Brum Notes Magazine August 2012

August 2012

www.brumnotes.com music and lifestyle for the west midlands

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GOING UNDERGROUND WITH THE FLYOVER SHOW 2012

BIRMINGHAM’S BEST KEPT SECRET

ALSO INSIDE: Victories At Sea Troumaca The Traps Jaws Matt Tolfrey The Destroyers Ocean Colour Scene’s Simon Fowler

IN PICTURES: Madonna in Birmingham / One Beat Sunday / Mostly Jazz Festival AND: Your complete guide to what’s on in August August 2012

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Sat 11th Aug • £22.50 adv

Fri 5th Oct • £10 adv

The Official MC Bassman Birthday Bash

The Skints

9pm - 5am • over 18s only

ft. Shaolin Master “Straight Through The Gate”

Thurs 16th Aug • £3/£4/£5 adv 10.30pm - 3.30am • over 18s only

Propaganda A Level Results Pirate Party Fri 25th Aug • £8 adv 5.15pm - 10pm

Plug’d In Showcase ft. Feird Wish + Heels + Ronin + Call Atlantis + Stillpoint + Dressing For Pleasure + Rising Struggle

Sun 26th Aug • £10 adv

A Wilhelm Scream Sat 8th Sept • £10 adv

The Rollin’ Clones

50th Anniversary Meals on Wheels Tour

Sun 9th Sept • £9 adv

IWRESTLEDABEARONCE Sat 15th Sept 6pm

The Cult

+ The Mission + Killing Joke

Sat 15th Sept • £8 adv 5.15pm - 10pm

Plug’d In Showcase

ft. Black Russian + The Tennysons + Twelve Clay Feet + The Nuclear Weasels + Silicone Daisy + Stormborn + Sophie Bohanan + Luke Huntley

Sat 27th Oct • £15 adv

Sat 3rd Nov • £13.50 adv

Sun 28th Oct • £16 adv

Tues 6th Nov • £18.50 adv

+ The Dangerous Summer + Don Broco + Transit

Mon 29th Oct • £20 adv

Tues 6th Nov • £10 adv

Weds 10th Oct • £22 adv

The Luxury Gap Tour

Pulled Apart

By Horses

Serj Tankian

Tues 30th Oct • £15 adv

Weds 7th Nov • £15 adv

6pm - 10pm

Tues 9th Oct • £10 adv

Lower Than Atlantis

6pm - 10pm

Thurs 11th Oct • £17.50 adv

Mindless Self Indulgence Shinedown Heaven 17

Tyler Hilton

Hot Chip

Weds 31st Oct • £10 adv

Thurs 11th Oct • £14 adv

Alt-J

Twin Atlantic Nightwish

6.30pm - 10pm

Punch Brothers

6.30pm - 10pm

Sat 10th Nov • £12.50 adv

Fri 10th Aug • £6 adv

Sun 30th Sept • £8 adv

Hopsin

Foreign Beggars Fri 12th Oct • £12 adv 6pm - 10pm

Ren Harvieu Sat 13th Oct • £18 adv / £50 VIP

Hugh Cornwell Mon 15th Oct

Bloc Party Mon 15th Oct • £14 adv

Impericon Never Say Die! Tour 2012 Weds 17th Oct • £13 adv

6pm - 10pm

Room 94

+ Disclosure + The Famous Class + Burn So Bright

Sun 7th Oct • £6 adv

Sat 18th Aug • £5 adv

The Villains & Vigilantes Tour

Rescheduled show • original tickets valid

Brum Notes in association with Manifest Live present

Jaws

6pm - 10pm

+ The Tone Thieves + Wide Eyed + These Kings + Caves

+ Feed The Rhino + Brotherhood Of The Lake

Tues 28th Aug • £10 adv

Gallows

Thurs 18th Oct • £17.50 adv

Twisted Wheel

Flatliners

We Are Knuckle Dragger, Romans, Antlered Man Tues 16th Oct • £7 adv

Fearles Vampire Killers + The Dead Lay Waiting

Sat 20th Oct • £5 adv

Snooty Bobs

+ Sugar Mama + Howling Owls + Claire Boswell + Jody Capper

Newton Faulkner

Sat 1st Sept • £5 adv

City Lightz

Thurs 25th Oct • £12.50 adv

Mon 17th Sept • £12 adv

Fri 19th Oct • £11.50 adv 6pm - 10pm

Evile + Wolf

Performing ‘The Action Is Go’

The Jim Jones Revue

+ Jimmy Davis + Mezzotonic + Luke Truth + Back To Back Covert + Arkwright ft. Bugzy

Fri 26th Oct • £12.50 adv

Sat 20th Oct

Mon 3rd Sept • £10 adv

Animals As Leaders

Fu Manchu

Tues 18th Sept • £13 adv

Dying Fetus

The Gaslight Anthem

+ Job For A Cowboy + Revocation + Cerebral Bore

Sun 21st Oct • £12.50 adv

Thurs 20th Sept • £11 adv

Reverend And The Makers

The Maine

7.30pm - 11pm

Sun 21st Oct • £12.50 adv

Fri 21st Sept

Gaz Coombes

Halestorm

Mon 22nd Oct • £15 adv

6pm - 10pm

Sat 22nd Sept • £22.50 adv

Nik Kershaw and his band Sun 23rd Sept • £13.50 adv

Labrinth + Dbanj

Tues 23rd Oct • £10 adv

Little Comets

Motion City Soundtrack

Weds 24th Oct • £18.50 adv

Weds 26th Sept • £11.50 adv

Bowling For Soup

6.30pm - 10pm

Aiden Grimshaw

6pm - 10pm

+ The Dollyrots + Patent Pending

Fri 26th Oct • £17.50 adv

Sat 29th Sept • £16 adv

6pm - 10pm

Maverick Sabre

The Enemy

Sat 29th Sept • £21.50 adv

Fri 26th Oct • £6 adv

Teedra Moses

Thurs 4th Oct • £10 adv

Vince Kidd

Brum Notes presents...

Dakota Beats + Paper Shapes + Dive Exit + The One Twos

Pearl Jem

Europe’s Number 1 Tribute to Pearl Jam

Sat 9th Sept • £7 adv

Tom Hingley

(The Beast Inside UK Tour) Performing the Inspiral Carpets 2nd Album ‘The Beast Inside’ and reading excerpts from his book ‘Carpet Burns’ + Rory Mckee + The Brightsparks

6pm - 10pm + TesseracT

Sat 27th Oct • £11 adv

Euroblast Tour

ft. Jeff Loomis + Monuments + Vildhjarta + Stealing Axion

Fri 31st Oct • £6 adv 6pm - 10pm

Dive Bella Dive

+ Proxies + The Hype Theory + Maycomb

Mon 10th Sept • £6 adv

Sun 4th Nov • £8 adv

Weds 12th Sept • £7 adv 6pm - 10pm

The Last Carnival

ft. Devil Sold His Soul + Heights + Heart Of A Coward + Steak Number Eight

Fri 14th Sept • £6 adv

Fri 16th Nov • £8.50 adv

StakeOut

[spunge]

Sue Denim

6pm - 10pm

Fri 21st Sept • £8 adv 6pm - 10pm

Malefice

Metal Hammer Razor Tour

6.30pm - 10pm

Mon 19th Nov • £8 adv

Juan Zelada

+ Silent Screams + Splintertone

Fri 23rd Nov • £10 adv

Sun 23rd Sept • £10 adv

The Lancashire Hotpots

Anneke Van Giersbergen

6.30pm - 10pm

+ The Re-Entrants

16-18 Horsefair, Bristol St, Birmingham, B1 1DB 2

Doors 7.00pm unless stated • Venue box office opening hours: Mon-Fri 12pm-4pm, Sat 11am-4pm • No booking fee on cash transactions Notes Magazine ticketweb.co.uk • seetickets.com • gigantic.com •Brum ticketmaster.co.uk

CONTENTS

Madonna live at Birmingham NIA Photo by Andy Watson/Drw-Images Brum Notes Magazine Unit 12 The Bond 180-182 Fazeley Street Digbeth Birmingham B5 5SE info@brumnotes.com 0121 224 7363 Advertising 0121 224 7363 advertising@brumnotes.com Distribution StickupMedia!

0121 224 7364 Editor Chris Moriarty Contributors Words: Amy Sumner, Daron Billings, Guy Hirst, Jack Parker, Catherine Roche, Amelia Burr, Ellie Crean Pictures: Wayne Fox, Andy Watson/ Drw-Images, Gobinder Jhitta, Sheryce Smith, Jade Sukiya Style editor: Jade Sukiya jade@brumnotes.com Design: Adam Williams, Andy Aitken Connect Twitter: @BrumNotesMag Facebook: www.facebook.com/ BrumNotesMagazine Online: www.brumnotes.com

Regulars News 4-5 Live Reviews 20-23 Style 24-25 Food & Drink 26 What’s On 28-31 Music and Features Clubbing: DJ Matt Tolfrey 6 Troumaca 8 Victories At Sea 10-11 Jaws 12-13 The Traps 14-15 Paul Murphy 16 Simon Fowler 17 Soweto Kinch on The Flyover Show 18-19

All content Š Brum Notes Magazine. Views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Brum Notes Magazine. While all care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of content, Brum Notes Magazine will not be held liable for any errors or losses claimed to have been incurred by any errors. Advertising terms and conditions available on request.

August 2012

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pop-up festival kickstarts build-up for oxjambrum takeover 2012

one-off pre-festival show announced ahead of brum comedy festival

IN BRIEF

The cream of new comedy talent will come together for a one-off show to help mark the return of the Birmingham Comedy Festival.

The festival itself will take place across the city from October 5 to 14 at various venues, but organisers have announced a special pre-festival spectacular at Birmingham’s multiaward winning Glee Club. The jam-packed line-up on September 26 will include former Edinburgh Best Newcomer nominee and television regular Josh Widdicombe (pictured), accomplished comedy writer and stand-up Holly Walsh and another familiar face in Charlie Baker, team captain from Channel 4’s A Short History of Everything Else.

Completing the line-up will be well-travelled but now Brum-based comic Mickey Sharma as well as a very special guest still to be announced. Tickets for the show are now on sale priced £12.50 (£8 NUS), and are available from 0871 472 0400 or www.glee.co.uk.

To keep up to date with announcements for this year’s Birmingham Comedy Festival visit www.bhamcomfest.co.uk or follow @BhamComFest on Twitter.

A new cabaret night aimed at singles launches in Kings Heath this month. The Kitchen Garden Cafe will host The Mee Club twice a month, featuring a vibrant line-up of entertainment in a relaxed and casual environment. The first event takes place on August 7 and will be fortnightly Tuesdays at the York Road venue, featuring performances and readings from poets, storytellers, authors, stand-up comics, actors and musicians. Food will be served from 6.30pm with the cabaret starting at 7.30pm. Tickets are £7 from the venue or www.wegottickets.com.

West Bromwich-based arts centre The Public has unveiled its autumn comedy programme, which will include legendary comic Alexei Sayle making a rare return to the Black Country. The former Young Ones star will bring his new stand-up show to the venue on October 17, while other star names lined up for the coming months include exheavy metal drummer Steve Hughes on November 3 and the charismatic Patrick Monahan who returns on September 28 to compere The Public’s Comedy Showcase.

For full details visit www.thepublic.com.

detroit dj legend theo parrish heads for birmingham

A landmark vintage shop in Digbeth will unveil a unique ‘try before you buy’ Record Bar as part of its expansion. Urban Village in The Custard Factory was due to unveil its newly expanded premises at the end of July, allowing the clothes and vintage goods store to stock up to 1,500 more vintage fashion items and more than 5,000 records. The new layout includes a Record Bar which allows customers to sit, put on vinyl and listen to tunes as they shop. Owner Frankie Johns said: “It seems record shops are becoming a thing of the past, but in my mind it is still important to have physical music, not everyone wants to download music.”

Legendary Detroit soul and house music pioneer Theo Parrish will perform a one-off DJ set at an intimate Birmingham club this month.

Parrish, widely regarded as one of the world’s finest DJs, will play a headline slot for Leftfoot at the 250-capacity main room of the Hare & Hounds in Kings Heath on August 31. Born in Washington DC and raised in Chicago, he later moved to Detroit and is credited as a major player in revitalising the city’s now-famous underground house music scene. Leftfoot head honcho Adam Regan said: “Theo Parrish seems to unite the older disco/soul heads with the younger house and techno crowd. He’s basically a complete don on the turntables and needs to be experienced live at least once in your lifetime.” Tickets are £10 adv from www.theticketsellers.co.uk.

Some of Birmingham’s most talented creative graduates will transform the city’s Cathedral Square with a unique art exhibition this month. In:Site, A Graduate Festival of Creativity, takes place from August 6 to 10, with arts agency Craftspace bringing 15 new arts graduates from Birmingham City University and further afield to showcase contemporary twists on traditional craft techniques with a series of unique displays around the cathedral off Colmore Row.

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Brum Notes Magazine

Photo by Louise Palfreyman

The build-up to the OxjamBrum Takeover 2012 began in unique style after shoppers were surprised with a series of impromptu musical performances.

The popular one-day music festival in aid of charity Oxfam will once again take over venues across Birmingham with some of the city’s most exciting musical talent on October 13. And organisers continued their tradition of announcing its arrival in unusual style with a free ‘popup’ festival on July 14 which saw Midlands band Young Runaways perform five secret gigs at Oxfam shops around Birmingham, followed by a cast of ‘festival-goers’, complete with wellies and fancy dress.

For more information on the Takeover on October 13 or to find out how to get involved visit www.oxjambrum.org.uk.

birmingham town hall to be lit up for olympic closing spectacular

Supersonic countdown begins

The historic Town Hall in Birmingham city centre will be transformed with a spectacular performance of light projections, music and dance as Olympic celebrations in the West Midlands draw to a close.

The exterior of the iconic building in Chamberlain Square will be illuminated with 3D images, light displays and visual effects to form a breathtaking backdrop to an evening of contemporary and classical British Asian dancing and music.

Mandala will be a free show taking place on Friday, September 7, and will help mark the end of the London 2012 Festival, a 12week nationwide celebration which sees a variety of cultural events continuing throughout this month.

Entertainment on September 7 kicks off at 6.30pm with a set by Brooklyn-based dhol n brass band Red Baraat. The evening will also feature the music of Anoushka Shankar and Zakir Hussain, as well as a special live performance from multi-award winning drum n bass and electronica producer and renowned tabla player Talvin Singh.

The free outdoor performances of Mandala at 8.30pm and 9.30pm will see some of the best known talents in British Asian dance teaming up with urban artists for a contemporary performance set to a powerful soundtrack, with the unique projections and light displays against the Town Hall triggered by dance moves and music, as well as audience interaction.

It follows the success of The Voyage in June to help mark the opening of the London 2012 celebrations, which saw giant projections beamed onto the Town Hall while hundreds of dancers, singers and musicians performed.

More events will take place across the Midlands throughout August, including a variety of free activities, to help celebrate the Olympics. Visit www.wmfor2012.com for details.

To find out more about Mandala and view the trailer visit www.mandala2012.co.uk.

The countdown to the 10th anniversary Supersonic Festival begins this month, with two taster events taking place in Birmingham and London.

Experimental music and arts showpiece Supersonic, organised by pioneering promoters Capsule, returns to The Custard Factory in Birmingham from October 19 to 21.

But audiences will be able to get in the mood with a special show on August 4 at Eastside Projects in Digbeth, followed by a party at Corsica Studios in London on August 9.

The Birmingham event will feature King Midas Sound’s unique remix show King Midas Sound System (pictured), with live vocals by Kiki Hitomi and Roger Robinson, and Kevin Martin at the controls. Joining them on the night will be JK Flesh, the latest techno project from Godflesh founder and former Napalm Death member Justin Broadrick, while the Birmingham show will also welcome appearances from Iron Fist Of The Sun, Laurence Hunt and Sarah Farmer.

Tickets are £15 advanced. To book or for more information about Supersonic 2012 and its 10th anniversary celebrations visit www.supersonicfestival.com.

NON PROFIT MUSIC REHEARSAL ROOM FLOODGATE STREET MUSIC COMPANY August 2012

£5

REHEARSALS

ALSO FREE TO REFUGEES & ASYLUM

£45 PER WEEK LOCKUP

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Clubbing

MATT TOLFREY Matt Tolfrey brings his Leftroom label to adventurous club night Face this month, joining forces with LA imprint Culprit for an unmissable night of DJ talent and imaginative house. We caught up with to find out more.

Leftroom have formed an amazing partnership with Culprit, what was the ethos behind joining forces?

The Droog guys [the trio of DJs who founded the Culprit label] and I have been good friends for the last three or four years and we share the same taste in music, that is what it really comes down to. We have been getting a lot of praise for our parties so far, but in theory we’ve only done WMC in Miami in 2012 and Sonar in 2011 and 2012 officially together. There are a lot more plans for the future though, as I was always taught, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.

What have been your highlights so far?

Each party has been a highlight in it’s own way. The pictures of the sun setting at our Sonar party in 2011 are magical, and Craig Richards at our WMC party was next level, really pushing some boundaries in Miami. I do feel though that the best parties are yet to come.

FACE has also been a great place for you to play, why do you think the parties are so popular?

The guys that run the party know exactly what’s going on, and they have great residents. The Birmingham crowd are always up for it, and FACE never give them a chance to get bored and keeps them on their toes with their bookings.

And what can we expect from your show there in August?

It’s always good fun when we do these kind of showcases as the DJs involved are good friends, who actually don’t get to see each other all that much with all the touring going on. This coming together makes us work that much harder behind the decks as we’re all kinda trying to show off to each other. This then leads to an interesting party for everyone involved!

Do you think Birmingham itself has come back to the forefront of the house music scene?

I actually lived in Worcester just below Birmingham for three years, and the city is where I first started clubbing. I used to go to Godskitchen at The Sanctuary on a Friday night, then have the whole weekend to recover. Drives on that M5 home were always very interesting. I then moved up to Nottingham, and I didn’t follow the Birmingham scene all that closely. Recently though I definitely have a good feeling it is back on the map party-wise, as it is getting a lot more exposure in magazines and online. I am actually quite new to this resurgence, I have not DJed in Birmingham as much as I expected, so I am probably not the best person to ask...

Back to Leftroom, would you say that your style of music has changed over the years and how has it developed?

As I have said in the past, Leftroom has always been about the 6

music I am playing and supporting at that time. I would never sign a record just for the sales, I always sign records that I love and want to play. Over time my music taste has changed, so Leftroom’s has evolved with it. All labels change through time, I just hope Leftroom never gets slotted in as one of those labels that just changes with ‘hype’ or what’s ‘popular’ at the time, as this is not the case at all.

What releases have you got coming up over the next few months?

We have the first single Turn You Out featuring Ya Kid K from Technotronic on vocals from my debut album Word Of Mouth out at the end of July on Leftroom. Then we have an amazing Waifs & Strays EP with a remix from Huxley and myself out at the end of August, then at the start of September we are putting out a small compilation called Our Summer which features tracks from some new and older artists of ours. There is so much going on in Leftroom HQ but we don’t always want to give it all away at once.

Finally, where else can we see you play over the summer?

I have a residency at Sankeys in Ibiza which has been going great.

I have played there three times already, and I have four more dates there left before the end of the year. I have a good few visits to Russia coming up, and also a big festival in Hungary called Ridefest. Then it is off to USA for my first Burning Man, so I hope to see some of you out on the Playa, then I am touring the album across the States for the whole of September. So exciting times ahead.

Face featuring Leftroom vs Culprit takes place at The Rainbow, Birmingham, on August 11, with DJ sets from Matt Tolfrey and Sam Russo or Leftroom and Culprit’s Shonky, Seuil and Droog.

competition Daytime party Below makes a welcome return to Digbeth to celebrate the August bank holiday in style on Sunday, August 26, in The Rainbow Courtyard & Pub from midday until late. Heading the line-up will be Grammy-nominated mixologist Martin Buttrich, with DJ sets also coming from tINI, Hector, Subb-an and more.

For your chance to win entry for six, worth £90, simply tell us: What is the name of the record label run by Martin Buttrich?

Answers to competitions@brumnotes.com by August 23.

Brum Notes Magazine

Last weekend of the London 2012 Festival

Sampad and Seeper present

MANDALA Friday 7 September 8.30 & 9.30pm FREE Chamberlain Square, Birmingham See the trailer at www.mandala2012.co.uk Spectacular illuminations in colour and light, 3D digital projections with international and British Asian music & dance. Live music by Talvin Singh, live classical dance meets edgy urban attitude with Aakash Odedra, Devika Rao and Bboy’s Attic The FREE outdoor multimedia spectacle not to miss!

FREE events

RED BARAAT

BANDSTAND MARATHON

Friday 7 September 6.30pm FREE Chamberlain Square, Town Hall, Birmingham www.asianartsagency.co.uk

Sunday 9 September 1pm FREE www.bandstandmarathon.org.uk

Seriously hot, larger than life, Brooklyn based dhol ‘n’ brass band.

Premier partners of the London 2012 Festival

August 2012

Principal funders of the London 2012 Festival

Blues to reggae, bhangra to rock, brass bands to steel bands at bandstands in parks and town centres across the region.

Find free events and search Review and post images at for what’s on near you thegamesandme www.wmfor2012.com @WestMidsfor2012 www.london2012.com/festival #London2012Fest 7

Tropical troubadours Troumaca make a welcome return to the live stage in their home city this month. With an ever-growing reputation, it seems exciting times are ahead. Amy Sumner finds out what’s in store.

SWEET AS

HONEY When we last caught up with Birmingham five-piece Troumaca, they told us their songs were inspired by love, loss, regret and mystical figures. It’s now eight months down the line and Troumaca are no less cryptic. But they’ve certainly been putting in the hard yards.

“We’ve been busy little bees since then,” explains lead singer and enigmatic extraordinaire Sam Baylis. “We’ve built a beautiful new hive and have been producing the most succulent honey for y’all. We’ve written about 15 new tracks in total and some of those have made the live show.

“We’ve been playing lots of festivals — Isle of Wight and Mostly Jazz for example, and we’ve been going down like gods!” he says, without a hint of seriousness. “But they really have been great experiences — better than we expected because everyone at a festival is so game. And the fact that not many people have heard of us works in our favour I think, because that way we come as a pleasant surprise. Like when a girl pinches your arse in a club.”

An interesting metaphor. But they seem to have been doing something right because they’re gaining celebrity fans thick and fast — via their Twitter account recently Ghostpoet scouted them out to request their material, following on from praise from the likes of Huw Stephens and Gilles Peterson.

“He [Ghostpoet] caught our set at Mostly Jazz I think, and then we bumped into him at Lounge on the Farm,” Sam explains. “He’s an absolute guy and we can’t wait to hear 8

his new stuff. Also, I heard that Demi Moore has a thing for [bandmates] Matt [Campbell] and Geoff [Foulkes], and we gave Gordon Ramsey a t-shirt once,” he adds. Baylis is a not-entirely-serious kinda guy.

But he is serious about his music. “We got a shed load of cash at the end of last year so we bought lots of shiny new machines.

I’d say we are closer than we have ever been to the sound we are trying to achieve,” he explains. “There’s no hard and fast way of writing for us, although on the whole Geoff calls me up and tells me about how he dreamt about a song with a beautiful woman in it. So then we try to reach her in the daylight — sometimes it’s hard to get it, but we persevere.”

But he’s also cagey about what the future might hold for the band. With so many of his friends’ outfits being signed around him, there’s been plenty of speculation that Troumaca could be next. Not that Sam is giving anything away just yet. “Maybe,” is his disciplined response when asked if they may be the next Brummie band snapped up by a label. He gives little away on the possibility of forthcoming releases too. “We are planning to release a few nuggets pretty soon.

That is all I’m going to say for now.” He’s a hard man to unravel.

Troumaca are being understandably cautious, but there is plenty for their fans to be excited about as they continue to play live dates with passion. Their next venture sees them headlining an adventurous This Is Tomorrow line-up, which also boasts Victories At Sea, Greatwaves and Arc Vel at the Hare & Hounds at the end of August.

“We always love playing at the Hare,” Sam says, “it’s kind of like a second home to us. What the guys do there is great for the city and the fans should be expecting lots of honey.”

“And after that who knows? We’ll probably have 500 hives around the world and our honey-making empire will be a beacon to all.”

The interview has been a metaphor. But what’s clear is that Troumaca have plans, and they’re exciting, and they’re keeping them under wraps. For now, the best thing is to go and see them play, because that is one outlet through which they express themselves truly.

Troumaca are live at the Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath, on August 31, with support from Victories At Sea, Greatwaves and Arc Vel. Brum Notes Magazine Photo: Kate Hook Photography

August 2012

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S ’ E R U T FU N E D L O G Victories At Sea have kept their cards close to their chests so far and are a band determined to do things on their own terms. Not that it has stopped the excitement building at their selective live shows and snippets of recordings. Amy Sumner delves deeper.

Victories At Sea have played little more than a dozen gigs. Or thereabouts. And yet, as absolutely anyone who has seen them play live will confirm, they look and sound at a level far above their station. And that goes for their recorded material as well. Though they only have two songs available to hear online, they are completely anthemic and will more than whet the appetite of anyone who has a penchant for big, electro sounds.

“We got together at the start of 2010,” explains guitarist and man on the mic JohnPaul White, or JP as he’s commonly known, 10

“though we’d each been messing around separately in other bands while we worked out what we wanted to do. Ultimately, we wanted to make music and not just plug in and play like some three-piece indie rock bands out there.”

“We were bored,” continues bandmate Steve Edgehill, “we wanted to explore. I’d been in bands before of no significance. You know, the kind where you’re only really a ‘band’ in the sense that you’re playing together. But with Victories At Sea I feel like we’re all on the same wavelength.”

“Right. Every band I’d been in previously, I felt like I had to accommodate the wishes of others,” agrees JP, “and you end up resenting that. You’ll always strive to be in a band with your mates but ultimately you don’t want to piss them off. I mean we are three opinionated people and so sometimes it does take us a while to write songs…” ”Yeah, sometimes we end up standing in opposite corners of the room,” interrupts Steve, “but it all makes sense in the end.

We’re not a fisticuffs band — we’ve all been doing music for long enough now to be able to have constructive arguments.”

Brum Notes Magazine

“Ultimately, we wanted to make music and not just plug in and play like some three-piece indie rock bands out there.”

Which is reassuring, because Victories At Sea are the kind of band that you want to see stick around and do well. They play music to dance to — sleazy rhythms in the best possible sense. But underlying everything is something darker.

“We don’t sound like Joy Division,” states JP emphatically, “and by that I mean that we get pigeonholed a lot. The comparison isn’t a negative one — we’re all fans, and in fact pretty much every band we’ve ever been compared to has been one that we’re fans of.”

sounds, so it’s hard to say that any city is just one sound.”

But you can understand the irritation — it must be a drag never to be defined in terms of your own sound. In fact Victories At Sea are a little more eclectic.

“We did some recording recently,” enthuses Steve, “and no two songs are the same. So we’ve got one which is a little reminiscent of early New Order, and then the next one sounds like Mogwai.”

“There are different sides to the band,” JP continues, “some of which people never experience because they’re left in a locker.

I think it’s easy to imitate bands, but it’s far more interesting to mix it up a bit. A few years back I was listening purely to indie music and that had a negative impact on my songwriting, though I didn’t think so at the time. Now if we just go in one direction we tend to get bored very easily, so not keeping to any set formula is exciting for us.” A little further on in the interview, he describes their sound as ‘dark disco’, though he whispers it behind a muffled hand. Pigeonholing and labels is clearly not something that Victories At Sea appreciate.

Though their gigs have been few and far between so far, they recently enjoyed an appearance in front of 1,500 people, having been handpicked by one-time fellow Brummies Editors as main support for the first of their sell-out nights at the HMV Institute in Digbeth.

“Russell [Leetch] from the band came to see us at the Vice launch party we played at The Rainbow a couple of months back,” explains JP. “It was really nice to be asked.

And it was cool because though Editors played two dates in the end, that show was the first to be announced, and at the time it was the only one in the whole of the UK this year. So their fans came from all over Europe — the front of the gig was five rows deep with people from Germany, Belgium and all over. After we played, we got lots of appreciative Facebook messages and we started appearing on Italian blogs…which we couldn’t read. Initially we went through them looking for the sentence where it told us we were shit. But I don’t know if Italians have a word for shit. They were good reviews once we’d translated them anyway.

“With regard to my lyrics, I think they’re very reflective of geography, of Birmingham,” JP continues. “A lot of bands here sound like they want to be somewhere else, and I don’t mean that we sound like them. Rather that we rehearse on a grim industrial estate in Digbeth, and Birmingham as a whole is a pretty grey place; a concrete cancer. But we love the fact that we’re in Birmingham right now, we’re like the bastard child of the city.”

“People forget that it’s a very diverse city I think,” says Steve. “But the music coming from within it reflects that diversity. There are many bands here making many different August 2012

“The lyrics aren’t really storytelling,” continues JP, “but they are certainly bleak. And that’s not to say that we’re all depressed, because we’re not. There are lots of interesting tangents and emotions within the songs though — Future Gold for instance has a lot of depth. Really, we want to write big, dancey tunes, and if people also want to chip away at what’s going on underneath then that’s ok.”

“We handmade free CDs for the gig and we spent the five nights in the run up to it putting them together. It was longer if you count sorting out the artwork and picking the images etc — it was over a month. The images that the band uses are very important to us, and we do all of our photographs ourselves because we want them to be individual and unique.”

“Yeah, the idea was that at the end of the gig we’d have a merch table with these 500 CDs laid out, and people could come up and pick the one they wanted, with the artwork they liked,” explains Steve.

“But it went Smash Hits!” JP exclaims.

“There was just this sea of hands which was five deep at one point; people above us on the stairs were reaching down, and everyone wanted them signed!”

“They must have been so disappointed when they got home…” jokes Steve.

At the moment, Victories At Sea are holed up in a little recording studio in Digbeth (“it’s great because Einstellung record right across from us — they probably have no idea that we listen to them, but it’s an instantly positive thing to come out and hear their music”). But they make another rare sojourn out of the studio to play the Hare & Hounds with Troumaca, Greatwaves and Arc Vel this month. And it looks like it’s going to be huge.

“The gig is actually on the same day as the Moseley Folk Festival,” says JP, “so we’re planning to make it an aftershow party and give discounted entry to festival ticket holders. It’ll be really heavy on visuals and we’re going to completely blacken the room to make it into a bit of a club. The line-up is amazing. We’re huge fans of Arc Vel who has an incredible record just out, and we’re bringing Greatwaves down from Manchester to play their first ever Birmingham show.

We played The Great Escape with them; they have the potential to be huge. From our perspective it’ll be nice to play some new material if we get it finished in time.

“And after that, we’ll probably put another song up online,” he continues. “We’ve no plans to release an EP this summer because we’re not a hazy summer band; we’re more like New York in the winter. But since we first started recording it has been our intention to release a record so we’ll be doing that at some point. It will be on our own terms.”

Victories At Sea are a band to watch for the future, but right now they’re a band to watch when you can. Because if they keep producing tracks as big as internet sensation Future Gold, then it’s only a matter of time before they sail away to victory.

Victories At Sea are live at the Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath, on August 31, with Troumaca, Greatwaves and Arc Vel. Photo by Dave Wright / Rhiannon Adam

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JAWS OF VICTORY Jaws have quickly become one of Birmingham’s most talked about bands since their early demos started earning them plaudits aplenty. Having already enjoyed Radio 1 airplay and with their debut single and first ever headline show to come this month, the teenage four-piece are ready to bare their teeth. Jack Parker and Chris Moriarty find out more.

Strolling around frontman Connor Schofield’s childhood home of Coseley with the rest of Jaws on a photo shoot, Connor’s dad still can’t believe the sudden surge of excitement around his son’s bedroom jams.

And he’s not the only one to notice how quickly this teenaged band seem to have risen to prominence. Now the foursome of Connor (vocals, guitar), Alex Hudson (guitar), Eddy Geach (drums) and Jake Cooper (bass) are ready to sink their teeth into phase two of their career.

The band were initially assembled as a simple case of supply and demand; Connor’s Soundcloud demos were garnering attention and had already warranted interest from promoters who wanted to put the band on and so he got three friends from college in Halesowen to flesh out his initial ideas into their live incarnations.

Eddie and Connor both used to drum in metal bands (Eddie still does) and Jacob used to be a part of a pop-punk band that he recently left. But despite the band seeming somewhat thrown together, they all get along like life-long friends, bouncing off each other perfectly – and musically it seems like everything just works.

Despite the confident on-stage ramblings of bassist Jake and the seemingly mediasavvy approach they took to the early attention, it seems the band are still slightly ill-at-ease with the buzz that surrounds them and the positive press has certainly taken them by surprise.

“Someone was like: ‘they are just naturally cool’,” says drummer Eddy, coyly. “This woman said: ‘they aren’t hipster cool, they aren’t River Island or Topman cool, they’re just…cool! I’m not cool, can I just put it out there that my favourite band are Pantera?”

Still, cool or not, new single Toucan Surf has already earned the band national attention, having recently been played on Radio 1. And while it still shimmers with the dreamscape sounds and lo-fi vocals of their early demos, it is further evidence that Connor is already evolving into more of a pop conscious writer, albeit with his head still firmly in the clouds.

Still, Connor, in keeping with his almost reticent stage presence, is self-deprecatingly modest about the whole thing, insisting they chose it as their first proper

single because, “that’s the only good song we’ve got.”

The modesty continues when he reflects on the recording process, which took place in two parts, recording the drums, bass and guitar at 123 Studios in Shoreditch, before adding the keyboards and vocals at Dreamtrak in Hackney (also used by Foals and fellow Midlands hopefuls Swim Deep). “They did a very good job, they made me sound as though I can sing,” adds Connor.

His deep, earthy growl of a vocal is certainly one of Jaws’ most distinctive elements and has the potential to be instantly recognisable, juxtaposing beautifully with the ethereal and sun-soaked music behind.

But there is nothing contrived about it, as with everything about Jaws, it seems this is something else which just…happened.

“It [my vocal style] definitely just came naturally, I didn’t really think about doing a particular style or whatever, that’s just how it came out.”

As for influences, there is undoubtedly a rich variety going into their sound but, similar to contemporaries Swim Deep, their

Photo by Gobinder Jhitta

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Brum Notes Magazine

songs seem underpinned by an almost dreamy vision of escapism, alongside an early 90s aesthetic.

“I think we’re quite influenced by 80s pop bands like New Order but 90s alt bands like Smashing Pumpkins at the same time,” says Connor. “I don’t think [escapism] is a main subject for us really, but I think everyone our age dreams of being in places that they’re not and having things they haven’t got.”

Something else which Connor says just seemed to fall into place naturally is their on-stage dynamic, which, as those who watched them at One Beat Sunday will testify, sees bubbly bassist Jake almost take centre stage in between tracks, acting every bit the frontman and interacting with the crowd while Connor stands quietly towards the side, instead letting his music do the talking when their songs begin.

“I’m very new to being the front of a band,” Connor admits, “[but] I feel more comfortable and confident after every show.”

Reflecting on their sun-drenched set at the aforementioned One Beat Sunday, it is clear that the Jaws frontman has high

standards when it comes to performances and is firmly focused on seeing his band get better and better, not resting on their laurels or relaxing because of the attention they have earned so far.

“It was ok for us, it was our first show in about two months and we felt like it didn’t go great for us, however we’re past that and we’re looking forward to the shows we have coming up. Although we did enjoy the day after our set, the weather was beautiful. Tempting Rosie were a highlight. Before the show I’d never listened to them and I feel bad that I never took the time out to give them a listen but they absolutely smashed it.”

The live appearances continue for Jaws this month with their first headline show, topping the bill for the next Brum Notes Presents show at the O2 Academy 3.

“Yeah, we’re really excited for it,” Connor says. “It’s our first headline show ever, hopefully a lot of people will come down and party.”

And it is not their only milestone in August, with debut single Toucan Surf released on August 27 on Rattlepop Records, and

“I’m not cool, can I just put it out there that my favourite band are Pantera?” it’s a track that already has plenty of fans, including Radio 1’s Huw Stephens. And hearing it played on the radio was clearly a humbling experience for the band.

“It was incredible, especially when you consider how many people actually listen to Radio 1. We’re just taking it in our stride for now. Hopefully bigger things to come soon.

“I didn’t expect to be where we are now so soon after we started out. I’m really grateful for anyone who has helped us out so far.”

Brum Notes presents Jaws with The Tone Thieves, Wide Eyed, These Kings and Caves, in association with Manifest Live, at the O2 Academy 3, Birmingham, on August 18. Tickets are £5 adv from www.o2academybirmingham.co.uk.

Jaws release debut single Toucan Surf on Rattlepop on August 27.

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13

CAUGHT IN A TRAP After more than a decade of making music together The Traps have carved their own reputation in Birmingham and beyond and made a splash with their DIY independent label Speech Fewapy Records. With a new single out this month and plans for their own long-awaited debut album now in the pipeline, Amy Sumner meets the band to find out if now is their time to truly shine.

“I don’t know if we view it as a case of having a particular time,” explains lead singer Jamie Berry. “We’ve always enjoyed making music and we’ve no desire to be a band on the so-called ‘scene’.”

“Exactly,” agrees bassist and brother Nick Berry. “We’re actually working on an album at the moment but we kind of wanted to lock ourselves away from what was going on in Birmingham…” ”Not exactly lock ourselves away,” Jamie clarifies, “but a scene is a very insular thing and it can become all-consuming to be a part of that — you can lose focus on reality. We’re just four creative individuals, and we make the music we make. With this project we wanted to take the most creative approach — draw a line in the sand with regards to the old stuff and make a record with none of that on it.”

So, The Traps are reinventing themselves?

“This time it’s been a conscious decision to create a different sound to what we were producing before,” agrees Jamie, “though the core arrangements have remained the same.

But we’re working with a producer rather than an engineer now, and the emphasis is off superfluities like the cushy studio and more onto the music. As a result, we’re working in an uncomfortable studio in Queens Park in 14

London — it’s a place with one room which just about houses the four of us.” Guitarist James Minhas and drummer Daniel Webb make up the four, alongside Jamie and Nick.

“We’ve been in that studio since January, and it’s done nothing but get progressively hotter,” grimaces Nick.

“We take no influence from Birmingham really… Our influences are from the furthest reaches from here.”

“After the first chord sequence, we’re generally dripping with sweat,” Jamie adds.

“It’s actually really depressing,” Nick continues, “we keep going to buy sandwiches and seeing Hot Chip and just knowing that they’ve been in a fantastic and large studio. But it’s good fun — it’s more fun really because we have no choice other than to be completely focussed.”

See, The Traps have been together in one guise or another throughout the majority of their adolescent years and into whatever state of maturity they’re in now. And it’s often during that time that our tastes in music develop,

progress and evolve most dramatically. So with being in a band as well, does that development translate into a change in musical output?

“Definitely,” Jamie confirms, “and I think that’s the same of any band that listens to music. We all listen to lots of different bands of course, and I think that’s the great thing about our band — all four of us have different tastes.”

“But they’re also similar,” says Nick “they’re melodic, and that’s a core strength.”

“Songwriting has become easier as we’ve grown up though,” explains Jamie. “It’s become very collaborative and there are ideas from everyone rather than just me. Everyone writes their own parts now that we have that level of trust which builds up with time. I think that maturity is important in a band.”

“We write our songs together but in separate batches,” Nick explains. “So inevitably some of these will sound different to others, depending on what we’re listening to at the time.”

“But we’re working with The Voluntary Butler Scheme [Stourbridge’s one man band, Rob Jones] in the studio and he’s really great. Our collaboration with him has helped to make sense of a lot of these songs, and we’re really proud of that — there is a real feel to this record,” Jamie summarises, thoughtfully.

Brum Notes Magazine

Originally from further afield in the Midlands before making the move to the Second City, three of The Traps currently live in Birmingham while drummer Webb resides in London. So, does that make The Traps a Birmingham band, or three quarters Brummie?

“We take no influence from Birmingham really,” answers Jamie instantaneously. “And that’s not a negative comment regarding the city, but our influences are from the furthest reaches from here. Besides, it’s not hard having Daniel in London at the moment because we’re recording down there.”

“In fact, it makes us focus more on making rehearsals count,” adds Nick.

And the fruits of their more recent labours in those sweaty rehearsals and recording sessions will be there for all to see and hear later this month when new single Your Headland is released as a free download on their own Speech Fewapy Records label, with a live show to celebrate on the same day.

“It’s tied into the central theme of the album,” says Jamie of the song, “which is about a character from the Myth of the Odyssey, Calypso.

She has always intrigued me a lot, so much of the lyrical content is tied in to her story.

The music has an otherworldly feel to it, and

the concept of Calypso really fitted with that.”

the full-length album will follow in the new year.

“We’re throwing a launch party at the Hare & Hounds to coincide with the release,” Nick explains. “It’s a really good venue and we’ve worked with some of the guys there before in their This is Tmrw capacity. They throw great nights and so it was a no-brainer really.

We’ll be supported by Greg Bird & Flamingo Flame who is on our Speech Fewapy Records label and has got some really great sounding new stuff which is different to his old sounds. Racing will also be there because we loved Alex [Singh, one half of Racing alongside James Rea] with his old band Pandas & People and they’ll work really well with the rest of the line-up which is completed by The Bombergs.”

“And as for us, we’ve generally dispensed with our old songs and will mainly be playing new stuff,” Jamie concludes. “But I mean, those are songs that we have written and they are there to be played if the occasion arises,” he adds fondly.

“It’s only our third gig back after our time away so we’re still testing the water,” ventures Nick.

“We’ll be releasing the album through Speech Fewapy in the New Year,” confirms Nick, “but that isn’t to say it’s a case of releasing it on our own label as a last resort or anything, because it isn’t. But having the label is beneficial because by doing it with other artists we create a learning curve, and we learn from them as much as ourselves.”

What seems to be the case is that far and away from being lost in the sea of bands starting out, The Traps are very much on course.

They’ve got knowledge, they’ve built up experience, and now they’re producing the songs to go with it. With their new album being recorded as we speak, and their single launch gig set to be a date for the diary, The Traps are really putting in the legwork to ensure their music is controlled on their terms. Which proves that, actually, being fiercely independent isn’t such a bad shout after all.

Their rebirth is set to continue with another new single called Moving Pictures, earmarked for release this autumn, while it is anticipated

The Traps’ new single Your Headland will be available for free download through www.speechfewapy.com from August 24.

They play the launch show that night at the Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath, with support from Greg Bird & Flamingo Flame, The Bombergs and Racing.

MU Network : Birmingham Calling all those working in music throughout the West Midlands.

Free networking session at Fazeley Studios 15 August 2012 6:00pm – 9:30pm To book your place or for more information please go to networkbirmingham.eventbrite.co.uk

theMU.org August 2012

@WeAreTheMU 15

THE Loose cannon Rabble-rousing frontman of gypsy-folk collective The Destroyers and iconic folk artist Paul Murphy will once again be taking centre stage at this year’s Moseley Folk Festival, both with his band and as a solo performer. Guy Hirst catches up with the Belfast-born, Birmingham-based musician.

Upon arriving on the shores of England in 1966 at the age of 16 as an aspiring young poet and songwriter, Paul Murphy began an ambitious musical expedition to become an established folk artist, a title that he not only now merits but surpasses. However, Murphy’s continuous accomplishments don’t only reside within the realms of his solo work.

He is now widely known for his enchanting performances as part of Birmingham’s own gypsy extravaganza and festival favourites The Destroyers, and this year’s Moseley Folk Festival will see him performing under both guises at an event that is clearly close to his heart.

Photo by Brett Wilde

“It’s great that folk music has been revived,” he says. “In a way it got drafted into the redundant category of the dinosaur. Folk festivals give folk some sort of prominence and help put artists on the map. And like the old folk clubs of days gone by they give an inroad for new artists to learn their craft.

I started off as a folk singer in the mid 60s when folk started to embrace people that were also writers in the tradition of telling stories and telling the news, and so that’s essentially where I’ve always seen myself.”

Murphy is a familiar face to Moseley Folk Festival audiences, as both a performer and a compere, a role which gave him the chance to introduce one of his own poetical and musical influences in 2010 when he welcomed Scottish singer songwriter Donovan onto the stage.

“I met Donovan when I was about 15 before 16

I’d left Belfast. He was playing at the Ulster Hall and I had the pleasure of meeting him, so to introduce him many years later at Moseley Folk Festival was extraordinary.

It’s a very fine festival to host and to play.

The kind of amphitheatre nature of the park makes it work really well; it’s just the right size to achieve the right level of acoustic and atmospheric intimacy. Plus being from Birmingham we [The Destroyers] actually get a chance to experience the festival as a whole which is great.”

This year has also seen the release of Murphy’s new solo album The Glen. The album is essentially a handful of 10 thematically linked letters dedicated to Murphy’s late wife Honora. Astonishingly beautiful and heartbreakingly personal, this eloquently written insight into Murphy’s life acts as an emotionally weighted journey for the soul.

As a genuine expressive piece of poetry and song there is no denying its authenticity. The definitive mix of the album has taken years to accomplish. Murphy had previously decided not to release the songs after collaborating with his bandmates, but by taking a new solitary approach to the writing process he achieved what he had originally set out to do.

“I started again,” he explains. “I went back to the songs I had originally recorded and it was clear that I was just too close to the emotions of the whole ordeal. I was collaborating with a couple of guys from The Destroyers back then but it didn’t feel right. So last summer I got back into my treehouse and I looked at

the songs I had and I drew out some that I hadn’t finished which should have been part of that batch of work. I wanted to get something that was absolutely stripped down, really minimal and keep it very simple and focused. I would find it quite difficult just to go out and play songs from The Glen because they’re so demanding on the emotions of the listener and really on me too.”

From looking at The Glen and his other solo work in contrast to the work of The Destroyers, it’s clear that there is a duality to Murphy’s work as a whole. Murphy draws upon real experiences from his life tapestry to inspire lyrics for his own work and explores bizarre and often fictitious themes to match the erratic lunacy of The Destroyers.

“With The Destroyers it is a different experience. It’s a big band and my role in it draws on other elements of what I do like drama and theatre. It’s much less intimate and much more declamatory in style; it’s definitely a bigger canvas to work with. I wrote Zurinak when I was 17 and Out of Babel is kind of a reflection of the unity and diversity of this city — ‘from the east and west, the north and the south, we come to the city strange tongue and mouth, and out of the confusion and babel of tongue, people of the city gather round and learn to sing as one’ — it’s about forging unity out of diversity.”

The Destroyers will be performing at Moseley Folk Festival on August 31 and Paul Murphy on September 2.

Brum Notes Magazine

MOSELEY SOUL Ocean Colour Scene frontman Simon Fowler brings his latest project to his native Birmingham this month when his folk outfit Merrymouth perform at Moseley Folk Festival, ahead of some stripped back performances of his more familiar material at other nearby festivals. He talks to Catherine Roche about his Second City roots.

“Me and Steve [Craddock, guitarist] lived in Moseley during the mid 90s, just after the band was formed,” says Acocks Green-born Fowler, reminiscing about the artsy suburb which adorned the name of their most famous album. “And my mum and dad still live there so I probably go back a couple of times a fortnight. I like Moseley. There are some really nice cultural shops there.” So he does stay true to his roots then.

But he also thinks the motherland has changed “beyond recognition” and he no longer knows how to drive around his home city. But what he does know about is music. He and his band Ocean Colour Scene have some impressive achievements to their name, with five top 10 albums and six top 10 singles, including breakthrough second album, the aforementioned Moseley Shoals, enjoying critical acclaim and reaching number two in 1995. Ocean Colour Scene are a band that have truly carved their place in musical history.

But never one to rest on his laurels, Fowler is currently enjoying something of a breakfrom his most famous role, as Ocean Colour Scene take a back seat to work on new material for their 10th studio album, earmarked for release early next year. In the meantime, he has unveiled his own solo project in the shape of folk band Merrymouth, with a crowd-funded debut album out now and a live airing planned for Moseley Folk Festival.

“Merrymouth is a folk act I put together with some friends and we did some gigs. It’s nice to do something by myself, something I thought I August 2012

was in charge of. Of course Merrymouth has elements of OCS and a big folk influence.

People generally think of The Riverboat Song when they think of OCS, but Merrymouth is more folk sounding than that.”

Having brought up one of OCS’s most famous tunes, it seems he is not precious about the band being renowned for a handful of soundtrack-friendly hits despite having such a significant back catalogue. Having famously featured on Brit gangster flick Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, the anthemic Hundred Mile High City is currently enjoying a new lease of life as a credit card advert featuring Usain Bolt on his way to the Olympics, something which he insists is a source of pride.

“I love it. I feel childishly proud watching the Visa advert and it is such an anthem. I am really proud to see it as the soundtrack to an advert featuring the fastest man that ever lived for the Olympics. It’s just crazy.

“I also think it’s not a choice we can make as a band as to which songs people choose to associate with us. Robin Hood is one of our most popular live songs, and it’s not on an album. The Queen is popular and she only has one anthem. We were pop stars for a bit when we were young enough not to look stupid.”

Despite their advancing years compared to the ‘pop stars’ of today, live is where OCS can still knock the newbies off the stage, because Fowler’s voice remains extremely pure and strong. And his acoustic shows are a chance to see him in a different light, something he

particularly enjoys as “a real tonic – a great chance to look the audience in the eye and interact with them on a more personal basis than ever before.”

As well as his Merrymouth performances, this summer he will also join up with OCS drummer Oscar Harrison to perform a number of intimate acoustic gigs, where they will of course be playing some of the band’s most iconic tunes, including an appearance at next month’s Shrewsbury Fields Forever Festival in the nearby rural idyll of Shropshire.

“I’m looking forward to performing there. I have never been to Shrewsbury but I have heard lots of nice things about it. Acoustic gigs are different to with the full band. I feel less pressure when it’s just the two of us and I can talk to the audience.

“It’s how I started as a performer, playing in clubs and pubs with my brother. I think the audience get to know us a bit more. It’s just me, Oscar and the audience, really stripped back.”

Simon Fowler’s Merrymouth are live at Moseley Folk Festival in Moseley, Birmingham, on September 2. Details at www.moseleyfolk.co.uk.

He will be performing an acoustic Ocean Colour Scene set at the Shrewsbury Fields Forever Festival, at the West Mid Showground, Shrewsbury, on September 15. The festival runs from September 14 to 16, details from www.shrewsburyfieldsforever.com.

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SUPER FLY The Flyover Show returns to Birmingham this month to transform a unique urban space with a family-friendly, free day of world class music, entertainment and more. Bringing a flavour of the underground to the masses, it is the brainchild of renowned jazz and hip hop artist Soweto Kinch.

Amelia Burr meets the Birmingham musician to find out more.

In the ‘forgotten space’ beneath Hockley Circus flyover lies the best kept secret in Birmingham. For one day every year, this concrete thoroughfare is transformed into an urban amphitheatre for The Flyover Show.

Conceived by multi-award winning Birmingham hip hop and jazz artist Soweto Kinch, this free one-day festival takes local artists and puts them on the bill next to renowned global names like Goldie, Omar and Akala, to name just a few from last year’s line-up.

This year’s instalment on August 18 brings one of the world’s biggest selling reggae solo artists Maxi Priest to the stage, along with the likes of Wordsmith MC, Janet Kay and Steel Pulse’s Basil Gabbidon, as well as local rising artists Lady Leeshur and Deci4life, a specially-commissioned performance from Birmingham Royal Ballet and much more.

The first Flyover Show took place in 2008 when Kinch realised his vision of putting on a high quality arts event in the heart of his own community in Hockley. He set out to shine a light on the wealth of talent that goes unnoticed and unrepresented in some of the more deprived areas of Birmingham.

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Underneath a busy flyover may seem like an unlikely location for a family-friendly festival, but it was chosen specifically by Kinch to send a message out. “This area isn’t just about unemployment and gun crime,” he says. “All sorts of people live here and it’s important that we re-brand what we’re capable of. We want to celebrate the best aspects of black culture and share them with the wider city.”

Over the last four years the festival has grown both in numbers and reputation. “In terms of roster, it’s evolved to include more international artists,” he explains. And with acts like Maxi Priest on the bill this year, The Flyover Show continues to punch way above its weight in the festival world.

Now in its fifth year, The Flyover Show has developed into an international event. In March Kinch took the concept to Soweto, South Africa, where 2,500 people saw acts from South Africa, Birmingham and plenty of places in between. And with plans to continue the Birmingham and Sowetobased Flyover Shows on an annual basis, that isn’t where it stops, as Kinch explains.

“With the addition of The Flyover Show in South Africa this year, we’ve hugely

extended the ambition and scale of the event,” he says. “South Africa proved that it can work outside of the UK. The amazing thing about doing The Flyover Show in South Africa was its similarity to its sister event in Birmingham.”

Kinch’s connections in the global music scene mean that The Flyover Show has the legs to become a truly international festival, with France and Palestine next on his hit-list. His convictions are strong and his passion for what he wants to achieve, infectious. It’s a passion that rubs off as we talk, and must go a long way to explaining how he gets big name artists like Ms Dynamite and Speech Debelle to come and perform at a free community festival. He makes them want to be a part of it, part of the revolution he’s leading with a saxophone in one hand and a microphone in the other.

Tumi, of Tumi & the Volume, is one of a handful of artists who have performed at The Flyover Shows in both Birmingham and South Africa, saying after his performance in Soweto, “I did that exact same intro at The Flyover in Birmingham two years ago and that is amazing and powerful for me.

I am so blessed to be a part of it.” The artists on the bill feel like they are involved Brum Notes Magazine

Maxi Priest

in something important and that creates a special vibe for the whole festival.

Each year, Kinch has chosen to theme The Flyover Show, raising awareness of issues facing the black community in the music industry. Last year it celebrated male role models, the year before that, female artists who kept their musical and personal integrity in the face of thong-filled, cleavage-ridden music videos. The Flyover Show 2012 is celebrating Jamaica and its widespread influence on contemporary British culture, in the month that the Caribbean island celebrates 50 years of independence.

The West Midlands has the second highest concentration of British Jamaicans in the UK and, with the Jamaican Olympic team staying in the city before the Games, what better time to explore the living legacy of Jamaican culture in Britain today? “What does Jamaica mean to the third and fourth generation black community and how is that cultural lineage expressing itself through them?” is the question Kinch is hoping to answer with the festival this year.

Of course, the event is aimed at everyone, no matter what their heritage, with inclusivity a key aim too. “It’s not exclusive in any way,” explains Kinch. “It’s certainly not exclusive music-wise. It’s universal in its expression but specific in what it’s celebrating.” The emphasis is on “representing the unrepresented” and sharing that with as many people as possible from all different walks of life.

August 2012

Soweto Kinch

The Flyover Show 2012’s theme is particularly relevant to Birmingham and its cultural make-up, flagging up Kinch’s continued connection to the city. Born in London, he moved here at the age of nine and has been here ever since. In a world where

“It’s the creation of something that we will remember, something that will make the world a more accessible space.” people rarely stay in one place, it is interesting to find out why Kinch, an internationally successful artist in his own right, is so rooted here. “There is a strong sense of community. I’m grounded here. There are no distractions of the rat race so it’s better for me, creatively, to be here. It’s home,” he declares.

As a musician who fuses jazz and hip hop, Kinch has had his fair share of struggles defining his own place in the music industry, an industry which loves to categorise artists for marketing purposes. It’s difficult to pigeon-hole Kinch, something which he seems to like. When asked if we need a new genre to describe the music he makes, he shrugs and says: “You could stick ‘neo’ on the front. That’s what everyone else does.” What is important to him is not labels, but making music without

compromise and getting it out there for people to hear.

Beyond The Flyover Show, he has certainly been keeping busy musically as well. Kinch is currently working on an album based on the seven deadly sins and says we might hear a sneak preview when he takes to the stage himself in Hockley. One of the perks of putting on your own festival is that you get to perform at it, sometimes alongside artists who have inspired you. One of Kinch’s many Flyover highlights was playing on stage with Julian Joseph, a seminal contemporary jazz pianist.

It is this combination of local talent and internationally acclaimed artists which is part of what makes this festival so special.

The secret world under the flyover and the gems of talent hidden behind news headlines are opened up for all to see. At the same time, the rest of the world is brought closer to home.

“It’s the creation of something that we will remember, something that will make the world a more accessible space.”

The Flyover Show 2012, headlined by Maxi Priest, takes place on Saturday, August 18, from 1pm to 9pm, at Hockley Circus underneath the Hockley Flyover. Entry is free and access is from subway tunnels on Soho Rd, New John St, Great Hampton St and Heaton St. Visit www.theflyovershow.com for more information.

19

live Madonna NIA, Birmingham 19/07/12

With some tickets costing £200 a pop, programmes £25, a hoodie £90 and mug £15 (you said it), Madonna’s clearly still a material girl. This tour’s attracted other criticisms though, mainly from those expecting (or hoping for) a greatest hits set. The fact that it’s called the MDNA tour should’ve given the game away though, eh? Ok, so MDNA isn’t her best album but it’s fine in a big, dumb pop way. Prop the tunes up with some well choreographed routines, a relentlessly morphing stage and the odd flying drummer boy and it actually comes across a lot stronger.

In fact, opening number Girl Gone Wild and mid-set crowd pleaser Give Me Your Lovin’ could both give Gaga a run for her money.

It’s the classics that still justify your love (and hard earned dosh) though. Papa Don’t Preach, Hung Up, Express Yourself (featuring some enthusiastic jigging about from son Rocco...bless him) and Vogue all got an airing. Like A Virgin was reinvented as a piano-led waltz, transforming it from a horny chat up line to more of a post coital hymn to lost love and fading youth. It’s a bold interpretation, attracting much gnashing of teeth from people who’d clearly prefer Madge to play it safe. Get over it. Like A Prayer stole the show though. Yep, you’ve spunked a week’s wages on the tickets, pawned your grandma for a programme and sold a kidney to buy a beer but it was all worth it just for that moment when several thousand people clapped their hands off, eh? The show has its faults, some of the new tracks are weak and how much of it’s actually live is debatable. But the pluses far outweighed the minuses. This is one of pop’s true icons (up there with Elvis, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Daphne & Celeste...), the biggest selling female recording artist in history, hauling her ass around the world for you. Open your heart and she’s still a ray of light.

20

Daron Billings Photo by Andy Watson/Drw-Images

Camila Kill Bull’s Head Moseley 06/07/12

Wise additions to the recently launched Hustle! Records, Camila Kill are one of Birmingham’s most exciting and unique bands.

Their mix of rock, punk, pop and almost every other genre makes them hard to pigeonhole – and that can only be a good thing.

One thing that is for sure, however, is the power of frontwoman Kelly Smith’s vocals

– subtly sultry one moment and demonic the next; Camila Kill’s sound far exceeds the tiny upstairs room at the Bull’s Head and is sure to soon exceed Birmingham.

This band have to be seen live in order to appreciate them fully – their eclectic sound leaves you wondering whether you should be head banging or dancing. And when you can buy their debut...

Ellie Crean

The Destroyers Mac, Birmingham 7/07/12

Brum Notes Magazine

so there’s no real reason why you should be any good but still...it’s a pretty impressive pedigree. Happily, Will Johns more than lives up to it, taking inspiration from his heritage while clearly putting his own unique stamp on things.

In a 15-year career he’s played with Joe Strummer, Jack Bruce, Bill Wyman and Ronnie Wood as well as forming a band with Ronnie’s son (GLYDA), but now finally he’s performing under his own name, playing an electrifying mix of rock and blues. Tonight’s gig, part of the 28th Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival marks the release of his second solo album just 24 hours earlier on Birmingham’s very own Big Bear record label.

Tucked away in a corner of the Garden House pub next to the kitchen door, it’s not the biggest or most glamorous stage Will’s ever played but that clearly doesn’t matter to him or his band, a crack unit of musicians with the musical chops to keep up with him.

And they’re some chops. Bearing an uncanny resemblance to a less grizzled Tom Waits, Will and co blaze through three sets of originals and covers but even that wasn’t enough and the crowd just didn’t want to let them go. It’s easy to see why. As a performer Will’s both a gifted musician and vocalist, blending a bluesy growl together with a lighter shade that’s perfectly suited to some of the slower numbers and covers – including a hugely enjoyable romp through Dire Straits’ MTV staple Money For Nothing.

More importantly though what comes across loud and clear is that he clearly loves performing. From the testifying blues hollerin’ of original track I Believe (off the new album Hooks and Lines) through some of the standards of the genre (like Sweet Home

Chicago) and on to some excellent cover choices (Will’s version of Purple Rain is suitably majestic), the whole set is a masterclass in how to put on a show. Blues anoraks will appreciate the playing, anyone just out for a good time will have one. Guaranteed. Simply one of the best live blues bands on the scene right now.

Daron Billings

Pure Love The Glee Club, Birmingham 18/07/12

Having quit his old band Gallows to form a new one, Pure Love, eschewing screamcore for a more melodic rock sound, you might be expecting Frank Carter to have mellowed a bit. You can kiss that idea goodbye. For a track or two tonight that certainly seemed the case but he was lulling us all into a false sense of security. Pretty soon he is back where he belongs, in the crowd, under the crowd, on the crowd...at one point being lifted so high that he breaks through the ceiling. Yep, really. Gone is the larynx-shredding vocal delivery but the new sounding Frank still retains that raging sense of anger/passion and ‘give it all you’ve got...then give it a bit more’ attitude that marked Gallows out as something truly special. Gone too are the 100mph tunes, replaced with a (whisper it) more commercial rock sound best demonstrated on anthem-in-waiting Handsome Devil’s Club. “Never has a band playing only its eighth gig got such a reaction,” observes Frank during a brief moment of calm in proceedings. When audience and band connect like this there’s only one way to describe it: Pure Love.

Daron Billings

Photo by Andy Watson/Drw-Images

Taking to the stage as extraordinarily dressed laboratory workers, instruments in hand, these 14 white coat-wearing eccentrics unleash their musical alchemy upon the Mac’s minuscule amphitheatre. This intoxicating concoction of folk, klezmer and Balkan instantaneously stimulates the manic, dancing feet of the audience and, as the tempo accelerates into new realms of preposterousness, opening song Hongo Bulgar causes the crowd to erupt in merry-making.

The grand entrance of one Mr Paul Murphy transforms this band of jesters into a fullblown circus act. Murphy’s lyrics range from profound and political to cryptic and nonsensical and their delivery is often as intense as the music behind them.

The chorus of crowd favourite Methuselah Mouse needs no invitation for participation, with onlookers convincingly proclaiming “METHUSELAH MOUSE WILL LIVE FOREVER!” This carousel of oddities loses no momentum as band members rush through the ecstatic audience to inspire some anarchy.

Band antics continue during the morbidly but appropriately named song Clown Slayer.

The happy footed fiddler climbs the grassy knoll to the right of the stage as the audience is bombarded with a tune fit for a psychedelic merry-go-round. Murphy eerily narrates The Glass Coffin of Professor Zurinak, a forlorn tale of being buried alive, as the audience gathers in closer to listen, before springing to its feet as Murphy, now with a face nearly as red as his fez, bellows “LET ME OUT!” Band harlequins Louis Robinson (fiddle) and Dave Adams (accordion) treat the audience to a delightful little musical skit entitled The Kosher Klezmers, before the remaining Destroyers join them and the whole band animates itself once more.

They end the set with their two album title tracks Hole in the Universe and Out of Babel which are received with the same astounding enthusiasm. They have won the hearts and minds of their audience with their infectious nature and unique musicianship.

The Destroyers simply come, see and conquer.

Guy Hirst

The Will Johns Band The Garden House, Edgbaston 14/07/12

When you can count Eric Clapton as one of your mentors, George Harrison as one of your uncles and your dad worked on Zeppelin’s seminal IV album (not to mention The Rolling Stones Exile On Main Street) you could say the bar’s been set pretty high. Ok, August 2012

Pure Love

21

One Beat Sunday Mac, Birmingham

From top: Tempting Rosie, Swim Deep, The Carpels. Photos by Sheryce Smith

22/07/12

As far as symbolic gestures go, the weather certainly nailed it today. Having waited weeks for a few rays, the sun was out in full force to shine down brightly on the packed outdoor amphitheatre for One Beat Sunday.

And this mini-festival showcasing some of the best young talent in Birmingham certainly proved that the future is very bright for the Second City’s music scene too.

As families relaxed in the leafy surrounds of Cannon Hill Park, music-lovers of all ages flocked to what is one of the city’s most unique performance spaces, with a sell-out crowd filling up the crescent-shaped concrete rows that overlook the outdoor stage.

Teenage pop-punkers Red Method bravely open proceedings in the mid-afternoon heat and deliver a combination of killer tunes and edgy guitars that is both assured and mature beyond their years.

Up next, one of the surprise hits of the day, as fellow teenage outfit The Scribers who, like Red Method, were chosen from a host of young entries to complete the bill, but delivered a performance to prove they were every bit worth their place alongside the better known acts. Achingly cool and challenged to ‘bring it’ by compere Jodi Ann Bickley, they certainly did that and more, with frontman Jack Lawler spitting lyrics with the attitude of a young Jamie T, against a backdrop of brooding guitars.

An accomplished set of ballsy indie rock from Not By Design is held together confidently by swaggering frontman Alex Wareham and his flawless vocals, while The Jacarandas overcome some early technical difficulties to deliver their 1990s-inspired set of breezy indie pop – perfect summer music.

Jaws, one of the day’s most talked about, are next and they certainly aren’t short of a thing or two to say themselves, with bassist Jake Cooper joking with the audience at every opportunity. But questionable banter aside, it is their music that really does the talking and shows that there can be little question about the potential of this band with their hazy, lo-fi dream pop taking on an ethereal charm as we head into the early evening. And when they drop the chillwave-tastic Holy Cat, it is a fine contender for tune of the day.

Title of feel-good band of the day is in little doubt as soon as Tempting Rosie step on stage and this joyful ska/reggae collective are the first to get the audience on its feet, with their sun-kissed tunes

22

and party vibe helping them to steal the show in the sunshine. The electro-pop of Poppy & The Jezebels keeps the fun factor going, with set-closer Sign In, Dream On, Drop Out their stand-out track.

The crowd swells as new NME-darlings Swim Deep take to the stage with all the confidence of a band that are seemingly on everybody’s lips. And it is soon easy to see why, their shimmering soundscapes filling the air with dreamy songs of escapism, fantasy and desire. Frontman Austin Williams acts every bit the star in the making, smashing his mic stand to the floor and later dragging it with him as he strolls out into the centre of the arena to perform as he watches his own bandmates. And debut single King City is delivered with all the aplomb of old hands belting out an established hit.

As the sun sets on a hugely successful maiden festival, The Carpels live up to their billing as headliners and for the first time the crowd fills the gap between seating and stage, as frontman Dylan Williams confidently orders them in, before leading his bandmates in an energy-charged set that lurches and looms between high-octane rhythms, shuddering basslines, angular guitars and biting vocals.

Epic. One Beat Sunday 2013 anyone? You betcha.

Chris Moriarty Brum Notes Magazine

Mostly Jazz, Funk & Soul Festival Moseley Park, Moseley

Clockwise from top: George Clinton, The Blue Notes, The Family Stone, Roots Manuva, Troumaca

29/06/12-01/07/12

Day One Day one dished up another awesomely eclectic line-up. Early birds were rewarded with fine sets from rising local stars Free School’s brand of Balearic house meets Bladerunner soundtrack and Paper Tiger’s chilled out inner city jazz hop before Introducing bought DJ Shadow’s Endtroducing.... to life for the very last time (apparently Shadow’s agent was getting pissed off with people mistaking the band for the DJ...boo!).

Ghostpoet mournfully drawled what could well be our new national anthem, Survive It, before Brum’s very own Troumaca – fine purveyors of reggaecalia – played a scene stealing set that prompted Gilles Petersen to offer to sign them on the spot. As dusk fell and the cider flowed, Roots Manuva’s mix of hip hop, dancehall and ragga got the crowd bouncin’ along to earthquake-inducing levels. Bonus points for his Moseley-centric version of Dreamy Days.

Day Two Hangover? What hangover? No time for all that. With 6Music’s Craig Charles in charge things were about to get F U N K Y. Neatly sidestepping the ‘all cover bands are crap’ minefield, Rotunda Of Wonder breathed new life into US funk legends Tower Of Power’s back catalogue before The Bongolian made everyone feel like they were in a particularly cool episode of Starsky & Hutch. It’s a whole big bongo thang. Rather brilliantly the next band on the schedule Lack Of Afro... failed to turn up. Genius. That left the way clear for Speedometer to demonstrate just why they’re rated as one of the best, most authentic funk bands around right now. Native New Yoikers Odyssey got all disco on our asses with a booty-shaking greatest hits set leaving Craig Charles free to blow another funk shaped hole in the ozone layer. Suitably whipped up, The Family Stone (sadly lacking Sly) capped things off in fine

August 2012

style. Happily the current line up features three original members of the band (including a still sassy looking Cynthia Robinson) and, of course, they still had the tunes, Everyday People, Stand, Family Affair, Dance To The Music...each and every one a (Family) stone cold classic.

Day Three Following a moving tribute set to the late, great saxophonist Andy Hamilton by his band The Bluenotes, both The Zoe Rahman Quartet then Husk showcased jazz’s diversity.

Rahman’s fusing of her Irish/ Bengali roots with more traditional jazz forms added a neatly exotic twist, while Husk’s experimental 30 minute opus left the crowd shaken, stirred and taken roughly from behind.

That’s a good thing by the way.

The Neil Cowley Trio proved to be one of the weekend’s highlights, three musicians at the very top of their game with some Jerry Lee Lewis-worthy pounding from Mr C himself. Who knew a double bass could rock too? All round cool dude Soweto Kinch blew sax and minds with his amazing freestyle improv rap routine. Can you think of many words that rhyme with serotonin? Exactly. Fred Wesley and the New JB’s proved they’re still horny, 40 odd years after powering some of the Godfather’s finest moments, delivering a blistering performance of Funk For Your Ass before the mothership delivered George Clinton and crew to take things to another planet. Free Your Mind and Your Ass

Will Follow sent the crowd wild before One Nation Under a Groove summed up pretty much what this whole funkingly awesome weekend had felt like.

Daron Billings Photos by Wayne Fox 23

STYLE

:ON TREND ACCESSORIES

A COLLECTION OF MUST-HAVE SUMMER ACCESSORIES.

TOPSHOP £34.00

A-MORIR $250.00 URBAN OUTFITTERS £18.00

RIVER ISLAND £8.00

OFFICE £6.40 MEDWINDS £180.00

RIVER ISLAND £4.00 H&M £5.99 FOREVER 21 £3.15

URBAN OUTFITTERS £18.00

H&M £2.99

A-MORIR $320.00

FOREVER 21 £8.90 RIVER ISLAND £8.00

OFFICE £40.00 TOPSHOP £36.00

DOROTHY PERKINS £5.00

SCHUH £45.00

TOPSHOP £22.00 URBAN OUTFITTERS £10.00 24

RIVER ISLAND £3.00 Brum Notes Magazine

TOPSHOP £32.00

MISS SEFLRIDGE £35.00

H&M £7.99

BLAZER Zara SHIRT Cow

TOPSHOP £45.00 URBAN OUTFITTERS £95.00

DRESS Urban Outfitters

H&M £29.99 TOPSHOP £75.00

RIVER ISLAND £35.00

URBAN OUTFITTERS £16.00

TIGHTS Topshop

Q. How would you describe your style?

A. Girly goth with a boyish charm.

SHOES Accidentally stolen from friend Kitty

ANNA PALMER FORMERLY KNOWN AS LITTLE PALM AND THE PIANO PLAYING FRONT WOMAN OF TANTRUMS, ANNA PALMER IS BACK WITH A NEW STYLE, NEW MUSIC AND BIG PLANS. KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR ANNA’S NEW PROJECT, ANUSHKA.

August 2012

Q. Where do you get your inspiration from?

A. I like 50s styling mixed with a bit of punk and 90s grunge.

Q. Who are your style icons?

A. People like Karen O who just wear ridiculous things and don’t really care about it.

Q. What is your favourite wardrobe item?

A. Probably my nice little shirt that I’m wearing right now. I even ironed it for you! It’s from Cow Birmingham.

Q. What is your item of shame?

A. I’ve probably got loads of these, in fact too many to mention actually. There’s this sequin dress that looks like it’s straight out of a cheap high street store, it’s really blingy. It was a hand-me-down from my mom’s friend. I thought I’d make it into something half decent but that never happened.

Q. Where is your favourite shop in Birmingham?

A. I don’t really like shopping. I just like charity shops.

Q. What is next for ANNA PALMER? A. Anushka. I recently played Off The Cuff festival and am playing Moseley Folk Festival. I’ll be working on some recordings and getting all the promotional things ready and making a comeback closer to November.

25

FOOD + DRINK A Different Way To Enjoy Tequila There are a million and one different ways to enjoy the blue agave spirit, however many people tend to stick to what they know – shots or margaritas.

As a Tequila lover I should be firmly against shooting the lovely stuff, however there is always a time and place where it’s almost unavoidable. The margarita is one of the biggest selling cocktails in the world, and there are literally thousands of variations for people to enjoy.

Ignoring my agreement with these ‘go-to’ methods of enjoying Tequila, there are many, many more. If you ask any bartender then they will always think of a different drink, cocktail or shooter for you to try.

The first drink that I am using is called A Violeta, by our very own Amanda Garnett. The base spirit in this drink is Patron XO Café, a Tequila made by one of Jalisco’s most famous Tequila houses and then blended with coffee to give an amazing coffee/dark chocolate flavour. Amanda’s cocktail fuses the initial hit of coffee and chocolate flavours with a smoothness similar to almond milk and an almost baked biscuit finish.

The second drink for you to try is called Sangrita, this is one of the most popular ways to drink tequila in Mexico. It comes as two shots, the first being a tequila of your choice, traditionally a Reposado (rested) or an Anejo (aged). The second shot being the Sangrita, a mix of tomato juice, orange juice, lime, chillies, hot sauce, peppers, spices and seasoning. This is a very basic recipe, you can be as imaginative as you want with the mix.

Our mix at Bodega has never been the same twice, we always come up with something new to add or change.

The idea of the two shots is to sip from the tequila and then the Sangrita, the spiciness of the Sangrita is mellowed by the tequila and the kick of the tequila is...you get the idea. They work in perfect harmony with each other to create and interesting and different tequila drink.

By Antony Bubb, bar manager at Bodega, Bennetts Hill, Birmingham. www.bodegabirmingham.co.uk

Recipe: A Violeta Ingredients: 25ml Patron XO Café 25ml Frangelico 25ml semi skimmed milk 12.5ml almond syrup 5ml Violet liqueur Directions: Shake all ingredients and strain into a martini glass the top with chocolate sprinkles.

Recipe by Amanda Garnett.

26

Brum Notes Magazine

presents

in association with Manifest Live

Plus special guests:

The Tone Thieves | Wide Eyed | These Kings | Caves

O2 ACADEMY3 BIRMINGHAM SATURDAY 18 AUGUST DOORS: 7PM / CURFEW: 11PM / £5 ADV Buy tickets now from: o2academybirmingham.co.uk 0844 477 2000 (24hr) www.jawsjawsjaws.co.uk facebook.com/thetonethieves facebook.com/YDYED

1206 BrumNotes Presents Jaws A6.indd 1

13/06/2012 23:35

3 1 S T A U G U S T, 1 S T, 2 N D S E P T E M B E R

STEELEYE SPAN • ROY HARPER ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN

CARA DILLON • JULIAN COPE • JONATHAN WILSON GUILLEMOTS • SIMON FOWLER’S MERRYMOUTH

BETH JEANS HOUGHTON & THE HOOVES OF DESTINY GOODNIGHT LENIN • LANTERNS ON THE LAKE • DARK DARK DARK DEVON SPROULE • RICHARD JAMES • THE DESTROYERS • THE MAGNETIC NORTH ABIGAIL WASHBURN WITH KAI WELCH • PAUL MURPHY • SPIRO • EMILY PORTMAN TRIO THE LONG NOTES • TREETOP FLYERS • RACHEL SERMANNI • JONNY KEARNEY & LUCY FARRELL LAURA J MARTIN • ELLEN & THE ESCAPADES • THE FALSE BEARDS • TELLING THE BEES MICKY GREANEY • GENTLE GOOD • SUNJAY BRAYNE • RAPUNZEL & SEDAYNE REVERE • THE TERRAPINS • GOLDEN GLASS

August 2012

27

WHAT’S ON Wednesday, Aug 1

Bardo Pond M Canvas M CN Moschino Hoes

M M M M

CN CN

Versace Hotties Thursday, Aug 2 Acoustic Lounge

M M M M

28

Birmingham

Birmingham

O2 Academy 3

Birmingham

Micky Greaney Band + Chris Tye Band + Ben Drummond Samba Circle & Jam Go With The Flo

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

edy Fredrik Anderson + Andy Robinson + Daliso Chaponda + Steve Allen Friday, Aug 3 The Black Sheep Family The Grades + Swamp Snakes + Concrete Belly Mr Shankly Public Image Limited Tiki Friday

XXXY R Manor present Dubcherry (live ) + DJ Leeming Freestyle

CN Fredrik Anderson C

M

The Victoria

Mac

CN CN Click CN Gully in a Rave CN Le Lieu Present

M

Moseley

Summer Sessions feat Matt Tyler Give Chase

DJ4D Berlusconi’s

M

Bull’s Head

Birmingham

CN CN Just A Groove with

CN

Kings Heath

Island Bar

CN Tropicalia Manila Road ComC C

Hare & Hounds

+ Andy Robinson + Daliso Chaponda + Kockov Saturday, Aug 4 Supersonic Festival Taster feat King Midas Sound System Fear of Flying The Last Pursuit + The Resurrection

KEY TO LISTINGS: M = LIVE MUSIC CN = CLUB NIGHT C = COMEDY

M

M CN Shuffle CN Uprawr CN Juqebox with Missy Rodriguez DJ Royale

CN CN FACE meets 2:31 CN Summer Slammer CN Prospec present

Bodega

Birmingham

The Wagon & Horses Bull’s Head

Birmingham

The Victoria

Birmingham

The Glee Club

Birmingham

The Actress & Bishop The Flapper

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Wulfrun Hall

Wolverhampton

Island Bar

Birmingham

The Rose Villa Tavern The Victoria

Birmingham

Snobs

Birmingham

The Rainbow

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

M

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

CN

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Glee Club

Birmingham

M

Moseley

CN CN C

M M

Birmingham

M

Birmingham

M

CN CN

M Eastside Projects

Birmingham

The Actress & Bishop The End @ The Ballroom

Birmingham

M C

Birmingham

Victor + Giant Elf Fist The Ripps

M M

Metalheadz with Goldie, Lenman, J-dok, Process & Spinx Sumo Sound System with Aries + Tuffist Hot Wax Club With Thieves & Arc Vel Live Fredrik Anderson + Andy Robinson + Daliso Chaponda + Kockov Sunday, Aug 5 Free Love Club Dan Salt + David Swift + Tim Fletcher Forgotten Fallacy + Pyrotic + 8 Bit Monster Hardcore Matinee Gig (1pm) feat Coke Bust + Sick Fix + No King Street Sounds All-dayer Brian Travers Sunday Social Monday, Aug 6 Agnostic Front + Terror Jam Jah Reggae Session Tuesday, Aug 7 Acoustic Club Wednesday, Aug 8 Canvas - Visuals, Music And Artist Workshops The Lonnie Donegan Band Laughing Calves Thursday, Aug 9 Acoustic Lounge Summer Sessions feat Boat To Row

The Flapper

Birmingham

Kasbah

Coventry

Island Bar

Birmingham

The Asylum

Birmingham

The Rose Villa Tavern The Victoria

Birmingham

The Rainbow

Birmingham

Subway City

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Island Bar

Birmingham

The Flapper

Birmingham

The Flapper

Birmingham

The Wagon & Horses

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Library @ HMV Institute Bull’s Head

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Robin 2

Bilston

The Kitchen Garden Cafe

Kings Heath

Island Bar

Birmingham

Mac

Birmingham

Birmingham

Moseley

Brum Notes Magazine

M M

That Cavalier Attitude + The Press The Jay Tamkin Band Manhattan Loft

CN CN Go With The Flo

CN Fantastic Damage XV: East Coast vs West Coast Tropicalia

CN Trevor Crook + C

M M

Andrew Stanley + Andy White + Mundo Jazz Friday, Aug 10 Exide + Our Dystophia Malandra + Cerebral Laceration + Sevendaze Keziasoul

O2 Academy 3

Birmingham

Robin 2

Bilston

The Victoria

Birmingham

The Wagon & Horses Bull’s Head

Birmingham Moseley

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Glee Club

Birmingham

C C C

Highlight Comedy

Highlight

Birmingham

Jongleurs Comedy

Jongleurs

Birmingham

Trevor Crook + Andrew Stanley + Andy White + Chris Distefano Sunday, Aug 12 Free Love Club

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Island Bar

Birmingham

James Foster + Call Me Unique + Paraffin Brothers The Prospects

The Flapper

Birmingham

The Flapper

Birmingham

Mass Terror

The Other Room @ The Ballroom Bull’s Head

Birmingham

Robin 2

Bilston

CN CN Brian Travers Sun-

Club PST

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

C

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Actress & Bishop The Kitchen Garden Cafe Bull’s Head

Birmingham

M M M M M

The Actress & Bishop The Flapper

Birmingham Birmingham

M

M CN Lucha Libre with DJ

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Bodega

Birmingham

CN CN Shuffle CN Osmosis

O2 Academy

Birmingham

The Victoria

Birmingham

The Wagon & Horses Hare & Hounds

Birmingham Kings Heath

M

CN Highlight Comedy C Jongleurs Comedy C

Bull’s Head

Moseley

M

Highlight

Birmingham

Jongleurs

Birmingham

M

C

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Disgrace Propaganda

CN The Source Present Tango & Ratty Freestyle

M M

Club Trevor Crook + Andrew Stanley + Andy White + Chris Distefano Saturday, Aug 11 The Bellfuries

CN

Bohemian Jukebox Sunday Social Lee Small’s Band Of Brothers Rumour

day Social Rough Works New Material Night Monday, Aug 13 Jam Jah Reggae Session Tuesday, Aug 14 Never Cry Wolf + The Departed Mick Thomas with Squeezebox Wally Acoustic Club

presents

Moseley

Kings Heath Moseley

in association with Academy Events

HMV Institute

Birmingham

The Actress & Bishop The End @ The Ballroom The Flapper

Birmingham

The Other Room @ The Ballroom Hare & Hounds

Birmingham Kings Heath

Plus special guests:

CN CN MC Bassman Of-

Island Bar

Birmingham

Paper Shapes | Dive Exit | The One Twos

O2 Academy

Birmingham

CN CN Subculture Beach

The Asylum

Birmingham

The Ballroom

Birmingham

CN

The Rainbow

Birmingham

CN CN High Fidelity Club CN Hot Club De Swing

The Victoria

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

CN

Bull’s Head

Moseley

M M

M M

The Night Shift + The Ritas Left Below + As Night Dies Pretentious Class + The Black Tears + Rise + Avogadro Constant Red Method The Nervous Kind Reunited Hot Wax ficial Birthday Bash 2012 Uprawr Party FACE presents Leftroom v Culprit Funk Fusion

Free Party It’s A Brazilika Thing

Birmingham Birmingham

O2 ACADEMY2 BIRMINGHAM FRIDAY 26 OCTOBER DOORS: 6PM / CURFEW: 10PM / £6 ADV Buy tickets now from: o2academybirmingham.co.uk 0844 477 2000 (24hr) facebook.com/dakotabeatsband | facebook.com/papershapes facebook.com/DiveExit | facebook.com/TheOneTwos

August 2012

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Wednesday, Aug 15 Break The Mic urban showcase Canvas - Visuals, Music And Artist Workshops Thursday, Aug 16 Acoustic Lounge

C

M M

M

Birmingham

Birmingham

The Jacarandas + Prayers + T H I E VES Connie Lush & Blues Shouter Reel Big Fish

The Flapper

Birmingham

Robin 2

Bilston

Gary Delaney + Karl Spain + Ben Davids Friday, Aug 17 Occoeur + SubTotal + ANIMA Scruffy Somethings + Go Primitive Bowen & The Tide Infa Riot Magoo

Kasbah

Coventry

Gatecrasher

Birmingham

The Victoria

Birmingham

The Wagon & Horses Bull’s Head

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Moseley

The Actress & Bishop The End @ The Ballroom The Flapper

Birmingham

The Other Room @ The Ballroom Bull’s Head

Birmingham

Birmingham Birmingham

Moseley

V Festival 2012

Weston Park

Staffordshire

Propaganda

O2 Academy

Birmingham

Tiki Friday

Island Bar

Birmingham

Live Forever

The Victoria

Birmingham

Therapy Sessions

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Freestyle

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Highlight Comedy

Highlight

Birmingham

Jongleurs Comedy Club John Fothergill + Gary Delaney + Karl Spain + Kate Lucas Saturday, Aug 18 Shirt Lifter + The Courtesy Group + more Vegas Assault + Awesome Proportion + Severed Ties + Elysium Johnny & The Sexy Weirdos Plus Alex Kid V Festival 2012

Jongleurs

Birmingham

The Glee Club

Birmingham

M Slade Alive M CN Atta Girl

30

Island Bar

O2 Academy 3

CN John Fothergill + C

M M CN CN CN CN CN C C

Moseley

Birmingham

gun Decapitater Live Tropicalia

M M

Bull’s Head

Mac

CN Theo & The Show-

M

Birmingham

Summer Sessions feat The Rachael Cohen Quartet Cause for Concern

M CN Supersonic Vague CN Manhattan Loft CN Go With The Flo

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Mac

The Conservatory @ Muthers Studio

Birmingham

The Flapper

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Weston Park

Staffordshire

The Slade Rooms

Wolverhampton

Island Bar

Birmingham

CN Uprawr CN Juqebox with Hot

The Asylum

Birmingham

Wax FACE: Ten Story

The Rose Villa Tavern The Rainbow

Birmingham

Beatamax

The Victoria

Birmingham

Afrolicious

78 Bar

Birmingham

Highlight Comedy

Highlight

Birmingham

Jongleurs Comedy Club John Fothergill + Gary Delaney + Karl Spain + Kevin McCarthy Sunday, Aug 19 Free Love Club

Jongleurs

Birmingham

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Island Bar

Birmingham

Matt Sheehan

The End @ The Ballroom The Flapper

Birmingham

M V Festival 2012 M CN Brian Travers Sun-

The Flapper

Birmingham

Weston Park

Staffordshire

Bull’s Head

Moseley

CN CN Jam Jah Reggae

Gatecrasher

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

M

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Wulfrun Hall

Wolverhampton

CN CN CN C C C

M M M

Aarron ArmstrongCraddock Moody Bomber

day Social Monday, Aug 20 GB Mondays

M M M M M M

Session Tuesday, Aug 21 Acoustic Club

Wednesday, Aug 22 Canvas - Visuals, Music And Artist Workshops Mark Lanegan Band Thursday, Aug 23 Acoustic Lounge

Birmingham

Birmingham

Island Bar

Birmingham

Summer Sessions feat Anguish Sandwich Old Man Luedecke

Mac

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Kate Goes + Eat Y’Self Pretty Pavlov’s Dog

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Robin 2

Bilston

The Victoria

Birmingham

The Wagon & Horses Bull’s Head

Birmingham

The Glee Club

Birmingham

The Actress & Bishop The End @ The Ballroom The Flapper

Birmingham

M CN Manhattan Loft CN Go With The Flo

CN Tropicalia Paul Thorne + Zoe C

Moseley

M

Lyons + Gary Little + Paul Ricketts Friday, Aug 24 The Grey Quotes

M

Criminal Diva

M

Day Release + Bolshie + The Delta Rhythm Long Grass Hare & Hounds

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Robin 2

Bilston

Bodega

Birmingham

M The Traps M Mungo Jerry M CN Lucha Libre with DJ Disgrace

Birmingham

Kings Heath

Brum Notes Magazine

CN Tiki Friday CN Beatdown Beach

Island Bar

Birmingham

CN Jam Jah Reggae

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Ballroom

Birmingham

CN Stanley Court Col-

The Victoria

Birmingham

Tuesday, Aug 28 Flatliners

O2 Academy 3

Birmingham

Holy Other

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Acoustic Club

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Mac

Birmingham

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Robin 2

Bilston

Kasbah

Coventry

Island Bar

Birmingham

Mac

Birmingham

O2 Academy 3

Birmingham

The Flapper

Birmingham

The Flapper

Birmingham

M CN Samba Circle &

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Bodega

Birmingham

CN

The Wagon & Horses Bull’s Head

Birmingham

The Glee Club

Birmingham

O2 Academy 3

Birmingham

The End @ The Ballroom The Flapper

Birmingham

The Wagon & Horses Hare & Hounds

Birmingham

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Moseley Park

Moseley

Island Bar

Birmingham

The Rose Villa Tavern The Victoria

Birmingham

O2 Academy

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Bull’s Head

Moseley

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Party (All ages) lective Propaganda

CN CN Freestyle Free

O2 Academy Bull’s Head

Moseley

C

The Glee Club

Birmingham

M M M

Party Paul Thorne + Zoe Lyons + Gary Little + Jeremy O’Donnell Saturday, Aug 25 Summer Slam Festival Exodus Calling The Night Shift + Escape In Paris + Ruby Moon + Rise at Dawn The Major Toms

Birmingham

The Ballroom

Birmingham

The End @ The Ballroom The Flapper

Birmingham Birmingham

M M M M M M M M M M

M CN Uproar - The Laser

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

HMV Institute

Birmingham

M

CN CN Uprawr CN Discographic with

Island Bar

Birmingham

M

The Asylum

Birmingham

Steve Jones Hot Wax

The Rose Villa Tavern The Victoria

Birmingham

Heroes & Villains

Gibb St Warehouse Birmingham

FACE v Dolce Vita

The Rainbow

Birmingham

Yo! MTV Raps Remembrance King Of The Beats Present Party Groove Paul Thorne + Zoe Lyons + Gary Little + Jeremy O’Donnell Sunday, Aug 26 Free Love Club

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Bull’s Head

Moseley

A Wilhelm Scream Listener

Spectacular Neither Nor

CN CN CN CN CN C

M M M M M M

CN

Defiance, Ohio + Martha Sound Of The Sirens Luke Round + Dale Hanson + Benjamin Jones + Liam Perry Bank Holiday Tunes

CN CN Below feat Martin

Education in Sound Buttrich Absolut Reggae

CN CN Tribe CN Brian Travers SunCN

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day Social Free School present Tender Administration Monday, Aug 27 Booker T & His Sensational American Band

August 2012

Birmingham

The Glee Club

Birmingham

Island Bar

Birmingham

O2 Academy 2

Birmingham

The Actress & Bishop The Edge

Birmingham

The End @ The Ballroom The Flapper

Birmingham

The Rose Villa Tavern The Victoria

Birmingham

The Rainbow

Birmingham

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Hare & Hounds

Kings Heath

Bull’s Head

Moseley

Bull’s Head

Robin 2

M

Birmingham

Birmingham

Birmingham

Moseley

Bilston

Wednesday, Aug 29 Love to Jaw Cyper Party Kimbra Canvas - Visuals, Music And Artist Workshops Steve Ajao Blues Giants Saves The Day Thursday, Aug 30 Acoustic Lounge Summer Sessions feat Matt Tyler The Regulars + The Domino Effect Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkyard JEFFREY LEWIS & THE JUNKYARD + Misty’s Little Adventure + Kate Goes The Outside Track Jam Go With The Flo

CN Tropicalia Keith Farnan + C

M M M M M

M M

Daniel Townes + Susan Murray + Scott Bennett Friday, Aug 31 Dive Bella Dive Rise Lightfire + Grace The Skies Birmingham Punks’ Picnic Troumaca + Victories At Sea + Greatwaves + Arc Vel Shades Moseley Folk Festival Tiki Friday

CN CN Discographic

CN Out of Bounds CN Propaganda CN Leftfoot Present Theo Parrish Freestyle

CN Keith Farnan + C

Daniel Townes + Susan Murray + Wouter Meijs

Moseley

Birmingham

Kings Heath

Birmingham

Send your listings to info@brumnotes.com

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Brum Notes Magazine