Heaven's End – Loop
Collision 12” - Loop
Remix EP - Loop
I went to see Loop at the rather cozy Deaf Institute in Manchester last week - the only time I'd ever seen them before was thirty odd years ago at the Boardwalk there. They were one of my favourite bands at that time and they didn't disappoint in that small sweaty club either. They've been a going concern again for a few years now so I was certainly overdue a Loop gig, especially as last year's Sonancy (which managed to sound like Loop of olde but also sound different, too) was probably my favourite LP of 2022. Loop are a very different band personnel-wise these days but - to paraphrase The Fall stipulation - as long as it's Robert and his effect pedals then surely it's Loop. It's a very different Robert these days, too. Gone are the long black locks and 'alternative' clobber/image, replaced by short white hair and an almost mod-like look. Musically it was very much what you'd expected - loud, repetitive riffs and distant vocals over a rhythm section that refused to relent as they played numbers from Sonancy and old favourites like Straight To Your Heart and Collision. It was, to put it simply, fantastic. I picked up the recent remix EP there – nothing drastically different from on Sonancy but sounds great.
Contino Sessions – Death In Vegas
So good to hear this one again – it was one of my favourite albums from circa millenium which is such a long time ago now! It's probably a more varied album than I remembered, with all the different contributors but it hangs together brilliantly and features some totally killer tracks.
Fall Heads Roll – The Fall
Blindness will probably always be the stand-out track here, but What About Us didn't half sound good this week.
Blue & Lonesome – The Rolling Stones
I played this one a lot when it came out and it still sounds like a breath of fresh air. The Stones playing like they played on their debut album but with a much better sound. I also watched the BBC Arena filmThe Stones and Brian Jones, too. Brian was clearly an important figure in the history of pop music and a tragic one at that. Nick Broomfield includes some very personal recollections from important players, not least Bill Wyman extolling Brian's musical virtues as he listened back to the likes of Little Red Rooster and Paint It Black which was a nice unexpected bonus. It's not a perfect film, but with Jones' life becoming more and more of a distant memory, this might just be the last word on this difficult Rolling Stone founder.
Everybody Wants To Shag... - The Teardrop Explodes
I'm warming up for the new box-set! Ouch Monkeys and Soft Enough For You, originally brought to us on the You Disappear From View EP are amongst my favourite TX tracks.
Also...
Satta Massagana – The Abyssinians
Into The Setting Sun – Athene & & Stijn Huwels
Green River - Creedeence Clearwater Revival
Cosmo's Factory - Creedeence Clearwater Revival
Pink Moon – Nick Drake
Return To The 37th Chamber – El Michels Affair
1000 Volts Of Holt - John Holt
Private Lesson - Gregory Isaacs
Music Of My Mind – Stevie Wonder
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