DANPYUNSUN AND THE SAILORS (London Rich Mix, 21/10/16)
 

So, apparently Jambinai are far from the only alternative band of note from South Korea at the moment. I discovered these avant-garde indie-rockers on the K-Music Month Spotify playlist a couple of weeks back, and they struck me as a band I nedded to see live. And in that I was correct, even though some of their songs are a little middle-of-the-road for my tastes. Danpyunsun is a hilarious, deadpan frontman, even when jetlagged to hell, and their riveting, no-holds-barred performance is up there with the most energetic I've seen in 2016. Well worth checking out, for sure.

HANNAH EPPERSON (London Slaughtered Lamb, 20/10/16)

Looped violins and birthday cake from the talented Julianna Barwick collaborator, whose spawling, absorbing compositions mark her out as a talent to keep an eye on.

OPERATORS (London Lexington, 18/10/16)

Any band involving Wolf Parade's Dan Boeckner is always going to be one hell of a beast, but Operators might well be his best side-project yet, marrying the zest and energy of the Handsome Furs to electrifying synth-rock and tremendous live drumming. One of the best London debuts I've seen this year.

YUMI ZOUMA (London Oslo, 17/10/16)

Pleasant enough dream-pop from New Zealand, with a couple of standout songs going someway to make up for a lack of variety.

HOLY FUCK (London Village Underground, 15/10/16)

A holy fuckin' great show from the Toronto electro-rock quartet, who can still inspire a dance party even when playing an absurdly early time-slot. One of the few shows I've seen recently that I genuinely wish had been longer.

SWANS (London Islington Assembly Halls, 13/10/16)

Review: HERE

EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY (London Brixton Academy, 12/10/16)

Review: HERE

SYMPHONIC FANTASIES (London Barbican, 06/10/16)

There's no one person more responsible for my deep and enduring love of music than Nobuo Uematsu, the composer behind the "Final Fantasy" series. Since I first played FFVII at the age of eleven and heard the synthesized church bells of "Flowers Blooming In The Church" I've obsessively gorged on his soundtracks and the various arranged albums built around thhem. I've religiously attended every concert of his music put on in this country - the "Distant Worlds" series more purist and faithful to the original compositions, the "Symphonies" taking familiar melodies and leitmotifs and re-arranging them into exciting new forms. I've even met him in person, leading to the only time in my life where I've genuinely been star-struck.

 But I've always secretly hoped that I'd get to hear a concert showcasing from some of his lesser-known but similarly brilliant contemporaries, most notably Yasunori Mitsuda (Chrono Trigger/Chrono Cross/Xenogears), Yoko Shimomura (Kingdom Hearts) and Hiroshi Sakimoto (FFXII/FF Tactics/Vagrant Story). I'm still waiting for that Sakimoto concert, but Symphonic Fantasies offered me the opportunity to witness Mitsuda and Shimomura performed by no less than the London Symphony Orchestra - and it was just as elatory an experience as I could have anticipated.

The first half comprised of two works, one based around Kingdom Hearts, the other around Hiroki Kikuta's "Secret of Mana" soundtrack. To my surprise, though the former symphony engaged the old nostalgia glands right from the start with the simple, beautiful piano line of "Dearly Beloved", it was latter that ultimately proved the stronger work, with its masterful use of choir and unexpected sound effects, including that of a tropical rain storm.

But it was inevitably the second half that truly shined, with a Mitsuda medley that wove together a smorgasbord of classic Chrono tracks- not least Scars Left By Time, Gale, Frog's Theme, Magus' Theme, To Far Away Times and Peaceful Days. What has always differentiated Mitsuda's work from most VGM composers is his passion for world music, and the effect that has on his melodies, his rhythms and his instrumentation - and thus giving a starring role to the effervescent red-coated darbouka virtuoso Rony Barrak and his percussive brilliance was a masterstroke. After that, a conservatively arranged work based around Uematsu's themes felt a little underwhelming, especially compared to what was showcased during the Final Symphony concerts (in fairness, this program predates those by several years), but there's no denying the hold those classic themes have over my psyche.

As is standard for these concerts, an "unannounced" encore wrapped up proceedings- and delightfully, it comprised a medley of final boss themes from the various games represented tonight. "One Winged Angel" and "Dancing Mad" are inevitably the focus of the piece, but hearing 80 or so primly-dressed choristers intone "LAVOS!" with appropriately apocalyptic volume may have been my personal highlight.

All in all, it probably didn't hit quite hit the heady heights of Final Symphony II - which was one of the best concerts I've ever attended in any medium - but just hearing the Chrono piece alone was well worth the price of admission. A superb performance, and one that makes me excited about what the organisers will come up with next.

JAMBINAI (London Oslo, 03/10/16)

Every time I see Jambinai, they get a little less post-rock and a little more metal. Which isn't a criticism by any means, as their fusion of the harder edge of Western music with traditional South Korean instrumentation remains as potent as ever.

STARS OF THE LID (London Barbican, 02/10/16)

Although they're almost indistinguishable from their sister band A Winged Victory For The Sullen these days (no bad thing), Stars of the Lid's beautiful orchestral ambience and stunning projections - which look breathtaking from the back of the Barbican Hall- provide the perfect soundtrack to a most agreeable Sunday evening.

MERZBOW (London Cafe Oto, 01/10/16)

The sound of a tiny kitten skipping lightly over a sea of rose petals. Or forty-five minutes of unrelenting harsh noise being blasted in my direction, and every other direction, and possibly in directions not as yet discovered by even the most intrepid scientists. A not entirely unpleasant experience oddly enough, but one that left me in a weird daze for some time afterwards.

THE GOON SAX (London Shacklewell Arms, 27/09/16)

A scrappy but endearing set from the maudlin Australian three-piece, whose wistful lo-fi melancholy compensates for their lack of polish.

TERRY RILEY (London Barbican, 24/09/16)

Review: HERE

WEAVES (London Scala, 22/09/16)

The best band to have come out of Canada since the mid-Noughties heyday of that particular scene, the off-kilter, grungey art-pop of WEAVES is an unabased riot live, coming across as a glorious mix of Deerhoof, Pavement and the Pixies (and maybe a sprinkle of Ponytail too). The best support act I've seen in many a year.

BJORK (London Royal Albert Hall, 21/09/16)

Being eight foot away from Bjork is like being in the presence of a unicorn, a rare and beautiful creature - that you're even there seems an honour in itself, regardless of what she actually does. So the fact that the show was one of the most beautiful I've ever seen could be considered almost a bonus. It many ways, it was her "Carrie and Lowell" to the Volta tour's "Age of Adz", eschewing the lasers, confetti, and electronic beats for minimalism and subtlety and though it wasn't quite what I was expecting, it was undoubtedly a truly special experience. The first half, focusing purely on "Vulnicura" was relentlessly bleak but utterly beautiful, complimented by understated, but stunningly arranged strings. The second, a carefully-curated run through her more delicate classics, including "Aurora" and "Pagan Poetry" (where she giggled in delight when the audience joined in during the final refrain) added some light to the darkness, culminating in an ambitious and unexpected string-based take on "Pluto". It probably wasn't a show for everyone, but for those who respect Bjork's inventiveness and innovation, it was a night we won't soon forget.

SLOW DOWN MOLASSES - INTERVIEW

Interview/feature: HERE

END OF THE ROAD FESTIVAL (Larmer Tree Gardens, 01/09/16-04/09/16)

Yes, it rained. A lot. Yes, it felt there was a slightly higher proportion of twats in the audience than in the past (although maybe that was just due to the ubiquity of the guy from MONEY). Yes, I still hate camping with a passion that burns brighter than seven suns. But at the end of the day, it was another fantastic weekend filled with good music, good people and good hot dogs slathered with melted raclette cheese. Highlights:

- Broken Social Scene: Hearing "Anthems For A Seventeen Year Old Girl" performed live for the first time since 2008 made me cry. The rest of it was alright too.
- Ezra Furman: Three separate sets, three stunning performances - although Thursday's all-covers set incorporating Madonna, The Arcade Fire, Springsteen, Jackie Wilson, The Clash and Beck was my personal favourite.
- Jeffrey Lewis: No comic strips, but more rockage than usual from the New York "anti-folk" veteran. Always a pleasure.
- Joanna Newsom: WHY DOES SHE ALWAYS PLAY MONKEY & BEAR RATHER THAN EMILY, GODDAMMIT?
- Whitney: Some much-needed summertime vibes on a desperately grey day.
- Anna Meredith: One of Britain's most inspiring, eccentric composers, bringing something a bit more left-field to the EOTR mix.
- Martha: Riotous, tongue-in-cheek lo-fi punks from Yorkshire trigger the most middle-class crowd-surfing experience ever witnessed at a live music event.

SILVER APPLES (London Corsica Studios, 31/08/16)

Review: HERE

KAMASI WASHINGTON (London Royal Albert Hall, 30/08/16)

One of the most astounding figures in modern jazz, with a 20-piece gospel choir and a 36-piece string section, playing at the Royal Albert Hall. Of course it was going to be one of the best gigs I've seen in my life. Perhaps the Star Trek-ish choral washes went a bit overboard at times, but when the band were in full flow, their hard-bopping, dazzingly proficient, orchestrally-enhanced jams produced some of the most transcendent music these ears have had the pleasure of hearing

KING GIZZARD AND THE WIZARD LIZARD (London Moth Club, 29/08/16)

The Moth Club in Hackney may have been sweatier than Chris Moyles' jockstrap, but the Australian psych-rock phenomenon would have melted everyone's faces regardless. Two drums, two guitars, two bassists, one flute, all the riffs- no wonder they're selling out venues ten times the size of this.