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Blogger Of The Week: Punk Rock Ist Nicht Tot
It's time for another edition of ABoF's Blogger Of The Week! This week, we've decided to shine our light on Punk Rock Ist Nicht Tot, the brainchild of Mark Cousens. Passionate about music, he realised that he still had enough time left over from his day job (writing reviews for Artrocker Magazine) to launch his own music review blog. ABoF caught up with him to ask him a couple of questions.
Tell us about Punk Rock Ist Nicht?
The name comes from a Billy Childish song of the same name. The blog was borne out of frustration with the UK charts being watered down by things like the X-Factor; there was nothing being played on the radio that interested me. I started the site as a way of finding good music, and hopefully introducing others to it too. We mainly concentrate on alternative and indie but occasionally stray into folk as well. The site is mainly a review site but we also put up news items we think are interesting and we regularly stream mp3s and music vids.
What's your best resource for finding new music?
Since starting the blog I get sent plenty of demos so I spend a lot of time listening to those, some aren't great but some have gone on to become favourite bands. I also invested in several DAB radios so I could listen to 6music both at home and in the car, it's the only mainstream station worthy of my ears. Oh, and Spotify is brilliant for a quick listen to something I've been told about.
For a while now print has been playing second fiddle to the online press. With so many blogs around, how do you separate the wheat from the chaff?
As long as I like the music they cover I give them all a chance, but the ones I stick with are the ones whose writing style I like best, like SoundsXP and indie-mp3.co.uk.
How do you keep your blog fresh and different?
Really by covering music that no one else is. Also I don't worry too much about genre - if I like it it's on the blog, though you're unlikely to find any R&B on there.
Tough question, but which artist(s) are you enjoying most this year?
Hmmm that is tough, there are so many good bands out there right now... the ones I keep returning to at the moment include the Smith Westerns, Young Buffalo, Archie Powell & the Exports, Yacht, Our Mountain, Cults, Yuck, Pains Of Being Pure At Heart, Limozine, Theatre Royal... the list goes on.
Have to ask. . . Is there anyone on the ABoF roster you're quite keen on?
For sure! I really Architects Of Grace and The Blood Arm, and I've seen Keith TOTP a few times with different lineups, he can always guarantee a fun night out.
Finally, what are your top tips for starting your own music blog?
Make sure you have the time; you'd be amazed how much it sucks up. Don't waste time writing about stuff you don't like. Always be friendly and polite in your emails. Always use a spell checker. Be nice to PR people.