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The Review - MUSIC - grooves with CHARLOTTE CHAMBERS
Published: 8 May 2008

Camden music | Grooves | Sparks| LA brothers Ron and Russell Mael | Islington Academy

THERE are a lot of kids on the musical block these days. There probably always were, I just wasn’t born so only the famous survive.
One band that have stood the test of time – whether you like, loathe or don’t care – are Sparks.
I never thought I’d be seeing them on the Grooves page, but they’ve done something quite remarkable that not many bands could match.
The LA brothers, Ron and Russell Mael, began their creative life gigging on the same scene as The Doors and The Beach Boys, way back in the 1960s.
Five decades later, they are still performing and making music. Twenty-one albums to be precise, with another one on the way later this year. To celebrate this amazing feat, they are doing an unheard of 21 shows at the Islington Academy from May 16-June 13, performing one album per night from their career.
It puts things into perspective – Oasis, who are considered our modern-day rock heros, have only made six records in nearly 20 years.
Sparks have gone on record – and even made a record – about the dire state of music today, dismissing the majority of it as unadventurous. But among the artists they do rate are Eminem, Morrissey and Franz Ferdinand.
Those young guns could learn a thing or two from a trip to see one of their shows – try the Whomp That Sucker or Angst in my Pants night.

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