brum notes magazine july 2012

1July 2012

ALSO: Win three-day passes for Off The Cuff 2012 / Birmingham Pride in pictures / Editors return to Birmingham / How Jamaica shaped the sound of Birmingham

AND:Future of the LeftBoat to RowGoodnight Lenin Jim Lockey & The Solemn SunSharon Van Etten and more

PLUS:FoodStyleWhat’s on in July

D IV I N G I NTO S UMMER WITH

SWIM DEEP

www.brumnotes.com free

July 2012

music and lifestyle for the west midlands

2 Brum Notes Magazine

16-18 Horsefair, Bristol St, Birmingham, B1 1DBDoors 7.00pm unless stated • Venue box office opening hours: Mon-Fri 12pm-4pm, Sat 11am-4pm • No booking fee on cash transactionsticketweb.co.uk • seetickets.com • gigantic.com • ticketmaster.co.uk

Mon 9th July • £13.50 advBrian Jonestown Massacre+ Cate Le Bon

Tues 17th July • £27.50 advLady Antebellum+ Kacey Musgraves

Thurs 16th Aug • £3/£4/£5 adv10.30pm - 3.30am • over 18s only

Propaganda A Level Results Pirate Party

Sat 8th Sept • £10 advThe Rollin’ Clones50th Anniversary Meals on Wheels Tour

Sat 15th Sept 6pm

The Cult+ The Mission + Killing Joke

Mon 17th Sept • £12 advFu Manchu Performing ‘The Action Is Go’

Tues 18th Sept • £13 advDying Fetus+ Job For A Cowboy + Revocation + Cerebral Bore

Thurs 20th Sept • £11 advThe Maine

Fri 21st Sept 6pm - 10pm

Halestorm

Sat 22nd Sept • £22.50 advNik Kershaw and his band

Weds 26th Sept • £11.50 adv6.30pm - 10pm

Aiden Grimshaw

Sat 29th Sept • £16 advMaverick Sabre

Sat 29th Sept • £21.50 advTeedra Moses

Fri 5th Oct • £10 adv6pm - 10pm

The Skints

Tues 9th Oct • £10 advLower Than Atlantis + The Dangerous Summer + Don Broco + Transit

Thurs 11th Oct • £17.50 advHot Chip

Fri 12th Oct • £12 adv6pm - 10pm

Ren Harvieu

Sat 13th Oct • £18 adv / £50 VIPHugh Cornwell

Mon 15th Oct • £23.50 advBloc Party

Mon 15th Oct • £14 advImpericon Never Say Die! Tour 2012

Thurs 18th Oct • £17.50 advNewton Faulkner

Sat 20th Oct • £18.50 advGaslight Anthem

Sun 21st Oct • £12.50 adv7.30pm - 11pm

Reverend And The Makers

Mon 22nd Oct • £15 advLabrinth

Tues 23rd Oct • £10 advLittle Comets

Weds 24th Oct • £18.50 adv6pm - 10pm

Bowling For Soup + The Dollyrots + Patent Pending

Fri 26th Oct • £17.50 adv6pm - 10pm

The Enemy

Fri 26th Oct • £6 advBrum Notes presents...Dakota Beats + Paper Shapes + Dive Exit + The One Twos

Mon 29th Oct • £20 advHeaven 17 The Luxury Gap Tour

Sat 3rd Nov • £13.50 advTwin Atlantic

Tues 6th Nov • £18.50 advNightwish

Tues 6th Nov • £10 advPulled Apart By Horses

Sat 17th Nov Sun 18th Nov • £15 advRizzle Kicks

Weds 21st Nov • £18.50 adv6pm - 10pm

Europe

Fri 23rd Nov • £22.50 adv6pm - 10pm

Levellers

Sat 24th Nov Ben Howard + Willy Mason

Mon 3rd Dec • £27.50 advBen Folds Five

Tues 4th Dec • £12.50 adv / £25 VIP Electric Six 10th Anniversary Tour - performing ‘Fire’ in its entirety

Sun 9th Dec • £24 advOrbital

Tues 11th Dec • £17.50 advThe Hives

Tues 11th Dec • £12 advThe Rasmus

Check out our mobile app

Thurs 13th Dec • £18 advThe Damned

Fri 14th Dec • £22.50 advAli Campbell The Legendary Voice of UB40

Sat 22nd Dec • £20 advSleigh The UK 2012:The Wonder StuffPop Will Eat ItselfJesus Jones

Sat 8th July • £6 advRams Pocket Radio+ Shadow City + The Fading Lights

Mon 9th July • £9 advBaroness

Mon 16th July • £7 advNite Jewel

Weds 18th July • £7 advOrange

Sun 22nd July • £7 advShadows Chasing Ghosts+ Tantrum To Blind

Mon 23rd July • £7 advFei Comodo + Paige + I Divide

Tues 24th July • £6 advThat Sunday Feeling+ Amy Can Flyy + Falling Faster

Weds 25th July • £7.50 advFrankie Rose

Sat 28th July • £5 advUnderground Heroes + The Angry Bombs+ Generic Eric + Not By Design

Fri 10th Aug • £6 adv6pm - 10pm

Room 94 + Disclosure + The Famous Class + Burn So BrightRescheduled show • original tickets valid

Sat 18th Aug • £5 advBrum Notes in association with Manifest Live presentJaws + The Tone Thieves + Wide Eyed + These Kings + Caves

Sat 1st Sept • £5 advCity Lightz + Jimmy Davis + Mezzotonic + Luke Truth + Back To Back Covert+ Arkwright ft. Bugzy

Mon 3rd Sept • £10 advPearl Jem Europe’s Number 1 Tribute to Pearl Jam

Sat 9th Sept • £7 advTom Hingley (The Beast Inside UK Tour)Performing the Inspiral Carpets 2nd Album ‘The Beast Inside’ and reading excerpts from his book ‘Carpet Burns’+ Rory Mckee + The Brightsparks

Mon 10th Sept • £6 advSue Denim

Fri 14th Sept • £6 adv6pm - 10pm

StakeOut

Fri 21st Sept • £8 adv6pm - 10pm

Malefice+ Silent Screams + Splintertone

Sun 23rd Sept • £10 advAnneke Van Giersbergen

Sun 30th Sept • £8 advTwisted Wheel

Sun 7th Oct • £6 advWe Are Knuckle Dragger, Romans, Antlered ManThe Villains & Vigilantes Tour

Sat 20th Oct • £5 advSnooty Bobs + Sugar Mama + Howling Owls+ Claire Boswell + Jody Capper

Thurs 25th Oct • £12.50 advEvile + Wolf

Fri 26th Oct • £12.50 adv6pm - 10pm

Animals As Leaders+ TesseracT

3July 2012

CONTENTS

Regulars

News 4-5

Live Reviews 22-24

Style 26-27

Food & Drink 28

What’s On 29-31

Music and Features

How Jamaica shaped music in Birmingham 6-7

Sunrise Over Europe/Sharon Van Etten 8

Goodnight Lenin 10

Swim Deep 12-13

Birmingham Pride 2012 in pictures 25

OFF THE CUFF FESTIVAL SPECIAL:

Boat To Row 16-17

Jim Lockey & The Solemn Sun 19

Future of the Left 20-21

Brum Notes Magazine Unit 12 The Bond 180-182 Fazeley Street DigbethBirminghamB5 [email protected] 0121 224 7363

Advertising0121 224 7363 [email protected]! 0121 224 7364

EditorChris MoriartyContributorsWords: Lyle Bignon, Joe Whitehouse, David Vincent, Ivy Photiou, Amy Sumner, Daron Billings, Guy Hirst, Jon PritchardPictures: Gobinder Jhitta, Wayne Fox, Jermaine Lloyd, Tish Jarrett, Jane Williams, Jade SukiyaCover Photo: Gobinder JhittaStyle editor: Jade [email protected] Design: Adam Williams, Andy Aitken

ConnectTwitter: @BrumNotesMagFacebook: www.facebook.com/BrumNotesMagazineOnline: www.brumnotes.com

All content © Brum Notes Magazine. Views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Brum Notes Magazine. While all care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of content, Brum Notes Magazine will not be held liable for any errors or losses claimed to have been incurred by any errors. Advertising terms and conditions available on request.

Editors live at the HMV Institute, P24Photo by Gobinder Jhitta


iNTErNaTiONal jazz STarS flOCk TO birmiNgham fOr frEE fESTivalA host of free live music performances will take place across the city this month as part of the 28th Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival. More than 180 concerts will be staged at various venues and outdoor spaces, with the majority being free of charge. Artists and musicians from across the globe will descend on Birmingham for the festival, which runs from July 6 to 15. Among the highlights will be four free performances from the ‘King of Cowboy Punk’ Jason Ringenberg, UB40’s Brian Travers introduces his all-star bluebeat, rock steady, ska and jazz combo The Peaky Blinders as special guests of Musical Youth in Island Delight at The Botanical Gardens, while festival director and former Black Sabbath manager Jim Simpson will reminisce with two pre-gig talks about groundbreaking 1960s venue Henrys Blueshouse. For full line-up details visit www.birminghamjazzfestival.com.

TOyah willCOx TO pErfOrm iNTimaTE ShOw TO lauNCh NEw walk Of famE Toyah Willcox will perform a rare and intimate homecoming show to celebrate her induction as the very first star on the new Kings Heath Walk of Fame. The New Wave icon turned actress, who was born and raised in Kings Heath, will take to the stage at the Hare & Hounds on July 16 for a one-off show with her full band, performing a host of her classic hits which include Neon Womb, It’s a Mystery, Thunder in the Mountains and Brave New World. The Walk of Fame will be unveiled on bustling York Road to celebrate the area’s musical and comedy heritage. The road was once home to the Ritz Ballroom on the site of what is now Cash Converters, with the renowned venue having played host to the likes of The Beatles and Pink Floyd. The Hare & Hounds, on the corner of York Road and High Street, still attracts international

acts to the area and also helped launch the careers of UB40 and comic Frank Skinner, among others. Live music is also alive and well at other venues along York Road, including the Kitchen Garden Cafe and cafe bar Cherry Reds. The ongoing project has already included the unveiling of a Civic Society Musical Plate last month to commemorate the former Ritz Ballroom, while a series of performers and musicians with close connections to the area will be hailed in a series of pavement plaques making up the Walk of Fame. A specially commissioned floral display featuring a guitar and a microphone is also planned, while organisers are also hoping to launch an audio visual trail and a music festival in the future. Tickets to see Toyah live at the Hare & Hounds on July 16 to celebrate her induction into the Walk of Fame are £15 from www.theticketsellers.co.uk.

iN briEfBirmingham’s own pop-up restaurant ‘with a difference’ returns this month with a new one-off event in a secret location. Secret Dining Society will host ‘Pop’ on July 15, with the menu, destination and plan all kept under wraps until the day.Diners will be asked to meet at The Old Crown in Digbeth High Street at 3pm before being whisked away for the mystery culinary adventure to begin. Spaces are limited and must be booked in advance with early bird tickets £20 and standard tickets £25. The next planned Secret Dining Society event after this month is SDS Fire on August 18. Visit www.000-00000.com for more information and booking details.

A new bar and restaurant has been launched in Birmingham city centre by the former owners of the Sunflower Lounge.

Temple Street Social is now open from 10am to 1am every day in Temple Street, serving lunch, brunch, afternoon tea and dinner and specialising in modern takes on British classics, plus an extensive wine list, cocktails, real ale and quality lagers. Resident DJs at weekends play Northern Soul, funk and indie. Temple Street Social has been opened by Paul and Laura Cook who launched popular bar The Sunflower Lounge nearly a decade ago before selling it last December.

Chilli-EaTiNg CONTEST TO SpiCE ThiNgS up aT brum fOOd fESTivalFood lovers will be able to turn up the heat when Birmingham Chilli Festival returns to the city this month. A fiery chilli-eating competition will be among the highlights of the celebration of spice taking place on July 13 and 14 at Brindleyplace. A range of stalls will also be offering chilli-related produce and food from across the globe, with plenty available for visitors to sample over the two days, as well as cooking and cocktail demonstrations from the restaurants in Brindleyplace plus entertainment including tango dancing and live music. It forms part of the wider Birmingham Food Fest, which is now in its second year, and takes place across the city from July 13 to 19. The week-long food extravaganza will see a host of food-filled events and restaurant offers taking place throughout the city to showcase Birmingham’s reputation as an emerging hotspot for food and drink. Visit www.birminghamfoodfest.com for details.

5July 2012

NON PROFIT MUSIC REHEARSAL ROOMFLOODGATE STREET MUSIC COMPANY

£5REHEARSALS

£45PER WEEK

LOCKUP

ALSO FREE TO

REFUGEES & ASYLUM SEEKERS

[email protected] 448 0323 | 07535 669 726

9-13 Floodgate St (off Digbeth High St)

A series of free outdoor music perfor-mances will take place throughout the summer at Mac, the leafy arts centre nes-tled in Birmingham’s Cannon Hill Park. Gigs will take place outside every Thursday evening from July 19 and will be curated by the artists themselves with some of the re-gion’s finest musical talent performing along-side acts they have picked. First up will be Mellow Peaches on July 19, with support from Abie’s Miracle Tonic and Gren Bartley, followed by Charlotte Car-penter on July 26 who will be hosting her own tea party with an all-female cast of per-formers including The Cadbury Sisters and Emily Ewing. Mac will also host its first one day music festival on July 21, One Beat Sunday, with performances from the likes of The Carpels, Swim Deep, Poppy & the Jezebels and new-ly announced additions to the line-up Red Method and The Scribers.Thursday night gigs are completely free, with barbecue food available including beer and a burger for £6. Tickets for One Beat Sun-day are just £10 for the whole day and are available from www.macarts.co.uk.

frEE wEEkly gigS lauNCh aT maCJaws, Dakota Beats and Boat to Row will headline the next series of Brum Notes Presents gigs, taking place at the O2 Academy Birmingham over the coming months. We launched the first Brum Notes Presents gig in style with a packed-out headline show from The Lines at the O2 Academy 2 last month, with an exciting line-up of local and national talent set to follow throughout 2012. Next up, lo-fi chillwavers Jaws headline a night co-hosted with Manifest Live and packed with emerging talent at the O2 Academy 3 on August 18. Also performing are The Tone Thieves, Wide Eyed, These Kings and Caves, all for £5 adv. Heading into the autumn, Black County intelli-rockers Dakota Beats (pictured), renowned for their frenetic live shows, head up the bill at the O2 Academy 2 on October 26, topping another great line-up which also includes Paper Shapes, Dive Exit and The One Twos. That will be followed up by a headline appearance from the Midlands’ next emerging folk heroes Boat To Row, appearing at the O2 Academy 2 on November 30 as part of their biggest tour yet. Visit www.o2academybirmingham.co.uk for tickets.

alT-fOlk OuTfiT & guESTS TO TOur SECrET SpOTSYoung Runaways will play a series of free shows at Oxfam shops across Birmingham on July 14, for the OxjamBrum Pop-Up Festival. It will finish with a show at a secret city centre loca-tion. Frontman Matt Pinfield said: “Imagine the magical mystery tour but with more roll neck sweaters and second hand board games.” Visit www.facebook.com/oxjambrum for clues.

NEw SEriES Of brum NOTES prESENTS gigS kiCkS Off NExT mONTh

www.punch-records.co.uk #bass12

JUNIOR MURVIN / SEANI BCHANNEL ONE / TOPCATLADY LESHUUR / BIG JOHNMOQAPI SELASSIE / GAPPYRANKS / VANLEY BURKEGENERAL THEORY OF DUB

FLYER 1 10/5/12 16:28 Page 1

The Tone Thieves | Wide Eyed | These Kings | Caves

Plus special guests:

presents

www.jawsjawsjaws.co.ukfacebook.com/thetonethievesfacebook.com/YDYED

Buy tickets now from:o2academybirmingham.co.uk0844 477 2000 (24hr)

in association with Manifest Live

O2 ACADEMY3 BIRMINGHAMSATURDAY 18 AUGUSTDOORS: 7PM / CURFEW: 11PM / £5 ADV

BN1206 BrumNotes Presents Jaws A6.indd 1

13/06/2012 23:35


In 1949, a young musician by the name of Andy Hamilton had arrived in Britain, bringing the calypso-jazz he had played back home in Jamaica.

The Windrush generation, as the Caribbean immigrants of the late 1940s became known, brought many things with them to this cold, strange and unwelcoming land, as well as a willingness to work and help rebuild the country post-World War II: new language, cuisine, social etiquette, politics and, fundamentally, music.

Those sounds, imported from a small island thousands of miles away, would go on to have a monumental impact on British culture.

As the 1950s gave way to the 1960s, Chris

Blackwell’s Island Records — along with Trojan Records later that decade — started to deliv-er Jamaican music to, not only the expatriate community, but to the masses. Hits from artists like Jimmy Cliff, Bob Marley & The Wailers, John Holt and Desmond Dekker & The Aces made the charts; reggae had crossed the pond and reached the British public.

First and second generation Caribbean musi-cians, mainly located in urban areas like Birming-ham and London, were already producing their own output and in the late 1970s, a movement began to form in the country’s second city.

Despite being released in 1978, a whole three years before the first riots were to take place in north Birmingham, Steel Pulse’s Handsworth

Revolution album — one of the most significant reggae recordings ever produced — was made up of political and social commentary, messages of hope and, eerily, warnings of future conflict. As NME journalist Adrian Thrills wrote: “Steel Pulse have their finger firmly on the mood of a generation.”

Dennis Seaton, lead singer of Musical Youth, recalls: “At one point Birmingham was prob-ably the number one place for reggae music outside Jamaica. We had the biggest selling artists — Pato Banton, The Beat, UB40, Steel Pulse, Apache Indian, Bitty McLean and Musi-cal Youth — who between them have sold in excess of 50 million records.”

“The first gig I ever went to, Musical Youth at

The Hummingbird, was amazing,” recalls Roifield Brown, media consultant and self-confessed reggae enthusiast. “Listening to DJ Dick play Push Push by his group Rockers Hi-Fi circa 1991 at Snobs is probably the time when I thought that reggae-fused house music from Birmingham was going to dominate the UK scene. It never happened but for a delicious moment two genres of music that I love joined and they fused here in this city.”

In recent years, thanks to the success of the Home of Metal project, PRS’ recogni-tion of UB40 with a permanent award at the Hare & Hounds, high-profile reunions of bands like Black Sabbath and Dexys and dedicated work by a number of individuals and organi-sations to recognise the rich musical history

of Birmingham, there has been renewed inter-est in the city’s contribution to popular Brit-ish culture.

For Steve Hughes, who managed Pato Banton and Apache Indian among others, reggae is still the very heartbeat of Birmingham. “The city has long been a springboard or sounding station for a lot of Jamaican artists — even today they send their music here to get dubplates and remixes done. Without doubt, outside of Jamaica and the west coast of USA specifically, I believe that this city has been and will continue to be the best place for reggae.”

“Firstly, reggae produces a source of pride,” explains Robin Valk, the first DJ to play UB40 live on the radio during his days at BRMB. “Second-ly, it is economically significant and thirdly it has a historical place. There is a generational process, starting with Andy Hamilton in the late 1940s, and moving on to the second genera-tion — British kids in Handsworth who took their cues from Bob Marley and some of the original greats — and moving on to today’s very diverse, very integrated scene.”

Fans, devotees, enthusiasts and proud Brum-mies look back with fondness at those formative years — as with heavy metal, bhangra, classi-cal and jazz — which helped to shape the city’s musical profile. Yet, as is the case with all genres of music, younger artists, bands and collectives continue to develop and evolve in the shad-ows of the more documented and celebrated achievements of the past, carving their own way through the music business.

And while the new breed repping Birmingham on the national scene – such as electro-dance-hall grand master Serocee, grime MC C4 and older brother producer Preditah, Lady Leshurr (described by an Independent journalist as ‘the female Busta Rhymes’), spoken word artist and vocalist Deci4Life and hot MC talent RTKAL — all take inspiration from Jamaican music in one way or another, the progression and the future of their music is just as crucial.

Musician and promoter Robin Giorno, member of the city’s industrious Friendly Fire reggae and dancehall collective, points out that although complacency, fragmentation, lack of support

from local authorities and funding issues have led to tensions within the scene, Birmingham has a strong hold on the international New Roots scene, with key figures such as Murray Man, Jamo, Ras Tweed and King Earthquake taking reggae forward in to the 21st century while paying tribute to the pioneers of yesteryear.

“Connection is evident,” he says. “The main connection being the sound system culture as imported by the Jamaican community that led the way for these new styles. The sound system is the rock of ‘bass culture’ as people call it.”

Jamaica is the theme of BASS Festival 2012, the UK’s biggest month-long celebration of black music and arts. This year it pays tribute to the pioneering champions of Jamaican culture in Birmingham and the young blood taking music, art and culture inspired by Jamaica into the 21st century.

BASS Festival 2012 runs until 13 July. Highlights include: A heritage trail of Jamaican sporting

heroes throughout Birmingham from July 4

Blackheart Man will host an evening of music, poetry and social commentary entitled Jamaica to Rastafari at the Library Theatre on July 5

The Rainbow Courtyard hosts a Jamaican-style Swagga Battle pitching lyricists and artists head to head, backed by a live band, on July 6

Club night Bruk Up! hosts a festival special of Jamaican-flavoured broken beat at the Hare & Hounds on July 7

Junior Murvin closes the festival performing groundbreaking reggae album Police and Thieves at the Hare & Hounds on July 13

For details visit punch-records.co.uk/bass-festival

Musical Youth are also live at Birmingham Botanical Gardens on July 8 as part of Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival

Simmer Down International Reggae Festival takes place at Handsworth Park on July 22 from midday to 8pm.

Jamaica’s 50th Cultural Extravaganza Concert takes place at Symphony Hall, Birmingham, on July 25.

Article dedicated to Andy Hamilton MBE (1918 — 2012)

Birmingham will be awash with the sights, sounds and tastes of Jamaica over the coming weeks celebrating, not only the arrival of the Jamaican Olympic track and field team to the city, but also the 50th anniversary of Jamaican Independence. Boasting the largest Jamaican community in the country outside London, the culture of the Caribbean island has become woven into the very fabric of Birmingham, home to some of the world’s most influential reggae artists. Lyle Bignon looks at this unique musical relationship.

“ At one point Birmingham was probably the number one place for reggae music outside Jamaica.”

FROM JAMAICA TO THE WORLD

Andy Hamilton

An iconic photo of early 1980s Handsworth, taken along Soho Road by Vanley Burke David Hinds of Steel Pulse

7July 2012

In 1949, a young musician by the name of Andy Hamilton had arrived in Britain, bringing the calypso-jazz he had played back home in Jamaica.

The Windrush generation, as the Caribbean immigrants of the late 1940s became known, brought many things with them to this cold, strange and unwelcoming land, as well as a willingness to work and help rebuild the country post-World War II: new language, cuisine, social etiquette, politics and, fundamentally, music.

Those sounds, imported from a small island thousands of miles away, would go on to have a monumental impact on British culture.

As the 1950s gave way to the 1960s, Chris

Blackwell’s Island Records — along with Trojan Records later that decade — started to deliv-er Jamaican music to, not only the expatriate community, but to the masses. Hits from artists like Jimmy Cliff, Bob Marley & The Wailers, John Holt and Desmond Dekker & The Aces made the charts; reggae had crossed the pond and reached the British public.

First and second generation Caribbean musi-cians, mainly located in urban areas like Birming-ham and London, were already producing their own output and in the late 1970s, a movement began to form in the country’s second city.

Despite being released in 1978, a whole three years before the first riots were to take place in north Birmingham, Steel Pulse’s Handsworth

Revolution album — one of the most significant reggae recordings ever produced — was made up of political and social commentary, messages of hope and, eerily, warnings of future conflict. As NME journalist Adrian Thrills wrote: “Steel Pulse have their finger firmly on the mood of a generation.”

Dennis Seaton, lead singer of Musical Youth, recalls: “At one point Birmingham was prob-ably the number one place for reggae music outside Jamaica. We had the biggest selling artists — Pato Banton, The Beat, UB40, Steel Pulse, Apache Indian, Bitty McLean and Musi-cal Youth — who between them have sold in excess of 50 million records.”

“The first gig I ever went to, Musical Youth at

The Hummingbird, was amazing,” recalls Roifield Brown, media consultant and self-confessed reggae enthusiast. “Listening to DJ Dick play Push Push by his group Rockers Hi-Fi circa 1991 at Snobs is probably the time when I thought that reggae-fused house music from Birmingham was going to dominate the UK scene. It never happened but for a delicious moment two genres of music that I love joined and they fused here in this city.”

In recent years, thanks to the success of the Home of Metal project, PRS’ recogni-tion of UB40 with a permanent award at the Hare & Hounds, high-profile reunions of bands like Black Sabbath and Dexys and dedicated work by a number of individuals and organi-sations to recognise the rich musical history

of Birmingham, there has been renewed inter-est in the city’s contribution to popular Brit-ish culture.

For Steve Hughes, who managed Pato Banton and Apache Indian among others, reggae is still the very heartbeat of Birmingham. “The city has long been a springboard or sounding station for a lot of Jamaican artists — even today they send their music here to get dubplates and remixes done. Without doubt, outside of Jamaica and the west coast of USA specifically, I believe that this city has been and will continue to be the best place for reggae.”

“Firstly, reggae produces a source of pride,” explains Robin Valk, the first DJ to play UB40 live on the radio during his days at BRMB. “Second-ly, it is economically significant and thirdly it has a historical place. There is a generational process, starting with Andy Hamilton in the late 1940s, and moving on to the second genera-tion — British kids in Handsworth who took their cues from Bob Marley and some of the original greats — and moving on to today’s very diverse, very integrated scene.”

Fans, devotees, enthusiasts and proud Brum-mies look back with fondness at those formative years — as with heavy metal, bhangra, classi-cal and jazz — which helped to shape the city’s musical profile. Yet, as is the case with all genres of music, younger artists, bands and collectives continue to develop and evolve in the shad-ows of the more documented and celebrated achievements of the past, carving their own way through the music business.

And while the new breed repping Birmingham on the national scene – such as electro-dance-hall grand master Serocee, grime MC C4 and older brother producer Preditah, Lady Leshurr (described by an Independent journalist as ‘the female Busta Rhymes’), spoken word artist and vocalist Deci4Life and hot MC talent RTKAL — all take inspiration from Jamaican music in one way or another, the progression and the future of their music is just as crucial.

Musician and promoter Robin Giorno, member of the city’s industrious Friendly Fire reggae and dancehall collective, points out that although complacency, fragmentation, lack of support

from local authorities and funding issues have led to tensions within the scene, Birmingham has a strong hold on the international New Roots scene, with key figures such as Murray Man, Jamo, Ras Tweed and King Earthquake taking reggae forward in to the 21st century while paying tribute to the pioneers of yesteryear.

“Connection is evident,” he says. “The main connection being the sound system culture as imported by the Jamaican community that led the way for these new styles. The sound system is the rock of ‘bass culture’ as people call it.”

Jamaica is the theme of BASS Festival 2012, the UK’s biggest month-long celebration of black music and arts. This year it pays tribute to the pioneering champions of Jamaican culture in Birmingham and the young blood taking music, art and culture inspired by Jamaica into the 21st century.

BASS Festival 2012 runs until 13 July. Highlights include: A heritage trail of Jamaican sporting

heroes throughout Birmingham from July 4

Blackheart Man will host an evening of music, poetry and social commentary entitled Jamaica to Rastafari at the Library Theatre on July 5

The Rainbow Courtyard hosts a Jamaican-style Swagga Battle pitching lyricists and artists head to head, backed by a live band, on July 6

Club night Bruk Up! hosts a festival special of Jamaican-flavoured broken beat at the Hare & Hounds on July 7

Junior Murvin closes the festival performing groundbreaking reggae album Police and Thieves at the Hare & Hounds on July 13

For details visit punch-records.co.uk/bass-festival

Musical Youth are also live at Birmingham Botanical Gardens on July 8 as part of Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival

Simmer Down International Reggae Festival takes place at Handsworth Park on July 22 from midday to 8pm.

Jamaica’s 50th Cultural Extravaganza Concert takes place at Symphony Hall, Birmingham, on July 25.

Article dedicated to Andy Hamilton MBE (1918 — 2012)

Birmingham will be awash with the sights, sounds and tastes of Jamaica over the coming weeks celebrating, not only the arrival of the Jamaican Olympic track and field team to the city, but also the 50th anniversary of Jamaican Independence. Boasting the largest Jamaican community in the country outside London, the culture of the Caribbean island has become woven into the very fabric of Birmingham, home to some of the world’s most influential reggae artists. Lyle Bignon looks at this unique musical relationship.

“

At one point Birmingham was probably the number one place for reggae music outside Jamaica.”

FROM JAMAICA TO THE WORLD

Andy Hamilton

An iconic photo of early 1980s Handsworth, taken along Soho Road by Vanley Burke David Hinds of Steel Pulse


So, who are you?Chris makes noise and pretends he knows how to play guitar. Jordan smokes cigarettes and plays bass, often simultaneously – he’s just that rock and roll. Jake hits things, some-times really hard. Amber brings the hook with the violin: the Beyonce to our Jay-Z, the An-gelina to our Brad, the Dawn French to our Lenny Henry. Will has got the voice of an angel and the face of a sex offender.

Why do you do what you do?We can’t really do anything else. Four-fifths of us are at uni with no hope, ambition or prospects. We’re honestly nice guys and if

we could do anything else we would. But we can’t. So we just want you to buy stuff. T-shirts, posters, albums, anything. Buy loads and tell everybody else to buy loads. Two of us have just finished uni and we have noth-ing, literally nothing, to fall back on. Please. Really?In all seriousness, we have all been friends for nearly 10 years. About four years ago, a phone call was made and from then on in the majority of our afternoons were spent in Chris’s front room drinking tea and argu-ing whilst crudely recording an album. Jor-dan and Jake were recruited and the band was essentially formed. Amber joined about a year-and-a-half ago and whipped us into shape.

What’s your main focus at the moment?We’ve teamed up with PWS Promotions to curate a night called Watchfires at The Flap-per that runs about once every two months, in an attempt to create a community of like-minded bands and infuse an atmosphere that, we believe, can be somewhat lacking in the Birmingham music scene at the moment. We have also just finished recording our first proper album, We Raised the Flames and Built a City on the Ashes.

How did the album come about?

After many attempts at home recording, our friend Chris Donald (who is founding the label Minor Artists) kindly offered to record and release the album more professionally. We were fortunate enough to be given the chance to record in a medieval church in ru-ral Worcestershire. Doing so in January was perhaps not the wisest move but we man-aged to escape without any frostbite related amputations and with an album that we are really excited about.

What can we expect from your live shows?It’s kind of a Jekyll & Hyde deal: one part gnarled, angry, cavernous nightmare folk, one part soaring ocean pop. We have a ten-dency to lose our shit on stage.

Sunrise Over Europe are at The Flapper, Birmingham, on July 7. Debut album We Raised the Flames and Built a City on the Ashes is out August 6 on Minor Artists.

Sunrise Over Europe are a local band that like to put

on a show. Joe Whitehouse ventures into the crevices of

their cold, loud collective mind...

SuNriSE OvEr EurOpE

Calling from a hotel room between shows, Sharon Van Etten says she’s been “pleasantly surprised” by the applause that’s greeted her third album, Tramp.

“You never know what people will say as people are ready to hate as much as like,” she reckons. But like they do as the shimmering, occasionally Mazzy Star-esque Tramp marks a significant step forward for the New York-based singer-songwriter who pieced the dozen tracks together during a period in which she was essentially homeless. “Over the course of the last two years I’ve

been touring constantly [and] in between I’ve been staying with friends, crashing out in their apartments,” she says. “That didn’t give me much time to write [which] in some ways made Tramp have an inherent sense of urgency. I didn’t want to be the jerk in the living room with a guitar, playing as they went off to work, tried to sleep, or got ready for work. So I would grab moments to write whenever I could.”

As a result, the songs can be seen as something of a diary, offering quick snapshots of Sharon’s life during this unsettled period.“Those songs take me back. I can remember exactly where they were all written ... All I Can I wrote in Japan at the end of 2010 and Kevin’s and Leonard were written at my

friend Kevin’s house,” she says. Another key component in shaping Tramp’s more expansive and textured sound was The National’s Aaron Dessner. “I was on tour with Megafaun and they showed me a clip of Justin Vernon [from Bon Iver] and Aaron cover one of my songs on video at the MusicNow Festival in Cincinnati. I was preparing to record [second album] Epic and my friend encouraged me to reach out, to see if they’d play on it. But they were too busy with their own records ... but Aaron reached out and said, ‘please let me know when you start demoing the next record.’ “So I sent him Epic, we met up and talked about how we like to write and how we like to record and we became friends. He has this studio in his backyard. He’d accumulated 20 of my demos and said ‘you need to record a record, you don’t need to do any more demos.’ So we recorded the record.

“I think he pushed me a lot more to do things I’m not necessarily good at, but perhaps am too afraid to try - like to not make things sound too polished.”

Sharon Van Etten is live at The Glee Club, Birmingham, on July 11.

Armed with her finest album to date, New Yorker Sharon Van Etten brings her shimmering sounds to Birmingham. She

talks to David Vincent.

SharON vaN ETTEN

9July 2012


“We were going out on the road ourselves and it was slowly spreading around the coun-try, but to go on tour with someone like Beth [Jeans Houghton & The Hooves of Destiny] and performing in front of 400 people just after her album release and appearance on the Jools Holland show was an amazing expe-rience,” says frontman John Fell, refl ecting on their numerous musical highlights from the past couple of years. “We did Moseley Folk festival in 2010, so going back this year to hopefully play on the main stage is a great pleasure, especially at an event like that.” Squeezed into their bustling and seem-ingly never-ending touring schedule is an exclusive, one night only gig at the Hare & Hounds especially for their hometown fans. As Birmingham’s music scene fl ourishes with national acclaim greeting the likes of Peace, Swim Deep and Troumaca, John insists coming back to perform in Birmingham is more exciting than ever. “It’s the most enjoyable thing,” he says. “We don’t play so often in Birmingham and we’ve done it on the basis of making sure each show is special, such as playing at the cathedrals and churches at Christmas [Goodnight Lenin performed sell-out shows at St Paul’s Church in 2010 and Birmingham Cathedral in 2011]. It’s great that Birmingham has these bands with different sounds and when you throw us into the mix as well it shows that there’s diversity — which is what this city is all about.” Even between all the touring and EP releases, John takes great pride in revealing that the

long talk of a debut Goodnight Lenin album is fi nally true, which thankfully seems to be just in the nick of time as he confesses fans were beginning to feel frustrated (“Which is why we chose to do the Hare & Hounds too, before we get shouted at!” he jokes). “In October we’re releasing another single and video, December we’re releasing a winter type EP and between all that we’ll be record-ing our album which should be out in March next year. We’ve fi nally found the way we like to record now, based on a 1970s ‘playing live’ style. It will be a thicker American sound like Garfunkel and not really anything like our EPs. A lot of thought has gone into it so it will be interesting to see the reaction.” For John, the full length album will also be a chance to carve out a breakaway sound all of their own, hopefully free from the lazy folk comparisons which have inevitably followed them, due in no small part to their emergence at the same time as the rise to stardom of modern folk sweethearts Mumford & Sons. Despite their own insistence on being more closely aligned with the likes of Elvis Perkins and classics such as Bob Dylan, John says their own album will be a chance to show what they are “all about.”

“Yeah, I think when a band is playing live and releasing the odd track, people aren’t going to get the full picture of what they’re all about. We ended up shooting ourselves in the foot by releasing the most Mumford & Sons-type songs. For some unknown reason we’ll listen to our music in the studio, agree on what we

sound like and then end up not releasing it! But that’s exactly what the album is going to do. It will be a collection of songs that are exactly all about us and hopefully stop any more misleads.” Their live shows, dashed with humour and plenty of between-song banter, and down-to-earth manner leave audiences relaxed and engaged and behind their fruitful success so far still lies an honest, earthly manner about Goodnight Lenin as they continue to set their standards high with admirable future goals, ensuring that more harmony-soaked, toe tapping, folk fun goodness can certainly be expected. “The perception of us is quite strange some-times; I think people think we’re a lot bigger than what we are,” John says. “Nothing but hard work goes into what we do with 14 to 15 hours a week outside work. We put a lot of effort into what we do. In terms of where we are now, I don’t think we’ve even started yet. We’ll always be trying to change and improve ourselves. Our goals next year are to mainly get the album out and just be happy with it, to play a sell-out show in Birmingham and hopefully push ourselves further into bigger festival slots with the help of the album. Just writing good music too.”

Goodnight Lenin are live at the Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath, on July 14.They play the Moseley Folk Festival on September 1.

Since their formation in 2009, Goodnight Lenin have built up a strong reputation and loyal fanbase, with sell-out shows in churches and cathedrals in Birmingham, high profi le support slots around the country and endless festival appearances both at home and abroad. With a new single, EP and their debut album in the pipeline, bubbly frontman John Fell tells Ivy Photiou why the time has come to show what they are really about.

11July 2012

Friday 26th OctoberO2 Academy Birmingham

0844 477 2000 | gigsandtours.com | ticketmaster.co.ukAlbum ‘Streets in the Sky’out now theenemy.com facebook.com/theenemy

A Metropolis Music presentation by arrangement with Coda Agency

31ST AUGUST, 1ST, 2ND SEPTEMBER

STEELEYE SPAN • ROY HARPERECHO & THE BUNNYMEN

CARA DILLON • JULIAN COPE • JONATHAN WILSONGUILLEMOTS • SIMON FOWLER’S MERRYMOUTH

BETH JEANS HOUGHTON & THE HOOVES OF DESTINYGOODNIGHT LENIN • LANTERNS ON THE LAKE • DARK DARK DARK

DEVON SPROULE • RICHARD JAMES • THE DESTROYERS • THE MAGNETIC NORTHABIGAIL WASHBURN WITH KAI WELCH • PAUL MURPHY • SPIRO • EMILY PORTMAN TRIO

THE LONG NOTES • TREETOP FLYERS • RACHEL SERMANNI • JONNY KEARNEY & LUCY FARRELLLAURA J MARTIN • ELLEN & THE ESCAPADES • THE FALSE BEARDS • TELLING THE BEES

MICKY GREANEY • GENTLE GOOD • SUNJAY BRAYNE • RAPUNZEL & SEDAYNEREVERE • THE TERRAPINS • GOLDEN GLASS


Swim Deep lounge around the two tables we’ve pushed together at the Crown Inn, Digbeth. It’s overcast, the wind is blowing, and you couldn’t think of a setting more adverse to the sound this band is producing if you tried. They’ve just returned from the accompanying photo shoot at the Custard Factory, but watch-ing them strolling around the complex, splash-ing about in the fountain, it’s difficult not to notice that they look completely comfortable, completely at home. Birmingham (or Digbeth at least), is their territory. Rain or shine.

The Birmingham ‘scene’ is currently atop pretty much every cool list going, and Swim Deep are hovering somewhere around the top of that. Not that it necessarily means very much these days, but it’s some indication as to just how much noise this city is making outside its own walls. “That’s because the bands are fucking awesome,” explains lead singer Austin Williams modestly. “We’re making the best music in the UK at the moment and it’s not all the same like in other scenes; it’s a really varied sound. We’re bunched together because we’re all

making music here, but we worked on a strong level as mates even before we started getting any attention. We’re like a family.”

He’s right in a way. The music that this scene is producing is similar in its themes of escapism — in its desire to get away from the city which bore it, but it isn’t necessarily a unified sound. People outside Birmingham see where these bands are from and group them accordingly, but the ties that bind are really ties of friendship rather than those that any geography degree can define. “The scene will stay alive forever,” says bassist Cavan Mccarthy, not altogeth-er seriously. Austin interrupts, “No, there’s a Birmingham scene now because there are great bands in Birmingham. But it shouldn’t stay alive if those bands move on — it shouldn’t be alive just for the sake of it. You shouldn’t be an adult in a teenage scene,” he concludes.

“I started playing the guitar to impress girls,” he continues, to emphatic agreement all round. “No, that’s not true actually,” he corrects, “…it was to impress boys as well. But really we

just wanted to make people smile. The ulti-mate goal is to make a career out of it, but right now we want to put out original music which inspires people to create their own. And we’re listening to different bands and artists all the time. We’re listening to a lot of Led Zeppelin at the moment, and whoever brings something to the table then we write the music around that. But we write the music we write and we’re influenced by what we are, not what other people are,” he concludes, persuasively.

To deny the influence of influences is a risky business, particularly sounding (as they do) as if Nirvana met Washed Out on a beach somewhere in California. But right now there’s certainly no one doing it with quite as much gusto as they are. “We like Pond,” identifies Cavan, giving way just slightly. “We’ve just come back from touring with them, and they’re the only band making rock and roll on such a high level at the moment.”

“We’re people’s band of the moment because we’re the best,” interrupts drummer Zach

Hazy dream pop outfit Swim Deep are the latest hopefuls threatening to explode out of the Birmingham music scene which has captured so much attention from the national music press in recent months. Amy Sumner meets the band to discover they are more than happy to agree with the hype.

Robinson, emphatically. “Right. If people thought we were shit, they wouldn’t listen,” agrees Austin.

But listening they have been. Having just returned from the aforementioned tour, the band are high on praise which has been a little less than forthcoming from audiences in their own town. “We’re getting better everywhere we play,” explains Austin. “Pond taught us so much on that tour. But people have been really receptive everywhere we’ve been. Glasgow in particular was awesome.”

“We get better compliments everywhere else,” bemoans Cavan. “Because we’re friends with everyone in Birmingham so no one ever says anything nice!”

“I don’t think we sound the same as when we began though,” Austin admits. “Stuff changes and you move on — you don’t write the same songs again because there’s no point in that. It’s environmental in a way though — we have new members now and the sound changes with that, with the new input.”

So what does the future hold for one of the most hotly-tipped bands in the UK at the moment? “I want to go to a summer vine-yard to record an album,” says Austin. “There’ll

be another single by the end of the year, but we don’t want to be a band that puts out a single every six months, because that’s lame — that’s getting music out there for the sake of it. People are always asking us for new music though so we want to get another single out there for the fans.”

And this time next year? “I hope we’ll be on a speed boat in Malibu,” dreams Austin. “We want a number one single, that’s the ultimate thing, although not in terms of making music. For now, we want to get our music out there and have a good life. Will we still be in Birming-ham? I hope not.”

Which is exactly what Peace said when asked the same question. The bands in this Birming-ham scene are grouped together because of their roots; because of where they’re from. And actually what no one seems to have

noticed is that they’re all singing about escap-ing and leaving it behind. “There are lots of places like Birmingham, which are all very beige. Our music is escapism from that beige — if we had lots of money then we’d be in Malibu,” concludes Austin, though surely the colour of any city depends on the focus of the individual. For now, the outside world has finally started to pay attention creating the illusion that anything is (and might well be) possible for this gaggle of lads from the streets of Brum — from that ‘beige’ which has nurtured them. Who knows where Swim Deep, or any of these bands will be this time next year, but if they keep churning out tunes as catchy as those they have been, then there’s no reason why the Malibu dream can’t become a reality.

Swim Deep are live at One Beat Sunday, a one-day new music festival taking place at Mac Birmingham on July 22. Also perform-ing are The Carpels, Tempting Rosie, JAWS, The Jacarandas, Not by Design, Red Method, The Scribers, Jodi Ann Bickley & Friends and more. Tickets are £10 adv from www.macarts.co.uk

Photos by Gobinder Jhitta | www.gobinderjhitta.co.uk

“ I started playing the guitar to impress girls… No, that’s not true actually, it was to impress boys as well.”

13July 2012

Swim Deep lounge around the two tables we’ve pushed together at the Crown Inn, Digbeth. It’s overcast, the wind is blowing, and you couldn’t think of a setting more adverse to the sound this band is producing if you tried. They’ve just returned from the accompanying photo shoot at the Custard Factory, but watch-ing them strolling around the complex, splash-ing about in the fountain, it’s difficult not to notice that they look completely comfortable, completely at home. Birmingham (or Digbeth at least), is their territory. Rain or shine.

The Birmingham ‘scene’ is currently atop pretty much every cool list going, and Swim Deep are hovering somewhere around the top of that. Not that it necessarily means very much these days, but it’s some indication as to just how much noise this city is making outside its own walls. “That’s because the bands are fucking awesome,” explains lead singer Austin Williams modestly. “We’re making the best music in the UK at the moment and it’s not all the same like in other scenes; it’s a really varied sound. We’re bunched together because we’re all

making music here, but we worked on a strong level as mates even before we started getting any attention. We’re like a family.”

He’s right in a way. The music that this scene is producing is similar in its themes of escapism — in its desire to get away from the city which bore it, but it isn’t necessarily a unified sound. People outside Birmingham see where these bands are from and group them accordingly, but the ties that bind are really ties of friendship rather than those that any geography degree can define. “The scene will stay alive forever,” says bassist Cavan Mccarthy, not altogeth-er seriously. Austin interrupts, “No, there’s a Birmingham scene now because there are great bands in Birmingham. But it shouldn’t stay alive if those bands move on — it shouldn’t be alive just for the sake of it. You shouldn’t be an adult in a teenage scene,” he concludes.

“I started playing the guitar to impress girls,” he continues, to emphatic agreement all round. “No, that’s not true actually,” he corrects, “…it was to impress boys as well. But really we

just wanted to make people smile. The ulti-mate goal is to make a career out of it, but right now we want to put out original music which inspires people to create their own. And we’re listening to different bands and artists all the time. We’re listening to a lot of Led Zeppelin at the moment, and whoever brings something to the table then we write the music around that. But we write the music we write and we’re influenced by what we are, not what other people are,” he concludes, persuasively.

To deny the influence of influences is a risky business, particularly sounding (as they do) as if Nirvana met Washed Out on a beach somewhere in California. But right now there’s certainly no one doing it with quite as much gusto as they are. “We like Pond,” identifies Cavan, giving way just slightly. “We’ve just come back from touring with them, and they’re the only band making rock and roll on such a high level at the moment.”

“We’re people’s band of the moment because we’re the best,” interrupts drummer Zach

Hazy dream pop outfit Swim Deep are the latest hopefuls threatening to explode out of the Birmingham music scene which has captured so much attention from the national music press in recent months. Amy Sumner meets the band to discover they are more than happy to agree with the hype.

Robinson, emphatically. “Right. If people thought we were shit, they wouldn’t listen,” agrees Austin.

But listening they have been. Having just returned from the aforementioned tour, the band are high on praise which has been a little less than forthcoming from audiences in their own town. “We’re getting better everywhere we play,” explains Austin. “Pond taught us so much on that tour. But people have been really receptive everywhere we’ve been. Glasgow in particular was awesome.”

“We get better compliments everywhere else,” bemoans Cavan. “Because we’re friends with everyone in Birmingham so no one ever says anything nice!”

“I don’t think we sound the same as when we began though,” Austin admits. “Stuff changes and you move on — you don’t write the same songs again because there’s no point in that. It’s environmental in a way though — we have new members now and the sound changes with that, with the new input.”

So what does the future hold for one of the most hotly-tipped bands in the UK at the moment? “I want to go to a summer vine-yard to record an album,” says Austin. “There’ll

be another single by the end of the year, but we don’t want to be a band that puts out a single every six months, because that’s lame — that’s getting music out there for the sake of it. People are always asking us for new music though so we want to get another single out there for the fans.”

And this time next year? “I hope we’ll be on a speed boat in Malibu,” dreams Austin. “We want a number one single, that’s the ultimate thing, although not in terms of making music. For now, we want to get our music out there and have a good life. Will we still be in Birming-ham? I hope not.”

Which is exactly what Peace said when asked the same question. The bands in this Birming-ham scene are grouped together because of their roots; because of where they’re from. And actually what no one seems to have

noticed is that they’re all singing about escap-ing and leaving it behind. “There are lots of places like Birmingham, which are all very beige. Our music is escapism from that beige — if we had lots of money then we’d be in Malibu,” concludes Austin, though surely the colour of any city depends on the focus of the individual. For now, the outside world has finally started to pay attention creating the illusion that anything is (and might well be) possible for this gaggle of lads from the streets of Brum — from that ‘beige’ which has nurtured them. Who knows where Swim Deep, or any of these bands will be this time next year, but if they keep churning out tunes as catchy as those they have been, then there’s no reason why the Malibu dream can’t become a reality.

Swim Deep are live at One Beat Sunday, a one-day new music festival taking place at Mac Birmingham on July 22. Also perform-ing are The Carpels, Tempting Rosie, JAWS, The Jacarandas, Not by Design, Red Method, The Scribers, Jodi Ann Bickley & Friends and more. Tickets are £10 adv from www.macarts.co.uk

Photos by Gobinder Jhitta | www.gobinderjhitta.co.uk

“ I started playing the guitar to impress girls… No, that’s not true actually, it was to impress boys as well.”


SATURDAY 28 JULY 2PM

FRIDAY 27 JULY 8PM

SUNDAY 29 JULY 2PM

WEEKEND £26 3 DAY £29SATURDAY £15FRIDAY £5 SUNDAY £15

SATURDAY 28 JULY

SUNDAY 29 JULY

15July 2012

SATURDAY 28 JULY

SUNDAY 29 JULY


For a relatively new band, any festival appear-ance can be a risk as they find themselves battling against dire timeslots, tiny stages tucked away behind burger vans, big names on the big stage, and the great British weather. “You never know how it’s going to go until you do it,” says Boat To Row’s Mike King of the band’s lengthy summer festival itinerary. “When the tent fills out, it can be great. Other times, you end up playing for yourselves. You can’t judge a festival too harshly though as if you’re there, you just pop in to see a band, or whoever’s on. We’re just looking at festivals as fun… and it’s nice if people pop in to see us, and then stay around to chat or buy a record — which they are doing more of.” So far, the Birmingham-based six-piece have appeared at the inaugural Lunar Festival and The Big Session, with Truck, Y Not, Larmer, 2000 Trees and Standon Calling (and others) to follow. “We’ve played festivals in the past, but never had such a schedule like this before,” contin-ues Mike, adding that No Direction Home has, so far, been the highlight. “No Direction Home was really good, a great line up and it was the biggest stage we’ve played on this summer,” interjects Ben Gilchrist with a laugh. “We were lucky as it was raining, and we were in the only tent… so there were lots of people there!” The band are also headlining the brand new Brum Notes-curated free acoustic stage at Off The Cuff at The Flapper on July 29, but

before then there’s the release of their second official single, Freedom / Old Scene. “Since the last EP [Grassmarket], we’ve been trying to be a bit quicker in releasing music,” says Mike. “We wanted to get [this single] out as soon as we could, and keep the momen-tum going.” Boat To Row’s earliest incarnation was essen-tially just Mike, but over the last couple of years, the project has grown considerably, now resting at the current six-piece, with Mike and Ben joined by Fay Haddon, Billy Moss, Lloyd Miller and newest addition, French horn player Emma Geddes. The resulting expansion has, naturally, had a sizable impact on Boat To Row’s sound. “Freedom and Old Scene are full band tracks, which is how we want to portray ourselves. We’re all writers, there is no leader, no single voice, we’re a unified unit now, there’s a full band mix,” stresses Mike. “The tracks defi-nitely showcase how we are at the moment. They are quite separate songs but do share a link lyrically. Freedom is about the need to better yourself, about recognising something in someone else… quite personal lyrics; Old Scene was written for a friend who was going through a hard time in a relationship, and it’s about how I viewed it. It’s quite a driving song.” Recalling Boat To Row’s inception, Mike says: “It started off by myself as I wasn’t sure what I was doing. I tried stuff out… and as I start-ed to record, I turned to Lloyd, as I’m not a drummer. Then, as you look at other instru-ments, you begin to write with that in mind. It

was a natural progression from a guy with a guitar to being the six-piece we are now. We can still do subtle songs, but we can also do full band songs.” Ben agrees: “Both songs, Old Scene and Freedom, are a step forward for us, for our writing. The Grassmarket EP tracks all feel like each is a different style. Now, there’s a more cohesive sound. Old Scene is a bit aggres-sive for us, compared to our older stuff, it has a bit of attitude, a bit of energy. It is a bit of a driving song. The violin and mandolin tie in together, it sounds really interesting. There’s a bit of piano on there too. All six of us are playing live, and every part has its place... .” Available as a ‘double A-side’ digital down-load from July 2 (“we all love singles, a physi-cal release, we love records, but financially it wouldn’t work… so it’s just a download this time,” explains Mike), the tracks will be followed by the Loyal Light EP in the autumn, featuring Old Scene and Freedom, plus new numbers Dreaming Wild Flowers, Ode To Work A Day and the title track, Loyal Flight. “Dreaming Wild Flowers is quite a sweet little track,” Ben reckons. “It reminded me of a Paul McCartney Beatles song when I first heard it. We tried a few different things out for it. We did some dates with Gemma Hayes earlier in the year, acoustic shows, and Lloyd tried mandolin and a few things. It’s easy to go for the standard set up, but we’ve switched it around, tried different melodies, without drums, different sounds. “Loyal Light has a good groove to it. Everyone

plays an intricate part to it and it all fits togeth-er, all the parts are interesting. There’re some nice hooks, it’s quite an energetic track.”

“They follow on from Grassmarket,” Mike continues. “On reflection, you want to progress as much as you can. We do want to move on from that Grassmarket period. We’ve found our feet more now, and listen-ing to Grassmarket, that sounds like musicians still finding their sound. The new songs are sounding fresh for us, refined. These songs are maybe darker, more mature lyrically and musically.” The flurry of festival appearances, releases, and soon to be announced autumn dates are all part of Boat To Row’s new grand plan. “A lot boils down to a plan,” says Mike. “We have good backing behind us this time, good people. We’re sticking to a time frame. We can release something, tour, and set aside tracks for an album next year. We hope to have a stash of new songs. We’re recording now, doing sessions in Lloyd’s garage. He and Billy are music tech wizzies. It’s nice to have that [skill] in the band, you can save a few pennies.” Though it’s too soon to discuss the long-play-er, there’s a good chance that it will have a cover design by artist (and unofficial seventh member) Rosie Moss. “Roise’s artwork is important, it is an impor-tant part of presenting the music,” says Ben. “We are big fans of physical formats and her artwork is so beautiful, so lovely to hold, it looks so good, and it’s really nice talking to her about her inspiration. “It’s good to have that similar style across our releases, it has an identity. I really think it complements the music very well. It’s about the whole package, isn’t it? It’s important to have someone who has that vision, like we do, who can tie it all together.”

Boat To Row headline the free entry Brum Notes Magazine Acoustic Stage at the Off The Cuff Festival, The Flapper, Birmingham, on Sunday, July 29.

New single Freedom / Old Scene is released for digital download on istartedthefire Records on July 2.

Boat To Row have also been announced to headline a Brum Notes Presents show at O2 Academy 2 Birmingham on November 30, with tickets available now from www.o2academybirmingham.co.uk.

Birmingham-based folk outfit Boat To Row have built a growing reputation with things set to turn up a notch as they prepare to set sail on a hectic summer of festival appearances, record releases and not to mention headlining the brand new acoustic stage at this month’s Off The Cuff festival. David Vincent caught up with Mike King and Ben Gilchrist to find out what’s in store.

Pushing the Boat Out

“We’re all writers, there is

no leader, no single

voice.”

17July 2012

For a relatively new band, any festival appear-ance can be a risk as they find themselves battling against dire timeslots, tiny stages tucked away behind burger vans, big names on the big stage, and the great British weather. “You never know how it’s going to go until you do it,” says Boat To Row’s Mike King of the band’s lengthy summer festival itinerary. “When the tent fills out, it can be great. Other times, you end up playing for yourselves. You can’t judge a festival too harshly though as if you’re there, you just pop in to see a band, or whoever’s on. We’re just looking at festivals as fun… and it’s nice if people pop in to see us, and then stay around to chat or buy a record — which they are doing more of.” So far, the Birmingham-based six-piece have appeared at the inaugural Lunar Festival and The Big Session, with Truck, Y Not, Larmer, 2000 Trees and Standon Calling (and others) to follow. “We’ve played festivals in the past, but never had such a schedule like this before,” contin-ues Mike, adding that No Direction Home has, so far, been the highlight. “No Direction Home was really good, a great line up and it was the biggest stage we’ve played on this summer,” interjects Ben Gilchrist with a laugh. “We were lucky as it was raining, and we were in the only tent… so there were lots of people there!” The band are also headlining the brand new Brum Notes-curated free acoustic stage at Off The Cuff at The Flapper on July 29, but

before then there’s the release of their second official single, Freedom / Old Scene. “Since the last EP [Grassmarket], we’ve been trying to be a bit quicker in releasing music,” says Mike. “We wanted to get [this single] out as soon as we could, and keep the momen-tum going.” Boat To Row’s earliest incarnation was essen-tially just Mike, but over the last couple of years, the project has grown considerably, now resting at the current six-piece, with Mike and Ben joined by Fay Haddon, Billy Moss, Lloyd Miller and newest addition, French horn player Emma Geddes. The resulting expansion has, naturally, had a sizable impact on Boat To Row’s sound. “Freedom and Old Scene are full band tracks, which is how we want to portray ourselves. We’re all writers, there is no leader, no single voice, we’re a unified unit now, there’s a full band mix,” stresses Mike. “The tracks defi-nitely showcase how we are at the moment. They are quite separate songs but do share a link lyrically. Freedom is about the need to better yourself, about recognising something in someone else… quite personal lyrics; Old Scene was written for a friend who was going through a hard time in a relationship, and it’s about how I viewed it. It’s quite a driving song.” Recalling Boat To Row’s inception, Mike says: “It started off by myself as I wasn’t sure what I was doing. I tried stuff out… and as I start-ed to record, I turned to Lloyd, as I’m not a drummer. Then, as you look at other instru-ments, you begin to write with that in mind. It

was a natural progression from a guy with a guitar to being the six-piece we are now. We can still do subtle songs, but we can also do full band songs.” Ben agrees: “Both songs, Old Scene and Freedom, are a step forward for us, for our writing. The Grassmarket EP tracks all feel like each is a different style. Now, there’s a more cohesive sound. Old Scene is a bit aggres-sive for us, compared to our older stuff, it has a bit of attitude, a bit of energy. It is a bit of a driving song. The violin and mandolin tie in together, it sounds really interesting. There’s a bit of piano on there too. All six of us are playing live, and every part has its place... .” Available as a ‘double A-side’ digital down-load from July 2 (“we all love singles, a physi-cal release, we love records, but financially it wouldn’t work… so it’s just a download this time,” explains Mike), the tracks will be followed by the Loyal Light EP in the autumn, featuring Old Scene and Freedom, plus new numbers Dreaming Wild Flowers, Ode To Work A Day and the title track, Loyal Flight. “Dreaming Wild Flowers is quite a sweet little track,” Ben reckons. “It reminded me of a Paul McCartney Beatles song when I first heard it. We tried a few different things out for it. We did some dates with Gemma Hayes earlier in the year, acoustic shows, and Lloyd tried mandolin and a few things. It’s easy to go for the standard set up, but we’ve switched it around, tried different melodies, without drums, different sounds. “Loyal Light has a good groove to it. Everyone

plays an intricate part to it and it all fits togeth-er, all the parts are interesting. There’re some nice hooks, it’s quite an energetic track.”

“They follow on from Grassmarket,” Mike continues. “On reflection, you want to progress as much as you can. We do want to move on from that Grassmarket period. We’ve found our feet more now, and listen-ing to Grassmarket, that sounds like musicians still finding their sound. The new songs are sounding fresh for us, refined. These songs are maybe darker, more mature lyrically and musically.” The flurry of festival appearances, releases, and soon to be announced autumn dates are all part of Boat To Row’s new grand plan. “A lot boils down to a plan,” says Mike. “We have good backing behind us this time, good people. We’re sticking to a time frame. We can release something, tour, and set aside tracks for an album next year. We hope to have a stash of new songs. We’re recording now, doing sessions in Lloyd’s garage. He and Billy are music tech wizzies. It’s nice to have that [skill] in the band, you can save a few pennies.” Though it’s too soon to discuss the long-play-er, there’s a good chance that it will have a cover design by artist (and unofficial seventh member) Rosie Moss. “Roise’s artwork is important, it is an impor-tant part of presenting the music,” says Ben. “We are big fans of physical formats and her artwork is so beautiful, so lovely to hold, it looks so good, and it’s really nice talking to her about her inspiration. “It’s good to have that similar style across our releases, it has an identity. I really think it complements the music very well. It’s about the whole package, isn’t it? It’s important to have someone who has that vision, like we do, who can tie it all together.”

Boat To Row headline the free entry Brum Notes Magazine Acoustic Stage at the Off The Cuff Festival, The Flapper, Birmingham, on Sunday, July 29.

New single Freedom / Old Scene is released for digital download on istartedthefire Records on July 2.

Boat To Row have also been announced to headline a Brum Notes Presents show at O2 Academy 2 Birmingham on November 30, with tickets available now from www.o2academybirmingham.co.uk.

Birmingham-based folk outfit Boat To Row have built a growing reputation with things set to turn up a notch as they prepare to set sail on a hectic summer of festival appearances, record releases and not to mention headlining the brand new acoustic stage at this month’s Off The Cuff festival. David Vincent caught up with Mike King and Ben Gilchrist to find out what’s in store.

Pushing the Boat Out

“We’re all writers, there is

no leader, no single

voice.”


Birmigham’s Pop-up RestaurantSecret Menu, Theme, Location

15.07.12 SDS Pop

18.08.12 SDS Fire

INFO & TICKETSWEB: 000-00000.COMTWITTER: @ooo_ooooo

The Tone Thieves | Wide Eyed | These Kings | Caves


presents

www.jawsjawsjaws.co.ukfacebook.com/thetonethieves

facebook.com/YDYED

Buy tickets now from:o2academybirmingham.co.uk

0844 477 2000 (24hr)

in association with Manifest Live

O2 ACADEMY3 BIRMINGHAMSATURDAY 18 AUGUST

DOORS: 7PM / CURFEW: 11PM / £5 ADV

BN1206 BrumNotes Presents Jaws A6.indd 1 13/06/2012 23:35

19July 2012

You must have been pleased with the posi-tive response to [second album] Death since its release in April, how have things been from your point of view? There’s been an overwhelming response to Death that is way beyond our expectations and it’s been a pleasure to tour the UK and play shows to people who are really into what we’re doing at the moment, a truly humbling experience.

It’s been a busy year as well, headline tour dates, SXSW, Radio 1 airplay, does it feel like things have really started to move quickly for you this year?Yeah, it’s been a bit of a crazy start to 2012, so much has happened that we probably need to sit down soon and chat it through to fully understand exactly what it was. Playing at a place like SXSW was always a dream of mine and it didn’t disappoint, and to have the back-ing and support of people like Radio 1 and the other bands we tour with is a fantastic feeling, a validation of sorts that the early shows to empty rooms were building us to this.

You’ve had a lot of attention this year tipping you as a ‘new band to watch’, when you’ve been together for quite a while and are now on your second album; did it feel strange being described as a ‘new band’ again? In a way its weird when you’ve been working very hard at something for some time to be described as a new band but I think it’s quite an accurate description at the moment, we’re such a different band now to how we were 18 months ago and we’re continuing to develop as a unit of musicians and as people so I guess

we’d always like to think of ourselves as a ‘new’ band in that sense with every release we make.

You’ve signed up with Xtra Mile yourselves but you run your own label too in istarted-thefire Records, which has championed some great artists including Boat To Row. How is that all going? The label is doing great, we have a really strong roster of UK folk musicians at the moment and soon plan to expand into more genres to reflect my sporadic tastes in musical genres I guess. Boat To Row are at the head of this family and

it’s a pleasure and an honour to work with them over the past couple of releases and long may it continue — though I’d happily concede them to the major label deal they truly deserve.

‘Solemn sun’ is something of a bleak oxymoron — do you think that sums up the themes of your music, an optimistic, energetic sound but often tackling some, shall we say, less-than-jolly topics?That is exactly it. We throw everything we have into playing live, it’s the most important part of being a band for us, but I do tend to discuss slightly downbeat subject matter in the songs — but if you can’t make out what I’m saying it sounds very positive… Also I’d say that the underlying ‘message’ for want of a better word, is that no matter what stands in your way, fight it, stay true to yourself and you’ll get where you want.

There are some great descriptions of your sound out there, especially ‘anarcho-anglo storytellers’. Has it always been important to you to have a narrative thread in your songs? I think it’s important that the songs can be related to for sure, but there’s never any outset plans for the songs to take any particular shape, they just happen. Lyric is a massive

part for me, mostly more important than the songs themselves.

And where would you say you draw inspi-ration for your own songwriting? Lyrically I take a lot of influence from things that I believe should be addressed and many of the songs are autobiographical in some way. Musically we pull from loads of different genres that loosely hover around rock and folk/punk and we also take a lot of influence and energy from punk/hardcore bands for our live perfor-mance — if there’s enough room.

You have a reputation for getting quite involved with the crowd in your live shows, is that something we can expect? We may be a little more chilled out for this show but will we no doubt get people involved and may get into the crowd to play one or two.

And will you be sticking around to check out any of the other bands? Well, the line up is unbelievable I have to say Future of the Left, Shapes, &U&I, Boat To Row and Charlotte Carpenter are sure to amaze so we’ll definitely be checking those guys out. Our manager, James, also recently stated that Three Trapped Tigers have the best drummer in the world, so we can’t miss that.

Jim Lockey & The Solemn Sun headline the Brum Notes Magazine Acoustic Stage at Off The Cuff Festival, The Flapper, Birming-ham, on July 28.

Passionate, poetic and engaging, folk-punk raconteurs Jim Lockey & The Solemn Sun bring their rousing live show to our Acoustic Stage at this month’s Off The Cuff Festival. Two albums down and with an ever-growing reputation, frontman Jim Lockey speaks to Chris Moriarty about his band’s whirlwind 2012.

BURNING BRIGHT

“ No matter what stands in your way, fight it, stay true to yourself and you’ll get where you want.”


Andy ‘Falco’ Falkous has only been home for a few hours and could do with a kip. “We’ve been all over the place,” he yawns. “I’m a little tired and have had less vitamins than I should have had, and more beer than I probably should have had.” Sleep deprivation and the ravages of tour-ing aside, he remains enthusiastic and eager to talk. His band, Future Of The Left (FotL), are just back from a short promotional tour of the US where they experienced exceptionally clean loos in a dive bar (“we all made a note of that”); unexpectedly enjoyed a daytime in-store appearance (“It’s for good reason that rock ‘n’ roll happens at night, away from the cold light. But that was a very good show…”); and had gig audiences “flexing and dancing.” “That’s infectious,” Andy says of the danc-ing masses. The reason for the spurt of activity — which has already included UK and European headline dates — is FotL’s new album, The Plot Against Common Sense, a caustic, sharp and diverse collection which Falco sees as their strong-est and most accomplished release to date. “Every band says that whatever is new is the best thing they’ve put out,” says frontman and founder member Falco of the claim. “Whatever the case, you qualify that, it’s always the best, you find something in there. But I genuinely think that The Plot Against Common Sense is. It taps into previous things, expands the colour scheme. For me, it’s like the whole world comes into focus. The weaknesses might be that there could be a perceived lack of focus,

but with successive listens, it will all make sense. This album’s strength is its accidental unity. Lyrically, there is more focus.” With songs about crass commercialism, the protests/riots of last summer, and the all-consuming London 2012 barrage, it’s an album seemingly very much rooted in present day Blighty. “We didn’t sit down and set out to do some-thing about the riots last year or the Olym-pics, simply they were just out there, they were pressed on our brains,” he says, confirming the accidental element. “If it has something of Britain in it, it’s not deliberate. If there’s a notion of Britain in there, it’s not a normal notion of Britain.” Though recorded over a period of time, the third studio album was conceived as a single piece of work. “For me, it definitely helps the story for it to be listened to from beginning to end, in order. It might be a bit long for some people as it’s just a wisp’s clacker away from 50 minutes, [but] it’s a no filler album, there’s nothing on there just to fill the space, everything is the same [quality] … but different.” The lead single from the album was the XFM, Kerrang! Radio, 6Music and Radio 1-approved Sheena Is A T-Shirt Salesman, recently followed by the short, sharp, shouty I Am The Least Of Your Problems. “We didn’t really want a single,” says Andy, who prefers the idea of 7-inch vinyl to digital

downloads. “An album is about the art, the single isn’t, it’s a means to get people to listen to the album. But what do you get to repre-sent this album? I love Cosmo’s Ladder, but does that sound like the rest of the album? What about Robocop 4: Fuck Off Robocop? No one in their right mind would think of that as a single. Notes On Achieving Orbit? That’s a little long and grandiose for a single… . This is when you need a major record label behind you. Their marketing department can tell you that some track has an approval rating of 82.” He laughs: “82? That’s great, you soulless ****.” It’s six years since FotL made their debut, arriv-ing in the wake of Andy and drummer Jack Egglestone’s previous band, the underrated Mclusky. Comparing the combo who played those early FotL gigs with the band today, Andy sees a steady and natural growth in confidence and powers. “We’ve just progressed naturally… it’s progressed in a way that it should’ve done. Some people make a decision to evolve or revolve, but for FotL it’s been a natural progres-sion and process. I might be 4.8 per cent differ-ent than I was six years ago, but I’m essentially the same human being. I play slightly differently due to the guitars I play and hear, the books I’ve read, the comedians I’ve heard. But apart from making songs great and live performanc-es great, there has never been an agenda. We never sit down and discuss that there should be more X, more Y or more Z. The songs work or they don’t work. If they don’t work, then they don’t make the record,” he says. “There has never been any discussion after a rehearsal. No one has a talk after a rehearsal to say ‘that

song didn’t work’. To the band, it’s obvious, we’re locked into that mindset. It would be painful if every set list was up for discussion. We put all our time and effort into the music and let the songs fight it out.” After beginning life as a trio, founders Andy and Jack are now joined by Julia Ruzicka, formerly of Million Dead, and Jimmy Watkins. “FotL were originally intended to be a four-piece. At that time I was not ready to write songs for a four-piece. I like the idea now. Now, partly because it’s working out very, very well indeed. Julia’s transition has been very, very easy.” Response to the record has been strong (“The previous records, generally speaking, have reviewed better in the States than here, but this one has reviewed better here than in the States,” reckons Andy), as a result, the quartet are keen to capitalise by getting out and about. “The plan is to tour as much as we can afford. You just play as much as possible. We have just done 15 shows in 20 days which is the closest we’ve come to a proper tour in two or three years. Touring is fantastic. I’m hard-ly young anymore but it’s fantastic for me, it

works for me — the downtime and the rock ‘n’ roll and the two per cent appreciation, it just works for me. You get to snooze, read in vans, soundcheck, you begin to enjoy the whole day not just the hour-and-an-half rock ‘n’ roll show. We hope to tour and tour and tour, and write

new material in stolen moments between. We already have maybe three songs written and I want to not wait another three years before the next album’s out.” As festival season continues, and FotL make their way to 2000 Trees, YNOT, Tramlines, and headline Off The Cuff, it seems unlikely Andy will get a chance to complete one project though — his book.

“That’s so far from complete that it’s not worth trailing at this stage,” he stresses. “Putting every available minute into the band means there’s not as much time as I’d like to write.” He laughs again: “I just need to find a way to make sleep a luxury not a necessity. And I’m not alone in that.”

Future of the Left headline the Off The Cuff Festival at The Flapper, Birmingham, on July 29. For full line-up and tickets visit www.offthecuffbirmingham.co.uk

Post punk Welsh wizards Future of the Left are revered for their effervescent live shows and have just returned with their third – and finest – album to boot. David Vincent speaks to sharp-witted frontman Andy Falkous ahead of their hotly-anticipated headline appearance at this month’s Off The Cuff Festival in Birmingham.

“We didn’t sit down and set out to do something about the riots last year or the Olympics, simply they were just out there, they were pressed on our brains,”

THE FUTURE IS NOW

For your chance to win a pair of three-day tickets to Off The Cuff 2012, worth £58, visit www.brumnotes.com

COMPETITION

21July 2012

Andy ‘Falco’ Falkous has only been home for a few hours and could do with a kip. “We’ve been all over the place,” he yawns. “I’m a little tired and have had less vitamins than I should have had, and more beer than I probably should have had.” Sleep deprivation and the ravages of tour-ing aside, he remains enthusiastic and eager to talk. His band, Future Of The Left (FotL), are just back from a short promotional tour of the US where they experienced exceptionally clean loos in a dive bar (“we all made a note of that”); unexpectedly enjoyed a daytime in-store appearance (“It’s for good reason that rock ‘n’ roll happens at night, away from the cold light. But that was a very good show…”); and had gig audiences “flexing and dancing.” “That’s infectious,” Andy says of the danc-ing masses. The reason for the spurt of activity — which has already included UK and European headline dates — is FotL’s new album, The Plot Against Common Sense, a caustic, sharp and diverse collection which Falco sees as their strong-est and most accomplished release to date. “Every band says that whatever is new is the best thing they’ve put out,” says frontman and founder member Falco of the claim. “Whatever the case, you qualify that, it’s always the best, you find something in there. But I genuinely think that The Plot Against Common Sense is. It taps into previous things, expands the colour scheme. For me, it’s like the whole world comes into focus. The weaknesses might be that there could be a perceived lack of focus,

but with successive listens, it will all make sense. This album’s strength is its accidental unity. Lyrically, there is more focus.” With songs about crass commercialism, the protests/riots of last summer, and the all-consuming London 2012 barrage, it’s an album seemingly very much rooted in present day Blighty. “We didn’t sit down and set out to do some-thing about the riots last year or the Olym-pics, simply they were just out there, they were pressed on our brains,” he says, confirming the accidental element. “If it has something of Britain in it, it’s not deliberate. If there’s a notion of Britain in there, it’s not a normal notion of Britain.” Though recorded over a period of time, the third studio album was conceived as a single piece of work. “For me, it definitely helps the story for it to be listened to from beginning to end, in order. It might be a bit long for some people as it’s just a wisp’s clacker away from 50 minutes, [but] it’s a no filler album, there’s nothing on there just to fill the space, everything is the same [quality] … but different.” The lead single from the album was the XFM, Kerrang! Radio, 6Music and Radio 1-approved Sheena Is A T-Shirt Salesman, recently followed by the short, sharp, shouty I Am The Least Of Your Problems. “We didn’t really want a single,” says Andy, who prefers the idea of 7-inch vinyl to digital

downloads. “An album is about the art, the single isn’t, it’s a means to get people to listen to the album. But what do you get to repre-sent this album? I love Cosmo’s Ladder, but does that sound like the rest of the album? What about Robocop 4: Fuck Off Robocop? No one in their right mind would think of that as a single. Notes On Achieving Orbit? That’s a little long and grandiose for a single… . This is when you need a major record label behind you. Their marketing department can tell you that some track has an approval rating of 82.” He laughs: “82? That’s great, you soulless ****.” It’s six years since FotL made their debut, arriv-ing in the wake of Andy and drummer Jack Egglestone’s previous band, the underrated Mclusky. Comparing the combo who played those early FotL gigs with the band today, Andy sees a steady and natural growth in confidence and powers. “We’ve just progressed naturally… it’s progressed in a way that it should’ve done. Some people make a decision to evolve or revolve, but for FotL it’s been a natural progres-sion and process. I might be 4.8 per cent differ-ent than I was six years ago, but I’m essentially the same human being. I play slightly differently due to the guitars I play and hear, the books I’ve read, the comedians I’ve heard. But apart from making songs great and live performanc-es great, there has never been an agenda. We never sit down and discuss that there should be more X, more Y or more Z. The songs work or they don’t work. If they don’t work, then they don’t make the record,” he says. “There has never been any discussion after a rehearsal. No one has a talk after a rehearsal to say ‘that

song didn’t work’. To the band, it’s obvious, we’re locked into that mindset. It would be painful if every set list was up for discussion. We put all our time and effort into the music and let the songs fight it out.” After beginning life as a trio, founders Andy and Jack are now joined by Julia Ruzicka, formerly of Million Dead, and Jimmy Watkins. “FotL were originally intended to be a four-piece. At that time I was not ready to write songs for a four-piece. I like the idea now. Now, partly because it’s working out very, very well indeed. Julia’s transition has been very, very easy.” Response to the record has been strong (“The previous records, generally speaking, have reviewed better in the States than here, but this one has reviewed better here than in the States,” reckons Andy), as a result, the quartet are keen to capitalise by getting out and about. “The plan is to tour as much as we can afford. You just play as much as possible. We have just done 15 shows in 20 days which is the closest we’ve come to a proper tour in two or three years. Touring is fantastic. I’m hard-ly young anymore but it’s fantastic for me, it

works for me — the downtime and the rock ‘n’ roll and the two per cent appreciation, it just works for me. You get to snooze, read in vans, soundcheck, you begin to enjoy the whole day not just the hour-and-an-half rock ‘n’ roll show. We hope to tour and tour and tour, and write

new material in stolen moments between. We already have maybe three songs written and I want to not wait another three years before the next album’s out.” As festival season continues, and FotL make their way to 2000 Trees, YNOT, Tramlines, and headline Off The Cuff, it seems unlikely Andy will get a chance to complete one project though — his book.

“That’s so far from complete that it’s not worth trailing at this stage,” he stresses. “Putting every available minute into the band means there’s not as much time as I’d like to write.” He laughs again: “I just need to find a way to make sleep a luxury not a necessity. And I’m not alone in that.”

Future of the Left headline the Off The Cuff Festival at The Flapper, Birmingham, on July 29. For full line-up and tickets visit www.offthecuffbirmingham.co.uk

Post punk Welsh wizards Future of the Left are revered for their effervescent live shows and have just returned with their third – and finest – album to boot. David Vincent speaks to sharp-witted frontman Andy Falkous ahead of their hotly-anticipated headline appearance at this month’s Off The Cuff Festival in Birmingham.

“We didn’t sit down and set out to do something about the riots last year or the Olympics, simply they were just out there, they were pressed on our brains,”

THE FUTURE IS NOW

For your chance to win a pair of three-day tickets to Off The Cuff 2012, worth £58, visit www.brumnotes.com

COMPETITION

Access to Music has over 20 years experience of delivering quality music technology.

the place formusic technology

• Music Technology (live and studio sound engineering)

• Music Composition (programming and production)

OPEN DAY: Weds 11 July - 5pm-7pmApply online now at: accesstomusic.co.ukMore info on: freephone 0800 28 18 42

the UK’s leading popular music college

birmingham Heath Mill Studios, 68 Heath Mill Lane, Digbeth, B9 4AR

Dedicate yourself to music! Apply now for courses starting this September.

• Music Performance (writing, recording and performing music)

• Artist Development (the ultimate A&R experience)

We also offer:> Music Business> Intro to Popular Music> Music Educator> Music Business 2-year Degree> Music Performance 2-year Degree

the place formusic performance


livEDJANGO DJANGOO2 Academy 2, Birmingham06/06/12

One of the few joys about living in 2012 is the vast wealth of music that’s just sitting there waiting for us to gobble it all up. With-in seconds we can access everything from Mongolian throat singing through to experi-mental death jazz. Unsurprisingly, therefore, there are bands out there who’ve presum-ably been munching away at all this free music since birth, creating some truly gen-re-defying groups. Tonight, playing their first ever Birmingham gig, Django Django outed themselves as one of them. Here’s the evidence. There’s the twangy spaghetti western of WOR, the trippy harmony heavy Waveforms, the Egyp-tian prog (yes, really) of Skies Over Cairo and the Beta Band-meets-60s beat bands of Default. They’ve yet to perfect the throat singing but hey, it’s early days, eh? Given the mercurial nature of the music, the band’s performance was spot on too with everyone bar the drummer swapping instruments including the world’s biggest tambourine (well, almost) and a pair of co-conut shells. Nuts. If you’re vainly looking to categorise them the Beta Band have to be a major influence (unsurprisingly one of the band’s big brother’s was actually in the Betas) but to be honest you could pick out anyone from Link Wray to Kraftwerk and no one could disagree. Proof perhaps that pop has finally well and truly eaten itself?Daron BillingsPhoto by Wayne Fox Photography

TOWNS + Sulk + Eat Y’self Pretty + Young Men DeadThe Flapper, Birmingham16/6/12

Young Men Dead opened proceedings and with heavy pounding bass lines and deep brooding vocals and, complete with

screaming gaggle, gave the night a prom-ising start. This was a big night too for Eat Y’self Pretty. Their EP We Are The Morally Untidy was due out the following Monday and this coveted support slot was to be the release show for said record. They’re a band with a rapidly growing fan base and it’s not hard to see why. Exciting and quick, they swam through their four-track EP and requited the crowd with a one-song en-core. The hollowing vocals of the final track Heartwings demonstrates the full extent of their early potential. Each song lives in its own dimension live, synths distributed sym-pathetically throughout and then executed with acute guile. Played by Radio 1 and fea-tured in the Independent, EYP already have a fair few accolades of which to be proud and, with the quality of performance on show tonight, it’s difficult to see how there won’t be many, many more to follow.Sulk did anything but their epithet when they took the stage, all the swagger of every 90s

Britpop band breathing a (well needed) fire up the arse of a genre that died about 10 or 15 years ago. Many bands have come and gone (and some are still unfortunately around) that may as well have been an Oa-sis cover band. Not Sulk, sure the guitars have resemblance to what’s gone before and the vocals seem to ring an eerie bell, but it’s different this time. A crowd invasion mid-set and wild dancing towards the front pretty much sum up their live show, many things can be said about the style of Sulk’s music but they pull it off with ease. Hotly-tipped headliners and Weston-super-Mare’s finest Towns ended proceedings, producing a sharp tight set to a miniature army of ardent fans. Shoegaze (or should that be shoe wave?) seemed to rule the night, highlighted somewhat by a rapport between Towns and said army, involving waving a shoe above your head. Shoe-wav-ing aside, Towns earned their headline slot; ‘shoegaze meets baggy’, the Guardian New

Django Django

23July 2012

Band of the Day article read, and it’s hard to disagree.A state of controlled frenzy seems the right description for the latter two bands and they both seem to have the right mix of ‘MY BAND’S THE BEST BAND IN THE WORLD’ attitude and a certain mesmeris-ing grace that is difficult to describe.Joe Whitehouse

JOHNNY KOWALSKI & THE SExY WEIRDOSThe End @ The Ballroom, Birmingham15/06/2012

An infectious excitement and a great deal of anticipation perspires from the glands of an already sweaty audience as the fans’ ram-bunctious behaviour demonstrates the more than willing attitude to indulge in Friday night revelry. They cheer heartily and rejoice as Mr Kowalski takes the stage accompanied by his band of Sexy Weirdos. The audience is promptly bombarded with lively Balkan rhythms, expressive Yiddish melodies and Johnny’s loud, punk-like DIY vocals. Their use of extraordinary eastern klezmer music coupled with the unpreten-tiousness and fun loving attitude of ska alongside the inherent blaring dynamic of punk means The Sexy Weirdos are an ex-plosive and bizarre concoction that fuels and inspires pure lunacy.They playfully own the stage with their con-tagious energy to which every band member contributes. As the trombone slide is extend-ed into the manic faces of the front row of the audience, the happy footed fiddler dances and performs among the crowd. Feet start to skank and pints are hastily drunk, and the event is transformed into a gypsy carnival of fun and merry-making. “I AM RIGHTEOUS!” blurts mutton-chopped Johnny in a vocal to and fro with

the audience and his jolly band mates. “I AM RIGHTEOUS!” they reply convincingly with eagerness and volume. These frequent par-ticipatory moments conjoin the band’s ener-gy and the audience’s and, when combined with high tempos and accented rhythms, they demonstrate that this music causes the need to jump up and down or sway arm in arm with your drunken brethren. After a vigorous 11-song set the band face the audience, join arms and start singing an ever so familiar melody led by the golden tuba held high. The tempo increases and eyes widen as the audience realise that the encore is the Tetris theme tune. And as the Russian knee bending ensues, the band animate themselves one last time, for these festivities must come to an end, at least until Johnny Kowalski and his sexy weirdo circus come to town again.Guy HirstPhoto by Tish Jarrett

MAxïMO PARKThe Glee Club, Birmingham06/06/12

The Glee Club, with perspiration dripping from the ceiling, was a sight to see.By the time Newcastle’s favourite sons made it onto the stage, the heat had been cranked up another notch and, with Paul Smith’s erratic dancing and the band’s post-punk tendencies, it was only going to get hotter.The burning desire for Maxïmo Park to set out their political stall on their latest album, The National Health, meant they rattled through tracks at an alarming pace, pleasing the crowd with old tracks before unleash-ing the new songs on unsuspecting ears.Kicking off with their fourth album’s title track and the catchy Hips and Lips, before switch-ing back to Graffiti and Girls Who Play Gui-tars, the band made sure they road tested new material as well as knocking the dust off their older tracks.Chatting with the crowd, Smith was clearly loving getting back into the swing of things after his solo album showed his softer side, pacing around the stage and dancing like a madman.A highlight for new songs was The Under-currents and the wonderfully titled This Is What Becomes of the Broken Hearted, while Wraithlike, Books From Boxes and Limas-sol showed why the crowd loved them in the first place.After ending with Our Velocity, the band returned for an encore of Parisian Skies, Waves of Fear and, of course, Apply Some Pressure.The only problem Maxïmo Park are going to have in future if they keep writing albums

as good as The National Health appears to be how to fit all their songs into one set list. Jon Pritchard

MAC MILLERHMV Institute, Birmingham26/05/12

Seven mix tapes deep and with a freshly re-leased studio album under his belt, Mac Mill-er has radically blossomed from small town local sensation to internet extraordinaire, pocketing impressive eight figure views on YouTube and an extremely adoring fan base along the way. Miller explodes onto the stage tonight with opening song Blue Slide Park. Taken aback by his incredibly energetic stage presence, hysteria is caused amongst the overexcit-ed young crowd as Miller continues cas-cading them into a high tempo, dumb fun, party frenzy. Even with a slight sound glitch that unluckily occurs in the middle of hit single Loud, Miller coolly controls the dislike by playing clas-sic audience games and entertaining them with his zesty wit, until the technical fault is overcome and cleanly forgotten.Demonstrating his diversity and impressive knowledge of hip hop, Miller pays tribute to declared childhood inspiration, late Beastie Boy member MCA, adding a feel of togeth-erness in the room while K.I.D.S. mixtape fa-vourites Nikes on my Feet, Kool Aid & Cold Pizza and Knock Knock contextualise the as-tounding success the youthful 20-year-old already possessed prior to his debut album.As the show comes to an end, it isn’t difficult to acknowledge why the clone-like fans are so admirable of the street-wearing, tattoo-sporting, grin-bearing kid. Though his mu-sic isn’t for everyone with much room for improvement, his electric stage presence, love for performance, music and his fans are all unmistakably first class.Ivy PhotiouPhoto by Jermaine Lloyd

Johnny Kowalski

Mac Miller


THE CASTILLIANSBodega, Birmingham23/06/2012

“This’ll be our last gig for a while, I’m mov-ing to America,” confesses drummer Dan-iel Finnemore before the band take to the stage. ‘Stage’ is grandiose – it’s a bit of floor space in the corner, and adorned in fairy lights and surrounded by fans, it’s the most novel setting for a gig. We’re in the basement bar of South American bar and restaurant Bodega, people are eating bur-ritos and everybody’s really fucking ready for the performance, supported by The Cedar House Band. The Cedar House Band, though in the ven-ue, do not materialise to perform (and with drink more than fluidly flowing and no expla-nation provided, one can only guess why), and thus The Castillians are left to warm up the crowd and bring down the house all on their own - not that they need to because their audience is more than ready for them. Nevertheless, they do so superbly. Describ-ing themselves as a somewhat ambiguous ‘garage pop’, The Castillians really are much better than that – they’re all the good parts of the Beach Boys and Jefferson Airplane, and The La’s and managing to sound some-thing akin to Marty Wilde in the process. But

a little more rock and roll. The band really are impressive tonight – they’re a fantastic sounding group in a great looking venue (which really should be used for events like this more often) and thus it’d be a real shame if what Finnemore says is true. We can only praise The Castillians for their sterling performance tonight and hope to see them kicking about town again soon.Amy Sumner

EDITORSHMV Institute, Birmingham26/06/12

Editors could probably have sold out two nights at the HMV Institute in their adopt-ed hometown just by playing on their own. But by handpicking their support acts in the form of four bands taken from the very cream of Birmingham’s emerging talent, they ensured it. Tonight, locals Free School and Peace take to the stage to warm up the already hot-with-anticipation crowd, the following night the duty falls to Victories at Sea and Swim Deep. And surely, as Editors appear to the roaring appreciation of their fans, the thoughts running through the heads of these bands must only be those of ambition. Silhouetted against a backdrop of hazy,

coloured lights, Editors storm their way through three albums-worth of really mas-sive sounding songs, the effects of which are only heightened by the surrounding adoration. The weighting between their albums is evenly balanced and when lead singer Tom Smith steps up to the microphone to in-form Birmingham, “yep, missed you too”, he could hardly have asked for a more appreciative response. In fact there is such a frenzied atmosphere in the room tonight, that even when he sits down at his piano mid-stage, there is abso-lutely no danger whatsoever of the band do-ing a Coldplay. Which is always reassuring. Tonight, Editors play their only live dates this year, and you can tell – both they and their fans are on fire. This is a band whose sound has always outstripped their status – they aren’t a stadium band yet. However, by putting in thoroughly impres-sive performances like this, there is no rea-son that, given another album or so, they cannot surpass their nearest rivals.Amy SumnerPhotos by Gobinder Jhitta

25July 2012

pridE

BIRMINGHAM PRIDE 2012Gay Village, various venues02-03/06/12

More than 90,000 people from across the UK descended on Birmingham’s Gay Village for Pride 2012.

The event featured more than 100 acts and DJs across five arenas and included a head-line performance by glam girl band The Sat-urdays, alongside other star names including Stooshe, Kerry Katona and Judge Jules.

The festival launched with a colourful car-nival parade which set off from Victoria Square, with more than 50,000 spectators watching the spectacle as it wound its way to Hurst Street.

A record number of visitors filled the streets around Birmingham’s Gay Village on the Saturday, while thousands more braved Sunday’s rain to turn out in force again.

Lawrence Barton, Birmingham Pride’s fes-tival director, said: “Overall, the feedback we’re getting has been tremendous about

this year’s event – particularly the biggest ever carnival parade, together with the at-mosphere on the Community Village Green on the Saturday, in the cabaret marquee, on the main stage and in the women’s arena.

“The entertainment offer this year was by far the best ever and the most diverse. And despite the miserable weather on the Sun-day, many thousands still came out to show their support.”

Birmingham Pride 2013 will take place on May 25 and 26. Pictures by Jane Williams

www.wordsandimages.org.uk


STylE LONDON COLLECTIONS:MEN SS13This year saw the very first London Collections: Men, a three-day fashion event held in various London ven-ues showcasing the creative and commercial impor-tance of Britain’s emerging fashion talent and their de-signs for Spring/Summer 2013. The weekend kicked off with HRH The Prince of Wales hosting a reception to celebrate the launch of the event and the shows were adorned with buyers, press and VIPs, followed by an abundance of after parties held at London’s most exclusive venues.

From tailored vintage to tropical and colourful, there was a great variety throughout all the shows and pres-entations, and the event was undoubtedly a huge suc-cess on the Fashion 2012 calender.

Here are some images of our favourite chosen col-lections...

KATIE EARY MAN

CHRISTOPHER SHANNON JAMES LONG

PRINGLE OF SCTOLANDSUPERDRY AND TIMOTHY EVERESTRICHARD NICOLL

Imag

es c

ourt

esy

of J

ade

Suk

iya

and

Eva

Sal

vi.

27July 2012

Q. How would you describe your style?A. I’d say quite a modern gentleman look crossed with tramp.

Q. Where do you get your inspiration from?A. I get a lot of inspiration from a lot of the old hardcore and post punk bands who used to dress quite smartly mixed with a bit of the current tailored look.

Q. Who are your style icons?A. I suppose people like Vincent Gallo, Cedric Bixler- Zavala, Daryl Palumbo, Steve Snere all have very cool styles.

Q. What is your favourite wardrobe item?A. Err... my blue Levi’s printed cardigan.

Q. What is your item of shame?A. I was once given a small, polyester red jacket by a friend a while back and I thought I liked it until I realised it was crap.

Q. Where is your favourite shop in Birmingham?A. There’s a shop I discovered more recently in Birmingham called A Too, their clothes are really cool and they’ve got this wicked little shop dog.

Q. What is next for SHAPES?A. We’re playing at 2000 Trees festival in Gloucestershire in the middle of July and we’ve got Off The Cuff coming up at The Flapper at the end of July.

RICHARDBUCKLEYSHAPES BASSIST RICHARD BUCKLEY TALKS TO US ABOUT HIS STYLE INFLUENCES FROM EARLY HARD-CORE BANDS AND WHY NOT TO ACCEPT CRAP JACKETS FROM FRIENDS WHO HAVEN’T GOT ANY STYLE.

SHAPES HEADLINE OFF THE CUFF 2012 AT THE FLAPPER ON JULY 27. FIND OUT MORE AT WEARESHAPES.COM.

SHOESVintage

SHIRTVintage

COATPierre Cardin

BAGRiver Island

TOPMAN£70.00

TOPMAN£30.00

BURTON£25.00

RIVER ISLAND£40.00

RIVER ISLAND£32.00

H&M£12.99

JEANSLevi’s

WATCHStorm

BURTON£38.00

URBAN OUTFITTERS£49.00

A TOO£97.00 NEXT

£99.00


fOOd+

driNkprizE-wiNNiNg COCkTailSWhile superb customer service is without a doubt the top attrib-ute needed in a great bartender, knowledge and an enthusiasm for drinks is near the top of the list.

A bartender who is passionate about the drinks they serve and the products they use will be able to elevate what can be just a rather uninteresting spirit and a mixer into something worth leaving the house for.

Our bartenders possess an enthusiasm for their service that we’re really proud of. They’re hungry to know more and show how a few ordinary ingredients can be combined and transformed to make a damn fine drink. So we set them a challenge.

Earlier in the year we dared them to come up with their own cock-tails and pitted bartender against bartender to see whose crea-tion would win.

The bartenders really got into the competition, creating drinks based on their own personal influences, using rum, gin and tequila and vari-ous other spirits; their imaginations knew no bounds. After nearly 10 weeks of competition we counted up whose cocktail was the most popular, with our own duty manager Katie Rouse (pictured) being crowned victorious.

Katie’s winning cocktail was her first foray into cocktail creating. Based on traditional confectionary and reminiscent of the great

British summertime, her Rhu-barb & Custard cocktail com-bined dark rum, rhubarb bitters and vanilla schnapps. It’s de-liciously indulgent and tastes just like the sweets.

Enjoy responsibly!

By Julian Rose-Gibbs, general manager at The Victoria, John Bright Street, Birmingham. For info visit thevictoriabirmingham.co.uk.

recipe: rhubarb & CuSTard COCkTailIngredients: 50ml Goslings rum2 dashes of rhubarb bitters25ml of half and half (half milk, half cream)5ml orgeat (almond syrup)5ml sugar syrup15ml vanilla schnapps

Directions: Shake all the ingredients with cubed ice and fine strain into a martini glass. Garnish with a vanilla sugar rim.

Recipe by Katie Rouse, duty manager at The Victoria

29July 2012

KEY TO LISTINGS:M = LIVE MUSICCN = CLUB NIGHTC = COMEDYwhaT’S ON

Sunday, Jul 1

M Adrenaline Mob O2 Academy 2 Birmingham

M Sunday Session open mic

The Flapper Birmingham

M Kyoto Drive The Slade Rooms Wolverhampton

CN Below Daytime Party

The Rainbow Birmingham

CN Brian Travers Sun-day Social

Bull’s Head Moseley

Monday, Jul 2

M Lights O2 Academy 2 Birmingham

M Garbage Civic Hall Wolverhampton

CN Jam Jah Reggae Bull’s Head Moseley

Tuesday, Jul 3

M School of Rock & Pop Showcase

O2 Academy 3 Birmingham

Wednesday, Jul 4

M Futureproof The Ballroom Birmingham

M Gabrielle Aplin The Temple @ HMV Institute

Birmingham

M Speak Up With Jodi Ann Bickley

Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

M Eve Selis Robin 2 Bilston

M De La Soul Kasbah Coventry

CN Moschino Hoes Ver-sace Hotties

The Victoria Birmingham

Thursday, Jul 5

M Acoustic Lounge Island Bar Birmingham

M Diamond Head The Slade Rooms Wolverhampton

M Your Demise Kasbah Coventry

CN Manhattan Loft The Victoria Birmingham

CN Tropicalia Bull’s Head Moseley

C Dave Fulton The Glee Club Birmingham

C Lloyd Langford Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

Friday, Jul 6

M Roxette LG Arena Birmingham

M Swamp Snakes The Actress & Bishop

Birmingham

M Jiya The End @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

M Futures The Temple @ HMV Institute

Birmingham

M Under Blackened Skies


M Camila Kill Bull’s Head Moseley

CN Eargasm 78 Bar Birmingham

CN Takin Care of Busi-ness

Island Bar Birmingham

CN Remedy Jekyll & Hyde Birmingham

CN Coolio The Rainbow Garden

Birmingham

CN Hot Wax The Victoria Birmingham

CN Le Lieu Present French Fries


CN Freestyle Bull’s Head Moseley

C Highlight Comedy Highlight Birmingham

C Kill for a Seat Com-edy Club

Mac Birmingham


C Richard Sandling The Glee Club Birmingham

Saturday, Jul 7

M The Destroyers Mac Birmingham

M Sunrise Over Europe + Bad Apes


M Butterfly Stone The End @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

M Arcane Roots Kasbah Coventry

CN The Only Way is Hardcore

Air Birmingham

CN Hype feat Datsik HMV Institute Birmingham

CN Panic! HMV Institute Birmingham

CN Looking Glass Bur-lesque


CN Dr Jekyll’s Potion Jekyll & Hyde Birmingham

CN 1 Night Stand - The Payback Party

Subway City Birmingham

CN Subculture - The Zombie All-Nighter

The Ballroom Birmingham

CN Machine The End @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

CN Mish Mash The Library @ HMV Institute

Birmingham

CN Beat Down (all ages club night)

The Other Room @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

CN Juqebox The Rose Villa Tavern

Birmingham

CN Bruk Up Hare & Hounds Kings Heath



Sunday, Jul 8

M Free Love Club Island Bar Birmingham

M Rams Pocket Radio O2 Academy 3 Birmingham

M Brains for Breakfast The Flapper Birmingham

M Arrows Of Love Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

CN Rumour Club PST Birmingham



Monday, Jul 9

M Brian Jonestown Massacre



M Baroness O2 Academy 3 Birmingham

M Martin Stephenson Robin 2 Bilston


Tuesday, Jul 10

C Cheeky Monkey Comedy Club

The Cross Moseley

Wednesday, Jul 11

M Paul Heaton St Pauls Church Birmingham

M Sharon Van Etten The Glee Club Birmingham

M The Formula Robin 2 Bilston

Thursday, Jul 12


M Canterbury The Flapper Birmingham

M Andrew Duhon & Kara Grainger


M Misty’s Big Adven-ture


M The Steve Gibbons Band

Robin 2 Bilston



C Pete Johansson The Glee Club Birmingham

Friday, Jul 13

M The Real Detonators

The Flapper Kings Heath

M BASS Festival pre-sents Junior Murvin


CN Demondubz - Chamber of Filth

Club PST Birmingham

CN This is Tmrw Island Bar Birmingham


CN We Love DnB Rainbow Warehouse

Birmingham

CN Shuffle The Victoria Birmingham

CN Jam Hott Club Pre-sent New Jack City & DJ Mylz



C Jongleurs Comedy Club

Jongleurs Birmingham


Saturday, Jul 14

M Making Maisie The Flapper Birmingham

M Coffee & Cakes For Funerals

The Adam & Eve Birmingham

M Exide The End @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

M The Legendary Shack Shakers

The Temple @ HMV Institute

Birmingham

M Goodnight Lenin Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

M The Dogs D’amour The Slade Rooms Wolverhampton

CN Neither Nor Island Bar Birmingham


CN FACE presents Fuse The Rainbow Birmingham

CN Jungle Fever vs Amazon

The Rainbow Complex

Birmingham

CN Loose Joints with DJ Kaminski

The Rose Villa Tavern

Birmingham

CN Soul Food Sound-system


CN High Fidelity Hare & Hounds Kings Heath



Sunday, Jul 15

M Wu Legends HMV Institute Birmingham


M Sunday Session open mic




Monday, Jul 16

M Nite Jewel O2 Academy 3 Birmingham

M Toyah Hare & Hounds Kings Heath


Tuesday, Jul 17

M Lady Antebellum O2 Academy Birmingham

M Uneven Structure The Actress & Bishop

Birmingham

Wednesday, Jul 18

M Orange O2 Academy 3 Birmingham

M Canterbury The Flapper Birmingham

C Rhys Darby Town Hall Birmingham

Thursday, Jul 19


M Mellow Peaches Mac Birmingham

M Carlou D Hare & Hounds Kings Heath



C Daniel Sloss The Glee Club Birmingham

C Nick Doody Edin-burgh Preview


Friday, Jul 20

M The Low Anthem Mac Birmingham

M Rising Struggle The Actress & Bishop

Birmingham

M Dirty Mindz The End @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

M Village Green Ma-chine


M School Of Seven Bells

The Slade Rooms Wolverhampton

CN Takin Care of Busi-ness



CN Live Forever The Victoria Birmingham

CN Horse Meat Disco Hare & Hounds Kings Heath





Saturday, Jul 21

M The Words The Other Room @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

CN Function (Sandwell District)

Gibb Street Warehouse

Birmingham

CN Education in Sound Island Bar Birmingham


CN Random Xcitement Subway City Birmingham

CN Juqebox with Missy Rodriguez


Birmingham

CN Back to the Future The Victoria Birmingham

CN Moodymanc Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

31July 2012

CN UTC Presents Africa Hi-tech




Sunday, Jul 22


M One Beat Sunday feat The Carpels + Swim Deep

Mac Birmingham

M Shadows Chasing Ghosts


Monday, Jul 23

M Haiku Salut Island Bar Birmingham

M Fei Comodo O2 Academy 3 Birmingham

Tuesday, Jul 24

M The Champions Tour feat Chip + Lethal Bizzle

HMV Institute Birmingham

M Lera Lynn The Temple @ HMV Institute

Birmingham

M Nanci Griffith Town Hall Birmingham

C Joe Lycett The Victoria Birmingham

Wednesday, Jul 25

M Frank Rose O2 Academy 3 Birmingham

M As Cities Burn The Ballroom Birmingham

M Fingerstyle Collec-tive


Thursday, Jul 26


M Charlotte Carpenter Mac Birmingham

M We Are Saviours The Ballroom Birmingham

M Viper Central Hare & Hounds Kings Heath



C Lucy Porter The Glee Club Birmingham

Friday, Jul 27

M Shades The Actress & Bishop

Birmingham

M Weatherbird The End @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

M Off The Cuff Festival (Shapes headline)


M Betty & the ID Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

CN This is Tmrw Island Bar Birmingham

CN Dr Jekyll’s Remedy Jekyll & Hyde Birmingham

CN AUM presents Mark Anxious


CN Discographic with Steve Jones


Birmingham

CN Stanley Court Col-lective


CN Milk & Honey Club Hare & Hounds Kings Heath



C Tom Deacon The Glee Club Birmingham

Saturday, Jul 28

M Looca The Actress & Bishop

Birmingham

M Puressence The Ballroom Birmingham

M Off The Cuff Festi-val (Three Trapped Tigers headline)


M Drongos For Europe The Wagon & Horses

Birmingham

M Deborah Bond Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

CN DJ Henry Evans Island Bar Birmingham


CN Resurrection feat The Twang DJ set

Subway City Birmingham

CN FACE presents Richy Ahmed


CN Juqebox The Rose Villa Tavern

Birmingham

CN Education in Sound The Victoria Birmingham

CN Tribe Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

CN Tribe Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

CN MOVE Bull’s Head Moseley


C Tom Deacon The Glee Club Birmingham

Sunday, Jul 29


M Off The Cuff Festi-val (Future of the Left headline)


M Jonah Matranga Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

Monday, Jul 30

M Jamaican Legends Alexandra Theatre Birmingham


Tuesday, Jul 31

M Jenny O Hare & Hounds Kings Heath

Paper Shapes | Dive Exit | The One Twos


presents

O2 ACADEMY2 BIRMINGHAMFRIDAY 26 OCTOBER

DOORS: 6PM / CURFEW: 10PM / £6 ADV

facebook.com/dakotabeatsband | facebook.com/papershapesfacebook.com/DiveExit | facebook.com/TheOneTwos

Buy tickets now from:o2academybirmingham.co.uk

0844 477 2000 (24hr)

in association with Academy Events

BN1206 BrumNotes Presents Dakota Beats A6.indd 1 13/06/2012 20:34


Sales & Information0121 446 3232 www.macarts.co.uk

Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham, B12 9QH

M u s i c Ext r avaga n zaOutdoor Arenamac birmingham proudly presents

THE LOW ANTHEMONE BEAT SUNDAYSUN 22 JUL

THE CARPELSSWIM DEEPPlus dj sets, vintage clothing, outdoor bar & BBQ

Moseley Folk Festival & mac birmingham present

Have some fun in the sun (or rain)THE Destroyers Sheelanagig&Sat

JulTickets

TicketsGet Your

One Beat Records, Birmimgham Promoters and mac birmingham proudly present a day-long music festival

Get YourAll Day

£15 (£12)

£10 All Ages& More

7.30PM

7.30PM

3PM

OutdoorArena{ }

brum notes magazine july 2012

Documents

advthe damned

advthe rasmus

advthe hives

advthe maine

birmingham pride

pmthe cult

anniversary tour

pmthe enemy