email: [email protected] website: nightshift.oxfordmusic.net Free every month. NIGHTSHIFT Issue 117 April Oxford’s Music Magazine 2005 SunnyvaleSunnyvale NoiseNoise Sub-ElementSub-Element “we“we cancan experimentexperiment withwith impunity!”impunity!” -- interviewinterview insideinside alsoalso inin thisthis issueissue -- OxfordOxford PuntPunt 20052005 Line-upLine-up announcedannounced photo: Miles Walkden photo: Miles NIGHTSHIFT: PO Box 312, Kidlington, OX5 1ZU. Phone: 01865 372255 NEWNEWSS Nightshift: PO Box 312, Kidlington, OX5 1ZU Phone: 01865 372255 email: [email protected] THE LINE-UP FOR THIS YEAR’S OXFORD PUNT HAS BEEN finalised. The Punt takes place on Wednesay 11th May and features 24 local bands and solo artists playing across eight venues on one night. The Punt is now established as the best showcase of local unsigned music. This year Nightshift received over 100 demos from local acts hoping to take part. The Punt received an added boost last month when Kiss Bar became the eighth venue to be added to the event, meaning we could fit an extra three bands on the bill, making this the biggest Punt ever. The full line up is as follows: Borders: 6.15pm: Laima Bite; 7pm: Kate Chadwick. Jongleurs: 7.30: The Evenings; 8.15: A Silent Film; 9pm: The Factory THE YOUNG KNIVES release a new EP on May 16th on hot new indie Far From The Madding Crowd (in conjunction with Delicious Music): label Transgressive, the label that launched The Subways earlier this 8.15: Zoe Bicat; 9.15: The Thumb Quintet; 10.15: Chantelle Pike. year. Tracks on the limited 10” EP are ‘Coastgard’, ‘Kramer Vs The City Tavern: 8.30: The Half Rabbits; 9.30: Fell City Girl; 10.30: Kramer’, ‘Weekends And Bleak days’ and ‘Trembling Of The Trails’, all Junkie Brush. of which were produced by Gang Of Four legend Andy Gill. The songs The Wheatsheaf: 8pm: P.Y.E; 9pm: Vena Cava; 10pm: The Confidential will also be available to download. The Young Knives head out on a Collective. national tour to promote the new EP, including a headline show at the The Purple Turtle (in conjunction with The Beard Museum): 8.30: Zodiac on Friday 6th May. Tickets available from the box office (01865 Moocher; 9.30: The Family Machine; 10.30: Film Noir. 420042) or online from wegottickets.com. Kiss Bar: 8.30: TV Baby; 9.30: Harry Angel; 10.30: Script. The Cellar: 9pm: Blue Kite; 10pm: The E Band; 11pm: Big Speakers; 12am: The Walk Off. DONOVAN heads a list of big THE HALF RABBITS contribute With a solid six hours of great live music on show, with styles ranging name acts coming to Oxford. The a track, ‘Fast Breeder Reactor’, to from acoustic folk and hip hop, to punk, new wave and industrial techno, 60s folk legend appears at Oxford `Public Service Broadcast 6’, fans of local music shouldn’t miss out. The best way to enjoy the Punt is Town Hall on Thursday 9th June to released on Jetplane Landing’s with an all-venue Punt Pass. There are 100 of these available, priced £7, promote his new album, ‘Beat Smalltown America label. The on sale now from The Polar Bear on Cowley Road, The Oxford Music Café’. Also coming up in Oxford is compilation, including tracks from Shop on St Aldates or online from oxfordmusic.net. Alternatively simply the return of former Spice Girl Mel 65daysofstatic and Thee More pay on the door at whichever venues you fancy. Borders and Far From C at the Zodiac (Mon 2nd May), Shallows, is available now from the Madding Crowd are free entry. The Futureheads at Brookes www.smalltownamerica.co.uk. Nightshift would like to say a big thank you to everyone who submitted University Union (Sun 15th May) a demo for consideration. The quality, as ever, was extremely high and and a highly-anticipated first visit we’re just sorry we couldn’t fit even more bands on the bill. to town for The Magic Band BOB WOODS rd In the May issue of Nightshift we’ll be running a four-page Oxford Punt (Zodiac, Mon 23 June). Tickets Nightshift was saddened to special with a complete guide to everything that’s happening on the for all shows are available from the learn of the death of former night. Zodiac box office (01865 420042) Jericho Tavern landlord Bob or online from wegottickets.com. Woods last month after a long period of ill health. Bob, along THE DOWNLOAD, BBC Radio NATION, who released their debut KISS BAR opens its doors to with his wife Kath, ran the Oxford’s local music show, album, ‘Today Is The First Day’, regular live music from this month. Tavern in its heyday as a live continues its initial 8-week run this in December last year, make their The Park End Street bar, which has music venue and played a large month. The show, hosted by Tim latest bid for rock and roll glory just become the eighth venue on part in making it the legendary Bearder, goes out every Friday with a headline gig at the New this year’s Oxford Punt, will host venue it has become. Their between 7-8pm and features songs Theatre on Saturday 13th August. gigs every Tuesday, Wednesday enthusiasm for live music and interviews with Oxford bands, They become the first Oxford band and Thursday starting on 5th April allowed gig promoter Mac to as well as gig reviews, a gig and to headline the 1,700-capacity when experimental hardcore noise build the Tavern up into one of club guide and a local demo vote. venue since Supergrass last year. legends Nought headline. Lee the best small venues in the For anyone who misses out on the Tickets, priced £10, are available Christian, singer with local rockers country before it was shut live airing, you can listen to the from the New Theatre box office or Smilex, as well as former presenter down in 1995. show again on bbc.co.uk/oxford. Virgin Megastore on Cornmarket. of The Fortnightly Fix and As well as a great pub landlord Bands wanting to submit music to Quickfix Records label boss, is the of the old school, with an be played should send it to Tim promoter for the new music nights. attitude and sense of humour Bearder c/o BBC Oxford, 269 He hopes the Kiss Bar will become that made the Jericho such a Banbury Road, Summertown, a cool hang-out for local gig goers in great place to visit, Bob was Oxford, OX2 7DW. a part of town dominated by crap also a talented singer in his own nightclubs and vile weekend binge right and would often perform DAYS OF GRACE have called it a drinkers. As such there will be 100 at Your Song nights, including a day. The local emo faves decided to club membership cards available classic rendition of The split at the end of February, due to that will allow cheap entry to all Specials’ `Gangsters’ with ATL. “different life commitments”. gigs and priority entry on busy Nightshift extends its deepest Singer Patrick Currier has since nights. As well as live bands, local sympathies to Kath and to joined Blood Roses, while drummer band members will be DJing Bob’s children, Mick and Shel Chris will be concentrating on his between band sets. See this and raises a glass to his other band, Sow.. month’s gig guide for full line-up. memory. a quiet word with Sunnyvale Noise Sub-Element THE HISS AND CLANG OF A The five tracks on the EP have malfunctioning futuristic factory. captured our sound pretty well; The clatter and skitter of they’ve also forced us to focus on spasticated off-funk rhythms. The the intricacies and detail of our crunch and skronk of a belligerent songs, resulting in tighter guitar getting its own back on a arrangements and less being left to society that refused to understand chance. I think our live set has it. No, not the new McFly single. improved massively as a result of This must be Sunnyvale Noise working on this EP.” Sub-Element, Oxford’s premier How has the band changed since exponents of dissonant electronic Simon left? And how do you feel post-rock and fractured guitar you’ve progressed or regressed noise. They’ve come to make your since we last interviewed you, back stereo bleed. in 2003? STUART: “Possibly in the early SUNNYVALE’S ABILITY TO days, we were trying to weave turn heads while turning the elements of bands we love like accepted norms of rock music Prolapse, Unwound or Hovercraft inside out is an art form that has into an electronic backing, but been honed over the past five probably ended up sounding more years, ever since their first like Godspeed You! Black Lace or incarnation recorded one of the something. Now I think we just most indulgently unlistenable sound like Sunnyvale. With fewer demos Nightshift has ever heard. members, we’re able to give more Nowadays, of course, we can’t get emphasis to each constituent part enough of their intricate, often Sunnyvale Noise Sub-Element (l-r): Giles, Simon, Stuart of the sound, and achieve a finer brutal, always fascinating, brand of balance in the sound. When we anti-music. were using three guitars, two Having become an integral part of SUNNYVALE (STUART live. Sometimes the electronics are basses, a desktop PC, a sampler the Oxford music scene in recent Fowkes: electronics, bass and too harsh to be put through a PA, and a keyboard, I think people times, spearheading a left turn into keyboards; Simon Minter: guitar as we’ve discovered to our didn’t know what the hell was more experimental sounds, and Giles Borg: guitar) spent personal extreme discomfort when going on - us included half of the organising (and starring at) the much of last year touring the trying them out in rehearsal.