August 2010
2 posts
1 tag
Apologies (I have some)
What with spending over 10 hours a week travelling to work and back I don’t get much time to sit down at the computer and write about buzz bands anymore. In this time I did however discover that I could write blogs on my phone, plug it into the computer and copy and paste them across. Last weekend my phone went all ADHD on me and switched on and off and then made everything Russian. When I...
art is hard records: Tracklisting & Artwork... →
It’s been a long time coming, but finally we have some news about our first release - Brink of The Clouds. A Compilation featuring the South West’s nine best (our favourite) alternative/indie/lo-fi bands. This release serves as a blueprint for where we hope to head in the coming months and years….
July 2010
5 posts
4 tags
Teenage super party
This weekend marks the third ever 1234 festival and for £12.34 of my hard earned cash i get to see the likes of Vivian Girls, Wavves, Fucked Up, Dum Dum Girls, Veronica Falls, Rolo Tomassi, We Have Band and These New Puritans. Now i don’t know about you but this is possibly the closest to getting something for nothing you will ever get. There must be some sort of catch…maybe...
2 tags
Live at Dead Indie Student Night
“Are you guys having fun….” hollers Hot Club De Paris front man Paul Rafferty during ‘Fuck You The Truth’. The recorded version contains a resounding call of boo’s and no’s and the reaction from the majority of the audience tonight may not be quite as dramatic but it’s certainly in the same vein.
Playing a smattering of material from both albums...
1 tag
Celebrate this place
If there’s one thing i really dislike, it’s what i’d call a product band. These type of bands really just seem to be marketed at a certain type of consumer and have a very defined purpose. With the band in question it seemed like they were specifically aimed at the Los Campesinos fans looking to get a little bit alt. It was this and the fact I had lumped them in with...
2 tags
We have 15 minutes to discuss
Only 3 beardy Huey Lewis fans from Norwich would do something as strange as write a song catchy enough to be everywhere; and then name it something as ‘ofcom on speed-dial’ unfriendly as ‘Big Fucker’. These cheeky chaps are called Men (not to be confused with the LA version).
They’re one of those bands that seem so nice you almost want them to do a Rollins’...
3 tags
We'll just try to love again
So our competition close date came and went, and everything was all going swimmingly until in some strange turn of events Twitter deleted all the posts, making the whole competition a bit of a joke really. Finally managed to find some spare time in the very strange situation which is the ‘9 to 5 week’; so thought I would write a little blog post.
If there was an award for most under...
June 2010
6 posts
3 tags
Competition: win a signed Bright Eyes 7"
We like to think we’re fairly nice guys here at sbm so as a result of reaching 46,000 hits we’re launching a little competition to reward you for your readership. (Let’s just pretend 46,000 is some kind of milestone!) Up for grabs is a signed 7” of the Bright Eyes single ‘Four Winds’ - as pictured below. To get your hands on this great little prize is...
3 tags
Imagine yourself away from me
It’s seems weird that we first wrote about Teeth just just over a year ago now and we don’t often cover artists again without any due reason. Well let me tell you now this is a completely valid reason for Teeth have just made what in my opinion, is the song of the year thus far.
I’ve had the song ‘See Spaces v.1’ for quite a while now and appreciated it for what it...
3 tags
sharing notes
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what the future holds for music as a tangible product. It won’t be long till CD’s become obselete and what then…? One of the more interesting ideas I’ve came across recently was the band Breton putting out their debut release - ‘Sharing Notes EP’ as a CD incased in a circuit board which can also double up as a...
3 tags
waking up in tangles
The third album theme is continuing this week with a look at an excellent new Johnny Foreigner track. Despite loving their debut EP & album, I haven’t ever really managed to rekindle the love I felt for JoFo during the summer of 2008. I’m not sure what it was about Grace & The Bigger Pictures; it could’ve just been the lyrics weren’t as engaging or maybe I was...
Probably a stupid decision
but me and my friend Rich have decided to start a record label. You can see what we’re all about/check out our site/follow here
thanks.
3 tags
King of the beach
This time last year support for Nathan Williams noise pop project - Wavves was rapidly dwindling. If it wasn’t onstage tantrums or sacking drummers it was broken arms and cancelled gigs - therefore if he was going to make any sort of comeback it was going to have to be pretty special. Luckily it appears to be exactly that.
As well as announcing the title and due date of his next album...
May 2010
3 posts
2 tags
bleary eyed
You know those bits of Los Campesinos! songs where it gets really NOISY and Gareth starts SHOUTING and you want to enjoy it, but at the same time you’re cringing a little as you remember “It Started With a Mixx” and 8 twenty-somethings with too-cool haircuts jumping around the stage….We Came Out Like Tigers sound a bit like this but without all the cringing. They take...
2 tags
Whenusleep
That old saying ‘a picture speaks a thousand words’ is sometimes almost true. Salem make ghostly, dark electronic pop in the vein of Telepathe. They’re apparently massively influenced by dubstep (bit of a cop out thing to say these days) but definitely in a good way i.e not like these guys. They give me this strange feeling that if members of Velvet Underground were born in...
3 tags
The Shuffle #7 - Joysticks
The Shuffle is the part where we get bands we’re currently loving, to talk about some of the music they’re currently loving. Which obviously is an awesome idea for a feature.
I always wonder what it must be like to be in a band in Australia, with such a big island and such a small population it must be hard to get anywhere. Even if you do tour, everybody would be too busy having barbies on the...
April 2010
5 posts
2 tags
I see the mountaintops
One of the things I really hate about ‘being a blogger’ is the fact that anytime I have a lot of other stuff to do, be it job interviews, revision or just life. The blog gets neglected, and the longer I leave it the harder it becomes to get back on here and post an update. However here I am for another couple of weeks of randomly interspersed posts, before disappearing again for...
1 tag
tell me what it look like tell me what it is
WU LYF (World Unite - Lucifer Youth Foundation) - are something of a 10 headed myth. In this age of internet and communication it seems increasingly harder for bands to retain any real sense of mystique; WU LYF however, seem to be doing a fairly good job. Anything people really seem to know about them, is that they’re from Manchester, show traits similar to that of a cult and are creating...
2 tags
Offset announce first wave of artists
In 2008 Offset festival had Gang of Four headlining, and I was all set to go but then found out it clashed with starting at university. 2009 saw Offset sporting the strongest line-up of the festival season and it seemed as though they’d almost picked artists straight from my last.fm, the only hurdle this time was friends dropping out on me. The first wave of this years acts was announced...
2 tags
We just like to drink, skate and eat pizza...
…and to be honest we’ve been doing that all day, so I don’t give a fuck.” This introduction gives you a fairly good idea of what to expect from Cerebral Ballzy. Brash hardcore Skate-punk in the style of Minor Threat/The Germs. The UK cassette label Tape Alarm are bringing out a live cassette of a set in Toronto last year that is already making me want to dig out my...
2 tags
quiet little place somewhere new
I seem to get hundreds of promo emails that I never really pay attention to and then every now and then, there’s a gem and you feel eternally grateful that some plucky manager went to the effort of cc’ing you in.
It was by these means that I received an album by a band named Sir Yes Sir. Who remembers Favours For Sailors? I don’t know about anyone else, but I was pretty angry...
March 2010
6 posts
3 tags
I think I lose myself
Although it’s nice to be back in Weymouth for the holidays, I do miss being able to listen to so much music as it’s a lot of trouble bringing my computer back. If I had a brief search in my iTunes library I’m pretty sure that I’ve probably had Beach Fossils in there since sometime since July 2009, downloaded aimlessly from some distant ‘Forkcast’. As is always...
1 tag
They keep telling me it's cold outside
Sorry for the lack of new music recently, had some pretty big job interviews which I expect I will definitely end up boasting about if they actually come through. The band who’s really caught my attention recently are The Blanche Hudson Weekend. Despite having a promo picture that couldn’t be more naff if it was a depicting a puddle of piss; their fuzzy, shoegaze pop songs were the...
1 tag
Pleased to meet you I'm so sad
I was extremely alarmed when I noticed A Grave With No Name had recently played a free gig in my almost hometown of Bournemouth. For one it was annoying to miss it when I had in fact been thinking of coming back from Uni for the weekend but then there was also the fact that as they were over from America; it was an opportuinity that really shouldn’t have been missed.
Turns out A Grave...
1 tag
I don't want nobody else
Sometimes as a music blogger the time comes to put your head on the block and take a punt and write about a band you’re not too sure about. It all starts off with the name - ‘Spaghetti Anywhere’ not exactly a band name to inspire hope and then there’s the fact they seem to musically pedal a line somewhere between Belle & Sebastian and The View. Despite all this...
2 tags
I took my lucky break and I broke it in two
Not through any form of elitism or anything like that but we tend to write about new artists on SBM. However through a lack of inspiration and the need to share; today I’m writing about Karen O. Having not been a massive fan of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s latest album, it was exciting to discover she’d be soundtracking last years massively anticipated ‘Where The Wild Things...
1 tag
Safe At Home
If you can imagine the sound of Kings Of Leon with their ego’s knocked down a peg or two fronted by the Vaselines you’d probably be pretty close to Eternal Summers. It might just be the name but this duo from Virginia really do sound like they should be soundtracking sunny afternoons of days where you woke up far too early and you know there’s still another 5 good hours of...
February 2010
4 posts
2 tags
The Shuffle #6 - Spectrals
The Shuffle is the part where we get bands we’re currently loving, to talk about some of the music they’re currently loving. Which obviously is an awesome idea for a feature.
It’d be hard for pretty much any plaid shirt donned teenager to not be just a little envious of 20 year old Yorkshire-man Louis Jones. Having recently dropped out of uni, he’s “pushing his luck” to...
1 tag
at least I have a heart
The unconventional pop song; not something that’s always done well, but if mastered can yield great results. It seems as though Lonely Galaxy (a 17 year old from London) could be somewhat of a Bob Dylan for the bedroom generation. ‘Have a Heart’ is 7 minutes of aching honesty which builds over waves of fuzz and guitar riffs that recall Real Estate and Girls. With a 10” on...
1 tag
Time is catching up with me
run,WALK! have a silly name but sensible music. Flitting mid-song between sounding like Lightning Bolt, Shapes and label mates Throats; run,WALK! make for nothing short of an enthralling listen as blistering drums clatter over catchy heavily distorted chord sequences.
With a mini album due on the iconic Holy Roar label later next month it will be interesting to see if run,WALK! can make the...
1 tag
The Colours Blend
Dazzle camouflage was a camouflage paint scheme used on ships extensively throughout World War I. It is credited to artist Norman Wilkinson and consists of a complex pattern of geometric shapes in contrasting colours, interrupting and intersecting each other.
Funnily enough this would be a pretty good way to describe Dazzle Ships the band. ‘The Colours Blend’ sounds effortlessly...
January 2010
4 posts
5 tags
the monday mix #1
Just a quick one because I’m lazy and coursework/placement applications are making me feel like im being drowned in a fishtank of anxiety. Three great remixes that offer a great take on the original.
MP3: The XX - Islands (Nosaj Thing Remix).mp3 MP3: These New Puritans - We Want War (SBTRKT Remix).mp3 MP3: We Have Band - You Came Out (Stereogamous Bathhouse Version).mp3
1 tag
they say that feeling never ends
It’s no surprise that come January acts seem to shoot from absolutely no-where, to a situation where blogs are scrambling to be the first to give them a mention. It appears as though this is the case with Yuck. They’ve produced two demos, both completely excellent, both completely different. “Georgia” is a jangly lo-fi future classic that bears more than a passing...
1 tag
Year's not long
Like a beautiful collision of post-punk and lo-fi grunge Male Bonding really made big steps in 09. From being just a band with a silly name, they’ve become one of Sub Pop’s most discussed signings, along the wat releasing split 7”s with just about everyone. (i.e. your neighbour, your uncle, your neighbours dog)
“But it’s basically just noisy repetitive lo-fi”...
6 tags
just incase you were interested
here’s some lists detailing my albums of the year with links to related SBM posts. From the top. 20. Nosferatu D2 - We’ll Walk Around This City With Our Headphones On To Block Out The Noise 19. The Wave Pictures - If You Leave It Alone 18. Slow Club - Yeah So 17. Japandroids - Post Nothing 16. Noah and The Whale - First Days Of Spring 15. Brand New - Daisy 14. Johnny Foreigner - Grace...
December 2009
2 posts
1 tag
you made the city your own
It’s always nice to receive post, particularly when it’s a CD from a band you’re actually interested in. I originally discovered Cycling Season whilst looking through some of the tour dates Sky Larkin were playing. Cycling Season were the local support act for the Exeter leg of the tour, a short but epic train journey from my termtime hometown Plymouth. I always seem to pledge...
1 tag
You and me, we're just crazy
It seems as though Best Coast have pretty much been the staple of my music listening the past couple of months. No doubt helped by the fact she’s constantly throwing new releases/demos out to an ever-swelling group of fans/admirers.
Latest release ‘When I’m With You’ on Black Iris is the first of her tracks to include a live drummer and this addition is all for the...
November 2009
2 posts
I breathe out, you breathe in
It’s been about 2 weeks now since Bloc Party stopped off in Plymouth as part of their “Bloctober” extravaganza. As well as being a great gig it served to remind me just how much of a monumental band Bloc Party are. They define my generation a lot more than Radiohead or Arctic Monkeys do, and three consistently great albums prove this.
Another thing I always seem to forget is...
5 tags
The Shuffle #5 - Teen Sheikhs
The Shuffle is the part where we get bands we’re currently loving, to talk about some of the music they’re currently loving. Which obviously is an awesome idea for a feature.
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Although the last post was titled ‘a million days without the internet’ to be completely honest it ended up being a lot closer to ’ a week and a half without the internet’...
September 2009
3 posts
a million days without the internet
I’ve moved house, haven’t had internet for a while and won’t be getting it for a little longer. Postal address for demos and the like has moved, email is separatedbymotorways@gmail.com for more details.
1 tag
I keep waking up by mistake
Oh hello 300th lofi punk band to emerge from somewhere in London this year, are you as fun as all the rest? You are? Rad! This is Thee Fair Ohs and are basically “like Paul Simon but…you know…punk” you can tell they’re punk because one of them has a beard and tattoos and his name is Matt Flag…GET IT?
My Mum loves a bit of Paul Simon, I’m not sure how...
1 tag
True Swamp Neglect - Umbrella Weather
It’s fucking raining…again. I am enjoying my 5th night off in about 5 weeks…sure, working everyday has netted me a couple of hundred pounds but I feel mentally obliterated. Writing anything resembling a blog post has been the last thing on my mind. But it’s a rainy day and here’s a band with an extremely relevant song. They’re called True Swamp Neglect and...
August 2009
4 posts
1 tag
Gentle Friendly give us something to get excited...
Earlier on this week Gentle Friendly gave away two songs from their forthcoming album “Ride Slow”, although a much less raucous affair than most cuts on their Night Tape EP, there is no mistaking that it’s still them. All the Gentle Friendly trademarks are there; weird looped sounds, drums building up into crescendo’s and strange distorted background noises. ‘RIP...
3 tags
The Shuffle #4 Crocodiles
The Shuffle is the part where we get bands we’re currently loving, to talk about some of the music they’re currently loving. Which obviously is an awesome idea for a feature.
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After months of being a work-shy student I finally decided to bite the bullet this summer and get a job waitering/tending a bar in a busy pub right next to a holiday park. Every...
we bought a domain
You can now access the site through www.separatedbymotorways.co.uk
1 tag
Kurtz - +1 EP Review
Kurtz are a two piece noise attack, think Girrafes? Girrafes!/That Fucking Tank/Death From Above/Lightning bolt type sounds. The 6 tracks contained on this, their debut EP are every bit as primitive and tribal as their name suggests but they also find time to switch to melodies and rhythms a lot more intricate and sparse. This switch makes for a an EP that manages to maintain interest and...
July 2009
2 posts
4 tags
procrastination sucks; great new releases don't!
I feel like I’ve tried writing this post well over a dozen times, but for whatever reason I’ve just been too lazy and rubbish. However I felt it was probably about time I did something worthwhile with my days instead of eating a worryingly high amount of calories, lieing in bed and spending way too many hours on miniclip; like it’s the summer of 2004 all over again. I could...
1 tag
Video round up: June
It seems like 50% of our posts are just turning into video round ups but oh well, been in Portugal and Kent for about the last 2 weeks, quite different places but both fun! Back in Weymouth now and starting to get quite serious with band practices, which is fun, we’ve recorded 2 living room demos and we are playing our first gig on the 13th. If you enjoyed this shameless plugging, more...
June 2009
4 posts
2 tags
New Noise 3# - Teeth!!!
It would be ignorant to deny there is some kind of movement going on in London at the moment and it would be stupid to call it a scene, for it is more of a collective of artists, making a similar lo-fi sound with similar lo-fi aesthetics. One of these such bands is Teeth!!! in case you were wondering I’m not really excited, that is sadly how they wish their name to be punctuated. Teeth!!!...
2 tags
Review: Jam On Bread & Matt Riviere Split EP
Recently I feel this blog has been lacking in the way of posts about completely new and exciting music, so over the next couple of weeks you should be seeing a healthy amount of reviews about releases I’m pretty sure you never would’ve heard about but will be satisfyingly smug you did. To kick it off we’ve got a review of the split tour EP between the lo-fi pop of ukulele...