CHILDISH & THE BLACKHANDS, WILD BILLY - Play: Captain Calypso's Hoodoo Party
"Britain's bohemian/beat, poetry/writer, and musician who headed The Milkshakes and The Headcoast, Billy Childishappeared as Wild Billy playing Caribbean music with his one-night group The Blackhands (what a cool name!). Whole tunes were recorded in a kitchen room in 1988, using only one microphone in the span of a single day. Assembling a coterie of friends and players as the Blackhands -- notably including a trumpeter, one Dave -- Childish turned in a loose and lively romp through originals and covers both -- yet one more collection of rough and tumble wiggery from the man. Hoodoo is the sound of folks playing for their own enjoyment and having a fun time while they're at it. It's not quite rock, not exactly calypso, definitely not lounge, and not really big band jazz, but somehow the Blackhands make it all sound like a fusion of it all, like a record dropped somewhere out of the '30s or the late '40s into the present. Childish sends his vocals through some light effects, or maybe it's just the mike, giving it a mid-century scratchiness. His banjo takes the basic lead, but Dave's trumpet provides the flair, and even if it's not always note-perfect, that's hardly the point. Vocals from Ludella and Kyra provide a nice contrast, sometimes taking lead and sometimes pairing up with Childish in duets, while Seamus on accordion adds more fills and fun to it all. Everything kicks off with the old standard "Rum 'n Coca-Cola," delivered with an infectious glee -- the punchy drums from Richard add to the entertainment. Other oldies include the calypso number "Underneath The Mango Tree," "I Love Paris (In The Springtime)," and the Champs' legendary instrumental "Tequila." Even The Sex Pistols' anthem is given a hilarious and energetic run-through. Hearing Childish play the opening riff on banjo is reason enough to give this an ear." - EM
After nearly a decade of false starts, multiple game plans veering off the rails, and a handful of shattered hopes and/or dreams, the odyssey is finally complete—the new Fusetron site is here.
This is the first phase of a multipart rollout that will span the next few months: the currently browsable stock includes miscellaneous new releases from the past 8+ months (we have a lot of catching up to do), plus approximately a third of our backstock. Note that we’ve reduced/slashed prices on many titles and will continue to do so in order to make room for new stock. We’ll also be expanding / tweaking / improving / debugging the site itself (for example, we still have work to do on the automated international postage system, not to mention the inevitable inventory discrepancies that come with transferring an ancient and massive database to a new system).
Over the next few months, as we take inventory, clean house, and delve into our storage, we will be uploading thousands of additional items, gradually, on a near-daily basis. This will include the majority of the LPs, as well as many titles, in all formats, once thought long-gone. Many currently “sold out” items are likely to resurface.
Finally, once our general backstock is up (probably in the next two or three months) we’ll begin making our extensive stockpile of rarities available online for the first time: tons of random out-of-print titles, "deadstock," warehouse finds, secondhand collectibles, etc., accumulated over the past few decades.
Frequent/returning customers will be getting early access to these items. Details to follow on how this will work (a priority mailing list? a 'frequent flyer'-like program?), but it will not be based on dollars spent. We want to reward those who consistently support us, especially in the discogs marketplace era (to those who show up trying to poach five copies of a one-off rarity, and nothing else, ever… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ).
So—we suggest you take some time to dig through the site—even we’ve been surprised by what’s been turning up, and there’s much more to come.
