Ska Mutiny tees
Posted by jamie on Apr 30, 2010
The excellent folk at Ska Mutiny Records have released a limited edition t-shirt, available from their big cartel page. Have a peek at their site - there’s a lot of excellent downloads on there too.
Kippertronix
Posted by chips on Apr 26, 2010
A is for Ape, the Hostiles, Truebeat and the Steady Boys are all among the bazillions of cool bands at May Day Kippertronix fest this weekend. See the full line-up here.
Sonic Boom Six: Craufurd Arms
Posted by jamie on Apr 15, 2010
Sonic Boom Six, Knock Out
Anti-Vigilante, AWarAgainstSound
Crauford Arms, Milton Keynes
9th April, 2010
Jamie
Few things are better than enjoying the music, live, of a shared favourite band with friends. Pineapple Malibu, for example, is much too sweet, even for me, and will go down as a lesson learned. A trip to a particularly good chippy, though, is surely something that would enhance any night: that pretty much goes without saying.
On certain days, though, everything just seems to go turn out perfectly, and this was one of those evenings. That it would later include Guinness-punch and Jonathan Creek, both of which were very welcome surprises, is proof, if proof were needed, that I really should have bought a lottery ticket and that, where ideas are needed for a party, my friends consistently come up with the goods.
When Theo produced a green-headed devil/dragon thing that lives in a plastic ice-cream and whistles, well that was just the icing on the proverbial cake.
The Crauford Arms, as has been said, is a lot better than the Woughton Centre. Instead of swimming pools, a psychedelic 60s rock covers gig in the other room was the stark contrast to our gig in the back. There’s a cheesy line here somewhere about music’s past and it’s future next door to each other in the same bar. It just feels too corny to put in. They were nice enough when we came in to use the bar, though.
Problems with various sound-checks mean that AWarAgainstSound start late, giving us more time outside to eat award-winning chips but less time to actually watch them. Undeterred, AWAS race through twenty minutes (twenty minutes!) of tight, technical, old-style skacore. Last song Pull Your Twos Out Your Pocket is the only one I knew (it’s on the TNS Comp) but their short set kicks off a great pit for the minority who are early and also very hard, so that lot got to do their thing at high speed. AWAS also went down very well with us pint-holders, though: they bring a refreshing sincerity to the ska/hardcore thing, and rip through a collection of startlingly good songs with such energy and so much physical effort that a few of us are left breathless just standing still. They have a new record out, by the way, which will be well worth a look.
Anti-Vigilante, who played next, were also cut short. Keeping in mind that the two bands have just completed a whole tour of their own, getting them both in to open on this show was something of a coup all the same, and, at a home-town show, Anti-Vigilante go down a storm. It’s still relatively early, and a beautiful summer evening outside, so the room still has plenty of space in.
It’s starting to fill up, though, and beginning to glisten with shared sweat. Most of that remaining space is around a growing and frantically moving throng right in front of the band. It gets pretty heavy in there, so you’re either in or out.
Anti-Vigilante have a large and devoted fanbase in Milton Keynes, and, playing to them for the first time in a while, they get a rapturous response. They deserve it, too: I’ve watched them a few times in the last couple of months and they keep getting better and better. They also seem to get less skacore and a little more ska every time I watch them. Tonight was an especially skankable example, with sax and upstrokes to the fore. Not that it stops anybody down front from gleefully throwing themselves around. That little bit of extra room for skanking and pogoing works out a treat all the same, and an energetic set is eagerly gobbled up by an appreciative pit and enjoyed at the same time by a steadily growing crowd at the back of the room, all of us working our way further and further forward to take in what’s going on and to get more involved.
Tonight was the second time in a week, and also the second time ever, that I’ve seen Californian punkers Knock Out, and both times I’ve been very impressed. A four-piece with two guitars (and no horns), they’ve got an impressive musical range, moving from the harder end of pop-punk to breezy, easy-going reggae with accomplished ease and confidently dominating the stage and the room in that way that US bands seem to be particularly good at. Knock Out hold the room pretty effortlessly and, once that respect has been earned, we’re all bobbing and swaying with them. Their cover of Madness’ It Must Be Love* is a particular highlight, and, put in earlier in Milton Keynes than it was in Birmingham, still provokes lines of sweaty arms over sweaty shoulders and has all of our heads slung back and happily singing along. We rock out with them too, and a good time is had by all. I was really impressed by these guys.
On nights like these, where everything happens just how you’d want it to, the Sonic Boom Six have a happy knack of showing up and starting a party. I still credit them, by the way, with the greatest gig I’ve ever seen.
This isn’t the first time they’ve played without Ben Childs, but it was meant to be. Matt Crosher’s misfortune on the Rebel Alliance Tour meant that new guitarist Jimmy T Boom actually made his debut in High Wycombe. In the dusty, sweaty heat and the half-light here, though, the first real sign of his presence is a dirty dub beat underneath the intro to Welcome to the City of Thieves. In his own words, Jimmy is “all about bass that goes right through you, and dubstep that f*cks you up”. We’ll take that first beat as a downpayment.
The Sonic Boom Six enter and open with Polished Chrome and Open Kitchens.
Meanwhile, Back in the Real World and The Strange Tale of Sid the Strangler come next, setting the tone for a set that’s taken mainly from the two most recent records, City of Thieves and 2007’s Arcade Perfect, which gets its American release shortly when they head over to the US, again with Knock Out. Laila’s “sshh” gesture, silencing a screaming crowd before the first words of Meanwhile, Back in the Real World still works really well, and, hushed and brought to a standstill by that, we immediately spring back in to life on “never one to break any rules..”. It all basically goes off from here on.
I wasn’t the only one to notice that the vibe in MK was friendlier in Milton Keynes than it was in Birmingham on Tuesday. That meant that, as there wasn’t as much full-on moshing and rocking out going on, there were more bodies down at the front jumping around, partying and swapping sweat with each other. I still smashed heads with three people, but the speed with which we scooped each other off the floor is a credit to the camaraderie and general goodfeeling in the pit. We still climbed all over each other to get an “Awooo” in in Strange Transformations, mind. New song Bandito sees Jimmy get his own special introduction and is really well received. Chants of “Oi! Oi! Oi!” go up during th verse, and Laila’s got a cool little “Ah-aaaaaaah” bit. The other new song, Shockwave, is more of a ska song and promises to be a real live hit. After that, the “Sonic Boom Six self-indulgence bit” sees us all under instruction to rock out to Jericho and For 12 Weeks, the City is Theirs - as if it’s possible to do anything else.
Barney gets his own little freestyle, dedicated to AWarAgainstSound and Anti-Vigilante who “bring a tear to his eye”. It’s about how important it is to nurture new bands and how tough it can be for them to break through, and it works really well in the live set. At the second time of asking (in Milton Keynes, at least), it leads in to Bang, Bang, Bang, Bang and then Ya Basta, both done without samples this time. Next up is the band’s addictive new cover, Puretone’s Addicted to Bass, where the bass really does go right through you. It is one of those songs you know that you know but can’t actually place until it kicks in, and that’s where we went totally nuts. The total opposite happens to The Rape of Punk to Come: when the opening lines of roll through the room it’s recognised immediately and a perfect end to hectic, sweaty set.
We were begging for more by then, though, and rewarded with Rum Little Scallywag, in which Nick plays trombone for the first time tonight, and finally Bigger Than Punk Rock, where he doesn’t. It works well with the guitars, though, and, though there is a feeling of watching a different band, what they’ve done has definitely worked: there’s enough of the classic Boom that we know and love in there too. There have, of course, been a few tweaks to the set-list, but those old favourites haven’t gone anywhere and the new material sounds absolutely fantastic. It was a stunning end to a great show and a great night out: Milton Keynes knows how to party.
Oh, and if you missed Jonathan Creek, the guy’s wife didn’t die: she helped him kill another woman and then dressed the body in her own clothes. I think. We weren’t really watching.
*It was Madness’s It Must Be Love that they were playing. Labi Siffre wrote it, but he didn’t play it like that.
King Blues: Mike & Johnny’s statements
Posted by jamie on Apr 10, 2010
Mike (fka Fruitbag) and Johnny Rich have left the King Blues and each released a statement on the subject. They’re up on punktastic - read it here.
Advantage: new single
Posted by chips on Apr 7, 2010
Advantage’s new single The Beat (Get Up!) is getting play here. It’ll be replayed at 1pm on Saturday. The single is released on 2nd May.
Robb Blake: Ain’t Got No Soul
Posted by jamie on Apr 6, 2010
Robb Blake
Ain’t Got No Soul (Do the Dog)
5th April 2010
Jamie
In four years fronting Salisbury ska/punk outfit Whitmore, he played 1,000 shows in thirteen different countries. That’s more than two shows every three days. Then, after they went their separate ways in 2005, little was heard of Robb Blake for a little while. Since releasing his first solo record on Do the Dog in 2007, the touring schedule has resumed in earnest. A few days ago, Robb arrived home from his latest adventure, promoting his third solo release on Do the Dog, 2010’s Ain’t Got No Soul.
Liam O’Kane supplies the guest vocal on Hit the Bottle. It’s a similar song in terms of subject matter, but the interchanging of the two vocals: Liam’s is almost plaintive at times. The song builds nicely in to a chorus, sung by Robb, and, most likely, by you as well: this is another song that gets inside you and starts itself off: the constant presence of that rhythmic, uplifting guitar, makes sure of that. It’s on laid-back upstrokes for the most part, but does get beefed up towards the end: the key change in Robb’s voice as the chorus takes over, round and round, before finishing, is wonderful, a real moment for your inner pop fan: giving the song a little extra lift at just the right time. On Here I Am he once again tries that old Buzzcocks trick of taking a subject that’s actually fairly downbeat at putting it to a great hook. Again you’ll find yourself singing your devotion to Robb’s rum and how “one night turns in to five very easy now”. Don’t fight it: sway with this one and sing with him, just because it’s so much fun. I’m enjoying this record all the more as it goes on. There’s a moment midway through the song where he’s half-speaking, almost rapping quickfire lyrics before the return of the refrain and then a drop-out to just the bassline and then an instrumental. The song’s packed with lush little melodies, though, where previously on the record it was slightly simpler there’s more to this song and it’s really worked. As your insides get lifted up in a heavy, happy sigh, you can feel the benefit of that.
Title track Ain’t Got No Soul is the record’s first that’s properly skankable and really gets your shoulders going, not just side to side. The song starts quietly but the return of Robb’s rich, throaty growl kicks it off and you’ll be bopping around to this for the duration now. It’s cheering on a quiet afternoon at home, so it must work in concert. Oh, and There’s a gang vocal shout of “hey! hey!” over the guitar solo. Highways continues the goodtime, skanking fun. It’s still just Robb and his guitar but it’s still really infectious and thoroughly enjoyable.
Where his subject matter is occasionally pretty dark, a song called Everybody’s Leaving would be expected to be quite down, but not so. Instead, it’s upbeat, uptempo and thoroughly uplifting. “I can’t speak for you, but I’m Ok” he sings at the top of his range, “..and I got everything I need right here”. It’s the first time I’ve noticed percussion, for the record, and the song fairly runs along.
Million Miles is a little more chilled out for a time, but ends up matching Robb’s gravelly-voiced growl with high-speed upstrokes as it sprints for the album finish that comes afterwards with the last one Nothing But Rubble. This one starts quickly and carries on that way, Robb’s quickfire vocal over upstrokes and the contagious repeated chorus of “this house is falling down”. Robb’s last guitar solo actually gets a bit epic rock on us here, and the combination of off-beat guitar strokes and percussion works nicely. It’s a great way to wrap up the record and a guaranteed singalong. By the time it’s over, you’re just left to reflect on what’s gone before: a little over half an hour of sheer joy, a surprisingly broad selection of songs, and the sort of good fun that sticks around in your head.
Everybody’s Leaving
Nothing But RubbleNB: there’s a lot more great tracks than these.
But I felt daft typing out half the album here.
Stand Out Riot, TAlan and Kickback
Posted by chips on Apr 5, 2010
Stand Out Riot and the Apostates have been named as support to Tyrannosaurus Alan and Kickback UK at Deptford’s Bird’s Nest on 1st July.
You can join the facebook event here.
Detached: None The Wiser
Posted by jamie on Apr 2, 2010
Detached
None The Wiser EP (S/R)
2nd April 2010
Jamie
South Wales’ ska/punk outfit Detached self-released their first EP, You Only Live Once, way back in 2007, and did the whole thing at home: burning the discs and designing and printing the lot themselves. Understandably, they sold out of copies pretty fast, so its follow-up, None The Wiser, has been eagerly anticipated for some time now before finally dropping a couple of weeks back. Since then it’s scarcely left my CD player.
Like its predecessor, None The Wiser is self-released, but it’s actually a very different record. Before it was released, Detached made sure everything, even down to their myspace html, was all new just to make sure we were ready. Here goes..
None The Wiser is a six-track EP packed with hooks and uplifting horn parts. Detached are a six-piece with a two horns (trombone and trumpet) and three different vocalists. Despite the classic format, they’re not a traditional ska/punk band: with stronger guitars and the snarl in Rhys’ vocal, this is more bombastic than is usually expected of the genre, something that’s particularly evident early on. The killer moment where the opener Don’t Bite the Crust (and Say the Pie Ain’t Tasty) kicks in for the first time being a prime example. The song builds steadily for a quick spell before taking off in an impassioned scream and an ascending horn riff. It’s peppier once it returns, with short, sharp refrains sung over some classic upstrokes before the guitar riffs kick in once again, the horns return and the song builds to its climax: that three-part vocal whoah-whoahing away as the song rocks out towards its end.
F.B.U again shows how adept the guys are at changing things around. At its very start there are thunderous drums and rock guitars that get heavier and louder, just for a little bit, before, once it’s underway, it becomes more of a ska song again. This song is brilliantly skankable, big and heavy, but with more than enough beat to move to. The gang vocal is fun, and then the horns take over and run away with the song. It’s short and sweet, but it’s an absolute joy. Teeth Rattling Boneshaker, in this context, begins as anything but. This record’s been pretty full-on so far, and this track is surprisingly easy-going: a switch to more positive subject matter perhaps influencing the change. There are echoes of [spunge]’s song Rockabilly even before the off mic shout of “pick it up”. With two guitars working on upstrokes and melody at once, a dreamy little horn part and a shared vocal that begins on “she’s the one..” and continues through the “wo-oh wo-oh”. It’s breezy, easy going, happy, loved-up summer ska/punk pop music at its best, and it’s a standout moment for me.
Lock Up takes that newfound happier outlook and mixes it with that slightly edgier tone of the previous songs. “You’re the beauty”, it says, “pulling me back to this oh so ugly place, and knowing that you need me still puts a smile on my face”. Again, it’s a great little song, at its best though the chorus where vocal and horns duet over those choppy ska guitar parts that Detached are so good at, and embellished nicely by those dirty great big riffs that they like to roll out at you. After a few smooth changes of direction and a couple of nice little singalongs, it skips away, and leaves us with just two songs left on the EP.
Horizons, the penultimate track, is another particular treat. It opens up with a full assault of guitars, quickly joined by bass and drums and then the horn section. As the song gets going, though, it’s a joyous crossfire of quickfire vocals from all of the singers over high speed ska guitar strokes. The moment another horn part joins in here is another favourite moment. Again there are plenty of moments to rock out here as well, and the outro is probably the album’s best, Detached going at it with all guns blazing before the twin guitars combine to finish it off. Rid Of It is last, then, and is another instant classic. There’s loads of melody in the chorus here, and a verse where interchanging vocals combine over brilliantly danceable guitars - and all interspersed with a fine horn line. If you weren’t already, by this time it’s impossible not to throw yourself around. For a second, it made me think of this song – I can’t remember at which point or why. As a special treat, there’s a reggae breakdown in here too and a three-part vocal harmony over guitars again and another chorus, joined again by the brass section before the song, and with it the record, disappears with a tiny little guitar line that fades into a satisfying silence. It’s only six short songs, but this is a great little record that gets better all the way through and better still with every listen.
None The Wiser is available from Detached’s bigcartel shop.
Less Than Jake / Kids Can’t Fly
Posted by chips on Apr 1, 2010
Kids Can’t Fly have the chance to tour with Less Than Jake. How sick would that be? Vote on the LTJ facebook page to make it happen.
