09.18.14
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Mr Plow – Not The Beginning, Not The End

Mr. Plow” is the ninth episode of The Simpsons’ fourth season, which originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 19, 1992.[3] In the episode, Homer buys a snow plow and starts a business plowing driveways. It is a huge success, and inspired by this, Barney Gumble starts a rival company and quickly puts Homer out of business.

But that’s not what I’d be writing about on Sonic Breakfast.

Mr. Plow is also the name of an Americana singer-songwriter, influenced by Johnny Cash, dark tales and guitars with slide. The man has lived in Leicester for years. He now appears to be working with a band of quality musicians. For ease and simplicity, they also take the name, Mr. Plow.

I’ve known Mr Plow for years – known as in we’ve sometimes made comments on the same social media threads. We’d acknowledge each other with a nod of the head and a couple of sentences of small talk should we pass each other in the street but I’m not sure that we’ve ever got into any conversations that have lasted longer.

In many ways, this is an odd state of affairs. A quick scan across my CD and vinyl would show that our musical interests are not hugely divergent.

Back at the start of the summer, Mr. Plow announced the impending release of his third album, ‘Not The Beginning, Not The End’ on Pinkbox Recordings. A free gig at the Cookie was put on to celebrate the launch. Over the course of the last few months, it’s an album I’ve frequently listened to as I’ve driven around the festival circuit. You’ll find more detailed reviews elsewhere but suffice to say, it is very, very good.

I’m a fan of story songs. If they contain heavy doses of death and drama then it’s all the better. This has probably been the case since the 9 year old me first heard Shangri La’s ‘Leader Of The Pack’. So, how could I possibly not fall in love with ‘Dwight’s Roadside Grave’, the second song on the album. In Mr. Plow’s deep, bass-heavy, drawl, he relates the darkly humorous tale of how him and his put-upon sister despatch with Dwight, their step-Dad. It’s classic songwriting.

The tune from the album that I’m featuring here is ‘Bag Of Bones’. It’s another stand-out on an album that in truth always keeps giving. This is a slower number. It could be a man coming towards the end of his life, possibly prematurely. It’s a man questioning his very existence. It’s a wretched, walk out of the door and never come back tune. It’s a sad song and I take much joy from it.

09.16.14
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Generationals – Alix

I think it was about 14 months ago now that I saw Louisiana duo, Generationals play at the Cookie in Leicester. It was one of those gigs. I’d heard a few of their tracks and seen youtube videos. I tried to convince friends that are remotely interested in seeing live music that the ‘next big thing from the US’ are playing in their city.

Result – a criminally under-attended gig that probably had no more than four paying punters in attendance.

Yet Generationals were good; sparkingly so. I wanted to make the noise of 100 people but self-consciousness got the better of me and so instead I clapped politely and whooped (very gently) at the end of each song. 

Back then, Generationals were promoting third album, Heza. It had a load of great tunes on it. Possibly the sort of album that could be toured for a couple of years. This video got them a fair bit of publicity to dine out on.

 

Ted Joyner and Grant Widmer appear to be having none of that though. Their fourth album, Alix, is being released on September 29th in the UK. I received a promo copy at the weekend and have been listening intently since. 

Thoroughly now and yet recalling some of the best synth-noise of the 1980’s, for me it hits a space somewhere between MGMT and Madonna. There’s a poppy swagger amidst funky bleeps providing the bubble. A vocal, often pitching just beneath falsetto, chimes and showers over you to complete the wash.

One of the lead tracks from ‘Alix’ is ‘Black Lemon’. If it’s not been so already, I’d place good money on this being used as incidental music on the BBC by the time this Autumn is done- perhaps with the goals round up on Match Of The Day or in a baking break on that programme that the girls at work go mad for.

By 2015, my friends might need less convincing should these guys ever return to Leicester.

 

09.15.14
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Eliza And The Bear – An E-mail interview

So, here’s something I’ve not done before on Sonic Breakfast….

But I got the chance to E-mail some questions to Eliza And The Bear in advance of their headline tour that kicks off at the end of this week in Brighton. I’m planning to see them live when they reach Leicester in a few weeks by which time the internet will be full of tales of the quintet’s rock n’roll excesses (perhaps). 

It was Martin from the band who responded….

For the uninitiated, how would you describe Eliza And The Bear?

Id say we are simply five guys making feel good pop-rock.

Given that none of you are ‘Eliza’s’ or ‘Bears’ (from what I can tell), has the name ever proven a hindrance?

Its never really created any problems, we just get asked “where is the bear” or “who’s Eliza” a lot. We always just tell people that the closest we have to a bear is our bass player Chris who is undoubtedly the hairiest member..

A summer of festivals completed. What’s been the best thing to happen to you at a festival this summer?

We played a lot of awesome festivals this year. It would have to be between the moment when Thom Yorke of Radiohead camped next to me in Leo and our set at Y-Not.

And now a pretty big headline tour.. What might the audience expect? Any special surprises? Which of these shows are you most looking forward to?

We are playing quite a lot of new material on this tour which we are all looking forward to. To be fair i am bias, but i would have to say that London is the one I’m looking forward to most. Its the one in which all our family and friends are at and always cause for celebration!

What’s the best and worst thing about touring?

Best thing is meeting people and seeing what each place has to offer in terms of hardcore nightclubs. Worst thing is the hygiene of some of my fellow band members. I won’t name names….

Early reviews of ‘Eliza And The Bear’ that I read suggested that you were a happier version of the Flaming Lips. Fair comparison or is there something else you aspire towards?

I think its a fair comparison. To be fair we have had that a couple of times but i think the Flaming Lips reference is unintentional as most of the boys haven’t really listened to them that much or at all!

Your music has accompanied quite a few adverts and TV programmes over the past year. Which of these has made you proudest? Are there any products that you wouldn’t endorse and if so, what are they?

Mine would have to be Match Of The Day. Im a West Ham fan and they actually managed to lose on the day we got played on it. Didn’t make it any less special though to be fair. Well Callie (our keyboard player) is vegetarian so i can’t see us doing Meat Weekly or something like that..

Scottish people are about to vote on whether Scotland should go it alone. How would you vote?

In the words of Al Green “Lets Stay Together”

And finally – I’d say it’s been a year of steady progress for Eliza And The Bear. What are your hopes and dreams for the next year?

I think we just hope that we continue the way we have been, seeing a rise in people hearing our music and coming out and enjoying our shows!


So – there you are. Anybody who managed to catch Eliza And The Bear at Y-Not will probably already have tickets to one of their shows. Live music is there to be supported. You’ll have a fun night out. It’ll certainly be better than staying in watching Strictly or The X Factor. 

 

09.14.14
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Olde Worlde – Stuck In Hibernation / Thinking About You

And so, after a summer break when I went to a festival every weekend, Sonic Breakfast begins again. Normal service is resumed.

I’ve half-joked that, as summer turns to Autumn, it signals my descent into hibernation. My armchair is comfy; the boiler is working and the heating is tested. There’s a mass of music to get me through the cold, winter months. Before we know it Spring will be in the air again. 

It seems appropriate that this song about being ‘stuck in hibernation’ by Japanese act, Olde Worlde, is my first post of the Autumn. This is twee Tokyo with a nod towards Brit pop. At times, the vocal is over-pronounced but rather than frustrate this just amplifies the overall charm. The lyrics might appear like they’re thrown together but I defy you not to smile at their random arrangement. 

Olde Worlde is the solo project of multi-instrumentalist, Sohhei Numata. Born in Machida, Tokyo, Olde Worlde released his brand new album The Blue Musk-Oxen in the UK on September 1st. 

These are tunes that’ll get inside your head. You’ll find yourself singing them as you make your morning coffee; you’ll stomp through the leaves that are falling from the trees whilst whistling these happy tunes. I add a second tune from Olde Worlde today as well. ‘Thinking About You’ is one of those wistful and yet upbeat laments; a love song to somebody far away. They might not even know how loved they are. 

Bring on those winter nights… 

 

 

09.10.14
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A long, hard (but brilliant) Summer

This post comes with apologies. 

When I last posted to Sonic Breakfast three months ago, I had no idea that it would be my last post of the Summer. 

But, reviewing a festival every weekend for eFestivals whilst trying to maintain the day job meant that something had to give.

You just need to read my BoomTown fair review to get a glimpse into the way my world has been.  

I’ve missed updating Sonic Breakfast daily; unearthing new bands and new tracks that have meant something. I’ve also received quite a few E-mails from bands, artists and PR companies still keen to push their wares through this site…,

And so, the time comes to relaunch Sonic Breakfast…. From Monday 15th September, this blog is heading back to daily updates. As ever, if you think you have something that’ll grace this page then send me the details at sean@sonicbreakfast.com

With love, 

Sean

06.03.14
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Melanie De Biasio – The Flow

Back from Wychwood – apologies for the lack of posts whilst I’ve been away. I take my I-pad with best intentions but then invariably something else gets in the way.

Perhaps you have heard of today’s act I’m featuring? Melanie De Biasio has been getting profile in posh papers and reviewed on Radio 2 for she is a classy chanteuse.

 

She (and her talented band) evoke jazz so loungey it strays into trip-hop. What a voice. Classed in her native Belgium as their answer to Billie Holliday and you can see why in this track ‘The Flow’ from her wonderful album, ‘No Deal’.

The wise and the connected have already taken to her in droves it would seem. For a headline set that’s been announced as part of James Lavelle’s Meltdown festival at the South Bank has sold out. There’s other chance to catch Melanie when she supports ‘Eels’ across Europe later this year. How good would seeing her be at the Royal Albert Hall? On initial observations, she seems an unlikely choice of support for Mark E Everitt but then you consider that, like with Eels, this is late-night smoke filled, cafe-culture, soul-baring music.

 

05.30.14
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King Capisce – Never Spoken

My review from last weeks Spring Off The Tracks festival is complete and published here.

I’m on the festival treadmill now, running ever faster to keep up with the demands of pretty much doing one a weekend throughout the summer. Later today, I head across to Cheltenham for the Wychwood festival.

If Off The Tracks taught me anything (I think I was aware of this anyway) it was to not be fearful of jazz-rock experimentation. A few years ago, a band described in a programme in such a way would have had me running for the hills afraid that I had finally lost my marbles.

But, Sheffield- based, King Kapisce are described as jazz-rock and they were one of the OTT highlights. To call them jazz-rock omits the other influences that mix into this cauldron. It was impossible not to tap a foot, to shake a head or to stroke a beard (I don’t have one but the man sitting behind me didn’t seem to mind) over the sounds they created.

They normally have two sax players to pump stacks of soul over a complex mesh of drum and guitar-led sound. But at OTT, they offer humble apologies for one of the band has left them for a holiday in America. We didn’t need to know this. There’s enough going on without needing more.

King Capisce make instrumental music. Their new record is ‘The Future Cannot Be Born Yet, It Is Waiting For The Past To Die’.

Regular readers of Sonic Breakfast might have noticed that I’m somebody who often gets excited about lyrics. The fact that King Kapisce are completely instrumental is not a hindrance. I closed my eyes during their set and let my imagination run wild. I climbed that tree and jumped across the tops. I threw myself from that plane and flapped my arms like an eagle with wings. I surfed on that wave until it washed over me.

Try it out yourself. Where might this take you?

 

 

05.28.14
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The Corner Laughers – Midsommar

Is it pouring with rain where you are? I’ve yet to draw back my curtains but I’m sensing grey. I can hear cars swooshing through puddles as early risers weave their way to work. It’s a thoroughly depressing sound and even the birds that are singing seem muted today. 

Thank goodness therefore for happy, sunny songs such as this one from Californian twee pop band, The Corner Laughers. Midsommar is a bright breeze of a piece and is released in advance of The Corner Laughers fourth album. If you like your music joyful then I’d recommend checking out more of the offerings from Karla Kane and gang. I have been over these last few depressingly, drizzly days. The album from a couple of years ago, Poppy Seeds, would seem like a pretty fine place to start. 

Vaguely aware of midsummer through the summer solstice, I had little idea that the ‘Midsommar’ celebrations in Sweden are such festive affairs. A national Bank Holiday is called on the weekend closest to June 24th. Swedes flock to the countryside where they set up camp for the night, wear crowns made of flowers, build a midsommarstang (like a community maypole), dance, sing, eat and drink potent drops of the alcoholic drink, Akvavit, around a Bonfire as night sets in. It does all sound like a rather glorious time.

And it’s those glorious moments of time that I think The Corner Laughers are trying to capture in Midsommar. From the initial strums of ukulele through to a pompous but not out of place guitar solo, this is a tune about celebrating good times. The impossibly happy chorus encourages us to frame those memories for they might be few and far between. 

I defy you not to have a glorious time. 

 

 

05.27.14
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Jimmy Binks And The Shakehorns – Apple Tree

A week ago on Sonic Breakfast, I posted about a wonderful Japanese ex-pat band called The Watanabes. And I pondered whether the ex-pat scene in Japan was an active one. The Watanabes are clearly generous, sharing sorts for Duncan from the band sent me a couple of other recommendations to check out.

One of those recommendations was Jimmy Binks And The Shakehorns. He must have known that left-field Alt-country, the sort of songs that The Broken Family Band used to issue before their sad demise, presses one of my many buttons. There’s lots of fine stuff here.

Just so that you know (I had to look it up), a shakehorn is a plastic acorn-shaped shaker percussion instrument that the band uses as often as possible.

You might have thought that JB&TS would have been fronted by a man called Jimmy Binks – but they’re not. This is a six piece band with four of the members coming from the Uk, one from Canada and one from Japan. Last year, they released a five track EP, Not Too Late, that built upon the success of a mini album they named after the band.

A quick FB search does show though that there are a number of people in this world called either Jim, James or Jimmy Binks. One Jimmy Binks would appear to be a lover of Liverpool FC and a keen fan of Elvis; another has recently started working at the VC Summer nuclear station. I wonder if they know about their namesake band in Tokyo? Perhaps, they could all be encouraged to form a choir of Jimmy Binks to singalong on a future release? 

If you have access to Spotify, I urge you to check out their tune, “I’ll be in your arms again tonight”. It’s a classic, skewed story tale, littered with the darkest of humour and Country cliches. I genuinely hope it’s not describing a true story. 

Quite a few of their tunes seem to describe scenes in which relationships are drawing to an end, pictures of romance gone wrong. I guess it goes with the alt-country territory. It mightn’t be music to make love to but it’s definitely music to love.

 

 

05.26.14
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Hot Feet – Sedation

 Back from a great time at the Spring Bank Holiday Off The Tracks. A full review will appear on eFestivals this week once I’ve recovered enough to write it up. I tried to blog from there but couldn’t get a good enough signal to allow for uploading. Here’s something I wrote yesterday (Sunday) morning…

 

I’ve returned to my car to survey the lie of the land. The grass is soggy;puddles sit on the surface suggesting it could be a slipping and sliding affair to get out of this car park.

From elsewhere, the roar of Super Bikes has just kicked in again. The thunderous throttling hum has been a constant this weekend though it has sometimes been drowned out by low flying planes about to land and mostly been hidden by the live music on offer. 

I am here at Off The Tracks. My belly aches suggesting that one of the 80 real ales lives on inside me (Just to clarify, I didn’t have 80) and blue sky is trying to break out from behind the cloud. My hands are no longer cold. An extra layer of socks are keeping my feet warm.

 

But my feet aren’t hot. I’d go as far as suggesting that the only Hot Feet here yesterday were the band of that name from Stroud who entertained from a threshing barn. Hot Feet opened up an early evening session. Punters were still feeling the effects of the hog roast, the incredible, electric, storm that left everybody rushing for cover and a break for beer so Hot Feet’s languishing folk-fuelled laments hit a sweet spot.

I sat on a bench towards the front and marvelled at their display. The drunken, bumbling compere introduced this band as one with the best female vocalist we’d see all weekend. Marianne certainly did impress. A voice, fragile and pure, yet with a hint of rural ruddiness. These are songs rooted in farmyard barn simplicity that break out into urban sprawls of sound. 

And I find it rather charming. They’re apparently playing at Wychwood next weekend, another festival I’m reviewing. My mind is made up that I’ll see them there again. No cold feet from these quarters.