LIVE// Peace

The Bodega Nottingham// 07/02/15

B-town boys spread their message of peace and happiness in Nottingham 

Tonight sees Peace take to The Bodega's tiny stage for the third time in what has effectively become a residency of sorts, in support of their forthcoming second album 'Happy People.' It's sold out - again, testament to the fact that they could be playing in venues much bigger than this,yet have taken to being holed in joints across the country for days at a time as a 'thankyou' to the fans who have waited patiently for them to finish writing the follow up to their debut 'In Love'.  

Opener Higher Than The Sun taken from that album sees that the fans - who've been queuing outside in the cold for hours- are thoroughly warmed up, before the band rip through an enthralling rendition of Follow Baby.

Happy People and Perfect Skin are the first of the new cuts to be given a live airing, the latter proving that the band haven't lost their ear for an indie anthem whilst they've been away. Money is next, and despite being released barely a year ago, still incites the kind of reaction you'd expect from a song ten times it's age. Whilst 1998 transforms the crowd into a heaving mass of bodies and flailing limbs, that looks as though it might burst at the seems at one more swirling blissed-out crescendo. 

The band re-take to the stage for Someday, which sees frontman Harry Koisser adopt an almost Jake Bugg-like croon, for a song that will undoubtedly soundtrack every indie-kid crush to come, before World Pleasure sees the band's set- and residency -culminate in Peace's trademark pizzazz.

Their time in Nottingham may have come to an end, but for Peace the tour is far from over, a date in the capital follows and then who knows? If the success of 'Happy People' thus far is anything to go by, it looks as though it won't be long before the world succumbs to their pleasure.

LIVE// Alvvays

The Bodega Nottingham// 26/01/15

Toronto five-piece bring big glasses and even bigger chorus' to Nottingham

When Alvvays take to the stage tonight you could argue that the hype surrounding them - and their eponymous debut album- is reaching stratospheric levels, yet the Toronto five-piece have their priorities set very much on the ground. Vocalist/guitarist Molly Rankin opens the band's set by asking for the best British chocolate bar, and the location of oldest pub in England - The Trip to Jerusalem. Whilst the bands status as one's to watch could afford them a slightly more whacky rider request, the resulting 3 minute blasts of indie-pop heaven certainly make up for it.

Next Of Kin opens with the sort of jangy-heavy guitar Johnny Marr would be jealous of, it's upbeat riffs hiding a darker lyrical side, as Rankin sings "If I'd known you couldn't swim we would never had gone in".

Archie, Marry Me- which appears surprisingly early in the set-  provides the first sing along of the night thanks to it's catchy vocal hooks. Atop A Cake keeps up the pace, before the band slow down proceeding with a euphoric run though of Party Police.

The band even manage to throw in a cover of Deerhunter B-side Nosebleed, which, when adorned with Molly's piercing vocals, could easily be passed off as their own. 

If tonight proves anything it's that whilst Alvvays arn't breaking the mould, when your indie anthems are as contagious as that, theres no need to. (Oh- and that Mars is the best chocolate bar.)

Savages + Bo Ningen // Words To The Blind

Two of the year's most forward-thinking bands come together in performance art project

Savages first encountered Bo Ningen in the most unlikely of settings - a desolate pub deep in the North Yorkshire wilderness, since then they have been cropping up all over the latter's songs - Nichijyou and CC. Most collaborations between bands end there, but the East London based musicians decided to take it one step further, in the form of a 37-minute long performance piece.

Words To The Blind is inspired by the Dadaist concept of  'simultaneous poetry', first performed at Zurich's Cabaret Voltaire club in 1916. The poem is based around conflicting multilingual voices that eventually become incomprehensible. 

Savages frontwoman Jehnny Beth speaks in her native French, and Bo Ningen's Taigen Kawabe in Japanese. Their whispers are the calm before the storm, as they give way to barrage of dark, sonic noise, that sometimes veers on the edge of violent. The resulting chaos is reminisant of Bo Ningen's psych rock at it's most acidic. 

The two bands first showcased their work at London's Red Gallery on May 29th 2013, taking to the stage in a U-shaped formation to resemble a battle. This, and the desire to immerse the audience into a musical warfare that is punishing, eerie and hellish - at times all three, makes WTTB become more of a unique performance-art project than a gig. But that is what sets Savages and Bo Ningen apart from their post-punk peers - an appetite for musical anarchy. 

LIVE// Thurston Moore

The Bodega Nottingham // 12/11/14

Ex-Sonic Youth leaves Nottingham 'Thurston for Moore'

As Thurston Moore's new band - simply titled The Thurston Moore Band - saunter onstage tonight, for the final and most intimate date of their five-date UK tour there is an air of excitement in the sold-out crowd. As one member of the crowd puts it "It's strange being this close to a legend." 

There is not just one legend gracing tonight's stage - not your average backing band, Moore is supported by fellow Sonic Youth, drummer Steve Shelly, My Bloody Valentine bassist Debbie Googe and former Nought guitarist James Sedwards, making his new band effectively a super group.

If anyone in attendance was hoping for a nostalgia trip tonight, then they will be more than disappointed, as the set relies heavily on material taken from this year's The Best Day, allowing each member to place their stamp on the music. From the Sonic Youth-esqu Speak To The Wild to Furthermore's MBV-indept bass-heavy riffing, tonight isn't just about Thurston Moore.

That however, doesn't stop the quartet indulging in some of the ex-Sonic Youth man's trademark wig-outs, transporting the audience into the scuzzy stratosphere. 

The album's title track is perhaps one of the sets more poppier moments, followed by the equally as catchy riffage of Detonation and Germs Burn, the latter completed by a killer solo.

Whilst Moore has a rich back catalog of hits to pick from, his decision to bypass it - all except for a run-through of Psychic Hearts from Moore's 1995 debut of the same name- along with tonight's surprisingly restrained set -coming in at just over an hour- demonstrates not only his confidence in the new material but also his intent to look to the future.