Oliver Bouchard - glamglare (Page 129)

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Oliver Bouchard

SXSW Day 3 (part 1): Ibeyi // Honduras // Highly Suspect

SXSW Day 3 (part 1): Ibeyi // Honduras // Highly Suspect

This was the day when I wanted to see Ibeyi, my number one must see for this year. I saw them, kind of: there was a 90 minutes line at the Spotify House and most of the show I attended from behind a noisy generator. We made it in for

SXSW Day 2 (part 2): Highly Suspect // Nightmare Air // Be Forest // Chastity Belt

SXSW Day 2 (part 2): Highly Suspect // Nightmare Air // Be Forest // Chastity Belt

On top of Elke’s SXSW list is Highly Suspect a Brooklyn alternative rock trio who played The Trophy Club, which features a mechanic bull. They played a intense set at a packed room – we will probably see them again later this week. Nightmare Air at Valhalla Capping off the

SXSW Day 2 part 1: Kate Boy // Wolf Alice // Young Ejecta

SXSW Day 2 part 1: Kate Boy // Wolf Alice // Young Ejecta

Wednesday turned out to be a perfect day: we could execute our plan with no waiting times. After attending some sessions at the Convention Center, the first live show was Kate Boy at Red 7, a three piece from Sweden, who perform with electronic drums, bass and keyboards. Singer Kate

SXSW Day 1 (night): Dreamers // Idgy Dean // Dead Leaf Echo // Hamish Anderson

SXSW Day 1 (night): Dreamers // Idgy Dean // Dead Leaf Echo // Hamish Anderson

It feels a little funny to go all the way to Austin to see artists from Brooklyn, but that’s what we did for most of the night. It started with Dreamers, a rock three piece, who were on when we entered The Main II on Red River Street. I

SXSW Day 1 (daytime): Malia Grace // Safari // La Guacha

SXSW Day 1 (daytime): Malia Grace // Safari // La Guacha

After all the preparation and listening through some 1,500 bands, we finally arrived in Austin to see some live music. But plans are subject to change at SXSW more than anywhere, so the first show we actually saw was singer-songwriter Malia Grace at a cafe in the airport. It

NEW MUSIC: Dead Sea - Keep it High

Recently I find a lot of good music coming from Paris: there’s Ibeyi for once, but also Dead Sea, a four piece who released their first video for the song Keep It High. Their music lays somewhere between Keep Shelly in Athens and Lamb, which means I like it

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: Grimes - REALiTi

What we really want from Grimes is a new album with new songs, but somehow she’s not inclined to give one to us. Instead we get a new video for an old song that didn’t make the cut for Visions. Grimes dances through East Asia and there is

MUSIC BUZZ: SXSW // Warpaint // Blurred Lines

SXSW 2014 Next Tuesday, the music section of SXSW in Austin kicks off. Elke and I attended last year and had the time of our lives, even though it was supposed to be “miserable”. The thing is, if you see the event with fresh eyes, you just notice something like

NEW MUSIC: Wolf Alice - Giant Peach

Giant Peach is a wonderfully loud rock song by the London-based four-piece Wolf Alice. Their debut album is expected for this summer and they make an appearance at SXSW next week. I hope to see them there.

THROWBACK: Liaisons Dangereuses - Los Niños Del Parque

Another favorite song with a relentless synthline, two years before Anne Clark, is Los Niños Del Parque by the German band Liaisons Dangereuses. It also features my all-time favorite snare drum sound (better to be heard in the recorded version. I heard the song the first time on the portable

NEW MUSIC: Torres - Strange Hellos

This song is excellent and makes me want to see her at SXSW next week at any cost. Fortunately she plays seven shows in Austin, so chances are we run into a show of hers at some point. Strange Hellos reminds me on EMA, just a little more rock than

NEW MUSIC: Body Language - Reset

Body Language makes upbeat electropop, AlunaGeorge-style. There are another band from Brooklyn I have missed so far: fortunately Audiofemme has an interview with singer Angelica Bess to catch up and learn more.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: Björk - All Is Full Of Love

Maybe my favorite music video ever. At least the only one we bought on DVD.

The MoMA Björk retrospective

Lines for Black Lake Last year, we had a young friend from Germany visiting us with her boyfriend. At some point we came to mention Björk, but both of them drew a complete blank. ”The musician?” Elke tried to explain, “The swan dress at the Oscars?” But nothing. Later, Elke

NEW MUSIC: Cuushe - Tie

I have yet to hear a Cascine release I don’t like. Tokyo artist Cuushe’s latest song Tie is no exception: it immediately evokes pleasant images in my mind, maybe a cab ride trough a city o Friday night. There’s an EP on the way for release on

NEW MUSIC: Scarlet Baxter - Down With It

While this track is fiercely on the pop side, I love the funky guitar and the handclaps. Warning – this is a very catchy song!

MUSIC BUZZ: Björk // U2 // More

Björk’s MoMA retrospective starts at MoMA to almost universally bad critique. Of course, if you don’t have to concern yourself with the general state of contemporary art and MoMA’s reputation of curating it, you can just go and enjoy. We did, and a review follows soon here

FIRST LISTEN: Purity Ring - another eternity

On their first album Shrines, Purity Ring avoided spaces between words. On their follow another eternity up they kill capital letters. That seems a little silly to me, but their music is not – it’s first class electronic pop music. I like Megan James’ voice even more than I remember

NEW MUSIC: Gem & Eye

All I know is that Gem & Eye are a sister and brother duo from New York, who does dreamy pop with a slight retro-feeling. The Supreme Beings of Leisure come to mind here.

NEW ALBUM: Björk - Vulnicura

Björk is arguably one of the greatest contemporary artists, but too me, for the last decade or so, it felt what she wanted was almost too much for what is still at the core of her expression: the music. In the 90s she was a mostly electronic musician, but with

MUSIC BUZZ: Album Release Day // Looking for the next big star // Björk // More

Rough Trade NYC The official Album release day will globally move to Friday in summer. Of course, in the Internet age a global release day is the way to go, but does it have to be Friday? I kind of liked Tuesday – something to look forward to and kick the

FIRST LISTEN: Sea Change - Breakage

If you know that Ellen Sundes, who records as Sea Change, is from Norway, you might have a good idea what her music is like and your guess is probably not too far off. Still, Sea Change’s debut album Breakage is the best I’ve heard from Scandinavian electro

FIRST LISTEN: Twin River - Should the Light Go Out

Twin River is a five-piece from Vancouver, Canada and, for some reason, I seem to like everyting with “twin” in the name or made by actual twins. Should The Light Go Out has some psychedelic 60s vibe without being retro – a great record to get you into a good mood.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: Lower Dens - To Die in LA

Oscar play a role in this video about To Die in LA by the Lower Dens.

ALBUM REVIEW: Ibeyi - Ibeyi

The first I heard of Ibeyi was their third single Mama Says, a beautiful, but heartbreaking song about the passing of their father at 45 and their mother’s reaction to it. “It pisses me off, it drives me mad / That she let’s herself feel so bad” sings Lisa-Kainde