Dig ‘in: Blair Parkes, Black Country, New Road, House of All
Check out what the No Wristbands team is listening to and what’s in our show calendars this month on our latest Dig ‘in.
INCOMING
Blair Parkes - breezy (Seaside LP)
Christchurch native Blair Parkes is a bit of a modern day renaissance man, maintaining a vast portfolio that encompasses music, painting, digital arts, photography and writing. His first musical endeavor was with the band All Fall Down, who released My Brand New Wallpaper Coat on Flying Nun in 1987. His most recent output has primarily been under his own name, although he did team up with Steve Reay (formerly of The Subliminals) to form Running Club and deliver the crystalline pop delight, beach glass, in March.
Breezy catches him hooking up with long term collaborators, vocalist Miss Mercury (Helen Greenfield), and drummer Ryan Fisherman (aka Ryan Chin). True to its title, this is ephemeral, gratifying pop of the two-minute-in-and-out variety. Parkes and Mercury harmonize hand-in-glove with a breathless immediacy, ensuring that there’s never a dull moment. Production is crisp and bright, reminiscent of Mitch Easter’s Drive-In Studio punchiness. Breezy is a top-down, wind-in-your-face adventure set on getting your senses working overtime. -Bruce Novak
Black Country, New Road - Live at Bush Hall (Ninja Tune Records LP)
Black Country, New Road has proven since their inception that they will do things their way, so it should come as no surprise that their live album is unlike traditional live albums in that it is made up entirely of new songs. Since we last heard from our friends in BC,NR they have been hard at work crafting new material and splitting the lead singing duties amongst the band following the departure of former lead singer Isaac Wood just after the release of their second album, my favorite LP of last year, Ants From Up Here. Vocal duties are now split amongst bassist Tyler Hyde, piano player May Kershaw, and saxophone and flute player Lewis Evans.
To match their art-rock ambitions of previous releases, a simple coming-out party of new songs sung by three new singers wasn’t enough for BC,NR, so they also staged three different theatrical sessions each having its own back story. The lead song on the album is sung for the first time by a female singer, “Up Song” delivered by Tyler Hyde, comes accompanied by an ’80s prom theme called “The Taming of the School.” There’s still the earned build of the anthemic release as Hyde sings “Look at what we did together! / BC,NR friends forever!” My favorite song on the album is “Across the Pond Friend” which is sung by sax player Lewis Evans, and is set in a farmer gathering titled “When The Whistle Thins.” Evans details a long-distance relationship that settles into a real relationship. The music still has the anthemic quality of their past two releases, but with more tender vocals. Last but not least, the final theme is a haunted pizza parlor titled “I Ain’t Alfredo No Ghosts” featuring May Kershaw’s lead turn on the song “Turbines/Pigs.” This song features somber, almost balladry piano playing before doing with BC,NR do best; building to a cathartic crescendo. What makes this release so compelling is how disparate their new sound can be depending on the vocalist, all while still feeling like BC,NR. If anything, Live at Bush Hall makes me even more excited for their future. -Mark Joyner
HOUSE OF ALL - S/T (Tiny Global Productions LP)
Upon his return to Manchester last year, Martin Bramah, a founding member of the Fall with Mark E Smith and Una Baines, reached out to Marc Riley and Craig Scanlon about starting a new project that would honor the tenants of that landmark band. In particular he envisioned a creative process with no advance preconceptions or planning. While neither Riley or Scanlon jumped on board, Bramah was able to recruit a stellar lineup that represented the entire span of the Fall’s existence (1976-2018) by bringing in brothers Paul and Steve Hanley, Si Wolstencroft and Peter Greenway. True to his intentions, the record was created in three days time at Hope Mill Studio in Manchester without any prior songwriting or rehearsals.
The work reflects Bramah’s creative thrust with Blue Orchids as much as it does with his tenure in the Fall. It’s more congenial than caustic, guided by Bramah’s evocative wordplay and deliberate pacing. The combo drumming of Paul Hanley and Si Wolstencroft adheres to a metronomic pulse, allowing the rest of the instrumentation to swell and recede. Instead of feeling pressure to live up to expectations, HOUSE OF ALL seem at ease with each other, something that was hard to come by with the persnickety Smith. There’s a palatable joyfulness emanating from the track “Magic Sound” with it’s sing-along chorus and Bramah’s humorous exclamations. Despite the short recording window, two album’s worth of songs were apparently delivered—signaling that while this chapter is complete, the book is not yet closed on this unexpected union. -Bruce Novak
UPCOMING
Shame
Where: Thalia Hall / Directions
When: May 24, 7:30 PM
Shame have managed to fashion an escalating creative trajectory, where other bands might have been tripped up under similar circumstances. Starting out as teenagers, expectations for the band were outsized in the British press, even prior to their 2018 Songs of Praise debut album. The blistering and acerbic thrust of that record only elevated the critical pressure. Whether the follow-up Drunk Tank Pink was created with that pressure in mind, it did raise the stakes with more adventuresome song construction and variable tempos. Not being able to tour behind the album, threw the band for a loop as they struggled to write any new material to their satisfaction for a third record. It was only after they landed a gig at the Windmill in Brixton, where their career started, that things started to change. In an effort to crack the group’s writer’s block, their label Dead Oceans insisted that they perform a compete new set of songs for the event. Simplifying the process provided the breakthrough, and the resulting album, Food For Worms, is their finest yet, reflective of a band mature beyond their years. They’ll be joined by openers Been Stellar, and upstart NYC quintet who holds the type of promise that Shame has been able to deliver upon. -Bruce Novak
Remember Sports
Where: Beat Kitchen / Directions
When: May 24, 6:30 PM
As she approaches her 30s, Carmen Perry has begun to assess where her life has taken her in comparison to most of her peers. Already having to start over when the original band (then just named Sports) imploded after the 2015 release of their second album, All of Something, the thought occurred to her that maybe she needed to get on with her life. In reflection, she determined that music was the thing that provided her the most happiness and that writing songs allowed her to address her anxieties. At the same time, she realized that she was no longer the same person as the teenager that started the band while attending college. Understandably, Philly’s Remember Sports continue to evolve; their songs registering a bit more reflective and twangier then the high-strung, high-stakes of their Sunchokes debut. Tapping into new inspiration suits them just fine and reconfirms that tapping out isn’t an idea worth consideration when there’s more to be said. -Bruce Novak
Hallogallo Fest—Lifeguard / Post Office Winter / Flower Grease / Friko (Solo)
Where: Lincoln Hall / Directions
When: May 25, 5:00 PM (All Ages)
Hallogallo is a local music/art zine edited by Kai Slater of Dwaal Troupe and Lifeguard. Originally conceived to get the word out on the collective of area bands that bonded over the formative music that kickstarted their own works, Hallogallo continues to expand with the latest issue 8 corralling Michael Rother of Neu! for an interview—the creative force behind the motorik track that the publication takes its name from. This year’s fest is a continuation of last spring’s initial Beat Kitchen event, and will provide a forum for upstart zine producers and some of the bands aligned with the movement.
Like their fellow friends in Horsegirl, Lifeguard has joined the Matador roster and recently previewed their “17-18 Lovesong” single from the upcoming Crowd Can Talk / Dressed In Trenches release due out on July 7. Crowd Can Talk on the A-side is a re-issue of their 2022 Born Yesterday EP and the B-side Dressed In Trenches features five new songs that were written in tandem with that record.
Charlie Johnston plays alongside Slater in Dwaal Troupe and also in Post Office Winter with Will Huffman and Eli Schmitt. They’re a garage band only in the sense that it was the space in Johnston’s parent’s house that they retreated to practice and record material. Their music unfolds subtly with a lo-fi sensibility witnessed on their 2022 Music Box and 2021 Songs for a Scientist self-produced albums.
Flower Grease is a female dream-pop trio that exude a winsome charm with a smattering of songs that drift gently among the ethers. Frontman Niko Kapetan of Friko favors considered arrangements for the band’s sonic pastiches that traverse across a ’70s pop spectrum. All four performers represent a varied approach to music that reflects Chicago’s unique incubator climate where ideas are readily shared and the thought of banding together isn’t merely lip service. -Bruce Novak
UNCOVERED
Blue Orchids - The Greatest Hit (Money Mountain) (Rough Trade LP)
When Martin Bramah departed the Fall in 1979, he re-connected with another original member, keyboardist Una Baines, to set up shop as Blue Orchids. Their name was derived from a jumbled recollection of a suggestion from cult poet/performer John Cooper Clark, who had offered up ‘The Blessed Orchids.’ Their 1982 debut album, The Greatest Hit (Money Mountain), is a distinctive treasure; a bit unlike anything else that emerged from the post-punk creative canon.
The band announces their presence in grand fashion with the opening track, “Sun Connection,” that has the effect of the sky opening up to reveal the celestial heavens. Bramah’s vocal intonations retain a theatrical opulence and his narratives are poetic in nature. Baines’ organ is prominent throughout, sounding both majestic and off-kilter in equal measure. Her connection with Bramah is noteworthy; she contributes songwriting to half of the album’s tracks and later the two of them were married for a time. She provided the lyrics for the endearing “Low Profile,” an outsider tale about escaping notice. The human condition is scrutinized throughout the record. “Dumb Magician” chronicles the price to be paid for deception and leaves Bramah to conclude “the only way out is up.” The Greatest Hit (Money Mountain) didn’t cash in on its aspirations, peaking at number 5 on the UK Indie Chart, but to this day it makes its mark profoundly—leaving on a high note so to say. -Bruce Novak
We recommend listening along over at our Spotify page. Here’s this week’s content: