Retrosonic Podcast Episode 17: "The 12 Bar Blues"

Steve from Retro Man Blog and Rock Photographer Paul Slattery present a bumper episode packed full of our pick of the best in classic and contemporary Garage Rock, Psych, Punk, Mod, Power Pop, Soul and more! From classics, overlooked oldies and hidden gems to brand new releases, exclusives and unsigned acts. In Episode 17: "The 12 Bar Blues" we have an exclusive unreleased new track from The Fallen Leaves and new releases from The Medway's legendary Garage Rock icons Billy Childish & CTMF and Graham Day & The Forefathers. New Punk sounds from Buzzcocks, The Pukes and a live classic from The Outcasts. If you like your Mod and Psych then you will love The Most, Speakeasy and The Mynd Set. Some French Pop from Serge Gainsbourg & Brigitte Bardot and some modern day Yé-yé from Les Kitschenette's. There's the new single from of Arrowe Hill, some stompin' Soul from Willie Kendrick and Dana Gillespie and 60's nuggets from The Vagrants and The Hardtimes. If that's not enough there's Sunset Drive and The Sound and a tribute to Ian McLagan with a truly classic Small Faces number. Plus the usual waffle, rambling, news and reviews including a special piece on the sad demise of The 12 Bar Club and the scandalous re-development of Denmark Street. The episode is now available to download for free from the Retrosonic Soundcloud site or you can now subscribe for free at the iTunes Store. Please click the highlighted band names in the track-listing below to take you to each featured band's web-site or Facebook page to check out more info and news on upcoming gigs and releases. Enjoy!

Sunset Drive "She Don't Need Anybody"

Billy Childish & CTMF "Zero Emission"

The Sound "Heartland"

The Most "Really Good"

The Outcasts "Magnum Force"

The Outcasts - Photo by Paul Slattery

Buzzcocks "The Way"

Serge Gainsbourg & Brigitte Bardot "Bonnie & Clyde"

Les Kitschenette's "L'ascenseur"

The Hardtimes "They Said No"

Dana Gillespie "You Just Gotta Know My Mind"

The Fallen Leaves "Motorcycle Girl"

The Fallen Leaves - Photo by Paul Slattery

The Mynd Set "The Miracle Maker"

Of Arrowe Hill "And That's What Really Happened Blues"

Willie Kendrick "Change Your Ways"

The pUKES "12XU"

The pUKES - Photo by Paul Slattery

Speakeasy "Before The Night"

Graham Day & The Forefathers "The Good Things"

The Vagrants " I Can't Make a Friend"

Small Faces "Tin Soldier"

The pUKES - Debut E.P. and Fanzine out now!

The pUKES - Photo by Paul Slattery

Damaged Goods Records celebrates its 25th year in 2013. That’s 25 years of releasing glorious and riotous punk rock, new-wave, garage rock and vintage pop by all manner of mavericks, geniuses, odd-balls and lunatics…and this Spring is no exception, with the release of The pUKES debut EP on 7” vinyl with poster sleeve. The EP was produced by Dick Crippen from Tenpole Tudor, and features one original, "Will I Learn", plus covers of Menace, Elton Motello and Cock Sparrer songs. The EP release party was held at The Dublin Castle, Parkway, Camden on Friday 24th May with support from CASE and B-Movie Britz. Photographer Paul Slattery was there to document proceedings (before he sped over to the Buffalo Bar to capture Giuda), and a full set of photos can be seen at the pUKES web-site Photo Gallery. The EP can be ordered from the Damaged Goods On-line Store.

The pUKES - Photo by Paul Slattery

The pUKES - Photo by Paul Slattery

The pUKES are a 20-strong (nearly) all female punk ukulele band based in London. They play songs by the likes of Dead Kennedys, Exploited, X-Ray Spex, The Clash etc like you’ve never heard ‘em before. Their massive stage presence and raucous live show has landed them slots at Rebellion Punk Festival and Shoreditch 1234, as well as gigs with many of the bands who inspired them, including Sham 69, Bad Manners, Chelsea and Peter & the Test Tube Babies. Around half the pUKEs were non-musicians before they learned the uke, the others have been in bands such as UK Subs, Extreme Noise Terror and Lost Cherrees. The band have lots of gigs and festivals lined up for the summer – including Rebellion Punk Festival in Blackpool. 

Here's the video for the Cock Sparrer cover version "Because You're Young" from the new EP.

You can read more about The pUKES at The Art of Punk book launch at The Tate Modern last year, and see the video to another track from the EP "Will I Learn", on our previous Blog feature here. You can also see a video of "White Riot" on the Retro Man Blog YouTube channel.

The pUKES have received funding to set up their own Uke workshops and it's also enabled them to publish their own fanzine, entitled "Here’s 3 Chords". Issue 1 is out now for only £2.60 including p&p (UK and consists of 24 pages of Punk Uke awesomeness written and designed by members of The pUKEs – featuring Amanda Palmer, Itch (King Blues), UkePunk, Marjinal, chord charts, play along lyrics and tabs and lots more! Copies are available from their on-line Store, for overseas postage costs please contact the band.

With many thanks to Paul Slattery, Clara and Lorna.

The Damaged Goods Records Story Part 2: A Retrosonic Podcast Special

In this second special episode of our Retrosonic Podcast, Steve from Retro Man Blog talks to Ian Ballard, boss of the legendary Punk and Garage Rock record label Damaged Goods. Ian talks us through some more of the label's pivotal releases including songs from French chanteuse and ex-Bristols vocalist, Fabienne Delsol, and he explains his pride on finally getting to work with one of his all-time favourite bands, the Buzzcocks. Damaged Goods Records strong Medway connections are highlighted with a trio of the Delta's most successful artists in Billy Childish & The Singing Loins, singer-songwriter Pete Molinari, and ex-Prisoners legend Graham Day & The Gaolers. There's also a track from the debut album from The Wolfmen, featuring ex-Adam & The Ants guitarist Marco Pirroni. We then play some of the latest Damaged Goods releases, including the promising Cowbell  and some stomping Italian Glam Rock from Giuda. We are pleased to have some exclusive new songs too including one from Thee Spivs excellent forthcoming album "The Crowd and The Sounds" and The pUKES ukulele take on a Punk Rock classic! For more info on Damaged Goods releases and merchandise please visit the Damaged Goods web-site.

Part 1 of The Damaged Goods Records Story is available to listen to or download for free on the Retrosonic site. In this Episode we are joined by Rock Photographer Paul Slattery who talks about his involvement with Damaged Goods acts including the Manic Street Preachers and Billy Childish and The Headcoats. There are also great tracks from Thee Headcoatees, Helen Love, Holly Golightly, Slaughter & The Dogs and an exclusive from Thee Spivs forthcoming album "The Crowd & The Sounds".



Retro Man Blog along with Damaged Goods will be hosting the official Launch Party for the brand new album from Thee Spivs entitled "The Crowd and The Sounds". This will take place at The Half Moon Putney on Saturday June 29th, with very special guests The Fallen Leaves and The Past Tense. This looks set to be a great night, so book your tickets here to guarantee entry!

For updates and further info on the Launch Party, Facebook users can register at the Facebook Event page here. Otherwise please keep a check on the Blog for all the latest news.

The pUKES - A Punk Rocking Ukulele Orchestra

The pUKES - Photo by Diana More

I noticed on the posters advertising the Tate Modern's Merge Festival event to launch "The Art of Punk" book, that music was to be provided by a band called The pUKES. It automatically conjured up images of a really awful Kenny Everett Sid Snot Gizzard Puke Punk parody but, as it turned out, that couldn't have been further from the truth. As the lecture drew to a close there was a flurry of activity and over twenty brightly coloured Punks took to the stage. Apart from the drummer, they were all clutching Ukuleles, or Ukes, and I soon cottoned on to where the band's name originated. What followed was an unexpected delight, a set of Punk Rock classics covered in a truly individual style, that just made you grin from ear to ear. From popular favourites such The Clash's "White Riot", Ramones "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" and X-Ray Spex's "Oh Bondage Up Yours" to slightly less well known numbers like Menace's "GLC" and Cocksparrer's catchy anthem "Because You're Young", The pUKES sang and played their hearts out, it was fantastic.

The pUKES at The Tate - Photo by Steve Worrall

After the Tate Gallery event finished we all traipsed round to the nearby Charles Dickens pub, the band crammed themselves in and did it all again. This time freed from the restraints of the seated auditorium and the total absence of a bar at the Book Launch, a few pints made the experience of seeing The pUKES even better. The packed pub sang along to all the hits, and even when the band slipped in an original number, "Will I Learn", it was such a great song that I still sang along, even though I'd only heard it for the first time at the Tate a couple of hours earlier. So it all turned out to be a raucous and fun night, not something I expected when I first took my seat in the Tate Gallery's auditorium earlier that evening. The pUKEs describe themselves as a "ukulele anti-society for punks", they are based in London and first started meeting up in early 2011 at their local The Royal Sovereign. A lot of the band had never played an instrument before taking up the Ukulele but other members have been in bands such as UK Subs, Extreme Noise Terror, Lost Cherrees, ATV and Rabies Babies. The band are now in demand, playing gigs, festivals and punk's picnics in London and beyond. They have also been lucky enough to share a bill with many of the bands who inspired them, including Sham 69, UK Subs, Vice Squad, Bad Manners, Chelsea, Menace, Subhumans and Splodge. So if you are planning a Punk Rock party any time, you know you can always call on The pUKES to supply that perfect feel-good entertainment.

Here's the official video to their own original song called "Will I Learn". 

Many thanks to Clara, you can check out The pUKES web-site here.

The pUKES - Photo by Diana More

You can watch a video of "White Riot" filmed at The Tate at the Retro Man YouTube channel.