A Place to Bury Strangers to hit the UK and Europe

A Place to Bury Strangers (aka, "The Loudest Band in NYC" which they are, many nights in NYC left my ears completely numb thanks to them, but of course it was worth it) launch their UK/European tour in Nottingham on 6th November. The tour is to help promote their new album, Exploding Head (which I bought the other week, and suggest you do the same!). Their Cardiff date on the 8th November will be with support by Dublin's The Brothers Movement (formerly Mainline), who are amazing in their own right. Most of the UK dates however will be supported by Canada's Japandroids, followed with a date in Milan with Gringo Star and then a performance at December's All Tomorrow Parties' Nightmare Before Christmas festival in Minehead, England.

UK/European dates are:
6 Nov Bodega Social Nottingham UK
7 Nov Flapper Birmingham, UK
8 Nov Barfly^ Cardiff, UK
9 Nov Whelan’s* Dublin, Ireland
11 Nov Auntie Annie’s* Belfast, Ireland
12 Nov The Captain’s Rest* Glasgow, UK
13 Nov Digital (club night)* Newcastle, UK
14 Nov Moho^* Manchester, UK
15 Nov Cockpit^* Leeds, UK
17 Nov Portland^^ Cambridge, UK
18 Nov Garage^^ London, UK
19 Nov La Maroquinerie Paris, France
20 Nov Paradiso - London Calling Amsterdam, Netherlands
21 Nov Botanique Orangerie Brussels, BE
22 Nov Le Grand Mix Tourcoing, FR
24 Nov Ubel & Gefahrlich Hamburg, Germany
25 Nov die Werkstatt Cologne, Germany
26 Nov Guess Festival Utrecht, Holland
27 Nov Vera Groningen, Holland
28 Nov Museumskeller Erfurt, Germany
29 Nov Beatpol Dresden, Germany
1 Dec Magnet Berlin, Germany
2 Dec Le Romanidie Lausanne, Switzerland
3 Dec Magnolia** Milan, Italy
4 Dec Munich, Germany
6 Dec All Tomorrow’s Parties Minehead, UK
11 Dec Sala Caracol Madrid, Spain
12 Dec Sala Apolo Barcelona, Spain
13 Dec LA2 Barcelona, Spain

^ with Japandroids & the Brothers Movement
* with Japandroids
^* with Japandroids & Sad Day for Puppets
^^ with the Brothers Movement & Sad Day for Puppets
** with Gringo Star

Lastly, their new video for "In Your Heart", from the album Exploding Head


A Place To Bury Strangers' myspace

A few minutes with The Lovely Eggs

The Lovely Eggs, who are currently promoting their Halloween single, "Haunt Me Out" (available on CD via Cherryade Records, and also iTunes) sat down to answer a few questions....

How did The Lovely Eggs come about?
The whole reason we started was a drunken dare!
I (David) was visiting Holly who was living in Paris. We just started writing some tunes for a bet because Holly's friend Becky didn't believe we could write a song between us! That song what we wrote was called "Last Train To Ballard", a true story about Holly falling asleep on the Metro and waking up at the final station in an empty train where she had to get let out by the cleaners and find her way across Paris to her flat.

Where do your rehearse?
Well, we rehearse at a place called Lancaster Music Co-op. It's brilliant, non-profit making and David works there!

What was your best gig so far? why?
To be honest with you, in the last couple of years we've played so many gigs in so many bizarre places it's hard to choose! But recently the gig at Indietracks festival was amazing as it had such a good vibe! There are bands playing on steam trains and we played in a really old wooden church which looked like it belonged in America. We love playing places that look like they belong in America!

And the worst gig? why?
We've not had many bad gigs as we try and make gigs like a party and have lots of fun. Washington DC was quite scary and we saw a rat in the alley way!

When you guys are just hanging out, what music are your most likely listening to?
Well, in the evening we listen to 6 music as lot (especially Marc Riley's show) just to hear some new stuff, really. Marc Riley is into a lot of good stuff (old and new), but other than that we've been playing the new Jeffrey Lewis album a lot recently and some classics like Jonathan Richman and the Velvets. It just depends what mood takes the fancy!

What was the first album you ever bought?
Holly: I know the first single I ever got was theme tune from Fraggle Rock, not sure what album it was, but probably something like Michael Jacksons' thriller!
David: I think the first album I ever got was Joseph and his Technicolour Dreamcoat!

Any weird phobias and/or band superstitions?
Holly is frightened of buttons and David is frightened of giant pins! We have a mutual fear of Haberdashery!

What's your band's fashion sense/style? Any favourite clothing shops?
We do most of our shopping in Charity shops! Our favorite is St Johns Hospice on Church Street in Lancaster. We love anything that's old and has a story!

Describe your fanbase in 3 words:
Where are they?

If you could be any other person for a day, who would you be?
David: Elvis Presley, cause we've just visited his house and it made you wonder what his life must have been like!
Holly: Elizabeth the 1st cause I'd like to know what it would be like to have Henry 8th as a dad!

What's better - downloading, still buying CDs, or collecting vinyl?
Collecting vinyl, but we are still doing the cd thing because our turntable in the front room won't fit in, size wise that is!

Best band you've seen live?
Holly: It's a toss up between The Make up, Sonic Youth and Jonathan Richman, but Hotpants Romance are pretty ace too
David: The Fall, Grandaddy, Sonic Youth, there are so many!

Is there anything (previously unknown) about your band that you'd like to share with the world?
We have an unhealthy obsession with Twin Peaks.

Tell us something interesting about your hometown:
It's a spooky place with a history of witches

And share a story from the road:
We once played in a scrap yard outside LA and Holly thought David had disappeared and got kidnapped by a serial killer, but he just went to a gem rock museum.

Thanks Holly and David! x

Watch:
The Lovely Eggs' music video for "I Like Birds But I Like Other Animals Too" on YouTube

The Lovely Eggs' myspace

The Gallagher Brothers' Future Plans

Following the break-up of (one of my favourite bands) Oasis in August, last
week the NME reported that Noel Gallagher has confirmed plans for a solo album, quoting “I’ve actually got a backlog of songs that are slowly building up. The thing about a solo record is the time to do one is between Oasis world tours because you’d have a good couple of years, But it takes me so long to write the songs that eventually I run out of time (before Oasis begins again), but I’ve got a backlog now of about four or five songs which are probably too far in the past as far as the band in concerned, but which could work on my record... it's coming.”

Now this week there's reports that younger brother Liam has plans to start a
new band in 2010. Liam stated, "I'm always going to miss Oasis. It was my
f***ing thing, you know what I mean? It's who I am. But it's only a name.
I'm still who I am and I can go and do something else. I've got music in me.
I'll never leave it behind but we'll see where it goes. It might be s**t but
you don't know until you try." Then Liam told The Scotsman newspaper: "For now, I'll be relaxing at home, just getting out of music for a bit and then I'm going to start up something maybe after January, do something different, see where it goes. But I'll be having a breather from the music for a bit without a doubt."

------

As a long-time fan, I'm looking forward to both Noel and Liam's projects.
With Noel's support of more underground bands (Amorphous Androgynous, for instance) his solo album, with all his different influences and music acquaintances, could turn out to be quite interesting. Also, Liam is still arguably one of the best rock'n'roll frontmen of the past 20 years, so there's no question that whatever band he puts together, it's going to have a lot of that rock'n'roll swagger that Oasis fans love.

But for now we just have our old Oasis albums, wondering about the future, and of course, Liam's own line of designer clothes.

Download:
Oasis - Listen Up (Live from MTV Unplugged).mp3


Oasis' official site

Video: The Black Ryder's "Sweet Come Down"

One album I'm anticipating this fall is the debut by Australian band, The Black Ryder. Above is their new video for the track "Sweet Come Down". The haunting vocals match the concept of the video: an outlaw walking through the desert, stepping over deceased victims, but then finds one still alive... For how it ends, well, you have to watch the video..

Harmonica on this track is provided by Peter Hayes of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

The Black Ryder's album, Buy the Ticket, Take The Ride, will be released on EMI Australia on 6th November.

The Black Ryder's website
The Black Ryder's myspace

A few minutes with...Kim Acrylic

This past weekend's interview with Kim Acrylic from the band Kim Acrylic & the Northern Drones, who are based in both Seattle, USA and Dublin, Ireland.

How did Kim Acrylic and the Northern Drones come about?
It's pretty interesting really. I had just gotten my first volume of poetry
published and decided to do some promo stuff with me reading spoken word on my myspace. Well, the Northern Drones happened to stumble across my page, digged my voice and words, so they asked me to collaborate on a music project with them. Of course I was beside myself, it's been my dream to put my words with music. They reside in Ireland and I'm here in Seattle. Everything was recorded via the internet...talk about LOW-FI!

So, being the vocalist and lyricist for the Northern Drones, who are your biggest inspirations, lyric-wise?
As a teen Jim Morrison was a biggie for me, the dark mystical words thrown
together. As I got older I branched out into the beats. Jim Carroll and a
lot of the French poets. But lyric-wise and musically I'd have to say Jarvis
Cocker from the band Pulp is my greatest influence. His delivery and choice
of words and story telling is amazingly done.

What bands do people say are similar to the Northern Drones?
We seem to get the Velvet Underground comparison a ton! Which is so
flattering because I'm a HUGE fan of Lou Reed's words as well. We also get
compared to Sonic Youth which s funny cos I never listened to them much, and again, The Doors.

Tell us something interesting about your hometown of Seattle:
What can I say about Seattle that hasn't been said? Well it DOESN'T rain as
much as people say, in fact our summer had temps in the 100's and a rough
winter..I blame global warming...But yeah Seattle is more GRAY than
rainy..in my opinion.

When you're just hanging out, what music are you usually listening to?
Huge Britpop fanatic. Shoegaze, French and U.K. indie and 60's counter
culture. I have a ridiculously huge music collection

What was the first album you ever bought?
First album I owned was Chipmunk Punk on vinyl. I was like three or four
years old. However, the first one I bought on my own was most likely a
horrid bubble gum pop album from the mid-eighties.

Does your band have any weird superstitions?
I'm not superstitious myself, however, I was a little worried of the "poet
curse". After I got published then released a record I was worried I'd die
tragically (laughs), but as for the rest of the band I don't really know
where their beliefs on superstitions lie.

You're friends with James St. James...how did you get to know him?
James is a great guy. I interviewed him once for a music magazine I used to
write for. We talked a few times on the phone and say hello online, but we
have never met. We're more of acquaintances, really.

What's your band's fashion sense/style? Any favourite clothing shops?
I'm all about thrift stores and yard sales! Jeans and t-shirts suit the band
just fine. I'm mostly in all black, in a band shirt and skirt. Nothing is
ever "brand new" in my closet.

Your album is called "Fanfare Meltdown". Where did that title come from?
Fanfare Meltdown is the name of one of our songs and one of my poems. I
thought it would be a catchy title and the band agreed.

Describe your fanbase in 3 words:
Eclectic, avant garde, eccentric

I love the music video for "Exile Yourself". How was it made?
With a web cam. I made videos of me moving about and being intense with
masks and props. Then I sent it to Steve Lowe, the guitarist, who also mixed
the album. Then he added in his footage and tripped it all out. Very
brilliant artist. I'm happy to be working with him

If you could be any other person for a day, who would you be?
Someone definitely opposite from me, otherwise whats the point? Maybe Chloe Sevigny? Naw, shes not too different, maybe a gay guy!

What's better - downloading, still buying CDs, or collecting vinyl?
Downloading is easier, however, there is NOTHING like browsing a little
record shop for either tapes, CDs or vinyl. I really dig tapes still, I have
2 suitcases FULL of them! And besides, we don't want record stores to shut
down, do we?

Best band you've seen live?
Jarvis Cocker live in 2007..Hands down most amazing gig. The energy and
passion,everything I strive to be.

Is there anything (previously unknown) about your band that you'd like to share with the world?
We have never met in person during this whole project

And lastly, how can people get their hands on your album?
iTunes and CD baby

Thanks Kim! x

Kim Acrylic & The Northern Drones' myspace

Halloween mixtape!

It's that time of year again - the air is getting colder, the leaves are turning all shades of orange and brown, and it's perfectly normal to be dressed as a vampire in public. It's Halloween! To celebrate, here's a ghoulish mixtape.....enjoy. x

Side A
The Postmarks - Everyday is Halloween download
The Raveonettes - Attack of the Ghost Riders download
The Sonics - The Witch download
Zombina & The Skeletones - Zombie Hop download
Ladytron - Ghosts (Candle Hank Mix) download
Singapore Sling - Midnight download
The Ramones - Pet Cemetery download
Poe - Haunted download

Side B
Rob Zombie - Living Dead Girl download
Siouxsie Sioux & The Banshees - Halloween download
The Horrors - Count in Fives (demo) download
Blind Mr. Jones - Spooky Vibes download
The Shaggs - It's Halloween download
The Starlight Mints - Pumpkin download
The Tamborines - Bewitched download
The Flaming Lips - Halloween on the Barbary Coast download

Basement Jaxx with Yoko Ono on Later...

Last night on Later...with Jools Holland they ended the show with a brilliant performance by Basement Jaxx featuring Yoko Ono. The track is called "Day of the Sunflowers" and is one of the stand-out tracks from Basement Jaxx's recent album, Scars.

For Yoko fans, the Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band is having a remix competition for their track "The Sun is Down" off of their new album, Between My Head and the Sky. If you'd like to enter, the remix package is available for download here....good luck!

Basement Jaxx's website
Basement Jaxx's myspace

Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band's website
Yoko Ono's myspace