C86 Show - Indie Pop

The Seers with Steve Croom in conversation with David Eastaugh

The Roots of the Seers lie in two places; Bristol (obviously) and Billericay (not so obviously). Leigh Wildman grew up in Billericay and it was there he met Jason Collins, a guitarist from nearby Brentwood. They had spent some time in bands around the Essex region and they, along with a few friends, had decided to up sticks and try somewhere else. At the suggestion of one of their number, Bristol was decided upon, and a mini Essex invasion took place in the summer of 1984.

The Bristol punk scene in 1984 was a more cider fuelled version of what Crass was peddling, with a very much Do it yourself vibe. Bands squatted venues like the old Beetle Centre on Stokes Croft and encouraged the squatting of disused houses, which many lived in. It was in one of these squatted houses, Turdy Way, named for the amount of dog shit in the house when it was first squatted, that the Essex invasion landed.

John Donaldson aka JD Meatyard in conversation with David Eastaugh 

Calvin Party were a British indie-rock band from Darwen, Lancashire, based around the talents of John Donaldson (writer/guitar/vocals). Formerly known as Levellers 5, they renamed themselves after the 16th century theologian following the success of The Levellers. As Calvin Party, the band released four albums between 1994 and 2008.

Levellers 5 were a British indie-rock band from Darwen, Lancashire, based around the talents of John Donaldson (writer/guitar/vocals). They renamed themselves Calvin Party following the success of The Levellers.

Clan of Xymox with Ronny Moorings in conversation with David Eastaugh

Clan of Xymox, also known as simply Xymox, are a Dutch rock band formed in 1981. Clan of Xymox featured a trio of songwriters – Ronny Moorings, Anka Wolbert, and Pieter Nooten and gained success in the 1980s, releasing their first two albums on 4AD, before releasing their third and fourth albums on Wing Records and scoring a hit single in the United States. Their 1980s releases included synthpop/electronic dance music. The band is still active, continuing to tour and release records with Moorings the sole remaining original songwriter.

Thatcher on Acid with Andy Tuck in conversation with David Eastaugh

Thatcher on Acid were an English anarcho-punk band. They formed in Somersetduring 1983. Their name is a satirical reference to former UK prime minister Margaret Thatcher.^[3] Ben Corrigan, Bob Butler and Andy Tuck also played in Schwartzeneggar with ex-Crass member, Steve Ignorant. The band opened the anarcho-punk band Conflict's "Gathering of the 5000" show at Brixton Academy,^[2] an event which resulted in many arrests and achieved a degree of infamy.

Kristin Hersh in conversation with David Eastaugh - discussing her new book 'Seeing Sideways'

American singer-songwriter, musician and author, known for her solo work and with her rock bands Throwing Muses and 50FootWave.^[1]She has released eleven solo albums. Her guitar work and composition style ranges from jaggedly dissonant to traditional folk. Hersh's lyrics have a stream-of-consciousness style, reflecting her personal experiences.^[2]

Clare Hirst in conversation with David Eastaugh

UK saxophonist with a distinguished career in pop and jazz music.  Clare has performed with iconic British groups including Bronski Beat, Communards and David Bowie among others. However, Clare made her name with all female band the Belle Stars in the early 1980s; playing saxophone and keyboards on hits like “The Clapping Song”, “Sign of The Times” (not the Prince tune) and “Iko Iko”

Medium Medium with Andy Ryder in conversation with David Eastaugh

Emerging in 1978 out of the Nottingham punk/rhythm & blues band The Press, Medium Medium's first single was "Them or Me", which was released in late 1978 and was still selling well enough in 1980 to appear in the UK Independent Chart.^[2][3] The second single, "Hungry, So Angry", was released in February 1981 on Cherry Red Records. One of the first records to introduce slap bass - a technique borrowed from black funk music - to a generally white audience, "Hungry, So Angry" reached #48 in the Billboard Disco chart - the single and the album were released in 1981 on the New York-based indie label Cachalot Records - and has appeared on over a dozen compilations over the years.

The band released one studio album, The Glitterhouse, in late 1981. Its stark, stripped-down dub and dance rhythms and chiming, funk guitar with occasional saxophone and other sounds, failed to attract a large following.

Friends Again with Chris Thomson & Paul McGeechan in conversation with David Eastaugh -  Part 2

They were formed by members Chris Thomson and Paul McGeechan, together with Neil Cunningham, James Grant and Stuart Kerr. The group was famous for their singles "State of Art", "Sunkissed" and "Honey at the Core". They released a self-titled EP in 1984, which peaked at No. 59 on the UK Singles Chart. They then recorded their debut album, Trapped & Unwrapped (1984).

Wall of Voodoo with Bruce "Ravens" Moreland in conversation with David Eastaugh

Wall of Voodoo had its roots in Acme Soundtracks, a film score business started by Stan Ridgway, later the vocalist and harmonica player for Wall of Voodoo. Acme Soundtracks' office was across the street from the Hollywood punk club The Masqueand Ridgway was soon drawn into the emerging punk/new wave scene. Marc Moreland, guitarist for the Skulls, began jamming with Ridgway at the Acme Soundtracks office and the soundtrack company morphed into a new wave band. In 1977, with the addition of Skulls members Bruce Moreland (Marc Moreland's brother) as bassist and Chas T. Gray as keyboardist, along with Joe Nanini, who had been the drummer for the Bags, the Eyes, and Black Randy and the Metrosquad, the first lineup of Wall of Voodoo was born.

Thin White Rope with Roger Kunkel in conversation with David Eastaugh 

In 1984, a four-track recording with about 14 songs was sent to a number of labels, and an additional demo was recorded in December with Scott Miller producing. At this time, Jozef Becker rejoined the group, replacing French. Lisa Fancher of Frontier Records, who heard of Thin White Rope through a magazine review of the 14-song demo, signed the group to Frontier, and the band then recorded Exploring the Axis.

Over time, the band retained singer/songwriter/guitarist Guy Kyser and guitarist Roger Kunkel, with a changing line-up of drummers and bass guitarists. Like Television, it was noted for its twin guitar attack, innovative use of feedback structures and oblique lyrics. The Rough Guide to Rock called Thin White Rope "one of the few worthwhile traditional American guitar rock bands of their era. While most of the essential groups of the time were pushing back the limits of the form, Thin White Rope had the distinction of managing to breathe new life into the genre."

Adele Bertei -  Contortions,  Peter Laughner & Why Labelle Matters - in conversation with David Eastaugh

Bertei began her career playing guitar and singing in the Wolves, her first band with Laughner. She left Cleveland for New York City in 1977 shortly after Laughner died prematurely of complications due to alcoholism.

Bertei quickly became a prominent figure in the no wave art and music scene in NYC, playing Acetone organ and guitar in the original line up of the Contortions fronted by James Chance. While working as personal assistant to Brian Eno in 1978, Bertei took him to a series of concerts at Artists Space in New York, which resulted in Eno producing the iconoclastic LP No New York for the Virgin/Antilles label, featuring the Contortions and three other no wave bands.

Marco Pirroni in conversation with David Eastaugh

Pirroni was lead guitarist and co-songwriter in the second incarnation of Adam and the Ants, penning two UK number one singlesand a further four Top Ten hits, with Ant. The two albums he co-wrote for Adam and the Ants, Kings of the Wild Frontier and Prince Charming, both made the Top 10 in the UK Albums Chart ("Kings" #1; "Prince Charming" #2).

When Adam and the Ants disbanded in 1982, Pirroni was retained as Adam Ant's co-writer and studio guitarist; they produced another number-one single ("Goody Two Shoes") and an album (Friend or Foe), followed by four more Top 20 hits. Ant and Pirroni won two shared Ivor Novello Awards for "Stand and Deliver"

Pirroni and Ant working together sold more than eighteen million records worldwide, scoring number ones in Australia, the Republic of Ireland, Germany, Greece, Sweden, Israel and Japan as well as in the UK.

Doctors of Madness with Richard Strange in conversation with David Eastaugh

In September 2019 he toured the UK with an all-star band in a show entitled "Richard Strange performs the songs of Lou Reed", featuring over 20 songs by the former Velvet Underground composer and front man.

Throughout the Covid- 19 "Lockdown" months of March-August 2020, Strange worked from his studio, creating an audio version of his memoir "Strange- Punks and Drunks and Flicks and Kicks", which he offered free in daily instalments from his website, and he commenced a weekly online radio show, "Dark Times Radio", featuring music he had written, performed, produced or been inspired by. The shows were uploaded to the Soundcloud platform.

Strange's first band was Doctors of Madness, formed in 1975, recording three influential but non-commercial albums. The band was supported by the Sex Pistols, the Jam and Joy Division. He disbanded the band in 1978, after Dave Vanian of the Damned briefly joined him on vocals. He subsequently recorded as a solo artist, releasing two albums The Live Rise of Richard Strange (Ze Records 1981) and The Phenomenal Rise of Richard Strange (Virgin Records 1981) before further releases with the Engine Room up to the early 1990s.

The Hard-Ons with Ray Ahn in conversation with David Eastaugh

The Hard-Ons are an Australian punk rock band which formed in 1981. Founding members included Keish de Silva on guitar, vocals and Peter "Blackie" Black on guitar, Ray Ahn soon joined on bass guitar with de Silva switching to drums. The group issued eight studio albums before disbanding in 1994. They reformed in 1997 to release further material. In 2002 de Silva was replaced on drums by Peter Kostic, who was replaced in turn by Murray Ruse in 2011. De Silva returned as a guest vocalist in 2014 and permanently rejoined the band in 2016. During their first 12 years, the group issued 17 consecutive number-one hits on the Australian alternativecharts. During that time they became Australia's most commercially successful independent band, with over 250,000 total record sales

Christian Paris - Alice in Wonderland night club - in conversation with David Eastaugh 

In 1983, 24-year old Christian Paris, bored and with nothing to do and nowhere to go, came up with the idea to start the Alice In Wonderland nightclub in London's Soho. Loosely based on 1960's psychedelia the club was a phenomenal success that lasted virtually a whole decade and led on to the legendary Magical Mystery Trips, records, a film, film festivals, the bizarre Planet Alice shops in London and Los Angeles, their very own Number One pop group and a disastrous partnership with a Beatles daughter

The Bollweevils with Steve McKevitt in conversation with David Eastaugh

Although first formed in 1985, The Bollweevils did not come together properly as a live act until 1988. The first full line-up included Sarah Griffiths (vocals), Mark Johnson (lead guitar), Steve McKevitt (bass guitar), Dave Lloyd (rhythm guitar) and Chris Coyle (drums).

From their first gig The Bollweevils received favourable reviews.^[1] However, it was not until late in 1989 that the band signed a recording contract with the independent record label, Vinyl Solution. In March 1990, their first single was released on the Decoy label, the self produced and critically well-received four track Talk To Me EP. ABC's Stephen Singleton agreed to help record the second single, but it was not finished until 1991 and neither the band nor the record company were happy with the results. The tracks were re-mixed in June with the punk/dance producer Alan Scott, but the Life's A Scream EP was never released in that form

Jimi LaLumia in conversation with David Eastaugh

New York punk musician Jimi LaLumia was raised in Lake Ronkonkoma, Long Island, and grew more and more interested in the New York City music scene of the late '60s and early '70s. He became a freelance music writer and a scene staple at the legendary Max's Kansas City, befriending Johnny Thunders and Jayne County in the process. In 1977, LaLumia formed Jimi LaLumia and the Psychotic Frogs, self-releasing the manic "Death to Disco (Disco Sucks)" later that year. The aptly titled EP Typically Tasteless appeared in 1978, featuring the originals "Mangle Me" and "You'll Never Walk Again" on the A-side and hilariously vulgar renditions of "Eleanor Rigby" and County's "I Got Fucked by the Devil Last Night" on the flip. The following year saw the release of two more Beatles-related covers, the Isley Brothers' "Twist and Shout" and the Shirelles' "Boys," on a gold-vinyl 45 featuring vocals by Cherry Vanilla and Blondie's early backup singer Donna Destri. Although the group survived in various forms for several years, that was their last official release.

Shoplifters of the World - film with Stephen Kijak in conversation with David Eastaugh

1987. Denver, Co. One crazy night in the life of four friends reeling from the sudden demise of iconic British band The Smiths, while the local airwaves are hijacked at gunpoint by an impassioned Smiths fan.

The Meyce & The Moberlys special with Jim Basnight in conversation with David Eastaugh

Jim Basnight is a true veteran of the Seattle music scene. Since the mid-1970's, he has released albums with bands like The Meyce, The Moberlys, The Jim Basnight Thing, The Rockinghams and fine solo albums of power pop, punk, rock, folk, country, rock And roll and proto grunge.

Lloyd Cole and the Commotions special with Neil Clark  in conversation with David Eastaugh

Scottish guitarist, known for his work with Lloyd Cole and the Commotions. He has regularly worked and toured with Lloyd Cole post-Commotions including playing on and touring in support of Cole's 2006 album, Antidepressant. He also worked on Cole's albums, Bad Vibes, Love Story, Etc, Music in a Foreign Language and Guesswork. Clark was a member of Bloomsday with Stephen Irvine of the Commotions and Chris Thomson of The Bathers. Clark also features on the Bathers' 1993 album, Lagoon Bluesand has collaborated with Canadian singer Mae Moore on her album Dragonfly. His guitar playing was featured on her single from that album "Genuine", which reached No. 6 on the RPM "Top 100" singles chart in Canada. In 1995 and 1998 he worked on two albums with French singer Axelle Renoir.

Has released two solo albums, Sundogs in 2008 and Second Story Sunlight in 2010. Both albums mix minimalist and cinematic guitar styles with ambient electronica. He currently also plays and writes with Ambrose Pottie, (drums) and Alisdair Jones (bass) in post-jazz trio, Sleepers.