Peenko Blog is Four Years Old Today: Vinyl Postcards

 It was four years ago today that the first ever Peenko blog post went up, now that might not mean a lot to you, but for me it's pretty massive. When you hit so called milestones like this, it makes think back on how much has happened over the past four years. I am not going to sit here and blow my own trumpet too much, but prior to starting this site, doing this such as running a record label, putting on gigs, managing bands, etc, etc, were just pipe dreams. Seeing as I have no musical talent to speak of whatsoever, this blog has allowed me to fulfil a much longed desire to be involved in the music industry in my own little way.

For quite a while now I have been thinking about doing something special to celebrate my blogs 4th birthday, for the blogs 1st anniversary I gave away Peenko badges, in year 2 I released an EP with I Build Collapsible Mountains and last year I launched my ill fated podcast (finding the time to record it put paid to that). This year though I am extremely proud to say that I have come with something pretty damn awesome.

What with the recent trend of artists releasing their music on formats which were deemed to be defunct, such as cassettes, VHS tapes, etc. I had been looking to find something that was even more unique and you know what, I only went and found it. So here's the back story about what I came up with...

At the start of the year I contacted four of my favourite artists, that would be:
Randolph's Leap (Fence Records)
The Son(s) (Olive Grove Records)
RM Hubbert (Chemikal Underground)
Behold The Old Bear (Gargleblast Records)

...to ask them if they'd be up for recording a song for me that had to be no longer than two minutes long,  which I would then release exclusively on a vinyl postcard. That would be a postcard that you can play on a turntable, just like a record!

Aren't they pretty!

Anyway, surprisingly enough to me they were all up to challenge and now after many many months of planning and organising I am very pleased to be able to share with you my first ever releases on vinyl postcards!

Each postcard is limited to just 20 copies. The tracks will not be made available anywhere else and there will be no re-press, hopefully making them a bit of a collectors item (or at least that's the plan).

YOU CAN BUY THE POSTCARDS NOW BY FOLLOWING THIS LINK

Just to prove that they actually work, here's a wee video of The Son(s) postcard doing it's stuff (wait until about 20 seconds in for the song to start).

In case you were wondering the songs are all under two minutes long so that they fit on the postcards. I could have paid extra to have more space, but I liked the idea of giving the artists a bit of a challenge. The postcards are priced at £10 per card or £36 for all four, now that might seem pretty steep, but even at that price I won't be breaking even. I like to think of this as being the Scottish equivalent of Blue Monday, so if you feel like moaning about the cards being too expensive please don't!

Here's a bit more info on the cards:

C403 by Behold The Old Bear was recorded by Raindeer in the comfort of his own bedroom.

This Ain't It by Randolph's Leap was recorded by Roy Froude at Stow College. 

Heisenberg by RM Hubbert was recorded by Charlie Ward (aka King Post Kitsch) in his living room.

All My Days Are Shorter by The Son(s) was recorded by KP Son at 13 Leopold Place, in Edinburgh in the spring.

All of the songs were mastered by Jonathan Huxtable of Small Fish Recordings.

The postcards were designed by Kris Ferguson (Mitchell Museum/Miaoux Miaoux)

For those of you who are interested in finding a bit more about where I got the postcards printed, I used a company in Austria called Vinyl Postcards. They're quick, friendly and I can't recommend them highly enough!

BUY THE POSTCARDS

The Son(s) - Fresh Air Session (16/08/12)

Track Listing

1. Don't Stick Around Longer Than 

You Have The Stomach For

2. Roaring Round The House

Download

Video-rama (Part 2)

What do you do when you have loads of ace videos to share, you lump them all in one post of course!

First up we have up and coming Edinburgh outfit, Letters and their video for 'Older Motion Pictures', the title track of their debut EP which is out later this month.



In case you somehow managed to avoid all of our plugging, the label that I co-run, Olive Grove Records has emerged from hibernation this week with the release of a new EP from The Son(s). The EP is called Leviathan and here's the video for 'If I Hear You Talk Apostrophes Again..' the most poppy song on it.



Glasgow based punk trio, PAWS are set to put out their first release on Fat Cat Records this month with their Misled Youth EP which comes out on the 14th of May on limited edition cassette. You can catch the boys supporting Bleached at Sleazy's on the 20th of this month.







I don't know about you, but I am pretty damn excited about the forthcoming album from Michael Cassidy. Ever since I was introduced to him by Sean who recorded all of the Peenko Sessions, I have found myself raving on about just how great I think he is. What with recently appearing at WideDays, and forthcoming gigs at goNorth and the next Scottish Fiction Presents gig, it's great to see that I am not the only one who's raving about him. If you don't believe me then check out his new new video for his song Till You.



And to finish off this post I have the new video from Barbarossa for his haunting new number 'Butterfly Plague' which is taken from his forthcoming EP which is the last release in the latest series of Fence Records Chart Ruse E.P. series.

Friday Freebies

The Son(s)
What with all the talk about Peenko Records, you might be wondering what was happening with Olive Grove as we've been pretty quiet as of late. Well folks, the reason things have been quiet as of late is mainly down to the fact that we've been waiting on a couple of bands just finishing off albums and the like. Hey it will be worth the wait I promise, as will the new EP by The Son(s) that I have been teasing you about for what feels like ages now. The EP is called Leviathan and it's not due out until the 7th of May, however, as a wee teaser we've made the track 'If I Hear You Talk Apostrophes Again...' free to download on SoundCloud, which should hopefully whet your appetite for now. Oh and the EP will be coming out on limited edition cassette... I fucking love tapes...

Song, by Toad Records Sampler
Jealousy is a terrible thing, I hate being jealous of folk, but seeing as Matthew who runs by Song, by Toad has fucked off to SXSW I can openly confess to being jealous of what he's created with his blog and label. Fuck it's not like he'll ever read this anyway. Not only does he run pretty much the biggest blog in Scotland, but he also runs one of the coolest fucking labels. Cunt. Being the big fucking show off that he is, he's just posted up a free Song, by Toad Records Sampler on Bandcamp which features free tracks from amongst others, Meursault, King Post Kitsch and Dolfinz.

Frightened Rabbit
Much to our benefit Scott from Frightened Rabbit got rather inebriated over the weekend and his merry state he decided to tweet links to some demos of tracks that he had kicking about. I'm a big fan of happy drunks (usually being one myself), so if you want to help yourself to a whole load of free tunes then just click on the following links: Scottish Winds, Fuck This Place, Scott and and Grant in soundcheck, Scott and the piano, The Work' without Archie, Scott singing with James Yorkston on guitar, and last but not least this little bit of nonsense.

Sonny Carntyne
I had fully intended to include this link in last weeks Freebies, but somehow it got overlooked. Fuck knows why as this Dundee based alt-folk outfit are quite lovely. They've just released their debut EP Unicorns & Ghosts on Wise Blood Industries and you can download the EP for free here. Fans of Elliot Smith and Sparklehorse take should check this out, actually fuck that, you should all check this out as it's fucking ace.

Frances and Her Trampoline
I can barely keep up with the releases from this CATH RECORDS,last week they were giving away free tunes from Lasso The Moon and now they've just posted up some free downloads from Frances and Her Trampoline, which I think is a previous incarnation of band featuring members of the band that became PAWS, I am sure Jim 'Ayetunes' will correct me if I've gotten that wrong.

Tesla Birds
Steven from Happy Particles is a bit of a busy boy, not only was he was partly responsible for the greatest album to have ever been released on Christmas Day, he's also been busy working away under his solo project, Tesla Birds. Fans of chilled out ambient tunes should do themselves a favour and download his new tune 'flocks in RGB' for nowt from Bandcamp.

Hipster Death Squad ‏ 
The best named band in the world are back and once again the tunes are ace, they've made their new EP The Bedroom Tapes (Part 1) available for nowt on Bandcamp, I urge you to check these guys out. 

The Last September
Edinburgh outfit, The Last September have reworked their song, Tough Love which featured on their last album As The Crow Flies and have retitled it as 'This City', being the kind souls that they are, they're giving it away for nowt on Bandcamp.

Desert Sharks
Fans of Sleater-Kinney and The Donnas might well want to check out Desert Sharks, a 4-piece, all female rock/garage/punk band who are based in NYC. They've just posted up a few demos for free download on their Bandcamp which are well worth checking out.

Hiva Oa
Edinburgh three piece Hiva Oa have just released their new EP on Mini50Records, if you like you're music to be stripped back and haunting then this might just be for you. Their EP is available on Bandcamp on a pay what you want basis.

Marthas & Arthurs 
Former Fresh Meat starlets, Marthas & Arthurs are going to be releasing their debut album, "The Hit World Of... Marthas & Arthurs" next month, and as a wee teaser they're offering a free download of their cover of the Stone Roses 'Shoot You Down', which features on the album.

Scots Way-Hay - The Artists Albums of the Year 2011 (Part 3)

What with all of the excitement of yesterdays BAMS post, I forgot I hadn't scheuled this post to go up. Better late than never eh?! This weeks chosen albums of the year come from Adam Stafford, A Band Called Quinn, St. Deluxe, Mondegreen, The Son(s), Bear Bones and Sparrow & The Workshop...

Micachu & The Shapes - Chopped & Skrewed chosen by Adam Stafford

Most of the albums that I've admired in 2011 have come from female perspectives - PJ Harvey, Tune-Yards, Sleigh Bells, St Vincent - but Micachu & The Shape's Chopped & Skrewed really comes out on top because it sounds like nothing else anyone released during the year. Virtually ignored by the public and lukewarmly reviewed by the critics (isn't all great music!) on its release, the LP is a live album, of sorts, performed only once and recorded at the time with the London Sinfonietta - a very bold way of recording an album. The musical content can be described as "Wonk-Step", a hybrid of avant-garde Classical, Dub-step and Pop with most of the music played on odd home-made musical instruments such as clanging percussion which sounds like pots and pan lids being smacked off of pipes and a Cello made out of an old CD rack. If that sounds like shite, it's anything but; the innovative Harry Partch-esque approach is offset by lead-singer (and composer) Micachu's sudden burst of gravely Pop choruses which leap out unexpectedly through the woozy milieu of discordant string screeches and trippy-as-fuck hip-hop beats. Then we'll descend into bonkers free-jazz which sounds like it's improvised but is actually scored to the letter, before blooming gorgeously into some sort of backwards melody that plays like a segue from a lost Technicolor Musical. At once nightmarish and beautiful, the LP ends with the worrying refrain "We've swam too far/We've lost our way" before the music fades and the audience are heard rapturously applauding, only for them to be chopped half way through the thunderous reception suddenly, without warning. A strange end to totally bizarre record. If, like me, you prefer your music to sound like a nauseating haunted house lost at sea then please give Chopped & Skrewed a spin.


Mazes by Moon Duo chosen by Brian McEwan (St Deluxe)

My favourite album of the year is Mazes by Moon Duo, who are the other project from Ripley Johnson (the guitarist in Wooden Shjips) along with his partner Sanae Yamada on synth/keyboards. It keeps a lot of the elements of that band - drones, repeated riffs, meandering guitar solos, lots of phase and delay. The songs are a bit more hooky and accessible though - some of it is relatively ‘pop’ if Wooden Shjips is ‘rock‘ - and it’s more stripped back in terns of instrumentation: drum machine, synth, fuzz guitar and vocals mainly.
You can hear lots of influences in there - Suicide, Neu!, Spacemen3 etc are some of the obvious ones - but it has a character of its own I think - great drone/psych/space-rock in its own right. The new Wooden Shjips record is really good too, but this edges it for me.


PJ Harvey - Let England Shake chosen by Matthew Gilliland (Mondegreen)

My surprise album of the year by a mile. I don't really like or dislike anything PJ released before this, so I was caught off-guard when I saw her playing The Words That Maketh Murder on Jools Holland. The songwriting here is on another level to anything else I heard this year - the lyrics read well on their own, all Olde English hindsight, angelic and reflective, but the instrument choices and the echoey church sound give this record an ethereal, otherworldly atmosphere, and I like how that sound haunts from start to finish.



Tamer Animals by Other Lives chosen by The Son(s)

The album of 2011 is Tamer Animals by Other Lives. They were the best act at EOTR too. However I'd punch you in the face if you told me that I can't also have Aiden Moffat/Bill Wells - Everything's Getting Older. That's a beautiful set of songs, one I suspect I will continue to listen to longer than anything else this year. Oh and I'm going to kick you square in the balls if you won't let me mention that anyone who professes to like music should buy The Ship's Piano by Darren Hayman, The Party's Over by KPK and Office Doodles by The Weary Band. Oh and the single of the year was Snakes in the Grass by Sparrow & the Workshop. Don't you dare cut this before I say how good factorycraft is.... still here? You'd better not have cut this.... Or else when I meet you I'm going to...

Mine is Yours by Cold War Kids chosen by Ben (Bear Bones)

I first heard this album shortly after its release in late January. I didn't love it at first at first and only listened to it two or three times. A couple of months later I was in a hip, independent boutique when the bongo and bass intro of Royal Blue started plodding over the speakers with all the warmth and familiarity of a Mr. Matey bubble bath. Frustratingly, I couldn't remember what it was and I was far too proud to get on my tiptoes to Shazam the Topman (the illusion is shattered) speakers. I rushed home to trawl the whole of Spotify and soon realised my new favourite song was one that I'd discarded months before. I hated myself. Mine is Yours is far and away the best thing Cold War Kids have ever done and with the possible exception of Cold Toes on the Cold Floor, it is one of my favourite records ever. It is melodytastic from beginning to end and if you are patient and forgiving of it from the outset, I promise you will love it forever.


Within & Without by Washed Out chosen by Louise (A Band Called Quinn)

My album of the year is Within & Without by Washed Out. I'm sad I missed him live when they played Edinburgh but this is an absolutely gorgeous record with amazing synth sounds & production. It sounds so effortless & the lyrics are great too, although you can't really make them out (look them up!). Amor Fati is probably the stand out track for me & around half a million other people but it's just such an uplifting, euphoric sunny sounding record but still manages to be melancholic & tap into all the right dark places too. I did greatly admire PJ Harvey's Let England Shake too but from a sheer sensory enjoyment perspective Within & Without gets my vote. On the home front great music from Remember Remember, Star Wheel Press, Hektor Berzerk & a lot of the acts playing the Hear Glasgow Thursday nights at George Square (plug plug). Emile Sandee too - she is the real deal.



Miracle Fortress by Was I the Wave chosen by Gregor (Sparrow and the Workshop)

Have to say that most of the new music I am exposed to these days, certainly in album format, comes from meeting and playing with different bands on the road and trading albums with them. In Munich we shared a bill with a Canadian band called Miracle Fortess. Their new album 'Was I the Wave' was my stand out favourite of all the records we stacked up in the front of the van this year. It's a fantastic mix of dreamy melancholic electronica, well-crafted vocal melodies and intricate drum patterns. I love the way it's been put together, the layers are superbly mixed and listening to it in a different way (like headphones as opposed to a noisy van) revealed another side of complexity that made me smile as I'd enjoyed it so much already I was glad they'd gone to that effort with the detail but not let it distract from the core of the music. First class!

The Scottish BAMS Award 2011 (The Scottish Blogger And Music Sites Award)

logo designed by Bob Rafferty

Three years ago I decided that it might be fun to run a poll amongst my fellow bloggers and folk who run music sites in Scotland, to try and find out what the definitive album of that year really was. In its inaugural year The Phantom Band pipped Animal Collective to claim top spot, then last year I did it all again with The National topping that list. This year I managed to rope in a whopping 47 folk to take part in choosing their albums of the year. The following sites all contributed their favourite albums of 2011: The Pop Cop, Jim Gellatly, The Steinberg Principle, Blueback Hotrod, Scots Whay Hae, Dauphin, The Daily Dose, Blues Bunny, Rave Child, Glasgow PodcArt, 17 Seconds, Net Sounds, The Tidal Wave of Indifference, edRock.net, Dear Scotland, Vic Galloway, Manic Pop Thrills, Edinburgh Man, Kowalskiy, Last Years Girl, Aye Tunes, Song, By Toad, Elba Sessions, Listen Before You Buy, Detour Scotland, Jock Rock, Found in Sound, Phuturelabs, The Daily Growl, Favourite Son, The 'Spill, Scottish Fiction, Nicola Meighan, Jenny Soep, Rokbun, Curious Joe, Radar Scotsman Music Blog and of course Peenko.

Initially it didn't look like there was any sort of clear leader, then as the votes started to trickle in our eventual winner(s) absolutely ran away with it. So without further ado here's The Scottish BAMS top ten albums of 2011...

8-10. The Moth & The Mirror - Honestly, This World /PJ Harvey - Let England Shake / FOUND - factorycraft

6-7. Conquering Animal Sound - Kammerspiel / The Son(s) - The Son(s)

5. King Creosote & Jon Hopkins - Diamond Mine

3-4. Mike Nisbet - Vagrant / Bon Iver - Bon Iver

2. Adam Stafford - Build A Harbour Immediately

And the winner is...

1. Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat – Everything’s Getting Older

Ahead of tonights show at the Arches in Glasgow, I caught up with Bill and Aidan to present them with their very own BAMS Buckie!

a couple of BAMS

Congratulations Bill and Aidan, you are this years' winners of the Scottish BAMS award, how do you feel? Does this rate as a career highlight then?

Aidan - I think it might be the first award I've ever been presented with, with the exception of the joint 4th Year English Prize at Falkirk High in 1989, so it's very exciting indeed. Not sure about a career highlight – that accolade is always reserved for the work itself, and Everything's Getting Older is certainly one of my favourites, yes.

Bill - Feels good - though when it dawned on me, obviously quite some time ago, that awards are only ever decided upon by other people, not by some almighty, all knowing, arbiter of taste and quality looking down from the clouds, I thought it always best to never get too excited about any of them coming my way, not that there's been much occasion to, right enough.

How did you end up collaborating together in the first place?

Aidan - Bill says we found ourselves at the same table in a pub and I immediately asked him to play on some Arab Strap songs. I have no recollection of this at all, but at the time I was very much in love with his Also In White album so I've no reason to doubt him. After he played on the Monday At The Hug And Pint album, we did one song together and then took years to book a studio to do some more. We always seemed to have other things to do, but I'm glad we waited because I can't imagine the album any other way. It would've had an entirely different theme and tone if we'd finished it in 2005, and I really don't think it would have been as good from my side.

Bill - Indeed this is what happened - I was very surprised and flattered actually because although I was a huge Arab Strap fan, and though we were all from Falkirk, or, more likely, because, it never occurred to me that we'd ever all be in a studio together, so it did, for me at least, even at the time, feel like quite an occasion, and looking back, even more so now.

I am guessing that you've spent a lot of time in each others' pockets this year; has this bonded your love for each other, or are you sick of the sight of each other?

Aidan - We haven't really spent that much time together at all, to be honest. We haven't done a lot of touring, although what we did do was quite hard work. There's more gigs being planned for next year, so hopefully we'll have more to do, but it's not as though we're a young rock band out on the road and in the NME every week, there's not a lot of fuss or constant attention to deal with; there's been a minimum of upheaval, thankfully.

Bill - Yeh, sorry, you're guessing wrong.

If the love is still there, are there any plans to work together again in the future?

Aidan - We've just started talking about our second album now, so it will happen but we're not sure when. Certainly not next year, we've both got a couple of albums each planned for 2012, so we might try and have it ready for 2013. There's no rush though, it'll be ready when it's ready; the last thing i want to do is dive into it and force it out, that's why a lot of second albums these days are a bit shit. Bands and labels are desperate to hold onto any momentum and profile a new band has, but we're lucky in that respect because we're not really a new, young band; we've both been making records for ages and there's no pressure on us at all. So 2014 at the earliest!

Bill - Just to add that I'm really looking forward to this, the musical ideas for first album were pretty much all on one cdr I gave Aidan ages ago, then the EP happened pretty quickly this year so, personally, I'm more hopeful for the 2013 result but, whatever and whenever, it'll be great to get working together in the studio again.

Seeing as we are on the subject of albums of the year, what have been your personal favourites of 2012?

Aidan - I would've said Slow Club's Paradise a couple of weeks ago (which I still love) but it's been pipped at the post by the last-minute release of Josh T. Pearson's limited live LP, The King Is Dead, which I think is far superior to his studio album. There's been a lot of very good music this year though, but my memory can never work when it's put on the spot, sorry!

Bill - I look at these end of year lists and realize I haven't heard so many of these records, so it feels like a very uninformed opinion. The last time I was asked I said the re - release of Annette Peacock's 'I'm The One' which is truly one of the greatest records ever made. However after writing that I realized that "That's Reality' by Yumbo, which is Koji Shibuya's (bass player in Maher Shalal Hash Baz) Pop masterpiece, came out in Japan in early 2011.

'Everything’s Getting Older' is out now on Chemikal Underground and it comes with the Scottish BAMS seal of approval. You can order yourself a copy on CD, download or on triple vinyl (which also includes two Bonus 12" featuring 14 exclusive tracks of new material, remixes and demos/ a 12x12 16-page booklet featuring lyrics and sheet music for Bill's compositions/ a data disc with hi-spec audio files of all vinyl tracks plus a recording of Bill & Aidan's first ever concert at Glasgow's Triptych Festival in 2008, here.

Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat - The Copper Top

The Son(s) - Slow & Easy (video)

Friday Freebies

The Son(s)
It's been a few months since I last mentioned anything about The Son(s), that's not to say that they've not been busy. They're currently working on a new EP which is due out later in the year (from the demo's that I've heard it sounds very promising). They've just released their new single 'Slow & Easy', which is made up of three songs, two of which are new and the other being Dogs, Boys & Men, which now has a cracking wee video to go with it. It's an animated wee number that's very Captain Pugwash-esq, I think it looks great, then again I am ever so slightly biased.

Kowalskiy
My blogger friend Kowalskiy has just release his 14th free EP, yet again he's got some great wee tunes up for grabs. This month there are free tunes from Black International, Negotiations, Aerials Up, Edinburgh School For The Deaf and The Ramisco Maki Maki Rocking Horse, now that's what I call a line up. You can find out more information and download links on his blog which you will find here.

freckle tan
If you were listening to Vic Galloway's Radio Scotland show on Monday you might have heard one of freckle tan's songs getting a wee bit of airplay. The side project of one of the Copy Haho boys is a bit different to the day job, as this is an electronic project. I still haven't fully made my mind up about Copy Haho, but I really like this free single that you can download for free from his Bandcamp page.

Sojourner
A few weeks back I sat in for a recording of the Glasgow Podcart in which Pensioner were the special guests, one of the tracks that they chose was by an Edinburgh band called Sojourner. Admittedly I'd never heard of them prior to that day, but I mist admit I was really impressed, so when I got home I got googling and found that they had a whole load of free stuff up for grabs on their Bandcamp. Fans of Wild Oldham and early Bon Iver, should lap this up.

As In Bear
For those of you who like your music a little bit louder, Ayrshire outfit As In Bear might be worth checking out. The band are starting to stir up a wee bit of a buzz, so if you fancy checking out what the fuss is all about you can download one of their songs for free on Soundcloud.

Euros Child
The Welsh singer-songwriter has made his new EP, Beef Bridge, available to download for free on his homepage.

White Heath
The Edinburgh based 6-piece have made two new tracks from their debut album 'Take No Thought For Tomorrow' free to download on Soundcloud.

Laurence and the SlabBoys
The former Fresh Meat starlets have been testing out their new drum machine and have made the song they crafted free to download on SoundCloud.

Okkervil River
Stereogum have another free MP3 from the 'I Am Very Far' LP, download new song "Your Past Life As A Blast" here.

Friday Freebies

Y’all is Fantasy Island
Under appreciated, is the phrase that springs to mind when anyone mentions now defunct Falkirk outfit, Y’all is Fantasy Island. I am not going to start kidding myself that I wasn't one of the folk that didn't fully appreciate what we had until they were gone. Thanks to Wiseblood Industries we can all do some much needed catching up as they've re-issued the whole of Y’all is Fantasy Island’s entire back catalogue digitally for free. This includes five LPs, totalling 55 tracks all in. So if you're not Home Game-ing this weekend, then this should pretty much be your weekend sorted.

State Broadcasters
It feels like ages ago since we last heard anything from the Glasgow's finest twee-Americana band. In fact it's been that long that I actually thought they'd called it a day, so it was good to hear that not only were they still going, but they've also been busy recording new material. They've just made new song 'Kittiwake', which comes from their forthcoming album due out in the summer, available for free download.

Steven Milne
At the tail end of last year I got sent a copy of Aberdeenshire singer songrwiter, Steven Milne's album Chasing Phantoms. Really good it was too, somehow I seem to have misplaced my copy of the album so it slipped out of my mind. Admittedly I do feel kind of guilty about that now, I am going to have to do some much needed hunting to find it. Anyway, what reminded me of all of this was that his label Bedford Records have made a remix of his song Best Of Times available for free download.

The Little Kicks
It's funny that I just mentioned Steven Milne, as he crops up twice in this weeks Friday Freebies. This little freebie comes courtesy of his other project, The Little Kicks, who are going to be out touring for a lot of this month. They've made their new single 'Call of Youth' available to download for free on their Bandcamp.

Fucked Up
I had forgotten quite how much I liked the last Fucked Up album, I must go and give my copy a a good airing. If you're already a fan then you might be chuffed to hear that Stereogum have a free download of their new song “Queen Of Hearts” for free.

Dropkick
One of the reasons I reckon a lot of folk like to search out new music is because it can be quite daunting when you find a band with a back ground as it requires a lot more effort to try and sift through a more established artists back catalogue. Knowing where to start can be pretty off putting when you have so much stuff to listen to. Which in a roundabout way brings me to Dropkick, as East Coast outfit whose music flirts between alt country and power pop. They've recently made 59 of their previously unreleased songs available to download for free on their website. Some of which I am assured are "reasonably good". Having already built up a bit of a cult following in Spain, the band are set to release their new album 'Time Cuts The Ties' on the 14th of May. If that sounds like your cup of tea then you can download a tonne of free songs from their website.

The Spinto Band
Mind the Spinto Band, whatever happened to them then? One great album, one stinker, then I never heard of them again until now. They've apparently been away recording a cover of theme music for Arthur. I am sure that makes perfect sense in Spinto-land, if you fancy hearing what it sounds like then you can by downloading the track for free in exchange for your email address.

Smack Wizards
The up and coming new Glasgow 3-piece , featuring members of Plaaydoh/Mr Peppermint, have made their debut album available for free download through Winning Sperm Party.

The Son(s)
In the midst of everything going on at Olive Grove HQ, it might seem as if we have overlooked some of our artists. I hope that isn't the case, as we love each and every one of our 'children' equally. It's been a while since we talked about the Son(s), so this feels like as good a time as any to be mentioning that they're giving away a free track in exchange for a tweet. So if you were wondering what all the fuss was about then you can find out for yourself here.

Jonathan Sebastian Knight
He of My Cousin I Bid You Farewell fame, has made a whole host of tracks available for free download on his Soundcloud page.

RM Hubbert
I am afraid that this freebie is only open to folk in the US, so if you're not from across the pond then you might want to look away now. He might well be currently be holed up in a studio with Alex Kapranos recording his new album, but we've not forgotten about wur pal Hubby. If you haven't already checked out his album 'First & Last', then you're missing a trick. Chemikal Underground were smart enough to reissue the album, so if you don't trust me, trust them. Our American friends are also in luck as they can download my personal favourite track 'For Maria' for nowt on Amazon. Everyone else, well you've been told enough times, by now you should've already bought the album.

The Dawn Fanfare
This freebie comes courtesy of our radio pal, Pop Goes The Revolution, who are planning on posting a free download every Monday for the next few weeks. So if you fancy a freebie on a Monday get following their Facebook page. This week they came up with The Dawn Fanfare, who are new to me, possibly because they're not Scottish.

Rock The Fort
The mini festival held up in Fort William, finishes up tonight with Bronto Skylift, Homework and James MacKenzie & the Aquscene. From what I have heard from folk who have played it at it, it's been a rather successful start to the festival. What does that have to do with free downloads you might be wondering, well there's a free mini album featuring Bronto, Mitchell Museum and Pareto among others. Get it here.

Bear Driver
Mind we like this lot, they make me smile. Their new demo Colours Run, works for me, see if it does for you by downloading it for free here.

We've Got It Covered #44

It's Saturday again which mean one thing, yup, it's time for me to share another cover version with you all. This week it's the turn of The Son(s) and their take on Meursault's 'One Day This'll All Be Fields'. Having asked the Son(s) if they fancied recording a wee cover for me, I must admit that I am extremely chuffed with what they came up. Let me know what you all

One Day This'll All Be Fields - Meursault by The Son(s)

The Son(s) - The Son(s): Track By Track

In my life time there have been a lot of things that I have been very proud of, the birth of my daughter Erin and marrying Nic being the main two. Today, marks another day that will stay with me for many years to come as this is the day when a boyhood dream was finally realised. Having release a mini album with I Build Collapsible Mountains (on Peenko Records), an EP with Randolph's Leap and a single with Esperi, it's now time to move on to the 'big one'.
I think it's a bit a Scottish trait that we don't like to low our own trumpets, but for once I am going to go against the grain and say that The Son(s) album is an awesome album. I still can't quite believe that we're getting to release it, it's a phenomenal piece of work. How the fuck we're going to manage to keep this standard up I don't know, but we'll give it a good go.
Seeing as it's not the done thing to review something your releasing, I asked The Son(s) to write a wee track by track for me Not ones to do things by the book, here's what they had to say about the album...


1. Dogs, Boys & Men

A list of animals in our home in descending order of popularity.

Dogs, Boys & Men by The Son(s)

2. Sonny, You'll Never Get That Ride

As overheard on the #22 bus from Leith to the Gyle; Old gent leans over the back of the seat in front, where a younger man is sat gawping at the girls in the back of the bus in front. Whispers something along these lines in younger man's ear. Sit's back, sage. This as an introduction to the song might be misleading.

Sonny, You'll Never Get That Ride by The Son(s)

3. You Belong to No One

According to Mystic Lisa down the road this is Captain Beefhearts' least favourite song on the album. If you like angular then I guess that's fair enough. I like this one.

You Belong To No One by The Son(s)

4. Radar

I can't paint, I can't even decorate. And I've never tried to wallpaper anything, I may yet though I'm colour blind... Anyway when I see one, I always want to have a ride on those airport carousels. I've never done it, have you done it? That's what this song is about.

Radar by The Son(s)

5. Sold Down The River

I can't remember writing this one. Have you heard Child Is the Father Of The Man? That's a great song that. This started off as simple acoustic song but gained a whole bunch of stuff by surprise while it was recorded. That's ok isn't it? Not all songs have to work when reduced to someone scraping away at an acoustic guitar. Who made that rule up? That's a bunch of shite. We were so chuffed when Ally McCrae played it on the radio. It very nearly didn't make it on the album.

Sold Down The River by The Son(s)

6. There Is A Hole In The Middle Of The Sea...

There is a hole in the middle of the sea! There's a Eastern Pacific gyre and a North Atlantic gyre. Floating debris accumulates in these bits of the ocean. If you sailed through one it wouldn't look any different to any other part of the sea, bar that you'd be completely surrounded by large numbers of spinning bath toys, tyres and empty milk containers.

There Is A Hole In The Middle Of The Sea... by The Son(s)

7. Count Your Feet

When I was a kid I wanted to be an astronaut. And, unlike my other childhood dreams, for this one it might not be too late. For the other dreams, fallen by the wayside - ach well. Make do and mend.

Count Your Feet (Version) by The Son(s)

8. George & Harm

Someone, somewhere is having all the fun that you're missing. It's like a universal law, good times must be conserved. In my head it all gets channelled to this one old couple, they get yours, they get mine. So while you're sat in front of a computer, somewhere they're kicking their heels. Bastards eh?

George & Harm by The Son(s)

9. Soheyho

I think most songs should be around 3 minutes, there's hardly ever a need to go over 4 minutes. It's not a hard and fast rule. Basically I like songs that haven't been unnecessarily elongated. This one should have been 1 minute but I couldn't get it below 1.22. I've not helped either side of the argument there...

Soheyho by The Son(s)

10. Pinholes

A song about flotsam and jetsam, about slowly, quietly failing and wanting someone to notice and say it's all ok. Oh and about a dream once had about having to jump through tiny holes in the bedroom wall.

Pinholes by The Son(s)

11. Mars Just Pied Her With Gin...

Written after a long night of drinking, slowly wending down from the Pleasance to the Cowgate one summer. You wanted to carry on, invincible, down the Cowgate, the Grassmarket and on and out of town. It was the last thing we recorded. I particularly like the click at the end of it - that was the last sound we recorded. Stop tape.

Mars Just Plied Her With Gin... by The Son(s)

The Son(s) self titled album is out now, there are 100 limited edition CDs available directly from the band via their Bandcamp, which comes with a special Olive Grove cigarette card. If you like to buy your albums from your local record store then you can also pick copies up at the following stores:
Fence Records, Anstruther
Avalanche Records, Edinburgh
Love Music, Glasgow
Monorail Records, Glasgow
One Up Records, Aberdeen
Pure Groove, London
Rough Trade, London - recommended album of the week
Norman Records, Leeds
Action Records, Preston
Rise Records, Bristol

If downloads are your game then you can download the album directly from The Son(s) Bandcamp page, you can also find it on eMusic, iTunes, Napster, Ovi Music, Play.com, Spotify, Tesco Digital, Tunetribe, We7 and Zune.

Friday Freebies

The Son(s)
In case you missed our big Olive Grove announcement last week, we're going to be releasing their debut album in March. As a wee teaser of what you can expect from the album, you can now download a new version of 'Dogs, Boys & Men' over on Soundcloud. I genuinely think we have one of the albums of 2011, if you don't believe me, then go and give the song a listen. You won't regret it.

Bright Eyes
If like me you were one of the unlucky few that didn't manage to buy tickets for Conor Oberst and co at Oran Mor, then you can console yourself with this free download of his new track "Haile Selassie" (via Pitchfork).

The Last Battle
This freebie was originally pencilled in to go up at the start of the year, the only downfall was that the band went and got so popular that they ran out of free downloads to offer. I guess they must have shifted a few more albums as they've posted their new year treat/single, '365 Days' up for you all to download for nowt. What a luverly bunch they are.

Esperi
Not one, but two freebies from our Olive Grove stable in one post, god we really do spoil you lot.
If you sign up to Esperi's mailing list you will get a track from his forthcoming album.

Zefs Chasing Cara
On Wednesday I had the last of my series of Ones To Watch in 2011 posts with an interview with the amazing 'Finn Le Marinel'. If you'd were paying attention then you might well have noticed that he suggested an array of artists that we check out, one of which was Zefs Chasing Cara. If you head over to their Myspace you'll find a couple of EPs for free download.

Vasquez
This freebie was supposed to go up last week, but somehow I must have missed it in my bookmarks. Thankfully though it wasn't lost for good, so here it is in all of it's glory it's a free download of the latest EP from the Edinburgh post-rock outfit.

Penguins Kill Polar Bears
I still haven't quite made my mind up about whether or not this one of the worst or best band names on the go at the moment. Either way the Edinburgh rock outfit certainly seem to be making some pretty massive waves in their homeland. Their song 'Lungs' is free for you to download here.

FOUND
Not long now until the amazing new album from FOUND, their album launch shows look set to sell out pretty soon. So if you haven't already bought yours, then I would suggest you get that sorted as soon as. As for this weeks freebie, I've not a clue what it will be, it'll be good that's all I can tell you for certain. Download it here.

Japandroids
Featured as one the influential Seattle Radio Station, KEXP's 'song of the day', the Vancouver outfits song 'Heavenward Grand Prix' for free here.

Oh! Canada
We love Line of Best Fit, so we do. We also love their regular compilations that they put out showcasing an array of amazing talent from Canada. They're now on to their 14th Volume, a wee corker it is too, download it here.

Dave Hughes
'This was supposed to be a Hogmanay Single, but things happened and this got delayed. So, instead, I'm putting it up here as a free download. Two tracks, a band demo of The Replacement and a B-side of an older track called Midnight Walks. Download it here.

French Wives
Carrying on with their theme of a giving away one of their B-sides every week, the amazing French Wives have posted up a free download of 'Hyndland Weather Bear' in the tenth of their Homefires freebies. The song originally featured on their Me vs. Me single which was released in June of last year. Download it for free here.

BRONZE
This is the new band from Ian Menard and Charlie Davis, formerly of Detachment Kit (French Kiss Records.)Based in Brooklyn NY, they've just made their debut EP available to download for free.

People, Places, Maps...
I am not going to say too much about these guys as they will be featuring as one of my Fresh Meat bands in a few weeks time. All you need to know for now is that their self-titled single is free to download here.

Feelies
It's been a long time since we've heard anything from New Jersey postpunk, the Feelies. Their last album 'Time for a Witness' came out way back in 1991. Now they're making a return and they've made new song 'Should Be Gone' available to download (via Pitchfork).

My Satellite Music
Free download of the first single Mirrors of the new Depths EP.

Sun Dogs
This freebie tip off comes courtesy of our friend over at Traffic Cone Musi, who pointed me in the direction of this free download of Sun Dogs track 'Miwersa'

A Torn Mind
Livingston prog rock band, A Torn Mind, have made their new single 'Mindless Obsessions' available to download for free.