Sonar Group Home

What’s happening in Sonar World?

Welcome to the Sonar Group. We are a family run independent record and publishing company based in Coventry, UK. We have been established here for over 30 years and have several labels – Sonar Records, Frantic Records, Psalm Reader Records, and Dodgy Ticket Records and have a catalogue of local artists on vinyl and CD.

You can see us at The Coventry Music Museum  and find our products on sale at HEAD records in Leamington Priors

Hear us on spotify – search for Sonar Group Playlist or Mysterious Monks Music.

 
New shop

We have been using Groovy cart for our vinyl retailer but unfortunately they closed this year so I’ve moved the shop to Band camp.  New products for 2020 are the Sonar Records Vinyl Clocks in 2 sizes – 7″ and 12″ –  Find them here. 

CARY L – BACK IN THE STUDIO AGAIN for 2020

Cary has been back into Big Sky Studio to start work on her third album with the working title ‘Songs from the Dairy’.  This is her first all country album with 14 original songs  in ‘the can’ awaiting mixing.  Cary is recruiting extra help from various musicians across the globe on this one – Steve Giddings plays lap steel on a few of the tracks and Nashville based McMillan brothers contribute banjo, harmonica and fiddle.

MYSTERIOUS MONKS – LATEST NEWS

The Monks have been working on a new album of original songs and this has now been released. Arcanum Monachis is the latest work from the monks, 11 original tunes in the monks usual style. 

JULY 2019

Cary L has her track ‘Single Bed’ on the latest ‘ALTERNATIVE SOUNDS VOL III’  available from Bandcamp or Head Records in Leamington spa.

 

aPRIL 2019

Sonar Artists Crokodile Tears and Cary L are now in the official local charts with Paul Sanders at 24 and 26 respectively!!!!

Here is Week 57 Of The Official Local Charts

01. Abz Winter Alright Now
02. Matty Rock N Coles I Wanna Be High!
03. MC Curtis Liburd Ends Man
04. RG The Baron Overcome
05. Luna & The MoonHounds Don’t Follow Me
06. Wayne Stacey Puppet On A Shoe String 
07. Andy Beglin The Beast & The Temptress
08. DABB4 Fire In Her Eyes
09. AutoPilot Brain Cell
10. Cathy Beech Hello ‘ Cruel World
11. David Duquemin What Used To Be
12. Ian Hough ‘Huffy’ Airwaves
13. Taylor-Louise Thomas Blessed With A Curse
14. CVBE Wild Soul 
15. Bobbie Lord Be You
16. Long Good Fridays Amplified
17.Shannon Stevenson Take You Back Kylus Kdubz Ezekiel
18. Izzie Derry & Band Life Is A Gift (Live) 
19. Jim Thomason Famous Engineer 
20. Man Made Moon Tourist/Not So Haunted
21. Shanghai Hostage Step To Far
22. APE (Adam Collins) Hey Heather 
23. Joe Deverell-Smith Toothbrush Song
24. CroKodile Tears Kidz/ Norwegian Wood 
25. Bill Bates The Brexit Song
26. Cary Lord Single Bed
27. Chalk Drawings Rag & Bone
28. Perfect Storm Keeping Hope Alive (Charity)
29. Rosetta Fire Shakedown 
30. Louie Forde Maisie’s Song

march 2019

The Mysterious Monks are working on a new album for release in 2019.  We are looking forward to RECORD STORE DAY on Saturday 13th April.  Be sure to check out our vinyl products in Head records in leamington Spa!

October
JANUARY 2019 

Happy birthday to Croks main man Christopher Sidwell who celebrates this month!!

October

Hello October, with Christmas within our sights, you might want to get down to HEAD RECORDS in Leamington Priors and pick up some Sonar stocking fillers!

AUGUST 2018

Great news that HEAD records in Leamington Priors are now stocking Sonar Artist products!!!    Pop in to browse Crokodile Tears, Courtiers Of Fashion, Furious apples, Cary L, 20 Days, The Sweethearts and Mysterious Monks.  Treat yourself to a limited edition 12″ from Laughing House, Decipher the mystery of the Monks with their CD’s,  discover what was ‘Maid In Meriden’, and do a spot of ‘Engineering’ all at leisure under the cover of the Priors shopping centre, Leamington Spa!!

 

Dodgy Ticket artists Crokodile Tears release their new album ‘Old Skool’ this month. Catch them at the Magic Lantern in Leamington spa on August 10th

Get the ‘Alternative Sounds – volume Two’ from here – support Coventry artists!

Cary L track ‘Single Bed’ from her new album ‘Only The Night Knows’ is the featured song for August on HILLZFM. The album ‘Only The Night Knows’ is on heavy rotation on the Keith Fabrique show!!

JULY 2018

Cary L album featured on Keith Fabrique’s rock show  the recently released ‘Only the Night Knows’  whose Blush track “Seven Years” is on “Volume Two” of the alternative sounds anthology.  Keith played four tracks from the album: “Love On Ice”, “Single Bed” “Only the Night Knows” & “Get A Grip” Both “Single Bed” and “Get a Grip” have also been recorded by Cary’s 1990s band Viktoria’s Sekrets and of course “Get A Grip” is on the 1980 ‘Boys & Girls Come Out to Play’ EP performed by her first band the legendary L’Homme de Terre. Those of you who came to our event on Friday will have heard Cary perform both the latter songs, “Single Bed” as a duet with co-writer Christopher Sidwelll

Find us at the Alternative Sounds party at the Golden Cross pub in Coventry on Friday 20th July at 7.00pm.  See you there!

Several video clips available on Cary’s page

The new album by Cary L – Only The Night Knows – is now available in the Sonar shop.

JUNE 2018

We now have the fantastic ‘Alternative sounds Volume 2’ CD in our mitts!  What an amazing job these guys have done – So much history here – we are proud to be associated with this and look forward to more of the same !!  Available for digital download or as a physical CD

Alt Sounds Volume 2 with 3 Sonar artists
Alt Sounds Volume 2 with 3 Sonar artists
MAY 2018

02/05 Just listened to HILLZFM and Keith Fabrique’s interview – a mega 7 parter – Keith played a selection of tracks from ‘Mysterious Monks’, ‘The Sweethearts’, ‘Blush’ and ‘Cary L’  in-between stories from Jon and Cary reminiscing over the years and talking about the up and coming release of The Alternative Sounds Compilation CD Volume 2.

The Mysterious Monks have been working hard and have a couple of albums in the can. Working on a release date soon.

Cary L has nearly finished her album and is trying to decide on an album title and artwork for iminent release.

APRIL 2018

Finished our ‘father and daughter’ interview with the fabulous Keith Fabrique at Tinkle studio.  We talked about the Mysterious Monks, Blush, Cary L, L’Homme De Terre, Cabin Studio and the general Coventry scene back in the eighties. Lots of memories and we have two tracks on the new  Alternative Sounds – VOLUME 2   – Looking forward to hearing it on Hillz fm due to be broadcast on 2nd May 2018.

Cary contributing to a book being written by Keith Hancock (Mosquitoes, DT’s) about the Leamington and Warwick music scene

3 months of the year gone already and April sees ‘ALTERNATIVE SOUNDS VOL 2’ line up completed. Sonar artists Courtiers of Fashion, Mysterious Monks and Blush appear on this volume and it is down to the hard work of Martin Bowes and Andy Holdcroft that this project has come together.  These compilation albums are a historical voice for Coventry bands reflecting the scene back in the day – it wasn’t just all about the ska you know!     Alternative Sounds – VOLUME 2

MARCH 2018

Snow resulted in the alternative sounds launch date for Vol 1 being delayed;

FEBRUARY 2018

More studio sessions at Big Sky;

Tracks from the Monks and Blush accepted onto the Alternative Sounds Vol 2 – Exciting stuff!!

January 2018

Happy New Year from the Sonar Records Group!! A new year for new music.

Cary is in Big Sky studios again working on some bass and vocal tracks. She hopes to be finished by early Feburary and mixing….

Jake on drums at Big Sky Studio drumming for Sonar Artist Cary L
Jake on drums at Big Sky Studio drumming for Sonar Artist Cary L

Volume One of the long awaited Alternative Sounds CD has been released and features Sonar artists as well as many of the bands who recorded at Cabin Studio – The Primitives, Crokodile Tears, Giraffes and Furious Apples.   Further info here Alternative Sounds

The Mysterious Monks are also working on new material for the new year

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SEPTEMBER 2017

Find your Sonar Artists on Apple Music

Cary is in the studio this week with a Ukulele player to nail down her latest track

 
Les Paul Gold top chilling out
Les Paul Gold top chilling out
 
AUGUST
  • Don’t forget to stream the Sonar playlist in Spotify
  • Blush track ‘Groundhog Day’ was played on Radio 1;
  • Cary working on new tracks at Big Sky Studio with Josh producing and Jake drumming;
  • Find us on Facebook
  • Video of the month – Mysterious Monks – Money Lender

July
  • Our new website has been launched!;
  • Cary L is in the studio recording some new tracks for the Summer!
  • Mysterious Monks release new album ‘Viva Voce’ available through our vinyl and CD store;
  • Crokodile Tears play the Godiva Festival;
  • Martin Bowes from Coventry Band Attrition is compiling a special album to celebrate the Coventry Music Museum
Updated 13/03/2019

The Sonar Group

The Sonar Group

We are a family run independent Record and Music Publishing company based in Coventry, England.  Established for over 30 years we have a catalogue of predominantly Coventry based artists.  To celebrate our 25 year anniversary in 2009 we released a compilation album (Sonar Music – 25 years)  and Chris Sidwell (Crokodile Tears) put together a press release for the album which explains it all…..

Plumbing the depths of Sonar Records – 2009

Liverpool had the Cavern Club and Ringo Starr but here in Coventry we had Cabin Studios and Robin Hill.  

It’s hard to believe that we’ve now had over 25 years of Sonar Music and indeed Cabin Studios and that’s all thanks largely to one man, Jon Lord (but not the one in Deep Purple as he always reminds us!) Producer Paul Sampson who has also been at the Cabin from the start crops up a lot on these tracks and is well known for his work with Catatonia and the Primitives along with many others.

Gdansk take their name from a place far, far away. ‘Stand up’ is taken from their first E. P. and feature the Cunningham (Cov’s very own Gallagher?) brother and are still gigging today. This might make Gdansk one of the longest running of the ‘new wave’ of Cov. bands (post Lft. Pigeon).

Continue reading “The Sonar Group”

Sonar Artists

Mysterious Monks

Sonar artists ‘Mysterious  Monks’ hail from Coventry and have a mysterious, yet fascinating history with the Sonar label.

Graham Wale (keyboards, lead vocals, composer) and Jon Lord. (lyricist and lead vocals) have been meeting every week to write songs together for over 45 years. They have released 4 CD albums on our Psalm Reader record label available to purchase through the sonar shop.  Read more about them here.

Crokodile Tears

Coventry artists The Croks have been releasing product on dodgy Ticket records since the beginning. See the homepage for latest news.

Read more history of the Croks and find out what they are up to here.  THE TREES is a new project from Chris Sidwell.

Cary L

Cary has had a varied musical career since forming ‘L’Homme De Terre’ and releasing product on Sonar records since the beginning.  Various names including Blush and Cary L albums are now all available from the Sonar Shop.   See her own page for more details.  Her albums are now also available in HEAD RECORDS Leamington Spa!!

The Sweethearts

Coventry’s hip duo take their influences from American sitcom ‘Laverne and Shirley’ for the immensely catchy ‘Laverne I Love You’. Once this gets into your head you won’t get rid of it.  Read more about the duo here.

The Sweethearts have an EP ‘Rock Happy with the Sweethearts’ and the single ‘Laverne I Love you’ available from the Sonar shop

Furious Apples

Much loved Coventry band fronted by Greg Crabb with his brother on guitar.

Courtiers of fashion

Coventry guitarist/singer/songwriter, Dave Pepper played guitar with Coventry punk band the X-Certs, who began life in 1978 and lasted for 3 years. Between leaving the X-Certs and starting up his biggest band in the U.K (Blitzkrieg Zone), Dave flirted with several musical styles,  one of which was the new romanticism of ‘Courtiers of fashion’.  This is a very rare recording originally released in 1983, the first record on the Sonar record label now available as vinyl or download.

20 Days

Brilliant underrated new wave Coventry band – read more

The Sonar Music 25th Anniversary Album

2009 saw the anniversary of the Sonar Records Group of labels set up by Jon Lord.  We decided to see if any of the bands that had released product on the labels would like to get together for a gig and guess what….they did!

Read more here

Contact

How to contact us

We can be contacted on office@sonar-records.demon.co.uk

Please direct any enquiries for postage abroad to this email.

 

 

Retail Shop

Retail Shop

Welcome to our retail shop. We sell physical vinyl and CD’s from our Sonar Artists -and can ship Worldwide. Please click on the link below

Thanks for looking, come back soon!