Tag Archives: Queens

BACKYARD RITUAL: Small World.

Posted on by

Small World by Backyard Ritual was released last summer, and I’m a dummy for not writing about it sooner. Backyard Ritual is the project of Ian Campbell- the main songwriter of a band I’ve written about many times and love a hell of a lot- Pop.1280. Ian reached out to me about this record, and I genuinely never thought someone from a band I love so much would ever do that! The first person (and only besides this) I told was my uncle because he too, has an impeccable taste in music and is also a fan of Pop.1280. If anyone was going to know how big of a deal this was to me, it was him! Anyway, story out the way. Time for the music.

Small World is a tense and atmospheric record. It’ll keep you on edge but at times it will calm you down. I love how dark the record and how it feels it could easily have been used in an early John Carpenter film. There’s a lot to love and take in on this record, and I really appreciate how you can take in the minimalism approach on this record. Interboro reminds me of The Vacant Lots- there’s that New York feel to the record. I’ve said it before that some bands/artists make you really pick up on where they are from. You can really put a place to the music, and Backyard Ritual do this so well. You feel like you are scoping the alleys of New York late at night when you listen to this record, and you even get that when you listen to Pop.1280 but I’m not here to compare old bands to current.

The debut full length record is dark and eerie; the best records usually are. There are Industrial and Post-Punks influences on this record, and it doesn’t feel heavy. I know I mentioned above that you immediately feel you are in NYC when you listen to this record, but you still pick up on other feelings on this record. It’s perfect for if you are feeling lost and want to be found. There’s an urgency to it, and there are also slight laid-back moments too on this record. It’s a gorgeous Electronic record if you are in need of genres to be thrown around. But honestly? It goes beyond that. It’s a solid record. A really captivating debut record as Backyard Rituals, and there are moments on this record that are truly heavenly. For me, the gentleness in the middle of the record on Circumstance shows just how brilliant Ian is as a musician. The record does start powerful and it is then toned down here, and it then picks up. You don’t know how to feel, but you take it in any way because it’s such a big record. For me, I feel you could easily put your headphones on and soak up this record whilst wandering the street late at night or on the night bus to get you wherever you need to go. It’s a late-night record, and they are usually the best ones.

There’s something about this record that makes you feel like you’ve gone back in time but also stepped foot into the future with it. In its own effortlessly slick way- Small World is timeless. There are nods to Ian’s previous projects on this record, but there is also something brand new here. Something we’ve not heard before, and it truly comes to life on songs like Amateur Journalist and Proxy. At the moment, they are my two favourite songs but we know that the more I listen, the more likely I am to find a different song to love. In short, it’s a bloody remarkable record and one I am so glad I have been made aware of. Imagine going through life, and not knowing about this record?! How boring! How unfortunate!

If you love bands like Cold Cave, Harsh Symmetry, The Vacant Lots- then you’ll fall in love with this one. In just 9 songs, Backyard Ritual have created something really long-lasting and important. There’s urgency throughout this record and there’s so much to appreciate. I don’t think I’ve even touched the surface on describing how great it is, but hopefully if you listen to it too, you’ll hear it. You’ll pick up on how vital and slick this one is.

TOMMY RAMONE

Posted on by

 

 

Punk hasn’t and will not ever die. There will never ever be a style of Music that is as influential and as great as Punk. There will never ever be a band as great and as influential as the Ramones. You can keep your Beatles, and your Led Zeppelins. I’m aware it means something to others, but to me they meant nothing. Their songs and sounds didn’t speak to me. Ramones however, they did more than just speak to me. They were the backbone to a genre of Music that I simply can’t do without, and could never imagine not listening to.

Sure you get people who claim that Punk is just noise. But they probably listened to one song and that was it. Until recently  I pretty much turned my nose up at the Sex Pistols. I thought I didn’t get it, but I sat and listened to them for a view hours and loved how obnoxious young Johnny Rotten sounded. In my heart of hearts though, it is New York that is the REAL home of Punk and I fail to see how anyone could question that.

At only 62 years old, Tommy Ramone, the last original member of the Ramones has died. He was probably the finest drummer my ears have ever been exposed to. He kept up the fast and furious pace of the signature Ramones sound. He made it look so effortless, he made you want to pick up some drumsticks and drum your itty bitty heart out.

I’ve got a copy of Leave Home on vinyl, and when I play it when I visit my family I find myself staring at the cover. Taking in their poses and how all they did was done with purpose. No doubt it was done with a lot of blood, sweat and arguments but nothing good comes easy. If you aren’t willing to struggle, then just give up. Ramones taught me to not give up. I’ve read Mickey Leigh’s book about his brother Joey (I Slept With Joey Ramone) many times to know that for me, Joey is my hero. Tommy added something to the Ramones that the others didn’t, and they knew it. He added a form of stability that kept them together. When he left the band in 78, he went on to produce a few more of their records so the real sound of the Ramones was always there. He was a brilliant drummer and producer.

If it wasn’t for the Ramones, most of the bands that I listen to and love wouldn’t have formed. They wouldn’t have wanted to make their own scene, their own noise. Ramones made it easier for me to feel alright in the skin I’m in. It’s perfectly fine to not think like others, it’s alright to have your own interests and to hang out by yourself. It’s normal to get angry at what you see happening in the world. It’s alright to just be how you are. The minute you change for someone, you stop being yourself.

62 is no age, and cancer is a bastard.

Although there are no more original members of the Ramones around, we will always have the music. That will never go, and all they stood for is around in your favourite band. When your favourite singer towers over the mic stand, that’s Joey Ramone coming through. When your favourite drummer goes nuts and just blows your mind with how fast they play, that’s their Tommy Ramone inside of them. When you see your favourite bassist yelling out “1-2-3-4” and the music kicks in, that’s their Dee Dee Ramone coming out. And when your favourite guitarist stands playing with a wealth of fury yet looking effortlessly cool, that’s their inner Johnny Ramone shining.

Ramones placed something in their fans that they will always carry round with them, and that’s why Punk won’t ever die. It just goes some place else.