DIY, August 2016

set set music free free

free free / / issue 5354 / JULY / AUGUST 2016 2016

diymag.com

+

ANGEL OLSEN

GLASS ANIMALS

NAO

TWIN ATLANTIC

WARPAINT

W I L D

B E A S T S

KINGS of the JUNGLE

1

WITH SUPPORT FROM

28.10.16 BOURNEMOUTH

....................................... BIC

29.10.16 PLYMOUTH

.............................. PAVILIONS

31.10.16 CARDIFF

.................. MOTORPOINT ARENA

01.11.16 LONDON

.................................. THE O2

SOLD OUT

SOLD OUT

EXTRA DATE ADDED DUE TO DEMAND

02.11.16 LONDON

.................................. THE O2

04.11.16 LEEDS

................... FIRST DIRECT ARENA

05.11.16 NOTTINGHAM

.................. MOTORPOINT ARENA

06.11.16 MANCHESTER

.................................. ARENA

08.11.16 BIRMINGHAM

................ BARCLAYCARD ARENA

12.11.16 Glasgow

........................ THE SSE HYDRO

13.11.16 NEWCASTLE

................. METRO RADIO ARENA

............TO BE CONTINUED

MYTICKET.CO.UK • /SEETICKETS.COM • /TICKETMASTER.CO,.UK

BASTILLEBASTILLE.COM • INSTAGRAM.COM / BASTILLEDAN • TWITTER.COM / BASTILLEDAN • FACEBOOK.COM / BASTILLEUK

2 diymag.com

- A KILIMANJARO,, SJM,, LIVE NATION,, FUTURESOUND & DF PRESENTATION BY ARRANGEMENT WITH CODA -

A U G U S T 2 0 1 6

Nao has designed her very

own arm telescope.

Emma Swann

Founding Editor

GOOD It’s Reading

& Leeds this month!

If there’s a festival

with more passion,

excitement and

adrenaline within its

weekend, I’m yet to

find it.

EVIL Henham Park’s

many hungry insects.

Two weeks since

Latitude and I’m still a

human dot-to-dot.

..............................

tom connick

Online Editor

GOOD Latitude 2016

might have been my

favourite festival ever.

EVIL Hearing my own

voice back on the DIY

Podcast is going to be

the end of me.

..............................

El hunt

Features Editor

GOOD

VS EVIL

WHAT’S ON THE DIY TEAM’S RADAR?

GOOD Latitude was

properly ace. Please

can I watch Kero Kero

Bonito and then ride in

a gondola every single

weekend?

EVIL I have a truly

ridiculous watch tanline

from the recent

heatwave.

..............................

Jamie MILTon

Neu Editor

GOOD Portugal’s

NOS Alive festival is

a paradise. Take me

back.

EVIL Sadly, not

every festival boasts

Radiohead, Arcade

Fire and Hot Chip

on its line-up.

..............................

Louise Mason

Art Director

GOOD Boxing rings.

EVIL Nine injuries

trying to get photos at

Latitude.

EDITOR’S LETTER

With their new album, Wild Beasts are giving in to their more aggressive,

macho side. So, we figured, where better to meet them to cut loose and

let off steam than a boxing ring? Not just any old boxing ring either. We

got them down to York Hall – you know, where they do real life boxing,

that’s on the telly and stuff - to get the lowdown on tough new album

‘Boy King’. Luckily, no punches were thrown during the making of our

cover feature. We think...

Elsewhere in this month’s issue, we go into the studio with Warpaint to

find out all about their new album, speak to Twin Atlantic about the call

of their home town, and step into the frankly bonkers world of Glass

Animals’ new record. Plus, you can catch up with everything that went

on at last month’s Latitude, which – let’s be honest – was brilliant.

Sarah Jamieson, Managing Editor

GOOD Watching Wolf Alice at 2.30am on a Saturday night in the

middle of the Spanish mountains was pretty special. I reckon the

massive rum and Cokes really aided the experience, too.

EVIL Someone’s gotta have a word with the builders working next to

our office. It’s getting a bit silly now, lads!

LISTENING POST

What’s on the DIY stereo this month?

The DIY Podcast

Yes, readers: we’ve gone full stereo. From chats

in the dressing room to following bands on to

the ACTUAL STAGE, the first two episodes of the

DIY Podcast are on iTunes RIGHT NOW, featuring

Latitude shenanigans with Weaves, The Maccabees,

Frightened Rabbit, White, and Courtney Barnett.

Subscribe at diymag.com/podcast

3

C

O

N

T

E

N

T

S

NEWS

6 WARPAINT

10 LATITUDE

18 THOM SONNY GREEN

20 POPSTAR POSTBAG

22 DIY HALL OF FAME

28 FESTIVALS

NEU

32 DREAM WIFE

34 WILL JOSEPH COOK

38 MABEL

REVIEWS

64 ALBUMS

74 LIVE

FEATURES

40 WILD BEASTS

48 NAO

52 TWIN ATLANTIC

56 ANGEL OLSEN

60 GLASS ANIMALS

Founding Editor Emma Swann

Managing Editor Sarah Jamieson

Features Editor El Hunt

Neu Editor Jamie Milton

Online Editor Tom Connick

Art Direction & Design Louise Mason

Marketing & Events Jack Clothier, Rhi Lee

Contributors

Alexia Kapranos, Alex Cabré, Alex Lynham,

Ali Shutler, Cady Siregar, Craig Jones, Danny

Wright, Dave Beech, Dan Jeakins, David

Zammitt, Eugenie Johnson, Henry Boon, Jessica

Goodman, Joe Goggins, Kyle MacNeill, Liam

Konemann, Liam McNeilly, Mollie Mansfield,

Mustafa Mirreh, Nick Scott, Nina Keen, Niall

Cunningham, Tanyel Gumushan, Tim Cooper,

Tom Hancock, Will Richards.

Photographers

Andrew Benge, Carolina Faruolo, Ian Laidlaw,

Jenna Foxton, Jonathan Dadds, Konstantin

Kondrukhov, Kris Griffiths, Krists Luhaers, Mike

Massaro, Robin Pope, Poppy Marriott, Ryan

Johnston, Sarah Doone, Sarah Louise Bennett,

Sinéad Grainger, Stephan Flad.

For DIY editorial

info@diymag.com

For DIY sales

rupert@sonicdigital.co.uk

lawrence@sonicdigital.co.uk

tel: +44 (0)20 3632 3456

For DIY stockist enquiries

stockists@diymag.com

DIY is published by Sonic Media Group. All material

copyright (c). All rights reserved. This publication

may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form,

in whole or in part, without the express written

permission of DIY. 25p where sold.

Disclaimer: While every effort is made to ensure the

information in this magazine is correct, changes can

occur which affect the accuracy of copy, for which Sonic

Media Group holds no responsibility. The opinions of

the contributors do not necessarily bear a relation to

those of DIY or its staff and we disclaim liability for those

impressions. Distributed nationally.

Cover photo: Jenna Foxton

4 diymag.com

5

N E

in the studio

Warpaint

After two years apart pursuing other

creative projects, Warpaint

are back, reinvigorated, with third record ‘Heads Up’. Words: El Hunt.

6 diymag.com

WS

All Warpaint’s seance needed.

was a guest appearance from.

Derren Brown..

In the two years since their second, self-titled album,

Warpaint have been busy cutting loose and letting

go of all restrictions. Stella Mozgawa – the band’s

kit-wielding secret weapon – has been playing drums

for just about everyone, from Cate Le Bon and Kurt Vile,

to SBTRKT and Jamie xx. Jenny Lee Lindberg’s been

occupied elsewhere too, finding her own voice with

solo album ‘right on!’. Theresa Wayman’s also been working

on a solo record with production whizz Dan Carey. And, as if

her plate wasn’t full enough, she’s also got another project,

BOSS, on the go with Hot Chip and Yeasayer’s Sarah Jones,

and Guro Gikling from All We Are. With the band busier than

the world’s only ice-cream van during a searing heatwave,

you’d have thought a new Warpaint record was bottom of

their to-do list. Wrong. The hum of activity outside the band

has fuelled ‘Heads Up’, and with the balance re-jigged they

found themselves making a bold, raw and spontaneous return

to the unfiltered kinetic energy that fires up Warpaint’s central

engines.

“I think when people get their own creative juices flowing, it

doesn’t put as much pressure on the band to be an individual

thing,” agrees Emily Kokal, taking a chilled day off in Paris

amid a sprinkling of European tour dates. “Everybody was so

busy doing their own thing, that coming together to make

this album was just one more thing to do that was creative,”

she says. “Being in a band so long, if you don’t get those

things out your system individually you can get frustrated

7

Painting by

Numbers

Emily gives us a quick numbercrunching

breakdown

(highly scientific, of course)

of the ingredients fuelling

Warpaint’s third album.

Five months of writing

and recording

“We just kinda

started writing

and demoing

almost

simultaneously

to making the

album. We did

it all at the same time.”

Three sleepless nights

“It was psychedelic.

Shaun [Everett], who was

mixing our album, was

up 24 hours working on

three different projects,

so we’d get to the

studio at, like, 3am,

start mixing, and

we wouldn’t sleep

from the night

before. One of the

weirdest times. Every

day bled together.”

A devilish amount of

chai tea

“Everybody, even

Theresa, was on

coffee. We were all

on the iced coffee

for the all-nighters.

But chai tea? I’m

gonna go with 666

cups, collectively.

Zero police visits

“We didn’t have any

cops this time, at least

not at the studio....”

creatively...” she adds, laughing. “Blue

balls or something.”

In the past, Warpaint have been

meticulous songwriters, poring over

things endlessly, zooming in to perfect

every microparticle and complexity.

Late last year, however, they made a

conscious decision to not just switch

gears, but to rip out the old system and

re-wire completely. Adamant that an

album wasn’t on the cards, they instead

focused on one-off demo releases like

‘No Way Out’ and ‘I’ll Start Believing’.

New possibilities began multiplying

without halt; a sparser, less misted

sound taking on concrete shape. The

energy fizzing through Warpaint was

tangible, and infectious. Accidentally,

just five months later, the band found

themselves with third album ‘Heads

Up’. And accordingly, “it’s a lot more

rough and in your face,” Emily says.

“We were never like, ‘OK, now we’re

going to start working on our album’,”

she explains. “We almost tricked

ourselves into making an album really,

really fast. We just kept making these

songs, adding parts to them, and doing

what we do. And pretty soon all these

little ideas were an album. This process

was really conducive to what music is

all about; capturing a moment, and

capturing creative energy.”

A return to the basic essence of the

band is a major pursuit on this record.

Building themselves a proper band HQ

in Los Angeles – a cosy space they’ve

nicknamed ‘House on the Hill’ – they

were eager to keep things in-house

and stripped-back this time around.

And, after working on ‘Warpaint’ with

the formidable and hugely influential

production figurehead Flood, they

hit up an old pal. Jacob Bercovici –

who manned the desk for debut EP

‘Exquisite Corpse’ way back in 2008

– hopped back on ship, in a deliberate

move to simplify.

“That was kind of the plan. We wanted

to make [the album] ourselves, in our

rehearsal space, in downtown LA. We

decided we should probably have some

help but we wanted it to feel really

homegrown and organic, so [Bercovici]

was a really obvious choice.”

With all members frantically dotting

between projects, ‘Heads Up’ ironically

became a very relaxed process. Instead

of working songs together from the

ground up, they’d rock up at sessions

with fragments and half-ideas already

assembled. They’d meet for dinner

at each other’s houses, and wind up

tinkering about with new parts for

hours instead. The whole thing was a

revelation.

“What was really cool about making

it was going to our collective band’s

houses and just hanging out,” Emily

starts. “We took the rules off the band,

and said, ‘let’s play whatever we want.

Let’s not try to be strict so we can

play this live exactly how it is; let’s be

creative and do whatever we want’. I

don’t have to play guitar all the time.

Hey, I can beatbox if I like!” she hoots.

“Whatever, just feel it,” she concludes,

summarising the spirit of the new

record. “Feel free. Let’s not make each

other feel restricted in any way.”

With ‘Heads Up’ recorded, mixed,

mastered, your lot, the band are

chomping at the bit to get back out

on the road with an arsenal of new

material. Early airings have been going

super well, Emily agrees; the band even

found themselves debuting a brand

new album track in front of a double

rainbow during their Hyde Park show

last month. “I’m hoping every time

we play a new song a double rainbow

comes out,” she laughs. ”That must be a

good omen!”

Warpaint’s new album ‘Heads Up’

is out 23rd September via Rough

Trade. DIY

Exposed to the sun for the

first time, after months of

studio hibernation.

8 diymag.com

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9

NEWS

latitude

It’s the most wonderful time of the

year. No, not Christmas... Latitude

Festival! There’s no doubt about

it, this year’s edition was one to

remember. Jam-packed with brilliant

artists and (of course) those

infamous pink sheep, you can relive

the whole weekend right here.

Words: El Hunt, Henry Boon, Jamie Milton, Jessica Goodman, Liam

McNeilly, Tom Connick, Will Richards. Photos: Emma Swann, Mike

Massaro, Poppy Marriott, Sarah Louise Bennett.

The

Maccabees

shine brighter than ever

Earlier on Friday evening, The Maccabees

admitted to being plagued by nerves

ahead of their Latitude headline set. As

they take to the Obelisk Arena’s stage

to the shimmering entrance of ‘Given

To The Wild’, they don’t seem to have

shifted. It’s all smiles, but each nervous

glance out at the huge main stage

crowd amassed before them is cut as

short as possible, Orlando Weeks’ eyes

fixed firmly to the ground. It only ups

their charm factor, though – as they

beautifully drift from ‘Wall Of Arms’,

through ‘Kamakura’ and ‘Ribbon Road’,

it’s a soft start, but one that shows The

Maccabees don’t need flashiness to

prove their worth.

10 diymag.com

A perfect run through of every step

that’s taken them to this world-beating

height, they then duck into their earliest

days, with ‘Latchmere’ dedicated to

the South London haunts this band of

brothers still call home. ‘X-Ray’, the first

song they ever released, finds a new life

on this huge platform, still sounding as

vital now as it ever did.

Speaking a few hours before their

set, The Maccabees are visibly

nervous. “I’ve managed to distract

myself pretty well,” claims Orlando

Weeks. “We’ve been playing gigs,

these last two nights. There’s an odd

feeling where you’re imagining, just

for a split second, the different view

you’ll have at Latitude. You realise

it’s gonna be bigger than this.”

Felix White says this moment’s been

a long time coming. “We felt like we

were ready to do it, to be honest. We

should be able to do it by now!”

Father

John Misty

shoots for the stars

Pairing huge bursts of borderline

orchestral bombast with whites-of-theireyes

lyrical intimacy, there’s an everpresent

balancing act that Josh Tillman

skips along like a seasoned tightrope

walker. Throwing himself about the

stage, dropping to his knees with every

impassioned outburst and flailing his

limbs about like a man possessed by

the all-encompassing love that forms

the heart of ‘I Love You, Honeybear’, he

paints a picture of the ravaged lover

in stunning watercolours, becoming a

sure-fire icon in the process. Complex

and confounding though it may be,

Father John Misty’s main stage slot is a

star turn.

Låpsley brings a

powerful performance

A long summer of festivals is seeing

Holly Fletcher grow in confidence, with

the majority of the record rolled out

with poise today. She admits to never

having been to this part of the country

before, but a Latitude return must be

beckoning after a set that fluctuates

between soulful, thumping and delicate.

‘Station’ is a highlight, with the song she

released aged 17 still holding weight

against some of the newer, slicker

numbers from her debut.

The

Big Moon bring

the mayhem

Firmly at home on Latitude’s Lake

Stage, The Big Moon are overseeing

sheer mayhem. From amiable stage

invaders, to hurled iPhones, Madonna

covers, and a moshpit during brand

new song ‘Formidable’, it’s all a

standard day in the nuts trajectory of

this lot.

They’re as polished and lockedtogether

as ever, beaming and

exchanging fuzzed up blows left,

right and centre. The crowd is going

absolutely batshit in return, and

guitarist Soph Nathan can’t help but

play with a permanent grin.

Weaves offer up

oddball pop perfection

Screeching, squealing and slathering

away, the woodland of the Sunrise

Arena is the perfect place to lock away

Weaves’ monstrous pop. As guitarist

Morgan Waters wrestles with his

instrument, whooping and wailing

into its hollow body and toying with

the feedback it creates, it’s beautifully

captivating madness from the off.

11

latitude

CHRISTINE AND THE

QUEENS gets a superstar’s welcome

These last few months have been pivotal for Christine and The Queens. It’s

seen debut album ‘Chaleur Humaine’ soar to the Top Ten, a good two years

after its original release. Our shores might’ve been a little slow to catch on,

but now she’s quickly being embraced as a superstar.

It’s thoroughly deserved. A slick, polished show without a single weak spot,

Christine and The Queens has the effortless finesse of a stadium show, with

none of the arms-length distance. Endless dance routines, piercing laser

lights, and a high-octane foray into French discotheque make up a rammed

set that just doesn’t relent. From ‘Tilted’ to ‘iT’ and the declaration that “this

tent is a free zone!” there’s no-one else out there with the transgressive,

boundary-pushing punch of Christine.

Grimes brings

day one of Latitude to a

crushing close

It’s halfway through the biggest

summer of Grimes’ career, and

tonight she’s in a playful mood.

Claire Boucher’s stage presence

has always been charmingly

awkward, but it now resembles

confidence.

From laughing off starting

the wrong sample before

‘Oblivion’ to explaining her

embarrassment at not being

able to speak Mandarin to sing

‘Scream’ (she instead roars

through it in Russian, as you do),

Grimes and her backing dancers

throw themselves into every

beat. It’s a set that feels slick

and well-rehearsed, but not to

the point of complacency. ‘Art

Angels’ is an album made for

sweaty tents, and for headline

performances. ‘Venus Fly’ and

‘World Princess pt 2’ shake

the BBC 6 Music stage to its

foundations, with flailing bodies

from front to back. ‘Kill V. Maim’

cements its position as song of

the summer, a crushing closer

that brings a set that both the

packed tent and Grimes herself

could’ve watched all night.

Keeping it fresh: Grimes.

12 diymag.com

SAT 22/10/16 BRISTOL, COLSTON HALL

SUN 23/10/16 EDINBURGH, QUEEN’S HALL

MON 24/10/16 MANCHESTER, ALBERT HALL

WED 26/10/16 LIVERPOOL, THE DOME

THU 27/10/16 LONDON, ROUNDHOUSE

TICKETWEB.CO.UK/WARPAINT

13

latitude

The National return to

Latitude as heroes

Tonight, The National become the first band to headline

Latitude for a second time, and Matt Berninger takes time at

the start of the band’s set to remember how much the festival

helped them as a smaller band making their way.

Courtney

Barnett stirs up a storm

As Courtney and her band cut loose on stage, the audience

lose themselves in the music, pulling all manner of eccentric

shapes as the rhythms take hold. The driving distortion of

‘Small Poppies’ incites a particularly zealous crowd member

to rock out so hard his headband flies through the air, and

during ‘Elevator Operator’ a group of gentlemen in suitedand-booted

attire shake off all sense of composure. ‘Kim’s

Caravan’ sees Courtney sinking to her knees as the riffs she’s

playing overpower everything else.

Rawer, wilder, and verging on the edge of chaos, her

performance tears free of expectation and lets everyone’s

innate instincts take hold. The trio throwing their arms

around each other as they leave the stage, there isn’t an

experience that provides, or stimulates, more thrill.

‘Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit’

– Courtney Barnett’s breakthrough debut – came out

in March last year, and it’s taken the Aussie around the

world several times since. “It seems to have connected

with lots of different people, y’know?” she observes,

smiling. “Not just some boring little pocket of the

world.”

When it comes to album two, Courtney’s apparently hard

at work; though things remain in the scrappy-lyrics-insketchbook

stage at the moment. “I’ll record it, I guess,

when I get home,” she says. “I’ve been writing loads, but

I don’t really have a solid idea. Every day I change my

mind about it,” she laughs.

Tonight’s set leans heavily on 2013’s ‘Trouble Will Find Me’, with

four new songs also previewed. ‘The Day I Die’ comes first, and

feels like an instant classic. Bryan Devendorf’s backbeat is as

thunderous as ever, and the band look perfectly confident with

the song now, after loose, nervy videos of it had appeared on

the internet in the past few months. Songs that are insular on

record become anthems live, with ‘I Should Live In Salt’ and

‘Afraid Of Everyone’ belted back at the band with adoration.

By ‘Terrible Love’, Berninger is buried in the front rows of the

crowd, losing his glasses in the process.

The National have always been a well-kept secret. The fact they

can waltz in and headline a festival as big as this having not

released an album in three years is a measure of how far they’ve

come without ever having a tangible ‘big break’. The secret is

well and truly out by now, but the band still manage to make

tonight feel close, personal and superbly special.

Daughter triumph

at the Obelisk Arena

Daughter’s arrival on the Latitude main stage

is met with blazing sunshine and a headline-worthy

crowd. As they thunder into ‘How’

and that tumbling drum beat, it’s a dazzling

welcome to the festival big leagues.

A cloud of bubbles rises out of the crowd

for ‘Tomorrow’, the perfect reflection of

the beauty and fragility exuded from

on-stage. “Thank you so much… how

are you doing?” whimpers Elena

Tonra between songs, stunned into

near-silence by the mass of people

gathered in front of her. From glorious

summery triumph to crushing

bleakness, regardless of which

way they mould the mood,

Daughter’s main stage appearance

is nothing short

of a complete victory.

14 diymag.com

Chvrches bring electrifying

energy to Latitude

Strutting across the stage front like they own the damn

place - and let’s face it, from the moment they step under

the stage lights to the moment they leave, that’s pretty

much the case - Chvrches perform like superstars. Armed

with an arsenal of hits, the motion never ceases as both

band and crowd shake off every inhibition to the music

thundering through the speakers.

Lauren Mayberry is on top form. Staring straight into the

audience as she sings, it’s like every word was meant for

the individual. Opener ‘Never Ending Circles’ ignites the

wild side in everyone, and ‘Clearest Blue’ sees that energy

run rampant. By set closer ‘The Mother We Share’ everyone

from six to sixty is climbing onto friends’ shoulders to make

the most of the moment they’re in. Beaming from ear to ear,

it’s impossible to tell who enjoyed the experience more.

Welcome to the

DIY Den!

e love surprises, so at this year’s Latitude Festival,

we decided to do something a little different.

WAcross the weekend, some of the festival’s best

bands paid special visits to our DIY Den, a brand new space

hosting invite-only gigs, fan Q&As, meet and greets, and all

sorts more.

One of those brilliant acts was Frightened Rabbit: frontman

Scott Hutchison stopped by to run through a few strippedback

renditions of the band’s back catalogue.

Performing bare-bones versions of older tracks in the DIY Den

gave Hutchison an opportunity to reflect on their growth as

a band, particularly when it comes to festivals: “If I ever listen

back to one of the first few records, to re-learn a song or something,

it sounds so insular and quiet, but these songs have to

be beefed up when playing them to a massive field.”

Other bands who stopped by to join in the fun included The

Magic Gang, Oh Wonder, Oscar, Pixx, Blaenavon and

MONEY. Head to diymag.com/latitude to take a look back.

Kurt Vile gets celebratory

Kurt Vile could play for days, between sunrise and sunset,

without getting bored. His lengthy, exploratory rock eases

itself in. It’s easy to drift off, given his self-facing schtick, footlong

hair draped over his face. But once nestled into these

songs, it feels like being lifted up and carried away to another

place.

On record, Kurt’s music crawls into strange spaces, a lazy-day

vibe coated in invention. It’s more celebratory when played

live. Between songs he belts out “woop!” exclamations, clearly

enjoying himself.

Frightened

Rabbit pack a punch

Frightened Rabbit thrive on emotional intensity. Their set

in the BBC 6 Music tent serves this to the extreme, with the

crowd responding rapturously to every note. Songs from

this year’s ‘Painting Of A Panic Attack’ and cult favourite ‘The

Midnight Organ Fight’ make up the meat of the set, with the

latter’s numbers significantly beefed up live. On record, ‘The

Modern Leper’ and ‘Head Rolls Off’ are breezy and calm in

parts - today, Grant Hutchison’s thunderous drums make them

festival anthems.

15

NEWS

latitude

New Order’s hits prove the perfect Latitude swan song

After giving The Maccabees their first shot at headlining a major festival on Friday

night, the final night hosts the other end of the spectrum. The heady days of Haçienda

hedonism might be well behind New Order now, but they’ve made themselves a

new home in the form of massive slots like these.

Latest album ‘Music Complete’ showed a band that isn’t ready to tail off to irrelevance.

Those aren’t the tracks that people have come to see though. Closing the

main set with ‘Bizarre Love Triangle’, ‘True Faith’ and ‘Temptation’, the Obelisk Arena

is transformed as the audience arrive on side. Gillian Gilbert, forever the most composed

head on stage, sends out synth lines that double as commands for people to

start losing themselves.

Kagoule turn up the temperature

“It’s so fucking hot in here,” Cai Burns mutters as Kagoule launch into the start of another

new song. It’s been almost a year since the band released debut album ‘Urth’,

and the songs have lost none of their edge.

Numbers like ‘Glue’ and ‘Gush’ veer dangerously towards disarray, but having made

their name by creating their own brand of chaos, the Nottingham trio remain in

complete control.

Kero Kero Bonito

bring the party

Kero Kero Bonito follow sets from the intricate Three Trapped Tigers

and rowdy boys in The Magic Gang, but they’re on blistering

form. Recent single ‘Lipslap’ is even more cheeky live, and the set

comes with all manner of stage props (the band’s

signature flamingo only has one leg remaining,

the other lost on tour), really ramping

up the party feel.

Oscar

brings even more sunshine

As the sun starts to set on Latitude’s

lakeside, Oscar turns up to perform the

perfect soundtrack. All baritone and

silken sentiment, he slips down every

bit as smooth as the festival’s countless

cocktails.

Debut album ‘Cut and Paste’ is the ideal

sun-kissed summer retreat – as he takes

to the stage to ‘Beautiful Words’, his

croon proves the perfect antidote to

those festival-end-fast-approaching

blues.

16 diymag.com

Three days without

a shower, MØ tests

the waters.

Of Monsters

and Men

bring Latitude to a glorious close

The now-famous Icelandic football chant from

Euro 2016 greets Of Monsters and Men as they

take to the stage, and - unsurprisingly, really - it’s

a cacophonous noise that almost drowns out

New Order on the main stage. Yet, the energy

summoned at the start of the band’s time on

stage doesn’t let up for the whole set.

‘Little Talks’ still gets the biggest reaction - in

fact, it erupts into a glorious celebration - and will

probably always be their biggest hit, but there’s

no denying Of Monsters and Men’s capability in

rallying a crowd and putting on a blindingly fun

show.

MØ tears up the rulebook for frenzied set

“Are you guys sweaty?!” yells MØ at a packed, humid BBC 6 Music tent, “cos

I am!” A Duracell bunny of uncontainable energy, she pinballs her way

between the front row and the stage floor, tearing through ‘Kamikaze’ in

a frenzied burst of limb-flailing dance routines, and loads of braid-twirling

to boot.

“I just want to fuck it up,” she declares, balanced atop a speaker, side-stepping

security to throw herself into a crowd-surf. “I just couldn’t help it,” she

shrugs nonchalantly, shooting the guards a grin and taking to the stage

again for ‘Final Song’. It’s with ‘Lean On,’ though – the most streamed song

in the history of Spotify, no biggy or anything – that she packs her meanest

punch. Already a certified pop star, with a second record on the burner,

this is just the beginning for MØ.

The Magic Gang

bring fun and frivolity

“We’ve been here all weekend and we’re absolutely loving it,” Jack Kaye

exclaims as the group start their set. If the cheers that follow are to be

taken as any indication, then everyone present is equally as enamoured.

Performing to a crowd that fits near perfectly into the tent, their showcase

approaches sublimity.

‘She Doesn’t See’, ‘Jasmine’ and ‘All That I Want Is You’ all receive rapturous

applause, but it’s a testament to the band’s status that their new music

is met with just as much frivolity. If there’s one thing to take from this

performance, it’s how good everyone is left feeling - for sun kissed

joviality, it’d be hard to find anyone better. DIY

17

NEWS

Where the

Grass is

Greener

With triangle-loving

oddballs Alt-J taking

a well-earned break,

drummer Thom Sonny

Green is chasing after

minimal, atmospheric

beats for his new solo

project.

Words: El Hunt.

Photo: Mike Massaro.

Thom Sonny Green might be best known for

manning the drums for Alt-J, but under wraps he’s

been producing everything from Miley Cyrus, to

sparse, Boards of Canada-nodding electronica.

After reserving his own music as a tour bus hobby

for years, the sticksman is finally lifting the lid on a solo project

that couldn’t be further removed from his day job.

“The first tour of America [Alt-J] did was in a splitter [van],

and I can’t remember how long it was, but it felt like around

a month,” Thom says, taking a quick sofa break between rehearsals

for his debut live show. “I was in there for six or seven

hours a day, and I just put all my effort into this. I find touring

pretty difficult, so you’ve got to put your mind somewhere,

otherwise you lose it,” he reasons. “It really helped me with

anxiety and stress. It meant I had control over something.”

Aptly titled ‘High Anxiety’, Thom sees the entire record as a

positive outlet. “I’m prone to being anxious,” he explains. “It

comes on randomly, and on tour I can be a lot more sensitive.

The actual sounds themselves make me feel really comfortable

more than anything. I don’t like flying, as well. I do this while

I’m flying,” he adds, “and it’s a comfort blanket, I guess.”

Well used to headlining major festivals with gigantic production

budgets, he’s looking forward to getting back to basics. “I

do miss those small shows,” he agrees. “There’s something nice

about them. It’s a lot more nerve-wracking, because you can

see everyone, but it’s a lot more intimate. You can’t really hide

behind anything.”

“

You’ve got to put

your mind somewhere,

otherwise

you lose it.”

Thom’s first Pokémon Go

session saw him hunting

long into the night.

And as for Alt-J, the band are in the middle of a well-earned

break. As well as allowing Thom to focus on ‘High Anxiety’, it’s

also given bandmate Gus Unger-Hamilton ample time to open

up a lovely restaurant just around the corner from DIY HQ.

Frontman Joe Newman, meanwhile, is on his holidays in sunny

Australia. “It’s really important that we’ve taken this time off,”

Thom says. “We might be coming here to write, actually,” he

adds, indicating around the East London studio he’s rehearsing

in alone today.

“We’re thinking about it [the next Alt-J album],” he adds,

though is careful to emphasise that there’s no pressure forcing

them to crack on with things before they’re properly ready.

“We really want to do it, and it’s quite daunting,” he says, “but

as soon as we start, it’ll be fine. All we ever want to do is write

interesting things, so we might write an entire album with an

acoustic guitar and a tambourine,” he jokes, cracking a smile.

“We’ll see.”

Thom Sonny Green’s debut album ‘High Anxiety’ is out

19th August via Sudden/Infectious. DIY

18 diymag.com

NEWS

19

NEWS

Popstar

Postbag

white lung

We know what you’re like, dear readers. We know you’re just as nosy as we are when it comes to our

favourite popstars: that’s why we’re putting the power back into your hands. Every month, we’re

going to ask you to pull out your best questions and aim them at those unsuspecting artists. You

don’t even need to pay for postage! This month, White Lung’s Kenneth William is taking on your Qs.

What’s your favourite album of all time? James, via email

It’s a tie between ‘Loveless’ by My Bloody Valentine and The

Smiths’ ‘The Queen is Dead’.

Who would be on the guestlist for your dream dinner

party? Caroline, Manchester

Jeremy Kyle. I would also invite a ton of people I hated so

he could scream at them and make them feel bad about

themselves.

What was your favourite moment making ‘Paradise’? Will,

Glasgow

When Lars [Stalfors, producer] had a 24-pack of

Vanilla Coke delivered to me.

If you could live anywhere in the world,

where would it be and why? Kate, via email

Tokyo, I went to a bar once there where

they locked you in a jail cell and

people dressed as monsters came

to rattle the cages and scare

everybody every half hour. They

know how to have fun there.

What was it like working with Lars Stalfors? Lee, Farnham

It was really great and very easy. He kept us all separate

for most of the recording so it was a new record for least

arguments in the studio.

What made you want to start a band? Rosie, via email

Vanity.

Which film would you choose to watch right now? Stu, via

email

I still haven’t seen ‘The Shallows’, and I like shark movies.

What’re your three most essential items to take on tour?

Jimmy, Norwich

Basketball shorts, sunglasses, earplugs.

How would you describe White Lung in three words?

Thomas, via email

The best band.

NEXT MONTH: creeper

Want to send a question to DIY’s Popstar

Postbag? Tweet us at @diymagazine with the

hashtag #postbag, or drop us an email at

popstarpostbag@diymag.com.

Easy!

20 diymag.com

Sponsored

Famous last

words

W

ell, hello there. Last month, My Chemical Romance posted a teaser video

on Twitter, featuring the intro music to 2006 single ‘Welcome To The Black

Parade’, and a date.

The date is 09/23/2016 (23rd September this year, for us Brits). That single’s home,

breakthrough album ‘The Black Parade’, was released on 23rd October 2006. So,

we’re just putting two and two together here to say, something is gonna go down.

Since the video’s release (and the subsequent internet meltdown), the band

themselves have come out and confirmed that there’s not going to be a reunion

(boo! hiss!) but they will be releasing something for their album’s anniversary.

“We’ve been really touched and blown away by the response to the teaser trailer,”

the band said in a statement. “We are not touring and there is no reunion planned -

only a release for the anniversary of The Black Parade.” Hmmm. We’ll believe it when

we see it.

Honeyblood hit

the road with DIY!

N

ot only are Honeyblood releasing a new album later this year - they’ll also be

previewing material from it on a DIY Presents tour!

The intimate dates begin with an Aberdeen show at Lemon Tree on 25th October,

and run until October, with a London date

set for the Shacklewell Arms on the 4th of

the month. Support for the majority of the

tour comes from Eat Fast.

New album ‘Babes Never Die’ is released

4th November via Fat Cat. Read our

thoughts on lead track ‘Ready For The

Magic’ over on p26.

Tickets for all dates are now on sale; download

DICE to order with no booking fees.

SEPTEMBER

25th Aberdeen Lemon Tree

26th Glasgow Hug and Pint

28th Sheffield Bungalows & Bears

29th Brighton Patterns

30th Guildford Boileroom

OCTOBER

1st Portsmouth Southsea Festival

4th London Shacklewell Arms

5th Leicester The Cookie

6th Edinburgh Electric Circus

TOP

TIPS:

DIY’S PICK OF

LNSOURCE

Given up on festival mud and

decided to go to a good ol’ fashioned

gig this month? Here’s just a few of

LNSource’s upcoming shows that are

more than worth checking out..

Sundara

Karma

September 2016 • Nationwide

Following their massive Main Stage slot

at this year’s Reading & Leeds Festivals,

Sundara Karma will be returning to

the road to win over a whole host of

new fans. They’ve got twelve dates

scheduled across the country, so

chances are you’ll be seeing them

sooner or later.

L7


With their reunion last year still fresh in

many minds, L7 have now announced

plans to return to our shores for another

slew of shows. They’ll be playing in

Manchester, Glasgow and London later

this month.

Black Peaks

/ Heck


If something altogether heavier is right

up your street, this is the perfect tour

for you. The chaos-causing Heck will be

heading off around the country with

Brighton’s post-hardcore heroes Black

Peaks, who’ll be offering up cuts from

their debut album ‘Statues’.

For more information and to buy

tickets, head to livenation.co.uk or

twitter.com/LNSource

21

NEWS

Has there ever been a better way

to state your intent as a band

than crashing into your debut

album yelling your band name,

over and over, before a flamboyant “HIYA!”,

and a first song with enough force to kick down

a door?

Enter Dananananaykroyd (is that enough

nana’s?). The Scottish rabble released debut

full-length ‘Hey Everyone!’ on the back of the

extremely promising ‘Sissy Hits’ EP from the

year before, cementing the faith so many had

put in them.

‘Hey Everyone!’ is remarkable in that it dips

into so many sub-genres of indie rock without

any experimentation feeling gratuitous. Even

in ‘The Greater Than Symbol & The Hash’

alone, there’s thrashing hardcore, something

approaching soaring post-rock, and bouncing,

rhythmic guitar pop.

The band’s capacity to write a pop hit was

never in doubt either - ‘Black Wax’ remains

a fists-in-the-air triumph, and even when

Dananananaykroyd may be a band that many

have forgotten or rarely think of, when they are

looked back upon, it’s with a smile.

The album’s crowning glory is ‘Pink Sabbath’,

the track title a perfect, concise description

of the band - packing a punch, but remaining

saccharine-sweet. ‘Hey Everyone!’ manages

to maintain the perfect balance between

playful, tongue-in-cheek jokiness and crushing

sincerity when they yell “these are the days of

our lives” on ‘Hey James’. Dananananaykroyd

may have only existed as a band for five years,

but what days those were.

There are so many styles employed on ‘Hey

Everyone!’ - all switched between at lightning

speed - and it should make for a disjointed,

difficult listen, but the sense of unadulterated

fun running through the whole thing makes

it anything but, and it showed hardcore at its

most playful.

Dananananaykroyd became famous for inciting

a ‘wall of hugs’ at their gigs - a way more fun

and significantly safer take on the wall of death.

‘Hey Everyone!’ is its sonic equivalent, and a

complete joy to look back upon. DIY

DIY HALL of FAME

DANANANANAYKROYD - HEY EVERYONE!

Their band name might be a bit tricky to say after a few pints, but that didn’t stop this Scottish

rabble making a ludicrously fun debut. Words: Will Richards.

the

Facts

Release Date: April

6, 2009

Standout tracks: ‘Black

Wax’ ‘Pink Sabbath’

‘Infinity Milk’

Something to tell your

mates: Thanks to the

dedicated camcorder

work of guitarist David

Roy, there’s actual

video footage of the

band meeting Bill

Murray at an airport on

the internet. Give it a

Google.

“Dress fancy,” the invitation said.

22 diymag.com

23

NEWS

GAINING

MOMENTUM

Sponsored

Having funded 122 artist over the past three years, PRS for Music Foundation and Arts

Council England’s Momentum Music Fund in association with Spotify, is making a real

difference for musicians across the country.

Being in a band can be a challenge for a number

of reasons, but one of the biggest struggles

that artists are increasingly facing nowadays is

finance.

In a world where bedroom producers and do-ityourself

scenes are cropping up here, there and everywhere,

it’s growing more and more evident that money is not

something easily obtained in the current climate of the music

industry. That’s where PRS for Music Foundation and Arts

Council England’s Momentum Music Fund, in association with

Spotify, hopes to step in.

Set up to support artists at a crucial tipping point in their

career, the Momentum Music Fund gives acts the opportunity

to apply for a grant of £5K to £15K in order to take the next

integral steps of their careers.

Over the past three years, some of the artists funded include

Years & Years, Spring King, Little Simz, Dutch Uncles and

Ghostpoet and this year, another eighteen artists have been

awarded funding.

Hooton

Tennis Club:

“We all feel

very lucky”

Fresh from a performance at Benicassim, we spoke to the Liverpool-based band to find out how it’s already helped

to record their second album with Edwyn Collins.

Hello Hooton Tennis Club! It’s just been announced that you’ve awarded funding through the Momentum Music

Fund - how does it feel?

It’s really amazing and we all feel very lucky, very grateful, and very relieved. The money will help a lot on tour - we might

actually get to sleep in actual beds now! We’re really looking forward to getting back in the van, listening to Smooth FM, eating

Sainsburys meal deals and playing the new songs live.

What have you actually applied for the funding to help with?

The funding has allowed us to record our second record with Edwyn Collins! Edwyn and Grace are some of the loveliest, most

helpful people we’ve met as a band and their beautiful studio is up in beautiful Helmsdale. The funding is also going to help us

tour the UK to promote the album, it also really helps us go to places that may not be on the usual touring circuit of big cities.

24 diymag.com

Kagoule:

“It came as

such a shock!”

H

aving just played DIY’s Alcove Stage at Latitude, we spoke

to Cai Burns, frontman of the Nottingham-based trio, to

discover how the Momentum Fund will help them.

It’s just been announced that you’ve awarded funding

through Momentum - how does it feel?

It came as such a shock! We were stuck at the bottom of a big

soily hole and the Momentum angels have just thrown down

a rope ladder. We will be using it to record and release our

second record.

How much do you think the money will benefit you? Is it

hard to convey how necessary support like this is in the

music industry?

It’s going to help us out no end. We’ve had the songs for this

record ready for a while now but have been been chucking

everything we make back into touring. We don’t have the

backing of a label so the idea of saving up for a second record

has seemed almost impossible. People seem to think that

there’s a lot of money in this industry and that bands just

waste it away, but they couldn’t be more wrong. Everyone I

know in bands invest everything they have into it and often

fund it from their own pocket. Funding like this takes a

massive stress off their personal lives and lets them fully focus

on being creative and moving forward.

Hooton Tennis Club, Kagoule, Flamingods, Eska, Speech

Debelle, Employed To Serve and This Is The Kit are amongst

the latest 18 artists to have been awarded funding through

the Momentum Music Fund.

Not only that, it’s now been announced that Arts Council

England will contribute a further £1million investment to the

fund which will enable PRS for Music Foundation to continue

the programme for another two years, while partners Spotify

have also extended their partnership until 2018.

ALL IN A DAY’S WORK

PRS for Music Foundation will also be teaming up with Arts

Council England and Spotify for their new Momentum Day

series. Designed to offer advice and help artists across the

country through a series of workshops and showcases, the

first Momentum tDay in association with Generator NE will be

hosted up in Newcastle on 12th September.

The Momentum Music Fund is managed by PRS for Music

Foundation using Arts Council England funds and in

association with Spotify. Head to

prsformusicfoundation.com for more information on the

Momentum Fund and to find out how to apply.

25

NEWS

HAVE you

HEARD?

Honeyblood – Ready For The Magic

Distill all the best, most ferocious highlights of Honeyblood’s 2014 debut album and you’re left with a perfect, all-guns-blazing

punk potion. Or, in simpler terms, there’s ‘Ready For The Magic’. The lead single from a new album, it captures all the no-prisoners

ecstasy of the Scottish duo’s first work, adding another dose of ferocity just for the hell of it. If ‘Ready For The Magic’ is an early

indicator of what to expect for LP2, Honeyblood have upped the ante in every way imaginable. (Jamie Milton)

Rat Boy – Get Over It

Since his first pitter-pattering steps at

the beginning of last year, Rat Boy’s been

defined by chaos. ‘Get Over It’, though,

marks something of a heel-turn - he’s put

down the silly-string, the skateboard and

and the books of matches, and opted for

a daiquiri and a Hawaiian shirt instead.

Skipping along atop a skittering hip-hop

beat, there’s an upbeat edge to ‘Get Over

It’ that Rat Boy’s never shown before.

Now, though, he’s all beaming grins and

parping horns. It’s a carnival number

at heart, proving that even when he’s

chilling, Rat Boy’s output is packed full of

sherbet energy. (Tom Connick)

Pixies – Um Chagga Lagga

As fire-breathing introductions go,

they don’t come quite as red hot as

Pixies’ welcome letter from new bassist

Paz Lenchantin. ‘Um Chagga Lagga’ is

as nonsensical as that title – a rickety,

rollicking, smoke-spitting machine,

spewing its wares across a scorched

desert. It finds the new form Pixies

impossibly tight from the get-go, the onetwo

of Paz and Dave Lovering’s rhythm

section clattering along at breakneck

pace, never stumbling or stuttering. Atop

it all, Pixies sound fuller than ever before,

a roaring wildfire of careering riff after riff.

(Tom Connick)

The Big Moon – Silent Movie Susie

It can take some bands years to replicate

their live game on record. For an unlucky

few, it’s like a double-edged sword and

a constant curse. Energy doesn’t

translate to tape with ease, that

much is evident. But no such

problem hits The Big Moon, a

group whose all-smiles, berserk

on-stage dynamic is their

biggest draw. With new single

‘Silent Movie Susie’, these

antics are peering out from every side.

Nothing quite compares to witnessing

the experience IRL, but this is a perfect

antidote to being stuck at home instead of

in a sweaty venue. (Jamie Milton)

Wolf Alice - Ghoster

Wolf Alice’s contribution to the

Ghostbusters soundtrack might not

include cheeky samples of that theme

song (or an appearance from one of the

world’s rapping greats for that matter),

but as Ellie yells “I feel powerful, yeah”

over a driving riff and an oh-so-90s skittish

beat, it’s both as deliciously bratty as the

film it’s been written for, and perfect

for a chase through Manhattan

in Ecto-1. And, as those spooky

guitar licks scatter themselves

over the top remember:

don’t cross the streams.

(Emma Swann)

26 diymag.com

27

FESTIVALS

NEWS

Summer days, drifting away to, oh oh,

those summer nights (tell me more…)

Photo: Ryan Johnston

Meet Isaac Slaves, security guard gone rogue.

28 diymag.com

reading

&Leeds

26th - 28th August

ith not three but FIVE headliners

for this year’s shindig, the August

Bank Holiday looks set to be as hot

as July’s weather, as Foals, Disclosure, Biffy

Clyro, Fall Out Boy and Red Hot Chili Peppers

prepare to top the bill at Richfield Avenue

and Bramham Park respectively. If that wasn’t

enough, there are massive sets aplenty, from

Chvrches’ sub-headline, Boy Better Know’s

Main Stage takeover, and Two Door Cinema

Club’s return, to more faves than you can

shake a tent pole at: The 1975, The Vaccines,

Spring King, Savages, Hinds, Milk Teeth,

Låpsley… the list goes on (and on).

One act making their Main Stage debut at this

year’s festival are Slaves. The noisy Kent duo

spill all about the massive leap up.

A few seconds with…

slaves

We hear you’ve been working on a brand new album.

Laurie: As soon as we released the last album, we had a

session and started trying to write new songs and when

we had time off, we spent time writing and we spent

quite a lot of time focusing on the record.

Isaac: We’ve done all the music, so now it’s just about

concentrating on artwork and tracklisting, things like

that.

L: We just felt like we had the material and we were

writing really quickly, so let’s just do it. So, it should be

out before the end of the year.

Before any of that, you’ve got a Main Stage slot at

Reading & Leeds to play!

I: That is gonna be very special.

L: With Reading & Leeds, we’ve stepped up on every

stage for four years in a row, so it feels really nice.

I: It feels very humbling. I’ll probably weep a little bit.

summer

camp

Fancy catching up with our Class

of 2016 acts? You’re in luck. A

whole six (and counting) are on the

Reading & Leeds bill.

Rat Boy

BBC Radio 1, Friday at Leeds,

Sunday at Reading

It’s no shocker Essex boy Jordan and

his rag-tag pals are already half way

up the bill in this giant tent - 2016’s

been his for the taking from the off.

Expect crowdsurfers on skateboards.

Creeper

The Pit, Friday at Reading, Saturday

at Leeds

If there’s gonna be one

oversubscribed set all weekend, it’ll

be this. The Southampton six-piece’s

(black, natch) star has been rising

steadily over the past 12 months, their

self-styled ‘Creeper cult’ now a reality.

The Japanese House

Dance Stage, Saturday at Reading,

Sunday at Leeds

With big love coming in all directions,

most notably from her Dirty Hit labelmates

and sometime producers The

1975, Amber Bain’s oddball electronic

pop will ease in even the worst earlyafternoon

hangovers.

VANT

Festival Republic, Saturday at

Reading, Sunday at Leeds

With a handful of anthems-in-waiting

in their back pockets, VANT’s raucous

live set has gone from strength-tostrength

since last year’s NEU Tour

alongside INHEAVEN and The Big

Moon. Expect sing-a-longs, mosh pits

and some putting the world to rights.

INHEAVEN

Festival Republic, Saturday at

Reading, Sunday at Leeds

If smasher of a single ‘Baby’s Alright’

wasn’t made for a beered-up tent full

of sweaty festival-goers, we’re not

sure what it was for, tbh.

The Magic Gang

Festival Republic, Friday at Leeds,

Sunday at Reading

Summery-as-fuck jangly indie ahoy,

there’s every chance the crowd

for these Brighton boys will be the

noisiest of the weekend (yes, we’re

looking at you, The 1975 fans).

29

L

1-2-3-4 Festival VISIONS

3rd September

he Cribs, The

Wytches, Crows,

TSpector, Gang of Four

and The Jesus and Mary

Chain are among the first

acts announced for the

return of 1-2-3-4 Festival,

now taking place at Three

Mills Island in East London

on 3rd September.

Also on the bill are

Gloucestershire noiseniks

Milk Teeth.

CD Soundsystem’s

triumphant

return continues,

as they make their

way to Dutch village

Biddinghuizen alongside

rock heavyweights

Muse, Disclosure, Noel

Gallagher’s High Flying

Birds (or ‘Potato’ as the

former Oasis man’s little

bro would have it), Biffy

Clyro, Foals, Chvrches

and LOTS MORE. Brit

newcomers Pumarosa are

also heading across the

North Sea, for one of their

first tastes of festivals

abroad.

LOWLANDS

19th - 21st August


CHRIS WEBB, MILK TEETH

You’ve had a relatively busy festival season...

It’s been so much fun. We never know what to expect with

festivals but we’ve had such a good response at them so far.

Plus you get to see a lot of bands and hang out with mates so

yeah, we’re a fan of festivals.

Any stories to tell?

We camped at Download, and after three days in the soaking

wet we decided to go to a hotel, ten minutes away, for a

shower to try and fight off the cold. So we did and it was

excellent. But somehow it took us five hours to get back. The

traffic for Iron Maiden was unreal! So we are looking forward

to that never happening again.


PUMAROSA

Have you ever played any Dutch festivals before?

Nicholas: We did London Calling.

Isabel: At that amazing venue, the Paradiso. We played on

that little stage upstairs, which for us was a really big gig. The

next morning they texted and said do you want to come back

and headline! So yeah, Holland is really lovely. They seem

really receptive, and they seem to really get it. Also – they

seem to keep it quite civilised! They’ll all be getting really high

but it’s all fine and clean!

Have you got a basic grasp of the language, or will this be

a real phrasebook-led adventure?

I: Unfortunately the only word I know in Dutch is not very nice

- “godverdomme” It means ‘god damn me,’ but apparently

that’s a terrible thing to say!

N: I’m shocked.

I: Oh, and I know “hagelslag”! That lovely

chocolate on toast.

N: All you need to know, really.

6th August

Yak and Fake Laugh have

joined the bill for Visions

(6th August), joining the likes

of The Japanese House,

Dream Wife, Gengahr, Cate

Le Bon and Elf Kid at the

East London all-dayer.

GREEN MAN

18th - 21st August

Fish, Factory Floor,

H. Hawkline and Loose

Meat are among the latest

additions, which also include

DJ sets from familiar radio

voices Huw Stephens

and Tom Ravenscroft.

They join headliners Belle

& Sebastian, James

Blake, Laura Marling and

Wild Beasts in the Welsh

mountains.

POWER TO THE

PARTY

24th September

Afropunk’s first UK event

will be headlined by Grace

Jones, replacing the

previously-announced MIA,

with Laura Mvula, Skinny

Girl Diet, MNEK, Kwabs,

Noisettes, Jorja Smith

and Big Joanie also added

to a bill that also features

Youth Man, Ho99o9, and

Benjamin Booker.

SOUTHSEA

1st October

Honeyblood lead the new

additions to the all-dayer,

alongside Kagoule, Dream

Wife, Gang and Smoke

Fairies. They join the

already-announced Mystery

Jets, Eagulls, The Big

Moon, Black Honey, and

INHEAVEN.

MIRRORS

29th October

Joining Bat For

Lashes at this year’s

Mirrors are Fucked

Up, who’ll perform

2006’s ‘Hidden

World’ in full,

Cherry Glazerr,

Bill Ryder-

Jones, Caro,

Babeheaven,

Allah-Lahs

and Diarrhea

Planet.

30 diymag.com

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SEX CELLS

31

Never be Leo-nly

It’ll take something Titantic

to stop Dream Wife’s ascent.

A few months ago, a big project

of yours was putting together a

Leonardo DiCaprio shrine. Where are

you at with that? Or has the obsession

worn off now that he has his Oscar?

Bella: Young Leo was a phase I guess.

He’s an activist now, fighting for the

planet, and growing up. He’s not just a

teen dream. Rakel was even looking at his

Instagram a few hours ago, full of pictures

of him talking about the effects of climate

change. Rakel’s dad actually looks like

Leo. And when he was younger, he’s

almost the spitting image; fluffy blonde hair

and tight jeans. It freaked Rakel out a bit.

A controversial question: was there

enough room for both Jack and Rose on

the mantelpiece in Titanic? Did poor

Jack die in vain?

Bella: I mean of course, I’ve

acted it out with friends on

smaller pieces of wood. He

didn’t need to die, they

didn’t even try. It literally

makes no sense.

32 diymag.com

neu

dream wife

An art project run riot and out of control, this lot have found themselves forming one of the most exciting new bands right now.

Words: El Hunt. Photo: Mike Massaro.

Inflatable palm trees, impromptu Peaches

covers and trashed stages filled with

ruined ‘space beach’ paraphernalia;

it’s all a standard day for Dream Wife. A

glitter-pen daubed collaging together of

bright, gaudy obsessions – from Bikini Kill

and No Doubt right through to Blondie

and Banana-bloody-rama – Dream Wife’s

music is a tattered scrapbook, and yet

their sound is as recognisable as it comes.

Rakel Mjöll, Alice Go and Bella Podpadec

first crossed paths while studying art in Brighton,

with rock stardom the last thing on their minds. With

the band starting life as a performance piece (oh,

and because they fancied going on a jolly to Canada

and needed a believable excuse) the trio readily

admit they never imagined themselves as band

types at all – let alone in the process of readying a

debut album. Yet, here they are.

“We had a great time in Canada,” says bassist, Bella,

looking back on the time the band – before they

even realised they were an ‘actual’ band, that is –

spent playing shows across the Atlantic. “Canada

was intended as a conclusion and realisation of the

performance piece, but writing songs together felt

natural, and we were all curious to see how far we

could push the project,” she adds. “The transition

from art project to ‘real band’ was quite organic;

taking the piece out there, playing shows and

sleeping on night coaches for a month forged a

solidarity between us, we were suddenly a gang of

Wives on the road, and we loved it,” she says.

Starting out with no fixed end goal has been

liberating for Dream Wife. An unwieldy combination

of vulnerability and empowerment, there are few

places the band won’t explore. Their music veers

between taking aim at heartbreakers of the world,

searching for family graves in upstate New York, and

Rakel’s terrifyingly smirk-filled promise; “I’m going to

fuck you up.” And according to Rakel – who recently

moved from the Icelandic city of Reykjavík to spend

more time on the band in London – a certain country

legend is an unlikely inspiration for some of her most

laid-bare lyrical moments.

“When I write lyrics I often think about Dolly

Parton,” she drops into the mix with all the casual

nonchalance of someone asking for access to the

nearest condiment jar. “What would Dolly do? With

the rawness to her writing, she’s channeling a direct

emotion of a time,” she goes on. “If it’s a few minutes

or a night she experienced she can go back there.

Dolly the time traveller.”

The band recently inked a record deal with Lucky

Number (Hinds, Sleigh Bells) on the pebbled

beaches during this year’s Great Escape festival -

“champagne on the rocks,” quips Alice, “literally”

- and next on the Wives’ agenda is cracking on with

that full-length. “Right now we’re in the midst of

writing songs for our album,” Bella says. “Three

down! Seven to go? Or something like that. All the

ideas that have been bubbling within us for months

are now letting loose!” DIY

33

Will

Joseph

Cook

This Tunbridge Wells-based maverick’s star is on

the rise thanks to latest single ‘Take Me Dancing’

and his smart take on pop.

Words: Eugenie Johnson. Photo: Emma Swann.

Is it possible to steal Will Joseph

Cook’s dad? His love of live music

and impeccable taste in bands

neu

puts most fathers to shame. “He

literally took me to so many shows,”

Will says. “Everything Everything,

Vampire Weekend, just shitloads of indie bands

really. That whole scene built around MGMT and all

those bands, Empire of the Sun and stuff. Darwin

Deez too.”

In all seriousness, growing up in a creative

household helped introduce Will to a host of bands

who undoubtedly shaped the way he approaches

his own brand of unorthodox pop. MGMT, Weezer

and Vampire Weekend are

particular favourites of Will’s.

“I think the thing I find most

appealing is when they are

completely aware of what

they’re doing,” he says.

“They’re not tied down to a

certain era and they’re clever

pop songs, but also slightly ironic. They haven’t

stumbled across a sound by accident, they’re almost

showing off because they’re so good.”

That timeless quality is present in Will’s own work,

where classic hooks are married with shuffling guitar

licks and his own falsetto. It’s not in-your-face but,

as Will puts it, “if your music is saying something,

it doesn’t have to be abrasive.” Although he’s

technically an average guy with an acoustic guitar,

don’t try to pigeonhole him. “I fucking hate the

term singer-songwriter. Honestly. It’s the bane of

my existence,” he says. “Labels and stuff are kind

of bullshit. That’s what I like about [pop music]. If

you’re a pop artist you can do what you want.” Will’s

genre-busting sound hasn’t come too easy though;

he’s always hard at work trying to create something

magical. “If I can get one little thing a day and note

it down, even if it’s crap, I always record stuff,” he

explains. “You’d think I was fucking nuts if you

went on my computer, there’s so much stuff. Some

of them are the most awful, awful musical ideas.”

These moments of inspiration even hit him when

he’s out and about. “I think the worst ones are when

I wake up or I’m walking to the shops or in a public

place. It’ll be like a really creepy recording humming

in a bit of song and I’ll go

“I fucking hate

the term singersongwriter”

GAME FOR

ANYTHING

back to it and I’ll go ‘what

the fuck was I thinking,’

singing in public and all

that.”

Now Will sounds more

ready than ever to break

into the mainstream. Still, he’s aiming to stay true

to his own vision. “I love pop music, but there’s a

duality to it. The music means a lot and I’m not

making a product, I’m making music that I

find the most satisfying,” he explains. “I

could never make pop music to be

commercial. I’m just making

the music I wanna make. The

commercial aspect doesn’t

play a part for me.” DIY

ast month

Will played

L an acoustic

set on the Sony

PlayStation

stage at BST.

Unfortunately

for Sony, Will

probably won’t

be sponsoring

the PS4 anytime

soon. He’s much

more likely to

play for another

team.

“My first console

was the Nintendo

GameCube,” he

says. His favourite

game happens to

be the gorgeous

cel-shaded

masterpiece ‘The

Legend of Zelda:

Wind Waker,’ a

typically colourful

adventure across

the high seas to

match Will’s own

personality. “Every

aspect of

it is good:

looks

amazing,

cute

storyline.

Yep.”

34 diymag.com

Goldenvoice Presents

HUNTAR

16.08.16

LONDON ISLINGTON

O2 ACADEMY 2

THE STRUMBELLAS

24.08.16

LONDON BORDERLINE

RIVRS

+ CUCKOOLANDER

15.09.16

LONDON RED GALLERY

XAMVOLO

19.09.16

LONDON THE WAITING ROOM

TOM WALKER

20.09.16


MEADOWLARK

23.09.16

BRIGHTON HOPE & RUIN

27.09.16


CLARE MAGUIRE

26.09.16

LONDON

ST GILES IN THE FIELD

THE INVISIBLE

26.09.16

MANCHESTER SOUP KITCHEN

27.09.16

BRISTOL LOUISIANA

28.09.16

LONDON OSLO HACKNEY

THE MAGIC GANG

28.09.16

LONDON SCALA

BABY STRANGE

+ HAPPY MEAL LTD

28.09.16

LONDON CAMDEN

ASSEMBLY HALL

FUFANU

06.10.16

LONDON HOXTON SQUARE BAR

& KITCHEN

PARQUET COURTS

12.10.16

THE OLD MARKET HOVE

MABEL

12.10.2016

LONDON MOTH CLUB

JP COOPER

17.10.16

BRIGHTON HAUNT

20.10.16

OXFORD O2 ACADEMY 2

21.10.16

NORWICH ARTS CENTRE

22.10.16

SOUTHAMPTON BROOK

26.10.16

LONDON O2 FORUM

KENTISH TOWN

27.10.16

MANCHESTER ACADEMY

29.10.16

BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE2

SPRING KING

18.10.16

O2 INSTITUTE3 BIRMINGHAM

23.10.16

O2 ACADEMY 2 OXFORD

27.10.16

BRIGHTON CONCORDE 2

SOLD OUT

KHRUANGBIN

19.10.16

LEEDS WARDROBE

21.10.16

MANCHESTER DEAF INSTITUTE

22.10.16

NOTTINGHAM BODEGA

25.10.16

LONDON ISLINGTON

ASSEMBLY HALL

26.10.16

BRISTOL TRINITY CENTRE

HONNE

23.10.16


28.10.16

LONDON ROUNDHOUSE

01.11.16

BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE

JAGWAR MA

23.10.16

BRISTOL MARBLE FACTORY

KIKO BUN

23.10.16

BIRMINGHAM RAINBOW

25.10.16

BRISTOL LOUISIANA

26.10.16

BRIGHTON KOMEDIA

ADIA VICTORIA

24.10.2016

HOXTON SQUARE BAR & KITCHEN

SLEAFORD MODS

24.10.16

NEWCASTLE O2 ACADEMY

26.10.16

LEEDS BECKETT SU

27.10.16

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 1

28.10.16

LIVERPOOL

GUILD OF STUDENTS

31.10.16

BRIGHTON DOME

03.11.16

NOTTINGHAM ROCK CITY

07.11.16

COVENTRY EMPIRE

08.11.16

BRISTOL O2 ACADEMY

10.11.16

LONDON ROUNDHOUSE

YAK

27.10.16

LONDON SCALA

BILLIE MARTEN

28.10.16

CARDIFF BUFFALO BAR

CROWS

31.10.16

LONDON 100 CLUB

BEAR’S DEN

02.11.16

BIRMINGHAM O2 INSTITUTE

ISLAND

02.11.16

LONDON SCALA

TOM ODELL

04.11.16

BRIGHTON CENTRE

05.11.16

PLYMOUTH PAVILLIONS

06.11.16

SWINDON OASIS CENTRE

12.11.16

BIRMINGHAM O2 ACADEMY

SOLD OUT

WAND

04.11.16

LONDON BOSTON ARMS

05.11.16

LEEDS BRUDENELL

SOCIAL CLUB

06.11.16

BRIGHTON HOPE & RUIN

BILLY BRAGG

& JOE HENRY

07.11.16

LONDON UNION CHAPEL

08.11.16

LONDON UNION CHAPEL

THE SPECIALS

15.11.16

LONDON TROXY

16.11.16

LONDON TROXY

PHANTOGRAM

16.11.16

LONDON HEAVEN

ANNE-MARIE

21.11.2016

LEEDS WARDROBE

24.11.2016

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25.11.2016

MANCHESTER GORILLA

26.11.2016

O2 INSTITUTE2 BIRMINGHAM

28.11.2016

KOKO LONDON

TOM MISCH

25.11.16

BIRMINGHAM

HARE & HOUNDS

26.11.16

BRISTOL THEKLA

JESS GLYNNE

27.11.16

BRIGHTON CENTRE

28.11.16

PLYMOUTH PAVILIONS

TOURIST

29.11.16

BRIGHTON PATTERNS

01.12.16

BRISTOL MARBLE FACTORY

02.12.16

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01.12.2016


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07.12.16

LONDON O2 FORUM

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11.12.2016

MANCHESTER ACADEMY 1

14.12.16

LONDON O2 ACADEMY

BRIXTON

15.12.2016

O2 INSTITUTE MANCHESTER

THE 1975

22.12.2016

CARDIFF

MOTORPOINT ARENA

SOLD OUT

SOLD OUT

SOLD OUT

AUG – DEC

goldenvoice.co.uk

35

Holy Now

Sweet Swedish escape, coated in sadness.

Don’t be deceived by the sunny disposition of Gothenburg group Holy Now. In a similar

way to how Alvvays would favour a graveyard tour over a typical weekend picnic, they

clash deep darkness with the sound of pure escape.

It’s rare to find lyrics like “Let me fall asleep / I am trying” and “Let me find a space / I am

dying” in the company of jangly, euphoric choruses, but that’s how Holy Now operate.

Listen: Their debut single is out now via Beech Coma.

Similar to: An all-nighter with Alvvays.

Caro

Meet the UK’s next unorthodox-pop prospect.

Earlier this year, those stumbling across the North’s showcase

fests might have found their new favourite band.

Caro are a Leeds-based trio sporting stately, delicatelyarranged

pop that’ll slap you round the face unprompted.

Sounds unnecessary and a bit mean on paper, but the

fizzing ‘Cold Comfort’ drifts between two wild extremes.

Listen: ‘Cold Comfort’ has enough going on to set pulses

racing at dangerous levels.

Similar to: An Alt-J, Wild Beasts and Glass Animals

cocktail.

Stevie

Parker

Ditching old tropes for inventive,

emotional pop.

One of this year’s breakthrough standouts

at Field Day, Stevie Parker ditches the

‘earnest songwriter’ stereotype. Avoiding

the trap of being ‘just another musician

with a heartfelt message’, she balances

emotions with genuine invention. Few

newcomers know how to stand out in a

crowd with their first step, but Stevie

Parker has already hit liftoff. The

24-year-old’s synth-drenched first

steps hit a smart balance between

harsh emotion and instant pop

gold.

Listen: ‘The Cure’ is a fitting

antidote to summer blues.

Similar to: Soak raised on Bon

Iver and Cocteau Twins.

Aristophanes

A breathless, tongue-twisting

Taiwanese rapper.

You’ll likely know Aristophanes

from her dark, twisted cameo

on Grimes’ ‘SCREAM’. The

Taiwanese rapper sounds like

nothing else on Earth, hence

why Claire Boucher was so

keen to have her appear on ‘Art

Angels’. Since then, this English

teacher has gone skywards,

working with Arcade Fire’s Will

Butler as well as taking SXSW

by storm.

Listen: ‘Fly To The Moon’ is a

berserk intro.

Similar to: Spinning in the air

at 100mph per second, without

the motion sickness.

neu

Recommended

36 diymag.com

neu

All the buzziest

new music

happenings,

in one place.

THIS MESS

WE’RE IN

Never afraid to put their political views

front-centre, VANT gave DIY their

perspective on a post-Brexit Britain

after playing the Netherlands’ Best

Kept Secret festival in June. “I think

most young people are really scared,”

said Mattie Vant. “Obviously there

are a lot of reports saying it’ll affect

the music industry massively, as

well. Like I say, with festivals like

this, the reason a band like us can

come and open the main stage

is because they’re able to pay us

a fee which is affordable for us

to come, and it’s not a massive

fee for them to be able to

put us on. If taxes come in,

and visas, and all that stuff,

it’ll remove the British

music scene from Europe.

And at the moment, the

music industry is one of

the greatest – if not the

greatest – export we

have.”

LEAVING THE

HOUSE

The Japanese House has announced

a great big UK tour. The 21-year-old

Dirty Hit signing is also readying new

music, after touring the world with The

1975. Dates include a headline show

at London’s Heaven, plus stopovers in

Bristol, Birmingham and Leeds. This

summer, she plays Visions London (6th

August), Reading & Leeds (26th-28th

August) and Bestival (8th September).

UNFINISHED

BUSINESS

New York rockers Public Access TV have

announced that debut album ‘Never Enough’ is

set for release on 23rd September via Cinematic.

Zane Lowe premiered lead single ‘Sudden

Emotion’ on Beats 1 last month and it’s a hookladen,

hip-shaking taste of what’s to come on

a record that was made in New York, Nashville,

London and Henley-on-Thames. They’ve been

travelling, but expect this debut to carry nothing

but the spirit of the Big Apple.

37

Mabel McVey’s life so far

has been a pilgrimage,

a journey across Europe

neu in search for two things:

R&B and a community

who embrace it. Born

in London before

moving to Spain and then Sweden, despite

the globetrotting, Mabel’s teen years were

typically awkward. “I felt really misplaced

in my year,” she says of her school days in

Sweden. “I really loved Lauryn Hill, Destiny’s

Child and Beyoncé, and felt in some way

ashamed to admit that to my classmates,

which is crazy.” As hard as it is to imagine a

place where it was uncool to like Beyoncé, she

never really felt at home.

Mabel was looking for something else. She

was simply searching for a place where she

could “make sick R&B and nobody thought

that was weird,” and this search eventually

led her back to London. “When I moved

here I felt more free, there are just so many

people doing so many different things,” she

chirps, talking enthusiastically about finding

a community of like-minded people. Some

of the first of these people though came not

from R&B but from grime, namely Skepta and

the BBK collective.

Just an ordinary teenager, looking for her

place in the world? Well, not quite. If you

recognise the surname that’s because Mabel’s

the daughter of Massive Attack and Portishead

producer Cameron McVey. Oh, and her mum

is one Neneh Cherry. “It’s impossible to not

somehow take influence from them,” she says,

but she also mentions insecurities that came

with being the daughter of such influential

figures. “I thought if I could find managers and

get a record deal by myself, that would get rid

of my insecurities that they [her parents] are

the root of my talents,” Mabel says, admitting

that she did consider recording under a

different name but that she was too proud

of her parents’ accomplishments and too

resolute in her goals to get to a place where

“one day people just won’t care who my

parents are”.

She’s right to think this way. Completely

devoid of any tampering or helping hands

from her family, Mabel’s shimmering, soulful

R&B found her supporting Years & Years at

Wembley for her fifth gig ever. She’s had nods

from the BBC Sound Of poll, has collaborated

with the likes of SBTRKT and even found

herself part of the Tate Modern’s latest

makeover. Promising a complete album with

the kind of interludes and B-sides that made

up her influences (namely, ‘The Miseducation

of Lauryn Hill’), there’s no question that she

has so much more to offer. DIY

Mabel will play Reeperbahn. Head to

diymag.com/festivals for details.

Determined

not to be

defined by

her family,

Mabel is

globe-trotting

her way to

stardom.

Words:

Henry Boon

MABEL

38 diymag.com

Photos: Sarah Louise Bennett

neu

LIVE report

MURA MASA

20-year-old electronic pop producer goes way beyond his

calling with a smart, excitable set at Latitude 2016.

At first, Mura Masa (aka Alex Crossan) looks like someone

forced into the one-man-band role without much of a

choice. The Guernsey producer has a laptop on one side,

keys on the other, and a cymbal to smash in case he gets

frustrated, presumably. That’s on first glance. What follows is a magnetic

showcase of how to achieve a great deal with very few tools.

After a couple of songs, the 20-year-old tells the crowd “I know it’s

hot, but you’ve gotta move a little bit more than that.” The power of

persuasion looks to have worked. Within seconds, kids are standing

on each other’s shoulders, a circle pit even forming at one point.

To be fair, Alex’s cause is helped by guest vocalist Bonzai, who

takes centre stage for half of the set. On his own, Mura Masa brings

highs with sharp, hyperactive beatwork (he’s a dab hand at piano,

too). With Bonzai, the pair give the crowd exactly the kind of party

they’ve been waiting for.

Far from a one-man-band affair, this is a set that goes way behind a

laptop-hugging default. Plenty of producers stick to the basics when

they’re starting out. A big label budget obviously helps, but Mura

Masa is doing a fine job of going for the jugular.

GIG GUIDE

The must-see new music gigs

taking place this month.

Buzzy first steps

Dream Wife

London • Visions • 6th August

All-day hypefest Visions hosts big names like Young

Fathers and Gengahr, but you’d be a damn fool to

miss out on brill-as-fuck fuzz-punk-pop trio Dream

Wife.

On tour

Julia Jacklin

31st August • 11th September

Australia’s most talked-about new songwriter

arrives in Europe for a run of shows this month,

where she’ll be showcasing debut album ‘Don’t

Let The Kids Win’. Stops include a headline show at

London Lexington, plus End Of The Road festival.

She’s back for a proper UK tour in November.

Racking up the airmiles

Show Me the Body

6th-13th August

New York rap-punk hybrid Show Me the Body have

an excellent debut album in ‘Body War’. They’re

back in the UK this month for Visions, plus a brief

run of UK shows.

39

g

KINGS

WITH NEW ALBUM ‘BOY KING’, WILD

BEASTS ARE SWAPPING SILKEN SOUNDS

FOR LEATHER JACKETS, AND KICKING

DOWN THE DOOR TO THE POP PARTY.

40 diymag.com

“What do you mean,

Chris Eubank is coming

here to fight us?”

of the

JUNGLEg

WORDS: TOM CONNICK. PHOTOS: JENNA FOXTON.

41

“This is a

SELFIE OF

It’s not critical reception, everswelling

venues or even fans’

reactions Hayden Thorpe looks to

for reassurance that he’s making

something worthwhile. Instead,

the Wild Beasts frontman has a

far simpler, much closer-to-home

solution – get the relatives round.

“My theory is if your in-laws hear your record and think, ‘such a lovely boy, I’m so pleased for you’, then

your art is fucking terrible,” he grins from beneath his newly-groomed beard. “It’s a good barometer for

your art – your grandma and your in-laws should be slightly perplexed.”

It’s unlikely that granny’s going to be head-over-heels for new album ‘Boy King’. A sweaty embracing of Wild

Beasts’ most primal urges, it’s as probing and synthetic as they’ve ever dared to tread – a glitching, futuristic vision,

swapping the pastels of their past works for a newfound love of neon and excess. It’s a two-footed leap out of their

comfort zone. The four of them – fellow frontman Tom Fleming, guitarist Ben Little and drummer Chris Talbot –

openly admit to their nerves at letting ‘Boy King’ loose.

“The feeling of nausea and terror means that you’ve revealed something of yourself that isn’t necessarily for

everyday life,” reasons Hayden, “but who rwants their music to be appropriate for everyday life?”

“We’re not out to comfort,” Tom agrees.

A RECORD.”

Hayden Thorpe

That balancing act of bravado and insecurity

lies at the core of Wild Beasts’ story. From day

one, and with their pairing of silken indie and a

prominent falsetto, they’ve battled with their

own perception, contorting themselves into

new shapes in an attempt to avoid stagnation.

Their success at that could be questioned - a

second Mercury nomination for 2014’s ‘Present

Tense’ seemed like a sure bet, but evaded them once

the shortlist was unveiled. “There is the constant fear

of oblivion – of people losing interest,” Tom admits. “It

obviously has to be artistically consistent, but we’ve

always tried to turn the screw a little bit.”

Hayden talks of a “strange dichotomy” that’s bedded

into their collective lives. Growing up together in the

tiny, Cumbrian market town of Kendal, the four of them

were always somewhat out of place. “Men were men,

and they worked with their hand on the land – a very

stoic community, really,” he says. “And then we make

our living, our trade, through channeling our emotional

vulnerability. You can’t get rid of that in your skeleton

– that way of being that we grew up in. We’re bringing

out our softer sides, into what is a gang mentality

band. So that’s where the dynamic comes from – it’s

a constant source, a constant rub.” He rubs the tips of

his fore and middle finger against the edge of his palm

as if to drive home the point - that ‘hand on the land’

instinct creeping through.

Emerging in the mid-2000s - in a sea of “leather

jacket, proper lad bands,” as Tom puts it - Wild

Beasts remained at odds with their surroundings at

every opportunity. That ‘rub’ was inescapable – it

42 diymag.com

“Hello darkness my

old friend…”

43

“We wanted to

THROW OUR TOYS

out of the

PRAM.”

Tom Fleming

44 diymag.com

PARTY BOY

“Get My Bang’’s video finds

Hayden whipping out his inner

Travolta, thrust-heavy dancemoves

and all. As it turns out,

it was almost one impulsive

decision too far…

Hayden: “On the way from the

airport to the first dance rehearsal,

I was just thinking, ‘If the car

crashes, I don’t have to do this.’

[everyone laughs] ‘If I fall down

the stairs… I don’t have to do

this.’ This realisation of, ‘Fuck, I

actually have to be this guy now.’

But there’s no point in having a

song like ‘Get My Bang’ and not

actually having the guts to see

it through. In the end it became

a really profound, life-affirming

growth spurt. I was dreaming

about dancing, and dreaming

about the guys in inappropriate

ways [laughs]. It was that incredible

psychological effect.

And also, Serbians as a people

[the video was filmed in the

country’s capital, Belgrade], are

admittedly pretty brutally honest.

My encouragement spanned

from being told I was a pervert,

or - worse than that - Mr. Bean.”

even manifested itself within the band.

“Certainly on our first record [2008’s

‘Limbo, Panto’], I think we all played on ten

all the time,” says Ben. “We were all trying

to get our point across.”

By contrast, the spacious ‘Present Tense’

felt like both a breather and a turning

point. Sure, the Mercury snub must have

stung, but as the band’s first Top Ten

album, it propelled them into higher

climes, showcasing a band who finally

felt a fully cohesive unit in the process.

Heading towards ‘Boy King’, there were

arena dates with The National in their back

pockets; festival headline slots in their

diaries. The temptation to tread water

was never present, though

there was always a tendency to

remain close to that mast they

first nailed their colours to. Over

time, it became limiting.

“I think there was a bottleneck,

in terms of our craft,” Hayden

admits with a laugh, while Ben

cites the “element of surprise”

that keeps his favourite bands

relevant – “we want to shock

you and keep you interested in

that way.”

“If we’d have followed the line

of design of ‘Present Tense’,

it’s like music by maths,” says

Hayden. “It was so meticulous

and so detailed, and we went to

such extraordinary lengths to

construct it. It was either that –

we start putting the lab coats on

- or we put the leather jackets

on. And of course you put the

leather jackets on!”

The result of their latest

reinvention is a record that

takes every expectation

of Wild Beasts and sends

them packing. Outrageous

guitar solos nestle up to

their most juddering electronics

to date, while the sleaze would

put a red light district to shame.

True, Hayden and Tom might

never have shied away from the

sex factor, but on ‘Boy King’ it’s

taking over.

“I think all our records

have been fairly sexually

charged, and not always

about good sex…”

Tom admits, before

adding with a chuckle:

“In fact, almost never

about good sex or good

relationships!”

‘Get My Bang’, the lead single from ‘Boy

King’, showcases that filthier new dressing

best. Atop squalling, screeching guitars,

Hayden’s front-and-centre. “No getting

it right, no getting it wrong / just getting it

on” he cries - there’s no needless poetry

or self-doubt here. “Don’t be ashamed

of the things that satiate you,” Hayden

says of ‘Get My Bang’’s mantra. “Don’t be

governed by your inhibitions.”

“A band is like a nuclear reactor,” he

continues, “you bring these elements

together and it makes a great amount of

heat and energy. When we get together,

it’s kind of like harnessing that heat and

energy, and if that heat and energy is

directing the songs to get slicker, sexier,

darker, and the guitars are getting

heavier… just by osmosis, the subject

matter, the sex gets heavier and darker as

well, basically.”

Cementing that new mantra meant tearing

themselves away from their East London

studio and throwing themselves into an

uncomfortable setting – Dallas, Texas, a

place that couldn’t be farther removed

from home.

“The thing about being in Texas is our

modest Britishisms and politeness were

useless, and it was stamped on,” Hayden

smirks. The pace and size of life amped

right up, it proved the perfect place to

let ‘Boy King’ loose after a year of studio

entrapment.

“A lot of what we’d done in the early part

of the year was quite smooth,” remembers

Chris, “and I think we realised halfway

through, like, ‘OK, this isn’t really where we

want to go.’ So going to America, where

everything is huge, and you can’t walk to a

shop, and you can’t walk to a pub, and you

can’t walk to a restaurant – you get driven

everywhere… We needed that grotesque

lifestyle.”

Dallas’ sweltering heat – and the

“ballsiness and no-nonsense” attitude of

producer John Congleton - lit a fire under

Wild Beasts’ feet that they’d been longing

for for years. “A song like ‘He The Colossus’

– which is probably one of the most

obscenely sexual songs on the record - was

written pre-‘Smother’,” Hayden reveals.

“It’s almost as if we were waiting for the

right environment. It’s kind of a seed in

the ground that was waiting for the right

environment, and then all of a sudden…

it got really hot-house in that studio, and

it just kind of erupted and became this

Venus Fly-Trap type creature.” Likewise,

‘Get My Bang’, “after a year of meticulous

construction, fell together in about ten

minutes.“

45

Far from just refreshing

themes previously

trodden, that

spontaneity led to ‘Boy

King’ unveiling a new

side to Wild Beasts,

too – the fun lover. “We

are seen as a ‘clever-clever’

band, which does my head

in,” says Tom, just a matter of minutes

after play-fighting with his best mates

in a boxing ring, “and certainly to be

considered alongside a lot of British

indie bands does my head in as well.”

“The point of the record is that the

heaviness should be worn lightly,”

Hayden says. “It’s to be kind of

celebrated – the self-loathing is to be

celebrated and the darkness is to be

revelled in.”

He cites a mixture of “the self-loathing,

masochistic” sexuality of Nine

Inch Nails and the “slickness and

functionality” of Justin Timberlake as

primary influences on the record – not

your standard Friday night playlist,

perhaps, but one that seems perfectly

suited to the hedonistic, warped world

‘Boy King’ inhabits.

“In some ways it’s quite a dark and

angry record, but we also think it’s a

party record,” Tom continues. “We think

it’s fun! We were smiling when we were

playing it a lot of the time, because we

know how ridiculous it is, but this feels

great! It’s like, ‘What happens if I grab

the whammy bar – oh yeah, we like

that! What happens if you put that fill

in the wrong place? It sounds fucking

brilliant!’ That kind of thing. There was

a joy of discovery about it – or, I guess,

rediscovery. It did feel fun to make. We

wanted to throw our toys out the pram

a little bit. Make some noise.”

It’s a new, fist-forward stance that’s

set to send Wild Beasts leagues ahead

of their past selves. Swapping silk for

leather, mist for neon and tenderness

for a cocksure attitude, Wild Beasts

are a completely different, er, beast as

they enter their second decade. “We’ve

embraced a lot of the gestures and a

lot of the postures that we started out

against,” Hayden states proudly. “The

band was founded on principles that

completely object to some of the things

we’re doing now. The circularity to that

is kind of the beautiful thing about it.

“To me, it is an alter-ego record,”

Hayden reasons. “The ‘Boy King’ is

bigger than us, and it’s more brash than

us, and he’s more preposterous than

GREAT

WHITE

The showiness of ‘Boy King’

was defined in no small part

by a “big, white Jackson

guitar” that Tom brought

into the studio, like a kid at

Christmas.

Hayden: It’s a statement

instrument, absolutely!

[everyone laughs].

Tom: It’s been something I’d

been thinking about for a while,

and it felt consistent with the

music we were making. It’s not

really a metal guitar - it was

supposed to be a fun concept.

Rather than making a metal

album, it was like, ‘we’re gonna

have some ridiculous abstract

sounds.’

Hayden: The guitar is a beautiful

symbol of masculinity. It’s a

weapon, an extension of self – it’s

like a sports car.

Tom: Compared to a traditional,

like the guitars I’ve played before,

because I’m fingerpicking,

they’re big guitars and they

have heavy strings. This is like,

[wiggles his fingers] ‘Wow, look

at that, it’s easy!’ But certainly,

I’ve been practising – you can’t

have a guitar like that and… suck.

[laughs]

us, and to get to be that guy is pretty

liberating and cathartic.”

“There’s flashes of ‘Boy King’ in all of our

material, always – just brief flashes. But

that’s like, ‘Oh, that’s that guy!’ Now this

record is like, ‘Fuck, that guy’s me.’ It’s

always been around, but now there’s a

slight acceptance. It’s like there’s always

been a shadow, but now the shadow’s

receding actually into your body. This

is a selfie of a record – the camera was

facing outward before.“

Wild Beasts’ new album ‘Boy King’ is

out now via Domino. DIY

Wild Beasts will play Reeperbahn. Head

to diymag.com/festivals for details.

46 diymag.com

“We’re not out to

COMFORT.”

Tom Fleming

47

‘For All We Know’ might have a vague title when it comes to lookinG forward, but Nao’s

Sipping on a wholesome-looking

blueberry booster smoothie, Nao’s

still gathering herself after a late night

dancing on Dalston’s Ridley Road. The

East Londoner has a basement studio

right on the thronging market street,

which she shares with a ton of close pals

and long-term collaborators. For all of

her most pinch-yourself moments over

the last rapid-fire year – from Disclosure

guest spots, to scooping third place in the Beeb’s Sound of

poll – there’s one thing that defines all of her first steps, and

this debut record. Deeply

personal and totally lacking

in gimmicks, ‘For All

We Know’ is focused firmly

on the friendships, places

and loves that shape Nao

as an artist and person.

And, stopping by for a

natter a week ahead of her

first album’s release, she’s

dead excited to unleash

the thing for that very

reason (that explains last

night’s cocktails, then).

“I am the

ingredient

through it all.”

“I try to draw on what’s innate to me, and that’s what comes

out,” she says. Growing up on the outskirts of London, her

home was a bustling, musical melting pot; gospel music, old

school funk, garage, hip hop and jazz, all colliding from stereos

and clashing in the corridors. Every single thread is woven

into ‘For All We Know’. There’s that meaning-loaded title,

which nods to a 1934 song, performed by every legend from

Aretha Franklin to Nina Simone and Nat King Cole. There’s the

record’s thoroughly modern, but homage-paying production,

bringing to mind old-school pioneers like Kashif and Patrice

Rushen as much as the innovative wizardry of 2016. And there

are sly references to everyone from Billie Holiday to D’Angelo

hidden in plain sight, too. One voice memo on the record

even sees Nao covering Floetry’s ‘Say Yes’ with Kwabs, during

a tour as part of his backing troupe. It’s intended as “a thank

you to the past,” she says. Every single ingredient of ‘For All

We Know,’ as it goes, is taken directly from her formative

years growing up. “That was my spongiest time!” she laughs,

brandishing her smoothie.

“In really subtle ways I’ve given a nod back,” she adds. “There’s

a lyric - “with all the jungle

fever” - which is a nod

to Stevie Wonder,” she

explains. “In ‘Girlfriend’ I

sing “cos I’m your lady,”

which is from a D’Angelo

record. I take little licks

and influences, and put

them within the songs

for people to recognise

or not,” she smiles. “It

doesn’t matter either way.

I studied jazz, and that was

all about taking pieces

of information, or little

sentences, and evolving them to make them your own. That’s

improvising. You learn a language and use it. That’s kind of

what I was doing here; taking bits and putting them in my

own, as a little ‘hello!’ I’ve made my own story out of them.”

“With the EPs I was working out my sound quite publicly,” she

ponders. It’s a spot-on observation. From the fidgety basswubs

of ‘Zillionaire,’ to the skittish, parping A.K Paul hook-up

‘So Good’, Nao’s two EPs (‘February 15’ and ‘So Good’) have

48 diymag.com

debut cements this Londoner’s future as a star. Words: El Hunt. Photos: Mike Massaro.

49

Nao

.That’s What I Call

Music!

You know what we’re like here

at DIY - we’ll take any excuse

to make a pun. With that in

mind, we asked Nao to talk us

through some of her all time

favourite records.

Stevie Wonder – Hotter

Than July

“This album is just sick! I saw him

perform in London a few weeks

ago, and I was blown away by

how timeless his voice is. He was

so young when he sang on this

record, and his voice still has that

childishness to it. ‘Hotter Than

July’ has so many colours to it,

and so many good tunes, and it’s

so musical.”

taken her in all manner of experimental directions along the way. They serve as brief

little snapshots into the bigger picture, and in ‘For All We Know,’ she’s found her cohesive

sound-glue.

“I thought about all of my favourite albums and how they flow together, and what made

them so special; what makes them interesting to me,” she says. “I love Lauryn Hill ‘The

Miseducation...’, and I love ‘OK Computer’, and Frank Ocean. In all those albums, there are

all these cool things happening – intros, outros, interludes, and stories. It created a feeling,

and so that was the goal.”

“I feel like I sound like I’m saying this in a big headed way, but it’s not...” she goes on, “but

everything started with me. All the beats, songwriting, lyrics, are me. I hope that’s why it

can be cohesive, because I think essentially I am the ingredient through it all.”

“There’s something beautiful about the connection between writing these songs, and

them becoming other people’s stories,” she adds. “When I’m singing these songs, and

there are people in the audience singing them back, they’re not mine anymore,” she

smiles. “They’re ours.”

Nao’s far from being big-headed, and the personality that’s she’s charged her debut with

– the stories and lyrical poetry that shape every song – brings the pulsing life and soul to

‘For All We Know’. While many of her pop contemporaries are busy jetting off to snazzy

studios, and teaming up with gigantic chart names, this is an album built from the basics.

Demoed in a wardrobe, and recorded on her beloved Ridley Road, the joy of music is more

important to Nao than chart-climbing or radio play. “I want people to see how normal it is,”

she adds, “and how tangible. It’s not like we’re in big shiny studios. It’s just us in our little

rooms across the world making beats. I record in my bedroom cupboard!”

Nao’s debut album ‘For All We Know’ is out now via Little Tokyo / RCA. DIY

Nas – Illmatic

“This was my first introduction

to hip hop. My brothers would

listen to it, and it was so new to

my ears – I was super young, and

I had no idea what it was. I ended

up knowing the words, so I would

walk around the house spitting

Nas lyrics! Only as I got older

did I understand how important

that album is to hip hop. Nas is

such a good lyricist, obviously,

and his sound is so Queens, and

New York.”

BON IVER - BON IVER,

BON IVER

“I love Bon Iver! Oh my god,

how did he do that?! In a really

beautiful way, he’s so stubborn

in his sound. He’s just found it,

and it’s the perfect album for me

to put on during those long car

journeys. It takes you away to

another place; I don’t even know

where. It’s really mystical, and that

album reminds me of a few years

ago, discovering new music.”

50 diymag.com

51

From

Glasgow,

52 diymag.com

With their last album, Twin

Atlantic found themselves

obsessed with perfection.

For ‘GLA’ they decided to let

their instincts take control,

giving in to the heartbeat of

the city they call home.

Words: Sarah Jamieson.

Photos: Mike Massaro.

“It was all

instinct, and it

re-awakened

our senses

as to what

we can achieve if we just

do what we fucking want.”

Twin Atlantic’s Sam McTrusty

is sat upstairs in a South

London pub, just a few days

after the band headlined

Gloucestershire festival

2000trees. He’s not talking

about their recent successes,

or their newly-complete

third full-length. He’s

talking about the record’s

frankly batshit opener ‘Gold

Elephant: Cherry Alligator’.

“It was more a statement for

ourselves, to excite us,” he

goes on, explaining why it

was the perfect song to send

out in the open first. “That

was the song - when we were

making the record - where

we heard the demo, didn’t

change a thing, just added

some more cool stuff to it

and then it was done. That

was really why we put it out

first.”

A clear catalyst for ‘GLA’,

it’s a track that embodies

the band at their most

unhinged. It shows a quartet

with the shackles off, acting

on impulse and throwing

themselves in headfirst. In

some ways, it’s the antithesis

of previous album ‘Great

Divide’, which – by the time

its rigorous touring schedule

was complete - had left the

band at a strange junction in

their career. It’s no surprise,

then, that this feels like a

reaction.

53

“We had kind of boxed ourselves in,” admits

bassist Ross McNae, “and into our roles within

the band and it was getting very safe and

predictable. I don’t think it was even our fault.”

At the time, the four-piece claimed ‘Great Divide’

was about filling out their musical repertoire, and

exploring avenues they’d not yet ventured down.

There were, however, some pressures that came

with their third record.

“Everything was so under the microscope,” Ross

continues, “and there were so many people

making decisions on songs. That all got laid on

us, but the reality of it was, what did we want to

do? Keep fighting it or go with it and actually put

an album out?” “There was at a point where we

had finished ‘Great Divide’, in our minds,” Sam

takes over, “but the label said, ‘We’re not putting

that out’. We were constantly being pushed to

prove ourselves and I react quite badly to that,

and I’m then quite aggressive in my reply to

that. I had the opportunity to reply with a song,

so went in quite hard and wrote two songs like

‘Heart and Soul’ and ‘Hold On’, which – it just so

happens – went on to become the biggest songs

on that record.

“That last record became a bit of a

monster; like Ross said, you don’t

want to turn down that shit, but at

the same time, it was starting to take

over, so getting back that control,” he

returns back to the subject of their new

album’s opener, “and giving the song

an insane name, getting to make the

video... It was just exciting.”

On ‘GLA’, the band found themselves

following a new road. Where

previously, songs were written with the

entire band present in a practice space,

life had rejected that formula this

time around. Thus, with each member

working away in their own time and on

their own terms, their output changed.

Home studios and technology allowed

for the band to not only still write, but

to shape the record in a new way.

“Ross and I had always been more

interested, with every album we’ve

done, with the production side and

how things are actually made,” Sam

highlights. “As we were getting

involved in that, it just happened to

work out at the same time that we

were taking a departure from making

everything so perfect. As a team, we

made a conscious decision to be selfish

and do what we wanted. We wanted to,

once and for all, have a record that we

can listen to from start to finish without

judging it. We used to be obsessed

with self-criticism and it became

overthinking madness. But this time,

it was really just about getting as far

away from where we’ve been before. It

After working with

producer Jacknife Lee

on their now-infamous

hit ‘Heart and Soul’,

Twin Atlantic decided

to return to his studio

to work on ‘GLA’. He

didn’t half put them

through the wringer

though…

“It was brutal working

with him again,” says

Sam. “He fucking breaks

you down to expose your

inner creative weakness.

He destroys you in front

of your peers. We weren’t

playing to our strengths

anymore; we were more

conscious of what makes

us shit and it was put on

big neon signs in front of

us! We’d be like, ‘Here’s a

demo we made’ and he’d

rip it to bits.” Good grief!

It’s not all bad though.

“We’ve learned way more

from being told the truth

than being encouraged

like little kids.”

54 diymag.com

was more of an instinctive way of writing and once

we made that call, everything was so fucking easy.”

Deciding to do things their own way wasn’t all

that shaped their new record: it was the city in

which it was written – the city they grew up in –

that offered the final piece of the puzzle. Named

‘GLA’ quite simply for Glasgow, and the memories,

thoughts and lessons learned in the city, their

fourth album became a pinning of their colours to

the mast.

“I think that Glasgow definitely is, from our

perspective,” Sam says, on whether the city really

is embedded into the fabric of the record. “I think

some people may be surprised and want to hear

more, but that was the whole point in us calling it

that; it’s more a modern representation of it. We’ve

been quite lucky growing up in Glasgow as it’s

been totally on the rise, so a lot of the old cliches

that Glasgow has in the wider world – which, when

you travel around, you realise people still believe -

are totally not the case.

“When I listen to it, I definitely think it is, because

it was our decision about which songs fit that

attitude. It was more about if the songs sounded

“We make the

rules.”

Sam McTrusty

like our outlook on life; we’re from Glasgow, we still

live in the inner city of Glasgow, so even if someone

says it doesn’t sound like that, we can say, ‘Well,

we’re from there and we wrote it.’ We make the rules

and that was partly why we went down the road of

making it so much about us.”

There’s also something great about dedicating the

album to the place that ended up defining their

career. “For us, there’s a bit of... I don’t think irony’s

the right word but, for example, I still get a hard time

about my accent,” he continues, “so to call the album

that is almost like a bit of an extra ‘Fuck you’ to the

people who try and stamp on us for it.” They’ve

never been ones to reply shyly, after all. He laughs,

“Yeah, we just went and took it even further!”

Twin Atlantic’s new album ‘GLA’ is out 9th

September via Red Bull Records. DIY

55

56 diymag.com

Angel Olsen feigns surprise when we tell

her how good that new album is.

Angel Olsen is opening herself up on her new album, .

.but there’s so much more to ‘My Woman’ than its feminism..

Words: Liam Konemann. Photos: Jenna Foxton..

Are We

Human?

Angel Olsen is learning to be clear. Having spent the last few weeks gearing

up for the release of new album ‘MY WOMAN’, the North Carolina-based

musician has found that sometimes her message gets misconstrued.

Sonically, it’s a record that’s a bold step away from her earlier work, towards a

shinier, more synth-driven sound. Despite that, ‘MY WOMAN’ is arguably her

most personal album to date, exploring relationships, artistry and femininity. For Angel,

it’s vital the meaning is delivered with as much clarity as possible. It’s understandably

frustrating, then, when things get muddled...

With a title like ‘MY WOMAN’ she invariably finds herself drawn to conversations about

feminism, social politics, and the complicated mess of identity. Yet, this third album

is both bigger and smaller than that. It’s about womanhood, sure, but also humanity,

artistry, and beneath it all, the very specific experience of being herself.

“The title is ‘MY WOMAN’, and there is a woman - who is me - on the cover,” she says. “I

know that it’s going to come up. As a woman there are certain things that are from a

woman’s perspective, though I feel like to say every piece of work that I do is feminist

because I’m a woman and I have a woman’s perspective is sort of a linear way of thinking.

That’s what I’m trying to project, by saying, ‘Yeah, I am a woman, and I do see things a

certain way but I am also a human. And I’m also a writer.’ I’m also someone who makes

songs, and who wants to project something in my songs that isn’t necessarily just about a

woman’s struggle.”

This isn’t to say that Angel feels feminism should be left out of the conversation entirely.

Rather that she would prefer people engage with the music and form their own opinions.

“I guess that in some ways I asked for it, by being bold and knowing that it could be

misunderstood,’ she continues. “My main thing is [that people] just listen to the record,

and then decide if it’s a feminist piece of work. And if you think it is, if you see it in there

then that’s great, because it probably is.”

Identity hasn’t been the only factor to affect her newest work: this drive to engage with

her audience has permeated it too. In some ways, the record has become a more broad

artistic project than standalone album. To allow herself more control over the music’s

57

message, Angel started to write and direct her own videos,

and used them as a means to tie the whole concept together.

“In the situation where I’m making videos, I can finally carry

my music and my sense of humour and my image, and what I

think about this thing that I did and see it all the way through,”

she admits. “No matter how busy I am or how limited I am by

my experience - my very little experience - directing, I at least

have a vision in mind when I’m writing a song. I’d like to be

more in control of that.” Her clips for ‘Intern’ and ‘Shut Up Kiss

Me’ feature her in a glittering silver wig, singing unflinchingly

in the middle of an empty roller-skating rink. “Even if the

idea that I’m projecting through wearing a wig in my videos

is projecting something that has consequences, at least I get

to be the one to make that mistake. At least I can have more

control over the final art form.”

This process does, however, see her learning as she goes.

Throughout ‘MY WOMAN’, she’s exploring her limits as an

artist communicating with her audience. “It’s very humbling,

you know?” she says. “I realise that I’m risking certain things

not coming across. But I would rather learn and put myself

through the agony and the humiliation of it not coming across

than hire someone and be like ‘can you make me do some

weird hand movements in this video? I just want it to look

artsy and cool.’ I don’t think about my work like that. I don’t

think, ‘Oh, I put all this effort into this record, now you can

just have my image and make it whatever you want. Just do

whatever you want with me.’ I think that’s a weird thing to do,

you know?

“I’m testing people to see through the wig and to see through

the synth music, and to hear my writing,” she says. In the

past, her dedication to authenticity has proven difficult to

match to her artistic profile, but more recently, she’s struck a

comfortable balance. “To hear my voice, and to hear that it is

me, actually. That’s what’s so interesting about it, is that it’s

actually very autobiographical.”

Underneath the layers of synth and glam is a nostalgic, quietly

introspective record. While it may seem like a departure, in

truth, it’s something of a return to her roots. “I got a Yamaha

keyboard from my biological family as sort of a parting gift

from them, so I’ve had these objects around me from the

beginning,” she reflects. “It was just that folk happened to

be how I started writing music. Now I’m starting to embrace

R&B, and the different things that inspired me along the way.

I couldn’t write a song to piano before. It took time to figure

that out.” In particular, she says, the tracks that open and close

the album - lead single ‘Intern’ and the crackling, piano led

‘Pops’ - are close to the bone. “I get obsessed with that theme

of having the songs that bookend a record, and I think the

songs that bookend this album are very literal. I hope that

they apply to people and that they can come across to people

in a human way.

“When I wrote ‘Pops’ I was like, ‘What did I just do? I’ve never

done anything like that in my life! Is that even me in it?’” It’s

clearly still hard to fathom for her. “I had to speculate if I was

being an honest person in my writing. But then I spent time

away from it, I reflected on it and I realised, ‘This is me’. I’m

opening up some parts of my life - I’m opening up my singing

- and that, to me, made it interesting again.”

Angel Olsen’s new album ‘MY WOMAN’ is out 2nd

September via JagJaguwar. DIY

“When I wrote ‘Pops’ I was like,.

‘What did I just do?’”.

58 diymag.com

AUGUST ~ LIVE ~

2016

3rd X&Y / 8th Sound And Vision: MAVIS! / 10th Sounds Familiar Music Quiz

1th Jaij Hollands IR AY BUJU / 12th CLAY / 16th Giraffage / 19th Fairchild / 22nd August

23rd Gnash / 24th Kilter / 25th Joe Grind / 28th Frankie & The Heartstrings

Coming Up

6th Sept K Flay / 16 sept Nothing / 21 sept Matt Wills

29 sept Avelino / 30 sept Toh Kay / 1st+2nd oct The Warlocks

~ LATE ~

every friday

NIGHT CALL

Weekly

6th

MOHO

90s hip hop and r’n’b k nees

13th

UNDER _ TONE

Bridgi ng the gap bet ween

20th

SICK CHIRPSE

Cult classics

27th

FUTURA

Cut t i ng edge l ive acts and

Friday Club

up for al l you cool k ids

l ive and elect ronic

not best sel lers

eclectic selectors

Dates, times & tickets: www.hoxtonsquarebar.com

| HOXTONSQUAREBAR

DIY

presents

59

60 diymag.com

La La

Land

Glass Animals’ Dave Bayley has always

been away with the fairies (just ask

his school teachers). But with the

band’s second album, he found himself

fascinated by real life and true stories

that managed to blow his mind. Words:

Jamie Milton. Photos: Ian Laidlaw.

Glass Animals’ Dave Bayley is

playing a voice memo off his

phone, plainly titled ‘David

2 New York City’. “Walks to

the sidewalk, takes a left,

goes to the corner,” begins

the recording, and Dave cuts it off. “Can you

hear that?” he asks, before recounting the

tale. “So this guy was telling me about how

he went on a date with this girl that he really

liked. First date. They went clubbing on this

double date with their two best friends. They

left the club and sat in their car, smooching

in the backseat, with their friends sitting up

front - also smooching. This guy tapped on

the window of the driver’s seat and shot the

two people in the front. He then pointed the

gun at the guy telling the story, pulled the

trigger again, and he was out of bullets.”

Everyday conversations with taxi drivers

don’t tend to go into such gory detail. Usually

it’s the weather, football results, or how

Uber’s ruined everything for ‘us cabbies’.

Death rarely crops up. But maybe Dave’s just

the kind of person it’s easy to emote to. He

certainly has his fair share of voice memos.

Hundreds of conversations, recorded on the

road, became the foundation for ‘How To

Be A Human Being’, Glass Animals’ second

record. Their first, 2014’s ‘ZABA’, was a Jungle

Book-inspired canopy-swinger. This one is far

61

“I used to knock on my teacher’s

door and go ‘Mrs

Brooks,

you are evil.’”

Dave Bayley

more rooted in reality, though Dave’s imagination managed

to have its way.

Back in his school days, one teacher declared on every report

card that “Dave is always in La La Land.” Given the fantastical

debut album he made decades later, she might have been

right. “That really upset me, for some reason,” he remembers.

“So I went to see her every Halloween, from the age of eight.

I’d knock on the door and go ‘Mrs Brooks, you are evil.’ I was

probably dressed as a Power Ranger, maybe a Teenage Mutant

Ninja Turtle.” Terrifying.

Now that it’s his actual job to daydream, Dave has let his

imagination run riot. These voice memos didn’t initially

have a purpose. He just kept having so many interesting

conversations, and his “bad memory” meant that he’d forget

them otherwise. “I found it really weird that people were so

open,” he admits. “This taxi driver - he tells you a story in this

almost light-hearted way, with a smile on his face. These really

gut-wrenching, scary stories, told with a kind of cheekiness.

That’s one of the things that some of the lyrics have - a

cheekiness on the surface.”

Aside from the personal touches, all of ‘How To Be A

Human Being’ is from fantasy-land. The album sleeve is a

dysfunctional family portrait: there’s a bloke in speedos with

a walkie-talkie; a six-foot-seven basketball player spinning

a ball on one finger; a seedy tourist with three cameras

strapped round his neck; a sun-blushed space cadet. Dave

isn’t forthcoming on which song is connected to each specific

character, but when inventing these stories, he went deep.

“It got a bit out of hand,” he admits. “I was interested in what

they ate, what they wore, what they did in their spare time,

what their house looked like.” He started to make drawings of

these people too, hence the artwork and Neil Krug-directed

videos, where these fictional characters come to life.

Compared to ‘ZABA’, both records share a playful pop ethos.

The group perform to thousands every night in the States -

it’s easy to imagine them hitting the same Madison Square

Garden-heights of Alt-J. ‘Youth’ is a sunken-heart, tragic

anthem, while ‘Poplar St.’ could soundtrack dramatic sports

montages for decades. But instead of sharing coconuts with

Tarzan, ‘How To Be A Human Being’ cruises the streets with

“Northern Camden’s own Flash Gordon”, a boy whose “life is

back to front”, someone boasting about how they “fuck my

way from college”. These are vivid stories, caught up in the

band’s own current of strange.

Life on the road can often be a lonely, isolating experience.

Several time zones away from home, it’s easy to feel detached

from reality. But Dave honed in on those confessional

conversations and the dozens of people he’d meet each day.

“It was difficult to avoid talking to people,” he claims. “You feel

much more part of the real world than you do when making

a record, for instance.” He admits he “might have forgotten”

about the real world by this point, but he cites the “fifteen

people who work in the venue”, the fans who they meet after

a show, new friends they make at after-parties. “It was kind of

impossible not to think about people, all the time.

“The reason people probably feel lonely is because it is

strange. It’s not your normal life,” he adds. “The last two weeks

we’ve been in Australia, twelve hours separated from life back

home. We’re lucky in that we [the band] are friends anyway.”

He’s known Drew MacFarlane, Edmund Irwin-Singer, and Joe

Seaward “for twelve years now”. And even though this record

was mostly made in his own company, his bandmates were

fully on board with using bizarre conversations with strangers

as a launchpoint. They even had some recordings of their

own, it turned out.

Dave’s press-record documentation of the outside world

will “never stop,” even though he’d want a third album to

be based around something “totally different.” The taxi

driver anecdote was

actually recorded just

a few weeks back,

after ‘How To Be A

Human Being’ was

complete. Perhaps

the most fascinating

anecdotes are still

waiting around the

corner.

Glass Animals’

new album ‘How

To Be A Human

Being’ is out 26th

August via Caroline

International. DIY

62 diymag.com

WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU

LEMONS, STICK TO MUSIC

Dave Bayley might write, record, design artwork and think up

fantastical stories about made-up characters. But he’s not quite ready

to enter the world of filmmaking, Beyoncé-style.

“There are some wonderful little films out there, where this kind

of thing could work,” he says, citing Jim Jarmusch’s vignettes as

inspiration. “Maybe that could work, in a funny way. But I like

making the music, and the artwork side of it is really interesting.

I’m still getting my head round video, to be honest.”

63

Illustration: Nick Scott

eeee

WILD BEASTS Boy King (Domino)

Everything’s swathed in gaudy neon

There’s a lot to

be said for a

band perfecting

their niche. With

2014’s ‘Present Tense’, Wild Beasts blossomed like never

before. Taking their delicate, delirious, lovestruck sound and

tightening every screw, it was the final tinkering of a beautiful

engine, one that took the band to pole position. A decade in,

though, and that edge-of-a-cliff, fight-or-flight instinct has

taken over - with ‘Boy King’, they’re painting go-faster stripes

all over their car and taking it for a drag race in the desert.

A fifth album u-turn that few could pull off, ‘Boy King’ is the

sound of a band reborn. The core elements are all still there

– that falsetto-baritone play-off between vocalists Hayden

Thorpe and Tom Fleming as prominent as ever – but they’re

glitched-up and garbled. Everything’s swathed in gaudy

neon light and a sickening swagger, dripping with the sweat

of the Texan heat it was recorded in. Opener ‘Big Cat’ asserts

their newfound position as “top of the food chain”, and the

subsequent forty minutes find the Kendal kings on the prowl,

bellies to the ground.

Where before Wild Beasts bathed in soft textures, this time

around they’re wailing away. ‘Get My Bang’’s obnoxious guitar

solo is just the beginning – ‘He The Colossus’ repeatedly dips

in and out of squalling electronics that even Skrillex might

deem ‘a bit much’, while ‘Alpha Female’ feels fit to collapse

64 diymag.com

light and a sickening swagger.

with its laser-guided dogfight of high-gain guitars and

blinding electronica. There’s thunderous rhythm backing

every stomping step; a sense of grim urgency pushing

everything forward.

Sexually charged like never before, Hayden’s practically

breathless throughout. “I’ll be right behind ya,” he assures the

namesake of ‘Alpha Female’. Tom’s every bit as cocksure too -

‘Ponytail’ may be a slicked-back grease-fest too far, but even

the decidedly romantic currents of ‘2BU’ come with a looming

shadow – “I’m the type of man who wants to watch the world

burn,” he warns the object of his affection, a pick-up line fit

for a dictator.

All that being said, though, there’s a freedom to ‘Boy King’

that reveals itself only after ‘Dreamliner’ offers its gentle,

closing respite. Oppressive and overbearing though Wild

Beasts’ return may be, there’s a sense of shackles being

cast off – or (whisper it) fun being had. Playing up to the

stereotypes of the modern, fuck-first-and-ask-questions-later

male mentality, each repeat play unearths another almost

audible grin, buried deep in the ‘Boy King’’s gutter, and

it’s that which proves their masterstroke this time around.

An impulsive transformation, they’re no longer agonising

over every detail. Instead, the decade-old Wild Beasts are

embracing the more carnal impulses of that moniker, and

sounding all the more rejuvenated for it. (Tom Connick)

LISTEN: ‘Big Cat’, ‘Alpha Female’, ‘He The Colossus’

65

PHOTO: MIKE MASSARO

eee

DINOSAUR JR

Give a Glimpse of

What Yer Not

(Jagjaguwar)

With a title like ‘Give a Glimpse

of What Yer Not’, you might

expect this eleventh album to be Dinosaur Jr. moving

into unknown territory. It’s not totally out of the question,

especially considering that J Mascis’ 2014 solo album saw him

turning down the volume. Really though, it’s ironic: even on

opener ‘Goin’ Down’ he sings “I’ve got more of the same / I’ve

got more of who you know.” It’s eleven tracks of Dinosaur Jr.

doing what Dinosaur Jr. do best: fuzzy, classic rock.

Despite sticking tightly to the well-worn formula, none of the

tracks here feel too similar. Things do get quite plodding in

the album’s second half, where everything becomes a little bit

one-paced. However, even here there are a few memorable

moments, such as the hectic, clashing climax of ‘Knocked

Around.’ For those who enjoy their nostalgic licks, ‘Give a

Glimpse of What Yer Not’ will be a pretty satisfying addition.

(Eugenie Johnson) LISTEN: ‘Knocked Around’

eeee

CORBU

Crayon Soul (3 Beat)

Inspired by the weird and wonderful - from the

beautifully strange cartoon show Adventure

Time to the sci-fi mysteries of Interstellar - New

York dream pop project Corbu present a diverse body of work with

debut album ‘Crayon Soul’. Hints of Tame Impala and MGMT lurk

throughout - no doubt assisted by the work of producer David

Fridmann. Along with Corbu’s mind-boggling artistic vision, it makes

for one of 2016’s most out-there debuts. ‘Crayon Soul’ is ultimate

escapism, music that’s every bit inspiring as it is original. (Mustafa

Mirreh) LISTEN: ‘Better Better Off’

eeee

APOLOGIES, I HAVE NONE

Pharmacie (Holy Roar)

Since the release of ‘London’ back in 2012,

Apologies, I Have None have gone through a

fair few changes. Four years on, however, the

band have returned on blistering form. Laced with a tangible sense

of hopelessness, ‘Pharmacie’ sees the quartet grapple with their

demons while searching for some sense of catharsis. An emotionally

fraught effort perfectly executed by the punk band, it’s impossible

not to be affected by its stories. (Sarah Jamieson) LISTEN: ‘The

Clarity Of Morning’

eee

HOCKEY DAD

Boronia (farmer & the owl / believe)

Racing forwards like a keenly enthusiastic father

elbowing his way into front row at his kid’s big

school match, unwavering scrappiness and

no-frills, immediate songwriting is clearly Hockey Dad’s schtick.

Runaway surf-rock pegging it across a sandy beach – with little

deviation - their debut suffers from its tunnel-wave pursuit of those

crashing choruses. That said, ‘Boronia’ is undeniably good fun; even

if it’s not tearing up any rulebooks. (El Hunt) LISTEN: ‘Raygun’

eeee

NAO

For All We Know (Little Tokyo Recordings / RCA)

Somewhat of a late bloomer, Nao has plied her trade

over the last decade as backing vocalist for a host of

acts from Kwabs to Jarvis Cocker. She’s spent the time

since then working on a sound that fuses disparate

elements of UK bass, funk and early 90s pop and soul

to form something impossibly coherent; the product

of earned wisdom welded to raw talent. And on ‘For

All We Know’ there’s a maturity that shines through in

its restraint.

The undoubted standout here is A. K. Paul

collaboration, ‘Trophy.’ Its Prince-like grooves, all

offbeat and obsessing with the gaps in between, drive

it forward with serious self-assurance. Elsewhere, ‘We

Don’t Give A’ is a slick dance anthem that goes disco

without going kitsch, while ‘Blue Wine’ is a slow jam

for 2016, aching and throbbing its way through its

four minutes. ‘Feels Like (Perfume)’ is another single

contender, imbuing Destiny’s Child grooves with

the controlled class of recent D’Angelo. The only real

criticism is that, in trying to present all of her sides, she

hasn’t been ruthless enough in the cutting room. At

eighteen tracks, ‘For All We Know’ feels its length but,

to be fair, it’s hard to suggest what to trim.

(David Zammitt) LISTEN: ‘Trophy’

66 diymag.com

eeee

ANGEL OLSEN

My Woman (Jagjaguwar)

Football commentators of the world would have a field day with

‘MY WOMAN’: it’s quite deliberately an album of two halves.

Sonically, there’s a vast difference between the punchy, decisive

first, and the stripped-back wandering flip-side. And lyrically,

Angel Olsen is entirely concerned with opposites, too. Running

away, or facing things head on; falling senselessly in love or

bolting up the guarded emotive hatches at all costs – they’re all

dilemmas explored on ‘MY WOMAN’.

Despite the uncertain, vague and fast-shifting idealism fuelling

many of her lyrics, ‘MY WOMAN’ often shows her at her boldest

and most concentrated.

Though the momentum does slow, there’s still a playfulness;

despite her lyrical insistence otherwise. “I’ve been thinking about

your smile,” waltzes the smitten sort-of title track ‘Woman’ –

rasps of trumpet sounding out with

a sideways smirk behind her.

Contradictory, complex,

and worthy of endless

re-listens, Angel Olsen

has crafted her most

compelling record

to date. (El Hunt)

Listen: ‘Shut Up

Kiss Me’, ‘Not

Gonna Kill You’

eeee

THE PARROTS

Los Niños Sin Miedo

(Heavenly recordings)

As tends to be the case given

his distinctive, almost feral rasp,

it’s impossible to make full sense of The Parrots’

frontman Diego García’s words. He hardly has the

elocution of ABBA, but he does sing about having

“so much fun”.

It may have been made by Madrileños in the

southwestern city of Cádiz, but ‘Los Niños Sin Miedo’

can transport you far further than Spain, whisked

away to the rock ‘n’ roll tropics. ‘James Gumb’

journeys to that very fantasy-land, its steadfast,

rumbling, unrelenting bass line cutting through

a steamy jungle as García is joined on vocals by

the squawking and chirping of birds (which had

better be parrots, or there’s some explaining to do).

Ornithologist garage rockers: this is your calling. The

rock ‘n’ roll tropics, however, are just one region of

The Parrots’ world. ‘Los Niños Sin Miedo’ is a richly

enjoyable exploration of all of that, and a big two

fingers to all those who ever doubted them. ¡Viva The

Parrots! (Tom Hancock) LISTEN: ‘James Gumb’

eee

HAPPY DIVING

Electric Soul

Unity (Topshelf)

‘Electric Soul Unity’ is Happy

Diving’s fourth album in less than

three years. Such prolificity can either be a mark of a

band so confident in their own ability, or of one with

no quality filter. Luckily, Happy Diving fall firmly into

the first category, with this second album on Topshelf

Records full of vibrance and melody. At times, the

record threatens to be blanketed by distortionladen

guitars, but when guitar and vocal melodies

peek above the fuzz, they’re dizzyingly addictive.

It’s an album that almost falls into the trap of being

swamped by its huge instrumentation, but there’s

enough glimmers of insatiable melody here to cut

through the fuzz and create something that sticks.

(Will Richards) LISTEN: ‘Head Spell’

eee

JAMIE ISAAC

Couch Baby (Marathon

Artists)

At the ripe young age of 21, Jamie

Isaac has managed to create

an airy record that feels like being plunged into a

dizzying yet gentle wormhole of psychedelia. Debut

full-length ‘Couch Baby’ is a project three years in the

making, following Jamie’s assortment of little-known

releases and mixtapes, an EP released in 2014, and

several under-the-radar remixes and performances.

His background credits check out - hailing from

South London, he is a BRIT School graduate and

has collaborated with the likes of King Krule - but

‘Couch Baby’ is a fresh foray into the blurry realms

of both jazz and electronica. He possesses a sound

forever stuck between time periods, floating through

decades seamlessly. It’s a dark musical underworld.

(Cady Siregar) LISTEN: ‘Pigeon’

67

ee

OF

MONTREAL

Innocent Reaches

(Polyvinyl)

After the blunt nature of last year’s ‘Aureate

Gloom’, ‘Innocence Reaches’ finds Of

Montreal mastermind Kevin Barnes in a

much more lighthearted mood, embracing

contemporary electronics. After twenty

years and thirteen albums, are Of Montreal

finally embracing the here and now?

Kind of. And the results are very mixed.

Unfortunately, a slightly more mainstream

vision is consistently obscured, making

‘Innocence Reaches’ a frustrating listen.

(Eugenie Johnson) LISTEN: ‘trashed exes’

eeee

FIELD

MOUSE

Episodic (Topshelf)

Best known for

scurrying around under

floorboards and causing low-level mischief,

field mice have unfair reputations as pesky

little squeak-creatures. Actually – and thanks

for the heads up on this, Dave Attenborough

– they’re pretty badass. The lesson in all

this vaguely wildlife based rambling?

Underestimate Field Mouse at your peril. Their

third album, ‘Episodic’ sees the Philly band

amping things up. There might be a roll-call

of familiar faces longer than Stormzy’s Thorpe

Park guest list – Speedy Ortiz’s Sadie Dupuis,

Allison Crutchfield from Swearin’, and Hop

Along’s Joe Reinhart on production – but

it’s Field Mouse themselves who steal the

spotlight with smartly-written, sugar-edged

pop songs. (El Hunt) Listen: ‘The Mirror’

‘Accessory’ ‘The Order of Things’

eee

COLD PUMAS

The Hanging Valley

(Faux Discx / Gringo)

Cold Pumas’ debut

full-length ‘Persistent

Malaise’ pointed to a lot of obvious

touchpoints; claustrophobic post-punk

was very much the name of the game,

with the likes of Joy Division and Can clear

influences. With ‘The Hanging Valley’,

they’ve expanded their lineup and swapped

Brighton for London. Some of the fresh

efforts do work; the standout by a mile is

the sprawling ‘Fugue States’, which puts

an industrial spin on the band’s krautrock

influences. But Cold Pumas peddle a kind

of post-punk that’s long since been done

to death; it takes real ingenuity to find

a way to imbue this particular template

with genuinely new energy. (Joe Goggins)

LISTEN: ‘Fugue States’

eee

VINYL

WILLIAMS

Brunei (Company

Records)

Though blanketed in

a similar ephemeral haze to that of last

year’s ‘Into’, Vinyl Williams’ third album

‘Brunei’ feels far less tangible. Named after

the sovereign state of the same name,

it’s both a psychedelic and conceptual

record. That ‘Brunei’ should feel like the

soundtrack to a dystopian science fiction

novel is no coincidence. It’s an impressively

pretty record that masks a noble subtext.

But given its propensity to allow lyrics

to become lost in transience, it’s likely a

deeper message will go unnoticed. (Dave

Beech) LISTEN: ‘Riddles of the Sphinx’

eeee

THEE OH

SEES

A Weird Exits

(Castle Face)

Thee Oh Sees are less a band, more an

ever-evolving concept. With nine albums

already under their belt, and a further

seven released under earlier variations

(and that’s before we even start to look at

the various side projects associated with

their rotating membership), the group are

a force to be reckoned with.

‘A Weird Exits’ is - much like the rest of

the band’s repertoire - a world of its

own making. Uncouth and future-proof,

it draws on everything from krautrock

to psychedelia and beyond, drenched

in the group’s characteristic lo-fi brand

of scuzz. From gut-wrenching lows to

stratospheric heights, it’s an adrenalinefuelled

ride of epic proportions. The group

may be old hat at this by now, but they

remain relatively unsung heroes. (Jessica

Goodman) LISTEN: ‘Ticklish Warrior’

eeee

DM STITH

Pigeonheart

(octaves / outset)

Protégé of Sufjan

Stevens, David Michael

Stith first came to attention in 2009 with

‘Heavy Ghost’, blending his high-pitched

voice with brass, strings and subtle

electronica. Second album ‘Pigeonhole’

is a collection of fragile emotional songs,

delivered with delicate double-tracked

vocals. It’s a record that rewards repeated

listening, unravelling like a combination

of ‘Kid A’-era Radiohead and James Blake

collaborating with Justin Vernon, whose

voice shares the same keening quality. (Tim

Cooper) LISTEN: ‘Amylette’

eee

THOM

SONNY

GREEN

high anxiety

(Sudden / Infectious)

‘High Anxiety’ is an outlet

for every tour anecdote

Thom Sonny Green has

experienced in the past

four years on the road with

Alt-J. Since the band went

stratospheric with 2012’s ‘An

Awesome Wave’, he’s had

little to no time off.

This debut channels all those

moments Thom felt like he

couldn’t cope, providing

snapshots of nights out and

new cities, all under the

blanket of dark, ominous

electronics. Opener ‘Vienna’

lifts from Zomby’s frenetic

technique, while ‘Arizona’

could slot easily with Arca’s

recent material. Not a single

track would work alongside

Gus Unger-Hamilton’s keys

or Joe Newman’s signature

vocals. And while this is a

deeply personal record that’s

often hard to penetrate, it’s

a curious insight into life

on the road. Despite hiding

behind the veil of electronic

experimentation, Thom

Sonny Green has taken

a brave step beyond the

kit. (Jamie Milton) LISTEN:

‘Vienna’, ‘Neon Blue’

68 diymag.com

Drum’s

Not Dead

Thom Sonny Green is giving it a go.

Here’s a guide to the other drummers

who went beyond sticks duty.

Father John Misty

Somehow, this selfprofessed

ultimate

narcissist was once happy

sitting at the back of the stage with

Fleet Foxes. It’s hard to imagine, given

the open-buttoned seduction he

specialises in today.

Lauren Mayberry

Before she smashed

it centre-stage with

Chvrches, Lauren had

been behind the kit since her teens,

most recently as singing drummer for

Glasgow band Blue Sky Archives.

Janet Weiss

When Sleater-Kinney

originally fizzled out,

Janet Weiss took up vocal

duties with Quasi, and lent her skills to

Wild Flag. Not a bad way to keep busy.

Philip Selway

Sweetly dubbed a “partner

in time” by Radiohead

bassist Colin Greenwood,

Phil is essential to how his band

tick. But like Thom Yorke and Jonny

Greenwood’s solo stints, he found an

outlet with some similarly brooding

work of his own.

eee

BENJAMIN FRANCIS LEFTWICH

After the Rain (Dirty Hit)

Benjamin Francis Leftwich won a small but devoted

fanbase in 2011 with a debut album (‘Last Smoke

Before the Snowstorm’) that hinted at a list of obvious

influences - Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams, Nick Drake. He’s

been quiet in the five years since, but it’s an absence partially explained by the

passing of his father, and it’s dealing with that loss and grief that fuels ‘After The

Rain’.

These are tough songs to pierce through. The good news is that Ben’s found a

voice here and makes enough of an impact to stand out. The bad is that what

follows is nowhere near interesting enough to sustain the attention that refined

opening track ‘Tilikum’ demands. While these songs obviously hold important

and cathartic significance for Ben, any potential feels somewhat confused. (Craig

Jones) LISTEN: ‘Tilikum’

eeee

GLASS ANIMALS

How to be a Human Being (Caroline International / Wolf Tone)

On 2014 debut ‘ZABA’, Glass Animals shared branches with tropical frogs, talking

monkeys and funky fruit. A twist on The Jungle Book, it was the Oxford group’s

way of making a quick exit from this planet.

True to its title, ‘How To Be A Human Being’ is far more rooted in reality. But in a

nod back, this reality is lifted from a hyperactive, alternate universe. Threading

it all together are hooks served with popping candy. ‘Youth’ is a sadness-soaked

highlight, Dave Bayley chanting “you’ll be happy all the time” like a false promise.

‘Poplar St.’’s cinematic chimes could easily end up on a blockbuster’s rolling

credits. And ‘Season 2 Episode 3’ brings a Game Boy to life, Super Mario-like

effects forming a bed of zany, sugar-crushed pop.

On first glance, these playful songs are an extension of ‘ZABA’, which saw Glass

Animals going skywards in the States while remaining oddly uncelebrated

back home. ‘How To Be A Human Being’ should change the agenda. ‘[Premade

Sandwiches]’ is a chest-pumping, hip-hop steered gamechanger, while closer

‘Cane Shuga’ sounds like an extension of Kanye West’s ‘808s and Heartbreaks’

days.

Everyday life is pretty dull, in all honesty.

So it’s with relief that Glass Animals have

shifted the paradigms of reality. Their

new record showcases inner madness,

characters you’d cross the street to avoid,

and some of the band’s smartest pop

songs to date. (Jamie Milton) LISTEN:

‘Youth’, ‘Season 2 Episode 3’, ‘Life

Itself’

69

A guide to the hip hop

pioneers’ best records.

eee

DE LA SOUL

and the Anonymous Nobody (AOI Records))

Two decades ago this year, De La Soul’s iconic fourth album

‘Stakes Is High’ solidified itself into hip hop history at a time of turmoil. As the

genre sat on the cusp of widespread commercial appeal, De La called in-fighting,

label meddling and fakeness in the pursuit of mainstream appeal into question.

Twenty years later - and twelve since their last release, the New York trio’s message

is largely the same. Funded via a $600,000 Kickstarter, painstakingly put together

independently by De La Soul themselves (with, obv, a little help here and there),

‘and the Anonymous Nobody’ is made by the hip hop community, for the hip hop

community.

The ethos is refreshing and the sheer, palpable joy in their craft that has always

made De La Soul great is still present. Unfortunately, it’s only in the moments with

somebody else in the driving seat that ‘and the Anonymous Nobody’ shines; most

notable on David Byrne’s ‘Snoopies’ where the intertwining melodies are irrefutably

his hand at work. The rest is trapped somewhere between past and present; never

quite “classic” De La Soul, save for a few standout tracks. (Henry Boon) LISTEN:

‘Snoopies (feat. David Byrne)’

‘3 Feet High and

Rising’

Littered with funk, jazz and

even disco, De La’s debut

created a middle ground between

the serious and political, shunning

the pop leanings of its era. ‘3 Feet’

singlehandedly rejuvenated hip hop’s

sense of fun.

‘De La Soul Is Dead’

With more samples than a

food festival, the collective’s

second album moved away

from the friendly atmosphere of their

debut in favour of dark humour, crisp,

aggressive beats and brave subject

matter.

‘Art Official

Intelligence: Mosaic

Thump’

A source of fan division, this

is the group’s most experimental record.

After a four-year absence, ‘AOI’ brags an

iconic mix of guests from Chaka Khan

to the Beastie Boys, hosting a futuristic,

lo-fi party.

eee

SLOW CLUB One Day All Of This Won’t

Matter Anymore (Moshi moshi)

For ‘One Day All Of This Won’t Matter Anymore’, Slow Club hand

things over to the session band at Spacebomb studios. Therein

lies part of its problem. Opener ‘When the Light Gets Lost’ is a loping and transient

affair that kills the pace before it’s begun. ‘Ancient Rolling Sea’ however, is a notable

highlight. Brooding and entrenched in deep pop grooves, it’s an insight into the

more realised tracks of the second half, which contains some of the strongest

work Slow Club have released. Steeped in decade-spanning traditions of pop, rock

and folk, it’s ambitious, marred only by early nonchalance. (Dave Beech) LISTEN:

‘Ancient Rolling Sea’

eee

CASS MCCOMBS Mangy Love (ANTI-)

This is Cass McCombs’ eighth full-length, and with that in mind,

there’s a reasonably clear idea of what to expect by now. He’s

generally made gentle, melodic indie folk his calling card - what

he hasn’t done before is venture into contemporary political themes. The laid-back,

psych of Cass’ sound has always sounded like something from a bygone era, so the

fact that he’s gone sociopolitical on ‘Mangy Love’ is jarring.

In practice, the results are mixed. ‘Rancid Girl’ is a brilliantly bluesy strut that takes

aim at narcissism. But ‘Opposite House’ - which features Angel Olsen but criminally

under-uses her - meanders. ‘Mangy Love’ is the sound of a songwriter in transition.

(Joe Goggins) LISTEN: ‘Rancid Girl’

ee

BOYS

FOREVER

Boys Forever

(Amour Foo)

The fact that Boys

Forever, the new project of Veronica

Falls’ Patrick Doyle, takes its name from

his love of The Beach Boys tells you

everything you need to know about this

self-titled debut. Composed largely of

jangly guitars and quintessentially early

60s harmonised vocals, rare is this level

of worship of one band by another.

Which is fine, but this sound already

exists in several solid, untouchable

forms. It’s not even that it’s unpleasant

to listen to, more that listening to it

actively - as opposed to playing it

in the background - gives a sense of

diminishing returns. One of the best

things about The Beach Boys was their

creativity, their ability to reinvent. Boys

Forever’s debut does nothing of the

sort. (Nina Keen) LISTEN: ‘Poisonous’

70 diymag.com

eee

ALEX CAMERON

Jumping the Shark

(Secretly Canadian)

Alex Cameron is an oddball. For starters,

he’s constructed an elaborate backstory

involving a (possibly imaginary) “business partner” called Roy

Molloy who plays the saxophone in his band, even though he

doesn’t really have a band and his record seems sax-free. He

also refuses to conduct interviews outside his local bowling

alley. Harking back to the dawn of synthpop, ‘Jumping The

Shark’ joins the dots between the pre-punk minimalism of

Suicide and the lo-fi experiments of Ariel Pink. These songs

share a nobility of sadness and self-destruction, and there’s a

sense that the more his backstory unravels, the more Alex has

to give. (Tim Cooper) LISTEN: ‘The Comeback’

eee

BEATY HEART

Till the Tomb (Caroline

International)

Take a seat. Buckle yourself in. Hold on

tight. You’re about to embark on a sugar

rush trip. ‘Till The Tomb’, the second album from Peckham

electro-poppers Beaty Heart, fizzes more than a can of shaken

lemonade.

With a swagger in frontman Josh Mitchell’s vocals, Beaty Heart

can’t be placed exactly geographically. Whether it’s a tribal

beat, a bluesy undertone or a carnival groove, the trio aren’t

caged to their South London roots. Album closer ‘Death Metal’

is a faraway adventure in itself. A step up from their two year old

debut, ‘Till The Tomb’ is a fresh journal of euphoric memories.

With a knack for a killer pop hook and a jawbreaker of a chorus,

the only person who wouldn’t enjoy the summertime rush

would be a dentist. (Tanyel Gumushan) LISTEN: ‘Death Metal’

eee

CRYSTAL CASTLES Amnesty (i) (Fiction)

Since Crystal Castles’ chaos-theory electronic pop blew minds in the late 00s, they’ve been in a

state of flux. None more so than now, with ‘Amnesty (I)’ the duo’s first album with new vocalist Edith

Frances replacing iconic frontwoman Alice Glass, the release following a brief spell where founding

members looked to have disbanded, before issuing statements that implied there’d been a major falling out.

The main issue with ‘Amnesty (I)’ is that Crystal Castles needed to say something different. To act happy and pretend nothing’s

changed achieves very little. ‘Char’ is a bittersweet standout, an unorthodox club track designed for zombies. ‘Kept’ makes some

inroads, trading fear factor for a loop-heavy headrush. But while this record is an enjoyable nod to their legacy, it could have

given a bolder account of itself. (Jamie Milton) LISTEN: ‘Char’, ‘Frail’

Factory Floor’s Avatar auditions

didn’t go as planned.

eeee

FACTORY FLOOR 25 25 (DFA)

‘25 25’ is Factory Floor’s second album on DFA Records, first as a two-piece, and sees

Nik Void and Gabriel Gurnsey venture further into their club, bringing their studio

recordings closer to the experience of their now-infamous, pulsating live show.

The album’s title track is a perfectly to-the-point cut, rising and falling

with precision, but never losing its crushing backbeat. While Factory Floor

have made their home in the club, their 2013 debut didn’t quite manage to

recreate the euphoria they produce live. ‘25 25’ sounds as great in a bedroom

as it would do in any sweaty warehouse. For that reason, it’s a triumph. (Will

Richards) LISTEN: ‘Ya’, ‘25 25’

71

eeee

Show Me

The Body

Body War (Loma Vista)

Searing its way through flesh like musical scarification, Show Me The

Body’s debut album is as hot-headed as they come. Exploding into life

with ‘Body War’’s mangled riffing, it’s a car-crash in the most beautiful

sense – all twisted metal and lungs glistening black with smoke. That title

track perfectly captures the energy of these New York newcomers – harsh

noise and bawled vocals are their MO, but there’s a quiet intelligence

and methodical turn to every movement. Politically switched-on without

painting their colours in overly-broad brush strokes, ‘Body War’ captures

their home city’s latent frustrations with all the nuance they deserve.

‘Honesty Hour’, meanwhile, digs closer to home. Frontman Julian Cashwan

Pratt might ply his trade in tearing himself asunder, drawing blood on stage

and hurling himself around like a ragdoll, but ‘Body War’’s midpoint finds

him looking inward, sounding fit to break as he longs for something just

out of reach.

Anxious but exuding confidence, intelligent but forever giving over to

impulse, ‘Body War’ is a first work up there with the best of them. Show

Me The Body are an incomparable prospect, shunning the limelight and

churning up dirt in the shadows. Where they’ll go next is anyone’s guess,

but their first moves are attention grabbing in the extreme. (Tom Connick)

Listen: ‘Body War’, ‘Aspirin’

Show Me The

Body are heavily

influenced by

their home turf of

NYC - we unpick

the East Coast

metropolis’

most prominent

impacts on ‘Body

War’.

Disclaimer: NYC’s

quite nice really.

Try the pizza.

60%

Industrial noise

lifted straight

from a building

site

The building blocks of

‘Body War’

10%

Twatty

police

10%

Crazed yelps

from down

a darkened

alleyway

20%

Blood-curdling

screams that’d

wake you up at

night

eee

CHEENA

spend the Night

With...

(sacred bones)

NYC newcomers Cheena

collectively bring Lou

Reed’s thrashy punches, the heavy sounds of

the Dolls and hometown glamour of Kiss to

this brutally honest debut ‘Spend the Night

With’. Across the record, they drag themselves

off to familiar nights out, pounding mosh pits

and late-night whiskey sessions. Recent single

‘Stupor’ oozes with 1970s rock glamour, belting

with sliding guitars and swaggering vocals for an

emphatic finish. ‘Spend the Night With’ is rough

around the edges to an extreme, but it thrives

under this approach. (Mustafa Mirreh) LISTEN:

‘Stupor’

eee

OWEN

The King of Whys

(Polyvinyl )

Mike Kinsella has been

releasing music as Owen for

fifteen years now; ‘The King of Whys’ is his eighth

album in the guise. As such, it’s a collection of

songs that see Mike as confident as possible in

his skin. Reuniting American Football in 2014, he

took a step back into his formative, emotional

teenage years, and ‘The King of Whys’ appears

to be a reaction against this. The vast majority of

the album is told from the present day, with him

as father, a husband, and son. No Owen album is

going to completely reinvent Mike Kinsella as a

songwriter - he’s too entrenched in the things he

does so well - but he’s a master of the slow-burn.

(Will Richards) LISTEN: ‘A Burning Soul’

•••COMING Up•••

BEACH BABY

No Mind No Money

Riding on last year’s hype,

Beach Baby’s suitably coastal

pop makes its biggest

statement yet on 2nd

September.

THE WYTCHES

ALL YOUR HAPPY LIFE

Never afraid to raise the dial,

The Wytches’ second album

is a ferocious follow-up to

‘Annabel Dream Reader’. It’s

out 30th September.

TWO DOOR CINEMA

CLUB Gameshow

After a vow of silence,

Two Door Cinema Club

are promising to shift the

formula with a third LP. It’s

released on 14th October.

72 diymag.com

73

WOLF ALICE

BILBAO

BBK LIVE

Kobetamendi, Bilbao. Photos: Emma Swann

ARCADE FIRE ARE

NOTHING SHORT OF

MAJESTIC.

74 diymag.com

PIXIES

They may be one

of the first acts

to grace the

stage this year

but the crowd’s

here early, ready

and eagerly awaiting Years &

Years. The trio are as infectious

as ever, with Olly Alexander

proving yet again that’s he’s one

of the most brilliant pop stars

right now. Even tackling a cover

of Katy Perry’s ‘Dark Horse’

– interspersed with Drake’s

‘Hotline Bling’ for good measure

– isn’t a challenge for the band,

who seem to take everything in

their stride.

Lauren Mayberry is a

commanding leader, diving

headfirst into Chvrches’ set with

the ease of a headliner. Songs

from ‘Every Open Eye’ shine

brighter than ever, evidence

enough that their incessant

touring is constantly paying

off. It’s not all high octane

electro-pop though: the band

are also unafraid to mention the

current political climate in the

UK. ”I feel like we’ve spent this

whole run of European festivals

apologising to people,” she says,

pointing out a fan holding an EU

flag, before introducing ‘Gun’

with a cutting dedication to

Boris Johnson.

Thursday headliners Arcade

Fire are nothing short of

majestic. While their last

record’s touring schedule saw

them transform their set into

a fully-fledged disco, tonight,

they’re firmly back on grandiose

territory. Opening with the

anthemic combination of

‘Ready To Start’, ‘The Suburbs’

and ‘Sprawl II’, they then hit

the breaks and swerve back

into ‘Reflektor’. Its title track

packs in fun in droves, but is

also bittersweet as they cut

the song short just as

the late, great David

Bowie’s lines would’ve

usually been called out.

Bursting straight into

‘Afterlife’ immediately

after is a tangibly touching

moment.

No longer stuck behind

her synths, Grimes has

grown into a true pop star.

Backed VANT by dance routines

and high-octane energy,

her Friday evening set is hard to

draw your eyes from; the likes of

‘Venus Fly’ and ‘Kill V. Maim’ are

electrifying, but it’s during the

full-throttle ‘Go’ that things take

a turn. A power cut at a festival is

never something an artist wants

to deal with, but her approach

to the situation is admirable.

The adoration rippling through

the crowd as Pixies take to

the stage is as clear as the

mountain air. The band clearly

mean business: beginning

proceedings with the crunching

‘Bone Machine’ before storming

into their rendition of The

Jesus and Mary Chain’s ‘Head

On’, their opening gambit is

strong. It’s easy to see just how

profound an effect this band

have had on their audience.

From their anthemic ’Debaser’

to those forever-recognisable

chords that kick off ‘Where Is

My Mind?’, the quartet go from

strength-to-strength.

The rise of Tame Impala over

the past few years has been

remarkable. They top the bill on

Saturday, and it’s evident that

this new-found status suits them

well. Opening with the mindbending

introduction of ‘Nangs’

before bursting into their

now-infamous ‘Let It Happen’,

the Australians ooze a real

confidence on stage tonight.

By the time Foals take to the

stage, the crowd are prepped

and ready. Blitzing through

their set, there’s electricity in

the air; ‘Snake Oil’ twists and

coils like the animal it’s named

after, before ‘Total Life Forever’

whips up a storm. It’s the likes

of ‘Inhaler’ and ‘What Went

Down’, though, that remain

the big guns of Foals’ back

catalogue: they’re monstrous

in size, providing a tremendous

conclusion to their massive set.

It’s Wolf Alice, however, who

are given the job of closing the

final day. Performing at 2.30am

is a challenge for even the most

experienced but, despite their

late billing, the four-piece seem

unfazed. The hypnotic scuzz of

‘Your Loves Whore’ is enough

to get lost in, while ‘You’re A

Germ’ is an explosion, all visceral

energy and squalling guitars.

(Sarah Jamieson)

75

citadel

Victoria Park, London.

Photos: Jonathan Dadds.

Easing Citadel in on this sunny

Sunday are the golden,

glittering Cat’s Eyes. The pair

– The Horrors’ Faris Badwan

along with multi-instrumentalist Rachel

Zeffira – offer up a laid-back, almost

effortless set, previewing a handful of

tracks from new effort ‘Treasure House’,

which soar away darkly in the sunshine.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the

park, New York’s Battles are getting

themselves acquainted with the rather

toasty Soundcrash stage. A sweatdrenched

tent isn’t enough to put

them off, though; after a few issues

for drummer John Stanier during the

first half of their set, things soon get

into full, experimental swing. Laden

with intensity, there’s something

mesmerising about the band’s shifting

setlist. Newer cuts like ‘Summer

Simmer’ and ‘The Yabba’ weave their

way in seamlessly, while the intricate

‘Atlas’ remains a firm favourite.

Caribou’s exclusive outing sees him

transform the likes of ‘Our Love’ and

‘Can’t Do Without You’ into living,

breathing musical opuses, extended

way beyond their regular playing time.

There’s a confidence to Dan Snaith’s set

that works perfectly on a festival stage,

making him the ideal co-headliner.

“Kumbaya my lord,

Kumbayaaaa!”

Sigur Rós’ set

is something to

behold.

CAT’S EYES

In contrast to the swelling electronica

that’s taken over the Main Stage,

Lianne La Havas is serving up an

altogether more organic alternative on

the Communion x DIY stage. Brilliantly

talented, the singer runs through

the likes of ‘Forget’, ‘Is Your Love Big

Enough?’ and ‘Green and Gold’ with a

real beauty and warmth. It’s her cover of

‘Say A Little Prayer’, though, that really

shines bright today.

Sigur Rós’ new stage show has been

something of a talking point this

summer, and by the time they arrive

on stage to close Citadel, it’s clear why.

The intense opening – the band’s three

members standing alone, at the back of

the stage – melds into a gorgeous light

show. Spectacular visuals elevate the

likes of ‘Vaka’ and ‘Ný Batterí’, the effect

much more profound because of it. A

band both majestic and ferocious, Sigur

Rós’ set is something to behold. Their

next chapter may remain a mystery for

now, but its beginnings are promising.

(Sarah Jamieson)

76 diymag.com

Open’er

Gdynia-Kosakowo Airport. Photos: Emma Swann.

The shadow of Brexit looms as large as the plentiful

grey clouds over Gdynia in northern Poland this

weekend. It’s Glastonbury hangovers that kick

things off, though, as Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker

nearly doesn’t make the band’s bombastic closing set on

Wednesday, a photo with medical staff and oxygen mask

posted on the band’s Instagram hours before.

The Aussies’ set is peppered with “how are you doing? how

are you DOING?”, requests to sing along - stage banter

101 basically, but one of the reasons Tame Impala look

terrifyingly close to reaching the very top. Appearing on the

main stage after headliners Florence + the Machine doesn’t

seem odd - ‘Elephant’ and ‘Feels Like We Only Go Backwards’,

songs which once felt shy, have become powerful anthems;

they’re within touching distance of that final step.

On day two, Foals’ closing trio of ‘Inhaler’, ‘What Went

Down’ and ‘Two Steps, Twice’ is simply brutal, even when

Yannis Philippakis gets his foot stuck in a selfie stick while

attempting to crowdsurf.

The 1975 are due to play. Delayed by well over an hour,

Matt Healy accurately describes the situation when they

do make it out: “Hello, we’re The 1975, and everything is

fucked.” The crowd, who stayed put even through the worst

weather - it literally makes the stage shake - are full of energy

nonetheless.

Bastille’s Dan Smith revels in the post-storm atmosphere,

running and jumping everywhere possible. Poland loves the

band, with even the staff at the main stage bar seen singing

along. He dedicates ‘Overjoyed’ to the storm, and Bastille

create one all of their own today.

As closing sets for a festival go, Pharrell’s takes some beating

for hands-in-the-air euphoria, but Grimes does her very best

to incite the same chaos over in the tent. The final day of

Open’er 2016 began sodden, downbeat and even bordering

on scary, but come its conclusion, the Poles and the acts they

adore turned it around. (Will Richards)

LCD’s Soundsystem’s huge slot at last week’s Glastonbury

was their biggest in Europe since they returned, TV cameras

and millions of viewers watching and waiting. As a result,

the performance was nervy as well as triumphant. Tonight,

meanwhile, is care-free and glorious. James Murphy grows

into the set as it progresses, kicking cymbals and playing hide

’n’ seek with a spotlight. ‘All My Friends’ is

as anthemic as expected, and the

return of LCD Soundsystem

rolls on.

It’s an eerily quiet

field on the final

day, as right

on cue, a

storm rips

through

just as

TAME

IMPALA

FOALS

77

LI

VE

I

Positivus

Salacgrīva, Latvia. Photos: Krists Luhaers,

Konstantin Kondrukhov.

t’s Olly’s birthday, and Years & Years’ glittering set feels like

a celebration, all bubblegum hits and beaming desire. Hot

Chip take that carnival atmosphere and run with it - a cover

of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Dancing In The Dark’ opens a door for

Mark Ronson’s DJ set to march through. It’s not quite hit after

hit after hit but when he’s good, he’s really very good. And he

plays ‘Uptown Funk’ twice, so...

It’s been a while since we’ve seen Wolf Alice have a battle

on their hands. It’s the band’s first ever visit to Latvia and

the muggy opening of ‘Your Love’s Whore’ isn’t the best of

introductions but with ‘You’re A Germ’ swiftly following,

people don’t put up much of a fight in falling for them. There’s

something special about a crowd slowly losing themselves to

Wolf Alice’s magic.

Energetic to the point of chaos but never out of control,

Grimes’ hour-long assault is beautiful, wondrous, terrifying

and impossibly empowering. She bounces, shrieks and dances

about the stage as we glimpse behind the curtain and see

Grimes, the wizard of awe.

mark ronson

years & years

Iggy Pop, meanwhile, is a masterclass in melding nostalgia

with relevance. “This means everything to me,” he screams to

the packed crowd. And you believe him. That lust for life isn’t

going anywhere anytime soon and tonight, it’s shared by the

whole of Positivus. (Ali Shutler)

lovebox

Victoria Park, London. Photo: Sarah Doone.

W

hat was originally a straight up dance event feels

this year like a litmus test for the sound of now -

Lovebox pulses and buzzes with the zeitgeist.

Stormzy demands energy from the moment he gets on stage.

Born and bred in London, this is an thrilling homecoming

gig. From the opening bars of ‘Scary’ the level never dips

below high-octane. Even though his debut album hasn’t

even dropped, Stormzy is at the peak of his powers. Another

Londoner, Katy B, delivers a lesson in pop bangers, not

least her recent UK chart-topper, ‘Turn The Music Louder’

and concluding with the song that launched her, ‘Katy On A

Mission’.

Run The Jewels are quick to build up a rapport with the

crowd, El-P reminding us “It’s good for us to be here to realise

both countries are run by arseholes” before they launch into

‘Lie, Cheat, Steal’. Saturday starts with George Clinton, who

arrives on his spacecraft with ‘Mothership Reconnection’,

bringing with him members of the latest Parliament

Funkadelic line-up and a seemingly endless array of backing

singers, guitarists and rappers.

Five years since LCD Soundsystem’s last London show there’s

a sense of expectancy hanging in the air. But James Murphy

is too shrewd and too talented to fail. From the throb of ‘Us v

Them’, and the opening “A-Ow! Ow!” and joyful disco-punkfunk

rush of ‘Daft Punk is Playing In My House’, this is a band

who’ve lost none of their ability to have the crowd eating out

the palm of their hand. (Danny Wright)

run the jewels

78 diymag.com

“Listen here, this is my

treehouse and nobody

else is allowed in.”

British

summer

time

Hyde Park, London.

Florence + The Machine

Photo: Sarah Louise Bennett.

year ago, thereabouts, Florence Welch found herself in the unique position of topping the

A Glastonbury bill with just days’ notice. Twelve months later, she’s closing ‘How Big, How

Blue, How Beautiful’ with a hometown show just a stone’s throw away from her first Florence +

The Machine gig. “I don’t remember it because I was so drunk,” she quips, between sprinting

barefoot from one end of the stage to the other.

Her show is tight and awe-inspiring throughout. Perennials ‘You’ve Got the Love’ and ‘Dog Days

Are Over’ draw proceedings to a close with a perfect sing-along moment under a picturesque

London sunset. The lid is closed, then, on the ‘How Big…’ era, with style and elegance. Go get

some shuteye, Florence. (Alex Cabré)

MUMFORD & SONS Photo: Robin Pope.

F

or Mumford & Sons, the shift from banjo-wielding public schoolboys to aspiring arena rock

band is a risk that has worked in their favour. Opener ‘Snake Eyes’ is swiftly followed by the

big-hitting rustic couplet of ‘Little Lion Man’ and ‘White Blank Page’, during which the crowd is

at its most jubilant. ‘There Will Be Time’, when ‘Johannesburg’ EP collaborator and Senegalese

legend Baaba Maal joins in, meanwhile ranks as the most captivating moment of the night,

Marcus abandoning his guitar halfway through for a ‘Fix You’ style coda. Based on tonight’s

showcase, headlining to 60,000 is a feat unlikely to go unrepeated. (Alexia Kapranos)

massive attack Photo: Carolina Faruolo.

ith a smattering of guest appearances - including a wheelchair-bound Horace Andy

Wwhose vocals are no less chilling and captivating for ‘Angels’ than they were almost 20

years ago, as well as Tricky joining them on stage for the first time in three decades for ‘Take

It There’ - Massive Attack are clearly firing on all cylinders

tonight. As they’re joined by Deborah Miller and a

full orchestra for encore track ‘Safe From Harm’

to a backdrop of an impassioned plea for aid to

refugees, tonight Massive Attack are here to try

and unite people, even for a moment, through

music and discourse at a difficult time. If only

for a short while, it’s worked. (Henry Boon)

M83

Melt!

Ferropolis, Gräfenhainichen.

Photo: Stephan Flad.

The first act to

whet appetites

on the main

stage at Melt! is

M83, with a set packed

with huge electro-pop

bangers, the stage literally

lighting up for ‘Midnight

City’, its triumphant synth

hook proving as at home at

festivals as soundtracking

Made In Chelsea.

Even better are Tame

Impala. Throughout ‘Let It

Happen’ and ‘New Person,

Same Old Mistakes’ the bass

is groovier than a discoflavoured

packet of McCoy’s

crisps, embellished with

trippy visuals, pedals galore

and some guy in the crowd

holding a weird glow-in-thedark

jellyfish umbrella thing.

Jamie xx opens with the

post-punk of ‘Atmosphere’,

hauntingly industrial among

the setting of looming

cranes and concrete. It’s a

set with twists that don’t go

unnoticed - an ideally-crafted

soundtrack to the peak-fun of

Saturday night.

On the final night Chvrches

play an invigorating, fresh set

to a rammed crowd, then, as

the final tones of Disclosure’s

‘Latch’ wub around the

site, everyone is sonically

satisfied. (Kyle MacNeill)

79

LI

VE

T in

the

Park

Strathallan Castle,

Perthshire.

Photos: Ryan Johnston.

Everything from the apocalyptic rain, to the

oceans of mud and the general lack of organisation

means T in the Park descends into an unruly mess on

countless occasions. It isn’t always good, clean fun,

but those who made the trip to Strathallan Castle are willing

to embrace the chaos.

LA skate-punk outfit FIDLAR flourish with a typically raucous

performance which begins with a delightfully scuzzy,

impassioned rendition of the Beastie Boys’ ‘Sabotage’.

Headliners The Stone Roses’ set prompts predictably

deafening mass sing-a-longs, but while thousands indulged

in some nineties indie nostalgia, Jamie xx is busy establishing

himself as one of dance’s most forward-thinking performers.

Rat Boy thrives on the Radio 1 Stage, showing that he’s

far more musically diverse than many give him credit for.

Jordan Cardy and band combine bombastic nineties dance

beats with blaring, punk-inspired guitars which suggest he’ll

continue his upwards trajectory.

As the sun sets on Sunday evening, LCD Soundsystem

undertake a vibrant performance that fuses electro, disco and

pop. The dance-punk pioneers deserve credit for giving so

much to a show enjoyed by so few and remain on terrific form

throughout. (Dan Jeakins)

rat boy

NOS Alive

Passeio Marítimo de Algés, Lisbon. Photo: Kris Griffiths.

Despite the ‘taps-aff’ fearlessness of Biffy Clyro, day

one’s sentimental moment belongs to Wolf Alice,

who finally reach a meta peak by playing ‘Lisbon’

in the city it was named after. Theirs is a sharp,

focused, brilliantly loud set; a timely reminder of ‘My Love Is

Cool’’s force.

radiohead

Radiohead swing between perfect calm and berserk fandom.

Oldies like ‘Creep’ and ‘Paranoid Android’ are certified classics,

and ‘Nude’ and ‘Reckoner’ earn a similar status. Opener ‘Burn

the Witch’ is a clogged-up, dense mess without the strings of

its recorded version, but given how they re-jig fan favourite

‘Talk Show Host’ and percussive tracks from ‘The King of

Limbs’, Radiohead treat their songs like constant works in

progress.

Emotions are at a high by day two’s close, but the mood

changes by the time Arcade Fire close the main stage. Just

their second show in two years, they give the impression of

a band who’ve been watching the world unfold before their

eyes, unable to pass comment. (Jamie Milton)

Photo: Chris Bethell

80 diymag.com

Roskilde

Dyrskuepladsen Darupvej, Roskilde. Photo: Andrew Benge.

The story of Roskilde shares more than a few similarities to the same concepts of the previous

weekend’s Glastonbury: both are huge not-for-profit festivals founded on

hippie principles about half a century ago.

Accompanied by a full conventional band, two backing dancers either

side of her, with her ‘Art Angels’ tour, Grimes is at her absolute best

on Thursday at Roskilde. Later, Blood Orange brings his ‘Freetown

Sound’ to the red velvet quilts that drape over the Avalon for a

rare live show this side of the Atlantic.

Friday’s late slot is filled by Peaches, and whether it’s being

joined by two large vaginas (in full anatomical detail) for

‘Vaginoplasty’ or attempting to walk across the Danish

crowd in heels during ‘Fuck the Pain Away’, it’s a real

highlight.

LCD Soundsystem are seamless on this tour. No new

material gets an airing on their Saturday night headline,

but the band look anything but tired on this late-night

set which is both celebratory and a perfect finish to the

weekend. (Niall Cunningham)

Peaches

2000trees

Upcote Farm, near Cheltenham. Photo: Sinéad Grainger.

Bleary-eyed fans are camped out at the main stage

for VANT, who open Friday’s proceedings with an

energetic set that sees Mattie roll over backwards

while playing a solo at one point. Headliners Twin

Atlantic are on solid stadium-rocking aspirant form later,

coming a long way from peddling angular songs at the

bottom of the bill, and both look and sound a lot more

comfortable with their new material than the old.

Over the entire weekend, it’s doubtful that any band has

more t-shirt wearing devotees than Creeper, who deliver a

high-energy set on Saturday to rouse their faithful. Demob

Happy’s almost QOTSA-like grunge tunes, meanwhile, are a

breath of fresh air, powerfully knocking the hair back as they

blast through a set of alt-rock blinders that would have been

at home in 90s Seattle.

“Can I scream?!” The line that everybody expects Dennis

Lyxzén to open Refused’s set with actually doesn’t happen

until their final number, but luckily the intervening noise is an

arrestingly-delivered masterclass in heavy punk rock. Before

they smash out ‘New Noise’, Dennis stops to speak. ”The

people who book this festival, it’s fucking fantastic, but you

need to do better. Next year, 25% women, and in five years

50% women and 50% men. That’s the way it should be!” Loud

cheers and a sizeable number of boos rise from the crowd, but

Refused aren’t here to debate - kicking into ‘New Noise’ may

be a jade’s trick, but it’s a classy one to end the festival on.

(Alex Lynham)

REFUSED

81

DIY

INDIE DREAMBOAT

Of the Month

Zac, waiting for a call

from Wes Anderson.

Zac Farro

HalfNoise / ex-Paramore*

Full name: Zachary Wayne Farro

Nickname: Zac, or Mr. Downtown

Star Sign: Gemini

Pets? No pets now, but I will have a fish

tank one day

Favourite Film? Ahhhh, so hard.

Probably The Life Aquatic with Steve

Zissou

Favourite Food? Avocado toast

Drink of choice? Coffee or whiskey

Signature scent? Comme des Garçons

Favourite hair product? Shampoo

What song would you play to woo

someone? ‘I Want To Hold Your Hand’ by

The Beatles

If you weren’t in a band, what would

you be doing? It’s hard to say, I’ve been

doing music since I was 12, so I have no

idea really. Maybe an architect?

Chat up line of choice? “Hellooooo

ladies!”

*it’s complicated

82 diymag.com

83

84 diymag.com

DIY, August 2016

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