A very much welcome back to Austra. Katie Stelmanis & Co quickly became one of my acts of 2011 after the phenomenal "Beat and the Pulse" first hit my ears in January of the same year, I saw the act a handful of times over the year and the subsequent LP Feel it Break was number five in my records of the year posts too.
In fact, I just re-read the opening paragraph of my Austra "Introducing" post. "My first musical error of 2011 was deciding to have a peaceful evening in last Monday when I could have taken a trip to Brixton to see Daughter and Austra.". Imagine that Daughter and Austra at the Windmill....
Anyway, no point dwelling on past errors, there are a many. March 2013 sees the return on the Canadian sextet with their forthcoming second album Olympia, earlier announced for release June 16/17 via Domino. The first track to be taken from it "Home" starts with almost Austra-patented choral vocals, strong and passionate as Katie calls out to a lover whose failed to return home, the big, bright melody more akin to "Lose It" than the crunching darkness that shrouded much of Feel it Break, with driving piano and electronic glitches leading a dance-floor filler full of energy and infectious spirit.
The press release states that Austra have developed from primarily the work of Katie to "a complex collaborative effort between its six members", I'll be interested to see how that transfers to the LP. The good news isn't over there either - Austra return to the UK to play London's Hoxton Bar & Kitchen on June 17th - tickets.
12. Zola Jesus - Vessel Posted 29th June: "Vessel" is a stunning return for Nika Roza Danilova, harsh metallic beats and Nika's colossal voice create an immediate, menacing atmosphere that's dramatic and chilly."
11. Dum Dum Girls - Coming Down Posted 20th July: "Coming Down" is a real heart on sleeve lament. Dee Dee's smoky vocals recall more Hope Sandoval than the lo-fi fuzzed-out Shangri-La's of the debut. Languid, echoey guitars shimmer with emotion and longing, complementing the woozy and wistful lyrics perfectly, everything about this track is mellow, luscious, amazing. For those late night, alcohol soaked melancholic moments. Undeniably vulnerable and beautiful, if the album hits me like this track then it's going to be something special."
10. Echo Lake - Sunday Evening
Posted 3rd January and June 15th: "...Their sound highlighted perfectly on the shimmering beauty that is "Sunday Evening", with its hypnotising intensity, chiming guitars and foot-stomping progressive beat..."
9. Daughter - Love Posted 10th November: "Elena's voice remains pure and beautiful throughout, it's probably one of the most emotionally affecting, gorgeous voices I've heard recently, listening to the opening verse of the heartbreaking "Love" with its wounded, confessional lyrics is a provides a genuine goosebumps moment. If you aren't amongst those 6000 followers perhaps now is the time to stand up and pay attention, I'm sure dozens of A&R guys already have."
8. The Great Wilderness - Dark Horse
Posted 22nd September: "Their most recent (and best) release is the spellbinding "Dark Horse", a sprawling nine minute epic, seamlessly flowing from luscious, dreamy melodies, shimmering guitar rhythms sewn together by vocalist Paola's haunting voice to a shattering cataclysm of pummelling drums and frenetic guitar riffs played with such searing intensity you'll be left gob smacked, then you'll want to press repeat, again and again."
7. The Joy Formidable - Spectrum Posted 6th February: "Their sound is individual and unique, but recognisable and accessible. Whilst managing to simultaneously sound like and unlike every guitar band you ever heard, The Joy Formidable are a truly astonishing and daunting prospect but fortunately they are blessed with enough style and charisma to create the perfect package".
6. Braids - Lemonade Posted 6th January: "Lemonade" is the stand-out, a seven minute masterpiece which pushes the boundaries of mainstream psych-pop, swirling, tropical soundscapes and bubbling ambient electronics give the perfect platform for Raphaelle's delicately soft vocals (which hide somewhat of a dirty mouth)."
5. I Break Horses - Hearts Posted 10th May: "Hearts", for me at least, is the signature I Break Horses track, perhaps because it's what hooked me first, it's simply heavenly. Frozen beats sparkle while pulsating rhythms add a slightly sinister tone (my initial reaction was The Terminator theme) all softly woven amongst echoey drums and the hushed yet, ethereal coos of Maria Lindén. Her voice, as beautiful as it is, acts as another layer of the instrumentation where the lyrical content matters little."
4. Austra - The Beat and The Pulse Posted 24th January: Austra are Domino's latest signing, the work of Katie Stelmanis whose debut release "Beat & The Pulse" is dominated by a powerful, pounding dance-floor filling dark electro beat"
3. Lanterns on The Lake - I Love You, Sleepyhead Posted 29th November : "...windswept instrumentation sweeps and swoons while heartbroken melodies tug at your heart strings, the updated version of "I Love You, Sleepyhead" the perfection summation, genuinely gorgeous..."
2. EMA - California Posted 1st April: "California" is beautifully stark, through grinding, droning walls of feedback, the opening line of "Fuck California, you made me boring" sums up Erika's defiance in one line and it's repeated refrain "I’m just 22 / I don’t mind dying" is almost triumphant."
1. Josh T. Pearson - Honeymoon's Great! Wish You Were Her Posted 29th November : "The most stunning most though is on the devastating centrepiece "Honeymoon's Great! Wish You Were Her", the longest track in an album of lengthy numbers, at thirteen minutes it's raw, emotional and regretful "I’m in love with another woman, please don’t tell the wife / I cannot seem to stop it and it’s fuckin’ up my fucked up life" (in fact just read the whole lyrics here), a poetic lament to unrequited love and being stuck between two women. I'll repeat myself, an album of such heartbreaking fragility and beauty that I can't say any more than just listen to it."
From my introduction to Austra, the dark, brooding beat driven "Beat and the Pulse" to the more pop-friendly hooks of the stylised "Lose It", 'Feel it Break' the brain child of Katie Stelmanis is majestic. First single "Beat & The Pulse" is certainly amongst the best tracks of the year, dominated by a dramatic, pulsating dance-floor energy that carries an undoubtedly sexy momentum throughout (thoughts of the Tasseomancy twins dancing in the live set don't help that!) it's probably the star of the show and it's no coincidence it was the first release from the record, it pulls you in like very few tracks I've heard this year.
Much of the album is much more shiny and light, than dark and Gothic, yes there are incredible empowered vocals which Katie's delivers pitch perfect and equally big, icy synths but 'Feel it Break' is full of potential pop hits too, rather than foreboding and menacing like an Esben and the Witch or Zola Jesus, Austra have made their enormous beats clean, polished and stylish, never more so than on "Lose it" and oblique sexual references on the glistening "The Future".
Other highlights are the enchanted melodies of "Spellwork", album opener "Darken Her Horse" which combines twinkling keys with an industrial rhythm and then "The Beast" which abandons the dance-oriented electronics in favour of a piano ballad which fully utilises Katie's powerful, operatically trained voice, the departure is starting and beautiful. In summation, it's an essential album.
Simply put EMA's first solo record, the 90's influenced noise-grunge 'Past Life Martyred Saints' is a absolute knock-out. From the outset, the frankly insane one / two combination of "The Grey Ship" and "California" you know you are in for something special, raw and emotional throughout, Erika portrays a tough yet equally brittle persona through scuzzed-up guitars, intense vocal cries and compelling atmosphere, absolutely everything is laid on the line over the course of it's nine tracks...
The first half of the seven minute wonder "The Grey Ship" is like sailing in a melancholic and woozy ocean, tranquil and calm, but then it suddenly crashes into a thunderstorm with the introduction of a throbbing bass-line, washes of droning feedback, over-amped guitar, crazed violin and thumping drums. "California" is beautifully stark, through grinding, droning walls of feedback, the opening line of "Fuck California, you made me boring" sums up Erika's defiance in one line and it's repeated refrain "I’m just 22 / I don’t mind dying" is almost triumphant.
"Butterfly Knife" is an unrelenting four minutes of pure dissonance, sharp guitar shredding that is frenetic and fuzzed to fuck while the brash "Milkman" uses a deep industrial drum beat to head towards its noise harbouring conclusion.
Though it's Marked" that is probably my favourite track on the album, raw and bruised with its repetitive cries of "I wish that every time he touched me left a mark", Erika portraying a vulnerable, intimate side amongst the powerful, confident cries and dirty instrumentation. In a year of stunning debut records, EMA's is easily one of the best.
Another band I discovered mid way through 2010 and who've spent 18 months firmly in the category of 'favourite bands' are Lanterns on the Lake, signed up by the impeccable Bella Union at the turn of the year the sextet spend the first six months playing a few shows (included the spine-tingling shows I caught at The Great Escape and finalising their album 'Gracious Tide, Take Me Home' which was released in September
The album fulfilled every ounce of my incredible expectation, awash with natural beauty and elegance, the purposely restrained melancholia that shrouds the eleven tracks are the very definition of sensual, dreamy bliss. The soft, delicate whisper of Hazel's voice is enough to make you fall in love alone.
It's difficult to pick highlights, the album flows so beautifully it's best to sit and listen on one luscious sitting, windswept instrumentation sweeps and swoons while heartbroken melodies tug at your heart strings, the updated version of "I Love You, Sleepyhead" the perfection summation, genuinely gorgeous. Equally sumptuous is "If I've Been Unkind", a rich tapestry of intense beauty and arrangements from the heavens.
Another track revisited from the early EP's "A Kingdom" is fantastic, sweeping strings and galloping beat, Hazel's voice combines perfectly with Adam's while the graceful elegance of "Keep on Trying" provides more unrivalled emotional joy. Cinematic soundscapes delivered with such heart-tugging grace, it's simply to die for.
Josh T. Pearson, an absolute guarantee for my gig of the year (read my review of the first time I saw him and was left completely speechless here), ' Last of the Country Gentlemen', his first solo record and first release since an album with his then band Lift to Experience in 2001 is extraordinary. Everything about it is so compellingly heartbreaking, beautiful, transfixing that it's impossible to do it just in a brief review of about 200 words from a writer with zero ability, I feel pretty embarrassed just trying.
The flawless "Sweetheart I Ain't Your Christ" is a dark, morose and lengthy track of stark, honest Americana / Country, lyrical, melancholic, and incredibly intelligent, like the entire album is deeply intimate and bears the scars of Josh's failed relationship. It's a hard ride for some, I've read countless one star reviews, personally I think this is possibly the most moving album I've ever heard. His guitar playing varying from quite shimmering to raucous strumming in an instant, he's quite the exceptional player too as anyone who has seen him live with testify.
"Woman, When I've Raised Hell" follows in similar fashion, equally heart-wrenching and haunting beauty, weaving a long road of candid and confessional narrative and self-pity "Honestly, why can’t you just let it be / And let me quietly drink myself to sleep". The most stunning most though is on the devastating centrepiece "Honeymoon's Great! Wish You Were Her", the longest track in an album of lengthy numbers, at thirteen minutes it's raw, emotional and regretful "I’m in love with another woman, please don’t tell the wife / I cannot seem to stop it and it’s fuckin’ up my fucked up life" (in fact just read the whole lyrics here), a poetic lament to unrequited love and being stuck between two women. I'll repeat myself, an album of such heartbreaking fragility and beauty that I can't say any more than just listen to it.
If you've been here before then this is amongst the most obvious (but also the most deserving) top spot I'll ever give, I'm some what of a fan-boy when it comes to The Joy Formidable and their debut full length 'The Big Roar' is hands down my album of 2011, the band have defined by musical tastes of the past eighteen months plus and continue to do so, I cannot wait to see them again next year (and again and again) and am more excited than a kid in a sweet shop about the follow up due next year.
I'm not going to review this album, I've written about the band countless times already (including a lengthy prose just last week; read through the label here if you'd like to see that and do make sure you've at least listened to the record, it will blow you away.
I saw Austra for only the second time last week and the first time backed with Sari and Romy Lightman (Tasseomancy), the show was great though perhaps it didn't quite live up-to my incredibly high expectations.
The sound (where I positioned at least) was a bit too quiet until the encore when Katie asked for it to be turned up (the volume had a big impact on the synth sound and bass in my opinion) and secondly due to the atmosphere. For me it wasn't quite as good as at Corsica Studios, let's face it, the majority of Shoreditch is more interested in being cool than dancing to some dark and brooding synth-pop. Let's add a third a negative that is nothing to do with the music. The price of one can of San Miguel - £4.50. Seriously Cargo, that is taking the piss.
Saying that the show was still highly enjoyable, the twins were as entrancing as I was expecting and certainly help the visual element on the show (I'm not sure why they didn't open ahead of the frankly awful band that did) and Katie was equally hypnotising as she showcased her exception vocal range, her hand movements also channelled some pretty awesome energy. Full marks for the light show that would have befitted a dark nightclub much better than the back room of Cargo but still hit the mark, "The Beat and The Pulse's" menacing undertones and last single "Lose It" got the best reception of the night and they sum up what Austra are about, dark, bewitching and undeniably seductive.
If you can't wait to catch Austra live, as well as playing End of the Road (Whoop) they return for two UK shows in early September:
Sept 5th - DEAF INSTITUTE - Manchester
Sept 6th - SCALA - London
Brilliant. Watch these rather spellbinding new session videos that have shown up online of the past week or so. Firstly a rather pink "Darken Her Horse", the album opener and one of my favourites:
and this rather lovely version of "Lose It" from The Guardian:
Some rather splendid videos were uploaded today featuring one of my (and the Internet's) most blogged about (and listened to) artists of 2011, Katie Stelmanis' latest project, electro outfit Austra. I've not actually posted about them since the release of their debut album, the outstanding 'Feel it Break' but I'm sure if you've read this blog for a period of time you'd have guessed I'd have loved the album...
From my introduction to Austra, the dark, brooding beat driven "Beat and the Pulse" to the second single, the more pop-friendly hooks of the stylised "Lose It", it's simply majestic. Other highlights are the enchanted melodies of "Spellwork", album opener "Darken Her Horse" which combines twinkling keys with an industrial rhythm and then "The Beast" which abandons the dance-oriented electronic synth which is so compelling music in favour of a piano ballad which fully utilises Katie's powerful, operatically trained voice. In summation, it's an essential album.
A typically irresistible and somewhat sexual performance, as someone interview says "She basically kills it". You can watch it in full here. As well as videos for "Lose It", "Beat and the Pulse", "Spellwork" and "Hate Crime" there are some interviews with the band and audience members from a home-town show in Toronto.
If that's all tickled your fancy, you can come and see Austra live at Cargo on Thursday July 7th - tickets. Other UK dates too. Can't wait.
As the build up to the official release of Austra's debut album 'Feel it Break' draws closer (can't wait) Domino have treated us to a video for it's next single "Lose It" out next week May 9th (backed by a cover of Joni Mitchell's "Woodstock") on very limited 7" -Rough Trade link - the album itself follows a week later on double LP which is very reasonably priced too - album link.
I love the song, it's more mainstream and catchy than "Beat and the Pulse" but Katie's operatic training really comes through, her powerful voice soars above twinkling keys and a nod worthy heavy beat, and as for the video, well I've not really got a clue what's going on. The band (I'm not sure if Sari and Romy from Tasseomancy count as part of Austra?) moving around a house with some pretty weird, nonsensical things going on, in all honesty it's a big too artistic to me, but I'm not really a music video person, you can't watch a video whilst walking to work / at your desk / on the bus (well I guess with an iPhone you can do that now but you get my point).
Katie and co return to the UK at the start of July, so far there is a Cardiff date on July 1st and Cargo, London on 7th July (ticket link) I've already got mine and cannot wait. I'm hoping we get a Trust, Tasseomancy and Austra triple head - that would be rather spectacular!
I've added the official video for "Lose It" below as well as a live video from SXSW which for me wins hands down, maybe it's just the way Sari and Romy from dance!
So I've waxed lyrical about Austra at just about every possible moment recently and I'm not missing the chance to do so again for a couple of reasons; these two videos are too good not to be shared, and there are now London shows in pen.
Firstly, a rather wonderful a cappella version of new track "The Choke" (backed by Tasseomancy no less) for NPR and the latter a pulsating live performance of "Beat and the Pulse". Now all that seductive dancing has got me in a bit of a fluster!
Austra's return to the UK has been announced, taking part in Dazed Live in London on Saturday 9th April then a Manchester show on the 10th and a further London show on the 12th at Corsica Studios. Can't find tickets link yet, hopefully they'll be put here when I do. Maybe further dates will crop up at http://www.austramusic.com/ too.
Another new Austra song, another winner. "Lose it" has been released as a streamable track ahead of the album 'Feel it Break' on May 16th - I've recently said how much I'm looking forward to this album, so I won't repeat myself, but this new track is another brilliant track, probably a bit poppier than "Beat and the Pulse" but still an enthralling slab of dark electro.
Still no UK dates, although there is a French tour at the end of the month / start of April so fingers crossed they'll be some London dates added at the very least.
If you missed this last time, don't make the same mistake again; A piano rendition of a new track entitled "The Beast" that is truly breathtaking and gorgeous:
I'm probably pretty lucky living so close to London that I get chance to see almost every band that I want to on a regular basis, I can think of only a handful of artists that I've not seen live that I am really desperate too (Holly Miranda, Perfume Genius, Anika, St Vincent) - well the latest addition to that list is definitely Austra, I'm pretty annoyed I never made the effort to see their Brixton Windmill show in January. There are some French dates penned in for April and the debut album is released 16th May so fingers crossed they'll be some dates around then. I'll be there! Double Vinyl LP sounds sweet too.
Watch this, a piano rendition of a new track entitled "The Beast" and it is truly breathtaking and gorgeous:
Austra have announced details of their debut album, out 16th May via Domino. It's called Let It Break and if what I've heard so far is anything to go by, then it is going to be great.
Even more on an indication can be found over on nyctaper where we have a short but most excellent recording of the trio from December. I've listened to this four or five times and its fantastic, considering all six tracks are on the album consider it pre-ordered.
My first musical error of 2011 was deciding to have a peaceful evening in last Monday when I could have taken a trip to Brixton to see Daughter and Austra.
Austra are Domino's latest signing, the work of Katie Stelmanis whose debut release "Beat & The Pulse" is dominated by a powerful, pounding dance-floor filling electro beat that I like it a lot.
Fitting in nicely with some Knife / Zola Jesus / Iamamiwhoami female led electronic music with added does of dark, gothic musings. The single is due for release in the UK on Feb 21, listen below:
