Stand Out Riot: on tour
Posted by jamie on Jun 23, 2011
Stand Out Riot are will tour Europe and the UK this summer.
Full dates:
25th June - FuturePerfect Festival, Manchester, UK
1st July - The Old Cock, Halifax, UK
2nd July - The Swan With 2 Necks, Macclesfield, UK
3rd July - De Geniepegen Drauk, Aalst, BE
4th July - The Warehouse, Gent, BR
5th July - Cafe Lokaal, Heemskerk,
6th July - Dynamo, Eindhoven, NL
7th July - Wild at Heart, Berlin, DE
Jimmy the Squirrel: back on it
Posted by jamie on Jun 23, 2011
Our mates in Jimmy the Squirrel are officially “back on it”, after Liam returned from touring his solo project in support of Babar Luck and Chris Murray. Here’s what they told us:
Back on it now! Getting ready to start recording our second full length album! Got some big tunes in the bag!!!
King Blues: full UK tour dates
Posted by jamie on Jun 22, 2011
The King Blues have announced a clutch of extra UK dates, turning November’s Roundhouse date in to the start of a full-blown nation-wide tour. Fair play, lads.
Those dates in full:
November
2 London Roundhouse
3 Birmingham Academy
4 Manchester Academy 2
5 Glasgow Arches
7 Norwich Waterfront
8 Exeter Lemon Grove
You can get tickets here.
Blink: new album nearly ready
Posted by jamie on Jun 22, 2011
Blink-182 have announced that they’ve almost finished work on their new album. Mark Hoppus posted the following statement on the Blink facebook page:
“i’m very excited. we’re getting to the point of the album where we talk about mixers and finishing up the songs. we deliver the album to the label on july 31st, so it will be coming out during the tour. the most recent batch of songs are some of the best of the entire record. very happy it’s all coming together.”
The new record doesn’t have a title or a firm release date yet. So hopeful for this: not least as it means they’ll finally be able to tour the UK.
Mouthwash: 1995 - 2011
Posted by jamie on Jun 21, 2011
Our main men Mouthwash have decided that they’re not going to be in a band together any more. Obviously, we’re gutted about this and would like to thank the guys for all the good times and all the joy they’ve given us for sixteen (sixteen!) years.
It doesn’t explain why they’ve split, but Mouthwash’s statement in full is posted here and pasted below.
“Good day all,
Writing this statement is very strange for me as I have been in Mouthwash for the majority of my life and it is difficult to imagine life without it, but I can confirm that as of today we will no longer be playing together.
We would like to apologise to all our fans and say a huge thank you for making this a truly unforgettable and amazing experience. You were totally incredible and we are truly sorry that we cannot play some last shows for you guys. You are everything that is good about this band.
We would also like to thank all the bands we have toured with, to our booking agent Ian Armstrong and all the promoters who made it all happen for us. We would like to thank the producers we have worked with (Pete Miles and Charlie Hugall) and to everyone who has helped and supported us over the years by putting us up, putting up with us and driving and feeding us. It is amazing what we have achieved doing things DIY and it would not have been possible without you.
Our final recording Nine to Five produced by my brother Charlie Hugall will be available from tomorrow (hopefully) on Itunes. The video for the song was directed by our friend Adam Powell and is up on YouTube. You can watch it here:
I’m sure there will be future projects so keep a look out!
Big love and respect to you all,
Chris x”
Less Than Jake: new EP
Posted by jamie on Jun 21, 2011
So excited for this. Less Than Jake hare released a new EP Greetings from Less Than Jake. For the time being, at least, this is only planned to be a digital release. You can get it here now.
Track listing:
1 Can’t Yell Any Louder
2 Goodbye, Mr. Personality
3 Harvey Wallbanger
4 Oldest Trick In The Book
5 Life Led Out Loud
Breadchasers: Time to Stop
Posted by jamie on Jun 20, 2011
Breadchasers
Time to Stop – self released, 2011
20th June 2011
Jamie
Breadchasers first released Time to Stop in 2010 on Liam O’Kane’s Offcut Records, but hit our doormat without an imprint. It’s got the new artwork on now, and looks and feels like a re-release that’s been given the extra TLC and pampering to make sure it gets everything just so. Think of it as a record that’s allowed itself a bit of extra time in front of the mirror to make sure everything’s perfect for its big night.
Over the course of the eleven full tracks on this record, the Nottingham sextet show off the depth and variety to the sound: it’s uniquely retro in its approach, evoking a distinctly different take on two-tone that’s quick out of the blocks and giddily lurches through the instantly skankable little tunes. And then there’s four tracks that clock in six or seven minutes in length: in these tunes the sax and keys come to the fore and lead the song on a trippy, strung-out dance. It’s almost dub in places, and layered with eerie echoes and effects, yet peppered with rasping, throaty vocals that, contrarily, are probably the punkiest on the record.
It’s not really the truly modern take on ska or punk/ska that I was probably expecting, if, in fact, I’d worked out what to expect: more a slightly post-modern reinterpretation that revives some of what made this music so excellent and accessible the first time that two-tone and punk gatecrashed mainstream consciousness, but sort of moves those predominantly old-school ingredients around and turns them in to something new.
At first, in places, some of this is a little raw for my taste, but the songs themselves are very good throughout, and, given that extra polish, they really do sound excellent here. Things Will be Better (the Sunshine Song) is a particular favourite: the sax, keyboard and vocal parts are all lovely but it’s the harmonies and the weird, oddly strung out, epic dub atmosphere that it creates that really makes it. The outro, where all the parts drop out and then crash back in on top of each other at once in a crescendo before gathering themselves, becoming graceful again, and strutting off leaving us looking for more, is a real high-point.
There’s a momentary pause and the odd brilliance becomes the more instantly recognisable the Chase, a more traditional two-tone number with upstrokes, a staccato sax line and just a two-tone “ha! ha!” in the vocal. The next track, Needing Dough, starts in a similar vein, but its verse is slower, almost soulful, between the choruses’ all-out sprints. Again, the execution is a little rough-and-ready, but it works well as a contrast to some of the smoother, gentler melodies and keyboard parts. That the vocals keep that snotty, punk rock twang helps to keep it authentic. There’s even a little bit of rap here, hidden away right at the end of the song. Everyone seems to sing on this tune. Can’t beat a good gang vocal, after all.
That’s this disc in a nutshell, I guess: instantly catchy 21st century two-tone in places, only a little bit punkier. Think Truebeat and then imagine them going crazily prog from time to time, and chuck in a bit of dub. It’s an oddly engaging re-arrangement of some unusually retro musical devices organised in to a totally unpredictable wander through an oddly modern landscape of reggae, dub, two-tone and punk. Great stuff.
An honourable mention to this, which I stumbled across during my research, and haven’t found an analogy laboured enough to squeeze it in. But still, it’s funny. Here’s another one.
Stand-out tracks:
Things Will be Better
Latin Goes Bread
Needing Dough
Please stop teasing..
Posted by jamie on Jun 20, 2011
Still more album teasers from the SB6. Laila’s posted:
Album, video, rehearsals - all done!
It’s getting harder and harder to wait now, isn’t it? Maybe watch the video again.
Bomber Music: CD sale
Posted by jamie on Jun 20, 2011
There’s a big sale on at Bomber Music.
Until midnight tonight you can buy any album for £5. The Skints, Random Hand, Failsafe CDs for a fiver each!
See it here.
Jake and the Jellyfish: off on tour
Posted by jamie on Jun 20, 2011
A quick newsflash from Jake and the Jellyfish:
Organising a full band tour for late July, if anybody can help by putting on a show, it would be much appreciated, cheers guys!
