Live's what you make it...

Kudos to all the musicians out there still doing their thing whilst Coronavirus (aka Covid-19...what...ain't one name good enough for you eh...going all P-Diddley on us already) does its thing.

I'll try to stick up a few highlights of these home gigs/sessions over the coming weeks/months/years/decades starting with Matt Philip Hale's set from last Friday (he'll be doing another one this Friday at 7pm).

On a different tip here's Katherine Priddy and friends doing Nick Drake's Northern Sky. 

And finally for all you lovers of Norther Soul and Motown here's some of Mazzy's Night Owl set.

Enjoy.

Stay safe and stay in...it's the new going out don't you know.

Reasons To Be Cheerful - Ian Dury

Facebook informs me that it's 20 years (!) since Ian Dury passed away, so what better Friday banger than Reasons To Be Cheerful...and we could all do with some of those right now eh?

Keep It Chill! - Jeffrey Lewis

Trust Jeffrey Lewis to come up with the (un)official international anthem for the Coronavirus pandemic, just listening to this dude is guaranteed to make you feel at least 85% more chilled.

Pottery - Texas Drums Pt 1

Teardrop Explodes' Reward meets Talking Heads meets Vampire Weekend meets Yello...is there a better single out there right now than Pottery's Texas Drums Pt 1? No...I don't think there is. The weird vid's almost as awesome too. 

Krush - House Arrest

As we're all effectively under 'house arrest' for the next few months...years...decades...who knows...this tune kept popping into my head last night. More Coronavirus themed musical choices will follow as restrictions gradually get tighter and tighter until we're no longer allowed outside our own pants.

The The - Infected

Well this is a bit of a rum do isn't it eh? If someone had told you just a few short weeks ago that most of planet earth would be on 'lock down' by March you'd probably have called the mental health experts in. And yet here we are. At the time of writing this it looks possible that life as we know it could be on hold for months (if not years) and all because of one teeny tiny little virus. Given this it's perhaps not unexpected that The The's classic Infected keeps going round and round in my head so I might as well share it with you. Whatever you're up to this weekend...dusting, weeding, going through that kitchen drawer you've been stuffing things into since 2006...stay safe.

Genesis P-Orridge RIP

Whilst s/he'd been very unwell for quite some time the news of the death of Gen still came as a bit of a shock, even at a time when the whole world seems to be imploding. I'd been a fan since discovering their work via Psychic TV's acid house phase and through their links with another musical hero of mine Marc Almond. Of course Gen first became infamous fronting godfathers/mothers of industrial music Throbbing Gristle who are/were often a challenging listen. Their PTV output was/is a lot more accessible though, even grazing the nether reaches of the charts thanks to a Godstar, the band's tribute to Brian Jones (my own personal favourite was Gen's tribute to Ian Curtis I C Water though, apparently Gen was one of the last people to speak with Ian).



I was lucky enough to meet Gen once and spent a little time with them and the band backstage after a gig in Brum and found them to be wonderful company as we bonded over a one particular shared life experience that shaped us (for better or for worse) both. At that point they'd embarked on their pandrogeny project, during which time Gen and partner Lady Jaye had a series of fairly radical surgeries to try to look like each other, predating today's somewhat fluid gender identification. Quite frankly Gen was too original to look like, behave like or be like anyone else on planet earth though and whilst s/he clearly pissed off a lot of people during their 70 years on earth their contribution to art, music, politics and culture will be felt for as long as the human race survives...hmmm...that would have sounded a lot better a few weeks ago eh?! Anyway, RIP Gen, see you on the other side.

Deee-Lite - Groove Is In The Heart

Can Deee-Lite's Groove Is In The Heart really be 30 years old this year?! Oh my. What a complete and utter tune.

Sports Team - Here's The Thing

Anyone else think that Sports Team should release a Coronavirus version of this track? As it's virtually impossible to separate fact from fiction right now it would probably be a lot more informative...and certainly more entertaining...that the current Government 'guidance'.

Kitten - Panic

At the rate things are going by the time you read this toilet rolls will be fetching more than Apple shares and we'll all be under a six month curfew...well that's one way to hit those climate change targets I guess. Odd that the flu kills tens of thousands of people a year and no one bats an eyelid but Governments across the world are now falling over themselves to cause as much panic as possible about Coronavirus. Still, it did lead me to find this ace cover version of The Smiths's classic so silver linings and all that...

Bentley Rhythym Ace - Bentley's Gonna Sort You Out

Aaaaah, the 90s...if you remember them then you're probably as ancient as I am. Picked up a copy of BRA's classic debut album from the three for £1 rack in a local charity shop on Saturday and was sent hurtling back to 1996 when I first heard Bentley's Gonna Sort You Out...yes...1996...that's almost a quarter of a century ago. Bonkers. Anyone up for a Big Beat revival? Here's another classic from Bentley's live drummer Mr Fuzz Townsend.

Adult Contemporary - Matt Philip Hale

Chuffed to see/hear a top notch new offering from Matt Philip Hale, as lyrically laser guided as ever but with a more stripped back sound than his days with Miss Halliwell/The Day Ends. On a personal note it's nice to see a little of dear old Brum/Bearwood on the video too...

PS: Just in case you missed it here's Matt's last massive musical missive from October 2019.