The Lines- Flood Bank

‘The old ‘This band has been criminally ignored in the past’ line rears its head again. You may yawn but…have you ever encountered The Lines?’

Zig Zag No. 116, August ‘81

The Lines are shrouded in mystery, formed around the late 70’s in London the group went on to have little mainstream success aside from a number of NME features and the like…but then again who hasn’t been brown nosed by the NME and left high and dry like a dirty one night stand?

I was not previously acquainted with The Lines this is certainly a chance encounter I am quite relieved to have had, one of Post punks best kept secrets. Flood bank is a reminder of why reissues should exist to draw music lovers in to discover new/old music, not to line the pockets of bands that have had their day (cough Echo & The Bunnymen cough)

Flood bank combines both the bands full length LPs Therapy and Ultramarine which were recorded between 1981 and 1982, the fast tribal drum beats, distinctively 80’s vocals and harmonies the reissue feels like an album I’ve been listening to forever.

The Krautrock, Post Punk tag would place them in ‘The Fall, Gang of Four, Birthday Party’ alt Indie bracket that seems to encompass so many. But there’s plenty of room for melancholic experimental New Wave in my books. I’d encourage you to make use of your senses and read between the [insert obvious word play here].

MOLE fm second installment

Got a bit of a 70's/ 80's theme of Thatcher bashing here with some random additions at the end. The second installment of MOLE fm, the audio sister of MOLE blog.

Playlist: 'i'm no communist but...'

PIL- This is Not A Love Song
The Smiths- This Charming Man
The Fall- Totally Wired
Gang of Four- Damaged Goods
Bauhaus- Shes In Parties
Toots and The Maytals- Pressure Drop
The Specials- Ghost Town
TV On The Radio - Staring At The Sun
Dälek- Trampled Brethrens
Dälek- Hold Tight

(click on MOLE fm second installment...basic etc same routine as before.)

Pancake Mountain

George Clinton on 'Pancake Mountain'


why the bejesus wasn't this around when i was a wee nipper, this looks like the most amazing kids show in the world. fuck off Playdays, Pancake Mountain is where it's at.

...From Mole Hills

I just realised Dälek penned a track conveniently titled: '...From Mole Hills', it's as if it were meant to be!

Dälek: Gutter Tactics

New Jersey duo Dälek (pronounced dia-lekt) mix, and slice up the finest beats using a cut, copy, sample and paste ethic which sees them lean towards the more experimental side of hip hop.
After Recently purchasing ‘From Filthy Tongue Of Gods And Griots’ I was ecstatic to see this release land on my door mat. I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited to review a CD, it’s certainly the season for Ipecac at the moment, a label which I’ve held close to my heart for the past 4 years.
combining noise, drone and heavy rock influences by artists as diverse as shoegazers My Bloody Valentine and kraut rockers Faust, Dälek are often considered Avant garde hip hop, a term which the duo deplore considering themselves ‘hip-hop, in the purest sense.’
The dark ambience of Gutter tactics consumes you with each listen, although not too dissimilar from the duo’s earlier releases, the new record has an intensity and heaviness that has seen it compared to the work of Black Sabbath and label mates Melvins . ‘Atypical stereotype’ has a raw bassline heavy enough to melt your bones (no I’m not sure that’s possible either…). Certainly worthy of the albums title, the gritty Feedback and distortion on the record contribute a density that doesn’t exist on ‘From Filthy Tongue…’
One standout track and album opener ‘Blessed Are They Who Bash Your Children’s Heads Against A Rock’ takes it’s name and sampling from a controversial speech made by Reverend Jeremiah Wright and reminded me of a similarly styled Stokely Carmichael excerpt used by Blackalicious on the track ‘Cliffhanger’.
The Beautiful sonic brilliance of Dälek is proof of the evolutionary force of hip hop, having been active for the best part of the last decade the likes of Saul Williams, Blackalicious and Dälek by are no means part of a new skool but these are the sort of musical educators mainstream hip hop could do with taking a few notes from.

fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck

ahh that's better.

Melvins- Scala 9/12/08

( Melvins and Big Business)hardly a senile animal, but i can't say i'd like to see them nude in boots, except maybe you Coady...

After missing Nightmare Before Christmas curated by our heroes in question the Melvins and vocal acrobat Mike Patton and missing Fantomas perform the directors cut the previous night it was all I could do to see the behemoths of distortion and heavy low frequencies that are the Melvins, and disappoint they did not.

The ambiguously titled Melvins 1983 Stormed through a collection of songs from the mangled demos joined by founding member Mike Dillard on drums, Dale Crover took over bass duties. There seemed to be a theme of hippy bashing that night with Big Business front man Jared Willis expressing his disgust for this particular breed of liberal species. Despite this The drum and bass duo worked their magic, watching Coady Willis navigate his way around his extended drum kit is like watching a wizard at work, for those that think Dale Crover is a drumming Adonis, Willis is proves just as engaging. ‘Grounds for divorce’ was a particular highlight (unfortunately their cover of Devo’s ‘Be Stiff’ was nowhere to be heard). Jared’s bass could have done with being a couple of hundred decibels louder, I thought it would blow the cobwebs off of a few relics in the venue, however after the weekends antics which saw the band blow an amp after the first note of their set they probably thought better.

The Melvins and Big Business conjoined twinship is akin to a distorted mirror reflection. The synchronized drumming is nothing short of amazing to watch. Although Buzz had a solemn look on his face throughout, one glimpse from him felt like your eyes would be burnt out of their socket, like Medusa, albeit with scarier hair. The intimacy of the Scala suited the evening perfectly, no barrier between band and audience I thought buzz was going to knock out the front row with his guitar or mammoth afro from which he had actually carried his equipment and roadie in.

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is the energy and stamina the Melvins seem to possess (in their stripped down incarnation and the current lineup). The band worked through mostly newer collection of songs from A Senile Animal and Nude With Boots much to my disappointment I was hoping for some older classics. Revolver was met with cheers and gentle shoving which constituted the mosh pit of the evening, compared to their Islington show last year, the evening was tame.

Highlight of their set were mainly golden oldies which included Eyes Flys in its entirety, slow, dense track prompting audience members to shuffle from foot to foot in anxiety as they anticipated the climatic detuned riffs punctuating the glacial paced drum beat. The haunting stroke of genius that is ‘Boris’ sounded equally amazing. As did the distinctively Melvins version of Star Spangled Banner which almost made me want to lift a clenched fist across my chest as a sign of patriotism.

The night drew to a close with an intimate last track from Buzz as the others abandoned the stage leaving him to a soulful rendition of ‘Okie from Muskogee’ which drew titters of laughter amidst annoying shouts and requests from audience members who should simply shut the fudge up and let the man sing in future, damn savage hippies.

Mole FM 2

I have found a new hobby, it takes longer and it isn't quite as rewarding as writing, plus the sound and pitch of your own voice tends to grate after a few seconds, HOWEVER brothers and sisters here is the first 'properish' installment of MOLE FM, more to come hopefully and better quality, think of this as a guinea pig of sorts.

Tracklisting:

• When you Sleep- Portatile Room Mobile
  
• Bela Lugosi's Dead- Bauhaus
• Across 110th st- Bobby Womack
• Down in Mexico- The Coasters
• Hustler- Simian Mobile Disco

i know, not a great deal of songs, but it's a good half hour long and there are some fine tunes right there, hope it works. ( just click on MOLE FM2 and use filefactory basic service)

mole fm