It is kind of strange, some labels and bands are starting to send me songs and links for me to review. I’m not used to it. I usually find the news by myself, digging on Bandcamp, Soundcloud, Facebook and other websites. Of course it is nice to get some links from other people but I hope they understand the way I do things. For example I don’t want private links. I want to share with people the music I’m talking about. Even if it is just one song, I had no problem recommending one song, you know?
Anyhow, tomorrow Peru plays France. And I can’t wait for the game, it is making me so anxious! Hopefully we can get a good result this time.
Watoo Watoo: the fifth and final album by Pascale & Michaël is out now on Jigsaw Records. It is titled “Modern Express” and at first listen I must say I will have to order this asap! The Bordeaux based band who has been releasing records for decades now, with great quality and on top labels released this beautiful 10 song CD just a few days ago, on June 15th. If you like whimsy and classy indiepop, this is definitely for you.
Neonic Sundrive: just discovered this Russian band through my friend David. Their latest song, from May 18th, is a superb female/male vocals popsong. It is called “I Can’t See Your Eyes” and it is terrific, surely influenced by the JAMC and other noisy pop bands. This song is taken from the debut album “Lie Paradise” that is said to be released sometime soon. Will have to keep an eye on them!
Lost Jackets: “Above and Beyond” is the name of the song that has introduced me to this guitar pop combo from Melbourne, Australia. It was released just a month ago, on May 22nd, ontheir Bandcamp as a digital single. This band, formed by Hamza Siddiqi, Peter Russell and Nick Economou, have a few more songs, and I suggest checking their 2016 EP “Don’t Turn Your Back to the Sea” that has a terrific song called “Caitlin”. Good new find.
Fantasmamidi: the latest from the Spanish label Discos de Kirlian is the debut album by this Murcia band with a strange name. The band formed by Borja Martínez, Carmen Espín and Pedro Bayona, have crafted 10 fun pop songs that I’m totally loving. They remind me a bit vocal-wise to Patrullero Mancuso but the music is a bit happier (?). And lyrics-wise they do have a good sense of humor. I hope Jigsaw gets some copies of this limited to 100 CD.
Últim Cavall: another band I have recommended in the past is this Barcelona band. A favourite one of mine for sure. They sing in Catalan, you might notice that, or maybe not. But I find that interesting. The band has just unveiled a new version of the song “La Casa Cremant” which was included in a 2015 EP and I must say that this renewed recording sounds superb~!
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Here’s a band I’ve always been curious about. I do have the one 7″ they released but only recently I found out the band had put out a tape with a bunch of songs I’ve never heard before. One of them being “Julie Christie”, the song I’m sharing on this post, which quickly became my favourite song by them. I wonder though if that tape style is different to the 7″. The 7″ is rockier, while this song is jangly. Maybe one day I’ll listen to the tape.
The 7″ was the “Neurotica EP” that was released by the great German label Meller Welle Produkte (MEL 6). It only included two songs, on the A side “Down Fall Down” and “Yours For the Taking” on the B side. Both songs were recorded at Birdsong Studio in 1993 and they are credited to Coleman/Chester.
This wasn’t the only collaboration with Jörg Kruckemeyer’s label. They had participated in tape compilations on this Wörth/Main label. They had four songs on the compilation “Limited Europopsongs” (MEL 21) that came as a bundle with the first 100 copies of the compilation tape “Europopsongs” that was also released by this label. The songs they had were “Everyone Will Tell You” and “Pinstripe Stripper” on the A side. On the B side there was “Julie Christie” and “Unlikely Poet”. This compilation had other good bands like Friends Ahoj (which have been featured on the blog), The Keatons, Driver 8 or Polar Bear.
Before that tape comp, there was another one called “Ha Ha, Funny Feeling!” (MEL 15). Sadly I can’t find release dates for any of these tapes, but because of the catalog number I assume this one came first. On this tape the band appears with 3 songs, “I Think You Know” and “Doubtful” on the A side and “Starry Eyed Girl” on the B side. Some other great bands in this comp are Dan Dare (featured on the blog), The Waiting List or even Milky Wimpshake.
There is one tape compilation on Meller Welle that does have a release date, 1992. That one is “Sandcastles in the Sun” (MEL 10) which actually came out before the 7″. Maybe this was the start of the relationship between band and label. Kennedy has three songs on it, “I Know I Shouldn’t Laugh”, “Lilac Painted Sky” and “Miserable”.
They also had a song, “Everyone Will Tell You”, on the “Cerulean Sky!” tape that was released by Grapefruit (Grapefruit 07) and Bliss Aquamarine (BLISS 005) in 1993. I have mentioned this tape before on the blog, on the post about the French band Nothing Else, though there are bands on it that are still a mystery to me like Rentboy, Lovehappy or So-So among others. Would be nice to listen to the whole thing someday.
And the last compilation they were on is a 7″ that I actually own. It was a 7″ compilation called “Does Your Dog Moult? EP” that was released by Happy Dog Rekordz (BONE 001) in 1993. This 7″ that came with a fanzine of the same name was limited to 500 copies. Kennedy appears last on the B side with the track “Prude with Violin”. I had actually talked quite a bit about this 7″ when I featured the band Snog 6 and later interviewed them!
That was the discography I knew until a few days ago. But then, thanks to an upload to Youtube by Heinz, I could find out the band had put a tape in 1995 called “Oh What a Beautiful Mourning” on the Bliss Aquamarine label (BLISS 016). This label founded by our friend Kim Harten in the UK, to go along with her fanzine, released a bunch of tapes between 1993 and 2000. It wasn’t just indiepop on it, but there was quite a lot, and a lot of good stuff!
This tape has some great artwork I think. Simple, in black and white, but iconic. And I believe that is true too for their 7″. They must have a good sense of design. maybe one of them was a designer. This tape had in total 16 songs. Maybe it was a collection of all of their recordings. It was released in 1995, years after the release of the 7″. Maybe the band was no more at this point. I wish it had been released on CD, would be easier to find a copy perhaps. The songs that appear on this tape were on the A side: “I Know I Shouldn’t Laugh”, “Lilac Painted Sky”, “Miserable”, “I Think You Know”, “Doubtful”, “Starry Eyed Girl”, “She Pleasantly Murders” and “Flattered”. The B side had: “Fin”, “Everyone Will Tell You”, “Pinstripe Stripper”, “Julie Christie”, “Unlikely Poet”, “Down Fall Down”, “Yours For the Taking” and “Prude with Violin.” As you notice all of their previously released songs appear on this tape, that’s why I have the hunch it was a sort of retrospective comp.
I start looking for any other information about them and stumble upon Lee Coleman’s SoundCloud page. On it there are many Kennedy recordings! We can find the “Down Fall Down (7 version)”, “Yours For the Taking”, “Flattered”, “Starry Eyed Girl” and “I Think You Know”. Wow! It is great to be able to listen to these songs that were unknown to me until now!
The band also used to have a Myspace. Thanks to it I figure something out, they were based in Scunthorpe, England.
Scunthorpe is a large town in North Lincolnshire, England. It is the administrative centre of the North Lincolnshire unitary authority, and had an estimated total resident population of 65,163 according to the 2011 census. A predominantly industrial town, Scunthorpe, the United Kingdom’s largest steel processing centre, is also known as the “Industrial Garden Town”. It is the third largest settlement in Lincolnshire, after Lincoln and Grimsby.
What other guitar pop bands hailed from that area? Who do you remember? I then look at the photos that had been uploaded to Myspace and see a few flyers for gigs. For example a couple with a band called Timothy supporting them at Glanford Park and at the Jug in Doncaster. Also another gig at the Lincoln Imp. Then there is one at the Little ‘Un with support by the Dead Beats. Or at The Robey or at King’s Head.
I start wondering too why they named themselves Kennedy. I suppose because of John F. Kennedy? Or another Kennedy?
But I keep digging and I finally find their names. Kennedy were Richard Chester on vocals and guitars, Sean Coleman on guitars, Matthew Lambert on bass and guitar and Tom Lambert on drums. Were the last two brothers? And so Sean was Lee?
If he was called Lee Coleman I believe he is a visual artist now as well as a paramedic and still living in Scunthorpe.
There isn’t much on the web written about them. Of course having the name Kennedy is not easy when it come to looking for them. I couldn’t find much information about the band members. Had they been involved in other bands. Did they play many gigs? What happened to them? Did they release anything else?
Anyone out there remembers them?
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Listen
Kennedy – Julie Christie
