Not Many Experts

A certain amount of time ago that feels like last week, Liverpool Sound City announced the third addition of artists to the line up. Now, it’s a week later (you could have worked that out), and I’m still as excited an A&R who’s just met a band of malleable, integrity-lacking, but good looking indie lads with guitars and that, so I was forced to conclude that whether or not you’re up for the trek up to Liverpool, spilling some words on 5 of the most en-vogue and exciting British indie artists, and, err, the Young Knives, just couldn’t be a bad thing to do.

Trophy Wife

Moshi Moshi have an extensively brilliant roster, but we have to be honest, and as soon as we saw the words ‘Moshi Moshi showcase’, two words sprang to mind – Trophy Wife. Then some more did, like ‘soaring’ and ‘ambitious’ and ‘melodic’ and ‘we honestly don’t care if they sound anything like Foals, nothing has been more exciting in 2011 with the exception of Charlie Sheen’, but then, you probably know the standard Trophy Wife descriptions by now. If not, they took a step further into realising potential and proving expectation with the release of the “The Quiet Earth/White Horses” single on Monday, and you should definitely listen to it if you have any interest at all in soaring and ambitiously melodic indie that sounds quite like Foals. Here’s an indication of its quality: we bought it. With real money that was spent slaving away in a kitchen whilst being forced to listen to Robbie Williams. Hard earned cash, in other words.

Trophy Wife – The Quiet Earth

Dutch Uncles

Dutch Uncles confuse us, but in such a way that we’re only fascinated by their apparent attitude that typical song structures just aren’t a good idea. You get the feeling that if they met Brandon Flowers they’d dismember him and make sweet music with the severed results.  Off kilter drums still drum and bright guitars still guitar, but in ways that few others have even considered. Track by track, they’re proving that their left-field approach to guitar pop makes perfect sense, if you think about it. And if they kill Brandon Flowers in the process, we’ll definitely buy their album.

Dutch Uncles – Lovebone by Not Many Experts

Fixers

Indie credentials are earnt in a variety of ways. For instance, my fringe is so long that it falls into my mouth with the minimum of effort (this doesn’t impress as many people as it should do – do they know how many months of doing nothing this requires?), but, at the moment, there is no quicker way to find yourself onto the page of every left-of-mainstream media than being from Oxford and saying the words ‘Blessing Force’. Fixers, though, have been carving psychadelica-tinged indie-epics into the city long before it started becoming so popular. BBC introducing slots have turned into 2-page NME features, and even features on Not Many Experts, and with support like that, well, superstardom beckons. Maybe not, but there are only a few Fixers songs circulating, so if you really want to know where they’re going to end up in the economic hegemony of indie bands, you’ll just have to come and see their live set yourself.

Iron Deer Dream by Fixers.

Young Knives

Young Knives probably aren’t cool, which could be a problem because we kind of think we are, but surely it’s even cooler not to care and like un-cool bands? Isn’t that the whole premise of being truly indie? Someone ask Joe Lean, we can only aspire to be that cutting edge one of these days. Until then, we’re happy to admit that their fantastically English and eccentric debut, the musical equivalent of chatting to a druid in a pub over a pint of fish & chips, was one of our favourite albums back in the day. But then we also liked the Pigeon Detectives… This is yet more confusing than Dutch Uncles. Their forthcoming album has been talked up a lot, and is being billed an experimental step away from their rather conventional second album, so we’ll just have to get along to see them to work out whether they’re an embarrassing piece of our past or part of our musical upbringing. We’re leaning towards the latter, based only on the completely shockingly superb (shocking only in that it is so, so superb) new single, “Love My Name”.

Love My Name by Young Knives

Wolf Gang

Possibly the only indie artist to be catapulted into underground hip-hop’s consciousness due to a complicated similarity to the Gang Wolf hip hop “crew”, which is apparently a computation too far for some Tyler the Creator lovers. They’re not big fans of his chart-bound (surely?) singles, either, which is understandable – he doesn’t even threaten to kill Bruno Mars or any others who are already up there in those charts, but his truly unique voice and contagious choruses are threatening to get him there, regardless. This video of him performing his next single “Dancing With The Devil” with Kyla la Grange should remove any doubt.

Wolf Gang – Dancing With The Devil

Ed Sheeran

If “Lately” isn’t UK grime’s own “The Next Episode” by the end of this year I’ll… Do absolutely nothing, except be quite shocked. I’ll probably get over it, mind, but I find it unlikely that I’ll have to; the combination of his DIY credibility (he found his latest self-released EP in iTunes’ album chart simply through word of mouth), contemporary production, and “Lately”s accessibility will appeal to everyone but the most close-minded. Catch him here for the price of the festival wristband before you have to excavate £20 and spend the night in the company of 13 year old girls (that is not supposed to be appealing, and if you disagree, you’re either 15 or a paedophile) in order to see him.

Just as a sign of how seriously his label are taking him – I tried to upload “Lately” to SoundCloud for you, and it was pre-emptively blocked, which is something I’ve never seen before. Clearly, they’re expecting to make a load of cash from the track, and why shouldn’t they. Listen to it here, instead. Or even, this one.

Looks like you’ll be needing a festival wristband, surely?

It would be easy to construct a case for Liverpool having gone through a musical revolution in the past few years, sort of like the Egyptian revolution, just with fewer camel charges and more burnt down venues. (In fact, so easy would it be to make a case that that’s exactly what Getintothis did, and very, very well, too) Mere years ago young & old people from the city gifted with discerning music taste floated the city hoping for the announcement of gigs from the bands of the day who’s tours seemed to travel the entire country, whilst skilfully circumventing Liverpool as if it were a foreign country or leper colony.

Things have changed. The many, many contributory reasons are cross-examined in far more comprehensive detail than I am able to at the link above, but without a doubt, the ascendancy of Liverpool Sound City has a lot to answer for. In a good way. The success of the festival itself is complex and, frankly, irrelevant, but a diverse and exciting line-up, along with venues crammed with character and the successful organisation and structure have much to do with it. As a result, all of the right tour managers, promoters and bands have been passing through Liverpool; and the festival itself has provided an excuse for the city’s ears to drag their friends into a slightly less mainstream world of music.

This year, again, will provide an opportunity for this process to continue, and if the announcement of the first acts are anything to go by (which… they are, of course) then it looks like the success of the festival itself is beyond doubt this year. Below is a deliciously listenable compilation of our picks from the first announcements, but before we go, it’s worth mentioning that this year the dramatic decision has been made to make all shows wristband-only shows which… may or may not be a good decision, we’re no experts (no pun intended) and it is unimportant – from May 19th many of the most promising names in music shall be in Liverpool, so bring your camels, comrades – it looks a lot like this particular “revolution” is continuing for another year, at least.

Wristbands are cheaper than 11 double cheeseburgers from Hardman’s at £35, until March 1st when, presumably, the price will go up. So if you’ve already pre-ordered The King of Limbs, then what could you possibly be waiting for? Water is free on tap by law and  food is a bit of an unnecessary luxury so get cracking.

Tracks after le jumpe, comrades.

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You have probably noticed by now our tendency to introduce our favourite music by tenuously linking it to frustratingly dead end but thought provoking discussions about weighty topics such as the state of the music industry today / the culture of music blogs / how is it so possible for so many people to like Scouting For Girls. That’s all well and good, and we do enjoy pretending to know what’s going on, but sometimes, just sometimes, possibly at about 2 in the morning, we just feel the need to say: this, without a doubt, is a fucking amazing song. (and an equally encouraging album as well)

This is absolutely how I feel about Archie Bronson Outfit’s “Hoola” right now. (and the attached album, “Coconut”) There’s no way that, in this state, I can forge even a questionable link between it and the depressing state of music consumption today, or the future of the music industry. Quite simply, “Hoola” is one of those essential songs that you’ll look back on a years time and see how it defined a short period of your life. It’s a song that the repeat button was made for. It’s the sort of tune that you’ll look forward to all night as you grind it out (attempt to pass the time, not embarrassing hip gyration) at yet another average party.

Two fairly lengthy paragraphs down and I’ve not yet managed to even faintly describe what “Hoola”, or “Coconut” sounds like. But then, all of the above is just what the song means to me, and any ridiculous attempt to describe it would just again, be my interpretation. Ultimately, why would you bother reading clumsy words (it’s clear that words were almost definitely not invented to precisely describe music) when you can listen to it yourself and form your own opinions? In that sense, music journalism really is fucking useless. I’m not here to tell you what to think, just to recommend music that I genuinely love, but it’s up to your to establish your own position. Strangely, I seem to have gone from discussing how I’m not going to end up in a philosophical back alley this time, to ending up completely unintentionally in my pseudo-philosophical back alley. I just hope that you’re listening to “Hoola” by now – they’re 3 minutes of your life that you’re not going to want to get back from me.

PS: If you thought that was even slightly average, then you need to get “Coconut” in your life as well – it comes out on Monday on Domino, and we all know how everyone is swimming in money at the moment and all that, so crack out a wad of 10s. And oh yeah, it really is very very good. A proper description? Nah. Not only do I genuinely believe what I wrote above about forming your own opinions and trusting recommendations, but it has surpassed the 2 o’clock that I mentioned and I will not last much longer.

PPS: Lucky inhabitants of Liverpool can catch Archie Bronson Outfit in an incredible line up with Oh No Ono and White Hinterland on 19.05.10 and can get rid of more of that money stuff here. The whole thing is going to be occurring in The Kazimier as well, which is, in my opinion, one of the most original and therefore best venues in the country, and is probably worth the ticket price alone.