Media & Reviews

One of my favorite music artists, especially live, is indie rocker John Vanderslice. I covered previous albums and concerts on this blog, now there's a new album out, called Romanian Names. You can tune into it at his site, and when you pre-order the album, you'll get an immediate free download of the complete album as well, which I find quite welcoming. So far the album seems quite good, less noisy and a bit calmer; maybe better than Emerald City but not as good as my all-time favorite Pixel Revolt. Also saw that he's doing the European Tour next fall, let's see if he keeps his promise of visiting Luxembourg this time. (I had a short chat with him during the amazing concert he gave in Heidelberg)

Here are the dates, I haven't decided on one yet, but I can guarantee you that I won't miss this one!
Apr 24      Bourges, Fr      Theatre Jacques Coeur
Apr 25     Rennes, FR     Ubu
Apr 27     Paris, FR     La Cigale
Apr 28     Nancy, FR     L'Autre Canal
Apr 29     Nantes, FR     Olympic
Apr 30     Lyon, FR     Epicerie Moderne
May 01     Cologne, DE     Luxor
May 03     Stockholm, SE     Strand
May 04     Copenhagen, DK     Lille Vega
May 05     Hamburg, DE     Uebel & Gefahrlich
May 06     Berlin, DE     Admiralsplast 101
May 07     Amsterdam, NL     Paradiso
May 09     Brussels, BE     Les Nuit de Botanique Cirque Royal
May 10     Bristol, GB     Thekla
May 11     London, GB     Shepherds Bush Empire
May 13     Manchester, GB     Academy 2
May 14     Glasgow, GB     Oran Mor

Ever since I listened to my first Bjørk disk, I became enchanted by Icelandic music. There is just something that encapsulates you and touches you deep inside. Well anyhow, after numerous endorsements by my fellow blogbuerg bloggers, I finally decided to give Sigur Rós a try. Usually, when I try to discover a new artist, I first have to focus on one album to develop a relationship to its music and sounds. I tried with (), then Von, but somehow, it didn't suck me in. It was good all right, but not exceptional. At least it didn't keep me going. Now that their new album "með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust" (with a buzz in our ears we play endlessly) is out and much twittered about, I thought I'd give it another fair try. Well wow! I definitely converted! Mea culpa! What a great work, the best album I listened to in months! Thanks Thierry, Joel and Georges.

Finally, after the semi-cancellation of last year's tour, the Decemberists are coming to Europe again. And this time, I won't miss them!

• 07.03.08 Kristiansand, Norway @ Quart Festival
  
• 7.05.08 Arvika, Sweden @ Arvikafestivalen
• 07.07.08 Paris, France @ Alhambra
• 07.08.08 Antwerp, Belgium @ Riverenhof (Open Air)
• 07.09.08 Cologne, Germany @ Live Music Hall
• 07.10.08 Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Melkweg
• 7.11.08 Berlin, Germany @ Kesselhaus
• 07.12.08 Hamburg, Germany @ Grosse Freiheit 36
• 07.15.08 Birmingham, UK @ Birmingham Academy
• 07.16.08 Manchester, UK @ Manchester Apollo
• 07.17.08 London, UK @ Brixton Academy
• 07.18.08 Suffolk, UK @ Latitude Festival
• 07.20.08 Benicassim, Spain @ Benicassim Festival

As I have failed to write some interesting posts these past days, here's some recent additions to my iTunes collection, found more or less by chance. First there's Earlimart with Mentor Tormentor. I like it not only for the fact that the album's name contains my favorite protein, but also because they make a very melodic and calm album that is worth it's 10$... Furthermore, there's Andrew Bird with Soldier On, a very special album that shouldn't miss in a decent alternative rock collection.

Found this album on iTunes recently, highly recommendable. A charming and clever songwriter, drawing comparisons to Evan Dando and Billy Bragg, Hanlon wasted little time in establishing himself as a compelling songwriter with his observational wit and memorable pop hooks. Releasing his Early Days EP in 2000, he quickly gained notoriety within the Australian indie music scene (his album topping their independent charts) and began touring Europe and the United States shortly thereafter. In 2002, his full-length debut, Hello Stranger, a wonderful mix of folk-rock and quirky songwriting, was released to comparably favorable reviews. [allmusic.com]

If you like indie rock such as The Decemberists and Neutral Milk Hotel, make sure to give it a try!

As you all know, I've been visiting Fabienne in Heidelberg this weekend to see the concert of John Vanderslice. He of course is the not so famous indie rocker from the US who made furore with his amazing albums Pixel Revolt or Cellar Door. He also released his latest disc Emerald City a couple of months ago (which I find not quite as good as the previously mentioned). First time I saw him live was two years ago in Brussels where he was playing with Death Cab for Cutie. This time it was for a full length concert, and boy was this an act! I'm positive I've never witnessed anything like it before, and I've been to a concert or another. The location was almost perfect for a concert such as this: a relatively small hall shaped like a ship with panorama windows overseeing the Neckar and the passing cars. He and his band were playing at the front, and as there was no stage, he was basically playing 1 meter in front of me and my lens. Amazing! The concert started around 23:00, and after playing a couple of his new songs (which sound much better live), they performed their classics from the previous disks. As I'm saying, it was so unique because of this closeness to the musicians and the instruments, adding an whole new dimension to my understanding of the word live.
John and his band were at their tops, performing their songs very intensively and emotionally. You could really see he was enjoying this closeness as much as we did. He offered some strawberry candy to a girl next to me, and told us that their chocolate santas they had bought were melting away next to the radiators back stage. He also described their 4 level tour bus Sprinter they were touring with, and found that they were freezing their asses off in the wintery Heidelbergian climate. At the end of the concert, they moved their instruments unplugged in-midst the crowd and offered a really unique performance. So after the concert, there was this indie music party (that was quite nice actually) and they stayed too, surrounded by their fans, dancing just as awkwardly on the slippery floor as we did.
So I asked him if he'd ever planned on coming to Luxembourg, which he found a good idea, telling me that he'd definitely come their one day. So John, if you're reading this, mark a big red circle on your world map around Luxembourg, I'm sure I won't be the only one appreciating it;-)

See the pictures HERE! 

Link: http://rcrdlbl.com/

A very interesting site featuring many indie artists from various labels and offering free (AND legal!) MP3 tracks in fulllength to download. You have to register though, but that shouldn't be a problem. Artists featured include Art Brut, Bloc Party, Cold War Kids, Grizzly Bear, Kings And Queens, Maximo Park, Skeletons and the Kings of All Cities, Thomas Fehlmann and many more. Do not expect any full length albums, but still a nice way to explore and discover.

One of the best CD's I've bought in the pas months. Very high quality both for vocals and lyrics! (Un)luckily, they are rather unknown and difficult to find. Check it out in iTunes!

Two new fine bands I recently discovered. First one's from Rilo Kiley - Under the Blacklight. They're kind of Indie Poppish, but not too much. One could say a more feminine version of Death Cab for Cutie. Secondly there's Songs: Ohio with The Magnolia Electric Co. Well what more can I say, give it a try, I put the Deezer links into the post, so nothing's holding you back. Except if you're not too keen on Indie...

I just discovered an interesting new band, Eisley. They're actually a bit more poppy than my usual kind of music, but it's very plesant to listen too. You can check it out via the deezer link. Quoting AMG: A quintet featuring three sisters, their brother, and their best friend, Tyler, TX's Eisley formed in 1997 when the DuPree siblings — guitarist Chauntelle, singer/guitarist Sherri, singer/keyboardist Stacy, and drummer Weston — began playing with bassist Jon Wilson. Originally called the Towheads, the band began playing local gigs the following year, when Stacy was just eight years old. Over the next five years, the band wrote and played, expanding their touring area to the Dallas-Fort Worth region and ultimately winning a 2003 Best New Act Award from the Dallas Observer. A few months later, the group released their debut EP, Laughing City, on the indie imprint Record Collection, and toured that spring and summer with Coldplay and Ron Sexsmith. The Marvelous Things EP arrived later in 2003, and early in 2005, their first full-length, Room Noises, arrived. 2007's Combinations was Eisley's first full-length album of entirely new material and featured a slightly darker, more rock-oriented sound.

When my Deezer uploads will be ready I'll put a link here that you can check it out. Im the meantime, here are some sample lyrics.