interview: Sunderbans.

Here is another very perspective band. They are known as Sunderbans and live in London now. They like to travel and it feels in their music. Recently we asked these guys to tell us about themselves and answer on three questions...

1.) How did they form?

Chris: Maurice and I met while living in Sheffield in more debauched days. At the time I was in a one man band called ‘Let’s Bitter Cinema’ which consisted of a drum machine, synthesizer, electric guitar and some impassioned singing/shouting/screaming. Sheffield is a beautifully weird place which is very close to both our hearts but it had its limitations. It was time for a new adventure. By coincidence both of us decided to move to London and therefore ended up moving down together.
As well as Sheffield having its limitation so did being a one man band. I needed to find some other members. Maurice could play the guitar so he joined. Dave, a friend of friend, shared a taxi home following one of my last gigs as a one man band. He revealed he could play the drums so he was also in the band.

For some time we carried on with the moniker ‘Let’s Bitter Cinema’, playing my old songs. Within this period we learnt how to play our instruments and more importantly how to play together but we began to find the music and my history restricting and a little tiresome. We became less angry and I guess more musical.

We needed a fresh slate as were now very much a band. We started over and formed ‘Sunderbans’.

2.) About their main influences?

Maurice: I’m influenced by much of what my parents played me as a child. Particularly Nina Simone, Billie Holiday and Buddy Holly. My brother plays me lots of traditional folk - Pete Seeger, Martin Carthy, Blind Willie Johnson which inspires me too. Music I like today is Deer hunter (Microcastle/Weird Era Continued), Arcade Fire (Funeral) and Envelopes (Here Comes The Wind).

Chris: I guess I’m influenced by louder bands than Maurice, some of my favourite bands being Pixies, Sonic Youth and ..and you will know us by the trail of dead (well, definitely their earlier stuff). I used to hate the Smiths, never really got it until recently, but along with Orange Juice, they are 2 British bands that are having a real influence on me at the moment. These are just a few, I probably could go on forever.

3.) About the latest single?

“We Only Can Because We Care” is going to be our debut single which is due to be released with Young and Lost in March. Henrik Orrling from the phenomenal Envelopes produced the single which was recorded in a church in Crouch End.
We hold Henrik in such a high regard and hope to work with him again. Think he really helped us capture the essence of the band in the song. It is quite ambitious choice as it’s by no means a formulaic pop songs but are very proud of it.
Also, the brilliant Nicola Probert (his page on Facebook) has made an amazing video for song so make sure you watch it when it’s released.

Sunderbans - Road Kill
MySpace

errors // album coming.

The band have revealed details of their coming album and UK tour. The record will be released on February 15, 2010. Also Errors hit the road in February beginning with a hometown show in Glasgow. More information you can search on their MySpace page.

table manners // still working.

Monotonous knocking, silent noises that become louder and the deep voice from nowhere. It strains atmosphere making it cold and sad from the first sight but at the same time it has own romantic spirit. It is Table Manners. It’s the band that continues traditions pawned by experimental, industrial and post-punk acts of previous decades but interprets them in the modern way.

They still work on the compilation which you will be able to download for free soon as they mentioned. It will include some new material and all the songs they've already shared through the last year.

MySpace

egyptian hip hop: Neither Egyptian, Nor Hip Hop.

Egyptian Hip Hop is in the great tradition of Manchester bands. They have no relations to Egypt and their genre is not a hip-hop. Probably the first reason why I decided to pass by this band is their unusual name. They make music that quarter of a century considered to be Manchester’s brand. It seems that it’s post-punk with romantic electronic which all the known bands in Manchester 80s composed. The band is unsigned but I’m guessing not for long.

I’ve read that guys have links with Johnny Marr who taught guitarist Nick Delap how to play the Smiths’ tunes and gave him some old guitar pedals.
EHH recorded their material for a debut single. Late of the Pier’s Sam is now producing the band. Really great start! I certainly hope it gets in the way of enjoying their music.

Egyptian Hip Hop - Heavy Heaven (demo)

MySpace

band spotlight: Mirrors.

Today we have one more synth-heroes from Britain here. These are from southern Brighton but their music is closer to northern Manchester or Sheffield. It’s not hard to guess that their ideals are such bands as New Order and Ultravox but Mirrors try to rebirth eighties in their unique manner. Mirrors’ sound hypnotise listener making him enamoured and gets directly into the heart.

Highly recommended to watch their live performances. And if you can’t visit their concert watch out the link below. These guys are waited by the big future!

Mirrors in concert
MySpace

band spotlight: Model Worker.

I can’t skip this wonderful band and don’t try to write few lines about it despite the fact that it was very hard to find any information.

I was very surprised when I found out that these guys are from Chicago. And it seems that they came straight from the early eighties and fell into our times which are rich on poor music. From all new wave acts of that epoch they remind me the Twins most of all. Music of them both is imbued with new romantics' spirit, cold sounds of drum-machines and so sweet synthesizers' melodies. They force you to dance and you cannot stop.

Model Worker released their debut single nearly in March, 2009. It included tracks “Radio Life” and “You and I”. Recently they exposed their new single “Red to Grey” for free downloading. So let's keep our eyes peeled!

Model Worker - Red to Grey
MySpace

band spotlight: The Wild Mercury Sound.

It’s so great when you discover a new unsigned band and understand – this is it! When it sounds fresh and you want to get their tracks on your i-pod for listening for days on end. Shit! I’m really interested in these guys. Their music reminds me Bombay Bicycle Club in the beginning. Oh! those were the days! Unfortunately when the band signs a contract and rewrites songs in the super-duper studio it becomes another. And it’s impossible to refer to them in any other way than cursorily.
“Make guitar music which will mean something to people” – I absolutely agree with Banji’s words. Keep it up, guys!

The Wild Mercury Sound - Chemistry

MySpace

review: French Kissing - "Oh Suzanne".

Young Londoners, French Kissing, are ready to release their debut single "Oh Suzanne" on “Sleep All Day Records” featuring B-side “The Lonely Streets of Cairo”. This one is like an epitome of sunny days in the cold winter nights. The band's record will be appreciated even by those who are not susceptible to songs with lo-fi garage sound. It's necessary to mention that French Kissing's first ever release was on compilation produced by Thee Vicars' "Holy Twist Records".

MySpace

flashguns // making the album.

Here it is one of the most perspective English bands. And now it is occupied by making one of the most expected albums of this year. Flashguns were well-known even before they released their first single. Unfortunately the band used to tackle the problem to be as three pieces, keyboard player Oliver James Wright amiably parted from Flashguns. But changes didn’t prevent making a sensation! Guys are working in studio and the first part of the album is already done.

blighters // upcoming single.

The band announced new single "Heartbeat" that will be released in a few weeks. It will also include "Don't Want Nothing" as a B-side. They recommend fans to have patience, keep their eyes skinned and watch out for the video too. Guys already have a couple of nice tracks on their MySpace page and work preparing material for a debut album.

interview: Scarlets.

Turin’s Scarlets is one of the most interesting acts in so called new Italian wave. Few days ago we asked Stefano Murgia to give answers to our questions about their music and creativity. And here it is what has turned out from this.

When did you form your band and what inspired you to make music?

We formed in 2008 in our hometown Torino; the line-up has changed several times since then and recently Ugo joined us as guitarist. It may sound stupid, but the reason why we formed a band is because of music; I mean, we didn't start because we were particularly inspired by someone, we just felt music, it was the right way to express for us.

There is a strong spirit of the early eighties in your works. What artists influenced you mostly?

Yes, we listen to a lot of music from that period, I think the artists that influenced us mostly are The Chameleons, Ultravox and Scars. However, it seems like post-punk is becoming fashionable recently and I don't believe in "revivals". We write music for and inspired by our times. I think we live in hopeless times, we don't even have a wall to tear down.

What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs?

I started approaching new topics recently, but the relevant thing is that they all recall a same atmosphere which is created also by the blend between words and music. We have now reached a good coherence between those two aspects and it's just "scarlets" you know.

Are you going to release an album or EP this year?

We're currently working on our debut album. We can't wait to start the recordings, since the songs are sounding pretty amazing. It is going to be a very intense record, from what I can hear now.

Could you name some modern artists that you like and which music is interesting for you or you may name 3-5 albums of the 2009 that were your favourite?

I haven't bought any album this year, apart from "Primary Colours", but I think the most interesting band around are still The Social; I don't know if they're still playing, I should message them... However, who cares their music and lyrics are brilliant and they released a vinyl called " A Call to Arms" this year on their record label Divided London.

There is an impression that Italy gives world a couple of bands which sound is very fresh. It is stylish and reminds about British post-punk of the late 70s and early 80s. What do you think about such bands as Dance for Burgess and Soviet Soviet for example?

Yes, it's good to know there are some compatriots who dedicate their time to music. Then, I don't think it is stylish and if it is, it would be important to see what there's behind a certain style. Sometimes there's nothing behind, just the idea to create something "cool", which quickly turns into shit. I can see this in many new Italian bands today, that's why we can't really talk of a scene here. Dance for Burgess are amazing, we often share the stage and everytime we have lot of fun together; we have similar ideas concerning attitude, but they have a much more punchy sound. Another great italian band are LTD (le troie in discoteche), their singer has a very deep vocal which creates an unique atmosphere with their Chameleons-alike guitar riffs. You should check them both (Dance for Burgess; LTD).

What can you say about Ukraine? Do you know that there are a lot of people here that will be happy to visit your concert?

A friend of mine was born in Ukraine, I bet it is a beautiful country. It's an unexplored part of Europe which I would really like to visit. I had no idea we had some fans in Ukraine, that makes me really proud, I hope we'll meet them very soon!

Scarlets' links: MySpace and Facebook.

band spotlight: White Russia.

The new act from South East London with female vocals and cold futuristic sound is very close to Depeche Mode when they were young. White Russia already have a fascinating video for the song "Charmless State" which was directed by Lee Mangan.



"Charmless State" features in his debut film "R" selected by the Independent New York International Film Festival and the Berlin Film Festival 2010.

MySpace

velvet and velvet dolls // shoegaze in USSR.

This band existed in 1988, in Izhevsk (Russia nowadays). Their tracks are very experimental and were recorded with the help of two old soviet tape recorders. Primitive rhythms and noise guitar with "Elektronika" effects created special atmosphere.

Velvet and Velvet Dolls appeared on some compilations in Japan and Germany. It's a sad fact but such music was perceived only by few in the soviet society.

MySpace

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motorama // new video and single.

"Ghost" video was directed and shot by motorama in december 2009. This is a home one. The quality and shots make us realise it from the beginning. But otherwise this is it. This track reminds about froze russian winters, so the idea of making this video low quality and melancholic suits it more than anything else.

EP "Bear" which band from Rostov released last summer, wasn't a white elephant for people who appreciate such stylish new wave sound. Synths in this track also remind us about Joy Division. But it's necessary to notice that "Ghost" differs from all previous releases. Wait for an album.

MySpace
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