Review: F.O.E.S - Ophir EP (Self-Released)

Liverpool's F.O.E.S have an excellent pedigree – drawn from bands like ConnectingFlight, In Casino Out and Always the Quiet Ones, among others, this new project, while projecting post-hardcore sensibilities live, takes a more atmospheric tack on record.

There are still the hints to bands such as At The Drive-In and Yourcodenameis:milo that were introduced with their first single 'Ruin Lies in the Bow & the Sword', but writ large on Ophir are the post-rock inflections of Oceansize and Aerogramme. 'The Writing On The Wall' and 'The Four Of Oxblood' alternate between a sharp dynamic shift from loud modern rock in the vein of shouty, jaggy early Biffy Clyro to almost a mainstream radio-friendly alt rock touch with earnest, self-assured vocals. When the band cuts loose during a middle eight or an outro, the effect is infectious. James Lorenzo's drum parts always claw the most they can out of every situation, and the quality of musicianship consistently shines.

Single 'Ningyo' starts off as a more meditative post-rock-lite ballad before exploding from the speakers when the chorus kicks in. Again, the rhythm section is tasked with keeping the energy levels up while the guitar heads off into more angular territory, but the effect is thrilling nonetheless. 'The First Rook To Flee As The Thunder Rolls In' combines all their competing sensibilities in a slow burning track that builds to a passage counterpointing screaming vocals with quieter, melodic guitars, before finally breaking loose and crashing to earth with an ending that really does deserve the 'epic' epithet.

With such a fully-formed release only running to EP length, the prospect of a full F.O.E.S album is an exciting one indeed.

Words: Alex Lynham

Interview: The Family Wolves

So, Family Wolves – is it with or without the ‘The’?

“With the ‘The’, definitely,” asserts Matt Williamson, co-ringleader at Rusholme’s eclectic arts house Antwerp Mansion and the crux of The Family Wolves, a rock band formed from within the Mansion’s decrepit walls. “You need a run-up to it,” adds lead guitarist Dan Jones.

A fair point; it would be unwise to dive straight in. So, some key facts: there are six of them, they play music for the love, they have been gigging for less than a year, they’d pack it in to be able to make cheese and pate platters at the Mansion and they go by The Family Wolves.

Given Williamson’s proclivity towards more complex verse, it comes as no surprise to discover that this name derives from a Sylvia Plath poem named ‘Manor Garden’, which contains the line: “two suicides, the family wolves.” Of course, there’s more to them than odes and hors d’oeuvres.

As with any of the third Millennium AD’s heaped recycling centre mound of music, there are influences; part of the trick is being able to delve deep enough into the mound so that it’s as freshly repackaged and unrecognisable as the last time it successfully emerged. For The Family Wolves, this is a 1960s USA West coast jam band psyche folk feel, paralleled of course by others before and since using the media du jour but placeable geographically and temporally both in its outward appearance and stated nurture.

Neil Young’s legacy crops up in the ‘sounds like’ column as his is a smartly presented grunge. Grunge’s Godfather, in fact. And not the FF Coppola crime syndicate variety, but a less ill-tempered model. Aesthetically, the Godfather’s apparel is apparent with the Wolves' trilbies and waistcoats rather than a scruffy demeanour more fitting with Young’s Godsons and Goddaughters of the late Twentieth Century stoner rock.

On top of this, the vocal angle is more choral than growl, much indebted to Celine Belli’s reprise of Emmylou Harris’s collaborations with the Canadian Young, or more currently Mimi Parker with Low, Amber Webber with Black Mountain and until 2010 Rachel Fannan with Sleepy Sun. Indeed she carries her double x chromosome like a lone star, shining it as crucially as those fellow psyche maelstrom brewers. Again, although more modern, the appendices are North American.

Although relative Luddites compared with the loopers and vocoders and Ableton Live sequencers of Twenty Twelve, Gibson SG wielder Dan Jones boasts a well-populated pedal board featuring an oft-used Wah Wah wailing with near-crescendonic dominance. But even as lead guitar he stays in line with the Family’s values; the bluesy garishness of the late 60s with post-“Judas” folk amplification is still more team than I. Ivory tinkler Bradlie Houldsworth too is an example of FX in a land of Americana.

Sticksman Alex Grindulis (also of post-rocker locals Peak District) remains untouched by technology as he thunders his skins with a furious fortitude, as if revenge is perched intently in his mind’s eye, just as he is perched intently behind the more upright Wolves.

Then there’s Matt Williamson taking on the burden as the central figure, calm and in control but mindful of scenarios beyond his grasp, which are verbalised with clamour to enamour. His shouts and bawls about who-knows-what deliver in paradox to the poetic eloquence of a classical bard itching within. The polysyllabic articulation is often lost in the sheer depth of the compressed strata emitted by all six, including his own acoustic guitar, plucked rhythmically in tune with the lupine dogmatism rather than aiming to stand out as a lead.

It’s a wholesome broth that can easily lose key ingredients. With this in mind, the motorik certitude of audio density creates another angle aimed towards the stoner rock dial; it’s easy to forget the folk and blues foundations when you’re treading water in gluttonous drone, but for Kris Extance plundering the sonic depths of bassline with rigid reliability. With tides rising vertically all around him it could easily become nonsensical dirge, trailing off into aimless tangential self-indulgence. That rhythm section rudder provides both structure and direction, deliberately guiding towards the sirens luring the Wolves’ bonnie voyage to a final destination.

But it isn’t quite the end. Shouty vocals with messages hidden amidst a crepuscular rhythmic elegy energise a steadily pounding regularity for the hip-swaying shoegazers ebbing across the rattled floorboards. They don’t hear what Williamson says until WHAM; silence hits harder than noise. It clears the room of the all-encompassing muggy miasma enshrouded, before he unflinchingly continues, “I’m your maaaaan!” And in these words he speaks for the whole sextet.

If it’s an unremittingly infectious groove enclosed within clamorous cacophonies that you’re after, then, tonight at the Dulcimer venue in Chorlton at least, he is your man and they are your band.

It hasn’t always been that way in their short history. But as Kris runs through a veritable nightmare of a debut outdoor festival slot at Leek Summer Jam you can tell by his tone that they haven’t taken the experience to heart.

“We got told, ‘2,500 tickets have been sold, you’re on the main stage, at a good time,’ and we were thinking ‘oh, great!’”

“We turned up; three glorified marquees, ours was the furthest one away and the only one without a bar in it as well, the weather was shit, Matt snapped a string before we went on then two when we did go on, the power cut out halfway through the set, the crowd had just witnessed a covers band who played Rage Against The Machine’s ‘Killing In The Name’ before we went on so that obviously set the mood for us...”

It’d be misguided to blame only external forces every time. Matt’s vocal is often off-key in the same way as Bob Dylan but that’s rock’n’roll, as it is told. Precision discarded for pure, raw emotion; the odd bum note lost and forgotten whether sung, strummed, thwacked, grooved or tinkled. After all, to make genuine mistakes is more meaningful and true than hiding behind auto-tuned, over-produced sheen.

They’ve grown tighter both musically and emotionally. Together, they present more than a group; family is indeed a more apt description. They are a synchronous unit, starting as one and pausing in unison, understanding the emphasis of a strategic collected breath before rising to song finales.

Taking account of the root of their growth, the comparisons between Antwerp Mansion and Andy Warhol’s Factory HQ also point towards the equally ramshackle collective The Velvet Underground. Indeed, Lou Reed’s troupe’s early backroom dirges harvested a fine crop of recordings and so will be the case for The Family Wolves, with a debut EP pressed through their Animal Sounds label and ready to go later in September.

Words: Ian Pennington
Photography: Andy Minotaur

The Family Wolves next perform live at the Nothin’ But Abattoir Blues Festival on Saturday 8th September, shared across Oldham Street’s Castle Hotel and Gulliver’s. The free entry event also features fellow Now Then gig alumni The Bourbon Words, The Calimocho Club, Death Vignettes and many more besides.

Interview: The Calimocho Club

Bluesy rock duo The Calimocho Club may be named after a drink whose ingredients of Cola and red wine seem like chalk and cheese, but as a band they’re a cohesive unit despite the project’s nascent age. For Gary L Hope (vocals, guitar) and Tommy Pickford (drums) are no strangers to the live music circuit around Manchester and Salford, having appeared until recently as the stylish and memorably suited The Black Knights.

The shift into a new gear was a result of pure “gut feeling”, amongst other reasons, but a host of live shows and an accomplished debut EP have seen them accelerate since.

Conversely, debut EP Whoa Whoa, Hey Hey seems to want to slow down in title at least, but its content is juxtaposed with such an interpretation. Staccato grooves, screaming riffs and soulful rhythms are delivered with the force and unflinching starkness synonymous with the very best of electric blues and all with an urgency that keeps the fleeting running time under 15 minutes.

Musically, Tommy’s drum rolls are reminiscent of The Black Keys’ early records – in particular Pat Carney’s stick work on Thickfreakness – while Gary’s guitar and lyrics fit with the spirit of blues that they define as “raw, sometimes violent, melancholy, sarcastic, wry, hopeful and hopeless [and] mostly governed by feel”.

Their next show is a headline slot at the next Now Then Manchester show at Dulcimer bar, bringing the curtain down on another folk and blues showcase and they shared a few thoughts with us in anticipation.

Now Then: Why did you change your band name and aesthetic [from The Black Knights]?

The Calimocho Club: It felt right to do it – a combination of musical reasons, where we sat in the universe, a gut feeling and other behind the scenes issues definitely pushed us toward it.


NT: Do you have a favourite musical reinvention?

CC: Bowie has been the king of reinvention, killing Ziggy and going all 80s cocaine kid is up there for me.


NT: What have the experiences of support slots with the likes of The Jim Jones Revue, Those Darlins and Dave Arcari taught you?

CC: It helps break you out of your own bubble. They all tour like beasts – Bog Log III is the same. Band of Skulls have gone on to support The Black Keys. It’s a reality check that no two acts do things the same way. Some have more backing (team, press and monetary), some go totally DIY, some sit between the two. What is clear is that it is still a slog - you still have to be great.

What else has it taught us? That we can sit comfortably in that company. It forces us to raise our game. We always get a better reaction at these types of shows – to put it into crude numbers, we sell more CDs, and get more fans. It’s also good to see how other acts do things; you can always pick up something useful.

NT: You’ve just finished a tour of your own; which show was the pick of the bunch and why?

CC: They were all great shows but I’d say the Puzzle Hall, Sowerby Bridge for the performance and audience reaction. Bristol for the aftershow party!


NT: Lightnin’ Hopkins or The Black Keys? Do you prefer the blues of old or new – or are they not comparable?

CC: They are all the same ballpark. It’s more the spirit of the blues that draws me in – by definition it is raw, sometimes violent, melancholy, sarcastic, wry, hopeful and hopeless. It’s also mostly governed by feel rather than robotically learning patterns. Same ballpark then, but, like anything, if you can add your own personal twist onto it you’re away...

NT: What do you have planned for the near future? Are there any new recordings lined up?

CC: Unfortunately/fortunately our imagination exceeds our budget at times. We are putting together another tour at the moment, UK, but may look at some European shows.

We will be getting some new photos done, do another music video – not too concerned with having new recordings at the moment, there’s the artist in me that wants to record, fighting the businessman in me that says: “create more demand first”. We have a good EP that has still got legs and have some acoustic demos floating around.

In fairness the world is laden with recorded music; it’s ten-a-penny. It might be fighting a losing battle, but we want to try and keep music special, an experience. It’s another debate entirely, but the series of 0s and 1s that the digital marketplace has squeezed that thrill somewhat.

However, a great live show cannot be beaten. Playing live has always been our forte. You experience it in the moment and you can change things around in a way that a recorded artifact literally cannot. Yes, there are an ever-growing number of people who spend the show recording it on phones for posterity, sharing and using at as an honour/social ‘badge’ (and so miss out on the immediacy of being in the moment), but there’s still loads who long for that buzz that a live show can generate in them. That’s the fucking money!

Words & edits: Ian Pennington
Flyer design: Craig Brown Beards Club Illustration
Photos & logo: courtesy of The Calimocho Club

The Calimocho Club headline Dulcimer bar in Chorlton on Thursday 17th May. The free entry blues and folk showcase will also feature performances by Rory Charles, Eleanor Lou and Mathew Gray.

Interview: Cyril Snear

Manchester experimental rock quartet Cyril Snear headline a show at Chorlton’s Dulcimer bar on Thursday. We have a quick to and fro of words with them on the subjects of genres, venues, praise from The Mars Volta and the merits of musically induced blindness.

Now Then: Superstar Destroyer Records recently said before a gig that you headlined that it was “a line-up so hardcore it'll rip out your eyes and piss on your brain”; is that your intention?

Cyril Snear: No! Who was it out of SSD? Alex? He’s a wordsmith isn’t he! But, no, it’s not what we intend to do – if you ripped out someone’s eyes they’d never be able to see again and they wouldn’t be able to come to the next gig so it’d be a lose/lose situation.


NT: Your last record seems a while ago now. Is there any news on a new one?

CS: Yes there is… It’s going to be called The White of Colour and it’s definitely coming out this year, definitely!

NT: Is it full prog ahead as with Fluent In Seven Types Of Monotone or will the acoustic guitar style of Four In Hand – One In Face feature at all?

CS: Well there is a bit of acoustic guitar but it’s a bit different. I’d say it’s more prog – maybe more classically-sounding than the lo-fi, indie sound of the early stuff, which sounded like that because we didn’t have any money and recorded it for free! But it does have strings and piano – even has a sitar.


NT: Do you see your music as prog or prog (or neither!); is there a deeper meaning behind it or are genres just for list-makers?

CS: We always get asked questions about genres; they’re just for list-makers really aren’t they? They’re useful for people to get an idea of the music before actually listening to it, but we never set out to be prog; it’s just been applied to us.

NT: You’ve played at all sorts of venues, large and small, from The Castle to Antwerp Mansion to Kraak Gallery. Do you prefer larger or smaller settings for shows and which has been your favourite venue to play at?

CS: I think it’s Academy 3 because it’s not too big but it’s not too small either and you feel professional when you’re on there. We like playing at the Deaf Institute as well – there’s a good vibe there; good decor. I think with Sound Control we’ve never played when there’s been enough people to get that vibe. So we like medium sized venues, but wherever is full really. If you have a small venue that’s full then it’s going to trump a medium sized venue with about two people in.


NT: What has been your favourite memory in music so far?

CS: That’d be last week actually when Juan Alderete – the bass player out of The Mars Volta – complimented the whole band, but was mainly commenting on the bass guitar.

The album launch was mint just because it was the first album. We still don’t feel like we played amazingly at it but that’s probably the busiest gig we’ve had even though we arranged it ourselves with help from WotGodForgot, plus the light show was extreme so that made you get into it a bit more.

NT: Do you have any festivals lined up for the summer?

CS: Well we’re doing Eurocultured at Sound Control on 3rd June but we’d like some more festivals so someone get us some more festivals!

Interview & edits by Ian Pennington

Cyril Snear’s next show will be at Dulcimer bar in Chorlton on Thursday 3rd May. They will be supported by Outer Dark and Neko Neko.

Interview: Superstar Destroyer Records

Prog is not a four letter word, claimed Twisted Nerve’s purveyor of rare psychedelic records Andy Votel atop his 2005 compilation. Linguists would beg to differ, but the sentiment lies in the expansive nature of a much-maligned genre. From Genesis to Tool via Jethro Tull and Radiohead, many recording artists have been branded ‘prog’, whether correctly or otherwise, but Alex Lynham points out that “being 'progressive' is a state of mind; it's about cramming in ideas and not being afraid to let motifs and threads just unwind on their own.”

And Lynham should have at least a fairly good idea. As a music writer for many websites and publications from Line of Best Fit to Classic Rock presents: Prog, the co-founder of Manchester based label Superstar Destroyer Records has been able to pick the brains of many a musical mind, from Oceansize’s Mike Vennart to Amplifier’s Sel Belamir. But his favourite chin wag has been with Ben Curtis, a guitar formerly of The Secret Machines and currently playing with School of Seven Bells, an interview which “was amazing,” says Lynham, “as he's possibly my biggest influence as a guitar player – I asked him all these geeky questions about past bands, effects and stuff and he humoured me, which was great.”

Prog as a genre often has to defend itself due to Steve Lamacq and other media trendsetters peddling views of two-chord punk as a saviour movement. It's no wonder many buy into the anti-‘prog’ vibes so as to avoid its overly theatrical and un-cool connotations; even Peter Hammill of 1960s and 70s prog band Van Der Graaf Generator's agreed in a previous interview with "the fundamental principle that music had got overblown with the idea that you can only be a band if you’ve got six keyboards." However, since that 1970s heyday, its genres and sub-genres have diverged and overflowed into various streams and there are those who may share the appreciation for modernist interpretations of progressive music without realising it.

In this respect, Lynham’s clarification of ‘prog’ vs ‘progressive’ in alt rock thinking becomes more salient. “I've seen both Yes and Dream Theater and [the theatrical stage show] is more-or-less what they're about, but there's also bands like Tool and Porcupine Tree that come at the genre from a completely different angle. I like to make the distinction of 'progressive' rather than 'prog' in that sense, as it's easier to get non-'prog' fans to give it a chance. You see a bit of talk these days about 'post-progressive' and that's basically what I mean; all those weird bands that don't fit in anywhere else.”

Aside from writing about bands in the eye of the wider public, Lynham also champions lesser known musicians through Superstar Destroyer Records. Up to now that has manifested in EPs and singles for Ninetails, Dune (now named Peak District), Metamusic, Nowhere Again (Lynham’s band whose name was influenced by the aforementioned Secret Machines) and Black Market Serotonin, who will perform at the Now Then Superstar Destroyer show at Antwerp Mansion this week. Those records meander through many a rock sub-genre, taking in the math, alt and post-rock inventiveness. Indeed, when Lynham says he has assembled the SSD roster through “kidnapping, extortion and blackmail,” perhaps he means he has entrapped the musicians’ minds in his ‘progressive’ genres net, before conversely allowing them the free-thinking, shackle-less melodic mindset that he shares. Sort of like Captain Beefheart’s isolated cabin lock-in to free the minds of the Magic Band from societal structure during the writing and recording of Trout Mask Replica.

Whatever it means, he’s letting Black Market Serotonin loose – without demanding a huge ransom – to support Manchester favourites Cyril Snear and Liverpool’s Always The Quiet Ones on Antwerp Mansion’s stage this Thursday. There’ll be no Beefheart-esque lock-in but there will be progressive music aplenty through what Lynham describes as “a line-up so hardcore it'll rip out your eyes and piss on your brain.”

Words: Ian Pennington
Poster & flyer design: Hattie Lockwood
Logo: Courtesy of Superstar Destroyer