James Phillips

NEW RELEASE – J Pump & The Bulldozers – In Loving Memory Of Duncan Black

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Link2wales Records is proud to release the album by J Pump And The Bulldozers.
‘The Mudshark Incident Presents: In Loving Memory Of Duncan Black’ is a recording of Duncan’s final live performance before he was so cruelly taken from us.
Recorded at The Skerries in Bangor in March last year, the ensemble feature James PM Phillips, Simon Erridge, Matt Bicknell and of course Duncan Black.
The excellent sound was engineered, recorded and mixed by Simon Darvell, and the brilliant artwork is by Terri Black.
The songs are ‘classic James Phillips’ with improvised meandering contributions from the other musicians.
Available on limited edition CD and ‘pay-what-you-want’ on Bandcamp, all proceeds with be donated to the End Of Life Palliative Care Team, who so kindly looked after Duncan last year.

Cat No: L2W 043
Release date: 6th September 2024

 

5ALIVE – James PM Phillips – Five Albums That Keep Me Alive

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 James Phillips as you probably know is a musician / promoter from Bangor. He recently released an album ‘Bones’ on vinyl and CD on link2wales records and is currently collaborating on a new album with several contributing artistes. As well as his solo work, James has played in numerous bands over the years, including Burnham Burnham, Made Made Noise, Bum Sting Spiders, Mudshark Incident and Velvet to name a few. Apocalypses, pandemics and Four Horsemen appearances permitting, James hosts open mic nights in Bangor and promotes gigs in the city.

Name: James Phillips

Best known for: Running music. I think music in The Skerries is probably what I’m most known for overall. Perhaps locally I’m better known for having coloured hair, tattoos and a mobility scooter? Who knows what people think?

Current location: Bangor.

Where I’d like to be right now: I’m in Bangor and I love being in Bangor. I know it’s fashionable to run places down, and yes there are empty shops and charity shops everywhere, but it’s my home and I love it dearly.

My music collection has a lot of… NWOBHM records.

Don’t judge me for… My stagewear. I’m most a fat man in a dress onstage these days. It may not be beautiful, but I think it might be memorable and it’s extremely comfortable. So there’s no need to judge me for it. Hey, try it, you might like it!

Five albums that keep me alive and why:
1 New Model Army – Thunder and Consolation
2 Neil Young – Weld
3 Black Sabbath – Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
4 Midnight Oil – Diesel and Dust
5 Blondie – Parallel Lines

They all hit me right in the heart and refuse to let go. Those five albums are the ones that came to mind immediately, but there are others I could have named. I tend to find that some albums just stick with me from the first time I heard them. All five of the ones I’ve listed did that to me. The other thing about those five is that there is no filler on any of them. The CD ushered in an era of longer albums that you can’t fit on vinyl. Most of them suffer for that extra length with songs that shouldn’t have made the final cut.

GUEST COLUMN – James Phillips – Hurrah For Lockdown?

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Hurrah for Lockdown?

I’m joking right? While we’re all mourning the loss and, according to some commentators, the death of live music, what have we got to celebrate?

Firstly, whatever Facebook might like to think, we’re all still out here and, with the ubiquity of digital equipment, we all have an opportunity to spread our music about online and to find and enjoy the stuff that others are still sharing. No, of course it isn’t the same as a gig. You will miss the chance to pay too much for bad lager (obviously does not apply to the Skerries) while someone heavy dances on your toes, a six foot ten monster blocks your view of the singer and a cloth eared soundman does his best to give you terminal tinnitus. These things are irreplaceable and are part of what makes gigs fantastically exciting, but at least you can still get a fix of fresh new music.

Secondly, there are still ample opportunities to support the acts you love. Most of them have an online outlet like Bandcamp where you can buy their music. Some of them even have proper merchandise. You get to look swish in a questionable t-shirt (where is Betws Garmon again?) or at least keep warm, while helping your favourites to keep their heads above water.

Thirdly, I am producing the most varied and experimental music that I have in decades. One reason is that there is no prospect of playing any of this stuff live in the near future, so I don’t have to worry about whether it’s feasible to reproduce any of it on stage. Another is that I have much more time while I’m locked up at home avoiding all you plague bearers, to actually sit back and try new and interesting stuff.

Fourthly, and talking of trying new stuff, lockdown is a chance to branch out. Practice that guitar riff that you could never play, or even attempt to play. You won’t have to produce it on stage for a while yet, so you’ve got a chance to take your time and really nail it down. I have already taken this a step further, by expanding my collection of odd instruments that I can play a little bit. My future recordings may well feature an alpine horn, and that, if nothing else, should prompt you to say “Hurrah for Lockdown.”

James P M Phillips on Bandcamp