KCL Blog -Music: more than just entertainment

Our favourite songs often provide the soundtrack for daily tasks around the house and entertain us when we may need a break from computer screens, but it can be so much more than just background noise. Music serves several purposes in life and could unlock many more benefits than you realise. 

It can spark creativity

Notes and rhythms can dance around your head all day, playing repetitively. But it may start taking a slightly different tune. Songs that stay with us can provide the inspiration that leads us onto our own creations. 

Sampling isn’t anything new, and it’s something that even the greats do. Madonna borrowing ABBA’s ‘Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)’ for her hit dance track proved a huge success, showing her spin on the band’s classic. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and that certainly shows when a song can lend a hand to a new musical triumph. You don’t have to be a chart-topping hitmaker to create your own twist, and you may be surprised with what creative juices start flowing when you incorporate a sample of your own.

Thanks for the memories

When you visit past events, it’s more than likely that there was a musical attachment. Whether it’s the ‘Wedding March’ on your special day, or ‘Singing in the Rain’ from the first time you watched a special film with a grandparent, songs can spark special memories to reignite in your mind and remind you of a happier time.

Of course, not all memories are happy. We can be reminded of sombre times through emotional tunes, but maybe they hold a special place in your heart. There’s a place and time for when you want to be reminded of these times, and those teary moments aren’t always welcome. But say it reminds you of a person you no longer see, sometimes it can help you feel connected to that person and bring back happier memories you had with them. Hearing ‘Hushabye Mountain’ from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang saddens me when I think about why it reminds me of my uncle, but it also reminds me of the joyful memories and gives me a chance to reflect on happier times, which is one of music’s most special powers, I think.

Providing motivation

Whether you need to power through that run or finally finish that assignment that you’ve been procrastinating with, music can be the best motivational accompaniment. 

I’m sure that ‘Eye of the Tiger’ sees many of us through those dreaded gruelling workouts, as the power-packed song tends to sum up adrenaline for us, pushing us forward to work up a sweat. Maybe it’s the connotations of it being played whilst Rocky is training for his bag match, or maybe it’s the punch-like beats that puncture the song throughout that encourages us to gather more energy. 

It’s not all about high-adrenaline, blood-pumping anthems though, some relaxing Mozart or Beethoven may help you unwind and motivate your mind to help you concentrate on the tasks at hand you have- I know I need a relaxing melody or two when trying to settle my brain.

Having your favourite songs on has also been found to help put you in a better mood and push positivity higher, which can prove beneficial when you need to turn that frown upside down after a perhaps unsuccessful day. 

Music as medicine

It’s been found that music can actually help patients with certain conditions. Those with Alzheimer’s for one are said to benefit from music therapy, as it can help to associate songs with a particular moment in their past. Alzheimer’s causes patients to suffer from substantial memory loss, so anyway of re-connecting their mind with events from their life is seen as a huge success and help. 

Dementia is another condition that music has been found to help. Songs can help patients express themselves through gestures and expressions, which is often hard for those suffering from it, as their cognitive abilities are significantly impacted, so an improvement in their motor movements can mark a breakthrough moment. 

Bringing us together

No matter how far apart we may be from loved ones, there’s always something that can unite us, and music does that perfectly. Sharing Spotify playlists with one another and sending songs that we think others may like can encourage greater communication between people which helps to reduce loneliness and depressive moods, especially after the amount of time we’ve all had to spend apart this last year. 

It can also help us teach one another. Learning how to use a musical instrument not only helps brain development but allows us to learn from others and make new connections. These are not only connections with those passing on their expertise, but the further contacts they may have that can allow you to meet new friends or discover great opportunities. Who knows, your future guitar teacher may have a friend in the industry which could lead to you headlining stadiums one day…

Music is so much more than just entertainment. It doesn’t only entertain us and provide great backing tracks for nights out and other soirees, but it helps our brains, our relationships and our emotions to be released. We can uncover parts of ourselves we may have forgotten, or learn new things we didn’t know we could, and connect with people we may never normally do. There really is more to music than meets the ear.

New Music -OHIBO PARONTI -FITS LIKE A GLOVE

Forty years ago, Aberdare’s Rhode Island Red had a colourful past from being told to be quiet by boxer Howard Winston to waking the dead at a funeral parlour, cue the realisation that they were not the only band touring that moniker.

Unfortunately, they had just produced a pile of merchandise so with the help of some public house graffiti they picked a band name that wouldn’t be replicated elsewhere.

  Newly christened Ohibo Paronti the group performed BBC Wales showcases and high profile gigs including Hammersmith Odean led to them being muted as support for a forthcoming North American tour with the mighty Queen, then the wheels fell off, a management change at the record company left them out in the cold.

They carried on purveying a handy line in West Coast Harmonies and Steely Dan style musings with some harder edged covers (including a fabulous version of The Doors’ Been Down So Long) to local audiences before calling it a day.

An interesting side story in Welsh Music that took a Global Pandemic and a personal tragedy to rise Pheonix like to bring new and reworked tunes to help us through lockdown.

  OP’s guitarist Kelvin Edmunds passed away in the Summer of 2020 and the remainder of the band decided to work together again, albeit under covid conditions.

The album is out in the spring and feature tracks featuring contributions from Kelvin {ala The Beatles Real Love and Free As A Bird), the lead single is available now from all your usual download sites.

Fits Like A Glove has a soaring guitar leitmotif that will have you dreaming of Highway 66 and being on the bus in Almost Famous AOR Heaven,

CHRIS PHILLIPS

We Had An Issue!

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

Our KCL Store had a bit of an issue recently,Well we all have bad days!

But the great news is it’s back with a vengeance!….well maybe more of a point to prove!

You see every product you buy in our shops help fund KCL. Yes folks every penny!

We really do appreciate it every time you purchase, times are tough we know, but we want you to know it really makes a diffrence and helps us maintain our Website.

A big Thanks to everyone who has purchased and spread the word of KCL.

Thank You

Diolch yn fawr iawn

My First Music Memory

All Images Subject To Copyright

The influences of others can have a big effect on our musical path through life.
listening to The Beatles with my Mum was inspirational to me as a small boy.

My Mum Mavis Plays a Tune

We had the records and I in particular, played them to death on a tin pot radiogram, this was before getting my very own ‘portable’ record player.

Whether it be friends or family, these early influences can be both a breath of fresh air or a burden.
Getting back to my dear old Mum, now sadly gone, her love of music almost lead to a split from my father and in doing so, no me.

It all came about when my Mum bought herself a ticket for Bill Haley, who was on his first tour of the UK and who had got the kids jumping with this new found racket called Rock ‘n’ Roll.

Bill Haley

Not being a fan, my father and her husband to be, demanded that she not go, something she brought up at regular times when we discussed music.

Not that she bore a grudge, but was forever sad that she never rebelled and went with her mates. My Dad could be funny like that. Had it been Elvis, who never toured the UK, I doubt I’d exist now as I couldn’t see her backing away from that gig.

Another of my earliest memories was playing constantly ‘Heartbreak Hotel‘ at full volume until the plug was pulled, along with hits by The Beatles, Dave Clark Five and, when much younger Lonnie Donegan’s ‘My Old Man’s a Dustman, it must have driven the old man nuts.

These records that my Mum had bought certainly kick-started a love of music with me pushing aside my Pinky and Perky multi-track EP on shocking pink vinyl, never to be listened to ever again.

Whilst Rock ‘n’Rock never made any impression on my father, he did have a soft spot for Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and when he did venture near the record player without kicking it or turning it off, he’d been known to play their hits and records that I very much liked myself.

Not such a happy memory was being sent into town to buy him ‘Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head’ which he had heard in the cinema whilst working away and that featured prominently in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Strolling into Buffalo Records, Cardiff, with my head barely reaching above the counter, I asked for the record, the title of which I had repeated parrot-fashion on the bus, just so that I wouldn’t forget the title and incur his wrath.

I paid my money and headed off to the bus station feeling very pleased with myself, certain in the knowledge that delivery would be met by a bar of chocolate, no problem.

What neither my Dad or me realised was that the film version of the song was by B. J. Thomas. Sadly, gripped tightly in my small brown paper bag was a version by French heartthrob Sasha Distel. Not best pleased with the result there was no celebratory chocolate, though he did come to enjoy the version by Slasha.

Having a older brother, his record collection, though quite eclectic, served to provide much inspiration, most notably his records by Al Green and the excellent Motown Chartbusters.

Less than inspiring was Bread’s Greatest Hits and Rick Wakeman’s Journey To The Centre Of The Earth, though both sold by the truckload.

For every unmentionable album in the rack there was a gem like Hunky Dory or Bridge Over Troubled Water and so my education continued.

Of course friends can provide the best albums to check out. I remember hearing The Clash for the first time on the shittiest of cassette recorders.

The recording I believe was taken direct from the radio, The John Peel Show. Even allowing for the awful recording I was gripped, just as I was when a good mate played me Joni Mitchell’s Court And Spark for the first time.

Moments like these still remain to this day, where the hairs on the back of your neck signal something new and exciting.

I’ve tried where possible to guide and influence others, most notably when my sister asked my go with her to town as she wanted to buy ‘Mother Of Mine’ by Opportunity Knocks winner Neil Reid.

We came back with a bit of a result as I convinced and cajoled her into buying Ringo’s ‘Back Of Boogaloo’ and ‘The Witch Queen Of New Orleans’ by Redbone, both from the bargain bin.

I think she grew to like them both, eventually.

Cover of the Week

Neil Griffiths and Phil Allen have played in many great local bands over the years, two of the nicest guys your likely to meet.

During lockdown they decided to put their talents to recording some cover songs remotely, these have included work by such artists as Queen,Neil Young and Duran Duran.

This weeks Cover of the Week features their version of Solsbury Hill by Peter Gabriel.

Keep up the good work both,hopefully you will be playing this live again soon.

Minatures

In 1980, Morgan Fisher, former keyboardist with Mott the Hoople, amongst other things, had the genius idea of compiling a whole album of 1 minute tracks.

The result was the revered ‘Miniatures’, including work from Neil Innes, George Melly, Quentin Crisp, Robert Fripp, Andy Partridge (XTC), John Otway, Ivor Cutler, Robert Wyatt and many more. It has since become a bit of a cult classic, over the years.

Morgan Fisher

On March 15th, The 62nd Gramophone Company release a 40th anniversary homage to the original album, entitled ‘Miniatures, 2020’. 

Al Davies

The album largely came about, as a result of Llanbradach-based musician, Alan ‘Big Al’ Davies.  He noticed that it was the 40th anniversary and wrote a simple post on Facebook, mentioning this and asking if any artist fancied the idea of creating a retrospective tribute. 

Soon after, Al came into contact with co-compilers, Barry Lamb and William Hayter and the whole project grew legs, culminating in 124 tracks on the new compilation and approval from the main man himself, Morgan Fisher…

The album is released as a double CD and is accompanied by a beautifully produced pamphlet, replete with comprehensive sleeve notes and imagery. 

Miniatures, 2020, includes contributions from luminaries such as The Residents, Fred Frith, Stewart Lee, Billy Bragg, David Thomas, John Otway, Toyah, R Stevie Moore, Peter Blegvad, Eyeless In Gaza, The Bevis Frond, Gary Clail, Adrian Sherwood, Henry Kaiser, Census Of Hallucinations, Atilla the Stockbroker, Terry Riley, Half Japanese, Matmos, Apartment House, Tom Robinson, Bob Drake, Alternative TV, The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, Two Headed Emperor, Bringers Of Change, Boo Hewerdine and many, many more. 

William Hayter Co-Compiler

Barry Lamb -Co-Compiler

KCL Blog- Working On Wellbeing

The 2nd Edition of our New Blog on KCL features some great tips on Wellbeing.

During the past year it’s become easy to put our self-care and wellbeing last. 

With kitchen tables becoming work-from-home desks and added pressures to daily tasks like food shopping, there’s been a larger focus on perseverance rather than making sure we’re actually ok. We’ve taken more precautions to look after our physical health, but we also need to remember our mental health.

Some simple tips on helping your wellbeing

1. Put your phone down. As great and handy as they can be, our pocket-sized devices can lead to us feeling overwhelmed and tired, not only due to the effect of UV light on our eyes, but also the constant overload of news updates we have readily available to us now. Endlessly scrolling through Instagram may seem relaxing, but it can become a vicious cycle and tire your brain out more than you know.

1. Get outside if you can. It can feel relentless being trapped at home all day, maybe even claustrophobic, so try and stretch your legs even for half an hour a day. A bit of exercise, no matter how gentle, can be very beneficial.

1. Sleep! Everybody is probably guilty of staying up to finish that Netflix episode till their eyes have gone square, but that leads to poor sleep. Switching gadgets off ½ an hour-1 hour before bed helps the mind wind down, eyes to relax and leads to a better night sleep. A good night’s sleep is very underestimated, and can not only help you become more productive, but helps with physical health too.

1. Take 5. Just taking 5 minutes to unwind with a guided meditation, or simply some good music on and a cup of tea can help to release some of the day’s stresses, and lead to better productivity during tasks.

Activity suggestions 

Here’s a little list of some simple activities that can be used to focus on your wellbeing and encourage you to carve out a bit of time to dedicate to something other endless work at home tasks. There are plenty of things you can do to unwind and entertain yourself, but here are just some suggestions. 

1. ½ an hour of physical activity.
   Whether you want to test your muscles with a HIIT workout or unwind with some yoga, there are so many resources out there now to help guide us through a small period of activity to just get you moving and release pent up energy. Joe Wicks has an app with some great plans, but if you’re looking to save some ££’s then there’s loads of free workout on his YouTube channel, where you will also find plenty of free guided exercise classes depending on what you fancy. It can help the mind just as much as the body.

2. Mindfulness.
   Apps such as Calm or Headspace are great for taking you through short and sweet guided meditations, breathing exercises or just listening to some calming sounds. Closing your eyes and listening to the sound of rainfall for 20 minutes may be just what you need.

3. Music.
   Whether you’re a musical maestro or prefer to sit back and listen to your favourite tunes, from playing some chords to listening to your favourite album, this can leave you in a better mood and maybe even help you to relive happy memories. A little dance around doesn’t hurt either.

4. Talk to a friend or family member.
   Just picking up the phone for a good old-fashioned chat can help you re-connect with those you may be feeling distant from at the moment.

5. Write in a journal.
   Noting your thoughts and addressing them to yourself can really help put things into perspective.

6. Playing with or cuddling a pet (or any animal that will let you touch it and you have permission to do so).

7. De-cluttering and tidying.
   It may seem a chore, but you’ll be amazed at how much better you can feel in a de-cluttered room where you feel you have space to think properly.

8. Bake
   Even if you’re not the next Mary Berry or Paul Hollywood, giving the mixer a whirl can leave you with some time to gather your thoughts and leave you with something to enjoy- well, sometimes…

9. Self-care.
   Whether it’s lighting some candles, reading your favourite book or doing your face-care routine, something that relaxes you and helps take care of yourself often leaves you feeling refreshed.

10. Or maybe it’s time for a drink.
    At the end of the day after a hard day’s work, there’s nothing wrong with popping open that gin, wine or beer and enjoying your favourite tipple.
    

So, there’s just some examples. It’s not some ground-breaking set of suggestions ready to change your life, it’s simple.

By taking on short and sweet tasks and activities throughout the day, we can help settle our minds and put those restless thoughts at ease. It doesn’t require tons of discipline, just the willingness to want to help yourself take control if you feel overwhelmed with it all. 

Next time you find yourself wanting to hide under your duvet or drown your sorrows into a family pack of chocolate, or if your mind is just simply in override and can’t handle anymore, pick an activity or randomly select one, and just concentrate on that. Let your mind dust away the craziness of life for as little as 10 minutes and let yourself breathe- we all need to.

Gabi Page

Send in the Suits

Steve Johnson is a regular contributor to Keep Cardiff Live but is also a stalwart of the Cardiff music scene, perhaps best known for his role as frontman with Cardiff’s Anonymous Iconoclasts. 

 A conversation with an old friend, ‘Big Al’ Davies led to his submitting a track for ‘Miniatures 2020’. ‘Send in the Suits’, is one of 124, 60 seconds-long, tracks on this highly unusual compilation, released on March 15th, by The 62nd Gramophone Company.

KCL will be posting a feature on the Album Monday 15th.