This is good, better than good. Thank you to the people who sent it to me, and apologies for the lack of review in August’s Plan B. I lost it in a pile of other CDs. I’m guessing it’ll still be relevant in September.

For all that I’m bored of hearing that the energy, inventiveness and fire of the experimental scene of the early 80s has never really been surpassed, that this stuff still sounds more than fresh today, compilations like this make a pretty good case for both those claims. It’s all so joyfully serious and so kind of menacing; this overriding antagonistic intelligence that glowers out of the faces of the musicians on the cover as well as from the sawing notes of Swans’ ‘Weakling’ and Sonic Youth’s ‘Shaking Hell’. Oh and there is an eight-minute Arthur Russell track too, one of his really barely-there World Of Echo-style ones that sounds like clouds and light. And Rhys Chatham. All good.

From here:www.orangemountainmusic.com

Posted by Frances May Morgan on Monday, July 31st, 2006
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Last night’s Morgen und Nite sort out their minidisc recordings session resulted in our at least naming a couple of new tracks (look out for ‘Arc De Triomphe’, coming your way in the key of E-fuck sometime soon) but soon became the customary Friday night Morgen-Nite-Stannard listening party, with pizza and ale and puns galore. Fun!

On the menu were recordings by Espers, Strapping Young Lad, Facedowninshit, Circulus, Aerosmith, Tractor, Lotus Eaters and - my pick of the bunch - Fresh Maggots’ s/t 1971 one-off album. What was most great about it was its oddly urgent pace, and some beautifully recorded strings. Richard Youngs was evoked as a comparison, which gives you an idea, kind of.

There’s a pretty good review of it from last year here on Dusted, which takes a while to turn into an actual review but I think it’s all the better for that, exploring as it does some of the issues surrounding the current trend for folk-archaeology.

It doesn’t, however, mention the sleevenotes, which include a hilarious cutting from the local paper about a trip the band (from Nuneaton) took to somewhere in Kent to have their photos taken looking all sylvan or something. The guys picked up some Swedish hitch-hikers on the way, and on reaching their destination were pleasantly surprised and pleased when the ‘Scandinavian misses’ invited them for an impromptu swim in a pond - ‘STARKERS!’ reports the paper, gleefully, in full capitals, implying that nudity in Kent in 1971 was big news.

Also worthy of mention are the sleevenotes to the Tractor album we listened to, which included a superb list of bands playing at some interminable sounding British free festival sometime in the 70s - Gin Seng, Frogbox and Bashful Alley, where are they now?

Posted by Frances May Morgan on Saturday, July 15th, 2006
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So here’s what I played on the Kosmische show on Wednesday, in response to the commenter who wanted a list.

Nikki St George - Battle Theme from the Tomorrow People soundtrack
Thralldom - Anticipation Of An Obituary
Town And Country - Sun Trolley
Espers - Widow’s Weed
Amon Düül II - Eye-Shaking King
Josephine Foster - Verschwiegene Liebe
United Bible Studies - Tributaries Of The Styx Under Dublin
Tim Buckley - Starsailor/The Healing Festival
Sunroof! - Bear Melt
Patton/Kaada - Seule
John Martyn - Small Hours (instrumental version)

And then Nite and I are going on the radio tonight, at 9.30pm (on Resonance 104.4fm). We’ll be playing recordings of some new acoustic stuff we’re working on, plus some stuff by other people, including (so far) Nalle, Leopard Leg, Everlovely Lightningheart and Derek Bailey, and talking to Ivor, whose show it is.

Posted by Frances May Morgan on Saturday, July 8th, 2006
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new MP3 release on infinite chug from CGI WORMS. go check it out!

Posted by Andrew Clare on Wednesday, July 5th, 2006
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So tomorrow, I will be in Sweden. But you can hear my Kosmische show on Resonance 104.4fm anyway, because I’m recording it tonight and dropping it in tomorrow en route to the airport. Hopefully it will find its way onto the air at 11pm.

Anyway, it’ll be the usual psych gubbins, interspersed with mystery Black Metal, Schubert lieder with electric guitars and whatever else I can get my hands on this evening. Thanks to youneedamesssofhelp for helping me compile it and doing the washing up - at the same time!

In other news, Ghostly International’s podcasts are awesome and you can get ‘em here. Check the Bodycode and Dabrye ones. They are pretty fine and crunchy.

Posted by Frances May Morgan on Tuesday, July 4th, 2006
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