Music often seems to have reflections of previous generations and influences from past decades woven into them. Usually no bad thing, but sadly on occasion this plundering seems to lack any required modern twists. You will hear this a little with the below selections today, but thankfully all three bands do their thing so well that all is quickly forgiven.
FRENCH HORN REBELLION
Here we have a pair of brothers, now based in New York, that have graduated from the MGMT school of indie disco pop with flying colours. Being involved in the backroom for MGMT’s giant hit EP, Time To Pretend, you can see all subsequent paths were indeed taken from this point. DJ’ing at one of New York’s many hipster nights, Brass Magic, allows them a legitimate qualification of their own making. Their pumped, kitsch, sickly-sweet beats and bleeps form part of the soundscape you often find in 80′s movies, similar to the mixes Futurecop provide. There’s also the kind of styled indie love, that Australia’s Modular Records often sign up, when you think of the Midnight Juggernauts, The Presets and Cut Copy ‘Aussie sound’ that eventually evolved into Empire Of The Sun. However, there’s even more disco packed in here, with it’s obsession with all things camp. Basslines are unashamedly bouncy and the synths are so simple it’s like their written for toddlers. The high-pitched vocals give it more sincerity, thank god, because anymore bubblegum would have had us choking. Have a listen to one original track and a bonus Twelves remix to see if you can swallow it. (MB)
Find them here: Myspace
Hear them here: FRENCH HORN REBELLION – UP ALL NIGHT (ysi)
Hear them here: BEACHES AND FRIENDS (The Twelves vs Database vs French Horn Rebellion) (ysi)
THE HEROES
We think it’s fair to say that The Arctic Monkeys and The Libertines were generation-defining artists, who packed both style and swagger into a musical basket rammed full of tunes. After such cultural events you can guarantee a long line of followers pretending to take their crowns, yet the vast majority over the last few years did indeed fall way short, often missing the point of these band’s existence. Well, at first glance we were ready to rubbish The Heroes as just some such pretenders, particularly on their track Little Suzie. They also had the tight, spikey guitar riffs to suit their tight trousers and Mod haircuts, yet you have to say there’s a little more substance found here than amongst all the other contenders. Sadly we think that it’s come a little too late. This band are indeed a little bit too ’2005′. Neither are we suggesting they’ll achieve the impact of The Arctics or Libertines, as they lack the creative invention or solid punch, but we suspect there’s plenty of space still available to bands that provide us with a genuinely energetic, talented show. If the Leicester four piece’s high octane, packed out gigs are anything to go by then their power-indie strutting and Teen adoration may yet prove to be something that has the required lasting power. (MB)
Find them here: Myspace
Hear them here: THE HEROES – BLUE RAVE (ysi)
STAINED GLASS HEROES
Stained Glass Heroes look like they’ve just emerged from the last ever meeting at the Cabaret Voltairein 1916’s Zurich. This multi-faceted Krautrock-loving four piece revel in spinning their own myths and shroud themselves in mystery, which is no bad thing as it’s allowed them freedom to deliver some pretty catchy, esoteric tunes such as the sublime Insects(see below). Robert Fripps industrial guitar work channels Talking Heads and Brian Eno (circa, Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy), whilst managing to borrow some of Bowie’s ‘Scary Monsters’. This gives us a thickly-layered belter of a tune. The vocals hark at some disturbing science fiction prophecy that conjures up The Quatermass Experiment; you can even hear the unsavoury scraping sounds in the background of the track. The new single, Circumstance, is slightly less menacing but maintains their clever indie pop twists. It’s due out soon, whilst the album, Big Guns At Dawn, will be out in October. (DV)
Find them here: Myspace
Here them here: STAINED GLASS HEROES – INSECTS (ysi)
There’s a couple of bands on here that we aren’t 100% about, which is very unlike us, with our usual tight quality controls. However, some bands simply need more time for us to fall under their spell, and sometimes we need to offer our readers the chance to judge for themselves bands that have recently crossed our paths. Comment any thoughts you have…
