Saturday, 17 May 2025

Now I'm Aching For You

...and I still am, Mr. Andy Bell, after seeing you live in concert at The Forum in Bath on Tuesday 13th May!

I'll be honest, I had no expectations for the show. Firstly, and I feel terrible for saying this, but my primary reason for being there was the support act (more on that tomorrow). I'd heard a couple of singles from your current solo album Ten Crowns, but I hadn't rushed out to buy it.

Secondly, we've got history on the gig front. I saw Erasure at the Colston Hall in Bristol on Sunday 1st May 1988 as a 'swap' with my friend; he came with me to see Siouxsie & the Banshees, I came with him to see you. And I was a little underwhelmed, if I'm brutally frank.

Thirdly, I wasn't particularly an Erasure fan back in the day. I bought the early 12" singles, but I was already losing ground by the time of The Innocents and pretty much lost track of what you and Vince were up to during the 1990s and 2000s. That said, I've had plenty of time to catch up and reappraise since.

But, I went in with an open mind and an open heart. And, less than 90 minutes later, both were crammed full with light and sound and energy (Hi-NRG, more like) and love and joy. 

Despite the full-on club feel of the Ten Crowns singles, I was intrigued by the stage set up, more so when the 4-piece band took up position before you. Picking up on your mid-set introductions, I discovered they were Nashville duo Steele Fountain aka Hailey Steele (vocals and guitar) and Jerry Fuentes (guitar and vocals), Sarah Tomek (drums) and über producer Dave Audé (keyboards & everything else), who co-wrote and produced Ten Crowns.

I'd never heard of Steele Fountain and I only knew Dave Audé from a few remixes of New Order, Goldfrapp, Dubstar, Sparks and U2 in my music collection. So, my curiosity was piqued.

You made a typically low key entrance of course, in a bright red glittery 2-piece suit and shades. leaping straight into Breaking Thru The Interstellar, the opening song of your album. Being the penultimate UK date, it was immediately clear that you and the band have honed these songs on the road. Yes, still very much aimed at the dancefloor but your band gave the music real heft. And your voice was in very fine form indeed.

Halfway through the first song and I thought, "What the heck am I doing, sitting back here in the stalls?". My second thought was an action and before I knew it, I was in the side aisles, closer to the front and dancing. Very badly, I'll admit, but don't mistake ineptitude for lack of passion. I was committed.

Yes, of course you have a solo album to promote, Andy, but you also realised that the audience were predominantly here for Erasure's greatest hits and you didn't disappoint. Songs two and three were Blue Savannah and Sometimes, and the pattern of one new/two classics more or less continued throughout the set.

You soon ditched the shades and jacket. "Do you like my suit?", you asked us. "It's recycled from all that plastic floating in the ocean", giving the sleeve a scrunch close to the mike, which seemed to set off a cluster in the MAMP (middle-aged mosh pit) at the front. One woman had already had a leg up onto the stage to give you a hug and snog and it looked like there were dozens more who would have leapt up there themselves, if stage height and arthritic knees weren't an obstacle.

But sod the creaking joints (mine included), everyone was having a great time. A really great time!

A few more songs from Ten Crowns came with Don't Cha Know, Godspell and Heart's A Liar, the latter a duet with Hailey Steele, replacing Debbie Harry on the studio version. They all sat comfortably with the interspersed clutch of stone cold killers in Drama!, Chains Of Love and Love To Hate You. And then we were at the mid-point of the set. Already!

You went off stage for a breather. leaving Steele Fountain to perform a cover of another Erasure single, Breathe (I see what you did there, Mr. Bell). Hailey and Jerry had nicely complementary vocals and it was a nice version, but the detour into Nashville was a strange turn, given what came before and would follow after. It was just... well, nice.

And you came back on for the second half of the set. From my experience 36 years ago, I'd half expected a costume change. There wasn't one, but neither was there any change in the pace and the energy of the performance. It was hard to believe that you'd celebrated your 61st birthday only a few weeks ago.

You started off with Always, one of the few 1990s Erasure songs that I knew from back in the day and one of my favourite of your greatest hits. The live version did the song justice and your voice soared through the notes.

"Why did Vince always write the songs so high?!" you reminisced,. "I don't know if I'll be able to get there now". But you did, wonderfully.

Unexpectedly, you followed this with the only non-album, non-Erasure song of the night. Perhaps less unexpectedly, it was a vibrant, faithful cover of Xanadu, though definitely leaning more heavily into Olivia Newton-John than the Electric Light Orchestra. 

You sang three more songs from Ten Crowns but it was also time for the real heavyweights from your back catalogue and another trio of personal favourites: Victim Of Love, Chorus and Oh L'Amour.

In true showbiz fashion, you and the band left the stage. We all knew you were coming back, though we screamed and cheered and clapped all the same.

Ten Crowns' closing song Thank You came first and then - and really, what else could it have been? - you brought the night to an end with A Little Respect.  You joined hands with the band, took your bows and said farewell for the last time. 

As I stepped outside into the bustling Bath night-time, a few things struck me: 
1) I knew the words to every Erasure song that was played tonight, and sang along to them all;
2) My T-shirt was drenched in sweat, from dancing non-stop;
3) It was bloody cold outside! and
4) I'd had a truly incredible night.

Thank you, Mr. Andy Bell. You and your band were brilliant and I am so, so glad that I came to see your show. I will never forget it.

Yours truly,
Khayem (age 54 ½) 



Note on today's Dubhed selection:
I've included the full setlist below, but today's selection is made up of 12" mixes of the Erasure songs only, in the sequence that they were performed on the night. You can find Ten Crowns in all the usual places. 

1) Breaking Thru The Interstellar
2) Blue Savannah (Razormaid Mix) (Re-Edited By Art Maharg) (1992)
3) Sometimes (Shiver Mix By Rico Conning) (1986)
4) Don't Cha Know
5) Drama, Act Two (Hung Jury CD Edit By Steve Smith) (1990)
6) Heart's A Liar (ft. Hailey Steele)
7) Chains Of Love (The Unfettered Mix By Shep Pettibone) (1988)
8) Godspell
9) Love To Hate You (LFO Modulated Filter Mix By Mark Saunders) (1992)
10) Breathe (When Andy Bell Met Manhattan Clique Extended Remix) (2005)
11) Always (Extended Mix By Martyn Ware & Phil Legg) (1994)
12) Xanadu (Cover of Olivia Newton-John & ELO)
13) For Today
14) Victim Of Love (Vixen Vitesse Mix - Viximix Vitesse By Daniel Miller & Rico Conning) (1987)
15) Dance For Mercy
16) Chorus (Aggressive Trance Mix By Youth aka Martin Glover) (1991)
17) Put Your Empathy On Ice
18) Oh L'Amour (PWL Funky Sisters Say 'Ooh La La' Mix By Pete Waterman & Phil Harding) (1986)
19) Thank You
20) A Little Respect (Remixed By Mark Saunders) (1988)

Now I'm Aching For You (1:15:05) (KF) (Mega)



Friday, 16 May 2025

Here It Comes Again

"it" being "Friday", "the start of the weekend" or "another bloody 12"/80s Dubhed selection".

If the latter doesn't get your hackles rising then you're in for a treat with some poptacular extended mixes featuring Altered Images, B.E.F., Billy MacKenzie, Erasure, Eurythmics, New Order, Pet Shop Boys and Stephen Duffy.

Fair warning that the BPMs will remain "up" for the next 72 hours....

1) See Those Eyes (Long Version) (Remix By Martin Rushent): Altered Images (1982)
2) It Doesn't Have To Be (Boop Oopa Doo Mix By Mixmaster Phil Harding): Erasure (1987)
3) In The Night (Remix By Arthur Baker): Pet Shop Boys (1986)
4) Round & Round (Club Mix By Ben Grosse & Kevin Saunderson): New Order (1989)
5) Cool Blue (Vocal Mix By John 'Jellybean' Benitez): Eurythmics (1984)
6) The Secret Life Of Arabia (Dub Mix By Martyn Ware & Ian Craig Marsh) (Cover of David Bowie): B.E.F. ft. Billy Mackenzie (1982)
7) I Love You (Diversion) (12" Version By David Leonard): Stephen Duffy (1986)

1982: Methods Of Dance Volume 2: 6
1982: See Those Eyes EP: 1
1984: Touch Dance: 5
1986: Disco: 3
1986: Extended Play EP: 7
1987: It Doesn't Have To Be EP: 2
1989: Round & Round EP: 4

Here It Comes Again (46:06) (KF) (Mega)

Thursday, 15 May 2025

And So The Feeling Grows

R.E.M. performing a cover of The Troggs' classic Love Is All Around at Rockline Studios in Los Angeles, California on Monday 1st April 1991, as part of the promo tour for the Out Of Time album.

This version appeared on the B-side of Radio Song, released as a single on Monday 4th November 1991.

On Thursday 15th May 2025, a special posting for a very special person.

This one's for you, Mrs. K

Wednesday, 14 May 2025

Unwind Yourself From All You Know

Tune-Yards aka Merrill Garbus and Nate Brenner have collaborated with Ah-Mer-Ah-Su aka Star Amerasu on new single How Big Is Your Rainbow.

Best song I've heard all day.

And I've only been awake for 45 minutes.

On YouTube, @thecosmicblueautie has described the song as "a lot like getting a warm hug when you just feel like going Tasmanian devil on the entire universe.".

I couldn't put it better myself.

How Big Is The Rainbow features on upcoming Tune-Yards album Better Dreaming, available to pre-order from all the usual places

More goodies can be found at the respective Bandcamp sites for Tune-Yards and Ah-Mer-Ah-Su.

Run, don't walk!

Tuesday, 13 May 2025

As In Boom Not Bum

Today's selection heads over to Iceland and múm, performing at KEXP's Iceland Airwaves festival at the KEX hostel in Reykjavík, 2nd November 2013.


Five musicians and four songs in just under twenty two minutes, with multiple instrument swaps and oodles of musical talent. 

A Little Bit, Sometimes 0:00
The Colorful Stabwound 6:00
Toothwheels 10:05
One Smile 16:24

The opening song is from 2007 album Go Go Smear The Poison Ivy. The other three are from 2013's Smilewound which is múm's last studio album to date. The digital version of the latter is available on Bandcamp and includes an unlikely bonus track, a song the group recorded with Kylie Minogue. Yes, really.

Monday, 12 May 2025

Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh!

We Have Band first performed live circa April 2008 and played their final gig in August 2015 and in-between created some infectiously funky electronic music.

We Have Band were Darren Bancroft, Dede Wegg-Prosser and Thomas Wegg-Prosser, the latter two married, all three former colleagues at EMI, who met and formed a band. 

Oh! was their debut single in November 2008, re-released in June 2010. I latched onto the former via RCRD LBL and a clutch of remixes by Andrew 'Friendly Fires', Micachu aka Mica Levi) and Yo! Majesty aka Lashunda Flowers and Windy Baynham.

None of them featured here, though I have tracked down the two official videos and live performances from 2009, 2011 and 2015, the latter 55 days before their final gig. I've also included three of the remixes from the 2010 re-release, by Bit Funk, Vicarious Bliss and Filthy Dukes.

1) Oh! (2010 Video Version, directed by Blake Claridge)
2) Oh! (2008 Video Version, directed by Tom Ellis)
3) Oh! (Live @ Mohawk Inside Stage, Austin, Texas, USA, 20th March 2009)
4) Oh! (Live @ MELT Festival, Ferropolis Open Air Museum, Gräfenhainichen, Germany, 15th July 2011)
5) Oh! (Live @ The Lexington, London, 9th June 2015)
6) Oh! (Bit Funk Remix By Stephen J. Paul)
7) Oh! (Vicarious Bliss Love Dove Remix By Andy Gardiner)
8) Oh! (Filthy Dukes Remix By Olly Dixon & Timothy Lawton)

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Sunday, 11 May 2025

Doused In Dopamine

Another round up of 2025 highlights so far, this time focusing on the electronic end of the musical spectrum.

I posted my first review in March and only one of the ten artists featured then reappears in today's selection. No surprise to find that it's 10:40 aka Jesse Fahnestock, with the flip side of his excellent Powder Wax Vol. 2 EP. 

A few surprises: it was a delight to discover that Montjuïc are James Hackett and Ian Carmichael, old buddies from The Orchids, the latter also delivering era-defining music with One Dove. 

Not only that, but the remix is by Cold War Cowboys, who happen to be Martin Watkins, long-time Marc Almond collaborator, and Phil Bloomberg, bass player with The Polecats.

But I've saved the best 'til last, with a beautiful dub-infused remix by Matias Aguayo of Lucrecia Dalt's Cosa Rara, with a spoken word vocal from none other than David Sylvian, who also co-wrote, played guitar and produced the song. A real "how did she do that?!" moment.

1) Dagger (Radio Edit By Charlotte Caluwaerts & Reinhard Vanbergen): Charlotte & Reinhard (Dagger EP)
2) Falling (What Time Is Love?) (Tronik Youth Remix By Neil Parnell): Blavatsky & Tolley ft. Gene Serene (Falling (What Time Is Love?) EP)
3) Field Of Dreams (Hardway Bros Cosmic Interpolation Mix By Sean Johnston): Hugo Nicolson (Field Of Dreams EP)
4) The Third Wave: Matt Gunn (Nowhere EP)
5) We're All Gonna Hurt (Extended Vocal): Le Carousel ft. Jolene O’Hara & Jess Brien (We're All Gonna Hurt EP)
6) Let's Change (Cold War Cowboys Remix By Martin Watkins & Phil Bloomberg): Montjuïc (Let's Change EP)
7) Miracle Me: 10:40 (Powder Wax Vol. 2 EP)
8) Popolina 90: Follytechnic Music Library vs. Pop Will Eat Itself (FML25 Baggy Ravers 3)
9) Like Fire (A Space Age Freak Out Remix By John Paynter & Ben Lewis): Airsine (Like Fire EP)
10) Cosa Rara (Matias Aguayo's Dopamine Dub): Lucrecia Dalt ft. David Sylvian (Cosa Rara EP)

Doused In Dopamine (1:00:09) (KF) (Mega)

You can find my previous 2025 selection, It's A Glamorous World, right here.

Saturday, 10 May 2025

Explode Into Your Life Like A Tissue In A Washing Machine

2025 has been a good (albeit expensive) year so far, with some quality album releases before we're even halfway through.

I've compiled a 45-minute selection of a dozen artists that have been floating my boat. 

Enjoy!

Then buy!

1) The Swimmer: The Cowboy Mouth (Faultlines)
2) It Takes A Whole Lot Of Soul To Fill A Cup: Davey Woodward (Mumbo In The Jumbo)
3) All The Smartest People: Louise Connell (Clients Of Suddenness)
4) Music Concrete: Andy Bell (Pinball Wanderer)
5) The Mountains Are My Home: Edwyn Collins (Nation Shall Speak Unto Nation)
6) Another Fucked Up Druggy On The Scene: Gareth Sager (Play Yr Heart Out / Oh No, No Plan B)
7) My Devotion: Sparks (MAD!)
8) Sad Chord: Ellen Beth Abdi (Ellen Beth Abdi)
9) The Same Thing As Nothing At All: Destroyer (Dan's Boogie)
10) Good On The Inside: Mumble Tide (Might As Well Play Another One)
11) Dear Stephen: Manic Street Preachers (Critical Thinking)
12) Cinema Of Broken Dreams: Armory Show (Dead Souls)

Explode Into Your Life Like A Tissue In A Washing Machine (45:58) (KF) (Mega)

Friday, 9 May 2025

How Can It Be Remixed?

45 minutes of glacial Norwegian pop, courtesy of a-ha.

Most of these are 12" extended versions from the 1980s, including a couple that remained unreleased until 2016. I've also opted for one contemporary 21st century remix, plus revamps of their two biggest songs from the same decade.

Mark Vidler aka Go Home Productions is perhaps best known as a master of the mash-up, but also turned his hand to some (unofficial) remixes. The Sun Always Shines On T.V. appeared on a GHP compilation in 2007 but dates from 2-3 years previously.

The Twelves are a pair of Brazilian boys, clearly inspired by the likes of Daft Punk and Justice, who released music on the trendy Kitsune label and did tons of remixes for the hip and beautiful likes of New Young Pony Club, Black Kids, La Roux, Groove Armada and Fever Ray. Their remix of Take On Me appeared on a Chevrolet (Brazil)-commissioned promo for the Vectra GT sports car. 

Of the rest, you get Morten Harket's vocals on full display, be it for ballads, club tracks or rockier numbers (or at least, Norway's singular take on the genre). I wouldn't call myself a huge fan of a-ha, then or now, but they knew how to write and play songs laden with hooks, for sure.

Happy Friday, everyone!

1) The Sun Always Shines On T.V. (Go Home Productions Remix By Mark Vidler) (2007)
2) You Are The One (Dub Mix Edit By Justin Strauss & Daniel Abraham) (1988)
3) Cry Wolf (Extended Version By Magne Furuholmen, Paul Waaktaar & Gerry Kitchingham) (1986)
4) Stay On These Roads (Extended Remix By Alan Tarney & John Hudson) (1988)
5) I've Been Losing You (Extended Mix By John 'Jellybean' Benitez) (1986)
6) Summer Moved On (Remix By C.L.A.S.S. Production aka Andreas Herbig) (2000)
7) Touchy! (House Mix By Paul Simpson) (1988)
8) Take On Me (The Twelves Remix By João Amaral & Luciano Oliveira) (2009)

1986: Cry Wolf EP: 3
1986: I've Been Losing You EP: 5
1988: Stay On These Roads EP: 4
2000: Summer Moved On EP: 6
2007: GHP Unofficial Remixes 2: 1
2009: Vectra GT Remix EP (promo CD single): 8
2016: Time And Again: The Ultimate a-ha (2x CD): 2, 7

How Can It Be Remixed? (45:39) (KF) (Mega)

Thursday, 8 May 2025

An End To All Resistance

I stumbled across a clip of The Human League performing Do Or Die on TV in 1982 and the next thing you know....

1) Do Or Die (O.T.T., UK TV) (1982)
2) Path Of Least Resistance (Mainstream, UK TV) (1979)
3) Empire State Human (Mainstream, UK TV) (1979)
4) Open Your Heart (Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, UK TV) (1981)
5) Love Action (I Believe In Love) (Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, UK TV) (1981)
6) The Lebanon (Countdown, UK TV) (1984)

Philip Oakey, Susanne Sulley and Joanne Catherall looking super cool throughout, with perhaps the exception of The Lebanon, where Phil looks like he's just returned from a Bryan Adams gig...

Two former League members have a birthday in May, so belated best wishes to Jo Callis (2nd) and upcoming congrats to Martyn Ware (19th). Hmmm, I might have to come back to the latter in a week or so...

 
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, 7 May 2025

Cut The Crap And Set I Free

The return of an anarcho punk outfit formed in 1980, with their first studio album in over two deacdes? 

A guest appearance from a much-missed revolutionary writer who passed away 18 months ago? 

A song seemingly named after the notorious final album by The Clash?

That'll be Conflict featuring Benjamin Zephaniah with Cut The Crap, then.

I have to admit that it was the second one that piqued my curiosity and hooked me in, but I'm glad it did.

Cut The Crap is a song of two halves: the first comes in with a clash of percussion, frenetic bass then full on aural pummel as vocalist Fiona Friel switches between shouting and spoken word vocals.

I am history!
My history, your history, our history.
It's not just black and white,
It's shared,
It's in us every day,
Bound by the chains of our mutual DNA.

We are all commodities, 
Yes, that is true.
But have you ever been bought and sold like cattle,
Treated like a chattel?
No, I didn't think so.

And for all the libraries and schools they built,
We'll never admonish them of their guilt,
Full of books filled with big white lies.
This is our history!

And then at 1:25, as Fiona is questioning herself ("But what do I know? Who am I to say?"), Benjamin appears on screen. the song's tempo changes down a gear and the notes of a melodica creep in. Fiona introduces the song's special guest

Listen to one who has felt your ignorance
A gentleman, a scholar, a poet

The song's second half then shifts into full on skank, as Benjamin delivers a monologue that gives the song (and this post) its title. 

I have not drunk your wine,
That blood you shed is mine,
Your paper I won't sign,
Cut the crap and set I free.

You offer me a share,
You're acting like you care,
But how did I get here?
Can we check the history.
You want me to look like you?
It's a fear you're going through,
What you offer me won't do.
Cut the crap and set I free.

All in all, an unexpected find but a great song that delivers on many levels. Possibly not enough of an enticement to purchase the full album, This Much Remains. That said, I am intrigued by the boxset limited edition of 300.

For a cool seventy notes, you get the album on vinyl (white), CD & cassette. In addition, there's a sticker, patch, tote bag, signed print, signed lyric sheet, A3 poster and badge set. 

Best of all though is the "Bottle of Conflict vegan chilli sauce". Not something you're going to find on the shelf at your local supermarket...but wouldn't it be great if you did?!

Tuesday, 6 May 2025

You're Welcome Here

A dip into my shopping bag from last week's Bandcamp Friday bonanza, a mix of new releases and 'catch up' purchases.

Heavy Heavy was the first album by Young Fathers that I bought, and I really liked it. I also got to see them perform live (kind of) when they joined Massive Attack on stage for three songs at last year's ACT 1.5 concert in Bristol.

Second album White Men Are Black Men Too has been made available as Name Your Price, so it was straight in the bag on Friday. Get Started is the closing song.

Nation Shall Speak Unto Nation, the 10th album - and first in six years - by Edwyn Collins, was out in March. I enjoyed the singles that preceded it, but this is also a primer for seeing Edwyn live in concert for the first - and last - time in September.

The Bridge Hotel appears two thirds of the way through, a wonderful paean to the real-life guest house in Helmsdale.

For one day only, most of Ibibio Sound Machine's digital catalogue was available as Name Your Price, which was an opportunity for me to plug the gaps in my collection, including the second studio album, Uyai.

I previously had the excellent Richard Norris remixes of side one closer Joy (Idaresit), and the album version is a welcome addition to my collection.

I've been a fan of Los Angeles-based Black Market, with their dub reimagining of iconic artists and music. In my bag this time were EPs by The Clash and Talking Heads and, going back to my entry point, the Thin White Dub EP. 

Posing the question, "What if David Bowie spent the summer of 1975 in Kingston, Jamaica with King Tubby instead of Philadelphia?", the EP recreates four songs: Young Americans, Modern Love, Station To Station and TVC15. 

The attention to detail is impeccable and the dub-infused versions are completely believable.

Another delightful discovery, also hailing from Scotland and released in March, is Things Found In Books by Yvonne Lyon and Boo Hewerdine

I'll admit that I was very familiar with Boo, having been a fan of his music since first hearing Graceland and Mahalia by The Bible nearly 40 years ago, but I knew next to nothing about Yvonne. 

It's a brisk album - 15 songs in 36 minutes - but does exactly what it set out to do. Vocally, Yvonne and Boo are a great pairing, with delicate acoustic chords and wistful horn elements providing an effective backdrop to their vignettes of imagined lives.


Monday, 5 May 2025

Too Busy For The Laws Of The World

Following up yesterday's post with a recreation of American Music Club's gig at the University of Bristol on 21st October 1994.

I was a relative newcomer to the words and music of Mark Eitzel and American Music Club at this point, my entry point being the single Johnny Mathis' Feet and the parent album Mercury.

A couple of singles were released to promote seventh album San Francisco and a tour announced, and I was there like a shot. 

Memories of the gig itself are vague, even down to who I went there with. I think it must have been my college girlfriend, though the timing of the gig suggests that it was very close to the time that we broke up and I moved away from Bristol for a while. Either that, or I bought the tickets pre-split and had to find a last-minute gig buddy.

I'm pretty sure it was the former though, as my college ex was a fan of Strangelove, especially Patrick Duff, so for her this would have been the appeal of the gig over the headliners.

Sadly, not my first time seeing Strangelove - I would have seen them at least once at the Bristol Community Festival at Ashton Court - but I can't remember much, other than they were 'good'.

Likewise, memories of the AMC set are hazy, to say the least. There was a pre-gig moment where I spotted Mark with guitarist and long-time foil Vudi (aka Mark Pankler) in the foyer, but didn't dare speak to them.

On stage, I remember a tight and enjoyable set, with no sign of the growing tension within the band that would ultimately bring American Music Club to an end the following year. Nearly half the set was given over to San Francisco, opening with The Thorn In My Side Is Gone and including the two singles Can You Help Me and Wish The World Away.

The setlist for the Bristol show isn't available online, so I've plundered the one for the following night at The Forum in London for info. Fourteen songs, and surprisingly no sign of 'hit' single Johnny Mathis' Feet, although Mercury did get a couple of showings with If I Had A Hammer, the sublime I've Been A Mess and Apology For An Accident to close. 

At that time, I hadn't delved further back into the AMC back catalogue so the other familiar song was Western Sky, which I recall reading in Melody Maker was Mark's nod to Nick Drake and Northern Sky. The other songs from California and Everclear were first-time listens for me, though the recollection of the impact (immediate or prescient) of a song like Ex-Girlfriend is sadly lost in the mists of time. Oh, to have kept a diary at the time!

What I do recall though is that my love for the band and their frontperson grew on the back of this night, and remains strong to this day. I missed the opportunity to see American Music Club again when they reformed in the 21st Century, and last week's chance to see Mark perform solo only reinforced what an incredible songwriter he is. Screwed up and screwed down, capable of moments of visceral agony and heartbreak, and intense, technicolour beauty.

On paper, the recreated setlist looks fine at 14 songs though comes in at a smidge over 50 minutes, which is short for a headline show, so I'm guessing that either a song or two may be missing, the live versions of some songs were considerably extended and/or Mark entertained us with a lot of between song banter. If only I could remember!

As with yesterday's selection, what is apparent from hearing all of these songs in this particular sequence is that this is a cohesive collection of music. Three songs here reappeared in Mark's acoustic set thirty years later - Why Won't You Stay, Western Sky and I've Been A Mess - and I couldn't find contemporary alternative versions of any of these, so I have repeated the studio versions used yesterday.

1) The Thorn In My Side Is Gone (Alternative Version) (1994)
2) Ex-Girlfriend (1991)
3) Firefly (1988)
4) Hello Amsterdam (Album Version) (1994)
5) I Broke My Promise (1994)
6) Why Won't You Stay (Album Version) (1991)
7) The Revolving Door (Original Band Demo) (1994)
8) If I Had A Hammer (Album Version) (1993)
9) Western Sky (1988)
10) I've Been A Mess (1993)
11) Can You Help Me (1994)
12) Wish The World Away (Original Band Demo) (1994)
13) The Dead Part Of You (1991)
14) Apology For An Accident (Home Demo) (1993)

1988: California: 3, 9
1991: Everclear: 2, 6, 13
1993: Johnny Mathis' Feet EP: 14
1993: Mercury: 8, 10
1994: Can You Help Me EP: 1
1994: San Francisco: 4, 5, 11
1994: Wish The World Away EP: 7, 12

Too Busy For The Laws Of The World (50:43) (KF) (Mega)

In doing some of the background research for the last two posts, I visited the excellent music blog Nothing's Going To Happen, a real kindred spirit albeit active a long longer than this here blog. 

In January 2021, American Music Club were in the spotlight with a bespoke 20-track selection titled Shades Of Weariness 1985-2008. If you enjoyed the above, then you will love this and, good news, FLAC and MP3 links are still active.

A word of warning though, take a packed lunch and drink with you. Once you start exploring the other posts on Nothing's Going To Happen, you'll be there for hours!

Sunday, 4 May 2025

Party With Ghosts

On Tuesday 22nd April, I saw Mark Eitzel "Performing American Music Club & Solo Songs - Acoustic".

It was a trip back in time for a couple of reasons. I've been fortunate enough to see American Music Club live before, though just once and it was way back in October 1994, touring the San Francisco album. The band split following year, although they reformed for a successful (critically, at least) second act between 2003 and 2010.

I'm a huge American Music Club fan and have all of the studio albums, but my engagement with Mark's solo material has been much more sporadic, with just a handful of the 15 or so albums that he's released to date. So, part of the appeal was knowing that much of this acoustic set was likely to be unfamiliar to me.

The other nostalgia trip was the venue, the Hen & Chicken pub in Bristol, just south of the city centre and river. For many years, I lived a few minutes' walk away, and it was my local. Mrs. K and I spent many nights at the Comedy Box upstairs, seeing the likes of Dara Ó Briain, Mark Thomas, Lee Mack, Dylan Moran, Tommy Tiernan, Ed Byrne, Richard Herring, Marcus Brigstocke and an up-and-coming comedian called Alan Carr (whatever happened to him?) There was a lovely working club vibe, and it was a great showcase for pre-tour works in progress or Edinburgh Festival warm ups.

Back then, the Hen & Chicken was a real spit-and-sawdust pub, but the gentrification that was creeping in to the high street and surrounding area had fully taken hold by the time we moved away. These days, the Hen & Chicken is a much slicker affair, catering more for the younger, more bohemian locals than being just another stop on the pub crawl to/from the Bristol City football ground up the road.

Bristol was the 17th show of a 25-date tour of Europe and the UK. The venue was an unusual choice, given it's somewhat out-of-town location. I'd never seen live music at the Hen & Chicken and it was well over a decade and a half since I'd been there, full stop.

I needn't have worried. Whilst the downstairs pub has evolved to reflect it's surrounding environment, the upstairs studio seemed to have resisted the passage of time, looking pretty much as it did when I last crossed the threshold with Mrs. K in the 2000s.

Whereas the comedy nights were set up 'cabaret style' with tables and chairs, the layout for Mark Eitzel's show was 'theatre style' and I grabbed a second row seat. The seats in front were unoccupied but someone had already placed coats across them for their yet-to-arrive mates. Even at full capacity, the crowd would be less than two hundred deep.

Mark came on stage just before 8.30pm and played music for approx. 75 minutes. Fifteen songs, two of them encores, with some beautifully dry between song banter and occasional anecdotes. There was a good spread of songs, covering three decades from American Music Club's second album Engine to Mark's 2017 album, Hey Mr. Ferryman. And, as predicted, I was familiar with about a third of them.

Mark also played four as-yet unreleased songs and apologised for playing so much new stuff, though I wasn't complaining, though the beauty was how coherent the whole sequence of songs was. Going from 1996's solo Misson Rock Resort to new song Fall From The Sky to Why Won't You Stay from American Music Club's 1991 album Everclear was seamless, Mark's unfussy acoustic arrangements making each song sound like they had been written yesterday.

He was in good voice, too. One of the things that always attracted me to Mark and American Music Club was his voice, sounding brittle yet soft, emotive yet always with a threat of a bum note. There were real shiver down the spine moments, not least with Will You Find Me, one of my favourite songs on 1993's almost-breakthrough album Mercury.

And then, after a shuffle off stage and return for an encore performance of Outside This Bar and Last Harbor, that was it. As I was making way out,  I saw Mark re-emerge and stop to talk with a couple of the appreciative crowd. Although it wasn't even 10pm at that point, being a weekday I had to get home, it was a fair drive back and I had an early start the following day, so I continued on my way out. 

Besides, I have form in clamming up or worse, saying really dumb things, in the presence of musicians. I bottled it in 1994 too, when I spotted and Mark and Vudi chatting in the foyer ahead of the American Music Club concert, so the slight pang thirty years later was a familiar but fleeting feeling.

Outside, the pre-show cheery sunset had been replaced by a night-time downpour. And me with no coat! I'd parked the car opposite the former Casa K, and I was soaked by the time I got back to it. Driving home on the motorway, rain hammering the windscreen, roadworks up ahead, clothes still damp, Mark Eitzel's music playing loud on the stereo, everything that was wrong seemed so, so right.

A wonderful night.

1) Sleep: Mark Eitzel (2001)
2) Enomie (Live @ Dorado, Torino, Italy): Mark Eitzel (2025)
3) God's Lonely Dog (Live @ Dorado, Torino, Italy): Mark Eitzel (2025)
4) Rode All That Way (Live @ Copenhagen Hotel Cecil, Denmark): Mark Eitzel (2025)
5) Nothing And Everything: Mark Eitzel (2017)
6) Will You Find Me (Ahuja Mix): American Music Club (1993)
7) An Answer (Alternative Mix): Mark Eitzel (2017)
8) Misson Rock Resort: Mark Eitzel (1996)
9) Fall From The Sky (Live @ Dorado, Torino, Italy): Mark Eitzel (2025)
10) Why Won't You Stay (Album Version): American Music Club (1991)
11) I've Been A Mess: American Music Club (1993)
12) I Love You But You're Dead: Mark Eitzel (2012)
13) Western Sky: American Music Club (1988)
14) Outside This Bar (Album Version): American Music Club (1987)
15) Last Harbor: Mark Eitzel (2003)

1987: Engine: 14
1988: California: 13
1991: Everclear: 10
1993: Johnny Mathis' Feet EP: 6
1993: Mercury: 11
1996: 60 Watt Silver Lining: 8
2001: The Invisible Man: 1
2003: The Ugly American: 14
2012: Don't Be A Stranger: 12
2017: Hey Mr Ferryman: 5
2017: Hey Mr Ferryman (limited edition vinyl + bonus CD): 7
2025: Live @ Copenhagen Hotel Cecil, Denmark, 2025 (bootleg MP3): 4
2025: Live @ Dorado, Torino 2025 (bootleg MP3): 2, 3, 9

Party With Ghosts (1:02:07) (KF) (Mega)

A note on today's Dubhed selection: 

Given that the set included several songs that haven't yet appeared on studio albums, some online research was required to obtain song titles and live recordings that I could potentially use.

Three of the songs are lifted from Mark's show at Dorado in Torino, Italy on 7th April 2025. This was the only version of the second song, Enomie, that I could find full stop. It includes Mark having to pause and leave the stage temporarily following a coughing fit, which personally I think adds not detracts from the performance. 

No such incidents at the Hen & Chicken, although Mark did have to ask his manager to bring him a bottle of water. I bet this never happens to Ed Sheeran.

Rode All That Way was taken from Mark's set at the Copenhagen Hotel Cecil in (you guessed it) Copenhagen, Denmark on 13th April 2025. There were other versions online, including the Torino gig, but this was the best version overall.