I first became acquainted with the Notorious Lightbulbs almost two years ago when I featured them in the Mayhem Virgins series. They also provided a great Christmas message for all With Just A Hint Of Mayhem readers last December. Well this funk fuelled duo made up of Diego Wilde and Crystal Miss from the North East of England have a new single out, and in keeping with their talent for great titles it’s a another winner, it is called “Mad, Bad & Baggy”. It has a strong jazz funk feel that would get me on the dance floor. The keyboards have a great Joe Sample vibe going on and the band have maintained their expert grasp of crafting a top notch pop melody. Something about it made me imagine George Michael covering it and he would have made it even more special. The Notorious Lightbulbs keep their mysterious air with their ever present steam punk style shades. Is it really that sunny in the North East. Personally I think this is their best release and they have issued some great stuff before this. If you haven’t got into this funky, punky, disco outfit yet then get started now! That’s an order!
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German metal band Pentastone are the twelfth act to feature in the Mayhem Virgins series, maybe I need to sort out a Mayhem Virgins playlist! I came across this band thanks to the obscenely gifted singer Lauren Tate (Hands Off Gretel, Delilah Bon) sharing one of their songs on Twitter. Pentastone, from Darmstadt, and founded in 2016, are extraordinarily talented vocalist Luisa Knauß, drummer Timo Schwab a man who could trigger avalanches with his beats, lead guitarist Joschka Ihlefeld who is the complete master of his instrument, rhythm guitarist and riff supremo Dennis Ludwig and last but not least bass player Fabio Brauer who adds an intense heartbeat to the bands songs. For all the people who constantly moan that there are no great female fronted bands around you need to check out Pentastone now!
The band are from Germany and released the ‘Poisoned Mind’ EP in 2018. It contains five blistering and explosive tracks that clearly mark out the Pentastone metal manifesto. “Fuck This” is probably my favourite closely followed by the title track. Two tracks from the EP were good enough to turn up again on the bands debut album ‘Stuck In The Sky’ which was released earlier this month. That album has so far spawned four ace singles; “Stuck In The Sky” and “Keep Falling” from 2019, “How It Feels” from last year and “Get Better” from this year. All four tracks showcase the power and venomous emotion generated by Pentastone and Luisa sings like she means it. Support from BONASSIS of GUT on “Get Better” adds incredible depth to a great tune. If there was a test to write and perform the perfect metal song, “Stuck In The Sky” would be a contender. “How It Feels and “Stuck In The Sky” are two tracks that would ramp up the power in the mosh pit to super nova levels. Every track on this album is a future classic the riffs could split a planet in two, the rhythm section generate enough power to light the the Boötes Void all of this is made perfect by vocals that could be responsible for the Big Bang. Luisa has a magnificent range of styles from softer melodic to full on metal roar. If you have not listened to Pentastone yet, then you need to start NOW! The videos up to now are challengingly different to Pentastone‘s peers and are at times weird and challenging in a good way. I can see massive success in the future for this band and we need to demand their presence at UK Festivals when they resume post Covid!
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Those roguish rapscallions of rock known as Tommyrot have recently unleashed a new song on the world. It is called “Funky Feeling” and begs the question, can white boys play da funk? Well these boys can! They have clearly tightened the tourniquet and injected themselves with the funk, some punk and some classic British early 70s rock. But just enough to get a rock ‘n’ roll high. The languid chilled and obviously funky bass line is particularly addictive and Tommyrot prove that as well as being a great band they are also cunning linguists as they introduce some French into the lyrics. After last years singles, “Drugs” and “The Happy Ending Song” it is totally transpicuous that this band have many talents and are adept at avoiding being stuck in one particular genre box! Will there be a Tommyrot album sometime? I hope so, but in the meantime I reckon they will be a lot of fun when we get back to proper gigs.
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The Sonder Bombs have a strong sense of melody and they use it to excellent effect on this absolute gem of an album “Crying Is Cool” is a great pop song which bounces along and carries you with it. “Papillon” slows the pace but keeps the melodic sense firmly in place. “Vegas Baby” has some of the pop feel of the Go Gos and the vocals are fabulous. “What Are Friends For” keeps up the pace and quality and the drumming is key to this track. “Scattered” slows things down and the vocal is less intense but still with beautiful timbre and a lovely guitar melody. I think this is one of the most poignant songs here . “The Brink” takes us back to the more frantic but bouncy feel we have got used to early on. “Swing On Sight” is great punk pop and as with everything else here is very strong; lyrics, melody, playing …the whole enchilada! “The One About You” is a truly beautiful piece of melodic pop with a superb arrangement. The Sonder Bombs are a revelation to me and I will certainly be searching out more of their fabulous music and looking forward to seeing them live, soon we hope!
Written by Paul Bamlett
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You don’t see a Mayhem Virgins post for more than six months and then two come along in less than a month, I’m not sure how that happened but there you go. Anyway this is the eleventh act to feature in the Mayhem Virgins series. In case you were wondering it has nothing to do with being a virgin, it is simply artists that have never previously appeared on the pages of With Just A Hint Of Mayhem before. Today it is the turn of Gaylips from that hot bed of rock ‘n’ roll the Georgian town of Ampthill in Bedfordshire. The name of the town has Anglo Saxon origins The first settlement was called ‘Aemethyll’, which literally means either ‘ant-heap’ or ‘ant infested hill’. However that is not the town’s only claim to fame they also hold an annual music festival called Amp Rocks (well like everywhere they did in those pre Covid days) which has had bands such as Toploader and Razorlight featured. Last year McFly were pencilled in as headliners. But who cares about any of that now that Ampthill has Gaylips? Before you start sending me missives from ‘Angry Of Basingstoke’ or whatever about the bands name, it comes from drummer Jonny’s Mum referring to vocalist/bass player Carl as having Gay lips. Is that even a thing? Who knows? Anyway Gaylips were formed from the ashes of Betaboy, a band who remain the only act ever to be banned from the aforementioned Amp Rocks. Apparently the ban resulted from something which involved brandy and the Lightning Seeds.
Gaylips are a band that appears to excel in the true sprit of punk. Their tunes have bite, venom and volume in abundance. Vocals which at times take me back to the late 70s and the snarly, whiney Johnny Rotten singing style. I have no idea what this band are like in a live environment, but I have a suspicion that they are truly incendiary judging from their recorded output. They released the rifftastic and wonderfully titled “Fuck The Plan, Sell The Man” EP in 2019. But it is not just the riffs, the power of the drums could break the Himalayas into pieces. Seven tracks and clocking in at less than 15 minutes in total, that really is a throwback to 1977. “Retail Park” is a particular favourite of mine from that release. If there isn’t a Gaylips fanzine already then someone needs to start one. There were a few classy singles from the band last year, with “Hello Armageddon” having future classic written all over it. Meanwhile “D.E.B” is a fine slab of almost perfect punk. Current single “Temporary Love Song” drops the gears down a little, at least at times, and clocks in at a whopping 3 minutes and 9 seconds, that is almost prog rock proportions for Gaylips. Vocally it is as if Bryan Ferry had been put through a punk rock blender. It is a song that proves this band have depth and a real understanding of what makes good music. I know that I say this about a lot of bands in these strange times, but I really need to see Gaylips play live! Before I finish I want to use the rather spiffing quote on the about section of the Gaylips FaceBook page “GAYLIPS is a grenade chucked into the room – a last hoorah before music is finally sacrificed at the altar of an AI algorithm” Now that is class on a stick!
All the pictures above were “borrowed” from the Gaylips FaceBook page and the videos were sourced from their YouTube page. If any of them are yours and you would like a credit or for me to remove them please let me know. The photographer appears to be Paul Curry. (Paul send me your links and I will credit you!)
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This album has a raw and honest feel that is often hard to locate in current music. “Follow Me” has some essence of Patti Smith with a folk twist. Kristina’s voice is rich and she inhabits each song in a gripping and fascinating way. “Journey Part 1” carries the same feel and a similar insistent guitar backing. “Goddess” introduces a loping time signature and wonderful vocal interplay which is once again powerful and deep. “In A Previous Life” has a more melancholy feel. It is the great vocal sound which draws you in to every song. “Everyday” has a touch of Michelle Shocked and the lyrics are fierce and powerful. “Judgement Day” travels at breakneck pace and actually seems to increase in speed . “Silence And Slumber” is the strongest song here. Once again the voice , the tempo and the fascinating personality of the singer are set out clearly. This album is a powerful statement of intent and it will be extremely interesting to see where this truly original artist goes next!
Written by Paul Bamlett
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I am proud to say that the With Just A Hint Of mayhem blog has now been around for twelve years, yes on February 9th back in 2009 is where it all started. In that time there have been more than 1,500 posts, nearly 1.7 million views and we now have over 2,500 followers. I can’t let this post go without a very special thank you to my great friend and wonderful human being Nick Horslen who suggested that I should start blogging all those years ago! After a very brief introductory post the first proper post was one about Bob Marley, click here to read that. I just read it again and despite expecting it to be a bit crap, I think I am quite proud of it. You have to start somewhere, right? The mention and the link to MySpace certainly dates it though. Given these awful times we are living in rather than suggest huge celebratory party songs in honour of WJAHOM’s 12th birthday I have chosen a couple of songs that always make me feel good which I hope will help you through these dark days. One of them is, in my opinion, the finest Bob Marley recording ever and the other is by my favourite vocalist of all time, Johnny Nash who we sadly lost this year! On top of that I have added a Bowie classic, well you knew I’d do that didn’t you. Stay safe people and thank you to everyone of you who has read, followed, commented, liked or dissed WJAHOM over the years. A huge thank you to all the bands and artists that have been a part of this journey. Here’s to the next 12 years, by which time I’ll be 74, so things might slow down by then, but who knows?
If only the Dame was still around to help celebrate the 12th Birthday of With Just A Hint Of Mayhem! Especially as the blog title was stolen from one of his lyrics!
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This is the tenth act that we have featured in the Mayhem Virgins series since it began in 2018. It gives us an opportunity to showcase great bands and singers that have up to now never featured on With Just A Hint Of Mayhem before. For this post it is the turn of the extremely talented, very original and one of the best ska/punk bands I have ever heard, Call Me Malcolm. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Millie Manders (click here to listen to that interview) and she told me how highly she rated Call Me Malcolm, so I had to check them out and oh boy I am glad that I did. There is an incredible energy in Call Me Malcolm’s songs which I am sure translates into something special in a live environment and gig reviews that I have read bear this out.
They released their first album “We Did This To Ourselves” in 2014 and this sets out their manifesto as a band that knows what they want, where they want to go and what the journey might be like. Like many of my favourite bands Call Me Malcolm wear their politics proudly on their sleeves. Every song that I have listened to by them makes me think that they really give a shit about life. “You’re Free To Do as We Tell You” opens the album with a crashing boom that makes you want to stay with them, give it a shot, you won’t be disappointed. They deploy all the classic traits and skills of the best ska/ punk bands and blend them into a signature Call Me Malcolm sound. I also love their use of soundbites, there is a great use of something from ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy’ on this record. “I’m Alright I Suppose” is an early sign of their willingness to confront mental health issues.
The Call Me Malcolm sophomore album “I Was Broken When You Got Here” blows that old “difficult second album” problem that hits many bands right out of the water. It is yet another great collection of sublime songs. The “Guided Meditation” speech at the start is very funny. I almost spat out my dandelion and pond weed tea out mid meditation. This album takes the band to another level and I suspect they are still a long way from their peak. I sensed influences from Madness, Reel Big Fish and Less Than Jake at times and apparently Vinnie Fiorello (of Less Than Jake) said that he saw Call Me Malcolm as “a saving grace of the genre”. It is difficult not to agree with that assertion. The album was highly acclaimed and Ska Punk Daily voted it no.8 in their “Top 10 Ska Punk Albums of the Decade.” It is hard to pick a favourite track from what is a succession of banging classics. But if forced I would choose the incendiary “There Is No ‘I’ In Apocalypse”, the happy poppy tune with much darker mental breakdown related lyrics, “Restore Factory Settings” and “Show Me What You Got” which opens like a punked up Doobie Brothers track spliced with a ska punk Steely Dan jazzy vibe transported here from a weird and wonderful parallel universe.
The band released their third album “Me Myself And Something Else” last year. The spoof news broadcasts “Good Morning”, “Breaking News” and “Goodnight” showcase Call Me Malcolm’s skilful and very amusing comedic skill. Two of the singles taken from this LP are in my opinion perhaps the band’s finest songs to date. I can hardly wait to hear “Wake Up, The Monster Said” and “What You Burn” at a gig when Covid is all over. The band once again convey some powerful and heartfelt messages relating to mental health and in this current strange world they are much needed. They are among a small, but growing, number of artists prepared to talk openly about such issues and that takes courage and empathy both of which this band possess boatloads of. In addition to the previously mentioned singles my current favourites here are “Also, Spiders”, “I Met All The Beasts In Your Thoughts” and “Sleepwalk With Me”. The immaculate three part harmonies across the bands canon makes them seem like a ska/ punk Beach Boys!
Thanks to that wonderful human being Millie Manders I am now a big fan of Call Me Malcolm. This is another band on my ever growing list of gigs I want to see after Covid. I hope I have enough years left to see them all! Finally, I came across the Call Me Malcolm Christmas single from 2014, “All I Want For Christmas Is A Pony With A Jetpack”. I wished that I had discovered that before my ’12 Days Of (Mostly) Punky Christmas’ posts in December. Check this band out NOW, if you are disappointed after doing that then I will be very, very disappointed in you! Enjoy some great tunes and videos below and after that you’ll find a link to their Spotify page for even more delightful tunes from Call Me Malcolm.
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It’s February and time for our second singles round up of 2021. Eight classy tunes from eight proper talented bands and singers, none of whom have featured on With Just A Hint Of Mayhem before. This bunch come from Essex, Norfolk, Rotterdam, Liverpool, Lancaster and Manchester. Crank your volume up to 11 and dive into a sea of wondrously great tunes!
Austin Woodcock, Evan Butcher and Will Eagles are Gloria. They formed in 2018 in Lancaster. They claim that they write music for the soul. On the evidence of “Story Of Strife” I think that I believe them. This has deep feeling embedded in every part of it. At times I am reminded of Richard Ashcroft at his most introspective. The line “Freddie and Ziggy are in paradise now helping me write this song” is an absolute killer. “Story Of Strife” is an anthem we didn’t know we needed, but we really do!
Essex boy Ben Wood has been putting out great tunes since 2012. He has a very British sound with fragments of Paul Weller, Blur and the Arctic Monkeys among others. His lyrics for “Soho” can probably stand on their own as modern poetry. It is very much a story song and frankly if you are able to successfully mention Marianne Faithful in your song lyrics then you definitely get my vote!
A wonderful punky riff-fest from Das Kapitans with delightful punk harmonies throughout. The backing vocals are reminiscent of Steve Jones back in his Pistols prime. The video is a psychedelic jamboree and probably not for anyone who suffers from epilepsy. This is a great single and I reckon it will sound even better live. On his BandCamp biog Norfolk based Das Kapitans main man Stephen Potter describes himself as a Potato expert. Well if this song was a potato I believe it would be a Russet Burbank, probably the best potato in the world!
Recently signed to Rotterdam based Mattan Records this lot are pretty ace. They sound like a punked up, funked up and fucked up version of the Strokes with a dash of Talking Heads. I reckon this band is an instant party machine live. This track has taken up residence in my head and it doesn’t seem to want to leave anytime soon!
With it’s dark and sparse video “Roses” makes its whispered way into the world. It seems, to me, to be about a broken, abandoned relationship. Karl’s delivery oozes emotion and the song resonates long after it is over. It makes me want to hear much more from Liverpool based Karl McCann.
Positive Indie Lounge Core from Manchester’s Flowers Of Evil. “Getting Better” is essentially a positive tune and one that would be ideal to accompany us on the journey out of this Covid hell. Lead vocal and well drilled harmonies drift wonderfully over subdued but close to perfect instrumentation. I sense that you will be hearing a lot more from Flowers Of Evil!
Manchester’s Hurray For Tuesday refer to themselves as anti-folk. I assume that they mean they are anti folk music rather than just anti folk as in people. Either way it won’t work, this tune is steeped in the history of folk with a modern twist that evokes the Pogues and for me there is an undercurrent of glam rock in the driving incessant and fabulous beat. In the days when the charts mattered this would be instant top ten. It made me want to dance around the room, so I did! Based on this I want to see them on a festival stage when festivals are reborn! They make me want to shout Hurray for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and every fucking day of the week.
Doozer’s new single is the perfect sound to chill to after a heavy night out, do you remember what they were like? It is a hypnotic lofi style tune which stays with you like your favourite pillow or that old teddy bear you’ve had since you were a kid. I cannot think of a nicer tune to end this singles round up with. Doozer McDooze is, put simply, bloody ace!
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