Retrosonic Podcast Episode 48 "Why Don't You Smile Now?" with Special Guests Buddy Ascott & Rob Green of The Fallen Leaves. Features Exclusive New Unreleased Song by Thee Headcoats Sect

Steve from Retro Man Blog welcomes special guests Buddy Ascott and Rob Green from The Fallen Leaves into the studio to discuss their upcoming tribute and fundraising show in the memory of Deerstalker hat wearing guitar legend, Don Craine of Downliners Sect at The Half Moon Putney on Sunday August 21st. To help raise awareness of this very special event, Damaged Goods Records have very kindly granted us an exclusive unreleased new song by Thee Headcoats Sect featuring Billy Childish, Bruce Brand and original Downliners Sect band member Keith Grant. This episode also features news of Buddy's recent recording sessions with Speakeasy, The 79'ers and The Fallen Leaves and another charity show with Vox Pop. Steve chats about some of the gigs he's attended since the last episode including Baby Shakes at the Pump It Up Power Pop Weekender and The Undertones at the Camden Electric Ballroom where we also praise the merits of vocalist Paul McLoone. Then there's the stunning performance by Love Revisited with Johnny Echols at the Garage and The Gruesomes first ever U.K. show at Weirdsville. Steve also talks about his visit to Spinroad Vinyl Factory studio and pressing plant in Sweden and the problems for small bands and labels getting their vinyl pressed. There's music from The Masonics, The Undertones, Downliners Sect, Baby Shakes, Vox Pop, The 79'ers, Love, The Gruesomes, The Fallen Leaves and of course, that very special Thee Headcoats Sect exclusive! You can subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast for free at Spotify, iTunes, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts or direct from our SoundCloud site below:

Retrosonic Podcast · Episode 48 "Why Don't You Smile Now?" with special guests Buddy Ascott & Rob Green

For tickets to the Don Craine Tribute Show at The Half Moon Putney on Sunday August 21st, please contact the venue at this link. Tickets and info for the Sound of Woking event can be found here. Here's the full track-listing to this episode, please click on the highlighted links for further information on the featured bands and how you can purchase their music.

The 79'ers "Maybe Tomorrow" (Live)

Vox Pop "Cor Blimey"

The Undertones "Dig Yourself Deep"

Baby Shakes "Really, Really"

The Gruesomes "Stop It, Girl"

Downliners Sect "Why Don't You Smile Now"

Thee Headcoats Sect "The Baker Street Irregulars" EXCLUSIVE NEW SONG

The Masonics "When You Cry At Night"

The Fallen Leaves "Green Eyes F.C."

Love "She Comes In Colours"

With sincere thanks to Buddy, Rob Green, Rob Symmonds and Ian at Damaged Goods Records. 

Podcover star: Amy K-B.

Retrosonic Podcast with The Gruesomes, Canada's Legendary Tyrants of Teen Trash

For this very special episode of Retrosonic Podcast we caught up with all four members of the legendary Canadian Garage Rock band The Gruesomes as they rehearsed for their upcoming debut London show at Weirdsville on July 2nd, hard to believe this will be the first time the band have ever played the U.K. since forming in Montreal back in 1985. In this comprehensive and thoroughly entertaining show, singers and guitarists Bobby Beaton and Gerry Alvarez, bassist John Davis and drummer John Knoll take us on a wild ride from their formation in 1985 to their split in 1990 and right up to their resurrection and classic comeback album "Cave-In!" in 2000. Along the way we discuss their debut E.P. "Jack The Ripper" and how it became a favourite of The Horrors, along with their first album, the impeccably titled "Tyrants of Teen Trash". We play tracks from each of their albums and their latest single alongside a pick of various influences and favourite songs from The Haunted, The Chords, Kit & The Outlaws, The Prisoners and The Sorrows. We also cover Canadian culture and music including the Montreal scene that spawned The Gruesomes. There's life threatening road accidents, Buddy Ascott's drumming, touring Europe for the first time, why Spain loved The Gruesomes and the band's love of lemon curd! All this and lots, lots more in this teen-trash packed episode of Retrosonic Podcast. You can subscribe to Retrosonic for free at Spotify, iTunes, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music or direct from SoundCloud below:

Retrosonic Podcast · The Gruesomes

The Gruesomes play their first and only UK show at Weirdsville at the Fiddler's Elbow in Chalk Farm on Saturday July 2nd with support from Retro Man Blog favourites The Jack Cades and DJ's Keb Darge, Mr A and Miss A. Psychotronic visuals will be provided by Dave Taylor at Enjoy Yourself. Tickets are available from We Got Tickets here. Don't miss out! For more information on The Gruesomes please check out their official Facebook page here. With sincere thanks to The Gruesomes - Bobby, John, Gerry & John and especially to Grant Fisher.

 

Tracklisting

The Gruesomes "Bikers From Hell"

The Haunted "1-2-5"

The Prisoners "Hurricane"

The Chords "Maybe Tomorrow"

The Gruesomes "Leave My Kitten Alone"

Kit & The Outlaws "Don't Tread On Me"

The Gruesomes "Jack The Ripper"

The Gruesomes "What's Your Problem"

The Gruesomes "Je Cherche"

The Gruesomes "Way Down Below"

The Gruesomes "Hey!"

The Gruesomes "Stop It, Girl"

The Sorrows "No, No, No, No"

The Gruesomes "Make Up Your Mind"

The Gruesomes "Someone Told a Lie"

Retrosonic Podcast Episode 46 "Stupidly Happy" with Special Guest Buddy Ascott

In Episode 46 of Retrosonic Podcast, Steve from Retro Man Blog welcomes The Chords & The Fallen Leaves drummer Buddy Ascott for an update on his recent musical adventures. We cover The 79'ers tour with The Vapors, recent shows with The Fallen Leaves and his production work with Proper. There's also news on his charity bass drum skin which he is getting signed by as many famous drummers as possible to auction for the Roll Out The Barrel water-aid trust. So far there's the signatures of Nick Mason of Pink Floyd, Clem Burke of Blondie, Rick Buckler of The Jam, John Maher of Buzzcocks, Mick Avory of The Kinks and many more. We actually interrupt the podcast to capture the very last autograph, that of Terry Chambers of XTC. There's music from The Vapors, The Chords and XTC and then we play and discuss some new superb new releases from Ruts DC, The Price, Elvis Costello & The Imposters, Eels, The Len Price 3, The Wedding Present with Louise Wener, Lester Square, Telefis with Jah Wobble, The Jukeez, Goodbye Victory Road and Tiny Flaws. Please click on the highlighted links below for more information on each band and how you can buy their music.

Retrosonic Podcast · Episode 46 "Stupidly Happy" with special guest Buddy Ascott

XTC "Bottle From A Rocket"

XTC "Stupidly Happy"

The Len Price 3 "She's Making a Film"

The Vapors "One of My Dreams"

The Chords "One More Minute"

The Price "Between The Lies"

Ruts DC "Something That I Said" (Electracoustic Version)

Telefis (feat. Jah Wobble) "Falun Gong Dancer"

Eels "Steam Engine"

Elvis Costello & The Imposters "My Most Beautiful Mistake"

Newtown Neurotics "Liar Liar"

The Jukeez "Turning You Into"

Tiny Flaws (feat. Bobby Tarlton) "Photogenie"

Goodbye Victory Road "Tomorrow's World"

The Wedding Present (feat. Louise Wener) "We Should Be Together"

Proper "Harlequin"

Lester Square "Zulu" 

Buddy Ascott with Terry Chambers of XTC - photo Retro Man Blog

You can subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast for free at iTunes, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify and SoundCloud. You can listen to our special Lockdown Lowdown episode with Leigh Heggarty from Ruts DC and The Price here. Our Lockdown Lowdown with Buddy Ascott can be found here and the "Rhythm Method" episode featuring Buddy's favourite drummers is available here. Then there's our first episode together with the original story of the charity bass drum skin in the archive here or direct below. Thanks for listening, check out the Roll Out The Barrel charity here and look out for news on the drum skin auction date! Retrosonic Podcast has a valid on-line music PRS Licence.

 Retrosonic Podcast · Buddy Ascott of The Chords & The Fallen Leaves

Retrosonic Podcast: "The Rhythm Method with Buddy Ascott" New Episode in which we nominate, play and discuss our favourite Drummers & Bassists

In the latest episode of Retrosonic Podcast we welcome Buddy Ascott (former drummer with The Chords, currently with The Fallen Leaves and The 79ers) into the virtual studio to discuss that often overlooked and undervalued component of a band - the Rhythm Section... Buddy nominates and discusses the merits and influences of five of his favourite drummers, Keith Moon, Mitch Mitchell, Chris Sharrock, Pete Thomas and Topper Headon and he talks us through some highlights of their playing. Find out who features alongside Gaye Advert, Peter Hook, JJ Burnel and Tessa Pollitt in our top ten chart of iconic Bassists, there's five underrated Bassists including Inge Johansson of The (International) Noise Conspiracy and Serge Gainsbourg's session bassist Dave Richmond and to top it all off there's even a quiz to name twenty superb Bass intros including classic riffs from The Stranglers, U.K. Subs, The Damned, Joy Division, Spizzenergi, Public Image Limited and Sparks. The episode is generously sound-tracked by superb examples of our Rhythm Section heroes including music by The Who, Elvis Costello & The Attractions, The Clash, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Talking Heads, The Limiñanas, Ian Dury & The Blockheads, New Model Army, Magazine, The Slits and of course... The Chords! You can subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast for free at Spotify, iTunes/Apple Podcast, Soundcloud or listen/download directly from the link below.

Retrosonic Podcast · The Rhythm Method Part 1 with Buddy Ascott

Retrosonic Podcast Lockdown Lowdown Episode 1 with Brett "Buddy" Ascott from The Chords & The Fallen Leaves

Photo by Retro Man Blog

Brett "Buddy" Ascott, drummer with The Chords and The Fallen Leaves (and many more besides...) is our first special guest in a new series of Retrosonic Podcasts entitled "Lockdown Lowdown". Buddy tells us of his earliest musical awakenings, the first record he ever bought, his first gig and what event changed him from innocent fan of Pop music to the dark side of Rock & Roll. Along the way we hear who inspired him to pick up the drumsticks, some of his own memorable experiences as a musician and the favourite tracks from his own recordings. Buddy tells us of his favourite albums and singles and most treasured item of music related memorabilia. The episode is soundtracked by songs by David Bowie, The Kinks, Sex Pistols, The Who, Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers, The Undertones, That Petrol Emotion, The Auteurs, Dodgy, Lightning Seeds, The Thrills, Arcade Fire, The Clash and of course The Chords and his current band, The Fallen Leaves.

Full Track-Listing:

David Bowie "Jean Genie"

The Kinks "Dead End Street"

Sex Pistols "Problems"

The Clash "Garageland"

The Who "Doctor Jimmy"

That Petrol Emotion "Sensitize"

The Thrills "Found My Rosebud"

The Lightning Seeds "Pure"

The Kinks "Days"

The Who "Baby, Don't You Do It" 

The Chords "I'm Not Sure"

The Chords "What Are We Gonna Do Now?"

The Undertones "Get Over You"

The Auteurs "New French Girlfriend"

The Fallen Leaves "So Much More"

Arcade Fire "Modern Man"

Johnny Thunders & The Heartbreakers "Born To Lose"

Dodgy "In a Room"

You can order The Chords box-set "Re-Chordings 1979-1982" here. For more information on the forthcoming book "Remembering The Chords" by Ray Butler, please check out the link here. Details on how to donate and bid for the signed drum-skin can be found at the Roll Out The Barrel Trust web-site here. The Retrosonic Podcast special featuring the full story of Buddy Ascott's musical journey is still available to download/stream at our Retrosonic Podcast Soundcloud archive here.

Subscribe to Retrosonic Podcast on iTunes for free or download/stream at Soundcloud below:

Retrosonic Podcast · Lockdown Lowdown Episode 1: Buddy Ascott (The Chords/The Fallen Leaves)

Buzzcocks Pop-Up Exhibition & News On Their Upcoming Show at The Royal Albert Hall on June 21st

Buzzcocks - John Maher, Steve Diggle & Steve Garvey - Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks marked the 40th anniversary re-issues of the albums "A Different Kind of Tension" and "Singles Going Steady" with a special exhibition and pop-up shop at the Noho Showroom in London last Saturday. The one day only event featured Malcolm Garrett’s original artwork designs for Buzzcocks' record sleeves along with various prints, adverts and posters. There was also a shop selling the albums and the original "Product" carrier bag plus a very limited number of exclusive screen-prints of the original Malcolm Garrett "What Do I Get?" poster. To top it all we had the added bonus of a signing session where Steve Diggle was joined by the 'classic' line-up's rhythm section, John Maher and Steve Garvey who happily chatted with fans and signed albums and prints. Of course, seeing the three bandmates there together you couldn't help but feel extremely sad that Pete Shelley is no longer with us. However, the exhibition also served as a reminder for this Friday June 21st's very special event at The Royal Albert Hall to celebrate Pete's life and music. 

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

John Maher signes Buddy Ascott's charity drum skin - Retro Man Blog

Buddy Ascott, drummer with The Chords and now The Fallen Leaves, came along wth me and finally managed to get one of his biggest influences, John Maher, to sign the now legendary bass drum skin. John added his autograph alongside such drummimg icons as Clem Burke of Blondie, Nick Mason of Pink Floyd and Rick Buckler of The Jam among many others. The drum skin will eventually be auctioned in aid of the Roll Out The Barrel Trust charity which you can hear all about in our special Retrosonic Podcast interview with Buddy here. Buddy and I also pay tribute to Pete Shelley in Retrosonic Episode 33 where Buddy picks his favourite Buzzcocks song and talks about the influence of John Maher on his drumming. I also reminisce about the Buzzcocks 2012 "Back To Front" gig at Brixton Academy, which saw John and Steve Garvey joined by original vocalist Howard Devoto.

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

The Royal Albert Hall gig on Friday promises to be another very special, but of course poignant, one-off event and will feature Buzzcocks current line-up, along with Steve Garvey and John Maher and a star-studded cast of guest vocalists. The special guests confirmed so far include Dave Vanian, Captain Sensible, Thurston Moore, Peter Perrett, Richard Jobson, Pauline Murray and Tim Burgess. The impressive support on the night comes from The Skids and Penetration, making this a fitting tribute to Pete Shelley and a night not to be missed. Tickets are available from The Royal Albert Hall ticket office here. Here are a few photos of the exhibition and signing session.

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

Buzzcocks Exhibition & Signing Session, London - Photo Retro Man Blog

There are more photos of the exhibition at the Retro Man Blog Facebook page here.

Budstock - A Celebration of Buddy Ascott's 60th Birthday at The 100 Club April 6th

Buddy Ascott on stage at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

Budstock “One ginormous ego-trip” to celebrate the 60th birthday of Brett ‘Buddy’ Ascott (his words, not mine I hasten to add…) was an idea 10 years in the making. Originally mooted for his 50th birthday, the plan was to get together some of the bands he had drummed with over the years for a one-off gig. Unfortunately, for various reasons, it never got off the ground at the time but the idea remained dormant until it came round to the planning for Buddy’s 60th birthday. The plan was rekindled, he would gather together six acts - The Rage, The Way Out, Speakeasy, The Moment, his current employers The Fallen Leaves and of course the band for which he is best known, The Chords, or The Chords OK as they were dubbed on the night.

Birthday Boy Buddy Ascott at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

So, on April 6th we gathered at London’s iconic 100 Club to pay tribute to one of “the nicest men in Rock” (they may also be his words…) and witness the ceremonial handing over of the bus pass to our hero. He’s a popular chap is Buddy, selling out The 100 Club quicker than most bands is no mean feat and the demand for tickets would have freaked out even the most hardened black market ticket tout. Drummer with numerous bands, wearer of silly hats and connoisseur of exotic shirts, Buddy is indeed a man of many talents and all three were on display tonight. He took his place behind the drum kit wearing a different hat and a different shirt for each of the six bands performing for our pleasure. Six bands in one night is tiring enough even if you’re just there watching but to drum with six bands in one night is madness, surely! I probably wasn’t the only person to tell him he was crazy when I heard about the idea. He would be exhausted, I told him, he wouldn’t have time to talk to anyone or enjoy the party I moaned. He’d have to start early in the afternoon to fit everything in, and I warned, you’re not 50 anymore you know etc. etc.

The Way Out at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

Speakeasy at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

However, I’m bloody glad he didn’t listen to the advice as it turned out to be one of those special one-off events that will be talked about for years to come. Although, it was Buddy’s birthday, we were the ones getting all the treats. In addition to the six bands there were free exclusive CD’s featuring rare tracks from his various bands, Budstock badges and birthday cake. The Rage opened proceedings, then The Way Out who impressed with their catchy Power Pop. There was the Mod Revival ‘super group’ Speakeasy and then we had the excellent Moment.

The Moment  at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

The Fallen Leaves at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

Buddy’s current employers, and Retro Man Blog regulars The Fallen Leaves were next with their two bassists line-up. Current bass player Matthew Karas playing harmonica before taking over the bass from his predecessor Gaz Evans. The Leaves put in their usual entertaining set of Pop Punk perfection, or was it Punk Pop perfection? To top it all there were the headliners The Chords OK. The excellent guitarist Simon Stebbing from The Purple Hearts joined Buddy, Kip and Martin from The Chords and they crashed through a selection of their classic tracks such as “Maybe Tomorrow” and “Something’s Missing”. Just before their set, I bumped into Damian O’Neill from The Undertones and The Everlasting Yeah, strangely enough in exactly the same spot as when I last saw him at The Limiñanas 100 Club gig back in February. “Are you getting on stage as a special Guest?” I asked him, adding “It would have been great if Billy had come over from Japan for this” and I noticed something in Damian’s eyes that told me this might not just be an idle dream.

The Chords OK at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

The Chords OK at The 100 Club - photo Retro Man Blog

Damian then made his way to the stage for the encore and was joined by another familiar face. Yes! It was indeed Billy Hassett, original singer with The Chords, what a great surprise! They kicked into The Undertones classic “Teenage Kicks” and the crowd went nuts. An awesome blast of The Chords debut 1979 single “Now It’s Gone” raised the roof with the added volume of the crowd singing along. Unfortunately, Buddy was exhausted, out on his feet and signalled that he just couldn’t do any more encores otherwise we would have kept him there drumming all night. It was a bit of a shame that Billy couldn’t have done a couple more numbers but everyone understood that Buddy needed a well-deserved break, after all, he is 60! Huge congratulations to Buddy and his team of helpers behind the scenes who made this a unique and special night for all of us lucky to be there, it will not be forgotten. They also raised a lot of money for Buddy’s various chosen charities Battersea Dog's Home, The Samaritans, St. Christopher's Hospice, Crisis and Roll Out The Barrel Trust and it’s still not too late to donate if you feel inclined.

Some more videos can be found at our YouTube channel here and there are more photos at the Retro Man Facebook page here. I spoke to Buddy a few weeks before the gig in Episode 33 of Retrosonic Podcast, which you can listen to/download at our Soundcloud site here. Don’t forget he also has his very own special Retrosonic Episode in which he takes us on thoroughly entertaining romp through his musical career and you check this out below.

The Fallen Leaves at The Hope & Anchor - Exclusive Paul Slattery Photos From the Recording of their New Live LP

The Fallen Leaves photographed by Paul Slattery

The Fallen Leaves latest night in their residency at the legendary Hope & Anchor in Islington was a free gig arranged for the recording of a new live album. The band played two sets including some brand new songs and of course encouraged a healthy dose of audience participation, which might well give them headaches during the editing! The set was recorded on the night by ex-Vibrator turned Producer, Pat Collier, who as the founder of Alaska Studios has worked with Robyn Hitchcock, The Sound, Screaming Blue Messiahs, Makin' Time, The Seers and many more great acts over the years. At the moment no title or release date of the album has been announced but of course as soon as we have more details we will let you know.

All colour photos above copyright Paul Slattery

All black & white photos above copyright Retro Man Blog

Thanks to Paul Slattery for the excellent colour photographs. The Fallen Leaves next show at the Hope & Anchor will be on Saturday 26th May. For more photos of the gig please check out the Retro Man Blog Facebook page here.

Retrosonic Podcast Special Edition with Buddy Ascott of The Chords & The Fallen Leaves & News of His Charity Quest...

Buddy Ascott with Clem Burke from Blondie - Photo copyright Peter Stevens

Legendary drummer Buddy Ascott of The Chords and currently The Fallen Leaves, chats to Retro Man Blog about his life in music in this latest special edition Retrosonic Podcast. From being inspired by The Who's Keith Moon and Quadrophenia and witnessing the early Punk Rock explosion to playing the Roxy. There's encounters with The Undertones, Paul Weller and Jimmy Pursey and of course the story centres around his time with The Chords at the height of the Mod Revival. Buddy also explains about his theory of why drummers are the goalkeepers of Rock 'n' Roll and tells us of his involvement with an intriguing charity event. This honest and amusing account might just change your preconceptions about drummers! The Podcast is sound-tracked with music by some of Buddy's various (and many...) bands including The Chords, The Fallen Leaves, The Rage, The Moment, The Red Away Tops, The Way Out and we have an exclusive track from Speakeasy's forthcoming album. More details of the Roll Out The Barrel "Drummers on top of the O2" charity event - including the chance to bid for the signed bass drum skin as shown in the photos below - can be found here. Photographer Peter Stevens has been on hand to capture Buddy's quest to get this drum skin signed by an impressive list of drumming royalty such as Clem Burke from Blondie, Nick Mason from Pink Floyd, Dylan Howe from the Wilko Johnson band, John Coghlan from Status Quo, Mick Avory from The Kinks and many more...We'll keep you updated as the drum skin gets filled in with more names!

Buddy Ascott with Nick Mason of Pink Floyd - Photo copyright Peter Stevens

Buddy Ascott with Dylan Howe of the Wilko Johnson band - Photo copyright Peter Stevens

Buddy Ascott with Steve White of The Style Council - Photo copyright Peter Stevens

You can listen to or download the Podcast directly from our Retrosonic Podcast Soundcloud link below or subscribe on iTunes or Mixcloud. Buddy will be talking about his experience of playing the 100 Club in the next episode of Retrosonic Podcast so please keep an eye out for the release date.

With thanks to Peter Stevens for the excellent photos, you can check out his web-site with more examples of his superb work here. All photos copyright Peter Stevens.

The Fallen Leaves: Paul Slattery Photos from the New Album Launch Party at The Hope & Anchor with The Killer B's & The Nu Vandals

The Fallen Leaves at The Hope & Anchor photographed by Paul Slattery

Hot on the desert-booted heels of their "Best of" compilation "Punk Rock For Gentlemen", The Fallen Leaves have just released an album of all new material entitled "What We've All Been Waiting For" on their own Parliament Records. The band put on an excellent launch party as part of their residency at the legendary Hope & Anchor venue in Islington where copies of the album were on sale for the first time. It's on CD only for now and if we get any news of a vinyl release of course we will let you know. Some of the new songs have featured in the band's set over the past couple of years now and have become firm favourites alongside all those much-loved classics. New titles including "Motorcycle Girl", "All That Glitters", "Lavender Girl" and "Prodigal Son" are particularly impressive. We've played exclusive pre-release versions of a couple of the new songs in various episodes of Retrosonic Podcast and you can hear the brilliant "Funny World" in our latest Episode 26 here. The band had just got back from a mini-tour of the UK, taking in Manchester and another Marc Riley session and gigs in Glasgow and Middlesbrough and tonight they were on top form. Vocalist Rob Green pulls out all the stops and props - the cool shades, the flask of tea, the maracas, the blowing of smoke rings and even gunning down the crowd with a walking stick! Bassist Matthew Karas looks cool with his cravat and velvet smoking jacket, a bemused Cheshire Cat grin playing on his lips. Rob Symmons' assault on his guitar is still one of the most exciting visual treats you will see at any gig and Buddy Ascott's mightily impressive drumming once again proving that there's much more to these "Simple songs for complex people". Here's some great photographs from Paul Slattery...

The Fallen Leaves at The Hope & Anchor photographed by Paul Slattery

Rob Green of The Fallen Leaves at The Hope & Anchor photographed by Paul Slattery

Rob Symmons of The Fallen Leaves at The Hope & Anchor photographed by Paul Slattery

Buddy Ascott of The Fallen Leaves at The Hope & Anchor photographed by Paul Slattery

Matthew Karas of The Fallen Leaves at The Hope & Anchor photographed by Paul Slattery

The night started off with some down and dirty good time Rock 'n' Roll from The Nu Vandals which certainly put a smile on everyone's faces. A Punky cover of "The Harder They Come" was ambitious but they pulled it off thanks to some great drumming from Richard Grealish and impressive sax work from Natalie Lane. Vocals are shared between guitarist Alan Blizzard, who oozes Keith Richards style and imposing bassist Dale Senior who looks like he's stepped out of a Martin Scorsese movie. In fact the band do bring a touch of that New York Johnny Thunders Lower East Side Manhattan to Islington. One of my favourite songs was the short, sharp Ramones tribute "Ask Me No Questions" but "Feeling Good About Feeling Bad", "Have You Seen My Mama" & "My City" are all great tracks and I would thoroughly recommend catching The Nu Vandals play as soon as you can.

The Nu Vandals photographed by Paul Slattery

The Nu Vandals photographed by Paul Slattery

Next up it was the welcome return of The Killer B's who's raw, hypnotic R'n'B really went down well on the night. There's a slightly off-kilter twist to their take on the Blues to keep things interesting particularly on "You Don't Bug Me". It was when Chris Thompson started off that stuttering, scratchy Wilko Johnson style guitar on the superb "Unforgiven" that it reminded me of his old band The Screaming Blue Messiahs. I knew bassist Ricky McGuire had been in The Men They Couldn't Hang and I just found out he had also been in the early 80's Punk band The Fits, if I'd have known that I would have taken along my old "Last Laugh E.P." for him to sign...! He's a great bass player and both him and his rhythm section colleague, the dapper and laid back drummer David Morgan Mathias, keep things effortlessly in check. They don't play any songs at all from their only album "Love Is a Cadillac Death Is a Ford" so I'm hoping they will get round to recording some of this excellent new material very soon and not forgetting getting out there and playing some more gigs too.

The Killer B's photographed by Paul Slattery

The Killer B's photographed by Paul Slattery

The Killer B's photographed by Paul Slattery

The Killer B's photographed by Paul Slattery

Thanks to Paul Slattery for the excellent photos (copyright Paul Slattery 2017). Paul started off taking early photos of his heroes Dr. Feelgood and Link Wray and was inspired by Lemmy of Motorhead to dive head first into the music world. Over the years he's produced iconic shots of The Flamin' Groovies, Ramones, The Clash, The Fall, Joy Division, Manic Street Preachers, The Stone Roses and many more besides. Paul has had two books published "The Smiths: The Early Years" and "Oasis: A Year On The Road" which are available from Amazon. For more photos of the album launch party please head on over to the Retro Man Blog Facebook page and hit "Like" to sign-up and check out the exclusive photo albums. You can see some videos of all three bands filmed on the night too at our Retro Man Blog YouTube channel here. You can order copies of The Fallen Leaves new album  "What We've All Been Waiting For" from band's web-site here and don't forget our very special Fallen Leaves Podcasts where the two Robs talk us through their fascinating history and play a pick of some of their influences and favourite Fallen Leaves songs along the way. Episode 1 is here...