Hey folks. This is the last ever post on thedailygrowl.blogspot.com If you care anything about this blog, don't worry. All the action is continuing over on the all-new Daily Growl site, so point yer browsers at www.thedailygrowl.co.uk and have a look. It's still a work in progress, because unlike Blogger, the Wordpress interface requires a bit of technical knowledge, particularly if you're self-hosting. But I'm assured by people more clever than I am that this is a good move, and as I require the necessary knowledge, the look of the site will no doubt [...]
Yes, it's happened again. In the past week, I've had two more DMCA-related deletions from this blog. I wouldn't even mind if it was a fair cop, but the posts that were targeted make no sense at all. One of these was on Glasvegas from last year using demo mp3s that were freely available on the band's myspace at the time, and before they signed with Columbia. Given other bloggers' experience, this retrospective targeting was only to be expected. The other was a post featuring tracks from Esser and Calexico, BOTH of which were sent to me by PRs with [...]
I was having a chat with a friend recently about the value of consistency in music. Is consistency a good thing and when does it just get boring? How much are we comforted by a familiar sound and how much do we want our favourite artists to try something new? Answers in the comments if you may, but the aforementioned conversation was prompted by the new Lambchop album OH (Ohio) , even though at that point I hadn't heard it. However I sort of knew what to expect. It's now their third album since their 2002 masterwork [...]
It's the 5th of November, the night when people all over Britain celebrate the gruesome death of some Catholics in 1605 . Or just go and build a bonfire and watch some fireworks going off. It's also a good day to release a new album. Especially if your band's name is Fireworks Night . Fireworks Night have been round these parts before, after they released their second long-player As Fools We Are last year. It was a fine album, but didn't get the attention it deserved, a fact which seems to have left main [...]
It's been a bad year for reggae legends. By my counting, at least three have passed away. Joe Gibbs a few months back, Alton Ellis last month and now Byron Lee . Most famous for his group The Dragonaires , formed in 1950, Lee was a veteran of Jamaican music and one of its more tireless ambassadors. As well as being a ska pioneer, Byron was also a studio owner, producer (producing a lot of The Maytals' music) record distributor and carnival organiser, actively active in his island's music scene right up to his passing away [...]
The Daily Growl has love for The Shortwave Set , particularly their ace debut album The Debt Collection . The love was a bit more muted for their second long-player Replica Sun Machine . However, the love remains strong for Glitches 'n' Bugs , one of the best tracks on the latest record. Here, some dodgy-sounding character called Marshmellow Mike adds woozy psychedelia, funky drumming, wobbly bass and barrelling rock 'n' roll piano to take the song to new foot-stomping heights. mp3: The Shortwave Set - Glitches 'n' Bugs (Marshmellow [...]
Things have changed in the world of Tilly and the Wall. The last time I saw them was back at the first End of the Road festival in September 2006, and I look back to then and the previous months with some nostalgia. Fun times, watching the Omaha quintet all over the place at a time before the the Baby Growl arrived to change our lives forever. Perhaps it was fitting that this was the first time Mrs Growl and I have been at a gig together since our lives were changed. Then again, things haven't changed that [...]
It's been a prolific year from Bradford Cox. He's released his solo debut album as Atlas Sound, and followed that up with a run of 'virtual seven inches' on his blog. And just to prove that he just can't stop recording, with his 'proper' band Deerhunter he's released not one, but two albums, hitting the streets this week as one big juicy package. The fact that there are two albums is related to the aforementioned blog. As all fans will now know, over the summer, when posting one of his Atlas Sound virtual sevens, someone accessed [...]
For me, it started back in September. Just after returning to blogging post-holiday, I noticed that something wasn't quite right. I was sure I had done a post about Richard Hawley side project The Feral Cats, but it wasn't there any more. Strange, especially given that the song still appeared on my Hype Machine listing . My first thought was that I had been hacked. But by who? An outraged Richard Hawley fan, furious that I had posted a track only available on a very limited edition 10 inch single? Surely not. Slightly worried though I was, I changed [...]
When Isaac Hayes died earlier this year, everyone knew about it immediately, and rightly so. However, 10 October saw another reggae legend pass away with seemingly little comment. I can almost understand Joe Gibbs' death being widely ignored several months back, because he was more of a backroom man (even though hugely influential), but I'd have thought that someone as well-known in the world of Jamaican music as Alton Ellis would have generated a bit more column inches. Maybe it's just me not being more aware, but it was a week or so [...]
You know how sometimes an artist who has never really been properly on your radar (or has been out of mind for a long time) in short space of time keeps on cropping up, as if to say "hey, listen to me". Or something like that. Anyway, it's happened to me recently with Matthew Herbert. Firstly, a couple of weeks ago, I rediscovered his amazing 2001 album Bodily Functions in my CD collection. Shortly after that I when I found out about ace new band The Invisible , I saw that he is their producer. Then last [...]
It's a a damp autumn afternoon. The Baby Growl is asleep and a measure of peace has been restored to the house. What better to do than spend some time making Nigella's amazing chocolate banana loaf? With added rum of course. And the soundtrack to a Sunday afternoon of domestic goddessness? Van Morrison's Astral Weeks of course. mp3: Van Morrison - Sweet Thing
A Classic Education are one of these perfectly-named bands. In the sense that theirs is classic indie rock, informed by three decades of classic indie rock. You don't have to listen too too hard to sense their influences - seemingly everything from Echo and the Bunnymen to Arcade Fire and everything decent in between. I've been on about them here before , but today there's two good new things. One is that they're in town this weekend for a couple of gigs. So if you're in London, and are looking for some gig action, you could [...]
I don't want to start a review feeling sorry for a band, but lastTuesday night at Cargo there was something lacking. It was nothing to do with the band's performance, which was superb. It was the audience. Not even their enthusiasm for the band, just the number of people. Cargo's not even a particularly big venue, but there were no more than 30 people in there, which dampened the atmosphere somewhat. I know it's the first UK tour for Bodies of Water , and they're relatively unknown here, but surely more could have been done on the promotion side. [...]
Estimates of the prevalence of opiate use 11.6360 Normal 0 false false false [...]
Here, Friendly Fires prove again what an awesome live band they are. And that having two drummers makes you sound amazing. Snow Patrol, who appeared on the same TV show last week, should take note. mp3: Friendly Fires - Paris (Arto Mwambe Remix) Friendly Fires myspace / website XL releases Paris as a single on 10 November, on download and 12" with some remixes. (PS. If you're thinking that this blog should rename itself The Daily [...]
Let's round off a week of (lazily posted?) remixes, with another. I haven't got round to reviewing Roots Manuva's Slime and Reason album yet, mainly because I haven't given it enough listens, though what I've heard sounds pretty good. What I do know is that his new single Let the Spirit is totally ace. I can't imagine why there needs to be a radio edit of the Hot Chip remix, but whatever the reason, it still has the word FUN plastered all over its little truncated face. mp3: Roots Manuva [...]
Today we're going to Glasgow via Manchester and Fife. That's because Down The Tiny Steps are from Glagow, part of the feted Fence Collective , but have just had their latest release put out by Manchester's Red Deer Club records. On their website, DTTS describe themselves as a "Glasgow-based electro-folk-pop trio." This gives you a rough idea of what they might sound like of course, but they're worried about how that may be understood. "That sounds cack" they add "but they are not". They protest too much. It doesn't take long listening to their er, [...]
Yesterday, I got a complaint about remixes. It went: "I think it's pretty ridiculous to post 2 remixes and not a single original song from the artist. You've done this before, and it makes me think that you care more about your ranking on hype machine than about respect from your audience." Now it's clear to anyone even half-acquainted with The Daily Growl that this isn't the place to come for either remixes or Hype Machine-hot bands. All you need to do is scroll down to discover that. But that said, I [...]
The Absentee love continues right here, courtesy of an amusing cover I acquired yesterday courtesy of the good people at Pure Groove . The first shock is the huge difference in expected vocal pitch, and the silliness continues from there. And yes it is that I Want to Break Free . mp3: Absentee - I Want To Break Free Absentee myspace / website . Loads more free download goodness from Pure Groove .
The Daily Growl
James Blake – Live Album
Circo Voador anuncia shows de The Kooks, Foster The People, Friendly Fires, Gogol Bordello e mais
The Kills on Letterman (Video)
Download: James Blake Live Album (Unofficial)
