Welcome to the ramblings of a man who really should have grown out of listening to "that sort of music" a long, long time ago...A place to share thoughts and photographs on music and related paraphernalia.
Showing posts with label That Petrol Emotion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label That Petrol Emotion. Show all posts
Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the special launch and listening party for the new album "Staying Cool Staying Free" by The Everlasting Yeah on Saturday, so instead I dispatched Retro Man Blog's roving reporter for the day, Buddy Ascott to do the honours. Buddy was the perfect choice, as the former drummer in The Chords, he supported The Undertones at quite a few gigs in various cities around the country back in the day and became a big fan of That Petrol Emotion and The Everlasting Yeah. So let's hand over to Buddy to see how the launch party went...
Damian & Brendan at the launch party - photo by Buddy Ascott
I had no great expectations, having never before been to an album listening party, either online or in the flesh. But as a huge fan of The Undertones, That Petrol Emotion and yeah, The Everlasting Yeah, it was a tempting prospect. But what really piqued my interest was the video released that very morning, featuring the lead track on the new album, "Staying Cool, Staying Free". Titled "Girl from Miki City", it sounded remarkably similar to a song, "Making Certain" that I'd recorded back in 1997 with a group of ex-pats living in Japan, called Red Away Tops. In fact it was the very same song! OK, full disclosure - we're busted! Damian O'Neill had sent Billy Hassett (ex-Chords singer) a cassette of new songs back in those carefree days. Mightily impressed, Billy asked Damian if he could "borrow" a couple of the songs for our "Satellite TV" album. Being the gracious chap he is, Damian agreed, but forgot to tell us that the songs were in fact bandmate Raymond Gorman's. And so our little recording project in Japan contained two songs that should have been credited to Raymond. Glad I could get that off my chest, and apologies Raymond!
The launch party crowd photographed by Raymond
The London Irish Centre is set in a quiet, leafy square in London's Camden - not your typical rock'n'roll venue, but then The Everlasting Yeah are not your typical group, and they have a loyal band of followers to prove it. Arriving too early, I was ushered back out into the bar area, and was soon joined by my good friend Tim, who'd travelled all the way from Yorkshire - with a busted leg - just to attend the listening party. With around eighty devotees in attendance, we sat near the front in an impressively wide and beautiful wood-paneled room. The four Yeahsters (as nobody calls them) took to the stage, but instead of strapping on guitars and sitting behind drums, sat down in comfy-looking armchairs, the serene scene completed by a solitary standard lamp. It felt a little surreal, but also exciting. At first the group looked a little self-conscious, up there without instruments, but relaxed as the afternoon progressed. Please note - this review is of the first listen only, and I reserve the right to change my mind upon hearing the album at home! Playback of Side 1 began with the aforementioned "Miki City" track - it made our version sound like a demo! With chunky guitars and soaring vocals, it's a fine album opener and a potential single. The sound system onstage was remarkable: exceptionally clear yet powerful.
The Everlasting Yeah at The Lexington London in 2016 - photo by Paul Slattery
Next up was a song - "Myself When I Am Real" - that showcased Brendan Kelly's sublime bass skills, rolling along like an approaching freight train. On first listen I was convinced it was an instrumental, but the lyrics finally arrived, fully four minutes into the song. This felt very much in the vein of "Taking That Damn Train Again" from their first album - astonishingly, "Anima Rising" is now 10 years old! The song continued with Raymond chanting "It's just myself!" - and in a thrillingly upbeat coda - "Everything is gonna be alright! ALRIGHT!" All four of the band sat tapping their feet in sync, seemingly lost in thought, grinning away at favourite moments. Drummer - and often lead vocalist - Ciaran McLaughlin was particularly animated, as you'd expect from such a fine percussionist. The drums sounded much more natural - untreated - than on their debut album. The side continued with the acoustically led "You Can't Hold Water In A Closed Fist", reminiscent of one of TPE's quieter songs. Side 1 closed with "Hurricane Nation", growling bass and rimshots giving way to a taut and melodic pop song - the harmonies are a really positive feature on this album. There followed a short interval (a kindness to us men of a certain age), before playback recommenced.
The Everlasting Yeah at our Retro Man Blog Night, May 2016 - photo by Paul Slattery
First track on Side 2 was "Rise Up", perhaps an over familiar title, but it's an impassioned plea to "rise up in love" and continues the album's general good vibes - Raymond would later tell us that it was recorded in the face of adversity, and they seemed genuinely happy just to be making music again. "Dylan '65" was up next, as cool as its title - Buzzcocks meets Graham Coxon, guitars to the fore. It's also probably the most Petrols-based track on the album. I would have liked the drum fills a little louder in the mix, but I would say that, wouldn't I? The closing song, "Heartbeat Still", is another epic, clocking in at over 8 minutes. A frantic start gives way to a shaker and a Pink Floyd feel (No wait! Come back!! I mean that in a good way!) that again showcases Brendan's prowess as a bass player. The rhythm changes, the intensity is ramped up and the guitars take over again...only for an electric piano and that Floyd groove to bring this amazing song to a peaceful conclusion. Probably the best vocal performance on the album too, courtesy of Ciaran. There was unanimous, spontaneous applause in the room, much to the apparent relief of the band members.
Buddy Ascott with Brendan
Jon Hunter from The June Brides then joined them onstage to quiz them about the making of the album, and what inspired the songs. There was some good natured joshing between the band, as Raymond and Brendan did the lion's share of the talking. The travails that have delayed the album - mainly health issues - were mentioned only briefly, and the vibe remained positive and optimistic, at least until they were asked how they were going to promote this album. They all shrugged, justifiably feeling their work is now done, and it's up to "the industry" to do with it what they will. They make music primarily for themselves, and they are patently artists, not businessmen. One other revelation was how close they came to being named The Hoodlum Angels at the outset, but happily that only remained as a song title on the debut album. The merch table did brisk business and fans and followers slowly drifted away into the sunshine. A thoroughly enjoyable afternoon, with a cracking album that builds on the promise of "Anima Rising", and then some. Live shows soon, please.
- Buddy Ascott, August 2024
The Everlasting Yeah with Jon Hunter - photo by Buddy Ascott
With thanks to Buddy for the great report, for more information on how to order the new album, please check out The Everlasting Yeah facebook page here. Don't forget our Retrosonic Podcast with Damian, Raymond and Ciaran discussing the history of That Petrol Emotion and The Everlasting Yeah is still available, along with other interview specials with Damian, Raymond and Buddy, by subscribing for free at Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts/iTunes or our SoundCloud main page.
The Everlasting Yeah, formed from the ashes of That Petrol Emotion, released one of the best debut albums of all time "Anima Rising" in 2014 and now they are finally going to release one of the most long-awaited, hightly anticipated follow ups of all time too. Yes, the great news is that the band have overcome various trials and tribulations and are now able to unleash their second album "Staying Cool, Staying Free With The Everlasting Yeah". It seems like such a long time ago that they played at one of our Retro Man Blog Nights at the Half Moon in Putney and debuted a couple of new songs, well it was a long time ago, 2016 in fact. One of the songs that I captured on video that splendid evening was called "Dylan '65", I loved it at the time and I'm pleased to see it features on the new album, although I'm not sure if it will be very different from this...
Here's a few words taken from my review of our Retro Man Blog Half Moon Putney show (you can read the full feature here.)
"The chemistry between all four members is apparent when they play live,
they look like they enjoy each others company and it certainly pays off
in their music. Brendan Kelly's bass throbs with a thunderous intent
and his understanding with drummer Ciaran McLaughlin is impressive as
they lock into a mighty groove. The Everlasting Yeah have added a dash of Krautrock's motorik beats into the mix too which
enables the songs to develop nicely at their own natural pace. In fact
there are more ideas crammed into one Everlasting Yeah song than most
bands manage in a whole album! Raymond Gorman and Damian O'Neill seem
to have some sort of psychic thing going on as their guitars weave in
and out of each other like Richard Lloyd and Tom Verlaine at their
best. I've always thought that Damian and Raymond were totally
underrated as guitarists, they spin out razor sharp shards of spiky and
inventive riffs that complement each other perfectly. Like Joey
Santiago from the Pixies they take what at first might be familiar
melodic lines and twist them to breaking point. You think you know when
the pay off is going to come but they surprise you with another
unexpected and thought provoking detour. Although Raymond handles most
of the lead vocals - ably backed by Ciaran, who takes the spotlight on
"Everything Is Beautiful" - there's no front-man as such, TPE's singer
Steve Mack having relocated to his hometown Seattle - The Everlasting
Yeah are however, a tight-knit gang who present a united front and
share some stunning four-part vocals harmonies."
The Everlasting Yeah are having a listening party for the album on August 17th from
2-6pm at The London Irish Centre, 50-52 Camden Square, London NW1 9XB. Admission is free and there will be a Q&A session with the band hosted by Jon Hunter from The June Brides. Afterwards you will be able to buy
signed vinyl, CDs and T-shirts and chat to the band. For more information on the Event please check out the details here.
You can check out our features on The Everlasting Yeah gigs at The Half Moon Putney and The Lexington with exclusive Paul Slattery photos. You can check out the Retrosonic Podcast archive for special episodes with Damian and Raymond and lots of related features on the band. Don't forget our thoroughly entertaining Retrosonic Podcast with Raymond, Damian and Ciaran where they discussed their time in That Petrol Emotion, the formation of The Everlasting Yeah and their debut album "Anima Rising".
"Más o Menos", the superb opening track to Undertones guitarist Damian O'Neill's critically acclaimed new instrumental album "An Crann, has been given the remix treatment in a new E.P. out now on Dimple Discs Records. First of all, the fuzzed-up French band The Limiñanas' remix concentrates mainly on "Más o Menos" immediately memorable bass riff, which I always thought was reminiscent of Dave Richmond's iconic bass sound on Serge Gainsbourg's classic concept album "Histoire de Melody Nelson". Indeed, Lionel Limiñana has added new Serge and Jane Birkin style male-female spoken word verses in French that are really evocative of "Melody Nelson". He has then married this influence to the hypnotic Krautrock beats so favoured by The Limiñanas to create an atmospheric and highly evocative version. I'm extremely honoured to have been involved in some small way in getting Damian hooked up with The Limiñanas and to hear the end result of two of my favourite Artists working together, almost bought a tear to the eye! I knew Damian was, like me, a big fan of The Limiñanas and by coincidence, last year they were including a cover version of "Teenage Kicks" in their set-list. I must admit my first bit of meddling was to try and get Damian on stage with the band at the Scala in London's Kings Cross to join in with The Undertones classic but he politely declined. However, I did introduce them after the gig and then came Damian's idea of a possible remix, so he later asked to be put in touch as he could feel The Limiñanas might be able to draw something special out of "Más o Menos" and indeed they have. There's a feature on The Limiñanas' Scala Kings Cross show at the Retro Man Blog archive here.
Damian with Marie and Lionel Limiñana - Photo Retro Man Blog
Here's the video to The Limiñanas remix of "Más o Menos" which suits the theme of Lionel's narrative concerning a girl searching for the grave of Andrew Weatherall...enjoy!
Next up, the excellent Kevin Sharkey remix draws out the Spaghetti Western influence throughout "Más o Menos", with its haunting whistling, tolling bells and thunderous timpani shot through with a stinging fuzz guitar chord. Sharkey has then married this cinematic sound to more traditional remix elements such as scratching, spiralling synth motifs and rhythmic bongo drums and the original backing vocals are much more prominent. Its like taking Ennio Moriconne's "Man With a Harmonica" to the dance floor. Both versions are superb examples of how a song can be twisted into two very different, but equally imaginative and effective takes on the original, which is also included on the E.P. for good measure. At present unfortunately, there are no physical formats available but you can buy the download from the Dimple Disc Records Bandcamp page here. For more information on all of Damian's solo projects and collaborations please check out his official web-site here.
Damian & Dimple Discs boss Brian O'Neill - photo by Retro Man Blog
For our Retrosonic Podcast special episode recorded at the "An Crann" album launch party and Q&A with Damian and journalist Ann Scanlon, please subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast at Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iTunes or you can listen/download direct from our SoundCloud site below. You'll also find our other thoroughly entertaining episodes with Damian along with the That Petrol Emotion/Everlasting Yeah special available in the archive.
Welcome to Episode 51 of Retrosonic Podcast where we welcome former drummer with The Chords Buddy Ascott into the 'studio' on New Year's Eve to look back on 2022. Buddy, now playing with The Fallen Leaves, is currently writing his memoirs and he treats us to a reading from a chapter about an unfortunate incident in Guildford Civic Hall in 1979 involving The Undertones, Jimmy Pursey and some ex-Sex Pistols. He also talks about more recent gig experiences which include drumming with The 79ers as specials guests at The Vapors' weekend event at the iconic Portmeirion village, location of the cult TV show The Prisoner. Then we cover The Fallen Leaves shows at the Dublin Castle and the Don Craine tribute at the Half Moon Putney, plus we get a sneak preview of a song from the Leaves' next album. We also take a look at some of Retro Man Blog's favourite LPs, Singles, Compilations and Gigs of the year and play a selection of great tracks from The Clash with Ranking Roger, Rhoda Dakar, The Limiñanas, The Prisoners and Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band. We also announce our Band of The Year - The Undertones - for some superb gigs, their compilation "Dig What You Need", Damian O'Neill and Billy Doherty joining Baby Shakes on stage for "Teenage Kicks" and related releases such as That Petrol Emotion's stunning box-set compilation and Damian's solo album "An Crann". Then there's a more sombre look at just some of the influential musicians who sadly passed away in 2022 including Chris Bailey, Wilko Johnson, Jet Black and Terry Hall but we celebrate their legacy with music from The Saints, Dr. Feelgood, The Specials and The Stranglers. Happy New Year to you and here's looking forward to more great music in 2023, we hope you enjoy the show! Please click the highlighted links in the tracklisting below for more info on the featured Bands and Artists and how to buy their music.
This episode is dedicated to the memories and music of Terry Hall, Ronnie Spector, Jet Black, Wilko Johnson, Chris Bailey, Martin Duffy, Keith Levene, DH Peligro, Mark Lanegan, Taylor Hawkins and all those creative souls who sadly passed away in 2022. You can subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast for free at Spotify, iTunes, Apple Podcasts or Soundcloud. Retrosonic Theme by Adam Donovan. Retrosonic Podcast has a valid PRS certificate.
For more information on the forthcoming book "A Taste of Ink: The Prisoners Sentenced By Their Fans" compiled and edited by Thomas Buch, Michael Langer, Elinor Crockford and Jeremy Stride, as discussed in this episode, please check out the Facebook page here or official web-site here.
Here's Retro Man Blog and Retrosonic Podcast's top 22 Reissues, Compilations, Box Sets and Live Album releases of 2022, we hope you enjoy this selection and if you do, please follow, like, subscribe to the Blog and Podcast and please support all the featured bands and artists. Thanks for all the support throughout the year!
1. That Petrol Emotion "Every Beginning Has A Future: An Anthology"'
2. The Liminanas "Electrified"
3. Blondie "Against The Odds"
4. The Courettes "Back In Mono: B-Sides & Outtakes"
5. Love "Expressions Tell Everything"
6. The Undertones "Dig What You Need"
7. The Gun Club "Preaching The Blues"
8. Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros "1999-2002"
9. The Soundtrack of Our Lives "Homo Habilis Blues"
10. Fabienne Delsol "Between You And Me"
11. The Stranglers "The Men In Black In Tokyo"
12. The Damned "AD 2022 Live at the Hammersmith Apollo"
13. Various Artists "Psychedelic Forest"
14. The Blue Aeroplanes "Swagger"
15. The Raveonettes "Whip It On/Chain Gang of Love"
16. BMX Bandits "Life Goes On"
17. Giuda "Live at Punk Rock Raduno"
18. Various Artists "Jon Savage's 1977-1979: Symbols Clashing Everywhere"
19. March Violets "The Palace of Infinite Darkness"
20. Refused "The Shape of Punk To Come"
21. The Stranglers "Suite XVI"
22. Toyah "Toyah! Toyah! Toyah!"
Thanks to all contributors, bands, Podcast special guests and co-presenters, record labels and people who have shared and supported what we have done over the past year. Retro Man Blog and Retrosonic Podcast are an extension of the spirit of my old 1980's D.I.Y. cut 'n' paste fanzine Out of Step and are strictly non-profit without advertising or sponsorship, set up purely to promote music that we like. We hope you have discovered some exciting new music along the way, your support is very much appreciated.
We captured a great evening's entertainment at the Heavenly Social in London on November 6th with Undertones guitarist Damian O'Neill promoting his excellent new LP "An Crann" in a Q&A session hosted by Brian O'Neill of Dimple Discs Records and music journalist Ann Scanlon. As well as the story behind the record and its various influences, Damian also discussed various anecdotes from his time with The Undertones, That Petrol Emotion and The Everlasting Yeah. As well as tales of The Undertones on Top of The Pops, touring with The Clash and news of the forthcoming That Petrol Emotion box-set, we also find out how Damian nearly joined Dexys Midnight Runners and how he should have been a famous footballer! The episode is soundtracked by Damian's personal selection of songs from the new album. You can subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast for free at Spotify, iTunes, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts or direct from our SoundCloud site below.
You can order "An Crann" from the Dimple Discs Records Bandcamp site here. For more information please check out Damian's official web-site here. Photos from the night copyright Retro Man Blog. Thanks to Damian and Viv, Ann Scanlon, Brian O'Neill and Neil Waite from The Undertones Rocking Humdingers Club page.
Top Photo, Damian with Dimple Discs boss Brian O'Neill. Third Photo, Damian with That Petrol Emotion, The Everlasting Yeah bassist Brendan Kelly. Fourth photo Damian with Ann Scanlon.
The Undertones played a blinder at the beautiful Art Deco De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea on Saturday, a thirty three song set-list packed full of their melodic Pop nuggets. There was certainly no let up in the intensity as the songs whizzed by and the always amusing Mickey Bradley even commented on the rapid-fire delivery, "You can hold your breath right through to the end of most of our songs" and "we're playing even faster so that Billy can get back to watch Match of The Day". The band are on top form and the wonderful backing vocal harmonies from Damian and Mickey really shine through, although the crowd give them a run for their money as they join in whole-heartedly. Paul's voice and confidence has come on leaps and bounds (in fact he does quite a lot of leaping and bounding on stage) since I first saw one of the early shows after the band got back together. The 'Paul-era' songs so brilliantly collected in the recent Dimple Discs compilation "Dig What You Need" are well represented and in particular "Oh Please", "Thrill Me" and "Dig Yourself Deep" are as good as any of the classics from their impressive back catalogue.
Mickey and James Brown with respective books - photo Retro Man Blog
But yes there's no escaping those classics and of course we get them all, "Here Comes The Summer", "Get Over You", a sublime "Wednesday Week", "Jimmy Jimmy" dedicated to Loaded editor James Brown and "Teenage Kicks" dedicated to the ever-youthful U.K. Subs frontman Charlie Harper, both present at the show. John and Damian's inter-twining guitars are as vibrant as ever and those timeless riffs on "You've Got My Number" and "I Know A Girl" really hit home. It's great that they play some of the less celebrated gems such as my favourite, the heart-tugging "Tearproof" and tracks such as "When Saturday Comes" and "Crisis of Mine". I recently wrote - at some length I know - on the importance and impact of The Undertones (and their various off-shoots) on my life in a feature on their stunning show at the Camden Electric Ballroom back in April so I won't repeat myself here, but needless to say The Undertones treated us to another life-affirming evening's entertainment. Anyway, please do check out my feature here if you would like to know just why they mean so much to me and there are lots of lovely photos if you do get bored with my heartfelt ramblings!
You can check out more videos from the show at our Retro Man Blog YouTube channel here.
Damian O'Neill has been busy outside of The Undertones too - the brilliant second album by 5 Billion In Diamonds to which he contributes, has finally been released on vinyl and then Dimple Discs will be putting out his new instrumental solo LP "An Crann" on coloured vinyl and CD. The vinyl pressing of this sounds particularly impressive and there have been advance copies for sale at recent Undertones shows. Before Saturday's show Damian told me he was a bit concerned what die-hard Undertones fans might think of the album seeing as it is all very atmospheric and instrumental, but I think anyone who did invest in a copy at the merchandise stands would be extremely impressed. As we discovered in our thoroughly entertaining career retrospective Retrosonic Podcast with Damian "From The Undertones to The Monotones" - he is no stranger to ambient and instrumental music and "An Crann" is a damn near perfect and satisfying listen. From the absolutely stunning opening track "Mas o Menos", which draws heavily on the Gitanes soaked Gallic atmosphere of Serge Gainsbourg's "Histoire de Melody Nelson" and The Liminanas, we are taken on an evocative journey through eleven beautifully constructed pieces of music.
"An Crann" is not Folk music and it's not an album of 'ambient soundscapes', or is it? It's very difficult to categorise. It could almost be the soundtrack to an imaginary movie or incidental music from a prime Nordic Noir drama and yet then sometimes I get hints of Anton Karas's "The Third Man" or John Barry's "The Persuaders" theme. Then there are very organic, pastoral pieces that take you right out of your living room and place you deep into the middle of some mysterious fog-bound forest. The album's sound and feel is captured perfectly in Damian's daughter Rosa's stunning cover photography, in fact as the album was mainly recorded at home during lockdown, "An Crann" is something of a family affair. Damian plays most of the instruments throughout and wife Viv, along with Rosa, both add suitably atmospheric and effective vocal harmonies to the proceedings. To promote the album, Dimple Discs have arranged a Q&A session with Damian in conversation with Ann Scanlon at The Social at 5 Little Portland Street in London on Sunday November 6th, doors open at 7pm and tickets can be bought here. Copies of "An Crann" will be available on the night but if you can't make it, you can order from Bandcamp here. Don't forget to check out our Retrosonic Podcasts with Damian, two on his own music and a special on That Petrol Emotion where Damian is joined by Raymond and Ciaran from the band - you can subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast for free at Spotify, iTunes, Apple Podcasts or direct from our SoundCloud site below:
The Undertones at Camden Electric Ballroom - Photo Retro Man Blog
The Undertones have always held a special place in my heart ever since I first saw them on Top of The Pops as an impressionable 13-year-old back in 1979. I was too young to fully appreciate the initial Punk Rock explosion – the Sex Pistols had already split up and their record company were releasing cash-in singles such as “Silly Thing” and “C’mon Everybody”. Punk was already pretty mainstream, New Wave I guess it was called then, but it did mean that some superb singles were gate-crashing the Top 40 and we got to see loads of exciting bands on TOTP every Thursday evening. The Undertones might not have had the surly aggression of The Stranglers nor the spikey peroxide cool of Generation X and they certainly didn’t have the sharp black and white Mod stylings of The Jam or the theatrical fantasy look of Adam & The Ants but they really struck a chord with me and my pals. The band members were cheeky, smiling and clearly enjoying themselves on the tele and with their snorkel parkas, V-necked jumpers, floppy fringes and questionable complexions we could really relate to them. Most importantly, especially in guitarist Damian O’Neill’s case, they didn’t look much older than we did. So, in 1980 when we started up our very first band in the school music room, our guitarist Jeff copied the guitar swinging style of Damian rather than the high-octane leaps and poses of Mick Jones and Paul Weller. We also butchered “Teenage Kicks” as an encore at our very first gig in the school gym, a C-90 cassette tape of which still exists under lock and key somewhere in the attic. To cap it all, soon after that gig The Undertones released a superb new single about a cousin called Kevin. Hey, I even had a cousin called Kevin!
The Undertones, Belfast 1978 - Photo by Paul Slattery
John & Damian O'Neill at Camden Electric Ballroom - Photo Retro Man Blog
The band’s second album “Hypnotised” became a firm favourite and even to this day, remains in my “all-time top 10 albums of all time” (as Smashey and Nicey would say). After The Undertones split, the O’Neill brothers were to have a similarly invigorating impact on my life with their new outfit That Petrol Emotion and the blistering 1985 singles “Keen” and “V2”. These were followed a year later by their debut album “Manic Pop Thrill”, the title of which summed up their sound better than anything I could ever think up. On their release, I wrote about these records in my old D.I.Y. cut ‘n’ paste fanzine “Out of Step” – the records were ahead of their time, something that could be said for That Petrol Emotion’s career as a whole I guess. So, let’s fast forward to 2014 and Damian was involved in another pivotal musical moment in my life with the release of "Anima Rising" by a new band called The Everlasting Yeah - who just so happened to be the last line-up of That Petrol Emotion minus singer Steve Mack, who had moved back to the States and now fronts the excellent band Stag. "Anima Rising" must surely rank among the greatest debut albums of all time and I was thrilled to get to meet Damian, along with Raymond Gorman and Ciaran McLaughlin from the band around this time to record our comprehensive and thoroughly entertaining Retrosonic Podcast special about TEY and TPE (as they can handily be abbreviated).
Steve, Raymond, Brendan & Damian (That Petrol Emotion) at Stag gig, Islngton
The Everlasting Yeah, Half Moon Putney - Photo Retro Man Blog
This led to me putting on a show for The Everlasting Yeah at one of my Retro Man Blog nights at The Half Moon in Putney, a wonderful night that will live long in the memory. I also then did two more Podcast episodes with Damian about his career in music, including his superb solo album “Refit, Revise, Reprise” and contributions to 5 Billion in Diamonds, a kind of super-group project created by Garbage drummer and producer Butch Vig, James Grillo and Andy Jenks and also featuring our mutual acquaintance Ebbot Lundberg of The Soundtrack of Our Lives. Damian also discusses how he and Billy Doherty got to produce the excellent New York based Power Pop band Baby Shakes. All throughout these encounters, I think I did a reasonable job of holding myself together and not collapsing to the floor in a blubbering fan-boy wreck. At least I hope I did. In the meantime, hopping back to 2003, I’d seen The Undertones at the Brighton Concorde 2 for the first time since the band had got back together with vocalist Paul McLoone stepping in to fill the shoes of Feargal Sharkey and I was blown away. They’d just released a superb album of all new material called “Get What You Need” and yes, this really was just what I needed.
The Undertones in Brighton, 2003 - Photo Retro Man Blog
The lead single “Thrill Me” gave me goose bumps – it had all the unmistakeable melodies of the classic Undertones with the edgy sonic thrill of That Petrol Emotion. The Undertones were back in my life. They released another mighty fine album called “Dig Yourself Deep” in 2007 that again highlighted the fact that the band were very much of the here and now. Damian and Brian O’Neill’s excellent label Dimple Discs Records have just released “Dig What You Need”, a new compilation of the best of these two albums, re-mixed by Paul Tipler and sequenced by Damian. It also marks the first time on vinyl for the featured tracks and is packed full of great numbers such as “Enough”, “She’s So Sweet” and the brooding “Fight My Corner”, which I always thought sounded like a long lost That Petrol Emotion track. The compilation is not only perfect for those that might have overlooked the Undertones ‘Mark 2’ material but is a must-have for the die-hard fan too. It all sounds so fresh and exciting in a different context, especially when played extremely loud on vinyl.
Soundcheck at Camden Electric Ballroom - Photo Retro Man Blog
And now, rather like one of those annoying backwards and forwards time-travelling dramas, (insert wavy lines and psychedelic music) I find myself in the present day, standing on the side of the stage at the Electric Ballroom in Camden watching The Undertones sound-check. It’s hard not to avoid the lump in the throat, as I think back to myself as that 13-year-old boy transfixed by seeing the band on Top of The Pops. It’s a dream come true to be standing so close to the band that has meant so much to me over the years. The venue starts to fill up and is soon packed to the rafters and there’s barely room to move as the band take the stage and blast straight into “Family Entertainment”. The atmosphere is amazing – there’s such a wonderful vibe as the band speed their way through a career spanning set of almost thirty songs. Paul pulls out all the stops with his high kicks, jumps and Elvis moves – he’s an engaging frontman that has built up a real rapport with the crowd and live, his voice is really something special. Rather like Baz Warne in The Stranglers, Paul has made the position his own on merit – keeping the integrity of the original delivery intact while retaining his own personality. There’s the usual witty on stage banter, mainly from bassist Mickey Bradley as he reads out requests and dedications between songs.
The Undertones at Camden Electric Ballroom - Photo Retro Man Blog
Damian and John’s guitars are immensely powerful, swapping rhythm and lead parts effortlessly and Billy’s drums propel everything along at breakneck speed. Mickey jokes, “that’s a record, the quickest we’ve ever played that” after one song. “Hypnotised” and “Tearproof” are personal favourites and of course, the pick of faultless singles such as “Here Comes The Summer”, “You’ve Got My Number”, ”Jimmy Jimmy” and the inevitable “Teenage Kicks” are certainly hard to beat. It’s not just about the singles though, they treat us to a plethora of excellent album cuts and B-Sides like “I Gotta Getta”, “Jump Boys”, “True Confessions” and of course “Male Model”. The Paul McLoone era songs featured on “Dig What You Need” such as “Thrill Me”, “Oh Please” and “Dig Yourself Deep”, sit perfectly alongside all the familiar classics and I particularly enjoyed “Here Comes The Rain”, which sounded superb tonight.
The Undertones at Camden Electric Ballroom - Photo Retro Man Blog
I think it’s rare to see such a band where the only disappointment is that they don’t include more “new” material in the set. Given the quality of the songs highlighted on “Dig What You Need”, it’s a bit of a shame that they haven’t released any new material since the 2013 Record Store Day single “Much Too Late”. The band seem content to spend more time touring rather than being cooped up in a studio these days and I suppose you can’t blame them. When you get the chance to play live in front of frenzied, adoring crowds around the world, you’re not going to turn down the opportunity I guess. Anyway, after such an abysmal couple of years, it’s hard to put into words how wonderful tonight’s show was. It was so great to experience once again the sheer joy and life-affirming power of timeless music played by a band that still clearly enjoy themselves as much as we, the fans do. The crowd - from the very front of the stage to the bars at the back and to the balconies above - all singing along together, almost drowning out the band…bloody marvellous!
At the time of writing, it was announced that drummer Billy Doherty unfortunately had a medical emergency, which meant a show had to be cancelled at the last minute. However, the band have recruited Kevin Sharkey as a deputy and the rest of the advertised dates should be going ahead as advertised, but please double check with the venues. Our very best wishes to Billy for a speedy recovery. “Dig What You Need” is available now from Dimple Discs Records.
Please check out the following highlighted links...
Retro Man Blog - feature on The Everlasting Yeah at The Half Moon Putney
Retro Man Blog - Good Vibrations movie feature with photos by Paul Slattery
Write Wyatt - Malcolm Wyatt's excellent Blog with lots of Undertones related features
For videos of The Undertones at the Camden Electric Ballroom and more...please check out the Retro Man Blog YouTube channel. Here's a little taster for you...enjoy!
As we once again return to an unwelcome period of lockdown it's time to invite another very special guest into the Retrosonic Podcast 'virtual studio'. So, for Episode 7 of our Lockdown Lowdown series I am delighted to welcome Damian O'Neill, guitarist with The Undertones, That Petrol Emotion, The Everlasting Yeah and (as Damian confesses) "guitar gunslinger for hire"! I wanted to find out more information about his recent collaboration with the excellent New York based Power Pop band Baby Shakes and their brand new single "Sweet 'n' Sour", a stomping version of a track from Damian's own solo album "Refit Revise Reprise". Damian and his Undertones colleague, drummer Billy Doherty produce and play on the single which also features a cover of the Undertones "Really Really". We talk about his involvement with Dimple Discs Records, the label he runs with good friend Brian O'Neill who have released "Sweet & Sour" as a stunning 7" single on coloured vinyl. We also discuss and play a track from another excellent Dimple Discs release from Eileen Gogan & The Instructions album "Under Moving Skies" and catch up with news on Damian's latest projects including new music from 5 Billion in Diamonds. Finally, we get a long-awaited update on what's been happening with The Everlasting Yeah. You can download/listen to the episode directly from the Retrosonic
Podcast Soundcloud site below or subscribe for free at Spotify, iTunes,
Apple Podcasts and Mixcloud.
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