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Bolachas Now Playing

#203: Moon Duo, “Stars are the Light”

Wow, every now and then we also feature non-“songwriter” music as our album of the week! It’s only been half a week of listening to it on repeat, but Moon Duo’s seventh LP is probably their most interesting offering so far. “Stars Are the Light” finds the American psych duo at their grooviest and we simply can’t get enough.

And there’s more: brand new tracks by The Deer, The New Pornographers, Chastity Belt, Vivian Girls, Cate Le Bon and Bradford Cox, The Comet is Coming, Mão Morta, Weeping Icon, Xylouris White, Telefon Tel Aviv, Sturgill Simpson, Loving, Red River Dialect, Darrin Bradbury and Margo Price, Colter Wall, Molly Sarlé, Dori Freeman, Mount Eerie and Julie Doiron, Donivan Berube, Will Johnson, The Milk Carton Kids, the Mountain Goats, and Jim James with The Louisville Orchestra.

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Bolachas Now Playing

#194: Jesca Hoop, “STONECHILD”

 

Last time we checked on Jesca Hoop she was busy touring a collaboration album with Iron & Wine and recording a (mostly acoustic) new album with Blake Mills. In 2019, she’s taking a different approach by teaming up with John Parish and recording what’s probably the most interesting record of her career, his subtle electronic touches complementing her fingerpicked guitar without ever even approaching “folktronica” territory (good to know they both know it’s not 2005 anymore).

This week’s playlist also features new tracks by Belle and Sebastian, Vanishing Twin, Moon Duo, Rayland Baxter, The Raconteurs, Okey Dokey, TFS Band, Titus Andronicus, Necking, Giant Sand, 75 Dollar Bill, Claire Cronin, black midi, Kacy & Clayton, Aviva le Fey, Alasdair Roberts, Erin Durant, Leif Vollebekk, Jonah Tolchin, and RF Shannon.

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Bolachas Now Playing

#9: Black Yaya, “Black Yaya”

Last week’s playlist. Two tracks from the new Black Yaya record, out now, plus a ton of new tunes. Probably the catchiest bunch yet! Artists that repeat the honor include Susanne Sundfør, Death Cab for Cutie, Mikal Cronin, Lord Huron, Sufjan Stevens and Matthew E. White; there are also new songs by Jenny Hval, Colleen Green, Daughn Gibson, Lower Dens, Colleen, Coelho Radioactivo, Moon Duo, My Morning Jacket and Jacco Gardner

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live

Milhões de Festa 2012 preview: day 3

Aff, last day of the festival, it’s always an awkward feeling, knowing that these days only will be back in a year. But what is this, I’m already missing Milhões de Festa when it hasn’t even started? No can do. And there’s a lot going on on Sunday, so save the whining for Monday morning. Off we go.

Moon Duo

Swimming Pool Stage

The swimming-pool will be top notch this day. Starting with Grup Ses Beats, this should be interesting: remixed traditional Turkish music (or so it seems) with heavy beats and stuff. That’s pretty much all the info I could obtain on the web, later I’ll figure out if I got it correct.

To talk about Naytronix you need to contextualize that this fellow Nate Brenner plays bass guitar in bands like tUnE-yArDs, and if you’ve heard this you know there’s fucking groove there. Given the credits, his music is characterized with heavy synths, but expect to hear a sax or a guitar from nowhere, it’s like tUnE-yArDs turned futuristic. I’ll be waiting for the conditions of the pool for this, it has the potential of “favorite concert” for a few people.

But ultimately this is the concert lots of people wanna see: Moon Duo. Ripley Johnson of Wooden Shjips and Sanae Yamada are enough to do a heavy-weight psychedelic/space/whatever rock that will throw us all to the pool. Forget the flat water, there will be waves.

Also to check, after all this: DJ Fitz.

Memória de Peixe @ Mercado das Artes © Amílcar Rodrigues


Taina Stage

Midnight Priest is a metal band. There. The leather, old guitars, vintage feel, they rock. Just like that, very straight. Don’t ask for more, but expect to get what you’d think. And it’s much enough.

But the big name to close the Taina Stage sure is Killimanjaro, a band that sums up pretty well the spirit of this stage. Stoner rock who doesn’t afraid of anything and drum plates, the riff-fans will love it. It’s a loud goodbye.

Also check: AmazonasQuartel 469 (not their facebook page but a page for a good cause)

Black Bombaim’s Tojo Rodrigues © Amílcar Rodrigues

Main Stages

Fans of avant-garde… things, here’s your band for Milhões, L’Enfance Rouge. This is wild, expect highs and lows as for loudness is concerned. Also, great fucking distortion! You should learn better, bands over there who just shit either loud sound either dissonant music: do both!

Now one of the most talked/bashed bands in the Portuguese circuit, yes it’s Memória de Peixe. Is this really bad? I’ll answer you with a question: do you like Battles? El Guincho? Hipster Summer bands? If guiltily or not so, why the hate to this? It’s a perfectly legitimate act, drums and guitar doing all the work with help from the loops (curious to see how it works live), and above all things, fits like a glove in the MdF spirit. I’m not telling you to love this, but certainly I can’t understand the hate.

I don’t care, I’ll do the same. Alt-J? That’s bollocks, that voice is unbearable, chick-magnet beats, only the videos are good and even that is hipster clichéd, pfff [I’m kidding! (Am I?)]. Changing the mood, this is pretty enjoyable, moving through many grounds, hip hop, electronic, indie rock, you name it. And most of all, they do it right. I’ll submit to all the praise (but that voice, it’s fucking weird).

All is going to end well when right next plays the best band from Barcelos (I’m sorry other 1001 ones, but it is), they’re Black Bombaim! And guess whose band you’ll get to check again? It’s GNOD, joining them! Really, I deserve some beer from those guys, all the promote and shit (it’s an open invitation). But it makes perfect sense this, Black Bombaim ultimately are in the mood for colabs (this year’s album is full of them, and it rocks a lot), so this should work just fine. One thing for sure: PREPARE YOUR FUCKING EARS. THIS IS ME PREPARING MY VOICE IN CASE I NEED TO SPEAK TO SOMEONE DURING THE CONCERT (Cool down, I’m not one of those boring dudes who speaks to you during concerts and adds you on facebook).

The cool bands keep coming, now it’s Red Fang! Another stoner rock band for the day, this one is talented as hell, Mastodon got them for opening their concerts, they’re able of versatile stuff, it’s already a win. The only problem by this time of the festival is going to be mine, either if I still have the energy and ears for this. The hell with this, #YOLO. (sooner or later the change to tumblr. would make me type this)

And to finish, a big fucking party with The Discotexas Band,that is no more no less that a supergroup with artists from the Discotexas catalogue, in which includes two (or three) names that already played in Milhões: Moullinex + Xinobi & Da Chick. It’s the very best, so don’t miss!

Alt-J (∆), or how finally MdF got to have bands with triangles in their names

Other concerts to see: Al-Madar, Riding Pânico, Shangran Electro & Zombies For Money.

So this is it boys and girls. All the bands to Milhões de Festa covered (the ones on top of a stage, at least). This is only half the fun occurring in Barcelos this weekend, be sure to be there. Big holidays, wohooo. For you, with love, Bernardo.

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bernardo@bolachas.org (I’ll only check it Monday, and you know why)