just joans

There comes a time in every break up of a relationship were you start to listen to really, really sad songs because they make you feel sadder, which somehow makes you feel better. Its like picking at a scab, the pain is easier to take when you control it. So you spend night after night alone in your room playing the same sad songs again and again. Then, eventually, there comes a time when you realise you've made a bit of a fool of yourself weeping into barmaids blouses and thinking every corny, shite love song on the radio was written about you. At this point, you want to listen to something thats as poigniant as it is angsty, something that will give you hug then bark at you to pull yourself together. The Just Joans could have been created for this stage of introspection.

The motherwell 6 piece are masters of writing songs that both lie in awe of the fucked up-ness of relationships and at the same time take the piss out of it. Take, for example 'I wont survive', an ode to the joy and liberation of finding new love, with a chorus that warns of immediate self destruction should the said relationship sour.
'If you dont pull' is like a baby cousin of The Smiths's 'How soon is now?', a tale of a lonely man in a terrible nightclub who realises that as hideous as the place may be, it might be the only place he will find love.
'Hey boy..youre oh so sensitive!' is a perfect little piss take of the fey indie boy that lurks in all of us, the part of us thats convinced liking Woody Allen and carrying a book of poetry around with us will make us irresistible to the opposite sex.
Perhaps the most heartbreaking of them all is 'What do we do now?' a song about about growing older, losing friends and being alienated from your hometown. Full of achingly misplaced nostalgia, its like someone closing the indie club of your youth and holding a microphone up to it.

"what do we do now/now were are ten years older?/the bands we loved are dead/i'll always think of you/whenever i smell cider/but it wont be the same/again."

heartbreakingly real.

brilldream.blogspot.com/


http://www.myspace.com/thejustjoans

what do we do now?






hey boy...youre so sensitve

Dean McPhee

Last night, Didsbury's tiny boho-hipster cafe, the Art of Tea was the slightly unlikely but very welcome venue for one of the best gigs of the year. The unassuming, self effacing and unbelievably brilliant guitarist Dean McPhee was launching his new 12" record Brown Bear (Hood Faire Records). This guy really has to be heard to be believed. Post John Fahey, post Loren Connors mesmerising solo guitar brilliance. Plugging his Telecaster through a couple of delay pedals (I don't know exactly what he was using cus I couldn't see his feet) and into a Fender Hotrod amp, he created the most beautiful and hypnotic sound you are ever likely to hear. He picked up an Ebow at one point, but apart from that, it was all gorgeously understated finger picking. The set must have only been about 30 minutes, but he could have easily gone on all night and I would have sat there quite happily. The Art of Tea is a pretty nice venue for a gig too - with about 25 people in there it was seriously intimate, and felt a bit like someone's front room. In a good way. Basically, you need to buy his new record, and when his album comes out next year, you need to buy that too. Go and see him live too if you get the chance.

www.myspace.com/deanmcphee

www.hoodfaire.co.uk

www.boomkat.com/item.cfm?id=236274

I like Noise.

Really into all this churning noisy guitar music of late...


The Horrors - Mirror's Image



Health - Die Slow


^^^^^^
Off to see these guys at the Deaf Institute tonight!

Tying Tiffany - Slow Motion (Nic Endo Remix)



Woo! Always good to hear Nic Endo's productions :)

Jizz In My Pants

Groovy Proggy Krautrocky....

DAVES MIX - DOWNLOAD HERE

UKF

What the Fish!?

I stop reading the blogs for like, 2 weeks...
then i hear this! (Keep with it at least until the vocals change at about 3mins...)

UK Funky just got interesting :)

MAJOR NOTES - HOLY GHOST

Oh, by the way - it's got nothing to do with the band Holy Ghost...who, while we're on the subject, got me really confused because i thought the techno Holy Ghost (tresor!) had made a comeback...

Sunshine Lollypops

Hi there,

Things that have been buttering my crumpet>>>>


SWEDEN



GANG GANG DANCE



I've had loooads of trouble trying to describe these guys to people.
You can tell these guys were an improv band; their crazy loose tracks have elements of all kinds of genres stabbing or floating in and out of them...drum machines sit alongside tribal drumming, swirly guitars and psychedelic synths and are peppered with effected vocals...or, more like screams and yelps. They are wicked :) Also, they're on Warp, so if that ain't a healthy endorsement i'm not entirely sure what is.

I went to see these guys live in manchester a couple of weeks ago..
recommended! the amount of kit they managed to cram onstage at the deaf institute was impressive. The lead singer is an absolute mistress; she whacked hell out of pretty much every percussion instrument in her reach. Her voice is brilliant! And points go to Mr Synth man who was running about like a chicken with his head cut off prodding all manner of synths, effects units, drums machines and percussion. A great show. Loose and Primal.

KRIKOR & THE DEAD HILLBILLIES - GOD WILL BREAK IT ALL <



I LOVE this song.
Makes me dance about. Think Electronic Body Music like Nitzer Ebb or Throbbing Gristle, but more lighthearted.



TERROR DANJAH - ZUMPI HUNTER (SWINDLE REMIX)


Planet Mu just keep churning out amazing electronic music, and are really on the pulse with the party scene at the mo. I heard this Swindle Remix of Terror Danjah's Zumpi Hunter and instantly pictured 'Skate' from Streets of Rage II moving on a level into a grime party, skanking along to this tune while beating the shit out of bitches with electrical whips. Sass.

SYNCHRONOISE

This chap makes great electro, and gives it away for free! Check him out on Soundcloud (the link above).

Disco Mix!

Here's a mix. It's DISCO. Enjoy!

http://rapidshare.com/files/274320841/discomix.mp3.html

Cine city, Manchester

I was reading through the excellent blog by Laura Skilbeck(http://lauraskilbeck.blogspot.com/ well worth a look) when I stumbled across the sad news that the derelict Cine City cinema had been knocked down to make flats. It opened in 1912 as the Scala, only the third cinema to open in Britain. Can you imagine how electrifying it would have been to be taken to see you first film there, the air still rich with the smell of sticky wet paint?

I knew nothing of its history before looking it up today to be honest. I haven't been near there since 2003. To me it was a really cool looking building that I looked at from the top deck of the bus, on the way to visit a friend in Didsbury. But I was fascinated with this building. It looked cool enough to be on a record sleeve. I even went on a mission to take some photographs of it(arty black and white jobs, you know the drill), a plan scuppered by a pair of gentleman-of-the-street sitting on the steps drinking what suspiciously looked like a bottle of port,who kept asking strange questions about my trousers, and became enraged when I got my camera out, mistakenly thinking I was photographing them.

Whats really interesting to me, is that I dug up some pics someone had taken after breaking in the place. Initially, I was pissed of as I thought it would be shots of chavy ‘erberts pissing up walls etc. but actually, the are hero historians. Without them, I would have no idea what the inside of the building would of looked like. it’s a funny old world isn’t it? Now, pass the popcorn.

cool pics-

http://www.28dayslater.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=28157
http://www.28dayslater.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=21211

http://brilldream.blogspot.com/

Wee pop! records.

Being a fan of a music is sometimes testing. Every now and then you have a crisis(usually after hearing the latest ’hit’ by the Kaiser chiefs) You know the drill. ‘all new music is rubbish’, ‘its all so commercial’, ‘I cant believe that singer/band/label/the NME has sold out’. the last time that happened to me, Wee pop! Came to my rescue. Its quite hard to put into words how much I love this label. Its single handedly put my faith back in music and indie labels as a whole. it’s the anti-Amazon.
When you receive you cheaply priced record (£3 for 3” CD,£4 for a 7” single), the love and attention put into it takes your breath away. Its more like getting a birthday present than record shopping. Each little CD comes in a hand crafted , beautifully designed sleeve. With it you get lovely hand written note of thanks from the lovely Camila, a wee pop! badge and, if you’re really lucky, a sweet(I was thrilled beyond words to receive a humbug with a CD ordered around Xmas time). Music isn’t just about money, its about love. Its about care. Its about a DIY attitude and keeping the faith. With people like a Camila and wee pop! Around, music is in safe hands.

http://www.weepop.net

http://www.myspace.com/weepoprecords

The pains of being pure at heart

I feel a little bit silly writing this post, because I was certain everybody had fallen in love with this band already. It would appear I was wrong. The new york four piece deserve your time. Their self titled album is something to cherish. Imagine the perfect soundtrack for a real, heart stoppy, lollipoppy crush. Its that good. Or the thrills but really, really good. With sweetly fuzzy guitars, pounding indie rock drums, sweeling organs(ooh er) and mumbley vocals, the songs have a remarkable quality of sounding loud and hushed at the same time. Critics have described them as wearing their C86 heart on their sleeves, and whilst Ride and JAMC are obvious influences, the over all feel is more of a teenage fanclubesque pop rush. Single ‘young adult friction’ is hyper active, not so much a toe tapper as a leg pumper, with classic boy-girl vocals, a middle 8 to hand clap too and sweet teeny lyrics(‘in your old sweatshirt and your mothers old skirt, its enough to turn my studies down’)that recall big star, and chant-along outro to boot. Other cuts include ‘this love is fucking right!’ , an anthem with the slightly dodgy line ‘youre my sister and this love is fucking right.’ and ‘a teenager in love’, which wouldn’t be out of place in a john hughs film. Really, do yourself a favour and buy this record, get giddy with it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4itzHRpltQ

http://www.thepainsofbeingpureatheart.com/

http://www.myspace.com/thepainsofbeingpureatheart

didi noel-let the music play

i recently had a bit of a debate with my girlfriend about 'suedehead' by morrissey. to cut a short story shorter, her viewpoint was that it was so sad because it sort of 'gives up'. i didnt share her idea, but i know what she meant. 'let the music play', on the surface, is a northern soul stomper. but the vocal lends this air of meloncholia. it makes me sad and i dont know why. i kind of like that. sometimes a song doesn't need to be a call to arms or a weepy or a dancer. sometimes a song, like a life, can be a weary sigh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tz1QYI3S6t8

Virtual Reality

I'm going to be playing real music in a virtual club.
I think my brain is going to explode.

If you know all about second life, then come to this night!

Lineup:
11am - 12pm SLT / 7-8pm UK: Olaf Quintessa
12pm - 1pm SLT / 8-9pm UK: Prgrm (Live) (TBC - Pending sound check)
1pm - 3pm SLT / 9-11pm UK: Smashback and Teutonic Kaboom


Venue: The Drome in Second Life


Me & Smashypoos have been asking to play in a club in Second Life - a virtual erm, second life. From what i can gather, it's a bit like an onine Sims game.
You can create an avatar and dance away in this virtual club listening to the sounds of me and Edd. But we ARE real.
Aren't we?

here's all the info. i'm getting confused.


More Info Here

Second Life website


We'll be recording the endeavour and posting it up for all to hear on our pages, so if youcan't join us. Catch up then. :)

Start the Riot!

I've fallen out with NIN for playing only Arena gigs in the UK to finish off a huge worldwide tour. Trent Reznor's a hypocrite. He told us he'd never do that. What's worse is that this will be the last UK appearance for some time.
I really don't like arena gigs.

Soo, with Nine Inch Nails being in my bad books at the moment (Shock Horror!) I have been trying to fill that Trent Reznor void in my life.

I went to see Alec Empire at Satan's Hollow on Saturday.



What a hero!

His stage presence is huge. He launched himself into the crowd, encouraged everyone to shout, scream, and hurl abuse...he climbed up the pillars. It was LOUD, apocalyptic, and there were liberal amounts of strobe flashing. I fell in love.

For anyone who doesn't know about Mr Empire...(taken from Wiki)




Alec Empire's body of work spans a range of electronic styles. His earlier releases for Force Inc. were influenced by the rave scene in his native Berlin, and included Acid house, Techno, Hardcore, Punk and Breakbeat. On creating DHR his solo recordings for that label consisted largely of the digital hardcore staples of breakcore and later experimental noise, while his work during the same period for Mille Plateaux saw him experimenting with minimal techno (Pulse Code), ambient (Low on Ice) and musique concrete (Les Étoiles des Filles Mortes).

He's most well know for his output with band Atari Teenage Riot...



After the demise of Atari Teenage Riot, Empire's major releases for DHR sought to continue in the guitar-based, punk-influenced vein of the band. Intelligence and Sacrifice utilised live guitars, breakbeats, noise, sampled cinematic dialogue and Empire's trademark spoken/shouted English vocals, while Futurist saw a more obvious return to his punk roots and consequently sounds as if it were largely recorded using all live instrumentation, even though it was electronically produced. The creation of the Eat Your Heart Out label saw a move to a much more electronic-sounding approach with comparatively subdued vocals over synthesized sounds and beats.




His latest album 'The Golden Foretaste of Heaven' is great.
It's a departure from the breakcore/industrial rock stuff he's known for. It's a bit more synth driven, but never lacks power. Take a listen.

Alec Empire - Ice

Alec Empire - New Man

And this one is a fave of mine - a collaboration between Mr Empire and Handsome Boy Modeling School (Prince Paul & Dan the Automator), ft El-P

Handsome Boy Modeling School - Megaton B-Boy 2000



...Oh yeah, and while i'm bumming Alec Empire i shall now harp on about his mate Patrick Wolf!



I think Patrick now has four albums under his belt at the tender age of 25...i have no idea why, but I only just realised his genius about 2 weeks ago.

To be free of any record company shackles he's managed to set up a bandstocks account so that he can fund his musical explorations via donations made by fans. Investors get all kinds of perks including invited to private shows and freebies.

If you want to invest, go here

His latest album 'The Batchelor' features the nob-twiddling talents of Mr Alec Empire, and is a wonderful blend of acoustic and electronic music - violins and dirty drum machines sit side by side and the result is, well, ace. I'm not really very good at describing this kind of thing. Just listen and decide for yourself. I just love it - if this is what pop music sounds like in 2009 then i'm really rather impressed.

This video really reminds me of 'Sin' era Nine Inch Nails...it's an acquired taste, for sure - but this track sounds like an amalgamation of NIN, Soft Cell and Depeche Mode. And I love all three of them.



Here's another of my faves from 'The Bachelor'

Patrick Wolf - Hard Times

So then, Trent. It's time to sort yourself out. You've got competition.

MAY DAY, MAY DAY!

1st May - ELECTRODE MAY DAY PARTY @ The Palace
*******************************************

SCANONE (LIVE)
*************
"Perhaps best known for his work with Combat Recordings, Jude Greenaway aka “ScanOne” is a London-based producer, DJ and visual artist who has been making, playing and releasing music for over a decade. In that time he has managed to develop a sound that skirts around the lunatic fringes of a myriad of underground genres, from bass-heavy electro and techno to glitched-up IDM and techy, brooding, dubstep"

A true innovator, we've been wanting to get ScanOne on at Electrode for as long as we've been going - check this link for an interview and a taste of what to expect from ScanOne's live set:

Interview


WARLOCK
*********
"Together with Noyeahno, Warlock runs the uncompromising Rag & Bone label which aside from their own releases has seen cult material being unleashed by the likes of Aaron Spectre, Drop The Lime, King Cannibal and Blackmass Plastics. Expect dirty dancefloor business all the way"

At the centre of the London dubstep scene with a regular show on Ill FM Warlock never fails to bring the party. We welcome him back to grace the decks at Electrode.

Check this mix out:

Warlock - Out on the Lash mix


DUNCAN WHITELEY aka MR SUSHI (Botchit & Scarper)
*******************
"Music all too often seems to be dumbed down, regarding the importance of image over musical experimentation.
Duncan Whiteley walks down the latter path...
An alias of sorts, under his former (and still active...) guise he has been soaked in the world of music for over ten years.

His famously eclectic dj sets can't be categorized, known for all manner of genres... Provoking adverse audience reactions, crafting an unpredictable performance is always the key foundation.
When it comes to remixes Duncan has been luckily enough to get his hands on the musical parts of M.I.A, Huoratron, Various Production, ILS, Bonobo, Si Begg, The Ravenottes, Product. 01, Fil Okay and Loose Cannons"


Support on the night comes from *SEX WITH ROBOTS*, and ELECTRODE RESIDENTS.

10PM - 3 AM. £7.

Wednesday's Child is full of Wob.

It's been an amazing couple of weeks. I've been rather a busy girl.

I wanted to talk about Wednesday 22nd April, and what a great Wednesday it was.

YEAHYEAHYEAH'S @ Manchester Academy



Anyone who hasn't listened to the new Yeah Yeah Yeah's album "It's Blitz" should sleep no longer. It's a departure from their earlier more garage-rock output...but this new sound is gooooood.
David Sitek from TV on the Radio was involved in the production, and guitarist Nick Zinner tried his hands at playing a load of synths...this is more than enough to get me salivating. Get this album.

I'd been too skint/too slow about organising tickets to see the YYY's...and was feeling really rather upset about it.
My luck changed, however, when I managed to wangle a free ticket to this SOLD OUT show (Nice One Adam!)

I'd heard really good things about their live performance. To get to see Karen O in the flesh was a treat in itself; to behold her and her getup! (my favourite item being some kind of glittery cape thing)
They sound amaaaazing. Really rather good. Opening song 'Heads Will Roll' seemed to get everyone off on the right foot - the crowd seemed to be really up for this gig. Plus, they did a cover of the Cramps' Human Fly!
There were confetti/glitter explosions, the stage was kitted out with a huge eyeball, a la the cover of their latest album It's Blitz, there were costume changes, long, tension-building intros to songs to keep everyone simmering...wicked gig. '

Here's set list:

'Heads Will Roll'
'Black Tongue'
'Human Fly'
'Phenomena'
'Dull Life'
'Gold Lion'
'Miles Away'
'Skeletons'
'Soft Shock'
'Down Boy'
'Zero'
'Y Control'
'Maps'
'Date With The Night'


DISTANCE - Format @ The Ruby Lounge



I've been listening to Distance's album 'Repercussions' for months now. It's a winner. It's one of my 'most played' on itunes. A very dark affair (Dubstep and powerchords!? Yes, it WORKS.), it's eerie and brooding and doesn't suffer the problem some dubstep long-players seem to have of being just plain old boring/samey-same-same.
Go listen to/buy it and see why everyone had it on their Best of 2008 lists!


Listen to Repercussions

As for Format; I wasn't disappointed. Great atmosphere! I came for Distance, to be honest...but MC Chunky was actually NOT irritating (i'm easily annoyed by MCs), support from Jakes was pretty badass. The Ruby Lounge is a great venue, and save a few of those inevitable Rewind moments one will probably ALWAYS encounter at a Dubstep night this was a flawless evening. Wob!

Distance - Misfit

Free Palestine — End Israeli Occupation — End the Arms trade JOIN US TO MAKE THIS THE BIGGEST DEMONSTRATION FOR PALESTINE IN THE UK

Called by: Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War Coalition, British Muslim Initiative and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Palestinian Forum in Britain Supported by: Action Palestine, Amos Trust, Arab Media Watch, Association of Palestinian Communities UK, Britain-Palestine Twinning Network, Campaign Against the Arms Trade, Friends of Al-Aqsa, Friends of Lebanon, Friends of Sabeel UK, The Green Party, Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions UK, Jewish Socialists’ Group, Jews for Justice for Palestinians, Midlands Palestinian Community Association, Muslim Association of Britain, NUS Black Students Campaign, UNISON, Pax Christi, Public and Commercial Services Union, Rail Maritime and Transport Union, Viva Palestina, War on Want, Zaytoun.

Leaflets are available from the PSC office — please save the date and start organising transport now! Please contact the PSC office for more information: Tel: 020 7700 6192 Email: info@palestinecampaign.org Web: www.palestinecampaign.org

MIX!

Here's a mix I did. It's sort of dark electronic/ambient/drone/weirdness. Click on the link below to download and enjoy!

http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?yecmmzmd5tu

 

ELECTRODE APRIL 3rd, Manchesterrrrr

oh yes, and while i'm here...



ELECTRODE 3RD BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!
******************************

FEATURING:

CURSOR MINER (LIVE)
******************
"Cursor Miner's live sets reveal a completely deranged electronic lunacy with the odd occasional punk tendency, which he also applies to professional sound-design for Radio One and relentless and severely warped breakbeat / electro punishment on numerous labels like Lo Recordings, Combat Recordings, Uncharted Audio, Seed, Noodles and so on."

....Yes mate!!

KANJI KINETIC
************
"Already being championed globally by the likes of Drop The Lime, Tayo, Rico Tubbs and Starkey. After a short period of drum & bass production, Kanji began creating high-energy 4x4 and dubstep beats with influences ranging from oldskool rave, drum & bass and chiptune, united by monstrous basslines."

With recent releases on some of our favourite labels – Coin-Operated and Rag'n'Bone – we're well excited to have Kanji playing at Electrode.

Check this mix for an idea of what to expect:
http://www.zshare.net/audio/12743468d4746e62/

STORMFIELD
***********
"Stormfield's sound could be described at the result of dark, fierce and strange noises getting absorbed, chopped up, mutilated and spat back out again in dancefloor form, what he loosely calls "fierce bassbin electronics".

Always a favourite at Electrode, we look forward to the return of the Combat Recordings boss, who always leaves us feeling happy, but at the same time also a little bit sick.

£6 before 11. £7 after.
Not to be missed!!!

Yes, i've missed you too!

Shame on us for not writing for a while!
I have had a very busy few weeks, and so i should now splarge about them on this here blog...



ATOMIC JAM (7th March)
Many of you will know the Jam to be the biggest techno night in the UK, the lineup always being a big roster of techno's laaargest players.
This month we saw titans Dave Clarke, OVR (Ruskin & Regis) and Adam Beyer pulverising attendees at the Que Club under the wash of the biggest and best Lite-Brite i have ever seen (make's Berlin's Watergate lightshow look, well, pants.)

Highlight of the evening for me was Adam Beyer :)

Our lot ELECTRODE and bezzie mates Noodle hosted the 3rd room, showcasing the best in UK electro, ravestep and UK Bass...of course i'm going to be biased, but we rocked it!

check it out for yourselves by downloading one of these mixes recorded on the night...

Paul Blackford @ Atomic Jam by matthew-t-hinton

Glove:r @ Atomic Jam by matthew-t-hinton

Ally Reilly @ Atomic Jam by matthew-t-hinton

That's the stream, but you can right-click and save the set below...
Teutonic Kaboom - Atomic Jam Set 070309

BLOC Weekender (13-16th March)

Hooo-wee! Wow, i love this festival. Everyone knows that UK festivals can be spoiled for some people by the weather.
What better way to combat the moaning silly Billies who forget their wellies than to hold the event in a Butlins!

The lineup for this was SICK, just SICK.
I can't believe i missed AFX, but then again i'm not really a huge fan...
There was no way i would have fit in everyone i wanted to see, even if i hadn't drunk a drop of alcohol.

My heroes of the weekend were

Drums of Death, who's stage presence is
amazing. Takes the laptop set into a new comicbook dystopian realm.

Ebola (who kicked off festival with some wicked gabba at 6pm in the evening. That's the way to do it!),

Appleblim, who played some ace 4x4 dubby step business

Alexander Robotnik, who at 59 years of age technoed the PANTS off Carl Craig (who was a bit of a yawnfest)

Heartbreak, who i must admit i've been a bit slack on getting into. Anyone who loves 80's synthpop and italo should get their album Lies RIGHT NOW

DJ Godfather, who delivered topnotch Booty Bass using Serato Scratch. There's nothing like some fast misogynistic electro to fill a room with slutty vibes. I love it.
They were giving away this Promo CD, so i've uploaded it for you :)


I-F
awww, i've been waiting SO LONG to hear this man DJ. I love him. His "Space Invaders are Smoking Grass" pretty much kickstarted the Electroclash genre, and introduced thousands of electro/techno fans to young to remember to Italo disco.



If anyone reading this has not heard his Mixed up the Hague series...Download them now!
I-F - Mixed up in the Hague Vol 1

I-F - Mixed up in the Hague Vol 2

The two mixes are a journey through Italo, Electro boogie and disco. They're in my top 10 mixes of all time.


phew! now that's a lot of tunage to be getting on with for the time being, eh?


Hehe, i found this animation of a human Space Invaders game...

Feeling Empowered.

Last Thursday (Feb 26th) I went to see An Audience With Tony Benn at Shrewsbury's new Theatre Severn. Ever since he retired as an M.P. in 2001 Benn has made it his mission to tour around the country and try and embolden people to make the most of their democratic right and awaken them politically. He attempts this by returning to a basic format as old as the hills - being the focal point of a mass discussion amongst normal people, with no politicking and no polemic. Therefore the debate is driven by the audience, with Benn there to offer his (not inconsiderable) wisdom on the subjects raised. What ensued was a debate that got to the very heart of democracy.

Benn is noted as being one of the great orators of the 20th century but it was still a pleasant surprise to discover that he has a keen sense of humour, and with 50+ years in politics he has plenty of anecdotes! The night begins with him talking for 15-20 minutes, before inviting the audience to ask questions. His passion for motivating people to engage in their democratic rights soon becomes apparent and, at 83 years of age, is frankly awesome. When someone questions the point of voting, suggesting that in his view all governments are corrupt, Benn slaps him down immediately. As he points out, he bought and read Hitler's Mein Kampf aged 11 and quotes Hitler as saying that all governments are corrupt and that he should be given total power to run the country and rid it of corruptible politicians. It is, as he says, extremely dangerous to abandon democracy.

A lot of the night is taken up with debating the role we all have to play in the immediate political future with a deep recession looming. When the rise of the BNP and their will to exploit people's fears amidst hard times is brought up Benn recalls that Oswald Mosely (the II World War leader of the British Fascist Party) was a labour MP before switching to fascism as an example of how extreme circumstances can have radical effects on a person's ideology. But this is no reason to abandon democracy, instead - and this is an opinion I wholeheartedly share - the only way to deal with extreme politics is to tackle it head on. If the far right (and their politics of fear and intimidation) become prominent in the coming months and years it is the responsibility of all of us to confront it - not to ban it. With the BNP looking like it may well win seats in Parliament if it's current growth continues (something that Mosely's lot never achieved) then we will truly be in new dangerous territory.

However, it was the optimism of a lot of the night that I most connected with. For instance, he says most normal people will look at the billions of pounds being poured in to banking system and quite reasonably ask 'why can't we put this money into building schools, houses, hospitals etc?' He then talks about the politics of fear and governments scaring us into obedience. Which makes one wonder, why not? Why can't nationalise the banks? Why can't we put all the money into the infrastructure of the country - thus creating jobs, taking people out of poverty, creating a better educated population. If you try and suggest this politicians will ridicule you, this is one of their tactics of control. The politicians want to stop you pursuing ideas that would shift the power back to the people - they want to maintain the status quo. It has always been this way, but the next few years are a chance to say that we want a change - we don't want to be dictated to by the free market. Banks are there to keep our money safe, this is a public service - just like the Fire Service, Police, Royal Mail. And you wouldn't privatise those (well, not unless you're Brown or Mandelson). But whether or not you agree with this the point is that we should not be scared of our own ideas and more importantly, we should act on them. Change may not happen quickly, but it nearly always comes in the end. But only if we act to bring it about.

In the last year Tony Benn has done 169 of these shows. He is 83. Whether or not you agree with his ideology is not important - we should all follow his lead and make sure we make the most of the power that is ours and that generations of people, from the Tolpuddle Martyrs to the Suffragettes, fought to gain.

Stewart Lee

A couple of weeks ago comedian Lee Hurst, the Kojak-alike who used to be on They Think It's All Over, was convicted of criminal damage after smashing the mobile phone of an audience member because he suspected his act was being filmed with the intention of material being stolen. This resulted in a Phil Jupitus article in the Gaurdian the following week questioning the frequency of joke theft, you can find the article here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2009/feb/18/comedy-joke-theft-lee-hurst

This got Shaun and I thinking about a Stewart Lee performance we saw a few years ago, in which he lambasts Joe Pasquale in quite superb fashion for stealing fellow comedian Micheal Redman's joke. Always good to have an excuse to show some Stewart Lee, so here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YE9Kthyaco

I have recently bought Stand-Up Comedian - Stewart Lee's first live DVD - taken from his 2005 set and performed in Glasgow. It is isanely funny and intelligent in equal measure, catching Lee at his finest - I strongly recommed you get yourself a copy.

My favourite Stewart Lee purchase though came through the post just today and is my new favourite thing in the whole wide world. Fact. It is a 10" vinyl of his reworking of Edward Lear's The Owl And The Pussycat. Called Pea Green Boat, Lee's droll, monotone delivery is perfect for the dry comedy as he shapes the story around the literal detail of the original. The owl's attempts at learning and subsequently playing the guitar are side-splittingly funny. There's only 500 copies so make sure you get one and treasure it. Find it at:

http://www.gofasterstripe.com/cgi-bin/website.cgi?page=videofull&id=1891

there's only one peach with the hole in the middle

I was very pleased to receive the latest email from the lovely HYPONIK Bass Bleeps and Beats guys and find out about this linky>>>>>>

PEACHES AND DRUMS OF DEATH MIXTAPE

Hot property Drums of Death and filthy mistress Peaches have become pallymates and created this wicked 40min mixtape that includes:

*a couple of new tracks from the Peach with the Hole in the Middle
mixed up with
*some old faves that have been given the DOD makeover,
*a Desert Sessions style cover version of 'Rockshow'
and peppered with
*loops, samples, and randoms talking about Peaches herself...my fave is the first guy who confesses that Peaches helped him be more open with women about sex :)

for those of you who aren't familiar with Peaches, check out this vid. i like this because it kind of shows you what to expect from her live shows too.



and as for DOD, well, i'll have to give you my verdict on his live performance when i come back from BLOC. i'm always up for a bit of dressups, and his strange Brandon Lee-from-The-Crow image is a good start. and his tunes!
here's one of my faves...

Drums of Death - Cursed by Magick

love the oldskool electro-rap, and the laser noises too :)
his style is varied though, check out his myspace for a broader taste.

ELECTRODE parties; Spring Collection '09

Woo!

Boring old hibernation skintamundo January/February is soooo over.
Grab your filofaxes and start scribbling down the following dates in your glitteriest party pen!

07/03/09 - ATOMIC JAM!

March sees myself and the rest of the ELECTRODE crew hosting the back room of the UK's biggest and best techno event; the ATOMIC JAM, held in a big old church in Birmingham; the mighty Que Club.
Start warming up your jackin' arm...now.



After the excursion to Brum we return for two months of parties in Manchester...



17/04/09 ELECTRODE host the back room at Shrewsbury's DUBCLUB



Dubclub returns to the Buttermarket for an easter extravaganza featuring b'ham heavyweight system 'KING EARTHQUAKE! Expect a evening of ground-shaking dubplates and roots reggae classics from this top quality roots sound system. The legendary reggae star, WINSTON 'sugar cane' FERGUS will also be making a guest appearance and providing sweet live vocals throughout the night. Dubclub’s Room 2 will once again be occupied by Mancunian wobpeddlers ‘Electrode’. The ever successful outfit will taking a break from hosting The Jam’s back room and will continue to probe the limits of electronic music by unleashing their distinct blend of dubstep, techno and breaks!

keith's japanese photo-diary

Have you ever wondered what it's like to tour Japan with your very own rock and roll band? Well wonder no more. Thanks to this exclusive photo diary of Keith's visit to Japan, you can almost smell the sushi yourself.

www.keiththeband.com