mostly on a music tip

Scarecrow Smiles

Nathan from Soft Hearted Scientists has just been over to my house to drop round a new album master for me to listen to. He's been working on selecting demo versions of 16 songs which haven't made previous records, and which aren't high on the list of as yet unrecorded tracks by the band. This collection is going to be released sometime this Autumn, else these songs might never see the light of day. I'm just finishing the first play of them now. It's staggering how good they are, even in rough demo form, and it reminds me of getting that first CD off Nathan about five years ago which lead to the formation of My Kung Fu records and all that's happened since.

If you're a follower of Soft Hearted Scientists then you might find a few of the tracks on old playlists from BBC Radio Wales present Adam Walton. We have an agreement with Nathan that he can send anything to Adam without asking us, as Adam was the first supporter of the band. As a result Adam gets first plays of almost all SHS songs, and often songs that don't even get released - if you check his playlist SHS are his most played band. Ever.

The tracklisting for this record (which clocks in around 52 minutes) runs

Strangest Scene
Effervesce
THe Visitor
Scarecrow Smile
Totem Pole Blues
Man Overboard!
Midnight Dance of the Mexican Vampire

(interlude#1)
Twilight Eyes
The Garden
The Impossible
Black Dahlia
Hummingbirds
Evil Eye
The Hairdresser's Ghost
Mantaray on Main Street

I don't know if the interlude has a proper title - it's a new song to me. I love it. It sounds like Black Moth Super Rainbow, or anything quirky from 1970s TV. There's a track written by Paul which I'd never heard before - The Garden. It's superb. There's no title for the record yet - Nathan is thinking Scarecrow Smiles.

This is a great record - even in the muddy depts of Mantary On Main Street, with all the hiss and the squashed up sonics, there's incredible beauty. I bloody love the Soft Hearted Scientists.

Golden Silvers

Hello Blog. Sorry for neglecting you. There's been loads going on. Bit daft that I wasn't blogging daily eh? Well I'm back now - and updates will be damn regular.

So, right now, it's all about Golden Silvers. How good are this band. They're f-king spectacular. I haven't been this excited about a new band since the last time I got this excited, but that's not the point. Right now they're the best new thing I've heard all year. But my brain is, temporarily, putting aside a whole host of other great music. I know this. I've been on their myspace constantly listening to the tracks, and I finally got to see them live at Latitude Festival last week. They were on early in the Uncut Arena, but had pulled a fairly decent crowd. A sudden downpour of rain helped them out enormously and the tent filled to the brim just as they were truly hitting their stride. God smiles upon Golden Silvers, that's for sure.

The singer looks like a 1983 version of Dave Gahan, the band sound part Specials, with some of the poetry of Terry Hall in tow; they feel part The Jam, they look like MGMT dropped into East London. They could well have been ripped from the early 80s. They ooze style. Their delivery is without fault. The songs are brilliant. Brilliant.

They'll be playing our SWN Festival in November. Oh yes. I want to see them up close.

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