Volcanoes interview

Volcanoes

Interview

Imagine tricking your band mate into thinking that he was going to have to come to rehearsals and Christmas day, and not just or a little half hour, oh no a full four hour rehearsal. That would mean the missing of the Queens Speech and possibly the oh so exciting Eastenders Christmas special (and some years this can be your highlight). This was the case for the dedicated drummer of the volcanoes, and he was going to try his best to get there. Now that is what you call dedication.

I delved into the mind of Samson Bedford to get straight to the point of the making of the new ‘Mini Album’, find out that their next record could be their last and where they draw their influences. Also I find out whom he would have in his in his super group and if he would just like to be Bez from the Happy Mondays and how he would to twist the conventions of a summer festival. So read on and become immersed in the world of Samson Bedford and the Volcanoes.      

1.      You guys were previously an acoustic duo. How did forming the band as a quartet come about?

Kev (Shirles) and I were in an acoustic duo called ‘Shirles & Bed’ for about a year. Prior to recording our second EP we decided to get a percussion drummer to add a bit of depth to our tunes. One thing led to another and eventually we became a four-piece indie band and called ourselves Volcanoes. That EP became the Red Door EP.

2.      Your website has described you as mischievous Volcanoes. What is the most mischievous thing you have done to each other?

Ahhhh we’re generally nice to each other. Our mischief is in our music.

One little story does spring to mind though. Ash joined the band replacing our original drummer about 5 years ago. We we’re uber keen to get back on the gig circuit so we practiced pretty intensively for a few months. I remember pretending that we’d booked a four hour practice on Christmas Day. When we told Ash he looked really gutted but bless him he said he’d do his best to be there. Now that’s commitment.

3.      Vexihomp is a fantastic ‘mini’ album. How was the making of that compared to all you other records?

Thanks. Shirles writes a lot more these days so it takes a bit of the pressure off me and I think it gives the band a completely different edge. The record was good fun to write and it seemed to come together really quickly. We never try to give our CDs a theme, we just bang out a load of tunes and put them altogether. I think in some cases this is to our detriment as folk who like the first track might think WTF when they hear the second. We’re not at all bothered about that though. We just love pushing ourselves and going with as many different ideas as possible. Our next record (which may be our last) is going to have reggae / folk and gospel influences as well as indie. I hope we can pull it off.

4.      In many reviews people like to try and compare your sound. I personally think you have the unique balance of being yourselves. Who do you think you sound like?

It sounds corny but we’ve put a ridiculous amount of effort into trying not to sound like anyone else. We’ve scrapped loads of tunes in their early stages if they’ve sounded too this or that. Sure, individual tracks may have certain influences but they all have our stamp on them.

5.      If you could choose anybody dead or alive to be in your super group who would it be?

I’d happily give up the Vocals if Freddie Mercury wanted to join the band and perhaps give up the guitar if Lennon fancied a strum. I guess I’d just become a dancer.

6.      You pride yourselves on the live shows. What have been your best shows to play?

We’ve always had good nights at Dublin Castle in Camden and we used to love playing the Grapes in Sheff

7.      What has been the best gig that you have played to date?

BE @ PROUD galleries in London was probably our best gig

8.      If you could create your own festival, who would you have on your line-up and what would set your festival apart from the others?

Hmmmm.

Us ‘obviously’

Foals

System of a Down (headlining the naughty stage)

Super Furry Animals

Bassment Jax

Daft Punk

The Music (reforming)

Band of Skulls

Dinosaur Pile-Up

Bon Iver

All the bands would have to buy tickets but the public could come free.

Rochelle Massey

protectors EP review -The stem and the leaf

Protectors EP

The stem and

The leaf

Review.

This is a fantastic and glorious instalment from Protectors. This EP screams nothing but northern indie rock, wanting to break out and impose on peoples lives. Opening track “overtime” is new, fresh and upbeat. Newly re-mastered “Honeymoon?” brings it down a notch or two, slowing the pace but keeping that foot tappingly good beat going strong. “Carousel” brings you back up and into the Protectors world. Creating undeniably fantastic bass beat, gelled together with melodic, but powerful guitar parts. Finally on this rollercoaster of music is “shake the moves”, a perfect end for a glorious EP that will certainly stick with you for a while.     

Lisa Marie Glover - Album Review

Lisa Marie Glover

Einzelkind

Album review.

This latest offering from Lisa Marie Glover is nothing short of glorious. It is not often you get an all in one package with an artist, but Lisa is certainly an exception. This is the first time I have heard Lisa sing, and it is outstanding; her voice is beautiful, soulful, and melodic. She is able to take you up high but then softly sweep you back to ground.

Einzelkind (German for only child) takes you on a dreamy journey, mixed with a few tales of life in general day to day life. “The first place” is a perfect, melodic song to set you off on this dreamy, mystical journey. With a crisp acoustic guitar to accompany her sweet voice, you only think can this get better. The answer is yes. Further on “Mad Mary” brings the pace faster, creating you to start a foot tap to the jazz drum beat that is going on.

Closing with “wasting time” a perfectly blended song with a wide array of acoustic instruments, which is keeping in with the overall theme of album, Lisa Marie Glover certainly has a talent and a craft. She is able to keep the listener entranced in the music, while listening to her glorious play on words.    

A band that has inluenced me

Hey readers,

hope you are all doing well. this article is a rather personal one, but one that has made me who I am today. It is amazing how music can influence events in your life. I hope you enjoy reading this.

The artist that

Has influenced me the

Most.

How much of a cliché is it, when you say music has been in my life since I can remember?  It is a huge one, but one that is so true to many music fans, I included in this statement. My dad is a massive music fan, and it is him that I have to thank for my music taste, and one of the most influential artists I have come across. My mum played her part with the Motown and northern soul. Even my beloved Nan and Granddad were exposing me to the music from their era whenever they looked after me, from Nat King Cole, Andrea Bocelli, to ol' blue eyes himself Frank Sinatra. So it was no surprise that I picked up the music bug really.      

My most vivid memory from childhood, is waking up on a Sunday morning to the sound of my dad singing (badly – don't ever ask for him to sing China girl) whilst doing the general things round the house, and getting our Sunday roast ready. He would sing anything from Bowie, The Smiths and Pink Floyd. As the years went by his singing never improved but the bands did. Waking up to China girl was now waking up to 'What took you so long' by The Courteeners and with a hangover this was not a good combination.

Although these bands changed from week to week one always remained there and that was Pink Floyd. Now when I was developing my own music taste I never understood the true meaning of Pink Floyd and why my dad even loved them as much as he did. The comments came such as “they are a classic”, “they have amazing songs”, “the lyrics are so powerful” and “the guitar playing is beyond anything else out there that you are listening to”. Probably at this point I was going through my girly boy band stage (this lasted a year) but I still could not understand what the fuss was about them. So I just trudged along listing to Nirvana, Suede, Manic Street Preachers and such not.

That was until something quite prolific was about to happen in my life. It is amazing how things change when a situation arises. You see things differently and you certainly listen to music differently, you try to get where the writer is and feel how they are feeling. This something has shaped me to be who I am today. My Nan was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour. This woman had been in my life from the beginning and now she was not going to be there. She had always taught me to be who I wanted to be, was only round the corner from where I lived, and one huge influence on my life. So coming to terms with not having her was something I could not get my head round, but the world still keeps going even though you are going through something so big and hurtful. It is only here I that realise the power that Pink Floyd actually has, and why my dad loved them so much. It was in the final stages of my Nan's illness that I picked up on it. I had come back from seeing her in the hospice and dad was doing whatever he was doing round the house, and it was playing. The song that would change me and the way that I listened and thought about music. That song was 'comfortably numb' by Pink Floyd.

This whole song summed up everything that I was feeling, and how my Nan was in those final stages of the illness. If you have ever seen or been through watching someone battle cancer, then you will understand this song and how it relates to everything you and the person going through it is feeling. “There is no pain you are receding, a distant ship smoke on the horizon, you are only coming through in waves, your lips move but I can't hear what you are saying”. This particular lyric will be forever with and will always make me think of my Nan. She was comfortably numb towards the end.

So from this horrible loss, I gained a new band, not much of a consolation, but was something that she gave to me before she went. From this I delved further and further into Pink Floyd much to my father gloating and saying the obligatory “I told you so”. But I didn't care I just wanted to hear more of this band. I was hooked from then on and have been ever since. If I am ever caught off guard and hear 'Comfortably numb', then it does bring a tear to my eye, of course it will, that event was a life changing one. One of my other favourite Floyd songs is the early one 'See Emily play', which ironically enough was penned in my current college, where I study journalism. Another is of course 'Shine on you crazy diamond’ all 7 parts I might add. You can not listen to it in a single part. I often listen to that on my bus journey home from work. Listening to each chord played, each bass line and all the other effects going on in the back ground.

Pink Floyd is classic bands, who have stood the test of time. I only wish that I had listened to my dad sooner and took advantage from an earlier age. But it is these things that make us who we are, and I doubt that if things had not of happened they way they have, I wouldn't be concentrating on my career as a music journalist. I do know one thing for sure that I will be introducing my children (when I have them) to the music of Pink Floyd and any others I feel they need to know about. Although I won't torture them with my dads singing.

Young Aviators - live review

Young aviators @ The Library, Leeds

13 November 2011

After two successful support slots with The Subways, it was time that 3 of Irelands finest took to the road for themselves. Touring all over this fine country of ours, they came back Leeds to give us a show that was even better than the first one at the Brudenell. A hard show to live up to, If you were there then you would know, if you wasn’t you missed one hell of a show.  

Storming onto the stage, and into a powerful opener, these guys were ready to make us get our monies worth (£4 on door and the first song gave me my monies worth). The Gaelic wit was out in full force, and not a moment went buy that these guys weren’t giving out the banter. Or selling their newly released CD, to which they laid the guilt trip on the crowd “if you don’t buy this then we can’t eat!” (Needless to say they sold some so could eat, and not wither away.)

The beautifully sung “the question is” kept the crowds eyes and ears enticed onto what was happening right in front of them. “Rabbit in the headlights” was the highlight of evening. Perfectly formed you could not ask for anything more out of these guys. They keep you on your toes and make you move them hips like you are at a Zumba class. “Better future” is a fanatically formed song that that has the potential to be turned into an anthem. An outstanding performance and people should catch them around at some point next year when they come back

Volcanoes - Vexihomp review

Hello people, it has been a while, but here is a little review of a band i am pretty excited about.

Volcanoes

Vexihomp ‘Mini’ LP review

Time and time again bands come out with records, where all the songs sound the same. So it was a refreshing surprise to my ear drums, when Vexihomp came into my possession. Volcanoes have come up with something interesting to actually listen to, in a music industry that is bland and boring.

The pageant is a nice little opener that is quirky, bouncy and not to mention bloody catchy. I could go on to explain that they sound like this band or that band. But I am not going to do that. Why? Because this band is special they are something to shout about. The pageant is one of them songs that as soon as you hear the opening chords you know instantly who they are and what song it is. How many bands nowadays can do that?

Triceratops picks up where the last left off, a different sound that will make you move to the beat. Vocals have changed on this track compared to the others but still sound so powerfully sweet. They dirty distorted guitar riffs and heavy bass go hand in hand to make this track perfectly formed.

Lyrically this band are funky and from the heart. You feel what they want you to feel. This combined with sounds so unique, will make you want to delve into the world of the Volcanoes further, to see what they have to offer. What they do offer you is fun music you will want to hear again and again.

Rochelle Massey

A live gig review of Two Skies

hey there,

here is small gig review of a band called two skies.

Two skies

Northern monkey

07-08-2011

In an overlooked music venue, Two skies step into the corner, to take the centre stage at this free music night. Overhearing that one of the punters had stumbled upon this South Yorkshire gem on a website and couldn’t get the “heavy grooves” out of his head brings me to think is psychedelic rock coming back for an uprising?

This tightly formed 3 piece, gracefully start playing, giving the audience powerful psychedelic beats and melodies that would get the grooves of the 60’s and 70’s going again. Combine this with the heavy and fast paced drumming; you have a recipe for an amazing live band, which will go on to bigger things. But for now they are in this small intermit surroundings.

“Levitate” Dan Cutts voice is so unique, that it gives tingles down your spine, when he sings. His lyrics are so real that you can see his story as he sings them and the journeys that he has been on. “Automatic stride” is dark, powerful and sublimely amazing. With its small and dark verses which then lead onto loud and big chorus’s this song only leaves you wanting more. “Dear sun” is again dark but sweet at the same time, making you want to close you eyes and go on this mystical journey that the melodies seem to take you to.

As the set goes on you here each of the band member’s influences run strong, as they play there part in this special evening. Word of advice, see this band.