The new video for the Junkyard Scientists is available to view online: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=IhmjURQTTv4

Filmed and recorded live (and in one take!) at The Troubador, Earls Court, London, ‘Honeycomb’ is taken from the band’s debut EP available via the band’s MySpace [myspace.com/junkyardscientists].

For the first issue of Liberation Frequency Magazine (due February 09), LF will be running a review of the debut EP for the Scientists, and following up with an exclusive feature of the band for Issue 2, due in April 09!

St Giles Church on the Field

Thursday 20^th November

So I get an email from a friend a few weeks back inviting me to join her at this Andrew Bird gig.  I have never heard of him before and, although I am desperate to see some new music, I ponder if this desire overrules the fact that this purchase will mean the difference between Heinz and Tesco Value tinned soup for dinner for the rest of the month.  In the end, new music wins, I make my purchase and prepare for the malnutrition that lies ahead. 

On my ticket it clearly states the venue as ‘St Giles Church on the Field’.  Yet as my friend and I stumble out of Tottenham Crt tube station, we continue to look for a ‘venue’ and are blown away when we realise that St Giles Church is not just a clever name -  it’s an ACTUAL 300 year old Palladian church.  Once this realization hits, us the speculation starts – will we be sitting in the pews, will the religious theme filter through into the performance, will they demand that all attending make a confession and drink the blood of Christ before vacating the premises?  For someone whose major religious experience was seeing the movie Stigmata when she was 11, a church seems like a strange and eerie choice for a gig.  It is not until we are seated (yes, we were in the stalls) that the potential of this space becomes apparent.  Large chandeliers line the isle, the major part of the interior is encased in darkness, several ethereal light beams descend from the heavens, the stage for the evenings worship is set.

Playing JC to Mr Birds’ Holy Father tonight is Woodpigeon (aka Mark Hamilton, front man of the Canadian band of the same name).  As he ambles onto stage I do a double-take thinking I may have unknowingly walked into a secret Bon Iver gig.  Sorry to support stereotypes but he looks like a typical Canadian – flannel shirt, jeans, burly beard-and-moustache-combo – if he were wielding an axe instead of his acoustic guitar you would think he’d taken a wrong turn and ended up in London instead of on a mountain in the Canadian Rockies somewhere.

But then he opens his mouth…and my oh my, it’s like he’s eaten an angel!  Lush, haunting, tender yet still powerful, Woodpigeon’s voice is an unexpected surprise for all in earshot.  And it is not only his appearance that puts me in mind of Bon Iver, his songs are as raw and captivating as his beard-sporting contemporary with an air of modesty and minimalism that recalls memories of early Elliot Smith.  Plus this man clearly knows the key ingredient to any good musical performance - a Scotsman on a ukulele – who joins him for one of the more up-tempo numbers in the set.  My only complaint about Woodpigeon is that his set is too short.  As he leaves the stage I look to my friend to confirm ‘is that it?’ but only see her back as she makes a b-line for the merch stall.  We were both completely sold. 

So we have had our entree, our palettes have been prepped.  The pigeon went down a treat and now we’re ready for the main course.  Although we’re unaware of exactly what type of bird we’re in for, we’re all eager to find out (whatever it is, I’m sure it’ll taste like chicken).  Just to give an idea of the hype surrounding this guy, London Independent predicated that ‘Bird could do for independent American music what Tarantino did for independent American film’ - bet you the artist in question went and bought a lottery ticket the day he received a review like that.  Does he live up to the hype though?  For me, this is a grey area.

Clearly the man’s got talent.  He steps onto the stage, violin in hand, and proceeds to shock the audience into a state of utter awe with his ten minute, instrumental opening number.  The set list is made up of mainly new material from his forthcoming album, Noble Beasts, with which the audience seems suitably enchanted.  A classically trained violinist, his ease with switching between plucking and bowing is enviable as well as his effortless inclusion of acoustic guitar.  His vocals are complex, rich and layered thanks to the use of three looping peddles used to create melodies that the Beach Boys would be proud of.  His voice puts me in mind of Rufus Wainwright while his uncanny whistling ability and quirky banter also provide highlights.  It is clear that the live arena is where Andrew Bird’s songs come alive. 

So far so good right?  When something is so good though, there is always the risk of having too much of said good thing.  While I loved Andrew’s music and was suitably impressed by his skills, I couldn’t help feeling the set drag toward the end.  In any artistic pursuit, the line between good and great is a fine one and is defined by one factor – knowing when to say when.  

Had he rounded off his set a half hour earlier (it came in at one hour, forty minutes), I would have left satisfied with a desire to hunt down more of Bird’s music in the future.  But by the time it wound up, my arse was numb (the novelty of the pews wore off after about fifteen minutes) and the songs had, inevitably, started to blend into one another.  This is often the trouble with folk-based solo performers.  It’s almost as if they’re scared to change the tried and tested format of the thing for which they are known.  Although understandable, when playing to an audience for nearly two hours, even the most experienced gig-goer will become impatient upon hearing songs using the same instrumentation and similar vocal patterns.  This is especially true for those of us not previously familiar with Birds’ work.  However, the addition of a few guitar-heavy tracks toward the end of the set does liven things up enough for the audience to demand an encore, including a Bob Dylan cover to top things off.

Overall a quality performance but a little fat trimming could go a long way.

by Lee Spencer

Liberation Frequency are proud to announce brand new tour dates for new friends and favourites of LF - Junkyard Scientists.  The 7-piece London/Reading-based band take their blend of uptempo funk and soul to the following venues for a seasoned live show that will have you scrambling for more.
13 Sep 2008 20:00 Graffiti Breakz @ Purple Turtle, Camden

17 Sep 2008 20:00 Bar Rhumba, Shaftesbury Avenue, London

23 Oct 2008 20:00 TROUBADOUR, London

Liberation Frequency will be completing a new feature on the Junkyard Scientists next week, which will include a review of the band’s brand new EP, which we hope will go a long way to converting any non-believers.

For more info on Junkyard Scientists, please visit their MySpace.

If you’re in London on July 25th and you’re interested in seeing a heartfelt, raw, outsider musical performance

then you should go watch Daniel Johnston perform at the indigO2 (although being “supported & backed by Sparklehorse, Scout Niblett, James McNew of Yo La Tengo, Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub & Jad Fair of Half Japanese” means he’s losing the “outsider” label, I think). Expect: the absolute trumping of style by honest emotion.

I saw Johnston perform at the Union Chapel last summer and it was one of the most moving things I’ve ever seen. I’ve subsequently acquired Johnston’s entire recorded output, all 30+ albums of it. I’d be going to this for sure if I wasn’t going to be in Paris seeing Tom Waits. More info on Daniel Johnston here and here.

Next you should check out Lez Zeppelin. A truly awesome all-female Led Zeppelin cover band. I saw them a while back, and they rocked. They’re playing the King’s College London student union on 30-Oct-08. Tickets are only £11.50. I’ve got mine. [Buy tickets]

You should also see Bob Log III. If you don’t know who Bob is you’re going to find it hard to believe my description: he ’s a one-man-band playing lightning-fast slide guitar blues. Wearing overalls. And a motorcycle helmet. Into which is inserted an old telephone receiver. Which serves as his microphone. And he’ll probably perform a song called “Boob Scotch” which requires a woman from the audience to dip a nipple into his glass.

For taste. In the sensory sense of the word, obviously, and not the classy sense of the word. Seeing Bob is a weird experience (I’ve done it twice), but if you’re up for some trashy super-distorted lightning-fast guitar work, drop a few pounds and go see him. Unfortunately he’s not playing London, but those in Bristol, Nottingham (each £8.50), Brighton, Manchester (each £8), Leicester (£7) or Newcastle (£10) can check him out. [Buy tickets] or [Buy tickets]

Lastly, a few years ago when director Gore Verbinski and actor Johnny Depp were working on Pirates of the Carribean 2 they came up with the idea of releasing an album of sea shanties. That idea came to light as Rogue’s Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs and Chanteys, a double-album of shanties interpreted by artists like Nick Cave, Sting, Bono, Jarvis Cocker and Lou Reed.

I didn’t know the album’s legacy when a friend brought it to my attention shortly after it came out, but I really enjoyed it on its own merits. I grew up in a maritime area with a strong tradition of sea shanties and the tunes on this album immediately apealed to me (though many are too racy to have been sung in polite company).

I’ve just now discovered that there’s going to be a live performance of some of the album’s songs at the Barbican

later this month. I’m gutted, though, because I’ll be in Canada at the time. Anyone in London who’s interested should check it out; it will definitely be a raucous and unique singalong evening.

Photo of Daniel Johnston from Swansea Photographer via Creative Commons license
Photo of Bob Log III from timburts via Creative Commons license
Photo of musical pirates from ☞ Russell via Creative Commons license

Firm friend and favourite of Liberation Frequency, Poppy Seed, performs at London’s premier acoustic night.  Each week the Halo presents an array of acoustic artists - 4 carefully selected musicians perform original material along with a few well loved covers.

Tuesday 29th July 2008 08:30 PM - ’On Stage’ @ Halo Bar 
317 Battersea Park Road
Battersea, London and South East SW11 4LT
UK
Cost: Free before 7.30pm, £5 after.

Poppy Seed have been invited back to the Halo Bar next time to do a FULL evening on 20th September 2008.

This may be one of the final few occassions for a while to see Poppy Seed live, as work resumes in August and recording will be ongoing towards next year’s anticipated follow-up to ‘Coming Through’.

Clicke here to read our feature on Poppy Seed.

I joined some pals at the Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen last night to catch Alice Smith again. I won’t re-review everything, but I will say it was an even better show than the other night. It was livelier, hotter, and a less sterile (i.e., a bar) environment. Alice gave it a little more oomph, and looked funky in her ’50s-ish polka-dot skirt. Make sure you catch her the next time she’s close to you.

You’d have to be living in a cave to not have heard about the surprising and controversial headline act for this year’s event.

Noel Gallagher certainly made his feelings felt on the matter after being quoted as saying, “Glastonbury has a tradition of guitar music and even when they throw the odd curve ball in on a Sunday night you go ‘Kylie Minogue?’ I don’t know about it. But I’m not having hip-hop at Glastonbury. It’s wrong.”

Jay Z maintained a dignified silence throughout but certainly felt like saying … or singing … his response as he opened his set.  If you haven’t seen it, then prepare for a giggle:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrDIOVXx-y8

Smile, Noel, at least he used a guitar…!

Nine Inch Nails have made a media splash lately by (a) releasing albums on a new schedule that can be contrasted with the old by replacing the word “years” with “months”, and (b) giving some of those albums (the first volume of Ghosts, and The Slip) away for free.

NIN is now getting ready to hit the road in North America. A European leg will hopefully follow. Recent live line-up members Josh Freese (drums) and Alessandro Cortini (keyboards, strange boxes with switches) will return to the stage. Former Beck bass player Justin Meldal-Johnson has been brought on board.

And, for the old-school fans, guitarist Robin Finck is back in the NIN fold. It must have been hard to give up that heavy Guns ‘n’ Roses touring schedule.

To get a taste of the new lineup, the brains (actually, now the brawn) behind NIN, Trent Reznor, has released three good-quality videos of the band doing some live practice sessions. Check them out at Pitchfork.

Just posted in the Reviews section.

London fans still beaming from the brilliance of Prince’s 21-night residency at the O2 last summer, can relive the experience with ‘21 Nights‘ - an interactive book being released by Prince this year cataloguing his stint with over 120 photos, plus an accompanying CD entitled, ‘Indigo Nights‘ made up of highlights from his IndigO2 performances.

No official release date has been announced, but it sounds like a treasure in the making.