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InfamousT |
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Location: London
Prev. Posts: 1,972
Status: Offline |
The 'T' Room # 2
...i lounge in phlegmatic fashion, cossetted amongst the brocade scatter cusions, propped up by a languid elbow on an exquisite organza ottoman, my velveteen leotard shimmers in the half-light of the lava-lamps, a Meerschaum pipe pokes provocatively from the side of my quizzical grimace, it's bowl utterly stuffed with 'Bosun' cut plug...
...i candidly view old Ma Wackrill desperately endevouring to tempt Kevin the fruit bat back to his perch with a large slice of Rambutan as Marvin the midget gimp chortles merrily from behind his ball-gag...
...such japes are the stuff of memories... and with a commanding slap of my thigh, i announce that it is now time to open the doors and invite in the guests...
...the chips zoom hither and thither, delicately placing condiments about the tables and i crank up the amplifier in anticipation of this weeks intake...
kicking us off and into a veritable Oktoberfest of sonorousness are those champion chaps...
OPUS BRIDGE
...an exemplary arrival to the site heralds these newcomers in the fact that with minimal vote-whoring on the forums they have garnered for themselves a quite astonishing 88 votes at the time of writing... landing them at number 13 in the charts....
......hmmmmmm - unlucky for some.....
but not for these guys!
...the autoplay kicks in and denies me the pleasure of perusing, but i like that - especially when the band are providing such an excellent referance point as to where they are collectively comin' from...
the track in question....?
HARD SURFACE VERSION
...this commences with a rather 80's vibe - a somwhat funky souding ulta-verbed guitar picks out a pleasing little lick that bounces off into the distance aided by a touch of delay - reminiscent of something - but i cannot quite place it...
...drums, bass and vocals arrive simultaneously - the vox urgent, conspiratorial... are we being let in on a secret here...? we are then treated to the rather pleasantly jarring appearance of a kinda new-romanticy bridge by way of a breakdown and when the chorus is unleashed the space created by the dynamics is explosively filled with a considerable upping of the decibel stakes...
...this chap, Gabriel Wolf, can't half warble - i tell you! there's REAL passion in his voice, and that is augmented with some stirling performances across the board, special mention in particular to Sean Rose on drums, who powers his way through the track displaying a deftness of touch that allows for a consistent upping of the ante... so many bands miss the trick of dynamics - starting out at full pelt and leaving themselves nowhere to go... not here! Nick Power on bass backs up proceedings in stalwart rock-solid fashion, and after a rather 'tribal' breakdown, a fine chunky slab of guitar solo mayhem, courtesy of Tim Frudenberg, positively thrusts its way from the speakers and fills the room with all manner of foot-on-monitor allusions to arena performances to come....
...these guys have the full package - from yer actual rock-star names, to a powerhouse performance of a track that, though it borrows stylisticly from many sources doesn't QUITE sound like anything else....
...so, that secret we were being let in on...?
it's simply this:
Opus Bridge have arrived - and in some style toboot!
PROFILE : Opus Bridge
...i dab away the beads of perspiriation that have appeared on my brow having intoduced myself to the aforementioned bands sonic delights - and with a steaming cauldron of Lapsang Souchong infront of me i quickly turn my attention to the next on the list...
...ah those old votemongers...
+ 48 VOLTS
....there's a peculiar little track pops up from nowhere on the old autoplay, but i really cannot make head nor tail of it - sounds a little like all the band members are playing different tunes...hmmmmm, not my proverbial cuppa, so i plump for :
TAKE CONTROL
this track once again simply arrives with no preamble whatsoever... i think Mr. Phantom Powers is a fully paid up member of the 'Anti-Intro League'...
...it lands - like a cartoon anvil on ones head - from nowhere... there's a healthy grindcore feel to the growling guitars, and the suitably gutteral vocal entices us to :
"...take control and redfine your rock'n'roll..."
...at only one minute fourty, this is somewhat akin to waking up with an early morning alarm mallet to the face...
short - sharp - shocking...
...and another fine example of the voltaged ones ongoing exploration of styles that leaves them utterly unpigeonholeable... i suppose i'll be seein' them again next week, so i eagerly move onto fresher meat...
PROFILE : +48volts
....i seem to have suffered a touch of chaffing due to flinging myself about the room in response to the previous track, so i have decided to opt for the relative comfort of my corduroy doublet and seersucker smock, which afords Marvin greater access to my nethers and facilitates in the application of my favorite brand of foul smelling linament...
not one to be disheartened by a little smarting - quite the opposite in fact... i rush headlong toward the next artist on the agenda...
NEW YORK CRIBS
YOUR FIRST TIME
... a strange lo-fi combination of a classic 'bontempi' stylee drum machine overlayed with delicate acoustic guitars, gives way to some single finger 'hammond' as the bontempi organ drum machine offers up handclappy stylings whilst people mumble in the background and the sound of taperecorders being paused and unpaused clunks it's way out of the left hand channel...
...then we are back to the guitary bits again...
all VERY strange.. there's no real 'song' here, and what is offered up by way of an arrangement is certainly not in any kind of traditional style that i have ever come across, but reminds me of my earliest experimentations with bouncing tracks from one 'cassette recorder' to another...
...if this is what was intended - then it is VERY off the wall - avante gard in the extreme - but somehow i suspect not...
...if this had been an attempt of mine - i might very well have marked it for personal consumption only.
PROFILE : New York Cribs
HARUMPH....must try and recover the mood here and as i look into the enquiring eyes of the chimps from behind thier 'El Diablo' wrestler masks, i move hurredly along to the next artist...
ROSERED
JUST A GLIMMER
....now Rosered has a quite pleasant lilt to her voice - but it's a tad strained on occassion, and though she tells us at one point that she has a thousand melodies running through her mind, i am afraid that there's little evidence of that here, as the song consists of simply a single chord progression that repeats itself over and and over and over again...there is the pleasant addition of a 'cello in the 'chorus' sections and the whole track does have a rustic folksy quality... i'm sure that there is potential here, but some more seriously hard work needs to go into the investigation of structure and form, as this can only really be described as a starting point - there's a good song in there somwhere, and perhaps with dilligence and a little more experience then young Rosered my discover the knack of stringing two or three of her initial attempts together into a fully rounded piece... as i am afraid that at the moment it all sounds just TOO niave... though kinda charming...
PROFILE : Rosered
...as things draw to a close and the assembled glitterati mill about the great hall - my thoughts turn toward my afternoon appointment with my beauty consultant Gertrude, one of the hairiest women that one is ever likely to meet - today she shall be beaching my sphincter - as is the norm in California these days... and triming the downy carpet of my buttocks into a pleasing heart shape... which she assures me will be ALL the rage for next spring....
...our final sonic delectation this morning comes in the form of...
CLEAR BLUE SKIES
I
...this has an excellently authentic deep-south bluegrass figerpickin' style that sits refreshingly atop a quite straightforward poppy rock beat...
...now whilst i am all in favour of a touch of judicious hyperbole when describing oneselves to a potential public - i would warn against self description of the ilk of :
"...awesome vocalist, Derek Allan "
...as that is a purely a subjective matter - and though this is well sung and well played - regardless of intrinsic talent - one sets oneself up to be shot down in flames by the unflattering amongst us... not me, of course...
...this track is nicely recorded and moves along with a certain grace aforded by the skilfully picked acoustic, theres a quite uplifting break into the chorus that makes good use of the added texture of a harmonica off in the distance... these guys are from the North East of England - but do sound much more American than thier location would initially indicate...
...there's a kinda Prefab Sprouty feel to the progression in the chorus that is hooky enough to remain in the mind after the song has finnished, and at around 4:20 it's not overlong...
...al in all a nice melding of styles and textures that definately combine to make something rather original sounding - and i for one applaude that!
PROFILE : Clear Blue Skies
...well chaps'n'chapettes, that's it for now, and as i watch my patrons meander off down the gravel drive towards the massive wrought iron gates - decked out in a rather spectacular covering of bright purple hammerite, it only remains for me to bid you all a fond fare thee well for another week....
...so, 'till then - remember to get those votes rolling in!
TOODLE PIP!
'T'
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| Posted: 02-10-2005 12:59 PM
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InfamousT |
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Location: London
Prev. Posts: 1,972
Status: Offline |
OOOOHHHHH - now THERE's a rarity....
no comment!
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| Posted: 20-5-2008 9:10 AM
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UKB Office |
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Location: London
Prev. Posts: 0
Status: Offline |
wonder what happened to them?
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| Posted: 23-5-2008 9:38 PM
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Alphapro Audio |
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Location: London
Prev. Posts: 146
Status: Offline |
Most of the bands are still going strong but since this site went pear-shaped (I feel an edited post coming) they've all gone off to pastures new.
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| Posted: 30-5-2008 5:41 PM
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InfamousT |
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Location: London
Prev. Posts: 1,972
Status: Offline |
indeed 'tis a shame....
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| Posted: 31-5-2008 11:50 AM
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Alphapro Audio |
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Location: London
Prev. Posts: 146
Status: Offline |
As far as I remember this forum was a great place to hang out & chat to bands. There were lots of people willing to help other less experienced bands. It's a shame it's taken so long to get back on track but if anyone can help it along I'm sure Tarquin can (unless I've misunderstood what you wrote).
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| Posted: 02-6-2008 1:55 PM
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InfamousT |
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Location: London
Prev. Posts: 1,972
Status: Offline |
well..... whilst i'm not - in any way whatsoever, actually involved in UKBands, here's my two penneth worth:
I know John personally, over the course of many, MANY, (and often lengthy) telephone conversations and have had the pleasure of meeting him in the flesh on a couple of occassions - and can vouch for not only his enthusiasm, but also his deep commitment to music at a grass roots level...
there was a lot of bitching that went on here 18 months ago or so... and that was a shame...
...i got it in the neck myself over a couple of reviews i wrote that didn't please the artists concerned - which consequently left me feeling rather de-motivated...
....but let's face it here - just what does an artist or band actually get out of MyFaceTube...?????
as far as i can fathom, all myspace is about these days is essentially everybodys adder robots adding each other and spamming each others profiles with their own hyperbole...
facebook is no better... everyone has a 'group' and everyone belongs to everybody elses!
....and when was being bitten/seduced/bought/sold/fecked up the arse by a miniature zombie/jedi/werewolf/vampire with a 'gothic' gift in one hand any kind of substitute for an actual interchange or rational discussion?
...perhaps i'm getting old - perhaps jaded - but contemporary music and it's asociated genres and subcultures are simply now a commodity for the global megacorps to shove their latest bit of utter tat down your unsuspecting throat!
Alex Zane and the 'Mars Planets' Myspace radio show?
BOOLOCKS!
...i feel sorry for all these kids of today that think that by going to Camden market and buying a bandanna or a wrist band with skulls printed on them before gleefully downloading the lastes track from Paramore actually think that they are rebeling in some way!
When i was young(er), i ONLY wanted to play music that sent my parents around the bend!
....perhaps that simply isn't possible any more - as, let's face it - the music from when us oldies were younger pretty much spanks all over the pre-packaged homogenised corporate bullsh!t that passes for the sound of yoth in this day and age....
i have a sad feeling that John peel is probably spinning in his grave...
Now, that's not to say that there aren't some great acts out there, but how DOES one cut through the dross?
.....look, it's everybodies right to form/join a band - play an instrument etc.... etc.... but we live in an age whereb the whole of youth culture is based on the marketing message of a multinational...
....all the 'kids' these days look the same, parading about displaying their off-the-shelf angst/anger/teen-rebellion etc... whatever the flavour! (....oh! sorry 'flava')
now is the time when our most 'prestigious' national music publication is essentially nothing more than a long and complex advertisment for hair products! ! ! ! ! !
....there, once - and not so long ago, was a dream that was embodied on these forums.... a dream of reclaiming music - of cutting through the hype - of recognising bands, artists and musicians for their intrinsic talent - not simply how cool their hair looked and whether they were wearing the 'right' kind of jeans!
....we ALL tried to kick start it - some will remember, ( ieven coined the phrase!):
THE NEW MUSIC REVOLUTION
...sadly, due to the apathy of the consumers, the unwillingness of many of the 'artists' to actually do some sodding work - and of certain 'support' organisations to simply fleece and exploit the woefullly inept that suffer from the unmittigated self-delusion of talent....
it stalled, faltered and eventually failed.
we reap what we sow.
We all - collectively - had a fantastic opportunity to invoke some sort of change...
We blew it.
But.... hope is not lost!
Technology moves on - and with it come new opportunities - a new, fresh goldrush.... and this time it's mobile data services...
....and yes indeed - there is the potential for something BIG to happen!
DO YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE?
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| Posted: 03-6-2008 10:32 AM
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