Interview: The Suicide of Western Culture Talk Festivals, Meaning and Tours

Earlier in the month, we brought you the news that Spanish duo The Suicide of Western Culture were releasing their new album Remixes and offering a free download of “This Is The Last Time I Shake Your Hand”.  I caught up with them to discuss the best summer festivals, the meaning of their name and their upcoming tour.  By the end of the interview I wasn’t surprised that the secretive duo never did tell me their names!

First, can you tell me a bit about who you are and how you met?

We're two guys from the Barcelona outskirts. In our place most of the people spend their time with car tuning, dog fighting, watching football games in the bar... Those who make different things we know each other.

When did you realise you wanted to record music together?

There was some affinity. Our idea was 'do not dump it, we'll try to make a song'.

I love your name, The Suicide of Western Culture. Can you tell me about why you chose that name and what it means?

I was in a club. Glowing lights, house music, drugs, girls shaking their asses... I was lucid for a second and I thought that Europe was lost.

Can you tell me about your song-writing process and how you go about recording tracks?

It's a 2-step process. First, we work with the machines, just machines. We don't like software, we just love touching what we use, knobs, keys and so. We work with them to get the sounds we like. Then, we sequence them to make our songs. It's always fast. We don't spend too many time with one song. Whenever we find something exciting we just go for it.

What are your worst habits when it comes to your music?

We're not perfectionists. We're very messy and chaotic. But that might be something good, actually.

Where do you gain your inspiration for your music? Are your tracks snapshots of moments, events and emotions or do you try to convey deeper meaning.

That's it! We get inspired by films, commercials, something that might happen at a train station, a landscape, a moment, something we hate or something we love.

My favourite track is from your debut album and is "The End of Luxury". Can you tell me a bit more about the track?

It just came up swiftly, as any other song. In this case, we think we're not in a global crisis situation, but in some kind of twist. Everything is going to change. Nothing will be as it was before. Inequality would increase in the West and I don't think we'll get the newest iPhone every year. They'll have to make better batteries.

You played a series of festivals this summer. What was your absolute favourite festival moment this summer?

We have very good memories of all of them. No bad experience at all. Well, the police stopped a couple of our gigs because of the volume and then we got fined after a summer festival. If I have to chose a concert, I'd say the one at Frannz Club at the Berlin Music Week. It was great.

What is the best venue to play?

It seems that in Central and Northern Europe they do care about the sound and the stage conditions.

Which festival has the best crowd?

We're not a band for the masses and the people that come to see us is very devoted. They know what they're going to see. You find good crowds everywhere - some are quieter, others are louder, but they're always great.

Which festival would you like to play at that you haven't played at yet?

Abroad. We'd love to play anywhere outside Spain.

Can you tell me a bit more about your plans to tour the United States? Where do you want to play and what do you want do see while you're there?

We'll be playing at SXSW festival as much as we can. Then we'll tour in small venues. We'll work hard!

Are you currently working on new material?

We're working on the sounds, recording and playing around with our Casio keyboards, drum machines and some second hand synths we recently bought. Everything will be transferred into our MPC units and we'll spend a couple of days in Berlin recording album 2 in a Berlin hostel. That's our formula. No producers, no studios.

What do you do when you're not recording, practicing or performing? Are you at the stage where your music is supporting you?

Drinking beer at our local bar, walking the dog, taking photographs, cooking paellas, working... At the current time, we feel the need of making music. If not, it would be like being dead.

Do you have any upcoming tour dates?

We'll shortly announce some dates in Spain, Europe and then in the US for 2012.

Thank you for a killer interview! I hope to catch you on the festival circuit this summer.

Article first published as Interview: The Suicide of Western Culture Talk Festivals, Meaning and Tours on Blogcritics.

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Music Video: Kaizers Orchestra – “Tusen dråper regn” (live)

I had the strangest feeling this week that I might never listen to another English speaking band again.  It was the week that I finally got hold of the new Kaizers Orchestra (Norway) album Violeta Violeta vol. II and but I also spent the week listening to Korpiklaani (Finland) and Heavenwood (Portugal).  Of course, the band I listen to the most, officially my favourite band of all time, is Croatian band Kawasaki 3P.  There is just so much the world has to offer if you can transcend language boundaries in music.

Back to Kaizers Orchestra.  I have a slight crush on the lead singer Janove Ottesen and would very much like him wrapped up under the Christmas tree on Christmas morning.  It doesn’t look like they have released any official videos from their latest album yet, but I found this video of their live performance of “Tusen dråper regn” at Øya Festivalen 2011. 

I just love the drums during the introduction and the looks on the drummers’ faces.  They went from really serious to really awed to be there on stage with Kaizers Orchestra!

The title translates to “a thousand drops of rain” and you can check out the English lyrics.

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Single Review: The Phenomenal Handclap Band - "Following"

When I first encountered The Phenomenal Handclap Band, I wasn’t too sure what to expect but I was certainly intrigued by their name.  Described as a psych-soul band and a “tight-knit aggregation of musicians and artists from Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn”, I was immediately put in mind of the 1960s experimental band The United States of America. 

Their eponymous debut album was a collection of funky, psychedelic tracks with pop anthem “15 to 20” earning them the most success.  I had always held a fascination for the music and culture of the 1960s and I appreciated that The Phenomenal Handclap Band could pay tribute to that sound while remaining fresh and current.

It was the powerful old school soul track “Baby” featuring Tommy Brenneck and Rodrigo Ursaia that caught my attention on the album The Phenomenal Hand Clap Band.  This is a beautiful, uplifting track that was followed up with a really good video, featuring stunning retro styling and excellent cinematography.

The Phenomenal Handclap Band was started by New York City underground club DJs Daniel Collás, the Witch Doctor, and Sean Marquand, the Medicine Man.  Tired of playing other people’s music, Collás and Marquand had a vision of a supergroup comprised of the best artists from the indie rock and soul underground in Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn.  They have previously worked with Aurelio Valle (Callas), Jaleel Bunton (TV on the Radio), Jon Spencer (Jon Spencer Blues Explosion) and Lady Tigra (L'Trimm). 

The band are renowned for their intoxicating live performances and tore up the UK festival scene in 2010 with performances at Glastonbury, Wireless and Latitude.  They have most recently supported Bryan Ferry on his North American tour.

Naturally, I was eager when I heard that the band were returning with sophomore album Form & Control in early 2012 and that they had dropped the first single.  I listened to “Following” and it would be an understatement to say that I was surprised. I don’t think it would be possible for any track to represent a further departure from the sounds of the debut album than “Following” does. 

Whereas the debut was a perfect example of funk and soul, “Following” is a progressive, indie electronic track that would make Ladytron proud.  And I love it.  I cannot stop listening to it and since first downloading it earlier tonight, I’ve listened to it 16 times and counting. 

It makes perfect sense to me now why new wave master Bryan Ferry chose the band to support him in his US tour in September and October, given their updated, electronic sound.  I wouldn’t have expected to, but I really like this departure in style and I am eagerly awaiting the full album.

You can keep up to date with The Phenomenal Handclap Band on Facebook or Twitter.

You can buy their music at Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.

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Music Video: “Face Again” by Mali Woods

I received some terribly tragic news today.  Mali Woods and her fiancé, producer Moe Johnson committed suicide on the 16th of November.  Moe had three children.  It is always devastating when young, talented people take their own lives and it usually happens that more questions are raised than answers provided.

I interviewed Mali just a month ago and we chatted about her new album, the Occupy movement and the lengths she went to in order to maintain diversity and equality in her life.  It is a very sad day indeed when somebody of that calibre feels that they have reached the end of the world.

You can read the interview here: Singer/Songwriter Mali Woods Talks Music, Diversity And Other Serious Issues.

Obituary: Molly Anne Woods.

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Book Review: My Soul to Steal by Rachel Vincent

It is difficult enough to forgive the unforgivable but when you're a bean sidhe and that betrayal involves your Demon's Breath-addicted boyfriend enabling a demon to possess your body, it can be especially trying.  Kaylee Cavanaugh is just beginning to put the pieces of her life and relationship with Nash back together when she is confronted with her worst nightmare. Literally.

Nash's ex-girlfriend Sabine is back on the scene and she is a mara, the walking nightmare of lore that infuses slumbering humans with bad dreams and feeds off their fears. Sabine makes no secret of the fact that she wants Nash back and not only is she his first love, there is the slight technicality that they never actually broke up in the first place.

When teachers at Eastlake High begin dying in their sleep, Kaylee wastes no time in reaching the conclusion that it is Sabine that is killing them, draining their life energy as she harvests their fears.  But can Kaylee put aside her jealousy for long enough to see that Sabine might not be involved and she certainly isn't behind the wave of toxic jealousy that is tearing the school apart?

My Soul to Steal is the fourth book in Rachel Vincent's Soul Screamers series and it is certainly the best in the series yet. With the scene set and the characters established, My Soul to Steal is non-stop action from the first page.  Apart from meeting the mara, we are introduced to more demons, hellions and creatures of the Netherworld creatures including hypnos, who feed from human energy through the barrier between the two realms.

Rachel Vincent steps up her imaginative and disturbing descriptions of the Netherworld and the scenes at the twisted Netherworld version of Eastlake High were fantastic.  As I read about the crimson creeper and deformed Netherworld creatures,  I couldn't help thinking that this is one series that needs to be brought to life in television or film.

Nash's dead, grim reaper brother Tod played a much greater part in My Soul to Steal, saving the show at the last minute as usual.  There is something brewing in his swirling bean sidhe eyes and I can't help but wish that it means that he and Kaylee will become an item in the next book.  Not that she seems to notice of course.

Clueless about Tod's intentions or not, I like Kaylee as a protagonist.  I like that she had enough self-respect to maintain her distance from Nash because of his betrayal and despite their undeniable mutual love.  So many young adult novels feature weak-minded lead female characters and Kaylee Cavanaugh certainly isn’t one of them.

Aside from Tod, the other characters I'd like to receive more attention are Alec and Kaylee's cousin Sophie. Who cares if Alec is technically 40-something? After being held hostage in the Netherworld for 25 years, he has the body and mind of a teenager. Surely he could find a suitable love interest?  After everything she has been through, I'd like to see Sophie grow a personality and take a greater role in the books. With her previous forays into the Netherworld, it could make for some interesting plot lines.

I have just realised that My Soul to Steal did not have a preview of the next book in the series, as was the case with the previous three books.  Thankfully I can confirm that If I Die, which appears to be the final book in the Soul Screamers series, was released in the US and Canada in September and should be reaching bookshelves in the UK in February 2012.   I can hardly wait!

I give My Soul to Steal five out of five stars and wait with bated breath for the next instalment.

Buy My Soul to Steal on Amazon.co.uk ¦ Amazon.com

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Article first published as Book Review: My Soul to Steal by Rachel Vincent on Blogcritics.

A copy of this book was provided to me for the purposes of this review and all opinions contain herein are my own. This review contains affiliate links.

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Music Video: New Young Pony Club – “Chaos”

Last week was all about New Young Pony Club. I've always liked them but as I pumped up my iPod on Friday afternoon, after a particularly hard week at work, I realised that I pretty much love them. It is always a sign when I get on to my brother and insist that he listen to something.

“Chaos” is the second track on the album The Optimist.  I love the powerful, emotional sound to the track and was surprised to see that I hadn’t rated it before.  I quickly gave it four stars (five stars is only reserved for tracks that I play over and over again on repeat).

It is actually my second favourite song on the album but my favourite, “Stone” doesn’t have an official video.  You can listen to “Stone” on YouTube.

I’ve heard a terrible rumour that the band have split and aren’t planning on releasing new material.  I really hope it isn’t so.

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The Suicide of Western Culture Release Remixes

With a name like The Suicide of Western Culture, it is difficult not to sit up and pay attention to a band, especially when you are told that they are proficient in “the noble art of butchering carefully immortal keyboards, guitar pedals and lofi drum machines”.  I have to be honest, I’m not entirely sure what that means or how one becomes a master in such an art, but after listening to the new album Remixes, I kind of get it.

Spanish duo The Suicide of Western Culture occupy that glorious space between electronic and indie music and have played alongside artists such as Animal Collective, Cut Copy, Orbital and Darkstar.  After tearing up the festival scene in Spain and the rest of Europe this summer, they have their sights set on a US tour. 

They have a truly dark sound, as you’d expect from their name and it reminds me of 6am on a massive night out when you begin to savour the epic proportions of the evening while cultivating the fantasy that it can last forever.

Their eponymous debut album The Suicide of Western Culture attracted the attention of some of the biggest artists in the band’s native Spain, as Guillamino, Lasers, Rusty Warriors, Brunetto and others lined up to produce their Remixes album. 

I’d really recommend that you give their debut album a listen too, especially original version of the track “The End of Luxury”.   You can catch up with The Suicide of Western Culture on Facebook.

You can buy their music at Amazon.co.uk.

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Interview: Aimée Carter, author of The Goddess Test

Aimée Carter is the author of The Goddess Test, the debut young adult novel that she wrote when she was just 22 years old.  A modern day retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Hades and Persephone, The Goddess Test is the story of Kate Winters who would do just about anything to buy more time with her dying mother.  I reviewed The Goddess Test in September and caught up with Aimée to discuss how she began writing, her inspiration for the novel and the upcoming sequel.

Can you tell us a bit more about yourself? When did you first start writing and when did you finish your first book?

I started writing when I was eleven, beginning with fan fiction and working my way toward original fiction.  I finished my first novel-length manuscript when I was fifteen, and before I sold The Goddess Test, I wrote over twenty more. It was definitely a learning experience.

The Goddess Test is a young adult fantasy novel set in the Underworld and featuring the ancient Greek gods and goddesses.  What made you decide to write in this genre and where did you find your inspiration?

Writing YA comes naturally, as that’s mostly what I read, and I’ve always had an interest in Greek mythology. As for inspiration, I think my biggest inspiration is wanting to tell a story that people enjoy. Cheesy, but totally why I write.

A central theme in the novel is death and dying as Kate comes to terms with her mother's illness and impending death.  This was really touching and well written.  Was this based on your own real life experiences or was it entirely fictional?

Thank you! I did lose my mother when I was ten, but she died suddenly, unlike Kate’s mother, and I was also many years younger than Kate is.  Ironically, after I sold The Goddess Test to my publisher, my father got sick and was hospitalized on and off for several months, and that offered me a new perspective on Kate’s situation.  I wound up going back during the editing process and rewriting a lot of what Kate goes through in order to reflect that.

What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author?  What has been your best compliment?

I don’t read reviews, good or bad, because they have a tendency to rattle me and make me second-guess my writing. However, I think the toughest criticism to take is criticism from someone who didn’t “get” the story. It wasn’t a good fit, or there was a fundamental misunderstanding that wasn’t anyone’s fault. They feel like they’ve wasted their time, and I hate making readers feel that way. One of the best compliments is someone telling me they’re anticipating the sequel –not only did they enjoy the first book, but they liked it enough to look forward to the next one and maybe even form some theories on what will happen. I love hearing those.

Can you tell us what you are working on at the moment?  I believe that the sequel to The Goddess Test, Goddess Interrupted, is due out in January 2012.  Have you finished working on that and if so, what can we expect next?

The date for Goddess Interrupted keeps changing! I think right now it’s set for March 2012, but I don’t know when it’ll be released in the UK. Maybe it is January. I’ve completely finished working on the sequel, and I’m in the editing process with the completed third book right now. As for what you can expect in the sequel, the back cover flap was revealed a little while ago:

Kate Winters has won immortality.

But if she wants a life in the Underworld with Henry, she’ll have to fight for it.

Becoming immortal wasn’t supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she’s as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he’s becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate’s coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans.

As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future.

Henry’s first wife, Persephone.

Thank you for taking the time to speak to us Aimée.  I am certainly looking forward to Goddess Interrupted and in fact, it is already waiting on my bedside table!

Buy The Goddess Test at Amazon.co.uk¦ Amazon.com

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Article first published as Interview: Aimée Carter, Author of The Goddess Test on Blogcritics.

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Book Review: My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent

Kaylee Cavanaugh has had the strangest time lately. In just ten short weeks she discovered she was a bean sidhe, learned that her aunt was trading the souls of innocent girls on the black market  in exchange for eternal youth, brought her best friend Emma back from the dead and reclaimed the soul of a young starlet from the hellion who had bought it. She did all of this with the help of her bean sidhe boyfriend Nash Hudson and his dead reaper brother Tod.

A month after she was grounded following the events in My Soul To Save, Kaylee is hoping to resume a normal teenage life. She might just have to wait a little bit longer for that because someone is getting teenagers hooked on Demon's Breath, the most addictive substance in the Netherworld. Demon’s Breath is exactly what it says on the tin, the breath of demons and it is craved by creatures of the Netherworld.  As Nash’s friends succumb to addiction, madness and death, Kaylee realises that it can have catastrophic and fatal consequences to human users. 

With their unique abilities to cross into the Netherworld, Kaylee, Nash and Tod will have to track down those responsible for supplying Demon's Breath to our world and stop them before this deadly substance spreads through their school.  But could it be that the surge of Demon’s Breath is merely a diversion from a far greater and far more evil plan?

My Soul to Keep is the third novel in Rachel Vincent's Soul Screamers series.  In the previous two books, Kaylee and Nash met, fell in love and realised the lengths they would go to prove their love for each other.  Without giving away the plot, My Soul to Keep is a whole different matter as Nash fundamentally betrays Kaylee and her character is tested to the limit as she must overcome her shock and pain to push forward nevertheless and save the lives of Nash and her father.

As with all the books in the series, the best character in the book is Tod and I cannot wait to see if he will get a bigger role in future books.  Rachel Vincent has a terrific style of writing, and is able to convey humour, sarcasm and descriptions effortlessly, without weighing down the flow of the story.  Tod has the best line in the whole book which might make slightly more sense if you know the context.

“But without proxies to boost his energy level, Avari won’t have the power to possess his own wardrobe, much less the entire cast of the Kaylee Cavanaugh show.”

Avari is the demon behind most of the mayhem in all three books to date and the source of increasingly diabolical plots to gain control of Kaylee’s soul.

I’d recommend My Soul to Keep to all fans of young adult, supernatural fiction and fans of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series and Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy will love the banshees and demons in this series.

I give My Soul to Keep four out of five stars.

Buy My Soul to Keep on Amazon.co.uk¦ Amazon.com

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Article first published as Book Review: My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent on Blogcritics.

I actually purchased this book myself, so no need for a disclaimer this time!  This review contains affiliate links.

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Music Video: Falling Mirror–“Johnny Calls the Chemist”

I really wish this video was better quality.  “Johnny Calls the Chemist” is an iconic track by South African band Falling Mirror.  You’ll be hard-pressed to find any South African who lived through the 80s who doesn’t love this song (or at the very least, know of it).  And I bet that most fans have Googled the track at some time or another to try and figure out what the heck the lyrics mean.

“Johnny Calls the Chemist” was the title track off the 1985 album Johnny Calls the Chemist, a concept album loosely based on the obsession that lead singer Nielen Mirror had with a girl who worked in a chemist.  The whole album is really good but it is absolutely surreal and often disturbing.  The legend goes that Falling Mirror took less than 30 minutes to write this track which I find quite incredible.

This is quite possibly my favourite South African song of al time.

You can buy the track or album at Rhythm Music Store or Amazon.co.uk (mp3 only).

More…

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