Stavka - original alternative rock

BANDS

Here's a collection of musicians who have in one way or another influenced me greatly in my own endeavours...

	Easter Islanders - OK, this one's a bit of a cheat, beacause it is none other than my own electronic persona. Prior to Stavka stuff, l churned out ambient soundscapes, danceable grooves and insistent beats, all with a sense of melody, the vital ingredient missing from 99% of techno. The website includes downloadable MP3 samples and details of how to order CDs.
	Robyn Hitchcock - from his days with The Soft Boys in the late seventies to his later work with The Egyptians, Hitchcock is important because he is one of the few artists who has stuck to his vision with scant regard for commercial success. His music is deeply melodic, and his lyrics both intriguing and comical.
	Guided by Voices - Robert Pollard's abilities to knock out 60's tinged abstract songs with killer hooks is truly phenomenal.
	The Monochrome Set - Unsung heroes of the late 70s and 80s whose combination of suave pop, lounge music, and spaghetti westernisms were way ahead of their time.
	Wire - British art-punks who initiated the tradition of linking pop sensibility to intellectual abstractism. From primal punk to arty sound collages in three years, and always sounded great.
	Minutemen - a San Pedro, USA, trio who fused punk to free-form jazz and added left-wing intellectualism to the mixture. Their motto : say what you have to say, and get off. Hence albums full of 1 minute gems with no filler.
	Half Man Half Biscuit - In a league of their own since 1985, Birkenhead's HMHB blend catchy melodies and dire production values with witty and astute observations on British life, the indie music scene, obscure eastern European soccer teams and any other bizarre bits of information that have lodged in the head of main man Nigel Blackwell. John Peel's favourite band.
	Frank Zappa - The late great Mr.Zappa whose vast oeuvre of more than 60 albums spanned classical, jazz, hard rock, fusion, new wave, you name it. And all suffused with wit, humour, smut, a sense of anarchical fun, and two fingers up to the conservatives and the Establishment.

Also worthy of mention: Devo, The Raincoats, Buzzcocks, The Jam, The Who, The Beatles, Husker Du, The Fall, Dead Kennedys, Killing Joke, The Smiths, Can, Magazine, The Stranglers, Carcass, Captain Beefheart, Syd Barrett, The Kinks, King Tubby, Gang of Four, Joy Division, Shonen Knife, The Ramones and Swell Maps.

BAND RESOURCES

IUMA	A useful site where you can promote your own band online for free. They allow you to build a simple homepage which can include MP3 and RealPlayer sound files. They'll even sell your CDs for you if you send them 5 copies. Once you've built your page, you can check to see how well you're doing in the download charts!
Musicians Online	Here you can find record label addresses, reviews of equipment, and submit your demos for scrutiny.
Bandname.com	To protect that inspirational band name (or check that nobody else has already used it) you can register it at this fine institutions which houses a comprehensive database. The Band Register also has connections to A&R people and accepts demos.
The Unofficial Band Names Homepage	An amusing site where you can go for comic relief and realise that your own band name isn't so stupid-sounding after all. Or, if inspiration has totally deserted you, take the plunge and adopt one of the monikers on offer.