If you had been in close proximity to our studio in the last week, you would have heard an almost non-stop chorus of “Diddley Squat” belted out with impulsive gusto. It’s a phrase from the riotous new single by The Shend and Joe 91 as Anzahlung. More details about that further down but I wanted to let you know how we respect the new music we receive. And, there is so much to respect, to begin, Subzero Fun are a Paris-based trio formed in 2015, their Collection EP is on the mighty Shoredive label, and Never Down is an impressive wall of fabulous noise. | From the LP, World Wide Pop, Superorganism with a sly smile, give us Everything Falls Apart. The beginning and the ending of this one should explain where this “sprawling, multi-limbed collection of international musicians and pop culture junkies” are coming from. Apparently, they “number eight in total—seven of whom now live together in a house/DIY studio/band HQ in East London.” All well and good, except where does that 8th person live? | There is a vibrant punk-post-punk scene alive and well down under, take, for instance, The Murlocs out of Melbourne, who say they are, “Five skinny kids with roots firmly placed in their own blown-out, distorted brand of soulful RnB”. Virgin Criminal comes from their admirable, Rapscallion album. I have a hunch The Murlocs would be a treat live. (They’ll be playing at Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater in Austin soon). | Staying in Australia, The Chats take the punk ethos a wee bit further with their, Get Fucked LP. This Sunshine Coast-based outfit doesn’t mess about as they sing the praises of a 6LTR GTR and brag I’ve Been Drunk In Every Pub In Brisbane. Magnificent! | British-Creation producer Max Morwell proves he has a deft hand with drum and bass on his formidable debut LP, Souls. Using the singular moniker, Morwell, Nowhere To Run is a sublime recording. I can imagine playing this one around 2 am in an almost pitch-black room. Absolute quality. | Out of Chicago, Scott Cortez who goes by Astrobrite gives us his version of New Order’s Bizarre Love Triangle from Scott’s Versions EP. I was going through my archives recently and realized there are so many covers of Joy Division and New Order, possibly more than any other artists. Maybe a show of covers would be a good idea? | I’ve featured Ian Sweet on the show before, here we have Die A Million Times from the Star Stuff EP. Jilian Medford is Ian Sweet, based in Los Angeles. | And now to “Diddley Squat”. It’s the often repeated phrase by The Shend in What You Think Is All You’ve Got from the album of the same name. Our rascal of a friend, sometime actor, full-time Cravat, and also a member of Anzahlung with Joe 91 sent us their latest long-player. We were delighted, even more so after playing the record at volume 11 on repeat for a whole day. This is a collection of songs(?) in true Cravats style, half joking, half deadly serious and many halves yet to be determined. Yes, that’s far too many halves, but that’s the point of music from The Shend and Joe 91. Math doesn’t matter, what does is this LP is remarkably relatable. Listen to the whole album, digest, and listen again, and again. | The Music Of Sound is the brainchild of Neil March, an Arts Council & Lottery supported live events promoter, broadcaster, and author. From the EP, Overground Sound, we selected Music To Plan Towns By (2022 Version). From this, you should get a good idea of how Neil and The Music Of Sound utilize recordings of everyday environmental sounds to create refreshingly original music. You are advised to explore more from The Music Of Sound. | Previously, we have said a lot about Telefís, the groundbreaking collaboration between Irish iconoclasts, singer-songwriter Cathal Coughlan and producer Garret “Jacknife” Lee. Now there is a soon-come second album, a Dó, As Garret explains, “Cathal died on May 18th, his passing was always a part of these songs. Not literally, but his reflections and explorations of where he came from were examined from this perspective. After his death, we could have waited to release the album, and we accepted that we might have to, but now we just want to celebrate Cathal. I want people to know that he was active and working up to the last few days of his life. We were working on more Telefís – writing and planning. There are many layers to Cathal Coughlan. The mischief, the tenderness, and the profound melancholy. It’s all here, and it’s some of his best work. Writing these songs during his illness knowing what lay ahead of him shows his commitment to words and ideas. It’s his life.” Sean O’Hagan, Cathal’s longtime friend and Microdisney co-founder and High Llamas main man Sean O’Hagan is on the first single Space Is Us (included in this show), Echo & The Bunnymen’s Will Sergeant guests on two tracks, legendary Mancunians A Certain Ratio on another. The inimitable Jah Wobble also contributes bass on their single Falun Gong Dancer released earlier this year. | Then, we dip into retro land with Yum Yum Yellow from Hologram Teen. This is the work of LA-based Morgane Lhote who says, “this is an unabashedly nostalgic musical love letter to the 1980s. With cinematic sounds, 80s French pop, video game vibes, a little DnB and vocoder vocals, this album feels like living in a vintage arcade.” | I’m impressed with the production on Zoe Boekbinder’s I Am Yesterday from their EP of the same name. Based in New Orleans, Boekbinder is making music you need to check out. | And now to Soot Sprite – here is a band I’m raving about. They are from Exeter, in the county of Devon in the beautiful West Country of England. Elise Cook, Sean Mariner, and Tom Gilbert certainly know what they’re doing – creating exceptional music. Listen to their latest single, Lazy. Beautiful constructed, with words that actually say something. Then, enjoy Not Twisting from their 2018 Comfort In Concrete EP. Totally satisfying.
Playlist
- Subzero Fun – Never Down
- Superorganism – Everything Falls Apart
- The Murlocs – Virgin Criminal
- The Chats – 6LTR GTR
- The Chats – I’ve Been Drunk In Every Pub In Brisbane
- Morwell – Nowhere To Run
- Astrobrite – Bizzare Love Triangle
- Ian Sweet – Die A Million Times
- Anzahlung – What You Think Is All You’ve Got
- The Music Of Sound – Music To Plan Towns By (2022 Version)
- Telefis – Space is Us
- Hologram Teen – Yum Yum Yellow
- Zoe Boekbinder – I Am Yesterday
- Soot Sprite – Lazy
- Soot Sprite – Not Twisting
Artwork by Angus Dunne “Avalon” 2021 giclée print on archival paper 25” x 25” Courtesy of Norman B’s collection
Life Elsewhere 