 Festival, which took place from December 9-11, featured three curators – one on each day. Here’s how it went… Friday (curated by Les Savy Fav) Kicking off the first day in true shred style was Marnie Stern. A slight figure of a girl leading a band […] "'Pin It")
REVIEW: ATP NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS FESTIVAL 2011
This year’s Nightmare Before Christmas All Tomorrow’s Parties (ATP) Festival, which took place from December 9-11, featured three curators – one on each day. Here’s how it went…
Friday (curated by Les Savy Fav)
Kicking off the first day in true shred style was Marnie Stern. A slight figure of a girl leading a band of guitar fiddlery, punctuated with high pitched vocals and blasts from the frets. After this followed the well-named Surfer Blood, unfortunately they didn’t live up to the billing. We were expecting surf sci-fi like Man or Astroman but they were more grunge. Maybe judging a band on their name isn’t a good idea.
Soon Oxes were blessing the stage at Reds. They were all chuggy guitars, staccato drums and bluesy riffs. These guys took no prisoners. Then it was off to see a bit of Archers of Loaf, but personally I was really looking forward to No Age. They’re a two piece from Los Angeles whose albums mix dirty garage energy with gorgeous ambient guitar moments. We smuggled to the front and when the two lean bandmates took to the stage and quickly made the audience erupt into a mosh euphoria. They blasted out favourites like ‘Every Artist Needs a Tragedy’ and kept the beautiful drifty ambient sections of their albums to a minimum as they went all-forward, all-balls out mess.
Saturday ( curated by Battles)
Battles were hungover for their early show, although they didn’t show it as they motored through their set with absolute precision. They played an excellent version of ‘Atlas’ and it didn’t seem to matter that they’re now a three piece. Any guest vocals from the second album ‘Drop’ were handled with the screens behind. The vocalists appeared on these and the band played in time with them.
Next was Phil Manley Life Coach in Crazy Horse. Formerly of Trans Am, I’d expected synth led 1980s robo-Krautrock, but instead he played a mesmerising set. He stood with just an electric guitar and what must have been a collection of delay pedals. Then it was off to Reds to see The Field. They comprised a group of about three people with a live drum kit and a live bass. They pumped through the songs, all of which merged into one another, and each one lasting around ten minutes, weaving and bobbing into loud and quiet moments. After this we headed straight to Centre stage to catch the end of Gary Numan. His set was far more industrial than I expected, I think I’ve heard too much of his poppy stuff on the radio perhaps. It was all big loud guitars and powerful keyboard noises. Numan himself was on top form, I was pleasantly surprised.
Phil Manley had earlier recommended The Psychic Paramount to the audience at the end of his gig. We would have been rude to refuse. They were loud, really loud, brilliantly loud, playing long sprawling attacks of songs to a grateful audience. The music had a kind of funky beat, almost like Shellac but a much more dense and psychedelic. And an amazing drummer, but then again, Saturday seemed to be the day for amazing drummers.
Sunday (Curated by Caribou)
Pharaoh Sanders started off Reds on the final day. His soporific jazz was lovely but I felt my heavy eyes getting the better of me by the third song and had to get some air. Back after a break, Dutch post-punkers The Ex were in collaboration with Getatchew Mekuria an Egyptian jazz legend according to the programme. Of course, collaborations like this can go one of two ways, brilliantly or just godamn awful. Thankfully it was the former. The Ex played some of their classics like ‘Cold Weather Is Back’ and the added brass section that accentuated the song. Everyone was dancing and bopping.
No matter how dressed up you get for a gig, you’re never going to beat the Sun Ra Arkestra. The whole band regale themselves in classic Egyptian pharaoh outfits that shines and glitters like stars. Obviously missing Sun Ra himself who has since departed this world and jettisoned himself back to Mars, Marshall Allen is now band leader. He’s a man who looks like a wizard, a space wizard and played an electric clarinet. Yes, a midi controller electric clarinet, and plays it brilliantly of course. It sounds like a brighter Theremin, played by a master. Their schizophrenic but strangely catchy jazz got a smaller than expected audience. But we danced and were transfixed by the musicianship as much as the costumes.
Caribou Vibration Ensemble featured Marshall Allen from Sun Ra, two drummers (including Keiran Hebden from Four Tet), a man in a lab coat plugging cables into a huge modular synth that towered over the stage. To the left of that the brass section, with Allen leading they honked and blasted through the songs, including a favourite of mine, Barn Owl, a ten minute epic. Caribou stood on the right and played a magnificent version of Sun to an appreciative crowd. And then it was off for another fuzzy night in Crazy Horse with a soul DJ who did techno.
There was much variety at this year’s ATP. Musically it was one of the best I’ve been to. I can’t wait for ATP Mangum and I’ll Be Your Mirror in 2012.
Words: Henrietta Rowlatt
