Issue 433

Battle Circus

It'sbeen a number of years since the concept album has carried the kind of validity it once did. In fact, it's really become something of a derided art-form - one that carries with it the baggage of the excesses of '70s prog and '80s metal. But does that mean it can't be done? Certainly not, says Marcel Bellve, guitarist and vocalist with New Zealand 4-piece Battle Circus.


"We use it more as a device to write stuff," he explains, "instead of doing something and calling it a concept album. It's a means to an end."

Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend
Inertia / XL

There are plenty of bands that choose a classic album as a reference point when they undergo the process of recording an album. However, Vampire Weekend's choice to draw from the brilliance of Paul Simon's 'Graceland' is such a great idea, it left me wondering why nobody had thought of doing it before? The combination of afro-pop sounds merged with a preppy version of indie rock cool is such a winner. Vampire Weekend hail from New York and like the Big Apple's main musical export of recent years (The Strokes), a steadily building wave of hype - especially online - has been growing about their remarkably fresh and exciting sound.

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