Topic: 2018 in Music

[FlashingBlade]

Absolutely - internet wankers (He says as the most earnest of internet wankers). I don't see a huge issue with calling your post-punk band Viet Cong. I could pluck 10 other band names out of the air that should have a similar issue - Joy Division as a sex slave wing in a concentration camp for starting point. Age of rage shit, go listen to nursery ryhmes - those lads are in punk bands all their lives and should know better.  But I reckon some festival PR sanitizer told them they wouldn't put Viet Cong on a poster.

Intersting subject band names..probably the second most important thing after the music!

As for shock and moral outrage to the name , to be honest I think only a few times does this occur outside the music community...the Sex Pistols shook a few Daily Mail/Express readers back in the day...and one group stupidly called themselves The Moors Murderers for simple shock effect and no music.

Most of the outrage comes within the (liberal) music community....Joy Divsion didnt cause oturage but New Order did ( a bad choice I think to this day)

I think for a band name to shock you have to be A) Popular B) Create moral outrage....say like ...'The Fun Boy Third Reich'..or 'klu-klux-kraftwerk'..or 'The Thomson Twin Towers' !!

But great band names often reflect their music...Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin kraftwerk..they work!.....late sevenites/early eighties was a golden period for band names...and I think best of all 'Buzzcocks'...it sounded like the music.

Are there any great new band names?...or names that reflect their music?..War on Drugs is a shite name.

[Chip Evans]

Most of the outrage comes within the (liberal) music community....Joy Divsion didnt cause oturage but New Order did ( a bad choice I think to this day)

That was all Gretton's fault I think I read?

Also - Black Sabbath.  What a name for a band.

I think the name depends on the band. I agree War On Drugs is terrible for that band, but would be amazing for my imaginary stoner-metal side project. Current favourite of bands around is Woven Skull. I love the sound of the 2 words together.  But generally one word names for me - Devo, Wire, Earth, OWLS, Pavement, Low etc

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

Good discussion.

I think War on Drugs is a fantastic name - but maybe for a different band, as Chip says. They need to be really druggy so its irony is more pronounced.

Ultimately I think bands grow into their names, what sounds good to one person sounds awful to another when you just list names - its the music that ties it all together. It helps if the name vibes with that music. Led Zeppelin to me would have been an awful name - but they made some good music and it somehow came to fit. The Beatles is a pretty terrible name but with music like that, they transcended it quite easily.

How did Joy Division go to New Order, talk about out of the frying pan

The Muslims shout made me laugh...but The Christians got away with it just fine

I like two-word ones - Mercury Rev, or (the) Flaming Lips, Dirty Projectors.

Also enjoy ridiculously long or silly ones - Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci...

[Chip Evans]

Also enjoy ridiculously long or silly ones - Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci...

That's the other end, isn't it. 

And They Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead
Hands Up Who Wants To Die
Thee Silver Mt Zion Memorial Orchestra
Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. (I think???)

I'd imagine those band practices are like that episode of Father Ted where Mrs Doyle is trying to guess the name of the priest.

'Hands Up'

'Nah - too short'

'Hands Above Your Head'

'Nope'

'Hands Up Who Likes Chocolate'

'Come on - take it seriously!'

'Hands Up Who Wants To Die'

** All look at each other **

"PERFECT!"

[FlashingBlade]

My imaginary band would make heavy dub base sounds with a Martin Hannet echoy/industrial production  over flown by janlgy spikey Byrds-esqu guitars and harmonies making 2 minute 30 second pop gems....but name of group would be 'The Mighty Bastards!'

Don' ttell Filler but always though The Fall a bit of a shit name...The Who is shit as well....Rolling Stones good..Genisis shite...Yes..No!

My brother-in -laws band was called the 'The Teenage Tits'...a good 70's  punk name execpt he put band together in his 30's in mid nineties playing Tom Waits/blues/Stones influenced music.

[Chip Evans]

but name of group would be 'The Mighty Bastards!'

The War On The War On Drugs - surely!?

The Fall is a great name - but that's probably got more to do with the catholic guilt embedded from my rural school upbringing

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

The War On The War On Drugs - surely!?

The Fall is a great name - but that's probably got more to do with the catholic guilt embedded from my rural school upbringing

I like the name The Fall. Isn't it a Camus reference?

[FlashingBlade]

..or to take a lead from Prince Far I " The No More War on Drugs"....or better still "The No more Waaaaaaaar on Drugs.

The big question ...to 'The'  or not to 'The'  the start of a name?

[FlashingBlade]

I like the name The Fall. Isn't it a Camus reference?

It is.

[Djozer]

Good discussion.

I think War on Drugs is a fantastic name - but maybe for a different band, as Chip says. They need to be really druggy so its irony is more pronounced.

Ultimately I think bands grow into their names, what sounds good to one person sounds awful to another when you just list names - its the music that ties it all together. It helps if the name vibes with that music. Led Zeppelin to me would have been an awful name - but they made some good music and it somehow came to fit. The Beatles is a pretty terrible name but with music like that, they transcended it quite easily.

How did Joy Division go to New Order, talk about out of the frying pan

The Muslims shout made me laugh...but The Christians got away with it just fine

I like two-word ones - Mercury Rev, or (the) Flaming Lips, Dirty Projectors.

Also enjoy ridiculously long or silly ones - Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci...

Always thought they had a great band name. Fun little band too. Agree about The Beatles, it's a fucking awful name really, but as you say it's quite easy to overlook that. Have to disagree about Led Zeppelin though, think it's a brilliant name but maybe that's just because it ended up seeming to fit them perfectly.

I always found the "Someone and the Somethings" band names quite irritating but weirdly possibly my favourite current band name is Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives. Always like some of the monikers the rap lads give themselves or their groups too - Wu Tang Clan, Dr Octagon, Antipop Consortium, MF DOOM, Haiku D'Etat, Your Old Droog, Action Bronson - often an interesting mix of comedy and menace.

My imaginary band would make heavy dub base sounds with a Martin Hannet echoy/industrial production  over flown by janlgy spikey Byrds-esqu guitars and harmonies making 2 minute 30 second pop gems....but name of group would be 'The Mighty Bastards!'

That would be an ace band, with an ace name. You should give serious thought to making it happen. Reminds me of when I was at uni in Newcastle, I vaguely knew a couple of guys who made sort of weird glitchy laptop music and performed, individually, as The Shit and The C*nt, but would sometimes perform together as The Shitty C*nts, if memory serves. Great gigs they were - two skinny guys with massive afros pounding laptop keys and making an almighty ruckus. I think it was around that time that I was in a band that called ourselves Big Emile (three of us were mad reds and had a strange fondness for Emile Heskey) or Emile Heskey the Mouse (after the Viz strip - anyone ever see that one? Fucking genius). We never made it big, sad to say. Good times.

[Chip Evans]

Always like some of the monikers the rap lads give themselves or their groups too - Wu Tang Clan, Dr Octagon, Antipop Consortium, MF DOOM, Haiku D'Etat, Your Old Droog, Action Bronson - often an interesting mix of comedy and menace.

They're usually great.

And then all their aliases too. There's an reddit board dedicated to MF Doom's -> https://www.reddit.com/r/mfdoom/comments/3eja2e/all_of_dooms_aliases/

The Wu-Tang lads all have loads too.

[FlashingBlade]

That would be an ace band, with an ace name. You should give serious thought to making it happen.

Ive been giving it serious thought for about 40 years...sadly life never introduced me to a bunch of people or enviroment to encourage me to do that ...just  abunch of mates who wanted to get pissed and follow a football team around everywhere ( which was fine...for the first 25 year!)

I cant sing , play a instrument or write a melody...think I could do lyrics and bark them out...but I would have to be senior 'Bastard' in the group and dictate how we sound...basically Mark E Smith and The Fall.....but with a better name 

[FlashingBlade]

..and my second Perfect name for a group......

Wah Heat!
Wah!
Shambeko Say Wah!
The Mighty Wah!

...the 7,000 names of Wah!

EDIT!!! Stop the fuckign press!!...'Pete Sounds' got released in Novemeber and I fucking missed it!!..just tried on pledge sounds to buy ad his website it but it seems closed....anyone heard it ?....fuck me Ive got to get this...any one know how to track it down..Ive done usual searches

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

Not heard it FB, think there's a track or two on YouTube...I meant to get a copy too but I quit Twitter which meant it fell off my radar. Weird how you can't get a copy of something that has been made but I'm sure it'll surface in due time - maybe he's waiting for a label to pick it up and distribute it?

[FlashingBlade]

Not heard it FB, think there's a track or two on YouTube...I meant to get a copy too but I quit Twitter which meant it fell off my radar. Weird how you can't get a copy of something that has been made but I'm sure it'll surface in due time - maybe he's waiting for a label to pick it up and distribute it?

Hope so and soon...my album of the year sorted if it is.

[Filler.]

Delighted to hear that God Is My Co-Pilot have reformed and are touring UK next month. They decided to get back together last year but are recording and touring without Sharon Topper, their co-lead singer, who's given them her blessing. They have a new lead singer now. Learnt this at about 4pm today. Hugely underated behemoths of the jazz punk gay lesbian revolution of the early 90's.

From last week: http://louderthanwar.com/god-is-my-co-pilot-reform-and-announce-uk-tour/



26 songs in about 40 minutes. Could be less. Forward wind side one below to 7 mins 44 seconds and listen to their song 'Fat' (0:28) first if you're too busy celebrating this zip 5 win.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/dTqueCrRkbE" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/dTqueCrRkbE</a>


edit: or head to side two instead: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/aFLOUskhXZ4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/aFLOUskhXZ4</a>. Oof.

[FlashingBlade]

I presume Filler didnt read the previous posts 

[FlashingBlade]

Ok , team here's the question..my Friday trip to Concerto tommorow ,for my vinyl fix,  do I go for:-

A) The new Hookworms Lp

or

B) The new Nils Frahm Lp

there can only be one!

[Nick110581]

Ok , team here's the question..my Friday trip to Concerto tommorow ,for my vinyl fix,  do I go for:-

A) The new Hookworms Lp

or

B) The new Nils Frahm Lp

there can only be one!

Now there is a tough one.

Both meant to amazing albums and amazing packages.

[Szemerényi]

This political climate makes me want to dust off my old records with Whitehouse and Rapeman 

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

New Beach House, 'Lemon Glow', is lovely. Nice trippy video too.

Second track out from the Amen Dunes LP sounds good too, could be building up to a belter of an LP.

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

New Eleanor Friedberger here:

https://soundcloud.com/frenchkiss_records/04-in-betweeen-stars

The Dungen/Woods record sounds promising as well.


I was just starting to get pissed off with this year and suddenly loads of stuff I like emerges.

However my usual 'rip from YouTube' sites have started flaking on me, think there must be a new anti-piracy measure on YouTube or something. Curse you copyright holders! I only want to listen to it until its released, then if I like it I'll buy your records, promise

[Filler.]

I presume Filler didnt read the previous posts 

Missed it. Drank far too much after the game last night and plopped in some GIMC-P. Funnily enough, GIMC-P changed their name for a few releases as they were doing loads of takes on Jewish/Yiddish folk and you can't write the word God in Jewish or something so they went by 'G-d is my CoPilot' instead. What a band they were/are. Twelve releases in one year or something - impossible to keep up with!

Very odd for bands to change a name because of pressure to me. Remember when the band 'Death' surfaced a few years back? They had record companies pleading with them to change their name and they weren't having any of it. Some bands just ask for it tho really like 'The Muslims' that were mentioned. Deliberately provocative names can be so tedious. I remember yawning in the direction of this band someone mentioned called Butthole Surfers... 'yeah yeah, whatever... haha - look... 'Butthole'. Then I heard them


I'd read the book before I'd heard of the band The Fall, so the name of the band I guess has always referred to that book in some way for me. It's a fine name for a band. Not as good as the Mighty Bastards tho!

I always liked the band name 'Casiotone For The Painfully Alone' - used to love one of their albums - forget the name of it now. Very important thing to decide on is a bandname. I was in a two-piece for a few weeks called 'Business Travel Executive' - undoubtedly one of, if not the greatest band names of all time.

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

I always liked the band name 'Casiotone For The Painfully Alone' - used to love one of their albums - forget the name of it now. Very important thing to decide on is a bandname. I was in a two-piece for a few weeks called 'Business Travel Executive' - undoubtedly one of, if not the greatest band names of all time.

Business Travel Executive is a First Class name

I've got a couple of Casiotones upstairs. Thankfully not painfully alone though. Never listened to the band...good name.

[telekon]

Out today! New albums with U.S. Girls, Triathalon, Ought, and Geowulf.

Talking about band names. Fine Young Cannibals. 

[Seebab]

I am liking the Field Music record a lot.

For the new Brian Fallon album Sleepwalkers, there are some good tunes on there but it's all a bit more of the same isn't it? So far, I prefer Painkillers.

[Djozer]

Out today! New albums with U.S. Girls, Triathalon, Ought, and Geowulf.

Talking about band names. Fine Young Cannibals. 

Fine band name, and a fine band. The Raw and the Cooked is a hell of an album, haven't listened to it in ages. I'll have to dig it out tonight, cheers for reminding me of their existence.

Been listening to an Tantabara by a Nigerien band called Tal National past couple of days. Like a sort of madder Tinariwen/Farka Toure type deal, similar instrumentation and scales but some weird rhythm changes and percussion. Fun, upbeat stuff. Guess it's a bit like the louder, more psychedelic bits of afrobeat too, actually. I dunno, I'm not very up on my African music.

[Nick110581]

The Ought record is glorious.

Not sure whether to pick up the white vinyl (don't like white vinyl on whole).

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

The Ought record is glorious.

Not sure whether to pick up the white vinyl (don't like white vinyl on whole).

I stupidly read the gushing 10/10 review on Drowned In Sound before listening to it, expected it to be the best thing ever so naturally didn't like it on first listen

Never read reviews, kids. Certainly not on DiS, anyway

I'll give it another go at some point.

Been listening to the album Tongue by Anenon. Other half described it as 'the aural equivalent of a Koi Carp pond' I enjoyed the ambience.

My mate is raving about the Palm LP but I gave it a go and it did my head in a bit. Like it was the right bits but not put together right. Might be a grower.

Also gave Efrim Manuel Menuck's LP a go, GYBE! guitarist. Worth a listen but hasn't blown me away.

Think I might just have a mainly retro year of listening these days, trying all the new stuff is doing my head in. Just discovered XTC, what a band.

Oh, and caught up with the Fourtet record from last year, love it.

[Filler.]

You fuckers listen to far too much music. Just find everything impossible to keep up with. Have hardly listened to anything bar Dawson's 'Peasant', Alvarius B's album and The Fall for nearly 4 months. Bit's and bobs. Ought record has picked up since i started writing. Thought it was shite at first. Could be the weed. Hmmn, on second thoughts... maybe I need more. (I won't). Will check out the Koi Carp pond album tho

[CHOPPER]

Leppard and Frampton are touring in 2018


Rock and roll


Man

[FlashingBlade]

Leppard and Frampton are touring in 2018


Rock and roll


Man

When theres no football to  tire him out he becomes like an over active toddler, unruley and into everything....

[FlashingBlade]

 Just discovered XTC, what a band.

Indeed..one of those groups ( and there are where many inthe late seventies/early eighties ) who recieved good critical acclaim,  some success but never quite reached the status their music deserved ( Wire and Skids similar groups come to mind)

Brilliant intelligent pop without being smug..infact I have always for some reason ( and Im not sure why) associated them in a surreal way with Radiohead...theyre all cousins and XTC went to Oxford Polytechnic and Radiohead went to Oxford Uni....XTC make fun music , Radiohead make 'serious' music....my musical dream is to kick Radiohead up the arse and for them to make a LP of XTC  singles covers and call it " Lets do the Okey-Cokey Computer!"

Think my favourite Lp is Drums and Wires and fave song of theirs is " Life at the Hop" a brilliant pop song with an intense guitar riff that explodes the song into a wonderfull climax.

I have a story about XTC ( which may prove apocryphal) .When I was 17/18 and went to Erics there was a girl I knew from school , same age but very geeky and looked about 13...New Wave done wonders for her as she embraced it all and it helped her come out of her shell ( Punk/New Wave done a lot for women that its not credited enough for , but I digress)..any way looking so young she couldnt get into Erics night time gigs so went to the Matinee Gigs at Erics , Saturday afternoons, pop and crisps served and you get to see The Clash etc...she told me she went to see XTC and met them afterwards, they had a great time and XTC thought the matinee gigs where  brilliant idea and she said they would write a song for her.

Couple of months later...

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/7vq1U8BKsEw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/7vq1U8BKsEw</a>


I have learnt there's a magical spot at the hop
Come with me to the church on the corner the hop
There's nuts and there's crisps and c-c-cola on tap
A good time had by those boys and those girls at the hop
Tell me what do you say
Tell me what do you say
Life begins at the hop, boys and girls
Prepare yourself for the boys in the band at the hop
The cheap guitars, there too young for the bars at the hop
We'll jive around, make fools of ourselves and then stop
We're back next week with another ridiculous tie knot
Tell me what do you say
Tell me what do you say
Life begins at the hop, boys and girls
Tell me what do you say
Tell me what do you say
Life begins at the hop, boys and girls
Now I

[cloggypop]

The Dukes Of Stratosphere are boss.

[SamAteTheRedAcid]

Thanks for that FB, really interesting stuff. I've watched a few bits on YouTube, interviews and performances and they seem an interesting lot.

I got into them as Radcliffe and Maconie played Peter Pumpkinhead on the radio a month or so ago. Then I looked them up and saw they had the Uffington white horse on their LP cover, landmark local to my better half so that piqued my interest.

Currently really enjoying their song 'Bungalow', which I picked to listen to as my parents are house-hunting.

The Dukes Of Stratosphere are boss.

Always meant to listen to them - the XTC alter-ego band, right? Remember reading that John Leckie's production on that was why the Stone Roses picked him to helm their debut. Good producer. Also did the second Radiohead LP, more links between the two there.

[jackh]

Anyone else picked up The Orielles' debut - Silver Dollar Moment - which was released yesterday?

Only given it one listen so far but really enjoyed it - infectiously fun blast around lots of sounds I like!  Anyone who enjoyed (their most well-received single) Let Your Dogtooth Grow should like it.

[Szemerényi]

You fuckers listen to far too much music. Just find everything impossible to keep up with. Have hardly listened to anything bar Dawson's 'Peasant', Alvarius B's album and The Fall for nearly 4 months. Bit's and bobs. Ought record has picked up since i started writing. Thought it was shite at first. Could be the weed. Hmmn, on second thoughts... maybe I need more. (I won't). Will check out the Koi Carp pond album tho

Didn't even know there was a new Alvarius B. Got exhausted keeping track with SCG members and their whereabouts around the time Alvarius B made Blood Operatives of The Barium Sunset, but i remember it as a masterpiece, even though i haven't listened to it in a while.

[Filler.]

Didn't even know there was a new Alvarius B. Got exhausted keeping track with SCG members and their whereabouts around the time Alvarius B made Blood Operatives of The Barium Sunset, but i remember it as a masterpiece, even though i haven't listened to it in a while.

Album of the year for me. Triple album lasting 110 mins. Listened to it countless times now. I think it's one of the great American albums. He's probably America's answer to Mark E Smith in a way - just more misanthropic But he's pulled out an absolute beauty with this one. And he knows how to end an album too. 10/10

[Szemerényi]

It's absurd how inventive the guys from Sun City Girls are. Almost 40 years since they formed, and you still don't have a clue what they will come up with.

[Filler.]

The Hookworms LP grew on me the one time i heard it last week. Meant to give FB's other choice a go. Enjoyed the Russel Haswell E.P - track 4 particularly. Nice Baldessari-like cover which added to the pull on that one. Might give another listen to that album with all the italic writing on the front. There's been a number i've seen float by and dipped 10 seconds or so in and just went nah - Fall.