Okay, there aren’t any titans, but there are plenty of clashes in this week’s gig calendar.  Look at Saturday for instance – The Fall, The Leg or Bear in Heaven? – it depends on the precise length and angle of your fringe I suppose.  Well, that and the cut of your jeans.

And Wednesday, what do I do?  Go and butter up Yusuf Azak and try and get him to join the label, or go and butter up the Foxxes and try and make sure they stay?  That’s the music industry for you: so many arses to kiss and so little time in which to do it.

In other news, I have been invited down to Unconvention in Manchester to sit on a panel of labels and band managers to make some wafer-thin pretence of having something intelligent to contribute.  I will try very hard to not perform my usual trick of just talking over the top of people until they shush, and make a genuine effort to be a productive and valuable member of society. Yes yes, I know, stop laughing.

Wednesday 21st April 2010: Euan McMeeken, Yusuf Azak, Woodchucker, Dan Arborise & Library Tapes at the Roxy Room.

Yusuf has just finished his debut album which we are hoping to persuade him to release on Song, by Toad Records later in the year, and on Wednesday he and Euan will be supporting Dan Arborise and Library Tapes down at the Roxy Room.

Yusuf Azak – Ursa Major

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Wednesday 21st April 2010: Jesus H. Foxx & White Heath at Maggie’s Chamber.

The Foxx are currently writing and recording their new album, which is due out… well, about three or four months after they finish it, if we’re being determinedly practical about these things, which we have to be.  They’ve been posting demos and works-in-progress on their blog, so you can pop through there and have a preview if you like.

Jesus H. Foxx – The Sea (Demo)

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Thursday 22nd April 2010: Woodenbox with a Fistful of Fivers, The Stormy Seas, The Kays Lavelle & Tony Yorston at the Wee Red Bar.

This is the Woodenbox album launch party, and with my own very recent experience of album launches, that means it should be a gigantic, messy, good-natured piss up.  Their stomping Americana has been particularly upwardly mobile recently, which may be related to their recent hook-up with a new manager, and I am looking forward to hearing the full album.

Friday 23rd April 2010: Slaraffenland & Efterklang at Cabaret Voltaire.

A very Pitchforky gig, this.  Efterklang were pretty good at SXSW, but I find their recent album no better than okay.  Apparently earlier stuff is miles better though, so erm, well yes, good luck with this one. Lots of my friends, whose music taste I agree with in most aspects, love these guys but I don’t really know them well enough yet.

Slaraffenland – Long Gone

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Friday 23rd April 2010: Steffen Basho-Jughans & C. Joynes at the Roxy Room.

This looks like being an extremely interesting evening of music, particularly for those looking for something a little different this week.  This is something of a steel-stringed guitar masterclass, with all three bands featuring the instrument quite prominently apparently.  More information is available from the Facebook page for the event.

Saturday 24th April 2010: Maybe Myrtle Turtle, Enfant Bastard & The Leg at the Bristo Hall.

This is a fundraiser gig, and will be headlined by The Leg, who I would probably describe as My Favourite Edinburgh Band Who I Have Inexplicably Failed to Ever See Live.

Saturday 24th April 2010: The Fall at Studio 24.

I don’t really need to tell you anything about The Fall, do I?

Saturday 24th April 2010: Bear in Heaven at Sneaky Pete’s.

Bear in Heaven are extremely hip at the moment, and I not sure if they are more famous for being famous, or because someone famous tweeted about them, hence making them even more famous, and simultaneously a poster child for modern social media marketing.  Oh, and they play quite electronic stuff, which is not bad at all.

I am clearly not as hip as I pretend to be (was anyone really fooled?) because despite their being extremely cool, I don’t actually have any music by Bear in Heaven on my drive.  Out of shame, I have substituted at track by The Tragically Hip called the Bear, in the hope that you won’t notice.

The Tragically Hip – The Bear

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[This week’s Sunday Supplement has been provided by Euan ‘Steinberg Principle’ ‘Kays Lavelle’ ‘Trampoline’ McMeeken, and turns Matthew’s own review of an important local release on its head. Don’t forget if you’d like to see a Sunday Supplement of your own published here, just email us at sunday(at)songbytoad.com. All contributions welcome!]

Before you all get a weird sense of déjà vu, no, you are not caught in time warp.  You’re not going back to the future.  You’re simply reading my review of ‘The Winter of Mixed Drinks’ by Frightened Rabbit as opposed to Matthew’s review that he wrote the other day.  We spoke about this idea the other night and thought it’d be an interesting thing to do: I’d be reviewing this record for my blog anyway so we thought, if my opinion varied greatly from his, it’d be interesting for me to write a review which, in a way, responded to his.

I should make it clear that in undertaking this exercise I’m not just looking for a fight.  I personally think Matthew is one of the most engaging and best music writers out there in Scotland at the moment.  That’s the main reason that I continually read his blog and shun the lifeless and soulless drivel published in many music magazines these days.  However, at the end of the day, what makes music, and indeed a music blog, so interesting is when a piece of music can divide opinion so greatly.

Unlike many on the blog the other day I point blank refuse to pat Matthew on the back for his review of this record.  Sure, it takes balls to say what you think, but I’d expect more from him than “this is awful.”   I think, and hope, what he meant by that statement was that, in the context of Frightened Rabbit’s previous 2 albums, and what his hopes were for this record, this record is awful.  Not that he genuinely thinks this record falls into the awful category because simply put: this album is far from awful.

But is it good?

My answer to this is, in terms of song quality, yes it is.  ‘Things’, ‘Footshooter’, ‘Not Miserable’, ‘Living In Colour’ and ‘Yes, I Would’ are as good as anything that they’ve done before in my opinion.  I believe there’s enough quality songwriting on this record to justify a much more positive review than it received from Matthew earlier in the week.  With the exception of ‘Swim Until You Can’t See Land’  – which I do believe is awful commercial garbage –  this is a really good record.  It feels more like ‘Sings The Greys’ in terms of style and, for me, that can only be a good thing.  Whilst The Midnight Organ Fight captured the hearts and minds of most people who love this band, it’s their debut that still makes me smile most.  The frantic pace and rawness of that record is, at times, just sublime.  And there are moments on this that remind me of that record.  The ending of ‘Skip The Youth’ echoes, in a way, the end of ‘Square 9’ – Matthew, if you don’t hear that then please play them together and realise your wrong about this tune.

Sure, there’s a much lusher sound to this record.  A much bigger production.  But really, what do you expect from a band on their 3^rd album and with the resources available to them?  Of course more money will be spent.  Their music has always lent itself to a sweeter, lusher sound – just compare albums 1 and 2.  I would have preferred if this record had the rawness of their debut as it is what got me hooked into them in the first place but the same applies to TMOF.

Anyways, I’m determined not to let production affect my opinion of the record.  It’s not something I ever used to bother about – until I started reading this blog actually – and it ruined my enjoyment of the Broken Records album, even though the quality of songs on that record clearly speak for themselves.   I guess ultimately everyone has personal taste when it comes to production and it’s easy to let the production of a record distract you from the overall quality of the songs.  It is important to many, I’m not denying that for one second, but, and I never thought I’d say this, I completely agree with Rampant Chutney Consumerism (it really does hurt to say that) in that, if the songs are good then they are good and will shine through no matter what.

There are no instant hits on this record, like there were on The Midnight Organ Fight, but as a piece of music I genuinely think it’s a good follow up and a strong record.  It’s certainly not awful.  I guess at the end of the day you can’t please everyone though.  They didn’t please Matthew.  They have pleased me.  Like he said though, I’m sure they don’t care either way.

[There were a couple of songs to be included in this post, but give I already have two tracks from this album available for download I didn't think I could include these - don't want to give too much away for free, sorry - Matthew]

So August is almost upon us. Traditionally –  or at least for as long as I’ve been living here – most bands and promoters in Edinburgh tend to just take the month off and make way for the festival. It’s a bit of a monolith. Every available venue (and most non-venue) space is booked up months in advance, and with so much happening every single day in August, it becomes rather difficult for smaller operations putting on shows. Of course there are exceptions – a lot of the bigger clubs just keep on trucking, and nights like Acoustic Edinburgh embrace the Fringe and put on shows as part of the official line-up.

This year, though – more so than any I can remember – seems to be bucking that trend. There’s a lot of activity going on outside of the festival – and lots of local bands and promoters putting on shows regardless. Which is great to see – another indication of the strength and confidence of the city’s musical community at the moment. I thought I’d give a run down of what’s caught my eye – as with so much on, it’s entirely possible for an amazing show to slip by un-noticed.

The Edge

Firstly, the musical leg of the Fringe – the Edge – has some really great shows this year. The Mum show may have been moved to Glasgow, but we still have David Byrne, Woodpigeon, Andrew Bird, Frightened Rabbit, Malcolm Middleton, and Jeffrey Lewis. And judging by the website, the festival seems to have just absorbed all the shows at Sneaky Pete’s – including Sleeping States (who I can’t recommend highly enough), Monotonix, Sparrow and the Workshop, the usual This is Music night and the mysteriously titled ‘Songs By Toad night’. It’s also great to see some Edinburgh bands forming part of the Edge line-up – with Broken Records at the Queens Hall, a double header from Unicorn Kid and Young Fathers at Cab Vol, and support slots from Meursault (at Frightened Rabbit), the Kays Lavelle (the Lost Brothers) and Withered Hand (Jeffrey Lewis). It’s something that I’ve felt was lacking in previous line-ups, and it’s a step in the right direction.

www.theedgefestival.com

Retreat!

Then, of course, there’s the ‘other’ festival. Retreat! is an all day event at the Bristo Hall on Sunday the 16th. 15 acts (Meursault, Withered Hand, Rob St. John, Tissø Lake, the Leg…), and DJs till 3am. Free entry. I can’t think of a better line-up. But then again, I did help pick it.

www.myspace.com/edinburghretreat

Trampoline

Trampoline are also putting on four shows over first two weekends, and really great line-ups including Adam Stafford (Y’all Is Fantasy Island), Jonnie Common (Down The Tiny Steps), Animal Magic Tricks, Conquering Animal Sound, Golden Ghost and Woodenbox.

www.myspace.com/trampolineuk

Bang Bang Club

Normally at the Speakeasy in Cabaret Voltaire, the Bang Bang Club is hosting a series of shows upstairs in the Teviot Hall. Highlights include Clinic, the Pineapple Chunks, Paul Vickers and the Leg, and a series of soundtrack events from Steven Severin.

www.myspace.com/bangbangclubedinburgh

Playing With The Past

There’s also an exclusive second screening of the Playing with the Past event from this year’s film festival on 22^nd August, with eagleowl, FOUND and Meursault performing live soundtracks to old Scottish films. Tickets are available now from the Filmhouse website or box office.

www.myspace.com/playingwiththepast

Cybraphon

FOUND – not willing to give up their ‘hardest working band in Edinburgh’ tag to Meursault just yet – also have a residency at InSpace (a gallery space – part of the new University building) with their Cybraphon project, including a live band performance on the 13^th (which is free but ticketed). It seems to be some kind of automated musical cupboard, containing a series of musical instruments, which reacts to online activity about the project in real time. Or something. For a more coherent explanation, try the Cybraphon site:

www.cybraphon.com

Leith Tape Club

Okay, strictly speaking not an Edinburgh show – but a nice trip out of the city is normally always welcome around the third week in August. Leith Tape Club at the Iso Bar continues in August on the 20^th, with a rather special all-star line-up including the Kays Lavelle and Meursault (solo, I think).

Leith Tape Club

National Portrait Gallery

There’s also a series of rather exclusive shows at the National Portrait Gallery, whilst the gallery is closed for a refurbishment. These include Rob St. John and Emily Scott on 8^th August, X-LionTamer on 21^st August, St Jude’s Infirmary and Zoey Van Goey on 22^nd August, and Withered Hand and Meursault on 29^th August.

National Portrait Gallery

Electric Circus

There’s been some great gigs in Electric Circus since it opened earlier this year, and they don’t seem to be losing any momentum in August, with shows from FOUND, Dent May, White Heath and Rob St. John (1st), Jesus H. Foxx (11th), The Phantom Band (19th), and Trembling Bells and Ben Reynolds (25th), amongst others.

Electric Circus

The Golden Hour

A blend of poetry, music and live visuals at the Forest Cafe on 19th August, with performances from Billy Liar and Withered Hand.

The Golden Hour

Shipping Forecast Garden Party

And I think there’s another shipping forecast garden party scheduled for 30^th August, with Come On Gang!

No details yet, but I’m sure Dave will keep us posted.

It is all pretty exciting. Please spam the comments with anything I’ve missed, as I’m sure there’s loads, and if any more are announced or come to light over the course of the month, it’ll no doubt make it’s way into the weekly listings.

Sleeping States – September, Maybe

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Woodpigeon – In Praise of the West Midlothian Bus Service

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Zoey Van Goey – City Is Exploding

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