EFTERKLANG (London Barbican, 28/10/09)



Efterklang performing their critically-acclaimed breakthrough album “Parades” with the Britten Sinfonia was never going to be a disappointment, and so it was that its ethereal, at times playful majesty was splendidly recreated in the grand surroundings of the London Barbican. A more serious occasion than your typical Efterklang show- no high-fiving the audience at every conceivable interval- the band were nonetheless bedecked in commendably colourful attire (the orchestra opting, despite the insinuations of the programme, to adopt a more muted fashion style) and Casper Clausen’ sheer enthusiasm gave an endearing touch to a show that could have been too formal for its own good. Perhaps too many moments simmered when they should have soared (then again, that applies equally to the source material) but when the myriad elements came together it was glorious to behold- Mirador was utter perfection, bolstered by wonderful choral backing vocals and Cutting Ice With Snow was as powerful and beautiful as one could hope. However, they perhaps saved the best until last with the premiere of a new track from their upcoming album- more instant than their previous work without losing any of their offbeat charm, it’s made me very excited to see what potential masterpiece they come up with next.

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

PORTUGAL THE MAN (London Hoxton Bar & Kitchen, 27/10/09)



Two members down but no less fantastic, Portugal The Man made a triumphant return to London with enough 10 minute long wigouts and falsetto vocals to satisfy even the most demanding 70’s psychedelic rock fan. Mad props to the bassist, who appeared to be having a seizure at several points throughout.

(Photo: Higher_Ground (Flickr))

OUR BROTHER THE NATIVE (London Luminaire, 26/10/09)



Review: HERE

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

DOVES (London Roundhouse, 22/10/09)



Review: HERE

(Photo: Lauralilauralu (Flickr))

SOAP & SKIN (London Purcell Rooms, 20/10/09)



Review: HERE

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

SPIRITUALIZED (London Royal Festival Hall, 13/10/09)



Playing your landmark album in its entirety seems to be the cool thing to do these days (reunions are SO 2008) but if they’re all delivered with such loving care as Spiritualized’s recitation of late-90’s classic “Ladies and Gentlemen, We Are Floating In Space” there’s little cause for complaint. J. Spaceman may be as static a frontman as ever, but augmented with 2 guitarists, a keyboardist, a bassist, two percussionists, 6 brass players, a string octet and 12 members of the London Community Choir the music is anything but. The wondrously dreamy space-pop of the title track is delivered with such spine-tingling intensity it literally takes the breath away, even outshining Come Together’s stirring gospel-heavy refrain. Like the album, there are moments that don’t really go anywhere- Jason Pierce isn’t the most sophisticated of songwriters, either lyrically or melodically- but they’re more than made up for by the likes of Electricity, whose brutal assault is accompanied by such apocalyptically intense strobe lighting I started seeing colours that weren’t really there. Shame the sound isn’t quite as good in the balcony as one might hope, but not even that can mute the immense power of a 20-minute Cop Shoot Cop, complete with an extended noise wig-out that pushes the limits of the less hardy connoisseur (personally, I fucking loved it). An excellent, at times tremendous performance, it lacked the consistency to be a true gig-of-the-year contender but despite its flaws it’s an experience I most definitely wouldn’t mind repeating come December.

(Photo: Littlepants (Flickr))

IMMACULATE MACHINE (Brixton Windmill, 12/10/09)



A charming and good-natured show from the Canadian quintet, filled with up-tempo synth that may not have broken any boundaries but provided perfectly pleasant Monday night entertainment. Stained Glass Heroes and Joy Of Sex provided competent but uneven support.

(Photo: Christoph! (Flickr))

THE FIERY FURNACES (London Cargo, 08/10/09)



It's been almost three and a half years since I last saw the siblings Freidburger in action, and it's kinda heartening to see that although their albums have moved in a more accessible, instantly likeable direction, their live shows are as unpredictable and crazy as ever. Bearing no heed to the original arrangments, the band twist, remould and completely overhaul their back-catalogue, shifting time-signatures and rhythms in weird and wonderful ways and delivering it all with the impeccible technical brilliance of Deerhoof. It sometimes took a while to twig what song they were actually playing and there were a couple of mid-set lulls, but with such a well-judged blend of old and new material coupled with exceptional musicianship I left hoping it wouldn't be quite so long 'til the next time.

(Photo: sophie_of_delusion (Flickr))

THE ALLOTMENT (London Betsey Trotwood, 07/10/09)



Well, I didn't actually get to see any of the bands because I was on Door Custodian duties, but a well-deserved congratulations to Anika and Lynn for putting on such a excellent (and successful) first gig. Hope to see many more in the future!

CHRIS GARNEAU (London Luminaire, 06/10/09)



An enjoyable set of eccentric vaudeville pop that tottered too often into the snares of cheesiness to fully win me over, but hey- any man who professes a love of Frog Eyes is alright by me.

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

JULIE DOIRON (London Luminaire, 30/09/09)



Review: HERE

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

INVADA INVASION (Bristol Colston Hall, 26/09/09)



Review: HERE

(Photo: 6010 (Flickr))

SLOW CLUB (London Scala, 24/09/09)



One of the better proponents of the Brit-folk scene, this Yorkshire duo combine earnestly sweet acoustic balladry with a delightfully self-effacing sense of humour (and a penchant for performing songs in the middle of the audience). Much recommended.

(Photo: taraghb (Flickr))

MUSIC GO MUSIC (London Institute Of Contemporary Arts, 22/09/09)



Review: HERE

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

THE VEILS (London Scala, 21/09/09)



Review: HERE

(Photo: Alisha Ahmed (Flickr))

THE WHISPERTOWN 2000 (London Luminaire, 19/09/09)



Enjoyable country-rock stomps and impressive facial hair from The Whispertown 2000, whose infectious enthusiasm almost compensated for the evening's sub-par support acts. Actually, that's not entirely fair- Anna Calvi's guitar skills were damn impressive, it's just a shame her songs were lacking.

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

AU (London Cafe Oto, 16/09/09)



Imagine if you merged Holy Fuck, YACHT and Lightning Bolt together via some sort of awesome musical alchemy and you might get something a bit like Au. The ever-energetic duo's short but effervescent set jolted between jaunty camp electro-balladry and assaults of pure noise with carefree abandon but they were never less than entirely compelling.

(Photo: Anika Mottershaw)

SUNSET RUBDOWN (London Garage, 15/09/09)



My Spencer Krug fanboyism has been well documented so I'll keep this brief- despite being not quite as sublime as the Luminaire show, this still ranks as one of the best shows of 2009. Idiot Heart was much more electrifying than its recorded incarnation, Trumpet Trumpet Toot Toot is still a masterpiece in synth-drenched mania and the run of You Run On Ahead->The Men Are Called Horsemen There->Mending Of The Gown spectacularly highlighted the best songs off each of their albums. Hooray!

(Photo: tnarik (Flickr))

CRIPPLED BLACK PHOENIX (London Dingwalls, 14/09/09)



My ears still haven't recovered. Not quite post-rock, not quite prog-rock but most definitely fucking loud, the 8-piece's apocalyptic 'end-time ballads”shook Camden to its foundations. Although the Mogwai/GY!BE influences are clear (the bassist from the former band was a founding member), there's a lot more going on than just guitar-centric crescendos- there's a theatrical element to them that's much more Pink Floyd than the po-faced minimalism that normally besets the genre. Highlight was “Burnt Reynolds” which unexpectedly was even more OTT than on record, with the small but appreciative audience happily filling in the song's choral parts. Fantastic.

(Photo: Dematak (Flickr))

DIRTY PROJECTORS (London Scala, 13/09/09)



Taking support bands into account, possibly the best all-round shows I've been to this year. Dirty Projectors were occasionally infuriating but mostly brilliant- the additional band members really enhanced the Bitte Orca stuff, and the female vocal harmonies were on occasion utterly out-of-this-world. And tUnE-yArDs was worth the price of admission alone- I've rarely, if ever seen someone with such incredible vocal control. She does some very unusual things with her voice, and uses loop pedals, a ukulele and a drum to create a sound akin to a one-woman Animal Collective. Certainly left-field, but rather brilliant- the greatest support band discovery I've made in 2009.

(Photo: David Emery (Flickr)