trisickle

TriPod: Some Kind Of Leader – Two Pair

trisickle — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:56:57 +0000

Wales has produced a staggering amount of musical talent for its size and Cardiff four piece Some Kind Of Leader will surely be hoping to be their next big export. However, for all its positive qualities newest single Two Pair is perhaps not the song that’ll do that. A promising start of a laid back, sultry and almost loungey sound quickly stales as the song stays in the same laconic gear for its entirety. That’s not to say that it’s a bad song though. It’s a dreamy, trip-hop influenced track with hints of an early post-shoegaze Verve – just maybe better off as an album track however.

Fraser McPherson

TriPod: Dead Boy Robotics – Gatherer At The Threshold

trisickle — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:48:28 +0000

The single release from Dead Boy Robotics opens nicely with old school analogue sounds – thick and slightly abrasive. The tuneful song writing is evident throughout what could best be described as a rough cut. There are bum notes vocally in places and a human, defects and all, nature to it all.
The best way to pigeonhole it would be to call it humble stadium rock – ambient, echoing textures chasing one another in swirling spirals of sound. It’s grounded firmly in the guitar rock territory, but in choosing to give the spotlight to other instruments, the track benefits greatly.
Overall it’s good work from the Edinburgh posse, who are releasing an album at the end of the month.

Matthew Slater

TriPod: The Sound Of Arrows – Wonders

trisickle — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:39:20 +0000

Club and dance influences are shown with pride as ‘Wonders’ opens with a pleasing House synth pattern, drums that don’t dominate the proceedings and vocals that glide along breathlessly. It’s a chilled out MGMT meets LCD Soundsystem.
What it lacks in big, dance floor choruses, it makes up for with catchy hooks and a breakdown that’s sure to get the ladies swaying their arms upwards towards the heavens. It’s not one of those summer hits, but that’s not its intention. It’s a solid, mid-tempo, breather of a track – perhaps not the greatest choice for a single, but a very strong album track none the less.

Matthew Slater

TriPod: Underground Railroad – 8 Millimetres

trisickle — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 21:37:19 +0000

Swagger. That’s what this song has in spades. Rolling noise in the form of a guitar that’s been castrated; vocals that don’t seem to care whether there’s an audience there to see them or not; the drummer whose content with effortlessly adding to the track without going overboard and a scratchy solo from what I think is a slide guitar which only adds further to the unsettling atmosphere.
Things are then kicked into full-on, proper rock territory as the full band gel together where there were creases and hasty stitching before – the battle between the instruments ceasing as they combine forces and work together, for the greater good. Unfortunately, there’s something missing – the whole shebang comes across as a little flat, a little too laid back.

Matthew Slater

TriPod: Hard-Fi – Bring It On

trisickle — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:42:11 +0000

Behind Ali G, Hard-Fi are probably Staines’ biggest sons – even if they have pissed off the council by calling it a ghost town recently. And like Ali G, they might just be a little out of touch. There’s something about new single ‘Bring It On’ that just seems out of place. Out of time, even. It feels like 5 years ago – like it could have been on 2005’s ‘Stars of CCTV’ and nobody would have batted an eyelid. Regardless, the chorus is infectiously catchy no matter what year it’s from and small flourishes like disco handclaps and ‘whoo-ing’ backing vocals do enough to keep the listener interested.

Fraser McPherson

TriPod: My Dying Bride – The Barghest O’ Whitby

trisickle — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:35:49 +0000

My Dying Bride have been at the forefront of the Doom Metal scene for almost 21 years now, and ‘The Barghest O’ Whitby’ is another gentle reminder of why they’re regarded as one of the best Metal bands around.
Theirs is a world where the notion of a song in a strict verse chorus verse format is mere piffle. Why limit yourselves to 3 minute pop punk outbursts when you can release a single song that stretches to 27 minutes? Why not release a double album full of symphonic soundscapes along the way? Why not indeed.
The Barghest O’ Whitby is that 27 minute single, and tells a Gothic tale of a spectral black dog with massive pointy teeth. Arranged like a symphony of sorts, it is split into various movements – slow and introspective (complete with thunderstorm), classical and epic, and a thunderous riff driven conclusion.
As ridiculous as it all sounds, the execution is perfect. As soon as that thunderstorm rumbles at the start of the track, a mist descends engulfing everything and the Barghest starts to howl for meat.

Sam Sheperd

TriPod: iDriveHome – Everything Will Be Alright

trisickle — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:27:36 +0000

There are countless potential stumbling blocks and challenges of being an unsigned band and perhaps chief among these is optimising recording time. Your average unsigned band is hardly able to get the same studio results as a top act – that’s obvious. All too often the starry eyed but cash strapped musicians have to be content with a rough and ready sound from trying to do as much as possible in as little time – and for as little cash – as they can. For some bands this is less of a problem than others; a snotty punk band or lofi indie pop group can gleam a certain amount of charm from a frayed-around-the-edges production job. For an outfit with more grand ideas and ambitions, however, it can leave an album feeling decidedly half-baked and somewhat unfinished.
Unfortunately for Dundee’s iDriveHome the latter seems to be the case. ‘Everything Will Be Alright’ is an album full of good intentions and some solid pop song-writing that sadly falters in places because of weak production. Channeling Frightened Rabbit via the more ‘serious’ moments of Blink 182 iDriveHome craft a set of admirable pop punk-cum-modern indie rock tracks that fail to match ambition with execution.
There are a number of positives to be taken from the 9 songs on offer here. On tracks like ‘Metrics (Washed Out Kid)’ and album stand-out ‘Standby’ the heavier, bombastic crescendo-ing guitars with distortion set to ‘Glasvegas’ are pulled off brilliantly. And, as previously mentioned, iDriveHome have a good ear for a pop hook as showcased in ‘Aftermath’ and ‘Vegas’. With some fine tuning in both production and the often weak vocals iDriveHome can only improve.

Fraser McPherson

TriPod: The Moth And The Mirror – Honestly, This World

trisickle — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:21:32 +0000

‘Honestly, This World’ is the debut album from, what is essentially a Scottish supergroup, The Moth & The Mirror. Featuring former and current members and collaborators of acts including Arab Strap, Frightened Rabbit, Admiral Fallow and – another Scottish supergroup – The Reindeer Section this is a band with a serious pedigree to live up to. Fortunately The Moth & The Mirror take to that task with heady enthusiasm and fail to disappoint delivering a punchy and expansive debut that grabs the listener from the very beginning and holds them for its 40 minute plus entirety.
A strong opening track is always a good sign of a band’s intentions and The Moth & The Mirror couldn’t have picked a better song to introduce us to their world. ‘Everyone I Know’ immediately immerses the listener in a dark and hazy atmosphere soundtracked by pounding drums, spacey guitars and the crisp, clean vocals of Stacy Sievewright. The track effortlessly blends twinkling, subdued dream pop with soaring, thumping indie rock perfectly breaking the listener in for what’s to come.
Sievewright’s voice is a highlight throughout the album. Her dynamic and emotional range is at times incredibly impressive – calling to mind the likes of Hope Sandoval and Beth Gibbons – most notably on the one-two punch of ‘Germany’ and ‘Closing Doors’. ‘Germany’, one of the album’s poppiest numbers, showcases Sievewright in full on pop-rock front-woman mode while acoustic ‘Closing Doors’ finds a tender, hushed fragility to her voice.
For a debut album it’s a hell of a statement and more than lives up to the member’s former glories.

Fraser McPherson

TriPod: The Travelling Band – Sundial MMXI

trisickle — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:14:33 +0000

The indie folk market is a busy and bustling one with countless beardy bands and tweedy twinkling guitarists jostling for position and recognition. Manchester’s The Travelling Band do their best to let their voices be heard over the rabble with the rousing ‘Sundial MMXI’ from second studio album ‘Screaming Is Something’. Replete with top-notch vocal harmonies, plinking banjo and sweeping strings the track ticks all the indie folk boxes. Despite this it does enough not to fall into identikit territory and marks itself out as a potential sing-along favourite.

Fraser McPherson

TriPod: Roses Kings Castles (RKC) – British Plastic

trisickle — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:08:47 +0000

Most of you know Adam Ficek from his day job – as the drummer of controversial indie revivalists Baby Shambles.
You could be forgiven for expecting the worst here (this is a drummers labour of love after all!) But Roses Kings Castles third album ‘British Plastic’ is an astute and accomplished nod to early electro-punk, new wave and post-punk genres.

Yes, we were surprised by it too.

Those of you expecting the artless enthusiasm of Baby Shambles should be forewarned. If you’re already acquainted with Ficek’s solo output you’ll be well aware that he provides the listener with a much more profound experience to the band in which he made his name.
Buoyed by Ficek’s own brand of thoughtful melancholy, “British Plastic” derives influence from the likes of YACHT, The Stone Roses and feels driven by the same aesthetic which made Joy Division so successful. ‘These Are the Days’ and ‘Here Comes the Summer’ are triumphant floor fillers but neither track ever descends into anything mindless or commercial. Even with swaggering ‘Kittens Become Cats’, the highly melodic chiming guitars seem meditative and even necessary somehow.
‘British Plastic’ could well be the breakthrough album for Ficek but even if I’m wrong, he’s certainly fortified his new image as a talented multi-instrumentalist.

Christopher Kelso