The News Review:
- Rapper Dizzee Rascal bringing ‘grime’ to US
- Killeur Calculateur: Kuala Lumpur’s best kept indie secret
- 36 Hours in Liverpool England
- Big Weekend: Best of the new bands
- … WAS LOST: Albums hijacked the focus from what should be…
- Massive Attack talk to Miranda Sawyer | Music | The Observer
- Slicing and dicing that ol’ audience
Rapper Dizzee Rascal bringing ‘grime’ to US
San Francisco Chronicle – May 11, 2008
I like to think that there’s hope. Like Tupac did for me. ” Rascal acknowledges the parallels between grime and punk music – “It’s definitely the same kind of teenage angst” he says. English politicians have blamed the rebellious outspoken genre for glorifying violence and Rascal’s quote “I’m a problem for Tony Blair” became notorious. Although he downplays the remark – “I was just being cheeky when I said that” he says – he feels rap makes a convenient scapegoat in England just as it does in America: “It’s just the same s-. While influenced by American rap Rascal comes from a part of the black experience that is undeniably British. “I don’t think America has come to grips with the fact that there’s black people in England” he says.
Killeur Calculateur: Kuala Lumpur’s best kept indie secret
Jakarta Post – May 11, 2008
This will be the last time I’ll be your guide to the netherworld of music but before shaking hands and shedding tears enjoy the ride! Let’s stage dive right into this week’s Main Stage! MAIN STAGE: This week I’m going to put the spotlight on one of the coolest bands around in the Southeast Asian indie music scene. Let me introduce y’all to Malaysia’s Killeur Calculateur. During their short Indonesian tour last April I managed to catch them live twice even and I also eagerly grabbed their limited edition tour CD. From then on I have become a committed fan of theirs and I bet you’ll become one too! Hailing from downtown Kuala Lumpur Killeur Calculateur (KC) started when Smek and his three comrades-in-amps Piut Rafiq and Zamir who were in numerous bands prior to KC (Utarid and Ellisabelle Tears) decided that they wanted to jump-start another band. A full throttle emotive hardcore blast with a hard-hitting yet groovy screamo post-punk sound… And the answers lie in numbers. " They contemplated on this numerical quest and came up with the name Killeur Calculateur. Calculated or not believe me they do indeed kill! Inspired by angular post-punk bands such as Melbourne’s My Disco New York’s Off Minor and Washington D. C’s one and only Fugazi they have become a band that isn’t dwarfed by its origin. It would be wrong to assume that they are merely Southeast Asian copycats of Fugazi because KC does possess its own flavor. Musically KC combine jazzy bass guitar lines and odd-time drums signatures while letting both sharp trebly guitars do the talking. Not being your basic macho brotherhood type of muscle-core KC manages to deliver songs that have integrity and soul.
36 Hours in Liverpool England
New York Times – May 11, 2008
And the city’s legendary. Just listen to the recent crop of breakthrough bands like the Wombats the Zutons and the Coral… com) a musty club in the heart of the area has become a teeth-cutter for the breakthrough acts of the last few years: the retro-rock of the Coral the soul-soaked Zutons and current band du jour the pop-punk trio known as the Wombats. The sound system is superb the dance floor frantic and the stage intimate raised by barely a foot so fans are mere inches from the music. Midnight4) ROCK LEGACYPaul Du Noyer’s book “Liverpool: Wondrous Place” offers a seminal account of the city’s music legacy.
Big Weekend: Best of the new bands
BBC News – May 11, 2008
Back at their dressing room and completely out of the blue teenage singer Hayley Williams admitted she was most excited to see pop pixie Robyn. She said: “I was psyched ’cause I met Robyn. She’s just awesome. “She came out with a record when I was really young and I saw her on this show on Nickelodeon and I love her.
… WAS LOST: Albums hijacked the focus from what should be…
London Free Press – May 11, 2008
” And popular was the point. So don’t be a music snob. Rather than a limiting influence the pop-song format expanded horizons through AM radio. Black kids heard the Beatles. White kids heard Motown… But ironically most of what we cherish from that era is the stuff that didn’t abandon the song format. We still would far rather listen to the greatest hits of the Guess Who or Creedence Clearwater Revival than any of those double-album six-songs-in-total elephants that earned contemporary critical acclaim. In fact if you look at the history of music in the past 100 years the album-oriented rock era now seems like a bloated blip doesn’t it? And while some may argue that the bloated era was needed because it led to the much-welcome punk rejuvenation that’s like saying “I sure am glad I got that horrific rash because it reminded me how great it is not to have a rash. The song is the thing folks. As any editor will tell you it’s way harder to write short than to write long. Same thing with music. Neil Young had it right: “Hey hey my my rock AND ROLL will never die.
Massive Attack talk to Miranda Sawyer | Music | The Observer
Guardian Unlimited – May 11, 2008
Photograph: Harry Boden Grant and D of Massive Attack always look down in photographs – literally and in mood. It’s rare to see a snap of them doing anything but giving it glum. This suits their music which is intense rhythm-driven atmospheric modern – but it’s a shame because they’re upbeat company even while they’re having their picture taken a process musicians traditionally enjoy as much as high tea with the taxman. ‘Have you tried one of these?’ grins D short for 3D or Delge real name Robert Del Naja. ‘Frozen Jaffa Cakes. Just the normal ones but you put them in the freezer they’re unbelievable. They taste completely different! The orange really snaps… ‘ They both crack up. But we’re not here to talk about racist stereotyping for kids Massive Attack are this year’s curators for the Southbank’s Meltdown festival and they’ve come up with a brilliant selection of artists: Grace Jones George Clinton Stiff Little Fingers Elbow Gong Tunng Gang of Four Yellow Magic Orchestra Terry Callier the Shortwave Set Horace Andy plus newer acts like Fleet Foxes George Pringle and Aloe Blacc. The artists they’ve chosen illustrate their musical obsessions: hip hop punk funk reggae new wave electronica – sounds that weave throughout Massive’s dark musical universe. ‘The idea was to try to encapsulate what we always did as a sound system’ says D ‘but put it on as an event. ‘ Characteristically D and Grant were a bit disappointed that Meltdown doesn’t work like an outdoor festival; they thought that the musicians would be able to wander between venues and mix things up. Still they’re very excited: all that music all that partying. ‘Eleven days’ says Grant.
Slicing and dicing that ol’ audience
Mail Tribune – May 11, 2008
Before that there was an audience for only 40 people at a time. Consider the satellite music that comes with our TV package. There are like 900 stations not just splinters but splinters of splinters. In rock alone there’s early classic later classic deeper classic ’50s ’60s album jam bands hard pure hard ’80s hair alternative classic alternative buzzsaw grunge ’90s alt garage underground college metal new punk vintage punk and more. There are channels devoted to a single artist: the Dead the Stones Jimmy Buffet Elvis etc. In the future you’ll don a helmet and your music service will sense your mood and program the appropriate 3-D virtual podcasts… Consider the satellite music that comes with our TV package. There are like 900 stations not just splinters but splinters of splinters. In rock alone there’s early classic later classic deeper classic ’50s ’60s album jam bands hard pure hard ’80s hair alternative classic alternative buzzsaw grunge ’90s alt garage underground college metal new punk vintage punk and more. There are channels devoted to a single artist: the Dead the Stones Jimmy Buffet Elvis etc. In the future you’ll don a helmet and your music service will sense your mood and program the appropriate 3-D virtual podcasts. An optional chip will compose whole new genres of music based on your biorhythms and you’ll be the only one in the world listening.