Spoilt Lincolnian Child & the best of the last 6 months

Funny thing music lists.  Usually end up looking a bit silly a few years down the line as most of these can verify. Either you get it totally wrong or the information is about as inspiring as a Reef reunion. 

My current art concerns the manipulation of banal band information (often discographies/gigographies) creating a new language that is mostly unreadable but still with enough data to make for an interactive spectacle for an audience. These lists are intended to reflect my own concerns with modern social networking and the seemingly impenetrable mush of unnecessary internet nostalgia. However, I am as immersed in internet culture as the rest of us, so until I find a way out I guess I'll continue to pour over missed gigs, Britpop trivia and the setlist of Leeds Festival 2002 and wish I had have chosen to watch Aphex Twin OR Ladytron OR the White Stripes OR ANYTHING ELSE other than Feeder that Friday night.

Who cares what your top ten Fall songs are anyway?

A Snowflake Arrangement of every Stone Roses Concert I Never went to 

Alas, like the beloved internet, too much has already been said so I will keep it brief.  In no more than 5 words (ish) here is a list of my top 10 albums of the year at the midpoint with handy little links:

THE HORRORS : SKYING

Total-fucking-clever-clogs-goths

RINGO DEATHSTARR : COLOR TRIP

Sounding ‘refreshingly’ like Loveless 2011

MOGWAI : HARDCORE WILL NEVER DIE BUT YOU WILL

“Mogwai: are Slint. . . Again. GREAT.”

WHITE HILLS: H-P 1

“LADIES. GENTLEMEN. PSYCHEDELICING. SPACE. (MEN3).”

HAWK & A HACKSAW : CERVATINE

“Is ‘gypsy-folk two words?”

GNOD : INGNODWETRUST

“Like a clinically depressed CAN” (Not me, Stewart Lee)

GLASVEGAS : EUPHORIC // HEARTBREAK \\

“Pain. Pain. Never Again.” Lovely

CATS EYES : CATS EYES

love affair of the decade?

YUCK : YUCK

Sonic Mary Dinosaur Chain Youth

TRANSEPT : TRANSEPT

Norwich folk drone Fuzz Buttons

And if the list were longer (and in no more than two words) it would also include Echo Lake (Cocteau-Triplets), Esben & the Witch (glorious gloom), Metronomy (seaside bop), Explosions in the Sky (Softly LOUD), the Suede reissues (Britpop Nitrate) and if there has been another Fall album released that I may have missed.

Finally, in no more than one word the last 6 months has seen renewed interest/new found love for Spacemen3 Reccurring (COCK), Boo Radleys Everything’s Alright Forever  (PISS) and Pulp Different Class (PARTRIDGE).

So if I were you and weren’t me and had just over a hundred quid knocking about, I would go and buy the lot. Or at least make a list of every Oasis song that mentions the weather.  Then put it online for all to see. Forever.

Sammy

www.sammymerry.com


An Arrangement of Everyone and Everything that appears on the cover of Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band

An Arrangement of Every Mogwai song recorded up to March 2011

Velvet Owl Turn Ons - June 2011

Laura Marling - A Creature I Don't Know - New album due in September. Everything is alright with the world.

Foster the People - Pumped Up Kicks - Despite its outrageously summer vibe, this song from LA's Foster the People hides a dark heart 'All the other kids with the pumped up kicks/You better run, better run faster than my bullet'.  The trenchcoat mafia may have a new anthem. Beats Marilyn Manson I suppose.

My Morning Jacket - Holding On To Black Metal - One of the most joyous uplifting songs of 2011. If the woah, woah, woahs don't send a shiver down your spine, then you're most probably clinically dead. 

Jonathan Jeremiah - Happiness - Not another fucking bearded troubadour I hear you scream. Yep. And the video has him moodily walking along a railway track. Cliched twat! Lovely song, mind. 

Destroyer - Kaputt - I love this video. I love this song. The soft rock revival starts right here, right now.

Tyler the Creator - Yonkers - Another great video for one of the darkest and dirtiest songs of the year. I would love to see the white middle-class ladies shake their booty to this at the local street dance fitness session. 

Explosions in the Sky - Last Known Surroundings - One for the lights off and headphones on. An incredible piece of music from Austin, Texas' post rock dreamweavers. 

Vetiver - Wonder Why - A quite lovely piece of blissed out acoustica from Andy Cabic's new album The Errant Charm. 

tUnE yArDs - Bizness - If Joss Stone had been making records like this, I reckon those two keystone kidnappers would have stayed the fuck away from her home due to the fact they would have thought her insane.

Sleigh Bells - Rill Rill - Despite the wintry name, this Spectoresque new single from NYC's Sleigh Bells is a perfect accompaniment to these balmy summer days we are enjoying.

Drever, McKusker, Woomble, Holmbridge Village Hall, Huddersfield

It's not often (never, in my experience) that a gig starts with an announcement regarding 'A spot of housekeeping'. But that is exactly how tonight's show gets underway: 'Lavs at the back...fire exit to the right...meat tray raffle at the interval'.  You could never imagine something like this at the MEN Arena prior to a Kings of Leon gig - 'There is no plan for a fire alarm test this evening, so if the alarm sounds, please make your way towards a fire exit....and now please welcome to the stage the stars of tonight's show... KINGS OF LEON!!!!!!'

The ramshackle, slightly amateur feel to tonight's proceedings actually add to the sense of occasion as we took our seats (does sitting down make it a concert rather than a gig?) in the draughty surroundings of Holmbridge Village Hall filled to the rafters with locals - some of whom look as if they have just stepped off the set of The Wicker Man - to catch three of Scotland's finest songwriters performing here as part of the Holmfirth Arts Festival.  Accompanied by Heidi Talbot, the group run through a number of tracks from their 2008 album 'Before The Ruin' and have the attentive and appreciative crowd on their side from the start. With Kris Drever and Idlewild front man Roddy Woomble sharing the vocal duties, songs such as 'Into the Blue' and 'Silver and Gold' sound incredible as they resonate through the hall, and with the accompaniment of multi-instrumentalist John McKusker and the honeyed tones of Talbot on backing vocals, the band's alluring sound made for a bewitching night.  In the presence of great musicians such as we were tonight, folk gigs can often be a little too reverential for my taste, but the atmosphere and rapport between the group and their audience felt natural and relaxed and suited the welcoming if somewhat ungig-like surroundings. 

The Kills, Metropolitan University, Leeds

Describing the time he first set eyes on Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton said:

"She was so extraordinarily beautiful that I nearly laughed out loud. She ... [was] famine, fire, destruction and plague ... the only true begetter. Her breasts were apocalyptic, they would topple empires before they withered ... her body was a miracle of construction ... She was unquestionably gorgeous. She was lavish. She was a dark, unyielding largesse. She was, in short, too bloody much ... Those huge violet blue eyes... had an odd glint... Aeons passed, civilizations came and went while these cosmic headlights examined my flawed personality. Every pockmark on my face became a crater of the moon."

I thought about what Burton had said, as I watched the interplay between former lovers Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart (off of The Kills) and wondered if anyone had written lyrics that captured the exhilarating rush of being in love as well as Burton. Following some serious consideration, here's the Velvet Owl top 10:

The Crystals - Then He Kissed Me: 'He kissed me in a way that I've never been kissed before, he kissed me in a way that I wanna be kissed for ever more'

The Beatles - I Want to Hold Your Hand: 'Oh yeah, I'll tell you something, I think you'll understand, when I say that something, I wanna hold your hand'

Elbow - One Day Like This: 'What made me behave this way, using words I never say? I can only think it must be love'

Elvis Presley - Burning Love: Lord almighty, I feel my temperature rising. Higher and higher it's burning through to my soul'

The Flaming Lips - Do You Realize: 'Do you realize that you have the most beautiful face?'

Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run: 'Together Wendy well live with the sadness, Ill love you with all the madness in my soul. Someday girl I don't know when we're gonna get to that place where we really want to go, and well walk in the sun, but till then tramps like us, baby we were born to run'

Etta James - At Last: 'At last, my love has come along, my lonely days are over, and life is like a song'

Lamb - Gorecki: If I should die this very moment, I wouldn't fear, for I have never known completeness like being here. Wrapped in the warmth of you, loving every breath of you'.

Nick Cave: The Ship Song: 'Come sail your ships around me and burn your bridges down. We make a little history baby every time you come around. Come loose your dogs upon me and let your hair hang down. You are a little mystery to me, every time you come around'

The Beach Boys - God Only Knows: I may not always love you, but as long as there are stars above you, you never need to doubt it, I'll make you so sure about it'

Mark

Johnny Foreigner, Norwich Arts Centre

Performing before a backdrop of the recent film version of "Where The Wild Things Are" seems a little incongruous in tonight's setting - if the Owl wished to see a movie there is a perfectly good cinema five minutes up the road, and a wet Thursday night in Norwich is definitely not the place to find anything wild - but it is the dilemma facing Johnny Foreigner as they attempt to enthrall a somewhat meagre crowd.  It is, in fairness, an evening that deserves greater support, with six acts playing across the two rooms of the Arts Centre, all for the recession-busting fee of five quid, but the sparseness of the crowd does not appear to deter our nominal headliners.
Indeed, JF pull something of a fast one, with the boy/girl vocalists craftily placing themselves among the crowd as the drummer alone takes to the stage, before belting out the opening number unamplified whilst standing amongst the "throng".  It makes for something of a spectacle, albeit a low-key one.  I look forward to seeing them repeat the trick at the O2. 
Unfortunately, once back on stage and plugged in, the remainder of the set makes for quite lumpy fare, heavy on perspiration but light on the thrills we seek in a Jack n Meg free environment.  Regrettably, a detailed knowledge of the Pixies back catalogue does not automatically turn you into tunesmiths in the Black/Deal mould, and a few more surprises tonight would have helped divert our attention from the wild beasts performing over the band's shoulders.  

Chris

Velvet Owl Turn Ons - May 2011

Please note: This blog posting does not include any music produced by or featuring Will.I.Am

Arctic Monkeys - Don't Sit Down Because I've Moved Your Chair The indie titans are back with a new album to be released in June. This is the first single to be taken from it, and Turner's lyrics have definitely moved on from catching taxis in Hillsborough.

Bon Iver - Calgary New material from Bon Iver is a joy to behold. And news that he has announced a UK tour for November has made us all giddy kippers at VO Towers. 

The Kills - Satellite Chosen via the process of a lucky dip, the Velvet Owl Gig Collective's official outing for May will be The Kills at Leeds Uni.  If you're interested, the other gigs in the lucky dip were Yuck, Drive by Truckers, Cults and Wild Beasts.

Friendly Fires - Live Those Days Tonight Hands up, who thinks this sounds like Living in a Box? Rumours that the new album features a cover of Matthew Wilder's Break My Stride are as yet unfounded.

The Leisure Society - This Phantom Life Ok, we appreciate it's only May, but The Leisure Society's new album Into the Murky Water is already shaping up to be one of this year's best. 

The Avett Brothers - I and Love and You While we're happy The Leisure Society are playing this year's Green Man Festival, we nearly exploded with excitement when we found out these boys were rocking up too. If you don't own the best album of 2010 -from which this song is the title track- then shame on you!

Pete and the Pirates - Mr Understanding While it does sound like a secret track from I Should Coco, it doesn't stop us from plugging in our air guitars and pulling off some Townshend-esque windmilling here at VO Towers.

My Morning Jacket - Circuital To paraphrase that famous saying 'Tired of Jim James' voice, then you're tired of life' This is phenomenal!

The Jim Jones Revue, Norwich Waterfront

Much as we here in the Norwich Owl nest are looking forward to Tom Vek's new direction and have been blown away by Radiohead's brave latest venture (actually that's not true.  Either make a proper record Thom and co., or go away), there is nothing we like more than a good bit of honest, kick-ass rock n roll.  And so it is that we have converged on the Waterfront to check out the Jim Jones revue, confident that the traditional use of strings and keys will bring plenty of saturday night thrills.  And so it proves as, in front of a healthy all-ages crowd, the 21st century's finest Little Richard tribute band sweat buckets for the cause.
On record, the Revue's all-out assault can sound a little one-dimensional, but here it makes perfect sense, and as the likes of "Dishonest John" and album title track "Burning Your House Down" pummel the ears of the good people of East Anglia, it is clear that the good time sought by tonight's audience is being delivered in spades.  A little change of pace on occasion wouldn't go amiss, but subtlety is not really the aim here, and 80 minutes of blistering noise later, all appetites appear sated.
Leaving the venue by ten o'clock (to make room for Norwich's premier indie night, at which the hard-working DJs spin the same tunes in the same order as they have done for the past thirty years), all Owls agree that the spirit of rock and roll lives on in the lean frame of Jim and his classically attired cronies. By all means music needs to evolve and push envelopes, but sometimes a quiff, a leather jacket and a celebration of rock's history will suffice. A top night out.

Chris

Velvet Owl Turn Ons - April 2011

As a staunch royalist (ahem), this month's Velvet Owl Turn On list is dedicated to Wills and Kate and is offered as an alternative playlist to get Dave (in his morning suit) and the President of Swaziland up onto the dancefloor at the evening do.

Beastie Boys - Make Some Noise - What better way of getting the party started than three fifty year old Buddhists making music for fourteen year old boys.  This is wack!

Metronomy - The Look - Guaranteed to get even the more dancefloor-phobic guests cutting a rug, this is one of the standout tracks from Metronomy's third album The English Riviera. 

The Jim Jones Revue - Dishonest John - Not sure whether wedding DJ Pat Sharpe will have this in his record box, but he is bound to be asked for it, as we all know Prince Phillip loves a bit of dirty rock n roll. 

Wild Beasts - Albatross - Princess Anne's second favourite band. Fact!

TV on the Radio - Will Do - By the time Sharpey drops this one, Dave will have shed the morning suit coat and have his Bullingdon Club tie wrapped around his head and have been told to 'calm down, dear' by the Queen.

Keren Ann - My Name is Trouble - Disappointed that the Fun Factory host is refusing to play any Three Degrees or the 12" version of Let's All Chant, Charlie will skulk off to the lav and listen to this on his Ipod. 

Trembling Bells - Goathland - In case you were wondering, these are Princess Anne's favourite band.

Cats eyes - Love you Anyway - Fergie (not the one off of Black Eyed Peas) will be using the fact that the dancefloor will be full during this song to sweep up all the disposable cameras to sell to the highest Fleet Street bidder.

By the time the Gregg's buffet comes out, we expect the party to be in full swing, but as our invite has yet to arrive, we will have to make do with watching the whole shebang on TV. All we need to decide is whether we go with Bowman or Schofield.

Until next time..

Metronomy, The Hop, Wakefield

There are two bands headlining at The Hop this evening. Upstairs, Metronomy. Joe Mount's band of electro-lites out to promote their latest album.  Downstairs, Styckleback. Originally called Katan and then Bite the Mango, Styckleback are 'guaranteed to get your feet tapping and dancing in the aisles'. Needless to say, we head straight upstairs.

It's not even May, but Velvet Owl are tipping Metronomy's third album The English Riviera to be riding high in a number of Best of 2011 lists come Christmas.  So watching them perform above a Wakefield boozer on a balmy April evening, could well be our last chance to see them in more intimate surroundings before the less cooler kids catch on and declare them to be the saviours of electro. 

Taking to the tiny stage, the four-piece kick off with 'We Broke Free' before switching on their chest-lights to play 'My Heart Rate Rapid' which gets the already up for it crowd hooting and howling in delight.  From here on in, the band lock into an irresistable groove with songs such as 'Heartbreaker' 'The Look' and 'She Wants' forcing even the most uptight audience members to nod their head along in appreciation.  It is, however, 'Corinne' from the new album, with its playful drum sound and New Order-esque keyboards that gives the impression that Metronomy are primed and ready for the next level. 

I'm not quite sure what Styckleback's next level would be, but as we leave, their version of The Automatic's 'Monster' has the good people of Wakefield 'tapping their feet and dancing in the aisles' of the Hop's main bar. And it is this tune, and not, say, 'The Look' that I find myself humming all the way home.

Damn you, Styckleback!

Record Store Day – the plaster for the severed artery…..

Well this Saturday sees the third Record Store Day an annual event designed to make us all head back into the record shops we have so shamelessly turned our backs on. As an industry that so famously reacts rather than plans I can’t help but think the horse has bolted boys?

So how are they tempting us back into their beloved outlets? By releasing God knows how many ultra-limited edition instant rarities available only in the shops on Saturday. Simple really can’t think why they never thought of it earlier. Like about 10 years earlier when the writing first appeared on the wall maybe.

The problem I have with all this is it really is just a total reaction to shops closing but it is not stopping them closing throughout the year. Perhaps if the record companies had looked after these shops when they were still a viable proposition things might have panned out differently. But no a Faustian pact was made with the supermarkets and there was I’m afraid to say no going back on that one. I remember when we had our shop it was actually cheaper for us to buy cd’s from Tesco than to stock them direct from EMI or BMG so frankly a 7” limited edition of Layla is too little too late. If they want to help shops give them exclusives all year round and give them fair deals.

Now whilst I appreciate it must be nice for the shops to be guaranteed at least one bumper day a year we all know that most of these releases are gonna end up on e-bay like the Blur 45 did last year within an hour of the shops opening. The queues are gonna be full of dealers and their little cohorts getting all giddy ‘cos they bagged one of the Seeds 10” and though they know nothing of what the Seeds actually sound like they do know that they sell well and are collectable. Why don’t they just go and collect stamps or phone cards not music that actually means something to people and take their Thatcherite principles of first come first served with them?

Ultimately Record Store Day is a bit like Mother’s Day it’s nice to buy her a card and let her know she’s appreciated but would she not prefer it if you told her all year round? 

Phil

A French Kiss

In what we hope will become a regular feature on the Velvet Owl blog, our friend and fellow Green Man Festival quiz team member, Cedric Besnard, leads us through a selection of songs that are currently rocking the Parisian suburbs. 

Pains of Being Pure at Heart :  Heart In Your Heartbreak: An ideal song to herald the beginning of spring. With influences ranging from Ride to Field Mice, PoBPaH are here to bridge the gap between generations.

Lykke Li : I Follow Rivers: More spring-tastic tuneage!

Papercuts : Do What You Will: Addictive and haunting.

Bill Callahan : Baby's breath: The boss is back! Less sophisticated than anything off his previous album, but still beautiful!

 Summer Camp : Was it Worth it?: One of my highlights from last year. This song is the perfect croosover betweens the 80's and the 00's. I can't wait for the album.

The Cavalcade : For You: Another highlight from last year, from an album full of gorgeous songs.

Jens Lekman : And I Remembered Every Kiss: Another swedish entry amongst my current selection. Try to imagine a mix between Scott Walker, The Avalanches and Divine Comedy. Try indeed!

My Morning Jacket : One Big Holyday: Before the new album arrives, check out this huge song from one of the few bands around who are able to marry experimental and popular rock music.

Race Horses : Cake: Nearly one year after this release, I still don't understand why this song has not been a big hit.

Felt: Vasco de Gama:  A perfect pop song by one of the best kept secrets of English music.

Velvet Owl Turn Ons - March 2011

Winter is finally on its way out, so what better way to welcome the chance to shed the overcoat and don a cheeky little blouson than the Velvet Owl playlist for March. 

Yuck 'Georgia' - Formed from the ashes of Cajun Dance Band, Yuck are updating the shoegazing manifesto written by Dinosaur Jr and Sonic Youth in the early nineties.  This track comes from their debut album released earlier this year. Turn it up loud!

Elbow 'Lippy Kids' - The standout track from Elbow's new album.  Garvey's songwriting just gets better and better. 

Holy Ghost! 'Do It Again' - This track has us cutting a rug all over Velvet Owl Towers at the moment.  The latest signing to James Murphy's DFA label, Holy Ghost! make us want to party like it's 1989. 

Grinderman 'Palaces of Montezuma' - Nick Cave and his band of merry noiseniks in a mellow mood. Beautiful!

Jessica Lea Mayfield 'I'll Be The One You Want Someday' - Sounding like a leaner Lucinda Williams, this track is taken from Mayfield's Dan Auerbach produced debut album.

The Go Go's 'Our Lips Are Sealed' - A perfect pop song to herald the start of Spring.

Those Dancing Days 'Reaching Forward' - Sweden's finest purveyors of electro-pop return with a new album in 2011. Our schoolboy crush on lead singer Linnea Jonsson doesn't appear as if it will be dissipating anytime soon.

Iron and Wine 'One More Try' -We can't get enough of Sam Beam's new record at the moment, and are confident in predicting 'Tree by the River' will feature as a track on our end of year 'best of' compilation. This, however, is something altogether different. A cover of George Michael's power ballad 'One More Try' recorded for the AV Club.

The Charlatans, Brudenell Social Club, Leeds

I recently explained to a friend, that attending the NME tour in February felt like being a parent who had cut short a trip abroad only to return home to find 600 kids raving in my front room having responded to a Facebook invite from my home alone daughter.  Therefore, it was a blessed relief that the Velvet Owl's gig for March saw our feet planted firmly back on terra firma and without an ironic haircut in sight (apart from Tim's, but more of that later)


Tonight, Tim Burgess and guitarist Mark Collins take to the intimate stage of the Brudenell Social Club with very little fanfare. Not for them, a dimming of the house lights and an obscure Northern Soul tune soundtracking their anticipated entrance.  For tonight, this is a stripped back and laid bare version of The Charlatans.  Burgess on vocals, Collins on acoustic guitar and a tatty bed sheet as a backdrop.  For a band whose sound over the past twenty years has been driven by the swirling sound of the Hammond organ, this was a brave move.

However, following the reaction to opening song, Impossible, Tim, Mark and the 350 plus Charlatans fans packed into the venue, knew they were going to be in for a special night.  Warm and fuzzy versions of I'm Coming Home, A Man Needs to be Told and Just When You're Thinking Things Over  were standouts from the first half of the show, which was only let down by an understated reading of The Only One I Know (a song that so obviously needs the Hammond to make it work).

The introduction of drummer, Finnigan Kidd saw the band crank it up a notch or two, and start to become a little more playful with their back catalogue. The Britpop era North Country Boy was given a garage style makeover that wouldn't have sounded out of place on the Nuggets compilation. While One to Another sounded like a song itching to have been covered by Johnny Cash as part of his American Recordings series.  The night was fittingly brought to an end with a beautiful version of Sproston Green (what else) and then the band were gone, leaving behind a happy and somewhat inebriated crowd. 

Oh yeah. Tim's hair? It was fucking shit! As always. But we wouldn't have it any other way, would we?

Glamour Of The Kill, Norwich Arts Centre - Update

Our metal correspondent responds...

I cannot decide whether Glamour of the Kill are being ironic or not. If so then they're brilliant. If not then they're a rather generic Party Metal troupe who know how to play one song. That being said, the one song they know how to play is excellent and they performed it with a technical finesse that would make Star Wars Kid cry and a consistency that would put Honda to shame.

It is my understanding that Mr Davey Death (vocals) sang different words every time they began to play “the song” again but I was too busy being drunk and dancing like an arse to pay attention to that. What I did pick up on though was an anthemic, beautifully piercing quality to his voice and an honesty in the performance that warmed the deepest cockles of even the more mature members of the Norwich VO's.

The closest one of our Owlets came to crossing paths with a rock starlet (Ben Brutal, GOTK's drummer) was in the toilets. We learned that there are no facilities back stage and the cubicle chosen by Brutal  had no toilet paper.

I guess to sum up I would say - I was punched in the face once, my knee was bashed into a bruised mess, I pushed a transvestite over and a good evening was had by all.

Ironic Score 6/5

Ant.

Glamour Of The Kill, Norwich Arts Centre

Surely part of the point of the Owl is to open our minds to new experiences, broaden our horizons and better acquaint ourselves with musical sub-genres not often found within the pages of NME or whatever The Mirror's pop music supplement is calling itself these days.  And we here in the Norwich wing of VO like to do things a little differently to the rest of the world (insert your own joke about siblings here). So it is that a clutch of us are heading to the Arts Centre to check out York's premier exponents of what my newspaper calls "anthemic metal", Glamour Of The Kill.  And, erm...it's not pretty.
It must be said that this is not a world in which I feel comfortable.  Metal for me extends only about as far as AC/DC, and some metallers would probably do unspeakable things to my cat if I stood up amongst them and tried to place Australia's finest export in the same boat as the rubbish I am obliged to endure this evening.  The thing about AC/DC though is that, even though they do really only have one song, at least that song has a tune, and one you can whistle.  Every single time.  GOTK are so far removed from any concept of the tune it's laughable and, while they may argue that that's not really the point, well, to me, it is.  And while there must have been people living in LA in the mid-eighties who were reluctantly dragged along to a show by some new band called Guns N Roses only to have their heads pinned to the wall by the opening bars of "Welcome To The Jungle", there was never any threat of that happening here. 
So with so little happening on stage, the sparsely-populated crowd command all the attention, and quite a show they provide too.  They are bonkers, at one point lining up on separate sides of the floor before throwing themselves headlong into each other like some crazed Robot Wars-inspired line dance.  And the best thing?  If one of them goes to ground amidst the mayhem, the rest of the "throng" cease kicking the shit out of each other to help their fellow reveller to his feet.  It's strangely touching...
And so much more fun than the lumpen dirge being served up by our headliners.  So yes, my horizons have been suitably broadened.  Now can we have some more indie please?

Exclusive Velvet Owl Andy Bell Beady Eye album interview. Ahem

 Whilst bored at work reading the Saturday Telegraph Beady Eye album review I felt a little confused: this is nowhere near harsh enough.  Beady Eye?! 3 stars?  Only 2 stars less than a perfect-5-best-album-ever? Fucking tories. I have no intention of listening to 'Different Gear, Still Beatling' but know EXACTLY how it sounds. Vile. But the same 3/5 appears in the Guardian. Disgraceful. No doubt Q will give it a perfect 6.
Don't get me wrong- I was firmly in 'camp Oasis' up until about August 22nd 1997 (not strictly true as I believe Be Here Now is actually great; but thats another story) but that was then and this is now. You should have got rid of the others, (oh yeah, you did) swapped the Beatles albums for Xtrmntr and made a supergroup with the Chemical Brothers.  Too late- so now we are stuck with this drivel. And Kasabian.

So with the aid of white postage labels, pens and pencils here is my Viz Defacement album review.

sammymerry.com

Velvet Owl Turn Ons - February 2011

St Valentine has had us feeling all loved up at Velvet Owl Towers this month, and here's the songs that have been nibbling our ears and rubbing us over the top of our trousers.

Helplessness Blues - Fleet Foxes: confirmed to headline this year's Green Man Festival, the hairy cornflakes return with a new death metal direction and this cover of DM scenesters, Crematory's only US number one.

Shark Ridden Waters - Gruff Rhys:headliner for the Norwich Velvet Owl Gig Collective's first outing. Check out the review and accompanying comic-strip on the blog.

The Words That Maketh Murder - PJ Harvey: Polly Jean Harvey returns with a collection of songs that will no doubt see her riding high in many end of year best album polls.

I Don't Care if There's Cursing - Phosphorescent we make no bones for our love of country music here at Velvet Owl Towers, and this track from last year's Here's to Taking it Easy album has been on constant rotation on our stereo.

Long After Tonight is All Over - Jimmy Radcliffe a corking song form the Northern Soul scene and added to our February playlist as a way of banishing the images of the 'dance-off' in the utterly dreadful Soulboy film. I will never get those eighty minutes of my life back. Dedicated to blog contributor, Phil, who turned me onto Northern Soul during our stint at the Megastore.

L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. - Noah and the Whale: the snowdrops are out and spring is just around the corner. Surely that justifies a bit of whimsy.

Not Enough - J Mascis a voice that could break the hardest of hearts. Dinosaur Jr's J Mascis returns with a new acoustic album.

The Persuaders Theme - John Barry the greatest television theme tune ever! Fact! Dedicated to its composer, John Barry, who passed away this month.

Civilian - Wye Oak at the moment, we are listening to this song from Maryland's Wye Oak at least a dozen times a day. Their third album is due for release this spring.

Under Cover of Darkness - The Strokes a life-affirming new single from the planet's coolest band. Need  we say anymore.

Gruff Rhys, Norwich Arts Centre

After the better part of two decades penning slightly left-field but endlessly radio-friendly pop gems, it is fitting that the Norwich Owl's inaugural flight should be spent in the company of Gruff Rhys, chief Super Furry Animal and, latterly, solo artist of note.  And, while there are those among our seven strong party - well, me - who would like to live in a world where this gig is held at the city's 25,000 capacity football stadium, with hordes of ticketless fans turned away at the gate, it must be said that Gruff and the Arts Centre are well suited, both oozing class and the latter providing the acoustics to complement the former's silky croon.  The similarly committed are out in force tonight, as Gruff takes to the stage alone to perform "Rubble Rubble", one of the stand-out tracks from his "Hotel Shampoo" long-player, before being joined by backing band and support act Y Niwl to dip in and out of the three albums he has so far released away from the rest of SFA.  And it is a treat, with Gruff shifting between guitar, keyboard, gadgets and placards to bring the tunes to life, and engaging as only he can with between song banter that, as ever, takes a while to arrive at its' destination.  It's all in the timing. At the climax of a gig lasting in excess of 90 minutes, Rhys leaves us with "Skylon", his 15-minute epic of mid-air bomb disposal and, as the song unfolds in its own effortless, hook-filled manner, you sense that the whole room is happy to be on board for the duration.  It is spellbinding.  Pretty much like the evening itself, in fact.  And he still has bloody good hair.

Chris

sammymerry.com

George's Marvellous Medicine

Velvet Owl's Man at Work George Palathingal appears to have been burning the candle at both ends recently in a bid to add some sunshine to our dreary rain-soaked days. Apart from attending the Big Day Out and St Jerome's Laneway Festivals, George has been to check out Brit Award winner Plan B, MIA, Warpaint and the mighty Primal Scream. Click on the links below to read more.

Big Day Out Festival

St Jerome's Laneway Festival

Plan B

MIA

Primal Scream

Warpaint

Make sure you check out the blog later this week where we will have a review of the Gruff Rhys gig attended by the Norwich Velvet Owl Gig Collective and our February Turn Ons Playlist.

Cutting the Mustard

The Norwich Velvet Owl sets flight this month with a trip to see Super Furry Animal, Gruff Rhys. A review of the gig will be posted on the blog soon after. In the meantime, here's a cheeky little playlist that has been put together for your enjoyment by Norwich owl, Sammy.

Teeth of the Sea - Swear Blind the Alsations Melting

Mogwai - Mexican Grand Prix

The Besnard Lakes - Albatross

Holy Fuck - Lovely Allen

Why? - Eskimo Snow

Make sure you keep checking the blog as we'll be posting the Velvet Owl February turn ons fairly soon.

You can also follow the Velvet Owl Gig Collective on Twitter@velvetowlgigcol. Stuff and nonsense in 140 characters.

Leggy Mambo

Radiohead have announced that they will release the digital version of their new album King of Limbs this Saturday. The album will retail at £6 for the MP3 with vinyl and CD editions to follow on the 25th March.

NME Awards Tour, Leeds Academy

It's not long after the doors of the Academy are flung open, that 'Indie Landfill' hopefuls The Vaccines take to the stage as the opening act for this year's NME sponsored variety show. Unfortunately for the band, the early start has caught many ticket-holders unaware, and the venue is only half full as they start their thirty minute set.  The relatively small crowd appears to knock the band off their stride, and a sluggish performance is only livened up by current single 'Post Break-up Sex' and a rousing rendition of 'Wreckin' Bar (Ra Ra Ra). On a better day, I can imagine The Vaccines would provide good value for money, as many of their songs appear to be written with the live music experience in mind (lots of memorable shout along choruses and head banging guitar riffs), but aesthetically, the band don't really work. The three band members stage front (I couldn't really see the drummer as he was stuck behind his kit) look as if they have all stepped out of different bands (Talking Heads - lead guitar, Pavement - lead singer, Mudhoney - Bass) and therefore don't really look right.  I appreciate this is a small gripe, but bands such as The Strokes (coolest kids in school) and The Happy Mondays (thieving scallies) for example, have an identity that helps to perpetuate our idea of 'the band' and their 'all for one and one for all' attitude. This is something I don't get with The Vaccines. And that is a shame, as it is a great name for a band. 

Identity is something that Everything Everything take very seriously, and is evident as they take to the stage in matching grey boiler suits. Sticking to the funkier tracks from their debut album 'Man Alive' the band force the now sizable crowd to shake their skinny white asses with lively versions of QWERTY Finger, MY KZ, UR BF and Photoshop Handsome. Unashamedly arty, I cannot help but wonder had he still been alive, whether Anthony H. Wilson would have considered relaunching Factory Records and signing Everything Everything to be his house band ala A Certain Ratio. My enjoyment of the band was dampened a little, when a fellow Velvet Owl claimed the band reminded him of Take That, with the short, stumpy singer looking a little awkward in his jumpsuit next to his good looking bandmates (the Gary Barlow of artrock, anyone?).

By the time 'Dubstep Supergroup' Magnetic Man took to the stage behind a trestle table groaning under the weight of Apple Macs, the Academy was rammed. Looking around the venue, it was clear to see that the history and chemistry textbooks were being left in the school bags tonight, as the teenagers of Leeds were out in full force. From the opening squelchy bass chord, the kids waved their hands in the air like they just didn't care (that they had to get up for their milk round at 4.30am) and partied like it was 2045(pm). While the music - a mish mash of dance music genres taking in drum and bass, electro, hip hop, happy hardcore and rave - didn't appeal to my sensitive ears, I did enjoy the moment of being down with the cool kids and watching them lose themselves in the pleasure that live music can offer.

The sheer sensual onslaught that was Magnetic Man and the noticeably smaller crowd (those pints of gold tops won't get delivered by themselves you know) left headliners Crystal Castles feeling a little bit of an anti-climax. However, despite singer Alice Glass having broken her ankle at the previous night's show and therefore looking like a jack-booted Cinderella having fled the ball on the stroke of midnight, the duo put on a sterling show with 'Celestica' and 'Not in Love' still managing to keep those weary hands in the air.   

For less than £17 a ticket, the NME Awards Tour is still the best value for money around when it comes to the live music scene. And while some of these bands won't be gracing my ipod anytime soon, it was good to see and listen to what is floating the proverbial boat of our nation's youth.

Lets hope they never grow out of it.

More Free Stuff

A brand new song from The Strokes available for free for 48 hours only. 

Click the link below for more details.

The Strokes - Under Cover of Darkness

Free Sex and Money

Well not exactly, but probably the next best thing. Free music. Fleet Foxes offer us a little taster of their eagerly awaited second album by offering this beautiful track for absolutely nothing.  Click on the link below to download.

Helplessness Blues - Fleet Foxes

Velvet Owl Turn Ons - January 2011

Here's the 10 tracks that have helped to steer the gig collective through the bleak month of January.

1) Sea of Bees 'Wizbot' - Californian Julie Ann Baenziger leads the charge into 2011 with a simple yet stunning single.

2) Everything Everything 'Photoshop Handsome' - A song on repeat play in the Velvet Owl kitchen.

3) The Vaccines 'Post Break-up Sex' - Screw the hype! This is a great pop song!

4) Metronomy 'She Wants' - Be warned. One listen of this track, and it will never leave your head.

5) Sleigh Bells 'Riot Rhythm' - A track that weirdly enough, makes me want to go clubbing. But once it has finished, that stupid thought goes right out of my head. 

6) I Am Kloot 'Northern Skies' - The stars of The Velvet Owl's first gig of 2011. In the words of TV AM's Richard Keys: 'They smashed it!'

7) New Order 'Thieves Like Us' - Reading Shadowplayers: The Rise and Fall of Factory Record by James Nice has led to a hankering for all things 80's Manchester.

8) British Sea Power 'Living is so Easy' - Taken from the first great album of 2011

9) Thin Lizzy 'Jailbreak' - Another great documentary on BBC4, which had several members of Velvet Owl trying to squeeze back into their leather trews.

10) Joan as Policewoman 'The Magic' - Velvet Owl favourite Joan Wasser returns with a new album in 2011.

I am Kloot, The Duchess, York

Lets get the good stuff out of the way first.

1. I am Kloot were brilliant!
2. Johnny Bramwell is one of the most underrated songwriters of his generation.
3. The performance of Radiation was worth the ticket price alone.

Right. Onto the gripe. I love going to gigs. I love that feeling of excitement as the lights go down and the whoops and hollers of an anticipating crowd fill the air. I love that moment, when collectively, the crowd let out a cheer of recognition as the band launch into one of their all-time classics. And I love that sense of comradeship, as a thousand voices sing along with sheer abandon to a song that they have all taken to their hearts.  However, the gig-going experience has been cursed by those c%£ts (sorry, but I feel strongly about this), who throughout the show, can be heard chatting to their mates and not showing any consideration to the majority of the audience who are there to hear the band.

I'm not expecting hushed reverence. It's a gig for Christ's sake, not a piano recital. And I appreciate that these people have bought a ticket, and are entitled to talk to their friends if they want to - though surely that £20 they spent on a ticket would buy them a lot of blue WKD at the local Whetherspoons. However, when the band feel it necessary to say something - as Johnny Bramwell did last night - you would expect people to get the message. Fat chance. From the opening chords to Northern Skies to the last few bars of Same Shoes, last night's gig was unfortunately soundtracked by the incessant chatter of a handful of people who had a total lack of disregard for the band and the people who had paid to see them.

Live music should be about a shared experience and the crowd responding in unison to the band and their songs. For those people with short attention spans, they should sign up for yoga classes or ask their Dr for some of those pills they hand out to over excited kids. 

From the Ashes

2011 is already shaping up to be a good looking year for album releases. Next week the latest album from New Zealand band The Phoenix Foundation finally hits the UK shops. Named after a fictional organisation in the American TV show, Macgyver, the band look as if they are finally about to make the breakthrough into the UK that their music so thoroughly deserves. 

The Phoenix Foundation - Buffalo

Surf's up

Anyone with a ticket for one of the forthcoming Gruff Rhys shows, should ensure they're at the venue early enough to catch support band, Y Niwl (Welsh for The Fog, apparently). The Welsh quartet turn out a fine line in surf-rocking instrumentals, which should have everyone frugging away with sheer abandon.  Their eponymously titled debut album was released last year, and the band aired some new material on Monday night's Marc Riley show on 6 Music. 

Here's a clip of them performing at last year's Green Man Festival

Bernard Matthews is Dead! Long live the Velvet Owl!

Velvet Owl are pleased to announce the launch of the Norwich arm of the gig collective. First up for the collective is Gruff Rhys, whose new album Hotel Shampoo is released in February.

The next album you need to buy……

…..is Bananas Foster by The Jigsaw Seen.

Now I have to declare bias here as I was given my copy by the guitarist the top fella that is Jonathan Lea. That said if The Edge (apparently not his real name?) were to send me the latest world saving opus by Dublin’s finest on a bed of rare psych and beat singles in a container using the rarest original northern 45’s as ballast I reckon I’d still think it was shite. Probably. And if I didn’t I wouldn’t be going public on it that is for sure.

So back to the Jigsaw Seen then, these lads have been peddling their own take on psychedelic pop perfection for some years and if you’re new to their party I’m sure you’re more than welcome just the same.

As a reader of this blog I’m assuming a certain love of music so if your collection includes the likes of Love , Jellyfish , The Zombies , The Left Banke , Tom Petty , The Move  etc. (and let’s be honest it should) then this album sits well alongside them.

This album is all things to all men from the opening drone of Bertha Brilliance (which set our dog Louie off on a mystical search behind the settee) through David Hart’s Name Of Song onto my fave off the album which is Melancholy Morning. A truly spectacular pop record with heavenly strings and great vocals it is currently getting played by ‘whispering’ Bob Harris on his radio show. If you buy the album for this song alone your money isn’t wasted.

Another album track getting radio plays is Where The Action Isn’t a real belting fuzz rocker with a killer riff. This is getting spins from the legendary Rodney Bingenheimer on his famous Rodney on the ROQ show which should be more than enough to convince.

All in all not a duff track on the album so get yourselves to your local independent record shop and buy it there or do the download thing from i-tunes but be warned if you download you ain’t gonna get the special extras. This album is packaged in the most delightful way as Mary Poppins once said and includes a recipe card for the dish the album is named after  , sticker , poster but best of all a scent sheet which makes the whole thing smell of bananas. Your kids will love it like mine and you can while away the hours trying to decide what your other favourite albums should smell like.

So as Martha and Charlie say – “The Jigsaw Seen Bananas Foster…….get on it”. You know they’re right - it’s in the genes.

Phil

For the Birds

You can now follow the adventures of The Velvet Owl Gig Collective on Twitter @velvetowlgigcol

Nonsense and flannel in a 140 characters.