The Pixies to start touring with Olympia dates

According to the Pixies Myspace they are set to embark on a European tour kicking off proceedings with two dates at the Olympia in Dublin on October 1st and 2nd (Thursday and Friday) Tickets go on sale this Friday (July 3)...where is my mind!

An insight into music today...

There appears to be a bit of a renaissance erupting in the world of popular music. Bands are releasing sophomore albums layered with soul and adventure while this years pop princesses are no longer the Britney’s of the world.

It seems that there’s a few artists that once flew the flag for NME's template of indie blandness have broken free of the supposed “path of commercial destiny” and released material that exudes quality and genuine substance. The artists I am highlighting in this case are the likes of The Horrors, Jack Penate and The Maccabees.

When The Horrors released their debut album “Strange House” in 2007 it was most definitely a case of style over substance. Their gothic punk boudoir of clothing and hairstyles distracted the NME following from the notion that their tunes were a tad uninspiring. Their recently released second album shocked a lot of people as they found the new material boasted involving and relevant sounds. “Primary Colours” is laden with swooning and vast guitar sounds with pulsating drumming. It truly is one of the albums of 2009.



Jack Penate's debut album “Matinee” on the whole was an entity of unimaginative indie dribble it has to be said. It lacked bite and any sort of uniqueness. What he has followed that album with is another surprise to the musical world. His new album, aptly titled “Everything is New” sees a dramatic shift in direction adopting a whole array of worldly sounds that complement a focused melodic understanding.



Like Penate’s debut The Maccabees first outing lacked ambition and thirst for the extraordinary. Their material fit the indie template set out by NME tone by tone; safe song compositions with an altogether indie aesthetic. Their follow up “Wall of Arms” has seen the group morph their output into a beautifully intimate and decadent tapestry of sound seeping with emotion and substance.



These bands have gone from creating music that plays by the rules to actually delving into their souls and releasing material that means something and displays genuine substance and thought. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for bands/artists like those mentioned above who are in the NME foothold i.e. The Klaxons (who had to return to the studio under the label bosses orders upon hearing their work for their new album)

In terms of the ladies it’s the likes of Little Boots and La Roux are invigorating our airwaves with deliciously infectious pop tunes. These two are delivering quality tunes that are radio-friendly and actually propel involving lyrics as opposed to the American branded muck that we are subjected to on a regular basis. Our airwaves are slowly but surely emitting interesting pop tunes and it’s the ladies mentioned proving to be the honourable catalysts.

The Avalanches - After The Goldrush

The Aussie orchestrator's of all things mixed and spliced have released a mix an eclectic off the wall mix CD that starts with Bob Dylan and The Beach Boys before mixing into the Chemical Brothers, Basement Jaxx, Felix Da Housecat, Guns ‘N Roses, DJ Zinc, Phoenix, Queen and loads more before ending with another appearance from The Beach Boys! Saloon.

It has some old school classics thrown in giving party friendly genres a celebratory outing. This would be a great mix to put on at a messy house party. It would go down as a damn fine crowd-pleaser satisfying all tastes.

This may prove a teaser to wet the appetite of those in desperate need of a follow up to 2000's Since I Left You, which I hinted at way back then

You can try it out the mix for party pumping size here

The Mars Volta - Octahedron

This the fifth LP from the genre-fiddling prog-rock group The Mars Volta is quite a different type of beast to those previous albums. Octahedron contains more coherent vocals and less elongated screeches which should make the music more accessible to its incoming audience. There are still the characteristic themes of morbidity, darkness and alienation that encapsulate the focus of their material.

Compared to earlier works this is a more progressive and ultimately more formal body of material. Songs on this album are certainly less erratic than usual-With Twilight As My Guide and Copernicus(which strays into a lo-fi territory)are clear examples of this

Tracks like Cotopaxi still offer links to their latin punk funk startings.

This band is one of the main reasons as to why I am considering braving the intrepid melee of youth that is Oxegen-they are that good.

The Glass - Wanna Be Dancin'

The latest offering from the The Glass, the New York based duo who specalize in electro disco/funk (somewhat reminiscent of LCD Soundsystem) but carving their own by adding dreamy shoegazed vocals is not only damn infectious but has a top-notch video to boot. LEGO will always rock

New William Elliot Whitmore recorded session

The sensational William Elliot Whitmore has recorded has recorded a session for Daytrotter. All the tracks are from his new album "Animals in the Dark". He also plays an unreleased track called 'Don't Prey On Me'. You can download all the tracks from the session for free here

Experimental sounds to reach Castletroy

A new dawn in the live music scene in Limerick is a-coming thanks to Guantanamo Noise Fest II. This weekend-long event is set to take place at 31 the Cedars, Castletroy (recent change of venue from the above poster) this Friday and Saturday. And yes anyone who has ever attended the University of Limerick will know that the venue in question is a student house. The house, which would usually house empty cans of Dutch Gold and Koka noodles will play host to a range of experimental sounds. When I asked the organiser (BiPolar Joe) what one can expect the reply I got was:

For an experimental gig, you shouldn't expect anything. I mean, youmight hear just about anything, thirty minutes of white noise, thesound of someone taking a dump, the theme from Dallas, fuckin'anything. They key is experimentation. Sound is not just sound, andmusic is a genre of sound, if you get what I mean. The hardest thingto do is to describe experimental music. Put it like this, John Cageused piano sounboards, K-Project uses computer games. Everything is aninstrument, experimental musicians use them all. In short, expectanything! Expect to hear things you most likely never would have ever.

Admission to this "guerilla-gig" as I like to call it is only 7 bucks...viva la'resistance!