Cougar Microbes

LightGuides released their mini-album ‘Samba Samba Samba‘ earlier this month on Alcopop Records. We caught up with drummer Dave to discuss the ‘veggie challenge’, the healthy state of Scottish music and that elusive Jay-Z and Beethoven collaboration. And it goes a little like this:

Cougar Microbes: What time did you wake up today? Was it out of choice or necessity?

LightGuides: I think around 9:30am? We crashed at Richie (Jumping Ships) house after our Hastings show, which was lovely. Rich is very hospitable, all the Ships boys are! Unfortunately we woke up out of necessity as it’s a fairly long drive from Brighton to Leeds and we wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to get to the Leeds show today.

CM: Describe LightGuides to the uninitiated?

LG: I think we have a touch of early 00s American pop-punk (The Starting Line, Blink 182, New Found Glory), a dash of early-mid 00s Brit post-hardcore (Hundred Reasons, Reuben, Biffy Clyro) topped off with a spot of more recent Scot rock (Twin Atlantic, The Xcerts).

CM: How have you been killing time on the road, hobbies?

LG: Well Martin (guitar) and myself have taken the “veggie challenge” on the road, so it’s been fun trying to find decent vegetarian food, we are completely hooked on falafel! A lot of the Southern dates on this tour we’ve never been to before, so it’s been great taking the camera out and going exploring. Going out for beers is always a great way to kill time; we had a lovely night on Brighton beach drinking copious amounts of beer and wine on Saturday. Mark (vocals, guitar) and I went for a swim in the sea, boy is that a great way to sober you up!

CM: What have been your favourite venues to play? Any Venues you hated?

LG: I think our favourite venue on this tour so far has been the Old Blue Last in London. It had everything; great bands, great venue, great crowd, and it was really nice to catch up with friends and also Jack (Alcopop! Records’ Big Boss Man). Although I know we’re all really looking forward to the album-release show at King Tuts in Glasgow, it’s the last day of the tour too so hopefully we can end it with a bang!

CM: Is there a song you are simply sick of playing? Do you think that will ever happen?

LG: I don’t think there is a song I’m sick of playing, I guess when you play a song live there are so many variable factors (the onstage sound, the crowd reaction, the venue itself) so there is always a kind of freshness to the track. The songs we’ve been playing live for over a year, maybe we’re a bit tired of practicing these at rehearsals but once onstage it’s as exciting playing the oldies as it is the newbies.

CM: What is the songwriting process like for LightGuides. Are you able to write on the road or do you do this in your off time?

LG: Usually the guys will allocate time in our practice studio to jam out some ideas, and once they’ve got a general structure and the foundations to a song I’ll come in and give my opinion, and we’ll usually tweak it here and there. Then I’ll figure out what drum patterns I’m going to use, and Mark will start thinking about vocal melodies and lyrics. We’ll then sit down and go through the melodies and cement down the lead and backing vocals. It’s easier for the guys to do this is the studio than on the road, they find it slightly more relaxing and peaceful jamming out there, when we’re on the road things are usually pretty manic!

CM: Favourite LightGuides track and why?

LG: My favourite track would have to be ‘The Arts Factory’, it’s just really fun to play but at the same time quite demanding to play live, it’s a nice challenge. I think we’re all agreed on this one, it’s Martin and Mark’s fave too.

CM: If you could record any cover what would it be?

LG: Whitney Houston’s ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’. That song just makes me want to have a good time, all of the time.

CM: Do your songs go through many revisions via demo recordings?

LG: Not really no, we spend a fair amount of time working on the songs at the time of writing and sometimes we’ll touch certain areas up once we’ve listened back to demo recordings, but the foundations of the songs never really change.

CM: What came first, the lyrics or the melody?

LG: THE MELODY. Usually we get all the instrumentation of the songs sorted, before figuring out melodies. Mark will start writing lyrics once he has a good idea of what the melody of the song is going to be.

CM: What are your views on auto tune?

LG: I’d be a hypocrite if I said I didn’t agree with it as we’ve used it on our recordings, but only ever really to polish a vocal-pitch. What I would say is; in the recording process it’s really useful, but only in moderation. I’m not a huge fan of the current branch of pop-artists who rely heavily on auto-tune (so it sounds like their voice is half-human-half-keyboard), but I think it’s a bit of a fad and we probably won’t still be hearing that kind of pop music so much this time next year.

CM: Any other band/bands from your local scene we really should know about?

LG: There are some really great bands coming out of Scotland right now, here’s a little list : The Lafontaines, Fatherson, There Will Be Fireworks, Endor, Carnivores, Aerials Up, The Winter Tradition, Make Sparks, Pareto, He Slept on 57, French Wives. Sorry that little list ended up quite expansive! I highly recommend checking out any/all of these bands.

CM: Most flattering thing you’ve read about yourselves?

LG: To be honest if anyone says anything remotely nice about us we get really flattered! When people show an interest in the band it really brightens up our day. If I had to choose one though it would be the recent album review Rock Sound magazine gave us, were they stated ‘The Arts Factory’ is right up there with the best songs of the year. To hear that from a publication we ‘ve been reading for years and really respect is amazing to us.

CM: What was the first record/tape/cd you ever bought?

LG: I’m pretty sure it was ‘Crocodile Shoes’ by Jimmy Nail, and at the same time I bought Bon Jovi’s ‘Someday I’ll be Saturday Night’. Big Jon Bon uses an expletive in that song and I used to love screaming it as loud as I could: “My life’s a bargain basement, all the GOOD SHIT’S GONE”, haha.

CM: What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

LG: ‘Edith’ by Tellison. It’s always the 1st song on our playlist when we hit the road, great for perking you up for the drive. Also ‘Movers and Shakers’ by Jumping Ships, the boys have been opening their set with it and I’m pretty sure at any given moment someone in our band is singing it, albeit usually singing the wrong words!

CM: What was the last show you paid and queued up for?

LG: Endor at King Tuts in Glasgow, and coincidentally they’re the next band I’ve bought a ticket to go see. They are playing a 10-year anniversary show at The Captains Rest in Glasgow just after we finish tour, will be a great way to combat post-tour blues.

CM: If you had to bring on artist back from the dead in exchange for sending a living artist down ,which artists would it be and why?

LG: I’d probably say John Lennon. I don’t actually listen to the Beatles too often I just think it would be really interesting to see what they would be doing now, if they would still be together, if so what style of music would they be writing. Mark is driving beside me and his choice would be Beethoven, because he’d like to see his take on modern music. Can you imagine Beethoven guest-rapping on the next Jay-Z record? That would be sick!

LightGuides’ mini album ’Samba Samba Samba‘ is out now on Alcopop Records

TRACKS:

Old Bucket Seats – LightGuides

Ever since I discovered them I have always had a particular affection for The Kills. Since 2003, the band always managed to release strong and inventive rock albums without ever crossing to the ‘mainstream’ as is done by oh so many bands ( a lesson to be learned Kings of Leon…) . Even if it is likely that guitarist Jamie Hince‘s relationship with Kate Moss has put some added spotlights on the duo they still maintain the same intimate and discreet band aesthetic that they had before fame came knocking.

Often compared to the White Stripes, largely because of their bluesy punk style and boy/girl dynamic, Jamie and Alison are definitely close to the talent Meg and Jack exhume. The Kills‘ previous albums have been critically acclaimed, with unforgettable tracks such as ‘U.R.A Fever‘, ‘Cheap and Cheerful‘ or ‘The Good Ones‘, and now they are back with a new album wholly meets expectations. Never have The Kills been so loud, so controlled, so good at embodying the meaning of a ‘tandem‘, and this album is majestic.

‘Blood Pressures‘ makes a striking entrance with the dramatic ‘Future Starts Slow‘, possibly my favourite song of the album along with ‘Satellite‘, and a perfect illustration of the power, anger and determination in Miss Alison Mosshart‘s voice. On ‘Satellite‘, their first single, Hince once again successfully proves that behind Kate Moss‘ future husband-to-be lies a talented guitarist who manages to make me shiver.

I was consequently surprised by ‘Wild Charms‘, a lovely ballad through which The Kills break up from their usual loud and bluesy sound. ‘Wild Charms‘ which is sang solely by Jamie Hince feels like a flower on a battlefield, a little moment of peace, which you know won’t last long, so you enjoy it as much as you can. It furthermore strangely reminds me of John Lennon‘s ‘Jealous Guy‘. However war ignites again with ‘DNA‘, and Mosshart definitely sounds like she is getting ready for blood.

All along the album, The Kills display an incredible ability to fuse both of their vocal ranges; his soft british accent and her strong sexy cry are like a guitar and its strings, inseparable and made for each other. The Kills are a perfect foil for eachother with the beautiful figure and charisma of Mosshart put forward on stage and Hince‘s discreet almost shy self hidden behind a guitar.

They complement each other perfectly and with subtlety, and the music world should be glad they found each other.

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Post by Olivia

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TRACKS:

‘Bridge Burning‘, the opening track to Foo Fighters 7th studio album ‘Wasting Light‘ has three different choruses. Only a songwriter like Dave Grohl can offer me three different melodies and make me want to break stuff and fall in love at the same time.

Openers really are what Foo Fighters do well, from the smack in the face ‘Stacked Actors‘ to the immenant explosion of ‘All My Life‘, ‘Bridge Burning‘ will have the Foos wondering what the hell to open with this summer.

There is something Grohl and co do every so often that completely captivates me. There are two re-occuring notes that Grohl sings in certain songs that I can only describe in picture form, and it would probably be the excitement and spookiness of having sex in a haunted house. He’s used them in the coda to ‘Headwires‘, the chorus to his early demo ‘Petrol CB‘ and in track 2 of the new album ‘Rope‘.

‘Rope‘ is the first single and although nothing new to foo fans, it is a culmination of what the Foos do better than most surviving rock bands; cool rhythms and great melodies. That sounds simple but you’d be suprised how many bands sacrifice one for the other.

I’ve heard long term Foo Fighters fans say they don’t like the direction of the band into straight out balls rock, but I think they are forgetting how rare a band like this are now adays. There may not be the shiver down the spine of ‘Everlong‘ or the lo-fi garage rock of ‘I’ll Stick Around‘ but this band offer consistency where other bands flake, and rock in the completely traditional sense of the word.

‘These Days‘ is whimsical, whilst ‘Rosemary‘ is haunting, backed vocally by the low wail of Bob Mould. ‘I Should Have Known‘ sounds like John Lennon waking from the dead, and is the emotional climax guest starring Krist Novoselic before the closer offers a last visceral ounce of classic rock, with Grohl sceaming “I never wanna’ die!” Over again, and I think the world believes him.

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Post by Thom.

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TRACKS:

I’m not quite sure what I was expecting from the new OK Go album. They are a group who offer the occasional moments of brilliance, for example their phenomenal videos for ‘A Million Ways’ and ‘Hear It Goes Again’ (for which we offered an impassioned defence back in April) or their red hot debut single ‘Get Over It’. Then again they are also a group who tend to pad out releases with some filler material.

Firstly, and most importantly, let us note that ‘Of the Blue Colour of The Sky’ is an album title that boasts an impressive four conjunctions in a seven-word sentence. It is also an album which sees OK Go veer away from their squeaky-clean pop structures and express themselves with a creative freedom that moderate commercial success often affords artists. It is a risk which pays off in places; the soulful vocals on ‘Skyscrapers’ are reminiscent of John Lennon’s latter work and shameless 80s throwback ‘End Love’ is a more than listenable offering.

However, despite an abundance of ideas the album is severely lacking in any sense of cohesion and often sounds like nothing more than a mix tape. Nowhere is this more evident than on ‘Last Leaf’, an ill-advised acoustic number which harks back to the obligatory 90s secret track, yet sits right in the middle of the track listing.

Understandably, trying to pull off 90s acoustic, 80s synth and 60’s psychedelic (‘Back from Kathmandu’) all in one release is a tall order. Laying to one side the likability of the band members and the individual merits of the tracks in question, OK Go’s effort sadly has the effect of leaving the listener more than a little disoriented.

‘Of the Blue Colour of the Sky’ is an album which starts off with real promise but seems to run out of steam halfway through and is glaringly lacking in instant ‘hits’. OK Go‘s knack for memorable music videos means they will probably be remembered for a long time to come, however the group who are running out of time to deliver on their exciting early promise.

The band are offering a live mp3 of ‘This Too Shall Pass’ through their website now.

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Post by Kenny the Backpacker

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TRACKS:

OK Go – This Too Shall Pass