C86 Show - Indie Pop

The Crazies with Adrian Janes in conversation with David Eastaugh

New album on Optic Nerve - A Simple Vision

The legendary session from members of The Outsiders, The Sound and Honolulu Mountain Daffodils. released for the very first time Overseen by Adrian Janes and remastered by Nick Robbins with sleeve design and artwork by Bi Marshall.

In December 1978 Pete Williams, later to achieve cult infamy as Lord Sulaco of the Honolulu Mountain Daffodils, decided to realise a notion which he’d long kicked around with some of his musician friends.  This was to record some original songs for which he - who had never been in a studio in his life – would provide the lyrics and sing.  These friends were the Outsiders, at that time consisting of Adrian Borland (guitar, vocals), Graham Bailey (bass) and Adrian Janes (drums), plus an increasingly regular guest player in Bi Marshall (clarinet).  (A year later, Janes having left, the Outsiders became the Sound.)

With no prior preparation other than Williams writing a set of lyrics (reputedly all based on newspaper stories), he then hired Elephant Studio in London for a day’s session.  This was engineered by Nick Robbins, later to produce the Sound among others, but at that point at the very start of his career.  This was no bad thing, since he was as open to the bizarre working methods of the Crazies (named after the George Romero sci-fi horror film) as they were innocent of their strangeness:  improvise a song during one run-through, record it, and then move on to the next one, each to be created in the same way.

This extremely efficient method left enough studio time after recording six songs for the rest to head off for something to eat, while Williams scribbled lyrics for a final composition, ‘When We’re Dead’, which was recorded upon their return.

The surviving members (Bailey, Marshall and Janes) all recall this as one of the most enjoyable and relaxed sessions they were ever part of.  The same experimental freedom and warped humour can also be heard in the albums Williams and Borland made as the Honolulu Mountain Daffodils a decade later.

 Cassette copies of the resulting album were produced for all concerned, and it seems that there was an idea of making it more widely available in this format, but this was never to occur.  It is only now that, with the original tape rediscovered, that the Crazies’ ‘A Simple Vision’, mastered by Nick Robbins, can at last be perceived by the wider world.

The Woodentops with  Rolo McGinty in conversation with David Eastaugh

The band formed in 1983 in South London with an initial line-up of Rolo McGinty (vocals, guitar, formerly of The Wild Swans and The Jazz Butcher), Simon Mawby (guitar), Alice Thompson(keyboards), Frank DeFreitas (bass guitar), and Benny Staples replacing Paul Hookham (drums).

After a debut single, "Plenty" on Food Records in 1984, which received a glowing review from Morrissey in Melody Maker, they signed to the independent label Rough Trade Records, releasing a series of singles in 1985 and their debut album, Giant, in 1986. Generally well received by critics, the album's sound was characterised by acoustic guitars, but also featured accordion, marimba, strings, and trumpet sounds. The album reached No. 35 on the UK Albums Chart. A single from the album, "Good Thing", reached No. 7 on the UK Indie Chart.

The band then became more experimental and frenetic when playing live, using more electronicsounds. This first became apparent as documented on the live album Live Hypno Beat (1987), which was recorded in Los Angeles in 1986. The band also started to become more 'raw' and unpredictable live, becoming one of the most exciting independent groups from the UK, while gaining an early hit on the burgeoning club scene in Ibiza with '"Why".

Mark Stewart in conversation with David Eastaugh

The Pop Group are an English band formed in Bristol in 1977 by vocalist Mark Stewart, guitarist John Waddington, bassist Simon Underwood, guitarist/saxophonist Gareth Sager, and drummer Bruce Smith. Their work in the late 1970s crossed diverse musical influences including dub, funk, and free jazz with radical politics, helping to pioneer post-punk music.

The group released two albums, Y (1979) and For How Much Longer Do We Tolerate Mass Murder?(1980), and the singles "She Is Beyond Good and Evil" (1979) and "We Are All Prostitutes" (1979), then split in 1981. Its members worked on a variety of subsequent projects, including New Age Steppers and Rip Rig + Panic. In 2010, the band reunited, touring and releasing new material.

Subterraneans special with  Jude Rawlins in conversation with David Eastaugh

Jude Rawlins is an award-winning English singer, songwriter, filmmaker, author, poet, and music producer. He works primarily in the medium of rock music, mostly with his band Subterraneans, which he formed in 1992 with guitarist Carl Homer. Subterraneans have released ten albums, as well as creating critically acclaimed scores for the movies Pandora's Box and Derek Jarman's Glitterbug.

Shelleyan Orphan special with Jemaur Tayle in conversation with David Eastaugh

In 1980, Caroline Crawley and Jemaur Tayle met in Bournemouth, England, where they discovered a mutual appreciation of poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.^[2] Two years later, after taking the name Shelleyan Orphan from the Shelley poem Spirit of Solitude, the pair moved to London to seek out orchestral elements to add to their voices.

In June 1984, the band got their first break and landed a session with Richard Skinner for BBC Radio 1. The band signed with Rough Trade Records in 1986 and released the singles, "Cavalry of Cloud" and "Anatomy of Love".

In 1987, the band released their first of four albums: Helleborine. Named after the Helleborine orchid said to have the power to cure madness, the album was recorded at Abbey Road Studios with producer Haydn Bendall. Helleborine included an assortment of guest musicians including Stuart Elliott (the drummer for Kate Bush), and Kate's brother Paddy Bush.

In 1989, they released Century Flower. So called after a flower that blooms only once in its lifetime, this album was intended to mark "an event which affects enormous change, maybe once in a century: on a world scale, the atomic bomb: on a personal level, the death of someone close to you".

The Wolfhounds special with Andy Golding in conversation with David Eastaugh 

The Wolfhounds began as a slightly askew indie pop/rock band, and signed to the Pink label in 1986. First EP Cut the Cake was well enough received for the NME to include them on their C86 compilation album. After three singles and debut album Unseen Ripples From A Pebble on Pink, they briefly moved to Idea Records for the Me single, then rejoined Pink's boss at his new label September Records. September soon evolved into Midnight Music which was the Wolfhounds' home for all subsequent releases.

With original members Bolton and Clark replaced by David Oliver and Matt Deighton, the Wolfhounds' sound developed into a denser, less poppy sound. After a compilation of earlier material, second album proper Bright and Guilty was released in 1989, featuring the singles "Son of Nothing", "Rent Act" and "Happy Shopper". The sound progressed further with the albums Blown Away (also 1989) and Attitude (1990), which found them in Sonic Youth territory, interspersing raging guitars with elegant compositional exercises. 

Jeff Bloom + Television Personalities & Rude Mechanicals in conversation with David Eastaugh

The Television Personalities are an English post-punk band formed in 1977 by London singer-songwriter Dan Treacy. Their varied, volatile and long career encompasses post punk, neo-psychedelia and indie pop; the only constant being Treacy's songwriting. Present and former members include Chelsea childhood mates 'Slaughter Joe' Joe Foster, one time best friend Ed Ball (early line-up, later briefly) and Jowe Head (ex-Swell Maps), with Jeffrey Bloom from 1983-94. The threesome of Treacy, Head, and Bloom formed the longest unchanged line-up and as a result is considered by many to be the definitive line-up, performing hundreds of gigs around the world and recording many of the band's most popular songs like How I Learned to Love the Bomb, Salvador Dali's Garden Party and Strangely Beautiful. Despite this, the Television Personalities are best known for their early single "Part Time Punks", a favourite of John Peel's.

The Pop Group are an English band formed in Bristol in 1977 by vocalist Mark Stewart, guitarist John Waddington, bassist Simon Underwood, guitarist/saxophonist Gareth Sager, and drummer Bruce Smith.^[5] Their work in the late 1970s crossed diverse musical influences including dub, funk, and free jazz with radical politics, helping to pioneer post-punk music.

The Pop Group and dub maestro Dennis ‘Blackbeard’ Bovell MBE have shared a new track from their forthcoming dub version of The Pop Group’s debut album, Y, one of the era-defining releases of the post-punk period. This new track gives another taste of what to expect from this clash of the titan’s forthcoming release, Y in Dub, out on 29 October 2021 on Mute.

Dub Sex with Mark Hoyle  in conversation with David Eastaugh 

Dub Sex are often cited as one of Manchester’s greatest ‘lost’ bands. Formed in the concrete landscape of 1980s Hulme, their music is appropriately raw and intense, bass-led with wiry guitar patterns swirling around the impassioned vocal style and presence of frontman Mark Hoyle. 

They came to prominence over the release of five critically acclaimed EPs and mini-albums in the late 80s. John Peel picked up on them from the outset playing a demo recording of ‘Tripwire!’ later describing the band on-air as “one of my very favourites”. Dub Sex went on to record 4 sessions for his BBC Radio show, the first of which incredibly aired 3 times in just 6 weeks during Feb/Mar 1987.

Magic Roundabout with Linda Jennings in conversation with David Eastaugh 

Manchester band 1986-88, releases forthcoming on Third Man Records

From Dangerous Minds -

Cody with Chris Tighe in conversation with David Eastaugh

Oxford’s lost electro-gaze hopefuls from the turn of the 21st century. Cody whipped electronica, art pop, shoegaze and post- rock into a stubbornly indefinable but compelling whole. Cody’s unconventional and sinuous songs mixed the emotional ache of Sarah Records with sardonic dissections of globalization, the ambiguities of personal responsibility, and wandering around when it was windy outside.

Whiteout with Eric Lindsay in conversation with David Eastaugh

Whiteout were a British rock group from Scotland, who were most famous for their hit "Jackie's Racing". Although they had existed in a different incarnation since the very early 1990s, the band's classic line-up consisted of Andrew Caldwell (vocals), Paul Carroll (bass), Eric Lindsay (guitar) and Stuart Smith (drums). The name came from a slang term for the disorientating effects of alcohol. They were the first guitar band to sign to the Silvertone label after their enormous success with the Stone Roses. Whiteout's principal recordings were the albums Bite It (1995) and Big Wow (1998). Their music was influenced by the country rock and glam rock of the early 1970s, as well as the aforementioned Stone Roses.

Party Day with Carl Firth in conversation with David Eastaugh

Party Day were an English goth/indie rock band formed in 1981 in Wombwell near Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England, originally a four-piece consisting of guitarists Martin Steele, Greg Firth, bassist Carl Firth and drummer, Mick Baker. Their sound was described as being "hard knuckleduster goth with post-punk overtones".

The band were formerly called 'Further Experiments' (1979–81)^[2] but refocussed as Party Day. They released their first single, "Row the Boat Ashore" c/w "Poison" on their own label, Party Day Records in 1983, and was well reviewed - "their simpering and delightful sound is a thing of beauty".

Their second single, "The Spider" was described as "Excellent punk junk howl" and was played on John Peel's BBC Radio 1. We shall hopefully continue to see them rip up the roots of this bland desolate music industry.

Gerry Leonard is an Irish lead guitarist and solo artist, known for his harmonic and ambient guitar style and for his work with David Bowie featuring on the Heathen, Reality and The Next Day albums. 

He works a lot with Suzanne Vega, touring with her effectively as a duo; he produced and is given writing credits on all the songs on her album, Tales from the Realm of the Queen of Pentacles (Amanuensis Productions, 2014).

Carmen with David Clark Allen in conversation with David Eastaugh

The group was founded by David Clark Allen, a Mexican/American Californian trained in flamenco guitar. Originally a seven-member band in Los Angeles, the band relocated to London, England, in January 1973, where the personnel soon stabilized as a quintet.

In London, they became friendly with several rock stars of the time, including David Bowie - who introduced them internationally by including them on his Midnight Special '1984 Floor Show', Marc Bolan (Paul Fentonbecame his studio and tour drummer), and Bryan Ferry. Obtaining the services of producer Tony Visconti, Carmen released three albums: Fandangos in Space (1973), Dancing on a Cold Wind (1974), and The Gypsies (1975). By early 1975, the band was enjoying its greatest success, playing as an opening act at concerts by Santana, Blue Öyster Cult, and Electric Light Orchestra, and touring for three months as the opener for Jethro Tull.

Bitch Magnet with Jon Fine in conversation with David Eastaugh Bitch Magnet was an American post-hardcore band who formed in 1986 at Oberlin College in Ohio and later moved to North Carolina, United States. They released their first record in 1988. All of the band's albums were released on Communion Records in the US; they were also signed to the European labels Shigaku/What Goes On and Glitterhouse. The band disbanded in 1991.

The band's first single, "I Think I Need Help", was released in April 1982.^[2] In January 1983, "More Than a Dream" was re-issued as their first single for EMI.

Several more singles and two albums, Get Out and Walk and With These Handswere released before the band split in 1985, citing the enigmatical reason of "electrical differences".

They also recorded notable BBC Sessions at Maida Vale Studios for John Peel, the last of which featured early versions of "Sport for All" and "Heartache" [BBC, John Peel, 1984]. Their work became very influential upon the Norwich scene, as previously mentioned with The Higsons, and other offshoot outfits such as Ronnie Can You Hear Me. Baz and Mark went on to form The Avons in 1985.^[1] Mark later joined The Nivens.

Echobelly with Glenn Johansson & Sonya Madan in conversation with David Eastaugh

Madan and Johansson first met in a pub, with Sonya expressing her desire to sing in a band "I used to sing to myself as a child. I suppose I had a secret desire to sing", They soon teamed up with bass guitarist Alex Keyser and drummer Andy Henderson, who had previously played with PJ Harvey's band. Guitarist Debbie Smith, formerly of Curve, came on board in 1994.

According to the Epic Records' website, the group came up with the name Echobelly from the notion of "being hungry for something". With Madan and Johansson as the band's songwriters, they recorded their debut EP, Bellyache, on the independent Pandemonium label in late 1993.

Bruce Thomas - Elvis Costello & The Attractions & Suzanne Vega - in conversation with David Eastaugh

English rock bass guitarist, best known as bassist for the Attractions; the band formed in 1977 to back Elvis Costello in concert and on record. In addition to his work with the Attractions, Thomas has recorded with Billy Bragg, John Wesley Harding, Suzanne Vega, and Tasmin Archer.

Played with the bands Bitter Sweet and Bodast in the late 1960s and recording with Quiver, the Sutherland Brothers, Moonrider and Al Stewart in the early 1970s.

His inventive and highly melodic bass work with Costello brought Thomas his greatest fame. Between 1977 and 1987, Elvis Costello & The Attractions released nine record albums, including This Year's Model (1978), Punch the Clock (1983), and Blood & Chocolate (1986), and toured extensively.

Adrian Shaw or Ade Shaw - bass player with Hawkwind, Bevis Frond, Arthur Brown - in conversation with David Eastaugh

Ade Shaw, is a musician primarily working in the psychedelic field. He has a long history dating back to the 1960s working with such acts as Hawkwind,Country Joe McDonald, Arthur Brown, and the Deviants. Shaw played bass for former Tyrannosaurus Rex percussionist Steve Peregrin Took's band in 1974 and three years later, while appearing with Hawkwind on the former other half of Tyrannosaurus Rex Marc Bolan's TV show, was himself invited to join T.Rex; however Bolan's death very shortly thereafter prevented this.

Shaw co-founded Magic Muscle, and since 1990 has been a member of British psychedelic outfit the Bevis Frond. He has also recorded many albums as a solo artist and co-run the independent record label Woronzow Records with Bevis Frond's Nick Saloman. Since 2011 Shaw has also been a member of the band Hawklords.