The B of the Bang - In The Bleak Midwinter

The third and final free Christmas download that we’re featuring on Breaking More Waves comes from The B of the Bang. Having been locked away in the studio for some time recording their second album Tremors & Nosebleeds: The Melodies of a Malady the group quietly uploaded new material in the form of Wander (Through The Night) to You Tube just over a month ago. (Video here)

Today we’re featuring their take on In The Bleak Midwinter, a song that has been tackled by everyone from Annie Lennox to Chas & Dave. It’s a weirdly spectral version of the evocative carol, like a lost tune from Twin Peaks with twangy and detuned guitars and a languidly sad cold-turkey voice. This is as dimly-lit and depressingly meditative as you can probably get and will make you remember that not everything about Christmas is about tinsel, Slade and granny getting a bit tipsy whilst making suggestive comments at your boyfriend / girlfriend.

If you like In The Bleak Midwinter you can download it for free until the download limit is reached. If you do so, why not go to The B of the Bang Facebook page and give them a like or when the track appears on Hype Machine show it some love. 

The B of the Bang return to the live front on December 15th at a special Christmas gig for fans of pie and records. More details here.

This represents the end of what we’ve called Christmas Waves Volume 1. You can listen to (and download) all the songs from this online EP here just the ticket for people who like Christmas and free stuff really. Thank you to all the participating artists – Curxes, Alice Jemima and The B of the Bang, who agreed to record and give away these songs for Breaking More Waves. 

We’re taking a short break from the blog tomorrow and over the weekend but will be back on December 10th with a series of posts running down our ten favourite albums of the year.

The B of the Bang - In The Bleak Midwinter

Some Thoughts On Music Blogging

Amongst the industry conferences / debates at Manchester’s In the City there was one whose brief was to discuss the difference between UK and US blogs. The brief went a little astray at times as the discussion veered towards the wider aspects of new music blogging with a panel consisting of Pitchfork’s Ryan Schreiber, Hype Machine’s Dev Sherlock, My Band’s Better Than Your Band’s Oliver Clueit, David Greenwald from Rawkblog and Drowned In Sound’s Sean Adams. The first part of the discussion is not on the recording, but the remaining fifty minutes you can catch below. Sean Adams arrives part of the way through, having been stuck in traffic.

Some of the discussion revolves around what the invited panel considered to be a decent blog with the consensus being that good blogs have their own personality and put the effort in – they don’t just post the latest Lady Ga Ga remix to generate hits – content is everything.

However, there are elements of the discussion that we’re not so comfortable with. The idea that the best blogs post only niche material as suggested by one panel member smacks to us as indie snobbery – our love of music is broader than that. We wholeheartedly agree with blogs acting with integrity and not just posting a ‘big-name’ track to get high hit count from ‘readers’, free goodies, guest list passes or the like from PR companies. However if a blog posts a Lady Ga Ga remix MP3 we feel there’s nothing wrong with that providing that it truly represents the taste of the blog author and that they have some genuine quality content linked to the MP3. (And the MP3 has consent from the record company / artist / PR company to post!)

The MP3 blog market is over saturated and blogs that have a unique selling point such as great content in the writing or a different way of doing things are more likely to survive – if only because their author is showing a degree of commitment. However one issue that is quickly touched on (when Skatterbrain is mentioned) but that isn’t discussed within the conversations is how many blogs have a limited shelf life, often being written by students / the unemployed / those trying to get a job in music journalism or the music industry at large and those without other commitments such as families. As these authors personal commitments increase often their blog activity lessens particularly if their blog isn't monetised or linked to their day job in some way. Skatterbrain for example has only posted about ten times since the end of July. We’ve seen a number of other blogs all but disappear as their authors find the pressures of adult life leaving them less time to write their blogs.

Breaking More Waves is lucky in that with a family, professional career a long way from music and an already busy life before we started the blog. We have managed to time manage our real life pressures to ensure that we can continue to deliver regular content. Hopefully with our more discursive articles (such as this) we also occasionally offer up something a little different that the regular MP3 blogs don’t offer. We’ve never aimed to be a ‘big name’ blog – our blog is very much a hobby (but a hobby with a strong enthusiasm for its subject) – but are happy that with a growing readership, ONE that has doubled in the last eight months, we’re doing things along what we consider to be the right lines, and hopefully our regular readers agree –otherwise they wouldn’t be regular.

Now here’s that Lady Ga Ga remix. Only joking. Instead we feature something a little more ‘niche’ to help our indie snob points – a of track that we’ve posted about before and would like to give a little more exposure to. Enjoy Film Noir by Portsmouth’s The B of the Bang as well as the whole debate courtesy of Rawkblog.

In The City: Music Blogging in the USA panel, 10.13.10 by rawkblog

Film Noir - The B of the Bang by Breaking More Waves

Southsea Fest 2010 - Review

When you list famous musical cities it’s unlikely that the words Portsmouth or Southsea will crop up. Too close to London and lacking the artistic bond of Brighton, Portsmouth has always been the UK’s south-central second rate cousin in terms of music. Portsmouth may possess a small but thriving grassroots scene, the hub of which is Southsea’s Albert Road area, but the size of the place, the lack of quality small music venues (the Wedgewood Rooms excepted), combined with the lack of vision and entrepreneurial foresight of many (but not all) local bands and promoters means that Portsmouth often exists in its own little pond, where even the smallest fish can seem like a shark.

Yet last Saturday Portsmouth put itself a little more on the musical map, with the annual event that is Southsea Fest. It’s a multi-gig, multi-venue one day festival where one wristband allows access to everything. It enabled Portsmouth to look outwards as well as inwards, showcasing a significant number of up and coming national bands as well as the talent that lurks within.

There was a slow burning buzz of anticipation for Southsea Fest 2010, more so than similar events in other towns, particularly since the addition of Pulled Apart by Horses who by all accounts played a sweaty and messily fun gig at the tiny café sized Edge of The Wedge. This was a case of Portsmouth’s musical backwater status working in its favour – many of those attending were proud that Portsmouth was putting on such an event – there was no resigned ‘seen it all before attitude’ and good weather helped build the upbeat vibe. Southsea Fest had a d-i-y feel to it, staff mainly being volunteers - which led to a few venues running behind schedule - but nobody seemed to mind.

“Do you ever wake yourself up shouting at yourself?” asked Ollie from Oxford three piece Ute, beginning their lunch time slot in the Edge of the Wedge. Ute were the perfect wakeup call – complex arrangements and intricate rhythms that veered from shouty acoustic thrashes to desolate pastoral pop. Add in Ollie’s comical sense of storytelling – at one point he explained his ‘Pin-up’ labelled belt was purchased yesterday after his old one broke whilst eating pizza – and Southsea Fest delivered a pleasing start to the day.

The Edwardian elegance of the Kings Theatre, with its Italian Renaissance décor and high ceilings played host to four bands who dealt in similar sonic architecture – tunes that filled the space with their expansiveness and occasional bombast. Three of these gropus hailed from Portsmouth and its environs – but it was Londoners Revere who really excelled.

The words “All roads lead south,” sung by The Dawn Chorus seemed highly relevant for the festival. Their mix of acoustic and electric guitars, mandolin, accordion, keys, drums and a trumpet player who at one point blasted out his sound from the balcony had moments of tenderness, passion and melancholy. With a drummer who provided a rabble rousing impersonation of Frank Turner on the uplifting Carnivalesque, The Dawn Chorus filled the space of the Kings Theatre with that good old fashioned virtue of excellent musicianship.

Revere raised the stakes even higher. With their chartered accountant attire of black waistcoats and smart clothes this eight piece played incredible widescreen sculptures that built to huge crescendos like Sigur Ros with more guitars or Mogwai with more strings. Backed by projections of grey landscapes and balloons floating skywards, their music also aimed for the stars, full of sweeping strings and transcendent noise. Words such as euphoric, cinematic and majestic came to mind. This was a band who really knew how to fill the tall space, the power of The Escape Artist virtually lifting the roof off as the projections flashed up the words “Fade out of sight, step out of the light.” Powerful and masterful Revere were utterly incredible.

The B of the Bang had a virtually impossible act to follow. Thwarted by a technical hitch where a spilt bottle shorted out some equipment, the band struggled bravely on, but their sound seemed low-key after Revere. They finally hit their stride with a new song The Forest, the result being a bassy grunge-funk groove that seemed to merge 70’s Starsky & Hutch rhythms and Eye of the Tiger by Survivor into something new. Requests from the audience for the missing Alaska led to boos when it couldn’t be played because of the gremlins in the machine. “Just because we’re in a theatre doesn’t mean this is panto,” responded lead singer Chris Whitear before managing to get the electronics working so that the song could be played out.

There’s a military, chest banging, call to arms exuberance to The Strange Death of Liberal England, and this was taken one step further in the Kings Theatre, with an orchestra, marching soldier drummers parading down the aisles and air raid sirens played from the balconies. It was big, a little ridiculous and visually entertaining. Lead singer Adam Woolway’s parrot screech of a vocal was neatly juxtaposed against the bigger orchestral moments – his passionate rasp fighting solo against the orchestra on A Day Another Day, but it didn’t sit comfortably with everyone in the audience, the back rows of the stalls slowly emptying as the bands performance continued.

From the opulence of the Kings Theatre, over the road at The Loft – a grubby worn out pub, Manchester’s Cats In Paris did their very best to confound the indie kids with a set of genre bending oddness. Keyboards that sounded like rock guitars, violins thrown in from nowhere, jittery song structures and a lead singer that could do a good job as a Huw Stephens double act. Schizo-pop strangeness of the craziest order.

Run Toto Run continued the Manchester assault, although in this case it was full of darker jerky synth stabs, breathy feminine vocals and quirky but loveable song structures. Occasionally it appeared the boy-girl-boy three piece wanted to step out and make a big commercial dance-pop song, but are just a little bit more comfortable in their own non-conformity to do so. Run Toto Run are a band who have fully made the transition from sunshine folk tweeness to dark electronic pop eccentricity – the smooth sultry sounds of Out of Order and other new tracks banishing their old singles to the trash can. It will be interesting to see where they go next.

Fresh from their first ever London gig the night before Newcastle’s Let’s Buy Happiness played to a fairly small Southsea crowd. Lead singer Sarah Hall beckoned for the audience to come closer and the band won punters over with their utterly beguiling beauty. Spacious layered guitars formed soaring soundscapes with Sarah’s delicate Cocteau Twins referencing vocals caressing the ears. Let’s Buy Happiness made a compelling case for being your new favourite band with the songs Dead Legs, Six Wolves and Works Better On Paper all confirming their ability to create indie music that is graceful and elegantly ethereal.

From chiming indie to 90’s influenced synth pop, Swansea’s Bright Light Bright Light showed exactly why they’ve recently been signed to the new Virgin funded Popjustice Hi-Fi Label. Gracious melodies, gorgeous smooth vocals and hooky as hell choruses that got drunken girls dancing; they provided an exciting and welcome respite for those who found the likes of Pulled Apart by Horses just a little bit too intensely masculine. Ten out of ten for the way lead singer / keyboard player Rod Thomas assertively but politely replied to one drunk girls question of “Do you do cover versions?” He really doesn’t need to do covers when he’s got a case full of glitzy high-fiving pop monsters of his own such as Love Part II which shimmied to the dance-floor with its jubilant call of “I’m in love again.”

In a bizarre, but quite possibly brilliant piece of programming the act to follow Bright Light Bright Light was Cardiff’s Islet. With not one ounce of melody Islet charged straight into the audience with a rhythmic based core of yelping, growling, screaming and unhinged racket. How a band can be quite so rubbish and yet terrifyingly brilliant is perplexing. They really are exporters of the avant-garde and the extraordinary. Taking instruments off stage into the crowd, straining war cries off microphone, using the walls and implements of the venue as percussion to hit plus on the spot jogging, Islet blistered with energy, challenging ideas of what entertainment, art and performance are about. Who cares what the songs sound like? This is a band to experience, not sit at home and listen to.

With Islet having provided one of the most fascinating performances of the day, Southsea Fest 2010 had provided a rich tapestry of eclectic new music for a bargain price.

The B of the Bang + The Dawn Chorus @ Portsmouth Drift In The City Bar

There’s a moment just before The B of the Bang play Lung – their song about dying, where the band pause for a moment to announce that punk svengali Malcolm McLaren has died. It would have been interesting to see what McLaren would have made of this evening. He once proclaimed “It is better to be a flamboyant failure than any kind of benign success.” There’s little flamboyancy or failure tonight, although the muddy sounding speakers and sterile interior of the venue do their best attempt to doom both bands performances. Yet neither is the evening a benign success. In fact benign is a word that probably doesn’t sit comfortably with The B of the Bang, evidence being found when singer Christopher Whitear cups his hands around his mouth to yell at the chattering crowd to “Shut up,” during Last Day On Earth, which they play unamplified and acoustic from the venue floor. It makes for an almost angry anti-folk start, the band then marching forward with a rocked up set of songs taken from their debut album Beginning.Middle.End and their new tour only EP Art Deco.

It’s the new songs that impress the most tonight. The fusion of electric guitar riffs and “Ooh La La,” harmonies throughout Film Noir are almost sunny and upbeat until the song descends into an orgy of clattering noise that segues perfectly into Reykjavik 101 - a madcap math-rock workout that jives like a laptop-stripped Prodigy number. The stately First Thought of the Morning is mournful and gentle - it would probably have McLaren turning in his grave when he gets there, so full of anti-energy and downbeat melody.

The B of the Bang style – black t-shirts, ripped jeans - and sound, a mix of folk-rock with uncompromising guitars that display none of the niceness of current new country-folk kings Mumford and Sons - is deeply unfashionable. This though is probably just the way the band like it. It’s the old cliché, but they seem to be playing this for themselves and if anyone else buys into it’s a bonus.

The Dawn Chorus (pictured), who play before, are label mates and from the same musical family as The B of the Bang - distant cousins connected through Whitear playing in both groups. A double drumming, accordion, melodica, and eastern European sounding rabble, McLaren would hate them for their lack of glamour and un-punk attitude - just a bunch of lads standing on stage and playing the songs straight. However, there is something verging on exhilarating when they go hell for leather on Carnivalesque, tower like trumpets and cut-throat guitars battling away, their drummer rasping out the chorus sung on the recorded form by Frank Turner. Ironically it sounds almost gypsy-punk - Romanian Sex Pistols fans would be proud - and there’s a bit of that sentiment towards the end as well, when the whole of The B of the Bang join the stage whilst the groups trumpet player blasts brass from atop the speaker stack. Maybe Malcolm McLaren would have had a smile there.

The B of the Bang - Art Deco EP

Following on from their acclaimed Planet Sound (R.I.P) revered 2009 album Beginning. Middle. End, UK south coast folk rockers The B of the Bang return with a new EP. Art Deco is a limited edition, numbered and hand-packaged four track EP that will only be available on the bands tour which starts today and calls at London, Cambridge, Preston, Liverpool, Newcastle, Portsmouth and finishes at The Hope in Brighton on the 9th of April. You can listen to one of the tracks from the EP, the Gallic sounding Film Noir exclusively below (until the band put the track up on their Myspace that is). With a virtually new line up of musicians, the song represents a significant departure for the group in so far as it is more upbeat than much of their previous material, complete with “Ooh La La” backing vocals and prominent almost chirpy accordion. However underneath there are still many elements of the trademark B of the Bang sound, from the baritone vocal to the hints of angry guitar noise trying to break out from underneath the wash. It’s all tastefully topped off with the bands knack of writing quality songs with just a little bit of an edge.

Get down to one of the gigs where The B of the Bang will be playing alongside the equally good Dawn Chorus, whose album we gave a big thumbs up earlier this year here and grab a copy of the EP. It could quite possibly be the best thing you do this Easter holiday - certainly better than stuffing chocolate egg in your face.

Film Noir - The B of the Bang by Breaking More Waves

Southsea Fest 2009

Southsea Fest is modelled on events such as The Great Escape in Brighton and Swn in Cardiff but on a smaller scale. Established in 2007 the first event was held to raise funds for the promoter Josie Cutis’ younger brother, a musician, to record an album after he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The event has now expanded and this year took place in twelve venues with over one hundred and fifty acts performing with some profits given to charity.

An entry wristband was budget price, being the same cost as a standard gig ticket, allowing access to all venues which were situated within close proximity to each other, mainly on Albert Road in the south coast town. Unlike similar larger events such as The Great Escape there was no need to turn up at a venue early and queue to guarantee entry, wristband holders were able to freely wander between locations as they chose. At times the event resembled something more like a giant pub crawl than a music event, with bands providing a backing track for happy drunken punters roaming the street. Breaking More Waves took a more conservative approach however, remaining in one venue all day, (Little Johnny Russells) except for our surprisingly well received DJ Set early in the day under our DJ Hojo Hits guise at Cafe Citrus, where we managed to bring dubstep, synth pop, vintage rock and roll, and seventies disco to the artists VIP area.

This years event was crammed so full of bands that it is no surprise that several stages ran behind the scheduled timetable, but most punters seemed unconcerned, happy to catch whatever artist they stumbled across at any particular time. The line up for the event consisted of a number of small national bands previously featured on this blog such as Peggy Sue, The Joy Formidable, James Yuill and Alessi’s Ark as well as plenty of local artists. So to the bands we saw..

With lead singer Clym Arnold swinging from the stage balustrade till it almost collapses, diving onto the floor and his band raping your ear drums with a fistf*ck of visceral punk, The Deads mean business; and we don’t mean the kind that involves hot desking, water cooler moments and power lunches. No this is business that is primitive, brutal and likely to find you sprawled over the photocopier with a microphone stand thrust up your backside. We have no idea about the songs they play, except for a dirty cover of Helter Skelter, but finding blood gushing from our ears actually seems like fun.

The Hall Of Mirrors are about as far removed from The Deads as you can imagine. Every song is a delicate spoonful of sugar adventure of perky tunefulness. “This next song is all about love,” gushes singer Jessica Spencer and we are sure we see fairy dust sparkle from her keyboard and Mary Poppins skipping around in the background. Only at the end when she kicks back her piano stool and delivers a harsher bluesy number do things become a little more unsettling.

The keyboard remains for a short set by Loz Bridge , this time without his backing band The Box Social, who we have featured here before. Bridge produces a short, accomplished set of jazzy rootsy sounds, full of earnest musicianship with just a hint of Chris Martins more reflective moments. One for the more mature listener, his sound is better suited to a quiet theatre or lounge bar than a chatty south coast pub on a Saturday afternoon.

Little Johnny Russells fills up rapidly after Bridge finishes for the megaphone wielding Holdfast, who having recently bagged support slots with White Lies, These New Puritans and in the near future The Chapman Family. The band have developed a confident swagger as they race through their charged punkish riot of keyboard and energetic guitar laden noise with glittery dress clad singer Roberta stepping into the crowd. They may not yet have perfected any killer songs, but they have a dark raw shout about them that takes them above the level of your standard local indie no hopers.

Breaking More Waves regulars The B of the Bang have been peddling their wares for some time now and tonight feels like one of closure, songs from their debut album Beginning Middle End being performed for possibly the last time before some new material is unleashed. Lung is still a colossal beast of a song, triumphant in its sadness and set closer Alaska bristles with taught atmosphere, but their live centrepiece remains Last Day On Earth which is performed with members of The Dawn Chorus; full of soaring trumpets and men singing the words “La la la,” as if it were the most important thing in the world.

Rather like a game of tag The Dawn Chorus continue where The B of the Bang left off. The band are a menagerie of multi instrumentation and subtle tunes with heavenly trumpet fanfares that uplift and involve, and on one song the band even have a little stab at some ska which seems rudely off centre to the rest of their country tinged rock sound. Strangely endearing and glorious.

Eight piece Revere (pictured) are physically and musically too big for such a tiny stage as Southsea Fest. The band bring military jackets, waistcoats, strings and a big big sound that comes from the same musical space as bands like Broken Records and Arcade Fire. Their songs sweep and soar gloriously high, powerfully evocative and beautiful. With due respect to all of the bands that have come before them, Revere stand that much taller, that much stronger and bring the most illustrious sounds we hear all day.

After Revere ‘dirty folksters’ Billy Vincent have a tough job. A slimmed down check shirted version of the whole band, they play with just two acoustic guitars, and as the beer flows more readily you have to feel sorry for any act that really demands quiet attention.

Next up are San Francisco’s Love Like Fire who play a fairly straightforward female fronted blend of indie rock that has a vaguely early to mid nineties feel to it. The band suffer from an audience that now seems more interested in alcoholic kicks than actually listening to the music. There are hints of something epic trying to break out, but it’s a case of seen it all before with this band.

“Give me some love it’s tough up here,” announces Chris T-T. Good god the man’s right. At this point in the evening we wonder if anybody is actually interested in the music at all. Chris T-T could have probably come on stage, pissed in a pot and walked off again and nobody would have noticed. So all credit to the man who has played on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square for having the guts to force out his political acoustic folk rock to those who care. Breaking a guitar string after his first song, he continues a cappella, before thrashing out tunes about getting older, hunting and the wonderful Preaching To The Converted which has thrusting intensity and humour in equal measure. “Billy Braggs gone fishing in his 4 x 4,” he sings to a an audience who are drowning in lager.

At this point it doesn’t look good for James Yuill , but miraculously his beats, loops and geekoid electronic wizardry win the day. The inebriated crowd are ready to dance and the heavy beats and laptronica that Yuill produces work well. His sound mixes elements of Nick Drake, Radiohead, Aphex Twin and Calvin Harris into something that is uniquely his own. As songs such as the dreamy rotating No Surprise and the gentle bounce of This Sweet Love are played out it reminds us why we put his Turning Down Water For Air album in our Top Ten of 2008. Enchanting electronic melodies with a human side, from one of the nicest men in music make a fine way to end the evening.

Run Toto Run + The B Of The Bang @ Portsmouth Fat Fox

Imagine an evening where men dressed in Miami Vice themed suits play exquisitely dark and raw rock and folk music whilst holding a meat raffle, drop in a bit of Belinda Carlisle’s Heaven On Earth and jump off stage to play fully unplugged. Then as if this wasn’t enough four fairytale like creatures appear to bring Indian head dress, flower patterned xylophones, toy bubble machines and a keyboard called Dave to create a sound like the cute offspring of Hot Chip with added fiddles.

Except this wasn’t imagination. This was true.

The B Of The Bang celebrate the release of their debut album Beginning Middle End by sporting bad eighties ‘taches, aviator shades, ponytails and slicked back hair whilst playing the record in order in its entirety. And although some of the clothing may be Don Johnson’s idea of pastel heaven, the music definitely isn’t. Struggling with technical difficulties the bands set starts sore and angry, Alaska is almost croaking, shat up like a pearl from the aphotic zone with singer Whitear rasping the words in the audience rather than on stage. Lung meanwhile is potent and gratifyingly loud, layered with indecent guitar and puncturing noise. As the set continues the band seem to relax a little and appear to be enjoying themselves. “I don’t know how they managed to wear suit jackets in the eighties,” announces Whitear as things begin to heat up. Doing the sensible thing he finally discards it as his group join up with Jellymaid Music label-mates The Dawn Chorus to perform Last Day On Earth fully unplugged on the floor of the venue. The stage itself is like a revolving door, constantly delivering and spitting out different band members. During the crowd pleasing Delores its breathing space only, rammed full of musicians and equipment whilst on the haunting and fragile Desire Lines Whitear plays solo. Seeds finds the band in double drumming glory, sounding huge and stirring, even in a grotty pub venue. Towards the end the shift is towards a more folkish sound, with the appearance of an accordion for set closer New Road, which ends the fiery set. Its a long way from the world of Crocket and Tubbs, but then there are only heroes here and no villains to pursue.

Its not often that electronic music is described as beautiful, organic or natural but that is exactly the sound of Run Toto Run. Lead singer Rachael Kichenside has a flower like velvet soft voice that weakens knees, whilst the rest of band add almost minimalist folktronica, with accomplished acoustic guitar and fiddle. It’s charmingly twee but faultlessly modern. Run Toto Run look as if they’re waiting for the firing line lined up at the front of the stage, but they are going to charm their way out of it. Thanking everyone from the promoters Hong Kong Gardeners who rescued the doomed gig following its cancellation with another promoter, the B of the Bang and even this very blog, Run Toto Run are incredibly endearing. Single Your Face has been beefed up from its delicate twinkling acoustic form, showing the bands progression from pastoral schoolyard folk into the world of synthtopia, whereas the circus oompa of Full Stop sees the band leaning over and stealing a sneaky stab of each others keyboard in comic effect. Catch My Breath is the moment where the fairy folk discover samplers and create a breed of twitchy stuttering electronica. Despite the cuteness there are moments when it feels like Run Toto Run are going to pull the skin from their faces and reveal that the animal masks they sported on Sleepyhead are real, kicking into a tirade of hard full on dirty beats that Aphex Twin would be proud of. It never actually happens, but it’s easy too imagine it could. Instead they finish with their cover of Sleepyhead, taking the song to a new paradise. Run Toto Run are bewitchingly lovely, masks just divert from that fact.

The B Of The Bang - Beginning Middle End

In the same way that Bon Iver is just Justin Vernon, and Blue Roses is Laura Groves, Portsmouth’s Christopher Whitear is The B Of The Bang. Against a backdrop of seaside living, dreary jobs and grotty pub gigs he has gathered together an assortment of musicians to create his debut album Beginning Middle End released on the 8th June through Jellymaid Music

Describing The B of the Bang as “A lo fi, electronic-tinged, anti-folk cake with a gothic, grunge icing,” Whitear gets near the mark. However beneath the enjoyably gloomy sounds and wealth of instrumentation that sees appearances from banjo, guitar, violin, cello, keyboard, glockenspiel, loops, pianos and more, Beginning Middle End often follows a template based on traditional rock structures. For instance, at least four of the songs on this album, Alaska, Lung, Little Bean and A New Road invoke a dynamic of a quiet start, gradually building to reach a climax; yet due to the variety of instrumentation, each song sounds distinctly different. The reference points are many but can be broadly categorised into bands that have an earnest and serious sound; Editors and Radiohead being two obvious influences. However there are lighter touches with the almost chirpy Delores, the vaudeville jazz folk of Alfred Light The Fires and the acoustic medieval campfire balladry of Desire Lines, where rather disconcertingly the band appear to have left a kettle boiling in the background.

Tying these different styles together is Whitear’s baritone vocal, which has a slight warble towards the end of certain notes and occasional over enunciation in the style of a very English gentleman. His voice is at its best when it doesn‘t try too hard to emulate other deep noted singers which he is obviously a fan of. Take (We Used To Draw) Treasure Maps, one of the newer songs on the album. A misty, mystical, folkish song with military drumming and a beautiful backing vocal from Tallie Kane. Here Whitear is brooding with restraint and sounds all the more powerful for it. The addition of elegiac strings gives the song a meaty resonance despite its subtlety. It is worth buying the album for this track alone. Likewise Alaska, with its ships fog horn synth, ghostly asthmatic atmospherics and simple pounding electronic beat works because of its lack of over complication. Pared down to just one line repeated over and over Whitear sings “It only happens once, you won’t believe it when it does,” in a relaxed and hopeful way.

Ultimately Beginning Middle End is a collection of well crafted songs that are often the sum of their influences. It is when Whitear rises above these influences, through simple subtle song writing and not trying too hard that The B of the Bang really finds beauty amongst the shadows.

The Dawn Chorus + The Melodramas + The Autons + The B Of The Bang @ Portsmouth Wedgewood Rooms

“Good music by people who care,” is the strap line for Jellymaid Music; a record label based in Portsmouth, Uk. Jellymaid specialise in supporting local artists, so it is therefore fitting that the labels first ever showcase is held in the most established music venue in their home town.

The B Of The Bang are known for their experimentation, often bringing sombre lo-fi folk and electronica to the stage. For this showcase however the group play to the Wedgewood Rooms strengths, discarding much of their acoustic sound. “I’ve broken my banjo,” announces lead singer Chris Whitear, eliciting “Ahhh’s” from the crowd before the band launch into the metallic commotion of Little Bean. It’s straightforward rock, but characterised by a very English baritone vocal and the bands need to be just a little bit different. The stage front has pieces of the bands artwork on display, there are three drummers forcing the beat along and during Lung, their most anthemic number, detuned guitars can be heard working hard to ensure that the sound never veers too far into the mainstream. There are hints from this performance that the band have the potential to find a place higher than bottom of the bill, from the singers confident but slightly awkward Bono/ Chris Martin moment of leaving the stage to embrace the crowd, to the almost sanguine sounding Delores. Whether such mainstream propriety would sit permanently comfortable with the bands ethos is questionable however.

The Autons bring ties, interesting hair and shouty indie electro punk pop of the variety that can be found in many toilet venues around Camden on a rainy Tuesday night. Be careful with the world electro though. This does not imply that Autons are part of the new rave gang, or even the Brooklyn cool kids. Their form of indie electro consists of dark buzzing guitars and hyperactive keyboard moments that blend together like The Buzzcocks and Carter USM playing British Bulldog in the playground. Nearly every snarling song rushes headlong into a frenetic sweaty refrain designed for the moshpit, although tonight with such a range of guitar based bands on display The Autons sound seems a little misplaced.

The Melodramas arrive with a bucket load of “Woah woah woah’s,” energy, floppy fringes and tambourine bashing skinny jean indie pop with their song The Day You Die. A few years ago we would have given this band a begrudging thumbs up, but right now their sound seems dated and unadventurous. It’s landfill mortgage indie, empty of any real substance or meaning. “We used to be a metal band called Slayer, but those days are behind us,” they announce. Frankly we would prefer to listen to Slayer. If you believe that great art and music is created by progressive development and the attempt to create something new and inspiring then The Melodramas will not appeal to you. If you simply want some 'nice jaunty tunes with guitars' and not an ounce of challenge then The Melodramas will be your cup of tea. Breaking More Waves seem to be in the minority with our opinion of this band though, who are clearly having fun as do most of the audience.

Frank Turners favourite new band are The Dawn Chorus , and it is easy to see why. The band may not have the coolest of looks, fashion or haircuts, but are slowly building an audience that has lead to a UK tour in April and festival slots confirmed at both Bestival and 2000 Trees later this year. The Dawn Chorus are rooted in acoustic sounds, but with songs like A Blast From The Present they add high noon trumpet fanfares and chanted harmonies to produce something that is joyously uplifting and honestly life affirming. It's ambitious, absorbing and well crafted without ever being immediately obvious. The Dawn Chorus carry commodities of good old fashioned quality playing and songs that pack a punch through careful structuring and arrangement. Their songs range from alt. country pop to bigger indie rockier numbers, but without exception every song the band plays fills the Wedgewood Rooms with a sound far removed from that of an English south coast city.

The B Of The Bang - Welcome To The Beautiful South

The B Of The Bang from Portsmouth are just about to set out on a nationwide tour with The Dawn Chorus in support of their single Alfred, Light The Fires. The band will soon be parading their music, a mixture of folk, rock and doom laden electronics through some of the toilet venues of the UK. Their sound has been described as dark and elegiac, so it comes as quite a surprise to find that lead singer Christopher Whitear, whilst having a certain and stable vision of how his music should be, also has a subtle and sometimes self depriciating sense of humour.

This article is called ‘Welcome To The Beautiful South’. You are based in Portsmouth. What do you think, as musicians, are the benefits of being located where you come from ? And what are the bad things ?

Errr.....hmmm......good things.......errr.....the sea? Just joshing - I think Southsea especially has a great music community at the moment. There are some really strong bands around (The Dawn Chorus, Hold Fast, Loz Bridge & The Box Social, Andy Foster and others) and some great venues who really get behind live music (The Cellars, Little Johnny Russell’s etc...). Stuff like Southsea Fest last year showed that, when people set their mind to it, great things can happen. I love the whole 'independent republic of Albert Road' spirit...it's reminiscent of the North Laines in Brighton. Only with less silly haircuts.

On the downside - Portsmouth is not really known for its cutting-edge, forward-thinking, embrace-culture attitude is it? But I do think that’s slowly changing. There's only 143 lad-rock, libertine rip-offs this year so that’s down 82% from last year...

Yes we agree that there have been a huge number of sub standard lad rock bands in Portsmouth. Where are the girls forming bands ? When there is a girl in a band it seems she is always the vocalist backed by males. And yes, whilst The Libertines at their peak were fantastic, there are too many imitators who make even the Pigeon Detectives look good. Anyway, moving on, you’ve just teamed up with Jellymaid Music. Tell us about them.

It’s run by Rich Tamblyn who owns The Old Blacksmiths Studios in Portsmouth. Basically, The Dawn Chorus released their album on it last year and it got some great reviews (including a not-to-be-sneezed-at number 7 in John Earls revered Planet Sound list of 2008.). Neil from the band asked if he could record some of our stuff and it worked really well so - like magic, we find ourselves fighting for a common cause. Not sure what that cause is yet mind....we'll be going on tour with them in April so we'll see....

You have a single out this week called Alfred, Light The Fires. Explain and discuss this song please.

It’s from a dream I had. Basically, it was this gothic animation type affair that had a little lad in a flat cap being mischievous in the 1930's. At the end of the dream he burns down an old peoples home, inside which is an 80 year old version of himself. What does it all mean Breaking More Waves???

It means you need to stay off the cider I think. Some of the sounds you make seem to come from a pretty dark place. Why ?

I can't afford light bulbs (chortle chortle). I don't know....it just seems more.....appealing I guess. Its not a conscious decision. I just like minor chords.....there are couple of songs on the album that might surprise you though. They're almost....jaunty. (shudders)

You are building quite a reputation for your live sets where you sometimes go fully unplugged. Is that something you enjoy doing ? And where did the idea come from.

It came out of necessity really. The B Of The Bang is a collective, sometimes there are 6 of us, sometimes it's just me. We played a gig where everything was going wrong, power failures, equipment breaking. I just thought it might be nice to try it. I'd much rather be one of those bands that some nights are utterly fantastic and some nights are utterly shite. You have to try things to keep it interesting for yourself and the audience. Sometimes they work and sometimes not. Again, it's not really a deliberate attempt to be different. I just get bored easily. Those bands you go and see and it just sounds like they've put the record on, I sort of think "what's the point?"

Do you have plans for any further unusual happenings at future live shows ?

You mean like jugglers and dancing girls? Perhaps we could have some dadaism in there? A bit of confrontational situationist type stuff? We'll have to see - hopefully.....

Maybe you could get this man here to DJ before you come on ! I believe you shared a stage with him once ! You also have a reputation for liking your sound to be a little imperfect. De tuned guitars etc. Are you worried that this may put people off your music ?

It’s a weird one this. I speak to a lot of people who just don't seem to understand the concept of imperfectionism. I don't get the point of ironing out every little trace of what makes something human on a record. Obviously you want things to sound as good as they can but a little lo-fi never hurt anyone! The albums I love are ones you have to invest a little time and effort in, you can't really hear the words on Loveless but it's part of its charm. Beauty buried under noise. It's a recurring theme for me I suppose. If you were recording Leadbelly today would you use auto-tune on his guitar? I'm all for using technology but it should support and emphasise what you're trying to say, not squeeze the soul out of it. There's a bit of computer software that can tell you whether your song is likely to be a hit single, which is why a lot of stuff on the radio has that same chord progression, the same bit that changes key etc....fuck off Nickelback.

We hear there is an album on the way. We’re very excited about this, what can you tell us about it ?

I can tell you it's called Beginning. Middle. End. It has 11 songs on it and a few incidental bits of music that link some of the songs. I want it to be like watching a film or reading a book, hence the title.

The video for your song Lung had a great concept. How did that come about ?

It's great because it had very little to do with me! Some friends of ours have a small film company called Pinter Moments. We get on really well and have a lot of similar views on music and film. One of them, Cal, sometimes plays guitar with us and he had this idea for the 'pass-it-on' motif. We did a bit in real life too....leaving CDs and tapes around for people to listen to and give away. They're probably still there....

And finally, this article is called Welcome To The Beautiful South. What is your favourite Beautiful South song and why ?

....I’m sorry I have to go......

The single Alfred, Light The Fires is out this week, you can buy it here. Catch The B Of The Bang on the road with The Dawn Chorus in the UK at a venue near you soon, check the Myspace for details. Here is the video from one of the bands own self releases, Lung released prior to signing to Jellymaid.

The B Of The Bang - Alfred, Light The Fires

The B Of The Bang release their debut single Alfred, Light The Fires on Jellymaid music on 9th March. With the mainstream gradually reinvestigating the goth genre and the continued proliferation of the so called new folk scene, it is perhaps unsurprising that a single like this should come along. Alfred, Light The Fires is goth folk for the noughties. It’s a vaudeville freak show of a song set in a time distant place where typewriters and cherubs are still common language. Lead vocalist Christopher Whitear is the baritoned Victorian ringleader warming up for the greatest amateur dramatics show of his life, whilst underneath him pianos, acoustic guitars and accordions all find their place in this oddly structured tempo shifting song. Despite all of this unplugged music hall strangeness this single is oddly charming, with its beleaguered dickensian gravitas bringing a neatly formed melody. It’s like the Editors and Eighties Matchbox B Line Disaster out in a field, but it’s very much a field of its own.

You can purchase the single here and watch out for an exclusive interview with The B of the Bang at Breaking More Waves soon.

Love Albert Road Day @ Albert Road, Southsea, Portsmouth

Over the last two decades, the UK town and city centre has become an identikit place, formed from corporate culture that is sucking away any true diversity and choice you have left.

Back in 2002 a report entitled Ghost Town Britain revealed some staggering facts. In the UK between 1997 and 2002 specialist stores like butchers, bakers and fishmongers shut at the rate of 50 per week. The country also lost one third of its bank-branch network – leaving nearly 1000 communities across the UK with no access to a local bank. Twenty non chain pubs were closing every month.

And what was causing and replacing these closures ? Large corporate identical chain stores, with shop fronts of steel and glass, aggressively positioning themselves in our town centres, offering the attractive illusion of more choice, a fantasy shopping experience. And that’s all it is. An illusion. The appearance of another chain store in your town is the death of choice. All you can do now is to buy the same things that everyone else is buying.

And this is why the remainder of our independent retailers, pubs and restaurants are so important. If you value true independence, if you value choice and if you value towns that have a sense of identity and soul, then the status of our remaining independents must be maintained.

This is what Love Albert Road Day is about. In my hometown of Portsmouth a group of independent shopkeepers grouped together and came up with the idea of promoting their street and giving something back to the local community. Albert Road has largely managed to avoid the influx of large corporations, even if a small Tesco supermarket exists in one particular unit, but the retailers struggle against the nearby chain stores, even although many of them offer unique and better value products. So Love Albert Road day was born. With one mile of the road shut off for the day and glorious sunshine beaming down, an estimated 40,000 people came out for a big community street party. Frankly, if Portsmouth’s chain store centre the Cascades had organised a similar event, I can’t imagine that people would have been so willing to support it. There was a real feeling of celebration of the more alternative shopping centre of Portsmouth.

Musicians and DJ’s performed everywhere; on roofs of buildings, in bars, on the street and on two main stages, and whilst enjoying the sun, the shops, the atmosphere and other entertainment I also managed to catch a couple of sets. The B Of The Bang played on the back of a lorry converted into a stage. I wrote here about this bands eclectic sets and great dark songs, but today their magic is behind a cloud. Unfortunately their set is shockingly bad, marred by a huge number of technical difficulties including out of tune guitars, random unwanted rave beats firing from their keyboards and a terrible sound mix that does the band no favours. “If you want professionalism, there’s another stage 200 yards down the road,” announces lead singer Chris Whitear.

A few hours later however I catch them playing another set at The Wedgewood Rooms and it is a totally different tale. This time their music sounds, huge, wide screen, epic and gut wrenchingly good, guitars howling with real aggression, the presence of two drummers power pounding in perfect symmetry adding depth and beefiness with songs like Lung and Alaska being given the sound treatment they deserve. It’s not all rocking stadium sized songs though; opening song Last Day On Earth provides a possible first for the venue, with the band armed with their skittering and folkish banjos and ukuleles on the dance floor, playing without microphones before marching on stage to amp up the sound and finish the song. A risky but great way to start a set.

Before The B of the Bang, another Portsmouth based band also impress massively.

Holdfast display a very different side to the normal dirty sounding rock they play, with female fronted vocals from lead singer Roberta laying somewhere between Siouxsie Sioux and P.J Harvey over a stripped down two acoustic guitar acoustic arrangement. The lack of noise brings focus to the songs which seem to be strangely more adventurous, rewarding and occasionally ethereal than their brasher fully amped up brothers and sisters. Probably the best two bands in Portsmouth right now on the same bill.

Not everything at Love Albert Road day is however quite so serious musically. A set by The Bog Rolling Stones is funny, and the tunes are spot on as far as tribute bands go. Watched by a huge crowd, there are people hanging out of windows and sitting on the tiles to catch a view, including one brave soul who performs a series of backward flips on a roof to great cheers from the crowd below. “This festival is the only one you can go home with an antique,” quips ’Mick’ before adding “and I don’t mean you Keith.” Later he dedicates a song to the curry houses of Albert Road, thanking them for saving the drunk people of Portsmouth. And of course, even although they don’t look anything like the real thing, they do sound very good indeed and wheel out all the hits to a street of smiling faces against a backdrop of people.

Love Albert Road day was a huge success in its delivery and attendance. Let’s just hope that it reaps long term rewards for its traders, for without them Portsmouth will have another layer of its soul stripped away.

The B Of The Bang - New Waves @ Breaking More Waves

The B Of The Bang are the most recent signing to the Jelly Maid Music label, which was formed in 2007 by Richard Tamblyn who has previous production and engineering credits with Lou Rhodes and The Strange Death Of Liberal England.

Strolling out of Portsmouth, UK, The B Of The Bang are a collective of musicians lead by songwriter, wandering minstrel and lead vocalist Christopher G Whitear, who sings with a deep, dark, brooding baritone that will appeal to fans of bands such as Joy Division and Interpol.

Having released the self financed Citizens EP earlier this year, the band have just released a further four songs via the Souls EP. This release demonstrates that this is a band who are prepared to cast their musical web wide with four very different platters being served. Seeds bears distinct similarities to Editors with its commanding repeated vocal of “Seeds were there for you to sow,” chanted over a brooding elegiac bass line. Elsewhere melancholic beauty can be found through organ and xylophone on The Making Of The Making Of. There is also the squalling noisy rock of Little Bean, probably the most formulaic of the four songs on offer, before the EP finishes with the delicate medieval acoustic lullaby of Desire Lines, a duet featuring the haunting vocal of Jessica Spencer.

The band state that their sole purpose is to sound unlike anything else you've ever heard whilst sounding exactly like everything else you'd ever want to hear. An ambitious, if slightly confusing statement; most people prefer to wallow in the warm comfort of hearing sounds that they are familiar with, rather than wanting to hear sounds unlike anything they have ever heard. But then ultimately maybe The B Of The Bang are doing this for themselves, and to use a cliche, if anyone else likes what they do, it’s a bonus.

In the live arena, just like the assortment offered on the EP‘s, gigs by The B Of The Bang are also constantly evolving and changing, offering something new almost every time. From epic building rock with songs such as Lung, shown on the video below, through pulsing dark new grave electronica with added detuned lo fi guitars, to new folk with banjo, mandolin and accordian. This is not a band who are constrained by musical boundaries. Even limits between audience and performer are sometimes broken, with the whole group having been known to play fully unplugged in the middle of the crowd; or to lead everyone outside of the venue pied piper style. You simply never know what you are going to get. One thing however is certain and that is that an album is on its way, currently being recorded for release later this year or earlier next, preceded by a further single.

Portsmouth is not known for its rich musical heritage, its insularity and ability to not look at the bigger picture often holding bands from this south coast city back, but The B Of The Bang do have a wider, bigger, varied perspective that should stand them in good stead.


Lung - The B Of The Bang

http://www.myspace.com/thebofthebang