Sheep Farming In Barnet: Review by Velvet Thunder
Toyah – Sheep Farming In Barnet
Expanded Edition (Cherry Red)
Any time is a good time to have Toyah’s often-overlooked early ’80s albums revisited, but in this case there seems to be no more expedient occasion to have this album back in the public eye, in its most impressive form yet. Toyah has come to prominence very much on social media during the Covid pandemic and associated lockdowns, appearing in a series of light-hearted and very amusing videos with her husband, Robert Fripp. Now, many of those in the ‘prog rock’ fraternity – who may have passed over Toyah’s output with little more than a cursory glance at the hit singles – have been fond of expressing their surprise at the union of the ultra-serious King Crimson frontman, with his almost ‘Prog Godfather’ reputation, and the woman often looked back on as a kind of ‘post-punk pixie’ with wild hair and a handful of hits. This album comes out just at the right time to remind people that, in truth, the relative musical outputs of both parties at the dawn of the 1980s really weren’t as far apart as you may think. This isn’t punk, and it certainly isn’t pop-punk. If you want to give it a name at all, art-punk is closer, as what is found among the 41 tracks here is a brilliantly adventurous mix of the post-punk approach of bands like Magazine or Wire, combined with an art-rock influence in the music itself, which is astonishingly mature considering these were 20 year olds at the time.
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Nerdly: Frightfest 2020: ‘Heckle’ Review: Shot in neon-lit hues, reminiscent of Italian giallo (in particular the work of Dario Argento); with a killer in a clown mask and red rain mac that looks and feel like a total homage to 1976’s proto-slasher Alice, Sweet Alice; Heckle is a superb diatribe on perils of fame, personality and neurosis, and a warning to never, ever, meet your heroes! – 
• SciFi Now: Heckle – Interview With Airell Anthony Hayles: Heckle writer Airell Anthony Hayles tells us about his love for Eighties cinema and getting Steve Guttenberg over to the dark side – Directed by Martyn Pick and written by Airell Anthony Hayles, Heckle stars Guy Combes as Joe and Steve Guttenberg as foul-mouthed Nineties comedian Ray Kelly, alongside Dani Dyer and Toyah Willcox. We spoke to Airell about the Eighties, horror and stand-up shows – 
Heckle. A stand up comedian encounters a seemingly insane heckler, who becomes his stalker. This is a heckle on a whole new level… Starring: Steve Guttenberg, Clark Gable III, Guy Combes, Madison Clare, Dani Dyer, Toyah Willcox. Director: Martyn Pick, Writer: Airell Anthony Hayles.
