Zombie Zombie, Brighton’s The Hope, 25th July 2010
I'm a Zombie Zombie fan. I saw them first at Bestival in 2008. Then I saw them at The Freebutt in January 2009. I'm a lucky lucky lady.
Zombie Zombie is a band comprised of two.
Zombie one is Etienne Jaumet. Etienne's an electronic analogue Theremin brain chomper. I've also seen him play solo.
Zombie two is Cosmic Neman. Before death, he made himself known in a band called Herman Dune. Yes, I've seen Herman Dune play live too. I was suitably mesmerised by the simply ace drumming of Master Neman. As well as his sticks, Cosmic now boasts an odd electronic voice. He mostly yelps.
At the start of this gig, he spoke. Real words. It seems that Zombie Zombie have invited John Carpenter to live inside the one-bit memory of their one and only keyboard. GEE! The sonic terrain of the next hour would be inspired by the sci-fi master himself, covers an' all.
"Wow", I thought.
Within moments, music stole my cerebral cortex. An undeniable cinematic soundscape penetrated inwards. I sat, captivated, in the front row, on a chair that I'd rebelliously placed there. For the most part, Zombie Zombie's trademark eerie Theremin oscillations and distorted yelps took a back seat. Instead, Etienne and Cosmic created visual imagery with sound. Unbeknownst to me, somewhere in my subconscious John Carpenter resides. He gets everywhere. My mind made unexpected links. I fell into a retro-futuristic trance.
Zombie Zombie have since released a 5 track called 'Plays John Carpenter'. The tracklisting may tempt you to taste. 'Tis here:
1. The Bank Robbery (Taken From 'Escape From New York') 2. Escape From LA Main Theme 3. Assault on Precinct 13 Main Theme (feat. Romain Turzi) 4. Halloween Main Theme 5. The Thing Main Theme
Assault on Precinct 13, as played at The Hope, has kindly been shared on YouTube and has been watched almost 2,000 times as I type. I think about 40 people were at The Hope, if that!
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A wee while ago, I posted up a Zombie Zombie track called "Driving This Road Until Death Sets You Free". The video for this track is simply amazing. It will make you want to get out your old VHS recording of The Thing.
Yes, it's a remake of John Carpenter's movie "The Thing", in stop motion, with G.I. Joes. Blinding!
The Kissaway Trail, The Hope in Brighton, 29th September 2010
The Freebutt has been told off for being too noisy. Ya boo sucks to sound leakage. While I signed The Freebutt petition and wish it well, The Kissaway Trail's gig relocation was bloody brilliant. The Hope is now a fabulous live venue. They've spent some cash on a real stage, have a proper lighting rig and even offer ear plugs for all at the bar. I have missed having a small homely gig venue in Brighton since The Freebutt’s terrible refurbishment. Yes, I bleated on about that back in 2008. The Hope now fills that gap. The 2010 setup completes it superbly.
Six musicians filled the stage, with room to dance, in the form of The Kissaway Trail. Perfect songs performed with heartfelt accuracy filled the room. Having spent two weeks in the chaos of moving and in fear of evil landlords, going out to a gig was a big effort for me. In exchange for effort, The Kissaway Trail played a wonderful soul cleansing set. I can quite honestly say they healed me. As I rode my bicycle in relentless rain, a happy contentment carried me home. My soul was blighted no more.
The Kissaway Trail played a number of tracks from the lovely album Sleep Mountain and it was with these they enchanted the room. Their cover of The Pixies 'Where is my Mind' was so sensitively delivered it added further beauty. The strain of vulnerability stole the room.
Don't let me mislead you, for far from being dour, The Kissaway Trail had a ball. They laughed, smiled and let themselves get carried away with their own fierce attention to detail and the great output it creates.
I particularly admire a man that makes it enviable to play two tambourines for an entire set. He played them amazingly well and was so full of life. The bassist was equally expressive. His face said it all. And what does a small homely gig offer? The chance to say "Thanks mate, great gig". To say thanks to the boys from Odense, Denmark, as they walked off the stage, down the stairs and then outside. We were all very thankful.
Ten Thousand Things: the simultaneous connection and independence of everything.
When I said 'wig out' in the office the other day, the music lover I was gabbing to questioned me. "Wig out! Never heard of it, what does it mean?" I explained to the best of my ability. Then I enjoyed the paranoia of doubt.
Later, I checked online. I was wrong. There was an Emily-ism, so to speak. But damn, if I hadn't had to become an inept dictionary, I could have got away with it. At the exact point of the gig I was championing, the musician did wig out.
If you think that's the kind of coincidence that could blow an ant's arse off (yeah, right), since then I've read the term 'wig out' three times; twice in the NME magazine (one issue) and once on the Resonance FM website. Perhaps I'm the source of a word renaissance, or did I respond to a collective thought?
If there was a collective thought, I was a conduit, unaware of true meaning. I may have altered true meaning forever. Perhaps that's my role in my karass.
* A karass is "a team that do[es] God's Will without ever discovering what they are doing." [Kurt Vonnegut, Cat’s Cradle, 1963]
The Joy Formidable and Chapel Club, Brighton's Concorde2, 11th October 2010
Oh Rapture! Oh Joy! Formidable!
The Joy Formidable ARE one of THE best live bands on the circuit. Of this, I have no doubt. They tour and they tour and they tour. What are they like? In one word: Magic! They have earned the right to so much more than headline the NME Radar Tour. Kudos to NME though. One gets the feeling that The Joy Formidable have been on the cusp of breaking through for a long time, but they're just too fond of small venues.
Just listen to The Joy Formidable's live album: First You Have to Get Mad. Live albums usually suck. First You Have to Get Mad does not suck. That's pretty big news. Recorded in September 2009 at The Garage in London Town, it sparkles, it inspires and it's like every TJF gig I've ever seen. One year on and they haven't lost the fervour. They love playing as much as I like watching – it's clear to see - and that's mind blowing.
Selfishly, I love the fact that The Joy Formidable can't fill a venue like Concorde2, even with Chapel Club double headlining. Concorde2 is a lovely venue when half full. It's a horrible sweaty hell hole when tickets sell well. I love being able to get down the front and grin straight into the eyes of my captor. I hate not being able to see their feet. One has to admit that as well as making a glorious racket, The Joy Formidable offer oodles of eye candy.
Okay, Ritzy Bryan (lead vocals, guitar), was right. Rhydian Dafydd's (bassist) lapels were a little pimp-ish, but I liked them. And to you rowdy boys that shouted 'gay' over Ritzy's coy offering of the term 'pimp-ish', me oh my, did she sweetly turn that one around for you? She undid your bad ways and didn't even point the finger.
My show highlights included:
Ritzy's free range wig out. What a minx, entangling herself around her band mate's microphone stand and not giving a damn. Enter stage hands. The girl ain't gonna sort it out, she's too busy having fun.
Ritzy provoking Rhydian with her axe woman guitar jives and hip to hip jostling, with Rhydian finally relenting to some joyous sparring at the final hurdle.
The pedal board blowing and instead of leaving it to the stage hands, Ritzy dives straight in there. Her actions declared "This is my board, I know how it ticks."
The tremendous drumming of Matt Thomas. This man is drumming his way into the earth's core. I think he might coerce the earth's polarity to swap prematurely while it attempts to dance.
The band's pleasure that so many of us had downloaded their Christmas track last year (we must all be on their mailing list).
The encore. Always please the audience and not the venue. Damn the curfew.
The Joy Formidable are charming, accessible, enthusiastic and amazingly talented. They charm, they smile and they banter. They create a sound, that while dark and brooding, is so intensely bright it melts my mind. They caress, they tease and they triumph. I would usually criticise any guitarist that masturbates with the strings on stage. Yes, the instrumental rock out. Yet – in my humble experience of their performances – Ritzy entered that zone more than ever. I forgive her. Why? She looked so damn good and so damn happy, and for the most part it was pretty pleasing on the ear.
As for Chapel Club, they've improved. Chapel Club's Lewis Bowman is a contradiction; perhaps quite genuinely so. This was more apparent at Glastonbury than during their 30minute NME Radar Tour set. On Tuesday, Jack-the-lad was Jack-in-the-box and a little more out of sight. Instead, of being a geezer, Lewis made middle class references to poetry. An outward character more at home with deep rich vocals and Morrissey-like posturising.
Judged against their tent in a field set, Chapel Club seem less like a wannabe broody cash cow, invented purely to claim the next dark alt.rock dollar and a tasty slice of stardom. While they appeared a little more genuine, I'm yet to be convinced. Bowman has the voice, but he doesn't appear to have the depth of character to back it. He's articulate, cocky and perhaps far too self-assured. Knowing words I can't pronounce, and enjoying a little Byron, doesn't mean his soul is deep or his lyrics poetic. But being cocksure will probably get him a long way.
Yes a bona fide geek, I picked up a The Joy Formidable set list! Here it is:
Spectrum The Magnifying Glass I Don't Want To See You Like This The Greatest Light Is The Greatest Shade Austere Ostrich Greyhounds In The Slips My Beerdrunk Soul Is Sadder Than A Hundred Dead Christmas Trees The Last Drop Whirring
And for the encore, I believed they played: Cradle Anemone
This week is 'Fabulous Ladies Week'. Tonight I will be at the NME Radar tour for my fourth live viewing of The Joy Formidable.
Yes, I can't get enough of Ritzy Bryan!
How do I become Ritzy Bryan? a. Play guitar like you love it, mean it and are it. b. Fill as many pedal boards as will fit on stage and use them to create sonic delight. c. Sing like a fallen goddess. d. Grow a smart blond bob. e. Be drop dead gorgeous with ease and never show you know it. f. Take note of your audience. When they all grin at you, grin back.
On Thursday I am seeing Josie Long for my second live viewing or perhaps my fifth. I'm not sure what counts!
Yes, I can't get enough of Josie Long!
How do I become Josie Long? a. Marvel at the amazing, and the amazing is often in front of your nose. b. Use your stomach as a canvas, lift your top and show your art to the world. c. Be coy about being funny. d. Be coy about being clever. e. Will the world to be a better place without being earnest. f. Be the same in real life as you are on stage.
I like a gal who:
With the morning sun, strolls along a woody pathway, snapping bracken and declaring both her ignorance and an impassioned desire to learn poetry.
At midday performs to hundreds in the guise of a Bluewater shopper that 'goes up space', fielding questions about her ridiculously far-fetched astronautic venture.
As the day closes, thoroughly amuses herself - on a stage full of drunken comedians - providing random backing sounds for a Killer Crabs on the Rampage reading romp. 'Wow, are we really doing this? It's amazing!' That face said it all and, yes Josie, you did.
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Smiling in the face of adversity. I'm finally free of bullying landlords. It's so bloody brilliant I can't stop tingling with full body smiles.
I've seen hundreds of bands in tiny venues. Some go on to headline festivals. A greater number never find their way out of the fleapits. Many are bloody brilliant. I love going to gigs. When I get it together, I sometimes rave about good gigs here.
This is the stuff and nonsense of my life. You are welcome to visit as little or often as you like. I have no RSS or site feed, so read my words here or read another's elsewhere. Live a good life. This is just a blog.
On emilyfabpants.blogspot.com you will find links that lead to MP3 audio files. These files are stored somewhere else on the Internet and are not part of this website. Emily Fabpants does not carry any responsibility for them. Emily Fabpants does not store or make available for download any audio and/or video files herself. Please buy the music if you like it or pay to see the artist at a live show. Most of all, enjoy.
