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By Jon Milton Gilla Band's third album is a breathtaking achievement. Prior to listening to 'Most Normal' I had a passing appreciation of Gilla / Girl Band but little more. It was only on a whim that I decided to give the album a listen, but wow, wow, wow, it is brilliant. First things first, Most Normal has to be listened to in a single sitting. There has clearly been a lot of blood, sweat and tears put into this record to get it to where it is, and it is best appreciated in its entirety. Opener 'The Gum' sets the tone with its harsh yet bewitching sonic onslaught. 'Eight Fivers' juxtaposes percussion and vocals with a brutal cacophony. 'Backwash''s bouncing bassline is mesmerising. 'Gushie' provides a trippy interlude that takes the edge off the scampering, manic 'Bin Liner Fashion'. 'Capgras' is the sound of a breakdown. 'The Weirds' continues the mania, split into three disparate parts. 'I Was Away' and 'Almost Soon' are the closest the album gets to conventional music before disorientation returns in the form of 'Red Polo Neck' and 'Pratfall'. 'Post Ryan' concludes the journey with another warped bassline overlaid with glorious noise. The influences of electronic artists like Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada and the Chemical Brothers are pretty obvious on Most Normal, but what sets Gilla Band apart from these is the production, which so expertly melds analogue with electronica to create something unique. It may well be the album of the year and by some distance. 
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Anyone who managed to catch SOURDOUGH's excellent single 'Holocene Ending' early this year will be aware of what an exciting, under the radar prospect this band are. The band have just released their debut EP on Vandalism Begins At Home Records which features Holocene Ending along with three more incendiary tunes. In these volatile, uncertain, complex and uncertain times, SOURDOUGH attempt to provide a voice for the disaffected many, with an EP that pours contempt on governmental abuse of power. And all of this was written before the government decided to issue arguably the most bonkers mini-budget of all time, and in doing so widen the gap between have and have nots. Opening track 'Ragged Trouser Opinionist' considers the pursuit of power, Holocene Ending the abuse of power and 'Mind and Body' and 'Behind the Screen' the feelings of being powerless. The band's impassioned rhetoric is aptly accompanied by its music which burns with energy, anger and urgency.  Within the first minute of listening to Courting’s ‘Guitar Music’, you may well be thinking that the title was just an elaborate ruse and that an entirely different non-guitar based experience was about to hit you. Album opener ‘Cosplay/Twin Cities’ begins with 30 seconds of uplifting piano, harp and synth and then morphs into a deadpan ‘SexyBack’ like industrial number, replete with dentistry drill noises. Once that initial shock gets out of the way, the six strings make their entry on the excellent single, ‘Tennis’ and pretty much make their presence known throughout the rest of the record. In fairness there was always a hint of the band’s predilection for playfulness with that Cher effect vocal on ‘Loaded’ (included here) and there are little flourishes throughout the album.  The smart lyrics, great tunes and bright inventive ideas on Guitar Music certainly make Courting standout from the crowd and it is a very enjoyable debut album indeed. At times they’re winging a bit, with ‘Jumper’ close to straying a bit too far into mainstream territory and ‘PDA’ almost in danger of getting annoying with that click track, but there again they’re young and I’m not, so perhaps I should just get over myself. At 32 minutes long and with tunes as good as ‘Famous’, ‘Loaded’ and ‘Tennis’ on there you can’t really go wrong. The latest addition to Blitzcat Records impressive roster of artists (including Gag Salon and Kyoto Kyoto) are Bristol's HAAL, who have just released a new single in the form of 'Janus'. The song is inspired by the cult 2013 sci-fi thriller show 'Utopia’, whose themes around transhumanism and secrecy adorn the PS2-style graphics video, designed by Will Newcombe. Musically, think Massive Attack fused with a bit of grunge and Marc Ribot's guitar on Island era Tom Waits and you'll be in the right ball- park. Not a bad set of references, eh?  Immersive visuals will take centre stage at two special headline shows - the first in HAAL's hometown of Bristol at The Louisiana with support from Crimewave (Sept 16th), the second in London at Bermondsey Social Club with special guests Waterbaby (Sept 22nd). Check out the video below to give yourself a flavour. By Jon Milton The Lounge Society have been turning heads and pricking up ears for just over two years since their outstanding debut single ‘Generation Game’ came out. They set the bar high with that song and kept it high with their debut EP ‘Silk for the Starving’ released last year but has it stayed there for their debut album ‘Tired of Liberty’? Kind of. The sheer amount of energy and ideas that the band pack into Tired of Liberty is mind blowing. The first nine songs twist and turn, scamper and slow and then scamper again restlessly with such effortless ease. Its easy to lose your sense of time. Brilliant stuff. Then it all comes abruptly to an end with ‘Upheaval’ a significant change in direction and one that doesn’t really fit. The album closes with Generation Game which feels like it’s been tacked on to make up the numbers. Was it rushed out to capitalise on the bands growing popularity? It feels a bit like that, which is a shame.  Despite the disappointing end however, the potential this band have is incredible. I’m kind of reminded of the first Echo and the Bunnymen album ‘Crocodiles’ here in the sense of thinking that this is not the finished article but there could be something great like ‘Heaven Up Here’ just round the corner. The comparison is amplified as both albums feature lightweight production that doesn’t get the best out of them. Despite minor grumbles though, Tired of Liberty is an impressive debut. And in many ways it’s a good thing that its flawed as it gives them room to target improvement and really nail the next record, and hopefully a couple more after that too. |
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