Four years after the release of “What Went Down”, the Britons Foals return not with one but with two albums. What delight fans of their hypnotic pop and morning math rock. We find Yannis Philippakis and his clique on the stage of Gaîté Lyrique, on the occasion of the fourth edition of the ARTE Concert Festival.
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The Academy of Sun – The Parts That Need Replacing
Formed in Brighton nine years ago, The Academy of Sun is a four-piece comprised of Nick Hudson (piano, synths, Hammond organ, harmonium, vocals, percussion, synths), Kianna Blue (bass, synths), Guy Brice (guitars) and Ash Babb (drums).
Together, they present dystopian fantastic creations that combine the deeply personal and the poetically arcane. Dark yet buoyant, this is a controlled explosion of psychedelic and dark power pop with atmospheres couched in vast and expansive landscapes and cinematic arrangements.
The video for this single was directed and edited by Nick Hudson with cinematography by Samuel Horn. It features Wolfgang Storm with dinner guests Mark Walter, Gillian Rodgers and TAOS frontman Nick Hudson in what seems to be a red-brushed-culinary spread of grisly delight held in a gothic lair.
“The Parts That Need Replacing’ was written to sate my desire to ‘reconsecrate’ 16th Century Hungarian countess and noblewoman Elisabeth Bathory, whose reputed cannibalism and serial murders were most likely reputation-staining fantasies dreamed up by the church out of institutional jealousy. How could a woman possess such vast wealth and estates AND resist conformity with the church’s ways of being. Same tarring-brush as used on Jeanne D’Arc and Gilles de Rais. Usually, Bathory is immortalized in doom and black metal, so I wanted this reconsecration to take place by feeding these myths, scenarios, and allegations of bloodbaths, black magic, and eternal life into the medium of a hyper-catchy, high-energy pop song,” says Nick Hudson.
“The video, just as the song, alludes to various parts of the Elisabeth Bathory mythos – the alleged bathing in blood to replenish her youth, the cannibalism, the occult, and gnostic preoccupations, the aristocratic sensibilities, etc., whilst also ‘queering’ Bathory by having her played by the 23-year-old musician and artist Wolfgang Storm. The local butchers are getting fairly accustomed to my infrequent but memorable extra-curricular requests for off-cuts. As the song states “the best special effects are those you cannot see”… we shot it in one, fevered, orgiastic and insanely fun day. The dinner sequence was as deranged to shoot as it looks to be in the resultant video.”
Following 2017’s ‘Codex Novena’ LP, a hypnotic, doomy opus that found its way onto both Dangerous Minds and Sweeping The Nation end-of-year lists, ‘The Quiet Earth’ offers a colossal meditation on dystopia, irradiated landscapes and extreme states of human emotion. This 15-track collection of post-punk, chamber ballads and darkly prog studio epos was recorded at Church Road Studios with Paul Pascoe, whose work includes the last 2 albums by Barry Adamson (Magazine / Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds).
Nick Hudson’s musical juggernaut has been active in various incarnations since 2012, always transcending expectations. The Academy Of Sun has collaborated with Massive Attack’s Shara Nelson, members of NYC’s Kayo Dot, David Tibet of Current 93, Asva and Matthew Seligman (Bowie, Tori Amos, Morrissey). Hudson has also collaborated with Wayne Hussey of The Mission, as well as Canadian queercore icon GB Jones.
Known for explosive and psychedelic live shows, The Academy Of Sun has performed in a medieval castle in Italy, a boat on the Thames, an abandoned railway carriage in Offenbach, colossal churches, The London College of Fashion, The Old Market theatre in Brighton, the MS Stubnitz in Hamburg, Brighton Dome, and a string of L.A. shows in 2019. Having toured 3 continents, highlights include appearances with Mogwai, Toby Driver and Keith Abrams from Kayo Dot, and Timba Harris (Mr. Bungle, Amanda Palmer).
LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/TheAcademyOfSun
https://nickhudsonindustries.bandcamp.com
https://www.twitter.com/theacademyofsun
https://www.instagram.com/The_Academy_Of_Sun
https://www.youtube.com/user/NickHudsonMusic
https://open.spotify.com/artist/5CxsNgEPz9v8iBgO52VUUd -
Juniper Nights – All At Once
Juniper Nights is a four-piece alternative rock band from Oxford, formed at the start of 2017. The band consists of James Gallagher (Vocals/Guitar), Zach Wilmott (Guitar), Marty Melvin (Bass), and Tom Lindsay (Drums).
James, Zach, and Tom previously performed together in the indie band ‘Pipeline’, with bassist Jason Rich. Jason and Zach were friends from university and found James and Tom online through a musician finding the website. In February 2017, Jason moved to Sweden to pursue his career, and Marty took his place to complete the lineup. The band changed their name to Juniper Nights, inspired by the themes and style of the Black Mirror episode ‘San Junipero’, reflecting their change in lineup and darker sound.
Juniper Nights’ music is heavily influenced by a number of British rock bands such as Radiohead, Elbow, and Alt-J. Their style often varies significantly between songs, from somber and textural to grungy guitar-rock, with dark undertones being the underlying theme. Whilst their music is primarily guitar-based, they often experiment with other sounds, inspired by the works of trip-hop and electronic artists such as Aphex Twin, Portishead, Massive Attack, and Unkle. This includes the use of keyboards, drum machines, and strings, as well as the manipulation of sound with effects.
In July 2017 the band recorded a number of tracks at Glasshouse Studios, Oxford, the first of which, ‘Antidote’, was released digitally on November 10th. Antidote received a positive reception from a number of critics, who described the track as “stunning”, “beautiful”, and praised Juniper Nights for “succeed[ing] in creating something with real resonance.” After reviewing ‘Antidote’, Jammerzine magazine selected Juniper Nights as one of their 17 standout artists of 2017.
Juniper Nights released their debut EP, ‘Human Rush’, on February 2nd, 2018, and supported the release with a UK tour throughout January and February. Human Rush was rated highly by critics, with Bucketlist Music Reviews giving it a score of 9.5/10, making it their top album of the week.
SOURCE: Official Bio
LINKS:
http://junipernights.co.uk
https://soundcloud.com/junipernights
https://facebook.com/junipernights
https://twitter.com/junipernights
https://instagram.com/junipernights -
Skyfever – Kings
“Kings was written after a lost weekend involving a lot of whiskeys, Muhammed Ali documentaries, Game of Thrones and rediscovering early U2 albums. Embracing the war within and who you really are is an important mantra within our band and this song is the anthem for that way of life.
It is the focal track of our ‘Rear View Mirror’ EP and has been playlisted at the stadiums of the New York Yankees, Carolina Panthers, and Tennessee Titans “
About Skyfever
Skyfever is a rock band from Ireland who is breaking through in a big way, with their music being selected for play in a number of famous sports stadiums. Their infectious rock music has filled the stadiums of Liverpool FC, Chelsea FC, the Tennessee Titans, the world famous New York Yankees and also at the Carolina Panthers 75,000 seater Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. With this band, rock finds its rightful home!Legendary rocker Alice Cooper is a fan, and last year he endorsed the band by not only playing their track, The Returning, to listeners of his worldwide-syndicated radio show, Nights with Alice Cooper, but also by personally sharing their track on social media and praising their talent. In fact, radio stations across the USA have recognized Skyfever and they have been played on stations from Philadelphia (WCLH) to Chicago (WZRD) to Nashville, Tennessee (Under the Gun Radio).
The UK has got behind Skyfever too, with Jim Gellatly (Amazing Radio) playing their music and the renowned Fred Perry Subculture website name-checking them alongside Otherkin, Heathers and Squarehead as ‘Top 20 Dublin Bands to Watch’.
Skyfever is Luke Lang on vocals, Brian Clarke on guitar/sounds, Tyson Harding on guitar, Ciaran O’Brien on bass and Karl Hand on drums.
LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/Skyfevermusic
https://twitter.com/skyfever1
http://www.skyfevermusic.com
https://www.instagram.com/skyfevermusic
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4HPFvyJT6JkaEaoZFFUurl
https://www.snapchat.com/add/skyfevermusic01