The basement of  The Greenhouse Effect provides, in my humble opinion, probably the best venue for good music in Brighton [although it's in Hove, actually]. This somewhat highly contentiouus statement needs some justification I suppose, so here's why I think it's true.

It's at its zentith, I think, when it "stages" [it has no stage] on a show promoted by The Real Music Club [name intended to be ironic rather than moronic, I believe] whichspecialises in presenting what used to be referred to as underground rock of the late 60s/ early 70s-type arty, spacy, jazz, blues and folk fusion kind. In other words music for us old pharts at play.

One such happening occurred on Saturday 21st November 2009 when the bill consisted of ..

Sadly, I arrived too late to see Dirty Scavenger  strut their funky stuff, but I was assured by reliable people I spoke to that they were well worth not missing. I'll do my utmost to find out about them sometime in the near future.

Paradise 9 were billed as the headliners but I believe that untypical late arrivals in the Kyngs camp led to P9 being next up.  Tonight's First XI consisted GreggMcKella -/vox,guitat/gliss/clarinet/fx/ mosquito repellant machine, Carl Sampson- drums, Neil Matthars- bass,  Tyrone Thomas- lead guitar & Steve Teers - djembe/keyboards/backing vox and the band was supplemented on various tracks by the evening's sound man Xanthus on keyboards/Synths and "Jackie" on djembe. They played a selection from their record releases - album 'Showtime' and the new 'Nothing for Tomorrow' EP, for this evenings performance was ostensibly the Brighton launch party. 

As per usual, Neil & Carl in the engine room lay down a tight driving framework for the otheres to hang their talents on - it's great to see 2 guys playing together so well but so obviously enjoying trading licks and riffs as these two do. No rock attitude here - just good old fashioned hard work providing job satisfaction to its paracticioners.

Greggo delivered his alternately sci-fi trip outs and socio-political commentaries with the usual dry wit and verve one has come to expect from him and Steve  Teers provided his high energy vocal keyboard and djembe support with gusto. Tyrone almost dissapears into the background until one realises there's powerful guitar back-up coming from somewhere, you look around and .. hey.. there he is lurking in a dark corner grinding the mill that is his magic moody music maker.

The thoroughly faultless performance was especially noteworthy by the extended version of 'Into the Ethers' which coincided [accidently or otherwise] with a phase of the lightshow that transported one back into the sort of ammbience one thinks of in connection with those heady Munich Baader-Meinhof charged days of Amon Duul II . It was almost uncanny.... but really all in the mind!

Sumerian Kyngs came on to an even bigger audience than Paradise 9 [although it was noticeable how the audience changed its constituents markedly from band to band - only a hard core of us music lovers staying course of the evening].

Last time I saw this band I think they were in the turmoil of some traumatic personel changes and perhaps did not perform up to the expectation of earlier appearances I'd witnessed by them. But tonight I was pleasantly surprised - nay, delighted - by the way they seem to have pulled it back together.

They are one of those bands that's almost impossible to categorise in that they have a totally unique sound. They label themselves as psychedelic /alternative/ jazz on myspace   and I suppose that'll have to do - although various other epithets come to mind including swamp/fusion/blues and more.

They are somewhat dominated by the presence [or otherwise] of lanky Ross Clifford, the vocalist extraordinaire. He struts [and sometimes sounds] like JimMorrison  in poet-iconoclast mode,  elsewhen he might be a Tom Waits type figurine. Anyway, he always demands attention - even when he's offstage, one wonders when and where from he'll appear next.

The support comes from all directions witha mightily varied and unusual range of instrumentation and additional voices. It's unfair to pick out one above another but when one reports that the line up includes Saxophone, mouth organ and accordion with which the musical background can be varied among its ranks, one can begin to see the width of spectrum  of possibilities here!

This really was an evening to be remembered and is just about the best night out I've had for years. It really did begin to restore my faith in music. If anyone wants a life affirming experience look out to see what The Real Music Club havs to offer in the near future and especially watch out for the next time that Paradise 9 and the Sumerian Kyngs feature on the same bill.

Antiproduct was one of the earliest bands whose 2003 antiproduct  Made in USA I got to review back in the old CCNEWZ days when I first started out.

I liked 'em then and I like 'em now. They bill themselves as a glam/punk /comedy act and I guess this pretty well sums them up. But the main thing to realise is that they're not casual in their approach to their music as the moniker might suggest. They are - whether they like it or not - consummate professionals, calculating pretty well every move they make - notwithstanding the odd cancelled event for which they always apologise contritely and ebulliantly - and quite right too!

The current album which is produced and distributed entirely through their fan network, concerts, myspace etc ie avoiding all contact with the record industry as it once was and increasingly fails to be, has apparently outsold any of their previous output even though The man had his dirty paws involved there and then. This I think speaks for itself and shouts volumes about the commitment and backbreaking input Antiproduct are willing to invest in their music for the benefit of us - their public.

The album is full of their time-approved fun-for-all-the-family good-time exhuberance. They audaciously cover Brian Wilson's 'Good Vibrations' more than acceptably[probably not actually topping the original I have to admit!]; otherwise all the numbers are penned by Alex Kane aka A. Product himself. The style and content, as I say, pretty well all fit into the glam-punk bag - take such names as Jonathan Richman, TheFlaming Groovies and The Ramones - evenDavid Bowie, Roxy Music and The Sweet - as rough pointers to the area I'm talking about - but at the same time they  freely meander along various branches of the metal and related family trees to vary the feel and pace of the music.

They are the present day inheritors of the mantle laid down by the likes of Kassenetz-Katz with bubblegum style of garage music some 40-odd [and I mean very odd] years ago. All I can say is long may their beacon burn in the fermament and hope that they leave a legacy to be enthusiastically built on by ensuing generations of fun-loving pretention-busters.

Single: Lullaby +  Warning[remix]/Turn to Run [acoustic live]

I blogged enthusiastically about Amy's Ghost's appearance at Brighton Live Festival a week or so ago. You may remember I was quite exercised by the quality of their  performance.

I'm thrilled to be able to tell you Amy has kindly sent me the band's single and that I'm no less impressed by their recorded material than their stage presence.

"Lullaby" is a poppy workout somewhat in that post-rock style purveyed by the likes of Evanescence, and lays out their stall admirably by briefly signposting all the band members' individual talents in turn - percussion, keyboards, Amy's remarkable vocals and then cello right from the word 'Go'.

It is quite good enough as a song to chart if the band should be lucky enough to be picked up by a major music paper or featured widely enough on the radio. This is, of course, a big 'if' but that's the nature of today's music scene. There's so much good talent producing brilliant music, while the Biz looks the other way in search of pretty boy/girl bands who are willing to don the fashions being pushed by the market of the day and be exploited for all they're worth for the a few months, then dropped when the next trend comes along.

I'm sure Amy's Ghost wouldn't fit into this category of band even if they wanted to be exposed in this way - they are far too individual a sound and would not be malleable enough for the manipulators. No, I think they're going to make it by hard graft - and I feel this single sets them off on the right path.

Interestingly, if anything, the 'B-sides' [or whatever they're called these days] of 'Lullaby' could prove even more important in pointing up their unusual talents as a band. 'Warning' is almost an a capella performance for Amy, but with instrumentation added as a supplement to provide a dramatic setting for her voice. The cello is particularly haunting - it almost sounds like a bit from Steve Reich's minimalistic masterpiece 'Different Trains'. 'Turn to Run' provides the same function - this time turning the focus in the direction of the very high quality percussionist in the band.

I must repeat that I'm extremely impressed by this opening offering from the band. It would be a great thing if they had some success in the near future. This can be hastened by you, dear reader. Just check out their myspace page and listen to the tunes on their player, then tell your friends about it. If you're anywhere near Reading [that's pronounced 'Redding', for our friends across the pond!] you might get along to 'The Global' on November 6th for the Single's Launch Party. Otherwise watch the page for details of how it's being marketed.

Go On Punk - Make My Day... by making 'Lullaby' a great big phat hit!

I have been trying to reply to a Gavin Wilson who wrote a review of Van der Graaf Generator's first proper album "The Least..." on the Amazon website back in 2001.

Amazon won't let me post as I've never bouight from them using this name! How petty can they get?

Anyway this is what he said...

 

 

In the hope that Gavin comes across this or someone who reads this can direct him this way, here is my response...

A good review but having been a fan of this album since 1970, I think you have a long way to go in its appreciation.

Your comments on VdGG lyrics being so different are spot on and while I understand your placing of 'Still Life' and 'Pawn Hearts' as being so important in terms of music and the pinnacle of the prog rock cannon,  'The Least...' takes its place in my all time favourites LP list alongside Neil Young's 'Everybody Kows this is Nowhere', David Crosby's 'If Only I could Remember My Name' as my Top 3.

The Mike and Susie Question remains a mystery to me but I like it that way - this is not  science - it's a spiritual song - about the soul - and the mystery of life and death is central to that.

 I always releated 'Refugees' to the scenes at the end of Lord of the Rings when the Elves take their voyage from the Grey Havens 'into the West' carrying Bilbo along with them - this is a portayal of death to me that says it all - I am not religious but very much hope there is something which we experience in death which sums it all up. Even if there is nothing beyond that.  

Although I doubt this will be so, I live in hope!

Keep listening, Gavin, to this wonderful album - I've never tired of it - always finding more in it than I've noticed before - I DO love the 'Annihilation' bit in 'After The Flood' - but I love really Heavy Metal sounds too.

 Prog Rock has never been the same since the demise of VdGG - they were Kings of the Artform at their best.

Sadly recent releases have been somewhat disappointing - that must be largely due to the absence of JaxonSax - a manwho has no parallel in rock music and is sadly missed

best wishes

Abi Rhodes
www.abi-rhodes.typepad.com

There's always some joy to be had from bands who step outside the boringly defined guitar, bass and drums format in popular music and my trip out last night to see what this year's Brighton Live Festival had on offer proved that point conclusively.

For those of you not in the know, Brighton Live is an annual series of free events, staged by the otherwise fairly unremarkable local radio station JuiceFM. It cunningly coincides with Freshers' Week for the 2 local universities [Sussex & Brighton]  to help poor unsuspecting students new to the fleshpots of  the city [I still hate that term when applied to our little ol' town] relieve themselves of the big fat grants and parental supplements before theyget the chance to sit back and think about budgeting and spending them on something more appropriate like their rent, course books and some real  food.

Despite the target audience being so young and generally unsophisticated and indiscriminate in most things musical, the quality of gigs in this festival is, generally, surprisingly good - I base this judgement on 3 years experience dipping into its delights. Brighton's huge music scene is of very high quality anyway and bands with a bit of nous know that  a bit of unpaid exposure at this juncture will pay dividends later.

My main purpose for picking this particular evening for a scout round was to catch the latest stage in the progress of my friends The Adventurists aka Sam Walker and Daniel Clark. Information about exact programme times for gigs in Brighton Live is pretty poor - I suppose this is the pay-off for a free fest - they can't afford much promotion - so it's quite difficult to find out who's appearing where and at what time.

I knew my boys were due to appear at The Latest Music Bar [more popularly known as Joogleberry's] in Manchester Street, Kemp Town, sometime after 9, so once I found out more precise information by enquiry at the bar itself, I calculated I had an hour to spare and headed off around to Audio in the next street to see if anything was happening there.

Happily I found a gig in progress there and arrived part way through a set by a band I discovered to be called Amy's Ghost . They have an interesting line up consisting of Amy [not her ghost, I believe], a Wendy James [Transvision Vamp]-like vocalist with a very interesting voice who occasionally supplements it using a megaphone[!], a cello and a red-hot drummer. [I've often commented that a good drummer is essential to a new band if they are to get noticed - it will cover up a lot of teething troubles and leave the audient with a good impression of a developing new act. This is certainly true for Amy's Ghost. Not that they displayed too many faults - my main criticisms would largely stem from the inadequacies of lower priced technology found at these events] ].

I anticipated them using the generally useless epithets 'alternative', 'indy' and 'other' in their MySpace description of themselves, but on checking was pleased to find they had ditched at least 2 of these - using the more enigmatic and intriguing "FeminineTribal Leftfield Indie!"

So what did they sound like? Well - they were clearly of the generation very much influenced by the likes of Radiohead, but for my more jaded pallet I was pleased to find them to be of a more edgy ilk, somewhat heavier, maybe in the style of Evanescence, and was delighted particularly by their closing quite experimental number which drifted perilously close to the Space Rock beloved by followers of Hawkwind.

This was an extremely pleasing start to the evening. In fact, if I'd had to go home at this juncture I should have felt I'd had a good night out and discovered a great new band. I eagerly look forward to their upcoming single release in the hope that it's well produced and gives at least a flavour of the ambience I felt part of at this great performance.

But no, I felt ready for further frenetic action so returned to Joogleberry's for the next dose.  The acts at this gig all hailed from the OneTaste Collective and first up was Cate Ferris .

Cate is a singer-songwriter with a fine voice and varied vocal techniques which add a lot of character to her fairly ordinary songs. I felt that the whole performance could have been more interesting musically if she chose to move away from the standard girl with guitar folk club format. The addition of some good sympathetic instrumentalists with suitable arrangements and some work on Cate's personal stage image would elevate her material to a much higher plane. As things stand, I'm sorry to say Cate's appeal remains largely in one area of the entertainment scene - one in which I'm not particularly interested.

Then we came to The Adventurists. I have been following this band for the best part of a year now and had the pleasure of witnessing the evolution of a fine musical and comedic combination. Sam Walker - well known for his work with Turning Green and Shona Foster among an ever-increasing litany of other ventures and projects, and Dan Clark - best known to me as frontman to the splendid one-off outfit known as The Hat, have come together as The Adventurists and pooled their multifarious skills to produce an entertainment rarely paralled in pop music. It's taken this long to actually bare the fruit that the sapling of a year ago indicated that it was capable of sporting.

Their moniker is extremely apt as they clearly have only a skeletal plan for each performance and allow the quirks and accidents [and there are many!] of the occasion direct the progress of the show. They gel [variously like Laurel and Hardy, Ant & dec, chalk & cheese, balloon and razor blade]  by bouncing ideas off each other with juxtaposing songs by each of them in turn, intertwining these with poems and stories which are updated and redetermined by the ambience of the venue and reactions of the audience and incorporating the use of various instruments including a harp and a Jamaican steel drum. One example of this is the manner in which I have seen Sam's interpretation of the traditional ballad Matty Groves [made internationally well known by Fairport Convention around 1970] grow into a splendid piece of performance art over the 5 or 6 shows I've attended.

Watch out for them in your neck of the woods - I promise you - you will not be disappointed.

The headliners of the OneTaste evening were another new band to me - The Moulettes - a word which I'm finding it very difficult to remember [German Wikipedia tells me a moulette is a type of tool used in rotogravure!].

The Moulettes turned out to be a fantastic revelation - just the sort of thing I go out looking for on a night such as this. MySpace tells me they're a quintet, but tonight there were just 4 of 'em - including 2 hot women playing cello and bassoon [how sexy is that!] and 2 chaps percussing away to their hearts content. They all sing and together make an awesome noise and fantastic spectacle [Cate ferris - please note!] they produce a very happy kind of jazz-folk-fusion in the mode of Third Ear Band meets Curved Air and Blowzabella. Nice.

The song writing is excellent to boot and was spoiled by just one thing. By this time the audience had grown quite large and included many people who seemed to believe that their conversation was of more interest than the music - not only to themselves but to everybody else as well. In this they were sorely mistaken and are the only reason I can come up with as a good argument against free events. I know none of the offenders will read this so it's no good me asking them to consider real music lovers when they go to concerts but I will make a plea to performers to take a moment on occasions when this type of travesty occurs to speak out and tell the offenders to go elsewhere and let the rest of us enjoy the show.... [Climb down off soapbox]

Returning to my opening remarks - I think the variety of acts seen on this occasion go a long way to show that there's more to contemporary music than 2 guitars, a bass and a set of drums. I had a great time and I hope everyone else did too.

[A quick apology to the 2 bands I caught brief sight of upstairs at The Latest Music Bar. Sorry I forgot your names & did not witness enough performance to review you but I particularly liked the bluesy soul band with 2 fine female singers I spotted just before 9 o'clock - get in touch with detailsof where I can get to see you sometime.] 

 

Went down to The Albert in Trafalgar Street, Brighton last evening. To see the assembled rabble crowded in that rather sedate velvet lined venue you'd have thought you'd just entered a road house in Hicktown, USA. Every reprobate in the area seemed to be gathered there. Teddy Boys, Psychobillies, Hells' Angels and their Molls, together with an odd assortment of hobos and hillbillies, come down off the mountain and out of the woods. How they got the word, goodness knows but it sure shows the bush telegraph is alive and functioning well.

 What drew me there was the call "Here... Pig, Pig Pig!" which came over MySpace  from Inbred Knucklehead.

 These Good Ol'  Boys have come over to Little Old England all the way from Roma, Italy if their publicity is to believed.  Personally I think they're really a reincarnation of the Beastie Boys who've spent too much time in the backwoods smokin' Kentucky Blue Grass with Hayseed Dixie. But we'll take them at their word - for the time being at least.

It turns out they're really accomplished musicians - playing everthing from Hip-Hop and Jazz-Funk, through Blues and Country  to just about any style of punk/metal - thrash, speed, darkwave etc etc etc with a few classical references thrown in for good measure of white lightning.

In short, they're superb, consummate entertainers and if you happen to be at a loose end in Brighton Tonite or London over the weekend then it'd be a mistake not to get along to The Latest Bar, Manchester Street, Brighton, Dusk Till Dawn at Archway or The Bull & Gate to check 'em out.

Having seen them I'd intended to go on home to write this blog but bassist Mike urged me to stay on to witness the crime that is Leonard & Bubbas Delicious Goo Goo Cluster.

What can I say? What CAN I say?????

They're truly truly disgustin'. An' if you, like me, like disgustin', they'll be right up yer back passage.

It'd be no point in tryin' to describe them further - so I'll just say git on down to one of their misdemeanours and lap up a saucerful of their pustulating bodily fluids.....