INTERVIEW: Jagwar Ma

Originally published at Planet Notion: http://www.planetnotion.com/2013/06/13/interview-jagwar-ma/

Jagwar Ma, comprised of Gabriel Winterfield and Jono Ma, and hailing all the way from Sydney, Australia, are already turning out to be one of this year’s most interesting new bands. Their debut single ‘The Throw’ snowballed them into just about every platform of the UK’s music press with a blend of dream pop and acid house that instantly turned heads. With their debut album, Howlin, already turning heads, and having supported the likes of The xx and Foals on tour, the antipodean duo look set to only further their cause across the rest of 2013.

PlanetNotion caught up with one-half of the outfit, Jono Ma, to talk their crammed summer of international festival appearances, the isolation of Australia and avoiding dance music when you’re ill – Jono reckons classical is the only way to soothe a bad head…

PlanetNotion: How did Jagwar Ma form? How long have you known each other?

Jono Ma: Gab and I have known each other for years. We both played in our own bands in Sydney prior to us starting to collaborate. I started this side project called FLRL and asked Gab to join in for one gig, and that was the first time we made music together.

A few years later, we were playing each other respective songs we’d been working on, and Gab ended up singing on a track of mine. That was the very first Jagwar Ma song, and we then formed the band after we realised our skills were quite complimentary to each other.

PN :How does it feel to be acknowledged and celebrated across the UK’s music press?

JM: It really does feel amazing. We’d never imagined this sort of reception from the UK. It’s hard enough getting some recognition in our hometown Sydney, let alone the UK – one of the cultural epicentres of modern music.

PN: Did you imagine ‘The Throw’ was going to go down so well when you were writing it? Did you feel like it was a special track from the offset?

JM: We had no idea it was going to be so well received. We generally don’t think about that stuff when we write. It’s quite toxic for the decision making process I believe. It definitely felt like something good was happening as the song was evolving.

PN: You have been repeatedly compared to the ‘Madchester’ acid beats sound, is this purely accidental or was this something you wanted for your music?
JM: It definitely wasn’t intentional. We were initially inspired by loads of 50s and 60s R&B, soul, garage, particularly the old records from Chicago and Detroit. But, I really wanted to keep the production and programming side of things quite modern sounding. Somehow it ended up having a bit of a Manchester house vibe, which is fine by us, but wasn’t something we had set out to do.

PN: Australia is readily exporting a whole host of musical talent recently. Have you found the Australian music scene to be much different from the UK’s? If so, what are the main differences?
JM: Yes, very. It’s much smaller to begin with. It’s also much more fractured in that each city is so geographically far apart. It makes touring and cross-pollination difficult. I guess as a result there’s a sense of isolation in Australia as a musician, not only from other musicians in Australia but from the rest of the world. Being in the UK, there seems to be much more of a sense of inclusion and cross-pollination and a feeling of being connected with the rest of the world.

PN: What music are you listening to at the moment, new and old?
JM: At the moment, in all honesty, I’ve pretty much just been listening to classical. So, only old. It’s strange but I’ve never really committed myself to classical music and I’ve been quite sick lately and wanted to avoid electronic music and contemporary music for the moment because it made my mind so active. I’ve found some great classic compositions that just let my mind drift off somewhere else.

PN: Which new bands/artists are you rating?
JM: We love our fellow Aussies, Tame Impala: they’re pretty hard to look past aren’t they. We love Foals, of course. I need to get out and see some more new bands though. We’ve just been so busy touring and promoting.

PN: What kind of responses have you had from your album so far?
JM: It varies. Things like: it’s too long; it’s too short; very Manchester; sounds like the 90s; sounds like the 80s; sounds like the 60s; it’s great; it’s late.  It’s mostly been very positive stuff so far, though. We’re not particularly nervous about its release, more excited for it to finally be out there.

PN: Which festivals will you be appearing at this summer?
JM: All our live dates are up on our Facebook – I can’t believe I just said that. Off the top of my head:Glastonbury, Reading, Latitude, Pukkelpop, Ibiza Rocks, Calvi on the Rocks, Hulstred, Bestival,Summer Sonic… and some more that I can’t remember.

PN: Wow, sounds like it’s going to be a very packed summer for Jagwar Ma. What can we expect from your live shows?
JM: Lots of echo.

PN: What’s next for Jagwar Ma?
JM: The next natural phase for us is destined to be as guests on some sort of music quiz show in Australia.

- Catherine Elliott

ALBUM REVIEW: Hurts - Exile

Originally published at Gigwise: http://www.gigwise.com/news/80240/hurts---exile-sony

Hurts' debut album Happiness saw the Manchester duo experience reasonable success in the UK - but build a huge fanbase in Europe, where their slick image and ice-cold synth sounds hit home with continental music fans. With a cameo from Kylie Minogue and production expertise from the likes of The Nexus they fully deserved the success they achieved with Happiness. But does Exile live up to expectations?

Opener ‘Exile’ could be mistaken for a Muse track, while Lead single ‘Miracle’ is an instant anthem, with its lofty chorus and raw lyrics you can’t help but to click repeat.

‘Sandman’ is a tricky one, while the concept of the song (in which the sandman, y’know the man who comes in the night and sprinkles sand in your eyes) is threatened by Hutchcraft, “He will be sorry when he comes to my house, I’ll show no mercy till the lights go out”. It’s obviously a metaphor, or is it? Absurdity aside, the track unfolds into one of the best on the album.

Other highlights include ‘Only You’, ‘Cupid’ and the amazing ‘The Crow’. ‘Blind’ is another awkward one, where Hutchcraft begs an ex-girlfriend to cut out his eyes and leave him blind as he can’t stand to see her happy, be it alone or with someone else. Ex from hell? Yet again though, a mad notion that is somehow flipped on its head, and actually turns out to be startlingly good.

Exile remains powerful, polished and refined, but doesn’t quite reach the heights of their debut. Think back to ‘Wonderful Life’, ‘Stay’ and ‘Blood Tears and Gold’. Not one of Exile’s tracks is nearly to that standard. It’s certainly not dreadful, but it isn’t a progression, and if anything it’s a slight and disappointing dip in Hurts’ proceedings.

LIVE REVIEW: Everything Eveything @ Thekla, Bristol 09/02/13

Originally published at Middle Boop Mag: http://www.middleboopmag.com/music/live/live-everything-everything-thekla-bristol-90213

Everything Everything have finally cemented themselves within the currently thriving indie/electro popular music scene with their extraordinary follow up to their 2010 debut Man Alive. With Arc in tow, the world is at this bands feet.

 It must have been surreal for the quartet, going from major support slots at arenas with the likes of Muse and Snow Patrol, back down to academies and smaller music venues including Thekla Bristol, which is a music venue parked on the river in the artsey and cultural city of Bristol.

This is however, a wise choice and one they have publically spoken about being more comfortable with. The dingey and intimate setting did wonders for them, keeping their image, sound and the music’s soul intact. For a sold out show, as part of a sold out tour, the venue didn’t seem anywhere near capacity. For huge fans of the band, this would no doubt have been a real treat.

Starting with their current single ‘Kemosabe’ and being greeted with what could only be described as a wave of hype and elation from the audience. They sounded as they do on record, even down to the placements and delivery of the vocals, it was wonderful to behold these four young northern lads doing so bloody well for themselves. The audience recited every line, even from Arc’s lesser-heard album tracks.

They played a well-placed set consisting of their debut and second album, each track going down an absolute storm with the excitable crowd. The set lasted 75 minutes, and was short, neat and sweet. They did however fail to play their monster track ‘Final Form’ and during their en-core, the crowd screamed for it, but it was to no avail. They finished with ‘Don’t Try’ an absolute blinder from their current album. As they left the stage, it was clear to see the audience hadn’t quite had their Everything Everything thirst anywhere near quenched.