Jah Wobble & Tian Qiyi - Mystic Liverpool: The Beatles' Psychedelic Songbook (Cherry Red)

Driving home the other day to the sound of Echo and the Bunnymen's remastered Ocean Rain, the mood was somewhat spoilt by the inclusion of the band's version of All You Need is Love among the additional tracks. Covering The Beatles, it struck me not for the first time, is generally not a good idea.

There are exceptions, though. I'd name The Breeders' version of Happiness is a Warm Gun as my favourite Beatles cover version. Still, it didn't prevent me from approaching this album with some apprehension. Jah Wobble's sons - who record collectively as Tian Qiyi - produced one of last year's best albums with their Songs For Workers, so it seemed only right to give this release, where they team up with dad to take on some of the fabs' more psychedelically-inclined outpourings - a chance. 

I'm glad I did. For me, there are few better examples of recorded music that Strawberry Fields

Forever, where of course Lennon ignored George Martin's scepticism to take the two arrangements they'd tried and put them together, producing one of the greatest moments of the sixties in the process. To my surprise and delight, Jah Wobble and Tian Qiyi manage to pull off a cover of said track brilliantly and without, you suspect, any of the original's studio sorcery, and it's this you can hear in my Dandelion Radio show this month (here).

Where the rest of the album works best is often in the more under-the-radar Beatles tunes (if there can be said to be such a thing). The treatment of Blue Jay Way is a particular delight, as is the instrumental Flying, both of course originally from the Magical Mystery Tour EP. My mumbled 'careful, boys' at the attempt at the EP's most notable track - I Am The Walrus - is thankfully ignored: this version is wonderfully understated. Much as I'm tempted to stick on a recording of King Lear while playing it, for posterity's sake, I'm happy to report that the recording works perfectly well without it.

Mystic Liverpool is out today: get it from Cherry Red here.

The Ale Trail: The Little Taproom on Aigburth Road, Liverpool

Another micropub to celebrate in the Liverpool area, The Little Taproom has four handpulls and, if nothing there takes your fancy, there are some more on keg and a fridge filled with interesting cans. Dogs aren't just allowed but positively welcomed and last night was quiz night: we decided to enter and, despite occupying first place at half-time, messed up badly in the late stages to finish a disappointing fifth.

But it didn't matter. The quality of the ale is matched by the quality of the service: bar staff go above and beyond to be friendly, bringing water for the dog and touring the various tables to enquire about further orders. The rest of the pub was clearly filled with regulars but you're immediately welcomed as one of them and the dog was treated to an especially warm greeting.

Best pint for me was the Present coffee mild, another from the consistently excellent Thornbridge stable of ales, but it was run a closer second by the local Black Lodge brewery's Raisin' The Sail, in which the raisins add some punch to a solid bitter but never overwhelm. We'd popped into a couple of other places before this in search of something to eat (a better option might have been the Little Taproom's invitation to bring in your own food) and both had stocked almost exclusively lighter ales, which is fair enough given the time of year and this excessively hot British summer. But for those of us who prefer the dark side whatever the season, it's always great to find places that provide the option.

Armagideon Time: When Punk Met Dub (1978-1984) (Cherry Red)

It's hard to understand how a box set thus titled could fail and, predictably, it doesn't. The great thing about the best of these Cherry Red box sets is how they manage to combine what you know and already love with stuff you may missed out on first time around, or else has been lost among the fading memories of an ageing brain.

This 3CD set gleefully sets up punk/dub crossovers by the usual punk suspects - The Slits, The Clash, The Ruts - with the usual dub suspects - Dillinger, Linto Kwesi Johnson, Mad Professor - but, even more gleefully, doesn't stop there. Dub delights I've either forgotten or hitherto overlooked come from the like of Boomtown Rats, XTC and Sir Horatio. Other oddities are much-underestimated scouse outfit Cook Da Books and, gak, Thompson Twins. Back to the reassuringly predictable, we get a couple of 2-Tone cuts and another chance to hear The Pop Group's She Is Beyond Good & Evil, if you needed it - and who doesn't?

I'm playing one track from each of the three CDs in my FSK show this month. See it as a taster for an album whose magnificence is entirely precitable while the variety of what's on offer still manages to surprise and delight in roughly equal measures.

Zoom Unit - Sine Cosine Tangent

New releases from this Mansfield duo are always welcome so it's great we never have to wait too long between them. It's been less than a year since Astrocone Copperneck and Cyclops and we've had three excellent singles to keep us warm since then. This new album includes those three singles, a Leonard Cohen cover and a bunch of previously unheard tracks that do more that mould any expectations built up over that time into a form that exceeds them. The result is arguably their best album to date.

But Zoom Unit - who comprise Andy Whitehurst and Andy Pidluznyi - have been delivering for so long now any kind of misstep now feels unthinkable. I'm playing In a Lucid Dream in my FSK show this month (hear the show on-demand here) a track that combines dense electronic backing with the kind of out-of-control guitar thing some bands do which I just never get tired of. It's like taking some kind of sonic sledgehammer to something much-cherished and somehow managing to make it even better.

If other tracks are less frantic, and perhaps more representative of the anticipated Zoom Unit sound, they're no less pleasing for it (the breathy The Stars At Night is a particular favourite) and there's an unexpected delight at the end of the collection when the cover of Cohen's Tower of Song metamorphoses into something so immediately recognisable as Zoom Unit you'd swear they'd resurrected the bard of Montreal as an unofficial third member. Overstating it a bit, perhaps, but I'm prone to that when something excites me as much as this album does.

You can get the album as a CD or NYP download here. 

Daniel Jumpertz - City Frames Our Broken Dreams Again/Shadows (Feral Media)

Daniel Jumpertz's run of recent singles has been so impressive I reserve a provisional slot in my shows every time I hear of a forthcoming release. It's therefore not surprising that his latest release is (a) utterly great and (b) features in both of my shows this month. You can hear City Frames Our Broken Dreams Again in my Dandelion Radio show - available on-demand here - and the instrumental Shadows in my FSK show here.

Jumpertz is the owner of the excellent Feral Media label, based in Melbourne and responsible for releases in recent years by the likes of Brad Stafford, Clairaudience and The Artificial Limb, all of which are worth checking out at the label's bandcamp. Dig back further and you'll find the likes of Plankton, Underlapper and Comatone, all of whom are worth your attention. In fact, it's worth setting a side a day just to look through their back catalogue: what's in there is always interesting and at times breathtaking.

But it's Daniel's own releases that have provided many of the recent highlights. This single follows last's autumn's Everything Is Lost and spring's I Would Never Do That To You, both of which were great favourites. I'm going to stick my neck out and say this is the best of the three, though. City Frames in particular is magnificent, cinematic in scope with a driving riff that feels like you're being propelled through those city streets and its panorama of images that are somehow both familiar and bewildering. 

Get the single here.

Stand High Patrol - Skanking & Jacking (Stand High)

I'm in danger of repeating myself here, but there's so much good reggae around at the moment: every month seems to throw up another roots/dub masterpiece. The frighteningly hot British weather this summer has been the ideal setting in which to enjoy it and the amount of great new stuff this year has meant I haven't been able to treat the neighbours to their normal summer diet of Culture and Steel Pulse. 

This French release brings in house music influences to add textural variety to what, you suspect, would be an extraordinary listening experience even without it. As it is, 'bringing together the the pulse of house music and the vibrant groove of reggae', as the sleeve notes put it, results in one hell of an intoxicating mix.

Skanking & Jacking draws on a variety of international contributors too, with guest vocalists and producers from Jamaica, England, Switzerland and Italy. Just when you think its nine tracks have covered just about everything you'd want it to cover, there are remixes from Jeanville, Mad Professor and Androo to stir the put some more.

I couldn't make my mind up which tracks to feature in my Dandelion and FSK shows this month (click on the links to hear them on-demand) so I just went for the first two: the rich contours of Walk Walk Walk and the seductive Too Much Noise, which features a vocal contribution from Joe Yorke.

British Birds - Lie Down With Dogs, Stand Up With Fleas (Skep Wax)

With this joyous slice of indie pop, British Birds present one of the records of the year, no question. I opened my FSK show with it yesterday and you can now hear it on-demand here. 

The single will feature on the Murmurate, Oscillate album in October and we can only hope the rest of the selection is as good as this, where dual boy/girl vocals offer a commentary on the helpless consumer as unwilling victim as capitalism does what it does, wrecking everything it touches. The song sacrifices nothing of its message when dressed in infectious pop hooks, behind which hooks lie humour, rhythmic innovation, sub-garage guitars: you're left stunned that something so simple and immediate can reveal so many layers the more you listen to it. If you wondered if the three-minute single had lost its ability to do all this, here is your answer.

And I find myself wanting to listen to it...again and again. 

You can get the single as a cassette which also contains the track Christian (well worth a listen in itself) or as a download here. 

The band are playing a short series of shows starting in October with an acoustic gig at London's Rough Trade West on 17 October. On 24 October, they play Bootleg Social in Blackpool before returning to London at the Lexington on 11 December. A full headline tour of the UK will follow in 2027. Can't wait.

Rizomagic - Cumbion Planetario (Soundway)

I haven't played much cumbia in my Dandelion or FSK shows for quite some time and I'm not sure I can claim to have done so now because this release, although it draws on cumbia influences, throws in so much else besides it become hard to classify, which of course is what I prefer most of all.

Based in Bogota, this duo of Edgar Marun and Diego Manrique throw together electronic sounds, self-created instruments and field recordings to create a mix of electronic soundscapes that's as marvellous as it is, at times, bewildering. After considerable thought, I've concluded that 'throw' rather than 'piece' is the appropriate verb here: the sampled birdsong is apparently a natural occurrence culled from the recording locale and this clash of naturally occurring sounds and drawn-together electronic rhythms is what puts the magic into Rizomagic.

I'm playing El Sombras in my Dandelion Radio this month: hear it on-demand here.

Get the album here. 

The Ale Trail: The Ship & Mitre, Liverpool

Stiff competition when it comes to the best pub in Liverpool City Centre, but this great boozer nor far from the Queensway tunnel entrance has had my vote for a while and a quick visit last night reconfirmed it. Aside from the great ale selection, which of course is the most crucial factor, I love the layout and decor - a kind of wayward take on 1930s art deco, with the kind of sprawling, sectioned layout that gives an intimate feel even though the pub isn't a small one. It's the kind of setting that looks different depending on where you choose to sit.

The Ship & Mitre is situated on Dale Street. Another decent pub, The Exelsior is practically next door to it: it's worth a visit too but pales in comparison with the mighty S&M (if that's not a misleading abbreviation). They serve the local scouse delicacy plus a vegetarian option and there's a handpump with a scouse stout on: the idea is you pour some into your food to enrich it. 

I prefer my stout drunk rather than eaten so, with that in mind, I opted for the Early Days porter, a well-established favourite from Manchester's Blackjack microbrewery. If you like your stouts and porters, the Ship is a great place for them. They also have a couple of stouts on keg. If you don't, you'll find something to your taste among their eight changing handpulls.

Muflon Dub Soundsystem & Irie D - Mission Ignition (Dupophonic)

Based in Cyprus, Dubophonic are another dub label who never seem to put a foot wrong, delivering high quality dub releases on a regular basis and Muflon Dub Soundsystem more than pull their weight when contributing to that output.

Apparently we can expect many more collaborations with Greek vocalist Irie-D but this'll more than do for now, a call to battle negativity and oppression dedicated to those whose courage and compassion make a difference. Sometimes it's best just to let the sleeve notes speak for themselves:

'In times where hope can feel distant, the song shines a light on those who still care deeply for their communities, neighbours, society, and the planet itself. It is a message of respect and gratitude to the brothers and sisters who keep working for change, often quietly but with great strength and determination.'

Welcome sentiments, of course, and the music certainly doesn't do them a disservice, matching energetic roots reggae with Irie D's delivery and those of Polish opera singer Arleta: it's a vocal partnership that maybe shouldn't work but triumphantly and gratifyingly does.

Hear Mission Ignition in my Dandelion Radio show, now streaming on-demand here. 

You can get the release here.

Adrian Crowley - Quinn the Adventurer (Bring Your Own Hammer)

The story of Tim O'Brien (aka James Quinn) lends itself so well to balladry it's hard to believe it's not been told in song before. Or perhaps it has and I'm just not aware of it. Whatever the case it's great that it's fallen to Adrian Crowley to relate it.

Crowley's skill with lyrical narratives, plus his understated delivery underpinned by melancholic guitar and mellotron, put him ahead of the current field when it comes to this kind of thing. Here, he relates the story of the eponymous Quinn, a native of Belfast working as a silent film actor in 1920s America. He was convicted of a theft of a collection of valuable shrunken heads who somehow managed to flee before being sent to San Quentin, never to be seen in the States again. 

It's a preview track from the forthcoming Bring Your Own Hammer compilation From the Tombs, which is dedicated to the memory of the great Cathal Coughlan. Fittingly, if entirely by chance, you can hear both Quinn the Adventurer and a track from Coughlan's Microdisney in the Peel Back...section of my current Dandelion Radio show, now streaming on-demand here. 

You can get the track here. From the Tombs will be released in the autumn,

Robert Wotnot - The Queue (Metal Postcard)

Robert Wotnot, who often goes by the alias Sir Robert Orange Peel, continues to hold a cracked mirror up to everyday life and I hope he never stops.

His new single, taken from the forthcoming album Council House Drama Vol. 2, focuses on that most persistent of irritants, the queue at the post office. While other queuing terrors have been neutralised by online booking systems or at least enlivened by security checks and scanning devices, the post office queue retains its power to frustrate simply because there's little else to do other than stare blankly into the window of the officious cashier and wait.

If the Wotnot account is at least enlivened by an intoxicating musical backdrop, the uttering of the ominous 'hopefully it won't take too long' is our gateway into this world of queues and blandly repetitive questioning from a cashier who plainly doesn't really care whether your parcel reaches its destination or not. And of course the post office's opening times tend to mirror those of the working day so that's your lunch hour fucked. 

You can hear The Queue in my Dandelion Radio show month: now streaming on-demand here. 

Check out the Metal Postcard bandcamp site for the album's release and, while you're there, you could do a lot worse than investigate the Sir Robert Orange Peel releases, including

A Man Dressed Up (last year's Xmas single)

Tik Tok is Frying My Brain

French Fancies

You can also find these and his earlier recordings at the Sir Robert Orange Peel bandcamp site.

V/A - Sixties Garage & Psych Rarities Vol. 2 (Cosmic Rock)

My Dandelion Radio show for August is now available on-demand here. This month's featured compilation is a fitting one as I seem to have become immersed in a lot of Japanese themes recently: I reviewed the Lee Fowler book here last month and I'm currently reading David Mitchell's The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoe, the background of which is Dutch trading with Japan at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

This release has provided a compelling soundtrack between readings: it's not the sort of thing you can listen to while reading at the same time as the stuff on here is far too loud and captivating to share your attention with anything else. I need to dig out Volume 1 with some urgency but for now I've got this cracking release, which documents highlights from the Group Sounds era, when Japanese bands absorbed western influences and fed them back at high volume.

In the show, I feature three bands from the compilation: The Cougars, The Genova and The Burns. The Cougars released their first single Aphrodite in October1967 and it's that track I feature in my show, They're firmly at the garage end of the spectrum of this release, a fuzzed out R&B-influenced five-piece delivering a tune that's highly representative of that early Group Sounds period.

The Genova formed around the same time. The Beatles' tour of Japan in 1966 appears to have kicked a lot of this off and it's easy to imagine members The Genova spinning a copy of Help! before colliding in the street and heading straight to a recording studio. Not to be confused with the Japanese metal band of the 1980s, or you'll get an earful of something very different.

The Burns were largely a covers band, dishing out versions of Beatles, Hendrix and others no doubt to delighted Japanese teenagers. Adding funk and soul elements to the mix, this all-girl five piece's only LP came out in 1969. Mostly featuring more predictable covers (Knock On Wood, Purple Haze, I Saw Her Standing There), the band really go for it on the album's final two tracks, tacking Cream's Strange Brew then this, a cover of The Animals' anti-war tune which brings to a close the album and, perhaps, the Group Sounds movement. 

Except nothing really ends. Japanese bands have a long and rich history and it's best to see the bands on this album as laying some really interesting foundations on which Japanese guitar bands have continued to add fascinating layers: we're still benefiting richly from their influence now. 

You can get the album from Rough Trade and, hopefully a lot of other places.

The UT Archives: Jack Hayter - Abbey Wood (Gare Du Nord)

Jack Hayter has recorded a new session for my Dandelion show, which you can hear from 1 September. If that seems an impossibly long time to wait for something so wonderful, you could do worse than make use of the time in between by checking out Jack's back catalogue. To speed you in that direction, here's a review I did of his Abbey Wood album back in April 2018:

Jack Hayter - Abbey Wood (Gare Du Nord) 

The title of Jack Hayter's wonderful new album comes from the road in which he lived four years ago but the symbol that lies at the heart of the album's first track 'The Mulberry Tree at Abbey Wood' - which I played in my Dandelion Radio show last month - is loaded with far great depth

In particular the tree - 'you know the one, there's only one' as its lyrics tell us - stand as a metaphor that's explored throughout the collection.  It's a collection that's rich with feelings of solitude, yet it's a resilient solitude, loaded with a defiant spirit that manages to survive despite hostile surroundings.

On the surface, it's an album about places, but really it's about the people who give those places their character, characters like 'Fanny On The Hill', who serves up a liquid dinner with 'whisky for pudding'

Or the narrator of 'I Sent My Love To Bendigo', who fights his war in the farmyard, in attempt to stop the army from taking his beloved horse to war.  His brother goes to war in order to end the fighting with his girlfriend over the issue, only to return, broken, to hang himself at Christmas.  Under its original title of 'Horsemeat For Dogs', we featured an early version of the track on an Unwashed Territories compilation.  Its redolence has not diminished in the year since.

Similarly 'The Arandora Star', the tale of the ship loaded with British-based Italian and German civilians that was sunk during World War II, offers much poignancy against a backdrop of the sad xenophobia of these times.    As with Woody Guthrie's 'Deportees', the power lies in the evocation of individual lives behind the tragedy - the Italian women who'd helped to build bombers in north Manchester among them - leaving again a sense of real people devoured by circumstances they had no role in instigating.   I'm playing the track in my show this month.

it's a powerful collection, but it's also infused with a gentle, kind spirit.  A celebration of people and places, no less who, like the Mulberry Tree, still stand defiant despite it all.  Among them, unquestionably, stands Hayter himself.

Get it at here.