Acoustic Ladyland - Skinny Grin

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This is an extraordinary record, and people here should be talking about it much, much more.

Hits #3 in Marcello's top 50 of 2006 - http://cookham.blogspot.com/2006_12_10_cookham_archive.html#116617281014029210

My review at Stylus - http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/acoustic-ladyland/skinny-grin.htm

It's jazz, it's punk, it's pop, it's avant-garde; it's really very, very bloody good.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 4 January 2007 13:59 (seventeen years ago) link

The problem is, with that late 2006 release (end of November, and often not to be found in shops till now, at least in Devon), that it's gonna slip through the kind of exposure that EOY lists give things. Unless, of course, it ends up on loads of best-of-2007 lists.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 4 January 2007 14:04 (seventeen years ago) link

Sadly that traditionally tends not to happen and they tend to fall through the memory gap (see also Avalanches, Broken Social Scene etc.).

The Mercury shortlist (if it gets on there) is probably its best chance, but then Polar Bear were on it in 2005 and their sales didn't exactly go through the roof.

From my point of view it yet again proves that it's always best to wait until the actual EOY before doing EOY lists so that you don't miss anything...

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 4 January 2007 14:08 (seventeen years ago) link

Polar Bear did a lot better from the Mercury nomination that MIA did.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 4 January 2007 14:10 (seventeen years ago) link

I would imagine that even Jo O'Meara's "poorly marketed" solo album did a lot better than MIA did!

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 4 January 2007 14:16 (seventeen years ago) link

Still, Skinny Grin is a knockout of a record. I don't suppose a full-length rave review in tomorrow's Grauniad is forthcoming.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 4 January 2007 14:18 (seventeen years ago) link

I really liked their last one - will check this out.

― sean gramophone (Sean M), Thursday, 4 January 2007 14:29 (seventeen years ago) link

Have you heard, or got wind of, Fullborn Teversham yet? It's three of AL doing a not dissimilar thing but in the direction of Henry Cow and the like

― Feargal Hixxy (DJ Mencap), Thursday, 4 January 2007 15:32 (seventeen years ago) link

I'm aware of them but haven't heard them yet. At least they should have better vocals than the Cow (bless Dagmar, but way too strident for my tastes).

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 4 January 2007 15:40 (seventeen years ago) link

I have a copy of Fullborn Teversham in the post.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 4 January 2007 15:50 (seventeen years ago) link

I might try and blag a copy. Who's doing the PR - is it Dog Day?

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 4 January 2007 16:14 (seventeen years ago) link

I just bought a copy straight off the Pickled Egg site. I thought about asking for a promo but it's £10 delivered, and seeing as no fucker else is likely to buy it...

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 4 January 2007 16:25 (seventeen years ago) link

Perhaps if Pickled Egg got its distribution and marketing sorted out some other fuckers might be able to buy it. I like to buy records in record shops.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Thursday, 4 January 2007 16:30 (seventeen years ago) link

Ah - it's not in shops until mid-February. Til then you can purchase off the site.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Thursday, 4 January 2007 16:32 (seventeen years ago) link

Jim at No.9 / Ampersand is doing the PR.

― Feargal Hixxy (DJ Mencap), Thursday, 4 January 2007 16:53 (seventeen years ago) link

Okay I downloaded this and think it's lousy (and I really liked the last one). I guess I may yet change my mind, but I've listened attentively three times and am not just ambivalent: i'm vaguely hostile. no idea what you guys are hearing in it.

i guess consider this a warning to those who were planning to go and drop £12 on it, unheard, based on this thread. (as i was.)

― sean gramophone (Sean M), Monday, 8 January 2007 20:44 (seventeen years ago) link

Great live, but their records have disappointed. Prefer Polar Bear, although they too are much better live. As I understand it, PB is the name they use when Seb Roachford is leader, AL when Pete Wareham is leader (although stylistically they are very different, obviously). Roachford seems to me much the more interesting and original talent, not that Wareham isn't a fantastic musician as well.

― frankiemachine (frankiemachine), Monday, 8 January 2007 20:58 (seventeen years ago) link

two years pass...

"Hitting Home" is so good

― bitch hooligan, pussy ass nobrain dårk (country matters), Thursday, 26 February 2009 13:08 (fifteen years ago) link

three years pass...

Oh man Melt Yourself Down (Wareham's new band) is fucking exciting.

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 8 February 2013 15:40 (eleven years ago) link

You can download it in exchange for an email address, or order a 12", from here - http://meltyourselfdown.com

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 8 February 2013 15:42 (eleven years ago) link

Really hi-energy, dancey, very obviously Wareham on sax. Awesome stuff.

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 8 February 2013 15:42 (eleven years ago) link

ahh they had really good stuff on their bandcamp around this time last year, i'm sure i posted it to one of the bandcamp threads. the old stuff was produced by leafcutter john, this sounds like it might be too?

― Crackle Box, Friday, 8 February 2013 16:25 (eleven years ago) link

huh this is pretty cool

one song sounds like like Unforgiven 2 by metallica if it was a jazz song

― downton arby (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Friday, 8 February 2013 17:27 (eleven years ago) link

http://sickmouthy.com/2013/02/19/acoustic-ladyland-skinny-grin-2006/

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Tuesday, 19 February 2013 20:43 (eleven years ago) link

Can't believe I only found out about Melt Yourself Down on the day of their London gig. It's probably the first new music I've gotten excited about in about 18 months.

― Jill, Thursday, 28 February 2013 21:32 (eleven years ago) link

One of these two tracks is currently on an advert for Italian cook-in sauces or something. Discombobulating.

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 1 March 2013 06:49 (eleven years ago) link

"we are enough" is the one i heard a while back, so much fun, that's gotta be leafcutter john on that one

― Crackle Box, Friday, 1 March 2013 13:17 (eleven years ago) link

It is, aye.

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 1 March 2013 13:32 (eleven years ago) link

According to their website.

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 1 March 2013 13:32 (eleven years ago) link

two months pass...

So this album is pretty damn tight and frenetic. 8 tracks. 35 minutes.

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Saturday, 11 May 2013 10:08 (eleven years ago) link

one month passes...

http://thequietus.com/articles/12522-melt-yourself-down-album-review

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 14 June 2013 14:29 (eleven years ago) link

I love your description of it sounding like a rave in a souk!

― Jill, Friday, 14 June 2013 23:47 (eleven years ago) link

Thank you.

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Saturday, 15 June 2013 17:32 (eleven years ago) link

one month passes...

Damn that Melt Yourself Down album is banging.

― Matt DC, Friday, 19 July 2013 08:09 (eleven years ago) link

Isn't it?

― they all are afflicted with a sickness of existence (Scik Mouthy), Friday, 19 July 2013 11:03 (eleven years ago) link

four months pass...

So good live.

― I can still taste the Taboo in my mouth when I hear those songs (Scik Mouthy), Sunday, 1 December 2013 07:24 (eleven years ago) link

Pretty much the ultimate party band. Kushal Gaya is way more important live than on record. So much deranged energy. Obviously they're not 'jazz' but you don't expect crowd surfing and moshing at a jazz gig. From the singer. Played a couple of tracks not on the album that were just as intense. Wareham's got a very mean face and is rocking the sweaty jazz Heisenberg look at the moment. A lot of jumping up and down was done by all present.

― I can still taste the Taboo in my mouth when I hear those songs (Scik Mouthy), Sunday, 1 December 2013 08:09 (eleven years ago) link

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