Islet - Illuminated People

In October 2010 I saw Islet play in a tiny art venue in Dalston. It was totally rammed and the whole event carried that vague whiff of being an event, of being something special that would serve as a real bragging-rights gig. Then Islet fucked off and let us forget about them. But this hibernation wasn’t an artistic statement, it was an opportunity to cast of all the words and ideas pinned to Islet the first time around. Sure, the touching points of no wave, prog, krautrock and psychedelia remain, but Islet’s fearlessness has led to new sounds seeping into the maelstrom; What We Done Wrong begins with lush folky strings before pulling the rug out and going all in with garage rock stomp and an ending that (almost, almost) transcends into something resembling a post-hardcore track.

So really, nothing’s changed at all. With Islet the appeal always lay in their unexpected nature, the sense that listening to any of their recorded output was going to be an experience rather than a casual dalliance. So what do they do to change that? They play it straight. The schizo nature of earlier EPs Celebrate This Place and Wimmy just wouldn’t work when pulled out to full length and the Sturm und Drang would have worn off quickly. The problem is, Islet aren’t a singular band, in fact, they’re at their best when they sound like 5 bands playing over the top of each other and by outsourcing to a sound more accessible and approachable means the whole thing doesn’t (for the most part) feel like a band who could freak out and change styles at the drop of a hat.

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.

8/10

By Ned Powley

Islet - This Fortune

Well then Islet, you took your sweet time didn’t you? Over a year since they released their still-great second EP ‘Wimmy’, they return in the manner most befitting them. No, not a sneaky red herring to lure us into believing that with time had come maturity, or at the very least some Ritalin, but instead Islet have sharpened their corners and streamlined their sound into something bigger and brasher and more glorious than anything to ever grace your ears. The percussion, so key to the allure of earlier material, still remains and whilst it now resides further back in the all-encompassing melee it still provides the propulsion that makes listening to Islet such a thrill. Couple that with walls of stomach churning groans and vocals that bounce and undulate, at once woozy and terrifying. From a band whose trade is throwing everything at the wall and not giving a shit if it sticks comes something that is lean and streamlined but still resolutely monstrous. 


http://isletislet.com/discography/this-fortune-12/ This Fortune is available as a free download on Islet's website now!

By Ned Powley

Los Campesinos! - Hello Sadness

If you hadn’t already guessed from the title, ‘Hello Sadness’ is as bleak as the album cover suggests. The fourth offering from the Welsh band, Los Campesinos! have become a firm fixture in everyone’s mind with an almost cultish following of fans. Since being elevated to the lofty status of the band soundtracking the Budweiser advert, love ‘em or loathe ‘em, they’ve been impossible to avoid.


‘By Your Hand’ and ‘Hello Sadness’, the first two songs which have been released from the album are the obvious stand out tracks. The simple synth motif of ‘By Your Hand’ leads into one of the most singalong verses of the year and ‘Hello Sadness’ is full of a poignant lust, toned down from the rampant sexuality of previous album ‘Romance is Boring’. This same confident lust is also apparent on ‘Songs About Your Girlfriend’, which barely fits in as one of the few upbeat songs on the album.


Despite being recorded in Spain in the summer, the majority of the album could easily be set in the English countryside in the middle of winter. Lead singer Gareth Campesinos perfects his fragile sounding lyrics on ‘Every Defeat A Divorce’ and ‘To Tundra’, a song which he described as the most sincere one they have ever written. ‘The Black Bird, The Dark Slope’ shows off the incredible vocals of Kim Campesinos, whose contribution to the band seems too often neglected. ‘Hate For The Island’ and ‘Life Is A Long Time’ are overly sentimental and blatantly the low points on the album. But ‘Baby I Got A Death Rattle’ affirms the brilliance of Los Campesinos!’s cheerful misery before the end of the album.


Sure the album takes a few listens to get into and sure it’s not the best thing they’ve ever written, but ‘Hello Sadness’ will be adored by fans and charts a step further away from the twee beginnings of the band. It’s rare to watch a band mature as impressively as Los Campesinos! have. At first it is easy to skip over the darkness of the album but as you continue to listen the ten short songs will be a more than appropriate soundtrack to the winter.



7/10
By Jessy Parker