Let's Dance Like We Used To

If someone told me like 10 years ago that the 80's would make a comeback in any way, shape or form I would have called them liars. Well here it is now 2011 and they have indeed made a comeback over the past couple of years from fashion to music. You can't deny it, every where you look it's back for better or worse. Why might you ask am I ranting on about the 80's well take a listen to bands nowadays and the amount of synths being used. The kids who grew up on 80's music are now making music of their own.

For example White Lies who hail from London are awash in synths and vocals that recall Tears For Fears, Talking Heads or Talk Talk from the 80's. That's not saying there's anything bad about that. I am grateful that synths have become more prominent again and White Lies are doing a damn fine job of making themselves known as purveyors of the revival. They formed under another name Fear of Flying around 2005-2006. After writing some darker material that wasn't suited for the band they decided to put Fear of Flying to rest and begin White Lies. Before breaking up as their previous incarnation they recorded a couple of A-sides with Stephen Street (who produced Morrissey and Blur) and toured with The Maccabees among others.

White Lies was born in 2007 and took on a darker tone then their previous incarnation. They played as White Lies for the first time in 2008 and delayed release of their debut to gather some attention with the press. Their debut album was originally titled To Lose My Life Or Lose My Love but was eventually shortened to To Lose My Life... before it's release. For 2009, White Lies were first British act to have their album reach number one and to debut at number one. Quite an achievement for a debut album. After touring the album extensively and playing several festivals along with opening slots for Coldplay and Kings Of Leon, the band returned to the studio to record their sophomore album. They went with Alan Moulder as producer whose extensive credits include Nine Inch Nails and Smashing Pumpkins to name a few. In January 2011 Ritual was unleashed upon the masses to favourable reviews once again. Despite the band being compared to such bands as Joy Division, Interpol and Editors the band cite Talking Heads and Secret Machines as their influences.

Definitely a band that will only get better over time and their second album proves that they have staying power. Some lies are alright if nobody gets hurt and so a little White Lies never hurt anybody:

"Death" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Farewell To The Fairground" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Orl42Y-c4I

"To Lose My Life" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"EST" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Bigger Than Us" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Strangers" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Holy Ghost" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Orl42Y-c4I

This is best listened to loud, so turn it up!!

Blowin' Cool

I know the name will probably turn most people off but once you get past it then there's some really good tunes waiting to be heard. A forgotten band of yesteryear Kitchens Of Distinction, name aside, are a real band with real songs and to their credit were doing things that a lot of others weren't comfortable doing. Lead singer Patrick Fitzgerald was openly gay and some of his lyrics pushed the envelope in the 80's when gay was still taboo for the most part. Fitzgerald was even a medical doctor but put that on hold to focus on the band. They released first album Love Is Hell in 1989, followed by Strange Free World in 1991, The Death Of Cool (in reference to Miles Davis passing away and his album The Birth Of Cool) in 1992 and finally Cowboys and Aliens in 1994. Sometimes the band would play secret shows as Toilets Of Destruction and dressed in drag playing ABBA, Bowie and Bauhaus covers. Jonny Greenwood even cited Cowboys and Aliens as an influence on Subterranean Homesick Alien. Sadly in 1996 the band split with Fitzgerald going on to create music under a new moniker Stephen Hero and Julian Swales moving on to compose music for films and theatre. Their name is taken from a company at the time that specialized in kitchen and bathroom fixtures, that one of the band members saw an advert for on the side of a bus. Heavily influencing many bands even if not being recognized for it from Interpol to Editors the sound they created will definitely live on. Get down to the sound:

"Drive That Fast" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"The 3rd Time We Opened The Capsule" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Quick As Rainbows" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Smiling" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"4 Men" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"What Happens Now" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Sand On Fire" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Here Come The Swans" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

Relax, Don't Think About The Way I Treat You

Ambulance LTD started with Michael Di Liberto and David Longstreth who were later joined by Marcus Congleton. They signed with TVT records and recorded their only album to date LP. All the members left the group in 2007 leaving Congleton to be the last one. He received rights to the name and began recording with John Cale (of Velvet Underground fame) in 2008 but to this day nothing has come out of it. Some demo's did appear on their Myspace but nothing in the form of a physical release. After a legal fight with TVT ,who prevented the band from releasing new material, after filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy, the label was taken over by The Orchard. They were influenced by everyone from Spiritualized to My Bloody Valentine to The Rolling Stones and their music definitely reflected a band that wasn't ready to be pigeon-holed in any genre. Such an amazing debut and subsequent EP's that it's a shame if they don't release anything else. Here's hoping:

"Sugar Pill" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Primitive" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Ophelia" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Stay Where You Are" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

A band that deserves to be heard so spread the tunes with everyone you know who would dig them. Always share what you hear!

Hanging Out With Scheme Eugene

So after a very long hiatus I am returning to writing about what I love best...music. Obscure music to put it best. I really appreciate everyone's support and hope that out of everything that maybe a couple of these bands have ended up in your music collection. If I've done that then I'm doing my job. Anyways onto the music and to kick things off I'm starting with an unknown (surprise) UK band (surprise) by the name of Red Light Company. They are from London, England and in their short time together gained some success with singles "Scheme Eugene" and "Meccano". NME touted them as one of the hottest bands of 2009. Since then the band has failed to capitalize on this other then releasing the great debut Fine Fascination in 2009. Nothing heard from the band since then until lead singer Richard Frenneaux posted a blog about his new project Anothers Blood in July 2011. Here's hoping the band isn't completely finished but Richard's trademark voice still lives on in Anothers Blood. Red Light Company drew comparisons to bands such as Arcade Fire and that is not too far from the mark as their music is infectiously catchy and easy to sing a long to. There is/was something about Red Light Company that just makes you want to listen to it over and over again. Always great to find a band that you've never heard and now can listen to repeatedly. Cheers to that:

"Scheme Eugene" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Arts & Crafts" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"With Lights Out" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Meccano" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

All My Friends Think I'm Insane

Art Brut are an art rock band of the highest caliber. Deriving their name from French painter Jean Dubuffet's definition of outsider art - art by prisoners, loners, the mentally ill, and other marginalized people, and made without thought to imitation or presentation. It pretty aptly sums up the bands sound. Once, in an interview, Eddie Argos was questioned as to why he spoke on his records instead of singing and, confused, he replied that he thought he’d been singing all along. This is the sheer brilliance of the band. Their live shows have Eddie walking around the crowd, stopping the songs in the middle, for him to regale the audience with random musings or playing a vacuum (true story). If you've never heard an Art Brut track then you're doing yourself a disservice. They began with a demo called Brutlegs that caught the attention of Rough Trade records who offered the band a record deal. Bang Bang Rock & Roll was released in 2005 with "Emily Kane" being the first single released and was the highest charting single for Fierce Panda records. Second album It's A Bit Complicated was issued in 2007. Shortly after the release the band parted ways with EMI. Their last 2 albums Art Brut Vs Satan and Brilliant! Tragic! have both been produced by Frank Black (of Pixies fame) who is a huge fan of the band. Also an interesting fact is that Art Brut have franchises including the band We Are Scientists (AB47) who play or record Art Brut songs at random. Following in the spoken/singing tradition of Jarvis Cocker, Eddie Argos and Art Brut have definitely carved out their own niche and will hopefully continue to do so well into the future. If you ever have a chance to catch a live performance then I definitely recommend doing so as they are a whole other beast live. Here's to the revolution:

"Emily Kane" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Formed A Band" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Modern Art" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"My Little Brother" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Nag Nag Nag Nag" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Pump Up The Volume" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Direct Hit" http://www.dailymotion.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Alcoholics Unanimous" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"DC Comics and Chocolate Milkshakes" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Slap Dash For No Cash" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Lost Weekend" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

Lost In The Woods

The band by the name of Pete And The Pirates is not what you would call well known. They make great songs with some quality lyrics and will probably remain out of sight which is fine with me but for those in the know then we are the lucky ones. There is an obligation for those in the know to share the greatness of the band with others. I know some of you probably want to keep them all to yourselves. This isn't fair to anyone especially the band who deserve a little TLC from everyone. Now that's out of the way, we can turn our attention back to the band and the music. Hailing from Reading, they've been around since 2006 and issued their first album Little Death in 2008. A great collection of tracks that appealed to all the senses. Changing up from song to song definitely makes the album sound fresh upon each listen. Second CD One Thousand Pictures saw the light of day in 2011 and carries on the same jangly guitar that makes Pete And The Pirates who they are, along with the harmonies. Also of note is the band Tap Tap, who are lead singer's Thomas Sanders other band that he fronts which includes some members of Pete and The Pirates. Similar in sound and of course trademarked by Thomas's voice they even share a song between the 2 bands "Half Moon Street". Highly recommended if you want some toe tapping music for sunny days. Listen to the sound:

"Come On Feet" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Mr Understanding" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"She Doesn't Belong To Me" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Winter 1" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Come To The Bar" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"United" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Half Moon Street" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

Tap Tap "Little Match" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

Tap Tap "Half Moon Street" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

Cuts Like A...

The Young Knives hail from the UK, Leicestershire to be exact and have been around since 1998. Taking their name from a misunderstanding of "young knaves" the band read in a book, they started off calling themselves Simple Pastoral Existence. After the initial name and a split the band reformed as Ponyclub only to change their name to The Young Knives once they signed a record deal. They released The Young Knives...Are Dead in 2002 then dropped their full length Voices Of Animals And Men in 2006. Their first mini album was re-released as The Young Knives...Are Dead...And Some which included EP Rollerskater in 2007 for new fans of the band. In 2008 the band issued Superabundance and their newest album Ornaments From The Silver Arcade was unleashed in 2011. A quirky, fun band that has some clever tunes and lyrics. With jangly guitars and sneered vocals they fit in their niche quite well and are all the better for it. Take a walk:

"Here Comes The Rumour Mill" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"The Decision" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"She's Attracted To" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Weekends And Bleakdays" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Terra Firma" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Walking On The Autobahn" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"Dyed In The Wool" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c

"I Love My Name" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1nC-uyhg1c