IT is quite criminal for a self-proclaimed music writer to say that Liverpool Music Week has generally passed me by over the years.
Had a friend from pastures not quite so culturally diverse not noticed that I had clicked ‘attending’ GHOSTPOET at Liverpool Music Week Closing Party, as I do for most of the Facebook events I never attend, I’m quite certain it would have done so again.
LMW is not a week in fact I’m not sure it ever ends.
This leads simple folks like myself to believe we will maybe catch something the following week or in a few days when we’re not working/hungover/otherwise engaged. Before you know what’s happened you’ve missed the whole thing and will have to wait until Sound City! before we can miss a whole load more gigs we wanted to go to.
Most infuriating I’m sure you’ll agree.
Cutting to the chase; I missed almost all of LMW 2011 save for the Closing Party, held at Liverpool’s Contemporary Urban Centre, which judging by the line-up had more acts playing that the entire Liverpool Music Week.
Result.
In the run up to the event, much time was spent intently scouring Soundcloud and Spotify to try and glean out a timetable whereby I could get the most out of the high volume of music on offer.
And so as a small posse of close compadres sat and caught up over pre-drinks in the flat I finally had it down. It was going to be tight, but if we kept it together and carefully divided our time between acts, calling for some tricky and clinically cut-thrust decision making, we could see a good 15 top-notch acts.
First on my list was NEW VILLAGER, an angular conceptual art pop duo from Brooklyn and North California, whose infectious and soulful melodies on tracks such as ‘Lighthouse’ warm the soul.
But hang on, they were on at 8.30pm and we’re still at the flat. Shit doesn’t time fly when you’re catching up with friends over a few Becks Vier and Stella Cidres?
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| Dustin Wong: Bloody annoyed that we missed him |
Never mind, wasn’t that fussed about them and if we hurry up we can make the next act on my schedule DUSTIN WONG & THE INFINITE ORCHESTRA.
Hard act to track down online; plenty of Wong on Soundcloud but no sign of the Infinite Orchestra, and they sound pretty vast so surely worth a look.
Sadly it takes rather longer than planned to get to the CUC than figured, and it appears they didn’t live up to their infinite claims, the Orchestra and Wong has left us for dust by the time we’ve even got a beer from the bar.
Damn.
EX-EASTER ISLAND HEADS are up next, but I’ve seen those mallet wielding atmospheric instrumentalists before and so decide to explore the building instead.
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| The CUC: maze-like |
Two main rooms, a foyer, several long corridors, lifts, stairs and in total about ten different rooms with music on it was all a little overwhelming and by the time we’ve done a circuit and ended up back where we started it’s time to get another beer.
On route we finally manage to catch a snippet of some music as we wander into one of the two main rooms.
It is largely unoccupied and those who are there cling to the edges of the room in the shadows as two spectral figures cast some heavy electronic layers, accompanied by some chilling vocals.
It’s enthralling and strangely calming compared to the melee outside.
Sadly as it’s not on my schedule, I had no idea who it was so we reluctantly head back out to meet the rest of our posse.
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| Ghostpoet - unhappy to found he's trodden on dog poo |
GHOSTPOET is up, and determined not to miss another thing we head back into the main room.
It has filled up considerably and through the smoke and gloom you can just make out the ghostly poet himself.
The music is a transfixing blend of lo-fi yet high octane, melancholic yet forceful, eclectic blend of experimental Hip Hop and Dubstep that is as much Roots Manuva in its wordsmithery (yes that’s a word) as it is early Benga/Burial in its mellow and deeply spacious instrumentation.
The only downside tonight is that his lyrics, softly delivered almost in spoken word, are largely incomprehensible.
Not a major issue for those familiar with his songs, but perhaps disappointing to those to whom the words are as vital as the groove.
Still, invigorated by actually seeing some music, I’m back on task and head off to catch local art-rockers OUTFIT.
Formed from members of the much lauded experimentalists INDICA RITUAL/BALLOONS/SHADOW CABINET/APATT, founding members of Merseyside’s cultural institute and legendary house party venue The Croxteth Lodge, this acts as a homecoming show.
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| Outfit: dark and mysterious |
The band decamped to London in the summer where the shroud of mystery surrounding the group and their stormy, shimmering, synth rock is currently whipping up national interest and coverage.
It is clear that despite the titanic presence of Ghostpoet in the main room, and the other eight rooms of music, many people have come to see just what these Wirralites have been up to since moving to the big smoke.
The result appears to be polishing a professional sound that is the culmination of years of work on different tangents.
A group of guys who live for music and are done playing around, and are looking to succeed in making this what they do.
This is not a slight, just a reflection of music that seems to be taking itself very seriously. ‘Every Night I Dress Up As You’ is a subtly dark and sinewy track that crawls under the skin, while personal favourite ‘Vehicles’ is a shimmering 80s Synth Pop with a dark edge.
‘Two Islands’ is the track that seems to nail their colours to the mast: There’s something about it that imbeds itself into your head and will stay there for days and like the band itself, it’s got something you can’t quite pin down.
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| DJ Derek: Who needs a pension anyway? |
After this the schedule emphatically goes out the window: RIOT JAZZ, D/R/U/G/S and THE WHIP are all missed in favour of jostling for pints of Caffreys at the bar and despite earlier claims that I have far too much to see to go and watch 80+ DJ Derek, I end up dancing like a lunatic to the incredibly good pensioner for some time.
However, there is time for one last act that had to be ticked of the scrumpled and torn up list. DOGSHOW. And what a show.
For those of you who haven’t seen Dogshow before The Kazimier’s house band are a psychedelic freak out crunk duo who manage to create music that sounds unlike anything on this planet.
It is amazing what you can do with just a drumkit and a set of keyboards.
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| Dogshow: spectacular workout |
‘Pink Elephants’ starts off slowly and builds into a sound resembling circus music on acid, before exploding into a high tempo knees up around the shoulders rave.
The sets backdrop is a swirling hypnotic eye pattern that I think genuinely has hypnotic qualities, unless it was that hipflask of Sloe Gin I’d been sipping on all night, because it turned me into a dancing lunatic.
Engine Room is a crunked up, speed dubstep behemoth. It’s a workout from start to finish, they should do an exercise DVD or do a dance class down the local Lifestyles.
I must have sweated buckets of liberating freestyle limbthrowing and thrusting that resulted in a lost phone and finally that damned schedule too.
I may have only seen three of the 17 bands I had planned to, but it was still one of the gigs of the year. Roll on the next Liverpool Music Week; just throw the schedule out the window.
