Single review
Churchfield Boys with Jessie Russell
A little bit awful
Out now
A stunning one-off release that unites two former members of the properly legendary Five Go Down To The Sea? (Irish post-punk from Cork who brought their madness to London in the early 80’s.) Corrosive guitar and dark, poetic storytelling about the pain and shame of everyday life. Ged Babey can’t quite believe how good this is, for a one-off song, by artists with no plans for any follow up.
It was Brian O’Brien who tipped me off about this, with uncharacteristic understatement: See what you think of this.
It’s fucking amazing.
Churchfield Boys are Drummer Keith ‘Smelly’ O Connell and Guitarist Ricky Dineen. Both played together in 80’s Cork bands ‘Nun Attax’ and ‘Five go down to the Sea?’ Keith is presently playing with ‘The Revolt’ and Ricky is playing with ‘Big Boy Foolish’. They are joined on ‘A little bit awful’ by Jessie Russell who is currently lead vocalist with The Revolt.
That is the press release/biography in its entirety.
Five Go Down To The Sea? were Steven Wells favourite ever Irish band I think it’s fair to say. Brian told me. They also had a track on the Communicate!!! compilation.
I love it when more than forty years on, underground musicians, like Your Heterosexual Violence and now Churchfield Boys are still making music which is as powerful and contemporary as anything they did in their youth.
Hi there Shelly its been a long time,
I see you ran off with your best friends wife,
Are ye happy? Do you feel fulfilled or is it – another dirty chapter in the drama that never ends? I guess – can you share with me how you’re really doing? like have a heart to heart. Coz I see you living and sure! I don’t know where to start!
The combination of spoken word and vocal is brilliant. A dispassionate, desperate narrative yet a song full of compassion. Hot Press likened it to the band Dry Cleaning but to me it’s more Poison Girls and Siouxsie. The searing guitar playing and beautiful serrated guitar sound is key also. Keith is some drummer too. It is an amazing song – one of the best you’ll hear all year in my opinion.
I really hope Churchfield Boys come up with more material if it can be as stunning as this.
And thanks for the tip Brian, now get your next album out.
Download from Minm Minm is an Irish owned streaming site which actually pays the artists.
Churchfield Boys with Jessie Russell Bandcamp
And loads to explore here….
Big Boy Foolish back catalogue on Bandcamp
The Revolt (Cork) back catalogue on Bandcamp
Your Heterosexual Violence album is still available all formats
All words by Ged Babey with press release content in italics
A Plea From Louder Than War
Louder Than War is run by a small but dedicated independent team, and we rely on the small amount of money we generate to keep the site running smoothly. Any money we do get is not lining the pockets of oligarchs or mad-cap billionaires dictating what our journalists are allowed to think and write, or hungry shareholders. We know times are tough, and we want to continue bringing you news on the most interesting releases, the latest gigs and anything else that tickles our fancy. We are not driven by profit, just pure enthusiasm for a scene that each and every one of us is passionate about.
To us, music and culture are eveything, without them, our very souls shrivel and die. We do not charge artists for the exposure we give them and to many, what we do is absolutely vital. Subscribing to one of our paid tiers takes just a minute, and each sign-up makes a huge impact, helping to keep the flame of independent music burning! Please click the button below to help.
John Robb – Editor in Chief