D Says… Listen up y’all…

Whilst I face the trials and tribulations with my non-existent love life at present I, like most, find solace and hope within my relationship with music. I have a constant nagging thirst to find more and more artists whom I feel an affiliation with.

I yearn to be open-minded and unbiased in my quest in the unchartered realms. Like love there’s a constant chase, a pursuit of sorts, to find a band that you can latch onto and drain every last meaningful note and lyric from and apply it to your own infinitesimal existence.

This summer I had a fling with a five-piece from Atlanta named Manchester Orchestra. I felt that instantaneous bond to their music which was on the most part down to the gently soothing voice of lead singer/guitarist Andy Hull. He is subtle and docile in the quiet sections before bellowing with a compelled compassion in the strident choruses. It’s also true that he looks like a dishevelled hobo, the type which sits by cash points, dog and all, hoping for a stranger compassionate enough to part with, well, a note I guess (not likely).

I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing them at Leeds Festival this year. My dictaphone shat all over it as the playback is disgustingly terrible quality and non-transcriptional. I was gutted, I’m going to try and transcribe it again sometime but it just grinds my gears. Otherwise I felt we had a really good rapport going on.

I bled both their albums dry over the summer and occasionally play them through now – hence the term fling. It’s my entire fault – the music is still charming in its simplicity and vigorously forceful in its build ups – I just over listened I think. I read a press release today about their new video for Shake It Out and I had a little booty call with them in iTunes.

I just thought I’d share the love. Open up Spotify and listen to both their albums; I’m Like A Virgin Losing A Child and Mean Everything To Nothing. Then if you like that check out Mr Hull’s side project Right Away, Great Captain!

Shake It Out – Manchester Orchestra – MySpace Videos

Manchester Orchestra MySpace

Right Away, Great Captain! MySpace

D

D says… check zis band…

CANTERBURY

It’s been fucking ages since I’ve been excited (in a totally sexual way) about a new British band. To actually listen to something that has the pizzazz of originality is seriously rejuvenating. Their new album – Thank You – has been made available for free on their website. I’ll be honest, it’s beyond me why it has no price tag – not that it’s a bad album – just it ain’t exactly In Rainbows.

I dunno if the motive for releasing it free was a whole middle-finger-fuck-you-corporate-wankers thingy, or whether it was literally just to get the album out there and listened to. I’ll try ask them some day. Meanwhile lets focus on the content.

It’s kinda surreal, there are those wistful Explosions In The Sky post-rock intros and relapses, the intro to Diver wouldn’t be amiss on the Friday Night Lights soundtrack. Then you have Hospital with its Brian Wilson Beach Boys surf vibe and sing along hooks. Set Your Right, on the other hand, has an electro feel whilst Hometime has a hammering piano Panic At The Disco’esque charm.

This album is truly a pick ‘n’ mix of genres and you’d be an absolute mug if you didn’t go and download the shit out of it right now.

Seriously, do it. NOW.

Canterbury MySpace

Canterbury Website (For Album Download)

D

D Says… This is the shizzznay.

This is just a stroke of genius…

D

Bring Me The Horizon

I had me first phoner interview the other day. It was Oli Sykes of BMTH – a rather controversial figure in the metal music scene since their breakthrough album ‘Count Your Blessings‘ in 2006. There was that whole unwarranted golden shower incident at Nottingham Rock City a couple of years back, and let’s be honest – we’ll never know if this actually happened – if he did do it then she should be grateful it wasn’t a Cleveland steamer.

Anyway, I was set for the interview with the sketchiest set up ever to record – phone on loud speaker + recording equipment set to record from internal mic = Sketchy. As. Fuck.

I wasn’t so much worried about the interview, just the quality of the recording and whether it would be transcriptional. I even topped up £15 on my phone as I was aware that he was in the land of kraut, despite not really being able to justify spending that much money at a time when my bank balance arsehole feels violated. The phone call ended up costing me 50p.

“Hello” – and so I proceeded to ask if it was “Oliver” – “Yeah, who’s this” – he sounded as enthusiastic as a blind person on November 5th. When I told him I was press he seemed to chirp up a little, I have an inkling they’re trying to revamp his image via interviews (a recent Kerrang! interview highlights my point perfectly). He actually came across as a really sound guy, not arrogant, more… simple.

In all I’d say that it was one of the easier interviews I’v done, only lasting about 10 minutes but got some quotable shit from it. Worth 50p anyway.

Read it here.

D

I’m ‘a do things my way, it’s my way, my way or the A1 Northbound.

Please bear witness to another of my attempts to begin (and update) an online blog, which I doubt many people will read. It occurred to me that there happens to be a minute amount of online publications accommodating a spectrum of what I like to call shit hot music. I thought fuck it. Here goes nothing.

Most of the crap I put on here will be musings of sort. Other stuff will be content that I’ve done for other websites and work which I’ve remodelled to put on here. I’ll be divulging my strife and experiences whilst I try to squeeze my way into the gigantic-fuck-off-corporate-monster-ball-breaking-bum-licking industry.

D