#lobandwidthh

Today (according to an email I just received from Tumblr) is the 3rd birthday of this blog, which is a pretty long time, especially considering this blog wasn't even started with much of an aim in mind.

Why not take a read through the archive to celebrate such a joyous day.

REVIEW: FIREBURG’S FIRST FILM NIGHT HIGH FIDELITY VS EMPIRE RECORDS Firebug Bar 28 Feb 2013

REVIEW BY MEL REEVE:

Firebug is Leicester’s cosiest and hippest pub-come-venue, always providing a wealth of interesting and exciting gigs as well as a variety of other events, such as their infamous pub quiz.

In the next few weeks and months alone this delightful place has got live music from bands including Tall Ships (Wednesday 6th March), Ace Bushy Stripteas, Evans The Death (23rd March as part of their Indie Alldayer Festival) and Bats (12th April) . Not content with this busy schedule, Firebug kicked off a brand new monthly Film Club evening on Wednesday, with a cracking double bill; Empire Records and High Fidelity, two brilliant films.

It’s pretty empty when we first arrive upstairs, but it’s worth bearing in mind that it’s only the first time they’ve done this (and we can only hope it doesn’t put them off doing awesome things like this more often), and it just means there’s even more free popcorn to go around, as well as a wider choice of seats. A couple of the people I’d invited to join me decided to go to the cinema in Highcross and take advantage of Orange Wednesdays, but when faced with a choice between supporting a truly unique and wonderful bar in a new and exciting venture (as well as a more niche selection of films), there really is no contest for me.

It’s also nice to see all the posters in Firebug for Handmade Festival, another brand new event coming to Leicester, which genuinely has one of the best line-ups of any festival I’ve ever seen (Dutch Uncles, Sky Larkin, Johnny Foreigner, We Were Promised Jetpacks, The Twilight Sad, Katie Malco, plus loads of other awesome artists!) and promises to be a fantastic weekend of music.

Coming up on 26th March at 7:00pm there’s a Mean Girls and Clueless double-bill, which is sure to get everyone excited - two truly brilliant films in one sitting. Sadly, that’s slightly after the end of term for most of us Uni of Leicester students, but if you’re intending to stick around for a bit, then make sure you attend as you’re sure to have a great time. Also, make sure you put the Evil Dead 2 vs Shaun of the Dead evening on your calendar too, on 24th April.

Parenthetical Girls have never been one of those bands that just do things the usual way. Their last album, Entanglements, was a luscious orchestral work, and in 2009 they released a mini-album in tribute to the works of poet and songwriter Ivor Cutler, deliciously weird in a way only Parenthetical Girls can manage.

For their next release, they’ve ditched the orchestra and picked up the scalpel. The album was originally released as a series of 5 EPs, each one limited to 500 copies, with a different band member drawn beautifully by Swedish artist Jenny Mörtsell on the cover – and numbered in that band member’s blood. This release will not be making use of bodily fluids, instead including a DVD showing the pains (literal and metaphorical) that the band have taken with this unique release, as well as some live shows and other video footage of interest.

With their quintessentially morbid yet mysterious tagline of “we never meant you any harm”, the innovative (and at times gruesome) tale of ‘Privilege’s inception, this album is sure to intrigue. But on the basis of how amazing the individual EPs sounded, it’s sure to have more than just novelty value. Parenthetical Girls have always blended an extraordinary talent for melody into their sound, but these EPs showed exactly how catchy and addictive they can be, but without losing the strange edge that makes them so distinctive.

 Read on Goldflakepaint

An important component of any good band is a clear sense of certainty in their sound. It’s no good listening to something that’s confused, or as a result of an uncertainty, seems like it’s chosen to be boring instead (although I should be clear – that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the sound of band experimenting or trying something new). This requirement is exactly why the new EP by Sailplanes is something of a gem. Only three tracks long, it’s hardly going to tax your ear or your time. But with a solid, comfortably delivered sassy sound it’ll be an enjoyable ten minutes of post-punk, with female vocals that are distinctly reminiscent of the excellent Life Without Buildings.

There’s a definitively relaxed feel to their cheery, noisy, jangly tunes and, on The Fox, some lovely girl/boy vocals from vocalists Stacey and Tim. “Blue, grey-green eyes” they sing, in a lovely medley of sound. The effective use of boy/girl vocals is rare outside of twee music and is something to be valued.

Sailplanes sound great and fun, and if you’re looking for a pleasant, charismatic, engaging listen, then look no further.

The Croft is filled with the sounds of heavy metal guitars and screaming. This isn’t because Xiu Xiu Larsen have had a drastic change of sound, there’s also some kind of heavy metal evening going on in the next room tonight. Thanks to The Croft’s design, this is fairly easy to ignore, although it can be a little surprising later when XXL are keeping the audience enraptured, things fall silent, and there’s some thrashing going on in the background.

In the ‘main’ room we find Anta setting up in front of the stage – the rather large gong next to the drum kit attracting some attention. Without microphones as they are, there’s no in-between song chit chat (or singing), they don’t even pause at any point during the set. It’s a constant influx of noise, which can be a little overwhelming (and leaves you feeling a little dazed afterwards). But there are some catchy melodies and things never become self-indulgent. You might be fooled into thinking that there was no set structure to their set, but the clever fluctuating changes in rhythm and texture make it clear that everything is well calculated. Their set up in front of the stage allows the space to feel a little fuller but they soon pack away their (very impressive) array of amps, clearing the way for XXL. The latter are surrounded by a barrier of pedals, guitars, drum kit and unusual instruments - there’s even a theremin (although that doesn’t get much use) as well as several keyboards and a variety of small percussion.

XXL’s set begins gradually, building a blend of sound that seems almost without melody, until the drums lead with a beat and a much more defined shape emerges.  The audience is surprisingly small, at its peak there are perhaps no more than 30 people, which has the strange effect of making this feel like something secret. They all seem utterly absorbed in the performance, and there’s a small ripple of excitement when the opening notes of ‘Paw Paw Paw Paw Paw Paw Paw’ echo out. Invariably, Jamie Stewart (the Xiu Xiu part of Xiu Xiu Larsen) is drawing out a heart wrenching guitar melody, keenly emotive and almost unbearable in its beauty. It rises above the rest of the sound, pulling the reverberating chords and melodies around it into a web of noise that demands your attention until it’s the only thing you can think of.

Several of the tracks descend into the cacophony of fuzz and noise that Stewart’s band Xiu Xiu sometimes make use of. We’ve described before here at LBW how effective and affecting that can be, and whilst there is arguably a less calculated effect here, it somehow wraps itself inside your ears until the stabs of noise feel comfortable and necessary. It’s perhaps important to assert that this is certainly not a Xiu Xiu concert, but it also seems a touch illogical to consider tonight’s performance out of the context of Xiu Xiu.

We don't normally do reviews of single tracks here on LBW...but it's pretty much guaranteed that Los Campesinos! putting up one new track for free download, is going to send tumblr and twitter into a bit of a frenzy.

Tiptoe Through The True Bits is a perfect blend of heartbreak and hope, triumphant brass backs typically morose lyrics and the chorus is a complete hook, ripe for the inevitable sing along that will happen if/when this gets played live.

'Hello Sadness' is a clear marker of the moment that almost everyone started to realise just how good LC! can be. If this track is any indicator, it seems they're haven't fallen into complacency and are going to keep on producing music of a very high standard.

Canadian Dan Mangan has been making music in bands since the age of sixteen. His first album was created with a bank loan and a small community of musicians and this album, Oh Fortune is his third full length LP. The opening track ‘About As Helpful As You Can Be Without Being Any Help At All’ shows immediately the variety of instruments Mangan uses, the strings and brass kick in a mere minute or so in. They rock back and forth under his vocals and it’s a pleasing, promising start. The orchestra drop back to allow his guitar prominence when it’s needed.

The Fortnightly Sentence

Benjamin Shaw - Home

(posted every two weeks - a review of something that’s grabbed our attention, in a sentence)

When I am old, lonely and depressed, I will be leaning over a piano, sobbing and being haunted by ghosts of my past; this lovely little song will define that moment and it will be wonderful.

Can be listened to here.