Review: Nothing But Thieves, Clwb Ifor Bach 7/03/15

On the 13th show of their giant 15 show UK tour, Nothing But Thieves hit Cardiff for a night of lights, loud music and the odd spot of drama.

Supporting Nothing But Thieves on this tour were Twin Wild, a London-based quartet. They kicked off the evening with good music and a bit of drama (note: don’t tell the audience you dedicate a giant F U to your ex who is in the audience…), warming up the crowd for Nothing But Thieves.

In a no barrier or stage setting, both bands got up close and personal with the audience. For NBT came the realisation that their band are all pretty small (physically), but for the audience came the experience of an intimate gig. Having seen the band supporting Twin Atlantic playing at Y Plas before Christmas, it was interesting to see them in such a small setting.

They kicked off with Itch off their EP Graveyard Whistling as the room filled out. The five of them coped surprisingly well on the tiny stage area, and got the audience hooked almost immediately. Throughout their set, there wasn’t one still person – something I’ve seen bands at arenas struggle to maintain, but they made it look easy.

Part way through the set, they did a cover of Led Zeppelin’s Immigrant Song. Normally, I condone anyone trying to cover Led Zep, but they handled it incredibly. Front-man Conor’s seamless falsetto suits the song perfectly, and they put their own, slower spin on it at the beginning.

After dropping in some as yet unreleased songs, Nothing But Thieves ended the night on their most recent single Ban All the Music. Never has a room moved so much or gotten so sweaty in such a short space of time.

Throughout the show, the band was lively and engaging – whilst thanking the audience for selling out the venue. If anyone’s going to be playing arenas in the future and selling them out, it’s Nothing But Thieves.

Nothing But Thieves playing sold out show in Cardiff

 

Review: Lights – Little Machines

After months of teasing, Lights has finally released her third full length, Little Machines. It’s been three years since Siberia and a lot has happened to Lights, so this album is a whole leap forward.

It opens with three tracks already released online: the slower ‘Portal’, ‘Running With the Boys’ and ‘Up We Go’. ‘Running With the Boys’ seems like the flip side of the coin ‘Pretend’ started in The Listening. It’s much more upbeat than the 2009 release, though, and the lyrics take a more positive angle.

As the album progresses, it’s clear that it’s lost the almost dub-step edge of Siberia, but by no means the electro pop Lights is known for. ‘Muscle Memory’ strongly echoes Lights’s sound from The Listening with an almost haunting edge. In fact, Little Machines is musically much more like The Listening, but it remains clear that she has come a long way since then – the lyrics have taken on a new edge, accentuating the positive in songs such as ‘Meteorites’, blasting the chorus ‘we are gonna see greater heights/ They’ll put our names up in neon lights’.

After marriage and the birth of her first child, Rocket, it’s no wonder Lights is positive in Little Machines – she has a lot to be positive about. Closing track ‘Don’t Go Home Without Me’ (for those without the deluxe version) seems like a perfect way to end the album. It’s tempo is slower than previous songs, bringing the album full circle from ‘Portal’, and talks about the future. Dispelling loneliness even in her later years, this track peaks at the bridge really showing the diversity of Lights’s voice as she flows seamlessly from belting into a gentle falsetto on the line ‘and we’ll go out in style’. This draws the album to a close beautifully.

Every track of Little Machines fits in with the overall sound of the album, like its predecessors, and although it sounds like The Listening it has the maturity of Siberia and then some. Lights’s sound has evolved through each album, and the current product is a strong sound that still leaves room for her to spread her musical wings. Every track on the album is different, and every one fantastic. Whatever Lights does next, it’ll be hard pushed to top Little Machines, but as we know a lot could happen in the next three years.

Catch Lights on tour in the UK next January.

Review: The Cape Race – Home, Truths

I first heard of The Cape Race three years ago after happening across out their twitter and, shortly after, buying their self-released EP Now, Voyager. Recently, they released their first full length with label Ten Letters and it certainly doesn’t disappoint.

The Manchester quintet have done a lot towards this album in the last three years. The album, Home, Truths opens with ‘Digging For Gold’, a slower track that builds up as it progresses and definitely one of my favourite tracks on the album. The instruments in the verses seem restrained, really letting loose for the chorus in a way that compliments David Moloney’s strong vocals.

Aside from being an all-round great band, it’s Moloney’s voice that really sets The Cape Race apart from similar bands and puts the album on another level. Thankfully keeping his Manchester accent, no track ever runs the risk of instruments drowning out vocals, but Moloney also demonstrates his beautiful falsetto in the chorus of ‘The 77’. Each track gels together, from more familiar tracks to arguably more experimental ones, without jarring or stopping the album’s general flow; ‘Vines’ seems to me like it was written to be a live track, just waiting for an eager crowd to sing it back.

The Cape Race have by no means left Now, Voyager behind in their debut full-length, however, merely built on it. In fact, the album has four of the six tracks from the band’s EP, and personally I’m thrilled. ‘The Reprieve’ was my absolute favourite track – it’s the right amount of catchy without becoming annoying, and the guitars are just as fantastic as the clever lyrics – so to see it made the album was perfect. This way, anyone who buys the album that might not have also bought the EP get the pleasure of it anyway.

The album closes the same way as the EP, with ‘Now, Voyager’. This certainly doesn’t mean The Cape Race haven’t come far, though. Although more lyrically mellow than other tracks, the closing track takes away none of the albums bite. After a calmer bridge that signs off the build up from ‘Digging For Gold’ perfectly, the latter half of the track is more raw and energetic, and seals Now, Voyager and Home, Truths together. To say that this is a solid album would be an understatement; The Cape Race have come above and beyond since their first EP without distancing themselves from it, producing a consistent sound that they can call their own.

Review: Coasts – Oceans EP

I came across Coasts after they followed me on twitter. Admittedly, I don’t normally check out many bands I get randomly followed by – mostly I don’t have the time – but this time I’m glad a did. A quick google told me the quintet hail from Bristol, and the EP itself was released at the end of May. It opens with ‘Oceans’ which starts deceptively slow, picking up pace until hitting the first chorus. There is certainly an indie vibe throughout the EP, and this track opens it perfectly. Deposited the changes in pace, the track flows without jarring and gives the vocals a chance to shine without distracting from the overall feel of all the instruments coming together.

‘Tonight’ has a sort of Two Door Cinema Club feel in the intro. Slightly more mellow than ‘Oceans’, this track is great for just chilling out to. In fact, the whole EP feels like it was written for festivals in the height of summer. The slightly more electronic sound adds another depth to it and gives the band a slight edge over a lot of indie bands with similar sounds. This diversity carries through to ‘Golden City’, another slow starter giving the keys a chance to shine this time as the guitars slightly more of a back seat until around the minute mark. The lyrics match the tempo of the song giving it a wholesome feel blending nicely as the track progresses. It also shows a slightly experimental side of the band with the effects used towards the end, implying that when Coasts release a full length it’ll have a lot to offer.

The final song (excluding the two remixes) ‘See How’ gives way to softer vocals in the intro. Each track seems to emphasise different parts of the band, and altogether show a complete and rounded view of them. Despite the seemingly mellow lyrics, the track develops instrumentally into something deceptively upbeat. Though the EP works well in its studio form, it is definitely made for live performances. Even the slower tracks have an energy in them that’d be enough to win over any audience. I imagine their live shows would be well worth seeing – Coasts have a tour coming up in September which you can buy tickets for here, and you can get the EP here. It’s well worth the mere £2.99!

New Music: Pvris

*New posting days will hopefully be every Wednesday*

Massachusetts three piece are set to make their mark this year in the alternative rock genre. Their debut EP (available here) was released last year containing 5 songs from the band and giving listeners an idea of their sound. The EP opens with ‘Demon Limbs’, and show the bands solid sound and strong instrumental tones. The guitars show how skilled the band are with their instruments, giving the EP a more mainstream metal vibe that will appeal to a larger audience. Lynn Gunn’s vocals are like a mixture between Mindy White (Lydia/States) with all the raw grittiness of Lzzy Hale (Halestorm). The instrumentals perfectly gel with Gunn’s vocals, all providing a kick of their own. All five tracks have the same strong tones that give the band a fresh sound, separating them from the female fronted cliché that they must be ‘like Paramore’ for having a female lead.

The thoroughness of their sound even hits the lyrics, too. The band shows a maturity in all aspects of their music. There’s no hints of auto tune or that they’ve tried to clean around the edges of their sound, which makes them all the more appealing as it gives them a rawness found in few bands nowadays. However, this doesn’t sound accidental – it sounds like the band wanted to keep their sound as ‘real’ as possible, by keeping Gunn’s vocals untouched and allowing the band to keep their sound exactly as they intended. The changes in tempo in the guitars flow perfectly and everything seems to fit.

This year, the band released an acoustic EP (available here) produced by Blake Harnage (of Versa). Featuring the first four tracks off their debut EP, the sound is much more subdued with the same vibes often found on an album from Lydia (especially Illuminate). The band shows more diversity in their sound, keeping the instrumentals strong yet taking on the same gentler tone as Gunn’s vocals. However, this certainly doesn’t diminish what they built in their previous EP, but instead adds to what they can achieve together across their genre.

Gunn was featured in the most recent Glamour Kills line alongside Jess Bowen (drummer, The Summer Set) and Jenna McDougall (vocals, Tonight Alive). The band will also be playing Warped Tour in America this year alongside the likes of Neck Deep and The Summer Set, so they’re certainly going the right away about getting their name out there. Their two EPs give a promising taster of their sound, so I’d certainly keep an eye out for their eventual release of a full length – if their music so far is anything to go on, it’s going to sound pretty darn good.