Artist of the Month of September- Catherine Elms

The first featured artist of the month on "New Music New Talent" was the rather fantastic Catherine Elms.
The first time I heard her music I immediately thought of Tori Amos and that she wa sone of the best unsigned artists I've heard this year.
She has a great voice and plays piano as a "punk rock" instrument, and is a feminist too!
Catherine recenlty made her first EP "Not Sorry" which I am very proud to own. You can hear Amanda Palmer influences as well as Tori Amos on there.
The EP is only £3 and is worth every penny, so I highly recommend that you go and buy it on her website http://www.catherineelms.co.uk

Playlists

New Music New Talent- friday 25th Sept
The Fuseliers - Days
Rocket - I Wanna Luv You
Living For Today - Never Re-Do Love
Johnny and the Mullets - Baby Eyes
PROPELLER - WHISKEY & STRIPPERS
Nephu Huzz - Nurse! Nurse!
Louise Du Toit - Just Love
Red Carpet Rats - Going To Hell
Working Class Heroes - The End
Dirty Fairies - Get High (TT UAD Mix)
The Auteur- Hey Watch This
Catherine Elms - I Should
Johnny Cooper - Bring Me Down
Yes Miss, No Miss - Taking Over
- Loz Jones - Idiot Room

Pigtails and Army Boots Sunday 27th Sept
Yazoo - Don't Go
Martha Reeves & The Vandellas - Dancing In The Street
Lily Allen - Not Fair (Clean Radio Edit)
7 Worlds Collide with KT Tunstall - Hazel Black
The Hot Puppies - Green Eye Liner
Damone - Stabbed In The Heart
Tori Amos - 500 Miles
Mark Ronson Feat. Santo Gold - Pretty Green
Chicks On Speed - Plastic Surgery
CSS - Music Is My Hot Hot Sex
Florence And The Machine - Drumming Song (Acoustic Version)
Smoke Fairies - Sunshine (Radio Edit)
Spinnerette - The Walking Dead
Karen O And The Kids - All Is Love
Blondie - Heart Of Glass
Eurythmics - There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart)
The Dead Weather - Hang You From The Heavens
Girlschool - Demolition Boys
Metalchicks - We Are The Warriors
Heart - Barracuda
Lita Ford - Crave Master
Vixen - Edge Of A Broken Heart
Janis Joplin - Piece Of My Heart
Bonnie Tyler - Total Eclipse Of The Heart
A Brokeheart Pro - Kitten Next Door
Heather Nova - Heart And Shoulder
Dolly Parton - 9 To 5
Kay Hanley - Lust For Life

Music in Gaming

While doing research for Pigtails and Army Boots yesterday, I came across this game
Brutal Legend. A game that stars Jack Black as a roadie who is an expert on heavy metal music. he has a collapse and somehow ends up in a world where all the heavy metal album covers come to life. As if that didn't sound good enough- Lita Ford, Lemmy from Motorhead and Rob Halford also appear in the game! Mike and I have been talking about getting an XBox, and I think this might have just swung it!

Anyway, it got me thinking about the role of music in gaming. It's much more than it ever used to be, when it once wa sonly really music/dj software on p.c's mainly, it's now branched into a serious moneyspinner for companies like Activision.

I think it all began with the "Dancemat" phenomenon. It started off in the arcades, you could go on a machine and dance in time by following the arrows on the screen. It got so popular that they made console games of it, so everyone could enjoy dancemats in their living rooms.

Then of course, we have the karaoke games such as "Singstar" and "Lips". A step forward from a karaoke machine, (for a start it's the proper track that plays normally and not some plinky plonky cover!) you can plug in your microphone and the screen will tell you if you're hitting those notes! (at least on singstar, I've never played Lips)

Finally, probably the biggest success of music in gaming is the Guitar Hero/Rock Band franchises. Games where you could at least pretend to be able to play an instrument and be a rock god/dess. Some musical people claim that it's a bad thing, and puts people off wanting to play a real guitar, but personally I disagree. For one, any intelligent person knows that they way you play these fake instuments is not in anyway alike to how you would play the real thing. For another, I think it more likely encourages people to want to learn to play the real thing. And also for someone that is more into games than music, this might be a gateway to becoming a fan of rock music! Unsigned bands have been featured in these type of games meaning a massive exposure which can only be a positive thing!

Gaming and music have not always sat in harmony side by side, but now I think they are merging more and more, especially with this new game Brutal Legend featuring metal music in such a big way.

Personally I love Singstar and Guitar Hero, I'm not a huge gamer but I play on these, and find them great for socialising as well!
So music and gaming? A big thumbs up from me!

This weekend's playlists

New Music New Talent 18th Sept
The Beatroots - Ignorant
Lunic - Him
I Alexander - Kittens & Charmers
Blameshift - War Within
The Kiara Elles - Odio
Lucid Nation - Kindred
Surfquake - Surf & Destroy
Voodoo Johnson- Blow
The Duel - The Duel
Catherine Elms- Powerless (Artist of the Month)
Miss Cosmos - Paper Twin
The Tumbledryer Babies - Tell Me What To Do
Lola Dutronic - Brigitte Bardot

Pigtails 20th Sept
Ace Of Base - The Sign
Le Tigre - Don't Drink Poison
Goldfrapp - Happiness
Emiliana Torrini - Me And Armini (Simone Lombardi Mix)
Martha & The Muffins - Echo Beach
The Donnas - Party Action
Hole - Celebrity Skin
Daisy Grenades - Broken Record (Rob's mix)
Pat Benatar - Heartbreaker
Rilo Kiley - The Moneymaker
Regina Spektor - Better
Siouxsie & The Banshees - Hong Kong Garden
The Flying Lizards - Money
Remi Nicole - Rock N Roll
Metric - Monster Hospital
Sleater-Kinney - One Beat
The Bangles - Walk Like An Egyptian
Shakespear's Sister - Stay
The Noisettes - Don't Give Up
Suzi Quatro - Can The Can
The Creepshow - Creatures Of The Night
Skunk Anansie - Charity
Melissa Auf der Maur - Taste You
Guano Apes - Open Your Eyes
Tom Tom Club - Wordy Rappinghood
4 Non Blondes - What's Up
X-Ray Spex - The Day The World Turned Day-Glo
Bikini Kill - Rebel Girl
Hazard County Girls - Red Light
Sohodolls - Prince Harry
Alanis Morissette - Sister Blister
Robots In Disguise - You Really Got Me

Playlist Update

haven't put any playlists for a few weeks, so here they are...

Sunday 13th Sept- Pigtails and Army Boots
Belinda Carlisle - Heaven Is A Place On Earth
Elastica - Connection
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Date With The Night
Imani Coppola - Legend Of A Cowgirl
Little Boots - New In Town
Polly And The Billets Doux - Follow My Feet!
Gossip - Love Long Distance
New Young Pony Club - Get Dancey
Betty Power - New Best Friend
Biork - Declare Independence
Ladyhawke - Dusk Till Dawn
Berlin Brides - Rejection Junkie
Lulu And The Lampshades - Feet To The Sky
Cerys Matthews - Arlington Way
The Pretenders - Don't Get Me Wrong
Kasms - Don't Hit The Bottom
Florence & The Machine - Kiss With A Fist
The Dollyrots - Brand New Key
We Start Fires - Strut
Flyleaf - Again
Within Temptation - The Truth Beneath the Rose
Bat For Lashes - Sleep Alone
Amanda Palmer - Runs In the Family
Polly Scattergood - Other Too Endless (Single Version)
Air - Sing Sang Sung
The Slits - Typical Girls
An Experiment On A Bird In The Air Pump - Lights Out
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts - The Only Good Thing (You Ever Said Was Goodbye)
Kate Bush - Hounds Of Love
Patti Smith - Smells Like Teen Spirit


Friday 11th Sept- New Music New Talent
Illegitimate Sons of the King - Jack's Trousers
Quiet Company - It's Better to Spend Money Like There's No Tomorrow Than Spend Tonight Like There's No Money
Restruct - Alcohol
Moth Complex - Tied up
Berlin Brides - Off The Rack
Kasms - Don't Hit The Bottom
An Experiment On A Bird In The Air Pump - Saints
Stephen DP - As The Years
BODYMACHINE! - Littlethings
Louise Le Gry - Aeroplanes
Amy Hendrickson and The Prime Directive - Gold Dust Man
Aaron Carey - The Scene
Jennifer Justice and The Trilogy Sun - The Final Stand

Sunday 6th Sept- Pigtails and Army Boots
The Supremes - Baby Love
Mother Mother - Touch Up
Paramore - Crushcrushcrush
An Experiment On A Bird In The Air Pump - Saints
The Slits - Typical Girls
Ipso Facto - Circle Of Fifths
Lita Ford - Kiss Me Deadly
Marina & The Diamonds - I Am Not A Robot
Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - I Hate Myself For Loving You
Metric - Handshakes
The Dead Weather - Treat Me Like Your Mother
No Doubt - Hey Baby
Sneaker Pimps - 6 Underground (Nellee Hooper Remix)
Transvision Vamp - Baby I Don't Care
KT Tunstall - Hold On
Jennifer Paige - Crush
Imelda May - Big Bad Handsome Man (Radio Edit)
The Long Blondes - Fulwood Babylon
Scarling. - Baby Dracula
Rolo Tomassi - I love Turbulence
Blood Red Shoes - ADHD
Nightwish - Amaranth
Siouxsie & The Banshees - Spellbound
Trash Monroe - IDoll
Dirty Love - Baby You Suck
Atomic Blonde - Babydoll (censored)
Devilish Presley - Hammer Horror Glamour
Kate Bush - Hounds Of Love
Alisha's Attic - Air We Breathe
Amanda Palmer - Strength Through Music
Lily Allen - Don't Get Me Wrong


Friday 4th Sept- New Music New Talent
Daisy Grenades - Broken Record (Rob's mix)
CB6 - Like a Ship Over Black Seas
I'm Chinese - Till It Burns
Soliss - Yeah Yeah Yeah
New Nobility - Galactic
Mr. Crimp - Perfect Words (Woohooo)
Winter - Artificial Love
Catherine Elms - Drowning- ARTIST OF THE MONTH
Rounds - A Party on a Beach
The Amsterdams - She's Automatic
Graham McCullough - Aint Love Cruel
Misnomer - Start the Machine Up
The Morning Orchestra - Petal On Your Shoe
Jointpop - Outlaw

a few new features in each show- New Music New Talent now has an Artist of the Month feature, the artist for September being the very talented Tori Amos- esque Catherine Elms (www.catherineelms.com) if you know a band that deserves to be artist of the month (or even nominate yourself) and have 4 songs that can be played on the show, please email me dj.moonlight@mtjr.co.uk explaning why you/they ought to be artist of the month. If the band is local to me I'll most likely arrange an interview too :)

Pigtails and Army Boots now also includes feminist related news and items of interest, and also once again includes unsigned/indie label artists, but ONLY if it fits into the Pigtails mould (in other words not everything that makes it onto NMNT will go on Pigtails). I'll particuarly pick grrrls that truly rock! And of course, we still have the cover song at the end :)

Amanda Palmer @ Union Chapel, Inslington, London - Saturday 12th Sept

Funny, it was this time of year last time when I saw Amanda Palmer live for the first time (last year) at the KOKO in Camden.
Last year I went mainly on a friend's recommendation, only really knowing a few Dresden Dolls songs at the time.
The day after that gig, I went and bought her solo album and have loved her music and been reading her blog/twitter etc ever since! So anyway, I thought that even though I really enjoyed it last time, I thought this time would be even better as I would know a lot more of her music. It turned out to be a completely different experience.

I must talk about the queue first though, as that was a good part of the day in itself. My friends and I wanted to make sure we got good seats as the venue is tiny (it's in a real working church) so we got in the queue quite early. While we were there, there was a man right next to us painted black with the words "collecting sins" on his chest. He had a little box and bits of paper people could write their sins on. Don't know what happened to the sins after though...

There was also puppets, and ukes everywhere! I really think I am going to take the plunge and buy one. I can't play an instrument, but would love to learn.

Then a man with a piano on a bike appeared! He was riding along and playing, a little while later a woman came to join him and sang along. THEN! first I glimpsed Neil Gaiman so was manically trying to take a photo, promptly followed by Amanda Palmer, who took over from the piano guy! Typical it was just as we could finally get in, so we hardly saw any of her impromptu performance.

The support band was Polly Scattergood. She had a very good voice but some of her songs were a bit poppy, and I wasn't sure about some of her lyrics- "I've got a dog, I've got a gun, I'm living in London now.." what was that all about?!

Amanda Palmer came on about half hour or so later after much cheering from the audience. She started by singing a song without any music, before taking off her coat to reveal a stunning stripy dress and sitting at the piano to play "Astrounaunt" followed by "Ambersand" both from her solo album.

The show was much more serious than the KOKO show, very stripped down and personal. The most amusing parts were Neil Gaiman (he was only a few pews in front of us)!!! singing a filthy hymn, and Polly Scattergood appearing on the balcony to sing "Puff the Magic Dragon."

There were "Ask Amanda" sessions scattered throughout (there was a box on the merch stall) and an artist was painting through the show, the painting got auctioned towards the end of the show.

I can't find the setlist anywhere, but it was mainly the slower songs off her solo album (I was quite disappointed about no guitar hero or leeds united, and no uke)! and older Dresden Dolls songs and the highlights for me were Oasis with Polly Scattergood's band and "Runs in the Family".

Even though my favourite AFP songs are the more upbeat songs, and in a way I prefered the last gig I saw, I was still entralled, the way she plays the piano and her voice is so amazing. She just comes across so lovely as well, I feel like her know her personally from reading all her stuff online. I was so tempted to go onto the stage and just give her a hug! Luckily I wasn't drunk, haha (there is a bar but not allowed to take drinks into the church part).

All in all, another fantastic gig, just very different. Can't wait for the next time :)

Offset Festival

On Friday night, Mike and I dug out our tent and blew the dust off as it hadn't been used since Reading 2004.

This year we went along to the young, new (it was the second year) Offset Festival which takes place in Hainult Forest in Essex, about a 45 minute drive away from where we live. Also, a much cheaper festival at only £45 for a weekend camping ticket, it seemed worthwhile despite not knowing that many bands, although The Slits being there was also a big deal for me!

Anyway we set off about 10am on Saturday, and arrived at the site about 11, the first thing we did was go to the campsite that didn't seem very big (but got expanded through the day) and set up our tents. Then it was time to crack open the beers and the rum!

We went into the arena area in the early afternoon, we were quite suprised about the security, they frisked you everytime you went in! We weren't allowed to take any alcohol in with us.

The first thing we did was buy some food, luckily for us and RxKitten, there was plenty of vegan food available. It was still pricey (as is all festival food) but didn't seem so bad when we realised the portions were massive! The first thing we had was from the Leon Lewis veggie stall, I had a very tasty chickpea curry.

We went by the main stage and the first band we watched was the female fronted An Experiment on A Bird in the Air Pump, which actually set the tone for the day, as you will read, most of the bands I saw on Saturday were female fronted!

We hung around after them to see KASMS who were amazing. I would defintley recommend them for fans of riot grrrl. The singer was also completely mental, throwing herself around the stage and trying to climb up the poles.

We all went for a bit of a look around, then when trying to find Rxkittens boyfriend we went into the Guitar hero stage where we saw a band called Berlin brides who were awesome. They were from Athens and we even got given a demo after, so expect to hear them on MTJR!

After them, Mike and I stayed at the Guitar Hero: New Bands stage to see The Duloks, the name rang a bell, I was certain I had them on MySpace friends list (I was right)! Really glad we did, as they were also awesome. All female nutters that wear gym outfits (apparently they first performed at a fancy dress party and the costumes stuck ever since). They were very punky, fun, a bit like Le Tigre, and also hilarious. They interacted with the audience loads, and joked about the Offset crew people (that they all looked like they were from a TopShop advert- which they did) amongst other things. They also did a funny song called Bad Vegetarian.

We went back to the tents for more drinks and to have a bit of a break, before going to see Bombay Bicycle Club on the main stage, the first band of the day not to be female fronted! I quite enjoyed them too.

After that was The Futureheads, we didn't see the whole set as we had something to eat (veggie chili and refried bean wraps- messy but good)! and popped our head in the Hardcore tent I wasn't too entralled by that, so we went and watched the rest of The Futureheads just around the side of the stage, where we could see Rxkitten's boyfriend Dave and our friend Paul had somehow sneaked themselves backstage and into the press pit! We even witnessed Dave dancing to them, despite being known as "Heavy Metal Dave"... The Futureheads finished with their cover of Hounds of Love and it was pretty brilliant actually.

Then we stayed right at the front ready for The Slits, inbetween the djs on the mainstage were playing awesome music like Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Elastica, so we had a bit of a boogie! Then we saw Dave and Paul get kicked out from backstage- oops! So they came and joined us to watch The Slits.

The Slits were of course, my favourite band of the whole weekend, they sounded awesome, and were so funny! Girls we have make our "poon poon" happy! lol. At one point they invited two girls up to the stage but a whole load actually joined them, people were climbing over the barrier to join, I was really tempted but the barrier was quite high and I was drunk so it wasn't going to happen. Soon the security kicked them all out. It was great to watch! I can't wait for their new album.

Sunday we didn't see as many bands, and was much more chilled out. We went and had another look around the stalls, there was a vintage clothing stall where Rxkitten bought a few things and I got a dress for £10 that I'm going to wear for the Amanda Palmer gig I'm going to next weekend, as well as some earrings!

Band wise, the first one we saw were Shrag, who were male and female fronted and were quite good.

We went to the Hardcore stage to see Kong, who were bloody scary with their weird facepaint and masks, and weren't really Mike and I's thing at all, so we had a wander and ended up seeing a band called brontosaurus chorus on the new bands stage who had all sorts of instruments including violins and sounded a bit ska- ish as well.

Then we went to another stage to see someone called No Bra, who really doesn't wear a bra (in fact no top on at all), she was meant to sound a bit like Peaches but she sounded awful so we all ended up leaving, as did quite a few others sitting in that tent.

Later on in the day we visited the hardcore tent again for Rolo Tomassi, the tent was getting packed so Mike and I stayed just on the edge. Was so suprised that the female singer is so small, as she has a proper heavy metal voice! It wasn't our thing either though so went away AGAIN and this time had a look in each tent and ended up by the main stage where we caught the end of Clinic, who sounded a bit like Placebo, was a bit disappointing that we missed most of their set.

The final band we actually watched were the Horrors, we watched about half of it, but personally I can't get into them, so ended up going back to the tent. Although I am told they had a lot of sound problems and threw a hissy fit, so wasn't their finest hour in any case.

To sum up, I thought it was a great festival even though I didn't enjoy as many bands on Sunday, the atmosphere was much more relaxed than reading, there was no fires allowed so there was no trouble whatsoever in the campsite. I'm defintley planning to go again next year.
Tip though, bring a lot of cash, as there was no cashpoint on site (despite it saying so on the website) it was quite a way off the site to get to one,. Toilets a lot cleaner than other festivals, food good, and vegan food easily available. Oh and security most of the time was pretty high, I got frisked almost every time I went into the arena, so you won't sneak alcohol in that easily!