Don't Calm Down

Those of you based in the UK will know that Liverpool is European Culture Capital this year and to celebrate this (whatever it actually is) I thought I’d stick up a quick little post in honour of our friends up North. I considered basing it around the city’s most famous sons, but you can probably get all The Coral songs you like elsewhere.

For some reason the late 70s and early 80s saw a Merseyside music scene born that, whilst not as commercially successful as the Merseybeat bands of the 60s, spawned many great bands in its own right. The rock family tree is pretty tortuous so I suggest the interested amongst you visit here to start with. This will give you a short article about the now legendary Crucial Three – a band famous for not actually recording anything (they were only together for about six weeks), but rather for their members who all went on to form astonishing bands. These were Julian Cope (The Teardrop Explodes), Ian McCulloch (Echo And The Bunnymen) and Pete Wylie (Wah!).

Click on the links and you’ll soon be lead all over the shop of this bizarrely productive period – for instance, if you click on The Teardrop Explodes you’ll then find that the band originally featured David Balfe (who later set up Food records of Blur etc fame), who also co-owned the Zoo record label with Bill Drummond, later of The KLF – who at that time played in Big In Japan, which also featured Holly Johnson (Frankie Goes To Hollywood) and Ian Broudie (The Lightning Seeds)… and so on. Give it a go - it’s great fun and almost certainly better than listening to Ringo Starr’s latest tune Liverpool 8, which rather heartbreakingly is absolute shite.

And now for three monumentally classic hits from the bands that came out of that Crucial Three.



Echo And The Bunnymen – The Cutter



The Teardrop Explodes – Treason (It’s Just A Story)



Wah! – Hope (I Wish You’d Believe Me)


You want more of course. Echos here, Teardrops here, Wah!s here. Ringo... no.


Crisp Debris


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The Difference Is Felt Rather Than Heard

It always pleases me when I find something that’s been around forever that I’ve never really heard of. I properly came across Rhys Chatham in an interview he did with Wire magazine last year - I say properly, because I’d heard his Drastic Classicism in amongst the maelstrom that is New York Noise Vol. 2, but such is the embarrassment of riches that plagues the entire series, I’d kind of missed it. So when he started going on in the interview about tuning pianos in seemingly arcane and mystical ways, knocking about with The Ramones and Sonic Youth, and writing music to be played by hundreds of electric guitars, I thought I’ll have to see what this bloke’s about.

The first challenge was finding something by him. As a rule, I don’t like to talk to people who work in record shops. It’s the classic reason why, and I know I should be better than that, but these people are pros, and I don’t try to compete. So it took a genuinely thorough ferret around the racks before I found Die Donnergotter, a compilation of instrumental pieces recorded between 1977 and 1986.

Prior to 1975, Chatham's output was mainly minimalistic, lengthy experimental stuff such as 1971’s Two Gongs, but after seeing The Ramones at CBGB’s, he started punking it up - that actually meant using electric guitars, a couple more chords than usual, and cutting song length to around 8 minutes, but compared to what went before, it was definitely punking it up.

Guitar Trio is as good an example of this revised approach as any – first put together in 1977, it’s probably his most well known piece. It might not have the unbridled fury and aggression of Drastic Classicism, but it seems to have become a real touchstone for modern music. So many musicians have played Guitar Trio with Chatham who have then gone on to be genuinely creative or influential, it’s almost like a proving ground or graduation ceremony. Even until recently, Guitar Trio has been taken around the world, played with local guitarists wherever it appears.



Rhys Chatham – Guitar Trio


I was going to post Drastic Classicism as well (which you can probably find out there somewhere), but I’ve changed my mind. I mentioned to Cox earlier in the week that I wouldn’t be posting any of Chatham’s longer stuff unless I was feeling particularly pretentious, but I’ve changed my mind. And it’s not because I’m feeling pretentious, but because I want to give a decent idea of what he's about. If punk had an effect on him and it was long lasting, it was in sound and approach, and was always tempered by his classical roots.

Die Donnergotter was recorded in 1986, and whilst you can see the connection with Guitar Trio, it’s more drawn out and certainly not as frantic. It sees a return to the kind of minimalist ideas of repetitive rhythms and playing, leading to almost hypnotic passages that take long minutes to break – but when they do, the single chord change is all the more anticipated and beautiful - it’s almost a test of duration and patience.



Rhys Chatham – Die Donnergotter


In 2005 Chatham performed A Crimson Grail with 400 guitarists in Paris – part of which can be found at Motel De Moka. It possibly signalled the end of 30 years of gradual progression and expansion, as his latest project Essentialist has seen him form a genuine band with just four other musicians, and go back to the beginning. The beauty of A Crimson Grail is undeniable, but it seems to have been as far as it's possible to go – whether it’s the sheer scale, the logistics, the possibilities, the expectation - the next step on from there has completed the circle back to 1975.

Essentialist are due to release an album this year on Table Of The Elements, where you can also find Two Gongs, Die Donnergotter and A Crimson Grail.


Tiny Dancer


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You’re Messing With My Art

The Tiny Dancing team were all out in force last Thursday to see the very lovely Jim Noir play us some very lovely songs at The Borderline. If Jim hasn’t yet crossed your path, I can do no better job of describing his music than the two quotes on the sticker that comes on his debut Tower Of Love album (really a collection of his first 3 EP’s) – "Sun dappled soft psyche…irresistible"... "Luscious but simple... sure to bring a smile to the face". It’s got a hint of 60’s psychedelia, a touch of the Super Furry Animals (who he recently supported) and a dab of good old fashioned English whimsy.

Jim ambled on to the stage sporting a bobble hat and guitar and announced straight off the bat that he hadn’t played with the band for a while so they might be a bit rusty... but no-one minded; part of the gig’s charm was its slightly shambolic nature. The Borderline is a fairly ‘intimate’ venue, only holding a couple of hundred people, so it’s a bit like having your funny mate round to your house to play some nice tunes.

The gig seemed mostly a chance to try out new material from the forthcoming proper album – I quite like gigs like these; even though the audience doesn’t know most of the material we felt kinda privileged to be the first to hear it. They kicked off with recent(ish) single All Right, which features some nice vocoder action, and moved through some new stuff – all interspersed with some merry Mancunian banter and the frequent sight of Jim turning to his band and asking them what exactly it was that he was supposed to be playing next – but rather sweetly ("Come on then, let’s get this over with...") didn’t neglect to include Eanie Meany, his biggest hit following its use on a certain sportswear giants advert a couple of years back.

After about ten songs they wrapped things up ("this is our last song tonight… no, really... it’s the last one, we haven’t got any more...") and got a well deserved five minutes of applause and entreaties from the crowd for an encore, but alas it was not to be and I drifted into the cold London night warmed only by the memory of the night and several glasses of rum. Jim is nothing if not generous though, and you can go to the media section of his new website here and watch the brilliant video for All Right, plus My Patch, Eanie Meany, Key Of C and more. Not only that but All Right is being streamed on his myspace and is available for download for a reasonable sum from the usual places.

In the meantime here are two of my favourites from Tower Of Love to get you in the mood, Key Of C and the eponymous title track, which is particularly gorgeous I think you’ll find. Once you’ve been convinced that owning the album will brighten your life, get it from here.



Jim Noir – Key Of C

Jim Noir – Tower Of Love


Finally a mention of the slightly bizarre fact that having studiously avoided going to any of my mate Steve’s gigs for the best part of 4 years, it turned out after I’d bought the Jim Noir tickets that his band were supporting him. I won’t review them because I don’t want to be accused of nepotism but I will mention that a quick chat soon revealed that Mr Noir’s bonhomie is no stage act. "What’s he like backstage?" asked I. "Lovely bloke" came the reply.


Crisp Debris


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Love – Part Two: I Don’t Even Think of You That Often...

Seeing as nearly a month has passed since I put up a selection of love songs for those of you who needed help with a little wooing, it’s probably time to try and help you thorough what is probably by now the inevitable break-up. I feel responsible.

There are as many kinds of break-up songs as there are reasons for break-ups so I’m not going to be able to satisfy every punter here, however I shall do my best. You should look forward to this as there’s nothing that alternative music does better than a good break-up song and there are some real classics here...

First up is Favorite T by The Lemonheads. This is you as road-kill. They’ve dumped you for someone else and you’re left ruined in the corner hugging the tee-shirt that they used to wear. But there’s hope, by the end Evan Dando seems to be pulling himself out of it.

Fill in the shadows of a certain corner
You used to sit there
Got me a brand new lamp, plugged it in
And now the dark don’t fit there

Now, I’m not saying that Evan is a good example in this matter. As much as I love him (and I love him very much), I suspect he can be a tad fickle with his affections. However, it’s always good to hear examples of people who have walked through the shadows and dragged themselves out. This song is on Come On Feel The Lemonheads which is a very fine album indeed - get it from here. I’ve seen Mr Dando play many a time and although I think he’s probably done every other Lemonheads song but this one, next time he’s in town go and see him as he never disappoints. That voice just does not fade.



Lemonheads – Favorite T


Now our next case is Mr Elliot Smith with Somebody That I Used To Know. This really reminds me of For No One by The Beatles and is as good, if not better; which I do not say lightly. This is someone who has been dumped and is a little... resentful about it. Is there a greater line to say to someone who has hurt you than "You’re just somebody that I used to know". It’s a "fuck you" but through tears and gritted teeth. The brilliance is in not being sure if he’s saying it to her or if it’s how he feels that she now thinks of him.

I had tender feelings that you made hard
But it's your heart, not mine, that's scarred
So when I go home, I'll be happy to go
You're just somebody that I used to know

Man... I could do the whole blog about this song. I haven’t even mentioned the guitar playing which is in itself wonderful, but move on we must. The album this comes from is called Figure 8 and I only discovered it recently. It’s certainly the best thing I bought last year and I can heartily recommend it. Poor sad Elliott... Maybe at some point I’ll put up Son Of Sam and Everything Reminds Me Of Her off of it in case you need further convincing to buy it.



Elliott Smith – Somebody That I Used To Know


Scott Walker is up next with a love that seems to have ended some time ago but he can’t move on. Every lover gets compared to her and what they had together. It happens sometimes I’m afraid; we’ve all been there for a time at least. Maybe there are some you never get over.

When you kissed my eyes awake
Running mornings crowded streets
Just to find we've missed our bus
But we'd laugh, kiss, what the hell

It’s off the album Scott, which I think is underrated; sure, it’s got a couple of fillers but overall it certainly approaches the greatness of the other 3 in the Scott Quartet. Buy them all.



Scott Walker – Always Coming Back To You


Finally I’m going to leave you with First Girl I Loved by The Incredible String Band. This is from The 5000 Spirits album which gets compared a lot to Sgt Pepper and Forever Changes etc due to coming out at pretty much the same time. It’s nowhere near as accessible as them, but if you can deal with trippy hippy folk excesses then this is the album for you.

After the fatalism of the Scott song this one offers a little bit of hope that someone else will come along that helps you beyond it. When I was in my teens this was one of my favourite songs but it only grows in poignancy as I get older. It’s about looking back on a relationship that went wrong, probably through your own doing, and coming to terms with it. It’s got a melancholy sound but you know that he just misses her a little and that it doesn’t really hurt too much any more. It’s about moving on, which is what we all must do lest we end up like poor Elliott. Good luck.

So its goodbye first love and I hope you're fine
Well, I have a sweet woman
Maybe someday to have babies by me
She is pretty
She’s a true friend of mine



The Incredible String Band – First Girl I Loved


Ricky Stardust


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The Seven Deadly Sins Of Tiny Dancing - Part Two: Greed

Dancer: Outside of the heady world of 'big business' (which being a simple man I don’t really do the understanding of) are there any better king sized bedfellows than music and greed? You can keep your claims about artistic integrity and doing it for the kids, I’m not interested – it’s all about the money.

What was Robert Johnson after when he sold the devil his soul? Money. Make me the best guitar player in the world, and I’ll make a fortune. Simple. Should have read the small print, but there you go.

The Rolling Stones, even when Andrew Loog-Oldham was making them look dirty and swarthy at the Crawdaddy Club, they were in it for the money. 40 years on, they embark on Saga tour after Saga tour, each one setting the record for the most money made ever. Then, they re-invent the rules on avoiding any kind of tax, stock pile mountains of cash that would make a lot of small countries wince, and plainly refuse to write anything any good ever again.

Lars Ulrich – dear, dear, furious Lars. Unless you’re paying stupid amounts of money for a huge selling album which costs the company about 20p to put out, he will happily destroy your life. Actually, he might have calmed down a little bit, after selling his private art collection for millions and millions of dollars a few years ago. Probably not. He probably needs to buy a new jet or something.

EMI satiate the huge appetites for wealth that their massively ego’d artists cultivate, forgetting that maybe they’re not actually all that good in real life, leaving them vulnerable to a sharking private equity firm, prompting said artists to revolt, claiming they’re not going to work for a company that doesn’t understand the music. That would be the same artists that made the same stupid demands of the same stupid executives in the first place, plunging the company into disarray, and forcing huge redundancies onto the plebs? Just wanted to make sure I was on the right track there.

Money fuelled excess traces a slimy path throughout the history of modern music, from the super groups of the 60s and 70s, to the rock geniuses of the 80s, the rap stars of the 90s. Where does it all stop? Well, it could be here. The futureweb, and all that. But probably not. Whatever anyone ever says, it’s not about the music. Not completely anyway.

So, all that said and done, I need to present you with a song. I’ve been struggling a bit here without being completely obvious - we decided no Floyd and no ABBA - but I’ve come up with this. Sampling Jay-Z and The Beatles without even asking (shocking), infuriating music executives (for shame) and given away for absolutely nothing (disgraceful), The Grey Album is perhaps a rare example of music for music sake, promoting everything that the industry hates because it takes money out of their pockets.

Sorry Lars. Really.



Danger Mouse – 99 Problems


Stardust: There’s nothing worse than a miserly hippy. Rock Stars whining about money in general is not an attractive proposition; but it’s even worse if they’re hippies. One thinks of George Harrison whinging about how he’s being robbed blind on Taxman. Yes George, isn’t it terrible that the government is redistributing your wealth to the poor and needy when you really, really, really want that diamond encrusted sitar from Tiffany’s so you can write another dull as dishwater pompous and pontificating song about how we’re all too blind to see what life is really all about. It calls to mind the lyrics of The Kink’s Sunny Afternoon which is a much more charming and tongue in cheek muse on the subject (as you’d expect from Ray Davies).

The taxman's taken all my dough
And left me in my stately home
Lazin' on a sunny afternoon.
And I can't sail my yacht
He's taken ev'rything I've got;
All I've got's this sunny afternoon

Which brings me to the subject of Moz who most certainly couldn’t be accused of being a hippy. I was watching a Chris Rock stand-up show the other day where he was going through a list of all the celebrities that he was "Done With". Michael Jackson for there being ANOTHER boy; Janet Jackson for getting a 40 year old titty out in the afternoon; R Kelly for denying it was him in the video ("We KNOW what you look like!"). I’m sad to say that I think I’m Done With Moz. I don’t want to get too much into the political issues as I haven’t read exactly what he said but for it to happen a second time that he’s accused of racism is getting into Jacko territory. Should a man whose family is originally from Ireland and has himself actually emigrated to America and Italy be complaining about immigration..? But like I say, I haven’t read exactly what he said and I don’t really want to read it. We forgave the first time because we trusted you but if you really do think that then just don’t answer the question Morrissey!!!!

However, we’re here today to discuss greed and I’m afraid Morrissey and money are not too good a combination either. Anyone who loved The Smiths would have found all the issues regarding the treatment financially of Joyce and Rourke uncomfortable reading. Is it right that they should only receive 10% each of royalties (outside of publishing rights)? I don’t know, but whatever the rights and wrongs there’s no disguising that Morrissey in particular did not come across in the way those of us who hero worshipped him would have liked. The irony though is that what I believe to be one of his finest songs seems to heavily reference the issue. It’s called Why Don’t You Find Out For Yourself and it’s on Vauxhall And I.

Some men here
They have a special interest in your career
They want to help you to grow
And then siphon all your dough

The album came out during the arse end of the Britpop period and instead of being heralded as the master coming back to show his pupils how it’s done, it was lost amongst the younger, shriller voices of the time. It’s a shame as I think it’s his best solo work and as I get older and my concerns change I find that I prefer it to any of The Smiths albums as well. Buy the album here and don’t read any more interviews.



Morrissey – Why Don’t You Find Out For Yourself?


Debris: I’ve got the brains / You’ve got the looks / Let’s make lots of money

So sang the Pet Shop Boys on their classic anti-Thatcherism hit Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots Of Money). The thing I love about this song – apart from the fact that it’s a great tune – is that even though we all know it’s a critique of the greed inherent in the late 1980s finance culture, it isn’t actually explicitly stated that way in the lyrics themselves. In essence, we have to infer the irony simply from the fact that we know Neil Tennant is a bit lefty. Genius.

Also, I find myself strangely attracted to the offers we are being made in this song:

Ask yourself this question / Do you want to be rich?

I’m looking for a partner / Regardless of expense

Is it wrong that I’m tempted to join this silver-tongued city wideboy? My god – am I a yuppie?

There’s a lot of opportunities / If you know when to take them



Pet Shop Boys - Opportunities (Let's Make Lots Of Money)


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Novocastrian Mystery Tour

The more observant among you might recall my recent nervous disposition at the lack of NEW! and EXCITING! music I’d been coming across lately, that was happily assuaged by Teeth Mountain and their regimented lunacy. The truly intuitive among you might have picked up the undertone of desperation that showed through the cracks in my cheery demeanour – for I will only be satisfied for so long.

How pleasing for all involved then, that mere hours after that post went up the Guessmen should appear with a claim that they were just what was needed to help me make it though the cold, cold nights. ‘Very bold’ thought I, with the merest hint of colour rising to my cheek.

Now, I’m always happy when people get in touch to suggest we might want to feature their music - it’s the best thing about this entire malarkey probably - but alas it doesn’t always work out as we might hope. In our youth we might have been a little less choosey, a little more free with our affections, but experience has shown us it’s not always so simple, and so we pick our targets a little more carefully these days. Well, most of us anyway.

So – my blush of anticipation was tempered with the trepidation of past disappointment as I looked them up to see exactly what is was that they were offering - as it turns out, pretty much everything.

Their myspace has some full tracks from new album Back From The Bins, which they were kind enough to send me a copy of - at first, you might presume they’re a bunch of Beefheart-inspired-blues-filth-synth merchants, due to the bellowing fuzz of lead track Animal Man Robot and second track Troglodyte.



Guessmen - Troglodyte


Once into the album though, about halfway through they start veering all over the place - Warning and it’s building, almost Aphexish ambient-twitch signals the start of a free for all.



Guessmen - Warning


A couple of nicely messy interludes could have probably progressed beyond their 90 seconds - but when they do push one a bit further, on future single Black Balloons, it gets scrubbed clean by a shiny 4:4 beat, and it loses a bit of it’s original intent. Towards the end, a couple of slower songs wander into view, one of which keeps making me thinking of a Faithless track, leaving me feeling a bit soiled.

For me, it’s when they bring on the dirt and noise and do something unexpected that they’re at their best, and fortunately that’s the random ground where most of the album sits.



Guessmen - Under Rocks & Stones


They play in their homeland of Newcastle a fair bit (at The Cumberland Arms on the 20th of January and Newcastle University on the 9th of February), but for those of you elsewhere who want to be taken on the Guessmen mystery tour, you can pick up Back From The Bins from here when it comes out on the 28th of January.


Tiny Dancer


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So Good They Recorded It Twice - Part 1

What’s better than falling in love with a great song? Why, falling in love with it twice of course.

Every now and then an artist will decide that the great new tune they’ve just knocked out is too good to only be featured on their album once and record two different versions. For us humble punters this is the aural equivalent of being passionately kissed by blonde twins, one after the other. Or so I imagine.

Mr David Bowie opened the album Scary Monsters And Super Creeps with a mad screaming vocal on It’s No Game (Part 1), then did it again with a smooth croon at the end with Part 2. I’ve been listening to this album for 20 years or so and I still can’t decide which version I prefer. Get the album from here, make your mind up for yourself.



David Bowie - It's No Game (Part 1)

David Bowie - It's No Game (Part 2)


On Music From Films Mr Brian Eno gave us the haunting, unsettling piano drop of Sparrowfall (1). He then gave us the pulsing, surging synth push of Sparrowfall (2). Stick ‘em together and you get the damn near orchestral surge of Sparrowfall (3). To the best of my knowledge (please correct me if I am wrong) this music was never used on any film work in the end, but it would have sounded brilliant in some moody drama or other. I might phone Brian up and ask him if he wouldn’t mind me using it for my new short film about blonde twins. Get the album here.



Brian Eno - Sparrowfall (1)

Brian Eno - Sparrowfall (2)

Brian Eno - Sparrowfall (3)


Associates kicked off their 1981 synth classic album Fourth Drawer Down with White Car In Germany, a song of a) complete brilliance and b) complete madness. They then recorded an instrumental version – An Even Whiter Car – and stuck it near the end. For my money, the Even Whiter... version is darker than the original which is pretty impressive really as Billy Mackenzie’s extraordinary vocals are hardly chirpy... Get the album here in a nice double up with Sulk.



Associates - White Car In Germany

Associates - An Even Whiter Car


That’s enough of that for now – we’ve got some more examples lined up but if you have any suggestions of your own please let us know in a comment or an email or something. Remember though – both versions of the song must appear on the same album.


Crisp Debris


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