I may have first come across Conner Youngblood (twitter) with the lo-fi and bass heavy sound of Monsters, but he’s not one to be kept within a genre bracket. No, we had the uplifting marching sounds of Australia back in October, and today he’s put together a mixtape of his work to date in Sketches Pt.1 – a compilation of four songs we know and love, and four pieces of new material.
Better Slow Down is soft and simple with just layers of voices upon a fertile ground off-kilter rhythmic tin-can drums, whilst Color Blind (I swear) is more of an under-produced American folk-influenced serenade. Down #2 is back on the electronic groove, with soulful vocals over soft synth-lines and a drum machine that could almost be from Jamie Woon’s back catalogue.
Sketches Pt.1 shows the undeniable talent of Conner Youngblood, we are just waiting for him to decide on his path and follow it into a full-length soon.
I first came across Florian Lunaire (facebook/twitter) in his band Disappearers about a year ago (we even tried to book them for our showcase), and his talent of crafting perfect pop noir tunes that are both sweeten the ear and soften the heart was apparent back then. Now he is branching out on his own with often little but a piano to accompany him and I’m swooning once more.
He releases a collection of songs for each season, having just released the track Blossoming Winter – but his style can sway anywhere with influences from the likes of The Pixies, or even a little of recent Radiohead – high praise indeed! Whether it is the upbeat Summering Here or the swaying Four Darks, Lunaire is a man to be watched as the world discovers him in 2012.
…and here he is playing a gig recently at The Old Queen’s head
The Midlands was once a buzzing scene that broke bands such as Black Sabbath – but of late, there is a new wave of music coming out of Birmingham that’s grabbing the ears of the nation and fusing a range of different sounds. One of the most prolific names around town in the past two years has been The Arcadian Kicks (facebook/twitter) – a female-fronted five-piece with influences that include Fleetwood Mac, Sonic Youth and The Horrors. Their new material is a dark combination of echoing guitars and the powerful vocals of lead-singer Rebecca Wilson. It’s a sound that caught the ears of another Midlands music legend – Jon Brookes, drummer for The Charlatans, who signed the band to his record label One Beat Records.
The first of their new releases under One Beat Records, a track called You Play The Girl, features some warbling lead guitar chords and a great bass riffs but also a range of catchy lyrics that edge into the pop-world cautiously. The track was released as part of a Gap Clothing compilation and is available on free download.
Last week The Arcadian Kicks released the video for their newest offering – I Wanna Take You Home – which serves up similar melodic guitar lashing with catchy lyrics. The video itself is shot entirely in black and white and barely features the band. With plenty of alcohol abuse and pretty girls smoking, it’s a typically fitting video.
I Wanna Take You Home and You Play The Girl were both recorded with Mike Chapman, who produced many of Blondie’s albums. It’s a combination that seems to have moved the band towards a fusion of different genres and sounds, away from their typically indie roots. In fact the previous line-up even featured back-up vocalist and keyboardist Rebekah Pennington occasionally playing saxophone, which the band seems to have not utilised in the new tracks. Nevertheless their live performance is energetic and polished and the growing audiences at shows is a testament to band who may just be on the brink of national success.
