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22 MAY 2016
MUSIC
Pacific Heights
The Stillness
The title says it all, really: rather
than the banging anthems of his
old outfit Shapeshifter, Devin
Abram’s second outing as Pacific
Heights is wrapped in lush, plush
electronica. The beats haven’t
been forgotten entirely, but for
the most part they take second
place to Abram’s plangent,
ambient soundscapes and suitably
ethereal vocals from some rising
young stars of the New Zealand
music scene. As well as the
sultry shimmer of the first single
Airborne, jazz singer Deanne Krieg
brings her lovely, cool vocal tones
to two further tracks, Realm and
Breath and Bone, while Drax
Project’s Shaan Singh shines on
the gorgeous and gently pulsing
epic So Love. An elegant, shape-
shifting delight.
(Create/Control) John Ferguson
Sister (1987)
They'd started life a decade previous as a noisy,
post-punk No Wave outfit, but by the time they got
to this, their fourth studio album, they'd moved to
more subtle sonic textures and cohesive alt-pop-
rock songs, with discordant twists of course. The
template for much of what followed.
Daydream Nation (1988)
Generally considered their first great album (it
was their last on an indie label before signing
to uber-major Geffen, thus opening the door for
Nirvana and so on), it only sold 75,000 in the US
in its first year. In the days between the dying No
Wave and emerging grunge scenes, they showed
there were still possibilities in rock which were
uncompromising, innovative and exhilarating. A
defining album of the '80s.
Goo (1990)
Their major-label debut sprung radio items in Dirty
Boots and Kool Thing with Chuck D. It sold twice
as many as Daydream Nation, but only just scraped
into the US top 100. Pitched between alt, indie,
experimental and emerging grunge, it's a real
keeper.
Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star
(1994)
With mostly economically short songs, by dialling
down a little and dealing with more personal issues
(almost nostalgic for indie-days in places), they made
their first – and only – commercially successful
album. It sold about half a million on release.
With their albums being reissued on vinyl it's
timely to look at SonicYouth's catalogue – they
were a band whose influence far outstripped
their album sales.
SONIC YOUTH
Kaytranada 99.9%
Kaytranada is the best kind of talented: he's
generous with his gifts. For many years the
Canadian super-producer has refined his signature
blend of electronic music, founded in hip hop and
filtered through the heaviest underground dance
styles of the '90s and new millennium. It's a rare
quality but his tracks can usually be identified
instantly. They carry a special jazz-infused melodic character, rugged
breaks and buzzing basslines that are unmistakable in the midst of the
ever-growing beats scene. During his career Kaytranada has shared
remixes of icons like Missy Elliott and Janet Jackson, collaborated with
artists like Azealia Banks, and released several critical EPs, jumping
across styles with the enthusiasm and skill of a dedicated student and
rising master. Despite all this incredible output, 99.9% is Kaytranada's
debut full-length record. It's a compelling demonstration of his unique
abilities. Continuing his interest in conversations with other artists, the
album features contributions fromThe Internet's Syd, Anderson .Paak,
AlunaGeorge, Little Dragon, BADBADNOTGOOD, Vic Mensa, GoldLink,
and more. It's a 100% great effort. Kaytranada goes to the top of the
class. (XL Recordings/Remote Control) SimonWinkler
Cate Le Bon
Crab Day
Cate Le Bon is Welsh but sounds
stranger. On album four, life in Los
Angeles has entailed shelving her
native tongue while accentuating
her, um, alien qualities as an indie
rocker. That goes for her music,
which charges past quirky into
gleeful discord wherever possible,
and the kind of content as routinely
surreal as “feeling like geometry”,
I’m A Dirty Attic and “my heart’s in
my supper.” The spiky guitar lines
and awkward staccato rhythms
harbour melodies of surprising
charm though, even when
she’s insisting Love Is Not Love
between sax and marimba lines
that would spook Frank Zappa.
Unsettling and weirdly addictive.
(Caroline) Michael Dwyer
And also...
Fans and casual listeners all have different favourites, so let's pitch
in Washing Machine (1995) for the exceptional 20-minute Diamond
Sea alone. Also their Whitey Album under the name Ciccone Youth
from 1989 (with Minutemen, Firehose and more recently Stooges
bassist Mike Watt) because it takes loving pokes at pop, Madonna
and Robert Palmer's Addicted to Love. Don't ignore The Eternal
(2009), their final album and first to crack the US top 20. They went
out on a high.
For more interviews, reviews and overviews from Graham Reid visit