Music www.list.co.uk/music
EXPOSURE
DIVORCE Divorce are a Glasgow-based five-piece that sound as brutal and menacing as their live shows and brilliantly grotesque artwork would have you believe. Dissonant, brazen and relentless, their songs mix full-on rhythmic assaults, jagged guitar noise and yelping cries of rebellion. Ryan Drever finds they’re lovely folks, really. How did you meet? VSO [bass] and Andy [drums] have been friends for a few years and played in numerous bands, but most of the band met through mutual friends at gigs and parties. We all met up and
realised we had similar musical interests. Every facet of the band is disturbing and brutally in-your-face. Are you all OK? Aye, we’re fine! It’s the normal bands you’ve got to keep your eye on! A painting of rotten teeth on a record cover is more eye-catching than a random sepia- toned photo of an old barn door or whatever. We’re drawn to arresting images simply because they’re more interesting, but we’re not taking anything too seriously.
How did you get involved with Optimo? Some of us have been trying to break the side of the DJ booth when they play ‘The Chain’ by Fleetwood Mac for quite a while now. We really respect Optimo’s
attitude and music policy and were really honoured to be asked to do a record. Is there a track you love playing the most? We all think ‘Early Christianity’, would be the best introduction to Divorce. We really felt it nailed whatever sound we were aiming for.
How has the response been to your live shows? When we played at our 10in record launch, people totally lost their shit; moshing, crowd-surfing, the works. We respond well to that. www.myspace.com/puredivorced ■ Divorce play with Comanechi at Captain’s Rest, Glasgow, Mon 18 Jan; Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh, Tue 19 Jan.
REVIEW KRAUTROCK DOOM BEAK> King Tut’s, Glasgow, Mon 14 Dec ●●●●● REVIEW ELECTRONICA DEPECHE MODE SECC, Glasgow, Sat 12 Dec ●●●●●
REVIEW SLOW-MO FOLK EAGLEOWL The Bowery, Edinburgh, Fri Dec 11 ●●●●●
After the lengthy gestation of Portishead’s Third, it’s understandable that Geoff Barrow wanted to do something a little less painstaking with BEAK>. Written and recorded in a week, their eponymous album offers stripped down takes on the krautrock and doom influences that informed Portishead’s masterpiece. Barrow mans the drums, while Billy Fuller and Matt ‘Team Brick’ Williams handle bass, guitar and keyboard duties. Live, BEAK> stick closely to the recorded material. Considering Williams’ ability as an improviser (a Team Brick set can consist of anything from skronky noise to impassioned Latin incantations), this is slightly disappointing, but their lean, no- nonsense approach pays dividends on tracks such as ‘Iron Action’, with its hypnotic bass pulse and relentless motorik beat. Ghostly wordless vocals add an uncanny edge, but the band are at their most exciting when Williams is let loose on an ancient- looking synth, conjuring wigged out prog solos and bursts of white noise. BEAK> may not yet be the sum of their parts, but they have the makings of something formidable. (Stewart Smith)
This 10,000-strong arena date is probably Depeche Mode’s smallest show in ages, their first in Scotland for 22 years and definitely worth the wait for a devoted fanbase.
Tonight, after an unsure start with less obvious tracks from the recent Sounds of the Universe, they hit their stride, proving why they continue to pack out arenas worldwide. Having long progressed from their original electronic sound, tailor-made for tightly-packed small clubs, to a sound replete with rock music signifiers (guitars, live drums) that work well with huge crowds, DM live is a slick and impressive spectacle. Dave Gahan, a lean frontman toreador, owns both the stage and his into-the-crowd walkway, except during a couple of interludes where Martin Gore takes solo spots, showcasing his vocal agility with epic piano-backed torch songs.
‘I Feel You’, ‘Policy Of Truth’ and ‘Personal Jesus’ roll out like classic hook-laden ‘Mode anthems, while a mid-set ‘Enjoy The Silence’ incorporates post-punk anthem ‘Shack Up’ by A Certain Ratio, conveying an awareness of shifting popular culture. (Hamish Brown)
As one door opens, another closes, as Eagleowl launch their gift-wrapped ‘Sleep the Winter’ 7” single at the penultimate show at the Bowery before the venue’s sad and frankly unnecessary closure (well done, Edinburgh University Settlement, for thinking it can run the space better than those responsible for bringing the Bowery into the building, but who now find themselves homeless).
Beyond the occasion’s double- edged sword, Eagleowl’s mix of lo-fi electric slow-core, murmured male/female Americana harmonies and double bass, fiddle and harmonium textures are a deliciously swoonsome confection, sounding closest in spirit to the whispered melancholy of Galaxie 500 or the Mojave 3.
Guests from the support acts join in for what looks like a Bowery All-Stars session, as Withered Hand’s Dan Willson sings lead vocals on a number, followed by Jill from Sparrow and the Workshop. To close, the band move through the crowd like a tribe of promenading troubadours to play Low’s ‘Just Like Christmas.’ Which is exactly what it feels like. despite the EUS Scrooges. (Neil Cooper)
REVIEW ROCK THEM CROOKED VULTURES The Corn Exchange, Edinburgh, Tue 15 Dec ●●●●●
There aren’t many musicians who can overshadow Queens of the Stone Age mainman Josh Homme. Teaming up with Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters/Nirvana) on drums and John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin) on bass, Them Crooked Vultures have an enviable back history and their garage jam approach to low rumbling rock is even more thrilling live than on vinyl.
The band have huge grins plastered across their faces as they launch into the raw ‘No One Loves Me & Neither Do I’. There’s an undeniable thrill just to seeing JPJ playing bass – even the slap-bass of ‘Scumbag Blues’ is a joy to witness as you watch a master at work. The same goes for Grohl as he
pounds the skins. It’s just a shame there isn’t a drum riser for an even better view of one of modern rock’s most iconic drummers back where he belongs. Playing it fast and loose, they bring a
psychedelic swirl of stoner rock as tracks such as ‘Mind Eraser, No Chaser’ and ‘Caligulove’ rip through the rabid audience. A thrilling display of heavy rock from three masters of the art. (Henry Northmore)
62 THE LIST 7–21 Jan 2010