by Chris Parkes (@rocknrollparksy)

Welcome back

It’s been a while since our last instalment, but at the same time, Electone Records have been going into overdrive!

On the live show front, The Wicked Whispers kicked off their UK tour dates with a great gig at Edinburgh’s Sneaky Pete’s, and then appearing at our very own Showcase night in Glasgow (which for the first time featured Electone’s entire current roster, The Wicked Whispers, Red Sands and The Levons) and a show at Birmingham’s Hare and Hounds.

The Electone Showcase night in Glasgow was an emotional one for fans of Red Sands (we will return to that shortly) and having these 3 current Electone acts share a stage was justification of the level of talent that currently sits under the labels umbrella.

The Wicked Whispers debut album has gone live for pre-order, as has The Levons’ debut EP both available on iTunes with everything brewing towards The Wicked Whispers debut album release date and the very special launch show at Liverpool’s Kazimier.

Alongside all this, our monthly club night Liverpool residency at The Baltic Social has been going strength to strength with acts such as Viola Beach, Beatnik Hurricane (who could forget Barry Sutton’s table top adventures!?), myself (Chris Parkes), a guest spot from Natasha Murphy and even The Wicked Whispers making a surprise full band appearance.

With BBC Introducing’s Dave Monks now giving a pick of the month, it has been nothing short of special and we can’t wait for more (watch this space!)

The Wicked Whispers

So first things first, The Wicked Whispers are now in full velocity heading towards the release of their debut album ‘Maps of the Mystic’ released Saturday 22^nd September 2014 on 12” LP, CD and Digital Download. You can Pre-Order NOW from here :

http://www.electonerecords.co.uk/

In the meantime you can download The Wicked Whispers new single and album opener ‘Chronological Astronaut; taken from the forthcoming album here:

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/chronological…single/id885425082

For those who haven’t yet seen the amazing video go here :

On a more downbeat note, Whispers drummer Nathan Sayer unfortunately suffered a back injury earlier this month and The Wicked Whispers full band shows saw Mike Murphy leading the way with a special acoustic set with Andy Smith and Ste Penn in tow, appearing at District Liverpool, Broadcast, Glasgow and Hare and Hounds, Birmingham.

But don’t fret as Nathan Sayer will be back in action for the ‘Maps of the Mystic’ album launch Saturday 13^th September at The Kazimier. It’s surely going to be a great night with once again an all-round impressive outing, with Steve Powell’s supergroup project ‘Ark’ and label mates The Levons heading up support, we are in for a treat.

Tickets are flying out and are just £6 advance and can be purchased from See Tickets here:

http://www.seetickets.com/event/the-wicked-whispers/the-kazimier-liverpool/755928

So far, The Wicked Whispers are scheduled to play the following UK shows with more to be announced :

The Kazimier, LIVERPOOL (SEPT 13) *ALBUM LAUNCH PARTY*

Night and Day, MANCHESTER (SEPT 23) **

Crossfire @ Venue 2, LONDON (OCT 11) *ALBUM LAUNCH PARTY*

The Ruby Lounge, MANCHESTER (OCT 31)

100 Club, LONDON (NOV 1)

Georgian Theatre, STOCKTON ON TEES (NOV 6)

Think Tank, NEWCASTLE (NOV 7)

Red Sands

Last week we sadly bid farewell to our very own Red Sands as they provided a sell out crowd at the Electone Showcase event at Broadcast with one final swan song performance.

From the beginning, Red Sands had a dedicated and cult following recruiting straight from their previous popular incarnation ‘Figure 5’, whom exploded on the 2004-2005 Glaswegian music scene and beyond touring with likes of ‘Chelsea Dagger’ rockers The Fratellis and The Enemy. Having met at the mod culture inspired hangout ‘Friday Street’ the band including Neil Donaldson, Martin Keith, Brian Calderwood, Graham Gordon and Gerard Espie, eventually went on to work with LA producer Tony Hoffer on their debut EP and prepped an album.

For a band who did everything right and had all the elements to succeed and with a rumoured (and well earned) record deal that never followed, Figure 5 understandably became interested in change.

Red Sands became the new project. A project that would just be about the music and not following the industry trial of breadcrumbs. After a lengthy recording process taking their time crafting the sound and a small handful of shows Red Sands had an album ready with no definitive plans at that point on how they wanted it released.

It was when Red Sands opened for The Wicked Whispers at Glasgow’s Nice n’ Sleazy during their 2012 UK tour of ‘Dandelion Eyes’ , frontman Mike Murphy watched in wonder.

‘They were one of the best live bands I’d ever seen’ Murphy notes.

‘They were full of passion and belief yet vulnerable with such amazing heartfelt songs that sum up their heritage and environment.’

When the Red Sands and Wicked Whispers frontmen Neil and Mike both got chatting it all seemed all so clear Electone Records could, and eventually would be, the answer.

A few months later Red Sands album was done and Electone Records released their self titled LP. For Electone Records it become a an essential passion for the band to receive the recognition and immortalisation they deserved by releasing this very special album.

The collective of Red Sands are all now looking to move onto pastures new, hopefully satisfied that something special has been accomplished. From the early Figure 5 release to the self titles timeless album, ‘Red Sands’, Electone Records are proud to have been a part of what we believe are some of the most genuine and talented musicians Glasgow has produced.

The Red Sands debut LP will always be a part of the Glasgow musical heritage and an important release for this label and even though we are sad to see Red Sands call it a day, we wish them all the best for their ventures new!

BUY one-of the 1^st Edition 12” here:

The Levons

Electone’s newest act, Liverpool rockers The Levons revealed plans of their debut self titled EP this week which we are incredibly excited about.

With the band turning heads at every performance they give, will see the band surely shake up the scene with their fresh and energetic sound. Despite their young age, the band are already Liverpool music scene veterans with duel frontmen Danny Murphy and Nathaniel Cummings bringing Merseybeat and Americana together with sensational poptones and harmonies to die for, fans of The Band, The Beatles and The Beach Boys won’t be disappointed!

The Levons also recently did a live session for LFC TV with a wonderful acoustic performance of live favourite ‘The Beauty Of It All’ so keep an eye out, whether red or blue!

You can hear the first offering from The Levons below, with their debut video from Jonathan Gregory for the wonderful EP opener ‘The Other Guy’ with talk of amphetamines that taste like strawberries, get a taste for The Levons while you can!

The Levons debut EP can be pre-ordered now from iTunes

http://www.electonerecords.co.uk/product/the-levons-the-levons-ep

The Levons will be supporting The Wicked Whispers at their album launch party on Saturday 13^th September at the Kazimier and will then be headlining their EP launch show at District on Saturday 4^th October 2014 with a special Electone Records and Milk Presents collaboration. Hopefully the first of many!

The Springtime Anchorage

Another local band of late, The Springtime Anchorage who are no strangers to the Liverpool music scene for the past decade, have set sail with their folk rock debut album, ‘Labour Of Patience’. The solid four piece, consisting of drummer Nick Walker, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Marc Hannon and bass guitarist Stu Irwin, who all share a perfect harmony. Heres a little review of what we thought of it.

 A lively opening of ‘Farewell to Adrianna’ the band’s country influences of Neil Young and Crosby Stills and Nash shine on through, setting a tone for the lively album. Once again, the album produced by Electone favourite, producer Steve Powell at the legendary Track Studios in Liverpool, having previously worked with the likes of Mick Head and Edgar Jones.

 An immediate follow up track, opening with strong harmonies ‘I Don’t Know’ is another familiar tune and a personal favourite, sounds incredible upon hearing, with the lyrical hook and harmony of ‘you may have a heart of stone, but it can break like skin, like bone..’  will have you whistling and singing along in no time at all.

Live set highlight and the band’s calling card and epic soundtrack-esque ‘Bird Of Prey’ a shining gem in the band’s songwriting crown, is perfectly emotive in all the right places, and the chorus is absolutely effortlessly uplifting and brilliant, be sure to check this tune out at least!

The band kick it up a gear for tracks like ‘When We’re Apart’ with some fantastic vocals and guitar work, ‘Wedding Day’ and ‘I’ll Be Following You’ but they know when to mellow their sound out with tracks like ‘Nightingale’ and ‘Don’t Let It Pull You Under’ and another live favourite, the fast paced ‘A Face Like Her’s’ is another popular tune of the much loved Liverpool music scene veterans.

The record is a delightful collection of well written and performed songs, sure to take you from one place to another.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3WlKLCJZ5s

Closing with the delightful acoustic laden solo ballad ‘Love Has Changed’, rounds off the album as a perfect bookend.  Delightful harmonies, bouncing bass lines, intricate guitar work and catchy melodies are The Springtime Anchorage’s blueprints throughout the runtime of just under forty five minutes and will have you singing along and toe tapping from start to finish.

With the band having played music together for over ten years, they’ve the chemistry of the Brazil 1970 World Cup squad and the thirteen track record flies by, begging for a second listen as the songs all sound so familiar, even on a first listen and truly is a labour of patience, but it’s a wait worth waiting.

You can hear the record first hand at their now sold out album launch gig at The Casa Pub on Hope Street, with support from Liverpool veterans and cult heroes Rain on Saturday 18^th August, so I hope you got your tickets early or find a crack in the wall!

Tickets are/were available here:

http://www.seetickets.com/event/-labour-of-patience-album-launch/the-casa/798616

‘Labour Of Patience’ is released on 18^th August and is available here: http://www.springtimeanchorage.co.uk/shop/

Local round up and beyond

Former Coral guitarist and ‘Wild Swans’ singer songwriter Bill Ryder Jones recently announced a co-headline tour alongside the wonderful Saint Saviour. The two have collaborated on a number of tracks the last few months, bringing a whole new dimension to the music.

The tour opens early December in Cambridge, taking in Glasgow, Manchester, London along the way, before concluding at Liverpool’s Kazimier on December 13th.

On the back of a stand out headline performance at Astral Coast, Ryder Jones has gone from strength to strength as a frontman, with a unique performance and vocal style makes him one of the most interesting performers on the scene of late.

Ryder-Jones will also perform a very special one off performance of ‘If..’ the orchestral instrumental soundtrack to Italo Calvino’s novel ‘If On A Winter’s Night A Traveller..’ at Manchester Cathedral on October 9^th, tickets priced at £15. Surely to be a must see in the surroundings and collaboration with Camereta providing strings.

https://www.facebook.com/154135387976487/photos/pb.154135387976487.-2207520000.1407778123./777908465599173/?type=3&theater

Rogue Gallery Promotions returned this month with at The Pilgrim Pub with stunning line up that featured Sophie Anderson, Juveniles, Chris Parkes & Raw City, the latter who have recently released ‘Heavy’ with a video filmed in and around the city and featuring The Lomax’s very own chaos commander Frank Hedges.

The last few weeks has also provided some great shows. Lucky London dwellers caught psych folk western rockers The Merrylees at The Camden Barfly on 7^th August for a free lock out show after the Scottish rockers have gained many followers supporting the likes of Babyshambles and Paul Weller at his forest concerts over the past few months. Be sure to check out Farewell Dry Land and Turn For The Strange. Wonderful songs!

Happy Monday’s member Bez, headed to Liverpool’s Lomax venue to promote his Anti Fracking Rally. Recently the cause has grown in support with members of The Zutons’ Paul Molloy and The Sundowners’ Niamh Rowe and Fiona Skelly.

The Viper Kings recently supported Hollywood action hero Steven Seagal’s Blues Band at Liverpool’s 02 Academy, the solid four piece supergroup consisting of Coral drummer Ian Skelly who was most impressive on the skins, Zutons’ Paul Molloy’s most lively guitar, Tramp Attack’s James Redmond’s pounding bass and Neville Skelly’s rough and raw vocals were the perfect energy injection for the night.

The Glimmerman himself on guitar and vocals, and a solid ensemble kept the Liverpool crowd going for a few hours, with many quotes being thrown around from the crowd simply shocked to be a few feet away from Seagal.

You can catch The Viper Kings at East Village Arts Club on Seel Street on Friday 15^th August, with The Anfield Wrap party, also featuring KOF and The City Walls’ Paul Crowe with a stripped back performance. Tickets are £3 advance, which is a bargain for a night of this calibre.

Also making waves on the scene, and tipped from the start is Scarlet. After a well-received support slot with Bob Geldof’s Boomtown Rats and a storming headline set at Liverpool’s Chavasse Park, the band, headed up by Jessie Robinson formerly of The Thespians, who is enjoying the spoils of the spotlight with Scarlet now announcing they will be supporting Pulled Apart By Horses alongside God Damn on Wednesday the 20th August at East Village Arts Club (EVAC) and the band surely soon to be hitting even bigger heights once a release is on the horizon!

Tickets are £7 and available via See Tickets: http://www.seetickets.com/event/pulled-apart-by-horses/east-village-arts-club/804185 

Choice Cuts

Our selected choice of cuts this week involve Emilio Pinchi’s Lament (For Now) with a unique sound and outstanding lyrics, and a few EP’s under his belt, this Elliot Smith influenced singer/songwriter is one to watch after catching him perform around the city, and more recently at Tate Liverpool, which surely must have been an honour!

This month’s flashback record is Townes Van Zandt’s eponymous 1969 album, featuring some undiscovered gems such as Fare Thee Well, Miss Carousel; Lungs; Waitin’ Around To Die and Colorado Girl.

The third release from the country singer/songwriter, recorded in Nashville, blends together the harsher side of country folk music, with gritty vocals and emotional acoustic riffs, make this album a standout for its time, it’s more Woody Guthrie than Bob Dylan, and we love it.

That’s all from us this month at Electone, we will be back leading up to The Wicked Whispers debut album launch party and release!

Stay tuned! CP.

  by Chris Parkes (@rocknrollparksy)

Welcome to the next instalment of the Electone Records blog, as ever we’ll be doing a roundup of what’s going on within the music scene, both locally and from a far.

First and foremost, the time has finally come to make our most exciting announcements for label figureheads The Wicked Whispers! Yes, their long awaited debut album is finished and the brand new single ‘Chronological Astronaut’ is now available to pre-order from iTunes worldwide (released Monday 14th July).

‘Chronological Astronaut’ is taken from the upcoming debut album ‘Maps of the Mystic‘, (released Monday 22nd September on Electone Records). More exciting details coming soon…

The album maybe done but it’s no rest for The Wicked as the band are back in the rehearsal room ahead of their planned summer shows including the announcement of their debut album launch show in Liverpool.

These shows are also Electone Records co- promoted events working with some great people across the UK.

The Wicked Whispers will play:

Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh (June 28)
The Independent, Sunderland (July 5)
Broadcast, Glasgow (Aug 2) *ELECTONE SHOWCASE SPECIAL*
The Kazimier, Liverpool (Sept 13) *ALBUM LAUNCH PARTY*

All tickets are now on sale via See Tickets at the following link:
http://www.seetickets.com/artist/the-wicked-whispers/906054

We have some spectacular acts playing with The Wicked Whispers for these shows including some huge favourites of Electone Records including The Sons Of Bido Lito and Kobadelta supporting in Sunderland and The Liberty Takers and The Green Tambourine Band supporting in Edinburgh.

We are excited to also have announced an Electone Records Showcase taking place in Glasgow on Saturday 2^nd August 2014. All three of Electone Records acts will be performing including The Wicked Whispers, The Levons and a very special hometown performance from Red Sands. We have some great local DJ acts to announce also to polish off a truly special event.

First up, we’d like to welcome to our roster, The Levons. The retro rockers were on our radar from the very start, and have subsequently featured in our blogs a number of times and appeared at our Electone Records Club Nights.

We will shortly be releasing their debut EP on the label, which was recorded at Steve Powell’s Track Studios. One track we were treated to for a short while via their Soundcloud page was ‘Trainwreck’, a storming rocker of a track I’m sure you’ll all come to love.

Beginning on our June resident Electone Records club night, will are thrilled to be introducing a new element – ‘Dave Monks’ Pick of the Month’. BBC Introducing / Merseysides Dave Monks will be nominating a new act each month to appear on the night and making an occasional appearance to introduce the act and spin some tracks.

Tune into Dave Monks weekly Saturday show on BBC Radio Merseyside here each week live or listen again on-line here : http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p001d7td

All of us at the label were sad to hear of the passing of Deltasonic Records’ Alan Wills, after a tragic accident. Alan inspired and influenced a whole city for a decade or more, releasing records from The Coral, The Zutons, Candie Payne and The Sand Band to name a few. Alan will be sorely missed by us all, with some wonderful tributes from everyone who knew him. We would again like to pass on our condolences to his family and all who knew him.

Merseyside Police are still appealing for information. More information at the following link:
http://www.merseyside.police.uk/news/appeals/2014/05/09/cyclist-injured-east-prescot-road.aspx

The annual Liverpool International Music Festival (LIMF) announcements were made last week, featuring a handful of outstanding local acts such as Cast/La’s frontman John Power, The Farm and fresh from their storming sold out show at the Philharmonic Hall Liverpool, The Lightning Seeds will also be headlining the bill.

Some of our picks would be Matt Barton & The Carers, Emilio Pinchi, Nick Ellis, She Drew The Gun, The Tea Street Band , By The Sea and Mike Badger & The Shady Trio.

Also on the bill is Only Child, who released their debut album recently at The Zanzibar Club, entitled ‘From Muddy Water To High Ground’ with the debut single ‘Higher Ground’ recorded at Liverpool’s own Crosstown Records. More information and album availability here: http://onlychildmusicuk.wordpress.com/

Last month was Zutons guitarist Paul Molloy and The Sundowners’ Anti Fracking and Awareness gig at District. With a message of support from Yoko Ono, and an outstanding sold out gig featuring the likes of The Viper Kings, The Coral’s Ian Skelly, Paul Duffy and James Skelly, Edgar Summertyme Jones and Zutons man Dave McCabe to name a few. With another show in the pipeline, be sure to get behind this worthy cause.

Another outstanding gig this month was Rouge Gallery Promotions’ double header at The Pilgrim, featuring fantastic sets from a crop of Liverpool’s finest acts such as Sophie Anderson, Stray Wolf Club, Rowan Reid & The Vigilantes, The Sneaky Nixons (keep an eye out for their Maybes inspired graffiti around town!) and the return of The Wasters.

Selected cuts this month includes Ray La Montagne’s new album, Supernova. Produced by The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, who also guests on a number of tracks, the album sees Ray take on a more rocking psych approach, leaving past acoustic based albums of his own like ‘Trouble’ in the dust in comparison.

Another cut is the long lost Johnny Cash album Out Among The Stars. Recorded in the 80’s and shelved by Cash’s label, the recordings were found in 2012 by Cash’s son and prepped the album for release, an outstanding single was released, ‘She Used To Love Me A Lot’, right up there with Cash’s very best ballads.

We here at the label were most glad to hear of Liverpool venue The Magnet re-opening, with the best funk and disco tunes and the return of live acts over the bank holiday weekend and we wish the venue all the best!

That’s all from us for now, so check out some of the acts, buy a record or simply tune in! thanks for reading!

  by Chris Parkes (@rocknrollparksy)

Welcome to the Electone Records blog. For those who are new to the blog I have been asked by Electone to do a round up of exciting gigs, new releases and a look at new talent around Merseyside and beyond along with some label picks and features.

Kicking things off we have something different this time around as I sat down with Electone Records label dwellers, The Wicked Whispers and had a brief chat with frontman Mike Murphy about him producing the bands debut album which is promising to be one of the most exciting Liverpool debut albums in some time.

Continue reading →

Welcome to the third instalment of the Electone Records blog. As always we’ll be taking a look at new releases (and old releases that may have passed you by…) , some new musical discoveries and what gigs we recommend. Last but not least the complete low down on the forthcoming Electone Records Club Nights with a full on preview of the double launches in Glasgow and Liverpool this December!

Last time round we were finally creeping up on The Wicked Whispers headline Winter show at The Camp & Furnace wrapping up their 2013 UK tour. The night was extraordinary, with the band pulling out at all stops with a lighting show from Glasgow’s ‘The Minds Eye’ and some great support acts in name of Sankofa and Jimmy and The Revolvers.  The Wicked Whispers were also joined onstage for a few selected tracks from the forthcoming LP by Laura McKinlay , Martin Smith and Ray Wooding providing string and brass sections.

On the night, the band showcased some new material (intended for their debut record  which is in the pipeline for next year) and brought some interesting changes to the songs fans of the band know well. As a finishing touch, a very emotional cover of The Velvet Undergorund’s ‘Who loves  the Sun?’ brought the evenings proceedings to a close for the encore. What a night and what a hangover!

The band would like to thank everyone who turned up and supported the night. There will be some exciting news before Christmas from Electone Records and The Wicked Whispers regards  their next Liverpool show as part of the immanent album news on its way! Stay tuned! Regards to the long-awaited Wicked Whispers  debut album, Mike Murphy and Steve Powell began mixing last week and its taking incredible shape.

With the end of the year coming to a close, it doesn’t mean we’ve shut shop for the Winter here at Electone Records, instead we’ve got the fantastic Electone Records Club  Nights on the horizon, bringing you the absolute best in live local music alongside local vinyl spinners to keep your toes tapping throughout the night.

The club nights make their debut in Glasgow on 15^th December, with a very special matinée show kicking off at 1pm, making our home at Broadcast with Red Sands celebrating the release of their debut record, with The Wicked Whispers who will be performing a very special acoustic set. Also on the bill are Scotland’s own The Little Illusions and The Desert Willows, with The Freakbeats Club and Waterpistol spinning some selected 45’s.

Tickets are £5 each advance. Available here via TicketWeb here

After the Glasgow leg of the club nights, Red Sands will then make their way to Merseyside, for the first Liverpool leg of the Electone Records Club Nights, with support on the night in the form of a host of local talent with classic 50s esque rockers The Romleys, the highly anticipated debut show from new local prospects The Grim Fandango, as well as the Merseybeat homage of  Thomas McConnell.

Special guest DJs on the night come in the form of The Wicked Whispers. Get your tickets here

Selected limited edition stock from the Electone Records vinyl catalogue will also be available on the nights, and will make perfect stocking fillers!

Other recently announced gigs include Ian Broudie and The Lightning Seeds performing with the Liverpool Royal Philharmonic Orchestra featuring special guests for one night only in April of next year.

Broudie and his band will be performing hits from The Lightning Seeds as well as his 2004 solo effort and songs from Broudie’s extensive producer portfolio, which could see Broudie and co. perform songs by the likes of The Coral, The Zutons, Echo & The Bunnymen and The Pale Fountains. Special guests rumoured for the night so far include the likes of The Coral’s Bill Ryder-Jones and Miles Kane. This one off show looks to be an absolute must see.

Off the back of their recent support slot with Electone Records’ The Wicked Whispers, local cosmic rockers Sankofa are to release the highly anticipated follow up to their sold out 7″ Vinyl ‘Siren Song Part 1 & 2’ which was released by Eighties Vinyl Records.

The Zanzibar Club on Seel Street will play host to the release of their 4 track 10″ EP on Saturday 21^st December, with a sleeve designed by famous 60s psychedelic poster and album artist John Van Hamersveld, who is best known for providing cover art for the likes of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Grateful Dead and Blondie, amongst others.

Support comes in the form of Manchester rockers Rook &The Ravens  on the back of their US Tour, alongside local five piece psych rockers Mohebbi.

If Sankofa’s well-received performance at the Camp & Furnace is anything to go by, this will be a must see in one of the city’s best venues, which will be perfectly tailored to their garage psych sound.

Tickets are £5, and are available from here

The 2^nd support act for The Wicked Whispers’ gig at the Camp & Furnace was of course Jimmy & The Revolvers. The four piece release their Sunday Morning EP on New Years Day at The Lomax. Limited tickets available on the door, and support comes in the form of Lomax veteran Alistair Said, Gaffney and Raw City.

This week was a huge week for Red Sands who released their debut self titled album right here on Electone Records. The album has been a long journey for the band going back several years with the band slowly chipping away crafting this emotional body of work. Strangely intentional or otherwise, the LP perfectly sums up the feelings and atmosphere of the journey with subject matter verging on some very home truths, family sentiments and life in general amongst the working class of Glasgow. With almost med evil sounding folk and a tinge of 70’s pych rock the album is a haunting testament to Glasgow’s musical heritage. We will get a few words with frontman Neil Donaldson in the next blog issue.

Other selected listenings this week come in the form of Ray LaMontagne, with his fantastic 2004 debut effort ‘Trouble’ firmly on the playlist this week. The Ethan Johns produced record was very well received, with ‘Jolene’ a firm gem in Ray’s songwriting crown.

The latest cut from Findlay makes the list this week, with the release of her new EP entitled ‘Greasy Love’, the title track as ferocious as ever from the Manchester born, London dwelling front woman, who is one of the best live acts I’ve seen in some time. The four track EP also features the incredible collaboration ‘Black Cloud, Silver Lining’ with former Coral guitarist turned singer/songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones, showcasing the range of both their talents.

You can catch Findlay on their UK tour now.

As featured last week was the sad passing of Lou Reed at the age of 71, but previously unheard track ‘I’m Not A Young Man Anymore’ set to be released on the upcoming Velvet Underground 45^th anniversary re-issue of White Light/White Heat. The 30 track collection features outtakes, rarities, new mixes and bonus material. Guitarist John Cale and Reed had worked on the re-issue together before the latter’s death last month.

With the winter closing in, we all know about summer records, but now for some winter ones. Don’t look much further than the classics such as Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ or Bob Dylan’s 1963 breakthrough album ‘Freewheelin’, perhaps recreate the album cover with a partner?

If you’re sick of the classics and love a good Scouse singer/songwriter, pick up Jimmy Campbell’s incredible 1969 record ‘Son Of Anastasia’, with tracks such as ‘Lyanna’ and ‘Another Springtime’s Passed Me By’ make it a solid Liverpool album. There’s a few copies on eBay and it’s of course on iTunes, with Christmas round the corner, it’ll be the perfect stocking filler.

After a few doubts and delays, fans who had invested in the Michael Head and The Red Elastic Band project got their reward, with the EP vinyl arriving in the past week or two, depending on your luck. The limited vinyl copies are brilliant, the trumpets on ‘Newby Street’ are delightful and the song plays out just as you’d like and it’s hard not putting the needle down for another listen.

With the vinyl it’s clear this is the way it was intended to be heard which is how we like it here at Electone Records. You can discover a whole new sound when listening to the black lacquer version. We can confirm Mick Head intended ‘Artorious Revisited’ for vinyl offering CD and download to those who are yet to turn to turntable.

Another album with a similar feel is my personal album of the year which I’ve mentioned a few times, Bill Ryder-Jones’ A Bad Wind Blows In My Heart, the delicateness of the songs really come out when the needle hits the groove. It’s beautiful packaged as well, stunning artwork and the album was recently named in the top 10 of Q Magazine’s albums of the year.

Another new release comes in the form of a new film, entitled ‘Good Ol’ Freda’, a new documentary about Freda Kelly, described as a shy Liverpudllian teenager who became the secretary to The Beatles at the height of their fame, and her involvement with the fan club led to postal vans of fan mail being delivered to her home daily and Freda was in their inner circle so much, that it was once reported she had married Paul McCartney.

For the first time in fifty years, Freda tells her story to the cameras, and the documentary looks to be a fascinating insight into the band’s early days and her role in their rise to fame.

You can pre-order the DVD here

After finally picking up a copy of Shane Meadows’ Made Of Stone’, the documentary following The Stone Roses around after their reformation, and however much of a fan you are, you’ll love it. You’re right there with them, nervous before they go on, ready to cut the tension with a knife and you’re overjoyed for them once they flawlessly pull of gigs and even rehearsals.

The interviews with fans are a highlight too, there’s a wavelength and they’re all on it, a stand out was the bloke willing to trade his house and his car for a wristband to their comeback free fan only gig at Warrington Parr Street Hall, to be fair I’d do nearly anything to hear those first few bass noted of ‘I Wanna Be Adored’ and the last cymbal crash of ‘I Am The Resurrection’.

Shout out goes to Bold Street’s Café Tabac Twitter account for this recent tweet: “Scouting For Girls play Liverpool tonight. Come into Tabac and show us your gig ticket for a permanent ban. We’re that nice. #NoTimeForThat”

Thanks for reading and be sure to get down to one (or both!) of the club nights support some local music, or check out some of the releases mentioned or take a look at some of the past posts. Tune in next time!

To round up we would like to quickly shoot over our picks of the new releases available in independent records stores nationwide to get in those Christmas Stockings including Rough Trade, Piccadilly Records, LoveMusic and Probe Records.

Pyschemagik finally release the vinyl sampler version of the superb compilation ‘Psychemagik Diabolical Synthetic Fantasia’ which has already had a huge influence on their early CD release.

The Oh See’s released another wonderful single collection ‘Singles Collection Volume 3’ this week on Castle Face Records.

Pre-Orders have gone live following Heavenly Records announcement last week that Jimi Goodwin’s debut album ‘Odludek’ is to be released March 24^th 2014. Alongside this heavenly also announced their 100^th release will be the long-awaited debut album ‘Sun Structures’ by Electone and Wicked Whispers favourites by Temples released 10^th February 2014.

Last but not least and not to sound bias but our album of the month and album of 2013 has to be Red Sands self titled 12” debut released last Monday 9^th December right here on Electone Records. With only 300 12” pressed for the 1^st Edition, downloadable codes (for those who like to listen on the move or without a turntable) and already receiving praise from the likes of Shout4Music, hailing the album ‘a promising debut’, it stand as one of the most haunting and honest folk/rock albums you’ll here in recent times. In addition we cant wait to have them perform live at the coming live Electone Club Nights with a good sing along!