Let's dance!

30 years ago, it was impossible to imagine I'd ever be 50, but here we are. Today, I've been part of this absurdity called life for exactly half a century. When you're young, you think you'll be young forever. I like to think that I am still young in many ways, but then my body decides to remind me that I'm actually an old git and to sit back down with a nice cup of tea. 50 is only a great age if you're a fine cognac or a bottle of Scotch...

I don't have much in the way of plans. I hate parties (something that 30 years ago I never thought I'd write) so it'll be a strictly family affair with good food and good music. Speaking of which...

This is the third attempt at writing something to mark this occasion. The second attempt was the definitive one before I changed my mind. It featured a song for each decade of my life so far, mainly centred around the letter L, which as you know is the Roman numeral for 50. I've decided to replace it with this one today, but I've divided that other planned post into six daily ones that will appear here throughout the week.

So today, despite my aversion to parties, I'm giving you a party mix which will be played this evening during a family dinner. It's very different to what you may expect from me as it's rather electronic-based, but I like to think I can still spring the odd surprise even at this ripe old age. I initially aimed to make it 50 minutes long, but I quickly realised that wasn't nearly enough time to include everything I wanted. So it's 20 songs over 70+ minutes. Please don't expect a professional-sounding DJ-type job, I'm not nearly skilled enough for that. Some of it is quite rough, in fact, but it does the job.

If you fancy having a birthday dance with us, please feel free. I'll probably be sitting on the sofa tapping my feet with a warm blanket over my lap whilst trying to remember the days when I could dance like Bez for hours on end without having to worry about feeling stiff as a board the day after! And the day after that...

Anyway, enjoy. Dance if you want to. And stay tuned for daily posts all this week...

50... and counting
compiled by TheRobster

Donna Summer - I Feel Love
Django Django - Glowing In The Dark
Björk - Big Time Sensuality [Fluke minimix]
Primal Scream - Don't Fight It, Feel It [Graham Massey mix] (segment)
New Order - Paradise [Robert Racic remix]
Arcade Fire - Sprawl II [Thunderlust remix]
Public Service Broadcasting - Theme From PSB [D/R/U/G/S remix]
Gulp - Morning Velvet Sky [Richard Morris remix]
M.I.A. - XXXO
Saint Etienne - Tonight
James - Wherever It Takes Us
Madonna - Sky Fits Heaven
Chemical Brothers - Hey Boy Hey Girl
Utah Saints - New Gold Dream 81-82-83-84
Depeche Mode - Enjoy The Silence [reinterpreted by Mike Shinoda]
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Zero
Stone Roses - Begging You [radio edit]
Yeasayer - Ecstatic Baby
David Bowie - Dead Man Walking [edit]
Hafdis Huld - Fucked Up Mind

Grab it here

Memories of 2018 gigs #7

Public Service Broadcasting
Support: Perfect Body
Riverside Theatre, Newport - 28 October 2018

Can you believe it's been a whole year since we last caught Public Service Broadcasting? In that time, they've taken their tales of Welsh coal mining around the world and back agin, picking up even more plaudits than I reckon even they thought possible. Now back in the land where their wonderful album 'Every Valley' was originally recorded as a way of bidding it farewell, a show in our hometown was too good to resist. This time, MrsRobster and I introduced TheMadster and TheEmster to the live splendour of PSB for the first time.

This was our first visit to the Riverside Theatre, despite having passed it countless times. It sits on the bank of the river Usk slap bang in the city centre. It's a small space as far as theatres go, but ideal for a show like this one. Sadly, still a little too big for support band Perfect Body from Cardiff. It was clear what they were trying to do - despite probably none of them being born when Ride, Chapterhouse and Slowdive released their debut albums, they sounded like all three. There were three problems really: firstly, this really was the wrong venue for them, being much more suited to somewhere like Clwb Ifor Bach or The Globe. Secondly, their look. They didn't really have one, a real ragbag of styles. MrsRobster reckoned the drummer looked like Professor Brian Cox, one guitarist resembled Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, the other guitarist like Paul Weller (circa early-Jam) and the keyboardist like a young Morticia Adams. Harsh maybe, but I take her point.

Thirdly, this wasn't their audience. Despite a number of middle-aged ex-shoegazers being in attendance, they couldn't really be appreciated by the majority, many of whom probably wouldn't know what shoegazing was, and no doubt tune into Jools Holland religiously every week. Add to all that the sound mix not quite working to their advantage and you have to concede that sadly, Perfect Body didn't win many over. A shame. I'd like to see them in a better place to make a sounder judgement, especially as they have been very hotly-tipped round these parts.

As for the PSB boys - well I can't really add anything I haven't already told you before. This was, after all, the third time we've seen them during the 'Every Valley' period (the sixth in total) and they were, as always, exceptional. They did do a couple of songs we've not seen them do before, including the new Titanic-themed single White Star Liner. The funky brass section and dancing spacemen were present and correct, and the films were breathtaking as always. My personal highlight was - not for the first time - All Out, with scenes of the miners' strike and the police brutality that accompanied it being soundtracked by loud, aggressive, angry guitars.

TheMadster enjoyed it as I thought she would (the pics here, by the way, are hers). TheEmster? Well he's more of an EDM fan, still in mourning over the passing of his hero Avicii. However, he genuinely enjoyed the experience, the allure of PSB's unique live shows taking hold of him. Maybe there's a proper music fan in there somewhere, but perhaps - for now at least - I'll hold back on asking if he wants to come and see Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs with me next spring...

• Getting Cold - Perfect Body (single)
• White Star Liner [live] - Public Service Broadcasting (recorded live at BBC's Biggest Weekend, Belfast 2018)

Is this 2017? (part two)

Some blogger and his #2 fave album of the year (more apologies to The Swede...)

More of my top picks of the year, and the girls are dominant again...

Jane Weaver 'Modern Kosmology'
Until Nadine Shah's album came out, this was my favourite record of the year. A surprise seeing as it is rare I would rate anything so electronic so highly, but that seaks volumes. 'Modern Kosmology' has been hailed by many critics as Jane's masterpiece, and it is a real psychedelic/Krautrock odyssey - glistening synths and floaty vocals abound, but at the heart of everything is a good tune. Really good tunes, in fact. Slow Motion is one of my singles of the year, The Architect comes close too. Blissful, shimmery vibes - a proper lazy summer evening album.

It's telling how this record has appeared on so many Best of 2017 lists I've seen so far. A lot of those have posted Slow Motion so I'm going for The Architect just to be different!

• The Architect - Jane Weaver (from 'Modern Kosmology')

British Sea Power - 'Let The Dancers Inherit The Party'
They never let you down, this lot. Another consistently good set of songs infused with some unexpected twists and turns, a bit of weirdness and melodies that stay with you long after the record has finished. Business as usual then.

• International Space Station - British Sea Power (from 'Let The Dancers Inherit The Party')

Mammút - 'Kinder Versions'
Mammút's first English-language record - and their first to be released outside their native Iceland - proved to be a winner. A bit of a departure on their earlier stuff with more keyboards and a more lush production, but that's no bad thing. Some really good songs and sounds on here, making 'Kinder Versions' probably their best record to date.

• Walls - Mammút (from 'Kinder Versions')

Waxahatchee - 'Out in The Storm'
Talking of best records to date - Katie Crutchfield just keeps getting better and better. I played this album more times this year than I thought I would and I still haven't grown remotely tired of it. It's one I keep coming back to.

Here's a killer live take of Never Been Wrong featuring Katie playing one of my favourite guitars...

Public Service Broadcasting - 'Every Valley'
Of course, this one was always going to feature, wasn't it. A record about the decline of the South Wales mining industry doesn't immediately invoke 'album of the year'-type thoughts, but what PSB did with 'Every Valley' was bring the emotive elements to the fore to create exactly that. They also drafted in some special guests to sing some proper vocals for the first time. A sign of things to come, perhaps. Here's the angry Miners Strike song:

• All Out - Public Service Broadcasting (from 'Every Valley')

Other mentions must go to:
Annie Booth - 'An Unforgiving Light'
Marika Hackman - 'I'm Not Your Man'
Further proof (if any were needed) that the fairer sex seems to be making the best music at the moment. I owe CC a pint for introducing me to Annie Booth.

Spiral Stairs - 'Doris & The Daggers'
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - 'Who Built The Moon?'
Classic songwriting at the heart of these two records. It's Noel's best to date for sure.

And of course, there was Mark Lanegan Band's 'Gargoyle' and the Popguns' 'Sugar Kisses' that have already been written about a-plenty on other notable blogs from over there on my Blogroll. I ought to also mention Wolf Alice, Cold War Kids, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!, Prophets Of Rage, Feist and Bully have also got loads of plays this year. I've probably forgotten plenty others too...

The year was tinged with disappointments as well, though. The Charlatans, one of my favourite bands, delivered a bit of a stinker with 'Different Days', very uncharacteristic of them. Same for Weezer's latest offering 'Pacific Daydream', and Morrissey's 'Low In High School', an at times bordering on awful record. I never thought I'd write that about Moz, but then he's becoming increasingly unlikeable as a person so I don't feel guilty about it. Then there was LCD Soundsystem's comeback record 'American Dream' which sounded like, well, like LCD Soundsystem only with not-as-good songs.

And just to prove the girls aren't infallible I did feel a little let down by the latest efforts by Laura Marling and Torres. Laura, who up to this point has been flawless, seemed to have just channelled Joni Mitchell and just made a 'girl-with-acoustic-guitar-by-numbers' record, while Torres just rehashed Lana Del Ray and made a couple of controversial videos to get people talking. Not good enough.

That's yer lot for now. What of 2018? Well, as you know, I've struggled to keep the momentum up as far as blogging goes so I'm not making any plans for this place beyond Bowie Week and the marking of the blog's 4th (final?) Anniversary. We'll see what happens. Some bloody good music on the way though. Django Django, First Aid Kit, Franz Ferdinand, Buffalo Tom and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club all have new stuff imminent. The Breeders, Yak, Gulp and Estrons will probably all put albums out too. We have tickets booked to see British Sea Power and Belly - yes, THE Belly. They're back! So very much looking forward to those. Whether I'll write about them depends on whether I can be arsed.

See you next year.

Memories of 2017 gigs #9

Public Service Broadcasting
Colston Hall, Bristol - 23 October 2017
Support: Palace

You're probably getting tired of me writing about Public Service Broadcasting. The stats suggest you were never that interested to begin with.

Don't care!

Public Service Broadcasting ARE one of the best bands around right now. Their records are intriguing and original, and their concerts are something of an event. We first saw them four years ago - twice - in tiny Cardiff venues, around the time of their first album's release. Both dates were sold out, the venues packed. Back then, just Willgoose and Wrigglesworth were onstage with their visuals guy discreetly lurking in the shadows, projecting the cleverly put-together film clips and effects that illustrate the songs onto a big screen at the back of the stage and a stack of vintage TV screens at the front. We've seen them twice more since in very different settings (read here and here).

On Monday night, we travelled to Bristol to see them for a fifth time at the Colston Hall, one of our favourite venues. I had a feeling it would prove to be the perfect venue for PSB, and I was proved right. And my, how they've grown. The venues they're playing now are considerably larger, accommodating 10 times as many people - but they're still selling them out. The line-up is also greater; as well as the two mainstays and the visuals expert Mr B., they now have a full-time fourth member JF Abraham and a touring brass section (more on them later). The visuals and lighting are more ambitious and high-tech than ever too.

The show's intro music is David Bowie's Sound & Vision, an apt description of what is to follow. And what followed was 90 minutes of extraordinary sound and vision from a band I never grow tired of watching. Personal highlights for me were plentiful. The Other Side, the story of Apollo 8's manned mission to orbit the moon, was stunning. The bit where signal is lost with the spacecraft and mission control - and us - await to hear from the crew as they emerge from the other side of the moon is spine-tingling. There's near silence, the audience rapt and on tenterhooks as the tension mounts. From the new album, They Gave Me A Lamp was wonderful, the band joined onstage by Haiku Salut, the trio who provide the vocals and accordion on the record. All Out, the one about the miners strike, is a right rebel rouser. When the female voice utters the words "I was brought up to respect the police. I don't respect them now," I always smile. I don't know why.

For me, the biggest high point was the encore. The band emerged onstage with none other than James Dean Bradfield of my beloved Manic Street Preachers in tow. He proceeded to deliver a stirring rendition of his contribution to 'Every Valley', Turn No More (see pic). MrsRobster, who was never a Manics fan (to put it lightly), was cheered up by the next song. Gagarin was the moment on 'The Race For Space' when PSB got funky. The brass section shines on this one, especially when they launch into their impressive dance moves before being joined by two more dancers in spacesuits. This was the real fun moment of the set, although in truth, there's nothing that isn't fun about a PSB set.

It's been great seeing a band mature from the days of small, sweaty, dank clubs to theatres and mid-sized concert halls in such a short period of time. They will continue to grow, I've no doubt, and maybe I'll still be writing about them despite no fucker reading.

Don't care!


No MP3s today. Instead, a couple of videos. First, I found PSB's performance of Go! in Leeds a few nights before the Bristol show:



And here's their latest single. Yep, the one with that Manics bloke. This was absolutely IMMENSE live.

Memories of 2017 gigs #5

Public Service Broadcasting
Ebbw Vale Institute, Ebbw Vale - 9 June 2017

When Public Service Broadcasting first came to my attention, I thought they were a neat idea. A neat idea with some good songs, in fact. But maybe they were a bit of a novelty. How far could they take this concept and remain interesting? They seem to be answering that question with relish.

This was our fourth time seeing PSB, and it was a rather special show. The band is about to release its third album 'Every Valley'. Its theme is the rise and fall of British industry and its effects on our communities. It takes coal mining in South Wales as its main reference point so they based themselves in the valley town of Ebbw Vale to record it, kitting out the main hall of the Ebbw Vale Institute to use as a studio. As the album nears its release next month, PSB returned to that very space to play two exclusive preview gigs. Only 200 tickets were on sale for each night with a proportion reserved only for locals. They were difficult to get hold of but luck was on our side and we nabbed a couple for the second night.

The EVI used to be a working man's club for the mining community. Now it's a community centre whose main hall is ideal as a music venue. The stage is nice and high at one end and it has a bar at the back. It's small and it looked rather cramped onstage - especially when the three-piece brass section stepped up to join in - but that seemed to add to the special, intimate nature of the show. And it was hot. Very hot!

Now, MrsRobster loves Public Service Broadcasting. Like really REALLY loves them. The only other band I've known her have this much love for was R.E.M. So this is a pretty big love we're talking about. That said, what could they do keep her adoration? Well, like previous outings, PSB tried some new things. The biggest surprises of all involved reluctant frontman J. Wilgoose Esq. Not only does he actually speak to the audience now (as opposed to playing pre-programmed computerised messages), but he sings. Yes, sings! His English vocals duet with the beautiful Welsh words of Lisa Jên Brown of 9Bach who joined the band onstage for You + Me.

This was one of a number of new songs played for the first time. Singles Progress and They Gave Me A Lamp will undoubtedly be among the highlights of their autumn tour alongside more established tracks. The thing with these new songs, particularly in this area of the country, is that they will resonate with a lot of people affected by the issues they raise. The South Wales Valleys, along with other big industrial areas of the UK, continue to suffer the effects of successive Conservative governments' attempts to kill British industry, selling it off to the highest bidder and screwing all those left behind. It's still happening now with steel just down the road in Port Talbot.

But it wasn't all about the new stuff; established favourites were also given a fresh airing. Spitfire, Everest, The Other Side, Gagarin and Go! all sounded spectacular, the latter prompting the now familiar crowd sort-of-singalong during the chorus.

So is it safe to say Public Service Broadcasting are no longer a novelty? You could argue they never were. They seem to pull a new rabbit out of the hat whenever they make an appearance and this was no exception. And MrsRobster? Well, she gets a little over-excited sometimes and starts babbling like she's on drugs. She reckons she had a moment of clarity during the show and thinks all of PSB (including their brass section) should be the next Dr Who. Like all of them together. Yeah, it was probably the heat.

"I've never seen them and not loved them," she told me after she had calmed down. She was clutching an unopened bottle of Every Valley ale (on sale at the show) as a souvenir. Stone-cold sober and drug-free yet still on a high. A cold shower and a lie down should sort her out...

• Go! [live] - Public Service Broadcasting (from 'Live At Brixton')
• Spitfire [live] - Public Service Broadcasting (from 'Live At Brixton')

Here's a piece about the new album which also includes the video for Progress.

Memories of 2015 gigs 12 & 13

#12: Public Service Broadcasting
Y Plas, Cardiff University - 27th November 2015
Support: François And The Atlas Mountains

Y Plas is Cardiff Uni's nightclub. It used to be called Solus and we saw The Joy Formidable there a few years ago. Since then it has undergone a radical refurbishment and now looks like a hipster bar. It doesn't look like a place for gigs other than the large stage. It doesn't feel much like a gig venue either. If the support band was anything to go by, it also doesn't sound like a gig venue. They were bloody terrible, but I'm not sure how much of that was the venue or the band themselves. They were tuneless and directionless. They reminded me of Vampire Weekend; I hate Vampire Weekend.

Not the greatest of starts, but Public Service Broadcasting have never disappointed. MrsRobster and I have seen them twice before, but never in a venue this size. They've certainly grown in stature since their second album - the brilliant 'The Race For Space' - was released. Their live show was always impressive, even in tiny venues in front of a couple hundred people. The visuals that help tell the stories of their songs remain, but now everything seems to have been upscaled. Even the band line-up has been expanded. As well as J. Willgoose Esq., Wrigglesworth and their trusty visuals engineer Mr B, they are now joined by multi-instrumentalist J. F. Abraham and a three-piece brass section. Bigger venues afford more room on stage, therefore the luxury of being able to make the songs more 'live'.

The new material is stunning. The tension in tracks like The Other Side is played out really effectively, while Go! is the band's first bonafide singlalong track, the audience punching the air and chanting "Go!" throughout the chorus. Not bad for a band with no vocalist! Of course, the old faves were churned out too, but Signal 30, Everest, Spitfire and the others all now benefit from the enhanced live sound. Gagarin saw the brass players enjoy a few funky dance steps while a 'spaceman' boogied behind the drumkit. Willgoose's robotic banter with the crowd elicited many a chuckle. For a couple of nerds who love history and electronic music, Public Service Broadcasting are a surprisingly brilliant rock and roll band. The bigger spaces clearly do not intimidate them, they seem to relish it, and better still they pull it off, even if Y Plas isn't really the best place to be as an audience member.


Soundtrack:

• Go! [Mark Riley session] - Public Service Broadcasting (from BBC 6 Music Mark Riley show, Jan 2015)

#13: The Charlatans
The Tramshed, Cardiff - 9th December 2015
Support: Frankie & The Heartstrings, Yucatan

The Tramshed is a brand new venue situated in the heart of Cardiff’s Grangetown area. It’s part of an old building previously owned by the council and used as a depot for trams and buses in years gone by. While sone of the building is still under development, The Tramshed venue opened its doors just a few weeks ago and it’s already making a big impression.

I have to say I was impressed. It’s at the smaller end of mid-sized venues (no bad thing at all), has a balcony and a well-staffed bar – hurrah! Having hosted the mighty Public Enemy last month, The Tramshed welcomed the Charlatans this week.

Opening were Yucatan from North Wales. The best way to describe them is a Welsh version of Sigur Rós. Their album is wonderful and will feature in a Welsh Wednesday post in the new year (which is why I’m not posting a track of theirs here). Live they are unable to replicate the full lush sound of strings and brass like they do on record but they made a good fist of things. They did seem to have a mini-orchestra of bells played by the drummer and bassist which proved intriguing to those of us watching.

Frankie & The Heartstrings are the main tour support. I’ve never been particularly taken with anything I’ve heard from them before, but hoped their live show would turn me on to them. It didn’t. Apart from the songs being as ordinary as it gets, their frontman pranced around like the lovechild of Morrissey and Brett Anderson while subjecting us to some of the most banal attempts at audience interaction I’ve endured at any gig for some time: “You all looking forward to seeing the Charlatans, yeah? LOUDER! You all looking forward to seeing the Charlatans?” Yawn. The most interesting thing I can say about them is that they were selling their new Christmas single[1] as a piece of Christmas cake. It has a download code on the wrapping, see?

As for the headliners? Well the only previous time I saw the Charlatans was at Exeter University when they toured their first album a generation ago in 1990! Then they were a fledgling flock of floppy-fringed indie kids with a slightly nervy stage presence and unremarkable performance. How things change. Tim Burgess today, with his magnificent bleached toadstool haircut, is a brilliant frontman. He does not have to indulge in silly mundane banter with the crowd. All he has to do is beckon the audience to raise their arms simply by reaching out his hands palms up and wriggling his fingers.

The set was superb too, with top-notch performances of several tracks from the bands current album ‘Modern Nature’, their best for some years, and a shedload of old faves – Weirdo, North Country Boy, The Only One I Know, Oh! Vanity, One To Another, Just When You’re Thinkin’ Things Over – you name it, they probably played it. In fact they even gave an outing to Opportunity which was a real surprise. Visually, the projections and films onto the hi-tech digital backdrop really added to the experience, and the lights were fantastic as well.

The only downside of the whole night was the sound. It was ridiculously loud. Now you know me, I like a bit of volume as much as the next man. I’m not getting wimpy in my old age, but sometimes there is such a thing as too loud. Like when the overall sound just becomes a rumble and an audible blur. At times, that’s what we got. A guy I know who was also at the show and is a sound engineer himself reckons the "top end on the vocals" are what caused the damage. It was a real shame as everything else was spot on. MrsRobster’s ears are still ringing as I speak (true! Not good.)

Of course, Sproston Green closed the proceedings and was as spectacular as the rest of the show. This was our final gig of 2015 and it was a hell of a way to finish. While the Slaves show was difficult to beat in terms of standards of the entire line-up, I have to rate the Charlatans right up there as the best band I’ve seen this year. Probably. After 25 at times challenging years, they’ve still got it, without a doubt.


Soundtrack:

• Let The Good Times Be Never Ending [live] - The Charlatans (from 'Later... With Jools Holland')

---

[1] Recorded with Edwyn Collins, no less. Not one of his finest decisions if you ask me…

MrsRobster's birthday post

Today the love of my life celebrates another birthday, so here's a special post just for her. First, her favourite track from the debut (and to date only) album by Filthy Boy. It's a record about the dirtier and darker side of life, though Jimmie Jammies bucks the trend somewhat. It's about an old couple who are about to enjoy their last night of passion together. It's funny and cute, but sad at the same time. Probably why MrsRobster likes it so much.


Soundtrack:

• Jimmie Jammies - Filthy Boy (from 'Smile That Won't Go Down')

And here's one of her favourite bands, the amazing Public Service Broadcasting. We saw them twice in 2013 and we're going to see them again in the autumn. MrsRobster has really taken to their new album 'The Race For Space', and one of her fave tracks - The Other Side - marks the occasion of the first manned orbit of the moon. It's their new single, but here's a live version:



Happy birthday babe! x