Rill Rill by Sleigh Bells

Trust me #29

Sleigh Bells are apparently an intense noise pop band.

I'd never have guessed after hearing their 2010 single Rill Rill on Lauren Laverne's brilliant 6Music show one morning last month. I must have played it 50 times over the next week or so.

Although after checking the album Treats that the song features on, I can see where the intense noise description comes from! 

Sleigh Bells are Alexis Kraus and Derek Miller, the latter of whom was in a metalcore band, while Kraus was in teen bands. The duo met in Brooklyn and quickly found they could work easily together.

But back to Rill Rill, which is easily the bands most popular song with over 38 million plays.

The groove is there from the very start. It's got a kind of Beta Band rawness and soul, there are bells, little vocal noises and then Alexis starts singing. The vocal melody just flows so naturally and beautifully.

Wonder what your boyfriend thinks about your braces

What about them? 

I'm all about them

Six such straight A's

Cut 'em in the bathroom

Rill Rill such a cool song and Apple picked up on it, using it in a 2013 iPhone advertisement.

The coolness stems from the Funkadelic song Can You Get To That from their classic 1971 album Maggot Brain. It's a sublime use of sampling, taking the little riff that comes and goes in the Funkadelic tune and using it as the basis for a whole song, inspiring a new flowing vocal melody - gorgeous.

Funkadelic - Can You Get To That

Sleigh Bells - Rill Rill

You can listen to all the songs I've featured in my Trust Me series in a playlist by searching for Everything Flows Trust Me on Spotify or by CLICKING HERE

You can also read about the previous songs I've written about by clicking on the links below.

Previous Trust Me blogs

1. Something On Your Mind by Karen Dalton

1A. Crimson and Clover by Tommy James and the Shondells

2. I Am, I Said  by Neil Diamond

3. Where's The Playground Susie?   by Glen Campbell

4. If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lighfoot

5. Gimme Some Truth by John Lennon

6. Gone With The Wind Is My Love by Rita and the Tiaras

7. In The Year 2525 by Zager and Evans

8. The Music Box by Ruth Copeland

9. The Ship Song by Nick Cave

10. Sometimes by James

11. I Walk The Earth by King Biscuit Time

12. Didn't Know What I Was In For by Better Oblivion Community Centre

13. When My Boy Walks Down The Street by The Magnetic Fields

14. The Man Don't Give A F**k by Super Furry Animals

15. All Flowers In Time Bend Towards The Sun by Jeff Buckley and Liz Fraser

16. Are You Lookin' by The Tymes

17. A Real Hero by College & Electric Youth

18. Feelings Gone by Callum Easter

19. Sunday Morning by The Velvet Underground

20. Did I Say by Teenage Fanclub

21. Don't Look Back by Teenage Fanclub

22. Your Love Is The Place Where I Come From by Teenage Fanclub

23. Belfast by Orbital

24. Clouds by The Jayhawks

25. Dreaming Of You by The Coral

26. Everlasting Love by The Love Affair

27. As Long As I've Got You by The Charmels

28. Shaky Ground by The Lemonheads

Desert Island Disco

Back on 25th August I decided to submit a selection of tunes for the Desert Island Disco section on Lauren Laverne's brilliant BBC6 Music show. 

I'd kind of forgotten about it and then just over a month later I had an email from Lauren's team to say they loved the choices and would I like to be the guest on 16th October?

YES was the very quick answer and I was doubly delighted because it would be my daughter Rosie's 6th birthday.

I always think music sounds better on the radio. Do they sprinkle some kind of magical BBC dust into the equipment? 

From the 16 tunes I submitted (maybe a little overboard, but hey, I got excited), Lauren and her team had to narrow it down for around a 20-minute mix. Lauren's producer very kindly told me on the phone that they hoped to squeeze in an extra track ... and so the 9.30am news was a little late!

They chose; Going Back To My Roots by Ritchie Havens, Northern Piano - Ultraworld, Controversy - Prince, Jumpin' Jack Flash by Anada Shankar and I Wanna Dance With Somebody by Whitney Houston.

Thanks to Lauren and her team for their lovely words about the mix - one of the best ever! And they said they loved the choices so much they would play another couple later in the show - the Chemicals and Frankie Wilson!

And thanks to everyone who listened and sent tweets and messages. Really appreciate your feeback.

You can listen back to the show HERE and you'll find my full list of songs I submitted with some blurb below. (I'm on at 1 hour 38 minutes)

As mentioned on the show, it was emotional thinking back to nights out in bars,in clubs and at gigs in various venues across Glasgow. Oh how I long to get out in town to listen to music with friends and I have a real urge to dance a night away!

You can listen to the full list without the magical BBC dust via a Spotify Playlist HERE or search for Everything Flows Desert Island Disco.

1. Come Together - Primal Scream

2. I Believe In Miracles (extended version) - The Jackson Sisters

3. Going Back To My Roots - Ritchie Havens

4. Get Up Offa That Thing - James Brown

5. Controversy - Prince

6. If Everybody Looked The Same - Groove Armada

7. Northern Piano - Ultraworld

8. Jumbo - Underworld

9. Do I Love You (Indeed I Do) - Frankie Wilson

10. Stars - Mr Fingers

11. Swoon - The Chemical Brothers

12. Together In Electric Dreams - The Human League

13. I Wanna Dance With Somebody - Whitney Houston

ENCORE 

14. Jumpin' Jack Flash - Anada Shankar

15. Don't Leave Me This Way - Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes

IN THE BAG - JUST IN CASE

16. Nothing But A Heartache - The Flirtations

With this Desert Island Disco, I like to think that the eclectic taste enjoyed and promoted by many of the club nights I used to go to in Glasgow comes across in this selection of tunes. Nights like Melting Pot are (pre COVID) still going strong. I love pre-club / post-gig nights in bars like The Variety and McChuills. It was very much a case of anything goes and everything flows. In Glasgow, that always tends to be the case.

McChuills, High Street, Glasgow

Occasionally some friends and I would book a function room in a bar and play tunes that ranged from 60's beat, Motown, Northern Soul and indie, through to disco, electro and euphoric pop. We'd book downstairs in O'Henry's (now the Yes bar), McPhabbs or Blackfriars in the Merchant City. Once in the brilliant The Old Hairdressers which has such a cool New York loft art vibe going on.

And any excuse to DJ at a friends birthday or before/after a band I knew was playing was always welcome. 

A good night for me is a DJ playing tunes that either gets people dancing or coming up to the decks to ask about the song and artist - ideally  both! It's good to play tunes people know and can sing-a-long to, but also great to introduce people to new music that they immediately get into. 

I'll never forget being in a bar in Ibiza in 2001 as dawn was approaching and the DJ played Time Of My Life from Dirty Dancing - a brave choice, totally uncool, so totally cool, just perfect timing, everyone embraced it and sang with their arms in the air or around their friends.

So my selection of tunes is based on the motto anything goes and everything flows. Choosing the songs has made me realise how much I'm missing Glasgow pubs and gigs. My clubbing days are largely behind me but I cannot wait to get out for a night of dancing. In fact, I am going to put on a night to play tunes and dance with friends as soon as we are allowed!

We start off with an all-time favourite beginning with the declaration to Come Together - we know that music is music.

We then kick on with a soul/funk/disco vibe; the euphoric I Believe In Miracles, going into the stunning Ritchie Havens cover of Going Back To My Roots - the house style piano always gets me going, James Brown does his thing and I always remember my friend Stephen Watt dancing like crazy to this in Nice n Sleazy when I played it after a TeenCanteen show. 

Moving on to the insane Controversy by Prince - the first time I heard it I thought the DJ was mixing - no, it's just the insane Prince production and ear for a tune that he had!

I've enjoyed some incredible shows by Groove Armada in Glasgow over the years and If Everybody Looked The Same reminds me of dancing on tables and chairs in McChuills after a show at the Barrowland.

The Ultraworld tune tips a nod to Optimo, while Underworld just take you on a journey and I'm reminded of one of the sweatiest nights ever at the Barrowland. We then alter for a blast of northern soul from Frankie Wilson that everyone can sing and clap along to, whether you've heard it before or not. A number of years ago Russ Winstanley from the Wigan Casino played a DJ set at Barraloadasoul at the world famous Glasgow Barrowland and to see one thousand people busting moves and punching the air to the refrain was magical.

Lets head for the Stars with Mr Fingers, before blissful electronically Swoon-ing to the Chemical Brothers, before ending with a double header of vocal pop heaven with The Human League and Whitney Houston. 

If there is time, we blast back in with an outrageous cover of Jumpin' Jack Flash, before the incredible Don't Leave Me This Way, another song that people can sing-a-long to, keeping up high with the chorus, but just easing it down gently and warmly at the end of the night.

And it's always good to have one in the bag, just in case there is dust on one of the records, or you get extra time, the stomping Nothing But A Heartache by The Flirtations that absolutely blew me away the first time I heard it at a northern soul night in Blackfriars basement back in 2001.

So there you go. Psychedelia, funk, soul, electronic bliss and pure pop perfection.

Never Ending Mixtape part 8

I've had a great month of discovering all kinds of music/artists that I previously hadn't heard, as well as rediscovering some old faves. So this is the largest monthly addition to the Never Ending Playlist yet!

The Never Ending Mixtape began in October 2016 when I finally discovered Spotify after years of saying I would never use it. Watch The Sunrise by Big Star kicked things off, joined by the Velvets, Spiritualized, Tricky, Massive Attack, Belly, Mazzy Star, The Orb, The Smiths.....all kinds of things.

Each month I make some additions to the Never Ending Mixtape and the blog allows me to either reminisce about old favourites, seeing acts live or where and when I bought/heard the song, or to talk about recent discoveries.

You can check the Never Ending Mixtape below and then read on to find out the latest additions.

Look Up In The Sky (Negro Nature) - Francis The Great
I heard this on the Lauren Laverne show last year - what a tune!

I Feel Like I've Been Living (On The Dark Side Of The Moon) - Gene Page
I was looking for another song by Gene Page (All Our Dreams Are Coming True - the song my wife walked down the aisle to, it's not on Spotify) when I discovered this. It was the title that attracted me.

Love's Theme (instrumental)/Under The Influence of Love (vocal) - Love Unlimited
Sensationally uplifting and gorgeous string led instrumental changes into something completely different but just as good. Enjoy this one.

Found A Cure (Tom Moulton mix) - Ashford and Simpson
I discovered this while browsing for Greg Wilson mixes or re-edits on Spotify. Brilliant!

Summer Came My Way - Greg Wilson edit
I first heard this a few years ago when Greg Wilson played Melting Pot at The Admiral. Just sublime and uplifting.

Cocaine Blues (Greg Wilson mix) - Escort
Insanely good, the mix and production are spot on.

Jumpin' Jack Flash - Ananda Shankar
First heard on an old David Holmes mix, this guy sure knows how to dig out a gem

You're So Vain - Carly Simon
So who is/was this song about? Warren Beatty? Mick Jagger? I read an article recently where Carly Simon confirmed that Jagger sings backing vocals. Listen on headphones and it is all too clear. He was certainly vain! A gem of a song.

Tired Of Being Alone - Al Green
There have already been a few times on the Never Ending Playlist where I have simply said that it doesn't get much better than this. This is another one of those times.

Roadrunner - The Modern Lovers
I have this LP on delicious red vinyl. Brilliant guitar pop punk song.

Free Again - Alex Chilton
One of the rarest Teenage Fanclub records I own is a 7-inch import of rip roaring version of Free Again. It instantly became a favourite song of mine.

Stop And Smell The Roses - Television Personalities
One of the best names for a band ever, this song came on randomly when I had spotify on recently.

Anything Could Happen - The Clean
Another Spotify discovery at random. Love the raw vocals over acoustic and electric guitars and a simple beat. Rock n roll.

Streets Of Your Town - The Go Betweens
I caught The Go Betweens at the Renfrew Ferry a number of years ago. They were astonishingly good. I didn't know much of their music, my friend Ian bought me a ticket and I fell for their melodic guitar pop and charm instantly. This is a good example of why.

Black and White - The dB's
Another random Spotify discovery that I really enjoyed. There is such an urgency about this from the vocals all the way to the handclaps. I love the line we are finished, as of a lifetime ago

I Am The Cosmos - Chris Bell
Norman Blake, Bobby Gillespie and Tim Burgess have all highlighted this song in interviews over the years. Listen to find out why.

The Concept - Teenage Fanclub
Is this the first Fannies song on the playlist?! Well it is back to where it all started with the Fanclub for me, discovering them in 1991 through Bandwagonesque and this sublime chiming guitar pop and harmony driven beauty.

Echoes - Gene Clarke
Another guy that Norman, Bobby and co hold up in awe. I can never walk into Monorail Records in Glasgow and come away empty handed. One time i bought this after reading a review in Uncut or Mojo and i was not disappointed. How clever, amazing and wonderful this song is!

Clouds - The Jayhawks
Wichita - The Jayhawks
I caught a program on BBC Scotland from Cottiers Theatre in my mid-late teens and i was transfixed by The Jayhawks. What a band! Hollywood Town Hall is an incredible album. I fell for that perfect mix of acoustic rhythm and electric lead. Here are the 2-songs that were broadcast.

Wish You Were Here - Ryan Adams
I thought I was going to be listening to a Pink Floyd cover when I stumbled across this on YouTube. Listen for the superb use of swearing!

Hooton Tennis Club

A couple of months ago a friend posted a link to a song called Kathleen Sat On The Arm of Her Favourite Chair by a band called Hooton Tennis Club, describing it as brilliant guitar pop. I checked it out and was hooked.

The band hail from Liverpool and are signed to Heavenly Records, one of my favourite labels. Their warm slacker guitar sounds are reminiscent of Pavement, Dinosaur Jr and early Teenage Fanclub. The band also cite Parquet Courts, Beck and the Beach Boys as influences on their Facebook page.

Kathleen... is indeed brilliant guitar pop, coming in at 2 minute 29 seconds; the song flows from the start with a lovely guitar riff and the opening line is a killer;

Spent the best days of my life, travelling on trains and drawing cartoons

The song moves at a quick pace, packing a lot into the short time they have. The guitar instrumental at the end of the chorus is superb.

And even if you're lonely, we can go for a walk in the park

Or maybe go swimming 

Hooton Tennis Club have just released their debut album Highest Point In Cliff Town. I was eager to find out if they could capture this kind of warmth, humour and feel across the course of an album - I wasn't disappointed.

The lyrics paint pictures of people, locations and feelings. Many of the songs are stories about friends; Rose, Pierre (current single and much loved by Lauren Laverne), Jennifer, Jasper, Kathleen and Camilla all feature in the song titles. The guitars are beautifully loud, raw and warm, rhythm and lead combining superbly, underpinned by simple and effective bass and drums.

The band have a knack for finding cracking riffs and are not afraid to enjoy them and the opening riff of Jasper is one that you'll find yourself humming along to instantly. It was the bands debut single and it sounds glorious; the song is about singer Ryan Murphy's Grandfather who passed away a few weeks before it was written. I love the way they leave a line hanging and let the guitars flourish.

Always Coming Back 2 You is a bit of a favourite of mine already, at 4 minutes 21 seconds it is something of an epic for Hooton Tennis Club. The guitars are sublime, but they allow plenty of space for the bass and drums. The band clearly enjoy the riff and groove they find and the final 1 minute and 21 seconds of the song is dedicated to the band jamming on it - lovely.

The album closes with more delicious fuzzy and scuzzy guitars and the song Fall In Luv. I expect a fair few to fall in love with this charming debut full of fun, hooks and great guitar sounds.

The band play the Glad Cafe in Glasgow on halloween - 31st October.

Five for Friday, 3/2/12

Hola

This weeks 5 for Friday has just been inspired by hearing the sublime 808 State on Lauren Laverne's 6 Music show.

So we'll kick off with them and see where we go...

Then we go into the jazz infusioned 'Rose Rouge' by St Germain, I used to DJ occasionally in Glasgow and this always went down well.

As we're going with kind of blissed out, ambient, chilled tunes, this is a real classic from Groove Armada. A hands-in-the-air, hug-your-mates moment.

Ooh the memories of post night clubbing parties...

We'll pick up the pace and bring things forward with 2 Bears and 'Church'. Joe Goddard from Hot Chip at his best.

And how about a bit of Orbital to end - gorgeous bubbling synth sounds.

Five for Friday 12/08/11

Completely off the cuff today although starting with this beauty from the past as Lauren Laverne just played it on 6 music.

Followed by some genius by Damon Albarn;

And Teenage Fanclub playing with Edwyn Collins at Mono!

3 beautiful minutes of gorgeousness from Big Star.


And we end with abit of Hot Chip - great tune.