Found - BRNS

Om nom nom nom nom - that's me devouring cake, birthday cake no less, because as of yesterday The Found Of Confusion turned one year old!!....well sort of at least. Actually the weekly 'Founds' began on the 6th of January, but if the Queen can have two birthdays then so can we, and as it's twelve months since we stepped out from beneath the protective wing of the The Sound Of Confusion, to become a fully fledged stand alone blog, I think it's a good excuse for a party!! So help yourself to the sausages on sticks and jelly, have a play on the bouncy castle, then come gather near the makeshift stage... oh yes reader, of course we got a band in!

Not just any run of the mill band either; no such is our style, we've turned to some class from the Continent to set this shindig off just right. Flying in from the cobbled corners of Brussels, come four men who travel under the collective umbrella BRNS. If the pronunciation has you perplexed, then it's worth pointing out that the quartet originally formed with the name Brains, but the grind of grappling to get noticed on Google subsequently led them to jettison the vowels in favour of a sleeker signature. While though their calling card may be a source of ambiguity, few questions should linger around their music making potential - last years self-titled debut EP dispelled any doubts over the course of fifteen invention packed minutes. Leading things of was the raw, indie-funk, overtones of 'Mexico'. A half pleading, half protested, yelp of 'I've never been in Mexico!' conducts the show, inviting the organ, guitars, and what could pass for an impromptu pots and pans kitchen orchestra, to drop in and build the melody to a cacophonous conclusion; somehow meticulous and ramshackle at the same time, this is Holy Fuck stripped down to their engine parts with a splash of OK Go dripping from the fuel tank. For the juddering 'Here Dead He Lies', it's the factory production line rather than the repair shop that springs to mind, the drums and guitar working in unison and ricocheting back and forth like a pneumatic drill bit, before a ticking time bomb middle eight, explodes the song into a crunching and rousing finale. Vocally comparable to Miike Snow, and displaying the mood mannerisms of Metric, this is a high skilled operation live in action. With an additional track, 'Clairvoyant', maintaining the lofty standards, you don't need to read the future to know that the follow up EP the band are currently recording will be a work worth exploring. Come for the party, but if you use your BRNS people, you'll be the ones leaving with a new gift.

Mexico by BRNSmusic

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Up On The Clouds No 3

Allow me to share with you a little observation I've made readers. Come Spring or Summer each year, our excitable online news outlets like to wheel out the following headline: 'UK braced to bask in unseasonably high temperatures this weekend'. Very nice. The things is though, I've noticed that what they actually meant to type was this: 'It'll be baking hot in Bournemouth so we're off to the beach to build sandcastles - enjoy your freezing fog you daft northerners!!'' Not that I'm bitter at all! So if like me you're stuck inside shivering in your shorts, what to do? Well let me tell you - combat the cold and disappointment by taking a trip over to Soundcloud!...

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...Because there you'll find a new track form CALM AS THE COLOUR, and as we all know, the sun always shines down on their world! 'Sometimes' is the lead track from the bands upcoming 'Tomorrow Belongs To A World Apart' EP, and if by any chance fellow Scots For Abel are in need of some kindred spirits to spark a scene, then they need look no further. Mix '87 vintage Primal Scream in with some mid 90's Teenage Fanclub and Bob, it would seem, is your jangly uncle.

Sometimes by calmasthecolour

Now that's got you mentally bathing in the warm weather, you'll be wanting something to sweeten your ears while you lie back picking the grass and watching the clouds - what do you know, SUMMER HEART is at your service! The Crown Prince Of Chillwave (that's not an official nickname, I just made it up, but David if you're reading you can have that one on me!) is back with more wafting, woozy beats, to set the scene for his debut album 'About A Feeling', due out on April The 25th. In advance of that the record's first single will be 'A Million Times', and it's available right this minute for free!

A Million Times by SUMMER HEART


After such a relaxing afternoon in the sunshine you'll probably be feeling in a generous mood and want to take your significant other out for a spot of dinner wont you. Well while you're in the restaurant, make sure you pay attention to the young lady tinkling the ivories in the corner - it's only I AM HARLEQUIN playing her new track!!! A sweeping and striking ballad, 'Wild One' took it's public bow on last Monday's episode of Skins - so that makes it official, if you want to be allowed to hang out with the cool kids you'd better get this bought!

I am Harlequin - Wild One by I am Harlequin

Of course the night it still young, and on your way home from the meal there's every chance you might stumble across a party in full swing..... which you should continue to walk past and instead go to the one in the warehouse down the road, where MOSCOW YOUTH CULT will be set up sharing their dark, warped interpretation of electro. So that you know what to expect, you'd best grab the free download of 'Phase IV', a track taken from their upcoming LP 'Happiness Manchines', and study it intently.

p h a s e i v by Moscow Youth Cult

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Well that turned into quite the day didn't it, don't forget to slap on the after sun before bed readers!! Oh and if you're not to busy then why not pop back round on Thursday and meet the next band to join the club.

foundofconfusion@hotmail.co.uk

Found - Delta/Alaska

When upon last Friday night, The Found Of Confusion was engrossed in a charity quiz night (seeing as you’re dying to know we finished second, stupid picture round with its movie stills!!!), the following question was asked: ‘What is the 5th letter of the Greek alphabet?'. The designated ‘writer’ of our team immediately scribbled down the relevant response and sat back nodding confidently. Now, not knowing the correct answer and feeling inquisitive, a colleague to my left enquired discreetly of me ‘is it ‘Delta?’, to which I replied, ‘I’ll ask her’ – you can imagine the hilarity that ensued when the rest of the table thought we had actually been discussing this week’s Founders DELTA/ALASKA, spooky or what!

Presuming our cloth eared companions misguided assumption had actually been correct, what could they have gleamed from their well executed eavesdropping? Well first and foremost, they'd be left in no doubt that Delta/Alaska spin out the type of tumultuous and instinctive indie-rock jams that are designed to get your gig going threads dusted off and down the front for a serious shake down. Conceived in the autumn months of 2010, the five piece from the north side of London quickly dipped their toe in the industry water, launching a single 'Start With The Cage', before then opting to gradually seep further material out via a number of compilation appearances. Those tracks united to form January's debut EP, and the self titled collection is proof positive that opposites not only attract, but can also gel into a desirable relationship. In this instance the yang of the co-dependency is keen to flex its force - 'Vancouver's thunderous drum assault, the brewing storm clouds of 'D.L.O.I', and some fierce At The Drive In licks, combining to blistering effect - but the music's inner strength comes from the calming counterbalance the yin provides. Part Lilies From Mars, part Durutti Column; childlike, feminine vocals, intertwine with aquatic guitar melodies to confirm that at the eye of the tornado there's a tranquil haven to be found. This marriage of styles is at its most captivating on 'All Our Friends By The Sea'; the smooth waters of the songs opening minute, rapidly being displaced by a tidal wave of fuzz and frenzy that crashes out of sight almost as quickly as it arrived. If the quiz question many music fans in 2012 are asking is, 'Where are the exciting new bands?' then it just might be that the answer on the pad will read: 'Delta/Alaska'.

Vancouver by Delta/Alaska

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Found - Peace

Sit down beside me child for yours is the kingdom and.. blah de blah blah - no reader, I've not been Canonised (yet), I'm simply using biblical language as a rather clever means of conveying the impression that I'm feeling serene. The reason for my meditative calm is that we presently find ourselves in the midst of Lent, which for those non Catholic readers will be more familiar to you as the no mans land between the night you scoff loads of pancakes and the morning you shovel in big chocolate eggs. This is a period that requests we spiritual superiors take time to ourselves - atheists, think of the hermit in Life Of Brian as a guide - look inwardly, and reflect on what we could do better to make ourselves and those around us happier; in short to find peace...so that is exactly what The Found Of Confusion has done!

It turns out the path to PEACE is actually the M6 into England's second city, and it's one this blog first metaphorically travelled in the middle of last year. The strong desire to feature the Birmingham quartet at that stage, was tempered by the fact that the somewhat mental, epileptic-endangering, video for 'BBlood' caused this writer to feel like death incarnate, so a decision was made to sit tight and wait for something more visually suitable to appear. Thankfully that has now materialised in the shape of new single 'Follow Baby', and with heavyweights like the NME hitching up on to the bandwagon, let's hope there's still room for a little one to squeeze on at the back. Those clambering aboard, are likely to be discussing how the new track is not only kinder on the eyes, but also a treat for the ears. Both the prior mentioned 'Bblood' and it's partner demo 'Vials' promised much, abducting Foals mix of math rock rhythms and hollow melody and then giving the sap a lesson in how to toughen up, via some primal drum skin bashing and a growling base line. On 'Follow Baby' that attitude remains intact but the band have stepped out sporting different garbs; a straining vocal and grunge inspired intro pays worthy respect to The Vines, but it's the anthemic simplicity of the chorus that will really make you sit up and take notice. Throw in the type of static charged guitar riff that served Suede so well through their formative years, and what we have over the course of just three minutes is one of the best singles of the year to date. So sorry all, If you're looking for peace then you've come to the wrong place, it seems this band are about to turn things up a lot louder.

BBLOOD by P E A C E

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