Album Review: Patrick Wolf - 'Lupercalia'

(released on Hideout recordings 20 June '11)

On Wolf's 2007 album 'The Magic Position', he declares "...i'm singing in the major key". It was a marked change in trajectory for the traditionally melancholic folk tapestries that secured himself two critically praised albums (his debut was recorded whilst he was still 17 years old), but for the most part, it showed another dimension to the artist, although he reverted back to his more dark roots for follow-up 'The Bachelor'. Thus, 'Lupercalia' (named after an old festival of cleansing and romanticism) presents itself largely as a departure from Wolf's earlier work, even more so than 'The Magic Position'. It's undoubtedly his most positive and uplifting effort, and several tracks appear to sit comfortably with other mainstream artists on radio.

Opener 'The City' is a perfect example; boasting handclaps, saxophone solos, and a joyous Wolf refrains 'top of the morning' before a sing-a-long chorus whilst some light instrumentation helps create the most radio-friendly track in his arsenal. It's followed by 'House', which reaffirms Wolf's desires for pop stardom, and with his ability to create such beautiful major key melodies, it's difficult to see why this hasn't happened already - the final minute of the track in particular is one of the album's finest moments, where the violins soar with the vocals instead of overpowering them. 

As lush the instrumentation (all recorded live by an orchestra this time around) is  - such as the strings on 'Time of My Life' and the cliched brass on 'The City' - 'Lupercalia' is strongest when Wolf strips everything down and gives his vocals a chance to take centre stage, such as in the gorgeous folk song 'Armistice', and 'Slow Motion'. The former track in particular is the strongest on the record, made so by the inclusion of the Duduk, and a subtle grand piano, which really allows Wolf to deliver a truly heartfelt vocal performance as he sings 'Comreedhoo, when the night is long' - it stands as the most similar track to Wolf's back-catalogue.

Lyrically however, the similarities end completely. Whereas Wolf's previous records have been characterised by a strong storytelling element, on 'Lupercalia', he seems to settle for sub-par saccharin lyrics, which is always a danger with records concerning love. On 'Together', he sings 'i can do this alone, but we can do this so much better together', and on 'House' he proclaims 'love makes house a home'. For the most part, the underwhelming and generic lyrical matter brings the music down, which is surprising for an artist such as Wolf. 

However, there are few occasions where 'Lupercalia' also falls sonically. Interlude track 'William' simply contains too many scrambled beats and a random arabic vocal which, in the space of fifty seconds, is too much, especially since they seem to be placed in the track without much thought. 'Together' demonstrates Wolf's attempt at avant-garde dance-pop, but ultimately falls flat and the dance beat ruins the theme of the album as it draws to a close.

Because of the many stylistic changes of each of Wolf's records, it makes it difficult to determine whether this effort is better or worse, but to do so is redundant; 'Lupercalia' is certainly another success for Patrick Wolf, but it is fair to say it may be his least consistent work. Still, he is one of few artists that continue to surprise and still please his audience, and that in itself is a triumph. 

★★★★★★★
(Download: 'House', 'The City', 'Armistice')

(watch the video for single 'House' below)

Zola Jesus Releases New Track

Dark avant-garde pop artist Zola Jesus recently released the new single off her upcoming follow-up 'Conatus', which plans on continuing the dark balladry of critically received 'Stridulum II', but this time taking a more industrial route as shown through 'Vessel', which crawls it's way through an uneasy minimal electronic beat, guided by the powerful vocals of Nika Danilova. The highlight of the track appears towards the end, as the drum beats begin to speed up and the electronics start to lose control before it dissipates, and we're reminded of just how good Zola Jesus is at freaking us all out. Expect 'Conatus' to be released September 26th.

Zola Jesus - Vessel by souterraintransmissions

Imogen Heap Releases New Track

So far this year, Grammy Award winning electronica artist Imogen Heap has followed up her gorgeous third LP 'Ellipse' with a more fan-incorporating project. In the space of about a month, Imogen plans to create a song using fan-submitted lyrics, sounds, and samples, which will be used as 'seeds'. She plans on repeating the process until she collects an album of songs. Though it may come across as slightly 'gimmicky', it's yet another example of how the Imogen continues to push boundaries. Listen to the second song of this project, 'Propeller Seeds' below, with it's beautiful accompanying video. It's slightly more understated and 'back-to-basics' for the artist but still keeps Imogen's trademark vocals and delicate arrangements. 

Band Crush: The History of Apple Pie

The History of Apple Pie are a new five-piece indie-pop band from London who make perfect summer tunes with their jangly guitar playing and dreamy vocals. They've been mentioned by such peers as Yuck and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and fans of those two bands will find much to love here. Check out the cute video for their debut single 'You're So Cool' below.

S.C.U.M Unveil Debut Album

They've been on the scene for about two years now, but finally London post-punk five-piece S.C.U.M have revealed plans to release their critically anticipated debut album, 'Again Into Eyes' on September 12th. Expect mixes of gothic, ambient, punk, and shoegaze influences, reflected in their latest single 'Amber Hands' - the video to which can be watched below. Known for their impressive live shows, I shall be catching them perform at Field Day in August, one of their few festival appearances this year. 

The Drums Release Comeback Single 'Money'

The Drums - Money by WorkItMedia

Out of nowhere comes the new single from The Drums, who made quite an impact last year with their self-titled indie surf-pop debut. In recent interviews, frontman Jonathan Pierce commented that the 2010 album was 'naive'. This new track, 'Money', definitely shows the band's response to this, and the result is a less cheesy, more understated track, which still retains the immediacy of their earlier work.

There's several new additions to this latest offering; as well as the presence of minimal new-wave style synthesisers there's also some brass towards the end, further suggestive of a more 'mature' direction. Look out for the new album 'Portamento' due September 12th. Here's the tracklist:


'Book Of Revelation'
'Days'
'What You Were'
'Money'
'Hard To Love'
'I Don’t Know How To Love'
'Searching For Heaven'
'Please Don’t Leave'
'If He Likes It Let Him Do It'
'I Need A Doctor'
'In The Cold'
'How It Ended'

Album Review: The Horrors - 'Skying'

(released on XL recordings 11 July '11)

Despite many a mixed opinion on the Essex five-piece when they first emerged on the scene in their drainpipe jeans and goth-chic glory, anyone who is aware of the band can agree that Faris and co. are chameleons. From their garage goth-rock genesis plastered on their debut 'Strange House' to their widely received follow-up 'Primary Colours' (which fused krautrock, shoegaze and post-punk to great effect), The Horrors have maintained a process of sonic reincarnation - which unsurprisingly continues on their third LP. In fact, 'Skying' is in many ways the antithesis of their roots. In contrast to the five shadowy figures playing organ and abrasive guitar riffs, the band embrace a much wider sonic palette, evident in the album's trippy visual representation. 

Much more emphasis is placed on 80's style new-wave synthesisers, which wouldn't sound out of place on The Cure's 'Disintegration'. These establish themselves right from the onset of opener 'Changing the Rain', as a pulsing, almost trip-hop style synth keeps a steady, yet relaxed rhythm (something rather prominent to the album as a whole), aided by Rhys Webb's basslines, which have become much more distinct in the mix this time around.

 Joshua Hayward's notable guitar work takes more of a backseat as a result, but his magic can still be heard in a variety of ways (in fact, the album was named after a 20-stage phaser that he constructed himself). At times his guitars are almost intangible from the synthesisers (as in spectacular lead single 'Still Life'), other times his tremolo on 'Dive In' is reminiscent of early shoegaze bands such as Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine. Then there are brief moments of thrashing guitar riffs that escape the synth-heavy concept, as in highlight 'Endless Blue', when a haze of synths and samples dissipate to reveal a heavy attack of guitars that wouldn't sound out of place on some of their earlier work. 

Compared to the growls and shrieks of frontman Faris Badwan in his 'Strange House' era, the vocals on this record are much more subdued and breathy in a very understated fashion. Traces of his recent side-project Cat's Eyes permeate into tracks such as 'You Said', where he dispels any prior criticisms of sub-par vocal ability, and channels Ian McCullock style delivery. In fact, it's the vocals on this track as he sings 'you've gotta give me love' which quite possibly make 'You Said' the first ever positively uplifting track from The Horrors - Faris even 'lalala's' on 'I Can See Through You', surely a first.

The subtle use of brass samples throughout the record add further texture to 'Skying's array of layers, and all examples are used in a creative way that only serves to improve it, and never become self-indulgent, such as in the prelude of 'Endless Blue', or the interlude-style track 'Wild Eyes'. 

Then there are the two mammoth tracks that characterise the latter half of the album. Centrepiece 'Moving Further Away' achieves more sonically in one track than some bands could in their career. At over eight minutes in length it meanders through smooth New Order-like synth-rock and krautrock basslines, before the sound of birds(?) signals the emergence of an immediate post-punk guitar riff. Album closer 'Oceans Burning' doesn't provoke the same effect, but neither brings the album down. The two tracks contribute to the overall album length of almost fifty-four minutes, though 'Skying' never feels like a musical trudge, much to the band's credit.

Indeed, it is admirable that a Mercury Prize nominated band are courageous enough to change direction, being a 'jack-of-all-trades' style outfit does have it's disadvantages. When a band is good at so many things, one wonders if they can truly be great at one particular genre? It would be interesting to see them stick to one, and this time win the Mercury Prize; though with 'Skying', they might have secured that already.

★★★★★★★★

(Download: 'Still Life', 'Endless Blue', 'You Said')

(watch the beautiful video for single 'Still Life' here)