2010 End Of Year Review - Top 10 Gigs

Kicking off four days' worth of posts relating to BobbySix.com's End Of Year Review is the Top 10 live gigs of 2010. Still to come over the next few days, top albums, top movies and top songs:

1. REGINA SPEKTOR, Sydney Opera House 
"Heartbreaking tender ballad Samson remains one of the best songs of the last ten years and commanded hushed awe from the audience but, on this occasion, the highlight was Apres Moi. For someone so softly spoken, Spektor has a massive vocal range and when she ended the song by belting out couplets in Russian, it was jaw-dropping.

Though, on record, her edges seem to have smoothed a little, live, she was as weird and leftfield as ever, using her vocal as an instrument and singing ditties about how “Someone next door’s fucking to one of my songs.”  In taking the step to this next level, Regina Spektor proved that it is possible to make intelligent, beautiful music that is accessible while still remaining daring and oddball." (Full review...)

2. JEFFREY LEWIS & THE JUNKYARD, Oxford Art Factory,Sydney 
"There were punky rock outs and gentler - really wordy - acoustic numbers that showcased his writing talents, as themes of self-doubt, lost love and depression were treated with sincerity and humour. He told fantastical stories about various ways he could commit suicide... while suggesting that Pitchfork would only give his death 3.6 out of 10." (full review...)

3. LAURA MARLING, The Famous Spiegeltent, Sydney
"The use of cello, keys, drums, mandolin, guitar, bass and banjo offered a round sound, yet the set really dazzled when Marling stood alone with just her voice and acoustic guitar... This was a truly enchanting evening from one of the finest young talents around." (full review...)

4. DANIEL JOHNSTON, Monster Children Gallery, Sydney
"Life doesn't often make sense. Plug A rarely fits nicely into Slot B. People conflict and contrast, friction prevails. Sometimes though, very, very occasionally, everything comes together. And, as I stood on the steps, looking over Johnston's shoulder onto a crowd that were hanging on his every word. It was clear that these were my people, and this was my soundtrack. If only life were always like this." (full review...)

5. THE CRIBS, Manning Bar, Sydney
"Even four albums in, The Cribs' raw energy and vivacity hasn't abated, and to combine that with tunes to die for is to be in the presence of one of the most thrilling live bands around." (full review...)

6. KLAXONS, Enmore Theatre, Sydney

"The hour-long set flew by, and, as they wrapped things up with It’s Not Over Yet, Surfing The Void and Atlantis To Interzone, the band seemed genuinely taken aback by the fervent reception they received. “I’m not joking,” said keyboardist/vocalist, James Righton (above) with a look of bewilderment. “You’re the fucking best audience ever.” True, the crowd were going absolutely mental from start to finish, but that’s largely to do with the fact that the Brits practically ripped the roof off from the get-go." (full review...)

7. ANGUS & JULIA STONE, Metro Theatre
"What better way to celebrate your record going gold, than by playing three sold-out shows over two days in your home city? Following Friday night's gig, the siblings played a matinee performance to an under-age audience on Saturday afternoon. Cue a Beatlemania-esque frenzy from the crowd as fourteen-year-old girls took time out from screaming every word of every song to yell requests for impregnation from Angus. If it was all a bit much for the shy, unassuming Mr Stone, then the evening was happily a more chilled-out affair." (full review...)

8. PARADES, Enmore Theatre, Sydney 
"Sydney’s Parades looked like a bunch of high-school misfits who had been rounded up from the loneliest corners of the playground and ushered onto the stage against their will, but, behind their Breakfast Club aesthetic was an awesome, layered soundscape so huge that it’s hard to believe any venue smaller than The Enmore could cope with such epic noise. As is their wont, the quartet bolstered their numbers for their live show and with five boys and one girl offering four vocals and all manner of percussion and effects, their set was diverse and their songs experimental and enormous. This is a band with a really exciting future." (full review...)

9. CABINS AND BRIDEZILLA, Changing Lanes Festival, Sydney

"Cabins' performance drilled its way relentlessly through the audience's bodies. Their bone-shaking set - which included a cheeky cover of Edwin Collins' A Girl Like You - was loud with a capital L.O.U.D. and their catchy indie with alternating vocalists was the highlight of the day...

...Bridezilla (above)  performed a handful of promising new songs in their 30-minute set, the last of which really showed the band's desire to push themselves in new directions. This set-closer, Hey Girl, saw Millie Hall put down the saxophone and take centre stage, playing keys and sharing lead vocals with Holiday Sidewinder. Written by Hall, the poppy number was infectious enough to suggest it will soon be quite the crowd-pleaser, with Hall, Sidewinder and guitarist Pia May delivering some 60s girl-group singalong harmonies." (full review of festival...)

10. FLORENCE & THE MACHINE, Laneway Festival, Sydney
"Florence Welch ripped through the headline slot with gusto. By the time she ended with a winning trio of Dog Days Are Over, You've Got The Love and Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up) - all of which showcased that lung-busting voice - she had the crowd going apeshit (full review of festival...)

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

Ineligible, to be honest (largely because representatives of BobbySix.com made up part of the performance), but still worthy of a shout is David Ford's Milk and Cookies gig in December. Also due a mention are Kate Nash and Lily Allen's performances in Sydney.

Sydney-based artists that are well worth a look the next time they are playing in your neighbourhood are The Laurels, who - with their shoegazey post-grunge wall of noise - are Australia's most underrated band. Elsewhere, The Preachers put in an outstanding performance at Oxford Art Factory - they are fast becoming one of BobbySix.com's favourite bands. Similarly, Cameras played a stunning show at the same venue. Meanwhile, Melbourne's Howl at the Moon played a winning set at King's Cross' World Bar.

One of the most unique and exciting artists in Sydney remains Kirin J Callinan . His boundary-pushing afternoon show at a warehouse in the iconic Hibernian House (above, photo courtesy of Emma Daniels) was the perfect example of how he brings something genuinely different and interesting to the table. Yeah, so it actually took place at the back end of 2009, but we didn't get a chance to mention in last year's review and, anyway, who's counting?

There are probably loads of other really awesome shows that we have overlooked, or that have been lost in a drunken blur, but these are the ones that have jumped to mind. Have we forgotten anything? let us know...

Regina Spektor at Sydney Opera House

Brooklyn’s clearly talented Jupiter One opened with the kind of songs you would expect to hear playing over emotional montages in angsty TV dramas, with cello and violin tugging at the heartstrings. A bit bland, their set played out like the soundtrack to a marketing executive’s wet dream.

What a long way Russian-born New Yorker Regina Spektor has come since the days of self-recording her albums in one day and selling them at her shows. Shuffling nervously onto stage and talking shyly between songs about painting her nails, hugging koalas and how she says “thank you” too much, the big question of her two nights at The Opera House was whether she would prove to be too indie for such a grand setting or whether she was now too polished an artist to please fans of her edgier early work. Happily, she was neither, and her set segued perfectly between old and new.

Employing Jupiter One on strings and drums to great effect, Spektor mainly sat at the piano, but occasionally strapped on a guitar or sang unaccompanied as she mixed slow ballads with radio-friendly pop and more experimental stuff. The Opera House’s phenomenally crisp and clear acoustics helped carry forth every nuance of the music, as songs from her latest album like the bouncy Folding Chair went down well, while oldies like Us and Sailor Song were greeted with joy by long-standing fans.

Heartbreaking tender ballad Samson remains one of the best songs of the last ten years and commanded hushed awe from the audience but, on this occasion, the highlight was Apres Moi. For someone so softly spoken, Spektor has a massive vocal range and when she ended the song by belting out couplets in Russian, it was jaw-dropping.

Though, on record, her edges seem to have smoothed a little, live, she was as weird and leftfield as ever, using her vocal as an instrument and singing ditties about how “Someone next door’s fucking to one of my songs.” In taking the step to this next level, Regina Spektor proved that it is possible to make intelligent, beautiful music that is accessible while still remaining daring and oddball. The standing ovation she received was of course deserved. This was an enchanting performance in the perfect setting.

Interview by Rob Townsend.
Read Rob's interview with Regina here.

End of Decade Review

I know I'm a couple of months late with this. Don't blame me, blame Toshiba for selling me a faulty computer which took forever to repair. Anywhere, here is my end of decade review:

TOP TWENTY ALBUMS OF THE LAST DECADE

1. Is This It - THE STROKES
At a time when the likes of Limp Bizkit were considered the height of talent in indie circles, thank God The Strokes came along and changed everything.


2. Hearts and Unicorns - GIANT DRAG
Post-grunge guitar genius that still sounds as fresh now as when it was released in 2005. In Annie Hardy, Giant Drag have one of the most unique, witty and talented frontwomen around.

3. I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning - BRIGHT EYES
Conor Oberst's best album. The quality doesn't dip for the slightest second.

4. The New Fellas - THE CRIBS
Brilliant sideswipe at London's 'scene'. Raw indie pop tunes so catchy you'll be singing along the first time you hear them.

5. The Moldy Peaches - THE MOLDY PEACHES
A triumph for songwriting, imagination and charm over fancy production. A defining moment in anti-folk.

6. Rings Around The World - SUPER FURRY ANIMALS
Visionary to the point that it makes more sense now than when it was released in 2001. One of the Welsh band's greatest achievements.

7. Garfield - ADAM GREEN
The lo-fi, largely acoustic debut from one half of the Moldy Peaches proved what a diverse, weird and wonderful songwriter Adam Green is.

8. Funeral - ARCADE FIRE
Beautifully grand and epic.

9. Alas, I Cannot Swim - LAURA MARLING
This record is not only impressive because it belies her tender years or because it is her debut offering. Far from it; the genuinely exquisite Alas, I Cannot Swim would be a marvellous achievement for anyone, regardless of whether they were 18 or 80.

10. Up The Bracket - THE LIBERTINES
The album that - before it all went wrong - proved Doherty and Barat to be great poets, capturing the dirty London bohemia perfectly.

11. Myths Of The Near Future - KLAXONS
With Myths Of The Near Future, Klaxons defiantly transcended the hype and created a truly dazzling album. Rave? Hardly. Apocalyptic pop? Possibly. Bloody brilliant? Absolutely.

12. The Felice Brothers - THE FELICE BROTHERS
Old-fashioned yarns of jailhouses, alcohol, drugs, woozy romance and family ties.

13. Man Comes Around - JOHNNY CASH
Heartbreaking.

14. Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope
Her first step towards the mainstream consciousness, while still remaining joyfully left of centre.

15. Real Gone - TOM WAITS
Tom Waits beatboxes in a wardrobe (or at least that's what it sounds like), bangs blocks of wood together and comes up with a dazzlingly original album.

16. White Blood Cells - THE WHITE STRIPES
So many standout tunes, and the whole thing was probably recorded in about half an hour on a budget of four quid.

17. Panic Prevention - JAMIE T
Bouncing capriciously between indie, dancehall, punk and rap, Jamie T’s unrelenting tales of London life give a nod to Joe Strummer, and are told with an equal amount of wit and aggression.

18. Who Needs Actions When You Got Words - PLAN B
Acoustic rap? Surely not? Well, actually, it's really awesome, as Ben Drew washes his dirty laundry in public through lyrics delivered with venom. Whether his upcoming reincarnation as some kind of soul crooner is as good remains to be seen.

18. Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots - FLAMING LIPS
Like the soundtrack to a robot's hazy dream.

20. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not - ARCTIC MONKEYS
Urban storytelling well beyond their years.

TOP TWENTY SONGS OF THE LAST DECADE

1. Do You Realize?? - THE FLAMING LIPS



2. Sampson - REGINA SPEKTOR



3. Hard To Explain - THE STROKES

4. Dreaming Of You - THE CORAL

5. Anyone Else But You - THE MOLDY PEACHES

6. Time For Heroes - THE LIBERTINES

7. Be Safe - THE CRIBS

8. Maps - YEAH YEAH YEAHS

9. No Cars Go - ARCADE FIRE

10. Hurt - JOHNNY CASH



11. Hey Ya! - OUTKAST

12. Toxic - BRITNEY SPEARS

13. Golden Skans - KLAXONS

14. Road to Joy - BRIGHT EYES

15. Presidential Suite - SUPER FURRY ANIMALS

16. Take Me Out - FRANZ FERDINAND

17. Ballad Of Lou The Welterweight - THE FELICE BROTHERS



18. Fake Tales Of San Francisco - ARCTIC MONKEYS

19. Commercial Breakdown - THE SUNSHINE UNDERGROUND

20. Time Is Running Out - MUSE

TOP TWENTY FILMS OF THE DECADE

1. Juno

2. Shaun Of The Dead

3. The Royal Tenenbaums
4. Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain
5. Little Miss Sunshine
6. Young at Heart
7. Anvil! The Story Of Anvil
8. Lost in Translation

9. Mar Adentro
10. Memento

11. Ghost World

12. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

13. Sideways
14. Garden State

15. Being John Malkovich

16. Borat
17. The Orphanage
18. Grizzly Man

19. Donnie Darko
20. City Of God

(slight glitch in the system in the above list: 3. is The Royal Tenenbaums, 8 is Lost In Translation)


QUOTE OF THE DECADE
Take a bow, former Queens Park Rangers manager Ian Hollway, for this gem following his team's rather lacklustre victory against Chesterfield:

"To put it in gentleman's terms, if you've been out for a night and you're looking for a young lady and you pull one, you've done what you set out to do. We didn't look our best today but we've pulled. Some weeks the lady is good looking and some weeks they're not. Our performance today would have been not the best looking bird but at least we got her in the taxi. She may not have been the best looking lady we ended up taking home but it was still very pleasant and very nice, so thanks very much and let's have coffee."

Latitude Festival 2009

I'd prefer not to live up to the stereotype of us Brits always talking about the weather but, okay, let's start by talking about the weather. I've never known anything like what was thrown Latitude's way and, with more than a few English 'summers' under my belt, that's saying something. Having arrived in blissful sunshine on Thursday evening, the entire camp-site awaited the predicted storm with trepidation. When it arrived in the early hours of Friday, it didn't disappoint. Thank God, then, for a sturdy gazebo, which I only ventured away from mid-storm to assist three poor girls who were trying to erect their tents in the ensuing monsoon (by 'assist', I actually mean that I stood under a brolly, issuing advice before slying back to my tent before my feet got too wet).

For the remainder of the weekend, the weather went from torrential rain to boiling sun and back again at ten minute intervals, making it impossible to select a suitable outfit to venture to the arena in. The t-shirt/shorts/wellies/raincoat-either-tightly-done-up-or-tied-around-the-waist-depending-on-the-weather look proved popular throughout. Never mind though, the site remained remarkably mud free all weekend, so the affluent middle-class lefties and their irritating kids that made up the majority of the crowd didn't need to summon the kind of Dunkirk spirit that somewhere like Glastonbury thrives on in times of inclement weather.Onwards and upwards then, and Friday began with a great set by Eastbourners, The Late Greats, (above) with two frontmen sharing vocals over intelligent, interestingly crafted, lo-fi post-punk indie noise. Australia's The Temper Trap's sound seems to get more and more imposing and impressive with every show. On this occasion they filled the Uncut stage with movement and the large tent with soaring anthems. Over on the main stage, Ladyhawke offered the first anthem of the weekend in Paris Is Burning.

Under black skies, The Pretenders put in the performance of the festival so far. On a stage that had, earlier in the day, been frequented by some completely unworthy bands (hello, Amazing Baby), Chrissie Hynde owned the entire field. It was refreshing to see a real band playing a back catalogue of greatest hits (I'll Stand By You and Bob Dylan's Forever Young were particularly memorable) and putting on a proper show. Outstanding.

Next, Russian-born New York beauty Regina Spektor cut a teeny, tiny figure at her piano, so much so that half the crowd had to watch the big screens to catch a glimpse of her (above). Her set started slowly but got more and more awesome with each song. New songs Laughing With and Machine were highlights, as was a ramshackle, bashed-out-on-a-guitar rendition of That Time which she didn't know how to finish. "Sorry. I can't play the guitar," she shrugged with a giggle before sitting back down at the piano and playing one of the greatest songs ever written (seriously), Samson. Behind me, a man proposed to his girlfriend mid-song. She said yes. Tears and cheers all round. Even the rain couldn't spoil such a perfect moment.

While Golden Silvers, Little Boots and Bat For Lashes were headlining various stages that night, this reviewer was onstage in the Bafta-sponsored film tent as part of a choir for an acoustic version of Gangsta's Paradise (really), before dashing off to dance like a twat for the magnificent last twenty minutes of the Pet Shop Boys set.

Saturday at midday saw a secret show by David Ford (above) and his band down by the river. He played old and newies to a large crowd (some of whom were made aware of the event via twitter, others who just happened to be wandering past and stopped for a listen), before handing out champagne and ending with his singalong set-closer Cheer Up (You Miserable Fuck).

The rest of the day's line-up was patchy to say the least, and highlights had to really be sought out. While Patrick Wolf was dressing as an owl on the main stage, Dave Gorman chatted about magic poos in the comedy tent. Later Jessica Delfino started badly but was increasingly funny with each ditty at the comedy tent, ending with the brilliant Don't Rape Me. An acoustic show from New York's Jeffrey Lewis (below) was next, during which he tried out a bunch of new songs "for the first and maybe the last time". They showed typical lyrical genius in the very understated way we have come to expect from the artist.

Over in the Uncut tent, Newton Faulkner's arms were flying everywhere in a blur of motion in a crowd-pleasing set as the festival geared up for the arrival its wild card.

Grace Jones. Oh dear, oh dear, Grace Jones. Despite being a weird choice to headline a major festival, hopes were high that she would wow us with an amazing show. Sure enough, there was a costume change after pretty much every song, and the lighting was great, but where was the substance to back it up? "We finally have some new songs for you," she told us, (as if any of us know any of her old songs except for those two), before singing something instantly flat and forgettable. Indeed, once the costume changes lost their ooh factor, the show was only worth watching for the between-song banter, which was intriguing as it was incomprehensible. "Me Grandfather was a killer," she informed us. It was a car-crash of a headline set and not at all comfortable viewing. But then what would you expect from watching a 61-year-old woman with eyes totally vacant draping herself over onstage railings?

The sound of beautiful acoustic guitars woke campers from their slumber the following morning. It turned out to be Thom Yorke sound-checking for his midday solo set, which included the odd Radiohead song. After the biggest crowd of the weekend had stood in reverence at the great man, last night's hero, Jeffrey Lewis, reappeared, this time in the film tent, with his band to play a full set of folk-punk in place of the absent Lightspeed Champion. It was a more than welcome substitution, and those who attended would have struggled to get the chorus of Creeping Brain out of their heads for the rest of the day.

Following The Late Greats and David Ford earlier in the weekend, further Eastbourne representation came from newcomers Capital, who, either side of a power cut, played big pop anthems that seemed to pay a debt of gratitude to The Killers. Rain clouds hovered ominously as Lisa Hannigan began her set, and how disappointing it was that the heavens opened midway through, causing two thirds of the crowd to run for shelter. Still, those who stayed for the whole thing would surely have been dazzled by the breathtaking vocal of Damien Rice's former sidekick.

While, somewhere where I annoyingly wasn't, Javis Cocker was making an impromptu guest appearance, Tricky created a quite an intense atmosphere in the Uncut tent, but while it was nice to hear classics like Black Steel from his magnificent debut album, his set did seem a bit stale. Conversely, Phoenix were all about upbeat indie/disco/guitar pop. Their songs were bouncy and bright enough to banish the rain - even if they did neglect to play crowd favourite, Too Young.

Over on the stage hidden away in the woods, !!! were nicely funky but with paper-thin vocals, and on the Lake Stage, Slow Club's boy/girl tweeness found the middle ground between The Magic Numbers and The Moldy Peaches. Okay, so they weren't anywhere near as good as either of them, but still fun, even if they were a little drowned out by a polished yet uninspiring set from Editors on the main stage.

(I was collared by BBC7 on Saturday afternoon)

And so, to the main attraction of the festival. Sunday night was headlined by Nick Cave (who had already wowed the crowds here last year with his grubby side-project, Grinderman) and his Bad Seeds. It's safe to say he blew every other performance at Latitude 2009 out of the water. The sound that emanated from the stage from the first moment to the last was an absolute aural attack. Songs from the universally acclaimed latest album, Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! came at the audience like they wanted to beat the hell out of their eardrums and leave them sobbing in a gutter. Cave, an unbelievably intense frontman, pointed out individual members of the audience and stared them straight in the eyes as he delivered lyrics with venom. Of the older tracks, There She Goes My Beautiful World and the deliciously nasty Stagger Lee sounded as fresh as anything all weekend. Devastatingly brilliant.

Aside from the main stages, there were plenty of other things to entertain; movies were shown, celebs like Vivian Westwood spoke in the literary tent, there was a cabaret tent, a kids area, and lots going on down by the lake, like a classical orchestra, a man playing flute inside a bubble floating on the river (below), a robot dancing between the trees, coloured sheep to ahh at and a charity shop selling second hand clothes.However, while these things continued the tradition of Latitude being a laid back, eclectic, family-orientated festival, nothing could paper over the cracks of the line-up. Sure, there were some good acts and a couple of truly great performances, but generally there just wasn't enough depth of quality, especially for a festival that thinks that it can charge £150 a ticket and get away with it. Okay, so there were some big names and some of the little bands did themselves no harm, but where were all the decent middle-range bands; your Mystery Jets, Jamie Ts, Laura Marlings and Late Of The Piers? Any single day's line-up at this year's Glastonbury was a million miles better than the entirety of Latitude.

So, in a nutshell - Latitude 2009: great vibe, shame about the line-up.

Regina Spektor - Far

Three long years since her breakthrough long-player, Begin To Hope, Regina Spektor returns with an album that utilises no fewer than four producers. Across the thirteen piano-led tracks, the Russian-born New Yorker uses the production talents of Mike Elizondo, Jacknife Lee, David Kahne and ELO’s Jeff Lynne to fashion a polished continuation of where she left off last time.

Far sees the singer/songwriter accompanied by a full band, and the shimmering production does sometimes send things veering towards the middle of the road, but her unique personality remains strong throughout. Even though there is nothing here to match the best of Begin To Hope, there are still some really strong moments. Playing like a darker (and infinitely better) version of Joan Osborne’s What If God Was One Of Us, the sharp Laughing With stands out. “No-one’s laughing at God when it’s gotten real late and their kid’s not back from the party yet,” she sings.

A possible problem with Far is that it might be too polished for fans of her envelope-pushing earlier work while remaining too quirky for mainstream audiences. However, the inalienable truth is that, regardless of whether she is offering radio-friendly choruses (The Calculation) or doing dolphin impressions (Folding Chair), Spektor is an exceptional storyteller. Her lyrics manage to be everyday and fantastical all at once. Her vivid tales about a lost wallet, religion, a conversation between two birds and the result of a ‘human of the year’ competition are like beautifully intricate paintings. Regina Spektor remains a wonderfully weird treasure, even if her edges seem to be getting smoother.

Regina Spektor interview

Regina Spektor was still little-known in Australia when I last spoke to her at the end of 2006 about the release of her fourth long-player, Begin To Hope. While music lovers in the U.S. and the U.K. have long-since been mesmerised by her diverse, piano-led tales, word took longer to spread to these shores. However, such was the record’s charm that it was easy to envisage this country quickly falling head-over-heels in love with the Russian-born New Yorker.

Predictably, the album has been so well-received that the clamber for tickets to see Spektor’s first ever Sydney show at The Enmore Theatre meant another date had to be added. This leads me to ask the delightful songstress if it feels somewhat strange to be selling out sizeable venues in a country that she has never previously visited. “Absolutely,” she confirms in her delicate New York accent. “It’s very, very strange and I’m feeling a lot of pressure. In other places it’s a little bit more natural because I started out in small clubs and little bars and worked my way up. It’s a strange feeling just to show up in a place and to have something that in other places you have to put in the time and the work for. I feel like I’m getting handed something and I’m like: ‘Wait. Don’t give it to me. You need to see if I’m worth it first’.”

 

To see Regina Spektor perform live is an experience so captivating and intimate that it feels like she is singing to you and you only, and proves that she is indeed well worth the fanfare that she arrives to. Pleasingly, the anticipation is reciprocated, even though she has to overcome a massive fear of flying to make it here at all. “I can’t wait. I’m terrified of the flight and the jetlag – I’m a very nervous flyer, but I’m excited about everything else. I really hope I won’t just be doing promotion and playing. I want to see some real places and get a feel for the country.”

In spite of her keenness to take in some of Sydney’s attractions, you’re unlikely to spot this particular tourist embarking on the Harbour Bridge climb during her time in the city. Being a consummate professional, her need to put on a great show takes precedence. “I put so much energy into my shows and I need to have lots of physical and mental strength, which means I can’t go sightseeing all day and then just pop in to sound-check. I feel the desire to come through every time and give people the most that I can. So I can’t spend the day running around the city getting tired and then be like: ‘Oh whatever. The show will be fine’.”

As well as being fully committed to performing to the very best of her ability when she sits down to tickle the ivories at The Enmore Theatre, Regina will also treat us to some previously unheard material. “I have written some new songs and I’ll play some of those. Everything is mixed up together: old songs, new songs, middle songs, album songs and demo songs. It’s all a big mush.” In keeping with the vagaries of her set-list, her musical style is also wonderfully eclectic. She offers tender piano ballads, anti-folk romps and playful vocal melodies so varied that when I ask what her songwriting process is, she struggles to answer; eventually admitting that the way she creates her music is something of a mystery, even to her. “In that way I’m kind of a crappy interview,” she states.

 

Her refreshing unwillingness to simply reel off a hackneyed quote when faced with a question she doesn’t know how to answer brings me back to a point we discussed last year. The bashful, unassuming 27-year-old is open in her aversion to doing interviews, which makes me wonder if she is starting to find them any more bearable as her profile grows and she gets more practised at dealing with journalists. “I guess it depends who it is and how I’m feeling. Sometimes I’m still like: ‘Oh this sucks. I just want to make songs.’ It’s not hard for me to talk when interviews are nice like this one, but sometimes interviewers have an agenda, or they’ll seem to want to phrase things in an aggressive, sarcastic manner and bust my balls. Those aren’t a pleasure, but in general…” she pauses, before asking with a nervous giggle: “I don’t know. You spoke to me before. Have I gotten any better?”

The way that the genuine and friendly Regina patiently and thoughtfully answers my questions as I stumble through our conversation with the bumbling awkwardness of a schoolboy with a crush suggests that she is a better interviewee than she gives herself credit for. In her a sugar-sweet tone, she continues: “I hope that it’s one of those things where I am still in the transitional state, and either the interviews will die down because I’ll have eventually talked to everybody in the whole world, or I’ll learn how to write music in these conditions. I feel like something’s got to give though because, although it’s been an exciting year, it’s also been a bit frustrating to not be able to make as much music as I’d like. I’m the least prolific that I’ve ever been,” she
laments.

 

Even though Regina may not be as productive as she’d like, she is still incredibly fruitful in her songwriting and has “tons and tons of songs waiting to see the light of day.” While this is an exciting prospect for those of us who have played her latest album to death, her next record is still very much in the pre-production stage, and she is keeping a typically open mind about how it will sound, as things can easily change once she gets in the studio. “It’s all theory at the moment. It’s like baking a cake in theory, but then all of a sudden you have to handle stuff with your own hands and you accidentally spill half of the milk so you’ve only got half of it in the cake. Everything changes, you know? Man plans and God laughs. I might meet someone tomorrow who plays the best banjo I’ve ever heard and I might end up with banjo on my record.”

While banjos have so far failed to permeate Regina’s output, it is true that she has no fear of pushing the musical envelope in her vividly-imagined stories. On one song she plays piano with one hand and uses the other to hit a chair with a drumstick. Elsewhere, she sings Russian couplets, applies differing accents, or uses her voice as an additional musical instrument. These nuances make Regina Spektor’s music as interesting as it is charming and, as she is set to prove with her debut live dates in this country, she one of the most talented and intriguing songwriters of our generation. Hers is a unique talent which should be cherished.


Read Rob's previous interview with Regina here.
Read the review of Regina's show at Sydney Opera House here.

Regina Spektor interview

Check our more recent interview with Regina here.
Check the review of Regina's show at Sydney Opera House here.

If you read any review of Regina Spektor, you will inevitably stumble across the words ‘kooky’ and ‘quirky’. While it is true that the Russian-born singer does favour weird and wonderful lyrics and themes, and enjoys experimenting with all manner of sounds, she is also a songwriter of incredible quality (if anyone this year has written a song more beautiful than her new album’s standout ballad Samson, I have yet to hear it), which leads one to wonder if she gets frustrated with constantly being written off as an oddball. “That’s a really interesting question,” she says. “I used to get a lot more frustrated, but then I thought ‘it doesn’t matter’. To me, really standard things are quirky, everybody has their own taste.” She pauses for a moment’s thought, before continuing. “Maybe it’s because I’m female. The Beatles made I Am The Walrus and Bob Dylan sang about how ‘everybody must get stoned’. Lots of men have fun but when they do it people say they’re ‘being adventurous’ or ‘pushing the envelope’. Kate Bush and Bjork are described as kooky, whereas Trent Reznor isn’t.” It seems though, that Spektor isn’t the kind of person to ruminate on such matters, and she brushes it off by saying: “I don’t mind so much, it’s the only way some people can think to describe something different. I think I’m a pretty sane person. Maybe someday I’ll make a really serious album. And people will probably still call it quirky.”

Regina Spektor’s personality is as charming as her music. The flame-haired singer-songwriter speaks in the softest, sweetest New York accent, making her sound like a gangster’s moll from the 1930s. A one-time collaboration with her buddies The Strokes aside, the Australian public would be forgiven for not knowing a huge amount about Spektor. This is perhaps because she isn’t the biggest fan of doing interviews to promote herself. “I find it hard when someone clearly hasn’t listened to your music and is just reeling off things from your biography,” she admits. So when I tell her that I am something of a fan, the shy songstress is genuinely delighted, and instantly opens up about her latest album, Begin To Hope.

The album, which is her fourth collection of dreamy, fun and intriguing piano-based songs, has seen her take a different approach to piecing together her work. Previously, her long-players were rattled off in the space of just a few days, but for this recording, she holed herself up in a New York studio for two months to create an even more experimental record. “It was really wonderful. It felt great to have time to work on the songs. The big fear was that is was going to be something that was more fun to make than to listen to. Imagine someone is cooking, and they really enjoy the process of putting in lots of peppers and colours, but there is always the danger of overcooking it.”

The universal acclaim that Begin To Hope has received suggests that nothing was overcooked in Spektor’s kitchen, and she clearly enjoyed being able to spend time considering her work. “Some things are easy to scrap, some things are hard to scrap. It’s nice to be able to come back and listen to it fresh the next morning.” So, will she approach her next recording in this way or will it be a return to the old style of doing things? Well, neither, as it happens. “I’ll do it a third way. I always want to do different things. You never want to get stuck in a rut.”

On top of her beautiful albums, Spektor’s live show is an absolute treat, which perfectly combines fun and intimacy. “I love playing live very, very, very much. I’m also really fucking lucky though. The people who come to my shows are really cool to each other and cool to me.” Her tours have yet to take her to Australia, but there is the desire within her to visit soon. “I really want to. Hopefully in 2007. I’ve heard really great things about Australia from bands like The Strokes and Dresden Dolls and from crew members that I’ve worked with. Everyone who goes there seems to love it.”

One senses that, if the fanfare surrounding Begin To Hope is any guide, it won’t take Australia too long to fall in love with her as well.

Drum media End of Year Poll

This year, I was asked to do an end of year poll for Drum Media. Ridiculous as it sounds, it was a lifelong dream of mine. I am forever making such liss in my head. Here is a potted version of what I came up with:

TOP 10 ALBUMS
1. Giant Drag - Hearts and Unicorns
2. Regina Spektor - Begin to Hope
3. David Ford - I Sincerely Apologise For the Trouble I’ve Caused
4. Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Show Your Bones
5. Goyte - Like Drawing Blood
6. Arctic Monkeys – Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not
7. Micah P Hinson – Micah P Hinson and The Opera Circuit
8. Tom Waits – Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards
9. Kimya Dawson – Remember That I Love You
10. Muse - Black Holes and Revelations

Album of the year. So says Bobby Six

ARTIST OF THE YEAR
1. Regina Spektor
2. Goyte
3. David Ford

BEST LOCAL ARTIST GIG
1. Bridezilla/The Ghosts/Mercy Arms, Candy’s Apartment
2. The Vines (who’d have thought?), Homebake
3. Sarah Blasko, @Newtown

BEST TV SHOW
1. Extras
2. Family Guy
3. Australian Idol(oh the shame)

BEST FILM
1. Little Miss Sunshine
2. Borat

BEST WEBSITE
1. Myspace
2. Youtube
3. Shesaidhesaid.org

HIGHLIGHT OF THE YEAR
Not The Ashes. Anything but The Ashes.

PREDICTION FOR 2007
Bridezilla to become massive. If you don’t fall in love with their music, then I’ll eat my laptop.

QUOTE OF THE YEAR
“Lachlan Marks, Rob Townsend and Andrew Street are a bit smug about getting in (to gigs) for free,” according to a disgruntled reader in the Drum letters page.

2006 IN REVIEW
My 2006 started in August, when I moved to Sydney from grey old England. While my knowledge of English and American alternative music is pretty comprehensive, my awareness of the Australian scene didn’t really stretch far beyond Wolfmother and Men at Work. I was therefore happy to discover a vibrant Sydney scene with a real sense of community that made London seem even more up its own arse than I already knew it was. With fantastic young bands and no end of kids willing to go to their gigs, this place holds its own against other cities. Take it from a foreigner. While the NME has spent this year meticulously constructing its own scenes (New Rave anyone?), over here people just allow great bands like Mercy Arms to grow organically, without feeling the need to pigeonhole or label them. Oh, and the weather is better over here too.

This is just a selection of what I wrote. For the full listing go here: http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=12792787&blogID=210142284&MyToken=863eed6a-2e88-4487-9257-e47414164618.