Artist: Matthew Dear
Album: Black City
Record Label: Ghostly International
Rating: 3.5 stars
Matthew Dear’s fourth full length studio album has left us a bit confused, and we’re not certain how we feel about this record. That is no surprise, really, if you’re any follower of the man with more aliases than one can count (Audion and False, for instance). In continuing tradition from his 2007 release Asa Breed, Dear delivers vocals on Black City as well. One minute, we are completely in love with his deep, droning – slightly disconnected if not robotic – Nick Cave reminiscent vocal delivery, and the other we’re not very sure how we feel about the 1980’s throwback of the Grace Jones kind. However, the sonic peculiarity of this record goes beyond that. Dear has taken Asa Breed’s gauze disco feel to a darker place and draws beautifully from the playfulness of Zappa, Bowie and Eno – and if deconstructed long enough, the daddies of them all, Kraftwerk (particularly in the swamptronica track Shortwave). But that’s not the end of the 80’s influence – You Put A Smell On Me brings back the New Beat with its hard-hitting industrial dance sound. Slowdance, on the other hand, is a bit disturbing with a dark vocal pattern in a peculiar retro-futuristic way. In Black City, Dear has produced a very engaging album, thoroughly enjoyable and most fun to dismember into all its various constituents. The latter, however, is what keeps us from being generous with our love for the record – once all the elements are separated from the tracks, there isn’t much left to love.
~
(Originally Published in The Sunday Guardian, Delhi: August 29, 2010)
Sunday, August 29, 2010
What started as a club night in a London’s 93 Feet East in 2002, hosted by Groove Armada, has quickly grown into one of the most looked forward to alternative music events in the UK. In a span of eight years, the event has expanded to a span of 3 days and attracts some of the best Indie acts from across the world – a variety of acts from various music genres – electronic, rock, folk, etc – as well as circus performers, cabarets and other fringe acts.
Since it started, Lovebox has hosted acts like Goldfrapp, The Flaming Lips, Duran Duran, Simian Mobile Disco, N.E.R.D, the New York Dolls, and of course, Groove Armada, among others. Its 2009 edition marked a special event in the life of the Indian indie music industry with Raghu Dixit becoming the first Indian artiste to be invited to perform at the festival. Following in Dixit’s footsteps this year is folk band Swarathma, who played at Lovebox and two other music festivals – Larmer Tree and the Bedford river Festival – in the UK last week. Fresh on the return from their international sojourn, Swarathma is full of excitement at the prospects of Indian bands in the global market. Their second visit to perform in the UK, the band’s management at Only Much Louder has been stepping it up with the promotion – getting them a cool new iPhone application as well recently.
A folk band, Swarathma is possibly more widely known for the “act” they bring on every time they take the stage. What with a typical Rajasthani puppet Ghori and all the colourful clothing, and all that. The folk elements they use on stage – and in their music – know no regional boundaries. They might be from Bengaluru, but they’re open to using baul instruments and Rajasthani props along with drums and bass to create an act they think represents their music and their sensibilities. “We think making folk art contemporary by fusing it with the western influences most of us have grown up with is the most effective way to keep the folk alive” says Jishnnu Dasgupta, who plays the bass and delivers backing vocals for the band.
Swarathma believe that the response from an international audience is always interesting and mostly follows the same three step course – first, there’s curiosity, then comes the warming up as crowds begin to get on their feet and move a little and finally appreciation, since by the end of the show everyone’s swooning to the music, even if they don’t understand the language. And that’s exactly what they felt at Lovebox as well.
Ask them about the stage act that manages to get them a fair amount of accusations of banking on exoticism, and the response is crisp: It does help in the beginning but listeners wouldn’t stay if they didn’t like what the music. “It’s no longer possible for us to separate the act from the music. International audiences particularly appreciate if you carry an essence of who you are and where you come from with you” Jishnu points out. Straight from the horse’s mouth, as they would say.
~
(Originally Published in The Sunday Guardian, Delhi)
Since it started, Lovebox has hosted acts like Goldfrapp, The Flaming Lips, Duran Duran, Simian Mobile Disco, N.E.R.D, the New York Dolls, and of course, Groove Armada, among others. Its 2009 edition marked a special event in the life of the Indian indie music industry with Raghu Dixit becoming the first Indian artiste to be invited to perform at the festival. Following in Dixit’s footsteps this year is folk band Swarathma, who played at Lovebox and two other music festivals – Larmer Tree and the Bedford river Festival – in the UK last week. Fresh on the return from their international sojourn, Swarathma is full of excitement at the prospects of Indian bands in the global market. Their second visit to perform in the UK, the band’s management at Only Much Louder has been stepping it up with the promotion – getting them a cool new iPhone application as well recently.
A folk band, Swarathma is possibly more widely known for the “act” they bring on every time they take the stage. What with a typical Rajasthani puppet Ghori and all the colourful clothing, and all that. The folk elements they use on stage – and in their music – know no regional boundaries. They might be from Bengaluru, but they’re open to using baul instruments and Rajasthani props along with drums and bass to create an act they think represents their music and their sensibilities. “We think making folk art contemporary by fusing it with the western influences most of us have grown up with is the most effective way to keep the folk alive” says Jishnnu Dasgupta, who plays the bass and delivers backing vocals for the band.
Swarathma believe that the response from an international audience is always interesting and mostly follows the same three step course – first, there’s curiosity, then comes the warming up as crowds begin to get on their feet and move a little and finally appreciation, since by the end of the show everyone’s swooning to the music, even if they don’t understand the language. And that’s exactly what they felt at Lovebox as well.
Ask them about the stage act that manages to get them a fair amount of accusations of banking on exoticism, and the response is crisp: It does help in the beginning but listeners wouldn’t stay if they didn’t like what the music. “It’s no longer possible for us to separate the act from the music. International audiences particularly appreciate if you carry an essence of who you are and where you come from with you” Jishnu points out. Straight from the horse’s mouth, as they would say.
~
(Originally Published in The Sunday Guardian, Delhi)
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Cows for Kalashnikovs
“Remember one thing: cows for Kalashnikovs” said a friend through layers of alcohol induced haziness the night before I left for Kenya. I turned to him, as best offended as I could be after four drinks and said, “I’m going to Kenya and Tanzania, which is the safest country in East Africa, thank you. ”
When I finally reached Sofia, the village in Eastern Kenya I was going to stay at for the next month, the first order of business for my hosts was to sit me down and establish some ground rules. I should not walk alone after dark, I should not board any form of public transport and I should not even think about going to any other vilage or town or city without a chaperone.
My eyes were rolled as far back as possible in my head.
It wasn’t many days before I had to head to Nairobi, a 100kms from Sofia, for work. By 6.30 in the evening, I was on my way back, in a matatu – a means of public transport in Kenya that can seat 12 people – with a member of my host family, her constant worryign that it was already dark and how we should’ve just stayed in Nairobi overnight began to make the threat real for me. A little diversion on the road and we’re on to a no-road, when we’re suddenly stopped by about 6 men with big guns. Robbed, within my first week in Kenya. Thankfully only of very little money and all my silver jewellery.
The next three weeks are spent quitely adhering to all the house rules and yet, loving every minute of my stay – working with the kids, interacting with the community. The area has just recently emerged from a 6 year long drought, and the population is half what it used to be, I’m told. Even now there is very little water and most houses don’t have electricity. And then there’s HIV, the village seems to have decided to refers to the infection as “sickness”, and nothing more.
As my four weeks draw to a close, I prepare to head to Tanzania, to the safety of a friend’s house. Finally, the vacation starts. The first weekend is spent in Zanzibar, with it’s pristine beaches and breathtaking sunsets. Freshly returned from heaven, and then from a great seafood dinner, my friend and I are driving past the lonely streets of Dar Es Salaam. A few minutes later, we drive past the Tanzanian President’s house. Before I know it, there are big sickles and a group of men around me and my friend. We don’t want to hurt you, just give us all your stuff. And we oblige, this time we lose more than petty change. Phones, camera, laptop, all our cash, my passport.
Even so, I left my heart in Africa, along with a lot of my stuff.
~
(Originally published in The Sunday Guardian, Delhi)
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Tracy Bonham - Masts of Manhatta
Artist: Tracy Bonham
Album: Masts of Manhatta
Record Label: Lojinx
Rating: 3.5 stars
Since her first album in 1996, Tracy Bonham has been delivering fine alternative pop while maintaining an artistic difference from legends she one wrote songs for. Masts of Manhatta is her fourth album, five years in the works and definitely worth the wait. Bonham’s songwriting and her skills on the violin are no surprise to anyone, but this particular album shows a kind of light hearted maturity that makes it a lot more endearing than her previous records. The record shows a deviation from norm, and from 2005’s haunting Blink the Brightest, in the cleverly defiant song structures and skilful arrangements. Beck’s ex guitarist Smokey Hormel delivers an interesting counter to her otherwise jazz roots creating a delightful urban-rural sound bridge in her music. It is exactly this that she put on the table with what is arguably one of the highlight of the album – We Moved Our City To The Country, a satire on the young fleeing to the cities in search of a faux hip factor. Songs like Big Red Heart make the Beck influence apparent with the angular guitar work in combination with Bonham’s violin. Moonlight and Angel and Won’t You Come Down are perfectly examples of what the record has to offer – wry, witty lyrics combined with an effortlessly bouncy sound.
Album: Masts of Manhatta
Record Label: Lojinx
Rating: 3.5 stars
Since her first album in 1996, Tracy Bonham has been delivering fine alternative pop while maintaining an artistic difference from legends she one wrote songs for. Masts of Manhatta is her fourth album, five years in the works and definitely worth the wait. Bonham’s songwriting and her skills on the violin are no surprise to anyone, but this particular album shows a kind of light hearted maturity that makes it a lot more endearing than her previous records. The record shows a deviation from norm, and from 2005’s haunting Blink the Brightest, in the cleverly defiant song structures and skilful arrangements. Beck’s ex guitarist Smokey Hormel delivers an interesting counter to her otherwise jazz roots creating a delightful urban-rural sound bridge in her music. It is exactly this that she put on the table with what is arguably one of the highlight of the album – We Moved Our City To The Country, a satire on the young fleeing to the cities in search of a faux hip factor. Songs like Big Red Heart make the Beck influence apparent with the angular guitar work in combination with Bonham’s violin. Moonlight and Angel and Won’t You Come Down are perfectly examples of what the record has to offer – wry, witty lyrics combined with an effortlessly bouncy sound.
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