Monday 4 June 2012

TWINFEST: Saturday 9th June at The Labour Club

The legendary event that is Twinfest will be taking place this weekend on its England leg and I'm getting as excited as ever. Every year since the dawn of time, Northampton, Marburg and Poitiers will select the acts they think the other towns will have most difficulty in pronouncing and then jet them off to perform as part of one huge weekend of music. Marburg's MANOPO as ever took place in March with Poitiers rounding things off later in October however it's now our turn to play host with seven separate events all over the county, and in a moment of stupidity I decided I'd review them all...

Saturday 9th June, 9pm-midnight, The Labour Club


Baptiste Pizon
Finally, a name on this year's Twinfest that actually sounds foreign (and thus, to most UK listeners, like a complete and utter weirdo!) But skip past the language barrier and Baptiste Pizon is an undiscovered gem, drawing on influences from France's traditional folk music, classic rock 'n' roll, unadulterated funk and classical grandeur to create an awesome, extravagant and, dare I say, rather sexy sound.


Pat Fish
One of Northampton's biggest musical legends, his band The Jazz Butcher Conspiracy released twelve massive studio albums over their career, reaching the UK Indie Charts on several occasions. A favourite among spoonerism fans, the pop rock magnificence that the supergroup once held is slowly morphing into a whole stripped back, acoustic, velvety new chapter of purely Patrick with his guitar proving what an incredible musician he actually is. You can expect a brand new studio album and film (yes, you heard me, an actual film) coming out real soon.


[yet]
So either I know more French than I thought or the band speak English. Probably the second. Made up of guitarist Anthony Baril and drummer Lucie Mousset (Stripes vibes anyone?) and influenced by the American grunge rock bands of the late 80s/early 90s, [yet] provide a raw mix of infectious energy and darkened melodies above expectations of a band who've only been together a year. I do hope they'll get some live sheep up on stage when they perform Tonnes.


And as if The Labour Club hadn't already got enough classic 80s rockers on the bill with Pat Fish, they've gone and grabbed Venus Fly Trap as well. Since the release of their debut album Mars in 1989 Spiral Archives owner Alex Novak's experimental rock 'n' roll band have undergone several line-up changes, existing now only as vocalist Novak and instrumentalist Andy Denton the duo are as gothic as ever, fusing rock 'n' roll rhythms with experimental electro synths in their eclectic, atmospheric, explosive darkness. Easily one of the best bands this county has ever produced.

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