San Pedro

Rikki Turner, former Paris Angel, ex-New Southern Elektrik and The Hurt, is a restless soul who just keeps moving- when one project ends another begins. His latest group is San Pedro Collective, named after the town in California that was home to Rikki's favourite writer Charles Bukowski (and also home to Bagging Area favourites Minutemen). San Pedro are preparing for a release in July, an e.p. called The Demon Sessions, which will include this song (appearing here in a brief snippet and remixed by The Winachi Tribe).



The Things You See is a collaboration between Rikki and Suddi Raval, with a thundering acid house bassline, plenty of late night, dancefloor vibes and a sultry vocal from Millie MacBean. Also involved are Simon Wolstencroft (ex- Fall drummer), Antnee Egerton of The Winachi Tribe and Manc poet Karl Hildebrandt. The e.p. will feature the original mix of The Things You See and two further songs, San Pedro and A View From The Drowning Pool- the latter is a moody, electronic beast, bleeps and sirens over an 808 and Rikki's street poetics, spoken word vocal.

Suddi Raval was one half of Together who made two records I hold dear. The first was 1990 rave anthem Hardcore Uproar, piano house, a Star Wars sample and the crowd sounds from a rave in a warehouse at the Sett End in Blackburn.



The second was an unfinished remix Together did of Durutti Column's Contra-Indications. In 1990 Vini Reilly was experimenting with samplers and drum machines and his Obey The Time album chimed perfectly with the times. Together's remix was unfinished due to the tragic death of Suddi's partner in Together, Jon Donaghy, in a road accident in Ibiza. I've been coming back to The Together Mix for almost thirty years now and always get chills when I play it. Despite being unfinished Tony Wilson declared it magnificent and released it as a single anyway.

The Together Mix


Rikki's former bands have all released songs that I've raved about here. In 2016 The Hurt released Berlin, a moody Scott Walker via Bowie, collar turned up against the falling Manchester rain.



Paris Angels were from Guide Bridge, near Ashton under Lyne, east of Manchester. Their first single is a legendary slice of 1990 Manchester, a marriage of acid house bass, jangly guitar lines and rattling machine drum with Rikki and Jane Gill's dual vocals. I once bumped into Jane at the Boardwalk- literally- and she told me to fuck off. Which was probably fair enough- I wasn't looking where I was going.

Perfume (All On You)

Perfume came out on indie label Sheer Joy and was widely played and praised. They followed it with two 12" singles- Scope and I Understand- before signing to Virgin (who re-released Perfume) and then put out an album called Sundew. Virgin was sold to EMI and a cull saw various bands removed from the label, Paris Angels among them (and PiL too). Which shows what major record labels know.

Sleeping

Last month I wrote about the new single from The Hurt, a Manchester four piece with Rikki Turner at the wheel. Sleeping was co-written with Stephen Evans from Cabbage. When I wrote about them in April I said 'Sleeping growls and grinds, Rikki's baritone vocals recalling a northern Nick Cave, hiding his face from the light. Darker Sun is a brooding, bass led thing with overloaded guitars and female vocals, a soundtrack to  a night out under the streetlamps in the rain'. And I'm sticking with that for now. Out now on Blindside Records.

Hurting

The Hurt are back in May with a new single, Sleeping backed with Darker Sun. They have two former Paris Angels in their ranks, Rikki Turner and Paul Wagstaff (also of Black Grape), pictured above by Paul Husband. These songs are a long way from the heady days of Madchester though. Sleeping growls and grinds, Rikki's baritone vocals recalling a northern Nick Cave, hiding his face from the light. Darker Sun is a brooding, bass led thing with overloaded guitars and female vocals, the soundtrack to a night out under the streetlamps in the rain. Both are well worth some of your hard earned. I'll put some links up to listen and to buy when its released.

As a reminder, last year they put out the excellent, uplifting Berlin which came with a remix of The Dead by acid house hero Suddi Raval (of Hardcore Uproar fame), available at Bandcamp and on the Bandcamp player below.

Clean Up Your Messes

Since the invention of the camera phone (how quaint that sounds) everyone is now a photographer and that's obviously good news which results in some great pictures and the sharing of them. But being a photographer, a professional one, is a special skill that comes down to a bit more than just pointing your iPhone at something funny/beautiful/brilliant and clicking the shutter. Paul Husband is a Mancunian photographer I'm in touch with via social media and very good he is too. On Saturday night he went to a big gig at Victoria Warehouse headlined by Primal Scream with support from Black Grape, Badly Drawn Boy and a whole host of smaller, local bands. I was at my brother's wedding on Saturday night but Paul went and asked me if I wanted to share some of his photos. I'm more than happy to oblige- this one above of Kermit caught my eye. And so did these...

Reviews of the performance have been good, Black Grape reportedly upstaging Bobby Gillespie's group. Here, have a song from their debut album with characteristically great Shaun Ryder lyrics.

In The Name Of The Father

Cosmosis

There was a one day festival held in the Victoria Warehouse in Manchester last weekend- Cosmosis, a celebration of psychedelia with a line up that had me dithering for a while and then missing out- The Jesus And Mary Chain, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Sleaford Mods, Wire and The Raveonettes were the biggest names. Looking back at that I can't imagine why I dithered. What a fool.

I didn't go but I was contacted by a man I know virtually, Paul Husband, music fan, Mancunian and photographer. He has supplied me with the photos he took and I'm sharing them with you plus some music for each group. There's plenty here to dig around in. Have fun. Hassle with passes and bouncers meant Paul missed The Mary Chain. If you're after a photographer for an event or just want to look at some of his work, it's here. The selection of pictures below will give you an idea of his talents and a flavour of Cosmosis. I didn't go. Did I mention that?

Bones Shake- a dirty, scuzzy blues three piece from Manchester. 'Here to save your soul' they claim. Quite possibly true too. The song below kicks hard.

Paul's favourite band of the day were Cabbage, another up and coming Manc band. Satirical neo-post punk according to their Bandcamp page. There's something going on here. The single Kevin is ever-so-slightly demented but controlled and directed too.

You know about Brian Jonestown Massacre I'm sure, Anton Newcombe's merry band of psyche travellers, formed in 1988 and tripping out ever since.

What You Isn't is a feedback driven thump reviving the spirit of '69. Not Bryan Adams' '69, a murkier, more acid version of the end of the hippy dream. 

Sleaford Mods- you don't need me to tell you about Sleaford Mods. The voice of Cameron's Britain. An authentic response to austerity. Modern laptop punk. Etc. I like 'em. I'm just glad they're there. I first heard them on one of Andrew Weatherall's Double Gone Radio shows a few years back, a song with a chorus that included the line 'rinsing Screamadelica' which I know I've got somewhere digitally but can't find right now. I'll have a root around the hard drives.

I'd never heard of Freakout Honey. Manchester based again and they're certainly photogenic.

The only song I can find is this one, The Witch Surf, which is lovely stuff. Psychgaze surf is their own label and I can't improve on that. This song sounds better each time I play it. More please.



Last up are The Watchmakers.

Yet another Manchester group- who knew Manchester had so many psychedelic groups? Not me. I seem to be missing out. The Watchmakers Bandcamp page has a song called Kiss The Sun. Epic in a small way (that's a good thing). Reverb. More reverb. More reverb please.

Why didn't I go to Cosmosis?