We have now released two new Special Editions of the
Retrosonic Podcast, both looking at the contemporary Mod Scene. While I was promoting my first Retro Man Blog gig for The Len Price 3, The Past Tense and The Jetsonics, I was blown away, not only by the network of web-sites, radio shows and club nights, but mainly the amount of great bands out there who have been influenced by Mod. Admittedly most of the young bands are taking their cue from Britpop and Paul Weller, and as Hipster Lee from
Royale Records told me in our recent interview, he hopes that these bands do delve back further into the musical history of Mod and see what a diverse movement it was. I think if you look a bit deeper and sort through the Oasis soundalikes, the contemporary scene does have some of that original 60's eclectic Mod feel from Jazz and Soul to raucous Guitars, and I think these Podcasts will hopefully show some of that diversity. So, in
Part 1 we highlight the brand new label and management company,
Royale Records who are busy adding some great bands to their quickly expanding roster. We interview one of Royale's bosses, Hipster Lee and chat about the label's plans and philosophy, as well as playing great tracks from some of their bands, such as Retro Man Blog favourites,
The Past Tense, along with The Universal, Monkeeman, Mr. Bridger, The Lemontops and The Electric Stars.
In
Part 2 we take a wider view on the scene and turn the spotlight on some more of the movers and shakers, such as Alan May's Glory Boy Radio Show, The Alley Club in Cambridge, New Untouchables and The Mod Generation. We pick some of the best contemporary bands showing the diversity of the current Mod scene, from the Soul of DC Fontana, Button Up and Brandy Butler and The Fonxionaires to energetic guitar bands such at The Loop, The Cycle Paths and The Theme. There's also some classic Garage Pop sounds from the
The Len Price 3 and The Past Tense along with International bands like French Boutik from Paris and Spain's
Stanley Road.
The Podcasts can be downloaded for free via our Retrosonic Podcast
Soundcloud page.
