Sunday 31st May: 2010, and the last weekend in May sees a major music competition, a multitude of bands descend on one venue and play their hearts out in front of a large, screaming audience in order to gain the votes of a panel of experts, resulting in one being crowned winner with prizes including some high-profile gigs.
No, I'm not talking about Eurovision. That was last night. Tonight is the final of the Fibbers Battle of the Bands contest. To be fair, the two events are fairly similar. Except BotB is a lot smaller than Eurovision, there's less cheese, a lot less Lycra, very little silly dancing, a lot less (I would hope) political voting and an act from the UK has a very good chance of winning.
Oh, yeah, and the music is orders of magnitude better.
As I understand it, bands reach the final through a series of knockout heats and semi-finals, during which it is the audience which votes for the winners. So, the more fans, friends and family members the band brings along, the more chance of progressing. I think one finalist is put through by a judging panel. This year, this method resulted in five very different bands making it through to tonight's final.
Sadly, Kill The Captain had to drop out at short notice. A shame as I'd not heard them before. Some other time maybe.
The running order was decided on the day and first to take to the stage were The Littlemores, a band I had seen and enjoyed earlier this year, despite their music not being to my usual tastes. Ska-like, I stand by my earlier description that they sound like The Jam gone pop. As last time, they were joined on stage by multi-instrumentalist Ben Crosthwaite, who added the accordion to the previously featured trumpet. Ben adds a different dimension and a large degree of originality to the band's songs, which deal largely with aspects of youth and contain a degree of humour. My favourites from tonight's set were For The Lads, which tells the "story" of a young man who ends up joining the BNP, to the disappointment of others and something whose title begins with "O" (I'm writing this a week after the event and can't read my notes...) which featured the aforementioned accordion and some strangely Santana-like guitar-playing. The overall feeling is one of fun and The Littlemores had their large and somewhat vocal support bouncing.
It was all change in the audience as the next band took to the stage and fans of Scarborough boys The Shadracks moved to the front. If the Littlemores embody fun, the more traditionally indie sounding Shadracks could be said to represent cheekiness. There's lots of Cheshire Cat grins and more than one audience-involving gimmick, such as getting a volunteer to play tambourine on stage or keyboard-player Joe running into the audience with a small hand-held keyboard. Sadly, the vocals weren't as clear and the songs a little less memorable, but the set did include a reasonable drum solo (not something you see very often from local bands). It was, however, another very good performance.
Third up were Lost From Atlas and regular (hah!) readers will know that I really like this band. (In fact, they were one of the two reasons I was here tonight.) Unusually, the Atlas boys broke up their set a bit so that Danny could speak although, to be honest, he did look a little uncomfortable doing so and I can't help but wonder whether they thought it was expected of them to engage with the audience a bit. I'm fairly certain that there as some new material in the set which was another excellent one from an outstanding band who were described by tonight's host (Alexander King who, it has to be said, did a particularly good job as compere) as "bewilderingly good".
Finally, and with quite a disparity in age to the rest of tonight's acts, Maybe She's A Clone took to the stage. Described to me as "loud guitar rock", they are listed on the link above as "rock / emo / indie" What is emo anyway?? This was another new band to me, despite knowing one of the members. They follow the twin guitar pattern of one of my favourite local bands but manage to sound very different. Although I thought I detected a little Southern Rock (a la Black Stone Cherry) in the first song, that soon disappeared and the overall impression I was with was something more akin to The Engineers as, even without keyboards, they managed to produce a similar soundscape. Again, the vocals, shared throughout the band, weren't that clear from where I was standing but the riff-driven guitar-playing was superb. Highlight for me was the brilliantly melodic Breathe Again.
And then, after a short deliberation on the part of the judges, the results were announced. Perhaps a little unfairly, the acts were announced from three to one, leaving fourth place somewhat unrecognised. The full order was:
4th: Maybe She's A Clone
3rd: The Shadracks
2nd: Lost From Atlas
1st: The Littlemores -a result which went down well with what seemed to be the majority of the audience.
Personally, I wouldn't have ranked the bands in that order. Based purely on personal taste, Lost From Atlas would have been winners, followed by Maybe She's A Clone, The Littlemores and, finally, The Shadracks.
That's not to take anything from any of the bands - despite two of them not being my "thing", all of them were thoroughly entertaining and, overall, it was a fantastic evening.
Showing posts with label Lost From Atlas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lost From Atlas. Show all posts
Sunday, 6 June 2010
Thursday, 11 February 2010
CD Review: Lost From Atlas
Thursday 11th February: With no gig last weekend and nothing taking my fancy this weekend, it's time for a CD review...
If there’s one thing that has to be said about the self-titled debut album from Lost From Atlas, it is that it successfully captures the almost mesmerising tone of the band’s live act without, perhaps, fully putting across the energy and exuberance seen on stage.
Just as in the live performance, the album tracks almost exclusively merge into each other and, if you aren’t watching the display on your CD player, most of the joins would be hard to spot. There is one transition that almost jars with its abruptness and another where the briefest silence can be “heard” but, for the most part, you could be listening to one extended track, so cleverly is the music put together.
Being a series of completely instrumental compositions, the individual tracks eschew the traditional verse-chorus-verse structure and, instead, the music ebbs, flows, shifts and changes like liquid sound. Each track seems to wind its way around a number of guitar riffs, played using a number of techniques. One riff may start a track, disappear off to be replaced by something different, only to reappear at the end, almost making it seem that the track has some full circle.
Each member of the band has their own part to play in the album. Liam Ledgeway on drums and Orlando Lloyd are a very solid rhythm section, with the vibrating bass and faux military drum-roll (which for some reason I can’t help but associate with a firing squad) on Interlude 1.0 showing, perhaps quietly, how effective such rhythms can be. For more lively examples of their skill listen for the drumming on album opener The Horse You Rode In On and the bass on Success. Perfect. Failure.
For me, however, it is the lead guitar of Danny Gallagher which stands out. Ranging from atmospheric to choppy, it is his riffs that the ear is automatically drawn to. From the echoing riffs of the aforementioned Success… to the finger-knotting of Man Is The Warmest Place To Hide (one of a number of track titles which seem to reference film or TV) he shows versatility and inventiveness in his playing.
This isn’t album without fault – there are one or two slight niggles. I’ve already mentioned the jarring transition between two of the tracks, another would be the constant cymbal-playing during Here At The End Of All Things, which I find slightly annoying and distracting. The main problem for me, though, is that the album is just too short. Weighing in at around 30 minutes, it might mimic the length (and content, as far as I can remember) of the live set but it really does leave you wanting more.
Strangely, though, the final track, Fin, while adding another five minutes to the running time, seems slightly out of place. The previous track ends the album perfectly with its pounding finale and then, almost immediately, the “Sturm und Drang” of the rest of the album gives way to acoustic “Strum and Pluck” for what is a really nice piece of music but that has a totally different feel to the rest of the album. It’s almost as though this should have been a “hidden” track, but there isn’t enough of a gap for that. (Thankfully, I have to say, those long silences can be irritating).
Overall, this is a superb debut from a band that are, in my experience, unique in their musical presentation. Buy it, sit yourself in the focal point of your speakers and let the music wash over you.
Track Listing:
1: The Horse You Rode In On
2: For That Reason... I'm Out
3: Success. Perfect. Failure
4: Interlude 2.0
5: Tom Robinson Must Die
6: Interlude 1.0
7: Man Is The Warmest Place To Hide
8: Here At The End Of All Things
9: Fin
Additional guitar provided by David Lawrie on tracks 1, 5 and 8
Additional guitar provided by Liam Ledgeway on track 8.
If there’s one thing that has to be said about the self-titled debut album from Lost From Atlas, it is that it successfully captures the almost mesmerising tone of the band’s live act without, perhaps, fully putting across the energy and exuberance seen on stage.
Just as in the live performance, the album tracks almost exclusively merge into each other and, if you aren’t watching the display on your CD player, most of the joins would be hard to spot. There is one transition that almost jars with its abruptness and another where the briefest silence can be “heard” but, for the most part, you could be listening to one extended track, so cleverly is the music put together.
Being a series of completely instrumental compositions, the individual tracks eschew the traditional verse-chorus-verse structure and, instead, the music ebbs, flows, shifts and changes like liquid sound. Each track seems to wind its way around a number of guitar riffs, played using a number of techniques. One riff may start a track, disappear off to be replaced by something different, only to reappear at the end, almost making it seem that the track has some full circle.
Each member of the band has their own part to play in the album. Liam Ledgeway on drums and Orlando Lloyd are a very solid rhythm section, with the vibrating bass and faux military drum-roll (which for some reason I can’t help but associate with a firing squad) on Interlude 1.0 showing, perhaps quietly, how effective such rhythms can be. For more lively examples of their skill listen for the drumming on album opener The Horse You Rode In On and the bass on Success. Perfect. Failure.
For me, however, it is the lead guitar of Danny Gallagher which stands out. Ranging from atmospheric to choppy, it is his riffs that the ear is automatically drawn to. From the echoing riffs of the aforementioned Success… to the finger-knotting of Man Is The Warmest Place To Hide (one of a number of track titles which seem to reference film or TV) he shows versatility and inventiveness in his playing.
This isn’t album without fault – there are one or two slight niggles. I’ve already mentioned the jarring transition between two of the tracks, another would be the constant cymbal-playing during Here At The End Of All Things, which I find slightly annoying and distracting. The main problem for me, though, is that the album is just too short. Weighing in at around 30 minutes, it might mimic the length (and content, as far as I can remember) of the live set but it really does leave you wanting more.
Strangely, though, the final track, Fin, while adding another five minutes to the running time, seems slightly out of place. The previous track ends the album perfectly with its pounding finale and then, almost immediately, the “Sturm und Drang” of the rest of the album gives way to acoustic “Strum and Pluck” for what is a really nice piece of music but that has a totally different feel to the rest of the album. It’s almost as though this should have been a “hidden” track, but there isn’t enough of a gap for that. (Thankfully, I have to say, those long silences can be irritating).
Overall, this is a superb debut from a band that are, in my experience, unique in their musical presentation. Buy it, sit yourself in the focal point of your speakers and let the music wash over you.
Track Listing:
1: The Horse You Rode In On
2: For That Reason... I'm Out
3: Success. Perfect. Failure
4: Interlude 2.0
5: Tom Robinson Must Die
6: Interlude 1.0
7: Man Is The Warmest Place To Hide
8: Here At The End Of All Things
9: Fin
Additional guitar provided by David Lawrie on tracks 1, 5 and 8
Additional guitar provided by Liam Ledgeway on track 8.
Sunday, 10 January 2010
Lost in the Snow
Saturday 9th January: I'm a sucker for an album launch. The spectacular venue, the canapes, the free-flowing wine, the celebrities, the record company executives, the giveaways and the well-known artistes who have spent the last few months in a state of the art studio.
Of course, in the local music scene that I frequent, the venues are a lot smaller and darker, the alcohol and canapes are bitter or lager and crisps bought from the bar, where you can also pick up the freebies (flyers for upcoming gigs and The Fly magazine). There may be celebrities in the audience but they are likely to be members of other local bands and the chance of any executives being there are slim (the older gentlemen wandering around in shirt and tie are probably relatives of the band...) The artistes themselves are probably still well-known (throughout the audience, anyway) and have almost certainly put a lot of work into their album, albeit probably not in a state of the art studio.
Still, an album launch by any other name... and it's for that very reason that I braved the Wintery weather to meet Andy at Fibbers tonight.
Unfortunately, the weather made my bus late and I missed the first act, Tom Welbrock. A solo keyboard player. I got a text from Andy saying, "Some kid playing Bach and rag all by himself." Andy seemed to have enjoyed the performance, but I obviously can't comment.
Continuing the weather theme, it turned out that the next band, Surprise Fire had been snowed in. They had been replaced by Swimwear Juniors. A four-piece consisting mainly of two guitars, bass and drum, they played a set of bright, lively pop. Not the generic three-minute variety but more complex, longer songs. The only thing that sprung to mind as a sound-alike was the result of the The Jam changing musical direction. The music was superb, the lyrics clear and the band obviously had some fans in the audience as Fibbers was turned into a bit of a mosh-pit. This was an extremely entertaining and very assured performance. There was something about the look of lead-singer Oliver that reminded me of performers from the sixties - his haircut, the way he wore his guitar and the slight lean down toward the microphone... All he needed was a suit and tie and he could have stepped out of The Beatles. We chatted to Oliver after their set (I didn't mention the resemblance) and found out that Swimwear Juniors had actually split up in July last year, as they all went off to university. Not having had a chance to properly say goodbye to their songs, they were glad to have been asked to perform tonight. The boys have now formed a new band, Trophy Club, and Oliver says that their old music has been replaced by a more mature sound. While I'll certainly give them a try if I get the chance, I hope they retain some semblance of their old sound.
Next up were The Littlemores, a three-piece of guitar, bass and drum, joined for about half their set by Ben the trumpet-player. There was quite a mixture of styles in their performance - the trumpet added a hint of ska, there was at least one piece of something very like jazz, among others - and it was a bit of shame that the band didn't seem to have a style of their own. That's not to take anything away from the music - it was another enjoyable set, although both Andy and myself preferred the songs which featured the trumpet. Again, worth checking out if they are playing near you. Their next advertised gig is part of The Battle of the Bands on the 23rd of February.
Finally, the band we were there to see (and buy the album). Roj and I had previously seen Lost From Atlas as a support band late last year. Their highly individual sound had grabbed up immediately and we were both keen to go to the album launch in November. Sadly, that date was delayed and Roj was unable to make it tonight. So impressed was he, though, that he asked me to pick up a copy for him anyway. Thankfully, nothing went wrong this time as this weekend was the last that the band were in York before going their separate ways to university (but not splitting up). Anyway, tonight's set was pretty much the same as the last time we saw them - a fully instrumental set that could have contained one long song or could have been a number of tracks with no breaks. The intricate changes in music, along with the variety of playing styles employed by guitarist Danny Gallagher still remind me of a new style of keyboard-less prog rock, but Roj described their style as math rock. Who am I to argue?? The band certainly give it their all, with Danny alternating between standing almost still and cavorting around the stage as though he was on hot coals. Liam Ledgeway drums as though his life depends on it and bass-player Orlando Lloyd, while pretty much the quiet man of the band, still produces some excellent bass-lines. I can't remember whether there was anything different between this set and the last time saw them, but both were excellent and both over way too soon.
Danny also seemed to be continuing the lack of vocals idea of the set (perhaps a bit too far) by advertising the album on his chest. Although he did speak towards the end of the set to tell us where we could get the CD from, which helped as I had previously wandered around Fibbers unsuccessfully looking for somebody selling it. If time permits, I'll try to put a review together when I have had a chance to listen to it properly.
I may have only seen three out of the four bands on offer tonight, but rarely can four English pounds have been so well spent.
Of course, in the local music scene that I frequent, the venues are a lot smaller and darker, the alcohol and canapes are bitter or lager and crisps bought from the bar, where you can also pick up the freebies (flyers for upcoming gigs and The Fly magazine). There may be celebrities in the audience but they are likely to be members of other local bands and the chance of any executives being there are slim (the older gentlemen wandering around in shirt and tie are probably relatives of the band...) The artistes themselves are probably still well-known (throughout the audience, anyway) and have almost certainly put a lot of work into their album, albeit probably not in a state of the art studio.
Still, an album launch by any other name... and it's for that very reason that I braved the Wintery weather to meet Andy at Fibbers tonight.
Unfortunately, the weather made my bus late and I missed the first act, Tom Welbrock. A solo keyboard player. I got a text from Andy saying, "Some kid playing Bach and rag all by himself." Andy seemed to have enjoyed the performance, but I obviously can't comment.
Continuing the weather theme, it turned out that the next band, Surprise Fire had been snowed in. They had been replaced by Swimwear Juniors. A four-piece consisting mainly of two guitars, bass and drum, they played a set of bright, lively pop. Not the generic three-minute variety but more complex, longer songs. The only thing that sprung to mind as a sound-alike was the result of the The Jam changing musical direction. The music was superb, the lyrics clear and the band obviously had some fans in the audience as Fibbers was turned into a bit of a mosh-pit. This was an extremely entertaining and very assured performance. There was something about the look of lead-singer Oliver that reminded me of performers from the sixties - his haircut, the way he wore his guitar and the slight lean down toward the microphone... All he needed was a suit and tie and he could have stepped out of The Beatles. We chatted to Oliver after their set (I didn't mention the resemblance) and found out that Swimwear Juniors had actually split up in July last year, as they all went off to university. Not having had a chance to properly say goodbye to their songs, they were glad to have been asked to perform tonight. The boys have now formed a new band, Trophy Club, and Oliver says that their old music has been replaced by a more mature sound. While I'll certainly give them a try if I get the chance, I hope they retain some semblance of their old sound.
Next up were The Littlemores, a three-piece of guitar, bass and drum, joined for about half their set by Ben the trumpet-player. There was quite a mixture of styles in their performance - the trumpet added a hint of ska, there was at least one piece of something very like jazz, among others - and it was a bit of shame that the band didn't seem to have a style of their own. That's not to take anything away from the music - it was another enjoyable set, although both Andy and myself preferred the songs which featured the trumpet. Again, worth checking out if they are playing near you. Their next advertised gig is part of The Battle of the Bands on the 23rd of February.
Finally, the band we were there to see (and buy the album). Roj and I had previously seen Lost From Atlas as a support band late last year. Their highly individual sound had grabbed up immediately and we were both keen to go to the album launch in November. Sadly, that date was delayed and Roj was unable to make it tonight. So impressed was he, though, that he asked me to pick up a copy for him anyway. Thankfully, nothing went wrong this time as this weekend was the last that the band were in York before going their separate ways to university (but not splitting up). Anyway, tonight's set was pretty much the same as the last time we saw them - a fully instrumental set that could have contained one long song or could have been a number of tracks with no breaks. The intricate changes in music, along with the variety of playing styles employed by guitarist Danny Gallagher still remind me of a new style of keyboard-less prog rock, but Roj described their style as math rock. Who am I to argue?? The band certainly give it their all, with Danny alternating between standing almost still and cavorting around the stage as though he was on hot coals. Liam Ledgeway drums as though his life depends on it and bass-player Orlando Lloyd, while pretty much the quiet man of the band, still produces some excellent bass-lines. I can't remember whether there was anything different between this set and the last time saw them, but both were excellent and both over way too soon.
Danny also seemed to be continuing the lack of vocals idea of the set (perhaps a bit too far) by advertising the album on his chest. Although he did speak towards the end of the set to tell us where we could get the CD from, which helped as I had previously wandered around Fibbers unsuccessfully looking for somebody selling it. If time permits, I'll try to put a review together when I have had a chance to listen to it properly.
I may have only seen three out of the four bands on offer tonight, but rarely can four English pounds have been so well spent.
Sunday, 4 October 2009
Progessively Different
Saturday 3rd October: It's the start of a busy week gig-wise, as I'll be attending three in just eight days.
Tonight it's a rare trip (these days) to Fibbers to see Idle Jack And The Big Sleep, who I've never heard of but Roj has heard good recommendations for.
Taking to the stage first, with very little fanfare, were Lost From Atlas, a three-piece originally from York but now based in Leeds. We started their set sitting off to one side, with a restricted view but were soon drawn to the main floor area by the stunning sounds coming from the stage. Intricate guitar playing alternated with finger-smashing chords. A small drum-kit provided some of the most interesting and inventive drumming I have ever seen - how many other drummers play cymbals which are resting on the drums? Or play the drums with cymbals?? And, it was all held together by some subtle but effective bass.
There was very little audience interaction. The band briefly introduced themselves about halfway through their set. That could have been after one track or four such was the change in styles during each track ("tracks" rather than "songs" - there were no vocals). Both Roj and I were reminded of Ishtar, but Lost From Atlas are more structured than them.
A few days ago, in a discussion at work, I put forward the argument that true progressive rock should always include a keyboard. After seeing this band, I retract that argument. Their performance tonight provided a soundscape which would fit any prog fan's dreams. An album is due in November, with the launch at Fibbers on the 14th. I suspect we'll be there. Very highly recommended.
Imagine, if you will, what you would get if you crossed two fine head-banging guitarists, one sullen bassist (who you might vaguely remember seeing before but can't think where), one drummer who pounds the skins so hard that he is in constant danger of losing his glasses, a flamboyant showman (who himself looks like a cross between Mark Bolan and Slash). Got that? Right, add in a small brass section (two trumpets and two trombones, I think) and then a smidgeon each of theremin (link added for those, like me, who have no idea what one is...), banjo, stylophone and megaphone. Can you imagine what you have ended up with?
Well, the answer is Idle Jack And the Big Sleep and you can probably see my problem in describing their style. From the items above you might think "Chaos" and, in a way, you could be correct. Certainly some of the songs performed tonight were a little on the unstructured side, but that's not to say they weren't good. In fact, after a start which left me wondering what the hell was happening on stage, I found myself liking Idle Jack a lot more than I expected to. The performance veered towards the weird side of prog rock but, undoubtedly, it was progressive.
It wasn't perfect - most of the time the brass section worked but just occasionally it seemed to be intruding a little into the music and vocalist Robert Loxley Hughes sounded a little flat and shouty in a couple of places - but it was incredibly good overall. The band was formed in 2005 and their relative longevity shone through in an assured performance. Yet another band to add to the watchlist.
Tonight cost just £5, a price I would happily have paid to see either of the bands individually.
Tonight it's a rare trip (these days) to Fibbers to see Idle Jack And The Big Sleep, who I've never heard of but Roj has heard good recommendations for.
Taking to the stage first, with very little fanfare, were Lost From Atlas, a three-piece originally from York but now based in Leeds. We started their set sitting off to one side, with a restricted view but were soon drawn to the main floor area by the stunning sounds coming from the stage. Intricate guitar playing alternated with finger-smashing chords. A small drum-kit provided some of the most interesting and inventive drumming I have ever seen - how many other drummers play cymbals which are resting on the drums? Or play the drums with cymbals?? And, it was all held together by some subtle but effective bass.
There was very little audience interaction. The band briefly introduced themselves about halfway through their set. That could have been after one track or four such was the change in styles during each track ("tracks" rather than "songs" - there were no vocals). Both Roj and I were reminded of Ishtar, but Lost From Atlas are more structured than them.
A few days ago, in a discussion at work, I put forward the argument that true progressive rock should always include a keyboard. After seeing this band, I retract that argument. Their performance tonight provided a soundscape which would fit any prog fan's dreams. An album is due in November, with the launch at Fibbers on the 14th. I suspect we'll be there. Very highly recommended.
Imagine, if you will, what you would get if you crossed two fine head-banging guitarists, one sullen bassist (who you might vaguely remember seeing before but can't think where), one drummer who pounds the skins so hard that he is in constant danger of losing his glasses, a flamboyant showman (who himself looks like a cross between Mark Bolan and Slash). Got that? Right, add in a small brass section (two trumpets and two trombones, I think) and then a smidgeon each of theremin (link added for those, like me, who have no idea what one is...), banjo, stylophone and megaphone. Can you imagine what you have ended up with?
Well, the answer is Idle Jack And the Big Sleep and you can probably see my problem in describing their style. From the items above you might think "Chaos" and, in a way, you could be correct. Certainly some of the songs performed tonight were a little on the unstructured side, but that's not to say they weren't good. In fact, after a start which left me wondering what the hell was happening on stage, I found myself liking Idle Jack a lot more than I expected to. The performance veered towards the weird side of prog rock but, undoubtedly, it was progressive.
It wasn't perfect - most of the time the brass section worked but just occasionally it seemed to be intruding a little into the music and vocalist Robert Loxley Hughes sounded a little flat and shouty in a couple of places - but it was incredibly good overall. The band was formed in 2005 and their relative longevity shone through in an assured performance. Yet another band to add to the watchlist.
Tonight cost just £5, a price I would happily have paid to see either of the bands individually.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)