It is now official! After 12 years on blogger, Cool Music Central will continue its online journey at a new home on tumblr! Update your bookmarks and visit us here:
For the official launch, we have photos and video from the recent Membranes gig at Temple Club, the return of the band to Athens after 33 years (their previous visit was in April 1987 - I still have that poster!). The new site will be simpler and more frequently updated with links to our favorite new music, "Best Of" lists and of course all the live music action coming our way. Check out below a shot from the front lines of Membranes gig at Temple Club on February 6, 2020, and go here for more.
Membranes, live @ Temple Club (Athens, Feb. 6, 2020)
To close the curtains here, we are preparing a list with our favorite albums of the '10s, a decade of great music which we had the pleasure of sharing with you on this website! Stay tuned for that list, coming in the next few weeks. In the meantime, see you on tumblr!
The Winter 2019 edition of Plisskën Festival was slimmed down in comparison to previous years, taking place in two different venues on a single night. As was also the case in recent editions of the festival, the focus has shifted almost entirely to dance and electronic music, with little on offer for rock fans, which explains why we've skipped a couple of editions since the Winter 2017 event.
However, the participation of Snapped Ankles this year, convinced me to pay a visit to Piraeus 117 Academy early in the afternoon, as the eccentric London-based quartet is responsible for one of the most enjoyable records of 2019, the magnificent "Stunning Luxury".
Dressed in their shamanistic costumes, looking like creatures inhabiting an enchanted forest, Snapped Ankles sprang into action on stage, unleashing their infectious, kraut rock-influenced, post-punk sounds and spreading their joyous, mad energy to the few faithful who came early to the festival to see them.
Their 50-minute set comprised of songs from both of their albums, played at maximum velocity, with the beat augmented by DIY percussive instruments, while at some point their singer ended up performing in the crowd, expanding the party to the whole of the venue.
The performance by Snapped Ankles, as expected, was the highlight of the festival for us, while earlier we also enjoyed the 40-minute set by Australian singer and songwriter Carla Dal Forno, who opened the night with an atmospheric performance, somewhere between Cocteau Twins, trip-hop and the soundtrack to David Lynch's cult TV series "Twin Peaks".
Carla Dal Forno, who recently released her second album "Look Up Sharp", dresses her folk melodies with dark, electronic sounds and trip-hop beats, a gentle construction which was recreated on-stage by her bass and a table full of electronic equipment handled by her band-mate.
Carla Dal Forno, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
The festival's main stage was headlined by electronic music wizard Floating Points, while promising rapper Bishop Nehru and Quantic, William Holland's music project which combines electronic, jazz, soul and latin sounds completed the line-up at Piraeus 117 Academy. For those who enjoy clubbing, there was more on offer on Plisskën's Aquarium stage to dance the night away, but as we were among the few early birds of the festival, we had to call it a night much earlier and leave just as the big white balloons started floating around towards the end of Quantic's performance.
Bishop Nehru, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
Quantic, live @ Plisskën Festival 2019
Check out below Snapped Ankles performing "I Want My Minutes Back" and Carla Del Forno in "Blue Morning" from their sets at Winter Plisskën Festival 2019.
Snapped Ankles - I Want My Minutes Back (live @ Winter Plisskën Festival 2019)
Carla Dal Forno - Blue Morning (live @Winter Plisskën Festival 2019)
This time it took a little longer than usual, but finally Mark Lanegan and his band returned to Athens for another great night of menacing rock 'n' roll, odes to sad disco and muddy water blues.
Dark Mark somehow managed to avoid the lights for almost the entirety of the 75-minute set (hence the poor quality of our photos), but his distinctive voice shone brightly throughout, while his band was in fine form, switching gears effortlessly from the driving electrorock of his latest material ("Disbelief Suspension", "Stitch It Up", "Night Flight to Kabul", "Penthouse High") to the haunting blues ballads of songs like "Burning Jacob's Ladder", "Bleeding Muddy Water" or "One Hundred Days".
In short, another great rock night courtesy of the Mark Lanegan Band, where the only complaint one might have is that it didn't last longer, despite the enthusiastic cheering that met the ending of "Harborview Hospital", the only song of the encore. It was certainly a pleasure though, and we're already looking forward to the next time.
Have a listen below to "Ode to Sad Disco" and check out the set list of the Gagarin 205 show:
Mark Lanegan Band - Ode to Sad Disco (live @ Gagarin 205, Athens, November 30th, 2019)
It's a long distance from Athens, Georgia, to Athens, Greece, and even longer the time we had to wait until we finally got to see Deerhunter live in our city. The excellent 90-minute set they played at Fuzz Club last Thursday could not possibly include all the great songs they have given us over the years, but despite missing several of our favorites, we would certainly include this performance among the best live experiences of this year.
Bradford Cox and his band presented us earlier this year "Why Hasn't Everything Already Disappeared?", one of my favorite albums of 2019, and as expected a good part of the set was based on this release, including the excellent opening salvo of "Death in Midsummer", "No One's Sleeping" and "What Happens to People?".
The other record that featured heavily in the set was "Halcyon Digest", an album which will be turning 10 next year (perhaps an indication that this is the band's favorite work?), with "Revival" and "Desire Lines" being among the highlights of the evening. New and old material combined seamlessly to create a unique rock experience containing all the idiosyncrasies that make Deerhunter such a special band.
Before Deerhunter's performance, we had the opportunity to catch a brief set by Moon Diagrams, the name which Deerhunter's drummer Moses Archuleta uses to present his warped electronic experiments. A different kind of experience, for sure, but certainly an interesting one.
Moon Diagrams, live @ Fuzz Club (Athens, Nov. 21st, 2019)
Deerhunter, live @ Fuzz Club (Athens, Nov. 21st, 2019)
Check out below what Deerhunter played at their first ever Athens, Greece, show and videos of "Futurism" and "He Would Have Laughed", the epic set closer:
Deerhunter - Futurism (live @ Fuzz Club, Athens)
Deerhunter - He Would Have Laughed (live @ Fuzz Club, Athens)
Whenever The Dream Syndicate hit the road, it's a certain bet that sooner or later they will find themselves playing on a stage in Athens, a city where Steve Wynn's music has always found a supportive and enthusiastic audience ever since his band first played here in the mid-80s.
A lot of water has gone under the bridge since then, but what remains constant after all these years is the unique rock chemistry that Wynn and the rebooted Dream Syndicate can produce live on stage. It helps, of course, to have in your repertoire the songs that make up one of the greatest underground rock record of the '80s, the superb "The Days Of Wine And Roses" and several more classic tracks ("The Medicine Show", "Boston", "The Side I'll Never Show" to mention but a few) that are guaranteed to rock you to your bones every time you hear them.
Add next to all the classics, the fine new material that The Dream Syndicate has produced in the two records they have made in the last couple of years (2017's "How Did I Find Myself Here" and the recent "These Times") and it's easy to understand why the two hours that the band played in the last show of its current European tour went by in a flash, leaving us thrilled and feeling privileged to find ourselves once again here with this great rock 'n' roll band, putting some more miles on. May this journey go on forever!
The night opened by Dustbowl who provided some fine tunes to warm us up for the main event and presented us their new record, "The Story of Mr. Dandy Gasoline", which also features a collaboration with Chris Cacavas, the man behind the keys of The Dream Syndicate.
Dustbowl, live @ Fuzz Club (Athens, Oct. 26th, 2019)
The Dream Syndicate, live @ Fuzz Club (Athens, Oct. 26th, 2019)
The Dream Syndicate - Black Light (live @ Fuzz Club, October 26th 2019)
It's only been a month since Dublin indie rockers The Murder Capital released their excellent debut album "When I Have Fears" and, as their sold out gig at Death Disco last Thursday showed, they already have an enthusiastic fan base in Athens. And rightly so, as the young quintet may only have nine songs in its set list at the moment, but the passion and urgency of the delivery makes the live experience thoroughly fulfilling.
Coming out of the gate with all guns blazing, The Murder Capital started with "For Everything", the explosive lead track of their album, and continued full speed ahead with "Don't Cling To Life". The more measured pace of "Love, Love Love" and the icy atmospherics of the two-part "Slow Dance", which brings to mind the darker side of Joy Division, restored balance after the off-the-rails start.
The dark ballad "On Twisted Ground" was the uneasy calm before the storm which was sure to come for the impressive final part of the show. "Green & Blue", "More Is less" and "Feeling Fades" which had various band members entering the mosh pit, were the perfectly chaotic conclusion to one of the best gigs we've witnessed this year by a great young band which promises a brighter tomorrow for the battered rock'n'roll cause!
Check out below The Murder Capital performing their excellent single "Green & Blue" at their debut Athens gig which opened by local acts Screaming Fly and Church of the Sea:
Screaming Fly, live @ Death Disco (Sept. 26th, 2019)
The Murder Capital - Green & Blue (live in Athens)
The Cure, live @ Ejekt 2019 (Athens, July 17th, 2019)
In the third and last post of our three-part series presenting the live music we got to enjoy during our July vacation, we have photos and videos from Ejekt Festival 2019 headlined by The Cure and also featuring Michael Kiwanuka, Ride, Khruangbin and The Steams.
Khruangbin, live @ Ejekt 2019 (Athens, July 17th, 2019)
We arrived at Plateia Nerou, the seaside location of the festival in recent years, just in time to catch the summer vibes of Khruangbin, the Texas trio which we also enjoyed a few days earlier at BST Festival in London. The early afternoon heat did not hinder their breezy set which brought us the sounds of their recent album "Con Todo El Mundo", an interesting, laid back mix of global music, soul, funk, garage and psychedelia.
Ride, live @ Ejekt 2019 (Athens, July 17th, 2019)
The logical flow would suggest that after Khruangbin we should be hearing Michael Kiwanuka's soul sounds, but instead the musical mood changed drastically with the classic shoegaze guitars of Ride. The Oxford band has defined this sound with its early '90s output and in the almost 60-minutes they played, we got to hear several of their classics including "Seagull", "Dreams Burn Down", "Leave Them All Behind", "Taste", "Vapour Trail"and "Drive Blind". Ride's return to action in recent years has also brought us some exciting new music and their set also included songs from their 2017 comeback album "Weather Diaries" as well as a couple from their forthcoming work "This Is Not a Safe Place", with closer "Kill Switch" being one of the highlights of their performance.
Michael Kiwanuka, live @ Ejekt 2019 (Athens, July 17th, 2019)
Michael Kiwanuka and his band with the easier to the ear melodic soul and folk sounds allowed us some time to relax and enjoy our beer before the mammoth, two and a half hour headline set of goth godfathers The Cure.
The Cure, live @ Ejekt 2019 (Athens, July 17th, 2019)
Robert Smith and his band have not played around these parts for almost 14 years, so the long set filled with highlights from The Cure's early years until their late '80s - early '90s hits was more that welcome from the huge crowd of all ages that filled the venue to see them. It was certainly one of those occasions where different rock generations meet, some to remember the music of their youth, some to see for the first time one of rock's legendary bands, that although it has not produced any new music for several years now, its classic output is more than enough for a great festival show.
Here's The Cure's set list at Eject Festival which this year celebrated its 15th anniversary, plus a couple of videos from the event:
