Monthly Archives For November 2008

Belles Will Ring – ‘Priest Coats’

, , No Comment

Belles Will Ring – ‘Priest Coats’

Listen to

Hailing from the Blue Mountains, Belles Will Ring are Australia’s foremost exponents of nostalgic, psychedelic rock at the moment. With its distillation of their surroundings and influences into a fresh, sprawling and jangling aesthetic, their debut LP, Mood Patterns, was probably my favourite Australian album of 2007. Now, we are presented with a mini-LP, Broader Than Broadway, to hold us over until they regroup for a sophomore effort.

First single Priest Coats has already hit radio and extends their whimsical, folkadelic digressions into rougher, rock territory. Lush and upbeat vocal harmonies weave their way through equal parts chiming and distorting guitars until ultimately ending with a sigh. It’s the kind of song that you know took a lot of effort to produce and orchestrate but is never weighed down by it’s subtle complexity.

Fantastic stuff that showcases the dynamic combination of great production and a fine-tuned pop sensibility. Keep an ear out for these guys and let them soundtrack your summer.

www.myspace.com/belleswillring

Read Post →

Dead Letter Circus: ‘Next In Line’

, , 10 Comments

Dead Letter Circus – ‘Next In Line’

Listen to

I was pretty excited when I first heard Dead Letter Circus because here was an alternative rock band not concerned with aping either Cog or The Butterfly Effect but instead were interested in forging their own sound – a rock onslaught that brought together a multitude of influences.

They quickly found an identity, and one that appealed to people – lots of people. They found a large fanbase fast, despite years of slogging it out in the rehearsal studio, honing their sound. But since their eponymous debut EP, they’ve become stagnent, merely twisting their chosen formula into different contortions and not looking to evolve their sound. ‘Next In Line’ is disappointing not only because it demonstrates a paucity of ideas coming out of the Queensland four piece, but it’s a fairly pedenstrian effort. It’s heavily over-produced, clinically polished courtesy of ProTools.The chorus, which doesn’t rear its head until about half-way through, lacks the infectiousness of previous tunes as well.

But I’m not just lambasting DLC for the sake of it and there are positive aspects to ‘Next In Line’. The addition of synths are a nice inclusion, and Kim is keeping his vocals in check nowadays and not reaching for notes that he can’t hit live. Still, for all the potential DLC showed from the outset, it’s disappointing that they’re yet to completely capitalise on their success.

http://www.myspace.com/deadlettercircus

Read Post →

SMAC Awards 2008: We’ve been nominated!

, , 1 Comment

Who the Bloody Hell Are They has been nominated for the inaugural SMAC Awards – The Sydney, Arts and Culture Awards – presented by FBi 94.5fm and Time Out Sydney. As you can probably guess, we’re pretty chuffed to be nominated, and we’re in the running for the SMAC In Your Face Award alongside former Mess + Noise and now world-conquering writer Emmy Hennings, the rogue anti-World Youth Day bloggers No To Pop Coalition, the Raise The Bar crew who helped rally support for changes to the NSW Liquor Licensing Laws and event organisers-turned-bloggers The Supper Club.

And then there’s us, who have no little to no social value whatsoever in comparison to the four other nominees in our category – but that doesn’t matter! We’d still like to win (maybe even more so because of it) but we need your vote!

You have to vote for every category, but that’s just a minor inconvenience isn’t it? I’m not sure what we win, though I’ll guess we’ll find out at the awards ceremony which is being held at the start of December or something.

ANYWAY – please, please, please head to http://smacawards.com/smacawards/smac-in-your-face-award.aspx and vote for us!

http://smacawards.com/smacawards/smac-in-your-face-award.aspx

Read Post →

Canyons

, , No Comment

Canyons – ‘Big City Lights’

Listen to

Our great southern land has become renowned in recent years for producing blogloads of world-class dance music, particularly that of the indie/electro crossover.  However, while our Cut, Copied, and Preset Juggernauts have all released stellar records and conquered the planet, our real strength down under lies in regurgitating trends from across the equator – with all dials set to “party” and a singalong hook slapped on top.  This has become Australia’s signature sound, (not that there’s anything wrong with that) but when it comes to true innovation, the cities where it all began are still the hotspots – namely the colder climes of New York, Berlin & Paris.

Occasionally though, a group like Canyons slides in under the radar – giving the proverbial finger to populist convention and renewing faith in the ability to create something truly new in a saturated market.  Canyons are a duo from Sydney (via Perth) and like fellow statesmen and new Modular darlings Tame Impala, their sound seems to have embarked on some far-out trip to drag itself across the Nullabor.  This is the new psych – it’s dubby, downtempo disco that owes equal amounts to Balearic and 70’s rock.  It’s that weird record playing in the smoky stoner parties of your mind.  It’s dirty, danceable, and most incredibly, sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before – yet with enough familiar references to make you swear you had.

Canyons have recently released a split 12″ with Tame Impala, and will be sharing the bill with them at Modular’s monster Nevereverland fest in December, plus hitting the cities for Laneway dates.  Could this double-pronged assault on the bastion of antipodean cool pave the way for a new movement in original Australian sounds?  Probably not, but make sure to get there early and sway along to them anyway.

www.myspace.com/thecanyonsinfo

Read Post →

Tragic/Athletic

, , No Comment

Tragic/Athletic – ‘Three Months At Sea’

Listen to

Tragic/Athletic are the kind of band that have steadily outgrown their initial post-punk roots to inhabit a space that’s both more accessible yet also more complex.

‘Three Months At Sea’ is a dynamic entry that displays their new-found proficiency in slower, more contemplative compositions before building to a euphoric outro complete with brass section. It’s measured and alluring, investing as much in organs and atmosphere as guitar squall. If this is what ‘maturing’ sounds like then I might just apply for my Senior’s Pension.

The EP Brakes is available as a 10″ from the bands’ own vinyl-only label Mt. Field Recordings – in case the song itself didn’t quite solidify their indie cred. Here’s hoping there’s a full-length follow up is released soon.

www.myspace.com/tragicathletic

Read Post →