Re: Federal Charm

The Charmers are co-headling a Planet Rock tour in September with Cannock's Bad Flowers:-
Sep 19 Wed Bristol Thekla
Sep 20 Thu Pontypridd  Muni Arts Centre
Sep 21 Fri Nottingham Rock City
Sep 22 Sat Glasgow  The Classic Grand
Sep 23 Sun Chester The Live Rooms
Sep 24 Mon Manchester The Deaf Institute
Sep 26 Wed Huddersfield The Parish
Sep 27 Thu Newcastle upon Tyne Think Tank?
Sep 28 Fri Sheffield Corporation
Sep 29 Sat Birmingham O2 Institute
Sep 30 Sun London The Borderline

When life gives you lemons; don't make lemonade.
Give back the lemons.  Why were the lemons free?  What's wrong with the lemons?
Do Not trust the lemons...

20 (edited by BansheeUK 2018-06-27 05:40:31)

Re: Federal Charm

Federal charm have announced pre-Sale of their new album, the first to feature new guys Tom & Josh, Passenger. Available Sept 14th (in time for above tour) Available on "snow" white or "oil slick" black vinyl too

When life gives you lemons; don't make lemonade.
Give back the lemons.  Why were the lemons free?  What's wrong with the lemons?
Do Not trust the lemons...

21 (edited by BansheeUK 2018-09-18 04:13:22)

Re: Federal Charm

Talk about your “difficult 3rd albums”; come 2016 when Nick and Danny decided to call it a day, you wouldn’t have blamed Paul & LD for cutting their losses too. However, Federal Charm always had this tough gritty core and instead of just drowning their sorrows in Boddingtons they decided to fight back; nowt like a little adversity to bring the best out in folk….. In short order, they recruited a tungsten-tonsiled howler, Tom Guyer and another heavy hitter behind the skins, Josh Zahler, and for extra kick, Kyle Ross for that 2nd guitar + keys & backing vocals. And then it was out on the road to check with those who kept faith, had they got it right…..

Oh, Blimey, yes they have. They’ve taken one step sideways and two steps forward. Most of the Bluesy and punky cocoon has been shaken off and what’s emerged has more bluster and bite with Zeppelin-esque ideas that are crystallised into perfect bites of jagged rhythms and staccato dynamics reminiscent of Rival Sons at their best. Over songs with a bleak lyrical feel of relationship break-ups, Tom Guyer’s huge phrasing soars over the intense rhythms of LD’s bass, intertwining with Paul’s ripping riffs, all nailed by Josh’s dynamic pounding. There are so many new echoes here, from Monster Truck to The Who. One thing is for certain, Paul’s buzzing and riffing guitar has met a perfect foil with Tom’s overarching voice.

Of the 11 tracks and 40-odd minute running time, there’s hardly a wasted moment; Get Through, is short, sharp & to the point, Sing Sinner aches with tension while Choke is a bona-fide classic. The stylistic difference between Speak Out and Concrete Creature show that they’re not afraid to experiment with new sounds, but at the cost of a unified direction.

It’s not all power-bluster though, Emerald Haze sees the band winding it down and the music has more room to develop and mature. Nowhere Is Home is another case in point,  warm, sweeping melodies and this time it’s the keys that blend seamlessly with the vocals. These vocals also have an expressive and at times pointed edge in songs like Death Rattle.

In one way, you could almost see this as being a debut album, but you must not lose sight of the previous releases, with Nick Bowden’s co-writing which set Federal Charm a solid foundation of work and a reputation for energetic performances that have surely been a spring-board for this new, fatter and more relentless style. Yes, they are still in some ways finding their feet with this new, more aggressive style, but then they are so much closer to the great promise they always showed at the start; not so much “passengers” anymore, but rising phoenix-like.

Still a little way to go, but for sheer audacity I give this 85%. It's a hell of a good album; from a band that's just getting wound up - buy it!

Choke - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjtgSz_84Hg

When life gives you lemons; don't make lemonade.
Give back the lemons.  Why were the lemons free?  What's wrong with the lemons?
Do Not trust the lemons...

Re: Federal Charm

The Feds are doing a FREE gig - Friday 15th March @ The Big Red - 385 Holloway Rd. London.

When life gives you lemons; don't make lemonade.
Give back the lemons.  Why were the lemons free?  What's wrong with the lemons?
Do Not trust the lemons...

Re: Federal Charm

BansheeUK wrote:

The Feds are doing a FREE gig - Friday 15th March @ The Big Red - 385 Holloway Rd. London.

Oh man you Brit’s get all the cool stuff!!

Your rock candy baby
Your hard sweet and sticky

24 (edited by BansheeUK 2019-07-12 05:15:25)

Re: Federal Charm

Sad word was put out yesterday evening on Facebook, Federal Charm are breaking up. No specifics given but will no doubt follow in due course, but it sounds much like a mutual decision. From what Paul said though, they'll go with a bang with a special "farewell" gig (or tour?); details to follow.

Such a shame, a run of crackin' good albums (revisited after I read the news) and so much fizzin' energy on stage...

Update: - they're appearing at Weyfest in August and then after that,  the only date posted is a "local" on 6th September at Rebellion; Manchester. It may be the last one, confirmation later...

When life gives you lemons; don't make lemonade.
Give back the lemons.  Why were the lemons free?  What's wrong with the lemons?
Do Not trust the lemons...

Re: Federal Charm

Always sad a break up.  Sorry to the band and my friend Mike.  I've got bit of their music.