Rocking Horse Records + store owner, Warwick Vere.
BRISBANE'S ROCKING HORSE RECORDS
CELEBRATES 40th ANNIVERSARY
by Matt Bond
Brisbane has a proud music history. It's the home of The Saints, The Go-Betweens, Powderfinger, The Grates and Violent Soho. Over the years locals have seen unforgettable gigs in much loved venues like The Zoo, Black Bear Lodge and Festival Hall (R.I.P). There's our legendary radio station. No, not B105 or Hit 105 or whatever it's calling itself now. I'm talking about 4ZZZ! (How about those R'n'B Fridays though on Hit105?) We had our own festival for a while too. Remember Livid? Yep, there's a lot to love about Brisbane when it comes to its music. But there's nothing we love more than our favourite independent record store, Rocking Horse Records.
In 2015, Rocking Horse is celebrating 40 years as Brisbane's definitive home of music. Warwick Vere has done an incredible job with his store since it opened in 1975. He's arguably been Brisbane's greatest supporter of local music, battled through the Joh Bjelke-Petersen years and survived the evolution of music consumerism into the digital age and current vinyl resurgence. When asked about Blondie's status as music icons, Debbie Harry once said, "I feel like if you stick around long enough you become an icon automatically." I think Debbie is just being a bit modest. It takes a lot of hard work to become an icon and that's exactly what Vere and his team over the years have put into Rocking Horse to make it the iconic establishment it is today.
So if there's celebrations going on, where are they at? Future iconic Brisbane music venue, The Triffid will play host to a huge tribute to Rocking Horse on Sunday November 1. Joining the likes of The Cairos and Last Dinosaurs are faves like "90s queer folksters" ISIS, Midnight Oil's Rob Hirst and Crush 76's Sean Sennett and Blank Realm. Drinks will be flowing from The Triffid's beer garden from 2pm, with the main gig kicking off at 5:30pm. You'll want to get in quick to get your tickets, which you can purchase over at OzTix (full line-up details available too).
What else can you do, Brisbane music lovers? Next time you head into JB to pick up a CD or think about downloading that hot new album on the iTunes, consider heading into the mall on Albert Street and making your music purchase from Rocking Horse Records instead. Support local. You know you want to. If you're totally lazy, you can buy from their online store too.
There really wasn't an album we've been anticipating more this year than Little May's debut, For The Company. And this has been a big year for music releases from at home and abroad. But we've been paying close attention to the music of Hannah Field, Annie Hamilton and Liz Drummond for a couple of years now and the reputation they have built up in a relatively short time is nothing short of extraordinary. You'll see some recurring Little May hallmarks mentioned all over the internets... gorgeous harmonies, a penchant for tales of loss, longing and (of course) love, storytelling talents that defy the young ages of the lyricists. All of the plaudits thrown in their direction are well deserved. They deserve so much more and, if For The Company is an indication of a long career to follow there will definitely be so many more accolades to come.
A serene atmosphere is built around the opening track 'Cicadas', a reflective Field led number that effortlessly draws you in. There's a subtle build constantly propelling it forward under the direction of Hamilton's guitar and Cat Hunter's perfect percussion. More than a little enchanting, you'll be forgiven if the opening thud of 'Sold' snaps you out of the daydream it put you in. You'll slide right back into a daydream with the rolling wave effect of 'Sold'. It feels like a set of waves, with a calmer opening building up just a little bit until the big finish. You might just find the inspiration for the album title in the lyrics too. Don't get me started on the opening harmonies, we'll be here for days and we're only up to the second song, so moving right along to 'Home'. "Jet setter, I think I'd better go. It's been five years, waiting for the snow." One listen is all you'll need to understand why 'Home' was the lead single. It's a big moment on the album and a reflection of the strengths that The Nationals' Aaron Dessner brought to the production duties. Even the small moments before some thundering percussion feel rich and full. But that way the vocals hurtle towards the finish is all Little May, and harkens back to the fan favourite single, 'Hide'.
There is a unique identity to every song on For The Company, which is genuinely something that needs to be appreciated (along with the pacing) and it's no easy feat. If it was, the majority of album back halves wouldn't be so dull until the last song or two. 'Oh My My', penned by Drummond and featuring her equal parts ethereal and haunting vocals, balances the light and dark with bouncing piano against minor chords. There's 'wade in the water' soul and lines that appear more playful than they every truly could be in, "if I lost you all I'd say is oh my, my." These songs are complex, layered and when you scratch beneath the surface they become largely undefinable (like real people). But we'll try anyway, because #musicjournalism, am I right? 'Bow and Arrow' is actually what an anthemic song should sound like. "Don't you walk the line, walk that straight and arrow, don't you walk the line, we are the bow and arrow." General consensus will show an uplifting feeling experienced by listeners of 'Bow and Arrow'. Something to motivate you, put a smile on your face and remind you that it's all going to be ok. That's an anthem. That's 'Bow and Arrow'.
"You said I'm all you ever needed, but you don't want me all the time. Imagine us living by a river, I was your shotgun bride." I've been on somewhat of a happy/sad spiral the past couple of weeks and I think it has something to do with my inability to stop listening to the song 'Seven Hours'. There has never been another song I've listened to where I've felt more heartbroken for the person singing. Someone that I don't actually know, but if I saw them on the street I wouldn't be able to stop myself from asking if they need a hug."You said she's all you ever needed, we're just strangers with copper bindings, need you to give me back my lungs so my body can forgive me... slow. And I can fight this with my hands but my head won't let me. You're still here." She was all that person supposedly needed and then that other 'she' was all that person ever needed and then original she is left with a feeling that's just like being continually punched in the gut and yeah... I'd ask if said original she wanted a hug. (As a sneaky side note to Hannah Field, please don't be freaked out if a strange man asks if you need a hug because of the whole 'Seven Hours' thing.)
"What's your favourite song on the album?" Sometimes it's easy to answer that question, but Little May have not made it easy to answer that question. Kudos to them. If I was to direct someone that I didn't think could handle 'Seven Hours' straight up, I would point them in the direction of 'Sinks'. It's just Little May doing what Little May does best. There is an underlying groove here, an energy that is waiting to be let loose and a rush of drums signals it's about to be let out and when it happens 'Sinks' evolves into something powerful. That the lyrics are literally repeating, "something's going to rise," is too good to be a coincidence. Little May know what they're doing. And just to shake things up, when the frantic 'Remind Me' fades into a distant memory, you'll be convinced there's nothing they can't do. By the time you've arrived at 'The Shine Is Brighter At Night', you're likely to find yourself trapped in a state somewhere between devastating heartache and wonderful joy. If you stop for a moment and let the mood of the closing track wash over you, I think you'll find yourself on the joy side of the tracks. Those major chords (clearly not chosen by Drummond) are enough to trick you. This joy scenario only works if you resist all urges to think about the words. You have been warned. But seriously, do yourself a favour and listen to the words.
While I was listening to 'Seven Hours' earlier today I received a text message from music blogging superstar Jo Michelmore which said a little something about For The Company like... "When I was younger, I'm sure I would have liked it, but I'm not sure I would have understood, at least what it meant to me. It's stunning isn't it? Being an adult is awesome. In other words: the Little May album = [insert yellow love heart emoji here]." Jo's good with the words. There's a lot of talk about the sad songs Little May come up with, even from Hamilton, Field and Drummond themselves. The great thing about sad songs is they generally come from a place that a listener will have some form of shared experience. And there's nothing to make you feel a little bit better than not feeling so alone, right? Right. As you grow up just a little bit, you can appreciate the sad songs on a different level. It's not just feeling that they're sad, it's understanding why. And that really is awesome. And so are Little May. For music coming from a "sad" place, it sure does make us happy.
Sure it's only October, but it really doesn't get better than this. Album of the Year? It'll be hard to convince me of any less.
Matt Bond gives For The Company five red wine emoji out of five...
See of course I'm going to like this because A) the clip involves a whole bunch of vintage imagery of kids wearing things I wish I was alive to have worn when it was fashionable and doing things I wish I would have done should I have been alive in said vintage times (not that anyone should do those things, remember, drugs are bad kids) and it B) features a band I probably wish I was a member of and C) the song is called 'Anti-Socialite' which appeals to the 90s part of my personality that wishes at some point in my life I'd published a zine and screams "damn the man, man!" every time I drive past a McDonalds or drink a Diet Coke (which is probably more often than I'd like to generally admit) and D) it's by Jim Lawrie, who is a guy I may or may not have developed a minor obsession over in the past couple of years. Which brings me to the concept of 'Anti-Socialite' and blogging, because here is where I get to say "damn the man (or whoever commercial radio is playing at the moment), man" and write about things I like on a computer instead of a dodgy photocopied bit of paper I sell at the local independent bookstore. Ah, the 90s. Anyway, enough reminiscing, here's the hope that someone else likes the slightly country not even remotely 90s beats and hears the words of Jim Lawrie's voice and likes them, lots, like I do. Because essentially I'd have to say, there's nothing wrong with being antisocial sometimes Mr Lawrie. In fact, there's a part of my personaity that will always encourage it.
Jo Michelmore gives 'Anti-Socialite' three and a half beers out of five...
Well well well, isn't this nice? I can't decide if I'm sitting at a table, my supermodel body wearing some fabulous dress, looking at the ocean, a slight breeze blowing, enjoying a cool beverage, tapping my fingers to the sweet beats. Or wait, I'm in my expensive tinted window car, 80s style sunroof down, my beautiful shampoo commercial hair blowing as I drive, the highway ahead of me, humming along to some country style guitar chords and loving every second of it. I could of course be sitting on the porch of my Amercian style cottage by the river, not an annoying buzzing bug in sight, staring at the blue sky and spotting creatures in clouds as I hum with some beautiful harmonies floating about. Alternatively, I could be sitting in a corner of my house, in front of my laptop, wearing my slightly sweaty gym clothes, thinking about fries and listening this song called 'In New Light' by Patrick James and typing about it for this blog that I sometimes write on. You guess which one is reality. My life in my mind is so much more interesting than my actual life, but Mr James does a good job of letting me live it somewhere else for a
few minutes. Waiting for October 16 to catch his album and see where
else I can go. Or catching him when he plays with The Paper Kites
nationally this month.
Jo Michelmore gives 'In New Light' three and a half boxes of fries out of five...
I LOVE THIS. Ahem. I mean, yes, positive words about songs and sounds and things. That's what I'm meant to do on this blog thing, right? The thing is, sometimes I just hear songs that I really like and all I really have to say is I LOVE THIS SONG! I don't really wanna talk about the stop start chords and I don't want to have to think of words to describe the voice that captivates from the first second and I don't want to have to describe the way those beats kick in and make me turn around and question who this is and why I haven't heard it before now and the thing I really don't want to have to do is question the sounds of strings which make the whole thing even more dramatic than I thought it was going to be. They describe Evangeline as "Lorde meets Lana Del Rey" but in my opinion that's not really fair because this one made me press play twice which is more than any Lana track has ever made me do and although I don't mind Lorde, I'm not convinced being part of Ms Swift's extended 'squad' for a couple of days is a valuable life goal (oh Lorde how I hate the word 'squad', but that's a whole other song). Let's stop with all the words and get back to my original point. 'My Kingdom'. I LOVE THIS!
Jo Michelmore gives 'My Kingdom' four rose emojis out of five...
