Family man. 90s teenager. Music fan. Dog Owner. Office worker. Twitter’er!

How did Brits and Pieces account come about?

I kept a few bits from the 90s in my loft. One of those things was the Suede setlist from V98. I thought others might want to see it, so I posted up under my personal Twitter account. I tagged the excellent @britpopmemories account. It got a great reaction, so I set up my own account and posted up a few more ‘bits & pieces’. 

Who were your go to bands growing up?

Oasis and Ocean Colour Scene were played continuously. My first gig was Oasis at Knebworth. OCS at the Royal Albert Hall wasn’t far behind. Noel and Weller turned up for that one. The roof nearly came off when they appeared. I was hooked. The other big bands played a big part too. If they played at V97 or V98, chances are they were on my walkman. It’s not all Britpop though. I’m a big Green Day fan, I don’t mind a bit of Bowling for Soup and love my Beatles bootlegs.

Tell us a bit about the Album. How did the idea come about?

As my account gained followers, people started recommending new music. I was very stuck in the 90s. In fact, not even the 90s – very specific mainstream bands from 1995 onwards!. (I call Be Here Now a newer Oasis album!). I tried a couple of tracks and discovered that some of these newer bands were obviously influenced by the 90s bands I grew up with. There was a ‘wow moment’.

The amount of quality new music out there was overwhelming. It’s so easy to stream a song and move on to the next one without fully digesting the first. I had an idea to concentrate a few tracks onto one CD.

I thought we could all chip in a few quid and give away a sample CD to radio stations etc. I’d just be the ‘organiser’. Then I think it was @Oasispodcast that said something about the charts…..

Covid happened. Gigs got cancelled. Streaming revenue hit the headlines. I thought the bands could make a few quid out of it.  It all started to link together and form a project.

I also thought that being able to tell someone you have an album in the charts would be an amazing feeling. I can’t sing, and I can only play the intro to about 5 Oasis songs on an acoustic guitar, so this is another way of doing it!

Great, but very surreal. I’ve never met any of them but I feel like we are all part of an exclusive club! There is fantastic community spirit about the whole thing. I’m sure they were wondering who this guy was with this mad idea.Then there is Will who was recommended for the artwork – again, an absolute pleasure to work with. Nick Brine stepped up to help produce the master CD. I still can’t believe he did that just a couple of weeks after I saw him on TV walking around Rockfield Studios with Noel Gallagher. Legend.

Wow. I’m not sure where to start. The endorsements and support are right up there. The Twitter music community is the friendliest group of people. From the bloggers and podcasts presenters, to the national press and radio presenters, it’s all a bit surreal. Horace Panter (Specials) and Robert ‘Begbie’ Carlyle sent me an email today asking for a promo copy. What’s all that about???!

Do you have plans for the album to go on Vinyl?

At least one of the bands has an exclusive deal with someone for the single I used, so it’s a no for now. Maybe a reissue one day!

Who are you currently listening to on the indie scene?

Other than the obvious, I heard the Kairos recently. Check them out. Also Cruel Hearts Club. Both play with attitude.

A Question is always as is what would you like to change about the current Music Industry?

I’ve listened to a lot of radio since working from home. I still think that’s how a lot of people discover new music. I’d love to see more listener recommendations (and less scripted playlists) to open up the variety.

If you were booking Glastonbury, who would be your main acts on each night?

Liam Gallagher, Noel Gallagher (Weller can join Noel for Talk Tonight). Ocean Colour Scene (Liam can come on for a Daytripper finale). Green Day. Paul McCartney. It’s an extended Glasto!

You have £1 in the Jukebox what three tunes are going on in the pub?   

Live Forever, Supersonic, Champagne Supernova (did I mention I like Oasis?).

Thank you to Marc for answering my questions! Remember this is a great idea with all the profit going to the artists involved!! You Pre order your copy now via the link below and please help support this album by letting your friends family and even rivals now that Brits & Pieces is out December 11th!!!!

Pre Order the Album

Brits & Pieces Twitter

The Music 

All bands have an indie feel to them, ranging from acoustic to sing along indie anthems, with a bit of something different for good measure! The majority of bands were recommended to Marc on social media.

Track No.	Artist	Song
1	Spyres	Otherside
2	The Capollos	Electrify
3	New Mode	Victim to the Culture
4	Columbia	This Life
5	Theatre Royal	Locked Together on the Lines
6	Citylightz	They Don’t Know Me
7	Monza Express	Crying on the Radio
8	The Shed Project	Lucky Number
9	Ry Byron	Humans
10	Joshua Grant	Edinburgh
11	Stanleys	A Better Life
12	1Backspace	Letting Go
13	The Lutras	Run & Hide
14	Kid Violet	Lights Out
15	The Van Ts	Seeing Stars
16	Glass Violet	Over the Moor
17	Joe Astley	Anthem for the North
18	The Mariners	Don’t Ask Once