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My first time with Doug Stanhope

Our assistant Ed Williams tells us how he fell in love with comedian Doug Stanhope...

I remember the first time I heard a Doug Stanhope comedy album. I'd just moved back to London and was going through a bit of a cultural renaissance with my flatmate. We'd stay up all night getting wasted, listening to music, watching films, and classic comedians. I'd decided to take a much-needed break from the audio-visual overload to hide in my bedroom and play my newly purchased Resident Evil 4 (complete with chainsaw controller - that I never used). Once you've watched your 5th Lynch movie in the space of 48 hours, you need to kill some infected Spanish villagers to gain some perspective.

As I shotgunned my thousandth Capcom monstrosity, an angry American voice seeped through my door. It was talking about taking ecstasy by itself in Alaska, and the problems associated with it - basically, how the temptation to engage in sexual activity with inanimate objects becomes overpowering after a given period of time. It then went on to offer the homosexuals in the audience a free ticket for life, due to their pro-active approach to tackling the planet's overpopulation problem. By the time the voice moved on to DMT (and the dangers involved), I had to put my controller down. Who was this man? How was he getting away with this? It was my flatmate's greatest hit mix of his favourite Stanhope skits, and I was hooked.

It's easy to compare Stanhope to Hicks, as both use the voice of an angry everyman. But it's a disservice to Doug not to dig a little deeper. He's a true libertarian in every sense of the word, strongly opposed to the state legislating against drugs, sexuality or any freedom that comes down to personal choice. But instead of ramming it down the audience's throat, he pitches examples that hold society's hypocrisy up to a mirror, so we can all look at it with him, laugh and agree that the system is flawed. He takes arguments to the extreme not just to get a laugh or to shock, but to press home his points. This does mean that things can get a little rough at times. The man does not care if he offends you - it's your problem, not his, and you have every right to switch him off or walk out of his show.

At a time when British comedy had reached a point where to "shock" an audience was considered the height of genius, I was relieved that there was still someone out there willing to give his material a bit of weight. You can retro-justify a joke all you want: if people didn't get your point in the first place, you need to take a long hard look at your material, and ask yourself "Is what I'm trying to say a) clear enough and b) worth pissing off this many people?" In Doug's case - yes it is. He's not on some pseudo-crusade to push the limits of comedy. He's not just aiming for a cheap laugh. His material cuts to the very bone of society's ills, and he is there to hold open the festering wound and invite us to take a long, hard look. Then to lighten the mood, he'll throw in a dick joke.

You can pick up a copy of Doug Stanhope’s new DVD, Before Turning The Gun On Himself, from Play.com.

INTERVIEW - French Wives

Since their inception in 2008, Glasgow’s French Wives have been working intensively to build a strong fan base in Scotland. Now, after a steady rise, the band is ready to release their debut album Dream of the Inbetween. We caught up with Jonny Smith (drums and vocals) last week for a quick chat about their upcoming album and tour.

So how did all of you get together?

As much as I wish this was a fascinating story of us meeting, it's a fairly mundane one! Stuart and Scott met over the internet (the shame!) and the rest of us kind of joined through mutual friends.

How did you come up with the band name? Was it a "names in a hat" situation, or is there some significance behind it?

The name was actually only supposed to be a temporary one as we had our first gig coming up and still hadn't come up with anything (despite some horrendous suggestions). It was kind of 'borrowed' from a friend of the band and after a few weeks it really stuck, or maybe we were all just too lazy to change it! There's also an adult movie called French Wives, which I've heard is great.

Your debut album is due out in early May. How does it feel to finally have the release date in sight after all that hard work?

Amazing. It's taken us an incredibly long time to get to this point and I cannot describe how good if feels to be safe in the knowledge it is out soon. It's been such a great experience working with our producer Tony Doogan and we've all learned so much from it.



Is there a definite artistic leader in the group, or is it a collaborative experience? How do you approach songwriting as a whole?

It's very much a bit of both. Our guitarist Scott or singer Stuart brings most of the initial ideas to the table, and then we spend time in our studio playing about with them as a band. We approached the album a little differently as we wanted it to be a singular body of work, rather than just a bunch of our songs thrown together. With that in mind, we took out the first half of 2010 writing it in our tiny, dirty studio in Shawlands. We should have had the label fork out for 6 months in Spain!

Is there an artist/performance you've experienced that's shaped the way you approach music?

This probably isn't the best question for me given the range of ridiculous gigs I've been to over the years. However, we were lucky enough to be asked to play Connect festival in 2008 when we'd only been together for a few months. Sigur Ros played the Sunday night and we were all properly blown away by it. I guess that's one performance that really brought us together as a band. Franz Ferdinand came on afterwards and our bassist inexplicably left to go and sleep in his tent - he still gets pelters for that! In terms of an artist shaping how we actually approach our music, I would say bands like Pulp and The Smiths are huge influences for us. Despite the fact they're largely considered indie bands, both still ostensibly write pop music, which is something we're very much dedicated to.



You've got quite a busy tour schedule in 2012. What shows are you most looking forward to?

We're heading to America and Canada in March for South by Southwest and Canadian Music Week respectively so we're super excited for that. It's first time we've even left the UK as a band, so it should be great. Either that or we'll want to kill each other. The official SxSW showcase is usually a big one, so hopefully that goes well!

Finally, a meteorite is about to crash into the Earth, wiping out everything, and you have one hour left. How do you spend the hour (running around screaming while waving your hands in the air doesn't count as an answer)?

We've just been to London for our US Visa meeting, which involved hours of train travel. None of us really slept at all over the two days and the most rational thing we could think to do on the way back up was drink loads of cans of beer. So, yeah, probably drink loads of cans of beer and if possible try to facilitate a pre-apocalyptic game of Fifa.

French Wives release their debut album, Dream Of The Inbetween via Electric Honey on 7th May 2012.

INTERVIEW - Atom Eye

Phantom’s Elsie Martins has returned with a new solo project Atom Eye. Drawing influences from drone and sound art, she has taken the cinematic undertones of Phantom and has honed them into something beautifully dark and rich. With the impending release of the second and third parts of her Trilogy 120 just around the corner, we caught up with Elsie for a quick chat.

Tell us how the collaboration between yourself and Pete Lockett came about?

Finding the right percussionists was not an easy task. Pete Lockett is one of the best out there and, listening to his work, I just knew that he had the right sensibility. He's worked with everyone from Bjork to scoring James Bond films. His sound is versatile but also rooted in passion - so I was very touched when he liked the demos I played him. He's added a truly wonderful energy to the pieces.

Seeing him play live was a turning point, to really understand what I mean you need to see him play live. I would highly recommend his upcoming gig at the SouthBank centre in April 2012 with Rajasthan musicians. I researched for months and months trying to find the right person, and as they say "if you never ask you never get" - so I just took a leap of faith and contacted him. He is truly passionate about his work and it really shows.



Your sound has been described as cinematic. What directors would you say have influenced you?

I loved Director Veiko Õunpuu's Temptation of St Tony - a visually stunning film, absolutely masterfully crafted - which would have been a dream to score.

Beau Travail by Claire Denis had a memorable feeling of open space .

Daron Aronofsky's work is very interesting (Pi, Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain, The Wrestler, Black Swan.) , and Michael Haneke as well - although his films are very intense and, at times, disturbing. They are also incredibly compelling (Cache, The Time of the Wolf, White Ribbon).

And of course I can't answer that question without mentioning David Lynch - a reference often cited in my previous work and one that I have always been flattered to be tagged to.

You incorporate a lot of experimental recording techniques in your work. How do you go about piecing a composition together?

I wanted to give the ideas that I had created in Phantom the lease of life that they deserve. I wanted to leave conventions & conventional song structures behind and explore the themes underlying the last record that I wrote: field recordings, drones, ambient noise and feedback - I wanted to play with the swirls and pulses found in rumbles and feedback and use those elements as the core for each piece and not as token buffers. From that idea it was obvious that I wanted to carry on working with field recordings. I became fascinated with the process, and ended up wanting to experience a more "manual" approach - hence the use of reel to reel to manipulate the recordings. There's something deeply satisfying about it, tweaking loops manually was something I had never done before and I suppose the Trilogy is my first experience with reel to reel tape loops - so in that sense the parts' sound and textures were at the core of the compositions - that in itself is a new way of working for me. The end result was marrying tape loops with instruments I am more familiar with, like guitars, keys with an added world percussion element. My sound became more and more experimental as I went along, and I think is likely to continue into future pieces of work.

What did you set out to achieve with the Trilogy 120 EP?

I created Atom Eye because I wanted the opportunity take the ideas I created in Phantom and push them further.

As for the soundtrack element, so often referred to in my previous work, it's now central to how I create as opposed to being an element of it. Atom Eye is music for film, moving for moving images, and this is exactly how I intended it to be. I'll be releasing 3 shorts to go along with the Trilogy - each will be directed by the London film collective Yeast. The whole project has been created purposefully for film and I think it's a medium that suits my music perfectly. I am in talks with the directors from Yeast to create something fitting the mood of Atom Eye. Their work is beautiful and incredibly diverse (they direct films for London Fashion Week, 1883 Magazine, The Vauxhall Fashion Scout , BBC6 Music) and they're not afraid to experiment and push boundaries.



Are there any future plans for Phantom?

At the moment I'm focusing on Atom Eye. Despite taking the lead with compositions, recordings, mixing and managing the whole project; Phantom still wasn't without compromise whereas Atom Eye offers a lot more possibilities for me to develop and feel fulfilled creatively.

Will there be any live performances of the new material?

Yes, and I can't wait to hit the stage. I'm in the process of reworking the pieces for a live set. It's quite challenging and also involves rehearsal with percussionists so it's not a simple task. The live set will also have a strong visual element and I'd like to showcase the shorts which accompany the Trilogy, so I'm exploring different avenues in terms of launch venues and different spaces to make that work. Patience comes to those who wait - and I can guarantee that the live set will not disappoint.

What's next for Atom Eye?

As well as writing my own commissioned material, along with my aforementioned collaboration with Yeast. My latest score was for for a piece being shown at London Fashion Week commissioned by 1883 Magazine and The Vauxhall Fashion Scout. You can view the finished product here.

There will be plenty more to come, including feature length scores and a few surprises in stock... expect a compilation of Atom Eye scores to come out later in the year, and watch out for our sounds hitting the big screen in the near future.

Part II and III of the Trilogy 120 EP will be released on 12th March and 30th April respectively. They will be available as free download singles from Atom Eye’s official website. Three short films are also planned for the trilogy, they are being made by the London collective Yeast and will be available once all three parts are released.

INTERVIEW - The Unkindness Of Ravens

The Unkindness of Ravens are the hardest working underground electro-rock duo on the scene. After two prolific years of releases, videos and live shows Nina Wagner (vox) and Ben Raine (bass & vox) are getting set to release their next single Last Call For The River, taken from their forthcoming debut album Virus. We caught up with them last week for a quick chat.

Your last single, Virus | Viper was featured on a French Connection video promo. How did that come about?

Ben - A friend of ours who we did a photoshoot with was editing the FCUK promo and needed a track - so we gave her VIRUS which was new and nobody else had heard at that point. It's cool seeing our music used in a fashion context, it works well.

Your music videos always pick up a lot of coverage - will there be one for your upcoming single, "Last Call For The River", and what can we expect from it?

Nina - We're currently in the process of shooting the video, which will take place in both London and Berlin. Our style will be a cross between our usual minimalism meets something like the Swedish version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.



Your debut album, Virus, is due for release in May. How does it feel to finally have the release date in sight after all that hard work?

Nina - It's like a huge weight has been lifted. As much as we love making records, it's becoming harder and harder maintaining this DIY approach, especially as our expectations of what we want to produce become higher. So we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. Although the album is a balanced display of what we are capable of as a two piece, we're now working towards something rather different for the next record.

How do you approach your live performances?

Ben - We always know that we're gonna play great no matter what. It's whether the audience is gonna be great, because it's an exchange of energy. If they really get into it, then that's as good as it gets. I always know that at some point Nina is gonna wander into the audience and terrorize people. People love that. During our last show it was like Nina kidnapped this girl, it was funny, this poor chick didn't know what the hell to do.

Has there been an artist/performance you've experienced that's shaped the way you approach music?

Nina - Nine Inch Nails has been one of the most inspiring live shows I have ever seen. The lighting performance that came with their set was mind blowing, something I definitely want to look into. Currently though, I'm really into Atari Teenage Riot and reading every single interview I can get my hands on by Alec Empire - he's my hero at the moment.

Once the album's been released, what's next for The Unkindness Of Ravens?

Ben - We'll be playing shows in Europe, and writing and recording material for this new project we've started. It's a project with no name at this point, it may well turn into the next Ravens album, or it may need to exist independently. Either way it's gonna be us, but on a new level.

Last Call For The River will be released on March 5th 2012 on Sonic Fire Records, with their debut album, Virus, set to drop in May 2012.

Good vibes…

Claire ABoF shares some updates from ABoF HQ...

We’ve been so busy lately, I’d forgotten to write a little update of what’s been going down here at ABoF towers. As you can see from our latest newsletter, we’ve been rather busy these last four weeks!

The biggest thing we’ve been working on (since September last year!), was a private event for Last.fm and HP. We’ve been working with Last.fm since the summer, doing online PR for the pop-up sessions they’ve been promoting in conjunction with HP. The private event was a culmination of all our efforts and a party for Last.fm and HP’s staff and media partners.

There were canapés, free drinks, ballerinas and David Guetta plus 2manydjs did their thing on the decks. When the DJs started, it hit me that we’d come quite far and I felt so happy that we had this chance to organise something like this. When we started ABoF, we simply wanted to do something we loved and be in control of our own destinies work-wise and I felt really proud in that moment. Much thanks goes to Last.fm for giving us the opportunity.

Team ABoF and Last.fm
(photo by Lee Allen)


Aside from this event, we’ve been working on lots of different bands. I think I should mention there are lots of Scottish bands on our roster at the moment too. I can’t believe how many great bands are coming from up north.

It’s been such a busy start to the year and we’ve barely had time to breathe but we like it that way. I hope we continue moving onwards and upwards and working with brilliant people like the folks at Last.fm and all our wonderful bands. The only new music I’ve been listening to since the start of the year has come from them, we’re very lucky to be working with quality bands at the moment.

That’s enough gushing from me! Wishing all who read this super positive vibes for 2012!

If you'd like to get in touch, please email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), you can also follow Claire and ABoF on Twitter...