POLYMORPHOUS MAN GRIZZLY BEAR CHRIS TAYLOR TAKES TIME OUT FROM HIS GROCERY SHOPPING TO CHAT WITH CHRIS FAMILTON ABOUT HIS NEW SOLO PROJECT CANT. Chris Taylor is a man with many strings to his bow. As well as being producer, bassist and multi-instrumentalist for Grizzly Bear he also runs his own label Terrible Records, produces bands like Morning Benders and Twin Shadow and can now … Continue reading INTERVIEW: CANT
written by Chris Familton J Mascis’ recent solo album Several Shades of Why isn’t his first release under his own name, that honour goes to Martin + Me (1996) – a collection of acoustic Dinosaur Jr songs and covers recorded on tour. In that sense the new album is probably considered Mascis’ first true solo record as it was recorded in a studio with original … Continue reading INTERVIEW: J Mascis
Lee Ranaldo has timed things well with current question mark over the future of Sonic Youth in light of Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon’s split. He is set to release a new solo LP on March 20th via Matador who describing it as a “shimmering and melodic tapestry of sounds” and ” a fascinatingly approachable song collection”. The album features production from John Agnello and an impressive line-up … Continue reading NEWS: Lee Ranaldo to release new solo LP…
Shearwater return on February 14th with their 8th LP Animal Joy and their first on the seminal Sub Pop label. From the sound of the track Breaking the Yearlings (below) this will be their rawest, most direct effort to date. Animal Joy was produced and recorded by Danny Reisch in Austin, Texas and mixed by Peter Katis (The National, Interpol, Jonsi, Frightened Rabbit) in Bridgeport, Connecticut. … Continue reading LISTEN: First track from the new Shearwater LP Animal Joy…
written by Chris Familton The Bats are about to celebrate 30 years as a band in 2012 and one that can still boast the original line-up. Not many groups can lay claim to that milestone yet the New Zealand quartet have quietly gone about crafting a considerable body of work that has never taken drastic directional changes or seen them seeking to box above their … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: The Bats | Free All The Monsters
Real Estate came through with the jangly and sparkly, indie guitar pop goods on their second album Days that they released a few months back. They are already on the line-up for Golden Plains 2012 and now they’ve announced additional AU dates and a couple of shows in NZ as well… Friday 9th March – The Standard, Sydney Monday 12th March – Corner Hotel, Melbourne … Continue reading NEWS: Real Estate announce Australian and New Zealand shows…
written by Chris Familton Bradford Cox of Deerhunter and Atlas Sound has unfairly garnered a reputation as an eccentric, quirky individual and musician. Sure he jumps around stylistically, likes obtuse forms and shapes in his music and he can be a prickly interview subject but when you get into the music he is hardly charting new territories. His work with Deerhunter is decidedly indie rock … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Atlas Sound | Parallax
STEPPING UP “We get talked about as a lo-fi band but it isn’t what we are trying to do,” says Step-Panther’s Stevesie as he takes Chris Familton through the recording of their debut album. For any new band the biggest step after writing a batch of songs and establishing your live show must be the recording of the debut album. Many have built a career … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Step-Panther
Paul Weller is set to release his 11th solo record on March 26th next year. According to Weller’s website: Sonik Kicks reveals Paul Weller once again shaking up his palate and stirring his influences anew, mixing pop art punch with soulful communication, jazzy explorations into psychedelia and dub with razor-sharp melodies, abstract soundscapes with clear-eyed forest-folk. The first taste of the album is the track Around … Continue reading NEWS: Paul Weller announces details of new album Sonik Kicks…
written by Chris Familton The Drones have been one of Australia’s hardest touring bands over the last decade with frequent trips to Europe where they have garnered a healthy following. Now, as they look toward the writing and recording of their next LP in 2012, they have decided it’s about time to release a visual document of some of their most incendiary performances alongside an … Continue reading DVD REVIEW: The Drones | A Thousand Mistakes
There have been a bunch of new local bands that have appeared on my radar this year, many of them hailing from Melbourne. Dick Diver, The Twerps and Iowa in particular stand out and the latter now have a video to go with their recently released single Complete Control. Continue reading WATCH: Iowa | Complete Control
You wouldn’t associate angelic with a Hives song but Sydney based bros Mrs Bishop have recorded a sweet, glacial take on The Hives’ Hate To Say I Told You So. The duo will no doubt have a ton of attention heading their way shortly if they can write as well as they can sing… Continue reading WATCH: Mrs Bishop | Hate to Say I Told You So…
Doubtful Sounds 