MyGeneration... Your Generation


Britain might be going down the financial plughole, but its bursting at the seams with quality bands. Here’s another round-up of PHIL ISTINE’s favourite gloom-lifters.


Can regular readers guess where we start? Of course you can, it’s Glasgow. THE ECHO SESSION are a four-


piece folk-rock delta blues amalgamation. Debut single ‘Tell Me’ is a slight country-fried ramble with singer Tam’s vocals particularly hitting the spot. The teachest bass is employed on other tracks to much delight, and the general air of doing- it-for-kicks is as infectious as their idiosyncratic brand of polished harmony pop. www.myspace.com/theechosession


In Carlisle, where nowt much happens I am promised, THE LUCID DREAM stand out as bright as a lighthouse beam. The vibrations coming off this band are interstellar; I truly see this band leading the sonic underground in the near future. Their wall-of-noise take on psychedelia, with added sitar, makes comparisons with Ride, Verve, Spacemen 3, My Bloody Valentine, Brian Jonestown Massacre and other one- chord wonders apt. It’s drone rock with the colour spectrum turned up to the ‘blinding’ setting. Having toured with Sonic Boom recently you get the sense that the baton was being silently passed on. All that pass their way must shimmer in the neon sunshine they create. www.myspace.com/theluciddream08


THE


STAGS are from Wigan and it’s not their favourite place. So they make seedy rock ‘n’ roll to make up for it. A simple premise, and a winner to boot


given the musical results. There’s plenty of raw rock ‘n’ roll garage surf sounds here, with huge dollops of satisfying Hammond and vocal intonations. Not afraid to dress to impress either (well they are Stags after all!), I imagine these lot offer many thrills and spills when performing, which they are sure to do somewhere near you soon. Don’t forget to ask them to perform their ‘SexFizz’. Debut album Do The Ton! is out now on Soundflat Records. www.myspace.com/thestagssoundgreat


So the North continues to jump to the beat, this time over in Barnsley and to the sounds of THE JIVES. The five-piece have all the energy of The Cavern- period Beatles and the sprightly melodic nous of The Swinging Blue Jeans, but add the terrace anthem styles and guitar sound of The Libertines and Arctic Monkeys. Well versed in pre-’63 tunes, their strong following is based on a superb live show.


An over used term it may be, but “mod punk” best describes where they’re at, and The Bishops and The Draytones are other good contemporary touchstones. If you find yourself singing along out loud without realising why, then that’s the sign of a quality band. www.myspace.com/thejivesuk


Whilst we are on the subject of The Beatles, let me introduce to you another band under their spell: THE


CARNABYS. The


Leicestershire/Nottinghamshire band have the jangle and harmonica of the Fab Four, and come out somewhere near where The La’s found themselves. Other sunny-disposition acts that spring to mind are The Monkees, The Hollies and The Zombies. They lack a bit of bite to truly distinguish themselves from their influences, but if you live like it’s ’65 you should find yourself right at home with this foursome. www.myspace.com/thecarnabys


Hang on! Here’s a third band that owe a great debt to the succulent beats and harmonies of the remastered Mop Top Gods. THE MIDBEATS, from Leicester, lost a member recently to fellow travelers The Draytones, but it hasn’t stopped them from getting better and better. Songs like ‘Oh Mister’ and ‘Get Outa Your Bed’ illustrates that their hearts are firmly in the Macca and Mavers Merseybeat scene, whilst newbies ‘Of These Eyes’ and ‘Come On In’ show them going through their Revolver period and embracing tremeloed vocals, droning guitars, and chiming bells. This band is on the up and up, so get Mid-ded as soon as you can, la. www.myspace.com/themidbeats


Let us head to Wales now. THE KEYS really have really got me going this last little while; I think it’s the sublime vocals that have soothed my soul.


A rambling backing of guitars that have that Coral sound underpin the lead vocals of Matthew Evans on ‘Some Mother’s Son’. Yet they can rock with the best of them, see ‘A Brief History…’. Their very serious music is not an indication of a band who sing about weighty issues though; they have Peter Cook in their top friends after all, and dress up as Star Wars characters in their home videos. Debut EP Le Mans features half a dozen mini-masterpieces of acoustic and fuzz-driven psychedelia that are well worth adding to your collection. www.myspace.com/thekeysmusic


Meanwhile THE MOLES, from Bristol, claim to “have the telepathic ability to beam psychedelic music into receptive individuals frontal


lobe”. I think that means they make music for the likes of us, boys and girls. Brin, Billy, Dan And Steve create claustrophobic weirdo fuzz-psych to flip your wig and make you run for the hills. You should do nothing of the sort naturally: clasp them tightly instead, and try to work out where you can get what they’re on. With the whimsy of Syd ever-present, I imagine a debut album of majestic proportions could be made. What are you waiting for, lads? www.myspace.com/themolesuk


Fellow West Country doyens ULYSSES are that rare breed – a band who take the early ’70s rock scene as its primary influence and pull it off. Dramatic rhythmic flourishes plus power-fuzz chords plus crunchy riff plus impassioned vocals mean thoughts of Bolan and Bowie are never far away, but that’s no bad thing is it? In a world of Mott The Hoople


reformations these boys have the tunes and choruses to set teenage party dancefloors alight. Choruses that, if you’ve got a moment, could be described as 12-storey: with magnificent entrance halls, carpeting throughout, 24 hour portrage and enormous signs on the roofs saying "This Is a Large Chorus”. Jumble sale clothes and junkshop glam have rarely seemed so appealing. www.myspace.com/ulyssesgb


Let us finish with a couple of bands from my neck of the woods. I had been waiting to write about THE LEA SHORES until I knew their much- delayed debut album was ready. London fell under their spell right from the go, however. Their Ben Hillier-produced self-titled LP has just hit the shelves, and has fulfilled their early promise. Using the quiet- loud dynamic with exceptional results, their songs soar, dive and rise again; delivering an emotional rollercoaster you don’t want to step off. Musically think late Byrds, early ’70s Beach Boys, Ride, Spiritualized, even Oasis in their more recent psych-y moments. Harmony rock for the indie generation, if you will. www.myspace.com/theleashores


And to round off this month we have THE MOON MUSIC ORCHESTRA. They do a good job of


describing themselves when they say they are “the West Coast on the South Bank, a quasi- religious voodoo


country-funk


force”. The seven-piece actually own and run a pub in Borough (The Gladstone), where they regularly play their The Band-influenced easy-going Americana. I know what you’re thinking, country cats in the big city? Don’t question it, just let faith and melody take you down river to the gentle world they inhabit. This band is best appreciated live, where you can truly experience the subtle textures of their songs. www.myspace.com/theholymoonmusicorchestra


77


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92