Hey Colossus ‘In Black and Gold’ Rocket Recordings
Over the last 11 years, Hey Colossus have become something of an institution in the UK’s noise-rock scene. They’re absurdly prolific, this is album number nine, devoutly experimental – and heavy as a sack of spanners.
Their growing esteem and popularity likely has much to do with the band’s sharp changes in tone and style from LP to LP. Each one takes them into uncharted ground, exposing them to new audiences along the way. Recent releases have even garnered glowing reviews by broadsheets determined to assert their ‘cool’ – what more could a band so uncompromising and antisocial-sounding ask for?
Yet with ‘In Black and Gold’, the follow-up to 2013’s acclaimed ‘Cuckoo Live Life Like Cuckoo’ they’ve managed to deliver a record that pulls beauty from their copious wreckage more so than ever before.
Much of the tonal shift on this latest LP can be attributed to guitarist Jonathan Richards stepping up to provide more of the song writing than on previous outings.
A skateboarder since 1988, Richards intimates that much of his material was developed in his head while on-board: ‘The songs feature lots of banks and transitions that came directly from skating. The changes in rhythm and pace as I skated helped develop the blocks of sound that I would eventually translate to guitar when I got home.’
The result is a record that takes in a wide range of styles and moods, whilst managing to retain the trademark meditative aggression the band have developed in recent years.
Live, Hey Colossus have earned a reputation for show-stealing performances that are as unpredictable and confrontational as they are hypnotic. With a UK tour ahead to promote ‘In Black & Gold’, there’s a chance to experience the wall of sound created by this 6-man worrying proposition for yourself.
Floridian metal giants Torche have unveiled a new track from their upcoming album, Restarter, in the form of a single player computer game. The game enables fans to play as members of the band in a battle against evil robots hell-bent on destroying the city, with the carnage sound tracked by the album’s opening track ‘Annihilation Affair’. Click here to play Torche vs. Robots: Annihilation Affair.
Anyone who can beat the game is in with a chance to win a prize pack including the new album on vinyl, a t-shirt, two tickets to see Torche on their upcoming tour and stickers. To enter, contestants must upload a video to YouTube showing them beating the game with the hash tag #torchevsrobots. Winners will be announced on February 23rd.
Catch Torche live at the dates below, Restarter is due for release on February 23rd via Relapse Records.
May UK tour
22nd London, Underworld
23rd Leeds, Belgrave Social Club
25th Cork, Crane Lane
26th Dublin, Grand Social
27th Belfast, Limelight
28th Glasgow, CCA
29th Manchester, Sound Control
30th Bristol, Festival (2105)
”Soulful pop in a seashell dress, except the sea in question is the one from that bit in ‘Interstellar’ on the perpetual wave-machine planet.” – anonymous
That is just one way that the new offering from big ol’ buddy pals POND has been described to me since its release. It sounds like the sonic interpretation of having a really great time with some close friends, except that you all have the ability to transform into lava-lamps, and that’s what you do all night, every night for a week straight.
Three tracks into ‘MIFLSA’ (as I call it) you’ve been dragged aboard the Pond Rocket depicted on the cover and are heading into uncharted cosmic territory that somehow still feels like a sofa bed in your cool friend’s mum’s basement. Friendly, but slick grooves are split up by oases that float you down gently from the sonic equivalent of the East Australian Current (as seen in the 2003 computer-animated comedy-drama adventure film ‘Finding Nemo’), and out into tepid waters, where you can look back and have bit of a think.
Penultimate track ‘Medicine Hat’, however, sounds like something off Exile On Main St that was recorded in the bottom hull of the aforementioned Pond Rocket as it soars past Saturn. Other highlights include an insanely cool guitar sound in the second quarter of the behemoth title track that figure skates right over your shoulder and into your heart.
All in all, this album is pretty nuts and pretty great. The fact the centerpiece of the album is called ‘Heroic Shart’ basically sums it up – don’t take it too seriously and that makes the quasi-cosmic journey all the more fun.
The Saints have come back and are marching in, but Australia’s The Living Eyes don’t wanna be in that number, they wanna do their own number. And that number isn’t the D4, erstwhile and ersatz garage punks. This lot sure as hell know their product and they totally own it. In fact they sell it hard. While Tame Impala and Pond do the hippy dippy do, with thousand yard stares and degrees in distortion, The Living Eyes combine the song writing sass of The Clean with the bare knuckle vigour of The Hard Ons. And if King Gizzard did garage psych, this lot do garage psycho. Less likely to hit the superfuzz pedal than do a super big piddle on your shoes.
As you might imagine from the title this is a party record, and one which Andrew WK the professional party idiot might approve. Hooky as hell, it recalls compatriot’s Eddy Current Surpression Ring, and last year’s excellent Meatbodies album, and wouldn’t be out of place in San Francisco or on Castle Face, In The Red or Goner Records. But in fact they’re on Agitated Records. This is their second album but their first was put out on bandleader Billy Gardner’s own Antifade records, a man staking his claim as a Melbourne Ty Segall by also playing in bands enticingly called Ausmuteants and Wet Blankets.
Stand-out and hair on neck stand up song ‘Guilty Pleasures’ starts off like Adam & The Ants’ ‘Antmusic’, goes all Dick Dale and ends up like The Damned before dying abruptly in a brick wall of feedback. I won’t pretend that this is high-brow, in fact it’s more like deep set monobrow but it’s one furrow that I don’t mind ploughing.
It’d be foolish to be a London based trio of guitar wielding slackers without knowing that there’s a ton of other Londoners wielding their slack charms left right and centre throughout the capital city. Thankfully for Wicketkeeper, their breezy pop-smarts see them standing tall among a sea of five panel caps.
Methodically simple without being dumb, immediate without being throwaway, ‘All My Friends’ is a hook-laden, Lemonheads meets Pavement homage full of late 20s ennui. Captured live at House of Strange in South East London, their no-frills recording approach lets the song speak for itself as the raw energy pours and their slick melodies rise.
If you thrive on chunky guitar hooks and slacker charm then be sure to catch this instrument swapping trio live at The Shacklewell Arms on February 3rd with Naomi Punk.
‘All My Friends’ is taken from Wicketkeeper’s debut EP, Muscle Baby, self-released from Feb 9th.
The news spread like wildfire over the weekend but it looks like Death Row Records boss Marion “Suge” Knight has formally been charged with murder and attempted murder following a fatal hit-and-run incident.
It has been reported that Suge ran over two men, his friend Terry Carter (a 55-year-old rap music producer) who was killed, and Cle “Bone” Sloan following an arguement in Compton. Bail was revoked due to his violent past and Knight is said to be scheduled to appear in court in Compton, Los Angeles today facing four charges.
As a band name Purling Hiss is a pleasing Spoonerism, nearly as satisfying as when Jeremy Hunt, Cultural Secretary’s name was catastrophically mispronounced by James Naughtie on Radio 4’s Today programme.
Weirdon is also a catchy if not mind boggling title for an album. You wonder what causes a weirdon, and is it something you can hide by crossing your legs. Released at the tail (no pun intended) end of last year on Drag City, this one slipped under the radar, but much like the record by Ultimate Painting – it’s a real grower. Part Archers of Loaf, part Pavement, part Tall Dwarfs, and at its gnarliest Male Bonding, this pop is not just angular it’s so wonky that the shelf holding the vinyl copy has just fallen off the wall of Ikea and squashed your meat balls.
Purling Hiss is basically Mike Polizze, and he makes sounding lop sided effortless even though you know his fretwork is spotless. Easily on a par with recent records by Mikal Cronin and Kelley Stoltz, it’s not razing trees to the ground, it’s not ripping them up, but it is making them bend back like Thunderbird 2 emerging from its Tracy Island lair ready to ping in your face. Like an international rescue from your January stupor.
The East Midlands was rocked by an earthquake last night recorded at 3.8 in magnitude as over 1000 reports of tremors and buildings shaking were logged from people in Oakham and as far away as Dudley, where nothing ever happens.
The tremors were said to have lasted up to 10 seconds at a time, fueled by deafening roars that went to ’11’. Many heavy metal fans in the Birmingham area believe this to be directly linked to an aftershock from a punch thrown by Black Sabbath’s infamous bass player Geezer Butler, whose bar brawl in Death Valley, California was said to have been laden with seismic Satan approved energy, blowing out windows in the Corkscrew Saloon at Furnace Creek Ranch.
Butler, aged 65, was immediately arrested, put behind bars and charged for using highly illegal heavy metal superpowers for a misdemeanour assault, public intoxication and vandalism. Neither Butler nor Black Sabbath have issued an official statement as broken glass and tiles are swept up on both sides of the Atlantic and structural engineers assess the damage to offices, homes, churches and cathedrals.
Sources inside the police station are said to have banned lead singer Ozzy Osbourne from visiting the bass player as it’s rumoured that Butler and other Sabbath band members use a secret power socket as a direct source to regenerate their superpowers.
When we announced the news that Finnish punk band Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät were chosen to participate in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, the news spread like wildfire. Why? Because PKN are one of the hardest working bands out there, living a dream playing punk rock to underground crowds, whilst also living with their own learning disabilities. The support for them is massive.
On February 7th a national vote will take place on Finnish TV to find the artist their country wants to front the competition. It’s a very different place from playing punk rock venues with the likes of their UK mates Hard Skin who we saw play in London last October, but they need your vote to get through.
Regardless of our British ties, we would love to see Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät go all the way, so if you are reading this, get right behind them and spread the word as far as you can!
If PKN are new to your radar, some of the band knew each other from when they were younger, some of them met in working in the same culture workshop. Together they work daily with radio shows, making music and other culture following the success of their amazing film ‘The Punk Syndrome’ – it’s a phenomenal story, go scout it out.
Who would have thought that the journey would take you to Eurovision! Are you excited or dreading it?
Toni: Yes I am excited.
Kari: I am excited because it’s a once in a lifetime experience.
How did you become involved in it? It was definitely the biggest surprise of all time.
Kari: Pertti is a Eurovision fan. He likes them and knows who have previously won the contest.
Pertti: Yeah, I’ve always been a great fan of the Eurovision Song Contest. I wanted to play there, so we had to take part in the UMK contest first! And PKN was chosen!
Do you have to prepare many tracks for the competition in advance?
Toni: We had three new songs that were not released yet. We recorded them and sent them to the “jury”. They chose the song “Aina mun pitää” and took the band in. We also made a music video for it.
Knowing it’s Eurovision, will you compromise and write any poppier material for this competition?
Toni: No, only punk rock.
Kari: No way!
Have you worked any funny dance routines yet for your set to blend in with everyone else?
Toni: No. But I will dance if the television is filming me.
Knowing that Lordi from your home country won it in 2006, are you planning to wear similar costumes?!
Toni: Of course!
Kari: No. I will use my own clothing. My motorcycle vest!
Has Lordi been in touch yet, or are they still stuck in those costumes unable to communicate with other bands since?!
Toni: We were playing with him in Rovaniemi. He came along and sang our song Pyhäpäivä with us.
Kari: He’s also been singing with us. We met and traded phone numbers. He sent our manager a text message a few weeks ago, cheered us on and wished us good luck!
Is there a communal desire to spread the good message that others with learning difficulties can achieve the things they want with some well earnt support within this competition?
Toni: That’s right.
Kari: I hope so!!!
Knowing that TV and social media can be a cruel place to be when it comes to the general public having opinions on people’s music, are you ready for the potential backlash?
Toni: I am ready.
Kari: I know and I’m ready.
What message to you have for the haters?
Kari: You don’t have to insult us for a reason like this. If you want to achieve something in your own life, you have to do it. And this is something I want to do.
From seeing you at previous shows, Kari sometimes gets excited and rocks out with an erection in his pants, have you thought of ways of keeping it down if you reach the final so you are not disqualified?!
Toni: We will not win.
Kari: I will not take my penis out at the Eurovision, but other gigs, it’s alright!
Our mutual friend Sean from Hard Skin is famously a big fan of previous winners Abba, as he seems to always DJ their music at punk shows, in an ideal world would you prefer to see him front:
A) Puppet on a String in 1967 (video)
B) Ding A Dong in 1975 – (video)
C) or…Making Your Mind Up in 1981 (video)
Kari: Making Your Mind Up! Sean is an Abba fan. I like that 70s music too even though I sing different kind of music. If Sean will leave Hard Skin and start singing this kind of music, he would have fun and nice time. He could jump and swing and sing those kind of songs!
Ha! We will try and fix that for you, I’m sure he will be up for it. So finally, are you in it to win it?
Toni: We are going to win. If we win.
Kari: It’ll feel very great, good and awesome. If you’re in for something, you must enjoy it. Full heart.
Good luck from all of us out here, we will be right behind you!
A court room in Manchester today was surprised to see none other than Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown giving evidence against his former school teacher Fred Talbot, who taught him biology the 70s.
Testifying as part of a case to bring Talbot’s alleged seedy past to justice, Brown walked into the court room and told the jury how the sex offender had “..showed me a film. It was years before I realised it had been wrong to show us that film. It was a three minute film on Super 8 projector and a young guy walks into a room dressed in denims, sits on the bed, takes his trousers down and masturbates. It was only a few years later I realised it was perhaps a gay porn film. It wasn’t a sex education film.”
Brown’s involvement in this case sees him give evidence only and is not a victim of the alleged indecent assaults on boys carried out on children aged as young as 14 at Altrincham Grammar School for Boys School in Cheshire in the late 60s and 70s.
In related news, the Anonymous group today launched their date of Friday 13th February as the day to take to the streets in their fight to raise more attention on outing those who should be brought to justice for their involvement in crimes like this. Keep up to date online with #OpDeathEaters.
Hey Colossus
PURLING HISS
