A YEAR IN THE LIFE

This is the 298th posting to appear on TVV. Until now, the previous 297 have been read by 90,302 people. Well according to the little counter I have over at site meter that is.

But the real significance is that this post is coming out exactly one year to the day from the birth of this insignificant little blog. In human terms, TVV may now longer be a baby but an infant. In blog terms, with a life expectancy that is quite low with so many fading away after a few months (if indeed not days), I reckon I must be at least hitting my spotty, moody adolescence era.

I know I've said it before, but it is well worth repeating. Two folk above anyone else have to be thanked for getting TVV off the ground.

First up is Mrs V, aka Rachel, who got fed-up with me going on about how great it would be to be able to play the scratchy records again and bought me a USB Turntable for our wedding anniversary last years. And then told me to let other folk share some of those songs.

Second up, is Comrade Colin, sometime contributor to this little work of love and affection, but better known for his fabulous stuff at And Before The First Kiss. It was one of his previous, and sadly missed blogs - Let's Kiss And Make Up - that inspired me to start after he kindly responded to my request for a particular song by Go Betweens. Not only that, but he was incredibly helpful with advice and encouraging with support from the outset.

In nothing other than alphabetical order - Ash (much missed), Coxon, Crash, Ed, FiL, Mentok, Mike, Jacques the Kipper, Library Mama, Liz, Nancy, Simon and Toad - have all given TVV a hand and a welcome boost in different ways at just the right time, and I'll always remember that. And thanks also to everyone who has left behind a comment........

But without the music, TVV and most of the other blogs would be meaningless (I say most, for there are some, and we probably all know who they belong to, that are well worth visiting for the quality of the writing alone) and while I'm not anal enough to count all of the songs I've shoved out here over the past 365 days, it must be close on the 1,000 mark. Not all of them have met with universal approval and that's how it should be. Not all of them were difficult to come by, but I'd like to think I've put out a few hidden gems for folk to enjoy, listen to and then put some money the way of the artist by purchasing some product.

I hope I'm still here in another year's time - I certainly intend to be. But then again, there is no way that a year ago I would have predicted that I would end up living in Toronto for more than four months, that I would have been interviewed by a French music magazine, mentioned in an UK newspaper or have been thrilled to bits and near tears of joy that two folk I'll maybe be lucky enough to meet in the flesh some day, hooked up on a whim, fell in love and got married. Life certainly is far from predictable.

But it's the tunes that you've been coming in for, and I thought that it would be worth re-posting ten that have before which I hope, in a sense, capture what I hope TVV is all about:-

song : Ballboy - All The Records On The Radio Are Shite
song : Billy Bragg - Lovers Town (Peel Session)
song : Cinerama - Don't Touch That Dial
song : Clare Grogan - Love Bomb
song : Edwyn Collins - Ain't That Always The Way
song : KLF presents The JAMMS - The Queen And I
song : Malcolm Middleton - Fuck It I Love You
song : Orange Juice - I Can't Help Myself (12" mix)
song : Paul Quinn - Ain't That Always The Way
song : The 1990s - Pollokshields

With a bit of luck, the next posting will feature some new Canadian bands who are being championed by some of the younger lads who work alongside me.

Ciao

IT'S TARTAN TIME (PART 4)

Some of these you will know, others will be a bit more obscure, but further evidence from this handful of tunes that when it comes to great pop music, Scotland is a place that punches well above its weight.

song : Aztec Camera - The Boy Wonders
song : Idlewild - Roseability
song : Sons & Daughters - Rama Lama
song : U.N.P.O.C. - Amsterdam

Its quite astonishing to think that the Aztec Camera song was first heard away back in 1983 on the debut LP High Land Hard Rain and that Roddy Frame wasn't yet 19 years of age when it was recorded. There's many songs from the 80s that haven't aged well. Thankfully, this isn't one of them.

Idlewild are one of the most underated acts on the go right now. They're also an outstanding live act, and this was the song that kicked-off their set the last time I saw them in Glasgow late last year. I'm guessing it won't be too long now before their record label puts together a 'Best Of' (maybe in time for the upcoming Xmas market??). Meantime this can be found on 100 Broken Windows.

As for Sons & Daughters, most of the tunes on their two LPs feature lead vocal duties by the gorgeous and sexy Adele Bethel. However this song, taken from The Repulsion Box, is one in which the equally gorgeous and sexy Scott Paterson does the honours - albeit with some help from Adele. Methinks Nick Cave would have been proud to have put this on Murder Ballads.

The final act featured today is U.N.P.O.C. This is basically the name used by Scottish singer-songwriter Tom Bauchop, who is one of the lesser-known elements of the Fife-based Fence Collective.

I was lucky enough to see the first ever 'proper' gig (ie as a band rather than a solo act) by U.N.P.O.C. at King Tut's in December 2003 when they were first on stage in support of James Yorkston & The Athletes. The next act on was the equally impressive King Creosote. A quite magical night indeed.

This is from the LP Fifth Column which came out in late 2003. To the best of my knowledge, there has been no follow-up released as yet.

If you like any of these tracks, please go and buy the LPs. Thank You.

CRYSTAL DAYS

I was on an underground train in Toronto yesterday. I was wearing a t-shirt that featured a silhouette image of Will Sargent. A young kid - maybe 20 years of age or so - obviously on his way to some sort of club while I made my way home to a cup of tea, an early night and a few more pages of The Worms Can Carry Me To Heaven by Alan Warner, stared at me as he waited for the train to pull into his destination.

'Cool shirt.' he said. 'The best band to come out of Liverpool' he added.

And who am I to disagree with the youth of today??

song : Echo & The Bunnymen - Show Of Strength

song : Echo & The Bunnymen - The Killing Moon (Jo Whiley Session version)

I again apologise to regular readers if there's any frustration about the lack of posts appearing here, and also for the fact that so many of the songs are a tad obvious. I'm still unable to access only a few hundred songs that are on the back-up portable drive I have with me in Toronto, and I still don't know how I managed to fail to load everything that's on the hard drive on the PC back in Scotland - such as the many great and unusual Bunnymen songs I have on vinyl.

Another fresh experience awaits me tomorrow evening - I'm being taken to my first ever hockey game. It's a pre-season friendly between Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators. Given that my favourite football teams back in the UK lost again for the second successive Saturday, I'm sure I'll jinx the Leafs to a setback defeat.

There is of course only one tune that can be dedicated to this historic event in my life:-

song : Super Furry Animals - Ice Hockey Hair

And finally for this evening, a little bit of self-indulgence.

Some 10 years ago, there was a band called Foil. They hailed from the Edinburgh area, although in truth the members were drawn from all corners of Scotland. They released a handful of singles and two albums on an offshoot of Mute Records. They reminded me a lot of Husker Du/The Pixies, and I was quite taken by them. I was introduced to the band by my mate Jacques the Kipper who had gone to school in Buckie (a small fishing town in the far north of Scotland) with the singer Hugh Duggie (his real and admittedly unusual name).

You will all know that over time, friends and acquaintances can somehow lose touch with one another as family life, bringing up kids and moving jobs all change tour circumstances. That's what happened with Jacques and Hugh.

But the other day, Mrs JtK went to a meeting in Edinburgh, and there on the list of folk around the table was one Mr H. Duggie.....of whom Mrs JtK had heard a lot but sadly had never met.

A few minutes later, she had Hugh's phone number and e-mail, and now two great old friends of times long ago will be meeting up again.

song : Foil - Are You Enemy?

And of course there is also only one song that can commemorate this particular event, which I would post if I had it on the portable drive - so if you want to listen to Chance Meeting by Josef K, you'll need to head over to The Video Villain where I've posted a clip.

Ciao.

HERE TO SERVE (3)

I got a nice e-mail from Anders in Sweden asking if I could help him out with some of the songs that I put on this previous posting. Always happy to oblige. Especially when it gives me a space to fill where there should have been a review of the Rilo Kiley gig in Toronto from the other night. But I was working late and didn't make it.

song : The Smiths - This Charming Man (extended version)

song : Prefab Sprout - He'll Have To Go

Yup, the latter is a cover of a C&W song made famous by Jim Reeves.

A THING OF NATURAL BEAUTY

Sorry to say Toad, but the title of the posting does not refer to Kylie's arse......

Things are a bit hectic over here just now and I don't have a lot of time to try and come up with something inventive or relevant for your enjoyment. So instead, here's a photo I took the other week when Mrs V was over and we did some touristy things.

And here's a rather obvious but fantastic tune to go with it:-

song : The Stone Roses - Waterfall

Thanks to all of you for leaving such nice comments after the last posting. Such words will always mean far more than any mention in any newspaper or other media outlet.....

Oh and since I mentioned her earlier:-

song : Kylie Minogue - Love At First Sight

I'm away for a lie-down now.

WHAT THE PAPERS SAY

I don't normally indulge in self-praise, but a couple of e-mails brought it to my attention that TVV and sundry friends were praised in The Guardian newspaper in the UK.

As the blokes who sell the papers on the streets might shout out loud - Read All About It.

And given that my favourite football teams in Scotland and England both lost their matches, the blog getting this mention was one of the few highlights over the weekend.....

Now all I need is recognition here and I'll be a happy man.

Some random tunes to celebrate, all of which came up on the i-pod in recent days:-

song : Arab Strap - If There's No Hope For Us (rogue version)

song : Julian Cope - Bagged-Out Ken

song : Sons & Daughters - Johnny Cash

song : The Smiths - A Rush and A Push and The Land Is Ours

Ciao.

WORK IS A FOUR LETTER WORD

Although the hours are long, I'm still enjoying the work I'm doing over here in Toronto, and trying not to get depressed by thinking too much about going back to the dead-end job awaiting me in Glasgow.

My old (but not in the age-sense) friend Liz (aka Mrs Spoilt Victorian Child) is also having some work concerns of her own which I hope are resolved to her satisfaction ASAP.

In the meantime, I've had an idea which may solve both of our work-related dilemmas. I' m sure Liz and many of you regular readers will want to come a join me in a new venture - one that will one day rival and indeed surpass the popularity of Hard Rock Cafe.

Ladies and Gentlemen. Homos, Hetros and Metros. Why not spend some of your cash at Tearooms Most Twee??


Forget oversize steaks, burgers and king-size french fries. Put away your desires for sundaes and free refill sodas. Come to Tearooms Most Twee for cakes, cucumber sandwiches and french fancies. Feast your eyes on trifle and pots and pots of tea of all varieties, all served on antique wooden tables covered with the finest of lace.

The walls will not be covered with garish memorabilia. Only the finest of wallpaper from the catalogues of Laura Ashley.

Your ears will not be assaulted by the shrieks and wails of long-haired men wearing ultra-tight spandex backed by ugly folk pulling faces as their fingers move up and down the fretboard of their guitars. Instead, an old fashioned Dansette record player will be used to bring you sounds such as these:-

song : Belle & Sebastian - Dog On Wheels
song : Talulah Gosh - Beatnik Boy
song : Aberfeldy - Summer's Gone
song : The Smittens - Doomed, Lo-Fi & In Love

At least once a week, Tearooms Most Twee will have a live acoustic performance from Duglas BMX Bandit. Occasionally, it will also have theme nights - maybe something for The Goths where the music will be different and there will a DVD of Batman Begins on show. But the Laura Ashley wallpaper and lace-covered tables will be permanent.

Care to join me?

A REMARKABLE DEBUT

This past week and a bit saw Mrs Villain join me for a short stay in Toronto. It was her first ever visit to the city, and we did loads of touristy things including going along to something something at the recently opened Toronto International Film Festival.

We were lucky enough to get two tickets for Control. We had hoped to get to the first showing at 9.45pm on a Friday evening, but the tickets were impossible to obtain. But we had the consolation of getting to the second and final showing, albeit at the ungodly hour of 9am on a Saturday morning.

First surprise was that we were far from alone. The cinema was almost full to capacity with maybe the best part of 1,000 folk inside. Second surprise that it was not an audience entirely made up of music fans - just behind us we heard one exchange along the lines of "Was this guy Curtis some sort of cult figure?". The third surprise was a brief personal appearance by Anton Corbijn, who expressed his delight that so many people would come along so early in the morning to watch a black and white feature by a first-time film director.

The effort of getting out of bed at such an ungodly hour on a weekend was more than worth it. Control is an exceptional piece of work. I've long been a fan of Corbijn's photographs and videos, so I had a fair idea that it would look good. What I wasn't prepared for was the level of performances from just about everyone in the film.

The part of Ian Curtis is played by the relatively little-known Sam Riley, and he does an unbelievable job. The more famous Samanatha Morton is outstanding as Deborah Curtis, especially in the second half of the movie as she begins to come to terms with how her husband is treating her.

The other young actors who play the members of the band - James Anthony Pearson (Bernard Sumner), Harry Treadaway (Steven Morris) and Joe Anderson (Peter Hook) are just about perfect, and not just because the roles called on them to play live. Bernard in particular comes across perfectly as the wide-eyed little-boy not quite believing that he's making it as a musician.

While the overall mood of the film is, as you would expect sombre, the script is packed with some fantastic one-liners, some of which are delivered by Hooky, but most of whom belong to Rob Gretton who is played by another relatively unknown actor, Toby Kebbel.

If I have one gripe, it was that I wasn't initially convinced by Craig Parkinson as Tony Wilson - most probably because I found myself comparing it to the way that Steve Coogan portrayed him in 24 Hour Party People - but I did find myself loosening up a bit as the movie progressed and appreciating his performance.

And there will be some people - there always are - who will be apoplectic with rage that the film has not stuck 100% to the facts. For example, Tony Wilson introducing them on So It Goes on Granada TV. In real life, Joy Division performed Shadowplay, but the film has them playing Transmission.

There's also a number of occasions when the need to have the movie go along at a decent pace means some things appear just a bit too melodramatic - for instance, the inspiration for the lyrics behind She's Lost Control.

I understand that Control will be coming out in the UK early in October. I also expect that not everyone will greet it with universal approval. For instance, Kevin Cummins, another photographer who worked with the band has said "The film lacks humour. It would appear that Corbijn has bought into the mythology surrounding the band...the crypto-fascist young men in their grey overcoats from the grim north of England. Nothing could be further from the truth."

I think that's a bit harsh, but then again it is a fact that in just under two hours, there's no evidence of the light-hearted side of Ian Curtis (such as the well-documented high-jinks the band got up to when they undertook a tour as support to Buzzcocks).

There will be others who just don't get it. There's one scathing review kicking around on the web from the Reuters Hollywood Correspondent who saw the movie at Cannes back in May. He didn't like Control because it doesn't live up to the 1960s black and white movies set in Northern England that often starred Albert Finney or Tom Courtenay (and which were so beloved by Morrissey).

It's a dreadful and lazy comparison to make- the films of the 60s were based on fictional novels whereas Control is of course based on real-life events - the only thing they have in common is that they are black and white films.

It is my view that Control falls into the category of 'must-see', especially if you are a fan of Anton Corbijn, Joy Division, Ian Curtis or indeed Samantha Morton.

Incidentally, I'm not ashamed to admit that I was in floods of tears at the end of the movie - as was Mrs V. Yes, we both knew how it was all going to end, but that didn't stop the intensity of the performances from the two lead roles having a huge effect on us. We weren't the only ones sobbing and sniffing away in Toronto. So take along your hankies....(and I know that line is inviting some sort of smutty reaction from the filthy-minded Toad).

song : Joy Division - Passover

RUMOURS.....OR FACT??

The one downer about living in temporary accommodation is that I've had to cut back on buying the usual shitload of new records and CDs as and when they come out (it would be a bit difficult getting them home and staying under the weight allowance).

So...I've not purchased the new release by Rilo Kiley. But frankly, after reading some of the stuff written about it on blogs of note, I'm not too sure if I want to.

Toad, as ever, didn't beat about the proverbial bush with his entry entitled Rilo Kiley are Fucking Overated. He was clearly unimpressed.

So, using the search facility on The Hype Machine, I went looking for some second and third opinions, and sorry to say that I didn't come up with too many. Here's some evidence, and here's a little more, and finally, even more.

When I started reading words like 'pretty dismal', 'one part dance rock, one part porn jam, two parts bland alt. rock, and several parts over-produced', as well as the scathing review posted by the usually reliable Toad, I thought I might best proceed with caution.

Things weren't helped when I read an interview with the band in the latest edition of Spin magazine which contains phrases such as 'the record is a naked stab at the mainstream', ' a collection of tight 70s-tinged, mostly upbeat pop songs' and worst of all, right there on the cover, the question is posed - 'Rilo Kiley - Are they the new Fleetwood Mac?'

Surely not......after all, that's partly what punk was all bout....

So it was with intrepidation that I downloaded and listened to some tracks. And for once, the critics are right. It's all rather sad and appalling.

Do I offer a conspiracy theory that Jenny Lewis so enjoyed the freedom and kudos offered by her solo project that she helped sabotage this latest offering in an effort to break-up the band?? Or is it simply the sound of folk who have sold their collective souls to the man (it's their first record for a major label)??

I don't know....but I might get a better idea later this month when I go along to see them here in Toronto (the tickets were purchased before the LP was released).

In the meantime, here for your comparison are the classic single from their last LP, More Adventurous that came out in 2004, and the lead-off single from the 2007 offering:-

song : Rilo Kiley - Potions For Foxes
song : Rilo Kiley - The Moneymaker

And if you think it's a tad unfair just to do things that way, well have a listen (if you dare) to a pretty awful LP track:-

song : Rilo Kiley - Dreamworld

I will say that the blog that posted that song gave the new album a positive review:-

'A lot of my friends think I truly loathe Jenny Lewis. This isn't true. I just can't stand the honkytonk vibe she loves to dive into so much of the time. Under The Blacklight is out on Tuesday, and I really do enjoy it. Rilo Kiley has managed to completely reinvent themselves on this album. It's diverse in sound and so much of it is nothing like their previous material. Highly recommended - especially if you haven't been a huge fan in the past.'

Not the sort of thing however that I take as a positive recommendation.

Any thoughts out there??

And if anyone's interested, there's a few Rilo Kiley/Jenny Lewis clips now over at The Video Villain.

YOU TUBE KILLED THE VIDEO STAR?

Castle Clark has a treasure trove of VHS tapes lying everywhere.

It's a legacy of an old obsession of mine - when I aimed to capture videos and performances of some of my favourite bands and singers. From about 1982 when my mum and dad bought their first VHS recorder through to the early part of the 21st Century, I compiled tape after tape after tape. And I've some cracking stuff - early TV appearances on long-forgotten TV shows by the likes of The Smiths, New Order and Orange Juice.

Even as a student who couldn't afford to rent never mind buy a video recorder in 1983, I would head back home most weeks on the nights that Whistle Test and The Tube were being broadcast just in case something was on and worth capturing for posterity.

And it seems I wasn't alone.

All across You Tube right now, you can find all sorts of great clips from the 80s and 90s that folk have transferred from VHS (or Betamax). If I had the inclination (and the time) I would try and do so myself.

In the meantime, I'm going to bring some of my favourites to you via the sister blog at The Video Villain. Today, you'll find two clips from a mid-80s TV show called Rock Around The Clock which was basically a 24-hour long version of Whistle Test on BBC 2. It featured live concerts by The Cure and Aztec Camera live from Glasgow Barrowlands, mini-documentaries on a range of artistes and producers, loads of videos, and probably the best of the lot, performances in the middle of the night from the studios in London featuring folk who had over-indulged on the hospitality of the hosts.

Check out the state of Ian McCulloch, Edwyn Collins and Paul Quinn as proof.

In the meantime, this posting gives me another excuse (as if ny were needed) to give you some more great stuff from EC:-

song : Edwyn Collins - If You Could Love Me

And while I'm here, I'll offer up something a little unusual. A few years back, mash-up and bootlegs were very much in vogue. Some were great, some were awful. Some were inspired, some were inspid. Some brought acts together you'd never have thought of:-

song : Abba & The Bunnymen - Voulez-Moon

It's Sunday morning. Off with Mrs V to do some sightseeing and then we're bonding together at the baseball.

Ciao

FROM UNDER THE COVERS (Parts 19, 20 & 21)

Its been a while since I stuck to a something that what was once a regular here at TVV - a posting exclusively of covers.

And having scoured t'internet far and wide for some inspiration, I am proud to present a selection of tracks that have appeared at some other blogs in recent weeks.

song : The Cardigans - The Boys Are Back In Town

song : Colin Meloy - Jack The Ripper

song : Foo Fighters - Keep The Car Running

None of the cover versions are completely essential, but I particularly like how Nina and her chaps have turned it into something that sounds like one of their own.

I was also hoping when I found it that Mr Decemberist had been hard at work re-interpreting Nick Cave, but alas, it's a cover of the Morrissey song instead.

Ciao.