WE WEAR BLACK REVIEW OF THE YEAR-PART 3

As its New years Eve, here are my bands of the year!! Have not checked this for grammar as its new years eve, have a good one loser!

TITUS ANDRONICUS-

It may be unfair to put some bands within this list, as they get enough promotion without being mentioned on shitty little blogs such as this. But in all honesty it is hard to think of the last year, without certain bands being mentioned. Titus are the ultimate example of this. Not only releasing maybe one of the most ambitious records of the past 12 months with ‘The Monitor’, but when they toured the U.K. in October they put on some of the tightest and strongest shows I have ever seen. There seems to be an ambition to change your life, and for an hour you forget how shitty life truly is. It is this ambition that has set these bands apart from the vast majority of an ‘American Invasion’ of bands the past two years has produced.

MAGIC KIDS-

After releasing an under-rated album on True Panther, Magic Kids kinda became one of the forgotten bands of 2010. In a general sense, they have picked up the Memphis scene where Jay Reatard had left it. What I think is wonderful about Magic Kids, is there is a really cool craft to their songs and a child like innocence. They also played a really good show to about 5 people at The Bodega. Dan Russell did a really good interview with them on that night, I kinda tried to help. It went on for well over an hour and the first part can be found here: http://www.kickingagainstthepricks.org

STRANGE BOYS-

Another band who were probably forgotten about as the year went on. Released my favourite hangover album of the year, this and Beach Boys 20/20 got me through some horrible Sunday mornings. The album may not have had as many more ‘rocky’ moments as the pervious years release, it was slower and therefore allowed more ideas to show more prominently. It was just a great album which grew on me as time went on.

WAKE UP DEAD/BLACK MAMBA BEAT-

Right, I have waited a long time to say something about these bands! I have put them together in this as they both gave me the three best nights I have probably had this year. The first was in London at the Black Mamba Beat album launch, which was a super party. Then the two shows in Nottingham and Manchester which occurred in September. The Manchester show was pretty much the most fun I have had for a long time. Few bands give me such joy and delight live, as these two do. It is maybe easier to see the music they make by looking where they are from. Andrew from Wake Up Dead is from New Jersey, the land of Bruce Springsteen, Misfits, Titus Andronicus and the very cool Spider Bags. 2/3rds of Black Mamba Beat are South African and have this awesome laid back ‘cooler than you and don’t even have to try’ attitude whilst also loving cool stuff like The Minutemen. For half an hour each, they make me forget how much of a smug twat I really am. They are also some of the most awesome people I have had chance to spend time with, and easily make some of the best music currently being produced on this island. I do not know what is and is not still available by them but there is a really good tape on Kind Turkey Records and Black Mamba Beat’s LP is on Jeetkune! Stop reading this and go and buy them jerk.

TWISTED-

If I am really honest, I do not really know how to describe or talk about this band. So here are six things I know about them.

1)      They are from Leeds

2)      They toured with What Price, Wonderland this last summer and played an awesome show at Jamcafe in Nottingham

3)      They have a guitarist (who I think did vocals in Nottingham for some reason), who is really nice and cool (and attractive). He also has a cool looking van, and was driving Spectrals around.

4)      They released atleast two brilliant singles on Art For Blind, which I have not stopped listening to for the past 5 months.

5)       Their drummer sold me a poster which looks cool but it is still wrapped up in a rubber band somewhere (sorry)

6)      They have split up.

MAZES-

Again if I am honest, I would not know where to start when writing about Mazes. Niche Homo did a good interview with them a long time ago now and they probably released the best 7” this year in Centopath on Suffering Jukebox. I have also found it vastly annoying that I have attempted to see Mazes about three times, and have actually yet to do so. One time was meant to be with So Cow, which would have been nice. Saying that I am going doing this write up on about four songs, it shows how good this band can be. A lot of people are saying that they are ‘the band to watch’ for 2011, which is a pretty horrible saying really…but they are a good band! I am going to take a guess that someone else may write a considerable amount of more sense about this band upon which I will direct you to. From what I have mostly listened to, they are like a blessed out 90’s alternative band who may or may not taken a lot of narcotics and danced in fields. Note for Mazes: Please come and play a show in Nottingham.

 GUILTY PARENTS-

My friend Etienne put it bluntly about Guilty Parents when he said to me in Nottingham that they are ‘the best punk band currently in the country’, I would tend to agree that they are quite hard to beat. When it comes to Guilty Parents, I describe them in the same ilk of  a lot of Amrep bands. Just a really thrashy-garagey-punk noise which is really primal at its core. I also like using stupid analogies to describe, eg, Guilty Parents are like when you were at school in biology lessons and get to play with a stephoscope. After a while, you would put the ear bits in your ear, and bang the circle bit against a metal cabinet to see what happened. In conclusion, it hurts a lot but god dam, it was fun! They released a really good E.P. and played some amazing shows, still going strong.

HARLEM-

I feel stupid that I only discovered Free Drugs this year. But it was when I heard Gay Human Bones that transfixed me. In my own head, I always think that there will be one song every summer that will grab you more than anything and you end up listening to it again and again. For me, that was this song. America seems to be producing a lot of feel good summer bands that would be perfect to watch at a beach (a wink to Box Elders, Smith Westerns, Jaill etc etc etc), and Harlem were certainly to me at the top of that tree. Maybe Hippies, like Free Drugs, was not the most perfect record. It still had enough within it to keep me playing it over and over

GONER RECORD RELEASES!

I mixed this together as they released four lps this year that need to be mentioned. Ty Segall-Melted, Eddy Current Suppression Ring-Rush to Relax, Nobunny-First Blood and Luv Clowns-Love Clowns! Love each one of these records, so…there! There is some other good stuff they have released this year and in previous so check it out!

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

THEE LUDDS- http://www.myspace.com/theeludds

A cool primal drumbeat sound which I am a bit of a sucker for! Hoping to see a lot more of them over the next year, just released a split with No Brainers on Hodad! No need for description…watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rq8pBlkemzE

REAL NUMBERS- http://www.myspace.com/therealnumbers

I played a super fun/drunk show with them in a rehearsal space in Nottingham. They have a real knack for making really good punk songs with little fuss!

HUMAN HAIR- http://www.myspace.com/humanhairband

Saw them play two shows both at the Bodega, once supporting Times New Viking and as well at Spex Fest II. At the Spex Fest show the singer trapped half the audience with his microphone cable. ‘Happy Birthday’ is becoming a set hit! Need to remember to actually try and get their releases this next year.

LOVE TRIANGLE-

Dudes involved with The Sceptres and Shitty Limits bring a more garage rock sound to their bow with excellent results. Get the 7” and any tapes you can get hold of!