25 July 2017

A longer than expected break - got my dates wrong. Anyway, back in the saddle with loads of good stuff and a return of the featured album.

Talk Like Tigers - It Isn't Over
This has been on my radar for quite some time, so it's overdue to be played. Twin sisters Charlotte and Stephanie from Newcastle are Talk Like Tigers and this is infectious.

Burning Ferns - Go On, Make Me
More top stuff from South Wales, which is really a hotbed of great new music. This is off the LP See Saw Seen. Easy for you to say. Hints of Teenage Fanclub, which is always a good thing.

Birdskulls - Over It
Noise from Brighton from their self-titled LP. Reminds me of Dinosaur Jr to an extent.

Featured album: The Cuban Boys - Machines
Theme For A Revolution
The Pop Machine
A return of the featured album... err... feature. And I bring it back because there's an album out that warrants multiple tracks playing from it. It's been ages since the Cuban Boys put out an LP and, as the name may suggest, it's about machines, specifically the industrial revolution. Yes, it's a concept album, but before you run away give it a listen. Thematically, it's entirely on point and it works as a whole. But by the same token, individual tracks work just fine in isolation. It's fabulous. Go buy it.

The Debt Stars - Shallow Grave
From Liverpool via Sydney. Enjoyably noisome rockabilly-tinged punk. And I'm reminded of the Membranes.

Meatraffle - Love Hz
The flip side of the latest single Brother. This is Ian Dury level stuff.

Cambodian Space Project - Summer Wine
A cover of the old Lee Hazlewood classic from the LP Spaced Out In Wonderland which is flippin ace.

Toy - Dream Orchestrator (TVAM remix)
Well I like Toy and I like TVAM, so this should be a slam dunk. And it is.

Featured album: The Cuban Boys - Machines
Kids From The Rotating Door Of Fame
One of a few tracks off the album that samples the old Ealing comedy I'm Alright Jack to good effect.

Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith - An Intention
Lovely track from the LA singer from the LP The Kid.

Tricky - When We Die feat. Martina Topley-Bird
Reviving a partnership that goes back to 1995, it's new stuff from the Bristol godfather of trip-hop. ununiform is the new LP.

Four Tet - Two Thousand And Seventeen
A new one from Kieran Hebden, which is always a joy.

Aphex Twin - Korg Funk 5
And a new one from Richard D James, featuring his son on vocals. A new LP on the way, we all hope.

Youtube:



Soundcloud (for as long as they're still going):



Bandcamp:



Back next week

7 October 2014

You know the score by now, so let's cut the preamble and get straight in. Also, I was late...

See Gulls - Don't Write Me Love Songs
From North Carolina, this came out in April but has only just tickled my ear-drums.

Wild Smiles - Girlfriend
New, from their second album Always Tomorrow which is out in about three weeks time. Good old-fashioned rock n roll.

We Were Promised Jetpacks - Safety In Numbers
Contender for best band name around. Decent ditty too. From the album Unravelling which came out yesterday.

Cover Version Corner
Lonnie Donegan/The Wedding Present - Cumberland Gap
Bloody love Lonnie Donegan, me. That's a stone-cold classic from 1957. The Wedding Present version appeared on the 1992 compilation Ruby Trax which was issued to celebrate 40 years of the NME.

Gengahr - Powder
A debut single and how have they raised expectations for future releases. They're from North Dakota and it comes out in three weeks.

High Hazels - Banging On My Door
We've played these a few times now and here's a new single. Very typical of their oeuvre.

India Mill - Caribesque
Like that a lot. They're from Darwen and it comes off the album Under Every Sky which came out last month.

Voids - Knowing
From Galway, that's off an EP called Begin which came out a couple of weeks ago.

Rev Rev Rev - Catching A Buzz
From Modena in Italy. That's out in a fortnight. Really rather interesting stuff.

Tricky - Nicotine Love feat. Francesca Belmonte
Finally got my hands on the new album Adrian Thaws - Tricky's real name.

One Degree of Separation
Fontella Bass - I Can't Rest
The Go! Team - Ladyflash
The latter samples heavily from the former to create your link. The first came out in 1966 and is something of a Northern Soul classic. The latter appears on the album Thunder, Lightning, Strike! which came out in 2004.

Pretty/Disgusting - Lucky Day
I don't play anywhere enough drum n bass on the show. That's the debut effort from these Newcastle purveyors of the genre.

Lukas Beynon - Koi
Finally, to Wales. Terrific stuff from a young lad beginning to make some waves.

Here's that on YouTube:



and Soundcloud:


See you next week.

5 August 2013

Quite by accident, there's a bit of a 1970s feel to tonight's show. Even the new stuff.

Iconili - Mulato
John: From Belo Horizonte in Brazil, that came out earlier this year. Taking cumbia themes and updating them a bit. Good work from the session xylophonist. Definitely a '70s vibe to it.
Carolyn: Just a bit.

Sara Lowes - I Find You
John: That's quite lovely. Brand new from the Mancunian singer and off the EP 'All For The Dream (With The Means Of A Well-Planned Getaway).

Outfit - House On Fire
John: This is their second single which is out now. Rated as the most exciting band to come out of Liverpool in donkeys years and recently named by the NME among their 25 top bands to go see.
Carolyn: Even above the Reynolds Girls?
John: Even them.

Cover Version Corner
A House - Endless Art
Dave Couse - Endless Art '06
John: Cheating a bit here... The original came out in 1991 on the album 'I Am The Greatest'. Several years later, Dave Couse, now a solo artist and formerly the lead singer of A House, updated the song with artists who had died in the interim. The original was criticised for only including men and, despite claiming they thought Joan Miro was a woman, recorded More Endless Art which is all women. Well apart from Walt Disney's Minnie Mouse...
Carolyn: Yeah, but even if Miro was a woman, that would possibly be worse - tokenism at it's worst.



Pet Shop Boys - Axis
John: New from these and something of a return to basics.
Carolyn: I've always been a fan, but some of the stuff in the last... almost 30 years, I guess, hasn't really done much for me. This, though. Yes.
John: The album is 'Electric' and came out last month.

Babe Ruth - The Mexican
John: 1975 now and these are from Hatfield in Hertfordshire. That came from an album also called 'Babe Ruth' and has been used in soundtracks and sampled half to death.

Washed Out - Don't Give Up
John: Washed Out is Ernest Greene from Perry in Georgia. That's off an album called 'Paracosm' which is out this month.

One Degree of Separation
Kraftwerk - Das Modell
Karl Bartos - Atomium
John: An easy link here - Bartos was one of the original four in Kraftwerk of whom Ralf Hutter is the last one left.
Carolyn: So they're like the Drifters now then?
John: Well no, because it's not like each of the original line-up are now touring as Kraftwerk.
Carolyn: More like the Sugababes then?
John: No, there's none of them left. I play the German version of The Model - that's from the 1978 album 'Die Mensch Maschine' - simply because I prefer it. Karl Bartos's album 'Atomium' surfaced earlier this year.

Physics House Band - Teratology
John: New from these lads from Brighton. We were trying to work out what genre you'd call that while it was playing. It's very prog.
Carolyn: Well you did say there'd be a '70s feel to proceedings...

Therapy? - Opal Mantra
John: One of those bands I flipping well loved when I was a teenager. In clearing and tidying the house, I found a load of their old stuff. This was a non-album single in 1993 which I have on a cassette which dates it instantly. Bloomin' good though.

Tricky - Parenthesis
John: Off his recent 'False Idols' album. Paren-thesis - I see what he did there.

Rodriguez - Establishment Blues
John: And finish on a 1970 record from Sixto Rodriguez. Off the album 'Cold Fact'.

Here's that wrapped up in a YouTube playlist, bar the Iconili and Outfit tracks which are linked to above.

8 April 2013

Back after the Easter break, and John's bang on the bonce, with some Monday night bangers.

Dan Le Sac - Four Thousand Thumbnails
John: One of our favourites with a treat for his fans on his recent birthday. Once this hit 4000 views on YouTube, he gave it away as a free download. Which was nice.


Mat Zo and Porter Robinson - Easy
John: In a proper late '90s/early 2000s club style, that's proper banging.
Carolyn: Listeners should note that when we had this on in the car yesterday, John was throwing some serious shapes. Good job we were in a massive queue.
John: That's Matan Zohar from London and Porter Robinson from North Carolina and it's out now.

Visuals - Levitation
John: From Brooklyn, that's Marshall Ryan and Andrew Fox. It's got a real Joy Division-y feel to it, certainly in the bass and the guitars. It's available as a pay-what-you-like download from their bandcamp site.

Cover Version Corner
Rolling Stones/Devo - (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
John: Devo, very much of the burgeoning MTV scene, had a very visual element to their work. That's from the 1977 EP 'Be Stiff'. The Stones, of course, need no introduction. We play them as they've been in the news lately with concerts in Hyde Park - not free, £300 this time - and headlining Glastonbury. That's from 1965.

Vitalic - Fade Away
John: Vitalic is Frenchman Pascal Arbez. That's off the album 'Rave Age' which came out last December. It sounds like a number of things, none of which I can place.

Tomorrow's World - Drive
John: Keeping it French, this is Jean-Benoit Dunkel - him out of Air - and Lou Hayter. We've played them before, but this is the second track from the album 'Tomorrow's World' which is out today. And yes they are named after the TV show.

Spectrals - Milky Way
John: Someone else we've had before, this is Louis Smith from Heckmondwike, now firmly part of the Leeds scene. It's off the forthcoming long-player 'Sob Story' and is very jaunty indeed.
Carolyn: Always good to play local stuff. We do a lot from all over the world, which is great, but also good not to forget those closer to home.

One Degree Of Separation
Boards Of Canada - roygbiv
Public Service Broadcasting - roygbiv
John: We've been championing PSB like few others. 'Inform, Educate, Entertain' is out next month and I can't wait to get hold of it.
Carolyn: We like them.
John: Before that, a track we have played before, a 1998 10" single which I adore. The link is the title. Nothing else.

Menace Beach - Drop Outs
John: Back to Leeds now for some lo-fi goodness. It's out on a limited release on Rough Trade records.

Tricky - Nothing's Changed
John: New from the Bristol trip-hop veteran, from the forthcoming album 'False Idols' which is out next month. You can grab this as a free download from his website.

Serafina Steer - Disco Compilation
John: Not enough harp on this show. This is off the album 'The Moths Are Real' which is out about now, I think.
Carolyn: A bit bass-heavy isn't it?
John: No such thing as too much bass.

And here's a website-only bonus, apropos of nothing:


Here's all that wrapped up in a YouTube playlist for you, minus the Visuals track which isn't on there.

4 March 2013

Lots of short records, records by sibling duos, and a tribute to a Rentaghost actor.

Rodriguez - Sugar Man
John: It was the Oscars last week, but this featured on the 2012 best documentary winner, Searching For Sugar Man, in which two South Africans try to track down their favourite musician. Out originally in 1977, this also got a re-release in 2002.
Carolyn: It's all a bit swooshy.
John: Of it's time, methinks.

Bleached - Next Stop
John: They've got three chords and they're not afraid to use them. Like that a lot - very retro feel. That's Bleached who are Jessica and Jennifer Clavin from LA. That's off the album 'Ride Your Heart Out' which is out on April 2.
Carolyn: Fresh, yet immediately familiar. I like it when we play new stuff.

Django Django - Wor
John: For a record-breaking 10th time, they feature on the show. This is the new single off the acclaimed debut album, 'Django Django'.
Carolyn: I like these so much, they're pretty much on a loop in the car.
John: Bonus points for Klaxon usage.
Carolyn: Yeah, when that comes on, I'm checking around for blue lights in my mirrors.


Cover Version Corner
The Vaselines/Nirvana - Molly's Lips
John: 25 shows in before we play Nirvana. Ludicrous. As is Nirvana covering a Scottish band's tribute to Molly Weir who was Hazel McWitch in Rentaghost.
Carolyn: Was she in Supergran as well?
John: No. Or was she? I'm going to have to find out now... This section can normally take us 10 or 15 minutes, but this is less than five all in. Bosh, done, out. The Vaselines version is from 1988 off the EP 'Dying For It', Nirvana's was four years later and featured on the album 'Incesticide'.

Phenomenal Handclap Band - The Unknown Faces
John: Not much clapping of hands there, but pretty fine nonetheless. That's from the album 'Form and Control' which came out in February last year.

Masters In France - Flexin
John: Very much in the Hot Chip/Dutch Uncles envelope, I heard that the other day and have basically had it on a loop since. Layered. I like that. They're from Bangor in Wales.

Julia Kent - Transportation
John: From Vancouver, but based in New York, Julia Kent is a classical cellist who has put together a pop album.
Carolyn: Well, I wouldn't call it pop. It's a lovely piece of music, but I'm not calling it pop.
John: Well, no perhaps not. Haunting, I'd call it. The album is called 'Character' and is out later this month.

Heavyball - Small Town Hero
John: Hat tip to my chum Chris whose mate is in this band. That's off last year's EP 'Small Town Hero', but recently they've gone from playing back rooms of South London pubs to supporting the Kaiser Chiefs on tour.
Carolyn: That's a big leg up for a young band. Obvious ska influence, and pretty good.

Low - Just Make It Stop
John: From Duluth in Minnesota, that's off the album 'The Invisible Way' which comes out on March 19.

Drenge - Bloodsports
John: We had sisters earlier, and here's a pair of brothers. Eoin and Rory Loveless are from up-country Derbyshire, but very much part of the Sheffield music scene, and there have been a fair few successes from there down the years.
Carolyn: Again, it's all pretty stripped back and raw. Not that that's a bad thing.
John: Reminds me of The White Stripes a bit. That's their debut single which is out today. Drenge means 'boys' in Danish and is the name of an avant-garde 1977 Danish film of which they're big fans, apparently, and is ace to say.

One Degree of Separation
Tricky - Black Steel
Portishead - Glory Box
John: Almost 20 years old that Portishead track - unbelievable. Off their debut album 'Dummy' from 1994 which I've got on vinyl somewhere. Haven't listened to it in ages, but always worth reminding oneself of it. Tricky's anti-war Black Steel is off his 1995 breakthrough album 'Maxinquaye'.
Carolyn: And the link?
John: Both Bristolian, both part of that trip-hop scene down there in the mid-'90s and both excellent records.

Hidden Orchestra - Fourth Wall
John: From Edinburgh, that's off the album 'Archipelago' which came out last October.
Carolyn: Another more orchestral piece.
John: Oh yes. I don't just throw this together, y'know.

The King Blues - Five Bottles Of Shampoo
John: From 'Punk and Poetry' from a couple of years ago.

The Vanity Project - I Fear Nothing
John: End on a happy one, yeah?
Carolyn: Hmm, not exactly uplifting.
John: No, but very worthy. From the EP 'What Really Matters'.

Granville - Polaroid
John: From Caen, that was out last month on the album 'Les Voiles'.

And here's all that packaged up in a YouTube playlist.