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Kyra

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Kyra – Kyra sings Marieke

Vinyl Japan – PAD 38 [1998]
Marieke / Die Wonderlijke Dag (This Wond’rous Day)

In 1998, Kyra, without the Headcoatees, released one single titled Kyra Sings Marieke on Vinyl Japan. She was, of course, backed by Thee Headcoats, namely Billy Childish, Bruce Brand and Johnny Johnson.
Marieke, the title track was lifted from her solo album (Here I Am, Here I Always Am) and is a cover of Belgian singer Jacques Brel (Kyra comes from Belgium, by the way). She sings it with passion, and the tension goes crescendo until the end of the song.
The B-side is a Childish original (This Wondrous Day) that Kyra translated into Flemish (Die Wonderlijke Dag). It’s one of their best songs, both for Childish, the songwriter and Kyra, the singer. It’s sad and beautiful at the same time, a song that sounds like a traditional tune and seems to exist for decades. The musical saw reinforces the gloomy aspect, while the Flemish language adds a vernacular aspect. But most important, Kyra, who was too often reduced in Thee Headcoatees as the “Punk element”, can sing in a self-assured manner, without too much effect. Great!

Delmonas (the)

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Delmonas (the) – Hello, We Love You! The Big Beat EPs

Delmonas

Big Beat Records 10WIK 348 [2021]
Comin’ Home Baby – Chains – Woa’s Now – He Tells Me He Loves me / Hello ,I Love You – I’m The One For You – Peter Gunn Locomotion – I Want You

When they recorded After School Session in early 1983, The Milkshakes asked two of their girlfriends (Hillary and Sarah) to provide backing vocals on three songs (Cadillac, Soldier Of Love and Goodbye Girl.) It worked very well, and after adding a third member, Louise, The Delmonas were born. Of course, the Milkshakes provided the backing band.
Their debut on records took the form of two EPs on Big Beat Records in 1984.
The first one featured two covers, Mel Torme’s I’m Coming Home and The Cookies’Chains. A pair of two Hampshire/Childish originals completed the set: Woa’ Now (that the Milkshakes recorded on Fourteen Rhythm & Beat Greats) and He Tells Me Loves Me (that later appeared on the Milkshakes’The Milkshakes’ Revenge!).
Louise takes the lead on Comin’ Home in a very voluptuous manner. By comparison, Chains is very lighthearted and pure fun. Woa Now brings back a touch of Garage and Beatles’ Hamburg days feel. The best track has been kept for the end: He Tells Me He Loves Me sounds like an instant Girl Groups classic in the style of the Shangri-Las.
The second single is based upon the same pattern: two covers and two originals. Hello, I Love You is the Doors song played on the music of the Kinks’ All Day And All Of The Night. Peter Gunn Locomotion owes more to Freddie Starr’s version than the original one. The two originals (I’m The One For You and I Want You) had previously been recorded by the Milkshakes. Still, the girls added a brand new dimension to these songs, with their (dangerous) charms and sensibility, especially on I Want You, which sounds like a lost gem from Laurie records.
Both singles are now reissued by Ace/Big Beat records on this superb 10” album. 

Available here

Delmonas (the) – Comin’ Home Baby (Volume 1)

Big Beat Records SW 101 [1984]
Comin’ Home Baby – Chains – Woa’s Now – He Tells Me He Loves me

Delmonas (the) – Hello We Love You (Volume 2)

Big Beat Records SW102 [1984]
Hello ,I Love You – I’m The One For You – Peter Gunn Locomotion – I Want You

Debbie & Jackie

Headcoats Sect (thee)

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Thee Headcoat Sect-1 Thee Headcoat Sect-2

Thee Headcoats Sect

Deerstalking Men – DAMGOOD265CD
Strychnine – My Dear Watson – Fog-Bound Pinhead – Troubled Times – Cowboys Are Square – Baby What’s Wrong – Why Don’t Toy Smile Now – The Witch – Squaresville – Lie Detector – Deerstalking Man – I’m A Gamekeeper

Ready Sect Go!– DAMGOOD266CD
Ain’t That Just Like Me – Down In The Bottom – I’m A King Be – Take Out Some Insurance On Me – Knight Of The Baskervilles – I’m A Lover Not A Fighte – Mean Red Spider – A Certain Girl – She’s Fine She’s Mine – I Got Love If You Want It – Ready Sect Go – I’m Ready

A recent discussion with a friend about the Rolling Stones and Sir Jagger’s birthday brought the name of the Downliners Sect back to the map. After that, it wasn’t long before we talked about the Headcoats Sect.
It seemed inevitable that sooner than later, Billy Childish would meet those ’60s rhythm’n’blues misfits that are Keith Grant and Don Craine of the Downliners Sect. Back in the sixties, The Downliners Sect were raw, and next to them, the Rolling Stones and the Pretty Things sounded almost suave. Needless to say that no one ever thought of ennobling Craine nor Grant. And though there was a generation between them, they were clearly with the same page, like fathers and sons. It was not just the hat; it was the music, the sense of humor, and the attitude, both bands sharing the same aggressive, rough, and no-compromise approach. Together they recorded two albums in the second half of the ’90s. Each band benefited from this fruitful collaboration. Childish, Johnson, and Brand brought the freshness of their youth, the right backing band (with a special nod to Johnny Johnson on harp), as well as a bunch of Childish originals that seemed tailored fit for the two veterans. Craine and Grant brought a touch of professionalism to the project. Thee Headcoats records often sound as if they were recorded in the kitchen on a mono/two-track cheap recorder. Nothing like that here with Liam Watson’s recording who managed to capture the vibe without altering the spontaneity of the performance. Musically both acts melt perfectly, Craine’s rhythm guitar and Grant’s superb fuzzy bass perfectly complementing Thee Headcoats. Worth mentioning is the musical dialog on “I’m A Dearstalking Man” and “Ready Sect Go.”
The first album relies more on Childish’s classics with some covers thrown in for good measure (including two Sonics tunes) while “Ready Sect Go” contains classic blues/rhythm’n’blues covers with two Childish originals (Knight of the Baskervilles and Ready Sect Go!). Both are excellent and complimentary.

Find them on Damaged Good website.

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