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Fika Recordings

  • Cosines 'Transitions' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    Cosines 'Transitions' Vinyl 10"

    £9.99

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    Fika Recordings

    Cosines 'Transitions' Vinyl 10"

    £9.99

    10' vinyl EP with digital download code. Transitions, as well as being the transition between the band's debut and sophomore LPs, is transitional in theme, making changes, starting over and reacting against changes out of your own control.

    The EP also demonstrates a transition in the band's sound, introducing sonic explorations from the kraut rock grooves of Ra to the duelling saxophones of Chaos Theory, as well as showing a more confident approach to song writing from both Hubley and Nelson.

    This gives glimpses of what they have in store with the second LP to be released in 2017. Simon Nelson and Alice Hubley met on the London Underground after a Stereo Totale gig in 2009. Two days later Simon was round Alice's house unblocking her kitchen drain. Since then Simon has been round and put up two curtain rails, a blind and a shelf. This unlikely meeting, got them talking and once the DIY was done they started making music together, fusing metronomic pop sensibilities, 60's grooves and krautrock noise. What you maybe would get if you mix New Order, United States of America and Stereolab.

    As a band they are constantly trying to find the perfect meeting point between clean synths and fuzz guitars. The band's line up was completed by Alice's old Loves bandmates Daniel Chapman and The Late Jonny Drums and A Smile and A Ribbon's Kajsa Tretow. Jonny realised that he was always late because he was on Chinese time, so packed his bags and headed to the country on a quest to finally be on time. He has subsequently been replaced by the punctual Matt Harms.

    The band played their first show in April 2012, and since then have played shows with Laetitia Sadier, Comet Gain and Seapony as well the Indietracks Festival. The band's debut album was released in 2014 receiving favourable reviews in The Quietus and The Sunday Times and plays on 6 Music.

    'a cool and mannered (but not overmannered) exploration of a musical world bordered by Stereolab, Blondie, Saint Etienne, Belle and Sebastian and a band your mates formed at school that you wish you were in' The Sunday Times 


    'Cosines have found the magic formula that indie pop has been dreaming of - a winning combination of Pulp and Belle & Sebastian, seasoned with swathes of Stereolab. Refreshingly offering none of the dreaded 'twee' associated with that genre, Cosines have a big sense of melody they're not afraid to both use and play with, the same going for their sonic palette of guitars and spacey synths.' The Quietus

    'Throughout Oscillations'interlocking synth and guitar lines recall Stereolab and Parallel Lines'-era Blondie in equal measure, although not with quite such uncanny force as lead-singer Alice Hubley's airy vocals.' Loud and Quiet.

    Tracklisting:
    Side A:
    1. Let's Start It Over
    2. Ra

    Side B:
    1. Dunbar
    2. Chaos Theory

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  • Darren Hayman & The Short Parliament 'Bugbears' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    Darren Hayman & The Short Parliament 'Bugbears'

    £11.99

    An album of songs from the English Civil Wars and seventeenth century to accompany 'The Violence'.

    Tracklisting:
    1. Martin Said
    2. Bugbears
    3. Sir Thomas Fairfax March
    4. Seven Months Married
    5. Hey Then Up We Go
    6. The Owl
    7. The Contented
    8. Impossibilities
    9. Babylon Has Fallen
    10. I Live Not Where I Love
    11. Bold Astrolger
    12. Old England Grown New
    13. When The King Enjoys His Own Again
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  • Owl & Mouse 'Departures' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    Owl & Mouse 'Departures'

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    Fika Recordings

    Owl & Mouse 'Departures'

    £10.99

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    Debut album from London based 5 piece Owl & Mouse, fronted by Australian songwriter Hannah Botting.

    Owl & Mouse. What's in a name? In a just world, the seemingly bottomless talent pool that is the Botting family would be held in the same regard as the Osmonds and Jacksons thanks to their assorted attempts to charm both London and the wider world. Bill Botting, Allo Darlin's perennially pogoing, perma-grinning bassist (and, more recently, solo artist in his own right) has been winning hearts and fans for half a decade and more, but the imminent release of Owl & Mouse's forthcoming début album, Departures'marks the turn of his siblings to take a star turn in the limelight.

    The songwriting vehicle for talented young Brisbanite Hannah Botting, which began as a twosome with sister Jen. 'The name was kind of silly,' says Hannah, reflecting on the band's early days. 'It came from a song I wrote years ago about an owl and a mouse that go to war together. With the addition of Tom Wade (We Aeronauts) and the prolific pairing of Emma Winston and Dan Mayfield (Enderby's Room, Darren Hayman's Long Parliament). The extra additions - playing alongside star turns from Michael Collins (Allo Darlin') and Paul Rains (Allo Darlin', Tigercats) - have given Hannah's songwriting an added musical depth, complimenting the record's overarching themes and ideas. Straight out of the same school of Australian songwriting as The Go-Betweens, Triffids and Courtney Barnett, Hannah's words follow her compatriots' ability to be widescreen and personal at once, infused with an added degree of delicacy and poignancy.

    'There's definitely a theme of travel and adventure running across a lot of the songs. That feeling of being a bit lost and a bit unsure but at the same time excited, is something that sits underneath all the songs.' The results manifest themselves in an album that's both infectious and joyous - 'Misfits' and its ruminations on family; bittersweet - the brass-laden title track and its tales of airport arguments; and understatedly emotive - the turmoil of deciding whether to hold on to someone you love or not hold them back, detailed in 'Canvas Bags'; and 'Sinking Song's memories of the struggle of making friends in a new town, led by Wade's Stephin Merritt-esque baritone).

    In their début album they've made music which both swells the heart and conjures quiet reflection. Most of all, Departures'is, as its name suggests, music to escape into.

    Artwork comes courtesy of Tom Humberstone, of the New Statesman.

    Owl & Mouse press:

    'This is exceptionally beautiful and one that should be on everyone's radar' Folk Radio

    'There's an observational acuity in her writing that's almost novelish and her singing is freighted with bittersweet emotion, while she builds up her songs with inspired orchestration. In that sense, she's not another anything - ¦. Constructed of simple but strong tunes, Owl & Mouse's second offering is a little gem.' SoundsXP

    'understated, delicate and minimalist, but its honest and melancholic tone and beautiful melodies certainly make it worth checking out.' For Folks Sake

    'Botting's delivery and subject matter are beautiful and sad in equal measure' Neon Filler

    Tracklisting:
    1. Keep Your Eyes Open Wide
    2. Misfits
    3. Worst Kiss
    4. Canvas Bags
    5. Octopi
    6. Basic Economics
    7. Sick Of Love
    8. Louie
    9. Sinking Song
    10. Departures
    11. Rapunzel
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  • Stanley Brinks And The Kaniks 'Turtle Dove' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    Stanley Brinks And The Kaniks 'Turtle Dove'

    £15.99

    Blue vinyl LP in gatefold sleeve, includes bonus download of two track single 'Too Much Women'.

    Following the albums Gin and My Ass recorded with The Wave Pictures in un-gentrified East London, Stanley Brinks (aka André Herman Dune) returns with a new collaborative album, this time with the Norwegian folk collective The Kaniks as his backing band. Eschewing a traditional recording studio, André took The Kaniks to a remote island outside the small town of Egersund in south west Norway.

    Over the course of week of midnight sun, midnight swims and midnight beers on their isolated rocky island, living and recording in the only building on the island, the (now unmanned) mid 19th century Vibberodden lighthouse, Stanley Brinks and The Kaniks recorded three albums of material; Turtle Dove is the first of those three to be released. Brinks is renowned for his unique antifolk style: both playful and suggestive, insightful and entertaining. His fondness for calypso and the unusual provide the perfect foil to The Kaniks', whose folk instrumentation and country and bluegrass influences take these 12 songs to a joyous place Brinks hasn't been before in his extensive back catalogue. Stanley Brinks was born in Paris, France, in 1973.

    He studied a bit of biology and worked as a nurse for a while. Half Swedish, half Moroccan, strongly inclined to travel the world, he soon began spending most of his life on the road and developed a strong relationship with New York. By the late 90s he'd become a full time singer-songwriter - André Herman Düne - as part of three piece indie-rock band, Herman Düne. Several albums and Peel sessions later and after a decade of touring Europe, mostly with American songwriters such as Jeffrey Lewis, Calvin Johnson and early Arcade Fire he settled in Berlin.

    The early carnival music of Trinidad became a passion, and in the early 21st century he became the unquestioned master of European calypso, changing his name to Stanley Brinks. Under this moniker he has recorded more than 100 albums, collaborated with the New York Antifolk scene on several occasions, recorded and toured with traditional Norwegian musicians, and played a lot with The Wave Pictures.

    Tracklisting:
    Side A:
    1. Turtle Dove
    2. Say Goodbye
    3. I Spread My Wings
    4. One More Day
    5. This World
    6. Day In Day Out

    Side B:
    1. Slow Peace
    2. Come Come Springtime
    3. Between Me And The Future
    4. Stronger Than Wine
    5. Zombie Taboo
    6. And The Violin
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  • Stanley Brinks And The Wave Pictures 'Berlin/It's Complicated' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    Stanley Brinks And The Wave Pictures 'Berlin/It's Complicated'

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    7' single - maroon coloured vinyl.

    'sounds like Herman Dune when they were charmingly naïve and elegantly simple, a rock'n'roll strum with an easy rhythm, anthemic chorus and some memorable lyrics' Sounds XP

    'This is nerve-jangling, hard-surfaced, soft-centred funny, shot through with sadness. The new Lost Boys, the Unlikliest Lads.' Rock n Reel

    'The Wave Pictures'classy post-punkish bite is a great foil to Brinks'whimsy on these unhinged, loose-limbed story songs. Sometimes gin makes you win as much as sin.' NME

    Berlin'is yet another anthemic Brinks sing-along. Its airy ambivalence celebrates both the freedom and the ensuing pressures of his beloved adoptive hometown. It's the second single taken from My Ass'. Stanley Brinks is joined by The Wave Pictures for their new record My Ass', the follow up to last year's Gin', and their fourth album together.

    After Gin'Brinks wasted no time in taking The Wave Pictures straight back to the studio, bright and early, the morning after the final show of their tour, to ensure they lost none of the fire still burning in their hearts from the final night's drinks. Three playful days and twelve loose, jazzy, tracks later, with Brinks making salubrious use of his new penny-whistle and the assembled studio choir of friends hanging out, embraced into the recordings, he had his camel, My Ass'.

    Stanley Brinks was part of three piece indie-rock band, Herman Düne. After several albums and Peel sessions and after a decade of touring Europe, mostly with American songwriters such as Jeffrey Lewis, Calvin Johnson and early Arcade Fire he settled in Berlin. The early carnival music of Trinidad became a passion, and in the early 21st century he became the unquestioned master of European calypso.

    Under this moniker he has recorded more than 100 albums, collaborated with the New York Antifolk scene on several occasions, recorded and toured with traditional Norwegian musicians, and played a lot with The Wave Pictures.

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  • Stanley Brinks And The Wave Pictures 'Gin' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    Stanley Brinks And The Wave Pictures 'Gin'

    £13.99

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    Fika Recordings

    Stanley Brinks And The Wave Pictures 'Gin'

    £13.99

    Stanley Brinks is joined by The Wave Pictures for their third album together; their first since 2010's Another One Just Like That'. Recorded entirely live in the studio, without headphones or overdubs, and with a good deal of improvisation, Gin'is a modern-sounding, in a way avant-garde, old school recording of text-driven songs.

    The Wave Pictures didn't get a chance to learn the songs before the session, Stan having forgotten to put a stamp on the demo tape he'd sent them from Berlin. To anyone familiar with Stanley Brinks' huge discography - more than 100 albums - Gin'might sound considerably more raw and less sophisticated than some of his previous recordings. However this body of work remains rich in jazzy sounds and original structures, the songs looser and full of playfulness, the lyrics encapsulating their essence. And it goes without saying that Gin - the drink - was the inspiration for the album; while writing, and while recording.

    Gin'was recorded at Soup Studio, London, by Simon Trought and Giles Barrett, one sunny day in May 2013. A few months before, when Stan was at the studio playing guitar and sax on The Wave Pictures' City Forgiveness', they recorded one of his songs - Maybe I Will See You Again', now the B-side of the Orange Juice'45 - just for fun. Giles Barrett, who was engineering, suggested a whole album, and he made it happen. Stanley Brinks began performing officially as André Herman Düne in 1999, sharing lead vocals, guitar playing and songwriting with his brother David in the band Herman Düne for a number of years.

    They released several albums and toured extensively in UK, gaining and owing a lot to great support from John Peel. He has used many monikers for various side-projects, but since leaving Herman Düne in 2006, he has been known solely as Stanley Brinks. Born in Paris, Stan has been living between New York, San Francisco, Malta and Berlin for about a decade, always on the move. He has recorded more than 100 albums, collaborated with the New York Antifolk scene on several occasions, recorded and toured with traditional Norwegian musicians, and played a lot with The Wave Pictures. The Wave Pictures are David Tattersall, Franic Rozycki and Jonny 'Huddersfield' Helm. Formed in 1998 when Franic and David lived in a village called Wymeswold, the band played with several drummers until Jonny became a permanent member in 2003 replacing Hugh J Noble. In the beginning the band learned to play together by covering Jonathan Richman songs but soon David was writing lots of original material.

    They have since released 5 studio albums to critical acclaim and played numerous sessions on BBC 6 Music, Radio 1 and Xfm. The interest generated by these recordings has enabled The Wave Pictures to play shows all over the world with artists including Jeffrey Lewis, Darren Hayman, Stanley Brinks, Freschard and Herman Dune. From the dusky romantic feel of opener One Minute Of Darkness'to the love song, encompassing nautical metaphors, which is the last track Not To Kiss You', the album takes in the night, love & passion, Krishna, the modern way of life, exploration and moving on; all echoed brilliantly in the rich and varied musical interweave - by turns a jam, a calypso, some indie rock, a groovy mantra, a little voodoo rhythm and some good old regular country.

    All topped off with the Stanley Brinks endearing signature command of naïvely rhymed, overenunciated English. He touches the language in a way which really, no native speaker could get away with.Gin'is quite simply a beautiful, though-provoking, uncomplicated album.

    Tracklisting:
    Side A:
    1. One Minute Of Darkness
    2. I Wanted You
    3. Time For Me
    4. Spinola Bay
    5. Blues About Krishna's Latest Avatar

    Side B:
    1. Max In The Elevator
    2. Light And Slow
    3. Parking Lots
    4. No Goodbyes
    5. Not To Kiss You
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  • Stanley Brinks And The Wave Pictures 'My Ass' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    Stanley Brinks And The Wave Pictures 'My Ass'

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    Camel coloured vinyl with download.

    "...rich in a variety of sounds and original structures." Loud & Quiet

    Stanley Brinks is joined by The Wave Pictures for their new record My Ass', the follow up to last year's Gin', and their fourth album together. After Gin'Brinks wasted no time in taking The Wave Pictures straight back to the studio, bright and early, the morning after the final show of their tour, to ensure they lost none of the fire still burning in their hearts from the final night's drinks.

    Three playful days and twelve loose, jazzy, tracks later, with Brinks making salubrious use of his new penny-whistle and the assembled studio choir of friends hanging out, embraced into the recordings, he had his camel, My Ass'. My Ass'is an album born out of Brinks'life on the road, life as an outsider. It is a celebration of new drinking companions, in new bars, in new towns, every night.

    The memories of loved ones left at home, of places you can smoke inside and drink warm beer through the night. The shows that you wish could last forever. That island in the sun that keeps bringing you back Wakefield', the first single has a jazzy flowing bass driving a day in the life of Brinks on tour: a sense of togetherness, a touch of sax and the knowledge that love will act as a shield against all evil. Berlin'is yet another anthemic Brinks sing-along. Its airy ambivalence celebrates both the freedom and the ensuing pressures of his beloved adoptive hometown. Stanley Brinks was born in Paris, France, in 1973.

    He studied a bit of biology and worked as a nurse for a while. Half Swedish, half Moroccan, strongly inclined to travel the world, he soon began spending most of his life on the road and developed a strong relationship with New York. By the late 90s he'd become a full time singersongwriter - André Herman Düne - as part of three piece indie-rock band, Herman Düne. Several albums and Peel sessions later and after a decade of touring Europe, mostly with American songwriters such as Jeffrey Lewis, Calvin Johnson and early Arcade Fire he settled in Berlin.

    The early carnival music of Trinidad became a passion, and in the early 21st century he became the unquestioned master of European calypso, changing his name to Stanley Brinks. Under this moniker he has recorded more than 100 albums, collaborated with the New York Antifolk scene on several occasions, recorded and toured with traditional Norwegian musicians, and played a lot with The Wave Pictures. The Wave Pictures are David Tattersall, Franic Rozycki and Jonny Huddersfield'Helm. Formed in 1998 when Franic and David lived in a village called Wymeswold, the band played with several drummers until Jonny became a permanent member in 2003 replacing Hugh J Noble. In the beginning the band learned to play together by covering Jonathan Richman songs but soon David was writing lots of original material.

    They have since released six studio albums to critical acclaim and played numerous sessions on BBC 6 Music, Radio 1 and Xfm. Interest generated from these recordings has enabled The Wave Pictures to play shows all over the world with artists including Jeffrey Lewis, Darren Hayman, Stanley Brinks, Freschard and Herman Düne.

    "...an interesting and occasionally excellent collection." Drowned In Sound

    "....lo-fi delight, with cutesy low-key ballads and pop classics.." - The Line Of Best Fit

    Tracklisting:
    Side A:
    1. My Camel
    2. Brighton
    3. Fire To My Mind
    4. Berlin
    5. Love Me Too
    6. Run Along

    Side B:
    1. Think About You
    2. Goodbye My Love
    3. Wakefield
    4. With My Chin
    5. Back To My Island In The Sun
    6. Balluta Bay

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  • The Hayman Kupa Band 'The Hayman Kupa Band' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings

    The Hayman Kupa Band 'The Hayman Kupa Band'

    £11.99

    Heavyweight black vinyl LP with download code. Digifile CD.

    When Darren Hayman (Hefner) and Emma Kupa (Standard Fare/Mammoth Penguins) decided to make a duets record, we knew the results would be great, but we didn't expect them to be THIS great.

    Gathering together a rhythm section consisting of Michael Wood (Whoa Melodic/Singing Adams) on bass and Cat Loye (Fever Dream) on drums, The Hayman Kupa Band create brash, bold and effortlessly melodic power pop. Sharing writing duties and sometimes singing each others words, lines are blurred and creativity explored in a wonderfully exuberant collection of songs. The album, recorded in 3 days, is an exploration of relationships and, at its heart, it's the sound of a friendship being made.

    Darren explains further: It's only happened a few times but just once or twice I have seen someone on stage and thought, 'I want to be in a band with them.' But I thought it the first time I saw Emma playing with her magnificent and under-rated band Standard Fare. I met her properly a little later in Sheffield when we played together. Before the gig I said I was suspicious of bands that wore hats. She wore a hat on stage.

    They say imitation is a form of flattery and I was glad that I noticed when I wrote the song 'Boy, Look at What you Can't Have Now' that it sounded like the sort of thing Emma might write. I covered up my theft by asking her to sing on it. When we were recording the song I suggested that we should write a whole album of duets. Musicians suggest things like this all the time because they are stupid or drunk. A few months later Emma told me she had started writing the album.

    This is what Emma does; she says something then does it. I race to play catch up. The songs were written over 3 weekends at her house and mine. Co-writing is something I'm not used to. It's very intimate and me and Emma became friends through the process. Emma's lyrics are sharp and precise whereas mine are more metaphoric. We talked about relationships and that's what the album is about. It's about our fears and paranoias and the search for trust and love. We deliberately swapped lines and genders so the narrative is never truly that of traditional duets.

    We wanted a band to make the album and chose Michael Wood and Cat Loye. We never considered anyone else. They brought a brash, bold sound to the songs and we rehearsed twice and then recorded. I was thinking about the Beatles and very early 1960s pop records.

    We recorded everything live including the vocals with only a handful of overdubs. We recorded it two and a half years ago and it has remind locked like a time capsule whilst me and Emma released five other albums. I like this album a lot. It's the sound of a friendship being made.

    Tracklisting:
    Side A:
    1. Let's Do Nothing
    2. No More Bombs
    3. Red Petal
    4. Over's Now Overdue
    5. We Can Get By
    6. Do You Know

    Side B:
    7. A Tent of Blankets
    8. Draw the Line
    9. My Right Arm
    10. Pretty Waste of Time
    11. Reach Out
    12. Then We Kissed
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  • Tigercats 'Isle Of Dogs' - Cargo Records UK

    Fika Recordings / Acuarela

    Tigercats 'Isle Of Dogs'

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    Fika Recordings / Acuarela

    Tigercats 'Isle Of Dogs'

    £10.99

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    Isle of Dogs, the debut album from East London indiepop band Tigercats is re-issued on LP (heavyweight 180gvinyl + DL code). 


    CD is still instock now on Acuarela. With 11 fantastically catchy, heartfelt and infectious songs, the band are well in to their stride, demonstrating an enthusiastic confidence and a fun-loving charisma. Here's a bit of history:
    Tigercats'singer Duncan played in Esiotrot until suddenly he didn't, and after a respectful interval of ambling around for 18 months he asked his brother Giles to join on bass in a new band. The name Tigercats appeared out of the air and was soon followed by Jonny on drums, Stefan on guitar and Laura on keyboard. Tigercats have released three singles on Haircut and WeePop! records that have been mostly compared to Orange Juice and Hefner, with the Wave Pictures and Violent Femmes close behind.

    Steve Lamacq said their longest ever song, "Banned at the Troxy" was "a great little single" and Huw Stephens said "it reminds me of Los Campesinos that, and that's a very very very good thing". This is of course excellent, and perhaps someone will pick up on their love of Chic eventually. Tigercats have toured across Europe, playing at Primavera and appearing on Spanish TV, while back in the UK they've appeared at both Indietracks and End of the Road festivals.

    They've also toured in the USA and Canada, their last trip culminating in a headline appearance at NYC Popfest. Their follow up album, Mysteries, has been released by Fortuna Pop in February 2015, and the band head out on tour in April.

    "Excellent, alive, and bright.' Artrocker

    'Tigercats are that rarest of bands, an indie-pop act you can actually dance to - ¦' Neon Filler

    ' - ¦it reminds me of Los Campesinos that, and thatʼs a very very very good thing.' Huw Stephens BBC Radio 1

    'What Tigercats has come up with is a manifesto for what it means to be alive, to be in London and to be living life - ¦ if I was 16 right now Iʼd think this album was sent to save my life.' A Layer of Chips

    'TIGERCATS write songs about Stevie Nicks and Whitechapel, all delivered atop a cloud of shimmering dream rock. Drums twist and guitars bloom like fireworks, whilst a plaintive vocal sounding eerily like Pete Shelley underpins their sound.' Upset the Rhythm

    Tracklisting:
    1. Coffin For The Isle Of Dogs
    2. Konny Huck
    3. Full Moon Reggae Party
    4. The Vapours
    5. Stevie Nicks
    6. Harper Lee
    7. Limehouse Nights
    8. Kim & Thurston
    9. Easter Island
    10. Banned At The Troxy
    11. Jonny

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