They’re Back! Sniffany and the Nits Return

Rejoice, fans of snotty punky eccentricity, for the mighty Sniffany & The Nits are back. Forget Charli XCX, it’s gonna be a punky brat summer. I love the galloping tempo and snarky vocals. It’s a bit old school, a bit forward-facing, and altogether wonderful. It’s always exciting to see what they do. https://sniffanyandthenits.bandcamp.com

New Old Release: The Cramps- TV Set

Henry Rollins and Ian Mackaye have, as lifelong fans of The Cramps, managed to unearth some lost gems from the band’s back catalogue and are releasing them through the band’s Vengeance Records. It’s a dream come true, and a real passion project for the pair. All hail the mighty Cramps, gone, but now resurrected. Huzzah!Continue reading “New Old Release: The Cramps- TV Set”

Album Review : Horse Lords- Demand To Be Taken To Heaven Alive!

Originally from Baltimore and now based in Germany, Horse Lords cut an experimental swathe through the indie music scene. This new album sees them expand their sound even further. The title track is as though Battles got together with Steve Reich, and created alien funk. Blips and beeps build into looping percussion and vocals. It’sContinue reading “Album Review : Horse Lords- Demand To Be Taken To Heaven Alive!”

Overlooked Classic : Bauhaus – The Sky’s Gone Out

There isn’t much in the way of the concept album in the goth genre- perhaps only The Cure’s ‘Pornography’ comes close- but Bauhaus ‘ brilliant, multi-faceted The Sky’s Gone Out is perhaps our equivalent of a post-punk Pink Floyd or something, just with better songs. Forgive me, PF fans, but I don’t like post-Syd FloydContinue reading “Overlooked Classic : Bauhaus – The Sky’s Gone Out”

Mark E Smith : His Part In My Downfall

The audition had been bloody. Smith had various band members by the lapels, shaking them like human piñatas, waiting for ideas to just fall out. Smith kept screaming, for reasons best known to himself, “Peters and Lee!” A new musical detour for us to consider, no doubt. There had been dark mutterings in the ranksContinue reading “Mark E Smith : His Part In My Downfall”

Vintage Film Review: Funny Face

Before ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ , another film looked at an intelligent young lady willing to sell her soul to capitalism: Funny Face. Despite its feel -good posturing, there lies a deeply problematic film. Stanley Donen was considered a Hollywood great, a director of great elan with the wit to back it up. This film,Continue reading “Vintage Film Review: Funny Face”

Film Review : Billy Idol Should Be Dead

When I was a kid, Billy Idol epitomised the naughty boy we all fancied. He was always a bit cheeky, but we knew that. What we didn’t know was that he was also a heroin addict. Jonas Akerlund’s documentary about the former William Broad, who grew up in Bromley and reinvented himself as “punk” singerContinue reading “Film Review : Billy Idol Should Be Dead”

Archive: The Angst of Corky St Clair

June 29, 2018 • Spoilt Victorian Child Misunderstood… Corky dans le bain de bubbles Pity poor, misunderstood, Corky St Clair, the genius, the doyen that is the off-off Broadway, musical theatre maverick in the making. His tears are but pearls of sadness, for he is a man of grand schemes, and big, proscenium arch- shaped dreams. NoContinue reading “Archive: The Angst of Corky St Clair”

Five Of The Best: Marilyn Monroe Songs

Marilyn Monroe would have turned 100 years old yesterday… Imagine! A whole century of MM.I think she’d have been a brilliant old lady, laughing at how far she’d come. Sadly, she passed away at thirty six. Her legacy remains though, she’s still adored to this day: a reminder of the real triple threat performers ofContinue reading “Five Of The Best: Marilyn Monroe Songs”

Film Review : Becoming Madonna

Madonna has always been resolutely Madonna, bitch. From 2024, this documentary directed by Michael Ogden follows her early career trajectory like a tracking pigeon. It’s extremely insightful, like a scrapbook bursting to life, full of interviews with those who knew her back in the day, like late brother Christopher who became one of her backingContinue reading “Film Review : Becoming Madonna”