Joey Fourr Beats Reality

It can be hard to keep up with English skewed punk leprechaun Joey Fourr (I don't know how big he is, I'm pretty much writing what pops into my head for this one). He has an EP out now called Luv Is In The Mornin, which is pretty awesome wonky pop (the title track is pretty awesome to be fair, an 80s weird pop wigout), but I've been digging the split he's done with London grunged out crawlers H.Grimace a couple months ago, Nothing Beats Reality on Bad Paintings (this wont be the last split release I talk about this week).  Its all pretty straight up indie rock fare, albeit a little heavier on the guitar crunch, but just as liberal with the garish sugar rush. The charm is that he doesn't really feel awkward about being so overtly cartoonish, and that's where the genius lies. You can't deny that - a guy that isn't earnest, but isn't taking the piss either. Lots of words shortened and spelt with z's will do that to you. It's frenetic, its reckless, it's fun. What the doctor ordered.

You can buy Nothing Beats Reality here.

Joey Fourr's Five

I'm hoping to keep this short - I worked all day yesterday, was woken up early today, and want to do as little on this Sunday as possible - but I felt I had to give some lip service to London's Joey Fourr. Ex-Tubelord Lord Joseph Prendergast's lo-fi solo odyssey first reared its head last year on Art Is Hard's Pizza Single Biweekly Club, and he has since released five EPs - shiza... All of differing focus and fidelity, but all of interest. There is a lot to be said here, but I am really tired (sorry Joe!) so instead I'm going to say that this stuff has grown on me to the point that when a track inadvertently sneaks onto my playlists I grin and stop what I'm doing for a few minutes, take in the song and forget about the stresses of life. That to me is a good enough seal of approval.

Here is a taster from all five EPs. Head here to get them (in differing stages of cost and mediums).

 The latest EP, Sunslime.


'Surf Dye' off Museums.
 
'Wet Hips' off We.


'Play With Yrself' off Crack Is Whack.


'CROSS†DRESSER' off How To Buy Happiness.

2010's Best EPs...by David of Art Is Hard Records

Next up on our guest contributors for our best of 2010 is David , one half of the creative minds behind Art Is Hard Records, a new DIY label in the south-west of England doing its darnedest to showcase the best that the region has to offer. Art Is Hard was started by David and a friend who are influenced by the attitude and ethics of labels such as Factory, Wichita, Anticon and Dischord. They put out as their first release a compilation Brink Of The Clouds that brought attention to the likes of Colours, Dutch Husbands and Cycle Schmiechel, combined with an innovative T-shirt promotion - check out our thoughts and some of the tracks here.

"When Sonic Masala asked me to contribute a list to their end of year feature, I set to task with constructing some method of appearing witty and well educated in this year's releases. Unfortunately I am neither, so here is a list of my EP's of the year. "

1. Factory Floor - Untitled (Blast First Petite)

2. Hot Club De Paris - With Days Like This.../ The Rise and Inevitable fall... (Moshi Moshi)

3. Johnny Foreigner - You Thought You Saw.... (Alcopop)

4. Cerebral Ballzy - Live in Toronto (Tape Alarm)

5. Islet - Celebrate This Place (Turnstile)

6. Gold Panda - You (No Town)

7. Yu(c)k - Weakend (Mirror Universe Tapes)

8. Tall Ships - There Is Nothing but Chemistry Here (Big Scary Monsters)

9. Tubelord - Tezcatlipoca (Hassle Records)

10. Spectrals - Extended Play (Moshi Moshi)

See below for a taste of a few of these EPs, and also another taste of Art Is Hard's last release, the 7" split between New Years Evil and The Black Tambourines, here (not Black Tamborine - yes, they are flirting with libel there...)

Yu(c)k - Weakend

Cerebral Ballzy - Anthem

Tall Ships - Books

Tubelord - Ratchet