Fortuna POP! presents:

Fortuna POP! - Twenty Years of Trouble - Withered Hand

+ The Ballet + Pete Astor + Would-Be-Goods

Bush Hall, Shepherds Bush, GB

£13.50
Entry Requirements: Under 16's must be accompanied

Part of Fortuna POP!'s long goodbye after twenty years of the label, this show features Withered Hand, aka Edinburgh based folk-rock troubadour Dan Willson and band; NYC's sissy pop act The Ballet; indie auteur Pete Astor; and the literate indiepop of the Would-Be-Goods.

WITHERED HAND In 2014 Fortuna Pop! released New Gods, the critically acclaimed second album from Dan Willson, aka Withered Hand: a triumph of songwriting talent and superb musicianship that touched the heart of everyone that heard it. Willson had gone for broke, enlisting legendary Scottish producer Tony Doogan (Mogwai, Teenage Fanclub), and a veritable who's who of Scottish music including King Creosote, Eugene Kelly of The Vaselines, and members of Belle & Sebastian and Frightened Rabbit. The result: eleven meditations on love, fidelity and transience that saw Willson’s songwriting hit dizzying heights: by turns confessional and melancholy, raucous and life-affirming; a beautifully executed collection of songs from one of Scotland’s most gifted songwriters.

“Endlessly lovable stuff… zings with Teenage Fanclub-ish exuberance.” (NME)

THE BALLET Unashamedly “sissy” and explicitly queer, The Ballet marry the DIY ethos of the Hidden Cameras with the wry poeticism of The Magnetic Fields to create literate, infectious pop gems. Formed in 2005 by Greg Goldberg and Craig Willse they’ve released three albums to date, the self-released Mattachine! (2006) and Bear Life! (2009), and I Blame Society through Fortuna POP! in 2013. Inspired by Stephin Merritt’s body of work, songwriter Goldberg also draws from an array of pop artists and periods, from 60’s bubblegum to 80’s synthpop and 90’s indiepop, fusing these in sophisticated and novel ways which rewards repeat listening.

"Recalling Holiday-era Magnetic Fields, these songs bop with heady buoyancy, yet are underpinned by complicated but universal themes: self-deception, infidelity without shame, war fatigue and finding love in a world of online hookups." Time Out New York

PETE ASTOR Indie auteur Pete Astor, previously of The Loft, The Weather Prophets, and other esteemed acts, released his most recent album “Spilt Milk” via Fortuna POP! in 2016. It was recorded onto ½ inch tape at the home studio of James Hoare of Ultimate Painting, The Proper Ornaments and Veronica Falls, with James playing guitar, bass, drums, keyboards and singing backing vocals. The album has all the hallmarks of a Pete Astor classic, drawing together key strands and tributaries of his work over the years, blending intuitive songwriting, acute lyrics and incisive melodies.

“A doleful jangle that often feels like a bedsit Velvet Underground fronted by Lawrence or Ray Davies… the true beauty of Spilt Milk lies in Astor’s wry commentaries on domesticity, raging libidos and the pitiless march of time”

WOULD-BE-GOODS Eccentric and evocative guitar pop helmed by Jessica Griffin, enigmatic star of cult label él, with her crew of elegant rascals - Peter Momtchiloff, guitarist (Talulah Gosh, Razorcuts, Heavenly, Scarlet's Well) and occasional songsmith; Debbie Green, drummer and darling of the London nineties garage scene (Thee Headcoatees); and ex-Adam and the Ant and Monochrome Set bassist Andy Warren. Since their reactivation in 2002 the Would-Be-Goods have released three albums full of melancholy charm and wit coupled with a classic guitar pop sound ranging from new folk, tango to garage rock. Love songs to lions, frolics in the Garden of Eden, French Casanovas and personal demons await you. Let the Would-Be-Goods be your guides.

“Elegantly melancholy indie from a dapper London band”

Line Up

Fortuna POP! - Twenty Years of Trouble - Withered Hand
The Ballet
Pete Astor
Would-Be-Goods