‘It began in the car on the way to the Roxy. And ended under Nelson’s column… I know we didn’t want to sound like any other band. That was our launch point…we just used to be laughing all the time…and since re-forming its an ongoing affair, again’ Gareth Sager relates the early days and final
Tagreggae
ADRIAN SHERWOOD ESSAY ON COLLABORATING WITH MARK STEWART FOR WIRE
‘Working with Mark was something of a sound re-education. You spent a lot of studio time unlearning, experimenting and ignoring rules about levels to tape and studio do’s and don’ts. You discovered how much fun could be had in the land of overload’ Adrian Sherwood on his first meeting & early musical adventures with Mark
THE POP GROUP ANNOUNCE DEFINITIVE EDITION REISSUE OF DEBUT ALBUM Y
The Pop Group have announced the 40th anniversary reissue of their debut album ‘Y’ through Mute Records on 1st November 2019. ‘Y’ has been remastered & cut at half-speed at Abbey Road Studios Includes landmark single ‘She Is Beyond Good & Evil’ on 12″ + 10-track album of rare & unreleased material ‘Alien Blood’ + previously
MARK STEWART x BRISTOL MUSIC: SEVEN DECADES OF SOUND TRAILER
A trailer featuring a text by Mark Stewart for ‘Bristol Music: Seven Decades of Sound’, a new exhibition on the history of the Bristol music scene put together by M Shed (Bristol Museums) & 2 Degrees West: ‘The scene since the late 1950s has been nothing but eclectic. Artists from Acker Bilk, The Pop Group
I CAN’T STAND IT HERE ON QUIET NIGHTS: MAXIMUM JOY REISSUED
The Pop Group’s current bassist Dan Catsis & erstwhile guitarist John Waddington were members of Maximum Joy and a collection of the group’s singles, produced between 1981 & 1982, has been collated by Blackest Ever Black / Idle Hands co-venture Silent Street. Recently hailed by Pitchfork as the ‘Best New Reissue’. Here’s some choice praise
MARK STEWART INTERVIEWED IN NEW ADRIAN SHERWOOD & ON-U SOUND MINI-DOC
Mark Stewart on dub & the abiding innovation of Adrian Sherwood & On-U Sound Records in a new mini-documentary also featuring Adrian, Skip McDonald & Ghetto Priest