Freeq Magazine issue 8 by Freeq Magazine

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FREEQ MAGAZINE I did have this great speech prepared about how fantastic this issue was and how no other free magazine gets near us in terms of quality articles and access to high profile events and celebrities.

But then 2am happened, and I’m sat here, about to go through the painstaking task of checking the gig listings section (please use it, you don’t understand how much of a ball ache it is to do) struggling to make the print deadline - I’ll deal with that in the morning - and with a printer that has decided to pack up after several years of dedicated service. All this preamble is the long version of saying we’re going to play an exciting game of spot the deliberate mistakes because I can’t get to proof the copy properly. Fun and games aside, we’ve got a bumper issue this time. No other free magazine packs in as many interviews, features, and creative ingenuity as we do. We continue to raise the bar for every other publication in the area and don’t insult your intelligence with sloppy journalism, or cover to cover adverts blah blah blah (this was part of the amazing speech I eluded to earlier). Seriously though, we decided to let the great Jon Burgerman’s artwork breathe and not shove our logo on the front cover - that means you can rip it off and blu-tac it to your bedroom wall. Much thanks goes out to Jon for hooking us up. Freeq is the only Nottingham magazine to take you backstage at the country’s best festivals. The only place you’ll find high profile exclusive interviews squatting in the spare room of up-and-coming music, art and creativity. And we’re still the only music and arts magazine with a conscience. (That’s the speech again). Before I go I need to mention we’ve got a major party organised for 14th November at Moog, Nottingham’s best Out of Town Bar 2009 – see the centre spread for details – you’re all invited... (except for David) Big Kisseson- Sam Printed paper from sustainable forests

cover : Jon Burgerman Interview page 8-9

EDITORIAL TEAM Editor in Chief: Sam Borrett Sub Editor: Tomi Ajayi Assistant Editor: Amita Mistry Creative Director: Mellisa Harrison Music Production: Ryan Nolan Writers: Jamie Brannon, James Wilson, Ellie B, Phil Robinson Art and photography: Sam Borrett, Digital Resolution, Nick Foard, Chris James, Mellisa Harrison Cover Illustration: Jon Burgerman Design: Radar Creative Published by: Freeq Advertising: Call: 07766 118 852 Email: info@freeqmagazine.com NEW WEBSITE: www.freeqmagazine.com General enquiry email: info@freeqmagazine.com Address: Freeq Magazine, DBH House, Carlton Square, Nottingham, NG4 3BP There’s even more online now at www.freeqmagazine. com for you to peruse, including articles from all our back issues and image galleries of our favourite gigs and events. Facebook: search for freeqmagazine Myspace: www.myspace.co.uk/freeqmagazine Twitter: www.twitter.com/freeqmagazine

WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE FEATURES: JON BURGERMAN PAGE 8-9 FESTIVAL REVIEWS & PHOTO GALLERIES PAGE 14-21 GLASTO GUESS WHO PAGE 16 HOCKLEY HUSTLE PAGE 22-23 LEARN POKER PAGE 30-31 TIM LOVEJOY EXCLUSIVE PAGE 32-33 GAY COLUMN PAGE 34 CONSCIENCE: FRIENDS OF THE EARTH PAGE 6-7

EXCLUSIVE

JON BURGERMAN page

FREEQ PARTY 24-25 EXCLUSIVE

MUSIC INTERVIEWS VV BROWN FRANKMUSIK THE RIFLES

PAGE 12 PAGE 13 PAGE 21

REVIEWS: ALBUM/SINGLES

PAGE 37

GIG LISTINGS:

PAGE 41-45

TIM LOVEJOY

page

WIN WIN WIN EDDIE IZZARD TICKETS

FRIENDS OFTHE EARTH Think climate change and you might picture gas-guzzling cars, planes or factories, rather than food. But the meat and dairy Industry produces more climatechanging emissions than all the world’s transport. Friends of the Earth’s senior food campaigner, Clare Oxborrow investigates the hidden link between the food on our plates and mass-scale deforestation in South America. WHAT’S FEEDING OUR FOOD?

Most people don’t give much thought to what’s fed to the animals we farm for meat and dairy. Working as a food campaigner, I had heard a lot about the impacts of growing soy for animal feed in South America: forest loss, climate change, excessive use of chemicals on the GM monocultures, health impacts on communities, and pollution of rivers and soils. But on arriving in Paraguay nothing could have prepared me for the sight of the vast green deserts where Atlantic forest once thrived, or for meeting the inspirational people resisting soy expansion to protect their families, communities and the environment. MASS DEFORESTATION Over 90 per cent of the Atlantic rainforest extending into Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay has been destroyed. In Paraguay alone, some

2.5 million hectares of land have been planted with soybeans. That’s an area the size of Belgium. Most soy ends up in animal feed in the factory farms of Europe and China, providing the high-protein ingredient needed to fuel our growing appetite for meat. Our factory farms are now dependent on these rapidly encroaching soy monocultures in South America. WHO BENEFITS? The winners are powerful agribusiness companies like Cargill and Monsanto. The immediate losers are the thousands of small farmers and communities who are either forced off their land or who suffer as a result of the chemicals that are liberally sprayed on these GM crops. But in the long term we’ll all suffer the loss of these vital life-support services. Clearing forest for soy plantations means loss of wildlife, indigenous communities’ land and livelihoods. Destroying precious forests, which lock in carbon, is a major driver of climate change. ACTION AT HOME While communities in South America are doing their best to resist further soy expansion, it will

only be successful if we can curb our demand for imported animal feed. That is where Friends of the Earth’s Food Chain campaign comes in. We are demanding that the Government revolutionises the way we produce meat and dairy to help protect the environment and livelihoods around the world. At the moment the Government subsidizes the factory farms that suck up the soy. We want them to shift their support to farms that are kinder to the land and the animals, and to help farmers to grow their own animal feed so they don’t need to rely on damaging imports. SPREADING THE HERD Thanks to our campaigning, more than 240 MPs agree that we need to fix the food chain. But we need more – we want each political party to commit to firm action through their manifestos. We’re preparing for an actionpacked autumn. Food Chain Campaign events around the country will help to get the message across that there’s a real appetite for planet-friendly food and farming. To find out more about our Food Chain Campaign and to ask your MP to back the campaign visit:

www.fixthefoodchain.com

LIVESTOCK 2009

Friends of the Earth presents LIVEstock 2009: a one-off evening of comedy and music in support of the Food Chain Campaign. Stephen Merchant, Russell Howard and a herd of top comedians to stand up for planet-friendly farming.

Thursday 12 November at Londonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s HMV Hammersmith Apollo from 7pm line-up includes: Chris Addison Dan Antopolski Marcus Brigstocke Russell Howard Stephen Merchant Francesca Martinez Lucy Porter Mark Watson A special guest appearance by Razorlight w.foe.co.uk/livestock

or on

08448 44 47 48.

8 COVER ARTIST

JON BURGERMAN We decided it was time to touch base with one of the best creative artists resident in Nottingham so we shoved the world famous Jon Burgerman down the Lee Rosy stairs and kept him there until all our questions were answered. He’s drawn on everything from cars, tents, shoes Freeq magazines and clothing, and even two giant My Little Ponies for a charity auction. “It was funny, I had to walk through town carrying these giant white My Little Ponies and people gave me the weirdest looks.” Of all the things we could have asked, the most important was settled first; did he know his Wikipedia page said he was born in Nottingham? He set the record straight immediately, “don’t believe everything you read!” As it happens, Jon was born in Birmingham and I personally don’t think you should believe anything you read if it’s from Wikipedia. “For a long time my name was spelt wrong on it… I don’t know how to do Wikipedia but I know some artists do their own. Whoever filled it in originally didn’t care too much for details like where I was born and how to spell my name!” Jon’s chowing down on a lunchtime sandwich, and won’t let us buy him a drink (what a gent), he’s very easy going, and comes across as a happy go lucky kind of guy, but if he’d had his way as a kid, he might not have ever picked up a pen.

images: Sam Borrett

“I wanted to be a Ghostbuster. I also wanted to be a footballer, or be in a rock band, but none of those things were particularly realistic… except maybe the Ghostbuster.” So who did he look up to in his childhood? “I didn’t really do that when I was younger, [now] I do it even less. I don’t worship or obsess about anyone, maybe that’s a bad thing… When I was in LA in June, I was fortunate enough to meet the guy that invented The Simpsons, Matt Groening. I chatted to him for a long time and came away thinking I’d just met my hero. What he did with his comics, then obviously The Simpsons and Futurama, I was pretty impressed. Any artist or person that has something they’re passionate about and do regardless of money, I always find that inspirational.” Jon does confess to getting himself into trouble at school because of his non-stop doodling. “I’d regularly lose lunch breaks and I’d tell my mum I was at football practice but I’d actually be an hour behind at school. I used to get in trouble for drawing on windows in condensation as well.” If there was such a thing as doodle tourettes then I guess Jon would be the first to be diagnosed. We asked if he considers himself something of a geek. “I’m obviously a bit of a nerd, there’s no getting away from that but I wish I was more of a geek. Geeks are very smart and they know a lot about things; I know very little about anything. I am a bit of a geek but not enough – I want to geek it up more!

9 As a self-confessed nerd, Jon has a rather large stock of pens but is there a special pen that’s close to his heart? “ I have pens I like using but no, I don’t have any kind of ‘this is the pen I drew this picture with, I’m gonna keep it.’ I thought I’d keep all my dead pens, like little dead friends, make little shrines to them or something, but I can’t be bothered.” So what advice for aspiring doodlers out there? “I think you need some pens, something to draw on… I think these are the staples of any doodling exercise. Just, er, enjoy doing it is the main thing. Be a geek, definitely. It’s fun but you should take it seriously. Be inspired by people, but come up with your own way of doing it. Jon’s sense of fun and love for his art really comes across in the work he produces, and his success means there are now shops all over the world selling his merchandise. He has also recently set up a website www.burgerplex.com which sells his own stuff such as stickers, books, toys, laptop cases and wallpaper, plus products he’s licensed work to. “I don’t know all the shops where you can buy stuff. I had a poster in Ikea but it’s been discontinued now. I had emails every month from people saying ‘I was in Ikea and I saw this and took a picture on my phone, are they ripping you off?’” And if he went there with the sole purpose of seeing his poster, would he still come out having spent

£100? “…on flat pack furniture and hotdogs. No, I’ve nothing against Ikea but I wouldn’t go there just to look at my own posters, that’d be stupid… I do need some new plates though…” With all that available online we wondered if Jon had plans for his very own shop. “I’d love there to be a Burger shop, but in this present climate, opening a shop that just sells junk of mine, isn’t going to be a massive winner. Maybe one day, I’m not ruling it out; that and a theme park… On the subject of merchandise, we asked Jon about his new book Pens are my Friends. “It’s a monograph, it’s just a book of my work from the last seven years or so. It’s 300 pages, some of them fold out, it’s got special inks, the sleeve folds out to a big poster, and it comes with a mini book of sketches and doodles and a DVD with photographs, animations and time lapse drawings. My friend, Nathan Beddows, does a lot of BMX photography, he took a lot of photographs for the book and we couldn’t include everything so there’s a showreel of photographs with us doing a commentary over the top, which is embarrassing but funny as well. It’s full of goodness; it’s better than the Bible, hotels should have them… no, don’t write that (laughs). Mell Harrison - Sam Borrett

mimi

PAINT SHOP

images: Sam Borrett

We continue our focus on local independent retailers with a profile on Montana in Hockley, home of the finest graffiti art and illustration products in Nottingham. Shop owner, Dilk, is something of an institution in the Nottingham graffiti world, with a career spanning three decades, and he is firmly in support of independent businesses having run Coverage since 2002, before opening Montana, the first official store for the Montana brand in the UK, and one of only nine worldwide. In addition to the Montana paints which include MTN Hardcore, MTN 94, Alien, MTN Mega and MTN 2G, they also stock graphic marker and paint markers by Krink, Sub Ink, Posca and Molotow among others. You can also buy stickers, magazines, book, toys and DVDs, even some of Jon Burgerman’s products are on sale here. They have an excellent range of imported

t-shirts by Flux, Six Pack, Flying Fortress, Eight Miles High and South Painters. There’s plenty going on at Montana with expos and events every couple of months – keep an eye on their website www.montanashopnottingham.com for details. Recent additions to the clothing lines are a fresh fashion label from Holland called On Tour and Alife from the USA will be back in stock there this year. Find Montana at 6 Goose Gate in Hockley. They’re open Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 6pm. Look for them on Facebook (Montana Shop Nottingham) or follow on twitter.com/montanaengland

VV BROWN We were invited to an MSN Xclusives gig at Modiva in London sponsored by Lynx Bullet and were treated to an excellent line up of music from the Maccabees, Frankmusik, Sugababes, and the lady with possibly the longest legs in showbiz; VV Brown. Freeq:You seem enthused with life and full of energy, what inspires you? VV: I’m one of those people that’s really happy and then all of a sudden I’ll be really depressed, but I guess things that inspire me are my family and friends. Things that make me sad are that I worry a lot and sometimes put too much pressure on myself. Freeq: You have suffered from depression in the past, what would you say to people who are going through that same thing? VV: If you’re suffering seriously then you really need to see a doctor. If you suffer mildly then maybe don’t be so hard on yourself, whenever I get down I always think that there’s someone out there worse than me and it’s a bit ungrateful to be upset when there’s people who are starving, dying in wars or they have cancer. Stuff like that makes you put things in perspective. Freeq: With all the attention and adulation you’ve been receiving, how do you plan on keeping your feet on the ground, or will you turn into a bit of a diva? VV: I’ll always keep my feet on the ground, I’ve been in this business too long to get disillusioned by the fake things, I just wanna make music, fame is just an illusion, it’s not real. Freeq: Do you have any musical heroes? VV:Yea, I love Grace Jones, Regina Spektor, Feist, a group called Little Dragons. I really like classical music. Freeq: What’s the worst comparison you’ve ever had? VV: I got compared to Katatonia once but I don’t understand why.

Freeq: You do a lot of the arrangements for your songs, how many instruments can you actually play? VV: I play the piano up to grade 8. I play the trumpet to grade 7. I play the drums a bit, I can play the recorder, melodica, I can play the guitar a bit, a one string guitar, it’s helped me play the bass a bit. I think when you’re hands on in the studio, you just learn to pick up most instruments because you want to experiment and be creative so you learn to play a lot of different things. Freeq: So are you a keyboard geek? VV: Yea, I collect vintage keyboards and gear. I love technology. Freeq: Do you have a favourite? VV: I have a good Casio which has some interesting sounds on and a few Bontempis. Freeq: Does fashion play an important role in your life? VV: Yea, fashion and music go hand in hand. When you’ve got strong views about your music and identity, it’s natural that it comes through in the way your dress because that’s who you are. I’ve got a vintage website called VVVintage.com and I promote ethical fashion on the website, it’s good to get involved in buying clothes that can contribute to a charity and that are not made by children in India and stuff like that. Freeq:You probably get asked a lot about your hair – is the quiff here to stay? VV: I don’t know. I live in the moment so who knows. Freeq: So you’ll surprise us all one day with something drastic? Maybe shave it all off? VV: Maybe yea, my next aim is to go platinum blond. I don’t like to predict anything because it’s more fun when people don’t know what to expect, but I’m not a slave to the quiff. Catch VV Brown at the Rescue Rooms on 16th November www.vvbrown.com

FRANKMUSIC

Freeq: We were going to interview the Maccabees as well but they said they were ‘feeling poorly’ after their set so they left, so I’m not going to ask you the questions we had for them… Frankmusik: Why not, it’d be hilarious, that would be an interesting article… Freeq: Ok, your second album has been well received… haha. No seriously, can you really enjoy these promo nights or are you just putting a brave face on it? Frankmusik: I put some brave trainers on, I borrowed them from Timmy Mallet for the night… no, I got them from Puma, I’ve got them in black actually, I prefer the black ones but I thought I’d wear something quirky, so er, what were we talking about? Freeq: The gig… Frankmusik: It’s corporate, you just get on with it really, there’s worse jobs… Freeq: So you like your art? Frankmusik: Yea yea, I do all my own stuff, I didn’t do the album artwork though. Freeq: You seem to have a big following in the gay community… Frankmusik: It’s a bit like asking an urban artist ‘how do you feel about the black following you have with your music’ I didn’t go out to make music for gay people, I don’t think about people in terms of gender, sex or race, they’ve just got good taste! Freeq: But it’s helped in the crossover to the mainstream? Frankmusik: Yea, I think so. I’ve done two nude photo shoots for gay mags, one for male eating disorders and one for a laugh. I think it’s good to not take yourself too seriously. Freeq: I was going to ask about your musical background because your set tonight showed you were a lot more versatile than I realised. Frankmuisk: There’s a lot of things people don’t know about what I do, I write all the songs on the piano and do all the production afterwards. I like doing these kind of gigs, it tests your nerve, especially intimate love

songs on the piano. Freeq: There seems to be a common theme, what influences your writing? Frankmusik: Album one was about a relationship that went a bit sour, for many reasons, and it was a break up album, but I dressed it up in different ways; there’s a lot of upbeat songs. Freeq: So what’s changed for you in the past 12 months? Frankmusik: I don’t sleep much. My electricity bill has gone up and I now have the urge to drive; I really want to wrap myself around a tree. Freeq:What was the fling with Holly Valance all about and was she a good kisser? Frankmusik: She’s a great kisser, she was kissing me! Haha. Freeq: If you’re on a desert island and you only had one shoe, would you wear it or not? Frankmusik: No, I’d give it to TK MAXX, it’s the only place you can buy one shoe… Freeq: We like to ask insightful questions… Frankmusik: I think it’s more interesting than the Maccabees interview anyway. Freeq: I’m just going to guess what their answers would have been. Frankmusik: Yea, I would guess as well, it’d be great, let’s do one question… Freeq: Ok, I was going to ask Orlando about his illustrating but you might be able to answer that one well, so I’m not going to ask that one. Instead… your second album has been well received, what are the key ingredients for this success? Maccabees (aka Frankmusik): Er, the key success for the Maccabees album doing so well is that we all learnt how to play curling, we all had a goal to share and it gave us a really positive outlook so when we went back to the studio, we learnt how to play guitars again, it was amazing. Haha. Frankmusik plays Rescue Rooms on 4th November. Check out www.frankmusik.com

GLASTONBURY 2009 We did what no other media organisation at Glastonbury did and brought you reviews, footage and coverage from the all-important smaller stages at the country’s biggest arts festival. The BBC may have had three squillion employees enjoying the hospitality, but we ran our butts off between the Jazz World stage, the Park area, Glade and Trash City to make sure you get highlights of the very best of what you didn’t see in the mainstream media. Glastonbury is clearly unmatched in sheer size and variety of acts. We reckon if you tried really hard, you’d see about 10% of the festival at the most. Although we spent a lot of time in the alternative stages, we did

check out a couple of the big names on the Pyramid and Other stages. We spent some time with Rolf Harris at the Jazz World stage and got into deep philosophical debate with a surprisingly profound Will.I.Am from the Black Eyed Peas and were blown away by Q-Tip’s energetic set on the Friday night. Enjoy the reviews, galleries and the exciting who’s who and check out the best of the rest online at www.freeqmagazine.com Tickets are already on sale for Glastonbury 2010 visit www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk for details.

images: Digital Resolution www.digitalresolution.net

Answers page 19.

This is the second year we’ve covered the Eastnor Castle event in the beautiful Herefordshire countryside. It’s one of the best locations for a festival and there’s plenty of space for er, chilling. It has a really varied musical line up and always an excellent comedy line up. There’s plenty of art and culture to take in alongside the heavy raving after dark, and jazz, folk and world music among the day time acts. Our friends the Oxygen Thieves were there painting up old cars and our highlight was the Basement Jaxx set - we even managed to get a sun tan over the weekend! Keep up to date with plans for 2010 at www.bigchill.net/festival and check out www.freeqmagazine.com for our full festival reviews.

images: Digital Resolution www.digitalresolution.net

THE BIG CHILL 2009

SUMMER SUNDAE There were several highlights at this year’s Summer Sundae festival and we’ve summed up a few of our favourites:

The Beat headlined the indoor stage on Friday. The energetic ska-ragga mix was a sure-fire knees-up winner, which left the majority (including this reviewer) in a sweaty ball of excitement wanting more. Saturday on the indoor stage saw Nottingham outfit Yunioshi perform. Trying to pigeon hole this band isn’t easy, think breakbeat, hooky guitar and keyboards of all eras and you’re 50% of the way there. Outside on the main stage and another Nottingham based band, Frontiers. Trying to fit into a burgeoning 4-piece post-Oasis lad band scene is a difficult prospect at the moment, but these guys seem to have a little something about them, the lead singer’s vocals are just different enough to grab your attention. Bombay Bicycle Club was next up, and they looked as old as their crowd surfing fans, which was not very old. But don’t let that put you off catching these guys, because mark my words they will be big. Catchy

energetic tunes and with enough stage presence to please a plenty. One of the real highlights of the weekend was The Airborne Toxic Event, with a broken social scene sound that transcends to a live performance that subtly throbs with a brooding energy. And to top the set off a cover of Q Lazarus’s Goodbye Horses, the song which Buffalo Bill dances to in the infamous scene in Silence of the Lambs, a perfect ending to a superb set. This was followed up by the single biggest highlight. The Charlatans are comparative old-timers now and a lasting legacy to the ‘Madchester’ scene of the nineties. The crowd had matured somewhat since Bombay Bicycle Club, and they weren’t let down. A set full of pleasing classics that would have had even the hardest of critic mouthing the words. Indeed Tim Burgess, lead singer seemed to be relishing being back headlining the main stage with a roving, waving and gesturing swagger of a performance that showed some of the youngsters how to do it. The Easy Star All-Stars where an unusual choice, both for the fact that they where a touch lively and for that

Bon Iver drove all the way from Germany the night before to play his last set in England for a while. His first album was recorded in a log cabin in Wisconsin, locked away as a recluse for three months.The result is an album full of well thought folk based gems and this translates to the stage and an appreciative audience. If only all artists locked themselves away for three months, are you reading Bono? So as the festival draws to a close on a barmy Sunday evening, I grabbed an interview with Richard Haswell, Curator, Compere and generally ‘the face’ of Summer Sundae. He was in a particularly buoyant mood and

bursting with enthusiasm at what was in his mind the greatest Summer Sundae to date. I asked him about his plans for Summer Sundae’s 10th birthday next year, with a possible ‘best of ’ festival being planned with all the great bands that have played over the years. Asked which his favourite was, he replied rather proudly that he was the first festival promoter to give Elbow their first headline slot. For me the festival is small enough and has enough bands to discover something you haven’t heard before, Freeq wholeheartedly recommends The Airborne Toxic Event, and certainly recommends this festival, but I’ll leave you with a quote from Richard: “The beautiful thing about this festival is that people have open ears, they want to go and listen to new music, they want to go and see new acts, they want to go away and say I have discovered my new favourite band.” James Wilson

images: Nick Foard www.nickfoard.com

THE GREEN MAN Glasto Guess Who answers: 1: Damon Albarn. 2: Keith Flint (Prodigy) 3: Michael Eavis (Glastonbury owner) 4: Chipmunk. 5: Bat For Lashes. 6: Roots Manuva. 7: Harry Enfield. 8: Lady Gaga. 9: Q-Tip. 10: White Lies (Harry McVeigh) 11: Linda Lewis. 12: Fergie (Black Eyed Peas). If you got all 12 without cheating then you’re a musical genius - congratulations.

images: Digital Resolution www.digitalresolution.net

19 there music is all covers. But these are covers that are like no other; reggae fuelled Radiohead or Beatles anyone? It didn’t take long for them to win the crowd over though and in the end left them screaming for more.

We sent our roving reviewers off to the Green Man festival in the Welsh mountains in a Freeq first for our festival itinerary. It’s very much a family festival, laid back and with a folky overtone set in impossibly beautiful surroundings. Green Man is building a reputation as one of the finest boutique festivals in the UK.

A set from the excellent Bon Iver was definitely one of the highlights and the fact there was some good weather for once! Read our full review online at www.freeqmagazine.com

SPLENDOUR Despite the rain showers and a rather drunken set from The Pogues, Nottinghamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Splendour festival was a sell out and saw some memorable performances by Fun Loving Criminals, Madness and The Rifles, who we interviewed after their set. Set in the grounds of Wollaton Park, the imposing

Hall overlooks the Nottingham revellers and the main stage area. The festival is completed with a couple of smaller stages, plenty of eateries and a big bar. The only downside has to be the token system for drinks. Keep an eye on www.splendourfestival.com for news on the 2010 line up.

images: Chris James www.myspace.com/godqueenart main image: Digital Resolution

THE RIFLES

London indie band The Rifles have only been around for a few years but have already achieved success in the Indie Charts with their album Great Escape. We met up with Joel and Luke at this year’s Splendour festival in Nottingham. Freeq: Is this your first visit to Wollaton Park? Joel: Yeah, it’s a big old park Freeq: 10,000 people… Joel: I heard it was 12 Freeq: That’s what they tell you… Oh only 10k? – We won’t bother coming now! Freeq: So what made you want to play at Splendour? Luke: 12,000 people… (laughs) Joel: We always love good gigs up in Nottingham. We’ve played here a lot over the last few years and there’s always really good crowds, so it’s a pleasure. Freeq: I’m intrigued about this song about Robin Hood – Where did that come from? Joel: Its quite a long story, Luke got nicknamed it on Soccer AM coz you had your hat on… Luke: Yea yea, we did this sketch for soccer AM about 2 years ago or something and basically they nicknamed me Robin Hood and we had a new song out at the time and we didn’t know what to call it so we asked the crowd and they said ‘Robin Hood’ so we named it Robin Hood, but it ain’t got much to do with Robin Hood though! Freeq: For our readers who haven’t checked out your stuff – What are they missing out on? Joel: Our live gigs are great, lots of energy, we get the dodgiest things on stage, smelly old trainers, mars bars… Freeq: Why Mars Bars? – Shouldn’t it be knickers and bras? Luke: Haven’t got a clue Joel: At least I can eat Mars Bars Freeq: When the festival season is over what is the

band going to be doing? Joel: Writing new songs, get a new album out, we don’t have the luxery of taking breaks, we’re a hard working band, we don’t have the privilige of taking a year out, go to the Bahamas or something, we’ve got to get back to our bedrooms and write some songs, but we’re happy with that. Freeq: So if you were given time off – How would you relax? Joel: Well I’ve just moved house so I’ve gotta sand floor boards tomorrow morning (laughs) Luke: You’ll be painting walls basically. Joel: Yea, I find that quite relaxing. Luke: He loves decorating. I’d probably take a holiday, go to Cornwall Joel: All our friends think this job is a holiday Luke: Yea, you do have to work a little bit Joel: We’re working now! (laughs) Freeq: Would you give up the band for a 50k city job? Luke: no way Joel: 50k a year? We make that in a week Freeq: 100k then? Joel: We make that in 2 weeks (laughs), we could go on like this Luke: I wouldn’t get a job, everything that comes with being in a band is amazing, you get to do what you love, everyday you know, different venues, different places, we went to Russia the other week, dint we, I would never have gone there if it weren’t for the band. Freeq: So sticking with the band no matter what? Luke: Yea, touch wood, we can hang around for a little while. Ellie B

I’MA HUSTLER BABY... The Hockley Hustle is Nottingham’s annual music and creative arts festival raising money for Oxfam’s Oxjam campaign and local NSPCC projects. It’s a community festival all about everybody getting together behind a positive cause and having an awesome day, with venues hosted by the best, most forward thinking promoters and creative groups for miles around. That’s the introductions, let’s talk numbers. Hockley Hustle 2009 on 25th October sees over 200 acts at over 20 different venues, all in the name of charity and last year raised over £15,000 for good causes. This year, Freeq magazine is snuggling up with our friends at Fuzz Boutique to put on the infamous Air Guitar competition with the winner taking home a brand new guitar courtesy of the guys at Fuzz. There’s plenty to see and do all day though, with the action starting at midday and going on in some venues to the wee small hours. The Hustle is now into its 4th year and the brains behind the concept, Adam Pickering, has set ambitious targets for fundraising this time around. “We’re hoping to raise £25,000 this year, up from £15,000 last year, which will all go towards Oxfam’s vital work alleviating poverty around the globe and local NSPCC projects including school based counseling teams and the local Childline service.” So, if you’re feeling charitable and like music, art or fashion (well, you’re reading Freeq so that’s a good start) you need to get your tickets pretty sharpish – earlybird tickets are just £5 with a £10 the cost if you pay on the day. All the ticket money goes to the good causes.

If you didn’t already know, Hockley is the area of Nottingham next to the Lace Market, between the square and Sneinton. Take a walk up past the council house and you’ll end up on the main strip of Hockley. It’s a vibrant mecca for independent shops and boutiques with plenty of bars and cafes to boot. It’s understandable why Adam chose this part of Nottingham for the event. “The Hockley area’s a perfect location for this kind of thing as it’s got a huge variety of spaces, from established music venues to cafes to one of the world’s top 10 independent cinemas, and practically every business in the area is up for pitching in and doing their bit.” Adam explains what to expect on the day. “Over 200 of the freshest artists of all varieties across more than 20 venues; basically the Edinburgh Fringe being handed a guitar, some records and a big drum kit and told to stop pratting about with all the drama and crack out a few tunes. That’s not strictly true, as we’re squeezing in some performance art from Hatch and a bit of stand up hosted by Funhouse Comedy Club on top of there being enough music to satisfy any taste and any age; it’s difficult to communicate how many genres are on show... to say we’re showing rock, hip-hop, drum and bass, folk, dubstep, jazz, tech, a bit of world music and funk, barely scratches the surface of what we’ve actually got kicking off. Some of the highlights this year include a new BBC Introducing stage, Royal Gala, Tubelord, Spinster’s Emporium’s “Craft Off”, Community Recording Studio are involved with Scorsayzee headlining, live illustration from Subism, a fashion show at COW and cheap, charitable haircuts with your own personal DJ at Twenty Eight, amongst other things. Not forgetting the Freeq and Fuzz Boutique Air Guitar competition – come down and get involved all afternoon and stake your claim for a brand spanking new guitar and

15 column inches of fame in Freeq magazine! As for what Adam’s looking forward to in particular; “I’m personally really excited about Wigflex’s lineup at Bar Eleven, Dealmaker’s Hip-hop line-up at Muse, the jazz at Escucha and the open mic in Wild clothing’s window, which should be interesting having a few hundred musicians in the vicinity! Anything else you want to mention before we go? “We’ve got a lovely new website up at www. hockleyhustle.co.uk where you can get your advance tickets and check out how the last three years have gone down. I reckon it’ll convince the uninitiated, it is a pretty awesome festival.”

WIN A GUITAR! Fuzz Guitar Boutique and Freeq Magazine have teamed up to bring you the ultimate Air Guitar Championships as part of the Hockley Hustle. The competition will take place at Fuzz Boutique in Hockley on Sunday 25th October starting at 12noon. Simply bring your custom air guitar and pick from a list of popular tunes. The winner will receive a real guitar and also perform their air guitar solo on the night at Wax bar hosted by Crash factory recording studios. You’ll also get your 15 minutes of fame in the next issue of Freeq Magazine!

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RED BULL STREET STYLE FEVER HITS On the 24th of October 2009 Red Bull Street Style will be arriving at the Broadmarsh Underpass, Nottingham for an afternoon of first class Freestyle football with a Red Bull twist. For the first time ever, Red Bull will be holding heats around the UK to find the greatest ‘Street Styler’ in the land who will then represent the nation at the Red Bull Street Style World Final in Cape Town, South Africa in April 2010! Red Bull Street Style’s rules are easy as 3-2-1: three minutes, two players, and one ball form the battleground, in which control, creativity, and style are the elements that crown the winner. Players compete in one-on-one battles held on a special stage, seven meters in diameter, and need to alternate ball possession every 20 seconds while displaying their top tricks to the rhythm of music to impress the judges, beat their rival and move on to the next round. Following on from the huge success of last year’s final in Sao Paulo, there will be 56 countries from around the globe sending Street-Stylers to compete in Cape Town next year. In the UK, there will be four regional heats followed by a final back in the nation’s capital.

Timings; 1.30pm: Registration Opens 2pm – 5pm: Skills session start 5pm: Red Bull Street Style Event 7.30pm: Final Tour dates: Heats – Newcastle (10/10) Nottingham (24/10) Bristol (07/11) Final – St Michaels Church, Camden, London (21/11) For further information, go to www.redbullstreetstyle.com

ONETOWATCH

SCRUFFYS

After something of a makeover, Scruffys on Derby Road re-opened its doors on September 18th to a highly successful launch night. For a bar that has been a traditional student haunt we asked landlord John Bowles what will be different this time around. “What you can expect is a bar and brasserie that is high quality, I want a mix of people to enjoy coming to us and a little bit of quality will hopefully bring in the Park residents and the lunchtime office crowd too.” Scruffys certainly seems to have found the right balance between student bar and classy eaterie – not always as easy to do as it sounds. There’s a clean, neutral décor with no separate dining and drinking areas which results in a relaxed and informal vibe. John feels the best description of the new style is ‘gastrobar’ and we can see why that label fits so well.

We think everyone will enjoy eating and drinking at the new-look Scruffys, they have a fresh an seasonal menu, with a lighter daytime version and some twists on the classics in the evening, such as the herb bread crumbed hake fillet with sauté potatoes and home mashed peas – fish and chips but not fish and chips. They also have a interesting cocktail menu with several new cocktails created in-house, and John is staking a claim to have the best Bloody Mary in Nottingham. It’s worth going down to find out. Scruffys are at 198 Derby Road, NG7 1NQ. Call them on 0115 9470471 or find their facebook group ‘Scruffys Bar and Brasserie Nottingham’.

POKER FACE

Nothing to do with being inspired by Gaga’s ‘poker face’ or VV Brown’s lyrics in Game Over, but it seems that everyone is talking about the game that is fast becoming a worldwide phenomenon: Poker, or more specifically, the version known as Texas Hold Em. With the current World Series of Poker champion earning a staggering $9,000,000 in prize money in a showpiece tournament at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas; it’s easy to see the attraction of the game. Now, the World Series has come to Nottingham’s Alea Casino, and I decided to have a stab at a tournament just to see what my chances of becoming a professional poker player were. Alea is a glitzy Vegas-style casino, a result of a £15m development of the old Co-op building on Parliament Street. The company behind the Alea, London Clubs International, is owned by Harrah’s who run the world famous Caesars Palace casino in Las Vegas and own the World Series of Poker brand, which explains the new World Series of Poker Europe events held at Alea. Having checked out the tournament schedule on the casino website, I decided on a small stakes event – a £10 buy-in with unlimited re-buys for 90 minutes

held on Saturday nights. (There’s a Wednesday night version coming soon as well). I found the entrance to Alea on Wollaton street, the restaurant side, but its main entrance fronts onto Parliament Street and inside it really looks the business; very glamorous and feels quite exclusive – everything you want in a casino in my book. Making my way to the poker area, I stumbled across the ‘hidden bar’ which provides a welcome retreat from the bustle of the gaming floor, and ordered a cocktail to get me in the mood for some serious bluffing. It’s a surprisingly pleasant bar to chill out if you’re not that into gambling, or you’ve been knocked out a tournament early and all your mates still have piles of chips! In terms of the actual tournament, I played quite well, struggled to get very many decent hands, won a couple and lost a couple and at around 11pm, with a dwindling chip stack, ended up catching a really bad beat – I put all my chips in with Ace, Queen and got called by someone with Ace, Eight. Only three cards in the entire deck could save my opponent and he hit two of them on the flop, and that was my tournament over before it really had a chance to get going. Poker; part skill, part luck, lots of fun.

BEGINNERS GUIDE :TEXAS HOLD EM This is the most popular version of poker and quite easy to learn the basics – enough to organise a game with your mates, or enter one of the low-stake casino tournaments for a bit more excitement. Play moves clockwise one player at a time. The player to the left of the dealer places a fixed bet called the small blind, the player on his left places a larger fixed bet called the ‘big blind’ this ensures there is money in the pot on every hand. The blinds move round one place each hand and can increase as the game progresses. Each player is then dealt two cards face down (hole cards) and can either fold, raise or call based on the two cards in their hand. After the first round of betting, the dealer places three community cards face up on the table (called the flop) for everyone to see. There is another round of betting and then the dealer deals another community card, called the ‘turn’. A further round of betting and the final community card is dealt face up, known as the ‘river’.

There is a final round of betting before the players who are still in the hand turn their hole cards over to see who wins the pot. As a poker hand in Texas Hold Em consists of just five cards, the idea is to make the best 5-cards out of the combination of the five community cards and your two hole cards.

LOVE IS INTHEAIR... The tall, blonde, football-loving TV presenter, and friend of a thousand bands, Tim Lovejoy strode purposefully through the hospitality bar area at Glastonbury 2009 before being accosted by us and having a copy of the latest Freeq magazine shoved under his nose. A couple of weeks later we interrupted his busy schedule to talk festivals, Channel Bee and politics. Freeq: We met you this year at Glastonbury - what was your festival highlight? Tim: Festival highlight.....hmm. It’s a hard one that. I just enjoy always everything about Glastonbury, I do the whole thing. Its funny because Glastonbury Festival for me is not about the acts on the main stage if I’m honest with you, it’s kind of walking around the tents, Trash City, Shangri-La, you know, healing fields, stone circle, I love all that, I find that a buzz seeing all those areas. I went to see African Express which

was Damon Albarn’s project thing and I really enjoyed it, but before that there was band on called the, er, the something brass ensemble and it was just one of those moments that worked really well, I liked the American dudes with the brass instruments jumping around playing hip hop beats. It was in a tent down at Shangri-La and the tent was bouncing. I’d never watch this in London but whilst I am standing in the middle of a field, it seems like a good thing to watch (laughs). That’s what I like about Glastonbury, those moments where you are walking past a tent and stop to have a look at something that you haven’t planned to see. Freeq: When we met, you were wearing a Channel Bee t-shirt. What’s that about? Tim: I came up with idea a while ago. I’m always on the internet and I realised a lot of TV companies were putting up content [to the Internet] after it had been broadcast on TV and I thought there was a place to

33 make original content purely for Internet, TV-quality style sketches, interviews, etc. This is our idea we’re still doing and it’s very satisfying. It’s great because the Internet is a new medium, when I first started doing it people said that the Internet would take over from TV and that’s nonsense, but it’s a new way of watching content and that’s what we’re doing. Freeq: It features sport, banter and comedy; is it not a web version of Soccer AM, the TV show you used to present? Tim:Yea, potentially, Soccer AM was all the stuff I loved and Channel Bee is all the stuff I love, and the best way to make good content is to do the stuff you like. Freeq: Are you on the lookout for any up and coming bands? Tim:Yea, we do that all the time, if you go onto Channel Bee there’s a section called You Are A&R, where we like to put new bands and you can make up your own mind whether they are gonna be successful or not. We have had bands on there that have gone on to make it, er VV Brown… I’m trying to think who else… there’s plenty on there that have gone on to make it, and plenty that haven’t! Freeq: It’s so easy and accessible to make music nowadays that you tend to get stuff that maybe isn’t the same quality that would have been around when it was more difficult and expensive to make records. There’s not the natural filter. Tim:Yea, but look on the flip side, the amount of record industry people that spend their lives out getting drunk, drinking champagne, doing bugger all, turning bands down left right and centre. Everyone’s got to remember the Beatles got turned down. Nowadays bands don’t need the music industry, they only need the general public. Freeq: How did you get started in the entertainment industry? Tim: I went out and made my own show reels, I used to work a lot in bars and restaurants during the night to make enough money. I used to go round pretending I worked for Cable London as no one really knew what that was, and I used to work for free during the days for TV companies trying to get work experience and learn about the job. Freeq: And what keeps you motivated? Tim: Er...just enjoying it. Someone said to me, if you find a job you love doing, you never have to work again. It’s not really a job for me, its stuff I enjoy doing; I’m lucky enough to be able to do my job for a living. Freeq: You clearly love music and I know you love your football, if you had to choose between them, what would it be?

Tim: Football. I love playing, watching, It’s my first love. I mean football and music go hand in hand so I am hard pushed to answer but I think it’s just such a brilliant sport, I love it, I just love it, I can’t get enough of football, so yea, that’s the one for me - its also the one that’s made me the most money, ha ha! Freeq: So on the subject of football and Soccer AM and er, music - who has been the best band on the Soccer AM show? Tim: I think the ultimate is Noel Gallagher because he’s funny and he’s kind of the godfather of Indie music I suppose isn’t he? He’s the main man. They all love him and what Noel does always seems to be cool. You know, most bands if they turned up on a Sky News advert, people think ‘what are they doing? Have they sold out?’ Noel Gallagher does it, it’s cool. Everything he does is cool. Freeq: When you’re not working how do you spend your time? Tim: Apart from watching bands and going to football, I spend a lot of it with my two daughters, I like getting out and playing footy or going for a run, I like to stay active. Freeq: Finally. You mentioned in a previous interview that you’d be a good leader, what would you do differently? Tim: Leading the country? Freeq:Yes. Tim: Well if you gave me the ultimate job of leading the country, I’d go for common sense policies, proper distribution of wealth and making sure that money that’s paid into society is distributed fairly. I’d make sure people looked after each other. I’m not some mad communist or socialist but I do believe I would try and change fashions. I’d try and make it fashionable for people to like society rather than rebel against society all the time. I think rebelling against society has been good for our hearts but it’s about time we all bought into society, people need to be made aware that we are generally good people who look after each other. That’s got to be fashionable, at the moment its too fashionable to knock everything, I’m so tired over the last 5 or 6 years of things people tell me; how rubbish this country is, when it’s clearly not. It’s a great place for living, with a great climate, we’ve just got to change the fashions and get people positive about it. I’m tired of everyone in this country being so bloody critical of everything - all we do is say how rubbish everything is, lets change it round, lets get a bit of optimism. Peace and love. Visit Tim’s website at www.channelbee.com or see his presenting skills in action on Something For The Weekend on Sunday mornings (if you’re not still sleeping off Saturday nights).

WOULD LIKETO MEET... I don’t think I am alone when I say being single is great, you get to do what you want when you want, not have to answer to anyone, or come home to a pile of dirty dishes that are not yours! However majority of us singletons do dream of coming home to a surprise meal and a cuddle watching a good film with the man of our dreams. Trouble is finding just the right person that fits your criteria and actually finds you somewhat attractive are a difficult harmony to find. Yes being on the dating scene is a challenge especially when you’re a mid-twenties gay man, faced with the arena of the gay scene and its ‘culture’ (for want of a better word!). It had occurred to me many years ago that internet dating would be a good way of meeting like minded guys without the fear of rejection of chatting someone up who turns out to be straight. So meeting up over a drink after a few messages here and there would make it a quick and easy leap to get to know someone outside of the comfort zone of a crowded bar. But alas after years of serial dating I have come to the conclusion that the online experience is just the gay scene in a different form, and at times, worse than any gay club. Anyone can choose the amount of discretion and anonymity, hence men feel free to say and do whatever they want with no actual consequences. On joining up to sites such as Fitlads, Ladslads, or the infamous Gaydar, you find yourself bombarded with messages offering casual sex accompanied by several pictures of their manhood. And if it’s not a simple offer, it’s a question to know what you’re looking for sexually or what you’re into in the bedroom. Some people argue that they want to meet up for friendship, fair enough, but why people want to befriend other gay men based on their looks disappoints me. I don’t really understand the need in surrounding yourself with a number of people that have that one thing in common, and in terms of friendship, sexuality

really makes no difference. I could be an axe-wielding maniac for all they know! However you’re guaranteed to attract a group of men that have it listed in their ‘preferred sexual acts’ tick box, or as their favourite things. I can never take people seriously when faced with a shopping list of sexual delights such as; fit, straightacting, straight-looking, not into camp/fem (which makes me laugh as a lot of people who say that make Dale Winton look butch!). That’s scratching the surface you will then come across terms such as; bear, twink, chicken, cub, skin, daddy, jock, chub, sub, top, bottom, vers, chav, punk, rubber, uniform, guy next door (the thought of dating the guy next door to me frightens me!), and I won’t get into the really perverted stuff. Good old fashioned sex doesn’t seem to exist in the world of the gay. I was once asked if I liked vanilla!? I was ready to tell him I preferred mint choccy chip until I found out it was a sex act! Funnily enough it means to have good old fashioned sex…so why call it by any other name? Who knows what would happen if Starbucks was to host a gay speed dating event with orders of, “Can I have a chubby full fat half caff skinny latte with a side of cut vanilla twink and a cinnamon stick to go please”. The notion of labels just reinforces the fact that gay culture is one based upon image and sex. Like women facing the pressures of the fashion industry and media to be stick thin, gay men have the pressure of being tanned toned bronzed beauties who are straight acting and straight looking but still attainable. What is sadly overlooked in all the variety of what’s on offer is the individual. No amount of ‘labels’, muscles or designer clothes can build a character or personality, and I find it such a disappointment that a lot of gay men put such emphasis on such shallow things and disregard anything real or meaningful. Phil Robinson

ICE ICE BABY

If you’ve been to the Trent FM Arena for a gig, you’ll probably have noticed the tall block of apartments by the side of the Ice Centre that overlook Bolero Square, named after Torvill and Dean’s famously perfect Olympic performance 25 years ago. We recently stayed in the twobedroom penthouse suite at the Ice House with some friends to make a weekend of a gig at the arena. It’s pretty impressive; our views from the balcony and floor-toceiling lounge windows looked all the way down past the football grounds and to West Bridgford. There’s plenty of space in the apartments which include full kitchen, lounge, widescreen TV and dvd player – you can almost pretend you’re on holiday here.

What makes these apartments ideal is the added space and additional facilities you simply don’t get at one of the city’s centrally located hotels. Two bedrooms and two bathrooms, balcony and separate lounge and kitchen make this accommodation even better than most residential apartments in the nearby Lace Market area. It’s convenient not only for gigs at the Arena, but also for nights out in Hockley, the city centre, and is just a short walk from the train station. After our gig was over, and we’d supped a few ales in the Lace Market bars, we were able to get back to our spacious accommodation, make some toast and crack open a nice cold beer straight out the fridge to drink while sat out on the balcony in the warm summer air, watching the rest of Nottingham fall asleep.

Visit www.premierapartmentsnottingham.com or call 0115 908 2000 if you fancy a stay in the Ice House.

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REVIEWS

We try to print as many reviews as possible but everything that isn’t in the magazine, is generally on the website so check out www.freeqmagazine.com and meanwhile, keep sending us your lovely CDs.

SHOW UP RAZORBLADEKISSES WE ON RADAR - BALLERINA

MOUNTAIN TOP

Ballerina is an enchanting combination of eerie goth and beautiful string laden pop. The lyrical ambiguity only adds to the mystique and beguiling charm of this Persian based duet.The second track Butterfly shows a more doleful and reflective side, but still encapsulates why RazorBladeKisses are the UK goth scene’s hottest new property.

Mountain Top is a delightful little gem of imaginative storytelling and heartfelt pop sensibilities, reminiscent of Belle and Sebastian in their early ‘noughties’ pomp. Where Mountain Top is a victory salute for love conquering all, my preference is for melancholic B-side A Spider On a Thread. This showcases writer Andrew Wright’s more surrealist and playful side, while still remaining classic pop.

Rating: 4 stars Try this if you like: Shakespear’s Sister

Rating: 4 stars Try this if you like: Belle and Sebastian

CALLE DEBAUCHE When finding out that Calle Debauche’s self titled debut album was a composition of instrumental art rock, I feared the worst. After listening to their self indulgent opus, my original pre-conceptions were justified. Combining elements of Eastern European folk music, ska and math metal sounds promising, but in reality we end up with a one paced collection of songs that lack an atmospheric or an emotional punch. This is a record designed for those who like to sit in sophisticated coffee shops, particularly those

RICKY WARWICK BELFAST CONFETTI Belfast Confetti is the latest offering from earthy singer/songwriter Ricky Warwick. The eleven tracks that form Belfast Confetti contain a strong Celtic flavour, but the album is varied in its musical scope and lyrical tone. Can’t wait for Tomorrow gets things off to an upbeat start, however Warwick is far from one dimensional as he gets all reflective and introspective on Thousands are Leaving and Hank’s Blues. There is an emotional depth to aid his throaty drawl that will help establish Warwick a niche in the saturated singer/songwriter genre. We could be looking at a Celtic Springsteen. Rating: 3 stars Try this if you like: Bruce Springsteen

situated in Northern Europe. People opine that Radiohead can lead to bouts of depression but it is stuff like Calle Debauche that makes ‘Beachy Head’ seem an enticing proposition. Rating: 1 star

All reviews by Jamie Brannon

38 GUITAR RECORDING INTHE PERSONAL STUDIO Recording your guitar can be a tricky thing to achieve and get good results from, even when you’re in an expensive recording studio with thousands of pounds worth of effects processors at your fingertips. Phil Spector is rumoured to have spent an entire week recording ONE guitar chord on the album he produced for the Ramones! However, with a couple of decent bits of kit, and sticking to some basic principles, you can get pretty good results these days recording directly into your computer. Assuming that you don’t want to annoy your neighbours with huge amp stacks cranked up to eleven then you’re going to have to use some sort of effects unit that can give you the guitar tone you want without having to mic up your amp. You’ll also need an audio interface to connect to your computer that will record good quality sound with little background noise. The goods news is that there are some manufacturers that have put these two ideas together to create products specifically for the guitarist wanting to record to his or her computer. Line 6 POD Studio KB37. This is the all-in-one solution for recording vocals and guitars (and bass) onto a PC or Mac with a single USB connection. The device has microphone and guitar inputs and is also a full featured MIDI controller keyboard. Plus it ships with Ableton software so you can use your computer as the multi-track recorder. This means that you can create drums beats using the keyboard and software and then record over with your bass, guitar and vocals. The KB37 ships with Line6 gearbox software, which is guitar amp modelling software. It has ‘models’ of all the best amps from the past 30 years or so and is incredibly realistic. Line 6 POD Studio UX-2 Similar to the KB37 and has all of the connection features but without the MIDI keyboard. Still has all the great software so you can get the sounds you want!

TC Electronic Desktop Konnekt This is one of the bestsounding audio interfaces you can get for under £300. It has mic inputs and line inputs plus the all-important Hi-Z guitar input. The Desktop Konnekt ships with Cubase music production software. With this you can add virtual guitar effects to get your desired tone. Its big feature is its control functions - a big volume knob plus easy to read displays and connections for studio monitors and headphones - all in all the ideal hub of your personal home studio; ideal for recording guitars and vocals. Recording Tips. Always keep the gain on your recording interface as high as possible without over-loading - this will ensure you have the maximum signal to play with in the production process. Always try and use a compressor of some sort when recording anything like guitar or vocal. This ‘levels’ the signal to a certain extent making the audio source volume more predictable. Call us and we can advise on the best one for you! If you’re recording vocals, get yourself a condenser microphone and a mic stand.These mics have a natural compression and will pick up much more of the detail of your vocals than your dynamic mic. You’ll need the mic stand too as it will pick up the sound of you moving if you’re holding the mic! Don’t add too many effects. Use effects sparingly as they can quickly swamp your sound and make it unnatural and swooshy.There’s nothing better than the sound of a guitar that makes you think you’re sitting in front of the guitar cab. Remember - good recordings don’t just happen. Like anything else you have to practice. Try different things and experiment; eventually, recording instruments and getting a good polished sound will come naturally. Millennium Music 11 Hockley Nottingham NG1 1FH Tel : 0115 985 9500 www.millennium-music.co.uk

THE RUNNING HORSE The Running Horse up at Canning Circus has live music every night, partnering local talent with national bands across a huge variety of genres.

During the day the retro-style bar offers a range of teas, coffees, retro soft drinks and snacks, and daily newspapers and guitar magazines are always available.

Music starts at 8pm and is always of an excellent quality. They have a extensive range of drinks and offer a safe, friendly and intimate venue for all Nottingham’s music lovers.

The venue has a main stage with excellent sound system and a new acoustic stage for non-stop music performances. The audience are very up close and personal with the bands, creating that intimate vibe. Now open daily from 12noon till 3am Tuesday to Sunday it’s the place to go for a relaxed, live music fix.

Open mic nights are on Tuesdays and there’s a Blues Jam on Wednesday nights. Students can take advantage of the drinks offers and the free wireless Internet access; you can even use a Running Horse laptop if you feel the urge to check your emails or surf the web.

The Running Horse, 16 Alfreton Road, Canning Circus, Nottingham NG7 3NG. Call 07826803941 visit www.runninghorselivemusic. co.uk or email runninghorsemusic@hotmail.co.uk for more information.

4th October

THE ANIMALS

(yes, the original ones from the sixties) Live for one night only and playing all their hits. Tickets only £15 including after show party.

10th October

NEVER THE BRIDE

One of the finest UK rock bands take an evening out from the big stage to play an intimate gig at the Running Horse. Tickets only £10 including after party.

s 14th November ig G e d v e si s THOMAS LEEB Mabse mis World acclaimed acoustic guitar virtuoso. e e Tickets just £10. Thnrot to “I was his teacher for about five minutes – and then I heard him play.” Eric Roche 1967-2005

If you would like to attend a guitar master class hosted by Thomas please email runninghorsemusic@hotmail.co.uk Call 07826803941 visit www.runninghorselivemusic.co.uk or email runninghorsemusic@hotmail.co.uk for tickets.

GIG GUIDE Friday 02 Oct DON’T MISS

Jamie T Rock City

complete with its very own caves. Featuring Luke Unabomber, Kelvin Andrews, Coyote, Red Rackem, Smokescreen, Paul Wain & Rick Donohue. This will be the greatest party Nottingham’s seen in years. Go to www.theloveunlimited.com/ nash for details and tickets.

Dan Michaelson and the Coastguards The Bodega

Koopa Seven

The Pitty Pat Club Day of the Dead Spooktacular The Bodega

Patriot Rebel Running Horse

Open Mic hosted by Shallow Phase Running Horse

Eastpak Antidote Tour Feat. Alexisonfire & Anti-Flag Four Year Strong & The Ghost of a Thousand Rock City

Nat Johnson and the Figureheads The Maze

Masters of Reality with We Fell From Earth Rescue Rooms

Jamie Clarke’s Perfect Golden Fleece

James McMurtry and the Heartless Bastards Rescue Rooms

Papershaker Twisted Little Sister The Maze

An Audience with Paul Merson The Approach

The Maze is happy to welcome Papershaker! A new night bringing you the best sounds of the 60s! Travel in a time machine back to the 60s and 70s; Twisted Little Sister is a weird, psychedelic, raucous rock n roll party night.

Tuesday 06 Oct

Go-go dancers, film projection, party games and more!

Wednesday 07 Oct

Spinning the weirdest, wildest sounds from bygone eras that you cannot resist dancing to; Cherry Fuzz (Sunglasses After Dark, Blast Off Festival) and Will Jenkins (Supraphon)are the cool cats playing the sounds.

Papa Roach plus Madina Lake and Heaven’s Basement Rock City

For more details please visit: www.myspace.com/twisted_ little_sister Wild Beasts with Blue Roses The Bodega Stanton Warriors presents The Stanton Session Tour Stanton Warriors (3 hour set), Pete Jordan, Hexadecimal Stealth This City and The Xcerts with Blitz Kids & Kill Chaos Rock City Basslaced with YOUNGSTA, HENY G, Metaphi, Senate, Root One, TOAST MC The Bodega

Ensiferum + Metsatoll & Tracedawn Rescue Rooms

The XX The Bodega Abi Moore The Maze Rock and Blues Jam night Running Horse

Thursday 08 Oct Trespassers William and Glissando Malt Cross Ghosts Wear Clothes Running Horse Kate Walsh The Maze

Friday 09 Oct DON’T MISS

Them:Youth Stealth Never The Bride The Running Horse Ghoul Garden The Maze

Sunday 11 Oct

Detonate High Contrast, Skream, DBridge, Logistics Stealth

Charity Battle of the Bands The Maze

Devon Sproule plus support The Maze

Fanfarlo + First Aid Kit The Bodega

Baddies Rock City

Sic Alps (Drag City / Slumberland) + Guests Chameleon Arts Cafe

Sunday 04 Oct

Branco Heist Running Horse

Dizzee Rascal Rock City

The Therapy Band Alea

Wishbone Ash Rescue Rooms

Eklectic and Intelligent Funktion present… The Maze

Example Stealth

Monday 05 Oct

Emily Barker The Bodega

The All American Rejects Rock City

Go to Facebook and search for the Tamla group – then join it!

Girls (with Swanton Bombs) The Bodega

Friday 16 Oct

Matt Marriot Running Horse

Flood of Red + Lower Than Atlantis Rock City

The Animals The Running Horse

Bigelf with Haken Rescue Rooms

Saturday 17 Oct

Featuring live performance from Tamla’s neo burlesque dancers.

Global Weekender 2009 (part 3) Golden Fleece

Wolf + Cauldron Rock City

Richard Hawley plus support The Albert Hall

Ellie Goulding Stealth

The King Blues with Imperial Leisure Rescue Rooms

The Answering Machine The Bodega

The Dukes Running Horse

Left Lion Canning Circus event Various locations visit Left Lion website for details

Back To Basics (Roots Reggae, Ska and Rocksteady) The Maze

The Unthanks Plus support Nottingham Arts Theatre

The Bodega Ball with live acts Wave Machines + This Town Needs Guns + Stricken City + more artists and DJ’s tbc The Bodega

Tamla – Nottingham’s newest and most exciting night at Moog. A retro night with S.P.A.M! DJs playing the best soul music from the 60s sandwiched between some smooth lovers rock (reggae) and some soul diva 70’s disco. A night of fun, laughter and old skool twisting and a shaking!

Saturday 03 Oct

Thursday 15 Oct 2009

Idlewild with support from The Xcerts Rescue Rooms

Monday 12 Oct

Unpopular Records presents The Maze Tommy Reilly + Roddy Hart The Bodega

Maybeshewill + Cats & Cats & Cats Rock City

Eilen Jewell Band plus support The Maze

Luke Maximus promotes Darling Bones Running Horse

Bat For Lashes Rock City

Soft Toy Emergency Stealth

Duff McKagans Loaded Rescue Rooms

The Twang Rescue Rooms

Tuesday 13 Oct

Sunday 18 Oct 2009 The Hot Rats Rescue Rooms

Bellowhead with Belshazzar’s Feast Nottingham Trent Students Union Frank Turner + Fake Problems + Beans On Toast Rock City

Scarce + Just Fontaine The Bodega

Northern Monkey Running Horse

Monday 19 Oct 2009

The Maccabees with Lyrebirds Rock City

Simian Mobile Disco (Live) Rescue Rooms and Stealth

Wednesday 14 Oct

Johnny Foreigner with support from Tellison + Japanese Voyeurs The Bodega

Saturday 10 Oct DON’T MISS

Brendan Benson + Cory Chisel Rescue Rooms

DevilDriver + Behemoth, Suicide Silence, Trigger the Bloodshed, Malefice Rock City

Go:Audio Rock City

I Like Trains with Swimming Rescue Rooms

The Maze Presents: Notts in a Nutshell The Maze

Revolution Sounds The Maze

Tuesday 06 Oct

NasH Warehouse Party DO NOT MISS this one-off knees-up over three floors

Tuesday 20 Oct Karine Polwart with Sam Carter Rescue Rooms The Kabeedies The Bodega Billy Talent Rock City Revolution Sounds and Nottingham Punksoc Presents: 3 Way Dance The Maze

Wednesday 21 Oct

Enter Shikari with The Devil Wears Prada Rock City The Wave Pictures + Stanley Brinks + Freschard The Bodega Hijak Oscar The Maze Kano Nottingham Trent Students Union Walter Trout (20th Anniversary Tour) Rescue Rooms

Thursday 22 Oct

Slaid Cleaves plus support The Maze DJ Yoda Rescue Rooms Dax Running Horse Curtis Whitefinger Ordeal Golden Fleece

This Will Destroy You + And So I Watch You From Afar Rock City Dananananaykroyd with support from Dinosaur Pile Up & Super Adventure Club The Bodega

Friday 23 Oct

Colin Macintyre (AKA Mull Historical Society) Rescue Rooms

ISS N’T M

O Eddie Izzard << D Trent FM Arena Editors Rock City Dan La Sac The Maze The Therapy Band Alea

Fenech - Soler Stealth

The Swiines The Maze

Stumble In Da Jungle The Maze

David Ford Rescue Rooms

The Limits Running Horse

DON’T

29 Oct MISS >> Thursday Electric Eel Shock

Sunday 25 Oct

Jack Penate Nottingham Trent Students Union Calvin Harris with Mr Hudson Rock City The Smokin Hogs Running Horse John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett Rescue Rooms

Plus Peelander Z & Arse Full Of Chips Rock City Harry King Band Running Horse Trip to Dover Golden Fleece Steel Panther Rock City On Fire The Maze

Monday 26 Oct

Euler Running Horse

The Cheek with Apples The Bodega

Delphic + Two Door Cinema Club The Bodega

Wigflex with James Holden, Fairmont, Spamchop, Lone Stealth

Amon Amarth Rock City

Therapy? plus Ricky Warwick & Kidnapper Bell Rescue Rooms

Saturday 24 Oct

Tuesday 27 Oct

Firefest 6 featuring Airrace, The Poodles, Drive She Said, Romeo’s Daughter, White Sister, Crown of Thorns, F.M. Rock City The Twilight Sad The Bodega

S CKET E IN TI Eddie Izzard << W CK PAG BA Trent FM Arena

Acoustickle The Maze

Friday 30 Oct

Sights and Sounds + Meneater + Rinoa Rock City

Funeral for a Friend with The Xcerts & Spycatcher Rock City

Luxury Stranger Running Horse

Revolution Sounds and Nottingham Punksoc presents: 3 Way Dance The Maze

Rubber Room The Maze

Wednesday 28 Oct Bloc Party Rock City

Chase & Status & support TBC Rescue Rooms and Stealth Roachford The Bodega

Diabetes UK Halloween Roller Disco

Nottingham Trent Students Union

Saturday 31 Oct

Hey Hey Hey Halloween All Nighter Featuring: BlackStorm Rock City (10pm) Y&T with Ron Keel Rock City Shocksteady The Maze

Magnum Rock City Kurran and the Wolfnotes + Exlovers The Bodega

Thursday 05 Nov

Monday 09 Nov

Friday 13 Nov

Saxon plus special guests Anvil Rock City

The Saboteurs Running Horse

We Were Promised Jet Packs The Bodega

Shinedown with Soil & Counterpoint Rock City

Silk Flowers Chameleon Arts Cafe

The Debbie Giles Band Running Horse

Tuesday 10 Nov Elliot Minor Rescue Rooms

Green For Go Running Horse

Youves with Calories The Bodega

Maps The Bodega

Francis Dunnery New Progressives UK Tour Rock City

Funhouse Comedy presents: Should I Stay or Should I Go The Maze

Friday 06 Nov

Wednesday 11 Nov

Fat Digester Running Horse

The Ian Siegal Band & The Matt Schofield Band Rescue Rooms

The Therapy Band Alea

Frightened Rabbit The Bodega

Saturday 07 Nov

Thursday 12 Nov

Moriarty Rescue Rooms

A Place To Bury Strangers with Japandroids The Bodega

Sunday 01 Nov The Holloways The Bodega

Absu + Pantheon I & Razor of Occam Rock City

Monday 02 Nov

Liars Club with Cold Cave The Bodega

’T MI

The Apples << DON The Maze

Tuesday 03 Nov The Phantom Band The Bodega

City of Fire + Illuminatus Rock City

The Money with The Swiines Running Horse Isla Wight Presents… The Maze

08 Nov Wednesday 04 Nov MISS Sunday Biffy Clyro ’T Frankmusik N O D Rock City Rescue Rooms <<

Just Jack Rock City

Seth Lakeman Rock City

Katy Moffatt Plus support The Maze

Sam Bennet Running Horse Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears Rescue Rooms Alabama 3 Rock City

The Complete Stone Roses Rescue Rooms

The Mission District plus Save Your Breath & Snakes Hate Fire & Free Fall Rock City Darren Hayman & The Secondary Modern + Poppy and Friends The Bodega

Saturday 14 Nov DON’t MISS Freeq Magazine Birthday Party We’re having a belated birthday party and the drinks are on us! (Well, the first one is) We’ve put together an awesome line up with Basement Boogaloo residents Ed Shaw and Nick Cotton ably supported by Alex Traska [MyHouse YourHouse] and Supine [Audiophile] it promises to be one soulful funky party. See the centre spread of this issue for the full day’s lineup or go to www.freeqmagazine.com for details and tickets. The Pitty Pat Club The Bodega Gun + New Device Rock City O Children Stealth

Sunday 22 Nov

Friday 27 Nov

The Specials

Muzika The Maze

Thomas Leeb << D The Running Horse

Dax Running Horse

Overvibe Running Horse

The Finest Hour Golden Fleece

Monday 23 Nov

Saturday 28 Nov

The Bodega

Tuesday 24 Nov

Rubber Room The Maze

Ghoul Garden The Maze

Kasabian Trent FM Arena

Hundred Reasons with support from Canterbury Rescue Rooms

Thursday 19 Nov

Sunday 15 Nov

Good Shoes With support from La Shark The Bodega

Filthy Dukes The Bodega

Thea Gilmore Rescue Rooms

SS Rock City

MI ON’T

Out of Sight + Lights and Sound Rock City

Monday 16 Nov ’T MISS VV Brown Friday 20 Nov ON Rescue Rooms << D Wavves

Oceansize Seven

Wolf Gang Stealth

La Roux Rock City

Beyonce Trent FM Arena

Engineers With White Belt Yellow Tag The Bodega

The Limits Running Horse

The Last Picture Show Running Horse

The Therapy Band Alea

Wednesday 25 Nov

W.A.S.P. Rock City

Emily L’Oizeau Rescue Rooms

25 Past The Skank Running Horse

White Lies + Asobi Seksu + Violens Rock City

Gay for Johnny Depp + BlakFish + Outcry Collective Seven

Saturday 21 Nov

Michael Chapman The Maze

Don’t panic. Another issue of Freeq magazine will have hit the streets by now with up to date listings for December and January.

Thursday 26 Nov

Folkwit presents... The Maze

The Smears Running Horse

Breed 77 Rock City

Send your gigs by email to info@freeqmagazine.com by November 14th for inclusion in the next issue.

Wednesday 18 Nov

Smokescreen The Maze

Joanne Shaw Taylor Running Horse Pama International Rescue Rooms

Exit Calm The Bodega

We Are The Ocean with Hexes & The Amity Affliction Rescue Rooms

In the meantime don’t forget the regular Open Mic nights at Running Horse on Tuesdays and the Wednesday Rock and Blues Jam Night.

Tuesday 17 Nov

Slayer Plus Special Guests Rock City

Roses Kings Castles feat. Adam Ficek The Maze

Teenagers in Tokyo Stealth

Ringo Deathstarr The Bodega

The Specials Rock City

The Butterfly Effect Rock City

Also, definately check out Electric Eel Shock at Rock City on 29th October - I promise you’ll thank me for the heads up. All listings correct when going to print. Freeq accepts no responsibility for any changes to the published listings. Check with the venue first!

rc d dec ma den 17 s 25 adnso ion st a tat ju lyn memp i t ar & m ps to

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