Fierce Panda Birthday Celebrations Ahoy
24th February 2009
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A wild-eyed fierce panda press release
CLUB FANDANGO HELPS FIERCE PANDA’S 15TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATIONS BY PROMOTING PARTY-TYPE SHOW IN CAMDEN TOWN!
On February 24th 1994 fierce panda records rather carelessly released the ‘Shagging In The Streets’ EP, a six-track double vinyl 7” indie extravaganza which doffed its Greek fisherman’s cap to the delights of the scene known as the New Wave of New Wave by briefly illuminating the careers of S*M*A*S*H, Mantaray, These Animal Men, Blessed Ethel, Done Lying Down and Action Painting! And there’s where the story should, by rights, have ended. As we always type at this point at the end of the first paragraph of our press releases you don’t call yourself something as hopelessly bobbins as fierce panda if you expect to be around any longer than five minutes.
Yet somehow, some way, the panda has gone on to amass a catalogue bulging with 220 singles, 60 albums, seven t-shirts and one mug for our tea. Now hurtling into its fifteenth year with a roster stuffed with leftfield roustabouts such as The Von Bondies, The Computers, Hatcham Social and The Raveonettes the panda crew has decided to mark the event of the label’s crystal anniversary with not one, not three, but two party-type gigs. The first stars The Walkmen at London Scala on February 20th. The second falls on February 24th – preee-cisely 15 years since that first casual release – and sees The Spinto Band scurry into Camden Dingwalls to headline a fine line-up of up-and-coming sorts, as detailed further below.
We’ve had some good old times at this venue: the ‘Listen With Smother’ EP launch saw Ultrasound sound ace and Lo-Fidelity Allstars set fire to their decks; a Campag Velocet / Regular Fries Rabid Badger double header was a heaving success; and a Pandamonium hoedown saw a youthful Death Cab For Cutie cut some indie rug with a veritable smorgasbord of Panda supports. We also rather like the fact that it is spookily easy to change Dingwalls to Ningwalls. So we will. In the meantime, here is the information about the entertainment…
Club Fandango presents THE SPINTO BAND + SAM ISAAC + GAY BLADES + CAPITAL
LONDON CAMDEN DINGWALLS
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 24TH 2009
7.30PM ‚Äì 2.00AM / ADMISSION £10.00
THE SPINTO BAND (onstage 10.30pm) are six exuberant pop sorts from Delaware, USA. Last autumn they released the heartily acclaimed ‘Moonwink’ album and packed out the Borderline as part of a visit to these shores. This time around the Spintos are popping into headline THE OTHER FIERCE PANDA BIRTHDAY PARTY as part of a wee European trek to promote new single ‘Vivian, Don’t’ / ‘I Think We’re Alone Now’, which is released on fierce panda on March 3rd. Expect zippy guitars, hectic chord changes and the finest multi-layered harmonies this side of a Fleet Foxes b-side. www.myspace.com/thespintoband
SAM ISAAC (onstage 9.45pm) is a sensitive young man with a band who has spent the past couple of years releasing great little singles and, y’know, playing great little festivals and, like, developing his muse. Now out of exam hell Sam is stepping on the 2009 gas with the bright-eyed pop bolshiness of ‘Come Back Home Tonight’ hitting the single racks on March 9th. And if we needed any more of an excuse to have Sam on at a fierce panda night, rejoice in the fact that his imminent debut album is called ‘Bears’. Respect. www.myspace.com/samisaac
GAY BLADES (onstage 9.00pm) are two imaginative young bucks from Americaland who play some sweet sweet tunes but who are also capable of making like wild AOR-ated doods who turn up the soft metal switch to the astonishing point where Queen morph into Queens Of The Stone Age. And no, we can’t believe what we’re typing, either. The day before this show (ie February 23rd) sees the release of the ‘O Shot’ single on Something In Construction, with the ‘Ghosts’ album to follow in April. www.myspace.com/gayblades
CAPITAL (onstage 8.15pm) are five brooding young men from Eastbourne who create epic pop soundscapes out of guitars, synthesisers and other musical scraps they find lying around the seaside studio. We think they represent the missing link between Keane and Tears For Fears but by Billy Bunter’s mighty trousers we’ve been proved horribly wrong before over the past fifteen years. CAPITAL will be releasing a six track ‘shortplayer’ (if you will) on the panda on April 6th, before which comes the storming single ‘Ruin’ on March 23rd. www.myspace.com/capitalmyspace
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