2022 Album of the Year – // KURT VILE // (watch my moves)// album review//

2022 Album of the Year

// KURT VILE // (watch my moves)// album review//

Since hearing (Watch My Moves) by Kurt Vile in the late spring of last year it has become my go to record even surpassing great albums of 2022 such as Warmduscher ‘At The Hotspot‘, Preoccupations ‘Arrangements’ and Dubwar ‘Westgate Under Fire’. I am as familiar with this album already as I am with classic albums released decades ago that have become the score of my life.

After Fleet Foxes released ‘Shore’ in late 2020 I couldn’t quite envisage a record of equal beauty and of a similar painful optimism following so soon after. Yet, I am bewildered by the pure honesty and cerebral soul oozing from Kurt Vile’s latest record. (Watch my Moves) was released on Matador records on April 14th 2022, the day he discovered new realms of possibility.

Over the last few years Kurt Vile’s quality of output has more or less followed the upward curve of his growing popularity since Crack magazine amongst others placed ‘Walking on a Pretty Day’ as their album of the year in 2013 – steady. It is remarkable and clear that the clarity of atmosphere in his songwriting and formation has emerged progressively since his excellent break through album ‘Smoke Ring for My Halo’ in 2011. That opaque and smokey backdrop in his tight, cautious mysticality has now dissipated to reveal the true musical and emotional talents of the man.

The dreamy journey begins in a gracious and life affirming way and that is a defining feature of the whole album. By his own admission in the opening track Goin On A Plane Today Vile celebrates how fortunate he has become “Listening to ‘heart of gold’ Gonna open up for Neil Young, man life sure can be fun”. One cannot ignore the references periodically scattered around the record to the new found sense of freedom that all of us feel and the affect forced isolation has had on our mental states, like so many other albums released since the beginning of the Covid Pandemic. Here the novelty of something as everyday as going on a plane seems a treat.

Another obvious theme littering (Watch My Moves) is Kurt Vile’s nostalgic longing to revert to the simpler days of his childhood. His lyrics and narrated monologue display a pure innocence without any hint of being cutesy or cliched, instead they reveal his vulnerabilities and sometimes infantile playfulness, their charming innocence are nothing but endearing. He reveals that his “Manhood compromised – Watch me shrinking back into a little kid”. Following this there will be references to Lemonade, Pinball machines, a Stuffed Leopard (the final song on the album), Fantasies of flying, skateboards and teapots singing.

Perhaps the album sleeve cover tells us all that we need to be able to decipher the inspiration for the making of this record. He is sat lovingly clutching his two daughters sat either side of him. For all of the social and mental trauma the social animal has suffered in the last two years, it cannot be denied that some of us have slowed down and concentrated on what is really important in life. A loving family! and Kurt Vile certainly gives the impression of a doting father and family man.

The first single from the album – Flyin (Like a Fast Train) realises acid flashbacks and burn out exhaustion but in the lyric – “cooped up creature of discomfort can’t touch a thing” – it is as if he would go back to the pre-pandemic days in an instant. Any sense of pained struggle is camouflaged however by the ever present beauty of the dimensions Vile engineers through his horizontal song structures, lucid guitars and mastery of the synthesizer. We are all safe in his hands no matter what is going on outside.

The dream scape atmosphere is enhanced by Palace of OKV in Reverse as Vile’s over produced narration glides along the heavily synthesised, backwards recording. Something bands such as White denim have done with great success. That commentary of feelings both physical and mental, musical techniques and cerebral imperfection are best demonstrated in the spell binding Like Exploding Stones. Kurt Vile practically hands us his present vulnerable psyche on a plate as he jumps straight in to our trusting arms. He inspires us by freely laying all of his self doubts on the line yet he clearly is being too hard on himself as his mastery of syllable manipulation contradicts the line “Dreamin’ of a time when everything rhymed -And i was cool, calm and collected”. This record will be his magnum opus in when Kurt Vile came of age and linked all of his copious talents in an alliterated, soaring, heart felt encyclopedia of zen poetry. Chill out with the rest of us Kurt, it rhymes.

One can’t help but submit to his infectious and innocent childlike qualities. To keep this article at a relatively readable size I will refrain from going into every line of each track but be assured I could quite easily and with glee and pleasure. Like Exploding Stones is an ultimately positive thrust despite the pains and doubts circulating in his head – “But I’m just kidding and I’m just playin’ – And this is the way I make my living – Everyday, in my mind and in real life”. That ability to step back and be grateful for what we have is arguably a human trait that may have lacked before the perspective that a global pandemic gave us, especially in our (in parts) privileged Western lives.

The heavenly Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone) repeats a xylaphone and a heart jerking subtle riff as he reinforces how he had been lost and of his battle with his own mental well-being. Hey Like A Child is a landmark in Kurt Vile’s career. Along with Over Everything that he recorded with Courtney Barnett in their critically acclaimed album Lotta Sea Lice, this track is undoubtably his greatest to date. Keeping to the theme, the song is written from a childlike perspective and the words and imagery are of a primitive and innocent viewpoint but the power comes from his rhythmical vocal and control of words and syllables as they dance and play around the delicious acoustic backdrop. This is Americana music at its very best and draws influences from Neil Young and Hank Williams (the latter to whom he pays homage to in a later track on the album – the snail paced folk lament of Cool Water). He again acknowledges his constant battle with, but his ultimate management and acceptance of; his psychological challenges and emotional torment “In the mornin’ time the glorious spring – Feel I got a handle on everything”. Surely every listener could relate to the thoughts and issues Vile illustrates so purely and candidly?

We enjoy a pair of short but atmospherically enhancing instrumentals in fine After The Goldrush style (Granted Cripple Creek Ferry & Till The Morning Comes have a vocal but they attribute similar functions as links to the overall concept and feeling). Even Jesus can’t help mankind in Jesus On A Wire. Our saviour’s mental breakdown will be cushioned by Kurt himself, apparently. It is a melody of comedic but empathetic realisation.

Kurt Vile revisits a younger Kurt in Fo Sho although not Kurt as a child. This is the distorted guitar wizard from his early records – oozing attitude and pomp that no other track on the album comes close to. Chazzy Don’t Mind mirrors the fluid reminiscence of Cool Water. Both of which demonstrate the vocal peak that Vile has reached now following his vast experimentation throughout his career. Although not a natural vocalist, his sincerity and feeling ignite his Nashville-esque folk passion, comfortably visiting scales that perhaps before he wasn’t capable of.

To rival Hey like A Child arguably Say The Word is a confirmation of how far Kurt Vile has come in such a short space of time. A driving drum beat and an ascending and descending acoustic repetition is met by a translucent layer of synth allowing Kurt Vile to delight us with some of his best recorded vocals and schizophrenic like ramblings in an awe inspiring song. After he announces -“Go” His guitar explodes in unison with the cacophony of the backing takes us to emotional heights in which again Vile fears are highlighted “When everytime I grow into a man -Chaos comin’ around the bend“.

(Watch My Moves) is just as much an exploratory journey through the ages and psyche of Kurt Vile for the listener as it it for the artist. A journey vital for every musical traveller.

// RED SKY IN MOURNING //AN INTERVIEW WIH DISJOY //

Cardiff band Disjoy have released an album containing sound content of rare violence and disorder. Red Sky imagines the forefathers of punk and in doing so reacts to the injustice of society and political farce. Speaking to Disjoy in transit to Berlin Quiffed Owl learnt that this album was inspired by a specific event that directly effected the band – one member in particular – and the ensuing struggle to cope with traumatic loss.

Disjoy are the reincarnation of their former band LUVV. Vocalist and guitarist Matt Short and bass guitarist Ben Mainwaring salvaged the ethos and back bone of LUVV when other members left. Mainwaring tells me, “for the most part we have found ourselves in this position through necessity, as members of our former band had to commit full time to their band [Chain of Flowers]. So I wouldn’t say it was a conscious choice.”

Yet from LUVV’s ashes a robust desire to succeed has forged Disjoy, and with it a profoundly different punk sound than what preceded it. Mainwaring expands by pointing out that when the four became a three piece, with a brand new drummer and Short adding to his vocal responsibilities by claiming Lead guitar, their direction was forced some what. “ I wouldn’t really say we’ve done anything differently to our former bands. Since we’ve got together we’ve always written the same way, it’s always been very raw and from the heart but I think the added influences from former members obviously added something to the songs we were writing. So I think Disjoy is just us at our most stripped down, pure and natural.”

Disjoy were in their early stages as a band when disaster struck. The album is devoted to Mainwaring’s late father who died suddenly and in tragic circumstances in 2016. It is to Mainwaring’s credit that Disjoy have even been able to carry on at all in the light of such tragedy and emotional turmoil – let alone release a record of such focussed energy.

“He [Mainwarings father] was helping a collective we were involved in to try and create a new DIY space in Cardiff when the accident happened”, Mainwaring recalls. “Red Sky is from a funny phrase he used to say to me when I was growing up. So this record is dedicated to his memory”.

Red Sky explodes from a Peter Hook like bass line, low slung and unholy. The first track and first single from the album, Divided, is an unstable and violent lament to the disenfranchised. Short spits and sneers his Carmarthenshire propaganda around a tight reoccurring rhythm, Divided is a genuinely fine punk single and the most accessible on the record. Asked about the process of writing their songs, Mainwaring explains “we usually start with a riff that Matt will come up with and bring into practice. Then we usually play along and try to arrange it as best we can”.

The records second track Control cements the direction of Red Sky: no nonsense will be tolerated here. Your ears will bleed and your heart will race. The distorted buzz and electric prayer fizzes through the track. Matt Short elaborates on the records overall anarchic tone, “there’s a lot out there that I don’t think we agree with…that factors into any darkness that we might have in our music. The political climate at the moment is a big factor in the anger and just the trials and tribulations of being a human being”.

The title track is a contradiction of classic post-punk with visions of Joy Division’s Shadowplay – yet here Disjoy introduce a paranoid and distorted anguish cloaked in hate, where rhythm section and home-made pedal samples grate against Short’s possessive shrieks. This album is designed to be heard live and that is reflected in the raw production from start to finish. This is not an easy listen – Red Sky is not sugar coated for wider accessibility. This is undiluted punk music made for punks.

Red Sky will be released by the label that Ben Mainwaring has recently founded. Pretty Hate Records will release the album on cassette and vinyl as well as an online format – this DIY approach is defining the course of alt-rock today, and as more and more alternative music venues are closing it may be the only way that people can keep alternative music alive in an increasingly main stream society.

Speaking about the threatened closure of Wales’s most iconic venue, Clwb Ifor Bach, Disjoy emphasise the vital role these small clubs have to play in nurturing and supporting new music and young musicians. “It’s hugely important that we don’t lose Womanby Street. We’ve lost a lot of venues in Cardiff & Newport (Lepub and TJ’s) over the years and I think it’s extremely important that we stop the rot before it’s too late. People need music and new bands need places to play”.

Disjoy have begun a busy live period this spring and play with, amongst others, Sarcasm, The Violent Hearts, The Wolf Hounds and Japanese outfit Melt- Banana; and along with allies such as Cardiff’s Chain Of Flowers, we can expect a continuity of  boundary prodding, raw punk coming out of Wales’ capital for the immediate promising future.

Words by Jimmy Gallagher

// Le Lendemain // After The Excitement //

The cinematic score sound is all well and good and has been used increasingly in contemporary rock and pop music. The more judgemental of us expect the exponents to be perhaps an established group branching out and exploring their musical boundaries (Radiohead circa OK Computer and beyond) or, a 5 piece rock group with unhealthy addictions to box sets and access to 22nd century technology (Mogwai). This might be true but their sound and cinema are viewed in HD.

So what does cinematic rock sound like if one guy with a fraction of the facilities and budget attempt the same? The new EP from Le Lendemain describes the answer  in a comforting epic of home video nostalgia. After The Excitement is an exhibition of warmth and emotion capturing visions of everybody’s introspection that makes this so cordially accessible.

Richard Haylock is a song writer based in North London. He committed to studying the technicalities of production and has compiled enough material for this EP and another that will follow in due course. More importantly, however, he has unearthed an organic style personal to him.

Haylock cleverly sequences the tracks enticing you in before ensnaring you entirely. Outside In daringly avoids a sickly sweet start and instead stages the set for the more atmospheric tracks to follow. The opening track gently rolls along as if unaware of the gentle string flourishes adorning the rhythm, and in the spirit of the record these are joined by momentous clashing cymbals and kinetic guitar distortion rendering a wall of passionate sound swirling to its glorious conclusion.

The second track track is the reincarnation of The Hawk Is Howling by Mogwai, yet the dense sound is the work of just one man. This track has a precise power stored like a battery and called upon when needed. Haylock has allowed Le Lendemain to take shape naturally and subsequently an organic and meteorological aura fills the record. Free of the constraints of time and outside pressure After The Excitement flows sincerely, meandering through subtly differing styles and influences but fundamentally remaining forthright.

Good As It Was is a contradiction of human chemical reaction. Its languid waltz is matched by Haylocks understated lament, his voice matches the extended organ keys and drawn out notes in no hurry to go away, instead reinforcing an eerie and beautiful confusion. His arrangements conjur images of a exhaustion and regret following elation or dare I say excitement?

Haylock somehow makes this album feel like an instrumental score despite his vocal in 3 of the 5 tracks. He displays fine production knowledge in knowing when vocals are appropriate and when they’re not, he also has complete confidence in allowing the whole composition to do the talking rather than being drawn into the compulsion to over do things or show off. In the final two tracks this is evident as Le Lendemain progresses with pulsating mystery enough to find something new on every listen and heightens the excitement for the release of the next EP – I’ve Been So Busy.

Le Lendemain -After The Excitement is available on Bandcamp, Spotify and Soundcloud.

Words by Jimmy Gallagher

 

 

 

 

 

 

// Say Hello To Heaven // A Tribute To Chris Cornell //

Grunge, rock’s imaginary brother, has tragically lost another man to a self destruction that has gone hand in hand with the era to which it belonged. Perhaps despite Kurt Cobain’s super stardom and obvious genius it was Chris Cornell who was the most important to the movement and music at that time. Soundgarden, and later Audioslave’s lead man, committed suicide by hanging aged 52. He follows Andy Wood, Layne Staley and the great Kurt Cobain to the grave, taken by their own hand. So what is it that pollutes the murky waters of grunge that in turn infects these men of solid rock?

This article is a wholly personal and solemn response to the news of Cornell’s suicide on Wednesday after a Soundgarden show in Detroit – the home of the MC5 and adopted by Alice Cooper and the great Iggy Pop. His death will not make the front pages but it is nevertheless an unquantifiable loss to music and music fans worldwide. His legacy should be forever remembered, as it could be argued that with out Chris Cornell one of the most exciting and ground breaking movements in rock music may never have happened at all.

Soundgarden formed in 1984 in Seattle. Amongst the times of polished guitars and sparkling record production, Cornell stayed true to the long since forgotten golden age of hard rock and emulated the likes of Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. In doing so, he began his rise to being rightly considered one of the greatest hard rock vocalists – but that would come later.

The wet city of Seattle in the far north west corner of the United States was about to become the most talked about and hip musical metropolis on the planet. But not before the heavy metal ethos Chris Cornell and the likes of Green River, The Melvins and Mother Love Bone had adapted and incorporated this into their music. Soundgarden’s first album –Louder Than Love was followed in 1991 by the brilliant Badmotorfinger, which became a blue print for what the imminent rock movement of grunge would become. Formerly of Seattle institution Sub-pop Records, Soundgarden joined the majors when signing to A&M prior to the release of Badmotorfinger. Tracks as brazen and bold as Jesus Christ Pose, Outshined and Rusty Cage announced Cornell and guitarist Kin Thayill as the main players in guitar music  – yet Badmotorfinger is not given the credit it should be, due to the sudden emergence of the press favourites Nirvana. Bleach is the record remembered as that periods seminal album, but members of that band had been going to see Soundgarden and The Melvins for years in and around the Seattle underground scene.

Soundgarden built songs around riffs and dragged those riffs far, deep and long, but they were not necessarily ambitious in those early days. In a time when The Pixies were toying with their oddball excellence of weird time signature, it was Soundgarden who made ‘very loud’ cool again. In the same year Badmotorfinger was released, another band, formerly Mookie Blaylock, hit unheralded heights with their album Ten. Pearl Jam and Temple of the Dog guitarist Stone Gossard reflects on Soundgarden around 1986 in Mick Wall’s 1994 biography ‘Pearl Jam’: “Soundgarden became a great band because they had a chance to develop naturally. They weren’t thinking about major tours, they just wanted to put out a record on Subpop, because that was the coolest thing you could do”.

Pearl Jam were a mixture of survivors of the legendary Mother Love Bone, but when revered lead man and local icon Andrew Wood tragically died from a heroin overdose, guitar player Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament recruited guitarist Mike McCready and an untried rookie vocalist named Eddie Vedder. As tragedy manifested itself on Seattle, it seemed a phoenix would rise from the ashes of anything there. As Pearl Jam and Soundgarden joined forces in 1991 for the classic Temple of the Dog project, it would be Vedder who turned heads, but only under the masterful supervision of Cornell. To this day the Temple of the Dog is a superb and unequalled demonstration of hard rock soul from a collective soon-to-be supergroup. There was a tangible togetherness and camaraderie amongst (in the music press’ eyes) competing outfits. That collective power and mutual respect is still present to this day – see how Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron joined Pearl Jam in the mid nineties when Jack Irons left, yet he still performs with Soundgarden.

Now we are up to speed on the musical timeline and rock family tree in Seattle, we must now exclusively concentrate on arguably the orchestrator and linchpin of it all – Chris Cornell and Temple of the Dog is the perfect starting point. It is as a vocalist that he will rightly be remembered, and it was Temple of the Dog that catapulted him into the MTV world. At this point we knew of his high register metal capabilities but it was the soul within tracks like Reach Down, Call Me A Dog and the beautiful Say Hello To Heaven that set him apart from everyone else. He had soul and a willingness to explore the extremities of his capacity. Grunge by now was a category, a genre – but within it Cornell was never restrained either as a writer or a singer.

In 1994 Soundgarden released one of the all time great rock albums – Superunknown took rock to a place that it has never since returned. Close in magnitude to Physical Graffiti, the variety of The White Album and the transcending indulgent experimentation as Maggot Brain – this was a ‘grunge’ album of  versatility and cavernous depth like no other. Later The Smashing Pumpkins, certainly influenced by Superunknown, followed Cornell’s lead with the epic Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Much like 15 years before when punk was the saving word in guitar music, Cornell’s multi-dimensional and progressive vision was bigger in content and idea than the ‘grunge’ label would have previously allowed, yet it was the press who implemented those restrictions themselves.

In a truly important and defining point in time for guitar rock, the action was almost exclusively centred around one city, but Cornell would later recall that the money men took what was marketable and disregarded top quality Seattle bands who didn’t fit their archetypal version of a far larger group of bands that history tells us. The labels and moguls were quick in identifying the Seattle sound that the genre is identified by: a dark, heavy, unclean punk sound built around grimy disassociation with society. The fashion followed suit and the word became a youth culture beyond music. Cornell was not only influential in inspiring others to follow Soundgarden, but his song writing and all conquering voice was able to take a typecast music form to new places.

Chris Cornell’s voice was a one off. While appearing to be screaming he was able to somehow hit notes at the highest register. Full of soul and capable of so many styles, he could cruise between octaves at ease. Say Hello To Heaven from Temple of the Dog was Motown soul, while Rusty Cage expressed huge power. But later, even after years of serious drug and alcohol abuse, tracks from Superunknown and Down On The Upside left fans in awe of Soundgardens lead man. Just listen to Overfloater – his voice alone is able to conjure an atmosphere of cinematic tension. In arguably their best track, Fresh Tendrils, Cornell navigates through his range effortlessly and in doing so takes you to the dark, dense and dreamed up worlds that he imagines.

Chris Cornell was always willing to broaden his talents and he later achieved gongs of all kinds for creating numerous movie soundtracks, most notably You Know My Name from the James Bond movie Casino Royale in 2006. He pursued a successful solo career and fronted super group Audioslave (boasting Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello). Soundgarden reformed and released King Animal in 2012 – many thought this would be the start of a renaissance for Soundgarden but that proved not to be. Chris Cornell, whilst allegedly intoxicated by large quantities of anti-anxiety drugs, hung himself in his hotel room. Although it is over 20 years on from Stayley and Cobain deaths, Cornell’s is no less disturbing.

Chris Cornell could not escape the fatal clutches of substance abuse and the reoccurring deprecating doom that Seattle’s grunge era has induced in shocking cases of drug overdose’s and suicide. He will be remembered as one of the greatest hard rock front men and vocalists and he will inevitably continue to inspire so many young aspiring rock musicians.

Words by Jimmy Gallagher

 

// ANTI-POSTER PUNK // A look at the variety in trans-Atlantic post punk //

Chain Of Flowers in their home city of Cardiff – Buffalo Bar 2016

Some would suggest that punk music was over by the beginning of 1978, this revolutionary development in music culture containing only three chords in a two and a half minute package of guitar angst and anti-establishment verbal’s. It could surely only have a limited shelf life because of the formulaic constraints punk applied to itself. The use of any instrument other than drums, guitar and bass were forbidden and anything that resembled progression would have been seen as a U-turn to treachery and an admittance of conformity to the music of the ruling middle classes. Yet punk does remain in ethos, style and sound. It is an evolution of the purists version in 76-77 but the same rules do not apply. This is post-punk.

Post punk came in new waves in the UK and U.S.A throughout the late 70’s, 80’s and 90’s each washing up an added defining feature onto the punk landscape. These were shared by and built on by the next flag barers. Garage punk, hardcore-punk and Anarcho-punk are immediately identifiable from each other but are unmistakably punk; The Fall for instance, could not be mistaken for Black Flag and Napalm Death are a stark contrast to Conflict, but never has this form of music been so diverse and eclectic as it is today.

In Canada and the northern states of America a wealth of bands have adapted what punk is capable of, and in doing so have inspired its advancement with innovative design. The catch is that the majority of people won’t recognise the names of the bands who are creating an era defining sound in a truly golden age of punk. None are the same but all are alike, and that is in keeping with the post-punk tradition.

Parquet Courts at Trinity Centre – Bristol 2016

Parquet Courts from Brooklyn, New York City are a prime example of what post punk has become, or invariably, what they have made to be post punk. In 2012 their album Light Up Gold bared all of the energy and uncleanliness as The Clash’s Give Em’ Enough Rope did but the undeniable optimism in rhythm momentum and lyrical content seem a world apart. Not to say it’s better or more informed, it is not as consistently political. Just listen to Stoned And Starving or Dust for clarification of that point. However the Ted Heath/Maggie Thatcher revolutionists would spit out there fried spam sarnies in shock to the enlightened new age of punk music, but perhaps they wouldn’t make the connection between the two periods due to lack of exposure to it and a subconscious lack of empathy with a more privileged generation. The truth is there are socio-economic issues today and there will forever be, therefore a constant well of injustice and revolt can be tapped into for generation after generation of punks.

The Clash themselves were castigated for the use of horns and  a general eclectic approach to multi-genres on the great London Calling in 1979 (Although released in 1980). What would they have thought of the recorder solo Parquet Courts included in You’ve Got Me Wonderin Now from the 2013 EP Tally All Of The Things That You Broke? Although that was under the pseudonym Parkay Quarts, a thoroughly punk concept in itself.

The reality is that what is happening will go largely unnoticed by music history. The quality of the output is not reflected in sales but buying habits have changed and media coverage a mere fraction of that their ancestors enjoyed in the late 70’s. Fortunately the likes of Big Ups from New York don’t allow themselves to be phased by that. Verging on new wave hardcore, Big Ups are a tongue in cheek savagery made for the sweaty underground. This particular carnation of punk is a simmering undercurrent of disassociation with capitalist mediocrity mirrored in tight bass and reflecting drums erupting like a geyser every so often. Big Ups are an image of the 80’s anarcho-punk scene reminiscent of Conflict or Fugazi but sparkling with a chrome finish. Then there is Preoccupations (formerly Viet Cong), they are a punk for all seasons encompassing Pretty Vacant chords with In Utero blasts of dirge. They travel the timeline of punk stopping at new wave synths and bleak goth in a jigsaw puzzle of noise.

It seems that the hotter the music the colder the city it derives from, Canada is a hotbed of boiling punk in many guises right now. In Montreal you have two bands brandishing very different punk projects. Ought are a Talking Heads meets Pulp progression of high brow, high velocity high jinks, lead singer Tim Darcy is a slender and charismatically apologetic conductor of progressive and infectious punk compositions like More Than Any Other Day and the incredible single from their second album Beautiful Blue Sky. Solids on the other hand, much like Metz from Toronto, are a reincarnation of the Seattle sound of the early 90’s. A distorted wall of energy and adrenalin with a galloping thrust.

Ought @ Clwb Ifor Bach – Cardiff 2016

There seems to be a punk for all nowadays. Yuck are the epic anthemic punksters, The Cloud Nothings are multi dimensional band of tuneful pain, and the remarkable Thee Oh Sees are as experimental as any prog rock band. What is for sure is punks don’t feel obliged to conform to type, in music and in fashion. Punks don’t have to wear black ripped leather as was their want and they don’t sport safety pins through their septums; on the contrary, arguably the most complete post punk band of all are the least alluring, but then that is punk by evolutionary design. Protomartyr from Detroit are the anti-heroes, the un-hipsters – but they ooze a bleak topical power that blows anything in the billboards to smithereens.

Talking about Protomartyr’s lead man Joe Casey at 2014 SXSW Festival, The Los Angeles Times wrote – “In an industry that thrives on image, heat and pretty singers who wouldn’t tuck a button-down shirt into belted pants unless with irony, Protomartyr was unafraid to tackle ugly topics that most fame-seeking acts avoid.”

Ugly topics is what Protomartyr do best, with a cavalier disregard and a full blooded body punch of shuddering sound. 2014’s Under Colour Of Official Right was an unsanitized masterpiece tackling government corruption and social inequality in lyrics and the rules of engagement in guitar music. Last year Agent Intellect confirmed them as a true force in rock, with its sometimes squalid and shadowy atmosphere a surprising beauty unveils itself at key intervals – I Forgive You boasts a simplistic key change transforming the feel of a fast tempo ‘Cribs’ like romp into something far more profound and lovely. Pontiac 87, Dope Cloud, Why Does It Shake? and Clandestine Time all have moments of delicious magic mixed with a tinge of grief and discouraging anguish – accessibly inaccessible Protomartyr are a vice of dark proportions that you can’t do without.

EAGULLS/PROTOMARTYR Tour poster

This age of anti-poster punks is not confined to North America, in Britain post-punk bands arguably cover a broader range of music diversity in their punk music. Drenge, Wytches and Eagulls are loud and aggressive but are versatile enough to visit areas of post rock , grunge and metal. British punks are undoubtedly influenced by American bands but are as equally open to the artists of their own land but from another time.

Cardiff band Chain Of Flowers are one of those groups taking the best parts of the music they have studied and loved and redesigning the blue print to suit themselves. Elements of The Jesus And Mary Chain, Iceage and Joy Division intermingle in their sound and as a result Chain Of Flowers music is being enjoyed on both sides of the Atlantic. They have recently returned from a successful U.S tour via Europe and Scandinavia. Lead singer Joshua Smith tells me that they were as gratefully received by the public as they were to be there – “We were out there for a month, touring both the West & East coast of the USA before finishing up in Canada, playing Montreal and Toronto respectively. It was an overwhelming pleasure”.

Big Ups @ Louisiana, Bristol

 

 

Chain Of Flowers appeared on the famous Seattle radio station KEXP, squeezing in a live session performance in between dates on their tour – “That was a really cool thing to be asked to do” Smith tells me, “Even at 9am in the morning on next to no sleep. They’re great people who have been very supportive of us”.

Noticeably, many of todays post-punk bands tour together, much like they did first time around. Metz and Protomartyr toured the UK last year and the latter supported Eagulls a few months ago. Discussing the sheer number of high quality bands coming out of North America at present, Smith suggests a more logical explanation than a mutually beneficial support network for this – “I think the reason for so many good post-punk bands coming from the same place is more a matter of size and geography. The U.K. at the moment is most definitely blooming on its own terms. We’ve just got back from Static Shock Weekend in London and the weekend was testament to it all”.

It is true that the U.K is blossoming in this field, bands like Sievehead, Sarcasm, Misc, Fex Urbix and another Cardiff band – Disjoy are all pushing the boundaries of post-punk in this country reinforcing Smith’s enthusiasm for his own bands direction –  “I enjoy more so the blurring of lines and crumbling boundries of genre on lineups that we’re lucky enough to be a part of”.

Joshua Smith is surely not alone in the industry with his awareness of the impact this music is making amongst students of good guitar music -“Post-punk will never go away but it seems to be sliding back into the light for a minute both over here and overseas. It’s a very broad, all-encompassing tag that is also used to describe a vast amount of bands that are very removed from what we do. A lot of the time, it means not a great deal, but that’s also fine”.

For the time being it is important to celebrate the variety we are being treated to within post-punk today.

Words and photographs by Jimmy Gallagher

 

 

 

 

 

// BACK TO THE BEDROOM // An Exclusive Interview With OLIVER WILDE //

The stereotype once associated with the singer/songwriter was that of a disillusioned young person with an acoustic guitar strapped around their shoulder penning laments of alienation and social injustice. To a degree, some of those traits will always exist but a new generation of pioneering D.I.Y artists have adapted song writing and more specifically song production with a savvy digital approach that has injected a new lease of life into the music and has begun to change the perspective of the art of song writing. One such trail blazer is Bristol based Oliver Wilde. Quiffed Owl met up with him for a long over due talk. “I have been promising you an interview for months so we can talk about anything you want to” Wilde kindly offers. And I duly accept.

After a bowl of soup each in Stokes Croft’s The Canteen, we escape the bustle to take sanctuary in a quiet real ale pub over looking the famous Gloucester Road area of Bristol where so many musicians have cut their teeth. Oliver Wilde’s rise took a different path to many in that his critically acclaimed first two albums were made and completed in his bedroom using a mic, a couple of tape machines and a drum machine before his label Howling Owl approached him for a release.

His latest record Long Hold Star An Infinite Abduction saw Wilde take to the studio with intentions of collaborating with a producer and other musicians “I wanted to try and widen the screen a little bit. I guess the idea was to try and break out of the cycle of making bedroom records as an attempt to exhibit some sort of trajectory of progression”.

Along with his band Wilde moved down to a place near Land’s End on the very tip of Cornwall where they built a cabin studio with a panoramic view of the ocean.

Wilde identifies the reasons for his different approach to the recording of Long Hold Star: “I think my music is quite simple and repetitive and it is more about the words, the emotion and the atmosphere as supposed to a musical expression so working with people who are primarily musicians and less artists was what I wanted to do”.

Despite his very best intentions Oliver Wilde encountered numerous difficulties at the time of recording Long Hold Star including unrest between the band and a mental breakdown. He reflects on that time less than fondly and sites a lack of motivation at the time to contributing to, what he perceives as being, a poor record which he is keen to move on from.

“It was just after Loose End Womb and as we started Long Hold Star I had a full blown melt-down which lasted about two years and I only really started coming out of that at the beginning of this year so my attachment to that record is negative and I feel as though my heart wasn’t really in it because I didn’t feel comfortable with what we were doing.”

As if to exacerbate the psychological and emotional stress Wilde was experiencing, it was his body that was deteriorating due to a serious heart defect that he has been admirably living with since childhood.

“I was really ill with my heart condition and it made it quite impossible to do anything. But we had just signed to the label and things were moving along and there were some external pressures forcing that record through.”

By the time the album was finished Wilde immediately returned to hospital for a few weeks and whilst there he had an epiphany. “I was lying there and decided ‘I don’t like this album and I don’t want to put it out at all’ – which got me in quite a lot of trouble”.

Wilde remembers having to be convinced by Howling Owl to release the material recorded in Cornwall even though his personal attachment to the recordings were so negative. It was Wilde who decided to shorten the tracks from the original 16 to just 7 and make it an EP rather than an album to follow on from Red Tide Opal In The Loose End Womb.

In hindsight Wilde identifies some realisations born as a result of those dark times he experienced that has culminated in a new album due out in the new year. “You have to trust your judgement” He tells me, “My Life was so dishevelled with my health and everything that for a moment I lost my confidence in my judgement”.

It is fair to say that “His judgement has returned”, and the yet unnamed album is ear marked for a release in February. It is a return to the low-fi approach that he is far more comfortable with. “After wasting all of that money on an album that wasn’t even released properly I am returning back to the bedroom so to speak and I have recorded the material on really basic equipment again”.

So, what can we expect from his new stuff? Wilde suggests it is a continuation of the first two albums containing familiar woozy experimentation, for that is how he arrived at his sound in the first instance. “I consider the new record to be my third album proper. It is more of a personal statement and although musically and atmospherically it is moving forward, contextually it is still in a realm of comfort to me”.

What sets Oliver Wilde aside from other artists today is his trademark atmospheric sound and in his upcoming album he returns to his DIY roots but has tweaked his approach resulting in a record he is very proud of.

“I have always wanted to experiment with synthesizers and I have somehow found a way to get that to fit in with my world of constant repetition and what I call ‘skips’ but what others call ‘glitches’, these bit-crush sounds and all the things that characterise my music. The new record, like the first two records is fraught with imperfections but it is perfect to me but it is those imperfections that I strive for”.

When you listen to Oliver Wilde’s music you cannot help but notice that beyond the sound decoration there is a human resonance in his words that he intends for people to relate to and be challenged by. Wilde discusses a slight variation to his first two records as they were not originally intended to be heard so are by his own words – “More self absorbed”. Wilde is challenging what subject matter is appropriate for the traditional pop song.

“I try to convey a sense of truth whether it be a true story or if it resonates truth with anyone but I think in the mainstream, pop music tends to shy away from the more important subjects, especially in Britain and as a result we don’t tackle things like mental health, suicide, rape or racism because they are big scary words”.

When listening to Oliver Wilde’s music you are transported to an atmosphere that the music itself creates. The dense layers of sound and effect build a world around the words so I ask Wilde to comment on this and whether this is influenced by places or something more than just other artists. “I get influences from places, more conceptual things, from stories and literature and my experiences of the world. I know when a track is finished when there is a world to invest in, to go to, when there is a pallet of sound and an atmosphere intense enough for you to go to and get lost in”.

The Cover of Red Tide Opal In The Loose End Womb

Accompanying Oliver Wilde’s dense, woozy soup of sound, the ethereal album sleeve artwork and magically innovative titles empower Wilde’s vision of a dreamscape world. This is all part of the process for a man who considers himself an artist before a musician.

“I am meticulous with the artwork and very particular with whom I like to do it for me. There is a small team I rely on – Robin Stewart from ‘The Naturals’, Harry Wright from ‘Giant Swan’, Adrian Dutt from ‘Spectres’ and James Hankins. Between the five of us, we have enough skills to do pretty much what we want. For instance Adrian is a great illustrator and Robin did the first album collage from some old National Geographic magazines. James had the idea for Red Tide Opal, we wanted a foetus, not a human foetus so as there would be questions about it. It is actually a wolf”.

Howling Owl Records are an influential institution for music lovers, especially if you are from, or familiar with Bristol. Galpal, The Naturals & Giant Swan are all signed to the label that Spectres member Adrian Dutt is 50% of. There is certainly a sense of community in certain factions of music makers in the city.

“When I was growing up I thought ‘a scene’ should have quite a clear label or mutual direction but in somewhere like Bristol, because the music is so diverse you have to think of it in a different way. For example, in strictly music terms I can’t be compared to Spectres and they can’t be compared to Giant Swan, so what keeps us so close and such good friends? It is because we make art out of necessity”.

I wonder whether that is exclusive to Bristol or can be said for any city, “It is not a London type scenario where there can be a moulded market for the music”, Wilde explains -“We tell people what our culture is rather than us being told what our culture should be. We are allowed to grow organically rather than being formed from an embryonic beginning”.

It is his label whom Wilde is keen to adorn praise on. “It is not that we are resigned to not making money but we all share the same aspirations and that is to create music and art we think is great. The artistic freedom we have is down to how facilitating the label is, they are not money driven like a major and it completely liberates you from what others are probably expected to be”.

Wilde talks passionately about his city and the people and venues that go to creating this constantly vibrant and artistically progressive place. He identifies The Malthouse and musicians such as Beak>, including Geoff Barrow (Portishead), as being central to the sharing of ideas and development of unique art in Bristol. Oliver Wilde is the epitome of an artist and with good health willing, his industry and unequivocal imagination will take us on many more adventures into his world of sound.

Words and photographs – Jimmy Gallagher