Featured in the

Spring 2007 Issue

Cover Story:

Three years after the release of Leslie Feist’s breakthrough second album, 2004’s Let It Die, the Canadian singer/songwriter and sometime Broken Social Scene collaborator returns with her most fully-formed and charming album yet, The Reminder. Writer Matt Fink interviewed Feist about her journey from singing in the church choir in Saskatchewan to winning multiple Juno Awards (the Canadian equivalent of the Grammys) and selling 600,000 records. We also spoke to Feist’s collaborators on The Reminder: Gonzales and Mocky. Photographers Crackerfarm photographed Feist in their New York studio.

“In a way, I think the first time she had a master plan was on The Reminder. She really came with all the songs, all the ideas, insisting for the first time. Before, she never really insisted.” – Gonzales

“I’d seen a lot of faces and ears pointed toward the stage over those three years, and instead of making me nervous, it just felt sort of benevolent. Having played Let It Die for so long, I was desperate to play some new stuff, and I’d written a lot of things and sort of started to bring them into the set list live. More and more over those three years, Let It Die wasn’t even really on the set list anymore. Five or six of those songs always stayed, but the rest just slowly got pinged off. I had all these new songs, so when I finally got to the studio, it was just a relief to make music again instead of just photocopying it every night again and again.” – Leslie Feist

Bands On Their Favorite Films: We asked some of our favorite bands to write about their favorite films for us. The section includes contributions from The Aliens, Architecture In Helsinki, The Besnard Lakes, Fields, Fujiya & Miyagi, The Hold Steady, I’m From Barcelona, Metric’s Emily Haines, Mew, Midnight Movies, My Morning Jacket, Of Montreal, and Xiu Xiu.

Broken Social Scene’s Kevin Drew vs. Cillian Murphy Irish actor Cillian Murphy is a big fan of Canadian indie collective Broken Social Scene, so much so that he admits to Broken Social’s Kevin Drew: “You guys are my favorite band. Like, properly favorite band.” Luckily Drew is also a film buff and Cillian Murphy fan, so we enlisted the two of them to interview each other. Murphy is best known for his roles in 28 Days Later, Breakfast on Pluto, Red Eye, Batman Begins, The Wind That Shakes the Barley, and Sunshine. Drew is about to release his first solo album. The in-depth five-page Q&A, which is moderated by Under the Radar’s Senior Editor Mark Redfern, tackles both artists’ fascinating approaches to making art. Wendy Lynch photographed Murphy in Los Angeles exclusively for the article and Crackerfarm conducted a new shoot with Drew in New York.

Kevin Drew: How many times have you been accused of being a vampire? I’ve needed to ask you this question for a while.
Cillian Murphy: How many times have I been accused of being a vampire? Of being undead? Not that often, actually.
Kevin: No one has really pulled anything out on you or anything like that? You've never found yourself surrounded by crosses at four in the morning or anything?
Cillian: And cloves of garlic and stuff? No, nobody has done that to me yet.

Charlotte Gainsbourg: Careful Steps The The daughter of French music legend Serge Gainsbourg and British actress/singer Jane Birkin, Charlotte Gainsbourg perfectly bridges the gap between film and music. As an actress Gainsbourg has won acclaim for her roles in such films as 21 Grams and The Science of Sleep. Now two decades after her debut record, Gainsbourg returns to music with 555, a startling album that features contributions from Air, Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker, The Divine Comedy’s Neil Hannon, Tony Allen, and producer Nigel Godrich. This in-depth article, written by Matt Fink, charts Gainsbourg’s return to the recording studio and incorporates interviews with Gainsbourg, Cocker, Hannon, and Air’s Jean-Benoit Dunckel. “It was much more intimate [recording the album] than being in front of a camera, but at the same time intimidating also.” – Charlotte Gainsbourg

Kaiser Chiefs vs. Simon Pegg His film had been number one at the U.K. box office for three weeks. Their album had just entered at the top of the U.K. charts. But when Simon Pegg met up with Kaiser Chiefs at London’s Spring Studios, the meeting of entertainment titans quickly turned into a Star Wars geek-fest. They may share the pressures of stardom, the thrills of success, and the love of an entire nation, but it was the Force that proved the strongest bond of all. The five rockers and the thespian had come together to discuss their latest projects: for him the cop comedy Hot Fuzz, for them the catchy Yours Truly, Angry Mob. It’s the second time out for both. Kaiser Chiefs released their first album Employment in 2005 and went on to sell three million copies. Pegg is probably less familiar to American audiences, but even those who haven’t seen the debut feature that made him a bona fide star, they’ve most certainly heard of it. In 2004, Pegg went from cult TV idol on the bizarre sitcom Spaced to cult movie idol with the release of Shaun of the Dead, the zombie romcom that he co-wrote and starred in. Audiences loved it, critics adored it, and suddenly Pegg was new little buddy to Hollywood directors young and old. Now Hot Fuzz—which lovingly and hilariously spoofs over-the-top cop dramas like Bad Boys and Point Break—has turned Pegg into the unlikeliest of action heroes: a strawberry-blond bad-ass. So on a recent March evening, all five members of Kaiser Chiefs sat down with Pegg exclusively for Under the Radar to talk movies, to discuss music, and, of course, to compare their lightsabers. Writer Jumana Farouky moderated this hilarious interview and photographer Derrick Santini snapped the pictures.

Simon Pegg: Do you have one of those [tour] buses with the horseshoe at the back and a video area and stuff like that? Have they got you onto a double-decker yet?
Simon Rix: We’ve already been on one and gone back down. We’d had enough.
Nick Hodgson: Plus you get rid of all your crew. Cos they have their own bus and we’ve got our own.
Simon Pegg: Yeah. When I was on tour with [British comedian] Steve Coogan, we had the house bus and then the crew bus. Coogan used to follow behind in his Ferrari 355, but he regretted it. There were two dancers and an actress and makeup and wardrobe and Steve’s PA. So it was basically me and six girls on the tour bus. And after the show we’d either go to the hotel or hang around at the back of the bus and watch videos and I’d just take them one by one. [Everyone laughs] [To UTR] That’s not true.

Main Features:

Bright Eyes: The Bigger Picture Writer August Brown spoke to Conor Oberst about the new Bright Eyes album, Cassadaga. Photographer Wendy Lynch conducted an exclusive shoot with Oberst in his Los Angeles hotel room. “I’m much less interested in conveying my personal experience as a human per se. If I wanted to do that, there are much easier ways to do that, like a blog or a memoir.” – Conor Oberst

Jarvis Cocker: Boldly Going Jarvis Cocker has spent the last 29 years writing class-conscious theatrical outsider anthems, first with Pulp, the Sheffield-based band that he formed in 1978 at the age of 15, and now as a solo artist. It may have taken Pulp awhile to capture the mainstream British consciousness, not truly breaking through until 1995’s hit single “Common People,” but before and since, Cocker has remained one of the U.K.’s best-regarded songwriters and a performer with charisma to spare. Pulp rose to prominence at the forefront of the mid-’90s Britpop movement. Their trilogy of albums in that time (1994’s His ‘N’ Hers, 1995’s Different Class, and 1998’s This Is Hardcore) accurately chronicled the journey that British culture took in that period, from the hope and optimism of when the Labour Party got into power to the disillusionment of the realization that Tony Blair wasn’t everything he promised he was. After 2001’s We Love Life, Pulp amicably parted ways. Since then Cocker has donned a skeleton costume as the persona Darren Spooner to front the tongue-in-cheek electro-clash side project Relaxed Muscle, led the fictional Harry Potter band The Weird Sisters, got married, moved to Paris with his French wife, and had a son. Now arrives the dreaded solo album. Luckily, Jarvis is neither a dull stripped down acoustic record singing the praises of fatherhood, nor a self-indulgent and over-produced mess about the toils of an aging rock star. With the help of some friends (such as Pulp bassist Steve Mackey and Richard Hawley), the album finds the perfect balance between what made Pulp so vital and where Cocker is at now. Senior Editor Mark Redfern interviewed Cocker for this in-depth 5-page Q&A. Photographer Derrick Santini photographed the singer in Paris. “I once had a girlfriend, it was terrible, she used beat me after concerts because she said I never talked about anything personal to her and then she’d come to a concert and I’d be spilling it all out on stage. Which I suppose when you think about it isn’t that healthy. But you know, fuck it. I did have a girlfriend when I was at college who I wrote this song, “Razzmatazz” about. And then I was kind of embarrassed, I bumped into her a few years later and she twigged that it was about her and it wasn’t very complementary. Actually, we ended up laughing about it; it was all right.” – Jarvis Cocker

Dntel: New Possibilities Writer August Brown spoke to Dntel’s Jimmy Tamborello about the new Dntel album Dumb Luck, an album six years in the making. Since the last Dntel album, 2001’s Life Is Full of Possibilities, Tamborello has also kept busy as one-half of The Postal Service. Dumb Luck features such notable guests as Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst, Rilo Kiley’s Jenny Lewis, Grizzly Bear, Mia Doi Todd, and others. Photographer Wendy Lynch conducted an exclusive shoot with Tamborello at his Los Angeles home. “I just started realizing there was no reason I was supposed to do another record. I was lacking that kind of excitement. I had long periods of writer’s block, just sitting there and not knowing why I was doing it.” – Jimmy Tamborello

Detection is our new front-of-book anything-goes section and includes these features:

Dinosaur Jr.: Been There All the Time Writer Matt Fink spoke to J Mascis about Dinosaur Jr.’s reunion and their new album Beyond.

Interpol: In the Studio Writer Marcus Kagler interviewed Interpol’s Daniel Kessler while the band was in the studio putting the finishing touches on their third album, Our Love to Admire, to be released in July.

Yoko Ono: All Together Now Writer Matt Fink spoke to the legendary Yoko Ono about her recent album Yes, I’m a Witch, an album that features several other bands recording new music to accompany her preexisting vocal tracks. The album includes contributions from Spiritualized, The Flaming Lips, The Polyphonic Spree, The Apples In Stereo, Cat Power, and others.

Gruff Rhys: Caveman Writer Marcus Kagler spoke to the frontman for Super Furry Animals about his second solo album, Candylion. Rhys also gives some hints as to what to expect from the next Super Furry Animals album, as well as info on his Neon Neon collaboration with Boom Bip. Wendy Lynch photographed Rhys in Los Angeles.

Taken By Trees: Former Concretes Singer Victoria Bergsman Branches Out Writer Gary Knight interviewed Sweden’s Victoria Bergsman about why she left The Concretes, her “Young Folks” collaboration with Peter Bjorn and John, and her new project Taken By Trees. Wendy Lynch photographed Bergsman on a Los Angeles beach at sunset.

The Veils: The Rebirth of Finn Andrews Writer Frank Valish talked to Finn Andrews, the mastermind behind The Veils, about the band’s second album, Nux Vomica.

Pleased To Meet You is our new section dedicated to the best and most exciting new artists and includes features on these bands:

Bang Gang (Words by Bryan Borzykowski)
Deerhunter (Words by J. Pace)
Great Northern (Words by Gary Knight / Photo by Wendy Lynch)
iLiKETRAiNS (Words by J. Pace)
Klaxons (Words by Marcus Kagler / Photo by Crackerfarm)
Los Campesinos! (Words by Frank Valish)
Vampire Weekend (Words by Frank Valish)
Young Galaxy (Words by Bryan Borzykowski / Photo by Christophe Collette)

Reviews:

Over 150 albums, singles, EPs, books, and DVDs reviewed, including releases by the following artists:

4hero
ADULT.
Alex Delivery
The Aliens
Amandine
Brett Anderson
Antibalas
Apostle of Hustle
Aqueduct
Arab Strap
Arcade Fire
Arctic Monkeys
Au Revoir Simone
The Bad Plus
Bang Gang
Andrew Bird
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Blonde Redhead
The Blow
The Bluetones
Boris with Michio Kurihara
Bright Eyes
Bill Callahan
The Cinematics
The Clientele
Cloud Cult
Jarvis Cocker
CocoRosie
The Comas
Cornelius
Rob Crow
Jill Cunniff
Dalek
Danielson (DVD)
Betty Davis
The Decemberists (DVD)
Deerhoof (DVD)
Deerhunter
Dinosaur Jr.
Dntel
Dungen
Thomas Dybdahl
Bob Dylan (DVD)
Electrelane
Erasure
Everybody Else
The Fall
Feist
Foreign Islands
Fountains of Wayne
Frog Eyes
The Fucking Champs
Fujiya & Miyagi
Charlotte Gainsbourg
Noah Georgeson
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly.
Robert Gomez
Good Shoes
Great Lake Swimmers
Great Northern
Grinderman
Albert Hammond Jr.
John Hancock
Idlewild
iLiKETRAiNS
Junior Boys
Kaiser Chiefs
Kings of Leon
Klaxons
The Ladybug Transistor
Land of Talk
Let’s Go Sailing
Love of Diagrams
Low
Maximo Park
Money Mark
Mother Mother
Mystery Jets
The National
The Nein
New Young Pony Club
Noisettes
Of God and Science
Other Men
Page France
Panda Bear
Papercuts
The Parson Red Heads
Parts & Labor
Patrick Watson
John Peel
The Ponys
Punk TV
Kristoffer Ragnstam
Gruff Rhys
Rocky Votolato
The Rosebuds
RTX
Satellite Party
The Sea and Cake
The Shaky Hands
Shapes and Sizes
Sia
SJ Esau
Elliott Smith
SoftLightes
Stars
The Stooges
Maria Taylor
Thee More Shallows
Rosie Thomas
Tracy Thorn
Tokyo Police Club
Travis
The Twilight Sad
Vampire Weekend
The Veils
The View
Voxtrot
Wilco
The Willowz
Wolf & Cub
Patrick Wolf
Xiu Xiu
Young Galaxy
The Zincs
And more…

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