Recommended Sites
Many moons ago (in 1978) a drummer in a strangely experimental group decided he’d had enough of being told by record label bosses to make the music ‘a bit more commercial’ by adding ‘a guitar solo here’ or ‘shortening the track’. And so Chris Cutler (for it was he) of Henry Cow (the strangely etc) decided to forge links with other bands who survived precariously on the edge of the music bizness: he set up Rock In Opposition for bands to help each other to tour in each others’ country, and then decided that if no one else was going to sell their records he’d make damn sure that some of us got to hear them by setting up a mail-order record distribution (RECOMMENDED RECORDS) with a very tatty shop in Wandsworth Rd. Stockwell. And so many of us (or few of us) got our first listen to Magma, Univers Zero, Art Zoyd, The Residents, Sun Ra, Pere Ubu, Albert Marcoeur, This Heat, Art Bears, Samla Mammas Manna—because we bought their LPs on Chris’s recommendation alone.
The Rotters Club is just one more way to experience the unheard wonderful music that’s out there below the radar… Here are some of the other ways to find the really GOOD STUFF: (and I have no financial stake in any of these recommendations) (ker-ching!)
ReR Megacorp mail-order
“the idea was to find and make available recordings from around the world (on numerous independent and specialist labels, including some rare and hard to find limited editions) which embodied the most interesting, experimental or important work in the musical field I cared about... We don’t deal in narrow genres but look for what’s unusual across a very wide field” (Chris Cutler). Start here with the Sale Offer (buy any four for £5 each – Bob Drake’s in there.. the Recommended Records Sampler is a must. So are Henry Cow, This Heat, Sun Ra, News From Babel, The Necks, ZNR, Kew Rhone..).
Buy the bloody lot if you can!
Unorthodox Paradox Radio
Online on occasional Thursdays from 8pm-11pm, usually hosted by the Gurus of Wonk: Sir Real (actually Neil Charlie Spragg) and Dave Grindi (actually David Grindi)
The Progressive Alternative
Online radio show by Mr Adrian Bell (Belch). Tuesdays from 10pm, featuring the best of Progressive Rock both ancient and modern, and everything of an Alternative nature, from the Underground to the Avant Garde and everything in-between.
The Other Rock Show
Broadcast live from London Bridge on Resonance 104.4 FM every other Sunday at 9pm. It’s an hour dedicated to music that uses time signatures other than the usual 4/4.
The Other Rock Show is presented by Marina Organ, one half of the team that publishes The Organ ‘zine. The Organ began life as a hand-built music fanzine sold by the thousands at venues from 1986 onwards and has always championed the ‘other’ in rock.
The Alphabet Business Concern
The home of everything to do with Cardiacs, and a splendid opportunity to support the band by buying direct from them here
What would you want to recommend? Get in touch via our contact page to add your recommendations.