Portugal. The Man - The Satanic Satanist

portugal.the man

What makes some places become hubs of creativity and art, instead of others? Portland, Oregon is one place that crops up again and again when you take a foray into the world of music that sits below the surface of the mainstream – be it mainstream rock, dance or that of the talentless talent show genre.

Portugal. The Man’ are yet another group to base themselves in that very American city, and so when the album dropped through my letterbox with its colourful, puzzle-like cardboard artwork that fits together in some intricate fashion, I wasn’t too surprised.

What did put me off at first listen was the vocals on the opening track – ‘People Say’. I was concerned that amongst the pretty keys and twangy Western guitar sounds that you’d find off of ‘Come On Feel.. The Lemonheads’, that we’d have just another indie-fash melody over the top. Luckily, I managed to push onward, and convince myself that there was better to come, which luckily there was. As the timer clicked on, I found myself imagining the upbeat, feel good, swirly country guitar-pop tune being played atop a scene in a 90s movie. You know the one – a group of friends engaged in a communal moment; driving with the top of their unrealistically expensive car down; hair in their long blonde locks, laughing and pulling down the tips of their over-sized sunglasses, before taking stock of the world.

After the slightly tame start, the record ends up veering off towards the more jazzy, soulful side of the spectrum, instead of crashing into indie hell. It’s not really my sort of sound, but if you like to feel sunny days sitting in festival grasslands when you listen to albums, that’s what this conjures up.

Thought has obviously gone into the way things have been put together; the tracks blend into each other nicely; something that the digital format has managed to help destroy. Bring it back I say!

Check out their Myspace here.

Upcoming Tour Dates:

27-Oct – Tues – LONDON, Hoxton Bar & Kitchen
28-Oct – Wed – MANCHESTER, Roadhouse
29-Oct – Thurs – GLASGOW, Captains Rest
30-Oct – Fri – SHEFFIELD, The Shakespeare
31-Oct – Sat – BRISTOL, Lousianna
01-Nov – Sun – SOUTHAMPTON. Hamptons

    Post new comment

    The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.

MORE STORIES ABOUT

Rabbit, Rabbit All Day Long...

Top 5 Downloads

  • Behind the Scenes with: YER BEAUTIES

    After 3 hours sleep I found myself in Glasgow Airport buying an overpriced tuna cheese melt and iced coffee combo for breakfast, after being given a ticking off for bringing a half-empty deodorant...
  • Call The Fire Brigade - Jim Jones Revue

    The Jim Jones Revue From: London, United Kingdom London rockers The Jim Jones Revue have risen from the ashes of legendary UK garage rockers Thee Hypnotics to deliver the world from the computer...
  • The Choice Is Yours

    Freedom or Death From: Toronto, Canada With a name like Freedom or Death, the war cry for the people of Greece during the 1820’s Greek War of Independence, I was expecting a cacophonous,...
  • Transmitten Vamps

    transmittens From: Lawrence, Kansas, United States   With a name like transmittens and tracks called Balloons in the Sky and Meet Me At The Swings it doesn’t take a genius to guess that...
  • Wild Nothing : Gemini

    I’ve really grown to love the album ‘Gemini’ by Wild Nothing over the past few weeks. Jack Tatum’s home recorded dream pop draws from lineage of sounds stretching back to...

Have You Read?

  • Network DVD soundtrack CDs

    PARSLEY'S COMMLOCK CD Review: Network DVD soundtrack CDs A recent ‘sale’ on the Network DVD website tempted me into getting around to purchasing the soundtrack DVDs for Man In A Suitcase...
  • Mark Mathews and the One T's, and 'The Difficult Third Album'

    PARSLEY'S COMMLOCK Concert Review : Mark Mathews and the One T's, Clapham Grand, 07/08/08 My good friend Kieron of The Dilemmas tempted me south of the river to experience singer/songwriter Mark...
  • THE COVERGIRLS

    If Stephen Malkmus had formed fIREHOSE with Mike Watt and George Hurley, they may have made music akin to Glasgow’s COVERGIRLS.  Yes, they’re that good. 

Photos

  • In Pictures: Wickerman Festival 2010

    One of the most visually stunning festivals in the UK is Scotland’s Wickerman Festival. Not to be confused as a copy of Burning Man, Wickerman was inspired by the classic 1973 cult movie with...
  • In Pictures: backstage with Pulled Apart by Horses

    Following on from our time spent with the magnificent Pulled Apart By Horses on their album release tour, we’ve got a full photo gallery of delights from Stephen McLeod to give you an insight...
  • In Pictures: The Black Keys at London Roundhouse

    One of our favourite bands at Artrocker.com has always been The Black Keys. Currently promoting their new album Brothers, we’ve got these exclusive pics from last night’s show at London...
  • In Pictures: Dot To Dot Festival 2010

    Leah Mason. Photo: © Geoff Kirby Latest pictures from Dot To Dot 2010 Festival in Bristol, Nottingham and Manchester. The Dot To Dot Festival covers cutting edge indie, rock, dance and pop...
  • In Pictures: Patti Smith at Union Chapel

    Patti Smith with Patrick Wolf and Seb Rochford played in London at Union Chapel.

Blogs