The Frank and Walters - Greenwich Mean Time.

The Frank and Walters are one of the most recognizable alternative rock bands hailing from Cork, Ireland in the past 2 decades. The band: Paul Linehan (Lead vocal & bass), Ashley Keating- (Drums) Rory Murphy (lead Guitar) Cian Corbett (Keyboards) took the band name in honour of two eccentric Cork characters. Two decades on from the release of their very first record, and the Franks continue to defy expectations. With Indie hits such as ‘Fashion Crisis Hits New York’ & ‘After All’ (which reached the top twenty in the UK Singles Chart, where it peaked at 11. The group also appeared on Top of the Pops in support of the single; it went as high as 5 in the Irish charts). Their music today is as relevant as any of the new pretenders on the block and only a handful of bands anywhere in the world can lay claim to such longevity of popularity. Each year, the Frank and Walters perform sell out venues across the UK, Europe, and the US and their records, both new and classic, continue to sell across the world.

My first experience of the Franks, as we called them back then, was at the Escape club in Brighton on their first tour, these guys walked on stage in orange boiler suits and started playing some great poppy indie tunes with big smiles on their faces, almost tongue in cheek.
 Obviously they didn't take themselves too seriously which was refreshing in amongst the flocks of "too cool for school" bands that were treading the boards back then, I mean the orange boiler suits and the bowl haircut that Paul Linehan was sporting back then kind of suggested that, but that combined with the songs endeared them to the audience almost immediately, the in-between song banter from the band was almost impossible to understand with their broad Irish accents, this didn't matter, I loved them, the crowd loved them and during the last song, there were more people on the stage than there were in the audience, everyone was dancing and having a good time and the band seemed to enjoy it to, I spent half that song talking to the drummer, I couldn't understand him of course!
By the end of the evening my face was hurting from smiling, I imagine that was like many of the other peoples faces in the audience, great songs and a great fun band and the beauty of the Franks, is that they have never gone away, they have always been there like a light in a window that shows you the way home, when many of the other lights have been turned off.   Now they are back with another album of infectious, smile enticing gems, the orange boiler suits have been replaced with a more grown up orange tie and the bowl haircut has gone, but the great song smithery, the smiles and the fun remains.  Lets hope that the Franks will never go away and save the world one song at a time as they suggest and I believe they will!

The Frank and Walters new single.

Would you walk for miles and miles....you don't have to, they are probably coming to a town near you!

March 16th Leeds. The Northern Monkey

March 17th Liverpool. Zanzibar.

March 23rd Portsmouth, Wedgewood Rooms

March 24th London. Borderline.

March 30th Tullamore. The Thatch.

March 31st Dublin. Workman’s Club.

April 12th Cardiff. Buffalo Bar

April 14th Brighton Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar

April 20th Clonakilty, Co. Cork De Barra’s,

April 27th Galway, Roisin Dubh

April 28th Limerick,  Dolans Warehouse

 I believe there will be European dates added too! (Which is good because I am in Sweden now...hint hint!) 

The Frank and Walters FACEBOOK

New album now available to download iTunes  and soon available in stores and across the internet soon.

Supergrass - I Should Coco

 

Tearing by at a breakneck speed, I Should Coco is a spectacularly eclectic debut by Supergrass, a trio barely out of their teens. Sure, the unbridled energy of the album illustrates that the band is young, yet what really illustrates how young the bandmembers are is how they borrow from their predecessors. Supergrass treat the Buzzcocks, the Beatles, Elton John, David Bowie, Blur, and Madness as if they were all the same thing -- they don't make any distinction between what is cool and what isn't, they just throw everything together. Consequently, the jittery "Caught by the Fuzz" slams next to the music hall rave-up "Mansize Rooster" and the trippy psychedelia of "Sofa of My Lethargy," or the heavy stomp of "Lenny" or the bona fide teen anthem "Alright." I Should Coco is the sound of adolescence, but performed with a surprising musical versatility that makes the record's exuberant energy all the more infectious. - AMG

 

Listen: HERE

The Jam - Sound Affects Deluxe Edition

Unhappy with the slicker approach of Setting Sons, the Jam got back to basics, using the direct, economic playing of All Mod Cons and "Going Underground," the simply brilliant single that preceded Sound Affects by a few months. Thematically, though, Paul Weller explored a more indirect path, leaving behind (for the most part) the story-song narratives in favor of more abstract dealings in spirituality and perception -- the approach stemming from his recent readings of Blake and Shelley (who was quoted on the sleeve), but more specifically Geoffrey Ashe, whose Camelot and the Vision of Albion made a strong impression. Musically, Weller drew upon Revolver-era Beatles as a primary source (the bassline on "Start," which comes directly from "Taxman," being the most obvious occurrence), incorporating the occasional odd sound and echoed vocal, which implied psychedelia without succumbing to its excesses. From beginning to end, the songs are pure, clever, infectious pop -- probably their catchiest -- with "That's Entertainment" and the should-have-been-a-single "Man in the Corner Shop" standing out.

Universal’s 2010 Deluxe Edition of Sound Affects contains a remastered version of the original album on the first disc and a wealth of bonus material on the second disc, much of which is absent on the complete box Direction Reaction Creation. The bonus disc begins with the single version of “Start!” and runs through the B-sides “Liza Radley” and “Dreams of Children” before getting into a host of demos and alternate takes, stopping on the occasional oddity like the fan club flexi-disc “Pop Art Poem.” Much of this previously saw the light of day either on the rarities comp Extras or Direction Reaction Creation, but there are a few items making their debut here: a demo with overdubs of “Pretty Green,” a demo of “Boy About Town,” a previously unreleased instrumental of “Scrape Away,” a demo of “Start!,” an alternate “Monday,” an instrumental demo, a “dub ending” of “Set the House Ablaze,” and finally a demo of “Waterloo Sunset."

Listen: HERE

The Joy Of Painting - Asterisk. Name Your Price Download.

 

I love stumbling across bands on the internet, especially when they are this good and why is nobody shouting about them?  Why am I not already aware of them?

The Joy of Painting are from Nashville TN. and they play some really great tunes with some fantastic 3 or 4 part harmonies, I can't quite work it out but what I do know that to stumble blindly through the world wide web and find something as delicious as this is a brilliant feeling.

The songs on this seven track album are recorded live which gives you an indication of this bands enormous talent.

What others are saying:

"Accidently grandiose and bursting with color and energy." -Murfreesboro Pulse

"I hear a lot of Weezer in this record...it is certainly some catchy pop, but it also has the fuel of post-punk." -No Country for New Nashville

"From Self to Kyle Andrews to Fun [Nashville] has managed to produce a number of the best artists of the past few years. Go ahead and add Joy of Painting to that list, because their first EP is an artistically brilliant debut that will truly surprise you." -Obvious Pop

Colorful and delicious like your favorite cereal, full of groovy gravy beats and mom-approved hooks.

 

Photo by Melissa Mills

Listen to the brilliant No Bones 

Upcoming Shows.

3/24/12 - TBD

Oklahoma City, OK

w/Deerpeople

4/14/12 - TOUR DE FUN

Murfreesboro, TN // WEBSITE

BIKE & MUSIC FEST

5/25/12 - Prevervation Pub

Knoxville, TN

Go over to the bands bandcamp page and listen to and buy the album, it is a name your price download for the digital album: HERE

Contact and follow the band here: FACEBOOK

The Joy of Painting: Official

Daemon Familiar - Brontosaurus Rex

 

Daemon Familiar is a power-pop trio from Chicago dedicated to reviving the lost art of the catchy pop/rock song. A tight meld of their musical roots Cheap Trick, Husker Du, and Sloan creates their raw riff-driven compositions. Infectious hooks, vocal harmonies, and crunchy guitar melodies are their stock in trade. Not since Cheap Trick has a band from Illinois set out to deliver songs so unforgettable they'll be tattooed on your cerebral cortex.

Formed in 2006, Daemon Familiar has quickly built a following both locally and online, playing shows throughout Chicago at venues such as the Beat Kitchen, Elbo Room, Reggie's Live, The Empty Bottle, and the Underground Lounge, as well as other locations in the Midwest. Their sound has drawn comparisons to bands as varied as Cheap Trick, Sloan, Husker Du and Barenaked Ladies. The band released its debut album, Dawn of the Albatross, to strong reviews in 2009, with the Illinois Entertainer proclaiming, "...there's no denying the crunchy sweetness of Daemon Familiar's Dawn Of The Albatross." Daemon Familiar has also appeared on two compilation CDs, including Fabsound Records Fights Autism.

 

[Photograph by Mio Nomura]

Brontasaurus Rex  is a 7 track Power Pop album filled with chopping guitars and nifty hooks driven along by solid drum and bass section.

The album kicks of with the infectious and catchy song "Kate" filled with Ba Ba Ba's and the ultra catchy chorus which is almost impossible not to sing along to.  Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles gets a dedicated song on the album, hailing her as a Power Pop queen in a driving wall of guitar sound.

Brontasaurus Rex is a straight up, well produced body of work and incorporates just about everything you need, and want, from a Power Pop band that melds the likes of Cheap Trick with the stylings of Husker Du and Weezer.  A perfect driving album!

Here is a video of Daemon Familiar doing it for the kids, playing "Kate" at an all ages Chicago dance show!  I don't think they really play on Rock Band instruments!  ;)

Listen and buy Brontasaurus Rex: CD Baby

Contact Daemon Familiar: Official Website  Facebook

The Monks - Black Monk Time 1966

 

1964, West Germany. Five American GIs in a rockband combat Beatlemania by attempting to be the "anti-Beatles." Managed by Situationist-minded German advertising gurus, they're wholly branded as The Monks: dressed in black cassocks, tonsures shaved on heads, nooses hung around their necks. They strip the drum-kit of its cymbals, bash a banjo as a percussive instrument, and grow ever tighter and nastier as they tour Germany constantly, playing for audiences who usually despise them. They make one viciously-rhythmic record, Black Monk Time then implode in the face of the public's disinterest/dislike. But they leave their mark: the subsequent generation of German krautrockers owing an obvious debt to The Monks' devotion to repetition.

Listen:HERE

The Twin Sets - Take Your Rest. FREE EP DOWNLOAD

 

Another new band hailing from the North West of Spain (A Coruña) with a really nice set of jangly power pop songs....they must put something special in the water up there!

The Twin-Sets are:  Borja Fernández - Guitar, Denís Graña - Vocals, guitar, Nacho - Bass, Lito-Drums.

The EP has three tracks of melodically satisfying tunes with a really nice uncomplicated driving beat behind them so as not to detract from the jangly guitar sounds.

 

The band quotes artistss like The Nerves, The Jam, Teenage Fanclub, The Kinks, Badfinger and The Lemonheads as influences and they have certainly caught that sound without directly mimicking any of them.

 

I really like this bands sound and for a band that have only been together since 2011 they seem to gel very well as a group. 

 

Whilst all the songs on the EP have a standout quality, "We won't turn it back" which is sung in their native Spanish seems to flow better than those in English, which seem quite nonsensical, this however, would be my only criticism of this band and they will certainly be one on my watch list and I would actually be more than happy listening to more offerings from them in their native tongue!

Download the bands FREE ep: HERE

Befriend and follow the band: FACEBOOK

Baby Scream - Identity Theft. 7 Track Mini Album FREE DOWNLOAD

One of Ice Cream Mans favourite artists is giving away his mini album "Identity Theft" away free, this album is available to buy online but the artists is receiving no royalties from this vendor and would rather you have it gratis!!!  Enjoy and please swing by the Baby Scream page on Facebook and show this very talented artist some love.

Download FREE Baby Scream Identity Theft

BUT WAIT...........THERE IS MORE..........

Baby Scream are also encouraging you to download the brilliant album "Up's and Down's" album completely FREE too, two brilliant albums FREE, who said Mondays are rubbish!!!!!!

 

Baby Scream - Up's and Down's 

Please drop by Baby Screams Facebook page and show some support.

Baby Scream Facebook 

The Byrds - Mr Tambourine Man 1965

 

One of the greatest debuts in the history of rock, Mr. Tambourine Man was nothing less than a significant step in the evolution of rock & roll itself, demonstrating that intelligent lyrical content could be wedded to compelling electric guitar riffs and a solid backbeat. It was also the album that was most responsible for establishing folk-rock as a popular phenomenon, its most alluring traits being Roger McGuinn's immediately distinctive 12-string Rickenbacker jangle and the band's beautiful harmonies. The material was uniformly strong, whether they were interpreting Bob Dylan (on the title cut and three other songs, including the hit single "All I Really Want to Do"), Pete Seeger ("The Bells of Rhymney"), or Jackie DeShannon ("Don't Doubt Yourself, Babe"). The originals were lyrically less challenging, but equally powerful musically, especially Gene Clark's "I Knew I'd Want You," "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better," and "Here Without You"; "It's No Use" showed a tougher, harder-rocking side and a guitar solo with hints of psychedelia.

Listen: HERE

The Van Buren Boys - Up All Night LP

Tyler - Vocals/Guitar
Corsh- Bass/Vocals
Nick - Guitar/Vocals
Ryan - Piano/Vocals
Michael - Drums

Hailing from the midwest USA, The Van Buren Boys offer up a heady concoction of Power Pop Punk infused Rock 'N' Roll with their new Long Player  "Up All Night"

The 10 track album keeps the pace racing along from opening track "Turn it up loud" right through to the closing track "Up all night" and that kind of sums up what these guys are doing, turning it up loud and playing all night long, this is a great little album, full of energy and life and it sounds like the band are having a great time playing it.......check them out!!!

The Van Buren Boys play live:

Prima Donna with Van Buren Boys
Brauer House Lombard, IL
Sat, March 24, 2012 9:00 PM
$7.00
18 and Over

&

3/31 @ Schuba's w/ Wanton Looks and The...

Saturday, 31 March 2012 at 21:00

Listen to or buy "Up all night" HERE

Befriend the band and follow them Facebook

The Gurus - Closing Circles

 

Unlike the vintage '60s imagery that's dressed up the covers of the Gurus' previous albums, 2010's Closing Circles is adorned with a photo of a man falling from the sky to the ground -- while the back cover features a subtle but inescapable image of the same man after he's met the pavement. It's almost as if the Gurus are trying to tell us something is over and done, and though this group still clearly loves classic folk-rock and psychedelia, they're obviously less interested in replicating the sounds of the past, aiming for a more subdued feel and subtler textures on this set. By easing back on their shtick, the Gurus make a better case for their talents on Closing Circles; rather than suggesting they're trying to re-create some lost recording of another age, here they concentrate on writing good songs and bringing them to life in the studio, and they do it quite well. Psychedelic textures still play a significant role on this album, but the Gurus focus on atmosphere and mood rather than obvious trippiness, and the open, sun-dappled sound of "Strange Believer" and "Lunatic Lover" is all the more effective for avoiding the usual clichés. And there's no getting past the retro influences of "I Don't Care About It," "I Put a Spell on You" (an original, not the Screamin' Jay Hawkins' classic), "The Trip," and "Necromonicon," but the Gurus have effectively blended them into their style rather than letting them rise to the top like an oil slick, and the confidence of Emilio Ramirez's guitar, Sergio Bartel's bass, and Josep Pons' drumming goes a long way toward making this music click. With Closing Circles, the Gurus have finally crossed the border from being a group of '60s revivalists to a contemporary band who use elements of '60s pop to make their music work, and that's opened them up to make one of the most satisfying albums of their career.AMG

 

Listen: HERE

Pass in comments. 

Ride - Smile

 

A pairing of Ride's first two EPs, Smile is a batch of eight muddy, shambling wrecks that run dangerously close to obscuring great pop songs. In fact, much of Smile makes My Bloody Valentine's blurry Isn't Anything sound as polished as a Steely Dan record. What makes the tunes remarkable is the spirit of the band, along with a complementary mix. The band probably knew exactly what they were doing, but wanted to sound clueless. It's the sound of four art students losing themselves in their record collections, wanting to sound naïve and fresh but well-studied. Mark Gardener sounds like he couldn't sing to save his life on "Chelsea Girl," but it's no matter. The relentless rush of Loz Colbert's drums and distorted guitars of Gardener and Andy Bell carry the song, topped off by a nifty wah-wah climax. Though the mid-tempo, chugging "Drive Blind" could be taken literally, it could double as a metaphor for throwing oneself headlong into a relationship -- closing your eyes and not caring if a brick wall or cliff is up a mile ahead. The remainder is filled out with sticky riffs and melodies which avoid sounding like the standard pop fair. It sounds a bit amateurish, and Gardener and Bell hadn't quite found their footing vocally. Nonetheless, Smile brought something new to the table, and the U.K. audience and more adventurous U.S. fans clutched onto the sound for dear life. Rightfully so. [Oddly, Smile's mastering comes from the vinyl versions of the EPs. If you can track down the CD versions of the EPs separately, you'll notice a difference in quality. Also, the disc was remastered and reissued by Ignition in the U.K. in 2001; unlike the other releases in the campaign, the new version has no bonuses.]  

Listen: RIDE

The Monkees -The Best Of.

 

My Saturday mornings as a child would not have been the same without The Monkees and following the death of Davy Jones yesterday, it seemed rather fitting to post a Monkees album today.  Enjoy!

Davy Jones, 1945-2012

 "Hey hey, we are the Monkees/You know we love to please/A manufactured image/With no philosophies." In 1968, the Monkees addressed their own reputation in the song "Ditty Diego (War Chant)," which summed up the bad rap they'd received in the music press since they first emerged in the summer of 1966. The Monkees were talented singers, musicians, and songwriters who made a handful of the finest pop singles of their day (as well as a few first-rate albums) and delivered exciting, entertaining live shows. But at a time when rock music was becoming more self-conscious and "serious," the hipper echelons of the music press often lambasted the Monkees, largely because they didn't come together organically but through the casting process for a television series, and they initially didn't write the bulk of their own material or play all the instruments on their records. The fact they later took creative control of their music was often overlooked, and the quality of their music, which featured the work of some of the finest session players and songwriters of the 1960s, often seemed to be beside the point. Time has ultimately vindicated the Monkees, and their music still sounds fresh and engaging decades after it was recorded, but in some circles they never fully shook being branded as "the Pre-Fab Four," no matter how far they moved from the circumstances that brought them together.

The Monkees story began in the fall of 1965, when Bob Rafelson and Bert Schneider, a pair of producers whose Raybert Productions had a deal with Columbia Pictures and their TV branch Screen Gems, came up with an idea for a television series about a rock group. Inspired by Richard Lester's groundbreaking comedies with the Beatles, A Hard Day's Night and Help!, Rafelson and Schneider imagined a situation comedy in which a four-piece band had wacky adventures every week and occasionally burst into song. The NBC television network liked the idea, and production began on The Monkees in early 1966. Don Kirshner, a music business veteran who was a top executive at Colgems Records (a label affiliated with Columbia/Screen Gems), was appointed music coordinator for the series, and Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, a producing and songwriting team, signed on to handle much of the day-to-day chores of creating music for the show's fictive band. A casting call went out for four young men to play the members of the group, and Rafelson and Schneider's choices for the roles were truly inspired. Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork were musicians with solid performing and recording experience who also had a flair for playing comedy, while Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones were primarily actors but had also dabbled in pop music and had strong vocal abilities. As the show went before the camera, Kirshner had Boyce and Hart take the four leads into the studio to begin recording the songs that would be featured on the show each week. While initially the cast was only going to provide vocals for material Boyce and Hart had already recorded, the producers were impressed enough with Nesmith's songwriting skills that they chose to use a few of his tunes and let him produce them. With this, the Monkees took their first step toward evolving into a proper, self-sufficient rock band.  AMG

Listen:HERE

The Yardbirds - Five Live Yardbirds

 

Five Live Yardbirds was the first important -- indeed, essential -- live album to come out of the 1960s British rock & roll boom. In terms of the performance captured and the recording quality, it was also the best such live record of the entire middle of the decade. Cut at a Marquee Club show in 1964 , Five Live Yardbirds was a popular album, especially once Eric Clapton's fame began to spread after leaving the band. Although the album didn't appear officially in the United States until its CD release by Rhino in the late 1980s, four of its tracks -- "Smokestack Lightning," "Respectable," "I'm a Man," and "Here 'Tis" -- made up one side of their classic U.S. album Having a Rave Up, and the British EMI LP became a very popular import during the early 1970s as a showcase for both the band and the playing of Eric Clapton. That album had astonishingly good sound, which was not the case with any of the reissues that followed, on vinyl or CD -- even Rhino's compact disc suffered from blurry textures and noise, though it was an improvement over any release since the original EMI LP. The 1999 Repertoire Records reissue is the first CD that matches the clarity and sharpness of the original LP, and along with that improvement, their original concert has been very sensibly expanded with a half-dozen live cuts from roughly the same period, recorded at the Crawdaddy Club. Among them is a killer live version of the Billy Boy Arnold classic "I Wish You Would."There's also a pair of live tracks from German television in 1967 -- "I'm a Man" and "Shapes of Things"; the two, in a flash, make up for what they lack in perfect fidelity.   AMG

Listen: HERE mfire file

THE THEME - MOD/POWER POP - Live UK Dates

Some live dates for this most excellent band, if you are near any of the venues, do yourself a favour and go and have a great night out!!!!

Billeracy Football Club -  9th march
Scala , Kings Cross - DJ Set from Wombats - 24 march
Southend, The Riga Bar with The Most - 14 april
Islington O2  - 18 april
Ally club, Cambridge - 12 may
Fleece - Bristol 22 june
Help for heroes mod rally -  Birmingham 9 june
Clapham -  Granf 13 july
Fiddlers Elbow -  28 july

 Photo by: Neil McCarty

The Kinks - Live at The Rainbow 24th December 1977

 

I am not sure if this is an official bootleg, I don't believe that it is, it is however very obviously, a soundboard recording and the quality is excellent.

The Kinks were on the Sleepwalker tour at the time and the recording features many songs from that album as well as the classics. 

Tracklist

01 Sleepwalker
02 Life on the Road
03 Waterloo Sunset
04 All Day And All Of The Night
05 Slum Kids
06 Celluloid Heroes
07 Get Back In Line
08 The Hard Way
09 Lola
10 Alcohol
11 Skin And Bone
12 You Really Got Me
13 Juke Box Music

Get it: HERE

Telepathic Butterflies - Breakfast in Suburbia

 

Over 40 years after the Beatles grabbed North America's musical consciousness by the lapels and gave it a friendly shake, their brand of guitar-based pop is still influencing bands here, there, and everywhere, and the third album from Winnipeg's the Telepathic Butterflies, Breakfast in Suburbia, shows that plenty of good things can still be built from the Fab Four's model. The Telepathic Butterflies aren't devoted to the Beatles at the exclusion of all else — "Telescope" shows flashes of both the Hollies and the Kinks, and "If It's All Too Much" suggests someone in this band listened to a lot of Who records. But the clean melodic lines and energetic guitar figures of the Beatles circa 1963-1965 clearly loom large in the Telepathic Butterflies' pantheon of influences, and they certainly do right by their role models. Réjean Ricard's guitar work is sharp and engaging, and he's a first-class songwriter to boot, sounding equally clever as a lyricist and tunesmith, and Jacques Dubois and Eric Van Buren are an excellent rhythm section, giving the songs plenty of snap and crackle while pushing the tunes forward with just the right degree of force. Though it isn't difficult to suss out this group's influences, the Telepathic Butterflies aren't overwhelmed by them, or living in a bygone era; these are simply bandmembers who understand the virtues of a smart, well-crafted pop tune played with fire and skill, and they have the talent to apply those lessons to their own work. Breakfast in Suburbia is superb pop/rock in the classic style that anyone who still believes in the curative power of the electric guitar will want to hear. -AMG

Listen: HERE  Link refreshed and working.

The Cry! - The Cry!

 

Brian Crace :  Lead Guitar, Vocals
Ray Nelsen:  Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
Dave Berkham:  Bass Guitar, Vocals
Maus Mersky: Drums

 

The Cry say they are going to save Rock 'n' Roll from the grave and listening to their music I can tell you they are already in command of the undertakers shovels and menacingly looking at the back of Justin Beibers head.....and I am ready to look the other way!

This is brilliant straight up rock 'n' roll with a twist of doo wop , sure, it isn't reinventing the wheel, but it is keeping the wheel rolling (at great speed) greased with a passion and energy that is so often forgotten these days.

 The album is a brilliantly crafted power pop affair with only 3 of the 12 songs going past the 3 minute mark, three part harmonies in a 50's/60's styling and echoing bands such as The Beach Boys and The Exploding Hearts, and listening to the track "Be True" on the album, you could be forgiven for thinking that these guys are the bastard sons of the aforementioned artists! 

This album plays like a dream, from track one to track twelve The Cry! don't miss a beat, look as you might, there isn't one filler track or sub standard track to be found on the album.

The band have a motto and that is "Never Suck!" What a breath of fresh air that is in a world filled with X-factor, Idol type artists that seem to have the motto "Keep Sucking!"

The Cry! are playing loads of live dates from now until June in the States, so do yourself a favour, go and check them out and "Never Suck!" The Cry are rated A+ live!!!!!!

You can contact the band, like them on Facebook and find details of the album and the shows at the following links:

Official Website:  http://www.thecrypdx.com

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/thecrypdx

Reverb Nation: http://www.reverbnation.com/thecrypdx

The Exploding Hearts - Guitar Romantic

 

At first glance, the Exploding Hearts seem like mere revivalists. From the pink and yellow cover to their 1977 looks to their influences, it would be easy to dismiss them. But you need to hold the phone a minute and listen, because the Exploding Hearts are the best punk band to come along in a long time, maybe since the original wave. About those influences, here is a partial list: the early Clash if Mick Jones wrote all the songs and the Only Ones or Buzzcocks at their emotional best, but also classic power pop sounds like a (much) tougher Rubinoos, rock & roll like a tighter and sober New York Dolls, and the lo-fi approach of Billy Childish. Guitar Romantic is an amazingly raw and melodic debut, fully realized and original despite the obvious debt to the punk past. It is difficult to pinpoint just what it is about the band that helps overcome their idol worship. Maybe it is the love and authenticity that they pour into the worship, the raw production that smashes the guitars and bass into a whirling mess of tuneful noise, or the wonderfully tough but tender vocals. Most likely it is the songwriting. Too many bands that seek to re-create a sound or an era don't have the tunes to back it up. Not the Hearts. Every song on Guitar Romantic makes a bid to be the best on the album: "I'm a Pretender" is a jaunty kick in the head, "Sleeping Aides & Razorblades" is an ultra-catchy doo wop-inspired ballad with a brilliant guitar line, "Thorns in Roses" is a rollicking '50s-influenced ballad, "Throwaway Style" melds a lovelorn lyric to a Motown beat (the same one the Strokes heisted for "Last Nite") to great effect. There isn't a weak song here, not a single one that isn't on par with the best punk-pop. If you don't have this album and have even the slightest affinity for poppy punk rock or punky pop/rock, you are missing out on something special. -AMG

 

Listen: HERE 

Mod Gun - Fools - FREE ALBUM DOWNLOAD

 

Well, I can't tell you very much about this band, in fact I can't tell you anything other than who the members are and they are;

Paul Peters: Rhythm Guitar/Vocals
Jon Dyer: Lead Guitar
Kathleen Peters: Bass
Trevor Rubin: Drums

 

The band plays in a style reminiscent of Swervedriver, The Telescopes and Catherine Wheel, nice dirty guitars and well crafted songs with an almost floating effect to them.

You can contact and like Mod Gun: Facebook

You can download Fools here with the compliments of the band: Mod Gun

The Lemonheads - It's a Shame About Ray

 

If Lovey captured Evan Dando as he found his signature blend of punk-pop, jangle pop, and folk-rock, It's a Shame About Ray is where he perfected that style. Breezing by in under half an hour, the album is a simple collection of sunny melodies and hooks, delivered with typical nonchalance by Dando. None of the songs are about anything major, nor do they have astonishingly original melodies, but that's part of their charm — they're immediately accessible and thoroughly catchy. Dando's laid-back observations of middle-class outcasts are minor gems. The heartbroken title track or "Confetti," the crushes of "Bit Part in Your Life," the love letter to substances "My Drug Buddy," or the wonderful "Alison's Starting to Happen," where a girl finds herself as she discovers punk rock, capture the laconic rhythms of suburbia, and his warm, friendly voice, which is offset by Juliana Hatfield's girlish harmonies, gives the songs an emotional resonance. [It's a Shame About Ray was later re-released with a competent punk-pop remake of Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson" added as a bonus track. As Dando approached stardom, the album was repressed again with the title of "My Drug Buddy" truncated to "Buddy." It was later restored to its original title.] -AMG

 

Listen: HERE

Thee Vicars

 

We at Ice Cream Man  Power Pop and More think this is great and are really looking forward to the forthcoming album!!!!

Thee Vicars believe that life is too short for boring music. They have self-belief and faith in what they are doing. They started out by wanting to stomp on all the crap music they heard week in, week out in their small little town. They say they are “ready to, if it comes to it, to kick kung fu style all the shit bands into orbit! We will set the bullshit bands’ hair straighteners on fire...make them melt, and their hair go curly! Make them go out and buy a belt for their jeans! So they sit at the right height! Not with their arses hanging out! So kids, do you wanna be the problem? Or do you wanna be the solution?”

Following two singles and two albums, on Dirty Water Records, the band has been working hard at their sound, rehearsing, playing countless live shows, writing dozens of new songs...and have progressed along the way, from hard-hitting but trashy sixties influenced punk rock towards a more melodic but still teen-garage sound. They’ve shed a few members along the way but in their current line up as a trio with great girl drummer Alex they are sounding their best yet.
One of the hardest working bands in the UK, they are constantly travelling around Europe and the UK, and have also toured the USA, including appearing at a Vice Magazine music festival in Portland, Oregon. The Horrors chose them as support act for their first gig in a year for the live debut of the songs from their Mercury nominated second album Primary Colours. And the Black Lips chose them as their European tour support last summer. If you haven’t taken note of Thee Vicars already where have you been hiding?!
Writing about their second album Clash magazine said that, “Ironically, in displaying barely a drop of originality, Thee Vicars actually sound fabulously fresh when set against the current crop of synth-pop bunnies...” and that it “reveals both glorious tunes and a sense of mischief. Mindless, and endless, fun.”
Meanwhile, the Guardian said, “They might dress smartly, all suited and booted, but Thee Vicars create an unholy, unruly row. They are much like the Cribs’ new favourite proponents of back-to- basics rifferama, the Strange Boys. You can also hear echoes of the early Stones here, as well as of more contemporary outfits such as the Hives, and there is something in Whittaker’s snarling vocals that reminds us of Pete Shelley. Together they create a decent fuzzy racket, full of energy and heavy on the treble, with a low-end throb that does the job.”

Find more information about Thee Vicars: Facebook Myspace

Buy: Dirty Water Records

The Allusions - Anthology 1966 - 1968

 

Fans of the early- and mid-'60s Merseybeat sound (the Beatles, Gerry & the Pacemakers, the Searchers, etc.) will probably love this 21-song compilation, which assembles the Allusions' complete recorded output over a four-year period. At their best, as on "Gypsy Woman," they had a fresh, original sound somewhere midway between the romanticism of the Beatles, the dynamism of the Kinks, and the Who's early ballads, with a unique vocal sound and good attack on their instruments. "Fever (Burns My Brain)" is a strange, yet workable, mix of two seemingly conflicting themes, a harsh, smooth farewell main lyric bridged by an achingly beautiful chorus reminiscent of Gerry & the Pacemakers vocally and the Zombies instrumentally. "The Dancer" is one of those odd low visibility numbers, like "I'll Remember the Night" by the Roulettes (whom these guys also resemble) that are such smooth and catchy examples of the Merseybeat sound that they belong on any anthology of the era and the music. "Roller Coaster Man" sounds like a Searchers outtake or a Gerry & the Pacemakers reject, with a guitar part that resembles "You Can't Do That." "Looks Like Trouble" owes a bit to "I Feel Fine" in its intro, although it also includes a thoroughly American garage-band style guitar break. Some of the later numbers, such as "Roundabout," are less interesting as songs, although even this wimpy ballad offers a catchy chorus and, overall, resembles nothing less than a decent Micky Dolenz-sung Monkees song. And "I'll Be Home" is the kind of song with which Ringo Starr could have done wonders, especially with the Beatlesque harmonies at the end of each line. The album's later songs are an interesting mix of subdued, moody ballads and high-energy rockers, such as "I Gotta Move," which may be the most Kinks-like cover of a Kinks track that you will ever hear. This disc's sound quality is excellent and the annotation extremely thorough.  

Listen: HERE

Alternative link: HERE

LOOK OUT, HERE COME "THE CYCLE PATHS"

The Cycle Paths. Formed in April 2011,the line-up is Stace Rose(guitar/vocals) Ian 'Edde' King(bass/backing vocals) and Andrew 'Bungle' Hardwick(drums).

 Stace and Ian had been messing around trying to put something together for a couple of years but both being guitarists, it was going nowhere.  Ian dabbled with drums to try and kick start things,but,despite being adequate, it wouldn't have worked.  Next up was the bass guitar for Ian,which he took to like an escaped con in a knocking shop!  Around that time Andy Hardwick asked on the off chance if the band needed a drummer. Thus The Cycle Paths were born officially(even though the name had been with Stace and Ian for 2 or 3 years).

 The next 6 months were spent getting songs ready until the debut gig,playing 2 sets to an enthusiastic crowd. More gigs have followed since around the Sheffield/Chesterfield/Nottingham area with the band growing in confidence and playing electrifying sets.

 On 22nd Jan 2012 the band went into G2 studios in Sheffield. The day was a success with 5 self-penned tunes turning out really well. This is to result in a debut ep due out soon (March) on Dizzy Holmes' Detour Records subsidiary label Paisley Archive.  "Last Tram To Halfway" also features "You Must Be A Devil" "Living With My Guilt" "Getting Better" and "Time To Say Goodbye." 

The band play anything from 60s garage to mod revival stuff plus they have their own takes on soul tunes and anything that takes their fancy. Such songs like, You're Gonna Miss Me, Frustration, Billy, The Magic Touch, Maybe Tomorrow, What A Way To Die ,Tube Station etc. 

The whole point of this band is enjoyment, both for the band and the people that go to see them. The band have a healthy following of people that go to their gigs, which usually end up in dancing and drinking and much merriment!

 

Upcoming gigs are-25th Feb,Three Horseshoes in Brimington, near Chesterfield.  24th March-Ashleigh Club, Clowne near Chesterfield.   25th April-Viper Rooms,Sheffield.   8th June-The Cremorne, Sheffield. 

You can contact and find out more about The Cycle Paths here  Facebook  and  Myspace

The upcoming EP has had extensive play on the 6 Towns Glory Boy radio show which airs on Sunday evening 7pm to 9pm GMT, so if you enjoy your Mod, Mod Revival , 60's Garage, Freakbeat and The Cycle Paths, check it out HERE

The Stairs - Mexican R'n'B

 

The weed bus takes us on a wiggy ride out of London, accompanied by the rustlings of Rizla and the popping of beer caps. We watch the dopey mess that is Help on the telly, and when we stagger off the charabanc we're properly pie-eyed and disoriented. Just about ready for planet Liddypool.
OK, so this may be an exceptional night at the (replica) Cavern, but it gives you some kind of crash course in the stuff that's both great and lacking in the music of this city. You realise just how schooled the bands are, so attentive and finicky about the tones and details that characterise beat music and early prog-rock. They're complete fans. What isn't so healthy is the way this can become so obsessive, how introverted and out-of-it the whole scene can be.
Anyway, The Stairs represent the better end of all this. They bounce around and give the impression that they're having an terrific time. Ged Lynn is a little waif of a bloke, but he goes into twang frenzy from the start, while another guy who looks like Eric Idle in tne Rutles twats his tambourine and then Edgar opens his enormous gob and produces a mass of growling, gut-bucket effects. The Stairs are fun.
I guess it was a mistake to do a set of covers before the 'real' show. It was a revelation to see them biffing out 'Over, Under, Sideways Down' - squint a little and see Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck shaking it with the Yardbirds in '66. But presently you get The Stairs' own songs, and you find that they're not so hugely different. 'Weed Bus' and 'Take No Notice...' have funny, spliff-suckin' storylines, but they sound like the other old things, and they haven't yet got the beauty in their writing - like The La's have - to transcend this.
The Stairs are good, but a wait-and-see band, deffo. They need some kind of perspective. Maybe - with all due respect - they should get out more. -[Stuart Bailie] New Musical Express

Listen:  Part 1  and Part 2