Dr Albert Hofmann 1906-2008

Swiss chemist Dr Albert Hofmann has died aged 102. He was most renowned for his discovery and synthesis of lysergic acid diethylamide, better known as LSD. He first took the drug by accident in 1943 when some got on his fingers.
He’d always intended that the drug was used to help treat psychiatric disorders, and was [...]

Beggars Banquet to close Beggars Banquet

Who knows the workings of the corporate mind. The Beggars group has decided to close its titular label along with Too Pure and shift all the bands on to 4AD. At the end of the day it makes bugger all difference (although it might piss off the 4AD completists), but it does seem a bizarre [...]

Album: PORTISHEAD – Third (Island 1764013 2008)

To be honest, I’d got heartily sick of reading about this. It’s not going to stop me chipping in with my two penn’orth, though! If you’ve just returned from a lengthy trip to outer space you may not be aware that Portishead are back with their first album in eleven years. It’s been lauded to [...]

Humphrey Lyttleton 1921-2008

I was absolutely gutted to hear earlier that Humphrey Lyttleton died today, aged 86. He was not just an English jazz legend, but a phenomenal broadcaster. I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, the desperately silly panel game that he hosted for 37 years, was still the funniest thing on radio. And Humph, in his role [...]

Gig: The Vaselines / Emma Pollock (Glasgow, Mono, 24/4/2008)

Led Zeppelin at the O2? Pink Floyd at Live8? Pah!
Tonight at Mono saw a one-off reunion of indie legends the Vaselines. It was all in aid of a charity helping orphans in Malawi which Frances McKee’s sister is involved with. And it was all very hush-hush, billed simply as Emma Pollock, Eugene Kelly and Frances [...]

Bebe Barron 1925-2008

Electronic music pioneer Bebe Barron died on April 20th aged 82. She was best known for the score to the sci-fi classic The Forbidden Planet which she wrote with her husband Louis. Notoriously, this brought the couple into conflict with the American Federation of Musicians. Since they weren’t members, the union forced MGM to change [...]

Album: múm – Go Go Smear The Poison Ivy (Fat Cat FATCD46 2007)

I’ve always had a slightly ambivalent attitude to múm. This was partly due to Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir’s kindergarten vocals, but also the band’s forays into cloying toyshop tweeness. At their best, though, the sweetness carried just enough of an undercurrent of darkness to work.
With Kristín off in search of fame and fortune as a solo [...]

Song of the day: SANDY DENNY – Solo (1973)

It was 30 years ago today that Sandy Denny died following a fall at her parents’ home. I’m not going to write some great, long, mournful eulogy, but she remains my favourite English singer bar none.
The video was shot by a fan, and is of pretty ropy quality. The sound is pretty good, though, and the [...]