list.co.uk/music SINGLES
Records – Singles | MUSIC
HONEYBLOOD Bud (Fat Cat) ●●●●● They’ve long made us swoon with their particular brand of vintage scuzz-rock, but Glasgow grrrl-pop duo Honeyblood ramp up their charms on the harmonic alt-chorale ‘Bud’, their first release for Brighton-based independent label Fat Cat. Reminiscent of Stevie Nicks, the Go-Gos and Best Coast, and possessing a bridge to die for, ‘Bud’ serves as a glorious reminder that although Honeyblood might be sweet as you like, they’re also equipped to wound. The 7”, fittingly, comes on pink vinyl – the colour of petals, and also of cadavers. ■ Honeyblood play Henry’s Cellar Bar, Edinburgh, Wed 30 Oct, with Poor Things.
JOHN KNOX SEX CLUB / OVER THE WALL Animals / Tell Her I Love Her (Split 7”) (Gerry Loves Records) ●●●●●
The congenial Edinburgh DIY label furthers its reputation for a flawless taste in Scottish pop (with previous releases including Conquering Animal Sound, Adam Stafford and Rick Redbeard) and for producing gorgeous physical artefacts (this one comes on mint- green vinyl). The split-single heralds welcome returns from art-rock deviants John Knox Sex Club with prowling midnight aria ‘Animals’, and electro-pop heartbreakers Over The Wall, whose exquisite tech-rock serenade ‘Tell Her I Love Her’ is worth your coin alone. ■ Split single launch, Stereo, Glasgow, Sat 19 Oct.
ROMAN NOSE Long Live Our Friend the Revolver! EP (Badly Built) ●●●●● THE SPOOK SCHOOL I’ll Be Honest (Fortuna POP!) ●●●●●
And so they return, these fathomless machine-beasts, tooled up with churning industrial electro: all the better to soundtrack our nightmares. There is something deeply troubling, yet utterly compelling, about Glasgow’s Roman Nose, as first evinced on the excellent Youthclubbed EP, and further reconnoitred on Long Live Our Friend the Revolver!, which sees the masked trio invoke apocalyptic dread on ‘Coming For You’ and ‘The Bombers’, before throwing up the strobe lights for the Delia Derbyshire disco of ‘Bra-in-i-ak’. ■ Roman Nose play Stereo, Glasgow, Thu 17 Oct, a ListLive night that also features Marnie (Ladytron), Plum and Square K.
Edinburgh indie four-piece the Spook School are a lovable (post-) punk spirited rabble who explore gender, sexuality and identity via the medium of DIY party-pop. ‘I’ll Be Honest’ is the first single from the raucous collective’s ace debut album, Dress Up. It offers a wired introduction to the charms of Nye Todd, Adam Todd, Anna Cory and Niall McCamley – fierce riffage, rag-tag harmonies, bouncing rhythms and insatiable pop hooks. They are a joy. (Nicola Meighan) ■ The Spook School play the Wee Red Bar, Edinburgh, Fri 18 Oct, and the Glad Café, Glasgow, Sat 19 Oct, supporting The Flatmates.
EXPOSURE
MIRACLE STRIP Eurythmics, Boy George, Simple Minds – they all sang of miracles. Combine the three, chuck in Postcard Records and Jens Lekman, remove your clothes, et voilà: Miracle Strip. Formed in an Edinburgh kitchen by singer / instrumentalist Fergus Christie Jack (of Dirty Summer) in 2012, and thereafter augmented by Andrew Campbell (synths / bass) and List writer Malcolm Jack (synths / programming / guitar), Miracle Strip will raise your pulse with their electronic lo-fi indie-pop. We quizzed frontman Fergus about bass solos and girls gangs by way of – yes – ‘exposure’. Never has this magazine segment been so aptly-named.
What’s the Miracle Strip manifesto?
‘Lo-fi needn’t mean low ambition. We stand for returning a spirit of adventure, mischief and meaning to pop music. So far as budget permits.’ What music, books, technology and foodstuffs fuel the band?
'Sylvester, Talking Heads, Carl Sagan’s Cosmos, Charles Bukowski, charity-shop keyboards, Orange Juice and £3 lasagnes from Marcella’s.’
In tribute to the A-side to your new single, ‘Girl Gang’, do you have any favourite girl gangs in pop culture?
‘Girl gangs in movies such as She-Devils on Wheels and The Switchblade Sisters are pretty fierce. I’ve always had a soft spot for Bananarama and the Pointer Sisters too.’ B-side 'Stephanie on the Moon' features a bass solo − what other bass solos, in the history of pop, do Miracle Strip endorse (if any)?
‘Three spring to mind: Larry Graham’s funkified ‘Pow’, Bootsy Collins’ out-of-this-world ‘Space Bass’ and Alan Partridge’s iconic air bass solo.’ (Nicola Meighan) ■ Miracle Strip’s debut 7”, ‘Girl Gang’, is out via Simply Thrilled on Mon 21 Oct. They play Glasgow Old Hairdressers on Fri 25 Oct. miraclestrip.bandcamp.com.
17 Oct–14 Nov 2013 THE LIST 87
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