Wednesday, 18 February 2009
Jack Butler's debut album and new single set for release.
JACK BUTLER - FIT THE PARADIGM - Released on April 27th 2009
From the startling drum roll of the opening few seconds on first track, Hit It Out The Park,Son (their new single - released April 13th) – it’s evident that Jack Butler are a discernible force to be reckoned with. The Stirling-based four-piece are set to cement their status as one of the freshest bands in Scotland with the release of their long awaited debut album Fit the Paradigm on 27th April. First single, Are You A Hustler? has been paving the way for a grand reception by garnering encouraging reviews - allgigs.co.uk calling it, "a riotous fanfare of electrics and pulsing drum beats that punctuate the air like heavy rain on a tin roof",as well as enjoying airplay on Sky TV's Soccer AM and on Radio One.
Harking back to the early post-punk of the 1980s, previous single, Boy Vs Beast is a highly original slice of art-funk with infectious guitars, dynamic bass and powerful hooks. In contrast, Just Fit The Paradigm is a quirky, despairing pastiche of the generic nature of teenage life, music and consumerism layered over deeply textured guitar-work and a brass refrain. The angularity of the guitars often attracts comparisons to fellow Scots rockers Franz Ferdinand and Orange Juice but there is something far more colourful to the arrangements – He Got No Game is a shrewd, jagged-edged confrontation. Other tracks such as Velvet Prose and Let’s Testify exemplify a soulful and expressive aspect with their raw yet stirring melodies and poignant lyrics. Continuing this tone, the twinkling opening synths of Surgery 1984 (Operations I & II) ,together with grand and graceful guitars lend this track a poised, elegiac quality akin to the stadium-esque feel of Bloc Party, Interpol and Arcade Fire but still with its own unique twist.
Throughout this esteemed record, an electro sheen saturates many of the tracks lending them a 1980s vintage sound, but they remain firmly rooted in modernity. The album is a colourful array, bursting with full-on aural delights with something for every ear whether you’re looking for the eccentric or the anthemic. With this debut, Jack Butler make an unquestionably powerful musical statement. Impossible to ignore, it is a clear indication that the band should have a flourishing future.
(Claire Gilligan)
http://www.myspace.com/jackbutlerpresents
The Shermans return with 'Venom'.
Stirling-based quintet The Shermans return with the follow up to their hugely successful debut single, Calling It Wrong, which reached number 20 in Scotland and number 23 in the UK indie charts. Released on Platform Records on April 13th, Venom is a rollicking, fast-moving, foot-stomping, soon-to-be indie anthem. Confrontational from the get-go, Shaun Aitcheson literally spits his acerbic lyrics over equally serrated guitars and pounding drums. The track blazes along while a dooming quality lurks – over the shoulder glances, whispers in the dim light of club over a relationship gone wrong. Venom is the sonic equivalent of the shifty guy you don’t want to turn around a corner and bump into.
The release is backed with You're just not getting enough - jangly,with military beats, Beach Boys harmonies and an angular guitar hook. Aitcheson’s vocals warble the ridiculously infectious refrain “and you just can’t stand still, not getting enough” - that no doubt, when performed live, will spark a lot of drinks-in-the-air-hoisting antics. Despite being a song about getting stuck in life – it’s a hopeful tune – with a warm and communal feeling.
Still paying homage to bands like Ocean Colour Scene and The Bluetones, it’s obvious with the new single that The Shermans are carving out an identity of their own and are clearly not a band to mess with. On the plus side, if you do mess with them – the result is “Venom”. (Claire Gilligan)
Venom is released on April 13th - cd single and download.
http://www.myspace.com/theshermansrock
Check out the video:
The release is backed with You're just not getting enough - jangly,with military beats, Beach Boys harmonies and an angular guitar hook. Aitcheson’s vocals warble the ridiculously infectious refrain “and you just can’t stand still, not getting enough” - that no doubt, when performed live, will spark a lot of drinks-in-the-air-hoisting antics. Despite being a song about getting stuck in life – it’s a hopeful tune – with a warm and communal feeling.
Still paying homage to bands like Ocean Colour Scene and The Bluetones, it’s obvious with the new single that The Shermans are carving out an identity of their own and are clearly not a band to mess with. On the plus side, if you do mess with them – the result is “Venom”. (Claire Gilligan)
Venom is released on April 13th - cd single and download.
http://www.myspace.com/theshermansrock
Check out the video:
Monday, 19 January 2009
The Firm - 'Dismal Results' - latest reviews
With echoes of Echo and Siouxsie and even hints of the Durans, The Firm blast out the nu-wave pop-rock with powerful, punk tinged aggression and singalongable new-romantic finesse.
Retro no, nu-something yes! The Firm's brazen attack is led by fuzzy, distorted, scathing guitars and supported by an eternal-time-clock that is the combined rhythm section of oh-so-solid bass and metronomic drums. Atop of all this, the yearning, impassioned vocals soar and ride across the melee as they jostle for prominence with the massive sonic 'noise' of the instruments. It's a hard rather than harsh kinda vibe that The Firm give off; energetic and passionately angry whilst somehow retaining focus on the 'politics' of the job-in-hand.
The Firm's sound is not so much dense as thick-set; the guitar fills practically every available space behind the voice and provides a sort of corrosive layer that is always trying to eat its way to the fore but never quite gets through the cut and grind of the humanic outpourings. If not truly dirty, The Firm's 'noise' is certainly deeply tainted and stained with electrically derived ozone that etches its way into the midst of the electric storm to colour rather than destroy the layered natural 'tones', leaving a certain grubbiness behind.
'Dismal Results' is accompanied by 'Round The Rim' - it's here that the Duran's pop music ethic seems to cut through the more punkish roots of the 'A' side. Similarly robust and just as compelling, 'Round The Rim' demonstrates the more harmonious and pop-sided facet of this hectic sounding outfit - a great pairing resulting in a tidy and workmanlike release that'll suit several 'genre-hats' and raise The Firm's profile by several increments.
Peter J Brown aka toxic pete (http://www.toxicpete.co.uk/)
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The Firm recently came to my attention via Myspace. I am one of the more probably foolish people who do actually check every band who ask to be added. Sometimes, just sometimes, I find bands I consider worth sharing. I confess to being a lot more cynical than when I first started contributing to Rock Sellout. So, what attracted me to The Firm? To start, their well presented page immediately captured my attention. Then, the opening guitar riff off their forthcoming single "Life’s Dismal Results " kept me long enough for the vocal to grab me. Shades of Theatre of Hate sprung to mind, though there is more than a touch of Sonic Youth about them. Anyway, the band sent me a full biography and a half decent mp3 to share, so check them out. With lots of live shows coming up, I reckon you could do worse than catch them live. http://www.rocksellout.com/
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Debut single from London-based quartet The Firm offers up two tracks of straightforward rock that eschews current musical trends in favour of a more timeless sound.
A-side 'Dismal Results' is packed full of classy, assured riffs that act as a slick backdrop to Ross Liddle's likeably casual vocals. The chorus is similarly laidback, forgoing big, brash hooks, and instead relying on a very neat turn of phrase to win over the listener. Part of The Firm's appeal lies in the fact that they never seem to be trying too hard.
While this type of no frills rock has the potential to become repetitive, The Firm avoid this pitfall by picking up the pace after the midway point. They layer on the riffs, push the drumbeats to the forefront of the song and emphasise the underlying, jangly beat to ensure that 'Life's Dismal Results' doesn't just keep on delivering more of the same.
B-side 'Around The Rim (And Back To Him)' follows the formula laid down in 'Dismal Results' but has a more urgent sound, largely thanks to some insistent riffs and snappy drumbeats. 'Around The Rim...' increasingly veers more towards the heavy rock end of the spectrum, with a bridge section that delivers plenty of squealing chords, darker, brooding riffs and pounding drumbeats. This harder sound is carried over into the final quarter of the song, again ensuring that The Firm never get into the rut it'd be so easy for them to fall into.
On the downside, this song's simple but effective chorus is repeated far too many times towards the end. Although you'll initially find much to like in the choruses' slick phrasing, you'll be completely sick of it by the time 'Around The Rim...' draws to a close.
The Firm don't prescribe to any obsessively-specific musical genre, and are as such difficult to categorise. These two tracks may not drill themselves into your head like some of the more genre-specific music does but, by that virtue, The Firm's debut feels like a breath of fresh air. (4 stars) http://www.leedsmusicscene.net/article/10281/?hi=dismal+results
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Single Review
Dismal Results' is the debut single from London based psychedelic shoe gazers The Firm. The product of a culmination of a plethora of confusing juxtapositions, the band of over two years attack their music and accompanying lyrics on a number of fronts making their sound somewhat unique.
Consisting of Ross Liddle (Voice & Guitar), Chris Willsher (Lead Guitar & Piano), Julia Sieradzki (Bass Guitar) and Yameen Khan (Drums), the group combine here in the bands third year with a cruising, sometimes morbidly melancholic shard of fuzzy psychedelic rock. Produced by Matt Terry of The Enemy's 'We'll Live And Die In These Towns' fame, the bands 80's influences pulse through, instantaneously recognisable in the vocals of Ross Liddle who embodies the spirit of The Cult, Suede and The Cure. Like Morrissey's twin brother, the quivering naivety of Liddle's vocals rains through. It's a sinister, monotonic version of Ricky Wilson in play, which accompanied by the most energetic and explosive set of guitars ever witnessed by man make for good times for all. Twinned with 'Round The Rim' the singles b-side, 'Dismal Results' is surely due the reverse treatment.
Matthew Clutton http://www.allgigs.co.uk/view/review/3467/Dismal_Results_The_Firm_London_Single_Review.html
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The Firm :: 09 March 2009 / The Firm / 4 Trk CD By Parker Knoll Broadcasting from London, The Firm have a gloomy sound where monotone, straight line vocals perch atop the stepped descent of a few chords and some effective hooklines. In fact The Firm are good at mixing this gothic yet heartening indie with some excellent little themes. There are snippets of the Bunnymen, Chameleons and early 80’s post new wave modernism. Remarkably, "Dismal Results" isn’t that far removed from the sound of Manchester’s legendary Monomania circa 2000. There’s a live recording of the B-side "Round The Rim (and Back To Him)" in addition to the studio cut and it’s the former that provides a better sensation of the energy and impact of The Firm – and it’s all rather very good. www.manchestermusic.co.uk MMM ½ http://www.manchestermusic.co.uk/
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Firm - Life's Dismal Results
Colourful, Catchy and Edgy
by Jo Vallance
London band The Firm’s debut single will surely stand them in good stead for future success. It’s a catchy, furious lyrical delight with a vibrant guitar line that swells in and out with glorious ease. There are moments of glossy guitarwork at the right moment just as the charismatic vocal charge from singer Ross Liddle dies down. ‘Life’s Dismal Results’ has a sharp cynical edge but an ebullient melody that sweeps you away and will stick in your head long afterwards. B-side ‘Round The Rim (And Back To Him)’ adds in some chaotic vocal harmonies, crafting layer on layer to create a lithe and lively tune that blisters with scintillating percussion and edgy guitars. The vocals and rapturous pace and irrepressible and although there’s more than a hint of bands like The Cure and Suede about this tune in particular, there’s also a fervent punk sensibility that makes what the band are doing refreshing still. The Firm certainly major in musical style, which is sure to see them gain plenty of future success. http://www.roomthirteen.com/
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The Firm – Dismal Results (Whimsical)
It’s always a slight shock when you see yourself quoted on the press release of a band you are just about to start reviewing. Inevitable feelings of ‘was it really any good’ start to surface and you begin to wonder if your colleagues and peers who also receive this press release are laughing at your apparent lack of taste. Fortunately in this case, my taste is proven to be impeccable as The Firm following up their EP from 2007 with single ‘Dismal Results’- all swirling effects and nihilism befitting such an emotive title. There’s some Smiths influence in evidence and Ross Liddle’s terse vocals preach the word according to The Firm to the listener. ‘Release what you like, not what you should like’ say Whimsical. I couldn’t agree more.
http://www.tastyfanzine.org.uk/singles84mar09.htm#TheFirm
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The Firm sound from the name as if they are going to be a bad punk band from London who watched Green Street too many times and decided that they were West Ham boot boys who needed to follow in the footsteps of their heroes Sham 69 and form a band.
The truth isn’t quite as interesting as that but musically it’s a damn sight better!
As it goes they are London based, but rather than punk they find themselves landing somewhere between the doom laden humour of The Smiths and the guitar and mood of Echo And The Bunnymen on Dismal Results, the bands impressive debut single. On the b-side Round The Rim (And Back) they scuzz things up to take them into Jesus and Mary Chain territory, showing that live they could well be a bit more rock ‘n’ roll than the a-side suggested.
A promising start and I hope they build on it, the single is out now on the ever consistent Whimsical Records. (3 stars)
http://www.thebeatsurrender.co.uk/daily/recordbox/dismal-results-the-firm
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Retro no, nu-something yes! The Firm's brazen attack is led by fuzzy, distorted, scathing guitars and supported by an eternal-time-clock that is the combined rhythm section of oh-so-solid bass and metronomic drums. Atop of all this, the yearning, impassioned vocals soar and ride across the melee as they jostle for prominence with the massive sonic 'noise' of the instruments. It's a hard rather than harsh kinda vibe that The Firm give off; energetic and passionately angry whilst somehow retaining focus on the 'politics' of the job-in-hand.
The Firm's sound is not so much dense as thick-set; the guitar fills practically every available space behind the voice and provides a sort of corrosive layer that is always trying to eat its way to the fore but never quite gets through the cut and grind of the humanic outpourings. If not truly dirty, The Firm's 'noise' is certainly deeply tainted and stained with electrically derived ozone that etches its way into the midst of the electric storm to colour rather than destroy the layered natural 'tones', leaving a certain grubbiness behind.
'Dismal Results' is accompanied by 'Round The Rim' - it's here that the Duran's pop music ethic seems to cut through the more punkish roots of the 'A' side. Similarly robust and just as compelling, 'Round The Rim' demonstrates the more harmonious and pop-sided facet of this hectic sounding outfit - a great pairing resulting in a tidy and workmanlike release that'll suit several 'genre-hats' and raise The Firm's profile by several increments.
Peter J Brown aka toxic pete (http://www.toxicpete.co.uk/)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Firm recently came to my attention via Myspace. I am one of the more probably foolish people who do actually check every band who ask to be added. Sometimes, just sometimes, I find bands I consider worth sharing. I confess to being a lot more cynical than when I first started contributing to Rock Sellout. So, what attracted me to The Firm? To start, their well presented page immediately captured my attention. Then, the opening guitar riff off their forthcoming single "Life’s Dismal Results " kept me long enough for the vocal to grab me. Shades of Theatre of Hate sprung to mind, though there is more than a touch of Sonic Youth about them. Anyway, the band sent me a full biography and a half decent mp3 to share, so check them out. With lots of live shows coming up, I reckon you could do worse than catch them live. http://www.rocksellout.com/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Debut single from London-based quartet The Firm offers up two tracks of straightforward rock that eschews current musical trends in favour of a more timeless sound.
A-side 'Dismal Results' is packed full of classy, assured riffs that act as a slick backdrop to Ross Liddle's likeably casual vocals. The chorus is similarly laidback, forgoing big, brash hooks, and instead relying on a very neat turn of phrase to win over the listener. Part of The Firm's appeal lies in the fact that they never seem to be trying too hard.
While this type of no frills rock has the potential to become repetitive, The Firm avoid this pitfall by picking up the pace after the midway point. They layer on the riffs, push the drumbeats to the forefront of the song and emphasise the underlying, jangly beat to ensure that 'Life's Dismal Results' doesn't just keep on delivering more of the same.
B-side 'Around The Rim (And Back To Him)' follows the formula laid down in 'Dismal Results' but has a more urgent sound, largely thanks to some insistent riffs and snappy drumbeats. 'Around The Rim...' increasingly veers more towards the heavy rock end of the spectrum, with a bridge section that delivers plenty of squealing chords, darker, brooding riffs and pounding drumbeats. This harder sound is carried over into the final quarter of the song, again ensuring that The Firm never get into the rut it'd be so easy for them to fall into.
On the downside, this song's simple but effective chorus is repeated far too many times towards the end. Although you'll initially find much to like in the choruses' slick phrasing, you'll be completely sick of it by the time 'Around The Rim...' draws to a close.
The Firm don't prescribe to any obsessively-specific musical genre, and are as such difficult to categorise. These two tracks may not drill themselves into your head like some of the more genre-specific music does but, by that virtue, The Firm's debut feels like a breath of fresh air. (4 stars) http://www.leedsmusicscene.net/article/10281/?hi=dismal+results
---------------------------------------------------
Single Review
Dismal Results' is the debut single from London based psychedelic shoe gazers The Firm. The product of a culmination of a plethora of confusing juxtapositions, the band of over two years attack their music and accompanying lyrics on a number of fronts making their sound somewhat unique.
Consisting of Ross Liddle (Voice & Guitar), Chris Willsher (Lead Guitar & Piano), Julia Sieradzki (Bass Guitar) and Yameen Khan (Drums), the group combine here in the bands third year with a cruising, sometimes morbidly melancholic shard of fuzzy psychedelic rock. Produced by Matt Terry of The Enemy's 'We'll Live And Die In These Towns' fame, the bands 80's influences pulse through, instantaneously recognisable in the vocals of Ross Liddle who embodies the spirit of The Cult, Suede and The Cure. Like Morrissey's twin brother, the quivering naivety of Liddle's vocals rains through. It's a sinister, monotonic version of Ricky Wilson in play, which accompanied by the most energetic and explosive set of guitars ever witnessed by man make for good times for all. Twinned with 'Round The Rim' the singles b-side, 'Dismal Results' is surely due the reverse treatment.
Matthew Clutton http://www.allgigs.co.uk/view/review/3467/Dismal_Results_The_Firm_London_Single_Review.html
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The Firm :: 09 March 2009 / The Firm / 4 Trk CD By Parker Knoll Broadcasting from London, The Firm have a gloomy sound where monotone, straight line vocals perch atop the stepped descent of a few chords and some effective hooklines. In fact The Firm are good at mixing this gothic yet heartening indie with some excellent little themes. There are snippets of the Bunnymen, Chameleons and early 80’s post new wave modernism. Remarkably, "Dismal Results" isn’t that far removed from the sound of Manchester’s legendary Monomania circa 2000. There’s a live recording of the B-side "Round The Rim (and Back To Him)" in addition to the studio cut and it’s the former that provides a better sensation of the energy and impact of The Firm – and it’s all rather very good. www.manchestermusic.co.uk MMM ½ http://www.manchestermusic.co.uk/
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Firm - Life's Dismal Results
Colourful, Catchy and Edgy
by Jo Vallance
London band The Firm’s debut single will surely stand them in good stead for future success. It’s a catchy, furious lyrical delight with a vibrant guitar line that swells in and out with glorious ease. There are moments of glossy guitarwork at the right moment just as the charismatic vocal charge from singer Ross Liddle dies down. ‘Life’s Dismal Results’ has a sharp cynical edge but an ebullient melody that sweeps you away and will stick in your head long afterwards. B-side ‘Round The Rim (And Back To Him)’ adds in some chaotic vocal harmonies, crafting layer on layer to create a lithe and lively tune that blisters with scintillating percussion and edgy guitars. The vocals and rapturous pace and irrepressible and although there’s more than a hint of bands like The Cure and Suede about this tune in particular, there’s also a fervent punk sensibility that makes what the band are doing refreshing still. The Firm certainly major in musical style, which is sure to see them gain plenty of future success. http://www.roomthirteen.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------
The Firm – Dismal Results (Whimsical)
It’s always a slight shock when you see yourself quoted on the press release of a band you are just about to start reviewing. Inevitable feelings of ‘was it really any good’ start to surface and you begin to wonder if your colleagues and peers who also receive this press release are laughing at your apparent lack of taste. Fortunately in this case, my taste is proven to be impeccable as The Firm following up their EP from 2007 with single ‘Dismal Results’- all swirling effects and nihilism befitting such an emotive title. There’s some Smiths influence in evidence and Ross Liddle’s terse vocals preach the word according to The Firm to the listener. ‘Release what you like, not what you should like’ say Whimsical. I couldn’t agree more.
http://www.tastyfanzine.org.uk/singles84mar09.htm#TheFirm
-------------------------------------------------------------
The Firm sound from the name as if they are going to be a bad punk band from London who watched Green Street too many times and decided that they were West Ham boot boys who needed to follow in the footsteps of their heroes Sham 69 and form a band.
The truth isn’t quite as interesting as that but musically it’s a damn sight better!
As it goes they are London based, but rather than punk they find themselves landing somewhere between the doom laden humour of The Smiths and the guitar and mood of Echo And The Bunnymen on Dismal Results, the bands impressive debut single. On the b-side Round The Rim (And Back) they scuzz things up to take them into Jesus and Mary Chain territory, showing that live they could well be a bit more rock ‘n’ roll than the a-side suggested.
A promising start and I hope they build on it, the single is out now on the ever consistent Whimsical Records. (3 stars)
http://www.thebeatsurrender.co.uk/daily/recordbox/dismal-results-the-firm
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Wednesday, 31 December 2008
THE FIRM release their debut single Dismal Results on March 9th 2009.
Already with a firm following in their home base of London, The Firm - consisting of Ross Liddle (Voice & Guitar); Chris P Willsher (Lead Guitar and Piano); Julia Sieradzki (Bass Guitar) and Yameen Khan (Drums), release their debut single on Whimsical Records.
Produced by Matt Terry (The Enemy’s 'We'll Live And Die In These Towns'), Dismal Results is a dooming, sardonic warning layered over textured guitars. Liddle’s laconic vocals strut over Willsher's fuzzy and frenetic guitars, sneering truths that only he seems to know, while the rhythm section of Sieradzki’s bass and Khan’s unrelenting drums drive the track forward and offers a counterpoint by rooting the histrionic guitar turn. All the instruments converging lend the track an immediacy and a gleefully sinister quality. Ostensibly, the band create the sort of sonic collages that Creation bands such as Jesus & Mary Chain, House of Love and Ride used to be known for, albeit played with the style and flair of The Smiths, Suede and Verve. And while the ghosts of post-punk luminaries such as Magazine, The Sound and The Cure lurk in the belly of the track – there are sunnier references almost akin to The Kinks, and the band’s ear for a pop melody gives it a contemporary rejuvenation.
The single is backed by studio and demo versions of Round The Rim – a scuzzy, reverberating track, referencing modern day post-punk revivalists Interpol, with twitchy percussion and an impossibly epic and affirming guitar riff.
Equally influenced by the wit of Oscar Wilde, the darkness of post-punk, the intensity of shoegazing and the true spirit of punk – The Firm has created a muscular, compelling and stark sound. You won’t be able to 'look away' or turn it off – in fact, we defy you to.
(Claire Gilligan) www.myspace.com/thefirmband
Saturday, 20 December 2008
Latest Whimsical News
Following a period of relative calm, there is an atmosphere of organised chaos once again here at Whimsical HQ.
Stirling 4-piece JACK BUTLER have been grafting away on their debut album which has finally been completed, and well worth the wait it is too.Due for release in early 2009, Fit the paradigm will be preceded by 2 singles - the first being the ridiculously catchy Are you a hustler? which is available as a digital download from December 15th. Listen to it now on the Jack Butler Myspace player!
Following our expansion from Edinburgh into the Big Smoke, we have just signed our first new act in 2 years. London band THE FIRM have been wooing crowds at gigs with a brand of post punk indie, their 'edgy poetic wall of sound' catching the attention of Whimsical's A&R man Paul Grassick who describes their performance as 'truly mesmorising'. A recording and publishing deal was swiftly inked, which will lead to their debut single Dismal Results being released in early '09.
More updates soon!
Camilla Royle x (Whimsical PR dept) Camilla@whimsicalrecords.co.uk
Stirling 4-piece JACK BUTLER have been grafting away on their debut album which has finally been completed, and well worth the wait it is too.Due for release in early 2009, Fit the paradigm will be preceded by 2 singles - the first being the ridiculously catchy Are you a hustler? which is available as a digital download from December 15th. Listen to it now on the Jack Butler Myspace player!
Following our expansion from Edinburgh into the Big Smoke, we have just signed our first new act in 2 years. London band THE FIRM have been wooing crowds at gigs with a brand of post punk indie, their 'edgy poetic wall of sound' catching the attention of Whimsical's A&R man Paul Grassick who describes their performance as 'truly mesmorising'. A recording and publishing deal was swiftly inked, which will lead to their debut single Dismal Results being released in early '09.
More updates soon!
Camilla Royle x (Whimsical PR dept) Camilla@whimsicalrecords.co.uk
Jack Butler - 'Are you a hustler?' - latest reviews.
JACK BUTLER - ARE YOU A HUSTLER ****
A fast and furious romp with frantic guitars and tribal drums that's a glorious slice of indie pop mixed with disco. It's a bit Joy Division meets Bloc Party. Liam Kelly's shouty vocals remind of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Can't wait for the debut album from the Stirling the four-piece. AC
http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/tv-showbiz-news/music-news/music-reviews/album-reviews/2008/12/14/singles-albums-released-this-week-78057-20970409
JACK BUTLER – Are You A Hustler? ***1/2
Scottish Indie with a hearty dose of foot-stomping funk courtesy of the four piece’s maniacal rhythm section and upbeat guitars.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/sftw/article2028676.ece
One of Scotland's most promising indie acts, four piece Jack Butler manage to turn angular and jaggy pop into music to dance to.
(4 stars) http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/entertainment-catch-all/2008/12/19/singles-86908-20981632
''.....their latest offering is a riotous fanfare of electrics, pulsing drum beats that punctuate the air like heavy rain on a tin roof and laced by Liam Kelly’s usual growling Celtic vocal..... Jack Butler simply are one of the most exciting bands to pop up in the last 18 months. In a nut shell they’re like Joy Division meets The Arctic Monkeys via KC And The Sunshine Band.'' ****
http://www.allgigs.co.uk/view/review/3339/Jack_Butler_Are_You_A_Hustler_Single_Review.html
A fast and furious romp with frantic guitars and tribal drums that's a glorious slice of indie pop mixed with disco. It's a bit Joy Division meets Bloc Party. Liam Kelly's shouty vocals remind of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Can't wait for the debut album from the Stirling the four-piece. AC
http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/tv-showbiz-news/music-news/music-reviews/album-reviews/2008/12/14/singles-albums-released-this-week-78057-20970409
JACK BUTLER – Are You A Hustler? ***1/2
Scottish Indie with a hearty dose of foot-stomping funk courtesy of the four piece’s maniacal rhythm section and upbeat guitars.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/sftw/article2028676.ece
One of Scotland's most promising indie acts, four piece Jack Butler manage to turn angular and jaggy pop into music to dance to.
(4 stars) http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/entertainment-catch-all/2008/12/19/singles-86908-20981632
''.....their latest offering is a riotous fanfare of electrics, pulsing drum beats that punctuate the air like heavy rain on a tin roof and laced by Liam Kelly’s usual growling Celtic vocal..... Jack Butler simply are one of the most exciting bands to pop up in the last 18 months. In a nut shell they’re like Joy Division meets The Arctic Monkeys via KC And The Sunshine Band.'' ****
http://www.allgigs.co.uk/view/review/3339/Jack_Butler_Are_You_A_Hustler_Single_Review.html
Profile
Whimsical originally sprang to life in 1999, when Edinburgh band EMPORIUM began issuing limited edition promo cd’s to radio and press.
The previous year , while sending out demo tapes for reviews and airplay, Emporium’s music had been described by one journalist as ''whimsical pop with an adventurous sound''. This quote in Front magazine prompted the band to create a label name, and as the format for presenting their music was changing from cassette to cd , it seemed like the ideal time to create Whimsical Records.
The very first promo release was the single e.p Zombie (EMPS1) which won great acclaim on BBC Radio Scotland’s Beat Patrol. In fact, featured song Sleeping Dogs made the show’s year end top 10 tracks, as published in NME during December. The Emporium album A fine fine line (EMPCD1) was also issued at the tail end of ’99, along with a second promo single Elevate (EMPS2), much loved and much played by indie music champion Jim Gellatly on Scotland’s Beat 106.
In 2000, via a demo targeting service ad in the NME, Emporium’s music was mailed out to 15 record labels and publishers. One of these companies just happened to be a sister to distributors Shellshock, and, as they liked what they heard , it was suggested that the band should release a single (via Shellshock) on their own label.
Email Eddie (EMPS3), the first nationally distributed Whimsical release appeared in the shops on January 22nd 2001.It was followed by a second e.p Lisa on the screen (EMPS5), and an album Hallucinations (EMPCD3) which was made album of the month on 2 European radio shows, including the much loved Popscene.
Between 2001 and 2005 Whimsical issued 3 Emporium singles and 2 albums via the Shellshock deal, generating copious amounts of critical acclaim and a large catalogue of radio plays for the band and label, at the same time helping to create a hefty database of media contacts, whilst building up valuable business experience in the technicalities of releasing music to the market place.
Using this experience, it was decided during 2005 to develop Whimsical further, with a view to contracting artists, not only to the label, but to the newly created Whimsical Songs publishing arm.
And so, via a licensing and publishing deal, SUNSHINE VARIETY CLUB were the first signing in September 2005. The girl with the crooked smile / Bone idle pop idol (ICAL1) was released on January 17th 2006, achieving airplay on BBC Radio 2 and becoming Steve Lamacq’s single of the week on BBC 6 Music, where it was also given a glowing review on the long running BBC show Roundtable.
Further physical release and digital download licensing deals were then secured including
ALFIE KINGSTON’s I will wait (ICAL2) and BIG LIFE DESIRE’s debut single Your love is (ICAL3) which was also contracted in July to an American company for inclusion on the dvd release Project Everlasting, the first synch placement for Whimsical.
The label/publisher signed its first recording deal in May ’06 with Scottish band
JACK BUTLER. Their debut single Velvet Prose (ICAL4) was released on September 25th to rave reviews, and was playlisted by XFM London, helping to propel it into the official UK indie charts - the pinnacle to an exciting and encouraging 12 months in the continuous growth of Whimsical.
2007 saw the release of a 21 track various artist compilation
ELEVATE (ICALCD1) which met with rave reviews, and featured 2 tracks licensed by Whimsical to the American feature film 'Pinko's Place'.
ADAM TEDDER's debut single It'll be soon (ICAL5) followed along with Jack Butler's second single, the highly acclaimed Boy vs. Beast (ICAL6). Recording of their debut album continued.
A new subsidiary imprint was formed in summer 2007 - PLATFORM RECORDS - which also offered a label service to artists. First release was by THE SHERMANS, their debut single Calling it wrong reaching UK indie chart no 23.
NATASHA ENGLAND's UK top 10 single also got a re-release on Platform. Iko Iko, a summer hit in 1982, has sold almost one million copies worldwide, and Platform are delighted to have given this classic it's first ever digital outing.
BIG LIFE DESIRE aka the multi-talented Keith Harbottle issued his debut album dribs and drabs in the latter part of 2008, another Platform release. This followed NATASHA ENGLAND's 42 track double cd anthology Back from the mists of time which contained her complete set of 80's recordings, delighting fans who'd waited 2 decades to see her vinyl albums transferred to cd for the first time.
Whimsical expanded from it's Edinburgh birthplace into London towards the end of '08, and saw it's first new signing in 2 years with new wave 4 piece THE FIRM recording 2 tracks for their debut single (and video) Dismal Results (ICAL8), scheduled for release on March 9th 2009. JACK BUTLER also returned in December '08 with the single Are you a hustler? (ICAL7), which is taken from their 13 track debut album Fit the paradigm (ICALCD3) - due to be unleashed on April 27th 2009, and preceded by the single (and video) Hit it out the park, son (ICAL9) on March 9th 2009 - set to be our busiest year to date...
http://www.whimsicalrecords.co.uk/
www.myspace.com/whimsicalrecords
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