Very, very late indeed, but here comes the sixth monthly Mayhem Top 20 Song Chart, this time for August 2022, and it remains as eclectic as most of our previous charts. There are some weird and wonderful strange bedfellows in this list, just like those charts of my youth. The number one for August is the rather splendid Newcastle act, Cat Ryan with their incredible single “Rex Mundi”. They are followed closely by four acts who have not appeared in the song chart before, Trunky Juno, Thrillhouse, Matt James, and Lynx Deluxe. The latter made it into the artist chart for August. Check out Matt James’ new album, ‘Breaking The Fall’, a set of fine songs from a former member of one of my favourite bands, Gene! Politics and passionate, powerful opinions are represented by Captain Ska with “Blood On Your Hands” at number 6, Muse with “Will Of The People” at number 19, and the magnificent current single full of monumental power, passion, and anger from Delilah Bon, “Dead Men Don’t Rape” at number 10. Vaquelin, one of York’s finest bands have appeared in the song chart four months in a row now, their latest single “Broken Window” is at number 20. Classic soul and reggae are represented by Holland and Dozier and Junior Byles. The Streets, Arctic Monkeys, Just Jack, Yungblud, and Pale Waves are all here. Early Italian House Disco music is at number 17 with Silvetti’s “Spring Rain”. Tom Waits is at ten, while classical music gets a look in with the beautiful and haunting piano piece “Metamorphosis No. 4” composed by Philip Glass at number 16. Hannah Robinson has featured in the Mayhem charts a few times and she returns as the voice of J.A.G. on “Fools Lie”. We would love to hear your thoughts on the Mayhem Song Top 20 Chart. Check out the complete list below and click here to access a Spotify playlist of the whole top 20!
1 Rex Mundi – Cat Ryan 2 Oxford English Dictionary – Trunky Juno 3 Cruel Twist Of Fate – Thrillhouse 4 Champione – Matt James 5 Jane Goodall – Lynx Deluxe 6 Blood On Your Hands – Captain Ska 7 Why Can’t We Be Lovers – Holland and Dozier 8 Brexit At Tiffany’s – The Streets 9 Tom Traubert’s Blues (Four Sheets To The Wind In Copenhagen) – Tom Waits 10 Dead Men Don’t Rape – Delilah Bon 11 Curly Locks – Junior Byles 12 Starz In Their Eyes – Just Jack 13 Fools Lie – J.A.G 14 Star Treatment – Arctic Monkeys 15 Tissues – Yungblud 16 Metamorphosis No. 4 – Philip Glass/ Jenny Lin 17 Spring Rain – Silvetti 18 Lies – Pale Waves 19 Will Of The People – Muse 20 Broken Window – Vaquelin
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York band Pavilion released their new single “Delightful Horrors” last week. They have put out a couple of good singles previously, but this one takes a step up to great. It is a really mature-sounding tune with elements of the finest 60s and 70s rock combined with the kind of skillful tunefulness that Paul Weller does so well. This has radio hit written all over it with some sublime melodic hooks and a sound that shows a band in peak form. I love this and it has me drooling for a Pavilion album! The single was immaculately produced by Mickey Dale. The accompanying video, a satirical, psychedelic take on ‘The Office’, is supremely well shot and edited by ace photographer and filmmaker Nathan Luke Riley. I particularly loved the cake celebration vignette at the end. Click here to spin it on Spotify.
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Last week I had the pleasure of catching up with two very important people in York’s music scene, Chris Tuke (Owner) and Steph Collinson (Manager) of the fabulous Fulford Arms. Click here to listen to the interview. Turn your volume up loud, at least for the first few minutes as I had some tech issues with the sound, which was entirely down to user error. The interview was done in two parts, and I have joined them together at around 16 minutes in, can you find the join? No prizes! I really love the Fulford Arms and I had great fun speaking with Chris and Steph. I hope you enjoy listening to it. There are a couple of videos below that were filmed at the Fulford Arms and one that wasn’t. Why is the third one there? You will need to listen to find out. I look forward to speaking to more of the people behind great venues soon!
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The Mayhem Artist Top 20 artist chart for August 2022 is here. Apologies for this one being a little late. Many of you know that I am a keen user of a site called Obscurify. It claims to tell you how obscure your listening on Spotify is. Compared to the rest of the UK I achieved a level of only 95% more obscure than other users in the UK this month, the same as for July. Although my obscure overall percentage remains at 99%! Regular readers will know that it also lists my most obscure artists, which currently are;
Promethium (The British metal titans are stalwarts of my obscure listening)
Bonnie Mai (talented UK singer who I met at Leeds Festival last month. She is also the latest artist to feature in our Mayhem Virgins series) Check out the rather wonderful video for her track, “Slush Papi” below.
Lynx Deluxe – (This talented anglo American band also featured in the Mayhem Virgins series recently)
Teenage Tom Petties – (A relatively new band with perhaps one of the best band names for some time. They recently released their eponymously titled album on Safe Suburban Home Records)
As for the August Top 20, It is the first time since this artist chart began back in January 2021 that David Bowie hasn’t appeared. Only Eminem (at number 16 for both July and August) and Captain Ska (up to number 4 from 7 last month) remain from last month. Tom Waits makes it to number one for August followed closely by Lynx Deluxe who also feature in the obscure list. Jenny Lin, a Taiwanese-born American classical pianist, sits at number three. Yes, I do occasionally get a little highbrow. I heard her playing some gorgeous piano on some Philip Glass compositions. Captain Ska are at number 4, I suggest that you check out their new album. Check out the full chart below. There are quite a few classic and very well-known artists including Arctic Monkeys (5), Lou Reed (6), Eagles (10) and, Jarvis Cocker (14). African Prog is represented by Osibisa at number 8. As well as Lynx Deluxe from the obscure list both Bonnie Mai and the Teenage Tom Petties are in the chart at numbers 12 and 11 respectively. The Teenage Tom Petties label mates on Safe Suburban Home Records, R E Seraphin are in at number 17. Some of my favourite female artists including Lily Allen, Lauryn Hill and, Little Jackie all make the top 20. Little Jackie’s new EP is ace. Making up the 20 there are some classy British acts which include Pale Waves, the Divine Comedy, Super Furry Animals and, Richard Hawley. I really would love to hear your thoughts on this chart. Please keep your eyes open for the sixth Mayhem Monthly Song Chart, just like an old-school top 20 singles chart! That one includes songs by four of the artists featured in the August Artist Chart.
As for the August Top 20,
1 Tom Waits 2 Lynx Deluxe 3 Jenny Lin 4 Captain Ska 5 Arctic Monkeys 6 Lou Reed 7 Lily Allen 8 Osibisa 9 Ms. Lauryn Hill 10 Eagles 11 Teenage Tom Petties 12 Bonnie Mai 13 Pale Waves 14 Jarvis Cocker 15 The Divine Comedy 16 Eminem 17 R.E. Seraphin 18 Super Furry Animals 19 Richard Hawley 20 Little Jackie
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This was my first visit to one of York’s finest venues, the Crescent, for some time. This was also the second gig in a row for me where I had never seen any of the bands before, and that really doesn’t happen too often. Headliners were Coach Party from way down south, the Isle Of Wight to be precise. But more of them later, there were two rather spiffing bands on before them. First up were Yorkshire-based White Roses. They are purveyors of fine classic rock sounds, but we are not talking covers, this is their own original material. Vocally is like a cross between Joan Jett and Stevie Nicks at times. The lead guitarist is a complete master of his art and plays his axe like a young Bill Nelson. This is definitely a band for the future.
White Roses
Next up was Priestgate from Driffield, which is where Spiders From Mars drummer Woody Woodmansey hails from. As soon as they hit the stage and started making their huge noise I was blown away, a real what the fuck moment. Think Bauhaus, the Damned, the Skids, and even Big Country, particularly Stuart Adamson’s great guitar work with the latter two bands mentioned. Goth, punk, glam, this band has it all and then some. Lead singer and frontman Rob Schofield has that 1,000-yard evil rock god stare down perfectly, just like Jordan from Avalanche Party. The energy that Priestgate have is the equivalent of a billion Duracell bunnies and frontman Rob is one of the best I have seen in a long while.
Priestgate
I certainly wouldn’t want to be the band that followed Priestgate, but Coach Party did and they played an absolute blinder. They entered the stage with a weird and wonky cut-up/ remix of the Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me” and their set was weird, wonky, and wonderful throughout. The Isle of Wight has not been a hotbed of great rock music over the years, but I think Coach Party have the talent, skill, songs, and performances to change that. Up to now, we have seen Mark King (Level 42), Jet Harris (The Shadows), Snowy White (Thin Lizzy), David Steele (Fine Young Cannibals), Dick Taylor (Pretty Things), and more recently Wet Leg. Well, frankly they can all move over and make way for Coach Party. They are a band that uses wit and humour really well in their lyrics, but not without being able to get serious in some songs. Jess’s voice is spot on and enhances the tunes perfectly in the live environment, although to be fair the recorded versions are damned good too. There is a feel of 90s grunge in some of their tunes and maybe Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth. They worked the crowd really well too and we all clapped and sang along. This was a great set from a band that has an air of greatness and coolness about them. Highlights for me were “Everybody Hates Me”, “Bleach” and the staggeringly good “Shit TV” with its lyrics of pathos and comedy! I love this band!
All pictures, except the gig poster, were taken by me using my very cheap Chinese Android phone. The videos were found on YouTube. If the video is yours and you would like a credit or for it to be removed please let me know.If you have enjoyed this article feel free to follow the blog, or follow us on;
This was another visit to one of my favourite places and one that has the potential to become my second home. Yes, I was back at the Fulford Arms. Incidentally, when I eventually pop my clogs and leave this mortal coil many years from now I would like my wake to be held here and my ashes scattered in the Fully Beer Garden! But enough of me, there were two bands playing tonight, (interestingly I had seen neither of them before. The first was Highschool. they have a feel of New Order, the Killers, and perhaps a synthless OMD. Singer Rory’s voice at times reminded me of the softer side of Iggy Pop and also Julian Casablancas from the Strokes. This Aussie band is rather excellent and I am looking forward to their new single, due in October. Their 2021 EP ‘Forever At Last‘ is ace too.
Highschool
Headliners were Burnley’s the Goa Express, in the early part of their set the organ-style keyboard licks gave them a feel of the Inspiral Carpets or maybe Traffic. But overall their sound is a hard-rocking indie dance fusion with a bit of old-school classic punk styling thrown in a la the Clash. Are they Burnley’s finest band? probably yes, and almost certainly across a much wider area than that, among the best UK bands I have seen this year. At times James Douglas Clarke’s voice evoked the best of James Dean Bradfield, T.V. Smith, and Julian Casablancas. That is the second mention for Casablancas in the same review! They got more punky as the set progressed and the band is supremely tight. A very special shout-out to the ace bass player, Naham, who played some superb marching, melodic bass lines. I bought their 7-inch single, “Everybody In The UK”, from the merch stand and it is damned good. I will definitely be seeing this band again sometime!
The Goa Express
All pictures, except the gig poster, were taken by me using my very cheap Chinese Android phone. The videos were found on YouTube. If the video is yours and you would like a credit or for it to be removed please let me know.
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Day 2 of the Leeds Festival 2022 kicked off for me with Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes on Main Stage East. Frank and the Rattlesnakes are possibly the best live band in the country, and probably beyond, right now. Frank Carter clearly loves what he does and cares passionately about his fans and the wider festival crowd. The female mosh circles he got going were incredibly popular. But the highlight was Frank and Deano hoisted high in two separate circle pits while they carried on playing and singing. That takes balls and skill and this band has an abundance of both. I doubt that there is a more perfect band to kick off a day at this festival. Next, it was over to the Festival Republic Stage for Beauty School Drop Out. These manic LA glam metal punksters smashed it with a storming energetic set. I love this band that occasionally reminded me of Don Broco. I stayed at the Festival Republic Stage for the Scratch. This was fucked up folk music for all of us fucked up folks. This band is like an Irish Gorgol Bordello but on Lemmy levels of speed. The Scratch are definitely one of the best bands I have ever seen at a festival and also one of the oddest. There was even traditional Irish dancing going on in the mosh circle too. This was refreshingly different and bloody magnificent. I made my first visit to the BBC Introducing Stage on Saturday to see Sisi. Some of today’s R & B can be derivative and bland, but that is not Sisi. She is an ace performer and her voice has a majesty that only some of the greatest soul singers can match. Imagine the voice of Whitney Houston (in her less shouty moments) spliced with Millie Jackson’s immense soulful voice, that will give you some measure as to how good Sisi is. Witch Fever drew me back to the Festival Republic Stage. They are like a Bikini Kill for this generation. But they are even more magnificent, even more metal, and this last one might be hard to believe, but even more militant. This band wears their hearts and their beliefs on their sleeves. People should be more Witch Fever.
Sisi
I stayed at the Festival Republic Stage for Scene Queen who had Aqua’s “Barbie Girl” as their entry music. For a moment that did make me think what the fuck is happening here. But oh boy this was light years from AquaThis US band put on a proper rock show “Pink Bubblegum” was good, but “Pink G String” took the roof off and was accompanied by a huge ass-slapping circle pit. Scene Queen also played a cover of Katy Perry’s “I Kissed A Girl” and made it their own. I need to see this lot again. I wandered over to Main Stage West next for some of Joy Crookes set. I would say that she is almost certainly influenced by a mix of Stevie Wonder and Amy Winehouse. She has a stupendous voice and some great tunes. I decided to spend a lot of time at the Festival Republic Stage and went back there for Kid Kapichi. Someone recommended them to me at an Apollo Junction gig last year and finally, I got to see them live. The band give it their all and some. They have a party hard and play music harder attitude. In the music family tree, they might fit close to Idles and Fontaines D.C. although they have a greater handle on great pop hooks in their songs. “The Gift That Keeps On Giving” is a fabulous anti-UK government anthem, which is perfect for these strange times. It was the turn of Deadletter on the BBC Introducing Stage next. If you were to put Yard Act, Talking Heads, and Eddie and the Hot Rods into a huge blender I think the resulting output might be Deadletter. Lead singer Zac has the best of the stage presence skills of Iggy Pop and Jarvis Cocker and he is a total master of his audience. He also has that classic Ian Curtis jerky St. Vitus dance moves. But above all that perhaps the best thing about Deadletter is the sheer scale and quality of their staggeringly great songs. If they didn’t make new fans from this appearance I will eat my notepad!
Dolores Forever
I returned to the Festival Republic Stage next for a band that sounds like Muse going full-on metal, but on steroids, I give you Tigercub. The mountainous riffage and the stellar drive of the rhythm section puts a beat right in your chest that competes with your heart. Tigercub grabs you by the throat and don’t let go until you succumb to their towering tunes or when you simply melt in the mosh circle and become a part of the Tigercub ether. Caity Baser was on the BBC Introducing Stage next. She has a pop rap style that draws on Lily Allen, Taylor Swift, and Katy Perry. She has a stunning voice, even though on the shouty bit of the first song the ghost of Violet Elizabeth Bott loomed large. This was one of the biggest crowds that I have ever seen at a BBC Introducing Stage at Leeds or Reading. All Time Low were on the Main Stage West and I caught some of their show. With bands like these, it kind of does what it says on the tin, just perfect pop punk. Nothing groundbreaking maybe, but fuck they are still a good band and their canon of great tunes have aged well. The first time I saw All Time Low was at Reading Festival in 2010. The Festival Republic Stage became a home from home today and I went back there for Sick Joy. This lot reincarnated the ghost of Kurt Cobain with a grunge riff tsunami. The vocals were raw and matched the excellent songs perfectly. Singer Mykl even wore a dress, which Cobain did sometimes too. Dolores Forever were next on the BBC Introducing Stage. In the opening numbers, there was a whiff of 70s Fleetwood Mac about them. But songs like “Funeral” and “Party In My Mind” took them a long way from that comparison showcasing just how original they are. The vocals are sublime throughout, especially on “Kilimanjaro”. It would be incredibly hard not to like Dolores Forever.
Dan D’Lion
Tigress was the next band to occupy the Festival Republic Stage and I think it is fair to say that they have the combined power of a pack of a thousand tigresses. This was a marauding musical assault on the senses in a good way. The singer worked the disappointingly small audience really well. I guess everyone had gone off to see Little Simz, if that was you then you missed something very special by not seeing Tigress! The Festival Republic Stage was next host to Cleopatrick, a truly great name for a truly great band. This band are punk as in PUNK, they deserve to be huge. They deliver their cracking tunes with the power of a neutron bomb coated in megatons of passion. Bilk were next on the BBC Introducing Stage. These Essex lads come on like old-school 70s punks, at least musically anyway and they pull it off with style and supreme skill. “Be Someone” was my favourite song from an outstanding set. As It Is hit the Festival Republic Stage next and they hit us with molten melodic metal with hooks that Gods would sacrifice themselves for. This bunch are absolutely and officially as loud as fuck! Headlining the BBC Introducing Stage was Dan D’Lion. I sensed a range of influences from Justin Timberlake, to Jamiroquai via Plan B. But it is also crystal clear that Dan D’Lion is a rare and very special talent in his own right. What a fucking brilliant performance, he did not let up for a moment. This bloke even makes a tracksuit look cool. I would pay to see him again! Megan Thee Stallion was next with a spectacular performance. The scantily clad performer had the crowd screaming at every move, every word, every twerk, and every booty shake. She stopped the show to bring fans onto the stage to dance and I suspect some of those fans will be telling their grandchildren about that moment in years to come. I was perhaps a bit lukewarm on Megan Thee Stallion until now, she was fucking awesome! Surprise last minute guests on the Festival Republic Stage were the Interrupters a very classy LA ska punk band. The energy from this set could have powered the whole three days of the festival. “Take Back The Power” and “Raised By Wolves” were particular highlights in a set filled with banging tunes!
The Interrupters
Incidentally, there won’t be a report on Day 3 of the Leeds Festival for me as my car decided that Sunday was the right day for a meltdown, so sadly I missed what looked like the best day of the weekend, but hopefully, normal service will be resumed next year.
All pictures, except the gig poster, were taken by me using my very cheap Chinese Android phone. The videos were found on YouTube. If the video is yours and you would like a credit or for it to be removed please let me know.
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This is the eighteenth in our Mayhem Virgins series and features talented British artist Bonnie Mai. Sometimes you can come across new music and artists in strange and random ways, can’t you? I met Bonnie Mai at the Leeds Festival last weekend, she wasn’t performing there (not yet anyway), she was at the BBC Introducing Stage. We got talking and I discovered that Bonnie Mai is a singer and has released a clutch of great songs, so having heard them I think she is an excellent choice for our Mayhem Virgins series. For those who don’t know what the series is, it is simply an opportunity for us to showcase artists who have never appeared on these pages before. So please welcome Bonnie Mai to the expanding Mayhem Virgins club, most of who will feature regularly after that initial post. Bonnie Mai struck me as a cool and decent human being on that first meeting, although her online presence gives her a nice air of mystery like she just appeared on the planet a few years ago to grace us with some great music. Check out her Spotify profile detail below, I love it!
Not your standard potted history is it? That is what makes it stand out. Anyway, let’s talk about Bonnie Mai‘s music as we open the doors to the House Of Bonnie Mai. She has six singles and EPs available on Spotify, check them out. My favourite so far is probably “Slush Papi” which oozes confidence and sexiness over a modern R & B sound with some harmonic overdubbed vocals that drag you into the song and won’t let you go until the song ends, but even then you can’t forget it. The video is great too, you can see that below. “Chasing The Feeling” is a percussive tour de force of a kind of message song, with Bonnie Mai delivering a sultry and powerful vocal. The acapella version showcases just how good Bonnie Mai’s voice is. Meanwhile “Fall In Love” has a hybrid ska/ reggaeton/ electronica style, once again with some ace percussion and the keyboards give the song an almost oriental feel. The Ian Solo remix of “When Time Stands Still” is an anthem for female empowerment and I suspect may be directed at a former partner. The synth sound on here is reminiscent of early Depeche Mode. The enigmatic Bonnie Mai is a woman of many talents who deserves wider exposure, you need to check out her music, you will not be disappointed!
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Regular readers will know that I left day 1 of the Leeds Festival early to come to this show, was it worth it? read on to find out! This was the last date in a four-date spin around the country titled “Ginger Wildheart Presents Summer Lovin'”. They also played Hastings, Birmingham, and Wigan. First to take the stage was one of York’s finest musical talents, Mr. Boss Caine, the Barry White of Country (thanks to Ginger for that description, yes Daniel Lucas! The new songs Dan played bode very well for his next release, there are some gems there. I would say the highlight for me, and there were plenty to choose from, was “Ghosts And Drunks”. It was also great to hear Dan dedicate a tune to “the pricks in Westminster”. This was a sublime solo acoustic set from Mr. Lucas which has made me look forward even more to the next Boss Caine (or solo?) release. Carol Hodge was up next and what a great performance it was. She has the voice of an angelic demon with the purity of tone of a Karen Carpenter for the 21st Century. It was like she was playing a small intimate show in your living room. This was the first time that I had seen Carol live and it definitely won’t be the last!
Ginger Wildheart was joined on stage by Jon Poole and the aforementioned Carol Hodge. There was some great delving into Ginger’s huge canon of stunningly good tunes, including some Wildhearts songs. “Boxes”, “Geordie In Wonderland” and “Why Aye (Oh You)” were superb, but the song that stood out in this marvellous set was “Paying It Forward” which is an absolute classic. But I can’t let this go without mentioning the beautifully eclectic range of cover versions performed. “Summer Nights” was there, but given the title of the mini tour/ 4 date extravaganza, I guess that was no surprise. “How I Survived The Punk Wars” (Hey! Hello!) was ace and “Run For Home” (Lindisfarne) gave us all the opportunity for a great singalong, as we did for the opening song which was a cover of the theme from Cheers a.k.a “Where Everybody Knows Your Name”. The most fascinating cover for me though was Focus’ “Hocus Pocus”, including the yodelling. Acoustic prog anyone? On paper that should not have worked, but on stage it certainly did! What I loved so much about this set was the intimacy, it was like we were all sat around a huge campfire (it certainly felt that hot!) listing to Ginger, Jon and Carol entertain us.
All pictures, except the gig poster, were taken by me using my very cheap Chinese Android phone. The videos were found on YouTube. If the video is yours and you would like a credit or for it to be removed please let me know.
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The new single from Matziz is called “Barraque Beat” and it is a strange but very satisfying slab of Electronic Dance Music (EDM). It uses a lot of synth sound and electro instrumentation, but also includes a fair bit of organic instrumentation, mainly guitars. It is a four-minute instrumental with the kind of vibe that means it is impossible not to move to it. The track will induce everything from robot dance to just tapping your feet via a full-on Dad dance on amphetamines. Matziz describes his work as “an attempt to translate images into music, to sculpt sound material and play with its textures to extract an emotional essence. This is about working alchemical formulas through sound, to: – treat, accompany, heal, inspire… The sensitive world according to its various needs, which fluctuate at full speed, according to the context of the extremely changing and tumultuous news”. Matziz says that he is inspired by “the origins of Techno and the English effervescence of electronic music in the ’90s” Apparently the tune is about a toad, trying to enter a very weird house, now I know that it explains the weird toad-like sounds that can be heard scattered through the piece. This really is a great track and different from so many less exciting releases in this genre.
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With Just A Hint Of Mayhem 