Chairlift

“We’re the best band in the world at enjoying tacos” says Patrick, buoyed by his own confidence. “We challenge any band to combat us in a taco-eating contest.” At first, this might seem exactly the sort of comment one would expect from the drummer/bassist of a band that produces charming, kooky soundtracks for iPod commercials (yes, that “I try to do handstands for you” tune is theirs), but there is more to Chairlift than just brief throwaway whimsy. Much like Feist, the Apple experience served only to grab the collective attention. By comparison, the remainder of the debut album - Does You Inspire You - is a darker, mightier body of work, especially when manifested into their emphatic live performance. This is haunting stuff. Chairlift are quite creepy. Even the way they each speak conveys a sense of foreboding: Patrick drawls like an incoherent alien; Aaron - guitarist/songwriter - sits almost silently; and Caroline - provider of synths and vocals - jumps around in a wildly musing state.

This disparity of moods is evident in the work they produce and their wide-ranging reference points hop between genres. From the epic Asian-bent ‘Planet Earth’ to the slow synth dream of ‘Somewhere Around Here’ to the alluring horror power chords of ‘Territory’ to the swirling rock-and-thunk electronica of ‘Make Your Mind Up’; Chairlift’s miscellany is simplistic and textured.

“People get confused by how many different genres we play with but to us it’s all part of the same movie,” says Caroline. Using Quentin Tarrantino’s Asian/cowboy flavour as an example, she adds, “By combining all these different things, the world that they all coexist in is our sound. It’s not that we’re juggling between different ones, it’s actually cross pollination.”

Chairlift often refer to their own ‘world’; one which, according to Patrick, “you cant sit on but you could definitely crawl inside.” This hollow dystopian world has a conscience and deals with our planet’s destructions on several tracks. For Caroline, “Music is very physical. Like a building environment. It’s not flat when it comes out of the speakers. It’s a way of seeing the world from the point of view of the song.”

Even the band’s name, which was originally intended for a project Caroline and Patrick previously played in, is significant to viewing this ‘world’. “A chairlift is a journey over a beautiful, slowly-changing terrain” Caroline reflects. “It’s a slow panoramic view and our music is like that, it takes you through different places.”

One might argue that here they could be describing a movie soundtrack and it’s no secret Chairlift are great fans of Twin Peaks, Donnie Darko and a slew of 80s cinematic releases. However, the association with their sound is very much a coincidence. They claim to have only started listening to the era’s output once their album was finally complete: “The 80s pillaged us” admits Caroline.

Her slick vocal technique certainly benefits the fantasy element. She crosses the solidity of Feist with the peculiarity of Kate Bush and Regina Spektor, thus registering a high quotient of eeriness. The overall result is a world that borders with the likes of Ladyhawke, The Knife, PJ Harvey and Bats For Lashes.

Chairlift are quietly conquering Europe, as the current tour demonstrates. Aside from the odd broken guitar, blown adaptor, vehicle issue and illness/ailment, the band’s first TransAtlantic experience has been a success. So where do they see themselves a year from now? According to a psychic they frequented en masse recently, they’ll be in Florida making their next record. Even though Patrick hates Florida, Caroline sees this as a blessing: “the record will be much cooler because it [Florida] is beautiful but grotesque.”

The clairvoyant may just be right. After all, it was a strange act of fate that brought the band together in the first place. Having all known one another in Colorado, they experienced a spooky and fortuitous meeting again in New York some time later. This lead directly to the present Chairlift incarnation and the experimental, electronic trajectory they complete today.

Their move to the Big Apple has thrown up some notable relationships with Brooklyn neighbours MGMT, Yeasayer and Grizzly Bear, from whom the band has studied some of life’s most valuable lessons: “We’ve learned how to hang out really well,” admits Patrick proudly, as Caroline reaffirms, “We practice having fun and we’re getting really good at it.”

www.myspace.com/chairlift

London's best contemporary art galleries

Although the Tate Modern, the ICA and the Saatchi Museum all have the financial might to bring in top names and big crowds, London still boasts a wealth of alternative contemporary art museums well worth discovering.

Design Museum
This is Practicality Vs Art, all contained in a neat little riverside package. This slender collection offers a brief distraction from your Southbank stroll. When it opened in 1989, under the watchful eye of one Sir Terrance Conran, it was the world’s first museum to be entirely focused on 20th century design. Now that that has swallowed up the 21st century as well aspects like graphics, fashion, architecture, industry, manufacturing and interiors are also included. Anything goes with the exhibits: from global packaging to concepts in video gaming, from Manolo Blahnink shoe designs to Vogue photography. The museum is limited to two floors and the showcases are, therefore, constantly renewed. It’s also worth knowing that there’s a Conran restaurant, the Blue Print Café, on the premises. Get futuristic, get inspired and, while you’re at it, get a great view of the Thames and Tower Bridge.
+44 (0) 870 833 9955
www.designmuseum.org

2 Willow Road
This influential Hampstead homestead will suit fans of modern architecture. It was designed and lived in by Modernist architect, Ernö Goldfinger. If you’re thinking you’ve heard that surname before, you’re right: James Bond’s creator and fellow Hampstead resident, Ian Fleming, allegedly gave Bond’s nemesis the architect’s name when Fleming objected to him demolishing the previous cottages to make way for his modern terrace. Although Goldfinger’s private art collection still lives here and includes important works by Marcel Duchamp, Max Ernst and Henry Moore, it’s the building’s large, open interior that commands the most attention: the clever use of color; the obsessions with wood and concrete; and the spiral staircase designed by Anglo-Danish engineer, Ove Arup. Be warned, entry times are hourly and by tour only, plus facilities are very limited: restricted wheelchair access, no toilets, no refreshments and no parking.
+44 (0) 20 7435 6166
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-2willowroad

The Barbican Art Gallery and The Curve
Cutting edge art and design housed in possibly London’s most peculiar building. Constructed in the 1980s—and boy does it show—the Barbican Centre is a specifically-built cultural complex (Europe’s largest, apparently). And in terms of galleries it boasts two for the price of one; although one of them is actually free to enter. The Gallery, on the third floor of this labyrinthine monstrosity, heavily favors touring exhibits to keep things fresh (roughly seven shows a year). The rotation brings in elements of fine art, architecture, fashion and design but is particularly well known for photography. The second gallery, The Curve—so called because of its long bent shape—commissions new installations from contemporary artists. You could literally spend an entire day at The Barbican filling your boots with culture what with the concert hall, two theatres, a cinema, and a public library. There’s also the newly-refurbished (as of September 08) Searcy restaurant on site too.
+44 (0) 20 7638 4141
www.barbican.org.uk/artgallery


Bloomberg SPACE
An avant-garde space fueled by the world of business. It seems an odd pairing, especially when you think of all those ghastly works of art in skyscraper foyers dotted around the world. Better to have all the great art collected in one place, wouldn’t you agree? Well, Bloomberg, the kings of business TV, have taken the fiscal-meets-fine-art idea and transposed it into a deliberately innovative venue. This isn’t your average run-of-the-mill contemporary corporate art, this is large and intrepid. The ceilings are especially high and aid the artists in providing a larger and wholly differing sense of perspective. As well as intriguingly themed collectives—such as an exhibition about prison—there are commissioned installations by solo artists: for example, the bold wall paintings of Brit Paul Morrison and the neon explorations of Frenchman Bertrand Lavier. Plus, it’s only a 5-minute walk through the impressive Liverpool Street new business district to the delicious Turkish restaurant, Haz.
+44 (0) 20 7330 7959
www.bloombergspace.com

Kinetica
As the name suggests, this the UK's first, and possibly only, museum dedicated to kinetic, electronic and experimental art. If you like you art to be static, motionless and hung on the wall, this is not the place for you. Everything here exploits the world of movement; where shapes, rhythm, light, energy and sound combine in some sort of quirky science lab. Whilst it somehow conveys the very essence of the East End—fashionable, funky, leftfield, modern—it also quaintly juxtaposes the ‘ye olde’ feel of its Spitalfields Market setting. The installations utilize new media and audiovisual technology and the work is often created by up-and-coming artists. Recent highlights include suspended pens that draw light beams on the floor and a sonic exhibit called Soundwaves. Overall, half an hour spent warming your bones after trawling the vintage clothing stores in the chilly market all morning. Plus, it’s only a two-minute walk from the hearty St. John Bread & Wine eatery.
+44 (0) 20 7392 9674
www.kinetica-museum.org/new_site

Whitechapel Art Gallery
A must for 2009. Although Whitechapel is currently (as of October 2008) in the midst of major redevelopments it’s still worth a mention because if artists like Picasso, Kahlo, Pollock and Rothko have all had UK premiers there, you know it’s got to be great. Like The Barbican, Whitechapel is a one-stop shop for culture, boasting a whole host of events, talks, discussions, films, music and poetry, as well as art installations. If at all humanly possible, try waiting until the Spring of 2009 to visit because by then the £13 million expansion program will be in full operation and what was once the old library will then transform into three new galleries and a street-facing café. It seems the contemporary art scene feels most at home in the East End. The Barbican, Bloomberg SPACE, and Kinetica are all in East London and all less than 15 minutes walk from one another other. Indeed, you might want to have a crack at doing them all in one day.
+44 (0) 20 7522 7888
www.whitechapel.org

London's best contemporary commercial art galleries

Not all contemporary art in London is just for looking at. Some of it is for buying and taking home with you, too.

Lisson Gallery
This modern, minimalist gallery is quite spooky. Its blank white walls and parquet floor lend each piece a three-dimensional frame. Plus, it’s eeriely quiet, aside from the odd looped voice recording emanating from a few of the installations. The shows are mainly solo efforts depicting challenging sculpture and video. It heavily promotes young, upcoming artists which means it’s popular with students and the alternative/media crowd. In previous decades British sculptors like Bill Woodrow and Julian Opie have exhibited, as have Turner Prize winners Richard Deacon and Anish Kapoor. The gallery is split into two separate halves on opposite sides of an indistinct road but it shouldn’t take more than half an hour to get around both camps. Their website is fairly comprehensive so it’s worth checking prior to your visit which artist is showing and whether they’re to your tastes. Sadly, the surrounding area is nothing to rave about so perhaps combine this with a visit to the Wallace Collection which is only a 5-minute taxi ride away.
+ 44(0) 20 7724 2739
www.lissongallery.com

White Cube
Trendy, audacious and often quick to spot burgeoning talent on the horizon. Tomorrow’s heroes in a 1920s setting. White Cube Hoxton Square—in tandem with sister gallery, White Cube Mason’s Yard, in St. James—has been exhibiting controversial contemporary artists, painter and sculptors since the turn of the millennium. It’s particularly well known for giving introductory solo opportunities to the Young British Artists collective which included Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and the Chapman Brother, Dino and Jake. Turner prize winners Gilbert and George and Anthony Gormley have also shown installations here. This means it’s quite a fashionable hangout and the area itself is known for its colorful, edgy vibe. Many bohemian bars and eateries are sprinkled around the neighborhood. One worth noting is the Loungelover cocktail bar just a few blocks away.
+44 (0) 207 930 5373
www.whitecube.com

Victoria Miro Gallery
West End notoriety transposed to an alternative setting. When rental charges in central London rocketed, many commercial properties moved to cheaper areas whilst maintaining their distinctive output. Behold, the Victoria Miro, once resident of Mayfair, now living in a converted, yet still shabby chic, Victorian furniture factory in Hoxton. It’s a bit of a bright, airy maze inside and the vastness of the two floors can get a little disorientating. The addition of a sleek minimalist extension has added to this feeling. It was built over the neighboring Parasol Unit Foundation of Contemporary Art and can only be got at via the connecting back terrace (although the views are worth the trouble). In terms of art, for a contemporary gallery to be of any real worth these days it needs the ubiquitous ‘Turner Prize’ stamped somewhere in its blurb and the Victoria Miro does just that with winners and nominees aplenty. Although fawning over established names it also likes to represent young artists and usually has a sense of humor: a recent gay men’s club and fake toilet cubicle is one such example.
+44 (0)20 7336 8109
www.victoria-miro.com

Gagosian Gallery
A cavernous, bright space that has a reputation for delivering high quality. The catalogue of artists who’ve been previously represented at Gagosian reads like a ‘Best of’ list, so whoever is exhibiting at the time is probably well worth purchasing. Gagosian always seems to get the big guns—Takashi Murakami, Jeff Koons, Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst, Frank Stella, the Chapman brothers, Gilbert & George, to name a mere handful—and, as such, the Gagosian brand stretches as far afield as New York, Beverly Hills, Rome and Moscow. Basically, they know their stuff. Choose the Britannia Street residence over the Mayfair gallery as it’s a lot bigger and has outstanding natural light to complement the works. The latter gallery is purely to maintain the Gagosian name in London’s West End; a show pony, if you will.
+44 (0) 20 7841 9960

www.gagosian.com

Garden Gallery (@ Osterley Park)
A neat little gallery set amongst some quite outstanding National Trust scenery. Up until the end of the 2008 season, this West London country house was home to two galleries: the Jersey and the Garden. Sadly, the former will be closing for commercial use—boo!—but the good news is that the Garden Gallery will remain open. It’s still going to be showing a broad scope of mediums so you’ll get anything from pencil portraits to photography to video installations to abstract Lithuanian oil paintings. This one-room space is so-called because of its location in the 18th-century private walled garden. Solo artists—some professional, some amateur, many local to the area—use it for about a week or two at a time. The mansion itself is neoclassical and has an enormous swath of landscaped parkland and tranquil lakes attached to it. Plus, there’s a farm shop selling produce from the mansion’s own farmlands.
+44 (0) 208 232 5050
www.nationaltrust.org.uk

Waddington Galleries
This is something of a 20th century masters hoard. Waddington Galleries covers three separate venues in the same Mayfair street—the greedy lot—the largest of which is No.11 where works are focused on the older, more established greats of the twentieth century such as Giorgio de Chirico, Henri Matisse, Henry Moore, Pablo Picasso, and Donald Judd. The other galleries are predominantly reserved for emerging artists, young artists and burgeoning artists from around the world. The works are based around the fields of sculpture and painting and are exhibited largely as solo shows with the odd sprinkling from their representative inventory catalogue.
+44 (0)20 7851 2200
www.waddington-galleries.com

Michael Hoppen Galleries
The world appears much more poignant when seen through a lens in black and white. That’s what Michael Hoppen Galleries in Brompton aims to achieve by dealing only in photographs. They know a thing or two about capturing images, their clients include corporate names like British Airways and Citibank, as well as consulting for the V&A and The Guggenheim. This converted warehouse is three floors high and filled to bits with vintage and contemporary works. The chronological variety is outstanding and so too is the subject matter, jumping from documentary to nudes to seascapes in the blink of an eye. There is a modicum of color photography, but it is sparse. The shows jump between mixed and solo offerings to maintain a freshness and it’s great that they don’t always favor the established photographers just because it might add value to a picture, too; although there are the occasional unexpected works by the likes of Annie Liebovitz and Hunter S. Thompson.
+44 (0) 207 352 3649
www.michaelhoppengallery.com

Hauser & Wirth
Flowing obsessions with blue (Louise Bourgeois), architecturally-inspired conceptual formations (Dan Graham) and barren landscapes etched, drawn or made from unusual materials (Michael Raedecker): it must said, Hauser & Wirth represents a wealth of diverse artists. The primary space for the solo exhibitions is an Edwardian building on the famous Piccadilly. This former bank is lined with oak panels which provide an alternative backdrop to the typical white walls so synonymous with contemporary art. In fact the walls almost lend a juxtaposing air of antiquity to the modern environment. Hauser & Wirth also has a presence on Old Bond Street where they have joined forces with the age-old experts, Colnaghi. That venue holds important annual exhibitions from 19th and 20th century artists and the Red Room is especially geared towards an old masters set-up. Note that works on the upper floors can only be viewed by appointment.
+44 (0) 207 287 2300
www.hauserwirth.com

Tabernacle

55-61 Tabernacle Street, Shoreditch EC2A 4AA

Tabernacle has been entering ‘one-stop shop’ in the occupation field of its tax return for a few years now but in September 2008 it went a bit crazy and got refurbed out of its mind. Formal white table cloths were kicked out onto the street and suddenly Tabernacle became an odd mix of schmoozy boozer, School Disco, and Italian restaurant royalty. Cuckoo! Hitchcock did something similar with Norman Bates, only his victims ended up having not such a good night.

The first port of call in your loony toons night is the elegant eatery. Open kitchen, autumnal decor, wispy chandeliers, nifty lighting, textured walls, and a hefty door to keep the bar rabble safely in the bar where it belongs. This is a very long way from Bella Pasta. In fact, pasta is one thing you’ll probably find very little of on the menu. This is authentic rustic Italian fare. The first sign that you’re in a cracking Italian restaurant? That initial bread-into-olive-oil dip resulting in one of those very special kinds of ‘personal spasm’. That first hit from the hypnotic glass of Heba wine immediately transports you to a sun terrace overlooking a Tuscan vineyard. Nail this one down, you’re now a-board the Yummy Bus and you’ve only got a one-way ticket!

If you’re lucky, this is how your itinerary should follow:
A) Starter. Only one real option to go for - antipasti. Colourful, dramatic, blobby. Make sure you ask for the stuffed pork roulade as it might not be on the menu.
B) Main. Fish stew with truffle mash, made using a secret recipe written by Ivan the chef’s Mum. So secret he makes it in the basement so no one watch.
C) Dessert. Honestly, more than two courses is optimistic, but if you must slip into a total food coma, tiramisu should finish you off.

Now, the bar, that place where freelancer creatives and general layabouts (same thing) save on rent by plopping themselves at a Wifi-enabled ‘desk’, occasionally procuring a coffee, some breakfast, some lunch and more coffee. Here, exposed brickwork, chainmail curtains and floral ceilings are the guardians of the occupants’ souls. It’s like an industrial hideout for a East End baddie and Dennis Waterman is going to kick in the door at any moment. Be aware, the cocktail list is a tad anemic. Disappointing, considering the impressive library of spirits on display, but booze is merely a conduit for imaginary displays of wealth anyway so make it a pint instead. Conveniently and cleverly, bar food is served until 2am (!!) as well so trademark trips to Istanbul Kebab Palace to purchase something to wear/eat are thankfully neutralised.

Downstairs is Cube, the recently upgraded third installment in this oddball trilogy. Cube is strangely un-cube like in its dimensions and looks remarkably like the set from Charlie & the Chocolate Factory. The centre piece in this lovechild between colour and funk is the LED dance floor, a pulsating beacon of zest that doesn’t just light up the room as much as feed on the collective aura of all that dare to dance upon it. There’s no charge at the door meaning a younger crowd is almost permanently positioned down there. Either they’re young or the dance floor has a knack of making them look young. Regardless, Cube guarantees more kicks than a Portuguese footballer plus, the toilets are modern-thinking: Dyson airblades and no toilet attendant (thank God!).

Tabernacle is all things to all people. Because it can. Because it wants to. And because you want it. For those that prefer sitting down, there’s the restaurant; for those that are still learning to shave, there’s da club; and for all those that are considering their first mortgage, there’s the bar. Mental venues such as these are quite rare in these parts so go eat, drink and dance, you fools. Do as you’re told!

606 Club

90 Lots Road, Chelsea, SW10 0QD

Dinghy, cramped and a bugger to find: exactly what you’d expect from a perky little jazz club. That, and Osama Bin Laden’s hideout, maybe. Jazz nuts often allude to that crucial element of ‘cool’ when referring to their preferred pastime and 606 has just that, by the bundle, piled up in big stacks marked ‘Excess Cool’. With a pedigree that pre-dates the invention of Darth Vadar, Freddie Lundberg and Never Mind The Bollocks Here’s The Sex Pistols, 606 is New Orleans soul transposed to the industrial back alleys of Chelsea Harbour. And in doing so it pokes a knowing finger into the shoulder of homogenised jazz-joints like Ronnie Scott’s, saying ‘Hey you. Be cool’.

You will not find the curious archway entrance. It will find you. Just don’t be late. There’s an air of mystery upon entry: intercoms, buzzers, gates, ominous stairs that look like they want to kill you. A beatnik basement is waiting just around the corner to clobber you with the Speakeasy stick. Bare-brick walls, low ceilings, red drapes and tatty tables cluster in a space the size of this sentence. Roughly 100 people squash onto tiny tables congregated around the magic. How in the name of Thelonious Monk they managed to squeeze a grand piano (et al) in there as well is beyond me. This is cosy, but not in a Northern Line sort of way. More a snug jazz blanket sort of way.

You couldn’t get more up-close-and-personal with the artistes as they practice their musical sorcery without being forced to comment on their body odour. Which is highly likely as even a sumo wrestler taking an Egyptian sauna in the middle of summer doesn’t sweat as much as these guys. No wonder; they play at speeds that could’ve only been taught to them by aliens from the future. These musicians finish their set weighing half as much as when they started it. That translates to pure rabid passion, for any simpletons out there.

The worshippers in the crowd are sub-zero cool. These are the people you want to BE. These are real people. Their diversity embarrasses you. Their lack of pretension seems almost newborn. It’s like you’ve stepped into the university of “You Dig?” and expect to come out of it with a honours degree in Inner Beauty. Perhaps if you sit close enough their aura will rub off on you. Couples get intimate, a chap in a hat at the back taps his lap, everyone sips wine. There’s clapping and laughing and chatting and smiles and reactionary dancing and prancing and love floating all around the room.

The food and drink on offer are adequately fulfilling and you should appropriately get involved. However, physical sustenance plays second fiddle, trumpet, trombone and piano to the true nourishment: jazz. Plush decor and fine dining, on your bike. Who cares what shade of egg shell-white the walls are, this is all about life, so light that music up!!