Vladimir

Sections
All News Articles
Festivals
General
Live
Releases
Track Of The Day
Win
Introducing... Vladimir
Stream new single 'Come Over'...
ROBIN MURRAY / NEWS / 30 · 10 · 2013 0


Scottish newcomers Vladimir are set to release new single 'Come Over' on November 18th.

Dundee is virtually the epitome of the Scottish post-industrial city. Still shrugging off the effects of the Thatcher era, there's an intensity to the place, a dank, fetid atmosphere which helps fuel its creative scene.

Spawning a staunchly DIY underground, Dundee has recently hosted a number of noise acts. Sitting in opposition to the city's better known indie output - The View, The Law et al - it's a fiercely uncompromising, uncommercial attitude.

Vladimir seem to sit somewhere in between. The band have a love of feedback, a fondness for torturing their instruments, but alongside this is a nascent songwriting ability which shines through the gloom.

Reference points include Joy Division, The Birthday Party and early Horrors, with new single 'Come Over' set to make their name. With a sepulchral atmosphere and a gravestone grey aura, 'Come Over' is an imposing introduction from the Scottish group. - Clash

Artrocker is proud to present our premier of the brilliant Vladimir's Born Slippy.
Read more at http://www.artrocker.tv/news/article/si#HuxSHEaWK5oJbFmJ.99

At the tender ages of just 18, Dundee based Vladimir are talented way beyond their years. With a sound which clearly takes influence from late 70s post-punk - more specifically the melancholic drones of Joy Division - the band are beginning to exhibit their penchant for achingly thoughtful song writing. Following their track Come Over, the band have now revealed Born Slippy - which we at Artrocker have the pleasure of premiering. Listen below.
Read more at http://www.artrocker.tv/news/article/si#HuxSHEaWK5oJbFmJ.99 - ArtRocker

Vladimir are a four-piece band from Scotland. Yes they're 18 and yes they have that voice but that echo post-70s punk sound is spot on. Melancholic yet bold, Vladimir bring back that old sound without trying to make it feel new. It's refreshing to hear guitar music is still thriving. - The 405

Vladimir are natives of Dundee, Scotland - a city that unsuccessfully bided for the UK Culture City of 2017, along with my home city Leicester. We sighed together in misery as the UK redevelopment panel picked Hull as the city most in need of tourism and a cash injection; or as the sore loser from the Swansea Bay area said: "People who live in Hull had to have something to look forward to," but he's absolutely right. Dundee is rich in culture, but small in size with just 156,561 - ish inhabitants, though it's still one of the largest cities in Scotland - and we know how rich Scotland’s musical heritage is don't we. Vladimir follows in the footsteps of some delicate Scottish artists which have been and gone. First, there’s the influence of The Jesus & Mary Chain, then the feel and vibe of the Cocteau Twins. The Dundee quartet also take a piece from Scotland’s modernists like The Twilight Sad and Franz Ferdinand, but it’s all too easy to say 'this Scottish band influenced this Scottish band' - the real influence here is The Cure / Joy Division / Siouxsie Sioux and the Gothics of 80s goth rock.



"Come Over" is the latest ethereal single self-released by Vladimir on their bandcamp, for free. So click on that download link above and get it while you can. Vladimir sound like their recent tour buddies The Twilight Sad, but vocalist Ross Murray doesn’t have the thick Scottish twang fans of The Twilight Sad, Frightened Rabbit, and Glasvegas crave for. This allows Vladimir to venture in to a less generalised audience in Britain without the denotation on them being Scottish. Without reading this, you probably wouldn’t have guessed this four piece hail from Scotland.

Vladimir are like The Cure if they didn’t sing about love. There are dark tones in Peter Mackenzie's electric guitar, much like the post-punk sounds of Beach Fossils. Together, the quartet form a unity where the space rock percussion and layers of guitar mash to create a sinister atmosphere, or as Vladimir describe on their Facebook - bleak. They played the fantastic Tramlines festival in Sheffield last year, and have already toured with The Pigeon Detectives, The Twilight Sad, The View, and Catfish and the Bottlemen. But Vladimir are much more than just a support act, as heard with this single. Stay tuned in to Vladimir for what’s expected to be an important 2014 for the Dundee quartet.
~Eddie Gibson - Music Review Database

TITLE: Come Over
BAND: Vladimir
LABEL: Unsigned
RELEASED: November 18th 2013

Regular readers will know how much I love a group of talented youngsters and I’m delighted to introduce another one to you. Dundee foursome Vladimir are still only 18 years old but have a heavy, dark sound nailed. Veering away from the upbeat indie that is ever popular with bands their age, they’re channelling something a lot more serious.

With praise such as “The noisiest band in Dundee… once made a sound engineer cry with their levels” from Daily Record, you can imagine the impact these guys are already having at their live shows. The band themselves describe their sound as simply “bleak” so don’t go into this expecting anything like sunshine and rainbows.

vladimirFuzzy guitars and strong drums overshadow a distant muffled vocal. Slurring through the 3:45 song, the song is a distorted mess which no doubt makes a hell of a noise during a live set. They’ve already supported Pigeon Detectives and fellow Scots The View, providing a slice of dark depression to both gigs.

Atmospheric ringing riffs and shimmering drones characterise Come Over, as does the grainy hook. Yes, it’s messy and dirty but it makes a refreshing change from teens producing happy-go-lucky indie music. I personally prefer something sharper but there’s certainly a niche for Vladimir. Have a listen! - Show Me Something Different

My favourite cover versions are the ones that move the song being covered into a completely different environment, a completely different genre even. That’s why, right now, Dundee four piece Vladimir have made just about my favourite cover version at the moment, and its out right now, backed with Smoke Eyes.
Describing their sound as ‘bleak’, the Scottish band drop big riffs and sprawling messy noise. It doesn’t have the aggression or malevolence of metal, just huge enveloping sheets of noise. This was proved with the seductive Come Over, which announced the bands intentions at the end of last year.


Taking Underworlds beat classic apart, it begins with these layers of feedback and fuzz, before the vocals come in, rinsed through with echo and obscured to little more than a blur by the other elements. It winds its way through, until the accompaniment can’t stop itself any longer, transforming itself into this headlong rush towards the end, soaked in fuzz and leaving you breathless.
Live Dates

18th Apr – SHEFFIELD – Detestival (Queens Social Club)

25th Apr – DUNDEE – Beat Generator (w/ Pulled Apart By Horses)

29th Apr – LEEDS – Brudenell Social Club (w/ The Twilight Sad)

30th Apr – LONDON – Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen (w/ The Twilight Sad)

01st May – LONDON – Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen (w/ The Twilight Sad)

02nd May – MANCHESTER – The Deaf Institute (w/ The Twilight Sad)

03rd May – BRISTOL – Exchange (w/ The Twilight Sad)

11th May – EDINBURGH – Sneaky Pete’s - Backseat Mafia

Dundee, Scotland four-piece Vladimir (comprised of eighteen year olds Ross Murray, Peter Mackenzie, Joshua Gray, and Sam Taylor) released a free download of their single Come Over on November 18th, and will precede a string of new releases from the band in 2014. The band recently spoke with A Music Blog, Yea? about causing havoc, accomplishments, and their ultimate concert line-up. Enjoy:

AMBY: Hey Vladimir, thanks for speaking with AMBY. What’s the band been up to lately?

Vladimir: Causing havoc intentionally or by accident whilst playing as many gigs as possible.

AMBY: How would you describe your sound to those unfamiliar with your music?

Vladimir: Bleak.

AMBY: Your single Come Over is one hell of a tune! What’s the story behind the track?

Vladimir: It’s our reaction to the people who have done us wrong or just don’t like us both as a band and as people in general. We’re beckoning them.

AMBY: Is there an EP or record in the works?

Vladimir: We will be releasing a single and a b side early 2014.

AMBY: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration?

Vladimir: From trying to get out this fucking shit hole we seem to be stuck in.

AMBY: Where did the name Vladimir come from? And what other names had you considered for the band?

Vladimir: It’s a strong name, and we like Eastern Europe.

AMBY: You’ve spent the past year supporting incredible bands such as Peace, Pigeon Detectives, Twilight Sad and The View. But who would be in your ultimate concert line up?

Vladimir: The Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream and The Libertines.

AMBY: Which other artists from Scotland should we keep our eyes on?

Vladimir: An Edinburgh based band, NAKED. They are doing something really interesting.

AMBY: How does it feel to be so young, yet accomplish so much already?

Vladimir: What we’ve managed so far feels alright but we naturally want to keep progressing.

AMBY: What’s the best release of the year?

Vladimir: Government Plates – Death Grips – We admire this group because yet again they have spontaneously released an amazing album for free with no promotion at all.

AMBY: And lastly, what’s something about Vladimir that nobody knows yet?

Vladimir: You’ll need to find that out for yourself.

***

Thank you Vladimir, for giving us your answers! - A Music Blog, Yea?

Vladimir / King Louie / The Hugs / Blatant Flaws – The Cool Cat Club, Beat Generator Live, Dundee – 7th September 2013

I’m still not 100% convinced that last night’s jaunt to Dundee was the best move I’ve ever made. I’m certainly paying the price for a third late night in a row today and, to be honest, I was probably too tired to enjoy the show as much as I might have done.

However, and it is a big however, I was blown away (again) by the headliners. Vladimir are simply an unstoppable force live at the moment.

With no between song chat it’s all about the music and that music was simply ferocious. I’ve said it before (and Andy said pretty much the same thing last week) but the newer songs have added a greater range of dynamics to the band’s repertoire. That was evident again last night and the effect was to create something like Interpol with added malevolence.

It has to be said too that, good though the second E.P. is, the live versions of the new songs are simply immense and tower over the recorded versions.

That was probably to be expected but the effect was to add more intensity and menace to an already furious mix.

The one minor gripe about the performance was an inclusion in the set – a cover of ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’ midway through. Not because it wasn’t brilliant, it was, but simply because I would have preferred to have heard another of their own songs rather than a song that everyone (and their dog) seems to have done.

I’m genuinely baffled why Vladimir shows aren’t winning wider recognition across the land because, simply put, they are in a league of their own at the moment. - Manic Pop Thrills

On the Radar – No 221: Dundee doom-mongers Vladimir make sound engineers cry and are on good terms with Anton Newcombe of The Brian Jonestown Massacre.

The young four-piece – Ross Murray (vocals), Peter Mackenzie (guitar), Joshua Gray (bass) and Sam Taylor (drums) – release their second EP in March.

Daisy Dundee caught up with Ross and Joshua before their double-header support slot for Sheffield’s Wet Nuns Scottish tour this weekend (Electric Circus in Edinburgh tonight, Broadcast in Glasgow tomorrow)Are you the outsiders of the Dundee music scene?

Ross: “I think so. It feels like it anyway. I think other Dundee bands dislike us cause they are intimidated by what we do. I think a lot of people would kill to be in our band; everyone sees how much fun we have cause we just don’t care. That’s the way it’s meant to be… as people we have always been outsiders and we wouldn’t be in this band if we weren’t.”

Who does your music appeal to?

Ross: “People who want to let themselves go and live in the moment.”

Joshua: “People like us.”

You’ve played everywhere from Inverness to London in the last year. How much of a challenge is it getting four teenagers on the road, and staying in one piece?

Ross: “The biggest. I don’t wish this task on anyone. We just love to cause trouble, it’s what we do best – probably why we are best doing it just the four of us… we can look out for each other but would drive anyone else mad.”

You once made a sound engineer cry and Sneaky Pete’s closed down the night after you played. Are you THAT loud?

Joshua: “At the gig in Norwich where the sound engineer cried, the people there were literally backing up against the wall. I’ve no perception of how loud we really are, and I wish I did, but you really can’t hear on stage. By the looks of things we are pretty loud though.”

You met Anton from The Brian Jonestown Massacre at T in the Park last year. What was that like?

Ross: “A bit surreal.. he was so cool and down to earth. I don’t think we truly believe it happened.”

Joshua: “Anton was so cool and such a nice guy. He took a picture with us for his twitter/blog with his laptop and captioned it ‘A man of the peoples’. The BJM are one of our favourite bands and it was weird but exciting meeting them.”

How did you feel when Dundee venue The Doghouse closed at the end of last year?

Ross: “It was like part of us died! We spent all our money and nights in there. Was just a great place to hang out.. everyone was a delight that worked there as well.”

Plans for 2013?

Ross: “Release our second EP and probably a third as we already have about three or four songs written for that and a couple recorded. We will also play every dive venue in the land. Maybe even a festival if we’re lucky.” - The Scotsman

Glasgow may be Scotland’s main rock and pop metropolis, with Edinburgh always a constant and steady second; so it probably falls to Dundee to take the bronze medal.

The cover art for progressive-punk-rockers Fat Goth's new album, One Hundred Percent Suave (which is released tomorrow), was designed by legendary musician and artist David Yow of The Jesus Lizard
The cover art for progressive-punk-rockers Fat Goth’s new album, One Hundred Percent Suave (which is released tomorrow), was designed by legendary musician and artist David Yow of The Jesus Lizard
For a city of approximately 150,000 people, it really does punch above its weight in the cultural stakes and looks to maintain that upward trajectory.
Dundee unfortunately missed out to Hull as UK City of Culture 2017, but that certainly won’t slow its future innovation. With building work starting on the V&A Museum of Design this summer, alongside advocates of its creative industries such as Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee Rep, Creative Dundee, Clash Magazine and various well-respected arts, film and literary festivals, the place is thriving and constantly transforming.

Growing up across the Tay in Fife, my formative years buying music and dipping my toes into pop culture were spent travelling to Dundee in the 1980s on a pilgrimage to emporia such as Groucho’s and Chalmers & Joy. I bought my first concert tickets, posters, badges and many 7″ singles there. The former still stands, albeit in a slightly different location but nonetheless crucial to the city’s musical lifeblood, with a section of the shop now dedicated to local acts and specialist vinyl.

The City of Discovery once famous in the past for jute, jam and journalism has provided us with a surprisingly diverse selection of music too, spanning roughly 50 years and continuing to carve out a niche to this day. The genres and styles may change, but the integrity remains.

As the big band era began to wane in the 1950s and the seismic rock’n’roll blast was felt into the 1960s, names such The Johnny Hudson Hi Four, The Teenbeats and Poor Souls were Dundee’s representatives in this new movement. The aforementioned Hudson even got to know bluesmen such as Long John Baldry, released singles on Decca and supported The Beatles at the Caird Hall.

As the 1970s advanced, from the ashes of prog-rock combo Forever More came the soul, disco and R’n’B stylings of the Average White Band. Selling millions and influencing future funk and hip-hop generations around the globe, original members Alan Gorrie and Onnie McIntyre are still in the band and tour to this day.

Dundee once again flirted with success in the 1980s as melodrama, glamour and heartbreak collided in the songs of The Associates, featuring the untamed romance of Billy Mackenzie’s wild, unique vocals – a talent who sadly never reached his full creative or commercial potential, before tragically taking his own life.

Danny Wilson and Deacon Blue certainly did experience commercial highs in that decade however, and both band’s frontmen Gary Clark and Ricky Ross have gone on to become hugely lauded songwriters. Not only do these Dundonians continue to write for themselves, their songs are in demand across the UK and US, and classic tracks such as Mary’s Prayer and Dignity are rarely off the radio even now.

As the 1990s took hold and indie-rock started to flex its muscles. Formed at Dundee University, before moving to Glasgow and conquering the world’s stadia, was a certain Polar Bear. Due to a potential law-suit, they promptly changed their name to Snow Patrol and eventually went on to sell a veritable ton of records. They did acknowledge their debt to the city, and helped encourage other local victory-rockers Laeto, who in turn helped shine a light on another set of guitar-wielding acts like Stapleton and Avast!

Sadly passing away in 2012, one of Dundee’s most infamous sons, who was enjoying his creative renaissance before an untimely death, was Michael Marra. Beloved of traditional, acoustic and indie musicians alike, his songs resonate with so many fans and collaborators across the country; and it’s wonderful to see children Matthew and Alice keeping the fire burning in their own group, the consistently excellent The Hazey Janes.

Undeniably however, Dundee’s greatest runaway success story in recent years has been a group of unkempt tearaways from Dryburgh, with a sack-full of tunes and a rock’n’roll attitude. The View captured the imagination of an entire teenage generation with their 2007 album Hats Off To The Buskers. In the following years Dundee felt like the most exciting place in the land as a scene of like-minded groups took up residence in the now sadly lamented venue, The Doghouse – Dundee’s answer to the Marquee or CBGB’s for a while.

With a wide selection of venues such as Fat Sams, Beat Generator, Drouthy Neebors, Reading Rooms, Non-Zeros, Duke’s Corner and Kage, the city’s commitment to live music is obvious. And underground champions like the Rusty Hip Collective, Pet Piranha and Make That A Take Records show the DIY ethos is still in abundance too.

Another generation of songwriters and indie rockers including Anderson McGinty Webster Ward & Fisher, Model Aeroplanes, Scary People and Vladimir are now champing at the bit. Local hopefuls The Mirror Trap have been offered a tour of Russia supporting pseudo-Goths Placebo, whose lead-singer Brian Molko grew up in Dundee. Allegedly.

From this new guard and on the verge of a genuine breakthrough, albeit into the uncompromising world of alternative rock, is a visceral trio of noiseniks with the absurd but hilarious name of Fat Goth. Taking influence from The Jesus Lizard, Queens Of The Stone-Age, Rush and Dead Kennedys among others, the inventive progressive-punk-rock of new album One Hundred Percent Suave is released tomorrow. Seriously worth the attention, counting fans as disparate as Kerrang magazine and celebrity chef Nick Nairn, they launch it in their fair city on May 31 at Buskers and take Dundee’s musical heritage in yet another direction. Why not go with them on a true voyage of discovery…

Vic Galloway presents on BBC Radio Scotland at 8.05pm on Mondays, www.bbc.co.uk/radiosc - The Herald

No less than five local bands have been shortlisted for this year's Scottish Alternative Music Awards but they need your votes to seal the deal.

The competition is known for shining a spotlight on up and coming acts and giving a platform to home-grown talent. Now in its fifth year, the SAMAs are a firm highlight of Scottish music calendar and this year organisers have promised audiences the biggest and best event to date.

The voting lines are now open and there are five Dundee acts who need your support. The winners will be revealed on March 7 at Glasgow's The Garage nightclub so you have until then to get behind Dundee and show just how popular our local bands are. Here's the lowdown on the top Tayside acts.

Best Rock Alternative

Dundee bands Vladimir and Fat Goth have both had very successful past years nurturing growing fanbases.

We caught up with Fat Goth late last year to ask them about their plans for 2014.

Fat Goth get back to gigging after finishing their third album

Despite all being a relatively young 18-years-old, four-piece rock act Vladimir also saw their star rise after they released a second EP early last year. One of their fans was Keiren Webster from well known Dundee rockers The View. Kieren offered to design the cover of Vladimir EP 2 and gave them his picture of a half-demolished multi-storey flat.


(Vladimir)
via STV via STV
They then released single Come Over in October which won rave reviews in the music press as well as winning the band a whole new legion of fans.


via Twitter via Twitter
You can check out Vladimir's single here.


VladimirUK
via SOUNDCLOUD via SOUNDCLOUD
Best Live Act

The Dundee folk band who it seems everybody loves but whose name no one can remember also had a great year. Anderson, McGinty, Webster, Ward and Fisher made several key decisions last year, one of which was to start using the acronym AMWWF. They also staged several sell out gigs, performed Caledonia with Dougie Maclean and won a Scottish Variety Award.

We caught up with them recently to hear about their road to fame.

Meet two of the faces behind one of Dundee's hottest bands - AMWWF

If you want to check out their music then check out their most recent song Boo Hoo.


AMWWandF
via YOUTUBE via YOUTUBE
Best Newcomer

The next Dundee band up for an award is Model Aeroplanes. Think One Direction for the Skins generation with the looks of Justin Bieber. If Simon Cowell is ever looking to crack the rock market he should check these guys out. Here's their most popular hit to date, Crazy.


IndieMusicNation II
via YOUTUBE via YOUTUBE
We spoke to the young band last month to see if the fame has gone to their heads yet. It hasn't and we're happy to report they were lovely. Model Aeroplanes have also been asked by SAMA organisers to perform alongside The LaFontaines at the awards ceremony.

Model Aeroplanes are hoping to soar to new heights in 2014

Best Hip Hop Act

Last but by no means least are Tayside's most famous pranksters. Silibil N Brains took on the music industry as a pair of Californian rappers only to become victims of their own success. They were literally too popular to keep up the lie and eventually admitted they were actually from Arbroath.

But they had a lot of fun along the way and also made award-winning documentary The Great Hip Hop Hoax, which was released to critical acclaim last year. Years after going their separate ways and hanging up the mics, Silibil N Brains decided to get back together.

Their debut gig was held on December 27 in Dundee and true to form, we caught up with them to hear how the reunion was going.

The Great Hip Hop Hoaxers reunite for gigs

If you want to vote for any of the acts above, and we heartily encourage you to support the local music scene by doing so, then check out the SAMA website where you can also get the full short list for each category.

Voting is open. Go!

Have you got the App yet? Download it free for all the latest news, food and entertainment in your city.

Scottish Alternative Music Aw ...

Scottish Alternative Music Awards 2014 View
The Garage

The Garage
Save - STV

Dundee's finest - Scary People, Vladimir, Model Aeroplanes and Fat Goth - graced the Balado T-Break stage, some for the first and others for the very last time at T in the Park 2014.

The Tayside music scene is nothing if not bound by solidarity, and the four acts kicked off their festival experience hand in hand with a warm-up gig at The Reading Rooms.


via Twitter via Twitter
We had a rifle through some of their best Balado moments caught on camera and asked them to describe their festival experience in just five words.

Scary People: 'Much more than we expected'

Having launched in 2013 with a collection of broody rock anthems, Scary People are among the youngest (in band years) of the four Dundee T-Breakers.

It was their first performance at T in the Park, soon to be followed by a slot at Wickerman later this year - we can confirm their T-Break debut went well.

First they were hunted down for an interview.


seonaidbee
via INSTAGRAM via INSTAGRAM
Then they found an equally scary skull.


scarypeople
via INSTAGRAM via INSTAGRAM
They got a gig stamp of approval from Dundee radio legend Jim Gellatly.


via Twitter via Twitter
And a photo...


via scontent-a.xx.fbcdn.net via scontent-a.xx.fbcdn.net
Let's not forget, the performance itself was epic.


scarypeople
via INSTAGRAM via INSTAGRAM

via Twitter via Twitter
Vladimir: 'An intense, emotional rollercoaster'

This Tayside foursome were so overwhelmed by their T in the Park experience, they only managed to give us four defining words rather than five.

On the go since 2012, Vladimir recently toured with Pulled Apart By Horses - a group they dub 'the best live band in Britain.'

But how did Balado treat them? Well, they happened to be the very first band Jim Gellatly saw this year.


via Twitter via Twitter
Of course, they attracted the attention of a few other celebs.

For one, they got a shout out from fellow Dundee rockers The View.


via Twitter via Twitter
And there was the usual stream of affection from adoring fans.


via Twitter via Twitter - STV