Weather Wit You: Pete Hayman talks to Johnny Flynn:
Johnny Flynn and the Sussex Wit are born out of the leafy green pastures of south east England and carry an effortless sound bathed in eternal sunshine. Judging by recent weather, it is, of course, down to your state of mind, but you get the idea. What is also certain is that there is something undeniably cute about the outstanding talent that this group of young people possess. And something incredibly envious too.
Label Profile: Across the Pennines:
Across the Pennines, the brainchild of Mark Edwards, is on a mission. That mission is to educate you, and in doing so, prove that even out in the sticks away from the bright lights of London, there is some exciting music talent that must not escape your attention. Not that places like Manchester and Leeds should need to prove their credentials, but still, people can be ignorant and that is where ATP will plug that drain of knowledge.
Some news soon, like...
30 January 2008
28 January 2008
24 January 2008
Note to Damien Comolli
Please find a way to keep Radek Cerny at Tottenham Hotspur. Why spend big money elsewhere when there's an able candidate currently between the sticks...
End.
EDIT: Yeah, there's no way I can gloss over his mistake at Old Trafford.
End.
EDIT: Yeah, there's no way I can gloss over his mistake at Old Trafford.
23 January 2008
Rules of Love Pt. 3
Through the joys of Virgin's on-demand service, albeit at a price of £3.50, I finally got round to watching the latest instalment of the Die Hard series. And it has to be said that I learned a valuable life lesson courtesy of one of the film's subtexts. It could point as to where I have been going wrong in recent times.
You see, apparently, the way to a girl's heart is to save her life. And I thought it was just about being nice etc. Awwww, how naive was I!
Let it never be said I am a bit cynical sometimes.
You see, apparently, the way to a girl's heart is to save her life. And I thought it was just about being nice etc. Awwww, how naive was I!
Let it never be said I am a bit cynical sometimes.
22 January 2008
Films I never want to see again #481
Mike Bassett: England Manager
Cringeworthy rubbish that attempts to tap into a nation's love of football and does so badly. Hadn't England stopped playing at the Old Wembley by the time that came out? Clichéd "the Scottish are rubbish" gags are a bit out of date now considering they fared better than England in trying to get to Euro 2008. And the blatant parody of the Maradona goal - I just hope they weren't trying to make it somewhat believable!
Cringeworthy rubbish that attempts to tap into a nation's love of football and does so badly. Hadn't England stopped playing at the Old Wembley by the time that came out? Clichéd "the Scottish are rubbish" gags are a bit out of date now considering they fared better than England in trying to get to Euro 2008. And the blatant parody of the Maradona goal - I just hope they weren't trying to make it somewhat believable!
21 January 2008
I wish I still had my radio show!
Believe it or not, it is a genuine expression of a former love lost. Not that Strip It Down every Thursday night on Swansea's Xtreme Radio was some form of great citadel of radio broadcasting (it wasn't far off, but it was no Today programme, for example), but it was my baby. And I loved putting it together every week. No shit, a show on student radio that was actually prepared. But there is one reason above all else why I miss it right now.
It's got nothing to do with the fact that street-teaming for XFM South Wales has reminded me of former radio glories. Hell no, for a start, I get paid to pound the streets of Cardiff handing out XFM merchandise and swapping anecdotes with the beautiful, drunk gig-goers of the capital. It's all to do with the music that I played. For all the slating that the 1980s get, some of the music produced was the right side of the line marked 'phenomenal'.
Yes, some of the music was truly awful, but then the same can be said of any period of music - there were some shite punk bands, and there are some shite indie bands now - nearly all guilty of shameless, unoriginal copycat behaviour. But the post-punk and new wave eras of the early-to-mid-1980s deserve a lot of love that it rarely gets. Some of the songs I unearthed to play on my show have survived the end-of-uni cull and graduated into my iTunes, and some have even gone on to the iPod. That's how good they are - you have to be pretty special to get onto my iPod I tell you. I'm just that picky with what I listen to when out and about. Even bands I've discarded I still have respect for.
Count or discount Elvis Costello if you will, but certainly Gang of Four, Generation X and Public Image Ltd score highly; Stiff Little Fingers, The Ruts (yeah, Staring at the Rude Boys) and Talking Heads too - all alongside the always-influential stylings of The Clash and The Ramones. And who can forget Joy Division's humble beginnings? And then towards the end of the 1980s came the Madchester bands, and still the 1980s are slammed. It's not all new romantic rubbish you know.
Certainly some bands today could do with a bit of education in the art of changing things, ripping it up and stripping it down. Just because were good, made some money and had a good time, doesn't mean you will too. Do something different, take a chance ferchrissakes! Having said that, I am reeling from the apparent demise of Milburn. They were better than the Monkeys don't you know... seriously. And no, I've not totally given up the idea of getting back on the airwaves sometime soon either.
It's got nothing to do with the fact that street-teaming for XFM South Wales has reminded me of former radio glories. Hell no, for a start, I get paid to pound the streets of Cardiff handing out XFM merchandise and swapping anecdotes with the beautiful, drunk gig-goers of the capital. It's all to do with the music that I played. For all the slating that the 1980s get, some of the music produced was the right side of the line marked 'phenomenal'.
Yes, some of the music was truly awful, but then the same can be said of any period of music - there were some shite punk bands, and there are some shite indie bands now - nearly all guilty of shameless, unoriginal copycat behaviour. But the post-punk and new wave eras of the early-to-mid-1980s deserve a lot of love that it rarely gets. Some of the songs I unearthed to play on my show have survived the end-of-uni cull and graduated into my iTunes, and some have even gone on to the iPod. That's how good they are - you have to be pretty special to get onto my iPod I tell you. I'm just that picky with what I listen to when out and about. Even bands I've discarded I still have respect for.
Count or discount Elvis Costello if you will, but certainly Gang of Four, Generation X and Public Image Ltd score highly; Stiff Little Fingers, The Ruts (yeah, Staring at the Rude Boys) and Talking Heads too - all alongside the always-influential stylings of The Clash and The Ramones. And who can forget Joy Division's humble beginnings? And then towards the end of the 1980s came the Madchester bands, and still the 1980s are slammed. It's not all new romantic rubbish you know.
Certainly some bands today could do with a bit of education in the art of changing things, ripping it up and stripping it down. Just because
18 January 2008
Rooney - When Did Your Heart Go Missing
From the first time I heard I'm Shakin' back in 2003, I developed something of a very casual interest in the Los Angeles band, Rooney. But although I quite liked the up-tempo indie-pop, some of the other stuff at the time was raw and skimmed across the further reaches of my consciousness before the band seemed to drop off the radar completely.
But on a recent trip to Italy, I discovered that from literally nowhere, to my mind, the band had returned thanks to hearing When Did Your Heart Go Missing off a new album that had taken four years in the making. Reading back, it appears it came out in the UK in May, and failed to make the Top 40, which is incredibly disappointing considering how catchy this tragically epic song is.
And to think my first experience of it was thinking "Why the hell are these still making MTV Italy?" Without a word of a lie, it seemed this song was everywhere in Milan. Well, sort of. Two nights in a row in what became a favourite restaurant, the song sat snugly amongst other mid-to-late-2007 indie/powerpop releases. And to think when I first strained to hear it in this establishment I thought it was Lostprophets' A Town Called Hypocrisy. What an error.
But on a recent trip to Italy, I discovered that from literally nowhere, to my mind, the band had returned thanks to hearing When Did Your Heart Go Missing off a new album that had taken four years in the making. Reading back, it appears it came out in the UK in May, and failed to make the Top 40, which is incredibly disappointing considering how catchy this tragically epic song is.
And to think my first experience of it was thinking "Why the hell are these still making MTV Italy?" Without a word of a lie, it seemed this song was everywhere in Milan. Well, sort of. Two nights in a row in what became a favourite restaurant, the song sat snugly amongst other mid-to-late-2007 indie/powerpop releases. And to think when I first strained to hear it in this establishment I thought it was Lostprophets' A Town Called Hypocrisy. What an error.
Look Who's Back...
... it's everyone's favourite 'messiah'. Although it's not. Kevin Keegan has 'sensationally' returned to Newcastle United a decade after bottling the job, the league - just about everything. And my, how the fans (best fans in the world, truly) are excited. Oh, and the media just cannot get enough of it. Someone in the editorial department at BBC Sport online clearly cannot live without the mandatory seven references to King Kev on the Sport front page. Give me strength.
Outside of Newcastle, this story is admittedly one of the bigger stories this week, but it's not something that is changing my life so extraordinarily, that I feel compelled to watch videos and read Alan Hansen's view on the matter. Alan Shearer's comments, on the other hand, are hilarious to note in whatever form. If you want a job Al, just ask Kev. Don't make a thinly veiled attempt at subtlety on national television.
Don't get me wrong. In the mid-nineties, I quite liked Newcastle, with their brand of attacking football, but was shocked when they bottled the league in such spectacular fashion. But after their antics against Stevenage Borough in the FA Cup in 1998, I no longer held any respect for them. Managers that have gone there have had to live with the outlandish expectation that Newcastle is somehow still a big club. Wake up, you've been passed by half the league in the last decade.
And now, in early 2008, the Magpies are six points above the drop zone with a new manager who likes to prioritise attack over defence. No doubt they'll enjoy a honeymoon period against Bolton at the weekend, but I for one won't be too saddened nor even surprised if Newcastle fail to avoid the drop. And what then for the hero they call Kev?
Outside of Newcastle, this story is admittedly one of the bigger stories this week, but it's not something that is changing my life so extraordinarily, that I feel compelled to watch videos and read Alan Hansen's view on the matter. Alan Shearer's comments, on the other hand, are hilarious to note in whatever form. If you want a job Al, just ask Kev. Don't make a thinly veiled attempt at subtlety on national television.
Don't get me wrong. In the mid-nineties, I quite liked Newcastle, with their brand of attacking football, but was shocked when they bottled the league in such spectacular fashion. But after their antics against Stevenage Borough in the FA Cup in 1998, I no longer held any respect for them. Managers that have gone there have had to live with the outlandish expectation that Newcastle is somehow still a big club. Wake up, you've been passed by half the league in the last decade.
And now, in early 2008, the Magpies are six points above the drop zone with a new manager who likes to prioritise attack over defence. No doubt they'll enjoy a honeymoon period against Bolton at the weekend, but I for one won't be too saddened nor even surprised if Newcastle fail to avoid the drop. And what then for the hero they call Kev?
9 January 2008
Note to The Bill producers...
The recent trend of filling cast vacancies with ex-Eastenders and Hollyoaks people is just about tolerable, given how saturated it has become for former residents of Albert Square and... well, Hollyoaks.
BUT the decision to sack Jeff Stewart (or Reg Hollis) is simply wrong. For it is surely the case that part of The Bill's appeal is tuning in to see what wacky capers PC Hollis is getting up to 24 years after he first pounded the Sun Hill beat.
Regrettably, this decision leaves me now expecting the seemingly inevitable departure of Tony Stamp, and following that it will be left to DCI Jack Meadows to keep my interest in the show at a level I have become accustomed to.
It's a sad day in Sun Hill.
BUT the decision to sack Jeff Stewart (or Reg Hollis) is simply wrong. For it is surely the case that part of The Bill's appeal is tuning in to see what wacky capers PC Hollis is getting up to 24 years after he first pounded the Sun Hill beat.
Regrettably, this decision leaves me now expecting the seemingly inevitable departure of Tony Stamp, and following that it will be left to DCI Jack Meadows to keep my interest in the show at a level I have become accustomed to.
It's a sad day in Sun Hill.
8 January 2008
My favourite ever headline?
Some headline writers are masters of wit and punnery, and some, I would imagine, stumble upon it without even realising.
The creator, for example, of the delight that was "Super Caley Go Ballistic, Celtic Were Atrocious" must surely be an example of the former. Ingenious wordplay, and no doubt fortuitous to have had such a situation fall into his (or indeed her) hands.
But an example of the latter is this beauty I came across on nonleaguedaily.com, and before anyone says a thing, yes I am aware that it exposes the lingering adolescent within my mind, but I don't think for one minute that the writer here fully realised the innuendo that he (or, again, indeed her) was about to publish for amused souls like myself.
Marvellous and shit, isn't it?
The creator, for example, of the delight that was "Super Caley Go Ballistic, Celtic Were Atrocious" must surely be an example of the former. Ingenious wordplay, and no doubt fortuitous to have had such a situation fall into his (or indeed her) hands.
But an example of the latter is this beauty I came across on nonleaguedaily.com, and before anyone says a thing, yes I am aware that it exposes the lingering adolescent within my mind, but I don't think for one minute that the writer here fully realised the innuendo that he (or, again, indeed her) was about to publish for amused souls like myself.
Marvellous and shit, isn't it?
7 January 2008
A Selection of News
M.I.A. SLAMS VIDEO CENSORSHIP
GET MOVING FOR LATITUDE PRE-SALE
There were other stories but I cannot find them, such as the Foals lead singer monging his foot up. Spiffing what ho?
GET MOVING FOR LATITUDE PRE-SALE
There were other stories but I cannot find them, such as the Foals lead singer monging his foot up. Spiffing what ho?
2 January 2008
Now that's what I call 2007
Just as soon as it was thrust upon us, the year that was 2007 is about to be consigned to history. Naturally, the best way to celebrate this fact is to gather round the television for the hours of lists and reviews that somehow do the year's events justice. But rather than watch Jimmy Carr scoff his way through the funny side of Chelsea winning the cup, here goes my attempt at creating a "Best of..." list that even I can't disagree with, surely?
One of the most eagerly deployed clichés is 'what a year this has been in music', and if you look in any of the music mags, they'll probably say something to that extent. I'll happily subscribe to that claim though. It's not been an epoch-defining year, but there has been some good shit this year, and this is a shameless attempt to sign-up to the list-makers' guild with a look at some of the better music of 2007 type of thing. Some might be a bit older, but I reserve that right, isn't it?
Babyshambles - Delivery
Bloc Party - Flux
Cajun Dance Party - Amylase
Foals - Hummer
Hadouken! - That Boy That Girl
Heavyweight Champion of the World - He Said He Loved Me
Jack Penate - Second Minute or Hour
Jukebox Vandals - Yeah, No, Definitely
Klaxons - Gravity's Rainbow
La Rocca - Sketches (20 Something Life)
LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends
Los Campesinos - You! Me! Dancing
Manic Street Preachers - Send Away The Tigers
The Cribs - Men's Needs:
The Dykeenies - Stitches
The Holloways - Generator
The Maccabees - X-Ray
The Pigeon Detectives - I Found Out
The Rakes - We Danced Together
The Sunshine Underground - Borders
The Wombats - Kill The Director (CSS mix)
VWF - Family Man
I could offer explanations but I'll let the music do the talking. If I missed any out, hey, it happens. Lovely.
One of the most eagerly deployed clichés is 'what a year this has been in music', and if you look in any of the music mags, they'll probably say something to that extent. I'll happily subscribe to that claim though. It's not been an epoch-defining year, but there has been some good shit this year, and this is a shameless attempt to sign-up to the list-makers' guild with a look at some of the better music of 2007 type of thing. Some might be a bit older, but I reserve that right, isn't it?
Babyshambles - Delivery
Bloc Party - Flux
Cajun Dance Party - Amylase
Foals - Hummer
Hadouken! - That Boy That Girl
Heavyweight Champion of the World - He Said He Loved Me
Jack Penate - Second Minute or Hour
Jukebox Vandals - Yeah, No, Definitely
Klaxons - Gravity's Rainbow
La Rocca - Sketches (20 Something Life)
LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends
Los Campesinos - You! Me! Dancing
Manic Street Preachers - Send Away The Tigers
The Cribs - Men's Needs:
The Dykeenies - Stitches
The Holloways - Generator
The Maccabees - X-Ray
The Pigeon Detectives - I Found Out
The Rakes - We Danced Together
The Sunshine Underground - Borders
The Wombats - Kill The Director (CSS mix)
VWF - Family Man
I could offer explanations but I'll let the music do the talking. If I missed any out, hey, it happens. Lovely.
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