Record Label: Silverdoor Records

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Our Rating:

First off, buy this album! It’s only £8 – less than the price of 3 pints – it’s supported by the Strummerville Foundation, and all proceeds will be donated to Jail Guitar Doors, Billy Bragg’s organization which funds instruments and musical tutorials for prisoners. If you’re a Daily Mail reader and think that sounds like a wet lefty waste of cash, then, fuck you. Also, note that the re-offending rate of those involved is 10-15% rather than the 60% of the general prison populace. But mostly, fuck you. You get 31 tracks for yer dosh – a bargain in anyone’s language – and they’re a hugely varied bunch in style. Highlights are Billy himself’s live cut of ‘I Keep Faith’, and the sludgy glamour of Raven Beats Crow’s ‘Puncture Kit P;  and if Shock Defeat’s ‘As A Vegan I Was So Tired’ doesn’t win any awards for its sonics, it takes title of the year at a canter.  The real revelation however, is the 2 JGD graduates featured – Jonny Neesom’s swagger reminds you why you’re so disappointed Plan B’s turned into such a gonk;  and Leon Walker’s plaintive ‘Borrow Me A Fiver’ is battered and  beautiful;  he sounds like a rural sunset as directed by Shane Meadows.  Second off, BUY THIS ALBUM! (repeat to fade….)

Recommended Album:

Our Rating:

First off, buy this album! It’s only £8 – less than the price of 3 pints – it’s supported by the Strummerville Foundation, and all proceeds will be donated to Jail Guitar Doors, Billy Bragg’s organization which funds instruments and musical tutorials for prisoners. If you’re a Daily Mail reader and think that sounds like a wet lefty waste of cash, then, fuck you. Also, note that the re-offending rate of those involved is 10-15% rather than the 60% of the general prison populace. But mostly, fuck you. You get 31 tracks for yer dosh – a bargain in anyone’s language – and they’re a hugely varied bunch in style. Highlights are Billy himself’s live cut of ‘I Keep Faith’, and the sludgy glamour of Raven Beats Crow’s ‘Puncture Kit P;  and if Shock Defeat’s ‘As A Vegan I Was So Tired’ doesn’t win any awards for its sonics, it takes title of the year at a canter.  The real revelation however, is the 2 JGD graduates featured – Jonny Neesom’s swagger reminds you why you’re so disappointed Plan B’s turned into such a gonk;  and Leon Walker’s plaintive ‘Borrow Me A Fiver’ is battered and  beautiful;  he sounds like a rural sunset as directed by Shane Meadows.  Second off, BUY THIS ALBUM! (repeat to fade….)

Record Label: R*E*P*E*A*T Records

Download Album: Sweet Inertia

Our Rating:

Are The Shills being pretentious or tongue-in-cheek when they hit us with quotes like “We hate the insipid music that is the soundtrack to 21^st life. We stand against the evil that is banality”? Serious or not, the Cambridge five piece have certainly been doing their bit to kick banality in the teeth lately, catching quite a few eyes on the indie scene along the way. The title track – three minutes of sharp, crisp post-punk brings The Smiths to mind. If front man Tom Yates’ voice has been likened to Costello and Strummer, lyrics such as “Yesterday I met a girl/Now everything is wonderful/I got my end away” are deep into Morrissey country. Add a catchy tune, and you’ve got the EP’s most immediate song – and, in truth, its best. Here’s an analogy for the kids – ‘Sweet Inertia’ is Terry-Thomas in ‘School For Scoundrels’; a show-stealing British classic surrounded by likeable but slightly unmemorable character actors. Now if you’ll excuse me I have to go, my time machine’s parked on double yellow lines…