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This music video for "Take It and Go," the latest single from the Leeds-based band Nikoli, tells the story of a couple and some severely crossed wires. It was directed by Leeds-based Kevin Petch
Maximo Park: "Apply Some Pressure"
Maximo Park have taken the world by storm and proven themselves as one of the last truly original acts to make it through the closing door of the new wave of young British rock acts. Their debut full-length "A Certain Trigger" launched a wave of frenzy in the UK that began with an endless string of sold-out shows and emphatic praise from rock bible NME. It's recently ascended even further with record sales landing the band a Gold Record for the album, appearances on the legendary Top Of The Pops television program and a headlining spot on this year's NME Awards Tour alongside upstarts Artic Monkeys, joining Maximo Park in good company with past NME Tour headliners Franz Ferdinand, The Killers and Kaiser Chiefs. In addition to their superstar status in the UK, Maximo Park have made a great impression on US shores with praise from MTV and Rolling Stone as well as Andy Warhol's Interview, and a tour with modern-rock darlings The Bravery. More a companion piece to "A Certain Trigger" than a full-fledged Maximo Park album, "Missing Songs" is meant to act as both a treat for hardcore fans and a welcome addition to the collection of new converts. The record is comprised of nine tracks that were featured as b-sides on the band's UK and European singles but only two of which ever appeared on a US release (the limited "Apply Some Pressure" single which you'll also find in this package) and never-before-heard demo versions of three of MP's most popular tracks. On the import-single, you'll find the original version of the new single, "Apply Some Pressure" while "Missing Songs" features an acoustic version of the same songs as well as live favorites such as "A19" and "I Want You To Leave" that have become staples even though they've been essentially unavailable in the US.
Abrasive Wheels: "Find Your Heart"
Abrasive Wheels, one of the original and most successful 80's Punk bands released two top selling albums, "When the Punks go Marching in" and the classic "Black Leather Girl." During the early eighties the British band, based in Leeds, were seldom out of the top five of the Indie Chart with blistering anthems such as "The Army Song," "Vicious Circle," "Burn em Down," "Jailhouse Rock," "Banner of Hope," and "The Prisoner." The Band reformed with the original lineup plus new guitarist Steve Popplewell and did their first gig in Bradford, England in February 2003.
In the summer of 1998 ? brought together by a slew of disparate-yet-alluring musical reference points ? high school friends Eddie Baranek (vocals/guitar), Mike Trombley (drums), and Mark Leahey (bass/vocals) formed The Sights. The trio began playing around their hometown of Detroit shortly thereafter, around which time Trombley, founding drummer, headed to California for what would come to be a three-year respite from the band and also the impetus for a revolving door of drummers, bassist and keyboard players. Undaunted , The Sights took to the studio and began recording their debut album, Are You Green?, at Jim Diamond?s Ghetto Recorders in Detroit . Originally released in June of 1999, Are You Green? was picked up by L.A.-based Fall of Rome Records and re-released the following year. Never big on rest, The Sights went to work on their sophomore album, Got What We Want (released in 2002). With this, the band?s freakishly precocious ability to blend frenetic garage rock, Motown and 60?s pop into something equal parts classic and catchy got them noticed. Got What We Want was released in the U.K. a year later, garnering them some very nice words from both the British press ("Got What We Want is a revelation - a treasure trove of sparky and wildly immediate songwriting." --NME) and the not-so British press ("At last - a new Detroit-garage band that comes in colors." --Rolling Stone). The Sights hit the road for a year of touring both countries, including a 10-week stint sleeping inside the group?s 1991 Ford Econoline van and stealing bagels for sustenance. In the spring of 2004, The Sights - now including relative newbie Bobby Emmett as organist/bassist and Keith Fox as drummer- caught the ear of ex-Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha, who signed them to his own Scratchie Records ( an imprint of New Line Records). And with that, the band headed back to Ghetto Recorders to record their self-titled third LP, The Sights, due out in April 2005. No small feat, the album combines the unobtrusive honesty of The Band with slivers of influence from The Sights? own personal record collections: Ike & Tina, Solomon Burke, Everly Brothers , Bob Seger, Tim Hardin and all manner of raucous songwriting. The end result is an album that?s classic, not derivative?filled with swagger and deference?and ridiculously catchy. Really.
The Pharcyde emerged on the hip hop scene in 1992 with their debut, Bizzare Ride II the Pharcyde, on the Delicious Vinyl label. The Californian quartet consisting of Tre Slimkid Hardson, Romye Booty Brown Robinson, Derrick Fatlip Stewart, and Imani Wilcox came together to make a splash on the hip hop scene breaking the mold of the West Coast gangsta rap of its time, by producing rhymes and beats narrating hilarious skits, clownish antics, and stoned perceptions. With their unique style of rap, their light hearted lyrics, and diverse sound The Pharcyde established themselves quickly among the listeners as a legitimate hip hop force. And a force they were to keep their fan base so hooked that they waited three years before releasing their much anticipated sophomore album LabCabinCalifornia. Unleashed in 1995 this album made evident the growth of a band that had endured the realities of the music industry and fame. Manifesting a stronger lyrical content, LabCabinCalifornia showed the rap world that the Pharcyde were not just the playful cats on Bizarre Ride II, but they were musicians growing and exploring their talents. With different producers, The Pharcyde ventured into a jazzier, more sophisticated sound. LabCabin displayed the abilities of the Pharcyde as clever lyricists, as well as gifted musicians dappling in both the worlds of hip hop and jazz. In 1997, the ride began to get bizarre. While on the heels of completing their third album, Plain Rap, and in the middle of enjoying the fruits of labor as struggling artists who had impacted the world of hip hop, Fatlip decided that he would pursue a solo career. Upon Fatlip's departure it was not long before Slimkid followed suit leaving the group, Booty Brown and Imani, to make sense of their decisions emotionally, musically, and financially. Yet as always, under a new record label, Chapter One, Imani and Booty Brown focused and clung to the Pharcyde recipe that had repeatedly delivered success - retreat into the studio for a few years, lose yourself in your music, test yourself by pushing boundaries and hustle like you never knew what a record deal was. The end result of all this hard work, The 2004 return of a Band that influences the hip hop that crowds our radio waves today. The new ride for the Pharcyde starts with their recently released, Humboldt Beginnings. The duo has proven themselves once again as key players in hip hop. The album gives their fans a trip down memory lane with the same vibe and fertile lyrics from the Pharcyde's past classics. Imani and Brown display their abilities to carry on the Pharcyde name in its original fashion, seducing their audience with the same boyish charm that founded them at the beginning, now combined with the knowledge that has been bestowed upon them as men who have taken on the rap game. Humboldt Beginnings has repeatedly been described as an album before its time. http://www.thepharcyde.com
The Veils' sophomore album "Nux Vomica" has started to cause a bit of a stir stateside. Check out the video for "Advice"!
Stateless are one of Leeds' most exciting bands, currently on course to explode all over the music world. The band fuses a conventional band set-up of vocals (Chris James), bass (Justin Percival) and drums (David Levin) with the electronic mesh of turntables (Kidkanevil) and live programming (Rod). Stateless recently finished recording their self-titled debut album with producer Jim Abbiss (Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian), who passed on some tracks to the mighty DJ Shadow. Immediately a fan, Shadow enlisted Chris to co write and sing on two songs on his new album The Outsider. Check out Stateless on http://music.download.com/stateless
An escalating drum roll opens Our Ill Wills, the sophomore album from Shout Out Louds… and rightly so. It's been a few years since the release of their first full-length record, the critically acclaimed, Howl Howl Gaff Gaff, and anticipation is great. But the band's been anything but idle. These last years have seen their passports fill up with stamps and their photo albums with snap shots from all corners of the world. They've done their own headline tours as well as being the support act of choice for bands such as The Strokes, The Magic Numbers and Kings Of Leon. Being on the road means you have plenty of time to think, to drink, to reminisce on the past. To play computer games. To miss loved ones. To get lost in new towns. To misbehave and to get your priorities in order. It's all there, on Our Ill Wills, out September 11th on Merge Records. Well, maybe not the computer games so much.
Corrosion of Conformity: "Stone Breaker"
We really try hard to be true to what our hearts tell us to do," says New Orleans-bred Pepper Keenan, guitarist and songwriter for the band. "We do what we feel and we don't want to get caught up in any '90s-style production bullshit, 'cause when we look back at what we've done we want it to sound timeless. So many bands are gonna laugh at themselves in ten years. We don't want that." COC has been hurtling towards a "timeless" rock sound since their humble-but-turbulent beginning as a hardcore band way back in 1982. Back then, the band -- guitarist Woody Weatherman, bassist Mike Dean and drummer Reed Mullin (Keenan didn't join until 1990) -- searched desperately for a voice, an identifiable way to vent the spleen that has continued to haunt them through a full six records: 1983's vociferous Eye For An Eye, '85's phlegmatic rant Animosity, '87's drop D-tuned barrage Technocracy, '91's awesome, menacing Blind, and the album that serves as WISEBLOOD's most direct sonic ancestor: '94's breakthrough platter, Deliverance. "We began carving our niche with Deliverance," says Keenan with a hint of the South in his voice. "Now that we have that niche we should stay in it. I often wonder what makes good bands take sudden left turns. Why would you work hard to develop a sound and then just abandon it? It makes no sense." "We've always tried to make albums that have highs and lows and midpoints," says Keenan, "records that you can listen to from beginning to end. We've got no interest in ramming ten songs in the same key down your throat.
The Go-Betweens: "Here Comes a City"
The Go-Betweens are the quintessential cult band. Throughout their hugely acclaimed career they have sustained an unparalleled artistic consistency which has year by year elevated them above their contemporaries, many of whom have lapsed in to unfortunate artistic decline whilst the unique songwriting partnership of Forster and McLennan garners more respect and acclaim with each new release. Even Princess Caroline of Monaco and the Premier of Australia have become fans with the latter distributing copies of their latest album in the American Senate! Thanks to a fervent fan base the group is now playing to larger audiences than it ever did in the eighties. Their last release, Bright Yellow Bright Orange, has proven to be one of their biggest sellers to date. The Go-Betweens were formed in 1978, when Grant McLennan and Robert Forster, two Queensland University students with a passion for films and the US punk scene, met and decided (in Grants words) ?to do The Factory in Brisbane?. Musical instincts prevailed and, encouraged by Robert, Grant took up the bass guitar. After playing together for no more than four months, the pair went into the studio to record two of Robert?s songs - ?Karen? and ?Lee Remick?. Pressing up 500 copies and distributing it themselves, they nearly ended up with a deal at Beserkley Records (US indie label and then home to Jonathan Richman) but Beserkley ran into financial difficulties. In fact, the Go-Betweens were dogged by label troubles through out their career. Rough Trade who eventually put out their debut LP Send Me a Lullaby in Europe, had to drop the band after their second album due to a lack of finance. Later, both Sire and Elektra who either had the band signed or were in the process of signing them had to let them go when both labels closed their UK offices. But the Go-Betweens always had a phenomenal drive that kept them going- returning again and again to Britain, as strangers and then as undervalued songwriters, in an effort to establish themselves on the world-wide music scene, self-financing singles, supporting the Birthday Party across Australia, recruiting more members as they went (drummer Lindy Morrison, bassist Robert Vickers and, later, violinist/oboist Amanda Brown, whom the band discovered playing a Forster song, ?Draining The Pool for You?, in a coffee bar) and on the last album, bassist John Willsteed. Their second album, Before Hollywood, was recorded in Eastbourne, autumn 1983 and sounds all the more wonderful for it. Four more albums followed: Spring Hill Fair, recorded in France on a major label budget, the more coherent Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express (for which Robert recorded all his vocals in one afternoon, his voice having been out of action for most of the sessions), the bright poppy Tallulah and finally, the more acoustic and reflective 16 Lovers Lane. The heavily played radio single ?Streets Of Your Town? followed, as did a support slot with REM. However, by this point the pressures of being together for twelve years were beginning to have visible effect and both Grant and Robert were pushing in different directions. Finally, the Go-Betweens decided to call it a day. The set up of the band, with two independent singer-songwriters was (and still is) an unusual one, but in this case it worked out perfectly. Robert?s edgy, dark and highly romantic compositions were offset perfectly by Grant?s lighter, more wistfully melodic and lyrically more expansive contributions. It?s hard to say however, what makes them both so special. Unlike a lot of bands the Go-Betweens just made albums of (admittedly highly accomplished) guitar-based pop songs. They didn?t do anything widely unusual or idiosyncratic, but what they did is beautiful and timeless. Maybe it is something to do with the interplay on two perspectives on what must be similar or concurrent events. Maybe its the underlying romanticism of all their records - that they appreciate the fact that love and life are battles but they are battles which must be fought and one should wear ones scars proudly. They also knew how to craft a subtle arrangement around an intelligent lyric and winsome melody. And that should be enough for anyone. After the split of the Go-Betweens, Robert Forster and Grant McLennan had vibrant solo careers. Both released four solo albums and Grant also released two albums with Steve Kilbey of the Church under the name of Jack Frost and one album with Ian Haig of Powderfinger under the name of F.O.C. Recent projects have included a biography written by David Nichols and published by Allen and Unwin in Australia, a Go-Betweens tribute album, an acclaimed compilation: Bellavista Terrace, and a collection of lost early recordings from 1978-79. Since the split, Grant and Robert have played together on several occasions acoustically including the Beggars Banquet birthday celebrations in Tower Records, in Piccadilly Circus London (August 1994) and most notably with a full band at the Les Inrockuptibles 10th anniversary show in Paris (23rd May 1996) and a run of six full band shows in June 1997, two in Dublin, one in Glasgow, two in London (Forum and Fleadh Festival) and the Roskilde Festival in Denmark. As a duo, Robert and Grant toured the world in 1999 to rave reviews, which prompted the pair to consider recording a new album together. Sitting in a Melbourne seaside hotel on the Australian leg of their tour, Forster and McLennan finally agreed to restart The Go-Betweens with a new album. The Friends Of Rachel Worth (2000) was the result. Ten new songs were recorded in Jackpot Studios in Portland, Oregon. The album was produced by the band with Janet Weiss from Sleater-Kinney on drums, Adele Pickvance (who has played with both Forster and McLennan in their solo careers) on bass, Sam Coombes (Quasi and Elliot Smith) on keyboards along with Carrie Brownstien and Corin Tucker from Sleater Kinney on guitar and backing vocals. The finished record stood proudly alongside anything in their canon and received unanimously rave reviews. The Go-Betweens toured the world with great success playing to the largest audiences of their career and culminating in a headline slot at Australia?s Big Day Out, and Robert and Grant were honoured by the Australian Performing Rights Association for writing one of the ten greatest Australian songs of all time with ?Cattle and Cane?. They completed their eighth studio album Bright Yellow Bright Orange in 2003, which was released to huge acclaim. The group toured again, including Japan for the first time and their UK dates were sold out with a rapturous response. Robert relocated to Brisbane, where Grant is based, and they spent the rest of 2003 and much of 2004 writing. Their work was interrupted only by a short trip to Europe, playing two shows to celebrate the re-release of the albums Liberty Belle & The Black Diamond Express, Tallulah and 16 Lovers Lane. Vicker Street in Dublin and London?s prestigious Barbican Theatre were both sold out. Whilst in London they met up with Mark Wallis, the producer of 16 Lovers Lane, and agreed to return in November to record their new album with Mark producing again. The album was completed in January 2005 and is entitled Oceans Apart. The release date is May 3, 2005 on Yep Roc Records with US tour dates to follow.
