Category Archives: Station News

Jagwar Ma – ‘The Throw’

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The tricky bit of this review is putting my finger on how ‘The Throw’, maybe Jagwar Ma in general, will inevitably be compared to Animal Collective and MGMT and so forth, yet is much closer to planet earth. Although people are labelling this as a Madchester revival (I was guessing that they were British – turns out they’re Australian), it doesn’t come across as a self-conscious one. It feels like there’s more to it than that. On one hand it’s got surreal vocal samps, a tribal aesthetic and rhythm, an ethereal high-pitched male lead with plenty of multi-layering underneath, razzy synths all over the place, an opening period exclusive to the mid and high register before we hear the satisfying work in the bass department – all the psych-pop/indie boxes are ticked. So what gives? Perhaps it’s because although it deals in all of that, it doesn’t show off about it. There’s progression within the piece and there’s a noticeable instrumental build up from start to midway through, as if setting itself up for a knockout blow: but it’s one that doesn’t come. Yet it doesn’t feel like a let down, more a recognition that neither a distinct pinnacle nor an overripe hook are the be-all’s and end-all’s of a single.

It’s progressive as it gets for a 3-and-a-half minute package, though it’s far from frenzied or self-aggrandizing. It’s not exactly restrained, it’s just not an overstatement of itself. With the kind of sound that easily lends itself to extensive indulgence, it’s very pleasing to see something this interesting, catchy and self-mastered take just the right amount of time and show you what it’s about without being under-cooked or overdone. As a standalone piece it’s a great slice and it’s very promising of an album’s worth of content: you can’t ask for much more from a single.

7.5/10

Scott Reid

You Me At Six – ‘Reckless’

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Growing up, I was never really into alternative rock or pop punk, and so it might surprise some people to read that, prior to writing this review, I knew You Me at Six by name only. For some artists, that would speak volumes for them as a group, but with You Me at Six, I’m not hard pressed to think of similar groups; Blink-182, A Day to Remember, Green Day, just to name a few off of the top of my head. This is my biggest problem with ‘Reckless’ (the fourth single taken from their 2011 album Sinners Never Sleep), I feel as though I’ve been here before – there is a failure to create a new and unique sound.

That said, the music itself is largely inoffensive. The cut up chords at the beginning are an interesting sound, repeated before each chorus to great effect, and Josh Franceschi’s voice goes well with the music. The song’s format is nothing stand-out; there are no shortage of bands who follow the verse-chorus-verse-chorus-breakdown format for song writing, whilst the lyrics are standard ‘breakup-song’ fare; “Don’t hold your breath, I’m not losing sleep over you” probably got a lot of use on tumblr after the album’s initial release. It’s a small thing to note, but the singing-from-another-room voice filter doesn’t come across as derivative as it does on songs from other artists. On the contrary, it works quite nicely.

As far as songs go, ‘Reckless’ is definitely one which grows on you, but I genuinely feel as though this could have been released on any of their albums, or by a different artist entirely. Although it does what it does well, there is nothing distinct enough to make me want to come back to it, and because of this I’m sure existing fans of the group or genres will probably enjoy this track a lot more than I do.

6/10

Jeffrey Berraoui

Naughty Boy feat. Emeli Sande – ‘Wonder’

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This track is the latest upbeat and inspiring offering from the darling of the North East Emeli Sande, who features on producer Naughty Boy’s song ‘Wonder’. Her recent success as being the voice of the Olympics means she is the perfect candidate to feature as the vocals on Naughty Boy’s song about community spirit and basically loving life. It is a very happy song and I do find myself humming it and bopping along to it. It is, however, too much of a springtime or summery song to really enjoy whilst the cold draws in so I feel releasing it in May when the sun was shining would have been better. The summery feel is a nice change from the darker and more mellow music that comes with the changing of the seasons heading into winter.

Naughty Boy (real name Shahid Khan) and Emeli Sande have worked together in the past, in fact he did most of the production work on Sande’s latest album, hence this track has the same feel as some of those from Our Version of Events. This, however, will feature on Naughty Boy’s debut album due out early next year entitled Hotel Cabana on which it is expected Emeli Sande will feature on more tracks. It makes perfect sense since – as Sande’s album has shown – they work really well together. Overall whilst being a little too summery for the time of year it is a good song which I can easily have a sing-a-long to and a dance to. Therefore, I am giving it a solid 7/10 for having a good tune and one that has been in my head cheering me up all day! The song comes out on the 21st October, so buy it if you like it!

Holly Abbott

White Powder Gold – ‘RockNRolla’

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Well my first google search on this band did not go quite to plan, as I found my way onto a very obscure drugs website which was selling ‘white powder gold’… I did, however, eventually find my way onto a more appropriate MySpace link that portrayed four strapping young men – who you’d be forgiven for thinking were rappers. But oh no, the genre of music that these boys produce is not what you’d expect. White Powder Gold has a very Rage Against the Machine feel to them, but of course with a more Londoner accent than LA! The heavy Beastie Boys-type distortion that the track opens with sets the listener up for a surprise! And who would have expected a Johnny Rotten style voice?! It’s fair to say that this band is full of surprises…

The track that I’m talking about is ‘RockNRolla’, taken from their debut EP, and it certainly contains some cracking guitar skills… The band is obviously a big fan of heavy bass, heavy guitar, heavy everything! The chorus of the track is something that could make it very popular with those into mainstream Indie… the words “He’s a real rocknrolla” may become a familiar sound to many of us in the future. Despite the fact that the track is fairly concise (only 2:46 minutes), it’s snappy nature does not make it feel like it’s been cut short. And unlike many indie tracks nowadays, it is not incredibly repetitive, with a pleasing guitar solo along the way and a change in rhythm towards the end. Although I shouldn’t really say Indie, as the band are said to not focus on any particular genre. It seems that the genre depends on the track!

However, White Powder Gold does seem to combine popular culture with the Indie scene very well. For example, the inclusion of two remixes on their EP is something that I’ve rarely seen on any Indie record, but will appeal to a much wider audience. You can easily see the results of this, as the band’s previous single, ‘Can’t Stop Me Now’, gathered support from high-profile stations such as BBC Radio 1.

This band’s distinct sound is something that hopefully will bring them a breakthrough in the near future… But for the time being, keep it up boys!

Faith Thomson

Bombay Bicycle Club – ‘How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep’

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Having been a Bombay Bicycle Club Fan since, well if not day one, pretty early on, on the surface of it, the progression they’ve made across their first three albums is nothing short of incredible. Described, pretty harshly, by Pitchfork Media as “what might happen if the Editors were fronted by a freak folk singer”, by all means BBC have grown up, with the sound on their new album almost unrecognizable in its clarity, precision and sheer, well, adultness.

The first minute of ‘How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep’, the third single from and opening track of A Different Kind Of Fix has a weirdly hypnotic effect. The song focuses around an alarmingly simple riff, which provides the basis for the song, being built on by equally hypnotic drums, slightly heavier guitars and repetitive but equally simple lyrics. On paper, it sounds almost disastrous, but the sheer repetitiveness and simplicity of the track is actually something quite profound in reality. By the time the guitars drop, 2 minutes in, you find yourself humming along to the tune, something which you’re still doing an hour, two hours, even a day later on.

What ‘How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep’ shows best is that there’s no need to be obvious, in your face or loud in order to produce something truly beautiful. The best thing about the track is its simplicity and subtlety, and the fact that it’s the kind of song that a band can play at a festival while the crowd sing along to the riff. It really is all about that simple progression, those notes really do stick in your head. The weird thing is, it’s one decent remix away from being an indie-disco classic.

So while it’s not the showiest, most dangerously complex song you’ll ever come across, ‘How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep’ really is, by far, Bombay Bicycle Club’s best work, and it’s beyond soul destroying to know it’ll be largely ignored by the time of it’s April release. Plus, the video is exceptional, go check it out.

Gav Hastings

Caroline Gilmour – Take A Look

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Take A Look is the second album to be released by Caroline Gilmour, an Edinburgh based singer songwriter. Take A Look continues in a similar vein to her first album, Someday, in that it’s full of strong emotive songs that rely more on the passion and lyricism than the actual music itself, with the music often being minimal, and to great effect.  ‘Free’ is a good example of this, consisting of a simple piano refrain and light drums, allowing Caroline’s voice to take centre stage. She could be considered at times a Scottish Alannis Morissette, and indeed seems to take much inspiration from the Canadian, especially her more ‘country’ sounding efforts, with many of the songs on Take A Look having a tinge of ‘country’ and rock about them.

The main strength of Take A Look is Caroline’s voice. It’s a powerful voice that can soar yet can also drag you down, such is the range, both physically and emotionally. ‘Deny’ sees her voice reach those heights, with the song itself being a more upbeat rock effort, and this works well for one of the more cheerful songs on the album. That’s not to say that the songs on Take A Look are mournful, as despite the lyrics often being of love lost, the tone throughout is mostly one of optimism and resilience. ‘Survive’ is a prime example of this. Consider these lyrics;

“I can’t believe, can’t think I can’t breathe

As reality walks right up to me

We’re losing our faith, our hopes and all our dreams

We’re just trying to find a little sanity”

On the surface they seem rather sad, yet although this song is perhaps the most down in tone on the entire album, it still hints strongly at hope for the future. Emotion is music is all well and good, but to let it cloud an entire album and suffocate the listener in sadness is a line for all musicians to walk, and Caroline Gilmour manages to successfully navigate this by injected all her songs with optimism and a strong sense of hope. ‘Don’t Run Away’ is another great example of this, with Caroline somehow managing to make the title lyric seem both melancholic yet uplifting, a stange emotional juxtaposition and one that threads a seam throughout the album.

If it seems like the above is making out that the album is a sombre affair, then I’m giving the wrong impression. Indeed there are some great moments of brightness, such as the buoying ‘Take A Look’ and the fantastic ‘Devils & Angels’.

Basically put, if you like singer songwriters with a strong voice and some country and rock stylings, all overlaid with a strong sense of emotion, you will love this album. That is of course massively simplifying things, and there is lot more here to Take A Look at. See what I did there?

Give this a try. It might just be worth it.

Take A Look by Caroline Gilmour is out now and can be purchased at Imported Instruments, Ocean Terminal Edinburgh as well as most digital download sites including iTunes, Amazon and Spotify

 

http://www.myspace.com/carolinegilmour

Stuart Manson

Kutosis – Fanatical Love

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Kutosis… The up and coming Welsh band successfully bringing together punk, rock and pop into some electrifying riffs, really funky alternative drumming and appropriately assertive vocals.  The debut album ‘Fanatical Love’ is a diverse collection of tracks, every song generally having its own unique aspect to it which is great to see.  One of the most common criticisms for the music industry, “they’re too samey” is not a label this 4 piece collaboration (originally 3) should be given!  Shadows which appears third on the album is a particular highlight, verging on The Pigeon Detectives style of music this is certainly one to write home about.  This song includes impressive guitar parts using some awesome effects along with the bass providing the vital pulse and funkiness to the tune.  To put it simply… it’s a catchy gem on the album, certainly one that deserves particular attention.  This band has had the privilege of playing gigs with the likes of Babyshambles, The Paddingtons and Victorian English Gentlemen’s club!  These guys also played Reading and Leeds at the Introducing stage back in 2009, firstly being introduced by Radio 1’s Bethan Elfyn who is a great supporter of the Cardiff lads.  To see the 2009 performance just click on the link, I really recommend it! http://www.bbc.co.uk/readingandleeds/2009/artists/kutosis/.  Track 9 on the ‘Fanatical Love’ album, Lights to lead us is another excellent song from Kutosis.  The verses give off a more recent Arctic Monkeys vibe, progressing into a chorus that brings together guitar distortion and powerful vocals that can only be compared to a Muse approach…Quite simply superb!  After giving this album a listen to, it’s clear to see that this band really could be going places and I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see them on the likes of the NME stage at T in the Park in the next few years!  So go on, check these guys out! http://kutosis.co.uk/.

Rob Kelly

Palmist Records #7

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For those of you with even semi-decent memories who read this ASR reviews section, you may recall that we have covered the wonderful Palmist records earlier this year. For those of you with awful memories (I’m surprised you even remember how to breathe) or for those of you who didn’t catch the piece/have only recently started reading this site/missed the piece/etc, here is a brief refresher/introduction;

“Palmist Records are based in Brighton and are independently run sister label of Aberdeen’s own FatCat Records. They offer vinyl only releases of artists they are big on and want more people to hear, and these releases usually are from artists with a more low-fi sound, many of which are recorded are home. Palmist Records basically are making us mix tapes of bands they love, but releasing them on vinyl. Nice. Furthermore, all of their releases are physical copies, and not available online. It’s a pure love of music and of the physical form of it, and an ethos I find myself concurring with, owning no computer files of music myself.”

 

Plagiarism be damned, you can’t plagiarise yourself, and as I wrote the above in the aforementioned former article on Palmist Records, those who are currently experiencing facial wetness at the tears of plagiarism based rage running down their furious red faces can go and sit in the corner.

 

The latest offering from Palmist, entitled simply Palmist #7, is another split record. Once more, for of those who are unaware as to what a split record is, ask your dad or a passing old man. Ok, I’ll tell you. It’s a vinyl record that has one song on one side and another by a different artist on another. First up we have ‘The Shake Up’ by Gentle Friendly. Gentle Friendly are two guys from London, David Morris and Richard Manber, who utilise only Casio keyboard, drums and vocals to create their ethereal dreamscape sound. Imagine journeying through your mind; Gentle Friendly may very well be the soundtrack. This isn’t to say that they’re all wishy- washy psychedelic nonsense. They have a strong direction and sound that somehow manages to sound like the greatest coma ever. If I’m making out that they sound boring then I’m perhaps not explaining it well enough, as they’re anything but. They manage to pack hooks and rhythm as well as inspired loops into ‘The Shake Up’ and always keep the listener engaged. Even more, they try to pack in lyrics for a longer song, and succeed. The real magic here is that the lyrics are layered underneath the percussion for most of the song, instead of over it, giving the aforementioned dreamscape feeling. Fantastic stuff.

 

On the flip side, literally, we have ‘Two Feet’ by Dustin Wong. Wong lets the music do the talking, quite literally, as ‘Two Feet’ features no lyrics at all. Instead it’s a track driven by lovingly crafted melodies layered atop one another to create a warm and uplifting soundscape that gradually builds and builds to a stunning crescendo. Along the way there are some utterly brilliant little nuances that creep in that add to the majesty of this track. Repeat listens yield more and more each time. It’s hard to pick a favourite part of the tune when so many keep cropping up. Big production be damned, if one man can make such amazing music on a budget of two buttons and a liquorice whip, then what are the excuses of the big bands who churn out crap? Take note; it’s all about the music and the passion for it, and Dustin Wong gives us a lecture on it with ‘Two Feet’. Without saying a thing, and indeed without having to. Glorious.

 

http://www.palmistrecords.com/

http://www.myspace.com/gentlefriendly

http://www.myspace.com/dustinclarence

Stuart Manson

Aberdeen Student Radio Sticker Competition!

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ASR challenges you! Can you get our logo somewhere original? Somewhere quirky?
We put it to you, Aberdeen, to get an ASR sticker in the best place possible. We have a couple hundred stickers that we want to see anywhere and everywhere. We will love to see our stickers put in the weirdest, quirkiest places around Aberdeen!

Thanks to Tesco Direct, we are offering a brand new iPod nano as first prize for the person who gets an ASR sticker in the best location. So, not only are you showing your love and support for your student radio station, but you are also getting the chance to win an awesome prize! The best location will be decided by the committee of ASR.

But don’t worry if you didn’t quite manage to get the top prize, we are offering a runner up prize! This is a voucher for a dinner for two at The Beautiful Mountain restaurant, Belmont Street.

The details!
To enter this competition you can either come into the station (which is in Butchart) to purchase a sticker from us directly, or you will spot us around the university campus. You will also see our smiley faces at various stalls in the hub and in Alfie’s Café over the next couple of weeks. Stickers cost £1 each, you can buy as many as you like. Just think: £1 for an iPod nano. Why wouldn’t you!

Once you’ve stuck our logo in the best place possible, take a picture of it and send it to facebook@aberdeenstudentradio.org!

The announcement of the winner and the prize-giving will be on the 16th of November at Club SNAFU where ASR are taking over with electro boutique. So make sure you’re there!

Check out the facebook page here!

 

Have fun!

Disclaimer: Aberdeen Student Radio and its affiliates bear no responsibility for the actions of those who take part in this competition. By entering this competition, the participants acknowledge that their actions do not represent Aberdeen Student Radio or its affiliates. Any action undertaken by participants is independent of Aberdeen Student Radio and its affiliates.

Josh Lee

Weird Shapes – Blue Sky At Night/Weird Shapes Light

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It would be far too easy (and perhaps a little inaccurate) to describe the above band with their eponymous adjective. Personality-wise, they do embody said adjective with such zest they make Bjork seem merely ‘kooky’, but this is not to say their music is the sort that makes you want to lock yourself away  from society with nothing but a mug of hot chocolate and a James Morrison CD to recover from the brain-bashing. There are ‘songs’, rather than just ‘sounds’. They have melodies, rather than a random assortment of pitches. Their debut single, double-A side “Blue Sky At Night”/”Weird Shapes Light” is an interesting thing.

Ok, so “Blue Sky At Night” does sound a little like a Bombay Bicycle Club backing track that they couldn’t be bothered adding a proper vocal to so they got the guy from Maximo Park to make up some sparse, shoe-gazey thing to go on top of it. But to be fair, for what it is, Weird Shapes make a pretty good job of it. The incessant plucky guitar theme twangs away hypnotically, and their use of percussion is well considered. So you won’t hear it being covered on X Factor, or at 3am as you stumble out a nightclub. They’d probably be outraged if you did. The idea seems to be more about changing how people think about music, or at least giving an intriguing sonic experience. There’s definitely some of the latter – after a few listens there is a comforting familiarity about the track and there is much to like – but there is nothing about it that makes me say I’ll still be listening to it in a month.

“Weird Shapes Light” is a fairly different prospect.  More of an obvious single, it is comparatively purposeful, and – dare I say it – accessible. In places it even invokes the image of a suddenly experimental Elbow. Though still a little obscure in places, it is lyrically much richer. “This is for the little man who’s confused”, it begins, and though the obviousness (totally a word) quickly dissipates, it all seems much less ‘out-there’. Upon closer inspection, it’s clear that this is no throwaway track – a lot of effort has gone into achieving this sound. Much of the credit for this could perhaps go to producer Graeme Stewart, who has also worked with Radiohead (I know, right).

For a band that has existed less than a year, Weird Shapes already sound like a band well established. Their confidence in their own sound, well-deserved, should see them do well.

Alan Henderson