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Capsule have been at it again...Supersonic festival is back in The Custard Factory in Birmingham on the 24-26th July and Brumcast will be providing you with TWO podcasts featuring the talents on show this year. Download the first one direct by clicking here

With unique performances from such influential artists as Italian legends, GOBLIN, their first show in the UK in 20 years, the reformation of the original line up of HEAD OF DAVID, who bring their driving bombast to proceedings for the first time in 23 years, the notorious Japanese band CORRUPTED who have yet to play on UK soil as well the reawakening of Greg Anderson & Stephen O'Malley of Sunn 0))) maiden voyage into darkeness: the cult black doom act THORR'S HAMMER, not to mention splatter rock band THE ACCUSED, unruly trio MONOTONIX, the expansive drone-noise of GROWING; Brighton's prog adventure, DIAGONAL; the wild avant futuristic jazz of ZU; the stoned pysch of EARTHLESS, the Virginian sludge rock of PONTIAK, the industrial experiments of 65 DAYS OF STATIC, the immense duo that is FLOWER/CORSANO DUO, occult noise act SKULLFLOWER, also joining the line up is SCORN aka Mick Harris (king of the blast beat) and the new project combining Russell McEwan of Black Sun & the electronic-vocal attack of Lea Cummings (Kylie Minoise) in the form of ATOMIZED, added to this are the power violence duo IRON LUNG and one of the finest folk vocalists NANCY WALLACE will be featured in the line-up, once again highlighting the highly eclectic booking policy of the festival.

information at http://www.supersonicfestival.com

Here's the playlist for part one
Enjoy
Little Chris
1. Tweak Bird - Shivers (2:12)
2. Caribou - Melody Day (4:11)
3. zZz - House Of Sin (4:59)
4. Venetian Snares - Gentleman (4:33)
5. Arbouretum - False Spring (5:50)
6. Taint - Hex Breaker (4:41)
7. Scorn - The End (P.C.M. - "Nightmare" Mix) (7:40)
8. Pontiak - Shell Skul (4:01)
9. Zu - Ostia (5:05)
10. Tartufi - Boat Of Armor (4:42)
11. Pre - Dudefuk (2:03)
12. Corrupted - An Island Insane, Part 1 (6:28)
13. Kim Hiorthoy - As if (3:03)
14. Army of flying robots - Try Reading A Good Book (3:13)
15. Diagonal - Child of the Thundercloud (8:48)
16. Rose kemp - The Unholy (9:22)
17. Iron Lung - White Flag (0:30)
18. 65 Days Of Static - Drove Through Ghosts To Get Here (4:18)
19. Head of David - 108 (5:24)
20. Goblin - l'alba dei morti viventi (6:04)

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Olbilgatory myspace www.myspace.com/brumcastbirmingham

I've been along to two wonderful art events over the last week, one you'll have to rush to catch -- the other is handily distilled into newspaper form.

Echoes from the Edge is an installation that uses film, sound, physical objects you can touch and even smells to evoke people's memories of Digbeth and Highgate. Friction Arts have been collaborating with US artist, Shannon Flattery, to create an interactive exhibition reflecting the voices, thoughts and histories of the residents and workers as the area undergoes it's most significant changes for forty years.

Photo by Nicky Getgood on Flickr

Local Digbeth blogger Nicky Getgood has been effusive with her praise, and I found much to make me agree. The interactive sets are immersive and the audio memories that you find along the trail will bring Birmingham to life. It's really spectacular and on until the 30th May, Thursday to Sundays.

My second art experience also took place in Digbeth, but in the rather more alcoholic atmosphere of the Anchor pub. It was the launch of the new issue of The Eccentric City bills itself as "the World's first dedicated eccentric newspaper" - and I'm sure it is, whatever oddness the Daily Mail et al get up to. It's the work of artist and "eccentric archaeologist" Harry Palmer who edits contributions from around the World, he says it "serves to review, preview, present and promote the nuances of personal and creative pursuits, interests and fascinations".

It may surprise you to know that I lead a double life. By day, I'm a consultant on marketing & fundraising issues to cultural organisations, but by night I'm a volunteer charity trustee. It's a privileged position as it gives me insights to situations as poacher and gamekeeper simultaneously, as many of my clients are registered charities. This is a very tough time to be working in the charity sector, particularly when involved in income generation, as the recession - or for some the fear of the impact of recession created by media reporting - bites.

Fundraising charities broadly receive their income from one of four sources: public sector support, trusts & foundations, companies, and individuals. Although Arts Council England has set up a specific fund to help arts companies through the recession, some other funders - local authorities, regional development agencies, etc. - have found themselves with dramatically-reduced resources and so have been forced to cut services and sector's support of charities has been cut back (or in many cases simply removed) and trusts and foundations have found their endowments somewhat shrunken in the face of Icelandic banking disasters and world economic turmoil. Fundraisers are now hoping that individuals will feel compelled to support projects close to their hearts - but wait, aren't these the very same individuals who are losing, or worried about losing, their jobs right now? That's right, it's the humble taxpayer who foots the bill. However, we are known as a supportive and generous nation when it comes to charity; as the phrase goes, charity begins at home and recent history seems to bear this out.

Featuring not one but two tracks off the new 'Betty & The Id' album here's Brumcast 121, also features post rock, indie, techno, ska, punk, circuit bending and God knows what else....Download it free and direct by clicking here
Here's this show's playlist :-
1. Betty & The Id - Oregon Trail (2:24)
2. Tantrums - Mek Ya Feel Hype (2:23)
3. Through her Eyes - Battlecry (4:43)
4. Inertia Blooms - Mega Tsunami (6:52)
5. The Concept:MK - Enigma (8:25)
6. Flesh Eating Foundation - Godless (Digicore remix) (3:54)
7. Weatherbird - Declaration of Era's (2:34)
8. King Singh - No, go away. (6:48)
9. Screaming Guns - This is Music (4:13)
10. MISPELT2pointzero - Junkfood Generation (3:46)
11. Rhino - HOOV (7:18)
12. Sonic Delays - Are We Here (5:01)
13. Crystal set - a long trip (2:48)
14. Pressure Tones - Pressurized (2:42)
15. Windscale - 23,000v (4:43)
16. Betty & The Id - End is Nigh (5:41)
Enjoy!
Little Chris
Brumcast RSS feed for itunes etc - http://brumcast.podOmatic.com/rss2.xml
Brumcast on Twitter http://twitter.com/brumcast

At first I thought the Strangest Man in Britain was playing some kind of trick. That's my old mate Leigh Banks, who you can find here. He's the weirdo who gets a bit involved in apparitions, faces seen on walls a la Turin Shroud, sensible stuff like that.

We're sitting watching the fountains behind Jurys Inn in Milton Keynes, not far from the station and just across the road from the big new Sainsburys. Sunny Sunday morning, waiting for GBK to open for lunch. Our bikes (three good Treks and a getting-old Raleigh) are chained to a silver birch tree outside the restaurant in a square full of restaurants.

This show features a brand new Johnny Foreigner track in amongst Ska, Techno, Acoustic, Rock, Ambient, Indie Disco, Punk, and Extreme Metal, another top compilation of the UK Midlands underground. . Go to http://brumcast.podOmatic.com for download & audio stream links. Download it free and direct by clicking right here.
Here's this show's playlist :-
1. Tempting Rosie - Old Fashioned Mistakes (4:51)
2. Beatcompute - One Of Us (C-system Rmx) (5:24)
3. Mr Bones and the Dreamers - Are These Actual Miles (4:04)
4. Johnny Foreigner - Ohai, the sentinels (1:52)
5. The Garcia LX - Swimming (2:35)
6. Defamation - Bring me down (3:39)
7. King Singh - Sleepy Bones (5:32)
8. The Dead Fish - Cabin fever (4:37)
9. The Carpels - Abababa (3:29)
10. Fedd - Beat 1 (1:03)
11. Fedd - Beat 2 (1:26)
12. Fedd - Big Snow Falling (2:01)
13. Synopsis - Modus Operandi (2:58)
14. Yelps - Cavalier Frontier (3:40)
15. Thrones - Running From The Sea (5:55)
16. Plastic Glasses - Know Your Face (3:12)
17. Motion figures - Challenging Communication (4:22)
18. THE DEAD LIGHTS - Mirrors (4:03)
19. Herd - Tangent 38 (3:41)
20. Eastern Gun Club - Stockholm (3:08)
21. Darren Ramshaw - The World On A Stick (5:15)
Enjoy!
Little Chris
Brumcast RSS feed for itunes etc - http://brumcast.podOmatic.com/rss2.xml
Brumcast on Twitter http://twitter.com/brumcast

Brumcast features the best new music from the UK Midlands, kicking us off in this show we see the return of Hip Hop types 'Squashed Cob' and pop punkers 'Governors of California'. Good to see you both back and firing on all cylinders! We also have some experimental music from 'Flaw5', Idiosync' and 'Claire Obscure & the Nocturnes', Electro from 'Future Daze', 'Myza', and 'Machine Boy aLive', Stoner Rock from 'Outburst', Indie from 'Yelps', chaos from 'The Conscripts' and stacks more! Go to http://brumcast.podOmatic.com for download & audio stream links. Download this show free and direct from http://brumcast.podomatic.com/enclosure/2009-02-06T08_59_26-08_00.mp3

Here's this show's playlist :-
1. Squashed Cob - No Way I'm Letting Go (4:43)
2. Governors of California - you have 3 digits, i've got four (4:41)
3. Flaw5 - The Arm (4:45)
4. Yelps - Brains on Fire (3:17)
5. Machine Boy aLive - Building A Better Boy (3:26)
6. Mr Bones and the Dreamers - Time To Rest (4:06)
7. Outburst - Figures (4:21)
8. The Conscripts - Nerve Gas Jazz (4:04)
9. This Burning Age - Everlasting (4:26)
10. Idiosync - dir.T. nor.T vi.O.lent, Nature (Alex Singh remix) (4:45)
11. Your Biggest Fanclub - Keep The Change (1:56)
12. The Fores - It Took Me Years (3:34)
13. Claire Obscure and The Nocturnes - chantra (3:57)
14. The Late Arrivals - Head Blood & Bones (3:46)
15. Wiseacre - Menace to Society (4:04)
16. Trademark - MASTERS OF DISASTER (3:11)
17. MyzA - Tooled-up -washed up (5:27)
18. Future Daze - Oxygen (5:07)
19. The Yipes - Take It Or Leave It (2:47)
Enjoy!
Little Chris

Happy New Year to all!, after an extended Christmas break, Brumcast is back with a bang! Show 114 bursts into life with The Conscripts, an incredible live act who I witnessed down at the Island Bar a couple of days ago. Also included in this edition is hip hop from Rawality, electro from Amberphonik and Crash Repeat, theres a bit of everything in there as usual! listen in today!

Brumcast 114 'Blitzkrieg Flop', featuring the best new music from the midlands is now ready for listening and FREE download. Go to http://brumcast.podOmatic.com for download & audio stream links. Download it free and direct by clicking here
Here's this show's playlist :-
1. The Conscripts - The Run Down (3:01)
2. Dastards -Take a left (3:47)
3. Gillian Stapleton - people pleaser (3:10)
4. Filthy Cake - A Smile on your face (3:42)
5. che - shiver (4:26)
6. The Fores - I'm nobody (3:32)
7. Amberphonik - Night Sailor (5:16)
8. 35 seconds - Chew (3:16)
9. Miss Halliwell - SORGHUM (3:22)
10. Dead Letter Office - Chairkickers (3:43)
11. Rawality - BRrum BRum (2:21)
12. Crash Repeat - Son of the drum (6:05)
13. Steve Heathcock - White Flag (3:06)
14. The Lean Yellows - 21st Dream Syndrome (4:44)
15. The Garcia LX - 70s Dad (2:52)
16. The Riptides - An English Sentence (5:49)
17. Jonathan Beckett - about the midlands (2:55)
18. Tom Lord - Blitzkrieg Flop (2:30)
19. Malevolent Aspect - Cold Steel Bars (3:41)
20. Aquila - Let me Go (3:42)
Enjoy!
Little Chris

Brumcast RSS feed for itunes etc - http://brumcast.podOmatic.com/rss2.xml

Recently when perusing a certain gig guide I came across a group who described themselves as 'Dystopian Space Rock' "mmm" I thought..."music genre no. 4357 has been created there". Well 'Old School Tie' are the antithesis to that particular group with music genre no. 4358 now to be known as 'Utopian Space Rock'.

I've been aware of Old School Tie for some time now, their 2006 release 'The Addict' shown some excellent potential, good solid post rock grooves with some high quality live recordings thrown in for good measure. In 2007 their 'You Borrow from Tomorrow' release cemented them (in my opinion) as aces in the genre, highly polished and melodic and worthy of comparison to groups such as 'Pelican', 'Mogwai', 'Mono' and more locally Birmingham's 'Una Corda' and 'Mothertrucker'.
When I received their new CD 'Mystery Sound Playground' I pressed the play button with some trepidation. What could this group do to surprise me now? How could they follow up 'You Borrow from Tomorrow' and keep it interesting? Well in a word 'Vocals'. So surprised was I at the quality of the vocals on this recording, I was left wondering why they kept their mouths shut for so long! If I could compare the vocal style to anyone it would probably be Coldplay's Chris Martin only less dreary and doom laden, oh yeah...and it sounds far superior!

The album has a euphoric, laid back, dreamy feel with their signature bubbling bass sound, intricate guitar melodies and layers. The drums are always holding varied rhythms on a solid medium pace which always gives the impression that the tracks are a little faster than they really are. The keyboard use throughout is used to high effect, providing that little bit extra to the sound, even providing a beautiful solo in the form of the track 'Walls' which reminds me ever so much of the striking minimalism of Brummy pianist 'Rich Batsford'. This is a 5 out of 5 album, no doubt!

Don't just take my word for it. Take a listen to them at their myspace page www.myspace.com/oldschooltie and breathe in their magnificence!

Well after I discovered that Copter had made their new album free for download last week, this week a real treat for you all. Miss Halliwell (no, not Geri) have made both EPs that they released earlier this year, 'Imp-Imperfection' and 'Pre-dateoralbum Launch Party' free to download on their own Shabby Records archive page which can be found right here.

Now I could bore anyone to death going on about how good this trio are, and their extremely quotable lyrics. Now I don't have to. Download the EPs and see for yourself. All comes with artwork too! Please look to donate them a few quid!

If you're a myspace user you can keep up to date with their latest gig info and goings on and all that here. They are playing next at Katie Fitzgeralds in Stourbridge on October 27th which will be a live audio and video recording. Give them some support!