It’s all going on for Fear of Men at the moment. They’ve got a new single out, and they’ve just come back from a national tour supporting Best Coast. We catch up with Jess Weiss and Dan Falvey to hear first hand how things are going for the band.
For a Brighton band* Fear of Men don’t play that much in Brighton. So far this year, they’ve played as part of the Sea Monsters mini-festival, and also played a set during The Great Escape, so their support set for Best Coast is the first opportunity of 2012 to see them on a decent sized stage. The band have been supporting Best Coast for most of their UK tour, which is a bit of a coup for a band with only a clutch of singles to their name so far, and the homecoming gig is also the final date of the tour.
Fear of Men
It was an early gig anyway, because of a club night later on at Coalition, and Fear of Men’s set started at a ridiculously early 7.15pm, but by then the venue was already getting busy. For about half an hour, they filled a few seafront arches with their melodic guitar pop – catchy, tuneful melodies with fuzzy guitar around the edges, owing as much of a debt to Sarah Records releases of the late eighties as it does to the wave of female fronted indie bands of the nineties – songs that might not fill stadiums, but that you’ll form much more of an emotional attachment to. It’s a similar trick to that played by Pains of Being Pure at Heart – the familiarity of alternative music from the past but pulled off with a modern style that they make their own. In no time at all, the band are closing their set with new single Green Sea. I reckon it’s about time they came back and played a headline set.
Jess Weiss of Fear of Men
Later on, Spectrals from Leeds plays for a bit (sad songs, because they were one man down, apparently), and then Best Coast headlined. They started nervously with the lead track from their new album The Only Place, but quickly hit their stride rattling through their back catalogue, finishing up with Spectrals joining them onstage for their last track – a tradition which apparently started last time both bands played in Brighton. A great night!
Best Coast
*well, partly Brighton – some of them are Londoners, but they’re that good that we’ll keep them for ourselves.
Living in Brighton is fantastic, because there’s always something happening. Sometimes though, it can feel that there’s not enough hours in the day to do everything you want to, and thursday is one of those nights. There’s three gigs on, at the Pavillion Theatre, at the Green Door Store and at Coalition that I’d like to be at. The one I’ll be going to will be the one I bought a ticket to before finding out about the others!
First of the three is the Source New Music Night at Pavilion Theatre. Sparrow are headlining, and they’re supported by Rain Eater, Arthur and the Irrational and Tyrannosaurus Dead. I normally do my best to get along to the Source Nights, because they’re great for new bands and an absolute bargain at only four pounds. Next month’s – headlined by Sweet Sweet Lies – is already in the calendar.
Then we’ve got The New Union at Green Door Store, who really impressed us supporting Clock Opera a few weeks ago. And that’s even more of a bargain, because it’s free! We’re big fans of the Peter Saville style posters – there are four different varieties each relating to a different band member.
The gig I’ll be at though, will be Best Coast and Fear of Men at Coalition. Here’s the video for their new single Green Sea. Expect a few words and maybe some pictures on the gig later this week.
Hopefully you’ll make it along to one of these, or one of the many other gigs going on all round town. You’re spoiled for choice!
If you hadn’t noticed, it’s just been The Great Escape Festival around town. What a weekend! Officially I was taking photos for the festival themselves, which I’ve done for the last few years. Unofficially, I made it my mission to get around as many Brighton bands as I could. Over the course of the weekend, I saw Abi Wade at Unitarian Church, Dear Prudence at Above Audio, Us Baby Bear Bones at Green Door Store, Abi Wade (again) at Latest, Catherine Ireton at Latest, Fear of Men at Queens Hotel, Nordic Giants at Komedia, Speak Galactic at Latest, Thomas White at Shipwrights yard, Us Baby Bear Bones (again) at Latest, Woodpecker Wooliams at the Fishbowl and Kinnie The Explorer at The Haunt. Phew!
(click through to the pics to view them larger)
It seems like forever since Fear of Men put out the debut 7″ Ritual Confession last year. It’s probably been barely six months, and in that time one of their early cassette released tracks, Doldrums, appeared on the Sea Monsters 2 compilation, but now the band are just about ready to put out their next single.
Green Sea is coming out on limited 300 only 7″ on June 18th on Sexbeat records, backed with another new track called Born, which they claim is “hook laden”. If you want to hear what Green Sea sounds like before then, you can because they’ve put it up on Soundcloud:
If you want to hear what they sound like playing it live, then they’re playing at the Great Escape Festival, Friday 11th May at 9.30pm at Queens Hotel, and they’re back again supporting Best Coast at Coalition on 21st June. Of course, there’s no guarantee that they’ll actually play the new single, but I can’t see any reason why they wouldn’t.
A quick round up of Day 2 of Sea Monsters 2 then. Where yesterday was folk with a twist, today was very much an indie day.
Proceedings were kicked off by Tyrannosaurus Dead. The blurb in the program said Dinosaur Jr and Sonic Youth, but my ears heard The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, who in the past few years have done a tremendous job of distilling so many of the great guitar indie bands of the past twenty five years. This is by no means a criticism, and I thoroughly enjoyed their set, even if I was a little distracted by the singers visual similarity to a young Buddy Holly. Or maybe he’s just wearing hipster glasses and I’m now old.
Tyrannosaurus Dead
The second band of the night were Soft Arrows – sonically, they’re a rockier version of shoegaze, but the setup of the band was akin to the White Stripes – just drums and guitar. Either they were trying to be arty, or they hate photographers, because the only light on stage came from a single light bulb at the guitarists feet. They’re going to have to try harder than that for me to not get the shot I want!
Soft Arrows
Then we had kraut rockers Cinemascopes, who were fantastic. There’s not nearly enough krautrock around in my opinion, so it’s good to see another Brighton krautrock band, who aren’t treading the same steps as Fujiya & Miyagi. What elevated them about most groups who pick up guitars and make motorik music was the guy to the left of the stage, who spent most of the set kneeling down doing interesting things with loops and samples who defied the male dress code of the evening (skinny jeans, smart shoes, and either a check shirt or a t-shirt bought from M&S) with his hoody and baggy jeans.
Cinemascopes
Last band of the night were Fear of Men who while they weren’t doing anything especially different to any of the other bands of the night, did so effortlessly and sounding amazing. There was something about the way it all came together – how good the guitar sounded, how much of a better front person Jess was than those leading the other bands, how much more accomplished the songs were, which proved why Fear of Men were the worth headliners of the night.
Fear of Men
So, I had this grand plan to do a write up about what I was looking forward to at Sea Monsters 2 in the week leading up to the gigs. But then I went to a gig last Sunday night, which I wrote up on Monday night. And then I went to a gig on Tuesday (which wasn’t one for the blog). And then Wednesday I went and interviewed the Repeat Prescriptions. Last night I thought it was about time I spent some quality time with my girlfriend, so now here we are on Friday, with the gigs starting on Monday with nothing written.
Thankfully, One Inch Badge, who are putting on the gigs, have done pretty much what I intended to do, and have written up some highlights of some of the twenty three (!!!) bands playing next week.
Personally, I’m looking forward to Us Bear Baby Bones, who I saw supporting Laetitia Sadier last week at the Green Door Store, Black Black Hills, who headlined the Source New Music night a few months ago at the Pavilion Theatre, and Restlesslist, who I haven’t caught live yet but are playing tonight at the Green Door Store.
I don’t quite know how I’m going to have time to fit in time for an update on every gig next week, but keep an eye on the blog, and maybe I’ll find the time to get a little something up.
Here’s a link to the Sea Monsters section of the One Inch Badge website, and here are the links to the band previews they’ve posted so far:
Sons of Noel & Adrian
Fear of Men
I’m Being Good
Munich
Restlesslist
Tall Ships
Robert Stillman
Cinemascopes
Negative Pegasus
Black Black Hills
Us Bear Baby Bones
Heliopause
Monday 23rd January 2012
Sons of Noel & Adrian
Robert Stillman
Heliopause
Tuesday 24th January 2012
Fear of Men
Cinemascopes
Soft Arrows
Tyrannosaurus Dead
Wednesday 25th January 2012
I’m Being Good
Negative Pegasus
Plague Sermon
Sea Bastard
Thursday 26th January 2012
Restlesslist
Nullifier
Speak Galactic
DA-10
Friday 27th January 2012
Munich
Black Black Hills
Jumping Ships
Twin Brother
Saturday 28th January 2012
Tall Ships
Us Baby Bear Bones
Squadron Leaders
Physics House Band
In case you’ve missed it this week, Sea Monsters – a mini festival / series of gigs, put on by local Promoters One Inch Badge – is back next January, expanding by a night on this January’s five night run at the Prince Albert. This year there’s six consecutive nights of gigs, all from local bands (which means that if we’re not writing about it, we’re missing a trick). Tickets are a measly £4 for each gig, which is a bargain already, or if you want to go to all six, it’s a ridiculously cheap £20. There’s more info on the Facebook event, and the Source have got a big feature in this months issue too. Here’s the full line up:
Monday 23rd January 2012
SONS OF NOEL & ADRIAN
ROBERT STILLMAN
HELIOPAUSE
Tuesday 24th January 2012
FEAR OF MEN
CINEMASCOPES
SOFT ARROWS
TYRANNOSAURUS DEAD
Wednesday 25th January 2012
I’M BEING GOOD
NEGATIVE PEGASUS
PLAGUE SERMON
SEA BASTARD
Thursday 26th January 2012
RESTLESSLIST
NULLIFIER
SPEAK GALACTIC
DA-10
Friday 27th January 2012
MUNICH
BLACK BLACK HILLS
JUMPING SHIPS
TWIN BROTHER
Saturday 28th January 2012
TALL SHIPS
US BABY BEAR BONES
SQUADRON LEADERS
PHYSICS HOUSE BAND
Brighton Music Blog 