Live Review: Dusky, Tom Demac (Abandon Silence) (Liverpool Echo)

http://www.peterguy.merseyblogs.co.uk/2013/03/dusky-tom-demac-the-kazimier-l.html

Dusky

Tom Demac

Abandon Silence, The Kazimier

15^th February 2013

Upon announcing tonight’s show, Abandon Silence made the decision to keep the details as ambiguous as possible. Due to the welcome renovation of The Masque even the venue remained unannounced, as we were promised ‘somewhere near their two regular homes’, causing speculation to turn into dread as the lifeless pit that is Seal Street’s Hi-Fi seemed like the most likely location. The Kazimier came to the rescue eventually, raising the prospect of what would be an interesting match up between Dusky and Tom Demac’s new, electronic sound and The Kazimier’s old theatrical aesthetic.

Despite the 500+ capacity, tickets were sold out over a week before the event. This isn’t unusual for an Abandon Silence show, as their reputation for the shrewdest bookers in town is well deserved. What is unusual is the reaction after tickets sold out, as comments flooded the Facebook event page begging for tickets, offering to ‘pay double’ and ‘top dollar’ to be amongst the crowd. Now as impressive as they are, you can catch the likes of Dusky and Tom Demac at club nights every week here in the North and they are far from exclusive bookings. So what was it that caused this mad hysteria? Over the last two years, Abandon Silence has spearheaded the electronic movement bubbling around us, opening up the city’s consciousness and making room for the countless new promoters (Pause, Polka, Get Down, etc). Sure, there’s always been Chibuku and Yousef’s Circus, but as the years go on these events have seen themselves grow increasingly disassociated with youth culture in the city and even more so, youth culture in electronic music, as lineups become more predictable and more repetitive. Whilst I’m not suggesting that they are on their way out, as shows continue to reach capacity with no signs of slowing down, I would argue that their demographics have certainly changed over the last few years, allowing Abandon Silence to provide a new home for the remarkable number of student and young graduates who love electronic music. Tonight’s show is a culmination of all this.

First up tonight is Tom Demac. Over the last two years Demac has cultivated a strong reputation for a unique and innovative sound, due largely due to the secluded and ‘’Influence free’’ surroundings of his home in North Wales. After a foray of releases on acclaimed labels such as Hypercolour and Pets Recordings, as well as a track of the year contender with the ODB sampling Dirty Honey, Tom’s 2012 culminated in one of the most revered debut sets the Boiler Room has ever seen back in late August. Here in The Kazimier we are given plenty of reasons to believe the hype, as those industrial baselines anchor what is an astonishingly wide range of textures and styles, from the Ghostly slow building Obstructing The Light to the all out juggernaut that is Dirty Honey. The crowd is receptive and lively, yelping and fist-pumping the air as instructed by the Welshman, who stands behind the decks with the ease and composure as if he just found himself mixing one day and happened to be really bloody good at it. Don’t you just hate him.

This evenings Headliner’s Dusky are trusted with the 1:15 – 2:45 slot. Comprised of London based duo Nick Harriman and Alfie Granger-Howell, Dusky have found themselves spearheading a new wave of UK bassline crossover acts, not least down to the impeccable Flo Jam and their better-than-the-original remix of Justin Martin’s Don’t Go. Its easy to forget that Dusky were a footnote on the first Boddika headlined Abandon Silence showcase at the Masque a few months ago, so their jump to this evenings headline act indicates the rapid growth in popularity not only of them, but of the garage infused deep house genre that they represent.  The duo alternate between mixing duties, as new tracks from their forthcoming AUS Music EP Nobody Else sit comfortably with some old Swamp 81 classics, in what is an accessible and engaging set from producers with one eye on their mainstream appeal. Their will have polarised opinion tonight, as purists who hideously try and remind us that ‘deep house is the new dubstep’ and kids who are just starting to scratch the surface of electronic music look for their excitement in very different places. Whichever way you look at it, Dusky’s set reminds us that, at a time when electronic music is becoming increasingly self-conscious and introvert, there is still an art to crowd-pleasing that must be celebrated. 

The venue looks fantastic, as the excellent Abandon Silence posters and what can only be described as a giant claw set the stage in a way that truly frames the DJs as performers. Space is certainly limited, and any brave attempt at dancing is often met with a scowl from some girl who’s feet you have just trampled, but when you look around you as dancers pour over the steps and the balcony above it, you can’t help but feel like you are part of a community that cares deeply for its music and for having an unbelievable time. It still doesn’t beat the Shipping Forecast though, as that connection between DJ and audience fails to replicate itself on a bigger scale, proving to be a more essential factor in Abandon Silence’s success than perhaps first thought. What tonight confirms is that the team behind Abandon Silence sure do know what they’re doing. From the shrewd, on the ball bookings of Tom Demac and Dusky, the nature in which they played with hype and expectation as they drip fed the details of the event, to the impeccable choice and decoration of the venue, this really was a virtuoso performance that cements its position as one of the finest electronic nights outside of London.  

Live Review: The Joy Formidable (BidoLito!)

http://www.bidolito.co.uk/issues/issue-31

THE JOY FORMIDABLE

The Kazimier

22nd January 2013

Four years ago, Welsh trio THE JOY FORMIDABLE signed to Warner Music Group imprint Atlantic Records ahead of their debut full length album The Big Roar. Having toured relentlessly for years, supporting the likes of The Temper Trap, Passion Pit and even The Manics, that old phrase ‘stadium band’ was thrown around as they became synonymous with big guitars and even bigger choruses and the British media clung on desperately to their latest hope for a British invasion. 

The backdrop is impressive, as projections of city skylines and a bright flashing fox silhouette moves gracefully through each song, reminding us that their ambitions still extend beyond the intimate settings of the Kazimier. Lead singer Ritzy Bryan almost skips on stage and launches straight into promising new track Cholla, as the band waste no time in pushing that glaringly unreliable Kazimier sound system to its limits. That familiar baseline introduces debut single and favourite Austere, as singer Ritzy bravely attempts to induce a sing-along to a crowd who look as if they wished they’d taken tinnitus a bit more seriously. The brilliance of Austere signifies their greatest strength, as the soft vocals contrast with the dense, hard accompaniment, finding subtlety and grace in even the loudest places. However, as Cradle quickly follows alongside Tendons, and it becomes clear that each song will be followed by an onslaught of instrumental breakdowns, which impressive though they are sonically, do threaten to overshadow Ritzy’s vocals, consequently dehumanising the songs and reducing them to a exercise in just playing fucking loudly. Wolf’s Law opener This Ladder Is Ours passes by unassumingly, before the stunning The Greatest Light Is The Greatest Shade provides the backdrop for that piercing, monster of a riff, showcasing exactly the kind of life affirming bombast that we need from The Joy Formidable. 

Tonight is very much a set of two halves. Their early material is an impressive demonstration in loud, shoe-gaze soundscape that you would not feel uncomfortable mentioning in the same breath as You Made Me Realise era-My Bloody Valentine. Songs like The Greatest Light, I Don’t Want To See You Like This, and Austere are effortless, as the vocals, band and audience all become part of the same loud, abrasive but most importantly, fun sound. Newer tracks like This Ladder is Ours and Little Blimp can at times feel like aggression for the sake of aggression, as if by turning up those vocals and honing in on those choruses, this wonderful energy turns into something quite vulgar, seeing them land on the wrong side of Paramore. I’m not suggesting that they are wrong to aim for a wider, more inclusive audience, but it seems a shame to see them abandon the aesthetic that made them one of the most exciting new bands in the country five years ago. 

All their short-comings though, and there are a few, can be forgiven as we come to their finale song Whirring. Make no mistake, this is an unbelievable, career defining song, up there with the best that the UK guitar music has produced in the last ten years. Those brash opening chords signal the start of a ten minute bombardment, balancing restraint with attack until those final moments when you are swept up in the sea of noise and left exhausted, bewildered, but absolutely ecstatic.

Mike Townsend

Feature: DEATH MASKS (BidoLito!)

http://www.bidolito.co.uk/issues/issue-31

As I sit alone in The Shipping Forecast awaiting the arrival of St Helens’ post punk revivalists DEATH MASKS, I prepare myself for what might be a challenging interview. Pretending to make notes, images of glum faces quickly escalate into full black suits and eye-liner as indie stereotypes and The Shipping Forecast’s beer start to get the better of me. 

Death Masks began as a solo project for talented multi-instrumentalist Thom Tyrer, as the stress and tribulations of his former collaborative projects drove him to become a solo artist. Several raw and unpolished demos emerged from a homemade studio in his basement, demonstrating a songwriting prowess that was yet to find its voice, as Thom struggled to translate his sonic vision for the songs into actual recordings. Eight months later and this, accompanied with the urge to perform his songs live, lead him into recruiting two more guitarists, a drummer and a keyboard player until they became the five-piece that we see today.

Even at just three tracks, Death Masks’s first eponymous EP on E.D.I.L.S is a varied affair. Opener Times Six is a brooding, stodgy slow burner, with menacing vocals as Thom sneers “someone’s watching you” repeatedly to a wonderfully chilling effect. Final track Gather Your Thoughts is a startling contrast, as the pounding accompaniment is replaced by a light, sparse guitar line that wouldn’t have been out of place on the last Drums album. Having been together for less than two years, it is understandable that the band might still be searching for their ‘Death Masks sound’. Thom concedes that will need to nail it down somewhat, suggesting the new EP will  have a “much harder edge than the old’ as it brings elements of their ‘‘fierce live act’’ into the studio. I suspect they aren’t referring to Beyonce, as the bands passion and confidence in themselves as performers begins to radiate from all members. Despite the fact that they have only done a “handful of shows” together, this live sound is clearly deeply important to them. This desire to translate your live sound onto record is something that has driven guitar bands for decades. Now before your eyes start to roll, consider the that until now, all their recorded output so far has been written, recorded and produced by Thom alone in a homemade basement studio. To jump from a solo artist to a five piece is a testament to how big he thought his recordings were capable of sounding, and Thom gratefully admits that his new band mates made the new EP “the easiest recording experience of his career”. As we arrive at the subject of influences, Matt Wilcock is quick to cite Glaswegian noise pioneers Mogwai and of course My Bloody Valentine, whilst Thom reflects on the more delicate, melodic tendencies of Norwegian producer Lindstrom and The Cure. This paints a nice picture of how the band function in their songwriting and recording element, with the instrumentalists adding the muscle behind Thom’s carefully crafted compositions. Thom vehemently corrects me when I ask if song writing duties are still maintained on solely by him however, suggesting that “everyone chips in”. Whilst I suspect his humility might be getting the better of him, it’s not difficult to notice his relief that he is no longer doing this on his own. The three tracks on their new EP, a split release with fellow E.D.I.L.S band mates Tear Talk, certainly succeeds in refining their sound, and is evidence of a band who are starting to recognise their strengths. Their Fleetwood Mac melodies come drenched in such a dense, unnerving accompaniment that makes them so exciting and so engaging, playing dark and light against each other so effortlessly yet so deliberately with an astonishing confidence for a band who have yet to be together for such a short period of time.


 

Conversation inevitably turns to the name, as Death Masks already find themselves fighting off the misery and gloom tags that their name might suggest.  Its true that even at this early stage, gloom seems to be following them around. When Thisisfakediy featured them in their Neu Bulletin last year they felt the need to apologise for “creeping their readers out’’, and their photo shoot for this feature is hardly going to make you feel warm and cuddly inside. Whilst this image certainly isn’t something that the band is actively trying to perpetuate, Thom recognises that “it’s important to keep some mystery whilst maintaining some sort of image when it comes to public perception”. It is their music though more than anything that has lead to this dark illustration of them. Thom’s menacing, almost baritone vocals will draw inevitable Ian Curtis comparisons, but it’s contemporary bands like London’s O. Children and Indiana’s brilliant Stagnant Pools that they sit most comfortably alongside. Resisting the urge to describe it as ‘post-Interpol’, mainstream indie’s affection for post-punk revival that saw the likes of Interpol and Editors headlining festivals a few years back certainly seems to have dwindled, something Joe is quick to dismiss: “I think there will always be room for bands trying to create new and exciting music, and I think it’s important for us to stick to what we know and love”. You have to agree, as Liverpool looks to become one of the finest hubs for new music in the North, with promotors such as Deep Hedonia, Everisland and more dedicating an increasingly frequent set of shows to the most challenging and forward thinking new artists about. As one of the most self contained local scenes in the country, Liverpool does seem almost impervious to national shifts in taste and fashion. I’m not trying to suggest that Liverpool is out of touch, its just that with such a brilliant infrastructure in place, with its world class venues, huge network of culture press, internationally renowned festival, and global publishers and distributors (Sentric and Ditto Music), everything is in place for Liverpool to produce and cultivate its own cultural movements without the need to connect with London. This self-sustainability gives Liverpool an invaluable lack of self awareness and self-consciousness that allows bands like Death Masks to ‘‘stick to what they know and love’’, because they will ultimately be judged and celebrated on the basis that they have produced a piece of art that justifies their stubborn integrity.

One thing that stays with me after meeting the band is their unrelenting passion for what they do. Conversation regularly turns to their past experiences in other projects, and Thom talks warmly about his and Michael’s shared basement studio and Joe about his experience as a studio engineer. Even as I leave for five minutes to go to the bar, I return to find them in an animated discussion about their vinyl collections. The love they have for their craft is infectious, and as they develop and attention starts to grow it will translate into a dedication and persistence that will surely see them step up into the Liverpool elite.

Catch Death Masks at Mello Mello on the 22nd March, as they play alongside Tear Talk to launch their new EP. 
Mike Townsend

Feature: ORGAN FREEMAN: (BidoLito!)

http://www.bidolito.co.uk/issues/issue-29 (Dec 2012, page 10)

ORGAN FREEMAN are four young lads from The Wirral, comprising of the unusual combination of two frontmen and two stand up drummers. When asked to describe their sound, singer Luke Bather affectionately suggests that it is “music inspired by aliens”, which makes a surprising amount of sense if you’ve ever been to one of their shows, largely thanks to the influence of their fifth and most important member, an old Yamaha QY700 MIDI Sequencer. Resisting the urge to describe it as out of this world, their unique style of frenetic, messy, synth infused garage rock, delivered by two of the most excitable and yelping frontmen about will certainly sound alien to most. With no recorded content online and almost no media interaction, Organ Freeman have somehow found themselves being one of the most talked about new bands in Liverpool. 

The genius is in the name. Puns, play on words, double-entendres - keep ‘em coming. Describing its conception, co-frontman Simon Gabriel explains that they had a collection of organ based puns to choose from and this was the “best of a bad bunch”, although with the other options including Pianu Reaves, Keyboard and Kel and Bruce Forsynth you might argue otherwise. The key thing, he adds, it that’s it creates a “lasting impression with their audience”, which is so important in today’s local music scenes. Gigs, especially at local level are becoming increasingly busy affairs. The wealth of local bands, local venues and local promoters has meant that the headliner/ support act format has been usurped by more of showcase with five or six bands on the bill, making it even harder to achieve any lasting exposure from gigging than ever before. Ask yourself which new bands you discovered at Liverpool Sound City and you won’t be saying The Grande. “We wanted to make sure people could at least associate our performances, good or bad, with a name” explains Simon as he laments the occasions he had seen a good band but couldn’t remember their name. The danger is that with a name like this, correlations between how many people are talking about you and how many are listening can become dangerously skewered. Cerebral Balzy, !!! (Chk Chk Chk), Danananakroyd, Mumm-Ra all fell victim of this, disappointing with their first and second releases as the charm of their names eventually wore off and we all forgot why we liked them in the first place. For now though, it has acted as an invaluable tool for their guerrilla, word of mouth style of promotion, giving Organ Freeman the platform to express themselves to wider and more eclectic audiences.

Simon and Luke claim to have played Wheatus’ Teenage Dirtbag at every show they’ve ever done. At their show in Liverpool last month this was the set closer as the audience screamed every word as if they had been waiting for it all evening. Wheatus covers, planned and prearranged matching outfits and choreographed audience participation have all become synonymous with an Organ Freeman show. This very much stems from their early reputation as a ‘party band’, as their shows became more and more associated with alcohol fuelled mayhem, a reputation Simon and the band are keen to move away from: “We got such a good response from being a positive, party based band early on, and some people can rely on that and continue to do that forever but for us, that gets boring. We didn’t want to be expected to do something at all of our shows”. Simon and Luke go on to describe a time where a promoter had enthusiastically booked them based on the premise that they would turn the show into a wild party, so in response they set their stage up as an office and played the songs at half speed and without any drums. Whilst you might argue that bands as new as this can’t afford to be so petulant, it’s nice to see a band sticking to a cause. For a new artist reputations can be easy to earn and impossible to get rid of. Remember Be Your Own Pet? Weren’t they the ones who made themselves sick on stage at all their shows? Of course a reputation for putting on wild, fun shows is an admirable aim for many bands and even Simon admits that it has “served them well”, but something like that can so quickly be cheapened and turned into a gimmick as it starts to precede all discussion and surpass all their creative intentions. These days their shows are still the funnest and most exhilarating you’ll attend all year, but underpinning this is their desire to keep themselves and their audience moving forward. Playing with expectations perhaps more shrewdly than they might admit, they ensure that people are talking about them for the right, wrong or any reason at all, because you can do all the promotion in the world but if as soon as you stop becoming a talking point then it doesn’t mean a thing.

This is what drives Organ Freeman, proving that doing things differently speaks for itself without the need to tell everyone about it. The standards to which we commend live performances is alarmingly low these days, and with Lady Gaga, Katy Perry et al. bringing more and more extravagance to their shows, Organ Freeman recognise that audience’s attention spans are getting shorter so shows must be more engaging . Luke even suggests that he and the band “often go to Taylor Swift and Ke$ha concerts and take notes”. I suspect that he is only half joking, as he clarifies that the band ultimately aim to create a new form of “DIY Pop Music and performance” challenging the expectations of their audience with a performance that engages both their ears and their eyes, making it memorable beyond how well the songs were performed or that prick who kept talking behind you. ‘Oversaturation’ is a term that’s all too familiar with British independent music these days, and I’m not suggesting that an artist can’t still excel based on some extraordinary songs. But if guitar music in Britain needs saving, it won’t be by a new three chord chorus from The Vaccines. So perhaps an interesting and exciting live performance is what it takes to break out in 2012, and with no songs even released yet, Organ Freeman can attribute their already impressive success almost on this alone.

Simon reveals that the band have their long awaited first single recorded and ready to release in early 2013 with an album following much later. Be sure to keep an eye on their twitter (@TheOrganFreeman) for more details. Their plans for the year remain firmly in their live show though, as they look to bring bigger budgets and bigger ideas to them in an attempt to change how we feel about live performances. An ambitious aim it may be, but succeed or fail, the beauty lies in the attempt.

Live Review: James Blake, Mele (BidoLito!)

http://www.bidolito.co.uk/issues (Feb 13, page 26)

JAMES BLAKE
Melé - Residents
The Shipping Forecast
6th December

Since his last appearance in Liverpool, local producer MELÉ has been championed by Annie Mac, appeared in The Boiler Room and produced official remixes for the likes of Wretch-32 and EMI upstarts Bastille. So it is with intrigue and excitement that we await his 12 O’clock return to the intimate setting of The Hold. Animated as ever, Melé brings the party right from the off, almost bouncing off the walls as he takes us through a highlight reel of the last twelve months in electronic music. Flanked by Radio 1’s newest resident Monki, he treats us to an astonishingly energetic set, dropping tracks like Meek Mill’s House Party, his own Beamer and most explosively Joy Orbison’s & Boddika’s Mercy (Boddika’s VIP) with a confidence only acquired when you’ve enjoyed the type of year he has. As the final song fades and and rapturous applause ensues, the mutual love between the young DJ and his local scene radiates from all corners.
 

The evening's headliner JAMES BLAKE cuts an imposing figure as he towers over the booth, easing us into his set with some unheard new material. The twitchy, stop-start beats move quickly and suddenly, ducking and weaving their way tantalizingly close to that pay off and where your ears might expect. Technically brilliant as it is, it’s difficult to ignore the somewhat subdued atmosphere, as the challenging early moments of his set present a bit of a comedown from the exuberance of Melé moments earlier. The introduction of Digital Mystikz’ seminal Earth a Run Red injects some much needed energy though, as reverent nodding heads are dispelled by ecstatic pumping fists and the scene becomes much more familiar. We are soon taken even closer to Croydon’s Big Apple as Skream’s 2006 classic Glamma reminds us why we were all so excited by dubstep before it collapsed in on itself, the audience clearly appreciating these tunes that are becoming more and more of an enigma in todays shows. 90s R&B makes an appearance as it did with his 20120 CMYK EP, as his own  ‘Harmonimix’ remix of Bills Bills Bills teases you with that sample before crushing it almost beyond recognition, integrating the pop and experimental much like his career has to date.

As 3am approaches and a cold Liverpool beckons, James Blake abruptly halts proceedings and demands everyone’s attention with a moment of silence, before delivering a final masterstroke in what has been a riveting 2 hour set: a full, unedited version of Purple Rain. Now forgive me if hyperbole gets the better of me on this occasion, but as all 250 audience members sing in unison, arm in arm, until the very last refrain, you are forced to remind yourself that you’re not in a John Hughes movie and these moments are actually unfolding in front of you.

2012 has been a year of immeasurable improvements for electronic music in Liverpool, with new promoters bringing in the country’s finest and most challenging artist week in week out. Tonight as the best local talent and one of the country’s biggest names stand shoulder to shoulder,  Melé and James Blake have produced a night that will be retold and reminisced for weeks to come, encapsulating this exciting, ambitious and thriving scene that we find ourselves in.

Mike Townsend

Interview: Guti (BidoLito!)

As Guti As Gold

Argentine producer GUTI comes to Liverpool this weekend as part of an impressive Circus line-up, marking his second Liverpool appearance in as many years. Surfacing in 2009, Guti is still a new name in electronic music, working his way to the top of bills all over Europe with his creative Latino American-influenced house music. Go back a few more years and Guti was playing to tens of thousands as a pianist in his blues band Jovenes Pordioseros (Young Homeless), selling out stadiums across the world and landing himself in folklore of the South American rock scene.

Guti started to experiment with the studio as he became more involved with the production of Jovanes Pordioseros, using his jazz training and South American culture to create a style of house music that was unique, exciting and let’s face it, desperately needed. Guti’s break came in 2009 when Loco Dice featured one of his tracks on a mix, prompting him to release his first electronic works under the excellent Desolat imprint. Guti’s success as an electronic artist in his own right is epitomised this weekend as he shares a bill with Julio Bashmore and Laurent Garnier in what is sure to be one of the best shows the iconic Masque has seen in years.

Bido Lito!’s Mike Townsend caught up with Guti last week to see how he was getting on.

Bido Lito!: How did you find yourself getting involved with electronic music? Any DJs/producers that acted as early influences for you?

Guti: I don't really know, it just happened. It was a new world for me and still it is. Luciano, Ricardo Villalobos, Dice were early influences in the beginning. Then Marco Carola. Playing with Marco changed the way I played a lot.

BL!: How do you find the intricate and precise nature of house music works with the more free form nature your jazz and blues past?

G: Yes, with electronic music you have some rules, but in any kind of music you have some rules. You need to try and find your space in music. What I like in electronic music is all the space you have to work with. Silence is the greatest element in this music I think…

BL!: Do you find it has helped you create a more original sound?

G: Your sound is, in the end, yourself. So I think, yes, everything does.

BL!: You first broke after featuring on a Loco Dice mix-tape. How valuable was this exposure? What advice did he have for you going forward?

G: Completely invaluable! He gave me so much advice and I’ve followed it ever since. He is a great man and artist. I’m still growing up and learning, though.

BL!: As a keyboard player in Jovenes Pordioseros, you were playing to crowds of 10,000+ in your home country. How have you found going from shows like this to moving to be a live electronic artist? Have you had to change the way you connect with your audiences?

G: I’ve played really big shows before. When you are part of a band, you are a group: now it is you and the crowd. Now I play some big shows like that very often. Some years ago when I made the switch it was a bit shocking but now it is OK. Life takes you wherever it wants to, and I’m OK with this.  

BL!: You’re based in Düsseldorf right now. Was this a conscious decision, given Germany’s historic electronic music scene?

G: It is a place that gave me calm and music. It isn’t the first choice in many people’s minds, but it works for me. Especially the privacy and reclusion.

BL!: How are you finding it over there? 

G: Peaceful. Lonely. Musical. Calm.

BL!: You’re playing in the Masque this weekend, somewhat of an iconic venue up here in the North West. Have you heard much about it when preparing for this show?

G: I played at the Masque already! Two years ago with Seth Troxler, and I loved the place. Can’t wait to come back.

BL!: You have releases out on a number of record labels at the moment, including Desolat, Raum and Crosstown Rebels. Any plans to launch your own label any time soon?

G: Yes next year. I’m on the process of setting it up. It will be not club orientated though, more jazz and soundtracks. Music you can dream to.

BL!: Your debut full length album came out in 2009 on Desolat, followed by a number of singles. Do you feel like full length albums are important / the future for you as an artist?

G: I had a double EP in 2009, and the album in 2011 on Desolat. For me is all about albums now. That’s why I haven’t released much this year. Next year I’ll release my jazz album on my new label and a new Guti album somewhere else.

BL!: I heard that you have Seth Troxler’s name tattooed on your arm? What’s all that about?!

G: I have his name tattooed on my arm and he has mine on his! He’s one of my best friends, even if we do only see each other every few months. He is a bit dangerous, and so am I. That’s the whole point, we always meet somewhere without plan and always having the craziest time. That’s the way it should be.

BL!: What does 2013 have in store for you? 

G: 2013 will kick off with collaboration with my great friend Davide Squillace. This record will also come with a Carl Cox remix. Not a bad start right?

Guti plays Circus on Saturday 1st December at The Masque, alongside Laurent Garnier, Julio Bashmore and Circus resident Yousef.

circusclub.co.uk

Live Review: Terra Naomi (BidoLito!)

TERRA NAOMI     

Adam Barnes, Rags

Mellowtone & The Sound

LEAF Liverpool

Sunday, 4^th November 2012

The evening begins with a rare live performance Rags. Having impressed last year with excellent single You Started It All, produced by Picture book, we’ve heard very little from the Norwegian songstress. Alone with an acoustic guitar, Rags’ astounding voice does its best to encourage a series of uninspiring songs. Littered with b-movie lyrics and sub Norah Jones melodies, each track blends gravely into the next as Rags struggles to connect with an increasingly disinterested audience.

Promising singer-songwriter Adam Barnes comes to Leaf after an impressive 2012, touring extensively and prickling the ears of national press with his lovely mini album Blisters. As he launches into a heart-breaking rendition of Come Undone, his voice cracking as the high notes just escape him, it’s impossible not to warm to the young lad from Oxford. The sprawling piano accompaniment threatens to over power at times, especially on If I Was a Lonely Man which would have benefited from a bit more subtlety. His best songs by some distance though are those that tackle the darker side of human emotion, epitomised by the bleak and sombre We Can Only Sleep. At times though Ben’s songwrting flirts around the wrong side of average, as he introduces a flavourless ballad “about loving apples” whilst the audience regretfully concede that there is no metaphor and perhaps he just really loves apples.

Headliner Terra Naomi eventually shuffles on stage offering a few timid words of introduction. With over 20 million YouTube hits, Terra is one of the pioneers of the internet pop-star, epitomising the hope and optimism that came during the YouTube boom back in 2006. These days of course, unknown singers are getting millions of hits every week as ‘YouTube sensation’ becomes the most winced at term in music, only emphasising how well Terra has done to launch a three album (and counting) career off the back of it.

Terra plays alone on stage, offering much more stripped back renditions of her songs, much to their benefit. Up Here and Jenny are transformed into quirky, fun pop gems as Terra plays with the tempo and dynamic at will, giving them a personality that struggles to come across on record. The Vicodin Song is astonishingly moving as the snow patrol-esque guitars are replaced by a sparse, twinkling piano arrangement, rendering a chatty LEAF second floor utterly silent.

The covers inevitably rear their heads, as Terra plods through lazy versions of Billie Jean and Time After Time prompting much of the audience decide they need another drink. It would be unfair to dwell on these two songs too much, but with three albums worth of original material to play with you have to question their inclusion at all, especially for an artist who has spent the last few years trying to escape her YouTube success story.

The songs are far from extraordinary, but it is the charm and charisma that Terra both speaks and performs with that keeps the set from falling flat. This enables her to transcend all the musical clichés and criticisms that come with music of her genre and her background and produce a memorable performance. Whether it will be enough to maintain her popularity beyond the next few years is questionable, but for tonight, in what is one of the loveliest venues in the City, it will do just fine. 

Live Review: D/R/U/G/S, Ejeca, Organ Freeman (BidoLito!)

D/R/U/G/S

Ejeca - Organ Freeman - Residents

Waxxx In Public @ Waxxx Warehouse

Waxxx’s rise to the top of the Liverpool nightlife scene is a welcome one. To those who attended one of their parties in an empty Shipping Forecast eighteen months ago, it will have seemed impossible that they would be filling up warehouses as they do today. With a well-earned reputation for throwing the wildest and most unique events in the city, Waxxx breathe life into a frustratingly student orientated club scene, with parties that recognise young people’s desire for more to their nights out than cheap drinks and the chance to meet Mini-Me.    

Tonight sees them attempt their most ambitious project so far. The Waxxx In Public theme takes inspiration from Josh Harris’ We Live In Public, where the ‘Warhol of The Web’ documented people’s lives via webcams, exploring the way modern societies willingly trade their privacy in exchange for a constant connection with the world. As details were released, attendees were instructed to add a Facebook page if they wished to ‘take part in the experiment’, promising an Orwellian experienced they would never forget.  This intriguing concept was complimented by their most impressive line up to date, with hotly tipped duo D/R/U/G/S supported by EJECA, and ORGAN FREEMAN.

The first act of the night is Organ Freeman. Sporting two singers and dressed like boys from the Hitler Youth, the lads from the Wirral offer short burst of energetic synth rock to an intensely polarised audience, delighting and bemusing in equal measure.

Promising Belfast producer Ejeca is next up, bringing dance music back into the focus of a relieved crowd. Boosted by a collaboration with fellow Belfast duo Bicep on the excellent ‘You’ earlier this year, as well as support from Jackmaster and Radio 1, these intimate surroundings will surely be a fond memory for him very soon. Tracks like Love Daze and The Way I Feel keep things nice and smooth, as their UK garage style vocals and deep house baselines steadily flow through the audience in what is a confident and engaging set.

Headliner D/R/U/G/S arrives in the main room to a backdrop of brilliantly effective projected images, promising an hour DJ set and an hour long live set. The duo’s exciting brand of ambient house music is welcomed by a serotonin overloaded crowd, seamlessly crossing the bridge between the dynamic and the danceable as they exercise almost total control over their audience, dominating a packed main room with a breathless foray of ideas and sounds that demonstrate why UK electronic music is in such a good place right now.

The ‘We Live In Public’ concept is very quickly forgotten, which is a shame. A rather half-hearted execution saw people’s Facebook pictures flash across a projector in a style that resembled a freshers week disco, as people reluctantly conceded that there was nothing more to it. Such an ambitious idea was always going to struggle to flourish, especially with a line-up as strong as this one, although the idea itself must still be commended. Now they have a permanent home in place, it will be exciting to see what they can achieve with these concept driven club nights. With the new venue rumoured to have come with a five year lease, Waxxx look like they are making some room for an exciting, ambitious, and unpredictable future. I can’t wait.

Mike Townsend

UNTITLED Launch Night - Live Review (For BidoLito!)

UNTITLED (Launch)

RESIDENTS

HiFI (Formerly Binary Cell)

27^th, 28^th September

In an interview with Bido Lito! last month, UNTITLED founder Hasan Abbasi talked at length about his ambitions for his new night and for himself as a promoter with admirable confidence and infectious enthusiasm. Namedropping the likes of Abandon Silence, EatYourGreens and Chibuku, UNTITLED set itself the ambitious target of becoming a vital component of an already thriving Liverpool electronic music scene.

Residents of Liverpool will know that the city is already littered with student nights promising one pound drinks and the chance to meet mini-me from Austin Powers. Head to concert square any given weeknight and you will fall victim to a swarm of tired promo staff trying to coax you into their dry iced nightmares. With a handful of new nights launching every term, you’d be forgiven for mistaken Hasan’s confidence, likeable though it is, for naivety

Based on strong ticket sales for the original launch in May last year, UNTITLED’s relaunch is made into a double header, spanning across the final weekend of September and hosted by Seel Street’s HiFi (formerly Binary Cell). With a capacity approaching 900, selling out both evenings would be a remarkable achievement.

Promising to please listeners of all electronic music, UNTITLED’s two night launch took advantage of the impressive pool of talented local DJs Liverpool has to offer. With residents drafted in from already established local nights like Abandon Silence, Waxxx, EatYourGreens and Discoteca Poca, UNTITLED did its best to make good on its promise of being one of the most eclectic nights in town.

The nights themselves are mostly enjoyable. The DJs are good, the atmosphere is friendly and excitable, and the crowd, though not quite as big as organisers might have hoped, is still large enough to create a bit of a buzz. Mike ‘HORZA’ Wilding particularly impresses with an abrasive and lively set, justifying his recent appearances at Outlook and Parklife festivals. Local drum and bass veteran ANDEE J provides an unlikely highlight as he reminds us that drum and bass isn’t dead just yet. Other DJs do their bit and are generally very good, doing their best to keep a lukewarm crowd dancing on their feet and not sat in the smoking area. However, the constant genre hopping and the many, many set changeovers eventually contribute to an unsettling lack of continuity, making it difficult to lose yourself in the evening and have a good time. The stairwell is often the busiest part of the venue, as people hop back and forth between floors in an attempt to find something that catered to their taste, making the spacious Hifi rooms feel more vacuous than ever.

Another stumbling block for the night is that the majority of the crowd consists of fans of going out, not fans of electronic music. Now you would be forgiven for thinking this sounds pretentious and conceited, but allow me to explain. Of course there is nothing wrong with these people, many Liverpool nights thrive on them. However, everything leading up to the weekend; the interviews, the social media and the nights themselves, saw UNTITLED try to distant itself from Liverpool student nights and from the people that enjoy them. What the organisers have failed to understand is that the first UNTITLED event last term, and the infamous Thugz Mansion house parties that it was born out of, consisted largely of students just looking to have a good time with their friends. By misunderstanding its market and by aiming at the wrong goalposts, UNTITLED has risked alienating a potentially wide and lasting student fan base and leaving itself with nothing at all.

In his interview last month, Hasan suggested that UNTITLED would one day settle alongside these nights as essential parts of Liverpool’s Electronic music scene, bringing fans of all styles of dance music under one roof. This unfortunately, is where it all falls down. These aforementioned nights don’t offer something for everyone - far from it. This is exactly why they are so good, and exactly why they are still thriving after two years. The reason these nights have such a loyal and committed following is that people go there to get away from an indifferent and generic crowd, to be welcomed into a scene that truly understands them and one that they truly understand. If these nights were to suddenly try and please everyone it would be a betrayal of everything that has made them so popular. I’m not trying to suggest that for example, jungle and deep house listeners are worlds apart. Of course they’re not. But when was the last time you danced to both on the same night?

It is altogether an enjoyable evening. Come three o’clock, everyone spills out onto Seel Street with a grin on their face.  But in Liverpool, with the right people, the right outfit, or the right drugs, it’s not hard to have a good night. With club nights and venues falling every month, and with so much choice around the city, a good night just doesn’t cut it anymore. It has to be memorable. With another night planned for Halloween, perhaps UNTITLED and its organisers need to try and do what Waxxx et al. all do so well: find an identity, find a niche and stick with it. At the moment, UNTITLED lives up to its name as the ‘night you can’t put a name to’, which sadly, might be its downfall.