new band - HecklerSpray

Hecklerplay: Young Liar

August 7th, 2012 By Matthew Laidlow

For some stupid reason, people tend to think that Cheryl Cole is the greatest export to come from the North-East of England. Are these folks mental? Haven?t they heard of stottie bread, brown ale and Chris Waddle?

Due to the ongoing soap opera that's X-Factor, we've kind of fallen out of love with Cheryl Cole and we're now looking for people who can think for themselves and not get fisted off Simon Cowell on a daily basis.

Despite everyone in the world assuming that ?Fog On The Tyne? gets played when a child in christened in the North-East, this isn't the case. The region as a whole has many musical gems that should shun any musical stereotype. The bands we've seen and heard will soon be playing to wider audiences as opposed to a sideshow to a touring band. With so many ace acts to pick from, Young Liar is just one of the dozen acts that deserve the attention of your ears.

HecklerPlay: Frightened Rabbit

August 5th, 2012 By Si Sharp

There's a tired clich? that writing about music is like dancing about architecture. Obviously it's not. It's like writing about architecture. But with less focus on health and safety legislation. And architecture journalists probably don't come out with trite descriptions like ?Richard Rogers? Pompidou Centre is architecture of the high-tech style? ON ACID!?

However the challenge with music-writing comes when you are trying to get across your enthusiasm about something that belongs to a genre not known for being original or exciting.

This is the problem we've had with Frightened Rabbit. Sure we can throw out praise, like the fact that their second album ?Midnight Organ Fight? is one of the best albums of the last ten years but, even taking into consideration the fact that we've listened to A LOT of albums in the last decade, it's still just sounds like hyperbole from a faction of journalism not renowned for its faint praise.

New Video From The Chanteuse And The Crippled Claw Starring Maxine Peake Arm Wrestling In A Bunny Outfit. And A Horse.

August 7th, 2012 By Mof Gimmers

Around this time of year, the music industry starts getting cloyingly sentimental and making everything look like a show shaker. When they’re not doing that, they’re reminding you that you’ll be going on a work’s do, getting blind hammered and putting out compilations with KC & The Sunshine Band on.

Awful.

But what about the evil side of the winter months? What about the woodland that looks like it might eat you? That’s where our pals The Chanteuse And The Crippled Claw come in…

HecklerPlay: Watch Out! The Chanteuse And The Crippled Claw Are Coming To Get You!

August 7th, 2012 By Mof Gimmers

A while ago, a Liverpudlian siren emerged in the shark pit of the music world with a fist fulla pop-noir and bowled over those who stumbled across her. She was, and still is, Candie Payne. After ‘All I Need To Hear’ and ‘I Wish I Could Have Loved You More’ set the tone, with a late-night ’60s pop vibe, she cut a whole bunch of cool records and then…

…well, she went a little quiet.

But it seems she’s burrowed away with Adrian Flanagan of Kings Have Long Arms to start making something more poppy, and even more noirish. Something creepy to envelope you over darkened months of winter. Ladies and gentlemen, it is time to immerse ourselves in the ouija-pop of Chanteuse & The Crippled Claw.

Album Review: Colorama ‘Box’

August 5th, 2012 By Mof Gimmers

Sixties and seventies revivalism is, for the most part, such an ugly thing. As fun as the Super Furry Animals are, you have to endure the insufferable Ocean Colour Scene, Oasis and Kula Shaker (and, clearly, this requires a reviewer to be stuck in some ’90s mindset… don’t worry, it gets better).

Of late though, there’s been a batch of bands seeping through the cracks to bring that authentic ’60s sound and, most importantly, a degree of playfulness that made the best of the ’60s so much fun to listen to.

No-one wants a po-faced axeman chopping out endless 12 bar blues. The best revivalists get stuck into the dressing up box and mess with every dial in the studio to create kaleidoscopic toytown symphonies… and Colorama are stuck in this wonderful world of make-believe.

New Imelda May Single And Tour – Start Dribbling Now

August 27th, 2010 By Mof Gimmers

Imelda May is the siren of sleaze, bringing finger snapping rhythm and booze back from the brink of boring, linear pedestrian choogle. Yessir, with hips that mesmerise and a face you could stalk, Imelda has a new single out and a tour to announce. Start penning depraved fanboy and fangirl letters post-haste!

May first hit the radar after appearing on Jools Holland (and wisely ignoring his advances to sit in on piano) with the ace ‘Johnny Got A Boom Boom’, alerting those with ears that she had a fine, fine LP out called ‘Love Tattoo’.

After her last single, ‘Psycho’,vamped up garage punk, she’s now back with a new brassy-broad number, ‘?Mayhem’, which is released on 13th September on Decca Records. And we have the video for you to ogle.

MySpace Trawl ? The Notes

August 7th, 2012 By Matthew Laidlow

In 2020, when the internet is reduced to the size of a packet of frozen peas and unchecked knowledge from Wikipedia can be downloaded in to our brains in an instant, we?ll all look back and laugh. MySpace will be the musical equivalent of the 8-track. What was originally the biggest thing in the world in terms of social networking has been replaced by something where squirrels chirp out your thoughts.