Goat and Teeth of the Sea at Electric Ballroom - 27 June 2013

a Goat, yesterday.

I have some reservations ahead of tonight's gig. I'm not convinced that I'm going to enjoy it. I suspect it's because I'm wary of bands that are predominantly instrumental - I've seen way too many acts that nurdle away to themselves and gradually disappear up their own bumholes, oblivious as to whether they have an audience in front of them or not.

I'm also sure that I have seen tonight's support band, Teeth of the Sea, before, probably in one of their very earliest incarnations. What I AM sure about is that they are terrific this evening.

The band stand in a line at the front of the stage. They are past the first flush of youth and are challenging the onslaught of male-pattern baldness with a remarkable array of tonsorial techniques ranging from shave and dye, to distraction by means of outrageous moustache, to comb it all back and stick it up like a cockatoo.

Teeth of the Sea bring the fun. Rhythms are pounded on a small drumkit while the groove is picked up by a battery of keyboards. Stage right, a guitarist poses shamelessly with a Flying -V, sporting an ancient T shirt favouring ancient hair metallers Vinnie Vincent's Invasion.

It's all racketingly good. The band have a sense of the theatrical and the absurd and deliver a fine set of electronic dance with that glam rock beat.

We're off to a very fine start.

Goat hail from Sweden and have been gathering buzz since the release of their debut album 'World Music' late last year. There are such positive vibes about their stage shows that tonight's gig (only their second in the UK) has been moved to the Electric Ballroom from the Scala after excessive ticket demand.

What follows is pretty much indescribable…I just get blown away…

…a non-stop whirling orgy of psychedelic tribal drumming, insane rock, voodoo, robes, ju-ju, massive riffs, tribal masks, diamante knickers, hair flying, whooping, frenzied dancing, hand bells, ululation,  GOAT!……

..hypnotic groove dance jive, Egyptian imagery, arabian nights (at their primitive best), harem pants, seismic basslines, riotous colours, twins dancing dancing dancing ,  GOAT! GOAT!

,synchronised screaming, krautrock, glam rock, Ayers rock, mystery and mysticism, excitement, ectoplasm, exertion , passion, possession, afro beat, aphrodisiac, dizzy miss lizzy freak out freak out GOAT! GOAT!! GOAT!!!!

When the band leaves the stage you feel as though you have just been dumped in a field by a tornado. Everyone around you stands wide eyed and stunned.

Goat are an astonishing, almost religious cargo-cult of a band. Bloody hell!

  

Sky Ferreira at H & M Oxford Street - 25 June 2013

Sky Ferreira

It seems like a bad idea. Sky Ferreira is playing an invitation only gig at H&M in Oxford Street.

So this is why I'm standing in a queue of excited teenagers that snakes round the building, drawing queries from passersby and muttering from folk who are trying to use the nearby bus stop. It's not really a crowd that I can easily blend in with, so I adopt the demeanour of a taciturn Russian minder.

There's an awkward moment upon entering the store when I have to squeeze into a tightly packed lift. It's so cramped that if I breathe out, we're gonna get trapped between floors.

Upstairs we are shown into an area teaming with excited youth. There's a sign that says "Try it on!" I decide that I'd better not.

We are eventually stacked like kindling in a small space delineated by curtains. We are facing a huge neon sign. It reads…'Fitting Room'.

One of the first lessons learned in rock school is 'make 'em wait'. And wait we do in our sardine state for nearly half an hour after Sky's purported stage time.

Then Sky appears and all discontent and doubts about this evening disappear.

She's a genuine pop star. While between songs she is all nerves and giggles, when the music starts she is all business.

I saw her earlier this year at Madame Jo Jo's and was impressed on that occasion. Tonight I'm even more so.

Unlike many young pop stars, there is no sense of sticking to a rigid or safe formula. The tunes vary from rock numbers, to emotional ballads, to dancey pop. Sky is able to nail them all with aplomb. And make you care while she's doing so.

To my unaccustomed ears, the best track tonight is a brand new one called 'On Top'. It's got a rumbling rocky churn to it and it builds in intensity and repetition as it goes on.

Huge ballad '24 Hours' elicits squeals from the young crowd and camera phones are held aloft (yes, even more than usual) during a climactic rendition of 'Everything is Embarrassing'.

We troop out through the store in polite order and are given a goodie bag containing a T shirt and other odds and ends which I'll have to find a good home for.

It's been an unorthodox but very enjoyable evening. Sky’s the limit. 

The Virgins and Gentlemen at The Old Blue Last - 20 June 2013

The Virgins

The ladies are in the audience. Gentlemen are on the stage. At this early part of the evening the ladies are few in number whereas Gentlemen are the extremely difficult to Google support band.

These guys are long, slim and handsome in bright, tight-fitting shirts, skinny trousers and big hair. These guys are rockers.

They play an easy on the air psychedelic rock music and go down well in the room. It's a shame that more people didn't come up the stairs to see them, because they fit in very comfortably with the vibe of tonight's headliners.

By the time The Virgins arrive, the room is packed. It's really hot in here, a marked contrast to the first time that I saw the band on a minus eleven February day in New York in 2007.

It's been a while since the band have visited these shores yet welcome familiarity floods back as soon as genial front man Donald Cumming starts speaking. His is one of the more distinctive voices in all of rock, an amused and genteel adenoidal tone.

To untrained UK ears bands from the US sound…American. But The Virgins hail from New York and sound like that city, unmistakeably, through and through.

The band are promoting their new album 'Strike Gently' and it continues where their self-titled debut left off. And like that previous record, it is targeted like a missile at the love parts of every woman in the room.

The Virgins can make women dance like no rock band that I've ever seen. Donald calls out to them, praises them, winks and smiles. It's genuine and warm and not bogus or creepy. The band's music is a loping guitar and bass heavy funk that bumps and grinds against your hips, gives you a little nudge and invites you to dance.

As the new album has not yet really landed in the UK, it is the older songs that get the biggest response. Incredibly the audience sing along with their favourites in their entirety. 'Rich Girls' becomes a happy communal chant with the throng singing not just the chorus, but the verses and the off-the-cuff vocal asides too. This is real worship and affection.

I shuffle and groove with the best of them. I see a couple of lads try and hit on a pair of young women gyrating in front of me. They get rebuffed, but everyone is smiling, no harm, no foul.

The evening comes to a rather abrupt end dead on 10.30. It seems to catch everyone by surprise, including the band. 

The Virgins are a safe bet, a home run, a cast iron guarantee. You'll have a good time - and ladies will dance.

Siouxsie and Viv Albertine at Royal Festival Hall - 17 June 2013

Siouxsie (obviously)

Viv Albertine is golden and gorgeous as she takes the stage of the Royal Festival Hall as part of Yoko Ono's Meltdown Festival.

Looking for all the world like a gleefully beaming mumsy gladiatrix in a shimmering metallic dress, the former Slit leads her five piece band through a set that is a deft mix of punky noise, sweeping strings and familial concerns.

Viv acknowledges the passing of time since her eventful youth and jokes that her song 'Needles' might previously have been written about heroin, but is actually an account of her (successful) IVF treatment.

She's moved from 'Typical Girl' to everyday mother. Another song is entitled 'Life's too Short to be Shy'. Viv Albertine completely embodies this sentiment. Good on her.

Siouxsie Sioux has been absent from the stage for the past five years or so and it is a coup for Yoko that she makes her return with a couple of shows here on the Southbank.

The set design is striking- a wall of huge metal blinds and bright light beams that creates an antiseptic, hospital atmosphere. When Siouxsie appears there is an audible gasp followed by wild cheers.

From my lofty perch up in a balcony I can see a heaving rush of bodies crashing over the seats below, forming a pyramid of devotion as the fans pile on top of each other at the foot of the stage. It's exactly like this striking image from World War Z.

Siouxsie is dressed in a skin tight white latex gown, her hair hanging long and black and straight. It's an image directly referencing Japanese horror. Gone is the Victorian lace or coloured scarves of previous incarnations - this version of Siouxsie is dominant and cruel and not in the mood for softness or subtlety.

She starts with 'Happy House'. Her band is brutally loud and battering. For the rest of the night they will hammer us into submission. Siouxsie's voice is perhaps a note lower than previously and there are occasional signs that she can't quite control her breath in way that she used to, although this becomes less noticeable once she warms up.

Siouxsie is a formidable presence. She strides around, high kicking like a Russian soldier or else twirling and shimmering like a belly dancer, her arms weaving mystical patterns in the air.

She rips off the robe to reveal a clinging white latex cat-suit. It's a costume that only the very bravest would even attempt to wear, let alone carry off as triumphantly as this.

The crowd are in a febrile frenzy and Siouxsie playfully growls at them for thrusting gifts and flowers towards her during one of the relatively quieter numbers. They love her for it and they love the music – tonight’s set is very heavy on tracks from the Banshees’ third album ‘Kaleidoscope’.

The second half of the show starts with 'Israel' and the roof pretty much comes off the building. This is followed by a crunching version of 'Arabian Knights' which Siouxsie admits herself is demanding to perform.

It's a devastating, deafening show and an uncompromising performance. As the band leaves following an industrial 'Spellbound' my senses are spinning and my ears are ringing like gongs.

A literally breathtaking show. 

The Besnard Lakes and Sweet Jane at The Garage - 28 May 2013

Besnard Lakes pic by Patrick Kelly

It's probably more than two years since I was last here in the Garage. Initially at least, I am surprised at how sparse the crowd is. However, those who decide to come and give time to the support band are amply rewarded.

What immediately strikes me about Sweet Jane is that I'm unused to watching bands that play anything like a version of traditional 'classic' rock.  Sweet Jane are a well set up five piece from Dublin who evoke the song craft of late period R.E.M. or even Neil Young. This is melodic guitar-led Americana done really well.

Singer/guitarist Danda Paxton has a very pleasing voice and an easy manner. His mighty moustache is a thing of beauty too.

I like Sweet Jane a lot. I enjoy their harmonies and appreciate that they can incorporate guitar solos into their music without derailing their songs.

I have recently been listening again to "Until in Excess, Imperceptible UFO", the latest album from headliners The Besnard Lakes. It is an album of epic vastness and wonder, if a bit low on actual tunes. It will be interesting to see how the band approaches these songs in the live setting.

The immediate answer seems to be an overreliance on the powers of dry ice to convey mystery.

Singer Jace Lacek can occasionally be glimpsed through the fog, either wringing the neck of his guitar or coaxing sounds from a tall keyboard set up. He sings in a falsetto, his voice more a part of the grand sweep of the music than a distinct and separate thing.

When a more traditional voice is required to deliver a song, it is provided by Olga the bassist.

It is ludicrously hot in the venue and the band suffer along with the crowd, often stopping between tracks to mop themselves with towels.

The heat and the dry ice are distancing and damaging, much of the set passing by in a literal blur in which nothing can be distinguished. It makes for an at times dull and uninvolving show.

And yet. For the encore Jace leads the band through a rendition of 'Happy Birthday' for Olga and a friend dressed as Fidel Castro presents her with champagne and a cake. It is a silly, human moment.

This rejuvenates the band. The dry ice mostly clears and we see a cheerful, sweaty group of musicians enjoying themselves whilst making epic music. It's a fine end to the evening and goes a long way towards sending me home a lot happier than I would otherwise have been.

Not a great night, but decent support and a strong finish. I'm not a fan of the Garage though - I've been in saunas that were less oppressive.

Drop Out Venus, Skinny Girl Diet, Ben Dodson at Sebright Arms - 22 May 2013

Skinny Girl Diet (what a picture!)

The Sebright Arms is famously hidden away down a side street and rather hard to find. As I walk along the road to the venue I find Skinny Girl Diet wandering the wrong way along the pavement. They are laden down with their gear and am pleased to point them in the right direction. I'll catch up with them later this evening.

Some hours later, I squeeze into the tiny space beneath the pub and find Ben Dodson already onstage playing a small piano keyboard.

Ben has a lovely deep and sonorous voice that rumbles round the room. He's very tall and almost has to bend over to fit on the stage. He's dressed in black threads and is sporting a hairstyle with a topknot that makes him look like a startled bird of prey.

The first thing that I notice is that he appears to be playing a song that references Drop Out Venus' 'Love + Desire'. The reason for this will become clear later on in evening.

Dodson's set progresses with him playing a guitar. His songs are long and intricate, and often declamatory in style. He's as much preacher as singer.  He ends with a drum tucked under his arm, beating a sparse tattoo and glaring confrontationally into the crowd.

I smile back at him, I like the cut of his jib.

It's over a year since I last saw Skinny Girl Diet and that thudding sound that you can hear is me now beating my head on the desk and going "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" - because tonight this band are stone cold brilliant and I've missed them so many times between then and now.

The three piece are deceptively basic - Amelia on bass seems almost too small for her instrument, teetering on massive shoes and occasionally emitting ear-splitting screams.

Singer and guitarist Delilah has a face of exquisite sadness, her eyes often closed. She is a soul singer in the original sense that the songs that she sings are deeply personal, utterly heartfelt and genuine in sentiment.

Behind the others, drummer Ursula is apparently transported by the music, almost unaware of the others. Her beaming smile lights up the room.

There is not a scintilla of archness or artifice about Skinny Girl Diet. There's a real purity of purpose about them. They rattle and thrash and they make you feel good about yourself and about them and about life itself.

Drop Out Venus are headlining tonight and have entered a new phase in their evolution, a direction which had been hinted at during the Roundhouse Studio show back in February.

The band has expanded to become a four piece and it is Ben Dodson who has been added on keyboards and occasional guitar. He and the rest of the band are now randomly splashed with blue face paint, which is all part of the 'Glitz and Glamour' campaign they are running at the moment.

They start with the new single ' Death is Screaming'. It's a weird beast of disconnected time signatures and lyrics. The band have always described themselves as 'junk jazz' and this is not an idle affectation - their current material is leading them in all sorts of odd directions, often in the same song.

The addition of keyboards is not always a good thing. The band's trademark sound is softened and at times it feels as if there are two competing acts on stage, with the intensity and violence that made the band so startling in the first place being swamped and diluted. A friend whispers to me that "they've sold out" i.e. gone commercial. It's a Dylan Goes Electric moment.

Iva Moscovitch is the same as ever- beautiful, compelling and terrifying all at once. She introduces one new piece with the promise that if "any one of you says a word during this song I will come down there and put you in the fuckin’ hospital!" She means it. No one says a word.

The addition of keyboards is not an unmitigated disaster. New song 'Pain' is a fabulous thing and the first Drop Out Venus song that could be played to a wider audience without a prior health warning.  It shimmers and throbs with a rhythm that flirts with the Gnarls Barkley track 'Crazy'.

When Dodson switches to guitar, things sound different. The lurching, staggering power that the band generates reminds me at times of The Birthday Party and that is never a bad thing.

For the encore, the band comes back and performs the only 'old' song of the night, a typically emotional read through of “I Don’t Know.”

A really enjoyable and fascinating evening. It's the first time that I've seen Drop Out Venus given a genuine run for their money, with Skinny Girl Diet stealing the show.

DOV are clearly still getting to grips with their line up change. But they are never dull, never still, never content, never afraid. They'll be just fine.

Mika Bomb at Dublin Castle - 17 May 2013

Mika Bomb pic by Martin Myers

The backroom of the Dublin Castle is a tiny dark space that has seen more rock history than a busload of geologists.

Tonight, there is a bill of five acts, as there is most days of the week. When bands 'pay their dues' by getting gigs under their belt then places like the Dublin Castle are where they pay them.

By the time that I arrive, the Black Dots are well into their stride. A girl plays guitar and sings, while beside her a guy stands and plinks away at a keyboard. They don't immediately grab you by the lapels, but they are perfectly enjoyable as a prelude to the long night to come.

Next up are Lord Numb, a three piece who are clearly a gig-hardened and experienced outfit. The main singer/guitarist is a really mean axeman. He's one of those players who can make his instrument do anything and tonight it's blistering rock all the way.

Lord Numb soon get the room stomping along to their set which is mostly original songs with the odd well chosen cover version of various punky standards. They finish with a rousing version of Jim Carroll's 'People Who Died' and as this is one of my all time favourite songs, they get two enthusiastic thumbs up from me.

It's becoming almost a cliché of these multi-band bills that somewhere in the evening there will be an appearance from a bunch of lads who are in thrall to the terrace anthems of Kasabian. Tonight is no exception and the exponents are The Beautiful Game.

Musically they are actually perfectly reasonable (as all these bands are) but the relentless swagger and machismo gets a bit wearing after a while. The singer alternates between pumping his fist and exhorting us to get into the mood and rubbing his stomach and chest in a manner that might be better suited to the privacy of his own home. “Your Bones” is a tune, though.

Next comes Rhonda, a soulful, torchy singer from Germany who has the pipes and R & B vibe of this venue's most famous alumnus, Amy Winehouse.

It's the perfect time of the evening for Rhonda - the crowd is happily drunk and in the mood for some serious soul. Her band swings, she emotes and everyone falls into a joyfully lachrymose reverie. Great stuff.

I first saw Mika Bomb back in the late 1990's and they have now reformed for their first series of gigs in more than half a decade. 

Mika Bomb were pioneers of Japanese all girl guitar pop, taking inspiration from Shonen Knife. The line up was always very fluid and we always used to joke that Mika Handa would hang around Heathrow Airport and recruit any passing Japanese girl who came off a plane with a guitar in her luggage.

Tonight it's as though the band have never been away. The guitars still thrash at one hundred mile an hour, the vocals still a succession of high-pitched screams and squeals. The Chipmunks play The Ramones.

Mika Bomb released one of the all time classic pop/punk albums in 'The Fake Fake Sound of Mika Bomb' and a lot of this gets aired tonight. 'Contact Tokyo', 'Hey Man' and ‘Heart Attack’ come blasting past and we all go nuts.

A brilliant show and a really enjoyable evening. I derive pleasure from every single act tonight (to varying degrees).

The Dublin Castle is a Camden institution - treasure it.