Posts Tagged ‘nick cave’
ARIA’s – Presets and Cilmi Kill All
Even Nick Cave got an award…
Album of the Year – Presets
Adult Contemporary – Panics (Cruel Guards)
Comedy – Micallef
Rock – The Living End
Dance – Presets
Female – Cilmi
Group – Presets
Indie – Yunipingu
Male – Nick Cave
Yeah. Some good, some typical awards bullshit. Presets? AOTY? I mean, it was good, but any album with filler, ANY filler, shouldn’t get an award like this, no matter how good a song like My People or Aeons is.
Uh. 3 posts in one day! Make sure you read the rest, because it’s been a busy Sunday for us! HOLY FUCK!
Kathematics – Rock ‘n’ Roll and ‘Math’ puns.
If a band reached #2 on a New York radio station, chances are you’d have heard of them. Yeah well you haven’t! Cos they’re Kathematics.
Kathematics are Melbournian duo (Kath, guitar + vox and Danny, drums) who wield up-tempo Lo-Fi pop-punk rock with dark grungish riffs as featured on the 2008 U.S. Warped Tour CD. Yeah – they sound pretty successful, huh! Oh and Clare Bowditch is a fan too.
Well maybe if you’re in the Melbourne indie music scene or you have a finely tuned ear set to Triple-J, you might have heard of them, but if you haven’t – it’s high time you took notice. How can you not love a song title like (You Look Like) Alyson Hannigan!
They’ve put out a couple of EP’s already, and they’ve just finished recording a new album, Divorce Death Departure. LNaP took the chance to ask Kath a few questions before they head off to their legions of American fans.
Loud Noise and Pictures: For those who haven’t yet heard the sounds of Kathematics, give us a brief low-down.
Kath: Two-piece, riff-based, raw, in-your-face grunge punk!
LNaP: How has the transition into a two-piece been, and how has that changed the sound of the band?
Kath: The two-piece came about by accident. We were looking for a female bass player but when that didn’t happen, Danny and I started to play as a duo and really enjoyed it. Then I wrote an entire new set of songs a few months ago, totally changing my guitar sound and the way I played to make the two-piece sound full.
LNaP: The title of the new album ‘Divorce Death Departure’ seems a lot more grown up than the previous EPs ‘Splat,’ ’Do The Math’ and ‘Add It Up,’ has there been a significant maturity develop within the band?
Kath: Yes definitely. I went through a life-changing experience late last year that forced me to grow up. These songs are a result of that.
LNaP: Where does your musical inspiration come from? Axe Girl sounds like what would happen if the White Stripes and The Black Keys got together and let Karen O sing.
Kath: I love that description! Yeah that is spot on. I was always a fan of punk, pop-punk and grunge but I started to broaden my taste in the last year getting into music I never really liked before like blues (The White Stripes) and electronic stuff (Peaches) and I love Nick Cave’s new band Grinderman as well, I guess all these new influences have seeped into my songwriting which I think is great as I think I was getting really stale as a writer.
LNaP: You’ve supported some fairly diverse acts in the past (Sleater Kinney, Clare Bowditch, Kisschasy, Young and Restless, The Spazzys, The Vasco Era, Mach Pelican, Killing Heidi, Deborah Conway and Vika and Linda), how does Kathematic’s sound translate to the varied audiences?
Kath: Our sound has changed throughout the years but I guess we have always had a bit of a pop sensibility and catchy hooks so we usually fit with a variety of bands and most audiences dig us. Even now that we are heavier the songs are still catchy.
LNaP: Your film clip for Add It Up was guest programmed on Rage by Clare Bowditch. That must have been a spin-out, or did you know it was on the cards – is she a friend of the band?
Kath: Our old bass player did a music course Clare was teaching a few years back and Kathematics played a gig with her way before she was “Aria Award winner Clare Bowditch” and she became a friend of the band. She emailed us to tell us she was programming the song so yeah, it was a spin-out. I have a lot of respect for Clare. There aren’t many people in the world that are beautiful inside and out and the way she balances music and family is something I can only aspire to.
LNaP: How did you manage to score U.S. representation? What is planned for your upcoming tour of the States?
Kath: We hooked up with our U.S. manager after she found us on myspace. She is currently putting together a tour of New York and surrounding areas in October. We are getting really good venues wanting us to play there and have had solid radio airplay in NY over the last month so it’s pretty exciting for us.
LNaP: When can we expect to see ‘Divorce Death Departure’ in stores?
Kath: There are still 5 more songs to complete, after that our manager is going to try and get us a record deal in the States. There is no release date set for the album in Australia as yet.
Thanks to Kath for her time, and best of luck for the impending US tour.
If you want, you can hear some of the tracks from Divorce Death Departure on their myspace, or you can see Kathematics live before they head o.s. at the following gigs;
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Fitzroy, Victoria |
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Adelaide, South Australia |
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Fitzroy, Victoria |
More Cowbell!
Nick Cave Can Spook You In New Ways…
Photo: Sigurd Fandango (via Pitchfork) Click on Nick for the website!
How does 5.1 surround sound uh, sound? I’m excited, but then again, how amazing will Nick Cave be in surround sound? Orbital and Nine Inch Nails have done it a few times, and it sounds pretty cool because it’s so immensely layered… Who knows. They should release Grinderman in 5.1, and then come around to my place, play a gig, then leave all their gear behind. I’m a scab, so what?
This really has nothing to do with Music or Photos, but I thought it was pretty funny/interesting/depressing. I’m only in my early-20’s and that makes me feel really old. Damn kids and their Facebooks…
A photographer I’ve always been jealous of is Nic Bezzina. Here’s a reason why. Here’s another.
The Follow – Here, There and Everywhere!
Despite some limited success and a few shows supporting big names like Sonic Youth, Eskimo Joe and Nine Inch Nails, The Follow are still one of Australia’s best kept secrets. They have recently returned from the United States, playing shows throughout L.A. and New York, recording with producer Nick Launay (Silverchair, Arcade Fire, Nick Cave) and generally spreading Followy goodness across America.
Between houses, between countries, between shows and between recording sessions, Azaria, The Follow’s guitarist/vocalist allowed us to quiz him on the bands travels and upcoming album.
Loud Noise and Pictures: The Folow’s line up has seen a few different faces come and go since the last album, how is the band’s chemistry at the moment?
Azaria: Well the first album was recorded by me alone. I then got my close friends from high school to join the band and make the album come alive. Since then until now, we have put out an EP through Warner and toured with NIN, Sonic Youth and Amanda Palmer [Dresden Dolls], and touring up and down the east coast of Australia for 3 years. Released and toured ‘Smashed Heart’ in the UK and toured America… You’re bound to lose a member or two after all that. However the band is at its strongest at this point in time because we’ve been lucky to have found people who can sustain the road and maintain the ability to have a creative journey. Its been five year’s and I guess KJ (bass and Vocals) and I are the original members still standing. We’re really proud of everything we’ve been through. Our latest guitarist Jak was our guitar tech who toured with us for a year, and naturally, joined when it was time. And we met our new drummer (Steven) in NYC when we toured there.
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LNaP: What were you expecting to happen when you headed over to America? And did everything live up to expectations?
Azaria: We expected just to play a few shows, maybe get an agent or a manager as we’re in between management at the moment – and to record with Nick Launay. The States gave us more then we had expected. We’re releasing a new EP from America to everywhere in the world except for Australia/New Zealand (as Warner owns the rights to release us here). We recorded ‘Love Bomb Revolution’ and a new song called ‘Break’. We found many management offers and agent offers after playing a few shows. But the best thing was all the help and love our fans gave us. From accommodation, to lending us a BMW – thank you. There was something for us to do every night in Los Angeles. It was a fun trip.
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LNaP: How receptive were the U.S audiences? How different is the Australian scene to the U.S. scene?
Azaria: The Australian scene has always been welcoming to us. I guess the only difference is that there s more people over there. And you could play every night around California and meet new people and scenes. Where as in Australia, a band like ours could only really play once a month in every major city in Australia. The main reason we found ourselves in L.A. was because of the support that Nick Launay has given us and gave us when we were over there.
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LNaP: Was there a great deal of difference between the New York and L.A. crowds? Which was better to play for?
Azaria: Well we played 6 shows in 5 days. On our last night we played in NYC and we jumped in the cab to go to our next show in Brooklyn. Everyone from the first show came across the bridge with us, even the bar guy. The Brooklyn show was on at 1pm on a Sunday night and the place was packed. We made some loyal fans in NYC. And I got to meet Anton [Newcombe] from The Brian Jonestown Massacre and he gave me his red glasses. It’s nice to see the world through another’s perspective.
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LNaP: Did you get to play with any good bands audiences may not be aware of? Did you happen to play with any bands that we may already know?
Azaria: Yes we played one show in N.Y.C. and L.A. with The Veronicas. They are more underground over in the States and it went down well. That was fun and they’re such a good band. We played a show with Dizzy’s band from Guns ‘n’ Roses too. We played about 15 shows all up over there; we were more concentrating on our recording. But were lucky to pick up the shows we did along the way
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LNaP: How is it coming back to Australia? Does it feel like its good to be home, or do you wanna go back to the circus?
Azaria: We have a lot of people back here that we dearly missed, so it’s been good meeting up with them. We’re just taking things a bit easy here and not playing shows. We’re kind of homeless at the moment, Jak’s in Newtown borrowing a room, KJ’s out of town and I’m in Brisbane visiting my granny. Being scattered around has been fun but we’re looking forward to going back to the states in a month to complete our recordings and play more shows.
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LNaP: You’re playing again soon in Brisbane, has The Follow’s live shows changed at all since you last played on Australian soil?
I was just doing an acoustic show. But I think every time we tour we learn something new and refine our show. Plus we have lots of new songs now.
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LNaP: The Follow has been recording again with Nick Launay, how is it different this time around?
Azaria: It’s more focus and from both sides we’re working faster and creating more than before. We have developed a really good relationship with him inside and outside of the studio and recording process. So we have become very comfortable with him. And like a film maker loves to film on film rather then digital, we are the same in that since recording with Nick both times, we’ve recorded live as a band to tape. It’s all sounding better then ever, because the band’s at its strongest level then it’s ever been.
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LNaP: What can we expect from the new album – and more importantly – when can we expect it to be released?
Azaria: I’d say it will probably be out in the States before Australia. Early next year we think. But it has a very focused direction, unlike the schizophrenic first album, I guess playing for so long, we’ve kind of developed our own thing now. We still try new things, but the first album was like every idea into 12 songs. It kind of sounded like a compilation album. But I was young and had a million ideas. And I’m glad I got it out of my system back then.
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LNaP: In the past you’ve performed on stage with Amanda Palmer (from The Dresden Dolls), how did that come about – and who else would you love to perform alongside with?
Azaria: I’m actually playing a solo acoustic show in Los Angeles with her next month…like Trent [Reznor] from NIN someone had played our music to her and Amanda contacted us through a friend. She’s the kind of artist that picks and chooses who she wants to play with. Which is refreshing because mainly agents decide, but we have been lucky, Sonic Youth, NIN and Amanda Palmer have all hand picked us to play with them. And we are very honored of course… we’d love to play with the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s, KJ wants Hole to get back together (me too) but it can t be 1995 forever. Nick Cave is touring America later this year too. But he always gets a more subdued band to support him. But a kid can dream. We’re just dreaming and liking reality of a dream…
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LNaP: What are The Follow’s plans for the rest of the year?
Azaria: We’re going back to America to finish our album and get it ready to release and we’ll be back in Australia for a tour in December.
Plenty of kind thoughts go out to Azaria for his time and effort.
I strongly recommend you all Follow your heART and see the band in action if you are in the Brisbanian or Californian regions – and keep an eye and an ear out for their new album when it drops.
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The Living Room | Brisbane, Queensland | ||
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Bar Sinister | hollywood, California |
More Cowbell!
“Red Flower Pot Hats”
Uh, by that do you think they mean Energy Domes?
My money is on Devo, and why shouldn’t it be? The guy is called Jihad Jerry for christ’s sake! In our Western Muslimphobic world, we should be scared of such a man, despite him being an elderly, white, bass player from Ohio. New Wave Nigel? Make me a Jihad Jerry doll!
Anyone notice my religion pun? I didn’t until then either.
Seriously though, if anyone has one of these dolls and doesn’t want it and would prefer a guy in Australia has it instead, e-mail me at saimagery at gmail dot com.
Do it.
My daily Pitchfork read showed me this video by the amazing man Nick Cave and Grinderman. Now that we’re well into 2008, I can safely say that this album was the best album in 2007 for me. I’ve stopped listening to All My Friends, haven’t listened to The Great Destroyer in ages, and only re-discovered my love affair with Deerhunter when they were announced as support for Nine Inch Nails. However, I’ve never stopped listening to this. The original video here.
Also, that Grinderman site is a fantastic racket. What noise!
EDIT: Another glaring mistake I found today. Spike Jonze joint? Wrong. Check out the rest of them though, and then buy the Directors Label Series DVD’s (or borrow them off your film school friend who will have them).
Loud Noise and Pictures 