GOD IS IN THE CD’, an Underground Compilation of UK music in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support is released on the 13th of November 2006!!
GIITTV (www.godisinthetvzine.co.uk) the music and culture webzine is three years old: to celebrate this, and our recent ‘facelift’ we decided to put together a compilation of unsigned and smaller label acts.
"(GIITTV Zine) is more pretentious than a weekend spent truffle picking with Brett Anderson"- The Fly
"GIITTV is a cultural revolution in a webzine."-MusicTouristBoard
The eighteen tracks of GIITCD reflect a slice of the brilliant blend of spoken word, indie, art rock, alternative and punk, which exists below the mainstream in this country. Sick and tired of being force-fed over produced, trendy, lifeless sounding bands, this is our small but heartfelt antidote to that. Raw, vital, and varied. It also significantly reflects the thriving unsigned and small label reviews section that has been at the core of our webzine, over the last 3 years. Supporting underground and emerging unsigned talent, where others have failed (we were one of the first zines’ to review the Arctic Monkeys’ demo, and interview the Long Blondes). We have been staunch supporters of indie fringe bands like Luxembourg and Nebraska both of whom are releasing albums shortly, and who we are sure you will be hearing more of in future.
The CD you hold in your warm hands was only made possible by the artists and bands financial contributions and musical efforts combined, it truly a is team effort. GITTCD kicks off with the searing, original, street poetry of Leeds' Penny Broadhurst, then goes to the dance floor with The Swear's superbly ironic "Disco Bitch", before diving down into your sub consciousness with the sensitive and timeless indie of former ‘Angular Records’ act Gifthorse.
GIITCD also features up and coming bands like the Donde Stars, Korova, and the Sailplanes. The beguiling sound of One Little Indian signing Rose Kemp. Plus unreleased exclusives from the likes of The International Karate Plus, Villette, Captain Polaroid, and Rhesus. The record pivots on the building atmospherics of Nakeru's "Long Walks on the Beach" and the dirty off the wall zoo rock sounds of The Empty Vessels' "Sex Disco." Before finishing strong with Bronz Rat signings the Gemma Ray Ritual, Small Town America favourites Akira, and the uncompromising sound of Salvo.
Any profits made will go to Macmillan Cancer Support. Please see the inlay sleeve for full details on the charitable element of this compilation. Click the button below, the compilation costs five pounds, a bargain for 18 quality tracks.
I've put up links to this page from our website, LJ, myspace etc. Could you put the paypal button near the top of the page so it's easier to see? It would also be good to display the price on the page so people know how much they're paying (and what a bargain it is for 18 great tracks).
I've noticed huge Smiths influences, including "This Charming Man" in The Shake's track, and the lyric 'disused railway line' in Psychotic Reaction, not to mention the morrissey sound a like singer of Gifthorse. It's all quite good though. I like Nakeru and Korova at the moment, and Rose Kemp.
It's just occurred to me that this page could do with a shorter and more memorable permalink. Can Tim set up a rewrite rule?
The weird thing about "It's A Small Town" is that although it's consciously influenced by The Smiths, Alex was actually trying to imitate the imagery from "Still Ill" and wasn't thinking about "These Things Take Time", but came out with the same line anyway.
Yeah good point. Although we did extended that submission deadline a bit more into 2006...I don't care anyway....Never at any stage did we say this was a cd of entirely new music.Ideally it would have been out earlier too but these things are sent to try us.
Another review in, trakmarx, in fairness they are a punk fanzine, so I guess they aren't going to like all of it. Anyway its the compos first slating. Its a well written one though:
V/A - “God Is In The CD” (God Is In The TV)
Gods Is In The TV zine go all serious on us in their bid for immortality - by doing a lot of work for charidy (wonder whether they like to talk about it that much?)! Thankfully, they’ve elected to donate all proceeds from this compilation to the Macmillan Cancer Support, an organisation many of us could well patronise before we slip off this mortal coil, so kudos where kudos is due. Respect. Right, that’s the patronage out of the way, what about the music?
Things get off to an inauspicious start with the ill-advised Penny Broadhurst – formerly of Chalmers, Warrington & Broadhurst, the solicitors, judging by the plumy tones of her rhymes on “Rhythm Rebel” – who attempts what can only be described as an Eminem-style jam with hilarious results – making Yes Boss sound like Outkast! The Swear fare little better: their ship jumping from former home, Angular, smacks of bargain basement desperation & the transfer window shattering capabilities of “Disco Bitch” aren’t that effective. Gifthorse, on the other hand, are worth looking in the mouth. Their sprightly “A Night In The Arms Of A Stranger” offers slight relief from the mediocrity on hand elsewhere. Villette, meanwhile, ramp up the tempo for their guitar-fueled romp entitled “Drama Girl”. We’ve heard it all before, of course, but that doesn’t stop it being any the less engaging. Donde Stars up the ante slightly with their emotionally drenched softcore marinated in pathos (“You Can Keep The Kids”) that reminds me of very early Radiohead (before they got the gift token’s for Electronica World Of Keyboards of Oxford). The International Karate Plus, on the other hand, love Pavement so much they have decided to dedicate their entire careers to emulating (i.e. – copying) their heroes. Ah, bless. Korova – not to be confused with Korova Milk Bar – or any of the other sad saps who’ve attempted to reference Clockwork Orange via their music in the last 40 years – are so nondescript it really is impossible to write anything about them whatsoever. The Sailplanes feature yet another female vocalist with an awful voice – there seems to be a plethora of them right now. Does this have anything to do with the mysterious cult of Poshoes In Rock? I don’t know. Ask the NME. But I don’t know the NME - & neither do you, theatre!
The Sailplanes suck chunks. The Shake (“Loyal Union”) pick proceedings up by the scruff of the neck & - err – carry on where The Sailplanes left off. More totally inane ‘will-this-do’ LCD rock-by-numbers by people with shiney new guitars & no receipts. Nakeru – terrible fucking name, kids, are you sure that’s all the effort your music deserves? – confound beyond belief with a love of Prefab Sprout, a snappy tune, intelligent lyrics (in present company, unique in itself) & dextrous musicianship. Surely your art is worth more than Nakeru? Right, this is too much – I need a spliff, a lie down & a shot of rye before I can continue any further with this painful procedure. Back in 5-minutes. Talk amongst yourselves!
Fuck! That’s better. Are you still here? Wake up! It’s time for your nap! Ahaaah! Next up are Empty Vessels – a combo who are no strangers to the pages of trakMARX - & one we’ve been quietly monitoring these past few months. Put simply, “Sex Disco” is their best effort yet - & Empty Vessels are the best thing on “God Is In The CD”. There, put that in your crack pipe & smoke it!
Meanwhile, back at the track-listing, Captain Polaroid & Rose Kemp somehow conspire to take the compilation even lower that it’s gone before with “An Accurate Portrayal” & the excruciating “Golden Veins” (a song that, sadly, has nothing to do with Boris). The Psychotic Reaction fail to match the inspired Magpie tendencies of their nomenclature with the insipid & truly dire “It’s A Small Town” (you don’t say?). Rhesus monkey about with dulcet arpeggio’s before bursting into a power-chord-constructed chorus on “Performance”, doing for college rock exactly what Jagger did for acting in “Performance”. Gemma Ray Ritual don’t let their inability to spell Gamma get them down in their pursuit of forging a Fleetwood Mac for the noughties. Akira – with or without The Don – I couldn’t be sure – pop up to weird-out the mums & dads waiting in the forward area people carrier park where they patiently wait to roadie their offspring’s newly subsidised Gibsons, Fenders & Rickenbackers back to their 4-storey townhouses. There’s still time for Salvo to break into the recording studio after everyone’s gone home to guerrilla deposit “Customs” at P18 - honestly believing they’ve contributed to a mid-80s anarcho-punk-syndicate comp by stealth alone.
I love fanzines (I write for one). I love independent compilations (I’ve released enough in my time). I live on the underground (not literally, you understand, those Rail Police are bastards!) – but “God Is In The CD” is a terrible way to ruin what was a perfectly good fanzine. Know your station, gouger nation! www.godisinthetvzine.co.uk
John Lenin – tMx 27 – 11/06
Tis a bit strange he's positive about some of the tracks, yet he's ultra dismissive of others, what puzzles me most is why he spent so long having a pop at the record when the positive reviews he wrote are quite short. I don't think he listened to it more than once.
bloodflowerbill wrote: Tis a bit strange he's positive about some of the tracks, yet he's ultra dismissive of others, what puzzles me most is why he spent so long having a pop at the record when the positive reviews he wrote are quite short. I don't think he listened to it more than once.
Well I love Stacey's voice. If The Sailplanes suck chunks, then sucking chunks must be something really good and I want to do it as well.
"The Psychotic Reaction fail to match the inspired Magpie tendencies of their nomenclature with the insipid & truly dire “It’s A Small Town” (you don’t say?)." We might well put that on our myspace. We've had much worse.
All useful intelligence anyway, as I've never tried sending anything to Trakmarx.
(In view of developments elsewhere it might not be safe to criticise him for only listening once.)
There is always truth in a rumour.. they did get a double page spread in the NME because of it though
On a nice note, I heard that Barnet has got a really good voice.. this was before his new band.
I think it was a discussion slagging off martins vocal skills..
Did you send this compilation to everyone ever, Bill, or specific journos you think are going to like it? I say that because I only engage in the latter practice on the whole and the only time it has backfired is when the journo who was going to review it ended up passing on the CD to somebody else who didn't even listen to the CD. I also say this because the Trakmarx review - they were never going to like the comp and I'm not sure why you have reposted such a negative review in full on a website that is meant to PROMOTE the CD.
I am amused by Gavin's comment re: the Arctic Monkeys thing. If the reviewer a) writes that badly and b) has such poor taste I'm rather glad that I was slated. Not all praise is worthwhile.
Well not really, it was more the latter, I tried to focuss on publications I thought might like it.
I sent out about 20 to initial sites/mags that I know, and specific writers I thought may be interested. Trakmarx had liked a few of the bands on the comp before including Empty Vessels and Salvo.So I thought it was worth a go even though, yes they are known as more of a "punk" zine, so I guess in retrospect your right it was inevitable they would slate the indie/art rock type stuff on there. In fairness that was the worst review we've had and it was so funny I thought it needed posting in terms of contrast, anyway it wasn't all negative and any review at all(hear that DIS!!) sometimes is better than no review when it comes to promotion.
Anyway out of the reviews we've only had one negative one, Maps, HighVoltage, and Artrocker liked it and they are probably the publication with the biggest readership out of the ones who covered it.
Reminder:
It would be so funny to see video of former Villette members reading a review which says they're the best thing since the Arctic Monkeys. I can only imagine that they'd be thoroughly disgusted.
I sent out a couple of promo copies but so far the lazy bastards haven't got round to reviewing it. Haven't Lobster Quadrille reviewed it yet? I heard they were going to ages ago.
Are there any plans to get it in shops, like Rough Trade, or Fopp?
Bill, you probably mean Dirty Zine? I'd like to see a review from Powpowpow, SoundsXP and DiS, but then we'd be getting into a protracted discussion of inter-zine politics which wouldn't do anyone any good. Suffice to say, not everyone is on the same side no matter what they might claim.
In all honesty, I'd like to see the GIITTV compilation put to bed, lessons learnt, but unfortunately Bill probably has several hundred passing for furniture at his place.
Yes dirty. Yeah none of those three did one.... At the end of the day there is only so much you can push these things. But I'd like to sell a few more, so if anyone wants one;) the buttons above!
It served a purpose, and there are things we can improve on for next time...
I am amused by Gavin's comment re: the Arctic Monkeys thing. If the reviewer a) writes that badly and b) has such poor taste I'm rather glad that I was slated. Not all praise is worthwhile.
Poorly would be a better choice of word in my opinion. I won't argue this point because I accept my massive shortcomings as a writer.
However, your criticism of my musical taste based upon my praising of 'I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor' comes as a surprise considering your own preferences. Last FM is a helpful tool. I would have thought that the prowess for writing indie pop/rock songs displayed on that track would have been recognised by someone by someone who likes McFly, Pulp and The Libertines. Alas it seems no.
If I can give some advice it would be that future releases might do well to be shorter.
1) That track is 3 years old, I don't like it anymore and it doesn't remotely represent what I sound like these days. I was pushing for an early release for this compilation to get it buried and out of the way; Bill was not in a position to prevent its delayed eventual release.
2) Villette are one of the most average bands I have ever seen, made worse by their preening onstage. They are no better on record. It is to them I that was referring when I spoke of poor taste.
3) My incredulity at the Arctic Monkeys comment is caused by the facts that a) they are probably the last band to whom Villette would choose comparison and b) my disbelief that 'I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor' would hook anyone above the age of 17. It's a fun little pop song, like those churned out by my beloved McFly, that has been blown out of all proportion and is far from astounding. In ten years' time will anyone call it a classic anywhere but the indie disco? No.
4) My Last.fm charts reflect only what I listen to on my iPod and nearly everything on my iPod is stuff I have chosen to download or have been sent for review rather than things I have bought, a few favourites aside. The Arctic Monkeys are on said iPod, but I tired of their schtick quickly. I listen to stuff I have bought on a proper stereo. My tastes are far less limited than that profile would show. I couldn't give a flying fuck for indie. I do not consider myself to be an indie kid. Maybe back in 1995.
To clarify, I accept that people might be hooked in by that song but not that it would drive them to such rapturous levels of praise. I kind of think of AM as being a lot like Oasis, with better lyrics but a poorer vocalist. Have they more than two albums in them?
Sticking up for Villette a little bit, I agree they weren't that brilliant live, and by no means lived up to their look or their demos, but I quite liked what they were doing. Of course not everyone's going to like everything on the CD, it was afterall a compilation with many differing styles and acts, but I think they like others had potential and I guess that's what these compilations are all about.
It was a shame it took so long to come out, as many of the bands had moved on, but that was mainly for technical reasons, at the end of the day its served its purpose to an extent which was to get a bit of exposure for the site, and the bands involved, and to mark the fact that GIITTV had been around for three years with very little backing, doing it DIY if you like. It is by no means a definitive statement of GIITTV over the last four years(although it is some kind of testament) to have that the likes of Luxembourg, Nebraska, Bridge Gang and a plethora of others would have had to have been involved until the CDs completion.(all were involved in discussions surrouding this compiltion, and other bands were unable to do it because of label/finanancial restrictions). I just hope that people can see that we didn't do something half arsed, me and Mark worked bloody hard for over a year, with the bands, on the legal matters and to produce a good design/cd/ and tracklisting, which I believe it is. Of course you learn from your mistakes, and if we ever did something like this again I would hope GIITTV was in a better financial postion, and with the new found experience to produce and promote something like this with a quicker turnaround.
A lot more people have heard of GIITTV since the comp and the gigs, so it's certainly done its job in that respect, and it certainly isn't half-arsed. The new site design is gorgeous too.
The first time you have a go at something it always takes longer and you do indeed learn from your mistakes (argh, it took Blue Bank over 6 months to come out and I've learned LOADS from that experience). Plus I did think at one point you and Mark were cursed - legal stuff, artwork bloke, bands splitting, the stuff with the wrong tracklisting being printed. I don't think people realise what a ballache it all is if you don't have shitloads of money and the authority to stamp on people's heads when getting stuff done.
At the end of the day no reviewer is going to like 100% of a compilation album, in the same way a reviewer doesn't like particular tracks on an album. To get reviews is difficult, and the actual reviews have always included a positive bit about one or more bands.
Penny I wouldn't get so hung up on your track being an old one. I know it may be frustrating for you as an artist, as most artists think their new stuff is the best. But whether people like it or not (and there were reviews who did) it is something different that will divide people, and a good choice of opener. There are no halfways with that track, and perhaps your music in general, people will love it or loathe it, and that is a good, daring etc.
I think GIITTV prides itself on honesty, and showing all reviews of the compo gives a good overall feel to people who can make thier own minds up. The CD is a tool which we can use over a long period of time to sell at events and promote the parties involved.
"God Is In The CD: An Underground compilation.
Rose Kemp, Rhesus, The International Karate Plus, Akira, The Sailplanes and more
GIITTV (www.godisinthetvzine.co.uk) the music and culture webzine is three years old: to celebrate this, and their recent 'facelift', they decided to put together a compilation of unsigned and smaller label acts.
To be honest I don't always enjoy reviewing compilations, they too often feature one or two decent tracks with the rest being filler, local bands eager to get in on the action with very little room for quality control.
I'm glad to say that this compilation has proved me wrong.
Yes the CD does have its star turns - names you may already heard of include Rose Kemp, Rhesus, Korova and Akira. But, if you have the patience, you will come upon something new and exciting. In fact you don't have to go far; first track 'Rhythm Rebel' by Penny Broadhurst is a fantastic, atmospheric slice of female fronted hip-hop, a bit like The Streets or Plan B but consistently and intelligently from a woman's point of view. And with a more powerful backing track. A definite highlight, a definite discovery.
Other tracks I'll want to listen to again are The Swear's Disco Bitch, whose girl - boy vocals combined with punky DIY guitars remind me of mid 90s bands like Disco Pistol and Age Baby, Donde Star's "You Can Keep the Kids" which somehow manages to be both lo-fi and epic stadium pop-rock at the same time, Korova's frantic and feedback sodden "Bad Poetry", the loopy electronica of Akira's "Atom" and the urgently spiky pop punk finale of "Customs" by Salvo.
The more I listen to this, the more I realise that it is remarkable for its type, in that it is not stuffed with dodgy bands just wanting to get on a CD and happily included by a compiler eager to stuff on as many sounds on as possible, regardless of quality. It happens, believe me, I've done it. So hats off to Bill and the team for that, and also to the bands for donating their tracks to support cancer charities. Now it's down to you, invest £5 in making your life and the world that little bit richer.
"Every other comp CD out at the moment seems to be for some charity purpose and this is another one that's doing the rounds. Done by the guys who runs the God Is In The TV webzine, there's a mix of indie, punk, hip hop and rock on here with a lot of good artists and a few dodgy ones. Check out The Swear's punky tune, 'Disco Bitch', the fantastic energetic indietastic Donde Stars', 'You Can Keep The Kids' which sounds like early Radiohead circa Pablo Honey and the delightful Nakeru's, 'Long Walks On The Beach'. This is definitely one for indie fans, just skip that dreadful opening track by 'hip hop artist' Penny Broadhurst and you've got a decent CD of new music on your hands [7]"
