Only Three Lads - Classic Alternative Music Podcast

For our landmark 150th episode, we bring you an episode that made Brett so giddy that he nearly piddled.  That's right, folks, our Third Lad this week is none other than Phil Wilson from seminal UK indie pop band The June Brides.   During their initial run from 1983 - 1986, The June Brides released some of the most beloved singles of the era and the chart-topping album There Are Eight Million Stories... Originally under the spell of Postcard bands like Orange Juice and Josef K, the Brides' unique blend of guitar pop with viola and trumpet has in turn been wildly influential from C86 to Britpop and beyond.  High profile fans like Morrissey, Manic Street Preachers, and Belle & Sebastian's Stuart Murdoch have acknowledged The June Brides' impact.  Following the band's breakup, Phil recorded material for Creation and Caff before leaving the music business behind in the late '80s.   In the 21st century, The June Brides have returned for live gigs and recordings.  Phil also released an acclaimed solo album for Slumberland in 2010, God Bless Jim Kennedy, as well as self releasing collections of home recordings. Because your humble hosts of Only Three Lads are Only Two Idiots, it was a late realization that we already covered this topic in Episode 131.  Therefore, we present our first "Volume II" episode, where we take a previously covered topic and put a fresh spin on it with all new selections.  What do you think?  Should we add some more past topics back into the randomizer? As you would expect, we explore all kinds of dangerous diversions, dark alleyways and wabbit holes - Motley Crüe, Montrose, Andy Bell's "pendulum", a missed meeting with David Byrne, Coke mix-ups.   As Gregg would say: it's on like Donkey Kong! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Three is a magic number, yes it is...and good thing it is, because this week we take a look at our top musical trios of the O3L era. Appropriately enough, our Third Lads are The Monkey Power Trio (who are actually five guys, but we only got three of them...so that counts as a trio, right?!?).  The MPT have a fascinating slant, as band member Dan Richardson told us: "We are the Monkey Power Trio, a band of dummies who pledged in our twenties to record music once a year for one day without practicing or planning ahead and then to release the 'best' of that one day as 'music.' The last guy alive, by pact, has to do a solo album, thereby completing the project and avoiding the hauntings of already departed members. We just finished our 26th year. None of us is dead yet." We had a blast hanging out with Dan, Mark and Matt for this episode.  We missed Mike and Dave.  Dave... Oh, and this one definitely earned its "explicit" tag.  It contains some language that will make your ears bleed and mind melt.  Hide the kiddies.   We recorded this episode a few hours before the news broke that we sadly lost Trugoy the Dove from hip-hop trio De La Soul.  Trugoy, this one's for you.   Finally, if you're listening to this on release day, Happy Valentine's Day from Only Three Lads.  We loves ya to pieces!   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A-HA!  We go "back to the future" to 1985 to discuss our Top 5 Songs from that incredible year.  In many ways, 1985 was the heart of the BIG 80s...big hair, big, loud day-glo imagery, big booming snare drums, big synth sounds, big hits.  On the other hand, 1985 was also a year filled with a lot of incredible indie pop, garage rock, neo-pysch and post-punk music. One of those bands was The Dentists, a leading light of the Medway, UK scene in the mid-80s.  They debuted in 1985 with a prolific spate of releases: their first single, "Strawberries Are Growing In My Garden (And It's Wintertime)", the full-length album Some People Are On The Pitch They Think It's All Over It Is Now and a six-track EP, You And Your Bloody Oranges.  Each release masterfully blended '60s psych-pop, garage, and chiming, harmony-laden folk-rock that was mercifully out of step with the "Big 80s" sound.  Over the course of the next decade, the band would release 1990's Heads And How To Read Them, 1993's Powdered Lobster Fiasco, 1994's Behind The Door I Keep The Universe, and 1995's Deep 6 (the last two for major label Warner subsidiary EastWest), as well as more singles, EPs, and compilations.   The AllMusic Guide refers to The Dentists as "arguably the first Britpop band." It is our great pleasure to welcome Dentists' guitarist Bob Collins and bassist Mark Matthews as our Third Lads this week.  Along with a 40 year history as friends, Mark and Bob are bandmates once again in The Treasures Of Mexico.  They offer great insights on their history, and took their homework assignment seriously, coming up with a fantastic and thoughtful list of 1985 tracks.  During the show, you will hear The Treasures Of Mexico's 2021 single "Always The Shadows" and vintage 1985 Dentists track "I Had An Excellent Dream."   Finally...a Dentists visit to look forward to! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey, all you young (and not-so-young) dudes. electric warriors, starmen, and foxes on the run!  If UK glam rock is your bag, then you'll definitely want to feel this noize and get it on with these 20th century boys.  Put on your electric boots and mohair suits because it's, it's a podcast blitz! Translation for the squares out there: we're talking about our Top 5 UK Glam & Glitter songs this week.  While it just made a minor splash in the US underground with bands like New York Dolls. glam rock was THE sound of young Britain in the early-to-mid '70s.  A punchy mix of amped-up rock n' roll energy, anthemic pop hooks, teenage angst, and a flair for outlandish, flamboyant theatrics, glam ushered in a new era of pop stars who challenged gender stereotypes and brought a sense of fun and excitement back to a rock landscape that was beginning to take itself far too seriously.  Artists such as David Bowie, T.Rex, Slade, Sweet, and...uh...Mud became household names and fixtures on the pop charts and TV screens. One of the bands who carried the influence of glam into the '80s was Southern California's The Joneses, led by singer/songwriter/guitarist...and Third Lad this week, Jeff Drake.  Formed in 1981, The Joneses synthesized glam, garage punk, '50s rock n' roll, Stonesy swagger, rockabilly and country & western and became one of the biggest drawing bands in the LA and Orange County areas.  Their electrifying performances earned them a rapturous following and a nod as the "Best Live Band" in a 1984 LA Weekly readers poll.  They sang about drugs, booze, sex and criminals, but also had the lifestyle to back it up - leading to Drake's battle with heroin addiction and federal imprisonment for bank robbery.  Now, JD bears all with his unflinchingly honest memoir, Guilty! My Life As A Member of The Joneses, A Heroin Addict, A Bank Robber and A Federal Inmate, out now from HoZac Books.   Aside from the normal fun we have, this is a wild tale of rock n' roll and redemption that you do not want to miss!   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's the first thing you think of when you hear the phrase "guitar riff"? Big, stadium filling, wall-rattling riffs like "Smoke On The Water", "Whole Lotta Love", "Iron Man" or "Brown Sugar"? Well, even if they're not as instantly recognizable as their classic rock brethren, we've got plenty of amazing displays of riffery (yeah, we realize that's not a real word, Webster's) going on in the classic alternative world too.   Our Third Lad this week is not only someone who has heard a heck of a lot of loud guitar riffs in his life, but has made a career of capturing iconic moments of some of the biggest artists in the world (The Who, Led Zeppelin, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Fleetwood Mac, Tina Turner), alternative legends (The Clash, Nirvana, REM, The Replacements, The Jam), and the lesser known heroes of the underground (Compulsive Gamblers, The Pudz, Tupelo Chain Sex). Now photographer Marty Perez has compiled some of his greatest portraits into a new compendium on Hozac Books called Kill A Punk For Rock & Roll: Photographs by Marty Perez 1976-2019. It's a veritable who's-who of rock & roll over the past 40+ years, and is an essential time capsule for any music fan. Marty was a blast, with terrific stories, insights and some unusual picks (hey, that's usually Brett's job).   We turn our first O3L Spotlight of Season 4 onto a power pop/punk band out of the Isle of Wight, Reminders. A failing transatlantic relationship and a timeless riff are all it took for Reminders to produce their most authentic power pop track to date.  “International Dial Tones” feels like summer, reads like infatuation, and sounds like (a Gen Z) Undertones/Ramones supergroup. They are a true punk rock power trio firing on all cylinders, straight from the garage, rough around the edges, and yet the most refined we’ve heard the band yet. The beach punk boys of 2022 enter 2023 having graduated into bonafide songsmiths, and there is no further proof necessary than “International Dial Tones.”   #musicpodcast #musicpodcasts #classicalternative #punkrock #newwave #1stwave #indierock #indiepop #alternativerock #guitar #guitarriffs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hurrah!  It's a brand new O3L, where we discuss our Top 5 EPs & Mini-Albums with singer/songwriter Paul Handyside.  We love the EP, or Extended Play, perched somewhere in between a traditional single and a full length album.  Sometimes they compile album tracks or previous singles, and other times they are conceived as complete works designed to stand up on their own.  Either way, they're short, they're fun, and leave you wanting more.  Other than being short, sounds a lot like this podcast, eh?  ("Yes."  The correct answer is "Yes.")  Oh, and spoiler alert: We have the rare "triple crossover" in this episode.  Can you guess what it is? So join us for a rousing chorus of "Shubby Shubby Go!", won't you?   About Paul Handyside: Paul Handyside is a folk and roots singer/songwriter. His song writing style has been compared to artists as varied as Chris Difford, Billy Bragg, Robyn Hitchcock, Green Gartside, Elvis Costello, Jeff Buckley and Martin Carthy. He began his musical career with eighties indie darlings Hurrah! The jangle pop band had a run of classic singles (including Paul's "The Sun Shines Here", "Hip Hip", and "Sweet Sanity") and album releases on Kitchenware and Arista Records from 1982 to 1991, and toured extensively worldwide. During the nineties he toured and recorded with friend and Kitchenware labelmate Martin Stephenson. Handyside formed Bronze in 2001. Still embracing chiming, Rickenbacker driven pop, and increasingly alt country, they released two albums, The Statue in the Stone and A Common Prayer. His debut solo album Future's Dream, a combination of pop, country and modern day hymns was released in 2007 to great reviews. The second album Wayward Son followed in 2013 and further developed his own brand of folk-tinged americana. Tide, Timber & Grain was released in 2016 with elements of traditional British folk and sixties protest songs emerging in Handyside's now well established and diverse musical palette. The fourth album Loveless Town was released 21st of May 2021. As is evident in the title track he songs have an even stronger resonance with country and americana, the counterpoint to which is “Hartley Pit Catastrophe”, a true story from his native North East with its English folk sensibilities. Handyside is aided and abetted by long time cohorts Dave Porthouse on double bass and melodeon and by Rob Tickell, who also produced the album, on guitar and dobro.        Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's time to kick off our 4th Golden Year in Fashion!  For our Season Premiere, the two not-so-Young Americans (uhhhhh, Dusty Satellites & Dani Turquoise) are joined by singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist/producer Julian Shah-Tayler.  If it wasn't already apparent, the focus of this week's show is one of the most pivotal and influential figures in music history, David Bowie.  We take on the nearly impossible task of choosing our Top 5 Bowie Songs, because we apparently like to torture ourselves like that.  Over the course of his 50+ year career, Bowie earned a reputation as a trailblazing artist and musical chameleon, constantly evolving, challenging and shedding personas and styles.  On release day, it is seven years since his tragic passing, but he remains a singular cultural icon whose music will live on forever.   Julian Shah-Tayler is an acclaimed UK-born, LA-based singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer who is not only a huge Bowie fan, but also the lead singer ("Electric Duke") in The Band That Fell To Earth: A David Bowie Odyssey.  He also plays keyboards in the world's foremost Depeche Mode tribute band, Strangelove: The Depeche Mode Experience, and continues to prolifically release a string of his original music under both his own name and The Singularity.  His most recent album of self-penned material, 2022's Elysium, has garnered radio support and rave reviews - including respected indie magazine The Big Takeover, who proclaimed it to be a "vivid, dynamic to reflective, and catchy record" that "takes the listener on a voyage through the building back of hope through the different moods and stages of love."  Most importantly, he is gracious, charitable, and promotes the awesome power of music to pull people together as one tribe.  All that *and* Mick Jagger-esque good looks?? Oh yeah, and as if he needed yet another feather in his cap, we gave him the coolest glam name too! Special thanks to Paul Richison for suggesting Julian as a guest! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we get ready for Season 4's launch, take a journey back to some of our earliest episodes during O3L Flashback Week!  We conclude our flashback series by bringing our most popular episode yet back into circulation, the "main" episode of our three part extravaganza with Love Tractor.  Not only are Love Tractor art rock pioneers and founding members of the legendary Athens, GA alternative scene, but they also become our new BFFs.  We love Love Tractor, and we reckon you either already do or soon will!   Thanks for taking this trip down memory lane with us.  The Season 4 premiere is tomorrow, January 10th! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we get ready for Season 4's launch, take a journey back to some of our earliest episodes during O3L Flashback Week!  We had to do something cool for our 50th episode, and we can't think of anything cooler than having the Queen of Cool, Vanessa Briscoe Hay from Pylon, on O3L.  This highly influential band was called "the greatest arty party band" and "eons ahead of their time" by Rolling Stone, "raw, minimalist, brainy and danceable" by Pitchfork, "pioneering, good-humoured and brilliant" by Uncut, and "cool as hell" by PopMatters.  High praise indeed!  Not only is Vanessa cool, but she was also very gracious, generous with her time, has an awesome Top 5 list, and great stories to share.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we get ready for Season 4's launch, take a journey back to some of our earliest episodes during O3L Flashback Week!  We head to our super special Season 2 premiere, where we welcomed one of the most recognizable and legendary voices in alternative music, SiriusXM, radio and TV personality, author, screenwriter, game show contestant (and did we mention legend?) RICHARD BLADE.  The stories are incredible - if you missed this one the first time around, you definitely want to check this out, and then our bonus episode available at: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-p78d4-f6b519. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices