MySpaceSo even though I’ve got a mighty backlog of stuff to cover and even though this has been a long weekend (or maybe because), I’ve still not had time to get to any of it properly. So coverage of the past few days worth of showgoing will start tomorrow. For today, you get this. A free album. Which is probably better than my concert reviews.

Welsh trio The Joy Formidable know how to get media attention. Last Summer, they had a video for debut single “Austere” banned from YouTube on account of it being comprised of video clips of people… well, I’d rather not have my site indexed for THOSE particular keywords but even though it was just a fan-made clip, the band gave it their seal of approval by posting it on their own website. And it’s probably NSFW. The band also made an official clip, but it’s far less controversial. And now, they’ve opted to take their debut album A Balloon Called Moaning and give the whole thing away for frees via NME. It was already released in a limited edition box set which sold out in a heartbeat and will be out in physical form tomorrow, but you can have it digitally now.

Now both of these might seem like gimmicky ways to get people talking about the band, but fact is that even without these talking points, The Joy Formidable would be more than worthy of your attention. Its eight tracks veer from dreamy to wide-awake and in-your-face but always maintain a gleeful enthusiasm, propelled on a wave of fuzzy, barbed hooks and snarlingly saccharine vocals. It sounds like a being hit in the face with a sack of sugar. When anyone asks me next week what I did over the long weekend, I’m going to say (and truthfully) that I listened to this record ad nauseum and didn’t tire of it at all. Is that sufficient endorsement to get you to go download and listen? It’s free for goodness sake. Just go get and listen. Thank me later.

Uncensored has an interview with the band.

MP3: The Joy Formidable – “Austere”
MP3: The Joy Formidable – “Cradle”
Video: The Joy Formidable – “Austere”
Video: The Joy Formidable – “Cradle”
MySpace: The Joy Formidable

The Joy Formidable had been listed as one of the acts heading to SxSW next month and surely would have been one of my highlights, but with the release of the official schedule last week, they’re nowhere to be found. Actually, instead of heading to Texas, they’ve opted to go out on a UK tour as support for Howling Bells, another band I was hoping was going to be in Austin. In fact, the entire Sx lineup is looking pretty weak. I know I said the same thing last year around this time and ended up having the best time ever anyways, but there’s going to be a lot of digging to find acts that will get my attention. But on the plus side, I already know how my Saturday night is ending – seeing Echo & The Bunnymen play a gay Texan cowboy bar.

If you missed the numerous edits to last week’s post about Polly Scattergood, allow me to sum up – rather than her debut album being entitled Other Too Endless and being released on March 9, it will now be self-titled and be coming out on May 19. But there’s a new video for the next single, which would have been the title track but is now just a song. A great song.

Video: Polly Scattergood – “Other Too Endless”

Emmy The Great week at Drowned In Sound wrapped up with another set of interviews conducted by Emmy. First off, she talks with Aidan Moffat, formerly of Arab Strap and who’s just released a new album in How To Get To Heaven From Scotland. There’s also a piece with Darren Hayman, formerly of Hefner and also with a new solo record in Pram Town, a talk with Mica Levi of Micachu. And to wrap up, a heart-to-heart with Dev Hynes, aka Lightspeed Champion, about the genius of Steve Martin. She also lets Metro have a look at her iPod (though they evidently look at her as they’ve run a picture of Los Campesinos with the piece, and helpfully identify the one of them as Emmy) and gives an interview to Virgin Music.

BBC profile Saint Etienne.

This Is Nottingham talks to Bloc Party drummer Matt Tong. They have two dates at the Kool Haus on March 13 and 14.

The Boston Globe, Boston Music Spotlight, Metro and The Village Voice have interviews with various member of Los Campesinos!, in town at the Opera House on April 1.

Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3 may be saying Goodnight Oslo on their new album, out tomorrow, but they’ll be saying “hello Mod Club” when they come to town on April 16. Tickets $20.

Erin Nicholson

2008 has been a curious year. In assembling this obligatory list of my favourite records of the year, I found it a much more difficult task than past years. This was partly because the list of “no-brainer” records that were gimmes for year-end accolades seemed much slimmer than usual, and as such I had to do a lot more thinking about what would make the cut. Not to take anything away from those records who are listed below – all are excellent records that have soundtracked the past twelve months quite nicely – I just usually don’t have to think about things this much.

The other interesting thing is how the records that seem to be topping most everyone else’s lists are conspicuously absent from mine. Your Fleet Foxes, your Bon Ivers, your Vampire Weekends. I spent a goodly amount of time with most of these albums and mostly agree they’re fine albums (Vampire Weekend excepted, that one just bugs me), but they just didn’t move me the way they obviously have others. Curious.

Instead, what I find is a heavy representation from the UK, which doesn’t really surprise me considering this was the year I fully indulged my innate Anglophilia and actually visited London for the first time. I’m surprised there’s only three artists represented that I’d have called myself a fan of prior to this year – hell, six of them I’d never even heard of when 2008 began. The Canadian content is made up of records that were released wholly independently. There’s also a strong folk/roots representation which I should be used to by now, seeing as how it crops up most every year. Maybe my musical tastes aren’t quite as broad as I’d like to think. It really is a bit of a strange list, all things considered, but even though it was assembled a bit hesitantly, I’m very comfortable with how the chips have fallen. So let’s have a look.

And great thanks to Vancouver-based artist and web designer Erin Nicholson, who took my half-assed idea for an artwork meme and turned it into something completely awesome – please do click on all the images to see larger versions. Though I really have no idea how I’m going to top this next year.

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Photo by Frank Yang

I am willing to bet that most everyone who was packed into the tiny back room of The Rivoli on Saturday night was there to see Ms Laura Marling, she of the fine Mercury Prize-nominated debut Alas, I Cannot Swim if not of the top billing on this night. But, assuming they arrived early and stayed late and took in the entire show, I am also willing to bet that they weren’t just talking about Marling’s set afterwards, but every single act that performed.

It was the final night of the traveling musical caravan dubbed the “Fe Fi Fo Fum Tour” which had been traversing the continent for the past past three weeks, and in addition to Marling featured Johnny Flynn & The Sussex Wit and Mumford & Sons for an excellent sampling of the current crop of young, folk-based artists coming out of the UK right now. Though it was evident from the tour anecdotes and in-jokes that popped up in stage banter through the night that all involved had a terrific time discovering and conquering America, it was also obvious that they were tired but prepared to give their all for this one, last show.

And in addition to the three acts listed, there was a surprise opener in the form of Pete Roe, a member of Marling’s band who stepped up to play a quick and impressive two-song set of graceful, finger-picked folkistry that gave a taste of what was to come. And if that was the appetizer, Mumford & Sons was the first course. The four-piece, who would also comprise a large portion of Marling’s band, delivered a raucous yet mournful bluegrass-based sound that was steeped heavily in traditional forms but not at all restricted by them. There’s no overt genre envelope-pushing like introducing heavy electronic elements – banjos, mandolins and fiddles are very much the tools of the trade to say nothing of immaculate four-part harmonies – but there’s also no sense that they’re seeking to recreate the past, simply that they’ve chosen this particular style in which to write their songs. And in any style, their songs would have been strong and affecting.

My expectation for Laura Marling’s set was that it’d be a quiet, almost solemn affair in keeping with the downbeat tone of the album. And while it was far from a dance party, by playing with a full band and focusing on the more fully-arranged pieces from Alas, she far exceeded what you might expect from a conventional singer-songwriter performance. Initially, she evidenced some of the stage fright that she’s been contending with since being thrust into the spotlight, stony-faced and staring off into space whilst singing her songs, as though having an out of body experience. But the sheer love emanating from the audience – the constant singalongs were as endearing as they were annoying – and the joviality of her bandmates eventually pulled her out of her shell and by the end, she was smiling and joking along with them. For me, her performance was less a revelation as a reinforcement of the fact that Alas really is a strong record and Marling is a rare talent worthy of all the accolades she’s gathered in her short career. And though it’s usually the strength of her songwriting that’s praised, she also has a much stronger and versatile voice than you might expect – though she tends to favour the lower register that keeps with the confessional mood of her writing, there were a few points at the show when she went high or falsetto and sounded remarkable.

So with Marling having delivered what most in attendance were there to get, there was probably a bit of pressure on the final act – Johnny Flynn & The Sussex Wit – to prove they were worthy of the top billing and could close things out on just as high a note. And while they didn’t necessarily manage to exceed the bar set by the first acts, they were able to meet it handily and avoid any sort of let down. Drawing on their debut album A Larum, Flynn and company made the Rivoli feel like an olde English pub to which they were the house band. Like the other acts, they demonstrated really remarkable musicianship with Flynn trading off from guitar to trumpet to fiddle while singing his richly detailed folk songs overtop a musical backdrop that was simultaneously delicate and muscular.

Though I’ve used the term ad nauseum out of convenience, I’m not a fan of the “anti-folk” label that’s been attached to a lot of the young, roots-oriented bands coming out of the UK at the moment – all the artists on this night included. It sounds small and reactionary and doesn’t do the undeniable talent of those caught under the label justice. So instead, let’s try a different descriptor – how about “simply wonderful”? Okay, maybe not. But still.

Photos: Johnny Flynn, Laura Marling, Mumford & Sons, Pete Roe @ The Rivoli – October 4, 2008
MP3: Laura Marling – “Ghosts”
MP3: Pete Roe – “Let It Go”
MP3: Pete Roe – “I’ll Only Be Dreaming Of You”
Video: Johnny Flynn – “Tickle Me Pink”
Video: Johnny Flynn – “Leftovers”
Video: Johnny Flynn – “Brown Trout Blues”
Video: Laura Marling – “Night Terror”
Video: Laura Marling – “New Romantic”
Video: Laura Marling – “Ghosts”
Video: Laura Marling – “My Manic & I”
Video: Laura Marling – “Cross Your Fingers”
MySpace: Johnny Flynn
MySpace: Laura Marling
MySpace: Pete Roe

Stay Thirsty interviews Los Campesinos!, whose We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed is out November 11. Pitchfork has details on the bonus goodies that’ll come with the CD.

Thanks to Thierry for pointing out this odd but enjoyable video of Lightspeed Champion and SNL‘s Fred Armisen someone named Fred covering The Strokes. I have no context for this clip, and honestly, I don’t want any.

Video: Lightpeed Champion and Fred – “Someday”

NPR talks to Basia Bulat about the appeal of the autoharp.

PopMatters interviews Nellie McKay.

Daytrotter welcomes Aimee Mann to their studios for a session.

The Boston Herald features Fleet Foxes.

Broken Social Scene have added a second date at the Sound Academy for the end of November, playing on the 28th as well as the 27th. Support for the second date – and perhaps the first? – will be Land Of Talk, which does raise the question of whether or not their cancelled headlining date at Lee’s from the end of September will be made up anytime soon.