Greg Stekelman reminded me of this amazing song a few weeks ago on Twitter.
Ah, Si Señor . The story begins, for me at least, sometime in the first half of 2001, when Sean Drinkwater and I were sitting around our The Archenemy Record Company office and we got a call, completely out of the blue, from a Danish journalist, Erik, who was in town to cover Aerosmith and wanted to check out what else Boston had to offer musically. We went to meet him, a very nice guy, and when the other Archenemies (Rick, Jussi, Tony) got home, we all went to 'Mod Night' at the Common Ground. A few weeks later we got a package with a cd and a letter from a Danish band called Si Señor. We gave the cd a spin and quite liked it but didn't have the money to take on any new bands at that point. But I emailed them and they expressed an interest in coming to the States for some gigs. So I thought, "Why not?" and set some up.
It was an incredibly fun week. Lifestyle (2 free records there, go on, grab 'em!) got to play with Bis at The Tune Inn in New Haven, CT on our way down for the first gig of the tour in NYC. I fondly remember Bis dedicating a song to us because "we both ripped it off the same Duran Duran song". Then to The Acme Underground in NYC (Sunday October 7th so my old emails tell me) where we finally met all of Si Señor, everyone having a great gig and then drinking the night away. The excellent synthpop band Soviet also played that evening. Then up to Boston for a gig at T.T. The Bear's with The Texas Governor (one of the first gigs, when it was just Goolkasian with Rick on a laptop) and the ace William Academy (2 free songs there, such nice guys and they even covered Electronic's "Gangster", which had us all very excited). And the final gig of the tour was at this strange youth centre in New Hampshire - Lifestyle, Si Señor, Freezepop and The Texas Governor, where for the final song of the night, all the bands got on stage to perform "Feed The World" as Si Señor had covered it once and everyone "kinda knew it", or at least how it went.
Throughout the tour, everyone kept comparing Si Señor to Pulp, especially Jakob who, being thin and tall with glasses, inspired many whispers of "the Danish Jarvis Cocker". Though personally I thought they sounded more like Blur, when Blur were at their punkiest. Or, as koobaradio put it, "happy Smiths" : ) Sometime during that week, they went over to Tony "Boothnavy" Norton's studio and recorded a new version of "Do You Like Boys?" (the one heard above) as they had always pictured it with the sort of sound that Tony is so good at. And then the following April, Boothnavy spent the month in Copenhagen recording their record. You can hear some of the songs on their myspace.
And here's a TV performance of the ace "Something Illegal":
Freezepop later covered "Do You Like Boys?" on their 'Future Future Future Perfect' album (this is the version Greg mentioned):
Speaking of Freezepop, "Doppelganger" really is an amazing single, and has been stuck in my head a lot lately. You can get it for free at their site.
And then yesterday, Liz Ohanesian introduced me to The Aprils , who reminded me a lot of Freezepop. Check out Liz's article on them.
Wednesday, 13 April 2011
Tuesday, 12 April 2011
Dump - "Annabelle" (Nederglam)...
My girlfriend Sophia is a HUGE Glam fan (come to GlamRacket if you're in London!) and has been introducing me to a lot of great Nederglam. That 'Clap Your Hands And Stamp Your Feet' compilation is AMAZING. Lots of ace songs on there that I'll be posting about over the course of this blog. But today, let's go with, the perhaps unfortunately named, Dump. They only released 2 singles - "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow"/"You You" (1974) & "Annabelle"/"Baby Baby" (1975) - but wow, what 2 singles! "Annabelle", to me, has everything. It flat out ROCKS in the verses - powerful and insistent verging on menacing - and then comes in with a chorus so strong and catchy it's impossible to not have it stuck in your head forever afterwards. One has to admire the singer's energy and enthusiasm, not to mention intensity. Check out the handstand around 2:27 in "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?"!
These clips are taken from a 70's Dutch music program called 'Van Oekel's Discohoek'. Bizarre and entertaining, Van Oekel, his accountant, and other actors often interrupt the musical performances with their own bits, adding to the confusion/strangeness by visibly reading from their scripts. Such as in this clip of "Annabelle", so here's an uninterrupted version of the song (great blog too). Not limited to only Dutch music, there are a number of clips of Donna Summer appearing on the show.
These clips are taken from a 70's Dutch music program called 'Van Oekel's Discohoek'. Bizarre and entertaining, Van Oekel, his accountant, and other actors often interrupt the musical performances with their own bits, adding to the confusion/strangeness by visibly reading from their scripts. Such as in this clip of "Annabelle", so here's an uninterrupted version of the song (great blog too). Not limited to only Dutch music, there are a number of clips of Donna Summer appearing on the show.
Monday, 11 April 2011
Sambassadeur...
On Thursday April 7th, 2005, I headed down to The Windmill in Brixton to the very first How Does It Feel Presents . This was still when I didn't know very many people in London but I didn't let that keep me from attending a gig every night of the week if something interesting was on (and there usually was). I had been a big fan of the How Does It Feel clubnight since I had moved to London in 2003. In fact, the 2nd weekend I was in London (the very 1st I went to the Strange Fruit club, who were to make me feel very at home in London and for whom I'm always thankful how AWESOME they made my first stay here) I went to see David Gedge guest DJ at HDIF and ran into Harvey Williams again, who also pointed out many other indiepop celebrities in the crowd. I remember walking home that night and really realizing just how GREAT it was to be living in London.
First up was Wintergreen, who, checking my journal, I missed. But I was to see them many times that year and I really like their stuff. Then Vermont, who I always thought were fantastic. I had seen them at the 2003 Strange Fruit festival (an absolutely spectacular 4 days of music and drinking, I mean look at this line-up. The special guests were The Lucksmiths!) I was so impressed, I immediately bought their ace 'Ins Kino' cd. And I rather enjoyed them at this first HDIF Presents as well.
Tired and on my own, with Brixton being a very long way home if you live north of the river and miss the last tube, I debated leaving after Vermont's set. But I had heard some good things about Sambassadeur and knowing they were Swedish and took their name from a Serge Gainsbourg song, I decided to give them a chance. And was so glad I did. I fondly recall standing by the bar, lights low, completely entranced by this melodic hypnotic pop. Like The Magnetic Fields playing early New Order.
Here is my favourite Sambassadeur song, "Kate", from the 'Coastal Affairs' EP:
I've really enjoyed all their releases , especially the first record, which I fondly remember getting in the post from Labrador when I moved back to the States later that year and driving around my hometown listening to it. Perfect autumn-driving indiepop. So a few from that album:
First up was Wintergreen, who, checking my journal, I missed. But I was to see them many times that year and I really like their stuff. Then Vermont, who I always thought were fantastic. I had seen them at the 2003 Strange Fruit festival (an absolutely spectacular 4 days of music and drinking, I mean look at this line-up. The special guests were The Lucksmiths!) I was so impressed, I immediately bought their ace 'Ins Kino' cd. And I rather enjoyed them at this first HDIF Presents as well.
Tired and on my own, with Brixton being a very long way home if you live north of the river and miss the last tube, I debated leaving after Vermont's set. But I had heard some good things about Sambassadeur and knowing they were Swedish and took their name from a Serge Gainsbourg song, I decided to give them a chance. And was so glad I did. I fondly recall standing by the bar, lights low, completely entranced by this melodic hypnotic pop. Like The Magnetic Fields playing early New Order.
Here is my favourite Sambassadeur song, "Kate", from the 'Coastal Affairs' EP:
I've really enjoyed all their releases , especially the first record, which I fondly remember getting in the post from Labrador when I moved back to the States later that year and driving around my hometown listening to it. Perfect autumn-driving indiepop. So a few from that album:
Sunday, 10 April 2011
INDIEplaylist...
I just found out that my AUNTIE song, "Forever, Forensic & Too Few" (sung by Mikey Georgeson of David Devant & His Spirit Wife and Mr Solo, one of my favourite singers and songwriters, I'll do a seperate post on his work later) is on the new INDIEplaylist! If you've got Spotify, click here for it. And the AUNTIE songs are free downloads if you just type in 0, or pay-what-you-want.
Under Cover Of A Streetlamp...
So how I first heard Breathless was, when I first joined Rockets Burst From The Streetlamps in 1998, we decided to each choose 2 songs that the band would cover. As we'd rehearse 3 or 4 times a week, a lot of which was spent drinking wine and talking about amazing music (films & books too), so many songs came up that "we should cover", it was a good idea to narrow it down. Discovering new music is always a joy for me, often approaching euphoric heights, and I'm still thankful today for Annie choosing Breathless' "Sometimes On Sunday" and Craig introducing me to Opal's "Strange Delight" and then their 'Early Recordings', which is just awesome. I had only known 'Happy Nightmare Baby' and this is much different, more 'pop', more major keys. (There's also 'Early Recordings Vol. 2' , I highly recommend the Totally Wired blog those are on, some great finds on there). So I thought I'd post the 8 covers we choose. And you know what? We never covered any of them ; )
Craig's choices:
Opal's "Strange Delight":
Morrissey's "Jack The Ripper" (you probably know the released version so here's the 'rare original version'):
Rick's choices:
Crime & The City Solution's "On Every Train (Grain Will Bear Grain)":
Psychic TV's "I. C. Water":
Annie's choices:
Breathless' "Sometimes On Sunday":
I'm ashamed to admit I'm having trouble remembering her other choice. It might've been Neil Young's "Helpless", it might have been Dream Academy's "Life In A Northern Town". I'm waiting for her to get back to me.
Aug's choices:
The Jesus & Mary Chain's "Sidewalking" (wasn't there a proper, awesome, 'Sidewalking' video? I remember one - oh yeah, here it is, thanks Trev Oddbox. Proper POP video, can't seem to embed it though):
New Order's "Age Of Consent":
Craig's choices:
Opal's "Strange Delight":
Morrissey's "Jack The Ripper" (you probably know the released version so here's the 'rare original version'):
Rick's choices:
Crime & The City Solution's "On Every Train (Grain Will Bear Grain)":
Psychic TV's "I. C. Water":
Annie's choices:
Breathless' "Sometimes On Sunday":
I'm ashamed to admit I'm having trouble remembering her other choice. It might've been Neil Young's "Helpless", it might have been Dream Academy's "Life In A Northern Town". I'm waiting for her to get back to me.
Aug's choices:
The Jesus & Mary Chain's "Sidewalking" (wasn't there a proper, awesome, 'Sidewalking' video? I remember one - oh yeah, here it is, thanks Trev Oddbox. Proper POP video, can't seem to embed it though):
New Order's "Age Of Consent":
Saturday, 9 April 2011
Breathless...
A few years ago my friend J, who I went to Jr. high & high school with but lost touch after that, and I realized we were both living in London. J was one of the very few kids in our school who knew about cool music. We used to trade Cure bootlegs and I remember him bouncing up and down in a big Dr. Seuss hat when James came to New Haven on the 'Laid' tour. I went to J's birthday party last night at the Elephant & Castle bowling lanes and was very surprised indeed to see Dominic Appleton from Breathless amongst the party guests! Breathless came over and played with my old band Rockets Burst From The Streetlamps (here, have our second album, 'Departed', for free. And here's a collection of other tracks that came as a bonus disc. 'The Cartographer' was our pop single and I still think it's pretty special. Actually, I think they all are : ) in Boston and New York in 1999 and then again in 2000. Those gigs were pretty great.
'Chasing Promises' is my favourite Breathless album with 'Compulsion' being my favourite Breathless song. Dreamy and beautiful with an insistent melodic pulse underneath, the line "we may never get quite so close again" gets me every time, reminding me of so many girls and that delicious moment of opportunity that lingers only for a second before things go whatever way they were going to, but in that moment contained all possibilities. I remember very shyly telling Dominic at the CBGB's Gallery in NYC how much I loved that song and he laughed and told me they opened for My Bloody Valentine once and started with that song, and when it was over only one person clapped. A very awkward moment. But here it is in all its beauty:
And another enchanting soundscape from the same album, 'Here By Chance':
My other favourite Breathless song is the version of "Moment By Moment" on the 'Over And Over' EP . It is just lovely and whisks you away on a sigh. Unable to find a version to listen to, here's the video for the excellent 'Over And Over':
And "Don't Just Disappear" was the hit. (There is an official video for this but the audio quality isn't that great on the youtube clip).
And, heck, here's the video for "All The Same" by Rockets Burst From The Streetlamps (this was on a 7" as it's quite different from the rest of our stuff):
Before I sign off, I should mention there's some other good stuff on Breathless' label, Tenor Vossa . I particularly like ...Bender and Moly.
'Chasing Promises' is my favourite Breathless album with 'Compulsion' being my favourite Breathless song. Dreamy and beautiful with an insistent melodic pulse underneath, the line "we may never get quite so close again" gets me every time, reminding me of so many girls and that delicious moment of opportunity that lingers only for a second before things go whatever way they were going to, but in that moment contained all possibilities. I remember very shyly telling Dominic at the CBGB's Gallery in NYC how much I loved that song and he laughed and told me they opened for My Bloody Valentine once and started with that song, and when it was over only one person clapped. A very awkward moment. But here it is in all its beauty:
And another enchanting soundscape from the same album, 'Here By Chance':
My other favourite Breathless song is the version of "Moment By Moment" on the 'Over And Over' EP . It is just lovely and whisks you away on a sigh. Unable to find a version to listen to, here's the video for the excellent 'Over And Over':
And "Don't Just Disappear" was the hit. (There is an official video for this but the audio quality isn't that great on the youtube clip).
And, heck, here's the video for "All The Same" by Rockets Burst From The Streetlamps (this was on a 7" as it's quite different from the rest of our stuff):
Before I sign off, I should mention there's some other good stuff on Breathless' label, Tenor Vossa . I particularly like ...Bender and Moly.
Friday, 8 April 2011
Hanoi Rocks...
Hey everybody from Finland who keeps reading this, thanks very much! In your honour, here's a post about Hanoi Rocks, who I've loved since I was 13. I fondly recall getting the 4 reissues on Axl Rose's Uzi Suicide label for xmas 1989. And putting "'Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks' on my walkman as we drove to my grandmother's house for her xmas party. And falling in love with it, especially "Tragedy", "11th Street Kids", "Don't You Ever Leave Me" and their cover of "Walking With My Angel". I also loved the yellow, red, blue, and green colour scheme for each reissue cover. Green is my favourite colour, yet another thing to recommend 'Back To Mystery City' to me, a near-perfect record with lots of highlights. Glamrock, pure pop, or both, whatever you want to call it. Here are two of my favourite Hanoi Rocks songs, both from 'Back To Mystery City':
And here's "Don't You Ever Leave Me" reworked from the first album on their 1984 record 'Two Steps From The Move' (their last before Razzle was killed in a car accident. Michael Monroe and Andy McCoy reformed Hanoi Rocks in 2001 and have released some very good records, including 'Another Hostile Takeover', which has an excellent version of Phil Lynott's "Dear Miss Lonelyhearts". I finally got to see them live at The Astoria in London, March 2008, a really excellent gig, meant a lot to me) 'Two Steps From The Move' also contains the ace 'Boulevard Of Broken Dreams'.
And here's a rare version of '11th Street Kids' from the first record (another great version on the live album 'All Those Wasted Years' . In 1990 this was very hard to find and my uncle Frank finally tracked both video and album down for me on a business trip to Japan, for which I still am very thankful). Live on Finnish TV show 'Rockilta':
And here's "Don't You Ever Leave Me" reworked from the first album on their 1984 record 'Two Steps From The Move' (their last before Razzle was killed in a car accident. Michael Monroe and Andy McCoy reformed Hanoi Rocks in 2001 and have released some very good records, including 'Another Hostile Takeover', which has an excellent version of Phil Lynott's "Dear Miss Lonelyhearts". I finally got to see them live at The Astoria in London, March 2008, a really excellent gig, meant a lot to me) 'Two Steps From The Move' also contains the ace 'Boulevard Of Broken Dreams'.
And here's a rare version of '11th Street Kids' from the first record (another great version on the live album 'All Those Wasted Years' . In 1990 this was very hard to find and my uncle Frank finally tracked both video and album down for me on a business trip to Japan, for which I still am very thankful). Live on Finnish TV show 'Rockilta':
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