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2 Lost Gems From Manchester’s Factory Records: Cath Carroll’s ‘Moves Like You’ and Northside’s ‘Moody Places’

by on Sunday, August 28, 2011 at 2:58 pm EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

When I was living in London in 1991, Select Magazine released a Factory Records sampler cassette ( FAC 305C ) that would eventually go on to melt in my car. I cherished this sampler, because it introduced me to some fabulous tracks by two largely unknown Manchester artists that I otherwise might never have discovered: Cath Carroll’s ‘Moves Like You’ and Northside’s ‘Moody Places’.

I did ultimately find Cath Carroll’s CD as a pricey import (back in the States), but that Northside track was not included on the group’s only LP release at the time, Chicken Rhythms. Over the years, I managed to forget about the song, its title, etc. (Note to our younger readers: the internet was barely in existence in the early 90s, and it would take more than a decade before decent search engines evolved.)

Well, twenty years now after its release — not sure what exactly made me think of that long lost sampler — I vaguely recalled the track, and thought to investigate on Google.

What I found: In 2005, Northside re-released its Chicken Rhthyms LP — currently unavailable in the US, even as a download — but this time with bonus tracks, including the long lost song, ‘Moody Places’.

Here is that song, streamed from the group’s MySpace page:

Find more Northside albums at Myspace Music

And for those who have never heard of the former-Factory Recording artist, Cath Carroll, here’s the video of her fabulous 1991 single ‘Moves Like You’:

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WATCH: Tracey K and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra Perform ‘The Cure & The Cause’ Live

by on Friday, August 12, 2011 at 6:39 pm EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

Ireland’s Tracey K — a singer/songwriter who frequently collaborates with DJ/producer duo, Fish Go Deep (from Cork, Ireland) – is best known for her UK chart-topping dance track “The Cure & the Cause”.

She has been writing and recording House music for much of the last decade — ever since her college days at Galway University. You can learn more about her, and find additional Tracey K tracks on her site.

Here, Tracey K performs the very catchy “The Cure & the Cause” live in the studio with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra.

WATCH:

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LISTEN: New Paul Weller Single ‘Starlite’ Evokes The Spirit of The Style Council

by on Sunday, July 24, 2011 at 10:14 am EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

Last Tuesday, Paul Weller released a new standalone single, Starlite, which will surely delight his longstanding Style Council fans.

For the first time in 20 years, Weller recaptures that soulful dance spirit that made The Style Council stand apart from both his earlier The Jam material as well as his later solo work.

Here’s how Weller describes the new track:

Here’s a brand new track called ‘Starlite’ in time for the Summer. It’s not from the forthcoming album, it’s just for NOW! It’s part Balearic beat, poetry and psychedelic music. I hope you like it.  ~PWx

Personally, I love it and have been playing it all week long, as I’m sure my Twitter followers can attest.

The track will be available for purchase on iTunes on August 7. I’ll provide an update with the iTunes link at that time.

Here is Starlite. Enjoy!

MUSIC VIDEO: Saint Etienne – ‘Nothing Can Stop Us Now’ – 1991

by on Sunday, October 31, 2010 at 1:06 am EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

This British trio has managed to successfully infuse amazing modern dance club music with the spirit of 1963 over a period that spans twenty years. I was fortunate enough to have seen them play their very first US performance in New York City (with Grant Lee Buffalo and American Music Club) at the Manhattan Center [...]

Watch: Everything But The Girl Perform ‘Before Today’ Live In London ’99

by on Saturday, November 14, 2009 at 12:36 am EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

I’ve been a long-time fan of Everything But the Girl.  They have an endless discography of great songs; always managing to keep it fresh by allowing their sound to evolve quite dramatically with the times.  Their early sound had a jazzy, French Cafe-ish feel — not unlike the Style Council (another favorite of mine) — [...]

Watch: Groove Armada Perform ‘Superstylin’ LIVE At Brixton Academy 2002

by on Friday, October 30, 2009 at 12:50 pm EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

Grammy-nominated single ‘Superstylin’ is one of my favorite dance club ‘Big Beat’ tracks — definitely my favorite Groove Armada track.  Behind the heavy bass, and awesome melody is some powerful Jamaican-style toasting.  It’s something between dance-hall reggae and a heavy rave/club tune.  Truly hypnotic — the kind of song that will fuel your gym workouts, [...]

Great Dance Track – “Don’t Take it Personal” by Wahoo

by on Wednesday, October 21, 2009 at 6:08 pm EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

There’s a lot of great music falling by the wayside these days.  Here’s a cool dance track that — okay, I’m gonna venture out onto this limb, here — is virtually unknown in America.  Apparently, it’s gotten a bit of play in dance clubs around Europe.  Gilles Peterson — master Brit DJ / music purveyor [...]

Watch: Colin Newman’s latest Band, Githead, perform “Drop”

by on Friday, October 9, 2009 at 9:32 pm EDT in Arts & Entertainment, Music

For those of you who followed the band, Wire, back in the 1970s and 1980s, as well as Newman’s solo efforts in the 80s, you’ll love his latest band, Githead.  Here they are performing an acidic-trip, house-hop number entitled “Drop”.  Very catchy:   The Githead single, “Drop,” or the full length album, Art Pop, can [...]