popwreckoning

Liverpool alt-rock / dance / punk / pop band the Wombats are about to release their second full album, called The Wombats Proudly Present…This Modern Glitch. (Yeah, I know, it’s a mouthful – but their first released in the UK was called The Wombats Proudly Present: A Guide to Love Loss and Desperation, so I guess they wanted to continue the trend.) There’s been a lot of hype surrounding this sophomore effort overseas. Three singles have already been released in Britain (“Tokyo [Vampires and Wolves],” “Jump in the Fog,” and “Anti-D”); they hosted a special album launch party at the tony Supper Club last week; and this week, the new album is currently riding high as this week’s Album of the Week on both Zane Lowe‘s evening BBC Radio1 program and XFM over there.

And on the whole, the hype is deserved. The proceedings start in style with “One Perfect Disease,” touching on a common subject for pop songs: being in a toxic relationship. In the light of the popularity of Phoenix‘s more dancey songs like “1901,” America should take a shine to this beat-perfect, synthy dance anthem. The mad beats continue into “Tokyo (Vampire and Wolves)”: the Japanese capitals seems a random choice for a title, but I’m not going to complain when something’s got an amazing groove. “Techno Fan” and “Walking Disasters” might not be stellar in the lyric department but again, the Wombats come through with catchy tunes.

Their current single in the UK, “Anti-D” (music video below), is unique with emotional violin and tender lyrics that might make you cry. (It’s based on lead singer Matthew Murphy‘s own addiction to anti-depressants.) It’s not hard to see this soundtracking a rom-com in the near future. Or perhaps the song after it, “Last Night I Dreamt,” which has surprisingly amusing yet incisive lyrics for a pop song: “I tend to cry in a room full of laughter / as the cheese finally slipped off of its cracker / I don’t know / I just prepare to let it go.” When the Wombats employ humor, it’s total win: in “Girls and Fast Cars,” Murphy insists, “I’m a man of simple tastes / no whiskey or caviar / what I feel is what I say / I’m not trying to be smart / I like girls…girls and fast cars!” before breaking out into a sweeping chorus.

“Jump into the Fog” seemed like a strange choice for first single; it’s not bad, but it’s slow and lumbers along – not exactly what you want to hear from a dance punk band. Of a similar vein is “1996,” which is, disappointedly, not as exciting as Neon Trees‘ “1983,” talking instead about “building telescopes” and “kissing with one eye on the TV set.” The guitar work is admirable though. The closing track, “Schumacher the Champagne,” comes in from left field compared to the whole of the album. It’s the heaviest track on the album and not designed for dancing; perhaps it should be viewed more as a grand parting shot? But even if you don’t like this song, you can’t ignore the well-crafted electronic indie rock/pop on the rest of The Wombats Proudly Present…This Modern Glitch. Yep, English electropop is alive and well – and as usual, excellent.

The Wombats Proudly Present…This Modern Glitch will be released in North America digitally on April 25 and physically on April 26 via Bright Antenna.

Track Listing:
01. Our Perfect Disease
02. Tokyo (Vampires and Wolves)
03. Jump into the Fog
04. Anti-D
05. Last Night I Dreamt
06. Techno Fan
07. 1996
08. Walking Disasters
09. Girls and Fast Cars
10. Schumacher the Champagne

Tour Dates:
May 31 – Bowery Ballroom / New York City
Jun 01 – Troubadour / Los Angeles
June 03 – Rickshaw (Popscene) / San Francisco

The Wombats: website | myspace

Liverpool dance punk band the Wombats will be releasing their new album, The Wombats Proudly Present…This Modern Glitch, digitally on April 25 and physically on April 26 in North America on Bright Antenna. Here’s the promo video for “Techno Fan,” the fourth single from the album. The band will be playing three dates in the U.S. this summer, in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Tour Dates
May 31 – Bowery Ballroom / New York City
Jun 01 – Troubadour / Los Angeles
Jun 03 – Rickshaw (Popscene) / San Francisco

The Wombats: website | myspace

We’ve got a copy of Fenech-Soler‘s debut single in the U.S., “Demons” to give away. It’s the title track of the debut EP the Kings Cliffe band have released on this side of the pond (our review of the EP posted previously on PopWreckoning here, buy the EP from iTunes here). And this single we’re giving away isn’t just any copy: it’s a limited edition, hand-numbered vinyl single.

Want to win? All you have to do is comment and tell us what you would do if you were given the chance to meet Fenech-Soler. Answers must be submitted by 12 p.m. EDT on Friday, April 15 (think of it as a tax day present from us). We’ll select the winner at that time from the comments submitted. Please use a valid email address when entering or we won’t be able to contact you if you’ve won. This contest is open to U.S. residents only. Good luck!

Fenech-Soler: website | myspace | “Demons” video | Demons EP review

It’s unfortunate, but electronic music doesn’t really get a fair (mainstream) shake in America. You can see this by the cities most electronic acts and DJs choose to play: New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, and maybe some lucky others in between. My hope, specifically, is for English electronic bands, who traditionally do extremely well in European and Asian markets, to do equally as well here in the U.S. In 2009, I was pulling for Dan Black. Last year I was stumping for Delphic. This year it’s Fenech-Soler, four guys from a little town called Kings Cliffe, who get my vote. When I say little town, I mean that the band (comprised of brothers Ben and Ross Duffy, Daniel Soler, and Andrew Lindsay) is the only thing from there I’ve ever heard about. I had to look the place up in Wikipedia to find out exactly where this was.

This is not a dig. Not at all. Actually, the fact that they wrote their self-titled debut album, released in the UK last fall, in what Fenech-Soler singer Ben Duffy describes as “a little corner of Northamptonshire“ and their “hideaway” makes it all the more unlikely. Their name came up often in conversations I had with friends, but it wasn’t until I heard that the band were chosen as support for Delphic (at an important Manchester Warehouse Project gig in Delphic‘s hometown) that I really took notice.

Listening to their track “Lies,” there’s no surprise why the Manchester trio chose them for a famed rave event like Warehouse Project. The great thing about dance music is (and more than any other genre I think), it doesn’t matter who wrote it or where the band is from. If a song is well-written and has a good beat, you can bet your bottom dollar that it will get people on the dance floor and bodies moving. This is the feeling I get from Fenech-Soler‘s debut release in America, the Demons EP.

The title track of the EP first grabbed me because the chorus reminded me a lot of Dan Black‘s “Alone.” But lyrically, it’s more dense, in a good way. While I give that the words “I’m the one / you’re the drug to ease my pain / I was wondering / if you ever / see me again” isn’t Shakespeare, they work because this is dance music. When you’re on a dance floor, you want a song that has amorous, yearning lyrics and a monster backbeat paired with clean, bouncy synths, so you can sway your arms in the air and move your hips. At least that’s what I look for. Sexy spoken words on a breakdown are always a plus too. “Demons” ticks off all those boxes admirably.

“Stone Bridge” with solid piano chords and equally solid vocals from Duffy shows that the band knows their way outside the stereotypical dance track. The song has a darker, sultry edge that would appeal to people who usually run from dance albums. If I had to compare this song to another band, I’d probably name Keane, who have turned to dance and synth beats for their last two releases (2008′s Perfect Symmetry and 2010′s Night Train). Except for the fact that two-thirds into “Stone Bridge,” Fenech-Soler‘s electronic soul is fully realized. Also included on this EP is the “White Version” of “Demons,” where the band strips down the original track to a slower pace, with Duffy’s gorgeous voice showcased as the beauty that it is. (The band are so nice that they’re offering this song, along with other stripped-down versions of other album tracks “Stop and Stare,” “Battlefields,” and “Contender” for free download on their official website.)

Besides Delphic, Fenech-Soler have recently toured with the likes of White Lies and Kelis, so they’ve got friends in high places. And if you still aren’t convinced about this band, I suggest having a listen to the Groove Armada track “Paper Romance,” featuring Duffy on vocals. All I can say is there must be something in the water in England that somehow makes practically every English electronic band sound fantastic. I’m so glad the Demons EP is finally coming out on this side of the pond. America, get ready. Fenech-Soler is ready to rock your world. Let’s go dancing. And put St. George’s crosses on your cheeks while you’re at it.

Fenech-Soler‘s Demons will be released in America on March 29.

Track Listing
1. Demons
2. Stone Bridge
3. Lies
4. Demons (White Version)

Fenech-Soler: website | myspace | “Demons” video

The Vaccines, one of the most hotly tipped English bands for success in 2011, have released a new music video for their track, “If You Wanna.” They were described by the Guardian‘s Paul Lester as “like the Drums if they were more influenced by the Jesus and Mary Chain than the Smiths.”

“If You Wanna” will appear on the London band’s debut album, What Did You Expect from the Vaccines?, expected to drop in May on Columbia Records. If you’re interested in getting your hands on some Vaccines tuneage now, their 3-song eponymous EP is available in digital format, with a 10″ vinyl to be released on 7″ on March 15. And if you happen to be at South by Southwest this year, you can catch them there as well.

The Vaccines: website | myspace

Photo: Roger Sargent

New York City’s folk pop band Freelance Whales (pictured right) and Oxford, England indie dance rock band Foals will be touring North America together in April and May. In several markets (San Francisco, New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC) the two bands will be co-headlining. The support act for this tour is Auckland, New Zealand electropop band the Naked and Famous.

Tour Dates
Apr 10 – Commodore Ballroom / Vancouver*
Apr 11 – Showbox at the Market / Seattle*
Apr 12 – Wonder Ballroom / Portland*
Apr 14 – Great American Music Hall / San Francisco (Freelance Whales co-headlining with Foals)*
Apr 19 – Fitzgerald’s / Houston*
Apr 20 – Loft / Dallas
Apr 21 – La Zona Rosa / Austin*
Apr 23 – Firebird / St. Louis*
Apr 25 – Varsity Theater / Minneapolis*
Apr 26 – Metro / Chicago (Freelance Whales co-headlining with Foals)*
Apr 27 – Outland Live / Columbus*
Apr 29 – Beachland Ballroom / Cleveland*
Apr 30 – Phoenix / Toronto*
May 01 – Le National / Montreal*
May 02 – Paradise / Boston*
May 04 – Terminal 5 / New York City (Freelance Whales co-headlining with Foals)*
May 05 – TLA / Philadelphia*
May 06 – 9:30 Club / Washington, DC (Freelance Whales co-headlining with Foals)*
May 07 – Ottobar / Baltimore*
May 08 – Met / Pawtucket, RI*
*with the Naked and Famous

Freelance Whales: website | myspace | @ Rock ‘n’ Roll Hotel
Foals: website | myspace
The Naked and Famous: | myspace

In the Noughties, the British music scene was littered with female blue eyed soul singers; the ones that stood out in front were bad girl Amy Winehouse, doe-eyed lass Duffy, groovy Joss Stone, and the wild card, Adele, who managed a breakout hit here in the U.S. with “Chasing Pavements.” The London soul singer is back in 2011 with her second album. Like 19, her debut album released in 2008, this one is named 21, for the age she wrote these songs. Kind of unimaginative. Well, this is a woman who writes mostly ballads…and this album went straight to #1 on its first week of release in the UK in mid-January, and when it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

I feel it necessary to start this review by saying Adele has a great voice. She really does. The problem I have with 21 is that all the songs are too similar. There are essentially two types of sound on here: there are delicate acoustic tunes, and there are over the top, over-orchestrated ones with backing soul singers. Then there’s only so many times you can hear a woman singing the sentiment, “what did I do wrong? I’ll change, if you [come back / stay with me].” See “Don’t You Remember,” “I’ll Be Waiting,” “One and Only,” and “He Won’t Go.” It’s not that I’m a cold, heartless stone. I’ve loved and lost, I can relate to the feelings, generally. I’m no feminist, but I chafe at hearing another woman singing how she’s going to give up everything for her man to get him.

Then there’s the opposite emotion, which I think comes across as more real. “Rolling in the Deep” was chosen as the lead single. And with good reason. The tempo is upbeat (thudding drums and banging piano chords), and when it comes to emotion, there’s nothing like a woman scorned. When she sings, “we could have had at it all / rolling in the deep / you had my heart and soul / in your hands / but you played it / to the beat” and “you’re gonna wish you / had never met me,” you feel it. Maybe it’s no “You Oughta Know,” but it’s close. “Rumour Has It” is cut from the same cloth, but the shouted “rumour has it!” over and over gets annoying after a while.

The strength of Adele‘s voice comes across winningly in “Someone Like You”; this is the one song on here I can overlook the cloyingness. Also included on this album is an inspired cover of the Cure‘s “Lovesong.” This could have gone terribly wrong, but Adele gives the ’80s classic proper reverence with a bossa nova interpretation that Robert Smith should be applauding. Like sappy ballads? This one’s for you.

21 by Adele will be released on XL Recordings on February 22. She will be touring North America in support of this album on the dates below.

Track Listing:
01. Rolling in the Deep
02. Rumour Has It
03. Turning Tables
04. Don’t You Remember
05. Set the Fire to Rain
06. He Won’t Go
07. Take It All
08. I’ll Be Waiting
09. One and Only
10. Lovesong
11. Someone Like You

Tour Dates:
May 12 – 9:30 Club / Washington, DC
May 13 – Electric Factory / Philadelphia
May 15 – House of Blues / Boston
May 16 – Olympia Theater / Montreal
May 18 – Kool Haus / Toronto
May 19 – Beacon Theatre / New York City
May 23 – Royal Oak Music Theatre / Royal Oak
May 24 – Riviera Theater / Chicago
May 26 – First Avenue / Minneapolis
May 28 – Ogden Theatre / Denver
May 29 – Depot / Salt Lake City
May 31 – Commodore Ballroom / Vancouver, BC
June 01 – Showbox at the Market / Seattle
June 03 – Crystal Ballroom / Portland
June 04 – Warfield Theatre / San Francisco
June 08 – Humphreys Concerts by the Bay / San Diego
June 09 – Wiltern / Los Angeles
June 12 – Stubbs Waller Creek / Austin
June 15 – House of Blues / Dallas
June 17 – Tabernacle / Atlanta
June 18 – Orange Peel / Asheville
June 20 – Ryman Auditorium / Nashville

Adele: website | myspace | Adele Announces May and June North American Tour, Album Stream Available on NPR

London soul singer/songwriter Adele has announced plans to tour North America in May and June. The tour begins May 12 in Washington, DC and concludes on June 20 in Nashville. She will be touring in support of her second album, 21, which will be released on February 22 on XL Recordings. Presale tickets are already on sale but the general sale begins on Friday, February 11.

If you’d like to preview 21 before you can buy it, it’s available on NPR now but only for a limited time. It’s already done well in Adele‘s home country: when it was released in Great Britain on January 24, it hit #1 on the UK albums chart in its first week.

Tour Dates:
May 12 – 9:30 Club / Washington, DC
May 13 – Electric Factory / Philadelphia
May 15 – House of Blues / Boston
May 16 – Olympia Theater / Montreal
May 18 – Kool Haus / Toronto
May 19 – Beacon Theatre / New York City
May 23 – Royal Oak Music Theatre / Royal Oak
May 24 – Riviera Theater / Chicago
May 26 – First Avenue / Minneapolis
May 28 – Ogden Theatre / Denver
May 29 – Depot / Salt Lake City
May 31 – Commodore Ballroom / Vancouver, BC
June 01 – Showbox at the Market / Seattle
June 03 – Crystal Ballroom / Portland
June 04 – Warfield Theatre / San Francisco
June 08 – Humphreys Concerts by the Bay / San Diego
June 09 – Wiltern / Los Angeles
June 12 – Stubbs Waller Creek / Austin
June 15 – House of Blues / Dallas
June 17 – Tabernacle / Atlanta
June 18 – Orange Peel / Asheville
June 20 – Ryman Auditorium / Nashville

Adele: website | myspace

Fenech-Soler is the latest English electropop band to make the leap of releasing their debut stateside, scheduled for later this year, along with an accompanying North American tour. The Kings Cliffe band’s next single out in the UK, “Demons,” will be released on February 7 and is the second single off their 2010 self-titled debut album.

A good friend turned me on to them last year, and after having heard about their support slots with White Lies, Kelis and Delphic on tour, I definitely wanted to keep these guys on my radar. You should too.

Fenech-Soler: website | myspace

While on holiday in England in April 2007, I saw the indie rock group Hot Club de Paris open for Carl Barat and Gary Powell‘s post-Libertines band, Dirty Pretty Things, at London’s Shepherds Bush Empire. I was very confused that the trio was singing harmonies with an English accent and not a French one. Turns out the band is from the Northwest of England, Liverpool to be exact (yes, the home of the Beatles), and is comprised of principal songwriter / lead vocalist / bassist Paul Rafferty and a pair of brothers, Alasdair (drums) and Matthew Smith (guitar). Songs like “Shipwreck” from their 2006 debut album Drop It ’til It Pops turned into singalongs that Sunday night at Shepherds Bush, confirming to me that even though they aren’t massive in Britain like, say, Coldplay, they’ve got a devoted fanbase at home and in Europe. And for a British band, that’s a major thing to have under your belt: it gives you the clout to keep making records.

Hot Club de Paris‘ last two EP releases in the UK, With Days Like This as Cheap as Chewing Gum, Why Would Anyone Want to Work? (released February 2010) and The Rise and Inevitable Fall of the High School Suicide Cluster Band (released May 2010), have now been combined into one album for their North American album debut, the whimsically titled Free the Pterodactyl 3. Their record label, Moshi Moshi, may not be familiar to you, but past acts like Florence and the Machine and Friendly Fires should be, having released their earliest works on the indie London label before moving on to bigger things.

Hot Club de Paris is an interesting amalgamation of punk and pop. They make music under their own terms, putting out what they want (which explains why they put out two EPs in the UK last year instead of one long player) and bowing to no one. The backstory of the title track of the album is described by Moshi Moshi as “a slow and wistful jam about singer Paul Rafferty’s scrape with the law whilst attempting the liberation of a 3-metre fibreglass pterodactyl from a derelict fun fair with a couple of friends.” Sounds like a punk, all right (watch the black marker and drum-centric promo video for the song below). Their sound is at times angry and angular as math rock, but also maintains a pop edge, making them accessible to anyone. I mean, really, what punk band can you name that regularly breaks out into three-part a cappella harmony at a gig? While I haven’t seen the band in four years, I imagine “The White Town Express (Get High, Stay Low)” would be perfect to showcase their gorgeous harmonies live.

My favorite songs from this band are of the winsome, up tempo variety. “I’m Not in Love and Neither Are You” and “Dog Tired at the Spring Dance Marathon” have fun guitar lines running underneath the insistent, shouted vocals. “Dance a Ragged Dance” has feel-good harmonies and the proof that well-read Rafferty is handy with choosing words (“…buildings / booked basement parties, sad times / the moonlight lit a kiss on the stairs…“) without abandoning punk (“we can either dance or die!“). The song also ends with xylophone, more Freelance Whales than punk.

Despite the name, “Biggie Smalls and the Ghetto Slams” is not a rap song at all but instead tells the story of young kids and their ill-fated band. If you haven’t figured this out already, Hot Club de Paris likes to be different, but not for the sake of being different: it’s just not in their nature to operate any other way. And I’m glad, because their sound is all that’s great about the young North. “The Rise and Inevitable Fall of the High School Suicide Cluster Band” and “Fuck You, the Truth” (with the question, “are you guys having a good time?“, and response from the crowd, “noooo!“) are more punk, but there’s something charming about the way the lyrics are shouted at you. You want to root for this band. It’s not hard to imagine fans at a gig shouting the words back at them, fists in the air. Me? I want to be a part of that.

While Free the Pterodactyl 3 is not a cohesive album (and if you’ve read this far, you understand why this is the case), it’s a good introduction to an exciting Liverpool band that deserves success on this side of the Atlantic.

Track Listing:
01. I’m Not in Love and Neither Are You
02. The Rise and Inevitable Fall of the High School Suicide Cluster Band
03. Fuck You, the Truth
04. Biggie Smalls and the Ghetto Slams
05. Free the Pterodactyl 3
06. Dance a Ragged Dance
07. Dog Tired at the Spring Dance Marathon
08. They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?
09. The White Town Express (Get High, Stay Low)
10. Three Albums and Still No Ballad
11. Noses Blazing
12. Extra Time, Sudden Death

Free the Pterodactyl 3 is available now from Moshi Moshi.

Hot Club de Paris: website | myspace