Exlovers/Kurran & The Wolfnotes/Little Death live on Levi's OnesToWatch tour

Can You Gig It?: Exlovers / Kurran & The Wolfnotes / Little Death @ Levi’s OnesToWatch, London Borderline, 22.10.09

kurran wolfnotes Can You Gig It?: Exlovers / Kurran & The Wolfnotes / Little Death @ Levis OnesToWatch, London Borderline, 22.10.09

My Chemical Toilet’s roving review machine John-Scott Croly went to check out some up-and-comers on the latest Levi’s Ones To Watch Tour, so he did.

The band selector for the Levi’s OnesToWatch tour (for argument’s sake let’s call her Jean) is seemingly able to predict with unerring accuracy the bands that will be soundtracking our iPod commercials and adorning our NME-reading teenage relatives’ bedrooms walls twelve months down the line. Given the name and premise of the tour, this surely makes her very good at her job.

Of course I’m fully aware that in all likelihood each tour’s band roster is carefully selected by a team, nay, committee of achingly hip cultural Nostradamuses - but it’s fair to say that whoever these people are, they’re getting something right.

Previous acts to play on the Never-Ending Tour of Denim-Endorsed Musical Foresight™ have included White Lies, Passion Pit, Dananananaykroyd, Black Lips and The Temper Trap. And whether you care for these bands or not, their subsequent success is indie-sputable.

So it was with a curious ear I ventured down the steps of legendary Soho haunt The Borderline. I’d barely heard even whisperings about any of the bands on bill. A friend at the NME had only heard of one of them. Would this night’s show be a non-stop cavalcade of clever clairvoyance, or had Jean been headhunted by the Wrangler Corporation for their forthcoming ‘Next Big Thing’ tour? Well, chuffing well read on and you’ll find out.

Now, gig reviews by their very nature tend to be one-sided affairs so I took along a pal to help give things more of a balanced view. I’ll intersperse the remainder with some of her helpful observations (e.g. “Ooh, ooh! I like his hoodie - make sure you put that down!”, etc).

First on were North American drone-poppers Little Death. I was impressed by the jittery feedback-drenched guitars, singer Nathan’s yearning vocals (think Tim Wheeler meets Win Butler) and the, like, properly fit bass player.

My gig buddy, on the other hand, was distinctly unimpressed. She had only this to say: “I like that none of them are left-handed, it makes the stage look neat and tidy”. Powerful stuff indeed, I’m sure you’ll agree.

Next up were Kurran and The Wolfnotes (pictured above; Miranda’s opinion: “Good teeth”) – the States’ answer to a question about Noah and The Whale that no-one really remembers asking. I’m jolly glad someone did though, because their blend of skiffle-y stylings and Cosmic Rough Riders-y harmonies made my tummy feel a bit fuzzy.

Headliners (sorry, ‘co-headliners’) Exlovers were last on, as is usually the fashion. “No lefties here either! Gosh, isn’t she thin? They’re quite loud aren’t they?!,” gasped my companion. And loud they were, for the most part at least.

Early My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth are obvious influences here, worn proudly on their (no doubt Levi’s-sponsored) sleeves. The pop gems were played in earnest, with fragile boy-girl vocals evocative of a time when ‘twee’ wasn’t a swear word and they didn’t sell cardigans in Topman.

So, did we witness the makings of a new generation of indie glitterati? How the fuck am I supposed to know? Judge for yourself by jabbing your mouse finger indiscriminately about the helpful MySpace links that Stuart will undoubtedly provide underneath my musings.

And Jean, if you’re reading, get in touch. We could ~~make~~ listen to beautiful music together, months before anyone else.

Very well, John-Scott, here are those linkings:

Little Death on MySpace

Kurran & The Wolfnotes on MySpace

Exlovers on MySpace

Levi’s OnesToWatch official site