V4 Visions

I was invited to write a liner note for a compilation of South London label V4 Visions, who operated at the confluence of sound system soul, house, jungle, and swingbeat, releasing a compact but lustrous body of work across only a few years of the early '90s, which has now received the deluxe reissue treatment from Numero Group. 

It was a really fun and interesting assignment, as the biographical arcs and journeys-through-music of the collective's core four (Alex Palmer, Chris Forbes, Nick Austin, Julian Ashaye) transected just about every significant Black British sound + scene from the late '70s through to the '90s: lover's rock, jazz-funk, street soul, hip hop, funki dred, pirate radio, reggae sound systems,  you name it.  I'm not sure if they took me up on it, but I did suggest a map might be a useful supplement to the text, given the profusion of bygone club locations mentioned as well as specific neighbourhoods of London. I was surprised also by just how many famous-to-be names the V4 Visions boys rubbed shoulders with back in the day.  

 

The anthology - V4 Visions: Of Love & Androids - is out now and you can hear the tunes at the Numero Group bandcamp, where it is also purchasable in digital form. The vinyl edition is still available at the Numero Group website. 

 

"and I'm screaming next to you"

I had a great time chatting with David Stubbs and Jim Irvin for Jim's podcast You're Not On The List. The concept is "undervalued albums" - I went for Ian Dury & The Blockheads's Do It Yourself, Stubbs surprised me with his choice of the debut Comsat Angels as opposed to something mail-ordered from the Recommended catalogue, and Jim plumped for Bryan Ferry's Boys and Girls. But discussion roamed beyond the prompts, taking in pretentious teenage music-fiends, the care and upkeep (or not-keep) of vinyl, "working" for a weekly music paper in the late '80s, and more. 

You can hear / download it direct from Jim's website or stream via  Apple or Spotify

Enter Carducci

LA-people! This coming Sunday evening I'm doing an event with Joe Carducci of Rock and the Pop Narcotic / Enter Naomi renown at Stories Books & Cafe in Echo Park. We'll be chatting about "the tangled music cultures of Britain and America circa 1976-86 and the Rough Trade and SST scene" - punk, postpunk, New Wave, hardcore, DIY etc. 

Admission: free

Time: 7pm 

Date: Sunday, March 20, 2022 

Location: the open-air patio in back of Stories Books & Cafe, 1716 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles. 

Further info: (213) 413-3733 and https://storiesla.com/

Carducci is also the special guest on the next Rocks Back Pages Podcast, which airs on Monday 21st of this month. More information at RBP pod central.