Shazamers' Blog

Glastonbury festival should need little introduction. Since 1971 the festival has been using farmland in a usually sleepy corner of the British countryside to keep the hippy vibe alive, whilst throwing one of the hedonistic (not to mention muddy) parties imaginable. Unlike many festivals, Glastonbury’s music policy is truly all-encompassing: bearded folk singers, ancient jazz players and odd-ball North African troupes all feature alongside some of the biggest bands on the planet.

It’s also Glastonbury’s attention to detail that makes it special. Each year the organizers pock mark the 900 acre site with hugely imaginative, psychotropic, and downright weird areas of interest. Whilst headline shows on Glastonbury’s hulking Pyramid stage are sure to garner the most attention, there’s also a ton of must see bits of the site away from the throng. We’ve counted down some of the most interesting in the below 5 Minute Guide to Glastonbury 2011.

Secret Guests

Glastonbury’s organizers are keeping tight lipped about who this year’s special guest performers are. In a recent interview with NME festival organizer Michael Eavis simply had this to say, “There’s nothing bigger, I can tell you.”
2010’s secret performers were Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood: the driving force behind rock legends Radiohead. If the Glasto crew simply repeats the caliber of last year’s act then festival goers are due for a treat. Rumored guest include The Strokes (Shazam’s prediction for the guest spot), M.I.A. and even Prince.

 Arcadia

A giant mechanized, fire breathing spider perched up in the middle of the English countryside should be a memorable site in anyone’s books. But when you combine that with a series of big name DJ performances and thousands of face painted revelers, then you have something really special. Highlights of this year’s Arcadia itinerary include sets from Orbital and SL2 who will be injecting moments of ‘90’s rave nostalgia intro this post apocalyptic, arachnid loving arena.

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Stephen Titmus Shazam's 5 Minute Guide To... Friendly Fires, Glastonbury, Horse Meat Disco, radiohead, Rasta Mouse

Azari & III have been an act to keep an eye on for about a year now. Their sound doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but instead channels one of the golden periods of electronic music – late 80’s Detroit and Chicago House. Referencing the likes of Ten City, Inner City, Derrick May and Mr Fingers; Azari & III’s music has been wetting the taste buds of dance aficionados and indie mainstays Pitchfork, who ranked their recent single ‘Reckless With Your Love’ in their ‘Best New Music’ category.  

Azari & III’s forthcoming album could cement their status on an even wider platform. Soon to be released on Tiga’s always reliable Turbo label, the record promises to bring back the glory days of acid house to the mainstream. The first taste of the album, ‘Indigo’, sounds like a lost Trax record but with the added digital grunt of a modern studio. After a quality collaboration with London disco hipsters Friendly Fires (see above), Azari & III could well be on course to revitalise dancefloors with their referentially ass shaking sound.

If you’re a fan of Tensnake’s already inescapable ‘Coma Cat’, these guys are well worth looking out for.

Stephen Titmus Tag Of The Day Azari & III, Friendly Fires, Tensnake

Native New Yorkers Holy Ghost! have been getting plenty of plaudits from both the dance scene and indie fraternity since signing to the achingly hip DFA records in 2007. The band’s uniquely old school approach to producing disco influenced pop involves the use of plenty of dusty analogue synthesisers and even the hire of whole string sections just to get the sound right on certain tracks – something that probably dooms the group to financial disaster before they’ve even started.

Their latest project sees the group hook up with acclaimed British band Friendly Fires for a double A-side single where each band will cover the other’s songs. The effort from Holy Ghost! sees the band taking the raucous energy of Friendly Fires’ ‘On Board’ and slowing it down to a sleazy disco bump. Like the band’s previous track ‘Hold On’, produced by LCD Soundystem’s James Murphy, the Holy Ghost! version of ‘On Board’ mixes the up the cooler than cool production sound of DFA with a genuinely memorable vocal to great effect.  

The split single will be released on March 8^th and also includes a Friendly Fires version of ‘Hold On’. If you can’t wait till then you can purchase the original of ‘Hold On’ from iTunes by following this link.

Stephen Titmus Tag Of The Day Friendly Fires, Holy Ghost!

Soft Toy Emergency have been bubbling under our radar for a while. We first caught their frantic blend of pop, electro and indie at last year’s inaugural In The City festival in Manchester. Since then they’ve been relentlessly touring with the likes of Friendly Fires and Little Boots , as well as winning plaudits from tastemakers such as Steve Lamacq, Huw Stephens and the NME – who included their debut single ‘I Know U Want It’ as a Track of the Week .  

The band have now signed to dance imprint All Around The World, home to the likes of N-Dubz & Cascada. The label has previously shown a successful knack of un-earthing mainstream talent, the platinum selling N-Dubz being a prime example. Released on November 16^th ‘Critical’ is a storming, infectious floor filler that will instantly speak to pop fans, whilst simultaneously retaining enough edge to appeal to the indie crowd.

The band are currently on a headline tour up and down the UK before supporting fellow synth rock purveyors Hadouken! For more information head to their MySpace.

Jon Davies New Music Alphabeat, Cascada, Friendly Fires, Hadouken!, Little Boots, N-Dubz, Soft Toy Emergency

Not content with discovering the likes of Bloc Party, Late of The Pier, Florence and the Machine and Friendly Fires (we could go on), Moshi Moshi Records continue to bring us vital new music in the form of The Drums. Recalling the sun drenched melodies of Brian Wilson accompanied with jangly post punk guitars, the four young men’s debut single ‘Let’s Go Surfing’ is the perfect introduction to their sound.

Taking from the sublime ‘Summertime’ EP, the track will make you clutch at the final remaining hours of summer we have left and has the catchiest whistling riff heard since Peter Bjorn & John’s  ‘Young Folks’.

The band head to the UK in October for the following dates:

Tuesday 20^th October – In The City Festival @ Night & Day, Manchester

Wednesday 21^st October – Deaf Institute, Manchester

Friday 23^rd October – Club NME @ Koko, London

Saturday 24^th October – SWN Festival @ Dempseys, Cardiff

Tuesday 27^th October – Barfly, London

Jon Davies News Florence And The Machine, Friendly Fires, Late Of The Pier, The Drums. Bloc Party

Last night rank outsider Speech Debelle scooped this year’s Mercury Music Prize which awards the best British album from the last 12 months. Opinion was largely divided in to three camps in the Shazam office on whether the winner would be Florence & The Machine, Friendly Fires or The Horrors. However one fairly vocal lone voice in the office continually insisted Speech Debelle would win, and who’d have thought it, her opinions were rightly vindicated.

Anyway, congratulations to Speech Debelle, as you can see from the below video, it’s not just her fans that were assured of her success…

Stephen Titmus News Florence And The Machine, Friendly Fires, Mercury Music Prize, Speech Debelle, The Horrors

Friendly Fires have been one of the most exciting British bands to breakthrough in recent years. Their heady mix of dance, punk-funk and just the right amount of pop music polish has won them fans from across the board. Now, fresh from a triumphant Glastonbury performance, Friendly Fires deliver their new single, ‘Kiss Of Life’.
Featuring layers of South American percussion surrounded by the familiar Friendly Fires disco stomp, the track is yet another perfectly danceable pop song. Produced by Paul Epworth, who has recently worked wonders for Jack Peñate’s street cred by injecting an air of Balearic cool into his sound, the record has a rhythmic vibe that’s reminiscent of Talking Heads’ ethnic beat experiments.
The new track makes up part of a special deluxe edition of their Mercury nominated, self titled album, ‘Friendly Fires’. Featuring ‘Kiss Of Life’, video footage of the band’s live show and the truly amazing Aeroplane remix of the band’s earlier single, ’Paris’, the new version of the album is likely to bring the band much wider acclaim now the Mercury Award limelight has been shone on the group.

Stephen Titmus Tag Of The Day Aeroplane, Friendly Fires, Paul Epworth

As the Festival season continues on, next weekend sees the return of The Big Chill Festival. Treading the line between boutique and behemoth the festival attracts huge acts, as well as a weird and wonderful crowd that make the weekend so special. With a capacity of 35,000 the festival has retained some of the intimacy that has made it so appealing since its inception in the mid nineties. Located in Hertfordshire’s Malvern Hills, The Big Chill offers a festival experience in a truly picturesque location. The site surrounds a deer park and those wishing to “take a moment” can relax next to the site’s lake.

The Big Chill always seems to pull some great headline acts out of the bag – and this year is no exception.  Former Talking Heads maverick David Byrne headlines Friday, while Saturday will have you reaching for those torch glasses when the newly reformed Orbital play. The weekend is capped off with a performnace from  Basement Jaxx, who may quite possibly be one of the best bands to see at a festival. The Jaxx will be debuting songs from their forthcoming album ‘Scars’ as well as dipping into their plentiful back catalogue.  

But as we know it’s not all about the headliners. Other highlights will come from Brighton indie eccentrics British Sea Power, Friendly Fires (fresh from their awesome Glastonbury set) and Spiritualized, who continue to be one of the most stunning bands to see live. Big Chill will also play host to some of the best DJ’s around, including the legendary Norman Jay MBE, Shazam favourite Greg Wilson and fresh from recording his new Fabric mix, Toddla T.

The Big Chill team always aims to set themselves apart with a lineup that encompasses the music, art, comedy, dance and film. Where else could you flip between the cosmic-disco of Lindstrøm, the weird and wonderful stand up of Noel Fielding and an art car boot sale?  For line up and ticket info, head to their website

Jon Davies Gigs/ Events, News Basement Jaxx, Big Chill, David Byrne, Festivals, Friendly Fires, Greg Wilson, Orbital

As always around this time of the year, talk turns to who will be the likeliest contender for the 2009 Mercury Music Prize. After Elbow’s win last year capped off an amazing rise in the bands profile, talk of the fabled “Mercury Curse” has somewhat died down – Dizzee Rascal, Arctic Monkeys and Franz Ferdinand have all continued to release rapturously received albums after winning the prize in recent years.

This year sees the inclusion of several female artists who have all been subject to varying levels of hype in the past twelve months, from NME darlings La Roux and Florence and the Machine to blogosphere favourite Bat For Lashes. The list also sees the, somewhat surprising, inclusion of popular acts such as Glasvegas and Kasabian. The award is often criticised for ignoring populist tastes; a critique that simply cannot be aimed at this years shortlist.

As always there are cases for each candidate. Friendly Fires have shaken free their early Nu-Rave copyists tag and released a great collection of songs. The Horrors have made one of the most surprising albums of the year; surely the Shoegaze revival sounds of ‘Primary Colours’ deserves the accolade? Then again, the outsider can sometimes steal it. Will Sweet Billy Pilgrim surprise us all? The list is already causing debate around the Shazam music team. Who is your money on?

Bat For Lashes – ‘Two Suns’
Florence And The Machine – ‘Lungs’
Friendly Fires – ‘Friendly Fires’
Glasvegas – ‘Glasvegas’
The Horrors – ‘Primary Colours’
La Roux – ‘La Roux’
Led Bib – ‘Sensible Shoes’
The Invisible – ‘The Invisible’
Lisa Hannigan – ‘Sea Sew’
Kasabian – ‘West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum’
Speech Debelle – ‘Speech Therapy’
Sweet Billy Pilgrim – ‘Twice Born Men’

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Jon Davies News Bat For Lashes, Florence And The Machine, Friendly Fires, Glasvegas, Kasabian, La Roux, Led Bib, Lisa Hannigan, Mercury Music Prize, Speech Debelle, Sweet Billy Pilgrim, The Horrors, The Invisible