DIY, July 2016

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L ATITUDE S PECIAL !

TH E MACCABE ES TH E NATIONAL WE AVES

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YO U CAN D O AN Y T H I N G !

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James Murphy’s gonna need you reunion naysayers to whinge a bit louder.

GOOD VS EVIL

WHAT’S ON THE DIY TEAM’S R ADAR?

Emma Swann Founding Editor GOOD LCD Soundsystem at Glastonbury were bloody majestic! Also Beck twice IN ONE WEEK! EVIL First Field Day’s rain ruined my camera, then the Glastonbury mud ruined me. .............................. tom connick Online Editor GOOD Primavera was pretty much the perfect festival.

EVIL Everything is utterly fucked, really. ..............................

El hunt Features Editor GOOD Standing mere metres away from the sweet prince of Newsround himself, Lizo Mzimba, at Glastonbury.

EVIL Being too starstruck to get a selfie. ..............................

Jamie MILTon Neu Editor GOOD Going to the Euros and not getting bottled by English yobbos.

EVIL This is a tough one. Not much bad stuff happened in June, right? ..............................

Louise Mason Art Director GOOD Canada.

Weaves, Preoccupations, Dilly Dally, New Fries and a million more - I’m off.

EVIL That I don’t have any Jenna Foxton vision goggles so everything could be rainbow colours and shiny like the pictures in this magazine.

EDITOR’S LET TER Sometimes, dear readers, the stars align and magical things happen. A few months ago now, Team DIY heard through the grapevine that a certain Danish pop star named MØ, who had collaborated with a certain DJ collective (ahem, Major Lazer) to create the most streamed song EVER, was telling people we were responsible for their meeting. Little ol’ us, matchmaking superstars just like that! Turns out it’s true! But, while we may have accidentally given her a hand with Diplo, there’s no doubt about it: MØ is carving out her own destiny, completely on her own terms. ‘Lean On’ is just the beginning.

That’s not all we’ve got in store this month: as we gear up to head to Henham Park, we run through all of the most essential acts appearing at this year’s Latitude, we dive into the conceptual world of Bat For Lashes and meet the newest recruit to pop punk legends Blink-182. So, go on – get stuck in!

Sarah Jamieson, Managing Editor GOOD I can’t possibly explain how excited I am to see Chvrches, MØ and Grimes all in the same weekend. Let’s just hope there’s a bit less mud than Glasto, eh?

EVIL I think it might be best not to think about this one too much after the month we’ve just had...

LISTENING POST What’s on the DIY stereo this month?

Preoccupations - Preoccupations

With a new name and a new album, Preoccupations are ready to go: the record’s first cut ‘Anxiety’ paints a dark picture of what’s to come, but there’s more than meets the ear here.

Twin Atlantic - GLA

The Scottish quartet are getting selfish on their third album (which is pronounced ‘gee-el-eh’ by the way, for anyone wondering.) Find out more on p.10.

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C O N T E N T S “Of all the fucking places to lose my keys, I picked Glastonbury.”

LATITUDE NEWS

6 PA R T Y B A BY 1 0 T WI N AT L AN T I C 12 TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB 1 4 B I F F Y C LY R O 1 7 P O P S TAR P O S T BAG 2 0 D I Y H A L L O F FA M E 2 4 F E S T I VA L S

NEU

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38 46 48 TH 50 53 54 TH

MØ T H E NAT I O NAL DIY PRESENTS E ALC OVE S TAG E THE MACCABEES W E AV E S CHRISTINE AND E QUEENS

FEATURES

5 6 BAT FO R L AS H ES 60 BLINK-182

REVIEWS 64 ALBUMS 74 L I V E

Founding Editor Emma Swann Managing Editor Sarah Jamieson Features Editor El Hunt Neu Editor Jamie Milton Online Editor Tom Connick Art Direction & Design Louise Mason Marketing & Events Jack Clothier, Rhi Lee Contributors Amelia Maher, Ali Shutler, Alim Kheraj, Betty Townley, Danny Wright, Dave Beech, Eugenie Johnson, Henry Boon, Jessica Goodman, Kyle Forward, Liam McNeilly, Mollie Mansfield, Mustafa Mirreh, Nick Pollard, Nina Keen, Rachel Michaella Finn, Sean Kerwick, Will Richards, William Moss Photographers Bethan Miller, Caroline Quinn, Jenna Foxton, Jonathan Dadds, Luke Hannaford, Mike Massaro, Nathan Barnes, Nathan McLaren-Stewart, Paul Reynolds, Ryan Johnston, Sarah Doone, Sarah Louise Bennett.

For DIY editorial info@diymag.com For DIY sales rupert@sonicdigital.co.uk lawrence@sonicdigital.co.uk tel: +44 (0)20 3632 3456 For DIY stockist enquiries stockists@diymag.com DIY is published by Sonic Media Group. All material copyright (c). All rights reserved.

This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of DIY. 25p where sold.

Disclaimer: While every effort is made to ensure the information in this magazine is correct, changes can occur which affect the accuracy of copy, for which Sonic Media Group holds no responsibility. The opinions of the contributors do not necessarily bear a relation to those of DIY or its staff and we disclaim liability for those impressions. Distributed nationally.

Cover photo: Jenna Foxton

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This isn’t what Noah Partybaby signed up for when he heard about Brighton Pier’s ‘rides’.

“We really. did start this. band as a joke.”

Noah Gersh.

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“I

think it’s maybe the most English thing ever,” reflects Partybaby’s Jamie Reed, “to play your first UK show in a pub on top of the Brighton Pier!” Just minutes after the LA punks stormed DIY’s stage at The Great Escape, among the dodgy carpets and dodgier wood panelling of Brighton’s premier fake pub Horatio’s, spirits are soaring.

“I think it went well,” admits Noah Gersh, his calmer demeanour a world away from the jittery wreck who took to the stage. “We were really, really, really nervous. We’ve had so much love from you guys over here from the beginning.

I remember the night before we put out the first track [‘Everything’s Alright’], with you guys, Jamie and I were sitting at a bar close to our house being like, ‘Well, tomorrow’s the day that the world hits us and we have to go get jobs.’ So every step of the way since then, I’m convinced that that’s the time it’s gonna… y’know. Someone’s gonna walk on stage and just stab me and it’ll be the end!”

“Everything that’s possible could go wrong!” laughs Jamie.

“You could spontaneously light on fire in the middle of a show, or it’s like, your guitar could just die and you have nothing on stage. None of that happened, and people were smiling, and they clapped, and that’s a really great feeling.”

in

For a band started “as a joke”, Partybaby’s debut UK trip was nothing short of a monumental victory – broken fingers and all. Words: Tom Connick. Photos: Emma Swann.

to tell. “A few weeks ago, we got back from the studio at like three o’clock in the morning. So tired, all you want to do in the whole world is get in bed - I just remember thinking, ‘All I want to do right now is be naked in my bed’ - and sometimes you gotta fanangle your foot out of the hole in your pants. My finger got caught in-between the pants and my leg…”

“He literally broke his own finger taking his pants off…” finishes Noah with a sigh. There’s a sense that this isn’t the first time he’s had to play responsible adult to Jamie’s sugar-high antics.

Sticky tape has been his friend ever since – taking to the stage this evening, several inches of duct tape were the only thing preventing him from dropping his pick. “I literally just duct taped it to my finger before the show,” he says between giggles. “Like, ‘This hurts, but at least it’s not going anywhere!’”

“We thrive on limitations,” Noah says with a roll of the eyes.

There’s a feeling that everything around Partybaby is a limitation at this point – that the world’s not spinning fast enough to keep up with their thousand-miles-an-hour enthusiasm. “Our record’s been done since before we played our first show!” Noah grins. “I’d like to put out more than one record a year. We write ‘em! It sucks to sit on music.”

Bleak though their mindset might be, Partybaby’s rise has been marred by daft accidents from day one. As he speaks, Jamie’s finger is wrapped up in a splint the size of a small mobile phone. Rock ‘n’ roll injury? Battle wound from a particularly gnarly show? Not quite.

“The moment that we become sedentary people, we start to lose our minds a little bit,” Jamie admits, “So we like to keep working, and stay in the studio. We make the music by ourselves, start to finish, so we don’t need to ask anyone’s permission, or book a studio or anything.”

“Noah and I are tirelessly working on new music, all the time,” he explains, only slightly embarrassed by the tale he’s about

They’re a once-in-a-blue-moon kind of duo – a comedy double act that somehow find time amongst the calamity

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to pen instant anthemia like it’s nothing – “We write a song every day. We try to record a lot of them,” admits Jamie. Where he might come off as the finger-snapping, whirlwind party animal, Noah is the yin to his yang – a quieter, more reflective personality (but one that’s no less swayed by the promise of tequila). Together, it’s clear to see where Partybaby’s duality comes from – fire-starting pop-punk anthems with a head and heart of gold, it’s a trust exercise that’d collapse if either of the two were to turn away.

“We were doing it to appease ourselves,” Jamie nods.

“Every moment that’s happened since has been crazy,” Noah continues in earnest. “We had to work backwards – we had to find a band to play! We rehearsed for five months, because we had never played the songs. We rehearsed the songs when the time came to play live, because it had just been us banging it out in the studio and being done with it.”

Looking out over the Brighton beachfront, Jamie thinks back to the day before: “We looked at each other when we were at the airport, leaving Los Angeles, like, ‘Hey, this thing we started as a joke, that we’d never play for anyone… people invited us to go play in the UK right now.’ It’s the most special feeling in the world.” DIY

With The

“I wanted to say it on stage tonight, but I never talk on stage,” explains Noah. “I’ve been thinking about it all day, because we’d talked about it: this band genuinely started as a joke. I’m not taking the piss – we really did start this band as a joke. We were really enjoying it, we were liking the music we were making, but we were certain that we were never gonna play a show; we were certain that we weren’t gonna put it out, that it was just gonna be on our phones. We were doing it to fall back in love with making music.”

Jamie’s latest tattoo was done by none other than The Wolf Of Wall Street star Margot Robbie. As you do. Partybaby take us behind the ink: Noah: We live a weird life, man…

Jamie: I met her at a pre-Oscars party in Los Angeles, that by all means I snuck into in the trunk of a car. I had no real reason for being there!

Noah: He asked me, like, ‘Do you wanna come?’ I was like, ‘Fuck off, hell no!’ [laughs] Jamie: I arrived at this party that was for the top of the tops, in the trunk of my friend’s car [both laugh]. I just started talking – looking for anything to talk about – like, ‘Yeah, I made an appointment to go get a new tattoo this morning, but the appointment’s for next week and I really want one right now.’ She was like, ‘… I give tattoos.

I have a kit, I have everything.’ It began very much as a joke, and then as the conversation progressed she was like, ‘Well, what do you want?’ I want ‘Come Together’ on my arm. She was like, ‘Alright, let’s go.’ I found her a little later and she was like, ‘You want a tattoo right now, let’s go, come, I’ll give you a tattoo in my hotel.’

Noah: So I’m out at a bar with friends, and Jamie texts me like, ‘You’re never going to fucking believe what’s just happened’. I see this giant long thought bubble and I’m like, ‘This is big, he’s about to tell me a hell of a story…’ And he just deletes it and goes, ‘Just look at our Snapchat.’ [both collapse laughing]. I was standing in the bar like, ‘What the actual fuck.’

Jamie: Now it’s actually my favourite tattoo that I have.

If you’re happy and you know it, do a facepalm!

“We thrive on limitations.” Noah Gersh 8 diymag.com

SUPPORTING EUROPEAN ACTS AT 100 EUROPEAN FESTIVALS NETHERLANDS Lowlands Aurora, Oscar & the Wolf, Dua Lipa, Nao, Pumarosa, The Academic, Soom T, Charlotte OC, Rag’n’Bone Man, Woodie Smalls, Otherkin, Elias

GERMANY Rocco del Schlacko John Coffey, De Staat

UNITED KINGDOM Secret Garden Party Amber Arcades

SWITZERLAND Gurtenfestival Antilopen Gang

GERMANY Taubertal Festival De Staat, John Coffey, Bazzookas

ITALY Siren Festival The Parrots, Holy Strays

PORTUGAL Super Bock Super Rock The Parrots

AUSTRIA Frequency Festival Golan, Frances, Honne, Seafret, Alle Farben, Dua Lipa, Nao

SWEDEN Way Out West Stormzy, Dua Lipa, Oscar, Liima

SWITZERLAND Paléo Festival Nyon Jain, The Deaf, Steve’n’ Seagulls, Fakear, Hyphen Hyphen, Soom T

FRANCE Vieilles Charrues Soom T

HUNGARY Sziget Oscar & the Wolf, Kovacs, Aurora, Jain, John Coffey

GERMANY Melt!

Mura Masa, Klyne, Liss, SG Lewis

NORWAY Øyafestivalen Stormzy, Nao, Vant

LATVIA Positivus Festival Seinabo Sey, C Duncan, Postaal, Hælos, Liima, Branko

UNITED KINGDOM Green Man Amber Arcades, Fews BELGIUM Pukkelpop Alex Vargas, Dua Lipa, Hvob, Mura Masa, SG Lewis, Vant, Weval SWITZERLAND Winterthurer Musikfestwochen Elias, Grandbrothers, Rusangano Family GERMANY Haldern Pop Elias, Alex Vargas, Fai Baba, Rationale, Samm Henshaw, Amber Arcades, Liima

POLAND Off Festival Katowice Liima AUSTRIA Szene Open Air DeWolff, Middlemist Red LITHUANIA Das Fest FùGù Mango, Yast, Hornsman Coyote & Soulcraft

CZECH REPUBLIC Colours of Ostrava My Baby, Nothing But Thieves , De Staat, Aurora, Kovacs, Sacri Cuori, Brodka NORWAY Slottsfjell Elias, Dolores Haze, Alex Vargas, Axel Flóvent, Vant, Blossoms

ITALY Arezzo Wave Love Festival DeWolff, Dubioza Kolektiv BELGIUM Dour Festival Soom T, Stormzy, Fakear, Jeanne Added, Fews, Honne FINLAND Ilosaarirock Aurora

www.etep.nl

2003 - 2015: 2690 shows by 972 artists from 31 countries 9

HOME

“We walked away from the band as if it was finished,” frontman Sam McTrusty begins, sat in the infamous King Tut’s, where the band are launching new album, ‘GLA.’, this evening. “Not to up the drama, but we were like, ‘That’s it.’ We didn’t really know how to top what we had done, because we had actually done what we set out to do. OK, not on a global scale where we were a really big band, but it was still game-changing for us.

So, we went to make a new album and just didn’t know what would happen next.”

PLACE

like

What followed was a well-earned six months off. As well as spending time with their families and getting to live a more stable life off the road, they decided to put down their regular instruments and play around more, writing as and when they felt like it. “It was like Twin Atlantic didn’t exist anymore,” Sam continues.

“We set up home studios and made demos in a day.

We just embraced that side of songwriting. On our last record, we did a few songs with Jacknife Lee, and he opened our minds up to the idea that that’s useful.”

As it so happened, working on their own turf meant productivity sky-rocketed. They felt free. “That’s what allowed us to get right to the heart of it; by getting ideas out quicker. ‘Great Divide’ took six months to record and this took six weeks.”

“It was like Twin Atlantic didn’t exist anymore.” sam McTrusty

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Judging by the few tastes that’ve been offered up so far, their next record’s that bit tougher - more roughand-ready. “We’re still doing riffs and rock drums,” he explains, acknowledging that their core sound is still present. “We just took things in a really selfish direction. Last album, I got really obsessed with writing the perfect song and dragged everyone into that. It got to the point where we weren’t really sure why we were doing it, but we were really ambitious. I think this time, because we did whatever we wanted - on our timescale and in our own environments - we were dipping in and out of stuff that we listen to and care about. Plus, we were in Glasgow writing and recording, so it all naturally happened. We didn’t really think about any of this; we just did it because we wanted to.”

Twin Atlantic’s new album ‘GLA’ is out on 9th September via Red Bull Records. DIY

When ‘Great Divide’ drew to a close, Twin Atlantic weren’t exactly sure what would come next. For its follow-up – the aptly-titled ‘GLA’ - they decided to head back to where it all began.

NEWS

B

y the time their last album stint drew to a close, Twin Atlantic had climbed to their highest peak yet. Headlining the ginormo-dome of the SSE Hydro in their hometown of Glasgow was just one achievement that they managed to tick off their bucket list after the release of ‘Great Divide’, but – unsurprisingly – it also offered a bit of a question mark as to where the band would go next.

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in the studio

TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB

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With their second album ‘Beacon’, the band “played it far too safe”, but now Alex Trimble and pals are back, with a new sense of fearlessness. Words: Rachel Michaella Finn

lex Trimble is halfway across the world, locked in a tour bus that’s been driving overnight from Kansas City to Columbus, Ohio. This summer Two Door Cinema Club will continue their current festival circuit across the States before heading across Europe and then to Asia, playing gigs in Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand and Japan over the coming months. It’s turning out to be a busy year for a band that hadn’t played live for two years until a few months ago - or released an album for four. So where the hell have Two Door Cinema Club been?

“I don’t look back on ‘Beacon’ or the making of it very fondly.” Alex Trimble 12 diymag.com

“By the end of the last touring cycle, we just didn’t want to be around each other at all. We’d had enough,” frontman Alex admits of their unplanned hiatus. “That’s just what comes with spending five years locked up in a little box together.”

There’s no doubt Two Door’s rise was pretty sharp, with little time to take stock. The three childhood friends from Bangor, Northern Ireland were not long out of school when they recorded debut LP ‘Tourist History’. After that they barely stopped, embarking on a relentless record-tour-promote

Lovely decorations, lads.

Take the album’s namesake as one example: ‘Gameshow’, a new song they’ve been playing on their US tour, is a largerthan-life rock song with a winding guitar line that begs to be played to festival crowds. Elsewhere, ‘Bad Decisions’ teams falsetto vocals with a funk-style bass line, and lead single ‘Are We Ready? (Wreck)’ begins with a sample of a harmonious children’s choir before launching into a sleek, upbeat pop tune. Have no doubts, this album is definitively a Two Door Cinema Club creation. But it’s one that’s unafraid to step away from the pop-tinged indie they made their name on. treadmill that propelled them straight back in the studio to record a follow-up. Like many musicians who put out a second album quickly - as Alex says so not to “lose the momentum we had” - he has a few regrets about not giving their sound room to breathe and grow.

“We didn’t have time to put it together,” he says of 2012’s ‘Beacon’. “And I don’t look back on that album or the making of it very fondly... I think we played it far too safe.”

What followed was two years in which Alex reckons they did “nothing” as a band, a silence that left many fans wondering when, or even if, they’d ever make a return. That was until the beginning of 2016 when, along with bassist Kevin Baird and drummer Sam Halliday, he convened in LA with producer Jacknife Lee to see if time apart had affected their ability or desire to try to make a third album. Luckily, it hadn’t.

“The break and the time apart gave us reason to not be worried so much,” Alex says. “It was very relaxed. Having time to kind of let the years pass thinking and register, I think it brought an extra confidence or fearlessness almost,” Their time together in LA produced an album - ‘Gameshow’, due this October - that clearly shows a band that have grown up, diversified and, importantly for them, taken risks.

“I think at it’s core, it’s a pop record,” Alex explains, not a Taylor Swift kind of pop, he stresses, but “more traditional pop, if that’s a thing”. One such ‘traditional’ pop pioneer who played an influence was the late David Bowie: “He embraced pop music in the most wonderful way… He would bring it outside of his own time and I wanted to try and capture some of that with our record.”

With this album, Two Door Cinema Club have had time to look back on their past success and move it forward. After “kind of doing [the last record] for other people… All the wrong reasons to be doing something,” this time round their reason is pretty simple.“My only real aim, which for now I’m almost kind of there,” Alex says, “is just to make something that I am genuinely proud of.”

But isn’t there a risk that fans will be surprised at their new direction in sound? Alex seems unfazed: “There’s a chance we might lose some older fans but there’s a chance that we might make some more fans as well. I’ve so much confidence in this that surprises will only be a good thing”.

Two Door Cinema Club’s new album ‘Gameshow’ is out 14th October via Parlophone. DIY Two Door Cinema Club will play Melt! Festival.

Head to diymag.com/festivals for details.

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“What conditioner do you use, Simon?

Your hair is quite literally glowing.”

by

BIF FY

k c a r t

CLY RO

Dre s gal sing g ore ow : giv Biff y C n guit ar e us l a gl yro’s S solos imp a i se i mon N nd bla nt o eil, s t- b alb t he ir Jam e e at re b s um ‘ E ll ri lli a n a n d B g g ae s ips is’. tly bo en Joh ongs n ke n rs n ston ew

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: k ac r t

with just over a minute of us all going nuts and it was a great idea! But it came to down to the fact that, if we felt it was a struggle to listen to, it ain’t good.

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Simon: This was one of the first songs that came together in the practice room. It was kinda the closest song to [2013 album] ‘Opposites’.

James: For me, it really became unlocked when Simon put on his dressing gown and belted out that solo...

Simon: One day, the boys came over to my house at about midday and I came down at five past. I had barely woken up, had my dressing down on and I was like, ‘Alright, fuck, I’ll do this solo just now.’ It sounds like I’m making it up but I played the whole fucking thing! Then I went and got my coffee.

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.Medicine

.Wolves Of Winter

.Friends and Enemies

Simon: We knew we wanted to fuck about with the way we worked, and this track was the first leap of faith. I had the chords and we had a bit of guitar and singing and then we built the song from that. It was the first glimpse that our leap of faith was working, and it reminded us that we’re not necessarily here to show what we can do, it was about what the song needed. You can probably hear our Tears For Fears influence in there, too.

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.Animal Style

Simon: ‘Animal Style’ is probably our most heads-down rock song ever. Normally with Biffy, it’s all rhythm changes and quiet-loud. This was a riff I had for a few months and I recorded at my friend John’s studio. To be honest, I think if we’d worked on this track together as a band initially, it would’ve become a more

traditional Biffy song, but because I was in the studio by myself, it took it somewhere that it probably wouldn’t have gone if we’d been together in a room.

Simon: The song’s about certain things that you require, or are addicted to, in your life to get through things and it’s about trying to break free of those chains. We really wanted to embrace hip hop production ideas and make it textured and dreamy.

It feels more emotive because we restricted ourselves somewhat.

.Re-arrange

Simon: Once ‘Rearrange’ came along, it felt like we were ready to make a record, like it was the last piece of the ‘Puzzle’ – ohhh, ‘Puzzle’, our fourth record!

There was a sweetness and a feel to this song that suggested more of an R&B swing. I’ve always wanted to put trap beats on a Biffy song, which I don’t think I ever thought we’d do, but this song has got some in!

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.herex

Ben: Well, it used to be more bonkers than it is, but then someone pointed out, it’s actually quite a good song so maybe we shouldn’t have it be quite so bonkers...

Simon: This was our blastbeat, reggae song! It started

Simon: This is where we decided to go a little country! We’ve always toyed around with folk music in some of our B-sides.

James: There was something kinda friendly about it; every time you played it, there were smiles all around! There was something kinda familiar.

Simon: And we wanted it to feel like we were in a pub, so much so that we thought about going to a pub to record it. Then we realised, ‘Shit, we’re in LA!’ so that didn’t work, but we tried to capture that ourselves.

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.Flammable

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.Small Wishes

James: There’s a groove on this one that’s unfamiliar to us as a band: we’re all playing different rhythms.

Simon: I feel like we’re Paul Simon’s backing band – you’re going up while I’m going down!

James: Some of the percussion we’ve got in there is really tasty, and the song sort of slaps you about the face a bit at the start, with that guitar tone. .On A Bang

Ben: I’d say this is the angriest song we’ve ever had... possibly! This is a good example of how we’re not doing what we’d usually do: you’d think on the angriest Biffy song ever, there’d be a really distorted guitar but on this, not so much. We got the drums and tried to make them sound really aggressive and weird, despite us staring at the distortion pedals and wanting that heaviness!

.Howl

Simon: We were unsure where this song sat – it had a bit of a 50s vibe – and then we listened to a band called Midnight Oil and there was something about it. So, we tried to build this almost acoustic rock sound, as inspired by them. I think it’s really quite pop and I think we might’ve been a bit scared of the simplicity of a song like that on previous albums. This time, that wasn’t in our thoughts at all. .People

James: I remember the first time I heard the chords being like, ‘What’s that?!’ The feel of it was just absolutely amazing, and I don’t think there’s anything else on the album that has that cinematic feel.

Simon: Rich didn’t actually like this song, but I kept going back and playing it. It kept talking to us. As soon as we recorded it and we had put our stamp on it, it immediately became the last song on the album. We wanted to end it not with an exclamation mark, but with a dot dot dot...

Biffy Clyro’s new album ‘Ellipsis’ is out 8th July via Warner Bros. Records / 14th Floor. DIY

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Sponsored

Service Station of the Month

TOP

TIPS:

Yak: WATFORD GAP, M1

DIY’S PICK OF Bands love service stations more than music itself. Snacks, bogs, time to think - it’s all there. These are miraculous places where festival headliners mingle with lorry drivers. It’s due time we paid respect to the very best.

“We’ve gone for the Watford Gap services - the great North/South divide!

Maybe it can replace “Cumberland Gap” in our live sets: “Watford Gap, Watford Gap, 15 miles to the Watford Gap… Leave your sandals at the door!”

Snack of choice: Eccles Cakes

LNSOURCE

Given up on festival mud and decided to go to a good ol’ fashioned gig this month? Here’s just a few of LN Source’s upcoming shows that are more than worth checking out.

FIDLAR

12th July • Electric Brixton • London FIDLAR are brilliant: there’s no two ways around it. Having released their second raw-and-ready punk effort ‘Two’ back in the summer of 2015, they’re more than in the swing of things by now. If crowdsurfing and all-out chaos is your bag, their show in the capital is unmissable. Throw in the likes of Public Access TV and you’ve got a winning combination.

Tired Lion

14th July • The Lexington • London Fresh from an appearance at Glastonbury, this Perth four-piece are already making quite a name for themselves. Set to headline in London ahead of their slot on DIY’s own Alcove Stage at Latitude, their Lexington show’s set to be a lovely way to warm up for the weekend.

DR. MARTENS STAND FOR SOMETHING TOUR IS BACK! It’s official - the Dr. Martens Stand For Something Tour is back, and will be returning later this year.

Having previously hosted the likes of Twin Atlantic, Eagulls, Spector and Palma Violets playing tiny shows across the country, the 2016 edition of the tour is set to be even bigger and better than ever.

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The first acts set to appear will be announced next month, but to be in with a chance of getting tickets first you can head to: drmartens.com/standforsomethingtour to register. You’ll be given booking priority, so you can get your hands on tickets before anyone else. DIY

Jack Garratt November 2016 • Nationwide

Having managed to score the new music double earlier this year when he earned both the BRITs Critics Choice and the Sound of 2016 title, Jack Garratt’s gone from strength to strength in 2016. The loop-pedal wizard’s live show has to be seen to be believed though: this November, it’s the perfect chance.

For more information and to buy tickets, head to livenation.co.uk or twitter.com/LNSource

NEWS

Popstar Postbakgh o n e y b l ac

We know what you’re like, dear readers. We know you’re just as nosy as we are when it comes to our favourite popstars: that’s why we’re putting the power back into your hands. Every month, we’re going to ask you to pull out your best questions and aim them at those unsuspecting artists. You don’t even need to pay for postage! This month, Black Honey’s Izzy B. Phillips is taking on your Qs. If you could only watch one film for the rest of your life, what would it be? Alana, via email Léon: The Professional Will you guys come to Asia? Jack, via email Yes! We’re coming to South Korea and Japan this August.

I love the artwork for your EP and single releases. Where do the ideas for these come from? Sarah, Manchester They are all inspired from the narrative of the songs. We work with artist Olivia Savage, with the aim to create imagery that’s equally unsettling and obscure as it is beautiful and cinematic.

Would you rather have spaghetti fingers or lasagne feet? @sophiedanielle_ Lasagne feet, please.

How long has Jerry been on tour with you? @Ellie_Nolan_ The real question is how long have we been on tour with Jerry? I don’t think we’ve ever played a show without him.

Where did the flamingo idea come from? Jon, Hull Jerry is like our own Andy Warhol piece, he makes our touring world feel like the set of a 1960s Palm Springs movie.

What are your favourite pedals? @Codhapz Probably the weird homemade ones that our friend in Brighton makes us!

Izzy’s got a flare for clashing prints.

NEXT MONTH: WHITE LUNG Want to send a question to DIY’s Popstar Postbag? Tweet us at @diymagazine with the hashtag #postbag, or drop us an email at popstarpostbag@diymag.com.

Easy!

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NEWS

HAVE HEARD? you

Sleigh Bells – Rule Number One

Led by a chanting, unstoppable Alexis Krauss, ‘Rule Number One’ roars past Kansas tornadoes, out of control Monday night benders, and every lyric is as brilliantly odd as the last. Sleigh Bells are at their best when their music flashes a dangerous grin; like a white crash of lightning, or an arm-rest grabbing attack of turbulence. ‘Rule Number One’ – all over the place, totally chaotic, and fuelled by raw instinct – does just that. (El Hunt)

Bastille – Good Grief ‘Good Grief’ is a lesson in maximalism that shows Bastille at their most playful and confident. ‘Bad Blood’ showed the band as able to twist some pretty bleak subject matter into heart-pumping pop, and ‘Good Grief’ lays it out more clearly than before - Dan Smith’s even “dancing at a funeral”. Bonkers voiceovers, almost gospel backing vocals and a chorus to rival even that of ‘Pompeii’ - Bastille are hurtling into their second album with crashing momentum. Seems like these little maniacs want to release one of the hits of the year. (Will Richards)

and proud from the rooftops. “Stranger in the bar tells me to smile more, I look at him and ask him what for?” drawls Lindsey Troy, her voice dripping with venom and frustration. Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Nick Zinner only adds extra bite from behind the production desk. Deap Vally have always sounded massive, but on ‘Smile More’ they’re in another league of badass. (El Hunt)

Preoccupations – Anxiety

On last year’s ‘Viet Cong’ debut, Matthew Flegel spends much of his time trying to express crippling self-doubt, nagging unease and everything in between.

There’s no stopping him on ‘Anxiety’, Deap Vally – Smile More a heavygoing thud that’s mirrored by Over curling riffs that reach out like suckerthe group’s distinct instrumentation, a punching tentacles, and pummelling, sense of fear epitomised. “I’m spinning angry thuds, Deap Vally seize hold of the in a vacuum / deteriorating to great record, and shout their feminism loud acclaim,” he sings. On their first work,

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Preoccupations dived deep into a black hole. This time, they’re adding new shades to gloom, a new means of expressing their bleakest thoughts. (Jamie Milton)

Two Door Cinema Club – Are We Ready? (Wreck) This comeback single feels more like a who’s-who of the generation Two Door Cinema Club once fired up and led forward. The flexing basslines of Foals; the high-gloss pop polish of The 1975; the quivering vocal of Vampire Weekend - it’s all present and correct, Two Door taking up their place as grandfathers of the scene already. It’s perfect radio fodder, and to denounce a band for playing to their strengths would be trite, but the world’s not playing catch-up with Two Door Cinema Club anymore. It’s up to the rest of ‘Gameshow’ to prove they’re still worthy of the red carpet. (Tom Connick)

Goldenvoice Presents SPRING KING

ISLAND

18.10.16 O2 INSTITUTE3 BIRMINGHAM

02.11.16 LONDON SCALA

AIDA VICTORIA

23.10.16 O2 ACADEMY 2 OXFORD

TOM ODELL

SOLD LONDON SERVANT JAZZ QUARTERS

27.10.16 BRIGHTON CONCORDE 2

04.11.16 BRIGHTON CENTRE

07.07.16 OUT

24.10.16 HOXTON SQUARE BAR & KITCHEN

GIRLI 12.07.16 OUT SOLD THE GARAGE LONDON

ALLIE X 13.07.16 LONDON OSLO

MABEL 21.07.16 LONDON NOTTING HILL ARTS CLUB

LEO KALYAN 26.07.16 LONDON PICKLE FACTORY

KHRUANGBIN 19.10.16 LEEDS WARDROBE 21.10.16 MANCHESTER DEAF INSTITUTE 22.10.16 NOTTINGHAM BODEGA 25.10.16 LONDON ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL

HUNTAR

01.11.16 BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE

23.09.16 BRIGHTON HOPE & RUIN 27.09.16 LONDON WAITING ROOM

CLARE MAGUIRE 26.09.16 LONDON ST GILES IN THE FIELD

THE MAGIC GANG 28.09.16 LONDON SCALA

THE INVISIBLE 26.09.16 MANCHESTER SOUP KITCHEN 27.09.16 BRISTOL LOUISIANA 28.09.16 OSLO HACKNEY LONDON

PARQUET COURTS 12.10.16 THE OLD MARKET HOVE

JP COOPER 17.10.16 BRIGHTON HAUNT 20.10.16 OXFORD O2 ACADEMY 2 21.10.16 NORWICH ARTS CENTRE 22.10.16 SOUTHAMPTON BROOK 26.10.16 LONDON O2 FORUM KENTISH TOWN 27.10.16 MANCHESTER ACADEMY 29.10.16 BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE2

04.11.16 BOSTON ARMS LONDON 05.11.16 LEEDS BRUDENELL SOCIAL CLUB

THE SPECIALS

28.10.16 LONDON ROUNDHOUSE

MEADOWLARK

WAND

HONNE

04.08.16 LONDON ECHOES

20.09.16 LONDON WAITING ROOM

12.11.16 UT SOLD O BIRMINGHAM O2 ACADEMY

06.11.16 BRIGHTON HOPE & RUIN

JADU HEART

TOM WALKER

06.11.16 SWINDON OASIS CENTRE

26.10.16 BRISTOL TRINITY CENTRE

23.10.16 BRISTOL TRINITY CENTRE

16.08.16 LONDON ISLINGTON O2 ACADEMY 2

05.11.16 PLYMOUTH PAVILLIONS

JAGWAR MA 23.10.16 BRISTOL MARBLE FACTORY KIKO BUN 23.10.16 BIRMINGHAM RAINBOW 25.10.16 BRISTOL LOUISIANA 26.10.16 BRIGHTON KOMEDIA

SLEAFORD MODS 24.10.16 NEWCASTLE O2 ACADEMY 26.10.16 LEEDS BECKETT SU 27.10.16 MANCHESTER ACADEMY 1 28.10.16 LIVERPOOL GUILD OF STUDENTS 31.10.16 BRIGHTON DOME

15.11.16 LONDON TROXY 16.11.16 LONDON TROXY

PHANTOGRAM 16.11.16 LONDON HEAVEN

TOM MISCH 25.11.16 BIRMINGHAM HARE & HOUNDS

26.11.16OUT SOLD BRISTOL THEKLA

JESS GLYNNE 27.11.16 BRIGHTON CENTRE 28.11.16 PLYMOUTH PAVILIONS

TOURIST 29.11.16 BRIGHTON PATTERNS 01.12.16 BRISTOL MARBLE FACTORY 02.12.16 LONDON OVAL SPACE

03.11.16 NOTTINGHAM ROCK CITY 07.11.16 COVENTRY EMPIRE 08.11.16 BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY 10.11.16 LONDON ROUNDHOUSE

YAK 27.10.16 LONDON SCALA

BILLIE MARTEN 28.10.16 CARDIFF BUFFALO BAR

BEAR’S DEN 02.11.16 BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE

goldenvoice.co.uk

05.07.16 HOXTON SQUARE BAR & KITCHEN

JULY – DEC

THE STRUMBELLAS

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NEWS

Los Campesinos!, when they once ditched music to star in 60 Minute Makeover.

the Facts

Released: 26th January 2010 Standout tracks: ‘There Are Listed Buildings’, ‘Romance Is Boring’, ‘Plan A’, ‘The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future’.

Something to tell your mates: Gareth’s sister Kim is listed as playing the shruti box on the record – an Indian drone instrument that produces a low, constant humming noise. Very niche.

DIY HALL FAME of

LOS CAMPESINOS! - ‘ROMANCE IS BORING’

An exercise in individualistic indie-pop, the six-piece rabble’s second record is this month’s inductee into the DIY Hall Of Fame. Words: Tom Connick.

S

crappy and sweaty, Los Campesinos!’s debut album ‘Hold On Now, Youngster…’ was a gluey, rough-edged scrapbook of a band with equal penchant for both sneering social commentary and niche punctuation use. It wasn’t until four years later, though, that the Welsh-but-notactually-from-Wales rabble proved exactly what they could spin out of their smart-arsery.

Romance Is Boring, the band’s second full-length, found Los Campesinos! tightening the rusty screws of that scrappy debut. Every element perfected – if not polished – it remains the perfect introduction to their idiosyncratic take on the indie-pop template.

Bounding along like a dog on the trail of a string of sausages, ‘Romance Is Boring’ is as breathless as they come. Top of the list of panting persons, though, is surely frontman Gareth Campesinos!, who leads the charge with his thousand-worda-minute, feet-on-the-ground lyricism. “Just let me be the one that keeps track of the moles on your back,” he pleads on ‘I Just Sighed. I Just Sighed, Just So You Know’.

Throughout it all, though, there’s a sense of exuberance and relief – of casting off the shitty side of day-to-day drama with a 20

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good old-fashioned piss-up and a dance. The tongue-twisting ‘A Heat Rash in the Shape of the Show Me State; or, Letters from Me to Charlotte’ sees that indie carnival reach its peak, a blast of horns finding Los Camp! at their most party-starting.

It’s not all a pleasant trip down the sunny sands of Barry Island though. Noise plays a part, most notably on ‘Plan A’’s cacophony of B-movie screeches and its steady segue into the clattering interlude of ‘200-102’. It’s little surprise to hear Gareth himself described the record as “the death and decay of the human body, sex, lost love, mental breakdown, football and, ultimately, that there probably isn’t a light at the end of the tunnel.” Cheery stuff, mate.

‘The Sea Is A Good Place To Think Of The Future’ - the record’s breathtaking centrepiece - remains ‘Romance Is Boring’’s sucker punch. Pairing a dark, spoken word tale with an explosive, ironically life-affirming chorus, it’s the perfect encapsulation of the bleakness and beauty Los Campesinos! are masters of stirring together.

2016 marks the tenth anniversary of Los Campesinos! – a decade since that fuzzy maelstrom of a debut album. As they continue to innovate (and hop-skip their way towards that sixth record), ‘Romance Is Boring’ stands tall to this day as the turning point for a band who remain one of the scene’s most innovative, individual and downright essential listens. DIY

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NEWS

L

Spring King Scala, London. Photo: Nathan McLaren-Stewart

S

pring King couldn’t be more in their element; the last show of their current tour to the biggest headline crowd they’ve played to date, this is Spring King’s night and they know it.

Whaling on their instruments like there’s no tomorrow and making frequent trips into the adoring crowd, there’s nothing but energy on stage tonight, and it’s contagious. That being said, it’s when drumming frontman Tarek Musa finds time to leave his station and roam around with cheeky faux-menace for ‘They’re Coming After You’ that they’re are at their most

fear of men

St. Pancras Old Church, London. Photos: Jonathan Dadds

T

he stage area is decked out with candles, there are ‘Fall Forever’ ‘hymn books’ being handed out, and Fear Of Men’s almost-cross logo stands lit up in front of a painting of the crucifixion. And if that weren’t enough to hammer home the relationship/religion parallels to be found in the band’s new album, Jess Weiss appears on stage in a white hood. Any questions about why the band have chosen this space to launch the record are left at the door.

The church’s significance, grandeur and acoustics, elevates the already-gorgeous album to spellbinding. It naturally has an echo, and the wonder it brings to Fear Of Men’s sound feeds into the performance. Thanks in part to Jess’ beautifully deliberate, expressive vocals and in part to the way they keep the rapt audience silent in awe, the words of the songs are especially clear, their meaning intensified. (Nina Keen)

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DIY

V E

captivating. Swathed in smoke and trembling reverb, this and the few rare other moments when Tarek is untethered are a sight to behold.

For a relatively young band, the setlist is littered with hits.

From the heavily-embellished war cry of ‘Who Are You’ to new single and self-proclaimed “start of the summer”, the aptly named ‘The Summer’, Spring King’s music is simple enough to feel instantly familiar but complex enough to keep things interesting. There are very few moments where Spring King aren’t functioning at 100%. (Henry Boon)

SAMARIS

HOPSIN

TOO MANY ZOOZ

JUL 13 THE CLF ART CAFE BUSSEY BUILDING LONDON

JUL 14 LONDON ELECTRIC BRIXTON * JUL 16 MANCHESTER O2 RITZ

AUG 02 MANCHESTER BAND ON THE WALL AUG 03 LONDON ISLINGTON ASSEMBLY HALL

SPECIAL GUESTS OLAH BLISS *ADIAN COKER

NOAH GUTHRIE

ARKELLS

LANY

AUG 23 THE LEXINGTON LONDON

AUG 31 MANCHESTER SOUND CONTROL (SMALL ROOM) SEP 01 LONDON DINGWALLS SEP 02 BIRMINGHAM 02 ACADEMY 3

UK TOUR

IZZY BIZU

SUNDARA KARMA

BRONCHO

SEP 14 LOND0N KOKO

UK TOUR

UK TOUR

NORMA JEAN MARTINE

GROUPLOVE

KELVIN JONES

SEP 21 OSLO LONDON

SEP 26 MANCHESTER ACADEMY 3 SEP 27 LONDON ELECTRIC BALLROOM

OCT 20 THE BARFLY CAMDEN LONDON

MARIAN HILL

JACK GARRATT

KALEO

NOV 03 THE LEXINGTON LONDON

UK TOUR

UK TOUR

SEPTEMBER 2016

NOVEMBER 2016

SEPTEMBER 2016

SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016

NOVEMBER 2016

THE BEST IN NEW LIVE MUSIC

@LNSOURCE LIVENATION.CO.UK 23

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It ’s t h e f e e l g o o d b it o f the summer !

FESTIVALS NEWS

BILBAO. BBK LIVE.

2000trees

7th - 9th July Twin Atlantic, Refused, VANT, Yuck, The Magic Gang, Creeper, Milk Teeth, Muncie Girls, Kagoule

W

e could probably bang on about the stellar line up making their way up to Kobetamendi this month for Quite Some Time, since it’s jam-packed with faves from here to, well, the Basque Country.

NOS Alive

7th - 9th July Radiohead, Arcade Fire, Foals, Grimes, Pixies, Biffy Clyro, Wolf Alice, Years & Years, Two Door Cinema Club

Bilbao BBK Live is one of just two European live appearances for Arcade Fire, plus there’s a bumper number of former DIY cover stars - Wolf Alice, Chvrches, Grimes, Years & Years, Foals, Hot Chip, Hinds and Slaves all appear - plus there’s faves like world-beating Aussies Tame Impala and Courtney Barnett, long-time legends Pixies, Blood Red Shoes, and Class of 2016 alumni, INHEAVEN.

T in the Park

A few seconds with…

You’re playing a LOT of festivals this year - what’s the best thing about them?

Our favourite thing about festivals is catching up with bands we’ve played with over the past year, seeing how they are and what they’re up to over whisky and biscuits. (And the music, obviously.)

What are you expecting from the crowds in Bilbao?

Absolutely no idea, we’ve had a lot of people saying they can’t wait to see us there. So hopefully a good ol’ sing along.

A Basque speciality is Kalimotxo - a mixture of red wine and cola - can we expect you to partake on site?

We will certainly get stuck in! I tried a White Russian mixed with red wine in Glasgow when we were on tour with Sundara Karma (apparently it’s Oscar’s favourite drink), so we feel very prepared for whatever delicious drinks are thrown our way!

F

ans of lazy Sundays will find a lot to love at this East London all-dayer; not only is the music on the softer side - headline sets come from Sigur Rós and Caribou, with Lianne La Havas, Cat’s Eyes and Battles also looking to be stand-outs but there’s also activities like Sunday Papers Live, a comedy tent, brass bands and even yoga. Yes, actual yoga. At a festival.

CITADEL

A few seconds with…

CAT’S EYES .

Apparently there’ll be wheelbarrow races on the day. How well do you think you’d do as a human wheelbarrow?

Faris Badwan: I wouldn’t say I’m the best human wheelbarrow, but I’m in the top one.

What does your ideal Sunday consist of?

Faris: Listening to the first five seconds of the new Cat’s Eyes record on repeat for 16 hours straight.

THE HAPPENING

james taylor, inheaven

8th - 10th July Calvin Harris, LCD Soundsystem, Bastille, Jamie xx, Disclosure, Rat Boy, Maximo Park, FIDLAR

Lovebox

15th - 16th July LCD Soundsystem, Major Lazer, Run The Jewels, MØ, Stormzy, Jungle, Jamie Woon

Truck

15th - 16th July Manic Street Preachers, Everything Everything, Rat Boy, Young Fathers, The Magic Gang, Sundara Karma

Secret Garden Party

21st - 24th July Swim Deep, The Japanese House, Caribou, Air, Primal Scream, Field Music, Teleman, Money, Sundara Karma

Y Not

29th - 31st July The Cribs, Editors, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Deap Vally, Yak, Eagulls, Milk Teeth, Creeper 25

NEWS

FESTIVALS

LOOKING AT THE BANDS IN THE 17th July

It’s official! Mirrors Festival will be returning to Hackney later this year, after its brilliant debut back in October 2015. The multi-venue event is again set to take over East London, but this time, will be taking up residence at Oslo, St John-at-Hackney Church and the Moth Club.

POSITIVUS

A

mong those likely to get their mitts on Riga Black Balsam this month (Google it) are Wolf Alice, Grimes, Mark Ronson, Years & Years, Ho99o9 and The Japanese House, as they head to the Latvian coast for the area’s biggest festival.

A few seconds with…

THE JAPANESE HOUSE

Have you ever been to Latvia? What are you expecting from it?

I’ve never been before, but I’ve Google image searched it (just now). It looks great, i’m expecting lots of nice buildings.

You’ve been travelling around the world on tour - where’s your favourite place to play?

I can’t pick one place that I enjoyed visiting the most. I can pick my least favourite: Las Vegas. But the show was still fun.

It’s kind of irrelevant where you are when you’re playing a gig because how fun it is for me is so dependant on the audience. and how much alcohol they’ve given me backstage, but mainly the audience.

melt!

A few seconds with…

CIRCA WAVES

MIRRORS

I

t’s a largely electronicbased bill that’s headed to Ferropolis - Jamie xx and Disclosure might be heading a bill that also includes Chvrches, Peaches, Digitalism and Floating Points - but there’s also room for some (relatively) noisy guitars; Tame Impala, Two Door Cinema Club and Circa Waves will be undoubtedly turning it up to eleven at the German weekender too.

Things will be going down on Saturday 29th October, and the first act confirmed on the line-up is… the mighty Bat For Lashes. (Read all about her new album on p. 56!)

Just like last year, DIY will be there for all of the action so keep your eyes peeled for more announcements and news.

øya

9th - 13th August Haim, Skepta, Christine and the Queens, VANT, The Avalanches and Whitney are among the final acts confirmed.

Lowlands

19th - 21st August The Avalanches, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Anna Meredith, Evian Christ and The Range have been added to the Dutch event.

End of the Road

1st - 4th September Teleman, Ezra Furman and Beak> join a bill that’s headlined by Animal Collective, Bat For Lashes and Joanna Newsom.

By The Sea

Melt! is largely a dance music festival - how are you expecting your indie ruckus to go down?

I think it will go down well. We don’t have the same sounds as dance music but the energy our music has makes people feel the same way as dance music.

30th September - 1st October Returning for a second year, this one’s headlined by Wolf Alice and Super Furry Animals, with Wild Beasts, Mystery Jets, Bat For Lashes, and Jagwar Ma also appearing.

Have you played in Germany before? How was it?

A while ago, yeah. People in Germany are always open to new bands and making bands feel welcome. We did our first festivals in Germany and they were amazing.

Southsea

Who else on the line-up are you hoping to see?

Tame Impala and Two Door Cinema Club are up there for me, but I always like being surprised by an artist I don’t know. Discovering something new at a festival is always great.

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1st October Mystery Jets headline the returning event, with The Big Moon, INHEAVEN, Black Honey, Eagulls and Lucy Rose also confirmed for the one-dayer.

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neu 28 diymag.com

Ben Gregory.

S c h o o l’ s b e e n o u t f o r a w h i l e w i t h t h i s t r i o, a n d w i t h a da r k a n d i n t e n s e d e b u t a l b u m i n t o w, t h e y ’ r e r e a dy t o m a k e t h e i r p o i n t.

I’d be pretty happy to die.”

Words: Jamie Milton. Photo: Emma Swann.

blaenavon

“If this was all I achieved in my whole life then

P

ity the talented, young bands tipped from an early age and signed before they’ve finished their GCSEs. Whisked away, sent towards stardom by ditching studies without a second glance. For Hampshire band Blaenavon, they were advised to take a step back from music, to prioritise real life before diving headfirst into touring or records.

With that in mind, it might seem like the trio have been around forever - their rackety debut single came out back in 2013 - but business time is just beginning.

Last winter, they started work on a debut full-length with Jim Abbiss (Arctic Monkeys, Adele) at his self-built Cambridge studio. Cut to the present day and the finished LP is just beginning to hit home for frontman Ben Gregory. “It’s just absolutely the most important thing in the world to us, this record,” he claims. “If this was all I achieved in my whole life - to make an album as proud as I am of as this one - then I’d be pretty happy to die. I keep thinking it’ll be really fun to get round to a second record but still, this won’t come out for a while. I’m still living with it and I keep getting more and more proud of what we’ve done.”

Back when it all started, Blaenavon had to hit pause on any progress they were making. Ben describes an experience of recording a track before “disappearing for three months for exams.” He admits it was a “frustrating” situation. “We spent a long time after we finished school just getting our act together, actually,” he remembers. “We were so not used to being in a band anymore. It felt like we started fresh. We went away for ages, wrote all our songs again, made sure we could play properly.

Then we felt like we had a good collection.”

One half of the record harks back to day one, songs written back when the band were in their late teens. “I used to approach songwriting in a much more naive way,” admits Ben. “It’s more honest, lyrics people could easily relate to - no unnecessary nuances. So there’s that side of the album. And then there’s the more mature, strongly considered, experimental side. That’s something I find a bit strange. It tells loads of different tales from a really long period of time. But the way the tracklisting is looking, for me personally it’s all over the place, in the way it jumps between time periods. Listeners would have no idea which one is me being sad about being sixteen and which one is me being terrified about turning twenty.”

Once this full-length finally lands (“The world’s never gonna be the same again,” drummer Harris McMillan jokes), their years of waiting in the wings should finally come good. The way they speak about it, you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s a matter of life or death. A lot rests on this record, but more than anything Blaenavon know they’ve made a big statement. In years to come, those annoying exams will be a blip on the radar. DIY Blaenavon will play Latitude Festival. Head to diymag.com/festivals for details.

29

ABATTOIR BLUES neu

At the start of summer, they had their first “proper studio” experience, recording the almighty ‘Sense’ with Blood Red Shoes’ Steven Ansell. “We’d been working within our means for a while,” admits George. Surrounded by snazzy equipment for the first time, they worked two sixteen hour days.

“And we all went a bit potty,” claims Harry.

It’s the Blood Red Shoes man’s fault. He thought it’d be a good idea to record “sober takes” and then a few more, post-consuming two bottles of whiskey. “I went in to do some overdubs on guitar and I could barely stand up,” remembers George.

“Steve couldn’t be annoyed because it was his idea,” pipes Harry.

30 diymag.com

The producer should have seen it coming. While building a must-see live reputation, Abattoir Blues have been known to stumble shambolically through fire-starting sets. Booze isn’t their muse, but post-hangovers, the group realised they needed to move on from a “gimmick”.

“About a year ago, we tried to put a cap on it,” says Harry. “At The Great Escape last year, I was really nervous. I drank loads of whiskey and ended up falling over the drum kit - it was a bit of a travesty. My dad was at the gig and he put me to bed. The next day, I never wanted to repeat that experience.”

Somehow, a tour with fellow trouble-makers Yak ended up being a turning point. “Yak are actually professionals,” claims George. “ I was really embarrassed by [the drinking],” reflects Harry.

“But I’ve since learnt how to play without booze, and that was a really nice thing.”

After taking their time, these five appear to have landed on their own two feet. ‘Sense’ is a remarkable step up; deftly-applied, delicate build, it’s a far cry from the Eagulls comparisons their bolshy early work was lumped with. Suddenly they sound like a band breaking out of the coast’s confines. All it took was one studio experience and a healthy dose of whiskey. DIY

Had The Blues, Shook Them loose

Credit to Abattoir Blues, a Brighton five-piece who’ve made a name for themselves without so much as a penny to their name. For the past couple of years, their ferocious post-punk has been put to tape in home studios, The Magic Gang’s Kristian Smith on production duties. Two members frontman Harry Sinclair Waugh and guitarist George Boorman - share a house with fellow Brighton bands. It’s one big happy family. But the group have been longing for a bid outdoors for some time.

.

One of Brighton’s best bands are on the up. There’s a brilliant new single in the wings and Nick Cave hasn’t tried to sue them (yet). Nothing could possibly go wrong for Abattoir Blues. Words: Jamie Milton

Abattoir Blues’ name is a nod to Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds’ 2004 album ‘Abattoir Blues / The Lyre of Orpheus’. Nick is a Brighton local, and can often be spotted driving a swanky Jaguar around the city. Has he pursued the band on foot, threatening to sue? “Not yet!” claims Harry. “I’d like him to. I’m hoping for him to try and sue us, just so I can speak to him.

I don’t think we’re on his radar. “

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Will Joseph Cook’s just discovered Banksy.

Wi ll Jo seph Co ok

A Tory-dissing prodigy specialising in massive pop songs.

Tunbridge Wells-based teen Will Joseph Cook started out making fairly standard fare, sentiment-laced songs.

But he’s since added fascinating new shades. New single ‘Take Me Dancing’ nods to Everything Everything, all frazzled falsetto and clever clogs guitar lines.

Something’s shifted, and Will’s beginning to develop his own multi-faceted identity. He also makes jokes about George Osborne on Twitter, so he’s a winner.

Listen: ‘Take Me Dancing’ and ‘Beach’ are shiny, sadnesslaced triumphs.

Similar to: A ‘singersongwriter’ finding out it’s way more fun to try new things.

neu

Recommended

F ISH

He r ’ s

Way more than just a good catch.

Bringing A-Ha to the 21st Century.

On their first two tracks, Liverpool-based duo Her’s go gung-ho with their 80s influences. But far from being mere nostalgia, the DIIV-nodding ‘Dorothy’ and supremely slick ‘What Once Was’ are super addictive glimpses of the future.

Norwegian Audun Laading and the Barrow-born Stephen Fitzpatrick have something special - sod knows if they can pull it off live, but we’d suggest they play in shiny spandex suits (with shoulder pads too, obvs).

Listen: ‘What Once Was’ is a swooning, loved up gem.

Similar to: Beach Fossils singing A-Ha songs on karaoke.

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diymag.com

Al e x L ah e y

An honest-to-blog Aussie newcomer.

“Remember that time we slept together, and we just slept but your girlfriend dumped you anyway? I don’t hold that against her” is one of Alex Lahey’s best lines, but each of the Australian’s lyrics could be expanded into their own story.

‘Let’s Go Out’ is the Melbourne musician’s ode to being broke, bored and apathetic. As the Aussies might say, she has “heaps” of character behind the Best Coast-nodding fuzz.

Listen: ‘You Don’t Think You Like People Like Me’ is a tonguetwisting, superb introduction.

Similar to: Courtney Barnett raised on Weezer.

Plenty more fish in the sea?

Nope, there’s nobody quite like this London force. After playing DIY’s Hello 2016 shows at the turn of the year, they’ve supported Wolf Alice, both bands sharing grungeinfested traits. They only have a handful of haunting, splintering demos to their name, but their music is a cross between ‘In Utero’-era darkness and the smart, Speedy Ortiz-style present day.

Listen: ‘Wished’ is the only song ‘out’ in the big wide world.

Similar to: Grunge kids immersed in sin.

neu

All the buzziest new music happenings, in one place.

Living the dream

Fuzz-fiends The Parrots have announced debut album, ‘Los Niños Sin Miedo’, which translates to ‘Children Without Fear’.

The band’s first full-length comes out on 26th August via Heavenly Recordings. Recorded in the Southern Spanish city of Cádiz at Paco Loco’s studio, it marks a bold, psychedelicflavoured surge forward, and on the evidence of lead single ‘Jame Gumb’ alone, The Parrots have never sounded more ambitious. They’re also heading out on UK dates, starting this September.

Living the dream Brighton trio Dream Wife were the talk of this year’s The Great Escape, and they’ve inked a deal with Lucky Number (Hinds, Sleigh Bells). Turn attention to October, and they’ll be supporting DIY favourites Black Honey on tour.

That’s an (ahem) dream of a line-up.

The shows begin at Southsea Fest in Portsmouth on 1st October, with a London show at the Lexington set for the 5th, before the run ends up in Leeds on the 12th.

Can’t keep checking my phone Jorja Smith filmed her new ‘Where Did I Go?’ music video on a phone, but that doesn’t stop it from being a slick, intimate glimpse of the future. There’s nothing stopping this Walsall-raised, London-based star, who we profiled back in May. She just made her festival debuts at Field Day and Disclosure’s own WILD LIFE. Not bad for first steps.

Liss-ten up

The Parrots do a spot-on impression of the three-headed dog from Harry Potter.

Danish future-R&B group Liss are going places fast. They’ve just released the ‘First’ EP via XL, and it’s hard to think of a debut four-track containing more wallto-wall bangers. It lands ahead of an appearance at Melt! Festival in Germany, and they’re already working on a new EP due out later this year. Like fellow XL signings Jungle, expect them to go stratospheric within months.

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A quick Google search on GoldLink, and you’ll discover that it’s tough to find out much about this 21-year-old rapper.

Describing himself as a “very private person”, he’s a young talent who doesn’t rely on obnoxious gimmicks to get attention: he just lets his music do the talking.

neu

After a spell of mystery, this sharp-witted, politicallyminded rapper is

Since his early mixtapes, GoldLink has been on a solid upward trajectory developing a sound which has been described as ‘future bounce’ - it’s a signature that bops between genres.

With his first ‘official’ release - the impressive and attention-grabbing ‘The God Complex’ - it was immediately obvious that GoldLink is something special, and it wasn’t long until everyone and their mother was jumping on the bandwagon - including Rick Rubin.

It could be a lot for any newcomer to take on, but this guy isn’t fussed. “Not even in the slightest do I feel pressure.

I don’t really pay attention to outside expectation. I’ve always had a goal in my head since before I was known and I’m sticking to it.”

standing on his own two feet. Words:

GOLDLINK

Amelia Maher.

34 diymag.com

When GoldLink trades blows between different genres, words stream out of him like he’s not even trying. “It’s easy for me to manage the ideas solely because the influence of black culture is something I can easily channel, which is why I root back to funk, jazz, and gospel. I just feel like it was something I was born with and grew up in, so I just use nostalgia to fuel my records.”

Debut album ‘And After That, We Didn’t Talk’ is a massive step up from ‘The God Complex’, and like a game of hopscotch it jumps from one trademark influence to the other - in each case, GoldLink proves he’s more than capable of taking on the heavyweights. “Music is a powerful tool to unapologetically say anything you want, and everybody has no choice but to respect it if it’s coming straight from you… That’s what makes it powerful.”

“I’ve honestly achieved everything I set out to do.

Be alive, not in jail, be

successful.”

For all the bravado and grand statements, GoldLink still has his feet firmly placed in what he believes in. “I’ve honestly achieved everything I set out to do. Be alive, not in jail, be successful, remain sober and humble, make my city proud.” It’s not about flashing the riches, late nights or girls - it’s about making music and pushing things forward and pushing himself creatively in every aspect of his life. And in his eyes, the sky’s the limit. DIY

NZCA LINES Infinite Summer

FIELD MUSIC Commontime

POLIÇA United Crushers

WEAVES The Debut Album

“Glorious electro-pop sadness”

“Fantastic” HHHH

“Bristles with mournfulness and melodious joy” HHHH Guardian

“Arch and angular, their music has a crazed energy” Guardian

“An elegant move into Daft Punk territory” HHHH

“A triumph” HHHH

“A lesson in how to create something truly universal” HHHH DIY

“They bend pop tropes as if they’re made of Silly Putty” Rolling Stone

The Times

NME

GUARDIAN

Q

“Superb”HHHH THE TIMES

8/10 UNCUT 8/10 ALBUM OF

ON TOUR 23 Jul Secret Garden Party, Huntingdon 30 Jul Port Elliot Festival, Cornwall 06 Aug Forgotten Fields, Tunbridge Wells 28 Sep Village Underground, London

ON TOUR 16 Jul Summer Streets Festival, Sunderland 22 Jul Deer Shed Festival, Thirsk 23 Jul Tramlines Festival, Sheffield 24 Jul Secret Garden Party, Huntingdon 02 Sep End of the Road Festival, Salisbury 22 Oct The Sage, Gateshead 26 Oct 02 Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London 29 Oct The Ritz, Manchester

ON TOUR 17 Jul Latitude Festival, Suffolk 14 Oct Stylus, Leeds 16 Oct SWG3, Glasgow 18 Oct Anson Rooms, Bristol 19 Oct Roundhouse, London 20 Oct Institute Library, Birmingham 21 Oct The Ritz, Manchester

OUT NOW ON ORANGE LP / CD / DIGITAL

OUT NOW ON DOUBLE 180G LP / CD / DIGITAL

OUT NOW ON LP / CD / DIGITAL

OUT NOW ON NEON PINK LP / CD / DIGITAL

NZCA-LINES.COM

FIELD-MUSIC.COM

THISISPOLICA.COM

WEAVESBAND.COM

“A cinematic escapade… this is the dancefloor at the end of the apocalypse” HHHH DIY

THE MONTH, LOUD & QUIET

ON TOUR 03 Jul Brighton, UK, Hope and Ruin 04 Jul Boileroom, Guilford 08 Jul Railway, Winchester 09 Jul Craufurd Arms, Milton Keynes 12 Jul The Musician Leicester 15 Jul Latitude Festival, Southwold 17 Jul Nice N Sleazy Glasgow 18 Jul Think Tank, Newcastle 19 Jul Brudenell Social Club, Leeds 23 Jul Secret Garden Party, Huntingdon 02 Sep End of the Road Festival, Salisbury

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TICKETWEB.CO.UK/FESTIVALS 36

diymag.com

It’s time for

latitude!

Brilliant music! Endless green fields! Multi-coloured sheep! Latitude Festival has it all, and over the next twenty pages, we’re getting ourselves really bloody excited about it. Our cover star MØ is only one of the incredible acts playing at Henham Park this year; get acquainted with all the ace music you can get your ears around right over on the next page...

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Top: Ganni. Skirt: Molly Goddard.

latitu de

from Rising through the Danish behind the

punk

most streamed song

underground to being

ever,

Karen Marie

summer o f f e s t i v a l s - i n cl ud i n g a s lot at L a t i t u d e - an d a s e c o n d a l b u m o n t h e w ay , t h i n g s a r e o n ly s e t t o g e t

Ø r s t e d ’ s s t o r y h a s b e e n i n c r e d i b l e s o fa r . N o w, w i t h a

more

r i diculo u s ...

Words: El Hunt.

Photos: Jenna Foxton.

( h o w d o yo u l i k e i t, h o w d o yo u l i k e i t ? )

Is that an EU referendum / 1975 logo slogan on MØ’s t-shirt?

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“S

eriously!?” shouts MØ suddenly, reeling around in a swivel chair in a state of total disbelief. “That’s pretty fucking crazy.” She’s just been informed that when you tot up the total minutes people have spent listening to ‘Lean On’ worldwide, it leaves you enough time to get to Pluto and back. 138 times. The track – her storming team-up with Major Lazer and DJ Snake, and the most streamed song on Spotify, ever, (no biggy) – has a reach beyond all rational comprehension.

Pretty fucking crazy stuff indeed.

“It’s super weird to think about...” she ponders, pausing to take stock. “Shit! Thank god for ‘Lean On,’” she concludes, with a comedy shrug.

Things have sped on at asteroid-quick speed for MØ since releasing debut album ‘No Mythologies to Follow’ two years ago, and it’s only now that it’s all started to properly sink in. Originally, she planned to start work on the follow-up back in her homemade recording booth - a makeshift den of blankets at her parents’ house back in Denmark - immediately after putting out her first work. A certain song flipped everything upside down, took previous plans by the scruff of their necks, and drop-kicked every expectation into another galaxy.

“I started working on it actually straight after finishing [‘No Mythologies To Follow’],” explains MØ, referring to her in-progress second record, “and that’s a while ago now. Due to the whole success of ‘Lean On’ things happened and so it took longer,” she adds. “It took me in different directions, and also opened up doors and all these things, so it’s been a long run.”

New avenues have opened, and then some, with all the speed of the Starship Enterprise’s corridors unfolding during a vessel-wide automatic door malfunction. From the thrilling, left-field pop banger ‘Kamikaze’ – a clear statement of LP2’s gigantic ambitions - to Diplo’s recent cat-out-the-bag revelation that she’s been working with Justin Bieber, everything’s coming up MØ-house.

“Maybe three years ago, or even more, DIY interviewed me and asked me about my dream collaboration, and I said Major Lazer,” she remembers, revisiting just how recent stratospheric events first began to unwind. “Someone on Twitter tweeted Diplo, and said ‘please make this happen, you should work with her’. He replied ‘we love her’,” she beams. “So then me and my manager were like, we need to fucking hunt him down and get a session set up.” Hunt him down, she did: cornering the producer in Amsterdam for a day of studio time. The outcome was ‘XXX 88’. “That was the beginning of our collaborations.

So thanks, man!” she laughs.

Her recent record-smashing madness with Diplo is all the more surreal considering she didn’t exactly start out with chart domination on her mind. Instead, she first cut her teeth playing rough-and-ready shows in squat venues, her first creative ventures seeing her pen songs with grinningly brash, provocative – and overtly political - titles like ‘Fisse I Dit Fjæs’ (‘Pussy In Your Face’) in punk band MOR. That song remains “one of my favourite songs I ever wrote!”, she grins.

40 diymag.com

“Shit!

Thank god for ‘Lean On’.”

First person to spot the Moomin wins a Twix!

Bralet and Shorts: Katie Eary. Jacket: 883 Police. Shoes: Nicholas Kirkwood 41

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p o p m u s i c.

Yo u ca n d o a ny th i n g , bas i ca lly.

Fu c k!”

“It fe e l s li ke u n d e rg ro u n d i s i n fi ltr ati n g

Jacket and Skirt: BOY London. Bralet: Ann Summers. Shoes: Kenzo

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Firmly dedicated to the Spice Girls (Sporty Spice in particular) and subversive pop figures like Peaches in equal measure – while adamant that the two can go hand in hand - she spent much of her teens hanging out in Odense’s punk cafes, playing trashy, glitterysoaked electro-punk on Copenhagen’s activist music scene. It’s a far cry from your usual clean-cut pop star beginnings, but then again, there’s very little that’s predictable about MØ.

Every other sentence is flecked liberally with cusswords like a sweary Jackson Pollock painting, for one.

Upon rocking up today, she proudly points out her Sonic Youth t-shirt, bearing the cartoonish cover of their 1990 record ‘Goo’. She’s currently reading a bashedup copy of Kim Gordon’s memoir, ‘Girl in a Band’, too.

“Kim Gordon is a badass for sure!” she announces, loudly.

“She was a tomboy, she was a badass! She was rough, unpolished, and so sexy, and such a role model,” she continues, entirely failing to keep her head static as final preparations are underway for her photoshoot. “So fashionable, such a front

On the

wishlist Since we already hooked you up with working with Diplo (good to know!) who would you like to shout out as your next future dream collaborator?

Yes, thank you for that! Well, then I’m not gonna lie - it would be pretty damn dope to get to work with Flume at some point in my life.

mover, a girl in the punk rock scene!” she gushes. “I was very not like the classic beautiful little girl, you know?” she asks.”I was a tomboy myself, and I could really relate to her. A great role model, when you’re a girl that is not one of the pretty dancing girls.”

MØ isn’t just inspired by the rebellious spirit and powerhouse force of Kim Gordon either. In fact, it turns out she’s a bit of a badass herself. Over the years she’s designed feminist t-shirts bearing the slogan “Kvinde Kend Din Kusse” (Danish for “Woman Know Your Vagina”), vocally aligned herself with left-wing politics, and interned with Le Tigre member and outspoken LGBT activist JD Samson in New York. She originally called herself MØ – ‘maiden’ or ‘virgin’ in Danish – to deliberately provoke a polarised reaction. Singing middlefinger flipping songs about fucking, fighting, going wild, and smearing herself with gravy (yep, really) in her early days under the moniker, things suddenly clicked for her when she started to write frankly about her own feelings, too. She soon realised that it’s punk to feel powerless sometimes.

All roads led to ‘No Mythologies to Follow’. As a debut, it’s a euphoric, immediately infectious collection of gaudy, skysoaring pop, sure, but is also charged with a subtly political pulse. “Oh, what a world I was born into,” bemoans ‘Pilgrim,’ later declaring “all the time I just want to fuck it up,” over parping, sharp-edged horn-stabs. Elsewhere on the record, she’s a “bug in your eardrum,” raging and tired with endless photo-fit billboards, and a tenacious searcher intent on finding something that feels uncynical and real. Much of ‘No Mythologies...’ centres around the confusion of discovering yourself, and then taking on life’s dangerous business square on, win or lose. It’s a personal battle she’s raging, here.

“For many years I was into being an activist,” she says today.

“When I look back on the whole thing, and my life before, and everything, it’s so hard to pinpoint. It was ten years of my life, and such a big part of my character-building as a person.

It took me to so many places and situations, with different people, thinking about different things and politics. I was in MOR for five years,” she points out, referring to the band she formed aged 17. “All our songs would be extremely political. I also think, coming out after that, it was time for me to talk more about my feelings,” she admits. “My first album was very much to do with being a teenager, and finding yourself, and being lost in this weird life and society. I just think it’s important to talk about something that’s important to you.” she adds as a qualifier. “Don’t pretend to be radical” she says firmly. “It’s more radical to just be yourself.”

The way her second album seems to be shaping up – on the evidence of one-off tracks like ‘Kamikaze’ and ‘Final Song’, anyway – it’s a quest MØ is following with all the determination of Frodo heading for Mount Doom. Except in her case, she’s headed for somewhere altogether more sunny; a heady, branch-twisted rainforest packed to the tree-tops with pure pop.

such a

kool thing MØ, you’re just a bit of a Sonic Youth fan. What’s your favourite record of theirs?

Excellent question! My favourite is ‘Washing Machine’ closely followed by ‘Daydream Nation’ and ‘Goo’. I also love ‘Dirty’ and their early days EP ‘Confusion Is Sex’ and actually I also really like ‘Sonic Nurse’ [that’s definitely more than one, but we’ll let you off! - Ed]. I’m just reading Kim Gordon’s book ‘Girl In A Band’ so having a second revival of my obsession with Sonic Youth. Okay, anyway, ‘Washing Machine’ is my favourite as it’s got some amazing tunes and lyrics on it, and the sound is amazing. You have no idea how much daydreaming I’ve been doing to that album, and how many times I have gone to sleep at night while listening to ‘The Diamond Sea’. I’m also in love with the album artwork and it was so amazing to read about how it actually came about in Gordon’s book.

“Now with the second [album], again, it’s a mix of me analysing myself, and the world, and life....” MØ drifts on, before laughing suddenly and stopping herself in her tracks.

“We’ll see what it ends up like!”

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It ’s m o re r a d i ca l to j u s t b e yo u rs elf.”

“D o n’ t p r e t e n d t o b e r a d i c a l .

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If there’s one thing that’s starkly apparent about MØ, it’s that she owns everything she does - even her missteps and fuck-ups. Her and Major Lazer’s ‘Lean On’ video attracted controversy and rightful scrutiny for its flippant hawking of Indian cultural symbols; a criticism that could be levelled at many pop music videos filmed in token exotic locations. But while the likes of Coldplay still remain schtum about their own visual gap years through diluted takes on other cultures, MØ responded with a flat-out admission that she’d messed up. “I should have been more aware,” she told the Fader earlier this year.

Looking back on her performance with Iggy Azalea on Saturday Night Live today prompts a knowing look, followed by an amused snort. MØ’s telly debut was a disaster, she freely agrees – a combination of malfunctioning ear monitors, and gyrating male dancers that made her look plain uncomfortable. She had never seemed more lost, and it could have been crushing. For her, it’s another stepping stone.

“I learned something from it!” she says. “It’s a fucking TV show, you gotta do fucking in-ears, because otherwise...” she smiles, indicating towards herself. “Be prepared,” she hoots.

Having a crack at something and falling over in the process is, in her opinion, the only way to tread new ground. She’d much rather things be imperfect, and prone to mayhem. “The worst thing I can imagine is to be trapped in the same kind of thing and never move,” she states firmly.

“I’d rather go and do something drastic, fail, and then get on top of the horse again, than to just stay safe for the rest of my life.

Fuck it if you fail!” she announces.

“Failure makes you better. Pull yourself up! Suck it in. Whatever you call it,” she adds. “It always sucks to make mistakes, but I’ve always seen it as a good kind of way to reflect and make a new fresh beginning or something.”

That said, failure isn’t likely to figure when it comes to MØ’s next steps. Despite a few difficulties settling back into an intense writing headspace after years of unrelenting touring, her sole

goal now is to “just let go! You can’t think too much about it, you just have to do the music and have the love for making music, rather than thinking about it like ‘What is this?! This is my second album?!’

Blah blah blah...” she says, putting on a theatrical whingeing tone for a second.

“I never thought that second album would be hard to do because the songs have always naturally just flowed from me.

But the second album is hard! But I feel like I’m getting back into what it is, to the core of why.”

A no-fucks-given Get figure in the bonkers land of pop – who chucks a big old dose of holographic, iridescent roughness into everything she does - she’s been pondering music’s shift towards an exciting new realm with few boundaries herself. “It’s super exciting!” she says, on the subject of Grimes, Christine and The Queens, Charli XCX and countless other rulebreakers blowing the lid off convention’s usually-limited melting pot. “I feel when I was a teenager, it was like, either you’re into pop, or you’re into the underground,” she ponders. “Maybe this is a wrong observation, but it seems like now because everything is available and on the internet,” she enthuses, “it feels like underground is infiltrating pop music,” she says with a glint, “and getting mixed up. You can do anything, basically. Fuck!”

Insistent that Cher can be rock n’ roll and moomins are punk, she’s undoubtedly onto something.

Zooming to Pluto and back 138 times aboard the good ship ‘Lean On’ is only the start. The way her next steps are shaping up, MØ’s just about ready to crash through the borders of the entire solar system.

MØ plays Latitude Festival on Sunday 17th July. DIY

the

Dip-lowdown

MØ’s always been a Danish pop ledge, but it was teaming up with Major Lazer which switched things up into crazy fast-forward mode. An accidental match-make by DIY (she namechecked Diplo as a dream collaborator in her very first Neu interview!) one sentence kickstarted a whole new chain of events. We hit up the zorb-loving beatmaker himself to get the scoop on how the pair first started making MØ-sic together.

So, you first met MØ shortly after she told us she fancied working with Major Lazer.

What happened after that?

She pinned me down in Amsterdam, and me and Jillionaire [from Major Lazer] spent a day with her in a studio. At the time she was working with a few people, and we made a song all together that ended up becoming ‘XXX 88’ [from her debut album]. I wasn’t really sure what would happen but we kept in touch and went back and forth on a lot of songs.

Were you a fan of her stuff at that point already?

I wasn’t that familiar with her, but I fell in love with her... she was prolific in her writing and I think it just became really easy to create together.

What’s the best bit about working with MØ?

She’s hyper-creative and patient when it comes to the process, and a great songwriter.

She will give every song and idea a try, she’s not afraid of anything, and she’s not chasing hits or anything bigger than the love of music.

It’s so rare to find someone with that pure feeling when you’re creating.

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COURTNEY BAAAA-RNETT If you’ve ever been to Latitude before, you’ll know about all their brilliant multi-coloured sheep, which wander around the site for the whole weekend. But what’s even better than sheep, you might ask? Well, we’d have to go with our Aussie fave Courtney Barnett - who’s playing the Main Stage on Friday pretending to be a sheep…

Baaaa-rnett, geddit?!

Ten minutes later, Matt still hadn’t clocked the rude sign stuck on his back.

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BACK AGAIN:

THE NATIONAL

Now pros at headlining festivals, the Ohio five-piece are the first band ever to be invited back to top the bill a second time at Latitude. Their return promises to be a bit special, too.

Words: Will Richards

T

his year’s Latitude sees The National returning to the top spot at Henham Park for the second time. Their performances at the festival can accurately chronicle their rise to the very top of the indie-rock game: in 2010, just following the release of ‘High Violet’, the band headlined the festival’s biggest tent, in what felt like one of the sets that took them to the next level. Indeed - the following year, they returned to headline the festival.

Five years on, and The National are back in Suffolk as an even bigger band.

There’s been no new recorded material since 2013 album ‘Trouble Will Find Me’, but the band find themselves entering a new era in the run-up to this Latitude, with fresh songs in their pocket.

Speaking of these tracks, Matt Berninger said recently: “I’m not sure if we need another great ‘National song’ - I’d rather try to do some other stuff and fall on our face than make another record that is interchangeable.”

The first of these, ‘Checking Out’, was debuted live at a Los Angeles show back in October, and is an uncharacteristically keyboard-heavy cut. Berninger sounds as morose as ever though, after his somewhat funky side-step with the EL VY album. Lyrically, its hook of “I don’t wanna fuck it up” places the track - previously (or maybe still) called ‘Roman Candle’ - into familiar territory for the band; a brand of social awkwardness and self-deprecation that The National do better than any other.

Two more tracks followed at a recent gig in Toronto, the first being a track supposedly named ‘Hague Blue’. It feels sharper and more awake than the often dirgy yet brilliant ‘Trouble Will Find Me’, and Berninger’s yelps feel more potent than ever.

‘The Day I Die’ is the hit though - it’s helmed by Bryan Devendorf’s trademark rollocking backbeat, and is the band at their very best. Where every other track the band have premiered live has shown restraint in buckets, ‘The Day I Die’ bundles headlong into a cacophonous finale worthy of entering ‘Mr November’ territory.

All of the songs, presumably destined for the new album, definitely fit on a so-called ‘National album’ that Berninger doesn’t want to blindly reproduce, but have enough progression and individuality to push the band forward, as they’ve managed with all of their six albums so far.

Just when 2016 looked relatively free of activity for The National, the flurry of new tracks has shown the band to be at the peak of their creative powers, and bursting to keep on going. Their show at London’s O2 Arena at the end of 2014 - the last gig of the huge world tour for ‘Trouble Will Find Me’ - felt like it could’ve been the peak for the band. Latitude is their first UK show since then, and is set to be a great deal more important and transitionary a set than first thought.

The new tracks point to something extremely exciting for LP7, and the Latitude set is the perfect opportunity for the band to launch themselves headfirst into their future. Be there. DIY

rat boy If anyone was caught causing chaos at Latitude last year, it was Rat Boy. Amazingly, after stirring up a riot at DIY’s own Alcove Stage back in 2015, Jordan Cardy’s been invited back to Suffolk for a second helping. Here goes nothing…

We saw you last year at Latitude (what a lovely time that was!) and now you’re back again for seconds, two years on the trot. What’s brought you back so quickly?

It’s summertime and festival season, baby! Need to make the doughs, the dinero, the mula and play all these new songs I’m writing!

Last year you played the Alcove – our lovely lil’ DIY dive tucked away in the woods. This year, you’re on BBC 6 Music’s gigantic stage. It’s bloomin’ massive. How are you feeling about that?

We will have a game of SKATE before the show. We’re feeling pretty good, thanks guys. We should hang out after the show and take loads of pics again!

You’re on before Frightened Rabbit.

Are you going to be frightening any actual rabbits in the woodlands of Latitude, or will you leave them in peace?

No, I love rabbits, unless they ask me to frighten them… but I will be leaving any rabbits to party in peace.

Finally – important festival question for you. What are your feelings towards bumbags?

You get good ones these days... I may make some on my clothing line SCUM. Would you like one? We can call them ‘scumbags’.

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DIY PRESENTS: THE ALCOVE STAGE

While we’ll be scurrying off all over the site at Latitude this year, we will be - for the second year - taking over The Alcove and making it DIY’s official HQ. We figured we’d invite some mates along too - The Magic Gang, Kero Kero Bonito and Danny L Harle are just some of the acts lined up to play.

PS. Keep your eyes peeled for some surprises over the weekend, muahaha…

gang mentality Kero Kero Bonito

Kero Kero Bonito! You’re off to Latitude, and you’re popping along to play DIY’s Alcove stage.

Excited to start a party in the woods?

So much so that we actually wrote a song in anticipation of this precise event called ‘Let’s Go To The Forest’.

Will you be bringing your faithful flamingo mascot along for the show, too?

Yes, unless it gets stolen/ sick of touring/learns to fly.

Every year Latitude has sheep roaming around, and they often spray them fun colours. Which colour would you pick, if it was your choice? Black, white, green, blue, or a natural hue?

Well don’t forget that multicoloured is cool too...

What’s the main difference between playing gigs and festivals? Are festivals more chaotic because everyone is more drunk and sunburned?

People mostly know what they’re getting themselves into at gigs.

Either is absolutely fine with us though.

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the mAGIC GANG

Ahead of their performance on DIY’s Alcove stage, look forward to the festival field’s simplest pleasures.

“I

kind of like sharing my bed with lots of creepy crawlies,” chuckles The Magic Gang’s bassist Gus Taylor. “Get at one with nature. It’s fine.” Nonplussed about leaving behind the comforts of home for a bumpy ground and all manner of wildlife, the band are eager to kickstart the weekend in Henham Park, describing it as “the festival we’re most looking forward to this summer.” “I’m really excited for Kurt Vile and Grimes,” Gus enthuses. “The Maccabees will be good as well: they’re one of our sixteen-year-old-selves’ favourite bands, so we’re excited about that.”

Performing on DIY’s Alcove Stage on the Sunday, The Magic Gang’s blissed out, sun-kissed sound is set to be a sure draw. “There’ll be some nice, summery, happy-go-lucky tunes,” he says of the group’s live set. “We like playing with a smile. There are going to be lots of smiles, and lots of dad dancing” (“from us, not from the crowd,” he clarifies of the latter).

Comical dance moves at the ready, the group have a few extra surprises up their collective sleeve in the form of new songs. “We’ve been recording our next EP, and I’m really excited to play these new tunes to everyone,” he exclaims. Promising that they’ll be “playing a few of them at the festival slots,” Latitude will be one of the first chances to hear this new material. Ready to rock the tent with some older favourites as well, the group pledge to “up (the performance) in terms of energy.”

“I know we’re called The Magic Gang, but there is definitely a gang element,” he says. “Us and the audience play off each other so much.” DIY

Danny L Harle

and his PC Music friends are finally finding success with their world of extremes.

“T

he underground can’t really exist anymore unless it’s been given a very specific protection,” reckons Danny L Harle – undoubtedly one of the breakout successes of the sugar-sweet PC Music collective. To be fair, he knows better than most the impact this kind of sprouting up can have. The start of 2016 saw ‘Broken Flowers’, Danny’s pitch-fluid breakout single, whisked from SoundCloud obscurity to daytime radio success, flooding Radio 1 with his hyped up, every-extremity-at-once pop. “I guess it helped being signed to a major label and having a big release on Columbia,” he smiles.

It’s not just bigwig interest that’s dragging Danny and his mates out of the underground, though – their deconstructed, highly-magnified take on pop has hit the spotlight itself. “It’s just interesting how basically PC Music is involved in – amongst other things - an avant garde approach to pop music. And that experimentation accidentally lent itself to being involved in “Right now I’ve been actual pop music!” he enthuses. listening to a track on “It’s interesting. It made me SoundCloud a lot,” realise that the edgiest place to Danny explains, “which be is in the actual world of pop is just a very distorted music - it’s such a crazy world, they compilation of Gordon often don’t even notice if you’re Ramsay being very angry, just shouting stuff, and it repeats just certain words that he says. There’s an overwhelming distortion in the background, and you just hear occasional words just floating above it. For some reason I find it incredibly relaxing. It’s great, it’s called the Gordon Ramsay Orchestra – I’m kind of obsessed with it.

I might have to listen to it on headphones during my gig.“

Cooking up a storm

experimenting with things. There’s a lot of opportunities to take the carpet from underneath the audience’s feet, and then put it back - to provide moments of imbalance and then return it.”

Imbalance is what Danny L Harle thrives on. “I often listen to sped-up pop music, or slowed-down pop music – usually something where something more extreme is done to it,” he explains. The glint in his eye widens as he recalls equally frantic attempts to throw club nights at trendy London arts spots like Café OTO and Ambika alongside PC Music head honcho and old school-pal A.G. Cook. “We had so many nights cancelled, he laughs. “We were kind of too ambitious and there were health and safety worries and things like that.”

It’s that desire to dive headfirst into unknown waters that’s core to Danny’s being. Looking ahead to a packed summer of festivals, he’s relishing both the afternoon slots and the latenight madness he’s being offered – “People look for a more chilled euphoria in the afternoon, whereas I think people want to hardcore their brains out at 2am!”

Those heading to Danny L Harle’s twilight hours excursions might want to pack a helmet, mind. “I was looking: oh my god there are some amazing t-shirt cannons,” he says, that eyeglint reaching blinding proportions. “And stress ball cannons!

I’d have to be careful, because I think a t-shirt cannon’s not a good idea at a club gig, because you might end up getting sued… You get t-shirt Gatling guns as well – that’s the real peak! That’s gonna be the peak of my career, when I’ve got a t-shirt Gatling gun.” DIY

Flower Arrangements

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THEIR PICK OF THE BUNCH: THE MACCABEES

The Maccabees may be graduating to headliners at this year’s Latitude Festival, but that doesn’t mean they’re not looking forward to getting back out into the crowd this summer. The band’s Felix White runs down the acts he’ll definitely be watching across the weekend.

British Sea Power

“I’ve loved British Sea Power and pretty much their entire output since ‘The Decline ....’. They came and played with us at at Alexandra Palace for the end of touring ‘Given To The Wild’, which is one of my happiest memories in The Maccabees. I rarely go a week without listening to something by them, of late it’s still ‘Machineries of Joy’, which is pretty much a perfect summary of the band up until now. They tend to veer from straight-up perfectly written rock songs to beautiful atmospheric soundscapes and are worth being recognised as one of Britain’s most treasured acts of the decade. The guitarist Martin [Noble] skateboarded - or attempted to - on stage whilst playing guitar at a slightly mis-pitched music meets extreme sports festival in Brighton years back too, which was heroic enough in itself.”

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The National

“The National have been a rewarding band to have fallen in love with years back. Since ‘Boxer’, every record they have made has aged really well, evolving subtly but noticeably. They’ve also become a definite marker for bands making music the way they want to, without compromise to the intimacy and personality in their records, and still finding themselves a group with a huge audience. We’re staying Saturday night to see them.”

Roots Manuva

“Off the back of listening to ‘Awfully Deep’ repeatedly for a year, we collaborated with Rodney Smith on ‘Wall Of Arms’-era stand-alone single ‘Empty Vessels’. It’s one of my favourite things we’ve done. He literally cycled into the studio on his bike and told us the first time he went to Brixton Academy was to see the Metropolitan Police Brass band.

His new album ‘Bleeds’ is a mixture of his trademark hopping through and blending of gospel nodding, lyrical masterpieces, dark, detailed production and synth experimentation. It’s a special thing. Album track ‘Me Up’ was maybe my favourite song of the year. I think he’s touring with all live musicians again and playing across his whole catalogue too, so the show at Latitude will be more than worth seeing.”

Steve Mason

“There was so much variation and ambition on ‘Monkey Minds in the Devil’s Time’, I thought it was a really great record. As far as melancholic album closers go, ‘Come To Me’ is really perfect and strangely addictive. I haven’t heard the new record yet but a few of us went to see him play Brixton Electric and he was brilliant. The kind of show that slowly wraps you up. I was really proud to have him do an alternate version of ‘Something Like Happiness’ last year, with harmonies and playing that could only be his – it was by far my favourite remix of anything we’ve done.”

Beirut

“Our guitar tech put together a playlist for me on our last American tour with ‘Santa Fe’ on it and I listened to it on repeat. There was a magic afternoon at Glastonbury watching them years ago too. I’m not sure they’ve toured for a while so although they’re on just before us at Latitude, we are all fans so I’m sure we’ll be watching as much as we can.”

The Maccabees play Latitude Festival on Friday 15th July. DIY

Pumarosa Hello Pumarosa. This’ll be your first time at Latitude (as a band on the bill, anyway). Do you have any idea what to expect, or is it all a grand mystery awaiting you at the moment?

Every festival has its own nuances, and different atmosphere, but I’m sure it will be a big party.

You’re playing the Sunrise arena. Do you plan on pulling any festival all-nighters and staying up til dawn to commemorate?

I guess it depends, that’s usually the story though..

Who else are you looking forward to catching, both onstage, and backstage?

We’re looking forward to seeing our friends Flamingods, they are a really great band. Also in any order, New Order, Kurt Vile, and Pantha du Prince.

Imagine you’ve been accidentally allocated a rather generous budget for stage production. You can have pyrotechnics, a floatilla that takes you out onto the middle of the lake, well-trained pumas on stage, anything you like. What’s the vision looking like?

I’d get Cameron and Boris on stage wrestling naked in jelly.

And talking of the lake at Latitude, are you going to jump in it at all?

Yes, we are all very keen swimmers.

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FOR NEW BANDS, THIS IS

WHERE IT’S AT H ESTRONS E

xpect jaws to ‘Drop’ when these Cardiff firestarters make their Latitude debut. Tali Källström fronts the group alongside fellow founding member and guitarist Rhodri Daniel. Together they make twisted punk, inspired by dodgy real life experiences - like ending up in a police cell. Hopefully Henham Park will host a more subdued experience, but don’t bank on it.

This is your first Latitude as a band. First time as a punter, too?

Tali: I volunteered at Latitude in 2009 for Yorkshire CND, hoping to catch some bands but accidentally saw Tom Jones twice and missed everything else. The most interesting parts of the festival I got to see were actually the immersive theatre acts. I got invited into a caravan and watched two women reenact drinking their own menstrual blood. There weren’t any kids at that show.

You’ve been playing lots of city-based festivals, but this one’s on a lovely field, which is nice.

We haven’t played many outdoor festivals so we are all looking forward to this one. We did play X Music Festival in Cardiff last year, which was in a field.

The main difference there was that the slot we played was at 12pm, so there were loads of people watching us but all with takeaway noodle pots in their hands. It was a strange experience to be honest. I’m not sure our music is the kind of thing you want to enjoy your lunch to.

You’re playing Huw Stephens’ Lake Stage - what is your absolute favourite thing about the lovely Huw? I think he’s really helped put the Welsh music scene on the map. Like a lot of Welsh BBC Radio DJs he’s really funny and relatable - there’s never any holier-than-thou airiness to him. You’ll always see him at gigs, doing his own research. He’s no faker.

Which one of you’s the best swimmer, and will you be joining DIY for a game of water polo in the lake?

We all went for a midnight swim after one of our gigs in Brighton not so long ago. We had to be rescued by wardens. Or maybe they just stopped us because we were indecently exposed. Either way, bring it on.

Estrons play Latitude festival on Friday 15th July.

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PIXX

annah Rodgers’ otherworldly pop is perfect for Latitude. You’ll most likely find Pixx jumping on loose branches, having a casual chat with the Suffolk wildlife.

The 4AD signing’s latest single, ‘Baboo’, is brilliantly weird, a glimpse into a different universe.

What are you most looking forward to at Latitude?

Kurt Vile & the Violators! I’m also really looking forward to Kagoule, and of course The Magic Gang.

The ‘Baboo’ video suggests you’re a big fan of forests, which is a relief given Latitude’s location. Is there not a danger that you might get lost and miss your set?

I will make sure I leave a trail wherever I go so that I can easily retrace my steps... I wouldn’t wanna miss out on playing! I’m so excited.

What else do you have lined up, in terms of new material?

There’s an album on its way. Lots and lots of new songs to play to you all.

What’s the one thing festivals don’t tend to have that they absolutely should?

They should always have a she-pee area for sure.

Pixx plays Latitude festival on Sunday 17th July.

T

o witness Weaves live is like nothing else out there.

Oddball pop with a snarling, noise centre, this piecemeal Toronto bunch play musical Jenga at every opportunity.

Speaking at the start of a massive European run, they’re still finding their place.

“The first show that we played, in Berlin, was kind of a showcase thing,” reflects bassist Zach Bines. “It was kind of like an art instalment,” interjects guitarist and chief noise-maker Morgan Waters, prompting a burst of laughter from Zach: “It was like an art instalment!”

Lend an ear to their fluid take on structure and melody and it’s easy to see why the pamphlet-clutching, chinstroking arty farty crowd might take a shine to Weaves.

Later that evening, Morgan’s whistling into the holes of his hollow-bodied guitar, harnessing the feedback it creates with little more than a change of his pursed

lips. “One of my synthesizers was dying one day, and as it was dying it was making fucked up sounds, so I recorded it and took those samples,” says drummer Spencer Cole on the oddest noise he’s ever conjured behind the kit.

There’s a whole lot more to this lot than happy accidents and left-field credentials though; not least their keen ear for that ever-dirty word: pop. “It shouldn’t be!” protests Zach when reminded of pop’s perennially uncool status. “We’re all pop lovers, to some degree,” Spencer admits.

“Even when they’re going crazy, usually the melodies are always pop-driven,” says singer Jasmyn Burke. “If you can figure out how to create fun hooks, you can do whatever you want instrumentally,” she laughs, referencing the group’s tendency to improvise every track within an inch of its life, night-after-night.

“We still want it to be listenable music that isn’t alienating particular groups or anything,” she clarifies. “It’s like, how do you create interesting music that everybody can like? Trying to figure out that balance – it’s like rejected pop music or something. Dejected, rejected…”

“Ejected!” shouts Morgan with a grin.

It’s a loopy, fun-first approach that’s found Weaves snagging fans in the most unlikely places. “I feel like people, if they have open ears and they come to our show, we’re still trying to

Right-angled wonky pop with a beaming grin at its centre – Weaves are incomparably brilliant.

Words: Tom Connick. Photo: Mike Massaro.

weaves

entertain,” reasons Jasmyn.

“You’re trying to win over people, and so even if they’re into a particular genre, you’re still trying to cross over to different people.”

Morgan’s grin returns: “And we’re going nuts on stage, so… ! There’s no holding back, so people are like, ‘I don’t know what this type of music is, but they’re going crazy, and my ears are confused and I thiiink… this is punk.’” The four of them collapse into fits of giggles.

“You don’t have to identify with a particular personality,” admits Jasmyn, composing herself once more. “We’re not really interested in that. It’s good for us to play with different people.” “You shouldn’t have to have a cool record collection to listen to us and enjoy it,” Morgan agrees.

“You can just be a lame-o.”

Weaves play Latitude Festival on Friday 15th July. DIY

“It’s like rejected pop music or something.”

Jasmyn Burke

Jazz has nailed her, er, jazz hands.

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TILTED lover: CHRISTINE AND THE QUEENS

A certified star already back in France, the rest of the world is playing catch up with Christine and The Queens’ madcap pop. Words: El Hunt.

“W

hat would Christine do?” asks a sharpsuited Héloïse Letissier suddenly, almost upturning a cup of green tea in the process. “It’s a question I find myself asking a lot. What would she do?”

“What would Christine do,” exactly? Considering her track record thus far, just about anything. Last month saw Christine and her accompanying Queens standing in the middle of Dutch festival Best Kept Secret’s main stage, Christine holding biceps tensed, and yelling “I’m a dude!” at the top of her lungs.

At a landmark sold-out show at London’s The Roundhouse earlier this year, – with a certain Elton John in attendance, no less – Christine danced so much that she split her trousers.

“Things happen in London!” she grinned at the time, hurling flowers across the room, and welcoming every single attendee to an all-enveloping barrage of leaping dance routines, and plunking, subversive pop songs about finding freakish freedom in boundless expression. Christine and The Queens is about smashing free of every mould, and slipping away from definition.

‘When I’m on stage nothing can happen to me, truly,” smiles Héloïse; who surprisingly claims to be very shy when it comes to her everyday, non-Christine existence. “It’s just a rectangle,” she quips, “a different floor. But I think it creates something really weird. The stage is like a ring, it’s like a fight. In a cool way.”

Born at London’s Madame Jojo’s, thanks to the occasionally forceful encouragement of the venue’s resident drag queens, Héloïse ‘s debut album, ‘Chaleur Humaine’, was written to get over a break-up, and back to herself. “They said, sing louder!

Do something with your fucking sadness! “ she remembers “With Christine, I stopped trying to choose and make sense, and decided to feel,” Héloïse adds. “When I was creating Christine in the very beginning as a character, I was writing ‘Christine is my anger,’” she adds. That anger, she says, stems particularly from a society obsessed with neat boxes. “It’s something I’ve experienced, and felt, and lived with. Changing your mind, and feeling like a boy, and sometimes wanting to be desired as a woman, or lurk after someone like a macho man – it’s something I’ve lived,” she nods. “Christine was a statement about being an unusual little thing, moving and loving people,” Héloïse smiles, adding, “I’m attracted to characters that are queer. Michael Jackson, Björk, David Bowie, Laurie Anderson, Boy George. They were creatures. And I guess I want to be a creature as well.”

Christine and The Queens plays Latitude Festival on Friday 15th July. DIY

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Here Comes

The

bride

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From tragedy to Tinder and every thing in bet ween. .- with her l atest conceptual epic, Bat For. .L ashes is get ting right to the heart of love itself.. .Words: Danny Wright..

“P

eople are more up front now about wanting to fuck around and find something better so everyone’s like ‘Ooh, humanity’s so fucked up right now,’” muses Bat For Lashes’ Natasha Khan. “I think we’ve always been fucked up - we’re just not so controlled by society’s conditioning.” She’s discussing the topic of whether people’s desire to want more is a modern trait or simply a human condition that’s previously been suppressed.

“But I also think deep down we do want love and we do want to meet that person who will accept us for who we are. It’s about you being able to love someone else and not look elsewhere and accepting that it’s not always going to be perfect. That’s fucking hard and a sign of emotional maturity, but it’s a beautiful thing if you do find it.”

New album ‘The Bride’ sees Natasha taking on modern romance through a concept that tells a rich and intricate story: a bride stands alone at the altar – her groom has been killed on the way to the church. Devastated, she leaves in their honeymoon car and embarks on a journey of grief, anger and supernatural sex. Finally she learns to accept what’s happened and find inner strength and love. To Natasha, this is central to the album.

“I think it’s a real love album because it starts off with this heightened idealistic perception of romance – a very unrealistic expectation – but what it ends up being about is the deepest type of love. Through this tragedy she ends up finding out how to love herself. It’s not all about the marriage and the tragedy - that’s a construct I’ve used to explore deeper levels of love and intimacy.”

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Indeed ‘The Bride’ is no mere B-movie character study – it’s an exploration of all these themes: of marriage, of love, of womanhood and of intimacy. She tells it in her own uniquely evocative way: bringing you with her, creating these places, imbuing the songs with colour and depth. And if the album feels cinematic that’s because ‘The Bride’ was inspired by her short film ‘I Do’ - the title of which doubles as the record’s opening track - with the album intended as the soundtrack to a feature film she hopes to make.

“I think we’ve always been fucked up.”

“I wrote a synopsis for the feature length film of ‘The Bride’ story, a one page document which I presented to FILM4 and subsequently we made ‘I Do’, the short film.

I loved ‘The Bride’ story so much that I wrote song titles in chronological order first and used them as chapter headings.

They worked really well because I felt like I had a story to tell. I knew ‘Honeymoon in Rome’ would be when she first got in the car and she’s driving and upset and angry and I knew that ‘If I Knew’ was when she’d almost reached the end of her journey.

So the songs did tell me what they wanted.”

Natasha Khan

Ambitious and outward-looking but also intensely personal and intimate, the album takes in torch songs, fuzzy krautrock, shoegaze and desert blues. Recorded in Woodstock, she pieced it together with a group of longtime collaborators but - more than any of her previous albums - this is most certainly her own work.

“On the last album [the label] pushed me to write singles and I felt like I really struggled and lost my way, whereas with this one they accepted me as an artist and not someone who’s going to make big money for them on Radio 1. I’m on my final album with them now and we’ve come to a place where I’ve made my best work, in the way that I wanted to. I’m more of an artist than a pop writer and it feels good.”

That artistry comes through not just in the music, but how it’s presented – an idea which has seen her play churches across the States and the UK. “When it was finished I realised how epic it was and how it needed to be presented in a really specific, beautiful way. My manager said we should do churches up and down England like an ill-fated honeymoon and I thought ‘That’s such a good idea!’ The venues are just perfect for the music and coming down the aisle and that theatricality has been so much fun.”

Her recent show at London’s Union Chapel was just one part of her ‘honeymoon’, with Natasha gliding up the aisle, red gown trailing behind her. She finishes by throwing a bouquet into the crowd and telling them the key theme: love yourself. And this epiphany – that you must find out how to love yourself first – seems to reflect the place she’s found herself as a musician.

It’s a vindication for the unique path she’s trodden. Did she always feel that she was that kind of artist – one who would grow and develop as more people joined her? “I didn’t know and I’m not sure I know now. I think I hoped that would be the case because I looked at people like Nick Cave. Björk and Radiohead - those are the kind of acts who I looked up to as a teenager and they had long careers that afforded them to develop as an artist and I hoped that would be me too. You spend your life developing your craft and making music is a dream come true and I’m humbled by that.”

Bat For Lashes’ new album ‘The Bride’ is out 1st July via Parlophone. DIY Bat For Lashes will play By The Sea and Mirrors Festival. Head to diymag.com/festivals for details.

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The Modern Age It’s no secret that the way that relationships begin and end are constantly changing but one word is on just about everyone’s lips right now: Tinder. But what does Natasha reckon about the infamous dating app?

“I do think this type of thing makes people regress into being toddlers, the terrible twos – ‘I want it now and I’m just going to pick someone’. It’s just this instantaneous need to satisfy yourself.” Oof!

CHRISTINE AND THE QUEENS CHALEUR HUMAINE / OUT NOW “A PERFECT ANTIDOTE TO POP CONSERVATISM” ALBUM OF THE WEEK The Guardian Q Magazine ALBUM OF THE WEEK The Observer MOJO ALBUM OF THE WEEK The Sunday Times Free UK Delivery available on eligible orders. Terms and Conditions apply. See Amazon.co.uk for details.

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B li n k-1 82 m ay h av e b een a ba n d fo r ov er t wo d eca d es , b u t th at d o es n’ t m e a n th ey’r e n ot r e a dy to b eg i n a fr es h c h a p ter . With fo r m er a lk a li n e tri o m a n M at t S ki ba , th ey’r e r et u r n i n g with ‘Ca li fo r n i a’ a n d prov i n g th at n ew tri c ks a r en’ t a pro b lem . wo rd s : sar ah jam ies o n

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“D

ude, did I say something wrong?” Mark Hoppus has just been stopped short mid-sentence by his new bandmate Matt Skiba, who’s currently whooping with laughter. The massive hotel room that they’re sat in makes his laughing echo even louder. “I was just thinking about John and something he

did to me!” comes his reply. Safe to say, the Alkaline Trio frontman has some explaining to do.

“I was sitting doing guitar tracks,” he begins, thinking back to Blink-182’s time in the studio earlier this year. Back in January they began work on their forthcoming new album ‘California’, and drafted in the infamous John Feldmann on production duties. “It was

once the record had been written, and I was in the lounge at about 11pm at night.” He splutters again, “John was like, ‘Hey Matt!’ and I turned around: he was just butt naked. He was standing in the doorway with his dick hanging out!

That’s just what popped into my head - I was just thinking about John’s dick...”

Dick jokes may still be present in Blink182’s ranks but a lot has changed since

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“I was just th i n ki n g about J o h n’s d i ck …”

M at t S ki ba

the release of their last record. Following their highprofile comeback, and postreunion album ‘Neighborhoods’, it was back at the start of 2015 that the tide really shifted for the trio. A sudden and well-documented bust up occurred between Mark and the band’s drummer Travis Barker, and former guitarist Tom DeLonge. Exactly what went on behind closed doors, no one will ever really know, but now, almost eighteen months later, the band look as tightlyknit as ever with Skiba by their side.

“We were supposed to play these shows at the beginning of 2015 and Tom had dropped out of the band at that point,” Mark opens up, on just how Matt came to join the group.

“Travis and I did not want to cancel the shows - we’d already sold tickets - and we wanted to continue to play. So, we talked about it and the only person that we wanted to play music with was Matt. We didn’t really have a Plan B. We met with Matt, took him out to lunch and asked him if he wanted to fill in for the shows, to which he very graciously said yes. Matt had to learn a whole bunch of songs really quickly, but he killed it and the shows went awesome.

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“The thing is,” he goes on, “we had always talked about working together on a project. For years, Matt and I had talked about writing songs together or scoring a movie together; just doing something. So we had been circling one another for a while - we’ve been friends since the late nineties - so it just fit easily. It all felt very natural and organic.”

After a successful run of shows with their new guitarist “everybody embraced him early on and everyone felt it was just the natural evolution for the band. Even before we walked out onstage, people were chanting Matt’s name” - they decided to try their hand in the studio. And, after a flurry of creativity, they decided to recruit a host of new producers, to add different elements to the mix. Enter former Goldfinger frontman - and the infamously ridiculous - John Feldmann.

“It was Travis who first reached out to John about meeting up,” Mark explains. “We had worked with Jerry Finn, who was our dear friend and producer for many years, and really helped define Blink’s sound and find what we were all about.

But he unfortunately passed away suddenly many years ago, and we hadn’t worked with a producer since. At the start of

this record, we had talked about maybe working with a few producers and John came up as a potential name. We asked him to be a part of it, then played him a bunch of demos we had been working on, and thought he would take a few of those songs and help record them and guide those songs.

“We ended up going into the studio the next day, starting from scratch, and wrote twenty five to thirty songs in a matter of five weeks; that’s what became ‘California’.” Having begun writing in the middle of January, they found themselves finished before the end of February. “There was such an energy and we had an incredibly creative time for five weeks.

Everybody was non-stop, twenty four hours a day, Blink-182 full-on. It was awesome; it was one of the best writing experiences I’ve ever had. It was completely different from any writing experience that I ever had, and it got the best out of all of us in a really positive way.”

“When we got in with John, when we wrote a song together,” Matt continues, “it was like there was something magical.

That’s how the record really quickly came together - just through the energy from him. He’s contagious and it made us all... not quite as crazy as he is, but the guy just has craziest

energy and it’s perfect for what he does. It just brought the best out of all of us. It was really exciting.”

The result of that unhinged energy shines through in ‘California’; a record that bears the real essence of Blink, it also manages to represent a new era for the band. That’s undoubtedly down to the excitement that the band felt themselves. “I totally think that, absolutely,” Mark confirms. “I think that energy is one of the great things that John brought to this record. The intensity and the immediacy of what Blink-182 is all about. When I listen to it, I’m excited. The songs have an energy and a passion and enthusiasm about them.”

That’s the main thing they hope fans will take away from the record. After all of the upheaval and change in their camp, ‘California’ feels the perfect step. “As a member of - and a fan of - Blink-182,” concludes Mark, “this record feels like everything that I love about the band in 2016. I love the energy, the catchy songs, the lyrics. Travis’ drumming is insane, Matt’s voice is awesome, and I think and hope that people will be excited with this record, because it feels like home.”

Blink-182’s new album ‘California’ is out 1st July via BMG. DIY 63

REVI eeee

BIFFY CLYRO

Ellipsis (Warner Bros / 14th Floor)

Fucking with the system and giving anything a go

O

on its promise. The soaring chants of ‘Wolves of Winter’ are unmistakably Biffy, but there’s something ever so warped about the track as a whole. Swinging from vocoder-drenched vocals to intriguing guitars, it’s an opener that seems to show the lay of the land, and sum up the album’s personality.

Their new album ‘Ellipsis’ starts with a laugh; a mad scientist cackle from Simon Neil that signals the start of something new, something different. It pretty swiftly follows through

Throughout ‘Ellipsis’, there’s a strange sense of fun that’s not been fully present within their previous records. Where their older offerings saw them build upon the firm foundations of guitar-bass-drums, here, they’re fucking with the system and giving anything a go to see how it stands up. The warmth of ‘Re-arrange’ exudes through its dreamy textures, while the

ver the last decade, Biffy Clyro have carved out one of the most ridiculous careers in all of British music.

Clawing their way up the ladder, having laid their foundations in squalling, jagged indie rock, they soon grew to become behemoths of the rock world. With their last album ‘Opposites’ - both massive in sound and tracklisting - they stepped up to the top plate and hit a home run. Where to go from there, however, was where their real challenge lay.

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IEWS to see how it stands up. playful harmonies of ‘Friends and Enemies’ – along with the track’s accompanying children’s choir – elevate it to a new kind of anthem.

Granted, there are still lots of very Biffy moments littered throughout the full-length. ‘Medicine’ is another reflective offering akin to their gorgeous ‘God & Satan’. ‘On A Bang’ almost channels Queens of the Stone Age in its introduction, before descending into a full-blown frenzied attack of lines like ‘Why can’t you fucking do better?!’ Yet, being followed by a country-esque singalong like ‘Small Wishes’ – complete with a bit of whistling and honky tonk piano – shows the

band swerving in a different (and admittedly unexpected) direction yet again.

An ambitious double album filled with reverb and distortion this is not, but if a new, playful kind of Biffy Clyro take your fancy, there’s more than enough of ‘Ellipsis’ to dive headfirst into. (Sarah Jamieson) LISTEN: ‘On A Bang’, ‘Medicine’, ‘Herex’ 65

eeee THRICE

ee HONNE

To Be Everywhere Is To Be Nowhere

Warm on a Cold Night

(Tatemae)

When Honne released their first music, the promise was unquestionable, but ‘It Ain’t Wrong Loving You’ sums up all of this debut’s least attractive features.

On top of unimaginative melodies and rhythms, rhymes barely worthy of secondary school are mumbled – “Don’t care what you got, don’t care what you’re missing / You got what I need, you got them lips for kissin’” It’s these moments of non-inspiration that have the lasting impression on ‘Warm On A Cold Night’. We don’t get a glimpse of any unique identity or defining characteristics. (Liam McNeilly) LISTEN: ‘Someone That Loves You (feat. Izzy Bizu)’

(Vagrant)

Every one of Thrice’s eight albums leading up to their 2012 hiatus showed off a different side to a band who seemed comfortable in any and every situation. Despite a three-year pause for breath, album number nine sees the band return to a form that’s never been anything less than impressive. Across the record, they conjure an atmospheric beauty but maintain a connection to the dirt beneath their feet. ‘To Be Everywhere Is To Be Nowhere’ is soaked in the uncertainty of the world that surrounds them but rather than cower in fear or stay in the safety of the shadows, Thrice are lit up. (Ali Shutler) LISTEN: ‘Wake Up’

Keeping it conceptual

Concept albums aren’t exactly all the rage, and many musicians like to shun the term. But Bat For Lashes’ latest is most definitely a concept album. The same applies to these: Kendrick Lamar - ‘Good Kid, M.A.A.D City’ A coming-of-age tale of living in Compton and making it out alive, Kendrick Lamar’s breakthrough moment remains a blueprint for honest, warts-and-all hop-hop.

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs The kids are alright. Or are they?

For their third album, Arcade Fire wrestled with the idea of growing up in a lost town, seeking escape while rolling with the punches.

Hit Reset

(Hardly Art)

Originally the solo project of full-time badass Kathleen Hanna, The Julie Ruin has grown from a 90s side-stage outlet to a full-blown band. ‘Hit Reset,’ meanwhile, sees The Julie Ruin taking a sharp-pointed pin, pushing the button and reverting to factory settings. Though the ramshackle essence remains, it’s a more brawny and carefully-honed follow-up. A racing sense of fun propels the record, and it’s a more refined step forward from their debut. With such a hefty past to lug along and live up to, ‘Hit Reset’, true to name, is the moment where Kathleen and co. wipe the slate clean again and run riot. (El Hunt) LISTEN: ‘Mr So And So’

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BAT FOR LASHES The Bride (Parlophone)

Though no-one really expected uncomplicated happiness from Bat for Lashes’ new concept album ‘The Bride’, surely few expected something as achingly sad as this. ‘The Bride’ tells the story of a woman whose fiancé dies in a car crash on their way to their wedding. Overcome with grief, she leaves the church and goes on their honeymoon alone.

There’s a resistance of clichés on this record, and Khan gives a freshness and a sincerity to her otherwise ethereal music. She relies on a sense of minimalism, creating a build that’s never quite reached. The sense of potential that’s left unresolved creates a beautiful, constantly engaging sound, and it feels perfect for the sense of sorrow and longing.

An underlying lowness persists, but the songs that bring you to tears aren’t necessarily the mournful ones. Opener ‘I Do’ feels especially sad, as Khan’s bride doesn’t know what the listener knows. Richer then than even the sum of its parts, ‘The Bride’ is a beautiful, complex and often harrowing listening experience. (Nina Keen) LISTEN: ‘I Do’, ‘Close Encounters’

The Antlers - Hospice The darkest, most harrowing of all ‘concept albums’ released in the past decade. The Antlers took the perspectives of a hospice worker and a dying patient.

A sense of sorrow and longing.

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eeee THE JULIE RUIN

eeee

BROODS

Conscious (Island / Capitol)

Reflecting on the past and tumbling forward with lessons learnt, Broods’ second record is full of big, heartfelt pop songs. ‘Are You Home’ dances in the dark while the likes of ‘Hold The Line’ and ‘Couldn’t Believe’ shine bright, constantly searching for the spotlight. And as large as every track is, all thirteen glittering moments come with their own edge.

With hints of everything from Ellie Goulding and MIA to Kanye West and Radiohead, Broods have still managed to establish their own voice. The Lorde co-written ‘Heartlines’ sees the band take overused comparisons by the horns and prove just how unique their own chemistry is, via swaying builds and spinning, unrestrained celebration. Arms outstretched, Broods are on top of the world. (Ali Shutler) LISTEN: ‘Worth The Fight’, ‘Heartlines’

Q&A

The Nott siblings - Georgia and Caleb - are delivering banger after banger without a moment’s pause. We asked the duo what it’s like to stay in the spotlight for so long. Interview: Alim Kheraj.

Hello Broods! Your second album is here just a couple of years after debut album ‘Evergreen’. That didn’t take long.

Caleb Nott: It feels really natural for us, it doesn’t feel too quick. But then you look at HAIM who put out their record a year before ours and still haven’t put out their second album.

Georgia Nott: When people have the luxury of taking a big break then why shouldn’t you? We’re still working our arses off to keep momentum up so we can keep doing this because if we stop then we’ll probably have to stop forever.

Is there a lot of pressure involved, though?

Georgia: Not only is it such a heavy career with so much pressure on you, but it’s also the way that creative people are to start with. Creative people have

a different thought process. When you don’t have the time or the room to look after yourself it can affect you.

What did you want to achieve with this record?

Georgia: We wanted to make something, a song and an album, that had some essence to it, that was addressing things that aren’t addressed in pop music that much. I can’t stand songs that are about nothing, because I’m a lyricist. All the songs I connect to are the heavy songs about dark things.

Really hard hitting lyrical content. Yeah it’s pop music, but it’s got something more. You can hear in the album there’s not one song about going to ‘the club’.

I never fucking say ‘club’. Some people do get a lot out of those songs, but I’m just not one of them. I feel like there’s enough of that out there, I don’t need to add to the club songs.

eee BLOOD ORANGE

Freetown Sound (Domino)

Sweltering with the heat of a Brooklyn pavement at the height of summer, ‘Freetown Sound’ is the full documentation of Dev Hynes’ transition from scrappy post-punk wonderkid to slinky New York vintage store aficionado. As a result, it’s frustratingly piecemeal – his evermore-complex mindset battling against itself for attention throughout.

When one element breaks through, it’s dazzling. Dev’s choices of samples and sound bites, too, couldn’t be more prescient – everything from female empowerment to the anxieties of being a young black man in an America plagued by increasingly seismic racial tensions gets a look in. Spewing at the seams with new sounds and concepts, ‘Freetown Sound’ is more a vessel for Dev Hynes’ production prowess than Blood Orange’s flag in the sand. (Tom Connick) LISTEN: ‘Love Ya’

eee BAND OF HORSES

Why Are You Ok

(Interscope)

It’s been four years since Band of Horses released their last LP ‘Mirage Rock’. In that time the group have worked with Grandaddy’s Jason Lytle on a Christmas song, while frontman Ben Bridwell released a covers album with Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam. On this comeback, they’re not entirely willing to stray from their comfort zone - not that returning to the formula is necessarily a bad thing. The band are much more engaging when they stray further into the realms of Americana. ‘Throw My Mess’ is a proper country stomper complete with slide guitar and gorgeous harmonies and on ‘Country Teen’ Bridwell starts sounding curiously like Father John Misty, which is always welcome. When they drift into this more roots-driven territory Band of Horses can be captivating, but these moments are few and far between.

(Eugenie Johnson) LISTEN: ‘Casual Party,’ ‘In A Drawer’ 67

eeee

Metronomy Summer 08 (Because Music)

Q&A

Photo: Andrew Whitton

A gaudy, glittery slab of disco, ‘Summer ‘08’ is Metronomy like we’ve never heard them before. The record that Joe Mount always wanted to make, it nods back to summers past in both title and sonic ambition. On this album, Mount sings about booking tables at pop-ups over pulsing Daft Punk-nodding bass lines, and details rich kid rendezvous on the glitchy, shoulder-jutting ‘Old Skool’.

Given that this album follows on from the misty, vapourous, and fairly earnest ‘Love Letters,’ this is all the more bold a move. ‘Miami Logic’ delves into sawtooth edged guitar solos, while ‘Night Owl’ ducks and swans about, busying itself with waltzing ambition. ‘Hang Me Out to Dry,’ meanwhile, stands up as the best of the entire bunch, inviting Robyn into the mix, and soundtracking dancefloor swell.

Nodding strongly towards everything from Hall & Oates, to Justice, and Patrice Rushen, and flaunting all of Mount’s influences without a hint of irony, ‘Summer ‘08’ is - from start to finish - a back to basics, pure-pop odyssey.

(El Hunt) LISTEN: ‘16 Beat’, ‘Hang Me Out to Dry’

The questions have been mounting up (sorry) - now it’s time to quiz Joe Mount about his new Metronomy record.

After your last album ‘Love Letters’, did a part of you want to start from scratch?

The choices that you make after you have some level of success or exposure they’re not quite as pure as the thoughts you have before that happens; when you were just making music in your bedroom for pleasure. I still make it for fun as much as anything else, but the reason I made a record like ‘The English Riviera’ was as much a reaction to ‘Nights Out’ and the way people perceived that record as it was me following my own instincts. I’ve had a really busy time. I’ve got children and I’m living this life now.

I just wanted to make an album that’s purely about enjoyment.

How come you’re not playing any gigs around this record?

Last summer, towards the end of our 68 diymag.com

tour, I sat the band down and told them I thought it’d be really good to put out a record and not tour! I realised it was a big decision. I took the decision without really thinking about what the album’s about or how it would be recorded. It’s more the idea of us having toured for a long time. The short answer is - life.

How did the Robyn collaboration come about?

Sometimes getting someone else to sing detracts from who wrote the song. I remember ‘Thing For Me’ in ‘Nights Out’, I wanted to get a girl to sing the chorus.

But it would sound more weird and authentic if it was me. I had the version of me singing the chorus on ‘Hang Me Out to Dry’, but I just didn’t like it. It felt like the right time to bring Robyn in. But it’s not going to be “featuring Robyn”.

That’s not the main force behind it.

eee MSTRKRFT

Operator (Last Gang)

For their first album in five years, Canadian electronic music agitators MSTRKRFT – composed of Death From Above 1979’s Jesse F. Keeler and producer AI-P – wanted to make a “techno record with a punk aesthetic”.

It’s probably sensible, then, that they recruited a host of punk musicians to collaborate with in order to do this.

The result is chaotic and hard-hitting enough to be called punk(ish) but it’s really their choice to use vocals on a few tracks that separates it from their last record, 2009’s ‘Fist of God’. The deep rumble of the ironically-titled ‘World Peace’ and the pulsating sirens and slippery synth of ‘Little Red Hen’ work well, but ‘Playing With Itself’ is slow and, well, kind of boring. Still, the album as a whole suggests a new direction for MSTRKRFT which seems promising – one that sounds darker than their previous work – and it’s an exciting direction. (Rachel Michaella Finn) LISTEN: ‘World Peace’

eeee STEPHEN STEINBRINK Anagrams

(Melodic)

Where most songwriters would subscribe to one solitary state, Phoenix, Arizona’s Stephen Steinbrink instead sits stubbornly on the fence. Far from a morose record, ‘Anagrams’ still feels torn between two prevailing personalities. One of whimsy and wanderlust, of which there’s an almost child-like innocence. And one of anxiety, uncertainty, and the self-doubt that comes with being a twenty-something. It’s a less optimistic record than 2014’s ‘Arranged Waves’, but it’s also the product of a musician fast maturing. (Dave Beech) LISTEN: ‘Dissociative Blues’

Even The Avalanches are surprised they’re back.

Things that have happened since The Avalanches released an album:

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THE AVALANCHES Wildflower (XL)

The Avalanches released their only album ‘Since I Left You’ sixteen years ago, and in that time, nothing has managed to sound quite like it. The album carved the Australian group a niche all of their own making, seemingly all corners of the electronic music sphere incorporated into the sound, influencing thousands moving forward.

‘Wildflower’’s twenty-one(!) song tracklist can be forgiven due to the fact that it took almost as many years to complete, with the band recently revealing how single ‘Colours’ alone went through “over a hundred edits”. But no marks of such a laborious process are evident here. Lead single ‘Frankie Sinatra’ is loose and carefree, with a chorus that sticks for days. Danny Brown and MF DOOM’s contribution to that song are two of many, with Mercury Rev’s Jonathan Donahue, Toro Y Moi, Father John Misty and more also joining in the fun.

Multiple minute-long interludes flesh ‘Wildflower’ out, feeling like breaks to an all-out, never-ending stage show. It needed to take something substantial to feel satisfied after those sixteen long years, and The Avalanches have gone beyond their calling. (Will Richards) LISTEN: ‘Colours’, ‘Subways’

ee DISCLOSURE

Moog For Love (Island/PMR)

It’s been three years since Disclosure made good on their early blog and smoker’s room hype with ‘Settle’. In the years since, the boys still look as fresh faced as ever, but they’ve struggled to rekindle the flame, opting for big name collaborations over genuine innovation.

On new EP ‘Moog For Love’ all three songs verge towards indistinct nothingness.

Most of these tracks are reminders of older, better Disclosure. Experimentation or risk taking is given over to what feel like demos.

The final feeling of ‘Moog For Love’ is that the whole thing feels like one long intro.

There is no snap. There is no burst. There is no pay-off. (Kyle Forward) LISTEN: ‘BOSS’

eeee CLAMS CASINO 32 Levels (Columbia)

As is often the way in the age of the instant, Michael Vope, aka Clams Casino, has already created serious waves well before the release of his debut. Simply from a compilation of instrumentals sent around MySpace, the New Jersey-native soon found himself collaborating with the likes of A$AP Rocky, FKA twigs and The Weeknd. On his first full-length, the producer’s most innovative creations are on display in the absence of rappers. Throughout, he shows off a far-reaching ability to mix artists and genres in unpredictable combinations.

(William Moss) LISTEN: ‘Back To You (feat. Kelly Zutrau)’

• 24 notable actual avalanches took place across the world.

• Busted formed, split and got back together.

• Barack Obama gained a seat in the U.S. Senate, won the U.S. Presidential race, served almost two terms.

• New rave.

• England continued to fail in international football tournaments.

eeee BLINK 182 California

(BMG)

It’s been a bit of a bumpy ride for fans of Blink-182 over the past few years. After the high profile departure of guitarist Tom Delonge in early 2015, a question mark was placed above the future of the band. Yet, after a batch of shows playing replacement, Matt Skiba appears to have settled in. What’s even more remarkable about ‘California’, though, is how it showcases a band back to the height of the powers. There’s an energy, a fun and an immediacy present throughout these sixteen tracks that genuinely reignites the brilliance of the band. (Sarah Jamieson) LISTEN: ‘She’s Out Of Her Mind’ 69

ee RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS

eeee MICHAEL KIWANUKA Love & Hate

The Getaway

(Polydor)

It’s been a quiet few years for Michael Kiwanuka on the surface - after being flung towards the spotlight by means of a BBC Sound of 2012 win and Mercury Prize nomination for debut album ‘Home Again’, he subsequently slipped into the shadows.

Behind the scenes, he was consumed by self-doubt and uncertainty over his merits as a musician. This time on ‘Love & Hate’ he’s shaken off this image entirely. His guitar is a mighty presence on this record, often adding to the emotional outpours. This is a landmark album for a previously forgotten musician, an incredibly neat and satisfying collection of songs. (Sean Kerwick) LISTEN: ‘I’m a Black Man in a White World’, ‘Father’s Child’

(Warner Bros)

Is there a more ‘Red Hot Chili Peppers’ opening to an album than a looped, shoddy attempt at beatboxing?

Anthony Kiedis then demands “take me to the future!”, but if there’s a band more rearward-facing than this lot, we’ll eat our sweaty cock-socks.

It’s not entirely laughable laziness.

There’s a clear attempt to add a darker tint to their palette of slap bass and noodling, as evidenced by ‘Dark Necessities’’ murky opening. But this quickly gives way to an ‘oh-so-Flea’ bass-line, and a dragging dirge of nonsensical lyrics and wah-pedalled blues scales. Back to the twenty-yearold drawing board, then. (Tom Connick) LISTEN: ‘Dark Necessities’

eeee PINEGROVE Cardinal

(Run For Cover)

Evan Stephens Hall could be a pop-punk frontman, a country hero or an experimental drone artist, if he put his mind to it. The Montclair, New Jersey musician’s voice treads strange territory - a tightrope between different worlds - without any sense of finality. It’s a trade that suits Pinegrove, whose ‘Cardinal’ album is a streamof-consciousness, philosophical take on life’s big questions. Songs centre around Evan’s meaning of life pursuit, but there’s equal fascination in the group’s instrumentation; a curious hybrid of country, old-school indie and sweltering emo rock. Without providing a tick-all-boxes answer, ‘Cardinal’ still makes the world feel smaller and more conquerable. (Jamie Milton) LISTEN: ‘Old Friends’

It all sounds so fresh. eeee

THE STROKES Future, Present, Past (Cult Records)

There isn’t another band quite like The Strokes. Sure, your Radioheads can ace a stealth release, but unless we missed a throng of butter-blond mop tops in the mid-90s, Thom Yorke and pals didn’t cause an entire generation to switch their wardrobes after a single drumbeat.

It’s possible ‘Future Present Past’ is little more than a stop-gap, bridging 2013’s ‘Comedown Machine’ with what we’re told the band are “working on” . It’d probably stand well as much opener ‘Drag Queen’ fits in nicely with the previous record, while ‘OBLIVIUS’ and ‘Threat of Joy’ work their way backwards through the quintet’s back catalogue respectively - the former evoking ‘First Impressions Of Earth’’s ‘Ize of the World’, with the third back in ‘Room On Fire’ territory, if not their debut. Almost as if the release’s name was deliberate.

It’s uncanny, too, for a band whose sound is as instantaneously recognisable now as at the turn of the millennium, that it all sounds so fresh. Those guitar solos, Julian’s barely-intelligible vocal and the vibes that caused a million hangovers may have altered little in the interim, but ‘Future Present Past’ more than proves The Strokes are as important a band in 2016 as they’ve ever been. (Emma Swann) LISTEN: All of it, ffs.

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ee BEYOND THE WIZARDS SLEEVE

The Soft Bounce (Phantasy)

Initially swathed in anonymity, producing obscure and wild remixes of the likes Midlake, Franz Ferdinand and Peter, Bjorn & John; Beyond The Wizards Sleeve is the side project from influential producers Erol Alkan and Richard Norris, created for the sole purpose of exploring every aspect of music that they wouldn’t normally go near. Of course, it wasn’t long before the cat got out of the bag scenes, masks being removed. The project lived on though, and ‘The Soft Bounce’ is their first full-length. The great thing about ‘The Soft Bounce’ is its desire to honour the past. Beyond The Wizards Sleeve was birthed in a mutual love of the kind of records that influence every left turn and genre-hop of this album. Sadly, this doesn’t quite transfer to the songs themselves. You can hear what the pair are trying to do - the ideas are there - but this alternate world doesn’t quite seem to be their forte. Ultimately Beyond The Wizards Sleeve sounds like what it is - a hobby. As an outsider, it simply doesn’t reap the same rewards as it might have for its creators.

(Henry Boon) LISTEN: ‘Iron Age’

eeee

SHURA Nothing’s Real ( Polydor)

Plain-talking, and 80s nodding all the way, Shura’s long-awaited debut ‘Nothing’s Real’ chucks liberal amounts of heartbreak and anxiety into the melting pot, making punchy soup with the brain-being-fried-to-mush feeling of falling crazily in love. Though Shura’s not quite got the vocal aerobic strut of most of her heroes – she’s more of an unembellished, relatable vocal than a Whitney Houston-type – her debut record smudges together a super-smoothie, tinged with hints of early Madonna, Janet Jackson, Cheryl Lynn and Donna Summer. It’s a pretty foolproof blend; gaudy, infectious and best of all unafraid of going near pop cheese.

‘Nothing’s Real’ isn’t faultless, and at times, the otherwise unrelenting momentum lulls. ‘Kids n’ Stuff’ feels too misty and humid, slap-bang in the middle of what’s otherwise pop banger central. ‘Indecision’ - though still one of Shura’s best songs to date - feels overproduced for this album version, losing some of its awkward, hesitant charm in favour of a slightly misplaced race for powerhouse club beats. That said, this debut makes few missteps. It serves as a personal glimpse into this newcomer as an artist. It’s a statement packed with masses of future potential, and that’s all you can really ask for from a debut record. (El Hunt) Listen: ‘What Happened To Us?’, ‘Make It Up’

Q&A

Now that her long-awaited album’s about to be in the open, Shura reveals just some of the finer details… Words: El Hunt

Your debut album has been a long time in the works...

Stop saying that! It’s a really weird thing to finish it, and be like, ‘Okay, now I have to wait four months?

Are you kidding, that’s mental!’. But then again I like teasing people. I’m excited, yeah – unless of course people really fucking hate it. The files are there on my computer. Let’s just do this.

You ended up working with Greg Kurstin (Adele, Beck) in LA on ‘What’s It Gonna Be?’ How the hell was that, and did you feel like you were in a glitzy Hollywood telly show?

Me and him just had a really funny chat about how he was gonna bring all his heavy metal samples to the session. I was in LA anyway for a show, so I just stayed behind for a couple of days and jammed with him. It’s weird – I’ve made this bedroom pop record but I’ve also worked with one of the biggest pop writers in the world. I’ve done both. I just felt like I was this weird person who had accidentally walked onto the set of a California drama, interrupting. When I was writing with him, ‘Hello’ had just come out, so I’d get an Uber to his house – you can’t walk in LA - and the song would play, like, twice. So weird. I felt like a total fraud!

Were you ever tempted to rock up at the studio by saying ‘Hello, it’s me’?

I think I probably did. I think everyone does that to him. I mean, I definitely said ‘Hello’. But you can’t really avoid that, can you?

Unafraid of going near pop cheese.

Your family, feelings, and relationships, are all over this album. Why was it important for you to make a record like that, which puts a lot of yourself into it?

A lot of it was from watching ‘Interstellar’, honestly.

That film really fucked me up, being a film about death and ageing. I think about death a lot, bizarrely; in a hundred million years the sun might be gone! There’s this part of me that thought, ‘This is my first record. I might only get to make one, who knows?’ I wanted to have this time capsule.

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eeee

GLOBELAMP The Orange Glow (Wichita)

A vast landscape of her own creation. eee BADBADNOTGOOD IV (Innovative Leisure)

BADBADNOTGOOD are masters at repurposing the old into something shiny and unrecognisable. For years, they’ve represented a hybrid of jazz and hip-hop, but their music stampedes into other strange territories. ‘IV’ is their first album to feature guest collaborators, but it isn’t a fully-realised trip towards the mainstream. In fact, the quartet are harder to pin down than ever.

Future Islands’ Samuel T. Herring forms part of a solemn opening trio of songs, his appearance on the smoky ‘Time Moves Slow’ being a highlight. The Charlotte Day Wilsonfeaturing ‘In Your Eyes’ contains featherlight acoustics and isn’t a far cry from early Amy Winehouse, soul splintering off into new worlds. There’s also a beat-led experiment with Kaytranada, ‘Lavender’. Collaborations aren’t here to generate headlines or set pulses racing - each serves its own noble purpose. And taken on its own, each track solidifies the group’s wild imagination. But ‘IV’ has a habit of being tough to stomach. Beyond BBNG’s wild imagination, there’s not a great deal tying these songs together. (Jamie Milton) LISTEN: ‘Time Moves Slow feat. Samuel T Herring’

eeee 65DAYSOFSTATIC

No Man’s Sky: Music for an Infinite Universe (Laced Records )

Infinity is something 65daysofstatic have been consumed in since forming, but never this literally.

Producing the soundtrack for everlasting video game ‘No Man’s Sky’, the post-rock foursome induce a feeling of falling into the universe, but that’s okay. Despite only playing in the “threatening” patches of the game, there’s nothing dangerous about this album - they’ve created the perfect tone for floating in a comforting - albeit probably fucking terrifying abyss. (Mollie Mansfield) LISTEN: ‘Asimov’ 72 diymag.com

“I’m blocking out the negative,” sings Globelamp’s Elizabeth le Fey repeatedly on a track titled, well, ‘The Negative’. It’s a line which sums up this album pretty accurately, as it goes. ‘The Orange Glow’ is less fist-pumping ball of joy than the sound of a woman living within a vast landscape of her own creation, a Technicolor palette of 60s California, 18th Century English villages and what one imagines the interior of legendary shop Granny Takes A Trip looked like. Hers is a glam-folk sound; hints of psychedelia here and there, ‘classic’ songwriting and oft strange pronunciation - with glitter sprinkled on top.

This is a record that’s wilfully away with the fairies, wistfully looking backwards, hopeful and makes full use of 60s folkpop tropes without once becoming precocious or twee. No easy task. Like the Wonderland Alice walks through, or Willy Wonka’s factory, there are fantastical twists and turns within ‘The Orange Glow’, and matched with gorgeously simple songs this makes for an endlessly captivating album. (Emma Swann) Listen: ‘Piece of the Pie’

eee ROISIN MURPHY Take Her Up to Monto (Play It Again Sam)

Irish electro-pop star Roisin Murphy returned from an eight-year hiatus with 2015 full-length ‘Hairless Toys’, leading to a Mercury Prize nomination. Fast-forward twelve months and Murphy’s artistic motives and wild inventions take another step on new album ‘Take Her Up To Monto’. Throughout, she specialises in spooling honesty and disco-frantic textures - her signature tricks. Gone are the days of Mokolo, but ‘Take Her Up To Monto’ remains resilient, proving that Roisin’s productive world of pop madness has a rightful place in the present day.

(Mustafa Mirreh) LISTEN: ‘Mastermind’

•••COMING Up••• GLASS ANIMALS

How to be a Human Being

These previous rainforest-dwellers are going closer to home on LP2. It’s out 26th August.

ANGEL OLSEN MY WOMAN

A stirring return, Angel Olsen’s third album is a powerful step up, out 2nd September.

DEAP VALLY Femijism They’re back! Deap Vally recorded with Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Nick Zinner for album two, out 16th September.

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GLASTONBURY

Worthy Farm, Pilton. Photos: Emma Swann

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coldplay shura

here are two themes to this year’s Glasto: mud, and Brexit.

Neither too cheery, it’s left to the wonders within the brown stuff to cheer the crowds. The weekend is kickstarted by a scrappy, not-sosecret Rat Boy set at William’s Green, before exploding fully on Friday afternoon via Skepta’s triumphant Pyramid “Look, it’s a Stage appearance. Yak’s Oli Leave voter.

Burslem decides to acquaint Get ‘em!” himself with both the crowd and the muddy pit in front - in a packed-out William’s Green during their brilliantly frenetic set, before VANT’s Mattie gets straight to the point. “If anyone voted leave here, fuck off,” he yells. “I’m sure all of you will agree that this is the time to take action, and revolt against this racist, bigoted, pig-fucking system.”

Bastille are visibly happy to be returning to Glastonbury during their sunset Other Stage spot, the crowd clutching at every stadiumready hook their new material shows off, while Friday headliners Muse are full of bombast - theirs is a set which has everything: fireworks set off by guitar chords, confetti streaming at every opportunity.

lcd soundsystem

wolf alice

Wolf Alice’s Pyramid Stage slot on Saturday feels like a homecoming for heroes, twelve months on from the release of ‘My Love Is Cool’.

‘Fluffy’, ‘Moaning Lisa Smile’ and ‘Bros’ are all real hits on the biggest stage of all. There’s then a crash course in pop stardom, as MØ makes use of every inch of the John Peel Stage.

‘Final Song’ hits the button on an especially cranked up setting of VANT but pandemonium,

predictably, it’s Major Lazer hookup ‘Lean On’ which pushes things completely over the edge. A rainbow casts itself over the Other Stage for The 1975’s performance earlier in the evening, but Chvrches get tonight’s stunning sunset. ‘Never Ending Circles’, ‘We Sink’ and ‘Keep You On My Side’ put the crowd firmly in the trio’s hands from the off.

Only Adele could rock up to the Pyramid with a mid-song squawk of “fuckin ‘ell!” midway through one of the past year’s biggest belters. As white hot rain pours down the back of her stage, and red flares illuminate Glastonbury’s largest crowd yet, there’s not a single person holding back - even security, as they bustle through the packed audience, are howling along.

“Shove a rainbow in fear’s face,” shouts Olly Alexander at the end of this year’s Pride weekend on Sunday.

He’s dressed in double rainbow for a set that’s open, visible and heavily emotional. Synth player Emre Turkmen also makes a statement, wearing a homemade t-shirt that reads: “music sounds better with EU”.

While Years & Years are a pop band with hooks that never end, today’s message is more important, and it’s really hammered home.

It’s Coldplay’s fourth time headlining Glastonbury. Arming everyone in the crowd with LED gizmos that could be straight from Camden’s Cyberdog, and hitting ‘go’ on the pyro just one song in, their set is a Technicolor spectacle. Flares erupt just minutes into LCD Soundsystem’s Other Stage headline opener ‘Us v Them’ - and the band are in similarly fiery form.

‘Yeah’ turns into a rave in a beefed up live version, and ‘New York I Love You, But You’re Bringing Me Down’ follows a sweeping, full-of-life version of ‘Someone Great’. Then, when Coldplay’s fireworks erupt behind the Other Stage from the Pyramid and a truly anthemic rendition of ‘All My Friends’ starts up, as far as everyone in attendance is concerned, those fireworks belong to LCD. Capping off the weekend is left to Charlotte Church, who at her Pop Dungeon (tonight, the Rabbit Hole) brings out her underrated pop banger ‘Crazy Chick,’ and disco covers of Nine Inch Nails and Queen Bey. Only at Glastonbury. (El Hunt, Will Richards)

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best kept secret Beekse Bergen, Hilvarenbeek. Photos: Emma Swann

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Over on the main stage, Glass Animals are playing their first festival slot in quite a while; not that you’d guess it, Drew MacFarlane and Edmund Irwin-Singer whizzing around between various bloopy gadgets and sharp-angled guitars.

“What do you need…” drawls tonight’s headliner Beck, stalking craftily around the main stage, holding – bizarrely – a banana.. “I can do anything for you. A scented bath, perhaps?” he suggests.

On Sunday, VANT find themselves on a stage that’s probably the same size as most entire venues they’ve played so far. For a split second, it’s unclear whether Mattie’s flailing floor-rolling antics will translate from sweaty, beer-sticky dive bars to the daunting main stage; such concerns evaporate the moment the band crash on stage. Their trajectory is an unstoppable freight train.

hristine and The Queens is possibly the only dry person at Best Kept Secret on Friday evening.

Fittingly, she’s singing a hastily improvised cover of ‘Singin’ In The Rain’. Today she’s brought flowers, oodles of good advice and endlessly slick, foot-twitching, breakdance-covered onstage dance routines; playing this show like it’s the biggest stadium in the world, doing so without a single misstep.

It’s fitting patter in a headline set that’s firmly about entertaining a sea of pogo-bobbing ponchos, sparing no expense or greatest hit. The giant, echo-chamber blues riffs and crispy snare rolls of ‘Devils Haircut’ kick off the show; a mere two songs later it’s the turn of ‘Loser’. ‘Dreams’ feels right at home in a gigantic mix of punch-packers, from ‘Sexx Laws’ to the wonky half-arsed hip-hop of ‘Hell Yes’. Beck’s right when he says he can do anything. Tonight brings the lot.

Tucked away in the woodland on a wetter still Saturday, Weaves are taking stage five by storm. All snazzy shirts and pop songs pumped full with a volatile tendency for the unhinged, this Toronto gang have the kind of Tetris-tight onstage chemistry that’s impossible to fluke.

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After years without a single peep, Two Door Cinema Club are playing their first live shows in a fair while, laden with new material, and a keen desire to progress from debut ‘Tourist History’. But here the old favourites keep firing out with the quick succession of a rapid-fire glitter catapult, and the whole set is like a delicious celebratory sandwich.

Closing out is left to the quiff-sporting sweet prince of dance, Jamie xx. As headline sets go, his is a fairly low-key kind of jam, more foot-to-the-floor vinyl spinning than showy fireworks. Though it doesn’t quite wave off Best Kept with a bang, everyone assembled at this set won’t stop dancing all night. (El Hunt)

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WILD LIFE

Brighton City Airport. Photos: Sarah Doone

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our Tet’s 3pm set on the first day of the second WILD LIFE feels very early, but is a thunderous, breezy introduction into a two-day bash that doesn’t ever really stop pelting forwards.

The Avalanches then continue their comeback tour on the cavernous main stage in a set that falls more than a little flat - even the supposedly timeless ‘Frontier Psychiatrist’ fails to cause more than a little ripple. For this one instance of the crowd’s age playing a detrimental part, WILD LIFE has many more sets that thrive in front of a fresh, never-endingly exuberant throng, with Flume in the Big Top hitting all the right spots, already confirming ‘Never Be Like You’ as a classic.

Rat Boy also succeeds on these terms, while Skepta’s main stage triumph feels like it might be his biggest yet.

Disclosure’s headline set is surprisingly short on guest stars, but no lesser for it. The 90-minute barrage is hit-heavy, with the debut of new track ‘Boss’ one surprise tonight - it doesn’t really deviate from the duo’s formula but does show a continuation of their path of utter confidence.

Jorja Smith’s first ever festival performance kicks off day two,

and throwing her straight on to the main stage seems perfectly appropriate.

bastille

If Skepta’s performance felt like a moment, Stormzy’s early set on Sunday blows it away. The excitement and reverence shown by the huge crowd shows grime’s new hero as the star of 2016.

Though his between-song chat is largely stage banter-bynumbers, his claim that this is the best festival crowd he’s ever played to couldn’t be more believable.

2016 is massive for Bastille, and their third-from-top billing ramps up the excitement for ‘Wild World’. Tracks from ‘Bad Blood’ feel rejuvenated and even more anthemic second time around, but it’s the as-yet-unreleased new cuts from ‘Wild World’ that make the set. ‘Send Them Off’ possesses a chorus up there with the band’s very best, while ‘The Currents’ is punchy and full of life. The band are clearly as itching to release the album as the crowd are to receive it. It’s a start to the summer that shows a select few as already having 2016 in the palm of their hands. (Will Richards) 77

Meltdown laura marling Southbank Centre, London.

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ow is London tonight? “Middling” shrugs Emily Staveley-Taylor after a self-conscious cheer from the Royal Festival Hall. But ‘middling’ is something this trio are not. The Staves are undeniably exposed on the small stage, this huge and impersonal venue meaning the intimacy of their records could easily have been lost. But they rise to the challenge, using their power to reach out and entrance with their tumbling harmonies, the crowd hanging on every word.

With just a banner and simple blue lighting, there’s no showy stagecraft here - they don’t need it. The stage is messy, the trio wear t-shirts and jeans, and the set is relaxed, but quietly confident. Veering from the rocky ‘Black and White’ and ‘Damn It All’ to the delicate ‘Mexico’, they reach both ends of the folk rock spectrum.

Quipping furiously, trading puns and detouring into stand up, it doesn’t take long for their confidence to rub off on the crowd. A bloke pretends to be the Queen, Emily pulls off a convincing impression of Guy Garvey and the vastness of the hall is forgotten. “Shit, I just realised I’ve got my phone in my back pocket” blurts Camilla. Their awkward down-the-pub mumbling and angelic vocals are a winning contradiction, and everyone tonight is smitten. (Betty Townley)

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aura Marling is an exceptional talent to behold. When she opens her mouth to sing, her voice commands the space, filling every crevice of this mighty room. There’s a wonderful moment in ‘How Can I’, when the song goes from solo performance to full band, bursting in to life - the magnitude of the song really hits as Laura swoons “how can I live without him?” She performs a faultless set that lays her heart, love and insecurities down on the table.

It’s a set that’s carefully crafted around covers of Bert Jansch’s ‘Courting Blues’ and Townes Van Zandt’s ‘Waitin’ Around To Die’ as well as favourites ‘Rambling Man’ and ‘I Speak Because I Can’, the mood shifting immaculately from light to dark. With ‘Breathe’, her whole band stands together in perfect harmony, moving as one body, Laura fully commanding centre stage. As the intensity of the song develops and builds, it’s massively enhanced by the immaculately-arranged strings adding an extra layer of subtle, sweeping beauty.

Yet, it’s when she’s is left entirely on her own that her real talent shines forward, showing the honesty in her words. As she sings, it’s as though she’s peeling away at the layers of herself. Laura tonight proves she’s still at the top of her game.

(Amelia Maher)

Photo: nathan barnes

Guy Garvey’s

Photo: Luke Hannaford

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primavera sound G Parc del Fòrum, Barcelona. Photos: Emma Swann.

iant solar panels and purposefully unfinished bridges steal the skyline at Parc Del Fòrum. A modern concrete paradise, it’s an architect’s dream come true, but it’s enough to flummox the everyday punter when they first go through Primavera Sound’s gates. With this in mind, try being a hyped, Tennessee singersongwriter playing your first European show to a crowd of close to a thousand, within these strange surroundings. Julien Baker is an initially unassuming newcomer who quietly packs star quality.

Still, Primavera’s Thursday isn’t one to warm emotions - at least not yet. Julien Baker doesn’t pen happy songs about finding love at a sun-kissed festival, and the same applies to Daughter, yet somehow, the group’s unrelenting bleakness suits the Barcelona sunset.

game is an achievement few bands actually manage. James Murphy cut the ropes at the exact point LCD Soundsystem hit lift-off.

Demand is a funny thing, and their return feels like a miracle in itself - hence the top dog billing. But it’s impossible to understate just how 2016 this whole experience feels: they’ve never sounded more vital.

Radiohead provide a circus of hits. When was the last time ‘Creep’, ‘No Surprises’, ‘Karma Police’, ‘Talk Show Host’ and ‘Paranoid Android’ appeared in the same set? It’s a ludicrously crowd-pleasing trip back in time. Tonight they hit a fine balance between their expansive, luscious new record and their 90s heyday.

Kevin Parker might claim he’s always been making pop songs, but there’s a notable difference between last year’s sharp, hook-centric ‘Currents’ and Tame Impala’s two previous records. Tonight’s performance is a bid for headliner territory.

Bowing out at the top of your Kevin Parker’s ‘YMCA’ routine needs work.

Ahead of Parquet Courts’ post-midnight set on Saturday, one fan can be seen dragging a bin towards the bar. The band themselves are suitably sloshed, too, Austin Brown attempting broken Spanish several times. It doesn’t stop the four-piece from being tight as a fiddle: new material from latest album ‘Human Performance’ is exceptionally rabid. Parquet Courts are one of the coolest bands on the planet, and they bloody well know it. (Jamie Milton)

slam dunk Various venues, Leeds.

Photo: Ryan Johnston.

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t’s a Bank Holiday weekend and there’s pop punk as far as the ear can hear. That can mean only one thing: it’s Slam Dunk weekend.

Canterbury quartet Moose Blood are still winning over crowds with their rough-around-the-edges emo, before pop rockers Mayday Parade use their set to dip in and out of their ten-year back catalogue. The only shame is that the main stage’s sound system doesn’t seem able to cope all that well. Meanwhile, Creeper are causing chaos; yet more evidence that they’re one of the most exciting new bands right now.

Headlining this year’s Slam Dunk is something Panic!

At The Disco’s Brendon Urie has obviously been looking forward to. Emerging onstage in leather trousers and nothing underneath his jacket, the frontman’s clearly channelling the bombast of hometown Las Vegas, and his set follows accordingly. A little bit ridiculous, a little bit flamboyant but a whole lot of impressive, tonight proves less of a challenge and more a real celebration. (Sarah Jamieson) 79

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PJ Harvey’s finally worked out how to get that saxophone off her head.

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Field Day

Victoria Park, London Photos: Emma Swann

Sheltered on the Shacklewell Arms stage, Toronto’s Dilly Dally tear through their set with tumultuous vitality.

Shrouded in smoke sometimes so thick they’re obscured from view, Katie Monks’ distinctive vocals cut through the haze like a blade. Switching from a coarse rasp to husky whisper and screaming with a shiver-inducing ferocity, the group put on a performance that’s both electrified and energised.

It’s a near-deafening din that emanates from the stage while Girl Band frolic in the limelight. Overdriven distortion is met with rampant cheers, and as the tent headbang, drop, and vogue to the bludgeoning refrains, there’s no other performance that gives quite such a sense of thrill.

“How you doing? Wet, I imagine,” James Blake laughs.

Headlining the festival’s main stage at the end of a long and miserably stormy day, his performance proves nothing short of majestic. Drawing mostly from recent album ‘The Colour In Anything’, James draws out the groovers and shakers in all their force.

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“I’m just gonna apologise in advance to whoever’s set gets cut short, ‘cause we’re just gonna play the full thing,” Parquet Courts announce as they belatedly take to the main stage the next afternoon. Their post-punk stylings and wry sense of humour are effortlessly engaging, whilst new album tracks ‘One Man, No City’, ‘Dust’, and ‘Human Performance’ instantly get the punters dancing on the still-damp ground.

Elsewhere, Mystery Jets take their audience “on a progressive exploration” along the stratospheric echoes of their new material and offer “a one way trip to the 00s,” for their golden oldies. The band elate their audiences energy along elated pop hooks.

Marching drums signal the beginning of the end as festival closer PJ Harvey, resplendent in feathered attire, takes her place under the stage lights. Built mostly around new album ‘The Hope Six Demolition Project’, the performance rings out through the fields, steadfast against an approaching thunderstorm.

Photo: Chris Bethell

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nciting all out dancing and word-perfect sing-a-longs, Skepta champions his every moment on the main stage on Saturday afternoon. “It would have to be on my set,” he grumbles of sound issues through the weather – though no amount of spluttering speakers, rain, or mud seem to dampen the spirits of the gathered.

“It’s a perfect day,” she sings before taking her final bow.

Through thunderstorms and ever-present mud, that might be an oversight, but that hasn’t stopped anyone attending from having the most wholly enjoyable of times. (Jessica Goodman)

milk teeth

download Donington Park. Photos: Ryan Johnston

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omething odd is brewing in the Dogtooth tent, as New Jersey duo HO99O9 bring experimental, bassheavy hip hop to the hallowed home of heavy metal.

It’s ten minutes before theOGM has stripped to his underwear, in favour of tentacle fingers and fangs. It proves chaotic fun at its very darkest.

def tones

On the unsheltered main stage, Deftones face a daunting task in front of the potentially miserable swamp of a soaked ‘Drownload 2016’ (a joke told by every second band’s vocalist over the weekend). Led by microphone-swinging and crowdsurfing Chino Moreno, Deftones are the weekend’s most successful band when making this year’s main stage crowd bounce. Having not released an album in 14 years, Glassjaw still show that they’re about as mystical as something so loud can be – a post-hardcore band whose fantastic complexity won’t let anybody follow song structure for long.

Lande Hekt of Muncie Girls shyly asks “is it raining or something? There are lots of you here.” However it’s their pop-punk delivery; madly, playfully and brilliantly squeezing as many syllables into songs as possible, such as latest single ‘Respect’ that is really bringing everyone to the stage.

Twin Atlantic frontman Sam McTrusty is far more upfront when addressing Donington as “the most hardcore music fans in the UK”. It’s an almost goofily-styled address that matches their roots, especially during reflection of ‘the night before’, ‘I Am An Animal’ - fitting at a rock festival.

However, in an overflowing tent stage, Milk Teeth show that their punk rock is where that fun and fury meshes best.

Through a non-stop grin, Becky Blomfield juggles political rights discussion during a somber ‘Kabuki’, with a playful ‘No Fun’, somehow aided by the illegible screaming vocal of guitarist Billy Hutton, beneath rapid drums. (Nick Pollard)

White Lung The Flapper, Birmingham. Photo: Paul Reynolds

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merging from the darkness with barely a word, White Lung tonight transport The Flapper through a whirlwind of searing riffs, shimmering refrains, and dazzling vocals. It’s a rare and raw splendour that the group bring to life – and one that lands the room in a state of hypnotic awe before the energy can start to kick in.

Their performance hurtles towards the crowd at a breakneck speed. Mish Barber-Way’s vocals cut through the speakers with an icy allure. Kenneth William’s guitar riffs burn so bright they could blind, flooding thickly and seamlessly from stage left. Equal parts chilling and thrilling, not a person gathered can tear their eyes away.

New album ‘Paradise’ may be only three weeks old, but the songs from the release are met with more fervour than any.

The glistening melodies of ‘Below’ and the raging intensity of ‘Dead Weight’ prove particular highlights, entrancing with an intense velocity as Mish struts and strikes poses from centre stage. (Jessica Goodman) 81

DIY

INDIE DREAMBOAT Of the Month

MATTIE VANT vant Nickname: The boys used to call me ‘Prince Argos’ as there was a phase where I’d force our TM to drive to Argos at the beginning of each tour to pick up any last minute supplies.

Star Sign: Taurus Pets? Dead Favourite Film? An impossible question to answer. Anything by Kubrick, Anderson (Paul Thomas or Wes), Linklater or Hitchcock is fine with me.

Favourite Food? Pizza (although I’m trying to go vegan) Drink of choice? Whiskey Signature scent? Wonderwood Comme De Garçons Favourite hair product? Sweat What song would you play to woo someone? ‘Simple Twist of Fate’ - Bob Dylan If you weren’t in a band, what would you be doing? Writing / directing movies, managing a bar, drinking myself to death or a combination of all three.

Chat up line of choice?

“Would you like a drink?“ 82 diymag.com

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NOW

8/10 UNCUT “A GLITTERY SLAB OF DISCO” DIY “BANGER FILLED RECORD” CLASH “ A S M A R T P O P O P E R AT O R ” M O J O

SHOW US YOUR SUMMER ‘08 PROFILE PIC TA G @ M E T R O N O M Y # S U M M E R 0 8

W W W . M E T R O N O M Y. C O . U K

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