RIP TV on the Radio's Gerard Smith

PITCHFORK is reporting tonight that TV on the Radio's bassist Gerard Smith has died after a battle with lung cancer.
TVOTR have issued a statement on their website.
Sad news.

Arctic Monkeys turn into Black Rebel Motorcycle Club circa 2003 for new song

Oh dear.
It's like Arctic Monkeys rediscovered Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's sophomore effort Take Them On, On Your Own.
The rather drab Don't Sit Down 'Cause I Moved Your Chair is on the band's fourth album, Suck It and See, out on June 6.
And here's the artwork...
Right....

Album review: The Vaccines -- What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?

OUR friends across the Atlantic have been blessed with a stellar roster of guitar bands capable of creating colossal works of thrilling pop music.
Throughout the past decade, the land of the free has berthed The Walkmen, The National, The Strokes etc – mouth-watering acts capable of thrusting six-strings to the forefront of their unrivalled sound.
Now it’s the UK’s turn to topple the American behemoths in the form of The Vaccines – albeit ten years late.
The London-based four-piece, who only formed less than a year ago, have been touted as saviours of the UK indie scene by the likes of NME, the BBC and Clash magazine – similar to the soup of excitement served up for the Arctic Monkeys. Back in 2005, Monkeys lead singer Alex Turner exclaimed “don’t believe the hype” at the beginning of the video for breakout single I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor. Thankfully, the frenzy surrounding the Sheffield scallywags was justified. Debut album Whatever You Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not provided a humorous mouth-piece of post-teen life in everyday scenarios that listeners could connect with.
But can The Vaccines’ What Did You Expect From The Vaccines? (note the similar quirky album title) dive into hyperbole and emerge with their early promise in tact?
Well, it depends on what you were really expecting. If you yearned for 30+ minutes of occasionally stimulating, hook-driven indie pop, this is the album for you. If you thought you’d found the UK’s version of The Strokes or The Walkmen, prepare to be disappointed.
The Vaccines are at their best when making anthems perfect for beered-up football terraces.
Riotous opener Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra) is fantastic; an urgent 80-second blast thumping drums and punk-driven, distorted guitar melodies, while front man Justin Young screams from the roof tops.
If You Wanna continues Wreckin’ Bar’s energy, forming a galloping pop number on the tribulations of a failing relationship, and its catchy chorus “If you wanna come back, it’s alright” instantly infiltrates the mind, while bouncy pop-punk Norgaard resurrects the much-missed The Rakes with its energetic strumming and candid lyrics on the fairer sex.
The Vaccines are also a dab hand at ploughing through shoegazey epics, such as the grandiose Blow It Up and the dizzying All In White.
But what stops The Vaccines from breaking through the ceiling of mediocrity is their inconsistency. For every catchy pop track (Wreckin’ Bar, If You Wanna), there’s dreary filler (Wetsuit, Under Your Thumb).
Also, Young clearly has the talent to unleash his emotions and inner-most feelings onto paper in some tracks, but in others the lyrics seem rushed and half-hearted.
Post Break-Up Sex is a song that should reflect the fragile, mind-fuck of break-ups; the insecurity, the fear, the sorrow, the sense of loss – we’ve all been there. Yeah, the lyrics are on par (I can barely look at you, don’t tell me who you lost it to/Didn’t we say we had a deal? Didn’t I say how bad I feel?). Unfortunately, the end result here is dry, insipid and rarely goes above second gear.
There’s no denying WDYEFTV? is a solid, if uninspiring debut, but the hype surrounding The Vaccines and regular mainstream airplay will ensure success, regardless of how good the music is.
So I guess the question that needs to be asked is “what can we expect from The Vaccines future?” Hopefully an album of consistent quality, either consistently great or consistently shit. Either way, it’ll be a hell of a lot easier to write about.

A typical Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All post

Swaaaaag.
IT’S been a manic week on the announcements front for post-rap, hot-on-everyone’s-tongues sensations Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All .
First, underground blog Altered Zones premiered Toro y Moi’s sinister-yet-stripped down remix of Tyler, the Creator’s French – the stand-out slab of in-your-face anger from last year’s critically-acclaimed Bastard.
And a little while later, AZ’s sister site Pitchfork announced MellowHype signed to label Fat Possum, while reporting the remastered version of BlackenedWhite will be released this summer.
Luminous Plectrum believes the future is odd, very odd.

Listen: Tyler, The Cretor -- French (Toro y Moi remix)

....and why not check out Odd Future's first live TV performance on US chat show Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. It's awesome.

PS I Love You featuring Diamond Rings -- Leftovers

CAN it get any better than this? PS I Love You teaming up with Diamond Rings? No friends, it cannot. This powerhouse packs a guitar-driven punch to the cranium. A sound akin to the result of a Cribs-cum-Vaccines affair, Leftovers is proof beautiful partnerships lead to gorgeous creations.

Artist spotlight: Pop/Rock/Punk/Electronic

Name: Pop/Rock/Punk/Electronic
Based: Gloucestershire
For fans of: Mirrors, Human League, Kraftwerk, Gene

WITH a name like Pop/Rock/Punk/Electronic, you’d hope young Finlay Shakespeare had the technical ability, and cajones, to pull off what is essentially a one-man-band for the 21st century.
Thankfully, the Gloucestershire-based musician/producer/all round top guy pulls it off with ease and manages to merge all the genres in his act’s abstract name choice into a pulsating package.
James Blake is 2011’s golden boy for his rather special self-titled genre-bending debut – primarily for producing it all himself – but there’s no reason not to suggest Pop/Rock/Punk/Electronic can follow the same route.
Luminous Plectrum took time out to talk a little more with Finlay about his influences and where he sees himself in five years time.

Luminous Plectrum: Who do you sound like?
Pop/Rock/Punk/Electronic: An amalgam of indie rock, synth pop and abstract electronica. Foals meets Travelogue-era Human League. Laser-injected guitars cut against shortwave radio. Tape loops played alongside digital drum machines.

LP: What are/were your influences?
P/R/P/E: A lot of the typical late 70s/early 80s New Wave and Synth Pop acts - Associates, Japan, OMD, Talking Heads, Kraftwerk, Public Image Limited - but also a lot of current bands, especially those pushing the boundaries of what can be considered commercial. Battles, The Redneck Manifesto, Metronomy, Tortoise and LCD Soundsystem spring to mind.

LP: Have you ever considered to expand the act into a band, or are you most comfortable performing as a solo artist?
P/R/P/E: There have been attempts, but the musical result is always so far away from what was originally intended that it becomes another project within itself, not that that's a bad thing however. It's difficult to find people that have the same musical ideas, influences and attitudes to how music can be written, performed, recorded, etc. though.

LP: How did you come up with the name P/R/P/E? Is it a fair description of the music you produce?
P/R/P/E: I had recorded the first few tracks for the debut album and needed a name for this new project - I was aiming to draw from all the areas of music that I personally enjoy listening to and approach each area equally within the writing and recording process. "Pop/Rock/Punk/Electronic" was written on a box of records I had been sifting through earlier that week and I decided the name was perfect. It instantly states the manifesto for the music I create, and the visual angularity fits well enough to my sound too.

LP: Do you play live often? Have you got any future gigs lined up?
P/R/P/E: I've played live a handful of times and it's something I'd love to do more often, yet local gig promoters never seem to be 100% committed to what they're doing. The last gig I was set to play was cancelled weeks before the show itself due to ticket sales, though the promoters didn't seem to realise that most of their audience would be paying on the door. Unfortunately nothing in the near future is scheduled performance-wise, though I'm constantly looking for new outlets for gigs.

LP: You're based in Gloucestershire - what's the music scene like in your area?
P/R/P/E: It's alright, typical small city music scene really. There's the local festivals - 2000 Trees, Walk The Line, Cheltenham Jazz - but nothing brilliantly diverse. Bristol had some brilliant inner-city festivals a few years ago, but alas they've all been wiped out through financial difficulties, etc. The venues themselves are quite diverse however, if not the acts they put on. Gloucester Guildhall and Cheltenham Town Hall have had quite a few big names playing over the last few years, while the indie venues like The Two Pigs and The Night Owl in Cheltenham give local bands their chance to play. There's some big things coming in the next couple of years though.

LP: Where would you like to see yourself in the next five years?
P/R/P/E: I'd like to be working with other people, helping to create something a little different for the mainstream music scene.

Listen to P/R/P/E: Myspace

We at Luminous Plectrum HEART new music and are always interested in promoting the freshest new talent. If you would like to be featured like P/R/P/E, e-mail luminous_plectrum@hotmail.co.uk or follow us on Twitter @luminousplectrm

Album covers recreated using Lego

WE spotted this in The Guardian on Wednesday and thought it was too good not to share with everyone.
If you missed it, the daily ran a small article on 21-year-old Aaron Savage's genius idea to recreate his favourite album covers using £100-worth of the iconic toy bricks.
Here are a selection:

Muse -- Absolution
Dizzee Rascal -- Boy in da Corner
Queen -- Queen 2
For more, visit Aaron's Flickr page.