Move Not Backwards Only Forwards

Following Greentea Peng's guest spot with Lee 'Scratch' Perry on 1st October, she's back here today with a new single and video.

It's fair to say that there's already much about Greentea Peng to grab one's attention. Her stage name, for one: a mash up of a Peruvian brew and a slang term for attractive or very good, itself evolved from Jamaican slang for waccy baccy. Aria Wells is fine as a given name, but Greentea Peng pops out from the page.

Then there's her image: tattoos here, there and everywhere that make Rag 'n' Bone Man look conservative in his choices. There are body piercings, kilos of jewellery and formidable and distinctive headgear - Greentea rocks a particularly fine woolly number in this video.

However, if all else fails, calling your single TARDIS will guarantee a whole new wave of Doctor Who fans dropping by to have a listen and look (75,000 and counting since the song dropped last Friday).

All of which may detract from the fact that TARDIS is a good song. Coming in with cavernous beats, you'd be forgiven for thinking that you're listening to a trip hop track from 1994 (Greentea Peng's birth year...now I feel ancient). Greentea then kicks in with a killer couplet of "There are no insecure monsters / No successful half-hearters". 

 

Underpinned by a stretched out bass and splashing, tinkling chords and keys that cement the Portishead/Tricky comparisons, Peng's assured delivery ensures that this is no retro copyist nonsense, but music that sounds fresh and intriguing.

I've not carried out a forensic comparison, though my general observation is that the title is something of a red herring: West Ham seems to get name checked at least as often as the iconic time and space machine, but TARDIS is the attention grabber, right? And once grabbed, Greentea Peng lets the words and music do the talking. 

 

Your attention will not waver.

What Happened To Us?

I wasn't that bothered when Blur's third album Parklife was released in 1994. To be honest, I was also equally unbothered when their first and second albums came out. 
 
But...I liked the occasional single and Blur's videos were undoubtedly becoming more interesting. To The End is probably the first Blur song that really struck a chord with me and went from a like to a more curious interest in the band.

The monochrome video, the faux 60s cinematic subtitled drama, the backing vocals from Françoise Hardy (naturellement en Français), the sonic soundscape created by the four all combine perfectly on this one song, promising greater things ahead. 

Girls And Boys and Parklife were bigger in terms of chart performance; To The End surprisingly peaked at #16 in the UK, but in my opinion it's the best single off the album.

Blur would return with a similar audio/visual template - and greater success - just over a year later, with The Universal. But that's another song for another post.

Misty Ruts

The poster says it all, really: Last Sunday, I experienced Misty In Roots and The Ruts DC in a double header at the Electric Ballroom in Camden, ably supported by the Pama International DJs. Boy, what a night.

What a day, in fact. Not just a gig in London, but a whole day trip and get together with my oldest friend, Stuart. Other commitments meant that it would be a there-and-home-again round trip on the Sunday (although thankfully, I booked the following day off work to recover...and I needed it).

I drove to Chippenham, jumped on the train, standing nearly all the way (I reserved a seat, which is a pointless exercise these days to be honest), and arrived at Paddington, to be greeted by Stuart. We haven't seen each other for a while, but time never makes a difference, we just click straight in.

 

Rather than the drab and stuffy Underground, we decided to get to Camden on foot, about 3/3.5 miles away via the Regent's Canal Towpath. I've been to London many, many times and this was the first time I'd ever been along the canal. It wasn't raining (not yet, anyway) and we chatted and walked, walked and chatted.

We passed Little Venice and London Zoo, getting back onto the street and into Primrose Hill park. Stuart had brought along London's Hidden Walks by Stephen Millar (Volume 4, to be precise), promising that "Every street has a story to tell". As do the parks, it seems. 

We passed Shakespeare's Tree without much comment and headed to the top of the hill, which affords fantastic views of London...and rows of tourists taking photographs, if you turn to face the other way. According to H.G. Wells, this was also the site of the largest Martian encampment when they invaded us in The War Of The Worlds. Every day's a learning day.

But it didn't end there. We took in 3 Chalcot Square, where Sylvia Plath lived for a year. 

A little further along, Chalk Farm Bridge, where Ted Hughes met a man with a fox cub in his jacket, who tried to sell it to him. At this point, we were clearly walking in circles quite a lot, more focused on talking than reading the directions properly, and finding ourselves after 10 minutes of walking at the top of a road, staring at a familiar junction at the other end and half-heartedly wondering why we didn't take the more direct route.  But that's missing the point, isn't it? We were having a great time.

So, although very close by, we missed the bronze statue of Amy Winehouse and, er, Duck World and found ourselves at Camden Lock Market about two and a half hours after we'd set foot from Paddington station. Still another three or four hours or so before the gig though, so no problem!

I clocked one more landmark from it's appearance in Doctor Who last year...

...but the sightseeing was now pretty much over, we needed food.

Not a problem in Camden Lock Market, of course. We got a couple of meals to go from a Indonesian street food stall and found a place to sit on steps just on the other side of a barriered outdoor seating area for a Wetherspoons pub. It was steadily drizzling with rain at that point, though Stuart and I had hot food, good company and plenty (still) to talk about, so we were very happy. 

In a spooky coincidence, given that my Dubhed post that day had recollected our trip to Preston on 6th October 1990 to see Pixies live in concert, our ad-hoc lunch was soundtracked by a nearby busker playing...Where Is My Mind? by Pixies. How cool is that?

What was less cool was the steadily increasing rain. It was time to move on. Casting my eyes around for a bin, I instead clocked a man a few feet away with his dick out, pissing against another side of the Weatherspoons enclosure, before rejoining his friends at a nearby table. I mean, the pub and presumably the toilets were about ten feet away...! It reminded me of a similar experience in Tokyo, where besuited, sozzled men casually urinated in the streets at night.

Being much more civilised, Stuart and I used the facilities at the legendary Good Mixer, just around the corner. It's probably the first time I've been in there for about 25 years...the pub, I mean, not just the toilet. Stuart and I stayed there for a drink and more chat until finally it was time to head to the Electric Ballroom.

It's deceptively small on the outside but as soon as we entered, it was down the stairs, round the corner and through the door into the vast interior space. After grabbing another drink (no alcohol for me, I must stress, as the designated driver) and a brief recce, we then headed upstairs, which in fact is where we stayed when the show began in earnest.

To be honest, I was a little surprised by the crowd of predominantly white people, mostly male, of a certain age and wardrobe, though the balcony area was a tad more varied and perhaps a stronger indication of people who had been with either or both bands since 'back in the day'. 

We found ourselves with a fantastic vantage point directly facing the stage, which was just as well as it was time for The Ruts DC to kick off proceedings.

 

These days, The Ruts DC is a three piece with founder members Dave Ruffy (drums), John 'Segs' Jennings (bass) and Leigh Heggarty (guitar), the 'new boy' since 2011 or thereabouts. For three men in the mid-late 60s, this was an incredibly, wonderfully tight performance that would shame bands half their age or more.

I just about missed out on punk, so I didn't get into The Ruts until the 1980s, but their fusion of punk, dub and politics felt in synch with but very different from The Clash. in 2024, this is not the sound of old men trying to recreate and relive their youthful glory. The songs have evolved though without losing the energy and sense of urgency, and lyrically remaining sadly just as relevant in today's troubled times. 

I'm very familiar with The Ruts' debut album, and more so with the 21st Century remixes and reiterations of the Rhythm Collision mini-album than the original, though I don't think it would matter if you knew the songs or not, the audience was fully engaged from start to finish and vociferous in their appreciation.

When Leigh gave his final thanks to the Segs and Dave, it was a surprise to realise that an hour had flown by. An exhausting yet exhilarating set.

Providing a perfect contrast, Misty In Roots were laid back by comparison though to equate that as being lacking in energy and power would be a grave mistake. Founder members Walford 'Poco' Tyson and Anthony 'Tsungirai' Henry were present and correct; the other seven members packed onto what now looked like a tiny stage have cumulatively amassed a few hundred years' service with the band and everyone gave a consumate performance.

Whereas The Ruts DC's set was short, snappy and spiky, Misty In Roots allowed the groove to unfurl, Poco coming in and out of the music, songs flowing from one to another, never losing momentum. Stuart and I picked our spot well, as the people around us were also getting into it, though I think it would be impossible not to move when the music was this infectious.

I'm relatively unfamiliar with Misty In Roots' music beyond seminal debut Live At The Counter Eurovision 79, a John Peel Sessions compilation CD and various songs scattered across subsequent albums. It didn’t make any difference: the band had me and the audience in the palm of their hand for the next hour.

Misty In Roots return for an encore, more extended grooves and to be honest, I'm not sure how many songs. All I know is that again, it all feels over too soon, as the lights go up and it's time to go home.

Back to Paddington - a rather speedier return trip via Tube, then on the 11.30pm train to Chippenham, and a drive home, getting in and to bed in the wee hours of Monday. A week on, I'm still aching and still buzzing from the experience.

Neither The Ruts DC or Misty In Roots have been updated on Setlist and I certainly wasn't keeping track of the running order, but I'm pretty sure that all of the songs in today's Dubhed Selection were played at the Electric Ballroom.

Rather than two separate selections, I've instead gone for a single, 13-track, 55-minute set, alternating between The Ruts DC and Misty Ruts. 

 

To coin a cliche, all killer, no filler!

 

1) You're Just A... (Rough Mix): The Ruts (1979)

2) Poor And Needy: Misty In Roots (1983) 

3) Jah War (Album Version): The Ruts (1979)

4) Babylon's Falling (John Peel Session): Misty In Roots (1979) 

5) Babylon's Burning (7" Version): The Ruts (1979)

6) Ghetto Of The City (Live @ Cirque Royal/Koninklijk Circus, Brussels, Belgium): Misty In Roots (1979)  

7) Staring At The Rude Boys (Single Version): The Ruts (1980)

8) West Livity: Misty In Roots (1985) 

9) Human Punk (Live @ The Marquee, London): The Ruts (1979)

10) Wondering Wanderer: Misty In Roots (1989) 

11) In A Rut (Single Version): The Ruts (1979)

12) Musi-O-Tunya: Misty In Roots (1985) 

13) Something That I Said (John Peel Session): The Ruts (1979)  

 

1979: Babylon's Burning EP: 5

1979: In A Rut EP: 11

1979: Live At The Counter Eurovision 79: 6

1979: The Crack: 3, 9

1980: Staring At The Rude Boys EP: 7

1983: Earth: 2 

1985: Musi-O-Tunya: 8, 12

1989: The Midas Touch EP: 10

1990: The Peel Sessions Album: 13

1995: The John Peel Sessions: 4

2019: The Crack (Expanded Edition): 1

 

Misty Ruts (55:50) (KF) (Mega)  

Note: all of the photos are mine, with a few exceptions (and belated thank yous).

The in focus close ups of The Ruts DC and Misty In Roots are courtesy of Tim Newburn

The pics of Leigh Heggarty and Walford 'Poco' Tyson were taken by Marcus Austin

Unsung Champion

45 minutes of Faithless for no other reason than "Why not?"

No epic-length cuts here, a few remixes, a fistful of hits, loads of guest vocalists and at the centre, the trinity of Rollo, Maxi Jazz (RIP) and Sister Bliss.

Enjoy!

1) Fatty Boo (Extended Version ft. The Hiites) (2005)

2) Insomnia (Original Radio Edit) (1995)

3) Hour Of Need (Skinny Mix By Matt Benbrook ft. Jamie Catto & Rachael Brown) (1999)

4) Crazy English Summer (Album Version ft. Zoë Johnston) (2001)

5) Killer's Lullaby (Nightmares On Wax Mix By George Evelyn) (1999) 

6) Muhammad Ali (Radio Edit ft. Pauline Taylor) (2001)

7) Miss U Less, See U More (Single Mix ft. LSK) (2004)

8) Reasons (Saturday Night) (Album Version ft. Ian Dury) (2005)

9) If Lovin' You Is Wrong (Cleaned Up Edit ft. Pauline Taylor) (1996)

10) We Come 1 (Wookie Rmx By Jason Chue) (2001)

11) Bring My Family Back (Album Version ft. Rachael Brown) (1998)

 

1995: Insomnia EP: 2

1996: If Lovin' You Is Wrong EP: 9 

1998: Sunday 8pm: 11

1999: Saturday 3am: 3, 5

2001: Muhammad Ali EP: 6

2001: Outrospective: 4 

2002: Reperspective: The Remixes: 10

2004: Miss U Less, See U More EP: 7 

2005: Fatty Boo EP: 1

2005: Forever Faithless: 8 

Unsung Champion (45:07) (KF) (Mega)

Mo' Jo

Jo Bartlett has a new single and video, Before The Police Car, out today.

If you've been following this blog for a while, you may recall that I included a Hardway Bros remix of Jo's song Camden in my 2023 end of year sum up. Here's the equally pleasing original version, from second album The Cut Up.
 

In February this year, I got all fired up by Jo's single Drawing A Line (ghost tape no.2), released in advance of her third album. It was at that point that I started joining the dots to her musical history and connection to It's Jo And Danny, many moons previously.

 

April 2024 saw the release of Ghost Tapes 1 To 9 which, after a few listens, I was already describing as a highlight of the year, mainly down to the consistently engaging sound and feel of the songs. This song partly inspired the blog post title but wasn't actually previewed at the time.

Ghost Tapes 1 To 9 hasn't been far away from my playlist since and I can say that, in spite of some truly great records that have followed this year, it's remained a much loved and much played album.

So what of Before The Police Car, which Jo herself describes "just sort of happened"?

The song comes in with some choral synths, before Jo describes a FaceTime call in the middle of the night, bass and shakers coming in before the first key change and a lovely guitar line adds to proceedings.

I think I've referred to the appeal of Jo's layering of sound and the juxtaposition of contemporary narratives and soundscapes that simultaneously evoke musical history. Elements of Before The Police Car spike memories of songs from the 1980s by The Passions and Lloyd Cole & The Commotions, whilst remaining wholly Jo's own. 

At the three minute mark, the song breaks into a repeating refrain of "It turned out alright" before a lyrical shift and fade out at the end. It turned out more than alright, I think.

 

Jo has said that "From writing, to recording to release [was] just under three weeks" and there is a lot to be said for the immediacy and impact that approach can bring to a song. 

 

Whilst a song can develop and grow and becomes something far beyond the original concept, there's also a strong argument for knowing when to stop and let it out there. This has been a major part of Ghost Tapes 1 To 9's appeal for me and Before The Police Car similarly so.

 

If Before The Police Car is your introduction to Jo Bartlett's music, then dive back into her Bandcamp and Indie Through The Looking Glass pages and you're in for a treat.

Irie Irie

Confidence Man, coming on like it's 1991 with new single and video Real Move Touch, featuring Sweetie Irie.

Back in the actual 1991, Sweetie Irie was at it again for the first time (?), side by side with Green Gartside on Scritti Politti's dancehall cover of Gladys Knight & The Pips' 1967 classic Take Me In Your Arms And Love Me.

Sweetie Irie (Dean Bent to his mum) has been in demand throughout his career, working with everyone from Aswad to Ed Case to Gorillaz to Ian Brown to No Doubt to Roni Size.

Confidence Man chose wisely.

Modest Maus

John Maus is playing a gig at Strange Brew in Bristol tonight (9th), the second date of a week-long tour of England and Scotland, which started at the Electric Ballroom on Tuesday and taking in Manchester, Brighton, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

 

John has played with Animal Collective (and Panda Bear) and Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, but has also released seven albums between 2000 and 2018.

 

An eighth album, a 2CD set called Rarities For The Road, was being sold on the merch stand during his live dates last months and hopefully will be available for the UK dates to come. 

 

In John's own words, the album comprises "two versions of “Rarities for the Road”, each with a overlapping / slightly different track listing of some unreleased music that *isn’t* going to be on the next album (out in 2025??)."

 

I'll be honest, I'd never heard of John Maus or his music before seeing a flyer for his London gig on Sunday. Having listened to the session (and interview) he did for KEXP in 2018, a smattering of album tracks and the closing video of ...And The Rain, performed live at EartH in Hackney last year, I'm wishing that I could be there at Strange Brew tonight.

 

John clearly commits 100% to his music and performance - and apparently so do his fans - and the shows promise to be an intense, sweat-drenched experience. Off stage, John is described as a modest, generous guy, so it would fascinating to see this juxtaposition in an intimate setting. Unfortunately, not tonight.

 

 

Summer Alone

So, The Cure are back with Alone, their first release in 16 years and the precursor to 14th album Songs Of A Lost World, promised for so many years that there was perhaps some reasonable questioning about whether Robert Smith would ever be satisfied enough with the results to let it out into the world.

He should be, for whilst Alone isn't breaking new ground, it distills in just under 7 minutes all that makes Smith as a songwriter - and therefore The Cure - so great. 

 

Alone plays almost like those extended 12" versions of the 1980s, of which Fascination Street was a prime example, where you essentially get the instrumental version followed by the vocal version. Pretty much bang on the halfway mark of Alone, Robert utters the opening line, "This is the end of every song that we sing" and it's like a warm hug (or should that be cold embrace?) from a friend that you thought you may never see again.

Robert's voice is in astonishingly good form. It's hard to believe that he celebrated his 65th birthday back in April as none of the passage or ravages of time seem to be reflected in his vocals. Certainly not the "broken voiced lament" of which he sings. 

Perhaps it should come as no surprise that I didn't have to look too hard to discover a fan-made video for Alone already out there. This one is courtesy of Ishtar Dark Films and whilst it's almost certainly not what Robert Smith has in mind if or when an official video for Alone is released, I'm always intrigued by other people's response to songs and how to capture it visually. 

The video for Alone is in monochrome, prominently features a long-haired female 'lead' who spents the entire time with her back to the camera, wandering along the beach and various other locations, never seeming to arrive at a final destination. And there's some lovely shots of cats, and a protracted scene with a curious dog on a lead. The video succeeds insofar as it intrigues without distracting from the song or its narrative.

Ishtar Dark Films has also recently posted another video, for The Last Day Of Summer taken from The Cure's 2000 album Bloodflowers. I'm assuming that this was filmed and edited around the same time as Alone, not least because it features the same female lead, beaches and other locations. This time, though, the video is in full colour and you get a pleasing sequence of shots around and atop a lighthouse. Stirring stuff.

Welcome back, Bob, it's good to hear you again.

 

This is the end of every song that we sing
The fire burned out to ash and
The stars grown dim with tears
Cold and afraid
The ghosts of all that we’ve been
We toast, with bitter dregs, to our emptiness

 

And the birds falling out of our skies
And the words falling out of our minds
And here is to love, so much love
Falling out of our lives
Hopes and dreams are gone
The end of every song

 

And it all stops we were always sure that
We would never change and it all stops
Wе were always sure that wе
Would stay the same but it all stops
And we close our eyes to sleep
To dream a boy and girl
Who dream the world is nothing but a dream

 

Where did it go? Where did it go?

 

Broken voiced lament to call us home
This is this end of every song we sing

 

Where did it go? Where did it go?

Where did it go? Where did it go?

 

Broken voiced lament to call us home

This is the end of every song we sing alone

Seventh Scott

A 'light' post with a 'heavy subject, courtesy of Mr. Scott Walker and The Seventh Seal from 1969's Scott 4.

 

I probably haven't seen Ingmar Bergman's 1957 film of the same name for over thirty years, a time when I was voraciously viewing all of the monochrome masterpieces of cinematic history that I could find. And up to that point, I most likely only knew lead actor Max Von Sydow from his late career star turn as Ming The Merciless in the wonderfully OTT 1980 remake of Flash Gordon.

It's a wonderful, powerful film that's been paid homage to (most recently by Depeche Mode's video for Ghosts Again) and spoofed (brilliantly in Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey). 

It was many, many years later that I finally got around to buying a CD collection of Scott Walker's early albums and therefore discovered his own adaptation of The Seventh Seal on Scott 4.

 

And then, in deciding to post The Seventh Seal on the seventh day of October, I discovered that standingathwart had edited together snippets from the film to accompany the song, so that the former more or less parallels the narrative of the latter. There are even moments when the original subtitles crossover with Scott's own lyrics. You can find the video here.

Very nicely done, and if it encouraged visitors to check out the song or the film or both, then all the better for it.

Anybody seen a knight pass this way
I saw him playing chess with Death yesterday
His crusade was a search for God and they say
It's been a along way to carry on

 

Anybody hear of plague in this town
The town I've left behind was burned to the ground
A young girl on a stake her face framed in flames cried
I'm not a witch God knows my name

 

The knight he watched with fear
He needed to know
He ran where he might feel God's breath
And in the misty church
He knelt to confess
The face within the booth was Mr. Death

 

My life's a vain pursuit of meaningless smiles
Why can't God touch me with a sign
Perhaps there's no one there answered the booth
And Death hid within his cloak and smiled

 

This morning I played chess with Death said the knight
We played that he might grant me time
My bishop and my knight will shatter his flanks
And still I might feel God's heart in mine

 

And through confession's grille Death's laughter was heard
The knight cried No you've cheated me!
But still I'll find a way
We'll meet once again and once again
Continue to play

 

They met within the woods the knight his squire and friends
And Death said now the game shall end
The final move was made
The knight hung his head
And said you've won I've nothing left to play

 

The minstrel filled with visions sang to his love
To look against the stormy sky
The knight his squire and friends
Their hands held as one
Solemnly danced toward the dawn

 

His hourglass in his hand his scythe by his side
The master Death he leads them on
The rain will wash away the tears from their faces
And as the thunder cracked they were gone

Preston Pixies

Pixies at the Guild Hall in Preston on Saturday 6th October 1990. 

 

According to the ticket, I paid by cheque but it doesn't say how much. A quick look on eBay reveals that admission for their gig at Aston Villa Leisure Centre the following week cost a whopping £7.50, so a bargain in retrospect, even factoring in the petrol there and back.

So, why did I hop into my Mini Metro, pick up my friend Stuart and drive from Bristol to Preston, three hours up the M5 then M6 when we could have made the much shorter trek to see Pixies at Gloucester Leisure Centre a week or so later?

 

Well, that would be fellow school friend, Matt, who was at university and was just as much of a Pixies fanatic as we both were. So, off we went, with the promise of a takeaway, a great gig and at the very least, a clear bit of space on the floor of Matt's student house share to lay our weary heads. To date, it remains the one and only time I've been to Preston.

 

If the truth be told, I don't remember a lot about the journey there or back, the pre-gig preamble (I think pizza was involved) or, sadly, the support act. 

 

I do remember that they were called Barkmarket, as I recall thinking what a crap name it was. I hadn't heard anything by the band prior to the gig...or since, until I started writing this post. Fronted by Dave Sardy, who I'm familiar with from his subsequent career as producer for the likes of The Dandy Warhols, Oasis and Jet, musically they sound like a good fit for Pixies. 

 

I've found a John Peel session that Barkmarket recorded a week before the Preston gig, with a brief introductory interview with an out of breath Dave, which you can listen to here. Three decades on, I have absolutely no recollection of Barkmarket's set, though arguably I may have forgotten it by the time I completed the near-200 mile trip home.

Pixies, though, were another matter entirely. Incredibly, I've discovered not one but two bootleg videos on YouTube of the entire show. Remember, this was 1990, no recording devices that you could slip into your back pocket. Goodness knows how either one of them snuck a video camera into the venue and filmed the gig, but there we are. 

 

The sound is atrocious on both, the image not a whole lot better, though it does capture some of the sweaty, frenetic energy of the concert. I've included a link to the one posted by Suzuhara, which appears to have been shot from inside a bag for the first couple of minutes, but comes good later on and provides the sole band photo for this post.

Matt, Stuart and I were right in there in the thick of it, as Black Francis screamed his way through song after song, Dave Lovering leading from one to the next with barely a pause, Joey Santiago nearly setting his guitar alight through the sheer speed of his playing and Kim Deal looking cool as hell throughout but especially when she took lead vocals for Into The White, Gigantic and (kind of) Tony's Theme.

The hazards of writing short, fast-paced songs is that when a band grows to playing headline sets for an hour and a half, that's a lot of songs. Pixies pack in thirty (30!) songs, before leaving the stage briefly and coming back for one more encore. 

 

What's even more incredible when you scan the set list is the number of songs that Pixies left off: River Euphrates, Monkey Gone To Heaven, Cactus, Isla De Encanta...Most of these were played, along with brilliant B-side Dancing The Manta Ray and the then-unreleased Subbacultcha, at the Gloucester gig, which in retrospect makes me wish I'd gone to both. 

This was the third time I'd seen Pixies and this tour was promoting the Bossanova album, with 9 of the 14 songs getting played, including Havalina. Not my favourite Pixies song at the time, it didn't get played much after and it appears the 21st century reunion was a nearly a decade in before they dusted off the song onstage again in 2013. I have a lot more affection for Havalina - and Bossanova - these days, and as a set, it's hard to argue with any of the song choices that night.

As usual, I've recreated the show as a Dubhed selection. It runs a few minutes shorter than the bootleg video on YouTube, though it kind of works if you play the latter with the volume muted. Oh, and all versions are lifted from the respective studio albums, unless stated.

The prompt for today's post was that, by sheer coincidence I'm travelling to London to meet Stuart and go to a gig, exactly thirty four years on from this memorable Pixies concert. It's going to be a fantastic day and I'll tell you all about it sometime in the next week.

For now, it's Pixies. Play loud.

 

1) Cecilia Ann (1990)

2) Levitate Me (1987)

3) Debaser (Clif Norrell Mix) (1997)

4) Rock Music (1990)

5) Dead (John Peel Session) (1988)

6) Hang Wire (1990)

7) Is She Weird (1990)

8) Broken Face (1988)

9) Crackity Jones (Demo 2) (1988)

10) Something Against You (1988)

11) All Over The World (1990)

12) Allison (1990)

13) Velouria (1990)

14) The Happening (1990)

15) Into The White (John Peel Session) (1989)

16) Here Comes Your Man (Simon Mayo Session) (1988)

17) Gigantic (Single Version) (1988)

18) Hey (1989)

19) Havalina (1990)

20) Caribou (John Peel Session) (1988)

21) The Holiday Song (1987)

22) Nimrod's Son (1987)

23) I'm Amazed ('The Purple Tape' Demo) (1987)

24) Ed Is Dead (1987)

25) Wave Of Mutilation (UK Surf) (1989)

26) Where Is My Mind? (1988)

27) Vamos ('Come On Pilgrim' Version) (1987)

28) Tony's Theme (1988)

29) Gouge Away (1989)

30) Tame (1989)

31) Wave Of Mutilation (Album Version) (1989)

1987: Come On Pilgrim: 2, 21, 22, 24, 27

1988: Gigantic / River Euphrates EP: 17

1988: Surfer Rosa: 8, 10, 26, 28

1988: The BBC Sessions (bootleg): 16

1989: Doolittle: 18, 29, 30, 31

1989: Here Comes Your Man EP: 25

1990: Bossanova: 1, 4, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14, 19

1997: Debaser EP: 3

1998: Pixies At The BBC: 5, 20

2002: Pixies: 23

2014: Doolittle 25: B-Sides, Peel Sessions & Demos: 9, 15

Preston Pixies (1:21:20) (KF) (Mega)