album leeeeak.

Jack Peñate's forthcoming debut album, 'Matinee', has leaked on the good old internetz. it's out October 8th so that's not too much of a wait for those of you opposed to downloading advances.

it's good. but it feels like there is something missing. all the songs you know ('Second, Minute Or Hour', 'Torn On The Platform', 'Spit At Stars', 'Got My Favourite') they're all on there and have been reworked and sprinkled with 'pop dust'. everything is that little bit lighter. there's xylophones as well.
new song 'Have I Been A Fool?' sounds like the next single. it's about kissing and being a fool and combines the now trademark sounds of Jack Peñate to make a slice of guitar/piano pop that's pretty and witty and briiiiight.
'My Yvonne' is (still) my favourite track of the whole 11 song, 41 minute long album. it's delicate, intricate and shows that not everything has to be moulded into chart topping, fast paced, rhyme-tastic, 3 minute songs to be better than just good.
with 'Matinee', Jack puts himself and his brand of reggae/ska/punk influenced music right on the map.

if all pop music sounded like this, we'd have something to be thankful for.

Jack Peñate - Have I Been A Fool?
Jack Peñate - My Yvonne

ps. hello to Rosie from islington academy last night! nice to meet someone who actually enjoys my rambling!
pps. last chance to vote in the BT Awards for my blog! voting ends tomorrow. click the image on the right hand side pleeeease.

canada comin' atcha.

Born Ruffians are Luke Lalonde, Mitch DeRosier and Steve Hamelin. they play guitars, bass and drums and sing. they are fantastic. i first heard Born Ruffians on X-Posure (hosted by XFM's John Kennedy aka a man of brilliance) arounddd June last year i think. and i was immediately blown away.

they're poppy and punky and funky and shouty and quirky and the vocals are slightly similar to that of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah! and all their music is just fucking strange. but in a completely good way.

their album 'Red, Yellow and Blue' is due out in February on Warp Records and i for one cannot wait as the new material sounds absolutely (and i mean absolutely) fantastic.

RIGHT CLICK, SAVE AS:

Born Ruffians - This Sentence Will Ruin/Save Your Life
Born Ruffians - Diverting On Norm
Born Ruffians - You Said I Said The Sun Took The Sky
Born Ruffians - I'm One Of Those Girls

a whole host of tracks there mainly because i couldn't decide what was my favourite. if you like these you must get your ears on more songs by the band; they won't disappoint.

everybody's talking about..

White Rabbits.

i feel like a proper bandwagon jump-er on-er!

they come from the Mid West but have settled in NYC, and it looks like they are tearing it upppp. there's 6 of them, they sound less like Vampire Weekend than people are making out, and their album 'Fort Nightly' is dead dead good.

i know everyone is bumming 'The Plot' but i think 'Navy Wives' is the best track on the album. it's the shakers that really win it.

the band describe their sound as "honky-tonk calypso" which is possibly one of the best self descriptions ever. pianos, shakers, cowbells, shouty choruses. what more could a girl want! check it ooooout.

White Rabbits - Navy Wives
White Rabbits - I Used To Complain Now I Don't

BUY THE ALBUM HERE.

ps. sorry this was so short, i'm rubbish and am buried under lecture confusion.

Late Of The Pier - live at Fabric, 21/09/07

this review should have come to you earlier and regarding Late Of The Pier's performance in Hoxton. however, due to some twats (i.e. the promoter and the bouncers) me and my friends were "removed" from the property (several times, including after being let in through the fire escape by LOTP). and all because my friend vomited. in the toilet. but don't get me started or i'll just get worked up about it. we had all of LOTP as well as Erol the one and only Alkan fighting our corner and trying to get us back inside the venue. if only it had worked, psh.

we rolled into Fabric, slightly bemused by all the stairs and shapes that slightly resembled swastikas (lol at that bag from Zara). then we got the shock of our lives when the barman asked me for £4 when i ordered a vodka and coke. single measure! expensive doesn't even begin to cover it..

Late Of The Pier took to the stage and almost immediately everyone started going mad. it's not the best i've seen them but they certainly put on a hell of a performance. 'Random Firl' sounds more than immense with added lyrics and 'The Bears Are Coming' is a complete stroke of genius. obvious set closer was Bathroom Gurgle which sounds good no matter where or when you hear it, i think it's possibly my favourite song of this entire year. well worth the trek to east London!

alsooooo. LA Priest (singer Sam's other project) is getting quite a bit of attention lately and so it should. with Erol Alkan managing him, LA Priest won't have to work very hard to get people's attention.

Late Of The Pier - Random Firl (with lyrics)
LA Priest - Engine

ps. as you can probably tell, i'm having a fantastic time in London. apologies for the sporadic updates that will be coming your way until i'm 100% settled.

everything's okay everything's alright.

it has been a crazy few days ahead of my move to the big smoke so i apologise for the lack of substantial posting (which will probably continue for a good week or so).

i've been making a CD for the car journey on Sunday to London and it has the unoriginal theme of "songs about London, moving to London, leaving London, hating London, loving London, .. songs with the word London in the title or just general songs about leaving or moving, new eras and more leaving".

so i thought i'd post up a couple for my fellow university freshers, and especially for Josh and Shaun who also happen to be taking up residence in our wonderful capital.

The Bridge Gang - London Sky Tonight
The Clash - Guns Of Brixton
David E. Sugar - Oi New York This Is London
LR Rockets - London Girls (a bit of a dodgy copy, but a fantastic song nonetheless)

also, here's a song that describes everything i won't miss when i'm gone.

Modernaire - Rain

hahaha.
anyway anyway. i went to see Elle S'Appelle and they were fantastic. i cannot wait to see them again which will probably be at the Moshi Moshi night at Hoxton Square Bar, October 25th. i can get drunk again and tell them how massive their band will be (again) and to remember me when they're hanging around with Britney and Madonna (again). cringe cringe cringe!

in my last post i thought i'd posted an exclusive but i hadn't. gutted. except, here's a REAL one. an exclusive that is:

Late Of The Pier - Space And The Woods (Jack And The Free Trees Remix)

it's brilllllllllllliant! it's very Jack And The Free Trees and not much Late Of The Pier. a mellower remix that still packs a punch. please check it out, and do check out Jack And The Free Trees. they were on XFM Manchester last night and i'm super proud (even if it was the Clint Boon show). Their drummer, Tom, also happens to be moving to university in London soon so good luck to him and everyone else!

Jack And The Free Trees - All Is Permafrost

(don't forget you can right click save as all songs now!)

nothing can go wrong.

you know when a CD comes through your letterbox that is so good, it makes you want to strap a giant speaker to your body and play it for the rest of your life? well that's how i feel about this CD i recieved in the post.

South Central are pretty fantastic. crazy live shows, dark and brooding electro singles that seem to go completely underrated, and the most amazing remixes that have put them on the map.

they've remixed everyone from Shy Child to The Maccabees to Van She to Metronomy. and now, the latest.. Late Of The Pier.

it's titled: Late Of The Pier - Space And The Woods - South Central Bootleg. and according to the biog that came with it, South Central would be going to prison for 12+ years if they were American for actually creating this bootleg. a bit harsh for making such a fantastic track.

Late Of The Pier - Space And The Woods - South Central Bootleg (right click, save as).

Saam from Keep Hope Inside has and is doing a brilliant feature on some of the new blogs cropping up so go check it out if you want to freshen up your reading material.

tomorrow i'm off to see Elle S'Appelle (who i blogged about ages ago - click, everyone seems to be loving them at the minute and rightly so!) and i shall report their amazingness back here.

BAT FOR LASHES WOZ ROBBED.

credit: amazing photoshop skillz by me.

the bitch is back?

whilst waiting for my jeans to finish in the tumble dryer, yesterday i fiiiiinally got round to listening to that new Britney track, 'Gimme More'. everyone seems to like it, and fair dos. it's not a good song, but it definitely belongs in your collection. probably alongside your secret stash of Rihanna and Girls Aloud. i'm waiting for some hot shit remixes!

find 'Gimme More' here. it's also streaming on Perez here, as if you didn't know.

speaking of remixes. check out Pixxxels (Dan from Sir Yes Sir's blog) for all your guilty pleasures made completely unguilty.

also! can someone pleeeeease dispel the rumour that it is Phil Collins inside the suit in this advert? i'm scared if it's actually him.

extra extra, read all about it

Headlines are a five piece from Manchester. i first came across them at D Percussion and was instantly hooked on their infectious brand of spiky guitar pop. think Assembly Now, Video Nasties and Awful Sparks and you kind of have an idea.

they got together three years ago after parting ways from two other bands. they came together under the name 'The Headlines' and just recently changed that to 'Headlines' when "it was written on a ticket by mistake once and we thought it looked shit hot!"

their next single, 'Takeover', is literally one of the most addictive songs i've heard all year. it's brilliant, and i can't get enough of it. they played yesterday as part of the New Islington Festival, however, due to some bad timing by moi, i managed to miss their set completely and was a bit gutted.

they really are fantastic, and well worth a listen. expect big things!

their inspiration?
"In terms of lyrics i [Duncan Wallis] just try to be as neurotic as possible so in that sense i'd say having a shit repetitve job for two years in an empty rural pub has brought alot of character to the songs so far."

their ambitions?
"At the moment i'd say we're all craving for a van (3 cars just isn't very Green of us!). But there's always that "lets write the next 'pet sounds' or 'marquee moon' for our generation" kind of bollocks swimming through our heads on the album side of things. But another ambition would be trying to hold off university as well, cos we cant be arsed."

what we can expect over the next 12 months?
"Definately more singles. We released our first single very early on and it took about a year for us to be happy with a second one. So this time i'd say alot more singles, with whacky b-sides! like adapting the a-side into 3/4 so its got more swing! And also, proper touring."



'Takeover' video, the forthcoming single, out September 17th.

the band are playing at 5th Avenue with Orphan Boy on September 18th and The Social in London on September 24th, as well as The Enterprise in London on the 26th.
hopefully i will be dancing away at both the London dates!

Headlines Myspace, where you can download 'A Long Process' for free.

LEEDS FEST 07. pt 2

SATURDAY

first i went to see Tim Minchin the comedian who wasn't that comedic. his jokes about Israel and Palestine kind of put a dampener on the lovely weather.

Blood Red Shoes - an amazing set from an amazing band. i love these guys so much. bring on a full album please please please!

i wanted to be at the front and nowhere else for Patrick Wolf (who, by the way, is NOT quitting music - yaaaaay) so i went down to the Carling Stage and hung around there for a good few hours.

1990s - i was quite impressed by the Scottish rockers. i wasn't expecting great things but they did well to deliver. definitely want to try and see them again some time.

Reverend And The Makers - what. is. this. band. even. about. absolute shite. i thought my ears were bleeding from all the yorkshire accent singing/talking at one point. band with a message? please fuck off. just because you can get lairy louts in awful shirts to jeer along with you doesn't make you 'man of the people'. do one (preferably off a hilltop).

Cajun Dance Party - a lovely set from the young'uns. topped off with balloons everywhere, CDP put on an energetic performance. the crowd wasn't as lively as i would have expected, despite me being possibly one of the oldest ones there.

Jack Penate - was suffering from a sore throat but still gave a valiant effort. it went down very well.

Patrick Wolf - now, i know absolutely everyone has been saying that he was the highlight of the weekend. it's pretty much because it's 100% true. minus him not playing 'Bloodbeat'. i was screaming like a fangirl and waving my arms outstretched for most of the set. but so was everyone else. the atmosphere was electric, and Patrick was witty and pretty and just completely brilliant. i loved him lots already but that performance has pushed me over the edge.

after this i walked past Razorshite with my fingers in my ears, skipped back to my tent and didn't go to sleep until 7pm on Sunday. nothing like a Wolf buzz to keep you up at night, haha.

SUNDAY

the first band i saw was Eagles Of Death Metal lolololol. there was no Josh Homme and that made things very disappointing as i really needed to fill my "sexy man who shouldn't be sexy but still is" quota for the day. i got bored and headed over to see Good Shoes.

Good Shoes - were on form, however i'd liked to have heard some new material or something to make their performance to stick out.

Metronomy - enjoyable for a Sunday morning. i can't help feeling they would have been better suited to a nighttime slot so i could have danced in the dark drunkenly. their music is music to be listened to in the dark.

Foals - not as impressive as i would have hoped!

then i went to bed.

and came back to see Battles who were rockinggggg. i loved every second of their performance and they turned what happened to be quite a dreary Sunday into something much better.

yaaay no more leeds fest blogs.

Battles - Tij (right click, save as!)
Patrick Wolf - A Boy Like Me (ditto)
Blood Red Shoes - Try Harder (ditto again)

if anyone's having any problems or got any complaints about me switching to hotlinkfiles, please let me know. because of this move i'm going to have to start deleting files after 7 days, so get them while they're hot! (if you want anything re-upped, or put on sendspace just drop me an email).