New Young Pony Club - The Optimist

Taking New Wave influences and turning them into posturing New Rave disco was undeniably fun but, despite boasting some shimmering songs and a gutsy frontwoman in Ty Bulmer, New Young Pony Club always came across as poorer cousins to the likes of Klaxons. Three years on, with New Rave being little but a memory, one might wonder how relevant the arrival of a sophomore album from NYPC is. However, while Klaxons interminably stutter over the release of their follow-up record, it turns out that NYPC have grown up and changed with the times.

Self-produced, self-funded and self-released, The Optimist leaves aside the smutty winks, nudges and the shiny, throwaway disco of Fantastic Playroom in favour of a tighter, darker sound with lyrics that show genuine emotional depth. Lost a Girl opens the album with Bulmer taking a deep breath before bursting into a quick-fire verse that shows a newfound vulnerability to her lyrics, “I’m making you smile/Why am I doing that?” Some great hooks, crescendos and big choruses later, and it’s enough to make the once delicious Ice Cream seem flimsy and banal in comparison. This strong start continues with Chaos, as Bulmer’s deliberate drone morphs into another catchy chorus over handclaps.

As the album ebbs and flows, the occasional brooding moments - like the electro-ballad, Stone - counterbalance its dancey edge, giving things a well-rounded feel. The Optimist is the sound of a band shedding its glossy skin and showing what’s inside. Put simply, this is a really strong comeback from New Young Pony Club.

New Young Pony Club at Oxford Art Factory

NEW YOUNG PONY CLUB
YOUNG LOVERS
HOOPS
Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst
06/08/08

After supercool all-girl DJ team HOOPS had done a good job in warming up the crowd, Young Lovers took over with their pleasant enough brand of indie-pop-rock. While at times the Melbourne five-piece’s songs felt a little derivative - from the occasional Arctic Monkeys bassline to an unashamed rip-off of U2’s With Or Without You - their set was generally enjoyable and showed plenty of potential. Although there was perhaps a bit too much rock posturing going on, not least from the female bassist, their tunes were big, bold and brimming with energy, even if they did feel slightly familiar at times.

After a lengthy wait, during which time HOOPS once again got the crowd moving, England’s new-wave/electro collective New Young Pony Club finally bowled onto stage with keyboardist Lou Hayter looking typically elegant all in black and guitarist Andy Spence having a sartorial nightmare in a yellow/grey T-shirt and red jeans. It was vocalist Tahita Bulmer (above) that all eyes rested upon though. Proving herself to be one of the best frontwomen around at the moment, and boasting a new, bleached blonde haircut, the singer exploded around the stage like a firebomb, spitting lyrics and oozing charisma with her between-song banter.

Getting things going with Get Lucky and Grey, the quintet was confident enough to throw away disco-funk track Ice Cream very early on in the set. Sure, we’ve all heard it a million times before, yet live it still sounds as sexy and exciting as it ever did and, of course, sent the crowd absolutely nuts. More bands should consider discarding their signature tune in such a way rather than leaving it for the encore, as, once it was out of the way, the set seemed free to go in any direction.

After rattling through more tracks from their debut and a few newies, Bulmer threatened: “This might be our last song,” and stated they would only encore if she saw the audience sweat during a rousing rendition of The Bomb. Cue enough enthusiasm from a full room to warrant a couple more tunes, including an interesting version of Squeeze’s Take Me I’m Yours. The night ended with The Get Go, but not before Bulmer had received a few marriage proposals from the crowd, along with one slightly less romantic shout of: “I would straight up nail you.”

Reading 2007 - Who to see...

I just saw the full line-up for Reading for the first time. If you’re going this year, then here are my musical tips for a top weekend:Must See:
Arcade Fire (don’t miss them whatever else you do)
Klaxons (ooh-ee-ooh-ee-ooh-ee-ooh-ee-ooh-arrrr)
Kings of Leon
CSS (best party ever)
Jamie T (above)
New Young Pony Club (below)
Bloc Party
Interpol
Tokyo Police Club
The Gossip
Albert Hammond Jr (surprisingly great frontman)
The ShinsShould See:
Kate Nash (is she worth all the fuss? I hope so)
Ash (awesome festival band)
The View (little cunts but with a few good tunes)
Cold War Kids
The Scare (Australian, and better than….)
….The Horrors
Silversun Pickups (Pumpkins/Pixies revisited)
The Sunshine Underground
Peter Bjorn and John (whistle along)Maybe See:
Alberta Cross (friends of Angus and Julia)
Pippettes (from Brighton. Pretty dresses)
Charlotte Hatherley (above)
The Young Knives (tweed post punk)
Operator Please (teenagers from Australia. And, no, they’re not in the same league as Bridezilla but might be worth a squizz anyways)

Don’t See:
Razorlight (urggggghhh)
Red Hot Chili Peppers (worst band in the world)

Klaxons and Jamie T nominated for a Mercury

I've just heard the nominees for this September's Mercury Music Prize and I'm very impressed. For those of you not in the know, the Mercury is the most well-respected award in the biz for the year's best album (previous winning albums came from Arctic Monkeys in 2006, Antony and The Johnsons in 2005, Franz Ferdinand in 2004 and Dizzy Rascal in 2003). Well, this year sees Arctic Monkeys and Dizzy nominated again, as well as the marvelous Amy Winehouse and NYPC. Most pleasingly though are the inclusion of the brilliant Klaxons album and the equally awesome Jamie T. I'd love Klaxons to win as I adore them, but, if you fancy a flutter, I reckon the clever money is on London rapscallion Jamie T or Winehouse for victory.

I'm so delighted that Klaxons are being recognised that I thought I'd revisit my review from a few months back.KLAXONS
Myths Of The Near Future

When I spoke to Klaxons a couple of months back, they claimed the New Rave tag that they had been lumbered with was nothing more than a media construct, and one listen to their debut long-player confirms this. While Klaxons are certainly offering something new, there doesn’t seem to be much in the way of rave within the 11 tracks on offer here.

Anyone who thinks the band are nothing more than style-over-content, fluoro-clad scenesters will be surprised to learn that, in spite of the false pigeonholing, Myths Of The Near Future is genuinely exciting and visionary, and manages to experimentally fuse dark pop with elements of punk and dance. The album is filled with space-age themes, but rather than having a pessimistic vision of an apocalyptic world in the vein of Muse, Klaxons face the future armed with an Acid House smile and a pocketful of pills, making this 35-mintues of dancey, mashed-up fun of the highest order.

Current radio favourite Golden Skans harks back to the best of 80s pop, while previous singles Atlantis to Interzone and Gravity’s Rainbow are high-speed, amphetamine-fuelled dance-punk car crashes. Meanwhile, hidden away at the back of the album is a cover of Grace’s classic It’s Not Over Yet, which is a delicious piece of gurning, synth-drenched karaoke.

With Myths Of The Near Future, Klaxons have defiantly transcended the hype and created a truly dazzling album.

Rave? Hardly. Apocalyptic pop? Possibly. Bloody brilliant? Absolutely.

(My latest interview with Klaxons will be a Drum Media cover story soon...)

The Latitude Festival 2007, UK

Even though I'm back in Blighty, I'm still writing for Drum Media. Here is my review of England's Latitude festival, which included a great set by New Young Pony Club (below):Blazing sunshine at a festival in England? Surely not? Well, in contrast to the mud-bath that was Glastonbury, The Latitude Festival was played out to gorgeous blue skies in the most picturesque setting imaginable, on the banks of a lake in the Suffolk countryside.

As well as being the most aesthetically-pleasing festival in England, the relatively new three-day event also boasted an outstanding line-up, which included a couple of Sydney bands. Tucked away on a stage in the woods, Howling Bells offered a suitably atmospheric set as the sun went down behind pink skies.

Meanwhile, in front of a large crowd, folk siblings Angus and Julia Stone (below) told beautiful tales of love and pain plucked from their upcoming debut album, before raising the roof with a delicious rendition of Chumbawumba’s Tubthumping. The rapturous reception and yelled proclamations of love that they received suggests that England is falling for their unquestionable charm in the same way that Australia is. Theirs is a star which continues to ascend at pace.On the main stage, which frustratingly suffered from sound problems all weekend, the legendary Jarvis Cocker played a cover version that rivalled Angus and Julia’s. His rendition of Eye Of The Tiger ended a stunning display which was punctuated by him casually chatting to the crowd about everything from cloud formations to politics. It was a performance which cemented Cocker’s place as one of the most charismatic frontmen of all-time.

While the muddy sound emanating from the PA was usually nothing more than a minor annoyance throughout the weekend, it was woeful to the point of being offensive during Midlake’s short set. Soldiering on, the Americans were joined onstage for Roscoe by the busiest band of the festival, The Magic Numbers, who also turned up to help Damien Rice end his epic performance with a bang. The brother/sister quartet had earlier played their own set, which once again proved they are the perfect festival band. Singing along to their harmonies under a clear blue sky certainly beat getting soaked to the skin while watching them in the torrential rain at The Great Escape earlier this year too.Brazilian indietronica/dance sextet CSS (above) brought the party to Latitude with their infectiously poppy tunes. On a stage bedecked in helium balloons, vocalist Lovefoxxx danced with abandon in glittery cat-suits so wonderfully garish that even Karen O might have thought twice about wearing them. By the time the mesmeric frontwoman belted out crowd-favourite Let’s Make Love And Listen To Death From Above, Latitude had turned from being a quaint part of the English countryside into the best disco ever. Similarly, on the same tiny stage that Howling Bells played, New Young Pony Club (below) went off. Literally. The crowd went so nuts to the Londoners’ dancey tunes that the plug had to be pulled on their show due to safety concerns.Elsewhere, Albert Hammond Junior (below) proved himself to be more than just the guitarist with big hair from The Strokes by playing an outstanding, pop-tinged set with the backing of a ridiculously tight band. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah put in a performance that split the crowd in two, with fans loving it while the uninitiated struggled to overcome the abrasive vocals. Having previously made a guest appearance on stage during New York folk singer Elvis Perkins’ appealing set, Cold War Kids ended their own energetic and well-received show with the storming Hang Me Up To Dry. Herman Dune played kooky guitar tracks, Joan As Policewoman combined the magical elements of Cat Power, Kate Bush and Regina Spektor and Au Revoir Simone’s dreamy synth tunes were perfect for a sunny afternoon.On Sunday night, the festival was brought to a majestic close by art-rockers Arcade Fire. Theirs was an utterly thrilling performance, and it was an indication of their awesome songwriting that, even though they only have two albums under their belt, their show played like a greatest hits set. As thousands of sunburnt Brits danced and sang along to No Cars Go and Neighbourhood #3, it became clear that Latitude can seriously rival Glastonbury as the best British festival, with its beautiful setting, chilled out vibe and no end of art, poetry, theatre and great bands to enjoy. Now all they need to do is sort out those sound problems on the main stage.

V Festival 2007, Sydney

Does Sydney really need so many festivals? Well, probably not, but with a plethora of international talent on offer at V, punters were happy enough to stump up the cash for yet another day in a field. However, here’s a tip for festival organisers, if you want a reviewer to review the bands you are putting on display, it might be worth making sure they get in on time. I stood in a queue with of host of other Very Important People after the music had started, while stewards tried to organise a wristband to verify that I was over 18. Ironically when the wristbands arrived, my companion, who wasn’t over 18, was happily handed one with no ID check. It’s good to see the system works. Anyway, once through the gates with freedom to responsibly drink alcohol, I took in Sydney’s own Mercy Arms (below), who got proceedings off to a bracing start, with Thom’s vocals soaring over their classically-structured epics, which, as always, were played with honesty and conviction. Judging by this showing, they might just steal your heart this year. Meanwhile, Melbourne’s The Temper Trap embellished their excellent live show by adding a string section which gave nice depth to their fast-paced, invigorating guitar tunes. And yes music fans, that was indeed Bridezilla’s supercool Daisy on violin.While LA’s Softlightes made the most of the beautiful sunshine to woo the crowd with their dreamy, melodic, experimental pop, local kids The Ghosts put in another sterling performance which illustrated exactly why their star continues to ascend at pace. Gabby’s vocal has never sounded so good. This is a band that improves with every performance.

By the time Melbourne’s Muscles had made an energetic surprise appearance, the crowd had noticeably swelled in anticipation of the arrival of Phoenix. “Good evening, my friends,” said frontman Thomas, even though it was only 3.15pm. Still, we happily forgave the much-loved Frenchmen for their slightly incorrect use of English, as they played neat, tight indietronica so charming that the world seemed a much nicer place by the end of their set.
Another French act, Nouvelle Vague, offered some kitsch, instantly disposable bossa nova covers of classic indie songs, including The Buzzcocks’ Ever Fallen In Love?, while elsewhere rock dinosaurs New York Dolls churned their way through an ugly set. Meanwhile, those who sought fun danced along to English quintet New Young Pony Club (above), who had the crowd practically turning cartwheels with their funky favourite, Ice Cream.
“It’s getting a bit chilly in’t it? I hope you’ve brought a cardigan,” said Jarvis Cocker in his familiar northern English drawl. An astonishing 29 years after he formed Pulp as a geeky teenager, the songwriter brought his legendary dance moves to V just as the sun was setting, and performed a collection of solo material which sounded as fresh and important as ever. Between songs, the bespectacled crooner threw confectionary treats into the crowd and chatted with such humour and affability that one would have been forgiven for thinking each and every audience member was a close friend of his. For many people, including me, Cocker (below) represents pure genius, and why anybody chose to be anywhere other than watching his wondrously beguiling performance is a mystery. Following Cocker’s majestic show, Beck really didn’t live up to expectations. He played his hits, his band members had a dance-off and the ingenious live puppet display was a clever touch, but there seemed to be a piece of the jigsaw missing. Mr Hansen was clearly lacking his usual spark, and was apparently suffering from the remnants of a bout of flu. While an off-colour Beck is still more entertaining than many fully-fit artists, the great man is capable of far, far more spectacular performances than this. After all, when the best thing about your gig is a puppet show, you know you’re not at the top of your game.
With queues for the bars and the toilets stretching as far as the eye could see, people who wanted to either expell or intake liquid were frantically checking their watches, as it was soon to be time for the arrival of two really big-hitters from overseas, who, due to the capriciousness of festival timetables, annoyingly performed pretty-much simultaneously. Purveyors of intelligent synth-pop, Pet Shop Boys (below) played hit after hit to a joyous crowd. Sartorially stunning, and with great visuals and dancers, the English duo can really put on a show. It’s also easy to forget just how many classic tunes they’ve penned, and, as the opening bars of each song rang out, the crowd yelped in utter delight. Amongst others, we were treated to Rent, Suburbia and Always On My Mind. Camper than Christmas and infinitely more fun, Pet Shop Boys’ magnificent performance was unquestionably the most enjoyable of the day. Quite simply, those who missed it, missed out.
People who tore themselves away from the Pet Shop Boys experience to finally see Pixies literally role into town might have initially felt slightly disappointed. Sure, they played absolutely faultlessly, but with a serious lack of interaction with the crowd, one sensed they were simply going through the motions. However, all it took was to hear one of their seminal songs to remember just why they are so well-loved. After all, how can anyone stand in the middle of a field with thousands of likeminded fellows singing the “oooh” parts to Where Is My Mind? and not have the best time ever?

After hollering along with abandon to Gigantic, Sydney waved farewell to the American legends, probably for good, and a jubilant crowd shuffled home in the knowledge that they’d just been entertained by one of the most influential bands of all time. So memorable was the overall experience that it no longer seemed to matter whether Pixies had come here to fulfil their desire to play to Australian audiences or merely to milk the cash cow dry.

So, does the city really need another festival? Well, any event that has the clout to offer such an impressive line-up is surely a welcome addition. More of the same next year please.

Review by Rob Townsend

New Young Pony Club interview

ON THE EVE OF THEIR FIRST EVER VISIT TO AUSTRALIA, LONDON’S NEW YOUNG PONY CLUB TALK TO ROB TOWNSEND ABOUT NEW RAVE, TOURING AND CAT FIGHTS WITH LILY ALLEN

“A good gig is better than sex.” Frontwoman Tahita pauses for a second, before correcting herself. “Well, actually it’s like having sex with 1300 people. And no consequences.” Watch out; New Young Pony Club are heading this way, and they’re bringing their unique brand of punk-funk, disco-pop noise with them.

For the uninitiated, New Young Pony Club is a supercool collective, comprised of three girls and two guys, that was born following a meeting between Tahita and guitarist Andy Spence three years ago. Bored with the plethora of dad-rocking post Brit-pop bands dominating the indie scene, they saw a niche for the fusion of guitars and dance music, and so their journey began.

NYPC’s influences come from far and wide. There are traces of the New York punk scene from the 70s, the rave scene, as well as nods to bands like The Stone Roses and The Rapture. “Our sound is a free-for-all, a car crash of styles,” the instantly likeable Tahita confirms. The band’s recent eponymous EP release brilliantly showcases this sound, offering simplistic lyrics and chunky, funky beats. It is infectious stuff.

Because they’re guaranteed to get you dancing, NYPC have lazily been labelled with the New Rave tag that all English bands combining guitars and dance music have been lumbered with. Like most of these groups, they feel a little uncomfortable being pigeonholed in such a way. A slightly baffled Tahita does her best to describe a scene that nobody really seems to fully understand. “It’s more a term based on people’s hopes of what is going to happen - the potentiality of a group of bands,” she says by way of explanation. “We’ve had a Labour government in England for ages now and things are getting corrupt. People, particularly young people, want to feel like they have something of their own. There seems to be a spirit lifted directly from 1988, when there would be a cavalcade of cars heading out to the countryside for a rave. Now it all happens with bands playing in warehouses in East London.”

And where did the band’s name come from? “I just like the idea of a Pony Club. It is cutesy and innocent, but then there is also that whole domination thing where people dress up as ponies and draw carts. There is also a lot of Freudian imagery entrenched within horses.” Almost as an afterthought, Tahita adds: “Also, it’s a good acronym.”

Until now, most of the band’s performances have been in the UK, including a recent tour with potty-mouthed songstress Lily Allen. “She’s an interesting girl,” the refreshingly candid Tahita says. “She’s pretty nice, and her band and our band got on really well, but to start with, her and I kind of circled each other like cats, ready to scratch.” In an attempt to clarify the reason behind the initial animosity between the two, she merely says with a laugh: “It’s a front-person thing. It was fine in the end though, and she gave us all flowers at the end of the tour.”

Keen to escape the freezing cold winter’s days of London, the gang of five are heading to Australia this week for the first time to perform at the Modular Christmas party, and a genial Tahita can’t wait. “It’s going to be an absolute riot, “ she enthuses. “I’ve heard that people are really up for it compared to London, where you have to shove a rock up people’s arses to get them moving.” NYPC’s tour also takes them to America and Japan, which is something that will test their stamina to its very limit. “I’m looking forward to seeing more of the world, and I think I’ll enjoy it, but I’m a weakling,” the singer openly admits. “A few nights of doing naughty things and I’ll be coughing, hacking and just wanting to be put in a cardboard box and fedexed home.”

And what does the future hold for New Young Pony Club? “Everyone wants to feel like they are going to be the biggest band in the world, but I’d just be happy to get a really good album out; something that sounds timeless,” Tahita says sincerely. “We want to write emotive songs, as well as songs that make you feel like going out and biting somebody.”

Interview by Rob Townsend