Fleet Foxes - Grown Ocean - Helplessness Blues

It's safe to say that having a big-great unorganized beard in 2011 is still very approved. Flannel shirts is also more than allowed. I know because the new Fleet Foxes album has leaked and nothing much has changed since their self-titled and much acclaimed album.

I've had the possibility to take a scant listen to Helplessness Blues and my impressions are living up to my expectations. Still a lot of melodic harmony-filled tunes. Changing tempos and folky. It's really nice, but I still havn't decided if it's better than their last album, which I really really loved.

But check out the video for the album’s closing track “Grown Ocean” - great footage. It's more upbeat Fleet Foxes than we are used to and that's pretty nice for a change. But still; it's the Fleet Foxes sound and my guess is that this dreamy insisting rhythm still will be in fashion when 2011 is over.

Thurston Moore co-op Beck - Benediction single

Was just listening violently to Beck's Sea Change earlier today and was once again loving his album of heartbreak and desolation. And now I notice that he is producing Thurston Moore's solo album Demolished Thoughts. It's out on Matador May 24. Courtesy of the great label download the poignant lead single 'Benediction' from Thurston Moore right here - click on it!

Kurt Vile - In my time

Kurt Vile is performing around Europe this summer. His album Smoke Ring For My Halo is really worth putting a bird on - to quote Portlandia. It's Viles fourth LP and I havn't really dug him before. But this new stuff is super super good. A haunting psych-folk record.

12 european music festivals guide line up 2011 - Glastonbury, Reading, Leeds, Bestival, Pukkepop, Roskilde, T in the park, Dour, Rock Werchter, Benicassim, Sziget Festival

It's interesting to follow how differently festivals are when it comes to strategies for announcing artists for this years summer festivals. Some festivals simply line up their artists when signed, leaving a line or two blank for last-minute announcement, others doesn't reveal a thing and some just reveals something. 

In Denmark, the well-known Roskilde Festival, has their own approach. Inspired by Glastonbury I guess. They play the gigantic guess-which-artist--we-have-in-the-pipeline-for-you-we-won't-tell game. The strategy is simply to release new artists on wednesdays - not the headliners though - and bigger names around the first day of each month beginning around 8-9 month before the festival. (At Roskilde that is) Why? To stay interesting to the media and the potential crowd. And attracting people to buy their tickets when their bankaccounts had an injection. The most annoying thing about this game right now is that Roskilde is nowhere as interesting to the public right now as any of their counter-festivals in Europe.   

But okay, let's play the game. I've been surfing around making the lists from this years festivals so far. Click through to the festivals to view full programme. I've taken an excerpt of what I think can be described as headliners and interesting names.

So by looking at the artists at the other festival we can make some guesses of what is to be revealed at Roskilde - where I'm going. My guesses are (from the genres I know a little about!): 

1. Almost for sure: Primal Scream, Pulp, The Strokes
2. A good chance - solid names and newcomers:  The Cure, Death Cab for Cutie, Beady Eye, Mumford & Sons, Elbow, Bright Eyes, Arcade Fire, Two Door Cinema Club, Fleet Foxes,  Portishead, Calvin Harris, Flaming Lips, Alice Cooper (he plays Sweden from monday 4. of july!)
3. Wild shots - but not just high hopes: Eagles, U2, Brian Wilson, Radiohead

At Roskilde Festival we have so far Big Boi, PJ Harvey, Iron Maiden, Kings of Leon, M.I.A., Kurt Vile.

Benicassim in Barcelona - which is later than Roskilde - has already lined up names like Arctic Monkeys, Portishead, Elbow, The Go! Team, The Strokes, Mumford & Sons, Primal Scream, Arcade Fire. Interesting names indeed. 

Rock am Ring in Germany - early june - has some heavy stuff in their programme, but a lot in common with other festivals. The programme for Rock am Ring is here and includes Coldplay, Mando Diao, Interpol, Wolfmother, Danzig, Deadmau5, System of a Down. 

The big festival in England - Reading and Leeds festival has announced that the newly reformed Pulp and New York garage-rockers the Strokes – whose seminal album Is This It was released in 2001 – will share top billing. Also on these festivals are My Chemical Romance and prog-rock outfit Muse.  Reading has also hired Madness, The National, Muse, Interpol, Elbow, Friendly Fires, White Lies, Beady Eyes.

Bestival, which takes place on the Isle of Wight, 80s pop-rock band The Cure will top the bill on Saturday 10 September and Primal Scream will also here perform their lauded 1991 album Screamdelica in its entirety. Bestival has also signed Public Enemy, The Drums, Brian Wilson, Fatboy Slim, Grandmaster Flash


Hop Farm Festival ( 1. / 2. july) in Kent has some interesting headliners: Eagles, Lou Reed and Morrissey. Also on is Brian Ferry, Iggy & the Stooges, Patti Smith, The Walkmen, Ocean Color Scene, Death Cab for Cutie, 

At Glastonbury they havn't revealed a full programme yet. But enough candy to satisfy. They hired U2 to take the Pyramid Stage. Also on that stage you find Coldplay (didn't they promise to stop making music for a while?).  Beyoncé is also on Glaston. Other great names are Anna Calvi, BB King, Big Boi, The Chemical Brothers, Crystal Castles, Elbow, Everything Everything, Friendly Fires,Fleet Foxes, Gruff Rhys, Janelle Monae, Mumford & Sons, Primal Scream, Warpaint

Big belgian festival Pukkelpop is not exactly crazy about sharing information on their event in august. No names have yet been revealed. 

T in The Park, which is the greatest festival in Scotland - and was sold out in an hour has a almost full programme revealed. It include Blink 182, Foo Fighters, Pulp, Primal Scream, Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys, Bright Eyes, Ocean Color Scene, Tom Jones, Leftfield, Noah and the Whale

Sziget Festival in Hungary in august has a lot of names ready already. Including: Dizee Rascal, Gogol Bordello, Interpol, Pulp, Skunk Anansie, The Chemical Brothers, The National 

The great little festival Dour Festival has shopped around and done a quite good job. And go here to the full line-up at Dour Festival which include the best electronic acts as well. Pulp /

• Suede /
• Cypress Hill /
• Pendulum live /
• House Of Pain /

At Rock Werchter in Belgium (30. june - 3. july) the line-up is almost done and the names are here:
ARCTIC MONKEYS, THE NATIONAL, WHITE LIES,  COLDPLAY, PORTISHEAD, PJ HARVEY, ELBOW, BRUNO MARS, THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM, THE BLACK EYED PEAS, IRON MAIDEN, GRINDERMAN, KAISER CHIEFS, ROBYN, FLEET FOXES, TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB

Also check Primavera Sound Festival in Spain. Also amazing line-up: Ty Segall, Flaming Lips, The Album leaf, Pulp, Gonjasufi, Grinderman, Lindstrom, Mercury Rev, M. Ward, Girl Talk, Fleet Foxes, Belle & Sebastian, Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, Animal Collective. Thx, @italienskepen

Roskilde Diaries 1

Yesterday we agreed on our camp-detalis for Roskilde 2011. New camp area with better conditions - it's gonna be perfect. And now we can start dreaming, counting and hoping that time will pass fast, that Roskilde will anounce some more good bands and that the weathers gonna be as good as the last couple of years. So far the most interesting artists are PJ Harvey and Kurt Vile - but there must be a lot coming up if you compare to other festivals.
I just saw that to of my absolute favorite bands are going to play the norweigian festival Øyafestivalen - the reunited Grant Lee Buffalo and The Jayhawks. Please Roskilde - it would be amazing. Here's some sweet memories:

Old Calf :: Bonnie Cuckoo

Old Calf is Ned Oldham (brother of Will) who we last featured in December of 2008 with the Anomoanon recording.  Old Calf have their debut out on No Quarter Records April 12th.This is not bad! 

Listen: Old Calf :: Bonnie Cuckoo

The people's key - Bright Eyes mp3

In the spring 2011 Bright Eyes is back with a new album. Here is a little teaser from the forthcoming album by Bright Eyes entitled The people's key. It's promising, but I'll refrain from making any judgement yet - because I'm still sceptic.
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(If you) keep me in your heart - Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat

The first single from Aidan Moffat & Bill Wells really stunned me when first listening to it.

Bill Wells always tickled a place in my heart, when I now and again were to stumple upon some of his unconventional jazz founded music. And I've always been a fan of Arab Strap.

On the other hand. Aidan Moffats projects since Arab Strap have been of a minor quality. Well, at least in my opinion. They've not been bad, just average.

That might be changing now. The change began with the concept album Ten short songs for modern lovers from 2010, where Mr. Moffat seemed to have found a grain of something great within his creative abilities towards dark humour and social sensibility. And now, with the collaboration with Bill Wells, it is not just a growing - it seems like the coming of a blooming.

The video below is the first single from Bill Wells and Aidan Moffats collaborative album Everything's getting older, entitled (If you) keep my in your heart. Brilliant

Hercules and Love Affair - "Blue songs" for free (well, almost)

In a review on BBC Music Ian Wade is almost over the moon by Hercules and Love Affairs follow up to their 2008 self titled debut. Wade sums up the review as follows:

"Blue Songs has the ability to sound great whether you’re cleaning the flat, swinging in a hammock or heading down the rave-up. Smashing stuff."

So it is definitely worth a mention, that right now the new album by Hercules and Love Affair entitled Blue Songs is streaming for free at The Guardian. So go on, go to The Guardian and listen to this great new album by clicking here.

The weekend cover #2 - Transmission

In no. 2 of The weekend cover series we're getting Hot Chips take on the post-punk icons Joy Divisions Transmissions. In itself a really unique trace from the post-punk era. The cover was done on a request from the former members of New Order in 2008 (which, as you all know, includes the former members of Joy Division). I've heard that it to some people brings reminiscenes to Pink Floyd.

The cover: Hot Chip - Transmission


The original: Joy Division - Transmission

Iron & Wine - Kiss Each Other Clean

As a dad of two lovely daughters I'm fascinated and weired out by Sam Beam of Iron & Wine. How can that dude grow such a strong beard, be only 36 years old and have a family of five (5!) daughters and a wife? At the same time he has released four albums, produced a flood of songs, a lot of EP's and been touring consistently since 2002? He has definitely earned his beard!

Sam Beam is back on the road with his new album Kiss Each Other Clean, his first album for Warner Bros. after leaving Sub Pop.

Since releasing The Creek Drank the Craddle - which were a stunning debut - in 2002 Sam Beam has taken Iron & Wine step-by-step away from the lo-fi, one-dude-in-a-bedroom, towards a broader sound with a larger cast of musicians. That goes for Kiss Each Other Clean.

On his 2007 album Sheperd's Dog he toyed around with African pop music and dub production. And this new stuff is even fuller and friskier than before. Almost funky?

I'm not sure how much I love this new path he is taking, but somehow it still sounds as if his not far from home. Home is of course the storytelling quality of his music. Check it out.

Interview with Sam Beam and producer Brian Deck - click.

You can listen to the entire new album (with a full backing band) below. Recorded for NPR’s “Music First Listen” series.


Sam Beam performs Tree By The River acoustic guitar

Shouting at wildlife - an absolute joy

Mentioned as indie-pop at its purest and seen as a modern form of powerpop. No doubt pop, but precisely so much more. Musically similar to an unmentionable number of indie-pop bands, but still quite unique - a romantic sphere that only sets naturally in the grey and windy parts of western Scotland. And absolute joy. What are you talking about? Oh, sorry, I thought it was obvious. It's Kid Canaveral.

The weekend cover #1 - Hotelounge (be the death of me)

This is the first in our new series "The weekend cover". The series will be featured here regularly, but not necessarily every weekend. This week we have Adem making a beautiful cover of Deus' Hotellounge (be the death of me).

The cover: Adem - Hotellounge (be the death of me)


The original: Deus - Hotellounge (be the death of me)

RM Hubbert to support Mogwai

On our Facebook we mentioned that Mogwai were going on tour in the spring of 2011. For their european leg of the tour they will be supported by the mighty talented RM Hubbert.

RM Hubbert is drawing a lot on flamenco guitar (toque), but is still a whole lot different than flamenco. In a combination with other elements of folk and jazz he creates a very interesting univers of guitar playing. It is not a univers that is in your face and happy go lucky. And it is not necessarily easy to get around at first. But it grows on you. And if you can't get enough, then you might even be able to get him to play in your living room.

The Mynabirds - Let the record go

The new year begun. New on Indie Laundry: The Mynabirds. Our judgement: Like, a lot.