Interview: Surfer Blood

2010 has been a pretty big year for Surfer Blood. A simple positive review on a little site known as Pitchfork had them quickly hailed (by some) as the second coming of early 90s nerd rock God's Weezer (considering the fact that many consider Weezer to have taken a long dirt nap post-Pinkerton.)

They've since spent much of their time attempting to distance themselves from said comparison, while trying to establish their own identity through touring the fuck out of their brilliant debut record, Astro Coast.

Roving reporter Rav (RRR) recently chatted to the band's frontman, chief songwriter and major producer of Astro Coast, John Paul 'JP' Pitts, about how Surfer Blood have developed as a live act since the release of the album, what hitting the big time has been like, and how they came up with their super sweet band t-shirt designs.

Hey JP. How you doin' buddy?

I'm good man.

Where are you at right now?

En route to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, for a show.

How's the tour been going?

It's been good. It's been hectic. Been touring a lot. Just got back from Europe last month. And have been touring with The Pains Of Being Pure Of Heart this month. And, you know, it's fun.

I've seen you guys in a bunch of write ups for stories like '10 Bands to see in 2010,' and '50 Bands You Must See!' Do you feel pressured at all by all the media scrutiny on your performances?

No, I mean, hopefully we're delivering. Just like anyone else we have our good shows and our bad shows. There's a lot of expectations but all you can really do at the end of the day is keep working hard, playing good songs, tour and, you know, try to reach out to your fans. We're growing everyday as musicians and as people.

Do you think you've developed over the last 12 months as you've been performing more and more live and to bigger and bigger shows?

Yeah we've definitely come together as a live act. The songs have always been there and recording was good, but the live show has grown and really fleshed out and people who see us now tell us now that it's better and more enjoyable than it was 6 months ago or whatever.


Now that you guys have blown up in terms of touring and having a big supporter base, do you think that you'll remain living in Florida, or is a relocation on the cards?

Right now we don't have any plans to leave Florida. Once this tour's over we're going to go back there and I'm actually excited to be home for a little bit, we've been on the road so much. We'll start working on some new material and I'm looking forward to spending some time with my friends and family.

You were responsible for a majority of the recording of the Astro Coast, and obviously how the album has turned out has been one of the major reasons why you guys have found such success - would you consider recording and engineering other bands in the future, or are you happy to just focus on Surfer Blood for now?

Right now Surfer Blood keeps me quite busy. But in the future it's not something I'd rule out. I've always been interested in the idea of producing other people's records and working with other people. I'm not an expert by any means. I kind of, like, figured it out as I went along. But collaborations are something that I'm interested in.

The first album's songs developed over a number of years before they ended up on Astro Coast, do you think you have experienced enough and will have enough material for the next time you record, and are you looking to get back into the studio anytime soon?

Not any time in the next few months. I'm not a big fan of just writing in the studio. I think it seems wasteful. Before we go to the studio I like to have a song pretty much written and demoed and everything else rather than try and rush through it in the studio and try to piece it together. And demoing is good too because you learn what the song's limits and strengths are because you've already tried to do a lot of the recording once before.

Do you guys like to road test new songs live?

Yeah a lot of times we do. We've been playing a new song on the road that we kind of worked on in the studio and we've been playing it live just to see how it goes. That's also very helpful for us learning a song. You can feel it more than just learning the parts and playing them in order.

Do you foresee Surfer Blood sonically shifting in the future?

Oh of course. I think that that's inevitable with almost any band. I see the sound becoming... You know right now it's already pretty full but hopefully the song writing will mature too and, you know, we'll continue to grow.





I was checking out your Myspace page and I loved the Unknown Pleasures spoof T-Shirt design you guys have for sale. Who came up with that?

That was actually our bassist Brian. He thought it would be a really cool design to show homage to. It's called the 'Unknown Leisures' T-Shirt. And yeah, Joy Division is a band that we all deeply respect so it's cool to pay homage to a band in that way, I think.

The album's artwork is also really striking, where did that come from?

My sister came up with the concept for the album art. She initially wanted to take two images and cut them up into strips and weave them together the way you'd weave together a basket and we sort of took that idea and ran with it and it turned out really cool.

I read somewhere that you're a big Yo La Tengo fan. What's your favourite Yo La Tengo record?

I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One. I mean, I know it's like everyone's favourite but it's just that good.

Yeah it's a pretty fucking amazing record.

Yeah and one of my favourite guitarists ever [Ira Kaplan].

Have you had a chance to meet any of you idols or found that you've got any celebrity fans?

Yeah we have actually. We got to meet a lot of the dudes from Pavement recently. And we met Mac and Laura from Superchunk at SXSW and that was pretty neat. And who knows, maybe we'll hook up after the show in Chapel Hill tonight.

[FYI - Mac and Laura from Superchunk also started the uh-may-zing record label MERGE, who have currently/at one time had signed to their roster The Arcade Fire, Spoon, Neutral Milk Hotel and the Magnetic Fields to name but a few. They're label is based out of Chapel Hill.]

So obviously you're heading to Aussie shores for some tour dates pretty soon. Are you guys getting psyched about that?

Yeah we've been getting a lot of emails and stuff like that from people who are really excited about us coming, so I'm really looking forward to the shows. I think they're gonna be really good. People seem really stoked to have us over there.

Are you particularly excited to be sharing the bill with anyone at Splendour In The Grass?

The Strokes, obviously. LCD Soundsystem is playing. Yeah, I just think it's gonna be a really awesome festival to be at.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Interview: The Fumes

Aussie blues rock duo, THE FUMES, have been tearing up stages across the country over the last year on the back of their latest record, Sundancer. Singer, guitarist, pianist and loose cannon, STEVE MERRY, talked to NATHAN WOOD in the lead up to their spot on the East Coast Blues and Roots Festival about how Sundancer has gone down with crowds live, plans to support the Hoodoo Gurus and dealing with other bands’ managers having hissy fits.

It’s been almost a year since your latest record Sundancer was released. How has touring on the back of Sundancer compared to when you toured your debut, Guns Of Gold?

It’s been a lot different this time around, funny too because Sundancer I really felt I got it right, where as Guns Of Gold we were pretty green and I didn't have much experience, therefore input into the production side. So it came out how it did and I was kinda like, “Oh well, it’s alright” (one good single on radio – that I didn't even like the version of either), but we had great touring success on that. [It] got us to Japan and all was great. Still broke, but good.

So [the] second album we demoed for nearly two years. I kind of don't like doing too many demos, the music is in my head and I guess I just think everybody else can hear it, so the process was slow and nobody was really interested in it to put up any money. But I knew I had a good album. So, somehow we managed to get the money from advances from publishing, Joel [Battersby, the other half of The Fumes] invested and I just had to depend on my good friends and missus and manager to make it work.

Well, we put the album out and got bloody critical acclaim pretty much across the whole media spectrum, but just couldn't get a single on radio, therefore cutting our touring routes down to just capital cities. And all of a sudden the album has run its course. Humbling experience indeed. Still, I love the album, but I guess people just have different tastes.

How has the record been received by the crowds at your live shows?

In Australia we have our core fans, bless ‘em! But we have been really trying to work in the States. New York City has been great, so I guess we’ll be trying to get back there for a third time to finally release the album. We've had some fuckin’ cool shows in some smaller joints in Soho – the Rockwood Music Hall is a cracker!

Guns Of Gold was a big hit in Japan when it was released, how has Sundancer gone down in ‘the land of the rising sun’?

I think it went down pretty well. We played our own headline show there and had about 200 people there, which was unreal. But I think ‘the land of the rising sun’ is, at the moment, the ‘land of the sinking economy,’ which is maybe hindering our label from getting us back over there.

Has your live show (already renowned for being a rollicking good time) changed or developed much while touring Sundancer?

I sometimes attempt to play piano, but it’s a keyboard. I just wish every venue had an acoustic piano, or Joel was bigger and he could carry one round for us.

You recently toured Oz with Clutch and Calexico. How did those shows go down?

They were both fun and really different. [With] Clutch we played a harder, heavier set and they were pretty cool. But I pissed off their manager because I asked for a piece of one of their 10 fucking pizzas after the show and he hit the roof and stormed out of the room like on a reality TV show, but fuck him. He looked like he ate about 10 pizzas a day anyway.

And then the ironic thing was, two days later [at] the first show with Calexico, who have been one of my favourite bands for a long, long time, we met them at sound check and they ordered a whole bunch of pizzas and shouted us as much as we could eat… Love Calexico.

Are you looking forward to tearing it up at the Blues and Roots fest in Byron?

Fuck no! I can't stand the idea off playin’ one of the biggest festivals in Australia, just down the road from where I live, with the likes of John Mayall, Rodriguez, Taj Mahal, and the frigging Gypsy Kings! Oh and maybe the chance to throw a bottle at Donavan Frankenreiter… No, please kill me!

You’ve also got some support slots with the Hoodoo Gurus coming up – are you psyched to be playing with such a legendary Aussie act?

First time I heard them was on Thank God You’re Here! Nah, they’re legends and we are very excited for that and to meet them. I watched them side of stage at St. Kilda Fest and it was funny because I knew every word to every song – they ripped!

Finally Steve, any plans to get back into the studio in 2010?

I have plans but I ain’t saying nothing yet! ! But thanks for the questions mate.

Record Review: Crystal Castles – Crystal Castles

I don't really like electronic music. Probably 'cos a) I'm not a robot¹; and b) I don't drive a lowered Hilux, play rugby league, take my shirt off at music festivals, eat disco biscuits like they're lifesavers, cliche, cliche, cliche... The Presets are the new Chisel, blah, blah, blah.

But for some reason I thought that when I was offered to review the new Crystal Castles record, I might like it. I'd read a bit about the band and if you believe half the shit that's been spouted by UK wank biscuits, they're the bee's knees.

So I listened to the record and I tried to write a review that sounded like it would be appropriate for someone that actually liked Crystal Castles or electronic music. It had a bunch of shit in it about androids and another bit about me being a robot and getting a piston erection over how good it was, followed by whacking off using WD-40 as lube. Essentially, I tried to be funny, and I failed miserably. Which is why when I sent the review in, the highly intelligent editor of this baby blue interweb music page decided not to publish it.

After giving the disc another spin, and although it may get me a bit of backlash from CC fans, like I copped with my last review (get over yourselves The National fans, ya cunts) I'm gonna give my honest opinion. I think it's shit.

I recognize that there are some good songs on the record, and I'm positive some of them would go off live (Baptism is sooo ravin'), but to tell you the truth, the quality of the album's production comes up way short [insert Gary Coleman death joke].

Half the time you can barely even hear Alice Glass' vocals. And when you do, they've been so manipulated they're hardly recognizable. While this worked when partnered with the more unfocused spastic music style of their debut, with the more linear focus this time around it just sounds flat and dull. The exception to this of course is the lead single Celestica, which jumps out like a pop tart with it's Groove Terminator worthy production².

Basically, when it comes down to it, I didn't find any of the songs catchy. Plus all the weird production and vocal effects stuff aren't anything different to what Aphex Twin or The Knife have done before them.

Beat it Crystal Castles.

P.S. What's with having a second self-titled album name? Who do you think you are - Weezer?!³

1. If you've seen Grandma's Boy, you'll think that's fucking hilarious!
2. That Kool Keith song fucking ruled.
3. Joke = © Jonny Yes Yes.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: The National – High Violet

The National strike me as a band that I should like a lot more than I actually do. And admittedly some of their songs strike me as utterly captivating (90 Mile Water Wall,Fake Empire, So Far Around The Bend). But when it comes down to the push and shove, Matt Berninger's voice is so God damn depressing that I really find it hard to enjoy a lot of their music.

However, with so much press giving each other hand jobs over how brilliant the band's new record, High Violet, was going to be, I was really hoping that hearing the album would be the turning point in my relationship with their music. After all, I do recognise the Dessner and Devendorf brothers as brilliant musicians. They build and create amazing sonic landscapes that sound as equally epic as they are quietly personal, conjuring such extreme levels of emotion that I can only imagine the band needs to wear plastic ponchos onstage to save themselves from being drenched by the audience's tears.

So when I sat down to listen to High Violet, I was prepared to be much more open-minded about my opinion of it than I would normally allow myself to be for so many other bands. Unfortunately, despite my best intentions, my turning point with The National continues to evade me.

That's not to say I don't love some of the material on High Violet. Afraid Of Everyone(featuring everyone's favourite Christian indie kid Sufjan Stevens on backing "Ohhs") and Bloodbuzz Ohio have been added to my list of genius The National songs.

Yet again though, it's the sad old bastard baritone that is Matt Berninger's voice that makes it impossible for me to fall for this record. Listening to High Violet is like listening to the soundtrack of clinical depression, which shouldn't necessarily be a negative thing. Music is as much designed to expose feelings of sadness and longing as it is to inspire listeners and fill them with joy. The aforementioned Sufjan Stevens is a genius in the field of taking the desperately sad and heart wrenching and transforming it into something of astounding beauty.

But it's Stevens' tender voice and musicianship that makes his sad cunt stories so captivating. Whereas Berninger's deep groans reach points of almost being monotone in their delivery and after hearing song after song of the same exhaustive droning and moaning, it gets to the point where I just can't bare to listen to it anymore.

I'm sure that this record will be critically acclaimed and will end up on a lot of critics' 'best of 2010' lists. But for the moment, The National and I will remain musical acquaintances, rather than the firm friends I hope we one day will become.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: Broken Social Scene – Forgiveness Rock Record

After being occupied by aboriginal people for thousands of years, the country of Canada was settled by both the British and the French in the 15th century. With a population of around 34 million people, it is made up of 10 provinces and three territories. The most populated of these provinces is Ontario, the capital of which is Toronto. Toronto is Canada's most populated city, with an estimated population of over 2.5 million people - all of whom are members Broken Social Scene.

And some how the masters of BSS, Kevin Drew and Brendan Canning, have managed to coordinate all of these lovely, talented Torontonites (?) to produce yet another record, their forth in nine years.

Now in a country like Canada, where the main exports include genius music, maple syrup, double denim and marijuana, you need to make sure you have a consistently high quality of product leaving your borders in order to maintain your country's good name. And obviously the Canadian FAMCS (Fucking Awesome Music Control Service - kinda like the Mounties) have been cracking down on BSS and its CEOs, 'cos there isn't much wrong on their new album, Forgiveness Rock Record.

Opener World Sick is aptly epic and fires the LP off like I'd expect your bowel movements would explode after a long night of eating the Canadian national dish, poutine (hot chips slathered with gravy and cheese curds).

This is then backed up by the surf rock guitars, Kraftwerk beats and syrupy sweet strings of Chase Scene. Meanwhile Texico Bitches sounds like an off cut from BSS's classic 2002 album, You Forgot It In People, with it's quirky production and disco beats.

Other stand outs include the lead single, Forced To Love, which stars all of Tontonto cutting sick; the beautifully lady-voiced, All To All, which mix masters a tremolo guitar and electronica tickle fight to perfection; and Sweetest Kill, a song that cuts through heart strings like a Saskatchewan lumber jack. I won't go as far to say that Forgiveness Rock Record is a classic in the same vain as You Forgot It In People, but it does have classic moments, and maintains BSS's Wayne Gretzky-like high level of consistency and performance.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: The Vasco Era – Lucille

Fuck yes! The Vasco Era! I fucking love the Vasco Era! I was at a gig of theirs once and as I put my lips to my glass of beer I discovered my beverage had transformed into a testicle milkshake! That's how fucking hard the Vasco Era rock!

Okay, time to listen to their new record, Lucille. Am I ready? I've got my under 16s cricket kit on. I'm hidden behind this sturdy brick wall. Okay.

PLAY.

What the fuck is that? It sounds like Snow Patrol? Did I leave one of my ex-girlfriend's awful fucking CDs in the stereo tray?

EJECT.

W.T.F!!!! This is the Vasco Era???

PLAY.

What the fuck is this piano shit? Why is Sid singing like he's K.D. Lang and I'm wearing a vest? What's this pop build up shit and windmill guitar chords?

SKIP.

Ahhh, okay. Track 2. This is better. This the Vasco Era! Wait, who the fuck is that chick singing in the background? Why is she there? Ohhh, it sounds like when they try to get women to commentate the footy!

SKIP.

Track 3. Here we go again! This is the Vasco Era! Ballsy guitar rock, drum skins getting K.O.'d, bass strings getting choked out like David Carradine. Ohhh, who the fuck let that piano back in the room again? Oh and it's brought a fuckin' organ with it! For fuck sake!

SKIP.

Is this a cover of the Choir Boys?

SKIP.

Marimba?

SKIP.

Ohhh yeeeaaaahhhh booooiiiiiii! This is the Vasco Era! Tear my balls off with yah voice Sid! Ted's playing the wrong bass notes, but that's cool. Solid chorus, awesome guitars. The vocals sound a little like Feeder, but I'll let it slide.

Track 7. Okay, another power ballad. Still sounds like Feeder.

SKIP.

What's that weird reverse choir sound? Oh shit, the piano's back in. Sid's singing like a pussy again. Where's that scratch in his voice that rules so hard? "From my father I got these blue eyes and the knowledge that I'm stuck here." Wow, these lyrics actually taste like a testicle milkshake.

SKIP.

Oh yeah! Scream it Sid! Sick build up! Vocals went a bit lack lustre. Chorus time - ahhhh, the chick is ruining it again!

SKIP.

A slow number... Probably building up to something fucking awesome! Here we go... What? More Snow Patrol guitars? More sing along, power ballad vocals?

STOP.

What a waste of fucking time. I'm just gonna wait till they tour again.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: Otouto – Pip

My first introduction to Hazel Brown and her sister Martha was at the now infamous Casiotone For The Clinically Depressed And Suicidal gig at the Wombarra Bowls Club. I had rocked up a little early and was polishing off what would soon be revealed as a not completely cooked chicken schnitzel, when a tour van rocked up. Like a clown taxi at the circus, Lord Casiotone The Well Girthed himself exited the vehicle, as well as what I assumed were a couple of label mates, some tag alongs and some smokin' hot indie babes (the aforementioned Brown sisters). I distinctly remember it, because as I sliced through the pink middle of the chicken breast, I laughed out loud at the fact that a fat, hairy guy that played shitty keyboards to crowds of middy drinking locals at the Wombarra Bowls Club could still get groupies.

It wasn't until I wandered into the dining room/salmonella factory/performance space of the club, that I realized these hot indie chicks were actually the opening act. The Browns, along with Kishore "Fuck The Drums I've Got Kitchen Utensils" Ryan (also of the excellent Kid Sam) formed Otouto. And quite frankly, they were fuckin great! In fact it royally pissed off Senor Casiotone when I reached right past his layers of vinyls for sale and grabbed a copy of their single Sushi (I bought a couple of CFTPA buttons to keep him from holding his breath till he passed out).

Like the gig, the single was fantastic. Hazel's smooth vocals, stuffed full of Aussie vowel pronunciation, worked really well with her baritone guitar, her sister's slightly drunk keyboards and Kishore ruining his mum's new Scanpan.

The only off putting thing was the song contained some of the strangest lyrics in the Solar System: "I mistook a man eating sushi / For a man putting on a fake moustache / The rain makes it sound like there's someone else around / The rain makes it sound like there's someone else in the house / It rains on my heart as it rains on the town / On the corner I thought I dropped something / It was just a bird landing." Hazel Brown be trippin', yo!

But that didn't matter, because the sound of the actual band was the key to Otouto and they tickled my ears like I was having maple syrup drizzled on my eardrums. And that sickly sweetness has carried over to their debut LP, Pip.

The bat shit crazy lyrics are still there, but the whole record sounds beautiful and innocent, like it was recorded by 12-year-olds using things in their dad's back shed to make a song because it's raining and they can't go outside and play.

It's also totally unique sounding, which in this day and age is a fucking hard task. The whole record isn't perfect, but it's always pushing to be different and I think that is the perfect approach that bands (particularly Australian bands) should be aiming for.

So I'd like to take this opportunity to openly apologise to the Brown sisters for being a male chauvinist pig and assuming you ladies were a couple of groupies, because in my opinion your band is one of the most wonderful and interesting musical projects in Australia today.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: The Kill Devil Hills – Man You Should Explode

7.5

Dripping with sweat, testosterone, and balls-and-all fuckin' awesomeness, Man, You Should Explode is a great Australian rock and roll album. It stands proudly alongside the recent tremendous work of The KDH's 'swamp rock' contemporaries, The Drones and The Mess Hall. And after listening to it just one time, I checked my nut sack to discover I'd grown three extra testicles.

This is a "smash a chair over the back of a cunt 'cos he looked at you the wrong way during a game of Texas Hold 'em" kinda record. Album opener It's Easy When You Don't Know How screams and rolls around the room a like mad man. It kicks your teeth in and announces that The Kill Devil Hills are here and they fuckin' own this town.

Cockfighter, (although it maybe a taboo reference these days, now that they've moved on to be U2-wannabe-cum-stains) recalls early Kings Of Leon records with a gun belt full of swagger and filthy, drawling guitar string bends.

And then BAM! The album takes the lead horse by the reins and makes a left into slow burner town with the country ballad I Don't Think I Can Take This Shit Much Longer. An unexpected manoeuvre, but this bunch of desert hell raisers don't play by nobody's rules.

Other standouts include the piano bar sing along Words From Robin To Batman (not a confession of gay love, if that's what you're thinking... not that there's anything wrong with that), the eerie When The Wolf Comes, and the boot scootin' rocker Siam.

And at the end of it all, the tender Lucy-On-All-Fours lulls you to sleep like your resting your whisky soaked head in the warm, loving arms of a gold-hearted whore.

When you've finished listening to Man, You Should Explode, you'll feel like you've been kissed by a stick of dynamite. And dat sheet feels goooood!

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: Bridezilla – The First Dance

7.3

Bridezilla have done more support slots in recent times than a pile of scaffolding. I haven't checked, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were supporting RZA at his upcoming Aussie shows.

And listening to their debut LP, The Last Dance it's easy to understand why they've scored so many great gigs. In fact, before listening to this album, I'd always dismissed Bridezilla as one of those ‘hype bands' that pop up every few years, support a shitload of acts on tour, put out one mediocre record and then fade into nothingness.

Only thing is Bridezilla haven't put out a mediocre record. They've put out a really great one that does an amazing job of melding their fucked up mix of instruments (guitar, vox, drums, saxophone and violin), without making them sound like a bunch of pretentious wank biscuits.

The saxophone (normally my most hated of instruments) and the violin work together to create a droning, haunting sound that permeates and adds depth to all their songs (see in particular Lunar Eclipse and Beaches).

Meanwhile, the guitar riffs are classic, especially the opening lick on Tailback. And of course Holiday Sidewinder's vocals add hundreds and thousands to the cake - breathily hovering through the music while simultaneously slinging a giant set of cahones.

The Last Dance is also an album that doesn't pigeon hole the band to any particular kind of musical slot. Perhaps that's why they are so adaptable when it comes to support gigs. They worked really well as an opener for prog-folkers The Decemberists' recent tour, and I'm sure they'll rip the nut sacks off a few punters on their upcoming warm up spots for The Cribs and The Mess Hall on their respective national tours.

In an Australian musical landscape where successful female musicians are as boring and similar as bread sandwiches (go hi-five yourselves Sarah Blasko and Lisa Mitchell) Bridezilla stand out like marmalade – a sexy and unique condiment, bursting with flavour. And The Last Dance is a particularly tasty jar of marmalade.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: Beach House – Teen Dream

7.8

If voices were fuckable, I'd be balls deep in Victoria Legrand from Beach House's sultry, sensual siren calls. It hazily wafts it's way through your ears, juicy with cigarettes, red wine and sex - leaving you feeling like you've smashed a bottle of claret while wading through a hot spa.

And its Legrand's vocals that truly stand out on Beach House's new record, Teen Dream. Where their earlier albums relied on her voice being drenched in reverb to induce a dreamy, lullaby sound that has become their signature, Teen Dream has seen them wring out the reverb and let the sickly sweet tones reign supreme on their own.

This could be to do with the fact that Teen Dream is their first album on Sub Pop, the pioneer grunge label that has transformed into a home for off-beat indie pop. With a bigger label comes a bigger budget, and with said budget Beach House were able to enlist the skills of producer Chris Coady (who's worked with Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV On The Radio and Grizzly Bear to name but a few) to help them extend the canvas for which they could work upon. And Coady has enabled Beach House to paint a beautiful picture.

Put frankly, Teen Dream is a fantastic record. Opener Zebra announces the album in true Beach House-style. Alex Scally delicately plucks guitar notes; the drumbeat dribbles into the mix; the organ and two-part harmonies fall into place; before finally Legrand's vocals swoon and deliver their perfect pop lines.

The stunning Silver Soul follows it, before the humming organ introduces Norway, a song I'm recommending as a contender for POA's already growing list of songs of 2010.

As the tracks continue, you realise each song is as strong as it's predecessor. It's no wonder the album is fast becoming both a critical and fan favourite. I wouldn't be surprised if it ends up on many 'best of' lists at the end of the year.

Beach House may have named this record Teen Dream, but to me it sounds more adult than anything they've done before.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Interview: 10 Questions With the Kill Devil Hills

We fire ten 'hot ones' at Brendon Humphries of Western Australian band The Kill Devil Hills and he politely returns serve with some responses that give a lil' insight as to what peeps attending shows on their upcoming national tour should maybe expect.

1. Describe The Kill Devil Hills in five words (swearing permitted).

Brendon, Steve, Alex, Steve, Ryan.

2. What kind of cocktail should one consume while attending a KDH gig and can you supply a recipe?

Claret mixed with Emu Export, never fails.

3. Why does Freemantle kick the shit out of Perth?

Most places kick the shit out of Perth, it's not that hard.

4. How many Kill Devil Hills does it take to change a light bulb?

We've got road crew for that.

5. Which Aussie artist would you like to collaborate with / give a squeezer to?

Not quite sure what a squeezer is but we would like to collaborate with Icehouse.

6. Do you want longer lasting sex?

What, more than 3 hours?

7. Vampires are all the rage at the moment, what's with that?

It's a good way to market jeans I guess...

8. I really like this girl at school, but every time I try to talk to her nothing comes out. What should I do?

Stalk her with your mobile like all your friends do. Or you could turn into a vampire and then she'd want to fuck you.

9. What's the secret to growing a rollicking good beard?

Longer lasting sex.

10. What surprises can audiences expect from The Kill Devil Hills' February national tour (eg have you added samplers and floor toms to the line up)?

We've got a choreographed dance and light spectacular now, with 250 people on stage... no miming either.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Live Review: The Decemberists, The Virgin Mobile Metro Theatre 19/01/2010

I rocked up to The Decemberists' Virgin Mobile (shudder) Metro gig, just in time to catch the end of Bridezilla's support slot. They seemed to have the audience in rapture with tracks from their tops new record, The First Dance. I caught a sweet soundingHeart You Hold, before they awkwardly maneuvered from the stage.

Thirty minutes and $13 for two cans of VB (FARK!) later, The Decemberists made their way on stage, lead by a bearded Colin Meloy. Now, I wasn't the biggest fan of their 2009 album, Hazards Of Love, and was a bit apprehensive that their Virgin Mobile (shudder) Metro gig's set list would be dominated by it. But to my surprise the band opened with the two opening tracks from their phenomenal 2006 album, The Crane Wife - The Crane Wife 3 and The Island: Come And See, The Landlord's Daughter, You'll Not Feel the Drowning.

For the rest of the night, the band waltzed their way through a 'best of' set list that featured tracks from The Crane Wife and 2005's Picaresque. In fact the only song they busted out from Hazards Of Love was a ball tearing rendition of The Rake's Song, clearly the standout piece of the night.

However, the most intriguing element of the evening was the sheer list of instruments the band went through, including:

• a lute
• an acoustic guitar
• a 12 string acoustic
• a hurdy gerdy
• a banjo
• a mandolin
• 2 keyboards
• 4 electric guitars
• a 12 string electric guitar
• a piano accordion
• 2 xylophones
• a melodica
• drums
• 2 extra floor toms (apparently everyone's fucking doing it these days)
• a bass
• a double bass
• a tambourine
• shakers

I have to say though, changing electric guitars two or three times during a song is fucking excessive. Jog on guys.

Despite this wankiness, Colin Meloy kept the audience of indie kids, Josh Pyke fans and dudes that had been dragged there by their hippy girlfriends happy with jokes and witty banter.

To finish off the night, the band played a polite, but unrehearsed rendition of the Go Betweens' Bye, Bye Pride, before sending us onto the streets of ol' Sydney town with a singalong of Sons And Daughters.

All in all it had been a fun night. But seriously... $13. Fuck off.

Originally published in Polaroids Of Androids

Record Review: The Mess Hall – For The Birds

8.2

Burke Reid poos gold and jizzes rainbows. I'm not sure what his sexual preference is, but I can tell you this much - the guy's a fuckin genius at fiddling with knobs.

Not only did he produce what is arguably the greatest Australian album of the last decade (The Drones' Havilah), as well as a number of other great local releases in recent years, he's now whipped out his magic wand and gone *POOF* all over The Mess Hall's latest LP, For The Birds.

I've never really been into The Mess Hall. I just thought they were part of the whole 'blues rules/bass blows' crowd. But I had a throbbing rager goin' when I heard that Optimus Reid had produced their latest effort. That coupled with my first listen to the lead single, Bell, clued me onto the fact that The Mess Hall had made a major sonic shift since their previous recordings.

Like a couple of notable American two pieces before them, The Mess Hall have decided to move on from their simplistic guitar and drum set up, and to incorporate moody keys and organs to alter their sound.

And what a fucking amazing sound it is. The whole album is a deep, dark and twisted groove session. Delta blues, funk, soul, swamp rock and every other badass, swaggering kind of sub genre of music you can think of has been rolled up, beaten over the head with a 2x4, run over, soaked in bourbon and set alight - all to produce a sound that has been done so many times before, but for some reason still sounds totally fresh here.

This is where Burke Reid's influence kicks in. There always seems to be twelve instruments playing at once, but none of them ever take the limelight over the others. The album's also been mixed in a way so that when you sit there with phones on, it sounds like shit is being thrown at you from all side of the room. And that shit sounds rad.

Fuzzed out guitar; percussion that sounds like it's been chewed up and spat out; haunting backing vocals; throbs of organ; reverbed hand claps; tickles of piano; all serve to reinforce Jed Kurzel's slacker vocals. He never bothers to try and show off his singing skills, because he doesn't need to. Just the tone of his voice is enough to make you think he's packin' a 12 inch wang.

My only critique is the two slowed down and stripped back numbers Marlene andSwing Low. I can understand that they were going for a change of pace with both, but I think the album would've have been much tighter and 'complete' without them.

In the end I could go through each song on this record and tell you how fuckin' good it is and come up with a bunch of shitty metaphors and similes to try and describe them to you. But quite frankly, that'd just be wasting time that you should actually be listening to this album.

So just drop whatever you're doing, go out and get it. NOW!

Note: You may also want to purchase some towels and a mop or something to clean up the mess you'll make after you blow your load over how good it is.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids

Record Review: Spoon – Transference

6.6

It's pretty obvious that Britt Daniel got an extra dollop of charisma when they were buttering the cool cunt sandwiches. The man may as well be Arthur Fonzarelli jumping a tank of sharks on a motorcycle.

I once saw him stare down and pick up the only hot chick ever to have visited Canberra, mid performance. She was already tonsils deep on his utensil before he'd even left the stage. And ever since Girls Can Tell, this extreme level of being fucking awesome has translated through to his band Spoon's albums.

That's no different for their latest effort, Transference. The lead single Written In Reverse was released just before Christmas and had all the band's fans frothing on what the new album would have in stall for them in the new year - myself included.

So when I finally got my hands on a copy a few days ago, I imported it to my trusty Pod, fingered repeat, and let her go. And in the days since, where I've literally listened to nothing but Spoon, I have to admit... it's disappointingly predictable.

Like I said, the cool is still there. As is the sparse, driving rhythms; thumping keys; chaotically exploding guitar licks; and gravel torn vocals that posses more soul than most white boys can dream of - all of which combine into that sound that is so identifiably Spoon.

But the hooks, those incredible pop hooks that shook you like an infant on Way We Get By, I Summon You and Don't Make Me A Target, just aren't there.

That doesn't mean there aren't some kick ass spinners. Written In Reverse makes you wanna stomp a hole in the dance floor with your dirty Texan heels. The Mystery Zonehas one of those unidentifiable elements that makes you love it more and more every time you hear it. And Got Nuffin, towards the end of the LP, pounds like a Catholic school girl when her parents are out.

But there are no surprises, no twists or turns. I remember catching I Turn My Camera On for the first time and thinking "What a shit song." But as I heard it over and over again, it clawed and wrenched its way through me until I grasped the unbelievable appeal of that disco hook - the same hook that pervades so many amazing Spoon songs, no matter how much they break it down, or swell it up.

But on Transference, Britt, despite his ability to fix jukeboxes with a well timed punch, seems to have bent the Spoon too far.

Originally published in Polaroids of Androids