Salford Music Scene – 28th February 2012

I was extremely pleased to get the OK from Ian “Moet” Moss to share with you four new studio recordings from Kill Pretty which were recorded at 6dB Studios a few weeks back – they give you another angle on this productive band and feature Mr Leigh and Mr Scanlon playing together for the first time since 1980. Also two further tracks from the excellent new EP from Taser Puppets “Twisted Pop”. You can see both of these bands with The Sexual Objects and Factory Star in a couple of weeks at Gullivers.

A full track listing is below – and you can listen in here

1	Kill Pretty	Kill Pretty	Album Sessions
2	Kill for Company	Thoughts Loaded Like Bullets	Singles
3	Hellbound Rebels	Vulture	Demo
4	Kill Pretty	Rob A Bank	Album Sessions
5	Toska Wilde and Luis Drayton	I Am Kathy Kirby (AAAK Remix)	Demo
6	Vei	Surelines	EP
7	Taser Puppets	A Beautiful Song for the Ripper	Twisted Pop
8	The Loaded Dice	Love	Hindsight of a Brand New Soul : Halo of Fireflies
9	Kill Pretty	What About Me	Album Sessions
10	The Darlings	Stop and Go	Monitor Mix
11	Death to the Strange	Drink and the Devil	Album Sessions
12	Kill Pretty	The Year of 13 Moons	Album Sessions
13	Taser Puppets	Wasp	Twisted Pop
14	The Fall	Muzorewis Daughter	Totales Turns

Music Diary #38 – Salford Music Scene 21st February 2012

Having been plagued with the lurgy for the last few days i’ve not had the energy to do much – main thing to report on is an excellent gig by Kill Pretty at the Shangri-La event at the Carlton Club in Prestwich last Friday Night. A most enjoyable set which ties in with a handful of new tunes sent my way by Mr Moss including the excellent new one “Year of 13 Moons”. Anyway here are a few snaps to show you what it was like……

Josh on the bass

Moet in Action

On other matters I have had a pile of new stuff but generally the lurgy means I have not had time to properly sort through it……however current recommendations for your listening pleasure include:

• Hong Kong In the 60s – their most recent album (from last year) My Fantoms is rather excellent……
• New York Dolls – Live From The Bowery – can they be the same without Johnny Thunders, Arthur Kane and Jerry Nolan? Probably not but Sylvain and Johansen manage to revisit the early debauched madness of the band.

And so to this weeks Salford Music Scene……some great new tunes from the local scene – the new EP by Taser Puppets is excellent, Easter are remarkable, and Jonn Deans new offering as Vei is spectacularly good. All the rest are rather stunning as well……

To listen in click here

1	Taser Puppets	Broken Dolls	Twisted Pop
2	Easter	Damp Patch	Damp Patch
3	Vei	Internettiquette	EP
4	The Brakes	All Forgotten	Demo
5	The Fiction	Medicate	The Greatest Hits EP
6	Rapid Pig	Flight (Edit)	Rehearsal Recording
7	Periscope	Lifeboat	Single
8	Cyril Snear	Confabulation	Four in Hand Two In Face
9	Death to the Strange	Bandit	Album Demos
10	The Brakes	This Time Monday	Demo
11	The Fiction	Worlds Apart	The Greatest Hits EP
12	Vei	Faceplant	EP
13	Taser Puppets	Dim	Twisted Pop
14	The Fall	Totally Wired	Live to Air In Melbourne

Music Diary #35 – 13th February 2012

Stricken with a bad back at the moment so not had much time to do much other than listen to stuff  – of note over the last few days are:

• Witch Hats – Pleasure Syndrome – nice garage sound from Melbourne…..
• The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation – Egor – immense slabs of cinematic wonderment – it’s jazz Jim but not as we know it…….
• Royal Baths – Better Luck Next Life – from Brooklyn – great sound – moody twangy feel – a strange confection of VU and garage
• Buildings – Melt, Cry, Sleep – noisy and most enjoyable….don’t play it to your granny, unless she was a Jesus Lizard fan
• Vei – EP  (released by Baptists and Bootleggers) – exquisite sonic manipulation by Mr Dean who appears to be exploring new avenues and doing it very well indeed….both reflective, ambient and challenging.
• Bacchanal Party – You Can Be As Orange As You Look – a marvellous mix of a broad Scots vocal and crisp guitaring – great tunes

Salford Music Scene – 23rd August 2011

On this show….and while I am at it please support independent music by going to gigs and acquiring music….ta!

• Geevor – Bitch Cackle – errr…they’ve split up and are no longer available for live appearances ….. this always happens , I record a show and then a band split up, nothing to do with me I hasten to add, just serendipity (or the opposite of it)…… so regardless of whether this is a great track all of this is a bit redundant in the great scheme of previewing this forthcoming saturday’s Helmets for Men at the Kings Arms, Bloom Street, Salford. My associate Mr Thornborough is working his magic to find a third act to fill the line-up which will also consist of…
• Still Down Gill – City Limit Sisters – comprising as it does of two ex-Jannocks this band has quality pedigree and delivers a mean slice of blues soaked rock for your delectation and
• The Calimocho Club – She Told Me – the purple suit and the eye-liner is gone and the plaid shirts and more of an RnB inflection is with us – headlining on Saturday night and proving that metamorphosis is indeed a sensible activity in a lot of instances…and I’m advised its CHO rather than CO in terms of pronunciation….
• The Happy Fallen – The Wheel – the ever busy Mr Neale James has been hard at work with this excellent new tune…..I think he should get a band together and go out and share this with you all live …..
• No Flash – Truth or Dare – missed them last week at the BOTW Indie thing due to illness – impressive sound and well worth checking out…will be playing near you soon!
• Vei – Escebeche – Jonn Dean showing how electronica should be delivered from his recent EP on Mind on Fire. He tells me he is going to record again soon with a more digital slant….
• The Loaded Dice – Turbo – recently recieved their material via our new and unsigned page…lots of info here on their website
• Salford Media City – The Lynx Effect –  a band with a lot going on for it but not much material out there so I was pleased to extract this from the recent Found in a Skip release – they will be on at the Salford Music Festival I am advised…..so I look forward to actually seeing them live in a pub close to where I live….
• Arks – Patterns – new EP out recently and this is from it
• Fidel and the Castros – Golden 20 – from a demo they sent me and rather fine it is too.
• Kill for Company – Tongue Tattoo – a new track from my favourite band of the moment – also on at the Salford Music Festival…..
• Vei – Moths – another one from the “Thank You For Talking” EP.
• The Fall – Repetition – classic early gruppe from the marvellous debut album “Live at the Witch Trials“

Click on the link to hear the show

Salford Music Scene – 23rd August 2011 by Bobonscr on Mixcloud

Aural Delights Radio Show – 29th June 2011 – Electronica/Ambient Special

Well I’ve been promising this to various luminaries round these parts over the last six months so it’s about time I got off my bottom and put a show together of this nature. The genre specification is a tad obtuse here as some of the things on the show are outside of the broad boundaries of Electronica/Ambient but i’ve generally kept pretty close to the brief and in doing so I’ve managed to incorporate quite a bit of “local” stuff.

1. Cabaret Voltaire – The Voice of America/Damage is Done – The Voice of America : the masters of electronic ambience with the opening track from their second album. Most of this was analogue which demonstrates the need to junk all this digital VST tomfoolery and get back to playing source instruments. They were never as good after Chris Watson left and the first three albums still hold up as classics. This music had a great affect on me post-punk and built on my love of industrial/electronic sounds.
2. Borland – Hot Orion – Supernova Lovers  : The aim was to ensure that local acts got a good look see on the show and who else would I include but the mighty Borland who I have been championing for nigh on 3 years now. A new set of tunes is promised when Breen and Gregg can drag themselves away from their other projects (see later in the show) so in anticipation of that a track from the trio of releases from last year which are still available for nowt on Bandcamp.
3. Borland (Vei Remix) – Clockmen – from the added twiddly bits that came out of the first release on Gulf we hear the Jonn Dean take on the Borland sound with his own unique stamp on the music. Edgy, thought provoking and utterly mesmerising.
4. The Black Paths – A sneaky preview of a remix of ‘Plan it’ by caro snatch! – thanks Anthony. From Salford tha’ knows. More please Anthony!
5. Archaeopteryx Eloigns Ichthyosaur – The Actual Cartographer – Sings Paeans To Euphoria And Destruction : I got this in the post from the other side of the world. Streaming on the link at the moment. A fascinating album. The creator of this artefact wishes to remain anonymous.
6. Toxic Idol – Spooks – Quarter Life : a product of the increasingly mysterious Captain Malibu from the nether regions of Blackrod. Watch this space for more illuminating aural delights in the near future.
7. Day for Airstrikes– How Do You Know Anything? – Adam, Wez, Ian , John, Danny, Rita, Sue, and Bob too : a marvellous album – available from Bandcamp. A one-off for the band but perhaps one of their greatest achievements. Discuss.
8. Claw the Thin Ice – Witches at Dusk – Sleep is not for us -Are you quoting Floyd here I wonder Mr Breen? As featured before a debut solo project for one half of Borland with another one following swiftly I am advised.
9. Hey Colossus – Teased From The Nest- RRR : the promo quite astutely says – “the seventh album for Hey Colossus, and the third for Riot Season. RRR is definitely more varied than previous Colossus records and it explores more subdued, quieter passages. Such moments of calm are not the only varied thing about the new record, Hey Colossus also explore the swooping filmic sounds akin to many a film score, think along the lines of Taxi Driver and Spaghetti Westerns. Some Krautrock-esque mantras also come into the fold, combined with a Nurse With Wound / DNA influence. Alongside this, ‘The Drang’ keeps up the one riff, one tune – like Sabbath done through NEU! That HC are heavily influenced by. There is a choice Berlusconi baiting Can inspired clangathon, ‘I Am Bunga Bunga’, with a rant that is buried but audible. The result of all of these amalgamating sounds is a Hey Colossus album unlike any other, out with the old and in with the new. RRR is the perfect soundtrack for the spring and summer months, assuming you like the idea of the Butthole Surfers manning the BBQ, Faust cleaning out the pool, and GG Allin manning the bar.”
10. Pikacyu*Makoto – Loid Mlinikata – OM Sweet Home : We Are Shining Stars from the Darkside – I can’t say more than this rather revealing promo –  “An alliance between two figureheads of underground Japanese psych/pop, the musically promiscuous Kawabata Makoto (most famous for his leadership of the legendary Acid Mothers Temple), andAfrirampo’s Pikacyu. No strangers to one another, the pair have not only gigged together with their respective bands but also recorded together, when these two outfits temporarily fused in 2005 to become Acid Mothers Afrirampo (releasing an album of the same name). Now they have distilled their collaboration, all other players being stripped away to leave the core of Pikacyu’s manic drums and vocals, and Makoto’s schizoid guitar conjurings. OM Sweet Home: We Are Shining Stars From Darkside is unlike anything either culprit has produced before, both structured and freeform, tuneless and beautiful. Pikacyu’s drums pummel, jitter, crash and stumble, but steadfastly refuse to groove. She layers her voice several times, competing with maniacally pitch-shifted versions of herself to bring you what is, in their words, “a story about the cosmic shaman Pikacyu vs the master of the darkness Makoto… including the full love from the universe!!”. Makoto attacks his guitar, cloaking himself in reverb to produce a wall-of-sound, alternating between melody and noise.”
11. Tangerine Dream –  Circulation of Events – Atem : from one of three early albums which are infinitely superior to the mid 70s stuff and beyond as heard played by Fluff Freeman on the Saturday back in the pre-punk days when the summers were hot and the music was cool.
12. Perplexa – Tribal – Gone Beyond : as introduced by the Outlier lot to our Tony and then passed onto me. Tony and I both reckon this is going to be one of the albums of the year. Marvellous laminal stuff.
13. The Church of Frozen Tears – Nightmares of a Damaged Brain – Primary Invocation – another Borland side project, or is it adjacent, or even parallel?  Rob Gregg with a chum (not sure who) doing interesting stuff….slight remix by me to allow radio play due to the heavy bass going on in parts.

To listen in click on the link below……

Aural Delights Radio Show – 29th June 2011 – Electronica/Ambient Special by Bobonscr on Mixcloud

Au revoir Kin

It is with some sadness that I write of the demise of both the Kin band and Mr Heart in their present forms. For reasons as yet unknown to me, the exceptionally talented Kin is off to pastures new. So to see both bands in their current glory for the last time please attend the Castle Pub (a rather nice pint of Robinsons Best Bitter) on Oldham Street in Manchester on 24th February commencing at 8pm with the electronic wizardry of Vei, then the pounding guitar lead magnifence of Mr Heart, and finally the last chance to see one of the best live bands ever (fact!).

My attention was first drawn to Kin through her collaboration with Borland on “The Glitch” from the Octopop EP. I was fortunate enough to get preview copies of the “Dot Dot Dot” EP via Julia at Invisiblegirl and was mightily impressed by the material and I arranged an acoustic radio session on the back of that. I remember fondly exceptional solo performances one saturday morning in Studio 2 at Salford City Radio, which I must upload to Mixcloud! The “Dot, Dot, Dot” launch, at the Kings Arms, proved to be as amazing as the acoustic set and several friends were suitably impressed. That gig did two things for me, it introduced me to the amazing work of Charlie Barnes, and it reinforced my view that with the Kin band  there was  a great set of musicians who were breaking new musical boundaries.

A few months went by before I got to see the band again, and I was in some sort of state of nirvana when I found that the band were supporting my all time favourites The Fall at FAC251 and my anticipation was rewarded by a stunning set of new material which moved the band up several notches in my appreciation, I pity the poor Fall fans who stayed in the Lass A’ Gowrie and missed a suoerb performance.  A set at The Crescent, with able support from Pearl Divers followed as part of the Salford Music Festival and my last viewing of the band was as part of one the Helmets for Men gigs at the Kings Arms in the late summer. Since then four new tracks came my way as part of a pre-album demo -which again re- affirmed my view that the band were indeed something rather fine – and the launch of Mr Heart’s “The Hide” ep and a gig at the People History Museum, where Kin performed in other her role as bass player in that fine band, topped off a great year in which I voted Kin as my band of the year.

So it is with some disappointment that I received the news yesterday that the gig next week with the last chance to see the band. The music they produce is different, eclectic, and unmistakeably modern. Kin, the singer, has to have one of the most powerful voices around and her stage presence and performance has to be seen to be appreciated. Add to this one this areas best synthesists at the moment in Jonn Dean (the aforementioned Vei) , and one of the most impressive rhythm sections it has been my pleasure to watch (up there with the Hanley Brothers, Art Blakey. and Denardo Coleman) in Ding and Howard you have the perfect combination of raw unbridled talent and forward looking musical vision.

So it’s with mixed emotions I write this – happy to have seen and heard such a band in action and sad it has to end in its current iteration. Let’s hope this great band, and its two support acts, gets the rousing send off they fully deserves.