Hello, and welcome to Wine of the Week, the first installment of Spoonfed’s new feature that pits the cream of contemporary music against the charms of a bottle of wine. I’m Tom Jeffreys and with me this evening are Theatre Editor Joe Harrod, and Dominic Haley, one of Spoonfed’s Live Music Editors.

We’re going to be sampling ‘Duo Mythique’ Syrah Grenache Vin de Pays d’Oc 2006 alongside three new albums, Alexander Tucker’s ‘Portal’, ‘Look Out Mountain, Look Out Sea’ by The Silver Jews and ‘Nouns’ by No Age.

Alexander Tucker – Portal

ATPR

Joe sipping the wine for the first time: It’s quite nice isn’t it?

Dom: I’m getting a kind of laid-back campfire wooing feeling.

Joe: You could definitely woo a girl with this one.

Tom: How do we feel it goes with Alexander Tucker?

Joe: The soaring crescendo is more like Martin Sheen going mental than red wine-drinking music.

Dom: Yeah, the psychedelic flavours of the music don’t quite go with the calm of the wine.

Tom: Which has a ‘voluptuous feeling which combines roundness and a velvety sensation’ according to the label.

Joe: It is quite velvety actually; you’d get a hairy tongue if you drank a bottle of this on your own.

Tom: Is that a bad thing?

Joe: No, it’s not a bad thing.

At this point Spoonfed’s Chief Programmer interrupts and berates us all for being boring.

Dom: Can we stop talking about how boring we are and start talking about Alexander Tucker?

Tom: Do we actually know anything about Alexander Tucker?

The Verdict
Joe: Well, the jangly bits are a bit like The Wicker Man. There’s a definite possibility of inappropriate pagan sexuality.

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The Silver Jews – Look Out Mountain, Look Out Sea

Drag City

Dom: There’s definitely something Bob Dylan about the Silver Jews.

Tom: A kind of homely quality, like a big jumper?

Joe: Something like that, Tom. So, where’s this wine from?

Tom: Um, the Co-op.

Joe reading the label: It’s Vin de Pays d’Oc.

Dom: That’s the big black bit on the map.

Tom: And where are the Silver Jews from?

Dom: I think they might be from… some guy’s side project or something? By the way, have my lips gone red yet?

Tom: No they’re fine.

Dom: The dude from the Silver Jews looks pretty cool on the back of the CD.

Joe: Yeah, he looks like a Middle American good old boy. Is there anything else we can say about the music though?

Dom: Only that I’m drinking my wine way faster than you guys!

Tom: I’m savouring the bouquet.

Joe: No, you’re not.

The Verdict
Joe: He’s got a beard and he’s balding, like a prototypical James Taylor. I like it. It’s good solid easy listening. A bit like the wine.

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No Age – Nouns

Sub Pop

Dom: So this is No-uns by No Age.

Joe: Err, isn’t it Nouns? No-uns? It’s clearly fucking Nouns man!

Dom: Well, whatever, it’s kind of punky. I’m getting an art-house New York gallery vibe.

Joe: Yeah, you can imagine sitting up in the factory waiting for Edie Sedgwick to get ready and drinking this cheap plonk.

Tom: It’s not cheap plonk – it’s £5.13.

Dom: That’s more than I’d pay for a bottle of wine for a date!

Tom: What exactly is your date budget?

Dom: About £3… But I can imagine necking a bunch of this and heading out skating.

Joe: I can’t imagine myself skating.

Tom: I once sat on a Snakeboard when they were supposed to be cool.

Dom: Steve from Lovvers once played with No Age and gave them their first vodka and coke. They ended up fighting on stage… And red wine makes me quite violent actually.

Joe: I immediately regret this whole wine tasting idea.

Tom: Thank you for joining us for the first and only Wine of the Week.

Joe: So, Dom, you’re like the downstairs character in hit comedy Spaced?

Dom: Hit comedy? That was on like four years ago, Joe.

Tom: I just hate Simon Pegg. Is that ok? Is it ok to hate Simon Pegg yet?

Joe: Yeah, I reckon it’s ok.

Tom: Well thank God for that. Err, so do we have anything else worth saying about either the music or the wine?

Dom: Only that we’ve finished all the wine. And I kind of need to leave now.

The Verdict

Joe: Arthouse punk and red wine – what a perfect combniation.

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Tom: Right then, that’s it from us. My thanks to Joe Harrod and Dominic Haley. Please do join us next week for another fascinatingly informative installment of Wine of the Week.