So folks, starting today I’m going to be posting daily. Just for a week while I have some time off. I want to push myself as a writer and creative, and as usual I have a huge backlog of posts to write, especially after this break. I shall post a review shortly.
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
So, it’s been a slow few weeks for the blog. It’s been tough for me to write lately, for a variety of reasons. I finally finished the massive list today of orders I had for reviews (largely thanks to the lovely Bassey) that had been backed up for months and I needed some time to find the spark again. I wrote a small piece about the election but ultimately I wasn’t happy with it. My band had just broken up and that coupled with the news about the election streaming in just meant I felt too miserable to write anything of worth. However, I’ve had some time off, we are about to start a new decade and I plan to make the most of it. I have big plans for this year, starting with a Needs More Cowbell fanzine and a regular post schedule. I’ll let you know if and when I manage those things. Thank you all for being patient with me these last few weeks. Should have another post up in a few days. Happy holidays to all.
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
The Sound Theory all hail from Derby and released their first single We Had All The Love several months ago but it is only now that we review this debut-many apologies for the delay guys. A quick scan on facebook shows they have only played a few gigs so far but the single is a mature sound and shows a good level of musicianship. A powerful sound that will appeal to anyone who likes power ballads and a traditional rock/indie sound, with a patient build up in the development of the song that usually comes from a much more mature band. They consist of Anna on vocals and acoustic guitar, Amir on bass, Ben on drums, Ragnar on lead guitar and Tomek on electric guitar. A great debut sound and they promise to release an ep shortly which we will keep eager ears and eyes open for-Good Luck Guys!
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Bassey
Well gang, after literal decades, twenty years to be exact, they’ve finally figured it out. A life time of doctors appointments, psychiatrists, teachers, councillors and even parts of my own family all telling me I’m wrong and mentally unstable, that I need to get over myself and man up. Failed friendships and relationships, years of torment from school bullies. For years I thought it was my fault and I was just a freak. Well now I’m telling all of them to go fuck themselves. I had a 5 and a half hour assessment today and I’ve had a diagnosis for autism. Now I have an answer. After an entire life of self hatred and pain. I have something to tell me that it’s not my fault I’m this way. That I’m not the freak I’ve been made out to be my whole life. I in-fact have a genuine disability. And now I know that I can relax and be myself rather than try to hide and pretend to be normal. I finally have a reason and an answer for who I am. I finally will be able to sleep at night knowing that all those fuckers were wrong and I am not the problem they made me out to be. I am me and that is a great thing. Now when I struggle I can explain it. That gives me a sense of power over my disability and will in time, allow me to master it. Thank you to those who’ve supported me. Fuck you to those who’ve destroyed me. I’m building myself back up. This snowflakes a fucking avalanche and I refuse to be beaten.
Well at this point this band has probably forgotten they have asked me for a review, as I’ll be honest, it’s been a while. To be totally honest I’ve been very busy having just started university and I was already backed up with posts for several weeks. But even through all that I never forgot folk punk duo The Spirits. Wonderfully charming, brilliantly atmospheric for just a two-piece band and seemingly very lovely from the brief email conversation I had with them some months ago. It’s hard to believe they have less than fifty likes on their Facebook page, please do go show them some love and tell them Oscar sent you, I’m sure they will appreciate it and I know I certainly would
. Based in north London, the pair have played many gigs on the capital’s indie circuit with the lovely Stevie on guitar and the brilliant Vanessa on percussion, mainly the cajon for the live performances but with some excellent additions to the rhythmic elements on the more produced tracks, my favourite of which being the upbeat and catchy Far from Livid London which is interesting in both its message and musical content.
Starting and with the sound of various birdsongs and calls and with a simple but strong guitar pattern being the main attraction alongside the emotive vocals from Stevie. While for my untrained ear it is hard to determine exactly what the other instrument is beyond the main beat, guitar line and vocals they certainly add to the track. Though perhaps it could be turned up slightly, I think it may be an organ but its really hard to distinguish. The title and lyrics of track also display an interesting contempt for London that I wouldn’t expect from a London based band, perhaps there is a story behind that. Either way, a tantalising track from a powerful pair. The band has a sway of more highly produced tracks all over their SoundCloud but most if not all of them are also available on their website and Facebook page in a live format. I’m sure all of my lovely readers would appreciate at least a single tune from The Spirits, but I’m confident many of you will fall in love with many of these simply superb songs.
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
Barnsley, South Yorkshire has a burning star called Toronto Blessings and for a 3 piece band they manage to make more noise than all the Super Reds Barnsley Football fans put together. I’m not sure what the connection is with Canada and why they decided to refer to Toronto in their name but Barnsley should be proud that they owned them first. The members are Dale Evans-Guitar/Vocals, Rik Whitehead-Vocals/Bass, Richard Murray-Drums/Vocals and they all share in making as much noise as possible.
This 7 track album starts straight off with Hopes/Dreams and hard, driving bass and drums, compulsive guitar and vocals that are barely in control. I’m showing my age here but track 1 at times reminded me of the legendary Killing Joke’s song Wardance. I loved it at 2 mins 32 secs when the bass gets really nasty. I’d never heard of this band before but after that first track I went straight on their facebook page and ‘liked’ them……you should too.
Track 2 Uvu has a guitar sound that just makes my teeth itch…..lovely stuff, I’m still finding it hard to believe that this is just a 3 piece band! I can hear Idles and if ever the Sleaford Mods decide to use guitar, bass and drums then I’m sure they would sound like this, in fact Toronto Blessings should have the aka Sleaford Idles name to help wannabe fans understand their sound (in my humble opinion).
Track 3 Good News Everybody is patient and only at around 1 min 30 secs do they reveal the money notes that make this a great number. The songs are coming fast and furious now with Survival Techniques and Invasions although the latter track is relatively calmer compared to the others by Toronto Blessings’ highly charged standards and then suddenly track 6 No Falling at just 1 min 9 secs long shows a different side to the band and perhaps a style they will come back to on another recording-slow, disturbing, more thoughtful and experimental and a style I’d personally love the guys to develop into future songs.
The album ends with track 7 Asleep, the longest song at 5 mins 41 secs and has elements of all the other songs which leaves you wanting more from this Barnsley star called Toronto Blessings. My burning question now is …….where can I see them play?
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Bassey
This post is from a brand new addition to the Cowbell Crew, the wonderful Bassey Easton, welcome aboard my friend and I hope you all enjoy his content,
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
Evening all, its two in the morning, otherwise known as my optimal creative period, so I figured it’s time to get some writing done. Today I would like to give you my take on the creative process, looking at both my experiences with creativity and my own recommendations for devising your own ideas and creations. Now I’ve already mentioned that late nights such as this one is a good time to write for me, being both a creative and mild insomniac allow my brain to get inspired at the time when I should probably be getting some rest. However, the answer to creativity is not simply staying up late dear reader, no, definitely not.
You see to get your own unique ideas you first have to look at the ideas of others that you have watched, heard and read. All ideas are just made up of a lifetime of other people’s ideas. You start to find out what you like and don’t like, what attracts you to a piece of work could be anything. Developing a sense of artistic vision is key to finding your own personal style. Once you have found something you really enjoy, I suggest looking deeper into the subject. Could there be an interview with the artist? Is there a funny story in the history of the book? Is there a documentary on the creation of the film? Chances are you’ll find a concept you hadn’t considered before. Pretty much every piece of creative work in existence happened because the person who made it was already a fan of so many other creatives. So, go to gigs and galleries, read novels and newspapers, pay attention to films and fan culture for every bit of inspiration you can get your hands on. I’ll include a list of things that inspire me at the end of this post.
Once you have an idea, don’t dilly dally, get cracking! Procrastination is truly a curse I am familiar with, made all the worse by the fact that it’s usually self-inflicted. But it can be overcome! Develop the self-discipline to get your shit together and have another try at your idea, if you’re truly stuck, perhaps have a break for half an hour or so and come back to it. I often find attempting things from a different angle after a break can make all the difference. Maybe you could look at other opinions on how to create something similar to what you are doing. Hell, this very blog post is massively inspired by/stolen from an Exurb1a video talking about writing. I’m sure with enough time and effort you will manage to create something, it may be crap, it may be a masterpiece, but it will be yours and it will exist and that’s a good thing. I also understand the nerves that come with releasing a piece of work. Sometimes you feel that it isn’t good enough and you have to keep working on it, but my advice is to learn when to let go. Self-doubt is part of the process and you should embrace it without letting it rule you. I often use my own anxieties to fuel the creative process.
I’m also going to touch on reviewing your work, as it’s a key part of the process. The more people who see your work, the more feedback you are likely to receive. And whether that feedback comes in the form of screaming fans, angry haters or perhaps just constructive criticism, take all of it together, don’t let it go to your head but see what the running themes are that people respond to and work with that. Ask a fellow creative in your field or even a friend to have a look at what you’ve done and ask them to be honest. Try not to get upset if it isn’t as good as you hoped and try not to let your ego go out of control if people say it’s the best thing they’ve ever read, honestly chance is they are lying to you but even if they aren’t, over confidence has been the downfall of many a creative.
Remember, these things will take time, be it hours, days, weeks, months or even years. All great work takes a lot of time and a lot of polishing. Even the Sex Pistols had to take time to learn how to write a decent song and perform their work. Greatness doesn’t come from nothing. But eventually, no matter how difficult it is, if you truly put emotion, time and energy into your project it will be done and will most likely turn out okay at the very least, but even if it’s not, that’s still a good thing as you would have learned so much along the way. Keep pushing, keep fighting, it will work out in the end.
Inspirational things I like
Exurb1a: Thoughts about writing
The Smiths: Bigmouth strikes again
BBC: Music for Misfits the Story of Indie
The Cure: A forest
BBC: The joy of the guitar riff
Escapist: Zero Punctuation
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
At a traffic light.
No one in sight.
Not one soul, not one thing.
My anxiety riddled brain: “what if the government has invented invisible cars to patrol the roads in order to control the masses and stop us from j walking?”
Decided to add a bit of pseudo poetry into the mix, hope you enjoy,
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
A few weeks ago, I was contacted by Lost Remnants, a band that originally formed in the late eighties and in the past couple of years have reunited. Last year they released their debut album Talking to Myself Again and after being rather impressed with the CD they so kindly sent me I’ve finally gotten around to writing this. Talking to Myself Again is an interesting record for sure. The mixing of influences creates a unique style unheard in the modern music scene. Tracks like A Big Issue verge on being something the late great Ric Ocasek would write for The Cars in the late seventies. Considering when the band formed originally it’s no wonder the new wave influences clear on this absolute tune. Then you’ve got the more relaxed folk songs such as Homefires which are in stark contrast to the heavily produced No Hope Goes There. I particularly enjoy the intro to this track. The layers of vocals really create an atmosphere. It’s really hard to pinpoint exactly where this album comes from, as there is such a variety of styles on display here. From rock to indie to folk, all listeners can get something they enjoy from this record.
All the musicians playing on this record are clearly top of the class, from the haunting vocal to the dynamic guitar work and behind it all you’ve got that steady bass and drums holding it all together. However, my favourite piece of instrumentation featured on this brilliant record is that beautiful organ and keys playing. It really brings out that seventies vibe that some of these tracks have and is the standout performance on this entire record. The addition of horns on a few songs is also appreciated.
It’s absolutely brilliant that bands from as far back from the late eighties are still getting together to jam without much in the way of fame or money as an incentive. The love of music is clear in this band and on this record. I wish Lost Remnants all the luck in the world and I will wait with bated breath for the follow up to this amazing album. Talking To Myself Again can be found on Spotify as well as in physical form. Check out Lost Remnants on Facebook for more details.
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
I wanted to take a moment to express my love and appreciation for one of my favourite bands. Idles. Their energy, their positivity mixed with rage, their brilliant songs and their amazing live show which blew me away when I saw them in Nottingham last year. But there’s something special about Idles. You get many bands with great energy, epic live shows and brilliant songs. But it is the sense of community centred around five shouty blokes from Bristol which is unique in both its unlikeliness and positive attitude. Sure, Talbot’s lyrics scream love and unity, along with his trademark anger, but it’s the members of the A.F. Gang who show such care for both one another and the band that make this group so special and close-knit. I remember when my elderly French bulldog, Boodles was very ill. I was certain It was her last night with us on this mortal plane and as we decided at the vets the next day, it indeed was. I reached out to the gang for support to get me through the night as I was up with her until my family woke up in the morning. Through tears and sickness, Boodles and I found comfort in the other members of the family that is the gang. Hundreds of likes and comments from people I’d never spoken to before. The kindness of others got me and, I like to believe, Boodles through the night. Every single day the kindness of close strangers supports both myself and so many others. I’m always seeing posts from people who have lost someone, who are trying to get over addiction or are simply having a tough day. And for every one of these posts there are tenfold A.F Gangers expressing genuine care, love, unity and sharing their own experiences. There are the positive posts as well, from memes to gig photos which brighten my day every single morning when I open Facebook.
The point is my readers, the A.F. Gang is so pure and genuine, so wonderfully human that I have to share the love with you. Though I am indeed terrified that the more people brought into the A.F Gang we might lose what makes us so close. But to share the happiness these people have brought me? It’s worth it. At time of writing there is 23,176 of us. Long may we continue. All is Love is our motto. We will not go gently.
Peace, Love and Cowbells,
Oscar
Needs More Cowbell 