Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion (Domino Records) January 12th, 2009 5.0/6.0 Just as In The Flowers, the opening track on Animal Collective’s ninth studio album, is about to lull you into a false sense of security with a comparatively understated opening, at 2:31, it literally explodes into a torrent of shimmering electronic noise more [...]
Album Reviews
Going Ape
Fight Like Apes – Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion (Model Citizen Records) January 26th, 2009 4.6/6.0 Wondering whether popular indie will ever move along from identikit three-piece all-male bands with guitars and a small handful of chords? Well, fear no longer. Fight Like Apes are here to do just that [...]
Music: Reviews
Cherbourg – Last Chapter Of Dreaming EP
Cherbourg – Last Chapter Of Dreaming EP (Chess Club Records) February 2nd, 2009 4.0/6.0 Cherbourg’s debut EP is a refreshing change from the stack of pathetic electroclaptrap we have all been urged to lend our ears to this year. Opening with a burst of Radio 3 evening concert-stylie tuning up – with a few folk’n’roll [...]
Album Reviews
Lark Ascending
Sky Larkin – The Golden Spike (Wichita Records) February 9th, 2009 5.5/6.0 Yorkshire’s Sky Larkin have been teetering on the brink of expectation since Dance To The Radio issued a limited release of their debut single One Of Two at the start of 2007. The same song which propelled them to infamy here in Motelville, [...]
Album Reviews
Nightmoves
Franz Ferdinand – Tonight: Franz Ferdinand (Domino Records) January 26th, 2009 4.4/6.0 Those of you who feared that Franz Ferdinand were going to take things up to 180bpm and replace their dirty guitars with a lot of pristine, soulless electro blips can breathe out now. Tonight: Franz Ferdinand does mark a shift in direction but [...]
2008 - Extended Edition
Kate’s Top 50 Singles/EPs of the Year: numbers 10-1
10. James Yuill – No Pins Allowed (Moshi Moshi) Review of the Year ‘08 interview star James Yuill already had his place in the Motel Editorial Heart marked a long long time ago (well, last winter), when he remixed The Answering Machine’s Lightbulbs to devastating effect. No Pins Allowed is an attention-seeker, but the good [...]
2008 - Extended Edition
Kate’s Top 50 Singles/EPs of the Year: numbers 20-11
This year’s new main rule is a maximum of one release from each artist, which has meant some very difficult choices in some cases. Re-releases are avoided unless they a) were genuinely overlooked or ignored last year and b) have made a tumultuous impact on your editor in the process. So no Five Years’ Time [...]
2008 - Extended Edition
Kate’s (Slightly Belated) Top Ten Albums of 2008
*This chart, ‘Kate’s (Slightly Belated) Top Ten Albums of 2008′, has been certified free of all MGMTs by the Falsetto Association and Society For The Preservation of Unashamedly Retro Synth Blips* 10. Hot Chip – Made In The Dark (EMI Records) A surprisingly diverse offering from the darlings of the Warehouse Project generation. Over And [...]
Music: Features
Happy new year from us!
Happy new year from The Fugitive Motel! Motelville officially ‘opens’ again on January 5th, and many many changes – both cosmetic and organisational – are planned and will be gradually introduced over the next six months. Hopefully, they’ll make the site easier to navigate for you. We also hope they will make it easier for [...]