My second brush with Council Pop in a matter of days sees the arrival of ORPHAN BOY in a Bolton pub not a million miles from my home. It seemed like too good an opportunity to miss, and so after a chat with their manager, I found myself perched on the pub’s back steps talking to the band prior to their support slot with local outfit ENDORSE.
I’ve got further questions about the concept of Council Pop, and it’s Rob Cross, who shares the guitar/bass/vocal duties with Smiffy, who is initially forthcoming:
“Council Pop is a tag we give to our music, cos it’s boring just saying ‘rock/pop’ he explains:
“When people say ‘What’s your music like’ and it’s dead hard to explain we just say ‘Council Pop’ adds Smiffy.
Who coined the term?
“I made it up” says Rob “..and Guy ( Guy Keeble, the band’s manager) hijacked it” he laughs.
You’re called Orphan Boy – though originally from Grimsby, you’ve now relocated. Is Manchester your ‘adopted’ home?
Hmm….tough one “It is really. There is a good scene in Grimsby, but it’s dead hard to get on to” states Smiffy. “There’s no industry as such to work with there as such” adds Rob “Nobody knows about it”.
“The reason we’re called Orphan Boy…” states Rob: “…is that we’ve had to do it all ourselves – which I know a lot of bands do, but then again, a lot of bands have that base – a foundation from which to start”
Was it a good move coming here then, relocating? (Manchester, rather than Moses Gate, I add as an afterthought).
“Moses Gate’s a good move” Smiffy laughs:
“My perception of Manchester prior to coming here is that it was full of music lovers, which it isn’t really….It is in a way…”
Rob: “…but everyone’s in a band in Manchester, and people are involved in this rivalry, and don’t wanna show their appreciation as such”
Smiffy: “People won’t acknowledge you, or your music, they’d prefer to stay within their own little clique”
“We’ve recorded the single ‘Trophies Of Love’” offers Rob: “We did that at Airtight studios - and then we’ve got two more singles to record” (prior to starting work on the album).
“We’re on tour in November with ?” adds Smiffy
As far as recording goes, they also feel that there are improvements to be made:
“When we were in Airtight, we were still, a bit, new to it all”
“We want to try and get a raw, less polished sound”
“Yeah….” adds Rob “…we’re signed to Concrete Records, who although pretty new, are quite established. ‘Trophies Of Love’ is gonna be our first release for Concrete, scheduled to come out in November”.
The pub has been hosting live gigs for some years, but it is only recently that it has begun to stage original artists, as opposed to the tribute bands whose posters adorn the walls. This could have something to do with the rise to prominence of the Bolton Music Collective – whatever, it’s a welcome innovation as far as I’m concerned.
Opening the show are Bolton rockers CUPID’S REVOLVER. A beautifully named young trio that have emo leanings, or so it looks by their dress sense, but whose sound proceeds in the traditional black leather anthemic way. That’s traditional to Bolton I hasten to add.
This likeable three-piece wasted no time in raising interest, and got feet tapping with their ‘had-it-up-to-here-with-just-about-everything’ teen anthems. Tunes like ‘Pride’ and ‘Jacknife’ earned them mounting respect from their peers - the former featuring a highly impressive drum solo that had the style police baying for their blood, and never mind that white necktie. Class!
Their gradual descent into heavy metal-esque rock freefall was pumped up by basslines from the group’s only McFly fan, as the mounting applause supported my impression that the band spoke volumes to the locals in a language that they fully understood. Underlining this notion with a shortened cover of ‘Money’ (that’s all I want), this impressive act showed more than enough of the credentials needed to earn a living on the live circuit, which is mature stuff for contenders still firmly on the right side of 20.
ORPHAN BOY’s set, on strangely appropriate borrowed gear (pending an advance from Concrete) was much more likely to alienate, especially as they were the only non-Bolton act on display this evening (not a shred of black clothing between them either, which for me was the dead giveaway!).
The plec-sliding, scene grinding intro to ‘The Great British Sitcom’ was like nails down a blackboard to this lot, as the band ripped into their set sounding every inch like a signed act. They were straight into their self-titled tune ‘Orphan Boy’ without so much as a break in their stride, representing Council Pop with their tense and frenetic jamming style, resulting in an automatic burst of jagged noise that had a real urgency about it. Soon, Rob and Smiffy had swapped guitars, with Smiffy taking up responsibility for the lead vocals along with the 6-string. This kind of versatility gave them a schizophrenic edge, and opened up yet more intriguing possibilities – the focus, however, stayed true to their manic eccentricities.
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‘Flicknife’ stood out as a fine example of their less than sane approach to songwriting, as did ‘The Salesman’ a tune that saw Rob back on guitar and throwing everything into the strangely enticing vocals. Oddly presented truths were revealed left right and centre, the kind we all recognise but rarely spare a thought for. It’s only one of the many notable strengths Orphan Boy possess I suspect, though as yet there is more than enough mystery to keep their fans guessing.
The newly-signed act ended the set with forthcoming single ‘Trophies Of Love’, bringing their professional performance to a close. It’s a difficult task to describe their highly original sound; no wonder they went for the ‘Council Pop’ tag.
Different, intriguing, and addictive? Possibly psychotic?
Yes, it was all of these things and more - peddled by the most unassuming bunch of lads you are ever likely to see onstage to boot. November will see them gigging like crazy, so try to catch them appearing at a venue near you.
Headliners ENDORSE were launching a new demo, and the coming weeks sees them touring quite a bit as well. With influences that are worn on the sleeve alongside the heart, this could have been a predictable celebration or reworking of late 80’s/early 90’s indie classics. What they did possess was a densely-textured sound, that was kind of off-focus, hard to pin down when heard through an absolute ton of FX. And that’s an early 90’s thing I guess. As I tried to figure out what lay at the heart of this condensed and introspective cacophony, my eyes flitted from one pulsating light to another. The simple chord pop was catchy enough, but as it strobed out with the two guitars merging under a sea of pedals, I suspect some of the power of their music was lost in this packed lounge bar.
With an easy onstage presence, they delivered their short set with confidence. ‘The Little People’ was a soulful slice of classic pop, as was another track reminiscent of Ride’s ‘Chelsea Girl’. The lead singer introduced the songs, but the reverb was just too wild, maan! Underneath this layer of digitally configured sound, there is a decent band, and I hope to hear them play with just a little more edge, putting in or highlighting more of themselves and their music. There are all of the ingredients of a Non-Mancunian shoegazer’s dreams soundtracked somewhere here, boss rhythm section included (another fine array of impressive drum styles their strongest point). It’s just a case of them losing or using some of the effects that muddied the waters on the night.
That’s only one opinion (you know what fussy bastard thirtysomethings are like kids), so check out their myspace, and leave a comment below. You’ll note that their logo is ‘Endorse’ spelt out in Braille. Which makes me blind, but not deaf.
ENDORSE are: Donnelly (Vocals/guitars)
Dean Glover (Guitars)
James Baynham (Bass)
Ben Robinson (Drums, backing vocals)
ORPHAN BOY are: Rob Cross (Guitar/vocals/bass)
Smiffy (Guitar/vocals/bass)
Chris Day (Drums)
CUPID’S REVOLVER are: JK (Voals, gutars)
Adam (Bass)
Chris (Drums)
http://www.myspace.com/orphanboyuk
http://www.myspace.com/endorse
http://www.myspace.com/cupidsrevolver
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