Spring Forward

Astrakan and Captain Blood Blood and the Sea Dogs played live on the show. Third time for the Sea Dogs, resplendently in costume for the radio, though for one song only. Still, it's not every day you see a bassist wearing a tricorn hat, is it? Last night T-Lo and I were on the Music for Punks wheels of steel at the Grosvenor in Stockwell. Duncan, our old Suffolk mate from back in the day, was playing a rare acoustic set along with an entertainingly sozzled Frankie Stubbs and fellow punk rock legend TV Smith, who played an epic set. Good to give the old punk vinyl an airing - we would have been happy playing to an empty room but ended up extending our set into the small hours for a select but enthusiastic group of dancers. Not feeling very punk rock today though - I'm missing that hour we were robbed of last night. Curse you British Summer Time!

Brighton Breezy

Starting to get in training for this year's Dunwich Dynamo, I spent a couple of days cycling in East Sussex with Spratticus and Ian. The weather was pretty extreme, and on Thursday we went from being pelted by high velocity icy needles of hail to basking in glorious sunshine within 45 minutes. Picked up a discarded baseball bat on the way and stopped in for a couple of marvellous pints at the Harvey's brewery tap in Lewes, just across the road from the brewery itself.It was at this point that the sun started shining, which is as much evidence as I've ever seen for the existence of God. From there we went upwards and onwards in a 40 mile loop before returning to Brighton to claim a magnificent joint 3rd in a pub quiz. For me blood sugar and cycling exist in a carb-on/offsetting relationship so with all those miles under my belt I felt I had licence to indulge a little more than usual. In addition to breaking my usual 3-pint rule this also meant a massive fry-up the next day at the Carat Cafe at Portslade, where we sought refuge from even more horrendous weather. Looks like I just about got the balance right as I'm still registering respectable blood sugar readings. Top laughs too - cheers chaps!

Brown Ale in Brixton

Pedalled to the Windmill last night for another of James and Michael's excellent Jlesh Munce nights. This time the line up featured Yeborobo and Breakneck Static, both of whom specialise in sonic mayhem of a very pleasing nature, which went down very well with a few bottles of Newcastle Brown. Yeborobo won bonus points for painting their faces and attempting (albeit unsuccessfully) to steal shoes from the audience.

Easter Eggs

Quick catch up on the Easter weekend, which started off with a trip to Old Compton Street to get my hair cut by Paul. He's been tending my locks for over 20 years and more often than not the haircut is followed by a swift pint or three. Several jars later I wobbled down to Acoustic Suicide to catch marvellous sets by Congregation and the Boycott Coca Cola Experience. BCCE were also live on Saturday's show, playing a very entertaining session of quality post-modern blues. Le Shark were live on the show too and equally excellent, with their Frenchified pop antics. The deXter Bentley themed Easter continued on Saturday night at the Half Moon with a line up including Shimmy Rivers And And Canal plus Agaskodo Teliverek, possibly my favourite two bands we've had on the show. Both outfits have relatively new line-ups and were a joy to behold, not least because of their impeccable dress sense - fetching tight shorts for Agaskodo Teliverek and a specially knitted Hello Goodbye jumper being sported by Shimmy's keyboard player. As if all this wasn't fantastic enough, Keith turned up too - turns out he used to live across the road in New York from one of Extradition Order, who were also on the bill.

Eye of the Badger

Finally got my manky mince pie sorted out. After another misdiagnosis from my GP, I went along to the opticians, where a very nice pregnant Irish lady shined her little torch into my eye and found a foreign body wedged into my cornea. She sent me off to Moorfields Eye Hospital toute suite and I sat in the waiting room with a loop of Buñuel's 'Un Chien Andalou' running in my head. Mercifully, the offending item was removed expertly and painlessly by a wonderful Filipino nurse with a needle and I am now free of both pain and blurred vision. Hurrah! The picture above is not a pair of peeled tomatoes but the back of my eyes, which I had photographed while at the opticians. Quite beautiful, I think, and also, I'm told, quite healthy. Which is nice.

You don't get a rainbow at the Rainbow.

Bit slow on updating ye olde blogge this week as a result of an eye infection that still hasn't gone away. Back to the doctor tomorrow, so fingers crossed I'll stop squinting soon. Things I did manage to see through the stinging haze last week included Agaskodo Teliverek playing live on the show last Saturday. I've always thought they'd be fantastic with a drummer and now they have one. He's called Pharoah, and he's great. Add an animated Japanese keytar-playing vocalist and it's clear that the ante has most definitely been upped. Needless to say, the session was a corker. New album 'Psycho Goulash' is scheduled for release later in the year. Caught the train down to Whitstable that night to meet up with Mr Adams and Mr Smith at a Hugh Cornwell gig. It was a strange affair, with the audience sitting in rows of chairs like a school assembly. To add to the effect, the ex-Strangler was perched on a very narrow stage in a terrible suit, looking like a cross between a maitre de and a headmaster. At one point he even stopped playing a song to tell a couple of blokes off for talking. Good job he didn't catch us running in the corridor earlier or there'd have been hell to pay. Nostalgia eh? It's not what it used to be. He's still my favourite Strangler though.

Iechyd da!

More quality sessions for St David's Day, with Serafina Steer and Miss Sills, neither of whom are particularly Welsh, in the studio. Serafina was playing a fantastic mini-harp made by her mum, which sounded amazing. Miss Sills's band were also on top form and coped admirably with the resonance drum kit dismantling itself halfway through one of their songs.

Quails eggs and gingernuts

The week thus far:

Out in Soho on Tuesday night to celebrate the birthday of Mr Adams: Sting lookalike, maninblack and king of the gingernuts.

Then Acoustic Suicide last night with songs sung in Roma and Turkish from Thee Intolerable Kid and songs with judicious use of the c-word, as well as a song dedicated to misunderstood diabetics, from Simon Breed. All of this and free quail's eggs too, I kid you not, making for a very fine evening's entertainment.

And tonight we're staying in - Howard Marks is on TV and looking uncannily like this mask Shelly made today.

Converted Barn Dance

Tales of the East Midlands nouveau riche set to a mediaeval prog background? That'll be Supreme Vagabond Craftsman again, this time playing a marvelous set at the Hello Goodbye night at the Half Moon in Hernia Hill. Also on the bill were the excellent Hamilton Yarns, whose pastoral English whimsicality might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it gives me the same warm glow I get from Vernon Elliot's music for Noggin the Nog and the Clangers. Special mention also to Keshco for fulfilling their promise to have a band member dressed as a proper old fashioned tramp...fitting in nicely with the vagabond theme.

Where's your caravan?

Got some quality time in the Oak with Spratticus and Christina on Sunday. Then down to Selhurst Park with Robert and Tom last night to see the Tractor Boys in action. Every time I've been to a Town game over the last few years they have lost, so it was a bit of a gamble going along to this game just after they'd rediscovered their away form. Fortunately the curse seems to have been lifted and Ipswich romped to a triumphant 1-0 victory. Cracking game, with both players and fans on good form. I'd forgotten how therapeutic it can be to spend a Tuesday evening in a cold stadium shouting 'Blue Army' with a couple of thousand kindred spirits. Wonderful player that Alan Lee is, however, I couldn't quite bring myself to join in singing his praises to the tune of Spandau Ballet's 'Gold'. Be interesting to see how the name of new signing Velice Sumulikoski ('the Macedonian Steven Gerrard') works itself into a chant.

Forest Punk

Brilliant session today from the excellent Supreme Vagabond Craftsman, who are arguably the finest grindcore folk outfit ever to come out of South Leicestershire. Also on the show was Denver Colorado's George Inai, who does a very nice line in mariachi flavoured ballads.

Badger's Badge

Found by Steph in an Essex Road charity shop. You can't argue with the design or the message really, can you?

Milestones

Saturday night in London's oldest restaurant (apparently) for our neighbour Sylvia's 80th birthday bash. Very nice too. Talking of milestones, my trusty Halford's cycle computer tells me I've now ridden 2000 miles since I fitted it on my bike on my last birthday. Not as impressive as Sylvia reaching the big ochenta, I grant you, but still not be sneezed at, I reckon.