ComEnts

So, Entrepreneurialism is the new rock and roll according to Dragon's Den Dragon Peter Jones. He reckons that programs like the excellent Dragon's Den and The Apprentice are making business cool. Well... maybe he has a bit of a point. From the lengthy discussions on Berkshire Live it does seem that a lot of local musos are watching Dragon's Den at least. Last year (or early this year) local band Exit Ten were on The Rebel Billionaire - Branson's Quest for the Best.

I remember when Comedy was the new rock and roll and Newman and Baddeil sold out Wembley Arena for the biggest comedy show ever, I'm not sure what a live enterpreneurial show would consist of. "Our projected turnover in year three is £500,000" cue screams and much throwing of ties onto the stage. I hope it would involve lots of graphs. Probably by this time next year we'll all be innundated by Business related reality shows, so in reality maybe Business is the new Home Improvement or Cookery.

I do love Dragon's Den though, it is great TV. It uses every trick in the reality TV book. It's like a business version of the Pop Idol/X-Factor auditions. We all know that the auditions when we get to see the truly awful singers are the best bits of those shows. Once they weed the chaffe out I lose all interest. For those that haven't seen the show the premise in Dragon's Den is that would be entrepreneurs come into the Dragon's Den to pitch their business to 5 potential investors. Once there they pitch their ideas and then they get torn to pieces for everything from having a ridiculous idea to dressing scruffily to not knowing the figures. Luckily with Dragon's Den we don't have to see what follows the auditions in endless live shows (voted by the public). Instead, last night there was a 1 hour catch up show telling us how people had got on after last series. Just right.

I had my first sprouts of the Christmas season last night. Fried in olive oil with garlic, onions and some savoy cabbage. Mmm. Two much underrated vegetables which are actually really nice if not boiled to a grey paste.

I tell you what though, makes you fart like you've had a night on the organic lager at the Rising Sun Arts Center.

Ah Christmas.. A time when folks of all races, religions, personality disorders and political leanings can all be squeezed for a little more of their hard-earned cash. Not once have I heard any mention of the real meaning of Christmas this year, nary so much as a Nativity play. Still, it's not as bad as it was a few years ago when Heelas, etc. would start putting up their Christmas displays in September. Ah well, I'm off to my first Christmas dinner tonight with some of my closest and drunkest friends, where we shall eat, drink, laugh and make merry before descending into blurry pools of alcoholic excess. I wish I could say something like "We will be donating gifts to the poor, feeding the homeless and praying for world peace", but that ain't going to happen. That's not to say that I don’t recognise those things as being among the greatest things that anyone can do at this time of year, I just don’t believe in beating myself up for under-achieving. One can only try as hard as one can without alienating one's friends and peers. I've no inclination to be the new Cliff Richard, but at the same time if you can’t stick up for what you believe in then you are well and truly fucked.

Last nights Blah Blah Christmas Party was amazing. All through the gig I was trying to work out what I'd say about each act but then Six Nation State just tore the roof off the place and I forgot it all. Anyway it's all given me an idea for another piece that I'll maybe post tomorrow.

First up were Bidgie Reef and No Gas, I only caught their last two songs but I was pleasantly surprised. I've never really got them before. Roger Winslet's vocal has always seemed to me to be a bit rambling and it's turned me off but last night it seemed much more alive and interesting. It's possible I've not seen the best of their performances before. They are certainly very different to anything else out there. I've downloaded their free single from their website this morning and I'm really enjoying it. Especially Colonel Blimp.

The Sandcreek Massacre were next. They are very popular but I've never been a fan. That said last night was the best I've seen them, despite them being dogged by technical problems including blowing the bass amp and breaking a snare. My scouts (hi Andy) tell me that they've been playing better than that recently as well.

I think I am one of the last regular gig goers in Reading who hadn't seen The Heartware Process. They have done loads of local gigs but I just haven't been at any of them. Anyway, I'd been hearing a lot of good things about them and they lived up to the hype. They put on a great show. I have no idea what kind of music it is. Punky, rocky, theatrical weirdness. I think they need to tone down the banter though. Either that or make it funny. Or stick to the music which is great. I'm seeing them again on Saturday at the Water Rats as well.

Six Nation State are getting better every time I see them. You watch Six Nation State and it's fun, it's a party. They're dancing around having a good time and you can't help joining in. That was the joint most fun I've had at a gig this year it was as good as Aqua Livi at Screwball Cabaret. The finale, was absolutely spectacular. There were guitars flying into the crowd, crowd flying onto the stage. SNS had resurrected, just this once, their cover of Helter Skelter and it prompted DJ Lawrence to storm the stage, stealing one of the mics to sing along. Half of Rebus and a bunch of SNS fans were on stage, the band were suddenly in a huge heap, the soundmen cut the sound and were generally looking very pissed off at the potential equipment destruction (and possibly about having been asked to change the monitor mix between every song...). Great end to a great gig. Once the carnage had subsided they took an Iron Maidenesque crowd facing bow. You know, the band all lined up on stage facing the crowd and receiving their applause.

Instant karma: buying Christmas presents in HMV over the weekend and spotting a solitary copy of Lewis Taylor's eponymous 1996 CD, saving me the bother of going online and ordering it through Amazon. This is now the 3rd copy I've bought, after lending/loaning/losing the other copies to other people after they too became intoxicated by LT's jazzy, soulful exploration of a fractured heart/mind. This latest copy has already left one friend of mine wide-eyed and converted, and I've got tickets to see him at the Camden Jazz Café in January as well (going with Lee from Müf / Kaldera, who features on LT's website as one of his "friends"). He seems to get dismissed as a UK version of Prince in the press/media, but to be honest LT makes Marvin Gaye look like cheap pop rubbish. And I love Marvin Gaye. The former has been name-checked by the cool and trendy without ever troubling the mainstream and given his shy and retiring nature this isn’t likely to change (the upcoming Camden shows will most likely be his only live shows this year) so to have tickets to see him make me as excited as a politician in a gimp mask.

His debut CD "Lewis Taylor" (released on Virgin, all his other CD's can be bought via his website) was recorded and performed by the man himself in his bedroom and slides seamlessly between Stevie Wonder jazz funk to r'n'b via dub, hip hop beats and Smoky Robinson/Teddy Riley vocals with some classic prog self-indulgence thrown in for good measure. Oh, and he plays guitar like Ernie Isley, too. I've gone on about him before, no doubt I'll go on about him again (review of Jan gig will definitely be forthcoming) - if you like soul/jazz you need to check him out.

As Mikey says, lots of good gigs happening in Reading this week - After Dark action with Six Nation State, Heartwear Process and Sandcreek Massacre: Pelican being "monsterously heavy" at the Face Bar, Club Velocity on Friday and another landing party from the 'Ding hits London on Sat as well. Go out and hug your local musicians, they aren’t half as bad as they smell. Personally, I have band obligations myself this week, writing, rehearsing and a Christmas curry on Thursday down in Portsmouth! Then I'm having Christmas dinner with some friends on Friday, and Christmas hangovers on Sat morning. Will be nice to leave the rehearsal rooms and get stuck into some vino instead (tho the two are not necessarily mutually exclusive - if it was a Venn diagram, there'd definitely be some middle grouping). I haven’t been particularly good this year, and Santa knows it. I'll be lucky to get an orange in my stocking this year..

I was intending to try and write more here more often. I managed two posts in two days and then got busy again. You've heard that before haven't you?

It's been worth it though, we've got a brilliant line-up confirmed for the next Screwball Cabaret. Pure Reason Revolution are playing their first ever acoustic show and we've got some of the cream of the local scene to play as well. I am really looking forward to it. It's going to be another really hard working day but I hope it's as much fun as last time.

I'm going on the New Music show on Blast 1386 on Thursday to talk about all things Screwball and listen to some of the new releases that have come into the station. I'm looking forward to it. Being on the radio is a lot of fun. Tune in 4pm till 6pm to hear the show. You can listen online if you don't live in the Blast broadcast area in Reading.

Blah Blah Christmas Party at the After Dark tonight. I will try and report back on that tomorrow.

Busy week for great gigs. Friday I've got Club Velocity in Reading with then Saturday it's Club Velocity in London. Not just that either, Rebus have invited me on a 'boys day out' involving an entire day out in London drinking followed by the gig. I will have a lot to write about but I might be too dead to write it!

Hooray for Reading's Purplest Turtle! having recently moved house to within a projectile vomit of it's hallowed and cherished threshold I now find myself booked in for a run of gigs there with White Sunday and Müf over the coming weeks that should please ladies and gentlemen as well as children of all ages. Le Dimanche Blanche are there this Friday (9th Dec - or "tomorrow" as one wag put it earlier today), going on stage at about 10pm - this show was due to be staged at the Boxing Club, but I'm guessing that the promoters (beautiful and lovely people) finally got sick of putting up with the BC's management/staff's shite and upgraded venues. We were already booked in for a gig at the Turtle on 4th Jan (the day after my birthday) alongside the very excellent Audio Runway, so looks like double bumper fun all round! I understand from Mikey's secret morse-code messages (passed to me via a wire taped to my leg) that Müf will also be getting geological at the Turtle on 17th Jan? This should be an extra special night in celebration of Luisa the promoter's birthday (21yrs), don’t know if it has been confirmed but if we are booked Mikey has promised to spring naked from a giant birthday cake as a surprise for all concerned. So yeah - the Purple Turtle; because everyone should have a porpoise in their life.

The Whizzle Suzzle should have our new CD available at tomorrow's gig, piping hot and packed full of nutritious vitamins and minerals. Mmmmm! Get 'em while they are hot, they're luverly!
We also did Linda Serck's "Detention" radio show at Blast 1386am (going out on Sky TV channel 913 at 3-5am on Sat morning!) recently, which was not only a wicked laugh but also a bit of an academic success with us getting a record, best-ever 9 out of ten questions right on Linda's pop quiz! Result. The delectable Ms. Serck played two tracks off our new demo CD and let us get the guitars out (Brent stylee) to do acoustic versions of "If You Got Soul", "Take the Fear" and "Common Life" - very cool to play in the studio, as it was like playing a gig to Linda (easy to forget the mics were broadcasting it to.. However many people were listening!). I made a dodgy start to the show by asking Linda if she was going to make us do lines in detention, but this was expertly swept under the carpet without any undue fuss..

After that we went and checked out the results of a photo shoot we did with Fern, our adopted image-capturer to choose which pics would be accompanying the new CD (as well as filling out the gallery on our website). Against all the odds, there were some beautiful pics there, and much deliberation was taken over a pub lunch in Winnersh before decisions were made. Fern is also sorting out the demo for us artwork wise, she's in line to winning "White Sunday Employee of the Month" for her efforts. At the photo shoot we did at her place she cooked me sausage beans and chips - she obviously clocked the way to my heart from the moment she saw me. I wish I wasn't so obvious - what I wouldn’t give for a little mystique..

I told my girlfriend last night that we were planning the next Screwball gig and she said she knew, she'd had to read it on the blog with everyone else. Whoops.

Speaking of the Screwball Gig, it's amazing how much work putting on gigs is.

It looks so easy as a punter, you turn up at the gig. You turn up the first band plays, you go and get a beer, the next band plays etc. Easy.

When you are in a band you get an entirely different perspective. You get invited by a promoter to play a gig (possibly after begging them to give you one*) a few weeks in advance, you possibly bounce some e-mails around about kit share. Then you turn up, bitch about having to turn up so early when the soundperson isn't even there yet. Spend some time doing a soundcheck and then try and find some way to spend the time between soundcheck and going on stage. Then suddenly you have that rush to get on stage, play your set which goes really fast, come off stage, have a few drinks load your gear up and start the long trek home. Still, even as a band member the promoting thing looks pretty easy. Just need to get a venue, PA, sound guy and some bands together in one place. No problem.

It's only when you start putting gigs on that you realise how complicated all those things are. The venue is difficult for a start. How many places in Reading are there with Public Entertainment Licences? Of those, how many are available for outside promoters to put gigs on? And don't already have a full complement of promoters working there? And are of the right size for the night you want to put on? And are prepared to give you a deal that makes the night financially viable? Not that many. When you get one, does it have a house PA? House sound person? If not you have to find those with similar questions to the above. That's before you even look for bands/compere/decorations. And I haven't even mentioned publicity.

Then on the day even though you asked them all to be there ludicrously early some of the bands are late (probably the band with the drumkit that everyone is sharing), possibly through no fault of their own. Gear breaks, there is some problem with the venue, no-one turns up and you end up having worked your arse off for nothing and lost money. Plus you didn't get to see any of the bands you hand picked because you really like them because you were working your arse off all night solving problems or soothing egos.

It is really satisfying when it comes off though. Seeing (and being one of) a full room of people dancing away to Aqua Livi and the Roots Imansion was a pretty special moment. It might have been hard but it was worth it. I must just keep that focused in my mind. All the work will be worth it if we can have another night as good as that.

The reason I got into that was that as I mentioned in a previous post the Fringe Festival organisation is also starting to roll forward like some unstoppable juggernaut and that involves (hopefully) persuading loads and loads of people all having to go through the same kinds of traumas to put on nights. We must be insane! Maybe it's like hangovers you just forget how bad the previous one was otherwise you'd think "sod it, I'm not doing another screwball, let's just do a normal 3 band gig in the town center... or actually how about we just GO to a gig."

Right, so now I've sold you on the concept I reckon you probably all want to be promoters. There are some great articles on Josaka to help you. I especially liked this one about budgets.


*A gig! Dirty minds the lot of you.

Ah well.

Instead I'll talk about Pete and the Pirates* gig last night, which was great. First time I've seen them in full live mode with new member Tom and they just keep getting better and better.

They played two sets in the end because there was no support act. The first set was kind of controlled and sedate and sounded amazing. The second set they just totally unleashed themselves and Jonny destroyed the drumkit. Well he cracked one cymbal right through the middle anyway.

Matthew from Morning Runner was there too, I only ever seem to see him at Pirates gigs at the BBBs. Their album is out in March and it sounds like the video for the accompanying single will be pretty cool too. Better not say too much about that in case it doesn't come off. I don't know if I've mentioned this before but Matthew, most of the Pirates, some of The Race and James from My Luminaries were all in the same year at school together. It's weird how that happens. It sometimes seems that half the good local bands are from that crop at Maiden Erlegh and the other half are from Forest (Coopers, Rebus, half of My Luminaries, at least one of Libor Spacek). Is there something in the water?

Yes, I know, there are good bands featuring people not from those schools. Please don't be too sarcastic in the comments you cruel people.

Oh, Screwball Cabaret is making it's long awaited return at the beginning of January. We have got some very exciting acts booked including a never before seen set from some special guests. I expect I'll be talking more about that as we finalise the line-up. It's certainly going to be good enough to get people to break their new years resolutions. Let's get people out of the Gyms and back into venues before mid January!

I've also got a meeting about next year's Fringe Festival next week. It seems amazingly early to be already thinking about next August but we only started so late last year because that was when we had the idea. If anyone is interested please check the thread on berkshire live and maybe come along to the meeting. It is quite hard work sometimes but we also had a great laugh last year.



*I should mention that I am little Pete from the Pirates brother otherwise people at berkshire live will call me names.