....Last night Liam and I went to Hoxton Hall to see the third in a series of comedy nights curated by Dave Gorman.
His 'Screen Guild' is a lovely, intimate event where he comperes, before introducing four lesser known, (to us, but liked by him), acts.
Hoxton Hall
Gorman himself is a very endearing character, an observational comic with a great deal of his material streamed from the internet. Tonight he introduces a new format, (and soon to be tour), involving PowerPoint as an aide. It works.
The acts were similarly good. Ed Gamble opened, whose fruit allergy acronyms stole the show. Next, Morgan & West, 'Victorian Magicians', delighted with their involving, intriguing and great set.
Morgan & West
After the break Tom Wrigglesworth took to the stage and after a shaky start involving a bit too much race and religion, won the crowd over easily. Last on the bill, and the only woman, was Helen Keen. She probably had to work the hardest of everyone, but that didn't stop an assured and funny performance.
Tom Wrigglesworth
All in all, a great night, in a great setting, curated by a man with more strings to his bow than you could imagine.
....After the exertion of the previous day, Kel & I slept in and had no real agenda. Despite that, we managed a fair amount. Our first point of call was to recruit Doug on our search for a local burger, that had suddenly become the only nourishment that mattered. We settled with a Gourmet Burger, (in an unusually, off peak, soulless Spitalfields), which actually hit the spot perfectly.
The show exhibits the British photographer's work from 1981 - 2006, which in it's entirety is a vast body of work, but on display was a carefully edited cross section.
[Photo from a series documenting Britain's jobless in the 80s]
I enjoyed the work, generally preferring his earlier photographs across Britain & Europe to those taken in the US. The vivid colour and often large scale printing of the imagery, gave many of the pieces an almost textural, painterly aspect that was startling.
House viewing: A couple view one of Graham's middle America shots, (c/o Doug)
Graham's documentation is a theme that he retains throughout, and where I find most success and reward in his work. 'A1 - The Great North Road (1981-82)' follows exactly that - be it photos of the road itself, or the characters met along the way.
Similarly in the latter project of this exhibition, 'A Shimmer of Possibility (2004-6)', Graham follows subjects in the US going about their every day life. But in doing so writes us a pictorial story, in to which we interject the narrative.
Pittsburgh, 2004
A good exhibition, but could have possibly been even more in depth.
Leaving, Doug, Kel & I retraced our steps along Brick Lane, to find Marques Toliver, (a recent discovery of mine through Jools Holland), busking to a small crowd.
The talented solo performer imparts his soulful voice to a string section of either individual violin or guitar. He sounded phenomenal, and we felt lucky to have stumbled across him. A real treat.
Kel & I stayed in for the rest of the evening - relaxing with dinner & a film. But another excellent day had.
....This year was a more opulent affair, with a, (slightly obvious and perhaps too well tread), Mad Men theme, held at Molton House. The theme allowed for the ladies to look truly spectacular, courtesy of hair & make-up stylists working there socks off throughout the day to satisfy demand. The chaps got to don their favourite suits, perhaps spray their hair grey a la Roger Sterling and there were certainly more spectacles on show than I'd seen before. Entertainment was provided by the truly exceptional AMV Band, followed by enough music and dancing to tire the most energetic of us.
A great celebration of the year and to see in Christmas. (I'm writing this from an empty floor, mind, so not sure how much work will get done today......)
....Tonight I surprised Kelly with an early Christmas present, with tickets to see Bill Bailey at the Wyndham Theatre.
We began the evening with a quick bite to eat at the marvellously unpretentious and hearty eaterie that is Gaby's cafe, in the heart of Leicester Square.
Kel & I were really excited to see Bill Bailey, after becoming fans from his numerous appearances on panel shows like Buzzcocks and QI, alongside brilliant comedies like Black Books. Tonight's performance was along the theme of doubt.......or was it?!.....and allowed Bailey's idiosyncratic comedy to come to the fore.
Bill Bailey's Essential Guide to the Orchestra
He is like a more musically proficient Stewart Lee in terms of his intelligent, surreal, punk-ethic routines. You can sit there and split your sides, or alternatively have a five minute period where you haven't laughed, but remain totally and utterly engaged. The show covered topics from football, to politics, advertising to music and of course doubt.
Apocalyptic rave
Interestingly, Bailey raised a story about his use of Spanish on a trip to Columbia. Kelly and my ears pricked as he continued on about Santa Marta and the Lost City Trek - exactly what we'll be doing come January. If it's good enough for Bill, (even if he was stoned), it's good enough for us. And so was tonight. Rambling, surreal, infectious, musical, intelligent, hysterical comedy genius.
....As a belated birthday present to his brother Stevie, Richie treated him, and brought Liam, Doug and I along, to Stewart Lee's 'Vegetable Stew' tour. The gig was at Leicester Square theatre and got underway after some dinner in China Town at Far East restaurant.
Richie, Stevie, Liam, Roy
A few of us had seen Stewart Lee before, at the same venue back in January, but this tour was testing new material ahead of filming for the 2nd series of his 'Comedy Vehicle' on the BBC.
The show was broken in to three parts, named, 'Charity', (90 benefit gigs a year and lots of free crisps) / 'Adrian Chiles', (a face like a Toby jug full of hot piss) / 'The Government', (David Cameron asked me to put on a gig / Gentlemen bombers).
Lee also weaved in a couple of songs, with a particularly memorable ditty mocking Russell Brand's recent wedding. Short of being funny, it reminded me again how much I actually like his singing voice! Lee's subversive comedy, (perhaps more so tonight, on what was press night), has a way of leading you down a garden path. Surreal, rambling fictional stories heading nowhere, until a hook, (or a 'call-back' as he rightly tells us), brings us back in the picture and splits our sides completely.
This second helping of 'Vegetable Stew' will likely be my last, but I cannot recommend him highly enough. If there are still tickets available, go. If not, hang about until early next year when he'll be back in your living room via your telly box.
....Kelly and I joined Sarah and Sandra at the Roundhouse for this anticipated gig.
Sarah, Sandra, Kelly, Roy
Having previously seen Yeasayer, outdoor at LoveBox, earlier in the year, I was keen to see if an indoor, more prestigious environment would alter my perspective. It did to an extent, in that I felt their more slow, broody songs really held up, with the vocal arrangements even more startling in their execution. However, the more upbeat numbers around which Yeasayer's reputation has grown, (and where they triumphed outdoor), felt a little bit hollow and subdued. Or maybe we, as a crowd, just weren't on form.
I didn't think it was helped by a lack of stage theatre. For all their well thought, innovative artwork and often bizarre videos, a simple white cloth is all that adorned the stage.
Album artwork for Odd Blood
The lighting was fairly one dimensional too - which is a shame as I've begun to realise the importance of such factors, alongside the live music itself.
The set was quick, interspersed with genuine humbled words from lead man Chris Keating, at playing such a great venue. As the band rolled out for the inevitable encore, they hit us with the magic '2080', but I was hugely disappointed not to hear 'I remember', for me the stand out track on 'Odd Blood'. A good gig, but with room for improvement, from a band I think can be truly special.
....A few of us had bought tickets for this a while ago and excitement was building. Largely because Roxy Music, (oh how I made mum & dad jealous!), were headlining the Saturday night. I had never been to the festival before, but others had, claiming it was good fun. I suppose it is subjective - if you like who's playing, then you're in for a treat.
With my only other festival experience coming at Glasto three years ago in cruel wet, muddy weather, this was a sharp contrast. The sun was out and so was a much more hardened crowd, in that an East London festival brought more locals, lads and over make-upped girls, looking to be seen rather than see the music. I tried not to let this put me off, particularly as I was amongst friends and watching bands I expected those very people not to be. Snobby? Yes probably. But I wanted a good time.
In reality I (really) watched three bands. Starting with the Invisible, who I thought were excellent. They have an underlying rhythm which is infectious, whilst they can hit you with punk, prog, indie...whatever. And it works. We then sat and relaxed in the sun as Wild Beasts played, (very well), in the background, before heading over, very excitedly to Yeasayer. I have wanted to see them live for some time, (and have even booked a gig at the Roundhouse in a few months too), and they didn't disappoint. A danceable, intoxicating mix of tribal, pop and indie songs that had the crowd in a frenzy as the sun set overhead. Brilliant.
Yeasayer
We all then scurried over to the main stage for the main event. Roxy Music. I have albums, but naturally lean toward the more classic songs. Bryan, Phil, Andy & Paul all looked hugely dapper up on stage, but, (for me), were slow to start. Whilst note perfect and Bryan throwing some shapes the old boy should be proud off, the more slow burning songs were failing to ignite the increasingly impatient crowd.
But that soon changed as the band rolled out the classics - Jealous Guy, Virginia Plain and Love is the Drug to close the set, before returning to encore with Bryan's solo effort, Let's Stick Together and finally, the Strand. In the end it was fantastic, danceable, enjoyable - Bryan making the girls swoon and the boys wish they can look and sound that good in 25 years time! LoveBox is a festival I'm pretty sure I would never return too, but I'm glad I got to see and enjoy who I did.
....Last Thursday Kelly, Lou, John and I went to see Florence + the Machine outside at Somerset House. I love these outdoor gigs - such a beautiful setting, made more wonderful by the type of act you're seeing.
Tonight was no different and we were lucky the evening stayed dry throughout. If I am totally honest, I have never completely warmed to Florence Welch. I have her album, on which are some good songs, very good in fact, but my problem lies with her voice. On record it's not too over powering, but on the occasions I have seen a live performance, (on the telly box), she sounds much too shrieky.
Lou, John & Kelly
It's almost like the song is beyond her. Tonight, that wasn't (quite) the case. She appeared on stage in an all white, ghostly hooded gown, her red locks flickering from beneath. The set was immaculate, running through the best of their debut album and also a couple of new, unreleased tracks that sounded very good too. As the euphoria built around the encore, that's when, (I felt), the shrieking returned.
But such was the fever of the crowd and the dancing to the beat, you couldn't really hear the misplaced vocals. So in the end it didn't matter, or detract from a great gig. I think the smaller, more intimate venue helped her reign in that projection she may feel she has to belt out at larger venues. The restraint made me like her again. I think.
....On Wednesday night, Kelly and I managed to get tickets to a secret gig at the Empire for the Arcade Fire.
I had never been to the venue before, but it is beautiful and despite our seats high in the upper circle we seemed to still be close to the stage and have a great view.
The gig, it seemed, was a chance for the band to try out tracks from the forthcoming album The Suburbs and with each number, they instantly sounded memorable and likable.
Arcade Fire, gig opener.
Intertwined between these new songs were classics from their two preceding albums, Neon Bible and Funeral.
Neighbourhood No.2 (Laika)
These sent Kel & I and the crowd totally berserk. I last saw them at Glastonbury where I thought they were incredible, but in hindsight something was lost in the open air that night. Tonight they are contained by the grand Empire, the electricity of their songs and the energy of Win Butler and his band, radiating through the audience.
They encored with three tracks and ended the set, as the did that night at Glastonbury, with the euphoric and sing-along inducing 'Wake up'.
A truly brilliant gig that I expect will be tough to match by anyone.
....Rich, Liam and I went to see the Black Keys last week. We kicked of with a vast tasty pizza at La Porchetta over the road, before heading to the gig.
As they took to stage, I hardly recognised singer Dan Auerbach, as his huge beard and long hair had been cut off. Along with drummer Patrick Carney, the two make up the band, in a sparse, but noisy blues-rock White Stripes-esque line up.
I like the band when I listen to them on record, but tonight, live, I wasn't really feeling it. The scuzzy guitar and thumping drumps left Auerbach's vocals with little cut through above the din. not so bad I suppose, when the riffs are memorable like some are.
Eventually songs seemed to blend in to one another, but for stand outs like, 'I got mine' and 'Busted'. Definitely my least memorable show at the Roundhouse, which is a shame because I do rate the band, but maybe they're better listened in, than out.
....Richie took me for a birthday treat, (yes, it rumbles on!), on Monday. We went to see Kabuki at Sadler's Wells and neither of us were entirely sure what to expect, thinking perhaps it was almost a circus-like act. It was in fact far more subtle and gracious than that.
Dating from the early 17th century, Kabuki is a highly stylised Japanese artform that employs flamboyant costumes, elaborate make-up and exaggerated body movements to create a sense of the spectacular. So, whilst beautiful, it was actually a much slower pace than we had anticipated. The complimentary earpiece that provided a translated commentry was invaluable for getting to grips with traditional show.
Richie has written more insightful words on his blog but it was a welcome and insightful introduction to Kabuki, with the make up and costumes alone a sight to behold. A pleasure.
....To (almost) echo a previous post: Music. I really do love music. Tonight I think Kelly and I had the best Monday night we ever had. Like no other. It was courtesy of Wiltons Music Hall and the phenomenal Creole Choir of Cuba.
London can sometimes offer us wonderful opportunities, and it came in the form of free tickets on a first come, first served basis to see the choir perform their debut in England. Popularity for the choir has been picking up speed of late, following a first visit to the UK earlier in the year, then a string of dates in Edinburgh to much critical acclaim. They were performing at Wiltons on the eve of their debut performance on Jools Holland, (you should be able to see that on Tuesday 18th, BBC2), so we felt doubly privileged to see them first.
We had drinks on the walkway outside the entrance before going inside, where we basked in a warming evening sun, whilst prying on the eclectic mix of people that were here for the show.
Inside, the compere appeared on stage prior to the performance and talked about the members of the choir and how they formed. Their website describes the background more fully, but they are Cubans of Haitian ancestry, descendants of migrants who fled slavery in the 18th Century. As a result, their songs are heavily steeped in this history, but also of a much more contemporary history in the form of the Haiti earthquake earlier this year.
Kel and I kick back
When the choir gets underway, it unravels as a blend of Caribbean rhythm with harmonies that remind me of the fantastic Buena Vista Social Club. Sung in a mix of Creole from various Caribbean countries, I could not understand what they sang of, but was utterly blown away by their love for the music, their passion for dance, their perfection of a harmony and the resulting beauty of the songs that they perform.
Their opening track reduced me, I'm not ashamed to say, to a combination of chilling goose bumps and then tears. Kelly was not far behind. The slower, more harmonic songs were truly stunning, whilst the rhythm and dance vibe of the others got the audience on their feet, brought hugs for the choir and a general good feeling throughout the hall.
(audio only)
On stage for an hour, almost every song brought a standing ovation, until the last song brought the longest of all. As the choir left the stage, they did so by walking through the audience whilst singing beautifully in A Cappella.
We walked downstairs and decided to stay for another drink. Wiltons was still full, there was live jazz playing and people were still out on the path drinking alfresco. It seemed like anything other than a Monday night. And, boy, what a night it was.
....Musicals. I really do love musicals. It obviously lies in my love for music itself - both melody and instrumentally, but also the power it can have. Over me, over an audience, to smile, cry, laugh, to stand hair on end. There, we're back to Hair. That is the musical that Kelly and I went to see last night - the controversial production first performed off-Broadway in 1967 and reaching Broadway a year later. The musical had been met with both admiration and protestation against the hippie, free-love, drug induced, naked frolicking that was portrayed on stage. But more now than ever, Hair is revered for it's risky nature, it's incredible songs and groundbreaking play writing. It also still seems current - perhaps as daring now, in a world where drugs, nudism, race, the military all remain taboo subjects, as they did over 30 years ago.
(Original Broadway poster)
Hair tells the story of a politically active, long-haired hippie 'tribe', living a bohemian life in New York City and fighting against conscription into the Vietnam War. The main character, Claude, must decide if he should enlist, to the approval of his '1947 generation' parents, or resist like his fellow tribe.
It is a powerful story and one in which this contemporary cast, (the entire Broadway cast brought to London), perform incredibly well. At once they engage with the audience - Berger, down in the front row of the stalls with his crotch in an audience member's face, whilst Hud literally crawls over the stalls, from front to back. We're there. We're in the moment.
I know musical theatre has a reputation for being camp, well, because it just is, isn't it?! But this production had less of that. The acting, to portray the drug induced fun they were all having was superb and I am continually amazed at the vocal ability that I see and hear in the West End. Dione prancing about with a Tina Turner-esque strut and better pipes than Beyonce, whilst Sheila was every bit the contemporary pop star.
And the message? Well, it's all positive. Sure, there is swearing and nudity, but the musical is out to promote being true to yourself, to being anti-war, to loving music and maintaining friendships in adversity. And as though to drill those points home, the finale is a thrilling, all engaging example of that. As the cast come on for the encore, the audience are invited on stage to dance and celebrate. And boy, do the audience oblige - there they are, there we are, together as one, smiling, dancing and with not a care in the world.
As the cast and audience took their bow up on stage, the front line, (as it were), spoke volumes for the multi-racial and religious diversity that Hair stands for. An old white Grandpa, a young Asian lady, an American mother hugging a young black Brit with over riding joy. And so it went on. It was hard not to get swept away with it all.
....Toby, Nick, Liam and I went to see Doves at the Troxy last night. That meant for me, it was a double whammy of first-times - my first seeing Doves live and my first at the Troxy. Surely a collaboration that couldn't fail? This gig was part of what has been billed a Greatest Hits tour, but then, doesn't every band play their greatest hits when playing live?!
Either way, I was hugely excited about this, particularly as Jimi Goodwin's vocals make the hairs stand on end, the spine tingle and cause a lump in the throat. I don't know what it is, but the man has soul.
The stage set up
Opening with the slow building, but gloriously powerful 'firesuite', we were underway. But something was amiss. That something seemed to be the drummer, Andy Williams, who unbeknown to himself, was slightly out of sync with the rest of the band. Annoyingly the mic on the drums also seemed to be louder than the guitars, which made no sense to me.
There was another thing - the venue. From the outside and as it filled up, the Troxy didn't disappoint, (even if the crowded bar did!) The Grade II listed art deco building is a wonderful sight - one I had imagined would suit the Doves music perfectly. But the open space proved almost too big. As though we're outside - the sound of the Doves was not yet truly filling the air.
View of the balcony and art deco detail
Amazingly too, the lighting arrangement seemed hugely below par - stark white or purple lights, that could have been the experiment of a school kid. It only picked up when the band used projections of their music videos or specially made edits on the back wall behind them, helping to evoke much more from each song.
However, after a slow start, things began to change for the better. About three or four songs in, the Troxy was awash with swooshing guitars, London-based Mancs singing their hearts out and the drumming, thankfully, sync perfect. A trio of songs, '10.03', 'kingdom of rust' and 'caught by the river' really pushed the set, the gig and the lump in my throat, to a higher place. This was the Doves I had wanted to see.
On a high, they saluted the crowd, shouted 'fuck the Tories', (to a glorious cheer) and projected 'Save 6 Music' on to the stage wall as they walked off stage left. With the crowd so pumped up, there was no other likely option but an encore, which quickly picked up where they left off. We were eating out of the palm of their hand.
They played out with 'Pounding' and then the wonderful 'spaceface', a New Order and Hacienda-tinged Madchester track, originating from the band's first incarnation, Sub Sub.
It was a wonderful way to end the evening - one that progessively grew in stature, performance and enjoyment. I'm very glad I went.
....What goes on the stag, stays on the.....blog?! In advance of his and Tess' New York wedding in May, Matt's stag party unravelled itself in London at the weekend. It incorporated restaurants, races, roller disco, a nightclub - oh and a different outfit for each!
