Athens66: 6/1/09

The Longcut Open their Hearts

Longcut are a post/punk band (with heavy elements of prog-rock) from Manchester. They released their debut A Call and Response back in 2006 (after two EPs and a couple of years playing live around Manchester) and recently announced their comeback. Their new album is already available for download but will officially be released on October 5th on Deltasonic label.

The Longcut - Something Inside

Upon a few listens to the album I must say I’m neither cold or hot about it. The music is definitely interesting and drifts between classic prog-rock and indie-rock. Some tracks are purely instrumental while others are backed up by Stuart Ogilvie’s (limited however) vocals. The whole album is definitely enjoyable, what it lacks though is that extra something that would make it stand out. It seems that the genre they have chosen is left somewhere in the middle. It’s not classic prog-rock neither is it purely indie-rock. The melodies are quite catchy and rich at times (although not the most original) but Stuart’s vocals lack the power and identity to make Longcut stand out from the crowd. The lads from Manchester still have a long way before they are able to make a name for themselves...but you never know.

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Reverie Sound Revue finally Out for Review!

Reverie Sound Revue are a unique case in the indie scene. The band from Calgary (Canada…what else?) released an EP back in 2003 which quickly became very popular on the radio and the alternative scene. However, instead of moving forward, the band quickly decided to call it a day in 2004. Lead singer Lisa Lobsinger continued singing as the female voice of Broken Social Scene, while the rest of the band members endured their own musical journeys. Fortunately for all of us, they decided to get back together and just released (June 23rd) their self-titled debut.

Reverie Sound Revue - Arrows

Their debut continues exactly where their EP abruptly stopped. Catchy tunes, melodic pop and endless reverb embraced by Lisa’s haunting voice. The closest match to their sound is probably Stereolab at their best (although the comparison may be too much for Reverie). The album sounds like a fresh explosion of melodies that makes you want to foolishly sing along. Each listen to the album is a journey that you just want to take again and again. Finally…Canada came to the rescue again!

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Rockwave Festival 2009....Screw you Guys!!

What else can you say about Didi Music and Rockwave Festival 2009? Already 18:00 o'clock and no official announcement what-so-ever for today's show...What are they waiting?? The glory of Greek festivals...Only one thing left to say (and do)...Screw you guys, I'm going home!

Berlin Brides Failing to Wank

Natasha and Marilena met on a warm day in July 2007 on a rehearsal for another project.Natasha and Marilena formed Berlin Brides back in September of 2007 and have been on the work ever since. They are one of the few promising new Greek bands in an (hopefully but probably not) upcoming scene. Their music is pure electro fun and , to me, can be compared to the likes of Cobra Killer (or more known bands like Peaches and Chicks on Speeds). A mix of keyboards, electro beats and careless lyrics make for an interesting and cool experience.

Berlin Brides - Failure to Wank

The girls informed us yesterday that they are currently in the studio recording new material and preparing their debut album (expected to come out sometime in Autumn). In the meanwhile, download their debut EP titled Failure to Wank. Go right ahead..it's worth it!

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The King is Dead

"NEW YORK, NY – June 25, 2009 – Michael Jackson, one of the most widely beloved entertainers and profoundly influential artists of all-time, leaves an indelible imprint on popular music and culture." This is the opening statement from Sony posted on the official page of Michael Jackson. According to media sources. he was pronounced dead today at 2.26pm local L.A. time due to heart failure at the age of 50.

Michael may have turned out to be one of the wierdest artists of all time with numerous allegations and rumours regarding his skin and his "affection" for children, but all this aside, he still remained the King of Pop and ruled the 80's with his all-time record selling albums Thriller and Bad. Nomatter what your taste in music, you just have to repsect Michael's achievements. For those that only see a multi-talented artist gone rotten, we simply prefer to remember Michael as the King of Pop. Farewell to the King!

PS. This is the 18-minute short-film/video of Bad written by novelist and screenwriter Richard Price and directed by Martin Scorsese. This was the golden age for music videos and MTV...

Portugal the Man is a real Satanic Satanist

I was first drawn into Portugal the Man due to their name. I quickly however became a fan of them due to their clear indie sound, solid music and pure rock voice ofJohn Gourley. Their music style seems to be progressing every year with the release of new material. After their debut Waiter: You Vultures! in 2006 and my favorite follow-up in 2007 Church Mouth, last year’s 3rd album Censored Colors was a bit more subtle but better produced (reaching my Top 100 list). Keeping consistent, they are now releasing their 4th album on July 21st on Equal Vision label titled The Satanic Satanist.

Portugal the Man - People Say

So how much have Portugal changed on this 4th consecutive outtake? To me, they made the final leap into making it big ; it’s now or never I guess. Their sound once again progressed and is much lighter than on Church Mouth but with more essence. They have shifted into a more pop/folk territory, within reason of course. Similarities to Yeasayer may be made at some points on the record but in general the album retains the rock kick we’ve been accustomed by Portugal. I’ve given the album numerous spins and I like it more and more each time. Everything seems to come together this time and it seems Portugal finally found the right chemistry (that was evident in all their material but always lacked the extra punch for making them big).All that’s missing now is to catch them on stage!

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Tortoise serve some Beacons Of Ancestorship

Since the early 90’s, Tortoise have produced some of the finest albums in prog-rock and experimental scene, including my favorite Millions Now Living Will Never Die back in 1996.. After a 5-year absent (excluding their previous album The Brave and the Bold which was a collaboration with Bonnie ‘Prince’Billy), they are back with their 6th album titled Beacon of Ancestorship (out on Thrill Jockey label on June 23rd).

Tortoise - High Class Slim Came Floatin' In

So what do these old rockers have to offer after 15 years on the prog-rock scene? Lots more experimentation I guess. The album is a mix of almost any genre you might think of, from rock to reggae and punk to rumba. The real question here is if it all works? A lot of dedicated Tortoise fans might not agree with me, but I find this latest album too experimental for my taste. The guys are mixing way too many tunes and rhythms in each track, constantly changing the tempo and ending each trip abruptly. Perhaps this is my biggest let-down; just when you start to sink into each track, Tortoise have chosen to move you forward into the next one without allowing you the pleasure of drifting along their sound. Or perhaps I missed the old Tortoise sound..who knows..it just didn’t work for me this time.

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Cheap Science is Making my Name

I'm trying to give a listen to a number of new records (including Mum and Ape School amongst them) at the moment, but until I find proper time to hear them out and post a couple of reviews, here's a greek tune by Rodes' front man Nikitas Klint (aka Cheap Science). True fun...old school style!

Summer wait for Mad Men

Is there a better show out there at the moment than the highly addictive Mad Men? Solid characters from Matthew Weiner and an amazing cast in the beautiful settings of downtown Manhattan in the 60's. I'm eagerly awaiting for the new season...August 1961 ain't that far away is it now?

Aceyalone & RJD2 - A Beautiful Mine

EJEKT festival Day 1 (and only)

Another year, another Ejekt festival at the south of Athens. The venue and organization of the festival was quite good this year. If only there was a bit more audience attending (but the lack of a rock audience in Athens is a big issues which I'm not going to touch).

It all started off with White Lies on stage. I missed the first few songs (including my favorite Fairwell to the Fairground) but managed to enjoy the next few ones. They didn't quite excite me but they weren't half bad either. I guess they just need a couple more years (and another record) before we can see what these guys are really made of (they still annoyingly young!).

Next up were Starsailor. I'm not a big fan of them and they are not really the band to set the crowd on fire. With the exception of a couple of their older hits, they mostly filled the spot till the next band with some enjoyable background music.

Next up were the highlight of the night (for me), the Editors. They started off with some new material (they actually played quite a number of new songs from their upcoming third album In This Light And On This Evening), which is definitely different from their previous two albums but I must admit I quite liked them. They switched to a more synth/electro sound with obvious influences ranging from Joy Division to Depeche Mode. Of' course, they included their usual hits like my favorite Smokers outside Hospital Doors. This band really knows how to rock the house and were really appreciated by the audience.

Finally, the night ended with the legendary Pixies. I'll be honest, I only saw the first 30-40 minutes of their show in order to avoid the exit traffic. They gave a solid professional performance but lacked any real edge. I guess that's the real problem with bands like Pixies. If you didn't catch them on stage while they were dominating the indie scene back in the 90's, I guess you only see half of their glory. All in all, the first day of Ejekt wasn't bad but didn't offer anything spectacular (especially for its quite pricy ticket). Count me out for today's second day...

PS. I didn't bother taking too many pictures or any videos..so I just posted some I found from other fellow youtubers..

EJEKTing Tonight!

Well..due to unforseen factors, we didn't make it to Monika's live yesterday. Hopefully we'll at least make it to today's first day of Ejekt Festival. Legendary Pixies are headlining and along with them we'll catch Starsailor as well. But the other two bands are the ones that we're really going for. First of all, Editors, who are one of my favorite bands and quite good on stage (seen them 2 years ago back in Germany).

The other one is the new and up and coming White Lies. Their debut album quickly became a big success and they have been stuck on my playlist the last couple of days (especially Farewell to the Fairground). Hope to see ya all there!

Gossip present Music for Men

Gossip are one of those punk/dance groups that we came to love during the endless cocktails downtown at Pop. They have always mixed punk and dance elements in a combination that urged you to foolishly jump around and sing/shout along with them. Backed up from the gay and lesbian community and a highly successful third album Standing in the Way of Control in 2006, their new release Music for Men (out on Columbia records on June 23th) was more than simply anticipated.

~~The Gossip - Dimestore Diamond~~

Music for Men follows and builds on the disco elements of their previous album. To be more precise, it focuses more on the dance/disco elements rather than their punk past. It starts off with a really good base line on Dimestore Diamond and quickly builds pace with full dance beats and Beth’s diva vocals clearly standing out. I’m guessing most of the songs will quickly become popular even in mainstream bars (as opposed to their previous indie and targets) but the downside to all this is that they’re probably easily become forgettable. All in all, an enjoyable and fun album, which will hardly stand out after a while. Nevertheless, it ain't over 'till the fat lady sings…so we’re expecting to see how this might progress in the future.

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PS. Re-posted without MP3 track due to Blogger DMCA shit..

Monika Night

Our favorite greek singer/songwriter Monika is playing tonight at Theatro Vraxwn around 21.30. Hopefully we'll be there this time. See ya!

Pains of Being Pure at Heart @ Gagarin (inc. Flakes)

So we finally made it downtown for yesterday's live by PBPH. Before the "main event" however, there were 2 supports to be "served". First up were Flakes, an indie punk/rock/pop band from Patra (and a touch of UK). To be honest, we were happily surprised by their energy and sound on stage. Their music is clearly following the leads of Arctic Monkey and other british indie rock/punk-ish bands that emerged the past few years. Nevertheless, they really did make us jump around a bit and were more than enjoyable to catch live (sample song from their debut album below).

Next up were a pure greek band called Common Sense. This was by far one of the worst things I've heard in my life. Uninspiring, uninteresting and completely out of place with the crowd under them. They almost made us leave the venue! Who the hell booked them as an opener to PBPH???

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Young Adult Friction

(Song hosted at Unnecessary Umlaut)

After around 50 minutes of suffering, they finally decided to do as the favor and leave the stage for the Pains of Being Pure at Heart! The band from NY was just amazing on stage. They "served" one hit after the other with everyone in the venue dancing and jumping around (or at least everyone around us). They played all their songs (after 2 encores they didn't have any more songs left to play...) and really gave a stunning end to their latest tour. These are the kind of bands we all want to see coming to Athens...fresh and at their peak...unlike most of the old fecking rockers that end up here. This was one Pain we'd love to feel again and again!

The Pains of Catching Pure at Heart Live!

After rumours of cancellation (which has become the standard way here in Athens lately), we're all set for tonight's gig from one of our favorite new bands here in Athens66...The Pains of Being Pure at Heart tonight at Gagarin around 21:00 (or most likely on stage around 23:00). See ya there!

Yeap..I am a Vampire

After seeing Juno once more (don't ask why...) I have to admit I love it more and more (and especially the music). I'm still laughing out loud with "they're yellow" and singing to Polisar's intro song and Antsy Pants' Vampire (yes..I'm a Vampire too). Add Cat Power, Belle and the feel-good ending and you got a charming deal!

A Moutful of Dø...A Year too Late

The Dø are pop duo from France and Finland (Dan Levy from Paris and Olivia Bouyssou Merilahti Helsinki). Their debut album A Mouthful was released like year and we somehow missed it.

The Dø - Tammie

Their debut mixes different styles from folk to rap to pure pop. I have to admit that in some songs this mix sounds a bit too strange. I personally prefer their folk and pure pop melodies, which highlight Olivia's sweet voice (any resemblance to Nina Person is purely coincidental!). Their single On my Shoulders is however a lovely tune that shows potential to an otherwise good effort.

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Pony Pony Run Run...Yeah Yeah!

Long time since the last Clip of the Day. This is such a lovely summer tune and video..with all its 80's glory and beats. The new album from Pony Pony Run Run is already out in digital format and is suprisingly interesting. This clip is from their single Hey You. Check it out.

Off to Hardcore beach

Once again..we are off to find the Hardcore beach!!! See you all when we get back and promise for more consistent posting...or at least an effort to finally find some new music worth our time.

Arthur and Martha Navigate us back to C86

Arthur and Martha are synth/pop duo from Leeds/London. Their real names are actually Adam and Alice (god knows why they changed them...but all indie bands need to have some wierd story behind them) and their music sounds (as Guardian posted it) like a new take on C86. Sweet melodies are combined with twee lyrics to make up a cheerful debut. Navigation will be available on the 29th of June on Happy Robots label. What can I say...I can't resist a twee meoldy..

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Our Dark Night Of The Soul

This is perhaps the project of the year. Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse have combined forces along with cult (and beloved) director David Lynch in a dark, mystical and alluring album. Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse provide the melodies, a set of guest artists the vocals and Davil Lycnh the 100+ page artwork, which will be exhibited in the Michael Kohn Gallery in LA.

Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse - The Man Who Played God (feat. Nina Persson)

Amongst the guest vocal in the album you can find James Mercer of The Shins, The Flaming Lips, Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals, Jason Lytle of Grandaddy, Julian Casablancas of The Strokes, Frank Black of the Pixies, Iggy Pop, Nina Persson of The Cardigans, Suzanne Vega, Vic Chesnutt, David Lynch, and Scott Spillane of Neutral Milk Hotel. Quite an impressive list for a more than impressive album. You can order the book online, although it is currently shipped with a blank CD (due to legal dispute of Danger Mouse and EMI label). However, you can stream the whole album for free from here!

Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse - Pain (feat. Iggy Pop)

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Jarvis rocking Primavera

A small take from Jarvis Cocker's performance from this year's Primavera festival. Hopefully BLR will provide more videos, pics and comments since he was our representative there (no festivals for me this year).