Long before Coldplay were going on about fixing people, Sunderland’s hugely under-rated Kenickie – featuring modern day wireless and telly presenter Lauren Laverne – were much better at fixing. Proof? Well, would you rather have ‘Lights will guide you home’ from Coldplay or ‘Sometimes the sunshines on unkind people’ from the Kens excellent ‘I Would Fix You’? I rest my case.

A big favourite at the Maker (Lauren was dating one of the writers, but no one should hold that against her, especially if you knew which writer), Kenickie are one of a string of bands from the time who, in my humble opinion at least, deserved much better. They had a gift, you could tell by looking. They were funny, sexy, smart, and their output was pretty much all killer no filler. But like many bands kicking around in late nineties they appeared dogged by bad luck. There’s a book waiting to be written about what went on post-Brit pop. No one would buy it, but hey, maybe one day. Kenickie managed a mere two albums before imploding in 1998, which is some sort of crime against music when you listen back 10 years on.

It’s hard to fathom, but Kenickie never cracked the Top 20, despite an appearance on TOTP, while Lauren landed her biggest hit – a number 15 smash – when she appeared on Mint Royale’s ‘Don’t Falter’ single in 2000. Doesn’t seem right somehow. Marie and Emmy-Kate went on to carry the torch for a little while with the excellent Rosita, and Marie can be found these days in the delightful The Cornshed Sisters, no idea where Emmy-Kate got to, Lauren we know about, and her drumming brother, Johnny X is still at work.

Carrying on my eighties revivalist theme, DJ Downfall was a man on a mission 10 years too soon. His first two singles ‘Song For Kelly Le Brock’ (1997) and ‘Shape!’ (1998) were spectacular enough for me to beg to do the Maker Breaker, meeting John Stanley, for that is his real name, in a Finsbury Park boozer. The photo – by the addled eyes of Sweeney, one of my favourite smudges – featured John posing with… wait for it… a Downfall game, the one where you turn the dials and little discs drop down… or I might just have made that up. For the life of me I can’t find the piece anywhere. If anyone else can I’d be grateful.

It’s all a little hazy, lost in my personal mists of time, but Downfall was on a great little DIY label called Where It’s At Is Where You Are, who I’m happy to discover are still doing their thing with the same level of style and commitment today. I recall that me and Sharon O’Connell, the live reviews ed at the time, were big fans of the label and the owner, John. Note to self: must dig out some more of his old stuff, when I’ve more time.

I appreciate I’m rambling now, but this meeting of two of my favourites of the time left me, frankly, over-excited. It’s a great remix, it actually sounds like it’s two different songs. I’ve listened and listened and I’m convinced it is one song, but it might well be two. Whatever, you’ve got to love it how ever many songs it is.

More hear…
- If you can hunt down DJ Downfall’s early singles you’d be treating yourself. His most recent opus is the well-recieved ‘Bon Viveur’ album from 2007.
- You can’t go wrong buying both Kenickie albums, ‘At the Club’ and ‘Get In’. Weirdly, amazon appears awash with the first album, you can pick it up for a bargain £1.99, while the second looks harder to find, only available from third parties starting at £7.99. It’s a strange world.