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Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Nocturnal mailer, 29th April 2009

Hello. This has been delayed due to my waiting for a couple of websites to be tweaked so I can show them to you, but it looks like you’ll have to wait till next time for them. It’ll make sense when you see them.
It’s been a nuts few weeks, the bulk of which was taken up by (a) finishing off the music for The Inbetweeners (which -if it’s your thing -I hope you’ve been enjoying. This week’s episode is my favourite across both series) and (b) a trip to America: first Austin, Texas for South By Southwest (my first time there), then Nashville, Tennessee for reasons I’ll have to explain in the next mailer (when the websites are tweaked). Both were awesome, I have a returned as a big fan of a number of Americans. I also got to see two of the best live things I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing.
Animal Kingdom
Clem Snide
David Berkeley
David Shrigley
Django Django
Doveman
Eskimo Joe
Flashguns
Frightened Rabbit
Get Crucial
Heypenny
Iain Archer
Ian M Hale
Ice Sea Dead People
Kammer Klang String Quartet
Magic Magic
My First Tooth
Nick Wallis
Nico Muhly
Not Cool
The New York Fund
Onlookers
Matt Deegan Writes
Right Away, Great Captain
Sam Amidon
The Temper Trap
We Were Promised Jetpacks

AOB:
When raving about http://www.alrighttit.com and http://betedujour.blogspot.com, I have frequently mentioned that previously, I never read blogs. In fact, I realised this isn’t entirely true, but rather that the blogs I read were ones that I received into my email inbox and I knew both the people in question and -most crucially - they weren’t emotional or personal, so because of all that, I didn‘t count them as ‘blogs‘. However, they are both incredibly interesting and wonderfully written, so I should flag them up. As they both have the option, I’d suggest signing up to get the blog posts emailed - then it’s just a happy sporadic present in your inbox.
(1)
Matt Deegan Writes
Matt is one of those rare people who, as soon as you hear him start talking about something, you wish that you could somehow plug your brain into his brain and download everything from it. He is incredibly smart and hugely insightful, yet always manages to explain his ideas in a way that’s very easy to understand, even for a techno-idiot like me. If you are interested in the media in general, new media, social networks or anything like that, you can’t afford not to read this. Just genius, through and through. But easy to digest genius.
www.mattdeegan.com
(2)
Be Careful What You Wish For
Nick Wallis is a freelance television reporter and radio presenter. He can frequently be seen on ITV1 and Channel 5 and heard on BBC Radio 5 Live. He writes about his experiences in a wonderfully honest and candid way. He is also incredibly warm throughout, so that even if he’s talking about something you didn’t think you‘d care to know about, he draws you in and makes you want to. Thankfully, most of the time he *does write about universally interesting experiences (having to jump into the Thames, panic interviews at premieres).
www.nickwallis.com

Gigs seen:
As you can imagine, at South By Southwest I saw a LOT of bands (if you’re unfamiliar with it, see www.sxsw.com). As there were so many and I have a bunch of other gigs to talk about here, I won’t detail every one. Rather, I will point you to the (soon to be less neglected) blog, where I’ve posted up the report I wrote for www.hitsheet.co.uk You can read that here:
http://hereifyouareinterested.blogspot.com
I will, however, mention one fellow, as he totally knocked me out:
Sam Amidon
Live, Sam Amidon reminds me of the art of (my favourite artist) David Shrigley. They both have the same sense of being playful, verging on surreal, but with a whole bunch of mischief in there too. And really, what in the world is better than mischief? There was one song where, he would sing a verse, then at the end say, “Whadaya say, banjo?”, before playing a banjo solo. He did that twice, then on third changed it to, “Whadaya say, pushups?”, put down the banjo and started doing pushups on the stage in silence. As with the best David Shrigley stuff, it not only makes me laugh, it makes me feel somehow warm and excited. He’s playing London a week on Friday (8th) at the Union Chapel, then again at The Water Rats on May 26th. I can’t recommend highly enough that you come, he is just utterly, utterly wonderful.
http://www.myspace.com/samamidon
He has some rather unhinged, and I think, very funny, videos up here: http://www.youtube.com/samamidon (I’d recommend ‘Story Time’ and ‘Wings Of The Dove’) and he’s wonderfully, frequently surreal here: www.twitter.com/samamidon
If you’re not yet familiar with David Shrigley, I suggest you immediately vastly improve your life by looking here:
http://www.davidshrigley.com

Other gigs seen:
David Berkeley, various locations, Nashville
I am just smitten with this gentleman’s songs, and live, he is something else. I’ve often said that his between-song chat is like stand up comedy, and at one of these shows, I witnessed a heckler and DB dealing with her as well as anyone I’ve seen at The Comedy Store. The songs, conversely, are little beautiful creatures. All of them warm, some rather sad, but each one made amazing by his astonishing voice. I listen to his stuff a lot; he is one of these artists that I feel my life is enormously enriched by.
www.myspace.com/davidberkeley
Heypenny, Weds 25th March @ The Mercy Lounge, Nashville
I’ve been wanting to see these fellows for ages (you may remember me first going on about their song ‘Parade’ on the mailer a couple of years ago), so I was particularly excited to be seeing them in their home town. After that long a build up, I had some pretty high expectations. They were not only met, they were smashed and far more over-reached than could have imagined.
Heypenny are *incredible* live. One of the best live band I’ve ever seen (and as you know, I’ve seen a LOT). There are four of them -on this occasion they were all wearing marching band costumes - and they leap around like they’re being controlled by somebody else. The music is very upbeat, optimistic, fun indie and their behaviour on stage totally reflects that. They look like they’re having an absolute whale of a time. At one point Ben, the singer, got out from behind his piano, ran down to the audience and did a bit of running man among us. After what had seemed to be their last song, they came to front of the stage, made us gather in close, handed out lyric sheets and, unamplified, we all had a singalong to ‘Goodbye Yellow Brick Road’. I didn’t stop grinning for a week.
www.myspace.com/heypenny

My First Tooth, Friday 3rd @ The Fly, London
This is the first time I’d seen them play full band (and only the second or third time they’d ever done it) and it was awesome seeing live the proper realisation of all these songs I’ve loved for so long. MFT take gorgeous folksy indie, with violins and mandolins among the usual instruments, but what sets them apart from the many other bands in that scene are the voices; the vocals are mainly taken by a gentleman who has this wonderful quality to his voice that, even though it’s soft in its earnestness, makes me incredibly sad in the best way. He’s then often joined by another lady, and their harmonies so that thing of pulling at each other, in a way that seems like it somehow shouldn’t work, but the fact that it does makes it that much better.
www.myspace.com/myfirsttooth

Django Django at White Heat @ Madame Jojo’s
This was rather one of these shows which, when I arrived and saw which of my friends LOVE this band (and people really do), I knew they wouldn’t be for me. It’s odd because, in retrospect, I really enjoy the songs on the myspace. Live they had tons of energy, and all my slightly cooler than me) friends thought they were incredible. At the time it sounded to me like Franz Ferdinand gone a bit tribal and world-music-ish. I like that they’re doing something that is interesting and different. And on the myspace, some of the songs have a sort of 1960s quality to them that’s lush.
www.myspace.com/djangotime
My buddy and I then tried to go and see
Right Away, Great Captain @ The Enterprise
We failed to make it in time, but I’m going to write about them anyway. I didn’t know this when I found out about them, but it turns out it’s a side project for the dude from Manchester Orchestra. All I really know about MO is that they’re one of these bands lots of my friends like, that have never quite connected with me, but RAGC are ace. He plays acoustic guitar and sings with his dreamy voice: it has that quality that isn’t quite husk, but that somehow tickles the back of my throat sometimes. It’s soft and warm and just totally lovely.
www.myspace.com/rightawaygreatcaptain
As we missed them, we poked our nose into the Barfly and found that these were playing
@ The Barfly
Because we were there on a such a whim, we had fully expected to end up watching half a song and then leaving. In fact, we stayed for the whole set. They’re all VERY young, which is apparent not just in the way they look, but in their music and the way they play -it feels like it’s early days, BUT there is something about them, that I can’t put my finger on, that I find a bit exciting. They play the kind of raucous indie that I guess you could compare to Kasabian -not so much in its sound, but in its attitude. Definitely going to keep an eye on these pups.
www.myspace.com/theonlookers

Eskimo Joe, Weds 8th April @ Koko
I have a long-time listener friend called Thaoie, who lives in Australia. She began listening online when I used to do the late-night show. She subsequently became a huge fan of Scouting For Girls and did a lot to help promote them in her home country when they got famous enough to make it over there. She has been going on at me to listen to Eskimo Joe since we were first in touch. I had listened to their myspace, and decided that, although I could hear that it was good quality, I didn’t think that genre (relatively mainstream rock) was my thing. However, as they were coming to London, it seemed only fair to Thaoie that I should go and see them.
I am so glad I did; they were *incredible live! The whole of Koko was rammed (I do love that about London, that there can be an army of fans for a band you’ve barely heard of), but it was the band that brought all of the atmosphere. They seemed so relaxed on stage and they played just amazingly. Even when it’s not your kind of music, it’s such a joy to watch people do something so brilliantly. I feel like it’s like great art and that just being in the room whilst an expert does their chosen craft with such skill, really enriches one’s life. They are one of these bands that, irrespective of how you feel about their music, you will almost certainly enjoy live. A real pleasure.
www.myspace.com/eskimojoemusic

Gigs impending:
I’m off to Greece next week, so I’m going to incorporate a couple of weeks worth. Don’t forget you can get a regular weekly recommendation from me by signing up to the Filter Mag newsletter here: www.filter-mag.com, or tons of weekly London and Manc suggestions by signing up to Jon Hillcock’s awesome mailer here: www.xfm.co.uk/jon

Weds 29th April
@ Queen of Hoxton
IMH is from the school of full-sounding but acoustic guitar led singers that I am such a sucker for. John Kennedy has already had him on X-Posure on Xfm for a session. The songs are that nice thing of being just emotional enough that they move you, without being overwhelmingly so. There is something really rather lovely about his songs that makes me want to keep a firm eye on him.
www.myspace.com/ianmatthewhale

Thursday 30th April
The Temper Trap, Flashguns and Animal Kingdom - Levis Ones To Watch @ The Fly

The Temper Trap's new single "Science of Fear" makes me a little crazy. I have been playing it loads on Xfm and every time I do, I feel exhausted in the best way. It charges along at breakneck speed; listening to it feels like running faster than you thought you were able along cold, dark streets, with some sort of sense of menace. It's really amazing. I haven't yet seen them live, but have heard nothing but amazing reports. I can't WAIT for this gig.
www.myspace.com/thetempertrap

Flashguns have some of the sad urgency of that Temper Trap song I am so smitten with. Even their more upbeat songs are shot through with something that, if not quite melancholy, is maybe just longing. The singer has one of those great voices, in the vein of the 80s thoughtful boys, that flops around the words in parts. They're about to release a single of Geffen; you can see how a legendary label like that could see massive potential in them.
www.myspace.com/flashguns

Animal Kingdom fit the bill perfectly, as they do it too! Songs that, even when they're perky, somehow seem a little full of thoughtful sighs. There's a nice feistiness to them all the same. If you like emotional music that isn't too downbeat or slow, and you're into his gentle, almost girlish voice, I can pretty much guarantee you'll love them.
www.myspace.com/weareanimalkingdom

Friday 1st May
I should probably mention that I will be Djing as part of the ComeAndTurn collective at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern. It’s a night called “We Built This Speedwagon On A Prayer”. We’ll be playing a lot of Hair Metal. If you like silly dancing in good company, I’m guessing it will be for you
http://www.theroyalvauxhalltavern.co.uk

Sat 2nd May
Ice Sea Dead People, Not Cool and Get Crucial at Überstompf @ Old Blue Last
Ice Sea Dead People has a mention once before on the mailer, ages ago. They make punky indie that charges along at breakneck speed, only pausing to do almost math-rocky stop-starts. It’s totally exhilarating. I feel wonderfully out of breath just listening to it - I bet live, it would knock your head off. Gutted I have to miss this because of work, I really hope I get to catch them some other time.
www.myspace.com/iceseadeadpeople
Not Cool are one of these bands that, about five years ago, I didn’t understand: speedy, noisy and with vocals drawl-talked or yelped. Then, an uncharacteristic (on my part) fight with someone led me to really get into The Test Icicles - because sometimes, you desperately need to fill your ears with NOISE. As such, I now really enjoy stuff like this when it‘s done well. Not Cool do it well: they‘re shouty and ramshackle and a bit discordant, but somewhere there‘s order within the chaos that means it totally works. Plus it has that factor of knowing your mum would NOT like it.
www.myspace.com/notcoolisaband
Get Crucial are lady fronted punk of the kind that you imagine would be AWESOME fun to be the singer in. They only have two songs on their myspace, one is full of jiggudy, yell-y excitement; the other is a jam that starts off as a big mess, then begins to make more and more sense, before turning into a big roaring (but somehow oddly emotional) juggernaught. Make sure you have earplugs, I think they could be a lot of fun live.
www.myspace.com/getcrucialband

Weds 6th
Clem Snide @ The Borderline

You HAVE to go to this gig because I can’t and it’s breaking my heart.
Having already moved my holiday to accommodate Maximo Park’s Brixton gigs, I couldn’t do it again for these chaps, but given that (a) they are one of my favourite bands in the whole world and (b) they live in America and never play here, I was very, very tempted. Listening to the new album makes me feel sad about missing this gig to the point of having physical pain in my belly. See, this is why I try not to get into bands that have already split up - live shows are so important to me. Anyway, Clem Snide are alt-country, the singer (Eef Barzalay -what a name) has a voice that simultaneously makes me want to swoon and to break down into howls of sadness, and they haven’t played in the UK full band for several years (sob!).
Please go. Then you can tell me about it and I’ll feel a bit like I was there.
http://www.myspace.com/clemsnide
Friday 8th
Nico Muhly, Sam Amidon, Doveman and Kammer Klang String Quartet @ Union Chapel
Obviously the main reason to go to this is to see Sam Amidon -such an amazing live artist, in such an incredible building: I think I may die with happiness.
Nico Muhly is the sort of artist I feel very out of my depth when describing. His music is instrumental and quite orchestral, in terms of the instruments it uses. That possibly suggests a BIG sound -in fact, it’s all very gentle and creeping. Some of it reminds me of the ‘Peter and The Wolf’ record I had as a child - not in terms of the actual tunes (I don’t remember those so much), more because of the mental pictures it conjured up. Listening to NM, you feel like you’re in a wood with a babbling brook; or perhaps have just woken up, poked your head out of the tent and seen that the world is covered in snow. He has worked on albums by Bjork and Rufus Wainwright among others. This is no surprise when you hear his stuff.
www.myspace.com/muhly
Sam Amidon. See above. Or just come. I promise you’ll enjoy it. Actually, I should probably mention the kind of music he does: he covers a lot of traditional American folk songs. On record, he doesn’t sound like he’d be out of place sitting and playing on the side of a dusty railroad in ‘O Brother Where Art Thou’ times.
www.myspace.com/samamidon
Doveman is a little confusing, in that it seems to be a band that Sam Amidon is in, but I’m certain SA is also playing solo at this show. There are three of them and it’s all very gentle. Music that prettily shuffles along, some strings and horns quietly backing it up and a voice that’s only half there, as if the singer was just singing to himself under his breath and hadn’t realised the microphone was on. It’s lovely
www.myspace.com/doveman
Kammer Klang String Quartet appears to be born from a club called Kammer Klang at Charlie Wright’s International bar in Old Street. This is all I can tell you
http://kammerklangblogspot.com

Monday 11th
Magic Magic @ The Social
I saw these chaps in Austin and, as you’ll see if you read the report, they are one of those bands that just Are Good Live - objective fact. You know when the chemistry of everything is just right - the band vs. each other, the band vs. the crowd, each member vs. himself? They make indie that is full and optimistic and positive but still very emotional. They have two drummers, but you wouldn’t immediately know it from listening. They’re an absolute delight live. Oh, and the NME gave their album 8/10, whilst The Times gave it 4/5 and a lead review. And they’re putting their single out on the SUPER-hot label Chess Club (previous singles: White Lies, Mumford and Sons, James Yuill, Wave Machines, you get the picture)
www.myspace.com/magicmagicband

Filter Newsletter Bands
I am still writing a bit for the weekly Filter Magazine London newsletter. Even though these gigs have now passed, I thought I’d include the previews so you can learn about the bands in question. If you’d like to sign up to get it so you get them in advance, you can here:
http://www.filter-mag.com/index.php?c=nl&newsletter=newsletter+signup&go.x=2&go.y=6

Iain Archer has always been an artist in his own right, but for a while he played as a member of Snow Patrol. As such, he won an Ivor Novello award, for having been part of the band when they all together wrote the album "Final Straw". Within this, he co-wrote one of their hits called "Run" - don't know if you've heard of that one? Anyhow, as well as being (evidently) an exceptional songwriter, he is also a truly wonderful artist. His debut album, "Flood The Tanks", was one of those that, in the pre-ipod days when I had to select which albums I took with me on a journey, I made sure i ALWAYS had (NB it's not that the album is that old, I was just very slow on moving on from discmans). It is emotional enough that you can have a wonderful daydream looking out the window whilst listening to it, but not so much that it plunges you into the depths of despair. He has a voice that makes me sad an optimistic all at the same time. And he's just super live.
www.myspace.com/iainarcher
The New York Fund are bluesy and exciting in that Kings of Leon way, where you dance like you're watching some band in a divey bar in deepest Texas (as opposed to a posh wedding venue in West London). This is not to say they won't work live at Bush Hall; on the contrary, they mix their feisty sound with enough emotion that I think they will fit perfectly in this dramatic setting. Plus the combination of the singer's awesome, full and grazey voice and how good musicians the rest of the band clearly are is a treat live
www.myspace.com/thenewyorkfund

Frightened Rabbit released one of the best singles of last year. "Fast Blood" is the kind of song that, if it gets you in a particular mood, can make you want to collapse on the floor, wracked with sobs. Even if you don't have anything to be sad about. It's utterly devastating in the best way possible. I've found it's a good one to stick on running compilations, as you can feel like you're in a tragic film scene. Luckily, the rest of their songs deliver on the promise it made. Whether singing songs louder or gentler than that one, the singer's voice somehow tears into you. Everyone I know who's seen them live says they're astonishing.
www.myspace.com/frightenedrabbit

We Were Promised Jetpacks. You don't want to be influenced by something as superficial as a band's name, but when it's literally the best one you've ever heard, it's hard not to get drawn in. If this band had been anything other than great, I'd have felt let down. I'm pleased to report that they're awesome. They play music that verges on fightpop (that emo/indie/rock hybrid championed by Biffy Clyro), but is a lot more thoughtful, even at its loudest. The singers voice treads a nice line between strong and earnest and the songs make me excited in my chest. A perfect match with the headline band.
www.myspace.com/wewerepromisedjetpacks

Good Books are one of my favourite bands. Their debut album, "Control", was the best record to come out in 2007, and I still get emails from people signed up to my mailer, saying "Oh my goodness! The Good Books album just gets better and better!". The new stuff is shaping up to be just as life-essential - listen to "Manifesto" on their myspace and you'll see what I mean. It was live that I first fell for them; I very strongly suggest you come and find your new favourite band at this show
www.myspace.com/goodbooks

Tommy Sparks - I'm guessing you've already heard the insanely catchy "She's Got Me Dancin'". I've had it on my ipod for a few months, managed to get it onto the soundtrack to E4's "The Inbetweeners", am playing it on every show on Xfm, and am STILL addicted to it. I'm guessing he is one of these artists whom it's impossible to see live and stand stock still. Given his profile, this seems a very small gig for him, so I'm guessing it'll be rammed.
www.myspace.com/tommysparks

Half Tiger make charming electro-indie pop. They sound like you should have heard of them already, in the best way. They have that things of all the backing vocals being done by a load of them, so even when the songs are a touch mournful, it feels like a party. It's the awesome combination of songs that are tuneful, have soul, and are FUN. If they're not brilliant live, I will be stunned.
www.myspace.com/halftiger

Right chaps. I'm off to Greece on Sunday for a few days. I am planning to do a lot of reading, a lot of sleeping, a lot of swimming and a lot of listening to music. Basically, I intend to be horizontal for most of the trip.
Oh, in other news, I now do both episodes of the Weekender on Xfm, Fridays 7-10pm, Saturdays 6-10pm. Although I won't be there on the 8th as I'll be at The Union Chapel. Maybe see you there

xxmarsh

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If you'd like this mailer sent straight to your inbox, put your email address in here: http://marsha.receptionmedia.com/lists/?p=subscribe

http://www.myspace.com/marshamusic / http://www.facebook.com/pages/Marsha-Xfm/6329774106 / http://www.twitter.com/marshamusic - Come be my internet friend

http://www.xfm.co.uk - listen to me talking and playing records, Sat 6-10pm

http://www.hereifyouareinterested.blogspot.com - less music chat, more other life stuff I've seen
http://www.xfm.co.uk/podcasts - "Marsha Meets..." is me talking to comedians
http://www.filter-mag.com - awesome US music mag who let me write in their London newsletter
http://www.alrighttit.com - reading this will make your life infintely better

2:25 AM

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http://www.filter-mag.com/

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Really? You reckon? mailer 14th March 2009

Hi chaps.

I know, I know. I said things would be different. I said I would change. And honestly, I really *did* mean it. Here are my excuses, if you can bear to listen: since we last spoke, I

- moved flat (and thus was rather consumed by packing and unpacking)

- changed shows: I now do The Weekender on Saturday nights on Xfm, but this means I’m not finished work and in an empty, distraction-free office all day as I was before

- became computer-less and internet-free until a week ago, and -most relevantly- I

- started work on the music for series two of “The Inbetweeners”, and thus worked harder than I have in years. It’s been tough this time, for various reasons. I’ve pulled six all-nighters in the last month. And it was just one of those things I had to get out of the way before I could even think about getting on with anything else. Like an essay.

HOWEVER, this work is almost done, and I now have not only internet, but also a computer AND a laptop, which means no reason why I can’t be more regular with the mailer from now on. And I will be. Except - I’m about to go away for two weeks. But I’m going to South By Southwest and then Nashville, so I will have lots to (musically) talk about when I’m back. In the meantime, below I have outlined things to potentially replace the mailer in your affections -three that are mine, one I write for, and one that is in direct competition and is putting me to shame. All below.

Onwards and upwards (and thanks for sticking around)

Andrew Maxwell (briefly, in passing)

Andy Parsons (briefly, in passing)

Animal Collective

The Answering Machine

The Apples

Bombay Bicycle Club

Brendon Burns (briefly, in passing)

Brontide

Casiokids

The Chapman Family

Chris Addison (briefly, in passing)

Colour

Dan Smith

David O’Doherty (briefly, in passing)

Dent May and His Magnificent Ukulele

Filter Magazine

Flashguns

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly

Jon Hillcock

Marsha Meets…

Me My Head

My First Tooth

My Tiger My Timing

The Olympic Symphonium

Pennines

Rod Thomas

Sam Isaac

Sons of Noel and Adrian

Stars of Sunday League

This Town Needs Guns

Tim and Sam's The Tim and Sam Band With Tim and Sam

Tubelord

Twitter

The Yeah Yous

Will Smith (briefly, in passing)

AOB comes in two parts (subdivided) this week:

Other people’s mailer alternatives that inadvertently disgrace me

(i)

The Mail On Sunday

Jon Hillcock presents the excellent New Noise show, Sunday nights on Xfm. He is terribly good at spotting new bands. He was the first person on UK radio to play Klaxons, Arcade Fire, Empire of the Sun and loads more. And now, he is truly shaming me, with his brilliant, detailed and unfailingly regular mailer. If the bits you like most in this mailer are the music listings (and less so the rambling), or even if you just want to expand your weekly musical knowledge (as well as outlining gigs, Jon tells you about new releases and blog downloads), go IMMEDIATELY and sign up at

http://www.xfm.co.uk/jon

(ii)

Filter Magazine’s London Newsletter, featuring a marsha’s music mailer snapshot

Filter is an awesome US music magazine, based in New York. In spite of it being the kind of cool I could only dream about, they have sweetly asked me to write a regular “Marsha Xfm’s gig of the week” spot. It’s very much like I would do in the mailer, only just one gig, and always, *always* on time. You can have a look round the mag stuff on the website, and if you click the arrow next to “newsletters” in the top right, it’ll take you through to the page with the London newsletter icon

I’ll post the previous ones below.

Three other means of catching me:

(i)

a BLOG

I’ve always like the idea of doing one, but (a) I have the mailer already (and this puppy is my priority), and (b) although I quite like the idiot way I write in fits and starts here, I don’t think I’m terribly good at writing longer stuff. I have constant run-on sentences. My punctuation gets really iffy. And I thought I would constantly be comparing myself to people like http://www.alrighttit.com and http://betedujour.blogspot.com , who are *such incredible writers that I would be embarrassed to even seem to be attempting what they do. I think I always thought that, in order to write a blog, you had to feel that your writing was really worth reading, and ! therefore excellent quality. However, a recent bit of (incidental) delving into the world of them has made me realise that it is a wonderfully democratic place. You can write a blog and have only three people read it -and that’s fine! That’s the nature of them.

Coupled with this was the realisation that, because of my various jobs, I quite often get to do things that, if someone else were doing them, I’d want to hear about. So I started one. There’s only one post there so far - I’m serious about the mailer always being my priority (I’m not hamming up how guilty I feel when it’s overdue), so I didn’t want to do any more there before this was written. But I have one in mind from something I did this week. In theory, it’s going to be work stuff, things of interest. In practice, I know I’m inherently too emo for that, so will no doubt have some other life bits at some point. In the meantime, it is rather self-consciously called

http://www...hereifyouareinterested...blogspot.com

(ii)

A Podcast

Remember how, for a while, I did interviews with comedians on my show? Now I no longer have that show (and it would be totally inappropriate to do it on The Weekender), this is my means of continuing to do it. It’s called “Marsha Meets…”, it’s weekly and it’s free on iTunes (or the Xfm website). It’s me talking to different comedians. Up there at the moment are interviews with (in descending order of how pleased I am with them) Andrew Maxwell, David O’Doherty, Brendon Burns and Will Smith (not *that Will Smith). On Weds, Chris Addison will go up (thumbs up), the week after, Andy Parsons (from Mock The Week) will (the jury‘s still out, I only just edited it). If you have any thoughts/feedback, I’d love to hear them/it.

http://itunes.apple.com/..WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/..viewPodcast?id=304888408

www.xfm.co.uk/podcasts

(iii)

Twitter

Before you roll your eyes and move on -stick with me. I am mildly obsessed by twitter. It has been very helpful - yesterday, computer illiterate that I am, I installed some RAM into my computer, thanks to being able to throw out questions like, “do I leave the stickers on?”, and thus not feel alone in it. Also, I work from home a lot, and so enjoy the ‘faking office banter’ element that leads so many freelancers to twitter. But mostly, ever since I was a child, I have mentally announced things to myself. It’s why I talk out loud a lot whenever I live on my own. So twitter just feels like an extension of my brain, in some ways.

www.twitter.com/marshamusic

Bands seen since we last spoke:

Not that many, given the moving/working like a dog situation. From what I can remember:

Tubelord @ Old Blue Last

It’s funny with this band. Usually, the stuff I really love is emotional and makes me think a lot. Even Maximo have a lot of emo in their soul, if not their sound. Tubelord, on the whole, are not the kind of band you get reflective around. They’re noisy and sometimes difficult, but for some reason, they have grasped my bones and won’t let go. Whatever kind of mood I’m in, a dose of them always sorts me out. And makes me feel a little invincible. At this gig, not only did they play brilliantly, but finally -finally!- the audience are starting to learn all the words. So I could stand and punch my fist in the air and sing along, knowing that I was surrounded by like-minded people doing exactly the same thing. Come and see them play whilst it still feels like you’re part of an elite and wise group. Then, when they’re massive, you’ll still be part of one. Only this time, you can add “smug” to &! ldquo;wise”.

www.myspace.com/tubelord

Colour - I'd heard so much about these fellows (loads of bands I love LOVE them), so my expectations were high. And were all completely met. They're pretty special. Fightpop, with a full skitterish sound. Some of the songs seem to change mood in parts, in a way that's interesting without being confusing. Plus they have some real spunky, feisty ones, which is *always a good thing.

www.myspace.com/colouruk

Sam Isaac @ various places

Is on great form live at the moment. He has two girls in the band now, who flank him onstage and do all the backing vocals. I know it sounds very Eurovision written down, but trust me, it works. The new single is the biggest sounding yet, if you want to listen to it, you can on

www.myspace.com/..getcapewearcapefly

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly @ Astoria on its last ever night.

For me, Get Cape were the perfect last band to see on this occasion. Partly because, as I realised when asked by a teenager in the coat queue, my favourite ever Astoria gig (and over the last 16 years, there have been MANY) was when Get Cape first ever headlined. But mostly because, the wonderful thing about seeing them live, is this sense that you’re all part of something special, and something that can make a difference. Sam Duckworth has an amazing way of rallying the crowd in a way that never even verges on preachy, and leaves you feeling excited and full of potential. It meant that, what should have been a rather sad little evening felt more like a massive celebration.

RIP Astoria. You were my favourite venue.

Gigs impending:

Sunday 15^th

The Apples @ The Lock Tavern

I can’t *quite make up my mind about these fellows, in a really good way. They’re certainly interesting, and not in the sense of being inaccessible. They do perky indie, charming and optimistic but somehow a little reflective as well. They also have a really visually relaxing myspace page.

www.myspace.com/apples

Mon 16th March (aka MY BIRTHDAY), two:

(1)

The Yeah Yous and Me My Head @ The Barfly, Camden.

The Yeah Yous play chirpy indie. This can go one of three ways, two of which are disastrous: the first is that laddish oi oi sound, that makes me want to stab myself in the face (they're not that); the second is super-poppy piano sound that has it's place on pop radio, but not in my stereo (they're not that either); the third is awesome -happy songs, that lift you up, but have enough soul in them that you're convinced by the bands. TYY's are this latter, with just a tiny does of the middle one. As such, they're ace: all catchy tunes and smiley choruses. It's a polished sound, but totally wouldn't work if it wasn't. If they're not tight-as-you-like live, I'll be stunned

www.myspace.com/theyeahyous

Me My Head are a rather more feisty affair. It's still indie-rock, with some interesting little keyboard bleeps thrown in, and a whole load more Grrrrrr. It's not angry as such - you don't get screaming guitars and bits that make you feel told off - there's just a hard energy to their (very accessible and tuneful) songs that makes you feel you'd be glad to have them on your side if a fight broke out. Energy and excitement, big tunes but just a *hint of darkness. Lovely.

www.myspace.com/memyhead

Dan Smith @ Borderline

I have mentioned this fellow a few times before. Phil Clifton from Xfm has since become a huge fan of his. He is doing something very interesting, that I don’t think anyone else is right now. The first thing that popped into my head when I first heard him was Regina Spektor (www.myspace.com/reginaspektor..). He does the same thing she does of being quirky and very interesting, but still very emotionally engaging. He also plays with the way he delivers his vocals like Regina. Plus he has the added differentiation bonus of being (a) inherently British-sounding, and (b) a dude. I’ve never seen him live (and am sad I’m missing this), but when Phil did, he couldn’t stop enthusing for a month.

www.myspace.com/..danielsmithsmusic

Monday 23^rd

Bombay Bicycle Club @ The Borderline.

I always quite liked BBC, but had found their songs rather dark and not necessarily massively accessible. Then I heard the new single, “Always Like This” (comes out April 13^th). It sounds like Vampire Weekend, but a bit sad. Now, I have never made a secret of how highly I rate Vampire Weekend. What I haven’t before said is how, although I respect them enormously and enjoy their tunes, I’ve never been able to emotionally connect with them, really. This song feels like the best of both worlds. Also, Jon Hillcock is a HUGE fan.

www.myspace.com/..bombaybicycleclub

Tuesday 24^th

Animal Collective and Dent May and His Magnificent Ukulele @ The Forum

Animal Collective are from Baltimore. They're a band who, I have to confess, I didn't know much about before today (I picked this gig because of the support fellow). They make wonderful atmospheric music, reverby guitars and haunting vocals with shuffly drums and little bleeps and squeaks when you least expect them - but still very accessible. The Forum is one of these venues that can bring the right sort of band wonderfully to life in whatever the aural equivalent of technicolour is, and I think it will serve that purpose beautifully with this lot.

www.myspace.com/..animalcollectivetheband

Dent May and His Magnificent Ukulele is so very, very awesome. He has some of the ramshackle surprise loveliness of Jonathan Richman, the crooning of a 50s lounge star, and the gentle plinkiness of that group of people you stumbled on once at 6am in Glastonbury, who were playing music round a dying fire that sounded to your addled ears like angels were singing. His music is devastatingly charming (in a quiet, non-intrusive sort of way) and I can't wait to see him play

www.myspace.com/dentmay (ignore the first track, it's a remix)

Some of the other bands that I wrote about on Filter Magazine London newsletters, that it seems a shame not to share:

The Answering Machine. I love this band. They have a lot of The Strokes in them, in terms of sounding full and almost fuzzy, but the three things that differentiate them (in the best way) are: (1) they sound so young in their earnestness, (2) they sound unarguably British, and (c) all the songs have an undercurrent of melancholy. Even the happy ones seem to be grounded in yearning. They're brilliant live, one of these bands that have that chemical thing to them, so that even if you weren't a fan, you'd still enjoy the show. Hard *not to be fan though.

www.myspace.com/..theansweringmachine

Casiokids are Norwegian and often do gigs in kindergartens. Not as an out-there venue - actually for the children. They make fun electro pop and live, they're an utter treat - there are tons of them, bouncing all over the place, each mouthing along to the other's vocal lines, and -most importantly - looking like they're having an absolute ball. This is infectious - it's terribly hard to not end one of their shows grinning wildly. Also, it's refreshing to note but not necessarily notice that they don't sing in English. It's quite rare for this not to be a big issue

www.myspace.com/casiokids

Flashguns do some of the up-beat-but-somehow-rather-sad thing that Answering Machine specialise in. Although they definitely sound American - not (thank God) because they sing in hideous fake accents, they just somehow have something that makes me believe they have experienced more sun that us, and that sort of culture. The songs are jaunty and gently excitable, and he has a nice way of singing as if he's pretending not to care but actually really does. I think they'd be lovely live.

www.myspace.com/flashguns

The Chapman Family play exciting punky indie, all urgent speedy drums, fuzzy guitars and deep vocals that he sounds like he's singing to get them done before he can set the room on fire and run away. It's terribly exhilarating, and I bet live, it would make you catch your breath and hold it for longer than you really should.

www.myspace.com/..thechapmanfamily

My Tiger My Timing, as well as having one of the best names I've heard in ages, are just ace. They are kindof electro, but not in the way that "electro" often means "cool and inaccessible for indie fans". They have boy/girl vocals, often singing the same tune, which has an effect of being warm and a little distance-making all at once. The music behind is exciting enough to make you *really want to dance, but also emotional enough that you know you'd love listening to them on headphones. I bet they're amazing live.

www.myspace.com/..mytigermytiming

Tim and Sam's The Tim and Sam Band With Tim and Sam play instrumental tunes with acoustic guitars, a fiddle, an oboe and, by the sound of it, whatever instruments they can find. Beloved of Xfm's John Kennedy and Radio 1's Huw Stephens (both smart men with excellent taste), their tunes are rousing, engaging and rather moving. The sort of band that gently create such a big warm noise, it almost feels odd that you can't see it.

www.myspace.com/..timandsamsthetimandsambandfeat..uringtimandsam

Rod Thomas makes beatsey acoustic indie that, whilst it's mostly optimistic in tone, usually leaves you a bit whistful and full of sighs -even the fast stuff. Live, he does that thing of sampling bits and looping them, so he accompanies himself. He has a warm voice, and when it's soaring in sets of two and three layers, it's quite an effect. He's also able to command the kind of attention live that means he often sings a song un-mic'd in the crowd. A real treat live.

www.myspace.com/..theolympicsymphonium

The Olympic Symphonium are from New Brunswick in Canada. They're awfully gentle and really rather lovely. Lots of little plucky acoustic guitar bits, backed up by gentle ghostly slide guitar and slow, meaningful drums. The kind of songs that should probably only be listened to late at night, or very, very early in the morning, when you know you should go to bed, but the sweet sorrow of the feel of the hour is too hard to give up. You know when you made compilation tapes as a kid, and if you'd put a really sad song on, you wanted to follow it up with something not as sad, but not yet optimistic? They would be perfect for that

This Town Needs Guns are the kind of fightpop that (mainstream girl that I often am) are a *suggestion complex for me to listen to a lot on my headphones, but that i LOVE live. They do that thing that epitomises a lot of the leftfield end of the fightpop sound, fast-but-shuffly drums, twiddly guitar lines that curl around them, and vocals that - whilst strong, somehow make you terribly sad, in spite of the fact that the music is theoretically upbeat. There's something about the sound that is filled with the promise of adventure - although perhaps the kid of adventure that could leave you bereft. But in a way that's worth it.

www.myspace.com/..thistownneedsguns

Pennines sound isn't a hundred miles away from TTNG's, but it's just a touch gentler. Lots of little mini-builds and long notes in the vocal melody that make you feel rather thoughtful. At times it gets almost hypnotic, but manages to stay engaging even when it does. I imagine this would perfectly soundtrack a trip looking out the window on an early morning train journey across fields. And everyone knows, there are few things better in life than that.

www.myspace.com/pennines

Brontide pick up the baton and play yet another kind of fightpop: the instrumental, introspective (and occasionally intense) side. Featuring former members of I Was A Cub Scout (the amazing drummer) and Pictures (who I have to confess I'd not heard before - they're ace but quite heavy), they tongue-in-cheek-ly describe themselves as "Pink Floyd for the scenesters", but actually, this isn't a millions miles off; some of that Mogwai, trippy-out sound, some of the rockier edge of it. I bet they're terribly engaging live.

www.myspace.com/..brontidetheband

Sons of Noel and Adrian are a collective of anything between five and eleven musicians. You don't usually expect this many participants when it comes to making music as gentle and pretty as this. It's pretty amazing stuff: gentle and acoustic, but all really dark. I can't imagine listening to this stuff in daylight, unless it was one of those bleak, empty days where everyone you pass seems to have something heavy in their soul. In that respect, it reminds me in some places of Bonnie Prince Billy, in others, of Fionn Regan - like him, they can be dark in a woodland way, full of the potential of something enormously exciting but probably rather dangerous. I reckon they'll be breathtaking live.

www.myspace.com/..SonsofNoelandAdrian

Stars of Sunday League are sweet and folky. The singer has the kind of Scottish accent that suits this kind of music perfectly; there's something simultaneously fragile and hardy which is exactly what you need for the kind of music that is fragile, but still fast enough and with occasionally bitter lyrics that it is still engaging and interesting. Lovely stuff.

www.myspace.com/..thestarsofsundayleague

My First Tooth are just dreamy. When I did Weekend Breakfast on Xfm, it meant my waking up at 3am, and coming into an empty office to sit for two hours, alone at 4am. Doing this not only puts you in quite an odd state of mind, it also makes you feel like you're the only human being left alive. MFT was the band I listened to most at these times. It was gentle enough to not be too much at that delicate hour, but - even its saddest moments - was so incredibly warm that emotionally it kept my head above water. They have recently beefed out the sound a bit, but it's no less wonderful for it. There are boy/girl harmonies that pull on each other beautifully, and Ross the main singer's voice has this quality that makes me somehow filled with a massive longing for I don't know what. They're properly brilliant.

www.myspace.com/myfirsttooth

Right buddies, it’s 3am, and I’ve yet to pack, something which has to be done by tomorrow. I have things to get, then the show, then in the evening I am Djing at a party, where there will be a saxophonist doing live improvisations to the tunes I play. Some people have too much money.
Have a SUPER couple of weeks, and I swear I’ll be back on it when I return
xxmarsh

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http://www.xfm.co.uk - listen to me talking and playing records, Sat 6-10pm

http://www.xfm.co.uk/podcasts - "Marsha Meets..." is me talking to comedians

http://www.hereifyouareinterested.blogspot.com - less music chat, more other life stuff I've seen

http://www.myspace.com/..marshamusic / http://www.facebook.com/pages/..Marsha-Xfm/6329774106 / http://www.twitter.com/marshamusic - Come be my internet friend

http://www.filter-mag.com - awesome US music mag who let me add to their London newsletter

http://www.alrighttit.com - reading this will make your life infinitely better

3:43 AM

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Sunday, January 25, 2009

Best of 2008 mailer

Dudes!

MINE GOOTNESS. I've finally done it. This has been hanging over me like an unpleasant apology. Except the act of doing it was actually really fun, just jolly tricky with no phoneline. Sorry about the delay - moved flat again, and then have spent the last seven hours listening to and describing music in anticipation of sound-tracking "The Inbetweeners" series two; this has involved lots of scraps of paper that say things like, "Oh no it's all gone wrong!", "Come on then, let's see what you've got" and "Aaah! Run!". The next step is to watch the episodes and see which match the moods of the songs.

Next week I will have internet, and -for the first time in my life - my own computer. I'm hoping this means I can fulfil the New Year's resolution of being more regular with the mailers. In the meantime, here is the bumper best-of issue, with all manner of AOBs. Have fun. Brace yourself.

Adam Bloom, Air Traffic, Alphabeat, Alright Tit, Bête Du Jour, Biffy Clyro, Black Kids, Bon Iver, Broderick Chow, Cage The Elephant, Cajun Dance Party, Captain, Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip, Daniel Kitson, David Berkeley, David O’Doherty, Dead Set, Death Cab For Cutie, Dent May and his Magnificent Ukulele, Derren Brown, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, Elbow, Estelle, Flo-Rida ft T-Pain, Foals, Friendly Fires, Frightened Rabbit, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly, Glasvegas, Heather O’Neill, Heypenny, I Was A Cub Scout, Ida Maria, Ivanov, James Yuill, Jason Byrne, John Pinette, Kaiser Chiefs, Kate Nash, Keane, Kings of Leon, Laura Marling, Look See Proof , Maeve Higgins, Maximo Park, Mechanical Bride, MGMT, Miles Jupp, Mobile Clubbing, Mumford and Sons, Mystery Jets, Nat Luurtsema, New Cassettes, Okkervill River, Panic At The Disco, Peggy Sue, Phil Kay, Pillow Fight Club, Rod Thomas, Royworld, Sam Isaac, Sam Sparro, Sarah Millican, Scouting For Girls, Snow Patrol, Supergrass, Team Waterpolo, The Duke Spirit, The Dykeenies, The Futureheads, The Inbetweeners, The Kooks, The Maple State, The Ting Tings, The Twelves, The Xcerts, The Young Knives, Thom Stone, Trafalgar Square Freezeframe, Tubelord, Vampire Weekend, Vincent Vincent and the Villains, War Horse, Wave Machines, We Are Scientists, White Lies

Tracks of the Year:

1.

Elbow "Starlings" (opener from the album "The Seldom Seen Kid", Fiction)

To me, this song is as close as you can get to the musical representation of what falling in love feels like. All the anticipation and gentle blissful calm and breath-taking, crashing surprise and light-headed swooping and unadulterated JOY of it.

Interestingly, when I first encountered the album, I was suffering from abject heartbreak (Christmas 2007 had not been my best). However, far from plunging me further into the depths of misery, this song pulled me out of it. It reminded me how wonderful I had felt and therefore, how spectacularly lucky I was to have experienced that feeling; something that made all the following pain totally worthwhile.

www.elbow.co.uk

2.

Peggy Sue "Spare Parts" (Broken Sound)

This song is incredible! It's exciting and enticing and has AMAZING lyrics; although, it's not just the lyrics, it's the way they bend them round the tune. They also do that awesome thing of using their voices as instruments sometimes. Then in the choruses it goes all blousey and bluesey. It's just WONDERFUL.

www.myspace.com/peggysuean....dthepirates is their myspace, but the song's not on it. If you don't want to spend 79p on it before trying it, here are the places to try and listen, all a bit sketchy...:

http://uk.youtube.com/watc....h?v=Y_a1QdzvMuQ - bit quiet

http://uk.youtube.com/watc....h?v=BnqFqEa-Ur8 - bit distorted

http://uk.youtube.com/watc....h?v=5mLvde6S3A0 - only a smidge of it

http://www.sweetslyrics.co....m/560446.Peggy%20Sue%20And....%20The%20Pirates%20-%20Spa....re%20Parts.html - for the lyrics, if you're listening to the quiet one

3.

Scouting For Girls "Heartbeat" (Epic)

I love my job at Xfm. I really do. And I do genuinely love most of the daytime playlist. The only problem is, as there are certain songs that get played a lot, the nature of what I'm doing has a tendency to kill them. I know that "The Pretender" by the Foos is an incredible song, but I find it hard for to have it resonate with me anymore.

We play a LOT of Scouting For Girls. Even before "Heartbeat" was released, I used to play it DJing all the time.

Every time I hear it, even now, I still get RIDICULOUSLY excited. I will occasionally surf radio stations in the hope of catching it. And when I do, it makes me want to peel down the road, grinning madly. Anything that can survive that many listens and still have such a strong effect must be a work of genius.

www.myspace.com/scoutingfo....rgirls

4.

Tubelord "I Am Azerrad", “Half Man Half Amazing”, “Feed Me a Box Of Words”, ”Obstacles”, ”Night Of The Pencils”, ”Stacey’s Left Arm”, pretty much anything I heard for new this year.

GOD i am obsessed with this band. I went to see them last week (see next mailer) and, as always, made a spectacle of myself howling along and punching the air with both fists. If I'm in any sort of weird state of mind and need bolstering, a quick blast of Tubelord always utterly sorts me out. My mental state is 1,000,000,000,000 better as a result of their existence.

www.myspace.com/tubelord

Remainer of list at the bottom.

Best Albums

Elbow "The Seldom Seen Kid" (Fiction)

It's just utterly magnificent. It's like they took everything they were brilliant at and ramped it up by fifty times. There are tons of songs on here that bend my brain they're so good. I wrote a longer description of it when I first heard it here: http://blogs.myspace.com/i....ndex.cfm?fuseaction=blog.v....iew&friendID=68450685&blog....ID=356535303 I'm not sure I can expand more eloquently than that. Except to say that you really, really need it in your life.

www.elbow.co.uk

Laura Marling "Alas I Cannot Swim" (Virgin)

Talking about this album makes me uses phrases I never thought I would. Like, "I think she is one of the most important artists of our generation". I do, though. I think people will be writing about this record in twenty, thirty, seventy years from now. Her voice has this amazing, timeless quality (there goes another one), that means I think it would sound relevant whenever you play it; imagine, for example, if you played a Kaiser Chiefs song half a decade from now. As great as Ricky's voice is (and I do think it is), it will sound very much like it's from the 2000s. Whereas I think Marling's will sound like it could have been recorded the day you played it. Like Joni Mitchell or Julie London or Ella Fitzgerald's does. All very different voices, but all have that in common. And the songs are just beautiful. And she's only young, imagine what she has ahead of her!

www.myspace.com/lauramarli....ng

Vampire Weekend "Vampire Weekend" (XL)

When I first mentioned them on the mailer in October 2007, I proposed that they deserved the hype surrounding them. I'm so happy they lived up to it. This album is a totally safe bet: like serving pasta for dinner. My muso-cool friends like them. My friends who know little beyond Take That and Rhianna like them. My three year old God-Daughter likes them. My 63-year old, jazz-fusion-loving uncle likes them. Win-win-win-win-win.

www.myspace.com/vampirewee....kend

Friendly Fires "Friendly Fires" (XL)

I always liked the idea of The Rapture and bands like that. I like a bit of a dance, or to walk with a slightly shimmying spring in my step. But I find it awfully hard to truly enjoy a band, unless I can emotionally connect with their music. Luckily, Friendly Fires are perfect at skirting the line between ass-shaking and heartfelt. This album is ace and makes you feel brilliant.

www.myspace.com/friendlyfi....res

Snow Patrol "A Hundred Million Suns" (Fiction)

Being lucky enough to live in Scotland when the first album came out in '95, I have been a long time Snow Patrol fan. And I'm not one of these that got all annoyed when they got famous - I was part thrilled for them, but mostly just smug: for years, I'd been saying, "If only more people were aware of them, they'd be massive...". However, I have to admit to having lost my way with bits of the last album, especially those overplayed on every station... So, I approached this one with a bit of trepidation. But it's BRILLIANT. It was all the bite and ferocity that I loved about them, whilst maintaining the massively stirring emotional side that is what made them my favourite band for so long. It manages to be user-friendly but *different and quirky and I think Gary Lightbody is one of the best lyricists around. He has a way of talking about relationships that is almost brutally honest in the best way.

www.myspace.com/snowpatrol....

Kings of Leon "Only By The Night" (RCA)

This is only a very recent one for me, but, once I got round to listening, the first few songs slew me instantly. Whatever mood you're in, putting it on headphones makes you feel SO. COOL. You swagger around feeling like a cowboy, even if you're actually just a scruffy indie dude, shuffling through city drizzle.

www.myspace.com/kingsofleo....n

Other goodies:

Bon Iver "For Emma, Forever Ago" Me and every Best Of list out there. www.myspace.com/boniver - great new songs on myspace just now

New Cassettes (title, label and release date TBC). Makes me happy and wistful like a pre-teen www.myspace.com/newcassett....es

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly "Searching For The Hows and Whys" (Atlantic) -similar effect as the above, but a couple of years down the line www.myspace.com/getcapewea....rcapefly

Cajun Dance Party "The Colourful Life" (XL) -ah sweet young things www.myspace.com/cajundance....party

Mystery Jets "Twenty-One" (sixsevennine) Eighties but only in the best, Breakfast Club, flicky-footed exciting way www.myspace.com/mysteryjet....s

Mechanical Bride "Part II EPs" (Transgressive) She hasn't yet got the draw-dropping talent translated onto record yet, but it's getting closer with each one. PLEASE see her live, she makes me a little loopy www.myspace.com/mechanical....bride

We Are Scientists "Brain Thrust Mastery" (Virgin) -on the one a little more serious than you'd expect from their silliness, but by no means sombre. TONS of night time excitement in the feel of this one. The kind of excitement that hurts my heart a little bit, in the best way www.myspace.com/wearescien....tists

Gigs

(1) Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly gig on routemaster bus, March

This was awesome! He did it as a special thing for people who had been at his Zavvi instore. We drove around London whilst he played his songs and we sang along, and people stared in the windows and we felt special because we were.

www.getcapewearcapefly.com....

(2) Elbow @ Royal Festival Hall, June

They had a full male choir (who Guy referred to throughout as "Geoff"), a class of school children playing horns from within the audience and an organ the size of the whole back wall. They said that it was the best gig of their whole life. That was pretty clear. It was utterly breath-taking.

www.elbow.co.uk

(3) Okkervill River @ Borderline, May

I didn't know a single song of their before this show. I thought, Well, I'll watch a few tunes, then I'll slip out. I stayed for the full hour and a half set and could have done the same over again. I danced and sweated and grinned and swooned. Wonderful live band, *wonderful.

www.myspace.com/okkervilri....ver

(4) David Berkeley @ The Slaughtered Lamb, Sept

This man is almost offensively charming. He sings and plays just beautifully, and in between, the chat is unlike any other you've heard. At this gig I was actually crying with laughter. He's back in June, I'll give you the heads up

www.myspace.com/davidberke....ley

(5) Mechanical Bride and Laura Marling @ Union Chapel, May

Two of my favourites in the most exceptional venue in London. I cried when Mechanical Bride played (I always do - not because I'm sad, just because it's so good it moves me to tears)

www.myspace.com/mechanical....bride

www.myspace.com/lauramarli....ng

Other great ones:

Kaiser Chiefs @ Xfm's Winter Wonderland, Brixton Academy

Friendly Fires @ Koko, Dec

Royworld, Feb @ Borderline

Scouting For Girls, first night @ Shepherd's Bush Empire

Sam Isaac @ Latitude festival

Best Non-music Events:

You Me Bum Bum Train @ Cordy House, Curtain Road, Old Street

This was pretty much my best experience of the entire year. One of the best of my life. You sit in a wheelchair, whilst you're pushed - one by one - through rooms where different scenarios happen around you. For example you might be at the dentists, then have to be a fashion model on a runway, then find yourself as the interpreter at a press conference. It's really hard to explain in writing -if you ever see me out, collar me and ask me to talk you through it. It was just utterly incredible and mind-bending and if it comes back, you MUST do it.

www.bumbumtrain.co.uk

Pillow Fight Club -how wonderful to have a non-aggressive ruck!

www.mobile-clubbing.com

Mobile Clubbing, November 18th @ The Royal Exchange - all the liberation of dancing in your bedroom, with all the camaraderie of dancing at a disco

www.mobile-clubbing.com

Trafalgar Square Freezeframe. Several hundred people just freeze-framing what they were doing. It was UNbelievably cool. Look!

http://uk.youtube.com/watc....h?v=PupR5V9aE2s

http://www.youtube.com/wat....ch?v=VqYwNEPumNc

David Sedaris doing a talk at Bloomsbury Theatre

He is my favourite author, and the only one that makes me laugh out loud several times a chapter, irrespective of whether or not I'm in public. Sitting there and listening to him tell stories, I had one of those moments of thinking, "This! This is ultimate bliss! I've never been happier". Those are the moments in life you must always take note of and remember as best you can. There's a biog here, but do a wee youtube search and you can hear him read some stuff. Then go and buy anything, but my favourite is "Me Talk Pretty One Day".

http://www.barclayagency.c....om/sedaris.html

Blog heaven:

I didn't think I was into blogs. Then I read

www.alrighttit.com

and it genuinely changed my life. Her writing has made it infinitely better for more reasons than I have time to describe here, but you'll see she's made her way onto the footers of my mailers. That's prime mailer real estate. Not that I charge for it, just that I'm VERY particular about what goes there. Stephen Fry is now a fan. Please, please have a look

www.alrighttit.com

Through her, I discovered

http://betedejour.blogspot.....com and became a bit obsessed over Christmas. He writes so brilliantly and so beautifully that he's got a book deal, after only blogging for a year. Do what I did - go back to the beginning and read it like a novel. You'll be totally hooked. There are bits that'll make you laugh, make you cry and make you shocked in a way you thought you couldn't still be, whilst totally remaining on his side. Awesome, awesome stuff

http://betedejour.blogspot.....com

Favourite youtube finds:

Dan le sac vs Scroobius Pip vs X-factor:

http://www.youtube.com/wat....ch?v=LSzA1kmH58U&featu....re=related

Morrissey and Johnny Marr on a kids show in the 80s:
http://www.youtube.com/wat....ch?v=cRjJ1H11kYE&feature=r....elated

Best TV:

Dead Set

I am still mildly obsessed with this. I made a friend watch it with me and it was just as good (if not better) second time around

http://www.e4.com/deadset

The Inbetweeners

I genuinely loved it. In case you missed it, I chose the music for it, but I'm so happy I did as I find it VERY funny. Today I watched a rough cut of episode one of series two, and I'm pleased to report it's as funny, and as "Oh god no stop!" as series one.

www.e4.com/theinbetweeners....

Awesome plays:

War Horse @ The National Theatre - just beautiful and breathtaking

http://www.nationaltheatre.....org.uk/warhorse/

Ivanov @ The Wyndham Theatre - so not the sort of thing I thought I'd love but I really did.

http://www.wyndhams-theatr....e.com

Books:

Heather O'Neill "Lullabies For Little Criminals"

This is now one of my top six favourite books of all time. The others in that list (the David Sedaris above, Cry, The Beloved Country, All Quiet On The Western Front, Running With Scissors and The Dirt) have all been in there for several years, so that's quite an achievement. If I was only allowed to recommend one book to someone, it would be this one. It's beautiful and funny and sad and thought-provoking and playful and just, just, just wonderful.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lu....llabies-Little-Criminals-H....eather-ONeill/dp/184724393....2

Derren Brown's "Tricks Of The Mind".

I know this is a couple of years old, but this is the year it changed my life. I can finally, for the first time in my life, remember people's names! And their wives' and children's, and their phone numbers....

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tr....icks-Mind-Derren-Brown/dp/....1905026358/ref=sr_1_1?ie=U....TF8&s=books&qid=1232740852....&sr=1-1

Quality comedians I was lucky enough to see (many of whom don't have functioning websites):

Jason Byrne

Maeve Higgins www.myspace.com/maevehiggi....ns

John Pinette www.johnpinette.com

Nat Luurtsema www.myspace.com/natluurtse....ma

Broderick Chow

Sarah Millican

Miles Jupp

David O'Doherty www.myspace.com/phlaimeaux....

Daniel Kitson

Phil Kay

Adam Bloom

The remainder of the singles, in various degrees of description:

Mystery Jets "Young Love" (679)

Aw, so good - goes in about five different directions whilst still remaining totally user friendly, then Laura Marling turns up!

www.myspace.com/mysteryjet....s

Frightened Rabbit "Fast Blood" (FatCat)

Christ this song is powerful. From the first chord, it plunges you in. I imagine it's best heard whilst hurtling down the motorway at night time, though I've never had the pleasure. I also assume it would perfectly soundtrack some kind of massive emotional turmoil that you experience whilst running through fields or woods in the pouring, drenching, violent rain. Still in the dark, though. Definitely in the dark. It's incredible.

www.myspace.com/frightened....rabbit

Dent May and his Magnificent Ukulele "Meet Me In The Garden/Oh Paris!" (Make Mine)

Almost offensively charming. Although ignore track one on the myspace, it’s a weird remix

www.myspace.com/dentmay

Cajun Dance Party "Colourful Life" (XL) lovely to run to. All optimistic, with a darkness halfway through

www.myspace.com/cajundance....party

Heypenny "Parade". This builds and builds, a little like the smile-to-grin you get from listening to it

www.myspace.com/heypenny

Wave Machines "I Go I Go I Go" - best band at Latitude, WONDERFUL song

www.myspace.com/mywavemach....ine

Snow Patrol "Take Back The City" (Fiction) Fierce return! Excellent to have them back on form

www.myspace.com/snowpatrol....

Elbow "The Bones Of You" (Fiction) pacey, lovely www.elbow.co.uk

Bon Iver "Re Stacks", “Skinny Love”. This is the song that turned me round. I didn't think I could put up with BI's falsetto throughout a song, but on the latter, he goes hoarse and broken and it's beautiful. And the former is just devastating.

www.myspace.com/boniver - currently beautiful new tracks up

others:

David Berkeley "Glory" or anything www.myspace.com/davidberke....ley

Death Cab For Cutie "I Will Possess Your Heart" (Atlantic) - my goodness this is breathtaking. Ridiculously powerful. Ridiculously.

Supergrass "Diamond Hoo Ha Man" (Parlophone)

Laura Marling "Ghosts" (Virgin)

Air Traffic "Come On"

Vampire Weekend "Oxford Comma", "A-Punk" (XL)

Alphabeat "Fascination" - yayayay!

Flo-Rida ft T-Pain "Low". Apple-bottom-jeans-an-the-....boots-with-the-furrrrrrrr

The Ting Tings "Great DJ", "That's Not My Name", "Shut Up and Let Me Go" (Columbia)

Rod Thomas "Same Old Lines" www.myspace.com/rodthomasm....usic

James Yuill "This Sweet Love" (Moshi Moshi) www.myspace.com/jamesyuill.... -sad when it shouldn't be

Elbow “One Day Like This” –hurts my brain it’s so good.

Mumford and Sons, everything really www.myspace.com/mumfordand....sons

The Young Knives "Up All Night" (Transgressive)

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly "Find The Time" (Atlantic)

The Futureheads "The Beginning of the Twist" (nul)

Sam Isaac "Fire Fire" (Another Music = Another Kitchen)

Elbow "Grounds For Divorce" (Fiction) - A. MAZING.

Foals "Cassius" (Transgressive)

Kate Nash "Merry Happy" (Fiction)

Team Waterpolo "Letting Go" (moshi moshi)

Panic At The Disco "Nine In The Afternoon" (Decaydance/Fueled By Ramen)

Maximo Park "The Unshockable" (Warp)

Vincent Vincent and the Villains "Pretty Girl" (EMI)

White Lies "Death" (Fiction) - so powerful! So exciting"

The Dykeenies "Waiting For Go" (LaVolta) makes me want to charge around the room like a toddler on orange sweets

Look See Proof "Do You Think It's Right" (Weekender Records)

Captain "Keep An Open Mind" (EMI) - I have a special bad dance I do to this

Sam Sparro "Black and Gold"

The Twelves www.myspace.com/the12s -amazing amazing remixes, many of which they offer you for free

The Xcerts "Do You Feel Safe" (Mannequin Republic)

The Maple State "Temperate Lives" (from "Say Scientist" EP),

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly "Waiting For The Monster To Fall"

I Was A Cub Scout "Pink Squares" (Abeano XL)

The Duke Spirit "The Step and The Walk" (You Are Here)

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly "Keep Singing Out"

Thom Stone "She Knows" -got released as a single after it was in the Inbetweeners. Love it www.myspace.com/superthom

Does It Offend You, Yeah? "Epic Last Song" (Virgin)

Cage the Elephant "Ain't No Rest For The Wicked"]

MGMT "Kids"

Ida Maria "I Like You So Much Better When You're Naked"

Ida Maria "Oh My God"

Mechanical Bride "Skeleton Sea EP" (Transgressive) heart her

Glasvegas "Geraldine" (Columbia)

Biffy Clyro "Mountains" (14th Floor)

Friendly Fires, “Paris”, “Jump In The Pool”. You know how couples have "songs"? I sometimes have them with myself too. Jump In The Pool is one of mine. Has gotten me out of a few mental scrapes. www.myspace.com/friendlyfi....res

Kaiser Chiefs “Never Miss A Beat” – What do you want for tea?

Black Kids “I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You” -12s remix is ace too.

Keane “Spiralling”

The Kooks “Sway”

We Are Scientists “Let’s See It”, “Chick Lit” -both EXCELLENT running songs.

Well done, you made it to the end!

RIGHT. I imagine I will be working late into the night tonight. Luckily, I love my job(s).

Be good,

xxmarsh

--------------------------....--------------------------....--------------------------....--------------------------....-

http://www.xfm.co.uk - listen to me talking and playing records, Sat 6-10pm

http://www.jameslooker.co.....uk - amazing band photos

http://www.tomparkerphotog....raphy.com - amazing other sorts of photos
http://www.jonhillcocknewn....oise.com - hear the best bands - before they break

http://www.alrighttit.com - reading this will make your life infintely better

http://www.myspace.com/mar....shamusic - come be my internet friend

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Friday, December 26, 2008

Canary Mailer, 26th Dec 2008

Hi chaps,

So, ahead of the onslaught that will be the Best of 2008 mailer, I thought I'd send a little scout in the form of the last mailer of the year, as there are a couple of gigs I went to, something I really want to flag up in AOB, and a few decent New Year's Eve options it's worth mentioning. Realistically, as I'm off to Bournemouth for New Year (a best friend has fallen in love with a Mexican, so this is my only chance to hang out with her before she goes back for a long time), you'll probably get that Best Of Mailer just afterwards. However, along with Sit Up Straighter and Waste Less Of Your Time And Intellect On The Celebrity And Letters Pages In The London Freesheets, one of my New Year's resolutions is to get back up to speed with the regularity of the mailer. People keep asking me if I still write it. Whenever they do, it makes me feel sad and guilty. You know I genuinely feel a little like your neglectful parent, don't you?

Anyhow, onwards and upwards:

Bête De Jour

Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip

Friendly Fires

Kaiser Chiefs

Keane

The King Blues

Noah and the Whale

Operahouse

Sam Isaac

The Attika State

Tim Burgess

Ultimate Power DJs

AOB:

Bête De Jour

So, the last few mailers should have cemented in your head my love for www.alrighttit.com . If you remember the first time I mentioned it, I said that I'm not really in the habit of reading blogs; if I'm on the internet, I want to either be working, or at the very least pretend to myself that I am, so reading big swathes of text just for pleasure doesn't often happen. Unless it's exceptional. Alright Tit has only a handful of links to other blogs and Bête De Jour is one of them. I have to confess that when I first curiously looked, I thought it was too dark and acerbic for me. I'm not sure what took me back to the page again, but I'm so glad something did. Through further reading - first tentative, then gently more and more engrossed - I have discovered that he is funny, insightful and writes beautifully; so much so, that, having only been doing this for a year, he's been offered a book deal. As I can't wait till June 2009 (and there is a lot there), I have taken to doing my Amish method of reading blogs - sitting and painstakingly pasting each post (in order, along with comments) onto a Word document, then printing the whole lot up and reading it on the bus and in bed. I've only done the first two month's worth (of thirteen) and it's already a massive pile, but I am gripped. He frequently makes me clap my hand over my mouth and gasp while hooting with laughter, although he somehow - incredibly - always manages to skate *just on the right side of being shocking whilst still keeping you really liking him. He also makes me wonder and think and question. And sometimes cry a little bit. It's amazing stuff.

Gigs seen:

Kaiser Chiefs, Tues 2nd Dec @ Xfm's Winter Wonderland at Brixton Academy

I'm only fully talking about these fellows as, due to a combination of DJing between bands and not being very well, I didn't really see enough of the other bands to give you a decent review. But in brief: I was very impressed by what I saw of The Rifles - what a good live band with solid tunes - and I heart the way Ida Maria throws herself around.

Kaiser Chiefs were headlining. I've seen them before (at a WW a couple of years ago); I thought they were good live then, I really like playing their singles when I'm DJing, I enjoy every one that comes on the radio, but they're not a band I'd ever listen to on my walkman, so I was expecting to be just pleasantly entertained. Oh my goodness. They stunned me, they really did. It's pretty much all about Ricky, the way he charges round the stage, the way he holds himself as he speaks to the crowd. He is a wonder. Honestly, it was one of the best gigs of my year. And if you've been sweet enough to stick with this mailer throughout it, you'll know I've been to a LOT and am probably more surprised than you to hear myself saying that.

www.kasierchiefs.co.uk

Sam Isaac and The Attika State, Thurs 11th @ The Windmill, Brixton

I love this venue. It's a bit of an arse to get to, and the sound isn't always awesome, but it really feels like home (even on your first visit), and even more so at Christmas time. They even had some Halloween lights up for good measure. Plus they always have brilliant bands playing. And a free barbeque in the summer.

Sam Isaac played a lot of songs from the (forthcoming) new album. There's a song that starts it, called 'Bears', that -when I listen to it on headphones - makes me unable to help myself from fantasy-montaging the film finale of my recent life, with some sort of multi-friends gathering at the end. This is a lot more healthy than the My Funeral-imagining I do when I hear David Berkeley's 'Fire Sign' or Elbow's 'Puncture Repair', but still possibly a bit misguided. I suppose it's my head, so doesn't matter. As soon as 'Bears' is somewhere for you to be able to hear it, I promise I'll let you know. In the meantime, I'll flag up the next time he's playing live so you can hear it then.

www.myspace.com/theattikastate

The Attika State do that emo/indie fight pop thing and are wicked live. I knew they would be: all energy and leaping around and smiley interludes that make you feel very welcome

Sometimes, when I think about how amazing my funeral is going to be, it makes me really sad that I won't get to see it. Or if I will, I'll be some sort of ethereal enlightened being whose pleasure is totally unaffected by Awesome Events In Her Honour.

Friendly Fires, Friday 12th @ Koko

I go to a lot of gigs on my own. Partly because most of my friends are less keano than me, but mostly because the frequency is so high, that if I turned each one into a fun jaunt with a buddy (dinner first, drink afterwards), then lots of money and my ever-diminishing free time would get sucked even further away. So, what I tend to do (as I did with this one) is find out what time the band are on, turn up exactly then, watch them, and then slip away alone. What I should have anticipated here is *just how big Friendly Fires have got. Koko was RAMMED. This meant that, in order to be able to see anything, I had to go right up into the gods and squeeze myself next to a slightly disinterested looking couple who kept talking. This, in turn, meant that no one around me was dancing, but that I was visible enough to be making a bit of a spectacle of myself if I wanted to. Bearing in mind that I had been daydreaming about this gig for weeks, ever since I first fell in love with the album, I was crushingly disappointed at first. Then, after about two minutes, that feeling was shunted out the way to make room for the wonderful, life-affirming sense of watching an INCREDIBLE live band and the peak of what they're doing. They were amazing! Just so, so, so, so wonderful. They're playing Brixton Sat 21st Feb as part of the NME tour; I can't imagine the effect will be any less profound.

www.myspace.com/friendlyfires

Keane, Tues 16th @ Xfm Christmas party at 229

I've only ever seen them before at the Royal Albert Hall, and am pleased to report that they were as wonderful live here as they were there. You know how some people just have 'it', that they're not even that pretty or handsome, but everyone you know fancies them, even just a bit? Bands have the same with live stuff. You can get awesome bands who are technically great, that are just no good live. And then there are other bands where it's irrelevant what the songs or the ability is, they just Are Good live. Keane, I think, straddle the best of both worlds wonderfully. They finished on 'Bedshaped'. It really moves me. I punched the air as I sang along.

www.keanemusic.com

Gigs Impending:

I thought I would do it as New Year's Eve Options.

XFM NYE @ Brixton Academy

When I go to indie discos, I like being able to go on little wanders and adventures, but in a way that anyone sitting around wouldn't necessarily notice; when you do this in small club, it just looks like you've got nae mates. The joy of XFM NYE is that (a) there are four different rooms you can mosey round, and (b) Brixton Academy is MASSIVE. When we were teenagers, we used to go there for Megadog All-Nighters (I had a dreadlock-free and very brief crusty raver phase) and I loved the amount of nooks and crannies you could find. Also, there are bands playing (the amazing Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip, the sohotrightnow King Blues and fierce but emotional Operahouse), plus tons of Xfm DJs DJing. If I was in London, this is where I'd be.

http://www.xfm.co.uk/news/2008/xfm-nye-bash-is-go

www.myspace.com/dlesacvspip (although, if you need reminding why they're so wonderful, look at this: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=vktcyvqfKn4 )

www.myspace.com/thekingblues

www.myspace.com/operahousehq

NYE Chalk Farm Jamboree

Also good in the going off wandering stakes, this is one ticket for four venues with tons of bands and DJs. Special note should be made of the Ultimate Power DJs who will be in residence at The Monarch. They are amazing, They manage to always play the perfect balance of songs you had totally forgotten about, but completely love, in a way that you can only when a song was ingrained into your soul in the days when you taped it off the top forty onto your own compilation, which you genuinely believed was quite professional.

http://www.barflyclub.com/camden/whatson/event/21118.aspx

http://www.ultimatepowerclub.com

PUSH @ Astoria 2 with Noah and the Whale

The last New Year's Eve in this building before they rip it down! Plus PUSH is a great indie disco and NATW are a great live band. And there are loads of night buses from Trafalgar Square, which is totally walking distance

http://www.myspace.com/push_club

Baggy Mondays @ The Social, w Tim Burgess DJing

This is a tiny club, so good if you fancy an intimate one. BM usually just plays Madchester stuff, but they're widening their remit for NYE to most indie disco stuff. TB will no doubt be playing some Northern Soul or Isaac Hayes or something. And there is a free raffle! And they're handing out New Year's resolutions, in case you can't think of any.

http://www.wegottickets.com/f/491

Right, I'm off for a run then home for a (hopefully) early night. Am considering watching one of the Romero trilogy films I've been lent, but am a bit frightened to, if I'm on my own. Having kept up the OBSESSION with a zombie armageddon that developed after Dead Set, I keep finding myself having dreams that it's happened and waking up terrified. This is the problem with having an over-active imagination; in the same way as I genuinely believe that it is likely I will one day wake up either as my fifteen year-old self, or as a boy (in a 'Switch'/'Freaky Friday', body swap-type way), it's not that I *want there to be a zombie armageddon, just that there's a bit of my brain that doesn't accept that there will almost certainly never be one. Maybe I'll just settle for 'Elf'.

Hope Christmas was good, have an awesome new year

xxxxmarsh

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http://www.xfm.co.uk - listen to me talking and playing records, Sat 10am-2pm & Sun 10am-1pm

http://www.jameslooker.co.uk - amazing band photos

http://www.tomparkerphotography.com - amazing other sorts of photos
http://www.jonhillcocknewnoise.com - hear the best bands - before they break

http://www.alrighttit.com - reading this will make your life infintely better

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?tab=3/pages/Marsha-Xfm/6329774106?ref=s - come be my internet friend

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Monday, December 01, 2008

Pinch and punch for the first of month mailer, 1st Dec 2008

Hello hello hello

Thanks for all the nice words and thoughts after the last mailer. How sweet you are.

This I'm guessing will be the last one before the Best Of The Year mailer. I'm inherently a bit of a High Fidelity list-maker, so started compiling this in my head in about February. One of the things that first massively endeared me to Jon Hillcock (who presents the excellent New Noise - www.xfm.co.uk/jon ) was the year we were discussing best of the year lists and he told me he'd made a spreadsheet. I hope I haven't just embarrassed him. Yesterday on the radio, I admitted I used to play live Dungeons and Dragons; I think my self-editing technique may need some work.

Anyhow, lots in this week, including something non-music that is just UTTERLY amazing - if you're in London any Saturday between now and Christmas, PLEASE go and do YMBBT (see below). You'll thank me for it

Andrew Bird

Andrew Maxwell

David O'Doherty

Ellie Goulding

James Yuill

Jay Jay Pistolet

John Hegley

Jon Richardson

Laura Marling

Left With Pictures

Luke Leighfield

Mobile Clubbing

Okkervil River

Pete Roe

Phil Kay

Rhod Gilbert

Richard Herring

Rod Thomas

Sam Isaac

Sarah Millican

SH Davidson

The Attika State

The Pipettes

You Me Bum Bum Train

AOB:

So, you know how when I go to two amazing gigs between one set of mailers, I hate it because I feel it dilutes the impact of each one? This has happened with to AOB's. The following two things are each, on their own merit, one of the best things I've ever done in my whole life. Definitely top ten. And I am lucky enough to have done a LOT of awesome things, so that's some statement. It just so happens that these ones fell within a couple of weeks of each other.

(1)

You Me Bum Bum Train on every Saturday until Christmas, 6-10pm @ Cordy House, Curtain Road, Old Street

This was unbelievable and I want you to go. Get there early, because you might have to queue. It costs £15 but could not be more worth every penny. It's astonishing.

It's an interactive art/theatre thing. You sit on a wheelchair and get wheeled into different rooms, each of which has actors and a different scenario, with which you get involved as much or as little as you like. They ask you not to ruin the surprise for other people, so I can't tell you specifics, but examples from past YMBBT's are: a surprise Bar mitzvah thrown for you, being rescued by firemen, a trip to the doctors. It is one of the most funny and fun and mind-blowing and utterly, utterly, utterly wonderful things I have ever had the good fortune and pleasure of experiencing. Please please go. And if you do, let me know what you thought.

www.bumbumtrain.co.uk

(2)

Mobile Clubbing, November 18th @ The Royal Exchange

I have talked about this before. It's the thing where you get an email passed onto you, then you turn up at a pre-agreed place on a pre-agreed date. You take your mp3/walkman/whatever and headphones, and at a pre-agreed time, you all press play and start dancing. It sounds not that fun and a bit scary. It's in fact utterly awesome and weirdly liberating; because none of you are dancing to the same songs, you feel more at liberty to dance the way you would if you were alone in your bedroom. But with all the camaraderie of being on a dancefloor with three hundred other people. It really is incredible.

www.mobile-clubbing.com - go and sign up to the mailing list.

Gigs Seen

Okkervil River, Tues 11th @ Shepherd's Bush Empire

They are one of these bands that, even if you'd never heard a single track of theirs, you'd have a wonderful time at their show. I struggle to describe what they sound like. Not because it's complicated - it's actually wonderfully simple, but not quite like anything else. I guess it's essentially an indie sound; nice clean instruments and strong singing and a full, exciting sound, that varies in pace, but mostly makes you dance in spite of yourself. It's rather glorious and triumphant. Have a listen and see what I mean. And then go and see them next time -I promise I'll give you advance warning.

Laura Marling, Jay Jay Pistolet and Pete Roe, Weds 12th @ Scala

Pete Roe doesn't sing in a fake American accent (heaven forbid), but there is something I think rather American-sounding about his beautiful, sparse acoustic guitar-accompanied songs. The plucky, warm twanginess of a song you feel would probably brilliantly accompany a dusty truck stop at a gas station in the middle of the desert, run by a wizened but friendly old fella. The songs are gently soothing, like giving yourself a little temple-massage when your fingers are cool

www.myspace.com/peteroe

Jay Jay Pistolet is gentle, in a different, rather more haunting way. Well, saying that, sometimes - as with the current single "Happy Birthday You" - it's in a more loving way than that would suggest, but no less intriguing and engaging for it. His voice is just something else - I don't know any other current singer's that comes close to it. He has a lovely plucky way of getting his syllables out, that manages to nudge your emotions into action, but is never too much. Wonderful.

www.myspace.com/jayjaypistolet

Laura Marling, I really, really, really feel, is one of The Great Singers Of Our Time. Her voice is just astonishing, and so timeless. I don't think I ever thought I'd use that adjective to describe music, but that's how it feels. Even though I know the album inside out, every time I see her play live, or really *listen to the songs on my headphones, I shake my head in wonder at how special it is. In years to come, you're going to wonder if you remember when Laura Marling first hit. Get into her now so you can feel like you lived some history.

www.myspace.com/lauramarling

Andrew Bird, Thurs 20th @ St Giles Church

In the same way that Marling's voice never fails to surprise me, so does Andrew Bird's awe-inspiring musical ability and general wonderfulness live. As well as being a violin virtuoso, he is amazing at loads of instruments, has a beautiful voice, and a mean whistling skill. He uses all of this by sampling and looping himself in a way that is unlike anyone else who tries to do this, and just *breathtaking. In spite of being alone, he builds up sounds and lines and harmonies to the extent that it sounds like there are twenty people on stage, not just one. His songs are beautiful too. Very appropriate that this gig was in a church - the audience were religiously reverential.

www.myspace.com/andrewbird

Jay Jay Pistolet, Left With Pictures and Ellie Goulding

Jay Jay Pistolet I have discussed above, here he played with full band, and the effect was charming. Pete Roe was part of that band, what an omnipresent fellow he is.

www.myspace.com/jayjaypistolet

Left With Pictures are a band I've been meaning to write about for ages, ever since my friend Sophie emailed me an mp3 of "Secretly", and it slew me with its plinkety, shuffling, tinkling charm. Their songs manage to be pacey but gentle, with little galloping instruments in the foreground, swooping strings in the background, and lovely vocal melodies with the odd harmony pulling it all together

www.myspace.com/leftwithpictures

Ellie Goulding, I'm hoping, will at some point go under a different name. Not because there's anything wrong with hers -it's a lovely name - but just because, sadly, Firstname Surname invariably conjures up an image of someone with an acoustic guitar, droning on about their love live. She couldn't be any less like that. Well, that's a lie, she did sing with an acoustic guitar, but the songs were beautiful and interesting and captivating, and her voice is just something else. I think I may have found a new favourite.

www.myspace.com/elliegoulding

Gigs Impending

There are tons of ace comedy shows on over the next couple of weeks, so I'm going to stick them at the bottom. All but one are in the same place, oddly.

GAH have to rattle through these if I want to get them out tonight; I wrote the comedy ones already, so vast apologies that the music ones are so brief.

Tonight:

Liam Frost @ Borderline

He's back! And He's sounding bloody great. I will be there, come and see him.

www.myspace.com/listentoliamfrost

Tues 2nd

Xfm's Winter Wonderland, featuring

Kaiser Chiefs, The Rifles, Iglu and Hartly, Ida Maria, Ladyhawke, White Lies

I am DJing in-between the bands. I will definitely play The Ghostbusters theme tune. I might play the Minder one too.

www.xfm.co.uk/winterwonderland

Sunday 7th

Mumford and Sons @ Communion at Notting Hill Arts Club

One of the bands of the year headline one of London's best band nights. Marcus Mumford's voice is just incredible: interesting and ear-catching, but totally warm and somehow familiar. The songs are almost like indie hoe-down; imagine the best musical image that conjures up and times it by a thousand. Wonderful, wonderful live band.

www.myspace.com/mumfordandsons

Thurs 11th

Sam Isaac, The Attika State, Luke Leighfield, SH Davidson, and James Yuill and Rod Thomas DJing @ The Windmill, £5

Sam Isaac finishes his debut album today. It's not going to be out until at least April, and I would so love you to come and hear some of the songs from it. He'll be playing full band, and they really are on good form. In spite of having seen them so many times, I am genuinely incredibly excited about this

www.myspace.com/theattikastate

The Attika State make that emo/indie/rock fight pop I love so much, and do it really well. Fierce but emotional

Luke Leighfield sings the kind of piano-led indie that gets stuck fast in your head, and is a treat live. He also has a Christmas song he wrote, which is ACE.

www.myspace.com/simplylukeleighfield

SH Davidson is usually the singer in amazing poppy fight-pop band Tellison, but also does his own, gentle, heartbreaking acoustic solo stuff

www.myspace.com/shdavidson

James Yuill and Rod Thomas make music that blends bleeps with acoustic guitars and soulful songs. I imagine their DJ set will be full of the best kind of tunes - ones you never hear but really love

www.myspace.com/jamesyuill
www.myspace.com/rodthomasmusic

I will be there

Friday 12th

Friendly Fires @ koko

Their debut is one of my top five albums of the year, it's flipping brilliant, and I am TOO excited about this show

www.myspace.com/friendlyfires

Comedy

David O'Doherty @ Soho Theatre, now - 6th Dec

I had him in on the radio show on Sat. This fellow won the If.Comeddie award -the comedy equivalent of the best Oscar you could get - this year. I was thrilled when he did; not only is he an incredibly funny man, he also managed to be in way that is interesting and different enough from most other comedians, but not so much that it moves into "funny because it's weird" territory, which has its place but is often not for me. I wrote about him in the last mailer, as I was about to see the show. It was, as expected, awesome. The kind of show that leaves you exhausted from laughing, a little more knowledgeable, and warm like hot pudding with beloved friends does. If you need further convincing, have a look at this: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Pz4f_e02RFM&feature=related or this http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=R49dWWXuMkI&feature=related

www.davidodoherty.com

Phil Kay @ Soho Theatre, 4/5/6th Dec, 11/12/13th Dec

This fellow was on my show yesterday - it's been a good weekend for it! If you've ever seen Phil Kay live or on telly, you'll know he's nuts, in the best, affectionate, hippy way. He sits just on the right side of eccentric: funny and a joy to watch, not so much that you start feeling uncomfortable. When he was on the show today, he was talking about how he'd got a surf board to ride over the hands of his crowd at a gig. It's quite hard for me to describe why he's so wonderful, and there are frustratingly few clips online, but if you want to leave a show grinning in all sorts of different ways, come see him.

http://www.sohotheatre.com

Live at the Chapel, Sat 6th Dec @ Union Chapel

Richard Herring, Andrew Maxwell, John Hegley, John Richardson & The Pipettes

In brief: Richard Herring - officially funny, great stand up, you'll know who he is when you see him.

Andrew Maxwell: TOTAL genius, not only incredibly funny, but also leaves you thinking about loads of stuff - but in this amazing way that you didn't realise he was putting thoughts into your head until after the gig (ie not hard work)www.maxwellsfullmooners.com

John Hegley: poetry, legend.

Jon Richardson: only seen bits on Youtube but was really impressed, great stand up.

The Pippettes: awesome fun live. www.myspace.com/thepipettes

In sum: could not be better value for £15.

http://www.unionchapel.org.uk/whatson/showevent.php/00658.html

Rhod Gilbert @ Soho Theatre, 12th - 20th Dec

Now, I've not seen this fellow live for a few years, but everyone I know who knows things, says he is on AMAZING form at the moment, and he was nominated for the If.comeddie award this year. I have him coming on the show next Sunday, so I guess I'll see then, but in the meantime, bear this in mind

www.myspace.com/rhodgilbertcomedian

Sarah Millican @ Soho Theatre, 17th - 20th Dec

This lady is coming on my show in a couple of week's time. She won the Best Newcomer award at this year's If.comeddies. She does fairly straight stand-up (in that there aren't songs or sketches or weird funny voices) in the best, best way. Her humour is pretty dark, which means you should consider not taking your easily offended buddies, but if like me, you like a bit of muck/black humour, then she's an absolute treat.

www.sarahmillican.co.uk

Right. I'm off to listen for the first time to Sam's finished album. It's pretty exciting.

Then to possibly get some sleep, something I've failed to achieve in the last week. If I don't get the best of out before Christmas, I'm on Christmas day 10am-2pm in London and Manchester and on www.xfm.co.uk It's pretty much one of my favourite shifts of the year, not least because it gets me out of scrubbing potatoes. If you're idle, so come and say hello, and I can say hello back on the radio. Mention you're a mailee, so I can make a special fuss of you.

Have an AWESOME one

xxxxxxxmarshxxxxxxxxx

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http://www.xfm.co.uk - listen to me talking and playing records, Sat 6-10am & Sun 10am-2pm

http://www.jameslooker.co.uk - amazing band photos

http://www.tomparkerphotography.com - amazing other sorts of photos
http://www.jonhillcocknewnoise.com - hear the best bands - before they break
http://www.myspace.com/marshamusic - come be my internet friend

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www.myspace.com/grannyward

Sunday, November 09, 2008

Good Excuse mailer 9th November, 2008

Hi Chaps.

Welcome to the new world! Isn't it wonderful? Should you have missed Obama's whole speech, it's really quite breathtaking. You can see it here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/us_elections_2008/7710079.stm

Everything just seems better now, doesn't it? Even if you're mad against his politics, you've got to admit we're all in a better mood than we were last week.

So, the longer than normal gap between this and the last mailer, has a little to do with being away (Edinburgh - lovely), some to do with having a lot of work on, but mostly it was knocked out of kilter by something bigger than everything: my granny died. If you've been a long-time mailee, you'll have seen pictures and heard stories of her, and know that's a bit of An Event. In the end it was as lovely as it could have been; every one of the family was there, holding her hand, she was at home and looked after and loved till the end. I wanted to tell you some of the stories, but there are a LOT, so instead, I've put up some of the ones we've been emailing around, along with a poem one of her former pupils wrote, and a bunch of pictures. You can see them all here:

I have just re-read and been crying with laughter. NB "mash" is the family Russianism of "Marsh"...

Right, onwards:

(Bon Iver, sortof)

Dead Set

eaststrikewest

Elbow

Friendly Fires

Good Books

Helmholtz Resonators

Herelduke

Ivanov

Jay Jay Pistolet

Laura Marling

Lillica Libertine

My Granny

New Cassettes

Okkervil River

Opera House

Skibunny

Snow Patrol

Gigs seen:

In spite of all the long time, only two, but they are two of my favourites:

Elbow, Monday 13th October @ Roundhouse

Someone - I think it might have been the NME - described these shows as a lap of victory - they had sold out before the Mercury prize win, so were full of genuine fans who were SO pleased for Elbow. And how could you not be? They have an incredibly ability to make you feel like you're in someone's front room having a chat. And yet, when the songs kick in, you feel more like you're in another world. I spent half the gig in tears, the other half grinning until my face ached. It's the kind of show that makes you wonder why people ever bother taking drugs, when music can make you feel like that and it's a thousand times better and more true and long lasting. If you don't yet have the current album, your life has a bit of a whole in it.

www.elbow.co.uk - click on the O to listen to bits.

Good Books, Sunday 9th November @ Proud.

MAN i love this band. The debut, 'Control', was my best album of last year by a long mile. And it's been ages since I'd seen them, so it was VERY exciting to do so, and to hear new stuff. The new songs were bloody great too: 'Manifesto' is all drama and night time excitement, and 'Save Me', poppy and BIG. I proper can't wait for more, and to see them again. I still get emails from mailees, every few weeks, telling me how right I was about the album, and how they can't stop listening to it.

www.myspace.com/goodbooks

As I always worry about AOB being buried, and as a few people I know used to skip to it first anyway, I thought I'd just stick it second for a while...

AOB - three:

(1)

Ah, good new albums. You wait around for months, then three come along at once. They are:

Snow Patrol "A Hundred Million Sons" (Fiction) out now

You may have read before that I am a long time Snow Patrol fan. Little understatement: for a long, long time, they were my favourite band. I lost my way a little with them on the last album. Not because they got popular (that just made me smug that they were right all along), but I found the softer songs had lost the dark bite I loved. The good news is, the new album has those teeth again. The songs are fierce and sad and exciting and heartbreaking in an almost, *almost uncomfortable and totally un-obvious way. It's a really, really, really great album. I'm thrilled.

www.snowpatrol.com to hear some snatches

ps When I interviewed Gary SP recently, he said that two of the albums they listened to most when recording the album were Bon Iver's (wonderful) "For Emma, Forever Ago" (www.myspace.com/boniver) and the debut by Friendly Fires... talking of which.....

Friendly Fires "Friendly Fires" (XL) out now

I'm a little slow on the uptake with this one -it was out in September. See The Rapture? I always liked the idea of them, but they totally failed to ever emotionally connect with me; I love to dance, but I need to really feel and believe someone before I can dance to their songs. FF deliver on all fronts. They make you feel *just emotional and excited enough, whilst making you either want to dance, or just STRUT. If I'm ever going somewhere and want to walk into the room feeling like the coolest person on this earth, a couple of these songs loud in my headphones does the trick.

www.myspace.com/friendlyfires

New Cassettes (title, label and release date TBC)

Sorry to be so vague on all of the above info; I was handed a cd of this at a gig last week, and can't stop listening. It does what many of my favourite albums does: makes me feel like a pre-teen. By that, I mean that night time, looking out of your bedroom window with longing for something, you're not sure exactly what, you just know you REALLY feel it. I like albums that are upbeat enough not to make me sad, but emotional enough that I can have really thorough daydreams along to the,. This perfect for that. They're also bloody brilliant live.

www.myspace.com/newcassettes

(2)

Dead Set

If you've heard me on the radio in the last two weeks, or spoken to me, you'll know how UTTERLY OBSESSED i am with this programme. It was shown on E4 over the course of a week. It's very scary, so if you're not into that sort of thing, then move on. If you are, then please please watch it. I am now very, very into zombies. I would really like to think that it not something anyone would have suspected of me. I have begun to judge people based on whether I think they would put themselves at risk to rescue me in a zombie situation. I bought it on DVD twice. Actually, I was so over-excited ordering it that I accidentally ordered it four times. I was going to send them back, but am considering keeping them to give to people.

http://www.e4.com/deadset

(3)

Ivanov @ The Wyndham Theatre

Thanks to my ma queuing up for returns, I just went to see this. It's a Chekhov play with Kenneth Brannagh. Given that the thing that most excited me recently was a zombie flick set in the Big Brother house, I was expecting to doze for an hour. In fact, it's *brilliant. One of the best theatre things I've ever seen (having lived in Edinburgh, I've seen a *lot). It manages to do that brilliant balancing act of being really, really funny and really, really sad. The acting is amazing, and there were so many points made by the characters that made me go, Hang on, that's such a good point! People *do behave like this for that reason! It's officially sold out till the end of the run, but get some warm clothes and go and queue up for returns. I can't tell you how worth it it is.

http://www.wyndhams-theatre.com - although if I'd read that description, I probably would have been put off going. Please ignore how highbrow it looks, it's totally accessible and a thing where it's easy to forget you're watching a play.

Gigs impending:

I'll just put a handful so as to get this out...

Tuesday - three:

!FREE! a rather dancey night

(1) Skibunny, Lillica Libertine, Herelduke and Helmoltz Resonators at Huw Stephens' ace club Introducing @ The Social (i may have the order wrong..)

Skibunny are a band formed from the Belfast club of the same name, one of the greatest in the UK. They make the kindof electro indie that's interesting enough to catch your ear, tuneful enough to hold it, and dancey enough to make it want to grow little legs and start shaking its lobe www.myspace.com/skibunnyclub

Lillica Libertine are a similar genre, maybe a little more dance-musicy. They do that thing of sampling snatches of vocals and using those snatches as instruments almost. I bet they're a treat live. www.myspace.com/LillicaLibertine

Herelduke, to my electro-ignorant ears like something a Super Furry Animal or a Beta Band-er would be involved in. Bleepy in a perky way, with grown up layered vocals. Cloudy/sunny evening music. Ace. www.myspace.com/herelduke

Helmholtz Resonators are a bit like an electro style of 60's lounge music; it bends your mind and makes you smile confusedly in the same way, and you can kind of imagine those sixties people dancing in that sixties, freaking out way to it

www.myspace.com/HelmholtzResonators

(2) Opera House and eaststrikewest @ Water Rats

Opera House make indie that sounds like a more serious take on a lot of the mainstream stuff we play on Xfm. Imagine Kasabian, with more emotion and less funk, or The Enemy with strings and a big helping of soul. Big drama, which I bet comes across live.

www.myspace.com/operahousehq

eaststrikewest are a more floaty, spaced out prospect - the same emotion and drama, but strung out over echoey guitars and long notes. The kind of music that's creep-up-on-you-sad; you think you're just watching it, but before you know it, it's massively affected you and you feel stronger about whatever you were thinking about that you thought you could.

http://www.myspace.com/eaststrikewestband

(3) Okkervil River @ Shepherd's Bush Empire

I have discussed these chaps quite a bit before, but only in the last six months. They're one of these bands that you've never heard of, you fall for, and then you discover they've got six albums and are playing venues this size. The latter is no surprise at all -they're *Awesome* live. The first time I saw them, I didn't know a single song, they played for an hour and a half, and I didn't look at my watch once. Everyone I've dragged along since has had the same reaction.

www.myspace.com/okkervilriver

Weds 12th:

Laura Marling & Jay Jay Pistolet @ The Scala

I'm pretty excited about this show.

Laura Marling's (deservedly Mercury-nominated) album is just amazing, and I think an important album, in terms of, I think people are going to be writing about it for many, many years. It's part of this indie folk scene (she features on a lot of Noah and the Whale's songs), but I think is much more universal than that would suggest. Her voice is just astonishing. It's one of those classic voices, like Tracey Chapman or Julie London or Joni Mitchell that will still sound relevant in ten, thirty or fifty years.

www.myspace.com/lauramarling

Jay Jay Pistolet's voice is incredible for a whole other bunch of reasons. For a start, it sounds like it's coming out of weathered, lived-in older man, and not the young handsome twenty year old he is. He sings songs that, however noisy they are, somehow tiptoe along. He's really great. And someone I've been talking about on this mailer for about four years, so it's probably about time you had a listen.

www.myspace.com/jayjaypistolet

Right. Depending on how long it takes me to get myself together, I think I'm going to go for a quick run, then dinner, then fall into bed, before a day of doing my taxes tomorrow. Fun fun fun.

I promise the next one won't be such a long wait.

xxmarsh

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http://www.xfm.co.uk - listen to me talking and playing records, Sat 6-10am & Sun 10am-2pm

http://www.jameslooker.co.uk - amazing band photos

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www.myspace.com/davidberkeley

Thursday, October 02, 2008

alrighttit.com mailer, 1st October 2008

Hello

I was going to call this "Screwy Order Mailer", but then the reason that the order is screwy is because, for weeks I've been wanting to draw your attention to the amazing www.alrighttit.com , but kept worrying the AOB would be lost in too much other stuff. Then I worked out it would be easier to just put the AOB first. And given that I'm only doing that for this reason, I may as well get it in the title for a further plug. So more below, but if you are, or know, a print publisher, you will want to read it and consider the career-enhancing benefits of signing up its writer.

I could also have titled this "Mailer Full of Bands I Really, Really Love". I kind of hate it when this happens, because I feel each "this is BRILLIANT" lessens the impact of the one next to it. But, equally, I never (as you may or may not have noticed) like to slag bands off in this mailer (I figure it's hard enough trying to make it in today's climate, without some random dude who can't sing herself slating you), so there's less balance. Anyway, you're just going to have to trust me, I hope that's ok.

Finally, I decided to write you a list of some of my record of the weeks, as there's been some right smashers recently.

Alrighttit.com

David Berkeley

David O'Doherty

Elbow

Errors

Goodbooks

Hold Fire

Ida Maria

James Yuill

My First Tooth

Rod Thomas

Sam Isaac

Sarah Millican

Snow Patrol

Tellison

The IT Crowd

The Real People

Those Dancing Days

Tubelord

Wave Machines

We Are Scientists

White Lies

AOB:

Alright Tit blog

I've mentioned this before, but didn't give it the justice it deserved at that point. I'm not really into blogs; when I'm on the computer, I feel like I should be working, or should get off the computer and do something else. And usually, they can be really great, but as my time is always pulled on by people, chores and non-computer fun, I tend to forget about them. This one, however, is amazing. What I do is print it out, then read it whenever I can. After each post, I'm hungry for the next one. It is not only *brilliantly written, it makes me laugh out loud in almost every single post, and frequently makes me cry in the same one. If you know anyone who is involved in publishing, please put them onto this lady. I've never come across anything quite so fantastic.

www.alrighttit.com

Gigs seen:

David Berkeley Mon 22nd @ Slaughtered Lamb
He is just *stunning. Stunning! He sings and plays killer beautifully, and the chat! You know it's going to be good, when pre-song banter starts with, "I realised how much I missed America when I got kicked in the nuts by a goat". I was actually crying with laughter at points. And it's so juxtaposed to his songs, which make you cry for all the other reasons. Sadly because he lives in Corsica, he doesn't play here that often, but I promise the second I know about more shows, I'll tell you. In the meantime, there's an amazing story (which he told bits of in the show) in the second part of this podcast, from legendary US Public radio show "The American Life": http://www.thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=364

Those Dancing Days, Thurs 25th at X-posure Live @ The Barfly

I'm not a very good feminist; I used to work in a lap-dancing club, and I tend automatically to ask only boys to help fix my computer. But I do love when there is a band consisting of five women, all playing and singing brilliantly, not with a political agenda, just that it's a band that happens to consist of only women. They were great live, rather Strokes-y in some ways, with melodies that wandered a bit further. And they all looked like they were having so much *fun.

www.myspace.com/thosedancingdays

My First Tooth, Tues 30th at Hooked On Music @ The Big Chill House

There's something about watching these fellows live that somehow simultaneously calms and fires me up. I just love them. There are two of them, boy and girl. He plays the guitar and leads on the vocals, she joins him for harmonies that tug at each other beautifully, alongside playing the violin, mandolin and melodica. He has this quality to his voice that I find hard to describe, but which is so wonderful. It manages to be distinctive enough to be interesting, without being in *any way obtrusive. The songs are pacey and somehow cut right to your core. They really are wonderful, please go and have a listen

www.myspace.com/myfirsttooth

Gigs Impending:

Thurs:

I shall be going to see a couple of bands as part of the Concrete and Glass festival

Goodbooks, 8pm @ 93 Feet East

Those of you who read the mailer avidly last year will know how VERY VERY VERY excited I am about this show. Their debut album was my best of any record released in 2007, and, unlike a lot of previous favourite albums of a moment, I still listen to it *constantly*. I also have a regular trickle of emails from mailees that say, "Marsha! You were so right about the GoodBooks album! It's incredible!". Anyhow, it was live that I fell for their songs first, so if you're about, come and watch me swoon with joy. Re their sound: it's indie that's more exciting than you could possibly imagine.

www.myspace.com/goodbooks

Wave Machines, 10.10pm @ The Macbeth

Beloved of Jon Hillcock (who does the amazing New Noise on Xfm - see www.xfm.co.uk/jon), this lot were my favourite band at Latitude this year. I actually spent the entire set jumping up and down. They make fun, slightly electro indie, that's awesome to dance to, but also has some soul. They're wicked live. They wear masks of their own faces. But aren't as arch as that would suggest

www.myspace.com/mywavemachine

Errors 11pm @ Old Blue Last

I'm not very good with bands that don't sing. I have a theory that's the same as why I sometimes struggle with lady singers - because ultimately I want to kid myself that whoever's singing is singing about me (and ladies mostly sing about dudes). However, Errors somehow break through this. Which means I get to feel well cool for liking them, without actually having to find myself trying hard. They play a lot of instruments, with squelchy beats between. They're also great live. Have a listen to "Mr Milk" for the most instant one.

www.myspace.com/weareerrors

Friday:

Tellison @ club NME at Koko
These fellows released one of my favourite albums of last year. They play indie that's at the rockier, emotional end, and they're incredible. Have a listen, and if you like what you hear, get hold of their debut "Contact! Contact!". You won't be disappointed I promise.
www.myspace.com/tellison

I am hysterically excited as, thanks to my generous, spare-ticketed friend Tracy, on Friday I am going to watch a filming of The IT Crowd. If you are too, I apologize in advance for any hyper-ventilating/passing out on my part.

Monday:

My First Tooth @ The Windmill, Brixton
Every time I see them play, I just never want them to stop. I honestly think I could listen to an hour and a half of MFT (songs I know, songs I don't) and it wouldn't be enough. Sadly, they aren't yet at the stadium size that would allow that. If you have any kind of emotional reactions, this gig will make you feel warm and very, very content.
www.myspace.com/myfirsttooth

Tues:

White Lies @ ICA
See Sure Shots below for what makes the sound so good. They are stunning live (and will particularly be in this venue) -all BIG moments, uplighting and suspenseful atmosphere.

www.myspace.com/whitelies

Weds:
Hold Fire @ 93 Feet East

These chaps do exciting punchy indie-rock that I can imagine sitting very happily on the daytime playlist at Xfm. They have a mixture of songs, some exciting and chargey, some handclappy and shoulder shimmying. You know how when something sounds familiar, not because it's tired, but because it just somehow fits into your head and your tastes? Like that. Bet they're ace live too.

www.myspace.com/weareholdfire

AND you can buy the single on a battery shaped USB stick - you can see a pic of it on the myspace

The Real People @ Water Rats
These chaps were Oasis before Oasis. But for some reason (maybe before their time, didn't have a pretty Liam in the band), they never made it. Cracking tunes, though. I used to be a massive fan in my teens. Oh, and going through their top friends is a brilliant trip down indie memory lane...Weekendahhhh...

www.myspace.com/therealpeople

Sun 12th:

David O'Doherty and Sarah Millican @ Apollo Theatre

These are the two who won the two big comedy awards at the Edinburgh Festival this year, DOD got The If.Comedy award (the Oscar of the comedy world, formerly the Perrier), and Sarah Millican got the If.Comedy best newcomer. They're both VERY funny. I'm always reluctant to describe comedy as I'm so bad at doing it, but here is a clip of DOD singing about something I managed to do three days ago:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=mAG18UUDPPI

http://www.davidodoherty.com

http://www.sarahmillican.co.uk/

Some great singles out this week:

Sam Isaac "Sticker, Star and Tape" EP (alcopop)

Ok, so I feel a bit weird talking about this, but track three, "Annie, Why Are You So Angry?", is one of my favourite songs of the year. I came into this as a fan, and have been listening to that song as a fan for days on end. Plus I saw two gigs of his this week, and haven't mentioned either. He's on tour just now, by the way.

Tubelord "I Am Azerrad" (Big Scary Monsters)

MAN i love this band. Especially when they're occasionally screamy stuff tends more towards the upbeat emotional. I really think that, not only are they writing fantastic songs, they're also doing something that no other band is. They clearly know a good pop song, they just choose to eschew it, at a moment where you least expect them to. Faultless

www.myspace.com/tubelord

Rod Thomas "Same Old Lines"

Gentle, pacey, warm, thoughtful but ultimately optimistic. And just, just, just LOVELY. His music really is dreamy.

www.myspace.com/jamesyuill

James Yuill "This Sweet Love" (Moshi Moshi)

I find it hard describe why I love this song so much. But I think it's mostly because it's one of those songs that, by its pace, should be a fairly neutral or even upbeat one, but it makes me feel unbelievably sad, in an unexpected and really good way. The sort of thing that makes you sigh a big sigh and realise that, although everything's going to be all right, there may be some tough times to get through first. Even if you don't actually have any tough times at the moment -it's very film soundtrack-y in that sense.

Sure Shots (records of the week I had on air):

We Are Scientists "Impatience" (Virgin)

I love the album this is from so much. It makes me feel all the excitement you felt when you were a pre-teen, looking out your window at night. It also makes me want to break into a run, charging down the street. Sometimes I do. I am also *desperate to see them live again, but sadly will have to wait till at least December... Though that is because they're on tour with REM and Kings Of Leon, so hopefully that will lead to the rest of the world catching up on what an ace band they are.

www.myspace.com/wearescientists - check out their robocover of Jay-Z

Ida Maria "Oh My God" (RCA)

This is another one that makes me want to go haring down the street. It's so urgent and so exciting and so aptly titled. If I'm not on the street it makes me throw myself around whichever room I'm in. It's brilliant.

www.myspace.com/idamaria

Snow Patrol "Take Back The City" (Fiction)
I was a Snow Patrol fan from the beginning. I'm not saying that to be smug, I'm saying that to illustrate how things have changed; between 1998 and 2005, when people asked who my favourite band were, I had to give a long winded explanation involving Belfast, Glasgow, and Belle and Sebastian's label. After 2006, people looked at me like I'd just said "Dido". I have to confess to having slightly lost my way with "Chasing Cars" (although a lot of the rest of that album still stands up), but this single is bang back on form. It's everything that made me love them in the first place: excitement, energy and an urgency most other bands just don't have.
www.snowpatrol.com

White Lies "Death" (Fiction)

Man it's exciting! It makes me feel like this:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=M_J-lxK8uCY

And every girl of a certain age knows that there is nothing more exciting than that. If you're a gent currently trying to woo a lady who grew up in the eighties, that's all you need to know.

www.myspace.com/whitelies

Elbow "The Bones Of You" (Fiction)(Clearly the WINNER of major labels at the moment)

I realised that, as I keep going on about how the Elbow album is not just the best of the year but one of the best of all time, I have taken it for granted that people know I love them, and hadn't rotw'd any of the singles. I love this song, how pacey and emotive it is. If you have a heart in your soul, get this album, it will be good to you

www.elbow.co.uk - click on the O and listen to bits of it in the cube.

Right, that's me. I think I'm going to go and have a run by the river. Doing this in the evenings has become my new favourite thing, thanks to an awesome soundtrack (some of which you can see listed in past mailers on myspace.com/marshamusic), which now comprises of half-indie, half-wedding disco soundtrack. If you happen to wandering along the Southbank one night, and see a sweaty girl panting ".....GHOSTBUSTERS!" to herself, give me a wave.

Have a super week and half ish....till next time

xxxmarsh

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Sunday, September 21, 2008

Mailer for Emily, 21st September, 2008

Hi hi hi hi hi. A combination of grand plans unrealised and life curveballs is what heralds the timing of this mailer. As it's been so long, and I've seen so much live stuff, and I want to get a couple of AOBs in, I will whizz through impending gigs and just throw a handful of important ones. Lots of gigs seen, and please please please scoot down to the bottom even if you don't have time for any of the rest of it.

Casiokids

Dash Delete

David Berkeley

Emily Horrobin

Faithless

Familijen

Fionn Regan

James Yuill

Meadowlands

Mechanical Bride

My First Tooth

Pearl and the Puppets

Rod Thomas

Sam Isaac

Screaming Tea Party

Scouting For Girls

Those Dancing Days

Gigs impending:

Monday 22nd Sept

!FREE! lunchtime

Sam Isaac instore @ Puregroove, Smithfield's Street, near Smithfields market

I'll be there. He's acoustic. The new single is out for download tomorrow, but he'll have copies there to sign too

www.myspace.com/davidberkeley

eve:

David Berkeley @ The Slaughtered Lamb

I implore you to come to this gig. DB is one of the best live acts I have ever seen. Not just because he sings and plays beautifully (because he really does), but because he has more easy charm onstage that you would have thought possible in one person. The chat is warm, inviting, and ridiculously funny. He also -unlike any other act I know - has a policy of never saying the same thing at different gigs, so you feel like you're getting little nuggets that are secrets between you, him and the rest of the room. Since I started mentioning him in my mailer, I have had countless emails from people thanking me for having sent me to one of his gigs. I promise you won't regret it. And in this venue, it'll be dreamy

Thurs 25th:

Those Dancing Days, Screaming Tea Party and Casiokids @ X-Posure live, at The Barfly

For Casiokids - see below, they're ACE live. Those Dancing Days,: five girls from Sweden making quality wonky indie pop. Screaming Tea Party : noisy and tuneful and fun.

www.myspace.com/casiokids

www.myspace.com/Screamingteaparty

www.myspace.com/thosedancingdays

www.xfm.co.uk/xposure

Tues 30th:

My First Tooth @ Big Chill House, Kings Cross

This band make my life infinitely better. They hug my soul.

www.myspace.com/myfirsttooth

Gigs Seen:

Mechanical Bride, Tues 2nd Sept @ The Slaughtered Lamb

So, if you've been paying attention, you'll know this lady makes me a little loopy. She and her band sing songs that are gentle and interesting without being distractingly quirky, and live they make me feel the best way I possibly could. For reasons you'll see below, it was a weird and sad week, but watching MB felt like the closest equivalent of having a live show give you a massive, all encompassing hug. Of the songs on the myspace, many of them are lovely, but she is *so incredible live that I don't think it is currently able to put that across. Next time she plays, I promise I will give you a decent heads up, and you must come.

www.myspace.com/mechanicalbride

Sam Isaac, James Yuill and Rod Thomas, Weds 3rd @ Water Rats

It's great when you've liked someone for a wee while to see them develop. Not only did all three of these fellows have people singing along throughout each (packed) set, they also each did a song stepping away from the microphone and managed to hold the total full attention of the crowd while they did.

Rod Thomas has stepped up a gear since I last saw him play The Water Rats. There was just that feeling that his game has been raised live, and it's very exciting to watch. He sings songs on acoustic guitar, accompanying himself by sampling bits of guitar, vocal, synths and beats, so that there is a full band sound onstage, even when its just him. His songs are emotional enough to make you fell yearning, but not so extremely that they'll make you cry. It's a good balance.

www.myspace.com/jamesyuill

James Yuill also shares the balance of a bit sad but not depressingly so. Actually, so does Sam Isaac. Possibly should have mentioned that above. Anyway, James Yuill's songs are a lot more bleepy, some really quite dancey BUT all with that emotional feeling shot through. I don't know anyone else who is doing exactly what he is right now, and he does it awfully well. There's one of his songs "This Sweet Love", that crawls right under my skin whenever I hear it, it's just beautiful.

Sam Isaac has a sick voice, because he caught a disease from a mackerel he caught and ate, that human's aren't supposed to be able to catch. His GP even had to notify the government. He still sang well enough to give me goosebumps though.

www.myspace.com/fionnregan

Fionn Regan, Thurs 4th @ 229

I don't think I could love this fellow's music more. It's testament to how people feel about him that he could headline to a packed 229, just him and an acoustic guitar, and have everyone stood in reverential silence, shushing anyone who dared chat. He sang a lot of favourites from the first album, which made me swoon wildly. Plus a couple of new ones, one of which ("A Violent Demeanour") made me feel a bit sick it was so good. I think he will become one of our most important artists. He is just amazing. If you even slightly like the sound of his songs, or if you've not yet listened but like gentle but dark plucky acoustic guitar stuff, I promise you'll love his album.

Pearl and the Puppets and Dash Delete , Mon 8th Sept @ Hoxton Bar and Kitchen

Pearl and the Puppets are a lady-fronted, acoustic-guitar-led outfit who do songs that, while they don't sound like they're copying anything else, have that nice thing of feeling familiar. She has a lovely voice, which is soft in a chalky way, with a quirk to it that makes it stand out just enough. The songs are gently optimistic, in an after-the-rain-has-gone way. That's not to say they're really quiet, just that they have that tone, all refreshing and clean-feeling. She was very impressive live.

www.myspace.com/pearlandthepuppets

Dash Delete are great! I've mentioned them once or twice in the mailer before. They are rather young, and sound it in all the best ways. Jangly indie pop, sung in a voice that keeps verging on husky. And they were wicked live; you know some bands you watch, and you can't help but just grin and grin and grin. They made me feel excited to be alive. In some bits they reminded me - and this is the sort of description I wouldn't have thought I'd like a band for, but - of those sixties British bands you see on old episodes of Ready Steady Go, where their feet appear to be glued to the ground and they can only angularly bend from side to side. All the youthful excitement of that. GO see them at NHAC on the 27th Sept. Go on.

www.myspace.com.com/dashdelete

Scouting For Girls and Sam Isaac, Sunday 14th @ O'Neill's in High Wycombe (competition show)

I won't say much about Sam Isaac, as I already talked about him above, but he told the mackerel story, and gave me goosebumps again. AGAIN.

Scouting For Girls. Have you ever seen them live? Have you? Because if you have, you'll know that they are one of the greatest live bands you could see. And, as you well know, I've seen a LOT. This is for a number of reasons, two of which struck me at this show. The first is that, whilst you and I go to a reasonable amount of gigs, and have enjoyed a lot, there is a vast swathe of people out there who don't and haven't. Not because they wouldn't enjoy them, but because they are a little intimidated by the idea of gigs, thinking of them as things other, more muso people do. This means all the light-headed, breathless, sweaty, goose-bumped utter JOY that we often get to feel, is lost to them. However, SFG's music is so accessible, and so lacks any pretension of exclusivity, that it is not so intimidating, which means there is always a bunch of people at the shows who wouldn't otherwise get to feel like that, and watching their ecstatic faces is truly a wonderful thing.

Irrespective of whether you care about people like that, you can't argue with my point number two: when Scouting For Girls play live, they - more than any band I've ever seen - really get the audience involved. Whether it's singing a vocal line so Roy can sing over the top, doing a call and response, or even just well placed cheering, the band are expert at having the crowd be an innate part of the gig. I have seen them more times than I can remember, you'd think by this stage I would just be at the back smiling benignly, but there's something about the way Roy encourages and whips the crowd up, that means you can't help but excitedly get sucked in. For a start, any kind of mass audience participation feels exciting when you can experience its effects (cf. Mexican waves, The North Korean Mass Games - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHM5qTpKQUo *). But also, it means you leave, not only knowing you were at a brilliant gig, BUT - and here's the clever bit - knowing that a lot of the reason that gig was so brilliant, was because of you. How often can you say that after a show? Not very.

www.myspace.com/scoutingforgirls

*if you want to see some of this with a better soundtrack, there's an awesome Faithless video, which you can see here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjR_mwCEiK8

The footage is taken from equally amazing documentary called "A State Of Mind" by Very Much So productions - see http://www.verymuchso.co.uk

Casiokids and Familijen, Thurs 18th @ Old Blue Last

Casiokids were great! They're electro-pop, but much more user-friendly and warm than that label usually suggests to me. There seems to be tons of them on stage, and they look like they're having the MOST fun; it's incredibly infectious, I grinned from ear to ear for the whole set. They take it in turns to sing, and while one is on the lead vocal, the rest of them do one of the best things I've ever seen a band do: not only do they sing along, they sing along pulling the kind of faces you would pull if you were listening to seventies driving music at full volume, on your own, in your kitchen. Strained faces and rock poses. It's one of the funniest and most endearing things I've seen. Go see them this Thursday @ X-Posure live at the Barfly at 8pm, or if that's too early, they're on later @ Hoxton Bar and Kitchen.

www.myspace.com/casiokids

Familijen are another band I whose description made me wary, but who I couldn't help but enjoy. They make a kind of up to date version of acid house, to the point where one of the two of them looks like you plucked him out of an early nineties rave, bez style dancing, slightly scary expression and all. And somehow, it really works, and doesn't seem at all dated.

www.myspace.com/familijen

I actually saw Sam Isaac play The Old Blue Last on Friday, but I'm guessing I've talked about him enough in this mailer already. Just like to tell you about each gig I'm at....

AOB:

(1)

Meadowlands

This is lovely, just lovely. It's actually one of the chaps from ace angular fightpop-ish band Dartz!, but you'd never in a million years guess that. It's gentle acoustic guitar, plucky and the kind of quality where you can hear the squeak of fingers moving up and down the frets. And gentle singing over it, not quite melancholy, but teetering close to the edge of it. You know how there are some records in your collection that you listen to mostly when someone's over your house, and you want to put a tune on first thing on the Sunday morning that perfectly reflects a mood you haven't quite worked out yet? One of those. I really like it an awful lot.

http://www.myspace.com/meadowlandsband

(2)

Emily Horrobin

Emily is my hero. That's how I've always described her to people; you might read the mailer and think I get up to a lot of stuff, but Em was the queen of this. All that stuff you read about in Time Out, interesting ways to spend your time that make you think, Ooh one day I'll get round to that - Emily had tried it, seen it or was taking regular classes. Having made friends with her a couple of years ago (in a convoluted way it was through this mailer) I was lucky enough to sometimes get to tag along. She was an utter joy in every way, and beautiful with it. This summer, Emily got suddenly very sick, and at the end of August, she was taken by the cancer she had. She's left a big gap. I know I'm stupidly lucky to have had her in my life. Every time you read about me having done something out of the ordinary, know that I'll be thinking of her.

www.emilyhorrobin.com

Hope you're well. If there's someone you love that you haven't told in a while, now's a good time. Even if you have told them that recently, telling them again won't hurt.

xxxmarsh

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http://www.xfm.co.uk - listen to me talking and playing records, Sat & Sun 6-10am

http://www.jameslooker.co.uk - amazing band photos

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www.myspace.com/wearescientists

Wednesday, September 03, 2008

a lot of acoustic mailer 3rd Sept 2008

Hello hello.

This was all written and ready to go on Monday, but some stuff came up which meant I couldn't send it till now. It means I talk about a gig in the future tense that actually happened last night (Mechanical Bride), sorry about that. I've left it in because I mean everything I said, if it's intrigued you, do come and see her at the Scala (supporting someone can't remember who....) on Weds 17th Sept.

The list below is quite long, as I've put all the stuff I saw in Edinburgh (mostly non-music), but I've chucked it down in AOB. Just below a little rant I felt the need for.

Aindrias De Staic

Broderick Chow

Cassie & The Cassettes

David O'Doherty

Emma Keele

Fionn Regan

Frank Satan and his Husbands

James Yuill

Jason Byrne

John Pinette

Lucky Soul

Maeve Higgins

Mechanical Bride

Miles Jupp

Nat Luurtsema

Pearl and the Puppets

Pete Greenwood

Pete Molinari

Rod Thomas

Sam Isaac

Sarah Millican

Stars and Sons

We Are Scientists

Xfm

Gig seen:

just one pure music:

We Are Scientists, Thurs @ Old Blue Last

This gig was rather exciting, partly because The Old Blue Last is titchy, and WAS usually play venues 50 times the size of it, and mostly because I hadn't seen them play since the new album came out, and I'm pretty in love with the new album. They are just a fantastic live band *anyway, fierce and funny and exciting and surprising, so seeing them in such a wee place with so many superfans was awesome. Dev who is Lightspeed Champion played guitar on a few songs with them. Keith the singer fell into the crowd and let members of it sing bits of "It's A Hit" and "Chick Lit". It was special. I heart them.

Gigs impending:

Tues:

Mechanical Bride -that's right, MECHANICAL BRIDE @ The Slaughtered Lamb

This is the lady I have been harping on about for a year. I'm not always great with girl singers (I think it's because I'm sappy and want to imaging I'm being sung to, and girls usually sing to theoretical boys), but when I fall, I fall hard, and here I've fallen the hardest. She makes me a little crazy. Please come to this show. The music she plays is gentle and moving and quirky enough to be interesting, but not so much it is in anyway anything other than utterly wonderful. She is one of the only acts that, for the whole of her (and her full band's) set, I can't think of anything other than Thisisamazingthisisamazingthisisamazing. It makes me feel like, whatever happens in life, it'll always be ok because I can feel like that, all because of a live show. I love the songs on the myspace, but I'm not sure the yet do the music justice. Please come to this show.

www.myspace.com/mechanicalbride

Weds:

Sam Isaac, James Yuill and Rod Thomas @ Water Rats

I'm pretty excited about this line up. The firstname surname nature of each artist suggests some kind of bore-me-later singer songwriter night, but the point of them all playing together is that each of them isn't as that would suggest, and all have a way fuller sound. And all three have awesome singing voices.

Sam Isaac - I'm always wary of how I talk about Sam on the mailer, but this is an instance where I'd ask you to remember that I first ever talked about him here (pre-involvement), and I only ever started working with him because I was such a massive fan. This will be a three-piece acoustic set, as opposed to the usually full band one. He makes warm acoustic indie. It makes me feel great.

www.myspace.com/jamesyuill

James Yuill plays songs with bleeps and squeaks and samples alongside his singing, that are pacey and beatsey but leave you feeling rather mournful. It feels like how you feel when, after a really crappy day that didn't seem to end, and that made you feel *terribly sorry for yourself, you finally get to crawl under the arm of your beloved and concede that everything probably will be fine. Definitely will, actually. Definitely.

Rod Thomas' songs are like the photographic negative of that feeling; in that, they also don't throw you into an extreme sense of feeling (sometimes that's hard work), but they're gently optimistic and warm and soak into your bones so that, by the end of them, you're grinning wildly without realising. He samples and loops himself live and the effect is dreamy.

www.myspace.com/fionnregan

Thurs:

Fionn Regan, Lucky Soul, Pete Molinari, Cassie & The Cassettes, Pete Greenwood & Stars and Sons @ 229 (part of A Fistfull of Fandango)

Fionn Regan
When someone asks you What is your favourite album of all time?, it seems somehow Not On to say one that's been out in the last five years, let alone a debut that's not yet been followed up. But that's pretty much how I feel about this record. It is the one I have listened to the most over the last couple of years, and one I still do several times a week. It's mostly gentle, with the songs v much led by his super-fast plucky acoustic guitar. And all though it's a mix of upbeat and sad songs, all of them have something dark about them. But dark in a woodlands at night time kind of way; full of excitement and danger. I am very excited about this show.

Lucky Soul have a lovely, warm fresh sixties pop sound to their indie. Lady singer and the sort of thing you can't help grinning wildly to.

www.myspace.com/luckysoulluckysoul

Pete Molinari has quite a voice on him. One of those amazing countrified voices that surely couldn't have come from anywhere other than the deepest South of the USA. Except he's from Chatham. Myspace is being weird and won't let me see what I'm listening to, but the songs I can hear are acoustic guitar bluesy, atmospheric and a bit amazing.

www.myspace.com/petemolinari

Cassie & The Cassettes are a bit quirky and spacey and sing sweet upbeat songs that verge on silly, but never quite hit it (in a good good way). Something of them makes me think of kids TV shows from the 70s. But more sensible than that sounds

www.myspace.com/cassieandthecassettes

Peter Greenwood

Lovely, acoustic guitar-led shuffly pacey tunes, with the sort of voice that stumbles and rolls along like he's only half having to try, because he doesn't need to. Sounds like a soundtrack to documentaries about those weird river boat/fan things that they used to ride in 'Gentle Ben'. So, calming, but with a suggestion of excitement as well. Just lovely.

www.myspace.com/petergreenwood

Stars and Sons are probably the loudest band on this gentle bill, but only just. They share with the above a wonderful sense of a tune and, like C&TC and LS, a brilliant optimism to their tunes, but a little trepidation thrown in. They're Big like the best piano-led indie bands are, and there's something dreamy too, like The Avalanches are dreamy and, I don't know how best to explain this, but commune-sounding about them ; a bit like the feeling you have round a lovely camp fire with TONS of friends.

www.myspace.com/starsandsonsuk

www.clubfandango.co.uk

Fri:

Paloma Faith, The Ryes, The Anomalies & Alex Cornish -charity show @ KCLSU (Kings College)

Paloma Faith has one of Those Voices. You know, the Amy/Adele/Duffy ones, that make people think of all the singers from the sixties whose records still get played all the time. The songs have a lovely full sound to them, some of them reminiscent of that era, some of them a lot more modern. I'm guessing live she will leave your jaw dropping.

www.myspace.com/palomafaith

The Ryes
I haven't seen these fellows play since they were fledgling, but I hear they're a real treat live. Given that they play user-friendly indie pop, with the stress on the POP, I can't imagine they could be anything else
www.myspace.com/theryes

The Anomalies have singles called "Kid Riot" and "Employee of the Month" that you may have heard on the radio. They are tricky to describe in the best way; singing with some rapping, but the rapping done fast over speedy, fuzzy guitars, and the singing, unlike the kind you'd expect to be married with that - it sounds to me influenced by The Libertines and that sort of fun British sound. Apparently they are *awesome live.

www.myspace.com/theanomalies

Alex Cornish has one of those voices that soars all over the place at various points, and each kind of note sounds great, in a very satisfying way. He plays a lot with gently plucky acoustic guitars twinkling over shuffly drums and it's lush. There is something familiar about his songs - not that they sound copied or tired, just that way that in the best music, it just feels like something you already know. He's another who by all accounts is great live.

www.myspace.com/alexcornish

Couple more to mention in case next mailer isn't out till middle of next week:

Monday:

Pearl and the Puppets @ Holton Bar and Kitchen

More song led by plucky acoustic guitar. This girl has an awesome voice, gentle and interesting enough to grab you, but not so much it grates. The songs are optimistic and fresh like when you've had a bit of an emotional night with someone or someones, but then in the morning it's been raining a bit, and you go to the shop for milk and realise everything's actually ok, and probably better than it was before. I'm really looking forward to this show. For those of you that know about these things, Stephen Street has produced some of her stuff. Go and have a wee listen, it'll make your lunchtime that bit nicer.

www.myspace.com/pearlandthepuppets

Tues:

Alex Cornish @ Borderline

See above for him. I am looking forward to this show

www.myspace.com/alexcornish

AOB - two:

(1)

Xfm
For those of you that have come to the mailer through other means and may not know, I am a presenter on Xfm. I have been for four years, but the six years preceding that, I was a huge fan of Xfm. I still am. There have been a few changes recently, tweaks here and there, and I hear grumblings from some people. If I had a pound for every time someone was shocked and a little disappointed that we don't all get to pick every song we play, I'd be a wealthy lady. What really, constantly makes me cross in people's attitudes is that they (partic muso snobs) can't get their head around the fact that Xfm is neither government funded, nor a charity. It's a business. In order to run as a business, we need advertising money. In order to get that, we need to have a lot of listeners. And, like it or not, most people find listening to obscuro music surrounded by heavily specialist chat a little bit difficult to stomach at 11am. They'd rather have The Zutons.
What I think is amazing and wonderful about Xfm, is that we manage to slip in so much new music, and that we have so many shows where the presenters pick all the tunes; outside of the bbc it is very hard to find any show where the dj has any choice. We have a three hour one every weeknight (X-Posure), a dance-influenced one on Fridays (The Remix), a Rock Show (w Katie P on Sundays) and four hours of eclectic brilliance on Saturdays (New Noise). As well as this, we've playlisted people like Laura Marling, Foals and Does It Offend You, Yeah? on daytime shows. I am very much more interested in preaching to the unconverted. I'd rather get someone who thinks Kaisers are way edgy into Tellison or Mechanical Bride, than someone who would find those bands of their own accord.
I suppose we should take it as a complement that people take enough ownership to get het up -you wouldn't get angry with Virgin for playing 'Chelsea Dagger'. I'm sorry to rant, but it's a fight I constantly have to fight. Recently, I ran into a music journalist I barely know. He had his go at Xfm, and after I gave him my thoughts as above, he told me that Xfm had sold out to The Man, and that if I believed what I'd said, I myself have been brain-washed by The Man. Two minutes later he asked if I would plug his club night on air. Idiot.

(2)

Stuff I saw in Edinburgh:

I'm really sorry, I am not at all good at describing comedy or comedians. I will try and put just enough that you get a measure of what kind of comedy they do. Most of them are rubbish at updating their myspaces and websites, so I've only put them in where they do. Otherwise keep an eye on Time Out...

Frank Satan and his Husbands -songs and chat, wonderful and funny and kindof disturbing

Jason Byrne -just one of the funniest men I've ever encountered. Frequently makes me laugh so much I dribble.

Maeve Higgins - just great, gentle, less BLAM BLAM JOKE BLAM and more the kind of stuff that is funny at the time, then it seeps in, and about two days later you find yourself remembering bits and laughing out loud to yourself

www.myspace.com/maevehiggins

John Pinette - just a brilliant, pure stand up: no arch commentary, no mind-bending ideas, just an hour of funny, start to finish.

www.johnpinette.com

Nat Luurtsema - former guest on my show, brilliant up and coming comedian. Tells the kind of jokes I find myself constantly quoting to people in order to make myself sound funnier than I am. Although I do usually credit her.

www.myspace.com/natluurtsema

Broderick Chow -I feel very similarly about this fellow. He's not yet been on the show, but I'm hoping to get him on in the coming weeks

Sarah Millican - wonderfully, she won the if.commedie Best Newcomer award. Deservedly so, she's brilliantly funny.

Miles Jupp - one of the best stand ups around, naturally funny and charming and engaging

David O'Doherty -awesomely, he won the if.commedie award (the comedy Oscar). This gentleman makes me go a bit child-tugging-at-bottom-of-her-skirt. You know how there are some people that you think are so wonderful you almost never want to meet them? Not because you think you'd be disappointed, just because you worry you'd spend the whole conversation staring at the ground in silence, then accidentally shouting "ITHINKYOU'REREALLYBRILLIANT" before staring at the ground again. Although I am hoping to get him in on the show at some point, so better start bracing myself

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrB6GeaXwmY to see what I mean, and

www.myspace.com/phlaimeaux for his dates

Rubbish, I am rubbish at describing comedy. Two more things I saw:

Aindrias De Staic - "The Year I Got Younger" - someone had described this to me as storytelling with some fiddle playing, which had made me think I'd hate it. It was *awesome - engaging, exciting, funny and left you feeling high like someone was stood behind you, holding your head up.

http://www.aindrias.com

Torn Out Pages -this was a brilliant play that by a small company, ultimately serious but with a lot of light touches. I want to mention in particular one of the actresses Emma Keele; now, dance isn't a medium I'm all that into, and this play only had tiny elements of it, but half way through, this lady did a dance that really moved me. It made me cry at the time, and week on, I still feel a bit funny when I think about it. I honestly never thought someone dancing could have that effect.

http://www.reducedcircumstances.co.uk

http://www.uk.castingcallpro.com/view.php?uid=44178

Right, that's me. Have a lovely week. Cling on to your beloveds and tell them you love them. If they're not near to hand, send them an email or a text.

xxxmarsh

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5:24 PM

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