Latest releases reviewed

VARIOUS
The Tube Volume 1 Network
*****

In the 1980s, cheeky chappie Jools Holland and flirty floozie Paula Yates redefined music television on Channel 4's The Tube. The bratty counterpart to the flaccid and pompous Old Grey Whistle Test, the programme concentrated on music's bright young things. There are some riveting performances here from a very young U2, The Undertones, Soft Cell and Madness - as well as the memorable last-ever performance by The Jam. The interviews with the bands are an irreverent hoot, and Yates in particular excels herself with her sweetly delivered put-downs. Remember, this was all at a time when Channel 4 took the show off the air for three weeks because Holland used the term "groovy fuckers" during a live broadcast. Everything here is tremendous (except Robert Palmer, obviously) and the second DVD has a good Inner Tube Stories feature about the making of the show. This is a cracking reminder of just how good The Tube was. Groovy fuckers, indeed.

Brian Boyd

VARIOUS
Moog Plexifilm
***

Bob Moog was one of electronic music's first frontiersmen, a technician who began turning out a bewildering array of new instruments from his workshop back in the 1940s. Best known for the analog synthesiser with electronic components which bears his name, and continues to give experimental and wayward musicians the satisfying squelchy sound they desire, Moog is the subject of Hans Fjellstad's fascinating documentary about the history of this synth. Fjellstad takes the story from the early days, when the Moog was dismissed as a silly gimmick, right through to its everyday use by the likes of The Beatles, Stevie Wonder, various prog-rock proponents and, of course, the electronic music community. While there's a welterweight of talking heads and guests musicians (from Bootsy Collins and Rick Wakeman to Stereolab, Jean-Jacques Perry and Money Mark), the real star of the show is the quiet, self-effacing Moog - and, of course, his trusty synth. www.moogmovie.com

Jim Carroll