Song of The Day - 'The Orch - Kenny The Snake'

Found this on the end of an old compilation and have been spinning it since I woke up several hours ago (don't you hate working weird hours, no such thing as a lie in).

Great piece of observational poetry over sparse beats and acoustics

On certain 'scene', everyone knows a 'Kenny', we certainly knew our fair share.

The Orch are Mick Conroy, Phil Hayes and Damian Ashcroft, and they began performing and recording together in the early nineties, releasing some tracks on a Factory Records compilation before calling it a day.

Following their split, Conroy released two fine albums and recorded a Peel session with Superqueens before The Orch re-formed, to the great delight of several Dandelion DJs, and released the Small Times album on the Skinny Dog label in 2010.

Characterised by pulsing electronica overlaid by Conroy's gritty East Lancastrian spoken word lyrics, The Orch appeared in session for Andy Morrison at the end of 2010. 'Kenny & The Snake', which appears here, finally gave The Orch their first festive fifty entry that year.

More Old Bootlegs - Liars Live Manchester Roadhouse 5th May 2004

Seem to have turned up a small cash of concerts that i attended a few years ago. I'm a massive fan of Liars, so thought I'd share this with you. It's from the European tour supporting their second album 'They Were Wrong So We Drowned'. Not sure what the last track is called, though i seem to recall Angus called it 'Southern Uric Acid' at the time. Don't think it ever developed beyond a jam, I don't recognise it from later releases, but if you know better, let me know. You can hear it Here.

Setlist for the night was...

Here's a small 'review' of the night if found.

"Liars songs are raw and unapproachable; unstructured compared to anything we have come to expect from conventional music and melodically vacant. Vocalist Agnus Andrew sings with an ominous monotone, pronouncing syllables in time with drum beats like a shaman reciting a prayer or a spell. But though Liars' music differs from that of The Blood Brothers, their performance is as intriguing. Dressed like a mad man on ket, Agnus Andrew collapses around the stage in a three-quarter-length matron’s uniform featuring the shakily written slogan, 'Weapons of ASS Destruction', on the back. He does well to jump into the ceiling and not fall into seizure. Or perhaps this crazy dancing _is_ his seizure. However crazy this may be, the underlying charisma makes you love it; watching this man is fun.
At times it is questionable if Liars are really pushing boundaries in music or just taking the piss. Songs become so extended that once stimulating repetitive drums become annoyingly drawn-out and dull. Where the Blood Brothers were giving and exuberant, Liars seems self-indulgent and pretentious. In theory, Liars' fresh take on avant-garde music is formidable, but commercially, it's just not Busted."

Not sure I agree with his views, but as the landed gent character from the Fast Show says " I was very, very Drunk!"