Brain Drain #2 - Photos

Next Brain Drain club night = Thursday 12 November

I am not a computer nerd. I prefer to be called a hacker!

I guess there's a lot of contradiction in this blog. On the one hand I criticise bands for looking to 'scene' and on the other hand I look at the above photo of ridiculously named band Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs and I want to know more... if nothing else than to know what it going on in that shiny box!

What is going on is like Germlin from Gay Against You being sick in Hot Chip's dressing room. No really. The Hot Chip connection doesn't just end there as TEED have just released their debut EP "All In One Sixty Dancehalls" on the wonderful label Greco-Roman which of course Joe Goddard from Hot Chip is heavily involved with.

First the goodness:

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs - Moon Hits The Mirrorball (YSI) (ZShare)

and then the madness:

Ronald Reagan? The actor?

Surely there must be a finite amount of band names. Well, I guess in reality you could form a band and call it "The Household Tiger Believers" (courtesy of this) and pretty much guarantee that no-one else has already bagsy'd that name (I just google'd it to make sure!).

Call yourself Delorean on the other hand and I'm guessing quite a few people will have seen Back To The Future a few too many times and also chosen that name. A search on MySpace shows there's another 279 bands called Delorean. Frustrating.

I've blogged about band names before and how strange it is that it bothers me when I could just let the music do the talking (or singing in this case). So ignore me and listen to the real Delorean...

They kind of remind me a bit of a Swedish (even though they're Spanish) Phoenix produced by Cornelius... maybe. Plus they're turning the tide against the now-cliché cowbell in favour of what appears to be the Amen break... nice!

Delorean - "Deli" (YSI) (ZShare)

Genoa what I mean?

I love it when you listen to a song and have no idea what you're about to hear.

I'd heard the name Teengirl Fantasy around the internet, mainly in the form of remixes he/she/they had done, although I knew nothing about their own stuff... even to the point that I had no idea what genre it might even fit into. Of course I knew they weren't a Norwegian Black Metal band but still...

So I listened to TF's track “Portofino” (the pick from their EP "T G I F") with interest...

0:01 - Okay so this is like a glitchy, Jackson & His Computer Band kind of thing. Do I buy a BMW now?
0:12 - No wait, I see... It's like a Four Tet/Presfuse 73 track. Any minute now Slug from Atmosphere will start rapping about Lucy.
0.34 - Huh? Where's the MC? I'm confused now...
0:58 - Ahh, it's gonna be a Drum & Bass track. Kinda of weird start to the song but I've got my gun fingers/rave horn ready for the drop... it's gonna be a stinker!
01:15 - Wah??? How did this become a Wavves song being covered by Neon Indian without me even noticing?

etc.

Teengirl Fantasy - "Portofino" (YSI) (ZShare)

Download the whole EP here... for free!!!

Why does the floor move?

Damnit!! There's nothing worse (for a music blogger) than a band that really reminds you of someone but you just can't put your finger on it. It's been a long week...

Anyway along with Finland's other recent and great export, Le Corps Mince de Françoise, Zebra & Snake have really caught my eye. Excluding the above nameless band they remind me of bits of The Tough Alliance, Low-era Bowie mixed with a whole heap of late 70's/early80's glam-art-rock.

Here's the entrancing track "Colours":

Zebra and Snake – "Colours" (YSI) (ZShare)

...and the equally mesmeric video:



Kippis!

Ultra-magnetic!

Are you the sort of person who needs to read the information next to paintings in art galleries? I guess it's a bit of an aesthetic dilemma; does knowing who the artist is enhance your appreciation of the artwork or does it prevent you from experiencing it on the most immediate and fundamental level? What does that have to do with Memory Tapes? I dunno...

If you don't want to be bogged down with information then go ahead and marvel at the psycho-Rapture/DIY:MGMT love-in that is "Bicycle":

Memory Tapes - "Bicycle" (YSI) (ZShare)

However if you're interested in where and from whom this track came you'll have to do a little digging (as I'm not even sure I've got it down correctly). Deep breath... it seems as if Weird Tapes, who is one of the people from Hail Social, has collaborated with Memory Cassette (who's EP "Rewind While Sleeping" was one of my favourite releases of 2008) to form Memory Tapes.

As a bonus here's a video that's amazing but is it amazing because I know it's directed by David Lynch? Go figure:

He shot Cyrus!

It's kind of hard to blog about a band who's entire press shots involve them wearing Wayfarers... The problem is that you end up looking so myspace that people ignore the fact that you are a great little band.

Take Magic Wands as a case in point. They might even be wearing them in the above shot, who knows! Anyway the way they market themselves could be a real turn-off which is a damn shame as their music, while not breaking any huge conventions, is very good... kind of like a 90's pop-style Blondie/Cocteau Twins/Felt Mountain-era Goldfrapp.

Here's the official video to "Warrior", my favourite track from their "Magic, Love and Dreams" EP (buy here):



and as a bonus here's some great remixes by Defend Moscow and The Xx:

Magic Wands - "Warrior (Defend Moscow via Lenny Picko mix)" (YSI) (ZShare)
Magic Wands - "Warrior (The Xx remix)" (YSI) (ZShare)

White Noise Minority

Just when you thought Brooklyn had surpassed Montreal as the scene du jour those pesky Canadians come back with another band to break your heart.

Sure Duchess Says have been around as long as fellow Québécois art-noisers AIDS Wolf, who DS have certainly sounded a lot like in earlier material, but there new stuff seems a little more accessible... and that's no bad thing at all.

Stand-out track from their new EP "Begging The 3 T’s" has to be "Black Flag" and it's frickin' awesome! Here's the original plus a remix by DFA records' The Juan Maclean:

Duchess Says- "Black Flag" (YSI) (ZShare)
Duchess Says- "Black Flag (The Juan Maclean Remix)" (YSI) (ZShare)

And as a bonus here's the equally fantastic music video which appears to feature footage from some sort of brainwashing cult's promo film!

Round 1... FIGHT!

Comparing musicians for the sake of illustration never sits easy. Do you make the obvious connections and turn off potential listeners who might not like the act your comparing a band to or do you let the listener decide for themselves but risk the track being overlooked?

In 12 months time, when Neon Indian might well be over over your radio & TV, doing a Google search for "Neon Indian" -MGMT might well bring up zero links as it's such an obvious comparison for people to make.

It would be wrong however, for people to think that NI are some major label's attempt to jump on anyone's bandwagon. They've gone down the mystery route and kept their names a secret however the press release says that they are a duo, one from Brooklyn (linking them even more to MGMT) and one from Austin, Texas.

There's been some discussion about their identity and the consensus seems to be that it points to one of them is none-other than Alan Palomo aka VEGA aka one half of Ghosthustler. If that's true it's a weird coincidence as we only wrote about Ghosthustler last month!

Anyway, here is their track "Deadbeat Summer" which is awesome

Neon Indian - "Deadbeat Summer" (YSI) (ZShare)

and as a bonus here's a fan-made music video to one of Vegas' tracks "All Too Vivid" which features the brain-crushingly cheesy BMX prom dance from the film "Rad" (I'm sure I thought it was cool in 1986!):

Cage The Smelly-Fans

Okay, so there's been quite a few rock/dance crossovers... but have there actually been any good ones?

I guess the likes of The Prodigy, Apollo 440 and even Pendulum have embraced rock into their music and have all been successful, but have they actually been any good?

Thankfully Mixhell have avoided going down the fusion route despite having arguably the best rock pedigree ever seen in a dance act. One half of Mixhell just happens to be Sepultura founding-member Iggor Cavalera!!

Their latest single "Boom Da" was released a few weeks ago by Helsinki-based label New Judas and features Oh Snap! and Jen Lasher. The result however, couldn't be further from the icy tundra of Finland but is a luscious slab of baile funk/Baltimore sleaze-rap. The single also features remixes from Les Petits Pilous, Edu K and, as posted below, remixers du jour Crookers:

Mixhell - "Boom Da" (Crookers remix) (YSI) (ZShare)

... and as a bonus here's Sepultura (and their insane fans) playing "Refuse Resist" on infamous 'yoof' TV show The Word:

Totally SXSW!

BD were of course at South By Southwest this year, drinking Lone Star beers, eating burgers, and checking out lots and lots of bands.

The fun part of SXSW is to check out new and upcoming artists (ie not Metallica, although we did see El Mariachi Bronx), and when you venture out with that mindset you get a healthy mix of crap band torture and random greatness . We saw some truly dreadful bands (Mantonix might be the worst band we've ever seen, despite putting on a GG Allin-like show), but also enough great new bands to keep us going. Some bands like Local Natives and Lissy Trullie (the former were ace, the latter a bit grumpy) have already started to get some attention in the UK.

The best gig we witnessed were not by any of the hotly tipped acts though, but by the IHEARTCOMIX one man band Totally Michael who pretty much sound like an updated Atom & His Package (remember him?), ie crazy melodic punky songs on a bed of very simple electronic beats. Sadly, commercial success eluded Atom, possibly (and even sadder!) because he's a short chubby nerdy guy. TM is a good looking, thin tattooed dude, so perhaps he'll become a superstar.

We saw him tearing the roof of a small local bar with no stage to speak of, where he spent most of the gig out in the small but very passionate audience. We were totally blown away and surprised since we didn't except it to be THAT good.

Listen to "Death Hilll (over and over)" (zshare) and you might be able to guess how ace this gig was. Someone need to bring this guy over to the UK for some summer shows.

Liquorice whip!

Two wrongs don't make a right (insert joke about three lefts) but surely two rights make, well... a SUPER-right, right?

If you take the electronically classical hypno-pop of Glass Candy and add it to über-talented Sally Shapiro producer Johan Agebjörn you get nothing but good music.

While Johan may not have tried to reinvent the wheel on this one he's certainly but his own cool hallmark on the track. Have fun:

Glass Candy - The Chameleon (Johan Agebjörn Remix) (YSI) (ZShare)

... and here's a neat little video where someone has set Megaman II to an orginal piece by Johan:

You won't like me when I'm angry

The remix is dead, long live the remake! Don't get me wrong I love it when someone remixes a track and produces something that really makes you think about the song and gives you a new perspective on the original. But for too long the remix has been seen as a way for lazy producers to get stuff out into the virtual world and cynical label staff to promote sales of the original.

And so the remake was born. While in days of yore this would have simply been termed a cover version in the instant realm of the internet the two versions can come out almost at the same time (in the case of Aeroplane's original-eclipsing remake of "Paris" at exactly the same times!).

Anyway... less preaching, more teaching!

Here's a version of The Presets' epic "If I Know You" which moulds the original into a hauntingly melancholy sorrow-fest. It's by a partnership between DJ and F-Communication artist Jori Hulkkonen and Chicago-based antipodean Via Tania and it is stunning.

The Presets - If I Know You (Tania & Jori remake) (YSI) (ZShare)

And if that wasn't enough "If I Know You" was also the subject of a beautifully uplifting video by the massively talented Eva Husson. Check it:

Brains!!!

It's strange to think that a band that has been actively hyped for the last 5 years can still be producing tracks that sound fresh and get people excited. The Tough Alliance have been doing exactly this and while they haven't broken any sales records you kind of get the impression that's the opposite of what they're about.

Since they emerged in 2004 (when BD also saw them produce an urgent and defiant performance at London's Notting Hill Arts Club) they have always been happy to go their own way. Since their acrimonious split from original lable Service they've spent a few years releasing stuff through their own lable Sincerely Yours and are now forging strong links (and getting more hype and fans) with Modular.

And it's through Modular we get a little treat in the form a cover of "Hung Up On A Dream" by 60's UK pop group The Zombies. Lovely!

The Tough Alliance - Hung Up On a Dream (YSI) (ZShare)

The Zombies - Hung Up On a Dream (YSI) (ZShare)

and as a bonus here is "Silly Crimes", my favourite of the many, many beautiful TTA videos:


(link due to YouTube's stupid removal of HQ embedding)

Sometimes I don't thrill you

Fucked Up's second album "The Chemistry of Common Life" was in the top 5 of most people's albums of 2008 as it showed the band were more than an fat-guy fronted punk band... more than a Vice Magazine-sponsored 'remember how cool hardcore was' flash-in-the-pan.

"The Chemistry of Common Life" was epic and that's not a phrase to throw around lightly. It gave fans a real glimpse into a band that was evolving and pushing really hard to not be held back by genre.

There was no better example of this than the track "No Epiphany". The use of layered tape-loops and psychedelic influences was different to the punk standard yet it felt just as cathartic and visceral.

To celebrate the 7" release of "No Epiphany" the song has been remixed by Sup Pop's equally experimental No Age who have turned it into a full blown freak out. Epic indeed.

Fucked Up - "No Epiphany"
Fucked Up - "No Epiphany (No Age remix)" (YSI) (ZShare)

I must break you

It seems like there's a romantic mystery about music that comes from Russia. Sure there's been PPK, (the brilliant) t.A.T.u and that Timbaland-produced Ken doll that won Eurovision a few years ago but other than that we don't get to hear a lot from the other side of the curtain.

Reaching out across the planet is the stunning Tesla Boy showing that France and Australia aren't the only countries that can produce 80's inspired synth-pop. It's just a shame that it's unlikely that we'll get to see them over in the UK anytime soon...

Anyway, their brand of driving, aerobic-pop music is reminiscent of Anoraak and Miami Horror with vocals from Nik Kershaw. Enjoy:

Tesla Boy - Spirit of the Night (YSI) (ZShare)
Tesla Boy - Electric Lady (YSI) (ZShare)

Never slime a guy with a positron collider

Brain Drain is SICK... and not in a good, Tim Westwood air horn explosion way:



... more in the traditional feeling ill kind of way.

Anyway seeing as our ears need some therapeutic music (and listening to whale-song/pan-pipes CDs is *so* 1991) here's some super nice music from IHEARTCOMIX-signed Londoners FUTURECOP!.

Been meaning to post some stuff up from them for a while now (ever since catching them live at the Valerie party with Anoraak and Minitel Rose @ White Heat last year) and the new remix of "Transformers In Time" by Texan twosome Ghosthustler gives us the perfect excuse to make amends.

Get better soon:

Futurecop! - Transformers In Time (Ghosthustler remix) (YSI) (ZShare)

and if you still need cheering up here's a video from Ghosthustler where people get punched in the face with an NES Power Glove!:

By: Larm 2009 - Manatee Racket

So, last week BD went to Norway and the By: Larm festival. It was brilliant, and we haven't recovered fully yet, this whole week has been tough.

We saw lots of bands there, some crap, some fantastic, lots of average ones. One bunch that stood out were Norwegians Manatee Racket who came across a bit like a Norwegian version of Bombay Bicycle Club. They were young, shambolic and had lots of charm. We'll definitely keep an eye on them, they had lots of charm.

Here's "Sarah went to cinema" from their EP "Play in the backyard":

Manatee Rackets - Sarah went to cinema

Go G G... Go G G...

Bugger x1,000... Don't you hate it when you find out about a gig at the last minute (due to being lazy) and it clashes with something else.

Not only are Wavves playing a gig about 2 mins walk from BD's front door but they're also playing with PENS (who are supporting them on tour but who we've missed every other time they've played). Maybe we'll just have to book them for a gig like 2/3s of PENS old band LOOK LOOK (Dancing Boys).

Anyway for the uninitiated Wavves are the kind of fuzzed-out stoner rock anyone that likes Sonic Youth (i.e. anyone with taste) will love. PENS featured on a single of G G Allin covers... need we say more?

Here's some stuff to occupy your eyes & ears including the stunning track "So Bored" by Wavves:

Wavves - "So Bored"

PENS - "Freddie"

... and as a bonus here's the inimitable G G Allin on Jerry Springer:

That's why Mums go to Finland

Finland's Le Corps Mince de Françoise have been on the ol' hype-radar for some time now (ever since Vice Germany blogged about them back last summer) and we fell in love with their debut(?) song "Cool & Bored".

We caught them last Autumn when they played at Proud Galleries here in London but came away a bit perplexed. They were really good live but for some unknown reason they played every song they've written except "Cool & Bored"... WTF? Not sure if they wanted to distance themselves from the song which gained them so much attention but it's not like it was used on a world-famous McDonalds advert or something...

Anyway, they've just released their new song "Bitch Of The Bitches" and to celebrate the fact here's a remix by Limping Boy (who we think is producing their album) and any song that references Twin Peaks is *ahem* damn fine in our book!

Here's some LCMdF goodies for you:

Le Corps Mince de Françoise - "Bitch Of The Bitches" video:



Le Corps Mince de Françoise - “Bitch of the Bitches (Limping Boy remix)" - removed by request

Le Corps Mince de Françoise - "Cool & Bored" video:

Now there a name I haven't heard in a long time...

Sorry for the lack of posts but one half of BD had folks in town last week and the other half of DB has been at By:Larm in Oslo. 33 bands in 4 days aparently!

Anyway while we weren't posting Obi Best's debut album "Capades" was released on Social Science Recordings. Singer Alex Lilly is best know for her vocal work with Blue Note's "The Bird And The Bee" but now she has her own band.

While some of the early singles have been a bit hit and miss the track "Swedish Boy" is brilliant so here it is:

Obi Best - "Swedish Boy"

and as a bonus here's the great Peaches remix of The Bird And The Bee's track "F*cking Boyfriend":

The Bird And The Bee - "F*cking Boyfriend"

No more snow, but Thermals are back.

Oh my, oh my! The Thermals are back! Did they ever disappear? Not really, but interest in them kind of waned after their second album "Fuckin A" from 2004. Their first album "More parts per million" from 2003 is pure gold! We love the whole American lo-fi thing they've got going, and wish there were more bands sounding like this (maybe this will change thanks to Let's Wrestle - Britain's own future megastars of tomorrow).

We didn't really get into their last album, but now they've gone and left one legendary record label (Sub Pop) for another one almost equally great (Kill rock stars), which might mean a re-ignition. They just finished a tour with The Cribs (ho hum!), and they also did some solo shows that we totally missed. We've seen them live countless times already though (check us out!!!), and they seem to come over here and play all the time, so we're sure we'll get the chance to see them later this year after they've released their new album "Now we can see" (out in April). Download the title track below.

The Thermals - Now we can see

Get my drift?

We've got a guilty secret... we're big fans of grime.

As a genre it was always set to fail as for every success like Dizzee Rascal, Wiley and Lethal Bizzle there's been money thrown at (commercial) failures like Shystie and the ever trying Kano.
In-fighting, jealousy and label fuckery have always stopped the all but a few of the best emcees from taking that final step and hitting the big-time.

But as a consumer, we don't really mind that. We can get all the music we want even if these artists aren't on major label as the internet plays such a big part in the scene and the fact that it stays bubbling under the radar keeps it... well, "punk".

Anyway here's a wicked little video featuring in our opinion the best UK grime emcee, JME. It was filmed while the UK ground to a halt under a huge 6 inches of snow a week ago.

Brrrap! etc.

I'm afraid I'm out

BD, along with most of the underground music press, predicted big things for Elle Milano a few years ago. We thought they had real promise as a less-Northern Arctic Monkeys and a less-Guy Ritchie character Jamie T.

But as with all up-and-coming bands sometimes they split before they make it. And so it was with Elle Milano who called it a day last Autumn. Sad.

We hear however, that frontman Adam Crisp has gone all glitchy and started producing some interesting stuff under the moniker Entrepreneurs. Will be interesting to see how this pans out and hopefully that will include some live show soon.

Here is an example:

Entrepreneurs - Offensive Coordinator

... and for old times sake:

Elle Milano - Believe Your Own Hype. Always.

10,000 spoons

To be honest, the first time we heard "If I Had A Heart" by Fever Ray (aka Karin Dreijer Andersson) just before Xmas, we didn't exactly fall off our chair with surprise. As achingly beautiful and haunting as it is, it's hardly a departure from the music she produces with her brother Olof as The Knife. Don't get us wrong, as a piece of music it is amazing, we just assumed it would be different.

The video for the track has just come along directed by long-time The Knife-collaborator Andreas Nilsson. He has somehow managed to perfectly encapsulate the enigmatic beauty of the piece and we're struggling to think of a music video that has held us captive in this way.

Enjoy.



and the song is here:

Fever Ray - If I Had A Heart - removed by request

RIP Lux Interior

Although the death of The Cramps' Lux Interior will no doubt be covered more eloquently (and most certainly in more depth) in other places on the web than on this blog, BD couldn't let the passing of this music pioneer go unmentioned.

With the death last month of Ron Asheton from The Stooges 2009 is turning into quite a sucky year for punk music. Anyway we think the best way to celebrate Lux's life is through his music.

Although the track posted below was written by 60's garage band The Green Fuz rather than The Cramps we love their version and the fact that it was the opening track for The Cramps seminal album "Psychedelic Jungle"

The Cramps - Green Fuz

Not Chris - JAMES!

Ok, BD thinks it's safe to say it's not very hip anymore to sound like Elvis Costello. Maybe because Jack Penate never got really famous, or maybe because it's just not a very hip sound (sad, but true). Anyway, there's this guy from Birmingham called James Rea who's got a nice Elvis Costello thing going.

Check out the song below for example:

James Rea - Quit hanging around

Most of the songs on his Myspace are quite charming, and this is why BD is going to see him play some place called The Miller tonight in London Bridge, of all places. When was the last time we were at a gig in London Bridge, you wonder? NEVER! That's the answer. We've never been there for a gig! We feel like such vagabonds! Maybe we'll have a drink we've never had before, to enhance the whole experience. Make mine a ... shandy!

Why so angry?

EXCLUSIVE: The internet is brilliant, isn't it? It allows us mortals instant reaction and interaction with the world around us but LA nice-guys The Mae Shi have taken that shit to the next level!

In case you missed it a recording surfaced yesterday of Christian Bale (aka Batman) going nuts on set of the new Terminator movie. It's well known Mr Bale has a very short fuse but most of his previous melt-downs have happened behind closed doors.

The latest incident however was caught on audio and was leaked yesterday:





So what has this got to do with The Mae Shi? Well, less than 24hrs after the recording surfaced they've written a song about it!! They're a really tight band so we guess Bale's request for the people around him to "act like f*ckin' professionals" must have struck a chord (or three):

The Mae Shi - R U Professional?

LOLZ

Blogger's do it online

Italians Do It Better is one of our favourite DIY labels with a great roster (which includes Glass Candy and Chromatics) and always release consistantly beautiful music.

One IDIB artist who had previously intrigued us but not quite convinced me was Farah. The demo she just put up on her Myspace page (which might be a re-visiting of themes found in her track "Law Of Life") just blew us away though. Maybe it's a little simplistic for some palates but we quite like the mystery the (almost lack of) lyrics leaves the listener with.

Make up your own mind , we guess:

Farah - Die (demo version)

... and as a special bonus here's an track called "Farrah" from Swedish pop artist Action Biker (aka Sarah Nyberg Pergament). We know it's spelt differently but it's an old favourite of ours:

Action Biker - Farrah

I have the power!

It seems only a heartbeat since SaKura NighT released the amazing "Masters Of The Universe" compilation and now they've just released volume 2!

85 (yes, count 'em!) FREE tracks of some of the hottest music you'll hear this year from the likes of The Sound Of Arrows, Miami Horror, Sally Shapiro, Futurecop!, Glass Candy and Hail Social. If you're still in any doubt check out this:

... and this:

Oh... and as a bonus here's the brilliant 80's Italo disco TV show-inspired video to Miami Horror's track "Don't Be On With Her" which appears on the compilation:

Brown > Black etc.

It's funny how quickly things move in the UK music scene.

While it's always been the case that break-through acts suddenly prompt every record exec to want to find the "new Klaxons/Crystal Castles etc." However as a consumer it makes you feel bad to find your new favourite band and love them because they remind you of a band you were only singing the praises of 18 months ago (who haven't even broken-through or reached their full potential themselves yet).

Does that make any sense? We're not sure... while you're trying to work out what we're trying to say take a look/listen at the AMAZING Tubelord.

Tubelord - "I Am Azerrad" (Huw Stephens session)

BOOM!