ultCult

Edith Bowman is a fan. Gareth Los Campesinos! is a fan. Dan 4 or 5 Magicians is a fan. And I think I'm now a fan of Yorkshire quartet ultCult.

Joining fellow Northerners Wild Beasts on a quest for mutated pop brilliance, ultCult (ultimateculture?) are a bizarre proposition. Their lo-fi Patrick Wolf meets Bjork stylings have an oddly hypnotic effect. Although probably what weirds me out most is that I checked out their MySpace then had a look in my inbox, where I discovered an email regarding the band. Co-incidence? Maybe. I had been driven to action by Dan from Brighton's popular beat combo 4 Or 5 Magicians mentioning the band on DrownedInSound.com - this is what he had to say:

"I'm sure it's some kind of conspiracy, 16 year olds can't be this good!My band when I was 16 was pretty good, but we basically just sounded like Mansun. This is actually really really clever, original stuff. Vaguely Stereolab / Electrelane-esque."

He has a point and mainly makes me think that I wasted my youth. But following a little digging (i.e a google search), I discovered that a certain Gareth from popular beat combo Los Campesinos! was also a fan and here's him gushing over ultCult on DrownedInSound back in January:

"UltCult are simply the best new band (new as in teenagers forming a band and recording songs) i've heard in ages. They sound like Linda Steelyard or Sue Tompkins fronting something like Stereolab. Sometimes the singers delivery reminds me of BARR, though they don't sound like BARR. They're amazing, I love them."

In fact, Gareth loved them so much, he asked them to support LC! on the Sheffield date of their tour in February. That was ultCult's fourth gig, and they'll be supporting Gareth et al in a couple of weeks in Bradford too. Alright for some eh?

I love traditional pop songs but there is a mysticism and unpredictability to ultCult that I haven't heard in a band since Late Of The Pier in 2006. And look how far they've come. Like Late Of The Pier, I haven't a bloody clue what ultCult's lyrics are about. I doubt that will hinder them.

In fact, a song like 'Tickitaboo' with its haunting (Patrick Wolf) Lycanthropy vibe would probably be eaten up by blogs if an established artist, such as Mr Wolf, put it out as a demo. As it is, it's probably my favourite from a capitivating bunch of songs, although I suspect many will look at 'Five Bedrooms And Two Lounges' (being touted as a possible single) and 'Sapphire Memories' as their most enjoyable sprinkles of ultCult magic. Others will look at them in disgust - ultCult are certainly an acquired taste.

In summary, take one glockenspiel, violin, keyboard, organ, accordian and guitar, add some unhinged vocals and you have one of the most original, dynamic, and fascinating bands to have emerged in the last few months.

ultCult - Tickitaboo [Yourfilehost download]//[Sendspace mirror]
ultCult - Five Bedrooms And Two Lounges [Yourfilehost]//[Sendspace]

They are playing a handful of live dates soon in Barnsley, London and Bradford. For those details and an opportunity to feast your ears on some more tracks, head over to their MySpace [link]

Radiohead Live On BBC

For some reason or another, the BBC have been having a recent lovefest with Radiohead. Likewise, this post will signify possibly their first appearance on my blog. I don't think I've ever even mentioned them in passing - I thought the whole 'In Rainbows' download then pay what you want was clever but covered by just about every music site going. More recently, a lot of bloggers have been getting excited about the Holy Fuck remix of 'Nude' from the aforementioned album. For more info about remixing Radiohead yourself, head [here].

I suppose I've never felt the need to talk about such an acclaimed and successful band. The ethos of this blog has always been one of championing the underrated and unknown and I'm certain I can't offer anything new in terms of opinion regarding Radiohead! In fact, I never even downloaded 'In Rainbows'. I think Radiohead are fantastic but I guess I was expecting to listen to it via diffusion. Or osmosis. But certainly not active transport. Luckily, waiting for the album to come to me has worked out rather well.



On April 1st, Radiohead played two sets comprising almost entirely of material from the 'In Rainbows' album for BBC Radio 1 and 6Music. This followed the playing of the 'OK Computer' album from 1997 in its entirety, as part of the BBC's "Masterpieces" radio feature. The BBC have even dedicated a whole minisite to Radiohead [link].

BBC 6Music presenter Marc Riley has offered his views of the two sets over at DrownedInSound.com [link]. Here's a live video of 'Faust Arp' from the day:

The BBC in their wisdom and benevolence, have made an mp3 available to download for free from the Radiohead live performances [link], which I've uploaded below.

Radiohead - Videotape (Live At The BBC Radio Theatre, 01.04.08) [Yourfilehost download]

And while I'm here, I might as well put up an absorbing cover of 'Airbag', the opener to 'OK Computer'. This is by Northern Irish band The Jane Bradfords, who've appeared a couple of times on my blog in the past. Their debut LP is out on April 7th, available on iTunes etc as well as physically [here]. The song is also up for download at their MySpace [link], where I recommend you listen to 'Hide From The Cold', formerly #1 in the Qatar alternative radio charts.

The Jane Bradfords - Airbag (Radiohead Cover) [Yourfilehost]

Listen to the Radiohead two performances at the BBC Radio Theatre (April 1st 2008), 'OK Computer' in full and their first BBC session (June 1992) at bbc.co.uk [link].

Buy 'In Rainbows' from play.com for £7.99 [link].

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Also, I recently did my seventh podcast, so pop along for a listen if you like [link]. It features the new Esser single, 65daysofstatic, Frightened Rabbit and many more.

Thos Henley

You also have to beware stuff that appears on April Fool's day. I received an email earlier from a certain Tom Henley, in the guise of a press release for a certain Thos Henley. 2+2=5? Anyway, it included a Leona Lewis cover and no mention of a website or in fact, very much information at all. So I was obviously wary.



Thomas, or Thos, obviously knew what he was doing though. I was compelled to have a little dig about on the interweb for information. Turns out he is the former frontman of cult Southampton(?) band Rival Joustas, contemporaries of the Mystery Jets (who were/are fans of the band). Their sound can be easily compared to that of early Mystery Jets, with a bit of added electronica for good measure.

Thos left the band to go solo and is now doing a very different thing. The man himself likes to call it "folk-psych-pop music on eastern european instruments". Seeing as I don't even know what a balalaika or a bouzouki is, I can go along with that.

Forthcoming single 'Summer On The Thames' is a lovely slice of breezy folk pop, in much the same vein as Noah & The Whale. The real revelation, however, is his cover of 'Bleeding Love', the song with which Leona Lewis is now conquering America. The double tracking of his vocals with the stripped down setup gives the song a poignancy perhaps dampened by the manufactured nature of the original, before breaking in some beats to add texture.

While I'm not sure what's happening with the Joustas (although the implication is that they are continuing), Thos has a promising career ahead of him. If you're missing Jeremy Warmsley, I suggest you divert your attention to Thos for the time being, at least.

Rival Joustas - The Countess Of Hong Kong (Demo) [Yourfilehost download]
Rival Joustas - Clarity (Blamma! Blamma! Clear As Mud Remix) [Yourfilehost]

Both tracks available to download on the RJ MySpace also [link].

Thos Henley - Summer On The Thames [Yourfilehost]
Thos Henley - Bleeding Love (Leona Lewis Cover) [Yourfilehost]

'Bleeding Love' can be downloaded from Thos' MySpace [link], along with some other demos. 'Summer On The Thames' will be disappearing from this page very soon.

Keep Hope Inside Podcast#7

In the spirit of The Raconteurs' new album, I have rush-released a new podcast. Although seven podcasts in a year is hardly profilic, it's been nice to look at the stats and see people have actually listened to them. Or at least downloaded them. Which is the same thing to me. But back to the point, hopefully this latest podcast doesn't sound too shoddy and even if it does, at least there is plenty of great music to overshadow any of my failings. I've also added a line of description per song, just so you have some sort of an idea of what's to come. Maybe it'll get more punters in eh? No, didn't think so.

And just a quick shoutout to a couple of new podcasts that have cropped up and are pretty decent. Firstly, there's Simon's weekly podcasts over at Jarock [link] then we've got Sid from Music Liberation delving into the world of podcasting at Music Liberation [link].

Keep Hope Inside Podcast#7(27mbs, 29.35)
Intro (created with samples from Michael Oster)

1) Frightened Rabbit - The Modern Leper
Mp3 freely downloadable from their [MySpace]
Anthemic Scottish folkpop with mega drum fills. Amazing.

2) Esser - I Love You
[MySpace]//Download mp3 [link]
The 'I Love You' single is out on April 14th
Remember White Town's hit single, 'Your Woman'? This is just as good.

3) John & Jehn - Make Your Mum Be Proud
[MySpace]//Download mp3 [link]
A spattering of Interpol and the Arcade Fire from these wonderful Frenchies.

4) Operahouse - Wrecking Ball
[MySpace]//Download mp3 [link]
Juddering indiepop from these tipped Londoners, with some bonus vocal hooks just for you.

5) Superman Revenge Squad - Idiot Food
[MySpace]//Download mp3 [link]
With thanks to God Is In The TV [link]
This song might not mean anything but it's still compelling.

6) Puzzle - Words & Actions
[MySpace]//Download mp3 [link]
Head nodding, foot tapping lushpop from another fantastic Liverpudlian band.

7) Banjo Or Freakout - Mr No
[MySpace]//Download the mp3 from RCRDLBL.com [link]
Tabla infused dream pop.

8) 65daysofstatic - goodbye 2007
[MySpace]//Download the mp3 [link]
The 'Dance Parties' EP is out from April 7th
Glitchy post-rock? A return to the 65dos of years gone by.

Tracks used with permission or made freely available on the internet by the artist at the time.

DIRECT DOWNLOAD [right click, save as]



Subscribe to podcast feed - http://feeds.feedburner.com/keephopeinsidepodcast
Subscribe in iTunes [link]

Subscribing to the feed means you'll be notified when I do more podcasts in the future. You can do that with podcatchers or through iTunes, as above. You can also do a DIY add to iTunes by going to "Subscribe To Podcast" under the "Advanced" menu and pasting the podcast feed (the podcast feed link above) there.

Thanks very much if you've subscribed already and you can also subscribe to my regular blog feed to get all the regular posts too if you like - http://feeds.feedburner.com/keephopeinside

Cheers for listening and I'd love to hear what you lot think!

New Patrick Wolf demo

So London troubadour Patrick Wolf made a demo from his fourth album available the other day via his MySpace. This coming after last year's apparent threat to quit music altogether (or at least not tour anymore?) followed by a hasty retraction. Or something like that, I got a bit confused. Read about it at Pitch4rk [link].

Although I enjoy his work, I'm no expert so I shall be consulting the wise fans on one of his messageboards for their views of 'Wargames', the new demo [link to forum]. Although can I first say, everytime I see the songtitle, I immediately think of the Matthew Broderick film of the same name. He almost starts a nuclear war via a computer game, watch it. Was Ally Sheedy a fittie? I can't really remember.



tivin thinks: "its Verrrry Lycanthropy innit?"
hex object ponders: "kinda Crystal Castles no?"
popyyyyyyyyy goes one further: "very crystal castles-esk!!!!!! eeeeeeeeeek!! excitement!!!!!!!!!!!"
a basket of kittens loves: "his return to noises"
victoria likes: "how the vocals are not the top of the track"
rain says: "At first I didn't like the beat, but it's growing on me. It sounds like it's from the same place as vulture and blackbird".
mynameisryanstiles believes: "the beat reminds me of stand up tall-esque dizzee rascal. or those 90's r'n'b/pop girl groups".
Marcus gets: "quite into it, and then it ends".
Sarah Motherfucking Records duly notes: "Let's be honest guys, Patrick could fart down a microphone, run over some puppies and homeless orphans and record their dying screams and crunching bones and put it on myspace as a 'demo', and everyone would still go apeshit over it".

Then the thread descends its semi-chaos after lighthouses proclaims: "I think it's a good thing this album being so bleak, shake all the clingers on dancing round their handbags to Magic Position. Don't need those fairweather types". What a lovely person.

Mr Wolf had this to say about the demo:

First, on my music player is an excerpt of a demo of a song called wargames, part of the more political, current affair part of the album It first started on my atari Back in the days when I had an atari str and a a couple of sturdy outboard samplers about eight years ago now rewritten over the last year as a battlecry my own battle against the apathetic technological age I debuted it in full with an amazing gospel choir at the barbican last winter in the plague songs
night with rufus wainwright and imogen heap, I performed as neolithic warrior complete with a bleeding skull for the climax with ondes martenot and full brass band... a personal highlight of last year..

So yeah, I can only really echo the praise given. It is only a demo so understandably raw, hopefully the end product will prove to be excellent, as with much of his other material. Here, see what you think.

Patrick Wolf - Wargames (Demo)[Yourfilehost download]//[Sendspace mirror]

FOALS

I first mentioned Oxford's FOALS, or Foals as I prefer (but definately not The Foals), in my Bands I Want To Namedrop Because They Will Become Big In 2007 feature [link]. Optimistically, I could claim I was about a year off but following the amount of hype which they generated towards late last year and then in the 'big in 2008' predictions (e.g #5 in BBC Sound of 2008, making it onto the NME 2008 New Noise list), they only stumbled into the UK singles charts at #26 with 'Cassius'. Okay, so the album 'Antidotes' has only been released this week but I somewhat doubt it'll be a chart topper.



The appearances on television (Skins, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, Later With Jools Holland and even the Culture Show), combined with a Live Lounge appearance for Jo Whiley's BBC Radio 1 show seem to have little to raise the band's profile. Unfortunately, the hype appears to have raised expectations of the band and they've failed to reach such unfairly high standards.

The band themselves have been critical of the hype and to be fair to them, the album is hardly a dud. Leaving off previous singles 'Hummer' and 'Mathletics' was possibly a mistake but there have been glowing reviews (DrownedInSound, The Times, and err Virgin Media). The general consensus seems to suggest that while the album is good, it's not great and that the early promise may not have been fulfilled. But let me finish with a reasonably silly parallel to Lesley Vainokolo and his newly found career in rugby union - the hype surrounding his emergence was overwhelming yet he hasn't been consistently good. But most importantly, we're all aware of the flashes of brilliance that Mr Volcano is capable of. Foals have given us a glimpse of what they can do, let's hope the next album puts paid to the doubters. And I'm sure their live performances still prove they're a force to be reckoned with.

FOALS - Two Steps Twice (Live At The Astoria) [Yourfilehost download]
FOALS - Hummer (Live At The Astoria) [Yourfilehost download]

Both tracks are available for free at wearefoals.com [link]. You can buy 'Antidotes' through the FOALS online store [link] or download on 7digital.com

And if you hate FOALS, you can even make them sound better by remixing 'Electric Bloom' through last.fm, where you can download the seperate parts for the track [link].

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Just a final reminder that my first ever podcast is being taken down at the end of the month, after a year long reign of terror. You can have a listen to it [here] and even download it if you really want to. Cheers!