Return of the Son of the Space Octopus

Well it's been a busy week in Great Men's registered office here in Holloway.

We had our first high volume practice in months, then followed it up with a gig at Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes. Thanks to the folk that came along (including you Frank Skinner)! No photos have surfaced yet but I'll let y'all know when they do.

On Friday we sadly waved off The Fabulous H-Town Savage as she has gone to conquer the Australian music scene. We dealt with it in our own ways: Regan overcame his fear of heights and climbed to the top of some trees at Kew Gardens (rumours of faeces flung at passersby have yet to be confirmed or denied). Then we went and hung out on a wall in Hackney with that Scottish one from Ulterior and ate sausages.

The natural way to follow a night spent sitting on a wall was to hang out in a cemetery. Here's the proof:




The weekend rounded off with some CD shopping at the mighty Music Video Exchange in Notting Hill with Hugh Grant and that naked guy. Then we went to see Obzerter, Regan's very first metal gig. I'm not saying it was a revelation, but here's what he looks like just one day later:



By the way, did you know we have a YouTube channel now? We'll probably get shut down soon so have a look while you can.

Back Off Boris

After one too many traffic contraventions, the penalty charges have become too much and Boris Johnson has insisted I repay my debt to the red lines, traffic wardens and box junctions of London with some community service. I only know how to do 2 things: guitars and maths, and London long since stopped making things add up, so in the name of justice Great Men will be appearing as follows:

Thursday June 2nd 2011 - Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes. Courtesy of Criminal Records, along with Guitars Have Ghosts, Othereyeswise and Enteric. We're on at 8:45. The Dude abides. Facebook it here.

Friday July 1st 2011 - New Cross Inn. As part of Chamber club night, along with Pet Scenes, Plantagenet 3 and The Party Faithful. Facebook fun within.

Remember Rocktober? In between rocking Camden, Nottingham, and the Science Museum, we popped into Shazam's Live Lounge and played a spot of music. Here's some proof:

See you on Thursday kidz! And remember, Twitter us with any setlist requests.

Open Season

Having spent the early part of this year doing things like writing new material, releasing an EP (I've got a handful of copies left here cluttering the place up if you or your loved ones don't have one yet), mixing an album and moving house, we knew there was something we'd forgotten: playing live! On behalf of Great Men everywhere, I do hereby proclaim the 2011 gig season to be open, with the first rounds to be fired on Friday July 1st in London. We're delighted to have been invited to play Chamber Club in New Cross, which promises to be a lot of fun. Bring your friends, we'll have a brewskerino.

Any other offers for sweet rocking, anywhere on this planet or beyond, will be welcomed and considered with great alacrity. Also since we're now in the bewildering position of having more material than we can reasonably play at any one gig, if you have any requests for particular tunes, go ahead and tweet them in our face, @Great_Men.

I suspect we'll be selling some t-shirts at the gig, but to be sure we have your size it's probably wise to order online because we are pathetic weak men and can't carry much (barely even a tune, ZING!).

Great Men

No Fear Of Humans (MCG mix)

Spectators at an Execution (Live in London EP)

Press & Bookings: Shaq Tap Promotions

Other Enquiries: Great Men HQ

It is a far far better thing he does…

C-Bomb has always reminded me a little of Dirk Bogarde…nice hair, matinee idol good looks… fondness for the company of young men… and this resemblance has been highlighted by his pulling a Sydney Carton and leaving this earthly (midlands) plane and heading for heavenly holloway.

Fear not noise fans we shall endeavour to continue. Great Men now will have two base camps and plan to cut a swath across the riff landscape based on a Nottingham-London Axis of evil. Or more simply – London isn’t that far, email exists and we can still get stuff done.

Besides, we’ve just gone international with our first review by some Fabulous French Femmes at Cellophanesoundsfanzine.

If the translation is to be trusted – it seems they liked our modest attempt and promise further releases in due course so we can’t stop now! Hats off to Mdme Schroetter for the translation:

When the guys who recorded with Ulterior, and who admit to have Generation Terrorists on their car stereo sent us their EP this march, we thought they were nice and took some time to listen to their first release called Live in London.

Great Men, 2 guys from Notts, don't describe themselves as a band but instrumental rock essayists, and when we listen to the album, we quickly understand why.

Do not look at them for easy tunes or the sacred structure of verse-chorus-verse-chorus, the three tracks on Live In London are pure musical experiments.

Even if classic in principle (drum, big bass, noisy guitars), the music surprises, especially the total absence of singer, as much as because in the history of rock, the number of good bands who are purely instrumental can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

It's then easy to recognise the musical creativity of our two friends: the virtuosity of the bass competes with the solo guitar, and none of the tracks falls into the trap "17 min prog rock song to listen under heroin".

We especially enjoy Lady Cakes, the most successful and feverish track, with which the band clearly shows his taste for dark rock à la Sisters Of Mercy. The album, recorded in Shoreditch should be in store very soon.

Until then, we will read their blog, which proves that for an instrumental band they also have much to say.

Many Thanks to Cellophane Culture Sluts - Cloe T & Magali PF

Guest Men

The many legions of Great Men fans who have been pining for us to appear onstage in 2011 got a taster last week.

First off on Wednesday it was our good buddies Ulterior's album launch party at the Hoxton Bar and Kitchen in That London. (I'm allowed to say that for 2 more weeks). The show opened with a cracking arrangement of the album closer Shallow Brown, featuring the inimitable harmonica and fashion stylings of Mr Regan Aloysius Naughton. It was a cracking gig and although I unfortunately couldn't make any of the other tour dates I gather there were also some sweet blues sounds from our man R-Man in Leeds and Nottingham.



Thursday was a pretty solid day: big breakfasts at Delicio's in Kentish Town (the finest cafe this side of anywhere), then we hopped on the bus to check out my new locale in Holloway. We got through 3 afternoon pints in the pub across the road from my flat so I'd say that's a result.

Then it was off to the Bowery for me, delivering another guest bass spot with Ginkinta. I do hereby proclaim it to have been a sweet gig. There was a great headlining set from Leeds rockabilliers (yes that's right) X-Ray Cat Trio, support band Fighting Fiction were spotted outside burning bibles (not really) and I'm not sure what the middle aged punks who came on first were called but they did their best to 'tood out as many people as possible before playing. I managed to play a whole set of bass without developing blisters! Look out Claypool!



Watch this space Great Men fans for not only are we discussing the possibility of actually playing a gig together, but I've just recorded guitar and machine on a demo of Magnum Myers which I'll share with y'all soon. So far it sounds like getting your face punched off in the 1970s.

Sounds of the road, again

I recently pulled another pile of my continued listening out of the car, so decided again to share it with you. The internet is full of wonder isn't it?


Miracle Legion - Portrait of a Damaged Family
Miracle Legion - Drenched
Soundgarden - Telephantasm
King Crimson - VROOOM
Cake - Fashion Nugget
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Deja Vu
Gram Parsons - GP/Grievous Angel
Primus - Brown Album
Primus - Rhinoplasty
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Crypt Style
ZZ Top - Eliminator
Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
The B-52s - The B-52s
Primus - Frizzle Fry
Lady Gaga - The Fame Monster
The Aquabats - Hi Five Soup
The Steve Miller Band - Bingo!
...and all the pieces matter - music from The Wire
Guns N Roses - Use Your Illusion I
Guns N Roses - Use Your Illusion II
Frank Zappa - Joe's Garage Acts I, II & III
They Might Be Giants - The Spine