W♥M

We're All Going To Die For Christmas

I hate jumping on to bandwagons (or should I say bandsleighs?) but we live in dire times. Lapland is on the brink of civil war, terrorists are disguised as children's toys and another factory-line squeaky clean vomit-inducing single is about to make it to number one in the UK charts. Where's President Bush when there is a real crisis? Why he is training his babies to be junior park rangers...of course (If you follow the link there is some free Christmas tunes courtesy of the Whitehouse website).

Malcolm Middleton's odds on winning the 'Christmas Number One' have risen faster than Father Christmas' sleigh in the winter skies. But now is not the time to be complacent! The result of the nationwide musical talent contest, the X Factor, was announced last night. Almost instantly winner Leon Jackson's single appeared on the front page of the iTunes store.

Having never paid any intention to the Christmas Charts, I was shocked to discover that the X Factor winner has seized the 'Christmas Number One' chart position too many times. Leon Jackson is evil. He is charming, he is dashing, he is Scottish, he is pretty much everything I am not. He must be stopped.

On the other hand, Middleton has produced the musical equivalent of Bad Santa, a working man's 'Do You Realize?'. He has captured spirit of the microwave meal for one Christmas. A track to unite all of those people who have ever enjoyed a Christmas glass of Gin and Tonic without the Tonic. A tune for those folks who find themselves taking advantage of themselves under the mistletoe. A ballad of such proportion...oh you get it, I hate Christmas.   

Actually I am not too fussed about who gets the 'Christmas Number One' but I needed to pad out this writeup in order to share the Middleton video with you.

Another lovely little video is Sufjan Stevens's Put The Lights On The Tree. This is included as a bonus feature in his Songs For Christmas boxset along with a comic book and other little goodies. I offer this video as Sufjan's Christmas spirit is the yin to Middleton's yan.

Finally in the spirit of Christmas, Okkervil River are offering a free Christmas Mixtape EP on their website. Check it out. It's quite good and it's free. If you see any more free Christmas goodies on offer, let me know!

Merry Christmas!!

December 16, 2007 16:20  Ryan my posts wereallgoingtodie.co.uk

I Fought The Lloyds Bank Charges

Money makes the world go round or so they say. But here in the UK the banks and their bankers aren't having the greatest time at the moment. With the British government loaning approximately £900 per citizen to the Northern Rock building society there has never been a better time to try to reclaim some of those illegal bank charges back from your bank.

Until recently the British banks have been hiding behind the notion of 'free' banking. Us Brits don't have to pay for our current accounts...or do we? Enter Martin Lewis, The Money Savings Expert. He pointed out that when we open our bank accounts we are entering into a legally binding contract. So far so good. If we miss a payment or exceed our overdraft, we are charged an excessive penalty fee. 'Wait' said Lewis.

Consumer law states that any charges credit card providers levy on their customers must be proportional to the actual costs they incur. And the simple question is, ‘does it really cost £35 to send an automated letter when someone’s gone 1p over their limit?’

They’re not supposed to fine you; yet over the years that’s exactly what they’ve done whenever people have missed credit card repayment dates or bust through their credit limit. And it’s for this reason that you should be able to get back the last six years’ worth of cash.

Well this campaign has been gaining ground over the years with a lot of successful reclaims against the banks. Now somebody called Oystar has gone and re-written the Sonny Curtis classic 'I fought the law' into 'I fought the Lloyds Bank Charges'. While this isn't destined to make it into your all-time greatest songs playlist, it is still a moderately good attempt at a protest song.

 

For more information about reclaiming your bank charges then check out the Money Saving Expert's website. If you feel so inclined then you can also order the track for a very reasonable 50p. No excessive charges as far as this song is concerned. The official release date is 7th January 2008.

Apologies to the vast majority of W♥M fans who aren't British.

EDIT by Christopher: MoneySavingExpert.com rocks!!! They just saved me like £80 on a new internet provider, and I don't have to wait ten hours for a single track to upload to WHM anymore :o) Martin's cool aswell.

November 25, 2007 13:28 Ryan my♥posts Moneysavingexpert.com

Kev Oystar wrote: Nov 25, 2007 1:13 PM

Hello
Thanks for putting up a blog and video of our song. We sold over 5000 copies of the single in our first 12 hours after the MoneySavingExpert.com press release so we're really excited about the track's prospects in entering the charts in a high position (top ten at least!) and raising awareness of the campaign against unfair bank charges in the UK and the wider international community. I would certainly agree with Christopher's comment that Martin Lewis has been inspirational with his coordination of the national campaign. We met him when the video was being shot and he's a lovely bloke to cap it all!

Thanks once again for all your support.

Kev Oystar (the horse in the video!)

 

Josh Ritter @ The Sage Gateshead (17/11/07)

Tour 23 Nov Concorde 2 - Brighton, UK 24 Nov New Trinity Centre - Bristol, UK 26 Nov Everyman Palace - Cork, Ire 27 Nov Everyman Palace - Cork, Ire 29 Nov Dolans Warehouse - Limerick, Ire 30 Nov Rugby Club - Tullamore, Ire 01 Dec Black Box - Galway, Ire 02 Dec Glor - Ennis, Ire 04 Dec The Classic Grand - Glasgow, UK 05 Dec The Empire - Belfast, Ire 06 Dec Olympia Theatre - Dublin, Ire 07 Dec Watergate Theatre - Kilkenny, Ire 08 Dec Forum - Waterford, Ire 11 Dec Club Passim (7pm) - Boston, MA 11 Dec Club Passim (10pm) - Boston, MA 14 Dec Grand Ballroom - New York, NY Links Josh Ritter Live : El Rey Theatre & Artists Den Performance http://weheartmus... I was hyped to see Josh Ritter perform at the El Rey Theatre this past Thursday in Los Angeles. ... Albums The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter [2007] The Animal Years [2006] 4 Songs Live [2005] Hello Starling [2003] Golden Age of Radio [2002] josh ritter [1999]

And the award for the happiest man alive goes to...Josh Ritter. From the moment he walked on the stage of Hall Two at the Sage Gateshead, to the moment he told his final bow, Josh Ritter wore on his face the most dashing smile I've ever seen.

Now I know Cristina (Ritter's future wife) has already mentioned the Josh Ritter tour, but W♥M is an international site and I loved the gig in Newcastle so much that I couldn't resist mentioning it again.

I never truly understood how being compared to Bob Dylan can used as a criticism, however I've read a few reviews making similar comparisons as if it were a bad thing. In my eyes, Ritter has always stood apart from Dylan, as part of the vanguard of the modern Americana.

I expected a good performance from a seasoned singer-songwriter such as Ritter. What I actually witnessed in the intimate setting of the Sage was an astonishing show from a musician at the peak of his game.

His personal serenade to a bearded man in the balcony was a priceless moment, as was his theory that David Attenborough makes most of the animal sounds on the documentary 'Planet Earth'. There was a moment during the show were he plunged the entire hall into darkness, although the lighting crew were quite reluctant. In the pitch black, he led the audience in making the sound of the giant carnivorous rabbit. Ritter had a lot of fun.

Supported by a band for most of the show, he was rarely off the stage during his two hour set. In total, he left for five minute break before returning for an encore of classics. The sole disappointment of the evening was 'A Girl in the War'. I have become so accustomed to hearing his acoustic demo version, that hearing it plugged in and amplified seemed alien to me. But all sins were forgotten when he started his encore with a soulful cover of 'Chelsea Hotel No 2', which is probably the closest I'll get to Leonard Cohen himself.

Josh was clearly playing to a crowd of fans. He seized the opportunity to rehash classic such as 'Monster Ballads', 'Lillian, Egypt', 'Good Man' and 'The Snow is Gone'. He even threw in an old Dylan song. Throughout though, there remained a healthy dose of new material taken from his latest album, 'The Historical Conquests Of Josh Ritter'.

The Temptation Of Adam

One of the highlights of the night was 'The Temptation Of Adam'. A ballad about a romantic affair in a nuclear bunker located underground and out of sight, which managed to be hysterical and sentimental all in one as the couple ponder whether WWIII is the only way to make their love flourish.

Supporting Ritter was the surprisingly delightful Katie Walsh, who has just returned from her US tour. Her brand of soft-spoken, sensual ballads was a fitting introduction to the more well-rounded sound of Ritter, and at times a little more heart-felt and personal.

At the end of it all, I felt like a born-again Ritter fan and fully justified in my decision to join the Josh Ritter Appreciation Group on facebook. Talking of facebook, there is an awesome W♥M fan page...Ok, so it ain't awesome but it is pretty good.

Check out Ritter's website for more free tracks available to download (spread across his entire discography).

Josh Ritter's Fall Tour continues on in the UK and Ireland before finishing in Boston and New York. A lot of the venues are already sold out.

Most importantly Ritter managed to convince my younger brother, Tim, that I am still cool. I am still cool. I am still cool. I was never cool. All in all, it was another wonderful night at the Sage Gateshead.   

 November 22, 2007 21:05   Ryan my♥posts joshritter.com

This Morning Call

Influences "Think Sigur Ros stealing Keanes vocals underpinned by glitched up Groove Armada style electronics, and seriously talented live instrumentalists."

Lately I've been a little lazy with my reviewing, which is a shame because I've had some interesting bands approaching me. One of those bands is an up and coming group from Manchester, This Morning Call. A health dose of electronica (beep-beep music as I called it) blended with the soft pop-rock vocals of Ben Hayworth make This Morning Call a wonderful dream-like experience.

They came together just over a year ago when Hayworth started to combine his solo work with some mates who were just messing around with instruments. A few gigs later and suddenly they realised they may just have something a little special here and that's when things turned serious.

Clockworks

This Morning Call

I am about to say something a little controversial and I'm fully prepared to be shouted down for my libel... When I listen to This Morning Call, I cannot help but think they sound a little like 'The Postal Service'. Now I know there are a lot of Ben Gibbard fans (and Gibband haters) out there. I am no way saying that Ben Hayworth sounds identical to his namesake Gibbard...but he sorta does...a little less refined in the vocal department and a British accent but the similarities do exist.

A world way from their old pub gigs, This Morning Call found themselves performing at Manchester PRIDE this year. From the feedback on their blog, they went down a treat with a party-loving crowd of 2000 people. To follow this up, they will be the supporting act on the launch of a brand new television station.

For your listening pleasure, I thought I'd share Clockwise. This is one of my favourite tracks from their musical portfolio. It is a very reflective number about love and all the naked emotions connected to love. This is the same track that has forced the UK indie labels to flock around the group, give them long drawn out limo rides and make comments such as "there is a lot of great detail in the music, Clockworks is obviously a great song" (Fierce Panda Records).

This is a band that is making sure their sound is getting out to the masses with a wonderful blog on myspace and a sister blog on Vox.

Whatever your opinion regarding their music, I am fairly certain that This Morning Call are here to stay and will be appearing on a radio station near you in the future.

Free music fans should head over to their myspace for some downloadable tracks. Better to get them while they are still free.

 November 15, 2007 23:30   Ryan my♥posts thismorningcall.co.uk

Digby: What's Not Plastic?

Tour 16 Nov Ear X-tacy - Louisville, KY 16 Nov 4th Street Live - Louisville, KY 14 Dec WFPK - Live Lunch - Louisville, KY 15 Dec Headliner's Hall - Louisville, KY Albums What's Not Plastic [2007] Falling Up EP [2005] Keeping Your Distance OST [2005] Falling Up [2004] Go Digby [Mar 2003] Laughing At The Trees [2000]

Self Evaluation

Time for a little bit of rock and roll. US country rockers, Digby, fit easily into my stereotypical perception of an all-American saloon bar; Light beer, whisky, Hell's Angels, bar fights and a run-down yet beautiful waitress who is trapped in a loveless marriage to the former quarterback of the high school football team. OK so that's my imagination working over time. 

'What's Not Plastic' is the first part in a trilogy of EPs entitled 'The Wake In The Street' and is the end product of a three year journey from Digby's first album. They certainly won't be winning any prizes for being the luckiest band in the industry as they have suffered divorce, the death and other similar demons. It has definitely been a period of 'Self-Evaluation' for the group and in light of all this they have still mentioned to pull off a half decent EP.

If I wasn't reviewing for W♥M, I'd probably never have consider listening to their EP. It feels like a commercial brand of americana in the vein of the Counting Crows et all. However I'd have been missing out on one or two hidden treats.

Digby don't put a foot wrong in terms of crafting their songs. The songwriting is solid and I loved the lines such 'I can't wait to sin again, sinning is more fun with friends'. 

Ultimately however, where they fail in this reviewer's mind, is they offer nothing unique to an already saturated market. As such this EP may not contribute much to your music library. Now this all sounds a little bit too critically for my liking so I have to confess over the course of a few listens I did grow fond of a few of their songs. The hooks and lines from 'Self-Evaluation' are catchy. I cannot promise they will last the month in my iTunes library as it is a competitive marketplace in there due to limited space on my hard drive but for the time being if one of their tracks pops up on a random shuffle, it won't be skipped.

Where I cannot fault the group is their use of technology. I feel nothing but joy when I discover a group is actually taking full advantage of the internet and all its potential. Digby are on myspace, iLike and youtube. They also maintain a fairly active blog. Searching through it, I found this rather decent cover of Radiohead's 'High and Dry'.

Oh yeah and the EP is part of the new wave of 'pay what you want' releases. That's right, if you are so inclined you can pick up a free copy from the band;s website. Although I am sure they'd appreciate a few pennies in the bank.

Talking of use of modern technology, apparently there is a crazy new website called Facebook.  Now if you are a fan of W♥M and a part of the facebook crowd then feel free to add us by following this link. It won't change your life but it will change your profile by adding a 'I am a fan of' section. Modern technology at its most pointless. Digby also have a Facebook profile so feel free to give them a poke. Join the revolution.
 

 November 14, 2007 12:54   Ryan my♥posts digbyonline.com

Music from troubled minds.

As it is World Mental Health Day (10th October), I thought I'd reflect on three of my favourite artists whose lives, if not music, have been marked by mental health problems.

Waiting Around To Die

Townes Van Zandt once said: "There are only two kinds of songs; there's the blues, and there's zip-a-dee-doo-dah."

Judge for yourself the type of music he played but heed my warning, these songs will not cure any form of depression. Townes Van Zandt rarely fails to satisfy those occasional country craving. He is considered by some to be one of the founding fathers of alternative country music.

Like many musical greats, Townes Van Zandt suffered from bi-polar disorder.

Unfortunately, he suffered from it at a time when modern medicine was less effective and electro shock was very trendy.

When I originally mention this on my personal blog somebody was quick to point out that electro shock therapy still has its place in certain treatments and can be effective.

 

Love Will Tear Us Apart (Peel Session)

A few months before I came into this world Joy Division's lead singer Ian Curtis left it. He suffered from epilepsy, mood swings and depression. On 18 May 1980, Ian Curtis hung himself.

The film Control directed by Anton Corbijn, a former photographer for NME, recently won the main prize at Scotland's Mental Health Arts and Film Festival (Amongst other film prizes). It is on my list of films to see once I escape from the cultural backwater known as Cumbria.

On the subject of his death, his daughter Nancy Curtis said:

People constantly ask, "Why did he kill himself?" To me it seems obvious - because he was really depressed.

If you get the chance, check out her full article about her father on The Guardian website.

Joy Division were responsible for one of my all-time favourite tracks, 'Love Will Tear Us Apart'. While doing a bit of background research I discovered this post over at My Old Kentucky. It is a comprehensive collection of Love Will Tear Us Apart covers. Definitely worth checking it out.
 

God Only Knows

Finally, another man with bi-polar and an inspiration to many contemporary artists, Daniel Johnston. I don't know if the Marmite debate exists in the USA. Daniel Johnson is the musically equivalent of Marmite. You either love him or hate him.

When I think of music by troubled minds, Daniel Johnston is the ultimate example. His songs take the listener on a tour around his own personal universe and back again.
 
Not to be out done by Ian Curits, there is an amazing independent film about Johnston. Again, I haven't seen it (Cultural backwater and all) but I have heard amazing things about it and the trailer below has sold it to me. Enjoy this cover of the Beach Boys classic, God Only Knows.
 

I'll conclude my mini-tour of music and mental health by plagiarizing a quotation and pointing out that one in four people will suffering from some sort of mental health problem during their lifetime, there are currently 24 people writing for We♥Music...

World Mental Health Day has been celebrated annually on 10 October since 1992. Every year a different theme is set by the World Federation for World Mental Health Day. The theme for 2007 is 'Mental health in a changing world: the impact of culture and diversity'.

(Mind)

 

 October 10, 2007 16:34  Ryan my♥posts BBC Mental Health

Vu wrote: Oct 10, 2007 6:32 PM

News: Joy Division Movie Trailer

http://weheartmus...

I watched the trailer and it's actually looks good (I'm very curious about that fight scene on co...

I just wanted to add this link - you can watch the Control trailer (it was previously pulled from bootube).

 

The Decemberists cancel the remainder of their European tour :(

 

Bridges And Balloons

The Decemberists

There are some bands this boy is fated never to see. It saddens me to add The Decemberists to that list. Another tour, another missed opportunity.

Having discovered that The Decemberist concert I was supposed to attend in Newcastle clashed with a vegan wedding in Germany, I clambered to get tickets for the Liverpool concert on 10th October 2007. Oh joy, oh joy! The tickets were available! Unfortunately, the band is not!

According to their website:

With much regret The Decemberists have cancelled the remainder of our European tour.  One of our band members is ill and needs to return immediately home to mend.

Our deepest apologies to all of our fans whom have purchased tickets to our forthcoming European shows. Unfortunately our calendar doesn't allow us to return to Europe at any point soon so please refund tickets at point of purchase.

It saddens us to disappoint our fans.  We hope everybody understands that it is because of an extreme situation that we had to make such an abrupt change in plans.

Human Behavior

The Decemberists

Obviously, the We♥Music team hopes the sickly band member gets well soon...and I am not bitter in the slightest. Never one to let the bad news win, I thought I'd use this as an excuse to post two covers by The Decemberists.

The first track appeared in The Believer (June 2005 Music Issue) magazine. It is a cover of Joanna Newsom's Bridges And Balloons. The rest of the cover CD contains similar covers by a variety of artists.

If anybody has a copy of that The Believer CD, please feel free to contact me on the email address below.

The second track is taken from an album entitled 'Interpreting Bjork' and is exactly that, an interpretation of Bjork's Human Behaviour from her album Debut.

Anyway, to the best of my knowledge the Decemberists will honour their US tour with Laura Veirs. If you check out their tour page, you'll notice an option by each date to add it to your gcal or ical. I may not be getting to see The Decemberists but the geek in me loves calendar options so I am happy now.

 

 October 8, 2007 03:55  Ryan my♥posts www.decemberists.com

Joanna Newsom @ The Royal Albert Hall

Albums Joanna Newsom and the Ys Street Band EP [2007] Ys [2006] The Milk-Eyed Mender [2004]

The Royal Albert Hall was made for Joanna Newsom. Forget anything you think you may know about it's official history.  It opened in 1871 and has played host to over 150,000 shows since then. But not one of them could compare to the show I witnessed on 28th August 2007.

I wasn't the only person to think it was a special show. Joanna proclaimed it to be one of the highlights of her musical career. This wasn't arrogance. I doubt she is capable of such things. No, her reason for enjoying the show was her chance to see Roy Harper perform his 1971 classic, Stormcocks from start to finish in his 45 minutes supporting set. Apparently she watched his full set from one of the boxes in the audience. I have to admit it was a highlight for me and was a fine compliment to her set that followed.

The whole event was opened by the Moore Brothers, Joanna's friends from California. Again, these boys did not disappoint and made their presence felt with their Simon and Garfunkel style harmonies and soft acoustic guitar. One guitar which was shared between the brothers throughout their set.

Nobody needs to hear me obsess about how wonderful I think Joanna Newsom is and how Ys was one of the greatest albums of 2006 and of the New Weird America movement. Her set list was a combination of her two albums and her recent EP, Joanna Newsom and the Ys Street Band EP.

Colleen

Joanna Newsom

It is always strange to hear Ms Newsom playing along with a band. The first time I heard her perform was a solo set at the Green Man Festival in 2005. Just one girl and her harp against a crowd of folksters. It was one of the few shows where I have insisted at being at the very front. However even with a full band behind her at the Royal Albert Hall, none of the magic was lost. In fact, it added to her performance.

What I will say is, from the moment Newsom started playing, the audience was captivated. In such a large hall, she appeared so small and yet you could literally see her music traveling through the hall and strike the faces of each audience member. Each note played perfectly and each song was met with a loud round of applause. Towards the end of the night, there were several standing ovations.

Easily the song most altered at her live performances is Inflammatory Writ. It was originally a piano piece, and possibly isn't as catchy when transfered to Newsom's instrument of choice, the harp. But it still retained it's charms.

The Moore Brothers reappeared to sing a Scottish folk song as part of a duet with Newsom before being sent away to grab Newsom's mobile so she could take a few photos of approximately 8,000 people in audience.

My biggest complaint about the whole event was my seat. I was in the arena, which technically sounded awesome when I rushed to order my ticket. However because the stage wasn't raised and Royal Albert Hall was fully seated, at times I had to swing my head back and forth against the flow of the sea of heads in front of me. But this is only a minor issue. In all honesty, I spent much of the performance with my eyes shut, caught up in the dreamscape of Newsom's lyrical creation.

Joanna Newsom - Inflammatory Writ

http://weheartmus...

This article is dedicated to Ryan♥M because he has limited internet access and I know he loves Jo...

With a few new songs on offer, Newsom had done all she could to ensure a good night was had by all. I doubt I'll ever see a performance so memorable as my night with Joanna at the Royal Albert Hall.

For more Newsom Goodness check out Vu's review back in July 2007, which I have just stumbled upon myself.

  October 01, 2007 01:08  Ryan my♥posts www.royalalberthall.com

Love Above All: Devendra Banhart

Uncut: Love Above All: 11 Tracks Compiled by Devendra Banhart 1. Jana Hunter - Vultures 2. Rodrigo Amarante - Diamond Eyes 3. Papercuts - Unavailable 4. Rio En Medio - Tiger's Ear 5. Kyle Tomzo - Bicycle 6. Matteah Baim - Wounded Whale 7. Feathers - Ulna 8. Hecuba - Peace and Money 9. Eliza Douglas - Shell 10. Noah Georgeson - Build & Work 11. Bert Jansch - Life Depends On Love

Uncut Magazine (Nov 2007)

Back in 2004, Acid-folk god Devendra Banhart compiled a collection of folk music for some magazine. Much like Nostradamus before him, he managed to predict some of the leading lights of modern folk music, freak folk, new weird america or whatever label you want to give it.

This collection was entitled The Golden Apples of the Sun. It featured artists like Antony and the Johnsons, Joanna Newsom and Vetiver.

Fast forward to 2007 and a similar feat is being attempted in Uncut magazine (November 2007 UK Edition). This time Banhart has opted to call the album "Love Above All"  and has selected some known friends like Bert Jansch and Feathers and some unknown friends who have yet to release a record.

 

Rejoicing In The Hands

Devendra Banhart

According to Uncut, the track list originally contained 39 tracks. I'd love to have seen that list. Anyway, it was edited down to 11 tracks (Boo). It is one of my favourite Uncut compilations since Hard Rain Volume One & Two ( A collection of Bob Dylan covers in the May 2002 UK Edition).

 

The magazine is currently available in the shops and if you are a fan of Devendra Banhart and the Golden Apples of the Sun then I recommend picking up a copy ASAP.

I've also included links to most of the artists on Love Above All. The only one missing is Kyle Tomzo, which is a shame because his song, Bicycle, is one of the best on the CD. I guess you'll just have to buy it to hear it...

 

 September 30, 2007 18:05   Ryan my♥posts Uncut.co.uk

Jack Penate live at Bestival, Isle of Wight - 07/09/07

Tour 21 Sep Northunmbria Uni, Newcastle 22 Sep Met Uni, Leeds 23 Sep Academy 2, Manchester 25 Sep Junction, Cambridge 26 Sep Astoria, London 28 Sep Garage, Glasgow 29 Sep Moshulu, Aberdeen 30 Oct Uni Foundry, Sheffield 02 Oct Waterfront, Norwich 03 Oct Central Station, Wrexham 04 Oct Pyramid Centre, Portsmouth 05 Oct Irish Centre, Birmingham 07 Oct Old Market, Brighton 08 Oct Trent Uni, Nottingham 09 Oct Lemon Grove, Exeter 10 Oct Anson Rooms, Bristol 11 Oct Carling Academy, Oxford 14 Oct The Sugarclub, Dublin 21 Oct Spring & Airbrake, Belfast

Crammed into the back of a small tent at one of the summer’s last music festivals, Jack Penate affirmed his successful arrival on the indie-pop music scene. The start of his set was greeted by a respectable sized crowd, but as he belted out one song after another, the hoards started to drift into the tent. Penate had pulled off an incredible feat: as the Beastie boys screamed unbearably down the microphones on Bestival’s mainstage, Penate’s energetic jumping-arounds worked an ever-growing crowd in the BBCintroducing… tent into frenzy.

 

By no means comparable to any of his previous gigs, Penate this time appeared much more confident and with an air of knowing why he was there. Almost entirely gone was the nervous schoolboy, and in his place was a performer who was beginning to believe in his own material. After a fantastic rendition of spit at stars, he nonchalantly suggested playing Torn on the platform to an already worked up audience. But before he allowed them their next song, he casually spoke to his fans: asked them how they were doing (fantastically); and, with voice slightly trembling, remarked how he couldn’t quite believe they had all deserted the headliner’s for him (“aren’t the Beastie Boys on stage now?”).

 

 

His uniquely seductive mix of arrogance and a sense of being slightly overwhelmed teased the audience who clearly didn’t want to be anywhere else. The start of Torn on the platform was greeted with cheers from throughout the tent and the queue that was steadily forming outside but even though it was past midnight and the crowd had spent all day dancing, there seemed no intention of going home.

 

On The Road

Jack Penate

 

 

Penate’s diffidence seemed to have a reverse effect on the crowd and as shoulders were mounted to get a better view, and sweat wiped from brows, the audience only demanded more from their star. The set was finished with the forthcoming single Second Minute or Hour and was performed to now a screaming sea of sweaty revellers.

 

Penate seems to have learnt exactly when his enviable energy is required but also when to remain absolutely quiet and let the naive musician in him reign. This will be the last time Penate is banished to the fringe tent: he has earned his place on the stage with the big boys of the music world. I only hope he can still exude charm performing to such a larger crowd.

 

 

 

Dominic Rampat lives in London and studies at the London School of Economics. This was his first time at Bestival but he recommends it to anyone with a penchant for nearly raw sausages, alcohol, sex, good music and sleeping in tents.

 

 September 16, 2007 2:10 PM   Dom my♥posts [email protected]   jackpenate.com