BabMag. Issue two. Summer 2016.

Birmingham and beyond.

Issue two Summer 2016

Bab Mag. Nick Smith Elizabeth Ilsley Sox Andrew John Smith Philth Adam Shelton Joe Lycett The London Vagabond And More

Image: Philth

Credits

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Introduction

John Bryan - Editor in Chief Callum Barnes - Art Director Joe Miles - Art & Lifestyle Editor Holly Eldridge - Arts Editor Jack Parker - Music Editor Lap-Fai Lee - Food Editor

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Nick Smith

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Elizabeth Ilsley

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Sox

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Andrew John Smith

Courtney Smith, Danny Clives, Edward Moore, Gift Gwambe, Jim Alix Heru, Joseph Marshall, Jobe Anderson, Kieron Cummings, Nick Smith, Phill Blake, Thomas Rackham, Tom Bird, Tom McElroy.

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Introducing

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Philth

Contact

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Adam Shelton

contact@babmag.co.uk

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Joe Lycett

www.babmag.co.uk facebook.com/babmaguk twitter.com/babmaguk instagram/babmag

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Thomas Rackham

104-108 Floodgate Street Digbeth Birmingham B5 5SR

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Danny Clives

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KeBabMag

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The London Vagabond

Contribution

Many of the manuscripts, visuals and promotional materials shown in this publication are sent to us anonymously and they are used only for the purposes of documentation. The views expressed in BabMag are those of the respective contributors and not necessarily those of the staff or the brand. This mag contains graphic material in the form of art.

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You’re avin’a laugh Bab

Welcome to issue two.

After the great response and positive feedback for our debut issue, we want to say a big thank you to all those who’ve supported and backed us from the start. BabMag is a free magazine and we literally couldn’t have done it without the advertisers, our editors, writers and photographers backing us and putting in the work without any return other than knowing they are helping bring Birmingham’s artists and subcultures together and giving them the exposure the second city deserves.

For many years Birmingham has been the brunt of many jokes, whether it’s mocking our accent or taking a dig at our below par football teams. So we thought it was only right to give the haters something to laugh about.

We decided to delve into the Birmingham comedy scene with an interview with one of the city’s leading comics, Joe Lycett. We talk about his journey into the stand up circuit, television appearances on 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, Live at the Apollo, his love

for Birmingham and publishing his upcoming book that mocks correspondence between himself and a host of characters. We will also be showcasing fresh, up and coming local comedic talent.

Our artist focus ranges from a contemporary feminist, a street artist, a candid street photographer, tattooist plus fine art. Offering a wide spectrum of disciplines, from artists residing or linked to the Midlands. We also cover musicians from genres that have deep roots in Birmingham, grime to house, hip-hop to techno, we got you covered.

Since the launch of our first issue back in March, our online platform has gained momentum with the addition of new editors allowing us to give a more regular content of what’s going down in our fair city. Including BabMag Selects giving a weekly insight into what’s on in Birmingham, food reviews and a host of writers covering art, lifestyle and music over at www.BabMag.co.uk

The BabMag Team.

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Words: Joe Miles Images: Courtney Smith

Nick Smith His background in fine art, interior design and past work on dazzle patterns leads to a running theme of block colours and white space, with his current work focused on colour swatches.

The range of subjects chosen for Smith’s work could not be further apart, from re-constructing iconic art including the Mona Lisa, Whistle Jacket by Stubbs and Son Of Man by Magritte, to highly provocative pornographic stills, leading to his latest series Paramour (an illicit lover) that explores the feminine form.

After two successful shows at Lawrence Alkin Gallery, Smith’s work has propelled to new heights.

Recently, he’s exhibited his work across the pond at Miami Basel, which led to a sell out show.

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Why go down the X-rated route? Originally it was all classical paintings and shit like that so what drove you to it?

It had to start somewhere. I had a vision of where I wanted to go but I had to set a framework, a structure, so that people understood what I was doing. I worked with images that everybody recognises, hence working with masterpieces for the first show. That was my intention. There’s only a finite resource that you can work with of other people’s images and also I wasn’t getting to flex my creative muscles, just regurgitating a pastiche of other people’s work. I was interested in the amount of information required for somebody to understand what it is. I’d done this reduction of Mona Lisa from the scale that it is portrayed in the Louvre all the way down to one pixel. Those are immediately recognisable images that have been in the human lexicon for years. So then, with the little perversion in me, I wanted to try that with pornography. So I did a woman sucking cock, a blow job, and then stripped that back down to where you’re only going to get it from a periphery glance. But the work… I mean, that sold, but it’s a little bit school boy. I wanted something that was a little more credible and was more beautiful and would hit a larger audience.

So, I worked with nudes. That previous work, if you’re familiar with what I’m doing, had word colour association. So the blow job piece which was called the Lewinski, you know, the most famous blow job in the world, that had 192 words for blow job on it.

I came up with about 80 of them and then was kind of struggling a little bit. I went on to the internet to source some and got there in the end. It’s a bit of an education.

So that was fun but I wanted to do the next show, which was Paramour. That’s what I called it, Paramour, the definition of an illicit lover, which is a word that’s seldom used these days. I wanted to connect these nudes with something a little bit more serious and my grandfather had always been an avid reader of Shakespeare and had all these books that I wasn’t interested in it at school. It gets forced down your neck and… it’s a little bit like whisky or something. You don’t like it when you’re young and you know one day that you’re going to enjoy a whisky or a cigar or something… So I kind of threw myself back in to all this classical literature as the first reference point. I didn’t want to do 50 Shades of Grey or some shit like that because it’s not credible. So I started to research romantic literature and it went beyond the pillar stones for Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D. H. Lawrence and then did a bit more research and found out that there was virtually no literature about lesbians. Nobody wrote about it and if they did it was heavily censored and there was this phrase used during Victorian times for lesbians and it was called ‘tipping the velvet’ because people didn’t want to use that word. It was… is it an acronym? It’s something like that. No that’s like ACAB or something. Anyway, it’s a metaphor. So, there was this Sarah Waters, who wrote this book called Tipping the Velvet set in Victorian England. I wanted to use text that was poetic and applied that to a picture of two women dressing each other. It’s a beautiful scene. I think everything I’ve done, it’s not gratuitous. It would be too easy to get school boy, too… 8 0 0 8 1 3 5 …if you get what I’m talking about.

Intimations

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Sonnet 46

What about your early work?

I always wanted to be an artist, and the stuff that I loved was born through experience with ships doing interior design on them. I became aware of this dazzle pattern that was applied to ships in the First World War. It’s the most futuristic, radical, graphic, striking melody of black and white.

Mesmerising, hypnotic?

It is, it’s like zebras. That’s why they have the pattern in nature, that’s where it came about. The predator can’t ascertain the number or the distance of their prey, so they find it harder to strike. The enemy knew that the ship was there, they could clearly see it, but they weren’t able to set the gauges on their weapons accurately to hit it. So, I was fascinated by that and the logic behind it because it was such a confident bold move.

This pattern … it looks like 80s rave pattern and it was happening at the start of the Twentieth Century, applied on to ships. It was all photographed in black and white, but it was actually in colour a lot of it.

Whatever paint they had to hand, but if it’s photographed in black and white, it just looks black and white. So I loved that and started … I’m not that good a graffiti artist or spray painter. I’ve worked with graffiti artists and I know my limits but felt I could impact with this. So I did it outdoors on a yacht, did it on a tank, did it on some garage doors, did it on a wall here and there, mixed up with other artists and then started to make prints out of that. I think with these bold solid blocks of colour, that’s what I appreciate.

So that sort of lead to the whole swatches?

Well, the swatches came about because working in interior design, you have to reference colours with paint swatches. They are little gems and I was pained to throw them away. I would have a jar on my desk full of them, a melody of beautiful, colourful little gems and then we’d be bored in meetings and assemble them to look like little patterns, like space invader and things.

Then the idea kind of took off. I thought, maybe you could make an image out of this. This was back in 2009. So, I did Marilyn

by Warhol. I did Whistle Jacket by Stubbs, which is the famous horse. I did Van Gogh’s famous blue self portrait and that sold in a day. Three pieces from someone that wasn’t an artist. I didn’t know how to price my work, sold them for I think £400 each. But I was just fucking chuffed that someone was interested in my work.

I then got contacted by RYCA who is an artist and publisher, and then did two prints with him in 2011 of Marilyn. They sold very well. I did the word colour association with them and they sold out. Then I went back

in to hibernation and carried on doing my interior design with this itch that I wanted to pick up my career as an artist.

You’ve worked your way into the paths of a lot of artists that were already well established, did that give you inspiration?

Absolutely. I’ve collected art for about ten years now. I only buy what I like and I have got a fair idea of who is out there and what they’re doing. Then, to meet these people and have them approach me and buy my work is the biggest compliment. Ben Eine, he got in contact and said, I want to buy some of your work and then Dave White as well.

How does that feel as an artist to sell art to an artist?

It feels incredible. I mean art is subjective, whether you like something or you don’t.

The only thing you can quantify is the volume that it actually sells for and then you can draw some sort of graph and the timeline from when an artist started and the value of the work going up. But it is fundamentally about the appreciation

Chapter 10, part 2

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of the art. For somebody to commit to actually purchasing your art, it’s an exchange of energy. They’ve been going to work for a month and they’ve got paid this certain amount of money. That effectively is the value of what you’ve done. It’s been fucking incredible. The main one is Stanley Donwood, the fifth member of Radiohead, I love his work, kind of monochromatic…

I’ve got that piece up there and then that gold one over there and there’s a few others knocking about in the house. But yes, to have him actually know who you are, to message you. It’s a good feeling. It’s not like all of a sudden there’s these notches.

It’s kind of an organic process and it’s just the way you feel in the world. Yes, I feel humbled by it.

Tell us a little bit about the process, and the names for your swatches as well, that’s obviously a massive thought process in its own right.

There is absolutely a relationship. So, the word colour association, it will start with the obvious ones. I have an image and I know that I’ve got 1200 colours and I have to attach a word to each one that is associated with that colour. I start with the obvious things, like the most basic things. Black is an interesting one actually.

In different cultures black means different things. I often start with the visual things like Cadillac black, tuxedo black, black tie, black blah, blah, blah, and then you exhaust all of those and you find that you’ve got another 70%. So I’ll do a little bit of research, look at minerals or things that I don’t know about. I learn while I’m doing this. I learn about star constellations and stuff.

Does that level of association boil down to the nature of the art in itself, the subject matter of what it’s about?

Absolutely. So, to take the Mona Lisa as an example, at the top everything was very green and verdant and then as you go down it goes in to darker tones. The words soak from our associations with

natural things all the way down. You almost get another portrait within it from good to dark things, like evil associations. But these words, if viewed in isolation, are in context with the colours. If you were able to zoom out and see every word and get a flavour of a play running through, there would be a jolly beginning and a dark ending. The process is filled with moments of unexpected inspiration, like, I’ll go for a piss or something and I’ll just be stood there and then something will pop in to my head or something will say something to me. It’s at the end. It’s the emotional stuff, the stuff that’s less direct and obvious that ends up filling in the gaps. That’s when it becomes exciting. I can’t even turn off my brain after I do one of these pieces. I’ll be walking around and I’ll see a word rather than a colour.

Has any work led you on to read a certain thing? You’ve had subject matter in mind and that’s led you to a book?

Absolutely. The most beautiful synergy in artwork that I’ve created was Son of Man

by Rene Magritte, which is the faceless business man with the apple over his face. A famous image, and the faceless business man in literature is Brett EastonEllis’s American Psycho. So the pairing of those two was so fucking obvious and that was the first piece I did that wasn’t this psycolourgy series. It wasn’t associated colour to words. It was my favourite passage from that book. There is an idea of Patrick Bateman and then it just runs through his narcissistic analysis of himself and his facelessness. So that connected beautifully with that image. And then Whistle Jacket, which is George Stubbs’ famous image of the horse prancing that is in the National Gallery, that was a lot of fun because that was research into horse names, which of course, run in to tens, hundreds of thousands and you find there’s a horse named Mr Blobby. You’ve got this contradiction you know, it’s funny to fucking read. And it’s educational as well.

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Marilyn

You’ve used some very iconic pictures, have you had any negative feedback from people for recreating such iconic images?

Those images are instantaneous. I’ve definitely had fear. The majority of images I’ve worked with are people that are dead.

David Hockney is obviously still alive and one of the most successful pieces that I’ve done is an appropriation of The Bigger Splash, the Swimming Pool, which was a fictional swimming pool some place in California.

Would it be right to say that piece has done particularly well?

That’s been my biggest success. The original sold for £3600. I did a larger one which sold for $15000 at Art Basel, Miami and the print was £250 at source. Now that print sells on the secondary market for £750, which I find astonishing. I only ever keep one print of what I’ve done, the first in the edition, but the rest… a print to me is a commodity and it gets my work out. I don’t overcharge for my prints and there’s lots of people that charge more. I want it to be accessible and an entry to what I do.

What’s your opinion on the art resale scene?

I have got no issue. It’s flippers basically.

It’s the same thing with trainers. You’re not in to it because you like it; you’re in to it because you want to make some money out of it, which is fair enough. I queued up for a Banksy print in 2012. It cost me £450 and now they’re selling for £15,000 plus.

There were lots of people that went in there, and there’s no shame in that. It benefits the artist. It only detracts from the people that are genuinely interested in the artwork that want to have it on their wall because they like it and they’ve missed the opportunity because there’s been people that are more ruthless. But that’s the nature of economics. Anybody would do that. If you could buy a loaf of bread for 20p and sell it for a £1, there’s no shame in that. It’s only because it’s a bit of fucking art and it’s not something that you eat, it’s something that we attach some sort of emotional value to, that you say that it’s bad.

Going back to the David Hockney piece that was in your Miami show. How was it going across the pond and what was your reception there?

Art Basel is the Mecca, it’s the nucleus of the art world on a global scale. People fly in from all over the world. It’s got a reputation and I don’t know much about it. I’d kind of heard about it. I’m not really… I work in isolation basically, but the gallery, they were going over there and invited me to produce a piece. We knew this piece had been successful, so I scaled it up massively. It was 1.6m2. I didn’t have a surface large enough to do it so ended up pinning it to a wall and

making it, getting it framed, putting a lot of time in to it and it was a risk. The whole thing was like a fucking risk, but it was cool just to be over there. Then the guys that I was working with, there was interest over the first few days. It got a lot of interest and it sold quite quickly. I think on the third day out of five or six days. It could have probably sold again, but I’m really militant on what I say I’m going to produce. If I say I’m going to do an edition, that’s it.

Knowing that can sell, does that make it easier to produce for the next piece of art, because you know it’s going to be received well?

That’s interesting. I would rather keep people excited. My next show is the thing that I’m most excited about. I was already thinking about it halfway through the last one and don’t know if it’s a good idea. I’m going to drip feed it in to the world but it goes way beyond creating an image. It goes way beyond… it’s the same thing as what I’m doing but I’m looking to connect people with really significant stuff that’s happened in this world before. A lot of the stuff that I’m doing, there’s not randomness to it.

Have you always got a plan? I imagine it’s all going to fall in to place as you want it to.

It’s fucking good fun. I don’t see life as a chore in the slightest. I can see the steps to take and I know… when I was at Coventry University and I did a Masters, the first three years were working with everybody.

Then everybody fucked off because nobody could deal with Coventry anymore and then I did this extra year and literally all my friends left. I was left there by myself in this shitty town in the arsehole of England and that was one of the purest moments I have ever had with my work. I found design and then it all led through that. We’ve kind of got to that stage now where I can enjoy life and focus on a grand idea. 35 years old, quite comfortable and happy. But now it has become about what I want. To do something that is going to satisfy me.

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Mona Lisa

Elizabeth Ilsley The modern world has become considerably more gender equal since woman gained the vote in 1928, but there is still a long way to go for true equilibrium. So what is a modern day feminist fighting for?

Elizabeth Ilsey’s work ranges from thoughtprovoking quotes dubbed over vintage porn to hand painted profanities on leather jackets; her work is likely to get the guys hot under the collar and women burning their bras. The Birmingham based print maker has been causing a stir in the big smoke with blogs queuing up to interview her and it-girls dying to get their hands on her unique wearable art.

Words: John Bryan

Images: Jim Alix Heru

Mailbox Tunnel

Girls Girls Girls

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You have recently announced that your art and wears will be available in London department store Liberty. How does it feel to be stocked in such an iconic British institution?

It feels so great to even be recognised by such a landmark like Liberty. I’m so excited for every aspect of it, but most of all for more people to have the jackets and for them not be as exclusive as they have been.

Your studio is based in Birmingham’s creative hot spot Digbeth; did the temptation of moving to London ever play a part in your plans?

Digbeth is like home to me, I eat there, drink there (a lot) met most of my friends there, work there... I will fly the flag for Digbeth and Birmingham in general forever. I’d rather be in my cheap studio with loads of space in a supportive community, close to my friends

and family, with links to London whenever I need to go down there rather than live in an overpriced shit-hole in London unable to afford a work space! When I was at school I dreamt of going to Goldsmiths and living in Camden - now I couldn’t think of anything worse. I will stay in Birmingham for the forseeable future.

Empowering women is a focal point of your work, what message are you sending to your sisters with your work?

The messages I’m sending to everyone, not just girls, that it’s okay to be honest! I made my prints to get over a guy who was horrible to me, and those prints have helped other people get over break ups which was awesome. But I like to make people laugh too and let’s not take sex so seriously; let’s promote our real bodies and emotions and stop crying all the time.

Some of your work contains X-rated material, has this lead to any negative criticism?

The x-rated themes and imagery I use has only ever been negatively criticised by men. They think I’m vulgar and a ‘slag’ and it always, always makes me laugh.

Has your work always been so provocative?

My work since the ‘I shave my legs for you’ jacket has been provocative. Sometimes unintentionally, just because all my work is honest and about real life stories I have about me. And the saucy stuff is always the most interesting, right?

A Girl is a Gun

You have a large social media following, how important is this for gaining exposure for your work?

Instagram has really launched my career.

I sold work, got exhibitions and exposure just through posting on Instagram. I like to use it but don’t cry over it if anything gets censored or anything changes on there. It’s just a tool I use.

Listen to Me 025

Who would you name as your icons and inspirations and why?

My icons and inspirations would be, Tracey Emin, Courtney Love, Jenny Holzer, Robert Mapplethorpe, but a lot of comedians too like Jo Brand and Joan Rivers. My mom too, of course.

Any exciting future projects you can share with us?

New jackets for Liberty, all of them bespoke. I’m collaborating with Tara Starlet, and self publishing my own photography book.

Aaaaaaaaaaaand finishing my final pieces for my uni degree show. And that’s all I can share for now!

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Hard To Be Humble basic Tee

SOX A 2014 MOBO nominee, who’s spent time learning his craft under the Boy Better Know label. A unique style and flow that comes from being born and bred in inner city Birmingham and a much talked about Lord of the Mics, Part 1 battle that was infamously hard to watch.

But he came back and held his own on the rematch. Now boosting his status with party tunes to fluent freestyles. Those lucky enough to have made it to the sold out Sketpa gig in Digbeth last month would have seen Sox warming up and preforming alongside the big man on the popular tune Shutdown.

We caught up with Birmingham MC Sox at Xenophorm Studios while he records new material for the summer antics.

Sox at Xenophorm Studios

How did your relationship with grime start?

Well it progressed from garage from So Solid Crew, I would say the year 1999 or 2000 when they first dropped 21 seconds. I ended up going to a local youth club and heard people making their own songs that I considered better than what was out there in the music industry at present; like just friends rapping back to back. Once I realised that local people could make songs and go to recording facilities, I fancied my chances - before I realised it was called grime - it was music you could make, regardless of your financial situation. So grime was urban street culture that was just part of my upbringing.

How strong is the Birmingham grime scene and is it still growing?

The Birmingham grime scene is very strong - it’s a big area, there’s a lot of people who live here and of course, it’s the second biggest city in the UK. Most UK artists that have blown up in the scene have “new accents”, easily recognised in America. While most have London accents, those who want summat a lil different turn to cities like Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds that play off their alternative, strong accents, putting them in at an advantage as they grow their audiences and start putting out successful music

What are your thoughts on the sudden love for grime from Americans artists, where do you see it taking the UK scene?

I think recently, especially with trap and drill music, it’s all produced at a similar tempo and the fact that in grime we rap at double tempo, over the same tempo beats, gives grime an edge. Americans are getting to know UK rappers more and more, especially Stormzy, Skepta etc. grime has gained a big following, there’s a lot of people showing love.

You had a good relationship with the guys from BBK, how did that help you along in your career?

Them lot helped me literally take my career to the next level, they helped me in artist development, showing me the ins and outs of the industry, how to release a professional album, even helping me get shows both in the UK and internationally. They probably got me my first few dates abroad, literally

gave me a course in grime! Bro, if you wanna go there, I got love for man still, cause there’s no other way to take that course.

What’s summer got in store for you?

I’m looking at doing the Yacht Parties in Zante, I’ve got a few tunes made behind the scenes that are focused on certain DJs that are out there; looking at taking it back to 2013, when I did the abroad seasons, made a lot more party music.

Then, probably a serious album will come after that, over the winter period when I’ve come back to the UK. Do you feel grime carries a bad reputation?

I don’t feel grime has a bad reputation at all I think artists develop bad reputations for themselves through their own actions. Grime is globally appreciated in 2016 as a positive British movement and has definitely gained mainstream respect as a genre in it’s own right.

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Sox and Skepta performing Shutdown at The Rainbow Venues

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culture. Before Pharrell’s takeover of the industry, it was all about super baggy jeans, XXXL t-shirt and gang life; something I personally couldn’t relate to, despite how much I loved hearing Jay-Z or Nas talking about that street life. It still wasn’t authentic to me and Pharrell changed that. Never had I seen a light skinned dude, with a bum fluff moustache, rocking a trucker cap and a Metallica t-shirt whilst riding a BMX or skateboard and still being the coolest guy in a rap video. It made me say for the first time whilst watching a rap video, I’m like that guy. I ride a BMX, I ride a skateboard, I look like that. That, I think, was a big part of my journey into this business.

So, I think it would be that real personal achievement to see Pharrell one day rocking DarkCircle.

You have recently launched your NOTHINGHERE space, can you tell us more about this venture?

NOTHINGHERE is a multi function space we have created in our DarkCircle HQ. It’s main function is acting as a showroom space for our latest products and collections. The name I came up with after the 3rd time of being broken into in 12 months. They would break in and just mess up the place and take some of the most random things like a couple of t-shirts and a hat, maybe a phone charger. So I saw the funny side in the name and just putting a sign outside that says NOTHINGHERE to save them the time of breaking in next time. The main reason we built the space was because we were so frustrated with Birmingham City Council and landlords in and around the city. Month after month, year after year we were trying to find a spot in the city centre for pop-up events, parties, product launches and even our own flagship store, but to no joy. Birmingham’s Council are yet to see the world trend of pop-up businesses and how they breathe new life and money into the dying high street. So we gave up trying

Words: John Bryan

to work with them and just thought let’s do it ourselves. Our studio is a little out of the way with zero passing trade, but we thought if we can make something people want, people will come. So over a 12 month period we renovated a section of our studio and converted it into what we called NOTHINGHERE SPACE. Since opening it in December we’ve had a number of parties, launched our latest collection there and most recently held a Super Bowl showing. For the future of the space, we are looking to make it an open retail space and stock other brands and products. Currently, visiting the space is by appointment only. Check out our website for more details about how you can book your appointment.

The turn of the year saw your debut womenswear collection, do you see streetwear becoming a more unisex fashion trend?

I think streetwear, at its core, has always been unisex, I just think streetwear now has become so much more mainstream, it’s become more recognised as unisex.

This is exactly why we decided to create the women’s collection. I think as the streetwear culture grows and becomes more mainstream, it will be accepted even more as unisex. For us, this is a great thing. We love anyone wearing our product if they appreciate the design and the aesthetic we work crazy hard to achieve. So men or women, as long as they like it as much as we do then we’re happy. This increased interest in our product ultimately lead to us creating the womenswear collection in the first place. The number of emails we would get asking if we would ever do it like this or that; would it ever be available in extra small? Would we ever do it in this colour?

It all started adding up. We were getting pictures on Instagram with us tagged in with girls altering one of our products to fit them better, it just felt like this was a natural move to make for us right now.

Images: Vicky Grout, Morgan Tedd & George Davies

Words: D Ballcap John Bryan Images: Tom Bird & Tom McElroy Dark Circle Brand Hoodie Stand For Something Trench Coat

How important is it to support the youth?

It’s the most important thing in the world man, because if you can point someone in the right direction you will be surprised where they will get to, they might end up helping you out, when you’re not so well off! So I always look out for the youts, trust me.

Any of those young artists making waves that we should look out for?

Yeah definitely! Shout out Tiny, Shadow, CV6… not necessarily young but he is putting in the work from Coventry. Shout out Killa, Stubzy, these lot are putting in mad work as well, and the kids that are in there Tamz, Jay1ace they’re a group, just 14, coming in their school uniform, straight off the bus and putting in the work.

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Words: Joe Miles Images: Joseph Marshall

Andrew John Smith Several train stops out of the city centre, you will find Painted Lady tattoo parlour in Northfield, Birmingham, where a host of the city’s finest tattoo artists reside including Dawnii Fontana, Nick Imms, Gary Stanley and our good friend Andrew John Smith. His traditional subject matter matched with bold colour palettes and modern shading techniques give him his unique style. His work ranges from bespoke designs to tattooing trains on writers. 2016 has seen him guest at studios all across the UK and Europe and the summer will see him make the move to the big smoke where you will find him at Parliament Tattoo.

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You’ve been working at Painted Lady for the past two years, how has that been?

It’s been awesome actually. I knew the guys here before I started, which was cool.

It was a natural progression to move here rather than like feeling forced to be in a studio you didn’t really know or whatever, it just kind of felt like home already.

Has your style changed since being here and being around different artists?

Yes. I think my style has progressed a lot but not even just my style, like my technical ability and stuff. I kind of felt I didn’t really know what I was doing with tattooing before. But yes, I wasn’t 100% sure what I was doing. I could put on a tattoo but you know when you don’t know the science behind it or anything, you don’t really know what you’re doing.

It’s good having Dawnii [Painted Lady] here, people that have been tattooing for a while and they know the ins and outs of it.

Gary Stanley [Painted Lady] has been telling me, he’s been tattooing in Birmingham for like 25 years or something ridiculous. So people like that, where you can just ask a question and he actually knows a good answer. Whereas I’ve worked with people in the past that kind of just feel like they are making stuff up as they are going along. Somebody being able to tell you exactly why something is happening is obviously going to push you to progress so much quicker. Just being around other people where you like their work as well. The natural progression … it almost forces you to work harder.

Because you don’t want to get left behind?

You don’t want to be that guy that’s like the shit person at the shop. It’s always good to have better peers around you isn’t it?

So now you’ve been living in Brum for a while, what are your thoughts on Birmingham? What do you like about living here at the moment?

I think I was attracted to Birmingham for the graff scene. I would always come over here. The paint shop was here and they had like legal walls and shit, which they didn’t have in Coventry. The scene here was more progressed. Coventry is Coventry and I don’t want to sit here and slate Coventry, however it’s not the most productive in many of art scenes.

So how long have you been tattooing now then?

I’ve been tattooing just over five years I think. It’s been an interesting experience.

What got you in to it?

I didn’t ever really want to be a tattooist, it just naturally happened. It was off the back of just being in to art and doing different art forms and people knowing that I did that. So even years before I even got interested in being a tattooist, I did a lot of tattoo designs for mates and stuff because the shops in Coventry weren’t great.

People wanted design work done by artists that weren’t necessarily tattooists.

How do you feel about that now? You wouldn’t really do a tattoo that someone else had drawn would you?

No, I think it’s changed quite a lot, even in the years I’ve been doing it. I think nowadays, people have the means of Instagram and stuff so it’s really easy to find out if you like something. Whereas even when I started it just wasn’t… well definitely when I started getting tattooed, back when I was like 18 or whatever, there was none of that. So people literally just went to whatever they heard was the best tattoo shop and you would pick something off the wall, or you’d try and make something on like Word on your mum’s computer or something and just take in like a bit of shit font and get that tattooed on you. But nobody had a specific artist to go to or anything.

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It used to be all set pieces and shit, panthers and all that sort of stuff.

Yes, all that which weirdly is coming back now. They’re back in fashion now where people are just happy to go to an artist, see their work and get like whatever, which is quite cool I think. Obviously they become like your easiest customers really because they’re interested in your art more than what they necessarily want. I think the Miami Ink sort of era when everybody just thought somebody has got to have died of cancer for me to get a tattoo; they just built some crazy back story around every tattoo…

I think that’s slowly going now so people just get tattoos because they’re rad, rather than because they’ve got some well deep reason for it. You know when you’re in a pub and some bellend who has not got a single tattoo comes up and he says oh what does that tattoo mean? It is fashion as well you know. You wouldn’t walk up to a stranger in a pub… well you might do if you’re a knob… and just go why are you wearing that t-shirt?

I think you’re more likely to keep your opinions to yourself but for some reason with tattooing, I don’t know why but people think it’s like their business that you’ve got a tattoo and I feel like it’s a bit of a weird concept that really. I can’t imagine ever just walking up to somebody and being like, why did you have your hair cut like that or whatever, so why is it okay to walk up to a stranger and be like what does your tattoo mean or why have you got a tattoo on your face, which I get all the time off dickheads.

How would you describe your style?

Would you say it’s more like a neotraditional or would you not go for that?

I think it lends itself more to just traditional.

It’s rendered more like modern in the way I do a lot of colour blends and stuff.

Whereas I think a lot of artists stick to like a three or four colour palette with a big black whip shade, whereas I tend to blend my colours more. But I still like the concept of… I like the composition of traditional.

What’s your favourite style to do? You did a lot of tattoos on graffiti artists of trains and shit like that.

I like stuff like that. I enjoy the fact that it’s on somebody that I can really relate to and have a bit of a chat with about common interests and stuff. That’s cool. I feel like it’s a bit like getting up still where you know, tattooing a load of graffiti words. It’s become now like they’ve all got a piece by me. All the writers in the UK… it’s like, I’ve got an Andrew John Smith tattoo and it’s cool. It’s nice to know that these people would still want my work, even though I’m not painting that much these days, they still have that kind of respect to come to me for tattoos.

What’s the strangest thing you’ve tattooed? I know it’s a hard one to think of on the spot.

Yes, it is. I haven’t done that many like real strange tattoos I don’t think. I think they’d be odd to regular people. I’ve done quite a few ACAB tattoos and FTP tattoos, but due to the terrible company I keep. But I get asked a lot by average guys, about these train tattoos that I do a lot of. They’re like, why do you tattoo so many trains? I guess to them it’s pretty odd having like an East Midland or a Midland train tattooed on your leg but to writers and that it makes perfect sense. So I quite like that. I guess some people would consider that kind of weird, having your favourite train tattooed on you. I swear people think I’m like a trainspotter and I tattoo loads of trainspotters. But that’s more on that vibe than peculiar stuff.

So we skimmed across it earlier, the internet and Instagram and how it’s affected the tattoo industry. Do you feel it’s a good thing or a bad thing?

Yes, a good thing definitely. I owe loads to Instagram I reckon. I remember when I hadn’t been tattooing that long and a lad I worked with, he said about this new thing called Instagram, and I was just like a proper 041

technophobe, like no idea what you’re talking about. I had like a bad boy Nokia that just texts and you have to pay a load of money for a picture message, or download it on a website or some shit. And when I first got it, I didn’t think it was going to be that big a deal. I just started sticking a few tattoos on it, more lifestyle stuff, look at my dinner all that crap. Then over the years, it’s just gone mental like. Now I reckon I get 90% of my work off Instagram and Tumblr and shit like that.

I think before, you’d only really know about other tattoo artists through magazines.

Going and buying a tattoo magazine was the only way you would ever go and find out about who was tattooing in other cities or stuff, or you’d have a mate who had been tattooed in another city or whatever. But yes, Instagram made it so like… the amount of amazing artists that are out there.

I think it’s progressed the art form as well because people have that natural competition that they’re seeing stuff other people are doing and thinking fuck, I need to up my game.

So tell us about your move to London?

I have been lucky enough to do some guest spots in London and kind of felt that it was somewhere I wanted to make a move to eventually and even when I started in Birmingham, I kind of always had it in mind that Birmingham would be a stepping stone to go eventually to London and then hopefully eventually to other places.

Any fucking words of wisdom? Any people that you want to big up for helping you along the way?

Yes, massive shout out to Dawnii Fantana who I have the honour of working next to every day at Painted Lady in Birmingham for the last few years who has helped me no end.

Going from having a boss that wasn’t necessarily that influential to having a boss who couldn’t go more out of her way to help has literally completely changed my career. Then just all the lads, you know who you are. The people who have just been there for me in shit times and also just being inspiring.

Being around other creative people is so helpful. You know, I love my old friends that I went to school with so much, so big up them, but like being around other artists has pushed me much harder to do the work that I do. My mother for always helping me out when shit was bad. And of course Keely; following my heart to London ’n’ all that.

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Introducing Phundo Art Lady Sanity

Introducing

Phundo Art The West Midlands is a melting pot of cultures that co-exist rather than clash; enter into this mix South African-born rapper Phundo Art, and what you have is a rapper fully vibing with his surroundings to carve out his own space in the rap universe. He currently calls Walsall home, but his sights are set on a much more global presence. His musical movements are the product of a young, curious mind that absorbs sounds and visuals that speak to him. Phundo’s lyrical style has roots in American street rap with slang heavy stories rubbing shoulders with production from local legend Dan Oddysee and a small gang of over-seas beat wizards. Phundo Art keeps his circle exclusively close and small in number ensuring a coherent aesthetic of sound.

Phundo Art’s recent mixtape ‘BNG’ has had the ears of rap fans pricking up at the sound of his localised lingo, radio-ready choruses and bold tunes with slang that bangs. He has a playful power over his vocal tones, switching from guttural menace to a lighter, streetwise growl. There is no need for a hype-man when he takes to the stage either; his audiences shout back every word. Recent live shows have seen him level up from the open mic nights he cut his teeth at. It was Wolverhampton-based grime MC Vital that first encouraged him to spit bars at an open mic night. He’s never looked back since; except to throw cheeky winks back at the girls, undressing him with their eyes.

When it comes to fashion, Phundo Art’s style is a work of just that. Art. Much like his music, his fashion is an amalgamation of aesthetics. His Instagram page pops out of mobile screens like a brand look-book. A future in modelling looks likely to be on the cards and for a modern rapper in 2016; it’s a logical career progression. Not stopping at rapping and fashion; Phundo has been staring into computer screens as much as camera lenses recently, as he intends to learn how to produce.

Phundo Art epitomises everything that people have come to expect from their favourite modern rapper. No longer are we accepting them just to have a wordy flow that makes us laugh and think. Audiences want rappers to also be producers, labelowners, models, designers and photographers. Phundo is well on his way to checking each and every one off the list.

Words: Jack Parker

Images: Gift Gwambe

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Words: Jack Parker

Introducing

Lady Sanity

Images: Gift Gwambe

Don’t fret too much if you’ve not heard Lady Sanity’s music.

She’s a bit of a cult-concern round these parts. But then so were The Streets at one point. Things change. Things change a lot quicker than they used to. Lady Sanity’s come up will be short-lived but for all the best reasons. Cult concern is a label she is out-growing. And fast.

Lady Sanity’s lyric-heavy raps hark back to classic 90s hip hop. But not because she consciously makes music that wishes it was born a lot earlier, but because story-telling was the biggest element of 90s hip hop. And telling stories, discussing ideas and promoting positivity is part of what Lady Sanity’s music is all about. So you can’t help but be reminded of A Tribe Called Quest and The Pharcyde when you play this Birmingham based rapper through your headphones. Rap is constantly evolving; reliving its past and reinventing itself at the same time. It’s hard to keep up. It’s also pretty hard to keep up with Lady Sanity’s light-speed lyricism that is full to the brim with broadcasts straight from her cranium.

She’s been happy to exist as a hidden treasure buried in amongst the West Midlands music scene. But through the busy activity on her SoundCloud page and via various live shows across the UK; she has been winning the appreciation of hip hop heads whom her lyrics really speak to. She even counts Little Simz amongst her slowly building fanbase. Lady Sanity met Little Simz when she tore up a set in Birmingham; after the show Simz asked Sanity to spit for her on the spot and Simz was blown away. Slots at Glastonbury and BoomBap festival have also been won by the sheer tenacity of Lady Sanity. Her music is taking her global without any prim and proper PR campaigns.

With her style of music leaning heavily towards a more traditional form of rap music and away from lean references and money boasts; it’s easy to see Lady Sanity winning the appreciation of music critics and rap purists and their appreciation alone. Dig a little deeper however into her short but sweet back catalogue and you’ll unearth radio-ready choruses in no time. Be prepared to dig a little deeper with Lady Sanity’s music. She’s here to discuss ideas, project concepts into the conscious of the masses through music but that doesn’t mean she has an overarching sense of ‘holier than thou’ that some rappers carry.

Lady Sanity is just like you and yours. Except she can rap.

She’s exceptional at it an’ all.

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Windows down system up music SKIT

Words: John Bryan Images: Callum Barnes

Philth Artist, illustrator and designer now based in Oxfordshire working in a variety of media from spray paint to digital. We’ve always been massive fan of Phill Blake and his luscious lipped women.

His work has graced many a street in Digbeth and donned various walls in various clubs and bars across the city. His latest direction takes a refreshing twist of Arts and Crafts and on the Art Nouveau movement reminiscent of works by Alphonse Mucha where the the female form is entwined with nature. He is also going back to basics with traditional print and pattern work that takes inspiration from the work of William Morris.

Do you find your environment has an impact on your work?

Yes it has an impact on everything, we adapt to our environment, or we adapt the environment to us, I prefer the first, since moving to the countryside my work has changed, like my studio has got loads smaller so I’ve adapted to that, I’m surrounded now by nature so it can’t help but creep in to the work because its what I see around me, I’ve gone from being on an estate surrounded by flats and now I am surrounded by wild life! It’s really quiet where I live so no distractions where as before they’re was full on distractions and out here there’s no other options but to get on with more work its a lot greener than grey!

Small canvases or painting bricks and mortar, which do you prefer?

It’s seasonal, I’m happiest outdoors on bricks and mortar when the temperature is right. I love to paint walls but I don’t like the cold. I like to use lots of different mediums so small canvases are good. I also like to paint on wood. I like to work mixed media on paper.

Anything!

Big canvases are what I like to paint best but I can’t really do that because of space and storage, I’ve only got a small studio space and it’s inside my house so I can’t use spray paint, plus larger canvases are harder to shift.

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How did you get in to painting portraits?

And what attributes do you look for when selecting the subjects to paint?

I wouldn’t really say it is portraiture, I look to use characters in my work as a representation of nature as a whole rather than capturing an individual person, which traditional portraiture does. I ‘ve always had an emphasis on character based stuff in all of my work, when I started to paint on the street I wanted to bring that into it. Also painting with artist N4T4 who paints lots of beautiful women, lots of people like it, it appeals to everyone, not alienating people and not criminal connotations. At the time it differentiated us from other artists who were painting male characters or just massive lettering pieces. It is a male dominated scene so it is good to portray a powerful positive female image in a masculine culture.

It can be very difficult for me to select subjects for me to paint, when I look back through my old paintings all the shit ones are where I have not put enough scrutiny into my initial editing of reference materials and I always look back and think they are terrible paintings.

Usually if I see images, I get them from everywhere, magazines, insta, the internet, books, I’ll put into a folder on my computer an then I’ll narrow it down and get rid of most of them, other times I just see things and know straight away it will work, sometimes I just see an image and it will spark something in my mind! sometimes I just have an idea and then I go looking for reference to support the idea, I would really like to shoot my own models but I don’t have the time or the resources to do that at the moment. If I’m looking for attributes I look for what I consider to be extreme beauty like nature’s being perfectly manifested in a visual representation if that makes sense.

We have seen shows run in Bristol and London but are yet to see you exhibit work on this scale in Birmingham? What do you put that down to?

I would love to do a show in Brum but have never been asked. My exhibitions have come from me being approached, plus Bristol and London have ok representation for street artists and illustrators and more low brow art than what I can see happening in Birmingham, There is art and street art and Graffiti happening in Birmingham but no one is taking advantage of showcasing the crossover between it all in a gallery or exhibition setting. In other words no one is putting on shows in Birmingham anymore.

Where do you look for inspiration?

The woods, the internet, books, people watching, other artists, music in general, i look within my own mind and memories. Anywhere but the TV! We have recently seen a collaboration with BabMag favourites Plume for their Tabula Rasa exhibition, how important is it for artists to collaborate with others?

It is quite important because it means you have some limitations and boundaries and that makes you think creatively with how you are going to work with that person, you’re also going to come out with something that neither of you would have alone so it is like a third mind kind of thing steering you in a different direction, it’s also good to just communicate with other artists and creative people especially if you spend most of the time alone working in your own bubble. I really enjoyed doing the Plume colab because it was digital photography which led me to do digital painting for a fine art purpose rather than just for illustration or design and now I’ve gone on to do further fine art works in digital media.

What are your plans for 2016? Any upcoming shows or projects that you can shine some light on?

I don’t plan things I just let things emerge, every time i plan things they never work out anyway, I like seeing what the universe has got in store for me! But I hope to improve as an artist.

Edition 9 October 1st 119 Floodgate St 105

Adam Shelton 
Adam Shelton has shaped Birmingham’s electronic music scene bringing it from the dance floor death bed in 2005 with the birth of Below. The Sunday day time party gained legendary status across the UK. One Records followed in 2009 quickly cementing itself as a leading underground record label signing music from artists such as the Martinez Brothers, Jef K, Dan Ghenacia and DJ W!ld.

From the courtyard of an old Digbeth boozer to most iconic clubs in the world, Adam has honed his craft with the biggest names in the game and been championed by the godfathers of dance music. Seeing him on the bill next to pioneers such as Sven Vath, Craig Richards, Kerry Chandler and DJ Sneak proves how far his journey has come.

Words: John Bryan

How has the Birmingham music scene changed from the early days of Wobble and Atomic Jam to what we see now?

I feel lucky to have been around for both Wobble and Atomic Jam who were bringing artists to the city that were so important at the time. It would have been a scandal for the second city to not have had Dave Clarke, Josh Wink, Derrick Carter, DJ Sneak… these are just a few examples of people that really blew me away and in the mid to late 90’s these guys were on top of their game, energy levels were high through music, drugs, and just that time in general was a buzz. The Q Club where Atomic Jam held their parties was just so special; I think walking into that venue is the same as when you first walk into Fabric in London or the Berghain in Berlin. It was mindblowing architecture for a club environment, added to that acoustics that were really pushed to the limits to fill the room with as much sound as possible. Wobble was really the club that did it to me for real - great residents, forward thinking bookings, the right venue. I remember been in the queue and hearing the shutters rattling; excited to get in there was an understatement.

I think the city now is on form. Especially in the last five years, you can’t deny that Birmingham is not fully on the map for electronic music - Rainbow Venues… Lab11… The Hare and Hounds, all firing and putting on solid parties weekly. It’s hard for me when I have seen so much in the city and have been collecting records for 20+ years to say that the scene now is fresh; it’s more watered down musically at the big nights, but it’s a business and it’s big business for some which lowers the quality levels but brings in the crowds. The smaller, more select parties for me are what keeps the city alive, Cloak n Dagger, Leftfoot, Social Underground… these parties have more soul, and visiting venues like Spotlight, the Hare and suki10c you can have a good night without the bullshit door policies and intense atmospheres.

Places and parties come and go that’s for sure and with the city under so much development there can only be more good stuff popping up in the future.

One Records has now been running for 6 years, was running a label always your game plan?

I have never had a long term game plan, the last 10 years or my life have been mad, from doing parties to running venues to starting the label, it’s all rolled into one trip. But I do feel now, the most comfortable I have ever felt with the label. Now all the other things are out of the way and just a fond memory I can really focus on my music, my gigs and making the label as strong as possible and I feel I have some really good people on board now.

The next 6 years are going to be big in the game in a very credible way and hopefully as a crew we can experience good things together and help each other to reach high points in our careers.

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You’re now on issue 036 of One Record releases. Any particular one that stands out as a highlight for the label?

036 to be fair is pretty badass! One of my favourites so far for sure. When I sit there and play the back catalogue I am consistently happy with all the music we have released, I have tracks that I play a lot because they suit what I play, the label is not just about what Subb-an and I like; its about putting out music we want people to like too. I don’t think having a best seller is the right way to reflect highlight. What I do buzz off, and a constant highlight of running the label, is the top quality the crew comes with, John Dimas, Yamen & EDA, Alex Arnout, Acid Mondays, Jack Wickham are all hugely on it, moving forward with their own interesting projects and delivering cool music to One Records.

From the success of the One Record’s tees to the cover art collaboration with Plume, how important is strong branding for you and the label?

I love the logo, and people seem to take to it really well, so working on collaborations with people has been a nice extension of what we can do with the label. I think there are so many avenues you can go down with visual awareness, merchandise and random ideas you have to try out just to see how it is received by your followers. It can open up the label to new supporters also. You might want a t-shirt but not be into house music - that’s cool, it’s all an extension of the brand.

How significant is it to keep the faith in wax, and continuing to press and play vinyl?

I could not believe in anything more so than this; the history, the collectability, the artwork on the sleeve, the way the label is presented, the sound you get, the feeling you get when you get a new purchase of wax and open it up and put the needle on for the first time.

Twenty years I have been having that feeling and I know I will have it for as long as my hands can put the record on the player and hand over the cash for it.

Chop my hands off and I will use my feet.

I love clothes, from the same age of buying records I have always been into clobber but as time has gone on it excites me less and less. Records excite me more and more and the funny thing is I only just feel now I have scratched the surface with buying music. It is a neverending amazing hobby. I like it, yes.

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What’s your preferred part of the creative process?

100% playing the music for the first time. When you get a great reaction from the crowd and you’re confident about it but you also know that anything can happen it’s a nervous / exciting / satisfying process and when it works out well it’s a special feeling.

How much inspiration do you take from hotspots of electronic dance music like, Chicago, Detroit and NYC? One of my early influences was Derrick Carter from Chicago and Derrick May from Detroit, also the body & soul crew from NYC consisting of Francois Kevorkian, Danny Krivitt and Joe Claussell. Now to the trained ear these are very general names in music around the 90’s but they started my whole story of electronic music in its advanced form. When I heard these guys play and researched the music they were playing, that’s when I really start getting into it and now I am still looking deeper and deeper into the story of disco, house and techno. Three cities you have to be extremely knowledgeable on, in my eyes, if you want to know the real story.

Your DJing has taken you far and wide, including broadcasting from the infamous favelas in Brazil. can you tell us more?

I have been very lucky to travel the world meeting amazing people as I go, Brazil has a special place in my heart, I fell in love with Rio de Janeiro on my first visit and have started my own event there now. What inspired that was playing in the favela. The mix of people, the feeling of excitement when hearing new music was just mind-blowing. Electronic music in Rio is happening but they don’t have the history that we have so their knowledge is more limited, but from my point of view that’s exciting as you can take records that you feel have been blasted so much over the years that you might not play it so much any more, but over there its new to them.

They love it. It makes music come alive again.

They are beautiful people.

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Words: Holly Eldridge

Joe Lycett is an increasingly successful, Birmingham bred standup comedian, whose credentials include 8 of 10 Cats Does Countdown, Live at the Apollo, Drunk History and Never Mind the Buzzcocks, alongside touring standup shows. His unique style borders on sassy but he never fails to enamour the entire audience with his anecdotes. His social media game is also on point; recently, his encounter with the local council over a parking fine went viral and his satirical look at celebrity culture has us in stiches.

Currently touring his show ‘That’s the Way A-ha A-ha Joe Lycett’ (with only a handful dates left), he describes the show as a love letter to Birmingham. We met Joe in the veritable Brummie boozer, The Spotted Dog and spoke about our great city, dressing in drag and getting fucked up.

Words: Holly Eldridge Images: Tom Bird

Images: Tom Bird & Edward Moore

Joe Lycett

What made you start doing stand-up?

A lack of attention basically. I went to Manchester University and studied drama with the intention of doing acting and then I was sort of shit at it, I just wasn’t really good at taking direction and being told by somebody what to do and read somebody else’s lines. I’d always been interested in stand-up, been to the Glee at Birmingham and seen Tom Stade and thought he was phenomenal, (he is a Canadian stand-up) an opening came up and I just thought I’d give it a go, I was in a university frame of mind where I was just trying all sorts of different stuff and it’s very addictive standup so that’s what kind of stuck with me and I just couldn’t not be doing it, it’s a bit of a drug, a bit of therapy, everything rolled into one really.

Was it always stand-up that attracted you?

There is no one thing and I sort of feel like this about most things in life anyway, there is not one thing that attracts me more than necessarily more than anything else, I just sort of end up falling into stuff, which is probably to my detriment because I end up just going ‘Oh I’m going to work really hard on one thing for ages that would probably amount to enough’ and I did a lot of stuff like that, but actually I think working hard on a project you learn all sorts of things by doing it, even if the project is shit and it doesn’t actually look like you created anything, you created experience for yourself I suppose. Stand-up wasn’t really on the radar at all because it seemed like a ridiculous thing to think you could make a job out of.

You had fewer preconceptions?

The only preconception I had of stand-up is that people who were doing it and were making career out of it were shit, other people that I thought were good like Russell Brand, Ricky Gervais, Alan Carr, but lots of people that I was watching at the time just didn’t resonate with me, in my head most stand-up was shit stand-up, but I think that was just not understanding; a naivety to what the material was about I suppose. But that was the only preconception.

How did you get the momentum going when starting out?

It was weird, it was a student charity gig at my uni and they did auditions for it, which would be a really weird thing for anyone to do now to do a gig, you’d just go and do it, but actually I’m so glad I had to do through this process because I could try out bits in front of people and it didn’t matter. It meant I could actually rehearse a bit before I got to that first gig, so I actually got used to being embarrassed about trying to be funny. I went on after Jack Whitehall who was at Manchester University at that time and had been doing stand-up for longer and he smashed it and then came off and said to me ‘Oh yeah, so there is a guy in the corner who is a bit heckly, but you’ll be fine, if he heckles you’ll have to do a bit of put down.’ I don’t even know what it was, I was really out of my depth and then it was a really nice crowd and a really nice gig and that was the thing that sort of made me really addicted to it and then subsequently I had a lot of gigs and looked like a right twat in various places around Manchester, but that first gig gave me that kind of ‘I can do this.’

What has been a career highlight for you so far?

Oh my word, I’ve got so much further than I even thought I’d go, there’s been a lot of highlights and a lot of bits where I’ve been like ‘Fucking hell!’. At the minute, the tour has been astonishing. I just wanted to live off stand-up and that was what I wanted to do, to actually have a tour with my own name and people coming to see me rather than just a comedy gig that I’m on, it’s beyond my wildest dreams. But I think the biggest moment was when I did Live at the Apollo, because that was the show that I watched a lot of stand-ups on before I even got in to stand-up properly, I used to love watching Live at the Apollo and to be doing it, and to have a nice gig and to not feel like I’d fucked it up was probably the career highlight. But the goals change and after that I sort of half jokingly said to my agent I’m going to quit after I’ve done Live at the Apollo, because that was kind of the goal, she was like ‘you’re not quitting,’ I’m kind of glad that happened, but yeah, that was a real moment for me.

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Do you prefer more intimate audiences or larger gigs like the Apollo?

The Apollo has this weird way of being intimate because it’s wide rather than long as a room, so you actually feel like if somebody heckled, you probably could hear it and have another bit of a go. I think the arenas seem terrifying, I know quite a few people who’ve done Channel 4 Comedy Gala and that is a tough gig because it’s so vast you say a joke, and you have to wait for the response and you have to really hold your nerve so that doesn’t really appeal to me, but I’ve been interested to try it just to see what it’s like, but I don’t think that would be where I’d be at my happiest.

I think I would probably miss that human connection. Whenever I get to a new venue for the tour, I always try to find out ways that I could get closer to the audience, I quite like getting off the stage and getting in to the room, I really like that, so yeah, I think intimacy is the one of the key things for me in stand-up.

You have a book coming out? Can you tell us about it?

Yeah, I’m working on it quite a lot at the minute, it’s long writing a book, it takes fucking ages. It’s being presented as a manual for modern life, so it’s like a self help guide that won’t provide any help, it’s a way of putting my letters and emails and correspondence with people but also a few other bits into a kind of book form. It’s a comedy toilet book and I’m illustrating it as well, it’s been a really lovely process, I used to be a graphic designer, so I love print and I love a good font and I love working with blocks of text and making them look nice.

Are you art directing the illustrations?

I’m doing pretty much the whole thing. I’m going to let the publishers put it together at the end because that’s long, this project particularly is an absolute dream to do because it’s paring up my comedy writing and the being able to make something.

You’ve chosen to stay living in Birmingham, was that a conscious decision?

Lots of people presume that I live in London and a lot of people said that I should move to London, but I’m going there when I need to and I’m also all over the place anyway. I love being in London, I think it’s a cool city, but I love being in Birmingham. If I’ve got a night off and I’m in Birmingham I’m so happy, I feel so chilled here. Also the fear that I think a lot of people have is they’ll get bored in Birmingham, but there’s so much cool stuff happening; I’m sat here with you guys doing this interview and seeing the work that everyone’s up to and I just think there is such a lot of energy and excitement here. London is actually a bit boring to me, I’d much rather spend time looking at the graffiti work in Digbeth than I would in any of the works going on in east London. People are doing it because they want to do it, not just for the sake of doing it, which is what the arts is about for me.

You get a purer person doing stuff here I think, whereas in London it’s all about ‘I get recognised and then I do this.’ It’s not about that here. It’s about doing good stuff.

Do you think it has helped your career staying in Birmingham?

Yeah, I think it just kept me from getting caught up in silly town, which London can be, it’s forced me to not go out to silly stuff every night. I find a lot of the things that go on in London they all sound really cool, but actually I find them quite stressful, like awards do’s and things like that, I find really stressful, my favorite thing is to sit in the Hare and Hounds in Kings Heath, just getting fucked up; it’s my favorite thing to do.

Are there any clubs or comedy nights in the Midlands that you suggest people try out?

No. They are all shit. The Glee is probably the best live stand-up club in the area, but then my friend Karen Bailey runs a brilliant gig in The Station pub in Sutton Coldfield, which is really good and then there is a fun one at the Hare and Hounds

in Kings Heath. Another is the Fat Penguin at Patrick Kavanagh, which is a free one in Moseley, I did that one last recently, and it was a really nice, great atmosphere in there. Rough Works at The Glee is my favorite to do it’s a new material one, which is really fun. But yeah, there are a lot of opportunities and increasingly so, because when I started doing stuff that was one thing that Birmingham suffered with and I think it’s doing a lot better, it’s like gigs local to the area, there was a great one in Cradley Heath, I can’t remember what that was called [The Holly Bush], but it was in a proper rough pub and I did a couple of gigs there and that was quite interesting, working that kind of room.

You’ve got to love a rough pub, any favourites in Brum?

I still love a shitty pub and we used to do quite a lot of shitty pubs, Trocodero is an old favorite of mine, I love the Trocadero, 079

and I really like Bacchus as well because it’s just got that sort of really solid identity to it, but it’s quite badly executed.

I did a shitty pub tour the other week when I came back from the tour a stand-up tour, there is a friend of mine Lauren O’Rourke who lives down the road from me, who does the E4 roadshow Drifters and she was actually writing one of the series and I text her and I said ‘Do you fancy coming to some shitty pubs with me?’ She was like ‘yeah’, so we went to the Red Lion in Shirley, we went to The Maggies and she bumped into her dad there, he was having a pint.

Her dad was chatting to this guy, who came up to me and he went ‘oh, you are that guy off 8 Out of 10 Cats, aren’t you?’ I said ‘Yeah, yeah’ and he said ‘oh, you are so funny.’ and I said to her, ‘he’s got a really bad throat’ and she said ‘he had his throat slit here 20 years ago.’ He still goes to the pub and that’s how he talks. I love a shitty pub.

Will you be going to Edinburgh Fringe this year?

Briefly, yeah, I’m going to take last year’s show because I’m writing a book, I need to work on that, so I haven’t had the time to write a new stand-up show, so I will, I’ll go with last year’s show for there nights I think we are doing, it might extend if it sounds well, but I think three nights is the plan. I’m going to try and do year on year off, because to do a new show every year is madness I think.

I saw you at the Alternative Comedy Memorial Society at last year’s Fringe trying out a routine as character, Nigella Farage. Are the alternative characters something that you’ve always done alongside your stand-up?

Very good, well researched question this one, not many people know of my other work. When I’m doing stand-up as me, I’m kind of a brand for want of a better word, in terms of I’ve got to do my thing and do what my audience want, to some degree, sometimes it’s quite restricting because you want to try different styles of stand-up and when you get paid by an audience who’ve come to see you specifically, I see it as rude to not do your absolute best worked up stuff. But the ACMS (the Alternative

Comedy Memorial Society) have always been really good to me, they allowed me to just sort of come along and do a character act, so I’ve devised a lot of characters and Nigella is the most bonkers one. I wanted to try drag and it was a way of doing drag.

I worked with a guy called Scotty who is a performance artist who did my make up and helped me create the kind of look, I have done a lot of ACMS and they’ve always been really stupid and ridiculous.

The first one I did was John Roast, it was a failed American shock jock and he had the catch phrase ‘That’s the roast’. He had a lot of material about his wife and things that happened with his wife, you kind of need to see it, but it was really dumb and then there was one called Jack Daniels, who was an old man from the past, American kind of South West, who would talk like this [imitates an American western accent] and then come out with a little stick and pretend to be an old person, and then there was butler David Deville. There was a lot of really stupid acts that kind of only have one joke and I’d only do for five-ten minutes, but Nigella Farage, her thing is that she is incredibly anti-immigrant, whilst making a goat massaman curry as the joke. She’s from Lancashire and her catch phrase is ‘you dozy crow’ and she likes hitting people.

In your current show, you use some multimedia bits, is that something you’ve always used?

I’ve done a lot of emailing, every show that I’ve done has had like emails I’ve written to people and I’ve read stuff that I sent to people, I love writing letters and emails, and that’s what this book is about really.

But the PowerPoint and stuff is very new to me. What I’ve always loved about stand-up is that you are not reliant on anything but yourself, so long as you are there you can make the show happen. I’d like to have a show where I don’t use any of that stuff, because then it’s at it’s purest, but also an audience needs different things going on to stimulate them. So, that’s kind of the reason for having it, none of the jokes necessarily rely on having the images there, I could probably get rid of them, but it keeps the energy and the interest going, it’s a kind of double edge sword I suppose.

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Can you tell us a bit about your next show?

Not really, because, who knows what it will be. The current show will be touring till the last show at The Alexandra Theatre (Birmingham) and then I’ll do a few more in Edinburgh and then I’ll start really putting together the show end of this year, so I don’t know what it will be, but I hope it will be as I say, a bit more of being in the room rather than working with PowerPoint. I’d like it to be purer in terms of stand-up and what I’m really getting to grips with now is the ability to use stand-up to tackle quite difficult issues. I talk about ISIS in this current show in a very brief way and actually I’ve got new stuff about ISIS that I’ve been working up, which I tried to do on Cats Countdown a few weeks ago, but they cut it from the show, probably quite rightly, because the routine is about trying to solve the issue by putting members of ISIS on Grinder. I think it’s funny and I think it works, but it’s so sensitive for TV. I was amazed they let me do it in the room to be honest. I think that comedy can

be a very powerful way of taking on something like that, like ISIS, they don’t have sense of humor and we do and I think that’s our power, that’s out skill and so using it to tackle things like that, I feel like I’ve built up a skill and it’s about what can I do with it, so that will be an inspiration for that show.

The current show is going to end up at Alexander Theatre in Birmingham, is it going to be your biggest solo show to date?

I think it could be, yeah, I think it will be. Well, if it sells. It’s 1300 seats, so could be the biggest venue that has had 10 people in it, but yeah. What will be crazy about that is I used to sell ice creams there, so that will be really weird, being on stage there at my tour show, will be very, very strange, that’s the big finale farewell of the tour and I’ll get really fucked up after that. I might hire that out and get ‘Shutdown’, I might hire out the Vic or something and maybe just put all the money I’ve made from the tour ever behind the bar, fuck my career and let’s see what happens.

Award-winning Street Food Weekly Fridays, 5pm-1am Food served until 11pm

Unit 2 & 3, Lower Trinity Street Birmingham B9 4AG

Thomas Rackham For someone who gets on stage and waffles on about his little life to a room full of strangers on a weekly basis I found whatever this is supposed to be quite difficult to write.

Because stand up, comedy, telling jokes, whatever you want to call it isn’t something that really benefits from being analysed. Like when you try and tell someone about a brilliant sketch or bit of stand-up you’ve seen online or at a comedy club - it never works. It comes across as dry and stunted, all that shine and energy that glued it to your brain is gone, you end up cutting your losses and deciding ‘you had to be there’ or ‘you need to go and see it for yourself’.

www.facebook.com/toadradio

So I did a comedy course at the MAC, which was brilliant, booked myself onto some open mic gigs, got started and most importantly, carried on! I don’t know why stand up stuck with me, I think it might be because it gives me a reason to write. Which I love. You can work on an idea for a book or a film, but it’s a long haul, I know I have a gig on Tuesday night, I can think of a new idea, flesh it out and find out whether anyone thinks it is as funny as I do within the space of a few days. You can think of something the minute before you go on stage, walk up there, say it out loud and get a laugh (or not). That gets addictive. Like proper.

You’re the only one in charge. There is no hive mind of collaborates, moody lead singer or lazy teams who don’t want to train in the cold. It’s just you, toiling away, producing all the content, making all the decisions, which can sometimes be frustrating because if all it goes wrong is kind of your fault mate, have a good old think about that on the two hour drive home alone, but then when it goes right you get all the glory and get to have a good old smug time on the two hour drive home alone.

The Midlands is a great place to do comedy. Birmingham is home to arguably the best comedy club in the country, The Glee in Arcadian, which hosts TV names every weekend and then you have a plethora of equally well attended gigs all over the place The Victoria, The Patrick Kavanagh and The Mockingbird Theatre all have regular gigs that showcase up and coming talent from across the country alongside open mic, new material, nights such as The Roadhouse in Kings Norton or The Hollybush in Cradeley Heath. There is probably a comedy night within walking distance of your house or work; you just need to seek it out! Start by searching on Facebook for nearby event, livebrum.co.uk or ents24. com I’ve also made some great new friends through stand up, had some deathbed memory experiences and even reconnected with an old friend I had not seen for ten years. Through some weird cosmic voodoo we both decided to try doing stand-up at the same time and then bumped into each other at a gig a few weeks later. Now we speak every day and spend most our week sat in a car together eating flapjacks or recording our (award nominated) podcast Toad Radio.

Images: Tom Bird

www.thomasrackham.co.uk

I started doing stand-up in January 2014. I’d just turned thirty and no interests beyond going to work, going to the gym, going to the pub. I was wallowing in classic third-life-crisis-land and wanted try something new. Comedy had always been lurking around in the back of the closet ever since I was a teenager, next to all the other abandoned half hobbies - the skateboard, the unplayed acoustic guitar and the pile of super important books I am definitely going to get around to reading.

Danny Clives Danny Clives is a comedian. Though shy, awkward, and still living with his mum (he is trying to move out but she just redecorated his whole room: plastered walls, new paint and new carpet) he excels in telling his one Capri Sun joke, fables about his absent love-life and having an overwhelming fear of public speaking. As he says, “my main reason for starting stand-up comedy is my ability to highlight my strengths which in this case is my inability to function as a human being.”

After three short years crafting his act he has been shortlisted for the BBC New Radio Comedy Award, nominated for Breakthrough Act at the Birmingham Comedy Festival, got down to the final 20 of the prestigious Comedy Reserve for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and got heckled by twenty-five bald men in Leicester when the microphone broke.

Don’t take our word for it. Here is a recent word-of-mouth review, from a fellow fledging comedian: “I did a few gigs. But one night, this guy did a joke about a Capri Sun and then said his life was so shit because of comedy and it really put me off and made me so sad so I went home before I went on and never did it again.”

Danny’s comedy style is a mixture of short jokes, observational sentences and 2 poems. He has been described as ‘having a good shtick’ by comedian Gary Delaney( Mock The Week) ‘strong anticomedy’ by The Stand Comedy Club and ‘Underpowered’ by Notts Comedy Review.

The latter really hurt his feelings.

His plight in comedy has been improving and last year he performed a sell out show for the Birmingham Comedy Festival with his 2 friends Lindsey Santoro and Michael Crump, did his first 20 minute headline set and survived going on in between his friends’ metal band and rock band. He is planning on doing another show for the 2016 festival.(hopefully not in between a metal and rock band) Danny’s main comedy influences are Steven Wright, Mike Birbiglia and Eminem’s The Marshall Mathers LP. His jokes have been played on BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 4 Extra.

Danny’s mum is proud of his decision to perform comedy. His younger brother is an accountant.

He hopes to move out soon so he can play his Xbox One at night without his mum telling him to keep the noise down.

Words: Lap-Fai Lee

Lokman Sofrasi

Images: Lap-Fai Lee

KeBabMag A hunk of beef/lamb/chicken/other meat revolving around a greasy electric spit, every so often the shaver takes a couple of slices off and it’s dropped into the hothold tub. There it waits for the next batch of chips, with maybe some salad and chilli sauce. That is the Doner kebab we’ve grown used to, the elephant leg of mechanically reclaimed mystery meat that graces every chippy across the land. Delicious when you’re in the right mood but in these ever more enlightened times, probably a crime against good food. We didn’t know any better. As far as I know, before Istanbul Restaurant opened in Handsworth Wood around November 2014, there were no Turkish restaurants in Birmingham but with our recent influx of people from that region we’re now getting the real flavour. This is a roundup of my favourite Turkish and Middle Eastern grill restaurants, cafes and their kebabs. I’m not getting into Pakistani and Indian kebabs.

I haven’t got all year.

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Nemrut

Let’s get something clear first; a proper kebab is grilled over coals.

The meat and veg picks up all the sweet smoky charred flavour and infuses each dish with a little magic.

This magic can be seen first hand at the Turkish Kurdish grill ‘ocakbasi’ in Nemrut (which confusingly used to be called Nemrut 2), Handsworth.

When you order the aubergine kebab, they cut a large aubergine into thick slices and alternate big chunks of lamb kofte onto a skewer before grilling. The aubergine picks up all the smoky flavour like a sponge and keeps the kofte nice

Nemrut

and juicy, the whole lot is finished in the oven before smothered in a garlicky fresh tomato sauce. I live in the South Birmingham and it’s worth the crosstown traffic north just for this kebab. I always order the Adana kebab too, juicy lamb mince spiced with chilli and formed around large flat skewers.

Breads from the Kurdish bakery next door are always fresh and the restaurant is big and comfortable.

Being secular, Turkish beer Efes is available but I like to drink Turkish tea which is free.

Lokman Sofrasi on the Dudley Road was the original Nemrut restaurant.

Their menus are actually identical, so any difference in the food is down to the chef. The Adana kebabs here are even better than those at Nemrut, less spicy but better seasoned and even juicier. It may just be the best kebab in Birmingham. The Iskender kebab is an authentic Turkish creation of doner meat and yogurt on top of chunks of bread that soaks up all the meat juices.

It’s better than it looks, because they make their own doner kebabs from actual pieces of lamb like a shawarma.

You can tell the difference from those made in some Small Heath factory that all the chippies use. Here, as in Nemrut, the salads are freshly chopped to order, fresh and perfect balance to the grilled meat and bread.

On Smallbrook Queensway around the corner from Chinatown, Rod Roj has probably the rudest angriest men on any Birmingham grill, Turkish or not.

Seriously if they didn’t serve such great food I wouldn’t step foot in this cafe.

But greatness is here. For £7.99, you have the ideal meal, grilled meat, rice, salad and bread that’s been crisped up with extra butter in their pizza oven.

Avoid the doner, it’s one of those crap ones. Go for any of the proper kebabs, Adana, shish, lamb ribs, chicken wings are all grilled expertly. The portions are slightly smaller than Nemrut or Lokman but big enough to satisfy any appetite.

Lokman

The original Al Bader in Small Heath has duplicated itself on Ladypool Rd in Sparkbrook. The Lebanese and panArabic menu wanders around North Africa and the Levant with tagines here and ful medames there. The mezzes and flatbreads are delicious, smokey aubergine dips, creamy hummus and bright pink pickles that mark out it’s Lebanese origins. I love everything about the restaurant, the arabic decor especially, everything that is except the grilled meats. They’re a little bland when compared to their Turkish counterparts. The chicken kofte is more flavourful and juicy than the lamb which should never be the case. I find myself drifting further down the Ladypool rd for kebabs to Antep, another Turkish restaurant but one which falls slightly short of Nemrut/Lokman standards.

Like an Iraqi Kurdish greasy spoon, Sara has been feeding our city’s minicab drivers since 2007. When you sit down you’re presented with a small bowl of lamb broth, a nice homely touch. The style is very different to the newer Turkish Kurdish restaurants. The minced kebabs are thinner and more finely ground with an earthier spicing. They come atop a huge

mound of yellow biryani rice (that tastes exactly like my Pakistani neighbour’s biryani, which is a good thing), naan, salad and a hot side dish. I usually get the okra.

Cheap chilli sauce and yoghurt condiments marks this place down but for £6.99, this may be the best value meal in the whole city. If, you can overlook the slightly grubby feel of the place.

Sara

If you want to sit down and have a nice meal out then Nemrut and Lokman Sofrasi are the ones to choose. The Adanas here are the best in the city and the portions generous. Nemrut is the bigger and slicker restaurant, I love watching the chef using the open grill. Rod Roj is a great choice if you’re in town looking for a quick fix in any cuisine not just kebabs. You don’t ever have to resort to that greasy yet at the same time dry as sandpaper doner kebab after a night out. Some tasty grilled meat, fresh salad and bread.

Treat yourself good.

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The London

Vagabond In Birmingham

Aka Kieron Cummings is a UK based street photographer who takes visceral portraits and photos of urban subcultures and the shots have an added rawness being taken with 35mm film.

The images seem voyeuristic; they are up close and personal and often depict evocative women and urban landscapes as well as gritty male subjects who stare us down. Gaze and composition are strong elements in this work. It Ă­s unapologetic and honest, giving us an insight into intimate scenes not normally represented through the increased beautification of media.

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Words: Holly Eldridge

How do you choose the subjects and locations for your photos?

There are two elements to my photography in terms of subjects. When out shooting street portraits, the location is never something that is pre-empted. It’s a split second decision. I have to work with what I have in that moment. There is definitely a direct link between who I am as a person and the photos that I choose to take.

I have always been attracted to the gritty side of life, ever since a little kid. The dealers, the gangs, the homeless, the crazy pidgeon lady that smells and everybody else avoids. These are my subjects, these are the portraits I go for. Sometimes they may not even have a face that people see as photographic but the eyes tell no lies...

Photographing women is an entirely different thing, I am a lot more fussy with location. I usually do lean back towards the urban enviornment, not because its cool or because it’s the in thing at the moment. Again it’s because its where my interests lie and its what I have always been attracted to all my life. There are deeper reasons to why I choose council estates, it’s not just an aesthetic thing. Gentrification is a dark cloud taking over all major cities in the UK which is affecting a lot of social housing. A lot of the estates I use as back drops won’t be hear in 5 - 10 years.

I also tend to shoot a lot in peoples personal space, you get a little insight into who they are. Its intimate.

They are more comfortable because it’s familiar surroundings and of course you want someone to be completely comfortable when you are working with them.

I like to hang out with the women I shoot, I don’t just meet them shoot and say see ya later, I chill have a beer and get to know them on a level. That way its easier to shoot and we completely collaborate in a way that helps portray them as themselves or as the character they want to put across to people. I don’t take it to seriously at all, I like to have fun and make the whole experience enjoyable.

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Does it feel different photographing a female vs male subject?

I find it a much more intimate experience when photographing the women that I do, it’s a really personal thing and it involves a hell of a lot of trust. I honestly feel so privileged when a woman is comfortable around me and is happy to listen to my ideas and roll with them.

Some of my ideas can be quite out there, I may not have published certain things yet but I have produced some strange stuff.

Has there been anyone you met in your photos that has really stood out or stuck with you?

There has been plenty of homeless that I have hung out with for hours on end, or I have built up relationships with. Their stories always end up sticking with me.

I think that its the people that I haven’t managed to photograph that stick in my mind though. I always dwell on the photo that I didn’t take. The opportunity I missed, the person that said no.

You’ve previously described yourself as ‘nomad’ what does this term mean to you?

I describe myself as a nomad for a number of reasons. I guess the main reason being I like to travel around as much as possible. Unfortunately, I have been restricted to the UK for a number of different reasons. I can assure you that things are going to change real soon. I feel comfortable pretty much anywhere I go. I’m least comfortable at home when I go to sleep in my own bed.

I don’t care if I have no money in my pocket, I don’t always plan where I am staying, as long as I have a sleeping bag I am happy. I just get up and go. I have stayed in squats by randomly asking people in the street if they know of places to stay, abandoned buildings, bushes, parks and a random car once. If anyone has a sofa, floor or garden shed and wants to put me up for a few days then get in contact!

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You have travelled all over but what do you like most about Birmingham?

Birmingham is still in my eyes a city that is still quite undeveloped, gentrification hasn’t been present there until only really quite recently. This is from an outsider looking in. It’s full of culture, derelict buildings and stuff that I see as real life. There is always plenty explore and its full of characters, I see Birmingham as a very overlooked city and its full of gold.

How did you get into photography?

I remember being a kid painting graffiti, never having money. Always wanting to take photos of the places I went to, constantly dreaming of owning a DSLR, always planning how I would take a photo even though I had no camera to do it with.

Then I went through a phase of being a full on scumbag and learnt to become a very talented theif. I began stealing a hell of a lot of electricals with a friend of mine, got hold of a lot of digital cameras and video cameras. We rarely kept them we always ended up selling them on. I managed to steal a bunch of compact cameras from Sainsbury’s one time and I ended up keeping one. I started taking photos on them I guess and on the odd disposable. Then eventually I acquired an olympyus bridge camera and thats when I really started taking loads of photos, I started thinking about composition and not just documenting a moment. That camera eventually got taken off of me by police when I got arrested painting in an derelict building.

Why do you choose film over digital photography?

Film was never a conscious decision, it’s never been something I wanted to shoot.

It was a decision forced upon me by the British Transport Police! I was raided and my DSLR was taken off of me along with my laptop and a bunch of other stuff. All I had left was old eastern european SLR’s and some point and shoots I had collected from charity shops, more for the aestethic than for actually using for photos. I went out, went back to my old ways and racked a bunch of film loaded up my cameras and started teaching myself how to shoot film.

Trial and error!

You’ve had some run ins with the law and done time in prison; did this change the way you viewed the world?

It made me realise that the system doesn’t work for anyone thats at the bottom. Once I left prison I wanted to show people my side of life, I wanted to show people what I see on a day to day basis. The whole time I was inside I wished I had a camera. I was constantly thinking if it would be possible to make a pinhole camera and having photo paper sent in. I thought about having the spy pens sent in, all sorts. I have no love for police, no love for the system and I hate following rules. That is something that is never going to change!

You’ve travelled and lived all over the UK is there any one place you see yourself settling?

I really haven’t thought that far ahead. I can’t imagine me being in my own home...

I see myself continuing to float about through life. I doubt I will settle for a few years unless someone decides to tie me up and keep me haha.

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You currently sell prints of your work online, would you ever consider showing your work in a gallery?

One of my most recent shoots has had a lot of interest and a lot of people are saying to exhibit it. It’s an ongoing project that I can’t talk about just yet as I don’t want it to be reproduced before I put it out there. All I can say is it involves a lot of public nudity! I definitely want to exhibit my work in the future I just haven’t had that opportunity yet.

Can you share with us what youíll be working on next?

I always have projects in mind but my main focus at the moment is this series on graffiti writers that have been to prison for criminal damage. It’s to highlight the fact that there are plenty of talented people getting custodial sentences for something that in the eys of the “perpatrator” is a completely victimless crime. People are getting sentences upwards of 3 years some times, it’s crazy!

This is going to go on for a long while as I need to get a lot of background stories and travel up and down the country documenting people that don’t neccasarily want to be documented.

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