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Moneytree Tour Diary: The Last Days!

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29/10/2010 By In Music

The last days of the Moneytree UK tour… Read on!

Mother’s Ruin – Bristol – 18th October 2010

After we hit Bristol we met up with friend and film maker Rob Jewitt who had just been making a documentary on graveyard preservation and nested in the Mothers Ruin which was serving mould cider, smelt awesome mmm! There was an open mic at the bar which brought a great bar room singalong atmosphere with us playing after. We started Playing to both the bottom and top room but by the end everyone came upstairs and we all had a rad time. Joe, previously from NATO came along. The night then decended into discussions on Neitsche, Campbell buying everyone at the bar a shot of absynth and a misplaced bloody high five to the face amongst various singalongs and vocal waxing from new friend Aftab. We also started fighting over a girl training to be a lawyer… sorry. Anja was missed because she was in Southampton playing with the incredible Haunted Stereo at the Joiners

We stayed at our friend Paddy’s house and ate a mean thai curry. Anja came back. Hollumi was consumed and travel resumed. We drove past loads of good charity shops in Bristol… I think Lewis and Campbell might move there.

The Bull Inn -Ilchester – 19th October 2010

Well this was probably one of the most luxurious gigs we have ever done. The pub is surounded by lush west country scenery. We played a stripped down set with Anja taking the lead by the end. Oh yeah, there was skittles and turns out its one of Campbell’s skills. Great cask ales. Anja had a quarter glass of wine – woop! We stayed in a private Cottage. Awesome. Lewis was on pashmina watch and scared some girls with his apparent passion. Pashmina passion that is. Lovely staff. They had a communal rizzla pig on the bar. Lots of love going on during and after the show. A good sleep in actual beds and off back to the big smoke.

Campbell and Jimmy Moneytree: Their bromance knows no bounds…

The Old Blue Last – London – 20th October 2010

Weds the 20th Oct saw us returning to London for a show at the old blue last, which was kindly organised for us by our lovely friends A Badge of Friendship.

It was a great opportunity for us to see some old friends and kick back a bit, and we also got to meet some cool bands as well.

First on was Wayter, whose yelpy take on grunge kicked the night off nicely. The rhythm section were really great, the kind of guys you are more than happy lending amps too.

Next up were Gin Panic, a nice rock 4-piece with a sexy stoner vibe. We were all mesmerized by the hypnotic grooves, and the guitarists sequinned pants…

Our set went down fairly well, though we did suffer a few technical setbacks. And boy did we have some hecklers, Chris from Internet Forever, Fred Kinbom and The Arthur Brown Band, Rob from the Moulettes, and also very special guest Josh Finesilver former moneytree bassist.

Next up was the square in Harlow Essex, a dedicated venue/youth club which carried the torch of the pioneering underage shows of D.C. in the 80′s. It’s also worth noting they had an amazing juke box, with minor threat and fugazi nessled in among the usuals.

Our set went nice and smoothly, and some hefty onstage monitors meant we could really hear the accordion pumping!

On after us were a band from wolverhampton called Silhouettes. Their melancholic style showed a love of radiohead, though they kept things fresh with some chunky programmed beats and harpsichord jamtracks.

Nell Gwynne – Portsmouth – 22nd October

After being defeated by Lewis Wrenshaw’s groundbreaking cheesy crumpets in London we found ourselves again on the supposed turf of the enemy. It doesn’t feel like it. Out bounds Nick the owner to greet us dread locks swinging and gold tooth gleaming. His hospitality and enthusiasm was to carry on through out. For those American readers who aren’t aware, our hometown Southampton and the location of this date Portsmouth have a long running rivalry dating back to dockers strikes that continues today in the form of occasional football (soccer) related violence.

The Nell Gwynne is an attractive old school establishment complete with roaring fire, pub cats, pub dogs and piano. We made full use of all of these. In fact, Anja left her keyboard back in the van and we just mic’d the piano up to play. Thanks to Nick for the lock in and thanks to Ethan from Sheep Bo Peep for organising the local talent. Bring back pianos in every pub. Ban tv music talent shows.

Lennon’s – Southampton – 23rd October 2010

OK, homecoming weirdness… El Racoon have pulled out it’s 10.30 and there’s no-one here. I’m beginning to think we have a curse in this town. Luckily as midnight approaches the venue is most of the way full and it is certainly full by the time we finished playing…

There were some serious technical difficulties which spawned what our label head called “a few mistakes” but the roar of the crowd was as good as we’ve had all tour after pretty much every song. Was great to see old friends and particularly good to party with label mates Lonely Joe Parker, Nato’s Matt Davis, Haunted Stereo’s Tom Solomon & Thomas Tantrum’s Dave Miatt. Bangin curry at Dhakar at 3.00 in the morning. Tommorrow’s lunch time gig is gonna hurt.

Hampton’s Oxjam Carity Gig – Southampton – 24th October 2010

13.00 loaded the stuff in very slowly

13.10 had a pint very quickly

13.20 set up quite grumpily

13.30 started playing to a room full of grown ups drinking cinnamon lattes

13.35 half the room leaves.

13.40 Remaining people seem to all have beards

13.45 Beardy guys rocking out sat down to “Seven Steps”

14.00 Start packing up

14.01 Campbell gets dragged off to do interview for the Echo

14.15 Campbell returns having promoted a song not even out yet or on the release we are touring.

14.45 go and see Jackie paper at the Art House

Good that we could do our bit for charity.

Railway – Winchester – 24th October 2010

By 17.00 we’re all feeling a little bit better. This turns out to be a tame gig but a great chance to catch up with the likes of Ben Startup (Loose Caboose, Valley Studios). Local All star group the Limes used to be drunken garage pop-rock band but now they are cinematographic improvisational 7 piece who play whilst watching grandiose and harrowing images of nature and contemporary civilisation. Although this is brilliant, we all sit there after eighteen hectic days with our mouths open as our brains frazzle. This has been the greatest tour of our lives but it ends on a strange note at the venue we have played more than any other. It all has the air of Hobbits returning to the shire to find that Saruman and Wormtong have irrevocably fucked their homes up. Perhaps this is another trilogy with a false ending.

Moneytree’s EP “The Great Indoors” is out now on Sotones!

Moneytree on Myspace

Moneytree Tour Diary: Day 10 & 11

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21/10/2010 By In Music

16th and 17th of Octobery twenteen tenty…

Hey Ho! So we hit wrexham after another night staying in Manchester, and were greeted by an all too familiar highstreet of tkmax McDonald’s and the like. Sigh…

There was a gunshop though, which was pretty convenient as we were low on ammo.

We made our way to the venue, a lovely establishment called Frenzi and were greeted by the smell of fried food and joyful disco bar muzak.

The night kicked off with a band called orient machine, a three piece of accomplished chaps playing jaunty rock in the style of weezer and nirvana with a healthy dose of off killer rhythms. It’s also worth noting that the singer Moz plays in another band called Gallops, who are really worth checking out if you havnt already.

Next on were the fag machine, a promising group of local youths playing a mixture of originals and covers.

Our set was much later than we are used to, but we all got into it and were still excited by the addition of Anja on keys and accordion. The drive home was filled with rapturous laughter as Anja told stories of her musical exploits with former band The Plonkers.

We were up early on Sunday, and set out for the south coast. We arrived in Bournemouth at dusk, after seeing a wonderful sunset over the plains of the New Forest.

We were playing a place called The Winchester, and were immediately taken back by the splendor of the interior. We subsequently discovered it was formerly a banks auction house, which explained the wonderful high ceiling and superb features.

Opening up were a band called the Jackrats, a group of punkish gentlemen playing high energy Irish folk and having a great time whilst doing it.

We played next, to a small but appreciative Sunday crowd. The stage was great and the sound acceptable. We were however plied with drinks by a used car salesmen from Essex, a nice guy though we were a little worried by his business proposition to Ollie…

Last on was The One Man Destruction Show, a very entertaining solo act with a unique edge. He strums his guitar with a drumstick in hand, hitting the snare in front of him and also pounding his suitcase with a kick pedal. It’s an astonishing sound and has to be heard, perhaps failed rehearsals with late drummers forced him to it. Anyway that’s all for now…

MT x

Moneytree Tour Diary: Day 5 & 6!

Moneytree: Day 5
13/10/2010 By In Music

Day 5: Source, Carlisle

Having been spoilt with soft things we start the day with esthers rich ipod full of folk treats. A fry up, a brief panic that we let out the cat and then back on the road to post industrial Victorian Carlisle.

We stopped off at the infamous independent west morlands service station for pies, pickled quail eggs and the long awaited sampling of old peculiar ale cheese. We arrived at the converted cotton factory now community arts centre. After the Charles of the ritz Lo fi noise and 70s sex visuals, pairs of gloves on the ground, wine, scrabble and rumored new Guinness pouring methods it was time for us to get on stage. Really fun gig. Stayed at Stuarts house. Again treated to soft things, pizza and beer. What lovely folk with an affinity for magnetic fields.

Day 6: Day off in London!

The day begun with the earliest start in tour history. Out the door by 9am! Then the long trip from Carlisle down to London in order to get paid for breaking in new venue The Nest’s new system, refuel on bio-diesel at Uptown and change drivers.

Unfortunately the venue was still a building site so back to our guitarist Jimmy’s house in Holloway to watch the disappointing England game instead. Drawing against a nation smaller than Leeds missing their best player?! Boo! Oh well, back to the north now to wig out.

Moneytree Tour Diary: Day 2, 3 and 4!

Moneytree
11/10/2010 By In Music

Moneytree kicked-off their mammoth 18-date UK tour last week to support their The Great Indoors Part III EP, the third part of their Great Indoors triptych and they’ve been busy writing us updates every few days. We have days 2, 3 and 4 for you with pictures! Check out the shenanigans below…

Day 2, Manchester

A decided step up from the band. Fuel Cafe is a mixture between Veg in London and The Troubadour. The food is vege-tastic lushness, the people are lovely and Debt Records are like Manchesters answer to Sotones (Moneytree’s record label – Ed). Many more collaborations there me thinks!

It’s definitely worth giving a mention to the  other band who played too; John McIvor sit somewhere between The Statistics and M Ward and were thoroughly nice chaps. Driving back to Liverpool now before heading to Preston tomorrow and staying just round the corner from where John Lennon first met Paul McCartney. Great to get in a bit of a rock and roll pilgrimage. Roll on Preston!

Day 3, Preston

Having been to the birth place of Beatlemania and then Factory Records, visiting the home of Europes first KFC was always going to have a different flavour. The Mad Ferret is the kind of place we like, a decent venue in a lesser known town, with less competition for peoples Saturday night. Both the crowds and other acts are commonly more diverse, open and down to earth than big city gigs. Tonight we played with an all girl accapella trio called Barbieshop, singing Mr Sandman and the like. Last on were local boys One English Pound who brought another flavour again. We will be taking them up on their offer of beers next time we’re in the north west. Real shame we didn’t get to play with Black Moth as that would have been a treat, our sympathies to their organist, we hope he can get well soon. On the plus side it was great to see Johnny 5th Wheel who in addition to being a great artist in his own right, handled the sound and promotion in customary gentlemanly and scholarly fashion.

Day 4 – Day Off!

Having found out the day before that our Glasgow show had been cancelled, our Sunday started in a relaxed fashion and ended with some much needed over indulgence.

Firstly, we treated our wonderful Liverpool hosts to a roast with as many trimmings as our budget would allow. Then we made our way to Manchester, where we spent some time with a lovely chap called Ellis of the band honeyfeet.

After a pint and stroll around the area, we made our way to the house where we would be spending the night. Nick Cave was playing as we arrived, and suddenly the relaxed afternoon was behind us and we went up a collective gear thanks to the bottle of single malt our Liverpool host Paul kindly bestowed upon us.

After some pleasant conversation everyone gathered in the kitchen for an impromptu singing, footage will follow shortly. It was also a great opportunity to hear some of Campbell’s new songs, which I’m delighted to report are very good indeed.

Anyway thanks for reading, we’ll be back soon with another update.

For more information about Moneytree, check their Myspace.

The Great Indoors Part III is out October 25th 2010

Hot Dots: Haunted Stereo

On a Pin - Lock the Doors COVER 1600x1600 copy
17/03/2010 By In Interviews, Music

Southampton six-piece, Haunted Stereo, have come a long way since signing to indie label Sotones. The gang are about to release double A side single On A Pin / Lock The Doors (out May 17th) but kindly stopped by Panic Dots HQ to tell us about the release, their dream festival line-up and what’s haunting their stereo…

1. Please introduce Haunted Stereo to Panic Dots…

We are a six-piece from Southampton and formed in late 2007. Lewis and Andy started the group from a shared desire to break away from the classic rock band format. We wanted to be as creative as possible and not place restrictions on structure and arrangements. It was very liberating at first, but we have come to realise that you need some limitations – otherwise you may never make up your mind on anything, or find a direction.

2. You seem to be a band of many! What are the pros and cons of being in a band with lots of members?

It is really great for getting people to gigs and it is fun all hanging out together. The difficulties can be matching up so many people’s diaries and getting everyone and all our equipment about.

3. Haunted Stereo is an interesting name… do you believe in ghosts? And if ghosts haunted *your* stereo, what would it sound like?

Our drummer believes in ghosts, no one else does though. If our stereo was haunted it would probably sound like Kate McGarrigle having a cup of tea with Jimi Hendrix.

4. Some of your tracks sound a little like Arcade Fire spliced with a little bit of Dirty Three – would you say this is accurate?

We did not know Dirty Three before you mentioned them. But they sound ace! Thanks for bringing them to our attention… Arcade Fire are also a very special band, but we do not really take a particular influence from them. The nice thing about being a six-piece is that you end up with such a mixture of inspiration. Lewis, for example, very much likes The Decemberists and Devotchka, Andy draws influence from more classic singer-songwriters, such as Neil Young and Anja loves composers, such as Michael Nyman, the combination of which can be quite interesting.

5. There are lots of indie bands floating about nowadays – how do Haunted Stereo stand-out from the crowd?

We hope we stand out… Collectively we bring lots of different influences to the table, as we have such varied background, and we think our songs are concoctions of that. But most importantly, we try to have fun with it all.

6. You release the double A side single “On A Pin / Lock The Doors” in May – have you any plans to release an album / EP thereafter?

This is our first single with Sotones Records, which is a co-operative Southampton-based label.  We will  probably follow this up with another single later this year and possibly get involved with a collaborative project with some of the other Sotones artists. Of course we also would not say no to the idea of an album and would love to start working on that at the end of the year.

7. If the single was the theme tune to any TV show past or present – what would you like it to be?

Andy and Lewis live and breathe Seinfeld at the moment, so maybe that could be an idea. Although we are quite happy with the way that sounds as it was and is.

8. What would be your ideal festival line-up (with you on the bill of course!)?

There are so many bands that we like, we could all easily  put on our own stages each. But on them we would definitely have to include a late night performace from Mercury Rev, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Björk, Justice and Cornelius – and of course all our friends from Sotones.

9. Who are your favourite ladies in music (past or present)?

Oh there are so many! Definitely Björk, Anne Brun, Nina Nastasia, Joni Mitchell, Josephine Foster, Beth Gibbs, Kate Bush, Kate McGarrigale, Camille, Abigail Washburn and maybe even Beyonce…

10. Finally, what’s your band wish list for 2010?

We would love to do the festival circuit and are hoping for general Sotones take-off. Their roster definitely needs to be heard!

The double A side single On A Pin / Lock The Doors is out on May 17th 2010… Keep checking Haunted Stereo’s official website for more details…

Hot Dot: Lonely Joe Parker

Lonely Joe Parker
04/03/2010 By In Interviews, Music

Lonely Joe Parker is a one-man, bike riding, folk machine. He recently released a split EP – What’s Wrong With Broken Glass – with label mate Jackie Paper a.k.a David Miatt and is now set to release the single “Shanty” taken from the aforementioned EP on Monday 8th March. (more…)