Something for the weekend?
OUT next week, ‘Something Good Will Come,’ the new album from London singer/songwriter, NIGEL BROWN.
There’s a joyous ‘60s ‘jangle-pop vibe’ throughout with an added splash of Tom Petty to reinforce that sun-drenched, West Coast sound.
“I started writing the songs in January 2021 during the lockdown. I wrote them in about two weeks, meaning that I had all the chord structures, and the lyrics were mostly complete,” explains Brown.
“It was all recorded at home in West London, in my small basement studio and took about two months on and off.
“I put down some basic guitars and a bass then got my son – who is a great drummer – to put down some drum tracks. Once I had those it gave me something ‘live’ to play to. Really then the focus was on the guitars. I made the decision early on to make good use of my Rickenbacker 12 string and a dodgy acoustic 12 string, to go for a kind of Byrds/Tom Petty vibe. Same when I wrote the songs, I didn’t think about it too much, just went with the flow.”
“I’m rarely satisfied with what I produce but this album is probably the closest I have got. Some of my favourites are ‘Something Good Will Come’ especially the end section, and ‘Tear It Down’ is good, those are probably my favourite lyrics on the album.
“‘Don’t You Talk Like That’ has a great ‘60s chorus, and ‘Soldiers Again’ bit of a Beatles ‘Getting Better’ vibe. It would have been nice if Roy Orbison could have sung the opener, ‘Won’t Be Your Love,’ but he sadly was not available. I did my best, what else can I say!”
With a total of eleven tracks, the album inevitably contains a couple of ‘fillers,’ and it’ll need a good listen to find the gems, but I assure you, it’ll be time well spent. I guarantee you’ll fall in love with ‘Don’t You Talk Like That,’ and ‘A Little Bit Hurt,’ so do persevere.
And there’s more to Brown than his latest album, his website (see below) offers a tremendous insight to his work should you wish to discover more.
“I began playing guitar when I was about 14, mainly learning chords from playing along with The Beatles and Bob Dylan,” he added. “In my early twenties I made the move to London to pursue my musical ambitions. After playing in many bands and doing a lot of live shows I found my true passion was for the recording studio.
“I got some work writing music for a Discovery Channel series and this evolved into writing and recording all the music for around twenty series mainly for Discovery and Sky.”
ALBUM: Something Good Will Come
LABEL: Colombina Records
RELEASE DATE: 21/02/2022
WEBSITE: Nigel Brown Music
T W O
HULL’S indie kings RED GUITARS have reunited with their original line-up and are currently preparing to hit the road for a run of UK shows in April.
Red Guitars were formed around the pairing of Jeremy Kidd (vocals) and Hallam Lewis (guitarist) and initially cut their teeth playing benefit shows for a series of left-wing causes, quickly building a loyal following, before providing an instant hit with their debut single, ‘Good Technology’ which shifted an impressive 60,000 copies.
Further success followed with the group topping the Independent Charts with consecutive No.1s, ‘Marimba Jive’ and ‘Steeltown.’
The band quickly earned support from the taste-maker titles of the time including cult 1980s Channel 4 show, ‘The Tube,’ and the BBC’s ‘Whistle Test,’ through to several memorable sessions for BBC Radio legend, John Peel.
RED GUITARS were also particularly enjoyed by thousands when supporting The Smiths on their breakthrough tour. Releasing their seminal debut album ‘Slow To Fade’ in 1984, frontman Jeremy Kidd announced his departure soon after and Red Guitars finally disbanded two years later.
Fast forward to 2022 and RED GUITARS are set to return with their complete and original line-up for what will be their first tour since their ‘80s prime. Featuring vocalist Jeremy Kidd, lead guitarist Hallam Lewis, drummer Matt Higgins, rhythm guitarist John Rowley and Lou Duffy-Howard on bass, they will be joined by old friend of the band, guitarist Jos Allen.
Marking 40 years since the release of their totemic first single ‘Good Technology,’ the former John Peel favourites take their unique mix of infectious post-punk and African rhythms to:
The Old Woollen, Leeds: April 19
Night & Day Café, Manchester: April 21
The Attic at the Garage, Glasgow: April 22
The New Adelphi Club, Hull (Sold Out): April 23
Green Door Store, Brighton: April 28
100 Club, London: April 29
O2 Institute 3, Birmingham : April 30
Connect with RED GUITARS online:
T H R E E
WIDNES indie-rockers THE SPASE have just released their second album, ‘Either Side of Right.’
The Widnes-based trio, Andy Forrest (vocals/guitar), Peter Walker (bass), and Simon Morris (percussion/guitar), have played in multiple bands over the years including The Utopians, and 20 While 40 – but it’s The Spase they now call home.
‘Either Side of Right’ is the follow up to their debut album, ‘On a Cloud,’ and features their trademark, smooth, rhythm filled alt/indie rock vibe – as one would expect from a group who include The Charlatans, Elbow, and Cast among their influences.
“The inspiration for much of our lyrics and music come from questions arising about everyday life and the desire to expand our own knowledge or personal experiences, the who, the what and the why of life,” said bassist Walker.
Learn more about THE SPASE here: Music | The Spase (bandcamp.com)
F O U R
NEW YORK’S indie, low-fi ambient supremo, ‘LOOPS & LOOPS,’ has maintained his remarkable run of producing extraordinary albums with the release of the ambient ‘Sleepless.’
A firm favourite of LondonPeaky, Loops & Loops is the work of Peter Bogolub who has been making music for the past two decades, ranging from shoegaze to indie to lofi.
“The album is a departure from the usual tracks that I have been releasing for the past few years,” he said.
“It was the result of a month-long bout of insomnia, written late at night or early in the morning, with each song highlighting a different aspect of the problem. The album takes notes from instrumental aspects from ‘My Bloody Valentine,’ and I hope it will aide those who also suffer from sleeplessness.
“The whole thing was written over those restless nights. It is different sound for me, but that’s the nice thing about being an independent artist without someone telling you what to do and I’m pretty happy with the way that this one turned out.
“I suppose the ‘single’ is a track called ‘Dissolution Of Memory,’ but please feel free to give the album a listen and choose another ambient track that is more to your liking.”
Below: ‘Can’t Sleep.’ (Released May 2020.)
(Fancy being included in a future edition of ‘Something For The Weekend?’ Well get in touch and tell us why.)
