Live Fast, Die Young

For all intensive purposes, 2010 is going to be a pretty Transgressive focused year. They're releasing the new Foals album, overseeing Mystery Jets move to Rough Trade, and also publishing Johnny Flynn's sophomore album due out in the middle of the year. For now though, they're just releasing a little taster EP to prove that he's not deviating too much from what made us all fall head over heels in adoration for him in the first place.

We've got the closing track from the Sweet William EP for you to download now, along with the whole EP itself streaming over on Spotify of course. Drum is a brilliant little piano led track, proving that Flynn is still as important to the English folk scene now as he was a few years ago.

[MP3] Johnny Flynn - Drum (Alt Link)
[BUY] Get a copy over at Puregroove
[SPOTIFY] Johnny Flynn - Sweet William EP
[MYSPACE] Visit Johnny on myspace here.

All That's Left For You Is Doubt

As we hit mid-December the "future acts" hype machine is hitting breaking point, but I don't care. Lauded in the BBC Sound Of 2010 shortlist and with some stellar live shows already under their belt, Delphic are 100% ready to explode in the coming year. From what I've heard so far their debut album Acolyte is shaping up to be quite the killer disc, a perfect mixture of "high art aspiration and party spirit". How very, very Manchester.

[MP3] Delphic - Counterpoint
[YOUTUBE] Delphic - Doubt
[MYSPACE] Find more from Delphic on myspace.

Looking For The Golden Lie

She'll likely be topping many Sound Of 2010 lists, but to us she's been well established since the beginning of this year, nevermind the next. Regardless, the follow-up to Mowgli's Road (her debut for 679/Atlantic) is finally here in the form of Hollywood. One of the first new Marina tracks to surface in a while, yet still not a million miles away from the groundwork layed on Obsessions, I Am Not A Robot or Mowgli's Road. Totally set for daytime radio, totally blitzing from start to finish, totally stuffed full of wit and charm. The video itself sees Marina writhing around with various American celebrity lookalikes, a much more accessible video than that for Mowgli's Road. Hollywood is taken from Marina's debut album, The Family Jewels, out 15th February 2010.

[YOUTUBE] Marina & The Diamonds - Hollywood
[MP3] Marina & The Diamonds - Obsessions (Pink Stallone RMX)

This Is What You Get

Our friends over at Faux are giving away a pair of tickets to General Fiasco's show with The Enemy at Engine Shed, Lincoln tonight. Seeing as we're such lovely people, we thought we'd let you in on all the info. Head over to Faux now to be in with a chance of winning, but be quick, they're picking a winner at 5pm.

Meanwhile, while you wait nervously, why not check out General Fiasco's new app on the Apple App Store. It lets you stream bundles of their tracks and videos, follow their twitter and facebook feeds, as well as check out loads of photos of the band.

[MYSPACE] Check out General Fiasco on myspace.
[FAUX] Find the competition over on Faux.

We Are The Tourists In The Cafe

Liam Haynes interviewed Local Natives. Their album, Gorilla Manor was released on 2/11/09.

How do you feel your performance at SXSW this year helped you? What are the negatives?
Because we played nine shows at the festival we were able to attain a lot of new exposure. Each show sort of built up on the last so that by the end there were a lot of new people interested in checking us out. I have to say there are really no negatives from the SXSW experience. We had a really amazing time and its helped us tremendously in getting our name out as a new band.

Does being a band in LA help or is it too much of a crowded scene?
I think it helps. There's already so much of a spotlight on a place like LA or NY that if you can stand out in a scene like this, you're already on a bigger platform.

Where do you see music blogs standing in the grand scheme of (musical) things?
Blogs have already become extremely influential on today's music culture and I see them playing an even larger role in the coming years. Maintaining personal relationship with blogs that we really like has been a huge asset to this band. It helps put our music into new ears.

If you were all someone from Seinfeld, who would you each be and why?
I asked everybody and we agreed that I (Kelcey, vocals & keys) would be Kramer, because I'm a bit of the odd-ball, crazy guy. We're all a bit nuts but I think I might be the nuttiest. I think Matt (drums) would be Jerry because he usually is the observer of it all. Taylor (vocals & guitar) is Elaine because he acts like a lady sometimes. Ryan (guitar & vocals) is George because he complains, and Andy (bass) is Newman because Matt doesn't like Andy (not really; I just needed an excuse to have Andy be Newman).

Which UK acts do you feel closest to musically? How has your reception been here so far?
The Zombies? Not really sure which current ones we do relate to at the moment, suppose I can leave that for the journalists. The reception has been overwhelming here.

[MP3] Local Natives - Camera Talk
[SPOTIFY] Local Natives - Gorilla Manor
[BUY] Grab their debut album from rough Trade.
[SESSION] Check out songs from their Daytrotter Session here.

Take Me To The Queen Of Hearts

The fantastic Wolf Gang have already caught our attention with their brilliant debut earlier this year and now return with the devastatingly catchy The King & All Of His Men. The video is fantastic, a weird Alice In Wonderland style affair that is sure to propel the single to greater heights than it's predecessor. We've also been promised some fantastic remixes for this, including a sure-to-be-awesome Egyptian Hip Hop mix.



[MP3] Wolf Gang - The King & All Of His Men
[INTERVIEW] Check out an interview I did with Max from Wolf Gang over at Platform.
[MYSPACE] Check out more from Wolf Gang at their myspace.

Tales From The Malian Sahara

Words by Theodora Wakeley. Tinariwen played Koko, London on 25/10/09.

"World music" is seemingly a dirty couple of words at my university campus judging by the sheer difficulty I had in persuading anyone to come with me to see Tinariwen at Koko. I ventured alone though on a wild London night (I like to think) and saw what could possibly be my favourite gig of the year so far in terms of atmosphere, uninhibited enjoyment, and pure organic music-making.

Tinariwen cannot be fully explained without their comprehensive back-story. However it is a long and complicated one so look up Andy Morgan’s brilliant biography for that. I will merely say they are a group of former African rebels, from the far-flung reaches of the Malian Sahara, who decided to portray their anguishes and the beauty of their desert home through the power of music. Despite the language barrier the emotion is truly felt as they sing songs from their latest album Companions, mixing it up with a traditional Touareg folk-song and ending on the truly stunning Cler Achel, the highest point on their defining album Aman Iman.

The most remarkable thing about these guys though is their stage presence. They dance constantly, interact with the audience, and I swear the performer on the left, all in white with only his eyes on show, is laughing and smiling the whole way through. The lead vocalist and guitarist Ibrahim Ag Alhabib, looking almost god-like, has to also be up there with the greatest rock front-men. He only arrives half-way through the set yet the cheers that greet him prove his stature.

Tinariwen are hardly undiscovered. They’ve been around for years and are extremely popular, yet a younger student generation has yet to embrace them. It’s not actually world music, its rock music of the highest quality.

[MYSPACE] Check out Tinariwen on myspace.
[WEB] Find out more about Tinariwen on their site.
[SPOTIFY] Tinariwen - Amassakoul

In Our House Made Of Paper

Our adoration for the delicious Ellie Goulding is well documented, and it's clearly no coincidence she's finally back with her first proper single on the inimitable Neon Gold Records. Under The Sheets takes the soaring vocals and electronic backing showcased so well in previous demo Starry Eyed and combines them with a melody to die for. Ellie and her songwriting partner/producer Starsmith clearly have an ear for something special, the fantastic production and standout vocals combining into a hazy blast of sure-fire pop. They're currently out on tour supporting Little Boots, but took time out last night to perform Under The Sheets on Later Live... With Jools Holland. Link at the bottom of the post or catch it on iPlayer. The true visual representation of the song though comes from the dazzling video you see below. Multiple iterations of Ellie stomping through heartfelt line after line, smashing glitter covered drums and breaking hearts. Enjoy.



[MP3] Ellie Goulding - Under The Sheets - Via Neon Gold
[YOUTUBE] Ellie Goulding - Under The Sheets (Live on Later..)

I Was Applying Pressure

Photo by Josh Wilson, words by Darryl Marsden. The XX played Bodega, Nottingham on 7/10/09.

London indie darlings The XX have had quite a year. After garnering glowing reviews of their self-titled debut released earlier this year the 4-piece decided to embark on their first ever UK headlining tour, culminating at a packed out Bodega Social. Once the crowd had gathered around the small stage there is one thing strikingly noticeable, the age of audience members. For every hipster in a plaid-shirt there is a middle aged man and wife with premium lagers and screwdrivers. Certainly not the type of crowd I had expected.

After technical difficulties with the drum machine The XX appeared all dressed in black, looking like some kind of odd gang. With only one album to date it was obvious where the material was going to come from, a glance at the setlist confirmed this. From the opening notes of first track and album opener Intro you could tell from the atmosphere in the room that people felt they were watching a band who are really going places. The guitar lines are beautifully crafted and sound magical against the beats produced by the drum machine. The vocals in Islands resonate chillingly and the hooks send tingles. Singles Crystalised and Basic Space get the best reception of the night. It is rare in a gig with such quiet music and few people that you get total silence between songs. There is normally some kind of chatter, but tonight there is nothing. This silence speaks more than any noise could do, it's exciting to see where The XX are going to go next. One thing is for sure, it’s not likely they are going to play venues this small for much longer.

[MP3] The XX - Basic Space (Sampha Remix)
[SPOTIFY] The XX - The XX