A couple of Dreamscape ‘adverts’, featuring fantastic photos from the 1982 ‘Changeling Tour’, for the forthcoming tour… The Changeling Resurrection II is on the way! (Please click below to view larger – View numerous other similar creations for the Spring tour here)
The darling of punk rock Toyah Willcox and her guitar virtuoso husband Robert Fripp are lending their support to a village fete.
Mr Fripp, of prog-rockers King Crimson fame and who plucked the solo on David Bowie’s Heroes, is opening the Wick fete at 1.30pm on Saturday.
There will be live music from Wyred Up, entertainment by Tyro the Magician, a fun dog show, and lots more at the village near Pershore. Admission is free for children and a £1 for adults, ad no charge for car parking. For details visit wickfete.org.uk
• Continue reading at the Worcester News.
Toyah guested on The Dave Llewellyn Show on BBC Tees on Bank Holiday Monday afternoon. A great interview that was recorded a couple of weeks ago and dominated the first hour of his show.
The first part of the interview begins around 19 minutes into the show and runs for approximately 12 minutes. Toyah talks her favourite cities (Glasgow) and travelling round the UK, gigs, five-year-old Toyah fans (Dave’s daughter), and recording The Changeling 30 years ago and returning to it this year. There’s also a play of ‘I Want To Be Free’.
Part two starts at 34 minutes, and runs for approx 12 minutes, with Toyah talking about how she is perceived (by critics) in comparison to Kate Bush and Siouxsie, Minx, The Humans and their evolution and playing in Estonia, and the King’s Heath Walk of Fame. Plus a play of ‘Thunder In The Mountains’.
Part three is at 51 minutes in, running for approx 10 minutes. Toyah talks the Hare & Hounds gig, The Changeling Resurrection II (fans will be able to vote for particular songs on the set list again), the BBC4 Love & Marriage documentary, what bonds Toyah and Robert, and more. With the magnificent ‘Rebel Run’ rounding off the chat.
Dave was a Toyah fan back in the day so this is an interesting interview. It’s available to listen to for the next five days here.
More photos of Toyah onstage at The Rainbow in April 1980. She was one of a number of guest vocalists who appeared with the band at the gig while Hugh Cornwell was in prison. Others included Hazel O’Connor, Robert Smith, Ian Dury, Wilko Johnson and Richard Jobson. View larger versions at Dreamscape’s 1980 Gallery. (Thanks to Andi for these rare photos)
Quadrophenia in released on special edition Region A/1 Blu-ray this week by The Criterion Collection. Here are some new reviews and articles focusing on the new Blu-ray.
• Blu-ray.com: Review: (Very comprehensive look at the film, Blu-ray release and extras) As far as I am concerned, Franc Roddam’s Quadrophenia is one of the all-time best British coming-of-age films. It is painfully honest, gritty yet beautiful, superbly acted film.
• The Hollywood Reporter: Quadrophenia: A restored Blu-ray/DVD of The Who’s landmark film recaptures the 1960s.
• Blu-ray Definition: Quadrophenia [Criterion Collection] Blu-ray Review: Going back nearly 50 years in time, Quadrophenia does a creditable job in conveying the fashions and fads of the era.
• The Boston Globe: The Who, why, and how of ‘Quadrophenia’: Flash back to “Love Reign O’er Me” as the soundtrack of a life, as “Quadrophenia” (1979), the immersively scruffy feature riff on the Who’s classic rock opera, arrives this week in a terrific-sounding, meticulously remastered Blu-ray.
• The Globe & Mail: The Mods are back, but who were they? They wore their jackets cut slim and checked, maybe a touch of seersucker and an open neck. They rode Vespa GS scooters with their hair cut neat. They were British Mods. But what does that all mean?
• Criterion Corner: Under The Covers: Criterion sure loves their rock odyssees (there’s this, Head, Spinal Tap, that one where Takashi Miike tortures David Bowie for 2 hours…), and they have done some serious justice to Franc Roddam’s Quadrophenia.
• SLT Today: ‘Quadrophenia’ rocks on Blu-ray: On my ever-expanding list of favorite movies, two titles have shared the top spot since 1979: “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “Quadrophenia.”
• DVD File: Review: What sets Quadrophenia apart from the pack isn’t as much its achievement as a ‘rock opera’ but its willingness to play among the fringes of the sub-genre.
Great photos of Toyah onstage, and off, at Manchester Pride on Sunday night. Toyah is with Paul Cable and Paul Lomas. Please click below to view larger. (Thanks to Paul Cable)
Toyah guested in the final ‘BBC America’ Doctor Who docu special, The Destinations Of Doctor Who, on Saturday night. Here’s a transcript of what she said:
Toyah on Starship UK (the spaceship/mini planet on the S5 episode ‘The Beast Below’): “Starship UK is this circular, metal planet floating through space BURSTING with skyscrapers because they’ve run out of… space… The amazing think about the people on this planet, they’re all so busy living for themselves and for the quality of their own life that they don’t realise that they’re actually being supported by a kindly, old saviour.”
On Gallifrey (The Doctor’s home planet): “It’s quite clever that the Doctor does not fit in with the map of what these other Timelords are. they’re all completely different, with very different agendas. But they’re all fighting for their survival. It’s wonderful that the immortals are threatened.”
On the destinations of Doctor Who: “The destinations that you go to in Doctor Who are always really surprising, they open out to reveal something completely different. You never quite know the reality of the destination.”
On Satellite Five (the space station in the episodes ‘Bad Wolf’ & ‘The Parting Of The Ways’): “Christopher Eccleston suddenly appears in this brightly coloured room, which is really confusing, and he’s suddenly in Big Brother, and he’s taking part in a gamshow. Of course! My favourite bit is The Weakest Link, where Ann Robinson is actually a robot and she has the power to destroy.”
• Screen caps of Toyah from The Destinations of DW coming soon. (Thanks to Paul Lomas)
A great clip of a fantastic looking Toyah performing Thunder In The Mountains at ‘Manchester Pride’. It’s A Mystery has also been uploaded. (Thanks to Paul Lomas)
Please excuse the alliteration and also my self indulgence, though I’m hopefully also indulging other Toyah/Doctor Who fans out there: My two favourite ‘things’ beginning with “T”. Toyah and the TARDIS, but not just one, three of them! These are taken from the recent ‘BBC America’ Doctor Who documentary specials, the last of which, The Destinations Of Doctor Who, aired on Saturday. View all of Dreamscape’s DW updates by clicking below.
The new Fuck Yeah Toyah photo blog has been updated with some great photos over the last couple of days. Take a look by clicking below.
Toyah headlined the Women’s Stage yesterday at ‘Manchester Pride 2012′. The set list was: Echo Beach, Thunder In The Mountains, Rebel Yell, It’s A Mystery, I Love Rock N’ Roll, I Want To Be Free, Sweet Child O Mine. (Thanks to Paul Lomas for the photos & info)
Two retrotastic Toyah articles from early Eighties ‘Suzy’ magazine: Toyah: The Troublesome Kid!, from November 1982 (this includes some great live photos from ‘The Changeling Tour’), and A Hit Show For Toyah!, from July 1983 (with some shots of Toyah performing in Trafford Tanzi). Please click on each to view larger versions. (A big thank you to Paul Lomas)
Three rarish Toyah photos from 1981. Live on the ‘Anthem Tour’, the band, and performing ‘Good Morning Universe’ on Top Of The Pops. These were originally included in a German magazine article. Click below to view larger. (Thanks to Paul Lomas)
Two photos of Toyah taken during the filming of the ‘Out Of The Blue’ video in 1993. This was the first single from the ‘Dreamchild’ album. Click on these to view larger. (Thanks to Andi)
• Official Toyah: The news at toyahwillcox.com has been updated, with details on The Humans (recording of third album + info on The Humans: Live, Up Close & Personal Podcast series), BBC4’s Love & Marriage (due to air next month) and ‘The Changeling Resurrection II’.
• Cult Queens: The brilliant 2007, Toyah as Medusa, image is included at ‘Cult Queens’. Toyah was previously featured by the site in March.
• Now Daily: A few past Toyah news posts have been collected together at ‘Now’ magazine’s website.
• Style Icons Past & Present: Toyah is included in this collection at ‘Pinterest’.
• Not exactly earth-shattering news, but… The King’s Arms in Salford has a Toyah mirror. Take a look.
There’s a great new Toyah photo blog, Fuck Yeah Toyah, at tumblr. It already has some brilliant content, including rare photos and classic Toyah imagery. Visit by clicking below.
A very rare photo of Toyah and Hazel O’Connor onstage with The Stranglers at The Rainbow, London in April 1980. More of these great photos soon. (Huge thanks to Andi)
An excellent new article on Quadrophenia, and the Blu-ray release, from The New York Times.
“Quadrophenia,” which the Criterion Collection is reissuing in a restored version on Blu-ray and DVD on Tuesday, concerns little more than a skinny 18-year-old West Londoner trying to track down some blues (speed) for one of these seaside gatherings turned tabloid-covered riots. But the emotions that “Quadrophenia” elicits and its role in converting troubled souls to smartly dressed members of a movement (one with its own chant: “We are the Mods! We are the Mods!”) can be as forceful as the waves that open both the film and the Who’s 1973 double album.
• Continue reading at The New York Times.
A small preview of all of the photos of Toyah included in ‘Herb Schulz, Capturing The New Romantics’ digital book, including rare shots from the famous 1981 session that have never been published before. If you’re a fan of Toyah’s early 80s imagery, or the New Romantics in general, this book is a must! Buy the book here. It may be available in other formats, including hard-copy, at some point in the future. (Thanks again to Andi | Photos © Herb Schulz)
Herb Schulz, an acclaimed advertising and fashion photographer of the time took these portraits of the ‘Blitz Kids’ in his studio. Unlike other images documenting from this period, Schulz decided to capture these creations in a sterile environment, removing them from the clubs or drab streets of 1980s London, imbuing them with a sense of hyper-reality. These images, like no other of the era, capture with a heightened sense of intimacy the characters behind the facades. Photos include Steve Strange, Boy George, Toyah Willcox, Siouxsie Sioux and many never before seen images from the earlier time of the New Romantic movement.
Amazing Melissa Caplan outfits from ‘Herb Schulz, Capturing The New Romantics’, along with the, slightly different. original cover. These are from the same collection as Melissa’s famous Toyah outfit, The Wedding Dress. Buy the book here. (Thanks to Andi | Photos © Herb Schulz)
