All Tomorrow's Parties, curated by Jeff Mangum

Dates:  Friday 9th - Sunday 11th March 2012

Venue:  Butlins, Minehead



Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise @pmhigham



I'd fancied going to an ATP at Butlins for years, so, although in the end I only really got into Jeff Mangum and Neutral Milk Hotel after booking the tickets, the eclectic line-up of this event sounded interesting and ripe for new discoveries.  Plus The Fall were playing, and loads of people from Twitter were going :-) The (never satisfactorily explained) postponement from December had the bonus of giving me even more time to 'revise' many of the bands on the bill I didn't know much about.



On arrival we were pleasantly surprised to find our booking for a 3-berth chalet had been upgraded to a 6-berther, leaving ample room for a designated food and booze room.  After a brief stroll around the dystopian motorway service station that is the central area of Butlins Minehead, we wandered over to see the first band of the festival on Friday - Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise, who took to the Centre Stage at 4.30.  The jubilant atmosphere of the upbeat music they created, playing each others' songs (and instruments), meant this Mangum-related supergroup provided the perfect start to proceedings. 



Robyn Hitchcock @pmhigham

Next was Robyn Hitchcock in the Crazy Horses bar, where he was playing 1984's I Often Dream of Trains.  My first time seeing him solo, and I really enjoyed it - one of the quiet highlights.

We just about made it back to hear Jeff Mangum's first set of the weekend.  In an atmosphere full of reverence, Mangum sat on stage alone to play a very impressive acoustic set, each song greeted by rapturous applause.  Despite feeling a bit hot, tired and out of it at the back, I was seriously impressed by the power and character of his voice and the way the sparse sound filled the whole room.

I managed to get nearer the front for Joanna Newsom, who I was really looking forward to seeing.  Despite playing Ys a lot when it came out, I hadn't really got into the latest epic Have One On Me and had passed up the opportunity to see her at End of the Road last year (though did see her cameo with Roy Harper at the RFH).  On the basis on this ATP set, I'm sorry I ever doubted her.  I thought she was spellbinding, and was especially pleased to hear wonderful renditions of older songs such as Emily, one of my favourites of hers.  Admitting to some jet lag, she fluffed the lyrics a couple of times but was easily forgiven - in fact it was nice to see that she is human!

Joanna Newsom @pmhigham


One of the brilliant things about this festival was the musical contrasts it threw up, and literally next up on the same stage as Newsom was The Fall.  Though this was only my third time of seeing them, they are becoming an addiction and I can easily understand how people end up clocking up 40 or more shows. For this we were on the barrier, which certainly added an extra dimension (and we had the bruises to prove it). As seemingly the hugest men attending the festival crushed us, elbowed us and surfed over our heads, MES prowled the stage taunting the hapless security guards charged with keeping order.  This was definitely the best I've seen them yet, the physical and slightly menacing aspect adding to what was a fantastic set delivered brilliantly by the 'workers'.  Smith himself seemed to be having a good time, and had even got dressed up for the occasion with some tuxedo trousers.  Highlights included 'Nate Will Not Return', 'Strychnine', 'Cowboy George' ("...and he went down the wibbly wobbly way until he came to a microphone that actually fucking works..."), 'Bury' ("...and the Elbow albums they bought..."), 'Latch Key Kid' and 'Theme from Sparta FC'.


The Fall @thelawes

Well, how to follow that?  Unfortunately Thurston Moore couldn't, so after a brief listen we hobbled off to bed to prepare for the next day's onslaught.

Saturday began with a trip into Minehead, which was misty at first.  After we'd consumed a restorative lunch in a whole food cafe, the sun came out to provide us with a chance for a nice sit down with the pensioners in the park and some lovely views of the bay.



Boredoms @pmhigham



Boredoms first 1.5 hour set of the weekend was unbelievable.  I'm not sure my words can do justice to the full trance-like power of 5 drummers and 14 guitarists all conducted and energised by EYE, who seemed like some sort of Buddhist monk on acid as he orchestrated Boredoms' massive sonic constructions.  Just wow.  Here's a picture and a video instead.

The Apples in Stereo @pmhigham

Next on were The Apples in Stereo, whose good natured noisy power pop got (almost) everyone dancing.

Then some momentum was lost, as the next few hours seemed dominated by fairly downbeat offerings. Mount Eerie made the decision to play a whole bunch of new songs, even though he admitted he'd only enough material for three quarters of his allotted time.  Reluctant to engage with the crowd's requests for older material, he did play one such song (his best in the set) but then sloped off after 50 minutes.  I was disappointed, especially as he'd raised expectations with the 12-string guitar he barely played (nod to @Sipperana).  Afterwards we headed to Reds to check out Blanck Mass, described in the programme as featuring a "gut bothering sub bass".  I think it's the only time at a gig I've had a stranger turn to me wincing in physical pain.  In a weird kind of way I enjoyed it, but after 15 minutes I was wondering if I was in danger of having a heart attack so thought it best to leave.  My earplugs really came into their own this weekend I have to say (there were plenty of people with their fingers in their ears at Boredoms too).

Thank goodness for Scratch Acid.  There was certainly no chance of falling asleep during their set, though there did still remain the threat of injury (as the man on the ambulance stretcher and the girl with blood on her face afterwards testified).  That was some mosh pit.  David Yow's ridiculously energetic (how did he manage to dive into the crowd over the photographer's pit during the second song?) and strangely charming ("Thank you for clapping and yelling") performance meant he was the perfect frontman for the band's boisterous and slightly scary noise punk. @thelawes' videos are brilliant (and the first one features a cameo from @pmhigham).



@pmhigham

There was no way I could go to bed after all that, so after some drinks at the chalet of @drelfy, @sipperana, @badger5000 and @country_steve we headed back into the fray to check out Stuart Braithwaite's DJ set.  Despite a promising few songs including one of my all time favourites (The Byrds "Eight Miles High") it did degenerate into Euro/techno type fare, which finally signalled time for bed (or time to stay up in the chalet chatting until 4am anyway).




Boredoms 2nd set @pmhigham

Sunday began with a lie in, and then another mind-boggling set from Boredoms, this time somehow managing to be both hangover-soothing and energising.  Band of the weekend.

After Boredoms we spent a little while queuing outside Crazy Horses while the quiz finished, in order to check out North Carolina's Lost in the Trees.  I didn't know anything about them, but was impressed by their brand of unusual, ethereal American folk, which reminded me of Shearwater, Bon Iver and a bit of Mercury Rev.  Great female vocalist/instrumentalist in red too, who sang some lovely, slightly unsettling, harmonies with front man Ari Picker.

Lost In The Trees @pmhigham



The Magic Band @pmhigham



Next up we decided to check out The Magic Band, as I hope to see The Olivia Tremor Control, who they clashed with, at Psych Fest next month.  At points we could feel OTC through the floor of the venue - I heard mixed things about their set.  The Magic Band played one absolutely fantastic song, but on the whole they seemed a little underprepared and things didn't really gel.  I thought their Delta Blues-style psychedelia seemed very much of its time (not that that's necessarily a bad thing) but they reminded me that I really should do something about getting into Captain Beefheart.

 Then a quick dart down to Reds to check out Versus, who were actually one of the bands I'd got into most when doing my pre-festival Spotify revision.  I found their set of '90s style indie-rock enjoyable if not mind blowing, and decided to leave about 15 minutes before the end to ensure entry to The Magnetic Fields up on Centre Stage.  I'd been getting rather obsessed with new record Love at the Bottom of the Sea, and adore 69 Love Songs, so, despite mixed reports I was looking forward to the set very much.  Stephin Merritt seemed on good form, engaging in some gentle banter with the crowd, and singing duties were probably split about 50/50 between him and the female members of the band.  The set mainly consisted of new songs (highlights included "Andrew In Drag", "My Husband's Pied a Terre", "I've Run Away to Join the Fairies" and "The Horrible Party") with some stunners off 69 (gasps of pleasure were audible during the introduction to "The Book of Love"). A couple of older songs (off The Charm of the Highway Strip and Holiday albums) were very country influenced - I don't know as much about the band's earlier material so this was a lovely surprise.  On the whole, a beautiful set and one of my festival highlights.

The queue for Jeff Mangum's second set had started whilst The Magnetic Fields were still playing, as the venue was being cleared in between, so by the time we got downstairs it seemed like a far better option to nip back to the chalet and then reacquaint ourselves with the excellent selection of driving games and slot machines.  I did hear later that the set was another acoustic one, and as such fairly similar to Friday's.  As the queue started building up for Sebadoh, we made an inspired decision to go to Reds instead to see Group Doueh, from Dakhla in the Western Sahara.  Despite never having heard of them until 10 minutes beforehand, we ended up right down the front for what was a fantastically joyful set of hypnotic guitars and soaring choruses, with the whole crowd enjoying the opportunity to lose themselves in the music. 

Then it was upstairs to catch the last 20 minutes of what seemed like an fine set from Sebadoh, accompanied by more in the way of old-school moshing and crowd surfing.  A fantastic end to a fantastic festival, one that was stuffed full of known and unknown music, plenty of laughs and lots of lovely meetups with new and old friends. 



Who needs Miami Beach? @pmhigham



Wolf People; Diagrams; Nat Baldwin; Bonnie Prince Billy; Jonathan Wilson

So, already I'm falling a little behind with the blog.  This is not a good start to 2012!  However, a couple of the gigs I've seen this January have been so fabulous I'd be amazed if one or both isn't still in my top 10 gigs of the year come December.

I don't want to lose track of anything, so have decided to do a series of posts combining entries for shows, and bringing together some of my erstwhile gig companion @thelawes' excellent photos and videos.



Wolf People @ The Garage (17/01)  This might sound a bit odd (and sexist), but I'm always glad to see an audience consisting mainly of men aged 30+, many of whom have come on their own.  They'll be into the music, there'll be no chat, and it'll be dead easy to get to the bar and to the loo.  Wolf People clearly must be some kind of 'man's band' but I think they're far too talented to be left all to the boys.  I love the new record, Steeple, and was impressed with the harder edge the material had live. There was a lot of chemistry between the musicians, which meant a fantastic atmosphere both on and off the stage, and the encore (when flute player Ross Harris came on stage for vigorous versions of  "Tiny Circle" and "Runter") was a great way to end the proceedings on a high.
 
Diagrams @ The Lexington (18/01)  The first support slot was filled by Fairewell (basically Johnny White) who was possibly the most awkward person I have ever seen on stage  (I love the birthday cake vid, but even setting up his equipment seemed a bit of an ordeal until the other musicians appeared). However, despite their seeming inexperience Fairewell had an interesting sound and plenty of potential.  They were certainly more interesting than the second band, Patterns (great name to support Diagrams at least) who were a bit polished and derivative, and seemed self-consciously 'going places'.  Diagrams were good, but I have to say I was little underwhelmed; my companions had seen him do an excellent festival set at last year's EOTR, complete with balloons, and I could see him coming across better in that sort of setting.  I really do like the new Black Light album though.

A very special mention has to go to Nat Baldwin @ Cargo (23/01) who was jaw-droppingly perfect.  One man and his double bass, Nat came out onto the stage alone and somewhat shy-seeming, to a small crowd who were at first respectful and then totally rapt.  As soon as the first song began the delicacy of his voice and the peculiarity and emotion of the music had me entranced.  It was only a short set sadly, ending with his beautiful cover of "A Little Lost" - I think long sets over the tour would mean repetitive strain injury!  Nat was so sweet and self-effacing too - when we spoke to him at the end to say how fantastic the show was, he seemed genuinely touched and mentioned in passing he was in a band called the Dirty Projectors - err, yes we know!  

Could the week get any better?  Well, yes, actually, it could.  If I see a greater show than Bonnie Prince Billy @ Hackney Empire (25/01) I can't imagine it right now.  It's actually quite hard to put into words, but I can remember it really vividly so I'll just let the pictures do the talking.  My first time in the Hackney Empire as well.  I thought its slightly faded and quirky grandeur provided the perfect backdrop, the Bonnie Prince treading the stage where many music hall stars (and bingo callers) have stolen the limelight before.

The last gig of January was Jonathan Wilson @ Scala (31/01).  Jonathan has been touring a lot over the past year, but I'd only ever seen one headline show (at the Borderline when Jackson Browne showed up!) His support slot with Wilco at the Roundhouse passed me by somewhat.

Before Jonathan and his band appeared, the stage was adorned with joss sticks (presumably for that early 70s hippy vibe) and Jonathan certainly looks the part.  I don't want to go on too much about the obvious comparisons because I think the strength of his songwriting sets him apart (and I don't want to condone the idiot who shouted out for 'A Horse with No Name'!) but the similarities have got him an interesting following, including some adoring older ladies who he seemed slightly bemused by.  Still shy on stage, Jonathan seemed uncomfortable in the breaks.  The songs themselves were beautiful, right from the opener "Can We Really Party Today?" and the band he played with were fantastic.  Their presence meant he could let go a bit more than in a purely acoustic set, and there were some brilliant extended jams which brought out the psychedelic rock element of some of his material.  It would be good to see a bit more of that side of him.

Milagres

Date:  Monday 9th January 2012

Venue:  The Old Blue Last, London EC2A

The next band after Krankenhaus was going to have a lot to live up to. Milagres have been hyped in some sections of the media lately, but would they be up to the comparison?  Well, of course, any such comparison would be monstrously unfair, so it's just as well the Brooklyn band are half a world away from the beloved Wilkinson brothers (and Noble and Woody ;-), aurally and aesthetically as well as geographically (despite what it says here http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/dpfd)

I work late on Monday evenings so only turned up at the ridiculously hot (as is seemingly usual upstairs at the Old Blue Last) room in time to catch the last couple of songs of the support band, Vadoinmessico, a five-piece band whose members come from various corners of the globe.  The songs I heard were an engaging kind of psychedelic-folk, and they seemed thrilled to be there, so they get extra points for displaying a nice attitude.

On the whole I was impressed with Milagres without being totally bowled over.  More than half the set was very good, but many of the other songs were somewhat underwhelming.  To be fair, perhaps these could be better characterised as works in progress - the intensity and ambition of their sound is such that it could easily fill larger venues in time, but at the same time the songs didn't really grab me. Front-man Kyle Wilson gave a committed demonstration of his high pitched falsetto-style voice (which does sound a bit like Chris Marton from Coldplay).  If you saw them without hearing them, you'd probably say they were from Brooklyn, and vice versa.  Other reference points that occurred to me were Grizzly Bear and Antlers, and they had one song (I think "Halfway") which could conceivably perk the interest of Wild Beasts' lawyer.

On tonight's evidence Milagres are good enough to stand separately, and the band rightly seemed to have a quiet confidence in their material, but I guess only time will tell.  I look forward to getting acquainted with their UK debut album Glowing Mouth (released on the 10th but on sale here).  The vinyl LP was purchased for the bargainous price of £10 - thank you Memphis Industries!

Picture by @thelawes

British Sea Power: Krankenhaus 1

Date:  Friday 6th January 2012

Venue:  The Haunt, Brighton

Well, I clearly haven't been updating this blog for some time, so you would be right in thinking this sudden activity is the result of a new year's resolution.  I didn't stop going to gigs in 2011, but I did stop writing about them, and that was a shame.  So I hope to put something up here relating to all the shows I go to in 2012, even if it's just a couple of lines and/or a photo.

A band who never let me down in 2011 - one whose presence always guaranteed a great night out - was British Sea Power, so they seemed the perfect way to kick off the next year of live music.  Between January and June, BSP are presenting their Krankenhaus night in Brighton – a regular club night on the first Friday of every month.  Each night will feature a full set from BSP, plus "wonderful and varied supporting attractions", according to the BSP website.  I'd demonstrated my commitment by purchasing a Krankenhaus season ticket, ensuring entry to each of the nights (and also meaning I got my very own actual season ticket, complete with owls).
 
With the hotel and train all long booked, anticipation was especially high, and carried me through my day spent travelling to the south coast from Yorkshire.  A special mention should go to the pub we went in beforehand, The Spotted Dog http://darkstarbrewing.co.uk/pubs/the-spotted-dog-brighton/ which had a fantastic selection of ales and some delicious vegetarian food (the mushroom wellington was yum).

On entering the Haunt not long after 8pm, the place was already packed out and plunged in gloom.  Various false starts followed, with us trying to procure drinks and somewhere good to stand without killing ourselves falling over barriers, steps and low tables, but eventually we managed to get in a good spot in the raised platform area towards the right of the stage.

Hopefully Liz (@thelawes) won't mind me linking to her excellent videos again! 

Things kicked off with a semi-acoustic set around 8.30, which consisted of:

Straight Down The Line
No Need To Cry
Lights Above Descending
Observe The Skies
It Ended On An Oily Stage
Childhood Memories

Then came a predictably eccentric turn from Jock Scot, accompanied by a slightly perturbed looking Yan and Noble.  Jock was on good form though, and he managed not to outstay his welcome!  I always enjoy his rendition of 'The Bed'. 

The main support act was due to come from Welsh surf-rock outfit Y Niwl, who had to cancel, so into the breach came all girl fourpiece Savages http://www.facebook.com/savagestheband#!/savagestheband?sk=wall.  Apparently this was their first ever gig, but you would never have known - they were seriously impressive.  The lead singer had a strong voice and a lot of charisma, and the band unleashed a tight and heavy barrage of tuneful, psyche-y songs.  They are playing the Shacklewell Arms in Dalston on 24th January.  One to watch?

Songs from Do You Like Rock Music? and the Krankenhaus EP formed the vast majority of BSP's main Krankenhaus 1 set, which I was happy about, being a big fan of both.  It will be interesting to see how future shows are arranged - I'm not sure one based around Open Season would be as effective, but BSP are frequently so superior live to how they sound on record I may well be proved wrong. 

Main setlist:

Heavenly Waters
Hearing Aid
Atom
Lights Out For Darker Skies
Canvey Island
Trip Out
No Lucifer
Open The Door
Down On The Ground
Pelican
Waving Flags
Great Skua
Carrion
All In It
Water Tower
Spirit of St Louis

"Spirit of St Louis" was nuts and included use of an owl.  I love the way Yan is looking positively demonic in Liz's video of it, especially in comparison with the one of "Observe the Skies" from their earlier set.  The crowd were pretty demonic throughout! 



DJ sets:
11.45-12.45 – The Go Team (Sam Dook)
12.45-13.45 – Born Bad(Jon Slade)
13.45-3am – BSP DJs

The DJ sets didn't disappoint, and I especially enjoyed dancing to the northern soul numbers played by Jon Slade.  Roy Wilkinson was also brilliant, managing to satisfy our group's diverse requests by playing both The Fall ("Rowche Rumble") and Lady Gaga.  And he saw the funny side when Lilly asked him how he felt about being "the least successful Wilkinson brother" ;-)  Lots of fun was had by all (thank you, friends, for the Jagermeister and the Jim Beam Red Stag) - easily enough to justify staying over for future Krankenhauses.

Apparently David Gedge was there but I didn't see him.  Probably just as well...

Roll on Friday 3rd February!

James Yorkston

Date:  Wednesday 21st December 2011

Venue:  Union Chapel

Final gig of 2011...

Lemonheads

Date:  Monday 12th December

Venue:  Shepherds Bush Empire

Thea Gilmore

Date:  Saturday 10th December 2011

Venue:  The Half Moon, Putney