Here at diskant we are planning some big changes, mainly behind the scenes stuff for better organisation and to make adding and finding new content easier. At present, all the techy geeky stuff is done by me but I am no real geek so it is a constant challenge for me and my brain to get everything working as I like it. In short, I could do with some help from someone who actually knows what they’re doing and thus could do it in a tenth of the time it takes me.

So, if you’re a fan of diskant, have geeky knowledge and have some spare time please get in touch. We’re looking for for someone who knows about some or all of the following: PHP, Javascript, CSS, RSS/XML, mySQL, Majordomo, Blogger, WordPress, Web 2.0 and, of course, pie. Having time and enthusiasm is more important than actual technical skillz as we have people to fill in the gaps here and there. PHP is the main thing we desperately need.

We can’t offer you any money but, um, you can hang out with us (if you don’t already) and you’ll be fully credited for your work. I could do a whole spiel about how rewarding and fun it is working with all the new web technologies and widgets and how it’ll look good on your CV and how you’ll be giving back to the community but you either know that or you don’t care. So, email me and let me know how you can help.

Yes, I am back from my holidays. It was great, thanks. More later.

I’ve not even finished listening to the marvellous Manicured Noise retrospective that I reviewed a little while ago and what should drop through my door but a retrospective of fellow early 80’s Mancunians, The Diagram Brothers.
I have to admit I know very little about them other than the fact that Andy Diagram is now one of David Thomas’ Two Pale Boys.
I also know their records were released by Richard Boon’s legendary New Hormones label.

Get past some of the humorous titles – “Ron! The Morris Minor’s Gone”, “I Didn’t Get Where I Am Today By Being A Right Git” – and what you have is a really exciting new wave art rock band that owe as much to the No Wave of the Contortions as they do to the UK punk scene and the art rock of Pere Ubu.

The guitars are all stainless steel clean, tones you could cut your finger on.
There’s some beautiful percussion, hints of both Devo and The Slits in the time changing and call and response chants, and bass playing that could be a forerunner to the avant noodling of Stump’s Kev Hopper.

The only downside is the ocassional low of some of the lyric writing. It can sometimes be a little too cleverly naive.
But then what would you expect from a group of young men making music where and when they did?

“Postal Bargains” is my current favourite – It’s all fighting guitars, driving rhythm and get-in-your-head annoying singing.

Don’t worry if you, like me, don’t know a great deal about The Diagram Brothers.
Regardless of whether or not you’re interested in experimental english pop of the late 70’s and early 80’s, if you like your pop music guitar driven, interesting, thought provoking, hummable and catchy then you’ll dig this to pieces.

GRRRR!!!!!
That’s not really enough is it?
I don’t really know how to describe The Scaramanga Six in a way that is both truthful and won’t put you off.
I’ll just go for the truth – S6 are a hard-rocking, indie-tuning, Meatloaf-operetta-singing, tongue-in-cheek-progging, murderous gang of thugs.

I’ve been a fan since I was given a copy of “Strike! Up The Band” album way back in 2003.
That’s 4 years of listening to deftly written pop tunes augmented by huge stadium filling riffage.

This, the new album, sees the band refining their sound even further.
There’s a timeless quality to some of the song writing – “Helvetica” being a case in point, building from a grimy little signature into a full scale indie-prog dream, all soaring vocals, sudden key changes (showing off their Cardiacs fandom) and BIG guitars.

The final, seven minute mini epic, “The Towering Inferno” is worth the price of admission alone, opening as it does with what can only be described as a Bastard Son Of Jim Steinman hook – you know, augmented pianos swooshing under chandeliers in a heavy storm before the songs explodes into the biggest chorus you think you’ve ever heard.

Buy this album NOW.

Spraydog are a band that would’ve fared much better if they’d have been operating in the American underground scene of the early-to-mid nineties. Their fuzzy, simple, sweet-natured songs, with dual male/female vocals struggling for space amongst warmly overdriven guitar lines, remind me of the output of labels like Simple Machines and Slumberland. They share a sense of hopefulness and melody with bands of yore like Velocity Girl, Lilys and Tsunami – stretching the parameters of indie rock with odd touches of dissonance and faltering lo-fi production, but never forgetting to keep the tunes in the foreground.

Over Karate Summer Camp‘s fourteen tracks, the mood is mainly one of forward-looking resolution; of making the best of unfortunate situations. There are nods towards the influence of a variety of bands – the Sonic Youth ‘Mote’-style opening of ‘Prizefighters’, the dreamy My Bloody Valentine vocal style of previous single ‘Allison Blaire’, the Codeine/Low slowcore pondering of ‘Bring All Your Sorrows’, for example – but in the main Spraydog’s sound, whilst not devastatingly original, is slowly becoming something all their own.

I’ve listened to this album over and over recently, and it doesn’t seem to do anything but repay such repeated listening. There is the odd touch that isn’t entirely in character for the band, like the aggressive yelped vocals of ‘One Big So-So’, which don’t quite work, but in spite of a very few faults this is still a solid, successful album, that marks out Spraydog as a band with a big heart and an uncanny knack with melody.

More on diskant:
Review of 2006’s ‘Allison Blaire’ single
Interview with Ferric Mordant Records

Spraydog
Ferric Mordant

Home of expensive booking fees Aloud.com are currently offering a pair of Glastonbury tickets to a “lucky” “winner” who enters their draw before the end of 5 March: see here.

Never been to Glastonbury myself but I imagine the experience can be recreated by sitting in an expensive real ale pub which is over-filled with braying middle-class white kids having mad drug experiences, whilst the jukebox volume is jammed on extra-loud and broadcasting nothing but the most pedestrian chart-friendly indie music available.

Hah! I scoff at your ATP full of all those bands who have already played ATP fourteen times before. Instead I will be at TRIPTYCH 2007, the annual music and films festival taking place simultaneously in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen (hence the name) over April 25-29.

Just lookee at that line-up! Damo Suzuki, CSS, Erol Alkan, Evan Parker, Ute Lemper, Pajo, Cat Power, Einsturzende Neubauten, Bobby Conn, The Pastels, Field Music, Cinematic Orchestra, Electrelane, Gruff Rhys, Bat For Lashes, Fujiya & Miyagi, Errors, Park Attack, Paper Cut Out, 65daysofstatic and more more more. Plus a special show tieing in with the Ballads of the Book thing Simon mentioned on here featuring the likes of Sons & Daughters, Idlewild, Norman Blake, King Creosote, Alasdair Roberts, Emma Pollock and Aidan Moffat.

I literally can’t wait. Full show line-ups, info, tickets and streaming music available now at www.triptychfestival.com.

From a recent mailout to the Wolf Eyes/Hanson Records mailing list…

Hey everyone,

On the morning of Feb 24th my brother Peter Young was in a fire. He
was injured with 2nd and 3rd degree burns on 30-44% of his body.
Neighbors reported seeing him coming out of his apartment unharmed
only to see him run back in to save his dog Little John. The smoke and
heat over took Pete as soon as he reentered the apartment. Pete was
found unconscious and burning by Brighton Police and Fire Department
who rushed him over to the U of M hospital. His apartment was
completely destroyed and Little John did not make it. Pete has no
medical insurance or insurance on his apartment which he owns. He is
undergoing surgery for skin grafts and has not been conscious yet. He
will be in the hospital for at least 2-3 months.

I am asking for donations to help my family with some of the medical
bills and the rebuilding of his apartment. I have set up a paypal
account in Pete’s name.
There are over 1000 members on this board, if everyone donates at
least $1 that will be a big help.

Please paypal donations to Peter.B.Young (at) gmail (dot) com
Please try to pay the paypal fee if paying from a credit or debit card.

Pete first introduced me to punk, psychedelic rock and noise – the
music that inspired me the most as a kid. He also painted the cover
for the first Wolf Eyes album released on Bulb. Without him Wolf Eyes
may not have ever existed. I hope you’ll help me give him something
back.

With much thanks,
Nate Young

This, from a recent e-mail I received from a press agency:

—

Hi Simon,

How are you?

I am working with Danish model/singer/presenter Anine Bing who is soon to be launching a new webiste featuring some of her best shots and her tracks form her forthcoming album. It will also feature a forum area where fans can chat directly to Anine.

Anine is best known in this country for the Ellesse ad that featured her cavorting in the rain on a tennis court with a male model. The picture was banned on billboards due to a large amount of crashes due to distracted drivers, and helped propel Anine into the FHM 100 sexiest women list!

Outside of the UK Anine is a huge star. Working in Los Angeles as the presenter of a top celebrity entertainment show, she has been linked to the likes of Jim Carrey, Tobey Maguire and Anders Svensson.

I wanted to know if you would consider running a news piece on the launch of the site. I thought it would be suitable for your readers as they will be able to chat directly to Anine and the site will have some great pics (examples attached).

If you could let me know your thoughts I would really appreciate it!

—

So readers, I consider this a news piece. Is it suitable for you?

This from the most recent Volcanic Tongue e-mail update:

“Totally vile artwork on this new ultra-limited handcut lathe courtesy of Nate Young of Wolf Eyes’ AA records from European actionist Andy Bolus. Sound is suitably disgusting noise mong with blasts of automaton crud and a particularly queasy aspect that’s all his own.”

…but can I dance to it? That’s what I’m asking.

You have to love the stupidity/pretentiousness of the underground noise scene at times!

Buy records here: Volcanic Tongue

I ended my review of TD Lind’s previous single ‘Come In From The Cold’ with the suggestion that he ‘could be pushed into the mainstream with the help of a hitmaking producer and an integrity-free manager’. What do you know, on ‘Radio Proposal’ that seems to have happened. Kind of.

Admittedly, the producer here is Lind himself, and I can’t say who he’s managed by. But where his previous single was a chirpy blues number without many connections to the current foibles of mainstream music, ‘Radio Proposal’ borrows from the mid-70s pop stylings of Supertramp or Godley & Creme (and, perhaps tellingly, with their recent success, The Feeling). It’s all one-two-one-two rhythms, plonking goodtime piano and overblown production. It’s not particularly offensive or unpleasant, just strange as a follow-up to TD Lind’s previous single – simplicity and subtlety replaced by pomp and musical-comedy style arrangements.

For my money, it’s one of the other two songs on the CD that proves a better indication that Lind is capable of more interesting work. ‘Last Kiss’ echoes ‘Come In From The Cold’ with quiet and repetitive backing music to a simple vocal delivery, building and receding in intensity and featuring a bowed saw solo that is as bizarre as it is pleasing.

On the basis of the two singles I’ve heard, TD Lind is slightly struggling to find his stylistic feet. If he can choose the path of invention that seems open to him, he could fare very well.

TD Lind