compilation – and so she thinks

Till Deaf Do Us Party Records present A Compilation in aid of CALM Part II

admin — Tue, 14 Jun 2016 10:45:19 +0000

Proving that not all charity complications require Bono to be involved, Till Deaf Do Us Party Records present A Compilation in aid of CALM Part II. Following up from last year’s album, this twenty track compliation features The Xcerts, Night Owls, Tellison, Lonely The Brave and Allusondrugs.

It continues to shock me that suicide is the single biggest cause of death in men aged 20 – 45 in England and Wales. The aim of the compilation is not just to make money for C.A.L.M, though every penny raised will go to help the charity’s wonderful work, but to promote the fact that mental illness is no longer a taboo, especially in men, and that people DO care and are looking out for them.

This isn’t just a bunch of bands wanting to put their name to what is a super important cause, but the musicians involved in this compilation have a story to tell and a reason for donating a track – each one bringing an individual take on issues faced by many every day – all of which are incredibly moving and poignant.

THE CAMPAIGN AGAINST LIVING MISERABLY (CALM) is a registered charity, which exists to prevent male suicide in the UK.

Martha – Sleeping Beauty EP

admin — Tue, 03 Feb 2015 15:51:00 +0000

There’s something lovely, and surprising, about a band making a mixtape. Of course, when you consider it rationally, of course they should be interested in music, of course they should be supporting one another, of course they dance until they drop to songs that shoot them through with adrenalin, and of course they should want to share their favourite songs with the world. But it’s still a pleasant shock, because we so rarely see evidence that this is the case. So thank you to Martha, the Durham based quartet, and this little collection of tunes, the Sleeping Beauty compilation.
Bookended by the fast and playful opening chords of new single Sleeping Beauty and the final angry shouts of their cover of Cheeky’s Bad Mood this new completion from Durham based band Martha is a rousing confluence of beats and pop ditties from some of their favourite bands on the scene.
It features indie-pop of Philadelphia band Radiator Hospital (with vocals from Waxahatchee’s Katie Crutchfield), scuzzed up and anarchic buzz from Felt Enacted by Cardiff’s Twisted, and a lovely brushed repetition to the rhythms of Art Sorority For Girls on Cecille B. Demille pt.3. The pulsing and frantic buzz of a punky attitude and DIY aesthetic is counterbalanced by honeyed and tender moments like Chrissy Barnacle’s Nightride (with strings) and a yearning soul stretching melody courtesy of Trust Fund on We’ll Both Apologise.
Many of the vocals have that slightly out of tune off kilter tone, polish neglected in the face of authenticity, and an angsty recklessness pervades the EP, the intensity of the emotions that provide the lyrical content perhaps belied by the generally fun nature of the melodies. Despite a variety of locations and labels, what’s clear is the powerful influence of daily life and mundane activities on the craft of songwriting for all the groups on this EP, each drawing on the everyday social and psychological experiences of modern living.
At only twenty minutes long, this compilation of eight songs sure rattles through (that’s two and a half minutes each on average), but what it lacks in length, it more than compensates for in noisy and heartfelt clout.
[bandcamp width=350 height=470 album=3092943248 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 tracklist=false]

The Spotlight Kid

admin — Mon, 24 Nov 2014 11:08:04 +0000

Spotlight Kid make music for a specific hobby – that of gazing at shoes in a fuzz drenched reverie, dreamy drizzle like guitars bubbling in the background whilst they go on a hazey jaunt through a rough hewn rhythm section. Their gritty tune The Waiting Room, out on Saint Marie Records, is the perfect soundtrack for such banal yet esoteric activity. Enjoy.

The Adult Teeth Recording Company Recording Sampler

admin — Thu, 23 Oct 2014 08:03:14 +0000

https://adultteeth.bandcamp.com/album/sampler-the-best-of-adult-teeth-2012-2014
As the sun streams through my window it seems crazy to be discussing the end of the year and any best of compilations. But let’s not see this as an end, but rather a celebration of awesome tunes over the last two years – even if they do all come from that most unlikely of spots: Hull. Adult Teeth is a label dedicated to putting out new music from the North Eastern city and has grown from being a bedroom label to really seizing the studio with latest recordings, but continues to span indie, alternative, experimental, electronic, spoken word and ambient genres. Experimental solo pop from My Pleasure, the frantic TV Speak from La Bete Blooms (who I have previously interviewed here), a lot from art-rock duo Glass Illusion including a collaboration with Leeds based poet Matthew Hedley Stoppard, along with tunes from Blackface, Mt Judge, Foolish Atoms and My One Band.

It's All Happening: The Christmas Collection

admin — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 22:27:29 +0000

Oslo’s given London a Christmas tree every year since 1947. Balthazar brought the little baby Jesus some gold. 27% of of men are hoping they’ll receive socks (according to TK Maxx). It’s All Happening want to go one better and bring you the ultimate festive gift – It’s All Happening: The Christmas Collection. Some of the best bands we’ve worked with this year, who have played the gig nights and generally delighted us all, have been lovely enough to donate tracks to our mixtape. Take a listen: it’s an absolute stonker, and like a puppy, not just for Christmas. Bet you wish you’d come to the gigs now hey?
Enjoy.
It’s All Happening: The Christmas Collection by It’s All Happening

Summersun – Ross & The Wrongens
Age Anti Age – The ID
Annika’s Song – Fievelwill
Tired of Being a Man – Killing Fields Of Ontario
Rocket Science – Cinemawave
Steal His Heart – Emily & The Woods
Aphrodite – Edit/Select
Plastic – Alphabet Backwards
Apes With Rollerskates – All Too Animal
Lion’s Throat – Barely Modern
Postcards To Strangers – Moustache Of Insanity
Soul and Substance – Peter Darling
In The Quiet – The Rifle Volunteer
Modern Hipster – Tracey’s Love
Truth Or Dare – ABI
Wired – Freak Static
Bonfires – Gunning For Tamar
Panic Don’t Panic – Secret Rivals
Joy – The Volitains
Heard It All Before – The Switch
She’s A Queen – Deadwax
Inuitses – Quadrilles
Rich and Famous – Lawrence Bray
Dancers In A Painting – Sugardrum
Burger Van Song – Rachel Sermanni
Taxi For Mr. Griffin – End Of Level Baddie

The Rock and Roll Circus – A Collection of Calamity Vol 3

admin — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 18:53:27 +0000

The Rock and Roll Circus, the crazily psychedelic recording studio in Leeds famed for its creative juice inducing decor has released its third compilation, the aptly named A Collection of Calamity Volume 3, a collection of tracks recorded his year in the hallucinogenic walls. From the sneeringly Stooge-eqsue Midnight by British Racing Green and Crrreep from the recklessly energetic Post War Glamour Girls, to glum pop band Men Only’s Bored Bored Bored and the ear crunching Turn it on Again that quakes from the guitars of Buffalo Bones, these fifteen tracks only reaffirm what everyone in West Yorkshire already knows – Leeds is where it is all happening.

Backyards – Heavy Handed 03:39

Moody Gowns – Nelson Skills 02:12

Men Only – Bored Bored Bored 01:56

Buffalo Bones – Turn it on Again 03:36

Black Water – Killer 04:32

Diehards Divide – Foul Weather Friend04:28

Indecisive Crisis – Mortgage Freeman01:57

Bearfoot Beware – Gerard Depardieu04:08

Honour Before Glory – TV-NO-TV 03:42

Post War Glamour Girls – Crrreep 04:29

Lovebites – Lust/Lust 04:49

Bear Mask – Shaky Ladders 03:58

Tsienna – Diskotek 04:49

British Racing Green – Midnight 03:24

Japanese Fighting Fish – Dry1 02:45

Tip Toe Records

admin — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:56:22 +0000

Francesca Baker

It’s hard to review a label compilation. Think of all the blood sweat and tears than goes into producing a song, then multiply this over tens of different bands. I feel pretty guilty that we can only offer a whistle stop tour, as with such low press numbers it will be pretty tough for you to get your hand son Top Toe’s complilation, but I take comfort in the fact that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed that tour.
Pertinent lyrics unite many of the songs on here, startling in their simplicity but acute relevance. The majority of the bands are Leeds based, with London, Nottingham and Cardiff representatives also popping up. A mixture of old (er) bands such as Just Handshakes (We’re British) and King Alexander as well as some so hot off the press they’re smoking bands, founder Dom Dean has succeeded in creating a coherent album that showcases the talent on Tip Toe’s books.
IAH have been fans of The Old Romantic Killer Band for a while now, and ‘The devil and me’ is a brilliant example of their dark and dramatic folky sound. They’re finding their way onto more playlists by the day, and will hopefully soon be revelling in some success.
There’s an element of summer on this record. Bear Driver’s swooshing cries in A Thousand Samurais is pure sunshine serotonin, albeit of a chilled nature, and the potentially familiar ‘Finger’ by Fists has a clash of sounds that unite to create a cocktail of Frank Turner blended with Justice, great for summer evenings.
The guys at Tip Toe seem to have a knack for picking out bands that overlay their simple beat with layers of vocals and capricious melodies that at once feel part of your soul yet startle your ears in their brilliance. Swimming’s ‘Catch the Currents’ rushes at a frantic speed that is reminiscent of the energy that Maximo Park once had. The constantly evolving and changing voice challenges the idea that the familiar feel that permeates the album has to mean domestic and boring.
Mid way though Negative Landscape offer their minimalist synths on the repetitive and hypnotic Ten. Whilst not my cup of decaff redbush tea, it does show that Tip Toe have more than one string to their bow and are evolving and innovating rather than sticking to one sound. The earthy prosaic charm of ‘Operation Daybreak’ by A the wonderfully named Just Handshakes (We’re British) song, lends an intimacy to the album, but the vocals are not strong, the female voice seeming slightly strained above the sometimes ska-y instrumentals.
The closing chords of Wolverine and the Beasts by Crayon would not sound out of place on Sgt Pepper, but the cries of ‘keep your head still’ evoke Electric Soft Parade. Out of the afternoon’s ‘This Ship Is Going Under’ is a raspy raw piece of indie with a sing along chorus that sounds like a band yearning for some excitement and release.
Dom Dean says that the bands signed to the label reflect his varying and eclectic music taste. Based on this compilation, I fancy a raid through his record collection. Constantly invigorating in an effortless fashion, the tracks on this latest compilation should give Tip Toe the shove to stride confidently into the spotlight.