Friday 27 April 2012

N'HANTS ST★R OF THE MONTH: rounding up one mega April

Yet another Alcopop signee to receive BBC Introducing recognition, Katie Malco's Sad Eyes got a spin on local radio up and down the country. Her EP with The Slow Parade has both an enjoyable spring to it as well as a mellow side that shimmers with beautiful guitars and bursts with addictive pop melodies, earning Malco a special little slot within the vast folk singer-songwriter world.


3. Ill Murk
After heading "up north" as they called it, SB.TV arrived in Northampton with a van full of pyrotechnic experts and skimpily clad women to record an explosive music video for Ill Murk's latest single Mosh. The follow up to the Woy Yoy anthem showcases Illy's nastier side, an belligerent brutal banger from the biggest hip-hop artist in Northampton by a mile.


2. New Cassettes
I know it's the middle of the Spring but no one's told New Cassettes as they call their infectiously anthemic new album Winterhead to support an energy-packed We Were Promised Jetpacks tour, flying off to countless stops across The States. Also smashing it on MTV and at South By South West, the band blast incredible summer-coated indie tunage to get you dancing like crazy with an ingenious post-punk edge making them properly phenomenal.


1. The Mobbs
A hilariously tongue in cheek trio, The Mobbs have had a mind-blowing past two months. At full throttle Joe, Jimi and Cheadle took their humongous rock 'n' roll mayhem and "Mobbed" Western Europe across Paris, Brussels and of course Northampton's German counterpart Marburg, the band's awesome retro freshness, non-stop bassy bluesy brilliance and Joe's trademark moustache giving MaNoPo a night it won't forget for some time.


They're here to rip us off, they're here to hold our hands, they're here to point and scoff and by Jove they've done just that. Last November's debut on BB Rex is a must-hear mix of humongous garage: blink-and-you-miss-it-speed belters in Gad..., Little Miss Twisted Gut and the minute and a half of mayhem Jolly Good; racing through Sweet Beatrice and You Be The Judge to explosive energy from Ghastly Business, No Belief and Old Square Eyes; even a couple of bluesy numbers in the rootin' tootin' harmonica of Better The Devil You Know and N-Town Odd Shoe Blues - lyrical craziness and tight, punchy songwriting all round.


Performing they've got the look of three prim fifties gentlemen and the sound of the sixties blended into one with a dab of 21st century too. Oh I'm not denying their a very odd band (Pull Yourself Together does weird down to a t) but both they and the audience do have the most tremendous fun. With so much potential to grow in such a short space of time, The Mobbs really are very much on the brink (in more ways than one!)

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