D’Eon - Al-Qiyamah

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www.facebook.com/pages/D-E-O-N/131040556939418
 hipposintanks.bigcartel.com

The main problem with this kind of event is that precisely, there are too many acts performing in too many clubs or venues and quality hardly matches quantity…It’s also quite obvious over the years that TGE’s organizers come from the indie rock scene more than the electronic and urban ones, so you hardly get a chance to see the up-and-coming hip-hop or electronic acts at the right time, right place and with the right sound. For instance Brighton’s lush electronica duo Regal Safari - who usually have a gorgeous lighting backdrop that creates a very stylish environment to their music - played on saturday at 7.00 PM in full daylight, on a very poor PA system, so their orgasmic waves of sound got totally wasted.

Directed by Josef Yvans
 http://soundcloud.com/regalsafari

Same with NYC’s duo Tanlines who, on their side, had the chance to perform in a proper club, but again at 7.00 PM when they should have been on much later and part of a more suitable line-up…let alone the terrible sound once again !

 www.myspace.com/tanlinestheband

Or the first of two gigs of Canadian new electro-pop sensation Trust, on the same thursday night. The sound was so appalling that the trio’s beautifully crafted pop songs turned into an ear torture ! But thanks to the singer Robert Alfons’s charisma and stage presence and the (new) drummer’s solid beat, Trust came out as one of the picks of the weekend (see previous feature here)

Directed by Eva Michon
 www.ttrustt.tumblr.com

Unfortunately I missed S.C.U.M afterwards but they’ve already proved that, along with The Horrors, they stand up to the best new wave acts of the late 70’s (Japan, early Simple Minds, Psychedelic Furs…)

On the same night it was just impossible to check Django Django and Friends because of massive queues in front of both venues, so the only two other noticeable acts of the evening happened to be also Canadian with first, the mesmerizing singer/guitarist Jordan Cook and his power trio, who certainly was the most convincing act out of the recent up-and-coming 70’s blues-rock inspired international trend, represented at TGE by the likes of US bands Alabama Shakes and The Sheepdogs or Aussies Pond, amongst others… Jordan Cook even manages to stand up to legends like Steve Marriott of Humble Pie or Thin Lizzy’s Phil Lynott, which is a true achievement indeed !

 www.jordancook.com

The other Canadian revelation of the night came from Hot Panda, with its exhilarating mix of post punk, ska beats, indie rock and electronics, masterly crafted by its 4 members.

 www.hotpanda.ca

On friday, I didn’t even try to get into Grimes’ gig as it was meant to be a real hassle - she probably was as stunning as in New York’s CMJ last october - and there was not much to remember apart from the AkaAkaRoar party at Life with London-based new electro/techno producer/dj Bobby Champs. He confirmed hat he’s not only an interesting young producer but a great dj too and this AkaAkaRoar party is definitely a highlight of Brighton’s club nights. It also felt good to hear a good sound for once!

I had more expectations on the last day and I was right with no more than four great acts in a row, almost a miracle at TGE these days ! It started well in the afternoon with the crazy live of Canadian electro-popstar Rich Aucoin, a more festive version of Dan Deacon’s live performance, with a wild ending that sees Rich Aucoin jumping into the crowd and making everybody hold a huge flag at arm length, then creep and jump up at once.

In the evening, Swedish quartet When Saints Go Machines confirmed that they dramatically evolved in the last three years in terms of songwriting and stage presence with a killer’s backbone made of a solid drummer and a fantastic singer, reminding a lot of Anthony Johnson in his warm vocal intonations. Powerful but very refined at the same time, their epic electro-pop can fit into any configuration, from a glamour club night to a stadium stage.

 soundcloud.com/when-saints-go-machine

This was followed by a total accident with the last minute replacement of Wilis Earl Beal by three young Liverpool girls named Stealing Sheep, whose debut album has recently been released on Heavenly Records. Armed with just a synth, a stand-up drum kit and a guitar, those three fairies managed to have one of the best sounds of the whole weekend, delivering a series of gorgeous and very fresh psychedelic short songs, all wrapped up into beautiful vocal harmonies and very sweet high-pitched voices with a tinge of Merseyside accent. In between Haight Asbury, The Au Pairs an The Raincoats somehow, Stealing Sheep was certainly the biggest surprise and revelation of the whole event and one to watch in the near future.
www.stealingsheep.co.uk/

Enthused by their performance, it didn’t matter so much to wait for quite a while in the queue for the second O.Children weekend gig, held at The Hope, the very same pub where they first played TGE three years ago ! On the strength on a brighter and ‘poppy’ sophomore album to be released in June, the four guys just confirmed that they reached another dimension these days and that they definitely will be a major rock act in the next few years.
 ochildren.co.uk

Finally, another Canadian act closed the three-day marathon very nicely, the left-field electro-machine Doldrums. A live trio nowadays, Doldrums is certainly one of the most original and unique dance acts at the moment and it’s almost impossible to describe them musically as they pick up from all electronic genres to create a very personal sound. You never know what to expect, as they shift from one song to the other from an ‘in-your-face’ dub-techno stomper to a sort of ‘gay-friendly’ electro-pop tune but what is sure is that you can’t resist but dance your ass off ! And just for that reason, they deserved a big round of applause ! A cool way to close this year’s Great Escape. Looking forward to CMJ next october though !

www.tumblr.com/tagged/prophets-of-sinnerman

Prophets Of Sinnerman - People Change

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A Video for ‘Trust’.

We Are Standard – Summer

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wearestandard.net / mushroompillow.com

O. Children are back with a new album, Apnea, the follow-up to their 2010 eponymous album, to be released on 28th May via Deadly People. Hereunder is a free download of one of the album tracks, “PT Cruiser”.  Apnea represents the culmination of two years of ‘imprisonment’ of the band in the UK because of lead singer Tobi O’Kandi visa problem. From a simple ticket control on a Manchester-London train journey which wasn’t the one the band had tickets for, the controller called the police and Toby had the terrible surprise to hear that he was illegal in the UK because he had a Nigerian family background and he needed a visa… that had expired 15 years ago ! Actually since he’d moved to the UK with his family at the age of 6. His parents living in the USA, the UK authorities didn’t know where to send him back…and it took two years to the band’s management and label to clear the situation. In the meantime, feeling depressed from his legal battle, Toby started to suffer from involuntary Apnea during his sleep which made him not want to go to sleep. His only escape was to go to a studio and work on this new album. The label says the it’s a new step in the band’s career. We’ll find out in a few months…

O.Children-PT Cruiser

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Rimar - It’s been so long

Rimar-I Still Feel A Certain Way About You

Trust - Candy Walls

Here are the official videos for Candy Walls and Bulbform, two songs from the debut ‘TRST’ album :

And a streaming of ‘Sulk’, the latest single :

We’ve already posted on SLIME and MONEY - two big UK hopes for 2012 - but we’re particularly proud to say that on this occasion, Will Archer aka Slime will perform his very first gigs with a band and this is not to be missed. For any true music lover, is there anything more exciting and memorable than ‘being there’ at the early stage of a great new artist ?
Money -Letter To Yesterday (non official video but what a great song)

 http://courtesyisafallacy.tumblr.com

Slime : Caffeine

 http://soundcloud.com/slime-music

The third one comes from Brooklyn and is one of the latest signing of DFA Records. Well, FALL ON YOUR SWORD is LCD Soundsystem guitarist Phil Mossman’s project with two other pals… As the videos below can indicate, FOYS is quite different to the rest of DFA’s releases. It’s still electro, pop and danceable but very witty and tongue-in-cheek as well. A track like ‘I Might Be Gay’ reminds us of a time when pop tunes used to really matter ! Entertaining tunes with a message…and we need this so badly these days ! For those february dates, FOYS will be in a dj set mode, with Phil and Will Bates only, but we still can expect a sort of live performance, where they’ll be mixing their own tracks with some of their remixes, the whole set being illustrated by their own great videos, often diverting classic film footage.
FOYS’ latest single… A special dedication to football hooligans and Clockwork Orange.

And a previous single with Captain Kirk…

 http://fallonyoursword.com

Here are a few of his instrumental gems used for the above mentioned MC’s…no need to add anything, this is pure beauty and extasy !
http://soundcloud.com/clammyclams

Clams Casino -Gorilla

Clams Casino -Numb

Clams Casino -I’m God

And just for the pleasure, two tracks of my favorite MC’s, ASAP ROCKY and Lil B, both produced by Clams Casino.

ASAP ROCKY -Demons

Lil B-Real Shit For A Real Nigga

http://www.asapmob.com/
 http://www.basedworld.com/