The Reatard and the Rain at ATP

There's quite a few reasons why I'm getting excited about the upcoming ATP vs Pitchfork festival. A swag of friends from Australia are coming along with me, and for most it will be their first ever All Tomorrows Parties. The very successful indie festival took its Don't Look Back series Down Under this year, with Sonic Youth and Low joining local stalwarts like The Surrealists in reinterpreting one of their iconic albums live. And although Aussies have had their chance at curating the UK festivals (The Dirty Three and Nick Cave) its not until now that we've been able to experience some part of ATP on home turf. So while i'm in London, and somewhat cut off from the buzz at home, it does seem as though more and more people are waking up to ATP. I'm hoping that when my antipodean friends kiss goodbye to Camber Sands on the Monday morning, they'll take away the same amazing feeling i had when i left my first one almost exactly 4 years ago. And maybe we'll one day get our entire festival.

So, another other reason to look forward to the weekend of the 9th, 10th and 11th is that there's a whole swag of bands i'll see live for the first time - Sebadoh, Red Kross, Hot Chip, Bon Iver, Vampire Weekend and Ween are standouts. Plus there's also a couple of new treats, and first up we have HOWLIN' RAIN.


photo by Daniel Arnold

Howlin' Rain is formed around the songwriting and vision of Ethan Miller (above), from the very great Comets On Fire. There's less wall-of-noise mayhem here, more a weaving of 70s boogie blues with wailing hammond and freak-country grooves. The Grateful Dead or Cream spring immediately to mind as comparisons. I'm yet to hear their entire album - Magnificent Fiend - but from from what is bubblin' around on Hype Machine I'm sure their live set is going to be a thoroughly enjoyable, possibly even psycheadelic experience. More details on the Howlin' Rain website.


photo by lechampiondumonde

I'm also dead keen to check out JAY REATARD (pictured above) who is from Memphis and was recently blowing minds and eardrums in Australia. He's also been super busy hitting dickhead stage divers square in the face (see video below). Huge applause! It'll be interesting to see how his punchy, uncompromising garage tunes go down among the beard-strokers at ATP, but i'm sure if his set comes late enough in the evening that there'll be enough satisfying destruction. Check out his stuff on Hype Machine and on his myspace. He even has a blog.

Here's that video from a show in Toronto where he thumped a member of the crowd who was acting like a cock.