The Muscle Club

Fragmented Ideas From Young Lungs…

Ceri Jones — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 11:32:12 +0000

So people moaned about the name, moaned about what we wore onstage, ignored the fact we drove around the country, booking our own shows, assumed we were making mega bucks and discounted us from the race…

Never mind.

Our EP was released in the midst of much to-ing and fro-ing and right slap bang in the middle of a recession. Not just in the economy but a recession in music. A bunch of people are attempting to keep the dream alive all around the country but it’s hard and it shows. A drunk 40 year old dude at one of our shows turned to me and said

“The big bands just get bigger and breaking bands just ain’t breaking”

Which was probably the most insightful thing I’d heard all year, that and“STOVIES!” and a whole manner of indistinguishable insults and onslaughts from our buddies up in Scotland.

anyway, i shan’t bore you with my musing’s any longer. We managed to release and EP with the help of Smalltown & Killing Moon Records.

it looked like this:

The ever insightful media and press gave the following reviews:

“The Muscle Club have produced an accomplished debut in Fragmented Ideas From Young Lungs… ‘Ithaca’ sandwiches harmonics between handclaps seething vocals spat between not-quite-guitar solos and cacophonous percussion…

The Muscle Club are instantly gratifying. There is a familiarity within Fragmented Ideas… their sound but this makes for comfortable, rather than unchallenging listening. This constant conflict between pop and a more angular sound is reminiscent of Idlewild, or at least before they turned into beardy old cunts.

By the time the understated bonus track kicks in, The Muscle Club will have stolen your heart. Frenetic, familiar and bloody good fun,Fragmented Ideas From Young Lungs could well be a late contender for debut of the year. Four sweaty boys with guitars might not tell you much about your life but sometimes you just have to figure it out for yourself. After all, it’s just music…right?”

BEARDED MAGAZINE

“If Pete Doherty still made music that mattered – stuff like the Libertines debut – it might sound something like this debut mini-album. Because although The Muscle Club and Doherty are, really, worlds apart, there’s something in the dual vocals of Michael Bateson-Hill and Matthew Hitt that conjures up the same reckless spirit alongside a very English charm. Yet these guys are inspired as much by postpunk/ hardcore acts like Fugazi and At The Drive-In as they are by the likes of The Smiths and The Clash. It means that songs like ‘I’ve Never Read Anything’ and ‘Alright! Okay! You Win!’ jangle and fizzle with self-doubt and self-pity while simultaneously bursting with youthful exuberance and energy. Intelligent, visceral

and far from fragmented.”

THE FLY MAGAZINE

“Fragmented Ideas From Young Lungs is a rip roaring mini album that blasts through six raucous ditties, full of vigour and carefree misgivings. The quartet from Cardiff offer a jovial explosion of indie rock that fills the body with a heightened sense of giddiness. This gluttonous, riff heavy, cohesion is refreshingly simplistic, delivering jaunty melodies in hedonistic bundles… It provides a heady combination that has you purring, in reminiscence, for the days when Pete Doherty and Carl Barrett could share a nonchalant lyrical dual.

Album closer ’Alright! Ok! You Win!’ is an anthem of masterful persuasiveness. A natural showstopper, its roaring chorus and flowing melodies provide exactly the kind of carefree riposte to society that you would expect from a fledgling band muddling and struggling to get their debut out. What makes The Muscle Club credible is that they’ve taken the swagger and refined it into a cohesive, unremitting sound.

Gavin and Stacey may choose Snow Patrol and Arctic Monkeys to narrate their episodic dreams but the real sound of Cardiff flows from the sweat filled crevasses frequented by the self-proclaimed indie elite. Here life is not narrated, rather tempered with jaunty sounds that suitably summarise the ups as well as the downs. And it is in these idyllically filthy venues that The Muscle Club have fostered and developed. There’s still a tender edge and exuberance to the band, which is perhaps unsurprising given that they formed a little under two years ago but, nonetheless, Fragmented Ideas From Young Lungs is a persuasive calling from a band with an exciting and tantalising future ahead.”

THE PLAYGROUND MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER TOUR DUUUUDES

Ceri Jones — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 10:07:50 +0000

So we did it dudes, we got a whole 10 day tour booked with only the slightest of snags… Now it’s time for you guys to get out of your bedrooms stop moaning that the NME isn’t as good as Pitchfork and come listen to some indie rock and roll…

A wonderful spectacular, whirling dirvish of a rotaing headline tour…

4 or 5 Magicians (myspace.com/4or5magicians)
Muscle Club (myspace.com/themuscleclub)

NOVEMBER
5th – Buffalo Bar, CARDIFF
6th – The Tap House, KIDDERMINSTER
7th – Proud, Camden (TMC Only)
8th – The Flowerpot, LONDON
9th – The Cellars, PORTSMOUTH
10th – The Hobgoblin, BRIGHTON
11th – The Hamptons, SOUTHAMPTON
12th – Start The Bus, BRISTOL
13th – OTT, NEWPORT
14th – The Cellar, OXFORD

We’ll have some super special stuff going on as far as merch goes… some limited edish stuff so that we can eat food on tour and perhaps even pay for petrol…

ADD YOURSELF & YOUR FRIENDS TO THE FACEBOOK EVENT HERE AS WE’LL BE UPDATING THAT

We know for a fact already we’re playing with some ace bands on this jaunt so, chronologically we’re playing with EVARISTE GALOIS, STAGECOACH, EELECTRICITY & LUST, MAMMOTH MAMMOTH & BEAR CAVALRY

Friends, Bedfellows & Countrymen…

Ceri Jones — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 11:15:07 +0000

How are things with you all?

Anyway, we’ve been put on Steve Lamacq’s rebel playlist, last week The Joy Formidable won it and you basically get blasted across the Radio 6 daytime schedule on every show… It’d be awesome if you could please just click this rather nifty badge I just made and get us a vote… I know voting is pretty lame BUT, this time it’s worth it… We don’t ask a lot normally do we… As a reward we may give a couple of live songs away or something… y’know cause we’re kind like that!

PLEASE CLICK THAT, THEN CLICK MUSCLE CLUB AND SEND STEVE-O AN E-MAIL

Anyway, other than that… We’re writing too much to even learn it at the moment so we’re off to practice one hell of a lot next week before our shows on

WEDNESDAY 30th SEPTEMBER @ CLUB NME CARDIFF (10ft Tall)

THURSDAY 1st OCTOBER @ ABERYSTWYTH STUDENTS UNION

FRIDAY 9TH OCTOBER @ MEZE FESTIVAL NEWPORT (MEZE LOUNGE)

We’re super psyched to almost have finished booking our tour with 4 or 5 Magicians, we played with them saturday in Camden (the graveyard of punk) ad by george was it a good rip rollocking time…

We’re gearing up for the final release of ‘FRAGMENTED IDEAS FROM YOUNG LUNGS’ it’s been a tumultuous path but we are very nearly finally there with the record hitting the streets on the 19th of October…

You can get it here if you’re impatient…

Oh yeah, before I sign off, go listen to the new grown up Kids In Glasshouses Song… it’s ace!

Ceri

Muscle Club Loves You…

NEW NEWS. ISH.

Ceri Jones — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 11:49:23 +0000

for the past and future month or two we’re playing a few shows, mostly one-off’s as we gear up to the actual, on the street release of our CD… that means it’ll be in the shops. I don’t know if anyone buys music from shops anymore but yeah…. we’ve got a bunch of them so get buying… we don’t want any people knocking on our doors trying to get money out of us… please.

The past month has been ace… we started it by playing the windmill in Brixton… we met lots of ace people, including 4 or 5 Magicians, more on them later… here’s a video of before I shaved off my beard. Watching the video makes me wish I didn’t shave my beard. anyway… watch it.

anyway… after you enjoyed me stomping around stage as if you were there we played with the wonderful wonderswan and criminally rad copy haho. I tried to emply some alliteration there but i failed. anyway… We also got play with Jamie T. We discussed Bad Brains and he got drunk. very drunk. The show was roasting hot… like the hottest show ever. ever. the fans weren’t switched on… nevermind…

Before the hard sell… We’re please to say that we’re going to be touring with 4 or 5 magicians in NOVEMBER! AWESOME!

so yeah… As mentioned before… our CD… you can order it from our shop…

BUY IT OFF US

… and we’ll send you a badge and a FREE copy of our HAIL, JOE HALE 7″ vinyl…

OR you can get it digitally right now…

iTUNES | 7DIGITAL | PLAY

Or, ’cause we’re super hip and environmentally friendly it’ on SPOTIFY for you to listen to, for free.

SPOTIFY RULES!!!

Blueprint

muscleclub — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:53:37 +0000

Why aye man…. so here we are again, sat in our respective bedrooms across the country sulking and sulking after finishing the second leg of our tour thing. We did of course have a brilliant time playing with bunch of bands;

Other People,Get in Get out, Mammoth! Mammoth! Bear Cavalry, Wild Palms… ta!

And then.. and then…. we sold some of our rather finely designed t-shirts (kudos to Signor Jones). They’re going pretty quick so if you want to get one- yous better log on to that bigcartel and snap one of those nipple coverers up sharpish, especially if you are of the petite build. (smalls be of low quantity)

Finally thanks to our Dan in top indie rock band 4 or 5 magicians we are psyched to say we’re playing ‘Our band could BBQ your life’ at Brixton Windmill. If you aren’t familiar with the concept its basically 13 bands becoming (stars in their eyes sytle) the bands featured in Michael Azzerad’s seminal indiepunkrocknovel ‘Our band could be your life.’

So yes, for one night the muscle club are FUGAZI! woop. so yeah were gonna do a couple of mackaye’s and the guys songs on Sunday 9th of August so do come down. here’s the link.

http://www.myspace.com/ourbandcouldbbqyourlife

I think thats about it for now. I’m of to get some tabs.

ultimateguitar whaaaaat!

the muscle club

First half of tour done…

Ceri Jones — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 16:12:22 +0000

we’re having an absolute blast driving from the top to the bottom of the country down motor-ways far too long to be healthy… 12 hours on Friday. Then a real bad greasy pizza but less of that.

Scotland was amaaaaaaaazing fun. we got drunk and i (ceri) stayed in my first and second everrrrer hostel. the second lacked the qualities of the one in Edinburgh.

Barnstaple was super duper outstanding matt and mike crowdsurfed. I ended up laying on the floor laughing out of exhaustion… quite possibly the hottest show ever… sweat on the walls shit y’know…

other than that things are pretty damn dandy…

Album pre-order is available HERE

and we’ve also got these rather smashing t-shirts…

BUY BUY BUY

TUUUUUUUUUUUBELORD…

muscleclub — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 17:18:36 +0000

we’re amazing last night… like. seriously good. my throat hurts from singing.

go listen: MYSPACE /// BLOGGG

really really really looking forward to heading out to play some shows net week. it’s been wayyy to long!

Acoustic Session

Ceri Jones — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 22:14:45 +0000

You can listen to our acoustic session on Bethan Elfyn’s Radio Show right here…

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/bethanelfyn

It’s a nice little chat and 2 tracks, one you know. One you probably don’t. It’s Called ‘Fun With Teeth’ and we’re gonna be playing it every night on TOUR

We canae wait to hit the road, mainly to get back up to Scotland and get our drink on with Ross and the Get In Get Out lot… Can’t to see bouncers inciting violence again!

Ceri x

ACOUSTIC SESSION

Ceri Jones — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 16:32:59 +0000

so we went all the way to BBC Llandaff last night to play live on air (pretty nervewracking!) the results can be found around 25 minutes into the BETHAN ELFYN show right here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/bethanelfyn/

go check it out. we had a blast!

Reviews…

Ceri Jones — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:27:19 +0000

well, we’re totally spiffingly happy with the fact that people came to our record launch show last week…

people even seem to have had as much fun as we did…

“It’s always a good sign when you have that ‘I wish they’d played one more’ feeling, and it was present in spades at the Old Blue Last. They must be putting something in the water in Cardiff these days that makes people play hip, literate indie rock, and The Muscle Club have drunk far more than their fair share. Iechyd da!”

Read the Full Review Here…

There’s also a review here at Backlash Magazine who consequentially are giving away one of our tracks on their cover mount CD with issue 7 of their zine-er-oo

more news as it happens…

We’ll definately be Twittering loads tomorrow as we’re on BETHAN ELFYN’s BBC Introducing show tomorrow night doing a one off, super, never going to be done again acoustic session!

play nice
ceri
the muscle club