ALBUM REVIEW: Kings of Convenience – Declaration of Dependence
words: Jamie Milton
The manifesto was set in stone simply by naming the first album ‘Quiet Is The New Loud‘. And although Erlend Øye at least, hasn’t stuck to the rules — forming The Whitest Boy Alive and outputting his electronic inner in a DJ Kicks compilation — Kings of Convenience still remain a band for snug autumn evenings and the morning after. Their songs over the last nine years haven’t budged from the stance of pretty, uncomplicated and warming. Save challenging music for when you’re feeling braver, Kings… should not be bashed simply because they sound “nice”.
But there are still boundaries that they could cross. For an album that mischievously hints at reaching more experimental ground, it doesn’t maintain the standard set by ‘My Ship Isn’t Pretty‘, a down-tempo, compelling and unpredictable number. Said song eventually comes across as the token “alternative” track; the song that doesn’t get your feet tapping automatically, the song that demands a closer listen.
Because the vast majority of ‘Declaration Of Dependence‘ does just that. It doesn’t require a scowl and an in-depth look at the lyrics sheet. Automated listening works. This is good background music. And the honest truth is that music still needs bands like Kings of Convenience to provide people with “background music”, however degrading a term that may be.
“accessible and enjoyable from the off”
And so the jazzy, stop-start optimism that scatters around ‘Mrs Cold’ allows the listener to turn a blind eye to the fairly dark lyrical content: “I stepped too close to your boundaries. You want nobody around to see. You feel vulnerable around me.” Anybody can ignore the finer details of ‘Declaration of Dependence’ and enjoy the record just as much as someone who spends their spare time digging as deep as possible. That’s rare – I can think of plenty of records released just this year that depend on being given a closer look: Girls’ ‘Album’ would be nothing without its fragile, contrasting lyrics, ‘Xx’ would be a smaller package without its expert crafting of minimalism that is so hard to notice at first. This album pulls no such subtle tricks, making it accessible and enjoyable from the off.
‘Declaration Of Dependence’ is actually made up wholly from the theme of separation, loss and then the meeting of two: lyric “So we meet again after several years, several years of separation” quite prominently setting the tone. But then again, you don’t really need to know this at all. What matter is how tender opener ‘24-25′ eases you in, how the Jose Gonzales-esque ‘Power of Not Knowing’ attempts to put a spanner in the works, breaking away from the easeful, smiling face that draws together the majority of what’s here. What lacks is variety. Two men who arrive, plucking their acoustic guitars and singing softly, exit as some kind of monotonous, automatic tone that doesn’t budge as the album progresses.
5 years in the making, but not exactly. Øye’s had side-projects to concentrate on, Eirik Glambek Bøe’s probably developed a gambling habit. The artwork of the pair relaxing on the beach sums up that no extensive measures were undertaken to get this album written – it’s a getaway album, something to accompany a holiday retreat, something that wants to appear to be written on a holiday retreat. The result is a honest, straightforward work that maintains the easy listening factor concurrent in all their work, a factor that will result in the album losing its longevity over time.
words: Jamie Milton originally scribed for gigwise
They called it an ‘Indian Summer’, and we knew it was coming. It seems very boring to start a review with the weather situation but it did seem to dictate the days of everyone who eventually made it to the Hanbury Ballroom by 9 in the evening. What had preceded was a monsoon of sorts – rain, not just rain in fact: sheets of water coming down from the skies, constant, merciless. When you experience a long, dry summer it’s always nice when rain first arrives but by the time the day filtered out, life was pretty miserable. And so it seems particularly apt that once dry, covered and free from the onslaught, the gig-goer is welcomed by two of the most warm-sounding, wholesome acts around today, rousing enough to help you forget about the damp smell tightly wrapped around everyone’s clothes.
An annoyingly dry looking pairing of Swedish sisters, First Aid Kit, commence proceedings with just a single acoustic guitar accompanied with the kind of whimsy, perfectly-tuned vocal harmonies you’d expect from those related by blood. Their relationship is a little too intimate at times; on stage banter drifting off for those watching, but still clearly leaving a whole lot to talk about for Klara & Johanna Söderberg. Their set, albeit limited due to the lack of instruments onstage, is endearing, cuddly – just as good as a pair of warm tracksuit bottoms to put on after coming home drenched.
Fanfarlo begin minimally too. A stripped-down performance of ‘Drowning Men’, with just three of the six members on stage, remains uplifting despite its lack of the uplifting, arm-in-arm grandiose found on debut album ‘Reservoir’. Once fully-formed, Fanfarlo treat the busy crowd to an all-out rendition of said passion, intense but smile-inducing crescendos in ‘Finish Line’ and set highlight ‘The Walls Are Coming Down’. They manage to silence a rather talkative faction of onlookers who happened to put a slightly hindrance on First Aid Kit’s set.
But it’s only common sense to save the finest for the tail-end of the set. ‘Luna’ and ‘Ghosts’ – the closing pair – are the most energetic, fruitful tracks that ‘Reservoir’ offers, providing a refreshing get-up-and-dance aspect to the more static but triumphant bulk of the performance.
Once closed, the Hanbury Club only offers you the exit door, for which the rain awaits to plummet itself down on you more more. But the occasion gives you this false sense of bravery, prepared for anything. In reality, you’re back to being soggy and hopeless within ten seconds of leaving, but the memory of such a balmy night in the company of First Aid Kit and Fanfarlo is a comfort.
ALBUM REVIEW: Noah and the Whale – The First Days of Spring
words: Jamie Milton
originally scribed for gigwise
‘5 Years Time’ broke ground in ways Noah and the Whale could in no way have imagined. It became a routine, summer-time sing-along for children, mums, and fans of Laura Marling. One year on, it’s allowed the band to un-cage the thoughts in their heads. That’s the beauty of the single: regardless of poor sales, dying formats and the loss of meaning in the top 40, one hit can pave way for new beginnings. However surely nobody in their right mind expected Charlie Fink to shelve the idea of writing another sure-fire, arm-in-arm, triumphant but slightly annoying pop song. He has instead, gone with his heart. ‘The First Days of Spring’ is anything but a half-arsed collection of songs. It’s a complete cinematic experience, sonically engaging, placing clear, enigmatic pictures in your head.
At first glance, this album details re-birth and growth, all things Spring. Quite predictable, then. However delve into the lyrics and you discover that “Spring” is merely a metaphorical tool, used to enhance some deeply personal feelings. Fink covers the loss of a flame (a relationship) and the attempt to re-kindle it. At times, words and meanings speak nothing but triumph: “Like a cut down tree, I will rise again. And I’ll be bigger and stronger…” But amongst this theme of determination is meaningless sex and the un-rivalled sense of loss, complete emptiness. For as much as Spring can symbolise a new start, it can also be the most miserable of seasons emotionally. And whilst this record offers hope, its finest moments are admittances of defeat. The most poignant of these comes in ‘My Broken Heart’, with Fink concluding “I’ll be lonely…” over and over again. Defeat is often met with replenished hope: particularly in said song, with “lonely” being cleverly replaced with the verb “laughing” in the second verse.
‘My Broken Heart’ concludes four opening tracks of complete perfection. The tracklisting seems to segment the album into three distinct parts. Tracks 1-4 are followed by the centrepiece, ‘Love of An Orchestra’; a driven, uplifting piece, like nothing the band has done before, surrounded by two, short instrumental parts. And keeping to this theme of symmetry, the middle segment is followed by another four tracks. The title-track is nothing short of sounding as beautiful as Sigur Ros, only without the language barrier. Strings segments are powerful and busy whilst Fink’s deep tones remain sturdy and firm. ‘Our Window’ is a disjointed ballad, detailing two lovers staring for hours at the stars. ‘I Have Nothing’ is warmer and more concise, centred around a melody suspiciously like that in Bon Iver’s ‘Creature Fear’ but on par with the quality displayed around it. This opening section is outstanding. And the closing four tracks, held upright by the anthemic ‘Blue Skies’, can only be regarded as a disappointment in comparison. But let’s be clear: only in comparison.
For an album with such a slow tempo, ‘The First Days of Spring’ quite remarkably, remains fascinating throughout. No-one in their right mind could have expected anything as grand, ambitious and most importantly, accomplished as this record. It’s taken immense time, effort, and all that money raised from the success of the debut album, to achieve this faultless tour de force. Nonetheless, it’s still one hell of a surprise.
ALBUM REVIEW: Graham Coxon – The Spinning Top
words: Christian Ritter
Graham Coxon’s seventh studio album (yep, seventh, I couldn’t believe it either) sees the Blur guitarist clock in a little off 70 minutes of predominantly acoustic based folk songs, more akin to those written by Kid Harpoon than anything Damon Albarn has attempted.
‘The Spinning Top’ begins well, with ‘Look Into the Light’ serving the listener a dose of classic Coxon, albeit without the fuzzy guitars; a song not depressing, but mellow, with Graham attempting to reach notes his vocal cords physically cannot attain! Delightful guitar work and a voice that you can’t help but love are abundant on this album, and although the lyrical content may at times be not be up to the same standard as his previous work, this can be forgiven due to the standard of the majority of songs, which would not seem out of place on a Cat Stevens record.
However, although it is clear that Coxon has for now abandoned the punk style of his last album, ‘Love Travels At Illegal Speeds’, that is by no means a precursor to writing songs that are simply too long! The calibre and potential of the songs is top-notch, however the actual song writing process seems to have been let down by these needless song lengths, with only a third of the album’s tracks consisting of less than 4 minutes. Indeed, the “wonderful for the first 3 minutes” ‘In The Morning’ lasts 8 and a half long minutes, and as it appears as the third track, one can’t help but feel this may discourage casual listeners, or those who have never given Coxon a chance before, from hearing the record more than once.
Despite all this though, ‘The Spinning Top’ remains an effort welcomed for its originality and simple delightfulness. This album may sell more amongst the over 30s demographic, partly due to its mellow sound, and partly as that may just be the age of people who would have grown up with Blur the most, however this is not to say that Graham Coxon is still an extremely relevant and competent artist, worthy of any music fan giving this a try.
British folk lovelies Fanfarlo appear suntanned and remarkably more happy than they would be in the 30mph winds I’ve been out in today.
Here, they play the uplifting trio of ‘Finish Line’, ‘Luna’ and ‘Coma’, filmed during their time at SXSW.
TRACK REVIEWS: Woods – Sunlit / The Dark 7″ words: Jamie Milton
The lo-fi movement requires a folk-representing hero. Talk has led to the finger being pointed directly at Woods, a newly emerging band for the hipsters, but yet another one of those capable of writing fantastic music. ‘Songs of Shame’, the band’s first work since ‘At Rear House’ is on its way and we’re getting the feeling that big things will emerge with that album for the trio.
First indications come from this 7″, which features the now traditional scratchy production and sun-basked charm that’s become a norm with the scene you could pigeonhole these songs into. Both tracks are around the two-minute mark. ‘Sunlit’ aims more towards dismissing claims that Woods stick close to their folk-roots and nothing more. There’s an edge to this quintessential summer tune, one that would get the occasional frenzied dance from an onlooker at a show. B-side ‘The Dark’ is more what many would expect; a simple, tuneful, a far more accessible effort to what the band judge to be the superior track.
Neither track is completely honest about ‘Songs of Shame’’s sound, and although most of the tracks on the record feature the woozy vocals harmonies and the mellow, sun-tinged atmosphere, they seem to exceed ‘Sunlit’.
ALBUM REVIEW: Fanfarlo – Reservoir
words: Jamie Milton
“The kid – “I’m a pilot. It’s all I believe in. You can ride on my back.“”
Ambitious is an understatement. Even as a keen follower of the group for the last couple of years, I never expected to find their debut album so chunky in strings and brass, to an extent where the Arcade Fire comparisons can stream in even easier than they already are. But it’s a move that suits the band more than any of their contemporaries, even the giants that they’re so often placed next to.
‘Reservoir’ is the warmest, most childish, most heartfelt album of the year so far. The pendulum swings between the dramatic and heartfelt (‘Fire Escape’) to the optimistic and fruitful (‘Ghosts’), time and time again. A combination of this warmth, courtesy of the diversity of instrumentation, with the childish charms of Simon, their frontman, makes for something almost unique, unheard of at least for the last twelve months. The moment you step into the vast land of this record, you feel nostalgic, in a place where maybe only your mind’s travelled to once before – a personal connection with the record surfaces in little more than 2 or 3 listens.
At times the hairs on the back of your neck stand up (see the climatic closing minute of opener, ‘I’m A Pilot’), elsewhere you’re jumping in a joyous glee (‘Harold T. Wilkins’s closing segment is equally as quaking), and this is no exaggeration. ‘Reservoir’ is the perfect companion for lengthy summer walks with friends, a lonely night in or a train journey with a mammoth view of the countryside. It’s fitting for any weather that satisfies your needs, no matter where you’re going and how long it takes you. It’s the occasional inclusion of euphoric climaxes, featuring in nearly half of the songs, that can make you feel almost overwhelmed.
Not one effort dives below the set standard, even if the album’s stand-out happens to be the very opening track. It’s not a record completely devoid of faults: some might find the vocals underwhelming, the overall feel of the record could be dismissed as ‘twee’ by a casual listener but once this personal connection we’ve already established sets in, there’s no going back from this. Without doubt, there’s room for Arcade Fire comparisons (‘Luna’ in particular) and Beirut comparisons (‘The Walls Are Coming Down’), but there’s a completely different aura to ‘Reservoir’ that you can’t really categorise with anything else. Maybe it’s the British/Swedish heritage, maybe the recording process added something to the mix but altogether this is as much, if not more uplifting than any of Zach Condon’s work to date. It’s more streamlined, more suitable for arenas, but it still requires your constant attention up to a certain point. It might not be the most complex record for the last 12 months but don’t expect an instantaneous impact.
Not one band can deliver the highs quite to the standard of Fanfarlo. ‘Funeral’ inspired or not, this album delivers the kind of thrills that only come around once a year. It’s the all-or-nothing climaxes such as that in ‘Drowning Men’ that may as well leave you for dead, completely taken back by the spirit, the triumph that sticks by ‘Reservoir’ for its entirity.
O P E N W I N D O W S WEEKEND TRACK STACKER – Feb 2nd words: Jamie Milton Not one single disaster occurred in my week. The week before, I got my just deserves when trying to knock a spider off my window, only to discover the windows were mighty old and a bit too delicate for even the palm of my hand. So in comparison, the last 7 days have been wonderful. This lack-of-education I have n when the seasons change in Brighton, is however returning and the newly-installed window isn’t keeping the cold out. But that just leaves more time to be tucked up inside writing about some music you should get your less-destructive hands on. All from British bands, you might note…
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Doves – Jetstream
The unveiling of ‘Kingdom Of Rust’ is what we’ve all been waiting for but even better, the band have decided to flog a track. The opening to the album, ‘Jetstream’ is more electronically-inclined than the heavy, hard-nut attitude that compelled us in ‘Some Cities’. But it’s not a drastic shift in direction – Jimi Goodwin steps aside from the main vocals role as the more vulnerable Andy Williams takes over. Atmosphere is raised up several notches, almost every ten seconds and never will you have such an urge for a track to simply take off and go “massive” but that’s the problem, it never does. You can’t have it all…As a whole, this is as glorious as the band’s previous work. 75% download:Doves – Jetstream ————————————————————————-
Fanfarlo – I’m A Pilot
Arena dates with Snow Patrol isn’t exactly fitting for Fanfarlo’s friendly-folk sound but they’ll be sure to charm the several thousands who pay an interest at the mammoth venues. ‘Reservroir’ one its way, ‘I’m A Pilot’ indicates something truly special. With a similar uplifting sound to ‘Fire Escape’ a single that introduced MFM to the band a couple of years back, this song sounds just that little bit more progressed and mature than any previous efforts. It never tries too hard and equally important, never loses your attention. To keep it succinct, this borders on a masterpiece. 90% mp3:Fanfarlo – I’m A Pilot (zshare) ————————————————————————-
PENS – Freddie
After coming across Tom’s post on them, it seems everyone’s beginning to flock to the lo-fi pop charms of this hipster three piece. The dominant sound is three girls having fun but you sense ambition behind the cheeky keyboard lines and non-sensical (at least on record…) vocals. Incorporating twee into lo-fi punk isn’t the easiest of tasks but above all, there’s a star quality that not many bands can portray as quickly as PENS. This should be dreadfully annoying but hey, it’s not, so rejoice! 72% mp3:PENS – Freddie (zshare) ————————————————————————-
All mp3s posted on Music Fan's Mic are posted after gaining the relevant permission.
Jamie Milton began Music Fan's Mic in 2006 as a means of publishing and collecting his reviews for other publications. Since then both Milton and Gareth O'Malley are co-running the blog and posting the best new music on a regular basis.
Boom-box-in':
Yeasayer - Odd Blood LP
Final Fantasy Heartland LP
Beach House - Teen Dream LP
These New Puritans - We Want War
Gigi - The Old Graveyard
jj - The xx Intro
Toro Y Moi - Causers of This LP
Liars - Sisterworld LP
Vampire Weekend - White Sky
Los Campesinos! - In Medias Res
mpletely devoid of faults: some might find the vocals underwhelming, the overall feel of the record could be dismissed as ‘twee’ by a casual listener but once this personal connection we’ve already established sets in, there’s no going back from this. Without doubt, there’s room for Arcade Fire comparisons (‘Luna’ in particular) and Beirut comparisons (‘The Walls Are Coming Down’), but there’s a completely different aura to ‘Reservoir’ that you can’t really categorise with anything else. Maybe it’s the British/Swedish heritage, maybe the recording process added something to the mix but altogether this is as much, if not more uplifting than any of Zach Condon’s work to date. It’s more streamlined, more suitable for arenas, but it still requires your constant attention up to a certain point. It might not be the most complex record for the last 12 months but don’t expect an instantaneous impact.
MFM @ HYPEM
