W♥M

Stereophonics at the 400 Bar, Minneapolis (02/14/2001)

Stereophonics at the 400 Bar (setlist) Minneapolis (02/14/2001) Read More Stereophonics Stereophonics made a much-needed return to the U.S., stopping by Minneapolis' Mill City Nights to showcase some of their songs from their chart topping U.K. album Graffiti on the Train …

As you know, I am a big British music fan, so the co-headlining tour of The Charlatans (or as they're known in America as Charlatans UK) and Stereophonics at the Quest in 2000 could not be missed.

Charlatans / Stereophonics at the Quest (flyer) Minneapolis (04/03/00)

At that time, I wasn't that familiar with Stereophonics, I was mostly at that show (which I could have sworn it was at the Fine Line Music Café) to see The Charlatans. I loved "Weirdo" and "The Only One I Know", which, when I saw Tim Burgess solo at First Avenue a few years later, he only did his solo music (boo!).

By the time Stereophonics were on tour for their Just Enough Education to Perform (aka JEEP) album, I caught the band at the much smaller venue of the 400 Bar (which is now long closed). They brought with them free Stereophonics JEEP promo booklets, which I picked up a few.

The thing about this particular tour was I believe they were not a full band and did mostly acoustic versions of their song. Which, I think lends itself well to singer/songwriter Kelly Jones' style of songwriting.

As you can see from their setlist, they did lots of song from JEEP and Performance and Cocktails (sadly, they didn't do my favorite song "The Bartender and the Thief"). Oddly enough the very last song on their encore was a cover of the Beatles' "Don't Let Me Down".

Stereophonic's eight studio album Graffiti on a Train (Stylus Records) came out in 2013, and it is actually their best record to date. I've listened to the album multiple times bicycling to Minneapolis and you can tell Jones has grown as a great songwriter.

Additional information about this 400 Bar, opening band was called Vibrolush, from New York. They were on tour for their second album Touch and Go on V2 Records. I'm pretty sure this band broke up, I tried search around for band members guitarist James Mazlen and singer Phil Vassil online, but could not find any (solid) information.

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Stereophonics at Mill City Nights, Minneapolis (09/29/13)

Setlist Catacomb Local Boy In The Photograph Superman Graffiti on the Train We Share The Same Sun Indian Summer Have a Nice Day Vegas Two Times Mr. Writer In a Moment Maybe Tomorrow Roll the Dice Violins and Tambourines Been Caught Cheating Just Looking The Bartender and the Thief Encore: A Thousand Trees Dakota Tour Dates 10/01/13 Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater 10/04/13 Seattle, WA - Showbox 10/05/13 Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom 10/06/13 Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom 10/08/13 San Francisco, CA - Fillmore 10/10/13 Los Angeles, CA - Fonda 10/13/13 Corona Capital Festival 11/08/13 Glasgow, UK - SSE Hydro 11/09/13 Aberdeen, UK - GE Oil & Gas Arena 11/11/13 Belfast, UK - Odyssey Arena 11/12/13 Dublin, Ireland - O2 Dublin 11/14/13 Manchester, UK - Phones 4u Arena 11/15/13 Leeds, UK - First Direct Arena 11/16/13 Newcastle, UK - Metro Radio Arena 11/18/13 Nottingham, UK - Capital FM Arena 11/19/13 Birmingham, UK - LG Arena 11/21/13 Brighton, UK - Brighton Centre 11/22/13 Bournemouth Int'l Centre 11/24/13 Cardiff, UK - Motorpoint Arena 11/25/13 Cardiff, UK - Motorpoint Arena 11/26/13 Cardiff, UK - Motorpoint Arena 11/28/13 London, UK - O2 Read More Stereophonics I'm not kidding when I say we are big fans of Stereophonics here at W♥M, personally I've seen the band a few times: their co-headlining tour with The Charlatans ..…

Stereophonics made a much-needed return to the U.S., stopping by Minneapolis' Mill City Nights to showcase some of their songs from their chart topping U.K. album Graffiti on the Train as well as play some old favorites.

THE WIND AND THE WAVE

Opening up for the whole U.S. tour was The Wind and the Wave, a duo (Dwight Baker and Patricia Lynn) from Austin, Texas. I can see why Stereophonics chose to have The Wind and the Wave as their touring guest, the band's songs focus around everyday life: from describing the beach wreckage to the lonely drive along California to breaking the rules to listening to your mother.

The band mentioned in their set that they will be releasing their debut album sometime in January or February of 2014, so expect to hear more from them in the coming year.

Like many U.K. bands, Stereophonics is obviously more popular in England, playing to 7,000+ capacity arenas and stadiums (even selling out their hometown gig in Cardiff's Motorpoint Arena, forcing them to play multiple dates to please all the fans). Seeing the band in the U.S. is a wonderful deal for fans, because we get to see them up close and in much smaller venues. Fans who showed up to last night's show were all dedicated fans, having seen the band multiple times, like myself, when the band was at the height of their popularity (circa 1997-2001).

So the first thing I noticed right away was that singer/songwriter Kelly Jones brought with him at least 13 guitars, changing guitars with just about every song! And because of the various guitar jumbling, Jones had a dedicated guitarsmith to keep downtime to a minimum and the music sounding pitch perfect and professional.

Since the tour was in support of Graffiti on the Train, of course about half the set featured those songs ("Catacomb", "Graffiti on the Train", "We Share the Same Sun", "Indian Summer", "Roll the Dice", "Violins and Tambourines", and "Been Caught Cheating"), but the real highlight were the old hits. You can always tell which ones were the favorite by the sing-along audience participation: "Have a Nice Day", "Maybe Tomorrow", "Just Looking", and the set closer, "The Bartender and the Thief". I didn't know 'Bartender' was going to be the last song, but based on the very high-energy performance, it was hard to beat or follow-up to that song and it made for a great finale.

After a few minutes, the band returned for the encore, "A Thousand Trees" and "Dakota".

On a side note, I wanted to say that normally I don't like new albums. Mostly because I'm not familiar with the new stuff and prefer the tried-and-true classics. Having said that, I think Graffiti on the Train is possibly Stereophonics' best album, and I love hearing these new songs live. My only regret that my favorite song on the album, "Take Me" was not played live. This is possibly because the song required a female duet (on the album it is sung with Kelly's girlfriend Jakki Healy).

Anyway, Stereophonics continues their U.S. tour until October 10th, then they head back to the U.K. to play the massive festivals and arenas that they are used to playing. If you live in North America, you really need to take advantage of seeing them at these unbelievable intimate venues!

Stereophonics at Mill City Nights, Minneapolis (09/28/13)

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ stereophonics.com ♥ thewindandthewave.com

Mind the Gap: Stereophonics, Train, I Like Trains, Wampire, and Hollis Brown

Read More Stereophonics I've seen Stereophonics a few times in Minneapolis, as the band ready for their UK tour, singer/songwriter Kelly Jones opened up to The Daily Mail about the passing of ex-drummer Stuart Cable. …

STEREOPHONICS
stereophonics.com

I'm not kidding when I say we are big fans of Stereophonics here at W♥M, personally I've seen the band a few times: their co-headlining tour with The Charlatans on 04/04/2000, an acoustic show at the 400 Bar on 02/14/2001, and the Fine Line Music Café on 11/30/2003. Their last show in Minneapolis was in 2005, which I did not attend, but that's still nearly a decade that the band's been absent here! So it's my pleasure to announced that Stereophonics will be returning to the U.S. in support of their eighth studio album called Graffiti on a Train (Stylus Records). The album was previously mentioned here, which, at the time of the writing, the album was just released in the UK. The album has done well, quickly hitting Gold status and on its way to Platinum!

Stereophonics 2013 North American Tour Dates:

September 19 Philadelphia - Union Transfer
September 20 Boston - House of Blues
September 21 New York - Terminal 5
September 22 Washington DC - 9.30 Club
September 24 Montreal - Corona Theatre
September 25 Toronto - Danforth Music Hall
September 27 Detroit - St Andrews Hall
September 28 Chicago - Vic Theatre
September 29 Minneapolis - First Ave
October 1 Denver - Bluebird Theatre
October 4 Seattle - Showbox
October 5 Vancouver - Commodore
October 6 Portland - Wonder Ballroom
October 8 San Francisco - Fillmore
October 10 Los Angeles - Henry Fonda
October 13 Mexico City - Corona Festival

TRAIN
trainline.com

Remember Train? The San Francisco band blew up with hit singles like "Meet Virginia" and "Hey, Soul Sister"? Well the band was on tour for most of 2012 with Mat Kearney for their sixth studio album California 37 (out now via Columbia Records).

It would seem that the band has another hit on their hands with "Drive By", reaching #10 on Billboard's Hot 100! Check them out on tour:

06/27/13 San Diego County Fair
07/11/13 Virginia Beach, VA Farm Bureau
07/12/13 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live
07/13/13 Darien Center, NY Darien Lake
07/14/13 Toronto, ON Molson Canadian Amph
07/17/13 Cuyahoga Falls, OH Blossom Music Center
07/18/13 Clarkston, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre
07/19/13 Noblesville, IN Klipsch Music Center
07/20/13 Kansas City, MO Starlight Theatre
07/21/13 Tinley Park, IL First Midwest Bank Amph
07/23/13 Wantagh, NY Nikon At Jones Beach
07/24/13 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank Center
07/26/13 MixTape Festival
07/27/13 Mansfield, MA Comcast Center
07/28/13 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center
07/30/13 Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Amph
07/31/13 Atlanta, GA Aaron's Amphitheatre
08/02/13 Woodlands, TX Cynthia Woods
08/03/13 Dallas, TX Gexa Energy Pavilion
08/04/13 Austin, TX Austin360 Amphitheater
08/06/13 Albuquerque, NM Isleta Amphitheatre
08/07/13 Phoenix, AZ Desert Sky Pavilion
08/09/13 Irvine, CA Verizon Wireless Amph
08/10/13 Wheatland, CA Sleep Train Amph
08/11/13 San Francisco, CA America's Cup Pavilion
08/13/13 Ridgefield, WA Sleep Country Amphitheater
08/14/13 Auburn, WA White River Amphitheatre
08/16/13 Iowa State Fair
08/31/13 Jazz Aspen Snowmass"
09/01/13 Canfield Fair

I LIKE TRAINS
iliketrains.co.uk

I previously mentioned I Like Trains before. The Leeds band just wrapped up their tour in support of The Shallows with Post War Glamour Girls.

A few years ago, I Like Trains created their label is called ILR (I Like Records), more information on ilikerecords.com

Releases so far:

Cat No: ILR009
Post War Glamour Girls - Jazz Funerals (04/15/13)

Cat No: ILR008
I LIKE TRAINS - Beacons (10/15/12)

Cat No: ILR007
I LIKE TRAINS - Mnemosyne (05/22/12 )

Cat No: ILR006
I LIKE TRAINS - The Shallows (05/07/12)

Cat No: ILR005
Stalking Horse - Waterhole (11/11)

Cat No: ILR004
I LIKE TRAINS - This Skin Full Of Bones (11/22/11)

Cat No: ILR003
I LIKE TRAINS - Sirens (07/11/11 )

Cat No: ILR002
I LIKE TRAINS - A Father’s Son (11/29/10)

Cat No: ILR001
I LIKE TRAINS - He Who Saw The Deep (10/25/10)

WAMPIRE
wampiremusic.com

Wampire's "Trains" is the latest single, taken from their album Curiosity (Polyvinyl Records). The strange Portland duo (?) is currently on tour with STRFKR and will be playing their first-ever UK date in London on June 18th.

06/04 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress *
06/05 Phoenix, AZ - The Crescent Ballroom *
06/06 Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad *
06/08 Denver, CO - Larimar Lounge
06/10 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge *
06/11 Reno, NV - Knitting Factory *
06/12 Fresno, CA - Fulton 55 *
06/13 Las Vegas, NV - Beauty Bar *
06/18 London UK Shacklewell Arms
06/20 Paris France - Espace B
06/21 Amsterdam Netherlands MC Theatre
07/03 Portland, OR - Holocene

* = w/ STRFKR

HOLLIS BROWN
hollisbrown.com

Hollis Brown is a classic pop/rock/Americana band from New York. Their debut album Ride On The Train is out now via Alive Records.

They wrapped up their national tour for the album last month, but that shouldn't stop you from checking out their music video for "Nightfall" on popmatters.com.

Don't like video? No problem, here's the audio:



Hollis Brown on tour:

06/19/13 Chicago, IL Ace Bar
06/27/13 Charlotte, NC U.S. National Whitewater
06/29/13 Beacon Riverfest
07/06/13 Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com

Britpop Now!

Read more Britpop. Blur, Suede (new song), Pulp ("new" song), and Stone Roses were recently covered on W♥M #167.

Read More Johnny Marr Lots of Radiohead's Ed & Phil and Johnny Marr (The Smiths) and lots of Wilco. In fact, there were one or two comments about how they thought it was such a clash of quintessentially British and American sounds.

JOHNNY MARR
johnny-marr.com

If you know me, you know that I'm actually a huge Smiths fan. I discovered the band years after they broke up through Morrissey, who came into my world in 1991 on the Johnny Carson show. Once I saw Morrissey singing about his friends in hell, I knew I had to find out more about Moz. This was pre-internet, so most of the information I had to work with came in the printed form: letters, fanzines, magazines, and books. It was only a matter of time did I get my first Smiths album, The Queen is Dead, at Tower Records. I don't care what anyone say, that album is perfect from top to bottom.

In case you haven't figured it out, Johnny Marr is the legendary guitarist from The Smiths. He co-wrote/wrote all the Smiths' songs and eventually went on to a ton of other solo projects post-breakup in 1987. Marr acted as "guitarist-for-hire" on various project, such as The Cribs, Modest Mouse, but he's finally decided to release a new solo album called The Messenger, coming out February 26th. I suppose this is the follow-up to his 2003's Johnny Marr and the Healers album (which I caught them live at First Avenue).

With a confirmed appearance at Coachella, Marr decided to put together a North American tour in April and early May:

04/11/13 Las Vegas, NV Pool at Cosmopolitan 04/12/13 Indio, CA Empire Polo Club 04/13/13 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore 04/15/13 Seattle, WA Neumos 04/16/13 Portland, OR Aladdin Theater 04/18/13 Santa Barbara, CA S Barbara Bowl 04/19/13 Indio, CA Empire Polo Club 04/21/13 Denver, CO Bluebird Theater 04/22/13 Omaha, NE Waiting Room

04/23/13 Minneapolis, MN Varsity Theater 04/25/13 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar 04/26/13 Detroit, MI Magic Stick 04/27/13 Toronto, ON Phoenix Concert 04/29/13 Washington, DC 9:30 Club 04/30/13 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre 05/02/13 New York, NY Irving Plaza Powered 05/03/13 Brooklyn, NY Music Hall 05/04/13 Boston, MA Paradise Rock Club

Read More Noel Gallagher You know I love Oasis, so I'm always happy to mention Liam and Noel whenever I get the chance. As it is, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds' first US single is called "If I Had A Gun"….

NOEL GALLAGHER
noelgallagher.com

I love Oasis, I still can't believe we interviewed Liam Gallagher through KFSR 90.7 and had special treatment by the band circa 1994 when they first tour here in the USA. By the time "Wonderwall" happened, the band was no long accessible to us! It's fine, we still love Oasis to this day.

Since wrapping up his promotional tour for his 2011 album, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Noel has been pretty quiet.

If you missed his tour, like I did, you will be happy to know that his DVD, International Magic Live at The O2 is coming out February 26, 2013, in North America. The video release will be available in a variety of formats: video downloads, 2 disc DVD, and Blu-Ray (with exclusive CD called Faster Than The Speed of Magic featuring demos of album tracks, B-Sides and live tracks).

From my understanding, the video captures two live shows: "International Magic Live" at the O2 in London and "Live At The Mod Club" from his Toronto appearance. I have been to the Mod Club and I can tell you that it's probably a lot smaller than O2 Arena.

Noel Gallagher will appear at "Give It Up For Comic Relief" in London's Wembley Arena on March 6th and "Teenage Cancer Trust Benefit" in London's Royal Albert Hall on March 23rd.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

REPUBLICA
facebook.com/officialrepublica

Republica is set to come back in 2013. You may have remembered this female-fronted-band from the 90s with their massive big hit song, "Ready to Go"? Fans might argue they had other hits, but c'mon, no one knows them. The popular song was recently used in the video game Everybody Dance, which I'll confess I own on PS3.

So Saffron and the original line-up is back in 2013, with a new EP set for March with an accompanying tour:

03/14/13 London The Relentless Garage
03/15/13 York Fibbers
03/18/13 Newcastle O2 Academy Newcastle
03/19/13 Leeds Brudenell Social Club
03/21/13 Nottingham Bodega Social Club
03/22/13 Bristol Thekla
06/16/13 Newport Seaclose Park

 

 

 

 

 

ASH
ash-official.com

Yeah, you already know I love these guys. 1977, what a great album …. but you can tell the Scottish lads were young at the time, listening to the album on retrospect. They're not the greatest lyrics, but who cares, it sounds so good and simple.

Since finishing their A-Z project (this was their weekly write a song for twenty-six weeks straight), the band has been on constant tour. They haven't been to Minneapolis since 2005, so I was surprised to find out that they'll be at the Varsity Theater on Mar 18.

I tried looking up the rest of their US tour schedule, but I guess these are the only two announced:

Mar 12 House of Blues Dallas Dallas, TX
Mar 18 Varsity Theater Minneapolis, MN

 

 

 

 

STEREOPHONICS
stereophonics.com

I've seen Stereophonics a few times in Minneapolis, as the band ready for their UK tour, singer/songwriter Kelly Jones opened up to The Daily Mail about the passing of ex-drummer Stuart Cable.

Apparently Cable had drugs and alcohol problems that lead Jones to fire the drummer in 2003. Although the two kissed and made up within a year and a half, his sudden death in 2010 affected Jones.

He's quoted as saying, "I think about him, and miss him, every day. Every time we play an old song, he's still there."

Stereophonic's upcoming album, Graffiti On The Train, will be out March 4, just in time for their UK tour dates. The single, "Indian Summer", is out on February 25.

03/15/13 Leicester De Montfort Hall 03/16/13 Wolverhampton Civic Hall 03/18/13 Leeds O2 Academy Leeds 03/19/13 Leeds O2 Academy Leeds 03/21/13 Cheltenham The Centaur

03/22/13 Portsmouth Portsmouth Guildhall 03/23/13 Plymouth Plymouth Pavilions 03/25/13 Doncaster The Dome 03/26/13 Blackpool Empress Ballroom 03/27/13 Edinburgh Usher Hall

DODGY
dodgyology.com

Sally's favorite band ever is doing a one-off date special acoustic set at Selby Town Hall on February 16th. They will play nothing but the hits "Staying Out For The Summer", "In A Room", "If You're Thinking of Me", "Good Enough", etc.

Since Dodgy's original line-up re-formation in 2007, the band's been on and off the music festival circuits. Pretty soon, they went back into the studios to record and release Stand Upright In A Cool Place, which came out in 2012. Their previous album, Real Estate, was released in 2001. What's interesting to note is that the original line-up's last album prior to breakup was 1996's Free Peace Sweet.

Anyway, you can see Dodgy at Selby Town Hall on February 16th for a mere 13 of your English pounds.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic

W♥M056: Welsh Britpop Bands

Super Furry Animals - Ohio Heat ♥ Flyer (11/07/09)

W♥M056 (49 min)

BRITPOPCAST #3: WELSH BRITPOP BANDS
This show was recorded on Saturday morning at 12.30am with Sally. I was half tired and half unprepared... but lots of fun on this episode about Welsh Britpop bands.

Welsh bands we focused on: Super Furry Animals, Manic Street Preachers, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, Catatonia, Stereophonics, and 60ft Dolls.

The second part, which is more like a post script is that Sally will be DJing Jarvis Cocker/Pulp music for an hour on December 5^th in anticipation and celebration of Cocker touring in Australia around that date. Come stalk her in Sydney, more details on britpop.com.au.

Below is the interview Sal did with singer Gruff Rhys from SFA, originally published in Kill the Cod fanzine.

KILL THE COD INTERVIEWS GRUFF RHYS

Whilst attending a smashing concert at Newcastle Uni (25th.Feb), i managed, as well as being able to watch three of my favourite bands (Lavish, Super Furry Animals and Custard), i was able to have a chat to a Mr Gruff Rhys, the lead singer of the Super Furries. So here is the story of that night....................................................................................*sally*

What's the deal with all the Welsh bands that have been touring Australia lately?
It's really funny, you know, we used to share the same amps as Catatonia and we shared drummers, we've known members of Catatonia since I was...you know...

So you lived near them?
ah...Catatonia are from North Wales and we're from South Wales...your in bands for years playing along and it's...so surreal, you know...we'll be playing in Melbourne the same night as Catatonia and we'll probably meet up with them after...and I saw them in a pub in Cardiff before coming over...

So it's just coincidence that you, Catatonia and the Manic Street Preachers have all decided to tour Australia at the same time?
Yeah...cos Wales is a small place...you bump into everyone and you meet everyone...the music is quite different...you know? Everyone does their own thing, so no one is in competition with each other...it's great you know...to meet up in exotic locations

How do you like playing with Lavish and, tonight, Custard?
well...I haven't heard Custard and I hadn't heard Lavish until last week

How do you feel about not being the headlining band tonight (Newcastle Uni)?
That's fine...yeah...I mean we've never played in Australia before and no one's heard of us practically...you know..we sort of have just started out in Australia, so it's great to be number 1 and number 2...it's good to have an audience...I don't care about headlining...you know, I think that's secondary to the music true true...

So how did the Super Furry Animals form?
ahh...we started recording in Dafydd's house about five years ago (points to Dafydd)...this doesn't translate on tape..um..that short guy with the brown shirt..um..we had a home studio..we spent a few years writing songs and before that me and Dafydd were in a band called Ffa Coffi Pawb, Guto and Bunf were in a band, and Cian had his own band and Cian is Dafydd's brother so he used to hang out with us...and by this time me Cian and Dafydd had moved down from North Wales to Cardiff and we knew Bunt and Guto from the days in Ffa Coffi Pawb, we were all in Welsh punk rock bands you know..then we spent two years in the house writing songs and playing around and um...then we decided to start playing live...we did a few gigs and then we got together to release a single on a label called Ankst and so it's one of those freaky things...we'd played about two gigs and we sent a copy to the NME or something and we got a slot in a pub in London and about 10 journalists came to see us and wrote rave reviews...we went to London again the week after and played in another pub and there was about 40 record companies and they all wanted a piece and...it was really strange and easy and then we did an album for Creation...we've been in bands for 10 years making music and suddenly you get offered this chance to record the albums of your dreams you know..and come to places like Australia to play

Are you enjoying Australia?
Yeah...I didn't know what to expect at all and it's a good place and um...i'm looking forward to coming back...yeah I want to come back

I don't know if you've ever been asked this but...i've got a game called Actua Soccer at home..
..oh yeah...

and I notice a SFA team with you running around the field...so how did you get into that?
well...we were making a video and we didn't have many pictures and we wanted to walk into the screen and change into football players and so we got in contact with these people and they did it free for us and...but they fucked up cos..we selected a team of all our heros..um...we had..i think Che Guevara was in goal, Nelson Mandella on the wing..i think Lou Reed was in the team and...Fidel Castro and...Frank Zappa on the wing, etcetera, etcetera and the five of us...apparently they've put like..Stalin and Ghengis Khan on the team and it's horrible cos they lost the piece of paper we sent them so they put all these wankers in, you know...it's really bad...so we're all embarrassed it's still an alright game though I prefer Fifa 98

yeah...me too... What football teams do you support?
Bangor City...their in the league of Wales............ah a bug (on the ground).........yeah..i support Bangor City in the league of Wales and I support Cardiff City who are in the third division of the English league even though it's a Welsh team...um...I support Barcelona and Bilbao in the Spanish league...who do you support?

I support Arsenal and it's not just because they won the FA cup and that, I had been supporting them for years, so don't get any ideas
o.k....i know some Arsenal fans

What is your favourite telly show ever?
well...Calimero...it's like a Czech cartoon. Calimero is a little black chicken with half a shell on its head and um...I did have a photo of him (searches his pocket and wallet)...he's like the only black chicken in a family of yellow chickens and it gets translated into Welsh so we used to watch it in Welsh on Welsh TV and i've met Japanese people...it's been translated into Japanese and Italian and in Scotland it's in English with an Italian accent so Calimero's catch phrase is "It's an injustice" (in an Italian accent) and um..in Welsh it's (Welsh words-sorry ) which is "there's no flavour to life"..it's this depressed chicken..it's a cartoon for kids but, you know...Calimero...god guy..one of the greats

How do you Kill the Cod?
Are you an active fisher?

it's actually out of the Goodies
Ah yeah...i saw a band a few weeks ago and they've got Graeme Garden's son on keyboards...he's got the same smile...that's quite amazing..i don't'know if I endorse killing cod..so maybe we should let it swim..you know.

--
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Archive of this show at archive.org. More information on podomatic.com

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M

Stereophonics

Stereophonics - I Could Lose Ya Stereophonics Tour Dates 11/07/08 The Academy Dublin 11/10/08 Union Chapel London 12/02/08 SECC Glasgow 12/03/08 SECC Glasgow 12/04/08 AECC Aberdeen 12/06/08 International Arena Cardiff 12/07/08 International Arena Cardiff 12/09/08 Echo Arena Liverpool 12/10/08 MEN Arena Manchester 12/12/08 Metro Radio Newcastle 12/13/08 Trent Arena Nottingham 12/15/08 NIA Birmingham 12/16/08Centre Brighton 12/17/08 Intn'l Centre Bournemouth 12/19/08 Arena Sheffield 12/20/08 O2 Arena London

I'm actually a pretty big Stereophonics fan, so I was pretty happy to see their latest album, Pull the Pin, on my to review list. Fans who's already bought the album on import, should either be really unhappy or really happy that the US version (for a limited time) will include a bonus DVD, featuring four live tracks - complete with an altered cover.

The new album is pretty much typically Welsh rock, if you've enjoyed their previous albums, you'll definitely enjoy this new album. The cover artwork seems to suggest a mix of sex (two women's lips?) and war (a grenade pin), a theme that reminded me of their infamous Performance & Cocktails cover art.

Back to Pull the Pin, the official single from this album is "It Means Nothing", which I didn't like that much as I think the song sounds too sensitive. I mean, I've always thought the 'phonics as more rock-n-roller type, and as they've aged into Just Enough Education to Perform they seem to get more mellower. I suspect this has more or less to do with singer/songwriter Kelly Jones (I don't have Only the Names Have Been Changed, but I reckon this is might be more acoustic and mellow compared to Stereophonics).

The songs I did like, I really like, and they include "Soldiers Make Good Targets", "Bright Red Star", "Pass the Buck", and "I Could Lose Ya". Yes these songs are aggressive, compared to say "It Means Nothing", "My Friends", and "Ladyluck", but I just some really enjoy that loud, loud rock sound with Jones' whiskery vocals.

The DVD portion only features four songs live, and I thought "Bank Holiday Monday" sounded particularly well.

Pull the Pin did quite well in the UK, charting at number 1, but in the US failed miserably. Shame, really, because I think it's actually one of their best album to date. The album is available now from any major retailer, courtesy of Universal Music Group.

Also, there's a lot of 'phonics news on the vine, I hear that Decade in the Sun: The Best of Stereophonics is scheduled to be released on November 18^th.

Details below:

HAVE YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW THE STORY BEHIND YOUR FAVORITE STEREOPHONICS SONGS? WE WANT YOUR QUESTIONS!
In celebration of Stereophonics' forthcoming album Decade in the Sun: Best of Stereophonics, the band will be answering fan's questions about the songs included on the greatest hits (+2 new songs) album. These questions and answers will be put into a very special podcast that will be made available worldwide through the band's website. The band will answer 20 questions (one for each song) from a few lucky fans who will be chosen to not only ask the band their question on the podcast but will receive an autographed copy of Decade in the Sun.

HOW TO ENTER:
Email your question for the band to: StereophonicsPodCast.at.gmail.com (Deadline is November 10th)

The question should specifically relate to one of the songs included on Decade in the Sun: Best of Stereophonics. The track listing is as follows:
Dakota
Bartender and The Thief
Just Looking
Have a Nice Day
Local Boy In The Photograph
Maybe Tomorrow
Superman
Pick A Part That's New
My Own Worst Enemy *
I Wouldn't Believe Your Radio
You're My Star *
Mr Writer
Step On My Old Size Nines
Devil
It Means Nothing
A Thousand Trees
Vegas Two Times
Traffic
More Life In a Tramps Vest
Handbags and Gladrags

The greatest hits album CD and DVD will contain two previously unreleased songs: "My Own Worst Enemy" and "You're My Star".

Since I actually own all of Stereophonics' album, I thought it would be nice to talk about their previous five albums and my favorite tracks from each album. For casual fans with only one or two albums, you might want to check out Decade in the Sun. Hardcore fans will want the best of for the two new songs.

Stereophonics - A Thousand Trees Word Gets Around (1997) This was Stereophonics' debut album, originally as a trio. The album didn't do so well in the US, but it did alright in the UK charts. I bought this album when Performance & Cocktails was released, so I had a lot of 'phonics song to listen to, but my favorite was "A Thousand Trees".	Stereophonics - The Bartender and the Thief Performance & Cocktails (1999) I love the cover artwork for this album. I've always thought it was a picture from an airport, but as it turned out - it was a staged photograph based on a similar picture outside of a prison. There are loads of great songs off this album, but I'm fond of "The Bartender and the Thief".
Stereophonics-Everyday I Think of Money Just Enough Education to Perform (2001) I saw Stereophonics live for this tour, the big controversy was that the title was originally called "JEEP", but apparently that's a copyrighted name from a car company. I bought the Best Buy version of the album as it included a bonus 4-track CD, which was nice because the album was only $9.99. You might enjoy "Everyday I Think About Money" about a trunk driver who fantasies about stealing the content of his truck. There's a nice, sad, twist of an ending of the song you don't often find in pop songs.	Stereophonics-Maybe Tomorrow You Gotta Go There to Come Back (2003) I "borrowed" this album from my ex-roommate, who was a Stereophonics fan. By this time, they've cracked the mainstream (although if you ask me, I thought they did that with Performance & Cocktails.) Not much to say about this album. "Maybe Tomorrow" appeared over the credits to the Award-winning movie "Crash" (2004).
Stereophonics-Dakota Language, Sex, Violence, Other (2005) I did borrow this album from my ex-roommate, and I can't say that it's one of those album I've listened to over and over again. Despite all that, this album was really well-received by the British press and even reached #1 in the UK charts. The first single is "Dakota", which I thought was pretty decent, but I would not have called it as "Single of the Year", as did some reviewers. It is pretty catchy and I thought the line "whatever happened to you" says a lot to the band around this time.	Only the Names Have Been Changed (2007) This is singer Kelly Jones' inevitable solo album. Each of the ten songs are names of girls - most people just assume they were former lovers :/ I never bought this album, I don't even think it was released in the States... Update: I just found out that this album is being released in the US around the greatest hits album.

Links: www.stereophonics.com myspace.com/stereophonics

 11/04/2008 08:04:44  ♥ written by vu ()

Bob Dylan - Positively 4th Street

 

 

Bob Dylan - Positively 4th Street

Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan's most brutal and bitter song is the ironically named "Positively 4th Street". There seems to be a controversy of which 4th Street Dylan is referring to in this song: New York City's 4th Street or Minneapoplis' 4th Street, as Dylan lived in both area in his lifetime. I personally think it's NY, at least that's the imagery I first conjured up when I first heard "Positively..."

No one really knows who or what Dylan is singing about, but here's my interpretation on the song: it's about running into an ex-girlfriend on 4th Street accidentally. He tries to stay nice to her, but inside his head, he's thinking all these awful things he would say to her. Such as: "You say, 'how are you? good luck!' but you don't mean it!" She's also probably with her new boyfriend or something, just to add insult to injury!

A very, very bitter song... which is why it's one of my favorites! Apparently it's also a favorite among other artists as well, including the Beatles (I don't have this rendition!), Simply Red (nor this one), Stereophonics, and the Violent Femmes.

Here's a breakdown of the songs I do have:

Bryan Ferry - Positively 4th Street

BRYAN FERRY From his 2007's all-Dylan cover album, Dylanesque. I don't know if it's done on purpose, but he sounds like a bitter old man in this song!

Stereophonics - Postively 4th Street

STEREOPHONICS It's a very a faithful version. Can't see a reason to re-record an already great song unless you want to interpret the song in your style... but still I guess Kelly Jones needed to show his sensitive side.

Violent Femmes - Positively 4th Street

VIOLENT FEMMES The most different of all the covers here. It sounds like a rock song, with "you got a lot of nerves" being the reoccurring chorus. You'd never would've guessed that this was a Dylan song.

 July 10, 2007 12:01 AM  vu [email protected] www.bobdylan.com