Author Archives: ajohndoe

Errors- Have Some Faith in Magic (2012)

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Turns out Errors have a new album out, entitled Have Some Faith in Magic. I’ve been accompanying my uni work with their album for a few days now, and I must say it’s definitely a keeper.

The overall vibe, for the uninitiated, is sort of an electro melting pot but with a alt. rock drum and guitar. I hate to label, and that description doesn’t do the album justice. You really need to listen to it. In terms of synths, there’s bleep-bloopy 8bit style synths, classic buzzsaw keys and oscillating thereminesque parts. And it’s all held together with often scorching drum parts and a heavy guitar/sparkly guitar almost reminiscent of Mogwai’s early stuff. 

Indeed, Errors’ signing to Rock Action is not the only similarity the two share. In fact, the more keyboard-laden approach that we saw the boys from Glasgow create on Hardcore Will Never Die… is also similar in tone to some of the parts here, albeit toned down. But that’s not to say that they sound exactly the same or anything. Goodness no, pigeonholing them in that way just wouldn’t do this album justice

There is a lot of tonal variation on Have Some Faith in Magic, and surprisingly for a synth-laden album (but not entirely synth-based), it doesn’t sound hokey at all. If it wasn’t for the ethereal vocal tones on Blank Media, you could almost be listening to an updated Kraftwerk for 2012. And that’s definitely a good thing! Perhaps it’s the live drums at the heart of it or something. Never does the album barrel into nostalgia-ville full tilt.

Lead single Pleasure Palaces gently segues into the album with a more electro version of Chemical Brothers’ Star Guitar vibe. Very much a travelling song, in my head at least. But then halfway, it changes into a delightfully bubbly arpeggiated line that just rises out of the blue. Accompanied by a toy piano/stars twinkling line, it’s just heavenly. And that’s not something that I can say about a lot of things I’ve heard recently.

Magna Encarta (see what they did there?) has a distinct Boards of Canada sound to it, but a bit more upbeat. Again about halfway through there is a delightful transition into a fanfare of guitar and ethereal vocals. Each track is a bit like a present on this album- you never know what’s inside the box you initially hear.

Caveats? Well if you hate electronica (i.e. keys and synths) this’ll probably not do much for you. Having said that, the laid-back feel of a few of the tracks might surprise a few who don’t normally attend the churches of Roland and Casio. It’s definitely an accessible album.

Vladimir- Vladimir EP

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I picked up a copy of this five-track EP at a gig where Dundee band Vladimir supported The Twilight Sad in November (reviewed Here).  Unfortunately I missed them live, but thought it’d be worth picking up a copy. Upon a bit of light new year’s cleaning I happened upon it and thought I’d give it a listen. 

EP opener On My Wall opens with a driving growl of bass and guitar that brings to mind the racecar-inspired Black Sunshine by White Zombie. Big, distorted guitar hits are the order of the day here, and it’s an enjoyable track. Vocalist Ross Murray’s double tracked vocals are all -encompassing and fit well with the driving rock ethic.

I Fight Fire and Passing follow a similar mould and are similarly enjoyable tracks, with the vocal style coming much more to the fore. The drums in particular shine on I Fight Fire with a nice spring echoey guitar line and heavy, mildly psychedelic vibe. It sounds a bit like a bad trip. In a good way.

For me though, Mellow really stood out. Alternating between a mellow post-rock/shoegaze calm and a full-on driving rain guitar assault, it works well. It’s nice to hear the bass take the lead, with an atmospheric seismograph-line guitar adding texture. The vocals on the chorus do verge on being a bit overly ‘shouty’, but that’s really a question of taste.

Album closer Untitled showcases further sonic possibilities, with static guitar and a series of un-nerving obscure movie samples. The drums beat hard amongst the guitar lines before a final explosion of feedback and cymbal crashes. 

Vladimir showcases an almost embryonic band that could evolve in any of many directions. It’ll be interesting to see where they go from here. I am definitely gutted I didn’t turn up in November earlier.

Discuss Here

 

Mogwai- Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will.

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Released about a year ago, Mogwai’s seventh studio album had a bit of a lukewarm reception. I don’t think it isn’t an album of merit. It’s just a little schizophrenic in its approach- attempting a new direction whilst still keeping that Mogwai identity.

Album opener White Noise is perhaps a little gentle, but it gradually crescendoes into a flourish, laden with guitar fanfares. To me, it brings to mind train journeys into the city- gradually increasing dynamics as one travels deeper into the metropolis. It plays a little like a more polished version of previous album opener I’m Jim Morrison, I’m Dead. 

I would argue that Mogwai’s strongest tracks are opener/closers- Consider Auto Rock & We’re No Here, Yes! I am a Long Way From Home & Mogwai Fear Satan. Unfortunately, HWNDBYW‘s opener is a bit lacking. It just never breaks out. 

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The Weeknd – Echoes of Silence

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I first heard of Canadian artist The Weeknd [yes, it’s spelt without the third ‘e’]  on twitter one night, seeing that ‘Dirty Diana’ was trending. So I went and had a listen to the guy’s cover of it, not knowing whether to expect a remix, cover or general mickey-take. I tripped over the ‘mixtape’ Echoes of Silence, offered free of charge. 

The aforementioned cover opens a nine-track ‘mixtape’ as it is being referred to all over the internets. Certainly not a bad set of songs whatever you desire to call it. It’s a rollercoaster-cum-ghost train of a ride, via reverberating piano ballads, satanic frat parties and more than a pinch of the late Mr Jackson.

XO/The Host and Initiation exude dark like some kind of anti-lightbulb. Singer Abel Tesfaye’s voice is at odds juxtaposed against the dark, occasionally ethereal noises he’s produced but it somehow works. XO/The Host sparkles with a ghostly carousel organ, but for me Initiation really stands out. With Tesfaye’s words on hedonistic addiction twisted and vocoderised, it brings to mind an evil-dark approximation of N*E*R*D’s video forLapdance, shot with torches, dark corners and even darker deeds.

Conversely, Montreal has more of an 80s feel to it whilst the dial tones of Same Old Song bring to mind Mike Shinoda’s remix of Enjoy The Silence. There’s a definite amount of tonal variation on the album- you couldn’t accuse it of being ‘samey’ in the slightest.

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