ABOUT THIS EPISODE
WA-CHING....that's the sound of Ali and Dan Seven returning for Season Two of the Seven Song Setlist podcast. Although the doors to live music venues across the country are still locked shut and bands remain unable to tour, gig goers Ali and Dan try their best to replicate the excitement of going to see your favourite artists. From the merch table to the bar, the support band to the headline act, the Seven Song Setlist podcast hopes to support the artists that we love through an exercise in 'gig economy (no, not that kind...), as we argue our case for our most loved songs and try to agree on the songs we would want these bands to play if they could only perform a seven song setlist!
And, after scoring their first number one album with Ultra Mono earlier this month, and on the eve of the world premiere of the film Don't Go Gentle, at London's BFI Southbank, who better to kick off the new season with than the ferocious prophets of positivity....the mighty IDLES!
Formed in Bristol in 2009 by sixth form friends Joe Talbot and Adam ‘Dev’ Devonshire. Guitarist Mark Bowen, a former dentist who is better known nowadays for ripping off his clothes and parading around on stage in his CK’s rather than ripping out teeth, joined the band after moving from Belfast to Bristol, and by 2014, John Beavis and Lee Kiernan completed the line up that have achieved so much success since they literally roared onto the scene with their 2017 debut album, Brutalism. Championed in the early days by the legend that is Steve Lamacq – the unofficial sixth member of Idles – and the station on which he DJ’s, BBC6Music, IDLES.
Their second album, the Mercury music prize nominated Joy As An Act Of Resistance extended a warm embrace to lots of people around the world who needed a band like Idles in their lives to make sense of the chaos. Proof of this can be found in the AF Gang, an online community of over 31 thousands Idles founded by Lindsay Melbourne fans that has become a vital part of of their lives and is now almost as well known as the band themselves.
A carnival like atmosphere at their appearance on the Park Stage was one of the highlights of the 2019 edition of the Glastonbury festival, and they capped off last year with their biggest headline show to date, at London’s iconic Alexandra Palace. Had this year not robbed us all of live music, there is not doubt that the tracks from IDLES latest offering, Ultra Mono, would have filled arenas around the country and propelled them ever closer to the top of festival bills around the world.
We also chat about the 80's Australian indie heroes, the Go-Betweens, the recent announcement that Arctic Monkeys are releasing a live album with proceeds going to War Child, where IDLES go next and if they'll follow Turner and co. and end up as the moon's next resident band...
EPISODE LINKS
AF GANG
(from the merch table) Arctic Monkeys live at the Royal Albert Hall for War Child
Don't Go Gentle: A Film About IDLES
(this ep's support act) The Go-Betweens 'Streets of Your Town'
IDLES npr music Tiny Desk Concert (one of our favourite things on the internet) -
IDLES perform 'Never Fight A Man With A Perm' on the Park Stage, Glastonbury 2019
IDLES official website; store full of incredible merchandise and music -
KEXP Performance and interview with Mark Bowen
