Jumping on this bandwagon a midge too late perhaps, but if there’s even one person out there who hasn’t heard about the utterly phenomenal heirs to the indie-Scot-rock throne We Were Promised Jetpacks, let us here at Cannibal Cheerleader let you know this group can only be described as utterly life-altering in their musical ways. While their name might inspire jeers and questions, focus not on the sci-fi inspired humorousness of the statement but the sense of emptiness and disappointment, the realization that childhood fantasies give way to harsh, cruel reality. Careening across the Western hemisphere, riding high on the back of their excellent debut LP These Four Walls, this Scottish foursome has a lot to be proud of when they stand beside groups like the Twilight Sad and Frightened Rabbit at a recent gig at the Mohawk here in Austin. A testament to the power of indie-rock and roll, find out about this group quickly.
BORIS BLOWS AUSTIN AWAY It goes without saying that when it comes to metal, Japanese trio Boris remains in a completely different league than the majority of other ‘heavy’ bands working today. With a combination of sludge, drone, and stoner metal built on top of a framework of mind-blowing virtuosity by guitarist Wata, guitarist/vocalist/bassist Takeshi, and drummer Atsuo, one could expect the band to put on a live show that borders on perfection. Saturday here in Austin at the Mohawk, Boris did not disappoint. While opener Clouds experimented with melodic metal and Torche brought the requisite crunch-factor that metal-heads crave, the Boris experience was near mystical, as they whipped through tracks from their latest LP Smile as well as cuts from Pink with the help of master guitarist and special unannounced guest Michio Kurihara (who assisted the band on their Rainbow LP). As the smoke machine billowed around the band who played loose and free during their entire set, the audience quickly became mesmerized, only snapping from their metal-induced haze at the end of each extended cut, which was ultimately followed by rapturous applause. Starting slowly with “Flower Sun Rain”, Boris built up speed through the entire set before eventually settling on such fantastic cuts from Smile such as “My Neighbor Satan” and ending on a sublime note, leaving the audience begging for more. Ultimately Boris proved that metal can be an avant-garde art form, melodic and breathtaking in its head-banging fury, all while treating Austin to the heaviest show it might see this year. Here are a ton of pictures I took at Mohawk and a cut from their latest LP. Enjoy! Boris Wata Takeshi Atsuo Michio Kurihara Clouds Torche Boris – “My Neighbor Satan” ******************************************************************** GRAND OLE PARTY ON MTV2 It appears that our old friends from San Diego Grand Ole Party are tearing it up on MTV2, as their video for “Look Out Young Son”, a choice cut from their Humanimals LP is now in rotation according to the trio. Definitely keep an eye out for it and check the rad video below.
Grand Ole Party – “Look Out Young Son” ******************************************************************** HEADLIGHTS NEW DAYTROTTER SESSION Illinois-natives Headlights have just put up a new Daytrotter Session and it includes a great rendition of their hit from Some Racing, Some Stopping “Cherry Tulips”. According to the band’s Myspace:
“All these songs were re-invented for the Daytrotter sessions. We used all the great vintage gear — old keyboards and an upright bass, loop pedals and what not. They have really cool toys.”
Thanks everyone for readings and thanks to Treasure Mammal for stopping by my work yesterday even though I missed his show! He’s a really great guy so be sure and check him out! Any comments?
FRIGHTENED RABBIT/OXFORD COLLAPSE IN AUSTIN Last night at Mohawk here in Austin audiences were treated to the indie-rock equivalent of the 0ne-two punch, with Scottish crooners Frightened Rabbit teaming up with poppy-punksters Oxford Collapse for an evening of scorching numbers, all played with such effortlessness the boys in the bands made it look easy. Oxford Collapse opened and by the time lead guitarist Michael Pace’s amp blew out in mid-song we knew we were in for a good set. Playing loose and cavalier the trio bounced around the stage with an energy that even got the much-maligned Austin hipster crowd to shake their hips. Frightened Rabbit’s music, while definitely more reserved, nonetheless sounded equally bombastic with the band ripping through tracks from their newest LP the Midnight Organ Fight with ease. Tracks like “The Modern Leper” and Cannibal Cheerleader favorite “The Twist” got us to our feet in no time flat, and frontman Scott Hutchison sings each tune with the grit and fervor of a man holding back years of tears with each word. Both bands provided for an emotional experience that won’t soon be forgotten here in Austin. Great double bill and kudos to OC, FR, and especially Mohawk. Here are some more pics from last night:
Frightened Rabbit Oxford Collapse ******************************************************************** NEW STARS “BITCHES IN TOKYO” VIDEO One of our favorite releases of last year (as you can read from our first post ever) was Stars‘ In Our Bedroom After the War. It combined our love of well-honed and perfectly executed pop music with our penchant for subversive politics, all wrapped up with a little bit of rock and roll to boot. One of the best songs from that album was undeniably “Bitches In Tokyo” so it’s awesome to see that even a year after the album was released we have the band’s new video for this standout track. Check it out below and be sure and pick up the entire Stars’ discography (if you like music that is). Bitches In Tokyo ******************************************************************** NEW BAND CHEER – PONYTAIL We’ve heard the rumblings about Baltimore’s Ponytail for a while now. From their recent Pitchfork review all the way back to mixtapes circling the Internet from radio stations in Maryland. But it wasn’t until we heard the band’s newest LP Ice Cream Spiritual, a bricolage of pop-punkery and noise-rock mashed into a rainbow cataclysm of sound and fury, that we decided to throw our full weight behind this great act. Truth be told Ponytail is one of our favorite new bands of the year bar-none and we’ll be impressed to see what they’ve got in store as the year progresses. Word on the street is they’re one of the best live acts around so here’s hoping they swing through Austin! MP3s are sadly still down but here’s a video to tide you over and introduce you to their fantastic sound. ******************************************************************** TERROR THURSDAY – CREEPERS One of the weirdest Terror Thursdays yet, Dario Argento’s Creepers (the American edit of Phenomena) stars Jennifer Connelly as the new girl in an all-female boarding school when murder mysteriously star occurring. Seemingly missing massive chunks of the plot due to perhaps a poor quality film print or bad editing (perhaps Phenomena is more complete?) the film nonetheless impresses with the Italian master’s signature artful kills and enough disgusting gore (pool of body parts and maggots anyone?) to impress even the most jaded horror fans. I give this one 3 out of 4 bloody pon-poms though it might get more when I rent the full version of the film. Look for the review in the future!
That’s it for this week folks! Hopefully mp3s will be back next week! Any comments?
Pink Nasty’s show Saturday night at the Mohawk was sadly, sparsely attended. However, that didn’t stop PN and her excellent backing band from delivering the hits, from Mold the Gold favorites like “Away Message” to new tracks like the garage-rock goodness of “Curses”. Sounding more like an alt-country songstress than her lo-fi recordings give her credit for, Pink Nasty was in rare form and definitely deserves all the attention she gets in Austin. Look her up now folks before she blows up into full-blown rockstar mode. More pictures below. ******************************************************************** BECK, LIKE THE BEER
Since Beck will be playing this year’s Cat Power, we figured we post a few of his little-known rarities to build the excitement up.
The mini-album Beck, Like the Beer is a rare demo tape circulated around the Internet after the artist gave the songs to a friend. Recorded in 1992 the album features psyched-out acoustic tracks that recall Mellow Gold and One Foot in the Grave, with a bent towards Beck’s more comic elements. Check these tracks out!
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs website has undergone a complete transformation and this new, cleaner look to the site comes with the welcome announcement that the band is hard at work on a new album. With rumors of the band’s breakup afoot and the dearth of live tracks that haven’t been committed to studio, the outlook for a new LP looked bleak until now. Here’s hoping the album is as rocking as the last two for my favorite working band (and here’s a live version of the b-side “Sealings” for your enjoyment).
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Sealings” (Live at the Filmore, San Francisco) ************************************************************************************* Personal heroes and the greatest snot-nosed high schoolers to ever revive punk rock, Be Your Own PET has just put four new songs from their upcoming sophomore LP Get Awkward on their band Myspace. Definitely check them out (as well as this video for their single “Bicycle Bicycle”). ************************************************************************************* Local awesome music venue Mohawk has been named the #1 Bar in America by Esquire. Just goes to show what combining a friendly bar staff (looking at you Emo’s) and an excellent stage for music will do for a new club. I’m particularly looking forward to the Feb. 16th show with Liars and No Age. Check it out! ************************************************************************************* CC faves Ringo Deathstarr have finally posted their music video for “Some Kind of Sad”. Check out that hot balloon action! See everyone tomorrow!
