Tom For Idea - hintro

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk

I'm not sure if we just attract bands who like to like to deal with stark and dark sounds, or whether this is just a current direction that much of the music world is taking. But we can add London's Tom For Idea to this list, at least judging by this intro track. More will be revealed when they release their first EP next month. It may be their debut EP, and the band officially came into being in the winter of 2011, but these guys have apparently been writing and playing together in various bands and various formats for years, but it was only recently that this current incarnation was decided upon and they've chosen to run with it. So it could be that these long-time friends finally have the sound that they were looking for.

'hintro' (they spell it with no capital at the start, it's not us having a poor grasp of how the English language works, although many would say we do anyway...) is stark; the beats are sharp and minimalist, the guitar line is similar and both are very stop/start, so the song feels broken, but not to the detriment of the track, indeed it's the whole idea. If you want to pin a genre to this song then folktronica is perhaps the closest match, and it will certainly be people who appreciate that style of music, and maybe those who've enjoyed records by The xx and Esben & The Witch, who will find this song the most rewarding.



Tom For Idea's website





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Bare Pale - If It Is

EP review by jay@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk

To many the world of lo-fi can sound like a cat trapped in a bucket, down a well, making a racket. Then one of the joys of lo-fi is that you really have to listen, to put yourself in that bucket down that well. Then suddenly this world of amazing noise surrounds you in the most marvelous way. You hear sparkling songs, that shine out of the dark. On their debut EP 'If It Is', Bare Pale are lo-fi, yet fantastically so. Amongst a wash of discordant, yet harmonious noise, opening song 'Bare Pale' lays out their template. Somewhat akin to early Sonic Youth melted with shoegaze melodic crashes. 'Bare Pale' leads quickly into second track 'Homecoming'. It is quite a wondrous amalgamation of the deep fuzz-laden grunge of Dinsouar Jr, The Melvins, and all the while drenched in honeyed melodies and Kurt Vile slacker vocals, which liquify together in quite an enthralling brew.

'I Never Could' is more forceful, the song has a rhythmic sensation of pushing itself along. Almost perversely, underlying it all is an almost proto-krautrock pulse that throbs with the echoing vocals. With dashes of Husker Du and early Lemonheads 'Rub It In' is maybe the most easily connectable of those here. It has a true, sky-bound chorus. There is a drone second vocal that adds a textural depth and recalls The Horrors before the bombast.  'You Look So Different Today' sees Bare Pale truly indulging and encapsulating the 21st century slacker. The song sounds barely awake at first, and struggles to find its form, then somehow it wakes itself up, and all somewhat gloriously falls into place. And Bare Pale then give you a strung out, ragged, yet charming solo to climax the song. Bare Pale bow out the EP with 'Shame'. This is the most sonically deep song so far. It has a real sense of dynamic, held around that exquisite foundation of joyous fizzing fuzz. Throughout 'If It Is' Bare Pale display the sparse, sun-bleached bones of the song, then they immerse you and the song, allowing it to become some blissful, wonderful whiteout of noise and melody.This is a collection of songs that linger even after the feedback has died.





Bare Pale's website

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Born In Alaska - There In Rising Day

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk

OK, what do we reckon? "Pop Atmosphérique - Normandie" is the description. Using my limited knowledge of the French language (and the fact that the words are very close to English) I think we could be looking at dreampop from Normandy. A quick spin of this new EP by Born In Alaska, a five-piece band who don't appear to have any actual connection to the US's largest state, would reveal this to be the case. 'Show Me The Great Wild Horses' is a dramatic title for something which fits your general descriptions of ethereal and woozy, but it's not half a bad song. This lot do diversity too. The excellent 'Seven Hundred Miles' is closer to post-punk in its beat and bassline, although it touches upon shoegaze too. It would make a top single.

Not for the first time in music, the first dog in space is mentioned. 'Laika' was of course the name of a band and famously an Arcade Fire song, but here it's a slow and ambient number, one that definitely fits "pop Atmosphérique", but it's nicely done and is a proper song as opposed to a soundscape and has a grand post-rock ending. There's a post-rock feel to 'San Diego' too, but more immediate and closer to convention. It's a lively track and an EP highlight. They quite rightly finish with a song that contains a slow build (it's exactly how a collection of songs like this should end) and take us on a journey to the clouds and back with 'Home'. Music is a universal language, so whatever you wish to call this, it's very good wherever you're from.



Born In Alaska's website

Stream or buy the EP

Catch them live:

Jun 28 Les artzimutés wt/ Arno, NNB, Cherbourg, France
Jun 29 PLAGE DE COLLIGNON, Tourlaville, France
Jul 27 Festival Tout un foin, Bayeux, France





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GHOST EYES - Scarecrows EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk

Considering their name and EP title, GHOST EYES aren't anything like as scary as you may expect. The music they craft is a form of electro-pop which has a subtle gothic undercurrent, but really is as much about mixing big pop hooks with music that stays on the alternative side of things. They're not engineering their songs for the charts or for Nick Grimshaw to play (naturally this is a good thing). 'The Forever Kids' is a seemingly regular track at first, but you soon realise that basically it's a big long chant, so maybe they are trying to conjure up the spirits after all. Their music is too light for that though, despite its slight edginess.

It's not really a sound that they stray from much on 'Scarecrows'. 'Lost In The Woods' sounds like it should be creepy too, but despite some effects on the vocals the haunting aspect is mild. None of this is to discredit the music in any way. There are a quartet of good songs here, but they're rather like Esben & The Witch's less frightening siblings, taking a similar approach but not delving so far into the darkness. "In the night time we dance to the beat of the drum" is the refrain of 'Beat Of The Drum, and with its organ this is perhaps the EP's blackest moment. The bleeps, synthesised birdsong and jittery beats of final track 'All Day Long' make for the most experimental and maybe best song here. If GHOST EYES were a horror movie they'd most likely be given a 15 rating rather than an 18, but it's an enjoyable EP nonetheless.



GHOST EYES' website

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Little Brother Eli - EP

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk

It's sweet how Little Brother Eli describe their first EP as a "musical lovechild". Formed by Alex Grew and Joshua Rigal, the main writing team, the project is now a fully-fledged band for live performances, so you can stop your Black Keys/White Stripes comparisons there. They make blues-rock, but not in such a minimalist way. The vocals to opening track 'Animal Fair' definitely have an element of raw blues to them, an a decent portion of soul too. The song is a confident and bold first statement. It can't be easy making a song about animals into a modern blues powerhouse and not sounding stupid, but they manage it, passing the test with flying colours and a great guitar sound.

Following this mighty start, 'Awkward Positions' is something of a let-down. It's still ambling around the same genres but sounds just too clean. You'd expect Jools Holland to be a fan of this one, and that just about says it all. It could be better; some of the spooky effects are good, but this more sanitised and less real. If someone came up with the phrase "landfill blues-rock" then this might fit the bill. All is soon forgotten though, and Little Brother Eli show us what they can do on 'When She Sings', a more authentic sounding song that's doused in more of that scorching guitar work; surely one of their best attributes. They mix in some nice tempo and style changes too, and this adds variety. It's a big song, much like the opener. They could be in line for very good things. And anyway, as Meatloaf one sang, two out of three ain't bad.





Little Brother Eli's website

Stream or buy the EP





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Frank Hamilton - London Eye EP preview + Q&A

Article by karla@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk

6 days notice to turn 8 microphones, 7 people, 6 cameras, 3 instruments, 2 laptops, 1 cup of tea (Frank's) and not a single plug socket into something really special. Frank Hamilton is back with a bright new idea. On 24th March 2013 he became the first person ever to record an EP (with strings) onboard the London Eye in the time it takes to go round once (28 minutes). This won’t be sitting around on a dusty shelf (on a computer desktop) as it has been put together with the entire 52 song collection of 2012’s #OneSongaWeek. Fans can buy 52 songs + the 4 videos + a chord/lyric e-book on July 1st from iTunes.
We caught up with him ahead of the release to see what other interesting plans he might have in store...



TSOC: Hi Frank, for those who are yet to hear your sound, in a nutshell what can they expect from you?

Frank: Songs and silly ideas.


TSOC: 2012 saw you start and complete a very successful, but what I can imagine was slightly painstaking and draining,  #OneSongAWeek project. 52 songs later and several collaborations you must have ended the year exhausted  Could you give us three other bands/artists who you reckon we should be keeping an eye on this year? Besides you of course!

Frank: Lauren Aquilina, Lewis Watson and the Crimea (new album out).


TSOC:  Say you were to release a five track covers EP. What songs would be on there?
 
Frank: Wheatus- Teenage Dirtbag
            The Smiths- Please, please, please
            Fleetwood Mac- Everywhere
            Bastille- Flaws
            Dog is Dead- Teenage Daughter


TSOC: There seems to be a HUGE amount of passion, honesty, and creativity in how you're going about getting yourself out there. Can you explain a little bit about your latest #LondonEyeEP Project?

Frank: Thanks very much, nice question! Another silly idea, wanted to take my favourite songs from one song a week and record them in a way that had never been done before.


TSOC: After all your hard work last year, and a bit of a bumpy ride since your first EP 'You, Your Cat & Me in 2008', how chuffed were you when your 'Best Of' 2- track album was released in December and charted at #1 on the iTunes singer/songwriter chart (outselling Ed Sheeran, Jake Bugg, Gabrielle Aplin, Ben Howard)?

Frank: More chuffed than I can put into words. Best feeling ever!


TSOC:  And how did you celebrate? We hear you’re quite partial to a nice cup of tea…

Frank: With a cup of tea on the couch (things were still busy). Did not manage to celebrate till the 20th at the Bar Fly.


TSOC: Having recently toured with Lucy Spraggan, have you ever auditioned for or considered a talent show like The X Factor or The Voice?

Frank: My mum's always told me I should go for it but I've never been a huge fan of the idea (or the shows themselves). Maybe it's because I don't have a pitch-perfect, pop-star voice... or maybe it's because I wish there was more to Saturday night TV.  Either way, my cover during "ABBA week" would be rubbish!


TSOC:  Imagine you’re hosting a “dead or alive” dinner party. You can invite 5 famous guests (past or present and not limited to just musicians). Who is sitting at your table and what are you cooking?

Frank: Sir Alex Ferguson, Buddy Holly, Morrissey, Mike Skinner and Jarvis Cocker. I would prob make a stew, the only thing I can cook.


TSOC:  You've got a fair few festival dates lined up over the summer, any you’re looking forward to being a part of in particular?

Frank: Excited about all of them. Especially Barn on the Farm (small, intimate, my fourth year). Secret Garden Party also, near where I used to live.


TSOC:  Last one, most of us have that one CD or band/artist we have a soft spot for but are a bit embarrassed to admit it. Do you have one you can share with us?

Frank: Miley Cyrus- Party in the USA.

Thank youuu bundles!
Karla and The Sound of Confusion 

Frank: ...and thank you bundles!!




Frank Hamilton's website

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GUMS! - Antipathy

EP review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk

GUMS! are a Glaswegian indie collective, so already you will have certain preconceived ideas about what their music sounds like, and to be quite honest you're probably spot on. They're also something of a supergroup. When The Plimptons called it a day earlier this year after 14 years, we ended our review of final album 'The Plimptons Are Dead' by saying it was sad to see them go. Well GUMS! was the destination for two of them, along with members of Orphans and Collar Up. So, yes, the music has that fey indie jangle on some songs, 'Luckless Days' being maybe the best example; native accents are used and lyrics talk of real life in the city they call home. They're following in the footsteps of many that have gone before, certainly, but think of them as current carriers of the torch. They're doing Glaswegian indie as well as anyone else right now.

There are rough, ready and ragged rattles through melodic pop that's frayed around the edges, as evidenced on 'The Willow Cafe' with its catchy melody and driving power. There's a typically miserable song about the events of s drunken night in the city; "...cold and wet.. take out a cigarette, try to light a match in the pouring rain". It's the tale of a ruined night out for 'New Year' that's lightened by the friendship on offer in the chorus which lifts the song. As the name suggests, 'Are You Still Cruel' is hardly a barrel of laughs, but the near doo-wop backing makes up for that. 'Dancing In Your Room' is the kind of hectic punky indie that's been a staple diet of the scene since the early 1980s, and what a fizzing song it is. There's no twist in the tale, as the EP falls into a classic end track with piano and a slightly more reflective feel. It's more tales of real life and real people, but maybe this is the perfect response to all the dreampop and psychedelia that's taking over the indie world. Whichever, it's good that the demise of The Plimptons has a silver lining after all.



GUMS!' website

Stream or download the EP





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