Primavera Sound 2018: my draft schedule

Here comes one of our favourite Blog traditions! The timetables of the Primavera Sound Festival 2018 have been disclosed, so it's time to organize our, temptative, very early, work in progress, draft, personal schedule. Unfortunately, at first look (sure some additional bands will be added) it is clear this is the less exciting edition for us, with not too much we are really eager to see, plus some of the (usual) overlaps reducing the options even more. But anyway, while we do some 'research' to complete the routes (one of the most attractive things of Festivals) and keep an eye on the final surprises (that bigger and open hidden stage) here's what our PS 2018 looks like right now. Suggestions are kindly accepted!

Wednesday,  May 30th, Parc del Fòrum
19:00 Javiera Mena (Primavera with Apple Music)
20:00 Spiritualized with orchestra and choir (Auditori RockDelux)
20:55 Wolf Parade (Primavera with Apple Music)
22:15 Belle and Sebastian (Primavera with Apple Music)

Very temptative day, as the only mandatory gig would be Spiritualized. It still hurts that Belle and Sebastian has lost the aforementioned compulsory condition. But it's been a while now...

Thursday, May 31st, Parc del Fòrum
17:40 Vagabon (Primavera with Apple Music)
19:15 The Twilight Sad (Pitchfork)
19:40 Warpaint (Seat)
20:50 The War on Drugs (Mango)
23:00 Amaya Laucirica (Night Pro)
23:35 Fever Ray (Primavera with Apple Music)
23:40 Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds (Mango)
Ok day with not a lot of must-see acts (The War on Drugs and Vagabon) but the additions of The Twilight Sad (although it clashes with Warpaint, first let down the Festival) and recently discovered Amaya Laucirica has made the day worthy. We end pretty early, which it seems is going to be some kind of a trademark of this PS' edition for us...

Friday, June 1st, Parc del Fòrum
16:50 Fontaines D.C. (Day Pro)
17:40 Waxahatchee (Primavera with Apple Music)
19:10 The Breeders (Mango)
20:20 Father John Misty (Seat)
21:30 The National (Mango)
23:30 Charlotte Gainsbourg (Primavera with Apple Music)
00:40 Cigarettes After Sex (Ray-Ban)
03:20 Omni (Adidas Originals)
The most promising day for us, with up to seven acts we are really willing to see, gets seriously jagged because Fontaines D.C. (soon to be featured at the Discoverer series) is only playing at Day Pro (meaning the city centre) and we don't have the superpower of ubiquity yet, and the gap until Omni's gig looks gigantic... Still, from Waxahatchee to Ms. Gainsbourg there's a pretty fine afternoon-evening awaiting us.

Saturday, June 2nd, Parc del Fòrum
17:00 Núria Graham (Ray- Ban)
18:55 Car Seat HeadRest (Mango)
20:10 Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever (Adidas Originals)
21:30 Slowdive (Primavera with Apple Music)
22:45 Jay Som (Pitchfork)
23:50 Arctic Monkeys (Mango)
And the last big day is kind of dubious. Excited to see Rolling Blackouts and Slowdive (although we saw them in March in a much smaller venue, so it's hard that a Festival show could beat that experience), and there are some nice options to warm-up and await until the Monkeys gig ends PS 2018 for us... but is that all?

Sunday, June 3rd, 
Tigercats, Waxahatchee and Jay Som could be enough reasons to consider a return to Sunday's, more so if that allows us to making some schedule switches. We'll see...

Stay tuned for further developments!!

The Indie Anthology 79: essential songs

This section has suffered another unfortunate, unwanted hiatus (hard for me to find the time to write) but that's about to change today! So, in order to return to form in our Anthology I just have chosen a blissfully gorgeous tune from a very dear band of mine, and connected (or at least I'd like to think so) with this humble Blog. Let´s go to back to Scotland with The Hermit Crabs!

Song: Correspondence Course
Artist: The Hermit Crabs
Year: 2008

Time flies! Almost a decade since Mel Whittle and Co. penned this melancholic indiepop gem (ten years since the band appeared with the lovely 'Feel Good Factor' EP. Can't lie the Belle and Sebastian and Camera Obscura comparisons drove me to them... but these shy & melancholic crustaceans were about to make their own space in this blogger heart. A close call between 'About You Before', the glorious, infinite guitar work of 'On the Spectrum', I finally opted for 'Correspondence Course'. I guess it's because of the lush arrangements, leaded by the mesmerizing violin and the tricky distorted, warped, fragmented guitar. Or, the knockout chorus. Or the quirky and, let´s face it, considering Mel's honeyed voice, pretty adorable lyrics including band name-dropping and flirtation around playing music, and yet a hint of reflection, dare I say disappointment towards the end. Like my dear The Very Most (the connection between Mel and Jeremy has provided us many amazing tunes) or Monkey Swallows the Universe (sadly extinct, but Nat Johnson keeps doing music wonders quite regularly) to just name three, The Hermit Crabs (or Melanie Whittle) are one of these modest, not putting any airs on them whatsoever, even unfairly sidestepped bands, that you can always rely on.

Spanish Indie 29: suggesting the best national acts

Pop, pop and more pop in our latest trio of national bands. Brace yourselves, gorgeous music is coming!

El Palacio de Linares. Drummer Gonzalo Marcos founded the band in 2011, initially with Mariví Hernández Lara, Ángel Román and Elena Cascón, debuting in 2012 with 7"'Himalaya' out on Elefant Records. Changes in the line-up began while the group released EP ‘La Casa Es Negra’ on Discos de Paseo in 2013, as well as singles with Discos de Kirlian, Discos Walden, plus the Mini-LP ‘La Espalda de un perro’ via Sweet Grooves Records a year later, which looked like the final release of the band. But Gonzalo didn't want to quit, so instead he relaunched the band in San Sebastián with the help of Alex & Raúl from Nuevos Hobbies and the support of Yon Vidaur from Ama. The new and reinvigorated ensemble now has come out with first LP ‘Ataque de amor’ via the great Pretty Olivia Records. A collection of pluperfect tunes echoing some of the greatest pop artisans, in between The Feelies and Belle and Sebastian, but with a trademark sense of humour and costumbrist grace. Smashing pop attack!

Evripidis and His Tragedies. Evripidis Evripidis Sabatis is a classically trained musician, visual artist and writer born in Athens, Greece, but adopted by Barcelona a decade ago. Here, with the support of likely minded musicians and artists, he gave form to his own particular musical and aesthetical universe, a solo project that expands into a collecive process. Since 2006, Evripidis has released several EPs, music for short movies and art projects and three LPs, the self-titled debut in 2007, 'A Healthy Dose of Pain' in 2011 and, since this March, we can enjoy 'Futile Games in Space and Time' in a joint release by Snap! Clap!, Canada Editorial, Jigsaw and Inner Ear. Piano-based, his soft pop is kaleidoscopic: sometimes vintage, devoted to 50s & 60s, others baroque, or flirting with Motown as well as with Belle and Sebastian, but always lush, hopelessly romantic and adventurous. Oh! This charming man...

Islandia Nunca Quema. Although they hail from Reus and Tarragona, this quartet formed in 2010 has their music DNA in distant places like Brisbane, Glasgow or Dunedin... also known as the "kingdoms of indiepop". Debut release arrived in December of 2012 with 7" 'The Wrong Parade / Pile of Junk', out via Philatelia Records, followed by another 7", only digital, entitled 'Behold the Evil Mind/ Dotted Lines' in January 2014. 'Applause', first album to date was next, again via Philatelia, with a 'Covers' record made public early 2015, including versions of The Kinks, Lloyd Cole, The Velvet Underground and Young Marble Giants, among others. So, while we wait for the new chapter of these "Islanders of pop", we can enjoy all their good deeds: their knack for penning classic, lasting melodies, their chiming guitars lines, their flirt with psychedelia... Contagious tunes.

These Go to 11: interviewing We Were Never Being Boring Collective

Time for another interview! Now with Samuele Palazzi, musician and member of one the happiest labels around, our beloved We Were Never Being Boring Collective (WWNBB) because, as they say, "we can't succumb to boredom"! These Go to 11!

Samuele Palazzi, We Were Never Being Boring 

Indie Italians having fun!

The WWNBB Collective was born in June 2009, when Le Man Avec Les Lunettes, The Calorifer Is Very Hot and Enzo Baruffaldi published a collective EP of four covers of Wavves tune ‘So Bored’. Since then, they have published more than 60 releases, including exciting bands such as Be Forest, Burnt Palms, Crescendo, Joyce in Pola, Making Marks, Brothers in Law or Tight Eye. Impressive. But there's more, as aside his work at WWNBB label, Samuele, now living in San Francisco, is a musician, member of The Calorifer Is Very Hot (also known as Calorifero) with whom he released 'Marzipan in Zurich' (2007), 'Evolution On Stand-By' (2009) and 'Mind Warp' (2011) and core member of the worldwide supergroup Still Flyin', leaded by Sean Rawls and with an extensive discography with ten EPs and albums like 'Never Gonna Touch The Ground' (2009), 'On A Bedroom Wall' (2012) or Perfect Future (January of 2016). Not enough?There's even more, as he has played with many bands of WWNBB, like The Ian Fays or The Yellow Traffic Light. All proofs we are in front of a man who breathes music 24/7, every single day of the year. Here we go!

King Kong revisited, early 90s style 

1.First record that you bought (be honest)

I have two stories that I consider my first purchases: do you remember when we used to buy from mail order magazines? My first 2 tapes bought that way were Counting Crows – 'August and Everything After', and Meat Loaf – 'Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell'. But I grew up in the middle of nowhere and I will always remember my first adventure to the record store (bike to the bus stop and then bus) when I was still a kid, asking people at the farmers market where I could find 'On the Rock' (that was the name of the store), and once there I bought Pearl Jam – 'Vitalogy' on vinyl and Pink Floyd – 'Pulse' on CD.

Queen of 'privilege pop'?

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)
Good memories here too… First was in Bologna (Italy) and the band was Marion for their tour of 'This World and Body', my 10 years older neighbor (with whom I was obviously in love) asked my parents if she could take me to the show, but obviously her boyfriend came too. Last show was Metric in San Francisco.

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)

I have tons! Maybe my biggest crush happened with Lana Del Rey – 'Born to Die'?

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)

I do not go extremely crazy for pricy collector’s items; I mostly care about the music on a support that I can touch. I have a lot of rarities that are not collector’s items, but for me they mean a lot, like limited editions of friend’s projects or the test presses of the WWNBB’s releases.

Mark "joyful" Kozelek: keep your guard up!

5.Favorite lyrics (not yours)
BIRTHH has a song called 'Queen of Failureland', and its opener got stuck in my head the first moment I heard it: 'We live worthless lives just to prove/that we’re victims of the system/that our wounds cannot be mended/that you’ll never understand/the pain inside our chest'…

6.Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)
Polly Jean Harvey!! And Mark Kozelek too, but with time to chat…

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)
Pearl Jam – 'No Code' / Mogwai – 'Come on Die Young' / Belle and Sebastian 'Tigermilk'.

Mark Ruffalo, the impossible manager

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both) 
Books: suggesting is too personal, but I can tell you that at the moment I am reading 'Lust for Life' by Irving Stone and it’s very good. Movies: I do like some films that are not really challenging, and one of these that I liked lately was 'Begin Again', especially because I love Mark Ruffalo in it.

9. Release (of yours) you are most proud of
As record label I can’t say. As musician probably The Calorifer is Very Hot! – 'Evolution on Stand-by'.

10. What does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)
Indie means that I wake up without knowing what I’ll end up doing for a band that day, that money is something that goes out but doesn’t come in, that if there were no passion there wouldn’t be indie!

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? 
I really have such a life that I can barely think about tomorrow…10 years from now I don’t see myself being too different than now, but I hope to incorporate some nature-related work and surroundings to music.                                                                     

 Zillion thanks Samuele!

The Indie Anthology 57: essential songs

Keeping things jangly at the Anthology folks. Here's nothing more than an unmissable classic (thanks to my dear The Fireworks for the inspiration)!

Song: Sunlight Bathed the Golden Glow (single version)
Artist: Felt
Year: 1984

Let's be honest. I'm pretty sure 90% of the Spaniards discovered Felt thanks to Belle and Sebastian and the love Stuart Murdoch has always declared for Lawrence music. And I'm also pretty sure the first time we heard Felt tunes got somewhat disappointed because of Lawrence's voice, much more alike to Lou Reed's, Tom Verlaine's or David Byrne's than Stuart's. But for the ones that didn't give out after one listen, we quickly found an incredible lost band. Delicate, strangely downbeat and intimate even in its more joyous moments, impossibly melodic, melodic as heaven, instrumentally delightful. There are many songs I could have chosen ('Ballad of the Band', 'The Day the Rain Came Down' were close) but 'Sunlight', with that post-punk opening that then turns into a eternal jangly guitar riff ringing all over the tune is just too glorious to resist. Yeah, the golden glow, can't you hear it?...

Primavera Sound 2015: first impressions

Primavera Sound Festival 2015's line-up unveiled! The show was quick and the videogame used to reveal the band names was a funny idea, (although a bit too easy?).Hipsters/posers were quite ok compared with previous years (except when the food arrived, the animal instincts appeared no matter how cool you dress) and the overall feeling was a pleasant one. Thanks to the organisers. 

But let’s go to key question. What an impressive line-up they have gathered! We are extremely happy they have followed our advice (kidding of course) and prepared an almost riot grrrl stage (by the sea perhaps?) on Friday with The Julie Ruin, Ex Hex and Sleater-Kinney. Amazing. Now please no overlaps, at least on Friday.

As happened last year, we’ll focus on the “middle class”, although my better half will strongly push for seeing The Black Keys and The Strokes (huge question marks on the latest one), which looks, as always, interesting, diverse, and with a lot of potential. DIIV, Eels (finally!), Spiritualized, Patti Smith, Torres (YEEES!) and a huge list of well-known (like Belle and Sebastian) and recently discovered names (Twerps to name one)… If we are lucky with the overlaps, this edition could be simply spectacular.

So, honouring the Blog’s tradition, here’s our traditional rough (we don't have the timetables yet) “paint & colour” version of the line-up with our first impressions on the bands we are willing to see. Promising, right?

CONFIRMED ARTISTS FOR PRIMAVERA SOUND 2015

27th-31st May

ALBERT HAMMOND JR. • ALT-J • AMERICAN FOOTBALL • ANDREW WEATHERALL ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS • ARIEL PINK • ARTHUR RUSSELL INSTRUMENTALS BABES IN TOYLAND • BAXTER DURY • BELLE & SEBASTIAN • BEN WATT • BENJAMIN BOOKER • THE BLACK KEYS • THE BOHICAS • BOREALS • BRAND NEW • CARIBOU • CHEATAHS • CHET FAKER • CHILDHOOD • CHRISTINA ROSENVINGE • THE CHURCH • CINERAMA • DJ COCO • D.D DUMBO • DAMIEN RICE • DAN DEACON • DAVE P. • DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979 • DER PANTHER • DIIV • DISAPPEARS • DIXON • DULCE PAJARA DE JUVENTUD • EARTH • EARTHLESS • EELS • EINSTÜRZENDE NEUBAUTEN • ELECTRIC WIZARD • EX HEX • EXXASENS • FERRAN PALAU • FOXYGEN • FUCKED UP • FUMACA PRETA • GERMA AIRE • THE GHOST OF A SABER TOOTH TIGER • GIANT SAND • GREYLAG • GÚDAR • GUI BORATTO • HANS-JOACHIM ROEDELIUS • HAR MAR SUPERSTAR (dj set) • HEALTH • HISS GOLDEN MESSENGER • HOOKWORMS • THE HOTELIER • IBEYI • ICEAGE • INTERPOL • JAMBINAI • JAMES BLAKE • JESSICA & THE FLETCHERS • JOAN MIQUEL OLIVER • JON HOPKINS • JOSE GONZALEZ • THE JUAN MACLEAN • JULIAN CASABLANCAS+THE VOIDZ • THE JULIE RUIN • JUNGLE • KELELA KEVIN MORBY • THE KVB • LAS RUINAS • LES AMBASSADEURS • LES SUEQUES • LOS PUNSETES • LOST TAPES • MAC DEMARCO • MARC PIÑOL • MARC RIBOT'S CERAMIC DOG • MDOU MOCTAR • MIKAL CRONIN • MIKE SIMONETTI • MINERAL • MIQUEL SERRA • MOURN • MOVEMENT • MY BRIGHTEST DIAMOND • NANCY WHANG (dj set) NELEONARD • THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS • NUEVA VOLCANO • NÚRIA GRAHAM • OCELLOT • OMD • OUGHT • PALLBEARER • PANAMA • PANDA BEAR • PATTI SMITH & BAND perform HORSES • PERFUME GENIUS • PERRO • PHARMAKON • RATKING • THE REPLACEMENTS • RICHIE HAWTIN • RIDE • ROCIO MARQUEZ • ROMAN FLOGEL • RUN THE JEWELS • SALVAJE MONTOYA • THE SAURS • SHABAZZ PALACES • SHELLAC SIMIAN MOBILE DISCO • SINGLE MOTHERS • SLEAFORD MODS • SLEATER-KINNEY • SOAK • THE SOFT MOON • SPIRITUALIZED • SR. CHINARRO • STRAND OF OAKS • THE STROKES • THE SUICIDE OF WESTERN CULTURE • SUN KIL MOON • SUNN 0))) • SWANS • THEE OH SEES • THE THURSTON MOORE BAND • TOBIAS JESSO JR.• TONY ALLEN • TORRES • TUNE-YARDS • TWERPS • TWIN SHADOW • TYLER THE CREATOR • UMBERTO & ANTONI MAIOVVI • UNDERWORLD dubnobasswithmyheadman live • UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA • VIET CONG • VOIVOD • WHITE HILLS • YASMINE HAMDAN • YOUNGHUSBAND • THE ZEPHYR BONES

Green- Definetely seeing them. Absolute must
Orange- If there are no overlaps (in particular with the green ones), I'll be there for sure
Yellow- Curious about it/"on research mode"

These Go to 11: interviewing La Fonoteca

This week the guest answering our questionnaire is an hyper-active music promoter/defender with a magnificent poppie taste, kind of an ubiquitous spiritual leader of all things indie in Barcelona. We are referring to Miguel Atienza, also known as "La Fonoteca Barcelona man". These Go to 11!

Miguel Atienza, La Fonoteca Barcelona

Mr. Atienza, man in
music charge

La Fonoteca, born in 2008 as a website, is a platform with the main purpose of promoting and disseminating Spanish music inside & outside our borders. What began as a "Spanish Music-pedia" keep quickly evolved and expanded its activities, organizing concerts and releasing almost music (a set of ten vinyls to date) and an editorial reference. The aim is clear and true: spread the word on emerging bands and vindicate Spanish rich music legacy. Miguel leads the permanent headquarters of LaFonoteca Barcelona, created in 2011, establishing an exciting music dialogue between Madrid and Barcelona. He's the man behind several releases and many gigs in our city, with bands so indispensable as, to name a few, Doble Pletina, El Último Vecino, Las Ruinas, Linda Guilala, Gúdar, Grushenka, Les Sueques, Bananas, Alborotador Gomasio, Prisma en Llamas y Atomizador. Truly a man of music. Here we go!

1. First record that you bought (be honest)

I think it was The Who's 'Live at Leeds', or maybe one of Led Zeppelin. My early years as music buyer mixed 60's and 70's classics with Brit-pop records. I was a real fan of Oasis, for example.

Once, they ruled the world...
and it wasn't that bad

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)
The first concert I went, I mean paying myself, I believe it was one of Los Piratas. The last one has been Trapece, a group formed by members of the Moving Pictures, they merge pop, jazz, bossa... A really beautiful concert.

Making waves

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)

Who hasn't sung out loud Rocío Jurado's 'Como una ola'?...

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)

I'm going to say my copy of 'Snowball' from The Field Mice. It's one of my favourites and is quite hard to find, so I'm excited to have a copy.

5. Favorite lyrics (not yours)

As my English is pretty bad I have always paid more attention to the lyrics of Spanish bands. Some of my favourite composers are Manolo from Astrud, Carlos Berlanga, Fernando Alfaro, Joan Miquel Oliver, Lolo from Hazte Lapón or Carlos from Los Lagos de Hinault, among many others. The last great discovery has been Sagrado Corazón de Jesús. Their lyrics have captivated me.

Tim Gane, the genious
alchemist of sounds & ideas

6. Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)
I would like to meet Dan Treacy, despite he seems to be pretty sick. I wouldn't mind to talk about politics with Tim Gane either.

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)
I will say the first that has came to my mind. I have always been fascinated by Belle & Sebastian's Tigermilk cover, with that combination between of innocence and sinister.

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both) 
Luckily, in real life I can choose both, but in an hypothetical desert island, where I imagine that there wouldn't be any electricity, I would bring 'A Confederacy of Dunces' by John Kennedy Toole with me.

'Puente Aéreo' of exciting music!

  

9. Release (of yours) you are most proud of
The collection 'Puente Aéreo' where a band from Madrid and another from Barcelona share a 7''. We have published 2 volumes (Hazte Lapón + Gúdar and Univers + Celica XX) and we are really eager to start working in the 3rd one.

10. What’s does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)
'Indie' is independent. Do it yourself, don't depend on the others. And if you do it yourself, you don't have to give any explanation to third parties.   

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
I would like to have my own little label and release few but very special in limited runs. I don't see myself organizing so many concerts as I do now, but you never know.

Zillion thanks Miguel!

"God Help the Girl", the hipster musical

God Help the Girl

Me and the musicals, chapter 25.

My relation with musicals has been an excruciating one. The vast majority of them are...umm... how to put it politely, ridiculous. Annoyingly shallow, empty films with never-ending choreography's and little-to-zero worries on the script, which are usually lame. And although that's not the case with 'God Help the Girl', it's hard for me to consider it a triumph.

For sure, it's an ok movie, with gorgeous music (couldn't be any other way? We are talking about Stuart Murdoch) some charming visual/music numbers and wonderful aesthetics (if you are into that contemplative-clothing-advertisement, 110% hipster look). There are occasional sparks of brilliance, in the form of witty one liners and some funny conversation about music. Plus, of course, it has Scotland in the background. Special vibes.

But being completely honest, is that what makes a film worth praising? I have my doubts, which mainly are addressed to Murdoch’s script. He has the ability of putting many feelings in the songs, something he has proven for almost twenty years now, but what happens when there's no music? It might be just me, but 'God Help the Girl' suffers, at times, quite painfully, when actors have to deal with words and situations. And not because they aren't trying. Emily Browning is convincing as the fragile but at the same time determined Eve. Olly Alexander is perfect as James, the smart-sensible-shy-but a bit snobbish guitarist. And Hannah Murray is the carefree, lovely loony Cass, the last vortex of the triangle involving romance, friendship and a wonderful bunch of songs. And THE GENTLEMAN, the great Neil Hannon, has a fantastic tune too!

No, the problem is not the acting. In my opinion, 'God Help the Girl' has an awkward tone and an even more odd balance between the story of Eve issues, a pretty serious drama, and the story of of creating a (very hipster and yes, utterly talented) pop band while dealing with friendship-romance. Sure, it all sums for a coming of age tale, but the contrast makes the movie feel a bit strange & disjointed from scene to scene (or from scene to song). The overall feeling I had is that I'm in front of a long videoclip (quoting the words from Antonio Llarena from my beloved When Nalda Became Punk). It's a nice one? Well, the music, for the most part, is wonderful, and each time there's a song, the movie achieves a level of grace... that almost evaporates once the music is over. Besides, it kind of annoys me the amount of importance the aesthetics have. I get the costumes are connected with the songs they are playing but to that extent? It makes "God Help the Girl" look like the poppiest verision of an H&M advertisement.

So, me and the musicals, chapter 25? Probably among the best musical soundtracks... but far from the best movie.

SCORE: 6/10

These Go to 11: interviewing The Swapsies

This day had to arrive! After meeting them at Indietracks (one of the highlights of the Festival without a doubt), Huw & Andrew, main composers of The Swapsies, one of the Blog favourite bands, take part in our questionnaire series. As expected, here's one of the funniest and charming These Go to 11 we ever had!

Huw Spink & Andrew Warhurst, The Swapsies

Best spoonball squad ever. Period

Hailing from Liverpool, the band started around 2011, releasing debut single 'You’re My Maillot Jaune/ Hey There You' that summer. But 2013 was the real "Swapsies year". First, with the August release, in conjunction with our dear friends from February Records, of their sophomore single 'Another Game on Saturday/ A Fleeting Summer' that, aside from its glorious two pop gems, got a lovely soccer-obsessed physical release. And before closing the year, it was followed by their first EP, 'Sparrows', four irresistible tunes, again preciously packed with a mini-fanzine and an illustration. While we await for new songs, and after enjoying them live for the first time, we can assure you this: your small & shy indiepop heart will be forever grateful if you hear The Swapsies. Music full of charm, harmonies, handclapping and genuine passion. Graceful, joyful, everlasting pop. Here we go!

1. First record that you bought (be honest)

Andy and Ned Flanders' choice

Huw: Almost definitely 'Any Dream Will Do’ by Jason Donovan. I still really like that song. I tried to persuade The Swapsies to perform it. Alas to no avail!
Andy: Ha! My Mum and Dad had the Joseph and His Technicolour Dreamcoat LP so after I went to see the musical I asked them to put it on a tape for me. I'm pretty sure I could sing it now but I'm not convinced it'd suit us! I remember when I knew I was getting my first CD player I went out and bought two singles. 'Free Me' by Cast and 'Blackbird on the Wire' by The Beautiful South. The first cassette I remember getting is 'Things Can Only Get Better' by D:Ream when I was about 7. The first record I remember feeling any sort of ownership of was a 7” of 'We Didn’t Start The Fire' by Billy Joel which I used to ask my Mum to put on for me to dance around to.

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)

Huw: First was Paul McCartney in Earls Court in London in 1993. It was mind-blowingly exciting! Even if I was sat about a million miles away from him. Last was The Hidden Cameras at Indietracks. Life-affirmingly wonderful.
Andy: First: Idlewild at the Students’ Union in Liverpool in 2002. It set me off on a lifelong love affair with Scottish music! Last: Indietracks!

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)

Huw: Very hard to answer! Apart from the aforementioned ‘Any Dream Will Do’? Ok then - 'Asajere' by Las Ketchup then. Love that song! Tremendous. No idea what they are singing about, which might help my enjoyment somewhat! [Blogger's note, it's 'Aserejé', and easily ranks among the worst songs ever, but we love The Swapsies too much to take it against them...]

Proof that genius pop composers
chat to each other

Andy: It’s definitely not a very cool answer but I really like the hymns of John Bell. I don’t go to church a lot anymore but my Mum’s a vicar and I grew up singing songs in church. I think a lot of my love for a catchy tune comes from that! A few years ago I went with my Mum to see him sing some songs and talk about songwriting and during the interval he came and had a chat with me. We talked about Glasgow and Belle and Sebastian and he drew me a little map showing me how to find the record shops when I was going to visit. (As a coda to this, I messaged Stuart Murdoch about our conversation through the B&S website and he replied saying that he’s a fan too)

Mount Beatles!

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)
Huw: Very hard to choose just one! Probably a model of Mount Rushmore but with The Beatles instead of Presidents. It’s quite classy in its own way.
Andy: My original vinyl soundtracks of the first three Muppet Movies! (should that be the guilty pleasure?)

5. Favorite lyrics (not yours)

Huw: “The temptation to take the precious things we have apart to see how they work must be resisted for they never fit together again”, from ‘Must I Paint You A Picture’ by Billy Bragg. Or maybe “I know it’s kinda hard but I’m glad that it is” from ‘Desperation Made A Fool Of Me’ by Belle and Sebastian.
Andy: I love so many of the lines in Belle and Sebastian’s 'Get Me Away From Here I’m Dying'. “Nobody writes them like they used to so it might as well be me” is such a wonderful philosophy for a song writer to live by.
“Think of it this way/ You could either be successful or be us/ With our winning smiles, and us/ With our catchy tunes, and us/ Now we're photogenic/ You know, we don't stand a chance”

6. Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)

Henson & family

Broadside balladeer

Huw: Phil Ochs. He is my hero. A great lost songwriter of the 1960s. I’d love to have had the chance to tell him how much his songs mean to me (having already made a fool of myself telling Billy Bragg & Stuart Murdoch)
Andy: Would Jim Henson count? He had a lovely singing voice and an ear for a harmony but didn’t write any of the songs. I’d love to have met him. I'd also like to sit round a cafe table with Stuart Murdoch and Lee Mavers.

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)
Huw: The Beatles’ ‘For Sale’ LP. A lovely photo of four lovely men. What more do you need?
Andy: Kraftwerk’s Tour De France artwork takes some beating for me

'Motherless Brooklyn'

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both) 
Huw: My favourite film is ‘Bridesmaids’. It has genuinely cheers me up everytime I have watched it. I really like the novels of Jim Thompson – though they are not terribly cheerful. They are all great (they are also all rather similar – which is fine by me!).
Andy: I wouldn’t want to choose one over the other! Our friend Kristin (co-runner of February Records) recommended reading 'Motherless Brooklyn' by Jonathan Lethem so I did and it was great. I’m reading another of his books now so I’ll pass on Kristin’s recommendation! For a film to recommend, I recently watched a documentary called ‘Just Like Being There’ which is about screen printing gig posters. It’s super-inspiring! Since I’ve watched it I’ve been recommending it to everyone!

9. Release (of yours) you are most proud of
Huw: Andy wrote it but our song ‘I Won’t Stand Idly By’ is the one I enjoy singing most. It’s a bit of a protest song, but it’s also about being a bit shy. In my mind it’s our nod to great protest singers like Phil Ochs without forgetting that we are not gregarious, rabble-rousing kind of people either.
Andy: I’m really proud of how 'Another Game on Saturday' turned out and it’s a lot of fun to play.

10. What’s does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)
Huw: Indie to me just means doing it. Not waiting for perfection or hoping for fortune and glory but the act of creating music being in itself its own reward.
Andy: Yeah, it's the freedom if you think you’ve got something worthwhile to share to just do it yourself and get it out there. If we like the music we make then maybe someone else will too? There’s also a great community spirit where everyone helps each other out where they can without expecting anything much in return. I think blogs like Bloodbuzzed sum up that spirit and enthusiasm and are just as much a part of ‘indie’ as the people who make the music.

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Huw : Celebrating the ten year anniversary of filling in this questionnaire (thanks Mitch Hedberg!)
Andy: Living in the West End of Glasgow in an independent Scotland (wishful thinking)

Zillion thanks Andy and Huw! Zillion thanks Swapsies!

These Go to 11: interviewing Cristina Quesada

This week we have the youngest person I have ever interviewed. I'm referring to the charming, perennially smiling, ukulele wizard Cristina Quesada. These Go to 11!

Cristina Quesada

The Pineapple Princess

Hailing from Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, but based in Madrid, Cristina started to develop a fond love for music, learning violin and sol-fa since she was a little child. She also established herself as a precocious artist, being part in theater groups and a local tv program (she is part of 'El Club de Archi' still). At 13 she bought a guitar, starting to play versions of her favourite tunes. But the giant leap forward arrived at 15, when she discovered the ukulele. Her only release to date, a lovely covers 7" EP entitled "Pineapple Princess", came out on Elefant Records during the summer of 2013, hypnotising us with her adorably sweet vocals and the irresistible simplicity of the ukulele melodies, showing her range as composer with her first couple of penned tunes, one sharing credits with Paul Bevoir, plus transforming the Sherman Brothers, Billy Rose and Lee David or Family on an intimate indiepop affair completely of her own. Here we go!

Shared gig, shared Love

1. First record that you bought (be honest)

When I was living in my hometown in Fuerteventura, there wasn't (or at least I didn't know) any place to buy records, so the ones that I had at home were my parents' or otherwise it would be my older sister the one who would buy them, most of the times on the internet. The first record I bought myself was probably 'Tapestry' by Carole King and I think I bought once I was already living in Madrid. 

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)

I think that the first concert I attended was one of Joan Manuel Serrat in Fuerteventura with my parents when I was a child, and the last one Helen Love at Primavera Sound!

Then came Céline Dion and things got
even worse, much worse...

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)

Sometimes, specially when I'm so stressed with exams that I lose my mind, I've found myself singing along 'All by myself' or doing playback to it like crazy with the music really loud around all my apartment while holding a hairbrush as if it was a microphone. I even pretend to do the final drums part, hahaha!

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)
I must confess I am addicted to musical films, so I've been collecting soundtracks for a long time now, but one of the most special one for me is the one of the film 'Melody', (S.W.A.L.K. in the UK).
5. Favorite lyrics (not yours)

Everyday I have a different favorite lyrics! Today maybe 'I love you I've a drowning grip on your adoring face, I love you my responsibility has found a place beside you' from 'Piazza New York catcher' of Belle and Sebastian.

Macca, Sir with bowl haircut 

6. Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)
I must admit that I am always a bit scared to meet people who I really admire, first of all because I don't know how I would react! But...thinking about it...I think it would be cool to have a conversation with Paul McCartney!

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)

I love the artwork in may records of the 60's. The one in 'Comment te dire adieu' of Françoise Hardy is one of my favorites, but it's really difficult to make up my mind with only one artwork!

Demoiselles de Rochefort

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both) 
I'll say movies! My favorite genres are romance and musicals. Recently I watched again a film that I really loved, 'Les Demoiselles de Rochefort'.

9. Song (of yours) you are most proud of:

I guess maybe 'Secret Song', because it's the first one I wrote myself and when I play it always remember the moment in which I was writing it in my room and it makes me smile.

10. What’s does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)

Doing things with your heart.

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Somewhere that's beautiful and sharing my happiness with my beloved ones.

Zillion thanks Cristina!