1. No Age by Jennifer Lo, 2. San Cisco by Adam Darroch-Thompson, 3. These New Puritans by Danny Payne, 4. Pixies by Thomas Perry
Simple Things Festival Bristol, Various Venues 12/10/2013 From opera halls to prison cells, Simple Things’ organizers have chosen a range of venues almost as wide as its choice of artists. And their two finest choices lie at equally opposite ends of the spectrum. In a small room at a converted fire station Jon Hopkins simultaneously leans on his sound’s dance roots, whilst not skimping on the more textual elements of his craft. A pounding rendition of ‘We Disappear’ gets the capacity crowd sweaty, but the depth and delicacy of his soundtrack work is still present and expertly layered on top of the beats. Bizarrely, No Age play on a stage, but they still bash their way through a crowdpleasing set of lo-fi art punk as if they were playing in someone’s kitchen. From ‘Teen Creeps’ to ‘C’mon, the-fly.co.uk
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Stimmung’ and beyond (there’s even a cover of Black Flag’s ‘Six Pack’ in there) the duo buzz with a ferocity and purpose that’s befitting of their stripped down sound. It’s full of heart and determination. It’s the fact that all the performers (and spaces used) are as varied as these two that makes Simple Things matter. Sam Mildner
San Cisco Scala, London 17/10/2013 Following the release of their ‘Golden Revolver’ and ‘Awkward’ EPs, Australia’s San Cisco have been on a whirlwind of international tours, signed to a major label and finally put out their self-titled LP. Rounding the year off, tonight is the last of their UK tour and the band’s earlier, naturalistic pop tunes open proceedings. ‘Golden Revolver’, ‘Girls Do Cry’ and ‘Awkward’ are upliftingly-percussive with an essence of Vampire Weekend, backed by some jolting, jangling guitars. More encouraging are the
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contemplative ‘Hunter’ and single ‘Wild Things’. The former highlights lead singer Jordi Davieson’s lyrics, featuring some acerbic phrases about toxic love. The latter, meanwhile, offers warnings about bitterness and hate amid Josh Biondillo’s distorted, twisting guitars. ‘Beach’, the first track from their LP, sees Biondillo ditching guitars for synthesisers in a dreamy ode to ‘Africa’ by Toto that ends with a rowdy singalong, whilst the encore is a rendition of ‘Get Lucky’ – cover versions of which are now as over-familiar as the original. This wishy-washy version is hardly awe-inspiring but the crowd do, of course, dance without question. Alison King
These New Puritans Leeds, Belgrave Music Hall 19/10/2013 Without wanting to cast a cloud over a venue that’s only been open a couple of weeks, the newly-opened Belgrave Music Hall has just played host to one of the best bands they’ll
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ever book. The six-strong ensemble of These New Puritans haven’t just set the bar for every act passing through Leeds – theirs is the standard that any artist planning a return in 2014 ought to be aiming for. The oddball beauty of ‘Fragment Two’ is breathtaking, with its fidgety piano and heart attack-inducing drums. But it’s quickly obliterated by a tumultuous trilogy of tracks from 2010’s ‘Hidden’, with the live brass helping to make the terrifying ‘We Want War’ all the more menacing. At their more sober moments, TNP are thoughtprovokingly pretty, mirroring David Bowie’s Berlin instrumentals in both ambition and quality. Jack Barnett is a far more unassuming frontman though, keeping tight hold of his bass, or else squeezing his eyes shut and waving his hands around wildly like a hallucinating Thom Yorke. On record, TNP are a clearly a band following their own path, but live they make it look like the direction that all artists should be pursuing: towards