Insight » Starry Eyed: The Nouse Constellations Guide
Leeds has already been fairly generous with its smaller festivals this year; Live at Leeds and the British Wildlife Festival were both over-egged puddings with so many crucial acts squeezed into such cosy events that clashes occurred with pretty much any band you saw. Constellations, a new get-together at the Leeds University Union on Sunday, is a fresh one-dayer that forms a kind of Triforce with the aforementioned. The University Union, if you haven’t been, is the perfect venue for small festivals, with its underground network of different stages providing an entertaining assault course when running from band to band. I last went along when it hosted the Damnation metal showcase two years ago, and, although there will be doubtless a wider range of colour on the garments of this crowd; it should have the same fantastic atmosphere.
Fingers crossed Constellations will also make up for this year’s Damnation having a line-up that made me want to vomit – in a bad way. The roster of artists would certainly suggest so, with 26 selections from the indie/post-punk/electro side of things collected for your pleasure. If you want legends you’ve got revered stalwarts Broken Social Scene, while if you want to get your indie mosh on there’s Los Campesinos!. If a shot into the pants of the trendy is what you’re after, suffer through some hip chill-dub-twat-step with Gold Panda, or alternatively give up and be pleasantly surprised by local talent like Sky Larkin and iLIKETRAINS. But rather than running around like a headless Chickenhawk have a look at these recommendations; five sets it’s utterly critical you are present for. Granted, due to horrible clashing you may require teleportation powers to see them all, in which case go for a jog round Chernobyl and hope some X-Men or Street Sharks mutation goes down. Because if you miss any of these you’ll be crying on your pillow until the next time they’re in town:
Les Savy Fav
If ever there was a band that makes me want to decapitate a reindeer, wear its head as a hat and charge through a bunch of cardigan-wearing kids whilst screaming maniacally then this is it. Singer Tim Harrington is everything Pink Eyes from Fucked Up wants to be; prominently bearded, hirsute, sweaty, on the verge of nudity and wildly entertaining. A friend was recently telling me how he managed to get a bite out of a bread hat that the man was wearing last time he saw them – it is for reasons like this that this band is frankly unmissable. Aside from yeasty follicle-hiding goodies, the band offers some of the weirdest and most strangely affecting US indie rock you’re likely to hear, with the same smirking sense of humour as mclusky offsetting textures similar to that of The Dismemberment Plan. Basically, this is just great punk spirited fun that’ll make you shit a cake.
Key Tune: ‘The Equestrian’ used to be accompanied by Tim saddling up a member of the audience and using them as a steed. On Sunday, it could be you.
Sleigh Bells
Currently setting the blogosphere alight (probably), I got slightly obsessed by Sleigh Bells’ record ‘Treats’ over the summer. They’re a summery band; big, hard-hitting R&B rhythms and cute vocals superbly accompanying any trip to the beach. That’s not to say they’re easy listening, as the guitars scree like freshly-amputated banshees and everything is turned up to 11. You can almost feel your eardrums rebelling against you when you test their resilience by playing this on headphones; it’s LOUD. They’re a duo, Derek Miller from post-hardcore nutters Poison The Well and pop chanteuse Alexis Krauss, whose mother suggested her for the project. Their differing musical backgrounds create an unusual dynamic. ‘Rill Rill’ is the potential cross-over hit, soaring pop melodies raised ever higher by pulsating percussive violence, while other tracks like ‘Crown On The Ground’ will make the venue collapse in on itself with their crunk low-end bounce. You’ll still be smiling under the rubble.
Key Tune: I guess if you’ve just got back from those student protests ‘Riot Rhythm’ is the one.
Four Tet
It’s worth navigating the inevitable rush of ‘the fashionable’ towards the stage for Four Tet. Tarnished with the IDM brush, he mixes a palette of hip-hop, electronic, techno and folk elements into an intriguing new hue. Since 1998 (yes, it really has been that long) Kieran Hebden has charmed the muso world with seven singular LPs and a host of remixes for artists as diverse as Bloc Party, Juana Molina and Black Sabbath. Collaborations with untouchable jazz percussionist Steve Reid (Miles Davis, James Brown and Sun Ra, oh yes) as well as that paragon of London dubstep, the clandestine Burial, have cemented him as a musician’s favourite if not a smash commercially. Expect to be confused and challenged but also to end up lost in the rhythms – Four Tet is a question of freeing your mind so that your ass will follow.
Key Tune: ‘Love Cry’ from the new record will send you spiralling off into a trance.
Divorce
If you’ve spent the day getting comfy with moustachioed tweeness from the likes of Local Natives, I demand you correct yourself with a dose of Divorce. If you’ve ever heard No Wave bands like Teenage Jesus and the Jerks or freak-punks like Flipper you might get an idea of what to expect, this is all screeching riot grrl vocals with spine-twisting guitar work and gnarled, perverted bass work. That flat out face-punch rhythm section reminds me of early Swans, their detuned, precise assault worryingly calculated. This is definitely the most upsetting band on the line-up, crawling like a napalmed cripple from the detritus of the Glasgow noise scene, having released an EP on Optimo and a collaboration with Comanechi on Merok. Let them scorch your face off, they’ll burn your old soul and dance on its grave.
Key Tune: ‘Early Christianity’ is 4.22 of abrasive confrontation, more punk than anything that has ever been on the Warped Tour.
Liars
Back in May, I witnessed Liars destroy a stage at one in the morning at ATP Minehead. I’ve never really recovered. Vocalist Angus Andrew was one of the most intense frontmen I’ve witnessed, on the wrong end of a bad trip, stalking the stage like an evil dude in a Death Row solitary confinement booth. The band have recently moved on yet further from their art-punk origins, with new record ‘Sisterworld’ proving to be one of their best yet, songs like ‘Scissor’ displaying a verve for dynamics and real psychological horror that was hinted at but never fully explored on earlier tracks. This Heat, Gang of Four and Swell Maps are all clearly influences, but Liars’ post-punk textures, brain-kicking bass and ghastly, bleak rhythms strike industrial fear into audiences’ hearts far deeper than those they are in thrall to ever did. Having been charmed with everything from slow-burning chants to motorik trances to all-out assaults on the senses, you’ll be emotionally exhausted by the time this eclectic, vehement band have stumbled offstage.
Key Tune: When the band begins the heartbreakingly powerful ‘The Other Side of Mt. Heart Attack’ you won’t hear a pin drop. After aural damage from some of their other songs you won’t hear a pin drop again for a good few weeks.
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