At The Mercy Of The Excellence

Big Scary should probably already be familiar to regulars of this website, or my writings in Beat magazine, but I have yet to give them their own dedicated post. A situation I intend to rectify now.

It's hard to write about these Melbourne up-and-comers without quickly sliding into a torrent of gushing hyperbole, so exciting is their music, so infectious their sound. Rather than attempt to paraphrase my various reviews of their work, I thought i'd simply cut to the chase.

Fresh from support slots with international acts Editors and Florence and the Machine, I caught up with the band on the night of their At The Mercy Of The Elements EP Launch back in mid-February at the Newton Workers Club.

Speaking pre-gig backstage outside the modest kitchenette, strummer Tom Iansek is likening the imminent launch to a birthday party “and it’s nice having a party where you know everyone. It’s genuinely a lot of fun.” His excitement is offset by his soothing demeanour, reclined in a bar-chair while casually playing with the rim of the table’s solely lit candle. Meanwhile his other musical half, Jo Syme, is visibly fidgeting in anticipation behind her floral top and perfectly coutuered bob-cut, though she is equally articulate and direct with her answers.

Obviously you’ve had the shows with Editors and Florence and the Machine, but is this more exciting for you two because it’s more of your own thing?

Tom Iansek: There’s more pressure, and I mean there’s a lot that goes into it obviously and all the publicity but hopefully a bigger payoff. And it’s good… you’re excited every gig with your friends and your family where you can play to them.

Jo Syme: I remember last time playing at the Empress (Hotel for the self titled EP launch) looking out and being like really ‘not emotional’ but I was emotional and it’s like “Thanks so much for coming!”

With this EP, is this the first official introduction of the piano to the live set?

T: yeah, it is. We’ve played with piano before, I don’t think the sound was very good though.

J: Only twice, and it hasn’t been part of our modern show for so long. So it’s a relief to be able to finally show it off

T: I don’t know what it’s going to sound like, you’re on the other side of the stage and you get a very different sound to what everyone else gets.

Is that something you’ve had to work towards? Getting the piano in the repertoire again?

T: well it was just more a matter of time

J: we had to wait until it was justified and then Falling Away was getting a bit of support on the radio, it’s sort of like – if that’s what we’re known for its kind of ridiculous if we can’t play that at gigs (laughs)

T: it doesn’t make sense.

So does it feel like an expectation, if that’s the stuff people wanna hear you want to get the piano out there?

T: Oh, totally! And we love playing it, it’s always been guitars and drums. but we’ve had this whole stack of piano songs. And it’s not just Falling Away we play a lot of others

J: half a set almost

Now in terms of recording, how was that compared to what you’ve done in the past to the recording you’re doing currently?

T: We just had a different producer, we had Matt Voigt, and before we worked with Dave Carr. And it was just a different experience; I mean they’re the only two producers we’ve worked with.

J: It was a really funny week of recording this EP. I mean we’ve said it before but it really was crazy, crazy weather. And just things like, even the studio that we worked in really affects how the songs came out. For example, if you listen to my vocals in the background, there’s a truck pulling out or different microphones we were forced to use and stuff. And that really… you don’t think about that often if you just pick up any CD and have a listen but the environment that we recorded in really affected it, and it was kind of a nice thing in the end.

And that influenced the naming of the EP obviously?

T: yeah, yeah, that sort o itf inspired it a bit. I mean we did go for the cheaper studio, to be honest, but it sort of imparted its own character on the recording. We had the option to go with the pristine studio, but it just didn’t have the vibe of this little place.

The same character?

T: Yeah, and like we said these little noises that if you really listen you can hear the details, so it was fun. Essentially we still did it in three days, before with Dave we would just go in and out and lay the tracks. We were on a bit of a budget, it was still a quick stint in the studio if slightly longer. So I suppose in that way it was the same. We didn’t feel like we were rushed. I mean we don’t have that many tracks to put down.

J: there’s only two of you, so it’s fairly easy. And compared to the current ones for example, these ones we’re gonna have more time to think about it. Because you mix it one day and then have quite a few weeks to listen to those and fix it up. We’ve already recorded what we plan to release in several months time – the seasons EPS. We know if we’re not happy with something we have time to go back and fix it. So that’s a new experience yet again. 

Your profile has certainly increased, getting more radio rotation and punctuating it with your live shows and support acts. How do you feel about that? Is there more expectations? Do you think it’s affected how you work?

J: I don’t have to write the songs so I don’t mind. (laughs) But honestly I don’t find there’s too much expectation; I’ve been looking forward to this.

T: I still consider ourselves, you know, very young - starting out. Finding our roots and so I still don’t feel there’s that huge… people kind of take a bit of notice this time which is nice, but I suppose that’s all it is. It’s just nice to have people interested. And encouraging. And it’s what you need when you put in so much time and slogging it out. Encouraging too.

J: keep it going.

T: yeah, move it along.

The support slots with Editors and Florence and the Machine were a big boost. Where there any experiences that you learned that you weren’t expecting?

J: Just being a bit more professional about even just (dramatically) stage plotting!

T: Just technical things. It’s just a different game at that level of shows.

J: And what mics you use. And there’s a guy, as opposed to just a sound mixer, there’s a special guy just for you side of stage with your own fallback. That’s the main learning experience, technical things.

T: It’s a different crowd too, there’s no expectation on you. You can sort of just grab their attention or just be a bit of music at the start. You’ve got a real opportunity to impress a whole lot of people. And that’s the best when you’re not expecting to experience something, from the audience’s point of view, when you’re not expecting much of the support act and it’s good to have that.

That opportunity?

T: Yeah, and it’s exciting too. What can I do that’s really going to blow these people away? I enjoy the challenge.

I mean it’s not like we weren’t backstage shitting ourselves. But we relaxed and we had a whole heap of fun.

You’re getting a lot of big comparisons: Jeff Buckley, White Stripes, Led Zeppelin, Bon Iver. These big, big music names. How do you feel about those comparisons?

J: It’s always a compliment really. I mean it’s never going to stick, because every song is different. It’s sort of Ok to say “That song sounds like the White Stripes” we say “Ok, well we challenge you to listen to another song and come to the same conclusion” And at that stage, yeah, I just think it’s more of a compliment. People can just assume, especially with the White Stripes because of the configuration. Really Tom’s voice is going for a different effect, and especially when you’ve now got piano in the set - not that Jack White doesn’t play piano - but it’s a whole different kind of genre.

It’s interesting that when you are, as you say, starting out that these big names are being thrown around.

T: yeah, it’s a convenience

J: Exactly, it’s convenient. I do it all the time to new bands. If I want some friends to come along and see someone I’ll obviously say a band that I like that I know they like, to draw them along. And especially since music these days, it’s all about genre-crossing. Oh so what kind of band are they, (nonchalant) oh, they’re an indie rock band – well that doesn’t help. You almost have to reference other bands to get an idea.

T: It’s almost what you have to do I suppose, it’s inevitable. So you can either hate it or embrace it and we’re Ok with it.

Are there any direct influences on the writing or is it just about seeing what clicks? Because it feels like there’s an organic vibe to a lot of the songs.

T: I think that probably came a lot from listening to Bon Iver, he’s been the only real influence that both of us have really gotten into in that way.

J: And at the time that we were forming as well.

T: yeah, and a lot of this new music, a lot of the songs that you’ll hear in these four seasons recordings we really like that organic vibe and hearing the story behind the production as well. I suppose that’ another reason we chose the cheaper studio because it had a vibe and all these sounds add to it. I like to hear the story about how it’s produced, and the imperfections, that sort of what excites me. So yeah he was a big influence.

In terms of the White Stripes, I don’t really see it.

J: I don’t think I’ve listened to any of their albums from start to finish. I really enjoy their singles.

T: I really like how they make their sound work you know. In a similar way.

I mean we really like time, tempo changes, and I suppose there might be a bit of an indirect fuzz kind of thing we’ve picked up from them but I can’t recall the last time I listened to the White Stripes.

What’s Next? You’ve got the seasons EPs, but have you thought beyond that?

J: (already nodding emphatically) we have, mainly about this year, we’ve got a pretty strong idea of this year because of the timing of releases. And then we’re looking forward to making an album, maybe next year.

T: Well there’ll be an album next year.

J: Yeah. Full stop. (laughs)

T: well, we’ve been building such good momentum and it’d be silly not keep it going and we’re still writing a whole heap of different stuff. You never know when that’s gonna drop off. We’re excited and we’re still writing music we’re excited to play and I think we’ve got the tracks for an album so it’s definitely on the cards. Probably record towards the end of this year even, and release it next year sometime.

With that, the pair - ever polite - offered their thanks (really, the pleasure's all mine), and headed off to prepare for the event at hand. As it turns out, it was an absolutely barnstorming performance. Delivering an all-encompassing set that included their radio-rotated numbers, older curios as well as brandspanking new material from the forthcoming 'seasons EPs.' For those who have followed the Big Scary trail this far, it was a triumph, for the uninitiated: categorical proof of their excellence.

Opening with a red-herring intro in which the duo battled it out on percussion, they then sank beautifully into the piano-led number Autumn an impressive blend of marching rhythm and sing-along power. Syme then ushers in Clouds with a deft backbeat, Iansek again at the keys, delivering twinkling arpeggios to accompany his dazzling falsetto. As such it mildly resembles Muse, kicking off the first of many, spot-the-musical-influence moments. A game the audience will inevitably lose.

Just as the cheeky Tuesday Is Rent Day, or the spiky flurry of New Killer may have you convinced that they are the heirs to the Black Keys’ two-man Zeppelin act; along comes a track like the hymnal Rolling By or anthem-in-waiting Stand Up Strong with Iansek’s expressive upper register recalling the likes of Patrick Watson or Jeff Buckley.

The fact of the matter is that Big Scary really can do it all. Both quiet and loud, fast and slow, rocking and restrained – but never in such obvious categorisations and always with their own stamp. They deliver a sound and virtuosity that groups double or triple their size struggle to achieve. And such range and diversity from only two people? The mind boggles.

Indeed the band has a great catalogue, but on tonight’s evidence, the real magic lies in watching the duo themselves. From the exchanged looks, to the smiles drawn on their faces, here are two musicians who clearly love playing with each other.

Particularly during Hey Somebody, a track whose live setting – complete with drum solo intro – really shows off its scuzzy rock energy and the band’s chemistry. Their enthusiasm for their songs and their audience is infectious, you can't help but smile and get swept away when the band are doing the exact same thing themselves.

When introducing the Triple J playlisted quartet of Polly, Apple Song, Lullaby and Falling Away, Iansek modestly comments “you might know these ones.” The crowd’s rapturous applause would suggest they do indeed, greeting the band with a sea of bobbing heads, clapping hands and swaying bodies.

The adulation is not lost on Big Scary, as they close with their signature send-off This Weight, Iansek dedicates it to all the people who couldn’t be packed into the already glowing audience of attendees. It’s an indication both of Big Scary’s ever-rising profile and a precognitive flash of their inevitable popularity.

Sad & Beautiful World, Mark Linkous R.I.P.

MARK LINKOUS R.I.P. (1962 - 2010)

It’s taken a couple of days to actually sink in (and complete this piece) but I was pretty upset when I read the news that Mark Linkous, best known as the musician behind Tennessee-based Sparklehorse, had committed suicide.

If you’ve never heard of Sparklehorse, that’s perhaps not a surprise, he was always a bit of an underground (if much valued) taste in his native country, let alone in Australia. But in light of his passing, perhaps his work will reach more people than ever before. A consequence as tragic as his violent suicide (the New York Times reports that Linkous shot himself in the chest with a rifle outside a friend’s apartment) an end that may paint him as a tragic case – and while Linkous’ music always had a dark, melancholic streak, his horrible death still comes as a shock.
I thought I’d take the opportunity to do a small retrospective-cum-remembrance on an artist who helped shape my own songwriting efforts and whose music was a big part of my own development.
I remember first hearing about Sparklehorse through Radiohead, who proclaimed his sophomore effort Good Morning Spider as one of the greatest albums they’d ever heard. It wasn’t until 2002’s It’s A Wonderful Life however, that I took the time to investigate. I remember wishing I’d discovered him earlier.

I was instantly taken with the album, I could best describe it as like taking a tour through a dilapidated mansion where the ghosts sing in the walls and all the old family portraits are covered in soot and rust. And as you brush the dust away, you feel a surge of warmth and beauty. It wasn’t long after that I purchased both of the first two Sparklehorse albums on a trip to Sydney for my auntie’s wedding. The impossibly titled debut Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot heralded Linkous’ Sparkehorse banner with a fully formed set of Southern-inflected folk rock and damaged, emotive storytelling, while the follow-up Good Morning Spider was as good as Radiohead had promised. Maintaining the flavor of Viva while taking the material to a darker place, as if waking bruised from a heavy night of drinking and waiting for the sedation to wear off only for the hangover to seep through.

I was struck by how confidently the music could swing between battered and broken melancholy, static-drenched fuzz-rock as well as experimental, homespun folk. All shot through with Linkous’ unique visual poetry, complete with an artistic obsession with small-town inertia, picturesque nostalgia and, of course, horses. His music reflected a Sad & Beautiful World (a lilting number from his debut that) and Linkous did both with equal aplomb, his music filled with the brutal honesty and world-weariness of a person who had seen, and more poignantly felt, too much and was able to convey it all through the most basic of musical settings. Though his compositions at time could be oversimplified, they always rung with a depth and sincerity beyond their meager construction.

The four-year wait for a follow-up to 2002’s It’s A Wonderful Life came in the form of 2006’s Dreamt For Light Years In The Belly Of A Mountain. Notably it was co-produced with regular cohort David Fridmann (Flaming Lips, Mercury Rev, MGMT) as well as one Brian “Danger Mouse” Burton. The appearance of the latter spurring a further collaboration with the production maverick, who along with director David Lynch, created Dark Night Of The Soul, a compilation featuring such artists as James Mercer (The Shins), Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals), Julian Casablancas (The Strokes) and Iggy Pop – to name a few. However the compilation was delayed due to a drawn-out legal battle and eventually leaked on the net.
A star-studded roster no doubt, but Linkous was always a wily collaborator, most notably on It’s A Wonderful Life which featured Tom Waits, PJ Harvey, Vic Chestnutt and Nina Persson of the Cardigans, who Linkous would go on to work with again under the A Camp moniker. During his career he also crossed paths with Thom Yorke on a cover of Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here.

Even despite praise from music journalists and musical peers alike, he was vastly underrated. A case of an artist whose influence was far greater than his commercial success. It’s hard to gauge whether this suited Linkous himself, notoriously evasive of the media circus often associated with the industry, he gave the air of a recluse – content to produce his wiry opuses, yet his lyrics constantly opined for good days long-gone or hopes for better changes to come. The scuzzy rock of Happy Man for instance with its incessant refrain of “all I want is to be a happy man”, at once desperate and defiant.
After his passing, Linkous’ manager confirmed that work was “nearly finished” on a new Sparklehorse album before Linkous’ death as well as an official release (finally) from EMI of Dark Night Of The Soul. So it seems Linkous musical legacy is not quite finished, let’s hope that his posthumous work is treated with the same virtue and respect that Linkous himself treated it with. The fact remains that though he will be missed, he left behind a powerfully concise body of work.
On a personal note, I thought the best way to send Mark Linkous off would be with a selection of his own wonderful lyrics, and while I struggled to choose from such a vast selection, I think the chorus from Gold Day is a fitting tribute:

“Keep all your crows away/keep skinny wolves at bay/in silver piles of smiles/may all your days be gold my child.”

...Make (JJ)Jack a dull boy

Hello fellow readers of The Rant, as your keen peepers have no doubt noticed, I haven't been as punctual lately with my posts. I assure it's not for lack of interest, or content. But more to the fact that my time has been spread thin with other endeavours. What are they?
Well, namely full-time work, and time commitments for a new comedy show (more shameless plugging on that soon but its called Occupation Ugly running as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, more details at Comedicate).
That's not to say I've been cutting back time on music, oh lordy, no. I've continued contributions to Beat Magazine, MX and as of next month's issue, J Mag. That's right this humble writer's services have been added to the list for JJJ's official music magazine. Colour me excited. You can start reading my reviews in next month's issue.
All for which has meant for severely less bloggage time. One good thing all this published stuff has taught me is to be more economical with my writing, 170-200 word limits aren't the usual count round these parts (as readers of some of my more exahustive posts will know.) As such (after that rant of another kind) this month's post will be short and sweet, d.
A cheeky taster of what you can expect in my first published work with J Mag.
Onward!

Two Door Cinema Club - Tourist History (etcetc/Kitsuné)

With their choppy guitars, dance-ready beats and indie credentials, this North Ireland outfit might have you groaning ‘not another fashionable guitar band,’ but Two Door Cinema Club may be swimmers, not sinkers.
Though they signed to the hip French label Kitsuné after only two singles and a single Glastonbury appearance, their debut draws from a more solid pedigree of proven musical styles.
I Can Talk’s fizzing energy picks up the skyscraping guitars Editors ditched when they went electronic. Do You Want It All? rings like Bloc Party’s This Modern Love, complete with tricky 7/4 timing; while This Is The Life, featuring Alex Trimble’s preening falsetto, sounds akin to Mew. They also recall Friendly Fires with their dual-guitar and bass setup, but the best indication of their appeal is that they’re due to support Phoenix on tour.
At 32 minutes over ten tracks, the album never lets off the setting marked ‘taut and lean’ but there’s still enough variation to its spry electro-tinged-indie-pop theme to captivate.
It may still be early in the year, but chances are you’ll hear a lot more of TDCC in 2010. And considering what’s on offer here, that’s no bad thing.

And there you have it, short, sharp, catchy and to the point. Much like the music.

Speaking of which, here's a random rundown on what I've been wrapping my eardrums around lately.
*Heaps of Wilco, who manage to convince me they are the greatest live act I've never seen whenever I listen to Kicking Television or the brilliant audio accompaniment to Ashes of American Flags.
*Plenty of Big Scary in anticipation for their EP Launch this Friday. The Newton Workers Club, Fitzroy. Be There. Need a reason? Their new single Falling Away is available as a free D/L over at JJJ.
*The new new solo album from Jón þor Birgisson, entitled Go, under the simple moniker of Jónsi - and it's all its cracked up to be.
*The new Lightspeed Champion. And yes, it's brilliant. I'll be covering that one soon for sure.
*Gone back to some classic prog-rock. We're talking Pink Floyd, Yes and King Crimson. In fact I've had Yes' Close To The Edge on high rotation, even despite the pile of CDs that need reviewing.
*Speaking of prog, a recommendation from Jem Godfrey (the amazing talent behind Frost*) led to me the little unsung band Halloween, Alaska and their brilliant little album Champagne Downtown. Check out their website for a few streams.
*and to top it all off, a small peppering of previews for some of 2010's most anticipated new releases via free mp3s from the bands themselves. Its good see major labels finally starting to catch on. We've had new cuts from the likes of Shearwater with Black Eyes, news of a new Broken Social Scene record (JOY!) with World Sick and Peter Gabriel's sweeping cover of Bon Iver's Flume. Taken from his new covers album, Scratch My Back, in which he reimagines all manner of musical heroes (Radiohead, Bowie, Arcade Fire, Elbow) with the backing of a complete orchestra.

Peow, so hopefully that'll tide you over 'till next we meet. Now if you'll excuse me I'm off to bed with the old ipey.

2009 Honourable Mentions: Part 2

(EDIT: *sigh* so I got away with Part 1 it seems, but Part 2 suffered a DMCA notice takedown. If you're unclear of what that means, read this, basically though I've just removed all the links that ain't YouTube and i'll go back and replace some time.)

Woah, sorry about the break there, it's been an eventful couple of weeks. Including a slew of top-notch concerts including Big Day Out, The Decemberists, Florence & The Machine and the almighty Porcupine Tree. On top of that, I've been wrapping my ears around a whole lot of new music - either new albums for this year (Owen Pallett, FourTet, Yeasayer) as well as some great heavy rock from Australia (Sleep Parade, Eleventh He Reaches London, Sydonia & Toehider)
I really want to just charge ahead on to new things, 2009 seems like so long ago already, but in the interest of spotlighting great music that may have otherwise been ignored, I shall fulfill my promise of part 2 of 2009's Honourable Mentions. In the words of Mario, "lets-a-go!"


Big Scary - Hey Somebody
If you've been following my writing in Beat magazine (or read my Interpol concert report) - you'll already know that I love this band, they're easily Melbourne's best unsigned act at the moment. Hey Somebody is the lead single from their brand-spanking new EP, At The Mercy Of The Elements. Displaying great diversity, immense talent and just straight-up excellent tunes, this is a band you best acquaint yourself with before they start a record label bidding war or storm the airwaves. Big Scary are that good.

Noah & The Whale - Love Of An Orchestra
The sophomore album from this indie folk collective was inspired by the break-up between bandleader Charlie Fink and former girlfriend/collaborator Laura Marling. It's not just a mopefest though, as this sprightly anthem attests.

DM Stith - Pity Dance
Combine Patrick Watson's inspired eccentricity, Sufjan Stevens' lush arrangements and Antony '& The Johnsons' Hegarty's haunting vocals and it would equate to DM Stith. Here is a suitably spooky cut taken from his supremely confident debut Heavy Ghost.

Kid Cudi - Pursuit of Happiness (Nightmare)
Though Cudi's conceptual record Man on The Moon: The End Of The Day was an unbalanced and occasionally monotonous affair, it did indeed contain its moments. By calling in psychedelic popsters MGMT and instrumental paramores Ratatat, Scott Mescudi ensured that Pursuit of Happiness was one of those moments.


The Swell Season - The Verb
The little couple that could from the delightful movie Once (aka Glenn Hansard and Markéta Irglová) make a return with a sombre set that encapsulated the full spectrum of love and heartbreak. Though it lacked a killer single, the likes of Oscar-winning Falling Slowly, it was a more consistent set peppered with strong cuts such as the dour The Verb.

Prince - (There'll Never B) Another Like Me
Taken from the second side of a double album (LotusFlow3r/MPLSoUND, a triple if you include the Prince-produced Elixer from Bria Valente... but I don't), this sees the Purple one laying down all his idiosyncracies in an equally eccentrically titled funk workout. Sample lyric: 'Slipped into the bathroom/Put some olive oil in my hair,' indeed, there will never be another like Prince, savour him at another career high.

The Melodics - Maple Leaf Rag
Even for a band whose profile is on the rise, The Melodics are still vastly under appreciated. Their confident debut 4D possessed a wealth of styles - synth pop, funk, new-wave,jazz, hip hop - eschewed through songwriting smarts. Not unlike fellow Melbourne groovesters The Cat Empire. The six degrees shorten with the presence of producer Jan Scubizewski , one half of Jackson Jackson (the other being Cat trumpeter Harry Angus). Maple Leaf Lag is just one of the may colours in their spectrum, sampling Joplin classic The Entertainer to dizzying effect.

Doves - Jetstream
The cinematic introduction to album number four, Kingdom Of Rust, was an 'imaginary soundtrack to the closing credits of Blade Runner' according to the band. Evident from its synth-driven sci-fi chug infused with group's usual penchant for finely honed production and building textures. It also heralded a triumphant return after a nearly half a decade's absence.


Marmaduke Duke - Rubber Lover
The bonkers side-project for Biffy Clyro frontman Simon Neill, who along with partner in dirty-pop crime JP Reid, produced a zany off-beat album in the appropriately titled Duke Pandemonium. Including this brief, but perfectly crafted gem - achieving the unique feat of making Billy Joel sound sexy in sampling his Sleeping With The Television On.

Major Lazer - Pon De Floor
The pseudonym for taste-making producers Diplo and Switch gave them the freedom to conjure gritty electro inspired by the daggering dancehalls of Jamaica. Fronted by a ridiculous cartoon concept about a lazer-toting general who kills vampires and zombies, but backed by a balls-out frenetic live show and a cavalcade of guest spots.

Katatonia - Day And Then The Shade
Following on from their career-defining album, The Great Cold Distance, Katatonia solidified their unique style with Night Is The New Day. Mawkish title aside, it proffered doom-laden aesthetics and grinding metal sounds teeming with emotional pathos. If you've ever been curious about heavier rock or metal but never had an entrypoint, this is for you.

Julian Plenti - On The Esplanade
After a less-than-favourable reception to Our Love To Admire, Interpol frontman Paul Banks returned to the Julian Plenti moniker of his pre-fame days gigging as a solo act. You'd be hard-pressed to imagine these arrangements' acoustic origins however, delivering a set of songs that dispelled any doubts as to Banks' abilities as a unique voice in the rock landscape.


David Gray - Nemesis
His White Ladder chart-topping days may be behind him, but that doesn't mean that Mr. Gray's star has faded. Returning after a four year long hiatus, Draw The Line was a welcome return of a songwriter in the classical mould. Perfectly metered couplets, accessible tunes that still contained the spirit of invention and of course Gray's ever-felt presence in that voice.

Monsters Of Folk - Say Please
Not quite the sum of their legendary parts, the monsters in question - Conor Oberst & Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, and influential singer-songwriter M. Ward - instead opted for casual bouts; but when the components sparked, it resulted in catchy tuneage such as this.

Arctic Monkeys - Cornerstone
The Sheffield heroes' third album may have polarised the lovers of their small-town-stories-meets-angular-rock aesthetic; but Humbug instead introduced a new kind of intimacy. Their excellent narratives were still intact, they just came accompanied in new musical guises, such as this relaxed ballad couching a deeply personal lyric that features a series of trysts in pubs

The Antlers - Bear
Alloyed by a steady stream of blogosphere hype, the Brookly three-piece's Hospice was a conceptual investigation into pain and loss via grief and hospital-bound turmoil. Though the prospect of such sour-faced introspection will have most heading for the exit, Antlers managed to temper it with cathartic build and release a la Arcade Fire en route through Okkervil River. The twinkling Bear being a perfect personification of their appeal.

Phew, that became far more of a trial than it needed to be. The Rant's internet plan is simply not cutting the mustard like it used to. So in the words of Farmer Hoggett "that'll do pig... that'll do"

2009 Honourable Mentions: Part 1

So it's time to go back and pick through the bones of 2009, to sift through the torrent of great music and pick out some highlights. As that big Part 1 in the title should suggest, there's an awful lot of great albums, artists and songs that deserve a mention. As such, you won't find anything from the Top 15 Albums of 2009 list, just the best of the rest. So let's get started.

Parallel Lions - Separated

Essentially the new group for Art Of Fighting's Ollie Browne, Parallel Lions continued his unique brand of soulful, eloquent songwriting but adding a new spin on it. Thanks largely to the equally talented Hamish Michael and Sam Bates filling out the other two thirds of this great new Australian act.

Wild Beasts - Hooting and Howling
Led by Hayden Thorpe's idiosyncratic falsetto (perhaps an understatement), the lead single for Wild Beasts' second album Two Dancers, it is a perfect showcase of their talents - moody, evocative, rhythmic and exciting.

Ramona Falls - Russia
In actual fact this is the working name for one Brent Knopf, of Menomena fame, and the resulting sound is not unlike his dayjob. Looped sampling of traditional instruments is weaved into beautiful, crystalline arrangements.

The Decemberists – The Rake's Song

It's hard to extrapolate a single track from The Decemberists latest, The Hazards of Love a prog-folk odyssey of operatic proportions, but this cut comes close to representing its scope without sacrificing on its individualistic storytelling, a creaking murder ballad.

Them Crooked Vultures - Scumbag Blues
The supergroup to end all supergroups. Three rock legends: Josh Homme (Queens Of The Stone Age), Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) and John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) made every music fan's wet dream come true with their debut that managed to mix all their styles into a cohesive beast, and Scumbag Blues is just one of its excellent litter.

Archive - Bullets
A little-known UK outfit whose decade-long career has skirted the likes of alternative rock, electronica and even trip-hop. Taken from its parent album, Controlling Crowds, this track has a whiff of Radiohead about while only scratching the surface of the full album. I highly recommend you check it out if this pikes your interest.

Odawas - Harmless Lovers Discourse

I usually hate those “sounds like band ‘x’ jamming with band ‘y’” descriptions, but the haunting if elusive atmosphere of Odawas can best be thought of as Mercury Rev jamming with The Blue Nile by way of Neil Young's crooning and harmonica. Beautifully produced music with an air of breezy relaxation.
The Temper Trap - Fader
One of Australia's breakthrough acts of last year. Sweet Disposition may have led the charge on their popularity, but it was their confident debut album Conditions crowned it. With album cuts like Fader, it proved they were capable of upbeat rock as well as moody post-punk and dreamy atmospherics. Plus it features the great line, "I pledge myself allegiance to a better night's sleep at home."

Mos Def - Casa Bey
Prior to unleashing The Ecstatic you wouldn’t be wrong to assume that Mos had left behind the hip-hop game for a burgeoning, if selective, acting career. Instead he performs a complete 180 and delivers one of the top-tier rap releases of the year, including this, the excellent closing number.

Pure Reason Revolution - AVO
Speaking of 180s, the prog-rock luminaries ditched their classic Pink Floyd-influenced sound for a shiny new chrome finish that can best be described as prog-tronica. The title track from their second album, Amor Vincit Omnia, is a haunting example of their shiny new sound: progressive, textured and stunning.

Biffy Clyro - The Captain

I can't really put it better than my original assertion, The Captain sets a jubilant mood, featuring a giddy refrain of "somebody help me sing" that bounces and fizzes against a rolling brass section. If my interview with frontman Simon Neil is anything to go by, it is the work of a newly invigorated group.
...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead - Isis Unveiled
Album number seven from the Texan art-rockers featured an even more symphonic approach to their epic sound, with Isis Unveiled being no exception. Its fiery hooks sound like gods clashing before a brooding mid-section sees them taking a breather. Widescreen, climactic music at its best.

Brand New - At The Bottom
Restlessly pushing to reinvent themselves with each passing album, Brand New delivered a claustrophobic but engaging record in the form of Daisy. Taking its cues from mid-nineties grunge as much as experimental rock, with At The Bottom providing a secular portrait of their daring sound.

Patrick Watson - Big Bird In A Small Cage
An equally eccentric and incendiary performer, Patrick Watson wields his talents towards this touching ballad, a Sufjan Stevens meets Damien Rice-esque acoustic number if you will. But you'd do well to seek out the rest of his diverse oeuvre, namely his two albums Welcome To Paradise and 09's Wooden Arms.
Volcano Choir - Still
aka. what Bon Iver did next. After releasing arguably, 'the best album of 2008', few would have predicted that Justin Vernon would join Collection of Colonies of Bees to form an experimental side-project - but that's precisely what he did. Still is actually a rewrite of Bon Iver's Woods (taken from the Blood Bank EP), and the resulting full band arrangement is nothing short of breathtaking.
U2 - Moment Of Surrender
Sure U2 are pompous, grandstanding and commercial; but they're these things for a reason - there's still one of the most popular and enduring acts in the world today. And that doesn't mean they're not good. In fact, their latest - No Line On The Horizon - was one of their best records yet. Including the long-winding Moment Of Surrender, a relaxed epic if ever there was one.

Wilco - You And I (feat. Feist)

Wilco's self-titled album followed in the same vein as its predecessor Sky Blue Sky, namely an album that drew from the band's tight live show and band line-up, steering away from the strenuous experimentation they peddled at the start of the decade. It even featured a classic duet in the form of You And I with Canadian indie queen Feist.
The Very Best - The Warm Heart of Africa (feat. Ezra Koenig)
Calling themselves "ghetto pop" only goes some way to describing The Very Best's unique brand of hip world music. The combination of Milawian singer Esau Mwmwaya and European production duo Radioclit, this is the title track from their debut; in which Mwmwaya trades verses with Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig making for a joyous summer track.
Devin Townsend Project - Trainfire
Devin Townsend Project - Numbered!

'Hevy Devy' was a busy boy in 2009. The Canadian metal pioneer finding time to release two (of a prospective four) of his self-titled Project series. The former taken from Ki, a more ambient, spacier approach to Townsend's usually thunderous prog-metal, while the latter is taken from his unabashed pop album. Paired with Anneke Van Giersberg (formerly of The Gathering) to create what he calls "Heavy Enya." As is usually the case with Devin Townsend, it's all so crazy - it works.

Stay tuned for Part 2, and feel free to provide some suggestions in the comments below.

Fit To Print

Welcome to another year for Al's Music Rant, which as it turns out is now its fourth(!) in existence. No new year's resolutions here, except perhaps to maintain my own personal standard of quality. Which is to provide writing on music that is informative, well-researched and most importantly, passionate.

I've got a lot of bigger ideas ticking over from 2009 (which if you need a good summary, try the Top 15 Albums list), including an honourable mentions/best of the rest list. But to kick things off instead, we have a review of the Editor's performance last week at the Palace Theatre in Melbourne.

So without further ado.

Editors, live @ the Palace, Jan 4th

w/ support by Big Scary

Getting the crowd started were Big Scary, perhaps one of Melbourne’s best new acts, even if they’re still one of the town’s best-kept secrets. The correlation between their popularity and their quality is totally out-of-balance, but with this support slot: their biggest show and venue yet, perhaps the scales will tip more in their favour.

Sidling onstage is one-half of the band, Tom Iansek, unassumingly silencing the crowd with a wash of guitar chords and his impressive Jeff Buckley-esque falsetto. He’s soon joined by drummer Jo Syme, who in an impressive rolling drum solo leads the duo into the rocking Hey Somebody. The lead single for their forthcoming EP, all bristling with energy thanks to its stop-start dynamics and tempo changes. Though they are visibly (and only just audibly) nervous they soon find their feet with a string of up-beat rockers, namely Polly and Apple Song. Both demonstrate that once the group rev their engines they make a much broader sound than the sum of their two parts. Happy Helpless introduces Syme’s extra talents, harmonising and playing xylophone before Lullaby and a freshly minted song “written yesterday” offers a snaking riff reminiscent of Led Zeppelin. As the numbers pour in and the floor fills with people for the main act, Big Scary receive an ever-growing positive response. When they finish with the crashing chords of This Weight it’s safe to say that, despite their disparity musically speaking from Editors, their talent and energy has won them more than a few new fans.

Where Editors previously struggled to shake comparisons to Joy Division, it seems with their compass now set in the direction of grandstanding electronics they will have to dodge another band’s shadow, namely Depeche Mode. Lanky frontman Tom Smith even vaguely resembles a younger David Gahan. Flanked by his similarly clad bandmates, all uniform black, he stalks the stage –often mouth agape, arms branchlike – lurching from mic to mic. As such his captivating presence confirms that Smith has evolved into a strong frontman. His enthusiasm matched by his strenuous enunciation and urgency on every syllable he sings. Accompanied by arching gestures and equally emphasised playing with energy to spare. If he’s tired of his songs after playing them so many times, he’s hiding it extremely well.

More captivating still is his rich baritone, perhaps the key entry point to Editors’ crowd-rallying appeal. Like the love child of Coldplay and Interpol, they tackle the ‘Big Themes’ - like Love and God – in gloomy histrionics and crowd-baiting anthems.

Even at a relatively young five years of touring, they’ve managed to command a strong reception at both headlining shows and the festival circuit. Generally thanks to the critical and commercial success of their first two albums, 2005’s The Back Room and 2007’s An End Has a Start, and particularly hit singles Munich, Bullets, Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors and Racing Rats.

Their latest album however, In This Light And On This Evening, sees them ditching their signature twin-guitar attack – all skyscraping riffs and skittering lines – for synths… banks and banks of synths. The keyboards and processed drums that go with it make a sound that while certainly starkly new sound for the band, it isn’t necessarily a better one.

While the newer material makes more sense in a live context, offsetting the nervous energy of their four to the floor anthems with cooler, slower moods, the reception to the newer songs is also occasionally just as frosty.

Chalk it up to a lack of familiarity, but every time the group trump up a new track, they retreat back to older, more familiar material to follow it. There’s almost an audible lull during The Boxer and The Big Exit until the pounding rhythm of Escape The Nest startles the audience back to life. Likewise the horribly titled Eat Raw Meat = Blood Drool receives some sporadic audience vibe for its industrial bounce, a seemingly good reaction until it’s followed by All Sparks whose crashing chorus confirms the entire Palace is now astir.

Exceptions to the rule however are a belting rendition of Papillion that fills the encore, and Bricks & Mortar closing the main set on a highlight, enrapturing the audience with its bluelight groove, all seven hypnotic minutes of it.

Time may well prove In This Light And On This Evening as a transitional album, the likes of You Don’t Know Love, The Boxer and the title track, have echoes of their original blueprint. Each morphing from a slow-burning front half to rocking closers, while consistently seeing the band dart from guitar to synths and back again. Still, whether flaunting their third album (the entirety of which is played during the course of the evening) or drawing from their impressive back catalogue, they rip into their playing with an equal amount of gusto. An energy equalled by the rabid fans.

Even against the rousing receptions that Racing Rats, Bullets and Blood receive, it is towards the tail-end of the set that Smokers Outside The Hospital gets the biggest response, hands-down. Its intro of pounding drums inciting near hysterical levels of cheering that quickly switches to an unprovoked anthemic sing-a-long from the crowd. Including, ironically one particular sozzled punter, who wails along to the chorus while dragging on a cigarette.

He is, however, merely one of a sea of people who Editors manage to unite into a fist-pumping, foot-stomping mass with their engaging anthems and yearning, every-man appeal.

On the strength of well-polished performances such as this one, it won’t be long till they graduate to the stadiums, allowing room to bloom their solid rock show into a spectacle with all the requisite flourishes. After all, Editors deserve a canvas as widescreen as their music.

Here is a live performance of Papillon in both QuickTime and Windows formats;
as well as an accompanying video: