Ahead of the December 6th release of their new album Jump, Paul Vickers and The Leg have unveiled the first single and video from the album.
Released on Tenement Records (who have also given us releases by Aberfeldy, George McFall and Dominic Waxing Lyrical), if you’ve never heard the band reassembled from the ashes of Dawn of The Replicants the first single is an excellent place to start. ‘Chieftain Of Paradise‘ manages to sound like a slightly sinister knees-up and a call to arms. No mean feat, I think you’ll agree. A couple of plays and it is very pleasantly wedged into your brain.
The video is cheerfully bonkers and great fun. The first verse drops clues about early Elvis Presley singles with hands holding up singles to drop clues. I can’t work out if this was low-budget or not, but it’s wonderful to have a single that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Mappe Of -‘The Isle Of Ailynn.’ (Paper Bag Records)
Mappe Of is the moniker of Canadian avant-folk artist Tom Meikle. On this, his second album he sets out to document a fantasy world that draws parallels between a mythological space and everyday conflicts, concerns and struggles within our lives. While that might sound on paper like the sort of stuff that punk rock came to save us from a little over forty years ago, this is no prog-folk monstrosity, but rather a thing of beauty. I come not to bury brother Meikle but to praise him.
Moodwise, it’s absolutely perfect for this time of year in the northern hemisphere. Daylight is becoming progressively more and more scarce, and the sense that nothing is permanent becomes ever more prevalent. Were it not for the fact it’s so damn cold here in Scotland, I’d be using this as the soundtrack to walk barefoot through autumn leaves and treasuring what remains outside. I’ll just have to wrap up warm – but this warms the soul.
Comparisons have been made with the likes of Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes, the sense of the very sad being absolutely beautiful. While it sounds nothing like Mogwai in full-on explosive mode, it does capture a lot of their magnificent melancholia. At times his voice reminds me of Tim and Jeff Buckley, perhaps most on ‘Thessalon’ and the fragility of music evokes Vashti Bunyan or Mercury Rev circa Deserter’s Songs. Yes it’s ethereal in places, and electronic in others – the juxtaposition on ‘Unkno’ (no, that’s really not a spelling mistake) is particularly successful. Voices sore like church choirs (as opposed to Gospel choirs), both evoking death and life.
‘Volcae’ evokes Radiohead as much as the Buckleys; with its refrain of ‘I was born in magma’ it evokes both Meikle’s beloved fantasy writing as much as reflecting on the turbulent world that the first two decades of the twenty-first century have been. Pan’s Labyrinth made the viewer try to make sense of the fantasy and reality and what was really stranger; this works on a similar level.
At this time of year, the music writer finds themselves drawn to consider end of year (and decade) lists. I hope this will manage to make itself known to those who can spread the word as much as listeners. While the music within here may not appeal to all, those who take the time to live within the album will want to spread the word. If you cast aside your prejudices, you will find yourself rewarded. If folk, prog, psychedelia or ethereal sounds have ever moved you, then take the time to investigate this. There’s scarcely a wasted note within.
****
The Isle Of Ailynn is released on November 1 on Paper Bag Records.
Most music nuts will have a list of acts that, past or present, they feel should have a far higher profile. The German philosopher Gottfried Liebniz may have argued that we live in the best of all possible worlds, but he wasn’t a music journalist. One of the acts that should have had a far higher profile are, of course, Spearmint, a band who paid tribute to this on their seminal early single ‘Sweeping The Nation.’ That was over twenty years ago, and Spearmint continue to make awesome records. Sure they still have day jobs – but one of the things about releasing your own records is that you don’t have to worry about A&R men (and they usually are men, let’s be fair) muttering about not hearing a single or it having to be remixed for the American market.
Over the course of twelve songs on a 45 minute album, frontman Shirley Lee and his merry men demonstrate just how great they are at writing songs. Sure they’ve been linked with the indiepop movement, but there’s a lot of soul and disco influences on this album, too. Not in a ‘there’s always been a dance element to our music…erm, honest’ sort of way, but in a way that feels totally natural and honest.
Album opener ’24 Hours in A & E’ sets the tone, with its use of strings, not as window-dressing or ‘let’s get on Radio 2’ but as soul and disco do, to increase the urgency and passion, mixing gorgeously with a wah-wah guitar. ‘Senseless’ evokes Orange Juice’s comment that they wanted to mix the Velvet Underground with Chic and runs with it. It also features the immortal line ‘you wouldn’t give away your mint original pressing of ‘(White Man In) Hammersmith Palais’ would you?’ amongst all the rhetorical questions posed within. Other tracks that seek to bring the album onto the dancefloor are ‘St. Thomas In The Darkness’ and closer ‘It Won’t Happen To Me’ the latter with reflections on all the things that Shirley thought…well, you get the picture.
The album title comes from the second track ‘Pick The Papers Up.’ ‘I’m sick of hate being put in front of me’ sings Shirley and it’s impossible not to sympathise, especially if you live in the UK. Singling out The Sun, Daily Mail and Daily Express for particular criticism, Lee has explained that ‘The title refers to the younger folk, who will see a future that I won’t. I can only apologise for what my generation and the baby boomers are passing on – the sooner the current teens and twenty-somethings are running the world the better, as far as I’m concerned.’ How much does that some up the present here in the UK?
So sure, they still seem to be a (frustratingly) well kept secret. But as someone who receives more albums to review than can possibly be heard or written about, this is one that got played frequently in the runup to writing the review. I’m likely to continue doing so, as it’s one of the best albums of the year…
****1/2
Are You From The Future? is released on hitBACK on November 1.
Looking for a perfect present for the Go-Betweens’ fan in your life? Well, December 6 will see the release of a fantastic box set entitled G Stands For Go-Betweens Volume 2, which is a sequel to the first volume. It gathers together their albums Liberty Belle And The Black Diamond Express, Tallulah & 16 Lovers Lane. But there’s so much more, so check out the details here.
So why not whet your appetite with some videos from the period? The reality is the band should have been bigger, but hey ho…
The word ‘celebration’ in the title should not be underestimated. As Broken Records’ Jamie Sutherland explains to the crowd, it’s about celebrating the life and music of Elliott Smith. Smith tragically died fifteen years ago this week. It’s a link with another musician closer to home, Frightened Rabbit’s Scott Hutchison who died last year and in whose name Tiny Changes was set up. The night is a celebration of Smith’s work and a reminder of just how much great music making goes on in Scotland. Oh, and of course, twenty-one years since the fabulous XO album was released.
Sadly, your humble scribe was making his way from another event and wasn’t able to be there for the start. But an event that included Matt Norris, Kid Canaveral and eaglowl is pretty much guaranteed to be good. We made our way up the stairs as a gorgeous version of ‘Thirteen’ floated through the building. This song, originally performed by Big Star was covered by Smith and the frailty of his version helped him make the song his own (for those looking for other heart-rending versions of Big Star songs, may I suggest Yo La Tengo’s version of ‘Take Care’).
The concert that I witnessed was fantastic. Siobhan Wilson, who has released two highly regarded albums There Are No Saints and The Departure was absolutely beguiling. Accompanied by Broken Records’ Ian Turnbull on guitar while she sang and played piano, it was the reminder that you can get at events like this that you have to investigate the artist concerned further.
Jamie Sutherland performed ‘Waltz #2’ and ‘Between The Bars.’ A stunning stripped down performance, it begs the question why, a decade into their recording career, have Broken Records not been given the exposure and recognition they so richly deserve? Certainly, this blog has long championed him and his band.
Still, one of the night’s surprise guests can tell the world about profiles being raised over a period of decades. Rachel Sermanni had to pull out but the legendary Vashti Bunyan takes her place. Ms. Bunyan seems very nervous but accompanied by Messrs Sutherland and Turnbull gives us a lovely rendition of ‘Pitseleh.’
The evening’s highlight for me was James Yorkston. Accompanied by violinist Aidan O’Rourke, he closed the event with distinctive versions of ‘No Name #1,’ ‘Roman Candle’ and finally ‘Miss Misery.’ In true Yorkston style, he recounts a story of meeting Smith backstage at a gig and Smith telling him to perform ‘Roman Candle’ at the memorial gig, in the style of the Doctor Who theme. It’s a wonderful idea…
A few weeks ago, I wrote about Leonard Cohen’s new album, Thanks For The Memories. It’s released on November 22. Today the video for the opening track and first single proper from the album ‘Happens To The Heart’ has been released.
While I realise some people can get worried about posthumous albums, in that they fear it may not be as the artist intended, this is a sure sign that Thanks For The Memories will be absolutely brilliant. To these ears it sounds like prime Cohen.
Sit back and enjoy…
…and as a wee bonus, this rather fantastic version of Cohen’s ‘The Future’ arrived in my inbox yesterday. It’s by Brooklyn act Guiding Light, who are a new name to me, but this is worth the six minutes of your time.
A street photograph of a Harlem Motorcycle Gang, photographed in New York City, USA for Queen magazine, 1959.
The Motorcycle Boy – ‘Scarlet.’ (Forgotten Astronaut Records)
There’s no shortage of records that we have had to wait an aeon for. Through my teenage years, it was The Stone Roses’ Second Coming which took five years to follow-up their self-titled debut, and then as I got older it was the dozen years that went by before Kate Bush finally released Aerial, the follow-up to 1993’s The Red Shoes.
But there are, also, those records that sit in the vaults, while rumours circulate, and bootlegs may issue forth. So let’s take a brief step back…In 1985, contemporaries of the Jesus & Mary Chain, Meat Whiplash, took their name from a Fire Engines b-side and released their one and only single ‘Don’t Slip Up‘ on the legendary Creation record label. Meanwhile, over in Edinburgh, there was a band called The Shop Assistants, who were fronted by one Alex Taylor. After the band released their only album, Will Anything Happen she left to join up with the members of Meat Whiplash and guitarist David Scott and The Motorcycle Boy was born.
Of course, this should have been the start of something brilliant. In a way, it did start brilliantly. The band debuted with a cracking single ‘Big Rock Candy Mountain‘ which made the Peel Festive Fifty and saw them get an NME cover. They signed to Chrysalis, but sadly, momentum got lost, and while a couple of singles were released in 1989, the album that got recorded was never released…until now. But with an interest in indie guitar pop always bubbling away under the surface, the band haven’t been forgotten, and the release of the album has certainly piqued the interest of many.
So what does the record actually sound like? Album opener ‘Hey Mama’ is dancey, and dallies with the sounds that were emerging out of the dance scene, involves sequencers and keyboards. ‘Valentine’ is that underrated point where shoegazing meets c-86, and ‘World Falls Into Place’ is that gorgeous sixties influence that had such an influence over many of the 80s indie bands (while we’re at it, I genuinely think the first c-86 record may well have been The Byrds version of ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’). Oh, and if you’ve never heard it before, ‘Big Rock Candy Mountain’ is here, too. It should have been filling up indie dancefloors for the last thirty years, and hopefully it now will do, too. Historically, it belongs with a whole host of bands that decimated the charts like Primal Scream and the aforementioned Mary Chain, the cult heroes The Pastels and the criminally underrated Jesse Garon and the Desperadoes.
It’s great, too, that the last two tracks on the album are an unreleased single ‘Sweet Dreams Pretty Baby’ and ‘Days Like These.’ If you look up the band’s releases on Discogs or Wiki you can see that there are other versions and recordings that could have filled an entire second disc. In the meantime, celebrate the fact that this release has finally seen the light of day, and check out the other bands on the family tree.
****
Scarlet is released on Forgotten Astronaut Records on October 25.
I’ve just returned from a trip to London, and inevitably, there was a bit of record buying. For the first time in many years, I’ve actually started buying CDs again – you can pick up some great stuff in charity shops for as little as a pound – and often a lot less. Why would I buy CDs when I prefer vinyl or I could stream it? Firstly, because there are albums you can pick up for the price of half a coffee that will cost fifty times that on vinyl (and I do have other commitments apart from expanding my music collection). Secondly, because not every album ever made is on streaming services and thirdly, because I don’t have a car that stream music either. Today I have been rediscovering David Holmes’ This Films Crap Lets Slash The Seats (sic).
Of course, I also picked up some vinyl, and while I can’t believe it’s seven years since this came out, I was thrilled to finally own Bobby Womack’s final studio album, The Bravest Man In The Universe on vinyl. Enjoy!
So…we’re into autumn here, and in Scotland that means that it’s getting cold, wetter than normal, and more significantly, grey.
But what better than a (musical) ray of sunshine from one of 17 Seconds’ favourite cities in the world, Melbourne, Australia? Emma Russack and Lachlan Denton will release their third album together on October 19, entitled Take The Reigns, and the three tracks here on their Bandcamp are absolutely fabulous. That gorgeous Aussie accent reminds me of Frente! and Courtney Barnett.
I knew absolutely nothing about them (though you can read an interview here) and the music speaks absolutely perfectly for itself. Give these three tracks a listen, I’m off to beg for an advance copy of the album! If you’re pushed for time ‘Catch’ is the highlight.
