BLOW UP BLOG

Blow Up 2013 Review

Wednesday December 18, 2013

BLOWUP.CO.UK

Blow Up Bussey Building Oct 12th Peckham

This year saw the Blow Up Club launch a brand new residency at The Bussey Building in Peckham, London and in October the club reached it's 20th Anniversary (read more) - we'll be celebrating officially on Saturday 15th February 2014.

Over at Blow Up Records, 2013 saw Baltic Fleet win this year's Liverpool GIT Award, be nominated for Liverpool Music Awards Album of The Year (along side Miles Kane and Ian Skelly) and perform at Yoko Ono's Meltdown. more / listen...

After a long haitus Alfa 9 returned with the stripped back West-Coast influenced second album Gone To Ground and swung back into live action. more / listen...

2013 also saw two debut releases for new signings Daiquiri Fantomas and David Woodcock. Sicilian experimental duo Daiquiri Fantomas released their debut album 'MHz Invasion' this August, including the fantastic 'Moogchile' described as 'Air meets John Barry'. more / listen... Essex-based singer-songwriter David Woodcock released his debut single 'Same Things', and the ltd. 7" 'Tease' more / listen...

Whilst Fay Hallam continued her UK & European tour dates in support of last year's 'Lost In Sound' more / listen...
Meanwhile both Big Boss Man and The Bongolian have been touring around Europe, whilst The Bongolian returned for two storming sets at Blow Up this October and December.

BLOW UP 2013 TRACK HIGHLIGHTS ON YOUTUBE

"Immense"
ROUGH TRADE SHOPS ALBUM OF THE WEEK & AN ALBUM OF THE MONTH

"Exceptional motorik beats" NME

"A sublimely cinematic blend of kosmische musik,
dream pop"9/10 SUBBA-CULTCHA

"Something very special indeed"
CRACK MAGAZINE

"One of the finest records from Liverpool in years"
LIVERPOOL ECHO

AN ALBUM OF THE YEAR: LOUDER THAN WAR, VIVE LE ROCK, CRACK MAGAZINE, LIVERPOOL ECHO, RESIDENT RECORDS & MORE...

BALTIC FLEET

Following on from the critical success of the second album 'Towers', this April Baltic Fleet won Liverpool's GIT Award (other nominees included Clinic, Dan Croll, Stealing Sheep and Wave Machines), and was invited to play the opening night of Yoko Ono's Meltdown this June at London's Southbank Centre:

"The judges believe that Towers captured the sprawling vitality of contemporary music and married this to a sonic landscape which is indicative of its birth. Flawless electronic melodies, breezeblock beats and an effortless futuristic edge"

Although Baltic Fleet is essentially the solo recording project of Paul Fleming, his live band have since played around the UK and Europe, shows including Liverpool International Festival Of Psychedelia, Soundcity, Sheffield Sensoria, Norwich S&V. This year they've played with Public Service Broadcasting (caught in action performing 'The Wilds' and 'Toire De'), Hookworms andThe Portico Quartet more ...

OUR TOP TRACKS: Headless Heroes, Frosklia

LISTEN:
Towers - 2nd album (YouTube | Download/Buy)
Baltic Fleet - debut album (YouTube | Download/Buy)

"A fascinating combination of sounds, drawing from the last half-century of electronic music"
Shindig!

"Like John Barry who's just taken delivery of a new Moog. Very filmic"
RADCLIFFE & MACONIE, BBC 6MUSIC

"You wouldn't blink if someone told you it was from the Sheffield-era Warp label. Or Air"
The Guardian New Band Of The Day

DAIQUIRI FANTOMAS

This August Daiquiri Fantomas released 'MHz Invasion', the debut album from the Sicilian experimental Avant-Pop duo Marco Barrano and Dario Sanguedolce. A mainly instrumental cocktail of ideas with a Retro-Futuristic flavour, encompassing Prog, Sci-Fi movie soundtracks & Kosmische (youtube album sampler).

Single 'Moogchile' described as 'Air meets John Barry' receiving spot plays on BBC 6 Music from Don Letts, Gideon Coe, Radcliffe and Maconie and Chris Hawkins and Huey Morgan on BBC Radio 2. more ...

OUR FAVOURITE TRACKS: Moogchile, Logarhythm

LISTEN:
MHz Invasion - debut album (YouTube | Download/Buy)

"A pillow of jangly guitars and sweet harmonies.
A beautiful record" Shindig!

"A sublime mix of 12-string led summer-breeze pop, an outstanding melodic soundtrack of skilfully crafted songs" 8 Out of 10 - Vive Le Rock

"The Stoke songsmiths are back, and it's been well worth the wait" CLASSIC ROCK

AN ALBUM OF THE YEAR: VIVE LE ROCK, PODROPHENIA, ACTIVE LISTENER, POP JUNKIE

ALFA 9

After a long haitus Alfa 9 followed their highly acclaimed debut with ‘Gone To Ground’ a much more stripped back affair, the most recent single from which 'El Morocco' was playlisted for 4 weeks on BBC 6 Music (1.9 million listeners UK & Worldwide) (other singles receiving numerous spot plays). They now haveBBC Radio sessions under their belt for 6 Music, BBC Stoke andBBC Liverpool.

The band have swung back into live action with dates up and down the UK including the Annual Liverpool Psych Fest and a support for Poltergeist in December more ...

OUR FAVOURITE TRACKS: El Morocco, Seedless

LISTEN:
Gone To Ground - 2nd album (YouTube | Download/Buy)
Then We Begin - debut album (YouTube | Download/Buy)

"[A] match made in heaven hark back to when pop music had a whole heap of soul and backbone!
Addictive stuff"
4 STARS - BLUES & SOUL

"An immediate pleasure, and wonderfully seductive" SHINDIG!

"Time-defying soul" 9/10 VIVE LE ROCK

AN ALBUM OF THE YEAR: VIVE LE ROCK & PODROPHENIA

FAY HALLAM & THE BONGOLIAN

Fay Hallam and Nasser Bouzida AKA 'The Bongolian' met when both playing a live show at Blow Up, and they soon discovered that they both shared a serious passion for 60's Hammond Beat and Soul. On 'Lost In Sound', their first collaboration, they immersed themselves in the music they both love, from Bossa Nova, heavier 70's grooves, Latin and Northern Soul, with a choice of classic instruments including old Rhodes, Wurlitzer and Hammond C3 keyboards and other vintage equipment, mixing in some analogue synths. The album was released to critcal acclaim and Fay Hallam continues to tour the album in both the UK and Europe with more dates lined up for 2014
more ...

OUR FAVOURITE TRACKS: Dancing, Freefall

LISTEN:
Lost In Sound - debut album (YouTube | Download/Buy)

"A great little pop record"
STEVE LAMACQ, BBC 6MUSIC

"Essex has a bit of form when it comes to delivering maverick pop geniuses with a gift for mixing a smidgeon of music hall with a dash of 60s pop and creating inspired, but intelligent tunes"BRANDISH.TV

DAVID WOODCOCK

David Woodcock is a singer song writer based in his hometown of Southend-on Sea, who recently signed to Blow Up in 2012 and he has just finished recording his debut album, due for release early 2014

A pianist and prolific writer, with a strong local following around the pubs and clubs of Southend, he has been building up a solid songbook of sharp lyrics and great melodies that are have been distilled into his debut more ...

OUR FAVOURITE TRACKS: Same Things

LISTEN:
Same Things - debut single (YouTube | Download/Buy)
Beggars Can't Be Choosers / Tease - 2nd single (YouTube |Download/Buy)

October 16th this year marked exactly 20 years to the day when doors opened to the Blow Up club for the first time. Since then it has become a bona-fide legendary club night, being at the centre of the early to mid Nineties Brit Pop explosion, cited as the catalyst and birth place of the Brit Pop scene and influencing the style and sound of a generation. Blow Up was voted as No.4 in Time Out's Top Ten Clubs of the 90s, one of '5 Classic Clubs of Out Time' by Vox Magazine (alongside The Blitz Club and Shoom) and as 'The club that changed the world' by Melody Maker. More recently Blow Up appeared in Time Out's London Calling which described the club as "the breeding gournd of the Brit Pop sound" and in NME's Original's Top Ten Britpop Moments. From its origins at The Laurel Tree, Camden Town (1993-1996), to Soho venues the Wag Club (1996-2001) the Metro Club (2002-2009), and through various London venues since (2009-2013), Blow Up is one of London's longest running club nights. We've hosted events in Europe, and further afield, with events in USA, Russia and Japan, whilst the Blow Up club compilations ('Blow Up A-Go-Go!' and 'Blow Up presents Exclusive Blend') have proved popular worldwide.

See more: Blow Up press here and flyers in the Blow Up scrapbook here

There is nowhere else quite like Blow Up, and in many ways it’s still unique. ‘Blow Up may be inspired by the ’60s,’ wrote Time Out years ago, ‘but their night could run and run.’ It looks set to do just that.
Time Out London, January 2009

"Year after year, Blow Up just seems to get better" The Evening Standard

No.4: Time Out's Top Ten Club's of The 90s

"The club that changed the world" Melody Maker

"This is the night which spawned a thousand bands, inspiring fashion designers and stylists to recreate the look for the mainstream" The Guest List

"Legendary" Time Out, Evening Standard, NME

The Roxy, Blitz Club, Shoom, Syndrome & Blow Up: Vox Magazine's 5 Classic Clubs of our Time

"The London clubland institution" The Guardian Guide

Blow Up Records & Club Year Review 2012

Friday January 18, 2013

Here’s what we've been up to at Blow Up in 2012... Blow Up Records releases included the critically acclaimed Baltic Fleet album ‘Towers’, ‘Lost In Sound’ from Fay Hallam & The Bongolian (their very first collaboration), meanwhile the year also saw the return of the mighty Alfa 9 who have been picking up some great early press for their second album 'Gone To Ground' which is out in March 2013. All three appearing in end of year polls for 2012. Sweden’s Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck returned with the single ‘Leaving For A Day’ and a last minute Christmas track ‘This Year’ and there were two new signings to the label for David Woodock and Daiquiri Fantomas, so stay tuned in 2013 for releases from these!

The Blow Up club headed back to the USA twice this year, with shows in LA, San Francisco and Sacramento. And in October Blow Up took part in the annual Oxjam series of shows in Leicester. Plus our London residency in West London carried on from 2011 with live guests including Sulk, The Fractures, Thee Faction, Fay Hallam, David Woodcock, B-Movie....

BLOW UP SF: San Francisco Blow USA + Lost In Sound Launch

Monday July 23, 2012

Blow Up SF: New Monthly Run in San Fransisco & Lost In Sound Launch

Blow Up SF: San Fransisco & Lost In Sound Launch

Mod Soul New-Wave & Britpop Action For Pop Stylists!

Blow Up returns to SF and to the Monarch with a great line-up of DJs from the SF scene: Carlos Perez (Tailor Made), Major Sean (Tailor Made, Club Leisure), Galine Tumasova (Shake Appeal) & Russel Quan (Teenage Dance Craze) and a live show from The Chuckleberrys.

Plus FAY HALLAM & THE BONGOLIAN Record Release Party! (Blow Up Records) This is a brand new collaboration between Fay Hallam (Makin' Time, The Prime Movers, Phaze) and Blow Up Records' Nasser Bouzida (The Bongolian).

Please note event is 21+.

More info: blowupclub.com • monarchsf.com • Facebook Event • Map
Connect: Facebook • USA Facebook • Twitter • mySpace

BLOW UP JUBILEE SPECIAL – Fri 1st June 2012: FAY HALLAM (Lost In Sound Launch) + DAVID WOODCOCK live

Thursday May 17, 2012

Blow Up Jubilee Special: Fay Hallam Lost In Sound Launch David Woodcock

Blow Up presents the album launch for Fay Hallam & The Bongolian's new album 'Lost In Sound' (Blow Up Records) with a rare live London show by the Mod Queen herself, with a brand new band line-up, and featuring special guest appearances by ex-Prisoners/ Prime Movers/ Phaze/ Solar Flares, bass-legend, Allan Crockford.

Blow Up's monthly West London residency at Ginglik in Shepherd's Bush with Blow Up DJs Paul Tunkin & Ian Jackson spinning their trademark mix of Pop Stylism, 60′s Soul, Beat, Garage, Funk, Ska, Soundtracks, Electronica, Library Music colliding with British Pop, Glam, Indie-Pop and New-Wave.

The Blow Up playlist includes classic tracks from both its past and present, from its Brit Pop era favourites, (the scene of which the club helped kick-start way back in 1993 in Camden Town) to the current new things tickling our fancy - the new Pop stylists putting the art back into pop alongside essential New Wave, Glam and indie classic cuts. All this alongside Blow Up's trademark mix of 60's killer dance floor tracks in the following genre's - 60's Swinging Soundtracks, TV Themes, 60s Exotica & Electronica, 60s Club Soul, Northern Soul, Beat, Mod Jazz, French Pop, Library Music and Ska. Bloody marvellous!

More info: blowupclub.com • Facebook Event • Map

Tickets £6 adv. from: Stargreen.com • We Got Tickets • Gigantic • SeeTickets • Ticketweb

Connect: Facebook • Twitter • mySpace

New BLOW UP Signings for 2012, New Projects & Free Downloads – Fay Hallam & The Bongolian, David Woodcock, Baltic Fleet, Alfa 9, Daiquiri Fantomas

Friday April 13, 2012

We're pleased to announce that we now have 3 new additions to Blow Up Records' roster for 2012: Fay Hallam & The Bongolian (a new collaboration), singer-songwriter David Woodcock from Southend-on-Sea and Sicilian duo Daiquiri Fantomas. Plus, 'Towers' the long-awaited follow up to Baltic Fleet's self-titled debut will be released this Summer, followed swiftly by the second album for Alfa 9 'Gone To Ground'.

FREE DOWNLOADS:

The first 2 singles for 2012 will be 'Engage' from Baltic Fleet, and 'Dancing' from Fay Hallam & The Bongolian which we'll be giving away as free downloads for a limited time, links below...

FAY HALLAM & THE BONGOLIAN

'Dancing' will be the first track to be taken from 'Lost In Sound' the very first collaboration between Fay Hallam (Makin' Time, The Prime Movers, Phaze) and Blow Up Records' The Bongolian. Both share a serious passion for 60's Hammond Beat and Soul. Due for release very shortly, the album covers a variety of styles: Bossa Nova, heavier 70's grooves and a strong Northern Soul influence. Get ready to get Lost In Sound...

Head over to FayHallamAndTheBongolian.com to get your free download.

BALTIC FLEET

'Engage' is the first track to be taken from 'TOWERS' the 2nd album from BALTIC FLEET, released this Summer and which follows his 2008 self-titled debut which was an Album of the Year (No 29) for Rough Trade Shops. Baltic Fleet is the moniker of multi-instrumentalist and DIY producer Paul Fleming. The second record signifies a departure from the travelling and diarising of life on the road (whilst touring as keyboard player for Echo & The Bunnymen), and arrives home to the industrial backdrop of North West England. The album was written and recorded in a room overlooking the industrial landscape a stone's throw from Spike Island, the scene of another Northern band's finest hour.

Head over to BalticFleetMusic.com to get your free download.