The Music Note

Given the choice, I much prefer listening to music with a full band, compared to acoustically.  I do enjoy acoustic music, but for me it's just not the same as the excitement of hearing a full band, whether it be on a studio recording or in a live performance setting.  However, there are a few acoustic albums that I have found myself listening to a lot lately. The Silver Seas'  Chateau Revenge! - Blue Edition  is a re-recorded and instrumentally stripped down version of their original Chateau Revenge! album. What I really like about this alternative track-by-track rework of the original recording is that the majority of the songs take a refreshingly unique approach to the acoustic genre, with a fair few of the tracks sounding completely different to that of the original studio album.  This is by no means a criticism of the original album which remains my favourite release of theirs, I just think this alternative version offers some very interesting arrang...

Having been a fan of Everything Everything since their 2010 debut  Man Alive , I'd wanted to see them live for quite some time, however, it was after hearing this   iTunes EP, that I knew they were a must see live band.  As part of the NME Awards Shows series, I was looking forward to seeing my first Everything Everything gig in the intimate nightclub venue that is Heaven in London. The band's signature sound of crazy hooks, off beat tempos and falsetto vocals were as present as ever throughout the hour long set, which comprised of an almost equal selection of tracks from both Man Alive and Arc .  Though the understated 'Undrowned' made for an unusual opener, the proceeding songs of 'Torso Of The Week' and 'Kemosabe' really kicked the set into action. "We're gonna play some party tunes now" announced lead vocalist Jonathan Higgs before launching into crowd favourites 'Schoolin'' and 'Photoshop Handsome', which perfec...

  I listened to Robbers On High Street a lot this past weekend.  Though I rate all of their albums,  Tree City  (as mentioned in my previous post) remains my favourite to date, largely due to the fact that only after the first few listens of the record, I instantly loved the majority of the track list.  Taken from that album, this live version of 'Love Underground', complete with the band's distinctive indie sound and Ben Trokan's smoking hot vocals, is a fine example of what drew me to their music in the first place.

'Big Winter' is the song that initially got me hooked onto Brooklyn based band, Robbers On High Street.  The track appears on the soundtrack to the 2005 film 'Just Friends', and it was while watching this film that I heard the song for the first time.  Instrumentally warm and melodic, I instantly liked what I heard and knew I had to track down the song and discover more about the band behind it.  The lyrics are simple yet effective in delivery, as lines of "That's why it's so hard for me / To have to say goodbye / To take off and fly / To where the sun shines" ride high over strings that progress into a sublime guitar solo. The album on which 'Big Winter' appears, 2005's  Tree City,  is also a much recommended listen and other key tracks from this record include 'Japanese Girls', 'Amanda Green' and 'Love Underground'.

A few weekends ago, Josh Rouse streamed his upcoming album The Happiness Waltz on PledgeMusic.com .  The preview was available for a limited time exclusively to fans who have made pledges in exchange for packages and experiences surrounding the new album through PledgeMusic.  The items/experiences on offer ranged from t-shirts and posters to a private house show and an opportunity to record a song with Josh (I opted for a signed copy of the album and a pair of concert/meet and greet tickets).  While the majority of money raised from the project will go towards the funding of The Happiness Waltz , 10% of any money raised after the goal is reached will be donated to Action Against Hunger. Onto the actual album itself.  With a title like The Happiness Waltz , I assumed the album could be of a similar theme to 1972 , and while there are traces of this album in places, most notably on 'A Lot Like Magic', I see more influences drawn from Nashville , with hints of...