ET Recommends - 48: Black Candy

Bangs alive, but I love Facebook sometimes. Throws up unexpected, glorious music from around the world. Speaking of which... you have checked out this blog already, right?

This brings us to Black Candy - an Italian friend sent me the link a while ago, and I just checked it out. In their own words, they say, "Hello! we are the Black Candy, a punk d.i.y. - 2 girls and one guy with beard band from italy. Yes we took the name of our band from the Beat Happening album. We like simply to beat our musical instruments and make the music we like, yeah it means we play punk and garage tune or more lo fi pop ones. If you like, contact us and we will be very happy."

Apparently, they split a few years back. This is a massive shame because their album Candinista is so sparky, so wonderful - (shrugs) like an Italian Comet Gain or a clattering, slightly more cutie, version of Brisbane's own Kitchen's Floor or someone. (If you want to get American, then Knight School.) You know, lots of shouting and off-key guitars: plenty of Nation Of Ulysses soul power and melodies that scour: admonishments and lo-fi revolutions and brazen harmonies. There's a little bit of Dinosaur Jr, Sonic Youth, Sleater-Kinney, The Raincoats mixed in as well, of course - but brief. Very brief. If this was 2010, they'd be massive in certain bedrooms and attics in Melbourne and Brooklyn and Istanbul. Oh wait, it is...

Coincidentally, I have also been informed they are reforming next month for a one-off gig in their home country. Perhaps they wouldn't mind stopping by Brisbane if that's the case? We can't guarantee a massive audience by any means, but they'd be enthusiastic for sure. Perhaps even Alex could take the short trip up North?

Here's what one friend wrote about them on Facebook.

Timothy Grisham
I lived in Italy in 2000. Being from Olympia I went to see Sleater Kenney play a concert in a castle outside of Verona. I met Mara from Black Candy at that concert and became pen pals with her following the concert. They were all from Modenia I believe, but went to school in Balongia at the time (from what I recall).


Timothy Grisham
The way I met them was because I was wearing a K records button and the ran up to me to talk about K, they are all HUGE Olympia music fans, Mara carried around a set list from an Unwound Italian show. They have a website:http://blackcandytheband.tripod.com/enframe.html