Monday 28 January 2019

Monday's Long Song



Today was always going to be a version of John Coltrane Stereo Blues the only thing to decide was what one of the 5 different versions of the track was it going to be mega long Steve Wynn, solo version or one of the three other live versions of the track. That was until I realised on Saturday that I hadn't ripped the version from the live 12" that came out for RSD last year, so I decided to rip the whole ep and when I did another track sounded better in the headphones. The slow. languid, echoey groove of How I Found Myself Here was just perfect for my mood at the weekend. I am not as familiar with this track as I am with John Coltrane Stereo Blues, as it comes from the 2017 reunion album which I didn't get around to buying at the time as it being the band's first new material in 29 years I didn't really have high hopes for it and it quickly fell off of my radar. It is on the strength of this back in my sights and on the list.

The Dream Syndicate - How Did I Find Myself Here (Live)

Friday 25 January 2019

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance




A bit of Portuguese tech-house remixed by French Duo Discodeine  and released on their label,  Dark & Lovely, proper European partnership going on here. I know nothing about this but bought it when I was going through my obsession with all things Pilooski and Dark & Lovely. It throbs away in a good way not like when you rattle your thumb with a hammer.

Last week's Scottish Cup game was not the slaughtering that had been expected, indeed just before half time the Celtic keeper pulled off not one but four excellent saves in rapid succession denying the Diamonds of a goal. Second half was a bit backs to the wall stuff but we came away with a three nil defeat, not as bad as a couple of encounters Motherwell have had recently with Celtic, as I overheard  Leo telling his mates over the PS4 when I take it he was getting a pure slagging at the result.  From the radio commentary and the highlights on telly last Saturday night (it's been a long time since the Diamonds have been on Sportscene) the team played exceptionally well, especially the defence and midfield as was essential and the keeper, well let's just say he's a keeper in the other sense of the word, no matter what the horrors on social media say about him and Airdrie in general.

Tomorrow it's back to league action away to Stenhousemuir. Although Stenhousemuir are sitting bottom of the table, that doesn't really go for much in this league and I expect that it will be a tough game. I am trying to persuade Leo to go with me tomorrow but he's not into it at the moment, we shall see.

Have a good weekend people.

Photonz - Trembler (Discodeine remix)

Thursday 24 January 2019

Sister John



Tomorrow sees the official release of an early contender for album of the year, Sister John, the eponymous second album from the band, Like its predecessor the songs on this album have a warmth which for me has a lot to do with the sound of Jonathan Lilley's guitar  which has echoes of a bygone age. Quite a few of the songs have a darker edge to them than those on the debut, Returned From Sea but not enough for this album to come across as depressing. On the press release there is a comparison made to post Nico Velvets and I can kind of see where that is coming from but if I were to make a comparison it would be as a less chilly Trinity Sessions era Cowboy Junkies without harmonica, added strings and all original material that was partly recorded at home and not in a church. I've had this album for over a month now and it gets better with repeated plays and was the perfect soundtrack to L and my late night biscuits and cheese on Christmas night. It would be really hard to pick favourites from the 11 tracks but at the moment The Other Side Of Love and I'm The One in particular are doing it for me at the moment.

Yet again Sister John and Last Night From Glasgow, the world's first crowd funded not for profit record label deliver a stunning album. This records deserves to sell shed loads and can be ordered here.

Sister John - I'm The One 

Tuesday 22 January 2019

Naked Eye



A couple of posts by other blogger's yesterday is responsible for today's track. First up was SA's over at the Bagging Area where he had posted a belter of a track (aren't they all) by Beastie Boys which got me thinking about Luscious Jackson and then I headed over to the Swede's bit where he had an excellent bit of Scandi Kosmiche called Propeller Propulsion by Swedish four piece Automatism. So after I turned off the lap top I rooted around in the Indie/Hip/Hop/Baggy 12" single cupboard for the Propellerheads heads remix of Naked Eye by the first signing to the Beasties Grand Royal label.

If the truth be told I was rather underwhelmed after playing it, it's alright don't get me wrong but just not as good as I remember it being. That could have something to do with the intervening 23 years, fuck, TWENTY FUCKING THREE years! Unless my memory is totally screwed I did always prefer the British Big Beat duo's remix but now the original mix is the one that's doing it for me. Tastes change I suppose.

Tomorrow I'm going to give Fever In Fever Out, the album Naked Eye comes from a spin. It the present time I have no recollection of any of the other tracks from it! Old age does not come itself.

Luscious Jackson - Naked Eye ( Propellerheads remix)

Luscious Jackson - Naked Eye

Monday 21 January 2019

Monday's Long Song



I was in two minds whether to post this as the album that this track is the main piece of is getting a long awaited re-release at the beginning of next month. It will be remastered and so will sound a lot better than the download below and although this track is the longest thing on the album, it works better as part of the whole than a standalone piece, although it does work like this which is why I'm not sure whether to invest in the cd or the vinyl as this is one of those things I think should be listened to in full.

The circumstances around the production of this extraordinary piece of music are quite unique. In 1999 Paddy McAloon was all but blind due to detached retinas making him spend a lot of time housebound during which he listened to a lot of shortwave radio broadcasts mainly talk shows and phone-ins. He began to record bits of these broadcasts and started to incorporate these recordings into the music that he was composing at the time adding some TV and television samples along with spoken word passages from the radio shows narrated by Yvonne Connors and Paddy McAloon singing on one of the tracks. The orchestration is lovely. especially the trumpet and strings. This is probably as far from what you expect from A Prefab Sprout album as you are going to get and when it originally came out it was credited to McAloon alone, however the re-release comes out under the Prefab Sprout moniker. I think that everybody's collection will be all the better for having this in it.

Paddy McAloon - I Trawl The Megahertz

Friday 18 January 2019

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



How about a bit of Spanish techno to brighten up your Friday? I say Spanish but that is an assumption, Agony Forces may not be but the label certainly is. I bought this when it came out and am really surprised that that was way back in 2013, I thought that this was from a couple of years ago at the most. The original mix of Kibera, is a very good piece of minimal tech house, however I prefer the throbbing mix by Italian producer Ness which just builds and builds but unfortunately finishes after just under 7 minutes which is a bit of a disappointment. I could imagine this being in a Slam set.

Well, tomorrow is the big one. Can the not so mighty Diamonds stop the treble treble from occurring. I think that we all know the answer to that one. But don't even jokingly suggest such a thing on Twitter as you will be greeted with a load of abuse regarding your religious persuasion, be accused of sectarianism, told that you don't really support Airdrie and that your club/town is worthless and pointless. Some people really need to get some perspective but then again I see my football club as just that a football club, not a family. or a "way" of life and it certainly does not shape my thinking or perspective on everything else. I know, my bad.

Anyway, after last week's draw with Raith Rovers, a match where according to JC, Airdrie had 11 men behind the ball all match, not the same game as I watched but there you go, to say I am not confident about the 4th round of the Scottish Cup tomorrow would be an understatement but miracles can happen but not very often in Lanarkshire. If we can keep it below 5 nil I will be happy, as I don't think that a score line like that will have any lasting trauma for Leo as he has experienced such a humping previously  but any more than that and I will be worried for the wee man.

Have a good weekend people and 'moan the Diamonds!

Agony Forces - Kibera

Wednesday 16 January 2019

Apache Street



What do you get if you splice a stone cold classic piece of soul with one of the most sampled pieces of music ever? You get an extremely funky three and a bit minutes of pure class. Daytoner, the producer from the West Country has come up with the goods once again. The soul track is Lou Rawls Dead End Street and the other is Apache by the Incredible Bong Band and they go together beautifully.

Daytoner - Apache Stree

Tuesday 15 January 2019

The Return of Nick Waterhouse




As you will be aware if you have read this for any length of time I am a big fan of Nick Waterhouse, his 60s insprired R&B, blue-eyed soul and on the last album downright jazzy grooves are right up my street. So the prospect of a new album was greeted with great joy in these parts and a sneak preview copy for my personal listening pleasure was much appreciated, thanks Ellie. You will be pleased to hear that it is another belter, yet again conjuring up images of dim light clubs, sharp suited guys and mini skirted girls with bobs but that may just be me. It will be released on the 8th of March from all good record shops or wherever you get your downloads from.

Those of you in Manchester, London and a handful of other European cities pissed off that once again no Glasgow show ! I had  the opportunity to see the man live and can thoroughly recommend him as back in September 2014 he was absolutely magic at King Tuts although the place was half empty maybe why he hasn't ventured back to Scotland but it was one of my gigs of the year, for the cover of Pass The Hatchet alone. Jesus, four and a bit years ago.


Monday 14 January 2019

Monday's Long Song



I have seen this lot a wheen of times over the last eleven years and only once have they been anything less than excellent live but that gig was at the Arches where the sound for bands at least was always a bit hit or miss and the crowd that night didn't seem to be particularly into it. Not sure if they are still active as a band, there hasn't been anything from them since, for me anyway the extremely disappointing Dope Machines in 2015. The first time I saw them was in November way back in 2008 when they were supporting Frightened Rabbit in the Wah Wah Hut. I didn't expect that much but if the headliners had been anybody other than the Frabbits they would have blown them away with their short set, what made it even more amazing was that that had been their thirtieth gig in 31 days! Not sure if Innocence was played that night, I think it was but it was at the following gig at King Tuts that ended with the band in the crowd and the crowd dancing on the stage, including one Prof Clark or Comrade Colin as he's known to many bloggers. It is a firm highlight of the live set and therefore a live version seems appropriate.

Airborne Toxic Event - Innocence (Live At The Walt Disney Concert Hall)


Friday 11 January 2019

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance



I got bored of this pretty quickly back in the day just as well that as it seemed there were loads of great new tunes coming out on a weekly basis. However when it came on randomly during the week the deepest gloom of the first week back at work in January very nearly lifted and I was back in loose fitting jeans and my lovely red nubuck Wallabees. During the festering period I had a morning afternoon when everything I played seemed to come from 1991 this would have fitted right in but it didn't even occur to me to dig this out. I think over the weekend I may try and replicate the mixtape that I had at the tail end of 1991 which had things like Dove, Fallen, Let's Kiss And Make Up, Hoomba Hoomba and Never Get Out Of The Boat.

The third meeting between Raith Rovers of the season has come around quickly. Can the Diamonds make it 4 wins on the bounce? It would be good to go into the Scottish Cup game on the back of a successful run of matches, then the inevitable slaughtering will not be so bad. I will be meeting up with JC to get the Stuttgart scarf that Walter so kindly brought over for Leo when he was here at the tail end of last year. Leo will not be in attendance however as it is his birthday so he and 9 friends are going to the Edinburgh Dungeon and then a sleep over at ours, deep joy. It could have been worse,  L suggested taking them all to the football which I successfully convinced her was not the best idea in the world,

Have a good weekend [people

Cola Boy - 7 Ways To Love (original white label version)

Thursday 10 January 2019

Holy Revelation



The Coral were one of the highlights of last year's Electric Fields for me. Not something that I thought would be the case beforehand, however their mix of Psychedelia , Pop  and Kraut grooves really hit the spot. One of the best songs of the set was Holy Revelation from 2016's Distance Inbetween where they nearly faithfully produced this version which was remixed by Andy Votel and released as a limited 12" white label.  The band's 2018 album Move Through The Dawn very nearly made my albums of the year but lost points due to the cover alone, which is so bad it has to be a piss take. Why anybody would have wanted a picture disc of it is really beyond me.

The Coral - Holy Revelation (Andy Votel's Holy Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues De-mix)

Tuesday 8 January 2019

Dix



When I started this blog with the intention of giving me something to do in the wee small hours when I would be wide awake due to being on feeding duties with our second child,  who would make his first appearance in the world four days after I kicked off this thing, I wasn't sure it would last the month, never mind getting passed Leo's teething, walking, talking,  growing into the bit of a gobshite he is becoming at the moment. But ten years, bloody hell, that was never on the cards.  In recent years there have been a few occasions when it has been difficult to keep it going,  especially this last summer when I rashly decided to jack it in completely but here I am, a decade of inflicting what I believe (in my arrogant opinion as L would say), is music that "needs" to be heard, the odd piece of self-indulgent navel gazing and more than a few pointless rants on those few of you who have persevered.

Thank you.

There could only be one song really. Recently I was wondering why nobody had ever covered this and then I said to myself "don't ever tempt fate like that again".

The Pale Fountains - . . . From Across The Kitchen Table (Original)
The Pale Fountains - . . . From Across The Kitchen Table (7" version)
The Pale Fountains - . . . From Across The Kitchen Table (12" version)

Monday 7 January 2019

Monday's Long Song



"Back to pit boots and purridge"  as an old uncle used to say at the end of the holidays.

At present I am reading the final book in Stuart Cosgrove's soul trilogy, Harlem 69 and very good it is too. Today's artist, Donny Hathaway features prominently in the book which got me reaching for the extremely reasonably priced 5 album cd boxset I bought a few years back. A must for anybody with even a passing interest in this extremely talented but much troubled composer/arranger/musician/singer who tragically died way too soon when he took his own life in January 1979 at the age of 33.

The Ghetto was Hathaway's first single, taken from his debut album Everything Is Everything. The song is probably Hathaway's most enduring solo recording filled with social consciousness and which I think introduced the concept of  "the ghetto" within black culture and was not to intended to be a negative but truthful portrayal of the vibrant, sometimes dangerous but continually happening  neighbourhood around Howard University where Hathaway and the song's co-writer Leroy Hutson lived when they composed this wonderful track when still students at the university. The version posted is for the excellent 1972 album Live. Where this amazing bit of jazzy funk magic is nearly doubled in length but could easily go on for a further 12 minutes without ever getting boring. On the album there is also a brilliant drawn out interpretation of the debut album's title track which is equally as good as the version of the Ghetto. What is really great about this live album is that it manages to retain the feeling of fun from the band and crowd that was obviously going on and also gives you the impression that this would have been one heck of a groovy evening to have witnessed.

Donny Hathaway - The Ghetto (live)