Liverpool Explodes Again

Mark Cooper published a great book on the Liverpool music scene of the early 80s (unfortunately long out of print) called Liverpool Explodes (Published by Sidgwick & Jackson). The book introduced the Scousers theory that luck works in cycles, the the gods usually smile on the city but, for some unfathomable reason, there are moments in time when they turn their heads. The Beatles were a broad beam but the deaths of Bill Shanklyand John Lennon and the Toxteth riots were dark days. The gods smiled again with the rise of Echo & The Bunnymen, Wah Heat, The Teardrop Explodes, OMD, and Liverpools footballing pre-eminence of the 80s. For many years it has appeared that the gods have favoured the other end of the M62 (scouse joke - Q. whats the best thing to come out of Manchester? A. The M62) but all the signs are that the worm is turning and, to quote the mighty Ian McCulloch 'another decade of superiority is on it's way!). Liverpool's got some great clubs (check out the Korova for one) some great new bands, the best Liverpool squad for 15 years (if Rafa would stop his tinkering) and the Capital of Culture for 2008. Yes Liverpool is about to explode again.

Check out one of the Devil's favourite blogs (and the inspiration for this post) Just Gimme Indie Rock for even more great new Liverpool bands that I just didn't have the room for.

28 Costumes

Described by NME.com as "a rag-tag explosion of human emotion coming straight out of Liverpool" 28 Costumes are probably one of the latest crop of Scouse bands that are closest to the scouseadelica of The Coral and The Zutons to which they add a touch of the down to earth story-telling of the TheArctic Monkeys.

Go TryMP3 - 28 Costumes - Electrical Fever

Go Visit

28 Costumes - Myspace //Website

goFASTER>>

goFASTER>> combine the art rock inflections of The Futureheads and the The Young Knives with the synths of The Silicon Teens (the start of 'She Starts Monday' reminded me of the Silicon Teens 'Memphis Tennessee') and the humour of Art Brut. As infectious as a dose of man flu, as bouncy as a kitten on a trampoline and as mad as a box of frogs.

Go Try

MP3 - goFASTER>> - She Starts On Monday

Go Visit

goFASTER>> - Myspace // Website

If you want to check whether the start of 'She Starts On Monday' really does sound like 'Memphis Tennessee' or the Devil's ears need syringing here it is...

MP3 - The Silicon Teens - Memphis Tennessee

Redeemers

With pictures of streets, houses and what appears to be a burgler in the act of escaping with his loot, rather than the band in various poses Reedemers are a bit of a mystery. They are, however, one of the most distinctive and interesting of the new crop of Scouse bands if the tracks on their myspace site are typical. The closest I can get to describing the Redeemers sound is Joy Division covering The Coral's Skeleton Key or maybe The Fall covering Space's 'Female of the Species'.

Go Visit

Redeemers - Myspace

The Coral

Skeleton Key



While we're talking about Space here are a couple of tracks to savour...

MP3 - Space - Spooky Bitch
MP3 - Space - The English Language

and the video to The Female of the Species...

Aeris Presley

Punk was never as big in Liverpool as people may presume. In the late 70s and early 80s Liverpool bands tended to take their influences from the psychedelia of Love, the garage psych of the 1960s Nuggets collection, the art school rock of Bowie & Roxy Music, the independent avant punk of The Fall and the alternative stylings of The Velvet Underground. But there were some bands such as the Spitfire Boys and Malchix who were as close to the traditional punk racket as anyone in Liverpool ever came, albeit with a flair and glamour missing from much of the punk rock in the rest of the country. Well Aeris Presley are keeping the Liverpool, punk light well and truly lit including the obligatory 'false' names (Alex CaSeltzer!).

Go Visit

Aeris Presley - Myspace

Zombina & The Skeletones

Zombina & the Skeletones are not a particularly new Liverpool band, they have been ploughing their rockyhorrorbilly The Cramps meets The Misfits furrow for about 8 years. Fiercely independent, they have reportedly turned down impressive offers from major labels and could well be the template from which Farris Rotter created The Horrors.

Go Try

MP3 - Zombina & The Skeletones - Nobody Likes You

There are also a graveyard full of mp3s for download through their Soundclick site here.

Zombina & the Skeletones
Zombie Hop

Bexy Sitch & The Creepy Crawlies

On their myspace site Bexy and her bunch of Creepy Crawlies claim that they sound like "the wind after the rain, the owls in the woods, the fish in the sea, the aftertaste after the brew, sausages whispering to each other" whereas to this Devil's ears they sound more like the The Bangles on LSD or the granddaughters of one of the long lost Liverpool bands Lori & The Chameleons.

Go Try

MP3 - Bexy Sitch & The Creepy Crawlies - The Shark Song

Go Visit

Bexy Sitch & The Creepy Crawlies - Myspace

If you don't believe that theres a hint of Lori & The Chameleons about Bexy Sitch & The Creepy Crawlies check out this video from the late 70s

Lori & The Chameleons
The Lonely Spy