We Give A Fuck About An Oxford Collapse

Maintaining a blog is almost as much hard work as maintaining a small-to-nohing independent record label. And this is only my first post. Who would've thought, apathy and indignance from the get go? But i guess it only seems like a chore as we've a million different plates spinning at once at the moment. I wonder if Sisyphus complained this much? He probabaly would have if he had a blog. In fact, if he had a blog, he would've got bored with that rock a long time ago.

Anyway, rocks, plates and mixed metaphors aside, there's something rather exciting about to occur and even though no one other than me and Ryan is reading this, it's important to record for posterity at least. We've always considered our monthly boozefest Don't Go Home... to be a lot less than shit, but the gigs we've organised this year have been especially not shit. That's to say, really quite excellent. The Johnny Foreigner/William/The Sequins blastoff in February had me smiling like i'd never had my heartbroken, while the bank holiday follow up of Youth Movies and Rolo Tomassi broke my heart for all the right reasons. I think that balances itself out. And why do blogs and heartbreak keep jumping into bed together? Needless to say, we're aiming for a triple crown run with Saturday's forthcoming line-up.

Fresh off the back of a support tour with We Are Scientists (and don't hold that against them) Oxford Collapse will be gracing the inappropriately-sized Taylor John's stage on Saturday 26th April. That they're signed to Sub Pop should be indication enough of their pedigree, but that they also share the same initials as a certain Orange County (there's a clue) teen drama/joke should tell you more about their Seth Cohen in tight shorts sassy-ness. The good thing though is that this particular OC leave behind the mawkish sentimentality that afflicts their namesake and just bring the heat and hot threads. Tough Love's very own Situationists and Mirror! Mirror! will also be playing, which is equally exciting given that they're two of the best young bands in the country. It's true that of course i would make such a claim, but it's also true that it's true and it's hard to argue with the truth.

So, here are the details for those to lazy to read the above:

Don't Go Home...
Saturday 26th April
Oxford Collapse
Situationists
Mirror! Mirror!
Taylor John's House, Coventry
8:30PM-2:00AM
£4/5

See you all Saturday and by all I mean you Ryan.

TLV 020 HEALTH - Triceratops//Lost Time + Remixes

Released 19th May 2008

We’re still reeling slightly from the news that HEALTH want to work with us, so it’s with great excitement that we can announce the release of a limited edition 12” from the LA-based four piece. Featuring “Triceratops” and “Lost Time” from last years self-titled DiS Top Ten album of the year, it also compiles together a number of remixes from their DISCO pseudonym. They’re pretty much the best remixes we’ve heard in the three years the label has been in operation. Thanks must go to Alex Ostrowski for helping out with the artwork.

In case you’ve been walking around with your eyes closed, HEALTH have been getting props pretty much everywhere, from Pitchfork to VICE to Plan B. Just look at their number of plays on MySpace: www.myspace.com/healthmusic. Always an indication of brilliance, possibly… So good are they in fact that their forthcoming May/June UK tour is being sponsored by the ever-on-the-ball Drowned In Sound. They’re also playing Primavera for any of you heading out there in late May. We hope to see you at one of the dates:


30th April – Wheatsheaf, Oxford
1st May – Luminaire, London
3rd May – Charlies Nightclub, Manchester
4th May – The Brudenell, Leeds
5th May – Portland Ardms, Cambridge
6th May – Bodega, Nottingham
9th May – Whelan’s, Dublin
10th May - Captian’s Rest, Glasgow
11th May – End Bar, Newcastle
12th May – Freebutt, Brighton
9th June – The Joiners, Southampton
11th June – Liverpool, Korova

TLV018 Honeytrap – Follies in Great Cities

Released 9th June 2008

From the very first Tough Love live show back in the summer of ’05 when they were known as Mawda and listened to the Lion King on repeat for months at a time, the prospect of a full album from those same four slightly off-kilter oddballs, now under the Honeytrap moniker, has always been rather exciting. Recorded in both an old coal vault and a bathroom, Follies In Great Cities delivers on that early promise and with great aplomb. Featuring ten tracks, including re-recorded versions of both “Mussolini’s Son” and “Death Before the Silver Screen”, it’s a wildly ambitious tour de force. The violins and horns leave me a little breathless I have to say.

Artwork comes from the wonderfully talented Rose Blake and we can excitedly confirm that T-Shirts based on the design are in the pipeline. Thank you so much Rose for all your hard work. You all really should investigate her other work.

To celebrate the release we’ve organised a launch party at Taylor John’s House on the 6th June, featuring not only Honeytrap but the new band from ex-Dead! Dead! Dead! members and some close friends from Norway. Keep your diary free or join the Facebook event.