Northwest Music News — 5 Jun: The Earlies, Evil Blizzard, Clinic and more

Feature by Simon Jay Catling | 05 Jun 2015
The Earlies return! 

Following an eight year hiatus, trans-Atlantic four-piece The Earlies have announced their return with a small run of shows and a new EP, Message From Home. Split between Lancashire and Texas — and featuring Autolux's John Mark Lapham in their line-up — released two albums of delicately nuanced psychedelic pop a decade or so ago, which took on Beach Boys melodies mixed with a Jason Lytle/Grandaddy-reminiscent wistfulness. They were great, basically. Eleven years on from their debut record, These Were The Earlies, and the group have revealed their first new work since their hiatus, with Abandon showing that once again distance doesn't matter a jot.

Clinic headline LIV-BCN

Returning for its second year, LIV-BCN acts as a cultural exchance between Liverpool and Barcelona and, with the first leg of 2015 having already taken place in Spain, the return  takes place in July, with the musical strand of the two week programme hitting the Kazimier on Sat 11 Jul. Alongside Catalan groups Mujeres and The Suicide of Western Culture, headliners are grizzled psychedelic veterans Clinic, a group who've been mining the third-eye for nearly 20 years and who are now getting their just rewards with the resurgence of neo-psych. Full details on the rest of the line-up can be found here.

Evil Blizzard release new video

The great mask-wearing Lancastrian noise rockers since Kong (that's high praise, trust us) Evil Blizzard have revealed the new video filmed at their recent show at the Ruby Lounge in Manchester. Supporting new single Are You Evil?, out on Louder Than War Records, the clip is a prettyapt representation of their visually and aurally intensive live show, the track itself based around a probing, menacing bass line that forces you to hold its attention as the rest of the group thunder forth over it.

Digital Crate Digging

Werkha —  Colour of a Red Brick Raft

Straddling a line somewhere between the intricate rabbit holes and tangents of Flying Lotus, and the more expansive, broader brush strokes of Bonobo, Manchester's Werkha brings out his soulful new LP Colour of a Red Brick Raft on Brighton-based label Tru Thoughts on Monday. The producer's calling card is taking straight-up R'n'b pop jams and coercing them left of centre, distorting dynamics and pushing through elements that others would leave languising in the background. He's recently moved to Glasgow, but returns for his album launch party at the Deaf Institute on the 18th. 

The Membranes — Dark Matter/Dark Energy

Another with an album out this month, veteran post-punk troupe The Membranes Dark Matter/Dark Energy is their first full studio album in more than 25 years, but like peers Wire there's little time for revivalism of their past on this new set of tracks, which bears all the hallmarks of front man John Robb's sustained explorations into the punk undergrowth of Eastern Europe and the folk music of Northern Africa. The result is a record that's arguably their most expansive yet — and a much more informed insight into the character of Robb for those only aware of his mainstream music media work. The Membranes launch their record with a show at the Deaf Institute in Manchester on 19 Jun. 

Ménage à Trois — Bobby's Prism

Not discounting former front man Ellery Roberts, the dissolution of WU LYF has resulted in various members mining some pretty overt pop channels within their respective solo work. There's been the glimmer and glam of Tom McClung's Francis Lung project, the, err, pig-inspired disco of Los Porcos and Joe Manning's new group Ménage à Trois. It's taking us a little while to warm up to the latter's slow jams, but the four-piece have just unveiled their most promising track to-date on Cracki Records, with the twilight R'n'B of Bobby's Prism. 

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