Gig Review: Great Cynics Album Release Show with Happy Accidents and Fresh at Urban Bar 13/4/17

On the 24th of March London punks Great Cynics released their fourth album POSI, on Specialist Subject Records. To celebrate this release the band put on two record release shows at the intimate Urban Bar in Whitechapel. The first night featured support from Happy Accidents and Fresh and on the second night they were supported by Austeros and Nervus. Emma and I went to the first night of fun - here's what happened.

First up were a band we first saw at the Happy Accidents album launch show last July, also at Urban Bar, London's Fresh. The three piece, fronted by the brilliant Kathryn Wood, are slowly building themselves a reputation as one the DIY scene's best up and coming band. Despite not really knowing any of the songs, I thoroughly enjoyed their set. The whole band clearly love playing live, the entire time that they were on stage they had the biggest smiles on their faces. This made me smile - I love watching a band who clearly love what they do and don't just try and be cool dudes and nonchalant about it. I just wish I knew more of the songs so I could have sung along. Fresh are a fantastic new band who certainly deserve your attention.

Next up were Happy Accidents, another young band on a very big upward trajectory. Since the release of last year's debut album, You Might Be Right, Phoebe, Rich and Neil have cemented themselves as one of the best bands in London. They are also one of the most charming bands I've ever seen live. Like Fresh, it's clear that Happy Accidents are happiest when they are performing on stage. Phoebe on drums in particular is in her zone behind the kit. Watching her bop her head and sing-a-long with the songs, even the sections where she doesn't have vocal parts, just shows how much she is enjoying herself. One particular highlight of the set was when they were joined on stage by Danny Lester and he helped out with the trumpet part of the song Facts and Figures - that was a nice surprise. The set mostly featured songs from You Might Be Right but there was a run out for older track Autopilot which went down a storm with the crowd at Urban Bar. Happy Accidents are another band who are fantastic and definitely need your attention.

Before Great Cynics took to the stage I thought about the bands that Giles had selected to play both nights. Three of the four bands booked were young London bands and the other were label mates on Specialist Subject. I suspect that all of these up and coming acts looked up to and were fans of Great Cynics before they began their bands. It's great to see Great Cynics, who at this point are veterans of the UK punk scene, give some rub to the younger bands coming through. It's kind of like Giles is a big brother to these guys and girls now.

On with the show. Tonight would be my first time seeing Great Cynics since long time bass player Iona left the band. Since then Giles and Bob have added Oli on bass and a new back-up vocalist and keyboard player, Gillie. After a bit of a onstage chat between Bob and Giles about getting hit by a beer glass whilst supporting the Aquabats and getting mugged by someone with an Operation Ivy Patch outside the Electric Ballroom, the band started out with Only Memories, the second song from POSI. Hearing this song live, and the rest of the songs they played from POSI, only made me love and appreciate the new album even more. I guess that's the point of an album launch show so that's a job well done. The problem with having a new line-up for a band that now has a fairly extensive list of songs to play is that it takes time for everyone to learn them. This obviously restricted the songs that the band could play but it didn't stop them playing plenty of fan favourites. Highlights included Want You Around - Chunky, Lost In You, Nightcaps and, set closer, Twenty Five - all of which got great reactions and at one point a crowd surfer. Great Cynics are another band the just exude charm on the stage, Giles’ enthusiasm on stage, bouncing around and smiling his way through the set was a joy to behold. I loved the make-it-up-as-you-go approach to the set list as well, as he chopped and changed the songs as he went - keeping the whole band on their toes. Great Cynics ended the night with a fun surprise cover of Cornershop's classic Brimful of Asha, which included the crowd stealing one of the microphones and Giles jumping into the crowd with his guitar to finish the song. There was quite a poignant section of the set as well where Giles spoke about formerly signed with a booking agency and not enjoying it and preferring the DIY approach of doing things yourself and taking chances. That's certainly something that seems to be working for Great Cynics.

And long may it continue!

Top Tens: John Maiello of Dead Bars Top Ten Punk Rock Influences

1) Green Day - 'Dookie'

In 1994, I was 7 years old and my parents both worked so for about an hour every afternoon I was in an after school program. I was in 2nd grade, and one of the 'older' kids in 5th grade showed me the song 'Basket Case' by Green Day on his Walkman cassette player. It was the greatest song I had ever heard in my life up until that point, and it made me feel a certain feeling that I'd never felt before. Not long after that I went to the store with my mom, and asked her if I could get the Green Day tape. I think it was 4 dollars. My mom, being a new mom, was excited that I was interested in something new so she got it for me. I went home and blasted it on my little boombox, and it only took a little while before my mom read the lyrics and decided that 'Dookie' was not appropriate for a 7 year old, so she took it away. I didn't even know the term 'Punk Rock', but I don't know if I would be here doing what I'm doing if it wasn't for Green Day.

2) Blink 182 - 'Dude Ranch'

A few years went by and I sampled a lot of different music as a kid in elementary school - mostly stuff that was on the radio and MTV. It was 1997, and I think I heard Blink 182's 'Dammit' in a movie trailer for the film 'Cant Hardly Wait'. I remember getting the same feeling that 'Basket Case' gave me. I thought it was the greatest song in the world, and I wanted to know more about this band. By that time I had a CD player and I bought 'Dude Ranch' on CD.

3) My friend, Derek Reilly

Green Day and Blink 182 were pretty mainstream bands, at least at the time I got into them. Both 'Dookie' and 'Dude Ranch' were released on major labels and both bands were selling out major venues, and they were, for lack of a better term, Rock Stars. As a young person getting into this type of music, I surrounded myself with other kids who were into the same music. My friend Alex was listening to a bunch of crazy stuff that he was getting from his older brother, Derek. Derek is 4 years older than me and was not only listening to awesome music, he was also playing awesome music in local bands. He was one of the founding members of Hidden In Plain View, who eventually went on to sign with Drive Thru Records. If it wasn't for me knowing Derek and going to see his bands play at a very early age, I don't know if I'd have the same drive to take my love for punk music and actually start bands and play punk music.

4) The Get Up Kids - 'Something to Write Home About'

I bought this CD when I was 12 years old, and it was my first introduction to what was described as Emo music. It was the first time that I heard something that I wasn't convinced was Punk music, but I didn't care because it was so good. It basically opened my eyes to the possibilities of song-writing. It didn't have to just be snotty pop punk songs. It could be more mature and more melodic, and I liked that.

5) Refused - 'The Shape of Punk to Come'

I also bought this CD when I was 12 or 13, and it was another eye opening experience. It was the moment that I realized that there was no formula for punk rock. It's about feeling and attitude, and not necessarily structure or sound. I must have listened to this album 1000 times. It was a huge part of my teenage years.

6) 'Our Band Could Be Your Life' by Michael Azzerod

I got this book when I was 14. This book was a major influence on me because it detailed the stories of so many influential bands that were before my time. This is how I learned about Black Flag, Minor Threat, The Replacements, etc. It reaffirmed that you could do whatever you want as a musician. DIY. The book title says it all.

7) My Friends Jarret Seltzer and Tom Keiger of Face First and Houston Calls

When I was a teenager in Northern New Jersey, Face First was THE band. Hundreds of people would go see them all over the state, and their shows were the most fun I have ever had. I saw them at least 20 times, but in 2003 they decided to call it quits. At the time, I was playing drums in a band with my high school friends, and I asked Jarrett from Face First if we could open their final show, and he said 'Yes'. It was my dream come true, and I'll always appreciate that because they really didn't have to have us play. Jarrett and Tom from the band went on to form Houston Calls who eventually got signed to Drive Thru Records. They were the first friends of mine who were actually realizing their dreams by putting out records, and touring all over the world. They also gave me a chance to tour with them; I sold their merch. I will always be grateful for the opportunity to see the country and work for one of my favorite bands. Later on, Tom and I actually played music together in a couple bands, and he is really the only reason I live in Seattle, weirdly enough.

8) RAMONES

In my early 20s, after playing drums in bands my whole life, I decided to try and learn guitar and write my own songs. At first, it was discouraging because it's not that easy, and I was having trouble playing along to songs I liked. Then I put on the Ramones and I re-remembered the beauty of simplicity. If it wasn't for the Ramones, I probably would have given up on guitar, and Dead Bars may have never been.

9) Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead

In the documentary, 'Lemmy: The Movie', a journalist asked Lemmy something like "Why do you keep going after 35 years on road?" and Lemmy responded, "You have a dream when you're a kid, and mine came true. Why stop?" That's what I want to say 35 years from now when you ask me this question.

10) My bandmate and partner in crime, C.J. Frederick

When I was writing the first batch of Dead Bars songs, I was at a pretty low point in my life. Uninspired, confused, and probably depressed. A lot of people who I showed my songs to thought they were pretty stupid, which advanced the insecurities I already had about singing and songwriting. For a while, the idea of ever forming a Dead Bars band was nothing more than a dream. When C.J. joined the band, I gained a great bandmate, but also a great friend. We've shared a lot of influences with each other, and have discovered new ones together. His influences and passions have made their way into the Dead Bars songs and I am forever grateful.

Check out Dead Bars on Bandcamp here: https://deadbars.bandcamp.com/

Like Dead Bars here: https://www.facebook.com/deadbars/

Album Review: I’ve Got This by Austeros (by Emma Prew)

One of my favourite albums of last year – number 6 in my Top Ten Albums of 2016 in fact – was Painted Blue by Austeros. When Colin asked me to review their debut album for the blog, back in May, it was the first time I had heard of the band but I became a fan the moment I hit play. Austeros fast became one of my favourite current UK bands and so you can imagine how excited I was when I heard they would be releasing new material so soon after their debut album.

I’ve Got This is an EP of 5 brand new Austeros tracks, released on 14th April on the excellent Specialist Subject Records. (They’re releasing new stuff from all my favourites at the moment!) I loved Painted Blue so I was sure to love I’ve Got This too.

First up is a song called To Be You which kicks off with drums for a few seconds before the guitar and bass join in. The track begins fairly slow-paced but it’s not long before a faster jangly poppy Austeros-style guitar melody that I know love begins. To Be You is a song for all of narrow-minded and stubbornly opinionated people in our lives, or indeed just all around us at any given time (cough, Brexit, cough). ‘Living in that narrow mind, Sucks to be you all the time, Turning all you touch to stone, Sucks to be you alone.’ The guitar solo outro and final chorus is particularly good.

Dead Cells is next on I’ve Got This. To Be You was a fairly up-beat and nonchalant track while Dead Cells takes us down a slightly darker and more negative path – but in a good way, if that makes sense. The opening verse lays out Jeremy’s feelings pretty clearly – ‘Look at what I let you do to me, You were my everything, The only one I needed to get me through the day, And darling it’s been real, But this is how I feel, I’d flush you down the toilet before I let you back in.’ It’s direct, it’s honest and the guitars have just the right amount of distortion and the drums pack enough punch to express anger without straying too far from Austeros’ pop punk sound.

After the hard-hitting nature of Dead Cells, Cherished gets the unplugged treatment as this is an acoustic track – at least most of it is, I do hear keys of some description in there too. It’s definitely a change in pace and sound, not only from the previous track on I’ve Got This but the whole Austeros back catalogue. The stripped back essence of Cherished simply means that we get to better appreciate Jeremy’s vocals and lyrics. He actually really reminds me of Jeff Mangum of 90s alt rock band Neutral Milk Hotel, if any of you punks know who that is, on this track.

One of the things I love most about the Austeros sound, and it’s something I’ve mentioned already in this review, is the jangly, warm guitar tones. Figure of Speech is a song that definitely embraces this sound – but it manages to sound both fresh and new, without straying too far from Painted Blue. Figure of Speech is about the excuses that people make sometimes when they make hateful comments and then try to pretend that they didn’t say or mean what they said – racist remarks, homophobic comments and general derogatory behaviour, you know. ‘It’s just a figure of speech, You say every time that you need, To get yourself out of a hole, That you dug with the wrong words you chose.’ 

The fifth and final track on I’ve Got This is one that I recall hearing live (maybe the first time they played it live, maybe not) at the Specialist Subject All-Dayer back in August. Islands is a song about not always feeling overly fond about the town you’re from or reside in – which in Jeremy’s case is/was Cheltenham. The song opens with the following verse, accompanied by some quiet guitar – ‘Lately I’ve been trying to force myself to feel at home, But it’s hard to feel at home somewhere you feel so alone. I have never been an island, Not about to become one…’ The quiet introduction gives the song a real sense of progression, especially as it doesn’t stay quiet for long. The fully electric Austeros can be heard after the first verse and by the final chorus Jeremy has upped his vocals volume as he almost shouts the final words – ‘Now I’m making plans…’

I’ve Got This is comprised of five individually excellent tracks and is just what was needed after Painted Blue – at least to tide us over until album no. 2! Now, I just need to get to an Austeros show asap and hear some of these songs live.

You can pre-order the I’ve Got This 12" via Bandcamp or direct from Specialist Subject.
It is released this Friday – so you can stream it then too.

You can also find Austeros on Facebook here.

This review was written by Emma Prew.

Album Review: Drifting by Wayfairer (by Emma Prew)

Wayfairer is the name of London-based Ian Crook’s acoustic punk singer songwriter-style endeavours. He released his debut 4-track EP back in January and, being a fan of all things acoustic punk, I decided to take a stab at reviewing it.

The first song is the rather strangely titled Feet Fingers (otherwise known as toes?). It is a lovely warm and melodic acoustic guitar driven track from the start and Ian’s ever so slightly gravelly vocals are wonderfully pleasing to the ear – ‘My memory tends to fail me, So cut the scenery.’ The addition of some gentle piano to play out Feet Fingers was a nice touch that I wasn’t expecting. A fine start to Drifting.

Bookmarks begins with more of a finger picked guitar style playing a sweet little melody. When Ian’s vocals kick in and the guitar playing switches to strummed chords, I am reminded of Great Cynics – or at least Great Cynics when it was more just Giles and his guitar. Like Giles, Wayfairer has a knack for storytelling within his songs. I particularly liked the middle point of the song where the finger picking style returns for a sort of interlude before the final verse. ‘The furious affection, The short span of attention, Paddling ankle deep, In a place I know too well…’

Drifting is a predominantly acoustic EP but, even so, the third track, Warped In Soul, feels like it has a lot more going on than simply strummed chords. It begins with multiple sounds – I think, acoustic guitar and piano – which immediately give the track a bigger sound, despite not being overly electric nor having drums, etc. There is also a nice balance between this ‘bigger’ sound and the vocals which are no means drowned out by the music.

The final track on Drifting is titled Floating City. It’s a fairly sombre-sounding track, both musically and lyrically, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a great track – in fact, it might well be my favourite on this EP. ‘Because I’ve been down this road before, The same old cracks keep tripping me over, I found myself killing time, My shelves harbour dust, Like ships in the night.’ This song, and to be honest much of Wayfairer’s music, feels like it would be just as suited to being heard around a campfire as it would in many a bar around the country.

You can stream and download Drifting on Bandcamp. You can also buy a physical copy in cassette tape form from Disconnect Disconnect.

And like Wayfairer on Faceboook here.

This review was written by Emma Prew.

Album Review: Like A Brother by Beng Beng Cocktail

Beng Beng Cocktail are a band that I first heard of on the massive What Do You Know About Ska Punk? that was released earlier this year. For me, Beng Beng Cocktail were one of the standout bands on the compilation with their track Fucking Rudeboy. It made me look a bit more into the band, I discovered that they are from France and class their version of the ska punk as Crystalcore. According to the band Crystalcore is a mixing together of acoustic guitar, crack rocksteady and hip hop. I also saw that they would be releasing a brand new album in March titled Like A Brother. I loved Fucking Rudeboy so much that I had expectations that this would be one of my albums of the year.

Fucking Rudeboy is actually the opening track on Like A Brother. This is a slow paced sing-along song that will be stuck in your head for days. I was playing it to Emma for the first time and she immediately found herself singing along to the song. There is a fantastic simplicity about the song, this makes it absolutely fantastic. Not all the great songs need to be complicated musical masterpieces, sometimes they can just be stripped back catchy tunes that stay in your head for days. Fucking Rudeboy is about wanting a friend to change their unhealthy ways before they end up alone. I loved the ending of the song where the music cuts out and the final chorus is sung acapella style. Hunger Shames is a faster paced track that has much more aggression than the laid back style of the previous song. The track feels like a political one, with the band fighting against the authority who seem to think that life is like a game and don't care about the people and only themselves. After a little research I discovered that the Hunger Shame title is a play on the popular Hunger Games series and there is a nice nod to the heroin of that story, Katniss Everdeen. The third track on the album is named Six Roses. Six Roses is a song dedicated to a sadly deceased friend of the band. It paints a brilliant picture of a man who is sorely missed by all that knew him. I don't know who Louby is but it seems apparent that he was a man to be looked up to. The guitar playing in Six Roses is absolutely superb with some great, intricate chords accompanying this emotional tribute to their friend. Traitiors, Haters and Traders is a short song at only fifty-eight seconds long and sees the band lean towards a more crust punk style. The production of the song is super raw and dirty and is definitely not one for the casual music listener. But if you enjoy some crusty punk rock every now and again this is a song for you. On this song, Beng Beng Cocktail attack the moneymen of the world - calling them out for being greedy and being more concerned with having money than helping people who need it.

The fifth track on Like A Brother is Half Baked Band. On this track Beng Beng Cocktail call out the disrespectful bands in the punk scene. The chorus really stands out on the song. The tempo of the song changes and the chorus is pretty much chantable - "Hey! You Know You're Just A Fucking Clown, You Motherfucker You'd Better Stay Out Of My Town." Beng Beng Cocktail are at their best when they are angry. Up next is the album's title track, Like A Brother. Like A Brother is a song about the bond of friendship between band members Befa and Skal feeling like they are like brothers. The closest bond two friends can have. This is quite a sweet song and that's something that I didn't really expect straight after the anger of Half Baked Band. Last Lie begins with another moment for plenty of singing along. The use of two vocalists works brilliantly well on this introduction to the song with each singer taking alternating lines. Last Lie is a song about the end of a friendship due to having enough of a person constantly lying to you. The placement of this song after a song about a great friendship really took me by surprise and is a great flip of the coin. Is (Th)is is a song reacting to the terrible Paris bombings of 2015. Beng Beng Cocktail question why Isis commit such terrible atrocities because of their belief in a god that they don't know exists. Understandably there is a whole lot of anger in this track with the band dropping more f-bombs than I can really repeat anymore in this review. Mr H is a humorous song that goes after a politician that Beng Beng Cocktail feel is greedy and stupid and they want him out of the government. I always enjoy when a hard hitting political song such as this can also have a bit of humour involved.

Track ten is a song named Lonely Bobby. On this track Beng Beng Cocktail question why people would abandon their pets, on this occasion a dog named Bobby. I actually found myself getting a bit upset and emotional listening to this song as I am a big fan of dogs. I really hope that this song isn't based on any particular incident. A truly heartbreaking track that got me right in the feels. Trash TV goes after the state of current TV and popular culture in general, claiming that people will do anything, no matter how stupid it might be, to get their fifteen minutes of fame. There is a fantastic sound of spite on the line "You're Like A Whore, Making Easy Money You're Too Lazy To Go To Work." One Year In Dark is by far the longest song on Like A Brother at five minutes and fifteen seconds long. The song talks about struggling with mental health issues and feeling like it's time to take your own life. It's never time to take your own life. This is another extremely sad song but I always think it's important to hear bands talk about these issues in songs or just in general as it really does help you realise that you're not alone. Credit to Beng Beng Cocktail for writing this track. The penultimate song on Beng Beng Cocktail is named The Death Of The European Industry. On my first listen of the track the thing that really stood out was the chorus. The dual vocals of screaming and singing work fantastically. It really helps hammer in the negativity of the death of industry in Europe. Musically the song is quite upbeat given the impression of a protest song that can be enjoyed as long as you are fighting for what you believe in. Finally we have One Day. In what seems like a fitting way to finish Like A Brother, One Day is about having a life affirming day where you realise you have to look after yourself and not worry about the bad people in your life. I like that after a long album that focuses on bad things that happen and are happening throughout the world, Beng Beng Cocktail decided to finish with a song like this. It gives a sense of no matter what happens you're going to be okay. Great stuff.

Like A Brother is an album like no other I've listened to this year. It's educational and doesn't pull any punches. Beng Beng Cocktail are clearly a band that aren't afraid to be different and to stand for their values. After listening to their previous material it's clear the Beng Beng Cocktail are improving massively as a band and have taken themselves to another level with this release.

Stream and download Like A Brother here: https://bengbengcocktail.bandcamp.com/album/like-a-brother-2017-14-tracks-album

Like Beng Beng Cocktail here: https://www.facebook.com/bengbengcocktail/

This review was written by Colin Clark.

Gig Review: The Toasters at The Craufurd Arms, Milton Keynes 5/4/17

The Craufurd Arms in Milton Keynes is fast becoming my new favourite local venue. They always have bands playing as well as other music based events such as record fairs. Earlier this year The Ataris played there in support of Independent Venue Week, this week the venue hosted legendary ska act The Toasters whilst they were in town. The long running band, who started way back in 1981, are always fantastic live so it was a gig we were really looking forward to. It also helped solve a clash at Manchester Punk Festival as The Toasters are playing at the same time as Strike Anywhere. Getting the chance to see them in Milton Keynes means I won't have to make the tough decision in a couple of weeks time in Manchester!

There was just the one support act for the evening, a band we had previously seen support New Town Kings earlier this year, also in Milton Keynes, Bedfordshire's Easydread. This made Emma and I quite pleased because we loved them earlier in the year and they have become my favourite local band. Admittedly I've only lived in Bedfordshire for three months so haven't heard too many but Easydread are great! Since the first time seeing them I've been in contact with Steve, the band's lead singer and guitarist, and tonight he dedicated the band's first song, The Calling, to me - as on the recording it sounds like he's singing Colin. The second band to dedicate a song to me after Paper Rifles did a few years ago. Easydread were as good as they were the previous time I'd seen them but there was something about them I found quite interesting. This time I found a different set of tracks to be the highlights of the set compared to the last time. Last time the standouts were definitely Fyah, The Wake Of You and Scrotes, whereas this time I loved Humble and Babylon Box. I think this really shows off the strength of the band's songwriting and performing skills. Easydread are one of the best ska/reggae bands around and I imagine it won't be long until they are well known all over the country.

Up next were the godfathers of ska punk. New York's The Toasters have been around for longer than a good portion of the crowd have been alive and by all accounts are still as vital as ever. Singer and guitarist Robert 'Bucket' Hingley is the only founding member of The Toasters still left with the band. Now he seems to have a rotating cast of band members depending on where abouts the band are playing. This has been the case each time that I've seen The Toasters before, although this hasn't been an issue - the band are always incredibly tight regardless of which members they have. Starting out with Dog Eat Dog I immediately found that my feet started to move with the music and I was gleefully singing along. The Toasters have this wonderful knack of filling a room full of smiles when they play and this was no different at the Craufurd Arms. Sadly the room wasn't packed from front to back. I guess that's to do with it being a Wednesday night and there being a lot of important football matches on but for the people who were there The Toasters were all that mattered. Whenever I have seen The Toasters live before I've always come away with a new favourite Toasters song. They are a band with so many fantastic songs it's quite easy to forget them some of them, especially since it had been a little while since I had seen them. Every song played was a highlight for me but the ones that had me dancing the most were Running Right Through The World, East Side Beat, Pirate Radio and, of course, Don't Let The Bastards Grind You Down, a song that is sadly as current today as it was twenty years ago when it was first released. The Toasters were absolutely fantastic and yet again proved why they are known as ska legends. It's incredible to me that a band that have been around for such a long time can still be so bloody great!

This gig review was written by Colin Clark. 

Column: Record Hunting

I, like many other people, am a collector of records. Otherwise known as a record collector. I am quite new to the game of record collecting having only started just over a year ago. However I have already collected over 100 records - mostly 12" rather than 7". A lot of people I know who don't collect records always question why I buy them and not just get the digital versions of the songs. Digital music is fantastic, I love being able to listen to a song and then own it within seconds. The rise of digital music has been so beneficial to so many small bands to get their music out to the world, in a way that they wouldn't have been able to in the past. But owning a record makes the music feel so much more special. Digital music can be a bit throwaway whereas having a physical copy of your favourite albums makes it feel more special.

Normally I buy records online from one of the many brilliant independent distros. I do this because the selection is usually better and you can often get a great deal. That said, nothing beats going into a record shop, digging through all of the records and finding exactly what you didn't know you were looking for. I could spend many hours and probably many more pounds when I go on a record hunt.

A couple of weeks ago I organised a Sunday in London with my good pals Jordan and Dan with the intention of hitting every record shop we could find and hunting out some gems. I obviously was on the hunt for punk rock albums whilst Jordan is a massive fan of electronic music, particularly the Anjuna Beats label. Dan was just there to hang out and catch Pokémon.

With me heading towards London from Bedford and Dan and Jordan heading from the Colchester/Ipswich area we deciding to meet up at Liverpool Street station and make our first stop Spitalfields Market. Last year Emma and I visited Spitalfields Market and discovered stall after stall of record sellers and went crate digging on every single one of them. I managed to come away with an original copy of End Of The Century by The Ramones. That made me one happy man. This made me think that Spitalfields Market would be the perfect place to begin our record search. After we met up at Liverpool Street we made our way to the market. It was jam packed full of people which made it quite tricky to move around but I made a bee-line towards where the records were last time we came. They weren't there. I guess it's only on a Saturday that the records stalls are there. Not a Sunday. The day started with a little bit of a fail but not too worry as Rough Trade East was just around the corner. Rough Trade is probably one the best known record shops not only in London but in the entire UK. They sell records from every possible era and genre you can think off. I, of course, went like a bullet to the punk section where Jordan, who was actually visiting his first proper record shop, immediately found the electronic section. Sadly there wasn't much in the punk section that cola-ed my coke and Jordan was unable to find anything for himself, so we decided to head to Soho for some lunch at Chipotle and continue our search around that area.

Whilst enjoying some absolutely delicious burritos we decided on where to head next. The Soho area of London has a few record shops so we decided to visit Sister Ray, Reckless Records and Phonica Records. I've been in Sister Ray and Reckless a number of times and always found them to have a great selection of old punk records. There were a number of Ramones records in both shops but sadly they were all the recent Rhino represses rather than the originals that I was hunting for. Sister Ray in particular is a great store with a massive selection of different genres. I did notice they had a great selection of records from The Clash, another band that Emma and I are collecting original records from. Unfortunately we have all of the ones they had for sale! Next we headed to Phonica Records. This was my first time in Phonica and I instantly felt welcomed as we entered the shop. The first thing I noticed was the massive sofa you see upon walking through the front door. There were also five or six record players set up where you could test out records before you buy them. This felt like a pretty cool shop. However the shop focussed more heavily on the electronic music which meant there was nothing for me. Jordan, being the electronic fan amongst our trio, had a good hunt round but unfortunately couldn't find anything that juiced his orange. That was Soho finished so after a quick trip to the Japan Centre and a failed trip to get in the Lego shop (the queue as always was huge!) it was time to go to Camden.

Camden is the home of alternative music in London so I was guaranteed to find something here. I knew of three shops we could hit as well as a small market stall. We started with Out On The Floor Records which has a good selection of old punk as well as a variety of other stuff. Despite these constant failings to find anything that I wanted I was still having a lovely day. There's something quite therapeutic about searching through endless records despite not finding anything you want. After our visits to the Camden Market record stall and Sounds That Swing (which is next to The Dublin Castle) I knew we had one stop left. My favourite shop in London - the wonderful All Ages Records.

All Ages Records is a small shop in the back streets of London that specialises in punk and hardcore releases, old and new. I can spend hours in this shop working my way through the records, starting with the new stock before working my way through the rest of the records in the shop. Any type of punk you can think of seems to be represented. It's a brilliantly welcoming place with the staff always willing to chat and help you out. I've had a few lovely chats with the owner about the Descendents. I remember once I was searching through the records and I was looking through the D section and stumbled across the Descendents album Everything Sucks, got a little excited and decided that this would be my purchase for the day. On this day I found three great records from Rancid, Hot Water Music and The Priceduifkes - I finished the day a very pleased man.

Despite hunting round London for the best part of a day, I only managed to find three records for me that day… and Jordan found none. We had a great day regardless of the lack of results - record hunting is a very fun activity. As useful as the Internet is for buying records nothing beats going into a shop and buying your favourite album on vinyl.

This review was written by Colin Clark.