Street Level Superstar: A Year with Lawrence Q&A at Foyles with Will Hodgkinson and Lawrence, hosted by Jarvis Cocker

Last night we attended a thoroughly entertaining evening at Foyles bookstore in London in the company of Jarvis Cocker who was questioning author Will Hodgkinson about his superb new book "Street Level Superstar: A Year with Lawrence" (Nine Eight Books) along with the enigmatic subject himself, Lawrence, the frontman of Mozart Estate, previously of Go-Kart Mozart, Denim and Felt. Hodgkinson does not shy away from Lawrence's sometimes frustrating idiosyncrasies and in other less involved hands, the story might have veered into sneering or ridiculing the singer's often quite baffling habits. But, it's an affectionate look at someone who basically wants to live life and create art on his own terms. The story is told through the conversations and experiences with Will and Lawrence during a series of walks around various London neighbourhoods over the course of a year. From Lawrence's early childhood in Birmingham to his time in his bands Felt, Denim, Go-Kart Mozart and Mozart Estate right up to the unveiling of Corin Johnson's quite remarkable marble bust, "Street Level Superstar" redefines the music biography genre. From poverty, drug addiction, homelessness to occasional close calls with the elusive stardom he craves, Lawrence is dogged by terrible bad luck, missed opportunities and a tendency to shoot himself in the foot. But despite all the slings and arrows over the years, Lawrence still exudes a cheerfulness and sense of optimism that's evident at the sold-out event. With so much acclaim being lavished on Hodgkinson's book, it might well elevate Lawrence to the fame and fortune that he feels is long overdue, we can but hope! Here are some photos from the talk along with some of the Martin Green curated marble bust exhibition at the stunning Fitzrovia Chapel. I've also included a rare early photo taken by my Retro Man Blog colleague, the Rock photographer Paul Slattery, who also has a photo included in the book.

Felt - Copyright Paul Slattery

VIVA Strange Boutique - Tokyo's Post-Punk, New Wave & Indie Store

VIVA Strange Boutique is a fantastic store located near Okusawa station in the south-west of Tokyo close to Jiyugaoka and its packed with vintage Post-Punk and Indie posters, badges, records, music magazines and memorabilia. The emphasis is very much on U.K. Post-Punk and Indie with prominent displays of the more avant-garde and DIY acts such as Alternative TV, Television Personalities, Throbbing Gristle and Psychic TV. Store owner Minami, who also sings and plays guitar with her own band, She Talks Silence, designs and produces original, officially authorised merchandise for some of her favourite bands and artists such as Felt, A Certain Ratio, The Raincoats, Durutti Column, David J, The Vaselines, Primal Scream, Sparks and the Japanese band Plastics who were a kind of cross between The B-52's, Wall of Voodoo and early Talking Heads. She's had some well known visitors too, DJ Don Letts and Devo's frontman Mark Mothersbaugh have popped in to visit the store. 

 

You can check out the VIVA Strange Boutique online store here for the full list of merchandise, as they also offer shipping worldwide. Of course, you can probably guess from the store's name, that Minami is a huge fan of The Monochrome Set and they recently invited the band over to Tokyo to headline a sold-out gig at the WWWX venue in Shibuya to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the store's opening. 

 

There's also an exhibition space in the basement and luckily we were able to catch an exhibtion of stunning photos by the music photographer Toshi Yajima who also just so happened to be in the store, so we could have a nice chat about this work and career as a UK based correspondent sharing his photos to various publications back in Japan. He took very early photos of the Sex Pistols in their Denmark Street rehearsal room in 1976 and would go on to photograph all the musical greats such as The Clash, The Jam, David Bowie, XTC, Iggy Pop, The Damned, Japan, Morrissey, The B-52's, Devo, Paul Weller, The Specials and Kraftwerk among many others - all are featured in an excellent book entitled "Each & Every One" which was actually published by VIVA Strange Boutique. Hopefully, we will be doing a more in-depth feature on his superb pictures sometime in the future.

With thanks to Minami and Toshi Yajima. For more information on VIVA Strange Boutique please check out their web-site here and Facebook page here, they are also on Instagram.

Soft Cell "To Show You I've Been There" - Details on The New Book & Report From The Launch Party by Ian Pile

Renegade Music will release a limited edition photobook on Soft Cell. It's another impressive addition to Ritchie Franklin's catalogue, as he has previously been involved with books on Felt, which featured some rare early photos of the band by my Blog colleague Paul Slattery, Ramones and Sheila Rock's Punk photography. "To Show You I've Been There" has been officially endorsed by Dave Ball and Marc Almond and features over 150 images from the archives of some of the best-known music photographers, many previously unseen, all fully restored from original negatives. This book will be the ultimate photographic record spanning the whole of Soft Cell's electric career, here's a few more details.

• Limited edition of 1300 copies only
• Commentary from new interviews by acclaimed music journalist Mark Paytress
• Each copy comes with an exclusive free bonus 4-track vinyl 'Magick Mutants' EP with artwork by Dave Ball
• Free bonus MP3 downloads of the 4 tracks plus edits (see email sent separately including zip file of the 8 tracks)
• Hardback, quarter-bound glossy and linen cover - 21 x 28 x 3 cm
• 176 pages - over 200 rare and previously unpublished images
• Full UK discography

Ian Pile from Podrophenia was at the launch party and kindly submitted the following report.

Photo by Ian Pile

With the start time set at a ludicrously early 6.30, we thought it was a pretty safe bet to nip round the corner for a couple in the Groucho before heading to the event. However on arriving at the Phoenix Arts Club around 7.45, we find it’s in full swing. Marc Almond and Dave Ball were both already in attendance and the dancefloor was heaving. Classic Soft Cell neon lighting throughout the venue ensures a seedy vibe to the evening. The pints are served in Soft Cell glasses, there’s Pink Flamingo cocktails on the menu and even Soft Cell beermats on the tables! There’s no getting away from what we are here for! Tonight was all about the release of the deluxe Soft Cell coffee table book ‘To Show You I’ve Been There’. Tantalisingly, the book is on sale right there in front of me but unfortunately, as a committed fan, I pre-ordered months ago and was still awaiting delivery on the day of the launch. Whereas an impulse buy on the night meant you got it on release day (without P&P fees!) and the chance to get it signed too.  

Photo by Ian Pile

The book is a glorious journey through 40 years of the band's history and how these two working class northern lads were suddenly swept up and deposited in the 1980’s mainstream. They kept the ‘Pop’ hits coming yet were subversive throughout – living a double life of clean cut and perverse. As an ardent fan, I was delighted to find the book wasn’t full of the usual shots I’ve seen thousands of times before. Some real gems have been unearthed, and it’s a book I will come back to time and time again. The cherry on top of the cake must be the exclusive 4 track EP ‘Magick Mutants’. A genius moment that completes the full 40 year cycle – as it’s clearly an accompaniment (and nod) to their very first release ‘Mutant Moments’ (which I have with me tonight and manage to get signed!). Three songs from the early set re-recorded plus a Fad Gadget cover and we are transported back to where we began. If this really is it for Soft Cell then it’s the perfect way to bow out. Marc slips away from the event not much after 8pm, but it’s not anything to do with sour grapes as the night is very much Dave’s, as tonight is also his 60th birthday. He’s still there enjoying himself at 10pm when we make our way out. He’s had people coming up to him all evening and he’s been happy to chat to everyone. We leave to the sounds of 70’s New York punk, electronica and camp HiNRG. How very Soft Cell! - Ian Pile, Podrophenia May 2019 

With thanks to Ian for the report and photographs. Podrophenia will be broadcasting a special 10th anniversary episode on July 4th so be sure to check out more details at their site here. Podrophenia was one of the influences on our very own Retrosonic Podcast and Ian and his colleague Dave Collins, or Mondo & Piley as they are more commonly known, have DJ'd at some of our Retro Man Blog Nights for The Len Price 3 and TV Smith at the superb Railway Hotel in Southend-on-Sea. 

Photo by Ian Pile

Thanks also to Ritche Franklin and Stuart Kirkham. For more details on the book and where to order your copy, please check out the official Soft Cell web-site here. 

Retrosonic Podcast Episode 6: "When The World Stops Turning..."

Episode 6 of Retrosonic Podcast is out and available to listen to, or download for free, at the Soundcloud  site now. Featuring Steve from Retro Man Blog, Adam from The Jetsonics and rock photographer Paul Slattery with the usual eclectic mix of tunes and chat. In this Episode we raise a glass to Wilko Johnson and pick a classic number from Dr. Feelgood, the first band that Paul ever photographed, back on the 1975 Naughty Rhythms Tour. We try to banish the cold and grey with the sunny sounds of Ansell Collins and blast each others' ears with some Sixties Psychedelia from the Texan band Homer and then some thoroughly British freak-beat courtesy of The Eyes. There's Vic Godard with his tribute to an American Punk legend and an instrumental Surf classic from Link Wray. In between there's the brand new single from The Travellers, some hotly tipped Retro Rock from Spiders, noisy guitar stuff from The Parents and some slinky Swedish Psych Pop from Caviare Days. If that's not enough we play a brace of Medway Delta Garage Rock tracks from Galileo 7 and Graham Day & The Gaolers and then to top it all off, there's an 80's Indie masterpiece from Felt.

Don't forget all previous Episodes are still available and as well as the regular shows there are various Special Editions featuring interviews with a wide range of personalities. TV Smith from The Adverts treats us to an exclusive live acoustic session, Mattias Bärjed takes us on a journey from the Nymphet Noodlers to The Soundtrack of Our Lives, his successful movie and TV soundtrack work to his brand new band Free Fall. We have some demo versions and unreleased tracks from Mattias Hellberg's forthcoming album, JC Carroll from The Members takes us on a little Punk Rock trip and there are exclusive unreleased solo songs from Ian Person from The Soundtrack of Our Lives. There are also special reports on various music related topics such as the Swedish music scene  which includes interviews with Ann-Sofie from Spiders, Bruce from MUG Music store and Wayne Lundqvist-Ford from the Gothenburg based Ice Cream Man Blog. There are looks into the contemporary Mod scene scene, Paul Slattery's adventures in Rock and Roll Photography and much more...

Lawrence Of Belgravia (Heavenly Films) + Felt Book

I recently attended the screening of Paul Kelly's excellent new documentary, Lawrence of Belgravia (Heavenly Films), at the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith. The film was immediately followed by a Q&A session with the Director and Lawrence himself. The documentary traces the trials and tribulations of ex-Felt and Denim singer Lawrence over an eight year period, as he tries to record a new album with his latest band Go-Kart Mozart. It's a refreshingly different music documentary, with Kelly steering away from many of the usual Rock movie cliches. The band's history is mainly told through recorded interviews with various journalists, most of whom are not really prepared for Lawrence's rather unconventional outlook on music and life in general.

Lawrence in 1980 - Photo by Paul Slattery

He doesn't seem interested in modern technology such as computers, "there are too many wires", or mobile phones. This is apparent when he looks dumbfounded at one web-site journalist and asks, "you don't make any money from the internet? I knew it was crap, the internet..."  The darker episodes are not really tackled in any depth though, the camera skims over various eviction notices, letters of debt, medical forms and prescriptions, hinting at Lawrence's drug and mental health problems. Director Kelly excels at using the city of London as an impressive backdrop as he follows Lawrence, whether it be moving into and decorating a new apartment or helping to roadie for a young band. In one scene you discover that underneath all the bravado lurks a self deprecating humour. He's in a clothes store looking for a replacement for his ever present baseball cap and is persuaded to try on some different styles for a change. When trying on a particularly baggy flat cap he says it makes him look like John Lennon New York 1975 but then admits it's actually more like "Bill Oddie, Ecky-Thump 1972".

One thing that is apparent is that Lawrence is seemingly desperate for fame and fortune, longing for the day that he can afford a private jet or Limo and be free from having to travel on the tube with the general public. He moans about Bobby Gillespie not introducing him to Kate Moss, as she was sure to have wanted to marry him. It's these sort of pronouncements that go against the grain in the music scene. It's rare to hear a musician openly and unashamedly say he would gladly write a Eurovision song or love to have a famous supermarket chain adopt one of his tracks to be used in a commercial.

Also, like a lot of innovators, they can sometimes find themselves left behind in the wake of copyists and plunderers who can go on to more, often un-deserved, commercial and critical success. This has certainly been the case with Felt, coupled with a huge slice of plain old bad luck. Like many Alternative bands, Lawrence sent a Felt single to John Peel hoping to get played on his hugely influential radio show. John Peel never played it so Lawrence sent another one, and this time Peel did play it but also made a comment that it was the worst title for a record he'd ever heard. Stung by this reaction Lawrence sent a really nasty letter demanding that Peel should send the records back immediately, which he did. Lawrence admits that without Peel it cost Felt a lot of valuable publicity and support. The release of Denim's impossibly catchy pop single "Summer Smash", what could have been a sure fire hit, happened to coincide with the breaking news of the car crash that killed Princess Diana. Of course, the two were totally unrelated but that did not stop the song being quietly banned from any Radio play in case it was "deemed inappropriate". 

Felt in 1980 - Photo by Paul Slattery

I must admit there was something slightly surreal about watching a documentary when suddenly the subject himself appears on stage as the end credits roll! There followed an interesting and lively discussion with questions from the audience, I asked Lawrence how he felt about giving up so much control to Paul Kelly considering his somewhat controlling nature. He admitted that although he trusted Paul, it was difficult at first and he had to "draw up a mental contract" with himself "not to interfere". At the end I had a little chat to Lawrence and he asked me to remind Paul Slattery to send him some prints of his early Felt photographs (some of which you can see here). "I hope he hasn't lost my address, I wrote it on a piece of paper, I haven't got an email or anything like that". I was about to say he could see some of the photos on the Blog but thought better of it...!





You can still catch the movie before the run ends, tonight May 17th, at the Glasgow Grosvenor, tomorrow May 18th, at Edinburgh Cameo and finally May 21st at the Hackney Playhouse, London.

Check the Heavenly Films web-site for further information and details of tickets and timings. 

Lawrence in 2012 - Photo by Paul Slattery

First Third Books have published an excellent 176 page book about Felt, featuring more than 140 rare photographs from 20 different photographers, including our very own Paul Slattery, who took some of the very first shots of the band. It's a beautifully presented cloth-bound embossed hardback book, limited to 1,000 individually numbered copies all signed by Lawrence. There's also an extensive illustrated discography, an introduction by Bob Stanley of Saint Etienne and Lawrence's own annotations and quotes throughout.

Many thanks to Paul Slattery for the exclusive photos of Felt and Lawrence.