JU NE 2016 ISSUE 38 // FREE
WHITNEY
LET’S EAT GRANDMA WEIRD DREAMS KLYNE YUNG
MITSKI
WELCOME
MITSKI
Instead of telling you about all the awesome musical things I'm excited for this month, I'm gonna use this editor’s letter to talk all about a new project we're part of that launches in June. We've come together with a bunch of awesome people to start an initiative called Support Act. After reading about the wonderful Plus1 scheme in Berlin, where gig-goers lucky enough to be on the guestlist are asked to donate one euro to go toward a range of different schemes helping refugees, we wondered why the hell there wasn't anything like that in London and set about plotting a way to make it happen. So this June will mark the official launch of Support Act, as loads of our favourite promoters and venues jump on board to help us raise as much money as possible for an incredibly important and pressing issue. We'd love to have your support too, so find us at @supportactuk and join in. You heard it here first.
STAFF ON REPEAT the tracks we can’t stop listening to this month JESS: LET’S EAT GRANDMA - EAT SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS DAVE: CHANCE THE RAPPER - ANGELS LOKI: SPEEDY ORTIZ - DEATH NOTE DANNY: SAMPHA - TIMMY’S PRAYER GEMMA: METRONOMY - OLD SKOOL METRONOMY (photo: Nicolas-Coulomb)
JACK: MITSKI - HAPPY LiS 03
CONTENTS 08. ON THE STEREO
LONDON IN STEREO IS:
13. NEW SOUNDS
Editor: Jess Partridge jess@londoninstereo.co.uk
17. TALES FROM THE CITY
Deputy Editor: Dave Rowlinson dave@londoninstereo.co.uk
20. WHITNEY
Sub-Editor/Sales: Loki Lillistone loki@londoninstereo.co.uk
26. MITSKI
Staff Writers: Danny Wright, Gemma Samways Jack Urwin
32. ALBUM REVIEWS
Photography: Mitski: Lucy Johnston (lucyjohnston.co.uk) Whitney: Tim Boddy (timboddy.com)
40. EVENTS 45. GIGS OF THE MONTH 49. LIVE LISTINGS 69. IN LONDON 70. LIVE REVIEWS 73. PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS
Contributors: Rhian Daly, Lee Wakefield, Tim Hakki, Kate Solomon, Simone Scott Warren, Jake May, Geoff Cowart, Thomas Hannan, Tom Walters, George O’Brien, Henry Wilkinson, Charlie Mock.
WHITNEY londoninstereo.com
@LondonInStereo
/londoninstereo
/london-in-stereo
londoninstereo LiS 05
JUNE 2016 ~ LIV E ~ 2nd 3rd
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Avec Sans / 10th Chalk / 11th Bambooman
Sound & Vision: Mistaken For Strangers
Saint Agnes / 25th Duck House / 27th Moonface & Siinai ~ LATE ~ every friday
4th
11th
Weekly Friday alt-pop
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Bridging the gap between
& contemporary sounds
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18th
25th
Wedding themed, time
Fresh bands straight
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off the stove
Dates, times & tickets: www.hoxtonsquarebar.com
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WAKE UP “Don’t wake me up,” pleads New Orleans-born dance sophisticate Dawn Richard on her Machinedrum-produced new single. We get ya, Dawn: in a time of the zika virus, George Osborne and food recipes being obliterated from the BBC website, it’s never been more tempting to hide beneath your duvet in a permanent state of hibernation. But this, another glimpse at her incoming RED*emp*tion album, is the kind of pacey banger worth getting out of bed for: a bassy braid of R&B vocals and agitated rhythms that further cements her as a cult club hero you can’t afford to sleep on.
XENIA RUBINOS BLACK STARS
XENIA RUBINOS
When David Bowie released his final album in January, two days before his death, we didn’t know what its title meant. The name Blackstar, it transpired, was his one last laugh in the face of fate: a nod to the medical name of a cancer lesion, as that illness ate at him from the inside. Brooklyn’s Xenia Rubinos’ new single, ‘Black Stars’, was written years ago, but coincidentally also stares down mortality. Inspired by her father’s health struggles and police brutality deaths, it’s a piano-driven groover with a bubbling underlayer of grinding synths and joyous steel drums.
ODDISEE
ODDISEE
ON THE TABLE Washington rapper-producer Amir Mohamed el Khalifa’s latest mixtape, The Odd Tape, takes inspiration in the little things. A bustling instrumental account of a typical day in his life, from coffee-making to the night bus home, it sees him step away from the mic, shining a spotlight on his skills behind the boards. The whole tape’s great, but the jazzy, sublime ‘On The Table’ stands out.
DJ Q SONIC Not to get all “old man yells at cloud”, but video games were just better back in the halcyon days of 16-bit, when picking up a console controller seldom meant you being abused to the point of psychiatric care by a racist, energy drink-huffing fifteen-year-old in another timezone. ‘Sonic’ harks back to that golden time: four minutes of grinning, pinball-like electronics forged from Sonic The Hedgehog sound-effects.
ARIANA GRANDE
ARIANA GRANDE SIDE TO SIDE
Okay, so no one strictly “needs” a reggaepowered pop song from Ariana Grande in their life. Nor does anyone need reminding that Nicki Minaj “gives zero fucks”, as she does on her guest verse here. Then again the singer, about to release new album Dangerous Woman, didn’t really need to lick that donut in that Californian bakery on CCTV, but that was awesome, and so is this, suckers. With thanks to FACT magazine’s Al Horner
FACT online: factmag.com // @FACTmag // facebook.com/FACTmagazine LiS 09
THE F E S T I VA L
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SUPER FURRY ANIMALS TEMPLES
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NEW SOUNDS by Gemma Samways KLYNE
photo: Synchrodogs
I’ve seen quite a few derogatory references to "blog-pop" recently, mostly from myopic #realmusic fans, who seem unable to cope with the fact that many disparate styles of music can thrive simultaneously. "Blog-pop" is essentially a snidey, bullshit phrase referencing the recent glut of synth-led, R&B-influenced songs self-released by bedroom producers. And yes, there has been a glut, and as is true of music of any genre, not all of it is worth your time. So instead of bleating on about the makeweights of the "movement", let’s focus on some future stars. Vocalist Nick Klein and Tiga-approved producer Ferdous Dehzad have been sharing slick, minimalist electro-pop on Soundcloud since the start of 2015. Their excellent early singles ‘Paralyzed / Entropy’ and ‘Waiting’
were released by tastemaker imprint Aesop - who also discovered TĀLĀ and SOHN - and, following an arena tour with Years & Years, the Dutch duo have just joined Metronomy and Christine and the Queens over at French indie Because Music. Listening to their debut track for the label, it feels like a very neat fit. Combining darkwave-ish synths with the propulsive patter of drum pads, and overlaid with the warmth of Klein’s supple, soulful vocals, ‘Don’t Stop’ is a crepuscular, avant-pop gem. So if the continued existence of "blog pop" means hearing more songs that sound like a collaboration between Jai Paul and Matthew Dear, count me in. LISTEN TO: Don't Stop ONLINE: soundcloud.com/thisisklyne // @thisisklyne facebook.com/ThisIsKlyne
LiS 13
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TALES FROM THE CITY Everything was set for March 2nd where we were to make our first live appearance in London. The location was The Old Blue Last, a venue where numerous prolific bands and artists had played. Needless to say, we were looking forward to that gig. Joining us on stage that night were Crows and The Bodies, two lovely London-based bands. We flew from Copenhagen to London on the day of the show and got to The Old Blue Last in good time to hang a bit. We had a couple of pints of Guinness (my first encounter with Guinness too) and had time to introduce ourselves to The Bodies and Crows. Very good people we still hang out with to this day. All three soundchecks went as smoothly as possible and the audience started showing up. We were having a time backstage (a good time), and things were looking as bright as ever. I mean it was our first show in the UK, tickets had sold really well and we were playing a very lovely venue. Maxwell (vocalist in The Bodies) came up to me and said: “We’re on in ten minutes mate. Very excited about seeing you guys.” And literally right after he finished that sentence the lights went out. It was very strange and our first thought was that the problem probably was a fuse.
by YUNG
Confusion broke out but The Bodies went on stage, in a very crowded room, and realised that the problem was not a fuse. The whole street had suffered from a power cut which of course was the worst thing that could’ve happened. The minutes went by and the crowd got restless; we got restless. After half an hour the technicians at The Old Blue Last concluded that nothing could be done, and the promoter immediately started calling all pubs in the area. The show had to go on. After ten very intense minutes on the phone he found a place. The very lovely venue The Shacklewell Arms was available and keen on a last minute show. We packed up all the gear and threw everything in three cabs. At The Shacklewell Arms we loaded in, put up the gear and soundchecked in 30 minutes. Luckily people followed, and thanks to social media (thank God, yeah) people found their way to the new venue. It was certainly a rather hectic first encounter with London but it was also a night with a happy ending. We’re back at The Shacklewell Arms on June 14th and they have promised to keep the power running. We’re very excited about that. Yung Shord
Yung release A Youthful Dream June 10th, via Fat Possum/Tough Love. LIVE: June 14th, Shacklewell Arms. ONLINE: yungbandstuff.com // @yungbandstuff // facebook.com/yungbandstuff LiS 17
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whitney
words: danny wright
photos: tim boddy
It’s the morning after the night before. Whitney’s songwriters Max Kakacek and Julien Ehrlich sit in an East London pub picking tentatively at their full Englishes. Yesterday was a surreal day, starting by watching Clapton FC beat Tower Hamlets 2-0 in the Essex Senior League and ending in Finsbury Park institution Rowans, a bowling alley-cum-nightclub-cum-karaoke booth that seemingly never closes.
So, what Whitney song could the Clapton team come running out to? “That’s a good question. Maybe ‘Polly’ if they came out right at the chorus,” Max is getting into it. “But also what’s the best Whitney song for the fans to appropriate into a chant?” “It’s ‘Dave’s Song’!” jumps in Julien. “Or maybe ‘Golden Days’. Just think of the call and response.” They both start singing theatrically: “Na, na, na, nah.” And it was ‘Dave’s Song’ which was the first track they wrote together as Whitney, after the pair had met when Julien joined Max’s old band Smith Westerns. “We were good friends “I bowled a 120 - I don’t that lived together,” Max know how,” says Julien. “...after explains. “And we’d “And we did this thing played together but never making those when we all put lipstick creatively. Then one on and kissed each first songs morning I got a tape other’s shirts,” laughs machine and said ‘Let’s we were like Max. “I Face-timed my just make a song’ and we girlfriend when I got in were like ‘This is cool.’” ‘Oh, no way, and she was saying ‘What “The demo of it sounds were you doing?’” we’re not insane,” explains Julien. It’s clear they’ve also going back to “We had friends over taken Clapton FC to their later that day and we hearts. “We’ve been that other said ‘Listen to this thing talking and we’re going to we made today,’” Max stuff.’” Clapton every time we’re adds. “We were excited here,” Julien tells me. because we could hear The band stood with the club’s fans – the what it could be as the finished version, Scaffold Brigada – chanting and drinking. but to them it just sounded like the craziest thing.” “It’s kind of hard to watch any sport in that intimate setting with that passion in As we discuss it further it’s clear that the States,” says Max. “That’s why we Whitney was a natural outlet for creative loved it so much.” urges that had felt stifled. “It was just The fans’ chants take in anti-Fascist really organic,” says Julien. “Smith songs, cries of ‘Forza Clapton’, an ode to Westerns had ended but it wasn’t like we Tyskie beer, right through to a reinterpreted thought ‘We need to work as hard as we version of Taylor Swift: ‘We are never can now to form a new band’. We were ever, ever, going back to Barking’. “That actually working on other separate was the most fun part - when they started projects. But after making those first singing and trying to figure what song songs we were like ‘Oh, no way, we’re not they were using,” says Max. going back to that other stuff.’” LiS 21
“...you have to make great records but you also have to give up a part of yourself.”
Those songs were written with the intention of making them feel like lost classics. And to help them with that aim, they took the name of a fictional songwriter called Whitney. If they were stuck, they'd think, ‘What would Whitney do in this situation?’ “The name Whitney was what spawned those first two songs,” explains Julien “But as we wrote more tracks the whole scope of what we were doing changed and we realised what we were writing was so personal that the writing from the character thing stopped.” And from those early demos they were able to slowly add colour to their vision of what they wanted the band to sound like. “The fourth song we wrote was ‘Polly’ and we had the chorus but we didn’t know how to make the chorus sound bigger. We try to only use organic instruments and Will (Miller) came over and did the horn part I wrote. Then at the end there’s a horn solo and we said ‘Do you just want to do your own thing here?’ and in one take he did what’s on the record. We immediately said ‘Do you want to join the band?’”
The result, their debut album, Light Upon the Lake, sees their dream to create lost classics become real: it’s a dreamy, sun-dappled record - a hazy and intoxicating mix of falsetto, brass and heartbreak. And the fact that Julien and Max have been in bands before means they’re ready to seize the opportunity. “It taught us there’s no way around it, you just have to tour, and work as hard as you can,” says Julien. “Of course, you have to make great records but you also have to give up a part of yourself. And whatever romantic relationships you have are going to go through some struggles. You might lose some sanity but you have to tour as hard as you can.” The album seems to encapsulate those feelings - an album of joy but regret, looking forward and back. As Julien explains, the title was the perfect sentiment to “sum up the transition of everything we were going through… But the lyrics being so personal actually makes it easier to get into for us. Neither of us are the type to dwell on it every time we play - we realise we’re in a good, happy position. We really just love playing.” Listen to their album and this joy shines through. Whitney will soundtrack many afternoons sat in a field this summer watching the sun setting. And, you never know, next season in a muddy field in East London, just maybe Clapton fans will be chanting their songs. Whitney release their debut album Light Upon The Lake June 3rd via Secretly Canadian. LIVE: Koko, November 10th. End Of The Road Festival, September 2nd-4th. ONLINE: whitneytheband.com // @whitneytheband // facebook.com/whitneychicago
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mitski
words: gemma samways - photography: lucy johnston
“I was a different person every year: the popular kid, the girl who never talks, the one who’s partying and doing bad things...”
Like most people, my overriding memories of adolescence are of being unsure of my identity, out of sync with my physical appearance, and ricocheting from one unrequited crush or unsuitable romance to another. What pulled me through was the naive belief that all of this was transient, destined to be magically spirited away with adulthood. The truth is that none of these issues ever truly subside. On the contrary, post-adolescence they’re simply augmented with a fresh set of concerns. No musician articulates the absurd, painful experience of being a young adult more eloquently than Mitski Miyawaki. On ‘First Love / Late Spring’ - from her 2014 breakthrough Bury Me At Makeout Creek - she serves up romantic anguish with a side-order of suicidal fantasy, all the while wryly referring to herself as “a tall child.” It’s an astonishing song, and emblematic of her rub ’til it bleeds songwriting style, which is characterised by violent emotions, macabre imagery and bone-dry wit. It’s the latter that makes Mitski such an engaging interviewee. We meet the day after her sold-out show at Birthdays, and when I thank her for eschewing with the whole encore charade, she laughs. “It’s complicated because it’s so nice to be encored. But at the same time it’s like, we know that this is a formality… It’s just like someone trying to do foreplay on you when you already came, you know? It’s like: we’re done, it’s fine.” As per its Simpsons-referencing predecessor, Mitski’s fourth album and debut for Dead Oceans - has a similarly tongue-in-cheek title, this time born out of “cynically riffing” on
the record’s themes with producer Patrick Hyland. Puberty 2 is more than just an amusing name, however; it’s deeply evocative, communicating that Groundhog Day-feeling of repeatedly butting up against the same issues in adulthood. Mitski’s own upbringing was somewhat nomadic. Born in Japan, she then spent large parts of her childhood and adolescence on the move with her parents and younger sister, including spells in DR Congo, Malaysia and China. At an age when most of us were focussed on fitting in at one high school, Mitski went to four, in three different continents, before ultimately settling in New York to study Studio Composition. “When you’re a teenager you’re looking for an identity or a group of people, and I was never part of any club,” she recalls. “I would get somewhere and all of my time and energy would be spent on just trying to keep up and adjust. And by the time I finally adjusted I would move again. So I think it was hard, but if it wasn’t that there would have been something else, you know? Adolescence is just hard for everybody, whatever situation they’re in.” “And I got to experiment a little bit. Every year was a tabula rasa, so I was a different person every year: the popular kid, the girl who never talks, the one who’s partying and doing bad things. So it was good because I got to try to figure out who I am, but it also fucked me up, because I realised there was no core me, you know? It’s hard to hold onto whatever identity you have when you realise early on that identity is very flexible. And I still haven’t found it, but I think it’s less about identity and it’s more about my limits and my habits. Like, I’ve realised by now that I have a certain amount of social energy and then after that I like to be alone.”
Mitski recalls those outsider feelings for Puberty 2-lead single, ‘Your Best American Girl’, which she jokingly introduced at Birthdays as, “The song that ten years from now everyone will be demanding I play, and I’ll be like, ‘Fuck you!’” Over gently strummed guitar and wistful synths, she quietly compares herself unfavourably to her “all-American” lover, describing herself as “not the moon, not even a star” while casting him as “the sun”, albeit with the caveat that he’s “never seen the night” from his position of privilege. By the distorted, visceral chorus, she’s ricocheting between indignant fury and acute self-doubt, crying, “Your mother wouldn’t approve of how my mother raised me / But I do… I think I do.”
“I want to shy away from saying my music is confessional because there is this trope of the wild girl who’s connected to a higher power...” Though Mitski’s songs are rooted in personal experience, she’s keen to reiterate the divide between life and art. “All of my music is triggered by specific encounters. But I want to shy away from saying my music is confessional because there is this trope of the wild girl who’s connected to a higher power - who’s like some kind of priestess - just talking gibberish and letting it all out, and that’s not the case. When I write songs, I craft them. It’s not like this is my diary, you know? I use metaphors.” Like its predecessor, Puberty 2 addresses a broad range of issues, from depression (‘Happy’ / ‘Fireworks’) and hustling to survive (‘My Body’s Made Of Crushed Little Stars’), to romantic relationships where the power balance is askew (‘Once More To See You’ / ‘A Loving Feeling’). She describes the record as “a maturation”, and that’s mirrored in increasingly adventurous arrangements on songs like ‘Happy’ - which features stuttering electronics and saxophone and more sonic variety throughout.
“For Bury Me At Makeout Creek I was very conscious of making sure I could recreate everything live,” she says of the development. “That’s why I stuck to instruments that would sound good in the worst sound environment. But for this one I figured I would worry about the live setting afterwards.” Learning to relinquish a modicum of control was integral to the process too. “I’m very obsessive, controlling, anal retentive,” she admits with a smile. “So for my past albums I almost wouldn’t let people do their jobs; I was helicoptering over everyone. I didn’t allow for any margin of error. And also I have this very bad habit of immediately going on the defensive, feeling like I’m attacked all the time. But now I think I’ve learned to let that go, like, no-one’s trying to threaten me, we’re just trying to figure this out. I have enough emotional space to step back and let people do their job, and I think that’s how music has helped me grow.” Puberty 2 was recorded in a fortnight, back in January 2015, and in the interim Mitksi’s fanbase has increased tenfold. I wonder, how is she coping with her
newfound notoriety? “It’s very scary,” she replies. “Being a “public person” [means] you’re no longer a person: you’re a symbol or you’re an idea. And that’s so uncomfortable to me. But I feel like I will always be perceived as that, as long as I am someone who people have never met but know. And I don’t know how to handle it yet, but I’m figuring it out.” In conversation, as in her songwriting, Mitski doesn’t have all the answers, and she never claims to. She isn’t some high priestess figure, for fans and critics to worship or fetishise; she’s a work in progress, navigating the same moral dilemmas and issues as us, and doing so with as much honesty and integrity possible. And while that may not be the dream we were all sold in adolescence, in reality, it’s the very best we can hope for from adulthood. Mitski releases Puberty 2 June 17th via Dead Oceans. LIVE: The Dome, Tuffnel Park, October 6th ONLINE: mitski.com @mitskileaks facebook.com/MitskiLeaks
CATE LE BON THURS 26 MAY OVAL SPACE
D.D DUMBO MON 13 JUNE SEBRIGHT ARMS
FAT WHITE FAMILY SAT 17 SEPT O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON
BC CAMPLIGHT MON 30 MAY THE LEXINGTON
PALACE TUES 14 JUNE ICA
CHELOU WED 28 SEPT ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH
ROYAL HEADACHE TUES 31 MAY TUFNELL PARK DOME
WOLF PARADE TUES 14 & WED 15 JUNE SCALA
BEATY HEART THURS 6 OCT BUSSEY BUILDING
MINNETONKA WED 1 JUNE SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS
CAR SEAT HEADREST TUES 21 JUNE 100 CLUB
MITSKI THURS 6 OCT TUFNELL PARK DOME
ASTRONAUTALIS THURS 2 & FRI 3 JUNE THE WATER RATS
MELANIE DE BIASIO THURS 30 JUNE JAZZ CAFÉ
EZRA FURMAN MON 31 OCT ROUNDHOUSE
FRAN LOBO MON 6 JUNE THE WAITING ROOM
GRACE LIGHTMAN TUES 19 JULY SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS
THIS IS THE KIT TUES 1 NOV UNION CHAPEL
FEAR OF MEN FRI 10 JUNE ST PANCRAS OLD CHURCH
SERATONES THURS 1 SEPT THE LEXINGTON
LA FEMME THURS 17 NOV O2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE PARALLELLINESPROMOTIONS.COM
ALBUMS
RECORD OF THE MONTH LET’S EAT GRANDMA I, GEMINI
All the best artists create their own worlds. Whether it be The Libertines’ romantic visions of Arcadia or Nick Cave’s dark and seedy underbelly, there’s a rich history of musicians forming their own idealistic fantasy lands in their heads and inviting their fans to join them there. Norwich duo Let’s Eat Grandma are no different and their debut album is their offer to escape with them. I, Gemini is like the soundtrack to a lysergic fairytale Transgressive - June 17th (almost literally on ‘Rapunzel’), covering the spectrum of playful, dark and completely, wonderfully batshit. It’s Stand Out Tracks: experimental and strange, but also boasts big pop moments Chocolate Fudge Cake Rapunzel and the kind of hooks that you’ll wake up singing months Deep Six Textbook after hearing them. Rosa Walton and Jenny Hollingsworth Eat Shiitake Mushrooms share similar idiosyncrasies with Grimes and the selfassured elegance of Lorde, but there’s also something very Live: June 1st, Electrowerkz June 11th, Field Day inherently English about them, in the same grand tradition August 6th, Visions Festival of fellow auteurs Syd Barrett and Kate Bush. ‘Eat Shiitake Mushrooms’ races along a xylophone solo Online: @thelegofgrandma ahead of thumping beats and ‘Chocolate Fudge Cake’ facebook.com/thelegofgrandma shows off Let’s Eat Grandma’s love of the left-of-field. It opens with a long, creepy panpipe intro that takes up half of the song’s run time. After, ominous drums and synths sneak in as the girls sing “I’m gonna make a coffee cake/ Eurrrgh!/I’m gonna make a chocolate cake” like their own nursery rhyme. ‘Rapunzel’ begins with elegant but spooky piano that sounds like should be filtered through Miss Havisham’s house in Great Expectations, before giving way to a dramatic, impassioned song that positions the girls as their very own Rapunzel-esque characters, locked up in towers. At one point, they reject the notion they should enjoy being the focal point of such gendered stories with the line “My hair’s not blonde and I’m not having fun in this fairy tale that my mother read”. The album is bookended by two versions of ‘Deep Six Textbook’. The first is languid and haunting, drones rippling gracefully throughout like murky pond water; a gentle but spellbinding introduction. Album closer ‘Uke 6 Textbook’ is a two minute recreation on ukuleles, included to appease those who assume Let’s Eat Grandma play twee folk because of their gender and image. That the pair are teenage girls (Rosa is sixteen, Jenny is seventeen) is important - it’s bound to have informed how they see the world - but shouldn’t dominate the rhetoric around this album. I, Gemini isn’t weird because it comes from the brains of two young women - it would be weird (and innovative and intriguing and downright magnificent) whoever laid claim to its creation. What matters most is how the world has gained a truly original and exceptional record, by two musicians with the ability to completely transport you to another world. Rhian Daly
HAILU MERGIA & DAHLAK BAND WEDE HARER GUZO
Awesome Tapes From Africa // June 17th While preparing the follow-up to his rediscovered and recently reloved LP Tche Belew, Ethiopian Moog synthesiser wizard Hailu Mergia decamped from his original Walias Band and set up in Ethiopia’s Ghion Hotel. Dahlak Band happened to be there at the time, and together they created this newly reissued tape Wede Harer Guzo - a brilliant collection of instrumentals that focus on Mergia’s ridiculous knack for melodic instrumentals that infused the spirit of the hotel’s famed nightclub. The resulting ten tracks - recorded in just three days of sessions - are some of Mergia’s most dancefloor-ready material, including the groove-laden single ‘Sintayehu’. Those looking for more to work their feet to will find this less laid back than Tche Belew, but just as urgent and infectious and timeless. Tom Walters
FEAR OF MEN
FALL FOREVER Kanine Records // June 3rd Fear of Men’s debut record, 2014’s Loom, was a delicately beautiful and quietly brilliant gem that didn’t ever quite receive the adoration it so thoroughly deserved, so you would hardly blame the Brighton band if they’d felt forced to shake things up with album number two. Thankfully they’ve resisted. Fall Forever subtly builds on the shadowy moods of their previous material, adding touches of dark, bassy, electronic experimentation and drum effects while continuing to pour the same level of thought, care and attention to detail into the production and subtleties of their work that they always have. As a result, Fear of Men have made a stunning record that – fingers crossed – will earn them that little extra bit of adoration this time round. Jake May
TEGAN AND SARA
LOVE YOU TO DEATH Warner Bros. Records // June 3rd Do you remember the spring of 2007, when we all got really into Wii Bowling? And then we figured out exactly how to twist the Wiimote in order to get a strike so we just kept getting strikes every single go? Tegan & Sara have figured out exactly how to twist the Wiimote of pop. They seem to have taken the formula they came up with on 2013’s Heartthrob and honed it, added some extra shimmer, infused it with even more love and heartache and come up with the world’s catchiest bops tailor-made for shouting along to as you clutch your BFFs in the middle of a sweaty crowd. Love You To Death may not quite be a 300 point game, but that’s just as well. Wii Bowling got a bit boring after that, didn’t it? Kate Solomon
BISHOP NEHRU MAGIC 19
Self-release // June 3rd The Batman Begins samples that kickstart Magic 19 on opener ‘Did I Find It?’ set us up for something epic, but rarely does the mixtape come close to its source material. Similarly, second single ‘It’s Whateva’ samples ‘Untilted 07’ from Kendrick Lamar’s recent TPAB demo compilation Untitled Unmastered but lyrically does nothing to carve a standout path for itself. It’s perhaps a little too bold to jump on a Kendrick offcut and attempt to turn it into a single. The obvious lack of K-Dot’s “Levitate Levitate Levitate!” hook leaves it feeling as fun as a bouncy castle without air. Bishop’s strengths are in the smoother moments - ‘$acred Visions’ and ‘You Should Know’ both excel here because they don’t attempt to do too much, but in the mixtape’s weaker moments it’s an absolute mess. There are several bad ideas that someone should be pilloried for: the two note octave piano pedalling on ‘He The Man’ is more like an annoyingly melodic metronome repeatedly bludgeoning the song into mediocrity. ‘One Of A Kind’ tries to hock us some tired and watered down Lex Luger style trap while ‘I Know’ is a bubbling broth of shoddy beats. Lyrically there’s nothing to relate to at all. It’s one of the quirkier and more juvenile hip hop records to have come out recently, but placed against Chance or select works from the Odd Future alumni, it’s actually just totally skippable. Tim Hakki
SIR WAS SAYS HI
City Slang // June 3rd For obvious reasons, too few debut EPs take you on a tour of the world. Whether it be due to the slight running time or the understandably tentative forays of an emerging artist, many refuse to approach the extended play through a widescreen lens. The same can’t be said of sir Was, however. Not one to be restricted by time constraints nor the lack of scope that blights so many releases, Says Hi treads a wonderfully ambitious path from its outset, snatching fragments from Joel Wästberg’s jazz roots and affirming experiences in Gothenburg, Durban, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Presented with such a unique project, it’s bewildering to learn that it took him fifteen years to pluck up the courage to even release it. And the EP’s globetrotting snapshots are no more prevalent than in its skittish, zigzagging rhythms; ‘Near Here’ is particularly compelling thanks to a hypnotic percussion arrangement that loops in mesmerising fashion. It’s sumptuous Scandi-pop but not as we know it, I tell myself as the bonkers bagpipe opening of ‘A Minor Life’ hums and bubbles into earshot, giving way to ‘Falcon’ and the record’s closest stab at a breakout single. Nevertheless, not much here grabs on first listen. If anything, repeats are needed to digest the scale of what Wästberg is attempting to meld together. As introductions go, it’s more hesitant handshake than warm embrace but that’s okay – against all the odds, sir Was’ indecision makes for some spectacular tunes. Let’s not wait another fifteen years. Lee Wakefield
ELVIS DEPRESSEDLY
HOLO PLEASURES / CALIFORNIA DREAMIN’ Run For Cover // June 3rd Mellow is a word indicative of several things. It’s both a flavour and something you can touch, whilst also suggesting a calm geniality that is, more often than not, generated as a result of moderate beverage consumption and direct exposure to sunlight. In this case, though, mellow pertains to the feeling that follows a listen of Holo Pleasures/California Dreamin’. A brief recap of the DIY duo’s 2013 release sails into much needed new noise from the North Carolinian pair, with California Dreamin’s light melodies offering a semblance of sanguine amidst the downtrodden lyricism and themes of despair as hums of noise pop squeeze their way into consciousness, begging to be heard and set up to triumphantly endure the test of time. Charlie Mock
STEVEN JULIEN
M.CRAFT
Apron Records // June 3rd
Heavenly Recordings // June 17th
For his debut album – and first outside his 12” Funkineven moniker – the West Londonborn Apron Records boss jumps straight into the deep end. Harnessing his trademark analogue grit he engineers a classic flip between sides A and B. The former lulls you into a false sense of security. Marrying up dub narcotic basslines, from the guesting Hercules, and incandescent ambient pop he gently introduces his woozy dancefloor grooves. But the flip is another – much darker – story entirely. Ramping up the tempo and the pressure, Julien pushes the pounding kick drum opener on ‘Kingdom’ to dizzying heights with a set of zig-zag synth line loops. It only gets wilder, heavier and more twisted from there until you throw your headphones across the room in delirious exhaustion. Geoff Cowart
Somewhere in the middle of the Mojave Desert, M. Craft sits at a hundred year old grand piano playing odes to something even older. Blood Moon, his third album, is named after twice witnessing the lunar event and celebrates its stillness and beauty over any ominous or sinister connotations, paying tribute with stringed accompaniment, soft percussion and hushed vocals. A ten point meditation constructed in isolation and centred around gorgeous midnight piano pieces, this is the classical pop album that Villagers’ Conor O’Brien would fawn over. In fact, it plays like one long movement rather than individual tracks. Blood Moon is cinematic from start to finish too, though just like the desert in which it was recorded, if it’s variety you’re after, you might not find it here. Henry Wilkinson LiS 35
FALLEN
BLOOD MOON
MINOR VICTORIES
MINOR VICTORIES Play It Again Sam // June 3rd It’s unfair, but impossible not to compare Minor Victories to the output of their respective other bands. With Mogwai’s Stuart Braithwaite, Slowdive’s Rachel Goswell, Justin Lockey from Editors and his brother James forming the quartet, the bar’s set pretty high before the first note. There are points where they hit it; ‘Give Up The Ghost’ builds an ethereal soundscape brilliantly, whilst ‘Higher Hopes’ and ‘Folk Arp’ make the hairs on your arms stand up in their beauty. The collaboration with Sun Kil Moon’s Mark Kozelek is suitably leftfield, but does underline that Goswell’s vocals work better when allowed to soar rather than speed. It’s probably less than the sum of its parts overall, but lower your expectations and Minor Victories is an interesting proposition nonetheless. Simone Scott Warren
DEERHOOF
THE MAGIC Upset The Rhythm // June 24th Deerhoof albums fall in to three categories; The Best Deerhoof Album (Friend Opportunity), Very Good Deerhoof Albums (like this one) and Good Deerhoof Albums (all the rest). The fourteen they’ve released in their twenty years together all sound relatively similar to be honest, but still, there are few bands who sound quite like them. The Magic isn’t a landmark release in their canon, but it’s perhaps more coherent than their last few, the sound of a rock band revelling in being the only ones doing whatever it is they do (which is a bit of everything). The best bit is ‘Kafe Mania!’, which sounds exactly like what you’d imagine a Deerhoof song called ‘Kafe Mania!’ to sound like, and is all the better for it. Thomas Hannan
CASE/LANG/VEIRS
CASE/LANG/VEIRS Anti- // June 17th We send a lot of emails these days and many of them amount to nothing. For case/lang/veirs it was all it took. Acclaimed and wholly individual musicians in the their own right, Neko Case, k.d. lang and Laura Veirs have teamed-up thanks to a hopeful lang email - for an album as beguiling as it is smile-inducing. The trio, with Tucker Martine behind the desk, blend enchanting harmonies, bucolic themes and a fairytale hue to create this masterful full-length. Veirs’ songwriting is probably most audible throughout, as ‘Best Kept Secret’ and ‘I Want To Be Here’ provide heart-warming highlights of folk perfection. But it’s clearly a team effort and what a team they are; maybe email is not so bad after all? George O’Brien
Goldenvoice Presents
ALGIERS
AIDA VICTORIA
07.07.16 SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS
GIRLI
12.07.16 THE GARAGE
ALLIE X
+ BLOOD SPORT 30.05.16 100 CLUB
13.07.16 OSLO
SHURA
26.07.16 THE PICKLE FACTORY
01.06.16 KOKO
CLARE MAGUIRE 06.06.16 T ST OLD LD OU SOPANCRAS CHURCH
LEO KALYAN LIVE EVIL 08.10.16 THE DOME 09.10.16 THE DOME
BLOODY KNEES
KHRUANGBIN
RIVRS
JP COOPER
08.06.16 ELECTROWERKZ
09.06.16 RED GALLERY
PIXX
+ LITTLE CUB 14.06.16 THE PICKLE FACTORY
CROWS 15.06.16 BARFLY
THE STRUMBELLAS
05.07.16 HOXTON SQUARE BAR & KITCHEN
25.10.16 ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL 26.10.16 O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN
HONNE
28.10.16 ROUNDHOUSE
SLEAFORD MODS 10.11.16 ROUNDHOUSE
THE SPECIALS 15.11.16 THE TROXY 16.11.16 THE TROXY
MAY – NOV
+ DARK E FREQUER 808INK JIKAY THE PURIST 29.05.16 JAZZ CAFE
goldenvoice.co.uk
WAKA FLOCKA FLAME
SAT.28.MAY.16
SUN.29.MAY.16
MON.06.JUN.16
THU.09.JUN.16
THU.30.JUN.16
WED.31.AUG.16
TUE.12.JUL.16 THU.01.SEP.16
TUE.31.MAY.16
FRI.10.JUN.16
THU.21.JUL.16
SAT.17.SEP.16 FRI.22.JUL.16
TUE.31.MAY.16 SUN.12.JUN.16
FRI.22.JUL.16 TUE.31.MAY.16
FRI.03.JUN.16
THU.22.SEP.16
MON.13.JUN.16
TUE.21.JUN.16
SAT.30.JUL.16
THU.29.SEP.16 FRI.30.SEP.16
FRI.30.SEP.16
THU.20.OCT.16
TUE.14.JUN.16
THU.24.NOV.16
THU.10.NOV.16
MON.03.OCT.16
THU.20.OCT.16 FRI.21.OCT.16
THU.10.NOV.16
FRI.25.NOV.16
MON.03.OCT.16 TUE.04.OCT.16
WED.26.OCT.16
FRI.25.NOV.16
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WED.12.OCT.16
FRI.02.DEC.16
FRI.28.OCT.16
FRI.18.NOV.16
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WED.07.DEC.16
WED.02.NOV.16 WED.23.NOV.16 MON.17.OCT.16
FRI.09.DEC.16
EVENTS
a selection of new stuff we’re excited about: ROUNDHOUSE PUNK WEEKENDER
YOUTH MAN
40 years on from 1976, the year that punk rock exploded in the UK, this weekender looks to celebrate the legacy of punk and to look firmly into the future of it, too. Naturally it’s set in Camden, this spiritual home of all things classically mohawk - but this will go way beyond the cartoon image of punk in an effort to explore just how influential it has truly been. Between screenings of documentaries like She-Punks: Women in Punk and talks touching on subjects like How Did Reggae Influence Punk? you’ll also find performances from Phil Jupitus, a punk record fair, 'zine fair, food stalls and, of course, a whole bunch of the best punky bands around, headed up by the incendiary Youth Man. This promises to be a unique and celebratory event. July 8th-10th. Roundhouse, Camden. roundhouse.org.uk // @RoundhouseLDN
SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL LONDON It’d be easy to glance over the pond, towards Utah and Robert Redford’s legendary Sundance Film Festival, see all the best in new and independent cinema happening there and feel a little envious. Don’t worry though, we’re getting the pick of those films over here at the lovely Picturehouse Central. Of course there’s a whole lot more going on than purely the opportunity to watch some of the buzziest new films around: you can also catch discussions on subjects such as Diversity As An Ethos and Cutting Through The Festival Bullshit. You can take in short film options, like a showcase of the best of the British shorts from Sundance or you can get nostalgic with some festival classics like The Usual Suspects. And, then, of course, watch the new films. We’re especially intrigued by Goat and the Ellen Page-starring, Sian Heder-written Tallulah. June 2nd - June 5th, Picturehouse Central. facebook.com/PicturehouseCentral // @CentralPictureH LiS 40
GUY GARVEY’S MELTDOWN FESTIVAL The music of Elbow might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but if you’ve listened to Guy Garvey’s exceptional 6Music show, you’ll know this is someone with a genuine fascination and love for a huge array of music. Therefore we now find him stepping up to where Jarvis, Patti Smith, David Bowie and Yoko Ono have stood before, curating this always-wonderful bash at the Southbank Centre. The line-up is typically eclectic and exciting, but above all we can’t wait to see the reformed Josh T Pearson band Lift to Experience. June 10th - June19th. Southbank Centre, SE1 @southbankcentre // southbankcentre.co.uk
Guy Garvey (photo: Thomas Butler)
DAYDREAMING WITH STANLEY KUBRICK The films of Kubrick have, of course, created a series of indelible images in our collective mind. So this coming together of a collection of some truly creative people to create art inspired by the legendary director sounds an intriguing prospect. The likes of Sarah Lucas, Joseph Kosuth, Gavin Turk, Doug Aitken and Charlotte Colbert are all responding to film, character or individual scenes and creating new interpretations of them. It all sounds fascinating, but especially Gavin Turk’s The Shining-inspired mirror maze. June 30th-Aug 29th, Somerset House, WC2R 1LA @SomersetHouse // somersethouse.org.uk
THE BP PORTRAIT AWARD 2016 Always one of our highlights of the year, we’re really excited to see the Portrait Awards returning to the National Portrait Gallery for an incredible 37th year. How many open-submission competitions exist like this, attracting art from all over the world exist? There are a selection of prizes available, from the overall winner to a Young Artist award - but, really, this is all about wandering around this beautiful gallery and just soaking everything up. Best of all, it’s free to get in, so it’s open to everyone. June 23rd-Sep 18th. National Portrait Gallery, @NPGLondon // npg.org.uk LiS 41
BIRD ON THE WIRE PRESENTS
Preoccupations
WED 22ND JUN THE SHACKLEWELL ARMS UT DO THU 23RD SOL JUN THE OLD BLUE LAST
Joanne Robertson
WED 22ND JUN SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS
The Weather Station + Gun Outfit
THU 25TH AUG THE SHACKLEWELL ARMS
Laura Gibson
MON 5TH SEPT THE COURTYARD THEATRE
Teho Teardo & Blixa Bargeld
Woods
Basia Bulat
Aidan Knight
Moonface and Siinai
Amanda Bergman
THU 2ND JUN RICH MIX
THU 2ND JUN SEBRIGHT ARMS
Zebra Katz SUN 5TH JUN OSLO HACKNEY
Moses Sumney MON 6TH JUN THE LEXINGTON
WED 22ND JUN THE DOME TUFNELL PARK
MON 27TH JUN HOXTON SQUARE BAR & KITCHEN
Mac DeMarco MON 27TH JUN ELECTRIC BRIXTON UT DO TUE 28TH SOL JUN KOKO
TUE 6TH SEPT OSLO
WED 7TH SEPT THE LEXINGTON
Frankie Cosmos THU 8TH SEPT THE DOME TUFNELL PARK
Ulrika Spacek TUE 27TH SEPT ELECTROWERKZ
Globelamp
She Drew The Gun
Olga Bell
Alex Cameron
Porches
Destroyer + Ryley Walker
Little Scream
Tim Hecker
The Very Best
Julia Holter
TUE 7TH JUN SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS
TUE 14TH JUN THE WAITING ROOM
WED 15TH JUN OVAL SPACE
The Tallest Man on Earth + Damien Jurado TUE 21ST JUN ROYAL ALBERT HALL
WED 29TH JUN THE LEXINGTON
WED 29TH JUN THE WAITING ROOM
TUE 5TH JUL SEBRIGHT ARMS
TUE 5TH JUL XOYO
Visions Festival
SAT 6TH AUG HACKNEY / LONDON FIELDS
Nzca Lines
WED 28TH SEPT VILLAGE UNDERGROUND
MON 24TH OCT THE DOME TUFNELL PARK
FRI 4TH NOV BARBICAN CENTRE
MON 14TH NOV O2 SHEPHERDS BUSH EMPIRE MORE INFO AND TICKETS BIRDONTHEWIRE.NET
GIGS OF THE MONTH
OUR PICK OF THE BEST SHOWS HAPPENING IN JUNE 2016
THE OLD BLUE LAST
SOLIDS // BIRDSKULLS // PET CEMETERY An awesomely fun line-up, topped by the Montreal duo bringing the scuzzy slacker rock of their recent ‘Else’ EP to London.
06/06/16 £8adv @theoldbluelast OLD STREET
SHACKLEWELL ARMS
BRIXTON WINDMILL
The great punky pop mayhem of Yung is back in town - hopefully they’ll have a smoother time than their last trip here, which you can read all about in Tales From The City on page 17.
Let’s Go Baboon are putting on a bunch of shows, raising money for CALM, and this all-dayer & BBQ looks brilliant
YUNG
14/06/16 £5adv @Shacklewell Arms
DALSTON JUNCTION / KINGSLAND AMBER ARCADES
ESPER SCOUT // COSINES // LAZARUS CLAMP + MORE
11/06/16 £6adv @windmillbrixton
BRIXTON
BUSH HALL
THE ANCHORESS // FIONA BRICE The ornate setting of Bush Hall is going to suit The Anchoress’ ‘Confessions of a Romance Novelist’ album perfectly. 15/06/16 £15 @Bushhallmusic
SHEPHERD’S BUSH
THE LEXINGTON AMBER ARCADES
Our New Sounds artist last month, Gemma Samways got us really excited to see Amber Arcades live and get swept away by ‘rippling, Deerhunter-esque dream-pop’, ‘krautrock shimmer’ and ‘sun-dappled melodies’. 07/06/16 - £8adv // @thelexington
SURYA LACEY
Post-rock, classic rock and more all come together to form the dynamic live thrills of Nottingham’s Lacey.
ANGEL
07/06/16 £7adv @Surya_London KINGS CROSS LiS 45
SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS
THE GOOD SHIP
The wonderfully intriguing folk of Globelamp’s ‘The Orange Glow’ album has totally won us over.
A night to get you dancing hard to the partyparty sounds of Concrete Disco.
GLOBELAMP
07/06/16 £6.50adv @ServantJazz
CONCRETE DISCO // THE SENIORS // BEE BAKARE
DALSTON JUNCTION / KINGSLAND
11/06/16 £5adv @thegoodshipNW6
BORDERLINE
MULL HISTORICAL SOCIETY We’re really happy Mull Historical Society are back in our lives with their charming indiepop. Hope they play ‘Watching Xanadu’!
OSLO
MOONFACE AND SIINAI
‘Ultimate Care II’, made entirely from noises from a washing machine, is one of the oddest and best records of the year. HACKNEY CENTRAL
NEW CROSS INN
Spencer Krug’s Moonface join forces with Finnish post-rockers Siinai to create an extraordinarily powerful racket. Really looking forward to this one. 27/06/16 £11.50adv @HoxtonHQ
OLD STREET
O2 ISLINGTON ACADEMY
SILENT FRONT // EUGENE QUELL // MASS LINES + MORE
THE SUGARHILL GANG & GRANDMASTER'S FURIOUS FIVE
Tons of noisey fun to be had here, and raising money for Calais Action, too. 05/06/16 £8 @NewCrossInn
21/06/16 £14adv @theborderline TOTTENHAM COURT ROAD
HOXTON BAR AND KITCHEN
MATMOS
14/06/16 £7adv @OsloHackney
KILBURN
NEW CROSS / NEW CROSS GATE
Legendary hip-hop pioneers combine to create this astonishing line-up. 12/06/16 £22.50adv @O2Islington
ANGEL
THE DOME
TITUS ANDRONICUS One of our very favourite bands, and one of the most thrilling and inspiring live acts around. So excited to have them back in London. TITUS ANDRONICUS LiS 46
09/06/16 £16adv @DomeTufnellPark
TUFNELL PARK
ALEX CAMERON
FABRIC
DAMIAN LAZARUS // CRAIG RICHARDS // TERRY FRANCIS Influential label Crosstown Rebels take over Room 1 to demonstrate just how great they are. 25/06/16 £19adv @fabriclondon
FARRINGDON
WAITING ROOM ALEX CAMERON
We’ve been hearing incredible things about the Alex Cameron live show, so you’ll 100% find us here, seeing what all the fuss is about. 29/06/16 £6.50 @WaitingRoomN16
BIRTHDAYS
BRASSTRACKS + RAYE Fresh from producing duties on the new Chance The Rapper, this is Brasstracks’ debut UK live show, and it’s going to absolutely rule.
BEDROOM BAR
18/06/16 £5adv @_Birthdays DALSTON JUNCTION/ KINGSLAND
PAPER DRESS VINTAGE
NOVA NEON // NIA EKANEM Syncopated beats, bass riffs and masterful guitar and synths hooks from Nova Neon sounds one hell of a party. 22/06/16 FREE @Bedroom_Bar
DALSTON JUNCTION/ KINGSLAND
OLD STREET
THE NO SORROWS
Album launch show for the noisey folk kicks of The No Sorrows in this ace and intimate venue. 17/06/16 £4adv @paperdressed
HACKNEY CENTRAL
THE LOCK TAVERN
100 CLUB
Dreamy hazy guitar pop from Stockholm’s Magic Potion. You know if something’s on PNKSLM you’re in for the best times.
The Car Seat Headrest momentum continues. ‘Drunk Drivers/ Killer Whales’ is one of our top 2016 tracks.
08/06/16 FREE @thelocktavern
21/06/16 £9.50adv @100clubLondon
CAR SEAT HEADREST
MAGIC POTION
CHALK FARM / CAMDEN TOWN
TOTTENHAM COURT ROAD LiS 47
WEDNESDAY 1ST JUNE
THURSDAY 2ND JUNE
FRIDAY 3RD JUNE
SATURDAY 4TH JUNE
SUNDAY 5TH JUNE
MONDAY 13TH JUNE
ANNA MEREDITH FIELD DAY
TUESDAY 14TH JUNE
WEDNESDAY 15TH JUNE
THURSDAY 16TH JUNE
FRIDAY 17TH JUNE
SATURDAY 18TH JUNE
MONDAY 20TH JUNE
SUNDAY 19TH JUNE TUESDAY 21ST JUNE
THURSDAY 23RD JUNE WEDNESDAY 22ND JUNE
FRIDAY 24TH JUNE
SATURDAY 25TH JUNE
MONDAY 27TH JUNE
TUESDAY 28TH JUNE
SUNDAY 26TH JUNE
THURSDAY 30TH JUNE
WEDNESDAY 29TH JUNE
FOR ALL THE LATEST & MOST UP-TO-DATE LISTINGS, AND TO SIGN UP TO OUR GIGS OF THE WEEK EMAIL, VISIT LONDONINSTEREO.COM
06—16 Shacklewell Arms 71 Shacklewell Lane London E8 Monday 6 June
XAVIERS Tuesday 14 June
YUNG Friday 17 June
TOMORROWS TULIPS Tuesday 21 June
AUDACITY Wednesday 22 June
Lanzarote
lanzaroteworks.com #lanzaroteworks
presents
The Waiting Room 175 Stoke Newington High St N16 Monday 6 June
FRAN LOBO Tuesday 14 June
OLGA BELL Wednesday 15 June
THROWS Saturday 18 June
LAURENCE GUY Wednesday 28 June
PREOCCUPATIONS
ALEX CAMERON
The Lock Tavern
MOTH Club
35 Chalk Farm Rd London NW1 Thursday 2 June
UNCLE FUNKLE Friday 3 June
THE MEMORIES Saturday 4 June
WHITE FANG Friday 10 June
HOTGOTHIC Friday 24 June
LESS WIN
Valette St London E8 Friday 3 June
TORN HAWK Saturday 4 June
HAR MAR SUPERSTAR Wednesday 8 June
ELVIS DEPRESSEDLY Tuesday 14 + Wednesday 15 June
EMPRESS OF Tuesday 28 June
DESTRUCTION UNIT
presents
LET’S EAT GR ANDMA
sir Was
AMBER ARCADES
ELECTROWERKZ
OLD BLUE LAST
THE LEXINGTON
Wednesday 01 June.
Wednesday 01 June.
Tuesday 07 June.
MATMOS
TITUS ANDRONICUS
THE MYSTERY LIGHTS
OSLO
THE DOME
THE SHACKLEWELL ARMS
Tuesday 07 June.
Thursday 09 June.
Thursday 09 June.
CASS McCOMBS
D WN
NEON INDIAN
plus JAMMZ
THE LEXINGTON
XOYO
OVAL SPACE
Monday 13 June.
Wednesday 15 June.
Thursday 16 June.
YUMI ZOUMA
COSMO SHELDR AKE
MOTH CLUB
BUSSEY BUILDING
CECIL SHARP HOUSE
Tuesday 21 June.
Wednesday 06 July.
Tuesday 19 July.
VISIONS FESTIVAL
& TH E IMP ROMP TU EN SEMBLE
WILLIS EARL BEAL
FABER SOCIAL: An evening of talks with
TIM BURGESS Sharon Horgan / Andrew Weatherall / Pete Paphides
KIR AN LEONARD
VARIOUS, HACKNEY
THE FORGE
100 CLUB
Saturday 06 August.
Tuesday 09 August.
Wednesday 24 August.
SUNFLOWER BEAN
SUPER FURRY ANIMALS WILD BEASTS MYSTERY JETS & MORE
BY THE SEA FESTIVAL
OSCAR
SCALA
DREAMLAND, MARGATE
THE DOME
Thursday 15 September.
Fri 30 Sept & Sat 01 Oct.
Tuesday 04 October.
SWANS
POLIÇA
MØ
ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL
ROUNDHOUSE
ROUNDHOUSE
Thurs 13 & Fri 14 October.
Wednesday 19 October.
Saturday 22 October.
HALEY BONAR
KEVIN MORBY
FLUME
MOTH CLUB
ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL
ALEXANDRA PALACE
Thursday 27 October.
Tuesday 08 November.
Thursday 17 November.
IN LONDON WEIRD DREAMS with
Why do you live in London? I was born in Leytonstone and grew up a few miles down the
road in Essex. Music and art have kept me living here. There seems to be something good on at either Whitechapel Gallery, Marion Goodman, Vinyl Factory, Gagosian and so many other good galleries almost constantly. And lots and lots of musicians.
Where do you like to eat and drink? The Royal Oak near Borough is as far from gentrification and pretension as you can get, Stormbird in Camberwell was a local for a few years, Black Lion in Plaistow if we’re watching West Ham. Akari on Essex Road is in my opinion the best sushi in London (and if you’re coming from Canonbury you can take the weirdly beautiful River Walk), Indian Veg on Chapel Market is a buffet Utopia.
What makes a great day in London? Me and a friend
recently had some genmaicha teas at Cafe Oto, walked down the canal to drink a beer and laughed at the signs about pissing in London Fields, had a few export stouts at Redchurch Brewery, ate some pho at Green Papaya, then watched an unassuming man belt out some 50s pop songs to a fairly empty pub of blasted locals.
The best show you’ve played here? This is tough.
There’s been so many. From being assaulted to excellent stage invasions, I’ve played in London for over ten years and have had some incredible and horrendous experiences. Our most recent show, and my first in four years, was something very special and dear to my heart. We played at Waiting Room in Stoke Newington to a room full of people that received something I’d been working on (and the band around me played beautifully) for a long time in the most positive way. Previous to that, Kentish Town Forum with Girls in 2012 was powerful. Then there was the Sex Beat Thames Boat Party with Crocodiles when I thought the boat was actually going to tip over…
Does London ever influence the music you write? In the way that you exist in any environment, yes. Historically, not really. There are a few lines in some songs that reference the place I was at the time, but nothing that really romanticises it as a city. It’s just been home forever, so it’s normal to me.
How would you advise someone to get the most out
of the city? Make friends with someone who’s lived here their whole lives and has excellent taste. Oh, and don’t be lazy. Weird Dreams release Luxury Alone June 10th via Tough Love. ONLINE: @Weirdydreams // facebook.com/weirddreams LIVE: Rough Trade East, June 10th // The Lexington, September 14th.
LiS 69
LIVE TACOCAT - The Lexington, May 7th From the t-shirts on sale adorned with the striking artwork of their latest album, to guitarist Eric Randall’s novelty silver astronaut helmet, singer Emily Nokes’ superb skeleton jumpsuit and translucent pink skirt combo, and three out of their four members’ vibrantly dyed hair, it’s obvious that Tacocat inhabit a slightly different world to the rest of us. For one fun-loaded hour of Saturday night, the Lexington gladly becomes a part of it. Their flamboyant frontwoman leads proceedings with tambourine in hand, inciting a riot on numbers like ‘Hey Girl’ and ‘I Hate the Weekend’, the latter a highlight of recent third LP Lost Time and an anthem for weekend service workers. The staff on shift doubtless approve.
Much of Lost Time deals with the horribly misguided notion that “women’s shit isn’t real shit” and the Seattle foursome are at their most riotous here tonight when debunking that fallacy. Another cut from the record, ‘FDP’ (that’s First Day of Period), forthrightly soundtracks the time it concerns, charging ahead with its battle cry of “F-D-P! Don’t fuck with me!” Whatever the subject matter, though – from calling out trolls on ‘The Internet’ to obsessing over The X-Files on ‘Dana Katherine Scully’ – Tacocat do everything with an inherent cheerfulness that’s befitting of their charming and lovable cartoon aesthetic. As riots go, this one’s been pretty pleasant. Tom Hancock
HELEN LOVE // THE DONALDS // JURASSIC POP The Lexington, April 24th Jurassic Pop are, of course, reciting erotic dinosaur fiction because they’ve already finished their song about sleeping with Jeff Goldblum. It goes without saying that Jurassic Pop would be the best band on the planet, we’re it not for the existence of The Donalds. The Donalds, fronted by one Eddie Argos, are a blistering tribute to The Donnas and pummel their punky kicks through an Art Brut filter, emerging entirely triumphant. It goes without saying that The Donalds would be the best band on the planet, we’re it not
for the existence of Helen Love. Helen Love have existed forever, never changing, never ageing. Forever the day-glo cartoon-pop superstars trading in the most joyfully fluorescent Ramones-flavoured racket you’ll ever know. Every second tonight is an explosion of positivity, and the duet with Eddie Argos on ‘Debbie Loves Joey’ makes hearts boom like never before. Every time you hear a Muse or Slaves song and fear for music, humanity and your sanity, then listen to Helen Love. Nate Rockwell
Tacocat photo: Alicia Boheimer
LiS 71
PRESENTS
FRIDAY 4th NOVEMBER O2 ACADEMY BRIXTON
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT MYTICKET.CO.UK
In Defence Of Camden by Carl McCrae I think the last time I ever wrote an ‘essay’ about anything, I was eighteen years old and was made to write about Blondie’s ‘Heart Of Glass’ (a song that I never want to hear again) for my A-level in music, so obviously, my writing skills aren’t at their peak. However, this is a subject that I know I can confidently write about more so than anything else in my life. Camden is commonly referred as one of the worst places in London / UK / the world by, well, pretty much everyone I come across and, to a point, it’s understandable – roughly every ten metres, you can indulge in luxuries such as a bong in the shape of a gas mask, a t-shirt saying ‘FBI – Female Body Inspector’, or ‘Keep Calm, I’m A Musician’ and yes, a large majority of people here still think that “the Libertines were / are the most important band on earth”. But Camden is so much more than that nostalgia. Or poppers and salvia. Camden is the home to some of the most iconic and incredible music venues in the UK; Roundhouse, KOKO, Electric Ballroom, The Underworld, Dingwalls and Barfly to name only a handful. It’s one of the only areas in London that has managed to avoid becoming massively gentrified – a short stroll through the area and you’ll quickly realise that actually it’s one of the only places where small businesses can still thrive whilst living in the existence of your well-known Nando’s, Pret, Urban Outfitters etc. You will also find it very difficult to meet such honest, colourful characters anywhere else and of course, we have a multitude of incredible bars. One of which - the one closest to my heart - is The Hawley Arms – a pub where the staff rota currently reads like future headliners of the aforementioned venues, and photographers already worthy of their own exhibitions. It’s also home to the best pint of Guinness you can get without having to go to Ireland. With the exception of a brief stint living in Tottenham, I’ve lived here my entire life, I work in ‘trendy’ East London and have a girlfriend that lives in what is also considered ‘trendy’ Deptford but nothing will ever change the importance and love of Camden to me, and many, many others. LiS 73
PRESENTS
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT MYTICKET.CO.UK
PRESENTS
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT MYTICKET.CO.UK
S.J.M. CONCERTS PRESENTS
PLUS GUESTS
PLUS BAD RELIGION + TEMPLETON PEK
19 JUN / O2 BRIXTON ACADEMY
22 JUN / EVENTIM APOLLO
PLUS GAZ COOMBES + YAK
15 JUL / ALEXANDRA PALACE 16 JUL / ALEXANDRA PALACE
PLUS GUESTS
04 OCT / SCALA
PLUS GUESTS
PLUS GUESTS
05 OCT / KOKO
PLUS GUESTS
11 OCT / THE ROUNDHOUSE
07 OCT / THE ROUNDHOUSE
PLUS GUESTS
19 OCT / O2 SHEPHERDS BUSH EMPIRE
PLUS GUESTS
PLUS GUESTS
03 NOV / HEAVEN
15 DEC / THE SSE ARENA WEMBLEY
0844 811 0051