2011 Books

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A final look back on 2011 and some books published last year. It was ayear in which it seemed to take me forever to finish certain books, no matter how much I was enjoying them. In large part that was undoubtedly a time thing.

I don’t seem to have read that many books published in 2011 either but theres no question what my favourite book of the year was. ‘Reamde’ by Neal Stephenson may have been a thriller at its core but it was over 1,000 pages long and when you’re talking about Stephenson there’s a bit more going on than JUST a thriller.

In the case of ‘Reamde’ there’s plenty of commentary on today’s world as well as a little speculation about how a MMPO game might create wealth in the real world. Great character development too.

As with the case with musicians and their music, there are certain authors whose writing I just adore and Stephenson is one of these. Additionally ‘Reamde’ is  a novel that is never predictable as to its ultimate destination. [Buy it]

Scottish novels worthy of note include ‘Pack Men’ by Alan Bissett an examination of the male participants in one side of the sectarian divide. As ever with Bissett’s writing, his characters are superbly drawn and believable people you can emphasise with, even if you don’t necessarily share their point of view. [Buy it]

There were also a couple of cracking Scottish thrillers, Chris Brookmyre dropped a fair bit of the satire and produced the more serious than normal ‘Where The Bodies Are Buried’ [Buy it] whilst Doug Johnstone’s ‘Smokeheads’ is a thriller which has the rare attribute of keeping you in the dark as to who is going to survive to the book’s end. [Buy it]

The Scottish based Charles Stross is another writer whose books I can count on to enjoy – regardless of the type of book he’s writing. 2011’s ‘ near future SF ‘Rule 34’ continued his Edinburgh police procedurals a decade or so hence and offered a cracking story allied to the usual insights on our current (and future) society. [Buy it]

I also enjoyed Sam Leith’s ‘The Coincidence Engine’ which was based on a bizarre change of events generated, as the title suggests, by coincidence. Entertaining though the book undoubtedly is since the rationale justifies absolutely anything, there’s a danger that it becomes nothing more than a series of random events. Leith though manages to make it work. [Buy it]

On the non-fiction front, two big musical heroes released autobiographies this year.

Kristin Hersh’s ‘Paradoxical Undressing’ was published at the start of the year in the UK and is the non-fiction equivalent of ‘Reamde’ – such a powerful and well written book that you don’t have to be a Throwing Muses fan to appreciate the story of 1 year in the life of the teenage Kristin. [Buy it]

Bob Mould’s ‘See A Little Light’ by comparison was a more straightforward autobiography but undoubtedly with a real arc of character development from angry punk rocker to far more settled and comfortable in his own skin gay musician. [Buy it]

Happy New Year! Some live videos …

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Happy New Year to everyone out there.

As a wee follow-up to yesterday’s post about my live experiences in 2011 here are some songs from some of the gigs featured in the list (and one that didn’t quite make it):

Throwing Muses  – Oran Mor, Glasgow – 7th November

Wire – Liquid Room, Edinburgh – 17th November

Grant Hart  – Mono, Glasgow – 30th November

Edinburgh School for the Deaf – Grassmarket Festival, Edinburgh – Sunday 1st May

The Wedding Present – Greenside, Leslie – 28th December

2011 Live

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I kind of figured I’d gone to more live shows this year than last but am surprised to find that I’ve been to 41 (yes, FORTY ONE) gigs in 2011. In the course of that I’ve seen 105 performances to some extent and that doesn’t include the 9 acts I saw perform at Dylan Uncovered.

For all that I saw dozens of great performances, one stands out in particular – Live Band of the Year has to be Throwing Muses at the Oran Mor in November.

The best show is harder to pick but I’m going to stick my neck on the line by saying it was our own show at Dexter’s in September, featuring FOUND, Man Without Machines, Martin John Henry and Strangers Almanac.

As for the rest here’s a list of 12 based on the shows as a whole rather than individual performances (in reverse date order):

Grant Hart / Unknown – Mono, Glasgow – 30th November (review)

Wire / Talk Normal – Liquid Room, Edinburgh – 17th November (review)

Throwing Muses / Teitur – Oran Mor, Glasgow – 7th November (review)

Zoey van Goey / Kid Canaveral – Stereo, Glasgow – 1st October (review)

FOUND / Man Without Machines / Martin John Henry / The Strangers Almanac – Dexter’s, Dundee – 22nd September (review)

Cancel The Astronauts / My Tiny Robots / The Bad Books – Electric Circus, Edinburgh – Sunday 11th September (review)

Kid Canaveral – Avalanche Records, Edinburgh – 23rd July (review)

Meursault / Inspector Tapehead / Beerjacket – The Caves, Edinburgh and Edinburgh School for the Deaf / Young Spooks – Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh – Friday 17th June (actually this was 2 different shows but on the same night!) (review)

TV21 / Second Hand Marching Band / Edinburgh School for the Deaf – Grassmarket Festival, Edinburgh – Sunday 1st May (review)

Vic Godard and Subway Sect / Spectorbullets / Edinburgh School for the Deaf – Dexter’s, Dundee – 13th March (review)

Let’s Get Lyrical – A Lyrical Deathmatch – Cargo vs Chemikal Underground with Emma Pollock, Alan Bissett, Lord Cutglass, Doug Johnstone, Ryan van Winkle, Rodge Glass, Kirsten Innes and A.L. Kennedy – The Caves, Edinburgh – 27th February  (review)

Come On Gang! / Over The Wall / Cancel The Astronauts / Kid Canaveral / Hailey Beavis – Pilmuir St John’s Church, Leith – 12th February (review)

Concetrating on shows rather than performances  means that some bands who were brilliant are omitted from the list. Step forward – Vladimir, Birdhead, The Wedding Present, Malcolm Middleton, King Creosote, Ash, WWPJ and The Burns Unit.

Gig trivia

In 2011 I saw 13 acts perform more than once – in 2010 that number was 9.

The 13 acts were Kid Canaveral (6), Cancel The Astronauts (5), Edinburgh School for the Deaf (5), Martin John Henry (3), Zoey van Goey (3), Kristin Hersh (2 + Throwing Muses show), The Burns Unit (2), FOUND (2), Man Without Machines (2), We Were Promised Jetpacks / 7 Blind Wolves (2), Hookers for Jesus (2), King Creosote (2).

Most attended venue was Dexter’s in Dundee on 5 occasions whilst I went to 14 venues for the first time in 2011.

Geographically I went to shows in Edinburgh (18), Dundee (9), Glasgow (8), Glenrothes (2), Kirriemuir (1), Cupar (1), St Andrews (1), Leslie (1).

The biggest gap between shows was 24 days, ironically between gigs 1 (The Burns Unit at the Old Fruitmarket) and 2 (Dylan Uncovered at the Voodoo Rooms). But I went to shows on consecutive nights no fewer than 3 times.

For the first time I went to 2 different shows on the same night (at the same time!). I also saw gigs in an art gallery, a bakery, a record shop and a castle.

At Long Last – Vladimir live

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Vladimir / Cha Cha Heels / King Louie / Blindfolds / Whigs and Rakes – Doghouse, Dundee – 29th December 2011

So last night, finally, I got to see Vladimir play live. After their excellent debut EP earlier in the year, I’ve passed on several chances to see them for different reasons. But that was put to rights last night as they played at the top of a five band bill at the Doghouse.

Let’s do the bill first. Opening the show were Perth 3 piece Whigs and Rakes who certainly made more of a racket than their fresh faced appearances might have suggested. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are perhaps a reasonable comparison but over their half a dozen songs W&R showed up well. So well in fact that the LP was swiftly purchased.

Next up were Blindfolds, an intense four piece rock band with attitude to spare not least a leather jacketed singer malevolently pacing the stage and a guitarist making all the right rock moves. The first half of the set was essentially evil glam with the rhythm section and guitar often pounding away in unison whilst the second half was a heavier, evil blues. Intense.

Although they also claimed at one point to be evil and also owed a lot to the blues, King Louie were much more like fun by comparison particularly with a quirky final number. Mainly guitar, bass and drums (although the bassist only joined the other two after the first song), they were very much in a White Stripes vein.

Having been preceded by three rock bands (with a fourth to follow them) I wasn’t at all prepared for Cha Cha Heels to be an out and out pop band opening and closing with covers (‘Blondie’s ‘Call Me’ and the B-52s ‘Love Shack’ respectively).

They certainly put on a show (see pic) and had one audience member in particular bopping around before prostrating himself at the front of the stage – shirtless. A highly enjoyable set which, by being something completely different, probably heightened the impact of the headliners.

If Blindfolds were intense then Vladimir were REALLY Fucking Intense. The nearest comparison I can think of is early Twilight Sad but how these four guys produce such an all encompassing noise is bewildering. In fact you’re almost tempted to think there’s 2 additional guitarists still playing in the dressing-room.

At the centre of it all singer Ross looks entirely relaxed at the centre of an extraordinary maelstrom, pacing the stage slowly but taking everything in around him. Drummer Sam is the only other member to be lit on stage as he batters away on his kit but a lot of the credit for the wall of noise has to go to largely unseen wingmen Peter and Joshua on guitar and bass respectively.

If the main part of the set was intense then the closing ‘Mellow’ took things to a new level of brutality amidst a flurry of strobe lights. As far as I could make out all members of Blindfolds and a couple of audience members ended up on stage whilst Ross took to the crowd, followed before the end of the song by the two drummers.

Last night demonstrated that the best way to experience Vladimir’s punishing noise attack is undoubtedly at a live show and it was great to finally find that out in person.

Headlining the Doghouse also seemed a decent way to cap a year that has seen them  come from nowhere to being a band that’s creating quite a stir. 2012, it seems, is set up perfectly for them.

Photos here.

Don’t Come Crying To Me – The Wedding Present live

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The Wedding Present – Greenside Hotel, Leslie – 28th December 2011

Last night was a rare outing to see a band I don’t know very much about despite their longevity.

For whatever reason, the Wedding Present have never loomed large on the MPT radar and I’m fairly sure the only LP I own, ‘Bizarro’, was picked up in a sale. But they’ve still been a band that I’ve had some time for so the geographical proximity of this show, coupled with the fact that it came at a good time made it quite attractive.

The show was also a chance to check out the Greenside, a fairly local venue which has sometimes had interesting bands on but never quite at the right times for me to catch. It turns out to be roughly 150 capacity with a proper venue layout rather than the hotel ballroom I’d been kind of expecting.

Despite the show being a sell-out there still feels that there’s plenty of room at the show, even when some ageing (and large) fans decide to pogo like it’s 1987 towards the end.

My overwhelming impression of the Wedding Present is of the earlier material that sounds like hyper early Orange Juice. So when the first three songs seem cut from that cloth, I briefly wonder if that’s been the extent of 25 years development.

Of course, that’s nonsense and over the course of 80 minutes or so Gedge and co delivered an excellent and varied set, of which I’m familiar with only around a third, if that. So yeah, the early singles that I recognise (‘Favourite Dress’, ‘You Should Always Keep In Touch With Your Friends’, ‘Don’t Talk, Just Kiss’) are great but there are also plenty of other tunes that are just as good. No idea what they’re called but a couple at least sounded like they might have been from the new LP due out in March.

I do rarely have the time to go and see bands on spec but this one turned out to be well worth the (minimal) effort.

Support came from Tomas Bird and The Blonde Spirit. Didn’t know quite what to make of them, they ended up sounding quite bluesy. Their Myspace talks of folk/psychedelic, could hear the latter, particularly earlier in the set whilst one song did sound quite anthemic/folk as well. Their debut single is free from their Bandcamp if you want to check it out.

MPT LPs of the Year – 1-10

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So here it is – MPT’s Favourite 10 LPs of the past 12 months.

In truth, it’s a surprising list for me. At the start of the year, I would have expected Martin John Henry and We Were Promised Jetpacks to make the Top 10 at the start of the year but I genuinely don’t think I would have predicted any of the other 8 records, apart from, perhaps, FOUND.

And as suggested yesterday, I think it’s the strongest Top 10 in the blog’s lifetime. The fact that a lot of it is surprising seems to me to be the point.

10. King Post Kitsch – The Party’s Over [Buy it]

The ‘Honeytone’ EP suggested ‘The Party’s Over’ would be a garage rock record and whilst there’s a degree of lo-fi on display TPO is a far more varied beast than I expected. Eels seem a definite influence but KPK have more strings to their bow than that.

9. Edinburgh School for the Deaf – New Youth Bible [Buy it]

Quite probably the record that taps into my past experience the most, namely the Sonic Youth/Mary Chain/shoegaze triangle. But ESFTD have found their own take on that era unlike some contemporaries who might make good records but do so without a shred of originality. (Yes, Ringo Deathstarr, I’m looking at you.) Still think ‘Orpheus Descending’ should have been on NYB though.

8. We Were Promised Jetpacks – In The Pit of the Stomach [Buy it]

Heavier, louder and brasher than before, ‘Pit’ is an odd listen as I’m usually anxious to get to “Side 2″ as the weaker songs on the record were put on “Side 1″. Which detracts a bit from a record that saw WWPJ push their envelope further than ever before.

7. Bill Wells and Aidan Moffat – Everything’s Getting Older [Buy it]

I can see why this would be Number 1 in the BAMS poll but there’s something holds me back from unreservedly loving EGO. It’s not the fact that it’s something of a departure for MPT (it is) but that a couple of the tunes are a little … unremarkable. Which is a pity because most of the record is magnificent.

6. Come On Gang! – Strike A Match [Buy it]

They came, they saw…  they split up. But ‘Strike A Match’ was a worthy legacy. At its musical heart, something akin to power pop, but lent an extra dimension by Sarah’s almost folky voice and intricate melodies. Gone before their time.

5. The Paradise Motel – I Still Hear Your Voice At Night [Buy it]

The real wildcard in the Top 10 and entirely down to needing to spend an emusic credit. I only discovered the band had reformed at the same time but ‘ISHYVAN’ was a great discovery. Sad and elegiac, ISHYVAN is a beautiful record which I always think is going to run out of steam in its second half. Believe me, it never does.

4. Mogwai – Hardcore Will Never Die But You Will [Buy it]

For some reason, even though they sound like they should very much be my sort of thing, Mogwai have never clicked with me before. But ‘Hardcore’ was everything I ever expected them to be. Post-rock, a bit more dancey stuff it may be getting old for long term devotees (or not) but coming in so late means that, for me, it’s a very fresh record. And very strong throughout.

3. Wire – Red Barked Tree [Buy it]

I’ve clearly been missing out on Wire over the last (gulp) 30 years or so but in the course of the last 12 months I’ve become slightly obsessed with catching up with their recorded output. Perhaps not such a shock to long term fans but for me ‘Red Barked Tree’ is a very fine record indeed which seems to distil different phases of their career into one great album.

2. FOUND – factorycraft [Buy it]

I was curious as to how ‘factorycraft’ was going to sound but even seeing them live three times in 2010 didn’t prepare me for just how good this is. It’s been described as ‘indie rock’ in some quarters but that’s surely only by comparison to their previous records.  Seamlessly incorporates the electronic elements of their sound into a new direct and streamlined approach. Stunning.

1. Martin John Henry – The Other Half of Everything [Buy it]

I know how this looks, but this wasn’t the foregone conclusion that you probably think. In fact halfway through the year, I’d have probably bet against this coming out top of the heap. But ‘The Other Half …’ is the best thing that Martin’s done and to be top of this list it needed to be. But he’s taken his previous electronic, folk and rock influences and  made a cleaner, sounding, more accessible, yet at the same time, more  powerful record.