Influenced by jazz, hip hop, electronica and classic warp artists like Aphex Twin and Autectre, Flying Lotus has a great passion for the weird, the warped and the wonderful which is demonstrated in his own musical productions. His sound provides a rich and intensely satisfying experience, which he describes as a “collage of mystical states, dreams, sleeps and lullabies.”

His first three albums were a beautiful fusion of his history of inspirations, and the fourth, ‘Until the Quiet’ released on the 1st of October, an even more complicated affair. An undulating, euphoric experience rushing you back and forth through the mind and emotions of its creator, his dreams, nightmares, addictions, fascinations, successes, fears and failures. It’s venerable, raw and intelligent but in being so is also enticing and excitingly open to interpretation.

(The Traps – 18/11/2010, Hare & Hounds, Birmingham. Photo Credit: Ben Bentley)

FLY53 made the journey over to Brum (Kings Heath to be precise), to go and watch one of our favourite supported bands, The Traps. The added bonus of this show was that they were the main support for LA indie rockers ‘The Blood Arm’ on the Birmingham leg of their  European Tour.

The night started out with Birmingham based alt-rock from HOT Monocles – having not heard of them before, it was expected that they would be your standard ‘run of the mill’ indie-gig support band. How wrong we were! Although there was a slow start as the venue began to fill, they soon caught the attention of the audience with a searing vocal performance from frontman, Daniel Wardle and eye catching guitar work from lead player William Lauder. After powering through a short set, they left the stage leaving us, if not everyone, craving another few tunes. As one of the best support bands we’ve seen in 2010, they’ve definitely earned the title for ‘ones to watch in 2011.’ Make sure you check these guys out, you won’t be disappointed.

A short trip to the bar and it was time for FLY53 favourites, The Traps, to take the stage. With a set full of new material, it was an experimental night for the Birmingham indie rockers, and with the audience loving every minute, its clear the boys haven’t lost the ability to write a catchy tune, even if they haven’t managed to find a name for a couple of the tracks as yet! But with the addition of keyboards and drum pads, they really have added a new dimension to their set and a real depth to their overall sound since FLY53′s last outing to catch a Traps show at the end of Summer. ‘Days in December’ takes your ears for a spin with its opening riff getting the audience moving and as ever, a chorus that hooks you in. The set ended with fan favourite and much recognised ‘Calypso’ which brought a few of the merrier audience members to the front to throw a few shapes. Whilst this show was designed to be a test for the new material, it’s clear that 2011 will be another great year for ‘The Traps’ with an album coming out on ‘You Need Speech Fewapy Records’ and plenty of shows to go alongside.

Californian indie rockers, The Blood Arm, were the final band of the evening, and with a big reputation off the back of their latest single ‘All My Love Songs’ (part of the ‘All My Love Songs’ EP – released Nov 15th) they took to the stage with real confidence. With, camped up front man Nathaniel Fregoso parading the stage in full suit and chatting with the audience between songs, there was no rest for the assembled crowd. Highlight of the night was 2007 single ‘Angela’ in which Fregoso insisted that everyone in the venue sit on the floor. He then proceeded to join everyone and sing the entire song cross-legged sat amongst the audience. A fun, if a little odd, way of performing in such a small venue. Finishing with their latest single, they left the stage in style, and rounded off a great evening of music. Their European Tour is over for this year, but I’m sure with the success of this one, they’ll be back next year. Check The Blood Arm by clicking HERE.

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