The Weblog Of Leonard’s Lair

Despite moving out from their home of Leeds to Liverpool, Friday’s Ghost embody the values of the current wave of West Yorkshire rock, with soundalikes This Et Al and Forward Russia clearly singing from a similar hymnsheet. Their frontman’s wayward vocals are delivered in passionate and off-key fashion, whilst glum guitars compete against blasts of electronic noise.

Just like their soundalikes they often struggle under the sheer weight of ideas and genres which can clash rather than complement. None of the four tracks on this EP totally convinces, largely because each song veers off into so many different tangents, yet at certain times the music is great. ‘Work Of The Invisible Hand’ and ‘Ten Rhinos’ certainly fare better when they tone down the layers of sound, the latter featuring some really impressive dark harmonies. The title track is also reminiscent of Bloc Party but with the student-friendly dreaminess replaced with less pretty but still effective Northern grit; this song also has a celebratory feel which should go down well as an encore. Only the discordant opener ‘Cities, Thrones & Basements’ disappoints. Friday’s Ghost do have a lot of good things going for them though, namely invention and passion, now they just need to deliver a little subtlety.

Web Sites:

Friday’s Ghost MySpace

Further Listening:
This Et Al, Forward Russia, Bloc Party

Click here to stream the entire EP from Cannonball Jane

Cool teachers tended to be thin on the ground when I attended school all those years ago. Usually the coolest teachers were to be found in the Creative Arts field as they at least showed some signs of being in touch with the teenagers. Doubtless, if you had Sharon Hagopian as a music teacher, lessons would be very “cool” indeed, especially when she performs as Cannonball Jane away from lesson time. ‘Knees Up!’ is an EP of experimental homemade pop made to sound very expensive.

‘Slumber Party’ carries echoes of 60’s girl groups even down to the big Wall Of Sound production effects. ‘The Secret Handshake’ tackles big-band, police sirens and a little bit of rapping. What carries this music into the modern world is Hagopian’s clever choice of hip-hop beats. Cleary her main calling card on this EP though, is ‘Take It To Fantastic’, so much so that it is featured here in original and two remix forms, one by Beastie Boy Adrock no less although she has more in common with another of The Beastie Boys’ former proteges, Luscious Jackson. Granted, what amounts to just five tracks isn’t much to form an opinion on but this is nonetheless an impressive collage of old and new sounds formed into something that indicates sure signs of an individual talent who is - lest we forget - rather cool.

Web Sites:
Official Cannonball Jane Site
Cannonball Jane MySpace

Further Listening:
Beck, Beastie Boys, The Ronettes, The Shangri-La’s, Luscious Jackson

Usually bands who are compared to Joy Division are viewed with understandable suspicion. In truth, there aren’t many bands who sound like them and that’s why they are revered almost twenty-eight years after their last recordings. Nephu Huzzband, a young quartet from Nottingham, are influenced by Joy Division as well as The Cure and Mission Of Burma. I’ve only got a single and a B-side from them but they do sound very promising indeed.

The title track is an excellent and intense reverb-heavy track which hurtles its way to the chorus at breakneck speed. Oh and the percussion is not unlike the kind a certain Stephen Morris used to perform. The more refined B-side ‘Either This Wallpaper Goes Or I Do’ reminds me a bit of Pilot To Gunner thanks to its shouted emotional vocals but it also has some strong melodies at its heart. On this evidence, Nephu Huzzband could be a young group that are well worth listening out for.

Web Site:
Nephu Huzzband MySpace

Click here to stream fifteen tracks from the new CD compilation of the masters of “pyschedelic death rock”!

As readers of the old Leonard’s Lair site will know, I’m rather fond of post-punk acts. One band that I hadn’t heard of until very recently were Soul Merchants, a Denver band who existed for a brief period in the mid-80s. The band termed their style “psychedelic death rock”; a fitting description for an outfit who borrowed from 60’s psych as much as they did from the punk and goth scene.

I received a sampler of their new compilation and I can highly recommend the group to fans of Bauhaus, Sisters Of Mercy and - going back a bit further - The Pretty Things. At their best - the spindly guitars and ghostly harmonies of ‘Joanna’ and the chilling wordless chorus to ’Crown Of Glory’ - they were moody, dark and intense. They also have a strange taste for spooky ghost train noises, from bone-shaking cackles to a deathly fairground organ sound. Surprisingly those tracks work in a charming way that you couldn’t get away with now. Check them out if you dare on the album stream provided!

Web Sites:
Soul Merchants MySpace
Smooch Records Site

With a name like Will Sanderson-Thwaite, one would expect classical music rather than the hip-hop/street poet material that he produces under the name of Gecko. There’s certainly intelligence, wit and musicality in abundance though, for Gecko is the thinking man’s Mike Skinner.

A mournful string sample underscores the smart opener ‘Theme’, the title track is dancefloor friendly, ‘What Is This?’ follows a glum-rock guitar line whilst ‘Seems All The Time’ is set to a rocksteady reggae rhythm. That’s quite a lot of genres covered in the opening four tracks and the diversity is certainly one of Mr. Sanderson-Thwaite’s great strengths. I’m not always a fan of accented vocals but Gecko’s Bristolian tones work well and his popular culture references (Fruit Corners, Russell Brand) are clever without being too clever. ‘Short Story’ is one of the few songs that doesn’t quite work, Gecko’s laddish charm isn’t quite suited to romantic balladry but the track that succeeds it, ‘The Library’, is a delight featuring a classy old school hip-hop sample and some inspired lyrics (including the tagline “If you want the Internet go to the library, if you want a book, then go to the bookshop”) . The lo-fi production also complements Gecko’s DIY ethic and overall this is a charming release with tunes clearly given priority over self-aggrandisement.

Web Sites:
Gecko’s MySpace
Gecko’s Store

Happy New Year everyone! 

Last year, I think I produced my best albums of 2006 list in March 2007 so I thought I’d produce a list a bit earlier this time! There may be a few additions to this list over the next couple of months as I catch up with my reviews. By clicking on each link below you can see my original reviews:

aMute - The Sea Horse Limbo
Annie Barker - Mountains And Tumult
Bell Hollow - Foxgloves
Boy Is Fiction - Boy Is Fiction
The Changes - Today Is Tonight
Matthew Dear - Asa Breed
Dawn Dineen - The Ghostly Apple Tree
Epic45 - May Your Heart Be The Map
Grand National - A Drink & A Quick Decision
HIJK - The Pen And The Letter
The Hours - Narcissus Road
Interpol - Our Love To Admire
Klaxons - Myths Of The Near Future
Kongos - Kongos
Magic Bullets - A Child But In Life Yet A Doctor In Love
Maps - We Can Create
Millimetre - Obsidian
The Mitchells - Slow Gears
Monocle - Outer Sunset
Morning Recordings - The Welcome Kinetic
David Newlyn - Ancient Lights
A Pacific Model - Divisions
Santa Dog - Kittyhawk
S.E.L.F. Of Lotus Tribe - The Art & War Of Misanthropic Philanthropy
Slow Dancing Society - The Slow And Steady Winter
The Twilight Sad - Fourteen Autumns & Fifteen Winters
Yellow6 - Painted Sky

I would be interested to hear other readers’ best-of lists too, if you’d care to contribute.