It’s been two decades since their last album but time and musical trends seems inconsequential to Feedtime as they return to grind out another slab of primitive and unrelenting rock.
They’ve still got that leaden lurch and queasy slide guitar that shifts and shudders like a displaced iceberg in a drunken sea. Perennial underdogs, they proved immensely influential on a raft of bands, from Jesus Lizard to Harvey Milk and here they reclaim their place at the unhinged intersection of post-punk, cow-punk and sludge rock.
The bass is still rough and growling, the guitar like exposed nerve endings and the vocals still sound like a bad night out on the booze. Some things, thankfully, never change.
On the back of one our favourite songs of 2012, History Eraser, Melbourne’s Courtney Barnett has issued the new track Avant Gardener that relates the onset of an allergic reaction amid the mundane chores of day to day life. Lyrically Barnett does amazing things here and on her other releases with her mix of observation and wit and it sets the bar high for an album hopefully on its way soon. The song also features Dan Luscombe (The Drones) and Jen Cloher among others. Check the moment at 4 mins where the song soars into a melodic chorus of oohs and aahs – totally ace.
Cocorosie have announced their new album Tales of a GrassWidow will be released on May 27th, 2013 (via City Slang) and they’ve also graced us with the first track to come from the record – Gravediggress. This will be the Casady sisters’ fifth album and again features guest vocals from Antony Hegarty. Gravediggress is pure Cocorosie with the two distinct vocal styles playing off one another with sparse beatboxing from their producer Tez and reminds us that there really is no other act as unique as Cocorosie who can marry accessibility and the avantgarde so seamlessly.
The new releases are coming thick and fast at the moment as record labels look to release albums they most held over from the end of 2012 to get maximum exposure as we kick off 2013.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds have already released one song (We No Who UR) from their new album Push The Sky Away and here’s another. Jubilee Street is still on the lowdown with its stately pace and mood but there is much more to latch onto here with Cave’s literary way with lyrics telling a tale of love/lust and the complications of conception. Lines like “I got a foetus on a leash” remind us that Cave hasn’t lost his edge and settled into musical complacency. Martyn P. Casey’s bass is another highlight of the new track.
Pissed Jeans have given us two stellar albums of tightly wound, swaggering punk rock and it looks like the new LP Honey will be another chugging set of humour and angst-laced songs. The latest song to emerge from the record is Cathouse. If METZ pushed all the right buttons for you in 2012 then pre-order this right now.
The Men are about to tour Australia on the back of last year’s excellent Open Your Heart LP and the good news is that the follow-up is already recorded and ready for release in March. The first track to come from the new record is Electric which sees them hitting some Primal Scream, JAMC and Ramones territory in their typical hurricane style.
New Moon is out March 5th via Sacred Bones. PRE-ORDER 7″
FAT FREDDY’S DROP ARE ABOUT TO TAKE LEAVE FROM RECORDING THEIR NEW ALBUM TO PREVIEW IT AT THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE. KEYBOARDIST DOBIE BLAZE GIVES CHRIS FAMILTON AN INSIGHT ON THE TOURING LIFESTYLE AND THE BAND’S CREATIVE PROCESS.
New albums aren’t a common occurrence in the world of Fat Freddy’s Drop. To date there has only been 2005’s debut Based On A True Story, Dr. Boondigga & The Big BW in 2009 plus an EP and live album. Ever since the band first formed around the start of the new millennium the’ve maintained a strong focus on their live shows and subsequently touring has taken up a major part of their time and played a key role in their songwriting process. As the band readies themselves for a brief run of dates in Australia they are also in the middle of recording their next album Blackbird which will take flight in the first part of 2013.
Europe is a key territory for Fat Freddy’s Drop and the region where they have focused most of their international touring. The band recently got back from another tour there which keyboardist Dobie Blaze (Iain Gordon) rates as the most enjoyable one they’ve done in terms of the shows and the personal relationships between band members on the road.
“It was an awesome tour, the best we’ve ever done really. It was a combination of our own shows and festival shows so we had great audiences and lots of beautiful venues. We get on really well on the road, especially with touring being managed so well which is a huge part of everyone getting on. We have an amazing tour manager through Europe and it’s just the way they structure the tour that takes the stress out of it. Everyone is there to do the job so no one gets pissed off. On the tour I don’t think there were any issues so it is nice to come home and feel like it was a success and there is no big drama to deal with when you get back.”
Returning home, in Blaze’s case to Paekakariki just north of Wellington, is a chance to recoup and reunite with family who don’t get the chance to accompany the band on the road, as much as they would like to share the experience with them. “When you get home it is a case of back to reality. As my wife puts it, it takes a little while for me to land,” chuckles Blaze. It’s always wonderful getting back to family so by the end of the tour you can’t wait to get home and the kids can’t wait to open their presents. Life on the road is very different, it’s all go and you get into your routine of bus travel and sleeping when and where you can. There is the luxury of living in hotels and not having to clean up after yourself though. You have to change those bad habits a lot when you get home. It’s great to be able to have those experiences as part of my life though.”
Fat Freddy’s Drop have played Sydney a number of times but this will be their first performance at the Sydney Opera House, as part of the Graphic festival, where they’ll be previewing the forthcoming Blackbird album accompanied by animation and illustrations. It promises to be a special evening as the band combine music and visuals in a venue seen as one of the world’s best. “I’ve got absolutely no idea what to expect from the Opera House so I’m really looking forward to checking out such a legendary and prestigious venue. It feels like we are doing something very grown up and arty,” says Blaze before adding “ I better go and get a new hat from my hat man for the occasion.”
This interview was first published in Drum Media.
Listen to the brand new single Silver And Gold from the forthcoming 2013 Fat Freddy’s Drop albumBlackbird:
Sydney independent label Popfrenzy have announced a trifecta of exciting releases in the last week. Songs have a video for their new song Alone When I’m With You from the forthcoming (early 2013) album Malabar. The song can be purchased HERE for a measly 99c.
Next up is the first single on the label from Sydney band Day Ravies.Double Act follows up their excellent self-released EP from earlier this year and is available as a free download from their Bandcamp page.
Thirdly the brilliantly named Camperdown & Out have been announced as another Popfrenzy signing and they too will have a full length album out early in 2013. The band features Nathan Roche (Marf Loth), Alex Kiers (Raw Prawn), David Akerman (Dead Farmers) and Chris Shortt (Royal Headache). Down & Out is also available from Bandcamp.
Radiohead’s Thom Yorke has released the first track from his Atoms For Peace project with Flea, Nigel Godrich, Joey Waronker and Mauro Refosco. Default is available now on iTunes with a vinyl 12″ to follow in October and a full length album in 2013.
WE PREVIEW SIX NEW RELEASES FOR THE WEEK ENDING 31/08/12
DIVINE FITS | Divine Fits
The combined talents of Britt Daniels (Spoon), Sam Brown (New Bomb Turks) and Dan Boeckner (Handsome Furs, Wolf Parade) have joined forces and recorded their self-titled debut that pretty much sounds like what you would expect from the trio. Delivered with the kind of energy you get when musicians successfully try new things with new people, this’ll hook in many listeners as we head into the southern summer.
OREN AMBARCHI | Saggitarian Domain
Oren Ambarchi only recently released his excellent Audience of One LP that saw him continuing to merge experimental sounds with more traditional song craft. Saggitarian Domain sees him furthering that approach but this time consolidating it into a single half hour track that traverses a range of sonic and compositional forms.
SWANS | The Seer
Already receiving massive praise, this album is being viewed as the summation of all that is Swans to date. It travels from the oppressive brain pummelling intensity that Gira’s band bring to their live performances to the more sun bleached gothic americana of his other group Angels of Light. At two hours long The Seer requires time, patience and submission and it delivers in spades.
ANIMAL COLLECTIVE | Centipede Hz
After Merriweather Post Pavilion took Animal Collective to the front of the indie psychtronica pack there has been much anticipation about where they would head next. Not wanting to repeat themselves they’ve gone into a more tripped out, hazy and disorientating place. The melodies and percussive quirks are still there but they are layered, twisted and mangled into new shapes. This is the sound of a band saying ‘follow us if you dare’ to their most recently acquired followers.
BOOMGATES | Double Natural
The proliferation of bands (predominantly from Melbourne) that pay homage to 80s Flying Nun Records acts and their antipodean cousins like The Go-Betweens continues with the new album from Boomgates. Bands like Twerps, Dick Diver, Scott & Charlene’s Wedding, Bitch Perfect, Lower Plenty and others are all throwing post punk, psych jangle and slacker vibes into a mixer and releasing fantastic records. Boomgates includes Steph Hughes (Dick Diver), Brendan Huntley (Eddy Current Suppression Ring) in their ranks. On first listen Boomgates continue that hit rate with songs that trip (up), tumble and croon with a cosy familiarity.
JENS LEKMAN | I Know What Love Isn’t
The crooning Swede returns with his third album and continues the lush melodrama of his early works. This is literate baroque pop that swings from twee to smooth 70s MOR sounds – in a good way. Think High Llamas, Belle & Sebastian and Harry Nilsson.
On the back of one our favourite songs of 2012, 
WE PREVIEW SIX NEW RELEASES FOR THE WEEK ENDING 31/08/12