Category: ICA WORLD CUP

It’s been a strange week with the ICA World Cup.

Four superb ties from last Saturday have been somewhat overshadowed by the midweek row over the potential exclusion of The Smiths after the latest interview given by Morrissey in which he, again, uttered words and espoused theories that were truly offensive to most folk.

I have, genuinely, appreciated the various forms of feedback from everyone which has certainly got me thinking about what to do next. It’s no surprise at all to see so many different suggestions being offered up and I’ll continue to take counsel over the next few days and say something when I the post the next again set of half-time updates in a few days time.

Returning again to last week’s match-ups. There was widespread support for all eight sides, albeit none of the games were nail-biters in the end. There’s certainly a lot of quality going to be on display among the final 16…….

New Order 28 v The Fall 14
Talking Heads 15 v The Housemartins 26
The Velvet Underground 17 v The Clash 22
The Jesus and Mary Chain 25 v The The 16

This week’s match-ups were scheduled to be penned by jimdoes, but one of them would have featured The Smiths and so they have all been held over till next week while the matches originally scheduled for next week have been hurriedly rearranged!

Lightning Seeds v Saint Etienne

A tie for the pop purists. And the two songs which have emerged from the selection process will undoubtedly attract votes. The home side has crept quietly under the radar to this point in the competition with Broudie’s Boys seeing off Gemma Ray and Big Audio Dynamite without too much fuss. Cracknell’s Crackers on the other hand, having eased past The Sugarplastic in Round 1, found themselves in a bruising and epic battle against The Cramps last time out. Will the efforts involved have tired them out or toughened them up for this assignment.

The Life of Riley (from Sense, 1992) v Hobart Paving (single version, 1993)

Pulp v Pavement

“I’ll have a P please Bob!’ as the tittering teenagers taking part in the quiz show Blockbusters were so fond of uttering when host Bob Holness asked for their choice of letter.

This is the latest of the many intriguing contests this intriguing competition has thrown up over the first three rounds. Both teams have delivered genuinely brilliant records over the years alongside material that was designed to test the patience and capacities of their more casual fans but to the great delight of the ultras. This could be a whitewash either way or turn out to be very close. It’s almost totally predicatable that both sides have gone with songs that aren’t among their best known, seemingly keeping their powders dry for whatever challenges lie ahead. The original author of the Pulp ICA described today’s song as bleak but rewarding; the original author of the Pavement ICA described today’s song as ‘a bit psychedelic…..like elephants charging’.  The original author of both ICAs was Tim Badger.

The Fear (from This Is Hardcore, 1998) v Texas Never Whispers (from Watery Domestic EP, 1992)

Wire(2) v Butcher Boy

I think you’d have got good odds on both these sides making it to the last 32. It will be quietly satisfying that one of these very fine but unheralded acts will march proudly into the final 16 when so many giants will have been toppled.

Wire, having seen off two English pop acts from different decades – Supergrass and The Higsons – are relying on a typical two minute burst of manic pop thrills to get through against their Scottish opponents this time round. Butcher Boy, conquerors of The Magnetic Fields and Martin Stephenson, are probably more renowned for lush arrangements around heartfelt ballads but take to this field with something a bit more conventional that has possibly the best organ solo that you’ll hear in this or any other round not to mention the best use of a cello on any song outside of Monkey Gone To Heaven.

Two People In A Room (from 154, 1979) v You’re Only Crying For Yourself (from React or Die, 2009)

Orange Juice v The Wedding Present

The competition is meant to be about the merits of the two songs on offer. I’m wondering if the inclusion of a live version by one of these stellar acts will have a bearing on the outcome. Either way, I’m not going to be alone in being delighted for the winner and distraught for the loser.

Felicity (single, 1982) v My Favourite Dress (live) (recorded at Sound City Leeds in 1996)

Just a pity that the coins and dice didn’t give us the cover version of Felicity by TWP……………..

Votes must be cast by Friday 27 April at 10pm.

Happy Listening.

JC

The sadistic streak in my nature has enjoyed many of your undoubted agonies in selecting which tunes to give the nod to in this week’s match-ups.  It’s really interesting that so many of you are doing what I was hoping the competition would do and that’s have the votes cast on a ‘song v song’ basis rather than simply going for the favourite act of the two.  It’s fair to say that, for the first time ever, every song up for grabs in a given week is attracting votes in quantity…

The half-time scores can now be revealed (after 36 comments):-

New Order 22 v The Fall 13
Talking Heads 14 v The Housemartins 20
The Velvet Underground 13 v The Clash 19
The Jesus and Mary Chain 20 v The The 14

As mentioned last week, the half time songs in this round will feature actual club songs and I’ve gone surfing around youtube to find this week’s offering just to keep CC happy:-

mp3 : Marie Osmond – Paper Roses

I have no idea why fans of Kilmarnock FC have adoped this as their anthem…….

Oh and please remember….if you haven’t voted yet for this week’s ties, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

Oh…..I did say there was more…..

There has been a particularly offensive interview given to a journo by Morrissey. The full thing, if really do wish to torture yourself, can be found here.

Among the gems of wisdom are:-

“And as far as racism goes, the modern Loony Left seem to forget that Hitler was Left wing! But of course, we are all called racist now, and the word is actually meaningless. It’s just a way of changing the subject. When someone calls you racist, what they are saying is ”hmm, you actually have a point, and I don’t know how to answer it, so perhaps if I distract you by calling you a bigot we’ll both forget how enlightened your comment was.”

“Nothing I say is provocative. They are just facts.”

“If animals spoke English then no one would eat them. You see, racism is at its most abhorrent in relation to eating animals. If you eat animals, isn’t it a display of hatred for a certain species? And what gives you the right to eat another species or race? Would you eat people from Sri Lanka?”

“London is debased. The Mayor of London tells us about ”Neighborhood policin ” – what is ‘policin’? He tells us London is an ”amazin ” city. What is ‘amazin’? This is the Mayor of London! And he cannot talk properly! I saw an interview where he was discussing mental health, and he repeatedly said ”men’el ” … he could not say the words ‘mental health’. The Mayor of London! Civilisation is over!”

“London is second only to Bangladesh for acid attacks. All of the attacks are non-white, and so they cannot be truthfully addressed by the British government or the Met Police or the BBC because of political correctness. What this means is that the perpetrator is considered to be as much of a victim as the actual victim. We live in the Age of Atrocity.”

“Diverse opinion is banned in England, debate is over. The most offensive thing you can do in modern Britain is to have an opinion and to talk clearly.”

He also expressed his concern that the ultra-right, anti-Islam political group For Britain does not get fair representation in the UK media….

There are fans out there who continue to justify support for him, although the increasing move is now to say that you have to separate the art from the artist…in other words let it be just about the music and not the person.

Sorry folks, as Hall & Oates once sang, I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)….and so it is with a heavy heart that in addition to the original decision to exclude Morrissey from this ICA World Cup, I’m now kicking out The Smiths and awarding a bye to the team they are scheduled to play in the next round.

However, as I do try to run this little corner of t’internet on the basis of giving readers and contributors what they want, I’d be happy to reconsider the decision on appeal if enough of you think that’s a step too far. I’ll return to the situation this time next week…..

JC

 

Honestly…..this week’s four ties are mouth-watering affairs so I want to publish the latest full-time scores and then give you the stuff of nightmares.

The Durutti Column 4 v Echo and the Bunnymen 35
The Police 24 v Pete Wylie 15
XTC 17 v Half Man Half Biscuit 22
The Charlatans 9 v OMD 30

I’ve a feeling Drew will be very keen to vote this week………….

Round 3 : Matches 5-8

New Order v The Fall

Anthony H Wilson and Mark E Smith will be pissing themselves laughing at this….as indeed will Rob Gretton.  Barney Sumner is known to be a fan of Manchester United while MES was a City follower, the team he adopted as a kid just to annoy his dad.  The establishment against the noisy neighbour.  The tickets to see this one will fly out of the door.

New Order must be cursing their luck with the draws having already been asked to take care of hardy overseas opponents in LCD Soundsytem and The Go-Betweens.  The Fall have had the slightly easier tasks of taking on Queens of The Stone Age and SBTRKT.  The interesting news for the both sides is that while they each have multiple and guest ICAs, (three for New Order and four for The Fall), the selections for both are coming from their initial ICAs, both of which were penned by me….and what emerged from the coin/dice stuff is quite staggering:-

Age Of Consent (from Power, Corruption & Lies, 1983) v Cruiser’s Creek (single, 1985)

Talking Heads v The Housemartins

New York v Hull…..certainly brings home the romance of the cup.

Talking Heads have had all sorts thrown at them thus far – Close Lobsters, Massive Attack and Kitchens of Distinction have represented very different types of challenges and the latest match is no different.  The Housemartins have progressed quietly to this stage by overcoming Gene and Julian Cope but, thanks to an ICA full of catchy and enjoyable pop songs, they pose a threat to the biggest of names and the most revered of line-ups.

Both songs selected this week have one-word titles which come in at a little over two-and-a-half minutes in length.

TH(NYC) opting for something which, despite being almost 40 years old, still sounds vibrant and fresh – they’ve also drafted in Brian Eno on production duties to the line up.  TH (Yorks.) go with something that, although a flop single from 1986, typifies so much of their output.

Paper (from Fear of Music, 1979) v Sheep (from London 0 Hull 4, 1986)

The Velvet Underground v The Clash

Just as the audience begins to come to terms with the all-Manc tie which opens up this week’s offerings, this curve-ball delivers another strike.  Two of the most admired bands in the competition, each having the firepower to go all the way, but only one will still be on their feet in six days time.

NYC or London?

Warhol or Rhodes??

Reed/Cale/Morrison/Tucker or Strummer/Jones/Simenon/Headon???

It’s all down to you.

The Clash are going for their third successive American scalp having beaten MGMT and R.E.M. in previous rounds, while VU have disposed of The National and Talk Talk with great ease. You may have to take your time with this one….

Foggy Notion (from VU : recorded 1969, released 1984) v Armagideon Time (b-side,1979)

The Jesus and Mary Chain v The The

Here’s a Scotland v England clash to complete a remarkable set of match-ups this week.

JAMC have had very comfortable wins over The Wondermints and Rod Stewart, and while this is a tougher assignment altogether, the names in other ties in this section of the draw surely demonstrate that it could have been a lot worse.

The The are going for a hat-trick of wins over Scottish acts having done enough to dispose of Simple Minds and The Skids.  This is yet another step up in quality and, as is so often the case, much will depend on the random aspect of things:-

Never Understand (from Psychocandy, 1985) v Slow Emotion Replay (from Dusk, 1993)

Have fun….and happy listening.

Voting closes at 10pm on Friday 20 April.

JC

Have particulary enjoyed reading all the additional words that have come with so many comments thus far this week and it’s interesting that some of you have been struggling with your selections this week…..that’s how it should be as we get down to the sharp end of the competition.  Once again, there are a few scorelines which aren’t truly reflective of the quality that’s on offer from both sides…and the possibility of Sting & co getting into the last 16 (and possibly further) seems to bothering a few folk!!

Oh and C, if you’re reading this…..you really can’t tease us with hints of why you had to vote for the Durutti Column song without sharing the sordid details……

Durutti Column 3 v Echo & The Bunnymen 28
Pete Wylie 12 v The Police 19
XTC 14 v Half Man Half Biscuit 17
The Charlatans 6 v OMD 25

In this round, the half time songs will feature actual club songs, and I’m beginning with one that’s associated Hibernian FC:-

mp3 : The Proclaimers – Sunshine on Leith

And here’s the rendition from their fans back in 2016 when their side lifted the Scottish Cup for the first time in 114 years:-

Remember….if you haven’t voted yet, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

JC

 

The final four ties have been getting played out all week against an increasing anticipation that we really are getting to the business end of the tournament.

Lemonheads 8 v Prefab Sprout 28
Julian Cope 11 v The Housemartins 26
The Pixies 12 v Billy Bragg 23
Ride 33 v Asian Dub Foundation 4

Condolences if all of your favourites have now been eliminated, but there’s still time to latch onto one of the remaining sides to cheer on from the terraces.

I’ve made the full draw for the last 32 and the matches will be played in the order they came out the hat. It proved to be a relatively fortunate draw in that none of the sides who were involved last week came out in the first four games and so get a well-earned rest. You’ll also spot that all of the first four games of Round 3 fall into the intriguing category but don’t offer match-ups that will make for sleepless nights mulling over the options. But trust me, there’s plenty of that to come with a number of the real big guns having to take one another on…..all of which opens things up for some so-called lesser lights to keep allegedly unlikely runs going.

This week does see a high proportion of sides from Merseyside…..

Round 3 : Matches 1-4

The Durutti Column v Echo & The Bunnymen

Manchester v Liverpool….and not for the first time this week.

Vini Reilly has thus far seen off two cult acts from Scotland but this is, without question, a real step up in class for him.  He’s likely going to have to field one of his strongest bits of music and preferably one that isn’t too noodly and so ends up appealing to folk beyond his small but dedicated fan base.  Turns out, according to strictly rockers who was the author of the original ICA, that it is “Probably the best-known DC song complete with Martin Hannett‘s sampled birdsong.”

McCulloch & co. have already been tested strongly and fought through, with surprising ease, in tough looking ties against Lenny Cohen and EBTG, with the latter being seen off by a live song which was loved and loathed in equal measures.  Perhaps complacency could be their biggest enemy….but looking at the song that’s come out, they’re showing that this is being taken seriously. Very seriously

Sketch For Summer (from Return Of…, 1980) v The Killing Moon (from Ocean Rain, 1984)

The Police v Pete Wylie

Something tells me that Pistol Pete, the self-acclaimed “part-time pop star and full-time legend” will be relishing this match-up and will spend the entire build-up badmouthing his opponents, particularly Sting who will be accused of turning his back on his working-class origins and the shipbuilding town he was born in.  The media will be stoking the fires too….

After a comfortable win in Round 1, Pete Wylie produced his ace card to ensure he progressed against PJ Harvey who was tipped by a few pundits as a possible overall winner and he’s up against a side who, although not hugely popular in the overall scheme of things, have a knack of fielding a terrific pop tune that has seen themn rack up more than 50 goals in seeing off Captain Beefheart and The Stranglers.  The coin and dice combo will be critical….

Weekends (from A Word to the Wise Guy, 1984) v Roxanne (from Outlandos D’amour, 1978)

XTC v  Half Man Half Biscuit

This is one of those ties that I think is, before the songs are pulled out, almost impossible to predict.  If there’s two things I’ve learned in all the years of doing this blog they are that almost all readers like XTC and almost all readers love Half Man Half Biscuit.  There’s a case to be argued that all three of the songwriters deserve national treasure status in the UK.

XTC have two ICAs to choose from, one which is dedicated to songs by Andy Partridge, whose contributions have been used in the first two rounds to see off two of my own favourites in Friends Again followed by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.  This time round its the Colin Moulding ICA from which the song will be chosen which could be bad news for Nigel Blackwell and co, although they do have potential gems of their own to offer

Grass (from Skylarking, 1986) v Joy Division Oven Gloves (from Achtung Bono, 2005)

The Charlatans v OMD

I think both bands will be pleased with this draw and will be quietly confident of progressing….they’ve done well to tip-toe their way through the previous rounds with The Charlatans seeing off The Mekons and Carter USM while OMD have proven to be too good for Super Furry Animals and The Stone Roses, although both losers were guilty of fielding weaker songs than they are famed for.

The home side have already fielded what are arguably their two best known songs while the away side still have some top-notch 45s to offer up.  Once again, the coin and dice will play their part:-

Can’t Get Out Of Bed (from Up To Our Hips, 1994) v Enola Gay (from Organisation, 1980)

Some really good and enjoyable tunes to listen to this week…voting closes at 10pm on Friday 13 April.

JC

All four matches look like foregone conclusions already….albeit some folk have found making the choices something of a tough ask.

The Lemonheads 6 v Prefab Sprout 21
Julian Cope 9 v The Housemartins 19
The Pixies 7 v Billy Bragg 19
Ride 25 v Asian Dub Foundation 3

Hopefully, there will be a bit more excitement in terms of close matches in the next round when we get down to the last 32.  Tune in on Saturday to find out………

This week’s half-time, as per the newly adopted practice, comes from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the above eight sides; this week offers soething quite gorgeous:-

mp3 : Gene – I Can’t Help Myself (Radio 1 Session – 18 May 1994)

Remember….if you haven’t vote yet, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

JC

 

And so we come to the end of March and what will be the final ties of Round 2.  There’s been a fair bit tension the past seven weeks albeit most of the ties have been settled by reasonably comfortable margins.  The last eight teams are the usual mix of big names and cult heroes and perhaps offering the opportunity to allow some lesser lights a chance to progress.  But before all that, here’s what you made of last week’s tasty offerings….and in case you missed it, the amazing match report from Jonny the Friendly Lawyer on The Stranglers v The Police in which he works in at least sixteen song titles….

Down in Guilford the Stranglers/Police match has a brief stoppage while Sting gets a manicure on the pitch.

The old codgers bring on the nubiles from the stands which distracts Andy Summers, the leading side’s demolition man.

Jet Black smuggles an ice pick to make your ears burn into his sock, thinking it might be necessary to straighten out the scoreline.

Cornwell observes that when the clock is running down you make the best of what’s still around and urges the band to (get a) grip (on themselves) before the canary falls down the coal mine. The ref shouts for both sides to rehumanize themselves and get on with it.

5 Minutes of added time when Stewart Copeland realizes he’s American and doesn’t know what he’s doing on the pitch. King of pain JJ Burnel abandons protocol and turns to karate, intimidating the 3 blondes until they’re so lonely, not standing so close to each other at the far edges of the touchline.

Sting, refreshed from his attentions can’t standing losing and hears the voices in his head shouting that Greenfield has just been hanging around the entire game. At the death it all boils down to who wants the world? most…

Stranglers stage massive comeback and win on penalties because they’ve got an extra band member.

Sadly for Jonny, his prediction of that particular result didn’t come through…..

The Stranglers 10 v The Police 26
Daft Punk 22 v Emiliana Torrini 14
The Clash 28 v R.E.M.(2) 12
The Skids 17 v The The 22

Matches 29-32 of Round 2

The Lemonheads v Prefab Sprout

The Lemonheads have been waiting ages to play their second match having been involved in Game 1 of Week 1 of Round 1 when they took care of business against Spoon.  Not that the wait truly troubled uber-stoner Evan Dando who just quietly sat in a corner waiting on his side being called to the pitch to strut their stuff.  I think Evan would have been initally pleased to be up against someone of a kindred spirit in Paddy McAloon whose Prefab Sprout may have the potential to go all the way, as demonstrated in an easy win against The Blue Aeroplanes last time out. But Evan’s winning and wholesome smile would surely have been masking some pain when he learned what Paddy is throwing at him in this tie.

Ride With Me (from Lovey, 1990) v When Love Breaks Down (from Steve McQueen, 1985)

Julian Cope (2) v The Housemartins

I feel I should quote from strictly rockers opening remarks when he penned the first of what turned out to be towo ICAs for Julian Cope : “He is the only artist I feel remotely qualified to compile an Imaginary Album for; he is the artist I’ve seen live most and own more albums than any other. Following the Archdrude through thick and thin sometimes feels more ordeal than pleasure and his prolific output occasionally appears to shoot wide but, in his words, he is always ‘true to my metaphor’ and never fails to deliver on attitude, enthusiasm and sheer energy. ”

My own words for The Housemartins were : “The self-styled ‘fourth best band in Hull’ only released two studio albums and nine singles in their all too brief time and some might argue this isn’t enough to merit an ICA, It’s also true that two of them (Paul and Norman) went onto enjoy more fame and fortune in later bands or as solo artists, one of them (Stan) did all sorts of things before becoming a very succesful writer of children’s book and TV scripts for a young audience and the other (Hugh) was part of other indie-pop outfits before he ended up in jail.”

It’s clearly a game of contrasts and having, respectively, seen off Joe Strummer and Gene last time out, once again it’s a battle of English Roses.

The Pixies v Billy Bragg

I won’t waste time insulting your intelligence by saying much about these two teams.  But it does match up one of the finest ever from New England against the bloke who wrote A New England.  And it also offers the contrast of something live that is raw and energetic against one of the most unapologetically tear-jerkers of all time.

Vamos (live from Brixton Academy, 2004) v Tank Park Salute (from Don’t Try This At Home, 1991)

Ride v Asian Dub Foundation

Outside of the ICAs, these two haven’t featured too often on the blog.  The Ride effort came from SWC while ADF was courtesy of his sidekick Tim Badger;  makes sense just to cut’n’paste from their pieces.

Ride are probably one of the most unsung bands of the last couple of generations, they were pioneers of the much missed Shoegaze scene and with their debut album ‘Nowhere’ they created one of the best records of the nineties (those who remember my 40 albums to hear before I am 40, would have read all about this if I had time to finish it – that album folks is the 6th best ever.  Also as a sub note – it was really hard to not simply just pick the tracks from ‘Nowhere’ here in the ICA.

Asian Dub Foundation in the late 90s and early 00s released two wonderful records, these being Rafis Revenge and the seminal Community Music;  the latter is described by some as the most important record ever released. It isn’t quite that, but it is certainly utterly wonderful. Both are angry, overflowing with polemic lyrics and a strong sense of trying to right the wrongs of society. These two records are their best – and obviously make up the bulk of this compilation.  It was these two records that took them from being whispered about underground urbanistas to overground in your face forces to be reckoned with.

Vapour Trail (from Nowhere, 1990) v Real Great Britain (from Community Music, 2000)

JC adds…..You got your wishes, boys…..maybe you should let KT vote on this one!  The closing date for votes this week is Friday 6 April at 10am.

The numbers for the draw for Round 3 are as follows:-

1. The Fall
2. Talking Heads
3. Edwyn Collins
4. The Velvet Underground
5. New Order
6. The Charlatans
7. Lightning Seeds
8. St Etienne
9. The Jam
10. Half Man Half Biscuit
11. Pete Wylie
12. The Wedding Present
13. Lloyd Cole & The Commotions
14. Orange Juice
15. Pulp
16. Pavement
17. The Jesus and Mary Chain
18. XTC
19. The Smiths
20. The Durutti Column
21. OMD
22. Wire
23. Echo & The Bunnymen
24. Butcher Boy
25. The Police
26. Daft Punk
27. The Clash
28. The The
29. Lemonheads or Prefab Sprout
30. Julian Cope or The Housemartins
31. The Pixies or Billy Bragg
32. Ride or Asian Dub Foundation

Not a huge range of diversity it has to be admitted, but so much to look forward to…first four ties of the round will be revealed next Saturday with the remainder to follow throughout April.

JC

 

It’s been a fascinating first half across all four games.  The Clash are destroying R.E.M. and thus laying down a marker for the remainder of the tournament while many others have, seemingly, unwillingly cast their votes for The Police on the basis that the song representing The Stranglers isn’t regarded as one of their best or most accessible. Both ties already look formalities.

The other two match-ups are much closer affairs.

Daft Punk and Emiliana Torrini have both enjoyed small leads before being pegged back, although the French are now on a bit of a roll and the current gap is at its widest.  The The began their match at a blistering pace racing into an eight goal lead at one point, but the killer combination of Jobson and Adamson have steadied the ship and The Skids could yet make history by being the first to mount a comeback win of seismic proportions.

The Stranglers 6 v The Police 22
Daft Punk 16 v Emiliana Torrini 12
The Clash 22 v R.E.M.(2) 9
The Skids 14 v The The 17

This week’s half-time, as per the newly adopted practice, comes from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the above eight sides:-

mp3 : Radiohead – National Anthem

Remember….if you haven’t vote yet, you have until midnight this coming Friday.

JC

 

jimdoes has come up with a superb way on introducing this week’s four ties, but beforehand we need to dispense with the business of who got through in Week 6 although those of you who saw the half time scores will know three of the match-ups turned out not to be competitive:-

Stone Roses 9 v OMD 31
Wire(2) 36 v Farmer’s Boys/Higsons 4
Everything But The Girl(2) 9 v Echo & The Bunnymen 30
Martin Stephenson 19 v Butcher Boy 21

I think the best summary for this week was provided by Matt when he said “A couple of occasions where the better song beat the better band here”;  I’d also like to give a special thanks to Micky who, as ever, voted late on by e-mail, especially in the knowledge that the MS v BB game was very close – Micky is experiencing some lousy and painful stuff in his personal life just now and it meant a lot to me that he took the time to make sure he could take part in the competition this week.

And now, it’s over to jimdoes….but before your read his words, I’d suggest you play the short video at the top of the page….it might help explain things, particularly to to non-UK readers!!

Matches 25-28 of Round 2

Here’s the next round of matches – we keep saying that ‘this match would have made a great final’ and ‘some are too tough to call’ but Match 27 has got to be the best match yet – fans of other teams will be relieved to avoid these two big guns and to see one of the favourites have to go home early.

The Stranglers v The Police

This is a veterans match if ever there was one. The Stranglers (who last round saw off Roddy Frame but, by playing one of their best songs might have peaked too early) will be shuffling around the pitch with a combined age of 281. Whereas The Police are a man down on their opponents but still clock up an impressive combined age of 206. Sting got all Tantric on Captain Beefheart in the previous round and looks to have brought his A-game to this tie with a song that needs no introductions (he says as he introduces it) – but can The Stranglers’ effort – described in the original ICA as “half-baked unintelligible sci-fi conspiracy nonsense about some whack-ass alien visitation” – cause an upset?

Just Like Nothing On Earth (from The Gospel According to The Meninblack, 1981) v Message In A Bottle (from Regatta de Blanc, 1979)

BOOKIES VERDICT

The bookies are using the incredibly scientific method of counting up the comments on their respective ICAs to work out odds on this round of matches and this tie is VERY close. There were 14 comments each, but more words were written about The Police so they are marginal favourites.

ODDS: The Police 5/4(FAV); The Stranglers 2/1.

As Ray Winstone would say in that “charming” cockney way of his – “CAAAAAM ON… AV A BANG ON THAT.”

Daft Punk v Emiliana Torrini

France v Iceland. Technology v Nature. Robot v Woman.
Daft Punk certainly got lucky in the last round – in the ‘Luck’ derby or ‘Le Derby de luque’ as they say, they comfortably saw saw off The Lucksmiths. Torrini ‘foiled’ Foil (I’ll get my coat) – in one of just two matches to have gone to penalties so far.

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger (from Discovery, 2001) v Wednesday’s Child (from Love In the Time of Science, 1999)

BOOKIES VERDICT

Daft Punk – 6 comments, Torrini – 21 comments;

ODDS: Daft Punk 4/1; Torrini Evens(fav). Torrini proved more of a hit with readers making her the surprise favourite in this tie – but bookies have been known to get it wrong.

Ray Winston says, “OI MAAAAAATE! GIT ORN IT!”

The Clash v R.E.M (2)

Tie of the round. Tie of the tournament so far. The TV companies didn’t have to think twice. I can’t even begin to decide who will win – or to even write a proper preview. Good luck to both of them. At least this tie shows that the draw is completely random and their are no warm balls in the bag at Vinyl Villain Towers. (JC adds….worth recalling that R.E.M. saw off Radiohead last time out and so will be gutted to pull out such a plum once again)

London Calling (from London Calling, 1979) v Disturbance At The Heron House (from Doucument, 1987)

BOOKIES VERDICT

The Clash – 30 comments, R.E.M. – 16 comments;

ODDS: The Clash (with home advantage) 1/2 (FAV); R.E.M. Evens.

Ray Winston says, “FAAAA*******CK”

The Skids v The The

Will Stuart Adamson run rings around Matt Johnson? Are The The over-confident and looking for who they might draw in the next round? Do the Scottish team have the wrong studs on and will they be slipping all over the pitch? With two players having the same name, will The The be difficult to mark?

The Skids had too much for Elbow in the previous round and The The beat another Scottish team, Simple Minds in what could be a good omen for them going in to this fixture.

Circus Games (from The Absolute Game, 1980) v I’ve Been Waitin’ For Tomorrow (All Of My Life) (Special Mix) (b-side, 1983)

BOOKIES VERDICT

The Skids – 12 comments, The The – 9 comments;

ODDS: The Skids 4/1; The The 3/1 (FAV) Another tight one for the bookies to call.

Ray Winstone says, “EYE EYE IT’S THAT TYME AGAIN! OOOOOOOOH NICE! LAAARVE IT!”

Remember, vote responsibly and if voting ever becomes an addiction, seek help. Votes close on Friday 30 March at 10pm.

jimdoes

 

Thus far, most comments and votes have followed a pattern….almost all have gone OMD, Wire and E&TB.  Matches 21-23 are, to all intent and purposes, done and dusted….

Stone Roses 6 v OMD 22
Wire(2) 26 v Farmer’s Boys/Higsons 2
Everything But The Girl(2) 6 v Echo & The Bunnymen 23

The final tie could be a cliffhanger….neither side has ever established a substantial lead and both have enjoyed spells of being in front. It’s the first genuine contest in weeks

Martin Stephenson 13 v Butcher Boy 14

This week’s half-time, as per the newly adopted practice, comes from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the above eight sides:-

mp3 : Mike Garry and Joe Dudell ‘St Anthony- An Ode To Anthony H Wilson’ (Andrew Weatherall Remix)

If you don’t know this half-time song, then ypu’re in for a real treat. If you do it, then you’ll no doubt want to listen again.

I’ll re-post what Swiss Adam said when he pulled together the Weatherall ICA:-

“Mike Garry’s wonderful poem for Tony Wilson, a celebration of the Factory boss and ‘Manchester music, marijuana, majesty and Karl Marx’, was set to music by Joe Dudell, a string quartet version of New Order’s Your Silent Face. Weatherall took it back to the electronic roots of Power, Corruption and Lies. Released to raise funds for cancer charities and The Christie hospital – go buy it.”

I’ll endorse his request that you go buy it.  I have.  Click here.

Oh and finally, if you haven’t voted yet this week, you have until midnight this coming Friday.

JC

 

---

Thanks for getting so many votes in by the earlier than usual deadline. As this post appears, I’ll be 70-odd miles away from home, making the most of a brilliantly nostalgic night with ex-players from Raith Rovers FC at a commemorative dinner/piss-up recalling the six games we played in the UEFA Cup in 1995, including the night when we dared to dream of knocking out Bayern Munich as we led 1-0 at half-time in the Olympiastadion.

Alas, there was no giant-killing, but it was fun while it lasted.  So which of our four teams from last week could call on the international class and experience of Klinsmann, Papin, Babbel and Kahn and which had to rely on brave warriors such as Sinclair, Lennon, Coyle and Dair ?

Rod Stewart 6 The Jesus and Mary Chain 30
XTC (2) 24 Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds 15
The Smiths 28 Husker Du 12
The Durutti Column 22 Paul Quinn 15

To all Paul Quinn fans, I’d like to offer a heartfelt apology.  My behaviour, as manager, in fielding the 12” version of Change of Attitude in the original ICA was totally out of character and a momentary lapse in my normally high standards of behaviour.  The 7” might have gotten through but in all honesty, it was a tad arrogant on my part to field such a self indulgent b-side in the first place…on reflection and with hindsight, it was an error for which there is no feasible excuse.  Good luck to Vini and his crew in the next round and the remainder of the competition.

Moving on now to this week’s match ups and I’m hoping after eight successive near walkovers that some minor excitement at least can be generated.

It does open with a tasty match-up with the bonus of it being a Liverpool/Manchester rivalry while the remaining three games will hopefully get you thinking a bit…..all teams may well need the luck of the Irish to get through.  Happy St Patrick’s Day.

Matches 21-24 of Round 2

The Stone Roses v OMD

The Stone Roses have been suggested in some quarters as having the ability to go all the way in the competition although there are some correspondents who think they lack the neccesary depth.  They weren’t pushed too hard in Round 1 against Yellow Magic Orchestra but even so, will need an improved performance to see off OMD whose professional and polished performance last time out saw them deal a mortal blow to trhe much fancied Super Furry Animals.  This tie has a similar sort if feel to it and much will depend on the toss of the coin and the roll of the dice…which might just favour the Liverpudlians in that their song is better-known amomg the masses.

All Across The Sands (b-side, 1987) v Messages (from Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, 1980)

Wire (2) v The Farmer’s Boys/The Higsons

The art-school veterans who go by the name of Wire got through Round 1 by a the odd-goal in 45 in a titanic battle againt Supergrass with the reward being a home match against one of the acts representing the ‘Sounds of Young Norwich’ ICA.  Last time round the reliance was on The Higsons who came through a close one against The Jayhawks.  Will the manager be allowed to stick with the same starting line or will the coin and dice enforce a complete set of new players?  Turns out that The Farmer’s Boys will be on the bench yet again, and given the might of the opposition song, the fates may have conspired to prevent them ever setting  foot on the playing surface.

Outdoor Miner (single, 1979) v Conspiracy by The Higsons (single, 1982)

Everything But The Girl (2) v Echo & The Bunnymen

I know I’m overusing the word intriguing in describing so many of these 2nd round ties but I make no apologies for doing so again.  The Bunnymen took care of Leonard Cohen last time out, although it needed the use of The Cutter to ensure progress.  They could end up with a similar type of tie again depending on whch EBTG comes out via the coin and dice.  In Round 1, Tracey and Ben went with Draining The Bar, a piano-led ballad, which was more than enough to hammer The Libertines.  Both sides will likely need to be at, or close to, their best to progress. Either way, Echorich will be sad that one of them will have to leave.

Cross My Heart (from Baby The Stars Shine Bright, 1986) v Zimbo (live) (b-side, 1983)

Martin Stephenson v Butcher Boy

This is just such a brilliant tie on paper.  Two of my all time favourites, neither of whom at the start of the World Cup I’d have given too much chance of reaching this stage; but now one of them is going to reach the last 32 and possibly take on a really big gun.  The romance of the cup etc.

Martin Stephenson, to the chagrin of many, removed Andrew Weatherall from the tournament, albeit he needed the might of The Daintees backing him on Crocodile Cryer to deliver.  Butcher Boy were up in a real Indietracks type battle against The Magnetic Fields last time out and came through despite being the lesser known of the combos.  Which tunes are going head-to-head this time?

Rain (from Boat to Bolivia, 1986) v Helping Hands (from album of same name, 2011)

Yup.  Two ballads make for a fine match-up.

Closing date and time for entries is Friday 23 March, at 10pm UK time.

Next week will see jimdoes take to the stage to introduce matches 24-27.  I know which games are coming up. I don’t envy him.

JC

 

The first three of this week’s matches are already looking foregone conclusions and it’s only 8.30pm on Monday night.  The final tie, however, has been fairly nip and tuck for the most part with both sides having held the lead at one point in time or other.

Rod Stewart 5 v The Jesus and Mary Chain 19
XTC (2) 19 v Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds 8
The Smiths (2) 19 v Husker Du 8
Durutti Column 12 v Paul Quinn 12

This week’s half-time tune, as per the newly adopted practice, comes from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the above eight sides:-

mp3 : Teenage Fanclub – Don’t Look Back

Remember….if you haven’t voted yet, you have until 10pm this coming Thursday (votes close 24 hours earlier than normal!!).

JC

 

You voted but not as heavily as previous weeks.  But then again, these ties were all pretty much done and dusted within the first few hours.

Lloyd Cole & The Commotions 28 Arab Strap 7
British Sea Power 10 Orange Juice 25
Lambchop 3 Pulp 32
Pavement 26  Clyde McPhatter 8

My favourite match report came from Bill albeit he backed a loser.

“You want me to vote for a lanky art school chancer trying to get a leg over with a naive foreign student. That may be ok in the 90s but definitely not on nowadays. My vote goes to Sharee Lewis little friend Lambchop. Simpler times”

Here’s how the numbers are shaping up for the next round

1. The Fall
2. Talking Heads
3. Edwyn Collins
4. Velvet Underground
5. New Order
6. The Charlatans
7. Lightning Seeds
8. St Etienne
9. The Jam
10. Half Man Half Biscuit
11. Pete Wylie
12. The Wedding Present
13. Lloyd Cole & The Commotions
14. Orange Juice
15. Pulp
16. Pavement

Another 16 still to come.

This week’s match-ups have two of the big guns on display but not up against each other.  It also has a couple of very intriguing ties while some cults take to the field.

Matches 17-20 of Round 2

Rod Stewart v The Jesus & Mary Chain

Rod Stewart is perhaps one of the more surprising names to appear in Round 2, but only in as much that he drawn against Johnny Marr last time out; as some observant commentators said, the fact that the grisly veteran dug deep into his catalogue with a track from the highly regarded Gasoline Alley album from 1970 showed how serious he was taking it while the finest indie guitarist of our era decided to rely on a fairly weak track by Girls Aloud.  It proved to be quite a one-sided affair.   The Jesus and Mary Chain also enjoyed a comfortable passage against The Wondermints last time out and the Reids are bound to be licking their lips again this time round with Rod deciding to rely on how folk feel about his interpretation of a track made famous by a different pair of brothers.  Having said that, JAMC are relying on a sweary lesser-known number lasting a little over 90 seconds

Cigarettes and Alcohol (from When We Were The Rude Boys, 1998) v Boyfriend’s Dead (b-side, 1987)

XTC (2) v Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

This really has the potential to be a fascinating contest.  XTC had too much in their locker last time out for Friends Again but will, in all likelihood have to up the ante a bit to take on Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds who had to field a live rendition of The Mercy Seat to ensure they came through an epic encounter last time out against Teenage Fanclub in one of just two ties that ended in a draw with the Bellshill boys going out agonisingly on an actual coin toss.  I’m sure the Aussies were hoping for something a bit kinder than the Swindonites this time round as the reward for such endeavours.  One of those ones where the song choice will be absolutely crucial…..turns out to Jonny the Friendly Lawyer‘s favourite ever song by one of his favourite ever bands against a live rendition of a track which The Robster describes as being as good as any ever written by Cave.

Earn Enough For Us (from Skylarking, 1986) v Jubilee Street (live at the Sydney Opera House, 2014)990)

The Smiths (2) v Husker Du

A mid 80s classic here. The away side came through in an emotional All-American match-up against Grandaddy in which the final 26-10 score didn’t reflect how close the call had been for many folk.  The home side flexed their muscles from the outset, racking up 41 points as they made mincemeat of Mission of Burma.  While the initial thought may be that they have been given another fairly kind draw, it could be a banana skin.  Here come the songs……oh well, I’ve a feeling this one could be a foregone conclusion (although I have been wrong before).

I Know It’s Over (from The Queen Is Dead, 1986) v Keep Hanging On (from Flip Your Wig, 1985)

The Durutti Column v Paul Quinn

One for the connoisseurs in which the guitar goes up directly against the voice.  Both ICAs were well received and this is going to be very difficult one to call.  Reilly broke some Scottish hearts in Round 1 with a narrow and hard fought win over The Beta Band, and hopes to do similar this time;  Quinn, whose contribution last time round was with The Independent Group, did enough to hold on against a late onslaught from The Feelies back in the very first week of the competition in early January.  Will this extended break from competitive action count against him?

Contra–Indications (from Obey The Time, 1990) v Change of Attitude by Bourgie Bourgie (12″ b-side, 1984)

Please have your votes in by midnight on Thursday 15 March

I’ve had to bring things forward 24 hours as I’m out next Friday night, nowhere near a laptop or PC, and so need to tally the scores a bit earlier; it shouldn’t make too much difference as most of you do vote early on.

Tune in next Saturday for the results and the line-ups for matches 20-23, which, if I’m being honest are fairly similar in feel to this week.  The real fireworks will be held over till matches 24-27 which will be written up by jimdoes.

JC

 

All four games looked like foregone conclusions as early as Saturday evening thanks to a very clear and distinct pattern of voting emerging. The television bosses (and Dirk) have already their disappointment with the lack of excitement but should be consoling themselves that the last 32 is shaping up very nicely indeed.

Lloyd Cole & The Commotions 23 v Arab Strap 5
British Sea Power 8 v Orange Juice 20
Lambchop 0 v Pulp 28
Pavement 21 v Clyde McPhatter 6

If they were boxing matches, I reckon we would be calling a halt to each of them. None of the losing acts deserve continued punishment.

This week’s half-time, as per the newly adopted practice, comes from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the above eight sides.  This one, selected by jimdoes before voting started, seem very apt:-

mp3 : Tilly and The Wall – Nights of the Living Dead

JC

 

As promised last week, jimdoes, whose concept it was to have an ICA World Cup, will take you through this week’s tasty match-ups, but before then, the final scores on the ties you’ve had to deliberate on these past seven days:-

The Jam 37 The Detroit Cobras 6
Half Man Half Biscuit 25 Trash Can Sinatras 17
Pete Wylie 27 PJ Harvey 17
Magazine 19 The Wedding Present 25

At one point I thought Magazine were set to pull off an historic victory as they closed what had been a substantial gap down to just two points some 24 hours before the close of voting, but the extra helping of apple pie on the final day saw TWP survive to fight another day.  Here’s some great comments in respect of each match:-

The Jam v Detroit Cobras : I love a plucky underdog, especially against a mighty top side (in recent weeks I’ve been cheering on Newport County (well, OK, most weeks I cheer for the County), Rochdale and Wigan!) So when I saw The Jam vs The Detroit Cobras, I was ready to cast my vote for Motor City’s finest R&B covers band. Until I saw Weller & Co had fielded Billy Hunt. From that moment on, there was only going to be one result…THE ROBSTER

Half Man Half Biscuit v Trash Can Sinatras : National Shite Day is our new national anthem so no contest. Overhead a rainbow appears. In black and white…..SWISS ADAM

Pete Wylie v PJ Harvey : Pete pips poor Polly, producing pristine, proto-pop pleaser…..MICKY

Magazine (“Oh, 10 points for them and they are very good indeed. 10 points by all accounts!”) v The Wedding Present (“And 11 points for them because I can understand the singer better!”). I said: “But you don’t speak English.”. “No”, he replied, “but he (Gedge) is a bit a slower and thus more comprehensible.”. So match ended 10:11…..DIRK & LITTLE LOSER.

The final submission this week, which came from themostdisagreeablefirst, did make me laugh out loud.  He/she typed the word ‘Magazine’ ten times and asked ‘does that help’?  Given that I actually wanted Shot By Both Sides to get through, it was tempting……but in the end, it only counted for one vote.

That’s enough for week 3.

Here’s jimdoes:-

First up, I want to thank JC for taking my crackpot scheme and turning it in to a brilliant series – and all the people who have voted and added brilliant comments about each tie.

Matches 13-16 of Round 2

Lloyd Cole & The Commotions v Arab Strap

A match that guarantees a Scottish team in the next round. If I knew anything about Scottish football I’d make a comparison between various teams and these two bands. But I don’t. So I won’t – as it would probably upset a lot of people. Anyway, last round both teams were expected to win their ties which they duly did, without any trouble – seeing off The Pipettes and A Certain Ratio respectively. I know who I’m voting for in this round but it’s a tie that I think is difficult to call.

Mister Malcontent (from Mainstream, 1987) v Packs Of Three (from Philophobia, 1998)

British Sea Power v Orange Juice

The magic of the cup. This is the televised round of the week – the broadcasters licking their lips at the prospect of two of the dark horses going head to head. British Sea Power are taking no chances even though they have home advantage and are playing a really strong team. Meanwhile, Edwyn Collins‘ team have foregone their usual Orange kit and have opted for their away colours – Blue Boys. BSP were also the televised match in the previous round, seeing off Beach House much to my relief. And Orange Juice ran up a cricket score against the unfortunate Tilly and The Wall, despite their fancy footwork.

Remember Me (from The Decline of British Sea Power, 2001) v Blue Boy (single 1980)

Lambchop v Pulp

In the previous round Lambchop beat Martha and The Muffins in a match that was end to end – it took a strong second half performance from Kurt Wagner‘s team to win. Pulp saw off a spirited display from Tindersticks to set up this tie. In an effort to appear neutral I’ll just say that Lambchop must be cursing their luck with this draw. Not only coming up against one of the tournament favourites but then having Pulp put out their ‘A’ team must be particularly hard to take. Still, everyone loves an underdog – could we see an upset here?

I’ve Been Lonely For So Long (from What Another Man Spills, 1998) v Common People (from Different Class, 1995)

Pavement v Clyde McPhatter

With his choice of song, has Clyde McPhatter already thrown in the towel in this tie? He’s been the underdog before and come through a closely fought match against Gene Loves Jezabel. Or will Pavement‘s slacker style count against them. On paper it doesn’t look like they are taking any chances, especially as they experienced a minor scare in the previous round against The Twilight Sad before running out eventual winners.

Cut Your Hair (from Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, 1994) v Have Mercy Baby by Billy Ward & The Dominoes (single, 1951)

As ever, the deadline for voting is next Friday, 9 March, with a 10pm cut-off time in the UK.

JC will be back with next week’s four games by which point we will getting close to knowing the make-up of the last- standing 32 sides.

jimdoes

Four teams jumped out to leads of at least five points within the first 36 hours which is when most of the voting tends to take place.  It’s also a fact that a five-point lead has been near impossible to turn around.

Some folk were happy to admit that some of the ties did cuuse them huge grief, none more so than The Swede who said of the Devoto v Gedge match-up:-

Magazine v The Wedding Present went to extra time, then a replay. Then another replay. Then penalties. Then another replay. Then a coin toss. The coin landed on its edge. Unseparateable. Do your worst JC.

Tne Swede bottled out of voting…and he wasn’t alone; but if you’re reading this mate, please remember you’re still able to come in again before 10pm on Friday evening.  It night make a difference…..

Oh and three of the early leaders have had very strong finishes to the half and look home and dried.

The Jam 28 v The Detroit Cobras 3
Half Man Half Biscuit 19 v Trashcan Sinatras 12
Pete Wylie 22 v PJ Harvey 11
Magazine 14 v The Wedding Present 18

Today’s accompanying tune, as per the newly adopted practice, comes from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the above eight sides:-

mp3 : Elvis Costello & The Attractions – Radio Radio

Don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m having fun with this series!

JC

 

Three of the ties were tight affairs for about three-quarters of the past week with all the winners finishing strongly.  All four losers this week would certainly have been worthy of a place in the final 32 and their fans will miss them.  The introductory title footage does reflect that this week ultimately proved to be a bit of an triumph for England.

New Order (3) 25 The Go-Betweens (2) 19
The Charlatans 32 Carter USM 13
Lightning Seeds 26 Big Audio Dynamite 17
The Cramps 20 Saint Etienne 26

This lastest batch of ties just about mirrors the full quality of last week and in Match 12, has what I think is the most scary one so far in this round, and in all likelihood the entire competition, partly on the basis of the two bands and partly on the songs that came out.  It would have made a worthy final.

Matches 9-12 of Round 2

The Jam v The Detroit Cobras

The Jam were perhaps fortunate that 1st Round opponents T Rex fielded a relatively weak song that enabled the use of album track The Gift to get the nod.  The Detroit Cobras, who offered Down In Louisiana, were on a hiding to nothing last time out, drawing Chris Martin and his merry men; readers of this corner of t’internet will just not counter any success for the latter, no matter the song.  The evil streak in me wishes I had rigged a Coldplay v Kanye West match-up – that would have got you muttering under your collective breaths.

On paper, the better known English beat-combo are favoured before the songs are drawn…..but it mustn’t be forgotten that their ICA consists solely of album tracks with the singles deliberately excluded.

Billy Hunt (from All Mod Cons, 1979) v  I Wanna Holler (But The Town’s Too Small) (from Baby, 2004)

Half Man Half Biscuit v The Trash Can Sinatras

This really is one for the purists with two of the finest wordsmiths going head-to-head with the extra spice of a cross-border battle which at club level would be Tranmere Rovers v Kilmarnock.  If you really want to enter into the spirit of things, you’d all wait till Friday night to vote for this one. Half Man Half Biscuit saw off the might of Elvis Costello & The Attractions last time out, but had to field a top-notch song in 1966 And All That to get through.  Still, there’s plenty more in their locker.  The Trashies had cult dance act A.R. Kane to overcome and they battled through thanks to All The Dark Horses, which will be an apt name to give to whoever emerges from here into the last 32. This is quality stuff.

National Shite Day (from CSI Ambleside, 2008) v Obscurity Knocks (from Cake, 1990)

Pete Wylie v PJ Harvey

Will you need to call in assistance from Sgt Rock to sort out this battle of the sexes or will the coin and dice make it such a mismatch that it’ll be an easy call to make?  Pete got through very easily last time against The Orwells despite fielding what could be considered a weak track in Remember, while Polly Jane casually went with one of her more  obscure numbers called The Wind which blew away Malcolm Ross despite him cranking things up with a Josef K number from the Postcard era, a result that saw the bookies react by reducing the odds on Ms Harvey being the eventual winner.  This has the makings of a superb tie.

The Story of the Blues (single, 1982) v C’mon Billy (from To Bring You My Love, 1995)

Magazine v The Wedding Present

You know those few opening minutes in the film Four Weddings and A Funeral in which the word ‘fuck’ is deployed on numerous occasions?  It was akin to the room in Villain Towers when these two names came out of the hat together.  Magazine and The Wedding Present….two of the most popular and written-about bands on the blog with very few, if any, dissenting comments ever left behind.

Round 1 saw very comfortable wins over Prince and Deacon Blue respectively, although it could be argued that in utilising The Light Pours Out of Me, Howie & co used a bigger weapon than Always The Quiet One as performed by TWP.

If this one comes down to a casting vote, it will be entirely about the song the coin and dice come up with.

Shot By Both Sides (single, 1978) v Kennedy (from Bizarro, 1990)

Fuckity-fuck fuck fuck.  That doesn’t help does it??

Please have your votes in by 10pm on Friday 3 March….as ever, you don’t have to vote in all of the ties but I’ve a feeling you might want to.

Tune in next Saturday for matches 13-16 which will be previewed by jimdoes, the mad genius who came up with this World Cup concept.  If you thought this week was tough, well babies you just ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

JC

 

Some of the commentaries in the first half have bordered on true genius, whether it be Dirk with his panel of experts, Malky Tucker imagining one of the matches taking place in an S&M dungeon or Nic Ros and Badger 21 each bringing in other appropriate tunes to back up their selections.  Many thanks…again.

The four ties this week have caused a great deal of angst – I think Brian summed it up for many by saying that voting against some of the bands did not feel good.  There’s plenty more of that to come, most likely as we get down to the latter stages of the competition although there will be a few more horrible scenarios to consider in the coming weeks of Round 2.  For now, here’s how things stand…

New Order(3) 20 v The Go-Betweens (2) 15
The Charlatans 27 v Carter USM 8
Lightning Seeds 20 v Big Audio Dynamite 14
The Cramps 16 v Saint Etienne 19

(as at Tuesday 10pm…and typed from my sick bed with a severe dose of man-flu)

It’s fair to say that the Charley Twins are almost certain to get through and while three other teams have decent leads, all of those ties have been swinging back and forth throughout the first half….indeed The Cramps were ahead until the final few entries so there’s still time for late drama

This week’s half-time, as per the newly adopted practice, comes from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the above eight sides:-

mp3 : LCD Soundsystem – All My Friends

Remember….if you haven’t vote yet, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

JC

 

Without any question, Dirk’s match report wins comment of the week. Probably wins comment of the year….

Back from a short trip to the Dutch coast in order to escape the Carnival season that started in my area last week. I guess I’m too old by now to wear false tits or something along those lines for four days in a row and drink way too much, that’s why we chose to go away and boycott the carnival by and large. So, a bit belated, but here you are, JC.

SBTRKT v The Fall: well, a most dull game, it must be said. It’s not easy to tell which team was the most boring one to watch, both performances jangled my nerves mightily because of whatever the noun for ‘repetitive’ might possibly be. The Fall though were a little bit less repetitive than SBTRKT, but just a tad. That’s why they won in the very last second. As Johan Cruyff said about this match: “Football is a game of mistakes. Whoever makes the fewest mistakes wins.”

Kitchens of Distinction v Talking Heads: much (!) more my kind of a game, this! Both teams were great and Kitchens were brilliant up to the last minute. Still ‘Artists Only’ has always been one my favorites by Talking Heads, so that’s why they succeeded in the end. But it was close! Arsene Wenger was right when he commented above game as thus: “Football is an art, like dancing is an art – but only when it’s well done does it become an art.”

Sonic Youth v Edwyn Collins: an easy score for Sonic Youth, because they entered the pitch with one of the best line-ups they could possibly have chosen. Poor old Edwyn failed here, it must be said! Perhaps he should’ve remembered Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s words: “If you are too nice, you will just get eaten alive. The football world is not always a nice place.”

The Velvet Underground v Talk Talk: as with the first game in this round, this one was rather bitter and not a great joy to watch! At the end of the day though the Velvet Underground won by following Gary Neville’s advice: “With good coaching, proper motivation and the right club structure with organic growth, you can achieve an awful lot in football.”

But did he get all four predictions spot on??  Not quite…….

SBTRKT 3 The Fall(3) 33
Kitchens of Distinction 18 Talking Heads 22
Sonic Youth 9 Edwyn Collins 30
The Velvet Underground 25 Talk Talk 14

KoD made a fist of things in the second half but ran out of time before being able to completely close the gap.  The other three were never in doubt from early doors and I’ll be the first to admit that things weren’t exactly mouth-watering or tense in the same way as many of those that were drawn out in Round 1, but I think this week more than makes up for it.

Matches 5-8 of Round 2

New Order (3) v The Go-Betweens (2)

Both sides were expected to reach at least the last eight of the tournament but it’s just not to be. New Order took no chances in Round 1, fielding Blue Monday in what proved to be a surprisingly one-sided triumph over LCD Soundsystem, a move that some commentators feel may come back to haunt them in later stages. The Aussies also had to play hard to see off The Woodentops, and they took a bit of a risk on using The Wrong Road, one of their album tracks rather than a classic 45, although it does give them better options for this immense match-up.

Here’s the very crucial coin toss and roll of the dice.

Football.  Bloody Hell.

Vanishing Point (from Technique, 1989) v Was There Anything I Could Do? (from 16 Lovers Lane, 1988)

The Charlatans v Carter USM

The Charlatans took a really laid back approach last time round, fielding a live and acoustic version of The Only One I Know, which might have been enough to defeat the cult of The Mekons but a similarly low-key performance this time round would certainly spell danger no matter the opponents, never mind the deadly South London duo.  The same applies to Carter USM who used up a lesser-known b-side in Re-Educating Rita to see off the countrified challenge of Dwight Yaokam.

If either is serious about getting into the final 32, they will surely need to offer up songs in this round that will appeal beyond the immediate fanbase.

Coin…..Dice….oh my!!  It’s fair to say these most certainly do that…from their wonderful and distinct introductions right through to the last notes.

Weirdo (from Between 10th And 11th, 1992) v Bloodsport For All (from 30 Something, 1991)

The Lightning Seeds v Big Audio Dynamite

Another all-English tie that comes under the heading of intriguing. The Lightning Seeds used up a hit single last time out, but it was a cover in You Showed Me which proved adequate to provide them with an easy win over Gemma Ray. Big Audio Dynamite used one of their strongest efforts in the shape of E=MC2, which enabled them to thump The Streets by 32-9 in a tie that, on paper, appeared to be one which would be a close call.

Before the songs for this round came out, the bookies had this one as a potential draw. Afterwards….they remain of the same opinion.

Pure (from Cloudcuckooland, 1990) v Medicine Show (from This Is Big Audio Dynamite, 1985)

The Cramps v Saint Etienne

Filth v Finesse.
Raw post-punk v dance-chic.
Poison Ivy v Sarah Cracknell.
Lux Interior v Bob Stanley.
Dirk v The Robster.

The contrasts in this one are a complete joy to behold. One of those ties that you really want both to go through, but sadly there can only be one winner.

Both were expected winners in Round 1 and so it proved, each racking up more than 28 points – The Cramps fielded I Wanna Get In Your Pants to defeat Shit Robot while How We Used to Live saw off the challenge of The Sugarplastic.

Might be different this time, but it could well be that one of them racks up a high score again.

What’s Inside A Girl (from A Date With Elvis, 1986) v He’s On The Phone (single, 1995)

 

Please have your votes in by midnight on Friday 23 February….as ever, you don’t have to vote in all of the ties.

Tune in next Saturday for matches 9-12.

JC

 

SBTRKT 2 v The Fall (3) 20
Kitchens of Distinction 9 v Talking Heads 15
Sonic Youth 5 v Edwyn Collins 19
The Velvet Underground 15 v Talk Talk 9

(as at 11 pm on Monday 12 Feb)

Fewer goals scored in the first half this week….has the competition lost its shine already??

Worth mentioning also that nobody has yet, in any of the previous ties, been able to turn round a half-time defecit.  The whistle went a little bit early this week as I couldn’t have the post interfering with a Valentine’s Day special, so maybe history can be made.  But somehow I don’t see SBTRKT creating it. Or indeed any of the others….nobody has yet turned round a five-goal defecit (although the Fannies came mighty close last week)

One other thing….I’m dispensing with the banging pop tunes normally played at half-time  – something that should go down well with Swiss Adam among others.  Instead, you’ll be treated to something from the ICA of a singer or band knocked out in the last round by one of the eight sides competing so you can realise what your previous voting patterns have deprived the tournament of:-

mp3 : Associates – Party Fears Two

Remember….if you haven’t voted yet this week, you have until 10pm this coming Friday.

JC