"That's Where We All Kind Of Synch Up"

Forty-odd minutes in the company of Kokoroko, preferably with headphones, refreshments, headphones, your favourite chair and a square of space to get up and get in the groove, should the fancy take you....

...I will be doing my best to imagine this, as I jump in the car for another cross-county commute on a dull, rainy Tuesday (it is still summer, isn't it?!), but Kokoroko will get me there.

Today's selection includes the second and latest single from album #2, Tuff Times Never Last, which came out a couple of weeks ago. This is followed by Three Piece Suit from the same album and originally released on the Get The Message EP last November. 

These Good Times appeared on Kokoroko's first album, Could We Be More, in August 2022, whilst Abusey Junction closed out their debut self-titled EP in March 2019.

Finally, a live session for KEXP, recorded 23rd October 2024, featuring four songs from the previous three releases.

All good stuff.

1) Da Du Dah (2025)

2) Three Piece Suit (ft. Azekel) (2024)

3) Those Good Times (2022)

4) Abusey Junction (2019)

5) Live @ KEXP (2024)

             i) Higher

             ii) My Prayer

             iii) Tojo

             iv) Ti-de

 

Somebody's Begging For Moves

Water From Your Eyes were put on my radar by SWC over at No Badger Required. And SWC's recommendations are always spot on.

Water From Your Eyes' latest single and video, Playing Classics, crams about twenty different songs into just under six minutes, and they're all brilliant. 

Rachel Brown urges the listener to shake in complete deadpan throughout the song, but it's hardly needed, as the Italo piano, squalling indie guitar (replete with bum notes) and persistent beats will get you there of your own accord.

What else? Skateboarding, a cuddly toy, lots of running around, Nate Amos skipping with a sparkler, retro Tiny Planet video effects.  What else do you need?   

There's an album, It's A Beautiful Place, available for pre-order now and an extensive tour in the autumn. Of only 5 dates in the UK, one is in Bristol but very close to a significant Clan K birthday. Someone's going to be disappointed.

Birthday Boys & Girl

Birthday Boys & Girl Wandering around Gloucester last month, seeking inspiration for John Medd's photo challenge, in a side street I came across an unexpected tribute to Chris Cornell.

Chris tragically lost his life to suicide in 2017, and I guess this street art was a heartfelt if slightly hidden acknowledgement of the Chris' work with Soundgarden, Audioslave, and as a solo artist.

The photo has been sitting there patiently, waiting for it's moment. I then discovered that it would have been Chris' 61st birthday on 20th July.

I'll be straight with you: I would struggle to create a Dubhed selection tribute to Chris Cornell: I have the sum total of three songs that he's performed on, all with Soundgarden: one Beatles cover and one 2-track CD single which I only bought because there was a Moby remix on it.

But then I had a look online and realised that there are loads of musicians all sharing a birthday on 20th July. Plenty in fact to create an eclectic (though heavy on the 1980s) Dubhed selection to bring some sunshine to your Sunday.

As the idea started with Chris Cornell, it's only right that he gets to kick off proceedings. Blow Up The Outside World appeared on 1996 album Down On The Upside, and was also released a single, remaining my sole Soundgarden purchase to date.

Kim Carnes (80 today) is perhaps (in)famous for two things: 

(1) Bette Davis Eyes, her global smash single in 1981;

(2) a voice that had Bonnie Tyler reaching to offer her packet of sore throat lozenges.

An acquired taste perhaps, but Kim was an accomplished singer/songwriter through the 1970s. Today's pick was the opening song on eighth album Café Racers. I haven't seen the video but it apparently features Ian McShane. He's got some CV, hasn't he?!

Carlos Santana (78) has recorded a gazillion albums (at least) and collaborated with at least as many artists in a long and illustrious career. All of which is poorly represented in my music collection. I have ten times more songs by Jesus Jones than Santana, for pity's sake. As such, I've had to resort to a 21st century re-rub of classic song Black Magic Woman by Mojo Filter, although I have to say that I like it very much.

I had it on good authority (well, This Day In Music) that it was Jem Finer's 70th birthday today. On checking Discogs and Iffpedia for my half-baked research, it appears that it's not until Friday (25th). As I'd already recorded and uploaded today's selection when I discovered this, I've decided that it's perfectly fine to celebrate early in Jem's case. After all, any day is a good day to listen to The Pogues...

The same could be said of JoBoxers, though sadly fewer people saying it. Still, cause for celebration today as it's singer Dig Wayne (Timothy Wayne Ball to his mum) who is marking 63 orbits of the sun. Well, if t'internet can be trusted, that is. Boxer Beat was a Top 3 UK hit in 1983, but I was also a big fan of follow up, Just Got Lucky. Ironically, I found out that I won a Lucky Dip in Saturday's Lotto. I'm listening to How To Be A Millionaire by ABC next weekend.

These days, Jim Irvin's name pops up in the pages of Mojo magazine and in songwriting credits for artists ranging from Unloved to Yungblud. In July 1986, Jim was front person with Furniture, singing Brilliant Mind on kids' TV show Razzmatazz. They had some great songs, including Love Your Shoes, presented here in it's expanded 12" single glory. Jim is 66 today... I think (that Jem Finer birth date stitch up has scarred me).

The Seatlle Grunge Scene in the 1990s shone a spotlight on Soundgarden. And Pearl Jam. I'm not a fan, though I seem to have a surprising number of odds and sods on the hard drive. It turns out that Chris Cornell is not the only Grunge guru to have a birthday on 20th July; it's also guitarist Stone Gossard's 59th. Thankfully for him - and therefore us - he's recorded music with Ani DeFranco, including the rather good single, Disorders, in 2022.

There's always a good reason to feature Talk Talk on this blog, and today's reason is that it's drummer Lee Harris' 63rd birthday. Last year, Lee lent his percussion and production skills to Beth Gibbons' superb album, Lives Outgrown, having previously worked with her on his .O.Rang project with Paul Webb. Today's pick is an obscure Talk Talk B-side, though typically one of their best songs.

Michael MacNeil (67 today) was keyboard player with Simple Minds from 1978 to 1990 co-writing many of the songs that propelled the band into global success and the "big music". So, I've unintentionally picked a song from 1979 album Life In A Day, which he didn't have a hand in writing. But his playing is a standout.

By adding Juke Box Jive to my collection especially so that I could include it in this selection, I've increased the number of songs by The Rubettes by a whopping 100%. I think you can guess what the other one is. Singer and guitarist Tony Thorpe is 78 today.

Bringing this birthday bash to a close is John Lodge, celebrating 80 years, many of them with The Moody Blues. I've opted for one of his solo outings, from his 1977 album Natural Avenue. Despite having the same title as the Isley Brothers' 1974 hit, Summer Breeze failed to replicate their success for John when it was released as a single. The UK public were more interested in Donna Summer, Hot Chocolate and Boney M...

So, eleven artists, one sadly no longer with us, ten with plenty of cause for celebration.

Here's to you (deep breath), Chris, Kim, Carlos, Jem (for Friday), Dig, Jim, Stone, Lee, Michael, Tony and John!

1) Blow Up The Outside World (Album Version): Soundgarden (1996)

2) You Make My Heart Beat Faster (And That's All That Matters) (Dance Mix By Rusty Garner): Kim Carnes (1983)

3) Black Magic Woman (Mojo Filter Smoke & Mirrors Remix By Ben Zaven Crane): Santana (2015)

4) Streams Of Whiskey (Album Version By Stan Brennan): The Pogues (1984)

5) Just Got Lucky (12" Version By Alan Shacklock): JoBoxers (1983)

6) Love Your Shoes (Expanded Mix By Mick Glossop): Furniture (1986)

7) Disorders (Single Version): Stone Gossard & Ani DiFranco (2022)

8) Pictures Of Bernadette (7" Version By Tim Friese-Greene): Talk Talk (1986)

9) All For You: Simple Minds (1979)

10) Juke Box Jive (Album Version By Wayne Bickerton): The Rubettes (1974)

11) Summer Breeze (Album Version By Tony Clarke): John Lodge (1977)

1974: We Can Do It: 10

1977: Natural Avenue: 11

1979: Life In A Day: 9

1983: Just Got Lucky EP: 5

1983: You Make My Heart Beat Faster (And That's All That Matters) EP: 2

1984: Red Roses For Me: 4

1986: Give It Up EP: 8

1986: Love Your Shoes EP: 6

1996: Down On The Upside: 1

2015: AOR Disco Vintage Edits Vol. 4: 3

2022: Disorders EP: 7

Birthday Boys & Girl (53:06) (GD) (M)

Take Good Care Of It Babe

On Saturday 18th July 1998, I saw Spiritualized play the headline slot at the annual Ashton Court Festival, or Bristol Community Festival to give it's proper name.

When I say 'saw', what I really mean is that I was there in body, but not mind, and I barely remember a thing about it. 

That was pretty much par for the course: there was the epic walk to get to Ashton Court in the first place; typically, this would be up Park Street, left at Durdham Downs and over the Suspension Bridge, having made several stops beforehand, for refreshment, supplies and generally meeting and picking up friends along the way.

This year was different, for a couple of reasons. By 1998, I'd moved across the river into south Bristol, so this would have been the first or second year that I walked to Ashton Court via Bristol City Football Club's home ground, and into the estate from 'the bottom' end, past the deer enclosure and the mansion itself. Whichever way you approached, once you got in, it was still a bloody long walk to the festival site.

This year was also different in that I was in a steady if not always stable relationship with the jangly music-loving girlfriend that I've mentioned a few times previously. So, we would have gone together, most likely meeting others once we got there, rather than en route.

This year was also different in that the substance of choice in 1998 would most likely have been red wine. Lots of it. And, being mindful of the practicalities of lugging stuff around Ashton Court, then it will almost certainly have been one or two of those boxes with tap, so we're talking between 3 and 4 litres of supermarket finest rioja. I may even have extracted the interior bags from the cardboard boxes, to lighten the load. Yep, I was the definition of classy, then as now.

I don't drink wine these days, but I was a lightweight back then, a couple of glasses usually sufficient to make me a bit squiffy. It would take no great leap of the imagination to assert that, a litre or more in with little more than an overpriced portion of chips or noodles from a food stall to soak up the alcohol, plus baking sun with little in the way of shade, and I was 100% off my shed by the time Spiritualized took to the stage.

I wondered if anyone else who was there and compos mentis had written about their experience of the Spiritualized gig and had a trawl online. I found two opposing views, which kind of sums up how Spiritualized's music generally split opinion with my friends. You either love 'em or hate 'em, it seems. 

In a 2006 thread, JTG commented that they "saw them headline Ashton Court same year as Portishead - 1998 I think. Possibly the worst spent two hours of my life, it was fucking appalling."

Sunpots was quick to reply, "Yep, it was the same year. The only bad part about it was that my girlfriend's sister insisted we had to leave halfway through Spiritualized's set. I kick myself to this day that I didn't tell her to hang on for another half hour. I was not happy."

I guess I fell somewhere between the two. I was there, but not there. I didn't leave halfway through the set, but I have very little recollection of what the hell was going on. Even looking at the setlist online didn't provide the usual memory jog. 

A pretty good set, as far as the song choices are concerned. Unsurpisingly, a fair few from still-current album, Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, one from their 1992 debut, a suitably gospel-fuelled cover version, and one of Jason's songs from his previous life with Spacemen 3.

In recreating the setlist for today's selection, I've topped and tailed with live versions from the Royal Albert Hall album, from a gig in October 1997 and released a year later, months after the Ashton Court Festival. 

Closer Cop Shoot Cop is not the only sixteen-and-a-half minute epic, as I've also spliced together parts 1 and 2 of Electric Mainline from the CD single to make a single piece of roughly the same length.

By contrast, the singles - Electricity, Come Together and I Think I'm In Love - are positively brisk, all coming in at four minutes or less.

I toyed with the idea of including the original version of Lord Can You Hear Me (with question mark) by Spacemen 3 from 1989. After all, Jason Pierce wrote and sang it, so it would fit in. However, I went for the Spiritualized recording in the end, which appeared a few years later on Let It Come Down.

And, ot mash up JTG and Sunspots' comments above, if I'd not been nursing the mother of all hangovers on Sunday 19th July, and we had made to the final day of the festival, we would have seen Portishead headline. I kick myself to this day.

1) Oh Happy Day (Live @ the Royal Albert Hall, London) (Cover of Edwin Hawkins' Singers) (1997)
2) Electric Mainline (Parts 1 & 2) (1993)
3) Electricity (Album Version) (1997)
4) Take Your Time (Album Version) (1992)
5) Lord Can You Hear Me (Cover of Spacemen 3) (2001)
6) Come Together (Single Version) (1998)
7) I Think I'm In Love (Radio Edit) (1998)
8) Cop Shoot Cop (Live @ the Royal Albert Hall, London) (1997)

1992: Lazer Guided Melodies: 4
1993: Electric Mainline EP: 2
1997: Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space: 3
1998: I Think I'm In Love EP: 7
1998: Royal Albert Hall October 10, 1997 Live: 1, 8
1998: The Abbey Road EP: 6
2001: Let It Come Down: 5

Take Good Care Of It Babe (1:01:21) (GD) (M)

Hobby Horse

Somone (probably John Medd) mentioned Fila Brazillia the other day. 

I don't often do requests, even implicit ones, but their name started bouncing around in my head until I succumbed to the urge to compile a Fila Brazillia selection, celebrating the great remixes that they've produced in the last 30 (!) years.

Fila Brazillia appeared to be rested in 2006, Dave McSherry and Steve Cobby following other pursuits not limited to making music. Except they never really went away, reactivating the FB name for a series of remixes in the 2020s, not least for shoegazers bdrmm, who also happen to be fellow citizens of Hull.

In a nod to the more recent past, I've included a track from Offshore Sunsets, the rather wonderful EP released last year by Steve Cobby & Third Attempt aka Torje Fagertun Spilde.

As I was in the midst of uploading this selection, and typing a dedication to the aforementioned Mr. Medd, I belatedly realised that I've done the very same thing in March 2023! 

Fortunately, I've only duplicated two of the eight songs on each selection, so I hope you will overlook this dereliction of due diligence on this occasion. 

Forty six minutes of phat beats and summer vibes, with a lil' bit of chill. Raising a glass to you, John! 

1) Forever Broke (Fila Brazillia Remix): The Seatbelts (1999)

2) Nepalese Fish Dances (Remix By Fila Brazillia): The Irresistible Force (1999)

3) Wild Party (Remix): Fila Brazillia vs. A Certain Ratio ft. Denise Johnson (2003)

4) The Sign's Alive (Fila Brazillia Dub Mix): Lypid (2000)

5) Be Careful (Fila Brazillia Remix): bdrmm (2023)

6) Golden Brown (Fila Brazillia Remix-Ambient) (Cover of The Stranglers): Better Daze (1997)

7) The Spy From Ankara (Fila Brazillia Remix): Snooze (1996)

8) Feeling Seen: Steve Cobby & Third Attempt (2024)

1996: The Man In The Shadow: 7

1997: Remix Project: 6

1999: Cowboy Bebop: Remixes: Music For Freelance: 1

1999: Fish Dances: 2

2000: The Sign's Alive EP: 4

2003: Fila Brazillia Versus A Certain Ratio EP: 3

2023: Be Careful EP: 5

2024: Offshore Sunsets EP: 8

Hobby Horse (46:24) (GD) (M)

You can find my previous Fila Brazillia selection, A Gazillion Brazillians, waiting for you here.

And whilst I'm name checking talented music makers, check this out.

Loveplaydarkminemammothonics

As an ignorant youth, I used to think that summer was a generally quiet period for singles, leaving space for the Ibiza (or Marbella) classics that holidaymakers brought home with them, along with a suitcase full of duty free and third degree sunburn.

Not so, especially in July 2025. The past 48 hours alone have seen a relentless surge of mail to Casa K, extolling the virtues of new music, here there and everywhere.

I've picked half a dozen which particularly grabbed my attention, mostly 'safe bets' I admit, but none the less enjoyable for all that. 

Wanna Play by Georgia is perhaps the closest of all to a banger, and I love it. The Charlatans and Jeff Tweedy have got me interested in their upcoming albums. 

Kim Deal doesn't have a new record out (at least I don't think she does), but this recent performance of Are You Mine is enough. I've never heard of Lydia Luce before now, though I will seek out more on the strength of Mammoth. 

And The Orb team up with rapper Rrome Alone, who has spent most of his adult life in prison and is currently on Death Row. Not one to celebrate, in that case, but I like the song.

1) We Are Love: The Charlatans

2) Wanna Play: Georgia

3) Out In The Dark: Jeff Tweedy

4) Are You Mine (Live @ Electric Lady Studios, Greenwich Village, New York, 5th March 2025): Kim Deal

5) Mammoth: Lydia Luce

6) Arabebonics: The Orb ft. Rrome Alone

 

 

 

 

Have A Good Time All The Time

Celebrating David Franklin Ewer aka Dave Kaffinetti aka David Kaff aka Viv Savage, 17th April 1946 to 11th July 2025.

Keyboard extraordinaire in bands since the late 1960s, his place in history was cemented with a star turn in This Is Spinal Tap in 1984. Although he left the band at the end of the year - literally and in character - and was not involved in any of the subsequent reunions (including the forthcoming sequel), David's performance was unforgettable.

Inevitably, I've included four songs from Spinal Tap, including a promo video for Hell Hole, which I'd never seen before writing this post. I've added a song each from David's pre- and post- Tap bands.

And, of course, I couldn't post a title like that without including Viv Savage's philosophy.

No time to rest in peace in that case., but thank you, David.

1) Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You (Film Intro): Spinal Tap (1984)

2) Hell Hole (Official Video): Spinal Tap (1984)

3) Heavy Duty (Film Version): Spinal Tap (1984)

4) Stonehenge (Film Version): Spinal Tap (1984)

5) As Your Mind Flies By: Rare Bird (1970)

6) Long Lost Love Affair: Fresh (1977)

7) Hold Me Close: The Linda Imperial Band (2012)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lindy Disco

It's Tuesday, it's mid-July and it's long past time for a spotlight on Lindy Morrison and Amanda Brown.

Obligingly, Lindy had a new single out earlier this month, which has been on rotation at Casa K, the latest from SnarskiCircusLindyBand, her current venture with Rob Snarski (The Blackeyed Susans), Shane O'Mara, Graham Lee and Dan Kelly.

After a couple of mini-albums, the first full-length record from SnarskiCircusLindyBand lands in late September. Ten songs, five brand new, five lifted from the mini-albums, What’s Said And What’s Left Unsaid is shaping up to be an impressive debut album.

I've included one song from each of the mini-albums, both of which will appear on What’s Said And What’s Left Unsaid, including My Sweetheart Always Comes Back, guest-starring Lindy's long-time rock 'n' roll friend and collaborator, Amanda Brown.

I've added a couple of blasts from Lindy and Amanda's past, too. Cleopatra Wong yielded a couple of EPs and a bright, shiny pop video in the early 1990s. And, inevitably, the band where I first encountered them both as musicians, The Go-Betweens. 

Whilst Lindy and Amanda have belatedly received some of the critical dues for their importance to the band, as someone who came in via the 1978-1990 compilation, and was fascinated by the band photos as well as the music, Lindy and Amanda were always an integral part of what made the band great for me. 

Both still smashing it in the here and now.

1) You're So Adorable: SnarskiCircusLindyBand ft. Lili Alaska (2025)

2) My Sweetheart Always Comes Back: SnarskiCircusLindyBand ft. Amanda Brown (2024)

3) Since I Slept With You Everybody Wants To Sleep With Me: SnarskiCircusLindyBand (2023)

4) Thank You: Cleopatra Wong (1992)

5) Streets Of Your Town: The Go-Betweens (1988)

 

 

 

 

What A Day To Be Belgian

 
I'm in danger of making Monday Big Special Day, but I couldn't resist sharing this.

If you were lucky enough to be at the Cactus Festival in Bruges on Saturday (12th), then you may also have been lucky enough to catch Big Special's set.

And if you were lucky enough to hang around to the end, you will have seen Rachel Goswell from Slowdive join them on set for a stirring version of new album closer, Thin Horses.

What a day to be Belgian.

Dancing Around To Your Favourite Song

Wednesday saw Mike and I rendezvous for a night in the company of Josh Rouse.

I got held up at work, so I headed straight to Stroud, tired, hot and bothered but looking forward to the show. Waiting outside the Subscription Rooms, I unexpectedly bumped into a couple of colleagues before Mike and his friend Duncan arrived.

After introductions and a short queue at the bar, we took our seats, prepared to be entertained. And entertained we most certainly were.

Support came from Jo Dudderidge, formerly with The Travelling Band, now recording solo as Later Youth. I'd heard of The Travelling Band, but not heard The Travelling Band, so I didn't know what to expect. 

Jo opened up on guitar and returned to it again during the 30-minute set, but mostly sat at a Wurlitzer electric piano, playing both with unassuming ease, letting his rich, warm voice float out above our heads and to the back of the theatre.

The set showcased songs from Living History, his debut album as Later Youth, and it was consistently great: Nuclear Love, Hotel Venezuela ("about a couple of lesbians who saved me from a broken heart") and On The Missing.

The album version featured Lissie, and Jo recounted a previous gig at the Sub Rooms as her support. 

"Were any of you of here for that one?" Jo asked the audience.

[silence]

"I thought there might have been one or two of you!"

No Lissie for the live performance, but Jo gave a good account of the song, the entire set to be honest, with endearing introductions and back stories in between. An ear-opening start to the evening.

Then, with a very short break, the stage was cleared and prepped and Josh Rouse arrived for the main event. Again, a stripped back affair, with Josh on acoustic guitar, and occasional harmonica and whistles.

The gig was promoted as "Josh Rouse Plays Nashville", held by many to be his finest album. Back in 2021, I posted a Dubhed selection, whilst freely admitting that I had a smattering of songs but didn't own a single Josh Rouse album. I concluded that "I really need to immerse myself in more of Josh Rouse's music."

I've done poorly in the intervening three and a half years, adding only a handful more offcuts and stray songs to my collection. So, apart from 4 or 5 songs, I sat in the audience, still largely ignorant of the Nashville album, advertised as the focus of the show.

As it turned out, Josh was playing whatever he wanted to play, and so four titles from Nashville (2005) appeared in a 19 or 20 song set. Thankfully, all ones I was familiar with, including the sublime Winter In The Hamptons.

Josh's previous album 1972 (2003) also got a fair shake, the evening opening with Sunshine (Come On Lady), and including Rise, Love Vibration and the title track.

The rest of the performance spanned Josh's debut album, Dressed Up Like Nebraska (1998) through to Going Places (2022). All mostly new to me, all delivered with a soaring grace that was served well by the sympathetic venue.

There were a few covers too. Three songs, Josh introduced "a song I wish I'd written", with an understated version of Ron Sexsmith's Lebanon, Tennessee. A member of the audience* captured the performance and you can find it here.

Later on, we were treated to a vibrant cover of Nick Lowe's Cruel To Be Kind, originally a 1978 B-side for Brinsley Schwarz, before Nick was convinced to re-record it as a solo single in 1979, when it became a global hit. Josh fondly recalled the song as one that meant a lot to him growing up. I'm a similar age to Josh - like many in the audience - and it received a warm reception from us all.

The third and final cover version brought the evening to a close, a beautiful take on Buddy Holly's 1957 smash, Everyday. A wonderful way to end a wonderful set.

After the show, I joined the queue at the merch stand and got to have a brief hello and chat with Josh. Every bit as affable off stage as on.

And I finally got my first Josh Rouse album, on glorious vinyl and signed by the great man himself. 

"They delivered a box full [of Nashville] to me today," Josh had told us earlier. "I'm hoping to sell a few at the end, as I don't fancy lugging them all back to the hotel after the show."

I was glad to help relief Josh's burden!

After such an enjoyable introduction to Later Youth, I also couldn't go home without a copy of Living History. On glorious cream vinyl, to boot. Again, a few words with Jo at the merch stand, and an equally lovely bloke to speak to.

The setlist for the Stroud show hasn't been posted online, but a glance at Josh's gigs either side in Hassocks and Gateshead will give you a pretty good idea, though the Buddy Holly cover appears to have been a one-off.

Given my still-limited collection of his music, today's selection instead features 10 songs from the Stroud show, in the order they were performed. As with my previous Josh Rouse selection in 2021, I've split this into two sides, to replicate the album listening experience. 

I've reactivated links to the 2021 selection, which includes songs such as Rise and Winter In The Hamptons, also performed on Wednesday.

Enjoy!

Side 1 

1) Sunshine (Come On Lady) (Live @ Exit/In, Nashville, Tennessee, 31 December 2003)

2) Henry Miller's Flat (Live @ The Library, The Moorestown Community House, 13 September 2024)

3) Dressed Up Like Nebraska (Live @ Today In Nashville, WSMV-TV) (2018)

4) It's The Nighttime (Album Version) (2013)

5) 1972 (Album Version) (2003)

Side 2

1) Quiet Town (Album Version) (2006)

2) Sad Eyes (Album Version) (2011)

3) Directions (Album Version) (2000)

4) Salton Sea (#OCBPaperSessions!) (2018)

5) Come Back (Light Therapy) (Album Version) (2003)

Side One (17:06) (GD) (M)

Side Two (19:05) (GD) (M)

You can find Tragic Endings (Side 1 & 2) from October 2021 here.

* Many thanks to Peter Dean for the cover photo and clip of Josh's cover of Ron Sexsmith. And thanks also to Mike, who provided the other pic of Josh on stage. Album photos are my own!

Saved By The Jezebell

Thanks to Jezebell, the perfect soundtrack to the summer - any summer - has arrived, with their new compilation, Jezebellearic Beats Volume 2.

Barely a year ago, on receiving the vinyl edition of Volume 1, I wrote that 

"Bearing in mind that Jesse Fahnestock and Darren Bell released Jezebell's debut single Thrill Me in 2021, issuing a 'greatest hits' in August 2023 and labelling it 'Volume 1' may have seemed rather ambitious, cocky even. 

 Yet, even with a digital edition packed with 20 tracks, the duo still had to leave out many mixes and versions that could easily have made the cut. It's really that good."

So, given that it's a mere 23 months since Volume 1 landed, have Jesse and Darren chanced their arm with another 20-track collection, with over two and a quarter hours of music?

Not a chance. These guys know what they are doing, and the confident curation of tracks captures the head spinning prolificacy of this dynamic duo.

If evidence is needed, look no further than the fact that a quarter of the collection comprises brand new and exclusive tracks, opening with Movimento Lento, closing with Turn It Yes, and sprinkling Japaneasy, Red Black & Green and Geo Metric in the mix. 

As ever, the pleasure of a Jezebell song is in repeated listening and whilst I've listened to Volume 2 a few times, I'm still nowhere near to unlocking the secrets of the new tracks, aside from Red Black & Green's pleasing hints of Zobi La Mouche by Les Negresses Vertes and the joyful voice of Yoko Ono in Turn It Yes.

What I will say is that the five new songs sit well with the previously released music, instantly recognisable as Jezebell, whilst continuing to push their sound forward, evolving into new shapes and forms. 

There are also a couple of exclusive 2025 reworkings. This can often mean either a deep love for a piece of music, or a nagging dissatisfaction leading to a pull to tweak or correct the original work. 

Jezebell originally remixed Submissive Background by Ian Vale in 2022 and I thought it was pretty damn good then. The '2025 Re-Remix' is essentially the same, but gives the music more muscle; the percussion positively booms from the speakers and the whole track sounds a little brighter, more confident of itself.

Dancing (Not Fighting) also appeated in 2022, a Jezebell EP built around a sample of Mick Jones from The Clash. The original came in four top notch mixes, In 2024 (to be precise, at 8:08 on 08/08), Jezebell released the 2-track 808 Day Exclusives EP, which included a remix of Dancing (Not Fighting). The 2025 remix appears to be a spruced up version of the latter, and is all the better for it. 

I've referred to my previous notes for some choice comments on other tracks and remixes. 

When I compiled a Jezebell selection, Clues To The Edit, last September, I referred to the 'Leave Your Lover' remix of Pandit Pam Pam's Pass A Wish "in sonic terms [as] equal parts chug and hug". Jezebell's 50 Ways Mix is cut from the same cloth, teasingly pleasing.

Two tracks from their Cream Tease EP have been included, which previously prompted me to comment that "You need more cheek than a Carry On film to name tracks Donkey and Hung, but they are bloody great" Yes. And then some!

I had a lot to say about the 2023's superb digital double pack EP Trading Places in 2023, not least for the '6PM' variation, including on the 'Daytime Versions' edition. Er, over to me.

"6PM is a revelation. After a punchy start, insistent beats, keyboard stabs and 1-2-3-4 sample, things really take an interesting turn at the 2:20 mark 

with Siouxsie Sioux's distinctive vocals kicking in. 

It's an inspired move and one which takes the music to another level. The longest track on both EPs at a smidge under seven and a half minutes, 

it feels like it could easily go on for twice as long."

Two years later and it's still a thrill to listen to.

Concurrence was an early release on When Disco Goes Wrong label in September 2021. In writing about the original version, I reflected that "To these ears, it's like hearing Sheila Chandra with John Bonham on drums and I can't get enough of it."

There were three additional remixes on the Concurrence EP, including one by Jesse with his 10:40 hat on, all excellent. In June 2022, an EP with four brand new remixes emerged, including the psychedelic epic included here by Akio Nagase.

Perfect Din was an exclusive for last year's Shelter Me: In Crisis compilation. Par for the course with Jezebell's music, Perefct Din "got me scratching my head trying to work out what samples [they'd] expertly woven into 408 seconds of groovy sounds." 

Sailing through the rest of Jezebellearic Beats Volume 2, there's the stunning 'Jezebellfast Remix' of Fitzroy Avenue by Warriors Of The Dystotheque featuring Joe Duggan, which wasn't short of a decent remix, but really, this pushed things right out there.

Likewise, Bibbles by Andres Y Xavi, which started off excellent in 2023 and somehow got even better when Jezebell got their hands on it - not once, but three times - the following year. 

I could go on, but I'll start retreading superlatives very soon. It's a testament to the power of Jezebell's sound and their refreshing approach to both their own and others' music that they can get away with two 20-track 'greatest hits' compilations in under two years. 

Not only that,  but the sequencing of the tracks is exemplary and the new songs on Volume 2, boldly proclaim that there's plenty more to come.

If all of the above hasn't had you rushing to snap up Jezebellearic Beats Volume 2 (and Volume 1, if you haven't already got it), then here's an open door. And they're both available as a 'name your price' purchase. What?!

Needless to say, if there is a vinyl edition of Jezebellearic Beats Volume 2 to follow, I will be there like a shot.

You did good, lads.