ShadowPlay

Busking brilliance on Columbia Road

2012-01-16T19:25:00.001Z

Perhaps the best thing about the perfectly imperfect artform we call music is it's ability to occasionally catch you in exactly the right mood at the right time and place. Like a rogue dolphin chomping on a beach ball in front of a Butlins audience, an improbable surprise is more pleasing than the best laid plans.

As such the incidental set of The Good Time Family offered up some tasty blues on a crisp, sunny afternoon on Columbia Road flower market. For anyone who hasn't been, it's one of those places that justifies the gigantic rent and crushed commute of living in our capital.

The market is full of great indie shops and classic flower traders (quote: "these daffodils [yet to bloom] are as tight as a nun") creating a great atmosphere. The band themselves, busking by the churos stand, play a classic strand of blues standards - earnest yet lively, skillful yet slightly off kilter.

There's banjos, slide guitar, spoons and even a strange incident I've never seen outside films about the deep south, essentially a tin bath upended with a thick string providing the bass.

Set against the low sun and freezing temperatures, the music is warming and cheerful, like your nan entering the room with the secret Jammu Dodgers. I often sniff at the irritating, Beatles-playing buskers near the central line platform at Oxford Circus but sometimes it's just nice to act like a tourist and spare some change.

The Clean Art of Reverse Graffiti

2012-01-01T21:51:00.000Z

Always ones to accidentally end up looking backwards at the start of a new year, ShadowPlay stumbled across this excellent lecture from Paul 'Moose' Curtis addressing the agIdeas Conference in Melbourne.
Curtis' skill is in, effectively, cleaning. Instead of using paint to mark walls and signs, he uses cleaning products to remove the dirt and grime and create images.
He describes his work as 're-facing' not 'defacing' in an attempt to highlight how polluted the world really is. Amusingly Curtis has worked both and with firstly the police and secondly commercial client. That the latter have cottoned on to his talent is no surprise - guerilla marketing and graffiti have become big business since Banksy hit the mainstream - but the fact the police have harnessed the idea shows a level of intuition and invention for which they are rarely credited. Of course, the police are often confused and down right idiotic in their approach to graffiti art and how serious a crime it really is but in this instance it's pleasing to see some creative thinking.
Curtis' idea is not new naturally, there have been white vans with 'clean me' written on the back since Ronnie Corbett was in (even shorter) trouser. But it's interesting to see the credit given to it and his eloquence on the subject. Can you think of a cheaper, more amusing way to leave your mark on a town? Watch out, Mr Muscle might just be the new spray paint.

A Very Merry Christmas Zine

2011-12-24T09:34:00.000Z

My new Christmas jumper worn in rather camp fashion

So it’s the time of year where people actually have ten minutes to take a breather and start reading zines, blogs, magazines and even the Radio Times.

It’s been a great year here at ShadowPlay Towers, there’s been plenty of great music and festivals (see Field View Festival and our stint hosting craft sessions at Greenman) and even an issue of ShadowPlay itself. Having a think about my New Year’s Resolutions last night I decided not to put in my annual stipulation about a certain amount of hours spent working on ShadowPlay or issues per year, instead opting to say – look, let’s see how it goes and enjoy writing ditties about music, art, films and getting drunk and doing silly things if and when I fancy it.

There’s always a noticeable guilt around many an editor’s intro to a fanzine I find, as if every month that real life gets in the way of cutting and sticking is an insult to the reader. Really a zine should be a special treat to a writer and a reader and fingers crossed that’s what we can be in 2012. Hope you all have a very merry Christmas and a rather fantabulous New Year. I’ll be heading to Nottingham to scoff chocs, binge on new music and maybe even do a little writing. I’ll leave you with a rather daft photo of me in my first Christmas jumper – have a good un! Alex

The Lovely Eggs: Foul-mouthed fun

2011-12-08T21:38:00.000Z

Got to love a good merch stand

Great to see a packed gig on a Monday night for the sweary indie pop magic of The Lovely Eggs. The northern pair were hosting "a right party" to celebrate the release of their new single Allergies and a free gig at the redone hipster hangout that is The Old Blue Last was very welcome. 
The band constantly play on their Lancastrian routes and, given I've only seen then play in London, it's probably possibly unfair to say they overdo it.

What has seemed footing is the initially sterile London crowds melt in the face of their truncated, sweary punk pop everytime.

The duo are tighter than Jesus' carpenters vice and their "what you would call two songs stuck together and what we would call a medley" about bowling alleys and reporting for The Lancaster Guardian is charming.

A buzzing, lively gig and just what the folded arms of London town this Monday needed to loosen up.

As a treat, here's The Lovely Eggs' most perfect piece of pop...

Tru Thoughts hits Camden

2011-11-23T19:19:00.001Z

Quantic stole the show at the mega Tru Thoughts night detailed last week. Playing his own mellow madness in addition to version of his remixes – You Don't Love Me (No No No) proved a high watermark – in an excellent, incisive set. Elsewhere, Hidden Orchestra provided a hypnotic centrepoint to the early part of the night, Belleruche were on a bit early in reality and Rodney P provided some rough tongued entertainment for the Camden crowd.

A great evening, a some generous compilation CD giving were all in keeping with the ever-consistent label.

Bookbinding at The Make Lounge

2011-11-22T22:30:00.000Z

Tucked away in two well kitted out studios in Islington, The Make Lounge knows how to get the creative juices flowing in a way only a certain Come Get Felt Up can rival. The crafty sessions hosted in the evenings and Saturday mornings include quilting, cake decorating and screen printing. Assuring myself that book binding is at the more manly end of delicate crafts in a ladylike environ (they host hen dos too), I set about creating a book. The process is relatively simple – take two bits of vinyl, glue them together, fold lots of sheets and stitch the two together – and to make a simple book is possible at home with the right tools. Engaging teacher Suzanne Cowan from Vancouver led the class of eight well and the materials (and booze) provided were very good.

Anna's (left) outclassed mine

Yours truly managed to make sure the class wasn’t over too quickly with some, erm, slight stitching issues. But the process was nice and straightforward (Anna and the rest of the class sailed through) and adding in the fastenings proved perhaps the most satisfying click I’ve heard since learning to snap my fingers. I would thoroughly recommend the workshop as a treat (it’s a bit on the pricey side) and warn that concentration levels mean it’s not as sociable as it could be. An excellent skill then, one to look out for.

Top tip:

Open the windows – the industrial glue has quite a whiff!

Pick your vinyl and thread carefully to complement each other

Use an extra length of thread to ensure there’s plenty left

Koko hosts monumental Tru Thoughts night

2011-11-14T22:02:00.001Z

ShadowPlay’s own debauched and dastardly backyard, Koko in Camden is to host a funk and hip-hop night of monster proportions this weekend.

The glorious Brighton imprint Tru Thoughts Records has provided a huge cast list for the Soundcrash event which will leave musicheads drooling.

Tru Thoughts A&R man and all round good egg Rob Luis will host the night which will see the label give away a mix CD to all attendees.

Quantic, the backbone of the label for many years is coming across from Colombia, Nostalgia 77 is bringing his full live band to the UK, Belleruche will be performing tunes from their hugely successful three albums for the label and one of the UK’s unsung producers in Hint is on the decks. All the way from Melbourne, Australia Lance Ferguson (The Bamboos’ main man/Lanu) is a very special guest travelling especially for this night.

Add to this the new signings and it gets even better. London Posse legend and host for the evening Rodney P is joined by UK soul Godfather Omar and new Japanese signing and live genius Anchorsong in the crazily good line up.

More info on the night here.

Style and Substance: The Hepworth Wakefield

2011-10-23T19:57:00.001+01:00

If there is one thing that is truly tragic about Barbara Hepworth’s death in a house fire in 1975 it’s that she didn’t live to see this gallery. I jumped at the chance to visit the relatively new Hepworth Wakefield gallery given the opportunity at the weekend and was not disappointed by the site which has already garnered more than 100,000 visitors since opening in May. A better conceived, designed and constructed gallery does not exist in England (even including my favourite, The Hayward). Full of the perfect light, the right stone and generous space, there’s little doubt that the attraction’s namesake would’ve given it an approving nod.

Hepworth (below, right), who was a DBE and mother to triplets, stands alongside Henry Moore at the very forefront of British sculpture and is more than worthy of such a grandiose space. Her works – many on loan from the Tate, others donated by her daughters – dominate much of the 11 rooms. Her smooth, unpretentious sculptures remind you how easy it is to engage with a simple object and admire good craftsmanship as well as shape.

What elevates this site perhaps even above the idyllic Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden at her house – in which she died – in St Ives, Cornwall, is the level of practical detail and explanation about her working methods. Enough to satisfy curiosity, not too much as to cloud the facts and kill the interest. Elsewhere, Hepworth’s work is put into context with pieces from Moore himself, fellow St Ives artist Peter Lanyon who also died tragically – in a hang glider accident getting inspiration above the southern town – and even David Hockney. The other major exhibition is from Clare Woods whose giant aluminium paintings (below, left) of rocks and landscapes in acrylic are astonishing. Their size is complemented by the curious shape of the concrete gallery and good lighting to enjoy the detail.

The one downside, and there has to be one, is that the gallery’s location, in Hepworth’s hometown of Wakefield in which she lived until moving to Hampstead, London with her first husband in the late 1920s is it’s, well in Wakefield. On a noisy roundabout opposite a tiling centre and near a Chunky Diner, the town offers little in the way of a day out but this still remains a must-see destination. The gallery’s foundations lie in a weir by a boatyard so the space has an excellent floating feel, far from the only strangely pleasant sensation a visit should evoke.

Drink, Shop and Fold

2011-10-13T14:10:00.001+01:00

Fanzine Fun – Wednesday, 30th November

ShadowPlay is going to be hosting a fanzine evening at Drink, Shop & Do in Kings Cross, London. The café/bar is more kitsch than a vintage tablecloth and their Madonna clay modeling and origami nights have made it a staple in the diary.

This is evening is your chance to create a new SUPERFANTABULOUS COMPILATION ZINE which will take the global zine scene by storm.

Come and discover the world of underground self-publishing by writing and drawing your own and reading the best zines we've collected from Grimsby to Gran Canaria. Glue, scissors, inspiration and typewriters will be provided and your efforts will be combined to create a brand new zine. 7-10pm, Free

Drink, Shop & Do is only a 2 minute walk from Kings Cross Station at 9 Caledonian Road, London, N1 9DX.
http://www.drinkshopdo.com

Boom Bip - Zig Zaj

2011-10-10T22:57:00.000+01:00

Great to see Cincinatti beat mangler Boom Bip return with a new release on the magnificent Lex Records. Following on from his Mercury Music Prize-nominated Neon Neon project with Gruff Rhys, this album also features a variety of vocal tracks.
But Zig Zaj is still very much a Boom Bip solo album; maintaining the lush and powerful instrumental melodic elements of his previous work. He's got quite the celeb cohort on board for this latest output with Luke Steele (Empire Of The Sun), Alex Kapranos (Franz Ferdinand), Josh Klinghoffer (Chilli Peppers), Money Mark, Cate Le Bon (Neon Neon) and members of Warpaint and Bon Iver all appearing. At times it sounds just like that, going in many directions but there's a mark of quality synonymous with Lex that is never lost. Ten years as one of the pre-eminent hip-hop labels and still right up there.

Read full review of Zig Zaj - BOOM BIP on Boomkat.com ©

La Volume Courbe - Theodaurus Rex

2011-09-25T22:01:00.000+01:00

Photo courtesy of Andrew Kendall

It’s excellent to see La Volume Courbe’s Charlotte Marionneau back releasing music after almost four years absence and there’s no doubt this EP provides an interesting development in a promising career. The ever-modest Frenchwoman has set up a new label, Pickpocket Records, with none other than My Bloody Valentine’s Kevin Shields to distribute the new material. In an interview with Marionneau in 2007 while promoting her last release, Freight Train, she told me working Shields and Hope Sandoval – a connection brokered by former Creation and Poptones boss Alan McGee – rovided a wealth of ideas to work on. Here, Marionneau appears more melancholic than her previous work – released on Honest Jons and Trouble Records – with a dreamy, fragile touch to each of the four tracks. Her broken English proves endearing while there’s a vulnerability (“thank you for everything that you do” on I Love the Living You) that underlines each track.

The pick of the bunch is Lazy which has a catchy “you’re crazy and lazy, you know how much I love you” refrain and is punctured intermittently with short busts of heavy riffing, strangely thrilling in their bizarre juxtaposition. Elsewhere there’s beautiful violin, a track that featured as the closing track in Nick Moran’s film The Kid last year and artwork which features Belgian surrealist Paul Nouge’s La Bras Revelateur. Plenty to enjoy here.

Interview: Kelpe and electronica Christmas carols

2011-09-08T14:58:00.001+01:00

ShadowPlay caught up with Kelpe main man Kel McKeown to discuss DC Recordings, gigging in communist outposts and electronica reworkings of Christmas carols

As we wait anxiously by the letterbox each day to hear whether ShadowPlay’s Dutch choral beatboxing demo has been picked up by Warp Records, we can empathise with the feeling Kelpe’s Kel McKeown must’ve felt when his bedroom audio daubings were picked up by DC Recordings. “I was into the label when I was younger and DJing, really into Depth Charge and that stuff. Then quite a few years later a friend told me they were still releasing a lot of good records and recommended I send a demo in to them, they were keen and phoned me up straight away and we worked out an EP of material,” he says. DC has provided a swish, cool home to the likes of Padded Cell, The Emperor Machine and White Light Circus and gained a kudos in clubs rarely afforded for long. “They were always into releasing stuff that was different from the norm, some quite gritty, hard-edged stuff but also a lot of funky, sleazy stuff and a lot of hip-hop-inspired music and disco. Then later they got more into live bands with a krautrock feel,” he adds.

Usually home to Sensible World of Soccer fanatics, the Amiga computer kick-started Kel’s fervour for computer aided sounds which he has honed since. Combining the less than trendy machine with a sampler and cassette deck aged 14, he moved on to a four track and then PC as he formed Kelpe in 2002 and released his first material a year later. Rich in experimental, gravel-y sounds, Kelpe has always mastered the art of sounding like a man in a field rattling a handful of curtain hooks with a genuine ear for a tune which has left him DJing across London, playing live with drummer Chris Walmsley since 2008, curating countless mixes and most importantly, creating the most incredible electronica-prog theremin heavy version of Silent Night you’re ever going to hear. Fact.

When ShadowPlay caught up with Kel, he’s just returned from SATTA festival in Lithuania, playing live in a run down outdoor communist lecture theatre packed from lecturn to top step with 2,500 people under a full moon. “[I was there with] with Paul White, Machinedrum, Gaslamp Killer, 100names. Debruit, Loops Haunt, and a load more top names in that type of music,” he explains. “It was generally a raucous time partying with my friends and musical heroes, and the kind of weekend that makes you feel its all worth doing.”

So how have things progressed in the studio? “I recorded a lot of drums and synths last year and need to get the recordings into shape. I think as a lot of electronic musicians will tell you, I've got like 100 half finished tracks, and its about selecting the ones that are worth pursuing.” With the new record just weeks away from release, and several 12”s in the pipeline, expect Kelpe to return in fine style.

How to make a zine

2011-08-29T16:33:00.000+01:00

Nice little stop frame on how to make a zine here. Just shows how easy it is, you can make a decent zine in a couple of hours and a great one in just a day.

The Sheffield Publicity Department launches

2011-08-23T18:03:00.001+01:00

I received an interesting missive from Tom Common, formerly one half of the Toms who ran the excellent Go fanzine and tried valiantly to save Sheffield's greatest landmarks, the Cooling Towers, today about the launch of the Sheffield Publicity Department. An interesting new project I hope you'll agree.

"Dear ex-Go fans.
Hope you're all well, and enjoying Sheffield's many new piles of rubble. Isn't St Paul's tower looking iconic and well-built?
Introducing you to a new project that, like Go, aims to celebrate this silly old city of ours. Step forward, the Sheffield Publicity Department.
The Publicity Department is a dream tourist agency for the city. It's not your usual tourist agency: we don't know what's on at the Crucible, and we haven't got the phone number for that Travel Lodge near Argos.* Instead, we aim to show residents and visitors alike the things that make this city so special, and where to find them: maps to the best views, tours of the terraces, postcards of the sunsets. We want to help people see the Sheffield we know and love.
With this in mind, we're doing a new project: tree-rubbings posters, celebrating Sheffield's beautiful urban forest. We're putting together special tree-rubbings packs, containing everything you need to get up close and personal with our trees, and create your own unique, DIY publicity poster for the city.
Plus, we're running a workshop this Thursday, at the Site Gallery, to take you to some trees, and get you started. It's part of Site's DIY Summer, which has got all sorts of other creative things to make and do. Why not come?
There's more info on our blog, and on this facebook thing. And here's our twitter.
Here ends the plug. Thanks for reading.
Yours fondly,
Tom Common
Publicity Officer, SPD.
* We can recommend a restaurant though. Zeugmas. Thanks."

The Accidental Tourist: Inside the EU

2011-08-01T22:20:00.000+01:00

As you know, ShadowPlay is a staunch pillar of the fourth estate and believes our journalism can breach any boundary. To prove a point, our intrepid reporter Emily Macintosh donned some sensible shoes and went undercover in the European Union

We all know there is nothing worse than a traveller who insists they are not a tourist – and in the same vein, although I work in Brussels, I assure you I am not a Eurocrat, honestly.

To understand the ‘Brussels bubble’, first you need to learn the lingo. To the uninitiated, turns of phrase like "Oh well it is a Strasbourg week" will seem bizarre. 'Strasbourg week' is when the whole European Parliament moves in vans and on trains once a month from Belgium to France. This writer has never been in a position that merits her a trip to this mysterious junket, but reliable sources relay tales of long-suffering Strasbourg residents boarding up their windows as they hear the MEPs descend.
Back in Brussels, the after-work beers are to be found in Place Luxembourg, or ‘Plux’ as some like to call it. It is a square of bars outside the European Parliament attracting a mixed crowd of tourists, young workers from the EU institutions and NGOs. They are joined by the many Brussels based law and consultancy firms, excited underpaid stagiaires (French for interns), and minor political celebrities like UKIP Nigel Farage MEP who for someone so intent on hating the EU and Belgium as a full time job seems not to mind a few lunchtime pints of Guinness while on the continent.
Those unfamiliar with Farage’s work might remember him from his headline grabbing plane crash, where the light aircraft he was travelling in was brought down after his election banner got caught in the propellers. Before this adventure in the skies he tried to play the naughty schoolboy by calling well-respected Belgian politician and president of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy a “damp rag” with “the charisma of a bank clerk” in a blatant attempt to shake up a few news agendas in the run up to the UK general election. He refused to apologise for his childish remarks, conceding only to state that he hadn’t meant to offend any bank clerks. No surprise really that people have a bad opinion of the British.
But aside from the MEPs jostling for headlines, behind the scenes there exists a whole network of European Commission civil servants who are either writing carefully choreographed speeches for commissioners or, in an institution where you need to fill out a request form to move a chair from one room to another, keeping the administrative wheels well oiled.
And if you don’t want people in the rest of Brussels to know you are part of this world, be sure not to head out of the European quarter brandishing the free canvas bag you just picked up at a policy launch or that handy umbrella with the EU flag on it – if not you only have yourself if you are dubbed a Eurocrat.

ShadowPlay's problem page: Part Two

2011-07-25T22:14:00.000+01:00

The second part of our Agony Aunt Piney Gir’s helping advice corner features horticultural quizzing and a person in a genital pickle…

Dear Piney Gir
Last night I googled "what is the origin of the phrase shaking like a leaf?" The first three returns didn't give me the answer. Can you find it for me?
Tom Whalley, Holloway
Dear Tom,
I think the answer is that a leaf shakes quite a lot as it's only lightly anchored to the tree by a little stem and when the wind blows the leaves really go for it like it's part-time. I hope that answers your question.

Piney x

Dear Piney,
I’ve been a post-op transsexual for several years now, but I’m a bit fed up and would like my manhood back. Is it easily reversible?
Adam, London
Dear Adam,
Suffering is a relative thing. Did you find the first time you had the sex-change procedure easy or difficult? You are likely to experience a similar level of pain the second time around. However, if being a man trapped in a post-op transsexual’s body is generating mental torture and anguish for you, then remember that physical pain is temporary, sexual transformation is forever (or in this case for as long as you want it to be). You might want to consult a nice therapist before you go for another great big change though. Try this place; they charge you according to your income so you can afford it! http://www.london-counselling-psychotherapy.co.uk/
Piney x
Dear Piney,
I’m addicted to wearing stripes but fear I may get piegonhold as a stripe-wearer – what do you advise?
Anonymous
Dear Anonymous,
I kind of think it’s not such a bad thing to be known for. If you are really concerned about being known as ‘Stripes’ or ‘Stripeytime Tennessee’ or ‘Stripe-o McGee’ then give all your striped items to the charity shop and start again sans stripes. OR you could draw contrasting stripes over the existing stripes on your clothes and you could be ‘Checkers Checkofferston’ for a while. If that doesn’t appeal, try taking up a new hobby where stripes are encouraged. Have you ever considered miming?
Piney x

ShadowPlay's problem page with Piney Gir

2011-07-13T22:44:00.000+01:00

Our resident Agony Aunt was so concerned about ShadowPlay’s confused, depraved and downright weird readership last time out she’s returned to answer your queries. Here, country pop starlet Piney Gir, whose new album Jesus Wept is out now on Damaged Goods Records, offers a helping hand in part one of our series

Dear Piney,
The high-volume of fish-related TV in the past week is making me want to stop eating fish. What do you think I should do?

Tom Bonnett

Dear Tom,

What you decide to eat and what you decide not to eat is entirely up to you and only you. Don’t let any posh-o celebrity chef push you around, and don’t let your concerned family and friends worry you about how much protein you are getting. If want to eat fish/ or not eat fish… that’s your choice. If you don’t want to eat fish but you want to trick the people around you into thinking you are eating fish, you could make fish shaped cookies and cakes and eat them in public places. Get a friend to photograph you eating the fish-shaped/fish-free items and tag you on facebook. Then your mom won’t bug you about where you get your protein from, and if a posh-o celebrity chef shouts at you say, “hey man they are just cookies shaped like fish, back off!” Piney x

Dear Piney,

For about two weeks now I have been unable to stop watching old episodes of the hit circa early 90s programme Blossom (you remember, the girl who wore the cool hats). Some kind soul has uploaded a plethora of these 20 minute gems onto youtube and watching one is never enough for me. It is starting to really affect my sleeping patterns, my relationships, my eyesight, my sanity, my humour and my fashion sense. Please help me resist!
Emily Macintosh

Dear Emily,
I feel your pain, I really do. It is tough to resist the nostalgic and wholesome appeal of Blossom! I would recommend you firstly tell the people closest to you about your issue with Blossom and explain to them how important it is that you wean yourself off of it. You will need a strong support network in the coming weeks. I would then instil what I call 'the treat' system. That is… when you finish your homework treat yourself to an episode (only one episode) of Blossom. When you helped the little old lady that lives on the fifth floor carry all her groceries you can treat yourself to an episode again. This should reinstall your Blossom vs life balance. Piney x

Dear Piney,

Do skittles count as one of your 5 A DAY? (or even five of your 5 A DAY what with there being 5 flavours?)
Bridget Tompkins

Dear Bridget,
I’m pretty sure that for each colour Skittles you eat, that counts as 1 of your 5 A DAY. As you very accurately pointed out, there are five flavours of Skittles so if you eat one bag of Skittles then you are defo getting all kinds of vitamins and nutrients. Keep up the good work! Piney x

New Facebook page for The Anoraks

2011-06-20T20:10:00.000+01:00

So we decided that life is really too hard. It's too stressful to tie your shoelaces, too busy to put your hand out for a bus so we've decided to make it really, really easy. Stand by for life changing news. Yes, The Anoraks have hit Facebook. The fortnightly show Alex Lawson, Alex Burnard and Tom Bonnett present for Shoreditch has hit your favourite social media site and is getting settled in with a cup of tea and a comfy Karrimor here. Hope you enjoy, if you want to make sure you never miss a show then subscribe to our Mixcloud page here, just nip to the bottom of the page and enter your email. You can subscribe to iTunes here.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Anoraks/174534165938968?ref=ts

ShadowPlay Interview: Ólöf Arnalds

2011-06-13T20:19:00.000+01:00

Icelandic singer and multi-instrumentalist Ólöf Arnalds has collaborated with the likes of Múm and Björk while carefully carving out a fledgling solo career. ShadowPlay caught up with the diminutive arts graduate ahead of the release of her new single Surrender

“There seems to be some sort of idea about Icelandic music that it’s something that’s magical and mythical and so Icelandic musicians get a lots of questions about whether it’s the nature, or the water, that creates so much good music. These questions are asked over and over and I feel like cutting to the chase that the most important acts that have come from

Iceland

have been noticed for their individuality and their hard work.”

Refreshing words from a musician not afraid to burst the often sickening media bubble surrounding certain countries, ‘scenes’ or genres which take their fancy that month. What makes Ólöf Arnalds even more refreshing is her acknowledgement that without these musicians she would not be sat in the Vortex in Dalston preparing to play a second consecutive sold out night at the venue. While expressing a feeling of guilt that the playing field is not level, the 30-year-old readily accepts that her associations, firstly as a touring “hired gun” for electronic experimentalists Múm, and then in working with Björk on the ethereal new single, she has raised her profile.

In fact her debut solo album Við og Við, released in 2007 on 12 Tonar, was produced by Kjartan Sveinsson of Sigur Rós, a band whose success appears to be escalating faster than a rickshaw driven by Usain Bolt munching on a particularly large box of chicken nuggets.

What’s clear is that in any language Arnalds will command the stage – as she did at the Vortex – with a quiet, jovial authority, stopping to make jokes, steward the crowd and even lead some birthday celebrations. Her lilting tones are evocative of a harsher Cat Power or a toned down Kate Bush while her musical versatility across various instruments belies the fact she was classical trained and harbours busting pocketfuls of intuition. There’s little doubt it soon won’t matter what language you speak, you’ll have heard of Ólöf Arnalds.

Arnalds released her second album Innundir Skinni – Under the Skin – on One Little Indian last year and revealed she could take a radical step forward and sing in English in future. “When I made my first record I was going through grief after losing my father – it was a healing record. The birth of my son was a big inspiration on the second – only these little things like life and death hey. But I want to make a joyful, blissful record now. I’ve started writing a few songs in English for this new record so I can interact with the audience in a different way, I live increasingly in an English-speaking world and play one out of 50 concerts in Iceland but some people have said I may lose the mystique of the Icelandic language.”

Go Crease Lightning: An evening of intense folding

2011-06-10T13:53:00.001+01:00

It’s not often you’ll find me in a seminar room learning about maths. Yes, that is an understatement. But last night I went along to the London Knowledge Lab’s rather swish HQ off Lamb’s Conduit Street to hear the fantastic Mark Bolitho impart his knowledge on origami to students and members of the British Origami Society in the session. Bolitho is a pre-eminent origami exponent who gave up his job as an accountant to pursue a passion that has taken him all over the world.

Bolitho showed the group how to create small animals (classic origami), pyramids and interlocking geometric cubes. He also ensured plenty of maths was covered, displaying tricks to create shapes with ridiculous numbers of sides as well as some informative stuff on tessalation. Bolitho (above right, with me) is the man behind the glorious range of Muji origami packs and an inspiring figure, not least because he owns the best domain name ever – www.creaselightning.co.uk – do check it out.

Time to get creative

2011-06-06T13:36:00.000+01:00

Creative energy is an interesting entity. It manifests itself in so many different ways, is expended at vastly varying frequencies and means so many things to so many people. The one thing that is widely acknowledged is, it ain’t easy.

Despite the fact I don’t see myself as a creative person and am, objectively shit at drawing, presentation or writing in long hand, in the eight years that ShadowPlay has been in existence the increasing hold television, new media and most importantly, phenomena like the invention of Facebook have created a nation of young people that make bashing out some words, stealing artwork and photocopying them look vibrantly expressive. There are two elements at play in this conundrum: dedication and raw talent.

I see and envy people with the latter all the time, marvel at the way they can find a creative spark and envisage an idea instantaneously. What makes me turn even more green is that, on the whole, many people who turn their hand to one thing – say drawing – and succeed usually find themselves a consummate Jack of all trades at a number of skills.

The central conceit of my day job, journalism, works on this basis. That artists are somehow set apart, that their work means they have achieved an ‘otherness’ and the more lauded they are the more license they have to talk about more quasi-psychological and social matters. Whether it’s just more convenient to work this way is another matter but certainly a few notable examples of artists interviewing each other in music magazines have yielded eminently readable results.

As for dedication, that implies that you can learn to be creative. That absorbing enough information will help bred the skill forcibly but this is a flawed concept, assuming that creativity comes from the conscious, rather than the subconscious.

In truth, their co-dependent. There’s no point having raw talent if you’re not prepared to work for it. I have recently started working on two fledgling projects run by dedicated an admirable Londoners – as reviews editor for football website footymatters.com and as a presenter on shoreditchradio.co.uk (The Anoraks – stream and download at http://shadowplayboys.podbean.com). The dedication of the volunteers who work for both projects has been promising but not always consistent. Personally I find myself compartmentalising creativity outside of my 9-5 life, thinking it’s not possible to think in a more expansive manner when concentrating on busy day-to-day tasks, which is pathetic. So how can young people be convinced that it’s work putting in the time and energy to find a creative release outside study, work or an increasingly common unemployed malaise?

Looking at my monthly night Come Get Felt Up (run at the Book Club along with the legendary Anna Harding, Nathan Crawley and Tom Whalley) each month, the small release that participating in a silly competition in which people craft Blue Peter style for naff prizes get from the creativity is particularly evident. So unleash your creativity – glue an egg box, write a letter or build a wonky boxcar – you might just feel better for it.

Keep calm and carry on waiting

2011-05-08T19:08:00.002+01:00

Coming home today on the tube, I got angry and distracted from my paper by the fact the train didn’t move for a full three minutes. When I got home, from where I didn’t intend to leave this evening, I promptly sat down and waste 20 minutes watching some pap on the telly.
Opposite me in the carriage a bloke sat, slumped down in this big brown coat, looking really content despite the fact it was an infuriating and unexplained stoppage. I envied him. So how can he left go and let it wash over him and I’m a nervous, furious young man?
I’ve always been uptight, a worrier, I mean that’s par for the course in fanzine circles. But do actions belie happiness? In the last three months, for various reasons, I have felt happier than I have in five or six years, happier at times than I have ever been. But this is not about being smug, and I certainly easily get down at times too. No, this is about how happiness manifests itself.
Surely, if you have an underlying feeling of happiness, of being content with how life is moving, that should superceed the day-to-day anger, or at least temper it? I’m yet to discern whether this is a personal thing, whether others, while essentially happy, still get wound up by very small things and are wound tight.
The reality is there’s always going to be hang ups but if you can find ways to distract yourself from certain common sources of irritation – wheelie suitcases, poor grammar, a shocking ignorance of basic defending (see Sheffield Wednesday’s defence in the last four months) – and pressure points then perhaps it’s possible to alleviate some of that irrational, stupid stress. Sometimes knowing yourself inside out and facing up to your largely unchanging personality is the only option.

East End Film Festival arrives

2011-04-25T23:05:00.000+01:00

Now in its tenth year, the East End Film Festival (EEFF) has established itself as an event not afraid to flex its muscles beyond the boundaries of simply seats, screens and popcorn. It is perhaps unsurprising then that EEFF HQ is home to a hive of ‘to do’ lists longer than an Elizabethan skirt on visiting just two days before the gala opening. Besides the weird and wonderful of contemporary and revived cinema, the five-day festival (27 April – 2 May) features live music, exhibitions, DJs, VJs, masons, stars, bars and, yes, popcorn.

Under the stewardship of artistic director Alison Poltock, the festival has landed some impressive names. Portishead’s Adrian Utley is to give a presentation at the UK premiere of the digitally re-mastered version of Martin Scorsese’s iconic Taxi Driver at the beautiful Aubin cinema; St Etienne and the Guillemots are to curate two afternoons of music and cinema as part of the Sonic Film programme in conjunction with fellow decade-old hedonists Camden Crawl and the festival is open with a world premiere of The Libertines – There Are No Innocent Bystanders. The debut feature from music photographer Roger Sargent is an all-access documentary into a band that only a glance at will reveal are an intriguing car crash of moderate talent crushed beneath the weight of expectations and, well, large quantities of drugs.

The event is backed by Tower Hamlets council, Film London, National Lottery funding and sponsors including the likes of Clash magazine, Sheffield Doc Fest and Old Spitalfields Market, which is to host an orchestra made of people turning up chiming bicycle bells.

The festival’s enthusiastic head of marketing Andrew Simpson, who has experience of both the Edinburgh and London film festivals as well as moving up from an internship at EEFF last year, is bristling with excitement ahead of the event. “The EEFF started ten years ago funded by Tower Hamlets council as a community festival. The area has more filmmakers than anywhere else in the UK, it’s such a hive of activity, such an incredibly vibrant, creative, productive area,” he says.

“It’s very much about grasping the nettle of the potential the area holds,” Simpson (pictured) continues. “There’s an audience for local output and every type of cinema from around here which makes the festival what it is. We can pick up the pulse of what’s happening around the globe and it’s amazing how coherent the programme comes together but that’s often the artists reactions to what’s happening around the world.”

Simpson cites several particular highlights. In conjunction with The Romanian Cultural Institute and award-winning filmmaker Bobby Paunescu, the festival has put together a strong line-up of Romanian films and events including the UK premiere of Bogdan George Apetri’s Outbound. Beyond this, there’s atmospheric horror in Sir John Soane’s church in Bethnal Green, films on secret societies in Masonic haunts and a swath of free activities on 2 May across 88 venues.

“It’s a real group effort, everyone pitches in, there’s no real hierarchy. It’s hard work, but very, very rewarding. It’s going to be a lot of intense fun,” concludes Simpson. An accurate statement one suspects, don’t forget the popcorn.

www.eastendfilmfestival.com

27 April – 2 May

Various venues, London

ShadowPlay #28 comes out

2011-04-18T21:28:00.000+01:00

ShadowPlay returns with a blockbuster issue featuring more intrigue and excitement than a distant-sounding ice cream jingle.
The likes of Icelandic starlet and Bjork collaborator Olof Arnalds and downbeat techno DJ Chloe Thevenin hone into ficus with interviews in a zine jam packed with characters.
Elsewhere our resident Agony Aunt Piney Gir returns to deliberate romantic troubles and debates over fish-based TV; graffiti artist Baron tells us about his new film Dots and we send Emily Mac under cover in the European parliament.All that and the usual rambling,short stories and musical musings.

Email shadowplayfanzine@hotmail.com‏ for a copy.

MJ Hibbett lands NOT number one

2010-12-22T10:15:00.001Z

MJ Hibbett & The Validators have thanked everyone who helped them to achieve their aim of NOT getting to Christmas Number One this year.

"We're especially excited," said MJ Hibbett, "because, with the possible exception of Simon Cowell, we're the only group whose Christmas Number One campaign was in any way successful!"

The campaign began a few weeks ago when the band decided NOT to try and get their Christmas single The 29th Day Of December to the top of the charts. "So many people try for the Christmas Number One these days that it's become boring", said violinist Tom 'The Tiger' McClure. "We decided to go the other way - and succeeded!"

The 29th Day Of December was accompanied by a stop-motion animation which has similarly managed not to top the YouTube charts. "That wasn't part of our original intention", says drummer Tim Pattison, "but it's a nice extra Christmas present for all of us."

The advantages of the band's victory are many. Just this morning bass player Frankie Machine didn't have to get up extra early to appear on Daybreak to talk about it. Singer Emma Pattison, meanwhile, didn't have to cancel an appearance on The Andrew Marr show when her flight home was delayed by snow. "Being stuck in an airport was stressful enough", she remarked by telephone, "without having to reschedule TV appearances!"

ShadowPlay dons its anorak for new radio show

2010-12-03T12:31:00.002Z

ShadowPlay has extended its tentacles into yet another ocean hoping to find the clairvoyance of a certain psychic octopus. Fortunately apart from discovering who is due to win the 2016 European Championships, we have a new radio show.
Teaming up with long-time collaborator Tom Bonnett (aka DJ Teddy Stones) and reggae aficionado and BBC bod Alex Burnard, the new collective The Anoraks will appear bi-weekly on Shoreditch Radio. Broadcasting at shoreditchradio.co.uk, the magazine show will cover the most exciting new labels and events across a ridiculous combination of musical stylings.
This week don their macks for a deluge of musical mightiness. The Nerd-Js discuss the new compilation Tradi-Mods Vs Rockers - Alternative Takes On Congotronics featuring Juana Molina, Andrew Bird, Kasai Allstars, Juana Molina and more, go down to the bottom of the garden to find out what's in Micah P Hinson and decide how best to an achieve an orgasm at the Christmas dinner table.
Download, subscribe or stream the podcast here: http://shadowplayboys.podbean.com/

New Mount Kimbie Tune

2010-10-17T15:40:00.003+01:00

Chloe: One in Other

2010-09-17T16:48:00.003+01:00

Ears from both within and outside the hardcore electronic music scene have been pricking up since the mysterious Chloé came to prominence with The Waiting Room in 2007. Alex Lawson caught up with the DJ to discuss bringing her bedroom out to the watching world

It’s 4am in an aeroplane hangar of a building outside Barcelona and Chloé Thevenin is making a lot of people incredibly happy and dancing like they are nursing an ingrowing toe nail simultaneously at Sonar festival in the summer of 2008. She flicks up eyes up for a second from her precious vinyl, surveys a crowd dancing inside a giant igloo and blinded by the giant blue lights that accompany her triumphant set, allows herself a flicker of a smile and gets back to work.

Two years later these same eyes stare out from the cover of new record One in Other, a record hotly anticipated thanks to performances like the one in Catalonia and the underground success of her full debut, The Waiting Room. The French DJ’s passionate intensity is portrayed in the cover image captured by friend and photographer Bruno Staub and in there is a sense that Thevenin has stepped up a gear in the interim, upping the tempo of her electronica which falls somewhere in between the chasm separating Ulrich Schnauss and Clarke. So what’s changed? “Between the two albums, I started to play live. It was a new experience to me on the top of DJing and producing in the studio,

playing live meant bringing my studio in front of the crowd and get a direct feedback. It gave me a lot of new ideas like on how I wanted to record my next record, like recording my music live, to be quicker, more spontaneous.” Thevinin first appeared on the scope of many minimal electronic producers and DJs with her first EP, Erosoft in 2002, but with no avenue to see her live it has been slow going for the undoubtedly talented noise inventor until signing to the ultra cool Kill the DJ records and playing out. Her new record, with its subtly humorous pun and flurry of heavy, teasing beats which bring the listener to the brink of frustrating such is there psiren-like promise, reflects this evolution into a fully fledged live entity. “I wanted to be the closest of the feelings I get from my DJ set during the weekend,” explains Thevenin. “I wanted to give back this great energy I receive but give it back on different tempos to build this new album, probably this is why you get this positive atmosphere.

“I build the track playing it live in my studio to keep something spontaneous. I use what I know to do as a DJ, I play with the dynamic, play with the music, the people, give or hold, I really like the idea of performance, as a DJ, in the studio or playing live, it's a good game which is very inspiring.”

Growing up on an aural diet of Parisian club and rave DJs, Thevenin has released material on labels like Karat, Gomma and Bpitch Control and her status as a minimal techno figurehead is growing. With a series of gigs lined up from September through to December culminating in a performance backing a contemporary dance show, Pandora Box by the tres chic Fabrice Ramalingum, there can be little doubt Chloé’s quirky material is turning heads. And those live performances, can we expect the same intensity? “When I DJ I play club music – I can equally produce an EP or a remix for clubs – for me it's the same mood, it's just not the same tempo.”

Come Get Felt Up: In Video Form

2010-09-02T13:46:00.000+01:00

Wondering what this ShadowPlay hosted Come Get Felt Up Night night is all about? Get a taster here. It basically a monthly night at The Book Club in London where people craft to win prizes along to the sounds of great bands, good eh? More info at www.comegetfeltup.com

Field Day: A cracking time in the sack

2010-08-03T14:33:00.001+01:00

It has been interesting to see Field Day evolve in its short history. Having attended each year since its inception four years ago, the small east London one-day festival has shown a certain amount of progression. Gone are the overflowing toilets and, for the most part, the giant queues for the bar. In their place, an army of amiable staff willing to have a laugh and who wince along with you when the painful booze bill looms into view. So, complete with sniffer dogs and, y’know, The Feds, but still with a craft tent and a mean tug of war, the fourth edition of the Victoria Park event got underway.

On a personal note, the day was a blur of bowling bacon (Frazzles up for grabs? Done), valiant sack races, silly dancing and a fervour to empty cans (10p each when returned, good to see an English festival finally follow Europe in working out a recycling method at festivals). Objectively, the line-up was not as strong was previous years. Pheonix do not have the cache of a Justice or Santogold, nor the talented Caribou (a Field Day stalwart) that of Les Savy Fav or Sleater-Kinney. But fuck it, the curators have taste. Thus the likes of Andrew Weatherall, Silver Apples, The Fall and Simian Mobile Disco stick their names on the bill.

In fact, the big names proved a little underwhelming, The Fall proved just as they have always been – stodgy – and Gruff Rhys vs Tony Da Gatorria sounded just that – a fight between two different styles which produced a cacophony so unbearable that the crowd quickly thinned despite the Power Ranger outfit. Among the highlights, and the reason Field Day has such a reputation for being on the mark, were The Golden Filter and Mount Kimbie. Both have been around for a little while but, in granting them early slots, they drew in the crowds (a tent bursting one in dubstep maestro Kimbie’s case) and proved beguiling. Aussies The Golden Filter are a hive of thrashing synchronised drums and inventive synth sounds which work perfectly to create fairly vicious pop; Mount Kimbie are an entirely different proposition drawing nodding heads and shuffling feet left, right and centre. Chilly Gonzalez also proves a popular delight, both defending his mix of jokey rap and classical piano (accompanied by duel drummers) and offering ‘stern words’ to those who doubted the combination, a genuine joy. Appearances from Hudson Mohawke, The Fact DJs and Gilles Peterson were cause for further salivation from any fingers attached to musical pulses.

What Field Day lacks in some of the logistical nous of making a one-day festival have the slick organisation of a larger, three to four day event, it makes up in passion for good, innovative music rarely seen in the often weary, lumbering cash cow genre that is British music festivals.

Come Get Felt Up, Thursday 15 July

2010-07-06T17:33:00.000+01:00

Our monthly crafty gig taking place at The Book Club this month features...

Lime-Headed Dog, Tom Whalley (BBC 6Music, DJ set)

From 8:00pm until 11:00pm

Entry: £1

Venue: The Book Club, 100 Leonard Street, London, EC2 4RH

Blue Peter meets Art Attack while Anne Robinson watches on. If you fancy crafting an aardvark from pipecleaners while listening to funny, fullsome folk then Come Get Felt Up at The Book Club. Nip for a game of ping pong between carving a terrifying mask or assembling a robot from leftover Lego. This month Lime-Headed Dog provide tales of Cockney wonder to alt punk styling to front the craft bonanza. Creativity for all abilities with glorious prizes, all for free. Materials and vats of Pritt Stick provided. See www.comegetfeltup.com for more information.

The Hand, Rachael Dadd and Itchi at The Union Chapel

2010-07-05T16:54:00.000+01:00

Rachael Dadd storms on to the stage in a black leotard with red lightening insignias emblazoned upon her bejewelled thighs as she stands posing like She-Ra leaning on a Flying V…no, not really. In fact, Dadd acts as a host of this welcome sedate Saturday gig, part of a regular Daylight Music series at the hip place of worship in aid of the homeless and it’s actually her husband, Itchi, who makes an entrance more shocking than a sane person in a British lending library.

The little Japanese man lurches through the pews on a pair of homemade stilts, singing and ringing bells on his legs. Back on two feet, his set is a surreal half hour of astonishing rhythm with inventive ‘tunes’ largely involving Itchi singing in a high pitched voice through a manipulative fake moustache, deflating balloons and ending songs by bursting paper bags. But the most shocking thing – more so even than him filling a steel drum with water and swilling a golf ball round it – is that it’s actually good. In fact, when Itchi sings a couple of traditional Japanese songs with an instrument that looks like a saucepan welded to a bike lock, it’s beautiful. Apparently, he’s got an ‘experimental’ side project, the mind boggles…

Dadd flips the brains of the quite stunned audience shortly after Itchi has departed unsteadily on the stilts with her wholesome folk. Her wavering, Joni Mitchell-like voice finds a new level when backed by her accomplished piano-playing and belies the fact she has been touring and releasing records for almost a decade now. The Bristolian’s latest project is The Hand, in which she is joined by pianist and kora player Wig Smith, the driver on the tourist boat on which Dadd used to work, for the final set. The duo have palpable chemistry on stage and as Dadd’s vocal ebbs and flows over Smith’s steady shore of a singing voice, it is clear that the thoughtful lyricist is perfectly at home in such a reverential location.

Yunioshi - CTRL

2010-06-29T13:25:00.000+01:00

Yunioshi - CTRL from Nathan Crawley on Vimeo.

With their latest effort CTRL, Yunioshi have affirmed what many in the glamour-ridden, cultural hive of the East Midlands (really!) that Nottingham's finest popstars really do come in perfectly offbeat forms. Check out this video for the EP, which sees keyboard culprit Anna Suzuki Yunioshi rather spooked out...

Stoke Newington Literary Festival: Stewart Lee and John Hegley

2010-06-07T17:21:00.001+01:00

The problem with things that sound pretentious is, well, they’re actually fun. Justifying going to a literary fest to others is a difficult one, like convincing a doubter to climb aboard an errant camel to enjoy the view from the top. But we wouldn’t commit pretentious acts – going to see foreign language films we know will be slow and depressing, attending twee folk gigs where you have to sit on the floor – if it didn’t have an element of raw fun in there somewhere now would we?

The inaugural Stoke Newington lit fest has already garnered an impressive line-up, swelled by the likes of Tony Benn, Jeremy Hardy and incredible author/ShadowPlay contributor Toby Litt, at this early stage. The north London suburb is typified by its poor transport links, slightly yuppyish but charming streets and hoards of goods pubs and eateries.

My experience of the event centred upon two acts, Stewart Lee and John Hegley. Tucked away in a back street, the Stoke Newington International Airport is an instantly engaging venue. Essentially a garage filled with trinkets and mismatched chairs, Lee takes to the stage backed by a haunting painting of horses with a plane overhead and a kitchen dresser any house proud mum would desire. Lee, a Stoke Newington resident, is typically downbeat and modest and the comedian apologises for not being funny today, despite being just that. He proceeds to read a short story, N, by Arthur Machen fluently and deadpan. Mackan’s tale is fit for this very occasion, a winding tome about visitors to Stoke Newington and perception of the village and its mythical park just four miles from central London. He’s an author for whom there is clearly much love and his gothic, accessible and eloquent 1930s tales are something deserving of further investigation. The heavens open outside as Lee reads, it seems entirely apt, they stop shortly before the end, not sure how much the organisers paid for that one.

Another local, John Hegley offers an entirely different prospect. Backed by double bassist Keith Moore (who also whips out a euphonium – an instrument which he can draw with some speed and skill – during the set), Hegley reads poems, letters and simple quips without breaking stride or hearing a lull in the laughter. The beautiful Assembly Rooms at the top of Church Street have clearly hosted the making and breaking of a hundred hearts over the decades but tonight the glitter ball merely reflected the positive. Urging the crowd to sing, translate French and even throw their glasses in the air, Hegley leads his audience through sidling songs of guillemots, Anglo-French romance and, ahem, hamsters. As the crowd file out, many clutching copies of Hegley’s book (which comes with lots of free space to draw pictures, nice) signed in pastels the smiles are as bright as the volunteer’s pink t-shirts. Stoke Newington, as an outsider, a comparative southerner, I salute you.

Campaign against BBC cuts gathers pace

2010-05-03T12:14:00.001+01:00

So I'm guessing you have all heard about the proposed cuts to vital parts of the BBC's radio offering. I received this update on the campaign to stop the cuts, do donate if you can spare the cash.

"The consultation on cuts to BBC services like 6 Music and Asian Network ends in less than a month. We need to make these last few weeks count. So we're going to put these massive billboard adverts right outside BBC buildings.
So far thousands of us chipping in has raised £13,000 to put these adverts up. That's enough for billboard campaigns around the BBC buildings in Manchester, London, Glasgow, Cardiff and Birmingham. If we reach £20,000 by Monday, we'll be able to reach other cities too including Edinburgh, Leeds, Bristol and Leicester, and also print thousands of flyers to distribute at concerts. Can you help by chipping in?
The more billboards we have, the more pressure we put on the BBC to protect services like Asian Network and 6 Music. Please donate now: https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/fight-the-cuts
The billboards are going up on May 10th. BBC bosses pushing the cuts had been hoping our protest would fizzle out as the consultation drew to a close. But these billboards will make sure the pressure just keeps building. The more cities we can put them in, the more people we'll reach and the more powerful the message we'll send.
Together, we're proving that the public wants to save these valued BBC services. Over 35,000 of us have signed the petition, and over 20,000 have emailed the BBC Trust. We've persuaded more than 300 election candidates to pledge to oppose the cuts if they're elected. There are real signs that our pressure is starting to shift the BBC position. Now let's make sure in these final few weeks, our protests reach a real crescendo.

Thanks for getting involved,
The 38 Degrees Team"

Son of Dave: Shake a Bone (Kartel)

2010-04-27T21:36:00.000+01:00

Son of Dave has represented an odd entity for some time and this latest outing, produced by the legendary Steve ‘is that a grating sound I can hearing beneath that noise?’ Albini, is no exception. The follow up to 2008’s ‘03’, this is arguably Benjamin Darvill’s most classically blues album yet. Full of slow rhythm, like an ex-con dragging a ball and chain down a Roman road, tracks such as Guilty prove Darvill has the ability to gently cast his harmonica over the top of a beat and enrapture in the process.

He’s warped more into Tom Waits than ever before too. Hell, he even looks like the innocent dreaming stubbly legend on the cover, adorned in a fetching hat and with an earnest stare. The (real) r’n’b blues riffs here, the relative simplicity of the lyrics and the extremely danceable structure to the tunes make it an easily recognisable and accessible record from the anomaly of a modern artist. Highlights include the full on rock out of Revolution Town and the blistering title track which affirms all you ever thought about the wiseness of wearing snakeskin shoes and dancing in the desert. A well-paced record of perfect length, pick it up.
And that’s not to say anything of its published accompaniment. A new book published by those Junko Partners the Stool Pigeon. Two books to commemorate the glorious oversized music paper’s 5th anniversary were released in Islington last month and I was lucky enough to attend the launch. Alongside of a series of incisive and hilarious interviews, Son of Dave’s columns from the paper were released in the form of a new volume entitled We Need You Lazzaro, You Lazy, Greasy Bastard’ – doubtless a hit with the kids section at Waterstones. Funny and fascinating in equal measure, tales of celebrity burials and great music adorn its pages. Quite a character then, and a great musician to boot.

Come Get Felt Up @ The Book Club, near Old Street, London Thursday 22 April

2010-04-20T23:59:00.000+01:00

http://www.comegetfeltup.com/

This Thursday ShadowPlay will be hosting an ace gig featuring the wonderful Yunioshi

at The Book Club in Shoreditch, London.

It's free entry and there's a creative competition (materials provided)

with mega prizes!

Be crazy not to come wouldn't it?

Piano Time: Dustin O'Halloran feature

2010-04-12T20:28:00.000+01:00

Californian pianist Dustin O'Halloran has carved an excellent career so far and here ShadowPlay examines the mysterious talent in profile.

Hello Thor presents Fists EP launch

2010-04-07T22:09:00.001+01:00

Our good friends over at Hello Thor record are promoting an excellent gig in Nottingham this Friday, it's the launch of the glorious new Fists EP Olympic Hits and takes place at The Rescue Rooms where many of ShadowPlay's formative years (great gigs, dubious kissing on purple sofas and bitch slaps) were spent. Here I am rocking a Hello Thor tee in Amelie's cafe in Paris. Details of the gig below, go!

FISTS ‘Olympic Hits EP’ Launch Party! @ The Rescue Rooms
This Friday - 9th April 2010 - 8.30 til late - £5 (+ free EP with advance tickets)

Four of Nottingham’s brightest and best under one roof for one night only!
FISTS - on record their sound shifts from skiffle-punk to country-inflected indie pop. Live, Fists are a woozy, kaleidoscopic and riotously fun affair. "They do DIY and they do it well. Imagine the infectious anthemics of Broken Social Scene arm in arm with the eclecticism of Belle and Sebastian. Underlying this stargazing poppiness is a foundation of razor-edged post-punk." LeftLion
SWIMMING - avant-garde, euphoric and righteously poppy music.
PILGRIM FATHERS - awesome slabs of mind melting psychedelic post-rock.
ESCAPOLOGISTS - synth-heavy, drum machine backed, dark pop.
AFTER-PARTY!!! up in the Red Room featuring special guests:
* APES FIGHT BACK - www.myspace.com/apesfightback
* FRANK’S VINTAGE METAL DISCO featuring early ZZ-Top, AC/DC, Thin Lizzy, Led Zep, Black Sabbath, and Judas Priest.

Snap up an Advance Ticket for £5 (from Rock City box office / www.alt-tickets.co.uk) and you’ll get a FREE copy of the brand new ‘Olympic Hits EP’ by FISTS - just swap your ticket stub at the merch stand on the night.

New ShadowPlay: Issue 27

2010-04-03T22:25:00.000+01:00

Yep, my scissors (ow) and brain (kinda) have concocted a 27th issue, subtitled Out of the Light, Into the Dark covering the likes of street crime, violence, nightmares and addiction, cheery! But there’s plenty else in there too including African adventures with Debbie Ng, dubious debacles involving some slightly risky interviews from me and musical mischief as ever. For both fact and fiction email (shadowplayfanzine@hotmail.com) me your address for a free copy and distros get in touch for a job lot etc.

Print day: the stresses and strains

2010-03-30T22:51:00.000+01:00

Print day for ShadowPlay is always a stressful occasion with last minute adjustments and chopped off edges always standard fare. I’ve been looking for a new print shop for quite some time, since moving to London in fact, and received a great tip off from a fellow zinester about one in the centre of town a couple of months ago.

I’ve started using an annual, How It Was To Be Young Then, about the swing era to keep the master copies flat and it was from this that everything fell immediately on entering the bizarre copy place. Housed in a disturbing quiet school-type atmosphere, it is staffed by a man of indeterminate eastern European origin wearing a large knitted jumper adorned with a Scotland flag on the top floor. After a last minute cut and Blu-tack job on some flyers featuring beautiful artwork from ShadowPlay fave Os Gemeos, everything is ready to go. Thus ensues the most circular conversation of my life:
“I’ve put this next to the edge to make it easier to cut, will it get cut off?”
“No, that’s not a problem. Is this not the finished cover then?”
“Yes, it is the finished cover.”
“Then why do you want to cut it?”
“It’s just the design. I do.”
“But why?”
“It doesn’t matter”

And so on. And so on for literally three minutes before the Groundhog day was broken by a paper jam, thank fuck. Of course there’s problems, missed off headlines that have disappeared, marks on the cover and a change in the price but, on getting the copies home (having skipped down the stairs of the weird building avoiding the lift in a cage and grappling with the heavy box and big umbrella given to me by a potato company on a tube packed tighter than battery hen) and assembling the protype it doesn’t matter. A new ShadowPlay is born and a sense of pride and dread installed. Now for the hard part, pass the long-armed stapler…
ShadowPlay #27 is available by emailing shadowplayfanzine@hotmail.com with your address, simple eh.

Mad March = Great Records

2010-03-25T21:20:00.001Z

So when Howard Hughes greets the “interplanetary indiepop pickers” in the intro to The Pocket Gods’ new record he isn’t going too far wrong in addressing the average sanity, and musical taste, of potential listeners to Plan Nub, Behind the Fridge. In fact, by the time he invites us to “loosen those space belts and prepare to go down, deep down into Nub country…”, you’re either in or out. Luckily for ShadowPlay, we’ve already ripped off our leather waist strapping (it was purely cosmetic anyway, three quid from the British Heart Foundation) and are rolling in a veritable pig sty of bonkers tunage. Ahem. Billy Childish Enters the Space race gives an excellent early sign of the witticisms, perfect riffs and off key singing in store. Alien Xmas Song displays the indie poppers in a rare contemplative move, coming over all lighters in the air but, before the hankies are out over the irresistible slow strumming they’re singing “there’s a nipple fight in the car park, nipple nipple nipple fight..beautiful manboobs”. Perfect and bizarre, indiepop at its finest.
ShadowPlay’s favourite Barcelona-based ridiculously traditional folksome singer, Peter Loveday, returns with a new album, Standard Ideal, recorded last summer. Always full of erudite phrases and clever little imagery (“As the trucks roll by I step out of the way/I’m in no hurry and there aren’t that many anyway”), Loveday has beguiling, cracked voice now backed with some complementing vocal and violin tones by Naomi Weldman and Sarah Davison. Some of the duets here work better than others but there’s a genuine skill in the songwriting that make him worth investigation for lo-fi fans across Europe.

Talking of lo-fi, the crayon cartoons scribbles across Islands Lost At Sea’s new record (pictured) belie the stylish CD packaging with a bunch of funny bookmarks (sample “Read Thicko”) spilling out from its bambuzzling form on unfolding. It would be easy to get distracted from the music then, but this Staywarm Records release is a particularly charming piece of indiepop wizardry. A mix of plaintive peaens, chirpy tunage and even the odd carefully weaved in beat keeps the island floating on towards success. Oh, and the packaging’s actually a bookend, neat.
Not for the first time, Sunday Best are band on form. Well, more specifically their artist Dub Pistols are, with Rodney P taking some of the limelight on new A-side Ganja. We know what to expect from Dub Pistols – the slight warped reggae, the inevitable catchiness – but the added element of Monsieur P shouting “they got us under prohibition like it’s 1932” gives it an edgy, exciting top layer – to be skimmed off and enjoyed as 2 Bit Thugs and Nitenoise play around with it in subsequent mixes.

Elsewhere Skeletons, aka Nostalgia 77, releases Smile on Impossible Ark Records – a clever ‘act of mindless fun’ combining West African earnest jazz with more fun, upbeat offshoots. The man behind is, Benedic Lamdin, says Skeletons “is a made up band” as the musicians were never together in the studio and, after playing around with what was in vogue, he couldn’t stop. Whatever the process, it sounds good and very, very hard to turn off. Oh, and Alice Russell fans – get this if only for her usual supersonic display on Adam and Eve. Funk and soul act The Bamboos finish us off, Tru Thoughts luminaries they’ve been around for a while now and new album ‘4’ displays perfectly why their stock has risen steadily in the last few years. Turn It Up has the dusty feel of a classic while you can hear the stilettos squeaking on the two tone floor in Like Tears in Rain, retro stylings in its finest. A stellar month then, go forth and multi-buy!

Various Artists: Disco Love (BBE Records)

2010-03-23T21:41:00.000Z

Just as you know Danny Dyer probably isn’t going to turn up in a period drama, cities can be typecast too. Musically certain cities are always associated with particular genres – Sheffield and Bristol breathe connotations of electronica, Manchester the stagnant fag smell of rock’n’roll – and it’s probably fair to say that Glasgow is as synonymous with disco as Rio de Janeiro is with black metal.

But Glaswegian native Al Kent, aka Ewan Kelly, might just be about to change all that. The talented DJ is best known for his label Million Dollar Disco and its Disco Demands series – a Northern Soul and disco digger if ever there was one he has added to this with his much lauded 20-strong Million Dollar Orchestra.

Here Al kicks off the exciting new Disco Love series covering rare disco and soul over two discs (originals and remixes) of sheer delight. There’s plenty for the casual disco acolyte, as well as the aficionados as Kent delights in sharing his eclectic taste. His liner notes for Sweet Daddy Floyd’s irresistible I Just Can’t Help Myself expose this raw passion as he urges listeners to “give it three listens and you will love them too”. And it’s true, there’s so many tracks here that do what both disco and soul should do – be impassioned but tight and clean cut, show some hard graft but be smooth as the proverbial swan on the water and provide something to dance your badly laced boots off to.

The mix from Bob Williams’ I’m Alright into the classic Nite Life (Let’s Get It On) by The Midas Touch shows Kent’s skills at their exemplary best while the smooth transitions that guide the second disc through remixes of Patricia White, Quinn Harris and JNB show a style that explains his appearances at London’s Soul City and Edinburgh’s Ultragroove among other big names. Al Kent has a heartening and genuine talent for mixing and provides a disco mix that can’t fail to please in this well thought-out appearance.

Zero dB: One Offs, Remixes and B-Sides (Tru Thoughts)

2010-03-08T21:31:00.003Z

As much as experimentation and diversion from what’s gone before is the spice of life when it comes to contemporary music, there is something perfectly satisfying when a new release does exactly what you’d hope, and expect, of it. Obviously, with an off-cut type of album like this two disc set, these expectations can sometimes be negative ones, tinged with worries over quality-quantity balance and whether it’s the artist or the label who wanted to release it.

No such concern here though, as Zero DB and Tru Thoughts could be one of the most reliable combinations in the world of beats and breaks. The experienced remixing duo of Chris Vogado and Neil Combstock have here combed the edges of their back catalogue to form a retrospective that says as much about their calibre as it does how good they must be at going to the right sort of parties. On their illustrious guestlist Alice Russell, Quantic, Hexstatic, Javi P3z Orquesta, Frank De Jojo, and Bonobo appear, along with remixes from Seiji and Aaron Jerome. The Vogado Projects’ glorious ten minute triumph that is Mas Feurte Que El Sol proves a particular highlight, ponderously mixing deep house (stay with me) style piano with a Latin rhythm and flecks of sax in the same way that made Quiet Village’s Silent Movie an effortless piece of perfection.

Zero DB may always remain deliberately shadowy figures, sat at the bar sipping a beer while some of their labelmates bare all on stage. But their gliding skills in production and ability to move from smooth low tempo work to textbook breakbeat will ensure they will keep winning and keeping fans time after time.

Ty: Special King of Fool (BBE Records)

2010-03-02T21:49:00.001Z

Special Kind of Fool represents a first outing for Ty, aka Ben Chijioke, on BBE Records, having formerly only really arrived in the public’s ears through the established auspices of legendary hip-hop label, and Ninja Tune sub-label, Big Dada.

Interestingly Ty describes the record as his story. And an interesting tale it is – that of artist who after ten years, three critically acclaimed albums (Awkward 2001, Upwards 2003, Closer 2006), collaborations with the likes of Tony Allen, De La Soul, Damon Albarn and Estelle, a Mercury nomination amongst other accolades, and a worldwide army of fans, has always followed his heart it seems.

But it feels like there’s too much heart and not enough of what makes Ty great here. His burly, thunderous rapping drawl has always contained plenty of humour in the past with the frontman always bouncing live and with an irrepressible amount of charisma. But somehow his passion has been channelled in the wrong direction here, passing on the vocal duties to a posse of impressionless, sometimes irritating guests. Many of them try so hard to sound soulful that they just appear vacuous and you are left craving more of the main man’s sturdy vocal. The beats are also a little pedestrian, rarely stepping up a gear and providing the genuine hooks usually so evident from the London-based Tony Allen associate.

There are a few positive signs though. The appearance of Sway and Roses Gabor does genuinely complement the ebb and flow of Heart is Breaking and there is a span of several songs, including the relaxed rhythm of Me and the clubby feel of I Get Up, where Ty is at his swashbuckling best saying: “where I’m from I’d probably make twice the money/if my skin was a different colour ain’t that funny?” before nonsensical lyrics and nursery rhyme rip-offs. But it’s too little, too late and it feels like a waste opportunity for one of Britain’s biggest hip-hop talents to burst back out of an overlong hiatus.

Ulrich Schnauss: Missing Deadlines (Selected Remixes)

2010-02-24T22:36:00.002Z

This record begs the question - at what point is something so altered from its original form as to be unrecognisable? Now, you might think this is a question best posed to the likes of the late Michael Jackson or the hideously reformed Sophia Loren, but in this case it is master craftsman Ulrich Schnauss falling under the auspices of the surgeon’s knife.

The ambient German producer is a well-known aficionado of shoegazing, pulsing works and here he applies his touch for warped remixes of contemporary tunes. As chief alchemist he rearranges and restructures pieces way beyond recognition to glorious effect.

Schnauss said of the work: “Essentially what makes me really happy about this album is the fact that it’s a selection of the – in my opinion – best mixes from a musical point of view, rather than a compilation of the commercially most successful ones, or the tracks that have the biggest names associated with them.”

Thus, we get Howling Bell’s Setting Sun becoming an edgeless, lilting wonder more akin to My Bloody Valentine’s abstract waves than the Australian’s usual bruising torrents. Dreamy New York band Asobi Seksu also get the treatment, with Yuki Chikudate’s ebbing vocal over a beautiful wash of sound on their iconic track, Strawberries. Mahogany, The Dragons and I’m Not a Gun all provide particular highs here while the denoument provided by the 10-minute reworking of Mojave 3’s Bluebird of Happiness, complete with ‘found sounds’ and carefully constructed piano-vocal combinations, provides an excellent representation of the album. Meticulous, faraway yet completely, disturbingly full of focus.

Brighton Zinefest

2010-02-21T21:30:00.002Z

It’s always tough to write about zines without falling into self-referential piffle – we are afterall unsubbed and unvalidated – but events such as this genuinely does remind me why I bother, sporadically, to produce material. There were a number of events, including a gig featuring the wonderful Bobby McGees and a knees up at the Cowley Club, around the festival but I just managed to leg it to the London Bridge train down from London for the main Saturday sale the fest was centred upon.

Having been to similar events in Manchester and London, I had an idea what to expect but it never fails to make me smile how much passion, genuine excitement and creativity can be so immediately evident. Sure, there’s some of the old record shop intimidating-ness about the situation – where self publishing is involved, there’s always a level of pretentiousness and feeling you’re being judged – and there’s some awkwardness to studying, and sometimes rejecting, someone’s wares right in front of them.

But the overwhelming feeling is one of worth. The host of papercuts, the empty wallet, the lack of sleep – worth it to see people enjoy zines. Needless to say I bankrupted myself fairly quickly and there were many zines I would’ve loved to have picked up but the coffers didn’t allow. Of the massive pile I did pick up a number stood out. It’s great to see a new issue of Bubblegum Slut zine, a mere six years after I started reading it, A Call from Karl effectively combined simple drawing with gentle humour, likewise Joe Decie’s What I Drew while The Quick and The Dead was very affecting and tackled the issue of depression engagingly, the list goes on… Emma Falconer also gave an interesting talk on the difficulties and tricks of putting zines together which even opened my realitively zine-wisened eyes to a few things. Honourable mentions go to the lovely people at Shebang, Dead Trees & Die and Beat Motel’s stalls who are always a pleasure to see and I was particularly glad to see Gadgie has been put into a book in the form of Now Then Gadgie – which you can get hold of here. Love to the zinesters, party for the fight to write, and write on…

Champion Kickboxer: Clouds

2010-02-15T22:57:00.000Z

To celebrate glory of more impending snow, ShadowPlay would like to post up its favourite weather-related tune ever. Here's Sheffield's finest, Champion Kickboxer playing on our old show, Faces for Radio.

Listening in Tongues podcast: The human voice and the warmth of the machine

2010-02-07T12:53:00.001Z

So I've pulled my finger out and got back in the studio to record a new podcast you can get hold of here. Trailing the latest Broken Yolk night at the Pangea Project, Tom Bonnett and Alex Lawson look at combinations of man and machine, looking at how they can complement each other and work together in a creative crunch of vocal chords and circuit boards.
The likes of Jamie Lidell, Scott Walker, Four Tet, Mount Kimbie, Schneider TM and Raymond Scott join Yolkie stars Ryat, Segment and Mataniu to explore the theme and provide a backdrop for cheeky chat and bootlegging banter.
More info on the night at: http://brokenyolk.net/ February 20th - Ryat, Mataniu and Segment. Free before 9pm, £4 after, Broken Yolk DJs spinning ‘til late.
Pangea Project, 72 Stamford Hill, Stoke Newington, London, N16 6XS
Download, subscribe or stream the podcast here: http://shadowplayboys.podbean.com/

Live: The Golden Filter at Pure Groove // Piney Gir at the London Transport Museum

2010-01-24T21:13:00.000Z

I’ve long held a theory that the thing that puts the beauty of going to gigs apart from, say, going to the cinema, is that you never know what’s gunna happen. Even in a venue you’ve been to loadsa times, seeing a band you’ve seen loadsa times – maybe even a band you’ve seen in that venue loadsa times still present something different, exciting, new people, a bum note, a longer set, a new support band, the potential to find an artist that engages so much that whole swathes are your life are soundtracked differently. It’s always a possibility.

So this weird combo was very welcome. First we dash up to the beautiful Pure Groove, the record shop/café in Farringdon which has put out so many great records it’s almost sick, to see an ‘in-store’ (cue images of thousands of teens queuing up outside Virgin Records to see Mel B sing solo or some shit) which is thankfully busy but without any acne-covered scamps armed with a black marker and crop-top they’re desperate to get signed. The Golden Filter, an NY three-piece fronted by model Penelope featuring synths and nice, heavy drumbeats take some time to drum up an atmosphere in the un-clubby atmosphere near the twee-tees but their sheer class shows through their net-happy hit Hide Me evoking the most reaction. Favourite Things, with its New York, Sydney, London, Paris mantra evokes both joy at the simple song at envy at the well-travelled gits. They’ve certainly been provoking plenty of reaction and there’s no doubt there’s any extra something, maybe in the league of St Ettiene, in there, I’ll be watching with interest.

A quick dash to the Transport Museum in Covent Garden (yep, that’s right) brings one-time ShadowPlay agony aunt Piney Gir happily to our ears. As part of an Arts Council funded monthly night the fulsome folkster follows a glorious screening of a video of some couples dancing in the 50s (on a screen 20ft up above a light up London 3D map). Piney, aka Kansas hailing and London-living Angela Penhaligon, takes the stage amongst the red buses and old taxis with a welcoming crowd cheering on her every accordion stroke. With some fine backing singers and a beefed up band in the shape of the Age of Reason, Piney has moved away from her original electronic-y ways to a much more traditional, perhaps ironic given her quite stringent upbringing outlined in several interviews, country-style with the twee but lovely duet Of All the Wonderful Things, the new single, a particular highlight. And as Gir finishes her set choo-chooing around the rather splendid, if nerdy, museum singing you have to say there’s a lot to say for having a night less ordinary.

The Wire: "No one wins. One side just loses more slowly." - Prez

2010-01-17T21:44:00.003Z

What felt like an important chapter in my life ended yesterday…yes, I finally finished what appears to be the last series of The Wire. First off, I realise how silly it is for me to be so involved about a television programme but then, when people are so crushingly earnest about films, it only seems fair that the only programme I’ve seen ever approach its style in novel form is worth it.

Quick background – The Wire is an American police drama set in Baltimore, Maryland largely following detectives as well as drug dealers, gangsters, politicians, judges, blue and white collar workers and solicitors – the whys, hows and wherefores of its background are too variant and, as the programme outlines, unsolvable to go into but I wanted to look at my response as a viewer.

Firstly, as a white, middle class viewer in the UK, it’s fair to say my life is far removed from those on the stoops and corners of Baltimore, let alone the courts and city homicide department. But it is the meticulous detail in which the show approaches each episode which evolves and reveals this unfamiliar world for me. I have often been critical of the extended series that are produced in the US, many comedy series are flabby where series like Peep Show and Black Books show you can say as much in six episodes as you can in twelve. But The Wire is different. It’s not just passive, each series is a project as they deal with the issues of the drug trade, smuggling, reform, education and journalism in turn. It is with this trust in creator David Simon that the viewer goes with each addition to the plot, each unsolved particle, each heartbreaking killing or smeer on the progress of evidence.

Ultimately, few series will engage the viewer in the next few decades. It has had me hooked when I should have been going out, on trains when the power cuts out and you’re begging the laptop battery to hold out and, amusingly, in an airport lobby in Egypt when I had to trail the wire (ironic huh?) across an escalator to plug it in. I don’t watch much TV these days, preferring to watch either catch up at my own leisure or, as this, hoards of DVDs, and in characters such as McNulty, Bubbles, Stringer Bell, Bunk, Kima and Omar Little (pictured) my faith in modern television, and the excellent HBO, may just rest. Adios.

ShadowPlay..slowly, slowly slowly

2010-01-10T15:47:00.001Z

So just a quick update as to where I'm up to with the latest ShadowPlay, I'm sure regular readers will be aware that it's been over a year since the last issue - a fact I find painful but also realistic. The problem with having a day job in which you both expend a load of energy and also, y'know, give a toss (previously unheard of for me) is that it really does test the energy levels.

Anyway, excuses over, its shaping up to be a really good issue under the particularly vague and pretentious theme of "darkness" and submissions are most welcome. Articles of 400-500wds most welcome, likewise, am ALWAYS on the look out for new artwork on account of not being able to draw and the like - do get in touch at shadowplayfanzine@hotmail.com ahead of submission. Just on a bit of a hunt for printers in London at the moment, any suggestions of cheap places welcome though I reckon there's one in Holborn that might just do the job. Cut'n'paste zines are always a struggle what with copiers usually needing to feed the page through a machine for double-sided - never too friendly towards the carefully tacked together proof it must be said. So any thoughts and ideas welcome and fingers crossed for a spring birth for the little un. Alex

New Listening in Tongues podcast

2009-12-31T14:30:00.005Z

Songs from a parallel universe and the black magic of soul

Journeying to a world unlike our own, Tom Bonnett and Alex Lawson ask what tunes might top the charts in another dimension and take their chances with the occult investigating the secret spell behind a perfect soul record. The ponderous duo take you through some pop puzzles and play some genuine classics to boot. Enjoy.

Listen and download here

or subscribe using this:

http://shadowplayboys.podbean.com/

MC Lars makes plea over suicides

2009-12-30T17:01:00.006Z

Had an interesting email through from old ShadowPlay friend and hip-hop fiend MC Lars, if you can help him out, get in touch...

Hey everyone,

As I'm sure many of you know, a song on my new record TWENTY-THREE details the life and tragic death of a best friend and Stanford roommate, Patrick Wood. You can read more about him on his blog. He was a brilliant friend who battled with depression and took his life in Berlin in early 2006:

http://patrickwood.blogspot.com/

We are making a video for this song, as it is the next single off of THIS GIGANTIC ROBOT KILLS.

To make this video be effective and raise awareness, we NEED YOUR HELP!

If you have any friends or family members who know or who have lost anyone to suicide, please get in touch with us. We want to feature photos of loved ones who have taken their own lives. The goal of this video is to help raise awareness that this is an issue that affects us all, and pay our respects to those who have passed on. One of the things that helps me get through losing Pat is having a song about him to sing and listen to. I hope that you will share this with me if you have gone through anything similar.

Please hit me up at - horrisrecords@gmail.com with photos and stories if you have friends who haven taken their own lives.

Thank you for all of your help! Together we can help raise awareness and help prevent suicide. We are talking to non-profit organizations to have some promotional support and help change the world together.

Much love and Happy Holidays.

MC Lars
mclars.com

P.S. Just on a legal side-note - we will need signed waivers, so before you get in touch with us with photos of your friends, please hit up your friends' families first. We know this is a sensitive issue and just want to make sure everyone's on board.

Psychoville returns to UK screens

2009-11-24T20:30:00.005Z

BBC Two has confirmed its weird, incestuous comedy Psychoville will return for a one-off special programme to be shown next year, and a new, six-part second series will follow.
Written by League of Gentlemen masterminds Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, rhe dark comedy thriller was centred on very different characters, who each received an anonymous mysterious letter claiming: "I know what you did..." in the last series.

The final episode concluded the story at Ravenhill Hospital, for the completely insane, with a huge explosion. In the new series, all will be revealed as to who managed to survive the blast.

Steve Pemberton said: "We're delighted that BBC Two commissioners have responded in the right way to the notes we sent bearing the words 'We know what you did'. We look forward to being able to tickle and terrify our audience once again - preferably at the same time."

Anti-Pop Consortium: Live at the Scala, London 05/11/09

2009-11-09T21:32:00.003Z

The re-emergence of Anti-Pop Consortium has been one of the undisputed triumphs of the CBRA (Continual Bands Reforming Age) as the stream of consciousness hip-hop merchants delve back into the world of collective creativity. Individually, there were signs of brilliance. Since their split in 2002, Beans has been perhaps the most successful, releasing four generally well-received efforts while High Priest and M. Sayyid as Airborn Audio plied their trade on Ninja Tune but didn’t follow-up debut Good Fortune on the label.

So their reformation, in August 2007 – five years after the barn-storming Arrhythmia – was welcomed by band’n’fans alike. Two years on and the first release from this second phase, new record Flourescent Black, shows excellent, witty signs of a return of a hip-hop act who can genuinely refer to themselves as ‘fresh’. Full of the quirky, intelligent discharge that made oft inaccessible beats irrelevant with a flow sharper than a nerd’s pencil always in charge of each tune.

In London, the New York foursome show their classic vigour. Facing inwards towards a desk, concentrating on their collective whole rather than individual style, predictably white crowd and APC-alike know this is about the music rather than the style. A year earlier at Sonar in Barcelona, ShadowPlay say this as a sign of an act still getting back on their feet, now it looks like pure, brilliant arrogance. Beans does turn ringmaster on a couple of occasions, the glib Apparently initiates the biggest roar of the night while Born Electric, also from the new record, sees them change pace and take a slower, more considered approach as they intone “can’t take my powers”.

There’s little doubt APC offer a refreshing antidote to the bling, overly smooth side of American hip-hop, what’s more impressive is that they do it while remaining out of the more nerdy fringes of it, maintaining their calm coolness and a rare hip-hop characteristic: integrity. Viva la reformation.

Latest Reviews: Aural October

2009-10-05T21:34:00.002+01:00

Where better to kick off this month’s reviews round-up than with a bizarre, disparate and confusing release? Ok probably with something straight forward but that just wouldn’t do. The concept of DJ Yoda and The Heritage Orchestra’s new release – ‘G.Prokofiev Concerto for Turntables and Orchestra’ – is an excellent one. Few would think to combine hip-hop and classical music (I mean, really combine them, not just a sample here and there) in a full length LP with movements and everything and the ambitious project has rightfully drawn some attention. But, well, it just doesn’t go far enough. As someone who likes their classical music I enjoyed the ridiculously sinister violins and the scratching combined nicely with the brass section but, well, where was the hip-hop? If Yoda, Mr Adventurous and supreme VJ was gunna take on a project like this I’d expect beats galore and those symbols to be sounding on top form, what we get is disparate, occasionally brilliant but far too often pulling up too short of its ambitious targets.
Those Northwesterly people at Cherryade Records have been busy as ever. Firstly they’ve released The Lovely Eggs’ record If You Were Fruit which, if a little sickly, brings a smile to the face of twockers (twee rockers) everywhere with their naïve lyrics. Secondly they glorious entity that is the Bobby McGees have release record L’Appropration Bourgoise De La bobby McGees and are on top form with opener Tractus Logico-Musica talking about innocent girlfriends and pepper spray and setting the tone from then on. The Bobby McGees are one of those special bands with perfect self-perception and an equally perfect lack of ego – they right fun songs with too many horns and far, far too many great hooks. Set aside a frantic half-hour.
From folk to funk, Bugz in the Attic have brought out a remixes collection, Got the Bug, which goes some way to displaying their sleek, undoubted talent and souped up version of Roison Murphy, Amy Winehouse and Bunny Mack tunes are decent but perhaps a little mainstream to attract core Bugz fans into this purchase.
Two beautifully packaged records in spray-painted wonderment reached ShadowPlay from Belle Records with Sol Gravy’s Sun Son proving a sombre affair with a beautiful harmonica and some nice lyrical touches adding to the jangly 70s dark folk feel of the record while labelmates Water were apparently one of THE Yorkshire bands of the end of the last century before their implosion through sex, drugs and ‘skullduggery’ fail to live up to the excitement of these pursuits with their flabby and meandering record Monkey Steps. Similarly attractively packaged, Bay of Islands’ Winter Vignettes, on Dizzy Records, provides a more soothing, intriguing record with the chirp of a scratched string and the sound of an undoubtedly talented pianist creating a sparse and beautiful record. Bear Driver’s Paws & Claws has a similarly lackadaisical rhythm to it with the Leeds-based psych-pop band displaying some promising signs with excellent vocals and an ear for when to make the tune go off on one, dancing into the woods without a cursory look back… Le Reno Amps return with their EP, the Stand Off, this month but, in all honesty, the grating lyrics and confusion over whether they want to be a straight up pop or kinda country-tinged indie band,a t least in the listener’s ears, is very off-putting.
Perhaps the prize for wild strangeness from a nutty duo this month goes to Misty Roses, the London/New York duo who, in their second album Villainess, create more mystery the Poirot puzzling over a particularly ripping Soduku. Singer Robert Conroy leads the tunes well and with ethereal backing and the skills of multi-instrumentalist Jonny Pearl, it’s definitely worth investigation.
A couple of harder releases come through TNS Records with the thrash of Revenge of the Psychotronic Man (and their barnstorming record Make Pigs Smoke, yep…) proving the custard shower effect, quite strange, fun once in a while but not for regular consumption. Meanwhile Halcyon Days are slightly lees all-out but provide some nice, threatening basslines and decent riffs, not to mention some quality boomed out harmonies. Good stuff.

ShadowPlay site moves on

2009-09-20T15:01:00.004+01:00

Long time readers will be familiar with the old, ramshackle ShadowPlay website. After six years and thousands of hits it

's time to say a tearful farewell to my little blue creation and move, full time, to this blog. I would still hesitate to call myself a 'blogger', the connotations are of someone with too much time (never the case here!) on their hands, issuing rash, thoughtless opinions.That said the ease, speed and sleekness of this blog has been refreshing, proving you needn't have all the web skills in the world to make it readable. I'll be working on adding extra detail to this site so all the ShadowPlay contact details, links and stuff about the paper fanzine (which remains the priority) is included. For now, I bid farewell to the old site, it's all over now baby blue.

Sounds Like Teen Spirit (2009)

2009-09-17T15:15:00.006+01:00

Kids can’t sing. People who enter Eurovision generally can’t sing (Gina G, I apologise…). So here’s a perfect match. This “popumentary” follows a number of kids vying for the title of winner of Junior Eurovision 2007. Pitched at an interesting level, this neither takes the piss out of Eurovision in a Wogan-esque way, nor takes it as seriously as it clearly is by many of the “smaller” countries around the continent.

First off, this seemed the wrong approach to take, afterall what dramatic interest are a bunch of kids singing going to provide if it’s not comedy. But actually this film connects on a real emotional level as the viewer feels complete empathy with the junior contestants, some of which seem to carry the weight of the world on their shoulders.

Perhaps the best example of this is Mariam, a 13-year-old Georgian who goes to the competition without her mother, who lives in a ramshackle tower block and vows to take tranquilisers before her daughter’s performance. Given free fruit and blessings on the street, Mariam carries the hopes of her country on her shoulders and stars in the live final, which receives no less than 23 million viewers before being caught up in the Russian offensive which took place in summer 2008.

There’s also plenty to laugh at though, perhaps the deadpan Belgian commentator who says “they are not singing very good” of three Dalton Sisters aged no more than nine or Belgian finalists Trust who have had a street in their native town of Ypres named after them, such is the measure of their success.

This documentary gave a real insight, perhaps for the first time for, as to just why people from so many, realistically, fairly unremarkable countries get so worked up by Eurovision. With over 14,000 entrants vying for the Rotterdam final it’s clear the stakes are high for a competition which says as much about fragmented European politics as it does about mini-camp entertainment. An interesting documentary, a DVD in front of the fire watch for sure.

Tru Thoughts Round-Up

2009-09-17T13:35:00.003+01:00

Those glorious people over at Tru Thoughts have cooked up a storm for the autumn period, celebrating 10 years of the label that has boasted the kind of cutting edge music, in Quantic, TM Juke and the Bamboos in particular, that has marked it out as a forerunner in the UK funk and soul scene.

Earlier this month it hosted an excellent, hot and sticky night at Vibe Bar on Brick Lane, London where Alice Russell and Belleruche in particular gave the night the kind of swagger only 10 years of hard work and good times can bring. The label’s three disc anniversary release is a triumph in displaying the diversity and quality of the label. Thus the usual faces are joined by the likes of Kinny, Kylie Audist and Nirobi & Barakas. The main theme is of a label firmly focussed on taking life at its own pace, grab hold of it and saying “look, I’m gunna relax for a minute, ok?”

Elsewhere on the label, Natural Self releases his second album My Heart Beats Like a Drum next month, full of the kind of minimal chirpiness that will see him open up top-end nights aplenty I suspect. Meanwhile, Domu, aka Dominic Stanton, has released a collection of One Offs, Remixes and B Sides but it does feel a little like that, not exactly rjects but not top-cuts, also his choice of vocalists seems a little dubious, some dodgy vocals/lyrics here. Overall, Tru Thoughts spoil their listeners beyond belief, a label of true class and style will leave you far from hiding under the Munka Moon. (AL)

Kid606: Shout at the Döner (Tigerbeat6)

2009-09-06T20:37:00.001+01:00

Kid606, aka Venezulan electronica supremo Miguel Trost Depedro, is one of those artists who, when on top form, is really on top form. The riviera kid has bust through the speed of sound on many previous occasions, with rip-roaring efforts like Don't Sweat the Technics and Kill Sound Before Sound Kills You marking him out as a real talent, if a little prone to the odd random mix too many.
Back with the bizarrely-titled Shout at the Döner (advice on Glaswegian kebab shops is offered in the notes), released through glorious off-kilter visionaries Tigerbeat6, this is a surprising release just in how fresh it seems despite some tunes, such as the menacing Samhain California, sounding like they coulda come out of the Steel city in any time in the last two decades. There are heavy strokes of futuristic LFO here while other reference points like Mouse on Mars and more minimal acts (that don’t have agoraphobia and play out) are bang on the money. The record is split into four ‘movements’ with Kid606’s Mozart moments coming in the form of nice glitches, tapered high-hats and strange clips which, to be honest, can only have been recorded and subsequently re-used under the influence of something a bit stronger than a bottle of Calpol left out overnight. There’s plenty of moments here when ‘606 hits real top form and create music to go to a fucking good party to and that is so invigorating you probably won’t even cringe when your mate flashes at the complaining neighbours. Get it.

Spotlight On: Blind Blake and Lecube

2009-08-31T19:49:00.001+01:00

“There is no bank on Wall Street that belonged to me..” croons Blind Blake, aka Matthew Town, the legendary singer from the Bahamas who was born in 1915 and carved out an illustrious if a little under-recognised career from the 30s through to the 60s. As the leader of the house band at the Royal Victoria Hotel in Nassau in the Bahamas his music combines the glory of ragtime blues, island classics and American pop with some quite forward-thinking jazz elements. Listening to Bahamian Songs is one of those truly positive experiences that can change an mood and get even the clumsiest of toes twinkling. Credit must also been given to the technical elements of this record which, on CD, sounds crystal clear and surprisingly for a record from the early 50s has very little hiss and crackle (not always a good thing I hasten to add but a pleasure here). Highlights include the effortless fun Yes, Yes, Yes, his particularly familiar John B Sail (sloop would be proud) and My Pigeon Got Wild show the skill the man had on his banjo, ukulele or six-string to create a rhythm and style that would entertain contemporary audiences and generations to come. A must have if you like both music and smiling.

It would be unfair to describe Frenchman Julien ‘Lecube’ Barbagallo, architect of his debut From Here to Now, as fey but there’s a certain otherworldliness to the breathy, sidling pace of the record. Recorded in Toulouse, this eight-track offering shows some definite promise with Barbagallo presenting at times incredibly very intricate songs in a simple fashion – breaking down from tumultuous drumming into the kind of carefully plucked guitar-work which led Nick Drake to the forefront of those talented yet mellow musicians who preferred to shun any egocentric qualities in favour of an educated sound. That said, he does whack himself on the cover and grate a little vocally but on the whole, definitely worth a hop over the channel.

ShadowPlay// Broken Yolk fledgling podcast

2009-08-24T22:09:00.004+01:00

ShadowPlay teams up with Teddy Bones, aka long-time SP contributor and fiend on the ones and twos, Tom Bonnett (pictured right) for an early precursor to a long-time partnership. This episode we introduce top monthly Stoke Newington night Broken Yolk, conducting some pointed ramblings about music consumption (including the mysteries of spotify) and featuring some aural delights in the form of Lord Tanamo, Acoustic Ladyland and a certain familiar reggae face.

Stream, subscribe or download it here: http://shadowplayboys.podbean.com

More info: http://www.myspace.com/brokenyolkuk

Get in touch: shadowplayfanzine@hotmail.com

Bent: Best Of

2009-08-23T21:54:00.005+01:00

Nottingham lads Neil "Nail" Tolliday and Simon Mills will always have a special place in ShadowPlay hearts not only for their origins in the fair Midlands but also for their debut, Programmed to Love, which was probably the best record the city has produced and certainly the most impressive in the field of cleverly-worked electronica. Accomplished DJs and superb musicians, Bent are due a Best Of and, having always kept a fairly low-key profile, it is nicely packaged as an introduction to the duo. Far from a flung together collection of their tunes, there’s a flow and control over this record which belies its status as a compilation – spreading the band’s work across two CDs.

The seven new songs here also serve to remind listeners that Bent are still fresh, coming up with a number of up-tempo, quite guitar led tunes to intersperse old favourites. But, in the end, long time listeners will enjoy a reprisal, Private Life and Magic Love still causing a tingle. Bent are a band who have often been under appreciated, their legacy starts here.

Melt! Festival: Ferropolis, Germany

2009-07-26T21:40:00.007+01:00

Astonishing discoveries are one of the things that makes life interesting: finding out what that button on the remote does, what colours food can turn if you leave it long enough and what that thing does you’ve been puzzled about for the earlier part of your life. Melt! is one such discovery. Now in its twelfth year, locals on the site tell me its profile has lifted considerably in the last couple of years with bigger brands, and bigger name acts, drawing the attention of a truly international audience.
Situated in Ferropolis, a complex created from an old quarry complete with a man-made lake and towering excavators, outside Dessau, an hour from Berlin, there’s plenty going for this cheap, large, three-day event.
Largely centred upon the more funky side of electronica - your Erol Alkan, Diplo, Digitalism type acts – there is a good diversity in terms of music, if not food where sausage dominates to a degree never before seen, even the usual dog burger is a rarity. Day one kicks off with some scepticism, Foals and Metronomy proving big name pull outs but ShadowPlay checks out the tenacious La Roux, full of spirit and, more crucially, tunes. Elsewhere, Aphex Twin (pictured below), making a rare live appearance, arrives onstage in the giant concrete bowl which mascerades as a main stage, to put in an hour of glitches, churning fun and a performance to set your teeth on edge – legend. Simian Mobile Disco and MSTRKRFT also prove popular before the torrential rain cut proceedings short at a mere 5am with a soggy Melt! going to bed cold but happy. The switch up in set times, compared to the more reserved, license-bound, UK festivals is notable. Here, the music doesn’t start until 7pm, meaning peak sets are 1-4am, and the freezing nights and wankers-shouting-fueled late night anger of festival camping are replaced by a serene knackeredness which both breaks and energises those in attendance.

The second day continues in a similar vein, Diplo and Boyz Noise put in masterful displays on the ones and twos, the artificial builders merchant sand of the man-made beach adding to the Brazilian DJs best-bits set while searchlights add to the effect, sat atop the humungous cranes. Digitalism also impress, proving more than just bleep-pop also-rans as they dominate main stage activities. The final day is an odd affair, opposite to the previous days, the music starts relatively early with many people descending for the day, doubtless drawn in by Oasis’ name at the top of the bill. Patrick Wolf delivers an impressive display, his stocks (which do in fact exist, he’s backed by Band Stocks) rise as he poses, pounces and prances around the stage in giant black wigs and backed by his increasingly glorious catalogue of pop songs. Various DJs continue to capture the weekend’s spirit, everyone still in seemingly good mood as the only sun of the festival appears. Oasis, for their part, put in an excellent, strangely professional and incongruous display. Along with the usual jibes about Manchester and laddish stuff, Gallagher junior shouts something about playing at Legoland and the band deliver a tight, wide-ranging and ultimately satisfying set. Devoid of the crap that has made going to see them in the UK an unappetising prospect – the piss throwing, chav presence, massive waits to get a spot – this was the best place to see an ace who are, realistically, still capable of putting on a great, enjoyable show. Even if it does involve lots of loud, shouty Swedish blokes.
A truly international festival, Melt! is a gem of an event, full of fun, intrigue and individuality, it’s well worth a flight out. Next year promises to be even better, with the event looking to expand even further size and acts-wise. Pack your muddy dancing shoes in anticipation.

Hop Farm Festival, Kent

2009-07-08T21:50:00.001+01:00

The idea of this festival is right up our street – no branding, no sponsorship – a great idea perhaps surprisingly brought about by former Meanfiddler magnate Vince Power who has evidently tired of the corporate, fan-fucking events he used to arrange in favour of, well, peace and love. And, true to its word, this is no Reading & Leeds, thankfully, thus we get an weird and wonderful array of food, celebrity 5-a-side football and the illustriously named Main, Dance and Third stages. At a moderate size and with nice, booming soundsystems, there’s a lot to like about this fest, which takes place near Paddock Wood in the heart of commuter-belt, London accessible society. The line-up, as last year when Neil Young led the line, is led by an old geezer in the form of Paul Weller who draws in a laughably large amount of over-sideburned, sunglasses-wearing middle-aged men. Elsewhere, the line-up is a bit stodgy with the Fratellis, Pigeon Detectives and The View offering a pretty pathetic threesome on the Saturday.

But the Sunday bolsters things with a Ladyhawke putting in a stellar performance and getting the crowd dancing and bellowing in front of the main stage. In the dingy third stage tent, first Fight Like Apes, and then Danananakroyd, offer bolshy brilliance in abundance. Fight Like Apes snarl and shout at the adoring crowd (while giving them a cheeky smile) and bashing out the likes of Jake Summers from their incredible debut while Danananakroyd throw themselves around a lot, shout a lot, cover up a ten minute technical hitch by playing Grange Hill and Hollyoaks theme tunes, and shout their way off stage. Overall, the festival lacks a little strength in depth, there was little genuine choice and the few surprise delights offered by unknowns, such as Synth Eastwood who offered a parade of delights to a ‘super chilled’ zonked out dance tent mid-afternoon, were a little too rare. A good festival, well organised with great intentions, just a few more top-quality acts please.

Fists: Cockatoo/Skit (Hello Thor)

2009-07-06T20:22:00.002+01:00

Fists have been blazing a trail across every dirty pub, middle class arts café and delirious DIY gig in Nottingham for some years now. But the (now) five-piece finally come to release the record the quirky, indie public of Nottingham has been waiting for.
Released on a label rumoured to be run by the charity shop vinyl-addicted spirits of Buddy Holly and various bearded sea monsters, the record bleeds passion, a sense of assurance and the ability to pull off wearing a flat cap in style.

Cockatoo kicks off with a fairground waltzer into before singer Angi Fletcher kicks into a vocal with flecks of Kim Deal and the ability to perfectly reflect the off-kilter, staccato rhythms of the song. Flipside Skit sees James Finlay take up the vocal reigns over a hypnotic, driving bassline. The band have received some excellent coverage from Steve Lamacq, our friends over at Stool Pigeon and the BBC’s Glastonbury coverage, and good luck to em.

Tru Thoughts Recordings – Shapes 09:01 and other offerings

2009-07-01T20:38:00.003+01:00

This latest offering from the frankly pioneering jazzy funk label Tru Thoughts is almost too cool for school. Shapes featuring the likes of Quantic, Nostalgia 77 and Bonobo this collection is an earwatering array of aural delights taking a laid back approach to blowing the listener away. Starting off solidly with some soul diva type musings in the shape of The Bamboos, it’s really in the drifting offerings of the Unforescene (with the glorious Phil King, not the ginger ex-Wednesday player though), the shimmering Jint with Laura Vane offering beautiful vocals and Felvans whose tune, Mad Perks, that some serious talent is on show. A label this good shouldn’t rightfully exist, but we’re damn happy it does.

Elsewhere on the Tru Thoughts, Kylie Auldist offers an interesting proposition in old style funk on her new record Made of Stone but her vocal is a little staid and too strong to be enjoyable at times and some nice brassy backing is slightly marred by her dominance across every song. At the other end of the scale, displaying the label’s diversity, Lizzy Parks releases Phonica (one of London’s finest magical musical outlets) favourite This and That, a folksome effort full of faraway stares and breathless vocals. Sparse at times Parks has the personality to carry an album which could easily drift by and, despite lacking rhythm at times, it’s an accomplished and promising second album from Parks.

And, to round it off, the label has released a summer special in the form of a covers album. Thus Alice Russell finally puts her Seven Nation Army cover to wax in astounding style, Quantic Soul Orchestra cover 4Hero and mix Mr Scruff classic Get a Move On; Jumbonics funk up the Strokes’ Last Nite hilariously and Nostalgia 77 forget about Dre in a cover of Eminem’s My Name Is… - it’s as funny as it is enjoyable, clever and a sign of label who can do no wrong it seems.

The Wave Pictures: Live & On Wax

2009-06-28T14:06:00.002+01:00

A real unique edge is hard to come by in UK guitar music at the moment, one you can grasp on to, live or at home, straight away is even rarer. But the Wave Pictures, who will be as familiar as a pair of old Midlands-made slippers to long-time ShadowPlay readers, have that direct quality which can be latched onto within seconds. Perhaps it’s lead singer David Tattersall’s ever lilting vocal, or maybe his off-the-cuff lyrics (I cut my hair and you grew yours/there always has to be the same amount of hair in the world) are the key, but it’s as likely to be Franic’s basslines or the ever-impressive supporting vocal from drummer Jonny Helm are the irresistible element.

On new record, If You Leave It Alone, the prolific trio step up their style a little, opting for their high tempos and cheeky guitar solos more often than not. The title track opens the album with vigour and finesse, setting the listener up for the bizarre and meticulous imagery to come, elsewhere Your Bed Hung off the Wall and Too Many Questions also display the kind of harmonising that sounds like the Beach Boys if they’d put down the Beano and picked up Razzle. Live, they’re such a perfect proposition, full of self-effacing modesty, but also a cheeky confidence borne from hundreds of shows to increasing adoration and success. At the Lexington last month the band show off material from the new album, already know to much of the hardcore audience in attendance at the fantastically booze north London pub. Choruses, and more importantly certain marmalade-y verses, are bellowed back, pins are dropped and heard when silence is needed and, most importantly, the Wave Pictures are treated as the treasures they so clearly are.

Homelovin' zine returns

2009-06-08T23:00:00.002+01:00

ShadowPlay has a few long-term friends it likes to cross paths with, share staples and generally be traded for in the kind of free trade, papery agreement which would put the Doha round to shame.

Homelovin’, the decade-old brainchild of Amsterdam-dwelling Lancastrian artist Paul Haworth, is one such companion.

Paul has long written about offbeat music in a quirky style, usually in capitals. The tenth issue continues in the same rich vein musings on Kevin Rowland, Bruce Springsteen, the Replacements, the Music Tapes, Freddie Mercury, American Music Club, Josh T. Pearson, an essay by Bunny Poe, and a few drawings to accompany them.

Homelovin’ hasn’t changed much over the years: folded A4 pages, stapled together, a sky-blue cover, type-written, Paul talking about the records he's been listening to, shows he's seen and some of the unfinished thoughts that these have inspired.

The zine is personal, engaging, human –what fanzines are good for really – and in the writing it wishes to celebrate great artists who have put wonderful things into the world.

If you would like a copy it's €4/£3 + postage and you can pay through PayPal or bank transfer. For more details write to homelovinpaul@hotmail.com

Patrick Wolf: Live at the Electric Ballroom

2009-06-04T21:34:00.005+01:00

Patrick Wolf is the opposite of an enigma. Someone who has given his all to his music and putting his vivacious personality across and has been stung, labelled and misunderstood. He does split opinion but, from the opinion of someone who has always followed his music with admiration and largely ignored the comments Wolf tonight dubs ‘jealous’, there can be little doubt over the man’s talent as a musician and a lyricist.

Tonight, Wolf is preceded by Yacht – a daunting, clever, strange and frustrating band from Portland. Jona Bechtolt and Claire Evans make up the two piece which spent the entire set leaping up and down, enjoying impressively choreographed dance moves and shouting down their white microphones. In possession of, realistically, no more than three decent tunes Yacht go for the jugular, encouraging audience participation, constantly asking questions – there’s no way this was just an exercising in waiting for the main act with a presence in front of you. The force an opinion, one way or the other, and for this audience member it was nice attitude, live drummer please and learn to sing in tune.

Wolf himself enters the stage to an atmosphere not unlike that which a boyband might meet. Screaming girls jossle for position, men in gold sequined trousers (yes) vie to be seen by the figure in the middle of the stage dressed in a cape, jump suit and sporting what can only be termed a ‘Britney-mike’. The handsfree device causes Wolf problems throughout the set, constantly slipping but does not affect the sound and allows him to express himself in his unique, ostentatious manner. Rattle through hits from his most popular third record, The Magic Position and new album, The Bachelor out today that day on new label Bloody Chamber Music.

If Wolf is scarred by the inferences and jibes that have been made about his vast redirection in music (when first ShadowPlay reviewed him he was a lang-haired shy type who spoke through his stark violin) and bisexuality then he shrugs it off well. He mentions the media a couple of times and touchingly dedicates the rip-roaring set closer The Magic Position to ex-girlfriend Ingrid who used to live above the Camden Underworld just a few yards away from tonight’s venue, but he comes across as someone more than happy in their own skin and persona. Climbing up ladders, attacking his piano, praising his band (which includes Electric Soft Parade and Brakes guitarist Tom White sporting a dubious ‘tache) and gentle playing the dulcimer bathed in a spotlight Wolf is a multi-faceted, multi-talented chameleonic musical superstar of the type that Bolan or Bowie would be and are undoubtedly proud of. We’ll even forgive him for using the word ‘showbiz’.

Put a Donk on it...

2009-06-02T22:56:00.003+01:00

Le Donk, an improvised comedy shot over five days by Shane Meadows in cahoots with Paddy Considine, is set to have its world premiere at the Edinburgh International Film Festival on June 23rd. The following day Shane Meadows and producer Mark Herbert will give a talk about their new five day feature programme.
Rock roadie and failed musician, Le Donk (Considine) has lived, loved and learned. Along the way he’s lost a girlfriend (Olivia Colman) and his life has turned to shit. But, he has found a new sidekick in up-and-coming Nottingham rap prodigy Scor-zay-zee (playing himself). With Meadows’ fly-on-the-wall crew in tow, Donk sets out to make Scor-zay-zee (and himself) a star…with a little help from the Arctic Monkeys… This low-budget rockumentary follows Le Donk and Scorz on their journey of a lifetime; it’s an unpredictable, irrepressible ode to spontaneous filmmaking – and to a burgeoning UK hip-hop talent.

"After taking two life sapping years to make This is England, I decided it was time to get back to my roots as a Guerilla Filmmaker. So me, Mark and our miniscule team decided to stick two fingers up to the establishment and make a film with our own money in only five days. Oh yeah, and we had to somehow get 50,000 people in our final scene for free," said Meadows.

Le Donk is the first in the 5 Day Features series created by Shane Meadows and Mark Herbert and released by Warp Films. Hurrah for Nottingham and Sheffield talent as ever...

London Zine Symposium: May 09

2009-05-25T21:05:00.002+01:00

This event has managed to elude me for reasons of music, travelling and, erm, Owls matches for quite a few years now so it was a pleasure, last week, to trundle along to The Rag Factory off Brick Lane for the biggest zine gathering (read, slightly nerdy but fun) in the UK of the year.

From the moment you enter the tight, sweaty venue you can’t help but be inspired. The sheer volume of the zines, imported (and there are issues from all over Europe and beyond) or otherwise, is quite astonishing with some exhibitors carrying as many as 100 titles it seems.
Some personal highlights were the thick little blue bueaty which is Shebang zine, a new un to the zine from the South West, covering loadsa of ShadowPlay-faves in an intricate, personal style. Beat Motel was there in force also, with the excellent latest issue spearheading a stall featuring plenty of US and Australian zines, some of the You letters and some prison writings. Dead Trees and Dye (http://www.deadtreesanddye.com/) distro carry some great stuff, largely of the arty variety and now some ShadowPlay issues so snap em up. Ricochet Richochet also offer up some excitement of the punky variety with the Anarchists Teapot supplying some tasty cakes too.

With all these things there’s an element of nervous embarrassment, wanting to buy zines from everyone just because I know how crap it can feel for people to look at your zine, and then seemingly reject it by returning it to its spot. But it’s totally worth it to chat to the great people you meet, reads some offbeat thoughts and ultimately open your mind to things that are different, but not necessarily worse (or better) than mainstream coverage. What is prevalent that I’m writing about this on a blog, but I would stress that it’s a matter of ease rather than preference and the paper issue of ShadowPlay will always be my main focus because it is the passion in printing and crafting, shared by everyone in that room, that remains the driving force. It does bring me to one small gripe which is prices. To me, no zine is worth more than a couple of quid. It’s always about covering printing costs of course but this rarely supersedes that price and, like independent record labels, if you’re in it to make cash, don’t bother. I’m not saying people were being greedy capitalists but to me a pile of unsold zines at five quid looks more pathetic than the one scruffy 50p one left in a pile of snapped up issues. Overall a fantastic event, some incredible people and unashamed inspiration for zinesters everywhere.

Marrisa Nadler: Live at the Luminaire

2009-05-14T20:48:00.003+01:00

It’s always worth the trip up to Kilburn to the charming Luminaire with its ‘sshhh, we didn’t come to hear you talk to your mates’ type signs and canny nack of snapping up the kinda mid-sized acts with enough of a name and plenty of intrigue to draw in plenty of punters.
Marissa Nadler is one such. Since she released her third album, Songs III: Bird on the Water, in 2007 her name has slow crept through folky-fingertips worldwide an, as the ethereal Nadler takes the stage it’s easy to see why. An instantly likeable character Nadler promptly commands the attention of the entire audience, putting them in instant silence, something they stay in – trance like for the rest of the set.
Playing largely from Bird... and her new album Little Hells the songs are undulating and interesting. Kicking off with Diamond Heart, sinking into her voice like pebble into sinking sand, and continuing to offer the kind of soaring, heartfelt saddened-tinged vocal that is so easy to get wrong but Nadler nails spot on. She’s not afraid have a little fun too have a ‘covers time’ featuring Neil Young’s hit Lonesome Me, which she adds a new, even more plaintive angle too. Marissa Nadler is incredible talented, sings beautiful songs and, unfortunately for us, won’t be playing venues of the Luminaire’s size forever.

MJ Hibbett & The Validators: Regardez, Ecoutez et Repetez (AAS)

2009-05-10T16:07:00.002+01:00

If you’ve read ShadowPlay for any amount of time you’ll be fully aware who, and what, MJ Hibbett is – for some the funniest guy in indie music who tells it like it is, for others, I’ve been told, he comes across as smug and judging. Evidently I agree with the former so it’s a pleasure to see the man from Peterborough/Leicester return with a new studio album, Regardez, Ecoutez et Repetez which commits to record some of the tunes he’s been touring for the last year or two.
So, he bounds in with Being Happy Doesn’t Make You Stupid – something I totally agree with as cheerful prose can often come across as irritating when really, why not? I know it’s not very English though – Do the Indie Kid and It Only Works Because You’re Here. In true Hibbett style they’re great stories – French mid-90s discos, dancing at weddings and broken computers leading to romance, you know the score. Elsewhere we get the glorious My Boss Was in an Indie Band Once and One of the Walls of My House Fell In which are both as much for fans of a good story tape as a tune. Hibbett’s always adjustable, cheery vocal can sometimes get a little over the course of a whole record but some beautiful work from his Validators, namely Tom ‘Tiger’ McClure in particular make this as enjoyable, original and funny a record as the comic legend has produced so far.
[A book of all the lyrics and the story behind each song is also available and an engaging read]

Brakes: Touchdown (FatCat Records)

2009-05-09T14:44:00.003+01:00

Brakes have always been a marmite band. Even for those who make it past lead singer Eamon Hamilton’s opinion-dividing, ultra-precise diction the roots of love for the band’s other incarnations British Sea Power, although Eamon’s departure didn’t impact too heavily, and the subsequent lack of attention given to the Electric Soft Parade has alienated some fans.

But for those who do follow the Brighton-berthed Brakes it is a rewarding experience. Frantic live shows, irrepressible character and three albums in four years (relatively prolific for a mainstream band) have seen them garner considerable favour.
This is an interesting effort given the herd of singles that previous albums have offered, notably the success of All Night Disco Party and several other from debut Give Blood. Touchdown offers no less in terms of tune but, where before it was hammering the peddle with a hot trainer, it’s more of a leisurely summer ride in a regal carriage. Tracks such as Crush on You and Do You Feel the Same? steer the listener into a dreamier space than ever before offering something different from Brakes’ trademark swagger.

Ultimately there’s still enough venom to please long-term plans but maybe signs of Hamilton’s soft underbelly may just offer signs for the future from this vastly talented, oft-overlooked band.

Plus One Magazine

2009-05-06T19:04:00.003+01:00

Our good friends over at Plus One Magazine are appealing for writers in Nottingham and further afield to provide the latest previews, live reviews, dates and news from bands playing in and around Nottingham, the Midlands and beyond.
Plus One are a team of like minded, music enthusiasts, not connected to any group, organisation or venue headed by Pete & Faith who work tirelessly to keep the site interesting and updated. Reviewers, photographers, interviewers, gig goers, all the writers do it for the same reason - the love of music in all its forms.
If you wish to get in touch, just visit the site here.

Photo(s) of the Week: Costa Rica

2009-05-05T19:19:00.008+01:00

A recent visit to Costa Rica revealed it to be a fascinating country, a tranquil sea in an ocean of unrest across the Central American region. Stabilised by its American contingent, largely incumbent along the coastline and in the west of the capital, San Jose, Costa Rica’s scenery frequently turns your eyes to dishes and its Spanish-speaking people proved particularly friendly. Here’s a few images from the trip:

Miranda Lee Richards: Light of X

2009-05-04T16:35:00.006+01:00

ShadowPlay’s first encounter with Miranda Lee Richards was a couple of years ago, strangely supporting feedback-laden lords of darkness and general rabble The Warlocks in as incongruous a billing as you’re likely to discover in the glamorous world of Nottingham. But from that day to this MLR has continued to unveil her voice as a thing of true beauty, possessing the kind of wistful country beauty that has propelled Gillian Welch and Lucinda Williams into a mature yet impressive stages of their respective careers.
Richards has renewed her feedback-friendly ties in teaming up with Rick Parker, producer for the Von Bondies and BRMC among others, though there is little sign of this in the clean, crisp presentation here. The singer-songwriter from San Francisco uses a mix of strings, piano and most evidently a softly played yet ever-present acoustic to create a the kind of misty, sunlit record which could easily drift by but thankfully gets caught on a rock. It’s true it would be very easy for Richards’ often fully-stretched vocal chords wash over you without impression but distinctive hooks on the likes of breathless, lifeboat and first single early November confirm her place as an intriguing and endearing songstress and I have the feeling the best is yet to come.

Fujiya & Miyagi: Live at Cargo

2009-04-16T21:55:00.009+01:00

Fujiya & Miyagi have always been an understated band, whistling by, collecting fans like a snowball on a slowly declining hill – one flake at a time. But this gig at the ever-busy Cargo brought this element to new heights as the band displayed some of the tunes from their third album, Lightbulbs, released last September to their London fans.
Originally a duo, F&M are a four-piece live band backed, throughout the set, by a big screen displaying patterns, words and pictures made up of dice. It’s all very impressive, and quite engaging, and makes up for the band’s lack of stage presence. It is this which holds the key to a gig full of little hooks and signs of greatness which faded away as lead singer David Best continued to stare at the floor. Either extremely shy or extremely arrogant (one suspects the former) the band’s refusal to acknowledge the crowd or create anything that the clearly partisan audience can up the gears with is incredibly disappointing.
There’s no doubt Fujiya & Miyagi have some tunes. Ankle Injury, Photocopier and Cassettesingle present some of the finest moments tonight with the krautrock element coming to the fore. F&M are true builders (ok, well not in a bum’n’The Sun way no) – they lay the foundations, bring in some heavy drumbeat - then accelerate picking up a well-known phrase or rhyme (including the Funny Bones headbone connecting to the neckbone one…) along the way. There’s no way they’re not good enough for a venue of Cargo’s size, or equally the adoring following, put if you’re gunna throw a party don’t forget to enjoy it yourself.

Hillsborough

2009-04-14T23:16:00.003+01:00

As Liverpool pay tribute to the 96 who lost their lives at Hillsborough 20 years ago I thought I'd re-publish the short piece I wrote on the home of my beloved Owls in ShadowPlay #22.

Hillsborough, Sheffield Wednesday
A spiritual home of sorts some of the best afternoons of my life have been spent in the blue plastic seats of S6. All those names, few of quality calibre, to pass before my eyes on the programme – some heroes Carbone, Di Canio, Hirsty, Pressman, Brunt, McGovern, MacLean and some error-ridden but loveable – Bullen, Peaks, Di Piedi. A few times I’ve looked at the Leppings Lane end from the Kop and thought about all those people gasping for air down there and I’m appalled at myself for coming to this place for something so futile. But it’s an age gone by and soon I’m up and complaining about a foul throw or a bad pass and I realise it’s just a place of passion.

Offhand comment you may think but really, as with many disasters, some bad decisions, some indecisive ones, and the passion, which allows football to be the great game it is, prove some of the causes. Rest in peace to those who lost their lives.

Photograph of the Week: Peacedrums

2009-04-12T21:35:00.003+01:00

Ok, so not a great piece of photography but it nicely encapsulates Mariam Wallentins' passion during The Wildbirds and the Peacedrums' glorious sweaty set at the Luminaire in Kilburn on Tuesday. An excellent mix of steel drums, Swedish shouting and heartfelt, endearing. Investigate.

Tunng and Tinariwen: Live at Koko

2009-04-08T19:35:00.002+01:00

Morecambe and Wise, Mark and Jez, Cannon and Ball, Richard and Judy – seminal combinations I’m sure you’ll agree and some of them you wouldn’t really have imagined (though a twitchy shoplifter and a boozy flasher were always a decent bet for union) – tonight is one such. Touched, as I’m sure many a listener in this country has been, by the pure rhythmic beauty of Tinariwen, the scale at which words which I’m the first to admit I don’t understand at all, can affect you so much was probably what drew Tunng to this glorious meeting.

As previously documented in ShadowPlay Tinariwen were a group of travelling nomads in Saharan Africa with many of their songs, including those on the beautiful Radio Tisdas Sessions, birthed in these dusty surroundings. Championed in the UK by dubious genius Andy Kershaw Tinariwen have built quite a following over here and could doubtless have sold tonight’s gig at the impressive Koko in Camden out alone. But their partnership with folktronica darlings Tunng confirmed the gig’s place in the hearts and buzz of all the self-respecting pretentious vaguely arty nerds (I’m nothing if not modest) of the time.

And it doesn’t disappoint, with the first few songs played by Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni (guitar, vocals), Eyadou Ag Leche (guitars, bass guitar, vocals) and Said Ag Ayad (percussion, vocals) alone you start to panic, maybe I misread the poster? Maybe they’re not playing together afterall? But then Tunng bounce on to the stage, clearly excited at the end of a tour which has seen them wow nationwide. Tinariwen largely oblige on lead guitar and percussion while Tunng offer up backing vocals and, well twiddly bits, on the former’s songs. For the most part it’s the Algerians who dominate the set (incidentally fine by me, I very much like Tunng but they’re capable of washing over in a way their stage-mates seem incapable of) with some choice cuts from their last outing Aman Iman: Water Is Life with Mano Dayek and Matadjem Tinmixan proving particularly incredible with Tunng’s Becky Jacob’s providing surprisingly accurate (to the record) backing vocals. It’s an experiment for sure, sometimes songs trail on a little too long, sometimes Alhousseyni becomes obsolete and goes offstage but Mike Lindsay, Tunng’s frontman shows such exuberance and excitement about the night that permeates through the crowd. The highlight has to be Lindsay’s interpretation of Tinariwen’s love of listening to metal – a two minute rock-out pretending to hit screaming solos on his acoustic guitar providing laughs all round. An adventurous project, fully pulled off, let’s hope they get something down on record.

Soha and Titi Robin: Live at Cargo

2009-04-05T14:01:00.004+01:00

As an outsider in London sometimes I forget quite how diverse its population is, which I know the majority of people are and that’s kinda the point. What I hadn’t really thought about is the subsequent affect on the city’s music scene which can happily host a two-day festival of French music at Cargo with an enraptured and good-sized audience in attendance.

Titi Robin kick-off in the opening night in the shape of an accordion player, Titi Robin himself playing every string from mandolin to guitar, and his ab-fab drummer. The ponytailed percussionist spends the hour-long set thumping the box he’s sitting on, attacking the skins with his elbows, kneading the bongos – it feels like a struggle and a fight with the instrument but sounds like the opposite. It’s a sight to behold and one that is only distracted from by the perfect interplay between the gypsy-ish twinges of the guitar and accordion’s mini-duel (literally, at one point they mimics each other’s tones and try to better them).

Enter singer Maria into the fray, full of evangelical charm (she crosses herself on alighting the stage), imploring the listener (unfortunately ShadowPlay is in the ten per cent in attendance who do not understand her words) and dancing. But not just swaying, it’s stylised, full speed and, as she chases her hands across the stage back and forth, undeniably Indian-influenced. An unexpected wonder.

Soha may already be known to you. Savvy, chique, sexy and soulful she’s a PR man’s dream, her sultry tones offering nothing if not passion, verve and, most importantly, a versatility that’s astonishing. One minute she’s relaxing into her smooth tones, pulling the audience, literally, forward with her brown eyes. The next she’s skanking, full of reggae empowerment, putting hands in the air and shouting “the show is for you, enjoy”. An incredible spectacle that breaks far beyond the clumsy, patronising term of ‘world music’ which I doubt will be shaken off for some years to come. Luckily, neither will Soha.

Anyway, I don’t usually do this, but don’t just take my words for it listen here.

You can thank me later…

G20 summit poses questions

2009-03-31T21:15:00.002+01:00

So tomorrow the City of London braces itself for the arrival, and resultant protest, of US President Barack Obama and the rest of the leaders in the G20 (which seems to expand and retract from the G7, or G8 when Russia can be bothered, almost weekly).
The advent of the so-called ‘summit’ brings mixed feelings to ShadowPlay towers. On a personal note I have family who work in the City (who aren’t greedy wankers but hard-working people by the by) and do not, as you or I do not, deserve to have to face possible violence merely to journey to work and return.

But really the protests, and the boarding up of every building in sight in the City, are indicative of how wrong it is possible to get things. To make things clear I agree with many of the issues being raised by the protestors on an incredibly large range of issues from human rights, nuclear disarmament, anti-war and even the pretext the summit is based upon – fiscal policy. The idea of protestors playing a giant game of Monopoly outside the London Stock Exchange is perfect, smashing windows, attacking people and getting involved in altercations, however innocently, with police is not. The line between protestors and anarchists is a thin one easily crossed and, although it proved ultimately ignored, the fact one million people marched to try to stop the UK entering Iraq in 2003 showed how to protest in a way that was universally noticed and astonishingly disregarded. To put it into context as a young man from Nottingham it’s not too hard to imagine a scenario where a drunk bloke in a short-sleeved shirt is drunkenly shouting at me outside a Yates’ and then smashes something. Now, am I more or less likely to listen to him than the still drunk but talkative bloke at the bus stop causing no harm? Transpose the boozers with the protestors and you see that smashing up the Starbucks opposite the RBS building near Liverpool Street (that’s my bet for taking a beating) is of little use.

With more than 2,000 protestors set to march on the Square Mile tomorrow I would just say that direct action does not necessarily lead to direct action – given the barrage of words Those of the Overblown Egos in the G20 are used to dealing with – maybe fight them at their own game. That soapbox is quite unsightly, let’s get back to the music…

Fight Like Apes // Dananananakroyd: Live at Camden Barfly

2009-03-26T16:17:00.003Z

There’s something about the Camden Barfly which makes you feel a bit like when you turn up at your Nan’s – it is a bit old and crusty but you know it can produce treats and has one hell of a history. Tonight XFM, the inconsistently excellent capital station which has birthed the likes of Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant and Steve Lamacq, host with its X-posure night. ShadowPlay bustles through the door just in time to spill some lager on new shoes, take up a position with said shoes locked to the floor, and still be blown away by Dananananakroyd. Well, kinda pushed a bit further back.

The Glasgow six-piece are full of such exuberance that, while other bands so in your face would be accused of arrogance, the youthful sextet prove merely endearing and, well, fucking tuneful. At times they step intothe realms of hardcore, some vocals barely distinguishable between that of a human voice and a shredder with a wadge of particularly guilty invoices. But for the most part they’re punk with great riffs, their determination to jump into the audience, make everyone hug each other in a barn dance style pair-off and make even the most cynical little faux-editor put a sweaty paw around a young man from battered Mars Bars Mecca. Glorious.

It says a lot about Fight Like Apes, having only just released their excellent debut album Fight Like Apes and Mystery of the Golden Medallion, that tonight the doors are locked tight shut as it’s a sell-out in some demand. Led by extreme-bonneted femme-fantastique ‘Mackay’ the Apes are a rare breed in being able to execute sarcasm and, strangely, not being cunts. So while they play up to tonight’s radio audience giving mums shout-outs and chastising all before them the Irish wizards underly this with a visceral, convincing display of brutal prowess. The genuine passion in this band bristles, even before amusing synth player Pockets (aided by a Gandolf the Grey-esque superfan) battles with his mic long enough to say he’s decided he is enjoying himself.

Fight Like Apes are in possession of some incredible tunes – Digifucker, the bellowed Lend Me Your Face and Lumpy Dough at a glance – which resonate around the small venue and are the main reason that most of those assembled were once failed beam away from finishing their pogoing in the bar below. The real belter tonight comes in the form of perfectly formed single Jake Summers in which Mackay shouts in her cheeky American-accent-tinged tone “hey, you, get some graceace, you’re driving miss daisy all over the place/ hey you you’re taking up space and you’re a fucking disappointment to the human race” – I love a singer who doesn’t mince their words and, in Mackay, the Apes’ adoring following have so much more.

February Reviews Round-Up

2009-03-26T16:13:00.002Z

So ShadowPlay’s first foray into Oh-Nine-Online comes in the form of our reviews collection, a chance to round-up and rinse out the music that’s been passing through the ever-changing letterbox of 1 ShadowPlay Street. Kicking off this month is Stonephace, I’m not sure when it became cool to replaced Fs with PHs or if it even ever has been but my guess is that the 24-year career of member Larry Stabbins who waqs in Working Week and has worked with Robert Wyatt, was in music at the time. This is a relaxed, spacey kinda record, beginning uptempo with inflections of jazzy sax before the sax takes hold and guides the record through its Sunday morning feel. Some offbeat electronica spices things up at time but for the most part its enjoyable if over-trippy fare from the Tru Thoughts act.

I’m not gunna lie, my thoughts on the new Sergeant Buzfuz record, High Slang, wasn’t heading towards the glowing fires of over-exuberant adjectives until it hit Cockney Rebel – a Camden-bashing, speedy chuntering piece of Wave Pictures-esque lyricism which elevates them beyond simply the Sheffield-origins and nice minimalist artwork which had previously counted in High Slang’s favour. It’s a really varied record, steering from Cockney Rebel’s cheeky charm to some genuinely beautiful instrumentation, investigate. I’m not sure I’ve ever used the phase, a French Tom Waits, before but it has to be applied in the case of Le Skeleton Band who’s broken strings and gravely tones do actually merit the high accolade. Entertaining, dirty fun throughout for Waits fans who want a little more of the great man’s irresistible style. This is stark contrast to Smilex who show no style in thrashing out seven screamed pieces of filthy Damned-style rock which doesn’t do a thing for me except to realise how many English words rhyme but are completely unrelated. Likewise imagine this but at the other end of the scale, Unfinished Drawings are a sappy, over-ambitious version of this but I don’t like ripping into small bands so I’ll leave it there. Again The Curfew’s intentions seem good with their new record Inside but it’s attempt at early 90s style Massive Attack style slow-beat soaring female vocals just turns into ten overly-long songs which don’t add anything to the musical sphere worth keeping once its gone. The same can bee said of 28 Costumes who’s album sampler does little to whet the appetite with repetitive and quite irritating shouting.

An altogether more sprightly album presents itself in the form of Navvy’s Idyll Intangible – a perfect collection of angular pop from the Sheffielders which keeps ears on tenderhooks and the mind on edge. They’ve definitely got something, punky charm or nice heavy harmonies. Watch this space, then grab it up. Another enjoyable effort this month is St Gregory Orange’s Things We Said in Bedrooms which sails along a sea of reverb with a kind of distance, unreal sound reminiscent of Winter North Atlantic with its Boards of Canada-lite ethos.

ShadowPlay favourites Le Reno Amps have returned with their beautiful brand of punch-drunk indie pop in the form of new record Tear It Open funded bizarrely enough by the Scottish Arts Council so I guess they must be contributing more than ace songs to society. Teaming up with Brakes’ Marc Beatty you can definitely see the Brighton bands influence on LRA with some electrifying thrashy fun and bizarreness. Pick this one up on release in March.

As far as singles go it’s a breathless one this time as Light Sleep/Heavy Dreams’ Leon Millar gets all home-studio-y with the minimal crunching excellence of WILD (Wake Initiation of Lucid Dreams), Depth Charge up the anti on that Mecha Squirrel finally getting a release in all its razor sharp glory – a triumph of samplin’n’dancin’ from ‘burbs to bars. Vile Imbeciles double A-side Tramp and Jennifer teaches us to make a guitar squeal in many ways and is value for money with a 30 minutes racket, I mean, b-side. A real gem comes in the form of Cuddly Shark’s Woody Woodpecker/ Bowl of Cherries double A with the former a glorious tribute to our little blue friend even including a ‘peck peck peck’ refrain while the latter tears through its two minutes with venom, a great little band. As are Kids Love Lies who’s debut single Count in My Headhas some topsy-turvy charm though steers a little close to the Winehouse wind at times. Another debut is Siegfriend Sassoon’s Muscle Beach which shows just that with angular harmonies, the flip features Laura Mary Carter of Blood Red Shoes fame. Wakefield label Philophobia is also releasing the Rocket Footage EP featuring the Lapels and the Sponge Wings in March with the former fun little faux-American jobbie and the latter reminiscent of something from a musical of Kate Thornton’s life, yep that good. Finally The Ironweed Project reminiscent of Chicken Legs Weaver’s raw croakiness and Tenek's Submission is a bit mid-80s and underwhelming in it’s overarching attempts to be dancey get epic. And where better place to leave you than Herman Dune who’ve released Try to Think About Me from Next Year in Zion, one of the best tunes from the record it is a surprisingly hopeful song for the Swedes who simply go from strength the strength as the years go by. See you again soon, keep stuffing those ears fulla music.

Psapp: Live at Cargo, 11/03/'09

2009-03-26T16:09:00.003Z

The audience rise as one as Psapp arrive on stage at Cargo, a venue which has long been a bastion for cutting edge music across all genres. And, despite the fact it’s largely because they have been mellow-ly, attentively waiting sat cross-legged on the concrete floor, you get the feeling Psapp have a standing ovation awaiting them from the start. Rarely does an act evoke such pure good feeling, without tipping over into anything sickly sweet, so instantly.

Lead singer Galia Durant displays an empathetic, shambolic charm throughout delving into a Poundland bag to supply the audience with sweets, toys and, bizarrely, vacuum packed pickles. Durrant’s bag of brilliance also features several medals (which may have been dog collars in a previous incarnation) which she readily dishes out. Unfortunately she gives the first out to one adoring fan, who sounds of Swedish origin, encouraging him to praise his parents in accepting the award only for the man to inform her that his father had died this year, a statement which leaves band and audience in slight shock until he sweetly states that his father would be enjoying the gig from heaven. A touching moment in an evening of similar emotions.
Material tonight comes largely from last year’s The Camel’s Back and 2006’s The Only Thing I Ever Wanted with delights such as Tricycle and The Monster Song enriching the quirky verve of the set. Typical eletronica style soundscapes are added to by much more natural sounds with Psapp – the two violin approach adds an immediacy to the tracks not found on record while made up instruments such as the boneafone, made up of bones procured from butchers by bluffing about non-existent dogs, add a 'unique' element to the night.

Last time Psapp did a gig in London Durant’s father got up and did a lecture on Darwinism and she baits her mother, in attendance, to talk on Middle East politics but in the end we get more soundscapes, more cats as instruments, kazoos and a farewell tinged with disappointment for fans who will have to wait till a sprog is popped before seeing the band in the capital again. Enjoy their increasingly illustrious back catalogue in the meantime.

ShadowPlay enters the nether regions...

2009-03-26T15:58:00.000Z

Hmm, ok. Well we've been heading this way for a while and updated the website has become far too convoluted in terms of space (online) and time (mine) in the last couple of years so in the name of productivity and getting more reviews and updates online as regularly as possible we turned to the lowest form of online posting...but after ditching Twitter ShadowPlay arrived here! Hope you enjoy the higher frequency and check back soon...

Love & Rockets,
Alex