A couple of weekends ago I visited Los Angeles. It was Labour day weekend here in the US, meaning it was a 3 day weekend. Monday being the holiday. As my work schedule allows me, I could fly on Monday night and arrive Tuesday morning and not lose a day of work. On every holiday I try to squeeze a trip, like I’ve done previously to visit many North American cities. I love the traveling drill, from airports to trains, from picking up tickets to taking off my belt at the x-ray security check. It just builds up my excitement, and then of course, the destination is the cherry on the cake.

Although I’m a formidable planner (if I may say so), this time I didn’t plan any fun activities in LA. My current mood and a dear friend, who I guess is not that dear, in Santa Barbara that bailed on me, made me go to the other coast of the continental US without any expectations whatsoever. Of course I wanted to see the Hollywood sign, the Chinese Theater and the Walk of Fame, don’t get me wrong, but I didn’t actually have an itinerary unlike all my previous trips this year. Of course I did plan to have one, I did plan to have things lined up, contact friends, and more. I even bought a Los Angeles Lost Planet guide, whose pages I never flipped through until I stepped in Californian ground.

I guess my trips to Spain and the UK set the bar too high for me. And just to think that these experiences might not repeat ever again was a hard blow. And what’s worst I have this same gut feeling for my upcoming trip to Chickfactor, but hell, that’s another story. There’s a couple of months to regroup and get the mood up. I’m positive that this UK trip will be alright. Actually I have started looking into Rochester Castle and Bodiam Castle, two of the places I want to visit this time. Prices, train schedules, and history. I probably will end up going there alone, but that’s fine. I was always a loner.

It was at the last NYC Popfest that I met Marion for the first time. We’ve been good friends online for some time, chatting and emailing about indiepop. She hosts this great club in LA called Hungry Beat and also has a radio show from 3am to 6am on KCRW. A pop activist. The kind of people I like. When she was here, which was just for a day, as she only came to see Comet Gain and Pooh Sticks and then take the plane back to LA, she told me to come and visit LA this year, that it would be fun. She wasn’t the first to invite me though, before also Jackie and Joey from Sweater Girls had been keen in me going and visiting them. So after I came back from Indietracks, bummed to be back at work, needing to look forward to something, I decided to book a flight on Virgin America to Los Angeles.

So I walked all over Sunset Blvd. I saw the pink stars on the sidewalk. Keanu, Britney, William Shatner. The Wedding Present I thought. Sean Connery, Marilyn, Burt Lancaster. Hombres G came to mind. The strip was packed with tourists but also by groups of quinceañeras. The neon lights of the different museums and stores reminded me of my old neighborhood in Miami. Walked to the Chinese Theater and saw James Bond Sean Connery’s hands and feet on the cement. Judy Garland’s too. And Marilyn, where “Gentlemen prefer them blondes” was written. I guess I’m a gentleman.

The Guinness World Record museum, the Madame Tussaud one, and Ripley’s Believe it or Not. Chain-store museums, that you see at every touristy downtown in the US. The culture of capitalism. I wanted to go to the Jim Henson’s museum, but that was closed. Would have loved to see the history of the muppets, Mr Kermit and Miss Piggy, and the Dinosaurs, Baby Sinclair. For lunch we stopped in an In-and-Out Burger, a Californian staple I was told. It was quite alright for a fast food joint. Reminded me of Five Guys. But less expensive. Next door was Hollywood High, with a big mural were Laurence Fishburne was the centerpiece. Cantinflas and mighty Bruce Lee were there too. Excellent students, why didn’t I study there?

But the apotheosis was definitely the visit to Amoeba Records. Then all these non-expectations I had were shattered. Cheap 7″s galore! And box after box my hopes of great finds increased and increased. I definitely didn’t score nothing out-worldly but i grabbed at least 20 7″s and a couple of LPs for a fantastic price. All indiepop, all in bonafide labels. It’s just that they are the lesser known releases, but I don’t care. I love them all. While an auction was taking place at the store, I picked every single 7″ box and found the likes of Lois, Courtney Love, Girlroy, Witching Hour, Le Mans and more. And then a 12″ by The Groovy Little Numbers. And for the first time in a month I was smiling.

That same day I tried for the first time Chiles en nogada, a Mexican dish whose name comes from the Spanish word for the walnut tree, nogal. It consists of poblano chiles filled with picadillo (a mixture usually containing shredded meat, aromatics, fruits and spices) topped with a walnut-based cream sauce, called nogada, and pomegranate seeds, giving it the three colors of the Mexican flag: green for the chili, white for the nut sauce and red for the pomegranate. The walnut used to prepare nogada is a variety called Nuez de Castilla or Castilla Walnut. I have to say I can’t recommend this dish enough. It was glorious.

We bought some Modelo beers that night and enjoyed a quiet time with Jax, the cat, and playing the Loveletter LP Marion found at Amoeba. Talked about music, relationships, cats naturally, and the plans for the next day. I was exhausted that Saturday, I’d been up since 3:30am. So I headed to bed pretty early.

The next day I walked across Hyperion Avenue and over the LA river. Ended up in a Salvadorian/Mexican restaurant for breakfast. I had Huevos Mexicanos of course, in honor of The Hit Parade. Then I walked back to Silver Lake, up the hill and down the slope for The Loft. I must have been the only person walking these huge avenues that mostly looked like freeways. That’s LA. But it wasn’t that terrible, just a 15 minute walk where the only sights were huge houses, big yards and concrete.

The plans were to meet Brian and Yvonne from The Tartans, we were going to head to the Huntington Library. Some issues with our cellphone networks threw these plans to the trash. In the end, I didn’t get to see them, and dear Brian ended up injured. Time to rethink our plans. Alright, let’s go up to Griffith Observatory. From up there, I could see the Hollywood sign. I posed for a couple of pictures. Then in the Observatory, which was free, I got some amazing views of Los Angeles. The spread of civilization, houses, houses and houses, and in the horizon a couple of tall buildings rising. It was such a view. Quite enchanting I thought. Inside the observatory I was perplexed with the Camera Obscura and thought of my days in Glasgow, and then astounded by the Tesla Coil purple rays. That was quite something.

We then met with Joey from Sweater Girls and went to another record store: Wombleton Records. Lots of goodies here, but everything way overpriced. I ended up buying a couple of 7″s and LPs, just for the sake of it. If you have money to burn this is your place, they will stock and have plenty of rare records, but they will price them quite high. I guess they save time for you, no need to look to hard for that rare TVPs 7″s.  Walked to a bar some blocks down, called the York, and got some fries and beers. It’s in this place where Hungry Beat will take place soon. Shame I wasn’t there for the come-back party. By now I was starving, and the rest too. So we drove to Pasadena, to Jackie’s vegan restaurant. It was a nice late lunch/dinner. Catching up about indiepop, their band, festivals, future plans, friends, a bit of gossip here and there, was great. One last stop for me this night, The Smiths night party that was held at the Echo by Michae and his Part Time Punks.

Neither Marion or Joey stayed too late. I stayed until the end of the night. Michael was kind enough to give me a couple of drink tickets. I spent them all in those tall Sapporo cans that I always fall for. What’s this Smiths night, you’d ask? Well, they only play Smiths songs and Morrissey songs. The crowd goes wild. I was amazed how much the Moz is loved by Mexicans. And not just regular indie Mexicans, but the gangster type too, the ones they call “cholos” in California. I was surprised by it. I always thought it was the sensitive, whining guys, who loved The Smiths. Not here. Not in LA.

I met with Nick from Catwalk and talked quite a bit about his next album. I look forward to it a lot. And while I was waiting for dear Elisabeth from Leaving Mornington Crescent to arrive, some Mexican girl came to me and asked me about the Cats on Fire t-shirt. I wasn’t really in the mood to be hit, but I went with it. She was obviously not my type, “why someone like you is alone here?”she asked. Of course I had asked me this question before too, where’s my girl?, but I politely replied that I was waiting for my friends to arrive. She instantly picked up my accent and asked me where I was from. She was surprised that I was originally from Peru, “so exotic”, but of course, as a true American, the poor girl thought my country was close to Puerto Rico. “If you feel like it come and join me and my friends at the dancefloor”, and she left.

(to be continued…)

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Talking about Mexico, Mexicans, did you know the word Avocado arrived to English dictionaries through Mexico?

The word “avocado” comes from the Spanish aguacate which in turn comes from the Nahuatl word ahuácatl (testicle, a reference to the shape of the fruit). Avocados were known by the Aztecs as ‘the fertility fruit’. In some countries of South America, such as Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Peru, and Uruguay, the avocado is known by its Quechua name, palta. In other Spanish-speaking countries it is known by the Mexican name and in Portuguese it is abacate. The fruit is sometimes called an avocado pear or alligator pear (due to its shape and the rough green skin of some cultivars). The Nahuatl ahuacatl can be compounded with other words, as in ahuacamolli, meaning avocado soup or sauce, from which the Spanish word guacamole derives.[8]  The modern English name derives from the Spanish form avocado, “advocate”, which was formed as a folk etymology that substituted (and obscured) the Nahuatl origins of the word. The earliest known written use in English is attested from 1697 as “Avogato Pear”, a term which was later corrupted as “alligator pear”.

True. I call it ‘palta’ myself and I had the best of memories when being a kid climbing the avocado trees and picking as many as you could, passing them to my brother so he could put them in a plastic bag and then take them home, so they could ripe, so we could have some great salad. Avocado with onions and rocoto chili pepper. Add salt. Add lime juice. Fabulous days. I can’t seem to find avocados here as big as the ones in Peru.

It was a couple of days ago that Nana, my dear friend, my big sister, probably trying to cheer me up, sent me a youtube link. A link to a song. She must have known I was going to like it immediately. She doesn’t really send me songs anymore, not since prehistoric times. It was quite a surprise. I was hooked immediately. Why has this song been missing in my life? The song was “I Never Knew” by The Avocados.

This is the long lost single by Dolly Mixture! I wanted to scream. I love, utterly adore, Dolly Mixture. And here I was presented with a song that could have been part of that pretty box set I got some years ago, that could have been part of The Demonstration Tapes. Right? I don’t think I’m hallucinating here. This is really fantastic, spot on Nana! She was telling me that it was a friend of hers and Andreas that was visiting them in Hamburg that showed them this track. Always so humble Nanita. In any case, what a find!

Immediately I checked eBay, Discogs, Musicstack, to see if I could find their 7″. As I expected there was no luck. But even worst, the information about them on the web was almost none. Of course this song was rediscovered through the Messthetics CD series. The Avocados were showcased on “Messthetics #107 DIY London 78-81”.

The 7″ was released on Choo Choo Train Records, catalog number CHUG 03.  Released on 1981.  The band members listed on the sleeve are: bass, flugelhorn – Steve Beresford, drums – Else,  guitar – Dave,  guitar, bass – Oisin  and vocals – Etta. The producer was Captain Strike. The B side of the single is “Television Brought Me Up”, but sadly I have never heard it. So if you want to cheer me up too,  be nice and share it with me.

About Choo Choo Train, there’s a little blurb on Discogs: Small-time label run by Andrew Brenner, mainly to release records by his band, The 49 Americans, and his friends – namely, the I Never Knew 7″, by The Avocados.

But that’s about it. The fun sleeve of some shrimp (?) playing music with a seedless avocado on the middle, way ahead of the indiepop halcyon days to come. Proto-indiepop. Fantastic lyrics, chirpy jangly guitars, and the vocals, so so Debsey! That’s all I seem to find and gather about this fantastic band. There were no other releases or any compilation appearances it seems. Probably they had more songs, but who knows, perhaps they are still in moldy tapes in someone’s cupboard. Anyhow, if you know anything about The Avocados, their songs, their whereabouts, or if you have a spare 7″, please let me know. I’d love to hear their B-side, I’d love to interview them and find out more about their time in the band. This is such a great finding!

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Listen
The Avocados – I Never Knew

A swami (Sanskrit: स्वामी Svāmi [sʋáːmi]) sometimes abbreviated “Sw.” is an ascetic or yogi who has been initiated into the religious monastic order founded by Adi Sankara, or to a religious teacher.

“Swami”, when used as a prefix with a monastic name. The term usually refers to men, but can also apply to women who have taken the oath of renunciation and abandoned their social and or worldly status to follow this path. The monastic name is usually a single word without a first and last name.

In the Bengali language, the word, while carrying its original meaning, has a dual meaning of ‘husband’. The word also means ‘husband’ in the Malay language, where it is spelled ‘Suami’.

I don’t drink coffee. “And all those little things they add up”. Black coffee. Soy milk. I learned how to ask. Not American, not a espresso. I never understood exactly what the name was. I would just ask. In Spanish and in English. There wasn’t a chance to do it in Welsh. Not that I speak it, but I felt no one in the places we were in Wales understood it either. “Sip a cup of coffee”. We took fikas at park cafés, ice cream parlours, at pubs. I usually didn’t order anything. Sometimes perhaps a diet coke.

To think those days are over. That’s the hard part. “And I’m still not awake”. I scroll through flashbacks, photos, at Indietracks, the first night when we arrived to Travelodge an hour earlier than we thought. We kept asking train officers to let us take the earlier train, earlier than the ones we were supposed to take with our purchased tickets. After three transfers, after leaving Stansted where I picked her up, taking the Stansted Express from Liverpool Street, we arrived to Alfreton. We took a cab to the Mansfield Travelodge, we checked in and decided to stay in, not head to the festival grounds. It was already 9pm mind you. Instead we ordered some Chinese food thanks to the lovely front desk woman. Minutes after she would show up at our hotel room bringing us plates  and utensils. 10 minutes after a short Chinese man brought our spring rolls and duck in black bean sauce. We ate sitting on the blue carpet. There are no chairs at Travelodge rooms. We devoured our food. And then we watched TV.

Mornings at Mansfield. Heading to the breakfast buffet. Sausages, beans, tomatoes, eggs, and orange juice. And coffee for her. Joining Cris and Madidi. Getting another serving. Not paying, just heading out. “Somewhere in My Heart” by Aztec Camera playing on the background.

“And I’ll always find you”

Introducing her to fellow librarian Bart. Taking pictures of Rose and her. Listening to Rose telling the story about “Alaska” where she was about to move for a guy but never did. Could have been a precaution? We used to fantasize of a life in the remote Unalaska.

The hours on the last seat of the stationary train. Behind the merch tent eating burritos and getting stuffed. The hours on Sunday having fun, joking all around with Matthew and Heather. Buying Secret Shine CDs. The muddy, slippery and dangerous route that ruined my shoes, from Butterley to Indietracks. The pecks. The kisses. Her fingers looking always for mine.

Losing her sunglasses at the taxi. Going to the outlet mall 10 minutes away from the hotel. Shopping at Marc & Spencers. Cocoa at Cadbury’s. A jacket for me at Reebok. Because I was dumb and didn’t pack one and well, it’s English summer after all. Sharing another cab with a random girl one night. Same girl that the next day would sell us ruffle tickets. We didn’t win anything of course. But we supported it.

Getting into Indietracks. Having to call Andy to find us in the Gold-Bears guestlist. I told her I would take care of everything. All tickets, all train tickets were bought months in advance. The cows behind the hotel. The day we left Indietracks in the middle of heavy rain just so she could see and pat the donkeys. The curry at Gopals. Water for her, warm beer for me. And coffee at only one of the food stands.

“I’m late for work”

Indietracks was different this year for me. The gigs were great. Meeting new people, new friends is always a thrill. Seeing old faces. Hugs. Hellos and goodbyes. The community I’ve learned to love. The people that have a similar, if not the same, sensibility as me. Friends that I believe understand. Understand how important our indiepop is. What it means. Which is all good. My third indietracks. The one that I didn’t drink much, the one I didn’t experience with the same passion. But the memories I have, even though not really music related, are intense, big, important and affirming as I could barely explain. At the moment, I don’t feel like going next year. Or to any festival really. Feeling like I need a detox, as strange as that sounds. I know friends are already used to see me at every single indiepop festival. But I need some new things in life. I’ve been dying to travel to Japan for example. I could well do that.

Talking about these coffee moments, the days when things were good, and being reminded about all this through La Casa Azul’s “La Polinesia Meridional”, with that line “dime si la espuma del cortado te complace” (tell me if the foam on your coffee is good for you), I ended up revisiting another coffee song, aptly titled “Coffee Song” by The Swamis. I don’t know anything about this song. I believe it’s the A-side of a 7″ but that’s about it. “Coffee Song”. By The Swamis. They sound English. Or who knows, maybe Welsh. Not Scottish I’d say. But who can actually know.

The information is non-existent. I’ve never seen this record on eBay or discogs. The first time I heard about it was through Takashi, the Japanese guy that disappeared. He uploaded it to Youtube. These days it is still there, but uploaded by a Peruvian fan. Googling about The Swamis leaves you empty handed.

On Last.fm there’s a photo of some Swamis. But they look like rockers. There’s also a link to two Swamis’ albums there. I can’t tell if it’s the same band. These seem to hail from Baltimore, US., and even though they say their songs were jangly, I can’t really tell if they could have penned this “Coffee Song”. I guess you can tell by yourselves here http://lynnpoint.com/swamis/index.html

But yes, if you actually know anything about this “Coffee Song”, about The Swamis, anything you’d like to share, please do. Maybe try to convince me to go to Indietracks next year. Or something else. A little cheer up can’t do no wrong.

Till next week.

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Listen
The Swamis – Coffee Song

Back in 2003-2004 I fell in love with a handful of songs by mysterious Swedish band called Fibi Frap. I played them often. Very often. On repeat. I burned them on CDs. Took them everywhere on my CD player, the same one I still use daily today. I didn’t know anything about them. I had downloaded these tracks from Soulseek, perhaps from the Twisterella room, or the Picknick room. From some Swedish user most definitely. Those were the days when I was falling for everything indiepop, when I was discovering how beautiful and how life-affirming this music is.

I wouldn’t revisit Fibi Frap until 2010. It was January and things hadn’t worked with K. It was hard to swallow and understand. She had written to me a letter where she called us soulmates. But soulmates wasn’t enough for it. Perhaps it was the long-distance situation. Miami to Stockholm was a long way, though it would turn out that we’d see each other about five times in the year to follow. Then maybe she just didn’t like me, or she wasn’t ready at all. She used to be depressed. Very depressed during those days. She was the first one in my long history of meeting depressive Swedish girls. A history that still follows me, where the worst thing is that I haven’t learned how to deal with them yet. Always ending in drama. Funny, as it’s usually us the “latin” people who are supposed to be more melodramatic and who produce an infinite number of cry-me-a-river soap operas.

There were plenty of songs that coloured my days then, that I identified myself, that I made mine. The Clientele’s “Since K Got Over Me”, St. James Infirmary’s “How Many Times”, Rose Ellinor Dougall’s “I Know We’ll Never” or the Marine Time Keepers’ “When Will You Realise That I Care”, were among them, though the song I heard the most was Fibi Frap’s “Sadeyes”.

“Sadeyes” ended up being my theme song during those dark months, when things were confusing,  and where I wouldn’t assume that this wasn’t meant to be. I nicknamed her “Sadeyes” too. It rapidly became the most played song of mine on Last.fm. It made me smile and look with a bit of a positive outlook the whole situation. It wasn’t me. It was her. The connection, the chemistry, most probably had idealized everything. I wrote extensively about her on the blog, the zine, and various inserts. I was heartbroken. And Cloudberry as a label that believes in unrequited love, continued, stronger than ever. Finding strength where there was pain. Today the story repeats itself. Time to regroup. Hacer de tripas corazón. Time to find Fibi Frap again among my old hard drives, or find the songs again on Soulseek. If I just had the original releases. I can only imagine holding those CD-R EPs whose cover art I’ve never seen, but that I picture as something cute, done with love, and it would mean the world to me.

Saved. Up and down I smile, giggle and enjoy the four tracks on their first CD-R release, the eponymous titled EP. Four playful songs, “Sadeyes”, “Applecoins”, “To Make You Happy” and “Sunny Days”, that were ahead of their time, a mix of Action Biker and The Deirdres, in a bedroom style recordings. They could just be your two best friend playing songs for you, in your living room. There’s closeness and not a single bit of arrogance, ambition or pretentiousness. It’s what it is. Songs straight to the heart. Proper popsongs, no tricks, no cheats. Just make them yours.

As far as I know there’s a book called “Fibi – Frap” by an author called Doe Mena-Berlin. I couldn’t find any relevant information about her/him aside that there are other books by the same author like “Vis – Öä” or “Coco – Dies”. I assume it’s a Swedish author, and that is half Spanish, or with half-Spanish descent, as Mena is a very common last name in Spanish speaking countries. Also the publisher of “Fibi – Frap” was Bra Böcker and the book was out for the first time in 1996 according to Google Books. I don’t believe these are novels though, but most probably volumes of an encyclopaedia, where Fibi is the first entry on the volume and Frap the last. That’s what my instinct tells me. But either Fibi or Frap don’t seem to be Swedish words. There doesn’t seem to be any other hints about the nature of this cryptic name. Can anyone of you solve this mystery?

Fibi Frap were two girls, Madelaine Sillfors and Sarah Andreasson who lived in between Gothenburg and Stockholm, probably one in each city. According to their old myspace, they made “happy and sad casio serenades about love”. And listed a long list of influences: Manga, picknix, Boris Vian, Paul Auster, Maurice Blanchot, Magnetic Fields, Will Oldham, Morrissey, Computer Vikings, Oski, Lifli, Brendan Perry, Neil Young and the guys, The Cure, Alma Cogan, Nina Simone and looove. They had good taste. And these serenades about love that they used to write were a clear example of that.

They started the band neither in Stockholm or Gothenburg, but in Kiruna in 2001. Kiruna being the northernmost city in Sweden, situated in the province of Lapland. Population 18,148 in 2010. I might guess both Madelaine and Sarah were originally from there and were good friends, or just perhaps were going to school there and met randomly. During their stint in Kiruna they recorded their first EP, the “Fibi Frap EP” in 2002. After this release they moved to Gothenburg and Stockholm and they gigged extensively in Sweden, playing the hip clubs of the time like the mighty Starke Adolf in GBG and Lava in STHLM. Other clubs that saw them were Debaser (Stockholm), Club monsters of Indie, Popaganda (festival) and on Meths Salonger (Gothenburg) They also appeared on radio, in shows like P3 Demo or P3 Pop, one of my favourite radio shows during those years, where Hanna Fahl would even play some of our own Plastilina releases! On P3 Pop they played live too, in the studio, in March 2003. I wonder if anyone has those recordings!

In 2002 they also contributed the song “Sunny Days” on the compilation “Alltid hela tiden: Utökad familj volym ett” (“Always all the time: Extended family volume one”) released on the “Alltid Hela Tiden” label run by Johan Jakobsson, a music journalist that writes for Sonic Magazine and perhaps the biggest fan of Strawberry Fair, who he would later release a delicious EP in 2006, the last time we heard from Jenny!

The next year, in 2003, they contribute “To Make You Happy” for the “Picknick Picks!” compilation tape released by the American label Popgun Recordings that the good Raoulie de la Cruz used to run. This tape, catalog number 055 and that had Argentinean comic strip cult hero Mafalda on the cover, included five songs by five Swedish indiepop bands picked by the Picknick fanzine. It was during those days that I also discovered on soulseek the Picknick room where I used to hang out silently and learn about all these small and fantastic bedroom projects that were appearing every minute in Sweden.

Fast forward to 2004 and they release another EP, “How Fast is Your Heart Beating”, from which I have barely any information other than they were released on the My Secret Garden label, that used to be run by a guy called Martin, who lived with his girlfriend and cats in Gothenburg.

Every year they would make an appearance, so in 2005 they contributed another song to another compilation. The song was the fantastic and catchy “Where’d You Learn to Kiss That Way?” (a nod to the Field Mice?) and the compilation was “This is My Secret Garden”, on the My Secret Garden label (catalog 010).

2006, another obscure release, “Remember Being Born”. Also this same year they showed up in yet another compilation on Rokit Records. The song “Catherine” was included in the “Robots And Electronic Brains – Telephone: Smethwick 2341-2” CD that came for free with the fanzine Robots and Electronic Brains (Cambridge, UK) in it’s 15th number.

And after that they totally disappeared from the face of the Earth. During their brief run they were praised by many bloggers and fanzine writers alike, from Tangents to Le Manchester, but for some reason they never ended up being a household name, a popular band. If only they would have lasted a year or two more, I would have pestered them until we could have made a release on Cloudberry, or help them play at Indietracks or some other Popfest. Their playful songs, their witty lyrics, and the bouncy melodies were always on repeat. I hate myself for not being able to buy their records, those DIY CD-Rs released in those years. They were pretty limited and today must be really impossible to find them.

I tried to get in touch with no luck through the Myspace some years ago, when compiling what would become The Sound of Starke Adolf compilation. I wanted them to contribute a song for me, but never heard from them. How much I would have liked that. I would even dream putting together some sort of compilation of all their songs. That would make me terribly happy, possibly poor, but who cares, this is indiepop!

But if anyone know their whereabouts please do let me know. I would still like to showcase them in the next Starke Adolf, I would love to hear the rest of their songs, I would love to know if they are still making music. And most and for all I would like to thank them for the music.

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Listen
Fibi Frap – Sadeyes

The past weekend at the Cake Shop I was running around, getting an Airiel CD signed by the whole band for my girl. Normally I do these things for myself. Usually I ask C86 legends, or indiepop friends. Probably they’ve heard about Cloudberry, have seen my silly profile picture on facebook, or have maybe read one of my many clumsy interviews. Then it’s much easier, it is more natural and even sometimes I end up taking a picture with the band. Fantastic.

But a shoegaze band, four young Americans from Chicago, that seem very friendly but not very used to such requests, well, it took a bit more than courage this time. There were three bands opening Airiel that Saturday night. The Cake Shop was mostly full for the first few bands and oddly enough by the time Airiel played it was halfway empty, maybe more. I remember a guy wearing a Secret Shine gig. An older guy. It made me smile. Should have told him something, celebrated his good taste. The rest of the crowd was just regular common people.

There was this English guy I met outside of the venue while I was having a break. Leather jacket, smokes. He was from Cambridge. “Best gigs happen in Cambridge” he said, “better than in London”. Of course that is total nonsense. He had a band. Psych-Rock he said. I can’t remember the name, could it be “Crash”? It was a one-word band name. That I do remember. He was amazed by the Cake Shop. Amazed by New York. He had been walking all day and actually this happened to be his first day in the city. He was taking a break from the band he said. They weren’t getting too well together.

By then Mark had already joined J and me. While J got a nutritious and greasy poutine, Mark kept having crepes, plain with sugar, lots of sugar. I wasn’t hungry. I had some thai food a bit earlier, just before the show, at a restaurant down the street where 6 beers were 15 bucks. Deal. Unbeatable in Manhattan.

J was friend with the DJ at the gig. He told me he DJs at the Weird nights. I think, I believe, this is a label that puts some cold-wave or/and minimal synth. Not really my cup of tea, but seems to be a popular name in NYC. J attends to them often. The surprising thing, for the second time in NYC I hear someone DJ “Picture Frame” by This Scarlet Train. First time was at NYC Popfest last year. That time it was my friend Brian who records music under Earth First (whose 7″ is out now in Cloudberry). I was amazed. A precious song. My heart skipped a bit, and for a moment the anxiety I had of knowing who the Airiel members were among the crowd disappeared. I headed to the decks and congratulated the DJ who looked a bit like John Cusack. He was nice and humble, he pointed at his friend that was sitting next to him and told me that it was him who introduced him this song. I asked if he had the song on vinyl because I’ve been looking for it for ages! And he said yes. That he is the only one he knows in NYC that has it. Lucky. What a find. I headed towards the stage and then they played The Popguns. I wanted to go and celebrate their taste with them again, but I desisted. The night  was starting to get better.

Alex doesn’t like many bands I like. Today I learned she doesn’t like The Would-Be-Goods. It’s quite amazing to me. We used to email so much back in the day and she never mentioned it. Mind you, my personal email is a very clear nod to one of their songs. I guess we are even, I never liked The Lucksmiths, perhaps her favourite band. But on that middle ground, those gray layers of indiepop, we agree on many bands, Airiel being one of them. Though I do suspected she is a bigger fan than me. She likes the dreamy stuff much more whereas, you know, I like a lot of the shambolic ramshackle crashing pop.

On my iPhone I googled for photos of Airiel. The ones I find don’t help at all. They look like emos. Perhaps there is another Airiel band I realize. I’ll have to wait and deal with my anxiety. I’m terrible at waiting, patience is not something I have. And of course, during the years, during this thing called growing up, it had gave me more than a headache. I’ve ended up looking as a demanding person sometimes. I’ve pressured people without meaning it too. I like taking action right away, taking decisions, planning. It’s much easier like that I feel, that way you are in control, don’t get surprises later. But of course, not everyone thinks the same way, and sometimes it ends up in a mess. So, I’m working on that. And here I was going to be patient. I was going to see three terrible bands until I get to see Airiel. And after that, I was going to the merch table and get Alex a CD.

Earlier that day we talked on the phone. She had recommended me using earplugs for the show. After so many years of attending gigs this was going to be the first time I would use earplugs. I know, everyone uses them and it’s supposed to be better for you. But I never went out of my way to purchase them, or actually care. I guess, now that I’m getting older and after getting ill I start thinking of these things twice. It’s better to take care of things before they go bad. So sure, I stopped in the morning by the pharmacy and bought a 3 dollar pack of earplugs. 30 count and all green. Also I bought a pair of sharpies.

With my earplugs on, almost at the front, I saw Airiel play a precious set. They even played my favourite song, “In Your Room”. It was a magical moment that I’m glad that I recorded on video. They sounded splendid throughout the whole show and sadly it went so fast, encore included.

I ran to the merch table and bought from the DJ a CD-EP they were selling. The cover wasn’t too intricate, a solid color, a turquoise splash with the words Airiel in Bauhaus font. Perfect. Tons of space to sign it. I spotted the drummer first, he was having a beer with two tall girls. One with glasses, and one without. I asked him to sign it. They all seemed very surprised. Actually every member of the band was surprised. Seems they don’t get to sign stuff too often. The next was the vocalist and I asked him to please dedicate it to Alex. Then the bassist and last but not least the guitar player who I told to come to NYC more often.

Anxiety gone. On Monday I posted it during my lunch hour. All the way to Sweden. Now just the normal worries that the package might get lost. Because it has happened a lot. Especially with my postcards. Postcards that used to decorate her fridge. But again, patience. That’s what I need. I asked her today if anything had shown up, but her answer was no. Give it another week Mr. Cloudberry! What’s the rush?

I remember the times when she cheekily asked me to blog about her. She was one of the few that I knew read my blog religiously. Many times I wrote posts while talking to her. She used to surprise herself that I could multi-task like that. I would tell her that if she wanted, she could blog here too. To this she’d reply, “but I will just post pictures of horses, and my drawings, what will the Cloudberry fans say?” Adorable.

I miss her.

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“I’ve seen you in the rain”

Falkirk. Scotland. That’s where This Scarlet Train, our heroes, hail from. Signed to Nightshift Records, Brian Guthrie’s label (brother of Cocteau Twins’ Robin), they only released one record. A monumental record that has being impossible for me to get my hands on. This 12″ mini-LP is one of my holy grails. But until now, luck hasn’t been on my side.

Some years ago they had a Myspace. I wrote to them, but never heard back. I think there were some extra songs, demos, but I can’t recall clearly. As far as I know then, the only songs released by the band are the ones that appeared on this record aptly titled “Fimbria”.

A fimbria (plural fimbriae) is a Latin word that literally means “fringe.” It is commonly used in science and medicine, with its meaning depending on the field of study or the context.

The band was formed by Stuart Nelson on bass and vocals, Steven Cocherty on drums, and Robert Polson on guitars and keyboards. The story tells that the band split when Docherty left the band in 1988. Nelson and Polsen carried on with the band for a bit but in October of that same year they called it a day. Nelson went to form Captain Trips and Polson would start Water Magnesium. Never heard of these bands myself! After Captain Trips Nelson joined Uncle Jack and continued to play with them until 1997. Then Nelson joined Little Green Apples as a second guitarist. None of these bands seem to have left any records. At least, I couldn’t find any more info about them. Anyhow, back to the lovely “Fimbria”, the producer for this record released in 1987 was Keith Mitchell. The sleeve was done by Steven Swinney.

The record is catalog number NISHI-202 in this nice label that put out the likes of Lowlife, and the songs were recorded at Planet Studios in Edinburgh in July 1987. The songs included were:

A1         Picture Frame
A2         Autumnhood
A3         Candice
B1         Kistvaen
B2         Still Rain
B3         Lilyhaze

All songs have that dream pop feel that makes me swoon. Wonder if Airiel knows them. If Alex would like them. I could see some similarities between them and the Chicago band. It’s perfect pop, blissful, rapturous. Of course “Picture Frame” is the song that hooks you up immediately, but the rest are really strong too. I can only wonder why they didn’t get to release more stuff, these songs tell me of a band that were way above the average, a band that perhaps were a bit ahead of their time too. But where are they now?

If anyone knows anything about them, or has an extra copy of the record. Please get in touch! I would really love to know more about this band that keeps appearing in my life. And if it’s signed by the whole band, even better.

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Listen
This Scarlet Train – Picture Frame

There was a time when we traveled night and day. We stayed at hotels and had breakfasts a la carte. Life felt glamorous. It wasn’t five star hotels or first class. A Travelodge could do; the economic seating on a train, facing an old couple, could do too. And it was perfect. For a week we criss-crossed the close-by towns, like a zig-zag, like a connect-the-dots game.

Like two dots, we got separated again by the ocean. A mass of water, a mass of nothingness. Pure and pristine nothingness.

We had arrived in Wales after Indietracks. On the train, which stopped at Chesterfield and Bristol, we held hands and joked. She taught me the basics of knitting, but of course I wasn’t skilled enough to coordinate my fingers and make tiny knots to eventually build something worthy with the yarn. She leaned on my shoulder. The green scenery flashed through the window. We were supposed to see sheep in Wales we were told. We didn’t see any. We did keep our eyes wide-open.

Upon arriving to Cardiff, Wales capital, we were greeted in English and Welsh by the train announcers at the station. We giggled at the sound of Welsh. We walked two mere blocks to find our hotel. The front desk guy seemed to be new and took forever to register us and get us a keycard for our room. A room on the third floor of a building in one of the main streets of the town. You know, very close to Sainsburys, Weatherspoons, and the like.

We left our things and went for a stroll, on the hunt for a nice place to eat lunch. We ended up in the old library which is now a restaurant. Fish and chips, salad and Brains beer. We sat by the window on a chilly summer afternoon. We ate slowly. I emptied a handful of tartar sauce packets, and she helped me with some of my fries.

Down the main road we ended up by the castle walls. The majestic Cardiff castle. We would visit it a couple of days after. But today the plans were different. We were going to explore the huge Bute Park. Without a map we circled the castle first, and then headed to a stone circle which wasn’t ancient at all, maybe just a century old, a commemorative thing. Some tree trunks carved with celtic motifs, and another tree trunk carved with animals caught our sights. We walked on the grass, fresh and humid. The park, full of open spaces, and greenness, felt endless. I wanted to hold her all the time.  We walked and walked until we decided to return. And through small paths, of muddy ground, we found our way to a cafe in the middle of the park. In the meantime, I had already burned my hand with some plant who I must have touched by mistake. Of course she knew what plants were good or bad, which to touch, which to smell. A native of the forest. A fairy. Me, always a big city guy, never close to nature. So much to learn.

Coffee with soy milk. Five o’clock in the heart of Cardiff. I watched her drink with a grin on her face. I stared at her. Trying to sketch her on my mind for the many months I won’t see her. Making a personal photograph, her with the clouds behind. Then it was time for more walking, more exploring. Next stop, Cardiff Bay.

Our Lonely Planet guide, which we both have brought our own copy, recommended us visiting it. And of course we thought it was very close to the city center. Turns out they are two different towns that today are connected by roads and urban sprawl. So it was quite a walk. We could have easily taken the train, but we didn’t know. At our arrival a common sight for us by now, Japanese tourists. We felt at home. She asked me if I would like to live there. I said, why not. She said she would. She’d like it very much.

She especially loved the Cardiff Library which we visited in our way to Cardiff Bay. A huge modern building. 5-stories if I remember correctly. Books in English and in Welsh. All signage also in both languages. She explored the Welsh books with such interest. The orange signs at the library and the blue carpet made it very cozy to me. Something about those colors appeal me. She looked beautiful there, the librarian in the library. A foreign library but her home still. Like a fish in the water, she swam across every aisle, explained me about microfilm, showed me some books that are among the most read in Stockholm, and told me it wasn’t a good idea to make out in the library. Of course, what I was thinking, it is a sacred place for a librarian.

Opening her big brown bag, pulling out a plastic bag, she fed herself candy from time to time. Perhaps that was the secret she had to not get tired. I don’t want to boast, but I do have a lot of energy when it comes to visiting new cities and places. And she kept up to that. Which until now, in my life, I hadn’t found anyone that could do it every day, for a week. And so, we finally made it to Cardiff Bay to notice that the Roald Dahl area was closed. We headed to the Norwegian church instead, a tiny timber structure. We walked towards a lightship and some statues on the way. Ended up in a playground. It was deserted at almost 7pm. We climbed some rope ladders and took pictures of ourselves together. Me serious, she making faces. Then we childishly played on the see-saw. We held hands, we left the playground.

Then we walked on the promenade while she cursed and hated the seagulls. She finds them annoying, nasty birds. She explained them to me, that in Sweden they have two names, that there are actually two varieties. For me, all of them look like seagulls, or chickens. But she knew what she was talking. The sea was a bit murky and the sand very different to the one I was used in Miami. More like dirt brown and with lots of pebbles. On our right side, modern shopping centers rose one on top of each other. Famous American brands and names all over the place. At the end of the promenade a pier with a Turkish restaurant. Our friend Cristóbal had recommended us eating there. But we were too late. They had very affordable prices until 6pm. So we headed back to Cardiff, the real, the main Cardiff. We thought about taking the train, but we couldn’t find a place where to buy the tickets. While we searched up and down the station, the train left. So we walked back.

Monday was almost over. And it started to dawn on me how little time was left on this trip. My heart accelerated. After a quick dinner we went to the hotel and watched some British TV. It was terrible, but having her by my side, doing something as mundane as watching TV, felt terribly good.

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I’m not sure if our train passed by Swindon. But this week’s obscure band is The Swindonians.

Swindon is a large town within the Borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, 40 miles (64 km) west and Reading, 40 miles (64 km) east. London is 81 miles (130 km) to the east. In the 2011 census, the population of Swindon was 209,000 people, including the small towns of Highworth and Wroughton, an increase of 16.2% since 2001.

Perhaps not very original in their band name as they were based in Swindon (no joke!), but their elusive record is a gem, a true indiepop gem. Their songs remind me so much to The Wishing Chair, another obscure band that I reviewed in the blog. Fantastic jangle with a dramatic feeling. How much I wish I could find a copy of this record. I’ve been looking for it for two years now since a friend recommended it to me after he had found seven tracks on Youtube.

The five tracks are:
– A Sense of Home
– Give Me Back My Sanity
– In the Rain
– Ring a Ring of Roses
– Song for the Homeless
– Sun is Burning
– Windowshopping

On Youtube there’s a small legend added by the uploader of these tracks. It mentions that these songs are from the self-titled 7″ EP on Hope Records. I really doubt that 7 songs fit on a 7″, but for sure some of them were included in it. I wonder which. Also, who were these Hope Records? Perhaps it was their own label.

The only other information included is that the band was a duo. Mumfie on vocals and Julian Sanger on vocals as well as guitar, bass and drums.  A true multi-instrumentalist! The 7″ EP was recorded at their home using a Marantz SD-285 tape deck and a Sharp RT-3151 tape processor in the Spring / Summer of 1992. Just at the end of the golden years of indiepop. Perhaps that’s why such a lovely record didn’t catch more attention, everyone had moved on to other sort of music. For me, it’s hard to grasp that. When I listen to the bone-chilling “In the Rain”, I can only think of indiepop greatness. A beautiful, heartfelt song, with beautiful guitar playing. It reminds me of other ‘rain songs’, like those by The June Brides or The Cavalcade. Something about it. Something about that rain, that British rain that never stopped raining while I was there in July.

If anyone knows anything else about The Swindonians or have any extra copies of the record please get in touch! Would really love to know more about them!

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Listen
Swindonians – In the Rain

Melting, or fusion, is a physical process that results in the phase transition of a substance from a solid to a liquid. The internal energy of a substance is increased, typically by the application of heat or pressure, resulting in a rise of its temperature to the melting point, at which the rigid ordering of molecular entities in the solid breaks down to a less-ordered state and the solid liquefies. An object that has melted completely is molten.

It’s been a couple of weeks since last time I opened the dashboard of my blog. After cleaning the spam comments, replying the ‘real people’s’ comments, getting back to legendary bands that got in touch,  I can finally sit and try to write. While in the UK many people, well, more like 5 people, told me they follow the blog. Some of them said that they do it religiously, some said that they only care for the personal parts, and other said that they wish they had more time to read about it. Another friend asked me again about the book that would compile the blog. That idea is still haunting my head of course. It’s just that it requires so much time to put 500 worth of pages together and I can only wonder when I’ll be able to  lay them out and print them. Time. Time is of the essence.

Receiving these kind of compliments is nice. Especially as I always tend to think people won’t like reading long posts on the internet. Modern tests have shown that the attention span of people when reading articles on the internet is very short. I don’t blame them. We just like flipping and then navigating to something else. I don’t think I’m an amazing writer to keep everyone hooked after a couple of sentences either. So these compliments mean a lot. Especially at this time that it feels indiepop is not as exciting and “cool” as it was some years ago. I’m thankful for the interest. And I hope I keep blogging for a couple more years at least. I started blogging in 2004. And this particular blog was started in 2008. It’s amazing how time flies. I feel as young as I was then.

I wish I could do a review of Indietracks, my trip to Wales, and those few days in London. But I still have to digest it all. Organize the thoughts in my head. It feels so fresh that it makes me feel nostalgic about all those days of hugging and kissing in trains and coaches that parted from Cardiff central to castles and petit towns, the mud and the puddles and nasty shoes at Indietracks, and the last hours at a King’s Cross’ Travelodge. Can’t put it in words yet. It’s tough. It’s hard to be back at work after such wonderful days, picking up the routines where I left them, from going to the post office to buying whole wheat bread at the supermarket. Long gone are the traditional British heart attack breakfasts, with their eggs, beans, bacon, sausage and toast (add brown sauce, plenty), now I manage with a glass of OJ and another of pomegranate kefir. Wonder how come British people are not as fat as those people that stroll their shopping carts in Houston’s malls.

After coming back I got back into Cloudberry business. The most important activity of my days in New York, and Miami before. That and talking to a sweet tooth in Stockholm. This week there were two very important announcements, first of all is that the Earth First 7″ has a release date and it’s just around the corner. The fab black round slab with be out on July 30th. If you like Brighter, Harper Lee, Pinkie, Silver Screen, Fireflies (you know the drill), this is the record for you. Precious, elegant, and chiming, this record includes a song on each side of the vinyl and you can already pre-order it. Look for a Cloudberry Bugle on the day of it’s release if you want to read a bit more about it. And then the other great news is that The Spook School’s 7″ has been unveiled. You can head to the label site to check one of their songs and also pre-order it. The artwork for this single is gorgeous and was made by Canadian illustrator extraordinaire Anna Bron. Time to start saving kids. Cloudberry is pushing it this second half of the year!

Yes! Because on this second half the new fanzine and the Strange Idols CD should be out as well. And Nixon 7″.

At Indietracks I received a CD from Rupert from the A Turntable Revolution blog. He didn’t actually hand it to me, but to Michael from Pebble Records. And then Michael to Cris, and then finally to me. Rupert was kind enough to offer me a CD on a blog comment just before I left to the UK. The CD was to contain lots of obscure indiepop goodies. I didn’t see him at all during the festival. I guess we either watch different bands or we just cross paths and didn’t even notice. Indietracks is not THAT big you know. But lucky enough, on the last night, on that last train from Indietracks to Butterly station, when the train officer was cheering us and asking us to come again next year, and in the same carriage I boarded, I saw Rupert. And I was able to thank him personally. On this CD, I would say I knew half of the bands, some of them I knew their music, but some others just by name. I guess the only good thing of coming back to the US, aside from going to see Shonen Knife yesterday, was playing this CD over and over this week. And it was the first sung that struck me immediately.

Sweet tooth: A great liking for sweet-tasting foods.

The song is “32 Sweet Teeth” by The Meltations. And it’s a fact that adults have 32 teeth whereas babies have 20.

At first listen the jangly and chirping guitar gives me goosebumps. And the vocals, I don’t know how to explain, they are just great. And while listening to it only something crosses my mind, the biggest sweet tooth I know. My girl in Stockholm. She who can skip lunch or dinner and just eat chocolate and jelly beans. Sugar and sugar, sticky fingers. Makes my day seeing her having all the sweets I can’t have. And her excitement over the British candy stores, colorful, and packed from the floor to the ceiling with all candies in different shapes and textures. Some wrapped and some not, waiting to be scooped in plastic bags and taken home for snacking the whole day. Makes me wonder how much happiness will bring to Alexandra when she sees the humongous American candy stores. She was overly impressed by the variety of candy at a Sainsbury’s! She tells me that in Sweden there’s not even half of the variety of candy you find in the UK. She takes her time picking which new candy she’ll try this day while we travel and hour on train to see some castles in a close-by town. One day she picks up Skittles, she’s never had them. These are not the traditionally wrapped in red ones. But in orange. I’ve had had them back in the day. She wonders how they taste. It is very strange for me when she tells me that she can’t find them in Sweden. Even in Peru I could find these! I tell her that they are chewable candy with a hard coating, all of different colors. She gets a bit disappointed when she notices that the center part of all of them is white. She thought they were colored even inside, not just the coating. Things a sweet tooth minds. At first she doesn’t like them much. Then they grow as an addiction. And she takes a bag to Sweden. Sadly the other day she tells me she has run out. If it wasn’t for her mean postman that keeps stealing every single package I’ve sent for the last couple of months, a huge overload of Skittles would be waiting at her front door.

The song makes me grin. I think of her. The distance. The fucking distance. And the visas, and the lack of vacations. The lack of sweet.

Who were the Meltations? Of course the internet keeps quiet about it, as if saving all the clues to itself, hoping that no one uncovers this mystery. The best clue is that on Popsike.com there are two eBay listings. One dating of 2007 when this 7″ went for 80 pounds, and then one in 2010 when it sky-rocketed to 225 pounds sterling. Who might have paid those crazy prices? I always assume is the Japanese.

There are a couple of clues if you keep digging. The B-side to this fantastic 7″ is a song called “I’ll Take It As A Compliment “. Does it have the same amazing jangly guitars as their A-side counterpart? One day I hope I’ll have the chance to listen to it. And the clues start getting thinner and thinner. The record was put out in 1987 and it was a self-release, catalog number MEL01. Recorded at Goldsmiths College. Safe bet to say they were Londoners?

The cover photography, of a man holding a heart-shaped box full of chocolates, was taken by Douglas Cape. I think of myself as the cover star for some reason. The record was mastered by David Burnand who is credited for writing and arranging “Points on the Curve” by Wang Chung. Odd.

The most important clue comes from the band members names: Andrew Newcombe, Heilco Van Der Ploeg, John Penfold and Matthew Graham. And it’s about Heilco Van Der Ploeg who I manage to shed some light. He seems to still be in London and ran a club called Club Montepulciano.  It seems that along this club he also had a band that played in it. With it he released a couple of CDs, “The Autumn/Winter Collection Volume 1” and “The Autumn/Winter Collection Volume 2”. He participates in them, on vocals, writing and arranging. Not sure what’s the sound of them, but I believe it’s some sort of cabaret stuff.

This is what I found out about the club on Wikipedia:

Club Montepulciano was a critically acclaimed lounge and cabaret club-night institution that ran themed events across a number of venues in London, with guest appearances in the South of England and across Europe, from 1993 to 2004. Acting as a launch pad for new talent, the club influenced the emerging cabaret and burlesque scenes.As a musical event, Club Montepulciano was founded on swinging cocktail tunes from nightclubs and ballrooms of a bygone era. Its themed nights had different retro vibes, influenced by icons like James Bond and the Playboy clubs of the 1960s, with clubbers dressing in the style of each event.Venues graced by Club Montepulciano included the Hanover Grand, Café de Paris, the Connaught Ballrooms, Turnmills, the Kensington Roofgardens, Brockwell Lido, the Rivoli Ballroom, the Embassy Club, Glastonbury Festival, Glyndeborne, Pacha’s flagship venue in Madrid, Dingwalls, Eastborne Wintergardens, the original Brighton Concord, The Water Rats, Madam Jojo’s, the Scala club at Kings Cross, the Eve Club, the Blackheath Halls, and The Camden Centre.Club Montepulciano’s cabaret and comedy acts included The League of Gentlemen (before they were famous), Mackenzie Crook from The Office as Charlie Cheese, Jackie Clune as Karen Carpenter, Matt Lucas from Little Britain and Shooting Stars, Amy Lamé in collaboration with ‘Duckie’, Ursula Martinez, The Tiger Lillies (Shockheaded Peter), Men in Coats, Mike Flowers Pops, The Lorraine Bowen Experience, Tina C and Dr Stuart (The Fifth Element), and the UK Latin American Ballroom Dance Champions.Complementing these performers were circus acts, magicians, and impersonators. Club Montepulciano also hosted its own in-house casino, talk-a-oke, the Flirtation Tank and Minuscule of Sound, as well as the in-house band Montepulciano.Club Montepulciano was described as one of the “199 things you have to do before you’re a real Londoner” by Time Out magazine in 2004. The demand for its music grew into Club Montepulciano Recordings and subsequently Freshly Squeezed Music. The band Hooverphonic recorded a song called “Club Montepulciano”.

Quite a change from his early days as a jangle master, huh? Still, the club stopped in 2004, and I wonder where did Heilco go? I wonder where all the members went after The Meltations. I wonder if they had any more songs. How many copies of this 7″ were pressed. Why it is so rare? Why people don’t know about it’s existence being SO GOOD? There’s plenty of mystery and questions to solve about them. I hope you all can help me.

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Listen
The Meltations – 32 Sweet Teeth

So when next Sunday comes around I won’t be waking up in Astoria, NYC, but in Mansfield, in the English midlands. Hopefully the weather is beautiful, something around 18 degrees, unlike here where I’ve been toasting myself feeling as if I was in Miami all over again. I’ll be thinking of the previous day, and I’ll be sad that this will be my last day at Indietracks. I’ll make up my mind and convince myself that I have to get the best out of this day, even if the warm beer and the greasy hamburgers try to prove me wrong. I’ll have a good shave, have a nice breakfast at the hotel’s restaurant and wait for people to gather at the front door in hopes of sharing a cab. The ride to Indietracks will be slow, discussing again which bands were our favourites the previous day and which we are looking forward the most for today. Sunday. Po! got it wrong. Sunday always comes around. And too soon.

My early Sunday was perfect until the other day. The good news was The Spook School were added to the lineup. Echo Lake wasn’t going to participate of the festival anymore due to the loss of one of it’s member. It’s sad news, but was happy to get to see The Spook School who will be part of the Cloudberry family very soon with a wonderful 7″. The terrible part was they were scheduled at a very delicate time when my beloved Electrophonvintage are playing. How to split myself in two? Electrophonvintage starts a bit earlier, at 13:20, at the church. That’s 20 minutes earlier than The Spook School. To start, I’ll be there. Sadly won’t be able to sit at the front row as I may need to leave before they are done with their set. And that annoys me for two reasons, one is that I want to see they play their whole set and second I would love to grab their setlist. If anyone can grab it for me? I will probablyy have to stay until 13:45, 13:50 if I can stress the time. And then leave the church stage and hastily head to the outdoor stage. Hopefully The Spook School has been slow at setting their stuff up, taking forever  to start, and I won’t have missed much. Their gig starts at 13:40. Hopefully I won’t have missed the tracks that will appear on the 7″, I would love to record them on video.

With The Spook School finishing by 14:20 it already clashes with another band I wanted to see, The Sunbathers on the train. And as you know, the train leaves and you can’t catch up with the gig if you didn’t board the train at the scheduled time. So no more Sunbathers for me. And I feel really disappointed. Stupid clashes. I do hope that The Sunbathers, as many of the train bands, play an impromptu  gig at the merch tent. That’s what’s been happening the previous years, and I would be very happy if they did. I don’t want to miss them. At least I want to hear a couple of their beautiful songs.

As this is the case, at 14:20 I’ll go to see some French flair, some gorgeous indiepop courtesy of Doggy. A couple of weeks ago I was listening non-stop a burned CD Fabien from Anorak Records handed me in Madrid. It was a demo by Doggy, with songs from his last album. It was a total surprise. The songs are fresh, catchy, and exude indiepoptasticness. If I had the song names, I’d write them here, and I would try to peek on the band’s setlist while they are playing to check if they will perform these songs. I’m curious to see how many English people would come and see something that they don’t understand, how open minded they are, and how much of a good taste they have. Because, if you didn’t hop on the train for The Sunbathers, you MUST be at Doggy at the church stage.

At 15:00 I head for a warm beer, to the indoor stage. From the bar I’ll see Toniee’s long hair on stage. It’s not The Parallelograms, but one of my most beloved bands. One of those little bands I liked so much back in the early 2000s when I had just discovered indiepop, Velodrome 2000. To be honest, I don’t know how popular they are, but I do hope I’m not the only one singing along to “Bobby Gillespie is a Virgin”, “Charity Shopping” or “Sindy Sex Aid”. They must be somewhat known, they, afterall, recorded a Peel Session. But you never know, this is an unfair world. I never thought I was going to see them live. I feel lucky enough to be here, and I feel grateful to whoever asked them to play.

Now there’s a little break. And I notice I haven’t had any lunch. It’s a bit late for lunch. But perhaps this is the best time to grab a bite. Or maybe not. I know there is going to be a huge line to get in to the church. The Hobbes Fanclub are playing and since releasing the split 3″ on Cloudberry, they’ve become way more popular. So probably the church will be packed. So I better be early, on time, and get a good sit. In my book, I still can’t picture The Hobbes Fanclub as a live band, you have to understand that when I worked with them, it was Leon and Fabi, both of them living thousand of miles away and working their songs through the internet. Now Fabi is not part of the band anymore and the band is a three-piece based in Bradford. In any case, in my book they are also one of the bands that I think will be one of the festival surprises.

Big break now. Big, in Indietracks terms, means something around an hour. 18:20 everyone heads to the church, or at least everyone that knows what GREAT indiepop is, and get to see the lush Love Dance. How many years since they released their album? Or how many years since they put out that 7″ that bowled us all over. So many, more than five definitely. And even though we thought they were no more, that they had split, they are playing at Indietracks. And who knows how, why, or any other question you want to ask, but I don’t care. This might be one of the most special gigs at the festival. It does feel by this time that I have spent an awful lot of time at the church. Perhaps it’s my subconscious too, that wants me to sit and not get tired, at least not yet.

When Love Dance are almost done, hastily I have to go see Language of Flowers. I was saying in my previous post that there were two bands that convinced me that I had to go to Indietracks this year. One was Liechtenstein. The second was Language of Flowers. The previous years I’ve seen a couple of times Help Stamp Out Loneliness and been systematically asking Colm about the unreleased Language of Flowers songs (there are 3 as far as I know, and they are GREAT), and when they were reforming. Half-jokingly I would instigate. But never thought this was actually going to happen. Why would it? They released just one album, a perfect album, a cult album if you ask me. It was the best indiepop record in a long time and everyone loved it. I think it’s just the cherry on the top of the cake this gig at Indietracks. They are closing the circle, and this might as well be the best gig at the whole Indietracks, even though Colm probably say they were shit. “Songs About You” or “Botanic Gardens”, I do hope they are allowed to play an encore. And I want that setlist.

Sadly, if you notice I have missed The June Brides. And this hurts a lot. They are a favourite band of mine, a big favourite. But they clash, and they clash with other favourites. And I’m only skipping them because I’ve saw them before. True, sans the trumpets, as Phil pointed me out. But I can’t do much. The trumpets are what make The Junies one of the most amazing bands of indiepop history. They are glorious, they can make Jericho fall. But with regret, I have to skip. I hope Phil forgives me.

After Language of Flowers things should run smoothly for all of us festival goers. You get Monochrome Set and then The Vaselines. Seems very straight-forward from now on. Who would choose any other band playing at that same time?

Then at the marquee, getting our shoes dusty and trying not to trip with the big boulders that pop up from the ground, we will dance to our Spanish friends Jorge and Miguelink. Just one request, not too much 60s Jorge!!

Some guy will shout “last train”. We will be heart-broken. Drunk too. We’ll give hugs to the right, to the left, everywhere. We say goodbye. Until next time, whenever that is. Good friends this is farewell. Maybe some of you I will see next week in London. Most probably I won’t see the rest for a long time. But it was great to see you. It was a fabulous weekend. And with that memory we head back to Mansfield. For the last night in the Midlands. Next day we have to leave early to Cardiff. For our vacations of castles, sheep, and botanic gardens.

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The Golden String is a sequence of 0’s and 1’s that is very closely related to the Fibonacci Numbers. Other names for it are The Fibonacci Rabbit sequence or The infinite Fibonacci word. I’m not sure what the point of it is, but math scholars salivate when seeing it. But this time I’m heading all the way to the Netherlands for our obscure band of the week. To Maastricht to be precise.

Maastrich is located in the southern part of the Dutch province of Limburg, of which it is the capital. It is widely known as a city of history, culture, local folklore, education. Furthermore, it has become known, by way of the Maastricht Treaty, as the birthplace of the European Union, European citizenship, and the single European currency, the euro. The name Maastricht is derived from Latin Trajectum ad Mosam (or Mosae Trajectum), meaning ‘crossing at the Meuse’, and referring to the bridge built by the Romans. The Latin name first appears in medieval documents and it is not known whether this was Maastricht’s official name during Roman times.

As far as I know the Golden Strings were active since 1981. Releasing their first record in 1983, a 12″ called “Budweiser Shuffle” on the Deng Deng Deng record label (catalog ES 46.782 M). The songs included were “Make Me Believe”, “Some Kind of Woman”, “Forward”, “She”, “Everybody Else” and “Budweiser Shuffle”. Their sound at this point wasn’t as poppy and fantastic as their later release. But still worth a listen. I think it’s easier to find this record than the other ones and it’s the only one I own. So keep an eye. This 12″ was recorded at Eurosound Studio’s Harveld. On Youtube the drummer Serge Van Dalsen’s sister has uploaded a couple of these if you want to have a listen.

The next release is a fantastic split 7″, shared with Buy Off the Bar (who were dutch as well), that includes two songs by the Golden Strings. The first one is a cracker and i’s called “My Life Is Like A Stanley Knife (Cut, Cut, Cut)”. It’s SO catchy, and it has this fabulous trumpets. I’m thinking of bands like Big Gun or How Many Beans Make Five while listening to them. The other song they contribute to this record is “Walked Out of That Door”. On the other hand, Buy Off the Bar participates with “February 6th” and “Silence”. This record was released on our favourite year, 1986, as a joint release by Deng Deng Deng records (catalog DENG 002) and Bang Bang Bang records (catalog BILLY 1). I’m guessing here that the first label belonged to The Golden Strings whilst the latter to Buy Off the Bar. The songs by The Golden Strings were recorded in Amsterdam at Oktopus Studio and again there are no band credits, so we don’t get to know the band members names.

The only other interesting fact on this record, that included a black and white 35×25 cm poster full of photos, are the running grooves etchings: on the Buy Off the Bar side it says “Bring Back The Buzzcocks” and on The Golden Strings side:  “We’re All Jump Boys”. Clearly big fans of the Undertones too. I’m looking for a copy of this one!

And last, but not least, my favourite song of theirs: “Tongue’s Too Big”. This track is a favourite of mine on Youtube, as I haven’t had the chance to find a copy of this record!, especially because of their trumpets, their glorious trumpets. Trumpets that do remind me of The Junies. Ah! Now I feel more terrible to miss them at Indietracks!! But yes, when you listen to this song you’ll understand. It sounds like a lost gem from C86 days in London, a song that should have been a single, a cult classic, but no, it ended up buried in a compilation record. Can you believe it? A song this good not having it’s own proper release? Life is never fair indeed.

“Tongue’s Too Big” appeared on the “13 Great Bands From The Low Lands “,  the second Noet Lachten records compilation.The album was financed by all the bands together; It included music from all over Holland except The Voners, who are Belgian guests. The catalog was NOET 4. The 12″ artwork is very strange, very artsy collage with two mouths half open, with the teeth showing. It looks a bit like a monster. Among the bands included in the compilation the only ones I’m familiar with are Buy Off the Bar and The Melting Eskimos who had a 7” on Meller Welle Produkte from Germany. This compilation was released in 1987.

And that’s about all I’ve been able to gather about this fantastic band. I believe they started as a new wave / punk pop band and as years went by their sound got more C86-ish. Their songs are fun and catchy, and also have that ramshackle element that I love. If you have any other information about Maastricht’s best, or if you happen to have extra copies of their records. Please get in touch! If you were in the band, please do too, it’d be fun to do an interview and learn more about you. I wonder if they had more songs. I’m sure they did.

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Listen
The Golden Strings – Tongue’s Too Big

Is it really two weeks until Indietracks?

This year the festival is happening in early July, trying not to clash with the London Olympics. The torch will still be going from town to town while we party and a parade of grannies and celebrities will be carrying it, crossing steel bridges and posing in front of sky high cathedrals. Who cares about the Olympics, Beckham won’t be playing, right? And anyways, we’ll be in Derby of all places. And this year I’m staying in Mansfield, not Alfreton, which is a big change for me and I don’t know how will that work. And that’s because the Travelodge in Alfreton was my headquarters for the last two years, were the breakfasts at Little Chef were appalling but much needed, and the late night wine drinking with Andreas and Nana at the picnic table on the porch were nothing but memorable. And now, because some geniuses booked every single room of the Travelodge way in advance, I couldn’t find a space. And so, as the Premier Inn in Alfreton was also fully booked, the third closest hotel was my choice: Mansfield. Because I’m not camping. Ever.

Happily some friends will also stay at Mansfield which means that sharing a cab won’t be a problem. But, how well it will work? Probably cabs will be over 10 pounds. And then, I wonder how long does it take from this hotel to Butterley Station. Stuff to figure out. Figuring it out starting Saturday. Because Friday we’ll probably miss it. Our train doesn’t arrive to Alfreton until 9:30pm. And I feel going to the festival for just an hour or two, doesn’t make much sense at that point. Jet-lagged.  Traveling all day. A good sleep and rest might be the best idea at that point. Waking up early would be great, head to Tesco and supply ourselves with Diet Coke and other important nutritious elements. But I won’t count with waking up early. We’ll give it a shot. Most probably waking up around 10am and heading for breakfast around 11am. Cristóbal has been raving about the breakfast at the Mansfield Premier Inn. As much as I love British breakfast, I can only have it once a year. It’s a heart attack. Sausage, bacon, egg, hash browns, toast, brown sauce, etc, etc. Delicious. But only once a year. Indietracks time.

Some days ago I made a list of the gigs I plan to attend. There are a couple of clashes like always. Clashes that make me worry, that wish I had the ability to multiply myself; clashes that annoy me, clashes that shouldn’t happen. Though they will happen, always. It’s impossible, unless everyone shared the same music taste. During the last couple of weeks I did my homework as well. I listened to every single band playing the festival, especially, and in detail, those that I didn’t know, that have been under the radar. And well, they’ve been under my radar for a reason clearly. No surprises there. And I went and listened some of them again and again because my dear friend Jennifer told me that I would like them, that they are great, that some have even political lyrics, but no. They didn’t make me feel an urge to release their music. Yeah, that’s the bar I have now. If I want or not to release their music. It doesn’t mean that I will do that of course. But it’s more like, if I had the money, if I had the time, and if the band was willing, will I release it? And if the answer is yes. Then, I like the band, it’s worth of 40 minutes and warm beer on the front row, holding the metal fence and clapping in between every single song.

So Friday. It makes me very sad to miss The School. Their song “Let it Slip” is a modern indiepop classic and a favourite of mine for a couple of years now. And their song repertoire is not far behind. But well, here I’m crossing fingers that they are booked to NYC Popfest next year. Because that’s the only festival I attend next year.

Moving onto Saturday.

Arriving at the festival grounds around lunch time would be perfect. The first band I want to see is not playing until 2pm, so there will be some time to hang out, say hello to friends, and perhaps grab a bite. Wonder what will be the lunch options this year. Will there be at last a proper sandwich place, with real hamburgers? Or instead of vegetarian indian, maybe I can find some chicken tikka? Or what about a kebab truck? I think that would be a big hit. But then, probably the options will be the same. Though, I keep crossing my fingers.

At 2pm Vacaciones will be playing and it feels a bit like a dream. How many years listening to Vacaciones. How many years since they split. But now suddenly they decide to come back. Perhaps it was because the Japanese release of the double CD including all their Elefant recordings? It wouldn’t be a surprise if that sparked it. The CD is a must have for anyone that loves pop. It’s indispensable. More than a decade since they started playing in their native Murcia, the band of the great Rafa Skam is ready to charm the English crowd. Songs like “Poppy Girl”, “No Me Digas Que Me Quieres”, “Espero una Respuesta”, are already classic songs in my book, and for the first time, I’ll be able to sing-a-long. And LOUD!

As soon as Vacaciones gig is over, it’s time for Evans the Death. Actually I’m listening to their album while I write this post. It’s a great debut album, though I miss a bit the lack of production of their demos. But nothing you can do about this, it’s meant to happen.  Since releasing “Catch Your Cold” on the compilation”Do You Think It Will Snow Tonight?” I became a big fan of the band. Young and talented. With bright songs, catchy, and fun. It didn’t take long for a bigger label, than Cloudberry, to offer a release, and well, nowadays they are releasing their music on Fortuna Pop and Slumberland. I never got around to offer them a 7″, something I would have loved. But that’s ok. Now they have 2 7″s out and an album, all of them really fantastic. I feel they could get even bigger. I have seen them before already, at London Popfest, when they played among the first bands and the 100 Club was nearly empty. I feel at Indietracks they’ll have a much bigger crowd as they are not to be missed. My new favourite song of theirs is “Wet Blanket”.

By 4:40pm half of my wishes come true. Also half the reason that I traveled to Indietracks. Half a reason that made me decide that this will be my last festival. One of my favourite bands of the last 10 years or so. Liechtenstein. Where can I start? I guess back in 2006? That’s when I heard for the first time “Stalking Skills” on myspace. It was AMAZING. When I put together that same year a tape called C-06, I had to include it. Liechtenstein re-recorded the song for me. And the rest is history. Later they will release a couple of 7″s in their own label Fraction Discs, penning more indiepop classics for the ages, like the super fabulous “Passion for Water”. And also two strong and dazzling albums would see the light of day. During all this time, even though I’ve seen the members around, especially dear Renée, who actually I saw play solo once, I’ve never managed to catch Liechtenstein live. And I’ve been close, very close, like that one time that they came to NYC Popfest and I had to cancel at last minute my flight for personal reasons. And it’s been like that, always. But at last, I’m heading over the UK, I got convinced that I had to buy a plane ticket there, when I saw they were going to play. After that, I would have seen all modern bands that I like, and I don’t see the point of traveling to attend any other festivals.  But I still have the wish of releasing Liechtenstein again, a proper release this time. No compilation. I love them. So much.

At 5:20pm, hopefully, I can make it to Bart Cummings and Pam Berry’s gig. They will play at the church and probably it will be packed. Two big names, in a tiny tiny place. So what’s the solution? Probably sit on the grass area next to the church and listen from there. Peek through the windows? We’ll see. This could be a magical moment for many, including me. Bart is releasing a new EP soon on Matinée, and from the promo song that’s been around, I can say it promises a lot. Hopefully it will be sold at Indietracks and I can get Bart to sign it for me. Should be nice to see Bart after that time in Berlin when we barely talked.

If I’m still outside the church by 5:40pm (which is the most certain thing at this year’s Indietracks), I’ll head to Gold-Bears. It’s true, I’ve seen them many times by now, but they are always fun to watch. Jeremy and company know how to put a show full of ramshackle guitars and fast-paced indiepop a la This Poison! If you’ve never seen them before. Don’t miss them. There is no one around playing this kind of frantic indiepop. And, you must know, they released last years’ best album.

At 6:20 I will head to see Joanna Gruesome for 20 minutes. I enjoy them, but I have mixed feelings. I find them charming, but nothing special. Their music sounds like the 90s, but for some reason I’m compelled to watch them. I think it’s because the girl/boy vocals. They are catchy and very poppy. My friends tell me that live they don’t have a girl singing. That is not a good sign. I’ll check them out, and see if they convince me. If not, heading straight to the Jasmine Minks at 6:40. This may be my first clash, only if Joanna Gruesome are good enough. The Jasmine Minks for sure are fantastic, but I could miss a bit of their gig just because I saw them last year already. But if I don’t have to miss any Jasmine Minks that’s fine with me too. To sing “Cut me Deep”, “Cold Heart”, or the INDIEPOP-HIT “Think!”, is life-affirming. Front row at the Jasmine Minks is what I recommend. They sounded glorious last year, no reason for them not to this year.

And now it’s time for the headliners. Both I’ve seen before. Go Sailor, once, at NYC Popfest, whereas Veronica Falls, like six times, all over the world. Both are great bands, and have plenty of hit songs. Songs that should be dancefloor fillers. And most of you will be watching them too. You know how good they are. So I’ll see you there. And we’ll have a beer.Then head to Librarians Wanted disco, to dance a bit. After an hour or so, Indietracks last train to Butterley will be leaving and our festival day will be over. Nostalgia will embrace us all and we won’t want to fall asleep, never wanting this day to be over. Just waiting for one final Indietracks day, Sunday.

But Sunday, let’s leave Sunday for next week.

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Now onto our obscure band of the week: The Harpoons.

HARPOON: 1610s, from Fr. harpon, from O.Fr. harpon “cramp iron, clamp, clasp” (described as a mason’s tool for fastening stones together), from harper “to grapple, grasp,” possibly of Germanic origin, or from L. harpa- “hook” (cf. harpagonem “grappling hook,” from Gk. *harpagon, related to harpe “sickle”). Earlier harping-iron (mid-15c.). Sense and spelling perhaps influenced by Dutch (cf. M.Du. harpoen) or Basque, the language of the first whaling peoples, who often accompanied English sailors on their early expeditions.

A harpoon is a long spear-like instrument used in fishing to catch fish or large marine mammals such as whales. It accomplishes this task by impaling the target animal, allowing the fishermen to use a rope or chain attached to the butt of the projectile to catch the animal. A harpoon can also be used as a weapon.

Some of you might remember an interview I did to Bristol’s Rorschach. The latter had formed from the ashes of The Harpoons. I tried interviewing the guys again about The Harpoons but never heard from them again. Anyhow, I think everyone should be aware of their one and only 7″ they released, “Tunnel Child / Cindy Storm”. Why? Because it’s fantastic proto-indie-pop. Yeah, I’m coining a new term here. But you’ll understand me when you listen to it. It was back in 1984 when this was released, and they were ahead of their time. “Tunnel Child” is pure bliss of guitar pop, with trumpets, great lyrics, and trumpets, and choruses. Just how I love my indiepop.

On that interview we talked some bits and pieces about The Harpoons:

Yabbo: From what I remember Jon Brokenbrow (the Harpoon’s drummer) had quit and we decided to start a new band (Rorschach) with the same line up – but with Cris Warren on drums. Geoff and I had become friendly with Cris while out busking in Bristol. Cris would tag along sometimes and play harmonica.

Geoff: the Harpoons had run their natural course. The new line up and material was a lot fresher and more punchy.

Yabbo: Geoff is my oldest friend – we met at primary school when we were little children. I met Pete Stillman when I was about 14 and thethree of us pretty much learnt guitar together – often practising at ourhomes. We had a lot of very poor quality equipment. Because we were all learning at the same time I think it was easier. Geoff and I met Scott in an old nightclub in Bristol called ‘Yesterdays’. We were looking fora new singer for the Harpoons and we went up to various good looking blokes and asked them if they could sing – one of them was Scott. I seemto remember that he never got in touch, but then we met him again at a party and it came together. He was a good front man – handsome and charismatic – and he could sing.

The band was formed by most of the guys that went to form Rorschach indeed. It had Geof on bass, Yabsley (Yabbo) on guitar, Pete on guitar, Dominic on vocals and Jon on drums. On the single they got the help from Tom on Sax and Ian on trumpet. The record was produced by Steve Street (is it Stephen Street?) and the sleeve came courtesy from a guy called Phil. The single was recorded at SAM Studios in Bristol, their hometown.

The record is dedicated to “Andy Jones and those Pineapple days”. A bio on the Bristol Archive Records site clears what this means:

Formed out of the ashes of Fishponds-based goofy garage band ‘Groovy Pineapple’ with the departure of their drummer to art school in 1983, the Harpoons (with Pete Stillman on lead guitar, Steve Yabsley on rhythm guitar, Geoff Gorton on bass, Jon Brokenbrow on drums, and Dominic Fitzpatrick on vocals for the single, later replaced by Scott Jarrold after joining Shrewd) were a regular feature on Bristol’s pub rock and club circuit in the early 1980’s, playing frequently at the Western Star Domino Club, the Granary, the Bristol Bridge Inn and the Thekla as well as at other less typical venues, including a memorable gig at Glenside Psychiatric Hospital!

A session for Janice Long’s Radio 1 show recorded at the Abbey Road studios in 1983 led to a growing fan base, with the band’s double A-side single ‘Cindy Storm / Tunnel Child’ produced by Steve Street receiving extensive air play on late night national radio. A tour was arranged, with the band playing at such far-flung venues (for a Bristol band) as Dingwalls in London, and Southampton University. Their exuberant, guitar-driven sound with psychedelic touches, with many of their lyrics penned by Steve Yabsley, the popular BBC Radio Bristol presenter, continued on after the departure of drummer Jon Brokenbrow when the band reformed as Rorschach (with Michele Schillace on drums, who would later play for Portishead), and later as Santa Cruz, who signed to MCA and produced one album before disbanding in the late 1990s.

And that’s about all the information about the band online. It’d be great to hear more from the Rorschach guys, but if any of you have any more information about The Harpoons, if you ever saw them live, or any other anecdotes please share!

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Listen
The Harpoons – Tunnel Child

This is the last part of my NYC Popfest review. And then onto Indietracks because there’s less than three weeks for the greatest indiepop festival of the year. Time does fly.

Let’s say this is just gossip, but when Pushy Parents got offered a place to practice before their Saturday gig, well, they couldn’t say no. I had vaguely met the band on Thursday, after been baked in the Cakeshop’s basement oven, just outside the front door of the venue just in that moment when people are  about to go home but don’t want to leave. Those extra fifteen, twenty minutes, outside the venue, hoping for something exciting to happen. Something else. Amanda and Helena, who were staying at my place, were figuring out with the rest of the band the plans, and what way were people walking towards their subway train. They spoke in Swedish naturally. And the rest of the band thought I was left behind, ignored. And then is when I briefly met them, as I say, “don’t worry about me, I understand perfectly what you are saying”, in my broken svenska. That’s when I briefly, really briefly, met Petter, Therese and Frida. Isak, the other member of the band, I had met last year in London Popfest as he had also joined that time Amanda to be part of The Andersen Tapes.

Friday I left early to work and the girls headed to Flushing for authentic Chinese fare. Saturday they were the ones who left early. They had the chance to practice just before their gig at some place in Brooklyn. They’ve never been to this rehearsal studio but they had an address and a key. The story goes a bit like this, they find the address but there are like 20 doors. All of them are locked. Now, which door will the key fit. Kafakaesque and post-modern as it seems, the key turns on one of the doors, and they end up in a sleek and fancy Brooklyn bar. There are no instruments around, no microphones, just a drum kit. This can’t be it, but there’s beer. It’s a bar after all.

They end up practicing outside the bar with the few instruments they’ve been carrying.

Meanwhile I’ve been attending the afternoon show at Spike Hill in Wiliamsburg. Chelsea and Bayern are playing the final game of the Champions League. Some people are caring about the game more than the shows. I bring in some tacos I bought from the truck outside and the bar tender is nice enough to not kick me out as this venue also serves food, and bringing your own is not allowed. From far away, biting my tortillas filled with cecina and having a pint of Hoegaarden, I enjoy one of the best NYC bands at the moment, Pale Lights. I talk a bit with Comet Gain’s David Feck and get him to sign me an old 7″ I have. Then with Felipe from Cola Jet Set we head to Academy Records and later for some bulgogi to get ourselves back together. It’s already 8pm so we head to Public Assembly.

What can I say about the Pushy Parents gig. First of all this night had the strongest lineup of the festival, with Electric Pop Group, Comet Gain, Seapony and Pooh Sticks. But it was Pushy Parents the one I enjoyed the most. You may think it’s sacrilege, with some indiepop classics up there on the billboard. It may be that I’ve seen Comet Gain and Pooh Sticks before, so the impact wasn’t much of an impact. Seapony sadly didn’t sound like on record and Electric Pop Group were nice but you couldn’t stop wondering what if they had their full band. Still enjoyable though. But Pushy Parents, they were the openers but they felt as the ones who were closing the gig. There wasn’t anything else after for me. I had my dose of fantastic indiepop and why keep on listening. I was done for the night. Especially after their last song, a rendition of Amanda’s old band Free Loan Investments. The song: “Bomb the Bourgoisie”. I remember asking her on chat to play this one months ago. It made my day, it may as well made my year.

This was the first time Helena played live. The rest of the band were much more experienced. They’ve been in many bands. And you could tell. They were so tight. They were having great fun. From the already classic “Secret Secret” to “Dear John”, they played a flawless set that encompassed their one and only 7″ record on Elefant and some songs of the upcoming 10″ on Elefant. It was glorious. And all of you missed it, well, pray that they will play again. As far as I know, this was a one-off.

On Sunday, things were a bit quieter. The venue this time didn’t have as much people and the lineup wasn’t as strong. I left just as soon White Town finished as the next three bands were a snorefest as my friend Scott put it. In a sense that was good as I was exhausted and had to go work the next day. But Sunday had a couple of highlights that have to be mentioned. First off, Dot Dash. Great, energetic, and punchy, the band that Terry Banks have put together sounded so good that it was a shame they played so early. Hopefully they become a bit bigger and come back. And what about the Holiday Crowd? They were a huge hit for me. I wonder how I didn’t know about their existance before Shelflife put their CD out. Where were they hiding? Fantastic jangle that for some reason goes unappreciated here. I feel it might be much bigger in the UK. They had songs, they had great chorus, and had stage presence. All the members exuded different personalities, and that is always a plus in my book. They seemed interesting. Would  have loved to exchange some words.

And then my good Canadian friends Sleuth. With Jainy pissed because the sound engineer sucked. Understandably so. They were fun to watch and listen. You could tell they have something special, just a bit of tightening here and there and they’ll be one of the most interesting indiepop bands around. This was cleared the next day, on the Popfest hangover show at the Rock Shop, where the sound was much better and songs like “Fishing for Moonlight” or the “Honey is in the Hive” shined brightly as Jainy’s Postcard Records’ cat tattoo. I look forward to their new recordings a lot. And to have Korean food with them again. It was a fun weekend.

It feels like I’m leaving a lot of Popfest stories out of these posts, but it’s time to move to the obscure indiepop band of the week, Macguffins.

Let’s all transport to Melbourne, Australia, in the 80s. There are many great bands at the moment, some more successful than others. Some good labels too. And there’s one band whose one 7″ always escapes from me. Always at last minute on eBay someone bids more than me. And my excitement, my hopes, are all killed, destroyed, buried. This is one of the 7″s I want the most, it’s the Macguffins and the single is “Rich Together”. A song that makes me tremble for the sincerity of it’s lyrics and the romanticism behind it.

The first time I heard this song was on a mere MP3, a rip from a tape compilation Keith D’Arcy had done for the indiepop-list. The compilation was called “A Sandwich and a Sweater” and I feel it has become some sort of lost classic. It has a lot of fabulous and obscure tracks on it, were every song and every band are worth investigating. Years later I would listen this song again and the B side as well, “Dirty Ol Life”, on a compilation Peter Hahndorf made called “The Sound of Glen Waverley”. It was only CDR and handed to a couple of friends. He intended to release it one day, as the sort of “The Sound of Leamington Spa” but with Australian bands. It never happened because Jim from Egg Records wanted to do the same, so not to step on his toes, Peter let the project on a side. Sadly Jim never got around to releasing it anyways.

Since then I’ve been in love with one of the finest songs I know. A song that deserves to be in thousands of mix tapes and burned CDs.

This fab record was released on the DEX label (catalog 218E) in 1988. The sleeve art is a photo, taken by Gary Moore, of the band though I can’t pinpoint who is who. The band was formed by Rowan Smith on vocals and guitar, Michael Paxton on bass, Michael Wilkins on drums and Philippa Nihill on vocals and keyboards. On “Rich Together”, Glenn Bennie added some guitars. The record was produced by Mark Woods. The single was recorded in Sing Sing studios.

Originally popularized by Alfred Hitchcock, the term “MacGuffin” refers to the object in a movie that drives the action. In most cases, what the MacGuffin actually is irrelevant. It exists solely to get the characters moving and drive the plot forward. The only real requirement is that it must be something people are willing to cheat, lie, steal, kill, or be killed for. As long as it sounds plausible, it’ll work. Still, despite the very loose qualifications for a MacGuffin, great films have used some pretty memorable ones.

I don’t know whatever happened to this great band. I assume they didn’t  have much success. I wonder if they had more songs recorded. If they played live often. When and why did they break up. But there is information about what happened to some of the band members after.

Rowan Smith went to join a couple of bands, Barefoot, Antenna, GB3, Coda, Youth Group, as well as helping recording and playing instruments with a couple more bands. Michael Wilkins played in Redfish Bluefish (who I’ve never heard but it’s said they were proper guitar indie pop!). And Philippa would also join GB3 as well as releasing some records as a solo artist, though she had some sort of breakthrough along Glenn Bennie, as the Underground Lovers, a band that is well known in their native Australia.

The Underground Lovers officially assembled in 1990, playing their first gig in May that year at Melbourne’s Corner Hotel, supporting The Macguffins. In addition to Bennie and Giarrusso, the original lineup featured Philippa Nihill (vocals, guitar, keyboard), Stephen Downes (bass) and Richard Andrew (drums); Maurice Argiro replaced Downes on bass following the first show.

Interesting fact, the Macguffins were still going two years after the release of their 7″. Perhaps it was the success of Underground Lovers that made the Macguffins split? Who knows. But if you know anything else about this long lost band, if you have spare copies of “Rich Together” and want to help a soul in need, please get in touch. Would love to know more about the Macguffins!

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Listen
Macguffins – Rich Together

Quite an exhaustive week thanks mostly to a freelance job that, like a snowball, became bigger and bigger. Moving domains, websites and databases is never fun. Working with some people who don’t understand anything about it, and expect everything to be functional within hours, is really annoying to say the least. My patience wore thin. If I hadn’t signed a contract until July, I would probably call it quits. The money is never worth if it’s going to affect my sleeping patterns. That’s my rule of thumb. But, in the end, I convince myself of being a professional and found some energy, somewhere deep in my soul I guess, and managed to finish it. But of course, there won’t be time to relax. I can see a pile of work coming up, though it won’t be freelance so I’m hoping that I can work at my pace. A pace I haven’t been able to have probably since last May, when things got terribly busy with NYC Popfest, and there was no time for anything else. But no complains then, it was busy but in a good way.

How can I bring back that weekend of Brooklyn Lagers and L and R trains. A weekend when Amanda and Helena stayed at my place and woke me up singing “Secret Secret”, a weekend of new friends and familiar faces, a weekend where indiepop reigned supreme again. I guess Indietracks will revive some of that excitement in a month, but it is a different experience altogether. It’s in the middle of nowhere and “exploration” means seeing trains and farm animals, unlike here in NYC where it has a wider meaning. Though also, the immersion is much different, Indietracks is like an indiepop holiday; NYC, is a different experience. It can’t be compared.

It’s been a couple of years since Maz took over NYC Popfest, and every year he keeps doing it better. You can only salute his taste, trying to always bring the new bands to the NYC public, something that me, attending many popfests, celebrates. It’s refreshing to see bands that I haven’t seen before. And Maz is good at that. He doesn’t just book his friends. As I told him, he is a ‘visionaire’. He knows what the fans want when it comes to indiepop. And mostly because he is fan himself. And it’s clear he dedicates a lot of his spare time to discover new and exciting music. During this NYC Popfest weekend, in a turn of events, at one point, on Saturday, he went up on stage just before Saturday Looks Good to Me. For the first time he addressed the fans directly,  with no shyness or stage fright. He thanked everyone that attended. He thanked all the bands. And last but not least, he invited everyone to the dance party. It was one of my Popfest highlights. I feel it’s important to make these festivals as personal, as friendly as possible. I think Maz is achieving that.

For me there was one band that was brilliant. And they were Cola Jet Set. Tight, fun, and close to pop perfection, Felipe Fresón’s ensemble was as dreamy and fun as you want a pop band to be. Even though they had lost some members in the last couple of years, the band seems to keep going strong, and everyone that is new, replacing an old member, performs just as good, and maybe, better. Alicia, Daniel, Ruth, Joan and Felipe gave a fabulous performance on Saturday night, even to the point that Maz had to ask twice to the sound engineer to give them more time so they could perform two more songs. One of them, an encore, “Al Amanecer”. And the fans were thankful to it. People danced non-stop to songs that most don’t understand because of the language barrier. And that is enough to point out how good they were. And how about Felipe’s introduction to each one of the songs? Not a story of what the song is about, but a little footprint perhaps, a little note with irony and love about what was going to be the next song. It was endearing. And the band smiling non stop, having the time of their life. And Joan leaving the drums, getting close to the stage, hitting his drumsticks, and asking for the crowd to get wilder, happier. And shouting, “one, two, three”, Ramones-style, because they were in NYC, and “Al Amanecer” is as punky as it gets.

And what can I say about hanging out with Felipe. Record shopping at Academy Records where I found the “Not Just Mandela” compilation for six bucks among other things. Having some bulgogi while we waited Pushy Parents. Getting some Burning Hearts records signed, and me, getting my Fresones Rebeldes’ “Al Amanecer” 7″ signed by the master himself. Endless conversations about Spanish indiepop, the story behind Los Canguros, Pepito Sex, and what not. The Barcelona scene, Brighton 64 and Kamembert. Los Negativos. His Vespa and his trip to see Les Calamites. It was good times. And can’t wait to hang out again. Perhaps when I find the time to visit Barcelona. Wouldn’t that be glorious?

And talking about signed Burning Hearts records. Weren’t they magnificent? I got the chills when they played “Into the Wilderness”. I was hypnotized by their set. The two times I saw them. They were just perfect. They had a SOUND. And I feel terrible now for missing them at NYC Popfest 2009, when they were just a duo. So I can’t compare. But this four-piece they are today, they can be huge if they wanted. They have songs, they have a particular sound that is both dreamy and edgy, and they are great musicians. Jessika is among my favourite vocalists at the moment in the indiepop scene. Well, at the moment is a bit paltry, I’d say since they started, 5 years ago, when I listened “I Lost My Colour Vision”, since then, she is one of my favourite vocalists. White socks up to her knees, holding the microphone and playing at the right time the keyboard, she exudes passion and control, and I find myself  bewitched by their songs. And I say it now, I wanted to release it back in the day. I love that song, and funny enough, they didn’t play it. But they played all my other favourite songs, so why would I complain.

It was sad that last year they had to cancel their Indietracks show. I was so excited to see them. I thought that maybe that was going to be my last chance. But the world is generous, and I was lucky to see them twice in NYC this May. Once at the sauna of The Cakeshop, sweating like if I was running a marathon in the Sahara desert, and then at The Rock Shop, where only a few, those militant indiepop fans, attended that Monday after Popfest. A Popfest hangover show indeed. Seeing Jessika and Henry again, since 2009 when they came to play with Cats on Fire, was great. And they haven’t changed a bit, they are nice, humble and friendly as they were. And they keep doing great music. And you know, I look forward to one day when I can work with them. They are among the best bands around, really creative and talented, that deserve to play more festivals around. It’s a bit confusing to see why they don’t get invited to more shows around the world. They are as good as Cats on Fire. And shouldn’t be seen as a sister band or something like that. They are a band on their own. And they keep better and better. “Into the Wilderness” should have been a HUGE hit last year.

There’s more to what NYC Popfest offered and I will continue to cover it next week. Also hopefully there will be time to do a little preview for Indietracks. I need to do that because I don’t have a clue yet if there are any clashes this year for me. Need to organize myself. Anyhow, moving to the meaty part, the one that is important for all of us, indiepop collectors, the obscure band of the week. This week I’ll introduce you to The Lowthers, from Manchester I believe.

I believe they hail from Mancunian lands, but I can’t assure you 100%. I can only tell you this for sure, they were formed by Simon Howles on vocals, Fran Wright on guitar, Julian Dyson on bass and Roger Quigley on drums. They were called “Fine British Mitherers” and they were around 1987 and 1988. Maybe earlier too. Maybe later too.

They appeared on two compilations. The first one is from 1987 and was a tape compilation called “Are You Ready?”. This was a proper indiepop compilation that included the likes of The Haywains, The Driscolls, The Mayfields and more. The song they contributed was  “Whoose Afraid?”. I remember hearing it. Though I can’t seem to find an MP3 of it. I’m sure many of you have it. And if you have some time, please do send it my way. I feel I have this compilation somewhere on MP3, but I still haven’t had the time to organize some of my hard drives, nor my computers, since I moved to NYC. Somedays I seriously think I need an intern or even better an assistant to organize a bit the mess here. Any takers?

The second compilation appearance, the one I know I love, is on the “The Disparate Cogscienti” compilation, released in 1987. This compilation was on the Cog Sinister label ran by The Fall’s Mark E. Smith. The song was “Sylvia” and what a song it is. It’s pure jangle! But first a little history of the Cog Sinister label thanks to Discogs:

The first appearance of the Cog Sinister label was in 1987 when The Fall used it as the imprint for their self-released anthology album “Palace Of Swords Reversed”. The imprint returned in 1990 when the band signed to Fontana and used Cog Sinister as a vanity label for their releases. When they moved from Fontana to Permanent Records, they continued to use the Cog Sinister brand on their releases .Since leaving Permanent in 1995, The Fall no longer used Cog Sinister on their new material. However, since 1997, the imprint has become part of the Voiceprint label group, and is being used for reissues of the group’s back-catalogue.

“The Disparate Cogscienti” was the second release on the label and it includes another gem, Beatrice’s “A Girl Like Me”. So I do recommend getting it, as I listened Jessel’s recommendation once, that time he took me to a – secret, secret – to find so many great records in what may be the best record shopping experience I’ve ever had. That day I picked up this fabulous black, white and yellow sleeve from one of the racks, after my good friend asked me if I knew about it. Of course I didn’t. He said it was worth it for the Beatrice song. Though he did mention that The Lowther’s song was quite good. And good it is. And the compilation is worth getting for The Lowthers song too I say. On Discogs at the moment there’s a copy for 4.99 euros if you are interested. I say get it.

Sylvia s(y)-lvia, syl-via as a girl’s name is pronounced SIL-vee-ah. It is of Latin origin, and the meaning of Sylvia is “woods, forest”. The Latin form Silvia was more popular for centuries until recently. Rhea Silvia was an ancient nature goddess, mother to the twin founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. Shakespeare used the name Silvia for the love interest in his play “Two Gentlemen of Verona”, probably intending to give the impression of a typical Italian girl though the name has come to be regarded as an English name. Through the centuries, Sylvia has many variant forms: Silva, Silvaine, Silvana, Silvania, Silvanna, Silvia, Silviana, Silvianne, Silvie, Sylva, Sylvana, Sylvanna, Sylvee, Sylvette, Sylviana, Sylvianne, Sylvie, Sylvina, Sylvine, Sylvonna, Sylwia, Zilvia and Zylvia.

Who was this enigmatic Sylvia, that the vocalist is saving himself for? Was she real, I wonder. If she was, she did inspire a fantastic indiepop song. Or maybe they were inspired by a historical Sylvia as Shakespeare did? If so, I would rule out the Sylvias with different spelling, so no Queen Silvia from Sweden, and no Silvia Pinal from those Mexican soap operas I saw with my nanny back when I was a five year old. Or Sylvie Vartan, that French chanteuse who was pretty pretty. We rule her out too sadly. So what about Sylvia Syms, the British actress? She is a possibility. It’s not a rare thing 80s band singing about actresses from back in the day. The other known Brithish Sylvia I can think of, and then I can’t think of many as I’m not British, is Sylvia Pankhurst who was a main player in the English suffragist movement in the early decades of the twentieth century. So no, don’t think they sang about her. Most probably, I’m just thinking too much and they just sang about a Sylvia they knew, a Sylvia from their neighborhood who they had a mad crush with. Lucky her. The song is really GOOD.

The only other fact, and perhaps the most interesting fact, is that Roger Quigley, the drummer, went to form The Bitter Springs, The Montgolfier Brothers, and the Verspertine record label. Alright. Most of you may know these names. But why were The Lowthers forgotten? Maybe because these were their only two songs? Hard to believe, but it’s a possibility. Two songs that weren’t released as singles, but on obscure compilations.

But still, I want to ask, because “Sylvia” is a fantastic jangle pop song that could be showcased in the great Sound of Leamington Spa compilations, does anyone know if they recorded more songs? what happened to then? did any of you happen to catch them playing live? if so, do share what you know or your anecdotes.

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Listen
The Lowthers – Sylvia