Unwashed Territories

Tear Talk - Port Sunlight (Bleeding Gold)

2012-02-15T03:08:00.005-08:00

Although much of my life at the moment involves happily digesting the slabs of noisy guitar destruction as practised by the likes of Fat Janitor, Amstatten Bedroom Punk and Your Enemy, my ears are always open to the prospect of discovering the occasional band that can knock out a damn good tune with freshness and originality.

I was therefore delighted when the excellent Bleeding Gold label put me onto Tear Talk, a band in that rich tradition of Liverpudlian music that stretches from the Fab Four via The Teardrop Explodes and Wild Swans, through such far too easily overlooked eighties practitioners of the art like Care and Cook Da Books and more recently The Cranebuilders. It is the last of these with whom Tear Talk are most comparable. Beautifully crafted and unashamedly pop melodies sit atop a musical backdrop that switches from crowded to sparse and back again via the most gorgeous time switches and chord changes.

Their EP, Port Sunlight, contains many such gems. Its archetypal expression is found in the sugared adrenhalin rush found on 'Sleepwalking' but it's in the frantic 'Lost At Sea', which features in my February show on Dandelion Radio, and the bewitching, distorted 'Dry Blood' - which I'll play in March - that offer a glimpse of the full scope of the band's potential.

Bleeding Gold, as they've been doing so magnificently of late, have clearly identified this potential. I invite you to do the same.

Mark W

In session in my February show: Dementio13

2012-01-31T05:41:00.000-08:00

Given the sublimely varied electronic forces at work behind the music of Paul Foster, aka Dementio13, it's hard to explain his music and even harder to explain why I've never featured it in session on my show before. Four years on from the first appearance of his music in my show, I decided it was time to do something about it. The results stream for the first time tomorrow at noon (UK time) on Dandelion Radio, with repeat streamings on most days throughout February.

I first played Dementio13 on Dandelion Radio in February 2008, so Paul was one of the people at the very top of my list to appear in our 'Five Years' anniversary compilation last summer, and I knew he would produce something extraordinary. With the (forgive me) quixotic 'Quixote' he duly obliged and a sneak peak of his forthcoming Crash St album (due on 1 May) reveals him to be still moving forward in invigorating and never predictable directions, his exploratory electronica more varied in texture and mood than pretty much any of his contemporaries.

All of the tracks in the session mix will feature on Crash St so I'm pleased to say that my show will be the first chance to hear much of what's on it. You can, however, pre-order the album for an unfeasibly low price at http://dementio13.com/. While you're there, may I suggest a valuable use of your time would be to peruse his fascinating back catalogue. Unless you've got it all already, of course, in which case presumably you know what I mean.

I don't do this sort of thing very often, but I thought the occasion called for a personal top ten of Paul's EPs and albums, both as Dementio13 and, with the equally extraordinary Pixieguts, in Cwtch. I know Mojo or Uncut or somebody would probably call this a 'buyer's guide' or something equally prosaic and consumerist, but I'm just going to label it a list of great music which, remarkably, all comes from the same inspirational fount. To be honest, it's all amazing stuff and I'm sure I'll want to change the order as soon as I've posted it, but here goes:

1. Dementio13 - Blacklung Mixer (2008)
2. Cwtch - be.ep (2010)
3. Dementio13 - Snackshack (2011)
4. Dementio13 - Blank (2009)
5. Dementio13 - The Hobbyist (2011)
6. Cwtch - Cwtch (2009)
7. Cwtch - Beyond Transgression (2011)
8. Dementio13 - Rebop (2010)

9. Dementio13 - Malt (2011)
10. Dementio13 - The Ballad Of Milton Friedman (2009)

Mark W

Labels To Love Top Ten - February 2012

2012-01-29T08:22:00.002-08:00

It's been a depressing feature of 2012 thus far that so many individuals who run some of my favourite small labels have expressed the concern that they can't be optimistic about still being around in 2013. Obviously I hope they're wrong about that, but it got me thinking that, however much I value good websites and blogs in their efforts to discover and celebrate new music, a number of these small labels consistently come up with the goods and remain the most reliable source of such stuff that they'd leave a hell of a hole in my listening experience if they were no longer there.

Feeling a bit powerless, I felt all I could do, in addition to continuing to feature their releases in my Dandelion Radio show, was to keep a monthly log of those labels that, in a current snapshot in time, are flying the flag for innovative new sounds most vigorously, and do this on a more or less monthly basis.

February 2012 features my first such stab. What follows are the ten labels whose music I'm playing most both privately and in the show right now and in recent months. Some are still relatively new, others well-established. What they have in common is their contribution to the discovery and promotion of great tunes.

Inevitably, many of my favourite labels won't make the list in a particular month, often because they've gone through a period of relative inactivity or simply that I've found myself listening to something else of late.

Anyway, for now, I reckon these ten labels are doing the job as well as anyone at the moment, and roughly in this order. Long may they thrive.

10. Bristol Archive Records:
9. Audio Antihero
8. Warp
7. I Blame The Parents
6. Probe Plus
5. Metal Postcard
4. Fruits De Mer
3. Bleeding Gold
2. Daddy Tank
1. Melting Records

Many of the above feature in my February show on Dandelion Radio, with more, including tracks from some great forthcoming releases, to follow in March.

Mark W

Vert:x - 1947

2012-01-22T04:57:00.000-08:00

If you heard the first Vert:x release for Unwashed Territories you'll know what to expect: sonic overload, where guitar and electronic pyrotechnics crash around psychedelic/krautrock drones destroying patterns that you suspect may not have existed in the first place as they go. It's an exhilarating experience, so when it comes in the form of 15 and 21 minute tracks, as it does in their new 1947 release, the effects of the bombardment are longer lasting and even more pleasing.

This time the textures are even more intense, lulling the listener into downtempo peaks and valleys of sound until you come out the other end like a traveller from a voyage both mesmerising and disorientating, like Odysseus emerging from the land of the lotus eaters not entirely sure whether he's been drugged into bliss or had his senses blasted into oblivion by some crazed hallucinatory demon.

Vert:x are a pretty special experience live, so every time they play a gig or a festival a bunch of people who've been there always rush out and grab a copy of their first release for us, the glorious transmission u.t., making it easily the most popular release on Unwashed Territories thus far. Each release is available for less than the price of a pint, with the effects considerably more pleasing and the hangover an absolute delight. Get the two releases here:

1947
transmission-u.t.

Best Albums of 2011: 1. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake (Island)

2011-12-24T06:02:00.000-08:00

I have to admit I never thought I'd find myself selecting an album of the year that had not only received a similar accolade from journalists at Uncut and Mojo, but was also the current holder of the Mercury Prize. But then this is an extraordinary album, with extraordinary powers of appeal. PJ Harvey has already well and truly rammed down my throat my words about her 'Dry' album a little under twenty years ago, which I praised to the hilt but felt this was an artist who would struggle to replicate this kind of form. Since then, Polly Jean has produced numerous masterpieces and even those generally deemed unworthy of that epithet (Uh Huh Her, perhaps, or White Chalk) have had an undeniable quality about them that still made them stand out from everything else. But Let England Shake is something else altogether.

We can stop and ponder why so few other western artists, living in such times, have produced anything on the subject of war. Even if they had, it's doubtful anything it would have been anything like this. It's album that can thrill unremitting lefties and peaceniks like yours truly and yet been praised within the armed forces for its veracity, power or imagery and sheer truthfulness. If Hegel's right, and all our disputes form an unrelenting chain towards synthesis, then maybe this is what that synthesis might look like - a piece of art of such defiant honesty and intelligence that even those on all sides of the conflict can unite around its brilliance.

The lyrics of Let England Shake contain some of the richest imagery heard on record for years, ranging from visceral battlefield depictions where 'soldiers fall like lumps of meat' to the almost unfeasible delicacy of 'The last living rose/Quivers'. Alongside these are devastating delineations of the current western psyche that are most powerful when astonishingly simple, most notably in the opening words of the title track: 'The west's asleep/Let England shake' come as close to summarising our national malaise as six words ever will.

Best Albums of 2011: 2. The Chasms - Alchemical Postcards (Command To Destroy)

2011-12-23T11:53:00.000-08:00

A slightly adapted re-post of the review I did for this album on its release:

Used to seem like it was some kind of musical law...and The Chasms have outstripped all of the superlatives I've ever employed to describe them in the process of breaking it. The Clash recorded 'Give 'Em Enough Rope' bookended by a couple of masterpieces. The Smiths had a certain creakiness in their debut effort and frankly I was never fully convinced by 'Meat Is Murder in its entirety either'. The Pixies followed my favourite albums of 1988 and 1989 with the listenable but unspectacular 'Bossanova'.

In short, history dictactes that releasing three breathtaking albums in a row is never done. But The Chasms have now not only done it, they've done it locked away in a barn in the Isle Of Man, made it available for free, and far too little is being written about it. Their latest album 'Alchemical Postcards', available for free download at http://www.thechasms.co.uk/ (and shortly
available for purchase in CD form) follows last year's 'Index Of Spirits' and their debut 'Advance Paranoia, Advance' as the latest in a series of mesmerising releases by what we must surely now label the world's best band. At least I'm going to anyway.

On receiving some early promos from the band, along with some of my colleagues, I played and marvelled at the incredible 'The Occult Soul Review' and, judging by their comments, I wasn't the only one to be left breathless by the experience. A clear and serious contender for the best track of 2011, and it almost doesn't need to be added that all six tracks on 'Alchemical Postcards'
offer a similarly magical sledgehammer impact to the listener, the effect of which borders on the physical. Playing tracks from it on the radio is actually a perilous business. Hard to keep to the time-honoured rule of 'no dead air' when you've just played something that leaves you as stunned and speechless as this.

What continues to remain perplexing is that The Chasms don't appear to have the kind of enormous audience they richly deserve. I'm aware that this statement can sound naive, aware of course that this can be said about so many fine bands, many of which we play on Dandelion Radio. But in their case it really does surprise me that anyone could hear them and remain immune to their music's effects. It would have to take my view of humanity down yet another notch, I fear. I live in a world that not only can vote in the likes of Bush and Cameron but also fails to succumb to the wonder of The Chasms in such large numbers? Perhaps they'll follow the Velvets, Can and Nick Drake in finding only a restricted audience at the time of their greatest potency only to be regarded as inspirational geniuses by future generations of music lovers.

I don't know. All I know is that if you don't take the opportunity to get hold of Alchemical Postcards right now you'll not only be missing out on free great music that comes, you'll also be putting yourself in a position of being asked by your grandchildren, 'What were you doing while The Chasms were around?'and having to answer something like 'Shuffling around me Kings Of Leon records'.It's not an option.

Get over to that website now and treat yourself to the sound of the greatest band to appear this century. Or future generations will know you by your folly.

Best Albums of 2011: 3. Defdfires - Operation: Zombie Nation (Emerging Species)

2011-12-22T06:08:00.000-08:00

Operation:Zombie Nation is part horror pastiche, part social allegory, part neo-Ziggy concept album. On the surface, the theme running through it deals with the social panic that ensues when zombies take over the UK without warning. Dig deeper and you'll find a rich seam of social observation that connects deeply with a post-economic collapse country struggling to maintain a sense of itself against the onslaught of something it can't control and is kidding itself if it thinks it can understand. The result? Panic, riots and a disruption to normal social mores that shoots violently through a nation formerly complacent that it had it all sussed. Sound familiar?

It's an album that competes with the universally lauded PJ Harvey opus as the perfect soundtrack to the western crisis. Sadly, it won't be heard by anywhere near as many people. While ostensibly a rap album, the rap is used sparingly, and thus the spitter's attacks are far more devestating when interspersed with sound collages, spoof eye witness testimony and Brechtian levels of dramatic disorientation, and over a rich tapestry of sound that darts roughly from the mellow and benign through the jerky and disorientating to an endpoint that is part apocalyptic nightmare, part consummated celebration of the only attachment which, in the face of such ultimate levels of disruption, is unclothed as the only thing that continues to matter.

It's outspoken enough to ram home constitutional observations too rarely voiced these days - its passage on 'the palace' is its zenith here - and yet amazingly manages to be compassionate and tender at exactly the right moments without yielding an inch to disharmony. A unique and brilliant body of work.

Top Albums of 2011: 4. Half Man Half Biscuit - 90 Bisodol (Crimond)

2011-12-21T10:51:00.000-08:00

Amazingly, after more than a quarter of a decade, Half Man Half Biscuit are still getting better and better. Faced with the dangerous sterility that always lies in wait for the careless humorist, Nigel Blackwell's arch observations remain remarkably fresh, still more insightful and get more inventive by the album. After only the mildest of lulls when the band reformed in the nineties, latterly the consistency on masterpieces like Achtung Bono and Cammell Laird Social Club confirmed them as one of the greatest of our musical treasures. So good were these troves, so rich and pertinent the wit, I feared that 90 Bisodol (Crimond) wouldn't be able to compete. I was wrong. It competes and, on most counts, it wins.

Contained herein are a handful of tunes that sit comfortably alongside Blackwell's finest compositions. 'RSVP', for instance, whose deceptively mild and listless introduction leads into a tale of a spurned love who responds by poisoning all the guests at her wedding. You still emphaphise with the murderous narrator, just as you connect with the typically Blackwellian monologues performed by the pissed off social observer in 'Tommy Walsh's Eco House' or the Browning-esque necrophiliac in 'Excavating Rita'. Sifting through these delights, you're left breathless at the end to find that they've truly saved the best till last, 'Rock & Roll is Full of Bad Wools', a Blackwell tour de force, reeling from the hapless incumbent on the Soccer AM sofa whose frantic couplets ('Do you ever get to Roots Hall/Which to him means fuck all'; 'Might need some help with this/But Heston's gone for a piss') reach their denouement in the most apposite way, Neil Ruddock entering left to 'get him in a headlock', through to an understated, perfectly exact dismissal of pub bands. 'They play two sets/And then say "requests"' Nothing more needs to be said when delivered by Nigel's ever laconic yet acerbic tongue.

Another triumph. Inevitably

Top Albums of 2011: 5. Cambodian Space Project - 2011: A Space Odyssey (Metal Postcard)

2011-12-21T03:36:00.000-08:00

The most infectious and inventive pop album of 2011 came from Cambodia, courtesy of my Dandelion Radio colleague Sean Hocking's consistently excellent Metal Postcard label, Cambodian Space Project play a brand of indie pop tinged with psychedelic inventiveness and quirky mischief, all delivered via the edgy vocal stylings of the amazing Srey Thy.

Inspired by the rich pre-Khmer Rouge heritage of Cambodian music, CSP are culturally significant and no less musically intoxicating for it, taking on and revitalising tunes from the sixties and seventies heyday of their country's scenes on 2011: A Space Odyssey and placing them back in their deserved place in the south-east Asian canon while reworking the tunes with an irrepressible sense of fervour and fun. To this they add an irreverant re-working of Shocking Blue's 'Venus'. Don't make the mistake of trying to pin this down as some kind of folksy artefact. It's some of the best music hear all hear and some of the best fun you can have with your clothes on or off.

Top Albums of 2011: 6. Moddi - Floriography (Impeller Recordings)

2011-12-19T01:40:00.000-08:00

Norway's Moddi is one of those artists I clearly should have discovered sooner. This was rectified when I witnessed a stunning performance at August's Green Man Festival when Moddi, holding only an accordion and backed by a cellist, delivered a set of astonishing warmth and intensity that cut across the mediocrity of the sounds drifting across from Laura Marling and The Antlers on the larger stages. There are few artists I'd compare with Nick Drake or Tim Buckley: Moddi is alone in evoking the best of both.

For the first time, my immediate action on returning home was not to have at least three baths, but to get hold of Moddi's Floriography as soon as possible. Granted, the rather less muddy nature of this year's Green Man made scrubbing the dirt off rather less of an imperative this year, but this also shows how much my post-Green Man thoughts were filled with the Norwegian's plaintive, laconic tones. Happily Floriography captured Moddi's brilliance perfectly.

You can hear 'Littlejune' from the album in the one-off Xmas Eve show on Dandelion Radio that precedes the first broadcast of the Festive Fifty at midnight. Drowned In Sound, by the way, gave the album a mere 3/10. Kind of sums up my overall feelings about reviews in general: if you don't get something, why comment?

Top albums of 2011: 7. Twiggy & The K-Mesons - Technique (UVG/Daddy Tank)

2011-12-16T02:12:00.000-08:00

Very few record labels manage three tracks in my end of year thingy, but then there are very few labels like the amazing Daddy Tank. Excellent though the label’s other releases have been, when I first heard Technique I was so thrilled my teeth flew out – and I don’t even have false teeth.

Robotic vocals combine with electronica by turns frantic and sublime to conjure up some kind of musical land that sci-fi forgot, where only barely recognisable musical forms lurk and where banality doesn’t exist.

Michael Valentine West is the man behind this brilliance, and you can hear a track from another project of his, Lower Third, in my December show on Dandelion Radio.

Glasgow Popfest 2011 - Paradise Reclaimed

2011-12-14T07:36:00.000-08:00

I recall, back in the late eighties, going to a Cud gig with a friend who'd spent the previous six months immersing himself in folk and world music to the exclusion of almost everything else. After a fantastic performance that caught the band just at their peak, he said he'd rediscovered himself, and realised he was 'an indie kid at heart'. Although I can't claim the circumstances are exactly parallel, I left Glasgow Popfest with a similar feeling.

What the event - held between the 8th and 11th December in Heavenly on Glasgow's Hope Street - did was reaffirm just how exhilarating, unpretentious and downright entertaining this all too easily dismissed form can still be. Within seconds of entering the venue on Friday evening, I was swept up in the considerable frenzy generated by Spook School's opening set, so much so that when they gave out free homemade CDs at the end and announced they had only one left, it wasn't just the whisky I'd spent much of the afternoon imbibing that led to me forgetting my inhibitions and shouting for one with the desperation of a spinster reaching out for a tossed bouquet. You'll be able to hear a result of my successful lunge when I play a track from it in my Dandelion Radio show in January.

The moment was, if you'll allow, something of a microcosm of the event as a whole, because at its best indie pop is inhibition-loosening music. Manda Rin & The Rinettes more than captured Manda's early Bis form, her unmistakeable tenor squeal accompanied by tossed out ironic gestures that only come from a performer of her considerable pedigree and verve. Ditto Amelia Fletcher, headling Saturday night with Tender Trap and dishing out an object lesson in close harmonies atop gorgeously redolent guitars. The session they'd done for my colleague Rocker's show was my favourite Dandelion session of 2011, and this was even better, the new songs rubbing up against the old, melodic delight faultlessly piled upon melodic delight courtesy of one of the true greats of British indie.

And it wasn't just the veterans at the top of their game. The remarkable Standard Fare served strong notice that their upcoming January album is likely to be an early contender for one of the best releases of the year. Bubblegum Lemonade delivered wistful and sumptuous melodies of a rarely bewitching ilk, while Barcelona's Cola Jet Set's girl group harmonies and sprightly keyboard-driven head-rushes meant that even the considerable hand-clapping that accompanied their set worked perfectly, a further example of indie pop's ability to take apparently tired and outre elements and imbue them with freshness. My cynicism draining at every step, I was then dragged into the sprightly world of Madrid's Zipper, offering a sugar rush of C86 goodies spiked with a pinch of punk.

Such was the conveyor belt of wonders on display, it's hard to pick a band that stood head and shoulders above the rest, but I might be prepared to plump for the extraordinary performance of Edinburgh School For The Deaf, whose MBV/JAMC guitar pyrotechnics unleash something entirely other on the Heavenly hordes. With vocals mixed way further down than in their recorded work, the performance offered new perspectives on the band's sonic architecture, a characteristic of only the very best live bands, and gave the event as a whole just enough of a serrated edge.

Unfortunately, circumstances dictated that I couldn't stay for the Sunday and thus had to miss veteran headliners BMX Bandits and personal favourites The Electric Pop Group among others. Small indoor festivals like this are a treasure much needed in the UK music scene, and Glasgow Popfest 2011 shone brighter than most.

Top Albums of 2011: 8. Seedhill Bruiser - Granite Fists

2011-12-13T07:20:00.000-08:00

Seedhill Bruiser’s reclusive laments are carried down ancient glens, transported there as if by the disembodied soul of an early eighteenth century folk singer transposed into the body of a weary modern minstrel. The songs on ‘Granite Fists’ offer threnodies in timeless forms such as ‘The Killing of Alan McKinnon’, the context the gaping vortex of eternity while the transient concerns of modern man are at play elsewhere.

From the label (Nerve Echo) that’s brought us the amazing catalogue of Tingle In the Netherlands, this collection of 'queer ballads' is Seedhill Bruiser’s masterpiece. Pick anything here for a sonic journey well beyond folly or whimsy, but particularly the majestic ‘Trees’, one of the finest tunes released during 2011.

Top Albums of 2011: 9. Nachtblende - Syntaks

2011-12-12T08:36:00.000-08:00

Seriously battling with 93MillionMilesFromTheSun for the best Parallax Sounds release yet, but 93MMFTS are Frazier and Syntaks are Ali. Stunning brute force against majestic guile. The woozy magnificence of this dream/nightmare electronica from the Danish duo resonates with flashes of something genuinely comparable with Boards Of Canada at their best - and these are words seldome said.

I first listened to it in the car while driving around the remnants of a medieval abbey but Nachtblende could probably make cruising around an industrial state feel estoterically beautiful. The album’s title hints at its cinematic vision and scope, but the richness and variety of the textures here go well beyond mere words.

Top Albums of 2011: Number 10

2011-12-06T06:58:00.000-08:00

10. Milk Drops – Zoomonk (Myhand.thanx)

The Myhand.thanx netlabel has been serving up slabs of excellence for a good while now, but Finnish duo Zoomonk produced an album of such zesty brilliance it defeated even the amazing ‘Memories of a Dog’ by Thomas W as the label’s finest moment yet. And, as with everything this remarkable label puts out, it's FREE!

Suicide-inspired no wave brashness collides with noisy krautrock injected dronery to produce a work that conspires to recapture the word ‘rock’ from its clichéd hovel. Sadly, we’ve not heard anything from one the world’s finest labels since July – anything we can look forward to in 2012?

Top Albums of 2011: 15-11

2011-12-05T04:33:00.000-08:00

15. Snowy Psychoplasmics – Dissolved (Daddy Tank)
Outrageously innovative, exploratory electronica – cinematic in scope and visionary in execution. Feeding time for the bits of the brain that we might think didn’t exist. A truly unique release from a label that spent the whole of 2011 producing unique releases.

14. Pedro Joko – Decibelles (Self-Released)
Sprightly French guitar pop. Unpretentious and easy to miss if you're not concentrating. Some make the mistake of dismissing this at face value as standard retro sub-punk fare - don’t be deceived.

13. Ode 2 A Carrot – Soom T & Disrupt (Jahtari)
Ganja-fuelled monologues over glitchy dub backings that provided one of the early highlights of a fascinating year. Humorous and provocative in roughly equal measure and scoring high in both respects.

12. Jeffrey Lewis – A Turn In The Dream-Songs (Rough Trade)
I’ve no idea what a bad Jeffrey Lewis album would sound like because I’ve never encountered anything slightly resembling such a thing. Lewis once again turns the world on its head, looks underneath and tells us all about it with the casual verve of the planet’s most undervalued poet.

11. Wolfroy Comes To Town – Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy (Domino/Drag City)
Will Oldham’s best album for many years. If releases in recent times have sometimes underplayed the delicate balance of spikiness and fragility that underpins the best work in the Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy canon, it’s right back where it should be here.

Hehfu - Music For My Broken Ears (Bleeding Gold)

2011-11-30T04:56:00.001-08:00

Regular listeners to my Dandelion Radio show know that I become excited beyond reason at the mere whiff of a prospect of hearing anything from Hehfu, so you'll no doubt be able to anticipate my reaction to a whole album's worth of his finely tuned indie pop stylings. Hehfu's first proper album release (as opposed to the compilation but out via my Unwashed Territories bandcamp site a little less than a year ago) comes via the well-tuned ears of the Bleeding Gold label and is, as expected, a triumph.

Quite what it really is that Hehfu possesses that others who indulge themselves in the same broad idiom don't have is something I've never been satisfactorily able to my finger on. I've talked in the past about wanting to hear milkmen whistling his tunes as it appears to me that said tunes have the propensity to aspire to that kind of cultural position. I'd like to think this release is a step towards achieving that goal, if indeed Bleeding Gold can, as is to be hoped, get Music For My Broken Ears into the much broader areas Hehfu deserves to be heard in before milkmen die out completely.

For those who've experienced Hehfu's fascinating past releases via my show, some of what's on here will strike a familiar chord. New versions of the tracks he recorded in session for my January 2011 show are all here, and one of those - 'A Puppy Is Not Just For Christmas' - I give another airing to in my December show, streaming as usual from 1 December and at varying times through the month at www.dandelionradio.com. Elsewhere, we find a mix of the familiar and the new, coexisting seamlessly and all underpinned by Brad Clarke's effortless, languid delivery over rhythms that vary from the rattling to the resigned, overlaid with those appealingly plaintive guitar parts that have become such a part of life for me these last few years.

Hopefully this collection will make Hehfu's music part of a few other lives too. For the record, a personal favourite is 'Street Orange Glow' which takes all of the aforementioned elements and somehow upgrades them to a level of sublimity even beyond that of Hehfu's previous works, something that I'd assumed wasn't possible. And maybe that's the elusive criterion I was looking for earlier. Working in this relatively well-trodden idiom, Hehfu's work retains a capacity to surprise that is well beyond his peers.

Anyway, I have to go now. The milkman's at the door and he's whistling something that sounds gratifyingly familiar...

Get it as a beautifully packaged CD/7" here

PS - Final day for voting in the festive fifty is today. Cast your vote here before it's too late.

Top Albums Of 2011: 20-16

2011-11-28T03:22:00.000-08:00

Only two more days to vote in the festive fifty here.

Moving into my top twenty albums of the year:

20. JD Meatyard - JD Meatyard (Probe Plus)
John Donaldson goes (roughly speaking) solo, takes his Levellers 5 and Calvin Party heritage with him and delivers a stunner that, had not only arrived a couple of days before I started writing this list, may well have been higher.

19. Go Tell Fire To The Mountain – Wu Lyf (Lyf Recording)
Much-hyped and deservedly so, mining that rich Mancunian tradition of fuck-you individuality and sweetly arrogant stylings and adding a curious mellow brashness.

18. Zeroes QC – Suuns (Secretly Canadian)
First seen at the Green Man and immediately loved. Effortlessly sunny guitar trip from sublime Canadians, with an edginess borrowed from Clinic at their best.

17. Morbido – The Dreams (Kill Shaman)
Ragged, idiosyncratic revision of what would once have been called post-punk from French collaborators.

16. Hardcore Will Never Die But You Will – Mogwai (Rock Action)
Scottish Peel-giants unleash their most consistent collection for years. The Mogwai steamroller rolls on – better to get in the front seat with it than stand pondering in its path.

Top Albums of 2011: 25-21

2011-11-24T04:52:00.000-08:00

Only six days left to vote in the festive fifty here. You know what you need to do.

Meanwhile:

25. Ghetto Ass Witch – Ritualz (Self-Released)
Mexicans defy their witch house heritage by giving themselves a name my keyboard can make sense of and putting out something good. The remix albums that followed were pretty damn fine as well.

24. Sensitive – Trevor Sensitive & The Locals (Self-Released)
Quirky, sub-Smithsesque parables on emotional conundrums that poke far into the recesses of convention beneath the slick indie pop veneer. They did a great session for my show during the year too.

23. Bells & Proclamations – Big Block 454 (Self-Released)
A not-before-time discovery and a rabidly contorted take on folk conventions and urban anthropology. Subsequently released much of their stunning back catalogue – it’s been a joy belatedly to discover it all.

22. Guider – Disappears (Kranky)
Delivering a swift kick to the l’cks to those who claim sublime guitar stylings like this are a thing of the past.

21. Laced – Psychedelic Horseshit (FatCat)
Indelicate noisemakers with their finest collection of abrasive guitar-driven noise cocktails yet. Less of the woozy gaucherie of releases past, but thankfully the maturing of Psychedelic Horseshit has brought the attraction of something reliably rough yet still more sublime.

Top Albums of 2011 - 30-26

2011-11-21T03:13:00.000-08:00

Only 11 days left to vote in the festive fifty here.

As for my albums of the year, the countdown continues:

30. Paris Burning – Derajah & The Donkey Jaw Bone (Chapter Two - right)
Superior reggae served up with considerable warmth (check out ‘My Sista’, which I’ll be playing in my December show for an example). One of several very late releases to muscle their way into this list (out at the end of this month).

29. This Day Is A Good Enough Day – Prince Edward Island (Crocfingers)
Scottish indie pop with hooks for hands. Anyone afflicted with doubts concerning the potential for current indie poppers to dish out original tunes need look no further for treatment.

28. All Rights Reserved – The Evolution Control Committee (Self-Released)
Veteran cut-and-paste iconoclasts rip up the world and put it back together in a far more pleasing fashion.

27. Proxemics – Social Studies (Daddy Tank)
The album that introduced me to the fantastic Daddy Tank label. Lengthy hip-hop treatises deliver a considered and considerable punch.

26. Relics – Matt Stevens (Self-Released)
The most innovative guitar instrumentalist since John Fahey. His ‘Live In Blackpool’ release would be in here too but for some reason I don’t include live albums.

Best Albums of 2011: 35-31

2011-11-15T05:35:00.000-08:00

A reminder that you can vote in the Festive Fifty - the only chart that really matters - up to the end of November here, but in the meantime please check the latest instalment in my countdown of my favourite albums of the year:

35. Crust Of Utopia – The Infinite Three (Self-Released)
Growling guitars underpin a dark, intelligent masterpiece. Written about in loving detail elsewhere on this blog.

34. S-750 – The Tinopener’s Art (Self-Released)
German-based electronic magician with his best work yet. Includes collaborations with Julien Auroux, another favourite of my show.

33. Senseless Sense – Piatcions (I Blame The Parents)
At the psychedelic end of the shoegaze spectrum. This excellent band deserves credit for getting XFM to play something as good as this (after Dandelion Radio had got there first, of course).

32. Hungry Ghosts – Lee Negin (Passing Phase)
Brain-teasingly original electronic brain-scrapings from eighties Peel favourite.

31. Red Barked Tree – Wire (Pink Flag)
Art-punk veterans still standing apart from everything else.

Best Albums of 2011: 40-36

2011-11-07T09:09:00.000-08:00

My top forty albums of the year, out of an original short-list of about 120, to be revealed during the course of November and December. A good smattering of self-released efforts. One record label features twice and another three times, but other than that it’s single appearances only, if indeed they appear at all…

40. Apocalypse – Bill Callahan (Drag City)
Best work since his Smog days. A steamy, atmospheric appraisal of an America in crisis.

39. Palace Of Toxology – Bashed Nursling (Enough)
Hungarian’s latest offering of brain-shredding electronic hammering. No one exposes the subtleties within electric noise better, and then batters hell out of them.

38. Greezy Man & Stinky Man Meet Smutty Ranks On Tarantula Hill – Dog Leather (Ehse)
Best album title of the year by far. Content doesn’t disappoint.

37. The Big Fish – Kiran Leonard (Self-Released)
Oldham-based innovator’s rich mine of varied sonic textures. You suspect he can, and will, continue to get better and better.

36. Ersatz GB – The Fall (Cherry Red)
Not their strongest effort, but for The Fall that’s like Messi not scoring a hat-trick. Still beats the pants off most of what’s out there. ‘Nate Will Not Return’ features in my November Dandelion Radio show, by the way.

And remember voting is open in the only chart that really counts…the festive fifty. Let us know yours at www.dandelionradio.com/festive50.htm.

Vote in the official festive fifty

2011-11-01T01:24:00.000-07:00

Voting is now open in the official festive fifty add Dandelion Radio, in partnership with SoundsXP and l'apartament18. Vote for your three favourite tracks of 2011 here. They don't have to be tracks played on Dandelion Radio, but if you want a reminder of what we've been playing throughout the year, find it here.

And while you're visiting the site, check out our November shows. I'm featuring an exclusive session from the excellent Benjamin Shaw in mine.

Mark W

The Infinite Three - Crust Of Utopia

2011-10-10T08:26:00.000-07:00

Always a good sign when a band contacts me via a mutual interest in The Chasms, yet somewhat perilous given that few could hope to match the admiration I hold for the Isle Of Man threesome. Thus did The Infinite Three pass the initial taste test. Faced with the obligatory and much more demanding 'But do they have anything to offer other than just good taste in music?' test, I was pleased to report that they passed this with almost conspicuous ease. Only the 'OK they're good, but do they have anything new to offer me?' test to go. Result: flying colours.

Thus did The Infinite Three's 'Crust Of Utopia' album find its way into my life. Unlike the aforementioned Chasms' latest opus and its sledgehammer attack, it's an album with a brooding presence, somewhat akin to opening a difficult can of beans with a broken tinopener, only to find that there is much more than merely beans inside, and that what does lurk within the can is actually wonderfully unclassifiable. Opener 'Lights Out For The City' lulls, fades and generally creeps its way into your life and under your skin. 'Blooms Of Immediacy' - which I play in my October show on Dandelion Radio - is, I believe, the third track I've played on my show to feature direct quotations from a William Blake poem. I'll leave you go guess what the others are, but aside from this the mystical Blakean presence is there throughout the album, not in the playful way it permeates, for example, Billy Bragg's 'William Bloke' album, but with the sinister, mystical undertones that infuse Blake's original works and in particular the challenging sparks that fly off the best of his innocence poems as well as glimpses into the dark hearts of experience.

I could easily follow this with a full pararaph on Blakean spiritual influence, but far better to discover 'Crust Of Utopia' for itself, delighting in picking the scabs from its sumptuous surface, bathing in the piranha-infused wash of its growling guitars and allowing yourself to prowl amid its sub-gothic dialectic. The Infinite Three don't offer easy routes into their music. Theirs is the messiness of dark art and not the clean dissection of science. They offer a world of conundrum and colour, of the visceral and the virtual in unbalanced but unquantifiable amounts, of the cinematic and the savage.

There's an uncommon depth to all you find here, even within the relatively accessible 'Is Erased' while, in the midsts of tracks like 'Three Blooms Dub', The Infinite Three test the fabric of their own universe with a drone that leaps into something even more startling somewhere around 4.21. Abandon yourself and enter.

You can get hold of a copy of 'Crust Of Utopia' at their bandcamp site - download is 'name your price' while a limited edition physical copy is damn good value at £5. And you can find out more about The Infinite Three here

Mark W

Melting Records - Phew!!

2011-09-12T05:30:00.000-07:00

I've discovered that the thing that really disappoints me most in the world is fakery. I respond to it now not with the unmitigated anger I think I possessed in my youth, but nowadays more with a kind of weary sadness. A deep sense of dismay sweeps over me whenever I hear a band with a singer who really just wants to be another singer. Or branded lemonades like Sprite that don't taste like lemonade at all. Or that time I heard David Cameron speaking to a member of the public about how much he hates self-service supermarket checkouts. I've even realised that the whole reason I'm against royalty isn't really the issue of class as I convinced myself it was when I was that angry young man. It's that the whole business is so utterly artificial it takes a logical effort of incredible proportions to give it even a small amount of credence.

So inevitably I became giddy with pleasure on encountering the bands and artists of the Melting Records stable, arguably the least fake music in the world at the moment. You'll see what I mean if you catch my September Dandelion Radio show and listen with especially undivided attention to the tracks from Nameless and The Fuzz, both bands who form part of the aforementioned label's enthralling body of work and who are doing more than anyone in the crucial battle against fakeness in the world of music. In fact, you won't even need to listen with that much concentration, because chances are you'll find yourself grabbed, assaulted, perhaps even ravished by their unvarnished and highly appealing racket.

While The Fuzz offer an untidy and irreverent take on what I suspect initially starts out as some variant on blues rock, Nameless take any rule book you care to mention and shred it, spit all over it and then bugger it sideways. I remember Nick Kent writing about seeing the pre-Lydon Sex Pistols in rehearsal for the first time and expect it probably sounded like this, except I suspect Nameless are actually far better. But I wonder how many bands start making an unholy row like this, check themselves and say 'we can't put this before the good people of the public' then turn into Kings Of Leon, Foo Fighters or any of a thousand dullards who make up far too much of the rock canon?

Even the way Melting Records got in touch was refreshing, a long, rambling but essentially very genuine attempt to tell me about what they're up to and suggesting that, having caught a recent streaming of my show, it might be the kind of thing I'd like. I become genuinely aghast at DJs from the likes of 6music saying things like 'I never listen to unsolicited demos' and wondering how on earth you then get to even listen to new music, not to mention be surprised by anything ever, and the thought that the kind of approach from Melting Records would be unlikely even to be read by so many 'tastemakers' (anyone who calls themselves that has nothing at all to offer in any capacity, by the way) makes me want to set fire to things.

In short, to say the stuff that Melting Records is putting out has a raw and unrefined quality is an understatement of silly proportions. This is music so untempered by commercial considerations it makes everything that is so tempered appear laughable in comparison. More power to Melting Records' elbow. Find out more about them here and, as Melting Records advise, buy their music, buy their T-Shirts and download them illegally.

The Chasms - Alchemical Postcards

2011-09-06T01:48:00.000-07:00

In short, history dictactes that releasing three breathtaking albums in a row is never done. But The Chasms have now not only done it, they've done it locked away in a barn in the Isle Of Man, made it available for free, and far too little is being written about it. Their latest album 'Alchemical Postcards', available for free download at www.thechasms.co.uk (and shortly available for purchase in CD form) follows last year's 'Index Of Spirits' and their debut 'Advance Paranoia, Advance' as the latest in a series of mesmerising releases by what we must surely now label the world's best band. At least I'm going to anyway.

I'm featuring a track in my September show on Dandelion Radio, a new version of 'A Copse Of Trees', which originally appeared on Dandelion's 'Five Years' anniversary compilation earlier in the year. Last month, along with some of my colleagues, I played and marvelled at the incredible 'The Occult Soul Review' and, judging by their comments, I wasn't the only one to be left breathless by the experience. A clear and serious contender for the best track of 2011, and it almost doesn't need to be added that all six tracks on 'Alchemical Postcards' offer a similarly magical sledgehammer impact to the listener, the effect of which borders on the physical. Playing tracks from it on the radio is actually a perilous business. Hard to keep to the time-honoured rule of 'no dead air' when you've just played something that leaves you as stunned and speechless as this.

I don't know. All I know is that if you don't take the opportunity to get hold of Alchemical Postcards right now you'll not only be missing out on free great music that comes, you'll also be putting yourself in a position of being asked by your grandchildren, 'What were you doing while The Chasms were around?' and having to answer something like 'Shuffling around me Kings Of Leon records'. It's not an option.

Get over to that website now and treat yourself to the sound of the greatest band to appear this century. Or future generations will know you by your folly.

Mark W

In session in my September show: The Sinatra Test

2011-09-01T07:29:00.000-07:00

If you've listened at all to my show over the past 12 months (and, unless you've been in Antartica or space, the only two places who've yet to receive Dandelion Radio so far as I know, I'd want to know why) chances are you'll have encountered the music of The Sinatra Test, a project of the venerable Phil South featuring apparently effortless arch languid grooves that so caress the ear you'd think making original and innovative music seem so much easier than it really is. Or maybe I've got that wrong. Maybe it is as easy as this and it's those who put so much effort into making derivative pap that have misled us on the issue.

Whatever is the case, there's an ambition at play in The Sinatra Test's music that's underpinned by such an effortless vibe you can fail to notice just how hard Phil's working to make us all feel so good. A case in point is the session The Sinatra Test have recorded for my December show, streaming at various points throughout this month on Dandelion Radio. You'd swear blind the tracks were filled with sampled voices and sounds, all easily picked up and assembled together like some highly pleasing collage. But you'd be wrong, because Phil's provided them more himself, a triumphy of artistry so rare you could present it raw on a plate and pronounce it done.

And the ease on the surface sometimes belies much darker elements beneath. Among the session tracks, 'Pointlessly In Brackets' is a terrifying tale of thwarted obsession that, by the end, has you so petrified at the prospect of the phone ringing while 'Wodehouse Whippet Bingo' delivers, through a series of epigrammatic pronouncements, the kind of dissection of 21st century mores that most songsmiths would fail to achieve with several pages of lyrics and several pints of sweated blood.

The Sinatra Test have also just released their highly anticipated album 'Do Be Do: 10 Songs About Being and Doing' on Bandcamp containing at least four songs you may have heard on my show in the recent past, one of which, 'The Beat Degeneration' ranks among the finest tunes I've heard all year, from anyone. Get it here.

As for the session, Phil has provided some helpful accompanying notes on the four tracks below:

1. Pointlessly in Brackets (3:44)
A love song to stalker movies. I imagined a large girl with thick Andy Warhol glasses and a pink cardigan who spends all her time on the Internet. She has convinced herself that the cute boy across the street is her fiance. I call her Tracy Love. Like many TST tracks it's a mini movie. Lounge jazz with creepy oboe.

2. The Towel Begins (3:52)
Another piece of surrealist poetry intoned by what I call the Leonard voice, similar to the one I used on "Zombie Sundae". I call him Leonard because he's part Cohen and part Nimoy. An 808 drumbox collides with David Lynch guitars and Miles Davis style trumpet stylings. Stand back everyone, I'm a trained surrealist...

3. Wodehouse Whippet Bingo (3:13)
Someone in a PG Wodehouse novel had a whippet called Bingo, so voila, song title. This was the last track I did so the words are inspired by much more recent events. Desi style tabla drums and tape echo with fuzz bass. Voice is based on my Uncle Dil.

4. Chant Boxer (5:17)
I have this little plastic chant box about the size of a deck of cards, and it plays buddhist meditation chants through a little speaker. I sampled it to see if I could figure out the chords and play along with it, and it got away from me. The singing voice is called Lala, one I've used for other tracks. A dub style meditative steady state tune.

Mark W

Green Man 2011: A Report

2011-08-22T07:20:00.000-07:00

There were gratifyingly few clouds of the physical variety at this year's Green Man Festival, but one or two metaphorical ones gathering over the Welsh hills, threatening showers throughout Friday and Saturday, relieved by some startlingly sunny intervals, before a cracking Sunday line-up broke through the previously overcast conditions and saved the day.

Every Green Man before this one had got off to a fairly mild start before some band or artist walked in - usually on Friday afternoon or evening - and really kickstarted the event. It was the same this time, but disappointingly they didn't arrive until Saturday evening. At that point Polar Bear took to the stage, delivered a blistering 45 minute set, and from that point Green Man 2011 never looked back. I'll be the first to admit that jazz isn't something I particularly understand and that, therefore, I'm not in much of a position to appreciate what Polar Bear do, but what I did appreciate was the appearance of such a challenging and uncompromising set that had followed far too much mediocrity across the first two days.

That's not to say we hadn't had highlights before this, including some scorching pyrotechnics from Holy Fuck on the first night, delivering a performance that deserves to rank among the greatest Green Man sets ever, ably supported by a richly dynamic Sic Alps. But am I alone in sensing that the Far Out marquee witnessed an outpouring of relief among the crowd following a day that had barely hinted at such a spectacle? The highlights earlier that day had been few and far between...a richly rewarding set on the main stage from the Cave Singers and brilliantly promising performances at the Green Man Pub from Younghusband, playing their first festival, and Tender Prey, playing their first gig. The former impressed with their brash confidence and the consistent quality of their tunes while the former experienced a hesitant start but grew into something genuinely wonderful during their half hour on the stage. I'd love to see them when they've got half a dozen gigs under their belt.

She Keeps Bees were easily the best thing during the daylight hours of Saturday and indeed, somewhat depressingly, only one of two bands genuinely to light up the main stage across the whole weekend. The Burns Unit were entertaining enough, but then any band featuring the vocal talents of both King Creosote and Emma Peacock can't help but generate something astonishing during the course of three-quarters of an hour, and I'd still prefer any of that collective's separate projects to the semi-vaudevillian pastiche they produced together, which sometimes veered close to the self-congratulatory.

What grated about so much of the rest was not just the mediocrity, but a sense that the Green Man's priorities are, perhaps understandably in one sense, moving towards packing out the main stage with sufficient big names of the Uncut/Mojo set (Fleet Foxes, Laura Marling, James Blake, Noah and the Whale, etc) and that those who, like me, prefer to pick around the stages in search of more creative thrills may still find them, but will have to search around among the b-list indie bands, faux americana and nondescript singer-songwriters to do so. And so many of them talked on stage of Green Man-related superlatives (great to be at the best festival in Britain, one of the best in Europe, etc). All of which I can agree with, but the problem is a festival's only as good as its performers, and it'll only stay that good if you come and make a genuine contribution to it rather than simply bask in its much commended vibe.

There were other scheduling decisions that were simply baffling. The Doozer, whose sub-Syd Barrett ditties work perfectly well on record, has an intimacy to his set that may have worked in, say, the confines of Einstein's Garden but just didn't scan in the wider festival setting. And the choice of Explosions In The Sky, a band I love, for first night main stage headliners was perplexing. They're a band who have to be appreciated for the intricacies of their musicianship and not for the bombastic sound some attribute to them, and as such would have gone down a storm on the Far Out stage. Here, their gorgeous fretwork just didn't reach out across the green amphipheatre and anyone not previously acquainted with their sound seemed understandably lost.

But then, as the dusk gathered on Saturday night, we got our festival back. Following Polar Bear's catalytic intervention, we moved across to the Chai Wallah stage to see Manchester's Nucleus Roots deliver a set of the most sublime and uplifting reggae to get that stage's party into full swing. So good were they I almost stayed to the end, which would have meant sacrificing the opportunity to see James Yorkston at the Green Man Pub. Thankfully I made the decision to go, and found Yorkston delivering his best Green Man set ever, semi-improvised and generating a power that no other artist in this idiom can get anywhere near. I'd pleaded in my August Dandelion Radio show for James to include a version of Shipwreckers. Not only did he do this, he gave me the finest rendition of this beast of a song ever, followed with a sparsely concocted version of Tortoise Regrets Hare. Even more audaciously, the set finished with a violin and accordion propelled version of I Feel Love. We shot off to Far Out as soon as he'd finished to hear the second half of a characteristically uncompromising set from the awesome Squarepusher.

Then came the optimism and sunshine-fuelled Sunday, beginning with the gentle, unpretentious and compelling Two Man Ting, the understated electronic and sampling brilliance of Zwolf and a highly evocative set from the gorgeous Our Broken Garden, prior to the fascinating guitar and drums assault of Tweak Bird - great to see such an abrasive duo able to deliver with such personality and humour - before I said a farewell to the Far Out stage for another year with a stunning performance from Suuns, who took off where Tweak Bird had left off but fed in woozy grooves where the former band had supplied naked energy.

In between, I found one of the unanticipated highlights of this year's festival in the shape of Norway's Moddi, who started with the smallest audience of the weekend (for some reason the pull of Laura Marling and The Antlers on other stages had proved too appealing) but whose accordion and cello drenched gems seemed to pull in anyone who happened to go past so that, by the time the set finished the Green Man Pub was full to the brim and responded with a standing ovation. No artist had charmed the Green Man like Moddi across the whole weekend, and first thing I've done today on getting home is order a copy of his album. This was exquisite, totally unique and an example of what this festival, like no other, can do for you when it genuinely hits the heights.

Ultimately, there was enough about Green Man 2011 to ensure it remains the finest festival on the circuit, still helped by the complete absence of police and corporate sponsorship as well as friendly and helpful security staff. Pleasing too, to see the number of young teenage girls - who the media would love to think live in a world of Justin Bieber and whatever the latest X Factor churns up - in full dancing mode to The Cave Singers and making up most of the front row of Holy Fuck. The Green Man has a way of providing much needed reassurances once a year that the world hasn't entirely taken leave of its senses. For 2012, I would simply implore them to eliminate some of the mediocre padding that filled out so much of this event and not forget that a passion for taking risks and challenging its audience has always been a major part of its appeal.

A Green Man 2011 Top Ten:

1. Holy Fuck

2. James Yorkston

3. Moddi

4. Tweak Bird

5. She Keeps Bees

6. Suuns

7. The Cave Singers

8. Our Broken Garden

9. Younghusband

10. Nucleus Roots

Discover: Cash Cow

2011-08-04T11:01:00.000-07:00

They're from Hereford and describe their influences as Blondie, The Kinks and Blast First's 'Nothing Short Of Total War' compilation. But they've come to remind me of summer drives up and down the M56 where I've been playing their EP over and over again. This is very much against my normal practice of filling medium to long trips with a suitably varied diet, but Cash Cow are a band worth making exceptions to your routine for.

It's often said to me by what I'd refer to (not dismissively, I should add) as the slightly sniffier end of my audience that guitar bands just don't cut it any more. My normal response is to throw in examples like The Chasms, Extradition Order and the continued brilliance of The Fall as examples to demonstrate the clear folly of such sentiments. I can now happily add Cash Cow to this list. The anti-guitar lobby has actually been in some sort of flow for the last fifty years now, and Cash Cow are the sort of band who render their positions untenable. Not to mention metaphorically shoving the aforementioned instrument up their tradesmen's entrances.

And while Cash Cow might be terribly nice people, there's a dangerous edge to their music that carried a threat of this sort of action happening. Intrusive melodies sidle up alongside the guitar buzz, both sides to bloody battle and the final outcome is a hotly contested high scoring draw with several sendings off, highly disputed refereeing decisions and much blood on the pitch.

If you read these missives regularly, you'll conclude that I'm reaching for extreme and possibly spurious metaphors because I haven't really got the words to describe what Cash Cow do and how it affects me. This is of course true, so I'll stop there and simply add that you can hear another track from Cash Cow in my August Dandelion Radio show, streaming at various times until the end of the month and if, as I expect, that's not enough, you can get more Cash Cow at their last fm site

Mark W

In my August show: Matt Stevens

2011-08-04T07:45:00.000-07:00

Very occasionally you encounter an artist who works in a fairly familiar idiom but whose technique and output is so outstanding it raises him above pretty much everybody else and makes any attempt at categorisation ludicrous. So to call Matt Stevens simply a virtuoso guitarist would be like labelling Picasso 'a painter'. If you're going to put what Matt does in a box, leave the label off, put him in there with the great John Fahey and leave it at that.

Listening to Fahey on Peel shows many years ago, it always enthralled me that someone who, on the face of it, simply made instrumental guitar music could produce something so earth-shattering. Not until I found Matt Stevens did I encounter someone of comparable worth. I played a track from his 'Ghost' album in my show earlier in the year, and I'm following that with a live version of 'Moondial' in my August show, which you can hear on Dandelion Radio at various times throughout the month.

Other than Fahey, it's really difficult to compare the experience of listening to Matt Stevens to that of other solo guitarists. The thrill of the ride is much more akin to what I get from a Mogwai album or the adrenhalin rush of the much-loved Vert:x or The Chasms (incidentally there's a phenomal new track from the latter also in my August show). When you check out Matt's upcoming 'Relic' album on his bandcamp site, you'll find he's tagged it with labels like post-rock and even progressive rock as well as 'acoustic instrumental' and this is probably nearer the mark.

That someone holding no more than an acoustic guitar can take you somewhere so transcendent tells you much about the artist in question and also says something about the continuing thrill of truly great music, still giving so much after so many years. That the guitar in particular is not the spent force so many thought it would be by now is due in no small measure to people like Matt Stevens. We should cherish him and the fact that his kind inhabit the same planet as us.

'Relic' is available for pre-order at Matt's bandcamp site, and I note there are very few left. If you're one of the many who've got your pre-order in already, you're clearly a person of considerable taste. To others of considerable taste, or who aspire to be, I recommend you get across there right now.

Mark W

In session in my August show - Emily & The Faves

2011-07-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

When I encountered Emily & The Faves supporting Lovecraft earlier this year, I found the three-piece battling against somewhat unhelpful conditions. The sound in the venue was completely off, and a lesser band may well have succumbed and used the excuse to blag a bad gig. This is not a lesser band, however, and I came away feeling I'd experienced one of the best gigs of the year.

Emily & the Faves have now released their debut album (available from itunes and Probe Records in their home city of Liverpool) and a remarkable session for my Dandelion Radio show, which you can hear streaming from tomorrow at http://www.dandelionradio.com/, with repeat streamings throughout August. The session features a full band version of 'Darth', from the album, a track which ably showcases their gauche yet melodic charms, plus intimately recorded acoustic renditions of two other tracks.

Again, the rather rudimentary conditions in which these acoustic versions were recorded are something the band responds to brilliantly, responding to my request for the session tracks by, er, tomorrow with an 'ok, we'll do them tonight', and using the opportunity to reveal further depths to their astonishing material. One of them, 'So Long Sucker' you may have heard in demo form on my show a few months back. The session version lends it an incredible sparseness that finds me listening to the original demo, and the version on the album, with fresh ears.

So many other perfectly good bands would have told me they couldn't get something together that quickly and either asked for a postponement or told me to shove it up my arse. I suspect it's not just their politeness that stopped Emily & The Faves from taking this course. Rather, as with the aforementioned gig, they rose to the challenge as only the most skilled and durable bands do.

But then Emily & The Faves are a highly skilled, innovative and, hopefully, durable band, as you'll find out for yourself when you hear the session. Then I'd recommend you do yourself a considerable favour and add a copy of their album to your collection.

http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/emily-the-faves/id445662261

Five Years Volume Two, Track 17 - Jay Stansfield

2011-07-30T10:32:00.000-07:00

Jay Stansfield - Happy Birthday Dandelion

Burnley-born artist who was brought to our attention by Greg Healey, who featured Jay in session in November 2010. Since then, he's gone on to sign a deal with White Label Music, with whom he released the single 'Express Yourself' at the end of March, and looks set to delight us for many years to come.

'Happy Birthday Dandelion' was, as its title suggests, specially recorded for this compilation and seemed an appropriate way to finish off the second volume, and the whole Five Years compilation. In it, Jay pays appropriate tribute to Peel's memory while saying some very nice things out Dandelion. No one could have summed up the spirit of this collection better.

http://jaystansfield.co.uk

Five Years Volume Two, Track 16 - Dementio13

2011-07-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

Dementio13 - Quixote

From Cardiff, Paul Foster conjurs up fascinatingly individual soundscapes as both Dementio13 and, with Australian vocalist Pixieguts, Cwtch.

Dementio13's works are characterised by a rhythmic intensity that can veer quickly from krautrock-inflected drones to classic electronica and dark atmospherics in a fascinatingly varied back catalogue of albums and EPs.

Dementio13's debut Dandelion session came courtesy of Greg Healey's show in October 2010. 'Quixote' was recorded exclusively for this compilation.

http:/dementio13.com

http://dementio13.bandcamp.com/

Five Years Volume Two, Track 15 - Slideshow Freak

2011-07-23T10:59:00.000-07:00

Slideshow Freak - Retrospensive Thinking

Ex-pat Englishman Jamie Wright now resides in Florida and makes arch musical creations under the moniker Slideshow Freak.

Slideshow Freak originally appeared on Dandelion as part of a feature on the Filthy Little Angels label in Mark Whitby's show in December 2008. Since then, Mark has become a champion of his work and featured Slideshow Freak in session in February 2010. He has also received acclaim from Huw Stephens and Steve Lamacq.

'Retrospensive Thinking' appears on his current album 'You Are A Monster But So Am I', released via Unwashed Territories.

www.myspace.com/slideshowfreak

Five Years, Volume Two, Track 14 - Martin Carr

2011-07-22T02:44:00.000-07:00

Martin Carr - No Money In My Pocket

Martin Carr rose to fame as leader of Merseyside's The Boo Radleys who made three Peel sessions in 1990 and 1991 and appeared in four successive festive fifties from 1990-1993. Later they signed to the Creation label and achieved significant critical and commercial success with the 'Giant Steps' and 'Wake Up!' albums.

The band broke up in 1998 and Carr began working solo, first as Bravecaptain and eventually under his own name. He recorded a session for Andy Morrison's show in October 2009 as part of Dandelion's 'Peel Legends' month to commemorate the fifth anniversary of John Peel's death.

'No Money In My Pocket' is one of a number of recordings Martin is working on for his new album, and is currently unavailable elsewhere.

http://www.booradleys.co.uk/

http://www.martincarr.com/

Five Years Volume Two, Track 13 - HealeyIsland

2011-07-22T02:11:00.000-07:00

HealeyIsland - Secrecy Is A Matter Of Opinion

Project of Cornwall-based recording artist Greg Healey, who's been fashioning his unique electronica over many years and under different aliases before settling on this project in 2004.

A prolific series of releases followed, fuelled by a variety of influences such as jazz and krautrock as well as electronic artists like Kraftwerk and Aphex Twin.

Greg has been presenting his own show on Dandelion Radio since December 2009. 'Secrecy Is A Matter Of Opinion' is a fine example of his HealeyIsland work.

www.myspace.com/healeyanalogueisland
http://whitelabel-music.co.uk/healeyisland.html

Five Years Volume Two, Track 12 - Magoo

2011-07-21T08:44:00.000-07:00

Magoo - Call Out The Crash Squad (Dandelion Radio session)

Fuelled by a love of bands like Pavement and Stereolab, Magoo, from Norwich, arrived in 1992 and recorded seven John Peel sessions between 1996 and 2004. They also released recorded on Chemikal Undeground in the days when it was just about the best label in the world.

They continue to record and release fantastic music such as their new album 'The Continuing Adventures Of Magoo'. 'Call Out The Crash Squad' appeared in the session recorded for the Mark Cunliffe show in October 2009 as part of Dandelion's 'Peel Legends' month.

www.thesickroom.co.uk/magoo/index.htm

Five Years Volume Two, Track 11 - The Horn The Hunt

2011-07-21T04:54:00.000-07:00

The Horn The Hunt - I Missed The Catastrophe (Dandelion Radio Session)

Clare Carter and Joseph Osborne's self-titled debut collected together a range of recordings put together across Europe over a period of time, eventually released via White Label Music in 2010.

The album became a firm favourite with several Dandelion DJs and led to sessions for both Andy Morrison and Greg Healey during the year. This was followed by an appearance for the single 'Raptor' in the Festive Fifty.

The band have since released their second album, 'Depressur Jolie', also on White Label Music. 'I Missed The Catastrophe' originally featured in the Andy Morrison session of May 2010.

http://thehornthehunt.com/

http://www.wlmusic.co.uk/

Five Years Volume Two, Track 10 - Hehfu

2011-07-21T04:46:00.000-07:00

Hehfu - Plenty Of Fish (Dandelion Radio Session)

Originally known simply as Heh, Brad Clarke's Hehfu, from Caerphily in Wales, has been responsible for some of the most magical indie pop to come out of the northern hemisphere over the last few years.

Championed by BBC Radio Wales' Adam Walton as well as a whole bunch of Dandelion DJs, Hehfu has released a string of EPs and also appeared in session in Mark Whitby's show in January this year. 'Plenty Of Fish', included her at Mark's request, was a particular highlight. You can download a whole bunch of Hehfu material from his bandcamp site.

http://hehfu.blogspot.com/

http://hehfu.bandcamp.com/

Five Years Volume Two, Track 9 - Vert:x

2011-07-18T02:17:00.000-07:00

Vert:x - Photon Sphere

Based in Neston, south of the Mersey, Vert:x make drone-fuelled scorching epics that resonate with psychedelic, space rock and krautrock influences, as found on their self-released 'a.f.m.o.m.a.h.e.' (2007) and 'Ggantija' (2009) albums.

The music of Vert:x has since found a very welcome home in both Mark Whitby and Pete Jackson's shows, and they appeared in session on Mark's show in November 2010, since released via Unwashed Territories as the 'u.t. transmission' EP.

This year, Vert:x have also covered Julian Cope on the Fruits De Mer label's 'Roqueting Through Space' compilation and have another release due on the label later in the year. 'Photon Sphere' has been specially recorded for this collection.

www.myspace.com/556320987

Five Years Volume Two, Track 8 - Alisia Casper

2011-07-17T11:29:00.000-07:00

Alisia Casper - Digdog

Yorkshire-based musician and artist Alisia Casper makes quirky, sometimes oddly melodic tunes that she delivers with a tremulous, often fragile voice.

Despite this, the songs themselves have a curious strength, offering glimpses of the world from strange perspectives, like images through an off-kilter telescope. Along with many self-released recordings, Alisia's work has appeared on the split EP 'The Bookshelf EP' with Wolfram Wire on Drahtwald Records and a self-titled EP on Sea Records.

'Digdog' was recorded specially for this compilation. Alisia also designed the album's artwork for us and we also present a selection of her visual work as bonus items in this collection.

www.alisiacasper.com
www.searecords.co.uk

Five Years Volume Two, Track 7 - Spidersleg

2011-07-14T08:16:00.000-07:00

Spidersleg - Swine Wave (Dandelion Radio Session)

Colleague of Lord Numb and equally at home with a microphone, guitar, keyboard or computer, several Dandelion DJs have warmed to the very unique appeal of Spidersleg and he's appeared in session on both Andy Morrison and Mark Whitby's shows.

Spidersleg also makes music under the alias of Edgars Lisp and, with Numb, as The Reject Club. He can be intricate and playful in pretty much equal measures and one of the tracks from his Mark Whitby session was selected for Dandelion Radio's 'Broadcast One' release on Odd Box Records.

'Swine Wave' is another track from that session. Spidersleg appeared recently again, both alone and in combination with Lord Numb, with a whole bunch of great new and exclusive tracks for Andy's show, and you can hear more exclusive Spidersleg tunes in his second session for Mark's show, which goes out this month.

www.myspace.com/spidersleg

Five Years Volume Two Track 6 - The Pocket Gods

2011-07-13T08:14:00.000-07:00

The Pocket Gods - Perfect Blue

Discovered by John Peel in 2005, The Pocket Gods create rampant indie pop melodies fuelled by science fiction dreams and other people's nightmares.

Based in St Albans, they've released magical albums like 'Lo Fi Sci fi' and 'Nub Country, Beyond The Fridge' on their own Nub Country label and three bedroom-recorded sessions for the Mark Whitby show, as well as contributions to Rachael Neiman's Cherryade label Xmas compilations. They've also appeared in session in Tom Robinson's 6music show.

'Lo Fi Sci fi' was hailed by our own Mark Whitby as one of the finest albums to appear during Dandelion's lifetime. 'Perfect Blue' is from their '...Beyond The Fridge' collection and remains one of their most perfectly conceived tunes.

www.myspace.com/thepocketgods

Five Years Volume Two Track 5 - Mind's Eye Dub

2011-07-11T05:11:00.000-07:00

Mind's Eye Dub - Back To My Dub (Manwel T Mix 2)

Malta's Manwel Tabone runs the excellent Dubkey net label, featuring original roots reggae and dub compositions from a variety of 'house' artists.

Also from Malta, Mind's Eye Dub, aka David Magro, has been making Mediterranean-flavoured dub music since 1988, first as a member of the Mind's Eye reggae band and more recently recording under his current name in his own studio.

'Back To My Dub' is one of many collaborations between the two artists, all available, along with many other great tunes, for free via the Dubkey label.

http://dubkey.com
http://mindseyedub.com

Five Years Volume Two, Track 4 - Warm Widow

2011-07-10T15:59:00.000-07:00

Warm Widow - Scruff Of His Neck (Dandelion Radio Session)

Warm Widow offer that peculiarly Mancunian mix of spiky yet tuneful melodies wrapped up in one part laconic humour, one part joyful aggression and five parts 'we'll do what the bloody hell we like.'

Their well-received album 'Widower' was released last year and drew comparisons with the likes of fellow East Lancastrians The Fall and Dub Sex.

Warm Widow's debut Dandelion Radio session appeared in Jeff Grainger's show in May this year, and included this track.

http://soundcloud.com/warm-widow
www.myspace.com/warmwidow

Five Years Volume Two Track 3 - Darren Hayman

2011-07-07T10:39:00.000-07:00

Darren Hayman - Loose Change (Composed by Valentine Leys)

Hefner's 'The Fidelity Wars' and 'I Love The City' were highlights of the cusp of the millennium Peel shows, and the two albums dominated the festive fifty in a way few have since.

It says much of their lead singer and songwriter Darren Hayman that Hefner were merely the beginning of a fascinating career with far too many highlights to mention here. This track is a collaboration with Valentine Leys, who sang 'No Different Girls' during Darren's recent 'January Songs' project. In return, Valentine suggested Darren sing one of her songs, called 'Loose Change'. Darren duly obliged, and he and Valentine have kindly allowed us to feature the song in this compilation. The kind of project of which Peel would have very much approved, we think.

www.hefnet.com

Five Years Volume Two Track 2 - Block 45

2011-07-06T05:08:00.000-07:00

Block 45 - Wires (Dandelion Radio Session)

An Australian based in Japan, Block 45 is named after a Tokyo ghetto snack bar and his eponymous album appeared on Sean Hocking's Metal Postcard label at the beginning of 2010.

Block 45 appeared in session on Andy Morrison's show in July 2009 and the extraordinary 'Wires', which features here, appeared in their second session for the show exactly a year later.

Block 45's second album is due for release on Metal Postcard later this year.

http://block45.net
http://metalpostcard.com

Five Years Volume Two, Track 1 - Beatnik Filmstars

2011-07-05T07:09:00.000-07:00

Beatnik Filmstars - Rats (Dandelion Radio Session)

Formed in 1991, Beatnik Filmstars released a string of great albums and recorded five sessions for the John Peel show between 1995 and 1998.

The band split up in 1998, but re-formed in 2005 and became regulars in the Dandelion Radio festive fifty, placing three tracks in the top eight of the 2007 chart, the first band to achieve this since Pulp in 1995. Sadly, they called it a day again in 2010.

'Rats' is a version of a track that appeared on their excellent 2008 album 'The Purple Fez 72 Club Social'. This version was recorded in session for Rocker's show and broadcast in 2009.

www.beatnikfilmstars.co.uk

Five Years Volume One, Track 17 - Dalmatian Rex and the Eigentones

2011-07-04T03:47:00.001-07:00

Dalmatian Rex and the Eigentones - Hairy Monsters (Dandelion Radio Session)

Dalmatian Rex and the Eigentones parade a body of work rooted in the idiosyncratic and sometimes surreal humorous tradition of Viv Stanshall and Ivor Cutler in a series of fascinating releases going back to 1999.

In early 2008 Mark Whitby began playing them and featured the band in session in April of that year. A Jeff Grainger session followed in November.

Their unique humour continues to delight in their recent 'Gnulabradoodle du' album. 'Hairy Monsters', one of their less surreal efforts, is the Mark Whitby session version of a track from their 'Psychedelic Monsters.

http://www.dalmatianrex.co.uk/

Five Years Volume One, Track 16 - Extradition Order

2011-07-03T05:41:00.000-07:00

Extradition Order - A Shot

The excellent I Blame The Parents was formed when founder Martin Brimicombe saw Extradition Order in Shoreditch and realised he had to set up a label in order to release something by them.

On that occasion, the singer played a guitar made from a castol can and the bassist wore a gas mask. Naturalised Londers hailing originally from Warrington, Extradition Order use guitars, drums and keyboards to serve up grim post-industrial philosophy, wit and the occasional murder ballad.

IBTP released their debut album 'Since The Bomb Dropped' in 2009 and their follow-up is due later this year. 'A Shot' was recorded specially for this compilation.

http://extraditionorder.co.uk/

http://www.iblametheparentsrecords.com/

Five Years Volume One Track 15 - 2 Hot 2 Sweat

2011-07-01T02:26:00.000-07:00

2 Hot 2 Sweat - Rude Dog

This duo of Norwich origin, consisting of Matt Leuw and Mia Lane, took their unique brand of spiky indie pop to the John Peel night of the BBC Electric Proms in October 2008, having made their Dandelion Radio session debut in Mark Whitby's show exactly a year earlier.

Mark also selected the duo as number one in his annual 'Listen To Me' top ten of new bands that year. 2 Hot 2 Sweat went on to release a string of excellent singles with the NR One imprint.

They continue to make faultlessly quirky and tuneful vignettes and the self-released 'Rude Dog', a fine example of what they do so well, came out earlier this year.

www.myspace.com/2hot2sweat

http://twitter.com/2hot2sweat

Five Years Volume One Track 14 - Wolfram Wire with Broadcast

2011-06-30T01:48:00.000-07:00

Wolfram Wire with Broadcast - Verstehen 1,8; 3.296.2.1

The always astute Jeff Grainger introduced the rest of us to the amazing Wolfram Wire, aka Dan Werner, from Germany, in 2008 and Dandelion listeners responded by placing his 'Armitage Shanks' in that year's festive fifty.

Dan then made Dandelion history by featuring in the first ever 'joint' session across Jeff and Mark Whitby's shows in March 2009.

In turns both angular and tuneful, this previously unreleased track finds Wolfram Wire in collaboration with one of the great Peel bands of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the melodically atmospheric Broadcast, who recorded three Peel sessions and featured in five festive fifties.

www.myspace.com/wolframwire
http://futurecrayon.blogspot.com

Volume One Track 13 - The Truth About Frank

2011-06-29T00:38:00.000-07:00

The Truth About Frank - In Harm's Way (Dandelion Radio Session)

Leeds duo The Truth About Frank are one of four acts on this compilation who also appeared on the Odd Box CD release 'Broadcast One', featuring tracks specially selected by Dandelion DJs.

Their ascent to 'much loved' status at Dandelion has been swift, following their February 2010 session for Jeff Grainger's show, and they secured a top ten place in the festive fifty at the end of that year.

'Harm's Sweet Way' is from their second session for Jeff's show, broadcast in April this year.

www.reverbnation.com/thetruthaboutfrank

www.myspace.com/thetruthaboutfrank

Five Years Volume One Track 12 - Jack Hayter

2011-06-27T11:00:00.000-07:00

Jack Hayter - I Stole The Cutty Sark (Dandelion Radio Session)

A man of varied talents and many musical identities, Jack Hayter brought his multi-instrumental skills to Hefner's 'I Love The City' album in a long career that has also included stints with Spongefinger and Dollboy.

Jack is a master of the pedal steel and first featured on a Dandelion-related released when his 'Bugger All To Do In Wagin' was released on Rachael Neiman's Cherryade label's 'A Very Cherry Christmas Volume 2' in 2006.

In 2011, his Audio Antihero EP 'Sucky Tart' has been acclaimed by several Dandelion DJs and Jack appeared in session on both Andy Morrison and Mark Whitby's shows in March, the former of which featured this track. All tracks from these sessions have since been made available for free as the EP 'Dandelion' via Bandcamp.

www.jackhayter.com
http://jackhayter.bandcamp.com
http://audioantihero.com

Five Years Volume One, Track 11 - The Orch

2011-06-26T09:46:00.000-07:00

The Orch - Kenny & The Snake

The Orch are Mick Conroy, Phil Hayes and Damian Ashcroft, and they began performing and recording together in the early nineties, releasing some tracks on a Factory Records compilation before calling it a day.

Following their split, Conroy released two fine albums and recorded a Peel session with Superqueens before The Orch re-formed, to the great delight of several Dandelion DJs, and released the Small Times album on the Skinny Dog label in 2010.

Characterised by pulsing electronica overlaid by Conroy's gritty East Lancastrian spoken word lyrics, The Orch appeared in session for Andy Morrison at the end of 2010. 'Kenny & The Snake', which appears here, finally gave The Orch their first festive fifty entry that year.

www.myspace.com/michael_conroy

www.myspace.com/thisistheorch

www.skinnydogrecords.com

Five Years Volume One, Track 10 - Ste McCabe/Tingle In The Netherlands

2011-06-23T04:22:00.000-07:00

Ste McCabe - Public Debate (Tingle In The Netherlands Version)

Describing himself as a 'One Man Pop Punk Electro queer Noise Machine', Ste was introduced to us via the Rachel Neiman show and his often acerbic and deviously provocative songs found a whom in the upper echelons of the festive fifty, with both 'Huyton Scum' and 'Murder Music' making the top ten.

Both tracks showcase Ste's uncompromising commentaries on narrow-mindedness and conservative values in a world that has drifted towards a cosseted acceptance of middle class mores.

Ste now does his own regular show on Dandelion, which is entertaining and confrontational in satisfyingly equal measure.

This track is Cheshire electroc absurdists' Tingle In The Netherlands, remix of Ste's 'Public Debate'. Tingle In The Netherlands ae one of the few bands whose music lives up to the excellence of their name, and they also earned a deserved high entry in the festive fifty last year with the scorching 'Prostitute's Handbag'.

www.ste-mccabe.co.uk
www.nerveecho.com/nerveechotingleinthenetherlands.cfm

Five Years Volume One, Track 9 - Lord Numb

2011-06-22T01:47:00.000-07:00

Lord Numb - Stackridge

The highly prolific Lord Numb has appeared in sessions for Andy Morrison, Pete Jackson and Mark Whitby, either individually or in collaboration with Spidersleg, with whom he performs as The Reject Club, including a collection of Xmas songs in December 2010 and a remarkable set of cover versions of songs containing the word 'city' in September 2009.

But his electronic wizardry is not confined to mere gimmicks. Lord Numb's back catalogue is a fascinating journey through electriconic sounds, both with and without vocals, finally brought together in the fantastic 'Numbskull' collection in 2010 (released on the SVC label), featuring, among other delights, the electronic dream poem 'I Dream Of Bowie', the perverse 'Chicken Mangle Disco' and the brilliant 'Stackridge', which fist appeared on Dandelion back in November 2008, and is featured here.

www.reverbnation.com/lordnumb
www.svcrecords.co.uk/artist_lord_numb.html
www.myspace.com/lordynumb

Five Years Volume One, Track 8 - The Chasms

2011-06-21T03:19:00.000-07:00

The Chasms - A Copse Of Trees

Few bands have united in praise so many of the notoriously idiosyncratic Dandelion DJs as The Chasms. Hailing from the Isle Of Man, the band made one of the most celebrated of Dandelion sessions, for Pete Jackson's show in September 2009, subsequently released as the Chasms Vs Dandelion Radio EP.

Their astonishing feedback-drenced epics have found a home on two incredible albums - 'Advance Paranoia, Advance' and 'Index Of Spirits' - both free as downloads on their own Command To Destroy label (to get them, visit the website address at the bottom of this post) - with a track from each securing the number five spot in two successive festive fifties. 'A Copse Of Trees' is an exclusive track recorded by the band for this compilation.

http://www.thechasms.co.uk/

'Five Years' Volume One, Track 7 - Trembling Blue Stars

2011-06-17T01:55:00.000-07:00

Trembling Blue Stars - River And Rail

Fronted by Bobby Wratten (formerly of The Field Mice and Northern Picture Library), Trembling blue Stars have continued to showcase Wratten's remarkable song-crafting talent. His eye for detail and uncompromising reflective honest - as exemplified in tracks like 'Abba On The Jukebox@, which made John Peel's festive fifty in 1996 - set Wratten's bands apart from their many contemporaries through the decades.

Trembling Blue Stars remain a favourite band of many Dandelion DJs. They contributed an acoustic session to Mark Whitby's show in the Peel Legends month of October 2009, featuring tracks later to appear on their 'Fast Trains & Telephone Wires' album.

Sadly this album appears to be their last, as the band confirmed their break-up last year. We're very grateful that they've contributed 'River And Rail', an acoustic demo from 2002, and a hitherto unreleased track, to this compilation.

(NB: apologies that this track was wrongly entitled 'Road And Rail' in early downloads of the album).

www.elefant.com/bands/trembling-blue-stars
www.myspace.com/tremblingbluestarsmyspace

Five Years Volume One, Track 6 - Decoration

2011-06-16T03:09:00.000-07:00

Decoration - Candidate

Decoration share the double distinction of being one of the last great bands discovered by John Peel and appearing in the very first stream of Dandelion shows back in June 2006.

Two of their tracks appeared in the 2004 festive fifty in the year of Peel's passing, and they went on to achieve their highest placing when 'Square Mile' made number three in the Dandelion chart of 2008.

They've recorded three sessions for Andy Morrison's show, in June 2007, September 2008 and October 2009, and remain an emblematic band for both the station and for listeners of the later John Peel shows. 'Candidate' is the version from their 'Flippant' album and reached number 11 in the inaugural Dandelion festive fifty of 2006.

http://www.decorationmusic.co.uk/

Five Years Volume One, Track 5 - JD Meatyard

2011-06-15T02:01:00.000-07:00

JD Meatyard - Olive Tree

With Levellers 5 and Calvin Party John Donaldson recorded eight sessions for the John Peel show. The consistently brilliant Calvin Party, who also featured in two festive fifties, later appeared in session in the Mark Whitby show of October 2009 as part of Dandelion's 'Peel Legends' month. Now based in Amsterdam and recording as JD Meatyard, John has an album to be released on Probe Plus this summer and, from it, 'Olive Tree' holds up an unnerving mirror to the listener in its raw presentation of attitudes to the persecution of Palestinians.

Donaldson continues to be a lyricist of gently stated but devastating insight and a performer who combines a fine treatment of musical tradition with an uncompromising individualism. The words 'Peel legend' have never been more fitting.

www.myspace.com/jdmeatyard

Five Years Volume One, Track 4 - the Emergency

2011-06-08T02:24:00.000-07:00

The Emergency - Freedom From Religion

Dandelion's Sean Hocking is also the man behind the Metal Postcard label, and Melbourne-based electronic duo The Emergency have provided some of the many highlighst unearthed by that ground-breaking label over the years.

Last year's 'Money That Dreams Can Buy' album was described as 'like the bastard son of Kraftwerk and Joy Division in slo-mo dub-disco style. 'Freedom From Religion' is a new track with a live drummer that reveals further dimensions to their sound.

http://metalpostcard.com/

www.myspace.com/theemergency

'Five Years' Volume One, Track 3 - CobSon

2011-06-08T01:56:00.000-07:00

CobSon - Like A Bike Without Brakes

Bass-less French trio CobSon have a special significant for Dandelion Radio - three of their tracks appeared on the Neil Jenkins show in that very first series of shows that spanned June and July 2006.

After a string of single and EP releases DobSon released their self-titled debut album in November 2010, from which comes the excellent 'Like A Bike Without Brakes' which also appears on an EP of the same name.

www.myspace.com/cobson

'Five Years' Volume One, Track 2 - Dihedral

2011-06-07T08:55:00.000-07:00

Dihedral - Dandelion Dub.

Nick Dihedral makes dubby electronica in Oldham. He released his 'Dub Collisions' album in 2007 and his work has been heavily championed by Jeff Grainger. Dihedral's expansive talents were showcased in a Dandelion Radio session for Jeff's show in May 2010.

'Dandelion Dub' has a raw, ska-fuelled freshness and is a specially recorded track in celebration of Dandelion Radio and an absolute must for this release.

http://soundcloud.com/dihedral

'Five Years' Volume 1, Track 1 - Rev Porl with the Tea-Time Trio

2011-06-06T07:45:00.000-07:00

Rev Porl with the Tea-Time Trio - Harm (Dandelion Radio Session)

Kicking off our first volume, Stockport-based Rev Porl has been performing his warped poetic masterpieces since 1995. Since then he's issued a fascinating range of books and music, some of the latter showcasing Rev's trademark rants over harsh electronic backings provided by Superstring and later by the six-piece TeaTime.

Rev Porl recorded a Dandelion Radio session for Jeff Grainger's show in December 2009 and returned in session on Jeff's show the following December with the Tea-Time Trio. 'Harm' appeared in his third Jeff Grainger session, broadcast in May this year.

http://www.revporl.com/

Download your FREE two volumes of 'Five Years' here

Confirmed for Five Years Volume Two

2011-05-28T02:35:00.000-07:00

More legendary artists are confirmed for Volume Two of our Five Years compilation, which you can get from tonight.

Former Hefner frontman Darren Hayman has contributed an exclusive recording of a track written by songwriter Valentine Leys, and we've got a brand new track from Martin Carr, ex-Boo Radleys. And Beatnik Filmstars and Magoo both contribute exclusive tracks recorded from Dandelion Radio sessions. All of these tracks are unavailable anywhere else.

All this plus a whole load of new and exclusive tracks from some of Dandelion's favourite artists of the last five years.

Get the two volumes here.

Five Years compilation: Trembling Blue Stars, Decoration and more confirmed for volume one

2011-05-25T06:25:00.000-07:00

Update on the FREE 'Five Years' compilation...

Among the artists appearing on Volume One will be legendary Peel figures Trembling Blue Stars, Decoration, John Donaldson (ex-Calvin Party) with his new JD Meatyard project, The Orch (featuring Mick Conroy, ex-Superqueens) and the amazing Broadcast, in collaboration with German experimentalist Wolfram Wire.

All this plus previously unheard tracks from Extradition Order, The Emergency and the Chasms, music from Dandelion Radio sessions and much more.

All available for FREE download from Unwashed Territories on Wednesday 1 June.

Information on Volume Two soon...

FREE Dandelion Radio fifth birthday compilation coming soon - watch this space

2011-05-14T07:42:00.000-07:00

Dandelion Radio, the only internet radio station inspired by John Peel, celebrates five years on the air in June.

To celebrate this, Unwashed Territories will be releasing a FREE two volume compilation featuring 34 tracks from bands who've been great favourites of Dandelion DJs over the first five years of broadcast. 'Five Years' will only be available from Unwashed Territories and will only remain available for download until 31 July. The compilation includes:

- 10 bands/artists who recorded more than 40 Peel sessions between them
- 11 tracks from Dandelion Radio sessions, the majority of which aren't available anywhere else.
- 10 tracks exclusively donated to this compilation.

To find out more, keep following this blog...

Mark W

The amazing Sugarbrute - in session in my Dandelion Radio show

2011-05-12T06:53:00.000-07:00

I really ought to have written something about this before now. The incredible Sugarbrute appear in session in my June Dandelion Radio show, streaming at various times throughout the month at www.dandelionradio.com, and I can't describe how good they are. No, I mean it. I've tried it and I can't. I've often written in reviews about the difficulty of describing really great music and I've finally found a band whose sounds is so astonishing, I literally have failed in my many attempts to put this into words.

I can tell you they come from Milford Haven. I can tell you that three of their tracks can be heard in the aforementioned show. I can even say that, if you heard the tracks I played by them in some of my winter shows, you'll know something of what to expect, but not quite, because they've got even better. I really hope you'll check them out because everyone in the world should have the chance to hear this band.

And I promise this blog is soon to get much, much more active and frequent, because soon we will have news of an incredible FREE compilation available via Unwashed Territories. Keep your eyes PEELed.

Mark W

My April show on Dandelion Radio

2011-04-04T05:57:00.000-07:00

My April show features a stunning five-track exclusive session from the magnificent Earthling Society and a triple helping of tracks from the Fall tribute album Hex Enduction Ours. We’ve also got new albums by Explosions In The Sky, Bearsuit, Moon Duo, The Psychic Paramount and The Bass Drum Of Death, among others, plus a track from the forthcoming and much anticipated new Battles album. In the corner marked established show favourites you’ll find releases from The Sinatra Test, Julien Auroux & Spidersleg, Vibravoid and Dementio13, plus a track from our recent Unwashed Territories release from Slideshow Freak. And in the always well-populated great-new-discoveries-you-really-can’t-live-without corner are two releases from the amazing Daddy Tank label and tracks from Victorian Hardware, Horrid Red, Cuba Is Japan, Big Block 454, Wet Years and Zoomonk. All streaming as usual at www.dandelionradio.com at varying times throughout April. You’ll find the schedule for the month here: www.dandelionradio.com/schedule.htm. Mark W

Best albums of 2011 so far...

2011-03-31T08:22:00.000-07:00

With a quarter of the year gone. Not including any of my own releases. I know the number one’s a bit predictable.

Let England Shake – PJ Harvey (Island) Get it: practically anywhere

Milk Drops – Zoomonk (Myhand.thanx) Get it

Snowy Psychoplasmics – Dissolved (Daddy Tank) Get it

Ode To A Carrot – Soom T & Disrupt (Jahtari) Get it

Hardcore Will Never Die But You Will – Mogwai (Rock Action) Get it

Guider – Disappears (Kranky) Get it

Sensitive – Trevor Sensitive & The Locals (Self-Released) Get it

Bells & Proclamations – Big Block 454 Get it

Red Barked Tree – Wire (Pink Flag) Get it

Help the Japan earthquake victims and get a great compilation

2011-03-27T05:29:00.001-07:00

One of our favourite labels, Audio Antihero, has put together a fantastic compilation featuring 34 (yes, 34) tracks from a whole bunch of great artists, many of whom I've played in my Dandelion Radio show. Called 'Bob Hope Would', the album includes tracks from this month's session guest Jack Hayter, Darren Hayman, Mersault and Extradition Order and loads more. The fantastic Social Studies, who'll be appearing in my April show, are on there too. Get the album for a minimum donation of £3.99 at http://audioantihero.bandcamp.com/album/audio-antihero-presents-bob-hope-would.

New Hehfu site

2011-03-22T09:48:00.000-07:00

Hehfu has a new website at http://hehfu.blogspot.com which features loads of new songs from our genius of jagged indie pop that you really need to listen to. Remember you can still buy a copy of his Perfection Is Boring album here. I'm currently ending my March Dandelion Radio show with his masterpiece Na Tas Ja so check the schedule here to find out when you can hear it, and indeed the rest of the show (Jack Hayter in session - don't miss it).

UT-004: Religiously Inept - Slideshow Freak

2011-03-21T06:52:00.000-07:00

In all the time I've spent chronicling the musical adventures of Slideshow Freak in my Dandelion Radio show, he's never lost the power to surprise me. So it's no surprise that I'm surprised by Religiously Inept, the great unreleased, 'lost' album that I'm very pleased to be bringing to the world's attention for the first time.

It's the first in a series of Slideshow Freak albums from Unwashed Territories and was made some years ago. Consequently you hear raw and unpolished elements that will be familiar to those who, like me, enjoy his officially released albums. This release also features the guitar stylings of Joe Wood, adding an undiscovered and often unfamiliar dimension to the Slideshow Freak sound.

Overall, though, you get Slideshow Freak doing what Slideshow Freak does best: viewing the world through a broken and distorted perspective, like the cracked bottom of a jam jar doubling as a wasp trap. There's a fractured, blemished element to what on the surface appears a fairly traditional and well-crafted veneer. He shakes up the world in a way that so many musicians have either forgotten about or just never knew how to. This release is a fascinating journey into where some of this came from, with many welcome surprises on the way.

Get your copy for the obscenely low price of £2.99 at http://unwashedterritories.bandcamp.com/releases.

Mark W

Myspace in good taste shocker + other news

2011-02-05T02:04:00.001-08:00

Great to see Hehfu featured in the 'Best of Myspace' podcast this week - you can stream it from here. Also on there are Braids, who I played in my January show on Dandelion Radio.

Our most recent signing Vert:x will be contributing to a great new compilation on the excellent Fruits De Mer label. You can find out more here. Also slated for a future Fruits De Mer release are the excellent Earthling Society, who'll be in session in my Dandelion Radio show in April - watch this space for details of a future release for that session later in the year.

Finally, we've been in discussion with the amazing Slideshow Freak about possibly two releases in the current year. You can hear a track from one of those future releases in my Dandelion Radio show this month, streaming at a different time each day at www.dandelionradio.com

Mark W

Trevor Sensitive & The Locals: In Session + 'Sensitive' album release + future UT release

2011-02-02T03:45:00.000-08:00

Trevor Sensitive & The Locals are Trevor, Aemelia Norton, Justin Brewood, Edmund of Abingdon and Chelsie Greenhow. They write songs rooted in classic indie song structures but which have a quality, seamless authenticity and deadpan humour about them, as you may be aware if you’ve heard me play tracks from their recent ‘I Knew You Didn’t Love Me Anymore When You Changed Your Facebook Status To Single’ release, including the mighty ‘Codeine’, a winter-themed song now right up there alongside The Doors ‘Wintertime Love’ and The Fall’s ‘Winter’ in the sub-category ‘great frost-tinged songs that have bugger all to do with Christmas’.

‘Codeine’ also appears on the band’s debut album, Sensitive, a collection of beautifully crafted tunes with lyrics that articulate the Frankenstein-like predicament of the intellectually aware and, well, sensitive. ‘Oh Gerald!’ anticipates and humorously plays with the inevitable Smiths comparison, including a nod to the classic ‘Keats and Yeats’ line from Cemetry Gates, but any influences manifest themselves in the form of building blocks rather than mere imitation, with tracks like ‘As Free As Air’ happily playing with self-deprecation with a whimsical nod to the human tragedy of knowing too much ever to feel particularly free. These are no mere copyists: their treading of such ground leads them into fertile pastures few have ploughed, and possibly none with such dexterity.

A version of another self-deprecating nod in the direction of literary pretence ,‘I’ve Read Finnegan’s Wake’ appears in the session in my Dandelion Radio show, streaming at a different time each day throughout February at www.dandelionradio.com. The other three tracks in the session are unreleased. One, ‘The Bag On My Back’, comes as close as ‘Codeine’ to getting to the heart of this band’s spirit, while there are magnificent cover versions of ELO’s ‘10538 Overture’ and The Golden Dawn’s ‘George Hamilton Is Dead’. At some point in the future, I’m pleased so say we’ll be putting out the two original tracks from the session as a single via Unwashed Territories.

In the meantime, visit their blog at http://sensitivemusic.co.uk/blog and grab yourself a copy of ‘Sensitive’ at http://trevorsensitiveandthelocals.bandcamp.com. Check out their two recent singles while you’re there and marvel along with me at the wonderful things this band might spread across the canvas of the coming years.

UT-003 transmissions u.t. (Dandelion Radio Session) - Vert:x

2011-01-28T03:11:00.000-08:00

Unwashed Territories proudly present the krautrock/spacerock-inspired churning epics of the amazing Vert:x. 'transmissions u.t.' gives an official release to the four mindblowing tracks they recorded exclusively for my Dandelion Radio show in November. In a year of great sessions for the show, this was one of the best. Neil Whitehead and Keith Hill make seductive, multi-textured landscapes of sound that stun the senses into submission.

Featuring over half an hour of Vert:x at their best, 'transmissions u.t.' can be got here for a mere £1.99 and there's the added bonus of a free track, Acidic Clone, originally released on their magnificent 'a.f.m.o.m.a.h.e.' CD.

Get amongst it.

It's all happening very quickly. Pindar's Apes confirmed for release on Unwashed Territories

2011-01-22T03:44:00.000-08:00

I'm very pleased to announce that we've completed negotiations with the amazing Pindar's Apes to release their new album on Unwashed Territories some time in spring. Information on the release date when we have it. If you've not yet acquainted yourself with this great band, they're from Norwich, which is always a good start, and you can hear their 'Elvis In Shrouds' track in my February show on Dandelion Radio, streaming as usual from 1 February at http://www.dandelionradio.com/.

We're just having the artwork finalised for the Vert:x release, and we're looking to have that available on 1 February.

I also keep forgetting to mention that, if you want a taster of the Hehfu and Hogarths releases, we do have a couple of tracks available for free download from here and here.

Cheers.

Vert:x confirmed as next release on Unwashed Territories

2011-01-17T12:58:00.000-08:00

I'm pleased to confirm that the third Unwashed Territories released will be an EP of the Dandelion Radio session recorded by Vert:x and broadcast in my November show. While you wait for that, do yourself a favour and hear more from Vert:x here. The band also have a track coming out on a forthcoming Fruits De Mer compilation. Incidentally, there are three tracks from a 'not available for sale' Fruits De Mere compilation in my January Dandelion show.

Just a reminder of other releases available at Unwashed Territories, digital copies of which you can get here:

UT-001 Beggars Belief - The Hogarths
UT-002 Perfection Is Boring - Hehfu

UT-002 Hehfu - Perfection Is Boring

2011-01-10T11:14:00.000-08:00

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. In any decently ordered universe songs by Hehfu would be number one in every nation and on every planet and everyone would be a whole lot happier for it.

While there are many bands and artists whose music I love very much (and more appearing all the time – keep ‘em coming), none has the melodic sense, the effortless delivery or the sheer timelessness to lodge into my head as I drift off to sleep in quite the way the music of Hehfu does. And there would be nothing amiss should I wake in the morning to hear the milkman merrily whistling the same tune to bring in the day (except I don’t have a milkman).

There is the power in all Hehfu songs to reach well beyond the likes of me and, frankly, please whole masses of people. And much as I love all the other stuff I listen to, I’m realistic enough to admit that there is very little of it that has this kind of potential (the kind that draws in milkmen, that is, although some of it may appeal to Pat Mustard).

This album brings together Hehfu’s three albums so far. They haven’t had the attention they deserve. I named him number one in my Listen To Me top ten on Dandelion Radio last year, ahead of the likes of Th’ Parish, The Volcanic Ash Cloud and Vert:x, which is saying a lot.

You can get a copy of ‘Perfection Is Boring’ for just £2.99 from http://unwashedterritories.bandcamp.com/releases - 14 beautifully crafted, edgy pop gems for less than the average price of a pint.

I also feature three exclusive tracks from Hehfu in session in my January show (streaming at various times throughout the month at www.dandelionradio.com). Find out more about Hehfu at www.myspace.com/hehfu.

UT-001 The Hogarths - Beggars Belief

2011-01-08T05:28:00.000-08:00

Availability:

Limited edition CD £6.99 plus £1 P&P in the UK only. You can pay by paypal: let me have your address via mark.whitby2@ntlworld.com.

Digital release for £3.99 via http://unwashedterritories.bandcamp.com/releases.

The first release on the new Unwashed Territories label is Beggars Belief by The Hogarths. It's the kind of record that makes you want to start a record label.

It’s the mixing of styles, the variety of instrumentation, deftness of touch and the refusal to view any musical territory as uninhabitable, that sets the album apart. ‘I May Kill You’, for example, utilises a Duane Eddy guitar line to minimal but brilliant effect. The Eddy effect is warped and disjointed into something misshapen and sublime in the supremely cluttered swarm of ‘Pink’ ‘Yellow Bellied Pondweller’ is a slow-burning swampy crawl with an almost Gene Clark-like propensity to yield sound features that probably aren’t actually there. Such passages of instrumentation, textures and references fall away and recur throughout.

There aren’t too many comparisons to make with Crocodiles here, but regular listeners of my show will know that their albums have a way of sounding great to me at the start and then somehow sounding even greater later on. So it is here. The brooding ‘Whisky Queen Mary’, which I play in my January Dandelion Radio show, cranks up the intensity, and is followed by the lilting ‘Pigeon Pollock Stains’, its references to the interface between the made and the discovered – with the latter playing no less a part in the creative process – a template for the album as a whole, its play with the Socratic concepts of the art and the knack redolent throughout this amazing collection, just as the world-weary tenor growl of Jack rubs up against the liquid smoothness of Olga Hogarth’s voice.

While it’s possible these names may be pseudonyms, the unity of sound that blends so many barely compatible musical features is something best achieved by two people playing everything, including their obsessions, untainted by other musical input. While the bastardisation of a work via the influence of, say, a bass player and drummer who won’t do what their told, is often no bad thing, ‘Beggars Belief’ has an exquisite value that is so neatly executed that you feel even the smallest of musical additions might queer the mix to detrimental effect. There aren’t many albums of which this could be said, and this is one of the few to warrant such reverence thus far into the current century.

Peel Legends on Dandelion Radio: Caroline Martin

2009-10-18T05:13:00.001-07:00

Peel Legends: Caroline Martin

Have written now about most of the Peel legends contributing exclusive tracks to my October two-part specials on Dandelion Radio, I find myself wondering why I’ve not written anything about the track Caroline Martin submitted. Then I sat down to write this, and I realised why. Because Caroline’s one of those artists whose touch is so light, whose appeal is so subtle and whose songs creep up on you in the night like an experience as perfect as a dream, but with the power of a nightmare. The phrase ‘indescribable beauty’ in this context just wouldn’t do, because such a trite description doesn’t get anywhere near the force in Caroline’s music.

Caroline recorded three Peel sessions between the years of 1999 and 2003. Her track ‘The Singer’ appeared in that first session and later appeared on record and in the final Peel festive fifty of 2004 at number three, thus holding the distinction of being the ‘oldest’ track to appear in one of the yearly festive fifties (as opposed, of course to the ‘all time’ ones).

Perhaps this fact speaks volumes of the timelessness of Caroline Martin’s songs. In any just world, her music would be spoken of in the same hushed tones currently reserved for Nick Drake. It’s only to be hoped that Caroline’s true contribution is recognised in a more timely manner than was Nick’s.

I know Caroline was making a CD of her Peel sessions available at gigs. I don’t know whether this is still the case, but there are many reasons, anyway, for going to see her live. She plays two Bristol gigs before jetting off to Germany for a full tour in December. If you’re anywhere in the vicinity I’d advise you to take the opportunity to see her now or regret missing out later (dates below)

And of course, you’ll want to hear her exclusive track in part two of my Dandelion Peel legends special, which will continue to stream at various times throughout the month at www.dandelionradio.com. For more information on this remarkable artist, go to www.carolinemartin.net and www.myspace.com/carolinemartinsmalldog.

Bristol gigs:

7 November – Island Records Night, The Folkhouse, Bristol
11 December – Warm-up gig, The Folkhouse, Bristol

Germany tour:

Starts at Wildehausen on 14 December. Check Caroline’s myspace for dates and venues.

Mark W

Peel Legends on Dandelion Radio: Solex

2009-10-10T03:35:00.000-07:00

Peel Legends: Solex

Solex – A French carburettor manufacturer
Solex – A California-based manufacturer of construction equipment
Solex – An Australian electronics supplier

If you have more time on your hands than you really should, you can quite easily find dozens of things named Solex. But what I find most reassuring is that, typing the word into Google, the top link reads: Official site with information on Elisabeth Esselink, pop artist.

This is a rare example of the world getting its priorities right.

In Elisabeth Esselink’s case, I don’t even mind the rather suspect term ‘pop artist’ because it fits her Solex project rather well. I’ve found myself putting on Solex CDs in those awkward moments when you really can’t find anything else that fits your mood. Her music is something to which normal rules don’t apply. The cut and paste she applies to sound collages doesn’t work the same way as when other people do roughly the same thing. A Solex rhythm may take from other rhythmic sources, but sounds unlike anything else.

‘Quick Step & Hard Bop’ is my favourite Solex album. This is predictable in the sense that it is the only album to yield festive fifty entries, two in fact. But it also showcases Solex’s unique appeal in a way no other collection quite does. Despite this, if I were to award stars or ratings to Solex’s work (something which I never do, so I’m not really sure why I’m even writing this, except that it makes the point, which is…) I couldn’t actually bring myself to award any of her other albums any less than this one.

This may seem bizarre, even paradoxical. To which I would say, welcome to the world of Solex. It’s a great place to be. So good, I spend a few weeks here every year and, despite the unpredictable nature of what is here, whenever I return I always get the same feelings from it. Solex is emotionally reassuring, despite being jarring and extreme. Its experience is never intense, and at its heart is a playfulness that is rarely a feature of truly great music. The rules aren’t so much different here, as absent.

Solex recorded four Peel sessions between 1998 and 2002. Now, in memory of John Peel on the fifth anniversary of his passing, she has contributed to part one of my Dandelion Radio show an exclusive live track (‘Reve’) which is characteristically Solex-like in the sense that it is different from any other Solex recording I’ve heard. Solex is like a story that keeps getting added to but is nevertheless the same, well-loved story with every additional page. It’s great that my Dandelion show can now add a very short page to that story.

Hear this exclusive Solex track on my show at www.dandelionradio.com. It’s in part one of a two-part Peel Legends special that also includes exclusive sessions from Calvin Party and Trembling Blue Stars.

And find out more about Solex at www.solex.net. You can safely ignore all the sites dealing with construction equipment, internet plug-ins, electronics and carburettors. Elisabeth Esselink’s Solex is a necessary part of life; these are not.

Mark W

Peel Legends on Dandelion Radio this month: Calvin Party

2009-10-07T05:18:00.000-07:00

Peel Legends: Calvin Party

Arguably no band embodies the spirit of John Peel more than Calvin Party. That’s a bold statement that I’m conscious requires some explanation. The spirit I speak of, after all, is difficult to pin down. Despite over the years undergoing some tinkering and updating, there remained a central ideal to John Peel that’s probably impossible to explicate. Few bands or artists over that period remained under its umbrella, most drifted by fleetingly but memorably. I suppose you’d name Beefheart, The Fall, David Gedge, Half Man Half Biscuit and one or two others that remained somehow central to the ever-mutating Peel universe.

But in the end, if there’s a band that springs to mind when I think of John Peel more than any of these artists, it’s Calvin Party.

This is odd, in a way, because, unlike the others mentioned above, they aren’t a band I found out about through Peel. In their case it was a chance discovery via a guy named Damian Liptrot, who was a vital source of information about new bands based in the north-west of England to me when I ran a humble but moderately successful band night in that vicinity in the late eighties. Damian managed an extremely good Wigan-based band called Volunteers who I featured regularly at the time (and who released a fine EP on Village Records) and his word was so good that any band he recommended were always worth putting on, and anticipated with some excitement by me. I recall Leigh’s Those Naughty Corinthians with particular affection, polarising opinion of regulars to such a pleasing extent, and Eskimos & Egypt, on the cusp of a neo-gothic/proto-acid transformation at the time, really pissed the pub manager off and played a set that led to a middle-aged guy yomping around the stage in yellow y-fronts in their wake. But then, he did that quite often.

But it was a band called The Levellers for whom I offer most gratitude to Damian. As became the way of these things, he told me about them and I didn’t ask for a demo or anything – Damian’s word was enough. So when I put them on and saw them dragging in what can only be described as a big fuck off drum that filled about half the back room of my small venue, inevitably my curiosity was excited and I detected a band whose promise exceeded even my Damian-instigated expectations.

This curiosity was further titillated when one John Donaldson, their evident leader, got up for the first track and wailed an astonishing version of ‘Last Train To Clarksville’ over the thumping beat generated by the aforementioned instrument. Those who were at the gig still talk, some twenty-odd years later, of how memorable the experience was.

Time passed. The Levellers became Levellers 5. I saw them again a few times, including a great, confrontational performance at Liverpool’s Planet X. It was then I began to hear John Peel had picked up on them, an emblematic rubber-stamp for a band I had long thought of as among the most interesting in the country.

They recorded three Peel sessions as Levellers 5 between 1990 and 1992, then morphed into Calvin Party and recorded four more between 1994 and 1997. It was, to me anyway, fitting that this most Peel of all bands put out a final Peel session in September 2004, in the month before John’s death.

During this period, Calvin Party troubled the Festive Fifty scorers only twice, with ‘Lies, Lies and Government’ making the list in 1996, and ‘Northern Town’ getting into the Da Bank-presented chart of 2004, again fittingly. Curiously, they’ve not appeared in one of our Dandelion festive fifties either, despite their album ‘Godard’s Girlfriend’ receiving considerably airplay from us last year.

I’m conscious I still haven’t justified the statement I made earlier that they embody the spirit of Peel more than any other. Perhaps it can’t be justified. Or perhaps it’s one of those things, like alien visitors according to The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, that you can only grasp out of the corner of your eye when not looking for it, and which is outside the comprehension of anyone who hasn’t experienced it.

I hope this is not the case, because everyone needs to hear Calvin Party and, if you’ve not done so yet, you must investigate their extraordinary back catalogue. They are by turns fascinatingly different and jarringly tuneful; like a comet, they make their own way through the galaxy occasionally, and memorably, coming into the sphere of other worlds which, when alert, behold them with wonder. They are a fucking great band.

Perhaps that’s it.

You can find out more about Calvin Party at www.calvinparty.com and www.myspace.com/calvinparty. And you can hear their Peel Legends session, streaming throughout the month on Dandelion Radio at www.dandelionradio.com: three tracks are in part one of my October show, and there’s a further exclusive track in Rocker’s show. Two of the tracks (Whimsy and Come Bleed) are re-workings of tracks that appeared in that final Peel session of 2004.