Stephen EvEns - Dustbin Man

Timely tribute to society's key workers. A taster from Stephen Evens' forthcoming full-length LP.

We're hearing a lot about key workers at the moment. That concept along with “fabric of society” and “all in it together” has come to define the age. Celebrating so-called ordinary workers will no doubt be claimed by the Tories as their idea. Anyone slightly attuned to the politics of the past decade will know how bogus and ridiculous that claim is. 'Dustbin Man' is a track by Stephen Evens, released today but recorded well before the coronavirus crisis. What remarkable empathy, sympathy and prescience it shows. Not only that but it damn well rocks too! A post-punk bovver-boy groove, heavy bass, and shrewdly astute lyrics. Stephen very kindly told us about how the song came to be -

"I’ve worked as a dustman, really. When I was a student. I lasted 2 days. I was rubbish.

When I wrote this song, quite while back, there’s no way in hell I could have predicted what was going to occur. But it looks like I have. I always knew I was special.

It’s a celebration of all those people who do the jobs you can’t and/or don’t want to do. They deserve you love and respect and a bloody great big pay rise."

The song is taken from Stephen EvEns' forthcoming album Employee Of The Month (to be released on Onomatopoeia Records on June 5^th). More about that fine album to follow nearer the release date. 

Stephen also plays Online Balcony Festival this weekend, on Saturday April 11th, kick-off 1pm, to raise money for NHS Charities Together – he will be performing at 3:30pm on the GigSlutz stage for more info see here - https://www.facebook.com/events/512048626149587/

Play the track loud and raise a glass to your fellow workers. Underpaid maybe, but dignified and valued now as never before. Respect.

Click here for Stephen EvEns on Twitter.

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Click here for Onomatopoeia Records.

Various - A Band For All Seasons (4CD)

Hugely enojoyable 4CD set of psych covers.

The promo of this set landed through my letterbox a few weeks back in the era now described as “pre-lockdown”. Since then the world appears to have shifted on its axis and we have this new strange reality. Given the gravity of the situation, what seemed important before the coronavirus crisis hit can now seem trivial, and it's tempting to put music in that box, along with football, luxury food items, and whether or not ITV is able to film Coronation Street. But, there's a counter argument - culture helps us make sense of the world, it keeps us sane, occupied, and entertained. That vital role should not be underestimated. Before the lockdown, I enjoyed listening to this set very much on my daily commute. Since then it's become something of a talisman to help me get through each day. I think you would enjoy it too.

Anyway I'll shut up about the coronavirus now and tell you about this compilation. Fruits de Mer released an amazing triple vinyl compilation a couple of years back. The Three Seasons featured 27 tracks, all covers of songs from the years 1967, 1968 and 1969. It sold out almost instantly so if you want a copy, be prepared to pay an inflated price via Discogs. The good news is that FdM released an expanded 4CD edition at the end of March under the title A Band For All Seasons: Songs From the Four Seasons of Love 1966-1969. The collection features a mind-blowing 61 tracks, many from HD-approved acts such as Moon Goose, Crystal Jacqueline, Schizo Fun Addict, Fuschia,Jack Ellister, Anton Barbeau and Nathan Hall. But that's just the tip of this iceberg.

Expect to hear well known psych-pop tracks getting a modern makeover along with lesser known gems that will open up new avenues of discovery. If, like myself you missed out on the pychedelic era by being born too late, this compilation will take you down musical rabbit-holes you never even knew existed and be introduced to a globe-spanning array of current bands who are not only enthralled by music from the late-'60s but use it as a starting point to take their own music to new and exciting places. Also included is a 24 page booklet to aid your enlightenment. Joy doesn't even begin to describe. A quick look at the FdM website tells me it's now sold out via their mail-order, though you should hopefully be able to track down a copy via secondary sellers.

Click here for Fruits de Mer Records.

Click over the jump below to see the full tracklisting.

Datura4 - West Coast Highway Cosmic

 Australian boogie rockers head for the open road on their fourth LP.

You don't miss the water till the well runs dry. So goes the old adage. As we're all currently under lockdown, the idea of travel, heading out on to the open road for adventure, purposeful travel and general fun suddenly seems like a privilege from a lost era. Fitting then that my listening album of choice this week has been the newie by Australian rockers Datura4. West Coast Highway Cosmic is a celebration of travel, rendered in old school boogie blues rock. The kind of album that sounds best when played loud. What better way to annoy your neighbours!

I greatly enjoyed last year's Blessed Is The Boogie. This latest release follows on almost a year to the day, and represents an extension and expansion of the band's trademark boogie rock sound, in no small part due to the input of new members Bob Patient (keys) and Howie Smallman (harmonica). For a little history of the band and to find out what sparked bandleader Dom Mariani's love of rock music you can look back to my review for Blessed Is The Boogie.

West Coast Highway Cosmic finds our heroes stretching out musically building on their firm solid rock foundations. The opening title track begins with scene-setting Hammond chords and swooping Moog notes before the guitars and drums kick in to hurtle you off at high speed down the cosmic highway. The track was written in honour of the studios the band have used over the course of their recording career, situated 124 miles apart along the south western Australian coast.

'Wolfman Woogie' is a no-nonsense brooding blues rock track, enhanced by Smallman's harmonica. The in-the-pocket groove dropping away to leave space for Mariani's riffs. Also worth checking for its heavy Hammond solo and wah-wah guitar workout. In fact the whole record has guitar heroics that will have bedroom players the world over wide-eyed in wonderment. The cleverly layered parts perfected by Mariani over a lifetime playing shows around his home turf since his youth.

The new textures brought by new keyboardist Bob Patient allow the band to build on the sound of their previous outings, but make no mistake this is a rock record with a capital R, one informed by the heavy rock gods of the 1970s – Sabbath, Zep, Lizzy, Purple, ZZ Top. 'You're The Only One' takes the pace down a little, a low-key swampy blues number redolent of the Mississipi Delta. There are those that say rock is long dead. On the evidence here don't believe it.

Click here for Datura4 on Twitter.
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Click here for Alive Records.

Squire - Get Ready To Go!

 

First wave mod-punk rarities from the brothers Meynell.

There's a cliché within music biz circles that there's always a folk revival going on, whatever mainstream musical fashions may be. In these days of global, internet-connected scenes you could say the same applies for any musical genre. Especially Mod. That said, the first Mod revival at the tail-end of the 1970s stands out as something quite special. The Jam of course led the pack, and The Who's Quadrophenia movie helped attune youthful ears to the sounds of of the previous decade.

One band at the centre of all this was Squire, who released a couple of classic singles on Arista, and were one of the scene's must-see live acts. I have to admit to being unaware of the band before hearing Get Ready To Go!, a newly released album that rounds up their early demos. The bulk of the tracks on Get Ready To Go! Were recorded on a TEAC 4 track machine by brothers Anthony and Kevin Meynell to present to the other band members in order for them to learn the songs. What strikes most about the album, apart from the sharp 'n' savvy musical moves is how it captures the tail-end of the '70s. Youthful energy had been fired up by punk rock but now bristled against the realities of everyday life. Find work, find that love doesn't always work out, find that Radio One still playlists the blandest of the bland.

The demos on this collection address these concerns with wit, brio, and an infectious energy. It's modernist for sure but mixed with punk and pop. Catchy three minute songs laced with to-the-point lyrics. 'Lets Have Some Fun' mixes hope and cynicism at the promise of summer. 'Tesco Music' pokes fun at the corporate music business. There are songs about the lure of big cities, the pains of finding work and your place in the world. The cumulative effect is akin to a teenage diary in song form.

A good indicator of any band's worth is often their staying power, and I'm pleased to report that four decades on Squire remain active today. In addition to the demos are some 1978 mixes and a new song 'I'm 21', which casts an eye back over the ensuing decades.The band clocked up over 30 gigs in 2019. An impressive number whichever way you look at it. It's well worth connecting with their social media channels to find where and when you can see the band play live.

LIVE DATES

May 3^rd – Round Chapel, London

May 22^nd – Nochtwache,Hamburg, Germany

May 23^rd – ZOSCH, Berlin, Germany

Click here for Squire's website.

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Extradition Order – American Prometheus

A history lesson about J Robert Oppenheimer couched in angular post-punk grooves.

For the rest of the country Warrington's main claim to fame is rugby league. Musically however it tends to be overlooked by its bigger neighbours Liverpool and Manchester. As is often the case if you did a little deeper our smaller towns have much to offer culturally and Warrington is no exception. One group with roots in the woolyback heartlands is Extradition Order. Their latest album is being co-released by no less than five record labels. Those labels are Gare Du Nord, Blang, Jezus, Helen Llewellyn Product 19, and I Blame The Parents Records. That in itself is an interesting scenario – let's hope they split the costs and don't argue about who did or didn't order a starter.

Anyway back to the record. A concept album based on the life of physicist J Robert Oppenheimer, taking in US politics and the creation of the A-bomb. If that all sounds a little highbrow and decidedly “non sexy”, fear not. The band are adept at laying down tough and angular post rock grooves, laced with slashing guitars and punchy brass, with lyrics that bring the subject matter to life. While it's educational, fun is still firmly on the agenda. Imagine if the Manic Street Preachers had grown up listening to Television, B52s, The Pop Group, Gang of Four and PIL, as opposed to hair metal bands. That's the mix of history lesson and passionate musical shapes we have here. The band describe American Prometheus as “a Northern Soul album about the atomic bomb”. That may be a stretch but it's a good chat-up line. There's a lack of finger-snapping Motown-beats but that's more than compensated by the record's cliché free romp, ragged sonic landscapes, thought-provoking lyrics and passionately delivered vocals.

So what do we learn of Oppenheimer? If like me you wished you'd paid more attention to history lessons at school, you'll welcome the insights gained via American Prometheus. Oppenheimer was instrumental in the Manhattan Project, a research and development project which resulted in the world's first nuclear bombs, later to be dropped on Hiroshima. Oppenheimer was also nominated for a Nobel Prize three times but was never awarded one, most likely down to his later public opposition against the bomb. There was also his complicated love life and left-wing politics. These aspects of his life are also touched upon, making for an album that's as much about the man's complicated inner life as it is about his legacy.

American Prometheus is dedicated to founder member and bass player Nick Boardman who sadly passed away in 2018. He leaves behind some fine musical contributions on this uniquely informative and highly enjoyable album.

Click here for Extradition Order's website.

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Click here for Extradition Order on Facebook.

Clickhere for Gare Du Nord Records.

Silent Fires - Forests

Norwegian/Italian quartet explore yearning and spirituality on their debut album.

In today's world there's much that makes one despair – climate change, the rise of racism, and the depressing state of politics in Britain and America in particular. For all that it is possible to hold onto some long-term optimism. One thing that gives me hope for the future is young creative people, their global outlook, desire for change, and their wealth of talent and ability to empathise.

Forests is manifestation of all of this. It's the debut album by Silent Fires, a quartet of talented musicians from the European improvised music scene. The album is a deep exploration of spirituality, quietly passionate and ripe with complicated emotions. Subtle piano chords, a hint of ancient folk melodies and pure-voiced vocals conjure up a soundscape that encourage the listener to delve into empathy and introspection.

The words of Maya Angelou, René Guénon, William Butler Yeats, and band leader Alessandro Sgobbio are set to music, as are extracts from the Bible and the Coptic Gospel of the Egyptians. These are given voice by vocalist Karoline Wallace. Her bell-like tones lending the words a heavenly reverence, sometimes singing, sometimes spoken and occasionally whispered. While the music has for the most part a calm, glacial stillness, it sometimes swells into small storms, spurred by subtle notes and pushes from all three musicians.

For their live appearances Silent Fires are joined by contemporary dancer Synne Garvik. The band held some release shows for Forests in Norway and France around the album's release, late last year. There are dates to follow later this month on Norway, Germany, Portugal, and Italy. More details below.

Silent Fires are -

Karoline Wallace – vocals

Hilde Marie Holsen – trumpet, effects

Håkon Aase – violin, percussion

Alessandro Sgobbio - piano

Forests Release Shows

12^th February – Nasjonal Jazzscene, Oslo, Norway

20^th February – B-Flat Jazz Club, Berlin, Germany

22^nd February – Pora-Jazz, Porto, Portugal

23^rd February - Casa Da Paes, Milan, Italy

1^st March – Langhus, Kirke, Langhus, Norway

Click here for Silent Fires' website.

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Click here for Silent Fires on Facebook.

Click here for Silent Fires on Instagram.

Click here for AMP Music & Records.

Matthew Sweet - Blue Sky On Mars / In Reverse

(This review first appeared in issue #88 of Shindig! magazine.)


Two albums of guitar-driven powerpop brought together as a double CD set. 1997's Blue Sky On Mars and 1999's In Reverse both have a sound and production that stands up well today. Sweet was one of the musicians in the '90s who studied Big Star, Brum-beat and Brit-invasion as core texts, making it his mission to re-present melody and melancholia to an audience raised on grunge. That said the contemporaneous influence of Nirvana pushes through on 'Where You Get Love' and 'Hollow'.

The use of synths gives Blue Sky On Mars a lightly futuristic edge and In Reverse is fleshed out with some nice touches – the trumpet peels on 'Millennium Blues' for one. Sweet's ability to write earworm tunes is in evidence throughout as is his sensitivity with the themes of fractured friendship and love's ever-elusive nature. The lack of filler and tracks to cash ratio here makes this a particularly sweet deal.

Telekinesis - Effluxion

(This review first appeared in issue #88 of Shindig! magazine.)


An album title to increase your knowledge, (Latin for flow, in case you were wondering), Effluxion is the fifth full-length offering from Seattle-based musician Michael Benjamin Lerner, fresh from a stint as touring keyboard player with Teenage Fanclub. The album was self-produced over two years in the basement of his home, with Lerner taking on all instrumental duties. He's songwriter who knows how to knock out a decent hook-laden tune or ten. Be it the quiet/loud dynamics of 'Set A Course', the piano-led pop of 'How Do I Get Rid Of Sunlight?', or the playfully dancing bassline on 'Cut The Quick' the attention is focused on songcraft with properly pleasing choruses and twist-laden mid-eights throughout.

Containing only ten taut tracks Effluxion may be a short listen, but after spending 32 minutes in its company the world will seem a brighter, more hopeful place. As Teenage Fanclub would say – ain't that enough?

Monks Road Social - Down The Willows

(This review first appeared in issue #88 of Shindig! magazine.)


This genre-shifting epic takes in downbeat soul, folk, jazz, dub and blues over its 18 tracks. It's the first full-length offering from this ever-evolving collective, is curated by chief Blow Monkey Dr. Robert, and shows a remarkable cohesion aided by Ben Trigg's string arrangements and a core band featuring Matt Deighton and Mick Talbot along with members of Galliano.

Its most sublime moments include 'Lost In Rasa' which echoes the troubled soul of Marvin Gaye's What's Going On, and 'Still Got A Lot To Learn' where guest vocalist Nev Cottee employs his baritone voice in a spot of self-reflection. Also of note is a lushly arranged re-recording of Dr. Robert's 1994 track 'The Coming Of Grace'. Added to this is the wealth of new vocal talent with Pat Dam Smyth standing out with 'So Long Soho', a Kinks-style homage to a disappearing London, along with Samantha Whates' dub-folk track 'Three Miles Left'.

Le SuperHomard - MeadowLanePark

(This review first appeared in issue #88 of Shindig! magazine.)


There's a strain of cinematic French music that feeds head and heart, and is fixed on the central tenets of style and sophistication. You can join the dots from Jean Claude Vannier to Air through to its latest progenitors - Le SuperHomard, an Avignon-based quintet led by Christophe Vaillant.

MeadowLanePark is the group's first full-length LP following 2015's mini-album The Maple Key and recent release The Pomegranate EP. Recorded during closed hours in the music shop where Vaillant works, the results are a joy, ebbing through sunshine pop, breezy electro, and gently playful psychedelia. The group make good use of the instruments to hand with vintage synths, harpsichords and strings making up the sonic palette. The band's key influences (Stereolab, Saint Etienne, Broadcast) can be heard but their sense of self wins out. Whether it's the evocative instrumental 'In The Park' or the electronic textures of 'SDVB', MeadowLanePark is one of this years early gems.