Approaching now to Popfest weekend. I’m not sure if there’s anything else to talk about at this point. I know a bunch of friends were last weekend at Copenhagen Popfest, and from the photos I’ve seen, it looked like a great time. They had a fantastic lineup. This weekend another bunch of people will be enjoying San Francisco Popfest. But for me both of these festivals seem to be a galaxy far away. My mind, my heart, is already looking forward to next week’s NYC Popfest.

The lineup is brilliant once again. Some weeks ago I went over it and mentioned the bands I really wanted to see. I missed one. And I want to apologize for that. How could I?! You know I’m talking about The Garlands.

I remember the first time I listened to them on Myspace. Would have been 2007.  Or even 2006. I think Andreas Olsson sent me the link. There was only a pre-Raphaelite painting as the profile photo. I didn’t know who the Garlands were. The day I contacted them and asked if they were up for releasing something and said yes I was terribly happy. Still I only know it was a girl called Christin and a boy called Roger. I didnt hear from them for a long time. I thought they quit making music. I thought they were not interested anymore. Or maybe they just forgot about our 3″ single release.

Almost a year later I hear from Cosy Recordings. Back then Matthias was friendly. He said that he had been in touch with the Garlands about releasing a CD as well and they told him that they had promised me already a release. They did remember. I learned then that it was Roger from Nixon the Roger in Garlands. I was thrilled. How did I not notice! Well of course he wasn’t singing, but the melodies were there. We agreed then in doing a co-release, as long as it was released I had no problem. There were 4 songs, one a George Michael cover even. They were fantastic. That’s when I met Karin too, she made the artwork for the release. It all went fast. In a matter of weeks the release was ready. I made 100 copies on the 3″ format. I can’t remember how many copies Cosy did, but it was the 5″ regular sized CD. It was a great time. The record sold out fast.

Months later all of a sudden Christin and me became good friends. We met at London Popfest. We hanged a lot. Then we went to Indietracks together with our friend Emelie. That’s more or less when a fantastic friendship was born. Since that time I’ve met Christin so many times around Europe. The last time just a month ago in Stockholm while we strolled past the cherry blossoms and ate ice cream.

I can’t forget the birthday celebration of 2013. Or London Popfest 2010, or Chickfactor shows in London. The lunches, the dinners, the beers. Of course there’s been bad moments as in any friendship, but I want to think those are over. For me indiepop has been, unintentionally, a vehicle to meet great people, and better friends. Christin is on of the important friends I’ve met, on that I trust blindly. Even the secrets and the love stories. So believe me when I say that I’m super thrilled that The Garlands, that small band that started as a duo and grew up as a 5 piece (even at some point at 6 piece!), is coming finally to the US.

I’ve been bugging Christin to come for ages. And now they are finally playing NYC Popfest. The band as I was saying has changed a lot through the years. What was the live band has become now the proper band having a say on the recordings and all. There’s no Patrik anymore sadly. That for me is such a big lost. Another good friend, Pata left the band some months ago. He was the funny guy of the band, who would talk between songs and make the crowd laugh while the rest of the band tuned their instruments or got ready. Another loss was that of Robert, the fantastic drummer who once was part of Hari and Aino. Two great musicians. Now I look forward to see how the new band mates fit in.

Christin’s voice though is still there, unique, and dazzling. Einar’s class guitars are also still part of the mix. And you can count with the pounding bass of Maria. Three of the best of all Sweden. You can’t question that.

Not so long ago they released a 7″ with Christmas songs on a Dutch label. They are bringing that to sell at Popfest. They are bringing too some tote bags with a unicorn silkscreened. Unicorns and cats are what Christin adores. Also the debut LP on Shelfilfe will be available. It’s a classic that even went to a second pressing I believe.

It’s been years since Christin and her cat saga appeared on the cover of the Cloudberry fanzine, the pink fanzine. It’s been a long time. I haven’t seen them play since March 2013 when they still had the “classic” lineup. That was my birthday. I turned 29 and was heartbroken. They made my year. I’m only thankful. Any misunderstanding that have happened afterwards or before are things of the past. Those of you attending Popfest better check them out.

The Garlands are playing Saturday 31st at Cameo Gallery at 9:15pm.

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If the Garlands had been around 1982 perhaps they would have sound a bit like Dancette, our obscure band of the week.

I know mostly nothing about them. I haven’t been able yet to find their one and only single released on Bel Records (SJP 836) in 82. But I do know for sure that it’s a cracking single!

If you like a bit of Orange Juice mixed with Dolly Mixture, “Going Green”, is just that perfect marriage. It’s such a lovely song that should have been a BIG HIT. Hard to believe it’s only known among only a handful of people. Well, let’s try to make some justice now, right?

The B side of the single is also nice. It’s called “He’s Clever” and sounds a bit different but still a top crack. It sounds a bit more like the bands from that period, like Moody Elevators, A Thousand Miles of Sunshine, Big Outdoor Type, if you know what I mean.

There are some credits on the back of the sleeve. The band was formed by David Brown, Julia, Emma Kelly, Mark Kovand and Vincent Taylor. The record was recorded at Fair Deal Studios in Hayes, Middlesex. Their manager was Simon Panell and the engineer for the record was Stuart. The design of the green and white sleeve was made by Tony Lyons.

And that’s about it. There’s absolutely nothing more online about them. It’s a shame as I really love this single!! Does anyone out there know anything else about the great Dancette? Whatever happened to them?!

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Listen
Dancette – Going Green

Thanks so much to Javi for this fantastic interview! I know Javi for many years now, since he had the Lost and Found blog possibly around 2004! He was always rediscovering a bunch of obscure bands back then. Some years later up until these days I would always meet him at festivals, especially at Indietracks! A true indiepop fan! So it’s no surprise then that this year he has embarked in a project that I’m sure will bring him many surprises, that of a label. Few are as passionate about indiepop as him, and I’m sure you will agree after reading this interview. Also you’ll notice his great taste in music, as he is putting top-notch up and coming indiepop bands out on his label. So keep an eye on Pretty Olivia (follow them on Facebook too) as I think it’s going to have a great run in indiepop history!

++ Hi Javi! Please tell me how this new adventure started! When did you decide that it was time to put together a record label? What triggered it?

Hi Roque, it’s a pleasure to chat with you about our common passion.

There wasn’t an only reason, really, first of all I had just lost my job and for the first time in my life I had the opportunity of thinking about what I was going to do with my life. Also I needed to get involved in music in other way, returning part of what music has gave me.

As Paddy McAloon sings: “music is a princess, I’m just a nobody who’d gladly give his life for her majesty”

And last but not least, my wife’s support, without her Pretty Olivia Records wouldn’t exist.

++ Have the idea of having a record label being in your mind for a long time? Was it something you’ve always wanted to do?

I have to admit that: yes!!, this has been a dream for many years.

I always had the ambition to discover hidden treasures and show them to everyone. And pop music is full of treasures unknown to the public. We have to solve that injustice!

Many years ago I defined my life with this sentence: “Looking for The Go Betweens” (it’s still my profile in twitter hahaha). That sentence sums up my thoughts, nowadays everyone knows the Go-Betweens, but back in the day they were the most brilliant hidden treasure. I’m always looking for the Go Betweens, looking further from the obvious…

++ Where does the name of the label come from?

Olivia is my daughter; she is 3 years old now. This is like a legacy for her, not the label itself but the fact that you have to be involved in the things you love.

You have to take an active position to preserve everything you love. Society is forgetting this.

++ And what about the logo? Does it have a meaning?

Hahaha, yes, it’s like a joke. It’s inspired, of course, in the symbol of the masonry.

The masonry use this symbol but with the “G” of “God” (or “Gadu”, the universal architect). I use the “P” of “Pop”, like a logia or sect of Pop advocators or something like that, like putting “pop” in the middle of our life.

My friend Ana (the designer of the logo) always says (like a joke) that my way of thinking is quite close to masonry so we thought that it was a good idea to use it as the symbol of the label. I really like it.

++ So far you’ve put two records out. Let’s start by the first one: Loor a los Heroes. Who are they? How did you find them?

Loor a los Heroes are a fantastic young band from Wigan, UK.

They are amazing, they know how to jangle, they have that touch of British indiepop from the 80’s and they are also very strong songwriters. You can also hear some echoes of the northern soul in the rhythm section (logical, they are from Wigan). They have a lot of fantastic songs that deserve to be released someday.

Members are Flynn Murnan (singer, composer and rhytm guitars), Matthew Smith (Lead guitars), Joe Howard (Bass) and Chris McIntyre (drums).

I don’t remember how I discovered them, someone put a link to their soundcloud page and “White Village” was there. I cannot describe how much I love that song. It’s pure pop perfection. The kind of song that makes you begin with a record label.

++ And what about Vicente Prats?

Vicente is an incredibly talented guy from Valencia, Spain. He recorded the record at his home, playing every instrument back in 2008/2009. He has a great instinct for hooks and is a fantastic guitar player.

Everyone who loves bands like Teenage Fanclub, Big Star, Matthew Sweet or Cooper have to listen to this record, for me, in this style, is one of the best records ever made in Spanish language.

It’s quite close to sold out, and I cannot be happier with that.

He is going to play in the next International Pop Overthrow, in Liverpool, with his band (Startrip)!

++ Are there any other releases planned out?

Yes! I’m going to tell you something you will love (and every fan of the jangle side of indiepop too).

Our next record will be the definitive edition (in vinyl, of course) of the first songs by the Australian The Rainyard. For me it’s the jangliest record ever made. 15 hits only released in cassettes back in the 80s/90s (well, and one 7” in the incredible Summershine label), remastered for this occasion.

I think it’s a masterpiece, and can’t wait to release it!!

We are working hard in the artwork also, I hope to have everything ready soon.

I have more ideas in mind; Pretty Olivia is here to stay.

++ So far you’ve only released vinyl records, will that continue to be like that, or would you consider doing CDs as well?

You can never say never, but it’s not likely. Vinyl is by far my favorite format, and I know that this limits the public (it’s more expensive, more shipping costs, etc.), but I have to be loyal to the way I think about pop. I will die with my ideas, I’m too old for changing now.

++ This is probably still new to you, but so far what have been the most exciting things about running the label? and what about the most difficult ones?

The most exciting?

When you discover a great song and write to the author, the gratitude of the bands, the fans, seeing the bands gaining the reputation they deserve, each time someone thanks you for your work…

The most difficult ones?

Distribution, without a doubt. It’s frustrating not having access for distribution channels, contacts, etc. in different countries.

I’m also frustrated about shipping costs, they are killing the independent labels. It’s tragic.

++ Would you say there has been other labels that have influenced you music-wise or even aesthetically? If so, who?

There are a lot of them. I’m a big fan of the pre-Oasis Creation and all the big independent labels of the 80s: Factory, 4AD, Beggars Banquet, Rough Trade … at least until they tried to become multis. I also love Sarah, Postcard, Crepuscule, … all of them have been an inspiration in one way or another. Well, Flying Nun is of course a continuous inspiration.

Nowadays, I think Cloudberry holds the flame of a true independent spirit, you are very important for us Roque, this is a good place for saying it, my friend.

Let me also praise one new label from Spain, Tenorio Cotobade. I think they are quite similar to Pretty Olivia. They have released the 2 Ginnels albums (the new one is a masterpiece!!) and a fantastic Zebra Hunt single. Everyone should have a look at this label.

++ From bands in the past, if you could just dream, which bands would you have loved to sign to Pretty Olivia records? And any contemporary bands?

Well, you know my favorite all time band is The Go Betweens, but there are thousands I would love to have released: Prefab Sprout, Orange Juice, Pale Saints, any Flying Nun band,…

From now, the Felt Tips, Ginnels, High Hazels, Trick Mammoth, the Lottery Winners,… there are hundreds of bands I love and I would be happy to release their records.

++ Your releases are limited to 300 copies with download codes and have really cool artwork on the jackets. On top of that the music is ace. But, where can people buy the records?

Our webpage is: prettyolivia.bigcartel.com

We sell worldwide, of course.

In Spain the releases are available in some good physical shops, and you can find our records in Rough Trade London (not sure in Brooklyn, will check it).

Jigsaw also has our records (a good chance for saving costs, they have thousands of fantastic records).

++ Is there any pros in being based in Alicante, Spain? Are there any good bands or good venues where bands come and play?

I think the only “pro” of being based in Alicante is the weather. Well, it’s also a very well connected city because of the tourism. The Alicante airport is also one of the few that flies to East Midlands, and that’s great for Indietracks Festival hahaha.

There’s only one Alicante pop band that really deserves attention: Oh, Libia!

They made psychedelic pop with 60s influences, and with fantastic songs. Even Douglas T.Stewart likes them!

No one is interested in indiepop here, but fortunately there are some power pop concerts, and we have Naranja y Negro which is one of the best record stores in Spain.

++ And what about the Spanish scene? Seems there are less and less labels and bands compared to say 10 years ago. What do you think happened?

Well, that’s not an easy question to answer.

I think there are still loads of bands and labels but there’s a lot less interest in indiepop. It’s true that 10 years ago, when tontipop exploded on the scene (the equivalent of twee pop in Spain), naïve, innocent pop became very popular. This new scene joined bands from a few years earlier (Fresones Rebeldes, TCR, La Buena Vida, Le Mans, etc.) and for while pop was everywhere.

To be honest, I think it died off because there was just too much. We can’t compare the records put out by Los Fresones, La Buena Vida or Family with the more recent tontipop bands (I’m not going to give any names because I respect those who try).

I don’t know if people have turned to garage or noise as a reaction against all that and have forgotten about writing good songs, when a harder sound shouldn’t mean you can’t write good songs.

That’s kind of what I feel about the Spanish scene: there are lots of interesting stuff out there but not many really good songs.

Then there’s Elefant, that’s a different case. Elefant has played a decisive role in the evolution of indiepop in Spain. For years they’ve been leading the way for many people and, to be honest, now I’m not at all sure what the right direction is now.

Siesta has also got lost along the way too; it used to be an essential label and now it’s disappeared in combat.

But not everything’s negative, not by a long way, apart from Tenorio Cotobade who I mentioned to you earlier; there are Spanish labels that are fighting to release interesting projects.

I don’t want to leave anyone out but here’s a list: Discos de Kirlian (look out for the fantastic Puzzles y Dragones or Fred I son and Coach Station Reunion, among others), Discos de Paseo, Ayo Silver! (not very pop oriented but produces some of the most interesting records at the moment), Jabalina (fighting on the pop battle lines for many years), Catalan indie groups such as Univers, who are wonderful, Gramaciones Grabofónicas,… Lots of small labels with plenty of enthusiasm, something good is bound to come out of all that, definitely!

++ And talking about Alicante, just for the sake of it, what’s the best the town has to offer? What’s their traditional food?

As I said before the best thing in Alicante is the weather. Also the beaches and the food are great. It’s not a beautiful city (apart from the castle and the beaches), nothing relevant from the cultural side and is the hometown of the most corrupt and stupid politicians you can imagine (and Spain has a lot of them).

The food is really great. The Mediterranean Sea is generous with this land and the seafood is incredible. The most typical food is the rice, in thousands of varieties and combinations. You really have to taste it to know how great it can be.

++ Just out of curiosity, do you play any instruments? Have you ever had a band?

No! It’s a permanent frustration for me, but I haven’t any talent at all. My voice is not melodic also hahaha.

++ And what about your record collection? An estimate of the number of records? Most prized items in it?

Well, my record collection is quite big now, more or less 4.600 records (in any format). Sometimes I think I’m mad, but sometimes I think that I’m not mad because of my record collection haha.

I think that my most prized items are 12” from the golden age of indiepop (obscure bands from the 80s): Apple Boutique, Clamheads, Potting Sheds, Boy Hairdressers, Red Harvest,… that kind of bands. I’m not obsessed with it, I have records because I love them, not thinking in the prize or economic value of them.

++ Javi, back in the day you had a fantastic blog, that’s how I met you! I think I discovered so many obscure bands through you. Why did you stop? And have you ever thought of bringing it back?

I really don’t remember the reasons why I left the blog.

It’s a shame because it even was useful for bringing together members of bands that haven’t seen each other for years.

And of course it was great for knowing people like you.

I’m thinking about it, maybe a new blog as part of the label page, maybe a podcast…

++ I also know that you are one of the biggest Go-Betweens fans I know, so let me ask you, Grant McLennan or Robert Forster? And what about your favourite album? and favourite song?

Grant or Robert, Robert or Grant. That’s like “who you prefer, mum or dad?”

Both are my favourite all-time artists, my life would be completely different without their songs, they had made a big impact in my education, I really feel that.

Maybe I prefer the Grant songs in the Go-Betweens, but the solo career of Robert is stronger, specially “Danger in the past” and “The Evangelist” which are as great as The Go-Betweens albums.

My favourite albums? Not sure, but “Liberty Belle” and “16 lovers lane” are really special for me.

And songs? Really difficult question, I change it every day. OK, today: “That way”.

++ On top of that you are always at indiepop festivals, it’s always great to see you at Indietracks drinking beers, front row of the legendary bands! So far which has been the best Indietracks you’ve attended? And will you be coming back this year? What would you say is that thing that makes this festival special, like no other?

Indietracks is “my” festival: fantastic music, superb location, gentle people from every part of the world, record shopping, the best beers, hundreds of friends,…

I think the 2009 edition is unbeatable, I will never forget that festival. Teenage Fanclub in the rain, singing “Baby Lee” for the first time… I’m sure that Elefant Records hosting the main stage was very important for the quality of the festival.

And now the difficult question… No, I’m not going again this year. I’m a bit disappointed with the line-up. For people outside UK it’s really expensive to go there and if we don’t like most of the bands that play the decision is clear.

I will come back next years, but not this one. I will miss it, anyway.

++ Do tell, do you see yourself doing the label still for another five years? or ten? Do you think we’ll be overtaken by digital releases at some point?

Yes, at least that’s my intention. I don’t know If I will release 2 or 20 records a year, but Pretty Olivia is here to stay.

I’ve just read that the main vinyl factory in USA cannot afford the demand… Vinyl is back, and it’s complimentary to the digital releases, I think.

I have doubts about the CD, no one seems to want them anymore. They will return in 20 years hahahaha

++ Let’s start wrapping the interview Javi, but what about merch? Are there any plans for that?

I have no plans for merch in the short term, but I will love to make t-shirts.

++ And one last question, aside from listening, collecting and now releasing music, what other hobbies do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

Well, I’m a family man now, and nothing is more joyful for me than sparing my time with my wife and daughter. I also play basketball and soccer every week. And well, I love everything related to food, go to new restaurants, cooking,…

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Listen
Loor a los Heroes – White Village

Thanks so much to John McElwee for the interview! Just a couple of weeks ago I wrote a small piece about the Subtonics on the blog and happily Paul Comaskey got me in touch with John, the driving force of the band as he called him. John has been kind enough to answer a bunch of my questions and in that way tell the story of this great band from the late 80s that released a classic 7″ with the songs “Take it Easy Florence” and “Nothing to Lose”. If you are not familiar with them, well, this is a good time to discover them!

++ Hi John! Thanks so much for the interview! How are you doing?

Very well thank you!

++ When was the last time you picked up your guitar?

A few days ago.

++ Are you still recording and performing?

Yes. I’ve never stopped performing, mostly with others in “The Sound of Spaghetti Junction” and “The Kings of Spain”, but also solo. I hadn’t recorded anything for 10 years until 3 weeks ago. I treated myself to 5 hours in a studio and recorded 10 songs. All live single takes with secondary parts added to a few.

++ I always wondered what sort of music were you listening at the time of the Subtonics, I guess a pretty eclectic mix?

Yes. My first love is Soul and Reggae. That’s what I heard/danced to at the local youth club when I was 12. Around the mid to late eighties I suppose it would’ve been The Smiths, Prefab Sprout, REM but I’d also started listening to Jazz. We used to play a few bars of Coltrane’s “Love supreme” and segue into Van Morrison’s “The Way Young Lovers Do” in our live set. The people who I own most music by and who I’ve listened to all my adult life are Sly & the Family Stone (I got the idea of using fiddle from his album “Small talk”) and Tom Waits – though I’m starting to build up a collection of Sun Ra at the moment.

++ How did you all meet and how did the Subtonics start as a band?

Paul Kelly I met by advertising for a bassist.

Melanie was singing in a play that I was in.

Paul Comaskey and I went to the same youth club and had lots of mutual friends but we didn’t become good friends until a few years later.

Aiden and I met aged 5. We went to school together. I lost contact when we changed schools at 11 but met him again through music years later. Aiden was a member of The Ian Campbell Folk Group and was a songwriter and performer in his own right. The Dubliners recorded one of his songs, “Dublin You’re Breaking My Heart”. I heard them play it last year at a festival in Moseley (where I live). They may not have known that Aiden had written the song within a few hundred metres of the gig. It was very poignant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBTX69uzLCk

Nick Smith – I can’t quite remember how we met but I think it was via Paul C. The last time I saw Nick was at ‘The Mean Fiddler” in London. He turned up in the dressing room at a Kings of Spain gig. I’ve just googled him: http://www.starnow.com/nicksmithsax

 ++ Have you been in bands previously?

Yes. I had a band called “The Truth Eggs” with Steve Sparks and Simon Colley (ex Duran Duran). We nearly got signed by virgin with our first demo. We only did a few gigs. Then Simon got signed to Virgin with another band and Steve moved to Austin Texas.

++ And where does the name of the band comes from?

The dictionary. We just looked for a musical term.

++ How was Erdington? Do you still live in the area? What were the places/venues you used to hang out the most?

Erdington was a very ordinary, mostly working class, suburb. It’s only claim to fame is that it had a club called “Mothers” but that was before my time.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mothers_(music_venue)

Now, it’s quite an economically and socially deprived area with high unemployment and associated problems. I still have friends there and go to one of my old haunts, “The New Inns” to meet up/watch football. I moved across the city to Moseley in 1990.

++ Were there any like-minded bands in town during that period that you liked and followed?

Like minded? No. When we started out we did a few gigs with ”The Nervous Kind”. They were very 60’s orientated. I loved their shows. Paul C was their drummer. We also did gigs with “Sons of Shane” from Stafford. Again, they were 60’s influenced. They were good fun live. Deryck from the band is still a friend and played keys on some Subtonics recordings. They made one 7”, “Fly”. I suggested we join forces and create one label but they declined.

++ Tell me about your gigs. Did you play many? What were some of your favourites and why?

We played a lot of gigs. I probably enjoyed them all. I tend to remember odd moments rather than whole shows. Such as the time we played the “Tower Ballroom”. It had a revolving stage. We got on the stage and waited while it slowly turned us around to the audience. We started the first song and within seconds Paul K broke a bass string. At the end of the song they set the stage turning and off we went so he could replace the string. Then they turned it on again to send us back to the audience. It was ridiculous.

We had 2 companies coming to see us at “Dingwalls”, London. After sound-check we had a few hours to kill. It was a Sunday and the local cafes were closed. We went to a pub to eat but they weren’t serving food. I hadn’t eaten all day. I had 3 pints of “real ale”. I didn’t realise how strong it was until I left the pub and hit the air. On stage, I was slurring when I spoke between songs. Andy Ross, from Food records, told Annie that when we played the first song he thought, “wow”, but that when I spoke it was clear that I was drunk. He said if I was drinking at that point in my career he wouldn’t touch us. He said if Annie could guarantee I didn’t have a drink problem he would see us again, sober. He didn’t. He signed Blur.

++ I read you were in Austin, Texas, and then you were deported. What’s this story about? Did you play and tour a lot in the US?

It’s mostly lies I’m afraid. I had been in Austin and a number of my friends had moved there. Paul C was in the process of moving to the US to join his brother but Paul was refused entrance at immigration and sent back. It took him a year to get things sorted out so he could move to the US and during that year he was a Subtonic. I did get to play shows in California with “The Kings of Spain” but as I couldn’t afford to take the band I hooked up with Paul C and Simon Colley and they became Kings of Spain for a short while.

++ And also is it true the story of Richard V. Frank that he funded the record? How did that happen? How did you meet him?

I met Dick aged 3. We also went to school together from 5 to 17. We’re still friends. Dick had helped “The Truth Eggs”, he got Virgin interested and he got “Rough Trade” to sell our first tape, he even designed our artwork. When Truth Eggs finished he came to see me for a chat and as he left he gave me an envelope with a cheque for £100 (a lot of money to me then) to make some more music. I was moved but as I didn’t have a band I didn’t feel I could use it. When Subtonics decided to release a single, we needed money for manufacturing. I asked Dick and he agreed to put about 33% up (I think?). Annie Healy put in about the same and I paid the rest. I’m forever grateful to Dick and Annie.

 ++ You, as far as I know, released one 7″, the one with “Take it Easy Florence”. Would you mind telling the story behind both songs on the single?

Florence is based on the idea of an obsessive character (Florence) whose love was unrequited. She tracks the other person down years later. Now she looks and seems different and succeeds in gaining the other persons love.

Nothing to lose – I can’t exactly remember, I know that the “troubles” in Northern Ireland and colonialism were in my thoughts. The key to the song was/is “The sun will shine tomorrow”, an empirical truth.

++ And are there any more recordings by the Subtonics?

Yes. We did a 6 track cassette release prior to the single. It got us some radio plays and record company interest. Paul C sent me a CD copy of it a few years ago but the quality is not very good. I could search my loft for a cassette if you’re interested? There are live recordings on cassette also – again, somewhere in the loft. I’ve not heard them for many years. I know there was one of Paul C’s last ever Subtonics gig and the drum riser collapsed during the set.

++ How come you didn’t record more records? Was there any interest from labels?

“Backs” distributed the single and Derek at Backs loved it. He wanted us to do more.

++ How do you remember the recording sessions for the single?

I think we did it in an evening. It cost £90. Aiden had never played that type of music. I’d given him a cassette of the song a week before but when I called to collect him he said he hadn’t listened to it. I think he worked his part out on the spot. He was always a bit disorganised in his life but once we got him to the studio he was totally focused. I don’t think Nick was happy with his part. I think we should have given him more time and encouragement. The rest of us had been playing the songs live, so we just knocked them out live, probably one take.

++ The record was released on Life of Man Records. Was that your own label? And how come the catalog was both 001 and 002?

Yes, my own label. Catalogue number? I didn’t know what I was doing.

++ And then what happened? When and why did you split?

We started to get some radio. Micky Bradley from “The Undertones” phoned me up to tell me how much he loved the record and that he was playing it on his radio show in Northern Ireland. I heard it a few times by chance which was nice. We got some good reviews also. We also got some bigger gigs. However, Paul C left for the US before we‘d received the copies of the record and we were using a session drummer for gigs. He was brilliant but he was charging us so much that he was taking every penny we earned. We’d been gigging for 3 years and had been able to cover our expenses and pay for any recordings. When Paul left it wasn’t the same.

++ After the band split, did you all continue making music?

Yes. I had a bit of break from gigging and wrote some new songs. Then I got Melanie to sing them. We became “The Sound of Spaghetti Junction”. We did loads of gigs as a duo and released one 10 song cassette (again, I may have a couple in the loft). We had lots of interest and were offered a deal by an off-shoot of Central TV. We turned it down on a lawyer’s advice. We had management and were making a little money. Then Melanie quit. She was attracting a lot of attention and getting a lot of offers to work with other people. Oddly, when we met up recently she told me she’s been going to open mic evenings and singing my songs.

I then started gigging solo and recoded a session for the BBC. I decided to record some songs with other musicians and found Richard Heath – drums, Mickey Harris – Bass (ex Lilac Time & Everything But The Girl) and Steve Shaw (aka Brennan) – violin (Ex Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Proclaimers and more). They loved the recording and wanted to gig. The Kings of Spain were born. We did a couple of BBC sessions and were regular headliners at the Mean Fiddler acoustic room. We were getting record company interest but nothing concrete. Then we had a party in my garden and we played a set and recorded it straight to DAT. It cost £10 to hire the machine. We got it pressed up on CD, the record companies ran a mile but the reviews were great, we got to do radio interviews and sessions and BBC TV came and filmed us in my garden. We released 2 more albums with changes in personel. A fourth was recorded but never released. Two of the mainstays of the last version of TKOS, Paul Keeves and Russell Poyner, now live in Germany so it’s become too difficult for them to continue. I have been to Germany a couple of times and played as TKOS with Russell. So now I’ve begun a new solo recording and who knows what will happen next?

Paul C and Nick you have links to.

Paul K is now a drummer in a covers band.

Aiden died tragically about 15 years ago but was active in music to the end.

++ Are you all still in touch?

With both Pauls and Melanie, yes. Haven’t seen Nick for about 15 years or more.

++ If you would have to pick the highlight of being in the Subtonics, what would you say that was?

I don’t know. All the memories are good; from travelling down to London and sleeping on floors to play scruffy half empty gigs to turning on the radio and thinking, that’s us!

++ And these days, aside from music, what takes most of your time? Do you have any other hobbies?

I have had a day Job for last 16 years. I teach people to speak English and I get to meet lots of interesting folks from all around the world.

++ I’ve never visited Birmingham or Erdington. Just out of curiosity, what’s the best it has to offer to a visitor?

Birmingham is a lot better now than it was during Subtonics’ days. It’s like a lot of cities, if you have a good guide who knows your tastes you’ll have a good time. It’s very multicultural. I think it has more parks and trees than any other European city and it has more canals than Venice!

++ Thanks so much John! Anything else you’d like to add?

Roque, I haven’t thought about this stuff for a long time. Once I started writing, the memories came flooding back and it’s been hard to stop! I hope you don’t mind all the detail. I’m sure you can edit it into something acceptable. Thanks for giving a reason to reminisce.

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Listen
Subtonics – Take it Easy Florence

Thanks so much to John O’Sullivan for the interview! Back in October I wrote a bit about Public Address on the blog and John was kind enough to get in touch. He was also up for answering some questions and sharing the story of his band! You’ll find the answers right below! Now sit back, grab a beer, and enjoy the read!

++ Hi John! Thanks so much for being up for this interview! Tell me are you still making music?

Hello Roque, you’re more than welcome, and thank you for asking me. Yes, I still write and play music, but only for my own pleasure nowadays, the fire in the belly to play live has left me. In fact, I’ve only played live on one occasion in the last twenty-five years when myself and Glenn (the bass player from Public Address) did a set of covers, including an old PA track, Goodbye From Her, at his wedding reception in Edinburgh in 2011. I still love the songwriting process, even without an outlet for it nowadays.

++ And still living in Worksop? What were the places you used to hang out? Has it changed much since they heyday of Public Address? Are there any sights worth checking out in town?

Yes, I still live in Worksop, although that will be changing soon. Back in the 80s there were quite a few venues were live music flourished in Worksop. The Frog & Nightgown and The Old Ship Inn are two that spring to mind. It was at The Old Ship that we stole our drummer, Derron, from his then current band (their name escapes me, sorry). We used to rehearse at a few places in town, a room above The Queens Head was used a few times, but our main room was at The Regal Cinema on Carlton Road, across from The Frog, which was our post-rehearsal watering hole of choice. Worksop has changed a lot these past thirty years and I rarely venture into town to socialise to be honest. I live on the doorstep of Sherwood Forest (Robin Hood and all that) with lots of fantastic countryside surrounding the town, so I enjoy going for walks in the area. Clumber Park is a large National Trust property on the edge of Worksop which is well worth a visit.

++ Where there any other good bands in the area that you liked?

There were some great bands in and around Worksop, but I can’t remember any of their names, sorry. How bad is that? Worksop is only a short drive from Sheffield which was producing lots of great bands in the early 80s, including Heaven 17 and The Human League. I have a vague memory of drinking (that’s why it’s vague) in The Frog with Phil Oakey on one occasion. But I may have dreamt it.

++ How did the band start? How did you all meet?

Me and Glenn knew each other all the way through our schooldays, and it was our love of The Beatles that got us into music and the idea of forming a band. We started writing songs when we were 13/14 years old – terrible songs! – but as we got older we got better. Well, I hope we did anyway. I still have cassettes of our early efforts, some of which I’ve put on MP3, which get an airing once in a blue moon. It was through Glenn that I met Stuart, our lead guitarist, as they both worked together. He had played in bands in Manchester in the late 70s/early 80s, supporting the likes of Joy Division and New Order, and was the driving force in getting the band to be more professional. Stuart and I eventually worked together as arrangers on the songs, and his lead guitar riffs were an essential part of our sound. Derron, as I mentioned earlier, was poached from another local band and was, together with Glenn on bass, part of a great rhythm team that kept us tight when we played live. Glenn was actually the lead singer and I was the bass player when the band first started, but we swapped over when I got told early on “You write the bloody songs, so you can bloody sing them.”, except the word bloody wasn’t actually used. I have an average voice and was never fully comfortable in the front-man-wiggles-his-bum role, but once I’d taken my glasses off – which made the audience a total blur – and got the first line of the opening song out I would relax into it. It still didn’t stop me screaming instead of singing occasionally (check out She Don’t Remember on ReverbNation!)

++ And was Public Address your first band adventure?

No, me and Glenn were in another band in 83/84 called Wine By The Glass. We played acoustic covers and we were less than average! It was the experience of that band breaking up that inspired some of the lyrics in James Dean.

++ Where does the name of the band come from?

I honestly can’t remember who came up with the name, but I do remember that we didn’t want to be ‘The” anything. It was probably Stuart, but I can’t say for certain.

++ Who and what would you say were the main influences of the band?

The Beatles were a massive influence for both me and Glenn. They still are for me. Their output was amazing, and their growth as songwriters and performers in such a short period of time was phenomenal. But my big influences at the time of the band were The Smiths and Prefab Sprout. The triumvirate of Morrissey/Marr and McAloon created amazing songs with incredible melodies and superb lyrics. I tried to – and still try to – write with that attitude, making the words and tunes work independently of each other, which I hope I sometimes achieved. Not always, I admit, but I gave it a good go. Derron was a massive New Order fan, but I can’t remember who influenced Stuart.

++ Tell me a bit about The Fabled Stable Records. Was it your own label? How did that work out?

It was our own label but it never really existed, hence the use of the word Fabled. I also really liked how the words ‘Fabled Stable Record Label’ sounded when said together so I pushed for that as the label name. It was just an exercise in me being a smart-arse to be honest, and the rest of the band let me get away with it. The publishing company ‘Remember This (Music)’ was also fictional. The crazy idea was that we’d eventually have numerous Remember This outlets. Just a bit of fun really.

++ You released one 7″ as far as I know, right? Both songs are top-notch! Can you tell me the story behind these songs?

Thank you for the compliment, Roque.

James Dean, as was the case with most of my songs, was about me or things that I’d seen/experienced. I rarely wrote third-party story songs, and James Dean was a definite first person song. I actually was 21 when I wrote it, and I really was still a child, as the lyric states. The line “leave the house to shouts of Dumb and Immature” related to the break-up of WBTG. We didn’t plan the sacking of the singer very well, so badly in fact that the day after the event we realised that all our gear was still at her house. I recall making a hasty exit, carry guitars and amps under my arms with mic stands flying around my head! Dumb and Immature were two of the milder expressions used that day. ‘The group of chords that raised a smile, I haven’t found one for quite a while.”, was self-deprecating and ironic as I had found one for the song itself.

Heart Ache was a group effort insofar as it began as a jam during a rehearsal session. Stuart and I then arranged the rough ideas into song form, and Glenn and Derron got busy with their rhythm parts. When it was taken into the studio it was a reserve song as we intended recording another track as the B side, and the lyrics were very much in a basic state. However, that intended B side song – which I now can’t remember at all – became a dog to record and we decided to go with Heart Ache. So while the others got on with their parts I quickly finished the lyrics. They’re not great to be honest, just words to go with the groove, but by the end of the session we were happy with what we’d produced. I actually wanted it as the A side but I was outvoted.

++ And how do you remember the recording session?

We used the same studio, Input in Sheffield, where we’d made the demos of Goodbye From Her and Can You Hear Me Now? back in April ’86. They’d been engineered and produced by Nick Wild and he did a brilliant job so we used him again for these sessions, although we decided to self produce. I do remember I had trouble singing the first few lines of James Dean in tune – no surprise there – and the finished item was a couple of takes expertly weaved together by Nick. We brought in Mick Ellison, who had previously been in the band for a short time, to play keyboards during the sessions, and he added such a lot to the tracks I was hoping he’d re-join, but he didn’t. I always enjoyed our time in the studio. I don’t remember much, if any, falling out, though I’m sure there must have been.

++ This record seems to be a bit obscure for some reason! Why do you think that? And how many copies were pressed if you remember?

We had 1,000 copies pressed and self distributed them around as many record stores as we could. We eventually sold about 750 or so. It’s obscure because it didn’t create enough of a buzz so subsequently became forgotten. I think it was a good song, we certainly gave it our all when recording it and when played live, although the live version was much shorter. We didn’t use the intro that’s still on the version available on YouTube – I cut that out when transferring it to ReverbNation – and we never used the last chorus live either, going straight to the last guitar break after singing ‘overtaking just like Jimmy Dean’.

++ As I was looking for more information I found that there were more recordings of the band uploaded to ReverbNation. So I wonder how come you didn’t release more records?

The single was funded by a local businessman who believed we had potential, as the cost was too prohibitive for us to fund ourselves at the time. Put simply, we never got to the point where we could record and release another single.

++ Counting them and the 7″, are there still more unreleased songs by Public Address?

Not that I am in possession of. The seven tracks that exist are taken from a cassette tape I made back in 1987 to give to my then girlfriend (she subsequently became my wife, and then my ex-wife!). They were copied from masters of our demos and live shows that were in the possession of one of our roadies. Sadly, he took his own life a short time afterwards and the master tapes were never recovered. So everything I have is up on ReverbNation, though there were lots of other songs recorded.

++ And from all of these songs, from your repertoire, what were your favourite ones and why?

My favourites were Goodbye From Her and Can You Hear Me Now? GFH was a very personal song (you see, it’s all about me!) and the lyric started off originally as a poem. I think it was the best song I ever wrote, and the melody is very simple, with only three chords used in the whole song. When we came to arrange it Stuart wrote some brilliant lead guitar riffs, and I think Glenn’s bass line and Derron’s subtle changes from rimshots to snare and back again really add light and shade to the track.

CYHMN contained my favourite chord sequences – I love great chord sequences – and I liked the fact that the intro was also the outro. I was never a fan of Derron’s double snare during the chorus (his nod to New Order) but I could never talk him out of it. If you take the first letter of each line of the lyric it spells out BEATLES JOHN and PAUL (my subtle tribute), and the first line ‘Back again with nothing new’ was my little dig at our critics who said everything sounded the same. It probably did though, to be fair.

++ What about gigs? Did you play live often? What was the worst gig and the best gig you’d say?

We played quite a lot over the two years we were together, though we didn’t travel any further afield than Sheffield, Derby or Nottingham. My favourite gig was the night we supported It Bites at the Porterhouse in Retford in March ‘87. They’d had a big hit in the UK called Calling All The Heroes, so we were lucky to get the support slot as a lot of the local bands were after it. Our single had just been released and we saw it as a showcase gig. The three live tracks available on ReverbNation are from that gig. There’s a bit at the end of She Don’t Remember where I can be heard in the background saying, “New ending”, as, for some unknown reason, we’d just extended the track by a few bars. That still makes me smile when I hear it. I just remember it as a great night with fantastic support from both our fans (we had a regular following by then) and those that were there specifically there for It Bites. The worst gig was at a venue in Nottingham, again my memory fails when it comes to its name – possibly for legal reasons – where we just didn’t connect with the locals at all. If anything, they were downright aggressive and we couldn’t wait to get out of there. I think we played everything at double speed and packed up in world record time. Probably broke the speed limit driving home too.

++ And looking back, what would you say was the highlight of Public Address?

Recording and releasing the single was the highlight for me. I really believed at the time that things would happen for us – the self-belief of youth and all that – but it wasn’t to be. I wouldn’t change a minute of the experience, both good and bad.

++ Then what happened? When and why did you split?

In the summer of 1987 we’d been together for two years, in and out of each other’s pockets, rehearsals, live shows, etc, and we needed a break. We decided to have the rest of the summer away from the band and get back together again in the autumn. When we eventually met up again Stuart said he wanted us to introduce covers and play more in what the Brits call ‘clubland’, i.e. more showbiz and less indie pop. I took this as criticism of my songs and my vision of the band so I threw my toys out of the pram and we split up, with Stuart and Glenn going off into clubland, and Derron and myself starting another band along with Mick Ellison. We never really got any further than some demos before it fizzled out in 1988. Having known Glenn all my life up to that point, we didn’t speak again for almost ten years (how silly is that?), but it’s been like old times again for the last 15 years or so (I was best man at his wedding in 2011), and he’s now the lead singer in a Mod/Ska covers band called The 5.15s who are brilliant live, and he’s a great front man. I do sometimes wish I was up there too, but on bass, in the background, backing vocals only, grooving with the drummer.

++ Since then have you been involved with other bands?

No, I pretty much gave it all up in 1988. I sold all my gear the following year when I got married, apart from one acoustic guitar. I now have a beautiful Epiphone John Lennon EJ-160E acoustic/electric that gets a play every day. I start writing more songs than I ever finish nowadays, but I can’t imagine not ever trying to write new melodies and lyrics.

++ And aside from music, what other hobbies do you enjoy doing?

Having reached my half century I need to stay fit and healthy, so I enjoy going for walks, especially around Clumber which is big enough to enjoy without seeing the same things each and every time. I enjoy going to gigs and the cinema when I can, and I’m lucky enough to be in a relationship with an incredible woman – hello Charlotte – so I get most pleasure from being involved with my new family, as well as my old family – hello Da, hello Sis -and seeing my friends. Oh, and drinking quality red wine, that’s right up there too!

++ One last question then, your favourite “James Dean” movie?

Giant. Dean is brilliant in the movie, and Elizabeth Taylor was, is and always will be a goddess.

++ Thanks a lot, anything else you’d like to add?

I just want to say that I’ve enjoyed the whole experience of initially finding your blog on Public Address, reading your very generous remarks on something created almost three decades ago, and then being given the opportunity to discuss the band further with you in this interview. So, thank you, Roque, for bringing back memories of good times from my past. I’m flattered that you’ve enjoyed something that we all worked so hard on back in the day, and if this leads to a few more people liking our music we’ve got you to thank for it. Best regards, John.

And suddenly it’s spring in New York and with that every single pharmacy starts running out of Claritin and other anti-allergic medicine. I have itchy eyes all day. It’s painful. On top of that it’s getting warmer and will have to install the A/C unit on the window this weekend. And it rains. If it doesn’t rain it drizzles. But soon enough it will be NYC Popfest with it’s blue skies and beautiful indiepopkids. But here’s a bunch of tidbits of what to expect in the next couple of weeks.

Three weekends away for that. Around the corner. For me, and possibly for many, it even starts a day before, on Wednesday as Pale Lights are having a release show for their new LP at Friends & Lovers in Brooklyn.

I was told that on Popfest Sunday labels and bands will be able to sell a lot of records as there will be some sort of small fair at Littlefield. I will definitely bring some Cloudberry Records to sell then as well as some of my “doubles” of my collection. I think this is a great initiative by Maz. Let’s see how this idea works out in it’s first year.

Aside from allergies this week I’ve discovered that there are a bunch of new exciting bands out there that I’ve been missing out by leaving under a rock. For example yesterday I was introduced to Trick Mammoth from New Zealand, and wow, I couldn’t believe that I’ve been missing out. It seems the days I had a finger on the pulse are over. I need of my friends to show me their latest finds! So I count with you all.

I had a nice dinner yesterday with Mr. Shelflife. I got the latest releases, Flying Colours 12″, Close Lobsters 7″ and Luxembourg Signal 7″. So far I’ve only listened the latter and it’s fantastic. You all better get it! Hopefully too in two weeks time, for Popfest, the Gingerlys 7″ will be out. I’ve been meaning to catch them live for like forever, but for a reason or another I couldn’t. This time I won’t miss them.

Also I received a nice message from The Popguns saying that they will play different sets at NYC Popfest and Indietracks. That’s indeed a fantastic piece of news to me, making both their gigs special!

Those who are staying in New York after Popfest you should catch Gold-Bears on June 3rd at Shea Stadium. They have a new LP out and even though I haven’t had the chance to listen to it, I’m pretty sure it’s ace.

Then the one gig I will be missing this year that I feel sad to miss is that reunion of Los Fresones Rebeldes in Madrid. This will happen in June as part of their old label celebrations. So jealous of EVERYONE who’ll attend!

I have some travels lined up too. Next weekend I’ll be heading to San Antonio, Texas, for the Memorial Weekend. Nothing too exciting there of course, but will be there for a couple of days for some proper brisket and BBQ.

Oh right, and I need to finish the fanzine. I think that’s what everyone cares right now. So I’ll get into that. Next week blog post though will be about a band that I hold dear but I didn’t mention on my Popfest roundup. And in the meantime know that there are many interviews lined up as well.

But now onto the obscure band of the week, I know you’ve been waiting for it as we missed it last week!

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“The sun shines for you on pension day”!!

There’s an Open Book band on Last.fm with releases from the noughties. I doubt that the band listed there has anything to do with the Open Book from the 80s. Sure I can’t proof this, and as a good detective I should leave the idea open. But let’s move to other things that we can be sure of.

The one and only 7″, including the A side “Pension Day” and the B side “I’m Incomplete” is not listed on Discogs. Don’t know how hard it is then to track a copy. On 45Cat and Rateyourmusic it is listed. Which of the two songs is my favourite? How hard to choose! In this record both songs are terrific. Proper indiepop, proper C86 sound! Definitely worth tracking this record that reminds me a bit of the Black Cillas or the Bicycle Thieves.

I can’t help for having a soft spot for the B side though, maybe making it my favourite of the two. I love how it starts with this sort of post punk sound, and opens with the lines “Friday night I’m drunk again and midnight blows me in“. Classic!

Ah! Pension day. I like being paid too haha. The cover art has a small bunny wearing sunglasses on the bottom right corner. Looks like a logo. I reckon it would be popular printed on stickers. Maybe it was. Would work nicely on badges/pins too.

The black and white sleeve record was released by Hag Records. Catalog HAG 002. I know the Levellers released on this same label at some point. This label was based in Brighton. Would it be safe to assume the band came from Brighton as well? Lovely town by the way, just remembering the day I spent there many years ago, visiting the beach, the Royal Pavilion, and having South Indian food. And of course enjoying a couple of pints on it’s famous pier.

The only other piece of information about the band was that the record was produced and mixed by John Bell. And that the band members are listed:
Ian Creese – Vocals
Nick York – Bass
John Lancaster – Guitar
Martin Southon – Guitar
Vince Bowshal – Drums

And that’s all I could find. I believe no other records were released by the band. Not sure what happened to the guys afterwards, maybe they continued making music under another name. But maybe any of you that lived in the area could remember them? Maybe you attended a gig or two. Please help this poor Sherlock Holmes in tracking down the fantastic Open Book!

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Listen
Open Book – Pension Day

No old band today (beware! as if they were the bubonic plague a girl told me that old bands only draw middle-age white male people and a guy said that they only bring old women that shop at Saga and Tenfield), but I want to talk a bit about a record I’ve been listening a lot and a band and a friend that I hold dear. Hope that’s ok with you my male middle-aged white and Tenfield shopping female friends.

The story begins a long time ago and it has continued until this day. Meetings in different countries and a good friendship. Strange of it all I’ve seen the band play live. It’s a dream of mine that seems won’t happen anytime soon.

There were plans to try a Peruvian restaurant in Stockholm. Called “Tumi” (the name of a pre-Incan ceremonial knife) and located in hip Söder, the restaurant was promising. Plans that went back for months since my friend Erik had mentioned it to me while he was in NYC on his way to Peru. I had to try it of course as I have tried Peruvian places in Berlin or London. You know, quality control.

Of course I didn’t count that it was going to be closed when I arrived there on Sunday. The website clearly states that they are open until 9pm every Sunday. But it was Easter Sunday. Perhaps the chefs and line-cooks wanted to pray? Who knows. It was just closed. Lights out. And there was me disappointed. Then Caro was disappointed. Gustaf saved the night suggesting a Turkish place around the area. Alex would soon join us too.

Around the area there used to be another Peruvian restaurant. Much smaller. But it closed some time ago. It had the fame of throwing a dinner for Mario Vargas Llosa after he received the Nobel Prize in Stockholm. Alex told me it was pretty good. You have to trust him after a childhood in Lima and a lifetime of making ceviches for his friends in Sweden.

The dinner at the Turkish restaurant, and then the beers at the Skrapan, at the Himlen bar on the top, and some more beers around the corner at Imperiet, were just one more episode to these meetings around the world with Alex, mastermind of HaHa Fonogram and bassist extraordinaire of my beloved Sad Day For Puppets. Of course after all these beer we stopped to have some tunnbrodsrulla. Happy days.

These days he is involved also with another band worth checking out Then Comes Silence. A mix of guitar pop and doom metal if that can actually happen. It’s pretty interesting. They call it goth-gaze. My favourite song might be the one where Anna Eklund, vocalist of SDFP, appears doing a duet: “She Lies in Wait”.

Chatting like it was yesterday since he had visited NYC or Miami, talking about the state of record labels, bands, the scene, and of course Stockholm and Lima. Time goes fast talking with good friends. My visit to Sweden’s capital ends up being too short. Gladly Alex gave me a copy of Sad Day For Puppets last effort, “Come Closer”. It will have to wait until I get to NYC for me to listen to it.

The album was released last year by HaHa Fonogram for the world and Fastcut Records for Japan. Touring Japan, I think that’s Alex’s highlight for the band. I can’t wait to go visit. They are on a league of their own he tells me. I notice that the artwork for both albums is different. In Japan we get a colorful artwork, a girl holding balloon, the other edition gets a tropical logo with palm leaves and red parrots as the central piece. The background looks like wet wood out of a rainforest. It brings to mind the Amazon and it’s mystery and it’s invitation to exploration.

10 songs. Classic Sad Day for Puppets Fare, catchy poppy shoegazy tracks. No surprises. Some heavier guitars perhaps on “Living Dead” and “Destroyer”. But yet it’s what I always expect from them, the same quality but something has made me listen to the album for two weeks straight now. I’m hooked. Perhaps trying to find an explanation would be futile but I keep thinking why.

Many years ago we did a 7″ together. I still make the joke that Alex gave me their best ever song, “Again” for the A side. I still believe this. I was lucky! But in this album, the whole body of it is so tight, that it’s such a pleasure to listen to it from start to finish again and again. Maybe it was a premonition this “again”.

The album has been produced by Alex and Tom Van Heesch who also mixed it. It was recorded at Big Island Sound and Uhr-Omrädet in Stockholm. At one point when I listen to songs like “Sugar” and “Shiver and Shake” I can see the band getting much and much closer to poppier sounds of classic indiepop from the 80s. The luminosity of “Human Heart” is a unique one for me, it’s so bright, so hopeful. And then immediately comes “Senseless”, a song that sounds like an updated Primitives. Perfect slice of pop!!! “How could I ever love someone else?” asks Anna and how could I ever come up with a reply to such a sweet question.

The album starts to wind down with the upbeat but yet melancholic “Bye Bye”, though it’s not goodbye as “Bells” closes the album in a much sadder note. But I haven’t even had the time to stop and think when the album starts again for me. “Cold Hand” is the cracker that opens Come Closer with a line that instantly tells you that you have to pay attention “It’s a cold hand touching me now”. It’s the story of a dead love. Shaking, shivering and asking to let go. The sort of honesty that grabs me and actually doesn’t let me go.

The synthethizers announce me that I’m reaching song number two, “Stardust”. Darker. The album enters into a stage of mystery. Pounding basses. Anna turned into stone. Hope is lost in this song. Everything crumbles within the beauty of the melodies. And then our poppy hearts go bursting to full sing-along happiness with “Human Heart”. And then we are repeating all songs again.

I come some months late to this album. Should be one of the best of 2013 definitely.  But of course we know end-of-year lists are usually made by deaf people. Senseless people! Now I urge you to check it out. I believe you can still get the album from Fastcut and HaHa Fonogram. Do yourself that favor. And if you aren’t that familiar with their music, well you should get their whole discography. There are so many classics in it like “Hush” (which I’ve DJed a bunch of times!), “When You Tell Me That You Love Me ” or “Marble Gods” to name just a few!

You do that, and I’ll keep dreaming a good indiepop festival will call them to play. Come closer.

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Listen
Sad Day For Puppets – Human Heart

A couple of weeks ago, just before leaving on vacation, I took on the book description for Twee: The Gentle Revolution book. People agreed and disagreed with me and that was alright. It’s great to have a discussion. On that same post I promised going over the Salon Magazine article that was written by the author of the book were he talks a bit more in depth about it. So let me do this exercise and see if the description was just written to sell the book and there are many differences between what the publisher promotes and what the author really believes. Of course, we are still waiting for the book to be published as it will hit bookstores on June 3rd. But in the meantime…

But Twees were not Hipsters.  Hipsters went out and did drugs and wore white belts. Twees, as I idealized, stayed in and wrote in their diaries (or on their blogs) and wore cardigans and listened to the Zombies, the Go-Betweens and Galaxie 500. They weren’t scruffy.

When I read this I got very optimistic. This sounded right to me. Maybe a bit of a stereotype, but in general lines indiepop people could fall into this description. But then he affirms that twees are hated more than hipsters and I’m not sure what does that mean. I feel that, for the normal people out, there they won’t be able to differentiate a hipster and a twee. They would be all the same. So then you might ask if a hipster hates a twee, or a twee hates a hipster. But that’s a very pointless question. Hipsters abound whereas the twee people are a minuscule group. Tiny. So no, I really not believe anyone hates the indiepop people. Nobody actually CARES about them really. And that’s totally fine. But I think the author has totally confused hipsters and twees. Even though he claims they are different groups then he is pretty sure to point out “Sure, they all moved to Brooklyn and ruined it“. As I said last time on the blog, there are a few indiepop people there, as there are a few too in Manhattan and Queens. So the question is, who really moved to Brooklyn? Well, it was mostly the hipsters, that’s pretty obvious. So he is mixing them up. Maybe he just hates hipsters.

And that’s more understandable. Hating hipsters is really easy. But that’s another conversation. Later on the article the author talks about a sameness that exists between songs and movies between many decades, even going further to the 1930s (!). This is something I’ve fought against a lot. That sort of idea that all indiepop is the same, that all of it comes from the same influences, wearing the same sort of uniform, etc etc. I found that this line of thought is very common to those that are alien to indiepop. In truth, for most people that are not knowledgeable about a specific music genre, when looking it from outside, it will usually sound and look the same. For a book like this though it’s pretty useful for the author to reduce it to sameness. It means less work, less research. It’s an easier way to prove his thesis. It’s wrong though because he is a music writer and he should know better. It’s pretty interesting that he mentions that “twees, as I saw them, were souls with an almost incapacitating awareness of darkness, death and cruelty, who made the personal choice to focus on essential goodness and sweetness“. Clearly he hasn’t got knee-deep in our beloved music. Even when listening to The Smiths you can tell that this belief of his is totally far off.

He also says that by 2012 there was some sort of explosion of twee entertainment. New Girl, Girls and Portlandia were the prime examples. Why are they twee? I don’t know. He mentions that Girls is a smart and feminist show. Does that make it twee? Sure indiepop people in it’s great majority are smart and feminist. But those are not exclusive traits of this scene. At this point I start to believe that for the author Twee just means quirky, witty and cute. It doesn’t mean anything else other than that. That the music is just an accessory, something that we all know that is not the case. It’s the music what we wear on our sleeves. It’s what defines us the mostly, our love for bands that go from yes, the Go-Betweens to more obscure bands like The Someloves. Indiepop is not defined for owning a kitty, for going to feminist rallies, or for watching these TV shows.

So he got it all wrong. What does this mean? In the situation that the book turns out to be popular (hopefully not), this may redefine the meaning of twee. It will be taken away from indiepop and become a more universal term. Who knows, twee.net will start getting a thousand hits then and possibly a proper twee scene will appear, all listening to She & Him and that sort of bands.

In a way that could be good, we’ve all preferred, for a long time, the term indiepop over twee. Perhaps after this we won’t use the word twee anymore. But it could happen the worst case scenario too. That where we’ll get pigeonholed into the sort of stereotype this guy is creating. It will be pretty uncomfortable if that happens.

The fact is, if there are people to blame for this whole situation, it’s us. Indiepop has been going for almost  30 years and only as of late some books are being written about it though mostly about specific topics like Sarah Records or Postcard Records. But a book encompassing the whole indiepop history, a book to understand twee and indiepop,  properly reserached, well, we never produced it. It was just a matter of time then that someone outside the scene would see the opportunity and write something about it. Now we can only hope it doesn’t make a awful caricature of all of us. Let’s wait and see.

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I believe I know about the Subtonics from the future Leamington Spa list that was once listed on Twee.net. I was glad that during that same date I stumbled upon a copy of their 7″ on eBay and bought it blindly. It must have been 4 years ago. The cover art of the record was definitely not very indiepop-ish, but I gave it a try. If Uwe had listed it, then it was probably good.

As far as I know they only released one 7”. It was back in 1987 in Erdington, Birmingham, when the band put together these two songs, “Take it Easy Florence” on the A side and “Nothing to Lose” on the B side, and released them on vinyl.

The band was formed by:

Backing Vocals – Melanie Paige-Gibbins
Bass – Paul Kelly
Drums – Paul Comaskey
Fiddle – Aiden Forde
Saxophone – Nick Smith
Vocals, Guitar – John McElwee

And the record was produced by Subtonics. The sound engineer was Phil Savage and the recordings were made at Outlaw Sound Birmingham. The cover artwork was done by Annie Healy. The label that put the record out was Life of Man Records. Catalog was  LOM 001 / 002. Perhaps a catalog number for each song? All songs were copyrighted to John McElwee.

The music is a bit folky, (I’m not a folk hater!), but it has a good indiepop element in it that makes both songs quite fun, especially the A side, with it’s classic chorus that sounds taken out from the mid 80s, reminding me of bands like The Rain or Home and Abroad. Of course, with the fiddle addition!

Included in the record there’s an insert written by a Richard V. Frank. He mentions that he was in Austin, Texas in 1985, and he was awaken by the music of Subtonics. Seems they were playing around the US. I wonder where else they played. On this same insert it says that in 1986 the band was deported from the US when it was discovered that they had been staying here as illegal aliens! Wow! Upon returning to Birmingham, Richard decided he loved so much the band that he paid for the record. What happened after? That part I don’t know. They split for sure.

The only other information I could track online was that the drummer, Paul Comaskey now actually lives in the US, in the North East and he still makes music as you can see in his bandcamp and soundcloud. In his bandcamp bio he doesn’t mention the Subtonics though. But it must be him as he comes from Erdington, Birmingham, right? He mentions that he has played in many bands like The Nervous Kind, The Music Lovers, The Sunshine Club and Richard Buckner.

What happened to the other band members? There is a John McElwee that is part of the New Yorker now. But is it the same one?

Does anyone remember this Birmingham band from back in the day? Did they release anything else? Did they record any more songs? Let’s solve the mystery!

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Listen
Subtonics – Take it Easy Florence

Well vacations are over. Back to the drill. To the routine of work, Netflix, indiepop, subway rides and take-out dinners. On the bright side around the corner there’s NYC Popfest and we all know how brilliant it is. And now it’s even more exciting as the The Hidden Cameras have been replaced by one of the best bands from the C86 period, The Popguns. At least for me, this is a step up for the festival! But then of course this makes my trip to Indietracks not as worthy as The Popguns were the main draw for me at the Derbyshire festival. It’s almost the same lineup! Don’t know exactly WHY this has happened, but it has. Usually some bands were repeated in both festivals but not in the same quantity as this year.

Sure of course some bitter people have commented before that they can’t afford going to both festivals and so it’s great for them to see the bands. And that’s totally fair. But really it isn’t fantastic news for me! I want to spend my vacations at Indietracks, a festival I love, and I will do so this year. But if the trend continues perhaps I should skip next year. The whole beauty for me, aside from seeing friends and the warm beer (not), was to get to see bands that I wouldn’t have a chance to see her in the US. Like when I saw The Brilliant Corners, or Helen Love. Those were fabulous treats! I feel at least this year this is really not the case. BUT of course I can keep positive as there are 20 or so more announcements to be made by team Indietracks and hopefully a handful of proper electric guitar indiepop bands will be booked! Enough of the hippie folky stuff! Come on, it’s an indiepop festival!

Also upon my return I was attacked on some comments by an English person calling me racist and prejudiced. Sometimes I don’t understand people and their ignorance. Just because I don’t agree with them, or because they have some sort of guilt trip, they assume I’m the same as them. I’m not a saint but thinking and believing hip hop is a culture that doesn’t add anything to our civilization doesn’t make me racist. That’s damn stupid. I believe surfer culture doesn’t add anything either, or what about the candy kids culture. What makes me then if I don’t like these things? A monster? Come on. That’s just plain stupidity, to insult me just because I have a strong personal view about these things. But forgiveness and turning the page, right?

So yeah, I’m in a good mood. Just received the new The Haywains 7″ sleeves. Now just waiting for the vinyl records that should be arriving next week. Then cutting the inserts, putting them in the sleeves and then the sleeves in the polybags. Right when all of this is done all pre-orders will be mailed. So luckily you’ll have your Haywains 7″ just before the official release date by the end of the month when the play NYC Popfest.

On more Cloudberry news the fanzine is shaping nicely. Crossing fingers that it will be ready by Indietracks time.

Also the My Favorite reissue for Love at Absolute Zero should be ready by NYC Popfest time. So keep your eyes peeled for that one.

So that’s what NYC had awaiting for me. Also of course a bit colder here than Spain, Norway or Sweden. I know I promised the post about the Salon article about the Twee book. I’ll get on that next week. I will also like to go through about my vacation, but in due honesty there was very little indiepop so it might not be of much interest. I only got to catch one gig, and it was a very small one. It was free and at a bookshop in Seville. The band that was playing was The Royal Landscaping Society, a fantastic and jangly new band formed by Cristóbal (Shizuka, La Chufa Lisérgica, Sundae), Fran (Papel Pintado), David (Los Catarros) and Maria (Wasabi Monster) joins them too, though she didnt at the gig at the bookshop. I think this was their second ever gig, and right now they should have already played Birmingham Popfest this weekend, making it their 3rd ever gig!

I would definitely like to seem them play at a bigger stage, the sound and the setting aside from being cozy, was not the best for them. But even like that they managed to sound really nice, with bright and luminous guitars, full of arpeggios, bringing to mind Harper Lee, Brighter, The Field Mice. That kind of very Sarah Records kind of sound. Just precious little songs. I really hope I get to see them grow more known and also to release their first proper record. I know right now they are selling their demo, and I wish I get my hands on it soon. So far they only had one song released on a compilation on Little Treasure Records. What about them being part of those 20 bands that still need to be announced at Indietracks? I think it would make sense. Just a tip if you haven’t heard them!

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And now let’s move to some obscure indiepop from 1989, the Gordon Jackson Five.

Gordon Cameron Jackson, OBE (19 December 1923 – 15 January 1990) was a Scottish Emmy Award-winning actor best remembered for his roles as the butler Angus Hudson in Upstairs, Downstairs and as George Cowley, the head of CI5, in The Professionals.

So that might be the Gordon Jackson they named the band after. And of course I think we all know who the Jackson Five were, right?

Don’t know how rare their one and only 7″ is. It seems if you look in the right places you might find it. I still don’t have it though, and I’m kind of in saving mode now, trying not to spend too much money on records. But if you see it, buy it. Especially for the A side, the well-titled “Beers”. The b side is alright too, and it’s called “Look at Me!”.

The record was released by Flatbat Yahoo, catalogue number FBY 1. Safe to think that this was a self-release.

Luckily for all of us, indiepop detectives and researches (ha!), there’s a small bio on Last.fm. It reads:

Wood Green, London, United Kingdon (1987 – 1990)
The Gordon Jackson 5 was an alternative, indie pop four piece band that formed in Wood Green, London, United Kingdon in 1986 under the original name The Backwater Squares, but decided to changed it to The Gordon Jackson 5 in 1987. The band released their 7” single Beers in 1989, but split not long after, in late 1990.

Members were: Paul (George) on Guitar, vocals, songwriter; Mick (Baurice) on Bass and b. vocals; Beamish (Roy) on drums and b. vocals; and Chris Alletson (Ira) on keyboards and b. vocals.

From there I could find out that Chris Alletson has been involved with other bands as there is also a small bio about him:

Chris is a musician from Leicester, United Kingdom. A keyboard player, he has collaborated with various artists since the early ‘80’s, (for example: The Attitude in 1981) until his move to London in 1985, where he took part in verious music projects, notably the Progressive Soul Program, The Gordon Jackson 5 and the Worry Dolls, which earned some ‘John Peel’ time. He relocated to West Yorkshire and was involved in an experimental/synth/drum and bass outfit called JumpCut.

He has performed with Kelvin Cartwright (Kelv), Dave Brown (Dan) of Likemind fame, whom Chris teamed up with to be keyboardist with The Attitude in 1981. Chris and Dan were part of a motown/Stax/70’s/rock cover band Friday Street in and around the East Midlands until 2011.

Cool to see he had been part of the Worry Dolls, a band that I’ve mentioned in the blog before. Sadly though the link to the Soundcloud that also appears on the last.fm page of him doesn’t seem to be working anymore. But you can listen to some of his own recordings here.

That’s more or less all I could find about them or related to them. But maybe someone out there can help? I’m sure someone in London or Leicester has seen them play? Or what about more recordings? I mean, it can’t be that they only left us with two songs, right?!  Use the comment box wisely 😉

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Listen
Gordon Jackson Five – Beers

 

Thanks again to Andy and Neal for yet another interview. Some time ago I interviewed them about their most known band Hellfire Sermons. Today we go a bit further back in time to their adventure with Swim Naked. You can also find more about them on their Facebook page. Hope you enjoy reading this!

++ Hi again Andy and Neal! How are you doing!? Once again another interview, now about an earlier project, Swim Naked. Formed in 1982, right? Was this your first band with your longtime friend Neal Carr? And what kind of music were you into at this time?

Neal: We were discovering lots of music together at the time, the band was an extension of that. I was into the likes of Orange Juice, Joy Division, Gang Of Four, The Cure, Teardop and The Bunnymen when I first met Andy and Chent. We were all exploring the likes of The Velvet Underground, The Doors, Tamla Motown, Love, The Creation, The Action, Thirteenth Floor Elevators but also Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Ennio Moricone before and during the time of the band. Joy Division / Warsaw were also a big influence. We actually formed in 1981.
Punk had set this Year Zero thing, which I for one had bought into, and the music press didn’t really cover the past.. so for me, meeting Andy who had already started buying reissued singles by The Creation and Elevators, plus some Motown,, it opened a whole world to me. But we all kind of influenced each other with what we were reading and listening to. Chent was a year older than us and had read quite a bit more it seemed.

Andy: I was a punk when I lived in London into the Cure, Buzzcocks, Vibrators, UK Subs, Gang of Four etc. then the mod revival gave us the chance to listen to the Who (feedback!), Small Faces, soul music, then the US garage bands, the Doors and Velvet Underground. At that time me and Chent listened to ‘Sister Ray’ at least once a day. Chent had done a lot of English classic poetry – John Donne etc, so his lyrics had a literary side.

++ The band as really a trio with the inclusion of Chent Goss. How did you three knew each other?

Neal: We met at Uni. Andy walked up to me with my Cure badge and said “so you like the Cure” – haha. We later found we both know Chent independently. Chent wrote lyrics and one time, I think it was his idea, I put some music to one song. It seems crazy looking back that it took so long,,, I played guitar, Andy bass, and Chent wrote stuff… I don’t understand why no one suggested it.

Andy: Chent appealed to me as a rebel and well read thoughtful character. He had been at quite an eminent private school but had pushed against the conformity and pushiness you find in these places. He got ne onto good writers like Gogol and Kafka, and I got him onto punk music and 60s beat groups and primitive garage bands. He wrote lyrics with no band to play them, but they were good, I could tell.
As Neal says I was so pleased to meet someone else who liked The Cure. We used to listen to records together and talk about them endlessly. We still have one debate from those days – is one band better than another or is it all subjective. I feel that the Velvet Underground are superior to the spice Girls but Neal says that I can’t prove it lol. The argument continues. We have been very good friends and collaborators now for 32 years!

++ Was this your first band experience?

Neal: No, I’d been in a couple of bands at school. Fun, but I have no decent tapes. I certainly cringe at the lyrics I wrote back then.

Andy: it was my first band. I did have a bass and had done lessons, but Neal had hold the music together – but we learnt fast – and some of those limitations actually helped.

++ On Facebook it says that you had a label called Hidden Heartbeat. So, who were they? And how come there are no releases?

Neal: Luminous Crocodile was on Hidden Heartbeat

++ There is a song that counts with vocals by Clare Millington. Who was she? And why wasn’t she full-time on the band?

Neal: The three of us had been the core of the band, but we’d had a drummer (darn it, his name escapes me.. second name Wilson ?) Unfortunately he left Liverpool , but in our final year Clare and another guy (Chis..?) joined to sing and play keyboards respectively. We also borrowed Adam from Where’s The Beach to drum sometimes before Tom Gent (later of Decemberists) joined.
So it was simply that people came and went – and we had two very different singers at one point, which was hard to juggle.

Andy: I liked that about Swim Naked – the songs were very diverse, from violent jams based on the Velvets, to pop or folky things. ‘Logical Silence’ was brought to us by Chris Wilkinson from a Preston band called Horrorshow and its quite a typical student song about difficulty in expression, loneliness, I like our treatment of it. Neal’s guitar is based on the sound of The Misunderstood – bendy chords, the bass and keyboard are maybe like he Sound or Chameleons.

++ Did you play many gigs with Swim Naked? Do you remember any?

Neal: 2 I think… one at a Uni Hall.. and one at The Left Bank Bistro in Liverpool . This was the 6 piece band. We were all terribly nervous, so I don’t think much fun was had.

Andy: That was the two. We had an idea that over-rehearsing would “kill the magic” so it was a bit hot and miss, and didn’t help the nerves!

++ Where does the name Swim Naked come from?

Neal: I think it was Chent’s idea – but I can’t remember where it came from. I always think it was to symbolise freedom and risk in creativity.

Andy: It was about absolute freedom. Funny thin is lots of people like us on Facebook just because of the name – they have interests like ‘nudity’ and ‘hot chicks’

++ On the Facebook page there are some of your recordings. I’m loving “The King of Love and Sex”, “Girlfriend” and “Logical Silence”. Was wondering if you could tell me a little bit of the story behind each song?

Neal: I’d say all our best lyrics were from Chent (KoL&S and GF were him). Some of it was about using our current obsessions with the likes of Kafka or JG Ballard out there… some of it was more personal to Chent. I’m afraid I don’t remember much about these two. Girlfriend was lift from some lyrics Chent had already written,, I think KoL&S was a germ of an idea that crystalised as we wrote the music. I think it may have been a skit on the Doors.
Logical Silence was from a band called Horrorshow (?) that keyboardist Chris was in.. he brought that with him and we re-arranged it. He had a tape of a drum pattern that we all played along to.

Andy: The King of Li=ove and Sex was ironic piss take of macho boasting, its supposed to be over the top. We had a drummer at one time (Lou) who was going through a sex change and he left because the lyrics were offensive – but it was supposed to be funny!
I do like ‘Girlfriend’ – it is quite a good look at a relationship and pregnancy (“her body’s white and leaping, and you lie there shivering in the wind, with an empty mind”), the heavy feet of pregnancy, and Neal’s guitar part rocks, good melody.
Logical Silence was the best song we got from Chris, we completely re-arranged it, and it worked well. Claire’s singing is nice as not trained – its a little bit hesitant. There’s a lot more with her – I think ‘Won’t We’ is good for her voice.

++ There are two other songs, “The Storm” and “The Love Bog”, way less poppy, more experimental I’d say. So you had these two sort of sides in Swim Naked. Throughout your career you always had a more poppier side I’d say, so I’m quite surprised by these two songs. Care to tell me what were they about?

Neal: I think Chent had the biggest hand in the music and lyrics of The Love Bog, We set out to create something very extreme with the music – the weird effects are created by the dischords between the notes on the two vl-tones. It used to freak out our cats. I’m not sure what it is about, I originally thought it was linking love with a sort of stifling torpor, but listening again, it seems more optimistic than I thought.

Andy: The ‘Love Bog’ is off the scale, its based on a dream but sounds more like a night mare, .ore unusual lyrics – “You’re thinking of the smell of meat” and “Fireflies buzzing in the air, of oozing wine, there is no time, no warning sign”. And the discords did used to frighten my cat. The horrific discord comes in on the offbeat, its more like a fire alarm than a song. The Casio VL Tone gave the song its sound. A bit of that dischord effect can be heard in the intro to the Hellfire’s song Sarasine’
‘The Storm’ was written after Neal left to do a side project with Claire called The Lids’. The drummer was really angry at the time and we just poured out the song. I like its atmosphere.

++ From all the Swim Naked songs, which was your favourite and why?

Neal: I very much liked “Alone”, which is about walking alone in a city at night in fear… excellent lyrics from Chent and I think we nailed the music – sort of Joy Division-like. I originally sang it, but Clare did a much better job.
The songs I most associate with the band are Drive, The Venus Men and Dance of My Mother. They were all composed with the three of us plugging away over many months of change – it’s that evolution that I liked. The first two are kind of Velvets/Doors soundtracks to Crash by JG Ballard … the latter is kind of unclassifiable, based on a bass riff Andy had that I couldn’t fathom at first.
Nowadays I feel like The Doors and especially Jim Morrison are overrated.

Andy: I like ‘Dance of my Mother’ which is about a birth, and the closest I have ever heard to it is maybe Sonic Youth, but with better lyrics.
‘Girlfriend’ I love for the catcy repetition of the keyboard set against Neal’s chords.
And ‘Flashing Red and Orange’ is a kind of violent Cramps thing written about some disturbed events at Chent’s house

++ Did you ever rerecorded any Swim Naked songs for your later projects?

Neal: I “borrowed” some of the acoustic/strummy songs for my next band with Clare (The Lids). Otherwise, I think we have just lifted bits now and then,

Andy: The Lids was fantastic, a bit folky, nicely played with Clare singing, many indie fans would love it.

++ Are there any more recordings by the band?

Neal: Yes, as you probably get from the above, there is plenty more.

Andy: About 20 songs looking for a release,

++ Ever thought of putting together some sort of compilation of these songs? Perhaps adding the Jenny Lind and Decemberists songs? It would be a hit I think!

Neal: Andy is very keen.. I guess we never get the momentum between us.

Andy: We should do a compilation. I would have 2 or 3 Swim Naked songs, 2 from The Lids, 2 from Swim Naked after Neal left, 2 from the Decemberists, 2 from Jenny Lind, then 2 from Hellfire Sermos before Neal came in, and then some Hellfire stuff. We should do it

++ How was the recording sessions for Swim Naked? And how do you think these songs have aged?

Neal: A lot of what you hear are practice tapes, and they were great for us… though I do wonder why the neighbours put up with us!
In summer 1982 we recorded in a small studio in London , KoL&S is from that session. It came out quite well, but Drive and Venus Men sounded neutered even back then. We just didn’t have the nous then (or for many years) to get what we wanted from a studio. I think the instruments were recorded well enough, but we needed to be able to take charge of the end result and we couldn’t,
The practice tapes still sound quite exciting to me. I feel we have since learned more about how to arrange a song, get good and repeatable sounds, keep it interesting etc, but these songs are largely driven by enthusiasm and our interactions and experimentation – and it shows to me in a way that still makes me happy. In addition, the condenser mics that tape recorders had compress the sound in a way I’ve always liked.

Andy: It was all bad experiences in studios back then because no-one really bothered to help us get the sound right. The practice tapes are way better. But then, pre-internet, you couldn’t release your music unless a record company would do it, and so you needed a demo to play to them. But now we should release the good practice tapes – they have the sound and the dynamics.

++ Liverpool during those early 80s had a very exciting scene. How did you enjoy it and how do you think you fit in it?

Neal: At the time of Swim Naked, we didn’t really fit in. The scene was between the whole Teardops / Bunnymen thing that had just gone national and before the likes of Icicle Works and Pale Fountains.
The only band I remember mixing with was Where’s The Beach. It wasn’t until later with Decemberists / Jenny Lind that I felt we were part of a bigger scene… but even then, we would be playing with a lot of bands who clearly wanted to be the next Duran Duran – not our thing at all.

Andy: Then we just went to see the bands, and maybe saw them in the Everyman. When we practiced at Dock Road we were part of a scene with Half Man Half Biscuit, the Jactars, DaVincis, Jenny Lind, The Room, and that was good. Then in Hellfire Sermons we were part of a national scene via Kevin Pearce of The Claim, Jasmine Minks, Emily and briefly the very early Manic Street Preachers

++ And then when and why did you call it a day for Swim Naked?

Neal: I quit the band in 1983. I was a bit frustrated with Chent never doing the same thing twice in a row – which at other times I thought was a great advantage, but if you do something good and never do it again it’s a recipe for disaster with me. Clare seemed to provide an opportunity to do something more songwriterly which I also felt frustrated we could not do enough (though I think that was a daft idea of mine nowadays – I would never dream of presenting a written song to the band, it takes out all the fun).

Andy: I was sorry Neal left, but I think he had to because the load on him was so great – tuning, arranging, working out at what point the chorus would come. An Chent just couldn’t reproduce the musical or vocal parts so they were either great or terrible and you couldn’t control which. When it was good it was mind bending but then if you could never do it again, was it music?

++ What did you all do music-wise immediately after? Did you take a break?

Neal: I went on to The Lids with Clare. Although we did some good stuff, she was not really committed the way I was. We joined with three other guys in a band that never did get a name. I got more back to a poppier sound, but was also frustrated because there was less full-on collaboration. I split in the end because not enough writing or practicing was happening for me (no gigs ever played). I put up an advert and after a couple of false starts with others, formed Jenny Lind with Ken.

Andy: We found Colin Pennington and played him the demo of ‘Flashing Red and Orange’. He thought it was strange but had potential. So we formed The Decemberists and set about being a hard working Liverpool band, loads of gigs, postering the town, and actually built a local following, which we only realised when we played The Neptune Theatre in support of the Liverpool socialist council and a huge cheer went up when we started ‘The Gift Horse’. The two bands – Decemberists and Jenny Lind ran in parallel for a couple if years – I shared a flat with Neal at that time – and eventually the time was right and Neal came across to the Hellfire Sermons

++ What would you say was the best moment, the highlight, for Swim Naked?

Neal: Playing the Left Bank Bistro was a highlight, but the best memories are of writing songs at weekends in Andy and Chent’s house – evolving songs out of ideas

Andy: The best times were playing together, trying things,learning things, finding you could do anything, whatever you wanted in music, and learning to write expressive songs. The strength of Swim naked was that the songs were never written to be successful or even liked by other people – it was just us enjoying the moment.

++ We can wrap it here, short and sweet, but one last question, were these songs distributed in any way? Perhaps as demo tapes or something? Or have they only been for rediscovering since the digital era when you uploaded them to soundcloud?

Andy: Never distributed! A few are up on the internet – Soundcloud and Facebook. maybe we will relaease one more to go with this interview and go on your site?

++ Thanks again Andy! Anything else you’d like to add?

Neal: Thanks for the opportunity to think about this again Roque

Andy: No that’s it, but keep doing what you’re doing Roque.

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Listen
Swim Naked – Logical Silence

Thanks so much to Madelaine and Sarah for this interview! Some years ago I wrote a post about Fibi Frap and through many different channels eventually got in touch with them. You can’t imagine how happy I was! I always loved this band, since the first time I heard them, and I’m not exaggerating when I say they were among my favourites of that time period. And then I was even happier when they were up for doing this interview! It’s great to know a bit more about Fibi Frap, to give some context to the music, to the songs, especially after such great answers both Madelaine and Sarah have given me! Anyhow, please enjoy and discover (or rediscover) the fantastic Fibi Frap!

++ Hi there! Thanks so much for being up for the interview! Whereabouts in Sweden are you now? And are you still making music?

Madelaine: I live in Umeå, it’s about half way between Stockholm and Kiruna (650 km home, 650 km to stockholm). I am doing a master in fine art but, yeah I just started a new band before Christmas, we’re called Thir and I hope something can pop up soon, on the net, to be listened to. it’s a rock pop grunge noise thing 🙂

Sarah: I still live in Göteborg, where I have lived for the past 12 years. I am still making music, I’ve recorded a bunch of songs together with various friends ever since Fibi Frap ceased to exist. I’ve gone by a few different names; Iluvsera, Saragasso etc. I still make pop music, but a bit more lo-fi I guess. The latest recordings were inspired by Blade Runner though, one of my all-time favourite movies, so a lot of synthesizers.

++ How did you two meet? Was it immediate friendship? And when did you decide it was time to make music together?

Madelaine: Nah, we met at school, we went i guess for five years just as classmates but then finally we realized we needed each other, we wanted badly to play in a band I guess and we had a common reference: smashing pumpkins. I was really competitive at the time and i did everything i could to collect more EPs and singles and releases from them than Sarah had. I don’t think Sarah really cared. Anyway she tried to introduce me to Neil Young at the time, but I was really in to Swedish indie and didn’t understand this old man cowboy thing. took about ten years i guess, but now i love him more then most music. we tried different constellations with guys, never really worked out so we just decided to do a duo. much better, immediate success 🙂

Sarah: I think we must have been about 10 or something when we met for the first time. We were in the same class at school but never really started hanging out until in the 8th grade or so. And then it wasn’t until we were 15 or 16 that we really became good friends and started making music together. Both of us were into music and wanted to be in a band but couldn’t quite figure out how this was done, so we decided to start a band together. Our first songs were about an old boyfriend of mine that had continued on to wooing a friend, so I wrote songs about what an asshole he was. Great inspiration for punk music.

++ What instruments do each of you play?

Madelaine: synth, guitar, bass, stuff, and now I play the drums.

Sarah: I play guitar, bass, some synthesizer and you know, things I find. I wish I could play the drums but nah, I’m really not good at it.

++ Was Fibi Frap your first music adventure?

Madelaine: Nah, it came out of trying different constellations with guys, always me and Sarah and a guy, usually flirts/boyfriends to play the drums or solo guitar, but they were always so difficult to work with. idiots really, hehe. best band name was ‘Cat Woman Aid’, my boyfriend at the time Ralf Rotmalm always comes up with awesome band names, still.

Sarah: Yeah, we played a lot of music but it wasn’t until we had fired all out male friends from our bands that Fibi Frap was formed. And I think we were tired of being in a band with people who didn’t really care. So we decided that we were going to be the only members.

++ Where does the name of the band come from? Does it come from an encyclopaedia volume as I thought it does?

Madelaine: Yup. My next project was gonna be coco dies, also a band in the same encyclopedia.

Sarah: And I also wrote a song called Coco dies, which didn’t become a Fibi song but it had potential! Maybe we should record it? It’s a good song!

++ You listed a long list of influences in your old mypace: 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. This list makes me happy, I can only say great taste. But can I ask then, what were your favourite mangas?

Madelaine: This list of influences that you refer to, we were probably having some beers and having fun. Don’t remember so much Manga, me an Tobias was at one point looking at Chobits. Otherwhise I mostly liked Anime, but I think I didn’t know about the difference at the time. I like Miyazaki, and some other stuff but I’m not a fanatic.

Sarah: I am not a manga fan, that was never my thing. And so we just wrote down our favourite authors, philosophers, bands, friends etc. I still love Neil Young, Nina Simone, the Cure and Alma Cogan. I grew tired of Paul Auster constantly repeating himself, forgot about Magnetic Fields and Will Oldham. Still like the Brendan Perry album though.

++ You were from the northern part of Sweden, how is it there? But afterwards you were in between Stockholm and Göteborg. Is it much different? And where there any like-minded bands in town that you liked?

Madelaine: Kiruna is far from everything. But it’s weird and beautiful and our home. 20 000 people. When we grew up there was a real dystopian feeling in town. The future didn’t look good at all, it was said the mine was gonna close down in a few years and the military base where a lot of people worked closed down, and there were no jobs. People left their flats, keys on the kitchen table. Houses were being closed down, turned of the heating, left to rot. So the feeling was that of: get the hell outta here as soon as you can. Now, 15 years later, they found more ore, and the area is the strongest growing economical area in Europe kinda Klondike. Gold rush kinda situation. There is nowhere to live, and lot’s of jobs! Now they have to move the whole city because it’s slowly falling down in the mine hole. So it’s the last few years to see our home town as it was…

Sarah: But I still liked growing up in Kiruna because it was such a small town. However, when I was about 15 years old I started growing restless. I wanted to do stuff, see the world and discover new things (and meet new people!). But the atmosphere with the sun shining 24/7 during the summer and the constant darkness during the winter sort of form my music, and I still think that that sadness can be traced back to growing up in Kiruna. There were, however, no like-minded bands in Kiruna. At the beginning we were frowned upon, since there were no girls playing music in a band back then. But we decided to continue on and then we were accepted, I think. But not everyone liked Fibi Frap, some people thought it was just silly music for silly people. Being in a band meant that there was a bass player, a guitar player and a drummer of course. Otherwise it was just weird. And so we were weird. And we didn’t care.

Madelaine: Stockholm and Gothenburg is real towns. Lots of people, and stress, and stuff going on in every corner. We did not hang out with other bands. We didn’t really identify with them and didn’t really listen to that kind of music. I don’t know why we were invited to play all those gigs in those gangs. Maybe it was the synthesiser we used and the fact that we were two cute girls from the north making strange music. We listened more to rock and stuff I think.

Sarah: Yeah, we were always outsiders I think. Everyone was really nice to us and we got to play with a lot of band with great people, but it was never the kind of music we listened to. We grew up listening to Smashing Pumpkins and Neil Young and Van Morrison (I like older men apparently), or rock. It just wasn’t our kind of music, although I can see why other appreciated these bands.

++ And what were the places you loved to hang out in town?

Madelaine: In Kiruna? We sat at the café most of the days after school I think. Safari it’s called. The first café to serve sandwiches, rest of the world style, the founder was from Tunis. I guess we spent a lot of time studying too. I studied science and Sarah studied Humanistic studies.

Sarah: I don’t know if it was the first café to serve sandwiches, but it was a café that was famous for its sandwiches since they were huge. I didn’t study as much as I should have, although I still managed to have good grades. I preferred sitting at the café drinking tea or coffee and smoking way too much. There was always someone there who you knew, otherwise you’d just bring a book.

++ Did you play many gigs? Which would you say were your favourites and why?

Madelaine: A few actually. one of my favourites were at LAVA, in Stockholm, because it was the first time we had a female sound technician, she actually listened to us and did not pat us on our heads, like all guys always did when we were a duo of two really young (cute) girls. and she was impressed on how quick we were at setting up. other gig was at monsters of indie at Debaser, Slussen, in Stockholm. it was just so cool to get to play there. and at the festival Popaganda, in Stockholm too. but actually i have such fucking stage fright, so all gigs were really horrible for me actually. i was always shivering like a leaf and pale as a ghost and Sarah always tried really hard not to look at me at stage because then she became nervous too.

Sarah: We played at Lava twice, the first time was amazing, the second time was not. One of my favourite gigs was the second to last one, at Underjorden, in Göteborg. It was just around the corner from my apartment and a lot of people and a lot of friends showed up, plus we connected with the audience and yeah, I really felt present during that gig. In my mind that was our farewell gig, since the last gig was one of the worst ones we’ve played. It was at Join our Club in Göteborg and we hadn’t seen each other for some time and during the whole show, a drunk girl was standing right by the scene, telling (screaming) the person she was talking to on the phone that she was listening to the worst band ever. I really didn’t want to play and I think Madelaine felt the same way.

++ I want to ask about the Starke Adolf gig. How was that? I have this very idealized view of that club!

Madelaine: We tried to talk about this gig and no one of us remember anything. But we remember a friendly and nice feeling.

Sarah: Yeah, I hardly remember anything. I remember that a lot of friends were there and that it was really fun playing. People really seemed to appreciate us. But apart from that I don’t remember much. It was the only time I went to Starke Adolf.

++ And what about playing a festival such as Popganda?! That must have been quite big?

Madelaine: I was part of the group who arranged the festival and the rest of the group really liked fibi frap and wanted us to play, I have never been so nervous my whole life, I don’t remember anything.

Sarah: I really liked playing at Popaganda. I was so nervous before we entered the stage but after a song or two it felt better and it was really fun. But it was strange as well since we were used to playing on smaller stages.

++ At that time there were many fantastic indiepop bands throughout all Sweden. It was like a explosion of very underground but very creative bands. Did you feel there was some sort of scene, or you always felt like outsiders?

Madelaine: I dunno, Kiruna is so far from everything, and there people either played Metallica – music or in cover bands. oh, but that’s not true. there were many bands experimenting, sometimes towards the verge of performance art, and having fun, but almost always guys. I guess that’s where the outsider feeling came from. Most of them were quite a bit older too, I never dared to talk to them because I thought they were so smart and cool. little did I know. I know some of them now as we have grown up, and they are all rather humble and not too cool for school at all. The rest of the indie or twee scene I was not very familiar too before we came to play in the south of Sweden. And by then we had already our own sound. There was a scene I guess, but in the south everything was so intimidating, everyone had such cool clothes and sun glasses, and i guess i just got really nervous. But we came to know a band called Laakso and or Pello Revolvers and that made it all a bit less scary. They were a bunch of really nice guys. (still no girls though). But then I got to know of bands like first floor power and honey is cool, and finally there were some women to have as role models.

Sarah: Well, I don’t think there were so many bands that were experimental, there was this one band that was some kind of performance thing but it wasn’t that serious. I don’t think I thought anyone was cool in Kiruna. I always thought I was way cooler than anyone (the mind of a teenager), so I didn’t really care for impressing people or found things intimidating (and if I did I would never have admitted it). Laakso and Pello were friends of ours so they weren’t scary at all. Still, there was apparently a twee scene in Sweden where some people thought we belonged (we didn’t, though). In Göteborg I listened to the bands I liked, but it wasn’t pop music. However, they were really creative. So I think we bonded with creative people but not people belong to a certain kind of scene.

++ Were you involved during those years then in anything other than making music? Like, fanzines? radio? gig organizing?

Madelaine: I worked for four years with the popaganda festival, it was cool, got a really nice insight in the music world, and the dirt:
“The music business is a cruel and shallow money 
trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and 
pimps run free, and good men die like dogs. 
There’s also a negative side.” (hunter s thompson)
and I also totally lost the wall between me and other artists, the magic was lost in a way, in a good way, and if I see a gig or meet an artist I can talk to that person freely no matter how much I love that persons work.

Sarah: I wasn’t really involved in other things during those years, I was a part of Union, a community where a lot of musicians and other creative people were involved; selling records, setting up a Union festival in Göteborg and so on. But that didn’t last that long, and then I just focused on the music.

++ Your first EP was released in 2002. What do you remember from the recordings session? Where did they happen?

Madelaine: They were really fun. took place at Tobias Asplunds flat, he had recording devices and he was a real friend. I don’t remember much other that it was completely without pressure.

Sarah: The sessions were wonderful. I remember them quite clearly. We recorded the songs at Tobias’s apartment in Kiruna, spending long days and nights at his place writing, playing, laughing…. I really did appreciate those days since it was so much fun and it was just about the three of us hanging out and being creative. And I think that comes through in the EP, you can hear us laughing in the background, cracking up due to our incapability of clapping our hands at the same time. We were both 20 years old, not knowing where our lives would take us and where we would end up. This was in March I think and we knew that after the summer we would leave Kiruna and move to Linköping and Stockholm. So those recordings meant, and means, a lot to me and I still enjoy listening to those songs.

++ After this first EP you appeared at P3Pop radio. How did that happen and how was that experience with Hanna Fahl?

Madelaine: Hanna Fahl was so warm and friendly, such a genuine music lover. It was fun!

Sarah: She was great, she was really enthusiastic and kind. I listened to the recording the other day and apparently the studio technician was the one who decided that “Longing” was going to be called…. “Longing”.

++ You also contributed some songs to the Alltid Hela Tiden label in Sweden, Robots and Electronic Brains in UK, as well as Popgun in the US. Did you contribute to any other compilations?

Madelaine: Oh, I don’t recognize half of those 🙂 I remember ‘My secret garden’ it was a label and Martin released some compilations.

Sarah: Nope, I think that’s it!

++ “How Fast is Your Heart Beating”, your second EP, was released by My Secret Garden Recordings. I interviewed Martin who ran the label not so long ago, and I feel he had a great ethos for running the label. How was your experience with him? And how did you ended up releasing this EP with him?

Madelaine: I don’t remember how we came to work with him. but he was really trust worthy and nice to us. also a real music lover.

Sarah: Well, I guess he contacted us since he wanted to release some of our songs, and we did, and he was a great guy.

++ What about the “Remember Being Born” release? I’ve never seen it. What was included in it?

Sarah: Well, those songs were never released, that’s why you’ve never seen it. We recorded the songs in Göteborg, just the two of us, and just “released” them at myspace. We thought about making an actual record but we never found the time. One of my favourite songs, “White beast”, is one of the “Remember Being Born” songs.

++ Are there any unreleased songs by Fibi Frap still?

Madelaine: I think there might be some, maybe Sarah knows more. there was a song called parking lot, wonder where that went!?

Sarah: Yeah, “Parking lot”! It was Madelaine’s song that we recorded in Stockholm with Johan, I think it was the same session when we recorded “Where’d you learn to kiss that way”. It’s a fun song about an ex-boyfriend of Madelaine’s. We also recorded one of my songs, which didn’t have a name, that was really catchy.

++ And among all of your songs which would you say are your favourite? And why?

Madelaine: Hollywood or Catherine. Sarah was so good at writing and it always get’s boring with your own stuff after a while. we wrote half of the material each.

Sarah: I like “Longing”. A lot. I like the way it was produced, leading up to a crescendo. And “To Make You Happy”, which is an oldie but a favourite. I always liked the way we wrote songs. I would come to Madelaine with a sketch for a song and say that it was missing something. She would come up with this great harmony and it would just be the missing piece I had been searching for. And the other way around. We completed each other’s skills in song writing, and we’d just get each other and know where the other person was going with her song.

++ When and why did you decide to call it a day?

Madelaine: I don’t know, did we really? I guess. I moved to Umeå because of love, it was too far. I am still here but love is no more. I guess I’ll be moving south again in a year or two. Malmö or Stockholm or even Gothenburg. If close to Sarah I’d say we’d probably play together again. I love her and our voices go well together.

Sarah: I’d say it started before Madelaine move to Umeå, I think the distance created problems for us since it was difficult and expensive (we were both students back then) to travel back and forth and it was also difficult to find the time. We would only meet when we were playing somewhere and that just wasn’t fun anymore. I hope Madelaine comes to Göteborg so we can play together again, I really miss that and I miss her.

++ Aside from music, what other hobbies do you enjoy doing?

Madelaine: I don’t have hobbies. I work. I work with Art and Music. I also work at a pub/club called Scharinska here in Umeå, it’s a great place. On my spare time, I travel and watch series and drink beer. I also love to go to my brothers cabin in Abisko, it’s in a national park called Sarek and I just sit there, and look in to the fire or walk in the mountains.

Sarah: I was going to say exactly the same thing: I don’t have hobbies, I work. But that sounds so depressing. I’m a high school teacher, which takes up a lot of my time but it’s also very rewarding. There’s a wrestling club in Göteborg called Gbg Wrestling and so I’ve become a wrestling fan. Other than that: writing music, go to clubs to watch bands play, drink beer and watch TV-series. I bought a nice camera a couple of years ago and really enjoy taking pictures. My father was a photographer and I’d like to think that I’ve inherited that part of him.

++ I’m going to be in three weeks or so in both Göteborg and Stockholm visiting. Can I ask for some tips? Maybe your favourite bars, or restaurants? If there’s any areas or sights that you like too?

Madelaine: I didn’t live in Stockholm for a long time now (8 years), but I go to Magasin 3, and Bonniers Konsthall to look at art or to the moderna museet. and I go to copacobana to have a snack. I want to eat at lao wai at some point because everyone talks about it. there was a great restaurant at the etnografiska museet a couple of years ago, but I don’t know if it is still there. I always went to debaser slussen but I have heard rumors about it moving now to Strand. Strand always have good gigs, saw buil to spill there in the autumn.

Sarah: In Stockholm I would go to Fotografiska (museum of photography) which is great, and maybe eat lunch at the nearby vegetarian restaurant Hermans.I would go to the pub Akkurat to drink beer and maybe even go to Boulebar and play some boule. The nicest area is still Söder, but anywhere near the water is great. And I would go to Grand Hotel to eat expensive but oh so delicious brunch. In Göteborg I would go to Haket Bar, The Rover, Tre små rum to drink beer. Haket is wonderful since the staff is really friendly (and they have the best sushi in town), Tre små rum is small but very cosy, and The Rover is easy going. Though, I suggest that you only go to Tre små rum if you’re really into beer since no Carlsberg is allowed (they actually have a sign that says so) and if you try to order it the bartender will give you the stink eye. I would try to stay near the water; buy some coffee and just look at the ducks and at people. There’s a great coffee bar called Bar Centro behind Nordiska Kompaniet (department store) and a restaurant called Dubbel Dubbel, where you can find great dumplings, that I would recommend. If you’re interested in gigs I would check out Skjul Fyra Sex or Koloni. Although these places could be hard to find and requires a bus ride.

++ One last question, will there be any chance in the future for a reunion gig?

Madelaine: I dunno, I could do it, I don’t now about Sarah.

Sarah: I wouldn’t say no, if we felt like it and felt that our music was still relevant and if we’d have fun playing together, then sure! And, of course, if anyone would be interested to come to that reunion gig (except our mothers and boyfriends).

++ Thanks again! Anything else you’d like to add?

Sarah: Nope!

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Listen
Fibi Frap – Sadeyes