Some Came Running

Double birthday bubble with Jo Bole's cumpleaños barbecue on Sunday (where we caught up with the Pants-Archers) and my 44th yesterday. Me and Shelly went to see Vincente Minelli's 1958 classic Some Came Running featuring Frank Sinatra, Shirley Maclaine and Dean Martin...who gets diabetes in the film! It must be noted, however, that Martin's character, the splendidly named Bama Dillert, doesn't present any symptoms whatsoever...didn't these people do any research, or were they trying to make a subtle point about the big DM being the 'silent killer'? I might start collecting on-screen depictions of diabetes - anyone got any suggestions of good ones? Anyhoo, from the BFI we went on to the Oak to meet up with Judge Ed, Mr Adams, T-Lo and SS and thencely to Simply Indian for some very fine curry indeed.

Culinary Similies and Maritime Metaphors

Spin Spin the Dogs, Tap Collective and Me Me Me were on the bill at the Half Moon on Friday night; strange bedfellows in a way but an intriguing combination - like a three course meal assembled from different cuisines. Richard's been struck low with a pretty potent virus so wasn't around for the gig or yesterday's show, which also featured Me Me Me and a solo set from Joanne Robertson, with Ean and me at the helm, skirting very close to radiophonic disaster for 90 minutes but just about keeping the ship afloat. Richard did heroically raise himself from his sickbed last night for the dexter Bentley gig at the anti-folk night at the 12 Bar, which was also the launch night for the new dB single 'Killer Kane', and featured excellent performances from Congregation and Hans Blix & the Inspectors too. Annoyingly I forgot my camera.

Mary Jane

Finally managed to youtube the Dave Cloud vid from the Windmill!

Tap and Gun

Twin-drummer fuelled blues grungers the Tap Collective and acoustic songstress Alice Gun put in splendid performances in a sultry Resonance studio this lunchtime. I managed to make an unscheduled guest appearance on one of Alice's songs as I fell onto the radiator while closing the window to shut out the sound of a passing police siren. Mercifully, I'm told, the resultant clang was in time.

Hog Night

Hooked up with T-Lo again on Wednesday night at the Windmill for another Dave Cloud show. Marvellous stuff - I got some great video footage on my camera but technophobe that I am, I haven't managed to get it on youtube yet. Will be playing the interview and a bit of the audio of the gig on the show tomorrow though.
More quintagenarian antics in Hammersmith last night for the Nicholas Edward Cave gig. Not quite as up close and personal as the Dave Cloud nights since we were perched way up in the gods but it was still an amazing show - with a phenomenal version of Stagger Lee at the end.

Cloud and Proud

Went for a bank holiday spin up to the Angel in Rotherhithe in T-Lo's Spitfire with Alfie in the back seat. Then on to the 12 Bar to see and interview the mighty Dave Cloud, who's flown in from Nashville, via Norway, with the Gospel of Power for a handful of London gigs. They were awesome and entertaining as ever - check them out if you can at the Windmill on Wednesday 7th or the Dirty Water Club on Thursday 8th. You won't regret it. Gerry's new side project Debbie Leggo were also on the 12 Bar bill and very good too - imagine three record players blaring out The Fall, Can and Pink Floyd at the same time while a Scotsman shouts about the devil dipping his horns in his pint and you'll have a pretty close picture.

Universality challenged

An excellent session from the fresh faced and charmingly named Gentle Friendly helped to lift me somewhat from my post-mayoral election depression. GF make a magnificent noise with some great equipment, including a really nice old Jen organ, which they rescued from an old people's home and which Daniel plays while drumming at the same time. Very impressive. I was also cheered up by Robin's brief but welcome return to the fold, celebrated with a backrub from Ean.

Last night I was on the Chelsea team at Yara El-Sherbini's Universality Challenge at the Chelsea Theatre. There was a routemaster bus parked outside so perhaps I was a little premature in my lack of faith in Bo-Jo. Then again, it didn't move all night so perhaps not. My team-mates were Garry (Chelsea - Rutter!), Layla and a theology student called Patrick, who we hadn't met before, but who turned out to be the star of the team. Our opponents were the actual SOAS team who appeared on University Challenge this year, beating Magdalen College Oxford, so they clearly knew their onions. Just seeing my surname in lights activated by pressing a buzzer was reward enough for me, but we also got £20 and free booze and sandwiches! Yara was a great quizmistress with some very amusing questions and miraculously we even knew the answers to a few of them. Even more unexpectedly we ended up winning somehow, despite not knowing the difference between a shepherd's pie and a cottage pie.

Spent most of today dossing about the flat before finally mustering the energy for a stroll up to the Thames, where the tide was remarkably low...waiting for Boris to command it which way to flow no doubt.

Night-mayor

London succumbs to the influence of the world's unfunniest comic, the Evening Standard, and votes in Lord Snooty...and Biffer Bacon of the BNP. Boris Johnson wouldn't know how to run a bath, let alone a city, so don't hold your breath waiting for the return of the routemaster or any reduction in the congestion charge or for bendy buses to disappear. Expect the tube to get worse and the city to get clogged up with 4 x 4's. I don't know who's worse - the Italians for voting Berlusconi back in or Londoners for giving a mandate to an over-privileged bigoted clown.

Deconstructing the weekend

A very busy weekend...

Friday night we were at the South Bank for Pere Ubu's 'Bring Me the Head of Ubu Roi'. It didn't quite hit the mark but did feature a great performance from Sarah Jane Morris and son, as well as some added amusement as avant-garde curmudgeon David Thomas got increasingly exasperated with his under-rehearsed band and crew.

Saturday's 'Hello Goodbye' was an altogether more congenial affair. The show was an Easycome special featuring Post Modern Antiquarian Andy Hankdog along with Jason McNiff & band, Indigo Moss, and Petra Jean Phillipson, all playing separately and then together for a rousing finale of 'Bella Ciao', which it turns out is a revolutionary call to arms and not a tribute to a South London pizzeria. Good to see my old engine room-mate from the Glint days, Mr Steve Brookes, alive and well and playing drums for Jason.

All that live music gives a man a thirst so I then sauntered up the road to the Parquet Mortar to meet T-Lo and Judge Ed for the nearest we get to a Crops rehearsal these days - a fez-wearing five-pintathon.

Worked off the hangover yesterday with a brisk 108 lengths in the pool and a large dose of constructivism at the last day of the Rodchenko exhibition at the Hayward, inspiring stuff indeed. As if that wasn't enough culture for one weekend, we then pedalled up to the Barbican for a screening of 'I Served the King of England', a Czech film based on the novel of the same name by Bohumil Hrabal. There was a Q & A with the director Jiri Menzel (of 'Closely Observed Trains' fame) afterwards, involving a very amusing translator. The film is the story of a waiter in Czechoslovakia before during and after WWII and is showing at the Barbican for a couple of weeks in May and is well worth seeing, though the book (inevitably) is even better.

Mai Lai, Hiroshima, know what I mean?

Here's the quite extraordinary Iron Pirate at another superb Jlesh Munce at the Windmill last night. Actually, I think that technically the feller at the back on the drums is Iron Pirate, but they were amazing anyway, and perhaps the best band from Norwich since the mighty Higsons. Check out their midi-metal mayhem for yourself.

Jeff Lewis was also on the bill but there are no pictures of him as there were two many earnest young men in glasses in front of the stage while he was playing. He did a great trio of Crass songs - Do They Owe Us A Living/Banned From The Roxy/Big A Little A - they certainly don't write em like that any more.

Blood, Filth & Suicide

A deXter Bentley triple this week - out for Ric's birthday and a spot of shoegazing at Acoustic Suicide on Thursday, with a special guest appearance from bon viveur par excellence Monsieur Brodie. Then the Half Moon on Friday, with another great set from Captain Blood Blood and the Sea Dogs (pictured) as well as Le Shark and Le Tetsuo (is 'le' the new 'thee' I wonder?). Ex-XX Teen Seb's new project Gypsy Girl Filth were live on Saturday's show and very good too.

Krakow Dawn!

Back from five days in the land of Po, where soup is served inside a loaf of bread. Did a bit of teaching but mostly mooched around the old town and the Jewish quarter, which is now the location of some very fine drinking establishments. This is a city that hasn't forgotten its past, but which is determined to move on. Na zdrowie!

Spring is in the air

Dogshit Park, SE1 9:15am

Saw Point

Corker of a show today. I know I always say it's good, mostly because it almost always is, but today was a particularly good one. Our old friends Fireworks Night played a great set, with the musical saw making a very welcome appearance. Apparently the saws that are best for performing music with are generally not that great for sawing with, so musicians and carpenters don't have to fight it out in the ironmonger's over who gets the best one. Le Tetsuo's four live songs were short sharp songs of blistering energy and wit in equal measure. Their new EP on the excellent Parlour label is well worth investing in and I nearly managed to avoid mentioning that they come from Norwich, which I will no longer hold against them. All this plus a quite beautiful live song from Jason Mcniff made for a quality 90 minutes of music, and you can't say fairer than that.