Review
by Alexander Tudor
Ane Brun is a promising bluegrass singer-songwriter from Norway, with a severe, husky voice likely to be much in demand. Her covers of ‘Big in Japan’ (Tom Waits), ‘The Dancer’ (PJ Harvey), and ‘True Colors’ (Dolly Parton) put her in the first rank of interpreters, in that she brings something distinctive to each that transcends genre.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
Taking the pulsing synths and woodwind of Glass or Reich as a foundation, the latest album from Simon Bookish is a groovier affair than his mostly spoken-word piece, Trainwreck / Raincheck (2006), based on his dream-diary.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
If you thought you had a handle on These Are Powers, All Aboard Future throws out almost all of the signifiers that would suggest Liars, and reaches back to the late-1970s / early-1980s futurists (This Heat, Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle) as much as any contemporaries (Black Dice, Gang Gang Dance, Animal Collective). It might not rock anymore... but it COLOURS.»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
DiS readers might want to focus on the last 80 pages of The Rest Is Noise, which explores Minimalism (as Classicists refer to it), and basically sees instrument-builder Harry Partsch invent Tom Waits; gamelan-enthusiast Henry Cowell [sic] invent Timbaland; John Cage & Terry Riley invent post-rock; Steve Reich & Phillip Glass invent electronica and most sequencer-based music that isn’t 19th century barrelhouse music played on synths.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
If you only buy one jazz-metal album this year... scratch that. Who am I trying to persuade – Howard Moon? Instead, let’s say: this is the intricate and heavy-riffing SKRONKCORE record you never knew you needed; stabbed through with pigs-on-heat sax, and featuring a couple of good-humoured parodies of metal at its most Satanic, from label-boss, Mike Patton. »
Review
by Alexander Tudor
They threatened it, and it’s here: The Decemberists drop their 17-track rock-opera... which in practice means a 58 minute album guaranteed to please long-term fans, and maybe even bring in more with its taut riffs (to carry dialogue) and crowd-pleasing reprisals of the best tunes.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
Touring shortly with White Lies, Wintersleep are bound to reach exactly the audience their Interpol / National-style indie-rock deserves... and the emphasis here is on “deserve” because they’re so much more likeable than you’d guess. »
Review
by Alexander Tudor
These Are Powers are the project of one-time Liar, Pat Noecker, sacked after that first kick-ass album where his bass is pretty much the signature sound, alongside Angus. With their new album out on Dead Oceans this month, These Are Powers are forging a bold, daringly strange path, which makes it timely to check out their re-issues.»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
No account of Slowcore would be complete without Bedhead (1991-1998), whose main songwriters, the Brothers Kadane became The New Year. If you thought Albini-engineered math-rock couldn't get better than Slint, think again. Arguably the most technically gifted musicians labelled slowcore, who better to tell us what it might mean? »
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
For almost a decade, Early Day Miners have been one of the best kept secrets in contemporary American independent music. "Ambient/Post-rock" they may have called themselves, but in a word, let's call it slowcore...»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
These Are Powers are the project of one-time Liar, Pat Noecker, sacked after that first kick-ass album where he's an integral part of their signature sound, alongside Angus. With their new album out on Dead Oceans this month, These Are Powers are forging a bold, daringly strange path, which makes it timely to check out their re-issues.»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
Part Two of our profile of Low, covering the albums and events of the years 2001 - 2008»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
Often overlooked due to her later move toward Memphis soul, and unhelpfully labelled “lo-fi” due to contemporary trends, Chan Marshall’s early releases (prior to 1998’s MoonPix) may best be considered slowcore, and although they’re a tough listen, they deserve a re-appraisal.»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
In an early interview, from 1996, Alan Sparhawk joked that Low originated from an idea to make the slowest, most depressing music possible (“…and then I thought “Cool!”). As one of the longest-running bands still (reluctantly) tagged "slowcore", it's fair to say this week wouldn't have happened without them...»
News
by Alexander Tudor
Welcome to a week devoted to Slowcore… arguably an “Alternative to Alternative music” that grew up in the shadow of Grunge, just as Teenage Rebellion was being commodified in the early 1990s.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
For the most part, then, this is superior dream-pop, closest to Blonde Redhead on their last album, and nodding to the Cocteaus, and MBV. “Superior” partly because the songs have more backbone than most in the genre, thanks to Benjamin Curtis (from prog-revivalists Secret Machines).»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
Ahead of her Valentine's Day extravaganza this Saturday at RoTa, Catherine A.D. talks us through her imaginary soundtrack to a broken heart...»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
Less than a year after Lie Down In The Light comes Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy’s "big album", according to advance notices. In fact, Will Oldham’s only working with a couple more guests than usual, the "big" sound is cluttered, and the dark humour’s become a little dumb. »
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
Will Oldham needs no introduction as the best-connected mainstay of US indie / alt. country and one of the most sought-after collaborators. This is the first part of our guide through his formidable back-catalogue...»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
It’s part of the charm of BBC Sessions that they often capture a band simultaneously at the peak of their naivety and enthusiasm. With or without the four unreleased songs, this was always going to be an essential collection for any Belle & Sebastian obsessive.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
A year from now, you could be sick of this (like too much cake), but on the other side of the pond, it’s in the running to be massive; the new Interpol-slash-Editors (with a dash of Arcade Fire-slash-National) that rocks even harder, with Tony Doogan (Mogwai) producing.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
Frida Hyvonen's second album is a giant leap forwards, in composition, arrangement, lyric-writing, and juxtaposition of musical styles. For those suspicious of her, for whatever reason... well, there are entirely new reasons to be wary (at first), but plenty more to be wowed, by the end. »
News
by Alexander Tudor
With a new Magnolia Electric Co. LP and 7" arriving this year, plus a Jason Molina / Will Johnson collaboration, DiS caught up with one of the most prolific - some would say 'best' - songwriters in America today.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
Antony’s put aside the duets, the high drama, his most idiosyncratic themes, and yet, with The Crying Light, he acts as a conduit between popular music and the avant-garde, and if that’s not a mark of greatness, what is?»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
Well, this is a relief – everyone else in the global media is confused about what they’re hearing in BLK JKS, and the band’s claims to mix raw jazz, drone rock, and ska suggests confusion is deliberately where it’s at. Of the dozens of ‘new’ bands this year, they may be the leading candidates for greatness.»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
It's been a while since Next Big Thing Tips by the NME and DiS but Emmy the Great's debut album is a triumph, with a maturity beyond her years, and with a humour no less enjoyable for being subtler...»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
Kurt Cobain said that listening to The Raincoats was like sneaking into the attic of these strange girls you like, and finding out what they really say when boys aren’t around. Question is, after 30 years of girls without the technical prowess of Joni Mitchell or Laura Nyro opening their diaries and setting them to new wave, what else is there to say about lame relationships that doesn’t belong in a diary? Shrag's promising debut has some clues...»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
The Blood Bank EP is a fine appendix to the Bon Iver story, so far, and although these unreleased songs may not all be "new" material, Justin Vernon's experimental side is showcased, alongside the splendid title-track.»
In Depth by Alexander Tudor
On the occasion of the publication of Luke Haines’ Bad Vibes: Britpop and My Part in Its Downfall, DiS reappraises his four classic records under the banner of The Auteurs»
Review
by Alexander Tudor
When someone mentions Amon Duul II, Popol Vuh, Neu!, Harmonia, and a raft of other kosmische freaks, you tend to assume he knows his krautrock, and is ready to be hoisted by his own petard. If Air or Justice are more your bag, you won’t be disappointed either, but Baikonour gets his cosmic groove on more like their 1970s influences, and for my money that’s a better bet.»
