Reading & Leeds 2014

Undoubtedly amongst the best festivals in the world, Reading & Leeds 2014 have just finished, and they were spectacular. Headlined by Arctic Monkeys, Blink-182, Queens of the Stone Age and Paramore, we had a few writers at Leeds who each had a different view on their favourite acts. Here are our picks of the best of the weekend, in no particular order:

Bombay Bicycle Club
London based indie-rock band BBC headlined the NME/Radio 1 stage on the Saturday of Reading and Sunday of Leeds. The band, led by angelically voiced frontman Jack Steadman, had the crowd in the palm of their hands for the entire set. The light and picture show going on behind them only exaggerated the brilliance of what was, for me, possibly the best performance I saw all weekend. Everyone lost their shit at What If, and songs like Lights Out, Words Gone and How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep prompted huge singalongs from the loved up crowd. I was a fan before, but they went so far above any expectations I had and absolutely blew me away.  - Molly 

The Hives

The Hives. Photo: Giles Smith

As soon as Peace left the main stage on the Sunday at Leeds, huge white letters spelling 'HIVES' took their place, forming the most part of the Swedish band's incredibly cool backdrop. The backdrop suited them well as they are an incredibly cool band, not least deservedly cocky frontman Howlin' Pelle Almqvist. Dressed to match the rest of the band, he swaggered and jumped about the stage, howling (hence his name) at the audience to "Cheer! We deserve more applause than that!". During the now famous freeze-frame bit of Tick Tick Boom, he spent around five minutes introducing the band and then went into the crowd to get us all to sit down, in preparation of going mental for the last part of the song. "If you're still stood up I'll come out there and make you sit down!" he commanded, and his adoring crowd obeyed. They finished with Hate To Say I Told You So, and as we showed our appreciation, Almqvist yelled proudly, "I know you're cheering in part because I've told you to, but the other part is because you fucking love me!". He wasn't wrong. - Molly

Baby Strange
Following their support slot on Palma Violets' Rattlesnake Rodeo tour last November, Glaswegian three-piece Baby Strange have built up a loyal following, and it certainly showed in Leeds; their fairly large crowd seemed to be loving every blast of punk rock they were showered with. After an extremely well performed and received cover of the Talking Heads' Psycho Killer, they expressed their wish to play "a couple more songs" which "are really short, only about two minutes each" but they were denied it, resulting in much booing from the crowd (including me), eager for more. However, the booing did turn to applause as the band left the stage - what we got from them was fantastic, and I know we'll be seeing much more of Baby Strange in the near future. - Molly

The Wytches
Filling an opening slot on the NME stage on Friday at Leeds festival, Brighton three piece The Wytches had a tough job. Their unique brand of "surf doom" could easily have fallen flat, with their heavily distorted guitar and piercing screams not being the usual fodder for this stage. However, they certainly impressed, filling their short set with pit-worthy anthems from their debut album Annabel Dream Reader. The standout moment for me was their opening song- Burn Out The Bruise, showcasing their Bleach-esque style and ability to write and perform a seriously heavy yet catchy chorus. - Benny

Mongol Horde. Photo: Giles Smith

Mongol Horde
Frank Turner's hardcore project Mongol Horde aren't what you'd call radio friendly, and of course in their sub-headline slot on Leeds' Lock Up stage, they didn't alter this one bit. Their music is effectively a massive "fuck you" to basically everything ever, full of genuine humour and brought together by Turner's deafening roar. Their set consisted of twelve songs from their self titled LP released this year, bringing huge circle pits to the adrenaline (and whatever else) fuelled crowd, with Frank frequently being hoisted in the air by adoring fans. A band which has a song about Natalie Portman's tapeworm forming a republic clearly doesn't take themselves too seriously, so they clearly don't give a shit what I think. All the same they were definitely a highlight of the weekend. - Benny

Queens Of The Stone Age
Possibly the best stadium rock band currently touring, Queens Of The Stone Age destroyed this years' Leeds festival, which isn't surprising as their latest album Like Clockwork is amongst their best. New songs such as Fairweather Friends and If I Had a Tail sat comfortably among their old classic songs from Songs For The Deaf and Rated R, with godlike frontman Josh Homme delivering them with his trademark swagger. Ending on the near satanic Song For The Dead, this band seem as good today as they've always been, and look unwilling to stop. My only criticism (and no fault of the band) is their short set, caused as a result of their headline slot being shared with the simply cringeworthy pop-punk of Paramore.  All in all however, Queens shone; their catchy desert rock being my personal highlight of the festival. - Benny

Peace
After standing through Dry The River (a very good folk band) Peace took to the main stage. I'd headed down early to get a good spot - I was in an alright place, quite far left of stage left. The crowd was pretty chilled out throughout their set. Each member walked on one at a time, starting with Dom who started playing a drum line, followed by Sam with a bass line, then Doug with some chords and finally Harrison. They burst into 'Lovesick' their last single from debut album 'In Love' and I must say it's a crowd pleaser. The band continued to play through some older album and EP tracks including 'Float Forever' and 'California Daze'. The guys didn't fail to impress with new songs 'Money' and 'Lost On Me' and they, as they have been recently, replaced '1998' with rap track 'World Pleasure', but who can complain when there's a groovy bass solo? No one. This was my fourth time seeing Peace and I've never been so proud of them; seeing them play on the main stage made my festival. - Laura

Wolf Alice

Wolf Alice. Photo: Victor Frankowski

When Wolf Alice took to the stage in the Festival Republic tent on the Sunday of Leeds festival, they did so in matching white outfits. I must say I was surprised; that was one thing I was never expecting a young indie rock group to do. As always, they didn't fail to impress. Ellie's vocals blew me away; how she can go from singing a quiet slow song such as 'Blush' to having loud, wild vocals in 'She' amazes me. At one point Ellie and Theo started doing their swaying side to side type dance while they played a solo together, and this always manages to make me smile. The band played through well known EP tracks and followed these up with a couple of new tracks, closing with a sped up version of 'Fluffy' as they were about to get pulled off stage. - Laura

Superfood
These guys were one of my favourite acts of the festival. After chatting to frontman Dom Ganderton (he remembered me from a few months back and gave me a slighty wobbly, possibly drunken hug), they played the BBC Introducing stage on the Thursday night. This, like Peace, was my fourth time seeing them, and they really did blow me away. It was nice to be surrounded by hundreds of people there to see them and being in a Superfood-loving crowd was incredible. The band played well knows tracks 'Melting', 'Bubbles' and 'Right On Satellite', a couple of album songs and finished with debut song 'Superfood'. Superfood really never fail to put on a good show. - Laura

Feel free to comment with your favourite acts of the weekend! 

Mindless Songs

Still from the video for Blood Bank 

In the middle of winter, I am prone to sudden swings of sadness - something about frost on windowpanes and the heavy clouds and the afterglow of Christmas just gets me down. I however, love feeling like this - lying on my bed, gazing at the ceiling for days on end while everything else in the outside world goes on as normal, quietly unaware of my teenage angst. It gives me space to think about everything in life that is usually lost amongst everyday chaos. So I have made a playlist for these days. Days where you have no energy and just want to stare into space and think meaningless thoughts. However, I've also included seven songs to bring some summer to cloud-stained days - to lift your spirits (after you've been down in the dumps). I feel slightly like morrissey writing this post; If you don't appreciate these playlists, I at least know that he would.

Blood Bank by Bon Iver - Beautiful, shivering lyrics and purposely detuned guitar is a surprisingly chilled combination.
Shiver by Lucy Rose - Lucy Rose has the most beautiful sugar sweet voice, but this song has an eerie edge.
Last Call by Elliott Smith  - One of the most haunting songs that I have ever heard. Smith sings quietly yet intensely about suicide - 'I wanted her to tell me that she would never wake me / while I'm lying here waiting for sleep to overtake me' has to be some of my favourite lyrics ever written.
White Leather by Wolf Alice - Wolf Alice are my favourite band at the moment - There are no words to describe my love for this b-side.
Glass in the Park by Alex Turner - I personally think that Alex Turner has turned into a massive prick, but the Submarine OST is one of the most perfect movie soundtracks of all time.
When'd You Find Me by Arrange (Ricky Eat Acid remix) - A friend sent this song to me whilst I was going through a rough time - this sounds so cheesy but this song really did help me overcome it.
Sunset by The XX - Minimalist beats and lazy vocals.

Honey by Swim Deep - With electric riffs and a catchy chorus, I discovered this band last January and fell in love instantly. This song helped me through dark mornings and late night school revision, and succeeded in driving my friends insANE.
Nosedive by Wolf Alice - Ellie Rowsell's lyrics swoop and glide, diving amongst fiery baselines and guitar riffs.
Dancing Anymore by Is Tropical - Bubbly vocals and electro beats make a change for this normally generic indie rock band.
The Suburbs by Arcade Fire - This is a four minute, concentrated blast of carefree summer.
No Waves by FIDLAR  - One of my favourite songs from this Californian stoner/skater band - It's sun drenched and thrashy and the band is the namesake of this blog!
Come Save Me by Jagwar Ma - Funky fifties drum beats and psychedelic vocals. Nina and I once sung this to a man at a record stall in a bid to get a free signed copy of 'Howlin', Jagwar Ma's debut album. Needless to say, it did not work.
All I Wanna Do by Splashh - This song is my favourite summer get away tune - with scuzzy riffs, wavering guitar pedals and I-can't-be-bothered vocals, this transports me to long hazy summer evenings spent on Hampstead Heath in an instant.

-written by avalon x x x

Ultimate make out songs

(this photo is cute + romantic and it's from someone's twitter)

Everyone has (or has had) (or is going to have) that someone who they think about constantly, who is never out of your mind, who makes your heart tingle whenever you think of them. It happens. You also can't go thinking about someone without thinking what it's like to make out with them. And even if you are a One Direction fan, you don't want to be making out with someone whilst 'Best Song Ever' echoes in the background, so make out songs are very important. To everyone.

Blush // Wolf Alice

Taken from Wolf Alice's latest EP, this song starts softly and makes you believe that it will stay this way. In the soft moments of the song, you can imagine everything around you being silent and you can only see that one person. You walk towards them slowly but as soon as the heavy drums come in, you race to them and the rest....well that's for you to decide.

She Changes the Weather // Swim Deep 

Seeing this song live was stunning as everyone stood still for the introduction, just waiting for that moment. Even to a non-Swim Deep fan, this song would sound utterly beautiful. The intro is an echo of Austin William's voice accompanied by a soft piano and guitar. Then the repetitive (but lovely) piano part comes in, complete with sounds of Swim Deep talking in the background. This song reminds me of someone chasing the person that they love and not giving up (as cheesy as it sounds). Like the first song, it seems like a song where you ignore everything around you and your mind is just focused on that one person. I think the video says just that and as a whole, it's very moving. 

There Is A Light That Never Goes Out // The Smiths

Every fan of The Smiths adores this song and I am sure it is very familiar to non-fans too. Just by listening to the lyrics, you know that it is a love song. "To die by your side, well the pleasure, the privilege is mine". Morrissey sings about doing anything for your loved one. Morrissey was (and still is) obviously a very poetic man but deciphering his lyrics is not hard. You can also dance away to this song which makes everything better. 

Warpaint // Baby

A lovely soft, calm song from Warpaint. You can imagine slow dancing to this after a wedding or sitting in the garden after a big party whilst feeling sorry for yourself. To me, this song is also about being maybe too protective of someone. "Don't you call anybody else baby" could have various meanings but I think we should stick to the romantic side of it.

Baby Blue // King Krule

All King Krule songs are absolutely beautiful and could all potentially be wonderful make out songs. Baby Blue is so slow and sweet and I would love to be listening to it whilst sitting under a tree, watching the sun (oh summer I miss you) and just thinking about people and love etc.

Teenage Riot // Sonic Youth

Undoubtedly one of my favourite Sonic Youth songs. This is definitely a song you have to dance to and it's up to you when you decide to stop dancing and make out with that someone. It would preferably be great if you and that someone were both teenagers but it really doesn't effect how great the song is.

My Kind of Woman // Mac Demarco

Mac Demarco makes me feel very lovey dovey and all over the place sometimes. He's a very silly but romantic person. I've walked during a beautiful orange sunset whilst listening to this song and it was such a wonderful experience. This song doesn't have the best rhythm to walk to but you can fool around and dance about instead. 

This is the Last Time // The National

This song was actually only introduced to me a week ago by one of my closest friends and I have absolutely fallen in love with it. The song title itself seems very romantic, but also very tragic, as if someone has had enough. The lyrics "I won't be vacant anymore" also justifies the unwanted feelings in the song.

Youth // Daughter

This is the single version of Youth which I prefer massively compared to the album version. Everyone fell in love with this song when they first heard it. The lyrics put across a sense of braveness but also sadness. "Setting fire to our insides for fun" sounds like something you would write on a protest banner but also something you would write on a goodbye letter. You can choose which way to interpret it. 

"The key to a kiss is a good song"

(Quote by me)

Amy x

             

Women in the Music Industry

If you follow me on twitter or know me in real life, you should know that I have an opinion on practically everything and I'm not really afraid to express my opinions. Which means, when I have a chance to write about something I feel strongly about - I will. So here it goes.

Women in the Music Industry

With the growing number of female musicians who are having success in bands where they play instruments, you'd think that females in the music industry would be finally recognised to be equal to men. However, that's not the case. For some reason it's still a shock that a woman can play an instrument well. Men can just be a bassist or a drummer or a guitarist - a musician, but as soon as the guitarist is a woman, she's a 'female guitarist'. Why can she not just be a guitarist? Because subconsciously, most people will judge her ability on the fact that she is not male, and that's 'weird'. For example, the phrase "she's good for a woman" might be used. 
Although male musicians may attract fan-girls, most of the time comments made about them are for their music, with the occasional "he's so hot". With females it's different. Take Ellie Rowsell from Wolf Alice for example, her name constantly pops up on my twitter timeline, but it's rare that I see a comment about her ability as an artist. The tweets are mainly about how attractive she is (I do agree) but not how talented she is, which I'm sure must be annoying for her as a musician. 
Another example is a band that I am not particularly fond of: Haim. Now, I don't like Haim purely because I don't like the music they produce, but people always try and argue back to try and make me like them. One of the first arguments that a Haim fan will use is 'But they're so pretty'. And believe it or not, I've once had a friend of mine tell me he didn't think that musically Haim were great, yet their attractiveness was one of the main reasons he liked them.
Now, you can argue back if you like, but most people don't try and support the fact that a male musician is good by the way he looks? It doesn't make sense - so why does that happen for female musicians? 
This brings me on to my next point: the sexualisation of women.
Many female pop artists look to being 'sexy' as a way to gain following, which it does. This though, means that they may not be taken as seriously and again the main subject of a conversation is not the vocal ability she has, but how 'hot' she is in her latest video. Even male musicians look to the use of an overly sexualised woman in their music video. Even bands that I really love are guilty of it, including Peace. Recently, the biggest outrage has been over Robin Thicke's 'Blurred Lines', a song perpetrating rape culture, and that uses women in a completely degrading and sexualising way, but I won't talk too much about that, because that could go onto something completely else.
Now as the last major point of this post, I want you to ask yourself a question. If you saw a teenage boy walking down the street in a band shirt and a teenage girl in a band shirt, who are you most likely to say actually likes the band? The boy, right? Because most people have built up this idea that girls only like bands for an image or to impress people. Why? Because girls actually liking something other than the sexualised pop music that is played so often is 'strange'.
I'm going to finish with a quote by one of my favourite musicians of all time.

"The media says that equality for women has arrived, but if you look around, you still don't see girls playing guitars and having success with it." 

- Joan Jett.

-Charlotte x

EP Review: Blush, Wolf Alice

EP Review: Blush, Wolf Alice

8/10

North London band Wolf Alice’s debut EP Blush is flawlessly coherent, featuring four songs evocative of all the emotions needed to flush your cheeks - lust, anger and a little embarrassment.

Title track ‘Blush’ opens with twinkling guitars and singer Ellie Rowsell’s dainty yet equally haunting vocals; Rowsell croons “it hurts to think that I can still go on” revealing a fragility parallel to her delicate tone. The track blossoms into something slightly heavier in the middle yet the ending remains poignant and mellow, leaving Rowsell’s voice raw and exposed as the built-up layers of accompanying fuzz leave it to stand alone once more.

There’s a swift turn in direction as second track ‘She’ erupts, complete with grungy guitars and vocals dripping with frustration. Reminiscent of angst-filled first single ‘Fluffy’, the song can’t help but call to mind ideas of teenage rebellion, making for an exciting listen.  

Nosedive continues along a similar vein, contrasting soft vocal harmonies and energetic drums to create “beats for you to dance to”, as the lyrics remind us. Closing track Ninety Mile Beach is slower and more reflective, yet enchanting with swirling guitars and a sluggish bass-line.

As the last chords echo and I put my record on to spin once again, I can only think of one thing: I, for one, cannot wait for the album.

Written by Amelia Holloway
@ameliazsz