31st March 2024

Titus writes:
 
You hear it said often that so and so band “have a cult following” – this is true in many cases, but certainly none more so than in the case of Sonic Youth, who performed for thirty years from 1981, and since their break up in 2011, have resisted all calls and attempts to reform. Their fans were very loyal to them and the band became one of America’s and New York’s finest.
 
They were founded by Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), and Lee Ronaldo (guitar, vocals) and these three remained as a unit for the entire thirty years of the band’s existence.The group employed various drummers, and they collectively became a very important part of the U.S. noise rock scene. One journalist praised them for “redefining what rock guitar can do”, and indeed they used some very unorthodox guitar tunings to create their own distinctive sound, such as deploying screwdrivers and drumsticks. Over their long career, Sonic Youth recorded for various labels, but had their biggest success after signing to David Geffen’s DGC label in 1990.
 
I’m becoming famous (or is it infamous?) at telling you stuff that apparently not a lot of people know, so do you know how the band got its name? No? Well I’ll tell you.......the name came from combining the nickname of MC5’s Fred “Sonic” Smith with reggae artist Big Youth.......hence Sonic Youth. Following this, the band seemed to always have their own unique Sonic Youth sound, and even a media giant like ‘The New York Times’ reported that Sonic Youth were “making the most startlingly original guitar based music since Jimi Hendrix”.  Praise indeed, and even more praise was bestowed upon them after Neil Young heard the EVOL album, and called it “a classic”. A number of influential periodicals such as ‘Rolling Stone’ named their LP ‘Daydream Nation’ as one of the best from the eighties decade. The decade also saw Thurston Moore & Kim Gordon get married in 1984, and ten years later they had a daughter Coco Hayley Gordon Moore.
 
In 1990, Sonic Youth released their first album for David Geffen, which was arguably their best but most commercial offering, followed by ‘Dirty’ in 1992. Another LP ‘Washing Machine’ was released in 1995 and the band seemed to be shifting away from their punk roots towards more experimental music. That year also saw them headlining the Lollapalooza Festival with Hole and Pavement.
 
In October 2011, Thurston & Kim announced that their 27 year marriage was over, following Thurston’s affair with art book Director Eva Prinz, and the band’s label Matador said that Sonic Youth’s future was “uncertain”. 
 
In that November, Lee Ronaldo stated that the band would be “ending for a while”. It did end, and as I said earlier all attempts at a reunion have been resisted. I have Kim’s book entitled “Girl in a Band” and she is adamant that despite 15 studio albums, 4 compilation albums, 46 music videos, 8 EP’s, and 21 Singles...... the split was “for good”. 
 
The track I have requested lex to play is from the ‘Goo’ album, and is their most successful single ‘Kool Thing’.

29th March 2024

Click HERE to listen again or to download the podcast (downloading & playing is more reliable). 

Nirvana vs Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give Your Teen Spirit up (DJ Morgoth mashup)
Get Wrong - Too Late To Hide
I Fight Dragons - The Faster The Treadmill
Ashes to Beauty - Don't Leave Me Here
Tones And I - Dance Monkey
Pavement - Harness Your Hopes
Night Tapes - Every Day Is A Game
Again ft. Marius Bear - Stress
The Vanns - Settle Me Down
Ibrahim Hesnawi - Never Understand
Troye Zillia - Pid Dubynoju
Lola Young - Conceited
Jorja Smith - Burn
Reverb 10,000 - Man Or Astro-Man?
(See blog by Titus below)
Jenni Vartiainen - Lanka
Julieta Venegas - Me Voy

25th March 2024

Titus writes:
 
I take it that many of you have heard of “The King of the Surf Guitar” a.k.a. Dick Dale.....well, this week I am concentrating on a band that was heavily influenced by D.D.and they are called Man or Astro Man?
They particularly like science fiction themes, and it is often said, weird musical devices like theremins & tesla coils. They started off playing plain surf rock in 1993, but with sci-fi sound bites, and their latter work has included the use of synthesisers, plus Apple printers (yes really). They have generally included sound bites from science fiction films & TV shows..... but how did these people come up with their collective name? Well, apparently there was an advertising poster in the U.S. for the Japanese film ‘The Human Vapor’, which included the line “Is he man or Astro Man?”. All very weird.
 
Equally weird are their names they chose to use in the band. Brian Causey became ‘Star Crunch’, Brian Teasley was ‘Birdstuff’, whilst Robert del Bueno assumed the name ‘Coco the Electronic Monkey Wizard’. Joining them later on was vocalist Samantha Erin Paulsen who is known as ‘Avona Nova’ and now plays 2nd guitar.   I thought that one of the band’s past members Dave Strength had the best a.k.a. though – he was ‘Grand Master Useless’ !!   Man or Astro Man? had a belief that they were extra terrestrials transported to Earth to play surf music. Inevitably the group had many leavings and replacements, but the original line up of ‘Star Crunch’, ‘Birdstuff’ and ‘Coco’ had reunions starting in 2010.
 
The band released ten albums from their beginnings up to 2001, plus a couple of E.P.’s and many singles, and some of these singles were pressed in various vinyl colours. They recorded 5 Peel Sessions between 1993 & 2000, and JP was always mesmerised by their music. In addition they performed loads of live gigs, and dressed in space age jumpsuits. I suppose that all of this intensive work got the better of them and they called it a day in 2001......until 2006 when themselves, Scratch Acid & Big Black appeared for a day each at a 3 day festival in Chicago, which was organised by Touch & Go Records to mark the label’s 25th anniversary. Fast forward to 2013 and the band’s album  ‘Defcon 5...4...3...2...1’ was released as a digital download.
 
One of the great album titles of our time IMO came out in 1995 as a picture disc/CD on One Louder Records entitled ‘Live transmissions from Uranus’, whilst in 2017, Man or Astro Man? released another live album ‘Live at Third Man Records’. They also had released 4 compilation albums and the curiously named ‘Destroy all Astromen’ and ‘What remains inside a Black Hole’ were particular favourites of their cult following. The former was produced on red vinyl for a limited 200 pressings.  One other record worthy of mention (as a tribute to the great man?) was a 2 x 7 inch single called ‘Inside the head of John Peel’.
 
So, that’s Man or Astro Man? for you and I’m hoping Lex will play ‘Reverb 10,000’ from the ‘Destroy all Astromen’ album. Give it a listen – the music is really great, and not half as strange as some of the stuff I’ve referred to above!

22nd March 2024

Click HERE to listen again or to download (downloading & playing is more reliable). 

Birdy - Paradise Calling
Emcee L (Da LAB),Da LAB,Mua (Starry Night) - Chuya (feat. Muaoii)
The Postal Service - Such Great Heights
Steve Miller Band - Rock'n Me
Arkells - Knocking At The Door
NEWSKI feat Matthew Caws - Chemicals
Starcrawler - Bet My Brains
Black Pumas - Tomorrow
Ben Harper & The Blind Boys of Alabama - 11th Commandment
Birdy - Wings
DT Tap Rap,Drum7 - Le Luu Ly 
T. Rex - Prelude
T. Rex - Dove
Margo Cilker - That River
White Buffalo - The Woods
Adolf - Gangnam Style Parody
Katina - Don't Stroke My Pussy
April Wine - I Like to Rock

Also, if you would like to listen to this week's Wrinkly Rock, it's HERE.

16th March 2024

Titus writes:
 
As one of the 1500 people who attended the very first Glastonbury Music Festival of 1970, I am having a bit of a change this week from my usual emphasis on an artist (e), or a band. I have to say that the Festival was less memorable at the time, but has obviously risen to iconic status in the ensuing years.
 
As a 21 year old, I could barely afford the £1 ticket entry, as my weekly salary was around a tenner. I distinctly recall mailing a £1 postal order to the Festival organisers, and my mate Pete (who I think later became a Jehovah’s Witness) and I duly set off in my 1963 Mini on 18 September 1970. We were told that the Festival didn’t open until the day after, so we settled for an uncomfortable sleep in the car, after being guided to a car park by one of the volunteers.
This, the first festival at Worthy Farm, Pilton was called the 'Pilton Pop, Blues & Folk Festival'.  Farm Owner and Organiser Michael Eavis had attended a previous Festival at the Royal Bath & West Showground in Shepton Mallet three months earlier. This was called ‘The Bath Festival of Blues & Progressive Music’, where Led Zeppelin, Jefferson Airplane, Frank Zappa, Santana, Canned Heat, Colloseum, Steppenwolf, Fairports, John Mayall with Peter Green (wow!), Pink Floyd & Pentangle amongst others all played – and wouldn’t you just know it, I attended that too! 
 
Looking back, it was an astonishing line up  and certainly rivalled the Isle of Wight event of August 1970.  Michael was so impressed with the Bath event, that he took it upon himself for him and his wife Jean, to organise their own event, and they provided free camping and free milk. The Kinks were supposed to be the headline act, but leader Ray Davies apparently fell ill and produced a sick note – I don’t know how true this is! With fellow headliners Wayne Fontana & the Mindbenders also backing out, both acts were replaced by Tyrannosaurus Rex, or T. Rex as they later became.  Others playing were the Pink Fairies, Quintessence, Keith Christmas, Al Stewart, Steamhammer. All of these acts performed really well, as I recall.   I’m going to search the archives to see if any original recordings remain (if indeed any one did any recording).
 
On a personal level, having attended three similar events before this, I found the facilities there very Spartan and uncomfortable, the food unplentiful, the toilets disgusting and the sole stage seemed to be made from scaffolding and plywood.....but at least I can say “I was there”.  I remember saying to colleagues on my return to work on the following Monday, that it was “alright but I doubt whether there’ll be another one”.  How wrong was I.
 
Fast forward 54 years and the Festival has gone from strength to strength, and has become a major event in the UK calendar. There hasn’t been such an event EVERY succeeding year but certainly most years, and it is attended in modern times by around 200,000 people. This figure in itself, requires the organisers to provide security, water, electricity & food, which must all comply with Health & Safety legislation.  When I was there and since, many revellers have left behind their litter, and latterly their tents, which volunteers have to deal with, in order to help restore the place to a working farm.
 
Incidentally, it was thought that the 1970 title of the event was a little onerous, so the 1971 show was entitled ’Glastonbury Fayre’. 1971 was also the birth year of The Pyramid Stage, which – not TOO many folks know this - was a one-tenth replica of The Great Pyramid of Giza, built from scaffolding and metal sheeting.

15th March 2024

Click HERE to listen again or to download (downloading & playing is more reliable). 

Katina - Don't Stick Stickers On My Paper Knickers
Lorraine Bowen feat. The Veltmans - Crumble Song (Punk Version)
(Tune of the week)
Rammstein - Stirb nicht vor mir (feat. Sharleen Spiteri)
The Damned - New Rose
(See blog by Titus below)
The Breeders - Divine Mascis
Dalmatian Rex and the Eigentones - Geek
Nick Pride & The Pimptones - Oh Michelle
The Penguins - Una Mosca Volava per la Llum
Züri West - I schänke dr mis Härz
The Nosebleeds - Fascists Pigs
Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers - I Used To Be Fun
D16 - Solidarity
Ladina - Milestone
Måneskin - Beggin'
Sheila - Spacer (Monsieurwilly & Sami Dee Cucaracha Cocktail Mix)
King Ibis - Watch My Mind Bend
Nelly Furtado Featuring Juanes - Te Busque
Sina - Rosa Rosä

9th March 2024

Titus writes:
 
When Lex told me that he was going to play some punk on 15 March, I had only one band in mind for my blog – The Damned.
 
The band is still going strong today and was set up in London in 1976, by Dave Vanian (vocals), Brian James (guitar), Raymond Burns a.k.a. Captain Sensible (bass, guitars, vocals), and Chris Millar a.k.a. Rat Scabies (drums). They are unique in that they were the first punk band from the United Kingdom to release a single - ‘New Rose’ -  5 weeks ahead of the Sex Pistols’  ‘Anarchy in the UK’. Incredibly, nine of the band’s singles made the Top 40. They released a studio album called ‘Damned Damned Damned’ in 1977 and also toured the United States of America.
 
They made a follow up album in 1977 called ‘Music for Pleasure’, produced by Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason, but the music press didn’t take to it, and the band then called a halt to their short career. However, they got together again pretty quickly  and released ‘Machine Gun Etiquette’ in 1979, followed in the Eighties by ‘The Black Album’ (1980), ‘Strawberries’ (1982), ‘Phantasmagoria’ (1985), plus ‘Anything’ (1986). The band by this time were moving away gradually from pure punk into a gothic rock style. They have often been hailed  as the major influence shaping British and American hardcore punk. Some of the more commercial stuff that they produced in the nineties and after didn’t really appeal to me as much as the raw 1970’s offerings, but hey, each person to their own!
 
Not a lot of people know that prior to 1976, three members of The Damned plus Chrissie Hynde had been playing in a group called Masters of the Backside. I’m not saying “You heard it first here”, merely that not a lotta people know that! Similarly, there was a music critic called Ned Raggett who commented on the ‘B’ side of ‘New Rose’ – a fast version of a well known Beatles’ tune called ‘Help’ - saying “This is a deathless anthem of nuclear strength romantic angst”. Many people know of course, that The Damned also made their television debut in 1984 in ‘The Young Ones’, performing ‘Nasty’.
 
All in all The Damned have released 12 albums between 1977 and 2023, and have had quite a few changes in their line up, with various members leaving, and then re-joining, such as Sensible and Scabies. In January this year, they announced that for the first time in over three decades, they would be doing a North American tour with the 1980’s line up of Dave Vanian, Captain Sensible, Rat Scabies and Paul Gray. The tour will comprise ten shows and is due to happen in May & June 2024.
 
It will come as no surprise to you that I have requested Lex to play that amazing first single ‘New Rose’. Enjoy, it’s a truly great record IMO.

8th March 2024

Click HERE to listen again or to download (downloading & playing is more reliable). 

TapTaK - I'm Gone
Blues Lawyer - Nowhere To Go
INXS - The One Thing
Swansea Sound - Twentieth Century
Merci, Mercy - Silver Lining
The Cavemen - Booze, Ciggies 'n Drugs
The Smithereens - Up In Heaven ~ Not Only Here
The Dollyrots - Da Doo Ron Ron/The Sponge/I Wanna Be Sedated
English Teacher - Nearly Daffodils
(Tune of the week)
Mozart Estate - Low Life
South of Savoy - Premium Shuffle (Live in Viljandi)
CHUCK - Nothing Matters to Me Now
Carrie Newcomer - A Great Wild Mercy
Skott - Overcome
Whalebone - Nebraska
(See blog by Titus below)
Of Monsters and Men - Circles
Ethan & Maya Hawke - We Don't Run

2nd March 2024

Titus writes:
 
This week I am compiling my blog on a band much closer to my home in Shropshire, than last week’s band The Yeah Yeah Yeahs from across the pond.  I refer to Whalebone, who are an acoustic guitar duo comprising Steve Downs ( my boss on the Severn Valley Railway – Steve is Station Manager at Eardington Station) and Charlotte Watson. They were originally a duo, with violinist Sarah Ibberson joining to make up a threesome, but then Sarah left a few years ago.
 
They have been writing & recording instrumental music since 2007, and have been inspired by the natural world, folklore in general, and their lovely surroundings in Shropshire. Much of their music has its roots in Celtic folk music of Britain, with some tunes rock-infused, indeed many classic rock tunes seem suited to the 2 acoustic guitar format. Since 2021, the 2 guitarists have been concentrating not only on the work of Whalebone, but also creating new music as The Bare Bones and Earthbone. I am told that since 2021, that they have had around 30 million streams on Spotify alone. To this end, Steve & Char have in 2022 released (as Whalebone) ‘What they Do’ and (as The Bare Bones) ‘The Bare Bones’.
 
They have assisted the Arts Council in 2019 with music & poetry, with poet Jean Atkin, in the making of ‘Understories’.  They also linked up with Kate Innes in ‘Flock of Words’, and have shown conscientious concern for the environment e.g. covers for their recordings are made from 100% recycled card with no shrink wrap.
 
I won’t name all of their albums, EP’s etc (including those made in the names of The Bare Bones and Earthbone) but I can assure you all, that collectively they realise a double figure total. I have seen the band play both as a threesome, and also as the two guitarists and can honestly say that like their enthusiastic followers , I have always enjoyed their gigs.  In 2020 the band played their 800th live performance, and released an album called ‘Totally Plucked’, which featured on BBC Radio 3. These days however, Steve & Char are concentrating more on working from their rural Shropshire studio rather than doing live gig.
 
They have their own web site here, and I would encourage you to purchase goods via that medium –you won’t be disappointed! The track I am requesting lex to play this week is ‘Nebraska’ from the ‘Totally Plucked’ album. This album features 14 tracks covering many musical moods and is Whalebone’s first guitar duo album since ‘There to Here’. The album is augmented in parts with in addition to steel and nylon string guitars, there is mandolin, bouzouki, tenor guitar, bass, shruti box & low whistle.

1st March 2024

Click HERE to listen again or to download (downloading & playing is more reliable).

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Date With The Night (See blog by Titus below)
Blue Lucy - Last Year in Amsterdam
Scriabin - People Like Ships
Siobhan Cotchin - Give It Up
Skepta - Can't Play Myself (A Tribute To Amy)
Kee'ahn - Catch the Night
Dane Tutty ft Jen Buxton - Church
The Moving Stills - Volcano
Angie McMahon - Letting Go
(Tune of the week)
Camila Cabello - Havana (Feat. Young Thug)
Caravan - Let It Shine
Colbie Caillat - Midnight Bottle
MAY-A - Something Familiar
Ira Marlowe - Losertown
Dust - Close Your Eyes And Smile
DMA'S - Step Up The Morphine
Ellen Soffe - Who Says?