Author: Joseph James

EP Review: Moors

Moors EP cover
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At the start of the year I went to see a film called Short Term 12 about a foster home for troubled teens. One of the standout scenes of the film was when a young man named Marcus raps how he is feeling to one of the carers. Marcus is just shy of turning 18, meaning that he will soon need to leave the home and find his own way in the world.

The scene is transfixing. The lyrics are raw and painfully honest. The camera slowly zooms in on Marcus to focus on the emotion in his face. The bongo beat sets a metronome that cuts out at the song’s climax, making those last a capella lines all the more stark.

Short Term 12 is a great film. Make sure to see it if you haven’t. It’s not Hollywood-happy, but it’s a rewarding watch.

I was thinking about it for days afterward. I decided to look up the actor who played Marcus. He was a talented actor, but surely he was a rapper, too?

Sure enough, the actor’s name was Keith Stanfield, and he had a music project called Moors with a song on vimeo called “Asphyxiated“.

“Asphyxiated” is in the same vein as the Short Term 12 rap. Daunting and unsettling, with minimal instrumentation that builds intensity. The lyrics are turbulent and tortured.

I followed Moors on Soundcloud and Facebook and waited to hear for more.

And now Stanfield has released a debut EP of four songs, plus two remixes. With song titles like “Asphyxiated”, “Gas”, “Fire” and “Smoke” there seems to be a theme of struggling to breathe.

The EP opens with the aforementioned “Asphyxiated”. Second track “Gas” is more upbeat, with sampled female humming and more underlying turmoil.

“Fire” is the most radio friendly track. It’s catchy, quick and repetitive. Like “Gas”, the beat could make it dance track, but I doubt you’ll be hearing this in a club any time soon.

The slow and somber “Smoke” brings the EP down in pace and mood. Although he has done with the other songs, this is when Stanfield really fights his demons. Family, alcohol and racism all feature. The softly sung chorus starts with the line “every silver lining has a black cloud”. Wow. This glass is definitely half empty.

Lyrically, Moors is clever and poetic, but at the same time so dark and depressing it makes me wonder if Stanfield has had a similar life to his orphaned character from Short Term 12. I don’t know if he’s putting on a persona or not, but you can tell there is some hurt that he’s working through

Moors isn’t going to put you in a cheerful mood, it’s pretty emotionally charged. But there’s something that draws you in and keeps you listening. It’s modern rap that focuses on internal issues instead of ego inflation.

Keep an eye out for the name Keith Stanfield. I’ve read that he has been cast to play Snoop Dogg in an upcoming NWA biopic. He is also currently touring with James Vincent McMorrow. With this much talent as both an actor and a rapper, Stanfield is sure to blow up soon.

Joseph James

Live Review: Jimmy Eat World play the Futures album at the Auckland Powerstation

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Jimmy Eat World playing at the Auckland Powerstation

Jimmy Eat World (Mesa, Arizona, USA)

w/ The Sinking Teeth

The Powerstation, Auckland

Saturday 8 November 2014

Jimmy Eat World released their fifth album, Futures, ten years ago. This was as good a reason as any for the band to do an anniversary tour with the premise of playing the album start to finish at each show.

It is always interesting when a band plays a notable album in its entirety. You know most of the songs that will feature during the set, but can never tell if the band is going to do something more. Weezer did it well when they played their eponymous Blue Album at Vector Arena last year. They started off with a greatest hits set, followed by an intermission that featured a presentation from a long serving roadie about Weezer’s formative years, before wrapping it up with the Blue Album. When Shihad played Killjoy and The General Electric they had a rule that the encores could only feature songs that had been released prior to the album they’d just played live. I was happy to see Jimmy Eat World play Futures, but was hoping that they would play a selection of other songs as well.

I needn’t have worried. As promised, the band played all eleven songs from Futures, commencing with the title track and finishing with album closer “23″. But then they played a selection of songs that spanned a good portion of their catalogue, enough to please everyone present.

The musicians were stationed onstage with drums and keys at the rear, and the bass and two guitars at the front. This added an interesting visual dynamic. The symmetry was nice, but the band was mainly lit from behind, leaving the forward standing members silhouetted for most of the night. This seemed deliberate, because it was clear that the lighting technician knew what he was doing. The lighting wasn’t spectacular, but it added a lot to the show in a subtle way.

Silhouetted

The bass and guitar players at the front were frequently silhouetted

There’s something special about seeing a band play their entire album live. They sounded just like the CD, from the rousing “Futures”, to the solemn “Drugs or Me”, to the tender “Night Drive” and the album highlight “Pain”.

My one critique was that the band had a backing track of string section during the song “Drugs or Me”. This is me being purist and nit-picky, but when I go to a live performance I expect it to be exactly that: performed live. It didn’t take away from the experience, and actually enhanced the mood of the song, but I prefer not to listen to pre-recorded music in a live context.

Futures is a great album, it sets a mood and simmers away. But the following set added urgency and unpredictability to the show because we no longer knew what was coming next.

The second half of the night showcased another side to the band. They seemed to become more energetic and less restrained. Lead guitarist Jim Adkins became increasingly wild with each guitar solo. Rhythm guitarist Tom Linton sang lead vocals for “Blister”. It was a good mix of songs from various albums and the audience became more enthralled as the band kept delivering by playing songs that we had hoped for.

For their final encore the band inevitably concluded with the two yet unplayed singles from their 2001 album Bleed American: “Sweetness” and “The Middle”. I’m sure that everybody had been eagerly anticipating these two hits, and judging from the crowd reaction the band chose well to end on such a high.

Because this was my first time seeing Jimmy Eat World, I think I would have preferred to see a standard show. That said, it was pretty unique show. They played a range of songs, old and new, but I got a glimpse of the band that I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. It was a great night and I’d certainly like to see them play again.

Joseph James

Lead guitarist Jim Adkins became increasingly wild with each guitar solo

Lead guitarist Jim Adkins became increasingly wild with each guitar solo

Live Review: Jakob at San Fran, Wellington

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Jakob guitarist Jeff Boyle adjusting his effects pedals at the Wellington gig on Friday night

Jakob guitarist Jeff Boyle adjusting his effects pedals at the Wellington gig on Friday night

Jakob (Napier, NZ)

w/ Bachelor of Architecture & Spook the Horses

San Francisco Bathhouse, Wellington

Friday 24 October 2014

It seems that it has been quiet on the Jakob front for a very long time. Their last record, Solace, was released in 2006. And the semi-regular gigs seemed to have stopped since they opened for Tool in Auckland during May last year. There have been a few side projects like Mean and Desbot to whet our appetites, but still fans were left hungry for more.

And now, a tremendous new album, Sines, with an accompanying tour to boot! To say I am thrilled is an understatement.

It felt so right being back at the freshly renovated San Francisco Bathhouse, watching such a glorious band. I have missed both the venue and the band so much.

Although no mention of opening acts were on the tour poster or the website, Wellington had two.

Bachelor of Architecture started the night with his sonic soundscapes. The most interesting part for me was seeing him play an unusual instrument: a metal fireplace shovel with a bow. Although BoA may have seemed suitable to open, his music was too long and directionless to be captivating.

Spook the Horses were more exciting. Their driving music seemed more stimulating, with polyrhythmic drumbeats and riffs propelling the music forward. They broke the mould be adding hardcore vocals to some songs, in the form of bearded roaring.

Jakob were always going to be good. The place was packed and everyone knew what to expect. They may not be showy, but their music is enough mesmerise.

There is something primitively attractive about it all. The band is bathed in rich coloured light, shrouded by the thick smoky haze. The building hums from the bass. You can feel the vibrations in your chest cavity. The guitar rises and falls in waves and layers, gradually immersing us in aural bliss. The repetition of a tribal drum tattoo is hypnotic. Everyone watches in awe, drinking in the sights and sounds.

And then: the most exciting part. That moment when guitarist Jeff Boyle leans forward to step on his distortion pedal and usher in the climax of the song. It’s that anticipation that keeps you on edge during each song, waiting, wanting.

They rest on the strength of their songs. Each one is immaculately written and played with such finesse and control. Like any three-piece band, each member really needs to pull their weight to make it work. And these three musicians are clearly experts of their craft.

I love how down to earth they are. Dressed plainly in black and delivering no-nonsense, high-quality music. Many bands of lesser calibre would expect stage hands to do the set up and menial labour, but these three were sound checking and tuning their own guitars between songs.

Seeing Jakob at San Fran was the same as it has always been. The same awesome music. The same straight forward delivery. The same songs, but now with a fresher expanded set. The same Jakob: consistently excellent.

Joseph James

Set list from the Jakob show at San Francisco Bathhouse, Friday 24 October 2014

Set list from the Jakob show at San Francisco Bathhouse, Friday 24 October 2014

Album Review: FVNERALS – The Light

FVNERALS, The Light - Album Cover
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FVNERALS is a band hailing from Brighton, UK, who have asked me to give my thoughts on their debut album, The Light, before its release on December 1st. I probably live as far as physically possible from Brighton, so how they discovered my blog, and why they would want an amateur like myself to review their work is a mystery. But I feel quite chuffed that someone would seek me out to ask for my opinion, so I’ll honour their request.

Their Bandcamp profile offers the genre tags such as “dark ambient”, “drone”, “post-rock”, “shoegaze” and one I’ve never heard of: “slowcore”.

According to FVNERALS guitarist Syd, his band has drawn comparisons to the likes of Earth, Shannon Wright, Chelsea Wolfe, Beach House, Monarch etc… This would possibly give me an idea of what FVNERALS sound like, if I had actually heard of any of those artists. I think I recognise elements of Isis and My Bloody Valentine, but I feel that may be misleading. I’ll offer some other comparisons as I go.

FVENERALS are dark. If the band name wasn’t gothic enough for you, check out at the names of their labels: Throne Records and Eerie Echoes Records. Have a look at that album cover and tell me it’s not spooky. And of course, the music itself is haunting and unsettling. To be honest I’m surprised that they’re releasing the album at the beginning of December, rather than end of October, because it would make a perfect horror Halloween soundtrack.

Teri Gender Bender of Le Butcherettes comes to mind when I picture the music being performed live. I saw her front a Mars Volta side project called Bosnian Rainbows early last year and I swear she was possessed. Her voice may be pretty, but I got the chills watching the way she staggered and contorted her body in such an unnatural manner as she sang.

The Light is eerie and sparse. It reminds me of playing a 45rpm record at 33rpm.  This makes the sounds drawn out, warped and sluggish, because the audio becomes down and distorted. Don’t get me wrong, the music is still recorded clearly, but it is soooo slooooow and stripped down.

The music is dark, distorted and droning. It is the sound of paranoia and nightmares. Much of it reminds me of that Godspeed You Black Emperor inspired track that was used so effectively in Danny Boyle’s game-changing zombie film, 28 Days Later.

If you want a taste of FVNERALS you can check out http://fvnerals.bandcamp.com/, where The Hours EP is available for free download. Two tracks from forthcoming album, The Light, will be made available for streaming on November 3rd.

Joseph James