Moody Gowns and Bearfoot Beware Split 7"

Memory Lane…  I recently saw a guy wearing a Casa Disco t-shirt and was consumed with jealousy. Why? Well, that long since closed shop on Peel Square in Barnsley still has a special place in the hearts of many music fans I know because it was a special place; the film poster wallpaper, the golden gramophone on the carrier bags, the chart on the counter, the anticipation and reward of picking up and buying music.

Where is this going? Well, what I’m trying to say is that proper record shops are special. You can see, hear, touch the merchandise, stumble upon new things, talk to people about what they’re buying, you can learn something in a proper music shop and I love that, but, and you knew there was going to be a but, they’re a dying breed. Leeds has Jumbo and Crash and they’re pretty secure it would seem, but I suspect this is mainly due to their recognition that just as the way the musicians make their money has changed from albums to ticket sales, so they must diversify and now they too probably attract as many customers for gig tickets as they do for music. 

Apple and Amazon have built virtual supermarkets that close down these musical corner shops, Spotify makes owning music a strange concept and the way that young music fans access their music is changing all the time. Which brings me to my point; April 21^st is Record Store Day, a day when your challenge is to go into an independent record shop and buy something.

What to buy? Well, Moody Gowns and Bearfoot Beware, both DIY-rockers from west Yorkshire, have created a double track single release for this year’s event which, in an ironic twist, you can get hold of it here: http://bearfootbeware.bandcamp.com/album/split-7-w-moody-gowns 

Stepmother, the Moody Gowns’ contribution, is catchy, playful and a little bit surprising, their aim is to not sound like anybody else really and they manage this in a delightfully twangy, discordant, atmospheric manner.  Bearfoot Beware’s Tending To The Slim Pickings On The Floor is a treat, driving percussion and distinctive vocals power the song along, muscular guitars prop up the fragile vocals and the whole thing sits together really rather well. So, that’s it, get out on the 21^st, go to a record shop, browse, chat, buy, enjoy. 

Matthew Rhodie