unpopular

The enigmatic numbers series: '14'

With musical accompaniement from Stars.

 

Do The Robot

That there is the robot tote bag mentioned yesterday in all it's finery. And this here is The Saints:

 

Block Colo(u)rs

I found this little display of wooden building blocks in the Arrietty store yesterday morning. I couldn't resist snapping them. For the record I bought a hand printd card (I told you can't resist cards) and a tote bag with a robot print on (I also can't resist robots). For musical accompainement, here are Nothing Painted Blue. 

  

New Arrivals: a bunch of Paul Messis 7" singles

I’m sure I read about the Paul Messis & Jessica Winter 7” in Shindig last year. Not entirely certain why I didn’t follow through it at the time, but thanks to a post by The Brogues about Messis’ latest single as part of The Market Squares (on his own 'Market Square' label) I’ve eagerly snapped up his previous singles. For sure there is some mighty infatuation with 1960s guitar pop stylings going on here, and Brogues rightly draws similarities to the likes of similarly obsessed ‘revivalists’ like The Times. I’m reminded too of the early Jasmine Minks sound, and that is certainly no bad thing. I’m looking forward to his ‘The Problem With Me’ set arriving soon and of course to new recordings from the year ahead. A second album is apparently due for release in May through State Records, and there are 7”s planned for The Sea-Weeds and The Sussexmen. Can’t wait!

 

Mirror, mirror on the wall...

What's the nicest cafe of them all? We discovered Bel Green in the St Leonards 'village' yesterday afternoon and what a pleasure it is. If you are ever in Exeter is worth taking a short sidetrack up to Magdalen Road. They have a whole wall filled with various different mirrors... Which leads me to this:

 

This is why I teach.

The Beach House from Richard Standen on Vimeo.

You know I still get a lot of people who ask me why anyone would want to be a teacher. There are a ton of good answers to the question, but that video right there is one of the most compelling. When your students go on to do/make something brilliant? No better feeling.

And here’s one he made when he was in my class, way back in the day. Full of teenage angst, but hey, if you aren’t full of teenage angst when you are sixteen then I'm sure there’s something wrong with you!

  

Once We Were School Kids (Drunk On Youth and Friendship)

Is it Blue Monday today? Or was it last Monday? I thought it was meant to be the third Monday in January (which is today) but some people seemed to 'celebrate' it last week. Well, it was The Sun and The Mail. I guess they can't count. In more ways than one. Boom boom.

Well, if it is 'officially' Blue Monday today, here is a treat to cheer you up. And if it isn't then here's a treat anyway. Who needs an excuse to share good vibes and good tunes anyway? Download ahoy here. Remember the rules: if you dig something buy it from the artists and labels. 

Once We Were School Kids (Drunk On Youth and Friendship) - Brown (from 'Mannequins' on Bandcamp)
A Nice Shed - The Doyleys (from 'Smithers' on Bandcamp)
Down & Out - Camperdown & Out (Bandcamp)
Canna - Arms of Tripoli (Bandcamp)
The Best Of Our Years - Beat Hotel (from 7" single on Random Acts of Vinyl. Soundcloud)
Done To My Love - Gayze (Bandcamp)
Bitterness Is The Appropriate Response - The Indelicates (from 'Diseases of England Part 1')
Slashing it down - Flies on you (from 'Nothing To Write Home About'. Bandcamp and Vimeo)
The 4th Chord - Galoshins (from 'EP1'. Bandcamp)
Security - The Wolfhounds (from 'Cheer Up' 7". On Bandcamp)
Follow the Leader - The Stammer (Bandcamp)
All The Time - Blooper (from ltd edition 7" single. Bandcamp)
Night Person - Goodman (Bandcamp)
All The Sad Young Literary Men - The Great American Novel (Bandcamp)
We're Gonna Get Fucked - The Death Of Pop (Soundcloud)
Strategy - The Naima Train (ltd edition 7" single. Bandcamp)
Touch (Ikons Remix) - Westkust (from Luxury)
A Train to Moscow - Daybehavior (from Follow That Car! LP YouTube)

you've got no pedigree, chum

Fox Hunters

Is this turning into a bit of a series? Songs with photos. Photos with songs. Something with something else. It's inspired. See, I told you I was a genius.

I actually snapped this last Sunday on my bike ride up to Dulverton. I'm guessing it's a garage used by fox hunter types to store the great ugly 4x4s that they stop randomly in the middle of the road in order to watch other blood thirsty types on the hunt. I rather hope the sandbags singularly failed to keep out the floods. 

Here's Saint Julian:

 

 

Blooper

It would have been The Lion In Love who first hipped me to Blooper last year. After all, she sings back-up vocals on this particular track. I thought they sounded terrific then, and with their debut 7" having been released this week, this seemed like as good a time as any to share. Watch out for this cut on the next Unpopular mix (eyes and ears peeled, pop kids!) and also in a 'new additions' post just as soon as the white slab of vinyl makes it across the ocean to me.

And hey, since we've mentioned The Lion In Love, let's have another quick blast of Sleuth whilst we're here. They're doing a neat line in unusual merchandise at the moment...

 

Breaking into the film industry

Heaven forbid that this should turn into one of those blogs that simply become repositories for YouTube videos (might as well get a Tumblr if that were the case - and I'm sure I've said exactly that before... humour me for I am Of That Age) BUT, this video is one that I had a hand in. See that title sequence? That was me that was. I'm in the credits and everything.

And since we're posting YouTube vids, here's another one by the fab Meat Bingo, for the equally fab Chris T-T.