BlackDog Music presents Pot Pourri. A perfect blend of up-and-coming bands featuring BEXATRON, GIANT CATERPILLAR, WHELLIGAN and THREE FROM ABOVE  

Crayon Ray- indie rock cum’60s psych pop with a bit of a C86 / TVPs vibe. Quintessentially, cooly lackadaisical but the guitars are sharp and shiny. Posted South-Psych tinged mod pop, The Who, Spencer Davis via the indie-neo-mod of Ocean Colour Scene and The Bluetones…  there’s some fine swirling organ on their recordings which gives it an occasional late 60’s garage Punk feel, neat. Igor Volk-Scintillating slow-burning indie with real pop nous.  band members have been involved with such acts as New Young Pony Club, Trans (feat. Bernard Butler), Spektrum and Heavy Heart. Leisure Tank- – Strident gal plays guitar and sings, bookish looking chap plays drums….lofi, scratchy, syncopated stuff with tunefulness in the vocal lines via Beefheartian tendencies in the music…vocally more on a B52s thru Exene from X in the vocal stylings…or Sheryl Crow even…the music is quite outre though…damn interesting… Have the look of pill popping grifters up to no good somewhere in the midwest USA circa 1950, which can only be a good thing. Benen- Greg Adsley and Alex Dickson, two Brighton based musicians and artists making ambient audio/visual soundscapes as Benen. Live guitar, voice and percussion musters forth dark, ambient, audio visual, soundscapes. ‘A Centre In You’, the new EP out April 2018 through Ceremonial Laptop. So yeah- think lengthy pieces,  moody and minimal, building up slowly, cinematic, and eventually overdriven and riddled with beautiful white noise. Mogwai could be a touchstone, or Fripp and Eno‘s collaborations. They have a fine feel for it .

Punk’s Payday Karaoke– Eagerly anticipated as it is, our Payday Punk Rock And New Wave Karaoke kicks off in it’s monthly fourth Friday of the month regular Dublin Castle slot on Friday 27th April. Featuring our bespoke punk and indie covers crack team The DPRK– AKA Democratic Punk Rock Karaoke– and their mahoosive book of fabulous songs that you can perform live on stage in London’s most iconic venue.  A pro celebrity panel will judge the best performers of the night, perhaps with a nail biting play off element just like in all them shit shows on TV, only this show ain’t shit Sherlock. Hell, there’ll be a goodie bag not to mention a shed load of kool unt kudos for the victor. Plus a free drink for every full paying punter entering the on stage fray. Featuring special guest turns and DJ Fuzz at the musical controls to keep the party going til the wee wee hours, this will be your monthly must attend event in Camden Town and certainly the only one where you can unleash your inner Johnny, Debbie, Joey or Joe. You are a fucking star, see you at the fucking bar. Those songs- Beastie Boys – Fight for your right Billy Idol – White Wedding/Blink 182 – All the small things/Blondie – Hanging on the Telephone /Blondie – One way or another/Blur – Song 2 /The Buzzcocks – Every Fallen in Love?/The Clash – I Fought the Law /The Clash – London Calling /The Clash – White Riot/The Damned – New Rose /Dead Kennedys – Holiday in Cambodia/Elastica – Connection/Electric Six – Gay Bar /The Fall – Totally Wired/Green Day – American Idiot /The Hives – Hate to say I told you so/Hole – Celebrity Skin /Iggy Pop – I wanna be your dog/Joan Jett – I Love Rock n Roll/Joy Division – Transmission/Kings of Leon – Molly’s Chambers/Nirvana – Smells Like Teen Spirit/Ramones – Blitzkrieg Bop/Ramones – Wanna be Sedated /Rancid – Ruby Soho /The Ruts – Babylon’s Burning /Sex Pistols – Anarchy in the U.K. /Sex Pistols – God Save the Queen /Sex Pistols – Pretty Vacant /Stone Roses – I wanna be adored/Talking Heads – Once in a lifetime/Talking Heads – Psycho Killer /UK Subs – CID /The Undertones – Teenage Kicks The Vapors – Turning Japanese/Weezer – Hash Pipe 

Rab 4 – fabulous psych into neo prog textures with a healthy modicum of Brit rock classique. Great band. The Adrenaline Animals – Snappy punk informed indie rock with a big over-driven guitar sound, which touches on Oasis as does the vocal at times with elements of The Vaccines and Arctic Monkeys but the aggression and kick ass attitude is all their own. Fantastic live band with a must view vim about them, filming tonight for their forthcoming foootball show specials (Ruskies allowing)- watch this space. The Lids – Stomping indie rock rooted in The Blues and Garage rock but with catchy tunes and wide commercial appeal that would sit well on an X playlist a-la Royal Blood or Catfish and the Bottlemen. The Vaulted Skies– spookily rendered electropop with loud rock guitars so quite Numan/Ultravox! – as evinced on very perky single ‘Does Anyone Else Feel Strange’… a very catchy track. ‘Once described as the lovechild of Robert Smith and Boy George, the beard-afflicted, kohl-eyed songwriter James AJ Scott put The Vaulted Skies together to satisfy his urge to fuse edgy alternative pop and rock with danceable electronica.

Rosie Wilby Is Monogamy Dead?: Rethinking Relationships in the 21st Century Bittersweet, original, honest and so funny. Rosie Wilby nails the challenges of intimacy and romance in this depressing age of Tinder. “My favourite way to learn is when a funny, clever, honest person is teaching me- that’s why I love Rosie Wilby!” Sara Pascoe In early 2013, comedian Rosie Wilby found herself at a crossroads with everything she’d ever believed about romantic relationships. When people asked, ‘who’s the love of your life?’ there was no simple answer. Did they mean her former flatmate who she’d experienced the most ecstatic, heady, yet ultimately doomed, fling with? Or did they mean the deep, lasting companionate partnerships that gave her a sense of belonging and family? Surely, most human beings need both. Mixing humour, heartache and science, Is Monogamy Dead? details Rosie’s very personal quest to find out why Western society is clinging to a concept that doesn’t work that well for some of us and is laden with ambiguous assumptions. Q and A with acclaimed author Julie Hamill and music supplied by DJ Tony Bugbear

They  Call M Max – noirish hiphop and jazx textures meet skued artpop and you’re in a groovy and engaging place redolent of early The The or maybe its even a bit of  an urban Lee Hazelwood vibe. ther Animals-Elcectic Indie rock from Melbourne that hints at the Beatles but goes off at interesting tangents taking in Country rock, film scores and contemporary pop. Interesting and engaging stuff. Static-Crisp alt-rock 3 piece with Prince like songs performed in a stripped down indie rock manner,but with undercurrents of Funk Wyte- Catchy punk pop via New Wave and the poppier end of Garage punk, actual tunes played with plenty of conviction and inventiveness.

QUADROPHENIA LIVE CLUB NIGHT feat THE ABSOLUTE KINKS– Playing 2 sets packed full of Kinks classics including Sunny Afternoon, All Day And All Of The Night, You Really Got Me, Dedicated Follower Of Fashion and Lola, our 1960’s era Kinks tribute will transport any audience back to the swinging sixties, creating the ultimate Carnabetian feel-good factor. + DJ Quadrophenia nightclub DREW STANSALL ex-THE SPECIALS/PRINCE BUSTER spinning the best in Mod, Ska, Soul, R&B + 2tone.

Punk Grunge And New New Wave Bank Holiday Special ALL DAYER The Shakespearos– Featuring members of The Vapours and Beautiful People these guys perform a blistering ultra high octane set packed to the gills with every punk rock classic you could possibly hope to hear. Playing a long set to finish off today’s Bank Holiday happening, it’s a party you can’t possibly miss. Spring has sprung, pogo dancing ahoy. The Time Sellers– Nicely puffed up wih plenty of tood, these Northern Monkey Indie kings outta Sheff are rocking a feverous warped pop appeal all their own. Reverend and the Makers style big chorus pointy finger pop, damn fine. Lord Numb- Iggy, Bowie,Bauhaus and Wire get given a hard rock guitar kicking tempered with some cutting electronica and rumblesome dubby drum and bass workouts. Rock And Roll is not only alive but thriving in the hands of discerning artists coz Numb is The Nuts. The Limerence– emotive electro-acoustic punky psych pop with a nod to alterno rock in the Muse ballpark. Lady Grey And The Earls– with some Siouxsie Sue reverberations and a bit of Garbage too, the post punk quotient is high plus elements of more contemporary alternative rock such as Foo Fighters, Muse, Oasis, Skunk Anansie.  Other acts from 2pm, DJs til 2am  

The Bowie Contingent– From the sci-fi, rock androgyny of Ziggy Stardust to the slick, suave sophistication of a rock aristocrat, Bowie pushed boundaries and excited and amazed audiences around the world. The Bowie Contingent, with their electrifying tribute show, follow Bowie’s lead. The hits are all there, sometimes in original, unlikely arrangements. Album tracks, rarely played live by Bowie himself, also ensure that The Bowie Contingent stand out as a tribute act with a difference. Their show isn’t about costumes and impersonation…they just focus on playing some of the most important, innovative music of the last 50 years. The Wealden – Employing a slick disco riddim and getting a bit of blue eyed funk on the case a la early Japan, Power Station, INXS..Also Prince. Taut, tight, edgy pop with a harmonic vocal style somewhere between Bowie and Robert Palmer. Vocally rather Billy McKenzie actually. A crisp duo with some alluring material. ‘Art-Rock / Avant’.

Lion O. King.-Oddball but very engaging electro-pop with a pretty lush production though it’s all done acoustically in a live setting, reminds of Beck at times, doesn’t really sound particularily like him, just that It’s a bit experimental and wayward but has big hooks and general pop nouse, fine work Project Culture-.Lo-fi indie pop a pretty stripped down sound but they’ve  decent tunes which remind of The Smiths or a de-cluttered Arcade Fire or  less frenetic Libertines. Whitewave-Soulful and eminantely hooky indie pop Franz Ferdinand-esque pop spikiness with late period beatles and Toploader, good of it’s kind have tunes Raindogs- Ramshackle but promising indie rock n roll with a certain rough hewn charm, sounds like a fledgling Oasis

The Dirty Blonds-Ace Brit psychedelic pop, equally influenced by the late 80’s manc scene Happy Mondays and Stone Roses as late 60’s psych and Exile On Main Street era Stones, late period Beatles also , so one tracks a nice slice of slightly whimsical psychedelia thru pre-Pills n Thrills Mondays. The Reverse Family- Wonderfully wonky exponents of skued post punk with a cheeky glam rock/kitsch pop element that works a treat. Currently on a singles issuing jag so look out fo some great tunes care of their Nub Records’ portals and snaffle em up)  Pere Ubu meets Mud, which is a beautiful place to be. . Pastis-Finish 60’s tinged indie pop, wonderfully melodic, intricately hooky, bubbly tunes which reference The Beatles, Kinks and The Turtles, lovely stuff.

Hunderground– Legends of central European rock, these Hungarian dudes have a selection of choice covers, plus their own Hungarian rock songs, all of which is excellently performed, impassioned stuff, utterly rousing and party central whether you be Hun or otherwise…..Stones/Zep/Zappa/Hendrix…..

The Bermondsey Joyriders– At long last Gary Lammin’s (Cock Sparrer/Little Roosters) punky garage rhythmn n blues trio come to The Dublin..“Anyone looking for a crash course in punk spirit should look no further” – Classic Rock “Loud, fast, cheekily confrontational and distinctly British. See ‘em at all costs” – Hugh Gulland, Vive Le Rock“A unique spin on punk blues” – Charles Shaar Murray“Extraordinary slide guitar … witty and original vocals” – Carol Clerk, Classic Rock. Blending a love of bottleneck Delta blues with a solid background in the London punk scene, but with their fingers on the pulse of contemporary society, The Bermondsey Joyriders are a band as accomplished as they are inventive. They have captured the imagination of crowds and critics alike with their blend of ’77 punk power, skillful playing, soulful slide blues, and razor-sharp social commentary, delivered with a distinctly British wit.Each a consummate player in their own right, frontman Gary Lammin is augmented magnificently by bassist Martin Stacey (Chelsea), and drummer Chris Musto (Johnny Thunders, Joe Strummer, Glen Matlock and The Philistines)  Darrell Bath- is a remarkably talented guitarist who can also deliver a song in a truly beautiful Stonesy cum Thunders poetic rock romantique manner. Has swung the axe for Dave Kusworth, Ian Hunter and The Vibrators amongst many others. Nuffin-  On 3rd August 1977, Nuffin’ turned up at the legendary Roxy Club to play ‘Audition Night’, only to find that Janet Street-Porter and a TV crew had taken over. Luckily, they were looking for an ‘undiscovered’ band as a counterpoint to all of the hype around at the time. And so a brief snap-shot of the the four Caterham teenagers, strutting their stuff and sharing their take on life, was captured for posterity. Anabollic Steroids– Raucous old school punk with a hefty dose of charm in it’s studied chaos and excellent dual vocal approach- part comedic punk a la Jilted John, part Machine Gun Etiquette era Damned, part UK Subs and remnants of Dolls/Pistols rock and roll punkerama. Addictive Philosophy– punk ska on a political tip…Culture Shock, The Clash and other emanations from what got called Festie Crustie ska punk in the 1990s “In the band’s typical style it isn’t backward in coming forward with their views, a forthright statement set to bubbling melody bound to get you up and dancing even as they take you down with their words” – Louder Than War

The Love Detectives-Punchy guitar pop deftly executed by “seasoned” players, there’s a Squeeze feel at times, also references Dylan, Lou Reed and even E.L.O. Great tunes played with conviction. Bella Barton – Sassy young bohemian singer songwriter with a nice relaxed vibe and a neat hint of out thereness.. She has a fabulous tone to her voice and a great delivery with it. The songs are drifting modal affairs with jazzy stoned vibes, dolorous and cool – think of Tracey Thorn or an Anglo and indie Rickie Lee Jones. From the Brit school too, proving they’re not all X Factory shaped.  Sam Gifford and The Innocent- Indie pop with a definite nod to Mumford and Sons but also Coldplay and Springsteen,  with intricate and compelling arrangements and they’ve superior, uplifting tunes.

Ryse-3 piece rocking a gnarly alt rock built on taut riffology a la Royal Blood but decidely less ‘rawk’- part way between them and early Bloc Party and a bit of Muse for sure. Decent. Grace Solero- picture PJ Harvey getting rocknroll fury and blonde ambition with major grunge lunging and post Hole righteous raucous rocking out. The lovely Ms Solero and her equally lovely punking perfecto band make a right royal noise.MeMe Detroit– Female fronted grunge rock. A distillation of Nirvana and early P.J Harvey via Blondie, sharp incisive tunes and a convincing lead vocal The Caterpillars- Toe tappin’ rockabilly from italy, fired up covers of Elvis Presley, Little Richard and Stray Cats. plus they’re own tunes.

Starsha Lee- ex Daisy Chainsaw/Dogbones main player Crispin gathers forth his remarkable cheekbones and even more remarkable paint stripper via Ron Asheton guitar sound with mad for it artnik vocalist Sophia Martins upfront disrobing, disclaimng, dissenting from the moral strictures. All good lean fun, and no flab in this band, every body hits it to the max. Essential. The Blue Carpet Band– Punk n roll, or rather punk rock and roll- bit of Godfathers, Hot Rods, Rezillos, early Damned- and a bit of that Jim Jones schtick.. they deffo like a 12 Bar punked to fuck. Nice to see some youthful punkers, no wonder these guys are turning heads wherever they go, heads old and young, respeck. Kajiki Volt-Post punk through a surf guitar- garage punk lens, think a more frenetic  Gun Club via Magazine,shades of Gallon Drunk and  the sorely missed Penthouse too. great tunes interesting arrangements, played with conviction. Fab GYB – Punk rock and then some, fierce and fast in a GBH cum Discharge manner. DJs We Got Killers spin punk, reggae, soul exotica and electronic bangers til 2am

Lover– beefy soul inflected pop rock with a great vocal, techy ’80s crossover sound, big guitars, dance/hiphop textures and a chant along chorus perfect for radio. Blondie/Cardigans/Prince…  ‘A cross between the song you can’t get out of your head, and something you’ve never heard before but are desperate to hear again, Lover will stimulate your aural senses with music from the depths of dark and twisted cognition. You’ll find everything was grey before discovering this band, now grey is blue and lines are blurred – yet you’ll witness more of the world than you ever deemed possible. You’ve been offered a window into the unknown, are you ready to jump?’ Not many, we love Lover. ‘Lots Holloway is a vivid pop newcomer, someone whose sheer energy helps her stand out from the crowd. Born in a small Cornish town, she performs bubbling pop music laden with colour, which gets under your skin with a message of pure joy in the everyday is something everyone can relate to’ CLASH Magazine. Yep we concur,  soaring, uplifting pop with huge hooks, damn good. Cats On The Beach– Taking the darker but more organic end of The Cure, getting some baroque pop elements on board care of some fabulous violin playing and harnassing a little Radiohead noir too. Piss In The Wind – Our favourite band around 10 years ago, whose intense, edgy, post punk cum avant indie cum rocknroll romantique shoulda wowed more people at the time…well they’re back so maybe now will be Piss In The Wind’s moment. Acidic pop beauty.

Punk N Grunge North N South- Our friends in The North return with another South and North all day alternofest featuring Southern Skies, Void, Ruby And The Knights , Gaylips, Finished 52,  Mad Foxes and Nano

The Von-Trio from Florida U.S.A playing highly accomplished and dynamic electro infused indie rock with an undertow of Prog, there’s moments of Muse-like intensity but it’s tempered by a pop nouse that puts ’em somewhere between Queen and the aforementioned Devonian demigods. Reno & Rome– Futuristic synth pop of a very commercial kind and catchy too, with elements of A.O.R rock a la Fleetwood Mac, but with a clipped 1980’s pop production, full of promise. The Fragments- Righteous bottle neck guitar and a lived in troubadour vocal. RNR scally vibes here like The Real People or even The La’s if they’d been rejigged as a Credence Clearwater Revival type experience. Or Cast more like.  Italian rockers with a Springsteen goes Paisly Underground vibe. They can play and they can rock- great lead guitar. Temple Of Time– Breton shirts, skinny jeans, jaunty synth lines, summery sunshine powerpop, harmonies aplenty…. XTC at their fluffiest meets something uber pop and American such as whoever it was did the ‘Friends’ theme tune. No prizes. No doubting the songwriting nous and skillful arrangements, playing and especially harmonizing..they might be They Might Be Giants….

Elijah Miller headlines his debut London show following on from his latest single release, Paris at the start of 2018. Yearning commercial pop, nicely melodic with influences ranging from K.O.L to Bowie, and elements of Lloyd Cole. Joining him on the billing are ‘Old Swing’ and ‘Coby Tom’. It’s promising to be a cracking night so get your tickets before they’re gone. £5 in advance from https://elijahmiller.eventbrite.co.uk or £7 on the door.

Radio Rage – Tribute to Rage Against The Machine- Fuck you I won’t do what you tell me, well, I reckon they will play that song if you ask nicely, not to mention all the other gnarly punk metal and hiphop informed fiery fare of yer actual RATM. And tonite Radio Rage meets TADEO MAN, singer and founder of United Rage so two exceptional concerts in one! Ghost Note City-Muscular yet melodic prog tinged alt rock, recalls Bring me The Horizon in places, decent hooky tunes

The Wilde-Adrenalin fuelled hard rock with a nod to AC/DC and Zep, tight riffology and huge hooks all played with bags of conviction Metril- schlock metal and filthy with it, supercool hard rock utterly living the RNR dream, I don’t think these boys do Dry January ya get me, and the lyrics are in French which somehow just underlines it’s raw, raucous nasty ass status.

Sonars-Anglo-Italian duo playing nu-psychedelic shoegaze  pop, rendered on Analogue Keys, drum pads guitar and Loop pedals, Tame Impala could be an influence but there’s a thread of mid 70’s prog running through the tunes too, interesting and compelling Planet- Australian band, shimmering brit-pop inspired psychedelic Indie, sounds like the Verve had they been on The Flying Nun Label (Chills etc). Great stuff Quintessenz-Indie pop from switzerland intricately melodic, there’s an undercurrent of prog, but it’s not overpowering, they’ve decent hooks too, quite a unique sound

Chernobyl Sunshine Club-Folk infused indie rock with a cinemascopic, beautifully realized sound, reminds of Last Of The Shadow Puppets in places, cerebral and compelling stuff with decent tunes to hold the attention Suns Up- Emo-pop with a highly polished commercial sheen and such a crisp production it’s oven ready for Radio 1,  a kind of Weezer up-date maybe, cool. Emily Cavanagh– is an independent artist, signed to a small publishing deal in Los Angeles, who has recently played a run of successful tours in Ireland, with multi-platinum selling Irish singer/songwriter, Paddy Casey. Her songs have been featured in commercial and trailer work, notably in 2017 in Woody Harrelson‘s trailer for the Fox Searchlight Film “Wilson.” She is a featured lyricist for the band Neeskens, based in Paris.

I, The Lion–  3 piece post-punk trio from Cheltenham featuring heavy progressive bass lines, twisting guitar riffs, hard hitting drums and melodic harmonious vocals. Think  Biffy Clyro via At The Drive In. Broads-  A ghostly female vocal and a male vocal parrying with her makes for a nice dynamic, a bit of Portishead and an equally spectral synth pop – less pop more synth gothic, icy and dark.. Broads are a Norwich-based 2-piece who merge programmed electronics, synth drones and gradually-unfolding melody into a delicate, spacious wall of sound. Their fourth full-length album ‘Field Theory’ is due out on Humm Recordings on February 16.  Mogwai, Boards of Canada and My Bloody Valentine all resonate within.  The Fire Harvest – deep folk informed alt rock indebted to Nick Cave but with a pleasing enough, engaging feel. Slowcore and post punk as evinced on The Fire Harvest’s 2016 album ‘Singing, Dancing, Drinking’ is at once nostalgic and forward-thinking, delicate and weighty. CCCV-Dark but hooky synth driven indie, echoes of early New Order and Cabaret Voltaire also Depeche Mode

Altered Bridge- Myles Kennedy and all things Alter Bridge perfectly tributed unto her. Swooning rock chciks ahoy! Harden Your Hearts- Gritty but anthemic alt rock, sorta Biffy Clyro via Coldplay with a soupcon of Foo Fighters, quality playing and the tunes stand up too, fine work.

‘Rock and Roll is Life’ is the new novel from the country’s leading man of letters, D. J. Taylor.Tonight in conversation with writer and DC RNR Book Club hostess Julie Hamill  as DJ Tony Bugbear provides the aural XTC….. You may remember the Helium Kids. Back in their late ’60s and early ’70s heyday they appeared on Top of the Tops on 27 separate occasions, released five Billboard-certified platinum albums, played sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden and were nearly, but not quite, as big as the Beatles and the Stones. Three decades later, in the big house on the outskirts of Norwich, Nick Du Pont is looking back on the rollercoaster years he spent as their publicist in a world of licensed excess and lurking tragedy. What follows is not only the story of a rock band at a formative time in musical history, when America was opening up to English music and huge amounts of money and self-gratification were there for the taking. For the tale is also Nick’s – the life and times of a war-baby born in a Norwich council house, the son of an absconding GI, whose career is a search for some of the advantages that his birth denied him. It is at once a worm’s eye of British pop music’s golden age and a bittersweet personal journey, with cameo appearances from everyone from Elvis and Her Majesty the Queen Mother to Andy Warhol. ‘Rock and Roll is Life’ is a vastly entertaining, picaresque and touching novel inspired by the excess and trajectories of the great ’60s and ’70s supergroups, and of the tales brought back from the front line by a very special breed of Englishmen who made it big in the States as the alchemists and enablers, as well as the old making way for the new in the era of the baby boomers. At its heart is one man’s adventure, and the poignancy of the special relationships that dominate his life. D.J. Taylor’s novels include English Settlement (1996), which won a Grinzane Cavour Prize, Trespass (1998) and Derby Day (2011), both long-listed for the Man Booker Prize, Kept: A Victorian Mystery(2006), a Publishers Weekly book of the year, and The Windsor Faction (2013), joint winner of the Sidewise Award for Alternate History. He has also written several works of non-fiction, including Orwell: The Life, winner of the 2003 Whitbread Prize for Biography and, most recently, The Prose Factory: Literary Life in England Since 1918 (2016). He lives in Norwich with his wife, the novelist Rachel Hore, and their three sons.

Friends of Gavin were a great Band in the 1980s, who supported the likes of R.E.M., Ian Dury, The Damned, Bo Diddly, Boomtown Rats, The Alarm and so many more as well as headlining in their own right at many famous venues past and present. This will be one ‘more’ gig for Friends of Gavin, and all proceeds from the night will go to Specialized for Teenage Cancer Trust and the Youth Music Foundation. The great Spizz Energi will be joining us on stage for a rendition of Where’s Captain Kirk as well, so a night not to be missed for so many reasons. The Otherness-“Argentina is a country where people really believe in rock n roll. Watching The Otherness live you can see this – they are on the tightrope between The Beatles in Hamburg and the Ramones first album – that purity of vision and they are damned good at it. The Otherness are touring UK with a fantastic feedback from the young rock and roll, pop and soul British audiences all over the country.”(John Robb, “Louder Than War”, Manchester) Authentic, quality, passionate rock, these guys really mean it.”(Chris Hawkins, presenter BBC Radio 6 Music) Black Swan Event- late 60’s brit acid pop, the Creation could be an influence, also the kinks, especially the orservational lyricism echoeing Ray Davis. Fab stuff

The Skalectrics– The welcome return of suberb 7 piece SKA covers act all yer 2 tone faves from Specials, Selecter Madness etc, played with verve and panache.

Peter Kasen– Kasen’s voice recalls the likes of Conor Oberst, with a bit of an edge and a dose of Pop sensibility. “Co-Pilot,” showcases the intellect of Kasen’s lyrics, and the depth of his songwriting abilities. His tightly focused songwriting path has brought him to stages across the world, garnering a fanbase of truly devoted fans and listeners in his native USA, and a developing one right her in Yoorp. Kasen wears his heart on his sleeve, with “Co-Pilot,” telling a very deep and personal story. Exceedingly interesting as it goes, feeling a bit Nick Drake in places instrumentation wise, but he does have a pretty unique voice. Something of Elliot Smith n’all, quite compelling actually. Ridiculous– Shimmering psych pop of a sunny disposition, think XTC via Lightning Seeds, and big fave raves for Bugbear back in the as they say day…and they’re back! Huzzah! The Band featured then as now drummer extraordinaire Jon Moss after Culture Club split 1st time round, he’s back in the band alongside songsmith Sebastian Wocker, vocals/guitar (Yeah / Hair / Michel Van Dyke) Erran Baron-Cohen: vocals/keys/trumpet (composer of film music for Borat / Bruno / The Infidel and brother natch of Sascha) And Pete Noone : bass/vocals (Roger Daltrey / Roger Taylor, Mick Ronson). All star cast, all star audience. Probably. Get yer selfie sticks out.

Sonic Black Holes-Hypnotic yet Heavy psychedelic post rock from germany sounds a bit like a mash up of Explosions In The Sky and Mogwai at their most intense.The Biggest Thing Since Powdered Milk- old school countercultural tripadelic hard hitting three piece…hairy guys with a rock out groovin’ sound via cosmic considerations. Zappa, Edgar Broughton, MC5, Hendrix….killer guitar solos,great stuff. The Gorgons- Two piece dealing visceral garage punk, like a particularily unhinged Cramps via The Oblivions, also the Monks spring to mind, great stuff.

The Travelling Wilburys -Celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Traveling Wilburys… If you’re looking for a tribute band with a difference, who play an incredible variety of songs by some of rock’s greatest legends, then you’ve just struck gold. The Trembling Wilburys pay perfect homage to the Traveling Wilburys, the amazing supergroup formed in 1988 by George Harrison, Roy Orbison, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan and the late great Tom Petty with hits including “Handle With Care”, “End Of The Line” & “She’s My Baby” as well as their incredible solo catalogues, plus Beatles & ELO songs. S o expect a wealth of brilliant material. Formed 30 years ago in 1988, the original Wilburys never played live as Roy Orbison passed away shortly after the release of their debut album “Volume 1”, but luckily the Tremblers bring you their version of the “show that never was” with an incredibly uplifting two hours of fantastic music. In addition the band features two of the closest look-&-sound-alikes of any tribute act, with GLEN KNOWLER being the living double of George Harrison, while DAVE COLLISON perfectly captures Roy Orbison’s unique vocal range and look. Absolutely NO WIGS in this band, folks! The line-up also features incredible lead guitarist DZAL MARTIN also renowned for his work with Terry Reid, The Equals, No Dice, Box of Frogs & many others, while drummer & manager DAVE STARK is also a well-known music industry insider who has some great stories of meeting George Harrison & all the Beatles along with Roy Orbison & Jeff Lynne. In addition the band was also officially endorsed & supported by Dave’s good friend the late Barbara Orbison, widow of Roy. FULL TWO-HOUR SHOW!!

Unknown Pleasures- Premier Joy Division tribute band and as far as we know the oldest one at that…it’s twenty years since they first performed for Bugbear! The gothique Warsaw into early JD side of things articularly featured but expect it all… long set….Stiff Kittentastic. Guns of the Seneca-Compelling  post-rock via prog,  nice Gilmour-esque guitar and they’re all great players and expert at the ‘ol light n shade dynamic. . Sorta Porcupine Tree via explosions in the sky prog and post rock with a dash of something a bit more folky and reflective. Vs. Robots-spacey synth sounds and quirky proggish passages that recall Calvert era Hawkwind and melancholic Rush meets Muse alt rock. Quite adventurous and definitely experiememting with the forms but commercial all the same.

The Annual Midsummer Spizz Party starring Spizz Energi is now on it’s what 6th, 7th, 8th year? We’re not sure, but we do know it’s a punky reggae party you can’t be missing whether you be a equinoxually inclined pagan party animal, a Scifi punky pop enthusiast or just someone who knows a good night out when he or she sees one. Feel the heat, feel the fun. Where’s Captain Kirk? Right here, beam up to Planet Bugbear and get your phazers set to stun. Also featuring this time around. A lot cheaper than the Isle of White fest & you don’t need a tent! Raffles, Quiz, acoustic early start then full on SpizzOut.

Football Spesh- Come On Engerland! Starring The Adrenaline Animals- (Ruskies allowing)- watch this space. The Adrenaline Animals – Snappy punk informed indie rock with a big over-driven guitar sound, which touches on Oasis as does the vocal at times with elements of The Vaccines and Arctic Monkeys but the aggression and kick ass attitude is all their own. Fantastic live band with a must view vim about them.  66 limited tickets available at a tenner for all three fixtures, get on the link below. As part of our Grunge Vs Punk all dayer. Times TBA.

Football Spesh- Come On Engerland! Starring The Adrenaline Animals- (Ruskies allowing)- watch this space. The Funky Dawgz- big brass frontline , all good players who can rip up a solo, with a groovin’ riddim section plus plenty of high jinks MCing and mass vocalizing, utta the U.S , and over here to sass up our Soccer…, great stuff – “Our sound is akin to the streets of New Orleans with a rock, hip hop, and R&B flair. With our high energy horns” The Adrenaline Animals – Snappy punk informed indie rock with a big over-driven guitar sound, which touches on Oasis as does the vocal at times with elements of The Vaccines and Arctic Monkeys but the aggression and kick ass attitude is all their own. Fantastic live band with a must view vim about them. 66 limited tickets available at a tenner for all three fixtures, get on the link below. 

Pussycat & The Dirty Johnsons–  Puss Johnson up front, taunting the crowd into a participatory cat scratch fever moshpit as the solid as fook Jake and Ant lay down the rawest, wranglingest, wriggling rocknroll imaginable.  For fans of The Stooges, The Cramps, Sex Pistols and Bikini Kill for sure but so much diverse input to enjoy here and they always sound just like their good selves. Excitement and fun assured. Morgellons – Elements of Joy Division, Killing Joke and Red Lorry Yellow Lorry…strident, stark, raw punky post punk with the prowling, portentous sound of 1979/80 brought smack up to date by these excellent Flicknife Records recording artistes. The Blunders– Politically charged attitude to the fore telling us what for with a semi narrated not exactly rap but kinda rap delivery and some insistent punky but tight and disciplined grooves..a bit Clash like but more like an organic deconstructed Gang Of  4 meets Alabama 3 or something. Lemmy and co as Motorhead also reverberate a lot here, as do Killing Joke, Ministry and Hawkwind. The Sesame Buns- Embracing Punk, Soul, Folk, Garage, Rock n’ Roll,  The Buns’ message whilst whipping out the staff of life is Rock n’ Roll, Sex / Foodporn and Punk. Ferociously rendered rock and bastard roll. Eat it.

John Rossall is a founding member of The Glitterband, the silver clad powerhouse behind the disgraced one we don’t need to bother with anymore…it’s all about these guys. This is John Rossall’s glorious Glitterband…So prepare yourself for an uninhibited,  joyous journey through their amazing run of superb 1970s defining hit singles. And what a primal, mould breaking, magnificent pop noise they made in their 1970s heyday…check the record… Rock And Roll Part 2, I love You Love, Angel Face, Hello Hello I’m Back Again, Just For You…so many more!…loads of ace numbers…so here’s a reet treat for you all. The Glitterband playing all them fabulous numbers again, book early! Let’s Get Together Again… The Priscillas- long standing all girl trash n garage/punk n roll London institution with proper ballsy tood to the fore. Kerrang said it adroitly – ‘The Cramps, The Shangri Las and New York Dolls all rolled into one’…A perfect start to a brilliant party. Spitting Feathers- how do you fancy hearing a wealth of crazy poptabulous  covers all done in a cranked up crafted punk rock style played by some people either old enough to know better or so very young they know its cool. Its cool.  DJs We Got Killers- The Glitterbeat, Northern Soul, punk classics, ’60s shimmy, exotica and beats to die for. Party ignition assured.

Terry Edwards is the multi instrumentalist renaissance man of head spinning multiple musical machinations…starting in pithy punk funk indie peasants The Higsons back in the early 1980s thru Gallon Drunk, Tony Visconti’s Holy Holy,  Madness, PJ Harvey, Lydia Lunch, The New Jazz Experience, Lydia Lunch, The Scapegoats and really, really tooooo many more to mention! “One Step Beyond” isn’t the best album in the world it’s not even the best album by Madness. It is, however, a great record and an exceptional debut album -fully formed despite half the band still being in their teens and it remains as exhilarating, inspiring and as much fun as when people first heard it nearly 30 years ago. Through extensive interviews with the band, as well as producers Clive Langer & Alan Winstanley, Terry Edwards tells the inside story of how Madness rose to be the most successful singles band of the 1980s in the UK charts. Terry faces the white hot Q and A of our resident scribe Ms Julie Hamill tonight alongside Mark ‘Bedders’ Bedford from yer actual Madness with bespoke musical illustrations care of DJ Tony Bugbear.

The Joneses The eagerly anticipated return of this fantastic tribute to The Smiths . Expect classics from The Smiths back catalogue as well as a number of deep cuts as they recreate a Smiths live show like no-one else can Radio Generation– .Rad Gen are our good friend Lord Numb in a new new wave, post punk and punk rock conceptualizing tribute scenario…the setlist will be a dream coz the guy has taste…there’ll be some Bowie I’d warrant…what else? Wait and see..it’ll be tremendous. Forget The Down-London band doing a feisty alt rock with a baggy swagger but a hard rocking riff monster edge. Dynamic stuff. Like Oasis go rawk

Forget The Down-London band doing a feisty alt rock with a baggy swagger but a hard rocking riff monster edge. Dynamic stuff. Like Oasis go rawk The Froot- Psychedlicists supreme, ripe with youthful countercultural cool. The pithy taste of Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, the sweet tang of Arthur Lee’s Love and the refreshing juicy hit of The Allah Las. Great.  The Brazen-  in thrall to the epic end of The Verve and The Music and all that nicely narco enabling Northern monkey widesceen stuff….there’s some genuine quality to the performance, big emoting vocals, strings tweaking those emotions, considered playing and ace arrangements. Elbow meets Oasis at their more serious with a choirester quality to the vocal up front. Good work.

Rock And Roll Book Club – Smashing It Up. A Decade of Chaos With The Damned By Kieron Tyler – The Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned were the originators of British punk rock, forming a three-pronged attack on a self-satisfied rock elite and were the inspiration to a new generation of music fans: the fans who would define the future. Forming in 1976, The Damned went on to be the first punk band from the UK to put out a single – New Rose in 1976, an album – Damned Damned Damned in 1977, and the first British punk act to tour the US.  They went on to have 9 singles feature on the UK Top 40 singles chart (so far!)…. Putting The Dammed in context for the first time as one of the UK’s great rock bands, Smashing It Up is the history of this important band and their original members. Packed with tales of the band’s encounters with other key musical figures of the time, Smashing It Up also investigates their permanently strained relationship with the wider music business in general. Julie Hamill and Tony Gleed host this DC RNR Book Club spesh with the usual kick ass Q and A with Kieron Tyler plus bespoke roots, shoots and fruits Damned good soundtrack topping and tailing the experience. Strawberries all round… Drawing on interviews with the original band members, their friends, associates and eye witnesses on their chaotic journey, Smashing It Up is the definitive history of The Damned, putting the record straight once and for all placing them as pivotal ground breakers of punk rock. About the author: Keiron Tyler writes for Mojo and The Arts Desk, and has written for The Independent, The Guardian, Q, Billboard and Music Week. He is a lifelong fan of The Damned.

Julie Hamill of 15 Minutes With You fame interrogates the legend that is Kevin Cummins on his wonderful new Mozzer book. Get the supercheap earlybird tickets early and dont miss out on this exclusive day of publication book signing, Q and A and Smiths/Morrissey discoteque experience. Morrissey: Alone and Palely Loitering is a photographic retrospective of Morrissey which chronicle Morrissey’s world as he emerged from The Smiths and established himself as a solo artist. With a backdrop of some of these ace photos on show as Kevin talks about the subject.

No Blinkers– Italians who have located the romance in the post punk and new wave music of the British Isles and perform an array of songs from that era with incredible power and passion, and a twist of their very own band style. So think Cure, Killing Joke, Banshees and so on. A fabulous night out if you dig your late ’70s and early ’80s noir pop gems. The Small Wonders– so what better than to pair them up with our very own twisted punky covers coves The Small Wonders? Joy Division , Buzzcocks , Clash , and a bit more up to date with the likes of Kaiser Chiefs . Played the Castle quite a lot in the 1990s these guys when we were young, dumb and full of it. Better compare set lists guys…