vibrations april. smallest

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V i b r a t i o n s M a g a z i n e

L e e d s a n d W e s t Y o r k s h i r e

A p r i l 2 0 1 2

F r e e

April Document 3.0.indd 1 02/05/2012 23:12


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04 Editorial

06 British Wildlife Festival

08 Hawk Eyes

12 Sam Airey

15 Leeds Fest with Melvyn Benn

17 Passport Control

19 New Pose - Old School Fanzine

20 The Spills

24 Honour Before Glory

28 Reviews

34 Live Reviews

38 Wombeatz - This Women’s Work

Vibrations is

Editor

Rob Wright - [email protected]

Design

Ben McKean & Niall Hargrave

[email protected]

Picture Editor

Bart Pettman - bart @vibrations.org.uk

Reviews Editor

Steve Walsh - [email protected]

Live Editor

Tim Hearson - [email protected]

Web Editor

Mike Price - [email protected]

Web Design

Sam Hainsworth - [email protected]

Advertising

Tony Wilby - [email protected]

Founded and Published by

Tony Wilby - [email protected] Simpson - [email protected]

www.vibrations.org.uk

Contributors

Tom Martin, Rob Wright, Steve Walsh, Bart Pettman, TimHearson, Neil Dawson, Mike Price, Benjamin Maney, Ellie

Treagust, Aaron Jones, Carl Fleischer, Jade Till, Rochelle

Massey, Sam Saunders, Emma Quinlan, Giles Smith, Greg

Elliott, Chris Ensell, Benjamin Rutledge, Martin Haley,

Jonathan Lees, Jenessa Williams, Stacie Lloyd, Hana

Walker-Brown, Gary Wolstenholme, Kate Wellham.

Cover Photograph

Hawk Eyes by Tom Martin

The Search

Vibrations is looking for

Advertisers - 2000 magazines seen by music lovers across

Leeds. Contact [email protected]

Writers, Photographers, Artists and Sub editors - Come be

a part of it, contact [email protected]

Send demos in to:

Steve Walsh

Vibrations Magazine

Eiger StudiosNew Craven Gate Industrial Estate

Leeds




Hello readers,

This is my second, possibly third attempt at an editorial asthe rst two were shit. I’m not promising anything more for

this one, but I’m hoping it has more gags and swearing in

it than the last two, which were almost free of both. That, I

think you’ll agree, just won’t do.

Another reason for another bite at the cherry is that this

issue is so choc full of quality writing, photography and

design that I feel I would be insulting the efforts of all

concerned by turning in a half arsed piece of work.

It should be whole arsed or nothing.

I mean, just look at this quality publication. Go on, closeit up, ogle the ne looking gentlemen on the front, feel

the quality of the paper, marvel at the suitability of the

typeface, then search for the price.

Still looking? That’s right, you won’t nd one.

Then once you’ve nished this go through the mag from

start to nish – you don’t even have to stop to take a piss

as the size of Vibrations is designed specically to be held

one handed, leaving the other hand to... no, stop that.

That’s just not right. Oh, you dirty bugger.

Are you nished? Good, then I shall continue. Ourincumbent government is currently doing it’s level best to

strip the joy from everyone’s life (look, I’m all for a price

per unit approach to alcohol as long as it literally means

just that – 40p a unit, so a pint of Abbot Ale would be

£2.00 – a perfectly acceptable price. Jaipur IPA would be

just under 2.40 and that I could denitely live with) and

provide us with quite frankly shoddy value for money (I

know my minimum wage will incur less tax, but I’m going

to end up spending the difference made on overpriced

under brewed beers – thanks a lot, Camel-leg) but we

here at Vibrations towers are dedicated, yes DEDICATED

to providing the same value that we always have.

Let me present you with a little equation. Stephen

Hawkins said that you lose half your readership for every

equation you include so... glad you stuck around, both of

you, but I’m going to lose one of you now:

Quality of product over price of product equals value.

Well, all you mathematicians out there should know that

if you divide any number (except zero) by zero you get

innity (actually, I’ve had a few arguments about this: if

you divide zero by zero, do you get one? Think on that, if

you will) so considering that you paid nothing, nip, zilch,nix, nish pence for this publication, you are holding in your

hand... innite value.

Well, fuck my old boots.

I hope you realise how lucky you are to be able to touch

the innite on a bimonthly basis, and here at Vibrations

Towers we will endeavour to provide the same level of

quality Every. Bloody. Time.

Now before I let you off the hook, a few hello/goodbyes.

First off, say ‘hello’ to our new designers, Ben and Niall –

I think you’ll agree that they’ve done a stirling job – long

may they reign! And goodbye to Leeds Guide, cruelly

cut off in its prime by... venture capitalists, I shouldn’t

wonder. Booooooooo!

Nearly done. A couple of festivals to note for different

reasons: Live at Leeds promises to be a ne affair again

this year – I may venture out, but I am afraid I am too

old to do the marathon dash around that is L@L – might

just hole up in a venue and drink until they ask me

politely to leave because I haven’t got an armband and

a small puddle is gathering around my feet; and that

Peter Waterman debacle, Shit Factory Live – Steps,

2untalented, Jason Pissing Donovan, Rick Cocking

Astley? WTF? When there is no more room in hell, the

dead will walk the earth. Stay in Leeds and go and see

some quality old school bands, like Human League,

Heaven 17 and The Levellers (guilty pleasure – greatlive band) at M Fest – yes, Morrison’s; I know, hard

to believe, but there’ll be some top scran too – very

important for a man of my expanding girth.

So off you go – enjoy the mag. If you really like it, think

about getting involved – be part of the innite...

Rob Wright

Ed with god-complex

5

I m a g e b y C a r l F l e i s c h e r




Herein be a recollection of the sixth and

nal British Wildlife Festival. May she

rest in peace. Feel free to reect on theseheart-warming and tting testimonials from

Benjamin Maney, Ellie Treagust and Steve

Walsh. Oh well, there’s always Brainwash…

Friday 2 March – Brudenell Social Club

First up, Super Luxury, a lo- four piece that started

their set with warm up screams and discordant guitar

noise leading into a murky opening number. No tricks,

frills, or melody. I suppose the pre-gig stretches should’ve

forewarned the crowd that the front-man would spend

the set in amongst them, wailing from table tops, with noregard for the microphone lead that got entangled around

at least ve throats. It’s all fun and games ‘til someone

gets decapitated, boys.

Bad Guys. Double-headed guitars, bright red jumpsuits,

classic, clever metal. They manage to use droning

interludes - often detrimental to a live show’s atmosphere

- perfectly. So much so that one of their breaks led to a

distinctly prog rock outro that must’ve lasted 17 minutes.

Imagine if you will, the most painful headache of your life.

Now, imagine really quite enjoying it... Ultimate Thrush,

as I can best describe them. Three people shouldn’tbe able to make such a huge sound, but with the help

of a small clarinet and a chaos pad, they master short,

gut-punching post-punk, not for the faint hearted or those

prone to hyperventilation... Somewhere in rural Austria,

Mozart turned in his grave as the clarinet was desecrated

in such an innovative fashion.

Three girls, one guy? Divorce’s music was even lthier

than an adult lm titled thus would undoubtedly be. The

tone got lower and the crowd moved in when their home

grown brand of captivating debauchery took hold. The

inevitable brawl broke out in the crowd, mirroring the

unharnessed adrenaline of the head thrashing alt-punk-

metal-hardcore/indenable-brashness.

Finally, if ‘live via satellite’ is the future of live music,

then it should ALWAYS be Disasteradio. Playing a set

containing the most cheerful electronica ever made,

headlining for the darkest metal bands on the planet.

Because it’d ALWAYS be this hilarious.

Benjamin Maney

Saturday 3 March – Brudenell Social Club/Royal Park

Cellars

Well, what a varied programme Saturday was. It was

reassuring to experience a festival at the Brudenell/

Royal Park where the acts didn’t all sound the same.

That doesn’t mean they were all good, but any line-up

that includes Yugoslavian Boys smacks of somethingreasonably radical. The programmed 6.30 start might

have been a little early for their set (which involved the

destruction of various food stuffs) but they were already

running late. Their set included sh ngers, two salami

batons, chips, a tuna sandwich, four drummers (two

of which were wearing son-of-God themed robes), a

cowboy, a mod, one assassin and a lot of pink hair. I’d

be tempted to suggest their musical variation between

songs is none too important to them or the crowd, but

they were easily the most entertaining band of the day.

They screamed and cavorted their way through the set

and despite having doubled in size since I last saw them,

it wasn’t to add diversity, just to add drums. Immense.

Teeth of the Sea provided a very different slant on the

playing of songs, both musically and practically. I do

approve of their stage lay-out (all members in one line

across the front) and although they threw their all into a

typically electronic set, I couldn’t get as excited as they

were. Their music did have a decent all-encompassing

quality to it, but more in a physical sense than anything

else; it felt a little like we were underwater. Unlike

Yugoslavian Boys, this for me is one band that is best

served recorded.

The next band, Cold Pumas, I knew absolutely nothingabout, but they turned out to be another of the night’s

pleasant discoveries. They played motorik rhythms

packaged up in an indie image (which did not do them

justice) to a slightly unresponsive crowd (who also did

not do them justice). There were some pretty soulless

sounding vocals that echoed over the music, but as a set,

it was far more absorbing than Teeth of the Sea. The only

downside was that they could be viewed as a little dull

compared to some of the other bands present, but for me

the diversity was very much appreciated.

Next were Hookworms, who brought an entire shipment

of ‘60s psychadelic rock with them. And it was loud. Very,

very loud. There was a lot of reverb. In my notes from the

set I have written “Oh wow a song ended. Oh wait, no it

didn’t.” I don’t remember any actual moments of silence.

It was at this stage that I regretted not bringing any

earplugs (but what’s rock and roll about that?). They got

very into their music which is denitely a good thing, but

unfortunately I did not.

Resolutions were quickly dashed by Blacklisters, and I

haven’t seen many worse bands at the Brudenell (apart

from maybe Shining at 2010’s Brainwash). There was

such an irritating wave of arrogant nonchalance that camefrom the singer and it was impossible to focus just on the

music, and for a while I was wondering whether it was

6




performed in all sincerity. One begins to wonder what the

point of writing lyrics is if you’re just going to shout them.

Why not just shout? It would be easier. To quote John

Betjeman, “I’m sure it’s all done with the best possible

intentions,” but it did just throw me back to my Trivium-

infused younger teenage years.

And nally, the very late headliners Zun Zun Egui.

With their usual bizarre mix of styles, languages and

footwear, it’s hard to know which genre to dene this

band by. Of all the groups that performed this evening,they came across as the most sophisticated (though I

suspect this is because they are). It’s reected in their

song writing ability, which has them building up songs

out of a great many layers and elements. The songs are

pretty unpredictable and half the time I have no idea what

he is singing about (because it’s in a different language,

not because he’s shouting). I’ve seen them create more

atmosphere than this before, but it was the end of the

night and running very late. Apart from Yugoslavian Boys,

they were easily the most interesting band of the day.

Ellie Treagust

Sunday 4 March - Oporto

The last day of the last British Wildlife Festival? Say it

ain’t so, Adam….

The jagged math rock of Magnapinna gets things

underway. They play a dry, gnarly kind of funk that feels

like you should be able to dance to it but in doing so

would surely lead to multiple dislocations. Fortunately that

leaves the synapses in your brain free to revel in the joys

of band’s explosive, unpredictable music.

Manchester sextet Stanger Son utilise a brace of

keyboards and extensive percussion to open with a

formless wash of noodling that threatens to disappear up

its own jack plug, until everything morphs into a gigantic,

driving kraut rocky groove that seems to stop prematurely

before it blows the roof off. Thereafter the band take

simple ideas and work each into a similarly epic but

controlled frenzy. Lanky singer Gareth Smith stands like

he should be holding a cigarette and reads rather than

sings his songs in a deadpan, detached voice. The music

and lyrics almost sound like they’re (partially at least)

improvised and songs seems to stop after a nod from

Smith rather than anything else.

Jeff T Smith may have abandoned his truck load of

instruments and effects pedals for this gig, but he’s still

trading as Juffage. So, apart from viola accompaniment

from Jenna Isherwood on the rst tune, it’s just Jeff, his

uncharacteristically reined-in guitar and his fantastically

quirky, idiosyncratic songs. And what a treat it turns out

to be. There always seemed to be a mismatch between

the live and recorded versions of Smith’s songs; it’s

quite a sight watching Smith assembling his live sheets

of noise but the racket does tend to detract from the

actual songs. Here, without even the minimal musical

backing used on debut album ‘Semicircle’, the songs

sound almost free form and invested with a fragiletension, Smith modulating the volume and attack of

his guitar and voice to create dramatic new readings of

the songs.

It’s difcult not to like the sound of Galaxians thumping

instrumental disco funk, but this duo of Jed Skinner on

synths and programming and Matt Woodward on drums

don’t really develop what they do much beyond the

opening bars of the rst tune.

On the other hand, Bearfoot Beware songs have so

many ideas and so much energy crammed into them,

they clearly nd it difcult to contain themselves in theirgiven form and sound like they’d be happy to throw

themselves off a cliff just for the hell of it. Guitarist

Tom Bradley and bassist Richard Vowden bounce

all over the stage when they’re not yelling into their

mic, and Michael Osbourne tries desperately to hold

everything together from his drum stool. It’s a thrilling,

riotous ride alright.

Shefeld quartet Wooderson have been knocking

around since 2008 but it’s hard to see how their

derivative guitar driven rock songs have managed to

sustain such a long career. The songs are built around

musical and lyrical clichés and seem devoid of any real

sense of dynamism. Dull.

London trio Gum Takes Tooth are well established

on the European noise rock circuit and provide atting

climax to the festival. Thomas Fuglesang and Jaxon

Paine play two drum kits with one wired up and the

sound fed through homemade electronic instruments

to be manipulated and messed about with by Jussi

Brightmore. The drums and treated noise produce a

gigantic sound that’s part noise ritual and part ecstatic

rave. Brightmore punches the air like a tripped out

DJ, his mangled vocals barely heard over thethundering drums.

Steve Walsh

7

I m a g e b y G i l e s S m i t h

B r i t i s h W i l d l i f e F

e s t i v a l




Last time we met them, we covered them in

mud and inadvertently showered them with

glory. Now it looks as if they are about to

take the world out for dinner and dancing

and seduce the hell out of it. Rob Wright tried

vainly to resist their charms in the name of

quality journalism...

I am not sure if ye olde man setting of The Victoria Hotel

is the best place for meeting one of Leeds’ most intense,ultra tech yet softly spoken metals bands, especially

seeing as it is a Saturday night and the place has

suddenly lled with suit-wearing, bellowing twats, but it

is handy for free parking on a Saturday night and serves

Dandelion and Burdock. This are the sorts of things you

start making decisions based on when you get old.

Though I am sure that I will not be thanked for this, Hawk

Eyes are no spring chickenhawks either – I have fond

but vague memories of them as they were one of the rst

bands I ever wrote a review of, back in 2005. One of them

wore a mask. That much I remember. I also remember

that Paul used to drum as well as sing, but now Matt Reidis in the band...

“Matt is no longer in Hawk Eyes,” announces Paul, whose

birthday is tonight (so you can imagine how popular I will

be as a result of keeping him from his irresponsibilities

and festivities). Woah, let me just get my head around

this. I’m surrounded on all sides by Hawk Eyes in this

dark wood panelled booth and don’t have a beer in my

hand, and if they keep laying announcements like that on

me, I may need something a little stronger than Dandelion

and Burdock. “It’s all totally sanctioned,” Paul reassures

me, “he’s just decided he wants to do something else,”

which seems entirely in keeping with Hawk Eyes’ ethos,

if there were such a thing. Stepping into Matt’s shoes will

be the absent Steve Wilson of Japanese Voyeurs fame.

Interesting times...

For the more keen eyed readers among you, I should

point out that this is not the rst time Paul, Rob and Ryan

have graced these pages. Back in 2009, they made the

cover with a picture from Danny North. Jokingly I suggest

this ‘made’ them.

“I think if we hadn’t got that at that time,” confesses Paul

quite sincerely, “after scurrying away for years and yearsfor basically our own benet and then all of a sudden

people, in this town especially, were saying ‘this is quite

good’... We’re really grateful for that. We genuinely are.” I

feel fairly thrown by this and have a strong urge to shufe

my notes or something. To cover my embarrassment, I go

on to say how, regardless of that, 2009 was a good year

for them anyway: a signing to Brew, a lively slot at Leeds,

the zombie video... and then an abrupt name change.

Rob laughs at this. “We don’t like to make things easy for

ourselves. The thing is...” he pauses almost dramatically,

“we didn’t really like the name and moving forward we

could see some... technical problems with it.”

Chickenhawk was a military operation in Vietnam which

is currently undergoing the celluloid treatment. It is also

an American term for a predatory gay man who likes

young guys.

“That as well,” says Rob uncomfortably, “if we wanted to

take our music over there... people talking about a band

called ‘Chickenhawk’ and all that connotation...” he lets it

hang for a moment, “but it wasn’t about pandering to what

we needed to do... it’s what we had to do ourselves.”

Hawk Eyes are very clear on this point – there is no grandscheme involved; in fact, Paul gets quite incensed about

the implication: “There’s never been a plan,” he says

rmly,” and we’ve been very lucky to get where we are –

we’ve worked hard – but we’ve never had the structure

and backing of... corporate music. We’ve got to where

we’ve got by doing a bit of this, a bit of that... and there’ve

been mistakes that we’ve made... yeah, it’s been pretty

messy, but unless you’re actually geeky enough to go and

read about it, you’re never going to know how messy it’s

been... but that’s possibly why we still exist.”

Even though they say there is/was no plan, the (almost)

re-release of their debut album, ‘Chickenhawk’ as Modern

Bodies did seem to have a certain... shape to it?

“We got picked up by this management company,” says

Paul, “they asked ‘what have you got?’ We played them

the CD and they said ‘has anybody heard it?’ So they

wanted to rerelease it... and we were totally against it.”

So much so that they don’t actually count Modern Bodies

as a separate studio album. Paul sighs. “It felt like...

stalling, not going forward or backward, it didn’t make

any sense to us to put it out... and someone showed us

the reality – we’d sold 200 CDs but who’d actually heard

it?” As a body of work, it acted as a calling card and arequiem, it seems. “Modern Bodies is Chickenhawk is

dead, it won’t happen again... not that we knew that at the

DREAMERS, NOT SCHEMERS...

8




9

H a w

k E y e s

W o r d s b y R o b W r i g h t ~ I m a g e s b y T o m M a r t i n




time...” Paul laughs freely, conscious of his own near slip

into contradiction.

But Modern Bodies is most denitely an ending, as much

as ‘Ideas’ is a beginning, and in the spirit of the new, it is

even being sold in a relatively new fashion. Though the

album is essentially paid for already, the whole thing is

being sold through Pledge. “It’s a way for us to give moreback to the fans,” explains Paul, “the whole point of it is

that people can choose to interact with us. People can

say ‘I want that, I want that – it makes it easier for fans

who really care about it to buy into it at the beginning.” A

different approach to marketing in a different market? “In

the last ten years there’s been a massive change in the

dynamic of how the whole system works,” Paul continues,

“you can’t just knock out a great album, put a lovely cover

on it, get some good press and expect to shift loads of

copies, people don’t want that anymore.”

“People download it for free,” says Rob brusquely, “that’s

a generalisation, but people who use to buy music like

teenagers or young adults download it. In the majority. So

a release is more like a calling card to get you more tours

and actually drive some revenue back into the band to

keep it going.”

There are plenty of good reasons to buy this album

though, one being Paul’s vocals, which have undergone

a metamorphosis since Modern Bodies . I ask where

this amazing voice has come from. His rst answer is

a yarn involving old women, fruit and magical powers.

His second is a bit more coherent. “When I was eleven

I joined the choral society at school... I had big braces

and big ginger hair and I sang soprano,” he admits, “I did

Handel’s ‘Messiah’ in its entirety. I’ve always been able to

sing, but that wasn’t the point of the music we made. Then

everyone was like ‘let’s try some singing now’, because

we’d gained in condence as a band... Again, it sounds

like it’s planned, but it’s just a happy coincidence.”

“We thought ‘let’s not do another album full of chugging

guitars...’” says Ryan across the table, who has not been

entirely silent, but has been almost entirely drowned out

by the noisy clientele.

“We can do different things on a guitar,” laughs Paul.

And with a new style comes a different label – Fierce

Panda. All told, Hawk Eyes have been on at least fourlabels. Paul shrugs. “I don’t think bands need to sign to

one label for life,” he says, “whatever works at the time. It

can be quite dangerous to sign to multi album deals with

labels, because you’re then beholden to them.” It’s true;

I’ve heard about local bands who’ve got locked into the

wrong deal and suffered the consequences. But Hawk

Eyes narrowly avoided making these mistakes, making

them wise in the eyes of their peers and very thoughtful

on the album.

“A lot of the record is about that...” Paul scrabbles for

a description, “that feeling of

hopelessness... really not knowingwhere you’re going and more

generally the world not knowing

where it’s going. There’s a lot of

stuff on there, certainly lyrically

– I feel sorry for the other guys

sometimes because they don’t know

what I’m going to do lyrically... as

long as the words t and the melody

suits the music I’m pretty much

allowed to do what I like – I try to

involve [the band] as much as I

can – I try not to make my lyrics ‘the

Paul Astick show’ because that’snot what the band is – the band is

four people – so it’s reective of

the moods of the music and all the

experiences that we’ve had together, our opinions and

values.” But despite or as well as this, it is still fun, just...

serious fun. They’ve also just released a nal EP with

Brew called Mindhammers as a kind of safety valve for

their creative overow. Considering what they’ve got on

the go, it’s amazing they’ve found time to talk to me at all.

Our time is nearly up and I can see that Paul is anxious

to ‘enjoy his birthday’, so I don’t want to keep them, but

I still feel like I’ve merely scratched the surface of Hawk

Eyes; they’re almost too mercurial as a band. “I don’t

think we should dene ourselves as one thing – I think

that’s very important for a band,” explains Rob, “not going

over the same ground twice – let’s progress.”

It’s all very grown up, very forward facing. Then one of

the band members suggests I take all my clothes off.

But that is another story...

Ideas and Mindhammers are both available to purchase (just

check out www.hawkeyesmusic.com), and Hawk Eyes will

be supporting Andrew W K on the UK leg of his tour in April.

Party Hawk.

1 0

“I don’t

think we

should

defne

ourselves

as one

thing.”




1 1




Sam Airey, mild mannered guitar slinger

with a hint of folksiness, has been stamping

like a buttery of late. From being the houseband at the recent Live at Leeds launch to a

Radio 1 Maida Vale set, he has been making

his quiet presence known in quite a loud

way. Ellie Treagust cornered this timid yet

feisty little performer and pelted him with

questions which you, dear reader, might like

to know the answers to…

ET How would you like your music to

be described?

SA I never really know how to answer this

question to be honest. I’d rather people justmake their own minds up when they listen to

it. I’d probably call it something along the lines

of indie-folk storytelling; there’s a real folk

element to a lot of the songs but it’s not always

a dening feature, I think. Lyrically I try and

write with a strong narrative most of the time,

but it’s not always the case. With the latest

things we’ve recorded there’s an emphasis

on atmosphere, trying to create a mood that

reects the content of the songs, I guess.

ET How do you go about the

song-writing process?

SA There’s no denitive method. Sometimes

I’ll have pieces of lyrics or a melody in my head

and it can take the shape of a song within

minutes, other times it’s more forced and you

have to work at it a little more. I usually write

with a guitar but I’ve been sat at the piano

a lot recently. However, I’ve written whole

songs before without being anywhere near an

instrument; I wrote ‘Endless Sea’ on a late-night

ferry crossing from Ireland. It started with just

a couple of words, but in my head I could hear

everything - the chord progression, melody line,

and soon I had a whole song, without actually

making a sound. As soon as I got home I played

it in full, it was pretty odd how it came out

completely formed.

ET Have you noticed much development in your

song-writing since you began, and if so, how?

SA I like to think so. Lyrics are a big thing for

me and I tend to spend a bit more time on them

these days. Musically, I’m less afraid to let thesongs take course and change, so I’m enjoying

layering them and nding new sounds. You’d

always hope you’re constantly developing - if

your next song isn’t as good or better than your

last, you probably need to sit back and question

what you’re doing.

ET What’s your favourite venue to play at

in Leeds?

I have a few. The Brudenell is an obvious choice

these days for all the right reasons. The sound

is always great, and Nathan does a brilliant jobof running it - it’s not just a cherished venue but

an integral part of the Leeds scene. In terms

of other venues, I like playing in slightly more

unusual spaces too. The new EP launch at Holy

Trinity Church will be the third time I’ve played

there. It’s a beautiful space and it lends itself

really well to the type of music I play. We did a

single launch last year curated by Anthologies,

inside the chapter house in Kirkstall Abbey, with

no PA or amplication at all - that felt like a risky

decision but it turned out to be one of the best

gigs. Finally, Oporto and Shopkeepers gigs

are always fun. It’s brilliant they have a decentbudget for live music and yet put on so many

free shows.

ET There’s been quite a surge of ‘one man and

his guitar’ acts in recent years - what makes you

stand out?

SA I’ve always said there’s an inherent aw, or

at least danger, with the term singer-songwriter,

if that’s what you want to call this. The problem

lies in the fact that the term attempts to denote

a genre, when all it really suggests is that it

concerns someone who both sings and writes

songs. However, these days we mostly come

to associate it with a great deal of bland/dross

music. One of the big problems for me is that

it’s quite easy to pick up a guitar and get your

songs on the internet - this may seem like a

good thing but it means you have to wade

through quite a lot before you nd something of

worth. I’ve worked pretty hard the last couple of1 2




years both on songwriting and learning how to

hold a crowd on my own, which at rst seemed

like the most daunting thing in the world.But now that the recordings are increasingly

layered and orchestrated, I’ll be doing more

with a full band too.

ET What’s your biggest musical

achievement to date?

SA There have been a few. Music for me has

always just been something I’ve loved - I never

really intended to get to this point, but with

everything good that happens, it seems to spur

you on to the next. At rst it was a case of “I

have these songs, I’ll write some more”, thenit was “I’ll record and release an EP”, and now

two years down the line I’ve released singles,

played around the UK, and I’m currently writing

an album. I think the most overwhelming thing

has been the radio attention; the Radio 1 Maida

Vale session was a huge highlight for me.

ET Do your songs always turn out how you

wanted them to or does the creative process

change them?

SA Sometimes you’ll have an idealistic sense

of what you want the song to sound like, butyou have to let the process run its course

because you might end up with something that

sounds better than whatever you anticipated.

ET How much inspiration do you take from

your surrounding area?

SA A varying degree. I’m from rural North

Wales originally, and bits of the songs are

partly inspired by my memories of it, and alsoby my move to Leeds and getting used to

life in the city. But I’d say I take just as much

inspiration from the people around me and the

places I visit.

ET A quick run-down of what’s in store

musically for you this year?

SA Firstly there’s the new EP – ‘A Marker & A

Map’, released in March with accompanying full

band gig in Holy Trinity Church, and we’re also

doing a London EP launch. Then I’ll be doing

some touring in April including my rst gigs inScotland, then of course Live at Leeds in May,

and hopefully we’ll be playing a few festivals

during the summer too.

ET If you could host a fantasy dinner party of

seven guests, who would they be?

SA Sam Cooke and Joni Mitchell would

come, and I’d also make them sing. Ernest

Hemingway would be on drinks duty, Audrey

Hepburn for some elegance and stories,

Salvador Dali seemed pretty interesting too so

he could probably come along. Then I’d inviteCharles Darwin and God, and make them have

an arm-wrestling duel.

You can catch Sam Airey at Live at Leeds on

Saturday 5th May. Be patient...

1 3

S a m A i r e y

W o r d s b y E l l i e T r e a g u s t ~ I m a g e s b y A a r o n J o n e s

1 3




1 4




1 5

Anticipation. Despite what the hacks will try

and tell you i.e. that they know the line up for

Leeds 2012 and have done for months blah

blah blah, there is a very tangible sensationof anticipation in this room full of giggers,

liggers, bloggers, sloggers, tweeters and

the occasional writer. In ten minutes time

there will be an electronic barrage comparable

to the EMP kicked out by a small nuclear

device departing from the cockpit, but for

now... anticipation.

By the time you read this, the line up will be old news.

There will be the usual accusations of ‘playing it safe’ and

‘soooo predictable’, but as for me... I still get excited by

this. I’m loving the prospect of (hopefully) seeing The Cure,re-acquainting myself with the Gallic dance metal insanity

of Justice, going bollocks-mental to Pulled Apart By Horses

ON THE MAINSTAGE and... well... At The Drive In...

It could only get better if Soundgarden made an

appearance (crosses ngers).

And we haven’t even got to the FR or Introducing

stages yet... or the Lock Down/Dance line up... or the

comedy stage...

Yes, it is commercial, yes, it is full of pissed up teenagers

but it is still Leeds festival, a massive festival in our backyard that bears our city’s name and I have it on good

authority (from two guys who came all the way from

Reading to go to Leeds, so...) that it is the preferred

locality. And for that weekend, there will be that same buzz

of anticipation, only grown several magnitudes larger – and

I have a feeling this is going to be a mighty weekend.

In a fug of free Gaymers, I am lucky enough to get a

moment of time with Festival Republic honcho Melvyn

Benn, a former Hullite and fan of fanzines. He is sipping

a white wine, leaning against a spare stage and looking

slightly relaxed but also slightly anxious about catching his

train down to the big smoke.

Seeing as this is a Glasonbury-free year, I ask him if

he feels like ‘a kid in a sweet shop’, literally having the

pick of the bunch when it comes to bands this year. “I

always feel like a kid in a sweet shop,” he res back,“anyone in my position should feel like a kid in a sweet

shop. Glastonbury’s a unique festival, entirely on its own.

Reading and Leeds are music festivals, they have music

running through their veins and essentially only music

running through their veins – there’s no clowns, no re

eaters, no snake charmers.”

As well as being a fanzine fan, it also transpires that he is

a Pulled Apart By Horses fan, having been introduced to

them by their manager. He had to buy his own copy of the

new album, though. Opening on the Friday, I ask him if he

sees them as a warm up band: “On the contrary actually

– I think that world domination beckons - they’ve got asound that will blow people apart in Germany, in America,

in Japan.”

Not only are PABH playing the mainstage, but Leeds own

Kaiser Chiefs will be up there too. Has he gone for some

local action specically? “Some people have said to me

‘do you pick the local bands for Leeds?’ but the festival

republic integrity wouldn’t allow that. We pick the bands

because they deserve to be there.”

As well as the big names, Leeds Festival will also be

hosting the winners of the Martin House Hospice’s

Centre Stage competition for a third year, demonstratingFR’s dedication to new music: “The fact that it benets

the hospice is a plus, but it’s a real opportunity for

young musicians to be on stage and to learn about

their contemporaries.” He’s also a champion of youth in

general: “I’ve always had young people at my heart – I

abhor the way that young people are given a hard time by

the press. The young people in the audiences at Reading

and Leeds are tomorrow’s leaders of the country - I’ve

been at festivals where the future king of England has

been excited by being stood at the side of the stage.”

But more than that, he has vowed to put a beer and

a burger in the belly of every individual who buys a

weekend ticket: “In truth, nothing prompted me apart from

philanthropy - I do what I can to make the sponsors help

me – if they don’t do that, I’ll pay for it. I’m not naturally

a person that just takes and takes, I always want to give

things back and at festival republic we always work really

hard on charity projects. I just felt I needed to do it.” And

for that, I salute you. Will there be haggis there this year

though? Can I get haggis...?

I n t e r v i e w b y R o b W r

i g h t ~ I m a g e s b y C a r l F l e i s c h e r

M e l v y n B e n n & L e e d

s F e s t .




1 7

Not ones to let the grass grow under our feet,

we’ve had a bit of a recruitment drive here at

WYPC, so please welcome Ofcer RochelleMassey – she doesn’t take any, as Reel

Big Fish found out when they got a proper

grilling. Fish? Grilling? Oh, forget it...

Names?

Dan, and I play the trombone.

Derek, and I play Bass

John, Johnny Christmas, and I play Trumpet

Matt, I play saxophone and sing

Reason for Visit?

Dan – Well once a year a plane comes by each of ourhouses, picks us up, and says you have to go dance like

a monkey, over within the UK. Since we don’t really have

a lot going on, we usually get on that plane.

Business or pleasure?

Dan – A bit of both. Between the hours of 9 and 10.30,

it’s business and the rest of the time, it’s business.

Derek – I am in the business of pleasure.

Dan- Business is good.

Derek – Business is a booming.

How has touring changed for you over the years? We

hope you won’t be all... rock and roll.Dan – On this tour we tend to be our PJs by 11pm.

Johnny – He is very happy about that.

Derek - Stage to PJs in ten minutes.

Dan – Although last night there was a bit of partying.

Johnny – In Glasgow.

When you come to the UK what do you enjoy the

most?

Derek – Kebabs!

Johnny – Yeah, kebabs here are awesome. We enjoy

meeting all the people. The British fans are always so

awesome. We really appreciate that.

Matt – You guys do really good deli meat. I enjoy the deli

meat. I do love some good deli meat.

When constantly touring do you ever get on each

other’s nerves and want space to yourself? I think we

have a free holding cell...Dan –I think we are old enough to know when someone

wants space.

Johnny – yeah, denitely, we have learnt how to stay out

of each other’s way when we are feeling that way out.

Then the next day they will be ne...

Derek – Actually, you should have each of us in the room

alone and ask the question again, and then see what

answer you get.

Drummers are known for being troublemakers,

bassists for being lazy – how does a trombone player

behave?

Dan – The trombone player is usually stoned, althoughnot now, I must stress that.

Matt – They love Doritos. They can eat an entire bag of

Doritos in one sitting.

Dan – That is not true.

Matt – And they lie.

Dan – I have not had a bag of Doritos on this entire tour.

I was ne being insulted by myself, but if you want to join

in, please do.

Calm down, gentlemen. How have you kept the band

relevant when ska is in and out of favour?

Dan – It certainly is not by getting a sax player.

Matt – Oooohhhhh, like that now is it.Dan – You bet it is. I think Aaron has written the

soundtracks of most people’s lives from about 12 to the

age of 25. So he is dealing with all the problems that you

go through at that time.

Matt – You are still going through them.

What is next for Reel Big Fish?

Dan – We are actually working on a new record.

Johnny – Yeyyy nally.

Dan – Now I know we have had said we have been

working on a new record for what seems like years...

Derek – It is years!

Dan – ...But Aaron likes these songs, which is very rare.

So this time it should happen. It will happen... (stern face)

Anything else to declare?

Johnny – Don’t eat space cake and try to come back to

Britain.

(shouts: blood test for Johnny...)

Dan – I would like to declare, that I did wear these shoes

in an agricultural situation, and brought mad cow into the

country with the soil on my boots.

Derek – Yeah! I have something to declare... I am

not lazy!

Thank you, you may now proceed through passport

control. Enjoy Leeds.

P a s s p o r t C o n t r o l

I n t e r v i e w b y R o c h e

l l e M a s s e y ~ I m a g e b y C h r i s E n s e l l

REEL BIG FISH




1 8




Long before most Vibrations’ readers and

writers were even born, the insanity of

providing quality musical opinion, info, news

and reviews for our ne city was under the

auspices of a certain Martin Tindall. In 1977 he

blazed a trail with his fanzine, ‘New Pose’, for

such mags as ourselves, so we called on an

old friend to big up his seminal publication,

now reissued after 35 years. Vibrations own

old schooler Sam Saunders was there, so he

knows what he’s talking about!

In the middle of the blandest musical decade in history,

a young Martin Tindall was going about his wide-eyed

life listening to New York Dolls and The Stooges, being

expelled from Art College and visiting London.

In London, looking like a punk could mean hiding in

Malcolm McLaren’s shop for safety, with teddy boy

assailants locked outside, shouting for blood. In Leeds

it was worse. Hanging around The Queen’s Hall on the

night of a concert could lead to a kicking.

No matter; the “Anarchy In The UK Tour” brought The

Sex Pistols, The Damned, Johnny Thunders and The

Heartbreakers, and (Special Guests) The Clash to Leeds

Polytechnic on Monday, December 6th 1976. Unlike other

cities on the advertised tour, Leeds actually allowed the

gig to proceed. Martin and his pals were there, with hearts

pounding and a plan.

By the spring of 1977, Martin, with typing by Jayne Cobbe

and photos by Steve Dixon, had photocopied the rst

issue of a remarkable fanzine called New Pose. It was

copied, one sided, onto 16 sheets of A4 stapled together

and sold through outlets like Virgin Records (who

quickly put Martin in charge of their punk-record

purchasing). With art school still in his blood, he got

contributions from cartoonists too: Mark Manning (founder

of the band Zodiac Mindwarp), Ray Burns (aka Captain

Sensible) and Jerzy Szostek of Knockabout Comics were

active contributors.

A lot of the text was handwritten by Martin. The

photographs by Jayne Cobbe and Matt Dixon (Elvis

Costello, Sex Pistols, Ramones, The Clash ...) are

densely zeitgeist (with contact prints in one issue to save

on processing costs). ‘Pin-up’ cartoons by Mark Manning(and Martin) are brilliant. The comic strip review of an Iggy

Pop gig and a comic strip biography of The Damned (by

Captain Sensible) are something else. Vibrations

should adopt the format immediately (duly noted – any

takers? Ed.).

Over ve spiky issues through the whole of 1977 writing,

photographs, comic strips, cartoons, gig news and

personal views poured out. Alongside the few Yorkshire

artists like S.O.S., The Jerks, Cyanide, The Mirror Boys

and The Neck Fuckers there were reviews and interviews

with most of the best: The Ramones, The Stranglers, The

Vibrators and The Sex Pistols and loads more.

The fanzine has had a good deal of national attention

over the years. NME, championing punk at the time and

fast becoming THE music weekly as Melody Maker lost

its bearings, put it second only to Snifn’ Glue as the

nation’s best fanzine. (Snifn’ Glue had started a bit earlier

and Martin thought he could make something that looked

better. He was right.) New Pose has since been featured

in TV documentaries of the era: notably in BBC 2’s Arena

series in 1990 and Channel 4’s ‘The Stiff Records Story’

in 2010.

But after ve issues Martin had run out of steam and theLeeds punk scene was turning into something a lot less

exciting and a lot more commercial. New Pose stopped

while it was still hot. Each issue had got stronger than the

previous one, but things were shifting in Leeds. Martin told

me that those descendants of the skin heads and football

hooligans were starting to arrive at punk gigs, looking for

trouble and going for the smell of bands like Skrewdriver

who represented everything that punk had stood against.

The cult of punk itself was morphing into goth and new

wave. Record labels who had been fast asleep in 1976

were starting to throw chequebooks at people like Elvis

Costello who could develop their music and make a

series of big money albums. The erce energy of the punk

singles that Martin was selling in Virgin couldn’t

maintain their impact on whole albums and something had

been lost.

He still remembers doing one DJ set at John Keenan’s

rst ‘Stars of Today’ series at Leeds Polytechnic but the

pressures of his full-time job and putting out New Pose

made him back out of a future as a DJ.

The New Pose full-set reissue of ve can be bought from Crash

Records and Jumbo Records. If you have original copies,

treasure them and buy these to read all over again.

1 9

W o r d s b y S a m S a u n d e r s

N e w P o s e - O l d S c h o o l F

a n z i n e




Just outside of Leeds (I know, bear with

me) there is a little star cradle of a town that

has spawned the likes of The Cribs, The

Research, Runaround Kids and now The

Spills. Emma Quinlan managed to get some

sense out of them between ts of laughing

and breaks for South Park. YOU WILL

RESPECT HER AUTHORITAH!

They like chilli sauce on beans on toast, eating sh andchips whilst recording and watching South Park. They

are The Spills, an indie rock quartet from Wakeeld who

in fact like watching South Park so much that we stop the

interview halfway through, so they can pay attention to

the TV in the room and watch a cartoon Rob Schneider

make a tool of himself. “Sorry about that,” says Sam, “it’s

the best bit of the whole episode.”

We’re in the ‘living room’ area at Greenmount studios

in Armley. A one-time place of worship, this converted

church has ceased to open its doors to the religious and

instead acts as a place for bands to record their music.

The Spills, consisting of guitarist/singer Rob, bassistSam, drummer Joe (who is sadly unable to attend) and

guitarist/singer Chad, have recorded here a few times

and don’t seem to be put off by the weird eeriness that

surrounds the place.

“We did our EP here and then we did our album

here,” explains Rob, “Lee and Jamie, the guys who

ran it then, did our EP and album and now I run the

studio with them. We just always really liked this studio

and we record to analogue tape and it’s got loads of

vintage equipment.”

Formed around six years ago, The Spills all met in

secondary school and began playing together when Rob

was in school and the others were in sixth form. “We

started pretty young...I was 15 when I started writing

some songs and then me and Sam bought a four-track

tape recorder. It’s been the same line-up [ever since] but

when you have been going from that young obviously it’s

very different.”

“You don’t mean that of The Spills do you?”interjects

Sam. “No,” laughs Rob, “It’s so different. It’s just that

most bands split up…”

“…They’re like school bands,” continues Chad, “and thenthey kind of break up and actually do something.”

With this, they all begin laughing, which they continue

to do throughout the interview, normally at the expense

of one another. “Basically,” says Rob, “we carried on

when we went to university [even though] we all went to

university in different places. In the rst year we took it a

bit slower and then we kind of built it up again. Then we

did an EP and then after university we did the album.”

The album he is talking about is ‘Occam’s Razor,’ their

fantastic debut that takes all the best bits of the indie

genre and whacks them together in one glorious CD.Their work has gathered a respectable amount of

praise from the music media (including this very ne

publication), which came as a nice surprise for the

makers.

“We got a lot more reviews than we thought and they

were all really nice so it was a pleasant surprise really,”

smiles Rob.

“Yeah,” chuckles Sam, “I thought we would get like three

reviews or something...”

Thankfully this has not been the case and instead‘Occam’s Razor’ has ignited a ame in The Spills and

shown the rest of Yorkshire how indie rock should be

done. However, even though they regard themselves

as an ‘indie band,’ they aren’t fully comfortable with the

tagline.

“It’s quite an indie band,” mulls Sam, “but I don’t like the

word ‘indie’ because people always turn their nose up at

it.” He’s got a point. If you say the word ‘indie’ to people,

most of them will envisage a bunch of posh lads, touting

guitars and annel shirts but The Spills are denitely not

one of these bands. “[Our sound] is noisy and I don’t

know if it’s heavy but it’s noisy and a bit rough. [It’s] kind

of indie in the sense of American indie…[like] Pixies and

Pavement.”

So did these bands inspire The Spills to pick up their

instruments? “When I started playing guitar I was like

10,” remembers Rob, “So probably [someone] like Jimi

Hendrix inspired [me] to start playing guitar.” Apparently

this isn’t the rst time Jimi Hendrix has been mentioned

during an interview…“Do you remember that interview

we did when you kept referring to the Jimi Hendrix

tape in your dad’s car?” smirks Chad. He doesn’t, but

according to Sam he mentioned it “over and over.”

Chills, Thrills and... The Spills!

2 0




W o r d s b y E m m a Q u i n l a n ~ I m a g e s b y G i l e s S

m i t h

T h e S p i l l s

2 1




The band breaks into more smiles and more giggles,

with Rob now the target for mockery. “Yeah, my dad had

a Jimi Hendrix tape in his car…” jokes Rob, taking their

mocks in his stride. Apparently he also had a few others

including Bob Marley, but we don’t need to go into that. “I

didn’t start playing until I was 15,” says Chad, “So it was

mainly that I liked a lot of bands but [also] that everyone

else played instruments and I just always wanted to…soI just did.”

He makes it sound so easy and The Spills as a whole

make being in a band look easier than it probably is. For

these lads though, this isn’t exactly an easy life - they all

have regular jobs as well as playing in The Spills. There’s

no Bono-style private jets and full stadium tours for them,

just small chapels with no bars and a bring-your-own-beer

policy. “We did an album launch at Chantry Chapel, which

is a chapel in Wakeeld. The capacity is probably 50

people. It’s a really little place,” explains Rob.

“There’s no bar so it was bring your own beer and no

toilets so people [were] just having a piss in the open,”

adds Sam, “I think [that was the] best gig of ours.”

Not exactly the venue dreams were made of, but it’s not

all pissing on walls and cans of Red Stripe for The Spills –

no, not all of their live appearances have been that classy.

Last year however they were booked for the one-day

extravaganza that is Live at Leeds and this year they

are doing Long Division (which they also did in 2011),

Wakeeld’s answer to Live at Leeds and according to

Sam, “the festival that is putting Wakeeld on the map.”

This brings a little grin to all our faces, but apparentlythe claim is deserved. “It actually is,” says Chad, “it was

amazing last year.”

“They sold it out last year,” adds Rob, “They had Darwin

Deez come over, and The Wedding Present.” Is getting

Darwin Deez to play really a thing to brag about?

“It’s pretty cool that he came from New York to play

in Wakeeld,” answers Rob and when put like that, I

suppose I have to agree…

So that’s The Spills, past and future (there doing a split EPwith Runaround Kids scheduled for later on in the year)

but what about the present and more specically what are

you recording in this creepy old church anyway? “[We’re

recording] a track for a compilation,” explains Sam.

“Yeah,” adds Rob, “Do you know who Rhubarb Bomb

are?” Queue the blank expression. “It’s a Wakeeld zine

thing and their doing a compilation with loads of Wakeeld

bands. It’s coming out with a big book on the Wakeeld

music scene. There’s us, Runaround Kids, The Cribs, Imp,

The Research: its Wakeeld

bands past and present, so

we’re recording for that.”

Sounds good to us but whilst I

wish I could talk to The Spills

all night, we all have homes

to go to and work to get up

for. Before we say goodbye

though, any last words? Not

that I mean that to sound so

terminal. “I’ll make a pledge

for this Rhubarb Bomb

compilation. [There’s] loads

of memorabilia from gigs

in Wakeeld like big printsof…Artic Monkeys playing

Wakeeld for instance I think

that’s one and there’s one of

Kate Nash playing Wakeeld.

Basically you make a pledge,

a certain amount of money

for whatever item and

obviously you get that item,”

explains Rob.

“That’s then funding the compilation and this big book on

the Wakeeld music scene [showing] the history of it and

the history of the magazine. You can make a pledge for

that online, so it would be good if everyone checks that

out, it’s a good thing.” When is this out? “[The compilation]

come’s out April 21st I think and it’s called ‘The City

Consumes Us.’” “Is it not called ‘The Bomb-palation?”

Unfortunately not Sam, but by God we wish it was.

‘The City Consumes Us’ will indeed be available at the end of

April, complete with funky book. It is unclear as to whether

Rob’s dad still has a Jimi Hendrix tape in his car...2 2




2 3




It actually came as a shock to realise that

iForward Russia! Have actually been on

permanent Hiatus since 2008, but time ies

and all that. Whiskas, not a man to let the

grass grow under his feet but having to

deal with the responsibilities of a young

family, took time out of his busy schedule

to speak to Greg Elliott about new honours,

new glories...

Musician, label owner, manager, producer, promoter - the

man known as Whiskas has had many guises throughout

his long association with the Leeds scene. He’s sat with

me in a Headingley watering hole talking about Honour

Before Glory, the solo alias under which he self-released

the This Is Broken Lines LP in 2011 and its follow-up

EP The Maison earlier this year. The origins of the

project can be traced to the dying days of ¡Forward,

Russia!, with whom Whiskas played guitar and rode

the mid-Noughties ‘New Yorkshire’ wave to something

approaching mainstream success. Breaking into the

charts, however, came at a price.

‘‘We got swallowed up by the machine,’’ he tells me, ‘‘we

were reacting to what other people were doing and we

weren’t taking into account what we needed to be doing

as individuals. Looking back it was mental that we were

hanging around with bands like Editors and Dirty Pretty

Things, thinking that we had the same kind of appeal!

We wasted a lot of time, energy and money on promotion

- it denitely got us bigger, but whether it was the right

thing in the long term I don’t know’.” He pauses. ‘‘It’s a

bit like Chelsea really.’’

In 2007 ¡Forward, Russia! decamped to Seattle to record

their second album, Life Processes . The sessions

were marked by a changing dynamic within the band.

‘‘I was coming up with things really quickly,’’ Whiskas

recalls, ‘‘before, I would just write a guitar part and we’d

build a song around that, but now I was turning up with

fully-formed ideas. I would go in and say ‘you do this’

and ‘you do that’. I could hear in my head how the

whole thing worked. ‘Some Buildings’ was the rst song

we’d recorded in such an un-collaborative way. It was

awkward - it wasn’t how the band worked and it jarred

with all of us I think. When there was downtime I would

disappear and mess around with ideas, but they didn’t

really t with what we were doing.’’

Whiskas had unknowingly planted a seed which would

come to fruition with This Is Broken Lines – indeed,

standout track ‘Broken Bottles, Empty Hearts’ was written

in Seattle and could have been a ¡Forward, Russia!

song. Upon his return to Leeds he tried to record some

demos with friends Jamie Lockhart (Mi Mye) and Jon

Foulger (Duels), but the project quickly stalled. ‘‘I didn’t

really know what to do with it, why I was doing it or what it

was for,’’ he admits, ‘‘I didn’t want it to be another band,

but maybe a more coherent collective of people than it

ended up being. In many ways it was a reaction to the

experience of four people in a room trying to write songs

together. When you’re in a band you don’t think of everydetail - there’s always somebody adding their two cents

and usually in a really good way. It was almost like an

experiment, pulling all of the ideas together myself and

seeing what happened. That’s probably why it took four

years!’’ He laughs.

It was the demise of ¡Forward, Russia! at the end of

2008 that started bringing things into focus. An interest

in production, sparked by the more holistic approach

to song-writing he had taken with Life Processes , led

Whiskas to enrol on a postgraduate course at LMU.

Freshly up-skilled, he entered the House of Mook

recording studios in Meanwood to begin work on his

debut solo album. It was a serious undertaking - as well

as producing Whiskas played every instrument himself,

with the exception of live drums performed by Simon

Fogal of I LIKE TRAINS. Backing vocals came courtesy

of a cast of Leeds musicians known to Whiskas from his

famous association with local independent label Dance

To The Radio, including Fran Rodgers, Sam Airey and

I LIKE TRAINS frontman Dave Martin. ‘‘I would say to

them ‘I want this to happen – I trust you to make it good’,’’

he explains. ‘‘I’d know I wanted a certain vocal range

lling, or a transition on the drums to get us from a verse

into the chorus, but people had the license to be creativeand come up with their own ways of achieving what I’d

asked for.”

Not Back in The USSR

2 4




H o n o u r B e f o

r e G l o r y

2 5

W o r d s b y G r e g g E

l l i o t t ~ I m a g e s b y C h r i s E n s e l l




This was uncharted territory for Whiskas. For one thing,

he was placing a much greater emphasis on the sound of

the songs. ‘‘I already knew about arrangements,’’ he tells

me, ‘‘like, in the second verse the guitar’s going to drop

out or the vocals are going to change melody or whatever

– but now it was more like, okay, the drums are going

to pass through a lter, the kick drum’s going to bottomout, all these synth and percussion things are going to

be happening. I was learning as I went. I enjoyed the

process, but if I couldn’t get the sound the way I wanted

there was no one I could turn to.” There

were some advantages to working in

isolation, however. ‘‘My experience with

bands is that you have a thing, then you

do another thing, then you do another

thing,’’ he explains, ‘‘you can’t get into

the detail too much. With Honour Before

Glory the songs are mainly verse-chorus-

verse-chorus-end, but they’re interesting

because of how they’re produced. I can’timagine being in a room with people

discussing why all these different

things need to happen at these very

specic times’’.

This Is Broken Lines also represents

Whiskas’ rst experience of writing lyrics.

Given that he became a husband and

a father while the album was – if you’ll

excuse the pun – gestating, did these upheavals in his

personal life inform its lyrical content? ‘‘The album is

musically rather than lyrically driven,’’ he insists, ‘‘the lyrics

are quite insular – they mean a lot to me but probablynot much to anybody else! The feel of the album is very

mono-chrome; the ideas are all very black and white.

Fran [Rodgers, also a talented illustrator if you ever

wanted to type ‘Lazy Dane’ into Google] came up with

some great artwork to represent that.”

So, he had a nished album he was pleased with – time

to promote it with a fuck load of live shows, right? Not

by the looks of the Honour Before Glory website, which

proclaims no gigs for the foreseeable future. ‘‘It’s never

been a live thing - hence its problem with being a live

thing!’’ explains Whiskas. ‘‘With my previous bands the

songs were written with gigs in mind and it was cool to be

able to get away from that. The un-live parts have dened

the directions the songs have gone in, rather than vice

versa. I’ve been able to put two drum kits or ten guitars

on a song because I haven’t been worrying about how

I’m going to do it live. We’ve done some shows, but I’ve

found them really unsatisfactory. I’m not a strong singer

and I don’t feel condent or comfortable fronting a band.

It’s a shame, but there are other things I enjoy more. I’m

so busy – I have to prioritise.”

These competing priorities – aside from the obvious

responsibilities of home life - include playing guitar forSam Airey and Monte Carlo, producing their new EPs

as well as upcoming releases by Soul Circus and Kleine

Schweine, and organising the 2012 Unconference as

part of Live At Leeds next month. That’s not to mention

the day job, which sees Whiskas passing on his wisdom

as a lecturer at LMU. He remains passionate about

empowering musicians to take control of their art and

keep their integrity, prompting me to ask if the name

he’s chosen for his latest project is a reference to thiscontinuing preoccupation. He nods. ‘‘It’s what ¡Forward,

Russia! was about too - doing things in the right way and

for the right reasons. It’s not about glory - I just want stuff

to get the recognition it deserves.”

It might have been taken off the road for the

time being, but Whiskas is keen to stress that

Honour Before Glory is still a going concern.

There are plans to go back into the studio

with some new songs this year, and there

may well be a quite different live manifestation

of his muse before too long. It can be

whatever he wants it to be, after all. ‘‘Theearly songs were quite Americana-inuenced,

a bit more rock and roll,’’ he tells me, ‘‘things

got more electro as I went on. I really like the

sound of the later songs – they’re a lot more

synthetic. None of the songs I recorded at

the end had live drums and I didn’t miss them.

So I have this idea that in the future I could do

songs like ‘Shadow Into’ [a seven-minute epic

of pensive ambience and perhaps the most

experimental track on the album] on my own’’. He smiles

wryly. ‘‘I wouldn’t expect it to be exciting to watch though!”

We’ll see.

This Is Broken Lines and The Maison are both available

via Bandcamp and, though you may not see Honour

Before Glory in a hurry, if you see Whiskas, buy him

a beer...

He remains

passionate

about

empowering

musicians totake control

o their art

and keep

their integrity

2 6




2 7




2 8

Stalking Horse – Specters (Role Model

Corporate)

For those of you who were disappointed with

last year’s Radiohead curveball ‘King of Limbs’,

this could be the album you were waiting for

all along. To say that Stalking Horse has only

a passing Yorke-ian vocal twinge would be a

massive understatement. And by the time ‘The

Creeps’ (oh, come on…) kicks in you’re startingto wonder if Stalking Horse is just a pseudonym

for an RH side project.

In actual fact, Specters is the debut LP from

Ex-This Et Al frontman, Wu, under a new

moniker. Comparisons to Radiohead should

be received in the most complimentary sense

too as this album is genuinely brilliant: warm,

pulsing and dare I say it, catchy, this ticks

all my hypothetical checklist entries. Other

comparisons to the likes of Wild Beasts and

Clinic hold their water well in tracks like ‘The

Dawn Is Father To The Sun’ and ‘Waterhole’and there’s a denite Vessels vibe about ’99

Stairs’. Plenty of variety too: ‘Mistress’ is a

piano-led epic complete with quirky obscure

lyrical hooks (“There’s no food on the table/and

you’re laughing at his bedside manner”) while

closer ‘Lament’ rounds things off in a suitably

thoughtful manner.

I struggle to nd fault with Specters : as an

album it’s well-balanced (having been given

the full James Kenosha treatment) and full of

beautifully constructed tunes. There’s only a

very thin resemblance to This Et Al, it feels like

Neil ‘Wu’ Widdup is well on his way towards

developing a truly idiosyncratic sound. In the

meantime, he’s produced a stunning rst record

and with a live band of veritable Leeds all-stars

is a project worth following, even if it does have

you reaching for your copy of In Rainbows .

Tim Hearson

Blacklisters – BLKLSTRS (Brew Records)

Admittedly, never having heard Blacklistersbefore, I was a little daunted by the prospect

of composing a review about a band that

are generally held in a demi-god like status

by other Vibrations writers. I was even more

perturbed when I heard they’d been compared

to Glassjaw. I had the distinct feeling that

they were going to be one in a number of

bands haunted by the irritating legacy of the

aforementioned band and their 90s post-

hardcore contemporaries, and I had the

distinct impression I was going to hate it. I

expected something between overt, incessant

machismo and the whiny verbal atrocities ofteenage melodrama.

What a relief then when I inserted the CD

into my hi- and was confronted by some of

the most visceral, unrelenting and superb ear

candy I’ve ever encountered during my short

acquaintance with the local music scene.

Blacklisters manage to execute with intrepid

precision the build and release dynamics

required for music of this aggressive quality.

But they manage to do it without resorting to

derivative breakdowns or bravado. Instead,

they combine audio savagery with a tongue incheek ethos.

I always feel a lack of critical prowess in using

the idiom ‘good riffs’ to justify a piece of music,

but in this case, it’s objective. Blacklisters have

an ear for what makes a ‘good riff’. Check

Albums




R

e v i e w s

2 9 2 9

out album opener ‘Clubfoot by Kasabian’ to

see what I mean. Whatever it is, sublime or

otherwise, Blacklisters are masters of their own

game and they’ve barely been out of my hi-

ever since.

Benjamin Rutledge

Hawk Eyes – Ideas (Brew Records)

There are some bands that you love because

you can rely on them to produce a consistent

quality of work every time – like AC/DC, for

instance. Who am I kidding? You love thembecause they’ve been producing the same

album for the last thirty years. In 2010, Hawk

Eyes did that literally but grudgingly with

Modern Bodies . In 2012 I can reassure you

that they are not doing this again. Ideas is

a completely different sh – in fact, I’d be

tempted to say it was a completely

different species.

It is still a fast, riff heavy piece of work, but the

emphasis has changed from cramming each

song with as much punishing fret work as

possible to creating mammoth melodies with

Kyuss-deep bass, Mastodon-like complexity

and Korn-ish beats; there are choruses to sing

along to as well.

It is however the revelation that Paul Astick can

sing like Joey Belladonna or Mike Patton that

really brings home how different this album is

to anything that has gone before – yes, he can

bark ‘shot up up!’ furiously on ‘Sky Spinners’,

but he’ll follow it up with the plaintive ‘to spin

back down’, and by the time you reach ‘BearsBy The Head’s vocal gymnastics the evidence

is overwhelming – Hawk Eyes have gone way

beyond the realm of the incoherent scream and

voice as instrument.

Hawk Eyes may not be as angry as before,

but this considered approach is just as, if not

more, striking – targets include herd mentality

in ‘Bees’, desperate avarice in ‘You Deserve

a Medal’, directionless existence in ‘Sky

Spinners’. But despite the frustration felt by the

band, the power of the music, rhythm and riff

keep pushing it through. Evolution is a messybusiness, but by golly this is one beautiful mess.

Rob Wright

Holy State - Electric Picture Palace (Brew

Records)

This Leeds (via Norwich) four-piece ride the

current wave of rst generation indie-rock

nostalgia on an LP abounding with tasteful

references to Fugazi at their more languid

(‘Age of ADHD’) and Sonic Youth at their most

reined-in (‘Ride’). Holy State studiously replicate

the stylistic quirks of their illustrious forebears toconstruct songs replete with nimble guitar lines,

insistent melodies and dynamic twists; the lead

singer even gives Thurston Moore’s distinctive

drawl an East Anglian spin.

Such relentless reverence could wear thin over

the course of twelve songs, but the concision

of the band’s approach - which rarely allows

a track to pass the three minute mark - sends

Electric Picture Palace rushing by in a kinetic

haze which is undeniably fun. We’re not just

talking supercial thrills either – there’s some

real craft on display here, from the infectious

stomp of ‘Lady Magika’ to hook-lled barroom

delight ‘Medicine Hat’ and the verging-on-the-

anthemic ‘Solid State Messiah’. In short, it’s an

album full of reasons to catch the band on their

valedictory May tour and to lament their early

passing. Admittedly your reviewer ts squarely

into the post-grunge demographic at which

they’re squarely aimed, but at least Holy State




don’t sully the lineage to which they lay claim.

Indeed, if their efforts turn younger listeners

onto the genre trailblazers their sound so

skilfully echoes, I’m all for it.

Greg Elliott

Pulled Apart By Horses – Tough Love

(Transgressive Records)

Last year saw Pulled Apart By Horses

eponymous debut unleashed on an unwary

public, and boy was it a full on tantrum of

stupid diatribes, shrieking, guitars and morenutpicks than you could shake a plectrum at.

Now I wouldn’t say that ‘Tough Love’ is a more

restrained offering; it’s still completely deranged.

I would however say it is a more considered

offering and... I don’t want to say it... more mat...

matu... look, this may take a while...

Starting where we left off from the last album,

‘V.E.N.O.M’ is as unrelenting a face melter

as you could get, joining the dots between

Motorhead and Gold Earring via Anthrax, with a

vocal intensity to match anything from the last

album. There is however more beneath the fury;

a frustration, venom in fact. The anger on the

last album was jokey, good humoured; this is

potentially dangerous.

There’s a lot of fear on this album too. The fear

of ageing and not changing on ‘Wolf Hand’

– ‘When I was a kid I was a dick/But nothing

changes’; the fear of people on ‘Night of The 3 0

Living’; and the fear of not being cool/being too

cool on ‘Degeneration Game’ and ‘Shake Off

the Curse’. What Tom Hudson has managedto do here is a masterstroke of lyrical laconic

understatement. Snappy and to the point.

But despite this the album is a whole lot of fun,

with its B Movie references both in the songs

and the music and pillaging of the genres from

thrash to glam and I kid you not you will play

this over and over again just to sing or thrash or

empathise along to. But this is not just a

bit of fun; this is a long haul album for a long

haul band.

Mature. There, I said it.Rob Wright

Various Artists – The City Consumes Us

(Rhubarb Bomb)

Wakeeld music magazine Rhubarb Bomb is

ve years old this year and decided to celebrate

the fact by not only putting together a CD of

exclusive and rare tracks donated by the great

and the good of the City’s music scene, but also

by writing a book about the whole thing. Hubris,

you may think, but as this mind bogglingly good

CD demonstrates for a small city of only 75,000inhabitants, Wakeeld has an embarrassment

of musical excellence that per capita probably

betters that of Leeds. No really.

There’s only a couple of weak tracks on this

18 song compilation and although you’d hardly

expect a hand-picked selection to include many

duffers, the variety on offer is amazing and if

nothing else this CD should lay to rest the idea

that all Wakeeld bands’ sound the same. The

best thing about it though is that all the really

strong tracks were recorded this year, some

specically for the compilation, and suggest

that superb music is set to ow from the city for

the foreseeable future.

There’s not enough space to mention all the

outstanding tracks here, but you should get the

CD at least for: Middleman’s ‘Hate Yourself’,

a brilliant but uncharacteristically dark and

brooding rumination on betrayal and back




opens with the Wire-esque ‘Harms Sweet Way’,

its propulsive soft-top down sheet metal riff

suggesting that TTAF may have hot-wired aMustang in order to escape the post industrial

landscape we keep trying to imprison them in. If

they did where were they heading? The obvious

clue is in the closer, ‘Someone Else’s Rainbow’

– TTAF unplugged, powered down and chilling

in Laurel Canyon? Too radical a journey to

contemplate? Perhaps you should join them and

then decide.

Martin Haley

Available free from http://thetruthaboutfrank.

bandcamp.com/releases

Arizona Bay – Refuse (Self Release)

Too often do bands these days have mediocre

lead vocals. Relying more on their dolled-up

guitar riffs and their repetitive drum pulsations

than on the man at the front. Thankfully, Arizona

Bay subvert this shit ridden convention that so

many bands seem to fall into. You want proof?

Then check out their new album Refuse .

If you were one of those who grew up in the midst

of the grunge-dominated media phase in the

90’s, then you will recognise this album as having

some potential. Maybe grunge is the wrong termhere, as that insinuates a return to the 90’s,

which isn’t the case. Post-grunge is more suiting,

as the album is more of a cocktail-time machine

of modern rock with traditional gritty grunge riffs

that give birth to a musical hybrid, which sounds

pretty damn good.

R

e v i e w s

3 1

stabbing; Protectors ‘Cauliower’ a punchy,

chunky song that boasts a chorus worthy of the

Beatles at their very best; Lapels ‘How I KilledThe Magnethead’, a fantastic example of the

idea that all it takes is a battered, banged out

acoustic guitar riff, imaginative, freewheeling

lyrics and buckets of attitude to make a great

song; One Day, After School….’s sparse and

skeletal ‘Nova Scotia’, which deliberately

pays homage to the great Arab Strap; and the

frazzled punk of Runaround Kids ‘Undress’.

The book will probably be a good read too.

Steve Walsh

Rhubarb Bomb are funding the CD and bookthrough a Pledge Music campaign – go here http://

www.pledgemusic.com/artists/rhubarbbomb

The Truth About Frank – Dandelion Radio

Sessions (Self release)

Readers may already be familiar with Leeds

electronic duo The Truth About Frank (TTAF)

and their full debut ‘Cannibal Work Ethic’

(CWE), voted one of Vibrations favourite

albums of 2012. The 6 tracks on ‘Dandelion

Radio Sessions’ are compiled from two

separate sessions that predate CWE and to thisextent seem less developed.

However, what the lighter touch evident in

these recordings does is offer listeners the

opportunity to look beneath the surface and

get a better feel for the core forces at play

within TTAF.

Or perhaps I am taking it all too seriously;

maybe I should just put it on and dance,

because essentially that’s what it makes me

want to do. Not in a joyfully expressive way

but more as the conscripted member of a

synchronised blast furnace worker dance

troupe, dropping Es and uberstrutting in

an abandoned East German foundry. The

searing industrial jazz opener ‘Oxygen Orgy’

establishes the tone in this respect acting

as a viscous precursor to the more minimal

trance of ’Section B’ and orchestral machine

frenzy of ‘Headless Rentman’. Session two




3 2

Vibrant indicators of

the bands potential can

be found; ‘Footsteps’,‘Open Fire’ and ‘Letting

Go’ where the rened

grunge synchronicity

shines through. The

most striking element

is undoubtedly Rhys Williams’ voice, which

has to be said, is exactly how a grunge voice

should sound. Hitting the high and low notes

to produce an alternative melodic dimension

to the band’s tracks, Williams’ voice

makes the album with a paradox of rugged

perfection. However, the Seattle scene tends

to inuence his singing accent at times.

That’s a minor issue though, and focus

should be placed on the band’s collective

ability to produce an easy listening album that

has great potential to become successful.

Denitely one to look out for.

Jonathan Lees

Wilful Missing – Molehills out of Mountains

(Little Attic)

With a name like Wilful Missing , I expected

this to be some sort of modern age folk. I wasnot far from wrong. The opening of ‘Cry for the

City’ is a beautiful opener (I am a sucker for a

little bit of modern classical choir).

Half way through I can’t help but think they

are jumping on this fad of folk music. Don’t get

me wrong, it is a good song, an amazing song

that is wonderfully produced and created with

such enthusiasm, but it does not excite me. I

feel like I have heard it before.

‘The Waltz’ has exciting parts that makes you

want to raise a toast and sing along during the

chorus, but then as soon as you get into it, it’s

snatched away.

‘I Am Clay’ is a refreshing song to hear on

this album. It is upbeat and makes you want

to move. This is my highlight of the album. If

there were a few more tracks like this I think

that would rate the album a little higher.

Overall it is a good album, it just lacks in

certain aspects. If you’re into slow and

peaceful, then you are going to love it. But forme it does get samey after a while.

Rochelle Massey

Available to buy from http://www.

marchofdimesmusic.com/sleeping-giant/

Cable 35 – Louder (Self release)

Another day, another alternative band from

Yorkshire. Thankfully, however, like many of

the bands from around this region, Cable 35

are not a big pile of conformist tripe. Instead

they are loud, brash, exciting and uniquely

brilliant. With a sound that meets somewherein the middle of Pulled Apart By Horses, Hawk

Eyes and Nirvana, Cable 35’s debut album

‘Louder’ does exactly what it says on the tin.

Starting with one of the grungiest and best

tracks on the album, ‘Cow Head,’ the album

contains a mammoth 16 songs, which in this

age of short attention spans and quick xes

could have proved a costly move. However,

when every song is as good as this, why

would you leave some out? From the distorted

guitars and snarling vocals on ‘Can I’ to the

slow and dark Pixies-like tones of ‘Lost City,’the album packs a mean punch, both above

and below the belt.

Favourites on this debut include ‘House Of

Fire,’ whose chorus sounds like a brutal

homage to Madness’s ‘House Of Fun’; ‘Fact

In Spain’ which plays host to a delicious guitar

solo; ‘Come Down To Party,’ a melodic yet

gritty affair and ‘Memories,’ a tempo-switching

beast that you can’t help but bang your

noggin to.

They don’t have the most rock and roll name

in music, nor do they have the luxury of big

label money. What Cable 35 do have is more

precious than that: talent, most of which

seems to have gone into this blisteringly,

fantastic debut.

Emma Quinlan

Available to buy from http://www.cable35.co/

For more reviews, go to www.vibrations.org.uk –

it’s been a big month!




3 3




Bilge Pump/Two Minute Noodles/Cowtown @

Brudenell Social Club, Leeds

First up is Cowtown, whose bouncy quirk-rock has you

smiling and nodding in the most positive senses of the

words. The Devo t-shirt adorned by synth-maestress

Hillary Knott gives a couple of ideas as to where one

should look for inuences, but for those unacquainted

they’re like a grungier White Stripes with a less tokenistic

drummer and far more frenetic sound. A little bit one-

dimensional perhaps – it’s all a tad ‘smash and grab’ -

but still, by the end of their sharp set I’m so happy I

could piss myself.

Two Minute Noodles step up now to have their say and

it’s another line-up that pleases me from the off. A duo ofdrums and electric organ, this is what I imagine an ice-

cream van ghting its way through the zombie apocalypse

would sound like. What amazes me is how well it all

hangs together – the drumming is especially brilliant (and

a pleasure to watch) with its frantic beats and its general

pissing about with tempo. All-out stomper ‘Black Rod’ has

to be the clincher though; these are some badass tunes.

As if that wasn’t enough, scene patriarchs Bilge Pump

line up for a dose of heavy rifng that has the heads going

once again. Fans of That Fucking Tank will recognise the

style of rock-riff mashups while the proggy lyrics assert

Bilge Pump’s status as kings among nerds. Somethingabout them reminds me of Rush. Not sure why, but

I imagine that comparison might get me into trouble

somewhere. A more ‘traditional’ rock sound to end the

night, but no less ballsy and excellent.

Tim Hearson

Hawk Eyes/These Monsters/Hookworms/Shallows @

The Brudenell Social Club, Leeds

To kick start this metal packed montage of mayhem, a

worthy precursor for the headliners Shallows were the

rst band to take to the stage. Shallows’ talented female

singer dominated the zone with an unforgiving display of

strenuous vocal ability, which the crowd seemed to enjoy.

Hookworms were up next and their psychedelic, cool

style of rock was a pleasant change of pace in the venue.

The band was visibly hyped – their elongated guitar riffs

and thoughtful combinations of very impressive keyboard

and drum vibes reinforced the unconscious journey that

everyone was being taken on.

After Hookworms, These Monsters geared up. I didn’t

know what to expect from this trio, but even after their rst

couple of songs I was blown away by how awesome theywere. Fast, sharp and tasty metal/rock riffs that smashed

everyone square in their faces! Sufce to say, everyone

loved it. The front-man emitted a screaming voice that

perfectly matched the speed of the composition, nishing

in a barrage of claps and cheers… Denitely one to lookout for!

Finally… Hawk Eyes. Although the crowd had diminished

slightly, the venue was still rammed and eager to absorb

the new tracks from their upcoming LP, ‘Ideas’. No time

wasted: they quickly showed the crowd why they are

one of Leeds’ nest live acts. Hawk Eyes blew the lid

off the Social Club, performing an explosive array of

metal. Tracks played tonight included ‘Kiss This’, ‘NASA

vs. ESA’ and ‘Headstrung’, each producing a wave of

nodding heads that broke on each drum pulsation. Their

new drummer is an animal, and the band as a whole are

exceptional. An intriguing night.Jonathan Lees

Pulled Apart By Horses @ The Leadmill, Shefeld

Taking to the stage to the not-so-dulcet tones of ‘Requiem

for a Tower’, it’s clear that Pulled Apart By Horses mean

business. Big business. Two albums in and threatening to

break the lock on the door of mainstream rock, they have

a lot to prove and tonight, in Shefeld’s The Leadmill, they

do so with aplomb.

If the sonic assault of opener ‘I Punched a Lion in the

Throat’ heralds the battle, then ‘Bromance Ain’t Dead’and new single ‘V.E.N.O.M’ wage the war. Both tracks

are from new album Tough Love and the heavy but

remarkably tight riffs are recalled note perfectly, displaying

just how far the band have come as a live unit.

The notably tattooed-older-male dominated audience

lends itself to some formidable circle pitting, even if

frontman Tom does put the kibosh on one audience

member’s drunken request for a wall of death. Pulled

Apart By Horses are not pugnacious men: in fact, they

come across as a humble and well-grounded four piece

who profess themselves this evening to be ‘just a bunch

of shitheads playing music.’ All humbleness aside,

there is denitely something about their epic, chugging

breakdowns and brilliantly ludicrous song titles that

seem to demand a riotous crowd response more betting

of a Sunday derby between two Yorkshire teams, creating

a jubilant atmosphere that lasts long into the night.

Mission accomplished.

Jenessa Williams

Submotion Orchestra @ The Wardrobe, Leeds

I was in the rare position of reviewing a band I had never

listened to before, a rare but good position. Before goingto the gig, I began to conjure up my own ideas about

Submotion Orchestra. My thoughts were solely based

3 4




on their name but it turned out my predictions couldn’t

have been further from the truth. They weren’t quite the

orchestra I was expecting.

Entering a packed out venue was my rst indication

of Submotion’s popularity. For the rst half of the set I

couldn’t even see the stage. Perhaps this was a positive

thing though, as I could make my judgments basedsolely on what I was hearing.

To witness such an array of extraordinary sounds was

mind blowing; it was hard to tell whether I was at an

indie gig or an underground rave. The best word I can

use to describe the atmosphere in The Wardrobe was

‘buzzing’; there wasn’t one still body in the room. It

was also interesting to see the mixture of people at

the gig, proving that Submotion’s music reaches a

wide audience.

The voice of singer Ruby could easily rank high amongst

some of the greatest dance music singers of our time:similar to Katy B, but with much more depth. This voice

is complimented so perfectly by the unique dub-step-

meets-jazz sound created by the other multi-talented

members of the band. All hailing from various different

musical backgrounds, each member brings they own

avour to the exceptional Submotion Orchestra. Their

new single It’s Not Me, It’s You is denitely one to add to

your iPod.

Stacie Lloyd

Extra Curricular @ Hi, Leeds

It’s the start of the night; we’re all thinking about dancing,

but no one is at that level where alcohol has replaced

inhibition so we’re all awkwardly shufing at the front of

the stage. The hardcore fans might take it up a gear to

a tentative two step in preparation for the band but the

whole room is self consciously holding onto their drinks,

savouring every sip, because otherwise we’re going to

have to think about what to do with BOTH arms.

However as soon as Extra Curricular take to the

stage, drinks are thrown back, clothes are coming off

and everyone, and I truly mean everyone, gets down.

Strangers are dancing with strangers and everyone hasforgotten whether their hair looks alright or if that guy

from Friday is here yet. Soon enough the whole room

is sweating, the kind of sweat that no one is going to

judge you for, the kind of sweat that makes passersby

on the street jealous because you‘ve had a better time

than they have.

It’s not just the music Extra Curricular creates - it’s

the atmosphere. The set was perhaps a little too short

(they could have played all night and it wouldn’t havebeen enough) but it did leave everyone wanting (and

chanting) for more.

Hana Walker-Brown

Arthur Rigby & The Baskervylles/Hunting Bears @

Nation of Shopkeepers, Leeds

Openers Hunting Bears have a lush, full sound

which is impressive for a four piece and owes much

to the double bass/violin combo. Battling hard against

Shopkeepers’ punk-friendly acoustics, there’s a buzz of

chatter that’s never quite quashed until gorgeous closer

‘Only in My Skin’, a tender 4-part harmony countrychorale, leaves the majority’s collective jaw hanging.

Personal favourite ‘Heavy Tree’ also packs a bit of a

punch once it gets going but this gentle band could do

with perfecting their crowd handling.

Arthur Rigby & The Baskervylles are next up with

a massive pop sound and a booming baritone vocal

delivery: I can’t help but feel like I’m being sung to by a

1920s aviator. That said, it’s the creative, vibrant brass

arrangements that make this really special: fanfares,

chorales and the occasional sweeping ute line have

a pastoral charm and give the whole sound a massive

mid-range boost. One particularly effective song has

the rhythm section pounding out a low groove that

showcases this band’s ear for the overall package.

If I am to gripe, all the most energetic and best written

songs seem to come at the start and I couldn’t help but

feel like the performance seemed to settle down a bit

too much. Also, the drummer’s sense of timing is liberal

at best but to his credit I think it added a bit of extra

energy to proceedings. These are very minor criticisms

though as Arthur Rigby... are one of the most inventive

bands I’ve seen in a long time. In a word: sterling.

Tim Hearson

L i v e R e v i e w s

3 5

I m a g e b y G a r y W o l s t e n h o l m e




Pengilly’s/Garnets @ Brudenell Social Club, Leeds

Opening up the night is Garnets who are mellow andspacey of the ilk of Hernameiscalla, Tomorrow We Sail et

al. The slow moving compositions show a lot of promise

but prove somewhat formulaic. This kind of music needs

epic rises and falls to grab your attention but Garnets

music by and large plateaus around the mid-range.

Also, the laptop additions seem slightly tokenistic given

the onstage keyboard. Don’t get me wrong, all the

ingredients are in there – Garnets just needs the stones

and the variety to shake things up a bit.

Pengilly’s are a bit special. Frontman Ric Hollingberry

has a face you’d love to punch and an unabashedly

southern whine (think The Kooks dialled up a notch) buttheir sound is captivating. Stripped back, synth laden

and cerebral, there’s a dark groove to these minimal

tunes. Lead single ‘Toby’s Hill’ starts with Hollingberry

layering up a looped chorale before dipping into a warm

bath of electronica. Add in some Radiohead-worthy

basslines – also a shameless rip off of the one from ‘The

Immigrant Song’ – and drums that sizzle and shimmer

and you’ve got a band who deserve every bit of the

recent radio airplay they’ve been granted. A home crowd

and fairly packed room give this gig a great atmosphere

leaving me very little to quarrel with.

Tim Hearson

Asa Hawks/Round Window/Iona Dhrum @ Carpe

Diem, Leeds

Last time I was at Carpe Diem, someone came in and

spat at the barmaid, followed by a pitchfork wielding mob

shouting ‘burn the witch!’ I really should get down more.

Actually, it’s not been that long (though the spitting part

is true) but it has been rather remiss of me not to check

out CD and Grain Division and to keep a weather eye on

what’s going down in the town. Naughty Ed.

I’ve always been a bit wary of ‘projects’ and when Jess

Kershaw announces herself as the project Iona Dhrum,

warning bells start to chime. She then strikes up an

ethereal key on her Roland and sings about drifty stuff.

The drifty stuff is not really her though and hardly a

decent match for her voice, which is strong and warm.

Fortunately she picks up a guitar and does herself

justice with some more earthy tunes. This is the good

stuff, stick with it – be loud, be proud, be Jess Kershaw.

I start doodling a bit of stick man porn during Round

Window’s set, which is never a good sign. They are

denitely procient, but the music is interesting ratherthan exciting – a blend of prog, folk and good old

fashioned rock. It’s a bit... indulgent and twiddly and can

be summed up by the lead singer’s confession of ‘writing

this one in a conservatory’. The last song really steps

it up, though, in classic ‘Who’ style – this is really whateverything else should sound like too. Get out of

that conservatory.

Despite coming on at 10.45, The Asa Hawks show no

signs of fatigue and strike up a jaunty country... sorry,

‘Americana’, number that is chock full of joie de vivre.

Katy, in a very sparkly top, comes across as a Yorkshire

Kirsty McColl, vocally charming and approachable, while

the rest of the band creates a Dick Dale/James Yorkston/

Johnny Cash groove. It’s funny, it’s enjoyable... it’s bloody

cheeky in places (especially the lifting of a Cure riff and

the casually dropped in homage to the Dueling Banjos ) but

more than that, the band are loving it. That makes themvery likeable, for me and the rest of the audience. You

might like them too.

Rob Wright

Kane-Hession-D’Silva/Swinepipe @ The Fox & Newt,

Leeds

This was the rst in a (hopefully long running) series of

jazz/improv gigs under the new Fusebox banner, actually

a collaboration between a revived Leeds Jazz and a

reactivated Leeds Improvised Music Association (LIMA).

Don’t know about you but I’m excited already.

Prior to this gig I hadn’t really appreciated the full range of

instruments included in the clarinet family. Swinepipe, a

trio consisting of Richard Ormrod, Helen Baines and Ollie

Dover, come armed to the teeth with different versions of

the instrument, and are here to educate anyone prepared

to listen. They open with an Astor Piazzolla tango which

highlights the traditional, warmly woody sound of the

standard clarinet, but then move on to a piece with three

bass clarinets to create a deep, hypnotic drone, and nish

with their eponymous anthem which does a good job of

creating an ear splitting storm of noise not unlike electric

guitar feedback. No, really.

Leeds born drummer Paul Hession and Leeds based

double bassist Dave Kane are no strangers to the

national and international jazz and improv scene, while

saxophonist Karl D’Silva may only be familiar to Leeds

audiences from his other band The Trumpets of Death.

Hession and Kane dominate this trio with some typically

furious playing from the former that cooks the music to

boiling point repeatedly throughout the set, and Kane rises

to the challenge with some raging playing that’s clearly

utterly exhausting. D’Silva seems a bit unsure of what to

do in the quieter passages, possibly prompting Hession

and Kane to keep things loud and fast, an approachwhich seems to suit the saxophonist’s penchant for short,

repeated phrases anyway.

Steve Walsh

3 6




P r e v i e

w s

3 7

The Pigeon Detectives @ Elland Road Stadium, Leeds

18 April

Leeds’ denitive beery lad’s band literally plays to theterraces in what is probably their spiritual home. This

date precedes a 16 date UK tour in May of considerably

smaller indoor venues.

Born to Brew/Chris Sharkey @ Fox & Newt, Leeds 20

April

Virtuosic, maniacal jazz keysmith Matthew Bourne

brings his esoteric duo Born to Brew to the Fox & Newt,

supported by Trio VD guitar demon, Chris Sharkey. Moist.

Monmon/Round Window/Snakepot Fanny @ The

Packhorse, Leeds 21 April

The lowly showing of the headliners Garage Rock albumin last year’s Vibrations Fight Before Christmas shouldn’t

put you off going to this gig. The album just gets better

with repeated listens and the songs have extra wallop

when played live.

Rhubarb Bomb 5th Birthday ‘The City Consumes Us’

Launch @ The Orangery, Wakeeld 21 April

Wakeeld music fanzine, Rhubarb Bomb, is 5 years of

age and it looks like they’re having a bit of a do. The

lineup consists of a stellar bunch of Wakeeld staples

including The Spills, Piskie Sits, Runaround Kids, Mi Mye,

Imp and St Gregory Orange. The launch is also in aid

of release of a special book, The City Consumes Us, apledge-funded biography of the Wakeeld music scene.

Renegade Brass Band @ Hi, Leeds 22 April

A horn-based funktacular from Shefeld, these can hold

their own against the likes of Hypnotic Brass, Youngblood

and Horndog.

Sir Richard Bishop/Michael Flower Band/Herb

Diamante @ Fox & Newt, Leeds 24 April

The Fox & Newt is rapidly becoming THE place tocatch the cream of avant garde and left eld bands and

musicians in Leeds. Guitarist Sir Richard Bishop founded

Sun City Girls thirty years ago but is a prolic collaborator

and, probably his modus operandi at this gig, solo

performer. Michael Flower does magical things with noise

and Herb Diamante does weird stuff in song.

Submotion Orchestra @ The Trades Club, Hebden

Bridge 26 April

Classy Leeds jazz/dubstep outt featuring some of the

top jazz musicians the city has produced in the last few

years (including Tommy Evans, Simon Beddoe) and

the seductive, smoky vocals of Ruby Wood. Last year’sexcellent debut Finest Hour deserves a wider audience.

From A Bad Girl @ Heart Community Centre,

Headingley, Leeds 28 April

This quintet features Norwegian vocalist Kari Bleivik,

recently voted Vocalist of the Year in the Jazz Yorkshire

Awards 2012, and the band use jazz, Scandinavian folk

music, experimental and improvised music in settings of

the words of Swedish poet Karin Boye. The venue is a

recently opened community and arts centre in Headingley.

Live at Leeds @ All over Leeds, 5 May

Yes, it’s time for the annual day-long music slog thatis Live at Leeds. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll probably

need a nap half way through. Absolutely something

for everyone with Los Campesinos! Marina and the

Diamonds and The Enemy rubbing shoulders with the

likes of Scroobius Pip, Ghostpoet and Blacklisters (though

probably not actually, could you imagine..?).

W o r d s b y T i m H e a r s o n / S t e v e W a l s h




It is a sad fact that the music industry is not as

groovy as everyone would like to think – there

is still a lot of gender-based inequality out

there… and it really needs to go the way of the

dinosaur. Fortunately, music tends to attract the

sort of people who want to do something about

it, as Kate Wellham discovered at the inaugural

Wombeatz Conference. Some of this may come

as a shock to you…

It’s International Women’s Day and we’re on our way to

a man-hating, hairy-legged musical event so militant that

it’s been organised exclusively for girls. I’m imagining it as

a sort of training camp where we will learn such dark arts

as how to render a man infertile with the ick of a single

drumstick, and how to close the pay gap by taking our 17%

from the removal and sale of his now unnecessary organs

as maracas.

The inconspicuous venue has been made slightly more

conspicuous by the sporadic hanging of pink and blue

balloons both inside and outside – the only indication thatanything sinister is going on.

Yes, pink AND blue. AND there’s a boy here! And instead of

plans to take over the world, there are biscuits.

What subversion is this?

Sneaking a peek into the various rooms reveals many

perfectly friendly-looking women teaching and learning

the basics of sound engineering, DJing and recording –

the technical sides of the business where females are

undeniably underrepresented.

What is clear from the happy participants is that this

obviously feels to them like a safe place to ask any kind of

question no matter how silly it seems, to play, to get things

wrong a few times, and to try something completely alien,

without worrying about the consequences: a fundamental

need in order for many of these women to even begin to try

some of these things, as they each later explain.

“We’re not saying we’re better than guys or we want to be

seen to be better than guys, it’s not about that, it’s about

offering the opportunity and encouragement to get more

women to try stuff like this,” says Sarah Statham fromLeeds-based organisation, Wombeatz, who are responsible

for the event.

Sarah – who is in a band herself, Esper Scout - goes

on to explain that today’s event is not about hating men

and wanting them to go away and leave music to us, it is

merely about giving women an environment where they

can experiment with some new skills outside the typically

testosterone-heavy music scene in which they will nd

themselves immersed if they dive straight in.

And it’s the diving straight in that is the only way to learn,but which sadly seems to be the most intimidating part for

women who want to try their hand at anything to do with

music technology.

If you’re a man reading this, and you’re in any way

involved in music, then you’ll probably have felt some

trepidation at attempting something beyond your technical

ability; maybe if you’re a musician you’ll have felt the

nauseating nerves that come before a performance; or

if you’ve promoted then you’ll have had to front up to

someone at some point. But the chances are you won’t

have felt on the back foot from the very start, because of

your gender; you won’t have felt all eyes in the audienceon you for the wrong reasons; you probably won’t have

been referred to as a boy band; you won’t have been

blanked completely by a business contact who refuses

to talk to your sort; and you won’t have experienced –

actually experienced, rather than imagined – the crushing

expectations from everyone around you that whatever

you are about to do is probably going to be a little bit

shit, with any mistake you make merely cementing

preconceptions of your inability, adding extra pressure

to everything you do.

Is it any wonder that fewer women than men are willing

to venture into that world? And because they don’t,

they remain a rarity, and the whole cycle perpetuates.

Welcome to just some of the reasons that events like

this one are so important. Clearly it’s the initial lack

of condence that ALL newcomers of either gender

experience which is holding only the women back.

And if you’re wondering why I think this is how women in

music often feel, it’s because this is what they talk about

during today’s panel discussion.

The discussion begins tentatively, but quickly becomes

painfully candid, with audience members sharing theirconcerns – both real and imagined – with a panel who

have all seen, heard and experienced similar things

This Women’s Work

3 8




before. Although there is very little in the way of downright

disrespect that has been shown to anyone in the room

by men in the industry, it is the innocent assumptions that

hurt them the most. The assumptions that they won’t be as

good as they are: “I get ‘you’re loads better than I thoughtyou’d be’ a lot, which is nice but when you think about

it it’s really sad,” says Kelii Compulsive – front woman

of Obsessive Compulsive, label owner, punk clothing

entrepreneur and ‘zine editor - of the feedback she gets

during gigs and sound checks, probably from people who

don’t have a tenth of the experience she does.

And it’s not just the performers who get it: “I always feel

that a male sound technician starts with 100% credibility,

and then anything he does wrong is taken away from

that, whereas I start with 50% and have to work so hard

to bring that up to a level where I’m respected as much

as he is,” says Hazel Plummer, one of the best sound

technicians of either gender in the country right now. She

also reveals that she once worked for someone at a venue

who would not talk to women at all, and to get around this

she hired as many females as she could, to make sure he

had to get damn well used to dealing with them.

Also on the panel are Jo Kira – a DJ who concedes (to

the general agreement of all) that other women in the

business don’t always have the most helpful attitudes

either (“women can be bitches”), and who dresses up

when she plays, but strictly for herself.

In fact, all women in the room acknowledge that how

they look is often made much of, which can lead to some

W o m e n i n

M u s i c

3 9

confusion when wanting to express themselves, but

without buying into the idea that it’s the most important

thing about them. “I like to make an effort, but I don’t see

why women should have to get their kit off or be sexy

in a situation where a man wouldn’t”, says Kelii, who isalso keen to point out “I don’t have a problem with men

in music at all, I’m in a band with some of them and

they’re brilliant.”

Casting a glance at the piles of feedback forms piled on

the desk at the end of the day, I can’t see a single one

that hasn’t marked the event as a 10/10 experience, with

comments highlighting how relaxed, fun and valuable the

day has been.

Clearly not everybody will be naturally skilled, dedicated

or interested enough to continue to a professional level

simply because they’ve been offered the opportunity

to learn, but without the opportunity to learn, the music

industry could be missing out on those who are that

skilled, dedicated and interested.

Wombeatz need funding to continue their brilliant work

in events, equipment hire, training and networking aimed

at women in music technology, and the more interest

there is in their work the more likely they are to be able

to get it. So if you think you can help them, would like

to participate, or would like to learn, have a look at their

website www.wombeatz.com. Also, I cannot end this

piece without mentioning Immi Cardy aka DJ Immi Yeh,director of Wombeatz and without whom this event would

not have taken place.

W o r d s b y K a t e W e l l h a m ~ I m a g e s B a r t P e t t m a n




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