The Ex & Housewives @ Oslo, Hackney

The Ex

19/08/15

It wasn't immediately obvious to The Ex but, apparently, they had played a very different Oslo back in the '80s - and to a very different crowd, as people in the audience were happier sniffing glue back then, according to the band's drummer joking on the mic, rather than dancing, like today. The space on 1 Amhurst Road in Hackney is in 2015 a different story altogether, but The Ex remain very much the same band in the best of ways: Alert, both musically and politically, authentic, agile. Covering the range from blazing punk rock to traveling jazz (though the newest version of the band has dismissed the sax), the Dutch foursome has been challenging norms continuously since the tail-end of the '70s. Without a doubt, and once again, they're refreshing to listen to, and a joy to watch.

All the better if they have a band like Housewives opening for them, South London experimentalists bringing '80s no wave to today's hipster Hackney. Between New York's schizophrenic DNA and San Francisco's more recent punk rockers Erase Errata, the band have killer guitars stopping and starting on a whim, while their double-drum stunts take noise on a new level, floating between synchronicity and disarray.
Don't fight it - just take a dive in.

                                                                                      Housewives - video snippet

Gnod & Hey Colossus @ Corsica Studios

Hey Colossus

Brutal. Black. Gold 

24/07/15

Sonic expectations were overturned at the joint gig of underground masters of visceral noise Gnod & Hey Colossus at Elephant & Castle's Corsica Studios.

Hey Colossus came first to attack with varied, layered noisescapes that often faded into slow-building riffs, heavy in psychedelic irony - the wandering projections at the back only enhanced this heady fusion. Their new album Black & Gold is a mighty piece of work on more than one level - smart, sexy, mature without sacrificing an inch of their menacing credentials.

Gnod

Having a tough act to follow, Gnod pretty much remained on a flat heavy rock plane throughout their set. Despite their interesting dynamics, the uniform whole came to stark contrast with Hey Colossus's unpredictable rides. Not bad by any means, just rather unfortunate....

Spot-on: Milhoes de Festa 2015 put together a tell-all video set  to the title track from Black & Gold

The Vinyl Factory @ The Barbican

 As Doug Aitken's multi-disciplinary 30-day happening Station to Station is drawing to a close, it's your last chance to become familiar with the inner workings of The Vinyl Factory Pressing Unit (until 26/7, 12-6 pm).

We visited the installation at the Silk Street entrance of the Barbican, where we started firing an eager employee with non-stop questions, freely rubbing the black capsules in our hands. He then placed them in the above 3-part unit and, through an elaborate process I can't pretend to remember in detail, he created copies through the master. The limited edition records pressed before your very eyes will later be sold at the Art Gallery's shop. They're unique, but they ain't come cheap:)...

Album Review / K on Top - Alekos Vretos

The Wandering Oud Takes the Lead

Greek oudist, pianist and composer Alekos Vretos took some time to deliver “K on Top”, the follow-up to his solo debut “Mergin’”, in a typical modern tale of recording in times of financial crisis. But when he and his ensemble finally got the chance to jam, they did it with plenty of “meraki”, a Greek word that fairly sums up the zeal and enthusiasm of everyone involved. The material includes three original compositions, a Lebanese traditional and covers of well-respected players in the world-jazz game, namely Gilad Atzmon, Anouar Brahem and Ara Dinkjian of Night Ark, lending their rhythms to the musician’s globe-trotting imagination and arrangements.

Gracefully jazzy and soothing, opener “K on Top of the Piano” evokes a time when the composer used to lullaby his son resting by the piano keys, with Brahem’s “Parfum de Gitane” and Vretos’ own spirited “Idea” soon providing a powerful awakening. The ensemble constantly seeks greener rhythmical pastures with agile piano improvisations and a variety of percussion (bendir, darbuka, daouli, riq), but the confident oud remains the leader throughout, a nomad exploring Mediterranean, Arabic and Middle-Eastern cultures. Another Vretos original, “Cactus” clocks in at over 17 minutes, wrapping up the journey with a dynamic improv that eloquently discloses the quintet’s live potential.

K on Top CD review by Danai Molocha.

Friends - Treading the Streets of Brooklyn

It took me a while to catch up, but here's a cool video by the band Friends, casually giving lessons in lyrics and beat, street-chic and modern loving.