Cardiacs: Classic or Dud?

That said, what I've heard of "Archive Cardiacs" is painful in the extreme ("A must for all collectors of toneless drivel" according to the bands own sampler CD), so destroy that. Search the two minutes and thirteen seconds of perfection that is "To go off and things". At the very least it scared Radio 1's Simon Mayo, so that should count for something.

Eamonn - im having a bad week - but looking forward to saturday's party !

Its true, Cardiacs are the least pompous band on the planet. They may be the most emotional... try listening to them more than once, you may notice that part of it. They are just plain unique, so don't come with a blueprint for listening - everyone gets something diffent out of them, hence such a wide range of gig goers

There's an album just out of quieter moments called 'Cardiacs And Affectionate Friends', with various solo stuff from Bic (Levitation), William D Drake and the Sea Nymphs... Of course Cardiacs are classic, someone described them recently as 'the finest band to walk the face of the earth' (which was nice)

He doesn't care that they sound like a riot in a fairground.

They supported Blur at their big Mile End Indiefest, as I recall. Damian Allbran always sites them as a major influence, although you never know with Blurboy whether it's just something he says to prove his uniqueness. The only other band to really take Cardiac-worship into the mainstream were Ultrasound, and for all their freaky- outsider posturing they were never quite as interesting (Whatever happened to Tiny?)

Popular rumour has it that one editor banned them from the NME. I'd love that to be true, although I've seen the printed review of "Heaven Born" so it seems unlikely.

Anyway, you do know about 'Cardiacs Greatest Hits' just out? - lots of nicely remastered tracks and a soaring new one.

they change my life constantly. no one today can touch them.

to be muttered in the same breath as the smiths, dexys, detroit techno, etc etc

Classic, Classic, CLASSIC

There's a Rock Sounds mention this week (thanks to Sean Organ), and a couple or articles in The Organ 'zine - www.organart.com

Always check out WWW.CARDIACS.COM for info!

I've had the Greatest Hits on constant play since I got it. What an album! I've only had Guns, Sing to God and the Sampler up till now, so most of the old stuff is new to me. Affectionate Friends ain't bad either.

xini

BTW if you get the chance go see Bill Drake, he has an album forthcoming, and there's a CD-single out produced by Tim Smith (Cardiacs).

A fan!

Result!

DL... If you've just heard 'Guns', wait till you hear 'A Little Man And A House And The Whole World Window'... give us an email if you have difficulty getting stuff.

C-A a decent analogue!

i think this is stressing my dog out

laaaaasssie's

on the tvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

Interview with Jon Poole
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbFfLpJUQYM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKSap5N2tmw

lol i just knowingly listened to the cardiacs for the first time ever

didn't expect to be reminded of henry cow

Beyond the often quoted 'Salvation Army band playing carousel punk in a force ten gale' type of thing, there are a multitude of influences that suffused Tim's style - prog and ROI, new wave, traditional British and early music composers, twelve-tone music, and so on.

you love to hear it

welcome to the first day of the rest of your music listenerhood, or something

idk if that'll work for yez

https://www.facebook.com/684066443/videos/1201624097486618/

amazing! who's in the band??

Bic, Jim, Baba, Jon, Jo but not sure about the rest, they had additional perc, sax and keys. Also, Mark Cawthra sang occasionally and maybe Tiny from Ultrasound.

Hearing 'Anything I Can't Eat' really brought it all back to me, seeing those HB&EB songs played live, they always sounded so brilliant, loads better than the recorded counterparts (apart from March and Helen & Heaven)

I'm there tomorrow. The excitement's unreal

Hopefully it ends with a big announcement concerning you know what

Some of these videos are getting me all misty eyed

Oh! It was Craig Fortnam on percussion I didn't recognise him, Chloe Herington on sax and Adrien Rodes on keys

Adrien's record is great - https://melodicrecords.bandcamp.com/album/heavy-maple

There's already stuff up from the show

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGDju6E85C0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVygQiy6TF0

Saturday was one of the best nights I have had

If there's Saturday crowd footage, I'm probably quite visible

Saturday was fantastic indeed

They're doing a small tour of North England in October.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/5yG1KKpY4Q618ZSq/?mibextid=oFDknk

(Scotland, too.)

And Brighton!

Ooh

!!!!

https://www-impattosonoro-it.translate.goog/2024/06/05/interviste/sing-to-tim-il-rinnovato-abbraccio-dei-cardiacs/?_x_tr_sl=it&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=wapp&fbclid=IwY2xjawDOid9leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHQ6zloxo1UUFw2fvAgA8Yidlo3-CxU-_lM3BrYQKKUAfmvh2lJUlAZVHyA_aem_AaqfuhNDkwLAFiYEOMCO6pqv41DRoaz2xmXXoFL41br_W35B-UpV_Fjp2VG5vmSKml66g-QFa5tdARbG8IojMI3T

It seems to be a very active time for you. What are the plans for the future? Will "LSD", the lost Cardiacs album, ever be released? (started recording in 2008 and never finished due to Tim's illness)

Jim: LSD? We have completed all the recordings. Many think that it was an almost completely completed project but it wasn't. There was still a lot to work on and we brought it to a final form. It's ready for the mixing phase, we're working slowly but I think it will be ready next year. All the voices were still missing, we recorded them but I can't tell you who sang yet.

Jon: Jim won't say it, but he's been particularly active on this project from a studio work perspective. He was the key element

Jo: Now you know too much, we'll have to kill you (laughs)

The singing issue is a tough one, Jon probably the best suited. I'd like to hear Sharon, Craig, Bill, Richard L, Jon or maybe even Bic, but as glorious as the gigs were and it was amazing to see people like Cawthra, the singing was often not great. Kav co-wrote a fair chunk of the record so he might be on it.

Never listened to Cardiacs til this past week. Not what I would have guessed somehow, it’s sorta like giant on-stage choral musical theater feeling. My 20yr old heard a little HBEB w me and said “it’s a lot of things but it’s a bit like oingo boingo.” i’m sure i looked confused, but after considering it— yeah.

Adjacent, but still worth posting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx1H9w4nUqY

aaaaaaahhhhhh so so good. YOUR MOVE CRAIG

literally the two faces of 'how to make breakup music' - craig going full 'the sea shall claim the land' mope-out, and then this, lol

both of these songs are great. is this the "solo album" spoken about here is that something different (always kind of hard to acertain the extent of james larcombe's role in the tonne of bands he's involved in - seems more as a player and arranger or other people's material?)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcJgpWF_Bh8

i'm a bit parasocially sad if i'm understanding the context correctly though :(

You managed to not pick that up from Ark, the album with the most just-divorced energy maybe ever, lol

i've love his music but i must admit it's not really something where i pay any attention to the words as anything more than a mood... i just assume he's always extolling the virtues of some kind of antediluvian Angleterre landscape or that it's a setting of a romantic poet doing the same thing :)

*looks at the song titles and listens to the first 20 seconds and Ark* oh...

You can sort of understand the whole thing from comparing that album to this new song, as I say. Or at least, you can damn well tell who required it be the case

Anyway, this is a really lovely interview, thanks!

I was asking James about the record yesterday and it was apparently made quite a while back, so much so that he had completely forgotten that he sung on the b-side.

Apparently there's an NSRO coming soon too. Hopefully Craig's got a bit of his pep back (mind you, I A Moon was quite a downbeat album and that worked out pretty well)

I think he's pretty consistent, the guitar instrumentals record and all the little things EPs and whatnot, that he was making and releasing post-lockdown have been great, still listen to Ark all the time.

Oh, quite a lot of his moon stuff was amazing yeah

I just mean I hope he's a bit happier!

I was completely unaware of The Cardiacs, despite having worked in a record shop and being involved in college radio (US) in the late 80s and early 90s. Yesterday I was idly following this thread, and then noticed that the friend of my 20 year old son was wearing a Cardiacs t-shirt. He (age 20 also) described them as “sort of prog punk”.

this Kugelshrieber album is even better than i thought it would be. just non-stop hits; had to play all over again after my first listen.

https://kugelschreiber.bandcamp.com/album/cheerleaders

closest comparision would be Shrubbies obviously, but it also reminds me a little of some of what Rob Crow does with some of the kind of terse, clipped riffs and the staggered harmonies? but yeah super poppy and fun but still slightly twisty and crooked. love how it was clearly written as bass/voice first and foremost.

oh fuck I've forgotten to listen to this! here goes. take the stage sharron...

oh my, this closing track!

https://alphabet-business-concern.bandcamp.com/album/cardiacs-e-p

yo!

https://mindysmind.bandcamp.com/album/bright-winter-premiere?label=2796755418

Go 5:34 into this^ for an overwhelmingly good surprise

Kavus' most recent FB video includes a test pressing of what I can only assume is LSD? He doesn't directly say what it is but mentions it's something highly anticipated that's been a long time in the making.....could it actually be happening????