Big Big Love

Hope all are well.  I’m on my last day of a week off work.  It’s been good to know what morning lie ins and al fresco drinking are like again.  We’re off to Alton Towers tomorrow with all the Leeds & Preston crew then I’m out with the Bolton boys in Manchester.  It should be good.

This blog is all about the Indie music.  With the exception of Queen & U2 in my early teens this is really got me into music thanks to John, Matt, Bally, Sam, Anders & the Evening Session.  Big shout outs to you guys.  These are some of my favourite Indie tunes with a wedding party edge to them.

The first one is Whatever by Oasis.  This was probably the first tune I’d heard from that made me properly listen to them.  For the next 3 or 4 years (along with everyone else) I was hooked on them.  I still think this is the best one though.  Notice Liam Gallagher’s proper singing voice on this.  Smit and I had the misfortune to see their last ever gig at V2010.  It was appalling.  Their version of I Am The Walrus must have had John Lennon spinning in his grave.  Anyway hope you enjoy this version from Jools Holland in 1996.

Next up is a band that I confess I’ve never massively been into.  They were the Jake’s Bar house band for month’s when we used to go out on a Friday night accompanied by Robbie Wells & Chris Wood’s violent pogo-ing in and around.  Like I say I’ve never really been into them but I saw them play at Live 8 and they were superb, this being the best one.  It’s In The Morning by Razorlight.

This was the band I watched at Glastonbury rather than Stevie Wonder and they were great.  If you ever get a chance to see Empire Of The Sun then go and see them for their stage show if nothing else.  Very theatrical and very very loud.  I always get a good reaction whenever I play this.  A great tune.

Radiohead are acknolowledged as being the best and most popular indie in Britain at the moment.  They’ve definitely been the most consistent although I confess I’m not the biggest fan of The Kings Of Limbs (the remix album is much better).  One band I think could be better than them though is Foals.  I’ve seen them play 3 times now and have nailed it each time.  Both albums are ace but Total Like Forever is a classic already.  Not one bad song on it.  In honour of the old and new are 2 classics from them both.

Radiohead aren’t really standard wedding music so it’s a struggle to find something to play at night events.  This is “Just” although more downbeat selections would be “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi”, “Fake Plastic Trees” & “Videotape”.

This is “This Orient” by Foals.  IF YOU HAVEN’T ALREADY YOU NEED TO BUY THIS ALBUM! Shout outs to Johnboy!!

I can’t get enough of this next tune at the moment.  The Rapture brought out Echoes nearly 10 years ago which had some belters on esp.  The House Of The Jealous Lovers (check out the Cosmos mix).  I never really bothered with them after that as I thought they’d gone off.  This however is a modern classic. 3 mins 54 in is ace ace ace!!  I’m still not sure about the new album but this one stands up there with the best (IMO).  Massive shout outs to Sam and Smit for this one!!

I couldn’t believe after seeing this next video that The Killers are from Las Vegas.  I think this sounds like a classic British indie tune and I think the video goes really well with it.  This video was replaced with a more American influenced Anton Corbijn version later on which I think represents well what happened to The Killers.  I think their record company got heavily involved in their sound.  Anyway this tune is top.

Bloc Party should have been much bigger than they were.  I think was due to the 2nd album being so spectacularly bad!!!  It’s mystifying as Silent Alarm is a truly brilliant album.  This is Positive Tension and its ace!!

LCD Soundsystem are ace.  Every album they’ve done has been brilliant especially Sound Of Silver.  We’ve seen them a few times at Leeds Uni and supporting Daft Punk (ace ace ace) but the best performance was a few years ago at Glastonbury.  Although Daft Punk Are Playing In My House isn’t my favourite this performance was amazing esp. with the sun going down on the Sunday night.  Check out Pat Mahony on the drums.  He did a disco mix with James Murphy (the singer) for Fabric a few years ago (http://www.fabriclondon.com/store/catalog/product/view/id/80/s/fabriclive-36/category/8/) which was top.  I’ve just realised that I’ve not got it on my computer so I’ve just downloaded it again.

If you’ve never heard anything by LCD then go out and buy the lot.

If I could see myself in a band it would be LCD otherwise it would be Primal Scream.  I once made it into an NME review of a Primal Scream concert when I was at uni for slating them mid gig.  They’d already gone off once as somebody had thrown a glass at them.  I lost it the 2nd time they went off.  Before all this though I heard the 5 best live tunes I’d every heard.  They were that good!  Anyway, this one is off one of their less successful albums Give Out But Don’t Give Up called Call On Me.

Anyway I could be here all day so I’ll just leave you with 5 more less party driven but still ace tunes.

I’m been having a roam around the internet looking at wedding blogs.  This one is pretty good with loads of good unique wedding photo shots (http://www.rockmywedding.co.uk/).  I can’t find much on wedding dj’ing though.

Anyway I’m off.  I’ll see you soon.  I’m looking forward to Martin’s tunes hopefully coming soon.

Simon

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