Brum Notes Magazine - July issue

july 2010

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kele: DANCING INSIDE

MONEY OFF AT MOJO URBAN BOUTIQUE

THE BLOC PARTY FRONTMAN SPEAKS, AS HE PREPARES TO BRING HIS SOLO ADVENTURE TO BIRMINGHAM

AND:

THE DRUMS THE CORAL CHAPEL CLUB

Brum Notes Magazine: Issue 10, July 2010 Brum Notes Magazine The Moseley Exchange 149-153 Alcester Road Moseley Birmingham B13 8JP info@brumnotes.com To advertise contact: advertising@ brumnotes.com Editor: Sean O’Muir Contributors Words: Tom Pell, James Collins, Richard Franks, Ross Cotton, Lyle Bignon, Rebecca Carlson Pictures: drw-images, Gobinder Jhitta, Katja Ogrin, Luke Fagan Design: Ryan Killeen, Andy Aitken, Chincherry Design All content © Brum Notes Magazine. Views expressed are those of the author, not necessarily Brum Notes Magazine.

While all care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of content, Brum Notes Magazine will not be held liable for any errors or losses claimed to have been incurred by any errors. Advertising terms and conditions available on request.

Twitter @BrumNotesMag Facebook search ‘Brum Notes Magazine’ www.brumnotes.com

Jay-Z live at the LG Arena, Birmingham.

Read the review on p20.

Photo by drw-images

contents NEWS 4-5: Local rock legends plan their return and a drugs baron drops into town.

FEATURES 6: Profile DJs and bookers of bands with obscure names, This is Tomorrow, reveal all. And give away tickets and CDs! 7: The Coral Everyone’s favourite psychedelic Scousers talk up their latest evolution. Plus, win tickets to see them live!

8-9: The Drums It must be hard being one of the most hyped bands around. But not for laid-back New Yorkers The Drums.

10-11: Chapel Club The Off The Cuff Festival headliners reveal their emotional side and their hatred of Kate Nash. Just don’t tell The Cribs.

12: The Traps/The Arcadian Kicks Two of the Midlands finest share their plans for the summer. And there’s not a bucket and spade in sight.

14-15: Kele The notoriously awkward Bloc Party frontman-turnedsolo artist lives up to his reputation in a slightly awkward interview.

16-17: Birmingham International Jazz Festival

As the festival marks its 26th anniversary this month, we share the thrills and spills.

REVIEWS 18-21: Live Rap legend Jay-Z and beard legends Band of Horses, among others.

22: Records New offerings from Kele, The Coral and Bombay Bicycle Club’s acoustic venture.

FOOD & DRINK 23: Cider guide 24: Recipe of the Month Make your own churros, soul food style.

LISTINGS 28-31: Gig Guide What to see and where in July

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news debut single for goodnight lenin

Nu-folk hopefuls Goodnight Lenin will release their debut single next month.

The hotly-tipped band, who have earned a growing reputation for their live shows, will release Crook in the Creek on August 6 through Static Caravan.

A limited edition run of 500 7’ inch vinyls will be available, also featuring b-side Ragged Schools.

The Birmingham band will stage a single launch party at the Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath on the same day, with support from Young Runaways, Boat To Row and Jodi Ann Bickley.

big money upgrade and new name for arena One of Birmingham’s biggest city centre entertainment venues is set for a big money revamp.

The National Indoor Arena (NIA), which welcomes crowds throughout the year for a range of sporting, entertainment, music and business events, will get spruced up public areas and a re-design as part of an upgrade which will also see it given a new sponsor name.

A feasibility study is now underway to develop the concept and appoint an architect for the project, with a budget to be revealed once the study is complete.

Work is earmarked to begin on the 13,000 capacity arena in summer 2011.

The arena bowl itself will remain the same, but improvements are expected to take in food and drinks areas, entrances, hospitality areas, toilets and backstage facilities, while a new canalside catering

NINETIES REVIVAL FOR TWO ICONIC BANDS

area is a possibility.

The proposals follow the £29 million refurbishment of sister venue the LG Arena, based at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Solihull.

The NEC Group-owned NIA, which first opened its doors in 1991, has hosted a vast range of international events, including more than 30 sports, Disney on Ice and concerts from the likes of Prince, Coldplay, Oasis and more than 50 appearances from Sir Cliff Richard.

Gorillaz and Thirty Seconds To Mars are among those lined up to play there later this year.

Phil Mead, managing director of arenas for the NEC Group, said:“Last year we launched the brand new LG Arena to critical acclaim, from pop stars to concert goers. We are now taking the first steps to propelling The NIA to the top of the UK’s premier arenas.’

Terrorvision and Dodgy in comebacks with concerts in the region Dodgy will perform a free show between 1993 and 2001, including Two names synonymous with at Birmingham bar Poppyred. The their ubiquitous 1999 smash Te1990s guitar music return to the quila. Tickets are £17.50 in advance Redditch-born singer will perform stage in the Midlands this month. a selection of their hits, which or £18.50 on the door.

Terrorvision have reformed and included Staying Out For The Visit www.therobin.co.uk to book. will perform at the Robin 2 in Summer and Good Enough, at the Meanwhile, Nigel Clark, frontBilston on July 25. The Yorkshire venue in the Arcadian on July 30. man from breezy Britpoppers rockers enjoyed 14 top 40 singles

news

NEDS TO HELP OPEN REVAMPED VENUE

HMV Institute to open doors in September after multi-million pound facelift Mama Group and undergone a big ham and that’s something we’ll money facelift, ahead of a Septem- be very happy to address all these years later. We can’t wait to christen ber re-opening.

It will officially open on September the new venue and set a new bar 17, with Ned’s Atomic Dustbin takings record.” lined up to play on September 25.

Fans will be able to buy a limited It will be the only club show of VIP Party Ticket on pre-sale, the year for the reformed rock cult including concert ticket, a signed heroes, who will play their ground- poster and laminate pass for the breaking 1991 album God Fodder after-show party at the venue.

Legendary Stourbridge rockers from start to finish.

The record, Check Myspace and Facebook for Ned’s Atomic Dustbin will be one which sold 60,000 copies in its first details and ticket links. of the first bands to play at the week of release, reached number Other bands already booked to play new HMV Institute when it opens at the new 1,500 capacity venue four in the UK charts and cataits doors later this year. The iconic pulted the band to wider success, and its smaller 600 capacity room venue in Digbeth, a 100-year-old selling 400,000 copies in the USA. known as The Library later in the former church previously known as Neds singer, Jonn Penney said: year include Hurts on October 7, The Sanctuary, has been taken over “Back when we first toured God Stornoway on November 2 and The Fodder, we didn’t play in BirmingDrums on November 27. and renamed by the HMV-owned

DRUGS BARON DROPS IN FOR A PINT Infamous former drug dealer, Oxford graduate and renowned writer Howard Marks will visit a Birmingham pub this month to share his unique story.

The ex-international hashish smuggler, who spent seven years in one of the USA’s most notorious prisons, will appear live at the Adam & Eve in Digbeth on July 16.

He was sentenced Pic by Luke Fagan to 25 years in a US prison for drug importation but was released in April 1995 after serving just seven years.

He is now famous for public speaking and a number of books, including autobiography Mr Nice which has been turned into a film with Rhys Ifans and provides a large chunk of

the material for his live show.

Mr Nice sold 750,000 copies in the UK alone. Since then, he has written two more books, Dope Stories and Señor Nice, and is compiling a third, an anthology called Tripping.

During the mid 1980s, Marks had 43 aliases, 89 phone lines and 25 companies trading throughout the world for his drugs operation, which at its peak was believed to involve 10 per cent of the world’s cannabis supplies.

Audience members will be able to grill him in a question and answer session after the show.

Live music and DJs will also be on until 4am as part of the show.

Tickets cost £7 and are available in advance at www.theticketsellers.co.uk.

SLEEPY DESIGN FOR WEB & PRINT

print design web design logos branding advertising

+44(0)7871 889 178 info@sleepy.me.uk http://sleepy.me.uk

page six

profile ORROW THIS IS TOM s, DJs, bloggers.

WHAT: Promoter gularly Hare & WHERE: Most re Victoria.

Hounds and The e-catching HIGHLIGHTS: Ey ays quality lineposters and alw ds: “Our first ever ups. In their wor , at The Sunflower show with Foals at Yardbird and Hot Club De Paris show!” every Casio Kids .thisistmrw.co.uk DETAILS: www rw/Facebook.

Twitter @thisistm So, what is tomorrow?

Tomorrow is Tuesday. No, Tomorrow is the day/ place where all our favourite bands congregate to play.

Did you realise the initials of your name spelt out ‘TIT’ when you came up with it?

Ha, yeah we did...It reminded me of Only Fools and Horses and we’ve always been a little tongue in cheek so we carried on rocking with ‘tit’ as our name.

How did This Is Tomorrow come about?

More than anything, just a lack of bands we wanted to see playing Birmingham. We found after only a few shows that lots of national bands avoided Brum, which still seems ridiculous. We also wanted things to be a little more conceptual than just some bands playing and hence the artwork, DJs and lineups that try and allow for lots of audience crossover.

Exploring the people and places that make up Birmingham’s alternative underbelly.

This month, THIS IS TOMORROW, the alt-indie purist promoters, determined to keep cutting it on the cutting edge.

It’s quite a roster of bands you’ve put on, what have been the highlights for you?

There’s been lots. Casio Kids have absolutely smashed it everytime we’ve had them, having Jofo and Calories play two sold out shows together with us was amazing and also some of the lesser known shows have really stood out like when Liverpool’s Wave Machines played Island Bar. You seem to have a penchant for acts with strange names, where do you find them?

Hmmm...I think its more they find us. I’ve never thought about the names actually and I’m now looking at the posters there certainly aren’t many ‘the blah blah’ bands. I guess we’re just attracted to odd bands.

And what’s next for you?

We’re dead excited about Toro Y Moi - he’s a total genius who’s part of the ‘chillwave’ movement, who’s full band live show is meant to be immense. To also have 35 Seconds supporting is pretty unreal. After that we’ve a free party at The Yardbird on July 23 with Scarlet Harlots and then we’ll see.

Any big ambitions for the future?

Just to keep putting on interesting bands really.

We’d like to put something on a slightly bigger scale, but never want to lose the intimacy of our shows, although we’ve been discussing some big plans for October time...

What local talent do you think we should be looking out for?

To anyone that will listen we will always big up how amazing Calories are and their second LP will drop this year on Tough Love Records. Other than that Tantrums have a great sound, Savant show a hell of a lot of potential, as do Green Gables who manage to combine 80’s goth, post punk and disco pretty well!

What’s the landscape like for independent promoters these days?

In a word, difficult. A lot of agents expect more money for bands now, due to no one making money from selling albums and people are more cautious about where they spend their money.

Independent promoters need the support of local music lovers more than ever.

What one thing would you like to see happening tomorrow?

Sonic Youth playing a free festival in Canon Hill Park.

COMPETITION>

Toro Y Moi

To win two tickets to the next This Is Tomorrow show at the Hare & Hounds on July 12, featuring Toro Y Moi, 35 Seconds and more, PLUS a copy of the Toro Y debut Moi album Causers of This, tell us where Toro Y Moi is from. Email competitions@brumnotes.com by July 11

s e r u s a e r t l nationa With a prolific six albums in eight years, it is hard to believe THE CORAL are still in their 20s.

After establishing themselves as one of the best-loved - and most influential - British bands of the last decade, Tom Pell finds out what’s next for the psychedelia-loving Scousers.

Two years to record an album? In today’s society?

Who do they think they are, The Coral!? Oh, it is The Coral. And it’s delightful to see them back after a two-year hiatus. With 2008’s Singles Collection under their belt, the band, trimmed down to a five-piece having lost guitarist Bill Ryder-Jones, are now back in business with Butterfly House, their first studio album in three years.

Butterfly House has seen the plucky scousers working alongside legendary producer John Leckie, in the studio in South London and a cottage in South Wales.

Now, no pressure on the album, but Leckie’s previous reads as such: The Stone Roses, The Bends, Showbiz.

Boom, no messing about.

“He’s the hardest working fella I’ve ever met,” says keyboardist Nick Power. “He just delivers, he kicks your arse. He expects something from you, and you want to give it to him. You want to be as good as those bands he’s worked with.

“He doesn’t take a job anymore unless he really wants to do it, and it only took one phone call and I think he was down within three days.”

And down he was, kicking arses and taking names like a modern day Marsellus Wallace. But the band still managed to get distracted enough to visit an aban•The Coral play the Alexander Theatre, Birmingham, July 12.

•Butterfly House is out the same day.

doned fairground. “Basically, there’s a theme of this abandoned fairground running through the album.

And as an image, the butterfly house was this tarot card room, and the last place on earth where things couldn’t be disproven, and you couldn’t reach it with the internet or with CCTV. “The last bit of mystery left on earth, and you could only get there by falling asleep.”

Dreaming of You it ain’t, but what can we expect from this new look Coral?

“We wanted it to be an evolution,” continues Nick.

“Every year you change and you get into new stuff, experience new things. There’s not like synthesizers or anything, but it is different. It’s something new from The Coral. We just keep writing songs all the time. We did one [album] a year for like four years, but I think you get a better all round result if you take your time a little bit.”

The Butterfly House Tour starts on July 9, with no gig on the evening of the 11th. Nick claims, despite all evidence pointing towards it, that the boys absolutely, definitely did not plan their tour around the World Cup final so they could watch it. “Ah, (laughs) well, some people just have all the luck don’t they.”

True, and hopefully theirs hasn’t run out yet.

COMPETITION>

We have two pairs of tickets to see The Coral live at the Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham on July 12 to give away.

To win, simply tell us the name of their debut album.

Email answers to competitions@brumnotes.com by July 10.

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----------- Hype can be a fickle mistress. You spend months being tipped for greatness before imploding under the pressure when you hit the studio. But luckily for New York’s nu-miserabalist indie popsters The Drums, they had got most of their first record out of the way before the wave of anticipation swept them to the forefront of many taste-makers’ minds.

Not that they would have struggled. Their self-titled debut is one of the albums of the summer hitting the top 20 on its release, while their newly-announced November tour, taking in Birmingham’s revamped HMV Institute in Digbeth, is rightfully one of the most anticipated of the autumn gig merry-go-round.

Not bad for a band who only played their first live show just over a year ago.With all the expectation ahead of the their first album, frontman Jonathan Pierce admits it was hard to avoid reading their own reviews with pride when it was eventually unveiled.

“It’s interesting, we’re human and it is a very human thing to

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want to see what people are thinking,” says the charmingly down-to-earth singer.

“It [the hype] has just been like really weird for us. It’s a weird thing because we had the album pretty much done before any of this hype started so we didn’t have this pressure to go and make a great album.

----------- Hype can be a fickle mistress. You spend months being tipped for greatness before imploding under the pressure when you hit the studio. But luckily for New York’s nu-miserabalist indie popsters The Drums, they had got most of their first record out of the way before the wave of anticipation swept them to the forefront of many taste-makers’ minds.

Not that they would have struggled. Their self-titled debut is one of the albums of the summer hitting the top 20 on its release, while their newly-announced November tour, taking in Birmingham’s revamped HMV Institute in Digbeth, is rightfully one of the most anticipated

“It was already done, we had already made an album that we loved. We didn’t know what we were doing and we still don’t really know what we’re doing.

The album was all written in our bedrooms with a couple of guitars and a keyboard.

“There was no producer or anything like that.“More than anything that excites me, as it’s a testament to this new era, any kid that believes in writing songs can just do it.“It’s really cool, it’s the first time that kind of thing has happened in history and I think there’s a really great upside to it but a downside as well, that there’s so much stuff coming out and a lot of it is strange and weird.”

Unsurprisingly, The Drums have already been flooded with offers for high profile producers and recording studios to help them get stuck into their next album.

But Jonathan says they have already resisted the temptations of big names and will be sticking to their DIY ethic and basic approach, while he also insists they will be no conscious effort to come up with a new sound for the follow-up.

“We just want to do another album like this one,” he continues.

“Wh i l e w e h a v e h a d t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o g o i n t o a b i g s t u d i o a n d u s e a b i g n a m e p r o d u c e r, w e ’ v e decid e d n o t t o g o d o w n t h a t r o u t e . We ’ l l p r o b a b l y ju s t m a k e t h i s n ex t r e c o r d i n t h e s a m e w a y.”

“Pop s h o u l d b e v e r y i m m e d i a t e a n d a n y s o n g w h e r e you ha v e t o l a b o u r a n y t h i n g o u t o f i t i s n ’ t w o r t h i t .

I try not to write anything until it is literally b u b b l i n g o u t o f m e .”

“It’s c r a z y t o t h i n k w e p l a y e d o u r f i r s t s h o w j u s t over one year and one month ago to a b o u t 3 0 k i d s .”

- the last song on the album The Future.

It just felt like it wasn’t done until we had that last song.

“It’s crazy to think we played our first show just over one year and one month ago to about 30 kids.”

“Every other song was written and recorded in one day. To me there’s no joy in scheduling time to go write a song, it feels very unnatural.

With songs about surfing, lost loves and youthful memories, it is no surprise that their eponymous album has been branded a ‘summer record.’ But for Jonathan, there are darker undertones that belie the coastal breeze feel.

“We love the idea of bands that you can rely on to sound a certain way. Consistency is something we’re really drawn to.

“While we have had the opportunity to go into a big studio and use a big name producer – that’s already been offered to us – but we’ve decided not to go down that route. We’ll probably just make this next record in the same way.”

“Pop should be very immediate and any song where you have to labour anything out of it isn’t worth it.I try not to write anything until it is literally bubbling out of me.” Scheduling time for writing may be pretty tricky for the band anyway over the coming months, with their timetable pretty much swallowed up by a summer of festivals followed by months of touring.

“We played our first show just over a year ago to about 30 kids.“The best part is we’ve not had to compromise anything, that’s why we feel ok playing to all these people so quickly.

“We love New York but we’re homeless right now,” he explains. “We all lived together and we’ve given up our apartment because we can’t see any end in sight in terms of touring.

“Our album was done, we hadn’t done anything to conform to what people were expecting or compromise anything about how it should sound. It is what we did before anyone was looking and we haven’t changed that.

“When we started it was very small, playing small clubs and small bars.

We started the band with a very hard work ethic playing anywhere and everywhere that would let us play.

We just begged people and some would tell us to f**k off and some would say ‘alright.’

“Five months ago we wrote the last song

“Some of the summer stuff that was left in there over most of the album was written in Florida, I went there from wintery, snowy New York so summer in Florida and that summer vibe weaves its way into the music in a very organic way. “It was very tongue-in-cheek, the subject matter is much more serious and the music has a much more serious tone overall.

“We feel like we’re seen as almost a seasonal band but it’s a much more intrinsically serious album.” Serious or not, it seems The Drums have still produced the sound of the summer.

The Drums play at the HMV Institute on November 27. Tickets available through www.brumnotes.com.

Debut album The Drums is out now. S i n g l e Le t ’ s G o S u r f i n g i s o u t o n A u g u s t 1 6 .

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page ten

Honesty goes a long way in music. While the industry itself may be tarnished with an image of back-scratching, underhand dealings and soulless, made-for-radio compositions, it is still pretty easy for the eagle-eyed music lovers to spot a fraud.

For CHAPEL CLUB, honesty underpins everything they do, from the fragility of their songwriting through to their emotionally-charged live shows.The London-based band, who return to The Flapper this month to headline the opening night of the Off The Cuff festival, it is the authenticity and raw emotion of their live performances which has helped them build up a loyal following. Radio backing from the likes of Zane Lowe and Nick Grimshaw has helped push singles such as the francic fervour of Five Trees and the invigoratingly impassioned O Maybe I to the foreground, but it is still months until their debut album will see the light of day, leaving a monumental touring schedule their best tool for winning over admirers.

For 27-year-old frontman Lewis Bowman, his stage persona was driven as much by nervous fear when he first started singing with Chapel Club.“I’d never written song lyrics or melodies before and the first time I went on stage I was like ‘what the f*ck, what am I doing?’,” he explains.

O f f Th e C u f f r u n s f r o m J u l y 2 3 t o 2 5 , w i t h t i ck e t s s t a r t i n g f r o m £ 5 . Vi s i t w w w. o f f t h e c u f f b i r m i n g h a m . c o . u k for details.

“And then suddenly I realised there was no way out, I had to go through with it and the only way to do it was to stop thinking of myself as someone on stage and start thinking of myself as the songs on stage. People are there to hear the songs, you are just the vehicle for delivering them.

“Everything invested in these songs comes from me and my experience and my imagination. “As I’m singing I try to forget everything else and let the songs do the work and that’s why they are quite intense shows.” Despite basing his songwriting on the relatively mundane elements of adolescence and growing up, he is not self-obsessed enough to think that his life in itself is of much interest to the listeners, but more how they relate it to their own experiences.“It’s all about growing up and that period between about 15 and 25 where you find out the world is so much more confusing than you thought it would be, love and loss are never far away,” Lewis continues.“That’s the most dramatic period of my life that I seem to look back on, the transition from being a teenager and not caring about anything to being an adult, or some semblance of an adult.

“The main thing is the songs are honest. I don’t think my life or my experience is any more interesting than anyone elses but if I present it honestly enough then hopefully people will recognise some of their own experience within it, then it becomes interesting rather than self-indulgent.”

If he is humble in his attitude to his own life, Lewis is more confident in his ability to invest his creative energy heavily in

Chapel Club headline the opening night o f t h e O f f Th e C u f f fe s t i v a l o n J u l y 2 3 , a t Th e F l a p p e r, K i n g s t o n R o w, Birmingham.

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his lyrics – something which he insists is not a trait displayed by many of today’s more prominent musicians, hinting at an honesty which may one day get him into trouble.“I don’t think there’s many great lyricists in this country at the moment. I’m not saying I’m great but I’m doing my bit to help,” he says.

“NME had a list of the 50 greatest lyricists and people like Kate Nash were in there. I couldn’t f*cking believe it, who comes up with these lists?“How Kate Nash and someone like Joanna Newsom can be in the same list for anything is beyond me. “I put a lot of thought into the words and the emotional truths of the songs. If you don’t you will end up sounding like some of those people I despise.“If you watched some songs on the radio these days on television with subtitles then deaf people would think ‘what the hell is going on?’

“We had some feedback from some radio guy about Five Trees, but they said there were some complicated words in there, but the most complicated word in there is probably ‘dust.’ “But we’ve been really lucky with radio play so maybe that person didn’t know too much. “People like Grimmy and Zane have been really good. You’re never sure whether people like that will like your songs. Then you are always wondering if the fans will like the songs at gigs because they haven’t heard them yet as we haven’t had a proper album out.

“You are always worrying what people think and there is always someone else to try and please, but at the same time you don’t want to do anything just to try and please people so it becomes a bit of a headf*ck – it’s like saying ‘f*ck you and please love me’ at the same time, that’s the game.“But we seem to be doing alright.”

As for the much-anticipated album, it is finished but is now in the hands of label A&M as to when it will be unveiled. “The album is pretty much done but there’s so much industry issues surrounding when albums can come out,” Lewis explains.

“No one wants to release anything in December because that’s Simon Cowell’s month and that sort of thing, so it will probably be next year, like January, but we’ll see.“We’re just going

to tour. We’ve got a whole summer of festivals, people won’t really buy the album without seeing us live and I want people to see us live “I think it’s quite an intense and dramatic album, with some quite emotional aspects and people seeing it live might get a sense of the intensity of it all.”Despite what Lewis describes as a “quiet and reflective” name and an intimate aspect to their songwriting, Chapel Club are by no means a quiet band – as anyone who witnessed their incendiary shows at The Flapper or Wolverhampton’s Slade Rooms will testify.

“I was just listening to the final mixes of the album tracks today and it sounds so loud and heavy and there’s a hell of a lot of heavy bass and guitar.

“I always think of our songs in terms of vocals and melodies so I think of them as pretty songs with a melodic immediacy, but they always sound louder than I think – it made me think: ‘f*cking hell, we’re a pretty heavy band.’“It was pretty loud at The Flapper as well I remember. We’re not just a noise band though where we try to scare you out of your skin, there’s an emotional immediacy there.”Their return to the aforementioned city centre venue on July 23 is sure to be a sweaty affair, no matter what the weather outside during Off The Cuff. “It will be good, we’ll be playing quite a few of these city festivals,” he continues.

“We’ve just done Dot to Dot which was a bit like a larger version of Off The Cuff and it was really good fun.“You tend to get real music fans who really plan out their day at the city ones rather than open air festivals, in real venues where people have a plan of what they want to see.

“We played The Flapper a few months ago. It was one of the first tours and one of the first times we played outside of London so it’s nice to be going back after playing a few more gigs.“We had a really good gig that time. It’s a really old school venue which is nice, it’s almost like you are just six inches off the floor and it means hopefully people will be packed in and right up at the front.”

JUMP TO IT

Chirpy indie rockers THE TRAPS have been away from the live stage since they helped open the new 02 Academy last September.

But this month they’re back, performing as part of the Hott Date all day extravaganza at the Hare & Hounds on July 10. So what have they been up to all these months?

What can anyone who’s not seen you before expect?

Hopefully something a bit different to the other bands around in Birmingham, something that will be as fresh and exciting for them as it will be for us.

Why the long absence, what the heck have you been doing?

We wanted to take the time out to perfect this set of songs. From our point of view, it’s definitely paid off.

And we’ve been working on our label, Speech Fewapy Records Why now?

Because we’ve only got one month left to live

So, it’s been a while since you’re last live outing, nervous?

No we can eat gigs for breakfast.

What can fans expect, new material, a new cap perhaps?

Yes a new cap made of new material. We wanted to give it a fresh feel, not only for us but for people who come to watch us. It’s been a challenge to have written a complete new set with an evolved sound

What next?

As well as playing a load more shows, we’re going to record and release our first album Visit www.the-traps.com.

sax appeal

After four years of endless gigging and growing plaudits, Kinver’s saxaphone-wielding rockers get ready to release their debut single during a hectic summer of festivals and touring. So are The Arcadian Kicks finally ready for the big time? We caught up with singer Becky and guitarist Tom to find out more about their big summer plans.

You’ve been one of the hardest working bands around in recent years, does it feel like it’s starting to pay off?

Tom: Definitely, it’s not really work though is it?

When we’re not playing we’re in town anyway. Having fun is tiring but I can cope with that.

Becky: Yeah it is starting to pay off, but it’s been a long and exciting road, we’ve met a lot of people along the way. We work hard and play hard and we’re not about to stop now.

shouldn’t stick to it, we’re only going to restrict ourselves if we do. There’s going to be a few more big festival announcements coming up and the club nights are getting bigger and bigger. It’s going to be an interesting second half to the year Becky: Everything you can think of really, just trying to jam pack as much stuff in as possible this summer.

The single is a big step for us, but we’re just striving for more and more.

The single must be exciting, what’s the plan after that?

Tom: Things are getting bigger and bigger by the day so I think it’s important to have a plan but we

19 Days by The Arcadian Kicks is out on August 2 on One Beat Records/EMI. Visit www.myspace.com/thearcadiankicks.

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BOXING CLEVER Bloc Party frontman Kele gets his dancing shoes on for his first solo offering.

KELE OKEREKE is not a talker. At least not today.

Nor, it would seem with regards to interviews at least, has he ever been too much in the past either.

He is a man keen to let the music do the talking.

Despite his success with his band Bloc Party – now on hiatus - he has never been comfortable with the things that went with it. The constant interview requests and the questions that went beyond the music – sexuality and race being the two topics that the mainstream media have been seemingly most keen to probe, topics which he has commonly refused to be drawn on. Understandably so, his lyrics are personal enough and people can read into them what they like.

If you want to talk about his

music that’s fine, anything else is not so easily up for discussion. The music which has got him talking now is his first solo offering in the form of debut album The Boxer, the strength of which suggests it is

much more than a side project, leading some to predict his previous guise as frontman of Bloc Party is set to become a mere footnote on his career as an artist.

Whether that is true is anyone’s guess – it is something which he does not confirm or deny and something which in all probability may not entirely have been decided.

Bloc Party are on a break, he decided to do something else in the meantime and The Boxer is the result. Personal and triumphant, with a dance floor techno edge and an intimate listenable quality, all with a defiantly poppy sheen.

And we can talk about it. Briefly.

For Kele, businesslike and vaguely courteous, this is an interview not a conversation.

“I guess it’s nice people are interested in the record,” he concedes. “It’s a nice thing that people want to talk about it.”

The record itself, which like so many others these days has been ready for months before its release, has the feel of a breakout project about it, Kele’s own work in its entirety, aside

from the input of an engineer, free from the group songwriting approach taken with Bloc Party.

Although, he is keen to point out that it is not a case of throwing off any shackles, as he never felt shackled in any way by his bandmates, that is not what The Boxer is about.

“Has it been liberating? Well I didn’t ever think I was being oppressed in Bloc Party so it didn’t feel liberating at the time,” he insists.

“But I guess retrospectively it was quite a milestone for me personally, so it has been liberating from that point of view.

“With Bloc Party, most of the songs were band compositions with all of us playing along and writing the songs together.

“With this, when I started it was just Logic and myself putting down little musical phrases and drum patterns so I could mould the process.”

Having achieved this personal milestone of making a record on his own, Kele has already started work on a follow-up, but what that means for his future is a question which will have to be answered in the future.

“I’ll tour, play some shows, meet some nice people, then we’ll see. The first thing is just to get out there and play the music live.

“It’s not scary [going out on my own], I like touring. We did the first tour and it was brilliant, absolutely brilliant, so I’m excited about this tour.”

Any fears of an obscure live show with Kele on stage huddled behind electronic boxes can be put to one side, he tours with a band and is determined to make a show of it. Just don’t expect to see any guitars.

“It is a band,” he explains. “It was important to me that it was a band, with a drummer,a synth and an all round electronic wizard kind of guy. I never wanted it just to be me on stage with some machines.”

Aside from some tongue-incheek responses when asked what the rest of Bloc Party are up to (“Russell is growing a beard, Gordon has taken up mixed martial arts...etc”), there is little more to be revealed on

The Boxer

by Kele out now

“I never wanted it just to be me on stage with some machines.” what the future holds.

“We’re just planning on having a laugh and having some giggles.”

The rest of us will just have to enjoy it while it lasts, however long that may be.

The Boxer by Kele is out now on Wichita/ Polydor.

Kele plays at the O2 Academy 2, Birmingham, on July 14. Tickets at www.brumnotes.com.

page sixteen

z z a j t a ll th

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The sights and sounds of jazz music will be taking over Birmingham this month, with the first ever Mostly Jazz Festival in Moseley Park from July 3-4, followed by the 26th annual Birmingham International Jazz & Blues Festival at various venues from July 16-25. We caught up with the long-running event’s founder, Jim Simpson, to hear more about the state of jazz in the second city.

MySpace and YouTube, we blog, this recession started to rear its Did you ever expect the festival to and for two years have had our own ugly head. In 2009 we seemed to still be going after 26 years?

IPTV site - www.birminghamjazzWhen I first organised the festival, gain strength, and certainly the festivaltv.com. attendances were significantly up.

I didn’t give much thought to the This was partly due to the poor future, there was no long-term Who are you most excited about in performance of the pound against plan. We had just organised a red the line-up for this years festival? every other currency known to hot swinging Jam Session with I’m excited about most of the man, rendering foreign holidays 12 of the country’s top jazz musiprogramme this year, that’s why less attainable and forcing folk to cians led by Humphrey Lyttelwe booked them. However, Alan look around the UK for attractive ton, recorded it for our Big Bear Barnes and Simon Spillett are alternatives. Birmingham at Jazz Records label and got Sunday world-leaders, James Morton’s Times Jazz Album of the year. That Festival time offers bargain hotel Porkchop are a rare treat, UK first deals, special restaurant offers and seemed to be enough at the time, some 200 performances with more timers are always top of the interuntil Humph encouraged me to than 90 per cent free to the public. est-list. Moscow’s top tenor saxman do it again. So I talked to the city Valery Kiselyov who sounds like Still without title sponsorship for council and brewers Mitchell & Ben Webster, Italy’s Emanuele Fiz2010, although we are in negotiaButlers and we agreed to make a zotti brings early Rory Gallagher tion with a significant player, we six day festival the following year are celebrating our name change to to mind while Czech Jazzband Velwith Humph as festival patron, ke Losiny, Munich-based Shawn Birmingham International Jazz & which he remained for 23 years up Harvey & B57, Budapest’s Village until his death. In 1986 we adopted Blues Festival with a record of 216 Lizards, Hammond Funksters our 10 day formula which has stuck shows, still almost all free admisPat Giraud Trio from Limoges in sion, and a determination to have ever since.

France, Chicago’s Drake University more fun.

Big Band, US folk bluesman Otis What do you put its success down to?

Gibbs and Canadian Joe Fournier Free music is always a bonus, that I guess that’s down to the music are all awaited with bated breath. must be crucial to the mindset of the which is ever inspirational and to A special treat will be Macon, festival and trying to attract new the musicians who give so much Georgia’s Chick Willis, famed as and invariably get so little in return. audiences to jazz and blues?

The Stoopdown Man, who is one With so many people of the That and a stubborn streak that of the great living legends of the mindset that their entire social life seems to run in the family. blues currently celebrating 50 years is only accessible through a computer screen, the lure of great music on the road. There’s a whole bunch Like many things, the festival has more, too many to list, though we without the obstruction of a ticket been affected by the economy in should keep a special lookout for price is the only way forward for recent years. Have you noticed any Edinburgh’s Federation of The Disa festival of this size. Not that we similar effects in 2010? co Pimp and the terminally-nutty don’t employ modern technology, In 2008 we had our first year ex Bonzo Bob Kerr’s Whoopee the festival has Twittered for nearly without a major commercial sponBand. three years, we use Facebook, sor - that was precisely the time

Who would you recommend to a younger audience who maybe have been put off jazz or blues in the past?

Chick Willis, James Morton, Fizzotti, Barnes, Digby, Disco Pimp, King Pleasure & the Biscuit Boys, Tipitina - anything that’s free is worth a look-in.

Do you think there’s a lot of exciting things happening in the genre at the moment, with the recent trend for cross-over and cross-genre projects?

It depends totally on the integrity of the musician, the quality of the musicianship and the validity of the project. Fusion for fusion’s sake is invariably devoid of artistic value, extremely short-lived and little more than a fashionable gimmick.

I know that a lot of people view jazz as a fashion accessory, but they

“There has never been much of a future for jazz in Birmingham, but somehow it survives.” just don’t understand the music. I well remember the manager of a well-known pizza parlour wanting to book a saxophone player “because it goes with the decor”! Some cross-genre projects produce wonderful music, but in a lot of cases it works better for applications for arts funding than it does for the music. I have to say that efforts to merge Norwegian folk music with jazz leave me cold.

What does the future hold for jazz in Birmingham?

There never has been much of a future for jazz in Birmingham, and nothing has changed, but somehow it survives. Must be something to do with this wonderfully inspirational and life-enhancing music.

View the full line-up at:

www.birminghamjazzfestival.com

live

JAY-Z LG Arena, Birmingham June 9 If you have ever wondered how the not particularly pretty Jay-Z managed to bag a woman as beautiful as Beyonce, go and see him in concert. He has charisma by the bucket load.

Gripping the audience from the start, he powered through more than 20 songs from his recordbreaking back catalogue. A gangsta urban poet stood centre stage and belted out hit after hit.

It turns out Beyonce, who was watching from the side of the stage, is a very lucky girl.

Before his grand entrance, a huge clock counts down

the minutes and seconds to the start and Jay-Z rises up on stage.

Dressed in black baggy shorts and high top trainers, an outfit more befitting a child, this 40-year-old proved he can do what the hell he wants and he will make it cool.

Run This Town, Big Pimpin’, and 99 problems all went down well, along with Empire State Of Mind and Forever Young, which saw him bring Birmingham’s own Mr Hudson on stage.

And after getting the sweaty crowd to whip of their tops and shake them round their heads, he asked if he could be an honorary Brummie – yes please, we screamed - before he launched into Already Home.

Words by Rebecca Carlson Picture by drw-images

page nineteen PHOSPHORESCENT Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath June 5 As the day draws to an end with the heat still beckoning, the night ahead was prepared with an enticing line up of acoustic, soothing harmonies, to echo around a cooling Hare and Hounds.

First to grace the stage, Rich Batsford brings his wispy, lounge and almost lullaby piano talent.

His traditional, lo-fi sound provided the perfect start to a chilled evening. He was followed by Forest Fire, mixing acoustic and electro, they were able to blend folk, indie, blues and country music to accompany Mark Thresher’s bohemian vocals like a cooling breeze.

By this stage, the crowd had delved into a whimsical state, just in time for Phosphorescent to reveal their down to earth, atmospheric hums.

As we enter the Texan sounding Los Angeles, the emotional and realistic effect is sustained.

“I’m closing my eyes until the colours appear,” sings Matthew

Houck, as though he wants everything to change for the better, and we believe him.

A hard-hitting implication which has only previously been achieved

by Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy.

Jesse Anderson Ainslie surprises us with tear-jerking, guitar solos, made to fit the whole experience with a sense of fragility.

It’s easy to see how the experience gains reliance from the crowd, as simple sways match an alluring, sweet and gentle lap steel echoing sound, beautifying the band into a familiar Joanna Newsom’s ‘This Side of the Blue’.

The Americana roots style is certainly upon us, but in a way that gets a British audience through that hard, long day.

“I don’t care if it hurts me,” sings Houck.

Words by Ross Cotton Picture by Katja Ogrin

Picture by drw-images

THE EIGHTIES MATCHBOX B-LINE DISASTER Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath June 2 After support bands Black Fangs and Bad For Lazarus have finished messing with our minds (that’s a good thing by the way...check ‘em out), the 10-legged psychobilly groove machine that is The Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster arrives to finish off the job. Bigged up by the fickle music press back in the day, now (in my humble opinion) criminally underrated, you can always be guaranteed a brain frazzling live show and tonight was no exception. With their Shaun of the Dead featured track ‘Mister Mental’ quickly

whipping a hardcore posse of moshers into a frenzy the pace was set for a frenetic run through tracks old (the Cramp-tastic ‘In the Garden’ and ‘Psychosis Safari’ were particular favourites) and new (a tasty selection from their highly recommended third album ‘Blood and Fire’). Of the new stuff ‘Love Turns To Hate’ really stood out, a pounding and impassioned track featuring a sing along chorus for the damned. Throughout lead singer Guy alternates between that strange thousand yard stare thing that he does, looking for all the world like someone who’s waiting for a bus, and his demented preacher routine, delivering sermon after sermon from the Gospel According to Rock (that’s just after Genesis I think).

Meanwhile bassist Sym paces the stage glaring at us while he grinds out some truly bowel churning bass lines. The moshers get sweatier, the music gets louder and Guy plunges into the mass of writhing bodies emerging with a still pumping human heart in his hands. Oh alright then, I made that bit up. It was a liver.

Pure, primal rock n’roll don’t get much better than this.

Words by Daron Billings.

page twenty TANTRUMS The Rainbow, Digbeth June 2 You can’t move in Birmingham for talk of Tantrums right now and tonight’s Champloo EP launch compounds this as the venue is absolutely heaving by the time the frisky five piece take to the stage.

The young and fearless down the front immediately create a mosh pit as the dubstep intro of Barracudas rips into the humid air followed by its enormous stadium-prog rock guitar riffs. Tantrums have long ignored musical boundaries, fusing heavy electronica with giant size axe wizardry but now there’s a conscious effort to make the melee as accessible as possible. The Fleetwood Mac harmonies of Steal it Back and Mek Ya Feel Hype have daytime Radio 1 airplay written all over them, while still retaining an edginess in their filthy laptop manglings to keep pushing your naughty buttons.

How apt too that their debut EP is to be the first physical release on Bigger Than Barry Records, an offshoot of the Brummie club night phenomenon that has never followed any direction other than that of pure upbeat party music – an ‘anything goes’ sound that Tantrums themselves have embodied.

One minute it’s all Rusko digital squelch and bangs the next it’s giant indie-disco choruses like a supercharged, more urgent New Order.

Tantrums absolutely nail it tonight and are threatening to become something much, much bigger than just another local buzz band.

Words by Andy Roberts

BAND OF HORSES Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton June 14 Tonight, songs such as Is There A Ghost and the big hit Funeral displayed what Band of Horses do best gigantic, poised, heartfelt choruses, oscillating verse melodies and, lets not forget, that magical treat to our ears that comes in the form of Ben Bridwell’s voice.

Another feature of the evening was the striking montage of images used as a backdrop to the beard-biased band. Deers, pine forests, landscapes and photos of the gang on the road including what seemed to be their backstage antics at festivals were included in the visual accompaniment.

The set itself was a pleasant voyage through tracks from all three albums, each offering feelings of love, loss and hope. But while tracks from Everything All the Time and Cease to Begin failed to disappoint,

Picture by Gobinder Jhitta

new efforts from Infinite Arms were not as poignant and slightly lacked soul. However, there were still some beautiful moments from the new tracks such as Factory, which floated along prettily with waves of ethereal strings, its harmonized dual lead vocals and slow-building orchestral surge creating a blissful, lullaby-like atmosphere. Compliments, the first single, was a catchy mid-tempo pop rocker which set the feet tapping in the crowd.

With a set of 20-plus songs, including a hefty encore which ended with an old soul number, an organ based cover of Them Two’s Am I A Good Man, Band of Horses displayed they are capable of being anthemic and can effortlessly switch to offering gentle melodies full of heart - a truly memorable performance.

Words by Sham Marawat

For more live reviews and pictures visit:

FAITHLESS Civic Hall, Wolverhampton May 27 And so he stands; clad in an open shirt and braces, head held high, arms aloft like a black Jesus, and he starts jumping. The crowd?

Well, they go absolutely mental, because Maxi Jazz, friends, is a very cool man indeed.

Maxi, live, heads up eight members of Faithless, providing an onslaught of sound in front of a constant wall of elaborate visuals

and text. After just one song the evidence is already there that this is a well honed act, an act which a loyal, varied crowd (aged from 16 to 60) are very used to lapping up. They play to their strengths, as during a mammoth two hour set list all the big guns are rolled out – Insomnia, Mass Destruction, new single Sun To Me - culminating in a three song

encore inevitably ending in We Are One. We Are One? Sure, go for it, as by this point, I’d have gone along with anything. I was so punchdrunk with noise and florescent visuals; it was like being in a cult.

A highly recommended night out.

Words by Tom Pell

CHIDDY BANG O2 Academy 2, Birmingham May 25 As Chiddy Bang’s partner in “crime” Xaphoon walked on stage and perched over his drum kit, those who had been waiting patiently at the front of the crowd let out a scream almost deafening – so imagine the scream when Chiddy Bang entered the stage.

It wasn’t just about the music, the band definitely knew how to work the crowd and get them involved – most notably by taking suggestions from fans of what Chiddy should freestyle about – with topics such as sex, toothpaste and Alice in Wonderland being thrown out. To his credit, he performed the freestyle impeccably.

Their Ellie Goulding remix of Under The Sheets went down incredibly well, as did a Hot Chip

remix of One Night Stand, despite Xaphoon’s claim that Hot Chip themselves had labelled this version as “terrible.”

After playing a couple of new songs and a few classics from the beginning, arguably the biggest cheer of the night came for their most recognised song, Opposite of Adults. Everyone down the front was bouncing and there was even a mosh pit in the middle of the floor. Ending on their new single, Truth, the pair showed their appreciation for a Birmingham crowd which was on top form, singing every word and moving to every beat.

Words by Richard Franks

THE ADAM & EVE

Bradford St, Digbeth, Birmingham B12 0JD July LISTINGS: Every Monday: ‘Broken Amp’ - weekly acoustic evening hosted every Monday by the “inestimably lovely” Richie Chappell. Usually 3-4 acts.

Free entry.

Thursday 1st: Slipstream + friends Friday 2nd: Friendly Fire Band in full effect featuring Lion Art Pablo Rider, Natural Mystic and special guest PETER SPENCE. XTREMELY LIMITED £3 ADVANCE TICKETS: www.theticketsellers.co.uk, £5 on the door.

Saturday 3rd: Fingers Crossed presents: The Coronation Gypsies + The Carpels + Rambling Pony. A night of new wave progressive Rock and edgy blues.

Sunday 4th: DJs Jam fu + Rumblefish present a night of Funk, HipHop and R&B. Tuesday 6th: The Seven Stone Mondays (Madchester covers band) + The Vehicles Thursday 8th: Incoming: A night of upcoming local talent.

Friday 9th: Whomanity presents Juggla Live. A night of roots, reggae and beats.

Saturday 10th: The John Vickery Experience. Live music, DJs, MCs and live percussion. Not to be missed.

Sunday 11th: DJs Jam fu + Rumblefish present a night of Funk, HipHop and R&B. Thursday 15th: Dirty Score + more tbc Friday 16th: An audience with Howard Marks aka Mr Nice.

Mr Nice will be on stage for two 45 minute talks, a question and answer session as well as signings. Barnsey + DJ Dylan and THE TROJANS. Buy now to avoid disappointment! Tickets available for £7 online at www.theticketsellers.co.uk.

Saturday 17th: Big Stone Culture +1xtbc ‘What You Gonna Play Now?’- a night of Old Skool house and naughty noughties classics Sunday 18th: DJs Jam fu + Rumblefish present a night of Funk, HipHop and R&B. Thursday 22nd: ‘Fingers Crossed Cabaret’ presents a night of comedians, magicians and live music. Harriet Dwyer Mohammed Jamil Crumbs Gabrielle Sutton and more tbc....

Friday 23rd: Henry’s Children.

Saturday 24th: ‘Pete Bennett and The Love Dogs’ Big Brother hero Pete Bennett is performing with his band at The Adam. Promoting their EP release, Pete and The Love Dogs will bring you the best of Electro Punk.

Supports acts tbc.

Sunday 25th: DJs Jam fu + Rumblefish present a night of Funk, HipHop and R&B. Wednesday 28th: Popes of Chillitown +True Beat (Ten Tone Ska Tour) Thursday 29th: Slipstream + Friends Friday 30th: Tempting Rosie ‘Pressure Drop’ Saturday 31st: Punk All dayer www.theadam.co.uk

0121 6931500

page twenty-two

records BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB

THE CORAL

(Island)

(Deltasonic)

Flaws

Retreating into an acoustic album may have seemed a strange move for a band hailed as one of the best new acts to emerge wielding electric guitars during last year’s electro-pop

heavy landscape. But Flaws is both bold and beautiful from start to finish. The fragile purr of Jack Steadman’s love-em-or-hate-em vocals, is a sometimes heart-wrenching accompaniment to the surprisingly original melodic journey. Novelty album this is not, this is Bombay Bicycle Club at their best.

Butterfly House

For younger listeners, the opening strains of More Than A Lover may seem reminiscent of those trendier purveyors of retro-pop, Last Shadow Puppets. But that Arctic Monkeys’ spin-off was

just one of a host of acts influenced by the psychedelic stirrings of The Coral. With a prolific six studio albums, they seem to be standing the test of time, despite harking further back into it for their inspiration.

Groundbreaking it is not, but they still produce some of the most crafted, beautifully layered pop songs around today.

KELE

PULLED APART BY HORSES

(Wichita/Polydor)

(Transgressive)

The Boxer

Let’s get one thing straight, this record is a lot more than just Bloc Party without guitars.

Kele and his ‘other’ band are inextricably linked, and it is not hard to make the connection between

Pulled Apart By Horses the two musically. As well as his distinctive if flawed vocals, this is the direction in which Bloc Party were always edging. It is essentially a dance record, but Kele’s largely electronic offering is cleverly layered and intriguing. Single Tenderoni is the standout track with its inducing rave of a chorus. The start of something special?

Anyone who has caught Pulled Apart By Horses live in recent months will know full well these boys have quite a talent for making a noise. The big question was, whether or not they could recapture

that same raw energy and spirit. The answer is a resounding ‘Fuck Yeah!’.

Opener Back To The Fuck Yeah sets the stall, sounding like The Offspring in a blender.

With titles like I Punched A Lion In The Throat, it’s hard to believe this melodic metal hardcore hybrid isn’t some kind of sick joke. But it’s damn enjoyable one.

page twenty-four

food & drink Get into the spirit of...

Cider Season Ciders of all flavours and varieties have become synonymous with festivals and the summer. Julian Rose-Gibbs, manager of The Victoria in Birmingham, takes a look at the ever-growing popularity and choice of the once-maligned tipple.

I remember a long time ago I saw cider as a vessel with which to propel myself and most of my friends towards inebriation. We would search out Woodpecker or Strongbow, because those were the only ciders available all that time ago, buy it in 2L bottles and mix it with 2L bottles of lager to make ‘snakebite’. Hideous I know, but it did the trick.

I am glad to say that 20 years on cider has come a long way and now is the time to celebrate that fact. Not only has the production of cider increased but countries importing it and the styles of cider have exploded recently. There are still traditional ciders and scrumpy in production but now our market has been infiltrated by the fruit cider and everybody is at it.

Our own producers tend to divide themselves into East versus West of the mid-to-south parts of the UK such as Aspall, Thatchers, Westons, Gaymers, Bulmers and Brothers. The list is endless, not to mention the Swiss invasion of Kopparberg taking over our beer fridges with Rekorderlig hot on its heels. The latest one I’ve noticed from further afield is Savanna from South Africa, a dry cider to combat all the sweeter fruit varieties around.

Now it is not surprising that with so many people asking for ‘cider and black’, the producers eventually caught on and decided to add their own berry flavours, ranging from your usual pear and apple to ciders with all manner of berries, as well as lime infusions and blush ciders. I have even noticed the words ‘premium’ and ‘reserve’ creeping on to cider bottles just like with the spirit market years ago.

The marketing of cider has become more sophisticated from the tradition and heritage of the Magners campaign to the all out music offensive of Gaymers -they even brought The Twang to the Victoria a while back.

One thing is certain, with all the new flavours, styles, packaging and marketing, cider is going places fast and I intend to keep up - responsibly of course.

The Victoria and sister pub The Jekyll & Hyde in Steelhouse Lane host their Summer Cider Festivals from July 12-25, featuring a great range of modern and traditional cider and perry available throughout the fortnight including: Dunkertons, Thatchers, Addlestones, Brothers, Hogans, Aspalls and also barrelled cider from Moles Black Rat & Gwynt y Ddraig.

food & drink

page twenty-five

Recipe of the month: Hot Chocolate and Churros

By Carl Finn, head chef for Soul Food Project, based at the Hare & Hounds in Kings Heath.

Churros have been on my mind for quite some time to try and we finally nailed the recipe for a private function the other week.

Churros, a Mexican dish, are half donut and half pancake, traditionally served with a thick rich chocolate sauce and a hint of chilli. We also put some apple in them for a nice warming treat. Try these to finish of any good meal or BBQ. Ingredients: 250ml water 75gm unsalted butter 200g plain flour ½ tsp baking powder Sea salt 1 egg

4tbsp caster sugar Ground cinnamon Nutmeg freshly grated Vanilla extract Apple sauce 1lt of oil

Image: flickr.com/multiget

Directions: • Place the water and the butter on the heat, once boiling remove and sieve the flour, baking powder, pinch of salt, vanilla and freshly ground nutmeg (1/4 of a bulb) into the water. Leave to cool and add 2tbsp of apple sauce to the smooth batter.

• In a separate pan, get the oil to 180c, (you can use a small piece of batter as a thermometer: once brown it’s hot enough).

• With a teaspoon, spoon in the batter, when bobbing at the top then your churro is ready.

• Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon and serve with a nice rich hot chocolate (with chilli if you dare). Enjoy.

Soul Food Project is a concept kitchen based in Kings Heath’s Hare and Hounds – the menu is inspired by Soul Food and diner food from America’s Deep South. For more information visit www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk or search ‘Soul Food Project’ on facebook / twitter.

Diary: July 4: Soul Food Project Independence Day Special Cajun roasts and DJs from midday at Soul Food Project’s base at the Hare & Hounds in Kings Heath.

July 16-18: Taste of Birmingham (pictured right) Sample food and pick up tips from the region’s finest chefs, producers and restaurants at Cannon Hill Park.

Tickets from £12 adv, www.visitbirmingham.com/taste.

July 21: Butchery: Perfect Poultry with Steve Rossiter Hands-on demonstration of how to make the most of a whole chicken and create a range of dishes, with Bournville butcher Steve Rossiter, organised by Birmingham cookery school Loaf, from 6.30pm-9.30pm.

Places cost £50 per person. Visit www.loafonline.co.uk for details or email tom@loafonline.co.uk to book.

Aktar Islam of award-winning restaurant Lasan at Taste of Birmingham

page twenty-eight

gig guide THE REGION’S MOST COMPREHENSIVE MONTHLY GUIDE TO GIGS OF ALL SIZES

PICK OF THE MONTH:

Want your gig or club night listed in our monthly guide?

Send details to: info@brumnotes.com All details correct at time of going to press.

Check with venues before setting out.

For latest information and ticket details visit: www.brumnotes.com.

While every effort will be made to ensure the accuracy of listings, Brum Notes Magazine will not be held liable for any errors or losses incurred from errors which may materialise.

Be good kids.

GIGS 1. THE TOY HEARTS, July 6, Kitchen Garden Cafe, Kings Heath Internationally acclaimed bluegrass favourites in one of their only hometown shows of the summer.

Tickets £7 (£5 concs), www.kitchengardencafe.co.uk.

2. BENTLEY RHYTHM ACE, July 8, Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton Intimate charity gig, with all proceeds going to Clic Sargent children’s cancer charity.

Tickets £8 adv , www.theticketsellers.co.uk.

3. BOMBAY BICYCLE CLUB, July 15, St Pauls Church, Birmingham Unique chance to see the talented indie popsters showcasing their acoustic side in a church.

Tickets £13.50, www.seetickets.com.

4. OFF THE CUFF FESTIVAL, July 23-25, The Flapper, Birmingham Strong line-up for city centre mini-fest, with Chapel Club, 35 Seconds, Pulled Apart By Horses.

Tickets £5-18 advance, www.wegottickets.com.

5. HOT CLUB DE PARIS, July 26, Alchemy Bar, Wolverhampton Moshi Moshi signed Scouse art-rockers celebrate the 1st birthday of promoters Out of Step.

Tickets £8 adv, www.wegottickets.com.

CLUB NIGHTS 1. SUMMER STREET FESTIVAL July 3, Rainbow Venues Birmingham’s finest DJs and promoters take over Digbeth.

Tickets £20 adv.

2. SEVERN HEAVEN July 11, River Severn Ibiza style boat day party in Stourport, coaches from Brum.

Tickets £25 including coach.

3. GILLES PETERSON July 23, Hare & Hounds Legendary Radio 1 progressive DJ, joined by vocal whizz Earl Zinger.

£11 adv.

BOOKING AHEAD MODIFIED TOY ORCHESTRA

the free,

monthly

guide to music

AND lifestyle acro ss Birmingham and the

West Midla nds.

Pick up the latest issue from your favourite bar, pub, club, shop, venue or other cultural hotspot across Birmingham, Wolverhampton and around the region. Free every month.

Sep 8, Town Hall £12, www.thsh.co.uk.

JONSI Sep 9, O2 Academy

£18.50, www.ticketweb.co.uk

SUPERSONIC FESTIVAL Oct 22-24, Custard Factory £75, www.seetickets.com

THE DRUMS Nov 27, HMV Institute

£11.50, www.seetickets.com

THURSDAY, JULY 1 KMFDM, The Slade Rooms, Wolverhampton THE PLIGHT, The Flapper, Birmingham PETE PRESCRIPTION, FOX, TUSK, CITIES PREPARE FOR ATTACK, The Victoria, Birmingham SILENT JACK, CRIMSON JACK, HIGHRISE, MORE FOR ME, O2 Academy3, Birmingham KILL EM DEAD COWBOY, OUR PEOPLE VS YOURS, Sound Bar, Birmingham BLACK DOLLAR BILLS, SOUND OF GUNS, BARNESY, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath THE PLIGHT, SEXWOLF!, FOR EYES, FALLACIES, The Flapper, Birmingham FRIDAY, JULY 2 THE OSMONDS, DAVID ESSEX, LEO SAYER, LES MCKEOWN’S BAY CITY ROLLERS, LG Arena, Birmingham COHERE, AGAINST THE WHEEL, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham THE MANHATTAN PROJECT, DIRTYSCORE, THE GRUBER, The Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham

The Toy Hearts, July 6, The Kitchen Garden Cafe, Kings Heath

SATURDAY, JULY 3 TONY BENNETT, Symphony Hall, Birmingham CHIPMUNK, Civic Hall, Wolverhampton TIGERTAILZ, The Slade Rooms, Wolverhampton V2A, Eddie’s Rock Club, Birmingham FRAMED, SICUM, WIARWAN, PROJECT, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham SCIATTICA, The Robin 2, Bilston MONDAY, JULY 5 THE BLACK KEYS, O2 Academy, Birmingham POLLY & THE BILLETS DOUX, Hare & Hounds, Birmingham TUESDAY, JULY 6 THE TOY HEARTS, Kitchen Garden Cafe, Kings Heath THURSDAY, JULY 8 THE SIN KINGS, KARMA SUITE,

DREAMERS NIGHTMARES, CHANGING PLACES, COURT LANE, O2 Academy3, Birmingham BENTLEY RHYTHM ACE, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath EYES OF THE RAVEN, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham BOWLING FOR SOUP, Kasbah, Coventry FRIDAY, JULY 9 SICK CITY CLUB, O2 Academy3, Birmingham DUTCH COUSIN, MINOR HIGH, EVILWITCH, BELLA DIEM, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham SCIENCE WILL SAVE US, The Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham LONG GRASS LIVE, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath EMMA SCOTT PRESENTS: GUNDOGS, CRIMSON JOY, NO

AMERICANA, The Slade Rooms, Wolverhampton, HOT MONOCLES, LITTLE L, The Flapper, Birmingham SATURDAY, JULY 10 ONE TON BULLETT, HEADTRAP, FIRELIGHT, FATBWOI 5, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham HOTT DATE SAILORS & PIRATES ALL DAY EXTRAVAGANZA WITH Ignoramuss, The Traps, Boat To Row, The Castillians, Swampmeat, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath SUNDAY, JULY 11 HIGH SPY, The Robin 2, Bilston MONDAY, JULY 12 ROBERT CRAY BAND, Symphony Hall, Birmingham ANDY FAIRWEATHER-LOW, Symphony Hall, Birmingham

THE CORAL, Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham TORO Y MOI, 35 SECONDS, Hare And Hounds, Birmingham CHAOS ACOUSTIC CLUB, The Victoria, Birmingham TUESDAY, JULY 13 CONVERGE, O2 Academy2, Birmingham

Heath SEA FIELDS, THE SCHOLARS, CIRCLE CIRCUS, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath JODIE AND THE JET PLANE, THE NIGHT BEFORE, O2 Academy3, Birmingham BITE THE KERB, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham GIANT, FIGHTS AND FIRE, Sound Bar, Birmingham MALPAS, Bulls Head, Moseley

TALLULAH FIX, BROKEN WITT REBELS, OLD IONS, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham LOOCA, HEATHEN ZOO, SUB-LIMINAL, The Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham FRIENDLY FIRE BAND, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath DEGRASSI (EXIDLEWILD), Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath

Actress & Bishop, Birmingham PURPLE HEARTS, SQUIRE, THE SCENE, J60, DC FONTANA, THE UNIVERSAL, THE VISITORS, Sound Bar, Birmingham NU:TONE UTAH JAZZ, JENNA G, STANZA, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath

SUNDAY, JULY 18 BASSHUNTER, SASATURDAY, JULY 17 SHA, DANCE NASEPULTURA, Wulfrun TION, O2 Academy, FRIDAY, JULY 16 Hall, Wolverhampton Birmingham [SPUNGE], O2 Acad- STEPHEN DALE RAY MANZAREK emy2, Birmingham PETIT, O2 Academy3, AND ROBBY KRIEGTHE WEDDING Birmingham ER OF THE DOORS PRESENT, The Slade A CELEBRATION OF WITH THE ROYAL Rooms, WolverhampDEXYS MIDNIGHT PHILHARMONIC ton RUNNERS, The Flap- ORCHESTRA, Civic ONE NIGHT ONLY, per, Birmingham Hall, Wolverhampton O2 Academy3, BirCIRCA SURVIVE, O2 JOE O’DONNELL’S THURSDAY, JULY 15 mingham Academy2, BirmingBOMBAY BICYCLE SHKAYLA, Kitchen THE LOVELY EGGS, ham CLUB, St Pauls Garden Cafe, Kings FEVER FEVER, HOT- HALOS, O2 AcadChurch, Birmingham Heath PANTS ROMANCE, emy2, Birmingham FIRST AID KIT, DE’BORAH, BOAT The Victoria, Birming- RFX, THE WICKED GOODNIGHT LENTO ROW, TOM ham MESSENGERS, IN, MR BONES & PEEL, Hare & THE LUCKY 27s, Is- PURPLEPHISH, THE Hounds, Kings Heath THE DREAMERS, EMISSARIES, The Hare & Hounds, Kings land Bar, Birmingham JAMESON RAID, The Robin 2, Bilston Pulled Apart By Horses, July 24, Off The Cuff Festival, WEDNESDAY, JULY 14 DEAN FRIEDMAN, Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham KELE, O2 Academy2, Birmingham SCARLET HARLOTS, Bulls Head, Moseley EVE SELIS, The Robin 2, Bilston

The Flapper, Birmingham

MONDAY, JULY 19 NAS & DAMIAN JR GONG MARLEY, O2 Academy, Birmingham TUESDAY, JULY 20 MAX RAPTOR, RASE, The Flapper, Birmingham JODY HAS A HITLIST, O2 Academy3,

First Aid Kit, July 15, Hare & Hounds

Birmingham BIRMINGHAM JAZZ PRESENTS: THE BRYAN CORBETT QUARTET, The Jam House, Birmingham THE SMITTENS, LIME CHALKS, JAM ON BREAD, The Victoria, Birmingham MAX RAPTOR, RASE, HINGE, The Flapper, Birmingham

TROL, OCTANE OK, ELMO SEXWHISTLE, The Flapper, Birmingham

SATURDAY, JULY 24 OFF THE CUFF FESTIVAL, The Flapper, Birmingham ROOM 94, O2 Academy3, Birmingham CARLO, DINKY, HALCYON DAYS, ROSLER, The Actress & Bishop, Birmingham SUNDAY, JULY 25 OFF THE CUFF FESTIVAL, The Flapper, Birmingham TERRORVISION, The Robin 2, Bilston

WHAT?, KISS CORONA, THIRD WAY FORWARD, O2 Academy3, Birmingham ALL OR NOTHING, KIDS CAN’T FLY, TELL IT TO THE MARINES, MAYCOMB, OCTAVE OK, Sound Bar, Birmingham GLASS, Hare & Hounds, Kings Heath

FRIDAY, JULY 30 DODGY, Poppyred, FRIDAY, JULY 23 Birmingham OFF THE CUFF FESJAH WOBBLE & THE TIVAL, The Flapper, NIPPON DUB ENBirmingham MONDAY, JULY 26 SEMBLE, O2 AcadJAMESON RAID, O2 HOT CLUB DE emy3, Birmingham Academy2, BirmingPARIS, Alchemy Bar, BEYOND DREAMS ham Wolverhampton OF GRANDEUR, SAZAPPA PLAYS ZAPTORI, The Actress & PA, Civic Hall, WolverTUESDAY, JULY 27 Bishop, Birmingham WEDNESDAY, JULY 21 hampton EMMA SCOTT PRES- COHERE, ONLY EARTH WIND & KID BRITISH, ENTS, O2 Academy3, SHADOWS, The FIRE, National Indoor TEMPTING ROSIE, Birmingham Sunflower Lounge, Arena, Birmingham THE CITY LIGHTZ, PAGE 44, O2 AcadBirmingham PETE BROWN AND The Slade Rooms, emy3, Birmingham JUPITER ATE, THE VOLUNTEERS, Wolverhampton ACOUSTIC SESBURN THE NEGAThe Robin 2, Bilston CRYER, The Asylum, SIONS WITH BEN TIVE, JACKDAWS, Birmingham DRUMMOND, The Sound Bar, BirmingTHURSDAY, JULY 22 BROKEN WITT REBJam House, Birmingham WILLIAM CONELS, THE LUCKY ham TROL, The Flapper, 27s, BOLSHIE, SEVSATURDAY, JULY 31 Birmingham ENTH SYNDICATE, WEDNESDAY, JULY 28 LEON JACKSON, O2 BIRMINGHAM INDEAN JAMES, Island HEAVENS BASEAcademy3, BirmingTERNATIONAL JAZZ Bar, Birmingham MENT, O2 Academy3, ham FESTIVAL: THE DIAMOND BLAKK, Birmingham BLACK MARKET JIVE ROMEROS, The CRIMSON JACK, STEVE CONTE & EMPIRE, The VictoJam House, BirmingRAGDOLL, The AcTHE CRAZY TRUTH ria, Birmingham ham tress & Bishop, Bir(EX-NEW YORK OPEN TO FIRE, THE COYOTES, THE mingham DOLLS), The Robin 2, DADDY DELUX, TIDE, THE TWO N ROMANS, BLUE Bilston HOODOO FIFTIES, EIGHTS, JUPITER NATION, THE JACKTEQUILA LIPS, The ATE, CAPTURE KEN- DAWS, The SunflowTHURSDAY, JULY 29 Actress & Bishop, BirDAL, O2 Academy3, er Lounge, BirmingME VS MONDAY, 4 mingham Birmingham ham QUESTIONS ABOUT WILLIAM CON-