Sound InPhotos: Summer Camp, PINS and KHUSHI @ The Social

Huw Stephens hosts a monthly night at Oxford Circus' The Social. Situated in the northern outreaches of Soho; the likes of Gaggle, Goldheart Assembly and Chet Faker have all played the Radio One DJ's night in the underground venue of >200.
Announcing the 'Special Guests' as Summer Camp just a few hours before the show guaranteed a show that also featured Bella Union girl-group PINS and opening music from the wonderful KHUSHI; Braden was on hand with a camera to capture the event. Here's the results.




Braden Fletcher

Leefest 2012 - Preview

South East London is a musical black hole. It’s close enough to the rest of London to go there for gigs and events, but the area itself is barren of any noteworthy acts (except for maybe Squeeze, but, y’know). This weekend however, for the sixth year running, it’s LeeFest!

In 2006, a bunch of teens fulfilled an age-old adolescent fantasy and held an impromptu festival at their house after one’s parents had gone on holiday. The story of the inaugural Leefest is a testament to teenage ingenuity and heroic compromises, from bribing a school caretaker with beer in exchange for a stage to pulling said stage for a mile in a bunch of stolen shopping trollies. Since then the organisation’s been upped but the basic premise remains: an unpretentious festival that chooses not to overthink itself or burden itself with gimmicks.

Though this mentality could easily lead to it all collapsing in a pile of wanky worthiness and dire up and comers, the organisers have made the intelligent decision to go with bands that come with both credibility and hefty presence.

 
Mystery Jets headline this year, along with Slow Club and Ghostpoet. Further down the line up lurk gems like Casiokids, whose skittery electro-pop has been cruelly missing from UK festivals for years, or Sound Influx faves Summer Camp, who’ll hopefully bring along new material as well as big hitters from their still-great debut.

The biggest surprise is Raf Daddy (better known as the non-Hot Chip half of 2 Bears), who is set to play a dj set that looks likely to contain the kind of garage, 2-step and soul that’s currently leading the way in reshaping the UK’s pop landscape. With more acts still to be announced and the cost of bigger festivals soaring, Leefest is looking likely to be the underdog of this festival season.

Find out more here on the official website

Ned Powley

Summer Camp - Life

‘Life’ is the first track of Summer Camp’s forthcoming EP ‘Always’. Following their debut album ‘Welcome to Condale’, ‘Life’ is a contrast to the generally upbeat indie pop of the duo, more brooding and dark. Elizabeth Sankey’s voice is easily one of the best in indie music at the moment; strong and detached in a rather chilling way, before the beat kicks in and we return to more traditional Summer Camp territory. If ‘Life’ is anything to go by, Summer Camp are just getting better and better, and their new material is going to be a treat. 

Jessy Parker

Sound Influx: Tracks of 2011 - 30-11

30. Friends - I'm His Girl

 

29. Metronomy - Everything Goes My Way

28. Cold Cave - The Great Pan Is Dead

27. Kindness - Cyan

26. Bon Iver - Holocene

25. The Death Set - Can You See Straight?

24. The Throne - Murder To Excellence

23. Das Racist - Girl

22. Gross Magic - Sweetest Touch

21. Slow Club - Two Cousins

20. Yuck - Operation

19. Austra - The Beat and the Pulse

18. Patrick Wolf - The City

17. Summer Camp - I Want You

16. Gil Scott Heron & Jamie XX - NY Is Killing Me

15. St. Vincent - Cruel

14. Death Grips - Guillotine 

13. Girls - Vomit

12. Battles - Futura

11. Wild Beasts - Bed Of Nails

Sound Influx - Albums of 2011 Part 1: 20 - 11

20. Summer Camp - Welcome To Condale

For two people who started off anonymously and claimed to be a group of Swedish teenagers, Summer Camp have come a long way. After releasing their debut EP Young late last year, the internet went berserk for comparing the band to 80s teenage movies and similar popular culture references. Who could blame them with song titles like ‘Veronica Sawyer’ and ‘Jake Ryan’ that directly reference cult films Heathers and Sixteen Candles. Welcome To Condale sees the duo ease up slightly on references and brings forth a concept album based on the fictional place of Condale, based in America and you guessed it, its set in the 80s. Elizabeth Sankey sings about getting rid of whoever it is she’s singing about for a large part of the album and there’s a fiery independence in Sankey as she’s not afraid to voice her true opinions. As with any couple who happen to form a band, there’s a song that showcases both of their musical talents and makes you audibly ‘aw’ and that happens to be ‘Losing My Mind’. Despite singing about leaving the other and not loving someone anymore, Sankey and Warmsley manage to sound like they’re talking about being loved up and in general, it’s hard to not to fall for the charms of a girl/boy duo. For an album that focuses on the comedown of relationships and unrequited love, Welcome To Condale remains to be incredulously catchy and hard to ignore. By Aurora Mitchell

19. The Weeknd - House Of Balloons / Thursday

Sleazy, heartfelt, heartbroken and euphoric; The Weeknd’s recorded output thus far has been a myriad web of clashing styles and grand ambitions. Abel Tesfaye’s damaged slow jams became a word of mouth sensation and provided the platform from which he could preach his bad-vibes sermons. Veering from heartbroken to creepy in the space of one track like on the claustrophobically intense "What You Need" or crooning terrifying come-ons over a fucked-up carnival waltz on "Life of The Party", Tesfaye taps into the stereotypical male hip-hop mindset and gets busy messing it right up. The albums (they’re referred to as mixtapes, but it’s obvious from the quality of the material that these are fully fledged albums) can be seen as hugely evocative mood pieces, two slow burning beasts that invite casual enjoyment and reward repeated listening. But they also exist as reminders that the boundaries between hip-hop, dubstep and mainstream pop can be blurred with relative ease, and that when they are, the results are simply gorgeous. By Ned Powley

18. Iceage - New Brigade

Punk is a genre easily abused. Its lack of grace can be used as a mask by artists without vision or talent, who see it as a shortcut through the complexities of functioning as a band in this day and age. Iceage are, from the outset, punk as fuck. Their debut lasts a breathless 24 minutes in length, previous live shows have seen frontman Elias Bender Ronnenfelt taking every precaution to cause maximum damage to both himself and every audience member present and they publish a fanzine, titled "Dog Meat". All of this could be seen a smoke screen. A diversion to draw people’s ears as far away as possible from the only thing that really matters: the songs. So thank the lord that Iceage can bring them on an unparalleled level. There have been punk bands before them and there will be punk bands long after they’ve gone, but Iceage have got something special. Maybe it’s meant to last or maybe it’ll all disappear in a pool of beer and a puff of off-brand fag smoke, but right now, they’re the most exciting young bastards on the planet. By Ned Powley

17. Johnny Foreigner - Johnny Foreigner Vs Everything

It’s difficult for me to summarise an album that is 17 tracks long and amazing from start to finish. Johnny Foreigner have proved that you can do quantity and quality in equal measure and execute something incredible. It’s been thrown around that it’s the album to "make them or break them" and if this album does not make them, then nothing will. From the heart breaking sounds "new street, you can take it" to the shout along lyrics of "if i’m the most famous boy you’ve fucked, then honey yr in trouble" this album has proved to be a masterpiece and it cannot be faulted. If you’ve never listened to Johnny Foreigner before, then there’s no doubt about it that "Johnny Foreigner vs Everything" will make you fall in love with one of the most dedicated, fan loving bands in the world. By Julia Christmas

16. Suuns - Zeroes QC



In an age where lines between genres are becoming increasingly blurred, it’s becoming more and more difficult for artists to well and truly break new ground. Trawling through the thousands of new bands out there making the same kind of lo-fi boring shoegaze influenced music often leads to nothing but apathy and the general feeling of wanting to smash your face into your keyboard. Imagine my elation then when I discovered Suuns, a Canadian band who make the kind of music that you daren’t put in a box. There’s no doubting that Suuns are peculiar, and are by no means an instant band for many. ‘Zeroes QC’ however is a collection of songs so broad in sound yet so distinctive it’s impossible not to get sucked into it. There’s the borderline incomprehensible mumbles on tracks like ‘Up past the nursery’ and ‘Arena’ that sounds like Clinic stuck in a washing machine. There’s mutated synth noise blasts like ‘Armed In Peace’ and ‘Pie IX’ the latter sounding exactly like what David Lynch’s Crazy Clown Time should have, unpredictable, haunting and very very weird. And if that wasn’t diverse enough there are furious math rock guitar anthems like ‘Maurader’ and ‘Gaze’ to quicken the pulse, and even a choice cover of lost Marc Bolan relic ‘Organ Blues’. A truly astounding album, from one of the most promising and perhaps overlooked bands around. By Toby McCarron

15. James Blake - James Blake

Whilst it appears likely that dubstep, a genre that felt like it could genuinely go in any direction and even reshape the face of pop as we know it, has been sabotaged by dreadlocked frat-boy cretins intent on creating music of such bludgeoning stupidity that even nu-metal bastards Korn have adopted it. James Blake’s debut appears to be one of the final reminders we’ll have of this era, so thank god it’s a thing of tremendous beauty. From the atmospheric overload of ‘The Wilhelm Scream’ through to jerky ballads like ‘To Care (Like You)’, Blake showcased technical proficiency and heart in equal measure, crafting an album that defied genre conventions whilst testing the very limits of pop. Treasure it, because we sure aren’t going to see a record like it for a very long time. By Ned Powley

14. Drake - Take Care

 In 2011, Drake returned to the scene with second album ‘Take Care’ and within moments of opening track 'Over My Dead Body', you knew he meant business. Lyrically, Drake has upped his game with the majority of the album centred around a past love that he's tried to replace by getting with many other women. Classy Drake. However, amongst the seedy bravado, a very personal and intimate side of the Toronto rapper comes out. This, coupled with production duties being mainly left to Noah "40" Shebib, brings out the best of the ex-child actor and helps the album one of the standout rap albums of the year. Stand out tracks include the Jamie xx produced title track and 'Marvin's Room', Drake's answer to the drunken phone call. However, with "bitches" and "niggers" still in heavy use, it's not the perfect album for the indie section to wilfully sing along to. By Robbie Baxendale

13. Florence & The Machine - Ceremonials

Florence + the Machine seemed to go from the darling of the UK indie scene to sensational superstar taking America by storm overnight. So it was understandable that fans might have been worried that Florence would go all commerical on us with her second album, Ceremonials. But we needn't have. Ceremonials is one of the most grandiose records you will have heard all year, complete with gospel choirs, strings and of course harps. Despite all this, it is still undeniably Florence, proving that she still has one of the biggest voices in the entire industry while at the same time writing songs which connect emotionally. It's more mature than Lungs, but no less brilliant. By Jessy Parker

12. Arctic Monkeys - Suck It & See

After the controversial release of ‘Humbug,’ it left fans and critics alike wondering where on earth Arctic Monkeys’ sound could go to next. Would they retreat back to the recording studio, tail between their legs, minds clouded with nostalgia and longing for the days when they wrote about pubs, clubs, girls covered in sticky fake tan, and scummy men? Two years later, they return from The States adorning leather trousers, enough hair grease to fry breakfast with and an album even more different than their first than the last. You can hardly deny that in true Arctic style they "stick to the guns, don't care if it's marketing suicide, won't crack or compromise…", with riddling lyrics, Helder’s relentless drumming and proof that all those cigarettes have only made Alex’s voice more alluring, ‘Suck it and See’ is a testament to good old fashioned rock and roll and an indisputable musical highlight of 2011. By Bella Roach

11. Patrick Wolf - Lupercalia

In 2011 the ever-evolving Patrick Wolf returned with his fifth, triumphant album, concentrating on love at first sight and showcased what a powerful and uplifting emotion love can be. However he never loses the quirks that mark him out from the mess of bland, autotuned rubbish out there. First, there's the voice, then there's the stellar songwriting, and then of course the multitude of instruments that appear on the record. This album is his most emotion filled and cohesive offering to date, and fully deserving of a place on this list. By Holly Read-Challen

Constellations Festival 2011 - Review

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Summer Camp - Down

From She and Him to Slow Club, boy/girl duos are at their all time peak of popularity and Summer Camp are surely going to end up defining the genre with their innate charm and several layers of synthesisers. Having sent journos and music fans alike into thralls of excitement with their early tracks and Young EP, the band marked Halloween with the long awaited release of their first album ‘Welcome to Condale’ and latest single ‘Down’.

‘Down’ is easily one of the stand out tracks from the album and Elizabeth Sankey’s omni-perfect vocals douse it in syrupy gorgeousness. Synths filled with feedback provide the catchy background, making dancing irresistible, and the background repetitions in the chorus make it feel like a release from a 50s girl band. The song was complemented with a video from possibly the weirdest Halloween party of the year, demonstrating the quaint charm of a band who seem like they wouldn’t care if nobody listened to them. Summer Camp are making kooky a good thing again. And everyone’s listening to them.

By Jessy Parker

Summer Camp - Welcome To Condale

October the 31st is the perfect release date for Welcome to Condale. Whilst everyone is getting wrapped up to brace the cold Summer Camp are brightening up our bedrooms with their sunny, synthy debut. Elizabeth’s syrupy vocals and the 80s bass work together so perfectly that even when she’s telling tales of over-obsessive love in the sexy, synth loaded "I Want You", she still sounds like a total angel.

Songs like 1988 could easily replace the Thompson Twins attempts at creating the most perfect musical moment in a film. When Jake Ryan is waiting outside the church in Sixteen Candles I can just imagine the 80s drums and Elizabeth and Jeremy’s perfect harmonies kicking in. Sigh. The song Welcome to Condale gives us an insight into what the album is really about, "leafy suburban streets" and the teens that inhabit them. Each perfect pop song is punctuated with sound bites that relate to the songs, "I am the nerd" "you crazy bitch!" This adds to the whole concept album feel and makes Condale seem like a real place. Songs like Summer Camp and Down are packed full of sing-along moments which would fit perfectly at the house parties of the "cool kids" in Condale. Ghost Train is the only song that’s managed to make it from their Young EP to the album. But it’s suffered a few changes along the way (I’ll leave it to you to work out what but I was very disappointed when I heard it! Or didn’t hear it...). Even though the album sounds upbeat, there are a lot of songs about broken hearts and trying to get over lovers, Better Off Without You being a highlight.

Welcome to Condale as a whole is a massive dose of nostalgia which will make you want to hunt down a hot psychopathic boyfriend who murders people to make it look like suicide. Or create a super babe with your geeky best friends’ laptop and magazine cuttings. Or throw a fabulous Val party at least! Summer Camp are going to help you through these wintery months by welcoming you to Condale. 

8/10

By Eden Young

Summer Camp - Better Off Without You

Summer Camp are back with another new song and nothing says 80s film soundtrack more than 'Better Off Without You'. Elizabeth Sankey sings 'Stop calling me/You gotta stop calling' like a fiesty independent teenage girl with deep rooted problems, the bitchy side of Claire Standish alongside the devil may care attitude of Veronica Sawyer. Her sweet sickly vocals disguise the harsh nature of the lyrics, which portray the height of pessimism about relationships and love. 'Better Off Without You' is an empowering anthem that is reminiscent of Cyndi Lauper's 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' in that they both encourage life without men getting in the way. Elizabeth Sankey and Jeremy Warmsley keep outdoing themselves and if this is similar to the material that will be on the album, we can expect one of the best records this year.  

By Aurora Mitchell

Wireless Festival Sunday - Review

Wireless festival returned in 2011 with a bang, Friday saw the Black Eyed Peas headlining in a day dominated by current chart conquerors and pop hopefulls such as the painfully polished Bruno Mars and the acceptable face of mainstream British rap music Tinie Tempah. While Saturday marked the token dance day with a wide range of acts from the ever-energetic Janelle Monae, recently critically acclaimed Battles playing material from new album 'Gloss Drop', and masters of middle-aged rave The Chemical Brothers fresh off of a triumphant visual extravaganza at Glastonbury.

While both of these days have their certain charms, the Sunday of wireless this year is undoubtedly the main focus for fans of all things vaguely alternative. Not forgetting to mention the much anticipated headline set from recently reformed Pulp, but more on that later. The day kicks off in style as the Pepsi Max tent fills up to watch London dream pop duo Summer Camp. Singer Elizabeth Sankey bellows out songs with infectious charm from their debut EP 'Young' and new material from their forthcoming fan-funded album. Set highlight and fan favourite 'Ghost Train' goes down particularly sweetly, Sankey's soft chants of "you you you you you" accompanied by a backdrop of slide show pictures of the duos youth give a warm fuzzy feeling of nostalgia. Set closer 'I Want You' is also executed brilliantly, as a repeating synth plays under Sankey crying out in true 80s style about bordering on obsessive love "If i could I'd kiss your lips so tight your entire face would bruise, write your name in blood on every wall it would make the evening news" instantly disproves any labels of the duo being cutesy.



Following on the Pepsi Max stage are Yuck, who today firmly establish themselves as one of the best new bands around. Yuck today have a new found confidence (as opposed to earlier more awkward gigs) and waste no time blaring out their scuzzy pop to the masses. Opener 'Get Away' is now all too familiar, but gains a new string to it's bow live as their younger fan base lose the plot over the infectious chorus. Similarly crowd pleasing are 'Holing Out' and 'The Wall' as they blast out of the speakers and have the words chanted back almost religiously, not bad for such a new band. Although the grungy energetic songs get the biggest crowd reactions, there's no question that Yuck are at their most poignant when singer Daniel Blumberg really bares his soul, 'Suicide Policeman' is excellent and still just as deep as it was when it first surfaced on their blog in 2010. While Yuck are unlikely to ever gain widespread chart success, their popularity is growing significantly if subtly, and this is surely no bad thing.

Making the transitions from tents to big outdoor stages this year are Metronomy who perform a mix of old and new favourites. It's encouraging to see new songs such as the 'The Look' and 'Corinne' going down as well old hits 'A Thing For Me' and 'Heatbreaker' although it's hard not to be on board when a band play with as much fun as Metronomy. Next on are The Horrors, who release their much anticipated third album 'Skying' in July. Unlike Metronomy, the transition from tent to main stage is not quite so seamless and a lot of the sheer noise that encapsulates The Horrors' sound is completely lost into the air. 'Sea within a sea' one of the best songs of the last decade, falls completely flat and sounds too blurred and hazy. New material 'Moving further away' and 'Still life' are more synth based dance affairs and are standouts amongst an otherwise disappointing set, although it is unclear whether this is due to The Horrors or simply the sound system.

Heading into the evening, and another one of the big tips for 2011's best new band take the stage, The Naked & Famous. Opener 'All Of This' is fast, abrasive and full of quirks and immediately grabs attention, which followed by the anthemic 'Punching In a Dream' quickly wins over the crowd. The Naked & Famous are a lot more powerful live than on record where they are more withdrawn and timid, singer Alisa Xayalith  belts out songs  like 'Spank' and Frayed' with the fury of a thousand suns alongside heavy strangling guitars and pounding drums. The already euphoric crowd, then explode as the band power into signature hit 'Young Blood', a former number one single in their native New Zealand and for good reason. Alisa shrieking "YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH" at the crowd who reciprocate all too gladly, is surely one of the best moments of the festival.
After The Naked & Famous, The Pretty Reckless feature on the Pepsi max stage, peddling their middle of the road, trying to be rebellious idea of rock music rather unsuccessfully. Not that it matters, as teenage girls and boys alike go completely ape shit for lead singer and American tween icon Taylor Momsen. Oh well at least they're better than the woeful Neon Trees and their one song.

As evening draws in, and as Grace Jones ends her set, The buzz for Pulp is evergrowing. Fans young and old flock to the main stage to await one of the most anticipated UK headline slots of the year. The set began with Pulp lyrics being projected onto the back of the stage, before the band come onto stage and are met by a flurry of cheers and whooping. Jarvis Cocker sporting his usual geography teacher influenced attire begins the nostalgic trip back to the 90s with the rather appropriate 'Remember The First Time' to which the crowd go absolutely nuts, women jump up and down frantically while their husbands dance like dads at a wedding. Pulp's core fanbase may have aged, but their dedication remains ever-present. Pulp then proceed to play somewhat of a greatest hits set, very much pleasing their adoring fans with timeless anthems including singalong favourite 'Disco 2000', ode to the grotty 'Mile End' and the playful 'Underwear'. It's an absolute joy to see Jarvis bounding about the stage, and even reacting with the crowd during the brilliantly sexy ' I Spy' plus his class on stage banter, with quips ranging from the celebration of Tom Cruise's birthday to how important it is to get behind the student protests over Tuition fees. The set finishes with 'Common People' as you'd expect, uniting the whole crowd in a singalong, followed by a rather peculiar remark from Jarvis about returning in 15 years time. Although judging by the crowd's reaction today, the memories of this performance will stick around at least 15 years if not for a lifetime.

By Toby McCarron