The Hangover Lounge's 5th Birthday

Glasgow's a great, great city.  Culturally, it's vibrant to an almost insane degree.  It's hard to keep up with everything that's going on so you miss more than you see.  What it doesn't have, however, is The Hangover Lounge.  You have to go to London for that.  The weekend after next (May, 26th) it celebrates it's 5th birthday with a gig at its regular home, The Lexington, featuring 3 special groups:

My love for Birdie knows no bounds.  Debsey Wykes possesses one of the finest pop voices ever to be etched into vinyl.  I was lucky enough to see Birdie a little over a year ago (thanks, again, to The Hangover Lounge team) so I know what I'll be missing by not being to see them next week.  Amor de Dias and Hacia Dos Veranos have created two of the loveliest, classiest lps of the year so far and both will keep things thoughtful and sophisticated.  With this show to look forward to and the memory of Robert Forster's appearance at their recent celebration of the life and work of his fellow Go-Between, Grant McLennan, The Hangover Lounge Organising Committee must be sporting smiles as wide as 70s flares.  If at all possible, be there on the 26th.  There's not even the remotest chance that you'll regret it!

Chickfactor 2012: For the love of pop! London

With Indietracks and the London Olympics both now (warming, nourishing) memories, Not Unloved was in dire need of something to look forward to.  Chickfactor's recently announced November weekend of pure pop joy. therefore, couldn't be more welcome.  Saturday, 17th November is shaping up to be a day to remember: The Pastels are my favourite group ever, Amor de Dias made my favourite lp of 2012 and Bush Hall looks like a smashing venue. Phew!  The Sunday line-up, too, is a studded with diamonds:  Tender Trap's new lp has been receiving great notices, Would-be-goods were classy and lovely at the Hangover Lounge weekender earlier this year and there's a rare chance to catch Pipas live.  Tickets are sure to shift quickly so best head here and here before too long for tickets!

Not Unloved's favourite things of 2011

Albums of 2011

1. Amor de Dias "Street of the Love of Days" (Porcini Music)
2. Crystal Stilts "In Love With Oblivion" (Fortuna Pop/Slumberland)
3. Veronica Falls "s/t" (Bella Union/Slumberland)
4. Sea Lions "Everything You Wanted To Know About Sea Lions But Were Afraid To Ask" (Slumberland)
5. The New Lines "All That We See and Seem" (Great Pop Supplement)
6. Motion Sickness of Time Travel "Luminaries and Synastry" (Type)
7. The Bats "Free All The Monsters" (Flying Nun)
8. Girls Names "Dead To Me" (Tough Love)
9. Sea Pinks "Dead Seas" (C/F) / Former Bullies "Golden Chains" (C/F)
10. Sweet Bulbs "s/t" (Blackburn)
11. Dum Dum Girls "Only In Dreams" (Sub Pop)
12. Comet Gain "The Howl of the Lonely Crowd" (Fortuna Pop)
13. Real Estate "Days" (Domino)
14. Still Corners "Creatures of an Hour" (Sub Pop)
15. Big Troubles "Romantic Comedy" (Slumberland)
16. The Garbage and The Flowers "Stoned Rehearsal" (Quemada)
17. PJ Harvey "Let England Shake" (Island)
18. Hong Kong in the 60s "My Fantoms" (Proper Songs)
19. The Babies "s/t" (Shrimper)
20. Chain and The Gang "Music's Not For Everyone" (K)

(There are a few lps on my Christmas list that I'm sure would've made the 20 but since I haven't heard them yet,they're not included!)

Singles of 2011

1. Veronica Falls "Bad Feeling" (Bella Union/Slumberland)
2. Golden Grrrls "New Pop" (Night School)
3. Terry Malts "Something About You" (Slumberland)
4. Real Estate "Green Aisles" (Domino)
5. On Fell "Untitled" (the first one!) (Moteer)
6. The Motifs / The Zebras "split" (Knock Yr Socks Off)
7. The New Lines "Please Fall In Love" (self-released)
8. Snails "She'd Like An Hour" (Great Pop Supplement)
9. Bleached "Carter" (Art Fag)
10. Wax Idols "All Too Human" (HoZac)

(e.p.s/12"s of the year may follow soon!)

Reissue of 2011

Penny and The Quarters "You and Me" (7", Numero)

Gigs of 2011

1. The Pastels at The Platform (Eastern Promise 2011)
2. Hollie Cook at Glasgow Afro Caribbean Centre
3. Korallreven at Nice'n'Sleazy
4. The Hobbes Fanclub at Heavenly (Glasgow Popfest 2011)
5. Tyvek/The Pheromoans at The Captain's Rest
6. Ducktails/Big Troubles/Julian Lynch at The Captain's Rest

The Pastels' performance at The Platform really was something incredibly special.  I tried to write a review of it for Not Unloved at the time but somehow the right words didn't come in the right order and I couldn't do it justice.  But then, how do you express in words that feeling in your heart when Stephen Pastel nonchalantly swigged his beer then used his bottle as a slide before casually turning his amp to blissful on "Baby Honey"?  The whole group was together and you could see from their smiles and the looks they exchanged afterwards that they, too, knew they'd been part of something memorable and way beyond the ordinary.

Amor de Dias "Dream (Dead Hands)"

As of today the debut album from Amor de Dias is streaming on the Merge Records site.  I tend not to listen to records ahead of their release date as it diminishes the thrill of walking home from the record shop wishing and hoping but I couldn't wait to hear "Street of the Love of Days" so an exception was made.  So far I've made it to the seventh song and, well, haven't been able to move to the eighth yet.  "Dream (Dead Hands)" is without doubt the prettiest 3 minutes and 47 seconds of new music I've heard since 2010 gave way to 2011.  It's as intimate and as beautifully clear-voiced as Chuck and Mary Perrin at their "Violets of Dawn" best.  It's as delicate and moving as Blueboy at their "If Wishes Were Horses"/"Unisex" best.  I'm sure I've written of this phenomenon before (ain't nothing new under the sun, sonny!), but I know when I truly love a song because when it plays I can't really decipher the words, can't focus on them.  My guess is that so much of my head is taken up trying to appreciate the sheer beauty of the music and the voices and the arrangement that higher brain functions like language just have to take a back seat for a while until it's all processed and understood and its place in the pantheon of my favourite music established.  This inability to fully grasp the song, however, means I'm compelled to play it over and over again to the point where I get a bit over-emotional and all fizzing with the need to evangelise about it.  It happened when I first heard The Field Mice, it happened when I first heard Alasdair from Amor de Dias's other group The Clientele and it's happening now with "Dream (Dead Hands)".  Just the other day I was lamenting the fact that I hadn't heard too many genuinely brilliant albums so far this year.  If the remaining 8 tracks are as majestic as the first 7, "Street of the Love of Days" will be one of the few.  Excitingly, it's only 7 days - 17th May - until the vinyl and cd hit the record shops.