Dick Valentine (Acoustic Live) [Review - Fibbers - May 27th 2012)

Dick Valentine (Acoustic Live) Fibbers, York (Sunday 27th May 2012)

And so it was back to Fibbers, my old stamping ground, in York on a balmy Sunday night to see Dick Valentine, lead singer of Electric Six, performing an acoustic set for the first time in six years at the venue. Back in 2006 I had seen him on his ‘American Troubador’ show where he debuted as-then-unheard tracks such as album Switzerland’s ‘Night Vision’ and ‘Pink Flamingos’ and ‘I Don’t Speak French’, finally released on his solo LP this year ‘Destroy The Children’, a CD available digitally but in limited physical copy at this, and other, shows.

Fibbers, as noted by the second support act of the night, had changed since his particular last appearance in the venue and that, on the new stage, he would have previously been performing in the toilets. But, since I saw the full band there not that long ago, the new Fibbers was familiar to me in all its glowing step, chipboard-walled toilet glory.

Opening support ‘Nico Cara’ didn’t have much of an audience to perform to – it was only just into double figures – but his acoustic original songs were engaging, catchy and well performed and definitely worth a listen at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Nico-Cara/363744760302524. Sounding very much like Jamie T in full on ‘Sheila’ mode, his understated music was a joy to hear and a great start to the gig.

It was second support, though, that really kicked up the pace. In a similar style to ‘The Re-entrants’ that supported ‘The Lancashire Hotpots’ at a recent Fibbers gig, Jake Radio’s schtick was to mix a couple of songs from his full piece band “Be Quiet Shout Loud” (found online at http://www.myspace.com/bequietshoutloud) including the fun and tongue-in-cheek “Jesus Is Coming” which folk reimaginings of the most unlikely songs possible, from the opening version of Limp Bizkit’s ‘Rolling’, making the frankly stupid lyrics sound much more credible, to a concluding crowd-interacting version of ‘The Final Countdown’ which the audience were more than happy to sing along with, with crowd engagement being high on Jake Radio’s hit list. With a suit as sharp as the points on his white shoes, Radio also entertained with perhaps the best style-change song I’ve heard ever, even beating The BossHoss, Richard Cheese and their like, in the Bloodhound Gang’s ‘The Bad Touch’. Even though he couldn’t quite keep up with the fast pace of the song it was a cover both funny to hear and masterfully performed. There was though, a roll of eyes from me and my friend when he whipped out a folk version of ‘Gold’ by Spandau Ballet which ‘The Re-Entrants’ had done previously. It was no better or worse than their version but it seems to be becoming Fibbers’ support theme song.

With hardly five minutes between the excellent Jake Radio leaving the stage it was the turn of Electric Six frontman Dick Valentine’ to appear on stage, dressed casually in a green top and a hat with a black guitar slung around his shoulders.

Opening with ‘Hey’ by the Pixies which melded into the titular track of his album-to-promote, Valentine showed far more confidence on stage than six years previously or even on bootlegs from the past few years, playing all the songs flawlessly and with skill, even the songs adapted from full band efforts. “Destroy The Children”, with its hilarious pop culture lyrics, sounded indistinguishable from the album version and was greeted well by the larger, but still disappointingly cosy, crowd. This was to be an excellent night of music and the numbers in the room didn’t justify the quality, but those that were there enjoyed it, ignoring the handful of people who felt it necessary to talk during his songs, which can be covered up at full gigs but not at one where the loudest instrument is a non-electric guitar.

New album opener ‘Counterattacks’ lost its second half instrumental, instead segwaying neatly into ‘Detroit Sandwich’ from the Valentine-song-written ‘Bite Me’ internet video series, a song I’d not heard but one that sounded great live.

It was into more familiar territory next with great performances of ‘Steal Your Bones’ and the cult classic ‘Jimmy Carter’ from ‘Kill’ and ‘Senor Smoke’ albums respectively before ‘Earth Side of the Moon’ from his solo release was delivered with aplomb. Old Wildbunch classic ‘I’m On Acid’ was a welcome appearance next before the as-yet-unreleased ‘I Killed Our Love’ was whipped out and performed well, with some short but witty banter between various tracks by Valentine. ‘Mr Shadow’ moved the set on, again sounding as good as the album version, before personal favourite ‘I Don’t Speak French’ got the crowd singing and laughing, showing a good mix between people familiar with the album and those experiencing it for the first time.

There was a slight break while he sold four copies of the album to lucky people on the stage, an extra fiver being their cost for meeting Valentine on stage and after this unusually lengthy interlude it was back to rattling through the Electric Six classics with ‘When I Get To The Green Building’ and ‘Pink Flamingos’, both sung back to him by the crowd and great versions of them.

The reason for a second mic on stage was revealed next after it had spent much of the stage standing there awkwardly, with Jake Radio appearing back on stage for a well-constructed duet of Tom Waits song ‘Dirt In The Ground’ which, though depressing in tone, was a great match of their vocals.

With some cracking one liners dispensed to the crowd (“Do you know about the Jubilee?” / “What did you say about my friend Billy?”) and a few verbal smackdowns of some crowd idiots, his version of “Evil Cowards” stand-out track ‘Sex Wars’ was very welcome and a much loved addition to the set. It was great to hear it performed acoustically, and the same could be said for ‘I Am Repulsed By My Daughter's Lover’ from his solo album and ‘Vengeance and Fashion’ from ‘Fire’ which were both performed excellently both in relation to guitar and his vocal tricks.

His set continued to be rooted in the past with ‘She’s White’ receiving the stripped-back treatment, but with snippets of Keane’s ‘Somewhere Only We Know’ and Peter Gabriel’s ‘Book of Love’ slotted proficiently between the verses. I’m not familiar enough with the latter to comment on it but Valentine certainly gave Tom Chaplin a run for his money in the vocal stakes.

The encore was a well-decided trilogy of songs, from personal new favourite ‘One Policeman Leads To Another’, where he certainly pulled the crowd into singing along and Electric Six classic ‘Dance Commander’ which continued the crowd going mad. It was also fantastic to hear his Bruce Springsteen cover as his closing number, as Valentine’s version of ‘Beautiful Disguise’ is incredible.

Overall, we were treated to nearly eighty minutes of music on the night with a well-balanced cross section of music from his various bands, collaborations and influences and though it would have been great to have perhaps heard something like ‘Night Vision’ performed again there are few complaints from me regarding the track selection, especially with inclusions such as ‘Jimmy Carter’, ‘Sex Wars’ and ‘Pink Flamingos’ from the back catalogue.

Another cracking night of music from an under-appreciated singer-songwriter who showed off his vocal and songwriting skills away from the exhuberance of the full band.

I just hope we can destroy the children before songwriters similar to all three acts on the night are replaced by autotuned dancers. Full Set Hey (The Pixies) Destroy The Children (Dick Valentine) Counterattacks (Dick Valentine) Detroit Sandwich (Bite Me) Steal Your Bones (Electric Six) Jimmy Carter (Electric Six) Earth Side Of The Moon (Dick Valentine) I'm On Acid (The Wildbunch) I Killed Our Love (Electric Six) Mr. Shadow (Dick Valentine) I Don't Speak French (Dick Valentine) When I Get To The Green Building Pink Flamingos (Electric Six) Dirt In The Ground (Tom Waits) Sex Wars (Evil Cowards) I Am Repulsed By My Daughter's Lover (Dick Valentine) Vengeance And Fashion (Electric Six) I Invented The Night (Electric Six) She's White (Inc. 'Somewhere Only We Know' and 'Book Of Love') (Electric Six / Keane / Peter Gabriel) One Policeman Leads To Another (Dick Valentine) Dance Commander (Electric Six) Brilliant Disguise (Bruce Springsteen)

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The Next Big Thing?

It's not often I hear a new single by a band and immediately fall in love with it. OK, it happens occasionally with tracks such as 'Danger! High Voltage' by Electric Six, 'Our Velocity' by Maximo Park, The Futurehead's 'Beginning of the Twist' and Moby's 'Slipping Away' to name four of a selection, but here is a track by a band that I think can join them.

Featuring a catchy verse and chorus, a Kaisers-style breakdown, song-and-echo lines from the rest of the band and a one-like breakdown that slaps you right round the face, this is indie pop at its finest and if you don't have it stuck in your head after a few listens then I'd be surprised.

I'm definitely getting their album come August. A marvellous track and deserving of success.

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Tim Vine is Going Out as He Leaves Sitcom

In the same week that the fifth series of hit BBC sitcom ‘Not Going Out’ came to an end, gaining an impressive 4.69m viewers for its final episode in such a competitive environment, and Den of Geek running an article on how it is one of the best shows on television - http://www.denofgeek.com/tv/not-going-out/21369/not-going-out-an-appreciation - a rumour circulating before series four has now been confirmed as true.

Tim Vine quits 'Not Going Out' after six years? - http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a382313/tim-vine-quits-not-going-out-after-six-years.html

Sitcom in chaos as Vine quits - http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/4323718/Chaos-for-BBC1-comedy-Not-Going-Out-as-Tim-Vine-quits.html

Yes, Tim Vine has announced he has quit ‘Not Going Out’ as the BBC announces two more series have been commissioned.

Though ‘sitcom in chaos’ may be an overstatement – ‘Not Going Out’ has survived the departure of Megan Dobbs and Miranda Hart – both replaced with Sally Bretton and Katy Wix respectively – but neither was as key a character as Tim, played by Vine. In Dobbs case she was only in for one series and before it really hit the big time and Hart only a supporting character and has been replaced, and bettered, by Katy Wix. Tim, the mild-mannered innocent foil to Lee (Tim Mack), is much more central to the premise, even more so than the will-they won’t-they relationship between Lee and Lucy. He is the perfect complement to Lee’s more rowdy humour, much more innocent in style and though Vine has no writing credit to the series, his style of puns and one liners is clear in the series and his presence is undoubted in the sitcom.

The BBC have promised new characters in the sitcom when it returns next year for a sixth series but I feel they will have a difficult job replacing Vine. It’s not an impossible task. Lee Mack is a strong writer and it can be argued that the series now is even better than it was at the start, but it has evolved. However, Mack and Vine have a great working relationship and work well off each other and if Vine goes then that dynamic will be missing. Furthermore, how will Katy Wix as Daisy, Tim’s ditsy girlfriend, be kept in the series? Also, the humour of Tim being wary of Lee’s advances on his sisters, will be absent.

Vine has said “He’s got lots of other work coming in and is keen to try other things” and I don’t blame him for wanting to be known for other things opposed to his stand up and his sitcom but it upsets me – perhaps not the right word when discussing a television sitcom – that when the series has survived cancellation and now gone on to do not only another two series in the can but another two series on top of that and it’s stronger than it’s ever been in popularity and ratings that it’s losing a key element.

I love ‘Not Going Out’. It’s not only one of my favourite programmes and a fantastic, consistent sitcom, it’s one of the few shows on television that I wouldn’t want to miss. I have every faith that Lee Mack well make another cracking series of the show but I can’t help feeling that Tim Vine, who is such a talented comedian both in stand up and in the show, is making a mistake in leaving the sitcom. I’m all for trying new things and not being stereotyped but he’ll be sadly missed and I think it’ll be a major stumble point for the series.

I only hope that he’ll come back for the start of series six to at least make a proper exit and what he goes onto do justifies his exit. He’s a great performer but equally Mack, I believe, will continue to make a fantastic sitcom.

Oh, and if the BBC are after someone younger who can replace Tim but see fulfil the cheesy puns and the sort of innocent-looking humour, then they can always e-mail me. My rates are reasonable.

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The Hunger Games review

It’s taken me a while to get round to seeing it but I’m glad I did manage to see ‘The Hunger Games’, film adaptation of Suzanne Collins first book of her trilogy.

'The Hunger Games’ tells the story of the country of Panem which, since a revolt, have run an annual televised competition where one young boy and girl from each of the twelve districts, are offered up to fight to the death with only one victor coming out alive at the end, all as a threat to the population about revolting.

We follow the story through Katniss Everdeen who volunteers to replace her sister as the ‘tribute’ for District 12 and her time taking part in the games.

Plot wise the film is enjoyable to follow and its length 140 minute running time doesn’t drag. The plot itself is pretty predictable at times as Katniss takes part in the game, with many of the outcomes expected but, even though the inclusion of a young love subplot makes a nod towards it, it has much more depth than the Twilight films. There are many emotional scenes through the film and these are managed well next to action scenes and the universe is well set-up through the film, with the pacing spot on, never seeming like they’re glossing over anything.

Jennifer Lawrence as the lead actress carries the film very well and plays the character with great conviction but Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson and Amandla Stenberg are all worth mentions for the portrayals of their characters.

An enjoyable film with some small amounts of effective CGI and a highly detailed focus on costume and design which certainly makes the film stand out. The plot isn’t particularly revolutionary but there is much to enjoy but is quite a depressing film to watch with its theme so don’t expect to leave the film feeling smiling.

(7/10)

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Dick Valentine – Destroy The Children [Review]

Over ten years since his last solo album, 2001’s ‘Smog Cutter Love Story’ recorded under the artist name of ‘The Dirty Shame’, the lead singer of Detroit band Electric “Danger! High Voltage” Six has released a new album, “an acoustic exploration of uneasy topics” as the minimalist album cover labels “Destroy The Children”.

Coming in at just over a lightweight thirty minutes, I was interested to hear what a solo album by Electric Six’s frontman would sound like as a big fan of the under-rated rock band. Don’t let the inclusion of the word acoustic put you off the record as, though it as naturally much more stripped back than, for instance, the last E6 record ‘Heartbeats and Brainwaves’, there is still much more to the record than a man and a guitar.

Album opener ‘Counterattacks’ kicks off with a Wonderwall-esque guitar before Valentine’s familiar vocals oohs and eccentric lyrics kick in, and he’s supported not only by his guitar but a rather melancholy violin. After a minute of lyrics the two-minute long song then bursts into a down-beat violin and drum-led instrumental started off with a roll of drum thunder and more anguished aaahs before fading back away.

It’s followed by ‘Maria Sangrienta’, mostly sung in Spanish, and if you can get the image of Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story 3 out of your mind while he sings it, you’ll find it to be quite a touching ballad with more violin work, though I have no idea what he’s actually singing about. Capturing the Spanish feel in the music as well as the lyrics, it’s something very different and refreshing.

Though the title of track three does sound like a parody of an Electric Six track, it’s in fact one of the best songs on the album with a fast-paced verse and a short, but catchy chorus, thanks to the metronome effect. ‘One Policeman Leads To Another’, with regular fade outs and repeated resurgences of music works really well and even when the closing repeating of the title starts to border on irritation the production steps up a gear and cranks out a great sounding choral effect that will stick firmly in your head.

‘I Am Repulsed By My Daughter’s Lover’ is just another wacky title that looks weird on paper but in the context of the song works. Very much a story song, it does at time perhaps sound a little off compared to the music but it’s a fun song to hear and the witty lyrics and imaginative rhyming keep the song afloat.

Onto ‘Mr Shadow’ and it sounds very much like a classic old Electric Six song, from when they were the Wildbunch, with a familiar-sounding but interesting acoustic guitar riff. A little like ‘Smoke on the Water’ mixed with their old hit ‘She’s Guatemala’ and more recent song ‘Night Vision’, it’s another story-led song that doesn’t outstay its welcome but sounds great and even throws in a Groundhog Day reference. It’s followed by the skit ‘Driving Into Certain Death’, a fast-paced fun little snippet of a song with quite a layered guitar riff for its short running time.

Title track ‘Destroy the Children’ is a definite highlight of the album with not only an eclectic mix of guitar and violin and intriguing lyrics but a catchy chorus that concludes with a string outro, and some well observed and sharp lyrics and reasons to ‘Destroy the Children’ including “before they replace the singer-songwriters with autotuned dancers” and “Imprison Lindsey Lohan before she becomes a mother… polluting all our souls with Hollywood dysentery”.

Entering the second half of the album in both track number and length, ‘The Termite Queen sees Valentine in falsetto mode and is a much more low-key number. Not the most interesting song on the album lyrically or musically, it’s still worth a listen and the mix of instrumentation works well. Follow up ‘The Earth Side of the Moon’ is my least favourite song on the album and doesn’t really go anywhere, but there are some bits to enjoy in the chorus.

‘The Wild Rose of Boise’ includes some more wacky lyrics and is an enjoyable three minutes with its folk song feel. Thankfully after this the good, but nothing special, three songs are replaced with three far stronger numbers. ‘Emergency Funding For The Arts’ is a speedy lyrically-fun ‘Dance Commander’-esque number with a short, but catchy deep chorus, over an enjoyable guitar line. Then, the track flips to become the most unusual on the album with a synth line poking fun at modern music before switching back to the more acoustic stylings of the album but with a well-layered closing.

‘Fresh Faces’ is more of the same style wise but with some catchy ‘woo’s here and there in the chorus, lyrics continuing the art theme set by track eleven, and a general uptempo feel. But its penultimate tune ‘I Don’t Speak French’ that is the true highlight of the album. Performed live on the circuit for at least six years, this is Valentine at his very best both in singing in guitar play, with lyrics that both manage to tell a story, sound great and make you smile. Plus, we finally get the harmonica put into the song. A well written, great-sounding hit with some truly funny lines (ending on a cracker!) and plenty of hooks and hopefully at some point deserving a fully produced version.

‘Destroy the Children’ comes to a close with short song ‘Meet Mr. Monkey’, no relation though to the similarly titled and themed Robbie Williams track. With a country-twang feeling to it, it thematically sums up the album and though it isn’t the strongest title, it’s a pleasant enough end.

Any fans of Electric Six will find much to enjoy here with Valentine’s fun lyrics and ear for catchy hooks as present as ever. Clearly acoustic in style, but with plenty of interesting production to compliment it, ‘Destroy The Children’ is well worth a punt. Though it’s relatively short running time might seem a negative, with most tracks failing to break the three minute barrier there is always something new coming along if there’s something you don’t enjoy.

It’s not particular serious, it’s perhaps not as bombastic or as imaginative as the band’s full albums, but it’s certainly a fun and involving thirty-three minutes and successfully balances enjoyable music with witty lyrics and strong compositions. (7.5/10)

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Primeval Series Five To Make Terrestrial Debut

The odds may be against it but, in my opinion, fantastic sci-fi drama Primeval is to return to ITV this June as its fifth series, already shown on digital channel Watch and released on DVD and blu-ray, makes its terrestrial debut.

Though the series has already got its short-term future secured in its Canada-based spin off 'New World', the success of this fifth series - which is due to start on June 16th - will dictate its future in the UK.

Cash-strapped ITV will not be willing, or at least able, to take a punt on another series unless this series hits high on the ratings. But it's not exactly got a lot in its favour. The big fans will already have seen the series either on Watch or on disc and ITV's questionable decision to schedule it in early summer and, no doubt, with little publicity won't help.

It'll be a shame if the viewing figures are not great as series five is perhaps just behind series three in the rank of best series' with some great plotlines and fantastic CGI.

I just hope it gets a new series commissioned by the UK's biggest commercial channel so we can see what the answer is behind the final cliffhanger of the series that regular terrestrial viewers will see when this six-strong series reaches its conclusions this summer.

You can read what I'd like to see from Primeval this year at http://www.denofgeek.com/television/1189671/the_10_things_wed_like_to_see_from_primeval_in_2012.html or, if you don't mind spoilers, read my reviews of all series five episodes at http://cybaria.net/tag/primeval/

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Stream of Consciousness

Tonight, the world waits, for the impending new Official Streaming Chart, to be revealed on Monday according to http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/the-uks-first-official-streaming-chart-has-arrived-1385/.

It will track the one-hundred most streamed songs on the internet, from sites such as Spotify, Deezer (is that an indie band said with a cold?), Napster, We7, Zune and ChartsNow, so instead of tracking downloads which people have invested in it will be only for songs listened to over the internet for free.

Now I have enjoyed streaming software but I’m not a big fan: I’d rather own the music and listen to it at my own convenience, however and wherever I want, especially without adverts, but I can see the appeal of the sites and understand their popularity.

It will be interesting to see how the chart differs from the download chart, when there has already been talk of how Adele’s ‘21’ album has been commercial successful and it’s not on streaming sites. What impact has streaming had on other artists who have embraced the technology?

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