This weeks gig guide may be irrelevant if the weather continues as it is, because we will all be trapped in our icy tombs like something out of ‘the day after tomorrow!’ ... But if you can brave the cold, or the weather subsides, as usual there are loads of live music events taking place this week - so here is this week’s gig guide:

Los Salvadores and Didi Bergman @ The Dog and Bone, Gillingham. Thursday 2nd December.

Tyrannosaurus Alan @ Westcoast Bar, Margate. Friday 3rd December.

The Deccas @ The Fiddlers Elbow, Camden. Saturday 4th December.

Oasish and Stereotonics @ The Beacon Court Tavern, Gillingham. Saturday 4th December.

Kris Dollimore + Didi Bergman @ The Nags Head, Rochester. Saturday 4th   December.

Tyrannosaurus Alan @ Ivy Leaf, Sheerness. Saturday 4th December.

Theatre Royal + Needs Must @ The Eagle Tavern, Rochester. Sunday 5th   December.

You can also listen to all these great bands from Medway, on Fizzer’s radio show Mondays from 8 – 10pm on radio Sunlight. Or alternatively if you want to listen again to shows that you may have missed go to www.fizzersradioshow.com. Where you can check out exclusive live performances from Theatre Royal and last nights guests Stuart Turner and The Flat Earth Society!

Enjoy! - Vizzler

I'm not a big listener of commercial radio, I rarely watch the music channels and I can't remember the last time I looked at the top 40 charts but I've still failed to avoid the track 'Like a G6' by Far East Movement. I know I've bagged out the lyrics on a previous post (Slizzered?) but then I looked it up at urbandictionary.com and it turns out this word has been around for nearly 10 years! Check out the definitions here. Needless to say, I felt like a complete 'asshat' when I found that out. 

So I started to think that maybe my musical taste is the problem here: loads of people seem to love this track which presumably means that these people must be able to decipher all those cool verbs... So I'm determined to do all these super chic fans of 'Like a G6' a favour by providing a few remixes, just to ensure that you're not all going to get bored of hearing the original track a torturous amount of times every day, wherever you go. 

And for those of you who are worried that Far East Movement are going to be a one hit wonder, panic over! They've been recruited by house music legend Roger Sanchez to defile a track for him - so expect some more David Guetta-esque 'dangleberry' on your radio's imminently and for the immediate future. That news may come as a terrible surprise to many house music fans but don't forget that F.E.M. aren't just a bunch of talentless upstarts, they're no strangers to fame... According to their website they were first made famous by having their track 'round round' included in the film and video game; Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift. They also won this years 2010 M.net Asian Music Awards, by default, because nobody else was nominated. 

As expected, now that they've managed to reach such heady heights of fame they've just been signed to major record label Cherrytree records - a subsidiary of interscope records and are being managed by Ted Chung, the President of Doggystyle Records. They've opened tours for the likes of Lady Gaga, Mike Posner and even their label mate La Roux. So, against all rational predictions, Far East Movement could be around for a while - so let's all cross our fingers and hope for plenty more of these remixes. Tree Boy xox    

Far East Movement - Like a G6 (Chew Fu's so Twisted Mix)
This remix does stay closer to the original than the others but that's not all bad, I'd be a liar if I didn't concede that I liked the synth. You may have heard Chew Fu's work on tracks like 'Take That' with Wiley, he's a specialist in beefed up electro. I also happened to check out a few more lyrics from this remix, I was particularly interested in the word 'twizzler', from the line; 'my mind's twisted like a twizzler' (I wondered if they were referring to the childhood dinner-time favourite that Jamie Oliver's TV programme ruined for everyone or whether it meant something else... turns out it does... But I'm not sure it's what they meant in this track!) Check it out here but I WARN YOU, there should probably be some sort of parental guidance warning on that definition!         

Far East Movement - Like a G6 (Dillon Francis Remix)
I'm pretty sure Dillon Francis remixes will eventually take over my ipod, the LA producer has been showcased in a big way by long standing dance music blog royalty 'GottaDanceDirty' and this goes to show why. Specialising in dubstep/electro/glitch this is a subtle take on the original, more subtle than we're used to from Dillon but it still works. 

Far East Movement - Like a G6 (Jesse Jamz Remix)
This remix veers away from the original quite a bit! I'd best describe it as apocalyptic trance music, the 'Chewy Chocolate Cookies' fans amongst you may draw comparisons, failing that, a placid 'Bloody Beetroot's' track may be the easiest way to describe it. Jesse's pushing out remixes for big names like 'Designer Drugs' and 'VHS or Beta?' - you can find out more about him and download free mixes from his website here.

Bonus: Far East Movement - Like a G6 (M-Theory Dubstep mix)
If you downloaded all the tracks from last week's 'mind the dubstep vol. 1' then you'll already have this, but just in case you missed it here's the wobble all over again!

It’s a special occasion, and that calls for a double dose of dirty dub mess this week – my not so little, little cousin (Ell) is about to trek thousands of miles to come and see me this week so I thought it fair to update that ipod of his before the marathon 24 hour flight...  I’m catering to his fine taste here with a dubstep collection that’ll have him ignoring those seatbelt signs whilst he skanks up & down the plane aisles. And if you're into filthy bass music as well then get hold of these tracks simply by clicking 'download file' - AND as always, let us know what you think about the tracks by clicking the 'comment' button at the top right of this post, you can write whatever you want anonymously! We do appreciate it!

Diplo ft. Lil’ John – U don’t like me (South Rakkas mix)
I definitely wouldn’t like this track as much as I do if I didn’t find Lil’ John so funny, I’m not sure he intends to be but honestly he cracks me up; ‘You don’t like me / I don’t like you... stop acting like a bitch / throw your hood up / represent that shit / middle fingers up / represent that shit' – Not only is this absolute comedy gold but the South Rakkas input has made it dubstep gold as well. Honestly though, I’m not afraid to admit that I’ve always had a penchant for Lil’ Johns take on his genre and his aggression works so well with a track like this, a respectful nod to the South Rakkas Crew’s vision for this one.

Skism – Rave Review
Arguably Skism is the most talked about artist on this blog at the moment (alongside Plan B); he’s featured in our live reviews, remix selections and now he’s back here again with one of the best original dubstep tracks of 2010. This track serves as evidence as to why I’m such a sucker for a good sample and when he dropped this track at his Brisbane set last month the place went ballistic – it got a play from almost every Dj on the roster that night, it is SO big.

Envy – Normal (Skism Mix)
What was I saying about Skism again? Oh that’s right... he’s tearing shit up
everywhere and we can’t get enough of him at IKAS. You might have heard this track before actually, it goes... 'WOBWOBWOBNURRRRWOBWOBWOBNURRRRWOBWOBWOBWOBWOBWOBWOB
WOBWOBOWOBWOB!'

Caligula – Absolute Power
Caligula always gets so close to featuring here and then I have to ruthlessly cut him at the last minute but with this track there's no doubting his inclusion into the top flight. With an opening not dissimilar to Excision’s ‘Subsonic Bass’ (Featured on Britain’s Got Talents as the opening sound clip for Diversity’s dance routines) and a lot of wobble behind it, this track has all the elements you'd want to hear whilst still managing to sound brand spanking new.

Deadmau5 & Wolfgang Gartner – Animal Rights (Dylan Sanders Re-Blast)
You can understand from the opening of this track exactly why this was one of the most anticipated dance music tracks of 2010, and also why the tracks producers are 2 of the most sought after men in electronic dance music. The one thing that I don’t understand is why I’ve never heard of Dylan Sanders before?! Because this isn’t just a run of the mill effort, this beast has a finesse which Dylan must have been refining for a long time– it’s not a feat to be underestimated messing about with this track, and it’s top class. I could run out of superlatives to throw at this track, it's a must-download!

Kano – Spaceship (Trolley Snatcha Remix)
The name ‘Trolley Snatcha’ is a hallmark of dubstep quality and just to reinforce that statement even more here’s another feather in his cap; a stomping bassline that tears Kano's original track to pieces. Unfortunately this track does end prematurely (because the master version is due for official release!) but until we get hold of that there’s more than enough to enjoy here!

Plan B – Love goes Down (Doctor P remix)
As my co-writer will have you rightly believing, we have unhealthy obsessions with Plan B. So when Doctor P stepped up for remix duties on Plan B’s new release it was wet-your-pants style news for me. Unfortunately I’ve got to question what Doctor P was thinking when he decided on that beatdown section, it sounds like that albino bloke from Scooter is about to pipe up about Siberia – it’s a hard house bridge made of pure cheese BUT that drop, that drop... is wow. The BPM is just where you’d want it with Doctor P proving that he’s not going to run out of steam following the mega filth of his mega hits ‘sweet shop’ and ‘big boss’ (to name just a very few). Tree Boy xoxox

Straight into some more free indie track downloads for you today!

Elizabeth & the Catapult – Go Away My Lover

EATC have pretty much got the formula for musical greatness locked down; Woman’s name + random word = a name for a band that everyone is going to love (Read: Florence & the Machine, Micachu & the Shapes, Betty & the Werewolves etc.) But... as will become clear when you hear this track EATC aren’t following in anyone’s footsteps, they’re striding ahead with their own effective female / male vocal dynamic, poignant lyrics and subtle but catchy instrumentation (I defy you to not whistle along with this track after a few listens!) 

The 3 piece band led by Elizabeth Ziman are based in Brooklyn and have been around a while longer than the aforementioned acts, forming back in 2004. The band all studied at the Berklee College of Music which Lizzy attended on a classical musical scholarship after training as a classical pianist and performing in the Young People’s Chorus of New York.  Recently the band has had to postpone quit a few tour dates on the US west coast because of illness, we haven’t got any more details than that be we’re hoping they get better soon and start touring a bit further afield! 

I tried to buy their album using both the amazon.com and itunes link on their website www.elizabethandthecatapult.com but you have to have your billing address in the US to buy it (and the record industry wonders why music gets pirated?!) Luckily this can be averted as the album is available for everyone to stream on spotify but whilst I’m livid - it’s not like they’re signed to a label that might not expect international sales, it’s made apparent on their website that EATC are affiliated with the Universal Music Group, the largest record label in the world! It’s unclear in what respect but I imagine it has something to do with the fact that one of their singles is now being used in a new commercial for Google so why can’t we buy the album eh? Grr. Unfortunately we can’t even sign up to EATC’s mailing list to keep up with their tour dates & news because of the old server error. Not good, so we can’t see or hear EATC, BUT… if this track is anything to go by, when we eventually do manage to get our hands on the rest of ‘The Other Side of Zero’ I’m sure we’ll forgive, forget and fall in love again.

Jenny & Johnny – Scissor Runner

Jenny and Johnny (whose mailing list over at http://jennyandjohnnymusic.com/ is in fine working order and also yields a free track upon joining!) are currently on tour in the UK... check out http://jennyandjohnnymusic.com/tour/ for dates – there are a fair few upcoming dates including a massive four London venues and they’re in Australia next for the Laneway Festivals! They’re travelling all the way from Los Angeles whilst the album that this track features on (‘I’m having fun now’) was written in Nebraska where they first met and was produced by their friend / producer Mike Mogis (who has also produced albums for Elizabeth & The Catapult!). Jenny & Johnny state on their website that whilst in Nebraska that the door of the guesthouse where they were staying actually froze shut so some of the songs they wrote are a little dark as a result of them being shut off from the outside world!

It’s simple to buy Jenny and Johnny’s album, it’s only about GBP5 / $10 and is available here - http://jennyandjohnnymusic.com/download/ mine’s just finished downloading and I’m about to wallow in it after finishing this post.

Wolf People – Tiny Circle

You can’t help but fall in love with this track 16 bars in (and it’s not often that a flute can do that to a man like myself.) It sounds like it should be on the ‘Snatch’ movie soundtrack it’s got that type of cool air about it and the more you learn about the track better it gets... Their upcoming album steeple was all recorded in a 17th century converted chicken barn in Wales and they’re the first UK band to sign to jagjaguwar records – the home of acts like Bon Iver. Some commentators argue that it’s too easy to label this band ‘the UK version of Tame Impala’ but they wreak of the Aussie band Tame Impala! (see what you think and chek out Tame Impalas single ‘lucidity’ from their ARIA nominated album ‘innerspeaker’ here...  take no notice of the video, it makes me feel sick too!) This is 60’s psychedelica captured in mp3 format and yes the reverb can mar the lyrics a whole lot but that backing track has made me care a lot less about that than I normally would... There’s a swagger to this song that you can’t help bobbing along with, it’s a sugar coated monster of a track.

Big Tree – The Concurrence of All things

No, I didn’t just love this track because they’re one of my namesakes but truth be told I’ve had this track (courtesy of indie blog stalwarts Birp!) for quite some while and it’s taken me a few months to classify it as a ‘best indies’ track so if it doesn’t suit your palate first time round I can only urge you to let this track grow on you. It’s most definitely a crescendo song; it builds into epic territory towards the end with lead singer Kaila’s vocals just teasing you to sway and then trickles back down to those simple piano keys. Big Tree is yet another Brooklyn based NYC indie band – honestly we should just all move there and we could just all live in gigs forever. This track hails from the June 2010 EP release ‘home (here)’ and we can all look forward to an upcoming LP from these guys.

Bonus: Call the Doctor – For Your Leisure

Now I’m classifying this as a bonus because courtesy of ‘Birp!’ again, we’ve had access to this track since late 2009 but as I’ve recently upgraded the old laptop and ipod I’m only just trawling through my music library to build playlists and this gem has only just resurfaced. It’s also catching my attention because as 2010 draws to a close I’ll be held accountable for my ‘pick of 2010’ as made on mine and my co-writers recently disbanded radio show – that pick was for the band ‘Chew Lips’ to make it big in 2010 and if you’re a Chew Lips fan you will love this, the resemblance to Tigs’ vocals is uncanny! Call the Doctor are actually a Bristol (UK) based band formed after lead vocalist Patti Aberhart moved from New Zealand back in 2008 and just like Chew Lips they’ve been a BBC introducing act in the past with Bristol’s ‘venue’ magazine (I did love that magazine in my time there!) rightly stating that they’re set to ‘make waves’ with their upcoming European tour. Check out more CTD tracks at http://www.myspace.com/ctdoctor  - This one’s a high octane short burst of a track and it’s the perfect note to finish on, getting hearts racing for the next Best Indies instalment which will be on its way to you very soon. Tree Boy xoxox   

I am going to keep this short because I have posted about Plan B before, but again, I want to make this single aware to the people of Australia (Tree Boy).

This is the fifth single that Plan B has released from the concept album 'The Defamation Of Strickland Banks'. Love Goes Down is the first song on the album, and from watching the video it portrays his failing relationship with his girlfriend and how Strickland gets arrested. So I can only assume that it is done as a flashback from prison. If not, then I'm not sure how it fits chronologically with the story... so any suggestions or answers are welcomed with open arms!

But at the end of the day, this is one of my favourite albums of the year, each song is fantastic and 'Love Goes Down' is no different! I genuinely think that the album could be made into a musical, just my opinion!

Anyways you can watch the video below and tell us what you think! Enjoy – Vizzler.

A jam packed week of music in Medway for you all to enjoy! As usual great bands and some awesome events taking place!

Gig Guide:

Medway City Meeting @ The Man of Kent, Rochester. Tuesday 23rd November. 19.00

The Rifles + Maker (acoustic set) @ The Royal Function Rooms. Wednesday 24th November. 20.00

Archie Wah Wahs + The Deccas + Retrospect (Fundraising event) @ The George Vaults, Rochester. Wednesday 24th November. 19.30

The Singing Loins @ The Somerhill, Tonbridge. Thursday 25th November.

Los Salvadores + Didi Bergman @ The Chambers, Folkstone. Thursday 25th November.

Need Must + The Razz @ Poco Loco, Chatham. Friday 26th November

Medway Broadside Launch (Music from Theatre Royal) @ Poco Loco, Chatham. Sunday 28th November. 15.00

If you want to check out any of these bands you can do so on their facebook and myspace pages. You can also listen to tracks from Theatre Royal from last nights Fizzer’s radio show at www.fizzersradioshow.com

 Enjoy! – Vizzler.

This is it, iknowasong.com’s long overdue dubstep feature! I take full blame for it being overdue – I’ve been meticulous in plucking out wobblers from all over the blogosphere that are filthier than your average track… I do trust that it’s been worth the wait! 

Rusko vs. Bassnectar – Hold on to your 808 (DJ Vizzice Mix)

I’m getting straight to it this week and posting the BIG drop first... you have to hear this to believe it! Vizzice has mashed up the two tracks; ‘Hold on’ (Sub Focus remix) by Rusko ft. Amber Coffman (Amber being responsible for the awesome vocals on the intro) and ‘The 808 Track’, the new release from Bassnectar featuring The Mighty High Coup.

Granted, the end of the track isn’t up to much and you might get the feeling that Vizzice has just picked up various parts of tracks and re-assembled them on a whim – but the disjointed feel about it has really grown on me. Anyway, after hearing that first drop I dare not criticise this track.

Far East Movement – Like a G6 (M-Theory Dubstep mix)

Like a G6 is yet another track where a producer knocks out a very decent instrumental which then gets defaced by arseholes banging on about Cristal (that mythical gangsta drink which they always talk about, that I’m pretty sure no-one’s ever seen or drank) and just inventing words to sound revolutionarily cool / poorly mask the fact that they have nothing to offer music (getting slizzered? … You what mate? Don’t know what you’re on about.) So here’s some filthy dubstep spattered all over those shite lyrics to help you take your mind off them.

I did get a bit confused because there is a Lithuanian duo producing bass music under the same guise but this is M-Theory from Baltimore, US – his soundcloud is full of womp for you all and even better than that; he’s been kind enough to upgrade his account to make sure all of his tracks are free to download, its next level filth and generosity combined and you can check it all out here.

Skism – Back Off (Subflex Remix)

When you’re sampling the film ‘Superbad’ in a dubstep track you can be pretty sure that there’ll be nothing I don’t like about it – this was true with Skism’s original track and even more so with this absolute re-mess from Subflex. For those of you struggling to recall the exact scene for the vocal – it’s when they’re about to get thrown off the bus for smashing the Goldslick vodka, Seth tells the tramp guy (Bub?) to ‘Back the F*ck up’.

This track was an entry for Skism’s label (Never Say Die recordings) competition asking for producers to submit their remixes. Subflex have already got a few remix competition wins under their belt despite the Sheffield / Newcastle duo only recently teaming up. The pair consists of Bobby who also works under the name ‘CircusJam’ and Sean who forms one half of ‘A-List’. These guys are the iron chef’s of pounding bass.

Sharps – Bad Sister

This track borders on the calmer side of the genre;  as soon as I heard it brought ‘Ganja White Night’s’ material to mind straight away and as it turns out Sharp’s is a fellow Canadian dubstep artist... more of these please, Canada. Sharps isn’t a new face to the industry either, he set up his studio for rave influenced productions back in the early 90’s and had big crossover bass hit back in 2007 with ‘nightwork’.

If you’re into artists like ‘Optimus Gryme’ I think you’ll get along with Sharps’ Bad Sister – it has Gryme’s ‘submerged’ feel about it, it isn’t fancy, it’s all about the bass sound so you’ll want to be grabbing your sexiest pair of speakers  / headphones to enjoy this one. Some are calling it future garage / future dubstep – I admit it’s different but maybe it’s not as much future as it is getting back to how dubstep sounded a few years back? Not that I’m reminiscing about the good old days or anything like that but it is refreshing to hear dubstep like this still making big impacts.  I’d be interested to hear what you dubstep fans think about the ‘futuristic’ label that ‘Bad Sister’ is attracting.

Sharp’s ‘Bad Sister’ EP was dropped on Multi Music November 12th, you can download all four tracks on the EP here for the more than reasonable price of $6/GBP3.

Penny For the DJ – Ninja’s

Ok, so I’ve left my pick of the week until last! As I mentioned, we tend to drop tracks after the rest of the blogosphere has pumped them out... This is because I like to sit and wait for a set of tracks that are far above the average – this track defines ‘above average’.

With DJ residencies in his home town of Cambridge, Tom Cane has been hammering out electro/fidget/bassline sets for the last year. To me that’s such a short initiation period for a bloke who can then turn around and offer us a behemoth like ‘Ninja’s’. Yes, strictly speaking it’s not dubstep, call it drumstep or probably fidget house, but it’s such a wobbler I’m claiming it for this post because dubstep fans should love this one! It’s impossible to not fall in love with the vocal sample here, ‘when two or more ninja’s get together, there’s either a fight / or a ninja man ragga party’. Any bassline that succeeds a sample like that is just going to be icing on the cake.  
  
This man has dj-busked on the street using a boombox his flatmate bought off ebay – he needs your support, spend your pennies on going to see this DJ whenever you get the chance. Tree Boy xoxo

Fall Out Boy – Where are they now?

Fall Out Boy, a very much marmite band, in the sense that you either love them or hate them. (Not that they go well on toast, or occasionally in poached egg sandwiches…) This may be due to the image that was labeled with the band, which was encapsulated in Pete Wentz’s appearance, but also at points in the pretentious song titles and lyrics. 

However, whether or not you like the band you have to appreciate that through the last decade they were one of the most influential bands in that punk/pop/rock/emo genre. They brought through artists such as Panic! At The Disco, Gym Class Heroes and Cobra Starship as well as being role models and an inspiration for bands like All Time Low, and the hundreds and hundreds of others that now seem to sound essentially the same. They had 4 amazing albums spanning over 8 years, and who knows like a lot of bands seem to be doing at the moment, give it a few years and they might have an epic come back! 

But for now this it where they are all at… 

So, in terms of what the band members are doing now since the split of Fall Out Boy, at iknowasong.com we love to bring exclusives, and there was an update yesterday (17/11/10) on Patrick Stump’s solo album. He posted on twitter a link to his website, which gives a picture of a sheet of music he has written to a song called ‘spotlight’ which will feature on the album. We also learn that even though the song cannot be heard yet, that you will be able to hear it very soon, and we will of course bring that to you when I get hold of it. Stump’s solo album is set to be titled ‘Soul Punk’ and will be released in February next year. It does seem that this has been a very long process, but you can only assume that he is taking the time to make sure that the fans are not disappointed by the outcome, but to be fair with a voice like his I’m sure that we won’t be!

Pete Wentz has started a new band, they are called ‘Black Cards’ and I’m sure they will have a huge fan base just because he is in the act. However when you listen to one of their songs you would never think that he was involved at all. The band have a very different sound to Fall Out Boy, the obvious first point is that there is a female singer. She does have a really incredible voice, and her and Pete apparently met in New York while she was on Broadway, which shows she has talent. I would say that Black Cards music is ideal for the current charts, it has a very modern pop vibe going on, and you will struggle to hear a guitar. Is Pete trying to refute his past… Saying all this, the two songs I’ve heard are very up beat and catchy, but I will let you guys be the judge of that. Their debut album is so far untitled and is set to be out next spring, you can watch the video they released last week for ‘Club Called Heaven’ below! 

(the video is at the very bottom of the post!)

Finally, the last two members of Fall Out Boy, guitarist Joe Trohman and drummer Andy Hurley have teamed up with a host of stars to form heavy metal super group The Damned Things. They are joined by Anthrax members Scott Ian and Rob Caggiano as well as vocalist Keith Buckley of Every Time I Die. This is the more polished and complete act out of the three, with the debut album ‘Ironiclast’ coming out on December 14th and after a host of gigs including an appearance at this years Download festival. For Trohman and Hurley they have technically gone in a complete opposite direction from pop punk to heavy metal, but it is the route you would have perhaps expected from them. Whereas with Wentz and Stump you couldn’t really ever see them taking on a band like this. I am yet to hear and music from Patrick, but out of Black Cards and The Damned Things I feel that the latter are going to do a lot better and they are also the band I prefer. You can check out their debut single ‘We’ve Got A Situation Here’ on their MySpace…   www.myspace.com/thedamnedthings

Now everyone is up to date with the current affairs of the ex Fall Out Boy members, but if your sitting there thinking, I have never even listened to a single Fall Out Boy song, then firstly shame on you, but secondly check out some of my favourite songs of theirs below. – Vizzler. 

Ok so I had some trouble uploading the songs, so these are the tracks I would have played, and you will have to search them by your own fair hand, or on the youtube machine!

Fall Out Boy – Where is your boy tonight.
Fall Out Boy – Champagne for my real friends, real pain for my sham friends.
Fall Out Boy – XO
Fall Out Boy – She’s my Winona

Below as promised, Pete Wentz' Black Cards.

 

I’d be lying if I told you that I didn’t download Allo Darlin’s debut self-titled album on the back of them having such a great name. It would also be a lie to say that I wasn’t surprised with how great this album is; my worst fear was that a band with such a promising moniker would waste it on an album that staggered through the indie motions. Now my only fear is that I might not be able to listen to anything else for a long time because I cannot turn this off!

I think the bands webpage got the sentiment right exactly when they explained the band; ‘Allo Darlin' are many things. They can turn a room in a famous punk venue into a joyous, jumping, sweaty, pop-mosh pit, or bring a room of 500 to hushed silence with the few strums of a ukulele and a love song about cooking’. I think you’ll agree after a few listens to the tracks below that this is a nail on the head description.

The guys are signed to Fortuna Pop! Records have been playing together since 2009 although they’ve played under different guises since 2007. Half of the band (Elizabeth and Bill) are from Australia, which explains the references to ‘Queensland’ and ‘beer in the esky’ in the track ‘let’s go swimming’, a personal favourite of mine. Mike and Paul hail from Kent, another hotbed of talent as I’m sure my co-writer will vouch for. Lyrically I’m a sucker for Allo Darlin’s descriptive tracks; I like to be able to see what’s going on with my minds eye so to speak. Take ‘Kiss your Lips’ for example which is all about a smitten couple having a day out at the fair; ‘In a fairground in the meadow of Paris / You tried to prove to me your manliness by winning me / A teddybear / Your mouth was pink from all the fairy floss we ate / And I got bits of popcorn stuck between my teeth and I felt a bit sick … And I kissed your lips and they were kind of salty / And I kissed your lips and they were sweet too…

Allo Darlin’ are already receiving air time on the big stations; Radio 1, BBC6 Music and XFM and have sold out European shows in the past as well as receiving rave reviews from the likes of the New York times for their slot at Popfest. They’ve only got a few tour dates left at the minute which they’re playing in the UK right now, a full list of which you can find here at their myspace. As well as tour dates you’ll also find many other eulogies thrown at them from press & media across the globe who are also convinced that that this is one of the greatest summer pop bands to grace us all this year. Tree Boy xoxox

P.s. You can buy Allo Darlin’s debut album from the Fortuna Pop! website here http://www.fortunapop.com/ as well as get free downloads of their other tracks and check out all the other indie talent the label has offer.  

Here you go; this is the weeks essential gig guide to the beautiful Medway Towns. If you missed it last night on Fizzer’s Radio show or just want to look over it again then here it is in full! 

Alternatively if you want to listen to the show in full, or any that you may have missed you can do so at:

http://www.fizzersradioshow.com/en/cms/index.php/content/podcasts.html

Gig Guide (In association with Fizzer’s radio show, Mondays 8-10, Radio Sunlight): 

- Phil Neale and the Chrome Horse Band @ Pocoloco, Chatham. Friday 19th November 21:00 

- Relics (live for Oxjam) @ The Beacon Court Tavern, Gillingham. Friday 19th November 20:00
 
- The Flowing + Wheels + Theatre Royal (acoustic set) @ The Barge, Gillingham. Saturday 20th November 18:00 
  (This is for The Flowing’s album lauch, ‘Garden of England’)
 
- The Rifles + Maker (both acoustic sets) @ The Royal Function Rooms, Rochester. Wednesday 24th November.

 - The Singing Loins @ The Somerhill, Tonbridge. Thursday 25th November.

 - The Medway Broadside Launch @ Pocoloco, Chatham. Sunday 28th November. 

Medway has a lot to offer this week! Enjoy! – Vizzler.