Big Wow To ‘State of Repair’ from And the Wasters

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So fitting for the times: And the Wasters are making music for the millennials!

Music is a substitute for caffeine. If you wake up in the morning and the music is right then the day is auspicious! I am always looking forward to releases from this group (Now called And the Wasters) as their subsequent albums have proven to be really good! Notice the change in the line-up(and name). Here’s a blurb from their site:

2016 saw the band change name and take on a new lineup to play main stages at UK festivals such as Bearded Theory and Boomtown Fair, complete an extensive tour of Europe and bring global influences into their sound with their instrumental diversity of accordion, trumpet and violin.

They are the most hard working group I’ve known and they get better every year in both their studio and live recordings. It is no brainer that everyone in the group has his or her own musical influence and the diversity makes And the Wasters appealing to all music lovers. There is also nuance and complexity I’ve noticed in their music as they strive for artistic growth:

Lyrically, the EP reflects on a sense of sadness, anxiety and uncertainty faced in the modern world, while also promoting an empowering message of solidarity, DIY culture and collective action in their rowdy Punk sound and spirit.

I think this is shown in their song Small Victories. I get that mournful tune on top of the ska-powered rhythm. It is fitting for the times. This contradicting forces are present in all songs. Notably in Reduce, Reuse, Rebel. The Wasters are showing us that the punk spirit is still alive. Despite the excesses and the entitlement that litter this generation, there are still those going against the flow. The production quality is noted here:

Recorded in 2016 across at Music Ape studios & Worse than Bad studio. Mixed and mastered by Matt Martin at Made of Ale (Pumpkin Records). Overdubs on ‘Intro Dub’ by Ian Upsettah.

So the album just dropped. Check out their awesome video below:

Give this band your two thumbs up and buy their albums! It’s a pay-as-you-fee download. Free if ya like 😉 Show your support by giving the world conscience through music!

And the Wasters are: Dan Kemp, Ivo Johansen, Jared Dyer, Celeste Cantor-Stephens, Jo Dobraszczyk, Danny Epstein & Jack Kitchen.

Links:

https://andthewasters.bandcamp.com

https://www.facebook.com/thewastersmusic/

http://www.instagram.com/thewastersofficial

 

Popes of Chillitown : An Interview

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My approach in doing interviews for bands has not changed. It is still made in the spirit of spontaneity. You know, that moment when you meet your favourite band and you scribble questions in a piece of paper (or ask them impromptu) and let them answer it shortly. I think it also depends on the occasion. There are times when the interview is complicated due to the schedule or the availability of the artists. But I always try to strike at a moment when I can get my answer out. Because it is fun that way. And I am darn sure you my readers will enjoy it.

I want to keep it simple and that thought made me decide to have a brief chat with Matt, the singer from Popes of Chillitown. They are a 6-piece band from London. They play a variety of Ska,Dub and Punk. They’re originally founded in 2006. This interview is a continuation of something I’ve written a few weeks ago.

Enjoy the answers and explore the music!

1.Tell us about your new album To the Moon.

Our new album to the moon…it’s our journey through space (uk ska scene and dance floors) and time (a year of line/up changes and our first European tour) What we wanted to do with to the moon was give people something that they could either dance to or sing along to as consistently as we could across 11 tracks.

2.Your new single Wisdom Teeth is out how was the experience shooting a music video?

Doing the music video with Craig from the snare was jokes. We’re all mates so we just had a laugh and ate monster munch and drank red stripe. It was nice that he knew what he was doing too. Check it out on the YouTubes.

3.You’re touring Europe promoting your album. What keeps you all energize while being on the road?

I’ve already mentioned monster munch and red stripe so add ginsters and walkers sensations to that list of energy giving fodder. Not that we’re looking for sponsorship or anything…More spiritually it’s an altruistic Bill and Ted style vision of musical utopia that drives us on. That. And Munroe.

4. How do you decide that the song is ready for recording?

When we finally get round to recording stuff we’ve usually tried and tested every could-be song at live shows. We feel that is the test of whether it should go on a recording. And that’s what we’ve done with this album. Other songs maybe fun to play or whatever but we were only after dance music on this one. Aside from that when a song is ready is a weird concept as some things burst into existence and some things linger and fester so you have to sympathetic to this and adaptive in the creative process.

5. What can the audience expect when they go to your gigs?

At live shows we try to bring as much energy as possible to the entire time that were on stage. We want people to dance so we have to take the lead in it, innit. We have sing along bits and we try to get people moving. Sometimes me and Tom go wandering on the wireless. Which is fun. Especially at festivals when you go too far from the stage and you’re trying to sing in time with an echo.

6. Are there other bands you hangout when you have the time?

I said The Snare and Millie Manders. We hang out with any of the bands we play with around the country. There are loads of safe people in the ska scene. People who have recently been safe; Tree House Fire, Riskee, Call me Malcolm, Stiff Joints, Cartoon Violence, Mad Apple Circus and Counting Coins.

7. Can you list down the band members and what they play?

Popes of Chillitown are:

Popes of Chillitown:Attitude, melody and energy- the reasons why I like these guys.

Popes of Chillitown:Attitude, melody and energy- the reasons why I like these guys.

Jck – drums / vox

Arv – Bass

Tom – Electric Guitar / vox

Jimmy Pingu – Trombone / vox

Classic Trev – Sax / Melodica / vox

Matt – Vox / Acoustic Guitar

8. What’s great about being in Popes of Chillitown?

Being in Popes is great because we get to live the glamorous life style of eating shit, driving all day to Germany and then sleeping on a strangers floor. We get to listen to a lot of music in the car though. We just love gigging and playing shows with other bands we like and can have a laugh with. We’ve had a really fun time this last year making the album and we’re enjoying playing it – as well as a few of the dancier tracks from the first one. We’re still exploring the continent one gig at a time and that’s fun too.

Yes, these fellas are fun. Be sure to visit their official links below:

http://www.popesofchillitown.com/

https://www.facebook.com/PopesOfChillitown

Popes of Chillitown are Spicing Up Britain

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Popes of Chillitown

These guys are about energy and fun melodies. You know, you tend to discover music in many unexpected situations. Sometimes, you get it from a friend of a friend, sometimes in a conversation. I get mine online when I talk to random people. Someone mentioned Popes of Chillitown to me and that’s how I was able to Google them and liked their Facebook profile.

Wisdom Teeth is their official music video released last month. If you haven’t yet you better check this video out and the music/graphics will leave a lasting impression in your  mind. The band is currently touring over Europe. You can get their latest updates by liking/following their official pages:

https://www.facebook.com/PopesOfChillitown

https://popesofchillitown.bandcamp.com

https://soundcloud.com/popes-of-chillitown

Found: Sacha Talens

I got a confirmation from Ophelie that singer/songwriter Sacha Talens is alive. It seems that he’s taking a BIG break from the music industry. He had big hopes in releasing a series of recordings that should been a 3-album deal but poof! He dropped out of the radar just like that.

You might not believe it when I say that I can relate to his situation. I was close to doing it myself last year when tragedy struck home and I lost my mom. It still hard for me and I am living a double life. One that brings you amazing musical talents and the ‘other me’ who is in the dark and probably has no chance of seeing the light ever.

Wherever Sacha Talens is right now, may this post get to him. We all die inside in order to be born again-if we want to. Some simply don’t. I can’t blame the man for taking it hard. His music is his life…other than the fact the he is an amazing chef and a good fella.

So we will just have to respect his wish to be left alone. We all need that. Heaven knows we do!

Here is a link to the review I did about his album for Expats Post : http://expatspost.com/entertainment/music/the-bathurst-moment-by-sacha-talens/

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