W♥M

Ash

Read More Ash Of course, being a fan of of all-things-Britpop, I do love Ash. They were a little band out of Northern Ireland, who were big Star Wars nerds and wrote power rock/pop songs about Kung Fu movies and cute love songs like "Girl From Mars". .....

To this day, I think Ash's 1977 is one of the best album I've ever listened to. It's like every song on the album is a standalone single. I think they tried that formula with their A-Z singles/compilation album that was released officially in the U.S. last November 6th, 2012, on Noyes Records. I have listened to A-Z, and as much as I love Ash, circa 1996, I found A-Z's 26-song epic album a little too much to absorb. If you haven't heard A-Z, check out the free song "Return of the White Rabbit" at Rollingstone.com.

Ticketstub to Saves the Day and Ash at The Quest, Minneapolis (10/27/02)

I've seen Ash a few times, but definitely my favorite was seeing the band support Saves the Day. I spent the majority of Saves the Day's set actually hanging out with Ash. They were signing for Free All Angels, which I already own the UK release. I bought the album again (although it was the U.S. version with a bonus DVD) to have something for them to sign. See scan below of all the autographs, including Charlotte Hatherley!

A few years ago, I guess Ash went back to basic and kicked out Hatherley, but she's actually continued on as part of Bat for Lashes's touring band. She's currently on tour with them:

01/26/13 Singapore, Singapore Gardens By The Bay
01/28/13 Auckland, New Zealand Silo Park
01/30/13 Newtown, Australia Enmore Theatre
02/01/13 Brisbane, Australia Alexandria Street
02/02/13 Sydney, Australia St. Jerome's Laneway Festival Grounds
02/03/13 Melbourne, Australia St. Jerome's Laneway Festival Grounds
02/05/13 St. Kilda, Australia Palais Theatre
02/08/13 Adelaide, Australia St. Jerome's Laneway Festival Grounds
02/09/13 Perth, Australia Cultural Centre

Something Big

Also, Hatherley is part of the collective, Sylver Tongue (with Al Spx of Cold Specks), which I previously mentioned. Her EP, Something Big came out on Dancing Coins on November 6.

Check out the title song on Soundcloud:

Ash autographs at The Quest, Minneapolis (10/27/02)

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M

The Silver Age

Read More Charlotte Hatherley I love Charlotte and I think she really compliment KT, by taking the heavy guitar work and leaving KT to do the vocals thing.

SYLVER TONGUE
sylvertongue.com

As you know, I am a big fan of Ash and Charlotte Hatherley. Hatherley is back under a new project called Sylver Tongue, and you can preview two of her songs via Soundcloud.com.

NME described the new songs as "space-age synths and subtle glam stomps" and "Creatures" as "meaty throb" and "Hook You Up" as "subtler, sultrier" … so two different type of sound coming from Sylver Tongue.

Pretty exciting, can't wait to hear more new material from Hatherley.

Also, I would love to see Charlotte Hatherley as headliner, I have previously seen her play with Ash, Bat For Lashes and KT Tunstall - but never as a solo artist or as main singer. She does have a great voice and a knack for writing songs, so it just seems like a natural move for her to step in the spotlight.

Wish I could attend one of these shows (I love S7B!):

07/04/12 Village Underground w/ Gaggle
07/19/12 Thekla w/ School of Seven Bells
07/29/12 Slade Rooms w/ School of Seven Bells

BRIEFLY:

SIMONE WHITE simonewhite.com National Public Radio recently named Simone White's album, Silver Silver, as best music of 2012 (so far). They loved her so much that they recently debut her video, "Flowers in May" via NPR's All Songs Considered. See her live: 7.24 Largo (with band) Los Angeles, CA 7.29 Museo Balenciaga Paradiso Getaria, Spain 8.3 Crystal Club Santiago, Spain

ZULU WINTER zuluwinter.com Going to Splendour in the Grass? I am told that there will be "mini-Splendour" parties at Melbourne and Sydney with Minneapolis' Howler and London's Zulu Winter. Zulu Winter's latest song and video is called "Silver Tongue", which you can see on youtube.com.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M

KT Tunstall at the Epic, Minneapolis (11/18/10)

Tour Dates 11/27 - 9:30 Club Washington, DC 11/29 - House of Blues Boston, MA 12/01 - Terminal 5 New York 02/19 - Radisson Hotel Galway, Ireland 02/20 - Cork Opera House Cork, Ireland 02/21 - Olympia Theatre Dublin, Ireland 02/23 - Alhambra Dunfermline, UK 02/24 - O2 Academy Newcastle Upon Tyne 02/25 - Academy Manchester, UK 02/27 - O2 Academy Leeds, UK 02/28 - Assembly Rooms Leamington Spa 03/01 - Colston Hall Bristol, UK 03/03 - O2 Academy Birmingham, UK 03/04 - O2 Academy Bournemouth, UK 03/05 - Brighton Dome Brighton, UK 03/07 - UEA Norwich, UK 03/08 - HMV Forum London, UK 03/14 - Ancienne Belgique Brussels, Bel 03/15 - MELKWEG MAX Amsterdam 03/16 - La Cigale Paris, France 03/18 - Les Docks Lausanne, Switzerland 03/20 - Komplex Zurich, Switzerland 03/30 - O-East Tokyo, Japan 03/31 - Club Quattro Nagoya, Japan 04/01 - Club Quattro Osaka, Japan Discography [2004] Eye to the Telescope [2007] Drastic Fantastic [2010] Tiger Suit Read More KT Tunstall You can now watch all of KT Tunstall's music videos, live performances, and various appearances on Hulu at hulu.com/kt-tunstall.

So, I was lucky enough to catch KT Tunstall on November 18^th at the Epic. As I've previously explained, I have not been to that venue in a long time, back when it was called the Quest.

♥ Hurricane Bells

Opening up for KT was Hurricane Bells, a band from New York. The first thing that came to my mind was that the band is a very strange assembly of people (like they shouldn't all be friends). Whatever the case, they all seem really happy to be in Minneapolis, for the first time. Memorable moment was when singer/songwriter Steve Schiltz explained that their song, "Monsters", was featured in Twilight. I didn't know any of their songs, but they ended their set with a song that had these lines: "you're an accident waiting to happen", which certainly is not "The Winters in New York" (which is a free download on their website).

A quite small framed-KT Tunstall came on stage, through a fog machine, to a screaming crowd of eager fans. I'll tell you one thing, I only have her earlier albums, Eye to the Telescope, Acoustic Extravaganza, and Drastic Fantastic, but unfortunately, most of her songs played at that were from her latest release, Tiger Suit. I'm not the only one there that didn't know the new material, it seems all the people around me didn't even know she had a new album. The new songs seems to include more keys/electronic in the tunes.

Of the new songs, I thought "Glamour Puss" and "Madame Trudeaux" were good. The later was supposed to be about Margaret Trudeau, who ditched her husband, Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, on election day, to follow the Rolling Stones on tour. Incidentally, I think he lost.

By the time familiar songs were played, which was about seven or eight songs in, the crowd went nuts for "Black Horse & The Cherry Tree", clearly the night's favorite song. Another block of new songs followed with "Lost", "Golden Frames", "Difficulty", and "The Entertainer". For a few of those songs, most of the band left the stage.

The other fan-favorite that night was "Saving My Face", which sounded much more rocking than I remembered it being on Drastic Fantastic. Admittedly, songs from Drastic Fantastic were more rock than her acoustic folky debut album.

She did three songs for her encore, with the most interesting being an Erasure cover, "A Little Respect". Maybe she should've dedicated the song to a pack of girls in front were clearly not paying attention to the show.

PS, I understand that people are just out to have a good time at concerts, but if you're going to be talking on the phone, taking pictures of yourselves, and talking over the singer - maybe you shouldn't be right in front where the singer can clearly see and hear you. Just saying it's rude.

PPS, Also, I had no idea that playing with KT was Charlotte Hatherley. I've met her before when she was in Ash, and last year saw her in Bat for Lashes at the Varsity Theater. So it was quite surprising to see her in the band, it really made my year. I love Charlotte and I think she really compliment KT, by taking the heavy guitar work and leaving KT to do the vocals thing.

PPPS, The ultimate KT fan should check out the Amazon exclusive CD/DVD, which includes a documentary of "How To Make A Tiger Suit". According to the description, the film is about her travels from Scotland to London, then California to Berlin.

♥ KT Tunstall at the Epic, Minneapolis (11/18/10)

vu () ♥ kttunstall.com

W♥M092: Live Shows

W♥M092 [download (35min, 44mb)]

Vu, Sally and Oscar on this week's W♥M Radio.

News

1. Pulp are back!. Sally will be celebrating by drinking loads of things and DJing and hanging out on BRITPOP.com.au's Party Hard (Pulp Night)
2. Beatles on iTunes. Yep, welcome to 2010, Beatles.

Main program: Live shows

Sally: Charlatans at the Metro Theatre on November 11th. Apparently it upsets Sally that Tim has better hair. Also, Manic Street Preachers at Metro Theatre on November 15th.
Oscar: Delorean at 7th Street on November 16th, then on the 18th, he saw Free Energy at 400 Bar
Vu: KT Tunstall's appearance at the Epic on November 18th was dwarfed by Charlotte Hatherley's awesomeness.

Song of the show: Hollerado's "Americanarama"

Throwaway bits: too random to mention.

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____
Archive of this show at archive.org. More information on podomatic.com

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

Ash - A to Z, Vol. 1

Ash - Return of White Rabbit Ash Tour Dates 04/15/10 Absolute Radio London 04/17/10 Rough Trade Instore, London 04/19/10 Southampton University 04/20/10 Cambridge Junction 04/21/10 Waterfront  Norwich 04/23/10 Irish Centre  Birmingham 04/24/10 Leeds Metropolitan University 04/25/10 O2 Academy Newcastle 04/27/10 O2 ABC Glasgow 04/28/10 Academy 2 Manchester 04/30/10 O2 Academy Bristol 05/01/10 Concorde 2  Brighton 05/02/10 O2 Academy Oxford 05/04/10 Electric Ballroom  London 05/05/10 Roadmender Northampton 05/06/10 Koko London 05/13/10 Point FMR Paris 05/14/10 Sugar Factory Amsterdam 05/15/10 Luxor Cologne 05/16/10 Logo Hamburg 05/17/10 C-Club Berlin 05/19/10 John Dee Oslo 05/20/10 Vox Hall Aarhus 05/22/10 59:1 Munich 05/23/10 Flex Vienna 05/25/10 Abart Zurich 05/26/10 Roehre Stuttgart 05/27/10 Batchkapp Frankfutt 05/28/10Botanique Brussels Discography [Oct 1994] Trailer [May 1996] 1977 [Oct 1998] Nu-Clear Sounds [Apr 2001] Free All Angels [May 2004] Meltdown [Jul 2007] Twilight of the Innocents Read More Ash http://weheartmus... Ash confirmed that Twilight of the Innocents (to be released July 2007) will be their last album....

Of course, being a fan of of all-things-Britpop, I do love Ash. They were a little band out of Northern Ireland, who were big Star Wars nerds and wrote power rock/pop songs about Kung Fu movies and cute love songs like "Girl From Mars". My first record by them was 1977, and eventually tracked down Trailer, but admittedly was not a fan of their debut album - save for the catchy "Jack Names The Planet".

Since 1996, I've bought every album they've released. I imported a copy of Nu-Clear Sounds, only to repurchased it when it was released domestically - mostly because there were alternate remixes of five tracks (plus it had a different cover artwork). I bought Free All Angels twice, because I eventually saw them on tour and just wanted something for them to autograph (since I didn't bring along my original copy).

With Meltdown, I was smart and did just wait for them to release the album domestically. I waited for Twilight of the Innocents, but their final album was never officially released in the US. I've often thought about buying an import copy, but I suppose I never got around to it.

Then about two years ago, Ash said that they weren't going to release albums anymore. That they were just going to release singles. So born The A to Z Series. Every two weeks, the band recorded and release a song, a total of twenty-six tracks over the course of one year.

The idea behind the project was that since they were all going to be singles, that they'd all be strong tracks. Was their theory correct? Sort of.

Since each song is a strong contender for radio play, it just seems that when they collect them (tracks A to M) into an album, A-Z Vol. 1, it feels a little even to me. With a lack of slow songs to space out the tracks, it just feels a little boring to me sometimes. But then again, the idea was that you were supposed to collect each song and were meant to consume them one at a time, over a course of two weeks.

After listening to part one over and over again, I can tell you that these songs have a very "back to basic" sound to them. Nothing too complicated (although there is an occasional experimental sound at the beginning of a song). Perhaps this is because the band no longer has Charlotte Hatherley?

If you're not quite ready to commit to subscribing to Ash's single club, I mean $20-ish dollars for songs that's not recorded yet or another $20 to import the compilation CD, I can guide you to check out the free "Prequel" single, "Return of White Rabbit", single A "True Love 1980" and single H "Space Shot" - you can preview these songs at their official website.

If you haven't heard Ash in a while, I can tell you that hearing Tim Wheeler's vocals is like hearing an old friend. You can pick up A-Z Vol. 1 on April 19^th, 2010. For track listing and additional details, head over to ash-official.com. Currently, they are going on tour, highly successful from the looks of some big shows selling out.

 04/07/2010 03:10:42 ♥ vu () ♥ ash-official.com ♥ myspace.com/ash ♥ twitter.com 

Bat for Lashes at the Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (8/7/09)

Bat For Lashes - Sleep Alone Bat For Lashes Tour Dates 08/09/09 Lollapalooza Chicago 08/12/09 Webster Hall New York, NY 08/13/09 Paradise Rock Club Boston 08/15/09 9:30 Club Washington DC 08/17/09  Loft  Atlanta, GA 08/19/09 The Parish Austin, TX 08/20/09 The Loft Dallas, TX 08/22/09 Bluebird Theatre Denver, CO 08/25/09 Venue  Vancouver, BC 08/26/09 Neumo’s Seattle 08/27/09 Wonder B Portland, OR 08/29/09 Outside Lands Festival SF, CA 08/31/09 Music Box Theatre LA, CA 09/05/09 Electric Picnic Stradbally 09/11/09 Bestival Isle Of Wight 10/01/09 Bournemouth Opera House 10/02/09 Brighton Dome Brighton 10/04/09 Corn Exchange Cambridge 10/05/09 Roundhouse London 10/06/09 Roundhouse London 10/09/09 Colston Hall Bristol 10/10/09 O2 Academy Liverpool 10/12/09 Rock City Nottingham 10/13/09 O2 Academy Leeds 10/14/09 Academy Manchester 10/16/09 Great Hall, Cardiff 10/17/09 Octagon Sheffield 10/19/09 O2 Academy Glasgow 10/20/09 Picture House Edinburgh 10/28/09 Postbahnhof Berlin 10/29/09 Uebel & Gefahrlich Hamburg 10/30/09 Melkweg Oude Zaal Amsterdam 11/02/09 Den Atelier Luxembourg 11/04/09 Olympia Paris Discography [2007] Fur and Gold [2009] Two Suns Video Bat For Lashes - Whats a Girl To Do Read More Bat For Lashes http://weheartmus... A friend of mine asked me to check out this errie music video for "What's a Girl To Do" by Bat fo...

Natasha Khan, aka Bat for Lashes, with her band made their very first American show last night at the ever elegant Varsity Theater in Minneapolis.

Once again, Dearling Physique (official / myspace / twitter), opened up for Bat. Compared to their previous appearance, I would have to say that this show sounded so much better (I talked briefly with the band and they admitted it was because they actually had a chance to do sound check prior to playing). Mister Dominique Davis came on stage in somewhat of a superhero outfit, complete with table cloth cape and all. It should be interesting to keep an eye on this band, they're starting their national tour in a few weeks.

Bat for Lashes ♥ Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (8/7/09) Setlist ♥ Varsity Theater, Minneapolis (8/7/09)

Back to Bat for Lashes, I was lucky enough to catch them very early in their career in America, at the very tiny 7th Street Entry in 2007. They only did eight songs, based on their setlist. And not even that Springsteen "I'm on Fire" cover song (Natasha told me that they just didn't have the proper equipment to play it).

With only just two years later, the band's audience had quadrupled with the Varsity Theater filling up quickly. Gone was the Indian/Native American theme, such as the Shaman's sceptre - but it's understandable as the setlist is mostly from their Two Suns album. And the theme to Two Suns, if anything, is about duality and opposites. Like the mountain the sky, the sun and the moon, love and hate, which the stage was clearly demonstrating.  For example, there were all these plastic Jesus statues and candles, but their songs are about nature (with the background of the mountains and the sky).

The highlight for me was them taking care of my favorite "lonely lonely lonely" song, "Sleep Alone", very early on their set.

The audience obviously loved "What's a Girl to Do?" and "Daniel". I should add that "Pearl's Dream" sounded fantastic live, as they end their set before coming back for the inevitable encore.

A fun note, as I have previously mentioned, Charlotte Hatherley is in Khan's band as the bassist/backup vocalist. I wanted to say hi after the show, as I've met her a while back when she was touring with Ash and that I have always liked her solo work as well. Unfortunately, the Varsity staff was kicking everyone out and I ended up just going home.

If you get a chance, check out Bat for Lashes on tour. Their latest album is Two Suns, however, a quick check shows an exclusive iTunes EP that was just released: Bat for Lashes - iTunes Live: London Festival '09 EP

 08/08/2009 01:27:24 ♥ vu () ♥ batforlashes.com ♥ myspace.com/batforlashes ♥ twitter.com 

News: Charlotte Hatherley is Back, plus Those Darlins

Charlotte Hatherley - White Charlotte Hatherley Read More Ash http://weheartmus... Ash confirmed that Twilight of the Innocents (to be released July 2007) will be their last album....

As you may have noticed with my absents, I do have a day job that's actually gotten really, really busy this past few months (and will likely carry over to May). In fact, it's Saturday morning and I have to get in the office and work. Hey, in this economy, I suppose I should be thankful, right?

So, anyway, there are very few albums that I have requested for review. There are some that came in that I'm very excited about and won't mind not sleeping in the next few days to write about them - so keep your eyes glued here.

Here's an album that I won't be reviewing (because I don't think the UK record label likes us): Cinnabar City by Charlotte Hatherley (official/myspace). Her previous albums (Grey Will Fade and The Deep Blue) was never officially released in the US, so her fans, actually paid good money for imports. Her third album, Cinnabar City, will be released in the US via Minty Fresh, which a reader have reported to me that they mostly sell MP3s only... so CD fans might still have to shell out big bucks for an import.

Charlotte Hatherley - Kim Wilde

Oh, in case you were wondering who Hatherley is, I first heard of her as the "girl guitarist" in the band Ash - a band that I have been a fan of since the early 90s when I was getting into all these Britpop-type bands. She naturally started doing her own solo material and left the band a few years ago. The last I heard of her was she was in the band new waver Client with Kate Holmes (not to be confused with the wife of Tom Cruise) and Sarah Blackwood.

Bat for Lashes - What's a Girl to Do

Currently, according to the press release I received, Hatherley will now be part of Bat For Lashes (for touring?). Who knows how long that will last?

Look for Cinnabar City sometime in the Summer. The cover artwork will be done by Lewes Herriot, so expect a thick pen with solid colors artwork. In the meantime, her preview song is "White", which I will have to confess didn't really talk to me on the first three or four listens. I suppose it sounds too internety-serious for me, not as fun as her 2004 stuff like "Bastardo" or the head-bopping as "Kim Wilde".

Those darlins

Those Darlins - Wild One Those Darlins Tour Dates 04/15/09 The Parlour at Southgate House Cincinnati/Newport, Ohio 04/16/09 The Vogue w/ The Avett Brothers Indianapolis, Indiana 04/17/09 High Dive Champaign, IL 04/18/09 The Hi-Tone Memphis, TN 04/24/09 White Water Tavern LRock, AR 04/25/09 Smoke & Barrel Fayetteville, AR 05/09/09 1000 Faces Festival Rhappahanock, Virginia 05/11/09 Milestone w/ The Features, The Dexateens Charlotte, North Carolina 05/12/09 Rock & Roll Hotel w/ The Features, The Dexateens DC, Washington DC 05/13/09 iS Venue w/ The Features, The Dexateens Charlottesville, Virginia 05/19/09 Grog Shop w/ The Features, The Dexateens Cleveland, Ohio 05/20/09 Schubas w/ The Features, The Dexateens Chicago, Illinois 05/21/09 The PArlour at Southgate w/ The Features, The Dexateens Newport, Kentucky 05/22/09 The Dame w/The Features & The Dexateens Lexington, Kentucky 05/23/09 Barley’s w/ The Features, The Dexateens Knoxville, Tennessee 06/19/09 Border Bash: Downtown Bristol, in the middle of State Street. Bristol, Tennessee

I got this email about Those Darlins (official/myspace), and there was this disclaimer for the 'foxy' picture attached:

"Disclaimer: Don't blame me. The Darlins' manager JT is crazy. He's the one who wanted to use this picture and the phrase "Drop More Dates..." He's currently boot-scootin' around our office and snickering, as I write these very words. We run a super, super-duper tight ship over here at Oh Wow Dang/Thirty Tigers."

I actually thought the picture is really cute that I made this quick sketch, obviously, looking at it side-by-side, it doesn't look that great compared to how I envisioned it.  I think I made the head too big anyway :/

Their self-titled debut album will be out July 7^th on OH WOW DANG Records, but in the meantime they have this single out called "Wild One", which sounds a bit country, don't you agree?

 04/04/2009 10:42:50 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥podcast.weheartmusic.com♥news.weheartmusic.com