This is weird one; firstly I know nothing much of Priest of Beards beyond the fact that he’s
‘a local Leeds lad who’s been in various bands over the years and decided to go it alone. Too many egos to deal with – my own’s enough! I’ve been compared to Lemon Jelly, LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip. It’s just me though innit? I write, produce and do it all. I’ve so far released a single, an EP and an album.’
Mysterious enough for you?
This release is the first in 12 releases over the next year. And then we come to the track, the second of the things that make it weird. Now, I want you to bear with me here. What he does is sample global traditional and folk music, and mix it, make it electro. If you’re reaching for folktronica, stop right there. It isn’t. It’s more… hmmm, acid-y, like you can dance to it.
‘The Boor’ mixes Bhangra, warped folk dance music, a beat that’ll have you throwing shapes to the point of exhaustion, off-kilter electro sounds. And the thing is, it’s joyful, it’s compelling, it’s intense and mesmerising. And yes, it’s crazy, crazy good.
You might find yourself thinking ‘hmm, not sure. Interesting’ but give it a moment, time for your head to get round it. And then, if you’re anything like me, it will suddenly all make sense.
The next 11 months are going to be a journey, people. ‘The Boor’ is our starting point.
Recently my interest has been piqued by seeing a whole load of gig adverts from The Beer Snobs, but I just never got round to seeking out anything by the band to find out what they do. The next thing that happened was that Tom Priestley – performance poet and multi-instrumentalist, who just happens to be the drummer and harmonica player in The Beer Snobs – asked me to review an album he’d done. So I thought I’d better review their last release. Such is the life of a music reviewer; connections and coincidences coming at you from all angles.
I had basically not any sort of idea what the band might sound like but dear reader – and this is a spoiler – the band are very much my sort of thing.
What we are talking about here is a song with a rather wonderfully earwormy tune that’s kind of timeless. Hints of sixties pop, indie’s in there somewhere, a dash of the artfulness and archness of the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, an edge of a punk thing – especially in the vocals; it’s a heady mix to be sure.
And musically this is a band who know their stuff. There is just that wonderful simplicity to this; it’s sparse, somewhat DIY, but with these wonderful little touches that are just glorious. And I’ll pause here to make a special mention of the bass; oh boy we are talking bass as a lead instrument, it’s a yummy thing.
And this is before you even consider the words. Now the words are a wonderful thing; rye, a touch of humour and wonderfully uncomplicated – if you get what I mean.
But, and crucially, it brings a smile, a grin to your face, and a joy to your heart. You just can’t help but be happy and don’t we all need music that does that? Cheer yourself up, get yourself a dose of The Beer Snobs.
And while you’re at it check out their other releases.
The info
The Beer Snobs are:
Tom Priestley on Drums and Harmonica
Michael Dailey on Guitar and Vocals
David Sowden on Bass and Backing Vocals
I adore Luna Pines, they make music that is so compelling I find myself completely spellbound by it. I have yet to be disappointed by a release, and thankfully ‘little dreams’ isn’t at all a disappointment.; it’s beautiful.
The other thing I love about their songs is that they are about something; an emotion, a situation. Not knowing this doesn’t take away from the song but knowing it adds that extra something, it helps you to understand the feel and sound. There are two strands to this song, Lotte explains ‘little dreams’ is a song about my father, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s a few years ago and he is now very sick. We’ve always had a complicated relationship and this song is basically about me wishing I could change that, and his illness. He’s always been the best guitarist I’ve ever known, and recently his illness has meant he can no longer play. It’s kind of about lost dreams — I know he always wanted to be a touring musician but he never got there. The line ‘don’t get stuck, like the edge of my little dreams’ is basically him telling me not to follow that path, and make sure I can become as successful with music as he wasn’t’.
There is a feel to the track that fits and reflects this. It’s hard to put into words completely but there is certainly sadness, anxiety, unease and a yearning need. Some of this is conveyed by the contrast between the sumptuous electronica and the edgy beats. Another part comes from the emotional vocals that come with something of a child-like quality.
So it works on an emotional level but does it work purely on a musical level. Well of course it does. The slightly hazy and dreamy electronic sounds are mesmirising, meticulously crafted and beautiful. The vocal somehow manages to both be part of that rich sound but at the same time stand out and enchant you.
But add in that emotional level and you have a song which reaches into your soul as well as your ears. Beautiful, simply beautiful.
The lineup this year has bands such as Death Cult Electric and Lyoness who will be travelling from all over the UK for this years festivities, both of which include members of previous heavy hitters such as Estrons, Wonk Unit and Gallows, who will be bringing their music to Leeds for the first time in over 2 years.
The lineup also constitutes some of the biggest and brightest of the upcoming music scene at the moment including the likes of Kid Kapichi, Wooze, Avalanche Party and Faux Pas, who have between them toured with The Specials, released debut albums and incredible EP’s that have shook the UK music scene to the core.
The festival also includes a healthy dose of northern flavour in the form of New Meds and Rubber Rose who will be making their mark on the northern music scene once again on this
explosive lineup.
Rifffest #3
Belgrave Music Hall Leeds
Sat 29 Jan, 12:00 PM
With preparations for the 5th edition of TOMORROW’S GHOSTS FESTIVAL well underway, Whitby’s premier gothic arts and music festival has announced a new partnership for 2022.
The festival will be teaming up with the SOPHIE LANCASTER FOUNDATION. A charity committed to stamping out prejudice, hatred and intolerance everywhere, the ideals of the Sophie Lancaster Foundation and Tomorrow’s Ghosts couldn’t be any closer aligned.
A dedicated fan of all things gothic, Sophie Lancaster lived and breathed all the music, fashion and styles that make the subgenre so unique and beautiful. Sophie was cruelly attacked and murdered by a gang of boys simply because of what she looked like. The judge at her murder trial recognised the brutal unprovoked attack as a hate crime, equal to all other strands of hate. She was just 20 years old. In the wake of this tragedy, Sophie’s mother Sylvia set up a foundation in her name to promote a greater sense of empathy in society for those who are different and to fly the flag for those alternative people who make our communities greater places to be.
14 years on from Sophie’s tragic passing, Tomorrow’s Ghosts is honoured to be aiding the exceptional work of the Sophie Lancaster Foundation as a key partner at the 2022 festival. As well as having a stall at the event and talking about their work, the Foundation will be undertaking educational workshops with local schools in the run up to the festival.
Sylvia Lancaster
Speaking about their upcoming involvement in Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival, Sylvia Lancaster, Chief Executive of the Sophie Lancaster Foundation, and Sophie’s Mum, commented “We are so excited to be back in Whitby. From the very beginning, the Goth community took us to their hearts and I will always be so very grateful. It was the Whitby Goths who organised a petition to recognise Sophie’s murder as a hate crime and this has underpinned everything we do as a charity. What is wonderful, is that Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival is being developed with a shared mission to stamp out prejudice, hatred and intolerance everywhere. I always love our visits to Whitby and I look forward to working with Richard and the Festival team to develop an event that’s truly diverse and celebrates difference.”
Expressing the Festival’s delight to be working with the Sophie Lancaster Foundation, Richard Maides, Creative Director for Tomorrow’s Ghosts added “We are overwhelmed to confirm that one of our event partners will be the Sophie Lancaster Foundation. The joy of Tomorrow’s Ghost Festival is that our event appeals to an audience with a wonderfully broad taste in music, fashion and culture. This is to be celebrated. We believe our audience is one that is tolerant of the beliefs and appearance of all others in all walks of life and whatever path they may choose to take. We acknowledge that despite our audience having such tolerant and open minds, others sometimes do not. We are now in a privileged position to work with an organisation that at its core promotes the same values we have, which is to stamp out prejudice, hatred and intolerance everywhere.
By working closely with the Foundation and their team to promote their campaigns and also to develop our own work in Whitby, we believe we can collectively raise awareness about hate crime. We hope this will give our followers and others the resources to educate those around them to promote greater tolerance for all things in life.”
Sophie Lancaster was a young woman who was murdered for being different. She and her boyfriend were creative, artistic people who dressed in their own unique way. They were attacked by a gang of five boys in a park in Bacup, Lancashire on 11 August 2007. The gang attacked Sophie’s boyfriend first and then turned on her, carrying out a brutal and sustained attack. Sophie remained in hospital for 13 days, before following medical advice, the family agreed to life support being switched off. Sophie died on 24 August 2007; she was just 20 years old.
Sophie’s mother, Sylvia, had seen at first-hand the abuse and prejudice her daughter had previously been subjected to, because of how she dressed. During the long hours at hospital, Sylvia decided that when Sophie was better, they would go into schools and talk to young people about differences, and how it is ok to be who you are and express yourself in your own way. Sadly, Sylvia never got a chance to do this with Sophie.
Sylvia was determined that she would carry on this work and The Sophie Lancaster Foundation was established as a lasting legacy to a beautiful life cut short by violence. The charity works to promote tolerance and acceptance for others – however we are different, and champions alternative people in our communities. The Foundation’s mission to stamp out prejudice, hatred and intolerance everywhere, can be summed up in one word. SOPHIE.
ABOUT TOMORROW’S GHOSTS FESTIVAL 2022
The festival that unashamedly paints the town black, Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival will return to Whitby for Halloween 2022. The ultimate celebration of all things Gothic and alternative, the festival will return to its spiritual home between Friday 28th to Sunday 30th October 2022. A weekend that relishes in the darkest of arts, from music to markets, performance to literature, and so much more, the festival remains central to the wider events taking place across the town, the official birthplace of Dracula for what will be its fifth year.
Shaping-up to be a vintage year, The Loveless (a.k.a Marc Almond, Neal X, Mat Hector, Ben Ellis, and James Beaumont) were recently announced as the Saturday night headliner. They join a line-up sporting a smorgasbord of gothic desirables drawn from across Europe & the USA including original goth rock messiahs Fields of the Nephilim who will headline on the Friday night, plus very special guests Into A Circle, Ghost Dance, and Balaam And The Angel, as well as exclusive performances from Bootblacks, All My Thorns, AND Evil Blizzard present… ‘Blizzoween’.
Established in 2018, Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival takes place annually at The Pavilion in Whitby (UK). A celebration of all things Gothic that also embraces a wide range of alternative culture, the festival aims to host both established and up and coming bands to reflect the diversity of the goth and alternative music scene as well as similar highlights from the mediums of film, art, guest appearances and theatre. Previous editions have hosted acts including Wayne Hussey & The Divine, Peter Hook & The Light, New Model Army, Paradise Lost, Fields of the Nephilim, Pop Will Eat Itself, The Chameleons, Pink Turns Blue, Salvation, Evi Vine, The Membranes, The Eden House, Sometime The Wolf, The Society, Terminal Gods, Sweet Ermengarde Saigon Blue Rain, Christine Plays Viola, Mercury’s Antennae and Clan of Xymox.
Dabbling in the dark arts to provide one of the most unique festival experiences in the country, expect diverse performances and surreal happenings aplenty when Tomorrow’s Ghosts returns on Halloween weekend 2022.
TICKETS
Tickets for Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival are on general sale NOW. Links and prices are as follows:
Friday Night Tickets – 28th October 2022- £38.00 Advance STBF
General Sale: https://bit.ly/3l2LRlS
Saturday Night Tickets – 29th October 2022 – £38.00 Advance STBF
General Sale: https://bit.ly/3xiOMMd
Weekend Tickets – Friday 28th & Saturday 29th October 2022 – £70.00 Advance STBF
General Sale: https://bit.ly/3r6EjTg
Ages 8+
Under 14s to be accompanied by an adult over the age of 18 at all times. Over 18s only for after show club night events.
LINE UP SO FAR
Friday October 28th 2022
Headliner – Fields of the Nephilim
Special Guests – Ghost Dance
Evil Blizzard present Blizzoween
Bootblacks
Saturday October 29th 2022
Headliner – The Loveless
Special Guests – Into a Circle
Very Special Guests – Balaam And The Angel
All My Thorns
I fell, I fell hard, for this song in the first few moments of my very first listen. There’s a darkness to ‘Manic’, a brooding atmosphere that’s almost suffocating, That is until the soaring chorus kicks in. Keira’s vocals, intimate, slightly anxious; draw you into the heart of the song. Atmospheric sounds build the feel. I expected a build, synth rock songs do that, but it’s a slow burn to the explosion of sound, the power of Kiera’s voice hitting you in your soul.
‘Manic’ surprises with musical twists and turns. Unexpected sounds stab out, atmospheric washes of synth. But make no mistake for all it’s pop sensibility this is a rock song; it’s heavy, It’s just not done with those standard guitar sounds.
Keira explains what the song is about, “ ‘Manic is a song about generational trauma, you know? When you’re at a party and everyone’s wasted, getting too deep for their own good and realising we all walk around with our parents’ emotional baggage – this song is about saying that we don’t have to do that. We don’t have to struggle the same way. We can be free of that.”
Once you know that the song snaps into focus, you get that what the song is about is driving the feel and the sound. The anxiety and uncertainty, and the frustrated rage of it. The heavy darkness that hovers over the song.
Ava in the Dark are carving out a niche of their own; making music their own way with their own sound. I expected a great track from Ava in the Dark but this is beautiful, dark and beautiful. It is simply wonderful.
The info
There is a DIY aesthetic to Ava in the Dark, Lead singer Kiera and Guitarist Tommie retreated to their home studio (aka in the bedroom) with a laptop to write new music – ‘Manic’’ was self-produced and recorded entirely at home – mixed by two times GRAMMY Award-winning engineer Eduardo D.
TOMORROW’S GHOSTS FESTIVAL 2022 have announced their primetime Saturday night headliner
THE LOVELESS
Comprising the singular shadow-cast tones Marc Almond, the snaking melodies of Sigue Sigue Sputnik axeman Neal X, the thunderous rhythm section of Iggy Pop’s touring troupe Mat Hector and Ben Ellis, plus the haunting Hammond organ sound of the esteemed James Beaumont; together they are THE LOVELESS.
Making their Tomorrow’s Ghosts debut in 2022 with a headline set, expect the unexpected when The Loveless bring their devilishly dark arts to Whitby Pavilion next Halloween.
A project designed to take its constituent parts back to where they all began, The Loveless pledges itself to the pulp appeal of Garage Rock in its rawest, most gripping guise.
Drawing material from Marc Almond’s immense back catalogue as well as from the oeuvres of Lou Reed to David Bowie, warped 60s R&B staples to lost garage-rock gems, The Loveless could be accused of being a “covers band”. And yet with a demonstrative talent for chiselling cuts down to their most primeval rock roots, it’s one that has seen the band steal the claim for being “Britain’s best garage rock band” (Louder Than War).
First appearing on the live stage in 2019, The Loveless spent the lockdown of the last few years recording their debut studio release. A self-titled 7-track mini album released just before Christmas 2020, the record saw swaggering Iggy Pop covers (“Kill City”) rubbing shoulders with leather-clad garage originals (Shadows of Knight’s “Dark Side”); dark dancehall standards (“Putty In Your Hands” by John Patton and Eddie Snyder) sparring with daring mash-ups of Deep Purple and The Sweet. And despite the insidious nature of gentrification that has made the area a theme park of its former self, guitarist Neal X swears the ghosts of old Soho make their presence felt in the twilight hours and late-night grooves of The Loveless’ version of Smoky’s ‘Hot, Hard & Ready’.
Having played just a handful of live shows since their formation, The Loveless’ headline set at Whitby’s Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival will be a rare opportunity to see some of the world’s finest musicians in unbridled form and embracing their dark sides. Miss this at your peril.
PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED
Already shaping-up to be a vintage year, The Loveless will join a line-up sporting a smorgasbord of gothic and alternative desirables drawn from across Europe & the USA.
Headlining the Friday night, original goth rock messiahs Fields of the Nephilim have been previously announced to be topping the bill that night. One of Goth’s most significant artists, Carl McCoy and co. will be reacquainting audiences with their magnetic, macabre appeal and a boundary-pushing arsenal that includes scintillating singles such as “Moonchild”, “Psychonaut”, “Summerland” and so much more.
Elsewhere, other incredible acts confirmed to be appearing at Whitby’s premier gothic and alternative arts festival include very special guests Into A Circle, Ghost Dance, and Balaam And The Angel, as well as exclusive performances from Bootblacks, All My Thorns, AND Evil Blizzard present… ‘Blizzoween’.
TOMORROW’S GHOSTS FESTIVAL 2022
The only festival unafraid to paint the town black, Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival will return to Whitby for Halloween 2022. The ultimate celebration of all things Gothic and alternative, the festival will return to its spiritual home between Friday 28th to Sunday 30th October 2022. A weekend that relishes in the darkest of arts, from music to markets, performance to literature, and so much more, the festival remains central to the wider events taking place across the town, the official birthplace of Dracula for what will be its fifth year.
Dabbling in the dark arts to provide one of the most unique festival experiences in the country, expect diverse performances and surreal happenings aplenty when Tomorrow’s Ghosts returns on Halloween weekend 2022.
Whitby Pavilion, Whitby
Friday 28th October – Sunday 30th October 2022
TICKETS
Tickets for Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival are on general sale NOW. Links and prices are as follows:
Friday Night Tickets – 28th October 2022- £38.00 Advance STBF
General Sale: https://bit.ly/3l2LRlS
Saturday Night Tickets – 29th October 2022 – £38.00 Advance STBF
General Sale: https://bit.ly/3xiOMMd
Weekend Tickets – Friday 28th & Saturday 29th October 2022 – £70.00 Advance STBF
General Sale: https://bit.ly/3r6EjTg
Ages 8+
Under 14s to be accompanied by an adult over the age of 18 at all times. Over 18s only for after show club night events.
LINE UP SO FAR
Friday October 28th 2022
Headliner – Fields of the Nephilim
Special Guests – Ghost Dance
Evil Blizzard present Blizzoween
Bootblacks
Saturday October 29th 2022
Headliner – The Loveless
Special Guests – Into a Circle
Very Special Guests – Balaam And The Angel
All My Thorns
I’ve said it before but, for me, a great song is all about great words and great music where the words are reflected in the music (and indeed vice versa). In ‘Levels of Insanity’ this is so wonderfully so but these are not songs. This is poetry with a fabulously atmospheric backing.
Before I go on I am not known to be a great fan of poetry, perhaps even less so of performance poetry; but the pieces on this album grabbed me, they grabbed me somewhere deep down inside.
Because this is poetry, the short time I’ve had with this album has not been enough to explore the pieces is just not enough. Indeed this is something to return to time and time again to immerse yourself in Tom’s words and world.
The album opens with what is perhaps the closest to what we might call a song – ‘Dead Planet’.To a frankly banging musical backing – that sits somewhere in the area covered by The Fall, psychedelic surf and psychobilly – Tom spits the words in his very own way. This way has, to my mind, hints of Mark Smith and John Cooper Clarke. But this is distinctively of Yorkshire and more importantly Leeds. The words are dark and go straight for the throat.
The pieces go from the dark and darkness of ‘Subliminal’ to a languid smoky mysterious piano, to the tortured rock of ‘Itch’ (which strangely has me in mind of ‘What A Waste’). ‘Nowhere Street’ is set to a madcap mix-up of prog and weirdly folky punk. The words tell of a place that is both nowhere and everywhere. This is dark humour, this is addictive.
The haunting ‘Maze of Death’ evokes visions of the path of life; while musically the atmospheric tone poem evokes more than a hint of religious music.
The biting words of ‘Welcome Back’ take a hit at the Brit Expats who voted for Brexit and now have to return to a Britain of austerity and decay. This is not kind, justifiably not kind at all. The music here evokes a Spanish feel appropriately. ‘Virus’ is a kaleidoscope of images, the words take flight, they build word on word; like jazz they build on themselves, taking you further down the rabbit hole.
‘The Factory Song’ evokes the suffocating reality of the world of manual employment, of working to live, the dead end of life once you get there. It tells this over to a backing that builds to a sonic scream.
‘Levels of Insanity’ is a compelling album that combines words and music in a very special way. The music reflects the words of the pieces but they do more; they add layers of meaning. This is a fantastic collection of pieces that take your mind on a journey that is dark but enlightening. They are of now but at the same time timeless.
If you’re a lover of poetry the album will tick all of your boxes, and perhaps boxes you never knew you had. If you’re not sure about it then this will change your mind.
The info
Tom Priestley is a Leeds performance poet and multi-instrumentalist. He also plays drums for Leeds’s band The Beer Snobs;
Why in name of all that is unholy have I ever not heard anything by Pornographic Sunset before. I have, of course, seen the name – which the band describe as ‘a superficially tranquil name with disturbing undertones’ – and been somewhat unsettled by it (which of course is a good thing).
If you’ve been unsettled by the name in a bad way, then the music’s gonna freak you out. For this is a band who throw musical convention and the concept of genre to the ground and tread on it hard until it lies twisted and torn.
Opening track ‘Self in Solution’ opens sounding like some fucking scary Gothic doom metal track; sounds are twisted and warped. But, and I kid you not, it then bursts briefly into bluegrass, before mutating into acid drenched doom rock and then further into ramshackle shoegaze with a hint of jazz strangeness.
This may sound horrible or, at the very least, a mess but it isn’t. This is very much a cohesive track; the sections merge into each other in a strangely beautiful way, that is unless the band don’t want them to. And this isn’t of course something new. The band say ‘the past, as has been often said, is prologue’.and in the case of their music that prologue has included – and I’m making assumptions here – Frank Zappa, Tom Waits, Captain Beefheart, avant-garde jazz rock, strange Goth bands, Cardiacs, The Band of Holy Joy, the extremes of progressive rock, acid rock and psychedelia. I’d then add in Doom Metal and noise rock, and anything else that builds on these. It is of course entirely possible that they took all that and then ignored it. Please bear this in mind as we go onto the next track.
‘Session with Dr. Michaelson’ sounds like progressive jazz rock – and in particular The Hedvig Mollestad Trio – crossed with later period Tom Waits, Marilyn Manson and Bauhaus. Totally out there drumming, discordant keys, trumpet, jazz guitar to name but a few. This is truly disturbing and incredibly beautiful, as it builds to all out sonic assault.
‘Diabolical’ is a Pornographic Sunset take on the angular post-punk funk of The Gang of Four or Public Image. That is until it suddenly mutates into something that comes out of West Coast rock with the most wonderful Santana like ending. And this my friends grooves like fuck, it will not only move your feet but your internal organs.
And that is it, well it is unless you get the EP they distribute on USB sticks at their gigs. If you do that, and you should, you get an extra track. ‘Dead People’.
This comes across as a cross between the wilder excesses of The Incredible String Band, The Band of Holy Joy, insane punk, weird spoken voice, psychedelic acid rock, early Pink Floyd and grunge. It is epic in all of its 6 minutes and 22 seconds.
Although this is obviously genre defying music, what this EP demonstrates is that this isn’t a band doing this just for kicks; it’s the sound of a band doing their own thing and doing that so wonderfully. They don’t have to worry about fitting into a musical niche because they’re already in a niche; their own niche with space for them and them only.
And although it might help you get their music if you have something of a hold on the eclectic music that came before, it’s not a necessity. You just need to let go of the conventional, the expected and open yourself up to the unconventional and the unexpected.
This is one of the most incredible fucking things I’ve heard in a long time. Inventive, clever, and way way way out there. Just do it people.
The info
It is not often I reproduce a bio in full and without edit but it seems entirely appropriate here. The band say
Ballistically bright and impossible to restrain, oblivious to expectations and wilfully ignorant of boundaries and ‘good taste’, Pornographic Sunset are a firework display against the night sky of reality. The EP, Gold; Flesh; Dirt fizzes with dangerous levels of exuberance and invites your body to move in sympathetic abandon. Even those who grow anxious at the very suggestion of tripping the light fantastic may find their internal organs twitching in a disconcerting display of unprecedented cool.
This proudly Leeds-based band know what they’re doing is right and it’s up to you to work out why. Comparisons serve little purpose here but, were you to seek kindred spirits, you might tip your hat towards Martin Bisis’s work at B.C. Studio (one time home to Sonic Youth, Swans, Cop Shoot Cop and the like); or you might haul out an old copy of C/Z records compilation Teriyaki Asthma and wonder how Pornographic Sunset managed to catapult themselves some thirty years into the future.
At any event, comparisons lack lustre when grinding riffs give way to chicken-pickin’ country
grooves via lysergic indie drones, so it’s probably just easier to admit defeat, pick up the EP and play it at neighbour-threatening volume until the ceiling collapses.
Pornographic Sunset are an incredible live proposition and that is the medium they value the most, so when Gold; Flesh; Dirt is released view it as an invitation to the carnival of their on stage performance. In fact, while three of the songs that make up this EP will be available
digitally via all major platforms, the only way to get all four songs will be on specially engraved USB sticks, distributed exclusively at Pornographic Sunset shows. Stand and watch from the poolside and nothing about this band will make any sense…but dive in head first and you may just have the time of your life!
If the world truly does get the media it deserves, then the ravaged remains of the UK both deserve and require the services of Pornographic Sunset. As the band themselves are fond of saying: “it’s just a bad dream”.
Line-up:
Daniel B. – Vocals
Dave M. – Guitar
Josh H. – Drums
Roger M. – Bass
I heard Luka perform ‘Happy’ at the Monomyth Christmas Do and loved it. Obviously, or perhaps not so obviously, that was her voice and acoustic. So it’s interesting to compare and contrast with the studio track.
While it may be richer musically, of which more in a bit, it’s Luka’s voice that is very much the focus; and that still has the emotional impact of the song I heard live. In fact, while the live version had the invaluable addition of it being live, the richer sound supports and multiples the impact. Not beyond the live version, live is always special, but in a different way.
There is a musical interpretation of the song – from the sadness of the start of the song with moody edgy guitar to the swell and joy of song as it progresses. I say joy but both vocal and music portray an edge to that, a hint that all is not entirely happy.
And musically this is a many layered arrangement; one to listen to properly. There are sounds that are unexpected – a grunge like guitar that appears at the end of the track – to the sounds that add atmosphere – the horn like tones at the start and much more. It’s truly absorbing and compelling. But it is Luka’s words and voice that really grab you, and these are both wonderful.
With every song I hear from Luka I fall deeper musically in love. ‘Happy’ is simply wonderful.
The info