Antigen Records

06/07/2025

"I haven't heard anything like that in this studio... EVER" - Paul Dupree is left stunned when his reaction to a live version of Bleephead by Rev Simpkins is turned into a clickbait headline on the antigen records page, designed to entice casual readers into clicking 'see more'.

Paul chats with the Rev'd Matthew Simpkins about music, meningitis and the genius of John Callaghan. And he discovers how Bloaty Head from Theme Hospital inspired their recent video collaboration. Features two exclusive live tracks.

Listen on Chelmsford's one and only City Sound Radio (Rev chat approximately 40 minutes in): https://www.mixcloud.com/CitySoundChelmsford/transmission-w-paul-dupree-guest-rev-simpkins-020725/

05/07/2025

In an auspicious move that bodes well for the their chance of securing promotion next season, Ipswich Town Football Club launch their 25/26 home and away kits to the sound of Beehive by Gaffa Tape Sandy.

If you can't afford 60 quid for a shirt, you can still show your support* by purchasing a vocal version of the soundtrack on 7" for a mere £7 from: https://antigenrecords.com/releases/meat-head-beehive/

* For antigen records (not affiliated with ITFC in any way). All proceeds will be wasted on releasing more records.

04/07/2025

Update to Wednesday’s post. Human recording artist Ben Brown is at risk of losing his primary revenue stream – eating vegetables for likes on Instagram – after Spotify CEO Daniel Ek unveiled a new AI-powered cucumber-eating machine, which can masticate salad items into unrecognisable pulp without any human intervention.

The device was developed by his tech bro pals at Helsing AI, during downtime from designing autonomous strike drones to ethically protect our common democratic values.

Ek hopes the machine will provide monthly subscribers with guilt-free mechanised mulching entertainment, without the tiresome inconvenience of compensating individual artists like Ben for their vegetable-based creative output.

Is this ethical? Let us know in the comments.

PS. I know cucumbers are fruit. Don't make me block you.

02/07/2025

We received a message yesterday from human recording artist Ben Brown (pictured below, eating a cucumber for attention) warning us about The Velvet Sundown, a band he believes to be made entirely of AI.

Although I suspect an elaborate publicity stunt by a real band so musically unadventurous they just sound like someone typed “create soulless dinner party music for people who find The War On Drugs too edgy” into ChatGPT, I genuinely hope they are the product of a malign machine intelligence lurking in a network of fibre-optic cables.

Then, we’ll finally have the future Spotify CEO Daniel Ek imagined for us all – AI-generated music, curated by streaming algorithms, for a fake audience of bots. And all we humans have to do is work 40-hour weeks to generate the power to run the servers.

But you might not agree. You might prefer a future listening to Ben Brown, whose work is in many ways the opposite of Artificial Intelligence. It is real. And he posts clips of himself on Instagram, eating salad vegetables for likes.

Do you have an opinion? If so, vote now and we'll let the internet decide.

29/06/2025

A tough choice for fans of Nigel Farage at 5pm today. Do they tune in to Rod Stewart at Glastonbury to hear an 80-year-old multi-millionaire exhort the crowd to 'give Farage a chance'?

Or do they head to Leigh-on-Sea to meet the musician who will be responsible for ministering to Nigel's spiritual needs, as his local Anglican priest, when he takes over at St. James's and St. Christopher's in Clacton-on-Sea and Jaywick, in September.

Catch Rev Simpkins performing at the Fishermen's Chapel at 5pm today, as part of Leigh Folk Festival.

21/06/2025

On 6 June, Rev Simpkins pumped himself full of steroids for the live launch of Headwater at The Minories in Colchester. Delivering a juiced-up power trio set of tracks from his new album, plus crowd-pleasers from Big Sea and Pissabed Prophet - his 2023 collaboration with Ben Brown of SuperGlu and DINGUS KHAN (who injured himself yet again, accompanying the Rev with overenthusiastic fireplace log percussion).

Thanks to everyone who turned up. If you missed it, you can read about it in the International Times. Find your way to the review by navigating the comments below.

Photo: Geoff Lawrence bags the money shot - special guest John Callaghan ending his set with the notorious Tear My Body Out. A song that instantly separates the audience into two groups - people who’ve seen John before and people who thought they were safe in the garden.

17/06/2025

How do YOU discover new music?

Perhaps you like your music served up by a predictive algorithm developed by a team of tech bros, who’ve programmed a vast machine intelligence to learn your music tastes by analysing your online shopping lists and the cat videos you watch on Instagram?

Or perhaps, like us, you tune into the mutterings of a wizened seer dwelling in the Soup Caves of Oregon...

It's time to plug our favourite radio show - The Beat Goes On, with Zaph Mann (formerly the In Memory Of John Peel show).

If Spotify is the aural equivalent of vanilla Angel Delight, then The Beat Goes On is like a taster menu at the Fat Duck, and Zaph is the Heston Blumenthal of radio playlisting. One moment it's snail porridge, the next, it's reindeer milk ice cream scrambled in liquid nitrogen.

Always ahead of the curve, Zaph is first to play a track from the new Rev Simpkins album, Headwater. You can hear it by following the listening instructions in the comments.

25/05/2025

Cashing in on the enduring popularity of father-son double acts with his Christian fanbase, Rev Simpkins has roped in son Jim to provide drums for his show at The Minories in Colchester on 6 June. They will be performing songs from their new album Headwater (copies of which will be available on the night) and hits from the Rev Simpkins back catalogue.

Also on the bill, the incomparable John Callaghan, with a repertoire full of songs and a suitcase full of costumes to delight and confound the expectations of the audience.

Event details: https://www.facebook.com/events/1862622167835463/

Album details: see below

21/05/2025

In November 2023, Rev Simpkins was hospitalised with aseptic meningitis, a rare side-effect of the immunotherapy treatment he was receiving for stage 4 metastasized melanoma. Slipping in and out of delirium, he fashioned a Mini-Matt from a urinal bottle for company. Now, he has created something arguably even more impressive, inspired by his experience as an in-patient.

Headwater is the new Rev Simpkins album, available on CD from 6th June 2024. Eleven songs and hallucinations from the brink, diving deep into – and out of – the dark waters of a seemingly terminal illness. Using analogue oscillators and synthesisers, he tried to recreate the sounds and visions he experienced on the hospital ward as music. Then, as he convalesced at home, he worked with his son Jim to flesh out these sketches into songs.

Headwater charts an extraordinary journey of recovery, from a time approaching death, to the moment when he became the first person to be discharged from care services provided by his local hospice-at-home team.

20/04/2025

DEAD RAT ORCHESTRA may not be a band that many people associate with aerobic exercise, but that's about to change as hollerin' harmonium hammerer Robin Alderton takes on the challenge of the London Marathon on Sunday 27 April.

He's raising money for RAMA, a voluntary organisation in Colchester working with refugees, asylum seekers and people with no recourse to public funds, offering practical support and advocacy for families and individuals coming into the area, helping them navigate the challenges of coming to a new city and addressing the inequalities they face in accessing services.

Donation link here:

I'm Robin and on Sunday 27th April I'm lucky enough to be running the London Marathon. This is my first marathon and the furthest I'll have ever run. In fact, I was rubbish at sport as a kid and hated

13/04/2025

In 2011, we teamed up with Andrew Laws to co-release a compilation capturing 30 years of punk, indie and miscellaneous oddities originating from our adopted home town of Ipswich.

Now, Andrew speaks publicly for the first time about the trauma of working with antigen on The Ugly Truth About Ipswich!

If you love Nik Kershaw and Extreme Noise Terror, you'll be thrilled to discover they both feature on this record. And we still have a few left, following the discovery of a box in the attic last year. 45 tracks on two glass-mastered CDs for only £2.99 (blame inflation).

Review and purchase details below

Ipswich: home to tractors, questionable nightlife… and one of the most underrated music scenes ever. This Bonus Bobbins episode dives into The Ugly Truth Abo...

06/04/2025

The rumours are true. Rev Simpkins made a low-key return to the live stage last night in Colchester, for the first time since he overexerted himself in Chelmsford in November 2023. Several hospitalizations and many kilograms of medication later, he is getting himself gig-fit for the launch of his new album. An album we will be releasing in June!

Your first opportunity to pick up a copy will be at the launch gig in the Commons Café at the Minories in Colchester on Friday 6 June. Matt will be performing a selection of material from the new album, plus greatest hits, with his son Jim and best friend Tony.

Also, on the bill, the irrepressible John Callaghan, with a suitcase full of surprises and a digital device full of tunes from his excellent new album, Thought Soup.

Tickets are genuinely selling fast for this. Don't miss out. Here's the link: https://wegottickets.com/event/653232