January Round Up

As starts of years go, 2012 has started with a bang in the musical world.


 

January saw some major shifts in the ways people listen to music, with the proposals of US congressional bills SOPA and PIPA dedicated to eradicating internet pirates illegally uploading copyrighted material, which in fact threatened to damage blog and mixtape culture significantly. Luckily the act wasn't passed, but the removal of major file-sharing site Megaupload came as a shock to the system.


The internet also received (and continues to receive) significant backlash over the hyping of one Lana Del Rey. It's been well documented, the sudden rise of signature track Video Games leading to slanderous comments on Lizzie Grant's image, background and her less than thrilling Saturday Night Live performance. If anything, this shows how powerful the internet has become with influence over new artists, Lana Del Rey acting as an unwilling puppet to demonstrate the brutal nature of the modern hype machine. 

Elsewhere, legendary singer Etta James saddened many with her passing, Michael Stipe of REM kicked up a fuss about Youtube's removal of the tastefully homo-erotic Perfume Genius album promo, Michael Kiwanuka surprised many by scooping the BBC's sound of 2012 poll giving hope for boring lounge music everywhere and Disney got hipsters hot and bothered over a badly judged Joy Division t-shirt.


In terms of album releases January hasn't been too shabby either. Here are some choice picks we at Sound Influx have been particularly enjoying:

The Maccabees - Given to the Wild 
"This should be the album that catapults The Maccabees to greater things, whether it’s higher chart placements or bigger festival crowds, it will guarantee one thing; more fans of this beautiful music."
Check out Calum Stephen's full 9/10 review here




Islet - Illuminated People 
"But for all its failures, Illuminated People remains a ferociously sturdy and confident debut, because it isn’t really a debut at all, it’s the logical next step in Islet’s story. And that’s the album in a nutshell, a ball of frenetic contradictions and clashing ideas. This isn’t the first message to the world, this is them having a shot at mass communication and telling people to get ready, because no-one knows where they’ll go next, not even themselves."
See Ned Powley's full 8/10 review here


Lana Del Rey - Born To Die
 "Already developing into a major artist on the strength of her first two singles alone, Born To Die will push her further into the spotlight. The only question is whether she’ll thrive or squint her eyes and hope for a moment of darkness."
Read Aurora Mitchell's 8/10 review here



Howler - America Give Up
"Howler have crafted a very promising record, which will no doubt strike a chord with many due it's undeniable sense of fun and Jordan's witty and wholly likeable lyrics and personality. Howler have dealt with the threat of hype impeccably and the Rough Trade signed band are certainly worth investigating."
 Read Toby McCarron's full review here


Roll on February!


By Toby McCarron

The Maccabees - Given To The Wild

2007 saw the arrival of South Londoners The Maccabees’ debut album ‘Colour It In’, a chirpy effort that would soundtrack first relationships and adolescent years. 2009’s ‘Wall Of Arms’ showcased The Maccabees’ affinity with horns, a horn section would feature on several of the album’s tracks, showing a more mature and developed sound, with help from renowned producer Markus Dravs. Now in the early stages of 2012, their long-awaited third album ‘Given To The Wild’ has been released. Have The Maccabees suffered from the difficult third album or have they created the album that should catapult them to great success?

The album begins with the ominous, minimalist title track, Orlando Weeks’ lullaby vocals overlapping the cascading drones. A horn section features on both “Child” and “Ayla”, the former being a beautiful track from start to finish, and an early indication of how sonically gorgeous this album is, and the latter being more upbeat, with an uplifting piano and vocal melody. “Feel To Follow”, opening on layered vocals and a drum beat, grows into a hyperactive crescendo, cymbals and guitar lines crashing against each other. “I’m a child to your voice” Weeks croons on the opening line of “Forever I’ve Known”, a heartbreaking plea to a former lover. “Pelican”, the first single to be released from the album, opens with sudden fervour, only taking a moment to catch its breath before launching back into frenzied excitement. It’s The Maccabees’ ability to balance the silent with the resonant, the slow with the quick, and the gentle with the raucous, that makes the songs on this album more impressive.

The only real flaw with ‘Given To The Wild’ is that many of the tracks, especially on the later stages of the album, drag on a bit. “Go” is quite breathtaking when the initial reverberated melody kicks in, but grates slightly as the song carries on. Most of the tracks on ‘Given To The Wild’ were created from the same outline of quiet to loud, however it isn’t a massive concern considering the melodies and the musicianship showcased.

Now onto the all-important closing track; ‘Colour It In’ had “Toothpaste Kisses”, ‘Wall Of Arms’ had “Bag Of Bones”, and ‘Given To The Wild’ has “Grew Up At Midnight”. Both of the previous closing tracks were gentle, quiet odes to a different form of love or beauty, whereas “Grew Up At Midnight” is more centred around childhood and innocence. The song starts as a whisper and builds, “We grew up at midnight, we were only kids then” being shouted as if two friends were reminiscing about the times they shared as kids. It is a fitting close to the album considering the amount of times the world “child” is used throughout the album.

It may only be the first few weeks of 2012, but “Given To The Wild” is already one of 2012’s musical highlights. This should be the album that catapults The Maccabees to greater things, whether it’s higher chart placements or bigger festival crowds, it will guarantee one thing; more fans of this beautiful music.

9/10 

By Calum Stephen

The Maccabees - Feel To Follow

The New Year has seen the anticipated arrival of some new material from The Maccabees, and the verdict = totally and utterly priceless, worth the wait.  Don’t know about you, but I’m on my twenty something playing of “Feel to Follow”;  i'm not sure if that’s down to the overall simple easy listening melodies and soft vocal arrangement, or the roaring end passage and damn right fun looking video that accompanies the track. From pressing play I danced in excitement (yes I was literally jumping up and down), anxiously waiting for the raw upbeat, cinematic sounding style The Maccabees do best. And without a doubt they didn’t disappoint; opening with a pretty simplistic vocal, taking off to funky guitar solos and drum bursts, making the perfect ending.  'Feel to Follow' even has that potential spark to be 10x bigger live, There really is nothing to dislike. A track which sails The Maccabees back into their high status, which will without a doubt set them up off for an amazing year.

By Ailsa Morris

The Maccabees - Pelican

“In the end nothing comes easy”. This certainly isn’t true for The Maccabees who manage effortlessly brilliant, and damn nice guys at the same time begging the question, How do they even do it? 'Pelican', the first single from new album ‘Given To The Wild’ is punchy and dazzling – The Maccabees at their best. It has the lyrical tenderness of songs from ‘Wall Of Arms’ and the spiky bursts of guitar similar to those from their debut.  For me, it’s like a matured version of ‘All In Your Rows’. The vocals harmonise beautifully, and 'Pelican' builds and falls at perfect points, creating a roller-coaster of a feel-good song. ‘Pelican’ will without a doubt become a live favourite, and has already been well-received at previous dates. If the rest of the album is as good as ‘Pelican’, success for The Maccabees looks as if it’ll come as easy as 1-2-3.


By Hannah Bettey