Pulco

Creeping stealthily from his attic studio, Pulco is the current recording project of ex Derrero singer / guitarist Ash Cooke

Ash started making ambitious home recordings in his adolescence before forming Derrero with Falmouth college friends Andy Fung and Dave Hirst in 1995.

Relocating to Cardiff a year later, Derrero released their debut album on big noise records, with three EP’s and two albums to follow.

The Radar Intruder and Unstraightforwardtune singles got played almost everywhere, and were particular favourites with John Peel and Steve Lamacq. Not to mention being b-listed on radio 2 and gaining lots of plays on daytime radio 1.

Both videos for these singles were broadcast on MTV’s alternative nation
The band also recorded three sessions and a live broadcast for John Peel.

During their career, Derrero toured with the likes of Super Furry Animals, Sebadoh, Gorkys Zygotic Mynci, Catatonia and grandaddy before heading to Europe with ex Boo Radley Martin Carr’s brave captain project in 2001.

The bands last album, comb the breaks, was recorded and released by the Welsh group Melys on their Sylem label. The record got rave reviews and still stands as a confident and multicoloured collection of songs.

With the birth of his son in 2002, ash decided to bow out of band comittments to concentrate on the Pulco project, and has continued to record via his attic studio.

His first sonic adventure, Cactus Fog was released in 2003 by cardiff label musicbox records and received lots of support from the likes of BBC DJ Adam Walton and the BBC session in Wales.

Second album Wengen made a few appearances on John Peels show before his sad passing and saw ash set up the Redlip Record label. Wengen has since been re-released on Folkwit Records (f0010).

Pulco music tiptoes along the colourful lyrical road that listeners have come to expect from Ash's songs. On his latest album Undersea Adventure tales of giant squid fights, breath hold divers and recipies for sardines mingle amongst the sounds of tin whistles, ukuleles and cheesy keyboards.

Wengen is an album I'd recommend to everyone, even people I don't like! The winsome Welsh country leaves me wondering where Cardiff ends and Montanna begins. There is odd stuff here and it's as perfect as you'll get in a verse / chorus format.
(Unpeeled magazine Sept 04)

"Derrero are a quietly evolving band who have managed to meld the panoramic ideas of their native kinfolk into one brash and quite brilliantly harmonious whole. Like a young lad returning from a spot of inner-city rioting, Derrero are invincible, buzzing like crazy and full of ideas. And if that's not a recipe for success, what is?" (NME)

"Derrero err on the side of barmy, dallying with all manner of perverse linguistic joys." (NME)

"Derrero are four fluffy Indie sprites who would appear to love Buffalo Springfield just as much as they worship Aphrodite's Child. "Fixation" is so bewildering in its eclecticism that it's impossible to keep up with whatever fresh madness is on the way. From the trippy, lilting folk of "Step from the Casket" to the supremely entertaining shouty progpunk fuzzpop of live favourite "Mudskipper", Derrero's twisted tomfoolery will orbit your noggin till you're smile is a mile wide." (Rocksound)

"Swoonsome sliver of nu Welsh psychedelia, like mercury rev serenading Gorky's Zygotic Mynci in a lukewarm bath. Includes the immortal line "you're orbiting my noggin", scoring full marks on the fol-de-rol-ometer." (Melody Maker)

"Undersea Adventure" (f0007).

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"Wengen" (f0010)

A combination of melodies as sweet as the first flower of spring and distorted screams as intense as a shovelful of English mustard. The fact that the band are into visual arts comes as no surprise, for if sound came in colours, this album would be all of them. "Floaters" is an exceptional beginning and although it's a soft/loud, soft/loud song, you won't have heard it done quite like this. "Pets/Coppice" is coming at you from a similar direction, but tracks like "Lassoe" and "Suntan" are the musings of a quieter mind and balance the album out nicely. Oh, and if you think you've heard weird lyrics before, then cast your ear Derrero's way; only then will you know what weird lyrics really are." (the Fly)

Wengen is Ash Cooke's second release under the Pulco moniker since Derrero were wound up in 2002. This a confident and assured set of songs that stands up well to repeated listens. Okay, I'll rephrase that, it actually improves with repeated listens. Essentially a quiet, laidback album, washes of electronica help pad out the songs and raise Wengen above the level of mere guided by voices / Gorky's pastiche. Shades of Derrero can also be found here, but not to the extent that listeners will hear radar intruder' part two. It is a home-made affair done for the sheer rambunctious enjoyment of it, and at a time when many musicians create music as merely incidental to their libertines-lite soap opera 'excesses', this certainly deserves merit.
(Soundnation Magazine )

For further information please visit Pulco's website :

Pulco_Music

www.myspace.com/PULCO