Old Indie Kid's Mixtape Oct 2020

The Prologue ... 

There are plenty of indie rock n roll recommendations in my monthly round up that I have discovered over on the Bandcamp site.  I have included links below so you can support the emerging bands during these troubled times.  Last week I was gutted when another talented young musician Joe Astley put his music career on hold given he couldn't secure gigs under the lockdown restrictions.  Joe says he plans to come back with a vengeance when the pandemic is over but it is another reminder that bands need music fans support more than ever before.  If you've got some spare cash then you can help them with some physical sales.  Crank up this Spotify playlist and then read on...    

Old Indie Kid's Mixtape Oct 2020 Spotify Playlist 

1) Fracture by Flip Fantazia

Douglas & Tim from Flip Fantazia presumably lifted their name from the lyrics of the Canterloop single by 90's acid jazz hip hop group Us3.  In May 2020 Flip Fantazia released their top notch electronic psychedelic debut album which is a real pleasure to listen to in full and each track wanders in a different direction without disintegrating.  Go and buy yourself a digital or limited edition vinyl copy from their Bandcamp page. flipfantazia.bandcamp.com  The downbeat disco track I've selected to open this month's playlist would fit neatly on Air's Moon Safari.  

2) Low Sun (Space_Kid Remix) by Moonlight Parade

Moonlight Parade's mate - the mysterious Space_Kid strikes again with his fourth remix of the band.  The first three were brilliant so my hopes were high for this remix and it doesn't disappoint.  Some of Space_Kid's previous remixes can be found here... moonlightparade1.bandcamp.com

3) Classic Weekender by Sterling

Debut single from Manchester's Sterling celebrating the joys of getting wasted all weekend.  Personally I'm at the getting up early to drive to kid's sport stage of my life so classic weekenders are few and far between for me but I have fond hazy recollections. Still classic weekenders are still popular and available (subject to local lockdown restrictions).

4) Valleys by Working Men's Club 

I only discovered Working Men's Club last week on Bandcamp but I am fascinated with their sound.  They have released a handful of singles over the last two years and their debut album is out on 1st October.  Imagine Joy Division fronted by Mark E. Smith mixing post-punk with dance music. If you imagined New Order I don't blame you but listen to their songs as my words don't do them justice.   workingmensclub.bandcamp.com

5) Glyn by Polyhymns

Polyhyms describe themselves as a mix of folk pop and electronica.  This organ based instrumental track reminds me of the type of cut we used to get from The Charlatans during the Rob Collins era. polyhymns.bandcamp.com

6) The Game of Love by Crimson Bloom

Crimson Bloom have just released the shimmering Chasing Gold song as a new single, but as I'm so cutting edge I included it on last month's blog.  Instead I want to draw your attention to The Game of Love from their second album Finer Times In Other Worlds.  It features menacing hushed vocals delivered over a chilled funky baggy jam.   Do yourself a favour and pick up both Crimson Bloom albums from Bandcamp.  crimsonbloom.bandcamp.com  

 7) One of These Days by Thrillhouse 

Brighton's Thrillhouse like to protect their identity by blurring their faces on promotional photos.  Then they admitted it allows them to pretend to be younger and more handsome.  A strategy I may adopt myself.  Thrillhouse are a fantastic band with five singles under their belt.  One of These Days was their debut. 

8) Get Ready by The Skints

I've loved The Skints for several years now and after hearing Get Ready, the latest single from this  London reggae band, I discovered it was a cover.  The original was released in 96 by the Californian band Sublime.  I wasn't aware of Sublime's existence until now but they made some interesting music mixing reggae, ska, hip hop, punk and surf rock.  Sublime and The Skints are both worth further investigation if you enjoy your reggae.  the-skints.bandcamp.com

9) Evacuate by The Shop Window  

Based in Maidstone, the Shop Window sing a song about setting down roots after many years living in different cities.  Their advice is to "Evacuate this anxious state and keep calm".  My advice is listen to their four singles on  theshopwindow.bandcamp.com  

     

10) Loving Only Gets You Down by Little Strange

Little Strange are yet another Manchester band and this track has a pleasing glam rock stomp to it.  I have been playing this regularly for about three months and it still sounds fresh to my ears.  

11) Weight of the World by GreenCircles

GreenCircles are another of my favourite acts discovered this year.  Weight of the World is taken from the Start Again EP.  Start Again and all previous singles (including some exclusives) can be found here   greencircles1.bandcamp.com  This haunting arrangement of a tender song is reminiscent of an early Smiths records.

12) Get Rid by Liam Hillyer

Speaking of The Smiths, Widnes songwriter Liam Hillyer does an excellent cover version of Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want which he says is his favourite song of all time.  Liam has just released the more rocky Get Rid as the follow up to Marquee. 

13) Bring Me Love by The Heavy North

Soulful blues rockers The Heavy North are, as the name implies, both Heavy and Northern.  What more do you need to know?  Play it, dig it and buy it here...  theheavynorth.bandcamp.com

   

14) Shivers by Thom Southern

Irish rocker Thom Southern's debut single is a catchy anthem and drenched in layered guitars.  I heard a snippet of an acoustic version of Shivers and  hope he releases the full acoustic version sometime.  Apparently Thom is the brother of Lucy Gaffney who has featured several times on my monthly playlists this year.  I'm looking forward to hearing more from this talented family.  

15) Everything Is An Attempt To Be Human by Afflecks Palace

The fourth, final and title track from their second EP.  They formed as a Stone Roses tribute band, but have emerged as a quality band penning their own original tunes.  Afflecks Palace have released 8 songs so far and all are brilliant.            

16) Love Comes In Waves by Andy Bell  

Hypnotic chiming guitars and a wonderful song taken from the forthcoming debut solo album from the Ride founder who has been very productive during his lockdown.  Former Oasis bandmate Gem Archer plays on several tracks on Andy's new album. andybell.bandcamp.com   

17) Through The Valley by Tash Sultana

Australian artist Tash Sultana with a wonderfully chilling cover.  Tash has been a big deal in Australia for the last four years and she is currently working on her second album.  If you like this check out her early singles. tashsultanaaus.bandcamp.com

18) Cathedrals of the Mind by Doves

It's so good to have new music from Doves after a gap of eleven years.  This is one of the standout tracks from the new album The Universal Want.  When I saw Doves had a song called Cathedrals of the Mind I thought "That's gonna be absolutely brilliant".  I love being right sometimes.

19) Can Love Be This Thing I Found by The Explosions

The debut single from Glasgow band The Explosions.  Sounds like the Jesus and Mary Chain to me but they describe their sound as a mix of Madchester and 60s rock so eagerly awaiting further Explosions. 

20) Coming To Get You Nowhere by This Is The Kit

Kate Stables is an English folk rocker who has spent the last few years touring as a part of US band The National.  Coming to Get You Nowhere is taken from her new album due in late October.  I am a huge fan of her previous album 2017's Moonshine Freeze so looking forward to this.  thisisthekit.bandcamp.com

The Epilogue ...

I hope you've got this far down the page given all the distracting links.    

For anyone new to Bandcamp - just head there, create an account and follow the artists you enjoy. You can buy digital downloads or physical products and the artists get 85-90% of the takings.  The first Friday of each month in 2020 Bandcamp will waive their fees so the artists get it all.  So if you plan to buy some stuff on this site do it on Friday 2nd October 2020 to maximise the profits for the artists.  

Two bands featured this month (The Shop Windows and Polyhymns) were tip-offs from my Twitter mate @MobyTanner and my final recommendation is to follow  The Rebirth Of Cool his excellent music blog where he introduces loads of new indie bands with a greater frequency than my monthly schedule.   

            Cheers Danny / @oldindiekid1

 

The Indie Years 1986

Welcome to the tenth installment of my indie retrospective where I will cover the music of 1986.  I looked at the news of the year and three stories jumped out at me - The US Challenger shuttle explosion, the Chernobyl meltdown and the Mexico '86 World Cup.  In fashion I recall everyone at school had to have one lime green and one fluro orange sock or you weren't cool.  At the cinema Crocodile Dundee, Aliens Platoon and Top Gun were playing.  And the indie soundtrack is detailed below.

 

The Indie Years 1986 Spotify Playlist

           

1) There Is A Light That Never Goes Out by The Smiths (Rough Trade)

Released on The Queen Is Dead album and considered as a potential single.  The doomed romantic theme and lyrics “to die by your side - well the pleasure and privilege are mine” were deemed too dark for 1980s radio playlists.  The song topped John Peel’s Festive Fifty in 86 and the song finally got released as a single in 92 to promote a Best Of collection.  Safe to say that There Is A Light That Never Goes Out is one of the greatest and most beloved indie songs of all time.

2) Really Stupid by The Primitives (Lazy) 

Thrashing garage pop with squalling guitars.  The Primitives were a indie band from Coventry who existed between 84-92  Success eluded them at this stage but they did score a UK hit in 1988 when Crash reached #5 in the charts.

3) All I Want For Christmas Is A Dukla Prague Away Kit by Half Man Half Biscuit (Probe Plus)

Taken from the debut EP The Trumpton Riots.  This song reminisces about childhood games Scalextric and Subbuteo and how they were unreliable and led to fights.  “And you’ll always get palmed off with a headless centre forward and a goalkeeper with no arms and a face like his”.

4) I Believe by R.E.M. (I.R.S.) 

First single from their fourth album.  Stripe’s vocals were clearer, more audible and less mumbled on the Life’s Rich Pageant album so he got the chance to be the voice of a generation and deliberately rejects it with stream of consciousness lyrics that proclaim nothing more than platitudes.  “I believe in Coyotes and time as an abstract”.  Elsewhere on the album R.E.M. introduce environmental and political songs (Cuyahoga, The Flowers of Guatemala and Fall On Me). 

5) And She Was by Talking Heads (Sire)

A song about a girl who keeps floating around her neighbourhood, very high on acid.

6) Freaky Dancin by Happy Mondays (Factory)
The funk pop of Happy Mondays is unmistakable on this early single.  Shaun’s unique vocal technique hasn’t evolved much over the years and the band speed up as the song goes on.  The Mondays just did what they wanted and the World bent around them accepting these Mavericks just as they are.

7) Happy Hour by The Housemartins (Go! Discs)

The upbeat drinking song that propelled The Housemartins into the charts and a place on every pub jukebox.  Obviously the lyrics undercut the cheery bonhomie of after work drinks with the closed minds and sexist work colleagues. “It’s Happy Hour Again, I think I might be happy if I wasn’t out with them”.  Paul Heaton would return to the dark side of drinking many times in his career.  Refer to Old Red Eyes Is Back by The Beautiful South for example. 

 

8) Velocity Girl by Primal Scream (Creation)

This 82 second rush of indie pop adrenaline was released as a B-side.  It opened NME’s C86 compilation cassette that gave a name to the alternative jangly guitar power pop sound that dominated the compilation.

9) Always The Sun by The Stranglers (Epic)

The Stranglers pre-dated Punk, embraced it and survived it.  This mid 80s poppy rock song is enhanced by the lyrics which pose many rhetorical questions, with a singalong chorus.  There are some nice guitar parts here, pneumatic drumming and an impressive cramming of too many words at the end of each verse.

10) E=MC2  by Big Audio Dynamite (Columbia)

After being fired from The Clash, Mick Jones created a new band B.A.D. which combined funk, reggae, dance and were early adopters of sampling music and film clips.  Joe Strummer later reunited with Mick Jones and co produced and co-authored much of B.A.D.’s second album.

11) Black Hole by James (Sire)

After a couple of EPs released on Factory, Manchester’s James released two albums on the Sire label.  A popular live band with a strong local following they had time to develop out of the spotlight before they emerged on the indie discos of the early Nineties.

12) Sometimes by Erasure (Mute)

Erasure’s fourth single was a great seductive pop song which made #2 in the UK charts. Vince Clarke had already been a founding member of Depeche Mode and Yazoo before teaming up with singer Andy Bell and forming the Synth-pop duo Erasure in 1985.  They are still playing together 35 years later.

13) Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order (Factory)
My favourite New Order song - there have been so many versions and remixes of this over the years and I love them all.  Pop Heaven.

14) Some Candy Talking by Jesus And Mary Chain (Creation)

Is it about sex or drugs?  It’s certainly Rock n Roll and influenced by the Velvet Underground who recorded the similarly titled “Candy Says”.   

15) Once More by The Wedding Present (Reception)

Second single from Leeds based The Wedding Present, featuring their trademark frantic guitars and drums with David Gedge’s distinctive vocals pleading for one more chance.  

16) Infected by The The (Some Bizarre)

The The With a song about love being a sickness.  

17) Rise by Public Image Ltd (Virgin)

An anti-Apartheid protest record written about Nelson Mandela (still a political prisoner at the time).

"Anger is an energy" screams John Lydon.  Ten years after Anarchy In The UK, his fire is still burns.    

18) Ballard of the Band by Felt (Creation)

Lawrence feels like giving in after years of no fame and no money.   He carried on for another three years and disbanded the band in 89 having released 10 albums in 10 years.  He later formed Denim.

19) Wide Open Road by The Triffids (Mushroom)
Post-Punk band from Perth, Western Australia with a tale of the loneliness and the freedom of the outback.  A true blue Aussie classic.

20) Swamp Thing by The Chameleons (Geffen)
What an intro!  Trippy, twangy guitars and a steady dance beat For the first two minutes.  This Manchester band had three albums in the mid 80s and Swamp Thing was their final and highest charting single reaching the giddy heights of #82.  Noel Gallagher was a big fan and has cited them as a major influence on his songwriting.  It would have been interesting to see where The Chameleons could have gone if they were still active during the Madchester years.


Further Reading...
The Indie Years 1985
The Indie Years 1984
The Indie Years 1983
The Indie Years 1982
The Indie Years 1981
The Indie Years 1980
The Indie Years 1979
The Indie Years 1978
The Indie Years 1977

Old Indie Kid's Mixtape September 2020

Welcome to my first Monthly Blog of 2020.   Each month I pick my top twenty new songs (released or discovered) and put them in my monthly Spotify playlist which will be linked below and write some blurb on why I love these records.  I had been writing these regularly since November 2015 but I've been slack  haven't updated my blog since December.  

I spent much of January listening to the Britpop Banter Podcast @britpopbanter and created a Twitter account to get involved with the musical debates on old beloved albums.  However, once on Twitter I discovered so many fantastic bands coming out of the UK, mostly unsigned and a large community of like-minded (often mature/immature) nutters who love the old bands (Oasis, Roses, Charlatans, Ride etc) but were also open to hearing something new.  So hopefully if you're reading this you will stick the playlist on and enjoy some amazing new songs whilst reading my whitterings below.

Old Indie Kid's Mixtape Sept 2020 Spotify Playlist

1) Days Gone By by Dictator  @Dictator_Band
This Scottish's band's third single is an immense track that creeps towards your ears with menacing intent and contains dark hypnotic rhythms reminiscent of Dandy Warhols Come Down era.  Be warned, this music is infectious and will demand repeated plays as it worms it's way deeper into your mind.      

2) Brightstar by Social Room  @SocialRoomband

Starts with horns, the drums kick in, a powerful gravely voice and guitars begin to build to a killer chorus.  Social Room hail from Sunderland and this track is the lead song from a 5-track EP released twelve months ago.  They have a new single about to come out so give them a follow. 

   

3) Start Again by GreenCircles @greencircles74
The lead track from the new E.P. from Newcastle's GreenCircles. Amazing vocals here accompanied by some lush strings.  I've been following this band for about six months now and bought all their singles over on Bandcamp.  GreenCircles singles are fairly varied in style and you can hear influences from Primal Scream, The Stone Roses, Teenage Fanclub and especially the Liverpool music scene.  They haven't put a foot wrong in my book and are one of my top finds of the year.    

   

4) Chasing Gold by Crimson Bloom @CrimsonBloomUK

Crimson Bloom are my favourite new band discovered in 2020.  They were formed by Andrew Johnson (aka #MrBloom) a prolific singer songwriter with a plan to create an album in a similar style to The Stone Roses debut.  The Crimson Bloom band recreate the jangly guitar pop, indie rockers and spaced out baggy grooves from the late 80s/early 90s that first turned me on to great music. Crimson Bloom have two excellent albums and a selection of great T-shirts which can be found in my wardrobe and over on Bandcamp.  

5) Please Don't (In Isolation)  by Bloosoms & Courteeners  @BlossomsBand & @thecourteeners

Blossoms have been recording a series of isolation covers during their lockdown and remotely recording with other bands.  I don't know a lot about the Courteeners - I hear they are big in Manchester and Please Don't was probably a big hit back in the day but the song was new to me.  Listen out and name the snippet of another classic song they segue into on this version.     

6) Marmalade Dreams by Alligator Moon  @alligator__moon
Strange things are afoot in West Yorkshire and it involves the Alligator Moon, a time portal to 1967 and a field of magic mushrooms.  Whether these are linked or co-incidental needs further investigation.  Marmalade Dreams is taken from The Erractic Explosion of Colour & Compassion album released in April.     

7) Has It All Gone Wrong by The Jack Fletcher Band @jackfband
Good question?  In general - yes it has but the advice from this talented Wolverhampton band is to keep keeping on.  What else can we do?   

8) Reasons To Be (Spacekid Remix) by Moonlight Parade @band_parade
Another of my favourite new bands come from the South Coast and have two LPs, some EPs and a handful of remixes by the mysterious Spacekid.  This tune was released in February and is my pick of the trippy dance remixes.       

9) Lucy by DDE's @wearetheddes

The DDE's are a great Manchester band and their latest EP Calm Before The Storm is a sonic blast - four tracks all killer no filler.  

10) Behind The Sun by Eskobar 
This beast of a track comes from a Stockholm band that have been playing together since the mid 90's. 

11) Youth by Pioneers @UK_Pioneers
Southampton's Pioneers with a tale of hedonism - they play unglamorous indie rock n roll and sound like a laddish version of The Libertines.  Plenty to love here.     

12) Fake ID by Spyres @spyr3s
Two female singers in this this excellent Scottish indie rock band Singing about blagging their way into venues with fake ID.  Absolutely brilliant - only two songs on Spotify so far but they are gaining a huge following. 

13) Affliction by Pink Tide Great Three piece band from Teeside who unfortunately split up during the lockdown when one third quit the band.  Two thirds plan to continue working together and hope to re-emerge with a new band.  These are the times we are living in so if you can afford to, please support the artists you love.  Like my dentist once told me, "Only brush the ones you want to keep".    

14) Something's Gotta Give by Jamie Webster @JamieWebster94

Jamie just released his debut album We Get By in August and he's another massive talent emerging from Liverpool.  This is a savage take on the crooked clowns of the Boris Johnson government failing the country and "the dreamers left out to rot".  Heartbreaking but an amazing protest song.

  

15) Tangled Up by The Royston Club @TheRoystonClub
Welsh band from Wrexham who have just signed a management deal this week. They have clocked up over half a million streams on Spotify and sold out three gigs at the end of the year.  Great band - give their latest EP This State I'm In a spin.  

16) Nobody Else by Dylan John Thomas @DylanJohnThoma5
Young Scottish singer songwriter with some lovely songs and a big following.  This song was released in March 2019 and is close to a million streams now.  Not bad for a recording he made in his shed. 

17) On The Back Burner by The Reytons @TheReytons
The Reytons have been going for a few years now telling the tales of the Kids off the Estate. The Reytons sound like the early Arctic Monkeys and the lyrics are just as good which obviously very high praise from me.  Perhaps they stole Alex Turner's notepad and gave him a wedgie for good measure?   

18) Ripley Jean by Afflecks Palace @afflecks_palace
Back to Madchester for the latest baggy revivalists.  Afflecks Palace will release their 2nd EP Everything Is An Attempt To Be Human in Mid September which will include Ripley Jean, It All Comes Around and Pink Skies. They are touring the UK later this year.    

19) Can't Get Out Of Bed by The Mariners @TheMarinersBand

This is the closing track on 60's inspired debut album The Tides of Time.  They are releasing this fantastic album on vinyl via their Bandcamp site from 4th September.  I have the CD and it is wonderful to play and look at. #GetOnTheBoat    

20) Marquee by Liam Hillier  @liamhillyermus1

 Playing out with another Scouser crooning his heart out.  Liam is a great songwriter - follow him, listen to his songs and share them widely.      

If you heard something you like, please follow the bands on Twitter, Spotify, Bandcamp or just start to follow them around if you see them in the street.  As I mentioned above, if you love 'em and can afford to support them, then buy a ticket, t-shirt, vinyl, CD or download.  Streaming pays almost nothing to the artists and they've had a tough year with no gigs.  

See you in October 

Cheers Danny x @oldindiekid1