There's no negotiation or debate....

Been a while crocodile

2010-06-08T13:02:00.004+01:00

Sorry for the lack of updates. We've been beeing busy beavers working on new material for our second album. Dark is not the word for what it's going to sound like.

Not much to update really. Had an awesome Live at Leeds (there are a few reviews kicking about) and Ark magazine has been writing nice things too.

A couple of festival slots are lined up for the summer so see you then!

From the blogosphere

2010-02-22T11:43:00.000Z

"Because of the birthday party, I only got to catch their last few numbers, but they were bloody brilliant!

"The music reminds me a bit of some of the very best mid-nineties Indy stuff from bands like the Seahorses, with textured layers of interwoven guitar backed joined by bass and drums that were impersonating the engine room of a battleship, topped off by some great vocals.

"I was so impressed I bought their debut CD, Able Archer, which I've now listened to three times already."

http://jason-elliott.blogspot.com/2010/02/catch-i-concur-when-they-next-play.html

It's been a very long time since...

2010-02-02T16:38:00.002Z

...we posted on here but I assue you we're still alive!

In fact we've got some new gigs for the Spring listed on MySpace and we've also been back in the studio to record two new tracks: "All Reds Are Low" and "Opening Doors".

We'll be back in touch with release news soon enough.

Keep happy! (Ooo, happy New Year by the way).

Concs xx

Another Archer Album Review

2009-10-12T15:01:00.002+01:00

We've had another review of Able Archer come through to Concur HQ from Leeds Guide. Have a gander:

http://www.leedsguide.co.uk/review/cd-review/i-concur/12376

"Recorded by the busiest man in rock production, James Kenosha (Dinosaur Pile-up, Grammatics, Pulled Apart by Horses, Wintermute), it’s a grand sounding record, picking up influences from the mainstays of post-rock (Explosions In The Sky et al) grand American alt rock (Wilco, The National) and, at it’s very best (like with the breakdown on title track ‘Able Archer’), some damn fine mathy moments."

We do get a bit of a dressing down in the last paragraph after some bigging up which amused me. I don't tend to think of us a rock band as such but more of a very loud pop band as most songs are written with pop principles in mind (ie cut out all unnecessary time, have good hooks, a good chorus etc). I tend to think of mid 80's hair bands when people say 'rock'. But that's just me and my unheathly power ballad fixation.

Also, this has literally just come through from DrownedInSound for Sobotka: http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4138112-this-weeks-singles--12-10-2009

Which is nice as it's very clear that we are more paletable than The Twang. Good times!

Richmond Fontaine - We Used To Think The Freeway Sounded Like A River

2009-10-04T12:13:00.005+01:00

I don't usually do this sort of thing but I'll make an exception in this case....

I saw Richmond Fontaine, a band I've liked for a number of years now, a few weeks ago at The New Roscoe in Leeds. The band always play the venue as part of their uk tours which i admire in that they probably could have upgraded to a larger venue by now. But still they keep coming back showing, loyalty I suppose, to the promoter that put them on in the first place. This is a rare thing in music unfortunately.

Anyway, they were touring a new album We Used To Think The Freeway Sounded Like A River and were better than i had seen them in the past. And they were excellent when i had seen them before, so they really are something special now. This album also is possible my album of the year, and i know there are 2 and a bit months to go, but i'm going to stick my neck out here. Stand out tracks are 'You Can Move Back Here', 'Watch Out' and 'Two Alone'. Willy Vlautin (an excellent novelist by the way) seems to have evolved his character based story driven writing in a less heavy direction which i think really benefits the album.

You could do a lot worse than get a copy of this record. My copy is currently got a special place on my desk since i managed to get it signed by a few of the band. I am a fanboy, it's true.

Tim.

http://www.myspace.com/richmondfontaine

First review

2009-09-29T10:39:00.002+01:00

First album review here: http://tinyurl.com/ygvq62e

"There is so much to enjoy in the thunder and rain of notes that I want to be your geeky friend pointing out all the great bits - now! now! This bit … hear it? But you can find them: there's one every eight bars at least. And the songs themselves are so strong that they could be done with a ukulele, never mind all this sturm und drang. This is a band on a rising creative surge with a very accomplished debut album."

9/10

2009-09-21T22:48:00.004+01:00

We've had a video made for us by some seriously talented guys who go by the name of K House Media. This video is for the first single off the album called Sobotka which is about one of the central characters from the second series of The Wire.

It's a pretty fantastic video though is maybe not completely family friendly in a Sunday afternoon ITV rom-com kind of way.

So here it is...

2009-09-04T12:32:00.012+01:00

ABLE ARCHER by I CONCUR
Released MONDAY NINETEENTH OCTOBER

Two years hard work, enough trips down the M1 to last a lifetime and five seasons of The Wire later, this is our debut album.

Produced in frosty Bridlington by James Kenosha (Grammatics, Duels) and released by London label Club AC30 (Swervedriver, Jenniferever), ABLE ARCHER is a collection of ten tall tales concerning lands severed by motorways, languages lost by ignorance and leaders taking lesser mortals to the brink of nuclear extinction.

ABLE ARCHER will be available to the reader in CD digipak form on MONDAY NINETEENTH OCTOBER. You’ll be able to purchase it from pretty much everywhere but if you want to pre-order it you can do so from -Club AC30-. You will receive a free MP3 of LUCKY JACK to chew on until the album arrives.

Chapters are as follows:
1) Iterate This
2) Sobotka
3) Grandeur
4) Lucky Jack
5) Able Archer
6) Build Around Me
7) Oblige
8) Your Words, Your Dialect
9) Decimal Places
10) Exits Are Blockades

As a prologue to the album we will also be releasing SOBOTKA as a single on Monday 5th October.

The track, penned following 12 intensive episodes of the second season of The Wire, will be available on 7” vinyl and iTunes download. It will also include b-side ITERATE THIS (EXTENDED VERSION). You can order that from -Club AC30- too.

To support these releases we will be touring the UK through October and November. The first announced shows are below.

23 Sep: BRUDENELL SOCIAL CLUB, LEEDS (w/Jeniferever)

14 Oct: QUEEN OF HOXTON, LONDON (w/The Hug)

20 Oct: SCY, LINCOLN

22 Oct: DOG & PARTRIDGE, BOLTON

25 Oct: HOCKLEY HUSTLE @BUNKERS HILL, NOTTINGHAM

28 Nov: RELENTLESS GARAGE LONDON (w/Swervedriver)

Clay

2009-03-29T19:57:00.003+01:00

Got to love Clay Davis.

More DeMarco genius...

2009-03-06T16:22:00.000Z

Our hero...

2009-03-03T11:49:00.002Z

This man has been keeping us going in the studio. It's what everybody needs.

Album recording with James K (weekend three)

2009-03-02T17:44:00.007Z

Beautiful Bridlington

2009-02-26T14:20:00.005Z

Album recording with James K (weekend two)

2009-02-26T14:01:00.007Z

Able Archer

2009-02-17T09:51:00.004Z

Album recording with James K (weekend one)

2009-02-09T23:19:00.010Z

Class of '09

2009-02-09T16:31:00.002Z

Some pictures from our weekend in the studio to come but first look at this nice little feature that we just found...

http://sweepingthenation.blogspot.com/2009/01/sweeping-nation-covermount-class-of-09.html

Choice cut: "With bands like this you're hoping the developmental stage will take them higher and further, but with this slow burning grandiosity they sound pretty much there already."

GIAA photos

2009-02-03T15:12:00.004Z

Concur Christmas

2008-12-18T12:28:00.003Z

We’re currently writing and recording our debut album so we’ll be off the radar for the next few weeks.

However we’ll be back in January supporting the wonderful God Is An Astronaut on their UK tour. For details visit our gigs page.

We've had an ace 2008. Thanks to everyone that's helped us out this year.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

x x x

End of '08

2008-11-18T11:19:00.003Z

We played what should be our last gig of the year in London last week at the Buffalo Bar. Big thanks to the lads from The French Quarter who lent us gear and made us new friends.

Now work begins on writing the album so many a long night in our new cold, dark practice room.

More to come...

So then...

2008-10-21T15:04:00.005+01:00

...well, we've been bloody busy.

Our new single "Oblige" came out on Monday 6th October and, both before and after its release, we've been touring like crazy.

We played a handful of gigs in London (Bush Hall) and Sheffield (Academy) with the gorgeous Nat Johnson. Bush Hall is a particulary special venue with huge chandeliers and pristine white walls. Good gigs. Loads of pizza.

The single launch at the Brudenell was top fun the weekend after. AnteAter, Dino Pile-up and Nappy 3 did us proud and I think we probably played as well as we ever have done (at that point anyway).

Then it was down to Nottingham for an ace festival called the Hockley Hustle. Great crowd in Notts and we had top fun, especially nice hanging out with Rich and Elly Glissando as well as Dom and Jordan DiS.

In the days after the single launch we got played by Steve Lamacq on 6 Music and on our way down back from our gig in Newcastle we even heard ourselves on Huw Stephens Radio 1 show. Special times.

After a short trip to Sowerby Bridge ("student rock!") we headed to Reading with Vessels and probably played the gig of our lives. Vessels were ace too (check out the pics posted here and more here - www.flickr.com/photos/adamreading).

The following week we played at the Dry Bar in Manchester and had an ace full-house gig at the Adelphi, Hull, with the lovely boys and girls of The Notebook (and Mikey Exploded!). Top night.

Finally we finished off with the Brainwash Festival last weekend (gig 61). It was a pleasure playing iForward, Russia!'s (possibly) last ever gig. They'll be missed.

Then on Sunday Tim and Jim did an acoustic session on Raw Talent to finish off a hectic October for us. You can listen again to Decimal Places (acoustic) and "Oblige" here - www.bbc.co.uk/rawtalent (do it quick as it's only up for a week).

Ta ra for now. Will try not to leave it so long next time. x

Sorry it's taken so long to blog...

2008-10-21T15:00:00.001+01:00

...we've just been really busy releasing singles, playing festivals and touring and such and such.

Lots to say. Hang on!

49 gigs and counting...

2008-09-04T00:09:00.015+01:00

Our next gig is our 50th as I Concur. Here's the run down of the good, the bad and the sometimes god damn ugly :)

2007

1. The Packhorse, Leeds - 15/01/2007 - with Pete Wright and Peasman
All I remember about this one is being scared to death playing our new songs in front of some very close friends. It as a real buzz when we got through the first song!

2. Mixing Tin, Leeds - 07/02/2007 - with Vessels, Apartment and Race
Our first gig with Vessels. They blew us away. I remember being very nervous at this one too with old band mates turning up.

3. Atrium, Leeds - 20/02/2007 - with The Window Right and Palo Alto
We'd started gelling by this one...

4. Brudenell Social Club, Leeds - 24/02/2007 - Vessels single launch with Immune, Itch and Downdime
Our first good gig and an honour to be on such a wicked line-up.

5. Brudenell Social Club, Leeds - 15/03/2007 - with Stateless, Samsa and worriedaboutsatan
Another good gig with the first set of proper songs coming on strong.

6. The Packhorse, Leeds - 24/03/2007 - with Napoleon IIIrd and ActionForce
This gig really set us going. The Engine Room guys and Nap3 have supported us ever since.

7. Mixing Tin, Leeds - 26/03/2007 - with Glissando and Laymar
Our first and only gig (so far) with our good friends Glissando.

8. Escobar, Wakefield - 16/04/2007 - with Samsa
It had all satarted so well but this was one of our worst ever gigs. Technical problems everywhere.

9. Brudenell Social Club, Leeds - 31/05/2007 - Concur EP Launch with The Pattern Theory, Rotary Ten, Micky Charbagz, Peter Wright)
It was a real buzz to have our first proper record launch. About 150 folks turned up too which was ace. Great gig.

10. Brudenell Social Club, Leeds - 06/06/2007 - with David Thomas Broughton, Peter Broderick and The Twilight Sad
Our first big support slot with the Sad. A really good gig.

11. The Howard, Sheffield - 08/06/2007
One to be forgotton...

12. The Packhorse, Leeds - 13/06/2007 - with Itch and Wintermute
Fun night playing with two ace bands that we love. No one turned up though.

13. The Cockpit, Leeds - 26/06/2007 - FutureSound Competition
This gig really set the ball rollingfor us. We played ace, had teenagers clapping (!!) and landed a slot on the DTTR compilation with this one.

14. The Cockpit, Leeds - 10/07/2007 - supporting The Hold Steady
Our first BIG gig proper. We were the main support to The Hold Steady in front of almost 600 people. Good times. We played ace too.

15. The Brudenell Social Club, Leeds - 18/07/2007 - Unity Day fundraiser with Smokestacks and The Butterfly
This ones a bit of a blur...

16. The Packhorse, Leeds - 03/08/2007 - with Cardboard Cowboy and The Old House
A good gig with good friends. We were just about to start recording Lucky Jack / Build Around Me with Jamie Old House at this one.

17. Qubar, Margate - 06/09/2007 - with The Pattern Theory
Our first night of a five date tour with The Pattern Theory. Dead as a Dodo (two people!) but great times getting drunk, playing on SingStar and paddling in the sea!

18. Cross Kings, Kings Cross, London - 07/09/2007 - with The Pattern Theory
Not so great times. Our least enjoyable ever gig to date. We played well but the support band were horrible, horrible people.

19. Bunker's Hill, Nottingham - 10/09/2007 - on tour with The Pattern Theory
Another fun one. We were well looked after by the DiS and Mint Ive crew. Carl TPT nearly lost a finger and we had a run in with some crazy kids and the Notts' police.

20. Dry Bar, Manchester - 11/09/2007 - on tour with The Pattern Theory
Alright gig. The Dry Bar smelt funny. Tim forgot half his pedals but we got through it pretty well. The WotGodForgot guiys were tops.

21. Head of Steam, Newcastle 12/09/2007 - on tour with The Pattern Theory
Ace times. Ace crowd. The Get Involved guys are the bess knees. We love them and Newcastle.

22. Royal Park Cellars, Leeds - 18/09/2007 - with Lite
We played ace and Lite still blew us away. Awesome band.

23. The Hi-Fi Club, Leeds - 05/10/2007 - with Scaramanga Six
This ones a blur too. Iremember is being a major rush for us all to make it for soundcheck from work!

24. Under the Boardwalk, Sheffield - 07/10/2007
Americana night. A small but appreciative crowd. Tim got very drunk and we sold more CDs in one night to one person ever (6 I think!?!).

25. Puzzle Hall, Sowerby Bridge - 18/10/2007 - with Laboratory Noise
Remember this one feeling a bit rushed! The Lab Noise lads were lovley though.

26. Brainwash Festival (Brudenell / Royal Park), Leeds - 19/10/2007 (with Youthmovies)
A big gig for us pretty much opening Brainwash. Remember lots of well known faces in the crowd. Ace gig. Ace night. Ace weekend.

27. The Faversham, Leeds - 21/10/2007 - with Gravenhurst
Gravenhurst turned up but never made it onto the stage :(

28. The New Roscoe, Leeds - 03/11/2007 - with James Apollo
The James Apoollo boys were ace. Hopefully we'll hang with them again.

29. The Cockpit, Leeds - 11/11/2007 - with The Duke Spirit
We almost set a record for the least amount of space on one stage ever at this one.

30. City Screen Picture House, York - 20/11/2007
Pretty much all I remember is rain, rain, rain!

31. Brudenell Social Club, Leeds - 21/11/2007 - with The Officers
England were playing a World Cup Qualifier. Dead!

2008

32. The Faversham, Leeds - 06/03/2008 - Red Stripe Music Awards
First gig after 3 months off and it was a good one. Able Archer got its first airing. Our first NME review too.

33. The Love Apple, Bradford - 07/03/2008
An odd gig playing in my old stomping ground.

34. Brudnell Social Club, Leeds - 08/03/2008 - Concur single launch - with Her Name is Calla, Wintermute and The Pattern Theory
Our first ever single launch. Huge crowd (250+). Didn't play as well as we can but an awesome night.

35. The Grapes, Sheffield - 11/03/2008 - with Vessels and worriedaboutsatan
One of the best. Full house. Leeds crew in Sheffield and wicked promoters. Fun. fun. fun.

36. Industry, Shoreditch, London - 18/03/2008 -with The Domino State and Telegraphs
Our first enjoyable London gig. Put on by Club AC30. Top blokes and all the other bands were sound.

37. The Library, Leeds - 28/03/2008 - with Twilight Sad, Vessels and Wintermute
Good gig. Far too many good band on one bill.

38. The Vine, Sowerby Bridge - 02/04/2008 - with Vessels
Good local crowd but couldn't hear a thing on stage!

39. Escobar, Wakefield - 04/04/2008 - with Vessels
A not so good gig. We don't have much luck at Escobar :(

40. The Head of Steam, Newcastle - 23/04/2008 - with This Et Al
Newcastle was ace again. The first of two gigs with Et Al and also their last gigs. Big shame.

41. Live At Leeds The Cockpit, Leeds -03/05/2008
One of the best gigs ever. Never to be forgotton. Ace (big) crowd. Felt like rock stars, ha ha!!

42. Brudenell, Leeds - 06/05/2008 - with Gravenhurst and Pivot
Finally we play with Gravenhurst.

43. Fuzz Club, Sheffield Uni, Sheffield - 05/06/2008 - with Napoleon IIIrd*
Silly night. Most of the students had left for the summer but still good fun.

44. The Library - 27/06/2008 - with You Slut, Itch, Lizardmen
Our first night official for Brew Records. Fun but another quiet one due to Leeds being dead in the summer.

45. The Cockpit, Leeds - 08/07/2008 - Futuresound with These Monsters
Ace gig. Good times playing in front of an ace crowd. We love playing The Cockpit.

46. The Luminaire, London - 18/07/2008 - with The Domino State and Mint Ive
Another ace gig. We love the Club AC30 guys. Sobotka gets its first airing and goes down a storm. We also had just found out we were going to be playing Leeds & Reading Festivals!

47. Festivals warm-up, Packhorse, Leeds - 21/08/2008 - with Grammatics, Fran Rodgers, Pulled Apart By Horses
Everything that could go wrong went wrong at this one. Still, what's a warm-up for?

48. Reading Festival - 23/08/2008
Ace, ace, ace!

49. Leeds Festival - 24/08/2008
Ace, ace, ace, ace!!

* We've played one more gig but it was only two songs:

Brudenell, Leeds - 31/05/2008 - Smixies Night
Fun night. Not a proper, proper gig as we only play two songs but we do get to cover The Smiths' Handsome Devil. Madness.

More fest pix...

2008-09-01T17:01:00.013+01:00

Sunday 24th August – Concur play Leeds Fest

2008-08-24T01:05:00.001+01:00

Another early 9am start. Surprisingly we all seem to feel pretty good, except Tim who lost the plot on the guest bar dance floor last night. From what I can see of the curled up red sweaty mess on the tent floor he looks pretty rough.

We head to the Introducing stage and emotionally hook up with Alan and Katy from the BBC Raw Talent team who helped get us here. We sort out the tech stuff and everything seems to be pretty good. Tim eventually turns up and we’re ready to go. An amazing weekend is pretty complete when we have another really good gig. The crowd are just brilliant and it’s one of the biggest buzzes ever!

Finally we can relax proper. We do various interviews and photo shoots for the BBC.before chilling out backstage. After checking out Los Campesinos! and Foals we head back to the Introducing stage to do one final interview with the Raw Talent guys. Alan Raw’s on top form and I recommend having a listen to the interview we did with him. We’re not normally on such good form when a mic is put in front of us.

From then on it all gets a bit hazy. We get drunk, dance a bit and even end up in the silent disco before turning it in. All in all it’s been wonderful. Happy days to be in I Concur.

Saturday 23rd August – Concur play Reading Fest

2008-08-23T01:05:00.003+01:00

I’ve never been awake before 9am at a festival before but then I guess I’ve never played one with my own band before. Reading is hot today. Very hot. No need for wellies either. Perfect.

We head to Gate Charlie and meet our Artist Liaison for the day, Hayley. She’s lovely and sorts us out with beer and water. Our stage manager, Pop, a giant of a man with neon orange dreadlocks is lovely too and we breeze through our sound check. You can just tell that we’re going to have a good gig.

We’re met by a few friends out the front of the stage and they wish us well before we head to a Radio 1 interview and then launch ourselves on stage. The gig’s spot on. Great fun. The short set works a treat: Captors, Able Archer, Sobotka, Build Around Me and Oblige.

We chill out in the guest bar and grab something to eat before running into Huw Stephens behind the Introducing stage. He’s seen our Oblige flyers and is even genned up on the date the single’s released. Good man.

We set off from Reading to get back to Leeds before it gets dark. Unfortunately we hadn’t planned on taking the wrong exit out of the festival and before we know it the van’s stuck in a sea of festival goers at the front gates! The crazy Scottish security guys, rather than simply sending us back the way we came, start moving the crowd and all the gates to one side. It’s carnage as we drive the van across rocks and people start diving out of the way. Once we get to the road the security guys realise it’s sealed off by metal gates which they can’t move. We then have to reverse the van down the pavement between several lamp posts and touts before finally finding a gap at the side of the road and escaping the crazyness.

When we get back to Leeds we begin to chill for the first time this weekend. All our friends are there so a fair few beers are knocked back, mainly by Tim, and we check out Dans Le Sac who’s pretty ace. After avoiding several ligging mediocre pop stars and TV presenters we head to bed.

Friday 22nd August - getting to Reading

2008-08-22T01:04:00.002+01:00

We get up in decent time and head to watch local lads Eureka Machines kick off the fest. Mega professional as always. When the rain kicks in head to see Yeasayer in the NME/Radio1 tent. Ace set.

It’s time to go to Reading so, after meeting the remaining members of the Concur that didn’t camp on Thursday night (that’s all of them but me!), we all pile into the Vessels’ van. Martin’s brought his fully inflated air bed and forgotten to take his mountain bike out (“what the ***!”). These two essential items take up much more room than any of our gear. Teff’s going to be great value for money this weekend.

Within an hour we’re stuck, permanently, on the M1. A detour through the delights of Chesterfield ensues and we fall two to three hours behind schedule. Are we going to make to Reading in time to see Rage Against the Machine. Probably not. At least I get some kip.

We’re welcomed to Reading by the crazy Scottish security guards who make the Leeds Festival security look like Masterminds (more about these guys later). The Reading site is right in the middle of the town in what seems to be a golf course or race track of some kind. All very odd. Toby’s loving it. He’s been here before and he seems very at home. The rest of us feel a bit like aliens.

After watching Minor Complaint Against The Machine (the sound quality really was that bad!) we head to the guest bar to hand out flyers and get mildly drunk. We then set up camp next to the lovely Johnny Foreigner crew and head to bed to get a good night’s sleep before tomorrow’s gig. Unfortunately the good kip doesn’t happen thanks to drunken idiots falling over my tent. Ah well, it’s all fun really.

Thursday 21st August - set up camp at Leeds Fest

2008-08-21T01:03:00.000+01:00

We’re late getting to Leeds Festival. Our van driver for the weekend, Mr Martin Teff of Vessels fame, is, completely out of character for him, faffing around. We’re gonna hit the A64 traffic and have to put our massive Concur tent up in the dark. Indeed, after an infuriating mission trying to get in and out of the artists’ car park (good old uninformed fest security) this is the case. It’s all stress, but at least we’re finally here. Thanks to superhuman Sandman Ed Rob Wright we get the tent up, “have you got planning permission for that?!?”, and head to watch the Dance To The Radio stage.

We witness the end of the Pigeon Detectives’ secret gig and hook up with the Brew Records crew and Teff’s sister Helen before getting the (incredibly expensive) food in and enjoying Grammatics. The site is really really really muddy. It’s going to be a wellies weekend!

Concur’s Leeds and Reading blog

2008-08-20T01:01:00.003+01:00

We decided to do a blog of the festivals. Here it is....

We love Huw Stephens (NME)

2008-08-03T21:24:00.001+01:00

Small fish, big pond

2008-08-01T16:16:00.000+01:00

We're playing Leeds and Reading fests!

2008-07-17T16:33:00.001+01:00

Whoop! Whoop!

We've been asked by the rather awesome Huw Stephens and all the guys at BBC Introducing to play their stage at both Leeds and Reading festivals.

As you'd imagine we're really rather happy.

More details to come as soon as we have them. Happy days!

Sobotka

2008-07-09T18:58:00.005+01:00

The next new tune is called Sobotka.

If you're a fan of the TV show The Wire you'll know who we're talking about - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Sobotka

If you're not a fan of the show then get on it - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wire_%28TV_series%29 - just got series 2 on DVD if you need a lend.

Futuresound last night

2008-07-09T18:54:00.003+01:00

We had our Futuresound gig last night - it was ace. Thank you for the support (especially at 7.30pm on a Tuesday night).

Hopefully we'll have some good news about Leeds/Reading Fests in the next days/weeks.

Whoop! Whoop! Whoop!

* Current set is: Demons & Slaves, Able Archer, Exits Are Blockades, Captors, Oblige, Build Around Me.

Having to drop Decimals, Grandeur and Lucky Jack is a pain.

Across The Tracks

2008-07-09T18:50:00.004+01:00

We're on the new Across the Pennines compilation - Across the Tracks Vol. 6.

It features Sir Yes Sir, Pulled Apart By Horses (ace!), Dutch Uncles, Wave Machines, Team Waterpolo, Dinosaur Pile-Up (double ace!), Spodni Pradlo, Mechanical Owl (triple ace!) and Tim and Sam's Tim and the Sam Band as well as our own Lucky Jack remixed by Napoleon IIIrd.

The compilations are currently on sale via the myspace for £2 (plus postage & packaging) for purchasing via the myspace buyers get a free Across the Pennines pin-badge to!http://www.%20myspace.%20com/acrossthepennines

They will are on sale in Piccadily records to in Manchester and will soon be in shops in Leeds, London and Japan!

Future News

2008-06-18T18:06:00.003+01:00

Just a quick update from the Concur camp as we've been a little quiet recently (Bear man Tim!) after a crazy March / April.

Our next single on Brew Records is going to be coming out in early October. We'll be touring pretty heavily around that time too. The single's going to be a new version of Oblige which was produced by Tom Woodhead of Forward Russia fame. It'll be backed by Captors. More details to come soon.

In the meantime we're playing the annual Futuresound event at The Cockpit on the 8th July. Please come down and support us as there's a pretty good chance it could lead to us landing a slot at Leeds and Reading Festivals. If you want a ticket drop us a line on MySpace or send us an email to info@concur.co.uk

Oh, and our gig this Friday at the Brudenell has had to be postponed for reasons beyond the venues' control. Come to the gig with You Slut! at the Library, Leeds, instead. Itch and Lizardmen are also raving it up.

Out.

Chris x x

No action for a while...

2008-05-13T09:58:00.002+01:00

...Tom Hann's in Canada. B*stard.

Live at Leeds '08

2008-05-05T21:04:00.002+01:00

What an amazing day that was. We've just played in front of about 400-500 people at the Cockpit and it was incredible.

Will post some pix and maybe even a video very soon.

Big ups to This Et Al (huge!!), Grammatics, Napoleon IIIrd, Vessels, Mi Mye and Dinosaur Pile-Up who we managed to see and were also superb. Our new label mates Kong apparently went down a storm at The Packhorse too. Good work Brew.

Next gig, Newcastle

2008-04-21T02:42:00.002+01:00

This should be a cracker. We've been wanting to play with This Et Al for a long time. And the Head of Steam is possibly the best venue outside of Leeds. Aceness.

Madia Vale session for Radio 1 (29th March '08)

2008-04-01T00:59:00.025+01:00

An early start (8am) and we’re all pretty knackered, especially as we played a late gig last night supporting The Twilight Sad. Ace night but feel “urgh” now! Still, to say we’re excited about our Maida Vale session is an understatement.

Simon from Brew turns up at my house nice and early and Tim’s here a few minutes later - we’re off. Several Gingsters pasties, traffic jams and, after Tim’s AWOL wheel trim almost wipes out Toby, James and Tom Brew in the car behind, we make it to London.

Maida Vale is a huge off-white low-rise building – just the one floor is visable from the street but it actually goes quite far underground. After making it through the manic but friendly security we take our own tour.

Firstly the canteen. A bit expensive and a bit disappointing for me. We should come back mid-week when the fresh food is back on.

Then Studio 1 which is amazing. A huge old skool BBC concert hall which is eerily absent of an orchestra with its many empty seats.

Then the in-famous studio 4, home to sessions by Nirvana, Radiohead, The Smiths and almost any other great band you’d care to name. It’s awash with stickers and graffiti of almost every band that’s ever played in there. You can still smell the sweat.

Our room is Studio 3 (see above). It's a large green studio (have you seen Joss Stone’s new annoying Flake ad – this is where it was filmed!) in which our amplified guitars echo off the walls beautifully. The desk in here is huge. 64 tracks. And the engineers, Guy and Gareth, are great. Real pros and friendly with it too.

After a faltering, nervous start we bash out three tracks. New one “Able Archer” takes four attempts. “Oblige” just two. “Build Around Me” we nail first time. It’ll be interesting to see which ones Huw Stephens picks for the show. We’re really happy with all three.

Next several bright lights are shoved in our faces and we’re interviewed for the BBC archives. Another scary experience. “Look t the camera”, ”Repeat the question”, “Don’t interrupt each other” etc. We’re not usually that good at interviews. We’re terrible at this one.

And in a flash that’s that. Time to go. We say our goodbyes and, a few motorway Whoppers and a bit of Motown later, we’re back in Leeds. It’s 11pm. A celebratory curry and a few tins at Toby’s then. Why not?

In the NME and on Radio 1 in one day

2008-03-13T03:36:00.000Z

As it says. We're turning into Muse or something.

The NME piece is here and Vessels and Wintermute are in too. Cool.

Listen again to the Huw Stepens show here. It's the 9pm program about half an hour in. Check out You Slut! just after too.

Also got an ace interview up from the launch on AudioScribbler and an ace review of the same gig on Whisperin & Hollerin. What an ace week.

If you've got some spare pennies floating around please buy the single that came out on Monday from us or Brew.

The end of a mad week

2008-03-10T12:25:00.002Z

Everything went bonkers this week.

On Tuesday we were asked to do a Maida Vale session at the end of the month for Huw Stephens.
On Thursday the NME turned up to review our gig at the Fav (fingers crossed they write something nice).
On Saturday over 200 people turned up for our single launch then on Sunday we did our first ever live radio session for Raw Talent.
Today our single is out across the country.

We're absolutley knackered now. Please buy it so we know it was worth the work!

www.myspace.com/iconcurband

BBC Raw Talent

2008-03-10T01:46:00.003Z

We were on BBC Raw Talent last night. You can have a listen again at www.bbc.co.uk/rawtalent.
We played the two tracks from the new single (out today!) and a brand new tune called 'Able Archer'.

We've never done a session before so it was pretty stressful but made great practice for Maida Vale in a few weeks.

Also big thanks to everyone that packed out the launch night for us. It was immense.

Huw's gone crazy

2008-03-05T13:31:00.004Z

We're now doing a session for Mr Stephens at Maida Vale. We're obviously rather chuffed.

www.bbc.co.uk/humber/content/articles/2008/03/04/maidavale_weekender_feature.shtml

See you at the weekend for the single launch.

Concur on Huw Stephens Radio 1 show

2008-02-21T12:16:00.000Z

Woo!

That's right we were on Radio 1 last night for the first time. At 1am in fairness but great news that the mighty Huw Stephens has finally succumbed to the concur.

For this week only you should be able to listen again to the show - http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/huwstephens/

Woo!

The launch

2008-02-13T13:37:00.001Z

Have a look at the poster. Wooooo!

Press

2008-02-13T13:28:00.005Z

Things have been going manic press wise in preperation for the launch of the first single. Take a look at the MySpace for various links to various bits.

Here's a rather nice interview we had in Sandman. If the text is a bit small click here - http//a374.acimages.myspacecdn.com/images01/29/l_40c73b4adb76b3276cf5119a5331f3fd.jpg

Russian in the studio

2008-01-29T16:58:00.000Z

A belated bit of blogging.

We finally made it out of the studio with Tom (a session that lasted approx40 hours!). It's sounding very good.

Pictures below:

Sandman

2008-01-11T17:21:00.001Z

We've been having a busy week here in team Concur.

On Monday we had an interview with Rob Wright of Sandman and Tuesday we did the photos with Kevin Petch. Wednesday we ran through bpms with Tom for the weekend then we're in the studio tomorrow and Sunday. Erk!

Then next Monday we've got the Leeds Guide. Phew.

Anyway, you can see a taster of some of the photo shoot results below. You may notice the 'Build Around Me' references. Madness.

Happy New Year / Happy New Single

2008-01-10T17:23:00.000Z

Happy New Year!

So it's official, our debut single comes out on Monday 10th March. Released by Brew Records and distributed by Cargo it'll be available on 7" vinyl from all good indie record shops (including Jumbo and Crash, Leeds) and digital download from iTunes. We'll put all the purchasing details and reviews on this site in the next few weeks.

To celebrate we're holding a BIG party at the Brudenell, Leeds, on the 8th March. We'll be playing (obviously!) as will Her Name Is Calla, Wintermute and old friends The Pattern Theory. You'll also be able to get your hands on the new single early. Fiver in. 8pm start. See you there.

We're also going to be announcing another tour very soon. We'll be going back to some places we've been before (London, Manchester, Sheffield) and visiting some new ones (Norwich, Bradford, Hull). We'll also be playing with some ace bands such as Vessels, Domino State and These Monsters. Again, all details will be announced really soon.

Right that's it for now although we should mention that we're going back into the studio this weekend to put down the tracks for the next single after 'Build / Lucky'. It's going to be produced by Tom Woodhead (singer of the rather ace iForward, Russia!) and we're very confident that it's going to be very good.

Ta ra
x x x

Brew's are in.

2007-12-23T18:32:00.000Z

Get your copy of Brew Volume 1 tomorrow from Brew.

It features us, Vessels, The Pattern Theory, Jon Gomm, Humanfly and loads more. It's bloody ace.

Merry Xmas!

x x x

Finally...

2007-12-20T11:58:00.000Z

...got the masters back and sounding hot! Not long to go now.

We're already planning the next single. In fact we're heading off to a studio in darkest Elland to record it. This time we're working with Tom Woodhead (Forward Russia). If his production skills are anything like as good as his music then it should be pretty special.

Bit quiet in here!

2007-12-16T21:55:00.000Z

Sorry for the lack of blog action. We're just dead busy sorting stuff out for the single.

We have however played with the brilliant James Apollo (have a listen at www.myspace.com/jamesapollo) who'll be returning next year fingers crossed (if only becaasue they want to stay in Toby's lush new palace.

Talking of Toby's palace, you'll notice that the website is currently looking a little out of date. This is due to Toby's recent move to a new pad and a distinct lack of broadband action. It'll be back on full power soon and will probably have a new look too.

No gigs for a while, we're talking it easy until March when we'll have a new single and a rather large tour.

Raw Talent...

2007-11-22T13:15:00.000Z

...is back on air!

Well done Leeds.

Raw Deal for Leeds

2007-11-14T15:00:00.000Z

Raw Talent, a really good (and important) local radio show for local music is no longer being aired on BBC Radio Leeds. This is bad news as it means that local bands are getting next to no radio exposure. It's criminal considering how vibrant the local music scene is in Leeds at the moment.

This is from a local music writer and friend Sam Saunders.

"The work that Raw Talent has done over several years now has given a lot of Leeds artists some experience/fun/exposure. And their contribution to getting the Raw Talent stage up and running at Leeds Festival has been way above and beyond the call of duty.

"More on Leeds music has come thorugh that one Hull-based programme than all the Leeds broadcast media put together. BBC Leeds has now stopped broadcasting Raw Talent at all It's a programme for and about the music scenes in the North. It has NO presence in Leeds - as of this week.

"Last week DAB. This week and next week NOTHING. The only way to hear it is through the glitch-prone audio drainpipe of internet streaming.

"Messages expresing shock, dismay, unhappiness, derision, calm resignation or floods of joy can (and bloody well should) be sent to one or more of the following contact points:

"BBC Leeds, Broadcasting Centre, 2 Saint Peter's Square, Leeds, LS9 8AH BBC.
Leeds e-mail: leeds@bbc.co.uk
BBC Radio Leeds: 0113 244 2131

"The BBC, I believe, are sensitve to "community response". So let's make it a big one. Ask them to get the DAB or FM back. DO IT PEOPLE."

We've written in. If you can please do.

THE NEW SINGLE

2007-11-13T11:32:00.000Z

You might have noticed that we’re putting our debut single out on Brew Records next year. It will be a pretty 7” vinyl and download. The label seems pretty enthusiastic and they’ve been bigging us up already:

BBC.co.uk and Subba Cultcha.

Good guys.

The single will be a double a-side of Build Around Me / Lucky Jack. We wrote a blog on the recording process here. More next year...

www.myspace.com/brewrecords

Lamo plays The Pattern Theory

2007-11-13T11:29:00.000Z

Lamacq played Lakes by The Pattern Theory on Radio 1 last night. What a guy!

Good work boys.

Brainwashed

2007-10-25T01:41:00.000+01:00

We played at an amzing Leeds festival at the weekend called Brainwash where all the proceeds went to various charities but especially Oxfam.

Our gig was a real buzz, playing in front of a pretty full Royal Park, with lots of close friends, well respected artists and lots of new faces watching us.

Other major highlights includes Wintermute and Napoleon IIIrd not long after us on Friday. Vessels, Humanfly, the amazingly aggressive Unsane (we got to meet singer Chris after at a party - really top guy!) and the mega ace Clark who was absolutley top notch and got the party rocking on Sat night. Finally on Sunday, The Pattern Theory, Glissando, Fran Rodgers and, after we got to the Brudenell after our Gevenhurst support at The Fav, the beautiful Adem who was just amazing. Can't wait to see him again at the EITS ATP in 2008.

All in all an amzing weekend. Well done Haydn!

Check out his night here - www.myspace.com/brainwashpromotions

Top pod

2007-10-17T11:58:00.000+01:00

The wonderful Leeds based spoken word artiste, Penny Broadhurst, has added one of our tunes to her rather ace Podcast.

Here's the full gen:

----------------------------------------

Instant Classic Podcast Episode Twelve

Autumn strikes with the twelfth episode of the Instant Classic podcast, hosted sparkily but inexpertly by writer and musician Penny Broadhurst. All MP3s have been made available for free legal download by the artist or label - the Radiohead album doesn't count, skinflints! This episode features tracks from Chopper Harris, Lisa Moorish, The Rosie Taylor Project, Wintermute, Sarandon, i concur, Adapter Adapter, Jackson Analogue, Armchair Songs, The Dirty Projectors, Language Of Flowers, worriedaboutsatan and The Plimptons. Not in that order.

Tracklisting as always available at the shownotes - http://www.pennybroadhurst.com/instantclassic

Also available from iTunes.

nice interview...

2007-10-12T01:20:00.000+01:00

...by Music Spotlight.

http://www.musicspotlight.co.uk/features.asp?id=56

Local radio a-go-go

2007-09-26T16:47:00.000+01:00

Tim will be appearing on Yorkshire radio on Saturday (29/10) at 6:15pm (GMT) for an informal chat about the state of all things concur related.

To tune in you can listen on DAB in Yorkshire - On Sky Channel 0209 - or online at http://www.yorkshireradio.net/

Note to self: *must not swear*.....*must not swear*.

Get the Brew's in.

2007-09-21T17:00:00.000+01:00

We're on the first compilation from Leeds' newest label Brew Records.

The compilation includes 18 quality yorkshire tracks from the likes of Vessels, The Pattern Theory, Immune, Glissando, Jon Gomm, Humanfly, Bilge Pump, Pixel Pixel Pixel, Cowtown, Chickenhawk, The Butterfly, Mucky Sailor, These Monsters and Year Of the man as well as us!

It's out on 10th December but you can pre-order it now from the Brew Records myspace.

LITE

2007-09-19T17:25:00.000+01:00

"Crazy math rock from Japan"

We're supported LITE last night at the Royal Park, Leeds. Jesus they're good. Check them out duggga dugga dink dink dugga!

Pic of the tour

2007-09-18T09:25:00.001+01:00

Margate Toby

2007-09-18T09:20:00.001+01:00

Toby took some ace pictures of beautiful Margate. Check them out.

Gigwise

2007-09-17T17:04:00.000+01:00

We've been recommended to students by Gigwise. Ace.

NUS

(scroll to the bottom section)

More tour...

2007-09-17T16:37:00.000+01:00

Carl breaks finger in door. D'oh.

What you looking at Nottingham.

Beer.

Floor.

Manchester had silver balls.

Head of Steam.

Sofa Theory

Spraydog = loud!

Newcastle smoking crew

Joel Gets Involved

Tour so far...

2007-09-10T14:33:00.000+01:00

Toby's lost in Margate.

James goes Battles.

Easy on the beers lads.

Beware of the bogeyman.

Singstar!

The Shell Grotto. Wow!

99!

Margate beach.

Chris feet.

Toby annoyed.

James on the way.

Vessels turn up for London and go to bed.

Pattern Theory trash the kit.

With consistent form

2007-09-04T10:12:00.000+01:00

We have new material ready for the tour. One song, ‘Captors’ is probably the heaviest and mathiest thing we’ll ever write. It’ll hopefully blow people’s heads off.

It’s ready just in time for the tour which starts on Thursday in Margate. Excited is an understatement.

Studio (part 2)

2007-09-04T10:09:00.000+01:00

Due to a slight change of plan we can only do a quick stop off at the studio. This sees us laying down Tim and James vocals plus messing around with an old tape machine on Build Around Me. It’s sounding good. The results should be very interesting.

Mixing next...

Su..su..studio (part 1)

2007-08-13T12:28:00.000+01:00

This weekend we headed into the recording studio to lay down the tracks for what will hopefully be our first single.

We worked with Jamie Lockhart (from Mi Mye and The Old House) at Greenmount studio in Wakefield – which is also his home. Jamie’s produced records for the Wrath label, The Research and The Piskie Sits amongst others.

Jamie lives in what can only really be described as a tower. Inside it’s littered with old amplifiers and strange looking pieces of recording equipment.

In the lounge is a beautiful piano, piles of vinyl and comical memorabilia from his days in local band Little Japanese Toy (the band he used to share with James Mabbutt, aka Napoleon IIIrd, who lives two doors down). The kitchen is a complete shambles but is beautifully wallpapered in pages from Reader’s Digest.

Upstairs in the attic is the actual studio. Everything is based around a giant 3M reel-to-reel tape machine and a giant handmade mixing desk which should have at one point in its life gone on tour with Dire Straits.

Day 1 – Saturday 11th August ‘07

The tracks we set about recording on the Saturday were Lucky Jack and Build Around Me. We wanted to record these songs in as ‘live’ an environment as possible so the four of us spent most of the day in a cramped tiny little room, rocking out together but at the same time trying not to knock each other out with our guitars. Saturday was also really warm so our little room became very hot and sweaty. Yum.

We didn't want the red hot valve amps in the room with us so Tim’s amp was stuck in a closed cupboard next to the ironing board two floors below whereas Chris’ amp was in the corridor near the bathroom. The occasional friend wandering in and out to see Bob (Bob Taylor, photographer extraordinaire and Jamie’s patient flatmate) must have wondered what was going on, especially as Chris’ amp was connected to a strange looking giant Sunn o)))) bass amp with a stupid amount of speakers.

Despite Chris and Toby turning up with a hangover and Jim making everyone late by demanding that a rather ill looking Toby cooked him breakfast, the morning’s takes of Lucky Jack went pretty well thanks to a relaxed recording environment and random conversations about unusual recording techniques.

Following two string breakages in as many strums lunch was called. This involved a swift Greggs banquet, a couple of Malboro and a few cold cans of Grolsch before we crack on with Build Around Me. Again everything went top notch. In fact Jamie thought it sounded like Godspeed so I guess it must have been good.

We shut up shop on Saturday with a quick reminisce about old bands and a homage to the wonder of The National. Apparently tomorrow Jamie’s going to make our guitars sound like they do on ‘All The Wine’. Ace!

Day 2 – Sunday 12th August ‘07

Hungover. Well Chris and Toby are (again!) although Toby won’t be at the studio for another three hours as Sunday is all about the guitars. Same goes for Jim.

So a delicate start to the morning sees Tim laying down some guitar lines for Lucky Jack while Chris takes a nap on the sofa.

However some extra strong Guatemalan coffee and a play with some retro amplification wakes Chris up and the conversations about off-the-wall recording techniques are going again.

This time Jamie’s using three different mics on the guitar amps to get individual tracks for the high, mid and low frequencies. It’s all mad technical stuff but it seems to be doing the trick. Jim and Toby arrive at the studio just in time to hear the almost finished version of Lucky Jack. It’s sounding HUGE.

After a quick trip out in the rain for pasties we set about putting down the guitar tracks for Build Around Me. Tim had clearly been hammering the Wilco when he wrote his parts for this one and a the occasional twang on his new Jaguar’s tremolo means everything sounding a little Twin Peaks. Which, obviously, is ace.

After Chris finally nails his one guitar line on take 28 we sit back and take a listen to what we've done. It’s early days yet, these tracks still need vocals, mixing and mastering, but it’s all starting to sound rather good.

We come back in three weeks to finish the job off. Can’t wait.

TOUR! TOUR! TOUR!

2007-08-09T15:20:00.000+01:00

The tour with The Pattern Theory is pretty much sorted now. Check out the poster for details but we might have to add one more date in Brum. Maybe.

Dance To The Radio: Out of the Woods and Trees

2007-08-03T17:00:00.000+01:00

We've been asked to put 'Decimal Places' on the next Dance To The Radio compilation CD which we're really very pleased about as we'll be sitting alongside the likes of Forward Russia, Howling Bells, Snowden and You Slut. Ace!

Our mates Vessels and Fran Rodgers are also on there. This is also ace!

Kotki Dwa - 'Pad' The Taste - 'Till There Was You'

The Wallbirds -'Desperate'

You Slut! - 'MyBloodyJesusExplorerOnFire'

Snowden - 'Black Eyes' (Le Castle Vania Remix)

Bobby Cook - 'Homesick'

Grammatics - 'The Manageress'

Howling Bells – 'This City's Burning'

Shut Your Eyes And You'll Burst Into Flames - 'Futures Rewired'

I Concur - 'Decimal Places'

Prego - 'The Longest Calm'

The Pigeon Detectives - 'Left Alone'

Mother Vulpine - 'The Hand That Cracked The Bell'

Fran Rodgers -'She Dwelt Among Th'untrodden Ways'

¡Forward, Russia! -'Don't Be A Doctor'

The Displacements - 'AKA The Train'

Sky Larkin - 'Keepsakes' (Napoleon IIIrd Remix)

The Chapman Family - 'You Think You're Funny'

Vessels - 'Happy Accidents'

Held By Hands - 'Trading on Past Treasures'

You can read a bit more about it on Drowned in Sound. As you can probably tell we're quite chuffed.

The Pattern Theory

2007-07-26T15:26:00.001+01:00

We're off on a short tour with an amazing new Leeds bands called The Pattern Theory. Have a listen to their new EP. It's quality.

Dates for the joint-tour confirmed so far are:

Thu 6th September: QUBAR, Margate
Fri 7th September: CROSS KINGS, London
Mon 10th September: BUNKERS HILL, Nottingham
Tue 11th September: DRY BAR, Manchester
Wed 12th September: HEAD OF STEAM, Newcastle

Wish us luck!

Leeds Festival

2007-07-26T15:24:00.000+01:00

We didn't make it through to the final six to play at Leeds Festival I'm afraid. But some of our friends did so all good.

Thankfully we've got some bigger and better news just around the corner...

Latitude

2007-07-12T12:20:00.000+01:00

Toby and I are heading down for Latitude Festival this weekend. It should be a right ball with the likes of The National, Wilco, Midlake, Arcade Fire, Clap Your Hands, Annuals and all sorts of other great acts playing.

Have a look at www.latitudefestival.com - wow!

I'm also lucky enough to be joinging Vessels on stage for a five guitar wig-out on their closer 'Look At That Cloud!'. They're on stage at 4.30pm on Friday. It's the Radio1 Lake Stage thingy. If you're coming down please go watch them.

Easy, Chris

The National

2007-07-12T11:59:00.000+01:00

We went to see The National at the Rescue Rooms in Nottingham last night and they were brilliant. The set mainly comprised of songs from ‘Alligator’ and ‘Boxer’ with each one sounding huge.

Every track they played seemed to take on a completely new feel to its recorded version with huge crashing delayed guitars, a wholesome pounding rhythm section and insane thrashing violin. It’s also frightening to think of how many of their songs have now become absolute anthems.

To top it off half of Leeds was at the venue and it was great to chat to new and old friends from iLiKETRAiNS, Glissando, Vessels, The Old House, Sandman and Drowned In Sound.

While we’re on the subject of Leeds we’d like to say a big thank you to all the Hold Steady fans who were really supportive of us at the Cockpit gig on Tuesday. It was quite scary to have about 400 people staring at us but we had a brilliant time.

The Hold Steady

2007-07-02T15:41:00.000+01:00

We had a cracking Futuresound gig at the Cockpit last week. This Leeds Fest slot may yet come off.

Anyway, on the back of that show we've been offered our biggest gig to dates. Supporting the Hold Steady at the Cockpit. Just us, them and a full house. Yikes!

They're a brilliant band and you probably know all about them from Pitchfork or Uncut or something. Have a listen here - http://www.myspace.com/theholdsteady. We can't wait.

NastyFest: Vessels

2007-06-25T13:19:00.000+01:00

Brilliant brilliant band. We love them. It's great when your friends are in one of the best bands on the planet.

They blew the roof off the Faversham at the weekend's NastyFest all-dayer. If you haven't heard them before have a listen to www.myspace.com/vesselsband - they also have lots of new material on the way which is absolutley stella.

Other bands worthy of mention from the weekend were, of course, iLiKETRAiNS and american band White Rabbits. Hear them at www.myspace.com/whiterabbits. Great stuff.

Drowned In Sound

2007-06-25T13:16:00.000+01:00

"There’s a new sound stirring in Yorkshire and this time, with the likes of i concur around, maybe there is a reason to believe the hype after all."

Crikey!

See the fulll review here: http://www.drownedinsound.com/release/view/10532

Organising...

2007-06-20T14:07:00.000+01:00

...tours can be very frustrating...

...but thankfully we've got some new songs about magnets on the way.

Futuresound

2007-06-14T10:39:00.001+01:00

This guy says...

2007-06-14T10:34:00.000+01:00

...we're not gonna make it to Manchester tonight. Sorry.

Pictures...

2007-06-04T11:59:00.000+01:00

...from the launch night.

Ones to Watch (Sandman)

2007-06-01T19:21:00.000+01:00

We've been given some really nice write-ups in Sandman this month (June). There's an ace CD review and a preview of The Twilight Sad gig we're supporting on. There's also this great piece of editorial by Sandman's Leeds Editor Tom Goodhand.

"I was already inclined to like I Concur before I heard a note they played. They emerged onto the Leeds scene with the proud declaration 'we formed thanks to a shared love of Low, The National, Mogwai and Wilco.

"Being utterly besotted with Low and somewhat in awe of The National, it seemed pretty much inevitable that I Concur would win over my ears without too much difficulty. And so I listened to their first demo as soon as it was made available and I got down to one of their early gigs.

"I Concur were impressive. Their sound revolves around the interweaving guitars of vocalist Tim Hann and chief noise-make Chris Woolford and the interesting rhythms of drummer James Brunger. The smart, sharp guitar melodies collide with Hann's understated vocals and an inevitable progression towards a crashing crescendo.

"The new EP is urgent and fraught with underlying subtleties. Each track builds and builds to a hair raising finale and leaves its traces in your mind.

"If you thought modern British indie was all about laddish bores telling you about their day-to-day lives, the I Concur will hopefully set things straight. Seek out one of the 200 copies of the EP, listen to their tracks on MySpace, go see a live show. Just make sure you hear them." Tom Goodhand

Ace!

We also got some wicked new press/live shots thanks to Kevin Petch at last night's EP launch. Cheers fella.

Our biggest gig to date

2007-05-29T15:40:00.001+01:00

We're playing with The Twilight Sad and David Thomas Broughton. We haven't got words to describe how happy we are about this line-up. It's an honour.

Leeds Festival

2007-05-29T15:27:00.001+01:00

We've been shortlisted for the annual Futuresound showcase which basically picks the best (whatever that means?) 30 new bands from Leeds & West Yorks. Six of them get to play Leeds Festival.

Good stuff.

Bands we've been checking out this week...

2007-05-29T15:25:00.001+01:00

...Battles, Do May Say Think, Corleone, Itch, Band of Horses, Middleman, Wintermute.

Have a listen to them all.

Sorry...

2007-05-29T15:20:00.000+01:00

...we haven't been on the blog for a while we've been too busy organising the Ep and this massive gig. We ain't had time to breath.

Build Around Me

2007-05-11T10:38:00.000+01:00

'Whatever it's going to be'

2007-05-09T10:13:00.000+01:00

Our debut EP called ‘Whatever it’s going to be’ will be available on Monday 28th May ‘07.

It includes four tracks - Demons & Slaves, Oblige, Decimal Place and Exits Are Blockades - and will be available on CD to order soon from our website and MySpace for £4.

Some early EP Reviews:

"The final minute of 'Exits Are Blockades' is one of those "Oh YEEEEES!" moments that us poor reviewers wait weeks and weeks to hear." Sam Saunders, Whisperin & Hollerin

"Leeds based i concur only started gigging for proper in January of this year and this EP is an impressive document of the story so far. If they can achieve this much in a relatively short space of time, and the progression continues, then i concur look set to follow in the footsteps of Leeds bands hammering on the publics door." Matthew Stanley, Die Shellsuit, Die!

"If Wilco and Explosions In The Sky shared notes, it wouldn’t sound dissimilar to this Leeds-based quartet. But there’s plenty more to i concur’s post-rock tinged mid-west indie. Aside from the usually sweeping guitars and extended instrumentals, there’s plenty of dark atmospherics, jarring syncopated rhythms and emotive vocals. More focus could transform them into quite a force." Dave Himefield, manchestermusic.co.uk

***

To celebrate the new EP we’ve arranged a special launch night on Thursday 31st May at the Brudenell which, as well as ourselves, will feature some well ace bands that we love. Take a look at the poster below for all the details, especially the bit about picking up the CD for £2. Bargain.

Tim's ATP diary

2007-05-03T12:32:00.000+01:00

So the first weekend at ATP has just been and gone. Not much sleep was had, much Guinness and larger (in combination) consumed. Many, many bands were seen. Curated by Dirty Three this weekend was always going to be a who’s who of the alternative Australian scene. Here are a few thoughts and highlights from the weekend.

Grinderman

Grinderman are Nick Cave and various elements from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds playing sleazy/dirty rock. Cave doesn’t play the piano, Warren Ellis hardly plays the violin. This is Cave and chums putting themselves out of their comfort zone, though it is still relatively similar to earlier works. First sets were good on the Saturday - a Nick Cave solo slot first, then a Grinderman set to round off the night on the main stage. Both sets featured the same band members, except for Bobbie Gillespie joining the Grinderman band on percussion and backing vocals. He looked off his face.The solo and Grinderman sets were repeated (with small set adjustments) on the Sunday and the result was stunning. Whether the sound was improved or the band feeling more confident, this was an improvement on the earlier day’s set.

Josh Pearson

The final act on the first night on the Centre stage was one of the finds of the festival. The former front man of Lift to Experience has the intensity (it’s all in the eyes) which are a warning as to not f*ck with him. There are many songs about the devil, saving souls and redemption overlaid with kilos of distortion. This man has a history – I’m not sure what it is but I bet it’s interesting.

Low

The new album Drums and Guns made up the majority of Low’s set but if anyone was expecting drums machines, synths or samples there may have been a few raised eyebrows. Songs like Sandinista have been written, de-constructed (for the album) and then re-assembled for the purposes of live performance. The results are awe inspiring. The final song in the set, (the single) Breaker, was the highlight leaving the huge crowd that had assembled wondering if what they’ve really witnessed what just happened. Performances this good are rare.

Shannon Wright

Starting off her set on a grand piano and having a biog (courtesy of the ATP paraphernalia distributed on checking in) with words like “intense”, “emotionally charged” I did expect little. This assumption was very quickly crossed out with Shannon filling the massive room with her superb vocals and (later) aggressive guitar playing. Her moves were equally good too. Anyone who plays a whole song sticking her behind out at an audience and still coming out without p1ssing too many people off has a rare gift. She has a new record out in the coming weeks.

The Drones

The Drones were (by my ears) the loudest band of the weekend, and also one of the most straight forward. Pub rock, as one of my chalet cohorts described them. I think there’s a little bit more to them than that, and they do have tunes. Front man Gareth Liddiard has a mad look in his eyes and is a good screamer. Shark Fin Blues from Wait Long by the River and the Bodies of Your Enemies Will Float By is stunning.

Spiritualized

After a period of ill health Jason Pierce has assembled an acoustic band with a string quartet, 3 gospel singers, a Fender Rhodes and himself on acoustic guitar. The idea of Spiritualized material played acoustically may not sound appealing but it somehow works wonderfully. A rendition of Ladies and Gentlemen We’re Floating in Space woven together with I Can’t Help Falling in Love With You is heartbreaking.

Dirty ThreeIf I learned anything at the festival this year it’s that Warren Ellis is king. His way with anecdotes about song titles and meanings are pure comedy. Wayne Coyne from The Flaming Lips has a similar ability to put the audience at ease and get everyone on his side. His hypnotic violin playing is equally as good as he sways back and forth attacking what should be a pretty instrument. He also puts a tonne of distortion through it at times. What a guy.

Dirty Three played two sets on different days with the 2nd instalment being a much improved performance.There aren’t many weekends as good as this one.

Talking of ATP...

2007-04-24T15:40:00.000+01:00

...we saw the afformentioned Josh T Pearson at the Brudenell last night. Wow.

His band thuded away at our chests and made splendid music in our ears. He's somewhere between Iggy Pop, My Bloody Valentine and A Silver Mt. Zion yet nothing like any of them.

Oh. He also has possibly the greatest beard on the planet.

www.myspace.com/joshtpearson

The first gig of what looks like a very busy week.

So far: Monday - Devastations + Josh T Pearson (Leeds)

Then: Tuesday - Spiritulized (Leeds)
Wednesday - Low (Nottingham)
Thursday - Thee More Shallows + Rose Kemp (Leeds)
Friday - ATP (Minehead)
Saturday - ATP (Minehead)
Sunday - ATP (Minehead)

Phew!

A weekend at ATP

2007-04-23T10:46:00.000+01:00

It's our first band outing to ATP at the end of this week. Curated by the Dirty Three we're in for a lot of fun watching some seriously dark and depressing (yet strangley uplifting) bands playing in the cheesy family surroundings of Butlins in Minehead.

We'll be with the likes of Low, Silver Mt. Zion, Nick Cave, Cat Power, Spiritulized, Smog, The Devastations, Josh Pearson and Joanna Newsom amongst others. We can't wait.

Wakefield with Samsa

2007-04-16T13:37:00.000+01:00

We're haven't been around much lately due to holidays and the like.

But we're gigging tonight in Wakefield. On with Samsa again. Good band with a good new single to come out very soon.

Decimal Places

2007-04-02T11:00:00.000+01:00

Is about this chap - http://www.nature.com/news/specials/hwang/index.html

Napoleon IIIrd

2007-03-26T16:59:00.000+01:00

Another great gig on Saturday. It feels like we're getting better and better but let's not get too confident just yet.

Have to say that this man, Napoleon IIIrd, is stunning. Please have a listen on www.myspace.com/boney3.

He's one man who's got a reel-to-reel with a personality complex. Lots of crazy noises (lazer guns, dog toys, brass sections), put together to make unbelieveable creative and genuinly brilliant (if not slightly off-the-wall) pop songs.

Buy his new album when it comes out in a couple of weeks. He's playing the Brudenell while we're at ATP (27th April) with his full band.

Your current eBay bid item is...

2007-03-22T16:34:00.000Z

Web 2.0

2007-03-20T09:40:00.000Z

The internet is ace. Yesterday we were added to a new music podcast called Darkhorse Radio - www.darkhorseradio.com.

Our tune 'Oblige' was featured in edition 53. Alan, the chap that produces the podcast from his home in Chesire, found us through MySpace. And now we're telling you about it on a blog.

So, thanks to the wonder of the internet, lots of people who'd have never heard us can now, well, hear us. As we said, ace.

By the way, the Stateless show was probably our best gig yet. If we find someone who took some photos we'll post them up here.

WE HAVE BATTLES IN OUR LIFE

2007-03-15T14:51:00.000Z

We've been listening to a lot of Battles recently. They're a mad avant-garde fusion of electronic jazz math metal.

Check out their MySpace at www.myspace.com/battlestheband

We've just heard their new album and it's bonkers.

Meanwhile we're playing tonight with Stateless at the Brudenell. Come if you can.