Various Artists - The North South Divine

"The North South Divine" was a compilation album released by FF Vinyl (although not on vinyl, only CD) and served as a sonic battleground and a bridge, capturing the energetic diversity of the UK's underground music at the time of its 2004 release. True to its title, the compilation aimed to highlight a musical and cultural dialogue, showcasing bands that were often divided by the media's focus on London-centric scenes versus the potent output from north of the Watford Gap.

With 12 tracks, this collection is genre-fluid journey, blending the raw post-punk edge and earnest indie-pop hooks characteristic of the era. These are not the chart-toppers, but the hard-working acts generating genuine buzz on the club and festival circuit. It functions today as an authentic time capsule, a valuable document that illustrates the geographic spread and stylistic depth of British alternative music before the internet fully flattened local music economies. For anyone interested in the bands that were on the cusp of breaking through in the mid-2000s, The North South Divine is an essential, if rare, listen.

There's no online copy available so I've linked some of the tracks I've found on YouTube.

Track	Artist	Song Title	Length
1	Kentucky AFC	"Outlaw"	3:32
2	JT Mouse	"Numb"	2:06
3	The Afternoons	"That Summer, That Sky"	3:37
4	The Crimea	"White Russian Galaxy"	3:19
5	Gabrielle 25	"Tearing Away"	3:05
6	The Peakz	"Conwy Valley Love Song"	3:24
7	Camera	"I'm Not Ready (Demo)"	3:24
8	Texas Radio Band	"Chwareon"	3:56
9	FILLMORE	"Acrobat"	3:15
10	Science	"Oh, I Hide It Well"	3:15
11	The International Karate Plus	"Nexus In A Chain Of Thought"	3:24
12	Sweet Baboo	"Do Do D Do Charlene"	2:47

The Keys - Love Your Sons & Daughters - 7" single

Released on Too Pure, “Love Your Sons & Daughters” finds Aberyswyth's finest garage export The Keys distilling their appeal into three tightly wound tracks that balance bruising guitar force with an unexpectedly open heart. The title song surges in on a cool sixties guitar, quickly settling into a driving pulse that never quite loosens its grip. There’s a ragged uplift to the melody — a chorus that tells you of so many tears and so many fears — and the vocal sits right on that fault line between tenderness and abrasion. I'm digging the organ solo! The whole song is hooky without being clean, anthemic without ever sounding safe.

The B-side sounds almost of demo quality, but still deepens the picture rather than merely padding it out. “Good As Glue” shifts from outward sweep to inward pressure, built around a thick, slightly trippy psychedelic background that scrapes and snags instead of soaring. Where the A-side pushes forward, this track feels stuck in place — deliberately so — exploring attachment as something adhesive and faintly suffocating. The chorus doesn’t explode; it tightens, pulling everything closer together until the tension itself becomes the hook. It’s a wiry, claustrophobic piece of mushroom influence that rewards repeat listens, revealing sly melodic turns beneath the surface abrasion.

“Echinacea,” by contrast, acts as an acoustic comedown and a quiet aftershock. Named after the herbal remedy, it drifts rather than drives, trading psychedelic swirls for hazier textures by acoustic guitars and a slower, almost narcotic groove. The vocals harmoniously recede into the mix, sounding distant and private, as if overheard in a bar rather than performed. Instead of building toward release, the song gently dissipates, leaving behind a residue of melancholy calm. It’s the most fragile moment on the single, and arguably the most revealing, showing the band’s ability to generate atmosphere without abandoning intensity.

Taken as a whole, the record feels less like a traditional single and more like a miniature emotional arc: a surge of communal feeling, a knot of dependency, and a muted recovery. What stands out is the absence of irony. “Love Your Sons & Daughters” may not polish its emotions into radio sheen, but that’s precisely its strength — it burns, wobbles, and finally exhales, leaving the impression of a band far more nuanced than a single blast of guitar noise might suggest.

‘People & Planet’ protest held at Esso garage on A55

The Esso garage on the A55 near Northop became a flashpoint for environmental direct action in North Wales. Organised by the student network People & Planet, the protest was a local spearhead for the international "Stop Esso" campaign, which sought to hold the oil giant accountable for its role in the escalating climate crisis.

The timing of the protest was significant, occurring just ten days after the start of the Iraq War. For the activists gathered on the A55, the issues of renewable energy and global conflict were inextricably linked. While other oil "supermajors" had begun making tentative steps toward green energy, Esso remained a staunch holdout, famously refusing to invest in wind, solar, or tidal power. Protesters used the high visibility of the A55—the main transit artery for North Wales—to highlight Esso’s active lobbying against the Kyoto Protocol and its perceived influence on oil-centric foreign policy.

Tactically, the demonstration was designed to engage motorists through subversion and visual storytelling. Activists frequently wore distressed tiger costumes—a mockery of the iconic "Put a Tiger in Your Tank" slogan—and displayed a modified Esso logo where the "SS" was replaced with dollar signs ($$) to symbolise corporate greed. By leafleting drivers and encouraging a boycott, the group aimed to hit the company's profits to force a shift in environmental policy.

The A55 protest was a critical component of a wider movement that eventually saw 1 in 20 UK motorists avoiding the brand. It cemented a legacy of student-led activism in the region, proving that local actions on a North Wales roadside could contribute to a massive national conversation about climate change, fossil fuels, and the urgent need for a transition to renewable energy.