This was a surprise. I'd previously had the honour of sharing a stage with Steve Whittle (frontman of LakeView) in an incarnation of Heavy Fluid Addicts, and have long been an admirer of his sometimes screeching, sometimes melodious guitarwork. I'd been a big fan of Modus, and really enjoyed the garage punk of his post-HFA band, The Cities (lack of links for these and the former due to Steve being in bands that are effectively unGoogleable) and was expecting this band, combining members of both of these as well as hardcore high-fliers Elias Last Day, to be something loud.
Not that it isn't at times, but this is far, far more subtle than I imagined. Lots of arpeggios, basslines that really lead the song, and very driving drumbeats that lead into very, very tuneful slower sections.
Song 1 is called 'Flags'. I first listened to this when walking from Hi-Q on Blackpool Road to Haslam Park, and now on my sofa with a beer, but what it really wants is to be played when driving on a really good road. I recommend taking the A59 from Preston to Skipton, for example.
Song 2 is called 'Habit'. A much slower affair, and one that references driving around Lane Ends in Preston. This made me smile as I was walking past the Lane Ends pub as I heard this (it takes a while to fit two tyres if you want it doing cheap). Lots of lovely reverb on the guitar, which is almost Pink Floydy at times, and I think I can hear that Echo Park guitar pedal that was a feature of our time in HFA.
I'm going to stop numbering them now. 'Live Wires' is different. It's a funkier track. The bass steals it for me, again. Credit must be given to whoever recorded this - the separation of bottom and top ends is truly brilliant - it makes for a snappy listen, as opposed to a middley mess.
'Right On, Yeah!' is a cool name for a song, and this is the first really noisy one. The melodies are this time backed up by a frankly dirty rhythm guitar. All this stops for yet another fantastic bassline. Make no mistake - this is definitely 'last song' stuff. Would really benefit from being played at neighbour bothering volume.
Songs 5-7 pick up where 4 left off. 'A Day Out' has a nastier, distorted bass riff that underpins a more warped tune than previous. I'm guessing these were recorded at different points - there seems to have been some kind of consensus that the less straightforward stuff is the way to go.
'Trains' has some big drums. Very big drums. However, the main feature of this is that Steve is really finding his vocal feet. The Cities were a very loud band, and it was easy to shout along. Here, singing is the order of the day and there's a far greater sense of coherence and cohesion between music and lyrics.
The last song is 'Breaking Glass'. It's more of a grower than previous songs. It changes several times, and returns to the driving imagery of 'Habit'. Some soaring guitarwork towards the end, and then it stops. Almost abruptly.
So, LakeView. A rock band, certainly, but what sort of rock band? A good one, one that is hard to categorise, and one that's produced seven songs (there may be more, I just hoiked these off bandcamp) that are simultaneously diverse and accessible.
31.7.10
Stephen James Buckley & The Feverdreamers Have Left The Building
OK, first proper post since my re-purposing of this blog.
Stephen James Buckley is one of the men behind Hello Bamboo, which would lead you to believe that he's some kind of barely-functioning sexual sadist that spends his spare time (of which he has lots) inventing new, innovative and despicable methods of pleasuring himself. As it happens, that's the drummer, but I wager Stephen isn't far behind on the sly. Anyway, this is his other band. Here, the in-jokes and knob gags are exchanged for a rather inward-looking sincerity. The humour is there, but it's very self-deprecating. Onwards.
(I should point out that, as I am listening to the e.p. and writing this review, someone on my street is sobbing uncontrollably. I hope that these events aren't connected. It's making me feel rather uncomfortable.)
... Have Left The Building kicks off with 'Behind The Moon'. A synthesized intro leads us towards a voice reminiscent of Benjamin Smoke. It's a sad song, granted, but there's something about the bells and 'ahhhh' backing vocals that are uplifting. Bittersweet.
'Fabulous Club' is a far rockier affair. Stabby rhythms and a wandering, walking bassline, tied together with a tremolo-picked lead guitar accompany a fairly vitriolic assault on the concept of cool. It's a straight-up rock and roll song; something that is nice to hear when many bands are keen to pigeonhole themselves as anything but.
'Cover Of The Rolling Stone' is a song by Dr Hook And The Medicine Show that I haven't heard, so I have to judge this on its own merits, and not as an interpretation of someone else's work. The verse is neotraditional country, in the vein of Hank III or maybe the Drive-By Truckers in their less raucous moments. There's a wonderfully atonal guitar solo, and the ending of the song is chaotic, seemingly aiming to capture a slice of studio life. Maybe. They sound like they're having fun, which is infectious.
'Behind The Moon (Reprise)' actually tops the opening track, in my opinion. Good as the vocals are, taking them away allows us to hear the fairly intricate layering of sounds. I can't quite put my finger on of what it reminds me, but it sounds a bit wintery. Which, in a crappy July, is something to look forward to.
An interesting collection of songs, possibly over-diverse for one short e.p., but is that a bad thing? It's a lot better than every song sounding like it's come from a formulaic toolkit of potential music, that's for sure. Regardless of this possible criticism, a nod has to be given to the actual sound of the record. Stephen has said that this was "[n]ot an exercise in production ProTools", and it's all the better for it. A creaky, juddering collection of songs, best-suited to being listened to while a stranger weeps in the background.
Stephen James Buckley is one of the men behind Hello Bamboo, which would lead you to believe that he's some kind of barely-functioning sexual sadist that spends his spare time (of which he has lots) inventing new, innovative and despicable methods of pleasuring himself. As it happens, that's the drummer, but I wager Stephen isn't far behind on the sly. Anyway, this is his other band. Here, the in-jokes and knob gags are exchanged for a rather inward-looking sincerity. The humour is there, but it's very self-deprecating. Onwards.
(I should point out that, as I am listening to the e.p. and writing this review, someone on my street is sobbing uncontrollably. I hope that these events aren't connected. It's making me feel rather uncomfortable.)
... Have Left The Building kicks off with 'Behind The Moon'. A synthesized intro leads us towards a voice reminiscent of Benjamin Smoke. It's a sad song, granted, but there's something about the bells and 'ahhhh' backing vocals that are uplifting. Bittersweet.
'Fabulous Club' is a far rockier affair. Stabby rhythms and a wandering, walking bassline, tied together with a tremolo-picked lead guitar accompany a fairly vitriolic assault on the concept of cool. It's a straight-up rock and roll song; something that is nice to hear when many bands are keen to pigeonhole themselves as anything but.
'Cover Of The Rolling Stone' is a song by Dr Hook And The Medicine Show that I haven't heard, so I have to judge this on its own merits, and not as an interpretation of someone else's work. The verse is neotraditional country, in the vein of Hank III or maybe the Drive-By Truckers in their less raucous moments. There's a wonderfully atonal guitar solo, and the ending of the song is chaotic, seemingly aiming to capture a slice of studio life. Maybe. They sound like they're having fun, which is infectious.
'Behind The Moon (Reprise)' actually tops the opening track, in my opinion. Good as the vocals are, taking them away allows us to hear the fairly intricate layering of sounds. I can't quite put my finger on of what it reminds me, but it sounds a bit wintery. Which, in a crappy July, is something to look forward to.
An interesting collection of songs, possibly over-diverse for one short e.p., but is that a bad thing? It's a lot better than every song sounding like it's come from a formulaic toolkit of potential music, that's for sure. Regardless of this possible criticism, a nod has to be given to the actual sound of the record. Stephen has said that this was "[n]ot an exercise in production ProTools", and it's all the better for it. A creaky, juddering collection of songs, best-suited to being listened to while a stranger weeps in the background.
30.7.10
A relaunch
I couldn't be bothered starting a new blog, so I decided to remove everything that wasn't me speaking about music, and retitle accordingly.
With a sense of purpose, I might even keep on top of this. Appearing here soon will be a review of some bits of local music I've downloaded from Bandcamp.
See you soon.
With a sense of purpose, I might even keep on top of this. Appearing here soon will be a review of some bits of local music I've downloaded from Bandcamp.
See you soon.
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