LTW Warriors 45

Hello Warriors,

We have sunshine! And music! And song!

Finally, February has retreated after its 12-week stint and let in the spring and everyone has breathed a sigh of relief. The birds seem to sing louder and swoop the soaring heavens with feathery delight whilst their freshly hatched young stagger forth and continue the endless parade of generations across the planet.

I have been on the road on my never-ending book tour and it's been great to meet some of the LTW readers at the events. Your support is always appreciated! This last week I was up in Glasgow and Edinburgh and spotted a Scars T shirt - that wonderful post-punk band that a cherished few embrace and should have been better known but then that’s what a music site is for - shouting about the future bands and also embracing the ones we may have missed.

The ‘Art Of Darkness - the History Of Goth’ book tour has been going great and there is more to come this week in Bath, Exeter and Bridport - please message if you want to come - guest list of course for subscribers to LTW.

If you want a signed copy of the book then mail order from here.

This week on LTW has been a mix of happy and sad and was overshadowed by the death of Andy Rourke who was not only the brilliant bass player from The Smiths whose bass lines were key to so many of the songs. More importantly, he was also a warm and kind hearted soul who was always a pleasure to bump into. There was an outpouring of grief at his death that reflected his popularity as a musician and a human and another reminder of time catching up with us all.

The Cruel World festival was held this weekend in LA before being interrupted by the gods and wild weather conditions. When the bill was initially announced it looked like a made-up fantasy bill of all the great and good from post punk and also first announced the return of Siouxsie to the stage. Ironically the iconic singer didn't actually get on stage in the end at the festival due to adverse weather conditions that seem to be happening more and more at outdoor gigs. At least she did play some warm up shows in Europe though and there are more dates to come but as Cruel World was reaching its Siouxsie climax the event was closed down as the heavens opened and the gods bombarded the earthlings with treacherous weather.

Still, at least Siouxsie had time to meet Billy Idol again. It was the first time in 32 years that the two core members of the legendary Bromley Contingent had met. The Bromleys were the suburban freak show fans of the early Sex Pistols whose outrageous attire and attitude was as much part of early punk lore as the Pistols themselves. Billy himself was nearly a Banshee - he was meant to be the guitar player at the famous first Banshees performance in September 1976 but opted out and got Marco in instead.

Gary Crowley has been enthusiastically DJing for years and become a bit of a radio voice for the punk and new wave period so it seemed perfectly fitting that his box set from the period has reached volume 2 .

After a much delayed and enforced hiatus, The Anchoress finally played The Deaf Institute in Manchester and silenced the room with her pitch-perfect pop. She really is worth the wait and her album came to life in the sold out room and was a hint at an intriguing future.

Smashing Pumpkins are a tricky band to love but their new album is an audacious and pretentious work that our reviewer gets under the bonnet of. Pretension is an asset in music culture so the review is a celebration of the musical brilliance of the awkward Billy Corgan and his latest opus.

James current tour is a stunning celebration of deep cuts played with an orchestra and choir. The Manchester band who never seem to get mentioned in the histories and the narrative of the city’s famous music scene but have somehow ended up being one of the biggest bands from it and have pulled off this extraordinary tour that was immersive and quite genius. The combination of choir and strings took the songs somewhere else and Tim Booth has never sounded in better voice.

Jill Furmanovsky is one of the great photographers of the punk rock wars and beyond. So many of her shots are deeply embedded in memory as her recent exhibition shows. She has an eye for a great shot and great framing that adds to the story and makes her one of the great rock n roll snappers.

Sparks new album is yet another instalment in their long-term genius. Who would have that that the ultimate kooky wonk band would end up being one of the greatest art rock bands of all time and the most British-sounding American band that ever existed? The new album is yet another great work and all the hallmarks are there and they still somehow feel fresh and invigorating.

The Stranglers have announced their 50th-anniversary tour for 2024. The band may be down to only one core member - now built around bassist JJ Burnell - but live they sound as great ever. God knows where they found keyboard player Toby but he has filled in Dave Greenfield's role perfectly and that is some task as the late and great Dave was the greatest keyboard player this country has ever produced. Hopefully the current lineup with make a new album?

Last week I was in Tallinn at the ever great Tallinn Music Week and stumbled over this astonishing French band Putan Club who deal and industrial blues howl that was gob-smacking in its brilliance. They have been going for ten years but somehow had avoided our radar. They will be in the UK soon playing their first gigs here and are a must see band.

Roisin Murphy graced the illustrious stage of the Royal Albert Hall, delivering an unforgettable performance that left her audience in awe.

Andy Cairns from Therapy? gave us his top ten most loved albums that gave a glimpse of his inner core personality and the music that moulded him.