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Written by Ben
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29 Apr 2008 |
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There are some albums (usually very few) that, on the day of release, will cause me to run down to my local record emporium with palpable excitement and anticipation, willing to splash any cash necessary to obtain the recorded form in all the glory that was originally intended (i.e. a CD with ...ARTWORK!).
It was this state in which I found myself yesterday, eager to hear the latest work of Miles Kane and (more so) Alex Turner. Although still undecided as to the merits of first single and title track “The Age of The Understatement”, I was hoping this was just (ahem) understatement and that the album as a whole would prove to be as rewarding to listen to as Turner’s previous endeavours with Artic Monkeys.
Unfortunately, after the first listen, something didn’t quite make sense: the modest single seemed to be the best the album had to offer; and by halfway through it all began to sound laboriously repetitive.
The first of my two main problems lies with the inclusion of an orchestra which, although I do understand its importance, began to feel a bit like some sort of David Brent-esque character; annoyingly adding a bad joke at every – and all the most predictable – moments. Secondly I found that at some points the two voices gracing such a grandiose backdrop sometimes lacked the strength and age to truly do it justice.
However, the album’s most impressive moments come in the last two tracks, “Meeting Place” and “Time Has Come Again”. These two bittersweet moments of intense nostalgia will surely remind anyone who has loved and lost, that, after all was said and done the journey was worth taking.
It is this intensity that I believe Turner and Kane always intended, but perhaps they’ve found themselves scuppered by their ambitious mandarins in the media. After the hysteria surrounding this project dies down, we may be left with an album that can achieve exactly what it set out to. One thing we can be sure of, however, is that that won’t be soon.
£9.89 from WHSmiths |
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Written by Ben
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02 Apr 2008 |
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One label criminally/geographically left out of our recent Berlin feature was Kologne’s Kompact records. Kompact has grown an immense reputation for pushing the boundaries set by Techno, with it’s output varying from ear bleeding stomping noise, through minimal to German pop. It can feel like a sort of major label of the future. Just check out leading artist Supermayer 's stunning album “Save The World” released last year (even better is his recent remix of Rufus Wainwright “tiergarten”). As for the here and now it looks like the label is gearing up for a love renaissance this summer with the recent release of Gui Boratto "Anunciacion" and Jonas Berings “Can’t Stop Loving You”. The first on K2 feels like a DC10 classic in the waiting with its acoustic guitar and brilliantly warm warping bass. This track fills the gap between deep house and techno with ease, expect many imitations... The second is pure Balearic house which feels like it’s capable of always going somewhere seriously cheesy yet never does. A bit like the sun without getting burnt or having to wipe cream all over yourself. Check out Beatport or their site to learn more about this ever growing institution. |
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Written by Ben
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19 Mar 2008 |
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Ooh yeah! One look at the ever growing confirmed acts for this year’s Great Escape is enough to make any Indie kid go giddy and spoon his/her father for their credit card. Already featuring pretty much every artist who is doing anything of note right now (there’s a big list at www.escapegreat.com) the Great Escape is quickly establishing itself as Englands answer to SXSW. Luckily I have a full time job now so my spooning days are over (with anyone) which also means I have enough cash to get the delegates pass, privileging me to probably very interesting talks about downloading music or something, but in all honesty a better investment would be to pay for cabs, text alerts, or whatever it may take to make sure you get from gig to gig with minimal queue time.
Acts include Crystal Castles (above), Lightspeed Champion, Late of the Pier, The Young Knives and Vampire Weekend... |
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