by Pete Chambers
Rudesix
The Coventry Music Museum continues its quest to showcase local talent by naming its current Artists of The Month, Rudesix.
They will be in the hot seats at the museum on Saturday October 5 at 12pm.
The Nuneaton-based Ska band are the real deal, so little wonder that they are honoured at the music museum.
There are many Ska bands out there, some are cover bands, some play their own original material. Rudesix fall into the latter, and how.
In my opinion this band represent the next generation of the local 2-Tone and Ska legacy perfectly. That was then and this is now, and these young dudes have taken this precious genre and made it their very own.
If it’s black & white box-ticking you are after, well these tick them all, sound, songs, style and originality.
I would like to think that if this was 1980 then this band would be on 2-Tone Records, no question.
Warwickshire should be so proud to have this band representing the area. Expect some acoustic music too.
The Specials on Album Day
On October 12, the second ever Album Day come around.
The Coventry Music Museum is currently conducting a vote to decide the favourite track on the Specials first album. An album that will be 40 years old on October 19.
So far the voting has been pretty even. The album will feature as part of ‘The Sounds of the Midlands’ exhibition at Birmingham New Street Station from September 30 to October 9. Plus this iconic finger-on-the pulse LP is to be re-released on double vinyl, running at 45RPM.
It was an eye-opener of an album for me. I had seen the Specials (and the Coventry Automatics) many times live, most would agree that the very essence of the Specials in a live environment.
Ska fans like me placed the needle on the record for the very first time hoping that the on-stage energy had somehow transferred itself to the studio sound.
To my relief, it had, and this amazing slab of punk infused ska stands today as testament to the band that were completely in control of their sound and artistic direction.
Its rhythmic life blood coursing through every track, relentless and original, giving us undoubtedly one of the finest debut albums of all time.
I can never hear it again for the first time of course, but for me every play takes me back on a journey of Coventry Night Clubs, polished loafers and crisp Ben Sherman’s.
It meant something then and means something now. For some it was just a record. For others like me it was the defining soundtrack of our lives.
The Merciful Wizards
The very wonderful Merciful Wizards follow up their debut single ‘Dream’ with the new track ‘It’s Getting Better’.
‘Dream’ was a great track but the new one is a superb slab of sound. Spot-on harmonies rub shoulders with retro guitar sounds. The song is graced with a great chorus all wrapped up with some cleverly understated psychedelic magic. Love this one.
