Mark Coles Music
Knowledge. Passion. Expertise.
Shedcasting
THE BLOG : NOTES FROM THE SHED
LATEST:
I can't tell you how chuffed I am. When you're as successful as Peter Gabriel, you can go anywhere to talk about your latest project. But, bless him, Peter chose our humble Shed to discuss his latest venture, Real World Gold. For the past 23 years, as well as having a massively successful solo career and being the leading light behind the international WOMAD music festivals, Peter Gabriel has run Real World Records, an ambitious record label recording, promoting and distributing music from all around the planet. On May 21st, he begins re-releasing some of the key albums to come out on the label over the past three decades....everyone from Pakistani music icon Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan to The Blind Boys Of Alabama and Uganda's Geoffrey Oryema.
Out of the blue, I got an email from Peter's office asking if I'd like to interview and talk to him about the label's back catalogue. It turns out he and his manager are regular listeners to "The Shed", they listen in the office each week. "I'm a big fan of what you do in your shed" he told me. Sheds run in the family too. Peter's dad had a workshop shed in which he invented and pioneered on demand TV and home shopping among other things. Peter has insisted his dad leaves his shed to him in his will.
So, with this in mind, I popped round to Peter's West London home last month for a chat. Its an awesome place...huge, with safe-style doors, a middle games room and a garden out back complete with trampolene for his three year old. After discussing the garden foxes...several of whom, he told me, slide off upper floor windows, we sat down for a chat about his favourite music. In a wide-ranging interview, he talked about Real World Records, the artists who recorded for it, the state of world music today ("it got tagged with sandal wearing, Guardian readers") and his dreams of new global democracies based on new technology. And, of course, sheds.
Nice bloke. My late dad, a Genesis fan, thought he was a genius. The very fact he listens to "The Shed" would have made his day. Please, give the programme a listen.
PREVIOUSLY: 03/ 05/ 2012
Apologies. Its been a busy few weeks....a number of rock and pop stars to interview for BBC Radio 4's Today programme in between my weekly stints playing CDs here in the shed ! Not that I'm complaining, mind. Its been fascinating. Former White Stripes man Jack White talked me through his new album "Blunderbuss" in his dressing room before performing live on BBC TV's "Later" programme the other night. I've also had the pleasure of talking to former Joy Division/New Order bass guitarist Peter Hook, Dr Feelgood's Wilko Johnson and American musician Pokey Lafarge among others. Tomorrow I get to interview new US band Alabama Shakes. Their debut album "Boys And Girls" highly recommended by the way.
Jack White is a charming bloke, despite all the flak he's getting from some quarters for some of the lyrics on the new album. It really is a wonderful record, possibly one of the best I've heard in twenty or so years. It feels very old school, how albums used to sound and be made before the advent of CD and digital technology. Its beautifully crafted, complex, musically and lyrically layered and textured. Full of surprises. Not what it appears to be on first listen. It feels slightly surreal. I interviewed Jack on the phone back at the start of August 2001 when the White Stripes were still unknown. He told me then that if his band got any publicity it would be short-lived and everyone would have forgotten about them in three months time. 11 years on, he's still here, making wonderful music and sitting at the top of the US and UK charts. Much deserved. You can hear the full interview with Jack White on The Shed this week. Its also on this website's home page.
Its fast approaching crunch time as far as The Shed is concerned. Do I continue or not ? I've loved every minute of broadcasting from the bottom of the garden and genuinely want to continue. I have a vision of the humble Shed being the basis for all kinds of things from radio programmes to record labels. The support from regular listeners who tune into the website every week or who listen on Mixcloud, PRX, Facebook, Twitter or other outlets has been fantastic. Sadly, World Radio Switzerland www.worldradio.ch who've been kind enough to broadcast The Shed on good old fashioned radio almost from day one, are now themselves under serious threat. Their parent company the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation has decided, wrongly in my view, that it doesn't believe there's a case for public funding of an English language radio station in Switzerland. Its considering closing the station or trying to attract a private buyer. Without a platform like WRS, it leaves the Shed in a precarious position. I wish WRS all the best for the battle ahead, they deserve better. I hope to continue broadcasting The Shed but have to investigate other avenues and other ways of making it work. Any suggestions would be welcome !
Away from the politics of the new age of austerity, musically, its been a wonderful few weeks. 2012 is fast turning into a great year for new music and album releases. There've been exceptional albums from Belgium's Zita Swoon Group, Italy's Vinicio Capossela, and Norway's Kim Andre Rysstad, while South African musician and producer Spoek Mathambo's new album "Father Creeper" is phenomenal. A really refreshing, innovative new voice, the music impossible to pigeon-hole or categorise. But therein lies a problem. The old style "world music" tag no longer really applies to music like this anymore. You'll find Spoek Mathambo's album languishing in the "world music" racks - assuming you can still find a record store where you are. But that does it a disservice. I went into what is my otherwise excellent local independent record store to try to buy it. "Never heard of him" was the response "we don't do much world music".
But this album is also rock, it's roots, it's house, it's electro, rap, urban, pop and at times jazz. Its an eclectic, staggeringly refreshing mix of everything thats contemporary. Its roots are in South Africa but its defiantly global in outlook. Every home should have a copy. But its being held back, hindered, by defining it as "world music". Which is why The Shed tries not to plough a narrow furrow when it comes to what is played on the programme. I try to play what I consider to be the best new music releases from around the planet that come my way every week, regardless of genre, categorisation or pigeon hole. If if moves me, I'll play it, whether it's Hong Kong punk, African roots, Croatian reality TV show contestants or Scandinavian jazz. The Shed is all about breaking down boundaries, trying to create a level playing field, where every music from every corner of the world gets an even look in. It only has to be good to get played. You can be Jack White selling millions or records around the world or The Malawi Mouse Boys, eight roadside snack sellers from one of the poorest countries on the planet making music in their village in their spare time. Both are featured on The Shed this week and both deserve to be. And that's what I loved about WRS, a radio station in a country that, on the surface, seemed to welcome people, companies and organisations from around the world which was willing to broadcast a music programme that celebrated global culture without borders or boundaries. Long may WRS continue. And hopefully, The Shed.
Mark
LATEST:
I can't tell you how chuffed I am. When you're as successful as Peter Gabriel, you can go anywhere to talk about your latest project. But, bless him, Peter chose our humble Shed to discuss his latest venture, Real World Gold. For the past 23 years, as well as having a massively successful solo career and being the leading light behind the international WOMAD music festivals, Peter Gabriel has run Real World Records, an ambitious record label recording, promoting and distributing music from all around the planet. On May 21st, he begins re-releasing some of the key albums to come out on the label over the past three decades....everyone from Pakistani music icon Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan to The Blind Boys Of Alabama and Uganda's Geoffrey Oryema.
Out of the blue, I got an email from Peter's office asking if I'd like to interview and talk to him about the label's back catalogue. It turns out he and his manager are regular listeners to "The Shed", they listen in the office each week. "I'm a big fan of what you do in your shed" he told me. Sheds run in the family too. Peter's dad had a workshop shed in which he invented and pioneered on demand TV and home shopping among other things. Peter has insisted his dad leaves his shed to him in his will.
So, with this in mind, I popped round to Peter's West London home last month for a chat. Its an awesome place...huge, with safe-style doors, a middle games room and a garden out back complete with trampolene for his three year old. After discussing the garden foxes...several of whom, he told me, slide off upper floor windows, we sat down for a chat about his favourite music. In a wide-ranging interview, he talked about Real World Records, the artists who recorded for it, the state of world music today ("it got tagged with sandal wearing, Guardian readers") and his dreams of new global democracies based on new technology. And, of course, sheds.
Nice bloke. My late dad, a Genesis fan, thought he was a genius. The very fact he listens to "The Shed" would have made his day. Please, give the programme a listen.
PREVIOUSLY: 03/ 05/ 2012
Apologies. Its been a busy few weeks....a number of rock and pop stars to interview for BBC Radio 4's Today programme in between my weekly stints playing CDs here in the shed ! Not that I'm complaining, mind. Its been fascinating. Former White Stripes man Jack White talked me through his new album "Blunderbuss" in his dressing room before performing live on BBC TV's "Later" programme the other night. I've also had the pleasure of talking to former Joy Division/New Order bass guitarist Peter Hook, Dr Feelgood's Wilko Johnson and American musician Pokey Lafarge among others. Tomorrow I get to interview new US band Alabama Shakes. Their debut album "Boys And Girls" highly recommended by the way.
Jack White is a charming bloke, despite all the flak he's getting from some quarters for some of the lyrics on the new album. It really is a wonderful record, possibly one of the best I've heard in twenty or so years. It feels very old school, how albums used to sound and be made before the advent of CD and digital technology. Its beautifully crafted, complex, musically and lyrically layered and textured. Full of surprises. Not what it appears to be on first listen. It feels slightly surreal. I interviewed Jack on the phone back at the start of August 2001 when the White Stripes were still unknown. He told me then that if his band got any publicity it would be short-lived and everyone would have forgotten about them in three months time. 11 years on, he's still here, making wonderful music and sitting at the top of the US and UK charts. Much deserved. You can hear the full interview with Jack White on The Shed this week. Its also on this website's home page.
Its fast approaching crunch time as far as The Shed is concerned. Do I continue or not ? I've loved every minute of broadcasting from the bottom of the garden and genuinely want to continue. I have a vision of the humble Shed being the basis for all kinds of things from radio programmes to record labels. The support from regular listeners who tune into the website every week or who listen on Mixcloud, PRX, Facebook, Twitter or other outlets has been fantastic. Sadly, World Radio Switzerland www.worldradio.ch who've been kind enough to broadcast The Shed on good old fashioned radio almost from day one, are now themselves under serious threat. Their parent company the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation has decided, wrongly in my view, that it doesn't believe there's a case for public funding of an English language radio station in Switzerland. Its considering closing the station or trying to attract a private buyer. Without a platform like WRS, it leaves the Shed in a precarious position. I wish WRS all the best for the battle ahead, they deserve better. I hope to continue broadcasting The Shed but have to investigate other avenues and other ways of making it work. Any suggestions would be welcome !
Away from the politics of the new age of austerity, musically, its been a wonderful few weeks. 2012 is fast turning into a great year for new music and album releases. There've been exceptional albums from Belgium's Zita Swoon Group, Italy's Vinicio Capossela, and Norway's Kim Andre Rysstad, while South African musician and producer Spoek Mathambo's new album "Father Creeper" is phenomenal. A really refreshing, innovative new voice, the music impossible to pigeon-hole or categorise. But therein lies a problem. The old style "world music" tag no longer really applies to music like this anymore. You'll find Spoek Mathambo's album languishing in the "world music" racks - assuming you can still find a record store where you are. But that does it a disservice. I went into what is my otherwise excellent local independent record store to try to buy it. "Never heard of him" was the response "we don't do much world music".
But this album is also rock, it's roots, it's house, it's electro, rap, urban, pop and at times jazz. Its an eclectic, staggeringly refreshing mix of everything thats contemporary. Its roots are in South Africa but its defiantly global in outlook. Every home should have a copy. But its being held back, hindered, by defining it as "world music". Which is why The Shed tries not to plough a narrow furrow when it comes to what is played on the programme. I try to play what I consider to be the best new music releases from around the planet that come my way every week, regardless of genre, categorisation or pigeon hole. If if moves me, I'll play it, whether it's Hong Kong punk, African roots, Croatian reality TV show contestants or Scandinavian jazz. The Shed is all about breaking down boundaries, trying to create a level playing field, where every music from every corner of the world gets an even look in. It only has to be good to get played. You can be Jack White selling millions or records around the world or The Malawi Mouse Boys, eight roadside snack sellers from one of the poorest countries on the planet making music in their village in their spare time. Both are featured on The Shed this week and both deserve to be. And that's what I loved about WRS, a radio station in a country that, on the surface, seemed to welcome people, companies and organisations from around the world which was willing to broadcast a music programme that celebrated global culture without borders or boundaries. Long may WRS continue. And hopefully, The Shed.
Mark
RECOMMENDATIONS / FELLOW SHEDCASTERS
On this page you will find whole-heartedly endorsed, highly recommended personal takes and picks of music from different regions of the planet.
HONG KONG GARDEN is a monthly garden/cafe/home/shed-cast put together by Sean Hocking who runs Hong Kong's excellent Metal Postcard Records, the label responsible for Cambodian Space Project's debut album "2011: A Space Odyssey" as well as Swoop Swoop, Ollo and Japan's ?Redo From Start. Each month he brings us his pick of new releases from the Asia Pacific region and beyond. Here's his latest edition - for May 2012
Find out more about his label here:
http://metalpostcard.com/
