Primavera Sound 2017 in brief, day 3

And here arrives the third and final take of our quick chronicles of the Primavera Sound 2017, with our impressions of Saturday 3rd, just an excellent day, with a couple of really memorable gigs to put a terrific end to a Festival that might rank lower than previous editions for us, but still has had much (much more than initially expected, to be honest) to be enjoyed, celebrated and written about. So, time to go back to the Fòrum!

The Good

Van Morrison: A music myth that is part of my childhood and teenager soundtrack, that opened his gig with 'Too Late', 'Moondance' and 'Have I Told You Lately'. It was just impossible not to get emotional...

The "lion of Belfast" gets jazzy. Photo: Bloodbuzzed

Angel Olsen: First thing first. She would deserve to be on the final section of this post, taking the top spot of the day (but we had to choose just one gig). Impeccable, magnetic, irresistible from start to finish. In total command of the stage, the tunes and the audience during the complete set. Confidence, talent, solid band backing her, charm and huge tunes, the climax arriving with the gigantic 'Sister', one of the Blog's favourite tunes from past year. Just mesmerizing.

Angel Olsen. 'Our' woman at Primavera Sound. Photo: Bloodbuzzed

Hamilton Leithauser: Another voice and mighty presence live to follow. Hamilton is a 'surefire'. Every time his throat explodes, you 'go places', every word he sings sounds true and heartfelt. He seemed really happy to be at Ptichfork stage, enjoying himself and giving all he has to put a great show. And his solo career is already sprinkled with amazing tunes, like 'Sick as a Dog', 'Alexandra', '1959' and, of course, the immense 'A 1.000 Times', another favourite from last year. You can't wrong with Hamilton.

Mr. Leithauser, would watch him live a 1.000 times. Photo: Bloodbuzzed

The Bad

Queuing for Auditori (second part): Yet again, there has to be a better way to organize this sort of massive gigs at Auditori. This time (2nd Magnetic Fields show) we didn't have to buy an extra-ticket, but still we queued for quite a while... and missed a couple of opening tunes. Again. 
Van Morrison: Yes, this is not a mistake. Van 'the man' show deserves to be in the previous category but also in this one. Because as much of a touching moment was seeing him live, his singing (or his lack of, better said) and the sort of bland, 'Starbucks' jazz versions of his eternal tunes they don't any justice at all to his memorable legacy.
As****es: We haven't complained about annoying people at the Festival so far. Luckily, we felt we didn't face as many annoying people (chit-chatters, posers) as previous editions... until Saturday. During Hamilton's gig we dealt with the 'traditional' category of bored folks joining the friend that really likes who's playing... and are decided to make him (and all the audience) notice they are THAT uninterested. But there was an even more irritating situation. During the majestic Angel Olsen's show we had to listen a couple of, how can we define them? Internet trolls showing up? XXI century haters? Why on Earth someone should decide, with all the options they had at PS, to go watch someone that they hate in advance? And why the need to express that hate to the unknown mass that is gathered to hear & see the artist? What a pain in the arse (and absurdly wrong) they were...

The Queen
Teenage Fanclub: I insist, Angel Olsen also deserves to be included in this spot. But having to choose only one option as the top gig of the day we have to go with the Scottish legends because a) It was the first time (finally!!!) seeing them live; b) they were terrific and c) they played 'Start Again', 'Star Sign', 'About You', 'I Need Direction', 'Sparky's Dream', 'I'm In Love', 'Everything Flows', and the list can go on... Did we need to say anything else? How can you beat that? A lot of singing our throats out, sweating, dancing and smiling for the best gig (alongside Ms. Olsen) of the Primavera Sound Festival 2017 for us.

McGinley, Blake and Love, indiepop dream team. Photo: Bloodbuzzed

Here are the links of the previous chapters! Day 1 and Day 2 

Discoverer 50: new indie findings

It's Sunday, time for new band proposals, enjoy!

Torres. Music has to express feelings, provoke emotions. Has to beat life. Sometimes, not many, an artist is capable of capturing intimate feelings, and make them universal, speaking to everyone. Like Mackenzie Scott's, a 22-year-old woman from Nashville, that under the nickname of Torres now debuts with a same-titled album. Recorded with very little resources, the album is a stark collection of Scott's incredible talents. 10 mind-blowing songs, musically between indie rock and minimalistic folk, propelled by her powerful and mutable voice, often subtle, others desperate, always unique. Add striking lyrics, like Flannery O'Connor colliding with Raymond Carver and resolve the equation. Haunting, extraordinary. 

Pia Fraus. More Estonians, yes! Formed in Tallinn in 1998 by six art-school students that self-released their debut album in 2001. Some changes on the line-up, three more records, EPs, singles & remixes, works with Norman Blake and many gigs complete their story... until this January Shelflife Records has released "Silmi Island", a compilation of their best tracks from 1998-2008, allowing new fans like me approaching their sound. A delicate, vibrant mix of shoegaze and dreampop that creates a unique atmosphere, an environment of their own, where vocal harmonies, reverb, layers and organs fit together gracefully. Can we hope for more?

Bored Spies. And our last proposal is a pretty risky one. They come from a very peculiar trio formed last year. Coming from Singapore, Seoul and Arizona. With only two songs available from their debut single "Summer 720", backed with B-side "‘沙鼠E'", and a promising double announcement: they are on the pre-production stage of its first full-length album, due later this year, and they will be in Barcelona at Primavera Sound Festival 2013 this May. I know that with just two songs including them as a band to follow might be premature. But judge by both tunes quality, sophisticated indiepop with traces of experimental rock wrapping the disarming voice of Cherie ko, and tell me it doesn't look exciting... 

Discoverer 49: new indie findings

It's Sunday, so here are the weekly band proposals for your listening pleasure!

Ex Cops. We begin in Brooklyn with a duo: Brian Harding (ex Hymns) and Amalie Bruun (from Minks, band already highlighted on this Discoverer series). Born as Ex Cops in 2011 they released a homemade EP. A first single, "“You Are a Lion, I Am a Lamb” b/w “The Millionaire”, followed last April, before signing with Other Music Recording Co. Transformed into a quintet they took to the studio to record "True Hallucinations", their debut album, out now. And what a debut this is. A kaleidoscopic indiepop lesson, delicate and joyful, vintage but modern, strangely moody but full of hooks. Indispensable.

I Was A King. If you also believe Teenage Fanclub is not just a wonderful band, but also a group that mankind needs, here's a name for you. A trio coming from the adorable Norway, they formed in 2006, releasing their debut album "Losing Something Good for Something Better" a year later. In 2009, thanks to the buzz, they assaulted the States with "I Was A King", followed by "Old Friends" in 2011. And then came "You Love It Here", with the help of (attention) Norman Blake and Robyn Hitchcock, released, just in Norway, in late 2012. It's a tragedy, because this is such an incredible pop masterpiece. Pop music lovers, please listen them.

Plumerai. Sure, is not the first time I got into a band thanks to a female voice. Active since 2004, this Bostonians have gone through several line-up changes, four EPs and three records including 2011's "Your Guilty Prize", after which they added the Parisian Eliza Brown on vocals. With her on board (plus a new drummer) joining foundational members Martin & James Newman, they released their latest LP, "Mondegreen", past November. Eliza's powerful, sweet, breathy and mysteriously haunting vocals (I imagine her stealing hearts while singing at some jazz club) give a very unique counterpoint to the indiepop, with a dark twist, somewhere in between shoegaze and post-punk, band sounds. Seductive music.