A Short Break / The Runners

I’ll be straight with you, if you want to start a blog and keep at it I recommend you don’t chose a time where other concerns include finding a full time job, learning to drive, finding somewhere to live, getting a band together and staying alive, amongst other things. So I’m gonna have a short semi-break. I won’t be gone completely, if something completely blows my mind I’ll be sure to make a brief appearance again to let you know. And I’ll still be writing for the good guys at GIITTV, who are currently taking time to sex up their website. I’ll also be having a chat with the guys at the BLD at some point in the new year in regards to sorting out another great band night, based on the success of the last.

It’s still weak I know, but I figure it best to wait till a time when I can put in the effort to give you something half decent, such as has been with recent posts, rather than just countdowns to single releases and nights out. I won’t leave you empty handed, of course there’s a wealth of artists on the right there to investigate, and today I bring you some new music from some people who call themselves The Runners fell through my letter box the other day and I like it a lot, so listen to the streams below. If you like it too, make an effort to buy them on the 3rd of December.

The Runners – All Over Again

The Runners – Having Fun

Listen to The Runners here.

All the best,

SWTNME

*Exclusive* New Tracks From They Came From The Stars… / Ruth Theodore / The DD Coys

Some great new music for you this week – and for the first time I’m trying something drastic, I’m actually letting you hear it, right here, on this very page.

I have a rather exciting start for you at that. I was going to post up some tracks from They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them’s new/old album ‘Vs Reality’, because it’s absolutely brilliant, but then I caught wind of something even more special: demo recordings from their next album. And what can I say, as expected it’s sounding absolutely fantastic. At points one of the tracks comes across distinctly Cubik, if you catch my drift (there’s the geek in me right there). If you like what you hear below, check out the rest of the demo here.

They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them – Everybody Showers Us With Gifts

They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them – Monkey Typewrite

Next, the stunning Ruth Theodore. The new album was a ray of sunshine through my letterbox, and I am delighted to present you with some samples to whet your appetite: Rash, a stripped down, gritty, acoustic blues work out, and Home, a beautiful piece of Jeff Buckley esque glory. The ‘Worm Food’ long player is out on the 5th of November.

Ruth Theodore – Rash

Ruth Theodore – Home

Finally, old friends The DD Coys have sent me some new material. Their fantastic ‘Gypsy Sonic Youth’ formula is sounding better than it ever has, as you can hear below. Like I always tell you, they really deserve more attention than they get.

The DD Coys – The Venus Sting

The DD Coys – An Audaciously Fleeting Affair

Listen to more of They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them here.

Listen to more of Ruth Theodore here.

Listen to more of The DD Coys here.

New Videos From: They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them / 586 / Popular Workshop

New videos from 3 of SWTNME’s favorite bands, accompanied by exclusive reviews of the singles (meant for GIITTV, but taking an age to get there):

They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them – (It’s Always) Boomtime, Part One

This is super! Giddy synthesizers, silly lyrics, funny noises: all the usual things to expect from ‘They Came From The Stars…’. You’d be pretty daft to think something cobbled together by their wobbly hands might be a disappointment, so all I can do really is reassure you of your impeccable taste. If you have an ounce of fun or insanity within your bones then there’s no way you can’t feel charmed by this superb piece of music. As a final bonus, there’s another chance to hear their underground classic ‘The Unstoppable Kite’ on the flip of the 7″ release. Out 15/10/07

586 – Rags and Tags

586 are effortlessly one of the best underground bands in London right now, in my opinion rightfully destined for some credible form of super stardom. New single ‘Rags and Tags’ does nothing more than firmly cement this belief in my cerebrum. Imagine The Specials dancing the polka with Cardiacs at a Broadway style musical played in a 1979 East Village New York theatre and you’re not far off imagining what fantastic delights this track will bring to your ears. Watch them closely. Out 08/10/07

Popular Workshop – William, It Was Really Something / Radical

On side A of PopShop’s new double single ‘William, It Was Really Something’, we are treated to something a little more subtle than their previous efforts. Whilst the almost mathematical angular riffs and rhythms that make their usual work so unique and enjoyable has been done away with, the track is no less genius than anything else they’ve created before it. Stripped of the standard aggression, we are left with a heart warming ode to another band held in high regard amongst South East London scenesters, William, of course. You’ll be happy to know that AA side radical is a return to form and then some, with nasty dissonant guitars and catchy melodies sharing the same aural space once again. Out 22/10/07

Listen to They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them here.

Listen To 586 here.

Listen to Popular Workshop here.

Trash Fashion / The Lovebirds / Popular Workshop

You don’t need to have scoured the SWTNME links list to have heard of Trash Fashion, they’re probably the biggest unsigned band on the planet right now. If you didn’t know already they have a single coming out on the 8th called ‘Mom and Daddy’, and they even seem to be getting some video play on MTV2. It’s the kind of music you blame Test Icicles for, and even though I know it’s shit, I really like it, so go and buy it. It’ll probably be in those Rough Trade type shops. Oh, and there’s a party to celebrate at Bloomsbury Bowling on the following day.

I’ve noticed The Lovebirds have put up a new track, or rather an old track that wasn’t there before, and it seems to have a shockingly small amount of listens. It’s called ‘Ha’ and it’s well worthy of a mention here as it’s one of my favorites of theirs, both on record and live. Listen to it on their MySpace.

Finally, the latest Popular Workshop single ‘William, It Was Really Something’, a track that simply refuses to stop growing on me, is now available for pre order, which can be done on their MySpace page. It’s another essential buy from the blogs favorite band, look out for a review of it, along with reviews of They Came From The Stars, I Saw Them, Ruth Theodore and 586 on GIITTV next week (honest). It’s a busy time for the underground!

Listen to Trash Fashion here.

Listen to The Lovebirds here.

Listen to Popular Workshop here.

Popular Workshop / Ice, Sea, Dead People / GSpot 3 Aftermath

 

Good news for fans of SWTNME favorites Popular Workshop: they’ve announced a new single. It goes by the name ‘William, it was really something’, and yes it is indeed about a certain other SWTNME favorite. It’s a bit different from their other stuff, less of the angular riffing and more of the gentle melody but, of course, I love it – and you should to. Expect a review with a little more to it at God Is In The TV soon. It’s due on October the 22nd. Hopefully there will be a suitable launch party with free wine, midgets carrying trays of coke and Gypsy/paparazzi punch ups – I’ll let you know.

The latest addition to the sacred list on the right hand side of the page are ‘Ice, Sea, Dead People‘. The name alone fascinates me, at first I couldn’t figure out if it was the worst one I’d heard or a moniker of pure genius – I have since decided on the later. The music is abrasive and exciting, imagine what Test Icicles would have sounded like were they less of a joke and you’re half way there. Check out their MySpace.

Finally, GSpot 3 seems to have been a success from what I can gather. As I said, I couldn’t make it, however the following quotes about the night from the various kindly folk at God Is In The TV seem to suggest a great night (of sorts):

“Broke a string, killed two kick drum pedals, had to leg it off… Bloody brilliant.”
“I was very, very drunk, but still managed to play almost everything right. Marvellous.”
“Our show was.. interesting to say the least! Simon had exploding pedals. The bassist is canned.”
“Screaming Tea Party had to be seen to be believed. Jumping from amps!  Gas masks! Screaming! Jumping into the audience! “
“Screaming Tea Party were just mental. It was like The Grudge on LSD.”
“I’m so annoyed I missed it!”

Well… so am I! Looks like we missed out, but then there’s always next year.

Listen to Popular Workshop here.
Listen to Ice, Sea, Dead People here.

586 / Ruth Theodore

Remember that time I raved about 586? The time has come again. They have a new single out on the 8th of October called ‘Rags and Tags’, and it is simply fantastic. It’s got everything you need to make a perfectly odd piece of brilliance: Oom-pah eastern European beats, a pure pop chorus, musical theater like call and response moments of glee and of course 586’s discoey punky signature sound to keep it very ‘them’. The B-side is the same song, but basically written after smoking crack. And it has a microwave ‘ding’ in it. Nothing more than a warped version of genius.

A CD popped through my door this morning, covered in a brown slip case with ‘Ruth Theodore‘ scrawled across it. It turns out to contain three beautifully quirky tracks by an angelically voiced singer songwriter. I know the term has been soiled in recent times by the likes of either irritatingly beige James Blunt’s or absurd mockney Kate Nash’s, but I assure you this is the real thing: great acoustic songs with a bit of a jazzy tinge about them. It appears she’ll be releasing them on the 22nd of October, under the title ‘Worm Food’, have a gander at her MySpace and if you like, make sure you buy.

Finally a quick reminder about the Gspot 3 BBQ at the Windmill in Brixton this Saturday. I don’t need to tell you again what a blinder of a night it’s sure to be, I’ve made sure to stress that enough already, just make sure you’re there. Rather hypocritically, I won’t be. I’m gonna be representing SWTNME at the front of the mosh pit for Avenue Q, but I’ll be thinking about you all and I’ll try and get someone to do a little write up of it next week. Buy the few remaining tickets here.

Listen to 586 here.

Listen to Ruth Theodore here.

Chet / William

So that’s it now, if you missed last weeks fantastic show, you’ve missed Chet. The atmosphere at The Fox was invigorating, with not a single stone faced person in sight. William paved the way for the big finalé by way of a storming set of lo-fi pop goodness, and Chet were… well they were Chet, and all the great things we have come to expect from them were delivered by the bucket load.

I also saw a few cheeky video cameras about, the expensive looking kind, so I have a sneaky feeling there might be some sort of DVD to look forward to, I’ll keep you posted.

Goodbye Chet.

Listen to Chet here.

Listen to William here.

Chet / G Spot 3

 

So here it is, finally the last day is here. This Saturday at The Fox in Lewisham we shall all be saying bon voyage to the mighty Chet. It is sure to be a momentous evening with SWTNME favorites William as one of the several supports. If you have to go to one gig this year, make sure it’s this one.

If you have room for a second then the G Spot 3 BBQ is the place to be. The final details have been announced. Starting at 4.30 at The Windmill just off Brixton Hill, you will be treated to an evening of: Das Wanderlust, Screaming Tea Party, Subliminal Girls, The Total Drop, Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring, Amy Blue, My First Radio and time.space.repeat. And of course food. That’s 6 out of 8 bands from our very own city, and the two that aren’t are most definitely worth a listen too, I have to say I’m a little ghey for Das Wunderlast. Tickets cost only 5 pounds. You can buy them here, and while you’re at it have a read about all the awesomeness you’re going to witness.

One last word, you may have noticed posts are still a bit erratic. I apologise. Sadly I’m having disputes with the countries… wonderful education system. I thought I was ready to leave it behind months ago but it seems to want to hang on to me for dear life. Things should be in order soon.

Listen to Chet here. And cry a little.

GSpot 3 / The Sailplanes

 

I have just enough time to pop my head in and give you a quick update. Firstly, a rather exciting night is approaching. A month from now, the good people at God Is In The TV will be hosting a BBQ with some of the best London bands about. It’ll be at the lovely Windmill in Brixton. Acts on the line up include Das Wunderlust, The Subliminal Girls and Amy Blue. More Details will be available on future posts, but it’s set to be a fantastic night.

 In keeping with the lonely hearts theme of last week, it seems The Sailplanes are leaving us too, moving to Germany. They’ll still be gigging, but London performances will be rare, so catch then at any opportunity you can.

Airhammer / CC and the Spades / Facebook

I must confess I gave in to my puerile side once again, and went to see Kunt and the Gang for the third time since this blog opened its electronicy pages to the masses. I know, I know… but he really is genius. Luckily it did lead me on to a fantastic new discovery that goes by the name of ‘Airhammer‘. Initially a bit of a shock to the system following the vulgar twee pop of Kunt, the brilliance of the one man explosion of cock-metal soon dawns. After the gimmick of a mentally insane Napoleon Dynamite-alike jittering round the stage like a burning epileptic wears off, the songs and the blatant talent still remain. Have a gander at their MySpace and really do try and catch them live.

Usually autumn is the season where the world decides it doesn’t need its partners anymore, leading them into a winter broken hearted. With the shitty weather it seems autumn has come early, and now we can add another band alongside the mighty Chet in the lonely hearts column. CC and the Spades will play their last gig on August the 9th at the Works in Kingston. Fear not though, CC promises a return under a new guise in the not too distant future, and I’ll make sure to be the first to inform you.

Finally, none of you fuckers actually use MySpace anymore so I’ve gone done a facebook group for the hip and with it amongst you. Join up here. And whilst we’re on the subject, the MySpace has reached a healthy 500 members. Welcome to the newcomers!

Check out Airhammer here.

Check out CC and the Spades here.

Check out Chet here.

Check out Kunt and the Gang here.