The Best Blaze of their Lives

2010 has so far been a year of side-steps, feints, stumbles and mis-hit passes. Our local acts, it seems, have been playing with one eye on the summer’s World Cup.

The second Burning Codes album (untitled, apparently, but Braille-readers will find that it’s called Empowerment) has a lot to live up to. When Paul Archer unveiled his solo project in 2009, it was striking how intricately realised and fully-formed it already seemed. Empathy didn’t feel like a debut album. The certainty of tone and fine detail gave it the air of an old and richly flavoured thing which had been maturing in a barrel buried in the ground for many years.
Wisely, it seems that he’s decided to draw from the same vintage this time around – so there’s nothing new, nothing startling, nothing that will make you wonder if you’re listening to another act. In fact, so similar to the first one, it takes a while to convince that these are actually a different set of songs. However, once its personality does assert itself, you’ll know all about it.
Burning Codes records, it’s becoming clear, share a strong family resemblance – but hang out with them on their own, and the individual quirks and character traits become clear.
It’s a similar story with The Lowly Knights. The band’s introduction was so stratospheric; anything other than instant global dominance would probably have made their reappearance seem low-key. And thus it proved: their new Hollow EP approached the door so quietly, many of you will not have been aware it even knocked. Not that the band were ever particularly in-your-face (their early success surprised them as much as anyone else). This time round their reticence was understandable. Shorn of pretty much half their established line-up, the new Knights are a very different (and noticeably male) prospect to their previous incarnation. It’s going to take all-involved a bit of time to see if the old spark is still there. Vital signs are good. We wish them well.
Aaron Shanley’s a mere pup, but the Lisburn lad writes songs (and conducts business) like an old time pro. He’s been building up an online (and onstage) presence for a year or so, and there’s an eager glint in his eye when he talks about his upcoming debut album that suggests he’s here for the long haul.
Never mind the person who has everything – the real bummer is trying to get something for the bod with Arvo Part and Explosions in The Sky on their iPod. Well, may I suggest Ruby Colley’s Murmurations? A blend of modern classical arrangements and post-rock dynamics, it’s an accessible and atmospheric entry-point to a very interesting talent.
It took me a while to fall for Tourist History by Two Door Cinema Club, and I worried that it was so of-the-moment that the second it ended it would seem old hat. In the time since, though, it’s proven to be a tenacious little blighter. Forget the cool label and the Kanye-seal-of-approval, there’s a giddy pop sensibility at work here that we look forward to following for years to come.
Sad to report, though, that Buildings by General Fiasco was an initial disappointment. We’re used to the Leacock/Strathern Gang being brilliantly unruly and engaging on-stage. On their debut, though, they seem to have undergone some house-training and their unruly instincts have been well and truly suppressed. Yes, it’s polished and radio friendly. And yet, where’s the off-beam messiness we associate the Derry-trio with? Luckily, no amount of airless production will dull songs like ‘Ever So Shy’ or ‘Rebel Get By’. However, the band are going to have to trust themselves more next time around or risk disappearing into the massed ranks of indie guitar acts. And they’re better than that.
We’ll round things off with news of a lovely treat. To celebrate this summer’s South African jamboree, the Cat Malojian lot have released for download a typically wonderful single called ‘Hand Of God (Maradona Song)’. A Billy Liar-esque ode to those eternal substitutes amongst us, slalom off to their MySpace site and take a look at their pretty brilliant accompanying video.
They shoot; they score.