Next Big Thing #77
It's that time again and since my last ramblings THE NOMADS have been and gone plus I got the worst dose of the viral lurghi in living memory. Maybe down to global warming then again maybe not, things are not exactly a whole lotta rose-tinted but ain't that the way of the world.
In my opinion, "The Cathouse" is the worst venue in Glasgow. It's dank, dark and despite the Rawk vibe, it's a disco where bands of said variety at a certain level, are cursed with playing when they come to the city. Getting there when SOHODOLLS were going through a semblance of a soundcheck was never the idea but really, if they hadn't been playing then I wouldn't have been there anyway. So eventually, at about 8.30 h is they come on, do a short, sharp set and depart. I can figure out if this is a good career move or not but they went down OK. Their marriage of "Empires And Dance" type electro and glam is pretty sweet, but how do you get a prospective audience to notice. I spoke briefly to their guitar player Toni who says they're about to concentrate on their next album. Let's hope that offers up the necessary options.
And I like HANOI ROCKS. I really do, but the sound was absolutely fucking awful. Mike Monroe mentioned something about their bus breaking down and making the best of them not being able to soundcheck but this was beyond the pale. We left to catch a train out of Dodge. On one hand to get away from the dang racket but also to evade HOT CHIP and EDITORS fans who were also packing into the town.
The live music cattle market is some place I have no desire to be anymore. Save for a few excursions to catch acts that I have supported my entire tenure, I'm cutting back. Sod it, some semblance of spiritual fortitude may ensue. Then again probably not but even I wasn't the oldest codger in the audience tonight and one or two had gone dressed as their grandmother or was it a burst couch? Meanwhile, great lip service is given to these things running to some kind of schedule but they never do. If that's "Rock'n'Roll" then they can stick it.
And surely you know that things are screwed when it's deemed newsworthy that THE BLACK CROWES and NAS had untrustworthy reviews in a lifestyle rag. The world has indeed ended. Can't you just taste the desperation as the ever-depleting buck slides into the sea. If the strategy of directing prospective audiences to the show, or to buy the t-shirt is indeed the future then I'm jumping ship right here and now. I can't read the bloody type on CD booklets anyway and as for downloads, the only positive thing I can muster about that malarkey is at least it doesn't create landfill. Let's hear it for that chill, inclement wind.
However, as always there is music out yonder that might just soothe or egg on that savage beast and by the time you read this, the as-yet-untitled SUZY & LOS QUATTRO album should be in the racks. Those kids are working feverishly to get it out just as soon as is possibly. The vinyl is coming on Screaming Apple so you can score yours at Soundflat. No problems there. The BOONARAAAS are headed for France in April, May so I guess that coincides with this coming out too. It's all go. Three weeks from the filing of this report, THE SONICS will have been to London and the great Stefan Conrad is bound for Scotland for some kind of Loch Ness monster hunting hijinks. At least I think that's what he and his crew are up to. It'll be good to see my old Punk Kongress mucker again.
Without any further ado ...
"Peter C Johnson 1978 - 1981" compiles tracks from the A&M and CBS albums he made during this time. This limited reissue has been put together to benefit the "Mark Sandman Music Project" in Cambridge, Ma. Mark Sandman of MORPHINE died onstage in Italy in 1999. He was "an essential thread in the fabric of Cambridge life" and this facility has been set up in his memory. For anyone who doesn't know, PCJ was all about minimal instrumentation/maximum atmospherics before most. His alumnus includes Nils Lofgren and Bonnie Raitt as well as Carlene Carter and Irene Cara (!). The song "Snowblind" is one of my favourite cuts of all time because every time I hear it I'm transported to another place. It's dream-like ability to conjure up a trancelike condition has been long overdue. My vinyl copy can rest up now.
Hopefully, as well as providing much needed financial aid to a good cause, this compilation will introduce PCJ to a whole new generation. People who need this kind of aural pop kaboom to wash away the bullshit that passes for what's left of the established music biz. This stuff sounds a lot fresher than most all of the stuff that was "happening" at the time. Built in obsolescence wasn't part of the gameplan back then. There was room to breathe. 30 years later we can use all the clean musical air we can get. So head over to CDBaby, listen to a couple of cuts and see if you agree. Don't lollygad though, you need to score one before they're all gone and you have to live with yet another regret on top of that pile you have already.
Tom Taber was in touch to help me to what will likely be Almeron Records final release, "Always Heed The SYMPTOMS - ?LIVE? in 78". 27 cuts in excellent sound quality, with a total time of 78 minutes. Some classics done LIVE from their classic (and valuable!) original LP, plus a nice mixture of 50s, 60s, and 70s well-known (and not so well-known) classics. "It doesn't suck!", is the message and you can bet your life on that. For those who don't know for whatever reason, THE SYMPTOMS were the precursors to the mighty SKELETONS and MORELLS and feature the alumnii of both. Excellent stuff.
BILLIE THE VISION AND THE DANCERS - "I Was So Unpopular In School And Now They're Giving Me This Beatuiful Bicycle", "The World According To Pablo", "Where The Ocean Meets My Hand" (all: Love Will Pay The Bills). I've been playing these constantly since I saw the band a few weeks ago opening for Seasick Steve . That title of the first one may well be a typo but that's what it sez on the sleeve. But anyway, these three albums feel like 3 seasons of an ongoing drama. Maybe something on HBO with all the thrills and spills and heartache such a thing would be peppered with. There are themes and characters popping up all over the three albums. It's unusual to say the least and some of the songs deal with subjects which you don't often hear in such a hip, bossa nova setting. Some of their stuff reminds me of the time I saw THE WANNADIES in Berlin during BID1990. BTV have concocted some kind of twisted wild, not entirely innocent shuffle on a Malmo boardwalk. Is there such a thing? I don't recall seeing one but whatever inspired this, I'm glad it did. The narrative nature of the songs is telling the story of Pablo, a cross dresser who gets into all kinds of scrapes because of "his" lifestyle. All set in this amazing folk pop tapestry. As I make my way through the various episodes, I discover that the exquisite "Overdosing With You" on Series 3 recalls the intrinsic theme of "I'm Pablo" from Season 2.
Maybe some enterprising Scandinavian film director could piece together this thing and make the Billie guys and girls into full-fledged stars, because that's what they deserve to be. After seeing them play, there's so much more to get. They're almost outrageous in some sort of way but not because the singer dresses up in women's clothes. More because the flavours they dare to put together probably shouldn't be so addictive. So anyway, they're looking for a label or distribution here in the UK, so do you know of any such thing that's looking for a genuine phenomenon? Let me know and I'll put you in touch.
Meanwhile, in lieu of the world catching up, order their albums direct. If you're not sure then check them out at their myspace where you can hear their heartbreaking ode to Andy Sipowicz. If that doesn't move you then nothing will. Their striking visual presence is one thing but it's matched by their interplay. These people are having a ball and they want you to join in. Please consider doing so. The rewards will be far greater than those to be gleaned by hitching a ride to the likes of them ARCTIC FIRE or ARCADE MONKEYS. If you saw The Brit Award last night then you just know that the entire business is due a considerable dose of salts.
Went to the movies to catch the European premiere of "A Life In The Death Of Joe Meek" and there's a lot of info to process in there. The success of such a venture is largely down to access. Not only to people who were there but also to individuals with a passion for the subject. Short of digging out the old ouija board and doing the Captain Howdy with Meek himself, the filmmakers have amassed a wealth of material. Of course, it gets to the stage that it's perhaps all too much but this "work in progress" cut set out the stall very well. It was good to see George Miller and Mike Stax in there with Chas Hodges and an array of the musicians who recorded with him during his short tenure on this earth. The Edwyn Collins clips are kind of precious too. Would it benefit from having your Jimmy Page or Richie Blackmore and the like in there? In my opinion, not much - other than status but I imagine it would be easier to make people who need crowbarring take notice. The freedom of ownership of the film means that this could actually be customized to any specific audience that sees it. There could be a template that ranged from informative introduction all the way through to a marathon now left unsaid. This one clocked in at 119 minutes which went in a lot faster that I expected it to. LITD doesn't pander to the usual stream of alleged experts and professional talking nappers. It went further and deeper.
I'm not sure what Alex Kapranos added to the debate. Evidently a fan but with nothing tangible to bring to the table but we were in Glasgow after all - Franzdabbidozi, all well and good but however, it's quite possibly just me ... NBT readers will find a lot to love in this film and to that end, expect a nod to it's whereabouts as screenings gather momentum over the weeks and months. I think that Howard S. Berger and Susan Stahman have come up with a unique slant on a profoundly British institution. Not an easy thing to swing in any case but pull it off they indeed have.
So let's close this one with something Swedish, that was recorded in Berlin, FIREFOX AK's "If I Were A Melody" (Razzia). The follow up to "Madame Madame" has been assembled in Berlin and the electro-stamp of that environment is the cornerstone here. There are echoes of the dreamier moments of SUICIDE amongst a KRAFTWERKian smorgasbord. Glistening and pulsating in equal measure, this type of sound used to be employed to evoke the future. I've been reading a lot of positive reviews regarding Gary Numan recently and there are elements of TUBEWAY ARMY about this too. "Winter Rose" must sound pretty mighty pumping out on a high-special club PA.
At one time, such synth driven things were considered cold or remote, but now machines can emote warmth. It's no longer just about bpm in this post-Moroderist age. fAK is about 3000 times better than anything. NEW ORDER ever even hinted at and Andrea Kellerman's voice is an integral part of what sets it apart. The heart of which is pure analogue, the placement of the vocal within the electro-mentation strike me as finite. The guy who put this together evidently did that by design and not accident. This ain't remotely Rock'n'Roll but it does verge on soul, albeit of an android-gynous variety.
And that's pretty much it for this one. I just got the JERRY TEEL & THE BIG CITY STOMPERS album on Bang and if it's no frills, old time Rock'n'Roll and country, you're after then this is pretty much wall to wall. It crackles with energy that merely being authentic could never muster. And has the "Duffy" thing hit Germany yet? The latest pop phenomenon from the UK is causing considerable ripples and one cut in particular, "Distant Dreamer" is the closest thing to any "wall of sound" that's been created since the advent of Meek, Spector or Badalamenti/Lynch. Maybe it's not just post-Winehouse after all.
Lindsay Hutton (www.tnbt.co.uk) |
