The High Llamas: C or D?

I love how when he hums & sings during the interview, he sounds nothing like he does in his own music. It's a much more gravelly, normal voice, rather than that airy, kind of flat voice we're all used to.

Just found out about this album. Came out a couple months ago. It's very, very good:

https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-good-is-a-big-god-mw0003159611

The rough guitar sketches he sent to O'Hagan earned beautifully detailed string arrangements, eventually forming the basis of this beautifully crafted collection. As a creative foil to Lancellotti's soothing yet ambitious approach, O'Hagan is a perfect fit, enhancing instrumental tracks like the lilting title cut and the gorgeous "Árvores" with exquisitely rendered string parts that seem both featherlight and absolutely essential. As on previous releases, both Kassin and Veloso also return to help out, the former adding sitar, guitars, and synth to the mysterious "Aracne" and the latter singing and co-writing the breezy highlight "Tudo ao Redor." For his part, Lancellotti remains the captain here, singing, arranging, playing a multitude of instruments, and turning out challenging avant-garde pop on "Asas" and sunny samba rhythms on "Insatiable," and crooning over eerie synths on the magical "Dama da Noite." The Good Is a Big God may be a lofty album rich in layers, details, and rhythms, yet it never flaunts its ambition. Lancellotti is a master of subtlety, gracefully melding his own attributes with the strengths of others to great effect on this excellent sophomore outing.

Thanks for the tip, checking this out right now

Did you notice Seano started a new website recently?
https://www.seanohaganmusic.com

There are some audio clips on the 'Music in Art' page that I need to check out.

That Basil Kirchin track is part of an album that I believe is either being worked on or completely finished. I heard one track and thought it was phenomenal.

This Lancellotti album is nice. "Asas" has a monster groove.

There's even a song where Sean takes lead vocals. Sounds totally Llamas. The instrumentals sound heavily influenced by Sean as well.

http://hernehillfestival.org/programme/155-Sean+O%26%2339%3BHagan%2C+Kieran+Mahon%2C+and+friends

Sean O'Hagan - The Peacock Hunter
Sean O’Hagan has spent 30 years in music as a performer and writer, first as the co-founder of Microdisney in the 1980s, then as the founder of the still current High Llamas as well as being a part time member of Stereolab. Sean has made a living as an arranger, in film, art and event writing. In 2014 Sean wrote a staged musical narrative called Here Come The Rattling Trees set in Peckham, his home for 30 years. Here Come The Rattling Trees is now the High Llamas's 10th studio LP. In 2017 Sean was commissioned by Hull City of Culture 2017 to write We Start Counting, a tribute to Basil Kirchin.

The Peacock Hunter, the show which will be performed this evening, takes you on an impressionistic trip from a Coventry production line to the last days of a collapsing Middle Eastern dynasty, using original music and text and archive images. Music written and performed by Sean O'Hagan, Marcus Holdaway, and Dominic Murcott, with text written and delivered by Liam McNeive. Liam McNeive has originated or collaborated in various musical and filmic creations, including a BBC-produced virtual reality world.

Looks fun!

Tickets have gone on sale now too

Peacock show is on Saturday.

https://www.wegottickets.com/event/446156

I thought I’d bought a ticket but seems like I hadn’t! Glad there are some left.

I can't wait to hear how it goes.

I wonder if this is connected to the Basil Kirchin project they were working on.

Ta for the reminder, I was planning to go to this and nearly forgot. Herne Hill's a mainline service as well so coming from Luton I've no excuse, the train comes practically right to the door of the venue.

Sean vs The Banging Door and Sean vs The Hand Drier = one for the ages

Seriously though, a great show in a lovely venue (the above mentioned drawbacks notwithstanding). The Peacock Hunter bears no relation at all to We Start Counting (the Kirchin project), it's much closer to Here Come The Rattling Trees in terms of structure, but with a single story arc rather than a series of loosely linked narratives.

I wonder what planning lunacy led to the toilets being directly behind the stage area, it was farcical. I genuinely thought Sean was going to kick off when they had to stop Bramble Black, he must've been fuming.

Lovely set though apart from the "technical issues", glad to've caught it.

Magical show by @mercuryrevvd at Oslo. Exquisite versions of tracks from Deserter’s Songs, a cover of Here by Pavement and a quite staggering surprise guest appearance of Sean O’Hagan to lead them through Checking In Checking Out by The High Llamas. Incredible night. pic.twitter.com/XDdu2xuRgG

— Steven Johnson (@_SPJ_) December 18, 2018

Woah

very nice, that song sounds like it was pulled directly off of Pretzel Logic

Fuuuck, I hoped that was going to be a video. Wonder if anyone thought to record it?

Also I had no idea Sean and the Rev boys had collaborated before, many years ago, on a cover of I Only Have Eyes For You

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tc1CwA8wbQ

Amazing how you just keep uncovering things as you trudge along the net:

https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/houseofhiss

Anyone ever heard this song 'Shang'? Sounds brilliant. Sean doing vocals.

https://houseofhiss.bandcamp.com/track/shang

There it is. Soooo good.

Sean O'Hagan is unjustly despised on this site.

He's a fuckin' genius.

Been going through h the entire Llamas discography and aside from the not very good solo debut and the middling Santa Barbara, it's just delight after delight. Every album its own little universe, a mini masterpiece after another. It's breathtaking.

Wait, who despises him? I don't think I've ever read anything negative about him on here.

There are a couple Stereolab threads where the comments on him are overwhelmingly negative.

1. Here are some drawings from a new video/animation I was asked to make for former @High_Llamas frontman and songwriter Sean O’Hagan @seano_arsenal. This for the first single from the ‘Radum Calls, Radum Calls’ album on @dragcityrecords (25/10/2019)... #animation pic.twitter.com/U7bFrZix09

— Paperface (@paperfacetweet) August 13, 2019

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOqaHefEN8c

Sean's second solo album in 30 years reflects the bold new sounds of today embedded in the plush sound-world he's built for The High Llamas, Stereolab and many others – thick low end synths under light orchestra strings, dubby percussion atop bossa-nova beats and rumbling drum sounds driving Sean's tounge-in-cheek ditties. Guest vocals from former Microdisney partner, vocalist Cathal Coughlan add to the surreal bloom of Sean’s new musical conception.

Woah @ Cathal.

There’s at least one song from The Peacock Hunter on the album, judging from the track titles on the DC website.

I wonder who actually plays on this record. It sounds like The High Llamas. I only recently started appreciating Jon Fell’s Bass work. It’s extraordinary.

Yeah, I don't exactly get how he distinguishes his solo stuff from High Llamas exactly. It's a bit of a weird track, but maybe a bit more adventurous than some of the stuff he's done in recent years. Looking forward to the album.

There’s at least one song from The Peacock Hunter on the album, judging from the track titles on the DC website.

― Jeff W, Wednesday, August 14, 2019 12:42 AM (seven hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

I hope the full Peacock Hunter material is destined for a separate release, as I thought that was some of the best stuff he's done in years.

I love O'Hagan, he's done some incredible stuff over the years. Snowbug is one of the greatest summer albums ever made by anybody.

He seems like a nice bloke too.

He also did a Basil Kirchin tribute a couple years ago. What I heard online sounded incredible. The music was original, but influenced by, aside from a cover of “I Start Counting” with Jane Weaver on vocals. Too good not to record.

i was graced with a promo copy

it's incredible

first track is a pretty weird 'psychedelic' song with cathal coughlan on lead vox

i love it when sean breaks out the synths. he always gets the best sounds out of them.

This album is ridiculously good. Like best in years. Why'd they give it such an unassuming cover?

Good review. Comes close to my initial thoughts:

https://www.popmatters.com/sean-ohagan-radum-calls-radum-2641069306.html

Sean's definitely on his own track and continues to make wonderful music.

He just canceled a bunch of shows because of 'health issues.'

Gutted.

What shows?

From what I understand, everything.

I was just about to buy a ticket for one of them!

Yeah. I am bummed out. The new album is great. I am happy he got to release a quality LP under his own name. That first Sean O' album is not one of my favs.

Get well soon Sean O'Hagan @seano_arsenal pic.twitter.com/r9NTDIICmU

— J. John Foyle (@JJohnFoyle) October 22, 2019

Jeez, I don't like this news at all, I hope he's ok

Appears he played a little set at Rough Trade at least.

https://t.co/VBG08RqwBg?amp=1

Here’s a new interview as well: https://therecoup.com/2019/10/25/pull-up-a-chair-for-a-spoken-gem-a-conversation-with-sean-ohagan/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

Have you officially retired The High Llamas?

Not officially, no, and I don’t consider them as such. But what needs to happen, and I am desperately trying to make happen, is to get the rights back to our label output from the Nineties. They’re owned by Universal, who are extremely reluctant to do anything with our catalog, and I’ve really been wanting to get them remastered and pressed on vinyl, and maybe do an expanded series like Stereolab have done. If we can get that to happen, we’ll tour. Maybe not a full-scale tour, but perhaps residencies where we play one or two albums a night over two or three nights. If we can get those albums reissued, we’ll definitely tour. Maybe we’ll do a new record to go along with them. Then we might use that as an opportunity to officially retire—it would be a great way to close that book, don’t you think?

Agreed. But you know, if you do decide to make one last record, you have to title it Sean O’Hagan.

(Confused) What? What do you mean?? I don’t…(Pauses, then bursts into uproarious laughter). Joseph, my friend, that is brilliant! I simply must do that, you’re absolutely right! What an absolutely perfect way to bookend it all

Some typically fantastic outros on the new one

The 6 November London Show at Cafe Oto is still on, I believe (which is good because I have a ticket for that). Only shows planned from 9 November onwards are postponed.

https://www.musicomh.com/features/interviews/sean-ohagan

He's giving good interviews.

“The music that is coming out of this generation of say, 17 to 37-year-olds, is the best it has been for years. They have finally cast off the past but are able to reference it in a healthy way. There’s this esoteric, creative jazz popping out everywhere. Hip hop is so old now it almost has the legacy and weight of jazz. It’s got such a history and presence that finds itself in this great contemporary music that we hear so much in the UK and US”. He compares Khalid to Marvin Gaye (“that Talk track he did with Disclosure – if Marvin Gaye released that people would be saying it is one of his best songs”) and likens Kadhja Bonet to the 1960s psychedelic soul outfit Rotary Connection. He goes on to praise the likes of Frank Ocean, Steve Lacy, The Internet, Mount Kimbie, Empirical and new(ish) Coventry band Batsch. “I don’t see a demarcation between musical eras. A problem I do see is my personal contemporaries who say there’s nothing interesting being released now. He suddenly remembers Tyler, The Creator – “nutty old Tyler, what a joy!” – and when we talk about some of the amazing short instrumental tracks on Radum Calls, Radum Calls he remarks how he was going to leave them off the album “but then I listened to Tyler, The Creator do them and I thought fuck it – if Tyler’s doing it, I’ll do it!”. It’s refreshing and inspiring to hear a musician who has just entered his 60s talk in such animated, heartfelt, excited tones about contemporary music.