RETROSPECTACULAR - The Classic Albums of 1991

Event information

RETROSPECTACULAR : 1991 @ The Windmill, Brixton - Saturday 27th August, 2011 - £5 inc. free BBQ - 4:00pm to late!

Bananirvana, You Killed Me First, Amy Blue, Paintings Of Ships, Pesto, Dan Ormsby (4 or 5 Magicians), Katie Malco, Warren Mallia (The Attika State) and Matt Emery (Stagecoach)...

...performing as...

Nirvana, Primal Scream, Smashing Pumpkins, Sebadoh, Pixies, REM, Madonna, Michael Jackson and NOFX!

The first annual RETROSPECTACULAR show, where bands from the current look back 20 years to their favourite albums of that year, and perform their favourite songs from their chosen albums. 2011 - 20 = 1991 !!

BANANIRVANA performing NEVERMIND by NIRVANA in full - 10:15 to 11:15

The third outing for surely the UK’s finest specifically karaoke oriented Nirvana tribute act - Dan (Dave), Jon (Krist) and Sam (Kurt's hands) and a string of special guest vocalists and members of the good old British public bash out the hits of grunge gods Nirvana, this time performing classic album Nevermind in its entirety (plus an encore of b-sides from the era, if the stage isn't totally smashed up by that point). Come as you are - or even better - as you were in 1991.

YOU KILLED ME FIRST performing songs from SCREAMADELICA by PRIMAL SCREAM - 9:30 to 10:00

Miss Black America, Popular Workshop, William, and The Scarlett O'Haras. All fine, fine bands of the 00's, but all now sadly deceased (or in the case of PopShop “out for lunch”). However a veritable indie-rock megazord came together as one earlier in 2011 with Seymour, Gypsy, Mark and Stuart forming You Killed Me First. Here they take on tracks from the Mercury Music Prize winning dance-rock epic Screamadelica. We're gonna have a good time. We're gonna have a party!

[SPECIAL GUESTS TBC !!] - 8:45 to 9:15

AMY BLUE performing songs from GISH by SMASHING PUMPKINS - 8:00 to 8:30

If ever there was a "tonight Matthew..." moment to remember, it was at a similarly themed show last year where Amy Blue took on the songs of the early Smashing Pumpkins, who famously possessed a penchant for cross dressing. A quite remarkable makeover (involving a couple of Primark dresses and some grade A wigs) saw Amy Blue transform from a band of three males and one female, to a band of three females and one male. Sadly bass player Trevor is away on a romantic weekend in Hull this time (seriously), but into his high heeled shoes steps an actual woman for one gig only. NB. It isn't D'Arcy. Well, probably not anyway.

PAINTINGS OF SHIPS performing songs from III by SEBADOH - 7:15 to 7:45

Paintings of Ships might conjure up images of bearded men with beparroted shoulders playing accordions and singing sea shanties whilst swigging grog, but in fact Paintings of Ships are a bona fide old skool London based indie rock band (though the grog is still very much part of the picture!). There were three of Sebadoh and there are three of Paintings of Ships, and III was Sebadoh’s third album. Maybe alongside their own stuff they will be performing three Sebadoh songs. I don’t know. Come and find out!

PESTO performing songs from TROMPE LE MONDE by PIXIES - 6:30 to 7:00

Green pesto, or red pesto? It is hard to decide. Similarly Brighton lo-fi rookies Pesto have their fair share of green and red moments, but that's what makes them such a loveable bunch. One minute guitarist Sam and drummer Liam will be harmonising like a young Robson and Jerome, the next bass player Matt is destroying the PA with a voice like Brian Blessed being bummed. Perfect then to take on the ever unpredictable Pixies final record Trompe Le Monde. Pesto may still be learning their trade but, you know, IT'S EDUCATIONAAAAALLLLL !!!!!

DAN ORMSBY performing songs from OUT OF TIME by REM - 5:50 to 6:20

Sometime between the Octobers of 2005 and 2010, 4 or 5 Magicians were a band that did some fun things that some people listened to and enjoyed. Since their split, former Magicians frontman Dan Ormsby (hello!) has been sat on the toilet thinking of witty rhyming couplets and inventing catchy guitar hooks during occasional showers, and he now has some new songs to play to the world. Currently in the process of demoing an album’s worth of material and recruiting a new band, Dan will showcase some of his brand new tunes here, and take on some massive radio songs from Out Of Time, hopefully with the help of a few special guests.

KATIE MALCO perfoming songs from THE IMMACULATE COLLECTION by MADONNA - 5:15 to 5:45

If Falco is the king of between song banter, then Malco is the queen, and while the similarities with Mclusky stop there, the originally Scottish (though now very much a naturalised Laaahndaner) Katie Malco is no less engaging as a performer than her angry Welsh counterpart. Recently signed to Alcopop Records, Malco will be performing some of her own delicate and delicious material (girl) alongside a couple of big tunes by queen of 80s pop Madonna.

WARREN MALLIA performing songs from DANGEROUS by MICHAEL JACKSON - 4:45 to 5:10

If ultra-melodic pop-punk outfit The Attika State were animals, then they could only be Duracell bunnies, bounding around the stage with grins from bunny ear to bunny ear. So I suppose it is apt that their guitarist is called Warren. Like where rabbits live. Incredible jokes aside, Warren Mallia brings the same energy to his solo performances, his powerful, positive songs aiming to … err … heal the world, make it a better place (that one was even worse!) and thus king of pop Michael Jackson is a perfect act to replicate alongside his own super stuff.

MATT EMERY performing songs from RIBBED by NOFX - 4:15 to 4:40

I wanted Matt to do Tina Turner as I thought Simply The Best would be a perfect power ballad for a megadude of his effusively optimistic nature to take on. However, he insisted on being NOFX, and while not holding the same classic status as The Best of Tina Turner, Ribbed is perhaps the finest album where the sleeve is designed to look like a condom wrapper - in 1991 at least. More usually seen playing drums with popular beat combo Stagecoach, Matt Emery here performs some of his excellent solo material on guitar and piano in addition to the NOFX.

+ Katie, Warren and Matt performing the biggest UK single of 1991 (including the best middle 8 of ALL TIME) together!