Travelling back to South Wales later today to visit family. Doubtless while I'm there I will pop into Spillers Records, which, when I was a youth, was the only oasis of alternative music in a sea of Our Price and HMV mass-market medicocrity (my first purchase at the shop: Bummed by Happy Mondays on cassette). Sadly, Spillers (incidentally, the oldest record shop in the world), is now threatened with closure as the latest round of redevelopment of the city centre into a shopping, drinking and dining 'destination', will see the shop's rent jacked up to an unaffordable level. I will be putting my name to the petition to save the shop, although, with the rise of download culture and MySpace, the future of traditional record stores everywhere must be in some doubt. This article from Adam Webb highlights how the role of the indie record store as a source of recommendations of little-known and unheard music to the hip and wannabe hip has been usurped by online social networking sites. But, the stores are fighting back, as the comments from Rough Trade's Stephen Godfrey illustrate. Of course Rough Trade, unlike Spillers, is also a record label and one of its new tactics is to offer limited edition downloads (a contradiction in terms, but something that at least brings a frisson of mystery back to the hunt for cool music). Still, there is something rather magical about walking into a record shop and chatting to the shop assistants about the latest releases, a feeling that an online store, no matter how good, cannot replicate. Good luck Spillers!
Was at the Zebra Bar in Place St.-Gery last Saturday for the live debut of Brussels electronica maven, Aschka. Recovering quickly from some early technical problems when a power surge caused the soundcard preferences on her laptop to change, Aschka (aka Debbie) delivered a really nice set of original tracks that combined elements of minimal with hints of early Warp.
Last weekend caught the return after a six-year touring absence of Sun Electric. The German electronic duo were playing the third anniversary bash of DJ Darko's Statik Dancin' night at Recyclart here in Brussels. The guys, who I was lucky enough to meet backstage, recreated the sound of albums such as Kitchen with a completely different set of equipment - Apple Mac laptops. The enjoyable set, which the band explained was something of a work in progress, included a couple of new tracks, and was well received. Hopefully some more shows and recordings will follow. Also performing live on the night was Thomas Fehlmann, the veteran Berlin-based ambient and minimal pioneer. Fresh from revatilizing the sound of The Orb on the latest album, Okie Dokie..., Fehlmann showed his mastery of the full frequency range in the course of an hour-plus set, shaking the walls and drawing a great reaction from the packed venue. Darko bookended the whole event, opening proceedings with KLF's classic 'ambient house' album, Chill Out, and ending the night with floor-filling IDM. As well as being one of Brussels' hottest DJs, Darko also runs the record label, Lucy Lee. The first release on the imprint, back in January 2005, was the Steal This EP by the ultra-cool French band, The Penelopes (who, check September 06 in their diary, appear to be managed by Jean-Marc Barr, ffs!). Last month, the Penelopes' debut album, The Arrogance of Simplicity, hit the racks, and very good it is too: an engaging mix of contemporary dance sounds, 80s goth rock and hints of Pulp, Stereolab and Nick Cave. A chic look and the patronage of the likes of fashion designer Agnes B could see The Penelopes joining the likes of Air and Daft Punk in crossing over to a hip Anglophone audience.
It seems that the media's interest in 'weird sports' such as pie-eating, air guitar and gurning shows no sign of abating. But in this multi-tasking age, surely being a champion cheese roller, or the world's best wife-carrier is no longer enough. I propose a new challenge to find the top all-round 'athlete' of the age, a 'postmodern pentathlon' testing a range of skills. Taking place over two days, the event would begin with a psychologically challenging round of 'paper scissors stone'. Next up would come the air guitar battle, followed by the pie-eating contest. Day two would kick off with a no-holds-barred 'gurn off', the whole shebang ending with a wife (or husband) carrying race, the starting positions of the contenders being determined by the points accrued in the previous rounds. First to cross the line wins.
A computer without web access? It's like a car without a steering wheel. Yet US-based firm AlphaSmart has just launched a laptop without Internet capability for parents worried about their kids' 'driving' habits. According to the press release, the Neo, dubbed "The Anti-Myspace Lap Top", is "a parent's new best friend". "Students are able to stay on task without Internet distractions or prying eyes of predators—no Myspace, no Instant Messenger, no chat rooms," the PR continues. I imagine the Neo will be fairly successful in the Bible Belt, but at what cost? Neil Young had it right when he sang: "There's crime in the city, but it's good to be free."
