Elba Sessions

The sun makes things look pretty awesome. I enjoyed just wandering about at lunchtime today enjoying Glasgow bathed in sunshine, looking up at the buildings and blue skies. It looks so much different in the sun. If I am honest though, I like Glasgow in the rain. It somehow suits the place.

I guess in talking about looks, it’s a round-about way of introducing the new design of the Elba Sessions website. We haven’t gone nuts with ‘loads of fab new content’ and a big launch of it wasn’t necessary, or very us, instead, quietly just appearing is our new brown, cream and polka dot theme. We’ve been working at it ourselves, with a little bit of consultancy from friends, you know who you are and we think it looks a lot fresher and clean.

We’ll tidy up some of the pages and get it generally spruced up over the next while but now that the look is in place we can turn our attention to writing about the pile of the things we have heard recently as well as getting some gigs on the go again. Podcasts are a little more sparse at the moment as Elba Studios has been jam-packed with bookings but we’ll let you know as soon as things die down a bit. I’m also going to sort out the blog roll so if there’s anything that you think is worthy of a good read then just holler at us!

The other day we spoke about the Barmellodie gig this Friday night however, if you are looking for some pre-gig, um, gigging, we’d heartily recommend you have a wee visit to The Flying Duck where Jim from Aye Tunes will be celebrating a multitude of birthdays with Verse Metrics, The Big Nowhere and Black International (whose album we also like around here). It’s only 3 bucks to get in and the fun starts at 8pm.

This has been a firm fixture in my browser all week. Get yourself on to it for some burrito goodness and GET INVOLVED!

GLASGOW MEGA BURRITO

Aff to build a burrito!!

This Friday sees the penultimate Barmellodie night in it’s current run at Bloc.

The line up includes Kill The Captains from Sheffield, a pretty formidable act live, expect plenty noise and energy. We caught up with them about a year ago when they released their album and it’s good to see them heading back to Glasgow.

Joining KTC on the bill are Popcorn Fiend, fresh from their EP launch at the Captains Rest last month. They’ve got a song called ‘A Fucking Epiphany’, which is good enough for me!

Also playing on the night are Pensioner, Vendor Defender were due to play but have now decided to call it a day so excuse them from the attached poster. If that wasn’t enough, Jim from Aye Tunes will be spinning Skee Lo on the decks after the bands, it’s free before 11pm and only £2 thereafter which you really can’t argue with!!

11pm Popcorn Fiend
11.45pm Kill The Captains
12:30am Pensioner
1:15 til close Dancing/Fighting/Jim Ayetunes and ArmelloDJ’s.

Randolph’s Leap, after selling out their first EP ‘Battleships & Kettle Chips’, have now released a double A-side single titled ‘Counting Sheep’. It came out today on Olive Grove Records and can be bought from the usual download outlets, links are at the bottom of the page.

To go along with the single release they are having a wee party to celebrate at Mono tomorrow night (17th May). Joining them on the bill are Burnt Island and the brilliant Moth & The Mirror. I had just been thinking recently that I hadn’t seen the Moth & The Mirror’s name about recently so it was good to see them on the lineup!!

Bandcamp
iTunes
other quality emporiums of download

I bestowed the title of one of my ‘Favourite New Bands’ to Johnny Reb in last nights post and it got me thinking about how The Portugal Years has been one of my favourite ‘exertions’, certainly by a local band, so far this year. However, hot on it’s heels will be the album from She’s Hit entitled ‘Pleasure’ (June 6th). It’s an absolute gem and it’ll get more column inches on this blog closer to it’s release date in June but I can say for now it’s a peach and very VERY loud. I’ve been pretty excited about hearing it since the release of their first single RE:Peater last year, it certainly doesn’t disappoint.

So, for some viewing over this weekend, here’s the video for ‘Shimmer Shimmer’, their new single which is out on May 23rd and if you are around the Stag & Dagger festival on May 21st in Glasgow, do try and pop along to see their set at Nice & Sleazy’s.

With a blog title like that, I’ve now got Super Furry Animals in my head. Anyway, if your Sunday afternoon is looking a little bare this weekend (I suspect football fans of a certain two clubs may have other plans this Sunday), you should pop in past Stereo for Hazy Recollections. We’ve mentioned HR lots in the past but this weekend’s show is a bit of a special one.

The show sees the launch of HR founder Findlay Napier’s new album ‘File Under Fiction’. I’ve had a wee listen and it’s definitely an album for the summer, lots of melodies and sing-a-long choruses. Joining Findlay on the bill will be Endor, The Hidden Lane Choir, James Mackenzie & The Aquascene and Little Fire along with house band and Findlay’s album cohorts The Bar Room Mountaineers.

Tickets are £5 and can be purchased in advance here or alternatively you can get on the door. I believe they are also doing a ticket and signed album deal for £15.

Hazy Recollections runs between 2pm and 5pm on Sunday 15th May at Stereo, Renfield Lane, Glasgow.

In our final section in preparation for this weekend’s annual Record Store Day we asked another friend – from fairly afar – about their preferred outlets. We do hope that you’ll support your local independent and are prepared to stop by early for those limited releases. The limited edition clear vinyl of Panda Bear’s Tomboy, which comes with a t-shirt is my own desired item. My oh my.

Without further ado, enjoy the bits of matter picked from Judd of Ba Da Bing Records‘ brain. Did you say ‘ew’ at that? I’m quite appalled by that sentence. So much so that I had to include it.

- Which store would you name your favourite record store?

Rainbow Books & Music

- Where is it located?

Newark, Delaware

- How would you describe the store?

Like falling through a hole of awesomeness

- Do you remember the first thing you bought there?

Either Casket Lottery – Survival Is For Cowards or Daft Punk – Discovery. Can’t remember which they rang up first.

- What is it about the store that keeps you going back?

Being in an independent record store makes me want to discover new music.

- Which format do you purchase most?

Vinyl

- Which format do you use most?

Probably digital, but if I had my druthers, it’d be vinyl.

- Recently Ba Da Bing have been involved with the Grapefruit Record Club, this features not just well packaged product but real collector’s items. What do you think is the significance of such items within the broader instant access mindset?

The idea of an album as an encompassing work of an artist is something which has fallen by the wayside in the digital age, when it is all too easy to flip from song to song. Listening to a record in it’s entirety is ultimately a much more fulfilling experience and vinyl records are more conducive to this idea. Creating a club of vinyl only releases is perhaps the most fantastic aspect of GRC.

- Is there anything that your hoping to get your hands on due for release as part of 2011′s Record Store Day?

Damon & Naomi are releasing a 7″ on Record Store Day. I would bite, kick, and claw for one of those.

In the second of our Record Store Day themed posts, Chris gives us some info on one of his favourite record stores…in Cheltenham. With the internet being so important to bands, labels and Record Stores these days, Badlands specialise in the type of thing a certain type of music fan may not find down at the their local store…

When we spoke about doing a post on our favourite Record Store for Record Store Day I had the thought ‘Can I really write a post on a store i’ve never been to…!!!???’

The answer is quite clearly yes…

I first came to know about Badlands when I walked into bar in Belfast, pre-Springsteen gig, and found that I had walked into what I now know as a Badlands Party. What I encountered was an all day sessions with sing-a-longs, bootleg CDs & DVDs, cool (& cheaper than the official merch) t-shirts and a pre-gig show by a local guitarist. Since that day I have been to similiar pre-gig Badlands Parties in Cardiff, Dublin & (finally) Glasgow, each as much fun as the last.

Now I know what you’re thinking, the above is no reason to mention them as a great Record Store, surely this just shows that they can throw a great party, however since that first event I have been a regular visitor to the store’s website. Any Springsteen fan will find something on the site to keep them happy with full back catalogue along with a number of bootlegs aswell. I use Badlands regualrly to get copies of Backstreets magazine which isn’t readily available in the UK. And it is worth a visit for said t-shirts alone.

Badlands don’t just cater for Springsteen fans, they have a good taste in music and when Bruce downs tools they’re always off to other shows creating a similar atmosphere so I highly recommend a visit to their site.

For Record Store Day the guys at Badlands have there very own release called ‘It’s Boss Time’ which is a compilation by a number of artists of Springsteen covers, as well as a Saturday night show with Willie Nile and Danny & The Champions of The World.

Oh and not to make this post too Bruce Springsteen orientated… Bruce Springsteen – Gotta Get That Feeling is released for Record Store Day also… (bet you didn’t see that coming!)

As I am sure most of you are aware, Record Store Day takes place next Saturday, 16th of April. We’ve decided here at Elba to scout around a bit and bring you some thoughts from Record Stores out with our locale. Today, we feature Drift Record Shop from Totnes in Devon. I’ve only ever made a ‘record store day purchase’ once before, I didn’t get up early last year to get the limited 7″‘s or anything but a couple of years ago, Drift Record Store gave away the Drift Records back catalogue, around eight albums, along with a few other bits and pieces. The majority of the artists I’d never heard of before but I now count several of these albums as some of my favourite albums, Tandy Hard – Tandy Hard, Birdengine and Thirty Pounds of Bone included.

We caught up with Rupert to get a bit more of a lowdown on Drift as well as getting his opinion on his favourite record store.

- Firstly, tell us a little about Drift and how you got started.

Drift has been in Totnes (small town in Devon) high-street since 1994, originally as a world music specialist but for the last decade specializing in contemporary rock/pop/indie/avant-garde/house/electronicia/minimalist/soundcape/disco… amongst others.

The shop has always been run on a rolling 12/18 month schedule of the best new music we here and love to promote. We’re very lucky that we have such a good set of customers (or perhaps good fortune in that we’re one of only about five record shops in 600 square miles) and it has enabled us to get behind labels like Woodsist, Souterrain Transmissions, K, Holy Mountain, Anticon, Tri-Angle… support and stock people doing really special things. Not too bad for an indie record store in a tiny little conservative safe heaven in the farming countryside. We can pretty much do what we want and I think that people recognize that we care about… so keep coming back!

- You have an online store as well as the shop. Is it important for a record shop to offer an online option in this day and age and do you find you get orders from all over the place?

We went online about 9 months back and it has been nice to meet more people that way also.

shop: www.thedriftrecordshop.co.uk
blog: www.driftrecordshop.com

- Does Drift have any plans for Record Store Day?

We’ve got a SMASH load of new music coming in so we’ll be trying to keep calm amongst the chaos of guys in denim looking for the illusive Queen 7″. Besides this we’ve been stock piling some great treats and we’re going to be dishing out (amongst other warehouse finds) Some rare Dungen vinyl, a couple of Warp Box Sets and a few copies of Thom York + Burial + Four Tet… so there’ll be some rare stuff flying about in the shop come Saturday 16th.

Come Sunday morning we’ll drunk still and have empty wallets and full record bags I am sure.

- You also have a label, Drift Records. How did this come about and do you find having it alongside the shop mutually benefits each endeavour?

The label came about primarily as a means to releasing my first album (The R.G.Morrison – Learning About Loathing) and just got a lot of good support. We’d put out Thirty Pounds of Bone and Birdengine pretty quick after that and we got some good momentum.

I think running the label made me very sympathetic in running the shop; I listen to all promos we get, I take things on sound not press release, spread the shelf space out a little… get behind things that maybe other shops don’t have the opportunity to. We root for the little guys!

- Some of my favourite albums in my collection were actually released on Drift, Tandy Hard and Thirty Pounds of Bone, do you have any future releases planned?

Thank you!

… Having said all that I did only this week start looking into licensing Townes Van Zandt material plus I saw band called ‘Barr Brothers’ who really blow me away… so you never know!

- Other than Drift, of course, what’s your favourite record store and where is it located?

I am and have always been a huge fan of Rough Trade (“west” now). It’s just such a great outlet. Waterloo records in Austin Texas is very thorough and very friendly. Amoeba Music in LA is just something else… be careful!

I love record shops… I always make a point of going and meeting people in them. Spencer at Rough Trade is tireless, Simon Pure Groove is a genius and Stephen at Mono is a great guy also.

- Do you remember the first record store you visited and what you bought?

‘Our Price’ in Torquay – I remember going to buy Blur ‘Leisure’ … I did own ‘Substance’ before that… mmmm James maybe? Frank and Walters maybe? I also had ‘should I stay or should I go’ on 7″… that was quite early?

- What’s your preferred format?

Vinyl… A nice heavyweight 10″ always gets me most excited. I bought two copies of the ‘Factory Floor – Wooden Box 10″ ‘ as it was just so pretty.