LIVE: Fever Ray – The Troxy, London 20.03.18

There are plenty of reasons to admire Fever Ray (aka Karin Dreijer) after her sold out show at London’s Troxy last night, but not all of them are based around her electrifying music.

In Fever Ray’s space, she takes care to make sure no-one is an outsider: everyone is welcome in her warped and wonderful world.

Before the gig, signs around the venue explicitly stated she wanted fans not to use their phones to document the evening and immerse themselves in her performance. The same signs requested that women come to the front and taller people stand back if obscuring a shorter person’s view. Outside of the toilets, another sign indicated that for the duration of the night, toilet facilities were trans-friendly spaces and trans fans were free to use the bathroom they felt aligned with their gender identity.

Emerging from the lights in her trademark “I heart Swedish girls” t-shirt and bare scalp, she plunged in to ‘An Itch’ as her crystal clear vocals swept across her excited crowd. From start to finish, the sound was flawless: each lyric, synth sequence, and drum beat distinct and easily discernible from the next. She delivered only a simple “Hello” or “Thank You” between songs – scarcely interrupting the torrent of sound.

She tore through ‘A Part Of Us’ and ‘When I Grow Up’, before performing ‘Mustn’t Hurry’ and ‘This Country’ with full fervor. The politically charged lyrics on the latter: “Free abortions and clean water / destroy nuclear / destroy boring” were echoed back by the crowd, and erotically charged line “this country makes it hard to fuck” was passionately reciprocated too.

Plunge‘s lead single ‘Wanna Sip’ sounded every inch as intense live, followed by ‘I’m Not Done’, the superb ‘Red Trails’ and the ominous ‘Concrete Walls’. The luscious “To The Moon & Back” came next, with it’s upbeat electronics buoyant lyrics, bleeding into the infectious ‘IDK About You’. The eerie ‘Keep The Streets Empty For Me’ was a fitting penultimate track and prepared fans for a powerful encore of ‘If I Had A Heart’ and ‘Mamma’s Hand’.

Fever Ray’s fierce, focused, full-on performance at the Troxy proved she’s an inimitable talent with a vision, generosity and energy unlike any other. Simply put: if you weren’t there, you missed out.

Support came from the the fluorescent and fabulous Bunny.

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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Track Of The Day: Raindear – ‘Sky’

Swedish electro-pop artist and producer Raindear (the musical project of Rebecca Bergcrantz) has shared her wondrous new single, ‘Sky.’ It is another excellent sample of her individual styling of bohemian electro-psychedelia and samurai sounds. ‘Sky’ fills every space with its swirling, layered sounds, and is inspired by an inner world of escapism and self-determination after a lover has let you down.

Opening with a synth beat, reminiscent of late ’80s Fleetwood Mac, Raindear’s dusky voice enters: “It’s not the first time I am giving you my all and you are already gone.” The song offers a bird’s eye view of the lover, almost as if the sky itself is singing at night, taking us to a fairytale landscape – “How are you sinking my love? I’m only melting on the moon you’re dreaming of.”

 

The lyrical texture of the song is enhanced by the symphonic, electronic effects, as Raindear’s voice swoops and soars towards the mid-point of the song, where the sonic effects are paused for a few breathtaking seconds before ascending again. As Raindear’s vocals reach a resolve (“Get with the sky..the secret saviour of this town”), the song ends on cloud nine, leaving us with a sense of optimism and pure escapism that Raindear’s atmospheric colours create.

Any artist offering such a delightful mix deserves your immediate attention and ‘Sky’ is sure to stay with you for some time.

‘Sky’ is out now.

Fi Ni Aicead
@gotnomoniker

Photo Credit: Kitty Lingmerth 

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Introducing Interview: Leisure Tank

Since forming in 2014, duo Leisure Tank have released debut album Wet Suit, and wowed crowds at the likes of Camp Bestival and Mellow Festival with their catchy alt-rock offerings.

Having just released the raw and dynamic energy of new single ‘Higher’, we caught up with Leisure Tank to find out more…

Hi Leisure Tank , welcome to Get In Her Ears! Can you tell us a bit about the band?
Leisure Tank is a female fronted indie rock duo. K.C. on guitar and vocals and Budi on drums. Style-wise we probably float around the area of indie rock; stoner, grunge-influenced, and a bit of punk attitude with some bluesy touches. Man, that’s the hardest thing to do as a band, describing your own sound.

How did you initially get together and start creating music?
We met in Berlin in the late nineties. Budi broke into my flat, helping a friend who had lost the key… Then we started hanging out, listening to music and creating it. We had a folk/songwriter band for 8 years, then created Leisure Tank as I started writing on electric guitar and wanted to get all loud and fun.

Your new single ‘Higher’ is out very soon – can you tell us what it’s all about?
I wrote ‘Higher’ after someone complained to me about their ex girlfriend. It was in such clear view, all the things that person had projected on her and she couldn’t possibly live up to and fulfil. Still, she was the one to blame. And I could not tell that person, so I wrote ‘Higher’ and became all brave and in-your-face, as music gives you that space. And it turned into a really fun song for us to play!

 

You’ve been compared to the likes of Blood Red Shoes and The Joy Formidable, but who would you say are your main musical influences?
Mm… I actually don’t listen to that much music from our own genre, I do have two Blood Red Shoes albums though and love their song ‘Don’t Ask’. I like The Band, Vampire Weekend, Dylan, Joni Mitchell, lots of songwriter music. Budi and I both like Led Zeppelin, Cream, some Jazz….

How is your local music scene? Do you go to see lots of live music?
We are based in London and really cannot complain about the music scene here. I wish I had more time to see more live shows though.

And what can fans expect from your live shows?
Well, it will be emotional but fun, I’d say.

As we’re a new music focused site, are there any new/upcoming bands or artists you’d recommend we check out?
Marine, Spy from Moscow, Frauds….

And how do you feel the music industry is for new bands at the moment – would you say it’s difficult to get noticed?
Yes, but also we can release music to our liking and make our own way through the musical jungle without relying on anyone’s approval.

Finally, what does the rest of 2018 have in store for Leisure Tank?
A video release, more shows in UK, Germany and Czech Republic, and hopefully more writing and recording.

Huge thanks to Leisure Tank for answering our questions! 

‘Higher’, the new single from Leisure Tank, is out now. And catch Leisure Tank live at the following dates:

29th March – Little Buildings – Newcastle Upon Tyne
30th March – Sticky Fingers – Middlesbrough

 

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LISTEN: Rare Colours – ‘Born In Love’

Love is the driving force behind electronic band Rare Colours‘ musical outpourings, and new single ‘Born In Love’ is gentle proof that they’re here to promote nothing more than a “simple message of kindness.”

The band’s music lies somewhere in an “invented musical universe” between Kate Bush and Fatima Yamaha via many strange and eccentric planets. “‘Born in Love’ was written to convey a very simple message,” the band explain about their new single. “Enjoy life, be grateful, be good to your fellow travellers and don’t let regret or hate be the defining emotion you experience as you die.”

Listen to ‘Born In Love’ below, and follow Rare Colours on Facebook for more updates.

 

Kate Crudgington
@KCBobCut

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