Chicago, Illinois Martina: We only had a six-hour stop off in Chicago, so we took advantage of the modern age by phoning Papa Booth to see if he could use his own world-wide-web prowess to locate us the nearest internet café in the Windy City. Catherine: Yes, the café he scored us was substantially out [...]
Guilty As Charged
Guilty As Charged: Part 9 – Gay Dad
As a fifteen year old, I did not care one bit that Gay Dad’s expansive media coverage was due to their roots as music journos rather than traditional hard graft. Cutting out pictures of frontman Cliff Jones and faithfully sticking them to my GCSE English folder, it didn’t bother me that such unashamed glam-rock influences [...]
Music: Reviews
Watch a track from the “Meet The Eels” bonus DVD
Eels. Eels. Even ignoring The Hitcher’s recent day-glo turn on the latest series of The Mighty Boosh, you can’t have avoided Eels lately. Daisies of the Galaxy is one of Deputy Motel Towers resident and Eff Em scribe and blagger supreme Alexia’s favourite albums of recent times, and to tide you over until our reviews [...]
Classic Albums
Classic Albums: Part 7 – Tigermilk
Belle and Sebastian – Tigermilk (Electric Honey) Released: 1996 (re-released by Jeepster, 1999) Probably the greatest pop band recording in the world today and almost definitely the greatest to come out of Scotland, Belle and Sebastian continue to pump out album after album of truly inspired genius. And it all started with this sought-after gem. [...]
Travel
Fugitive Motel Travel Diaries: Coming To America, Part 1: New York City and Washington, DC
New York City, New York Martina: I woke up in our Niagara Falls bedroom with a really weird, itchy rash all over my body. Uh-oh. We left for NY, where we landed around midnight, spending the next four nights at the Candy Hostel. The next day, I paid through the nose for a doctor to [...]
Music: Reviews
Supergrass – Diamond Hoo Ha Man
Supergrass – Diamond Hoo Ha Man (Parlophone) January 14th, 2007 5.0/6.0 Quite how on earth this majestic comeback single hasn’t received more attention, to be honest, is totally beyond my comprehension. Fuelled by a melodic guitar riff typical of the band’s finest moments like Sun Hits The Sky, Richard III and breakthrough hit Alright, this [...]
Mixtapes'n'Tapes
Mixtapes’n'Tapes: Part 11 – Commercial Breakdown
The (good) shoe now being firmly on the other foot, I find myself in the position of power. So it is then that I pass the baton onto Tom, and entrust him to explore the rich seam of “songs from television adverts”. Knowing that Tom has recently moved to pastures new in the wonderful world [...]
Album Reviews
A Refreshing Alternative
IAMX – The Alternative November 2nd, 2007 4.3/6.0 When I listened to this album I was surprised to say the least. Formerly of Sneaker Pimps, Chris Corner’s band IAMX seem to blend a mix of thumping techno beats with a singing style that has on most songs, a kind of protest element. The comparison to [...]
Music: Reviews
Babyshambles – You Talk
Babyshambles – You Talk (Parlophone) December 3rd, 2007 2.5/6.0 To these ears, You Talk sounds like a Libertines throwback. The chord sequences are repetitive, and when accompanied by Doherty’s wailing, make it sound like a Libertines B– side, and a bad one at that. It’s simple, unwaning and the “# yyyyyyyyyyyou talk! #” lyric becomes [...]
Guilty As Charged
Guilty As Charged – Part 8: Girls Aloud
Having chatted about music at work recently, someone suggested that I actually wasn’t an indie snob. The proof of this? Girls Aloud. Well, I don’t really see why they should be seen as a guilty pleasure. Girls Aloud have consistently released great nuggests of pop music, at a time when most of the charts is [...]