^^ Click. Last week it was Spotify, this week it's Twitter. It's like the millennium round here at the moment! But anyway, we decided that seeing as everything's a bit hectic at the moment, twitter might be a good way to keep people interested when there's not as much going on here. So click the banner to go to the 2STEPS twitter page and start following us around and stuff. Hope this finds you well. Here are some 5th November related songs to keep you busy. Yes it's late, but I can still hear fireworks as I write [...]
So I've moved to East London, to Queen Mary University. It's good here, I finally feel like I'm not hanging around waiting anymore. And everyone likes good music! I've been to 3 gigs so far - money has stopped me from seeing more, most painfully Biffy Clyro with Manchester Orchestra and Frightened Rabbit, nice one money. Here's the run down of those I did catch. Monday 21st September THE VEILS w/ Swimming, So Say So - London Scala This was an exciting one. 2 days into living in London [...]
What's up. Yes Halloween's tomorrow but I'm a busy lad so I'm giving you your presents on Christmas eve. We've made the move onto spotify, for better or worse and this means you get a spooky halloween themed playlist of 22 songs. I won't give the tracklisting because it's a scary surprise! But if you're having a house/flat party this weekend put some of this on, it's a mix of devils and dancefloors so you're set basically. Annoyingly spotify didn't have a load of stuff I wanted to put up, even some really well known stuff (Friendly Fires - Bring [...]
You may not be aware of Pharaohs - yet. Their debut EP 'We've Tried Nothing And We're All Out Of Ideas' will be released through All Aboard Records next week and hopefully it'll kick things of for them. The 4 Kent based lads have played alongside Venice Ahoy, Minnaars and recent radar stars Swims, which gives you a good idea of where they're coming from. The press release for this calls it technical indie but math pop is more fitting. Pharaohs belong to the scene centred around Big Scary Monsters but have a head on most of their competitors in [...]
Music can be so mean sometimes. It gives you something you love then takes it away. News surfaced today that The Rakes have split up, cancelling the remaining dates of their tour. Basically I'm gutted - these guys made straight forward indie with just the right amount of wit and edge. Their debut 'Capture/Release' came out on my 14th birthday and I still remember getting it that day and playing it all the way through, reading the lyrics in the booklet. The band released this statement on the reason for the split: " The Rakes have always been [...]
I should've written about these guys ages ago. SWIMS are 4 lads from Worthing (that's near Brighton for you Northerners) who play intricate yet catchy math pop that is quite frankly impossible to resist. And what's more, they're all under 18. I remember seeing them play in a dodgy end of town when they were all about 14 and called Llama Guns and they were amazing then. The tunes have the perfect formula of gang vocals, handclaps, tapping and driving rhythm which makes the songs pretty unbeatable. 'Hitler Was A Bad Man' encompasses it all in 3 and a half [...]
If - using some sort of futuristic machine - I could produce the coolest sounding band possible right now, they would be roughly half as cool as O Children. I got into them late last year off the back of some spine-tingling demos, and this week at last they release their first proper single. And they're starting to gain the attention they undoubtedly deserve. Sure, most publications are making a big deal of the Nick Cave homage of the band's name, but singer Tobi O'Kandi conjurs the ghost of Ian Curtis more than any dark wave band yet. [...]
So Speech Debelle has taken the Mercury Prize. Hm. Nevermind, The Apollo Prize is better anyway ;) so here we are, the results: Insert drum roll and raucous applause. Maybe Jools Holland pissing everyone off with a ridiculously painful pause. Friendly Fires self titled debut has topped the poll, winning the first ever Apollo Music Prize! It was close for a while there, with early favourites emerging as The Horrors' 'Primary Colours' and Bombay Bicycle Club's 'I Had The Blues..' But the St. Albans boys have taken the prize. Who did I vote for? Metronomy actually. [...]
It's been a year since the last CCLASSIC ALBUM feature! I admit that I sort of forgot about it but #1 is here if you're interested. I decided to bring it back as I've got some more time now but also because my girl wanted to get into Patrick Wolf, so this is really for her. Patrick Wolf is one of the artists that can do no wrong in my eyes. But even to a devoted [...]
Some records are hard to pin down. Near impossible to write about. 'XX' is one of them, but I'll do my best because it's an album that seriously deserves some praise. We reviewed The xx's debut single 'Crystalised' with total awe back in May and waited in anticipation for a full-length. Heralded by ominous artwork, the opener - simply titled 'Intro' - starts things off similarly dark with breakbeats, a moody bass line and ghostly ooo's and aaa's. 'VCR' lightens the mood with a musicbox melody and intoxicating smokey vocals from Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim. In [...]
" Well who the fuck is Simon Cowell, to tell people that they can't sing? Well I've never heard him sing a note in my life! " Birmingham's Blakfish are evidently not X-Factor's latest victors. They are infact possibly the most exciting prospect for hardcore/math working at the moment. Releasing their literally flawless mini-album 'See You In Another City' last year on Big Scary Monsters was a masterstroke. Those in the know will tell you with complete conviction that BSM is one of the best record labels around right now, and a lot of people will have discovered [...]
Not just another chance for me to showcase my shoddy logo making skillz on paint, but also to celebrate the uncelebrated (mostly). Yes, welcome to 2STEPSFORWARD4STEPSBACK's very own APOLLO MUSIC PRIZE. Mercury was the Roman god of trade and commerce - money basically. While Apollo is the Greek god of music and poetry; clearly the best god to steal the name of! Plus we get to use a lyre as the logo which is pretty nifty. So NME, DiS and a load of other people are doing alternative Mercury nominees so we figured we edge forward our own. [...]
Last year Leeds-based Wild Beasts emerged with a great yet opinion-dividing debut 'Limbo, Panto'. They supported the liked of Jack Peñate and The Wombats which is probably where the haters originated from - which figures; because Wild Beasts, and 'Two Dancers' is about as far away from your average throwaway British indie as you can go. This time they return with a more sophisticated work, something difficult to describe and impossible to shake off. This has been a year for ground-breaking sophomores, most notably The Horrors' 'Primary Colours'. But this takes the pip. You're instantly thrown into the [...]
www.myspace.com/arthurtheband When you get into a band through another artist, it's likely that they'll seem linked in your mind. I checked out Arthur by chance, because they were in Entrepreneurs top friends - Entrepreneurs being Adam Crisp's brilliant solo project. So naturally I was curious. It turns out Arthur are from Hampshire, in the same area where Adam and Elle Milano drummer James Headley grew up and met. Not only that, but it transpires that Crisp has also produced and mixed their new stuff. This is good. So you can understand why, when [...]
They say you've got your whole life to write your debut album, and for Bombay Bicycle Club that's less time than most other bands get. These 4 London lads are all aged between 18 and 19 years old, and their age is partly the reason why this has been such a long time coming. Yes, I'm talking about the all-too-familiar A-levels, which had to be done before the album could be completed. Their first EP 'The Boy I Used To Be' was released back at the start of 2007 - a lengthy 2 and a half [...]
REMIXES So, remixes are amazing. All agreed? We don't embrace them enough here, and we really should. There's been some awesome ones this year so far, here are 10 of the best: - Micachu - Lips (Clark Kunt's Heavy Mental Mix) The craziest remix for a while - Micachu's scathing attack, backed by an attack of metal guitars. - La Roux - In For The Kill (Skreams Let's Get Ravey Mix) The most played of the lot, Skream's killer remix of La [...]
TRACKS We're doing 'tracks' because we all know the single is a dying breed etcetc but more importantly there's been too many blinding b-sides, albums tracks and free downloads to ignore by just judging singles. So anyway, here are some of the tunes that have soundtracked 09 so far. The Horrors - Sea Within A Sea ( Surely the coolest song of the lot, a brooding 8 minutes taste of what was to come ) Bombay Bicycle Club - Dust On The [...]
I ' M F R E E . Of exams, that is. I've got my life and my time back and it feels pretty good man. So I guess it seems like as good a time as anyto give the official 2STEPSFORWARD4STEPSBACK 6 Month Review 2009. It's been a crazy diverse year so far with an amazing bunch of debuts, comebacks and unexpected gems. There's been a pretty staggering array of albums, singles and remixes, but these are the ones really worth remembering, or checking out if you missed 'em. [...]
A levels. We meet at last. There is surely nothing worse than sitting inside during the best weather we've had all year, with a psychology textbook bigger than the sun. And I bet it'll rain the day I finish it all! Anyway I'll be back on here after my last exam on 15th June. Expect some crazy activity after that.. Here are some new songs that are helping me wade through study leave: MP3: Jamie T - Sticks & Stones (ysi) [...]
Never before have I seen album artwork so unsuited to the music. Take a look at the dark, murky and foreboding cover, and prepare to be shocked beyond belief, because 'Manners' is possibly the most euphoric record you'll hear all year. 2008's 'Chunk Of Change' EP was a revelation - a shining spark amid the gloomy musical landscape (and the artwork fit a lot better!). And this week Passion Pit return with their first proper album, surely to unanimous praise. Here is a band that seem to be operating completely in their own space. No other band around right now [...]
new music from vampire weekend – cousins + music video
Friday Five: Surf Songs
Beach House: Norway
No Curve Allowed (Grading This Week's New Tracks)
