Music For Robots

March 3, 2006 | Posted by Blair at 3:33 PM

Almost There...

last round

TGIF, right? I'm not going to go on and on about my week, but suffice it to say I'm glad it is over. I think this song is pretty fitting for a Friday afternoon too: starts of slow and quiet, then builds and builds to a super crescendo of rock awesomeness, then, a lot like me this week, falls on its back at the end, going all quiet again and coasting to the finish-line.

Semifinalists are a three-piece, made up Chris Steele Nicholson, Adriana Alba and Ferry Gouw. Chris and Adriana are from Chicago and New York, respectively, and Ferry has lived in London for a number of years. They all got together while doing arty stuff in film-school, with Chris and Gouw first forming a band with a hilarious name, Intensedudes (I'm guessing its pronounced Intense-a-dudes, or I'm hoping so anyway, because that would be awesome) with some other friends. They ended up working on a film project with Adriana, then trying to work on a soundtrack together, then decided to try to make music together as a band.

This is the end-product - awesome, fun, spirited and totally off the wall indie rock that reminds me of... jesus, it reminds me of so many things, its hard to know where to start. If anything, it sounds the way the new YYY's record should sound (but from what I hear the new album is a bit of a disappointment...): brash at times, full of melody, and a driving rhythm section, ranging from sweet and gentle to big and distorted.

Anyway, they've been hard at work on their album for months now - their first 7" got okay reviews, but this full-length, which is finally coming out this month on Regal Bear Records/V2, is really solid throughout. It is self-titled, and with twelve tracks, clocks in at just over a half-hour long - they're pretty direct and to the point here, with focused pop-magic at work. I hope they come to the US sometime soon, because I don't know when I'll next be in the UK. They've got a long list of tour-dates on their website, and on their Myspace page. Be sure to visit them both for more info and songs.

PS: Just a little early-notice here, but I'll be rocking the decks at Cake Shop next Friday (March 10th) with JDH for Fixed! with a special performance by the Presets (Modular Records), who will be playing their first-ever US show! Think of it as a more intimate warm-up (if you've been to Cake Shop, you know its not a huge place) for their show the next night with Hot Chip and Grand National at Bowery Ballroom... Anyway, I think I can promise you that Friday will be off the freakin hook, so mark your calendars now!

Comments

i love this. i've always wanted to do something that mixes the new-age music of the late 80's with a solid beat. thanks for the inspiration!

Posted by: MPR at March 3, 2006 8:14 PM

omgomgomgomgomgomg

that's really nice. thank you for this nice gift, which i got you something.

Posted by: jellocat at March 4, 2006 12:58 PM

hey, thanks for the post. I have that 7 inch released by them and it's not bad by any means. The packaging on that 7 inch was just incredible too, but that's a different story.

Posted by: tony m at March 5, 2006 2:40 PM

another boring post by blair. truely is music for robots

Posted by: igip at March 5, 2006 11:19 PM

Im telling you Blair! You never let me down man! I love this track. You're like Saturn of this solar system: you have a lot of ice rings around you being.

Posted by: carlos at March 6, 2006 6:16 PM

Wow. That one really made me excited to hear music again! Thanx.

Posted by: thatvegasguy at March 7, 2006 4:04 AM