London Live Music in August

London Live Music in August

31 July, 2008
by: Marcus

Having spent successive weeks slating The Pigeon Detectives and The Ting Tings in the singles review section of this site, you would be forgiven for thinking that I give modern indie music a rather short shrift. It is not the inexplicable popularity of said bands however, or their minimal contribution to the overall musical landscape that causes such vitriol to spill forth as I pound my keyboard like a fat-handed ape attempting Beethoven's Fifth. It is simply this – a hell of a lot of bands these days are just completely and utterly shit.

Yet every time I come close to retiring with a nice mug of Horlicks, some comfy slippers and the complete works of Bob Dylan, someone comes along to reaffirm my faith in the state of modern music. This time around it was Fleet Foxes (surely the name of a Hampshire speedway team?) who have come along with a burst of harmony-driven baroque pop, causing me to positively choke on my tea in excitement. They're not in the UK 'til Bonfire Night and their date at the Shepherd's Bush Empire is sold out already, but I guarantee your eBay watching will not be in vain.

In the more immediate future, August is about much more than the Carling and V Festivals, though the month is somewhat overloaded with big shows towards the end. I'm probably most excited about the Saddle Creek-related triple whammy, starting with Canadian noiseniks Tokyo Police Club at ULU on the 21st. Bright Eyes man Conor Oberst and his latest incarnation The Mystic Valley Band are at the Electric Ballroom six days later, and on the 29th his former band The Faint bring their latest album ‘Fasciination' to Cargo. Incidentally on this theme, Two Gallants are at the Amersham Arms in September, but I'm sure Dom will remind you next month.

Elsewhere, it's great to see some breakthrough bands finally playing the stages they deserve this month. Noah and the Whale have come a long way since I first caught up with them at the Enterprise, and they are over the road at the Roundhouse on the 11th, celebrating the launch of their debut album 'Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down'. There's a bit of a conundrum on the 28th, with Yacht at the ICA, Brighton scream-core quintet Maths Class at the Underworld and down the road at the Barfly the Brewis Brothers performing with their side projects – The Week That Was and School of Language. With boozy indie-blues troupe Absentee in support, the latter might just win.

In terms of higher profile shows in August, Cold War Kids at the Bloomsbury Ballroom is sold out, but definitely worth an eBay search. Far better though to purchase a face value ticket for Yeasayer at KCLSU on the 20th – these guys are amazing live and as soon as the rest of the world realises it they'll be selling out the big venues. Folk fans should check out Bert Jansch at the Roundhouse on the 30th, while on the same day in the deep southwest, R.E.M. will be reliably excellent at Twickenham Stadium.

That's about it for this month. I blame the big festivals for the glut of great shows happening later in the month, but as I can't beat 'em, I'll be joining 'em at Reading for the Carling Weekend. If festival frazzle doesn't completely overcome my senses, perhaps I'll see some of you at Be Your Own Pet on the 26th. I might even be tempted take in a bit of SoCal skate-punk with Goldfinger playing the Islington Academy three days later, but we'll see. There's only so much great music you can fit into one month.

Marcus