Spanish Mod band Stanley Road have just started a funding project to help them release the bands debut album.
In these times where record companies choose to invest in so few artists, other than those that come from some TV talent show like X-Factor or the like, it is refreshing to see artists adapt the DIY ethic to ensure their music gets out there and that we the listeners get a diversity of choice.
There are different levels of contribution that you can make and the rewards given at each level vary from records, concerts in your home, local bar and even traveling with the band on a small tour with VIP treatment.
The feature is entirely in Spanish, I used Google Translate as a translation tool, however I am sure the band will happily answer any questions via their Facebook page here: Facebook
As a fan of the Medway scene I was really excited about this albums arrival, and with very good reason, vocalist/guitarist of The Galileo 7, Allan Crockford, was the bass player with, in my opinion, the greatest Medway band of them all, The Prisoners. Allan was also a member of Solarflares, Prime Movers and many other Medway garage bands and he is now leading his own band and standing shoulder to shoulder with the greatest of Medway bands in his own right.
So, you would expect "Staring At The Sound" to have some form and you would not be wrong, this is an absolute stunner from start to finish. Allan has had the reputation of being the reliable sideman to many great figures in his time as a musician, so it should of come as no surprise that he would develop and find a flair for writing his own songs, and, songs of quality too, which is exactly what he has done with The Galileo 7.
"Staring At The Sound" is everything you could possibly want from an album, tip top songs with psychadelic sounds, swirling organ, loads of harmonies, well written, meaningful lyrics and energy galore, as you would expect from a stalwart of the Medway sound.
It would be impossible to attempt to pick a stand out track on this album, all twelve tracks here hit the mark, each and every one of them could be released as a single.
This album will leave you wanting for more, I promise you, and the good news is, that there is more, The Galileo 7 released their debut album in 2010, "Are We Having Fun Yet?" which fortunately the band very kindly sent me along with "Staring At The Sound" and I can assure you that it is every bit as wonderful as the latest album.
"Running Through Our Hands" from the debut album "Are We Having Fun Yet?"
"Orangery Lane" from the debut album "Are We Having Fun Yet?"
"Staring At The Sound" (along The Solarflares and Prime Movers material), can be purchased at The Galileo 7 official website, both on the superior format of vinyl and CD here: http://www.thegalileo7.fourfour.com/home
(Also check out the excellent single "Modern Love Affair" and "Can't Get Away From Myself")
The albums are also available for download at itunes and amazon.
The Theme have landed, suited and booted and ready for world domination, with their debut album "Time For Change."
The echoes within the grooves here take you back to a time when music had a real immediacy to it, a time when the music gripped you and excited you, a time when music meant more.
The band are the first to admit that they are not re-inventing the sound of the Mod revival and Britpop eras, they are merely the torch bearers for the next generation, saving our souls, and ears, from the mindless drivel that is rammed down the throat of the nation by daytime radio.
Fortunately they are not alone in their conquest, but lead the way with the likes of Len Price 3, The Past Tense, Stanley Road and The Electric Stars to name a few.
The album is chock full of tunes, attitude and style, also reflected in the bands very sharp dress sense, and will not only appeal to fans of the Mod revival of the late 70's and early 80's but will also sit very comfortably with those who had a passion for the Britpop sounds, the likes of Oasis and The Real People. But, and maybe more importantly, this will bring a refreshing sound to the kids being starved of "real" music and hopefully revive something in the youth that makes them go out and check out the bands that don't get mainstream radio airplay, but, who like The Theme, have so much to offer. Time for a change? I reckon so, and The Theme are making it.
Whilst I have not been lucky enough, yet, to see the band live, I am assured that they put on a fantastic live show, so if you see any gigs listed near you, go along and have some fun!
I often get asked if we are at the start of another Mod revival, well, if The Theme is what constitutes a Mod revival, I f*cking hope so!!!!!
Buy the album, Contact, befriend, follow, like and love The Theme here: Facebook
I have been looking forward to hearing this album since I was sent the single "Kernersville" in the autumn last year, and I can, hand on heart, say it was well worth waiting for.
"Be Nice, Be Careful" is a choice cut of Power Pop, sometimes echoing the great power pop bands that have gone before them but without emulating them.
The song writing and music stand up to any scrutiny with well crafted songs and meaningful lyrics that never fail to engage the listener on every level.
A Fragile Tomorrow have released an album that will sit comfortably with a cross section of listeners, an album full of radio friendly tunes that will hopefully bring this music to the masses, who are currently being fed a diet of crap from TV talent shows, there is more to music.....and here they are!
A Fragile Tomorrow has become one of the most respected band of brothers on the road, largely thanks to their venerable work ethic, stellar musicianship, and fans in high places. The four-piece powerpop band is comprised of identical brothers Sean and Dominic Kelly, their younger brother Brendan, and Shaun Rhoades. In 2006, the band released its debut album, “Wishful Thinking.” Early 2008 brought the world "Beautiful Noise," the band's second record, which was produced by Grammy® award-winner Malcolm Burn, producer for such industry luminaries as Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, and Patti Smith.
Years of hard work and determination started to pay off in a big way in 2009. They went into the studio, with singer-songwriter Danielle Howle as producer, to make their third record “Tripping Over Nothing,” which features contributions from Amy Ray of Indigo Girls, singer-songwriter Susan Cowsill, and legendary musician Peter Holsapple. Sean and Dominic also made an appearance on Indigo Girls’ 2010 live album, “Staring Down the Brilliant Dream”, as well as Amy Ray’s 2012 solo release, “Lung of Love.”
Starting in 2010 and continuing through recent months, AFT joined Indigo Girls on tour in various cities, including a show in their home base of Charleston, SC in early 2011. As 2011 started to wind down, the band was invited to their West Coast debut as touring openers for The Bangles. Shows at well-respected clubs like House of Blues and legendary venues such as The Fillmore in San Francisco made the West Coast a successful new market for the band. More high-profile gigs followed throughout 2012, as the band shared the bill with Antigone Rising, Garrison Starr, Drivin’ and Cryin’, and Matthew Sweet respectively. While opening for Sweet on his celebrated “Girlfriend tour,” one Massachusetts critic proclaimed AFT as “everything that is right with music.”
Along with their busy touring schedule, the band carved out time in January of 2012 to complete their fourth record, “Be Nice Be Careful,” with music legend Mitch Easter as producer and Ted Comerford as co-producer. Known for his work with bands like R.E.M. and Pavement, Easter brought his trademark jangle-pop sound to the band’s compositions. This latest batch of songs show A Fragile Tomorrow’s growth not only in their songwriting, but in their musicianship as a whole.
Sean Kelly-Vocals, Guitars
Dominic Kelly-Drums, Vocals
Brendan Kelly-Guitars, Vocals
Shaun Rhoades-Bass, Vocals
A Fragile Tomorrow’s genre has never been easy to pinpoint, as the band uses the cities, musicians, and cultures that they come across while on the road as inspiration for their songwriting. Fans have compared their music to the likes of Teenage Fanclub, The Smithereens, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Big Star, The Jayhawks, The Lemonheads, The Posies, and more. Artists such as Indigo Girls, The Bangles, Matthew Sweet, Antigone Rising, Garrison Starr, Blues Traveler, Catie Curtis, Continental Drifters, Danielle Howle, The Cowsills, and Mark Bryan of Hootie and The Blowfish have invited AFT to tour and share the stage over the last few years.
As the band readies its fourth album for release on January 8th, 2013, their goals include expanding their fan base, touring to new cities, working with more up-and-coming musicians as well as some more of their idols, making quality records for their fans, and bringing powerpop music back to the mainstream.
Contact, befriend, follow, like and love A Fragile Tomorrow: Facebook
Find out more, buy the album and other merchandise at the bands official web site:
This turned up in the ICM mailbox last week and after a week of listening to it, it seemed that I was keeping a little secret to myself, well, I have kept it to myself for long enough and now is the time to share it, it isn't just "What We Want," it was what I want and what you want, just what you needed!
Michael Goodman, who records and releases albums only under his surname, makes pop music. He recalls the chord progressions of the radio hits of the ’50s and ’60s and long-forgotten power-pop bands of the late ’70s with ease, resting his achingly beautiful melodies over beds of I IV V’s and, even better, I vi IV V’s.
Michael Goodman is not, however, just a kid with a guitar, regurgitating the first chords he ever learned behind a wall of distortion. Also apparent in Goodman’s music is the meticulousness, the hours of deliberation, that characterize some of the greatest pop recordings of all times. The songs on “What We Want” are born of the same painstaking attention to detail that once resulted in “Be My Baby” and “Good Vibrations.” Every note is perfectly placed, every sound achieved with care. Goodman’s every syllable is sung with conviction, his soaring harmonies exactly matching the fastidiously wrought diction of his lead vocals. The end result is a certain soulfulness; the overwhelming beauty of a singular vision, correctly realized.
In the context of the ever-growing standards of the Mama Coco’s canon, Goodman has just raised the bar one notch higher.
Album opener “Night Person” kicks us off in a fitful burst of hooks, but hints at the meditative melancholy that permeates the record: “I’ve been pacing ’round the room / Trying to best my restless brain,” Goodman sings. As much as this album positively overflows with soaring melodies and hooks that permanently settle between your heartstrings after just one listen, it is also soundtrack for those long, deeply restless nights. The Wrecking Crew-esque groove of “Without You” drives a positively gorgeous tune home before giving way to the bounding “Waiting,” the excellent lead single (though, frankly, every tune on this album is a serious contender for the ‘lead single’ title). Mid-album highlight “Fever” chugs along like Ziggy-era Bowie and erupts into a cacophonous wall of synths and guitar leads in harmony. “Waking Hours” is some of Goodman’s finest songwriting to date, a strikingly subtle ballad; the instrumentation is perfectly understated, and the harmonies, doused in reverb, are almost painfully lovely. The late-album one-two punch of “Awakened” and the rowdy title track–the latter of which captures early-relationship jitters to a tee–are additional highlights. “Won’t,” which serves as the jangling but incredibly powerful album closer, ends an already-intimate record on an even more intimate note.
Like those of some of the best young songwriters (I am reminded, for instance, of Bright Eyes’ “Fevers & Mirrors”), Goodman’s lyrics are peppered with recurring imagery: flowers and fever, sleeping (but mainly lack thereof) and waking, early mornings and late nights plagued by uncertainty. He captures the ends of relationships and the beginnings of others through the eyes of the sleepless nights that bookend them.
This is pop music for nervous young people, tossing and turning because we don’t know just what we want.
If you have been missing the band, The Marlowes, fear not, former founder member John Larson has released a rather fine debut album, "Songs About Music" and will begin recording the follow up this year. We think that this debut is a pretty fine affair and look forward to hearing more later this year.
The Marlowes with Little Anthony.
Songs About Music is the record that John Larson has been trying to make for a long time. From the infectious guitars that introduce the opening track, “Girl in the Band” to “Kiss and Yell” - the story of strangers who turn lovers after they meet at a convention devoted to the band KISS - it’s clear that listeners are in for some unconventional lyricism and irresistible melodies.
Songs About Music is Larson’s first solo effort after having fronted the Providence, Rhode Island-based power pop/rock band The Marlowes for eight years. The new release is full of the kind of down-to-earth songs with heartfelt vocals and engaging melodies that define his best work.
Songs About Music, is a collection of songs that were all written about musicians, the art of writing music or the lively characters who surround the music scene.
Lyrically, the stories and observations that Larson unfolds are among his best work. The track “Billy and Wiggy” retells a chance meeting with English folk rocker Billy Bragg’s brother at a Bragg show in Providence in the mid-eighties. Interspersed throughout the album are odes to Josephine Baker (“The Constant Caterwaul”), a lament on the lack of authentic country music in America (“They’re Not Writing Country (In This Country Anymore”), and the thoughts of an obsessed vinyl record collector (“Track You Down”), among the others.
“Although this is my first solo album, it was definitely a collaborative effort,” said Larson. “I called on a lot of my music friends, including a few of the Marlowes, and everybody contributed beyond my expectations.”
For this project, Larson enlisted long-time friend and bandmate Justin Capaldi as his co-producer to help him achieve the sound he was searching for. “Justin is someone I trust and feel a musical kinship with and he was great at capturing the sounds I was hearing in my head,” Larson explains.
Recording and mixing took place at Lunchtime Studios and Fat Trax in Rhode Island and Rich Sound in New York.
It only takes one listen of Songs About Music to realize that Larson has achieved the sound he was searching for – in spades. For perhaps the first time, the music Larson conjures up to support his songs is just as compelling as the stories they tell.
To listen to the debut album from John Larson and to find out more, go and visit John's very excellent homepage here: www.johnlarsonri.com
If, like me, you like something a bit different sometimes how a bout a little trip into the gloriously trippy world of Sir Psyche and let him take you to some far off places and beyond.
One month after this album was released on April 24th, 2012, the album was out of print and vaulted. If you were one who didn't receive a copy of the 500 albums that were manufactured or didn't get to download a copy, now is your chance to get a copy, as well as 15 bonus tracks of alternate versions and outtakes from the sessions.
Venture of into the psychedelic world of Sir Psych. You might not be the same afterwards!
