Album Review - Big Canyon Rock is dead!!! Oh yeah? According to who exactly? Because from what I have been hearing in the last few months rock is very much alive. Its just been taken back from the mainstream and put into the hands of people who really appreciate this kind of music, instead of posers and wannabees, all fawning over the latest trend. Well, rock ain’t no trend, it’s a full on way of life, and bands like The Black Vultures, Ryder, Rattleback, Loz Campbell and here in all their glory Big Canyon.are all waiting to take the crown from the ageing and dying old guard of rock, and I include all the NWBHM bands in that sentence. Move over Rover and let the young guns take over. This is NNWBHM – the new new wave of British heavy metal So Big Canyon have been around for a few years, honing their craft to perfection. They released, as a three piece, a mini album in 2020, but now hit us with a ten track self titled new album and a new member in Andi Meacock on vocals. And that was a great move. Andi looks like Robert Palmer, but screams like a banshee. He has the voice to take this band to a higher level, in conjunction with full on riffmeister guitarist Ben Williamson, with outstanding rhythm section of Julian Palmer on bass and Leon Ashley on drums, who pounds those skins in a very John Bonham kind of way. They have already released two singles form this album, Rescue Me, and Falling, but the rest of the tracks are equally appealing and bombastic. Except for Beautiful Mind which is an acoustic track,showing off the bands more tender side, and a chance for the listener to catch their breath before diving back into the mosh pit with Captain Of Your Soul. The album starts on a Zeppelin kinda groove with Rescue Me, and ends on a Black Sabbath kinda groove with The Things You Do, with all other essential rock ingredients in between. This band look the part, sound the part and definitely have my vote. If you are a rock lover check them out – they RAAWK!!! Like muvvers.

Single Review - Different Kind Of Woman - Leoni Jane Kennedy Man, what a sultry steamy smoky soulful vocal delivery Leonie Jane gives on this little nugget, Different Kind Of Woman. The backing track reminds me, in its feel, of Allanah Miles’ Black Velvet. It soon breaks away from this and has a great build up where some nice Hammond organ swirls in the background, and Leoni lets rip on her PRS guitar. I couldn’t work out at first what the song was about, but then it became clear that she is talking to a friend possibly about her man wanting a different kind of woman, and really she should get over it, until the last line when she reveals she is that different kind of woman, Naughty. A clever different take on forbidden love. This the first of seven singles to be released from her forthcoming debut originals album ‘Synthetic’. Her debut debut album was an acoustic Rush covers album in 2023, which gained her massive respect throughout the music industry, and if this single is anything to go by, this woman is just going to go from strength to strength. Single Review - Different Kind Of Woman - Leoni Jane Kennedy

Interview With Peel Tell us about your latest release Pim: We are about to release an EP named “Love Phobia EP”. The date is not set yet, but late February/early March would seem like a good guess. We have already released 3 of the songs as singles and simultaneously with the release of the fourth one - “Breathe me into Life” - we will launch the EP. But these days we are in the final stage of promoting the third single from the EP “One You Know”. What was the recording process like? Was it in a studio or do you do it all yourselves? ● Pim: The recording process was quite painless and was done in Regulator Studios which is situated just outside Oslo, Norway. How do you guys write the songs? ● Pim: I tend to have the ideas and then we work it out, produce and arrange it together musically. The lyrical universe comes from my heart, soul and head, and is pretty much my take on the fucked up world we live in. What were your main influences while writing? ● Pim: Oh, so many things that inspire and influence me. It could be music, a movie, a book, or a piece of poetry. But when I wrote the songs for this EP I was heavily into early 90’s grunge and 80’s big rock, actually. What is your favourite song on the new release and why? ● Pim: For me it is “One You Know” even though it seems like that song doesn’t catch the listeners as for instance “Love Phobia” does. How did you come up with the name of the release? ● Pim: We decided to name the EP “Love Phobia EP” simply because that song is the most played from the release both on radio and on streaming services, so far. How did the band get together? ● Pim: The band has existed twenty plus years now with members coming and going. This line up consists of Holten and I, who are founding members, and my son Seb has joined forces. That’s rock and roll these days - a multi-generational thing, hehe.. I think that’s cool and it gives us both a potential crossover appeal and when we create and work it’s a “melting pot” of different How did you come up with the name for the band? ● Pim: We wanted something short and catchy, and at the same time multi layered in what it meant. Peel can be something that protects, at the same time it can be something you do, an action to get to the core. Have you got any gigs or a tour coming up where people can hear the songs live? ● Pim: No gigs planned so far. The situation is a bit tricky because we live in Norway and we are not a household name home in our native country. So it’s difficult for us to get gigs here. For some reason we seem to hit better abroad. What are your plans for the next few months? ● Pim: To promote the “Love Phobia EP” and prepare for the next release. It would be cool if we could put together a tour eventually, maybe outside of Norway.

Album Review - RØRY - Restoration This is the latest release from Rory and it is an amazing album . There is a lot of deep emotions that you can really feel as you listen to the songs. You can tell she has been through a lot and it writing songs for people to relate to and know that there is hope for them. If pain could talk, what would it say This song feels like it sets the tone for the whole album, if you close your eyes, you can see Rory screaming "LOOK ME IN THE FACE" into your face to make sure you are paying attention. We hear you Rory. In the Bible I love this song, it's a great song to bring people hope. The lyrics I love the most are "Everything you lost will be restored", it touches on mental health and that when you are at your lowest, you can still pull through. When asked about the song, Rory said "'In the Bible' is my way of reconciling my disdain for organised religion, and my reverence for the faith that saved me—it's about finding hope in the darkest of places, believing in the power of restoration, and turning brokenness into something beautiful”. Wolves Loved this song from the first time I heard it. Rory's voice is quite angelic on this track, you can feel her pain, it's like she is pouring all of her emotions into you through the lyrics. It's a song that I can see people singing at the top of their lungs to when it's played live. Hold on (ft. Roxanne Emery) This is a good song but it's not one that I would pick to put in a playlist, I feel I would only listen to it again if I was listening to the album. It has strong lyrics but I just couldn't get into it. Blossom This one has a fantastic beat and rhythm through it, it's verses have beautiful harmonies and then you get the chorus which is where the bet picks up. Even though it is a little slow in places, it still has you moving. This is a brilliant come back song, the lyrics say about her feeling choked and didn't think she would make it but they are all going to watch her "blossom" now. Sherlock Holmes I love this song, it starts off as an acoustic song and then more instruments come in but they blend beautifully with Rory's voice. I would love to see this one performed live as I can see everyone in the venue holding up a light and swaying to this one. It would look spectacular. One Drink Away This is a lovely song but it made me sad. You know that the lyrics are straight from Rory's heart about her alcohol addiction. I have never been in that position so I can only imagine how hard it is for someone constantly battling with an addiction. She sings about how great her life is now but how she is only one drink away from losing it. Morality $uicide If you needed a song to remind you how shit we are to each other and our planet, this is it. Talking about finding oil but not a cure for cancer, the government, war being a universal language, people starving, profit in disasters. Don't get me wrong, it is a great song, I love the levels of the song. The verses are a bit quieter so you can hear Rory reel off the issues and then the chorus is louder to bring the punch to the song. Sorry I'm Late I really like this one, I think it is really relatable for people. Not everyone is perfect, we do fuck up, we do things that we regret and we feel crap about it. We end up feeling like we are late to the party or that we are too old to be able to start something new, and the truth is that we aren't. It's never too late. no matter what anyone says. The Atheist A very chilled way to finish the album, although it is a sad song about a life being destroyed by another person, I take it she was drawing from her own experience for this one. But there is this slight sign of hope because she turned it around when she found faith. I love the dramatic parts of this song, the band turning it up to 11 and Rory belting out the lyrics so you feel every word deep down.

Single Review - Erik Flaa - The Fence First listening and the first few seconds I forgot who I was listening to and thought I had selected Radiohead. It soon changed when the vocal came in. Where is Eric going with this I wondered, with his melody soaring and dropping, and then some fantastic harmonies came in which reminded me of Love, Forever Changes era. Overall the song carries the melancholy of Nick Drake, although the vocal is nothing like, it is just an essence which permeates the song. It also has a feel of early King Crimson, and it finishes with a discordant guitar solo, which I like a lot, and is reminiscent of Robert Fripp. I think Chris Blackwell would have signed this guy to Island in the seventies. It has all the qualities a good Island artist had back then. After five or six listens I really warmed to the song, although in this age of instant gratification within ten seconds of listening, I don’t know if listeners would give him the chance to grow on them. I hope they do, as he deserves a large audience.

Single Review - Ryder - One Eye Open The third single from Ryder leading up to their album release on 31 st Jan, and it doesn’t disappoint - starting quite subdued, kind of Doorsish, you can picture the leather clad lizard king whirling his dervish dance - then a razor blade metal riff rips the song apart and pulls you into the narrative. A tale of learning from heartache, a self discovery by recovery with a hook line which gets you quickly. By third listening I was singing along to I pray with one eye open. Very infectious. Some changes in guitar tones make you realise these boys are pulling influences from different decades of great rock, and some nice play between the guitars and bass break the song up nicely, with some great tom tom work by Nick Bavaro on drums gives the song an almost shamanic quality. Roll on the release of the album .

This was maybe one of the hardest shows for me. I have tried to keep it light not thinking about the afterwards, about the goodbyes, the tears I saw people sharing, and yet my heart was breaking. After booking flights and hotels last minute I find myself walking towards the venue in Oulu, it's around 5am on a Saturday morning, no one is awake it feels like the city is mine, everything is covered in soft snow and we are at -13⁰, it's cold. I don't have a vip ticket for this concert but I still want to be as close as possible to the stage, Blind Channel announced their hiatus was going to be after these final shows in Finland. I got to second row, amazing, we have Rock Band From Hell to open the night. Then Blind Channel gets on stage, the room fills with they're energy, something that feels familiar now. Everyone is jumping to Flatline like our life depends on it, and maybe some how it does. We run through the first few songs, not time to breath, just jump and sing at the top of your lungs, the songs that you love. The adrenaline these guys bring on stage is absolutely unique. We reach "Balboa" and I always wanted to be in the moshpit during this song but always too worried to lose my barricade or of getting hurt. But this was Oulu, their home town, the last show before resting, my last chance. I walked back leaving the second row and I found myself in the middle of the pit trying to create the biggest circle I could around me and then people started running, I was jumping and singing, it was the last time I could do that. It felt like a movie, some of my friends even recorded me gifting me some special memories. Somehow I was able to go back to my second row spot and I was celebrating with my friends, pretty sure I saw some proud looks in my direction from the band too. Toward the end of the show we got a little speech, unfortunately I don't know what they said exactly cause they were talking finnish and my knowledge stop after "Kiitos" and "Vittu". I know, disappointing. Must have been something like "we played in big arenas, from Nokia arena (Finland) and Wembley arena but nothing is like our home", fans were cheering. We get to the intro of Dark Side, the song that put them under the European spotlight after Eurovision 2021, the last song of the set. And there it struck me, the last time I was gonna hear this song live, I thought of the first time I saw them in 2022, I knew two songs and barely their names. That day I queued up for like two hours and ended up in second row, met some people who later on would have turned into friends, fell in love with their music and lost my voice singing. Whenever it's gonna be, I'll be there to sign these songs again. All these memories, all the laughter, tears, cities, tickets, the shows and the hotels, all the drama everything got back to me the moment they started singing "put your middle fingers up, take a shot, throw it up, don't stop" And I smiled. Hopefully I wasn't the only one smiling there, I don't like the idea that the last thing they saw was crying fans, I am happy for them, I'm proud. They had the courage to accept something wasn't working and before throwing everything away choose to step back for a moment. The show ends, last few goodbyes, they get Santeri, the Tour Manager, on stage and few friends from the crew who have been working with the band for the past few years. Then another goodbye, picks and drumsticks are flying in the crowd, and they're gone. For how long? We don't know, but they'll be back at the right time. Niko, Joel, Olli, Joonas Tommi and Aleksi, thank you, until next time.

Gig Day With Paradise Sins Ever wondered what the band have done before the venue doors open on gig day? Paradise Sins lets us in on the secret How do you get to the gig? (Dan) Ah yes, the monumental task of 5 blokes from different sides of the UK getting to a gig. . . sounds like a nightmare, right? Sometimes it can be for sure but most of the time we’re so pumped to do the show it destroys any ill-travel worries. So Conor, Loui and I will usually dream of arriving by helicopter whilst we’re ploughing down some motorway in the car. Luis and Zack are based Birmingham way. They sort of just appear wherever we play. Do you carpool? Is there someone who is the “driver” of the band? (Conor) ME! I'm the driver! Mainly because I don't trust the others and I'm the sensible one… but anyways. Yeah most of the time it will be Dan and Loui jumping in the car with me to get to our shows, but if we plan on partying hard after the show we will sometimes take a train or a taxi sometimes even a limo to get there! I guess Luis and Zack just take the Paradise Sins helicopter because they appear out of nowhere! One thing is for sure though… We need to hire a bus driver asap! How early do you need to get to the gig? (Zack) Usually we have a soundcheck around about 4-5PM so it’s best to try to get there an hour early just in case anything happens on the way. When there is more than 1 band playing, how does everyone get set up and soundchecked? Is there a specific order to everything? (Conor) We have such a quick and easy set up! We are all digital (except for Zack of course). We have no big amps that need micing up. We just go directly into the desk and straight out the house speakers! We know exactly what we need to do when sound checking and waste no time, which is a sound engineer's wet dream! And we often get compliments telling us how great, easy and quick we are to work with! What do you do once you have done the soundcheck? (Zack) After soundcheck it’s a case of securing our belongings and making sure everything is where we need it. We’ll have a break and some food (but not leaving it too late to avoid indigestion!) and then start warming up and getting some BTS shots 45 mins to an hour before we go on. Do you have any rituals before going on stage? (Luis) I like a space to myself to run my warmups, suck a menthol, we go do a group huddle, and then we're in business. Oh and then personally I hype up the crowd right as the music starts before I join the band on stage. Same time every show. It's great. What are you mainly thinking about while you are on stage? (All members) LUIS: I'm not thinking at all, I live for the moment as I love gigs more than anything, so whatever happens comes natural. DAN: No matter the show, I try to take it all in and love every second of it. Same as Luis, I’m not thinking too much. It’s a mad thing to do, something I never thought I’d be able to do again - so I take nothing for granted. If people are smiling on and off the stage - it’s job done. CONOR: Just before I walk on stage I'm thinking about timing my walkout during our into track, which I normally get wrong and end up walking on too soon or too late. But I will get it right one day! When I'm on stage with my brothers I really don't think about anything. I'm just living my best life having a huge party with Paradise Sins and the crowd and I love every second of it. LOUI: I’m still pretty new to playing live gigs so I’m trying to learn to live in the moment and not think so much! Honestly I get distracted by how incredible the other guys are, I’m in total awe of their talent a lot of the time and have to remind myself where we are in the set. ZACK: oooh that depends really! When I first get on the stage I’m thinking about the crowd and the faces in front of me, when I’m on my throne behind the kit I like to look at my brothers in the band and it makes me feel like we're headlining a festival. What’s the first thing you do when you have finished your set? (Loui) I usually make a beeline for the bar to be honest! I’m super pumped up when I come off the stage and a beer helps to settle me a bit. I also like to get out into the crowd and say hello to people up close and thank them for coming. I’ll also give all the guys a big hug after the set and show them some love! What do you do next? (Dan) Without getting too deep, playing these shows with this band is a dream. Once we come off stage I try to have a few minutes to myself and take it all in. Enjoy those final moments of adrenaline before the come down. Some prefer to review the show directly afterwards, but in my opinion, that’s something that can be done a few hours after or the next day. Every show is different. How do you end the night? (All of members) LUIS: I don't have a fixed pattern here apart from the post-gig maccies on the way home! DAN: It’s highly likely some sort of party will be attended somewhere . . . CONOR: Ending a night when you're in Paradise Sins is like a packet of Revels, you never know what you might get! We might just pack up and head home or we might head out for some drinks and get a bit crazy ORRRRRRR we might burn down a house while listening to Motley freakin' Crue! Who knows! LOUI: As Dan said there’s usually a party whenever Paradise Sins are playing. We always manage to find our way into some shenanigans somewhere, occasionally in the back of a limo. ZACK: Always on a high! We'll end with a big crescendo, take a photo with the crowd, we’ll usually do a group hug off stage and then go and meet people at the merch table. We’ll always close the night having a drink and chat to our friends and family who came to support us too.

Suzy's Musical 2024 Hey everyone! Suzy here, it's my turn to give you my take on the music that shaped my 2024. My Favourite Albums Lost Zone - Ordinary Misery Lost Zone - Ordinary Misery This album came out in April and totally blew me away, it was only a few weeks before I saw them live so I'm glad it was such a good album as I had it on repeat for hours. With amazing tracks like Fighting Demons, my favourite tracks - Voices and You're The One. These 3 lads from Northern Italy are going to be the next big thing, I can feel it in my bones! Check them out! Blind Channel - Exit Emotions Blind Channel - Exit Emotions They promised us the heaviest album they had ever recorded and that is exactly what we got. This album was outstanding, every song was an absolute banger. Wolves is still be favourite, I have a video of me in Bristol that another fan took and it is me heavily rocking out to this song. GhostKid - Hollywood Suicide GhostKid - Hollywood Suicide In all honesty, I had only heard of Ghostkid because they were going to be touring with Blind Channel, so when I heard this album I was totally blown away. I loved it so much and was over the moon that I then got to hear it live on tour. Murder and Hollywood Suicide are firm favourites, in fact, Hollywood Suicide is my ringtone. My Top 3 Gigs Thursday 4th of April Blind Channel - Scala, London This was an amazing night, it was the last night of the UK dates of the Exit Emotions Tour so I was already emotional from not knowing when I would see them again, plus the fact I was super tired and needed a hug. The support bands were Rock Band From Hell and GhostKid who I have grown to love because they are both awesome live and have some banging songs. I seriously don’t know another band that can match their energy on stage, it was full on from start to finish, just like it had been at the previous 5 gigs. I always feel super charged as soon as they come out on stage, I feel like I can do anything. At the end of the gig, when they played Dark Side and had a picture taken with the crowd, Tommi handed me his drumstick (I have 5 of them now lol) and the night was done. They left the stage, the house lights came on and that was it. I cried on the way home. Saturday 13th of April Lost Zone - Club Volta, Cologne This gig was just all kinds of crazy for me. I’d never been able to see Lost Zone because they are from Northern Italy and whenever they had a gig, I couldn’t get there for it. The out of the blue, there is a tour poster for a band called Fall Into Spring and my Lost Zone boys are one of the support bands. What made it even better was the fact that it was gigs in Germany, so my boys were that little bit closer to me. I couldn’t find someone to go with me so I went on my own, mental health monsters in toe but did my best to ignore them and before I knew it, I found myself in the front row at Club Volta and I saw Simon (the drummer) come out on stage. Was it really him? Yes it was! Then Andre was on stage, then Seb and then there was Florian, I was actually seeing Lost Zone in the flesh!! Saturday 16th of November Spyder Byte - Leo’s Red Lion, Gravesend OMG this gig was AMAZING!!! The energy in the room was super charged as soon as the band started playing. They were the support band but there were loads of people there for Spyder Byte. They had the room dancing, jumping around and screaming from the top of their lungs. I loved every minute of it. BLACK VELVET LOVE!!!! My top new band that I discovered in 2024 was definitely Spyder Byte. I saw them at the Call Of The Wild Festival and have loved them ever since, they are seriously worth checking out if you haven't already. As a last note like Andy, I'd like to make people aware how important it is to buy tickets to shows, not just the big shows, the little ones too. They are the ones that showcase the little bands that will become tomorrows big bands. If not enough people buy tickets, the show won't go ahead because the band/promoter/venue/gig organiser can't afford to put it on. This then leads to bands not having gigs, venues not getting any revenue to stay open and people being out of jobs. It's not cheap to put on shows so please buy the tickets and go along to those shows. Lets keep music live!!

Andy's Musical World - 2024 Well here we are folks at the end of another rocktastic year. Suzy has asked us to pull some festive gnomes out of the hat, and hit you with a few readable mince pies over the festive season. Hush Money So first up – Three top bands Well at the top of my list, and if I have my way, you’ll be hearing a lot more of this name, specially from me, is Hush Money , a rockin’ alt country four piece from Georgia USA. They have all the the ingredients a country band from Georgia need. I’m hoping they either do a UK tour or appear at The End Of The Road festival, or Maverick, as they deserve to be seen by a whole bunch of country fans. Second place goes Jamie Williams and The Roots Collective , but only because it is one two and three. I think these boys are really level pegging with Hush Money. They deliver some fine UK Americana,and for me, cant really do no wrong. They gig regularly in the Essex area, and I would recommend you try to catch them in 2025, as it is a live experience well worth waiting for. They also released their 9 th album this year, Stay True. I’m staying true to this bunch, rock on boys. And my third has to be Steve Earle, he’s always top in my books, apart from The Stones, but The Stones have taken a dive this year after I was sent an email advertising a Rolling Stones perfume!!! WTF!!!. That’s just a corporate smell too far boys, its not what rock n roll is about. Unless it smells of body sweat and sex which I doubt. In fact it doesn’t, it smells of patchouli, that good old hippie fragrance, and I don’t need to pay 99 dollars to smell of patchouli. Oh Mick, Oh Keef – Really??? Top 3 Gigs OK first off Tylas Dogs D’Amour at Gullivers in Manchester. I didn’t get to see the Dogs in they heyday, much to my regret. I had a load of their recorded material, but I was on the road constantly myself at the time and just missed them. So I jumped at this chance to see them. It was a very intimate gig, it felt like you were in his living room. The Dogs in question this time were Matty James Cassidys band The Real Villains, who were also the support band, and they did a splendid job. The drummer hitting his snare with such venom you thought his life might depend on it. A great set, starting with Billy Two Rivers and ending with Errol Flynn. Highlight for me was The Ballad Of The Bullet Proof Poet, but the rest of the songs all stood the test of time, I Think It’s Love Again, Drunk Like Me, Gypsy Blood, all hitting the mark. In their prime they were a full on sex and drugs and rock n roll kinda band, and it’s something short of a miracle to see Tyla has survived it and still playing with passion. The Bay City Rollers In Second place, you wont believe this but I am going to say The Bay City Rollers . Yes folks, those cheeky tartan chappies who gave us such songs as Shang A Lang, Give A Little Love, and Saturday Night. I used to work with them in the 90’s and they were down on their luck, playing Gala Bingo Halls and other gigs on that circuit. They were down to a four piece, with Eric, Woody and Alan from the original band and Dave Innes on drums. They hated it and it was bound to implode. I really felt sorry for them at the time, being so big in the 70’s, getting ripped off royally by the manager and other hangers on and ending up on the nostalgia circuit, going through the motions to earn a crust to live off. A complete re union with Les McKeown was mooted for the early 2000’s and they could have done well out of it, but Eric was having none of it, with old band rivalries still too raw for him. After that Alan Longmuir died, then Les McKeown popped his clogs, Eric Faulkner went missing in Spain and you would have thought that was that. But no, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Woody has put together a fantastic band, and when I saw them at the Northern Kin festival, they were one of the most entertaining acts on there. The tent was filled with a couple of thousand people all singing along and waving their hands in the air. I was really chuffed for Woody watching them, and I hope he feels vindicated, that he can at last once again play these songs with pride instead of going through the motions. You may scoff at this, but just remember, The Ramones cited this band as one of their biggest influences, and if that doesn’t lend some credibility to the story then nothing will. Robert Plant And number three, I have to throw this one in – Robert Plant with Saving Grace at Blackburn King George’s hall. I had seen him and this band just at the end of lockdown at Tenbury Wells Regent Theatre. A friend of mine was managing the theatre at the time and he said come on down, Roberts rehearsing all week in preparation for a tour and then he is playing a gig at the theatre to a couple of hundred people. So I jumped in my trusty motorhome and set off for Shropshire. I was a wonderful intimate gig and I wanted more so I bought a ticket at Blackburn, a couple of years later. He was supported by a young guy from America called Taylor McCall, who was quite good at the time, but I don’t recall any of his songs now. Robert Plant was his usual imposing self, playing a mixture of Americana flavoured songs, from real old time Appalacian traditional songs, though a Moby Grape cover and ending on a medley of Led Zep songs, all given a makeover by his band Saving Grace. They really have a sound of their own which you will only experience by catching them live as they do have any recorded output, a conscious decision by Robert Plant apparently. The sound is Americana, but also brings in exotic world beats and melodies.. His voice is unmistakable, and his passion for music is unmistakable . If you get a chance to see him with this band then do go. Top 3 albums I am going to throw into the mix here Hush Money – Go Back Home and Jamie Williams and the Roots Collective -Stay True, both of which I have reviewed already on this site, so I will just add, if you like Alt.country and Americana go out and buy these two albums immediately. I haven’t really bought any new albums this year, meaning any new albums released this year, except The Rolling Stones Hackney Diamonds, which being a massive Stones fan I had to get to complete the collection, but y’know, it’s okay, it rocks, it rolls, it tenderfies, it countryfies and it’s okay. Is it the best album since Some Girls as most critics were claiming?. Personally I don’t think so, I think A Bigger Bang would have to take that title for me, but it’s all subjective isn’t it. A lot of the critics weren’t even born when The Stones were the greatest badass drug ridden sex soaked rock n roll band in the world. So they don’t know what it was like to have the likes of The Stones and The Beatles and Bob Dylan change your life and the fabric of society So saying something like it’s the best album since Some Girls makes them sound like they know what they are talking about. But as I said, I think it’s ok. Did the world need another Stones album? I don’t know. I know I will be playing Let It Bleed a lot more in the years to come than Hackney Diamonds, or Some Girls for that matter. I have been playing a bit of catch up recently with my music. I have discovered a new passion for Captain Beefheart, and have re stocked with Strictly Personal, The Spotlight Kid, Clear Spot and Trout Mask Replica, which is about the most bonkers album I have ever heard in my life. I never heard it back in the day, I was aware of it but never heard it. Nobody has made an album before or after anywhere near as similar. It’s out there on it’s own. I would say, and I don’t know for sure, this is just me thinking, that Tom Waits possibly listened to this album a lot. I’ve been catching up on him too, Blood Money, Franks Wild Years, Alice, and Bone Machine, which I did own on vinyl once upon a time. This has blurred into my musical 2024, so I’m just going to carry on. I have discovered a couple of online second hand cd companies, which I love. World Of Books, which I remember from London, they had an outlet on Kingsway and I used to pop in and buy blues cds there by the dozen. But now it’s just on line and you cant always get what you want, but, no I wont be as corny as finish that line off, but you can get some interesting stuff on there. I got a load of Steve Earle stuff which I missed on their release, my favourite by far is Steve Earle with Del McCoury band, real bluegrass stuff, as authentic as it comes, but also got Sidetracks, An American Boy, The Long Highway.. I got a couple of Lyle Lovett too, Joshua Judges Ruth, and I Love Everybody, and I love Lyle’s story telling lyrics. The other place is Musicmagpie, again they don’t have everything, but they have different stock everytime you look. That is where I got my Captain Beefheart’s from, and also The Best Of Jefferson Airplane. I was aware of the Airplane back in the day, who wasn’t, but I never really checked them out, apart from the obvious Somebody To Love, which I first heard done by Grace Slick and The Big Society on one of the Rock Machine albums. And White Rabbit of course. The production is a bit dated on some of the tracks but overall I liked the whole thing, it even started with a kind of Americana type acoustic guitar ditty, but Americana hadn’t been coined at the time. The vocals of Grace Slick and Paul Kantner and Marty Balin all blend together beautifully. Ah I did get another new vinyl album, but not by a new artist, it was Ronnie Wood Live at The Albert Hall doing a set of Jimmy Reed songs, with Mick Taylor as a guest. Well worth checking out if you are a fan of blues, Jimmy Reed Ronnie Wood or Mick Taylor. It was sealed but I had to break it to listen to it. The only album I have ever left sealed is Hackney Diamonds which as I said I bought to complete my UK Stones collection, and I got the cd too, so I listened to it on that. I went to two festivals this year, The Upton Blues Festival which I played at on The Riverside Stage, just before Kyla Brox. I stayed for the whole festival and saw some interesting stuff including Beaux Gris Gris and Chantel MacGregor, who I have seen before at The Skegness Rock and Blues festival when I appeared there with The Smokin’ Jackets. I loved the whole festival though, you can just wander around from stage to stage and venue to venue taking in a whole myriad of music from acoustic folky type stuff to jazz funk, to blues covers, to full on original blues. You just pay for the camping on a massive flat field on the edge of town. The second one was The Northern Kin which I mentioned before, and will mention again in the Bands Discovered in 24 category. But for now, one of my faves at this festival was definitely Hawkwind. I used to love this band and followed then all over the UK when I was an itty bitty boy, and the sound they made and the songs they played was just like meeting up with an old old friend who you haven’t seen for years but makes you feel comfortable with shared experiences. Another firm favourite was Alabama 3 , who I used to see regularly in London when I lived there. I am going to see them in December in Manchester after which there will be review, but for now I will just say, even without copious amounts of cocaine and tequila, their intoxicating rhythms re awoke a dance in my soul and had me grooving away with much content. Who else was on? Scuse me while I just talk to myself. Oh yes Billy Bragg, who was a bit too preachy for my liking, with him standing up and shouting about every PC issue of the moment. The Waterboys, who were okay. I’ve seen them in better form in the past. Jules Holland's Big Band, who was just like you’d expect, very entertaining with a few special guests. Oh and Where Rivers Meet, who really should have a mention in bands to look out for in 25, but I’ve just said it here. Fronted by husband and wife duo Grace and Aaron Bond. Grace is the vocalist who also plays mandolin and violin, Aaron the guitarist. A really good blues rock band. And quite a few others who I cant remember now, because I didn’t realise I would be writing about it six months later. My own musical 24 was a good one, starting with a gig at the 100 Club London on Feb 14 th , followed by an invitation by Gaz Mayall to play Gaz’s Rockin’ Blues. Danny Bourassa my guitarist and I supported Dan Patlansky at Manchester Deaf Institute, then the band played Upton Blues festival in the summer, followed by a PA in HMV Manchester Danny and I with Shelly Turnbull have played quite a few acoustic gigs which are going down really well, particularly in hippy enclaves. Talking of hippy enclaves we even got a write up in IT, or International Times, the original counter culture paper of the 60’s. Nick Kent from New Musical Express, and Danny Boyles Sex Pistols biopic fame, cut his teeth at IT, so I felt quite humbled to be mentioned in its historic pages. So that was top3 albums and my musical 2024 all merged into one New Bands Discovered in 24 Well, as I keep bleating on about them, Hush Money , and I also put them forward for a band to watch out for in 25. This reminds me of a Jools Holland Hootenanny a few years ago, and he was going around the celebrity audience asking what band they thought were going to break through and everybody without exception said The White Stripes. Well this year they should all say Hush Money …………HUSH MONEY!!!! And besides them, I discovered a dinky little Goth Americana band called Heathen Apostles at The Northern Kin again. They were on about 12 mid day, and played to about 50 people, but I loved their set. The band is made up of. Mather Louth a female on vocals and acoustic guitar, Chopper Franklin on guitar mandolin and banjo, and on recordings piano and drums, with Thomas Lorioux on upright bass and Luis Mascasro on violin I even bought a CD (In The Between) and a vinyl album (Bloodgrass 1 and 11), both very cherished in my collection. Now on a serious note the Black Deer festival have just announced they wont be holding a festival in 25 because of a precarious financial situation which held sway over their 23 and 24 festivals. In other words they nearly went bankrupt because not enough people bought tickets, despite having fantastic line ups. This year alone 125 festivals had to cancel as not enough pre sales were generated, and many music venues are having to close because of lack of clientele. So I would urge you readers, and all your friends to support as much as you can independent festivals and gigs, or the music scene in a few years time is going to be very different. You don’t need to go to Glastonbury or The Isle Of Wight to gain hipster points, and put even more money into the pockets of very rich established acts. Go to a smaller boutique festival, be unique, give your money to that promotor and put money in the pockets of up and coming new bands who really need your support, and who could be as big as the large name acts at big festivals if they get the support needed at this stage of their career. They can't make money out recorded material, and it’s very hard to make money live at a certain level. Unknown bands need support, and it’s great fun discovering new bands and acts. And here we go into 2025. Have a wonderful festive season. Thanks to Suzy for allowing me to scribble in her copy book, and thanks to all the readers of Suzys Musical World. Be good, and if you can't be good, you’ll just have to suffer the consequences.

Interview With Lost Dogs Of Ultimo Hi! Tell us about your latest release Hi our last release in October was The Grinding/Awake Not Asleep it is a two songs single a collaboration with Kymin Kaos from Blood In The Champagne on Bass and Vocals What was the recording process like? Was it in a studio or do you do it all yourselves? We recorded the demo in Melbourne at Three Phase studios then I went to Byron Bay to my good friend Smokey Po studio where we added some layers on the drums and samples and deep effects on the Guitar and Bass before Mixing How do you guys write the songs? We usually write about tropics that we resonate with politically or culturally we get together and brainstorm the topic and how we approach the lyrics What were your main influences while writing? We are deeply concerned about the Wars and its impact on the environment and Indigenous issues globally right now What is your favourite song on the new release and why? I really like Awake Not Asleep its a gut wrenching instrumental delivered with a lot of passion and energy How did you come up with the name of the release? The Grinding is a title relating to our struggles in this world today with the constant battle with corruption and the War machine that is in our lives right now How did the band get together? The band is a project of collaborators making music and art with an activist attitude to reflect on the state of the world order of politics How did you come up with the name for the band? Lost Dogs Of Ultimo name comes from Ultimo a suburb in Sydney Australia where a lot of Musicians Artists and Activists use to live and play it was vibrant community and I wanted to bring some of those people back together to create art after Covid lockdowns Have you got any gigs or a tour coming up where people can hear the songs live? New Gigs coming out in 2025 keep checking our socials for updates What are your plans for the next few months? We are heading back in to the studio to write and record demos for an EP, 4 songs about Trump and Netanayhu and the global power structure that is forming

My Favourite Album With Nick From Midland Railway What is the album? I'm going with Weezer's blue album (technically it's their debut self-titled album, but as they have since released multiple other self-titled albums with different colours on the covers, their first one is now commonly referred to as the blue album). There were a few other albums I seriously considered choosing, as the music I want to listen to tends to depend on my mood. These were: Idlewild - 100 Broken Windows Therapy? - Troublegum The Offspring - Smash Bright Eyes - Fevers and Mirrors The Magnetic Fields - The Charm of the Highway Strip Weezer - Pinkerton Grandaddy - The Sophtware Slump Why is it your favourite album? The reason I picked this one out is that I absolutely love it whatever mood I'm in. The entire album is brilliant, and I never feel inclined to skip any of the songs, but the songs are still nicely different from one another, each with their own character and appeal. It manages to be catchy, but interesting, and noisy, yet melodic. I think it's quite an important album, in terms of musical history, as it defined the geek-rock genre, in the way that it kind of celebrates not quite fitting in. I also love Ric Ocasek's production. It sounds heavy, yet bright and nice, and never over-produced. I think he's my all-time favourite producer, and his production style and Weezer's songs are so perfectly suited for one-another. How does it make you feel when you listen to it? Usually quite a bit better than I did before listening to it. It has a sort of feel-good vibe to it, without ever really feeling too unrelatedly happy. Some of the songs are a bit more melancholic, such as The World Has Turned, and Only in Dreams, but at the other end of the spectrum, My Name is Jonus and Surf Wax America are really uplifting. I tend to like albums that take you through the emotions, and this album does that. How do you feel when you hear the songs from that album played live? Earlier this year, I actually joined a Weezer tribute band, called Wheezed, and our first aim was to play the blue album in its entirety, which has been so much fun! Seeing how these great songs are constructed has given me a bunch of ideas that have helped me with my own songwriting, leading to some brand new Midland Railway songs I'm really proud of and enjoying playing. The blue album songs all seem to work really well live. They tend to be the songs people most want to hear (whether it's real Weezer or whether I'm playing with Wheezed), so you get so much crowd excitement, and everyone seems to know the words well enough to sing along, so these songs really seem to bring everyone together in quite a magical way. What is your favourite track and why? I have a particular soft spot for In The Garage. When the album came out, I was spending lots of my free time playing 2nd edition epic scale Warhammer 40k (from the Space Marine and Titan Legions box sets), and I had never heard a song like it before. Not only was the song about what we were doing, it was celebrating it, and in the best way possible, as it's an excellent tune. I had never felt able to relate to a song quite like this before. All these years later, it gave me the confidence to explore more niche interests in my own songwriting, and to really express myself through music. My Favourite Album With Nick From Midland Railway