Author: Paul Tunkin

Not one but three Blow Up Records albums made it into the end of year polls for 2012 including Vive Le Rock, Crack Magazine, Louder Than War, Liverpool Echo & some very nice blogs too…

Fay Hallam & The Bongolian  ‘Lost In Sound‘: read press here • more about the album

Baltic Fleet album ‘Towers‘: read press here  • more about the album

Alfa 9 ‘Gone To Ground‘ (not even out yet!): read press here • more about the album

See all artists press here

Alfa 9 ‘s second album ‘ Gone To Ground ‘ gets its official release on March 11th and the band will be signing the first 100 copies , but they’ll only by available from the official Blow Up / Alfa 9 shop –  click here to pre-order to guarantee yours! Plus you can buy their other releases, including other limited goodies. There are even a few copies of their first album ‘ Then We Begin ‘ on vinyl signed by the first line-up.

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…. Read more below…. BALTIC FLEET ‘TOWERS’… “Immense. Fleming has upped the ante on an already stellar debut,” Rough Trade Shops ‘Album of the week’ & ‘Albums of the MONTH’ “Exceptional motorik beats” NME “A sublimely cinematic blend of kosmische musik and dream pop ” 9/10 Subba-Cultcha “Something very special indeed” Crack Magazine “One of the finest records from Liverpool in years” Liverpool echo “A wonderfully well rounded and complete album ” Louder Than War ‘Album Of The Week’ & an Album Of The Year AN ALBUM OF THE YEAR: LOUDER THAN WAR, VIVE LE ROCK, CRACK MAGAZINE, LIVERPOOL ECHO, RESIDENT RECORDS & MORE… More about Baltic Fleet here… FAY HALLAM & THE BONGOLIAN ‘LOST IN SOUND’ … “A match made in heaven. It’s timeless and that’s the secret …addictive stuff” ★★★★ Blues & Soul “An immediate pleasure, and wonderfully seductive” Shindig! AN ALBUM OF THE YEAR: VIVE LE ROCK & ‘DANCING’ Podrophenia Single Of The Year More about Fay Hallam & The Bongolian here… ALFA 9 ‘GONE TO GROUND’… “The Stoke songsmiths are back, and it’s been well worth the wait” CLASSIC ROCK “A beautiful record” SHINDIG! EARLY ALBUMS OF THE YEAR: VIVE LE ROCK, PODROPHENIA, ACTIVE LISTENER, POP JUNKIE… Read more about Alfa 9 here. ..

Advance tickets have now sold out for tonight. For those who wish only to attend the late night club session without seeing the bands there will be a VERY limited amount of reduced price tickets at £5 on the door from 11pm. This will only allow entry after the bands have finished playing, and again is strictly first come first served. Stereo Total will return to Blow Up on February 8th 2013 for a one-off London show at The Macbeth . The 5th time our favourite electro-duo have played at the club who are flying in from Germany especially. Plus 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. More info: blowupclub.com • Facebook Event • Map Advance Tickets: SOLD OUT Stargreen.com • We Got Tickets • Gigantic • SeeTickets • Ticketweb Connect: Facebook • Twitter

This Year a brand new track from Sweden’s  Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck – a melancholy upbeat indie-pop Christmas song announced by the band to celebrate the 1 st Sunday of Swedish advent. Read more: Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck / Facebook / Twitter

“Leaving For A Day” is a brand new track taken from the forthcoming new edition of Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck‘s debut album “Days Come And Go” which has now been expanded to include additional tracks. The album made the top five list of albums of the year for Sweden’s national newspaper Sydsvenskan.

Check out the video for “Leaving For A Day”, a compilation of footage filmed during the bands last visit to the UK, including a Rough Trade East in-store, an appearance at Dot-To-Dot Festival Bristol, a support slot with Camera Obscura at King’s College, a show at the Blow Up Metro Club on Oxford Street and an acoustic session at the V&A.

Finally! A brand new single from Swedish indie-pop 8-piece Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck . ‘ Leaving For A Day ‘ will be taken from a new edition of their debut album ‘ Days Come and Go ‘ which will shortly be rereleased in an expanded form to include additional tracks.  The video is a compilation of footage filmed during the bands last visit to the UK, including a Rough Trade East in-store, an appearance at Dot-To-Dot Festival Bristol, a support slot with Camera Obscura at King’s College, a show at the Blow Up Metro Club on Oxford Street and an acoustic session at the V&A. Read more: Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck / Facebook / Twitter Buy single on iTunes

Ladies and gentlemen we present you the perfect antidote to all the current doom and gloom… We give you…

Silvery performing a brand new recording of You Give A Little Love, a cover version of the Paul Williams song as featured in the musical Bugsy Malone. The song has often featured in the Silvery live set and the band thought it was high time to put a studio version down.

This track is not included on their fabulous debut album Thunderer & Excelsior, but will be downloadable from Monday 15th December from all reputable purveyors of digital phonograms and just in time for Christmas! ….Its time to party like its 1929!!!

“How do you feel about Bugsy Malone? Me, I love it! And my favourite song from the movie? This one. Silvery deliver it straight up, no f**king about, building to climax with massed choir just like the original. Made my day.
Buy this, be young at heart, happy Christmas one and all.” Artrocker

“Never before has a song from Bugsy Malone sounded so… er, cool?!”
What’s On The NME Stereo?

• download…
• Silvery Dave TVs ‘Bands To Watch 2009’ weekly vodcast
  An exclusive interview with Silvery in Dave TVs weekly vodcast
  view here on dave.uktv.co.uk
• SILVERY Thunderer & Excelsior
  No.19 Artrocker’s Albums of The Year 2008
  Artrocker have voted Silvery’s album debut in at No.19 in their Top Albums of 2008.

read more…
silvery
reviews

live: silvery tour dates…

myspace: myspace.com/silverytheband

Following their Christmas single You Give A Little Love last December, London eccentrics Silvery release their 5th single on Monday 15th June 2009, previously featured on a live BBC Radio 1 Lamacq session and a standout track from their much talked about debut album Thunderer & Excelsior (which made the ARTROCKER and ORGAN top releases of 2008 lists).

The Nishikado EP features a new mix of the lead song (inspired by Toshihiro Nishikado – the creator of Space Invaders in the 1970’s) and 3 brand new tracks: Identity, Murder Holes and The Public Purse.
Think Sparks at their most Glam Rock, mixed up with all sorts of musical tricks Blur and Bowie would be proud of.

Watch the video now exclusively on Artrocker.TV

EP. will be available 3 weeks early as an iTunes exclusive on Monday 25th May 2009 (general availability from 15/6/2009)

Mockingbird, Wish Me Luck have a brand new track ‘The Divine Comedy’ available for free for a limited time as part of the new Eardrums download compilation ‘Birdsongs, Beesongs Volume 1’ available here. No sign-up required, just download!

If you like this you can download / buy their debut album Days Come And Go or listen to more tracks on their myspace…

DAYS COME AND GO quotes…

“Think The Concretes with strings and a folky/indie edge. Grand songs, delivered well” Stool Pigeon

“Lovely, gentle folk inspired indie pop that invokes the idea of Jens Lekman fronting Belle & Sebastian. Simple as that” indieMP3

“Wry but sincere hometown poetry” NME

“An album to pay attention to” AllMusic

• download…
• buy… HMV / Norman / Rough Trade / Rhythm Online
  & all good indies more shops here or Blow Up mail order

read more:
mockingbird, wish me luck
reviews

myspace: myspace.com/mockingbirdwishmeluckswe

facebook: mockingbird, wish me luck group

youtube: “pictures (too big to fit in a sight)” (unplugged)