This year has been a pretty weird one for me, 3 weeks in the US, 6 months in Salisbury, having everything I own in storage for months, then moving to Guildford. Shit, I’m surprised I even managed to buy any records, but somehow this year has actually been amazing. I usually do a Top 10 songs too, but they would just be a selection of the better tracks from the following so it seemed kind of dumb this year.

Top 10 Records of 2011:

1. Crash of Rhinos – Distal

2. Ryan Adams – Ashes & Fire

3. Tenement – Napalm Dream

4. Ssssnakes – Kissss Thissss

5. Lemuria – Pebble

6. Laura Stevenson and The Cans – Sit Resist

7. Sundials – Never Settle

8. Bangers – Small Pleasures

9. Cheap Girls / Lemuria Split 7”

10. Mikey Erg – Heart Shaped 12”

Honourable Mentions (Got into them too late / don’t like Apologies I have None):

1. The State Lottery / The 255s Split 7”

2. Static Radio NJ – We Are All Beasts

3. Shores – To Volstead

4. Muncie Girls – S/T Tape

5. ONSIND / Calvinball / Apologies Split LP

6. Jimmy Islip – Of Others… / Demo Tracks.

7. Hunx and His Punx – Daytrotter Session

8. Hangmen – Hang Ten

9. Dividers / Ten Speed Bicycle Split Tape

10. Broadcaster – Joyride

It’s also worth noting that a good handful of these records were either released, or bought from Specialist Subject Records, or if they weren’t, they probably should have been. Go check them out too, Andrew is a lovely man:

http://specialistsubjectrecords.co.uk/

My 13 year old brother Tom did a mock poster for his band ‘The Stray’ for his art class just recently. SWFU represent all the way from Hipperholme, Halifax. 

The State Lottery are playing Mozarts in Swansea on the 13th July, go download this album, it rules:

http://www.ifyoumakeit.com/album/the-state-lottery/cities-we-re-not-from-2/

Unfortunately due to circumstances totally out of our control, we’ve had to move this from the Skatepark to Monkey, we’re as bummed as you are that we don’t get to have a sweet gig in the park and we’ll be playing ‘I wanna go skateboarding’ by Ssssnakes on repeat in between bands, but we just can’t do it. 

However, the good new is:

1. We were 12 tickets off selling out before, Monkey is way bigger and you’ll be able to pay on the night now. It’ll be £6 on the door, but there are still £5 tickets available from Diverse Records in Newport, Exist Skateboards in Swansea, Derricks in Swansea or the SWFU Online shop if you wanna save yourself a quid:

http://swfu.bigcartel.com/product/iron-chic-banger-+-more-tickets

2. It was looking incredibly likely that the Skatepark would’ve been a dry venue. That’s right, NO BOOZE! So I’m sure lots of you will be happy to know that you’re more than welcome to get hammered at Monkey. Mine’s a Hoegaarden.

We’ll be putting posters up at the Skatepark directing people to Monkey, but if you could report the event and let people know of the venue change that’d be awesome.

See you wednesday!

Trev

New venue address:

Monkey Cafe

13-14 Castle Street

Swansea

SA1 1JF

01792 480 822

SC01 – This Hidden Switch @ Exist Skate Shop

SC02 – Young Livers, OK Pilot & Ssssnakes @ Coyote Bar

SC03 – Smoke or Fire, Fake Problems, This Hidden Switch & Dead Rails @ Sin City

SC04 – Git Some, No Choice & Saturday’s Kids @ Coyote Bar

SC05 – The Steal, Hot Damn, Portraits & Our Time Down Here @ Bar Sigma

SC06 - Dead City Stereo, Wilson Fisk & The Groundnuts & Independents @ Coyote Bar

SC07 - Above Them, The Amistad & The Symptoms @ Bar Sigma

SC08 - Bastion & The Groundnuts @ Coyote Bar

SC09 - Virgins, The Computers, Brothers & Dead Rails @ Bar Sigma

SC10 - Cheap Girls, Chillerton & Bedford Falls @ Bar Sigma

SC11 - New Bruises , Above Them, & Portraits @ Bar Sigma

SC12 - Lemuria, The Arteries, Dave House & A Broken Robot @ Bar Sigma

SC13 - Above Them, Bangers, Blackbeard & Little Triggers @ Bar Sigma

SC14 - North Lincoln, PJ Bond, The Death Of Her Money & Little Triggers @ Bar Sigma

SC15 - OK Pilot, This Hidden Switch & Smoke ‘Em Out @ Sigma

SC16 - Bedford Falls, Some Sort of Threat & Olive Anne @ Mozarts

SC17 - The Arteries, The Computers, Bangers & Portraits @ Sin City

SC18 - Brothers, Nozzle & The Doublecross. @ Mozarts

SC19 - Above Them, Hammer No More The Fingers, Caves & Dividers @ Sigma

SC20 - Sauna Youth & Barrie Holes Hitlist Presents @ Sigma

SC21 - Chuck Ragan, The Arteries, Bangers & Livers and Lungs @ Sigma

SC22 - PJ Bond, Adam Peachfuzz & Dividers @ Mozarts

SC23 - Ninja Gun & thekidisfireworks @ Sigma

SC24 - ONSIND, Imperial Can, The Symptoms & Fashanu @ Sigma

SC25 - Failures’ Union, Bedford Falls, The 255s & The Boneless Ones @ Sigma

SC26 - Good Luck, Bangers, ONSIND, Ssssnakes & Dividers @ Sigma

SC27 - The Computers, Men & Ringolevio @ Mozarts 

SC28 - Brothers & The 255s & Blackbeard @ Mozarts

SC29 - The Arteries, The Cut Ups & Nozzle @ Sin City

SC30 - The Max Levine Ensemble, ONSIND & Barrie Hole’s Hitlist presents @ Mozarts

SC31 - The Menzingers, Above Them, The Groundnuts & Leagues Apart @ Sigma

SC32 - Chas Palmer @ Mozarts

SC33 - The Riot Before, Caves & Ssssnakes @ Sigma

SC34 - PJ Bond, Truly Kaput & Some Sort of Threat @ Mozarts

Seriously though, when you realise it’s been over 100 days since we’ve checked the Myspace, it’s time to shut that shit down. We now have both a Tumblr and a Twitter that we’ll be updating semi regularly, just because nobody wants to receive messages from the Swansea Collective Facebook group every time someone mentions a gig, but this seems like a better way to go about it.