Back on the blogging train. There are a bunch of new interviews coming up too. I’ve been sending questions the past few days. Hopefully the bands answer them too! There’s been so many that have gone unanswered sadly.
Also I’m back working on new releases on the label, putting together the final touches to two retrospective compilations that will be released early next year it seems. I hoped for one to be released late this year but it looks a bit tight now as I’m waiting for the mastered songs.
What’s new? There are a few good finds for you to listen over the weekend of course.
Lightfoils: 5 songs on a 12″ by this Chicago band with a strange cover artwork. This EP titled “Chambers” is a superb shoegaze/dreampop record. I have never heard the band before but I’m quite surprised. They are formed by Jane Zabeth Nicholson, John Rungger, Neil Yodnane, Zeeshan Abbasi and Cory Osborne. It seems they’ve been around since at least 2012!
Blot: Josh T. Pearson and Gaspard Royant’s band has put together this digital single for the French label Le Pop Club Records. I don’t know much about them, but I saw the art for this single, with Trump riding a rocket with his North Korean friend and I kind of understood what the song was about. Previously the had released an album on the same label called “Tambourine”.
Static Animal: another digital single, this time all the way from Melbourne, Australia. It is called “See You Around” and it is a lovely jangly track, a great introduction to the rest of songs on the band’s Bandcamp. They are formed by Micahel gibbon, Dan Oke and Reuben Maskell.
A Very Cherry Christmas – Volume 13: Cherryade Records continues putting together wonderful Christmas compilations on CD. This is not the exception. There are two songs now to stream, Goddammit Jeremiah’s “Office Christmas Party” and Gang Clouds’ “Let’s Spend Christmas in Our Bed”. Both are fine songs but I really love Goddammit Jeremiah’s track, it reminds me a lot to TCR one of my favourite bands ever!
Deep Cut: Mat from the 90s band Revolver has been behind this band since 2006. Here he is joined by Emma Bailey, Simon Flint and Ian Button. I wasn’t aware of this until today. They have a new album called “Different Planet” which is available on CD through their Bandcamp and all three songs that are available to listen sound great! Definitely check out “Still Counting”, “Washed Up” and “Hanging Around”!
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While I was doing some research about the Ice Babies I stumbled upon a post on the blog Janglepophub that listed a few obscure jangle pop bands. Some which I had never heard. And having liked what I heard it made sense for me to find out more about them.
As Clear as Day was the first band that appears on this list. It sounded great. It was the A side of their one and only 7″, a song called “Some Excited Feeling”. Very 80s, influenced by post-punk, a song with that sort of romanticism that resonates to every guitar pop fan.
Then I find the B side on Youtube too. That song was “Without Compromise”. Good stuff. But how come just one single and nothing else?
We do know that the single came out on Rampant Releases from Australia in 1984 with the catalog RR 018. The single was distributed by Musicland Independent Distributors and both songs were recorded at Richmond Recorders.
As I don’t have a copy of the single I relay on Discogs to find any credits. We know the producer for the record was Chris Corr. He was based in Melbourne. As the label. And also the band. Okay, we have that clear. Then we find out about who were part of the band:
Bill Tolson – guitar and vocals
Brian Beecham – keyboards and vocals
Les Woodward – drums
Matthew Keene – bass
Something that caught my attention while listening to the songs on Youtube was that someone called Owen says he drummed for the band in the 80s too. Were there many lineup changes?
I notice something interesting. Bill Tolson was the person behind Rampant Releases. Now I’m more intrigued in why he didn’t release more records by his own band! Maybe because they split right away? I do know that he has put out on his label at least 4 studio albums of his solo work. And also he has been involved in other bands like The Metronomes, Not Drowning, Waving, Glided Youth and more.
What I find next is really great. Bill has a Youtube channel. On it there is As Clear as Day performing on TV, on the show Star Search, their song “Here We Go Again” which sounds superb! Is there a studio version of it? There is also a video Bill has put together for “Some Excited Feeling” which some footage of the band members.
And that’s not all. Then I find a live performance at Armadale Hotel in Melbourne sometime in 1984. They are playing of course their hit “Some Excited Feeling“.
There’s not much more on the web written about them. No more details, no more information. I understand why Janglepophub calls them an obscure band even though they had TV appearance and their vocalist ran Rampant Releases. Would love to know more. If there were more recordings? Why no more releases? Were the band members involved in any other bands? Melbourne friends, anyone remember them?
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