Fleet Foxes
Do you find yourself tired of pimple-ridden adolescents yelping their mouths off about, yawn, drugs, nights out and, double yawn, love? Do you find yourself even more bored by amateur music journalists cynically professing their apathy at all this ‘gritty realism’ that indie music seems infatuated with? Well then, hurry! Finish reading this article, scuttle off to the nearest computer, surf your way onto Fleet Foxes’ Myspace page and immerse yourself in some fuzzy poetry. No mere Animal Collective imitators, the quintet describe their music as "baroque harmonic pop jams", which is a load of pretentious rubbish. However, like fuck am I going to reel out a non-sensical stream of adjectives to describe their sound. You’re just going to have to take it from me that they’re amazing and go have a listen
Dave Wingrave
Anna-Louisa Etherington
Currently doing the rounds on the local music circuit, and fresh from a performance at the Sage, Newcastle University’s very own Anna-Louisa Etherington is starting to create a bit of a buzz around the town’s open mic and folk nights. Combining her deeply personal lyrics about relationships past and present, with a wistful, understated beautiful voice, songs such as Smiles on you, I’m sorry and when I wake up rise and fall in a swirl of violins, piano and guitars all played and mixed by Anna-Louisa herself.
She’s currently assembling a band and as yet only lacks a drummer upon this acquisition her performances can only become stronger as it will allow the intimacy of her songs to be fully explored live
Anna-louisa’s influences are as wide and varied as Joni Mitchell to Mogwai, however there is a sense that you must have heard these songs before even though you know that you haven’t that’s the beauty of her Celtic style lyrics, they make you nostalgic for events in your life that are yet to happen.
Check out her website at myspace.com/annalouisamusic and keep your eyes open for live shows – you won’t be disappointed
Rory McAlpine
LOOK SEE PROOF
Anyone with their ear to the ground, or the much needed ability to read between the lines of NME may already have heard of Look See Proof. If so, you’ll know what a treat this four piece from Hertfordshire are on the ears. Among the current splurge of grey, generic ‘indie’ music, it is such a refreshing slap in the face to hear four teens having such fun with their tunes. It is like all that’s actually good about the British indie scene, with the energy of the Libs, the infectious harmonies of The Futureheads and the anthem guitar lines of The Cribs, but at the same time, unlike any of them. This is indie dance-floor music at its best, with every chord screaming for a skinny jean clad, floppy haired youth to start pogo-ing across the floor. This was justified with third single ‘Casualty’ going to number one in the Club NME charts, and the extensive airplay they’ve received on MTV2 and by esteemed radio DJs such as Steve Lamacq and John Kennedy. Next single ‘Local Hero’ is a subtle explosion of power-pop madness which could even make Johnny Borrell smile. The absence of any particular lyrical power is a mere passing pest, for who needs lyrics when you’re having as good a time as this?! These guys are only going to get bigger, catch them now before some foolish record company tells them having this much fun won’t sell records.
Rob Sellars
Acoustic Ladyland
Modern Jazz. I know, I know, any self respecting indie kid should have already veered off this page to snuggle up to their three chord strum-along book and Neutral Milk Hotel collection. And no wonder, the phrase conjures up a world of the elite, a gateway into twenty-six minute epic ear-shattering trumpet operas only available to those who can appreciate modal variations over flat 13th harmonies in a cycle of fourths when they hear one. A cigar and smoking jacket wouldn’t go amiss either. But fear not, those with a penchant for jeans that carry a safety warning about unbuttoning away from the eyes, for there is salvation: Acoustic Ladyland. This London band decided to change jazz forever with a few conscious decisions: Hair-larger-than-life Seb chucked his tired old brushes, donned sticks and decided to smash his drum kit to pieces; Pete Wareham thought he might make his saxophone sound less melodic and more like a buzzsaw on brass. Punk-jazz emerged from the rubble. Tracks such as the jittery, restless and ethereal assault of OM KONZ burn their captivating melodies irreversibly onto your cerebrum until you realise that, yes, this is inspired music, and no-one else in the world is even contemplating emulating such a triumph of carefully constructed and beautiful noise.
Gordon Bruce
