COMMUNITUESDAY: How To Write Like The Beatles #3: GEORGE HARRISON

George Harrison can often be the forgotten Beatle. Going about his career quietly, doing what he wanted to do whilst garnering mass critical acclaim, it's easy to overlook him against the hegemony of Lennon-McCartney and the doleful kookiness of Ringo Starr. But Harrison was just as, if not more stylised than his bandmates, and widely influential in rock music throughout his life. The third part of my four part series covers him, and why he should be held in equally high regard to his talented friends.

Monday's Music Muse - What Albums Are Significant For YOU?

Hello everybody, how are we today? I am writing this article with a wonderment which I would love for you to answer: What albums are significant to YOU?

Beneath the line break are four albums from my CD collection that bare a lot of context and meaning to me, all providing a different backstory which represents a certain stage of my life. This week documents which album revealed that there’s more to music than the shit that gets played on the radio and gets spewed out the anus of The X Factor every year.

Jack Cooper - Art Is Cheap

Released: 24^th November 2011

Label: Self-Released
Genre: Low-Fi

TL;DR: Every song has a story, I like that. 7/10

Mazes is certainly a band that knows how to keep their fans’ collective appetite wet. The start of the year saw the release of debut album A Thousand Heys, an album that was pretty good with a good mixture of low-fi roughness with accessible riffs. This was soon followed by the release of IBB Tape, a 12” collection of demos, live jams, covers and musings which documented certain events of Mazes’ early life.

But release number three sees frontman Jack Cooper take to the stage with LP Art Is Cheap, a collection of songs written by Cooper after being sourced it’s message from willing-to-pay fans. All it took was £10 and a choice of lyric, title or an idea for Jack to record an impressively individual sounding track. All fans of Mazes should be digging this immediately considering the close similarities in sound this LP has, complete with low-fi tones of course. It’s a very interesting record, full of great riffs and showcases Jack Cooper’s talent as a songwriter, which must be quite a lot considering this project started in the summer.

DEAD JERICHOS - PLEASE YOURSELF

Released: 14^th November 2011

Label: I Don’t Know L

Genre: Psychedelic/New Wave

TL;DR: Nice. 6/10

Please Yourself is the lead track released to gain some extra buzz for Oxford’s most hyped about band, Dead Jerichos. A three piece that formed after frontman Craig Evans was invited to play a gig in his home village of Drayton, and drafted long time mates Sahm Amirsedghi (bass) and Leo Rayner (drums) to help wow the bikers who attended said gig.

The track blends a nice mix of indie with a slightly ‘out there’ atmospheric sound, most likely stemming from the amount of reverb piled onto Evans’ guitar. It has a very accessible feel to it, with an easy-to-get structure and a catchy rhythm section, much like the band Air Traffic had created their biggest hit Charlotte.

Dead Jerichos is a highly anticipated project that has played many shows, and even played AFTER Ellie Goulding at the Underage Festival one year. The track is solid and displays most of the reasons why press and people everywhere are going insane for more material from these guys. Their EP Please Yourself is released on the 14^th of December via Bandcamp, and was produced by currently hot producer Rory Brattwell. 

Please Yourself by Dead Jerichos

ODONIS ODONIS - HOLLANDAZE

Released: 7^th November 2011

Label: FatCat Records

Genre: Surf-pop/punk/garage

TL;DR: Pretty good. 7/10

Hollandaze is the new album by formerly solo-turned-band Odonis Odonis. This is an album comprised of ideas recorded by leader Dean Tzenos during the months of January 2009 and September 2010 in a tiny home studio, before turning to the city of Chicago and rerecording with Colin Stewart of Black Mountain fame.

The crash of drums and the harsh garage tones which swell each of the 11 tracks featured certainly force the listener’s attention towards them. The Jesus And Mary Chain and My Bloody Valentine-styled acoustics make Hollandaze a very exciting and full sounding record. Full of great riffs, Bauhaus-like personalities and a need to be played over and over, it’s a very enjoyable listen.

Mirrors - Deconstructed