We Are The Sound

Natalie Prass “Side By Side (Live at Spacebomb Studios)” 5/5 For Natalie Prass, waiting for the right moment is probably something the accomplished songwriter knows better then most. After penning a deal with long time friend/collaborator Matthew E. White’s label Spacebomb Records in 2013, Prass had to wait a full two years for her debut album to see the light of day. White’s own release as well as others on the label saw Prass’ album sidetracked to make sure it got the attention it deserved. When it was released, it received critical acclaim and took Prass across the world including three appearances in Ireland this year. Skip forward to autumn this year and Prass has returned to Spacebomb HQ to record her new EP, Side By Side (Live at Spacebomb Studios). As with her debut, Prass has utilized the Spacebomb house band and the result is five tracks of lush, warm, live-tracked goodness. The EP comprises of two originals taken from her self-titled release and three covers chosen by Prass. For her own songs, Prass ditches the intricate and admittedly beautiful string and horn sections found on the original recordings and offers a different kind of intimacy through stripped down, honest performances. On “My Baby Don’t Understand Me”, the first minute of vocals and keys is hauntingly delicate and yet somehow more powerful then the original ornate version. Alongside her own work, Prass has chosen a mixed bag of covers: Anita Baker’s “Caught Up In The Rapture”, Simon and Garfunkel’s “Sound Of Silence” and Grimes’ “REALiTi”. Each one is given the same attention to detail as Prass’ own originals. “Sound Of Silence” is reworked into something closer to a Motown song then it’s folk roots, while “REALiTi” is given a slightly jazzy feel. The real beauty of live recording is present here on “Caught In The Rapture” though, where the band really gel and little ambient noises like drumsticks hitting rims or the sound of the room really give the track it’s weight. For just a five track EP, Side By Side is possibly the perfect length. Expertly crafted songs played out by a solid band result in involuntary foot tapping and tugs at the heartstrings. A special mention should also be given for the quality of the recording here. In the digital age of metronomic music, to hear a band push and pull is a wonderful thing and only adds to the overall intimate feel of the record. With a running time of just twenty-one minutes, the only problem with this EP is it just doesn’t last long enough.

Recently Apple announced that their streaming service ‘Apple Music’ had surpassed 10 million (paying) subscribers. Looking at the figures, it’s hard not to be impressed. In it’s first lease of life from September 1st 2015 to November 30th 2015, the service was free to all Apple customers. In other words, if you had iTunes, you got Apple Music for free for the first three months. Apple has managed to keep a hold of 10 million customers with the hopes that this number will steadily rise to surpass Spotify’s 20+ million paying users.

So what are Apple’s USP’s? The company invested heavily on their new radio station Beats 1, recruiting big names from the radio world and broadcasting from different locations around the world meaning the station is always on, 24/7. There has also been guest shows from artists including Elton John, St. Vincent, and Pharrell Williams among others. Apple also insisted their playlists would be personalised, using a mix of their own algorithms and ‘expert curators’. It’s this last point that has made me cancel my subscription to Apple Music.

It could be said that Spotify have a big advantage over Apple Music just from the basis that Spotify has existed a much longer time. Over this time, Spotify has taken note of what we listen to, put us into categories and can now recommend music to us with a pretty good success rate. Along with the information Spotify has gathered, it has also gone through the growing pains of a new app. The bugs, the complicated interface, the non-user friendly displays...Spotify has been there and fixed them all.

At this point you could argue, ‘well, if it’s just time then Apple Music will only improve right?’. Maybe, we’ll see over time but the point is that right now, Spotify is a superior service to Apple Music. Although i liked the idea of a streaming service from Apple, at the end of the day there is no reason you should pay for a inferior service when a better one is available for the same price.

Unfortunately, there’s still one more negative point to be made here. As a musician (with music on both Apple Music and Spotify), I still find the royalty rates with both services appalling and before we get into labels taking the lion’s share, I should note that I refer to independent artists such as myself. I (along with the rest of my bandmates) own the music, we own the recordings, we distribute it to the stores. In other words, apart from the streaming services taking a percentage, the rest should go to the (independent) artist...but it doesn’t. To highlight how unfair this is, think of it this way...the royalties my band received last year, do not account for enough for each band member to subscribe to the service for a year. We provide content, the content is used but we still have to pay more then we receive.

My Review of King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard’s new album ‘Paper Mache Dream Balloon’ for State.ie  :)

My review of Best Coast for State.ie :)

Girl Band have been circling my musical orbit for the last year but I never got around to checking them out. Gigs passed, videos were released and analysed and excited discussions were had between my friends about their live shows (most notably their gig at the Twisted Pepper), but for whatever reason, my eyes never focused in on the Dublin four piece.

The first time I saw/heard the band properly was during a college lecture, where our tutor had showed us the video for “Lawman”. We analysed the video, the visuals, the aesthetics of the band and the song itself. Nihilism, post-modernism and anarchy were touched on while the consensus of the group was that Girl Band had a sense of direction and urgency.

On listening to their debut full length album “Holding Hands With Jamie”, the same thoughts of nihilism, anarchy and postmodernism are raised. It is raw, unapologetically brash, low-fi and deranged but it is not aggressive, or at least, it is not an angry record. The drums are not based on slick grooves but metronomic pulses while the bass and guitar create a barrage of noise that gives Girl Band a frankly massive sound. Sitting somewhere in the middle of this mix of pulsating noise is singer Dara Kiely’s unhinged voice. With a range from barritone slurs to gritty falsetto screams, Kiely spurts what seem non-sensical lyrics at times with a wonderful Dublin slang. Purely on lyrical content and vocal delivery, Fight Like Apes’ May Kay comes to mind.

Perhaps Girl Band are not a completely spontaneous emergence in the Irish music scene. That is to say, after the last 7 or so years of economic stress, surges in mental health issues and a constant public undercurrent of distrust and dismay of our political system, it’s not hard to see Girl Band as the sound of the post Celtic Tiger generation. Frustration, unrest and a loss of the sense of self are all themes here. Kiely’s lyrics may stem from his own personal life but coupled with the relentless noise of Girl Band, his words take on a bigger meaning. Even when he’s just repeating “Garlic curry cheese chips”, it feels relatable...I wonder does that carry across to listeners outside of Ireland?

I think it’s safe to say my gaze is now steadily focused on Girl Band and almost more importantly, on how the greater public will react to their wonderful noise.

SD

Got some fun shows coming up with Blades Club and THUMPER.

10/10 The Mercantile w/Blades Club (Supporting We Were Giants)

28/10 Sin é w/THUMPER (Headlining + TooFools, Planet Parade, Tadgh)

30/10 Bello Bar w/Blades Club (Fancy dress Halloween Party)

I’m just going to throw it out there...album of the year? With just over 6 months left of 2015, I’m willing to go out on a limb and say Tame Impala’s latest offering will rate pretty highly in most of the ‘end of year’ polls.

Although main songwriter Kevin Parker denies it, it’s hard to not take Currents as a break-up album. Songs with titles such as ‘The less I know the better’, ‘Love/Paranoia’ and ‘New person, same old mistakes’ set the tone while ‘Eventually’ and ‘Yes I’m changing’ highlight the heartache of acceptance of moving on.

Where Currents differs from most lovelorn records though, is through Parker’s style of songwriting, the instrumentation and the production. Album opener ‘Let it happen’, at almost 8 minutes long is like a synopsis for whats to follow. Layers of synthesiser envelop the listener while Parker’s haunting falsetto voice waves in and out as thumping, deadened drums push the song forward.

Dragging in all the right places, ‘Yes I’m changing’ is a beautiful open letter about letting go of the past even though you may not want to just yet. Parker’s lyrics are refreshingly honest here. When he chose to pen ‘They say that people never change but that’s bullshit, they do.’, you get the feeling this isn’t a throw off remark but instead a reaction to his own experience.

As if the album hadn’t grabbed you by now, when we reach ‘Past life’, Parker kicks the songwriting up a notch. A filtered, octave-lower voice (Parker) narrates throughout, with the song’s structure taking cues from what he says. As his voice skips, the instruments distort and Parker transports us to his faded memories, in a dream made up of psychedelic, relaxed disco-esque funk.

Currents is like nothing out at the moment. It’s low-fi sounds crunched together with high production values give it a unique sound that pulls you in and makes it difficult to want to leave. Again, I’ll bet it will stand the test of time and be recognised as some of Parker’s best work but for the time being, I’ll settle for album of the year. SD

Metronomy @ Longitude 2015, Marlay Park

When Metronomy walked out on stage, one by one it set the theme for their performance and that’s exactly what it was, a performance. With Matching stage attire, choreographed hand gestures and plenty of movement around stage, it is clear that as a band, they have thought long and hard about their live show.

Starting off the set with ‘Some Written’ from their hugely successful sophomore album ‘The English Rivera’, they slowly pull the (sizable) crowd’s attention. The song -at over six minutes long- is an interesting opener for a festival set but by the time the full band are letting loose for the synth solo’s the audience at Marlay Park are encapsulated by the layers of gut-shaking bass and slick grooves. Despite some technical issues and a not so well behaved drum machine, Metronomy dish out almost an hour of solid synth-pop delights. Instrumental song ‘Boy Racers’ sends the band and audience into full-on dance mode while fan favourite ‘The Look’ triggers a typical (and wonderful) Irish reaction as the thousands of punters begin to sing the keyboard line as the members of Metronomy look out with amusement.