OK let me just get this off my chest - the promo 'picture' above is truly terrible. Look at it for god's sake. Did a 5 year old knock it up on Paint? 'Could do better' is my school teachers report on that one. Ok, rant over, now let's get on with the blog post.... Every time a ‘mystery artist’ comes along I’m not sure whether to celebrate - because I enjoy the game of unearthing who they are and (without any assistance from the music industry) I’m generally pretty good at it, or commiserate, because frankly when it’s ‘all about the music and not the artist behind it' and there’s no context or story it can all become a little bit boring to read about. I mean – does anyone really want me to write 400 words on what the song sounds like when you can just listen yourself? No, probably not. Anyway, here’s the latest one. He / they (I suspect it’s just a he but I could be wrong - his / their Facebook page suggests a band) goes by the name Weirdo. I like this name; remember everyone, when people call you weird, don’t be offended, it just shows their lack of ability to empathise with you. Unless of course you’re a murder, child pornographer or such like – in which case you’re way beyond weird and need locking up. Thankfully Weirdo’s music is pretty easy to empathise with. It’s a lively blend of indie with perky pop flavours that will have you zipping along to the nearest dancefloor and pulling shapes. In fact, it’s so easy to empathise with I began to wonder why that was - maybe because I’ve heard the singer’s voice or sound before under another name? However, as yet I’m at a loss to make that connection with other parts of my brain (or the internet) and discover who Weirdo is or are. All I know is that they have (or have had) links with Berlin and Brighton. So this time my detective skills have failed me. Sorry. You’ll have to do what the artist intended you to do and just enjoy the music. His / their debut track was called Butter – I totally missed that one – but Armanio (the title sounds like a Pet Shop Boys song) found and grabbed me by way of a number of blogs that I have on my feed and regularly dip into, namely The Blue Walrus, Disco Naïveté and Going Solo. Oh and if you suffer from epilepsy please don’t visit the Weirdo website. (Here) Weirdo - Armanio
When you cast your eyes over dance styles in the history of pop music, from jive to northern soul to disco to acid house through to modern r ‘n’b twerking and grinding, there’s one that’s often forgotten, and that’s the slow dance. Back in the 80’s, in provincial towns and cities across the land, neon lit nightclubs with names like Cinderella’s and Ragamuffins owned the slow dance. There was that always that point in the night when the upbeat dance grooves and beats gave way to the smouldering smoochies. At this point couples would follow the instructions of artists such as Phyllis Nelson who sang that everyone should ‘Move Closer’. The swaying with arms round waists should have been a beautiful romantic moment, but in reality was often just an excuse for a lusty teenage experimental grope. Some people even called it the erection section. I can’t imagine the slow dance making a return to today’s clubs; it now seems confined to the first dance at a wedding, unless perhaps if it was served with a massive dollop of guilty pleasure type cheese and a knowing wink. However, if it did and was irony free, Closer, the new one from London duo Majik would be the perfect soundtrack to the new slow dance scene. A non-careless whisper of a tune, this soft, atmospheric and velvety pop song is true seduction, taking the sentiments of Phyllis forward for a new age; “Move a little closer to me.” Following debut tracks Save Me and It’s Alright, it’s another demonstration of why, despite it being incredibly early days for the band, I named Majik as one of my Ones to Watch for 2016. Modern and gorgeous. Majik - Closer
Whether he’s working with Cashmere Cat, giving the remix treatment to the likes of Banks, Bill Withers, Bastille or The Weeknd or knocking out his own jams like I Love You or Money, Norwegian producer Lido has been pretty prolific over the last couple of years. Now he’s put out his best track to date. Crazy is, I warn you, completely bonkers. If you’re going to use autotune and effects on a vocal, this is the way to do it. It sounds like music produced by one of those alien creatures you’d find in the Mos Eisley Cantina in Star Wars after they’ve had one too many Lucozades; it’s an out of this world banger that will either make you want to punch the air or punch Lido’s face.
A simple but brilliant visual concept for the video as well. A man conducting some lights might not sound like visual entertainment, but it works. Lido - Crazy (Video)
From my perspective the final day of the official Great Escape programme has less must sees than the previous two days. However, Saturday’s Alt Escape makes up for this with an abundance of choice, so there’s never going to be a dull moment on the streets of Brighton. These posts focus on the core event though, so in a similar manner to the two previous posts (here and here) I’ll waste no time and get straight on with recommending five acts that may be worth your while checking out. The Big Moon 12:30 Komedia (Also playing at The Corn Exchange 19:15) The Big Moon will be playing a huge venue (The Corn Exchange) later in the evening when they play support to The Mystery Jets, but early risers are advised to catch these Blog Sound of 2016 long list nominees earlier in the day at Komedia. Expect brash bold noisy guitar pop such as The Road, Sucker and new tune Cupid (below) to blow the cobwebs away.
Cadet 13:15 Paganini Ballroom Grime isn’t a genre that you’d really expect to see on Breaking More Waves, but for me one of the beauties of Great Escape is to be able to sample something a little off your normal musical road map. As I listened to the festival’s Spotify playlist last month, Cadet’s track Stereotype stood out. With its honest lyrical delivery, he deals with the idea that stereotypes sadly often come from behaviours of reality - we're all likely to be our own stereotype.
Ary 15:30 Patterns Upstairs (Also playing at Stick Mike's Frog Bar 01:30 Saturday) I first wrote about Norwegian pop singer Ary back in January and compared her to the likes of Aurora and Emilie Nicolas. After impressing audiences at other European new music festivals now she heads to the UK, hopefully to do the same there with her take on pulsing electronic Scandipop.
Holly Macve 18:45 Sallis Benny Theatre From the Bella Union label comes Holly Macve, another artist I introduced on the blog relatively recently. Clearly inspired by American songwriters, Holly possesses a show stopping country tinged vocal that sounds as if it’s been beamed from 50 years past into the present. A must see.
Stevie Parker 19.45 Komedia Studio Bar Gorgeous, laid back, keyboard based chill-pop from an artist from the Bristol area that is cropping up on the undercard of a lot of UK based festivals this year. Full confession; I’ve only heard one song (Never Be – streaming below), but it’s an enticing enough beauty to make me want to hear more. Stevie Parker is the last of my tips from the Great Escape 2016 official core programme.
Alt Escape Bonus Pick: Emily Burns 14.45 The Black Lion
