I once heard someone say; “nowadays no-one cares how much you earn, they want to know how much you give away” and without doubt this insightful but somewhat cynical appraisal of a world twisted by PR makes a lot of sense.
However, Watford quartet Swing Youth have formed a gentle symbiosis of altruism and that all-out bastion of hedonistic pursuits, rock music. Their first single, set to be released on October 12th, is a double A side called Myself to Blame/Blade of Grass and half of all profits generated are going to the Royal British Legion, both by way of offering financial assistance but also to promote the cause.
Make sure you’re really casual, absolutely smashed and always surrounded by really amazing women…
In a world where music is, to all intents and purposes, free anyway, their story is more than just a publicity stunt to fill out gigs. The charitable mandate behind their double A-side is inspired by the death of their friend, Captain Tom Sawyer, a former school mate of the band who was killed serving with the British Forces in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province.
Despite only having formed in the spring of 2009, the band, which consists of two pairs of brothers; Chris and Dave Chanell and Louie and Jimmy Johnson, have been busy building a grass roots reputation from the venue they run – the Lovely Red Lion in Twickenham.
Myself to Blame is reminiscent of the Cure and early Stone Roses while seeming to skirt the fringe of something slightly more raucous. Its predominantly melodic sound is balanced well with tight synergetic playing and the vocals are uplifting despite the somewhat maudlin lyrics. While the band lacks the necessary production values and vocal refinement to really break into commercial success they do have the gusto and energy to make this first single a valiant effort and possible whisper of future triumph. Furthermore, they are gaining a reputation for their wild live sets and their promo is nicely attuned to the pace of the music –watch here
When we heard the news of Captain Tom Sawyer’s death, it made all the troubles in Afghanistan far more real
Given their counter-culture feel, Swing Youth is an appropriate moniker. For those of you who don’t know, the naming of the band follows in the hallowed steps of Joy Division and New Order by biting the names of movements prominent in Nazi Germany. In this instance it refers to an underground sub-culture, which allowed for young people to meet secretly in jazz and swing clubs. The band’s MySpace relates a correspondence between two members of the movement which reminds us that the spirit of musical dissidence has been a force against established values for some time: “make sure you’re really casual, singing or whistling English hits all the time, absolutely smashed and always surrounded by really amazing women…”
While the single may not be a chart topping monument to all things sonic it has already been aired by Steve Lamacq and, more importantly, is decidedly more than just a gimmick. Their very real attachment to the cause is summed up in a statement made by the band:
“When we heard the news of Captain Tom Sawyer’s death, it really brought it all home and made the on-going troubles in Afghanistan far more real. The Royal British Legion do some amazing work to support families of servicemen and so we wanted to give something back. We have since played some rock n roll covers shows regularly at the Royal British Legion, its always busy for us and we are made to feel really welcome within that community.”
This sort of non-reciprocal philanthropy is not a commercial stereotype but a gracious archetype which an uncertain industry might struggle to recognise or understand.
The single is available from most digital outlets and as a ltd. Edition CD.
The Swing Youth Facebook page can be found at http://www.facebook.com/swingyouth
October 17th – Royal British Legion, Rickmansworth – Myself To Blame
Single launch
October 29th – Beautiful People are Ugly Too @ The Red Lion, Twickenham