MUSICIANS WANTED FOR GIGS!

I’ve been putting together some live music events in Newcastle upon Tyne and I’m always on the lookout for new acts to perform at these events.  If you are in a band, or even a solo artist, and are looking for gigs, get in touch.

The music I am looking for is not genre specific.  However, I would like to avoid whiny, generic Indie Pop bands that lack individuality.  Ideally I want bands that can bring something unique and fresh to the table.  So if you’re a band that is trying to imitate The Beatles, Muse, and Coldplay etc…, then don’t bother because I’m looking for something new and different!

Please send an email to – horrorshowartwork@live.co.uk or alternatively, leave a comment on this blog.

In the email or comment please state your name, contact details and your bands name with a link to where I can listen to some examples of your music online (without having to like any pages or anything first!).

Ginger Snap & The Style Pile

The Telegraph – Saturday 3^rd March 2012

I am still looking to confirm a couple of acts for my gig at The Telegraph (Orchard Street, Newcastle) on Saturday 3^rd March.  Currently I have Ginger Snap & The Style Pile and Emergency Door Release confirmed to perform at that event.

The artists involved in this event will be paid a share of the door profit if enough people attend.  Entry to this event will be priced at £3 and to break even the event will need approximately sixty people to attend (this figure may be higher than actually required depending on costs).

Check out the two bands I already have confirmed by clicking on their names below.

Ginger Snap & The Style Pile

Emergency Door Release

If you would like to be considered to perform at this event then please contact me as soon as possible, either by commenting on this blog or by email on – horrorshowartwork@live.co.uk

The Stroll

The Bridge Hotel – Wednesday 4^th April 2012

I also have The Bridge Hotel (Castle Square, Newcastle) booked for an event on Wednesday 4^th April, which is my birthday.  This is almost certainly going to be a fundraising event for charity.  I am currently in the process of confirming the details with the chosen charity.  If this is the case, then the artists involved will be expected to perform for free to show support for the chosen charity.  The entire profit from this event will be donated to charity.  Hopefully I will have all of the finer details relating to this confirmed in the very near future.

I will be looking to have four or maybe five acts to perform sets at this event.  Currently I have already confirmed The Stroll.  Check them out by clicking on their name below.

The Stroll

If you would like to be considered to perform at this event then please contact me as soon as possible, either by commenting on this blog or by email on – horrorshowartwork@live.co.uk

Battle of the Bands 2012

Heat 2 of the Battle of the Bands, Coatham Bowl – Friday 20^th January 2012

There may also be a place available for an act to perform at the Battle of the Bands, at Coatham Bowl in Redcar, tomorrow.

I had put The Mojags forward for it but they dropped me in it recently and decided they don’t want to do it anymore.  So if you can get to Redcar for half past five-ish on Friday and would like to compete in the Battle of the Bands, in a great venue, for the chance to win a recording deal and £3000 cash, as well as helping to raise money for two charities, then get in touch NOW.

Details of this event can be found on their website or on Facebook on the links below.  You may be better off sending a message to Sherry Clark on Facebook if you want to perform at this event as it is Sherry who is organising the Battle of the Bands.

Battle of the Bands Website

Battle of the Bands Facebook

Coatham Bowl is an awesome venue with an impressive history and this could be a chance for a band to perform in front of an audience comprised of followers of six or seven other acts.  Even if you don’t progress to the next stage, it is a valuable opportunity to increase your fan base.  So why not have a crack at it?

The Telegraph - 3rd February 2012

Future Events…

I will continue to run events at The Telegraph on a monthly basis and also regular events at The Bridge Hotel, as well as looking to secure other venues and expand into other areas outside of Newcastle.

If you want to be considered for future events, please get in touch by sending an email to – horrorshowartwork@live.co.uk or alternatively, leaving a comment on this blog.

IT WAS A CANNY NIGHT WITH THE STROLL AT COATHAM BOWL

Well, Friday was the first heat in the Battle of the Bands competition, being held at Coatham Bowl in Redcar.  Eight acts were whittled down to two in what was a highly entertaining night.

Battle of the Bands 2012

We went down by train on the Friday afternoon and stayed in a bed and breakfast in Redcar.  The train journey was the start of the fun.  We missed our stop at Darlington, where we were supposed to change to a connecting train to Redcar.  We ended up in fukkin York of all places, I’m really not keen on York!  It was my fault like, but I’m blaming my lack of awareness on the fact I was shattered because I received a stupid and pointless phone call at 4am on Friday morning and was then needlessly woken up again at 8am by the gas man.  Anyway, we ended up having to get off at York because we missed Darlington and we then had to go from York and change at Thornaby, or some random place I’ve never heard of, on the way to Redcar.  Inconvenient, yet highly amusing!

We checked in to the bed and breakfast then headed straight to Coatham Bowl for the competition.  Obviously we were late, getting there about half eight to nine-ish, and therefore missed the first few acts.

I was both tired and a bit smashed by the time we got there, but when we arrived James Arthur was performing.  We only caught a brief bit of his solo acoustic set.  Singer, song-writer and producer James Arthur was one of the two acts to progress to the next stage of the competition.  Check him out on Facebook on the following link;

http://www.facebook.com/jamesarthur2323

James Arthur

The other act to qualify for the next stage were Sailors and Saints.  Unfortunately we missed them… I think.  As I mentioned earlier, we arrived pretty late.  Check out Sailors and Saints on Facebook on the next link;

http://www.facebook.com/sailorsandsaints

Sailors and Saints

Coatham Bowl is a really impressive venue.  It’s got a good stage and plenty of room for the audience, as well as the sound being high quality.  Sherry Clark is trying to regenerate the music scene in Redcar and I greatly appreciate her effort and the motivation behind what she is trying to do.  What’s good for Redcar music is good for North East music in general.  Show Sherry, Coatham Bowl, the regions music and two great charities support by coming to any of the heats and/or the final on Friday 9th March 2012.  Every Friday, until 9^thMarch, some of the North East’s best bands and solo artists will compete against each other whilst raising money for two charities, TFM Cash for Kids and SANE.  Entry to any of the Heats is priced at a bargain £5 payable on the door.

If my memory and my badly scrawled notes serve me rightly, there was a band named Chasing Wilson, who performed a decent cover of Franz Ferdinand‘s ‘Take Me Out‘.  You can look Chasing Wilson up on Facebook but you can’t hear any music by them without liking their page so I’m not going to bother with a link.  How do you know you’re gonna like a band if you can’t hear anything by them?  They also have a Myspace page, but that doesn’t have any music uploaded onto it so that link would also be pointless.

Chasing Wilson

One band who didn’t impress me a great deal were Rough Justice.  I’m half sure they didn’t perform any original tracks, but don’t quote me on that, and they murdered ‘Starman‘ by David Bowie.  They also performed Queen‘s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody‘.  It was a good cover but they failed to make it their own in anyway.  It was the same thing with ‘Under Pressure‘ by Queen and Bowie.  Rough Justice’s singer was basically a thick tashe away from being a low-budget Freddie Mercury clone.  Their image lacks individuality and, in his black vest and skin-tight, ripped white genes, the singer appears to be a Glam Rock throwback.  He didn’t help himself in the image stakes when he donned his horrid mustard yellow jacket part way through their set either.  It wasn’t through lack of ability that Rough Justice failed to impress though, they all possess musical talent and the singer displayed plenty of vocal talent.  It was their lack of individuality that did it for them.  They just simply failed to give us anything we haven’t seen or heard before.  Rough Justice are another band who have no music for you to listen to online, so I won’t bother with links for them either.

Rough Justice

If you’ve been following my blog then you will know that the main band I went to see play at the Battle of the Bands was The Stroll, a four-piece Alternative Rock band from Durham.  I absolutely fukkin love The Stroll and they were every bit as impressive as I remember from when my old band played with them at LYH in December.  It was another energetic performance from an incredibly talented band who possess bags of potential.  They ended an epic set with my personal favourite ‘Different Tune, Different Mood‘, which is perfect for having yourself a little dance to.  We were told that afterwards that The Stroll missed out on qualification for the next round by only one point.  I blame that ridiculous hat that their drummer, Gashy, was wearing for costing them that point.  Of course, because I like them, I was heckling The Stroll throughout their set and they retorted with their usual amusing wit, well played.  Although Gashy did buckle and eventually took that daft hat off!  You can find The Stroll (and listen to their music!!!) on Facebook, Soundcloud and ReverbNation on these links;

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Stroll/152650318150277

ReverbNation – http://www.reverbnation.com/thestroll1

Soundcloud – http://soundcloud.com/the-stroll

You can also follow them on Twitter (@TheStroll1) –  https://twitter.com/#!/TheStroll1

Me with Josh Pringle from The Stroll

The Stroll are competing in another battle of the bands this Friday, this time at Seen on Beaumont Street in Darlington (they get themselves about a bit, don’t they?).  So if you’re not going to Heat 2 of the Coatham Bowl Battle of the Bands, then go to that instead!  You can find more details of that event on Facebook on this link;

http://www.facebook.com/events/320443234651476/

I’ve also got The Stroll headlining my next gig at The Telegraph on Orchard Street in Newcastle on Friday 3rd February.  More details of that gig can be found on an older post on this blog or on Facebook, links below;

My Next Gig (blog) – https://mallazmalcolmwhite.wordpress.com/2012/01/06/my-next-gig-friday-3rd-february-at-the-telegraph/

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/events/162422163865780/

The Telegraph - 3rd February 2012

The three other acts to compete, who I was either too late to see or too fukked to remember, were (I think…) The Blitz, Panda Lasagne and The Method.  Below are some links where you can find and listen to their music without having to like anything you aren’t able to listen to first.

The Blitz (Facebook) – http://www.facebook.com/theblitzsunderland

The Blitz (Myspace) – http://www.myspace.com/staidantheblitz

Panda Lasagne (Facebook) – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Panda-Lasagne/26738511357

Panda Lasagne (Soundcloud) – http://soundcloud.com/pandalasagne

The Method (EP on Soundcloud) – http://soundcloud.com/andrewrobinson-2/sets/the-method-5-star-rockin-ep/

And finally, here’s a link to the Facebook event for Heat 2 of the Battle of the Bands at Coatham Bowl in Redcar;

http://www.facebook.com/events/320213488011573/

REDCAR BATTLE OF THE BANDS BEGINS TONIGHT!

Battle of the Bands 2012

Today’s the day that the much anticipated Battle of the Bands, held at Coatham Bowl in Redcar, begins.  Every Friday, from now until 9^th March, some of the North East’s best bands and solo artists will compete against each other whilst raising money for two charities, TFM Cash for Kids and SANE.  Entry to any of the Heats is priced at a bargain £5 payable on the door.

I’m off doon there shortly for Heat 1 and will be staying overnight in Redcar, even though I honestly have no idea where Redcar really is, and intend to make a night of it.

The Stroll

Tonight, I’m mainly going to see The Stroll from Durham, who are currently my favourite local band, but it’s always good to check out  new bands and what better way than to go to an event like this?  From the information I have been given, there is eight acts on tonight, which obviously isn’t bad at all for a mere bluey!  The other seven are; James Arthur, Sailors and Saints, Chasing Wilson, Rough Justice, The Blitz, Panda Lasagne and The Method.  Each act will be performing a twenty minute set, and they obviously all have a degree of confidence in their ability to be entering a competition like this in the first place, so I’m expecting to slooshy some sweet noise tonight.

Basically, I’m fukkin well looking forward to this coz I know it’s gonna be an awesome night!

LOADSA SHITE, ALL IN ONE BLOG!

I’m taking my laptop to be repaired tomorrow so this blog’s gonna have loadsa crap crammed into it!  The fukkin retards at PC World bodged the original repair on my DVD/CD drive so I need to send the fukka back, which is a piss take seeing as they’ve had my laptop for repairs for two months outta the thirteen that I’ve owned the fukkin thing!

THIS WEEKEND’S BETTING TIPS RESULTS

Another weekend’s betting tips from Wor Shitus and me has proven fruitless!

https://mallazmalcolmwhite.wordpress.com/2012/01/06/fa-cup-third-round-betting-tips/

Wor Shitus‘ treble was let down by Millwall‘s failure to win at Dagenham and Redbridge.

Millwall also cost me on my second line along with QPR.  My first tip was let down because Bolton were incapable of beating Macclesfield.  Obviously my third line was a combination of my first two lines and failed to win anything too.

As things now stand, I still have my slender lead of £64.10.

Current Scores are;

Me -£362.46 v -£426.56 Wor Shitus

Dagenham & Redbridge 0 - 0 Millwall

NEXT WEEKEND’S BETTING TIPS

For next weekend I am going to go for a £50 four-fold.  I will get the odds for this bet later in the week but here’s my tips now.  Get on; Chelsea to win against Sunderland, Tottenham to beat Wolves, Cardiff to win at Doncaster and Southampton to win at Nottingham Forest.

Chelsea to beat Sunderland

SOME MUSIC STUFF

Friday (13th January) is the beginning of the Battle of the Bands North East 2012.

The Battle of the Bands is held at Coatham Bowl in Redcar, with heats being held every Friday from 13th January to 2nd March.  The final is to be held on 9th March.

Entry to any of the heats is priced at £5, payable on the door.

Click here to view details of the Battle of the Bands on Facebook.

Battle of the Bands 2012

HEAT 1 – FRIDAY 13TH FEBRUARY

The first heat in the Battle of the Bands is this Friday.  I would recommend checking out this heat as you will get a chance to see The Stroll perform live.  I’m gonna be going and making a night of it.

If you haven’t heard of The Stroll yet you obviously haven’t been keeping up to date with my musical recommendations and I can gladly assist you with your suicide, just because I’m really fukkin nice like that!

However, if you value your life and enjoy good music, I urge you to check out The Stroll on ReverbNation and like their Facebook page.  This is a band on the up, so get on it now!

If you haven’t read my blog recommending that you listen to The Stroll then click the link below.

https://mallazmalcolmwhite.wordpress.com/2011/12/14/what-im-listening-to/

Also check out their latest track ‘Searching‘.

Me talking shit to Josh Pringle of The Stroll

MY NEXT GIG – THE TELEGRAPH, FRIDAY 3RD FEBRUARY

The Stroll are also headlining my next event at The Telegraph on Orchard Street in Newcastle on Friday 3rd February 2012.  Check out the event on Facebook or my latest music blog.

Also playing at this event are Baron Von Alias & MistaBreeze, l87 of Sublevel2 and Artisam.

Entry for this event is priced at £3 on the door.

The Telegraph - 3rd February 2012

LOVE & OTHER DISEASES

Seeing as I’m still entitled to my 20% of the profit on the EP, I might as well take this opportunity to try push my old band, Downtown Lester Brown‘s, debut EP, ‘Love & Other Diseases‘, seeing as none of the remaining members of the band have bothered their lazy, unambitious arses trying to publicise it.

‘Love & Other Diseases’ is available for digital download at the following places, simply click the name of the site.

iTunes £5.53

Amazon £4.49

Fairshare £5.99

eMusic £2.94

Tunetribe £4.83

Tradebit £5.83

7digital £4.49

(prices exchanged from US Dollars are correct with today’s current exchange rates.)

Love & Other Diseases - Downtown Lester Brown

FA CUP THIRD ROUND BETTING TIPS

The current scores in the betting tips challenge with Wor Shitus are as follows;

Me -£312.46 v -£376.56 Wor Shitus

So after Swansea‘s late equaliser against Tottenham let me down, I still only have a £64.10 lead to take into this weekend’s FA Cup 3rd Round fixtures.  This week I’ve got two £20 bets, a five-fold and a four-fold, plus a £10 accumulator.

Bet 1

Firstly, a £20 five-fold.  Blackpool to win at Fleetwood Town (5/6), Swansea to win at Barnsley (11/8), Stoke to win at Gillingham (8/13), Bolton to win at Macclesfield (8/11) and Aston Villa to win at Bristol Rovers (8/15).  With Paddy Power, £20 pays £372.57.

Swansea (11/8) to win at Barnsley.

Bet 2

Secondly, a £20 four-fold.  Millwall to win at Dagenham and Redbridge (17/20), Newcastle to beat Blackburn (8/13), QPR to win at MK Dons (8/5) and Middlesbrough to beat Shrewsbury Town (4/9).  With Paddy Power, £20 pays £224.47.

QPR (8/5) to win at MK Dons.

Bet 3

The final bet is a £10 accumulator combining the two above bets.  So that’s an accumulator on;  Blackpool (5/6), Millwall (17/20), Swansea (11/8), Stoke (8/13), Newcastle (8/13), QPR (8/5), Middlesbrough (4/9), Bolton (8/11) and Aston Villa (8/15).  With Paddy Power, £10 pays £2,090.74.

Blackpool (5/6) to win at Fleetwood Town.

FUCK CHRISTMAS SONGS, THIS IS WHAT YOU SHOULD BE LISTENING TO

With Christmas happening, I’ve been swerving the radio because, basically, Christmas songs are shit!

Instead, I’m listening to proper music!  Right now I’m listening to Cob20 by the Happy Mondays, class!  As I did just the other week, I’m gonna highlight some local acts that you should treat your eardrums to.  My previous recommendations all seemed to be pretty well received.

The Stroll, Baron Von Alias & MistaBreeze and The Mojags all seem to have impressed people and the feedback I have received is very positive.

TOO SPICY

A band that I have been getting into lately is Too Spicy.  Too Spicy are an incredible and unique sounding Ska group, based in South Shields.  I have yet to see them performing live but I have heard their work online and am particularly fond of ‘Ruthless Killah’, which makes great use of a ‘Pulp Fiction’ sample.  The fresh, original and up-beat vibe that Too Spicy create within their music really is something special!

Too Spicy

I was first put onto Too Spicy by Chay Hobson at North-East Rehearsals-Recording.  Their lead vocalist Zak Boyd works at the recording studio and practice rooms.  I’ve been impressed by everything I have heard from Too Spicy.  This is an act that you need to hear!

Too Spicy’s next live performance is on Wednesday at The Office, in South Shields for the ‘Skankin in a Manger’ gig, also playing are Bright Lights and Blue Beat Attack.

EMERGENCY DOOR RELEASE

Next up, I’m gonna recommend a local act by the name of Emergency Door Release.  You may not have heard of them.  As far as I’m aware, Emergency Door Release are so new that they have yet to have made their debut performance.  However, they are due to perform at The Dog & Parrot, in Newcastle, on Saturday 11^th February next year.

If, like me, you’re a fan of the Editors then you will like Emergency Door Release.  Their vocalist, James Rooney, is extremely talented and his voice is very similar to Tom Smith of the Editors.  The band also displays a lot of skill with their guitar work and the song writing.

Emergency Door Release are an Indie band with a lot of potential.  You can find them on Facebook and Myspace, and listen to tracks such as ‘Stand Up‘ and ‘Just Begun’.  ‘Stand Up’ is my favourite of the two, the lyrics on that track are really cool and the chorus quickly gets stuck in your head.  ‘Just Begun’ is also a really strong track, displaying some excellent guitar play.

Unfortunately Emergency Door Release are currently without a drummer after theirs quit.  This has delayed both recording and performing for Emergency Door Release as they try to find a new drummer.  So, if you’re a talented drummer looking for a band, give me a shout and I’ll pass on your details.  Alternatively, contact James Rooney via Emergency Door Release’s Facebook Page.

Emergency Door Release

PLAYLIST

Joy Division – Atrocity Exhibition

Emergency Door Releases – Stand Up

Peter Gabriel – Games Without Frontiers

Artisam – Free Your Mind

Iggy Pop – The Passenger

Downtown Lester Brown – Eesh’s Jam (live)

Too Spicy – Ruthless Killah

New Order – Blue Monday

Shaun Ryder – Northern Soul Brother (Shapeshifter)

Kraftwerk – Sex Objekt

LINKS

Too Spicy

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/toospicyska

Emergency Door Release

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/EmergencyDoorRelease

Myspace – http://www.myspace.com/emergencydoorrelease

A TANGERINE CHRISTMAS

On Tuesday night I went to a gig at The Bridge Inn Hotel, in Newcastle upon Tyne.  Despite often frequenting The Bridge, I had never been to a gig there.  It’s a good venue with a reasonably sized stage and, at just 50p entry, was an absolute bargain.  My only issue with the venue was the amount of tables and chairs in the function room.  I would probably have removed the majority and just left a few up the sides of the room, you don’t really want everybody sitting down at a gig.

I think the event that I went to was called A Tangerine Christmas, run by Hal McCutcheon from Ginger Snap & The Style Pile, and it turned out to be a very entertaining evening.  I would have mentioned it before but unfortunately I was informed about the event with very short notice.

ARTISAM

I’ll start off with the band that I originally went to see, Artisam. This is the third time I’ve seen Artisam play, and the third time they’ve had to accommodate the drummer’s failure to attend.  Not an act to be put off by band members filing to turn up George Marcos Laybourne and Cam Martin performed an acoustic set, while their lead guitarist, Gary Glendinnng, watched from the audience.  George and Cam provided an excellent acoustic set opening with ‘Free Your Mind’, which is my personal favourite Halfisam song, and finishing with ‘The Rising’.

ARTISAM

Halfisam are a thoroughly entertaining acoustic package and the coordination and timing of the two guitars was impeccable.  Just a mere few weeks ago Photo Dave was telling me he thinks George has got it all.  He’s got the Philippino look, he can play guitar and he can’t half sing.  He’s also got this huge, infectious permanent smile.  These two lads look the part and I was also impressed by Cam’s crowd interaction in between tracks.  I like bands that involve the audience in their set.

Artisam still manage to perform a knock-out set even with just half the line-up.  That shows an incredible amount of versatility, as Cam is actually Artisam’s bass player.  It also shows a certain amount of dedication by that band, tweaking the line-up and style of music to accommodate the missing drummer.

GINGER SNAP & THE STYLE PILE

The final act to perform at the gig was Ginger Snap & The Style Pile.  I was blown away by them!  A local funky, Ska band with incredible talent and an individuality that money can’t buy.  This band really impressed me and I recommend that you check them out.  The female vocalist, Joanne ‘Gingersnap’ Robson, is an incredibly talented singer.  She’s also a redhead and gingers are my Kryptonite!  I absolutely love Ginger Snap and the Style Pile!

The Style Pile have a beautiful, unique sound and did not fail to impress.  A particular highlight from this band is Andy Strong, who plays the saxophone and clarinet.  Wearing his flat-cap and braces — certainly has his own unique style to add to the Pile.

Ginger Snap & The Style Pile

Being trapped in the middle of the festive period, Ginger Snap and the Style Pile performed their own renditions of some old Christmas classics, with a Ska twist.  I’m a proper Grinch and I hate Christmas and Christmas songs.  However I could let that slide with this band’s versions of the Christmas drivel, as they performed them in their own distinctive style.

At one point, Joanne was in amongst the audience singing and dancing.  As far as audience interaction is concerned, this is possibly one of the best gigs that I have ever been to for that.  The three acts that I saw all interacted with the audience and I believe that to be a very nice touch, especially when performing at intimate venues like The Bridge.

OVERALL

For an event that cost a paltry 50p to enter, this was a really impressive gig.  I’d have been happy to part with that just to see Halfisam.  Ginger Snap & The Style Pile were awesome!  All-in-all, it was a great night.

LINKS

Artisam (Facebook)

http://www.facebook.com/pages/ARTISAM/122829691064495

Ginger Snap & The Style Pile (Facebook)

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ginger-Snap-The-Style-Pile/181677578554592?ref=ts

Ginger Snap & The Style Pile (Bandcamp)

http://gingerstyle.bandcamp.com/track/if-you-want-me-to-leave

WHY I DECIDED TO LEAVE DOWNTOWN LESTER BROWN

On Monday 5^th December I parted company with Downtown Lester Brown, the band that I started earlier this year.  The main reason behind my quitting the band, both as a band member and their manager, is that I feel the band’s arrogance outweighs their ambition, although this mainly applies to Ben and Richard.

The straw that broke the camel’s back was the text message that I received on the Saturday following the gig I had organised on Friday 2^nd December at The Telegraph.

The Telegraph - Friday 2nd December 2011

The Telegraph is a small venue and for my gig it was only about a quarter full, only thirty-five or so people attended the gig.  Obviously I felt disappointed at the turn out.  The crowd Downtown Lester Brown attracts has seemingly been getting smaller the more gigs they do.  I feel that the more gigs they do the more followers they should acquire.  That would denote some level of success.  But to be pulling smaller and smaller crowds each gig, is stepping towards failure.  So to receive a text message from Richard the following day claiming to feel “like a god after that”, I was highly dissatisfied.  It shows a terrible lack of ambition as well as a ridiculous amount of arrogance for someone who had just played a gig in front of a handful of people.

Unfortunately this was not the first act of unwarranted arrogance from Richard, let alone the band.  Richard cancelled a gig that I had arranged, to go to another gig.  The gig I arranged was set to be Downtown Lester Brown’s debut EP release.  At that point Richard claimed to be too big to play at venues of that stature and Ben also stated that that gig was unimportant as it was a free gig and not one where we would earn any money.  When a band has just started out, every gig should be important but to cancel a pre-arranged gig to go see another gig shows a lack of dedication and ambition.  As well as the arrogance shown by Richard thinking he’s too big to play small gigs of the stature that I was arranging, as it’s “not Wembley”, and Ben’s attitude of it not being important as we weren’t getting paid, there is the wasting of the time and the effort I put in arranging gigs in the first place.  Ben is also the self-proclaimed “voice of a generation”, although he’s not saying a great deal with tracks such as Each To Their Own, which despite being free was only downloaded twenty times.

Despite that arrogance though, they totally lack ambition.  When I put the band forward for the Battle of the Bands, in Redcar, Ben didn’t want to do it and claimed it was pointless because his last band, the generic and unoriginal Casino, always sucked when they did them.  I had to convince him that it was a good idea and the winning isn’t important.  It’s an opportunity to play your music in front of people who might not otherwise ever get the chance to hear it.

Another massive issue for me was the style of the new material.  When I set this whole thing up I had a specification that I wanted to work towards.  I wanted to create a band with a fun attitude that would play psychedelic, up-beat music that would get people dancing and in the mood to go out clubbing because, after all, if you’re playing Friday and Saturday night gigs then your demographic is the pre-clubbing market.  Unfortunately neither Ben nor Richard has enough attitude or edge and, due to Richard having too much influence over Ben, we’ve ended up with songs with whiney vocals and songs crying over girls.  Too many of their new songs are songs that you can’t dance to.  The psychedelic guitars, such as the style in Empty Heed or High Definition Jazz Kitten have been dropped and I feel the music is heading in a more mainstream direction.  They’re heading back down the same route as their old band Casino.  I also have major concerns that all of the lyrics Richard writes are wet, too tame and basically shit.

After getting back from a short break in Amsterdam near the end of November, I was basically told by Ben that my input in the sound of the band is no longer wanted as I can’t play an instrument so know fuck all.  At this point I told them I would work with them for one more recording and the promotion of that release, and after that I would leave the band and concentrate solely on managing the band.  I am aiming to set up my own independent record label in the new year and was hoping to commission a Downtown Lester Brown album through my label.

As part of my role in managing the band, I sent the tracks from our EP away online for some independent reviews.  The reviews basically supported the things that I had been saying from the start.  Tracks such as Empty Heed, High Definition Jazz Kitten and Man On The Run were reasonably well received.  Those were three songs that Ben wrote before the band took off and before Richard had gotten involved.  Each To Their Own was unanimously panned for being generic wannabe-Beatles stuff, but that was an unrecorded Casino track that we used when we first started and has now been dropped.  Dufresne’s Escape bombed.  I had said that I thought the vocals were weak and let the track down because it’s just Richard whining again.  All the reviews seemed to agree with me and one even went as far as to say the vocals “ruined” the song.  However, Richard also sung on Fun & Games and there were several reviews raving about how good he was on that track.  On Fun & Games Richard sings with a bit of grit.  When we recorded it I was blown away.  Unfortunately that’s the only track he’s done like that and at the last practice I attended before leaving the band, he was whining on a new song and opened with the lyrics, “I was feeling down..” and went on to do the crying, “Why? Why? Why?” throughout the track. It was typical Richard Gilroy music; it wasn’t anything new or original.

I also have concerns over plagiarism in some of the new songs, and the legal ramifications that could come from that.  I wouldn’t want anything to do with the recording of Be Someone, another of Richard’s tracks, as that’s basically Breakfast at Tiffany’s and also the exact same guitars are in some crap pop song that I heard on whichever mainstream shite radio station Wor Colin listens to.  I also expressed concerns over several other songs.  There are only two tracks that I would want recorded, Mallaz Beats The Devil and Eesh’s Jam.

So after Richard’s “god” text, I have decided to quit Downtown Lester Brown to pursue other ventures.  I’ve got my next Telegraph gig on Friday 3^rd February 2012 and hope that the next couple are successful enough to start looking for bigger venues.  I’m going to be starting a new band after New Year and I am also going to be setting up my own independent record label in 2012.  I’ve also got the art to keep me occupied and several other ventures that I’m looking into.

I have processed Downtown Lester Brown’s debut EP, ‘Love & Other Diseases’, and that will be available to download from Boxing Day 2011.  As for the physical copies of the EP, I am not sure if or when they are going to become available.  That’s now down to the band to give me the green light to get them manufactured.  Also, as far as I’m aware, they don’t have anything at all book for before the Battle of the Bands, in Redcar, on 10^th February 2012.  There was some doubt whether they will actually attend that though.  Ben was telling me that the band had all basically agreed that it would be pointless as they wouldn’t win, I shit you not!

I wish Downtown Lester Brown the best of luck for the future.

WHAT I’M LISTENING TO!

I listen to music all of the time and I listen to all sorts of music, new and old, from across almost every genre.  My favourite artists include Shaun Ryder of the Happy Mondays, David Byrne of the Talking Heads, The Rolling Stones, Ian Brown of The Stone Roses and Swede Mason, who I believe should be knighted!

I also listen to a lot of new music, particularly from the North-East because it’s local to me.  So what I’m gonna do is give you some recommendations of what to listen to, based on what I’m listening to these days.  I’ll do my best to cater for different tastes, just because I’m nice like that.

What I’ll do is recommend a handful of acts you may or may not have yet heard of and prattle on a little bit about them.  Then I’ll give you a ten track playlist that will include some of my favourite tracks as well as new stuff worth listening to and then I’ll stick the links to the acts that I have recommended at the bottom.

If you click on any of the highlighted track titles in this blog you will be forwarded to somewhere you can listen to that track online.  Same with highlighted names, they’ll take you somewhere online relative to whatever you’re clicking on.  It’s not rocket science.

The Mojags

To start off with, I highly recommend checking out The Mojags, a young Rock band from North Shields area.

The Mojags performed at The Telegraph for me on December 2^nd.  They have bags of talent and, being so young, have limitless potential.  At my gig they did a brilliant cover of ‘Hey Joe’ by Jimi Hendrix.  This is a band that’s going places so keep an eye out for them.

The Mojags at The Telegraph, 2nd December 2011

In 2010 they won the Teenage Kicks Battle of the Bands.  They are also competing in a Battle of the Bands in Redcar next year.  They are in Heat 2 on Friday 20^th January 2012.  The Battle of the Bands is held at Coatham Bowl in Redcar and entrance fee for any of the heats is £10.  The event is in aid of charity.  Get down for that and show some support for a great band and help raise some money for charity.

The Mojags can be found on Facebook, YouTube and Soundcloud.  I would recommend listening to ‘Ojay‘ if you’re only gonna listen to one; it’s my favourite of the tracks currently available online.

Also check out this video on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mhs_Dkdu2w .  It’s The Mojags video of ‘Sychophant‘, shot as their prize for winning the Teenage Kicks competition.

The Stroll

Another band on the way up is Durham based Alternative Indie Rock band The Stroll, who are a new outfit only started in August.  They’ve only got one track online at the minute ‘Different Tune, Different Mood‘ and you can listen to that on Soundcloud.  It’s a catchy track like, and displays a small portion of the talent that these lads possess.

I saw them perform live at LYH the other week when I played there with Downtown Lester Brown.  Being a brand new band they are still doing quite a few covers but their original stuff is quality.  I particularly liked ‘Searching’, which is apparently about looking for magic mushrooms.  Their choice of covers was a cool blend of things ranging from The Beatles to The Stone Roses.

The Stroll

It’s not just the music that makes The Stroll a great band in the making.  The Stroll have a great vibe and energy and create an electric atmosphere at gigs.  They’re a fun band and their crowd interaction is impressive.  Their singer Josh Pringle has good crack and his patter on the microphone in between tracks is entertaining.  This band has it all and I’m tipping The Stroll to become massive!  They epitomise everything I was after when I set up Downtown Lester Brown.  They are a fun, energetic band with a great vibe and attitude as well as plenty of talent and drive.

The Stroll are also performing in the Battle of the Bands, in Heat 1, on Friday 13th January 2012.

I also have them booked for Friday 3^rd February 2012 at The Telegraph, behind Central Station in Newcastle.  That’ll be £3 in and the wisest investment you’ll ever make.

Look up The Stroll on Facebook and Soundcloud and remember, you heard it heard first!

Baron Von Alias & MistaBreeze

If Hip Hop’s your bag, here’s another act with a sense of fun.  Hip Hop duo Baron Von Alias and MistaBreeze are an audio-visual spectacle to behold, so I would recommend checking out their videos on YouTube to get the full effect.  The Baron is an emcee time-lord from 1830 and sports a huge tashe, top hat and sunglasses, so you know he’s got a sense of humour, however, he’s also an excellent wordsmith and a born entertainer.

Baron Von Alias

I was put onto Baron Von Alias and MistaBreeze by old school mate Nathan Wood, who has his own radio show.  He recommended I listen to ‘Get Wild, Gan Mental’, which is growing on me but I didn’t take kindly to it at first.  I told Nathan on twitter that I wasn’t impressed and The Baron piped up.  After a bit crack on, The Baron said I should give some of his other material a whirl.  I did, and I was impressed.  I blame Nathan for his poor choice in track selection whilst making recommendations.

There are plenty of quality tracks by The Baron and MistaBreeze so check out their YouTube channel.  You’ll enjoy their official videos and their live stuff.  I’m particularly keen on ‘White Noise’.  The Baron and MistaBreeze do make fukkin awesome videos!  I’d also recommend checking out the video of Baron Von Alias performing ‘Phoney’ on Amazing Beats, because I find it really fukkin impressive.

I saw Baron Von Alias and Mistabreeze performing live at The Head of Steam in Newcastle the other week and they are an act well worth catching.  For £5 you can see them live at The Riverside this Thursday (15^th December) http://www.facebook.com/events/109965722442103/ .

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So that’s three acts for you to check out, now here’s a couple other things that you wanna check out.

The Local Music Show

The Local Music Show presented by Nathan Wood, on Spark Sunderland.

That’s 107FM local radio or can be listened to live online at sparksunderland.com every Sunday at 4pm til 7pm.

Nathan plays music from local bands from across all different kinds of music so give that a listen and you’re bound to hear something that tickles your fancy.  Mix that with a little bit of low brow humour and smut and you’ve got yourself one canny Sunday afternoon’s listening.

Battle of the Bands

As mentioned earlier, there’s a Battle of the Bands going on in Redcar in early 2012.  The competition is being held at Coatham Bowl, in Redcar, every Friday from 13^th January 2012, with the final being held on Friday 9^th March 2012.  The entry fee to these events is £10.

The Mojags and The Stroll are both competing in the Battle of the Bands so get down for their heats and show some support.

Heat 1 – The Stroll – Friday 13th January

Heat 2 – The Mojags – Friday 20th January

Battle of the Bands 2012

Now Here’s My Recommended Ten Track Playlist

Here’s a ten track playlist I recommend listening to.  Click on the song title and you’ll be directed either to a YouTube video or somewhere else online that you can hear the track for free.  Enjoy.

Happy Mondays – Yahoo

Mick Jagger – A Memo from Turner

The Mojags – Ojay (live)

The Stone Roses – Good Times

The Stroll – Different Tune, Different Mood

Swede Mason – Bill Wyman’s Metal Detector

Baron Von Alias & Mistabreeze – Its OK

Public Enemy – What You Need Is Jesus

Gorillaz ft Shaun Ryder – Dare

Flowered Up – Weekender

Hopefully you’ve enjoyed what you’ve listened to and if you’ve got any recommendations let me know because I’m always willing to listen to new things.  Also please share this blog so that other people can hear the acts that I have mentioned and to get a little bit more publicity for the charity Battle of the Bands competition.

Thank you.

Links

The Mojags

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Mojags/162283410463944

Soundcloud – http://soundcloud.com/the-mojags

YouTube – http://www.youtube.com/user/TheMojags

The Stroll

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Stroll/152650318150277

Soundcloud – http://soundcloud.com/the-stroll

Baron Von Alias and Mistabreeze

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Baron-Von-Alias/28616761468

YouTube – http://www.youtube.com/iamsteesh

Bandcamp – http://baronvonalias.bandcamp.com/

Soundcloud – http://soundcloud.com/burnblockbeats

Spark Sunderland 107FM

http://sparksunderland.com/

Battle of the Bands 2012

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/events/233350486723088/

THE DOWNTOWN LESTER BROWN CALENDAR

Dufresne's Escape

Downtown Lester Brown are set to close 2011 with a steady gigging schedule on our hands.  This Saturday we’ll be making our first appearance at The Cluny, a very popular venue and yet another Too Far North gig.  Then we begin December by gigging on two consecutive nights.  Firstly, on the 1^st, at LYH and at The Telegraph on the 2^nd.  I’m actually running The Telegraph one, and I’ll be following that one up with another one in February.  If those two gigs go well, I hope to make it a regular thing.  Then it’s our final gig of the year.  On Saturday 10^th December, we’ll be playing at The Dog and Parrot for Too Far North again.

Also, you can download the Empty Heed single for just $0.50 now.  Click this link and get it downloaded – http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/downtownlesterbrown2.

So just to recap; DOWNTOWN LESTER BROWN GIGS

Sat 19^th November – Too Far North, The Cluny.  £5 door

Thu 1^st December – LYH.  £3 door or £2 each for groups (5+ people)

Fri 2nd December – DLB/Artisam/ The Mojags, The Telegraph.  £3 door

Sat 10^th December – Too Far North, The Dog and Parrot.  £4 door