Chain Of Flowers (left to right – S. Hunt, J. Smith, M. Clements, R. Clarke, D. Anderson, R. Jones)
Finally! They have released the album we have been waiting for. Too long have we listened to their phenomenal potential and watched, in awe, their tumultuous live sets but without anything to go away with to show our friends and demand they “Listen to this!”. Their self titled debutnot only does Chain Of Flowers proud, but now we have hard evidence to show off and ultimately celebrate.
These six friends from Cardiff are as grounded as a band of this talent can be, they will freely admit that they are just as euphoric to see Wales qualify for Euro 2016 as they are to release this record. Patriotic but universally minded, humble but with focused ambition – Chain Of Flowers have drawn upon their vast experience and endless influences to produce a genuinely magnificent album.
Released on Alter this first album proper was painstakingly constructed over the last few years via a process of trial and error but with a collective belief of exactly what the objective was. Chain Of Flowers have not had it easy despite building something of a cult following, and not only in South Wales. Singles such as Sleep had turned heads enough for them to support the likes of Eagulls, The Fall and Ceremony on UK tours.
Continuity in the line up and the resulting trust may account for the evident assertion that Chain display on this record. At no point do they compromise their sound or musical integrity, even though this is a debut album. Chain Of Flowers is overflowing with strong characters equally passionate about the music they make and the music that helps make them.
The artwork for the new Chain Of Flowers album
Chain Of Flowers cast a vast net over the waters of music and catch punk, shoe gaze, goth, indie and low-fi to take back to shore, yet this record is unconvoluted. It does not deviate from the blue print the opening track Nail Me To You Cross plans. These are a guitar band, a loud, unsympathetic guitar band and there is no quarter given in its entirety. Lead singer Joshua Smith epitomises self belief but he is sacrificial by allowing his undoubted vocal abilities to be almost diluted in order for the trademark guitar distortion to be at the forefront and for that the production should be applauded. So to the bands united direction.
Crisis is the awesome beauty of a natural disaster, Hunt’s thrusting guitars seem to unleash a gale force wind which the rest of the band follows on a jet stream but in contrast the narration from Smith wanders in the kingdom of humanity to give it that accessible punky edge. This is the sound of a band that dismiss what is marketable, instead relishing the opportunity to be classically different.
As the record lengthens, so do the songs. Death’s Got A Hold Of Me sparks out from an I.E.D unnoticed, Jones and Hunt take turns in worsening the explosive catastrophe of noise as Smith holds the wire ensuring the helium bomb stays within the stratosphere. In Glimmers Of Joy we recognise Echo And The Bunnymen or Public Image Limited while Bury My Love sees Smith take on Julian Cope form after Clarkes untamed but reliable drums form out of a Brian Jonestown Massacre hum.
As dank as the atmosphere Chain Of Flowers create is, the soaring repetitive riffs ignore the notion of bleakness. Anderson’s bass controls the majority of Colour/Blind as tempo swaps and switches until Hunt takes the track to that cloud level once again. The scene is set for Josh Smith to bury himself into the thick fog of noise and resonate his poetry from deep inside.
Drained restrains itself in making its own statement, Ross Jones’ part must not be under appreciated in what is the best track on the record. Suddenly everything is simplified, Jones brutal rhythm clears the floor for, first Smith to echo his sermon in a dreamy Bradford Cox like lecture; and then Hunt and Jones to clash out amongst the heavenly piano chords that linger formidably.
Chain Of Flowers prove with this album that time does wait for everyman and everyman will take time to be worth waiting for.
Everybody should go and see The Fall as only afterwards can you accurately assess to what degree you will be hooked. The predictable unpredictability of Mark E. Smith requires you to turn up just to see if he does the same or not. If he does, then what is he going to do? The world of rock and roll has eccentric characters, and then, there is Mark E. Smith.
The Fall’s fans are true, and once caught in the bands net there is no escape. These same loyal lot will have witnessed both the worst and the best of the band over the last 35 years and they will keep coming back, as long as there is breath in their lungs. Smith’s lungs may be inevitably failing but their unmistakable sound and prolific output is as exciting as it always has been. Just listen to The Fall’s recent releases such as Ersatz GB and Your Future Our Clutter to name but a few.
Local indie/punk outfit Chain Of Flowers proved more than a worthy opener as the old faithful, gradually gathered in The Globe. With a brand new set list, Cardiff’s talented band of brooding punks oozed confidence and power from the outset with new single Nail Me To Your Cross. Singer Josh Smith leaves little in the locker as he twists and turns around his microphone wire, and in Crisis his commitment to performance is equalled by his slicing romantic lyrics.
With usual drummer Rich Clarke state-side, stand in drummer Josh Day only had a fortnight to practice the parts but anchored the band brilliantly, with all things considered. Chain Of Flowers have supported Eagulls on a UK tour and it is clear to see that that experience is manifesting itself in the bands song writing.
Cardiff’s Chain Of Flowers
Guitarist’s – Sam Hunt and Ross Jones styles couldn’t be more contrasting. By ear and by eye, they are total opposites stood side by side. Another new track Glimmers Of Joy roars to cataclysmic crescendo but Jones is unmoved, staring blankly towards a ghost he sees at the back of the bar. Hunt is oblivious to his partners catatonic state as he is visibly consumed by the sounds attacking him from the wood he yields. Bury My Love brings an end to a set that should alert all present to the potential of this band.
The time had reached 22:20 and the tightly packed crowd clearly feared the worst, a slightly controlled raucousness steadily fizzed to a certain ‘unsteady’. After 15 minutes of the band’s intro and then re-intro and so on, the keyboard player and wife of the main man huffed and sighed and left the stage. Elena Poulou (Now Smith) strode up the stuffed stairwell towards the Globe’s upstairs bar. She returned a minute or so later with Mark in tow. She lead him back down and a round to the stage door and that was the starting gun. It may have been a false start however, the band sunk straight into My Door Is Never but still no Mark E. Smith. His grunts and slurs drifted over the Globe as a faceless taunt. And then, Mark E was there. He staggered on, stopping to acknowledge each of his players one by one. What mood would he be in tonight? He looked content enough, not well, but not ill, more like a drunk uncle at a wedding.
Smith wandered the boards with some kind of scrappy manual clutched under his arm only to brandish the tatty, scribbled on pages at random intervals like a threatening school master. It is amazing to think how a band with little or no continuity, at least until recently, can maintain a sound signature that completely different members made their own decades before. The relentless rhythm was born in punk and matured in new wave, throughout indie and then Madchester the beat was constant. Tonight the beat was felt in the bones, bass and drum sending shock waves through all physiologies present. Hittite Man (From Re-mit)and Junger Cloth (Sub Lingual Tablet)saw Smith’s blue suit going a darker shade as the heat built. Barely looking up from his laces, Smith exited and re-entered the stage via the door to the right as if carrying out an inventory of the venue.
Mark E. Smith with his harmonica
It was Theme From Sparta F.C that sparked a standing room only scrum of seasoned punksters, the hardened out of the 50,000 Fall fans (that can’t be wrong) seized upon the first tune in the set list not released in the last ten years to surge with venomous intent. It may be due to lack of shelf space that the longer serving supporters were not as familiar with the latest of The Fall’s prolific output which accounted for the overwhelming majority of the material tonight.
The Fall are forever influential but always inimitable and it shows when after 20 or so albums they still produce such marvels as Your Future Our Clutter from which Weather Report 2 comes; Wolf Kidult Man from the incredible Imperial Wax Solvent, but most tunes were brand new from this years Sub Lingual Tablet. The Globe cut the aura of a furnace by the time the stand out Sir William Wray from 2013’s Re-Mit formed a rotunda of vicious bass. Mark E. Smith ducked and dived through the final few never letting up on his over-emphasis of last syllable drawl like an MC from the centre of a boxing ring.
White Lightning was the last of a set that seemed to flow like a sulphuric river. If any other band of such a prolific back catalogue lasted less than this hour and twenty, many would feel aggrieved but based on the prior anxiety, all present went away feeling they cheated history and witnessed the best of The Fall.
In a golden era for Scottish Indie music, yet another Glasgow band have stepped out of the shadows, casting a soul shattering spell on, not just the UK audiences, but far beyond. The Twilight Sad have recently returned from the U.S leg of a far reaching tour, which has seen them grip new audiences straddling both sides of the Atlantic and deep into Europe.
Quiffed Owl spoke with Twilight Sad lead singer James Alexander Graham about their travels, their latest album and the hero who has delighted him by covering one of his songs.
QUIFFED OWL:
Your album Nobody Wants To Be Here And Nobody Wants To Leave has been critically acclaimed, not to mention making it to number 2 in Quiffed Owl’s albums of the year in 2014. If anything, what did you do differently this time, compared to previous albums?
JAMES GRAHAM:
Each album we have made is a snapshot of who we are and I am proud of every single record that we have done. With this record, I think there was a lot more pressure this time because the band may not have existed if the record didn’t do as well as it has done.
QO:
Do you think it was that imperative? Was it make or break with Nobody Wants To Be Here And Nobody Wants To Leave?
JG:
I think it was yeah. We wouldn’t be able to tour or put as much into it if people didn’t embrace it as much. We have been doing it for 7 to 10 years and we have not made any money out of it but it’s not about that, if it was we would have split up years ago. We would have compromised everything and we wouldn’t have been who we are.
QO:
And we have seen that happen too many times..
JG:
It’s not even that, the band have slowly grown and it got to the point that we were really happy with the last album, it received really good reviews but it got to the point we felt like we were shouting up against a brick wall. I don’t know whether it was industry stuff or what but it wasn’t through the lack of our trying because everybody in the band believe in what we are doing. There are no doubts about- Do we want to do this? What the fuck else would we do if we didn’t do it?
There was a moment when we contemplated that this might be our last ever record.
QO:
At what point did you think that?
JG:
I actually thought that before I even started writing it.
QO:
Did that put extra pressure on the writing of it?
JG:
It possibly did subconsciously, aye.
It didn’t affect the songs because the third album was more electronic and we always wanted to kind of ‘open up’ after that. It was all about the band progressing and not really caring about what anybody else thought. It was a matter of just caring about what we were doing and that was all that mattered, even with this record. But, in my mind I thought this could be the last one we ever did because if it didn’t work out it would probably break my heart and i’d never write again.
QO:
So it was a really personal and emotional thing for you?
JG:
Yes. It was like…I might not have the chance to make another one.
I mean, after I went away and did a proper job working on building sites and what have you. I know what hard work is like but I have always worked harder for this band although I made a lot more money doing the other stuff.
We were all aware of the importance of this record, although myself and Andy never actually spoke about it. ‘Make or break’ is probably a bit strong because me and Andy would still write together because that is what we love, thats what we do. To do it full time though,…and tour. I don’t think it would have happened.
QO:
But now?
JG:
It has inspired us to make more records. I never doubted the people who believed in us or bought our records, but when you are playing to small rooms and the shows are nowhere near sold out, you think “Do people really like this?”, but I am ashamed to have ever thought that given the loyalty of our fans and the success of this album (Nobody Wants To Be Here And Nobody Wants To Leave).
The most important thing is that we see a progression in what we do and not concentrate on the outside world.
The five of us are best friends and we are out there playing music together. That is the most important thing and to see it grow is brilliant. But it has naturally grown, through word of mouth not promotion and people talking about us to each other.
We would never have played to 800 people in London last night or had our New York and Chicago shows sold out, or the Seattle show being sold out. I am not saying we are a big band but the numbers of people coming to see us show that people give a shit about what we do.
James Graham – giving all he has got on stage
QO: You mentioned your shows in the U.S, How have the American audiences taken to your style of Indie music, bearing in mind it is quite bleak and dark?
JG: The thing is, we started over there. Our American label put out a 5 track EP which was the first thing we ever did. Then they sent us over to do a big festival with CMJ in New York and then to mix our record in Conneticut. That meant we could tour and every Sunday go back and check on the mixing of our record.
We hadn’t played a gig in Edinburgh at that point yet we had played New York, Philadelphia, Chicago and there would be 100 people coming to see us every night. Nobody knew who the fuck we were in Britain but because we put out that EP in America, it was the opposite.
QO: How many times have you toured America, because you’ve been there twice since November?
JG: Fifteen times. There is something about our music that really connects with American people.
I know the music is miserable but there is something about it that is strangely uplifting. I think they like the fact that the music is honest, that could be the same for any country actually but a number of Americans have heritage stemming back to Scotland. They may not understand all of the lyrics but they understand the passion that is coming through in the music.
I wear my heart on my sleeve and I am not afraid to show emotions. Other bands might think that’s not cool but I don’t care. It’s all about the feeling. Even if you think “Oh fuck, Iv’e been a bit of a fanny tonight and gone too mental”, I just genuinely express my passion in the music and in my performance.
A Happy Twilight Sad and Quiffed Owl
QO: A lot of your song titles…
JG: Fucking long aren’t they?
QO: Now you are just walking over my questions James. Yes, they contain a lot of prose but they also have a sinister edge to them. Is that something you do to try and mirror the darkness of the music?
JG: What I find interesting is that I write my lyrics and my melodies. Andy writes the music and is the producer of the band. But, I find it really hard to name a song, because I have put so much into it, so Andy has actually named most of the songs.
QO: Do you think that is out of exhaustion?
JG: No. I think it is because I am too close to it. I have to detach myself from the song after putting so much into it. I will say that Andy hits the nail on the head with the song titles though.
Andy always gets where I am coming from. I filter my lyrics through him so he is actively involved in every way but very rarely would he tell me that a particular lyric or line doesn’t work. He is sort of my editor but my mate.
Many of the song titles are quotes from films, which you’ve probably noticed.
QO: Your lyrics aside, the power and the resonance in the notes that you hit assure your vocals are extremely emotive, especially with how atmospheric and cinematic the music is. You mentioned before – “the music is miserable”, I would argue it is bleak and dark but far from miserable because it is beautiful.
JG: I agree there is something very uplifting about it and there is a difference between miserable and sinister. We have been at festivals with other bands or touring with them and they are all happy and up beat on stage and they come off stage and they are miserable bastards.
We get it all out of our systems on stage and when we are writing. So we just have a right laugh on tour. We have our moments but I bet if you ask Mogwai and other bands that we have been on tour with they will say that they have had more fun when on tour with us.
QO: And that is why you are doing it in the first place I would imagine?
JG: Of course it is, it is a privilege to do what we do. 10 weeks of touring is like group therapy because I can get off my chest stuff you can’t talk about in real life. We believe in everything we do.
QO: Tell me about the Robert Smith (The Cure) thing?
JG: Aye, Robert Smith of The Cure has covered There Is A Girl In The Corner, the first song off our new record and that is a double A side. I will play you that now (Plays song from his phone).
I cannot believe that The Cure like our band, it’s fucking mental.
The Cure and The Smiths are my biggest influences. I love the Smiths, I have actually done a few sessions with Mike Joyce, he’s a really nice bloke. The Cure to me though, progressively are a band that have always tried new things.
QO: On a personal level, who has influenced your vocals do you think?
JG: For me, I would say Arab Strap and now – Aidan Moffat is one of my best friends.
He is releasing a film shortly and Andy and I are doing backing vocals on it. We have toured the Islands with him and when we go home we go to the cinema and pub together. It’s surreal sometimes to think about it, that the guy who inspired me to do what I do now is one of my best friends.
Aidan and Malcolm Middleton laid the path for countless Scottish acts. They are both lyrically phenomenal but when this film comes out people will see what a genius and funny fucking bastard he is.
QO: Finally, you recently did a short tour of UK independent record shops. Why was that?
JG: We think it is important to support local and independent record stores. As you know with your last article on Record Store Day.
QO: In your opinion what is important about them and what can they do to survive?
JG: Well, it is an experience to shop in these places. There was one in Aberdeen that closed down, they got everything right but it just didn’t work because people didn’t go in.
I think like in Pie and Vinyl in Portsmouth they have made the store appealing and interesting. By selling food and music you are appealing to people to go on in and have a look. Those with the passion, the best ones will survive. We went to Spillers in Cardiff, unfortunately we didn’t make it to Diverse in Newport but we were really glad we did that tour. It was a lot of fun and we got a lot of people through the doors.
Record Store Day was born in the U.S.A in 2007 as a celebration of the importance of independent record stores and labels, and their vital role in the music industry. The UK and the rest of the world soon followed suit, elevating it to a universally accepted institution.
This year, Record Store Day has reached a new peak in popularity, having become a huge global event in which the fruits of its commercial success arguably cloud the essence of its original vision. The intrusion of large record labels and brands who have piggy-backed the day, has paradoxically cast many of the smaller independent stores back into the shadows.
Quiffed Owl paid a visit to a few independent record stores spread across Bristol and Newport. Despite only being separated by the River Severn, the affluence in their financial and commercial climates are far wider than the estuary that flows between them. But what affect does this have on record sales and buying habits in the respective locations? And has Record Store Day had any significant impact on, not only improving vinyl sales, but encouraging independent stores and labels to blossom as a result?
Stokes Croft at the end of Gloucester Road is adorned with street art including infamous Banksy murals.
Just by strolling down the infamous Gloucester Road and Stokes Croft, a pocket of Bristol adorned with pioneering and world acclaimed Street Art (including infamous Banksy murals), it is immediately apparent that every café, bar and independent shop or boutique has more than a steady flow of punters streaming in and out and back again. By no means is it an affluent area in relative terms, however it is self sufficient and culturally vibrant, attracting students, bohemia and hipsters alike.
Quiffed Owl spoke with Chris Farrell of Idle Hands about what Record Store Day meant to them as an independent store. Idle Hands is predominantly a dance music outlet and therefore its experience of Record Store Day is slightly different to less specialised stores. “Whatever negative aspects there are about Record Store Day, it has popularised vinyl. With added exposure within broadsheets and music media every few months, it has contributed to people buying records again”.
Chris Farrell of Idle Hands can identify both the pros and cons of RSD. As a label owner he can see the effects from both sides. “The shop side of RSD is great, it’s a lovely day and lots of people pass through including people who don’t necessarily come in here usually, so I would be stupid if I slagged off that part of it. But as a record label owner, there are some issues i’ve encountered. I run two small underground labels and have been putting out records for about 7 years. I have noticed that some of the releases and exclusives the major labels are pushing clog up the plant for months on end. That means that for the people like me, who press records all year round and have supported the industry when no one was interested in vinyl, have been marginalised. That negatively affects our release schedules – you can have a lot of money tied up in two or three releases that can’t be released and momentum is lost. Some of the bigger labels releases are quite unnecessary, we are not talking about stuff that’s rare but reissues of records that you can find anywhere for about 20p. So why that has got to be released now? I just don’t know”.
Idle Hands is in Stokes Croft, amongst the glutton of street art and in the cultural hub of the area.
As a label owner, Chris Farrell does feel some frustration towards the prioritisation of certain releases on Record Store Day. “It is frustrating for us, as a label and a shop, when we are trying to push new music and the system is clogged up with endless Led Zepplin reissues. There are countless things like that out there anyway”.
He goes on to say, “on one hand, RSD is great because it helps us as a business and raises the profile of independent stores like us. But as a label it is frustrating because the majors have more power, so no matter how much work we do in trying to attract everything around the promotion of our records and label, even early on we seem to get put on the back shelf and drowned out by the major releases”.
Chris Farrell of Idle Hands Records
Idle Hands are a dance music specialist and although RSD essentially ignored that area of music in the early years, it has recently included more genres. However, Farrell points out that RSD is still “A rock orientated initiative”.
Back over the Severn in Newport, DJ and label owner Paul Blandford of Deathproof fondly remembers having to go to Cardiff to buy his house and techno records in Catapult, now sadly a distant memory. “I used to go there especially, even before I was a DJ. It was a social thing as well, me and a few mates would get on the train and go to Cardiff. We would spend more than an hour in there – I would go for house and techno but look at anything from Break Beat to Drum and Bass”.
Currently, there are no dance music stores in Newport which demonstrates one of many contrasts between Bristol and Newport’s socio-economic situation. While the English city appears unaffected by the recession, with rising house prices and buzzing high streets both day and night, Newport is languishing far behind.
Newport relied heavily on its steel industry which has all but disappeared. In the valleys running north, the coal industry died out under Thatcher’s government. Since then, business and investment into the area has been at a minimum, and those who did relocate to Newport like LG Electronics, have packed up and moved on.
In 2010 golf’s prestigious ‘Ryder Cup’ was hosted at The Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, bringing thousands of spectators from across The Atlantic. Instead of enticing new business opportunities for the City, Newport served as a warning for what ‘small town America’ might become, documented in an article by The Washington Post. In this piece, writer Anthony Faiola uses Newport as an example of a town that has already fallen over ‘The Fiscal Cliff’. Faiola writes:
‘Consider this hard-hit Welsh city in western Britain, where the shopping district is a shadow of its former self. A litany of chain stores and mom-and-pop shops have gone bust or moved, sending the vacancy rate soaring from 15.7 percent in mid-2010 to nearly 30 percent today.’
This does not mean Newport is devoid of taste and culture. Notorious for its history of music, the city still celebrates in showcasing its talented acts; particularly in Lepub, a highly respected venue that is vital to Newport’s cultural community.
Diverse Music in Newport is run by Paul Hawkins and Matt Jarrett
For over 20 years Diverse Music has remained prominently independent and served Newport’s music lovers throughout the hard times. But Diverse is a beacon for vinyl collectors far beyond the boundaries of the city. This record store and its online mail order has specialized to cope with past recessions and the ‘Spotify’ generation.
Quiffed Owl spoke to Matt Jarrett who co-owns Diverse with Paul Hawkins. We asked Matt if he had noticed a growth in sales of vinyl records since RSD began, and if so, did he think that it was a direct result?
“Yes and no’, he replied. ‘We always stuck with vinyl, especially online, so we didn’t jump on any kind of bandwagon once it started. All that happened was that we had more competition. That said, RSD raised the profile of vinyl and I am sure a lot of our younger customers who are now shop regulars have been influenced in their buying habits by the media reporting on Record Store Day and vinyl sales in general”.
We were interested to know whether he thought RSD had helped or hindered Diverse as an independent business.
“I am not sure it has done either. It’s a great day but all the customers see is the end product. The weeks before are frantic with the guess work that is stock ordering, receiving stock, and the constant enquiries about what stock is coming in when we don’t even know ourselves. 750 odd units to be released on one day for a small shop is a huge amount of work and that doesn’t take into account the backlog of emails and normal stock orders. It can be a massive pain in the arse”.
There are certain myths surrounding RSD which Matt points out are not necessarily true. “Record Store Day is a fantastic day with live music and the music community coming together, but it is by far the busiest day of the year for us and people seem to think we make loads of money but we don’t. We can’t return anything and a lot of the stock is stuck in the racks. It’s great for customers but can be immensely frustrating for shop owners”.
Goldie Lookin Chain’s Billy Webb supporting Record Store Day @ Diverse Music
Although the general consensus amongst the store owners we spoke to was that RSD is a fundamentally a good thing, there are difficulties that can be thrown up. An excellent article by Eric Harvey in Pitchfork argues that the biggest labels, artists and brands have essentially hijacked RSD using its notoriety and publicity to promote their products. Harvey sees this as crass exploitation of a concept and initiative introduced to negate this and support the opposite.
Adrian Dutt of Bristol’s Rise Records and owner of Howling Owl record label (of which fellow Rise employee and critically acclaimed musician Oliver Wilde is signed to) shares elements of that theory.
He expresses to Quiffed Owl that, “This year there has been a backlash from labels, complaining they can’t get the records out because of the pressing getting clogged up.”
Adrian then refers to his band and the label he runs, Howling Owl.
“If I didn’t work here (Rise), we wouldn’t have much chance to stock our releases it in any shops (On RSD).”
“We support smaller labels but we have found that the day is being taken over by major labels just re-issuing old stuff. Hiking the prices up and getting away with charging those prices on one day, they normally wouldn’t be able to get away with this”.
“It’s an amazing day, I love it, its so good for our shop and others but it does seem to be slightly losing its way.”
Adrian Dutt and Oliver Wilde then explain an interesting idea that Howling Owlhas come up with to try and stem the one sided tide of the major labels and bring back RSD’s magic.
“We have started this thing where we put a record out on our label with 1 copy a day for however long. You can only get 1 copy, for 1 day, all over the world. We give them to shops for free and they sell it and make the money from it. We will also be leaving some lying around in weird places. It is an attempt to engage people in a different way. It’s a bit of fun. It’s good because we have people like the Guardian on side – not that there are any sides – but the idea has taken off.”
Adrian reiterates what Chris Farrell of Idle Hands had previously alluded to.
“We are a small indie label (Howling Owl) and it’s hard enough to press records because we haven’t got much money. But when everything is so clogged up and our releases are put on hold or delayed because of re issues, we haemorrhage money. The press plants are being cash cowed by major labels who swing influence. A lot of shops feel the same way. Some don’t want to be involved this year but can’t afford not to.”
Matt Jarrett of Diverse highlights some interesting points in relation to the commercialism of RSD and if it has achieved its objective.
“I think its has achieved its aim in getting people back into record shops. Over the last 3 years it has been slowly evolving into something major labels can capitalise on. They take a lot of flack from the indie’s but I think the majors get it right on RSD. They release quirky picture discs, novelty shaped vinyl covers, split 7 inches. I think that is what RSD should be about. Releasing exclusive and interesting products that wouldn’t be available for the rest of the year”.
We spoke to Olver Wilde, Adrian Dutt and Seb Newton of Rise Records
There are certainly enough opinions from the front line to add weight to the argument that RSD is being slowly taken over by the powers in form of major record labels and artists. There is no doubt, however, that RSD has raised the profile of vinyl and music in the independent sector, as Seb Newton of Rise tells us, “There has been a huge surge in sales over the last couple of years. In 2007 it was a much smaller event, since then it has grown exponentially”.
When asked if RSD was the sole reason for the growth in sales and popularity of vinyl, Seb suggests there are other contributing factors. “It has become quite a fashionable thing. There has also been a retaliation towards digital music and people seem to like the physical copy, personally I think it sounds better”.
Rise, like Diverse provide in store entertainments particularly showcasing local talent. Oliver Wilde reels off a list of bands and acts from the Bristol area who would play in store, many connected to Howling Owl. Across the board, the day is seen as exciting and generally positive, where music lovers, regulars and more often than not, annual shoppers can come together and enjoy the music they love and search the racks for that special release.
No matter which side of The Severn you may sit, RSD is for everyone who loves music. Despite the recent backlash against the perceived exploitation, it is contributing to improving sales in both cities.
Matt Jarrett offers some advice for RSD to refresh itself so, “People can get behind it again.. perhaps it needs a year off to re-think itself?”
The vast space in Bristol’s Start The Bus is reserved mainly for the bar area so the bands audiences are forced to huddle together into the far dark corner of the building but that did not deter those who came to see Basingstoke’s Habitats.
A gaggle of smiley people surrounded the small stage, drinks in hand and hips nice and loose, already shaking to the jaunty funk-indie that met them. The band may well have been equally as ‘Cheshire’ as the crowd but one could not confirm this due to the masking of the mouths by the obligatory hipster beards adorning them.
Habitats released their Diamond Days EP on February 9th via their record label Club Fandango and have taken to the road to promote it. As is the case nowadays, they have received airplay on the ever supportive BBC courtesy of Huw Stevens and Steve Lamacq and they have supported the likes of Tennis.
The four hairy young men masquerading as primitive beasts in their variety of facial whiskers, contently bounced into the ecosystem of twiddly, indie funk to which they had given birth. The songs are joyous and fundamentally fun, they visibly rejoice in the music they make and the music they make is gloriously uplifting, especially amidst a well oiled mid-Friday evening in the best city for music in the UK.
Habitats are from Basingstoke via London
If a band does not offer something new or push the odd boundary, that is no crime in music, unless the artist claims that they do. Habitats make no such claim. That is just as well because they are the musical image of Oxford indie outfit Foals. To achieve that however, it is essential that the musicianship and song writing is strong enough to draw those comparisons. Habitats seem to have talent enough in both fields. The first impression of the band when entering the venue was an expectancy to have fun.
The band started the set with Should Know Better followed by Turn Down The Sun before the EP title track – Diamond Days. The latter in particular is a smooth ascending song, inter weaving busy bass and reoccurring jangling guitar grooves. As well as the obvious Foals similarity, one can also recognise Two Door Cinema Club like guitars enhancing the party vibe. They saved the best to last as the moving bodies, scattering the floor welcomed Jungles.
And so, we were sent out into Bristol’s cloak of darkness humming Foals favourites. Perhaps that is something this perfectly capable group should be wary of if they are to give life to their own habitat of up tempo indie.
“Everybody wants to be famous”, spits LUVV‘s lead singer Matthew Short, like a can of mace, he sprays his vocal attack from the fortress of distortion that cocoons him. By just listening to Nothing it is quite clear that the five-piece, post punk outfit from Cardiff couldn’t give a toss if they were famous or not.
This is music made by a band who are not bound by the shackles of pressured restraint and that is true of all of the music made under the banner of LUVV so far. Along with Chain Of Flowers (Of which guitarist Sam Hunt and drummer Rich Clarke are also members), LUVV are arguably the most exciting and promising band in the South Wales area.
This track has been streamed free of charge by the band on Soundcloud and has a video to accompany it, made by Phillip Jenkins. Both sum up the qualities of LUVV as accurately as any fan could have hoped for.
Nothing is, like the band; an unpolished polymer of industrial angst that levitates above and around. Untamed but always in control, drummer Rich Clarke changes seamlessly through the gears to lead the powerhouse to come. As expected with LUVV, the bleakness clutches at you like an unseen spiders web, yet it is eerily joyous simultaneously, like sunlight strobing through dark forest thickets. This is mainly attributed to Sam Hunt’s soaring and spiralling guitar riffs and flourishes that hurtle upwards and keep rising.
It is the lead singer who is the ultimate object of curiosity and wonder. Matthew Short is originally from Carmarthen in West Wales but his appearance confirms he is of Italian stock and that is where the orthodox ends. Fed strictly on a diet of salami and potato-croquette’s, his black cloaked, slight frame pinballs back and for when playing live. Recently released of the constraints of rhythm guitar (Due to the addition of Iwan Heneghan), Short can concentrate fully on his writing, his lyrics and his performance that is always irresistibly hypnotizing.
The post-punk power is entwined with a Jesus And The Mary Chain like indie, which is executed with genuine passion and commitment. Whether it be Ben Mainwaring’s disciplined, driving bass lines or Shorts scalding vocal intent; LUVV need the limelight. They deserve it. Not for their sake but for ours.
Quiffed Owl 