the friday 7 8 November 2008

It's been a funny week musically for me, two nights DJing, two gigs, one of which was on Saturday lunchtime and was a jazz band. Now I detest jazz, but the lady I was seeing them with loves it, and on a date the lady gets what the lady wants. So I headed down to the Birmingham Symphony Hall for the weekly Sax In The City event with a massive hangover and the inability to eat anything. Drinking fresh orange and having to stand on wobbly legs because the chairs had gone to the large crowd that I wasn't expecting, me and the lady watched the session, and I actually enjoyed it. None of the rambling sax solos, none of the bu-ba-bi-bah dah vocals, just good easy listening played live in a really relaxed environment with an appreciative audience, though how many were in there to avoid the horrific rainstorm and how many went specifically for it we'll never know. Compared to the act I saw on Wednesday, it was a gig of extremes. Here's this week's 7

The Wonderstuff - Unbearable

I went to see the Stuffies last Thursday with my old mate Andrew Pack,my boss and a bloke from work, doing the Eight Legged Groove Machine 20th Anniversary tour, and it reminded me of how great a band they were. With Miles Hunt swigging from a bottle of red wine, two really long encores and a special aftershow performance with an extra four songs it was one of the best reunion gigs I've been to, which gives me hope for the Carter gig later this month. Here's an old one that they played on the night, and like all the best songs it's about hating people




Jesus Jones - Info Freako
The support act I missed at the Wonderstuff, they were always a more commercial version of Pop Will Eat Itself, but still always worth a look and listen. The pioneers of Stupid Hat Indie, they had a few hits then vanished, and like Shed 7 became the joke band of their scene




Rage Against the Machine - Renegades of Funk

I play this every week, and it's great fun, with RATM covering Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force. Not what you'd expect and you'd probably think it wouldn't work, but it does and it breathes a different life into the old hip hop classic




Kunt and the Gang - Men With Beards (what are they hiding?)
The act I saw on Wednesday, and possibly the cleanest of his songs. K&TG are a comedy song writer with a penchant for Carol Vorderman, as seen on his song Carol Vorderman where he explains how he'd defile the dodgy loan selling maths genius, and Alleged Jill Dando Killer Who Was Innocent Barry George. Childish, puerile and very funny live when put in content.




Beastie Boys - Sabotage

The best thing that they ever made was Ill Communication, and that's scientific fact, proven by scientists and all that. Matched with the Spike Jonez 70s cop homage, the guitars and bass rip through you like a bullet through Kurt Cobain's bonce. Forget the early frat boys era Beasties and the free Tibet preachy version and listen to what is just a great song.







The Cure - Why Can't I Be You?

There's a common known fact about me, and that is I love nutters. Proper nutters, and here's the nutter I liked most as a teenager, Robert Smith, doing his best Bobcat Goldthwaite impression in one of the great pop songs of the last century.





Glam Chops - Are You Ready Eddie?

All hail the leaders of Nu Glam, the supergroup of cult indie bands including Art Brut and David Devant and his Spirit Wife. This has nothing to do with the Emerson Lake and Palmer song of the same name, but is a Sweet style stompathon about a man who sleeps in the park. All done in classic Eddie Argos style, including getting the words to your own song wrong..

the friday 7 1st november 2008

So we hit November and where's the year gone? It's about eight weeks to 2009, but forget that, last night was Halloween and that meant a big party at the pub I DJ at, including some dodgy make up, me being seen in a bow tie and of course some rather splendid music. I played a lot more rocky stuff than usual which I really enjoyed, so here are the seven songs from last night that I really enjoyed, and rarely play.

Guns and Roses Welcome to the Jungle

I'm wrong alright. I always thought of this as the shit that Bill and Ted types listen to and should be locked up for. Cock Rock always belonged to the other kids at college. It had no heart and soul to it, it was just about doing as many bitches and drugs. I was listening to James and Blur at the time, wearing my cardigan and Bretton fisherman's jumper, reading Salinger and drawing with a twig dipped in ink. I was a twat, this is ace. And I was proved to be a twat last night when I had a pub full of people dancing like spaz's. It's ace.




Def Leppard Let's Get Rocked

Sheffield has given us some great bands, and for some reason I always forget about the Lep. It's really tongue in cheek cock rock, but you know the lad's would rather have a brew and a bag of chips than groupies and coke. And like most of Sheffield, it has the subtlty of a kick in the knackers by Big Daddy, if he was still alive.





Hole Celebrity Skin


It's wrong, I know. It's very wrong, but loathed as I am to give Courtney Love any publicity, I play this every week for Sarah the barmaid who loves Angry Woman Rock (TM), and it is ace, but the only time I want to mention her is when she admits she killed her husband and faked his suicide. Alledgedly.




Atreyu You Give Love A Bad Name


Fans of the Jovi might want to look away now as this is is a bit of a change from the original. Screamo replaces poodle rock and purists may not like it, but I think it's great. It's what a cover should be like, noticably different yet instantly recognisable.




Spunge Kicking Pigeons

I like kicking pigeons, it should be a demonstration sport in the 2012 olympics. I'd win and finally make my mum proud. This however is a great skanking tune, and a regular crowd pleaser, even if it has my natural nemesis - the false ending. Why do they do that. Spunge are on of those strange bands who are good fun but go nowhere. Their cover of Centrefold is great, as is the skanking version of Ray Parker Jr's Ghostbusters, but they seem to be penned up in the novelty act section. Anyhoo, enjoy.



The Mighty Mighty Bosstones The Impression That I Get

Play it every week because of one reason, it's bloody great. Do you need anymore?






Tenacious D Tribute



Because if you're playing a rock set, there's nothing better to finish with than a wig out song about selling your soul to the devil.