Frank YangSchool Of Seven Bells
Brooklyn, New York, USA

Dream-pop trio made up of former members of The Secret Machines and On!Air!Library! who released their debut Alpinisms in 2008
– Show review

Photos: School Of Seven Bells @ The Mohawk Patio – March 19, 2009
MP3: School Of Seven Bells – “Connjur”
MP3: School Of Seven Bells – “Half Asleep”
MP3: School Of Seven Bells – “Chain”
MP3: School Of Seven Bells – “My Cabal” (Robin Guthrie mix)
Video: School Of Seven Bells – “Half Asleep”
MySpace: School Of Seven Bells

Frank YangFor the second day of SxSW, I eschewed all the running around that marked the first day – instead, I let the bands come to me. The best place to let this occur was the Mohawk, where Rhapsody were again throwing an impressive party.

Leading things off and obviously dazed in the bright midday sun were Vivian Girls, who manage to grow on me a little more each time I hear them. I think their live show worked better for me because it shed the deliberately tinny production of the records and actually delivered some serious oomph with its simple pop sensibilities. Lock me in a room with the album on repeat for a week and I might even become a fan.

I decided to not pay attention to Wavves, who was up next, but was front and centre for the following act – School Of Seven Bells. The band maintained the trio-plus-sampler live format they used when they visited Toronto in November and while I still believe a live drummer would really take things to another level, I found their performance to be a lot looser and more natural this time out – one of the perks of relentless touring, I guess. This was most evident in the Deheza sisters’ vocals, which while still spot-on in their harmonies, had an extra expressiveness that I hadn’t noticed last time. Nice to see and hear their live presentation doing proper justice to the material.

And while not the afternoon’s headliner, it could be argued that Glasvegas were the biggest draw on the bill – after all, the Scottish quartet had rolled into town on no small amount of hype and many, myself included, wanted to see if they could measure up. And in a word, I would say yes. The reservations I had about their self-titled debut aren’t allayed, but they are significantly outweighed by the sheer intensity of the music’s delivery. Decked out in their signature black outfits – and flushed and sweat-drenched by set’s end – Glasvegas proved to have plenty of live charisma. Of course frontman James Allen provided much of it, with his Ray-Bans and pompadour, but much credit must be given to Rab Allan who I was surprised to see handled much of the difficult musical details – guitar, vocals, keys – that make the album a winner, and that he did so while bounding around the stage with bassist Paul Donoghue. A spirited performance from a band that I’d half-expected to phone it in (don’t ask me why I thought that). Very impressive.

At this point there were a few options open to me, but all were filed under “contingency” depending on whether or not the Brush Square Park tent was a badge-only venue, as it usually was in years past. The draw was Graham Coxon, who was a late addition to the festival lineup and the good news was that the venue was indeed open to all.

The bad news was they were running quite a bit late and that I was going to have to sit through a performance from an outfit called Esser to get to Graham. They were a British outfit that you’d have to call pop, but only in the most vapid sense of the word. With a frontman whose only distinctive qualities were a gimmicky haircut and annoying on-stage mugging, they pillaged soul, reggae and dance styles without managing to adopt any of their respective redeeming qualities.

Thankfully their set was somewhat truncated to allow Coxon to play his almost full-set. It’s remarkable – putting aside his skewed pop maven role in Blur, I knew Coxon in his solo guise mostly as a noisenik of the highest order, paying tribute to his American punk and hardcore influences. If this solo acoustic show is any indication, however, his new record The Spinning Top – out in May – will cast his as an improbable folky. Even assuming the arrangements on the album are more electrified, the songs are still very lyric-centric and decidedly unlike his past works. And speaking of his past works, I will confess a tiny part of me was hoping to hear “Coffee & TV” or “You’re So Great”, but I know that’d have been as likely as, well, something entirely unlikely. But still a treat to see one of my favourite all-time guitarists live, in any setting.

Frank YangEven before setting foot in the Opera House on Tuesday night, you knew it wasn’t going to be a typical evening – security wasn’t bothering to check anyone’s ID, as the odds of someone underage wanting to sneak into a Tindersticks were pretty much slim to none. The audience for the veteran Brits, on their first North American tour in half a decade in support of their first album in just as long – last year’s The Hungry Saw – skewed older to say the least.

Support on the Canadian dates were Montreal’s Elfin Saddle, a duo expanded to trio for live performance and whose principals set up seated behind small fortresses of unusual musical instruments. They sounded like what you might expect to hear if you were traversing the hills of medieval England and just happened to stumble across a Japanese temple built into a Gregorian monastery – a strange and fascinating combination of Eastern and Western sounds from long ago, not so much blended as tied together with wire and string. Definitely unique.

I’ve fully admitted to being a Tindersticks neophyte, but after their show I can also declare myself a total convert. They began with each player taking the stage one by one as they built up “Introduction”, the instrumental opener from The Hungry Saw, from nothing to perfection and thus set the tone for the night and that tone was one of effortless elegance. The seven-piece band of guitar, bass, drums, keys, horns and of course Stuart Staples’ inimitable croon were the very definition of class up there, grand yet understated, in creating an atmosphere like a suspended breath or the very last dance of the evening – like one of those fleeting moments you want to last forever.

And while not forever, their 90-minute set still felt like a gift, one which the enraptured crowd didn’t take for granted if their almost utter silence throughout the show was any indication (enthusiastic applause aside). Though Staples’ interaction with the audience was minimal – we got a “hello” and an “I already said hello” – it was obvious from the looks on he and founding guitarist Neil Fraser that they were fully enjoying this return to action after so long away. The setlist – punctuated with lovely instrumental interludes throughout – drew heavily on The Hungry Saw, so even though my knowledge of their catalog was limited the show still felt warm and enveloping. And as for the songs I didn’t know, while their words and melodies may have been unfamiliar, their language of sumptuous melancholy was one I’m quite fluent in and nothing was lost in translation. Simply a stunning show, top to bottom.

eye also has a review of the performance. The San Francisco Examiner has an interview with Stuart Staples, hour.ca talks to Elfin Saddle.

Photos: Tindersticks, Elfin Saddle @ The Opera House – March 10, 2009
MP3: Tindersticks – “The Hungry Saw”
MP3: Elfin Saddle – “Temple Daughter”
Video: Tindersticks – “Can Our Love…”
Video: Tindersticks – “Traveling Light”
Video: Tindersticks – “The Art Of Lovemaking”
Video: Tindersticks – “Rented Rooms”
Video: Tindersticks – “Dying Slowly”
Video: Tindersticks – “Can We Start Again?”
Video: Tindersticks – “No More Affairs”
Video: Tindersticks – “City Sickness”
MySpace: Tindersticks

Beirut have made a date for the Phoenix on July 9 with The Dodos as support. Tickets are on sale Saturday at 10AM, and will cost $25.

Matador continues to build the mythology of Yo La Tengo the Condo Fucks with a short documentary film entitled Straight Outta Connecticut. The Fuckbook album is out March 24.

MP3: Condo Fucks – “Whathca Gonna Do About It?”

The Tripwire and Newsweek have conversations with Bob Mould about his new album The Life & Times, out April 7. You can stream the first single over at Anti-blog.

NPR has an acoustic session with School Of Seven Bells.

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart are releasing a new 7″ on March 31, the a-side of which you can download below, perhaps as an excuse to continue touring – they’re at Lee’s Palace on April 28. They’re also playing every show and showcase at SxSW next week. I was going to play a little game called “Try not to see POBPAH in Austin” but that would pretty much require me to not leave my hotel, and even then I don’t think I’d be safe.

MP3: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – “Young Adult Friction”

Filter has posted online their recent cover story featuring a meeting of the minds between Elvis Costello and Jenny Lewis.

Clash talks to Colin Meloy of The Decemberists about their new album The Hazards Of Love, out March 24.

The Boston Herald and The Varsity interview AC Newman while Philadelphia Weekly gets him to review some of his reviews.

Forest City Lovers say hello with both a new download, a live acoustic track from a few years back, and a lovely new video. Kat Burns is playing a solo show at Rolly’s Garage on April 4 before the band heads out on a European tour (!). Their next local show is June 27 at the Tranzac for the Zunior anniversary. Burns gives Anika In London her guide to Toronto.

MP3: Forest City Lovers – “Oh Humility” (live)
Video: Forest City Lovers – “Song For Morrie”

NOW talks to Handsome Furs’ Dan Boeckner. They’re at the Horseshoe tomorrow night.

eye interviews Malajube, who play the El Mocambo tonight.

The Playlist rounds up some of the musical developments in the Scott Pilgrim film.

Frank YangWhile most bands spend their entire careers trying to nail down that elusive “signature sound”, actually achieving that goal can be as much a curse as a blessing. In the case of New York’s Asobi Seksu being “that band that sounds like J-pop meets My Bloody Valentine” certainly set them apart, but there’s only so much you can do within those boundaries and considering they damn near perfected it with their last album Citrus, the very real question facing them heading into album number three would have been, “what next?”

Their answer was to first strip the roster down to just principals Yuki Chikudate and James Hanna and then head back into the studio with much more Spector on their minds than Shields. And as you might expect, the resultant album Hush requires that the listener’s expectations be adjusted. Though things aren’t nearly as subdued as the album title might imply, they have traded in much of their fuzz-pedal squall for fluffier clouds of reverb and while the leaner sonic approach actually suits them quite well, it also seems their pop instincts were dulled in the process and by making their songs more atmospheric, they’ve also lost some substance. The record sounds more like a band in the process of creating a new identity rather than presenting a completed one.

Their live show, however, remains quite familiar as Tuesday night’s engagement at the El Mocambo proved. Though they’d paid a visit just five months prior, they still managed to draw a very healthy crowd and regardless of the band’s new creative direction, if they came expecting to be assaulted and battered by sound they weren’t disappointed. Apparently all the distortion pedals that didn’t make it into the studio were in the band’s touring van, because they had all their noisemaking toys along with them and weren’t afraid to use them – their signature Christmas and strobe light stage setup was also along for the ride. I was pleased to see that they’ve also developed a distinctive stage presence, with Hanna pacing the stage looking for pedals to stomp on and Chikudate cooly cooing into the microphone and whipping her hair around. And mixed in with the Citrus material and given the more muscular delivery, the Hush songs sounded much more alive, providing a bit of respite – but only a bit – from the sonic tumult of the older songs. If Asobi are looking for some pointers on where to take their sound, perhaps listening to a recording of one of their shows would be a good start – for my money, they’ve got the perfect formula right there.

Tourmates Bell also hailed from New York and the duo – frontwoman and namesake Olga Bell on keyboards and Jason Nazary on drums and both on laptops – were excited to be on their very first tour, this being the second show. Their sound is an interesting take on electronica, melding Bell’s powerful and elastic vocals with unconventional melodies, pop structures and dynamic live drumming. It’s the sort of thing that draws you in, then pushes you away and then pulls you back, sometimes all at once. Kind of strange but definitely intriguing.

Decider has an interview with Asobi Seksu, Gothamist has one with Bell.

Photos: Asobi Seksu, Bell @ The El Mocambo – March 3, 2009
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “Me & Mary”
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “Familiar Light”
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “New Years”
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “Thursday”
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “I’m Happy But You Don’t Like Me”
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “Let Them Wait”
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “Sooner”
MP3: Asobi Seksu – “Walk On The Moon”
MP3: Bell – “Magic Tape”
Video: Asobi Seksu – “Me & Mary”
Video: Asobi Seksu – “Thursday”
Video: Asobi Seksu – “Goodbye”
Video: Asobi Seksu – “Walk On The Moon”
MySpace: Asobi Seksu
MySpace: Bell

Black Book interviews Anthony Gonzalez of M83.

Ben Curtis of School Of Seven Bells talks to Drowned In Sound and This Is Fake DIY.

Pitchfork solicits a list of this and that from Stuart Staples of Tindersticks while NOW, The Washington Post, Express and New York Press settle for interviews. They play the Opera House on Tuesday night.

NME has details on Jarvis Cocker’s forthcoming album – relevant points are that it’s out May 19, but is still untitled now entitled Further Complications (via PF) and was produced by Steve Albini… now that’ll be a 180 from the Richard Hawley-helmed romantic lushness of the first record. Can’t wait.

Clash has an extended and thoughtful interview with Ian Brown about the history of The Stone Roses on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of their debut album. Yes, the “r” word comes up. No, don’t hold your breath.

Magnet Q&As Frightened Rabbit and NPR welcomes them to for an interview and session.

Gemma Hayes has released a new video from last year’s The Hollow Of Morning. I think the “swoon” is implicit anytime I write about her, is it not?

Video: Gemma Hayes – “Home”

Wireless Bollinger, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent and Clash interview Howling Bells, whose new album Radio Wars is – I’m sad to say – being rather justly pilloried. It’s just not very good and considering how much I’d been looking forward to it, is quite a disappointment. Not giving up on the band but it’s a let-down.

MP3: Howling Bells – “Into The Chaos”

Pitchfork reveals that one of the tracks on the new Wilco album – still untitled and set for a June release – will feature a duet between Jeff Tweedy and Feist.

To mark their upcoming tour in support of Neko Case, Crooked Fingers have released a new digital EP for “Your Control”, the closing track from their last album Forfeit/Fortune which is a duet between Eric Bachmann and Case. The EP also features a couple covers of Crooked Fingers tunes by Spoon and Lambchop.

Neko Case gives Spinner some of the ground rules for being in her band and talks to JAM about the naturalist themes that run through her work. She also talks to The Los Angeles Times and The Globe & Mail. She’s at Trinity-St Paul’s on April 17 and 18.

The Ithaca Journal and NOW talk to AC Newman, who is playing Lee’s Palace next Wednesday night.

Peaches has a date at the Phoenix on May 20. Her new album I Feel Cream is out May 4.

Grizzly Bear have mapped out a massive tour in support of new album Veckatimest – the Toronto date is June 5 at the Phoenix. The album is out May 26.

The National Post recorded a video feature on Ohbijou circa their show at Lee’s Palace last November, including a street corner performance backed by The Acorn. And more clarity on the status of Beacons – the band has signed a deal in the UK with Bella Union, making them labelmates – at least over there – with Fleet Foxes and Andrew Bird. Pretty good company. Beacons is set for a June 8 release there and plans are afoot for the North American release and rescheduled tour dates to fall in line with that.

Paste talks to Craig Finn about The Hold Steady about their forthcoming live CD/DVD set A Positive Rage, due out April 7.

Blurt reports that Richard Thompson will be the subject of a four-disc box set entitled Walking On A Wire: Richard Thompson (1968-2009) and due out June 30.

NOW talks to creator Bryan Lee-O’Malley and director Edgar Wright about the upcoming Scott Pilgrim and its Toronto roots.

Update: Sad news – Dutch concert webcast site FabChannel is closing its (virtual) doors next week – you have seven days to go root through their massive and beautiful archives. Get to it.

Frank YangWhen last week’s The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart show was announced way back in December, I figured it would be a nice little underground thing (literally and figuratively) with myself and the small but loyal posse of Toronto shoegaze devotees in the subterranean environs of Neutral. Sure, their unabashedly retro but still nearly perfect fuzz-pop in theory had mass appeal, but the same could be said for most stuff I like but never manages to catch on – it’s pop music. It’s not difficult.

But as the early February release date of their self-titled debut drew near, a buzz that couldn’t be credited just to the shoegaze loyalists was quickly growing around the band, culminating in a “Best New Music” review from the old Pitchfork and just like that, you knew it wasn’t just going to be a handful of people staring at each others’ sneakers. The fact that the show had already been moved from Neutral to the much larger Lee’s Palace was just a coincidence due to work permit issues rather than demand, but it proved to be a most necessary move – by the time the much-feted band took the stage, Lee’s was nearly packed.

Leading up to that point were a couple of support acts, one local and one tourmate. The former, an outfit called Don Mills, were hopelessly miscast for the audience with their decidedly anonymous-sounding rock. The only remarkable thing about them was their singer’s utter commitment to his performance, with stage moves that seemed laughably ironic until you realized they were totally genuine – and then they were oddly commendable.

The Depreciation Guild were a far more compelling warm-up. I commented favourably on their free-to-download debut In Her Gentle Jaws, with its M83-gone-8-bit charms, but wasn’t fully prepared for the transformation their sound would take in a live setting. Their secret weapon – an old Japanese Famicom game console – was very much on display beside frontman Kurt Feldman and set the table, musically speaking, for their songs but its bleeps and bloops were soon drowned out by the live band’s dual guitars and thundering drums, the synthetic wall of sound ever-present on the record replaced by a decidedly organic one. On one hand, it’s sort of unfortunate that their most distinctive element was lost in the din but the intensity of the attack – while somehow maintaining the dreampop delicacy of the songs – more than made up for it.

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, on the other hand, delivered exactly what was expected – twee-pop confections dressed up in big outfits of noise – but they fared less well in the live setting. The band’s inherent feyness wasn’t quite able to overcome their own sonic attack and as a result, some of the little touches that give the album enough variety to transcend its admittedly limited aesthetic, in particular the boy-girl harmonies of Kip Berman and Peggy Wang, were simply buried and the net result was a cheerful but rather monochromatic show. Though they’re not an overly charismatic bunch, it was fun watching them obviously have a blast and in particular Berman’s incredulousness at the sheer number of people in attendance – at one point he said that it was the biggest show they’d ever played. With a barely 45-minute set including encore, it’s impossible to say that they overstayed their welcome but what would have seemed like a too-short show from most bands felt just right for the Pains. I don’t want to use the word “disappointment” as that simply wasn’t the case, but they didn’t manage to make me feel any greater love for the band or the record. But I still love the record a fair bit so that’s okay.

eye also has a review of the show and Express Night Out, Tripwire and The New Gay have interviews with the band.

Photos: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, The Depreciation Guild, Don Mills @ Lee’s Palace – February 12, 2009
MP3: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – “Everything With You”
MP3: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – “Come Saturday”
MP3: The Depreciation Guild – “Darklooming”
MP3: The Depreciation Guild – “Butterfly Kisses”
Video: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart – “Everything With You”
Video: The Depreciation Guild – “Nautilus”
MySpace: The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
MySpace: The Depreciation Guild

Clash interviews Asobi Seksu. Hush is out today and they play the El Mocambo on March 3.

Clash talks to Ben Curtis of School Of Seven Bells.

eye, Metro and JAM talk to Antony Hegarty of Antony & The Johnsons, who are playing the Queen Elizabeth Theatre tonight.

Details have finally emerged about the new record from Grizzly Bear. It’s called Veckatimest and it’s out May 26 – for more, head over to Pitchfork.

Spinner is featuring Black Kids in an Interface session. They’re at the Phoenix on April 10.

The New York Times, Hartford Courant and The Los Angeles Times talk to M Ward about his new record Hold Time, out today.

San Diego one-man act Wavves – who’s apparently all the buzz with blogs which are not this one – is coming to town for a show at Sneaky Dee’s on March 31.

MP3: Wavves – “So Bored”

TV On The Radio have a date at the Sound Academy on June 2.

Virgin Music interviews Aaron Dessner of The National about his role as curator for the Dark Was The Night AIDS benefit compilation, out today.