9/15/2010

Cleaners From Venus' new album "English Electric"


Never thought I'd be saying this, but there is in fact a new album by Cleaners From Venus. Martin Newell has resurrected the name and I hope it's as good as before! I've not heard anything from it as I write this, but not for long since you can download the album here!

mix here Greatest Wits

9/14/2010

Hey Paulette - I Really Do Love Penelope

Does this jangle better than The Smiths? you decide...



Download Hey Paulette - I Really Do Love Penelope.mp3


UPDATE!
the I Really Do Love Penelope 12" EP is still available from Hey Paulette's myspace
http://www.myspace.com/heypaulettemusic

9/13/2010

Television Personalities - Salvador Dali's Garden Party

Never knew this had a video! Thanks to Josh Alper of The Art Museums for mentioning it in an interview (read here).
What're you saying Pat Fish??
For those of you who only listen to the first couple of TVP albums do yourself a huge favor and pick up their album "Privilege" (1990) sometime. It's up there with "The Painted Word" and "And Don't The Kids Just Love It" as their best albums.


9/12/2010

9/11/2010

Bron Area - Different Phrases EP



Download Different Phrases from 1982.

A1 Different Phrases
B1 You Would Be Amazed
B2 Dancing


Bron Area: A Biography

To start at the beginning: Bron Area started life as a duo in March 1979, emerging from an embryo of musicians in Nuneaton. Martin Packwood and Steven Parker had been involved in a number of these before meeting a wider and more competent group of musicians. Notably among these was Peter Becker who supported and encouraged them in the early stages of Bron Area. With the reorganization of The Reluctant Stereotypes, resulting in the departure of Martyn Bates and Chris Dunne (later to drum on all later Bron Area records) the former arrived at a Bron gig to be introduced to Peter and thus Eyeless In Gaza came into being. Ambivalent Scale Recordings was later established and saw the release of Bron Area’s One Year cassette album and Fragile Sentences Ep as well as Eyeless In Gaza’s Kodak Ghosts Run Amok Ep and Kevin Harrison’s On Earth 2 cassette (later released as a Cherry Red album [remixed]). As Eyeless moved on to greater glory via their deal with Cherry Red Records, the momentum of Nuneaton’s music scene diminished, Bron Area subdued their efforts somewhat until David Barker of Glass Records, having heard 2 songs from the Alternative Sounds fanzines compilation tape Facet 1 asked them to appear on his Wonderful World of Glass Vol. 1 Lp at the end of 1981. So impressed was Mr. Barker that on the strength of a recent demo tape Bron Area were signed to Glass at the beginning of 1982. The first vinyl was a 12” Ep entitled ‘Different Phrases’ released in March ’82 and later released as a 7” on Posh Boy Records in the USA. Now, after the best part of 1982 being spent in the recording studio Bron Area’s first album is ready. The album is The Trees and the Villages – a title which suggests the sentiments of their present music. Although not quite as described in Stringent Measures fanzine “a modern day country music … with a little organic additive” it does through different means seek to fulfill the same role as that music. Martin Packwood: “The album doesn’t take risks, but I really don’t see how any music could claim to do so. The only thing you risk in being avant garde is that no one is going to buy the record and listen to what you have to offer. People take risks in their lives – in their decisions, their lifestyles and so on – not when they listen to a record.”

From http://www.eyelessingaza.com/bron.html

9/10/2010

Able Tasmans - Hold Me I











Glorious song and very stylish video!

Shop Assistants - Somewhere in China (live)

Look, now there's all these Shop Assistants videos up on youtube. I think I prefer their softer numbers sans drums, that trademark pummeling percussion gets a tad tiresome. Soft numbers...

9/09/2010

The Chameleons - Splitting In Two

Fucking brilliant cover of an Alternative TV song. When I saw them play this in 2001 Mark jumped off the stage and sang surrounded by the audience and I gave him a hug resulting in my being covered in his sweat. Doubt I'll ever see a more transcendent show as that one.

9/08/2010

Today

Songs that reflect my current listening as opposed to the backwards gazing of previous entries. Included are two recent exposures I made last Saturday at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland CA.



Download Today part 1 / Today part 2

No real order or defined sequence.

Carter Tutti - The Sun Shone That Day
Bron Area - You Would Be Amazed
Trembling Blue Stars - Helen Reddy
The Sound - Winter
The Sound - Counting the Days
Two Daughters - Ladder of Souls
David Sylvian - The Healing Place
Bill Nelson - Soon September (Another Enchantment)
Cindytalk - Guts of London
Bron Area - Different Phrases
Kevin Harrison - People In Space
Kevin Harrison and Steven Parker - Distant Truth of English Dreams
Eyeless in Gaza / Lol Coxhill - November
The Velvet Underground - Here She Comes Now
Associates - 18 Carat Love Affair
Alain Goraguer - Générique (Fantastic Planet score)
Aztec Camera - Bad Education (Blue Orchids cover)
The Clientele - Since K Got Over Me
Fly - Lamborghini
Mary Margaret O'Hara - To Cry About
Spiritualized - Feel So Sad (Rhapsodies)
Be Bop Deluxe - Crystal Gazing


9/05/2010

Andy Warhol Elvis

nostalgia will lead me away (#2 in the series of 3)



Download Nostalgia 1 - Songs 1-12 / Nostalgia 2 - Songs 13-18

1. Dead Can Dance - In Power We Entrust The Love Advocated
2. The Cure - Plainsong
3. Soul Whirling Somewhere - Everyone Will Eventually Leave You
4. Cindytalk - Janey's Love
5. And Also the Trees - Gone...Like the Swallows
6. Trembling Blue Stars - Cecilia in Black and White
7. Cocteau Twins - Crushed
8. Nature and Organisation - Bloodstreamruns
9. Swallow - Lacuna
10. Xymox - Imagination
11. Mesh - I Don't Think They Know
12. Depeche Mode - Sea of Sin (Tonal Mix)
13. Chandeen -Ginger (Acoustic)
14. Death in June - Little Black Angel
15. Pieter Nooten & Michael Brook - Suddenly I
16. Halou - Feeling This is Like to Fall Awake
17. Dif Juz - Soarn
18. The Wolfgang Press - I Am The Crime

9/02/2010

reminiscent of the bygone

As I mentioned a couple posts back (Apoptygma Berzerk--who more recently covered House of Love's "Shine On" with VILE results. Do yourself a favor and avoid this unless you want to puke all over yourself) my discovery of an old playlist dating back to the year 2000 for a friend. This led to the fruition to recreate a similar mix broadened to include other old favorites and similar themed songs in dreamy, ethereal, gothy? tone. I was surprised to find that most of the songs I still enjoyed, except for the odd track that proves that your tastes sometimes do change (ie. Trance to the Sun).
I'm also including old images that I photographed around the same time.
Here's the first in a trilogy on the theme of nostalgia.



Download Reminiscence Part 1--Songs 1-9 / Reminiscence Part 2--Songs 10-17

1. The Tear Garden - You and Me and Rainbows (edit)
2. Cranes - Beautiful Friend
3. An April March - Mandarin
4. Love Spirals Downwards - Through Sky Blue Rooms
5. Mellonta Tauta - Pull the Charriot
6. Kitchens of Distinction - Quick as Rainbows
7. Clan of Xymox - Theme I
8. A.R. Kane - Up
9. Current 93 - The Inmost Light
10. Coil - Windowpane
11. Lush - I Have the Moon
12. For Against - Don't Do Me Any Favors
13. Slowdive - Shine
14. Martin L. Gore - Compulsion
15. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Dear Prudence
16. Secret Shine - Deep Thinker
17. Edward Ka-Spel - Hotel X

promise the double "rainbows" wasn't intentional. pop music quiz: how many songs here are covers?