The Birthday Massacre - Pins and Needles

I discovered The Birthday Massacre by complete accident.  They were touring in 2009 and I was invited to go along.  As it happens I didn't end up going.  I then forgot about them until Last.fm recommended them to me some 6 months later.  Although not a genre of music I have previously been overly enthusiastic about, The Birthday Massacre's synth-rock style has completely grown on me.

I have to admit that I have a soft spot for pretty album art.  The Birthday Massacre have brilliant album art that maintains a bunny rabbit and purple theme throughout their releases.  The artwork for Pins and Needles is a little darker than the others but is truly stunning nonetheless.  The music isn't bad either!

The album opens with In The Dark.  This is one of my favourite tracks from the album filled with  the trade mark heavy guitar riffs and the stunning vocals of lead singer Chibi.  The album is filled with these riffs, electronic elements and that voice that makes me literally stop and just listen.  Shallow Grave is a great example of this.  Electronica mixed with really neat guitar riffs and intermingled with Chibi singing in the cute and angsty style she has adopted so wonderfully.

New TBM T-Shirts!

Pins and Needles is of course the title track from the album and is without a doubt the standout.  Like those that have come before I find there is always one track which I really love from each of their albums.  Pins and Needles is that track.  Really heavy riffs, criss-crossing with softer, almost pop like interludes.  Just awesome.  Other tracks that deserve a mention are Sleepwalking, Always and Control.

Although there is nothing particularly new or different about Pins and Needles in comparison to their previous albums I have to wonder whether I'd want anything new or different.  They have a winning formula and I don't think that they feel the need (and neither they should) to deviate too far from what they have been successfully doing to date.

What has made this album even more special was seeing it performed live in Corporation on the 17th October.  I would say that it was the best gig we have been to this year (and having seen Lacuna Coil a few weeks before, that is really saying something!)  They played a lot of new tracks from Pins and Needles as well as some older favourites.  I haven't danced so much at a gig before. There is something about The Birthday Massacre that draws me in and I just can't help myself.  I love having more of their tracks on my iPod and can't wait for another opportunity to see them live.

So this is the way that music business works these days ... - Crystalic

With traditional media gatekeepers now in decline how has the music industry changed? How do artists generate interest in themselves, reach the general public and become famous?

When John Lennon and Paul McCartney met in 1957 and started making music the answer was simple: get noticed, get a manager, get a record deal, and become rich and famous. After a shaky start, The Beatles rose quickly to fame with proper support from their label.

When Alex Turner and his school friends started messing around with musical instruments in 2001, success was so rapid that they barely had time to consider how they were going to get there before they arrived. The Arctic Monkeys are widely regarded as the first Internet music sensation.

Before the Internet musicians were heavily dependent on the backing of record companies to record, promote and tour their music. Platforms from which to broadcast were also limited, and they were reliant on media giants such as the BBC to positively support their music. Large corporations ruled the music world; dictating rules, handpicking artists, writing contracts and fixing prices. Without this backing, artists were unable to reach their potential audience and wallowed in obscurity.

The music industry is renowned for its desire to make vast quantities of money and control the choices available to consumers. Numair Faraz, advisor to the late Geoffrey Frost, former Chief Marketing Officer for Motorola said that "Record companies like to make money, and that is their only goal. They do not care about the content that they sell - they care about maximizing their profits. ... It is more profitable for the record company to sell a few decent records in bulk than to have a vast array of cult hits that sell decently. ".

In the case of The Beatles this was very true. The band toured relentlessly and were even rejected by Decca Records before they were finally picked up by EMI Parlophone. They were then shaped and moulded to meet the requirements of the record label. They were advised on how to behave, how to dress, and even their line up was changed. When their music was released for the US market, it was repackaged to suit the label with no concern given to the artist’s original intentions. The Beatles were swallowed up into the corporate music industry make-money mentality and throughout their long career The Beatles ‘brand’ has often been seen to put profitability before artistic merit.

The Internet was always intended to act as a medium for sharing files and information, but when Napster launched in 1999 the world realised they could access music in a new way. The Internet has gone on to provide artists the means to bypass the traditional gatekeepers and get their music into the public domain quickly, easily and cheaply. It takes a lot less time and money to let fans hear a new track by providing it on a website than it does to play a live gig.

The rise of the Arctic Monkeys demonstrates the rapid shift in music distribution. When they recorded and gave away copies of a demo CD during their gigs, they couldn’t have known that their music would be shared online via BitTorrent and MySpace. More importantly, they couldn’t have known that the positive reaction to their music, shared online without financial reward, would result in an overwhelming popularity that ensured their rapid commercial success. In an early interview Arctic Monkeys said they hadn’t known about the Internet’s involvement in their popularity. They never opposed it, stating that it “made the gigs better, because people knew the words and came and sang along.”

Illegal filesharing has been a topic of debate since Napster was closed due to numerous claims of copyright infringement. David Lammy, minister for intellectual property, said: "Illegal downloading robs our economy of millions of pounds every year and seriously damages business and innovation throughout the UK. It is something that needs tackling, and we are serious about doing so."

Some believe that, rather than hindering sales of music, filesharing is an opportunity to try before you buy, and that it does not necessarily mean the loss of a sale. Web services such as Spotify have sprung up to support this common use of music distribution, offering users the ability to listen to whole albums for free and without restriction before going out and purchasing the CD or downloading the MP3s. Alternatively, users can pay a subscription to stream as much music as they desire. This “music rental”model is picking up steam, with over half a million users already paying for the service.

Since 2005 there has been an ever increasing influx of ‘Internet sensations’. Justin Bieber was discovered on You Tube, and Lily Allen was picked up on the strength of samples she posted to MySpace. Any artist worth their salt has a MySpace page, a Facebook profile or twitter feed to communicate directly with their fans.
Some artists, after failing to spark interest from record labels, are releasing their material as free downloads online. Finnish metal band Crystalic recently released an entire album as a free download after a year of fruitless negotiation with record labels. Websites such as CDBaby are enabling artists to distribute their music without the need of record labels using digital distribution partners such as iTunes and Amazon, or more traditionally in the form of CDs and vinyl.

Music journalism has also seen a meteoric rise in the number of independent blogs. Consumers can now write about the music they like and champion artists and their music without any bias towards a specific record label and without the restrictions placed upon the more traditional journalistic outlets.

As the Internet continues to showcase new music freely to the general public, the traditional gatekeepers appear to be in decline. Music journalist no longer have the monopoly on opinion about music and traditional print media publications such as NME are seeing a rapid decline in their readership. The major music labels, or the “big six”, (Warner, EMI, Sony Music, BMG Music, Universal Music and Polygram) have reduced to the “big four” (Sony Music, EMI, Warner Music and Universal Music) over the last 20 years. The number of smaller, niche record labels catering for specific markets such as Nuclear Blast and Season of Mist are increasing. Record labels still have a vital part to play in the financial backing of an artist, but those artists no longer have to wait until they fit into a perceived gap in the mass market or until they take a major record company’s fancy. Instead they can put their music out there on their own terms, and give the public the freedom to listen, share, and ultimately buy.

A Comedy Of Errors

It's been a rubbish week for live music. Everything that can go wrong has gone wrong, one way or another. Here's a quick rundown of why I haven't seen any live music in the last five days.

Thursday - Opinicus @ West Street Live


Fellow Sheffielders Opinicus put on a live gig at West Street Live. This is a good thing. It was a free gig. This was a very good thing. I went alone, and took my camera in case I got an opportunity to try out some shots with my fancy fast lens. All set for a reasonable night. Unfortunately the first support came on.

Necrogrinder. The name should tell it all, really. They were "extreme metal", which I've come to realise means "not very good metal". While the lead singer alternately screeched and belched into the microphone, the three guitarists hammered their instruments while apparently ignoring the fretboard entirely. I've no idea what the drummer was doing. But with their mercifully short (circa 20 second) songs at least they got rid of it quickly.

Sadly they decided to take their "extreme"ness to an, erm, extreme and went for deliberately and boringly tasteless song titles. Not that the titles had anything to do with the songs, all of which sounded the same and had no discernible lyrics.

Anyway, that went on a while and I decided that I couldn't sit through any more of that hoping that the good stuff would arrive. I was on my own so couldn't even chat to people while waiting. Very dull indeed.

Sunday - Volbeat @ Corporation


I was looking forward to this one. Having recently discovering them, and previously reviewing the album, I was in the mood for some relatively up tempo rock and roll metal. Sadly vocalist Michael Poulson is unwell and the band have been forced to cancel the entire first week of the UK tour. And to top it off, there were literally no other gigs in Sheffield that night except a folk supergroup at Plug. Rubbish. We went to see Skyline at the cinema instead. It was rubbish.

Monday - Vampire Weekend @ O2 Academy


Nothing technically wrong with this gig. In fact, I should be there as I write this post. But I'm not. Because for the last two days the city has been at a standstill due to snowfall, and we know for a fact that if we venture into town and the snow comes down, we ain't getting home again without a very long walk. So we're missing it, despite nary a flake to be seen.

Next March - Within Temptation @ Shepherd's Bush Empire Brixton Academy


We got the tickets early for this one. A two day trip to the capital for a night of music, fun and drink and a leisurely drive home the next day. Great idea. Thankfully we didn't book the nearby hotel because a couple of days after buying the tickets, the venue changed. Dodged that bullet.

Then we discover that not only has the venue changed, but so has the date. Onto the one day in November we simply cannot go. And to top if off, further dates in Manchester and Birmingham have been added. If they had been an option in the first place, would the original venue have sold out? Probably not.

The reason for the shift is genuine enough. Sharon den Adel is pregnant and can't be touring next March. Can't really argue with that. But the planning and communication of this entire tour has been a nightmare. Changing venues, moving dates, adding more venues after months of ticket sales ... it's just not helping the fans support the band.

And so there it is. In a mere five days I've managed to see no live music (I don't count Necrogrinder as music) and found that the big gig of 2011 is in question. Hopefully we can get tickets for the Manchester show.

Meh.

Disturbed - Asylum

Disturbed are not a band I've ever bothered with before. They're commercial, they're derivative and they are that most rash-inducing of genres, nu metal. Just the word "nu" is enough to make me laugh uncontrollably and shake my head in dismay. Ever since the heady days of Limp Bizkit, when nu metallers wore their sk8r boi chic and everything felt far too twee and ridiculous, I've had a lingering distaste for it all.

That all being said, I heard good things about the new album, Asylum. Dispensing with the nu metal sound, this was to be a heavy metal record. Loud, brash and bleak. I love me a bit of bleak. So bolstered by my possibly misguided confidence, I picked up a copy. And why not?

But I was surprised. It's actually pretty bloody good. No, it's not melodic. No, it's not subtle. No, it's not proggy or complex or any of the other things I look for in my metal. But what it is is simple, to the point, and catchy as hell. I defy even the most ardent of commercial nay-sayers to resist nodding a head to it.

I know many have said that it's just Disturbed doing their thing; competent but nothing groundbreaking. I know that many have panned the simplistic song structures, and still others have berated the "ooh look how angry I am!" vibe. This last point I can understand. Like many commercial metal bands, the front is too exaggerated to be realistic. Where I can easily believe that Mikael Akerfeldt or Tuomas Tuominen live and breathe metal, it's easy to think that Disturbed is just an act. A bravado, if you will. But let's not let that get in the way of the music just for the moment.

The songs on the album are all very bleak. Every one of them drawing inspiration from real events from lead singer David Draiman's life, although sometimes somewhat obtusely. From the Holocaust at one end, the pain of miscarriage in the middle, and the breakdown of a relationship at the other end, such is the breadth of bleak evident throughout.

In many ways the album seems emotionally confused. There are songs like The Infection, dealing with the quiet coping and the need to get out of a downward spiral. And then there are songs like Warrior or The Animal; losing control, giving in to it, and embracing the anger. It is reminiscent of a depressive's worldview. On the one hand introverted and hurting, and on the other hand driven, furious, absurdly confident.

There is a place for quiet, contemplative metal. There is a place for progressive, intricate and melodic metal. But sometimes the best therapy is to throw on something loud and heavy and thrash the shit out of it. That's where Aslyum comes in. And it fits the bill nicely.

Mostly Autumn's triumphant return

It's never easy for a band to replace their lead singer, and when that singer is as long-standing, popular and talented as Heather Findlay, it's just that bit harder. When Heather left earlier this year it cast a shadow of doubt over the future of the band. Fortunately backing-singer of 5 years Olivia Sparnenn stepped up to the plate and took over duties at live shows throughout 2010, all the while recording the band's new album.

I have been fortunate in recent years to have heard album tracks live before listening to the studio albums. In 2008 I attended the Glass Shadows launch tour, purchasing the album from the merch stand on the way in. And last weekend, we attended the first gig of the Go Well, Diamond Heart tour in Wath-upon-Dearne.

As is usual for Mostly Autumn gigs, there was no support. Instead, the band played a 2.5 hour set with half an hour break in the middle. Covering some classics from earlier in the band's career, and even throwing in one of Olivia's own songs, the set list was, of course, predominantly concerned with the new material.

Dressed in her trademark thigh-length boots and tiny dress (no hotpants this time), this was Olivia's first time playing the new material live, and she seemed a bit nervous. A few early sound issues caused problems, but by the end of the first half she had found her feet. After the short interval she returned to the stage confident and comfortable. This is a transition period for the band, but based on their "first night" performance, things are well in Mostly Autumn.

One of the wonderful things I have always found about Mostly Autumn songs is that, even after only hearing them once, they are familiar. Like I've always known them, but didn't realise it until now. Even after only listening to the songs during the gig and briefly glancing the liner notes, putting the album on was like revisiting an old friend I never knew I had.

I was very pleasantly surprised to find that, despite being a very different singer, Olivia is more than capable doing classic songs justice. Passengers and Evergreen, in particular, were familiar yet subtly different. And very enjoyable to hear.

The album title itself is clearly a nod toward Heather Findlay. A final farewell, if you will. Nostalgia abound, the first track is named for the band's first album, For All We Shared. Starting out with one of Mostly Autumn's signature instrumental intros, slowly building into a beautiful opening track. Both Olivia and Bryan sing on this one, and Olivia is certainly making the role her own.

There are several themes to the album, ranging from the deeply pessimistic [Something Better] to the melancholic [For All We Shared and Violet Skies] and the very optimistic [Go Well, Diamond Heart and And When The War Is Over...] War is central to many of the songs, specifically dealing with the futility and waste. Recycled a little, maybe, but very much consistent for Bryan's songs. Even cowboys and Caesar get a mention in Something Better. I don't think he's denying Hitler a sausage this time, though¹.

Go Well does seem to dispense further with  the folk sounds of previous albums. In fact, the band's entire direction seems to have changed from Prog Folk to pure Prog Rock. The lineup on stage consisted of guitars, bass, drums and keyboards. And of course a tambourine. But no flute, for example, to complete the folk line up. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, seeing as I am a fan of rock music, but I'm sure others are irked by it. Apparently Glass Shadows received some mediocre reviews, but I loved it.

So I suppose the big questions need answering. Can Olivia take Heather's place? Most definitely. In fact, I would question whether anybody else could even try. In both vocal talent and style she is a perfect fit. And can Mostly Autumn continue to thrive? Of course. This is a new era for the band, but also a continuation of trends evident in the last few albums. And they still put on a great show.

1. Knowing  Josh & Co reference. Listen to Through These Eyes to find out what I'm on about.