Monthly Archives: December 2009

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Blimpy’s Top Ten Indie Totty

Due to my inbox being flooded with requests for this, I feel I must oblige. So, in no particular order, here’s my top ten indie hotties:

Annie Hardy, the one woman potty-mouth shoegazeathon that is Giant Drag.

Obscure indie folkstress Rozi Plain.

Sophie Ellis Bextor was in an indie band before conquering the pop charts. I obviously stopped liking her once she became successful. I put most of her appeal down to the fact that I fancied her mum on Blue Peter when I was about 6.
One half of the Raveonettes; Sharin Foo!

Polly Harvey, of course!

Meg White, primal drummer extraordinaire from The White Stripes

Muse of the Noughties, the exceptionally talented Laura Marling.

Um, Elastica generally speaking…

Debbie Harry from Blondie invented the whole indie chick thing in the first place.

And let us not forget Zia McCabe from the Dandy Warhols!
So, who have I missed?

(And a happy 2010 to all!!)
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Let’s talk about cute boys!!

Calling on DebbyM, Treefrogdemon, AliMunday, Carole, Bethnoir, TracyK, Cauliflower, Frogprincess, Mnemonic, and any other female looking in…

* Very very sorry. Didn’t mean to be exclusive, of course fellows may have a say, too. *

Let’s talk about boys that are hot hot hot. No, wait, that look good in cocktail dresses…no no that’s not it. Let’s talk about boys that play guitar well. Yeah, that’s what I mean.

Okay, so he’s not playing a guitar, and I don’t think he’s hot, but I love this video. There is something beautiful going on. Must be the tail…

Half-naked fellows, please!

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Head To Head: Chicks Who Shred – ROUND TWO!

VS:

The winner from last round, Marnie Stern, takes on the grunge betty riff-mongers that make up Veruca Salt with their 1995 classic “Seether”. Boy, I was a huge fan back when I was 17, I wonder why…..

Again, Stern shreds from the word go, whereas the Salt save the big solo for a change amongst some monster riffage. Ow!!
Your winner please? And suggestions for who they can face in the next round?
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Album of the … what the heck day is it anyway? Doesn’t matter, it’s the blues Jim, but not as we know it.

After 100 years of blues recording, you wouldn’t think there was much new worth doing. I’m a lifelong blues fan, and I’ll defend the art form until my death ….. but its not a genre of innovation or current discourse. By and large there’s not been a pressing need to buy blues records beyond the chestnuts rereleased or recorded after the 60′s and 70′s blues revival.

Except R.L. Burnside, a contemporary of Mississippi John Hurt, Fred McDowell, Skip James and Son House. Like his Mississippi brethren, he was largely unknown until old age. But unlike them, he chose not to live only in the past.

In 1998 he released Come On In, an experimental mix of acoustic blues with electronica production easily filed with the other curious artistic breakthroughs (Buffalo Girls) you never listen to.

But Come On In led to Wish I Was In Heaven Sitting Down, which got it absofuckinglutely spot on. It’s one of the best blues albums ever and proof that blues need not be relegated to museums and documentaries. The tape loops, scratching and electronic tricks are still there, but the overall balance is more organic.

It’s a bleak album, filled with songs of death and betrayal. Yet it is strangely uplifting, perhaps because it is (or should be) a resurrection. The blues had a baby all right, and this is what it sounds like.

Hopefully someone with better wordishness than me/I will have a go now in the comments. I just think it is one of those rare fully realized artistic visions that any collection is incomplete without. I’ll link to Hard Time Killin’ Floor Blues – an autobiographical take on Skip James’ Killing Floor Blues – Got Messed Up and Miss Maybelle to give you an idea.
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After careful consideration..

My album of the decade: A Camp (the eponymous debut) 2001

Not a note out of place, not a wasted moment. Perfect from end to end and in exactly the order presented. Many people, it seems, love their album from this year (‘Colonia’ – and it is truly great..perhaps in another ten years, i’ll be writing about it) but I prefer the first album. Like The Sunday’s Reading, Writing and Arithmetic (apparently also a big influence on A Camp’s Nina Persson) this an album which never stops thrilling me with its charm. You know when you’re on to a real winner when this keeps happening.

Got one?

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Tim Hart 1948-2009

Tim Hart of Steeleye Span has died of lung cancer aged 61. That’s him on the left in front, and this photo, from the Grauniad website, has the bottom half cropped so you can’t see the rollup in his hand. From the obituary: “Their [Steeleye's] novelty Christmas release, Gaudete, led to a collaboration with Mike Batt, the creator of the Wombles pop act, who produced their eighth album, All Around My Hat (1975): the title track reached No 5 in the UK singles charts. Further hits eluded the band…”

Well, I like All Around My Hat a lot, but as many people don’t, I thought we could listen to Gaudete instead. ‘Tis the season, and all that. I expect it’s the being in Latin that’s the novelty.

Gaudete – Steeleye Span

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If you can’t be good, be careful.

I’m more than a little obsessed with this track at the moment. I’ve only ever been able to find 4 tracks by Sir Lord Comic, and this is one I don’t have. Catcher (I think it was) once asked about songs we’d like to use in a movie soundtrack, and this is absolutely one, for me.

Anyway…When I first met David he lived in an older apartment building, with an unfinished attic. We used to escape from roommates up there, there was an old couch, not much else. But somebody had scrawled in large letters across the wall “Trust in god, but take some care yourself.” Always stuck with me, somehow. Anyway. With the New Year coming up, have you ever heard a strange or surprising piece of advice, or received it from an unusual source? Did you heed it?

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‘Twas the night before Christmas…

…and all through the house, not a creature was stirring except for Mrs Frod who was beginning to throw out some pretty hefty curses during the early stages of labour.
It feels like a long time since I introduced you all to Squiggle (as he was known) and now, at last, I would like you all to meet Barnaby William Denham Sandford:

(Sideburns model’s own)
He pitched up at just after 6 pm on Christmas Eve, by rather necessary C-Section (he was, after all, 10lb 6oz…) and is now home, happy and fully awesome. It made it all a rather odd festive season, but it has been the best one ever. Mini Frod is unbelievably happy with him and has been a model big sister. So far.
So as a result I’ve rather missed out on most of the end of year stuff, and the mighty Festive ‘Spill (New Year’s resolution: be better at ‘Spilling) but it has all meant that, by a country mile, my song of the year is this:

10 Keeping Warm.mp3″>

Happy Christmas to you all and wishing you a less tired New Year than mine looks like being!
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H2H – Forever lost Vs. I believe in the thing called love

Two well-known suburban floor-fillers in a proper face off for the end-of-decade New Year.

I’m actually grateful that songs like this exist, if only because Simon Cowell was not allowed to get his expensively manicured hands on either of them. They both contain precious elements of the (subtle-but-defining) nostalgia, humour, mishape and glory of real people – things which the X Factor would like to believe it trades in, but actually ends up cr-ping all over.

Remember though, friends, the crap-o-meter is only for fun and I sincerely mean that, I really do

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Avoiding a thread-jack – Steenbeck asked for a new topic!


As ejay said the other day; what Steenbeck wants, Steenbeck gets. A random word for a new topic seeing as the mothership seems to be undergoing her annual service. This photo of a certain “Padre Jony” brought the word “Vocation” to mind. So there it is folks. Songs about vocations. Shane’s definition (see comments on Magicman’s post below) will take some beating!

Collabo playlist available.

Update: Tin has opened a DB folder for the topic. Game on!

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They’ve Only Gone And Closed Entries To Fresh Starts !


Shurely Shome Mishtake ?? We were promised a nice lazy ramble through to New Year’s Eve, no rush, no names, no packdrill. No mandrill I wouldn’t have thought. But no, Boxing Day after a weedy six hours of sleep (you’re lucky – Ed) I rise and shine, take the beef from the fridge, sign on to the RR blog with an absolute CRACKER of a fresh start song, not only about fresh starts generally but introducing a band who were IN THEMSELVES a fresh start as I have already attempted to explain here regarding their first single “Virginia Plain.” The first track off the eponymous first album is right on the money : an announcement of starting again.

“Next time is the best time we all know”

I talk, of course, of the great Roxy Music and their opening gambit : “Re-make Re-model”

They certainly remade and remodelled rock music into a sci-fi glam nightclub lounge art-rock act, and for that I and millions of others will be eternally grateful.

Will repost resquiggle if the blog goes live again.

Now where’s that joint of beef…


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It’s A White Christmas !!!!!


I thought I’d better respond more fully to you all, as Christmas arrives. I was going to post a thread called “HE’S BEEN, HE’S BEEN!!” as I’ve just taken the picture of the presents under the tree, but having uploaded the pics from my camera, they’re rubbish, so I’ll have to go and re-take them before I go to bed. Instead, here’s one of Darcey and her mates playing out on Christmas Eve, for no other good reason than (i) I was reminded of an old photo of the then-toddler Darcey by barbryn’s post; and (ii) I’m quite pleased with the ones I took today. Jess, by the way, was just out of shot, building a snowman bigger than she is! Bless!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE.

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log on… the new fire place.. sizzle.


I would put some new music for Christmas on…

.. but the speed at the new house is slower than a snail on a euro tunnel train………………………

Merry Pranksterish Fun Filled Wrapping stuffing and nonsense to all of you lovely people… last years Spill Santa gets repeated.. just like real tele.

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Two cans of Tinnie and a packet of Williamsbach

Fans of Two Pints of Lager will recognize this pub in Runcorn where Tin and Williamsbach met before Christmas during the Swiss Mister’s visit home. It was a quick visit shoehorned into the Christmas schedule at the last minute, but Willie says he’s looking forward to meeting more RRers when he comes Bach next time.