FLR NEWS
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- FLR celebrated our 30th anniversary last year (2023) So a number of special releases came out, including the long awaited 2nd Psykick Holiday album 'Sensory Art' out on limited edition CD. It's as innovative as their debut 'Forever Pop Noir' and is described as a trip down Alice's rabbit hole, as you get to experience 10 different worlds you have never encountered before, lyrically, musically and production wise. £ singles have already been released from the album 'Sea of Souls, Is It Passion that You Feel & the brand new release Femme Fatale.
- Also out is the Future Legend Records Story limited edition book that you can get from a link on the front page.
- The band haven't been idle between the long gap between albums and have released a number of download singles such as Comment Dors-Tu? (How do you sleep?), a low key Jazz Noir single in the French language. New French singer Maiko proved popular on the band’s French version single San Francisco and decided to become a permanent fixture in the band sharing vocal duties with Russell.
- Vanessa White Smith (who starred as Martha Reeves in Motown the Musical) did a brilliant vocal on Psykick Holiday’s tribute to the 50th anniversary of the peace & love movement of 1967, with covers of San Francisco & Let's Go to San Francisco. The tracks were included on the Summer of Love EP which also featured French and Spanish versions of the songs. Definitely worth checking out.
- As part of the labels anniversary, a few digital box sets of music we are most famous for. (New versions of Cult Tv & Film Themes) have been released. Cult Themes from the Sixties : The Complete Future Legend Records Collection features 45 tracks including Bonus tracks & Cult The From the Seventies : The Complete Future Legend Records Collection has 30 tracks (again including bonus tracks) Both are available 0n download & streaming. See cult Themes page.
Box Office Poison seems to be getting a second wind with their output becoming more popular with fans worldwide. They have now made a video for what we think is a much neglected single, their cover of Dave, Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich’s classic The Legend of Xanadu. It is rumoured that BOP’s track Backstreet Boulevard (a track about the homeless and down-and-outs) from debut album Beyond The Twilight Zone is about to be covered by one of the world’s leading pop stars so watch this space! It has also been adopted by the homeless charity Titus House. New Spanish and French Version of Mysteries have just been released as well.
Psykick Holiday made an impact with their single One Way Ticket to the Moon reaching the top 20 in the US Indie charts. Their environmental song Don't Shut Your Mouth has been very much to the fore as well. We wouldn't be surprised to see it adopted as an anthem for Climate Emergency. Another issue highlighted on PH’s debut album Forever Pop Noir is age prejudice as intimated in the excellent ‘don’t pigeon-hole me’ track Numbers, which has been released as a single.
Despite a preference for using female singers to record his songs and a reluctance to sing himself, Psykick Holiday’s main man Russell’s whispery vocal style was first pioneered on BOP's single Mysteries in 1994. In 1999 he recorded his first solo track in this style on a cover of Love Affair’s classic track A Day Without Love (with backing vocals by Mouse), but the song was never released. This kind of vocal has since been termed ASMR: a pleasurable scalp and back of the neck tingling sensation engendered by whispering and other similar stimuli. This type of singing has been used on several number one hits recently so we felt the time was right to release A Day Without Love by Russell C. Brennan & Mouse as a single on download.
A new album of Cult TV and Film theme covers came out called Cult Themes Forever. This is a trend that FLR started and launched the label with back in 1993, making cover versions of cult TV & film themes to help break new artists or revive the career of hit artists who have been out of the public eye for a while. FLR had previously released six highly rated albums featuring 60s, 70s & 80's cult themes (see Cult TV and Film Themes page for full info). All of these were produced and arranged by Russell, cumulating in a nomination for UK Record Producer of the Year 2002. After that he said he didn’t want to do another cult themes album and concentrated on photography, art, film and writing for a while, however eventually a combination of great new talent approaching him and his desire to return to producing resulted in this new cult themes album. Here are a few names associated with it: Glenda Collins, Ray Davies, Adam Faith, John Barry, Lalo Schiffrin, Ennio Morricone, James Bond, Gerry Anderson, Barry Gray, Doll Squad.
2021 - 2022
The big news is that a second Psykick Holiday album is due to be coming out soon. Their last offering was the debut album Forever Pop Noir and several new singles from that album have already been released, which coincidently are ASMR type tracks (recorded before it became trendy). Their new album is being written and recorded right now and hopefully will be released in 2022. The working title is Sensory Art and the first single from the album has already been released, called Sea of Souls.
The pop noir specialists who feature Russell as their main driving force have always had a fluid line up to take advantage of the talents of collaborative artists, so it will be interesting to see who will be up on stage. But whoever is performing you can expect some ASMR vibes. Psykick Holiday gigs are as rare as dragon’s teeth so if you are keen to attend drop us a line and we’ll keep you in the loop.
Ministry of Ska release their promised second album in in autumn 2024 and with their typical humour called it 'The Failed Comeback Album'. It has already spawned three great singles 'Don't Touch My Bikini, Dangerous Game & Lockdown' Meanwhile new supergroup Artistic Rebels have released two singles on download - a 12" extended single of French and English versions of the classic French song Je T'Aime and new original track Welcome To The Bureau of Affection. Another original track called I Want To Paint It Wtitten By Russell & Steve of the band has come out as a solo track by Maiko.
The Waterloo Sunset Story album was previously available on CD but sold out some time ago. It has been re-released on download and is now available on iTunes, Amazon and all good download sites. There are some changes to the track listing for this download album. Since the rights for A Beatboy are no longer held by FLR, those tracks have been removed from this release. For Eleanor Rigby fans it has a bonus demo acoustic track by Eleanor Rigby plus previously unreleased studio versions of two Eleanor Rigby songs by the The Psychomatics, a great pop band that was brought in as her replacement after she disappeared. All in all, the re-release is even better than the CD version and a must buy for Waterloo Sunset Records fans. Check out the new track listing on the Waterloo Sunset Story page.
We signed up legendary 60s singer Glenda Collins permanently after the popularity of recent tracks she did for us. Her new album Second Chance is being recorded. Glenda Collins has also had a new single released on download in 2022, a cover version of her favourite Psykick Holiday track, Too Sad To Cry.
BOOKS
Our sister company December Books have released a number of books lately many of which may be of interest to FLR fans due to the music related content. All of these can be found on Amazon.
Quiz Books.
Memories are Made of This (The Ultimate Retro Pop Quiz) '50s to '90s
Memories are Made of This '50s to '90s Volume 2
Mod Memories are Made of This (The Ultimate Mod Trivia Quiz)
Film Memories Are Made of This: The Ultimate Film Trivia Quiz (100 years of film)
If you love doing quizzes or know someone who does, these books are real find!
Music Business Bastards (How to do well in the music business without getting ripped off) is a must buy for any budding musician or singer and for anyone who wants to know how the music business works, as written by someone who has worked both on the inside and the outside of the profession.
The novel Over and Over is set in the music industry and is a pulp noir revenge story.
If you like a combination of adventure & music why not check out the book Adventures of a Dark Duke: The Pin (it could blow your mind).
The Box Office Poison Story is a warts and all biog of this pioneering and innovative band with all the interesting back stories, music business characters and intrigue that lays behind it. A fascinating insight into the music business that you have never had before. It's gripping stuff! Here's what Amazon reviewers say about it:
"Although it is packed with interesting facts, The Box Office Poison Story is also an absorbing and addictive read. A real page turner! I found myself unable to put the book down, so intrigued was I about what would come next"
"This is probably the best music biography I've ever read"
"Russell is a capable and creative writer, as this book clearly shows. His narrative is confident and full of insight, and there are some delicious touches of humour from him as well."
Behind The Painted Smile is an autobiographical account of the author's harrowing childhood and teenage years, and how he was able to rise above the abuse he suffered in early life by channelling his energy into writing and music, the two things he loved to do the most. An inspiring tale for those who have also suffered and who want and need to lift themselves up from the difficulties life throws at them and move forward to find their passion. Well worth a read.
WHAT ELSE COULD BE ON THE CARDS?
We haven’t mentioned everyone on the label yet. What about the other acts heavily associated with FLR?
Apart from her past work with Box Office Poison Misty Woods solo tracks Wallpaper Man & 5:15 are out on CD and download. Rumour has it she might be about to return to music and collaborate with Russell once more to do some solo releases. We do hope that comes to fruition as we have all missed her innovative attitude and distinctive vocals.
Of course FLR’s biggest act the mod phenomenon Eleanor Rigby still reigns supreme as a cult artist of some significance. Nearly all her physical releases have now sold out except The Best of Eleanor Rigby Vol. 1 on CD and a few 7” singles. We are delighted that download sales of ER have grown in popularity as a newer, younger generation discover her talents. A re-issue of her classic album Censorship sold out within a week. We have recently released an acoustic version of the title track Censorship, and an EP called Five Live with 5 of her best live tracks. They're both on download, so check them out now.
Last but not least, the Femmes Fatales Volume 2 album is in the process of being compiled so check back soon for more info!
If you want to contact us please email futurelegend2000@yahoo.co.uk