Exeter Goes Pop!-semi-regular Phil pointed me to this interview with one Simon Bish who runs the record label Pop Noise Records. Active since the late 80s, had songs of his previous played by (and recorded in session for) John Peel, cites Sarah Records, early Creation and Television Personalities among his influences; all the usual stuff really. Except that the label is based in East Devon. East Devon! That is just round the corner from Exeter, the district that Exmouth is part of. And, according to the label’s website, they do gigs about every week. In Exeter! Of bands that, according to theirspace, do not sound half bad. At all.

And following links, I then stumbled upon A Fine Day For Sailing. Which is an acoustic duo (“we’re so lo-fi, we nearly don’t exist”) from Exeter too, who wrote an ode to Rose Melberg. An ode to Rose Melberg! In Exeter! (Actually, Mark had told me about them before, but then I had kind of forgotten about them. I must have thought it was a dream.)

So there is Pop!, after all, in Exeter. We just should go out more. And no wonder that Pete Green says he wants to play in Exeter.

(Aforementioned Phil has a single out on Slumberland, which was recorded and designed in Devon. There is also a video of him covering Kraftwerk’s Neon Lights, which appears on the single. Don’t Forget To Dance then is less pop —‘100 per cent twee pop free’— but also from Devon, and it looks great, has Charly Gaul on the cover and is a nice read on top of that.)