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The Gallery al fresco
- Luxury outdoor kitchens and al fresco living.

Align Massage
- Sports & soft tissue massage.

CDO Developments
- Midlands-based property development company.

Climate Retail
- Supply and delivery of Interiors & POS Display.

Harris Steels
- Quality steel stockholder.

Iyla Rose Foundation
- Funds for children & families with complex needs.

Le Beau Fief
- 19th century French gite to rent.

Mabel's Label
- Pet-friendly cleaning products to order.

Mick Poultney
- Mick Poultney's Bostin' Compostin' blog.

My Handy Helpers
- Get you jobs done: Achieve domestic bliss.

Picture-This Books
- A celebration of creativity, individuality & play.

Proper Ryder Cup
- Literally, the proper Ryder Cup. Not literally.

Redditch Dog Walking
- Dog walking services in Redditch and Studley.

Skyline Ductwork
- Ventilation ducting and flue systems.

Steve Hawkesworth
- Artist: Finest quality handmade woodwork.

Stourbridge Historical Society
- Meetings, outings, activities and membership info.

Sunday Roast Club
- Birmingham's finest Sunday Roast #influencers.

Swinford Prestigue Haulage
- Transportation and delivery of prestige items.

The Bridge House
- Multi-purpose venue, café and children's centre.

Tulip Hair
- Award-winning hair salon in Stourbridge.

The Gallery
- Luxury fitted kitchens in the West Midlands.

The Pole Hub
- Pole dance and fitness classes in Hertfordshire.

Woofy Woods
- Dog boarding kennels in Worcestershire.

What's Your Language?
- Quality French & Spanish tuition in Stourbridge.

Bungalow
- Monthly evening of debauchery in Stourbridge

Lick of the Wik: {2010} {'11} {'12} {'13} {'14} {'15} {'16} {2017}
- A weekly music review

The Kage
- Online music / arts magazine.

Get in touch
- Contact El Grabbo

{ Lick of the Wik: 2012 }

Firstly, I'd like to apologise for the name of this section...

'lick' is jazz-slang for 'some music' apparently, where 'wik' is the equivalent of 7 days, in the Black Country.

 

{2010} {2011} {2012} {2013} {2014} {2015} {2016} {2017}

 

24/12/12
Temples - Shelter song

Sweeping sounds, trippy vocals, analogue equipment...

With all this so-called 'Neo-neo-psyche MK2 2.0 +1' knocking about; 2013 may well turn out to be the 3rd Summer Of Love, following on from 2012's Olympic Golden Shower, or the slightly more embarrassing: Paedogeddon.

 

17/12/12
Emmy The Great & Tim Wheeler - Christmas moon

A sweet and sickly Sid & Nancy performing what sounds like the oldest song never to have been written.

Merry Christmas to my readers. I love you both equally. x

 

10/12/12
Adam Green & Binki Shapiro - Just to make me feel good

I don't know if you can class a duet as a supergroup, but with a Moldy Peach and a Little Joy, you're sure to find something you like.

 

03/12/12
Love Inks - In my dreams

If you thought Lana Del Rey was that thing Barcelona and Real Madrid compete for....then you'll need to swot up on your Music and P.E.

 

26/11/12
Foxygen - Middle School Dance (Song for Richard Swift)

Discovered by, produced by, and now performing with: Polydor-polymath Richard Swift, a kind of Jean Cocteau for the 21st Century.

 

19/11/12
Scott & Charlene's Wedding - Footscray Station

This one is especially for you. x

 

12/11/12
Eddie Front - Texas

Tom Waits once sang: "The Piano Has Been Drinking (Not Me)"
- in this case it may be both.

 

05/11/12
Rhye - The fall

Gather round and let me Tellier what I like about this song...

 

29/10/12
Peace - 1998 (Delicious)

I'll leave the introduction to Lauren Laverne.

 

22/10/12
Palma Violets - Best of friends

Putting the 'rough' back into Rough Trade.

 

15/10/12
Seize The Chair - You who?

{ Video doesn't exist any more, or did it ever? }

Spectatled Sheffielders aren't normally your typical surf dudes with attitudes. This chuggy-gallop leaves you feeling like you're on a road to nowhere.

 

08/10/12
Tame Impala - Solitude is bliss

Categorised amongst the online lyric dissecting community as: "Loners" or "That's totally about drugs." - It could well be both.
A 'chicken and egg' situation which is yet to be answered on QI.

 

01/10/12
Jake Bugg - Two fingers

Skiffling his way in from Nottingham, this creepy-crawly needs to realise that naming yourself after a Beatle will get you nowhere man.

 

23/09/12
Santigold - Disperate youth

You can never tell whether this person is Missing In Action, or just going through another colourful name-change. Either way, this up-beat off-beat number is the lead track from her new record, after finally making a name for herself.

 

17/09/12
Cat Power - Cerokee

From the 'difficult 9th album.'

 

10/09/12
Tim Burgess - White

Founder member of the MadCheshire scene returns with a Spongebobbian twist on what could well have been Dexys Midnight Runners' other song.

 

03/09/12
Life In Film - Get closer

Right up Stephen's Street. That man does love a bouncy jangle.

 

27/08/12
Melody's Echo Chamber - I follow you

Hailing from Paris, supporting The Raveonettes on their latest tour, and produced by Kevin 'Tame Impala' Parker; this one posts itself.

 

20/08/12
Friends - A thing like this.

These Brooklynites manage to create a sound a hell of a lot cooler than their influences. There are a few sounds, however, which beg the question: What's love got to do with it?

 

13/08/12
Purity Ring - Fineshrine

Continuing with the down-tempo, boy/girl duo, high-pitched hinting-towards-oriental vocals with split-second samples theme...

 

06/08/12
Society - All that we've become

Finally...! - Portishead Vs The Walker Brothers.

 

30/07/12
Tashaki Miyaki - Best friend

The results are in for the annual 'Guess the accompanying video for this song' competition: Those of you who guessed: Gun pointing at camera in arty POV shot, will be sent their cheque in the post.

 

23/07/12
Blonds - Time

Next Wik's Lick will not be a dreamy female artist from coastal US, I promise.
Hate the game, not the reviewer.

 

16/07/12
Blood Diamonds (feat. Grimes) - Phone sex

Was delighted to discover this song only features Grimes, as I do try and have a no-repeat-artist policy on here.

Strange name for a song where 2 of the only 7 comprehendible lyrics are 'daddy' and 'god.'

 

09/07/12
Blur - Under The Westway

AKA: the song The Beatles never made.

 

29/06/12
Correatown - Sunset & Echo

I could never be so cynical as to ponder whether the brief for this was to provide music for the quite sad bits at the end of a teen drama series. That was a joke, but I've just checked and it has been used that way.

 

22/06/12
The Problems - Cyclone

Firstly, I should declare an interest: The Problems are pals of mine. But as my 3 viewers of this website will protest: I don't normally plug music from my friends, as I'm nowhere near cool enough to be hanging around with people who play instruments and that.

That said, no friend of mine is worth sacrificing my music snobbery for, so these two still had to come up with something that got my toe ticking or my brain tapping.

 

15/06/12
Jessie Ware - 110%

Apologies to my 2 (or is it 3 now?) readers, for my absence… I do have a note from my Mom.

Finally, a Jessie we can all be proud of.
I have no idea where to file this song, which can only be a good thing. But anyone producing something resembling RnB which doesn't make you want to spew up your own pelvis, deserves a knighthood.

 

30/04/12
Cry Baby - When the lights go out

This guy's voice is so smooth, it makes Michael Bublé sound like a Russian couple arguing at the bowling alley. *

 

23/04/12
Richard Hawley - Seek it

As an old-skool Hawleyite, it's great to see his 7th album still has a touch of the kitchen-sink-romance which gave the guy a dedicated cult following amongst retired / reformed greasers.

 

16/04/12
Craft Spells - Your tomb

With a name so dark, light cannot escape its surface.. luckily the song isn't all leather, skulls and serpents.

 

09/04/12
College (feat. Electric Youth) - A real hero (Instrumental)

After watching the trailer for the film 'Drive,' I was not tempted go and see the full feature. After hearing this snippet of the soundtrack, I may be swayed.

 

02/04/12
Beach house - Myth

It's worth sticking by this beaut' as it has the hazy version of a solo at 3:26 mins.

 

26/03/12
Soko - First love never die

Bordeauxienne songstress: Soko, or 'Southern Comfort' as uncool people (with the extra 2 seconds spare) call h.

 

19/03/12
Toy - Left myself behind

Knocking about / touring with The Horrors seems to have had an effect on these guys. Formerly 'Joe Lean & the Jing Jang Jong' an interesting name making uninteresting music, thank goodness they're now doing the opposite.

 

12/03/12
Skint & demoralised - The thrill of thirty seconds

File next to: Jack Peñate and that other one I'd forgot about.

 

05/03/12
Chairlift - I belong in your arms

If you also noticed the first line is very reminiscent of the first line of: Go your own way, then we both need to get out more.

 

27/02/12
Tennis - Origins

So, after my eagerly awaited return from a short break, i'll be serving up a set of songs, which I hope you will let yourself love at least one.

With sound sicklier than strawberries and cream: this husband and wife duo are possibly what the Sandie Shaw / Smiths collaborations were supposed to sound like.

The tennis/music puns which didn't quite make it:
Fault / racket / bassline.

 

20/02/12
Alabama Shakes - Hold on

As excited as I am by the 'Shakes, I refuse to go over the top and declare my undying love for a refreshing Southern {US} RnRnB band.
Last time I did, the band in question ended up singing about sex being on fire.
Once bitten…

 

13/02/12
Grimes - Genesis

Not to be confused with 'Grimes' by Genesis...

 

06/02/12
Trailor Trash Tracys - Wish you were red

Fulfilling every male's longing for a mixture of the sweet and the filthy, this London-based outfit take their name from a nice blend of Texas & Essex.

 

30/01/12
Richard Swift - Lady luck

Ricardo Sigilfredo Olivarez Swift-Ochoa to you and I, has given up his solo dream for a place in The Shins, who it seems are turning into the Man City of the US indie music scene. If you get the chance to listen to 'The Bully' you will not be disappointed. Do it, otherwise I will steal your dinner-money (unless you have McAfee of course.)

 

23/01/12
The Friendly Fires - Looks like rain

I have to admit, I heard this song a couple of years ago and fell for it, in more ways that one. A few months later 'Friendly Fires' released a string of singles with what I thought was a pretty drastic change of direction from their former selves.

It has just occurred to me that it is a completely different set of musicians, rather than the same lot simply dropping the definitive article. There are many bands who have gone 'sans le,' post-punk band The The, however, never got round to doing this …or did they?

 

23/01/12
The underground youth - Heart on a chain

Sounding exactly like their name would suggest.

 

16/01/12
French Films - Take you with me

If Finland's French Films were named according to next wik's lik's formula, I think we'd be looking at something like: The Division of Drum Vaccines.

 

09/01/12
M83 - Reunion

Quite an Earthy song for a band named after a spiral galaxy; by one of the few crossover artists around not pretending to be a French producer. Now hurry up and put this on your iPod docking thing before you set off around Africa, Thailand and/or Austrailia.

 

02/01/12
Major Lazer ft Mr Vegas & Jovi Rockwel - Can't stop now

Comin' straight outta 1994, or so it seems. This one contains the only bassline reggae has ever used/needed, with the little sample-y bits bringing it just about up to date.

 

{2010} {2011} {2012} {2013} {2014} {2015} {2016} {2017}