Friday 24 July 2009

Johnny Marr


Although I spend far too much time online when it comes to news I, unlike a lot of people still prefer to hold a newspaper in my hand and read the news with my morning cuppa. Not that I am loyal to one title or even buy a paper every single day but if I'm in a shop and a headline catches my eye I'll buy the paper regardless of whether it's a nasty tabloid or a highbrow broadsheet. When it comes to Sunday papers I quite often find myself buying a few papers which keep me in reading through to the next weekend. One such paper is the Observer. Not that I buy it every week but twice a month the paper comes with a magazine that is dedicated to my passions. Music is catered for on one of these weeks and on another week, which just happened to be last Sunday it was the turn of the 'Food Monthly' supplement. Also included every week is another magazine entitled not too imaginitively, The Observer Magazine. Last Sunday's regular 'My Body & Soul' article featured ex Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr. I would imagine if you stopped 100 people randomly in the street and asked what is the first thing that comes to mind when they think of The Smiths, the majority would say Morrissey which is a shame because for me Johnny Marr was every bit as equal in the band's music. Anyway here's the article as it appeared last Sunday.
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My body & soul
Johnny Marr, musician, 45
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What's your general attitude to health?
I'm pretty healthy. People think that I live a rock'n'roll lifestyle, but I've either missed doing all that stuff or I've done it and can't remember.
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Have you ever spent a night in hospital?
No, not a full one. I crashed a BMW into a wall when I was in the Smiths, even though I couldn't actually drive at the time. I did my back and neck in pretty badly but checked out after a few hours. I wore a neck brace - Morrissey was very envious.
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What exercise do you take?
I got into running in the early 90s. Now, wherever I am in the world, I just put on my hoodie and run for 20 miles.
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How do you relax?
By staying up too late watching nonsense on YouTube.
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How much do you drink?
I've had no interest in alcohol for the past 10 years. We had quite a dark time with the Smiths when there was a lot of drink. But we were recording The Queen Is Dead, and it turned out great, so I can't be too evangelical.
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What's your attitude to smoking?
I used to smoke 40 cigarettes a day. It took me about three attempts to stop - and it was tortuous, to say the least.
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And drugs?
I don't have any problem at all with psychedelics - they seem to unlock creativity. I really don't like being around people who are on cocaine, though. They just seem stupid.
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Do you worry about your weight?
Not at all. I became a vegan in 1985 when the Smiths were making the album Meat is Murder and I figured that it wasn't very cool eating meat.
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Is sex important to you?
Yes. Life would be easier for some people if it wasn't such a big deal. My wife and I have been together since we were kids, since 1979. We both feel pretty lucky. I'm not an idiot; I know when I'm on to a good thing.
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Are you happy?
I work on it. As a teenager I had a lot of things on a checklist that I feel blessed that I've achieved, such as: get to play with your heroes, be in a really important band, stay up for days ... But what's next? Either sit around listening to your old records, which doesn't interest me, or carry on travelling without a map. I have a compulsion to move forward. It's the only way to live.
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Wednesday 22 July 2009

Computer crash, thieving scum and The Good Button




Monday night, quietly doing some web browsing, catching up on various blogs when all of a sudden the screen went blank. I've been having some problems with my AC adapter which hasn't been charging my laptop battery at times so my first thought was something alomng those lines. Looking at the back of my machine my suspicions were confirmed, the adapter had somehow become disconnected and as my battery wasn't charged the machine had switched off. PHEW!!! I was dreading another computer crash. So I pushed the adapter back into the machine, pressed the power button and let out a sigh of relief as the screen came to life again. No worries, I'd soon be back on-line but I would need to get something done about the faulty adapter asap. So we're ready to go just need to click on the AOL icon and I can get back to my blogs. One problem though, where are the icons? I'm on the start up screen, my background image is showing, a picture of fish made out of leaves that my youngest made a few weeks ago, but still no icons. In fact nothing except scary looking green fish. So I restart the laptop, go through the same process and get the same result again. And again. And again. Now I'm starting to think that it's a bit worse than I first anticipated and I'll need to reinstall all my software and operating system just like the last time. Luckily I still had the software discs handy from the last time I had problems so I inserted the Dell disc and after a wee whizzing noise, nothing. At all. A slight flicker of the cursor and then nothing. So I tried the AOL disc. Exactly the same. Whizz, flicker, nothing. By this time I know something is seriously wrong and after trying a few more discs and getting the same results I did what I always do. Turn the machine off, make a cuppa and by the time I've finished my tea the laptop will somehow be back to life. Of course it wasn't so I tried a few other things and eventually I got the laptop to do a diagnostic test which revealed it was a hard drive problem. There was nothing else for it but to turn it off and wait until the morning and phone the Dell helpline. Tuesday morning I'm up bright and early and straight on the phone. After 3 attempts the woman on the other end finally puts me through to the help desk. 5 minutes later my debit card is £30 lighter just for the guy on the other end to even speak to me. 25 minutes later and after doing exactly the same test I had done the previous night, the engineer finally tells me that my hard drive is basically ... f*****d. Not in those words obviously but to the same effect. I was then informed that Dell could resolve the problem ... for £180. As I've said before, I really can't do without my laptop so I really had no choice but to pay up or else look at buying a new machine. Just as I was thinking of taking the latter course of action the engineer explained that the £180 included a new hard drive as well as an engineer coming out to install the hardware as well as all my software. It was sounding a bit more promising, then he told me he would send the engineer out the next day. So if the thought of being back in cyberland within 24 hours wasn't tempting enough he then hit me with an even better incentive. IF I was to take out a 3 year warranty there and then, it would cost me £140 and that still included getting the laptop repaired the next day. I thought I was hearing things and asked him to repeat the offer and sure enough, if I took out a 3 year warranty I would be charged £30 less than if someone just came out to fix the machine. Sothe debit card was hit for another £140. Anyway, true as their word the engineer arrived at 11.30 this morning, installed a new hard drive and my software and also replaced the AC adapter as well. So, I'm a bit out of pocket but glad to be back online so soon.





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On Tuesday, while the laptop was out of order, I took my youngest daughter Lauryn into town. There were a few things we were getting for her and this was as good an opportunity as any. For the last couple of months she has been reading a bit more than usual which of course we try to encourage. She has not long turned 6 and at the moment her favourite books are the 'Horrid Henry' series. It's easy enough to go into the likes of WH Smith and buy the full series but we've taken a different approach, one that suits me, Lauryn and my wallet. Yes, father and daughter have been scouring the local charity shops where so far we have managed to find 10 books for her. I'm pretty sure the search is as much fun for her as the actual books are. To see her wee face light up when we find a book or two in among piles of other books is far more rewarding than buying her a pile of them from any bookshop. So first stop yesterday before getting the bus to Irvine was a couple of charity shops in Kilwinning. The first one is pretty disappointing to be honest. We got her a couple of books the first time we went in but it seems they are more interested in clothing and furniture than anything else. Also this is the only charity shop I've been in so far that doesn't have ANY cds. Straight across the road is another, much smaller charty shop and this is where the SCUM comes in. Again there were no books for her but while she was looking I had a look through the cds. There was nothing much of interest but it is very cheap and as it's so small I don't really like walking out without buying something. So with 7 cd albums, 2 singles and a book I approched the counter and paid my £3. Yes, all that for £3. Ok the cds weren't great but they were all in mint condition and as I had no laptop, the book would help pass a few hours when the kids went to bed. Anyway, while the lady behind the counter put my purchases into a bag I overheard one of the other assistants telling a customer how the shop had been burgled a few nights before and the culprits had stolen a full jewellery display (at least I think that's what was kept in the glass case) and the collecting tin from the counter. Now I hate thieves. I don't think I've ever stolen in my life, definitely not since my pre-teen years when I think I stole a 2p lolly just to show off to my mates but there are times when I find it hard to condemn someone down on their luck from stealing a pack of sandwiches from a supermarket or a crime of a similar nature. I know the likes of Tesco and Asda moan that there is no such thing as a victimless crime but it's hard to take sides with a multi-million pound business over a hungry homeless person. Anyway, that's a different thing altogether but surely no-one can side with the SCUM who would rob a charity shop. Here we have a shop smaller than the average terraced house where a handful of women give up their time to volunteer a few hours a week to maybe raise enough pounds to help a cancer sufferer make the best of their final days and some scumbag destroys all their great work for the sake of a few quid. It really does make me sick to think of it. On hearing the rest of the conversation it became apparent that the shop wasn't insured against this kind of thing either which makes it even worse. How must those ladies have felt when they turned up for work that morning and noticed that they had been burgled? The lady who was speaking to the customer just shrugged her shoulders and said 'we just have to get on with it'. I hope the police also just get on with it and catch the scum responsible. I also hope that if those responsible or any of their relatives ever catch the dreaded disease there is still a hospice for them to get help from. It certainly will be no thanks to the scum responsible if there is.


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Right, now that I've got that off my chest here's some music. From the charity shop mentioned I bought (one track from each at bottom). ...


Ash : Oh Yeah (single)


The Thrills : So Much For The City


Space : Spiders


Paul Simon : The Rhythm Of The Saints


The Bravery : S/T


Orson : Bright Idea


Toto Coelo : I Eat Cannibals


Kylie Minogue : Slow (single)


The Good Button : S/T


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Monday 20 July 2009

Shuffling Shiny Shoes [Scottish Alternatives 2000-2009]

Nice compilation of Scottish acts here courtesy of Box_Set_Go blog.
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01. Rox – The Aliens
02. In Dreams – Crash My Model Car
03. Quiet Little Voices – We Were Promised Jetpacks
04. Johnny Cash – Sons & Daughters
05. Susan’s In The Sky – Bubblegum Lemonade
06. Folding Stars – Biffy Clyro
07. Two Of Us – Sister Vanilla
08. Opposite Direction – Union Of Knives
09. Pink Sabbath – Dannanaackyord
10. The Pain Inside – Cosmic Rough Riders
11. Lucy, What Are You Trying To Say – Popup
12. You’re So Changing your Mind – The Starlets
13. Honey – El Pres!dente
14. Black Path - Aereogramme
15. Mondo 77 – Looper
16. The Last Song – BMX Bandits
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Visit Box_Set_Go for some cracking compilations.
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Sunday 19 July 2009

Ramones : Blitzkrieg Bop

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Debut single from American punk band the Ramones. Released in 1976 on Sire records.
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1 Blitzkrieg Bop
2 Havanna Affair

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Hey!_Ho!_Let's_Go!
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Thanks to Punk_Friction
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read!!!
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Teenage Fanclub : Everything Flows


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Released on Paperhouse records in 1990 this single was the debut from Bellshill band Teenage Fanclub.
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o1 Everything Flows
02 Primary Education
03 Speeder
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**DOWNLOAD**
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Official _ Wikipedia _ Discogs

Shop Assistants : Shopping Parade EP



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This 4 track EP was released as a 7" single in 1985 on the Subway Organization record label.
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1 All day Long
2 Switzerland
3 All That Ever Mattered
4 It's Up To You

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Saturday 18 July 2009

Moondials : Can You See? EP

I saw this EP in the local Oxfam shop last week but to be honest it didn't really grab my attention. I had never heard of the band and the cover didn't exactly grab me either (apart from the rather basic design, the previous owner seems to have spilled beer or some other kind of liquid over it). So as I got home and played the cds that I had purchased the Moondials EP wasn't amongst them. The name did however stick in my mind so I had a wee search on the internet and although information was a bit scarce I did find out that a. The EP was released on Electric_Honey records and b. The band features Stevie_Jackson (now a member of Belle_and_Sebastian) on guitar. So yesterday I took a run into town and after a bit of searching managed to find the EP again buried among the many James Last and Petula Clark albums. Can You See? EP
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01 Can You See?
02 Take Me away
03 The Only One
04 Faker
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Electric_Honey is of course the record label run by music business student's at Stow_College in Glasgow. The label is most famous for releasing the original version of Belle and Sebastian's debut album Tigermilk and has also released music by the likes of Biffy Clyro, Snow Patrol and Wake The President among others.
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Friday 17 July 2009

It's A Living Thing [Themes 2]

Second part in the 'Themes' series and this time it's 'animal' songs. Again there's a few tracks I'm familiar with but there's a bit more music that is new to me. Once again I've not played the selection yet so could be good, could be bad.


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01 Andrew Thomas - A Dream of a Spider


02 Antony & The Johnsons - One Dove


03 Dirty Projectors - Two Doves


04 Jason Lytle - Ghost Of My Old Dog


05 The Doors - Peace Frog


06 Gene Vincent - Cat Man


07 Broken Records - Wolves


08 Four Tet & Burial - Moth


09 Department Of Eagles - The Curious Butterfly Realizes He Is Beautiful


10 Shellac - Squirrel song


11 Cheveu - Like a Deer in the Headlights


12 The Wind Whistles - Bats In Flight


13 The Wave Pictures - Bumble Bee


14 James Yorkston - Tortoise Regrets Hare


15 Autopilot is for Lovers - Whale Belly


16 Black Golden Bull - Buffalo Waltz


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http://www.megaupload.com/?d=PTGXGN72



Local Natives

Local Natives are a 5 piece band from Silverlake, USA who have just been announced on the bill of the NME Radar Tour. The 4 band showcase which also features Marina & The Diamonds, Yes Giantess and headliners Golden Silvers will be visiting Glasgow's Oran Mor on the 1st of October.
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Local Natives are already gathering much praise in the media with the Guardian newspaper comparing their different elements favourably with Fleet Foxes (harmonies), Vampire Weekend (rhythm) and Arcade Fire (drama). The band who are Matt Frazier (drums), Ryan Hahn (guitars, vocals), Taylor Rice (vocals, guitar), Kelcey Ayer (vocals, keyboards) and Andy Hamm (bass) have so far only released one limited edition 7" single, slow Hands/Cards & Quarters which came out this week on Chess Club records. The band's debut album 'Gorilla Manor' will be released soon.
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Check out the band's homemade video for their version of Simon and Garfunkel's, 'Cecilia'.




Listen:

Airplanes

Stranger_Things

Cards_and_Quarters_[live]

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The NME Radar Tour which kicks off on 26th of September visits Oxford, Sheffield, Manchester, York, Glasgow, Newcastle, Stoke, Liverpool, Portsmouth, Bristol, Coventry, Wolverhampton, Norwich, London and Brighton.

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Check out NME for tour dates and ticket details.

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Thursday 16 July 2009

The Parsonage Choir

The biggest surprise of this year's 'T in the Park' for me was the Parsonage Choir who opened the Main Stage on Sunday morning. I didn't even know they were performing at the main festival at all and it was more out of curiosity than anything else that I found myself in front of a rather wet and audience free stage. However after a couple of songs more and more like minded souls appeared beside me and the sun even made a brief appearance. For anyone who has never heard of The Parsonage (Choir) they are a 40 strong choir from Glasgow who perform clasic songs either accompanied only by an accoustic guitar or totally unaccompanied at all. It may not sound appealing and ok, it's not exactly rock n roll but I would recommend anyone to see them if you can. Starting off with Johnny Cash the choir then proceeded to entertain us with their versions of Elvis, Cash again, Neil Young and Joy Division songs (among others) before ending with 'White Rabbit' by Jefferson Airplane. So, not your standard choir then and they were the perfect early afternoon act for the festival. Go see them if you get the opportunity, you'll love them.
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Check out their version of 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' here
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Read choir member Paul English's funny review of 'T' here
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Wednesday 15 July 2009

T in the Park 2009

In no particular order, here's my top 5 bands from 'T in the Park 2009'.

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THE TWILIGHT SAD

BBC INTRODUCING ... STAGE [Sunday]
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I've loved just about everything I've heard from this Glasgow band but seeing them live is a different thing altogether. Only played for around half an hour but the band put more into that short set than most bands put into their full career. Absolutely awesome!!!

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See some of their 'T' set here


More Twilight Sad here


Official Website


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BROKEN RECORDS

BBC INTRODUCING ... STAGE [Saturday]
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Described by some as the UK's answer to Arcade Fire the Edinburgh band were another who didn't disappoint despite also being restricted to a short set. As with The Twilight Sad, I would recommend seeing Broken Records live to fully appreciate their amazing music.

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See some of their 'T' set here


More 'Broken Records' here


Official Website


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THE PHANTOM BAND

T BREAK STAGE [Friday]

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If the Yeah Yeah Yeahs hadn't been so bad on the NME stage I probably wouldn't even have went to see The Phantom Band but they were and I did and it was one of the highlights of my weekend. I hadn't heard much off them before catching their set and what I had heard didn't prepare me for this in any way. At times they seemed to be on the verge of falling apart but that just added to the experience. Described in the 'T' programme as like 'The Beta Band meeting Hot Chip at a party in Nick Cave's house'. Good attempt at describing the indescribable but still falling well short. Just get to one of their gigs and see for yourself.


More 'Phantom Band' here

Peenko

Official Website

http://www.phantomband.co.uk/

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CAMERA OBSCURA

RED BULL BEDROOM JAM FUTURES STAGE [Friday]

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Four albums down the line and the Glasgow band still never disappoint. This half hour set left everyone in the crowd desperate for more. Luckily the band will be playing at the Kilmarnock_Edition_Festival in August.

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More 'Camera Obscura' here

Peenko

Official Website

http://www.camera-obscura.net/

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MOGWAI

KING TUT'S WAH WAH TENT [Sunday]

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What better way to round off a great weekend than to be blown away by Scotland's finest? There shouldn't be anything to tell you about Mogwai that you don't already know but if you haven't seen them live before make sure you do. You will seriously be blown away, especially if like me you stand too close to the speakers.

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See some of their 'T' set here

http://www.bbc.co.uk/tinthepark/2009/artist/mogwai/

and

http://www.bbc.co.uk/tinthepark/2009/artist/mogwai/

More 'Mogwai' here

Peenko

Official Website

http://www.mogwai.co.uk/






Thursday 9 July 2009

We Are Family [Themes 1]



Something a wee bit different now. Trawling through the net today I downloaded a set of songs on a particular theme. Some are songs I already own, others I've never heard in my life before. It started off as 10 songs on each theme but soon expanded as I found more and more songs (and more themes). I haven't heard the outcome yet, I'm going to post it on here before I even listen to it myself. It could turn out amazing or it could be a disaster, probably the latter. Theme 1 is 'family'. Most of the songs on this one are well known to me (some other ones which I'll post later are a bit more obscure). So here we go 14 tracks to enjoy, or maybe not.

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01 Brian Eno - Third Uncle

02 Camper Van Beethoven - We Saw Jerry's Daughter

03 Pavement - Father to a Sister of Thought

04 White Rabbits - Navy Wives

05 Rilo Kiley - A Better Son-Daughter

06 The Smiths - Shakespeare's Sister

07 Black Grape - In the Name of the Father

08 James - Gold Mother

09 The Icicle Works - All The Daughters

10 Glasvegas - Daddy's Gone

11 Embrace - One Big Family

12 This Mortal Coil - You and Your Sister

14 Giant Drag - Oh Father (Madonna cover)

15 Half Man Half Biscuit - Look Dad No Tunes

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Tuesday 7 July 2009

Various : Killed By Crackle

Another purchase from my trip to Oxfam yesterday. This time it's a sampler from UK punk label Crackle! Records. Released in 2000, the compilation features bands from England, Scotland, USA, Australia and Japan amongst it's 29 tracks.

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Click on image below for tracklisting.


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DOWNLOAD

Crackle!_Records




Gifthorse : Childhood Gang Reunion EP



This EP comes courtesy of my local Oxfam shop. I had to go into town today to stock up on a few items for 'T in The Park' next weekend and while I was there I had a bit of time to take care of my new found charity shop obsession. First stop was Oxfam on the main street. Normally this would be my last port of call as it sits right at the bus stop for my homeward journey. I've spent many a time standing waiting for a bus and having a peek in the window, wondering what, if any treasures this small shop holds. A few weeks ago I had just missed a bus and decided to have a look inside. Ten minutes later I exited said shop with 6 albums in my bag and a wee voice in my head telling me I would be returning soon. In the shop today I found an even better selection of cds to choose from. Again there was nothing rare or anything that I've been desperately trying to track down but there was enough for me to approch the counter with 12 cds in my hand. Some were albums I had years ago but have since lost or sold down the record stall in the old market when money was a bit tight but I got a few others that I had never heard or even heard of before. The man behind the counter even came up to me at one stage and told me how their storage system worked. All the cds on the top shelf have been there for a while, whereas the bottom shelf is where they re-fill from. 'Just to save you from looking through them all every time you come in' he said. Well meaning advice which won't stop me from browsing through the top shelf everytime I enter the shop just in case I missed something the first time or even the first dozen times. I think the shop guy was a bit surprised when I handed over the dozen cds as after he had counted them he said '12 cds ... just call it a tenner'. Seeing as it was a charity shop I offered to pay the full price but he wasn't having it and even brought a small pile of cds from under the counter for me to look at. 'We've got these as well but they aren't by anyone really well known' he offered, which was music (no pun intended) to my ears. Sadly though there was nothing to get too excited about although I did add a 'We've Got A Fuzzbox And We're Gonna Use It' cd to my pile. And still the price stayed at £10. So needless to say, I'll be back for more very soon. As for the Gifthorse EP. Well I've never heard of the band in my life until now and there's not much info on the internet either. I did find out that there is/was a band on either side of the Atlantic with the same name. The one responsible for the 'Childhood Gang Reunion' are from this side of the ocean and basically that's it. I can't even find an image to use in this post but I will scan the cover as soon as. So basically that's it except have a listen and see what you think. Oh, and if anyone knows anything else about the band please let me know.
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CHILDHOOD GANG REUNION EP
01 A Night In The Arms Of A Stranger
02 Happy Daggers
03 Childhood Gang Reunion
04 London's Shelves
05 Death By Misadventure
06 Fear Of The Library
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DOWNLOAD
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My_Space
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'Take a pinch of Morrissey, a dash of Suede place in a bowl and mix with a teaspoon of Gene and you have Gifthorse. Happy Daggers and Childhood Gang Re-union (even the titles sound like Morrissey cast offs) are worth the entry fee alone.'
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read
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T in The Park 2009 [2]

In all my years of attending 'T in The Park' it's usually a band/bands on the smaller stages that make the most impression on me. Sometimes it's bands I know of but on many occasions it's been a band who prior to seeing at the festival have been totally unknown to me. Because of this a trip to Fopp on the Monday morning before boarding the train for the final part of my homeward journey has become a major part of the 'T' experience for me. No doubt this year will be no different as I arrive home with a bag full of cds by bands who ipressed me over the weekend. At least, I hope so. Below are 3 Scottish bands from further down the bill that I will be going all out to see.
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BROKEN RECORDS

Broken Records EP here
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CAMERA OBSCURA

French Navy EP here


WE WERE PROMISED JETPACKS

These Four Walls here
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Stop That Train [Podcast]

One of the best places on the web, sorry make that the best place on the web to find excellent dub mixes is http://stopthattrain.blogspot.com. Crammed full of mixes which put commercially released similar stuff in the shade Stop That Train is my first stop anytime I'm looking for a dub heavy mix. Once you have listened to one of their mixes you will crave them all. It's impossible to choose the best of the lot but here's a little taster for you. You will never need to buy another reggae/dub mix ever again.
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STOP THAT TRAIN 16
1. Version Big-Fi Meets Gregory Isaacs in Mr. Dub It All
2. Me Zion Dread - Messian Dread - Maranatha (Dub)
3. Pete Fountain - St. James Infirmary (Chris Coco Remix)
4. Dragnet - Theme
5. Granville Williams Orchestra - The Third Man Theme
6. The Who Boys - Dub Auctioneer
7. Bob Marley - Exodus (Tone396 Remix)
8. The Ruts - Love in Vain
9. Dead 60S - Flight Mission Dub
10. Version Big-Fi - Tannoy Dub
11. Skream - Blue Eyez
12. Wax Poetic - Angels (feat. Norah Jones)
13. Hard-Fi - Cash Dub (Edit)
14. Roots Radics Meets King Tubbys - More Dub
15. Ranking Joe - Shepherds Bush
16. Charlie Chaplin - Ram Up Dance Hall
17. G3RST - No Squirrel No Cry
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Click here for direct link!
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Monday 6 July 2009

T in The Park 2009


So it's nearly that time again for my annual trip to 'T in the Park.' Taking advantage of the early bird prices I paid for the tickets 2 days after last year's festival ended. Big Mistake. The problem with this is that you dont know the line up in advance. In the past that hasn't been too big a deal as there's usually plenty going on to make it a great weekend. It's not as if the headliners are the problem. Ok, I've no intention of watching Kings Of Leon again and I've definitely no interest in seeing Snow Patrol but 'T in the Park' has NEVER been about the headliners for me. There has always been better bands further down the bill or headlining the smaller stages. This year just doesn't look a strong enough line-up. Don't get me wrong I'll probably come home on Monday raving about how good this year's festival turned out but it will be in spite of the line-up rather than because of it. One good thing to come out of it all is my girlfriend will be happy as she'll get the pleasure of my company for the likes of Lady Ga Ga, Lily Allen and Katy Perry. So when I leave the house on Friday morning it will be with an open mind that I set off for 'T' hoping that the following bands will live up to expectation and that a few other bands will win me over.

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One of my favourite bands from my younger years. I never got to see them live first time around so hopefully they'll help me make up for that, even if Jerry Dammers is missing :(

Hear their set from Glastonbury 2009 here.

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I have to admit that it's very rarely I listen to Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds but when I do I fall in love with them all over again. Really looking forward to this. Hear a set they done live in Melbourne earlier this year here.





This should round the weekend off with a bang. I haven't seen Mogwai live before for some reason so I'm hoping to be blown away. Here's a set they played in New York earlier this year.


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Clint Eastwood



Taking my 6 year old along to the beach last week I noticed a church sitting on a corner near Saltcoats Railway Station. I've probably passed this church dozens of times and haven't paid it a second look. It isn't one of these massive, imposing buildings that stands over every other building in the area. It certainly is old but no different to many other churches you will pass every day. What grabbed my attention though wasn't the actual building itself but a banner hanging on the outside wall. Alongside a picture of Clint Eastwood as Blondie aka The Man With No Name are the words 'We Welcome The Good, The Bad And The Ugly'. This brought a smile to my face, something that a church or probably anything to do with religion has never managed before. I am not a religious person although I would never mock any person who is. If religious belief helps a person get through life then who am I to say it's wrong. Some people need alcohol to get through the day, others turn to drugs, some people even attend therapy on a regular basis just to get them through and I see religion as just another way for some people to have a reason to live. Obviously there are people in this world who take their religion to the extreme but these people are as far removed from the old couple next door who put on their Sunday best to join the congregation at their local church once a week. Anyway before I get even further away from the original topic, I have seen this sign outside the church twice now and can't help but think that if it's got me talking about the church it must be doing something right. I have never once given a second thought to any sign outside a church until I saw this so congratulations to the person who thought it up.

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Here's some music:

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First up the brilliant main theme from the film:


Ennio Morricone - The Good, The Bad And The Ugly here

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Next Damon Albarn and his cartoon friends namecheck Mr Eastwood


Gorillaz - Clint Eastwood here

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As does Lee 'Scratch' Perry and friends.


The Upsetters - Clint Eastwood here

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More classic reggae.


Clint Eastwood & General Saint - Stop That Train here

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And finally Mr Eastwood himself


Clint Eastwood - I Talk To The Trees here

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Friday 3 July 2009

Various : The Roots Of Hip Hop [Mojo Music Guide Vol.2]

The 2nd of Mojo's Music Guide series was the 18 track 'Roots Of Hip Hop' series which came with the September 2003 issue of the magazine.
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Tracks


01 Grandmaster Flash - Adventures Of Flash On The Wheels Of Steel

02 Lee Dorsey - Get Out Of My Life Woman

03 Lowell Fulson - Tramp

04 Rufus Thomas - Itch And Scratch (Part 1)

05 The Bar Kays - In The Whole


06 The Mad Lads - No Strings Attached

07 James Brown - Give It Up Or Turn It A Loose




08 Blood Sweat And Tears - Lucretia Was Evil

09 The JB's - The Grunt (Parts 1 & 2)

10 The Dramatics - Get Up And Get Down

11 Al Green - Here I Am (Come And Take Me)


12 Flaming Ember - Gotta Get Away

13 The Jimmy Castor Bunch - It's Just Begun

14 Kool & The Gang - NT


15 Cymande - Bra

16 Parliament - Flash Light


17 The Fatback Band - King Tim III

18 Funky 4+1 - That's The Joint
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The Four Brothers : Makorokoto




Something a bit different now thanks to Walker at Burning_Aquarium. For anyone who likes Vampire Weekend or further back, Paul Simon's Graceland album, this is the real deal.

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01. Makorokoto
02. Rugare
03. Wapenga Nayo Bonus
04. Ndakatadzeiko
05. Sara Tasangana
06. Pamusoroi
07. Nhaka Yemusiiranwa
08. Uchandifunga
09. Guhwa Uri Mwana Waani
10. Ndakatambura

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The above tracks were also used on a Best Of album of the same name which was released on Cooking_Vinyl in 1988. The vinyl release contained the 10 tracks above while the cd version included the extra 6 tracks below.

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01 Vimbayi
02 Rumbidzai
03 Rudo Imoto
04 Pasi Pano Pane Zviedzo
05 Maishoko Ababa Namai
06 Siya Zviriko

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Various : Instant Garage [Mojo Music Guide Vol.1]

Part One of Mojo magazine's 'Music Guide' was this brilliant compilation which contained 28 classic garage tracks, the majority of which were released between the mid 60's to the mid 70's. This album makes a brilliant addition to any music collection. The fact that it came free with a magazine (june 2003) makes it even more remarkable.
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Tracks

01 MC5 - Kick Out The Jams

02 The Electric Prunes - I Had Too Much To Dream (Last Night)
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03 The Sonics - Psycho


04 New York Dolls - Personality Crisis

05 The Ready Men - Shortnin' Bread

06 The Bush - To Die Alone

07 Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers - She Cracked

08 The Express - Wastin' My Time

09 Gil Bateman - My Daddy Walked In Darkness

10 Love - Seven And Seven Is

11 Rocky & The Riddlers - Flash And Crash

12 SHE - Outta Reach

13 The Ramones - I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend [Demo]

14 The Kinks - Milk Cow Blues

15 Little John & The Monks - Black Winds

16 The Alarm Clocks - No Reason To Complain

17 The Count Five - Psychotic Reaction
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18 Artesians - Trick Bag

19 Dean Carter - Jailhouse Rock

20 The Iguanas - Again & Again

21 The Nazz - Open My Eyes



22 The Wailers - Dirty Robber

23 Paul Revere & The Raiders - Just Like Me

24 Bunker Hill - The Girl Can't Dance

25 Brave New World - Train Kept A Rollin'

26 The Amboy Dukes - Baby Please Don't Go

27 The Rats - Rat's Revenge Part 2

28 Mouse & The Traps - Sometimes You Just Can't Win


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Mungo's Hi Fi : Sound System Champions

Mungos Hi Fi, Scotland's number one Reggae dancehall sound-system, have been releasing hits since 2001 when their killer track Wickedness featuring Brother Culture, released on the dubhead label, first took the world by storm getting heavy plays by Jah Shaka and Iration Steppas.
Their next single, Ing soared to even greater heights and is now in its second repress on Ninja Tune, having been a favorite of Mr Scruff. Their premier release on their Scotch Bonnet label, Belly Ska/Rasta Meditation, featuring MC Ishu and the legendary Kenny Knots has been phenomenally successful selling rapidly and kicking up a rumpus from the dances to radio.
The next set of singles, the Songs of Zion Riddim were a dancehall roots anthem in 2006. Big tings are expected for the new cuts on the belly ska riddim and with a mountain of unreleased material sweeping from ska through to dancehall and dubstep big things are expected from the crew.
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1. Divorce A L’Italiane – Marina P

2. Don’t Let Them Break Your Heart – Kenny Knots

3. Herbalist – Top Cat

4. How You Bad So? – Ranking Joe

5. Under Arrest – MC Ishu

6. Old Time Dance – Mikey Murka

7. Ruff Mi Tuff – Tippa Irie

8. Rasta Meditation – Kenny Knots

9. Rooster – Aya Faith

10. Songs Of Zion – Ras Charmer

11. Around The World – Suncycle

12. Did You Really Know – Soom T

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