POP 061/ Friday, 31 July 2009

Today’s Pop is Hannah. She’s really happy these days. She just got her saxophone delivered to London… Baker Street!!!

Toby L is the 24 year old founder of Transgressive Records who has some stories to tell.

There was the time when the singer of the Foals climbed up the outside wall of his Camden flat and in through a window, waking up passed out flatmates with a terrifying tirade of “IF I WAS A BURGLAR, YOU’D ALL BE FUCKED!”. Or the house parties with bands playing in the living room which had so many people crammed into the tiny flat that the floor is now visibly concave. Or the time when Graham Coxon’s guitar was left lying around in the living room…

Toby started his career in music at the tender age of fifteen when he launched a website called Rockfeedback. At the time when heavyweight music corporations dominated the music scene, Rockfeedback became the first independent online music magazine in the UK to give a voice to the up and coming bands. Specialising in interviews and reviews from writers around the world, not to mention the MTV2 documentary Rockfeedback TV, the name is now one of the most highly thought of talent-sources in the industry.

They also happen to put on one of the best gig nights in London, more often than not taking place upstairs at The Lexington near Kings Cross. I went along on Tuesday evening and watched three folksy bands, First Aid Kit, Blue Roses and Kill It Kid. Swedish duo First Aid Kit headlined the evening, and were incredible. They completely mesmirised the crowd with their sweet intertwining vocal harmonies accompanied by acoustic guitar and piano. The crown demanded an encore by clapping and cheering until the two girls came back onstage and were clearly delighted when they announced that “we’ll play two more songs if that’s alright with you”.

With Rockfeedback, you don’t really know what you’re going to get until you arrive. On some occasions they have filled the room with candles, yet other nights can be unashamedly rock. Whatever happens, you can be sure that the bands playing will be some of the best emerging talent, handpicked by Toby, from around the world.

The next Rockfeedback is on 20th August with tickets on sale now.

UPDATE:
Amazingly, when Toby recently moved out of his Camden abode he received his full deposit back plus a gleaming reference from the little old landlady. Safe to say she hasn’t actually visited the flat in about two years, how little she knows, how little she knows….