Ash Ra Tempel Comedy Gold

Strange fact of the day comes from the discover that “Traummaschine” from the first Ash Ra Tempel album is played in the British comedy quiz show “Lucky Sexy Winners” on Channel 4, hosted by Vic & Bob. The show started on August 23, at 10 pm BST, and can be watched online on Channel 4 on demand for the next 20 days.

To watch, scroll down to “Episode 1 – Vic & Bob’s Lucky Sexy Winners”.

Channel 4 on demand: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/themes/funny-fortnight-on-4od

PIAS London warehouse on fire

The saddest tales of the London riots are the number of small businesses destroyed in the violence. Now, we are finding that independent record labels could be joining those ranks. The warehouse where distributors PIAS keep their stock has been set on fire with some reports claiming it has burnt down. Labels distributed by PIAS include the likes of Drag City, Thrill Jockey, Matador, Domino, Fat Cat, Finders Keepers, Twisted Nerve, Mute, Jagjaguwar and many others.

Our thoughts go out to everyone who has been affected by these events.

update the latest news is that all stock in the warehouse has been lost. Please support the affected by labels by buying their music digitally and also buying up any stock left in the shops (which is now going to be very limited and collectable) so they have cash coming in to keep them afloat.

Kraftwerk iPhone app launched

a bit of news that really did make me go “Was ist das?” today:

Kraftwerk have just launched their own iPhone/iPad app that is a “24 hour music generator” and is called, predicatably, the Kling Klang Machine

It’s here

and here’s the official demonstration video:

So, there are you, brand new material from Kraftwerk but only for Apple users. Hmm.

On a related note, there have been sitings of a new beer from music-themed brewery Revolutions, which for some strange reason is named after the german word for power station, as evidenced by the pump clip. Will let you know my thoughts once I’ve had it both here and on my beer only Twitter account

NEW KRAUTROCK BOOK ON IT’S WAY


“Krautrock: Cosmic Rock and its Legacy” is a new book from Black Dog Publishing. I’ve been lucky enough to have a sneak preview with a digital copy and it’s a nice, professional looking book. There’s some essays on the subject in general, including the social & political conditions that gave rise to the scene but the bulk of the book is an A to Z of the bands & acts that matter, all given plenty of coverage and with some very nice photographs. It’s coming out early November and there’ll be a full in-depth review nearer the time on our Features page.

http://blackdogonline.com/music/krautrock.html