Recommendations from ABoF HQ!

There are so many great bands we've worked with in the last wee while, we would love to share with you some of our recommendations.

First up, Cinemechanica! They are an absoloutely awesome band from Georgia, USA. The play jerky, hectic, gloriously catchy tunes and are one of the best live bands we've had the honour of promoting in the last 6 months or so.

You can check out their video below:



We also suggest you check out Shield Your Eyes who are currently rocking venues all over the UK. They recently supported The Paper Chase at The Metro (see our previous blog post for a review of the night!) and are wowing audiences wherever they land with their unique brand of messy math rock.

Shield Your eyes live action below:



And finally, a record that has been spinning us right round (baby right round - sorry!!)... The Melvins release forthcoming album Nude With Boots in June and this has been a constant on our ipods for the last few weeks.

More recommendations soon, we thought we'd keep it short and sweet for now!

Over and out.

14th May 2008 @ The Metro: The Paper Chase + One Unique Signal + Geordi La Force + Shield Your Eyes

We were very excited to have The Paper Chase in town. They are in the UK at the moment as they are playing ATP this weekend.

Shield Your Eyes have not had a bad word said against them so far in their short existence. They play a messy, noisy, gloriously shouty/mathy set. Stef's unique guitar howls inter spliced with heavy handed picking and thrashes make their set absoloutely captivating.

On with the show and with Geordi La Force. GLF is one man, one laptop, one guitar and lots of noise! He seems determined to bring the riff back into fashion and his spikey chords and twiddling riffs dazzle and confuse the crowd all at once, but in a good way! His set is a mixture of jazz, metal and 80s rock. Fascinating.

One Unique Signal have played for us many a time before. They have a way of really making a venue burst with the sound of their rocking layered guitars. Their set is intense and they create a ruckus ambiance.

The Paper Chase are mild-mannered, unassuming guys from Texas. Who would've known how intense and impassioned they become once they hit the stage. John Congleton's off-kilter vocals fit well with the shapes he pulls to the tense and abrasive music. There's something really disturbing about their sound but there's a melody in its underbelly, which keeps heads boobing and bodies rocking. You cannot deny that they write bloody excellent songs and they play a set comprised of some of their best moments from "Hide The Kitchen Knives" and "Now You Are One Of Us".

And with that, we're off to the Cro Bar to share some drinks and toast a birthday! If you didn't get the chance to catch The Paper Chase on their tour or at ATP, then make sure you do soon. They're a force to be reckoned with on stage and a live band you won't forget too soon.

2nd May 2008 @ The Fly: ABoF vs Southern Records Club!

April's club night was unbelievably busy and we were hoping to emulate the same vibe at this month's club.

As the new summer sun loomed over London town, we were worried that most folk would just want to sit outside and drink in the sun, not head down to a small, dark venue in central London. We were wrong.

The doors opened at around 7.30pm but it wasn't until around 8.30pm, when Fago Sepia hit the stage. Fago Sepia hail from France and they were in the UK, added to our bill at the last minute, as they were doing a short tour here. They have a sound that's almost reminiscent to June of 44 in some places but with less of that jazzy edge. Their performance is tight and highly enjoyable and leave the crowd wooping for more!

It's time for Amit Sharma to take his place centre stage. Amit used to play in Stasi, who are unfortunately no more. Fortunately for us, however, Amit agreed to bring his one man band to our night on Friday and he attracted quite a crowd. It's just Amit, one oddly shaped guitar and some recording equipment (forgive me, I'm not clued-up on the technical terms here!). He records loops of his voice, hand claps, and beats against his guitar to create gorgeous layers of simplistic and captivating melodies. His set begins and ends in rapturous applause as he fills The Fly's tiny space with his haunting tunes.

Upstairs, all is well as we DJ playing a mixture of Riddle of Steel, Les Savy Fav, Man or Astro Man and Check Engine. Downstairs, Embers are about to go on. We promoted a show for Embers amongst others back in March at The Good Ship. They made such an impression on us that we simply had to have them back. Their intertwining guitars and brilliant beats make them ones to watch.

Before the DJs hit

the decks proper style for the last part of the evening, the wonderful Pennines

rock the crowd and show us that jagged rock can definitely co-exist with melodic sensibility. Heads are bobbing, songs are rocking. There are moments of American Football in there and possibly even some softer elements of old Minus the Bear guitar soloing. Whatever their influences may be, they are absolutely rockin' it as May's headliners.

And so with Pennines, ends the live acts. However, as the crowds flood through the doors, DJ FTW and Southern Records hit those decks bringing back the awesome sounds of Southern's back catalogue along with a few cheeky cheesy numbers thrown-in for good measure. Rip This Joint, rip it up upstairs for the last part of the evening as The Attrocitator brings back a mix of 80s indie, pop and excellent numbers from bands such as Big Black downstairs. Smiley faces and jiving bodies are aplenty as the folks at The Fly hit the dancefloor.

As we enter summer we're fire-up for the next few installments of the ABoF vs Southern clubs. It's been great fun and it wouldn't be possible without the bands and the DJs. We're most definitely looking forward to the next one now, roll on the summer!