In this month’s live action, post punk guitars and foppy hair combine perfectly at Brighton’s Concorde2 with the arrival of The Rakes. May sees new records from ska legends Madness, reinstated Blur guitarist Graham Coxon and Sussex-based pop-rockers The Maccabees. First off, RS talks to Ash drummer Rick McMurray about Kent’s upcoming Hop Farm Festival…

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Having just announced a slot on Kent’s eagerly awaited Hop Farm Festival, Ash are keen to remind the fans and the uninitiated that, in spite of last year’s retirement from album recording, they’re here to stay. Drummer Rick McMurray talks to KUDOS…

QTell us about the state of Ash, there were some rumours you guys had split last year?

Far from it actually, we’ve been secreted away in New York over the last year, working on our new plan to release singles for…ever basically! We’re coming up to release time pretty soon: the first track’s gonna be a free download on our website, it’ll be up there in the next couple of weeks.

QHas the new format freed you up creatively?

Definitely…not having an album and trying to collect the songs together to make a coherent record has been pretty liberating. There was a lot of experimentation in the studio; particularly the new download, which is called Return of White Rabbit…it’s like nothing we’ve ever done before. A lot of people are going to be very

shocked when they hear it. We put out a few white label records to clubs, and the reaction has been ‘oh my God, is this Ash?’

QDo bands need to change their relationship with the record-buying public?

I think it’s been a slow progress moving in this way. The album had its heyday in the late 60s, early 70s. I know when we started, everything seemed to be judged and based on the singles. It was something we tried to avoid, but with most albums you can hear four singles, the rest you can take or leave. Theoretically, it should improve music; bands won’t be able to take it for granted that they have four singles and the rest should be filler. You live or die by your last single; it’s all got to be consistent, strong and quality.

When we were doing albums, they didn’t feel like the place to experiment;

that stuff was stuck on B-sides. Now it’s all in the open…whatever idea you have in the studio, you just follow it wherever it wants to go. If it’s strong enough and interesting enough, it gets out there as a single, if not, it’s ditched. You’re not overthinking things, you’re just running with the song, rather than trying to make it blend in.

QDo you think people will miss Ash being an album band?

Well, I think people are just a bit scared of change at times. When we made the announcement at the Isle of Wight Festival, people said we couldn’t do it, but they’ll get used to it. The test will be when they actually hear it, whether they recognise it as Ash…I think they will though. When a band is excited about something, the audience can’t help but get excited as well.

The KUDOS Music Interview

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QDo you still have a fondness for the old records, even though you’ve abandoned albums?

Any particular albums stand out?

We still stand by all our records; we’ve always put in 100% every time we make them. They’re like a document of where you were in your life at that time, so you can’t help but be close to them. 1977, our first full-length debut is close to our hearts. In fact, I was out drinking copious amounts of vodka with the producer of that record, Owen Morris, who – in a bizarre turn in my life – lives about ten minutes away from me. Not good for the liver, but good for the reminiscing!

QYou’ve always been quite a festival favourite, are they shows you look forward to?

Any festival highlights from the past?

They’re so much fun…you’ve got max an hour, so you ram the set full of hits. It’s a bit of a whirlwind, if you’re into it, you’re playing well and the crowd are into it, it’s one of the best experiences ever. Reading is one that’s very close to our hearts, especially when it was organised by Vince Power, who’s doing The Hop Farm Festival…it’ll be good to hook up with him again. A couple of times we’ve headlined the second stage in the tent, and we’ve been favoured by the gods, by being put up against some appalling bands; I won’t mention any names, but you can look it up! When you’re in the tent, the crowd can barely move, because it’s rammed way beyond capacity, and there’s thousands of people outside trying to get in. That feeling is absolutely amazing...the last show we did was back in September, so we’re eager to get out there and start rockin!

Lily Allen Not Fair

Silly Lily’s stuck in (Kate)Nashville in her latest, a cheeky plea for unselfish bedroom antics. Over an irresistible oompah oompah country-rock beat – complete with banjos and mouth organs – Allen calmly dresses down a lover who ‘never makes me scream’. Sassy & inventive.

Released 11 May

Röyksopp [feat. Robyn] The Girl & The Robot

Robo-human relationships reache a new level of intimacy on this pulsating slab of electro elegance. A Scandinavian love-in between Norway’s favourite ambient adventurers and Sweden’s premier pop princess, this Kylie-esque gem demands radio recognition.

Released 25 May

Gary Go Open Arms

Pounding drums? Check. Bold piano-led rhythm? Check. Heartfelt, non-specific lyrics? Check. Londoner Gary Go has done everything possible to make sure his sound reaches Row ZZ of mega-stadiums the world over. Sadly, it feels about as hollow as the venues he’s pining for.

Released 11 May

Goldhawks Where in the World

Another day, another Arcade Fire-inspired band. To their credit, West-London based Goldhawks throw their whole souls into this pounding anthem attempt, but a beautifully controlled intro too quickly gives way to standard indie guitar fare…nevertheless, ones to watch.

Released 4 May

SINGLE FILE

Ash play The Hop Farm Festival,

Paddock Wood, on 4th July. Look out for

the first of their new single releases on

www.ash-official.com

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Graham Coxon The Spinning Top

Coxon’s solo work has always been a curiosity; a chance for Blur’s eccentric axeman to explore the quirkier side of his musical personality. The Spinning Top is perhaps the least adventurous, but most surprising, of his seven records: its 15 songs mostly comprise gentle lyrics – spanning one man’s life – married to sprightly English acoustic folk melodies, recalling Nick Drake and Bert Jansch.

This ‘life in an album’ concept celebrates each age of man: wide-eyed youth (the exceptional In the Morning), confusing middle age (utterly loopy Caspian Sea) and twilight dignity (the ghostly November). Like his sometime bandmate and occasional foe Damon Albarn, there’s still a dizzying energy and satisfying creativity about Coxon’s music, rarely more in evidence than here.

Steve Earle Townes

Eternally linked by politics and demons, Steve Earle and the late Townes Van Zandt were folk music brothers. Townes is Earle’s tribute to his fallen idol, a covers album, featuring an array of arrangements aimed to highlight the enduring nature of Van Zandt’s criminally underrated work. Ranging from rootsy, bluegrass-ish cuts, through muscular country rock, into delicate solo performances, it’s a vibrant sketch of a gifted songwriter.

Even hardened Van Zandt fans – they’re out there – will be surprised at the obscurity of certain choices (Rake, Brand New Companion), though Earle’s decision to steer clear of certain classics (Waiting Round To Die, Kathleen etc.) pays off handsomely. Van Zandt’s canon is more colourful than people imagine and Earle’s homage is both inventive and faithful.

Madness The Liberty of Norton Folgate

Few bands retain their signature sound without sounding stale: Madness are one of those few. Three years in the offing, their latest (and ninth) record is as immediately likeable as ever. Taking its title from a long-disappeared parish in East London, the record is a swinging, skanking tour of the capital, especially on stately opener We Are London.

Original cheeky chappy Suggs still surprises with his deft turn of phrase, but it’s the slushy, romantic numbers that’ll gnaw away at the brain. From the descending piano of Sugar and Spice to the celebratory NW5, few lyricists revel in the word ‘love’ so convincingly. Surprises include elegant Forever Young and subtle MKII, all accompanied by a band that’s as bold, inventive and fun as it has ever been.

LASTING LEGENDS

Released 11 May Released 18 MayReleased 11 May

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The Maccabees Wall of Arms

Virtually unrecognisable from the knockabout pop-rock of their debut, opener (and Radio 1 fave) Love You Better finds Brighton’s The Maccabees in dynamic sonic territory. Horns and guitars see-saw back and forth, interrupted by a beautiful, sparse mid-section, tempos fluttering wildly like drunken butterflies.

In terms of inspiration, Modest Mouse seem a likely candidate: in particular, the spiky, angular guitars and singer Orlando Weeks’ newly-discovered vocal yelp recall Isaac Brock and co. From the intricacy of Young Lions through the stop-start of the title track to the gentle lullaby of closer Bag Of Bones, Wall of Arms continually resists the easy option: its choruses are euphoric rather than cheap, and at every turn an unexpected instrumental subtlety permeates.

Alessi’s Ark Notes from the Treehouse

With her lilting, playful voice 18-year old Alessi Laurent-Marke cuts a beguiling figure somewhere between Joanna Newsom and Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star. This vivid, accomplished debut (following her excellent Horse EP) was produced by Bright Eyes member Mike Mogis, who dutifully wraps her precocious lyrical adventures in a warm, alt-country jacket.

Delicate moments (the elegant Constellations, the gorgeous Woman) suggest a rural Björk, poetic and whimsical, but still charmingly innocent: witness the heartbreaking plea of The Horse: ‘if you’d like me to/I’ll try to be brave like you’. Occasionally, the presence of harps (and lyrics about asteroids) too strongly recall Newsom’s awe-inspiring Ys album, and Alessi’s whimsy can be cloying, but overall, it’s a confident, intriguing listen.

Laura Izib Let the Truth Be Told

Though its ambitious title suggests Ireland’s Laura Izibor is ready blow the lid off contemporary pop, the only truth revealed by her debut is that the conveyor belt of Winehouse-inspired soul-pop must be decommissioned. There are some decent songs, and Izibor has a smooth, accomplished voice, but – as with countless other female artists since Mark Ronson was appointed Lord of all Music Production – everything is wrapped in predictable, nu-soul trappings.

Opener Shine is one of the stronger cuts, and promises more than the subsequent sea of funky horn sections and soft crooning delivers. The yearning The Worst is Over is also a highlight, its delicate piano and string arrangement producing a worthy, Alicia Keys-esque number, demonstrating the benefits of restraint in the crowded R’n’B market.

Released 4 May Released 18 MayReleased 4 May

NEW SENASATIONS

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There are those who claim that when The Rakes played the Brighton

Dome in 2005, lowest on a bill that included Editors and Franz Ferdinand, their set was the pick of the evening; a brief, spiky affair that put the radio-friendly-unit-shifting headliners in the shade. Tonight, with three well-received records firmly under their skinny trouser belts, East London’s smartest art-punks have lost none of that exciting, bristly presence.

Like Brett Anderson, Brian Molko and Jarvis Cocker before him, singer Alan Donohoe is one of those sexy, spindly, angular British frontmen that demands attention. From nonchalantly tossing away a pair of charming red

gloves to engaging in continued amorousness with lead guitarist Matthew Swinnerton (mic chords are draped over necks, cheeks are stroked – this is full on bromance), he’s an electrifying, libidinous star. By third song Terror, he’s hurled himself into an adoring crowd, managing to emerge from the carnage with magnificent mop untouched. Rattling through much of third record Klang, the band are very much Donohoe’s match, firing off riffs with a thrilling, scattergun intensity.

Brief respite from the post-punk party comes with the subtle, mid-set Binary Love, but the close of the set actually manages that rare feat: matching the energy of its beginning. Thundering through

two debut album favourites – We Are All Animals & Violent – Donohoe raises some incongruous devil horns and, amidst the gathering feedback, barks a familiar gig query. ‘ARE YOU READY TO ROCK????’ Luckily, we are, and the band oblige with the furious, post-smoking-ban rant The Loneliness of the Outdoor Smoker. With a cursory departure over, our well turned out indie heroes return with the frenetic clarion call of debut single Strasbourg. Without any detectable loss of steam, the evening ends as it began, with a chaotic guitar clang, skittering, intricate riffs and a tall, skinny gent preening for all he’s worth.

Rakish Rockn’ Roll

The Rakes – Brighton 21•04•2009

Gimme

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MAY GIG LIST

13/05 Jools Holland & His Rhythm & Blues Orchestra The man who introduces pop bands like he’s about to sneeze comes down south for another piano- rattling performance Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells SOLD OUT Phone 01892 530613 for returns

16/05 This is Cool Sound An evening of new music featuring local artists on the Cool Sound Recordings label. Expect indie, electro, grime and hip-hop The Forum, Tunbridge Wells £6

22/05, 06/06 Son of Kirk Beautiful, vintage folk – influenced by Bert Jansch & Nick Drake -from four piece Kentish act, part of the newly housed Fishbowl Acoustic night The Sussex Arms, Tunbridge Wells £4

23/05 Tina May and Her Trio Fresh from a French tour with the Orchestre de l’Opera National de Lyon, the acclaimed jazz singer brings her classics and standards to Trinity Trinity Theatre, Tunbridge Wells £18-£20

The Rakes – Brighton 21•04•2009

Gimme

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