Smiles In The Sunshine And Tears In The Rain

Right! we're off for part three of our summer vacances. This time a bit closer to home, Machrihanish,  probably less than a hundred miles as the crowflies but 169 miles and four and a half hours by road and we won't be detouring across the isle of Arran this time.

The week will either be spent on the beach playing football and building sandcastles and being eaten alive at night by midges or sitting in the caravan playing Connect 4 and impersonating Kofi Annan while Max and Leo try to batter lumps out of each other due to extreme boredom. Still I have a Brookmyre to finish and then Karl Marlentes Matterhorn to try and tackle.

As I am a lazy git and have been away much of this last week,  I have had no chance to do any posts not even a Friday dance one you will be glad to read, so nothing to see or hear here until either next Saturday or Sunday. We will not be coming home early this time I hope!

I will leave you with a track from a track from a tour only ep by Frightend Rabbit which features the dulcet tones of Tracyanne Campbell. I have been meaning to post acouple of early Camera Obscura tracks for a while now but just haven't gotten round to it.

Frightened Rabbit - Fuck This Place

It's Friday . . . Let's Dance

Back to 1992 for a bit of Garage, House, Tribal House? Whatever you want to call it . The mix of the track posted is by Slam but not the kind of tune that you would naturally associate with the Glasgow producers, what with the gosple style vocals and the almost JBO baseline. If I didn't know better I would have said that this was a Farley/Heller mix from around this time.

The track was released on the Stress label with mixes by Brothers In Rhythm which are not bad but not nearly as good as the Slam one.

Have a good weekend people.

Voices of 6th Avenue - Call Him Up (Slam mix)

London Bridge/End Of An Era

Here is the first single from 2004 from the band Dogs much tipped by the Modfather himself but who alas never set the heather on fire.

The band have produced two very good albums which are certainly worth a listen. I have to admit that I prefer the debut which has more energy and is a steal at under two quid here. I first became aware of the band when they supported the Raveonettes at about the time of the first single. They are great live, very loud, full of energy and in Johnny Cook have a very charismatic frontman.

The band  are still going and have a mini album available for free download here. It's a pity that Dogs haven't came to the attention of more people in these days of pretty bland indie guitar bands. I think that this lot have a bit more to offer.

Dogs - London Bridge

Dogs - End Of An Era

Happy Birthday L

This one's for you doll.

The Killers - Mr Brightside

Because Of You

I don't know about you but I feel rather depressed at the moment.

It appears that humanity isn't in that great shape at the moment what with that fuck wit in Norway, famine in East Africa, the crisis in the world economy about to raise it's ugly head again, I could go on but the black dog in the room is getting closer as I type.

What I need and you possibly is some up beat soul music. I'm not being flippant, I know that a bit of northern ain't going to set the world to rights but it sure as hell can't make it any worse. So here, in my view is the finest piece of northern soul ever produced by another artist taken well before his time. This track never fails to make me smile, want to shimmy around the floor and indulge in some out of time handclaps ( Colin - you twee indie types don't have the monopoly on them).

So even if it's just for the three minutes nineteen seconds of this tune be happy and revel in the majesty that is Jackie Wilson.

Jackie Wilson - Because Of You

Catch The Breeze

Shall we get the week off to a nice, gentle soft focus kind of start with a gorgeous tune which was the third and final single for Creation records from the much maligned Slowdive who got the brunt of the backlash against what was derogatorily termed "shoegaze".

Although by this time, 1991 I had mostly turned my back on indie music made by bands with real instruments in favour of indie music made by producers and machines I still bought this single and Just For A Day the album from which it was lifted. It probably wasn't until the early noughties that I really listened to it in full and realised the the joys I had been missing.

Slowdive - Catch The Breeze

Amy Winehouse

So terribly sad and such a bloody waste!

Rest easy Amy.

Amy Winehouse - To Know Him IS To Love Him (link removed due to DMCA takedown)

Let Me Tell You About My Mother

I tried to watch Blade Runner last night but did the usual on a Friday night and fell a sleep ten minutes into it. I am not going to discuss the merits of the different versions but I still prefer the original with the voice over but that's by the by.

Last Monday after the disastrous weekend we decided to go up the West End to cheer us up and inevitably I ended up in Oxfam Music and came out with a rather good haul, admittedly, two were pieces of vinyl that I already had but I certainly wasn't going to knock back pristine copies of Dot Alison's first album and the Arab Strap remix of David Holmes' Don't Die Just Yet.  Also included in picks was a copy of F1-11 by Sigue Sigue Sputnik which contains loads of snippets of dialogue from Blade Runner.

I have to admit at the time I baulked at this single, thought that it was a load of pish and as for the band I couldn't stand either Generation X or Lords Of The New Church and what about the dress sense, fucking awful if you ask me.

But over the years I've grown to like the track, really like the energy of it and the samples and it's not a million miles away from what the Age of Chance were doing but AoC were miles better, of course. So when I got a chance of getting the 12" single for 50p there was no conundrum.

Still think that they looked bloody ridiculous though.

Sigue Sigue Sputnik - F1-11 Love Missile (Extended mix)

It's Friday . . Let's Dance

Let's have some early house courtesy of Boy's Own. I think that a few people will find this sound rather dated these days but it still sounds good to me.

How Do You See Me Now was first released in the US on A&R records in 1990 and then remixed and released on Easy Street Records the following year when the track was then again remixed by Joey Negro and released in the US as the eighth release on Boy's Own.

During the early nineties Joey Negro was rather prolific as a remixer, mixing everything from Adeva to DJ Jazzy Jeff. He also produced his own tracks under numerous aliases as Mistura, Headboys, Akuba and a myriad of others. But he is probably best known for his release American Dream as Jakatta.

Have a good weekend people.

Extortion  - How Do You See Me Now? (Joey Negro's remix)

Spells and Incantations

Here is a rather magical piece of soul from Johnny Otis'  Hawk Sounds label.

This was originally released in 1972 but was repressed as a split single with Vera Hamilton's But I Ain't No More on the flip to promote the Watts Funky compilation of stuff by Johnny Otis, son Shuggie and associates, well worth trying to get your hands on if you like funk and soul.

Debbie Lyndsey - Spells & Incantations

Little Girl

Enough of my moaning back to the music.

Here is a belter of a R&b track loved by Mods everywhere.

Sugar Boy Williams - Little Girl

It's Official, Drew Is A Wendy Pt3

. . . and then the rain fell!

It started just after 4 am and continued all day, well at least until 2 pm when we eventually got everything to the car and fucked off up the road.

As someone from the west of Scotland I am quite familiar with rain and it doesn't really bother me that much but the difference is that I don't tend to go out in it when it's lashing down in biblical proportions let alone intend to spend the day standing in a muddy field watching bands and getting soaked to the skin. So I made the executive decision to go home L reluctantly agreed but Max was more than a little pissed off.

I would like to tell you that the reason was because Max was still not 100%, although he wasn't that wasn't why we came home. To be honest I could not face the prospect of spending the next couple of days soaked to the skin and miserable and so I will admit that I am a wendy and like my creature comforts.  Being inexperienced in the festival lark we had not really packed suitable clothes as nobody had told us that Glasgow Fair weekend was also monsoon season in the South East of England. I also had concerns about getting the car out of a field after another couple of days.
 
The real pity is that Friday had been so good and we were all looking forward to the weekend. I think that we will give it another go next year depending on the line up.  When we will be better prepared but I still will not be wearing wellies, especially not those Hunter things that were in abundance not just on the Saturday but also in the glorious sunshine on the Friday, what the fuck is that all about?

Thom Yorke - And It Rained All Night (Burial mix)

No pictures of the rain as by the time I decided to take some the camera had gone on the blink as it had gotten soaked in my pocket.

It's Official, Drew Is A Wendy pt 2

I awoke early on the Friday morning, around 06:00 struggled out of the orange coloured condom described as a sleeping bag and opened the tent to glorious sunshine which immediately put me in a good mood. It was now time to check out the amenities so I went for a wander around our part of the site bought a couple of bacon rolls, a tea and a coffee,  nearly had a heart attack when the guy behind the counter asked for fourteen quid. I know, I have just reinforced another racial stereotype but fourteen quid is fucking steep and no bloody butter on the rolls!

After rallying the rest of the troops it was time to take a gander at the festival site itself, which is really quite impressive once you go down through the woods and across the lake. First stop was the children's area for fun on the helter skelter and carousel,  finding out all about bees and honey and chilling out with Leo in the toddlers chill out area which was magic and then it was time for lunch and a meander up to the Obelisk arena to catch another emotional set by the ever improving Edwyn Collins and a backing band that are absolutely brilliant.

It was decided that we would remain camped where we were for the remainder of the afternoon to witness a great performance by Wanda Jackson who still knows how to have a party, even after finding god. I was not so impressed by Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan who I thought gave a rather lacklustre performance which could have had a lot to do with the fact they were on the main stage when their music really needs a more intimate venue. Although some banter with the crowd, well acknowledging that they exist for a start may help. When I went back to where L and Max were, Max said to me "that man (Lanegan) scares me dad"  and I suspect that Max isn't the first person to feel that when in Lanegan's presence.

L and Leo decided to stay where they were to take in KT Tunstall who was attracting quite a crowd. Max and I wandered over to catch Deerhunter at the Word Arena, who were on blistering form I thought and who in Max's opinion were "not bad". However I still don't get the Fall influence which is repeatedly mentioned in the music press.

Then it was time to re-group for some dinner after which L decided to take the boys back to the tent to get changed as by this time Leo was filthy and stripped down to his simmit.

This allowed me to watch Bright Eyes on my own.  Oberst and Co were very good but a good deal heavier than the last time that I caught them live, which granted was a few years ago and I was also surprised at how easily Conor Oberst has taken to rock star posturing. The version of Gillian Welch's Wreaking Ball was particularly note worthy especially with the guest vocals from Jenny & Jonny who were playing the Lake Stage later. By the time Bright Eyes had finished with a rousing version of Road to Joy the family were back and it was time to head over to the Word Arena yet again to see the most anticipated band of the weekend by half of the family at least.

"When are they on?" was the question Max interspersed the last 20 minutes of Lyle Lovett's set with at regular intervals and looking around he wasn't the only one waiting in anticipation as the tent quickly filled up with lots of teenagers and younger children with their parents, so much so that when The Vaccinnes eventually took to the stage they were not greeted with a roar so much as a high pitched scream. The band proceeded to play their whole album pretty much in order. Max had the time of his life.

Are the Vaccines the saviours of indie rock? Not especially. To me they are not that far away from the Pigeon Detectives with the sing along choruses and songs of teenage exploits, the Pigeon Detectives were also very entertaining live. But looking around the tent everybody and I do mean everybody seemed to be loving it. Even an old cynic like me at that moment didn't care how derivative they were or the fact that there are virtually no lyrics to their songs,  it was just life affirming to see so many people having so much fun listening to music with not a posturing scenster in sight or maybe I just had too many over priced pints of Magners.

We had one more stop to make on the way back to the campsite and that was to possibly the coolest stage at Latitude. Tucked away in the trees at the side of the lake was the Sunrise arena which due to the fact that the sun was down and the area was illuminated by over sized fairy lights took on a really intimate and quite magical feel.

We were there to witness for me what was the highlight of the day, Cat's Eyes. I was curious to see them live as I had bought the album on the strength of all the good reviews that it had received but had hardly given it a listen. From the first notes I just knew that they were going to be good, and not being that familiar with the album I cannot tell you what they played but they did cover an old psych song I had on a compilation tape years ago but which I can't remember the name of but has lyrics about black cat's and the like.As I watched the band L sat and relaxed, Max ran about the woods and Leo slept.

Once they had finished it was back up to the campsite passing those on there way back down for the late night revelry and thinking about what Saturday would bring as Friday had been so good.

Cat's Eyes - Over You

It's Official, Drew Is A Wendy pt 1

We went, saw and fucked off kinda sharpish.

Those of you who have been foolish enough to keep up with events at, around, across or miles away from the kitchen table will be well aware of the dramas that revolve around me and my family getting in the car and deciding to go away on anything that could be losely termed as a break.

The journey down to Suffolk was uneventful but on arriving at Latitude it didn't bode well that the road into the field where the cars were parked was deeply rutted and extremely slippery due to the eighteen hours of rain that the area had had up until this point.

After getting some of our gear out of the car it took us about an hour to find the Tangerine Fields where our fully assembled tent awaited us. We had a pizza, a couple of beers and then I went back to the car park to get the rest of our stuff. By this time quite a few (several hundred) other cars had arrived and it was dark.

So . . .

after about an hour's searching I eventually found my car got the rest of our shit and trapsed back the couple of miles to where our tent was to find two children still up to high doe (on cloud nine) and a remarkably chilled wife.

And so to bed and good thoughts of the weekend to come.

Bright Eyes -Nothing Gets Crossed Out

It's Friday . . Let's Dance

There is a distinct lack of dance music at Latitude, something that I hadn't really noticed until recently, so there's not really anything relevant to the festival to post, so how about a bit of Belgian Neu beat from 1989, courtesy of Frank De Wulf?

I remember the first time I heard this, it was when a local meat market (Foxes) decided it would have an acid house night,  on a bloody Sunday night. I hated the track but over the years I have come to quite like it which may be to do with nostalgia. I suspect I will be in the minority.

Have a good weekend people

Rhythm Device - Acid Rock

Latitiude, We're On Our Way

By the time you are reading this the car will have been packed, possibly a fair bit of niggling will have gone on and we will eventually be on our way down to deepest Suffolk, an eight hour drive at least, the joys!

We will be out of Lanark for,  at the most twenty minutes before Max first asks "Are We There Yet?" and probably another ten before he states "I'm burstin' you will need to stop so I can do a pee".

And so it will go for the duration. Still some good bands and artists await us over the weekend.

I am not the only person that has been derogatory about festivals in the past, here is Edwyn Collins with his take on festival going. I wonder if this will be on the set list for Friday?

Edwyn Collins - The Campaign For Real Rock

Latitude Is A Goer, Yipee

Max has been given the all clear and we are now definitely heading for Latitude tomorrow.

I am curious to see if the Queen of Rockabilly will be able to scream at the age of 73 as she did when she was 23 when Let's Have a Party was recorded.

Wanda Jackson - Let's Have A Party

Although she still sounds in good voice on this single from last year, however I not sure that Wanda will have a scooby what a Stella is.

Wanda Jackson - You Know I'm No Good

One Day To Go

So we will find out later on if we will be able to go to Latitude or not. I have been looking at the line-up again and there are so many things that I want to see that there is no way I will be able to see everything.

One act I will certainly not be missing is Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan, I have had the pleasure of seeing them on quite a few occassion now and i have yet to be disappionted, so fingers crossed I will get to see and hear them again on Friday.

The track featured is from their first collaboration on Campbell's 2004 ep Time Is Just The Same.

Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Why Does My Head Hurt So?

Tune Of The Summer

I thought I had the tune to accompany my summer when I first heard Jamie xx's single Far Nearer released on the Glasgow based Numbers label earlier this year what with the steel drums and overall happy vibe it was almost perfect. That was until I heard Natalie's Song by Zomby.

It was released in May on 4AD as a single sided 10 inch single with no expense spared on the packaging as the single is laser etched on one side, housed within a weird 3-D inner sleeve and a matt black outer sleeve which is virtually impossible to open without damaging.

The track is just beautiful, it has a bit of a Burial feel about it and samples a Russian pop song by Irina Dubtzova, the winner of  Star Factory, Russia's equivalent of the X-Factor apparently. It is also present on Zomby's second album which was released last week and by all accounts is well worth purchasing.

Will be there or there abouts when it comes to tunes of the year.

Zomby - Natalie's Song

Two Days To Go

Not long now, although there is a better than 50% chance that we will no longer be able to go to Latitude for reasons I will not go into at the moment, we will find out for sure tomorrow.

A couple of months ago I heard this track on Radio 6 and went out and bought the single. I haven't made any attempt to hear anymore from them as I knew that they were playing Latitude and would catch them there.

The Naked And The Famous - Girls Like You