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Physical Format-20190522

  • Published in Columns
It's a few weeks since I last wrote one of these columns, having bunched a few together in advance of going away at Easter but, with one lot of holidays done and the summer ones within sight, it's time to get on to July of 2018's Flying Vinyl box.
 
Since last actually writing there's been a Discogs sale - £2.50 for the Boniface single to someone in Poland. There's hope yet then that the other discs I'm wanting rid of will also shift.
 
The Night Cafe get a cheery orange vinyl for their songs 'Turn' and 'Felicity'. The latter is thankfully not a cover of the Orange Juice number. On both tracks they get a decent bit of shoegaze/indie guitar going without overblowing it. Pleasant stuff which I'll be keeping although, having not heard their name mentioned before digging the disc out tonight I'm presuming I'll not find much action about them when I have a look online for the current state of their affairs. The band's Facebook shows they're debut album will be out in the autumn, which is probably more than I was expecting.
 
Tempesst are London-based Aussies (at least they were last summer) who resemble The Wonder Stuff a bit. 'Doomsday' was supposedly one of the 'psych-rock hits of your summer' but it must have happened when I wasn't looking. They have a big sound which would no doubt reach apogee if they ever get to play stadiums but, as it goes, the strings bring to mind late Verve. 'Roller Coaster' feels more like ABC. Smooth with strings. Okay but hardly psych by any stretch. Keeping it for now though. Facebook shows the quintet are still plugging away at it.
 
The Flying Vinyl discs have some truly awful covers. Sports Team's 'Liberal Friends'/'Stanton' is definitely one of the worst, a shit bust of Charles & Diana (the point obviously being to be crap but still). Their name rang a vague bell but it seems that they're not in fact who I thought, which is handy as they're nothing special. Plodding, mid-paced indie and a singer who sounds as if he apes Bryan Ferry on stage. Something North of a tenner is apparently possible on Discogs so listed it is. Facebook reveals the band have played a couple of festivals this year so no doubt they'll be doing a few more of those over the summer.
 
Krush Puppies and Good Foxy also have rubbish covers. The former do at least have the better name of the two.
 
'Petal Head' is a moody, breathy effort to start off as it plods along. The guitars go a bit Elastica then its back to plodding. On 'Passata' the vibe is lighter but unfortunately to the point of inconsequence. No one seems interested on Discogs so off to the fleamarket it goes. The band seem to have been quiet since February 2019, according to Facebook.
 
Good Foxy are apparently a quartet yet their booklet photos contain five blokes. They're also apparently 're-energising '60s psych-rock'. So much so that of course they've become massive since last summer and there's no point in me reviewing 'Winning Man' or 'Don't Get It'. Part of that last statement is at least true. Another one for the fleamarket. The band's website shows them to have a few live dates in the coming months.
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Physical Format-20190424

  • Published in Columns
March 2018 saw the Flying Vinyl debut of Our Girl, a band who our contributor Steven Velentzas was touting back the autumn before when we had our one outing at Blogtober. Like the tortoise I get there in the end. Though he got there first in the tale. Whatever.
 
Tracks 'Our Girl' and 'Sleeper' are housed on white vinyl and it's obvious I've been missing out through my tardiness. Shoegaze elements, soaring bits, pleasant vocals all combine to form a very appealing sound on the lead song. 'Sleeper' further states the trio's case for being amongst the best thought of indie bands of the past five decades. This one stays here. Online it shows that the band have a number of live dates coming up in the summer although I doubt I'll see them until Rockaway Beach in 2020.
 
Sharky gets turquoise vinyl for her efforts 'Hawaii' and 'Cause And Effect'. I had to check I'd not put the deck onto a previously unknown 78rpm setting, such is the Pinky & Perky sound of the falsetto which eminates from the first song. It's debateable whether an auto-tuned voice would actually sound more natural. Beat-wise the song is pretty good but the vocals are too comic for me. The B side is in fact Sharky's first single and was apparently played a lot on 6music a year ago. I don't recall hearing it. Nobody's bought a copy on Discogs since last summer but I'll see if I can get £4 for it. Rather hard to find Sharky's online presence but it doesn't look like much has been happening (here) since this disc came out.
 
Boniface's 'Phantom Limbs' rushes out of the speakers to begin with but, before you can get all arm wavy, it calms down for the verse before giving you the release at the chorus. Unfortunately Flying Vinyl have decided that the band's hometown of Winnipeg is in the USA rather than Canada but, that error not withstanding they've done them a solid by releasing this upbeat number. Sylvan Esso fans will be quite taken with it. 'For Love' is a piano-led beast of a different nature entirely. Pleasant but not a keeper. Facebook shows the band are still getting shit done and that you'll possibly see them if you're off to see Foals.
 
Juke Lucid seem to aim for the middle of the road and a future as a wedding band with the pallid 'Move Maker'. This is not the sort of music that will inspire you to do anything other than become an Estate Agent, or to radically change what you listen to in ordr to avoid such a fate. 'Parallel Vision' works well as an instrumental and it's clear why it was the band's debut single, being more assured than the A side on this disc. That trick though perpetuates that annoying moment in the '90s when record companies decided to start releasing multiple versions of songs across different formats, in the hope (no doubt successful at the time) of conning punters into buying the same thing often just for (often crappy) B sides. For sale it goes though as it turns out it has vocals after all. Online it seems the band have been silent since last summer.
 
Brandon Can't Dance keeps it moody on 'Pop Queen Of The Teen Scene'. Apparently it's led to him being compared to Morrissey. I'm not sure who comes off worse with that association. 'Dead Growing' is raw, groany & a bit more upbeat at least but Evan Dando he ain't. No one's bought the disc recently on Discogs despite (as is the case with the previous disc) 10 folk selling it and four apparently wanting it but I'll list it all the same. BCD doesn't have a large online footprint but his bandcamp indicates not much has been going on since last summer.
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