Quench 130 - 10 Dec 2012

Quench

Nadolig Llawen

Contents.

Features

5 · THE GREAT DIVIDE Charlie Mock discusses which one really is better: the Kindle or the book.

6 · FESTIVE FEVER

Jack Di Francesco explains what Christmas means to him.

Columnist

7 · ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?

Rachel Moloney takes a look at those teen celebrities who just love to break the rules.

Interviews

8 · THE JOY FORMIDABLE Liam McNeilly speaks to frontwoman Ritzy Bryan.

9 · JAKE BUGG Hannah Davies caught up with the 18-year-old before his gig at Bristol Thekla.

Fashion & Beauty

12 · REVIEW: STREET CASUALS

Freddie Rochez reviews the new menswear store, which has recently opened in the Morgan Quarter.

13 · A WINNING COMBINATION Shoes, bags and other accessories to

Travel

14 · CHRISTMAS AROUND THE WORLD Cardiff international students describe how Christmas is celebrated in their cultures.

15 · SURVIVING INDIA Chris Horton recalls his time spent mountaineering in the Indian Himalayas.

30 · FESTIVE FOOD Recipes for tasty treats this Christmas. 23 27 6 16 18 15

Culture

16 · BEDTIME STORIES Looking back at your favourite childhood books and why they had such a big impact on young people’s imaginations.

Music

18 · THE ALBUMS OF 2012 Music take a look back at the stand-out albums and tracks of this year.

20 · THE ANTIDOTE TO UNDER THE MISTLETOE Stephen Springate asks, what ever happened to the classic Christmas pop song?

21 · LIVE reviews of Canterbury, Gabrielle Aplin and Gentleman’s Dub Club.

Film

22 · THE LOST ART OF CHRISTMAS Alice Hart looks at throughout the years.

23 · MOVIES OF THE YEAR Film choose what they believe to be the

24 · REVIEWS

The Trouble with the Curve, Rise of the Guardians and Great Expectations.

25 · TRAILER TRASH: I Give It A Year.

LGBT+

26 · COMING OUT AT CHRISTMAS Erin Ekins recounts her experience of being queer at Christmas.

26 · THE TROUBLE WITH BEING TRANS* Sam Hickman sheds light on the trials and tribulations of being trans*

Food & Drink

27 · WINTER WARMERS Rum, wine, cranberry and ginger: Food sample a range of favourite seasonal drinks.

Quench

Editors: Laura Evans & Jo Southerd

Creative Director: Luke Slade

Features: Helen Cameron, Johannes Laubmeier, Rebecca Newby & Charlotte Wace

Columnist: Rachel Moloney

Fashion & Beauty: Sophie Chamberlain, Vicky Gadsden, Jacqueline Kilikita & Olivia Reidy

Travel: Heather Arnold & Helena Lins

LGBT+: Thomas Leeming & Erin Ekins

Culture: Jess Rayner

Music: Rosey Brown, Kit Denison & Stephen Springate

Film: Becky Johnson, Amy Pay & Becky Wilson

Food & Drink:

Quench of 2012, packed with more festive cheer than the Gavin & Stacey Christmas Special.

I for one LOVE Christmas. I want to be on a strict diet of turkey and mince pies for the majority of December. I want my Dad to risk his life crawling precariously across the roof to hang up those tacky Fairytale of New York or Do They Know It’s Christmas at least once per day. And on Christmas Eve when I get home from the pub, I want to leave out a glass of sherry for Santa, and a carrot for Rudolph.

Of course, not everyone celebrates Christmas in the tragically cliché way that I do, and in this issue Travel sheds some light on alternative festive traditions from around the world. Elsewhere, LGBT+ gives a thoughtful account of being queer at Christmas, while Film takes a look back at a triumphant year in cinema, and Music gives a round-up of 2012’s greatest albums. Christmas might not be quite as enchanting as it was back in the day when I’d wear a tea-towel on my head to be a “shepherd” in the school nativity, but Culture has captured some of that childhood magic in a look back at some classic bedtime stories. Flip to the back of the magazine to feast your eyes on Food & Drink’s seasonal spectacular, or turn to page 10 for Fashion & Beauty’s advent calendar of winter must-haves: much more tempting than a square of mediocre chocolate.

As far as uni work is concerned, tensions are always high at this time notebooks, wondering where the term has disappeared to (and what the hell you’ve been doing?). But don’t panic. Cardiff is beautiful at Christmas time, so don’t let your deadlines ruin your last days in the city. Go and see a pantomime; wander around Cardiff’s Christmas market; visit Winter Wonderland with your friends. ‘Tis the season to be jolly, after all.

We hope you enjoy this Christmas issue of Quench. The team have been working super hard, and I think you’ll agree with me when I say that the results are really quite beautiful. From all of us here, we wish you a very happy Christmas (however you choose to celebrate it).

laughter.

And I hope you eat Quality Street until you vomit.

Christmas! a word from

Merry

Proof-reading: Emilia Ignaciuk

Michael O’Connell-Davidson Tom Parry-Jones

This week we learnt: According to CUTV exec member Phil birds’ in Glam on Mondays.

Soundtrack: Michael Bublé’s Christmas album. We all love the Bube.

Cover Photo: Nour Kasem

Back Photo: Luke Slade

Books have been the source of learning and recreation for hundreds of years. So, it’s hard to get your head around the fact that books are slowly being pushed off of the shelves by their modern counterpart: the Kindle. Since its initial release in 2007, by its developer, Amazon, and they certainly aren’t stopping there. Most recently, European Kindle fans got their hands on the new Kindle Fire, a touch screen device with a full-colour display. However, this top-of-the-range technology comes at a price. At a retail price of £129 (with the HD model starting at an astonishing £159), the Kindle Fire is the most expensive e-book reader on the market. This leaves me wondering: what exactly is it that is making people spend so much on this fancy alternative to books?

For university students, the chance to have an entire library at is capable of storing 1,400 books on the most basic model, makes this possible. Even I, as someone who is entirely against the Kindle, cannot deny the appeal of leaving some of those weighty textbooks at home. But in reality, who needs a whole library at your unoccupied time with your nose in something pretending to be a book, it’s unlikely that you’re going to take full advantage of the Kindle’s facilities. Although the fact that it’s portable is obviously useful, surely there has to be a cap on the number of gadgets that we carry in our bags? At risk of sounding like my mother, are we safer to carry a wodge of paper around with us?

it’s hardly going to break your back – the social impact of our new electronic pal is far from positive. Books are conversation starters. No one is going to start a conversation about your book if they can’t see it. With a Kindle, who is going to know what e-book you’re reading? No one, because there is no way to differentiate between Great Expectations and Fifty Shades of Grey – to a passer by, it’s

away a book’s greatest quality. We aren’t going to see people lending out their e-book readers or electronic copies to save their friends money. It’s too much of a risk. And you won’t have the opportunity Turkey last summer. They won’t notice it lying around in your room because it will be hidden in the little grey box that is your Kindle. Kindles are slowly taking the caring and sharing out of reading. When will you ever hear someone say, “I need to get a new e-book”?

the fact that it sounds ridiculous. There is absolutely nothing better than walking out of Waterstones with a new book and curling up on

all of your deductive powers to pick the perfect novel that will get you through the dark winter evenings or help you drift off to sleep at night. Downloading books, like downloading music, means all you have to do is click a few times: it hardly feels as though you’ve done anything (or spent any money) and you probably didn’t think half as long about which book to buy. Yet more and more people for Waterstones, which showed that like-for-like sales were down 8.5% in comparison to the Christmas period of the previous year. In 2010, Amazon announced that e-books had outsold physical copies

Has this happened because of the cost of physical copies? On average, a paperback book will set you back around £7.99, meaning readers should be buying at least 20 books in a relatively short period of time before it becomes worthwhile having a Kindle. However, considering that more than half a million e-books available from Amazon are either free or under £3.99, you don’t

However, shelling out for a Kindle isn’t the only way to save money on books. What most people seem to forget is that physical copies of books

can be free from the library: a fantastic building, home to uncountable volumes available for you to peruse at your will. What could be better? Yet (we’re back on the point of convenience here), a Kindle could be better. That’s if it wasn’t an electronic tablet. The bath and the beach are probably two of the most popular places to read a book (besides bed and the sofa that is), but neither one is particularly compatible with gadgets. Raise your hand if you’ve returned from the beach with sand in the charger slot of your phone or replied to a text in the bath only to face the catastrophic consequences. Have you ever noticed that it’s never your book that returns with some new defect? Paper copies of books are surprisingly durable. There’s nothing a quick stint in the airing cupboard or a wipe with a sponge can’t solve. And, if for some reason it can’t be sorted out, you don’t have to worry that you

If you happen to be more careful with your gadgets than I am, I’m sure you (in particular those studying literature and the like) will at least appreciate that being able to annotate a book until there is more pencil and highlighter than print is part of everyday life for a lot of us. This doesn’t work quite so well on a screen. I haven’t tried it, but I imagine scribbling notes on plastic could prove rather problematic. If you’re anything like me, you’ll have colour-coded sticky notes and bookmarks poking out from every other page. To do this, you actually need pages, and if the Kindle did have pages, it would somewhat defeat actually quite impressive. It is made with electronic ink capable of showing sixteen different tones and so reading from a screen has never been more similar to a book. You can forget the days of sun glare in your eyes because the Kindle’s screen has conveniently been made to combat this too.

Why, then, doesn’t everyone have a Kindle? When it boils downs to it, when push comes to shove, and when all is said and done, the Kindle and the controversy that surrounds it boils down to nothing more than personal preference, and, as you can probably tell, they aren’t to everyone’s taste. Personal preference, however, hasn’t gift lists for the third year running. So, if you side with me on the Kindle debate I urge you make clear that a book voucher would be more welcome in your stocking this year. No one wants Santa to leave the wrong present for them on Christmas morning.

FIN.

features@gairrhydd.com · @qfeatures

Words: Charlie Mock

FESTIVE FEVER

“WHAT’S TODAY, MY FINE FELLOW?” “TODAY? WHY, CHRISTMAS DAY”

Yes, Christmas is back. Well, it’s not technically Christmas Day until December 25th, but ask anyone out on the street and they will tell you that it’s Christmastime right now. All signs point to Christmas being upon us: the Coca-Cola advert is on, the John Lewis advert (considerably more adorable this year than it was last year) is on, the mince pies are on every other aisle in Tesco and, of course, “All I Want For Christmas” is blasting out of the radio.

We all know that December 25th is Christmas Day and yet it seems that the Christmas ‘season’ now kicks off at the beginning of November. On Halloween night, I was in Tesco and they were already putting away all of the Halloween costumes and sweets, replacing them with Christmas trees, gifts and festive food. That’s not to say I’m complaining. I mean, who doesn’t love the festive season? But people seem to be getting their Christmas lights and Santa hats out of the loft progressively earlier every year. In October, I heard a radio presenter say “Is it too early for me to play this [All I Want For Christmas – Mariah Carey]? Probably, but then again, everyone’s already started getting ready for Christmas, so I’ll play it anyway!” I hadn’t even got rid of my pumpkin yet. Then again, when you think about all of the excitement and activity that happens over those two months, perhaps trying to squeeze it all into December alone would make you exneed the head start if you plan on making the most of this very special holiday. And there are so many festive activities: watching Christmas movies, going ice skating, Christmas shopping, singing Christmas carols, drinking hot chococut the list short because there is not enough space in this article. But trying to do all that in

Some people will say that Christmas is starting earlier and earlier every year because it has

become too commercial and has lost its true meaning. There will always be people like this. They’re wrong. Yes, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Christ, but does that mean we can’t give each other presents? No, giving presents to others spreads happiness and love, which is exactly what Jesus wanted. And we all know Christmas isn’t about the presents (although they are a big part of the day). If you go into any primary school in December, you will be able to see a production of the Nativity going on. From a young age, we are all taught the religious meaning behind the Christmas celebration. But for me, Christmas has another meaning. It’s meant to bring people together. It’s a time for bringing happiness to others and it only happens once a year. If we could all treat each other the way we do around Christmastime, the world would probably be a better place.

Roll up your trousers, ladies and gentlemen;

one and only thing I dislike about Christmas is how expensive it is to buy them. It’s as though when it hits December the price of everything increases by 10%. Although this is good for the economy, unfortunately, it doesn’t help what’s left of my student loan. Despite this, buying people you love is a rewarding experience. You can show them how much they mean to you by giving them something that they really want on Christmas Day. Then there’s that awkward present situation: the ‘not-sure-whether-toget-you-a-present-because-we’re-not-reallygood-friends’ person. This is particularly tricky when the person in question tells you they’ve bought you something. Then you are forced to embark on frantic search for a gift for them.

The solution to this whole ‘friends and Christmas presents’ problem is Secret Santa. All you need to do is get a group of friends together, choose a price range for the gifts and pick each

features@gairrhydd.com · @qfeatures Q

buying for whom and the Santas are no longer secret. And some people are terrible present I’m not bad per se, but I don’t buy what people would expect. That’s something my Dad taught me. He always says: “At Christmas, you should always buy people things they wouldn’t normally buy for themselves.” I think this is true. Why waste money on something people can buy themselves? If they want it, they’ll buy it, so buy them something different and fun (of course, you have to make sure that it’s something they’ll appreciate). This year I’ve donegise now to the person I’m buying for this year. I’ve got three things for my person and one of them is a Spongebob Squarepants tattoo sleeve. Personally, I think that the recipient will love the present. And it’s something they’d never buy for themselves. Whether or not they’ll truly appreciate it, I don’t know, but it’s a fun gift and hopefully will go down well.

I miss the old days when you could get all your presents from Santa Claus. It’s strange believing Santa gave you all your presents and then some of your distant family come round and give you extra presents. What about your parents? It’s strange because it’s as though they have never bought you anything for Christmas! I used to get so excited (and still do a little bit) for Santa’s arrival. Every Christmas night would

The Grinch or The Muppet Christmas Carol) and the computer on with NORAD Santa Tracker up. It can show you Santa’s exact whereabouts in the world. As straight to bed! My brother and I would haveing up sooner (apparently), and the sooner you wake up the sooner you get to open all of your presents.

Even at this age, I still look forward to Christmas more than any other day of the year. I probably don’t look forward to it as much as excited than most people. For starters, I still have a tendency to write a letter to Santa asking for an outrageously long list of presents. But I don’t look forward to it for the same reasons as when I was younger. Yes, I still anticipate snow, Christmas can only mean one thing: a break from education. No lectures and a chance to revise. I know it’s not the best reason to be excit-

week in between Boxing Day and New Year’s Day when the shops aren’t open at normal times, buses don’t run regularly, and Christmas decorations are still hanging around. This week post-Christmas depression.

I don’t look forward to being in charge of Christmastime for my future family. Every older person seems to complain about the cost (something I struggle with at Christmas too) and the overall stress of the occasion. I want to make Christmas as magical as possible for my children, but up until now, I’ve only been on the

how hard it is to plan a Christmas Day. Either way, I have big plans. I’m going for a kind of Home Alone 2 sort of deal (the ending scene where the family is happily in the fancy hotel, not when Kevin is wandering around alone in New York). I suppose, if I want to make Christmas that big, it will cost a lot of money. See? I’m already feeling the stress of this make-believeily, there is plenty of time until my day comes. All we need now is for a bit of snow to come our way and get everyone even more in the festive mood. Merry Christmas, Quench readers.

Words: Jack Di Francesco Photo: Nour Kasem

Are you not entertained?

by Rachel Moloney

If you want people to forget your many trials and tribulations, the answer is simple: play someone just as colourful and dramatic as yourself. That’s exactly what Lindsay Lohan has done, with her portrayal of classic actress Elizabeth Taylor recently airing on American TV. In Liz and Dick, Lohan wears the black wig and thick eye make-up very well and looks remarkably like the Cleopatra star, who died aged 79 last year. However, Lindsay was always going to struggle with one aspect of Taylor’s character. She’s widely regarded as one of the best actresses of all time. Actress: a term Lindsay seems to have forgotten about in recent years. Instead, she’s been way too preoccupied with going to misdemeanours such as drug use, theft and simply not turning up for things. Ever since her fall from grace, the press have given her all sorts of unwanted attention, in the same way that they lapped up Elizabeth’s Taylor’s on/off romance with fellow actor Richard ‘Dick’ Burton. He was one of Taylor’s seven husbands and she married then divorced him, only to marry and divorce him yet again. However, apart from a brief dalliance with Mark Ronson’s sister, Li-Lo’s love-life is practically the only thing that the press couldn’t give a damn about. If she really wants to be like Elizabeth Taylor, she needs to concentrate on this.

Unsurprisingly, Liz and Dick was slaughtered by TV critics, but Lindsay immediately found solace at Justin Bieber’s gig in New York and tweeted that it had put “a smile on my face”. Maybe that’s because Justin isn’t exactly the ‘Baby’ we all remember either. The boy was recently pulled over by LA police after he made an unsafe left turn in his white Ferrari. Now, I know you’ve got a snazzy car, but that’s no excuse. On closer inspection, the vehicle’s registration plate was also seen to have expired and Justin was therefore reprimanded by police the whole debacle, but the chart-topping superstar instead just posted a photo of the approaching patrol car on Instagram.

Now that’s proper gangster.

Beliebers will be happy to know that their idol has seemingly escaped the claws of justice with nothing but

Lindsay Lohan being a prime example. While she was in jail in 2010 for violating her probation for drunk driving, so was Alexis Neiers, who had ironically tried to burgle Lindsay a

year before. Neiers, who was 19 at the time, was one of the main members of the so-called ‘Bling-Ring,’ who broke into celebrity homes and got away with items worth millions of dollars. If it makes Lindsay feel any better (which it won’t), goes to Paris Hilton, who was allegedly chosen because she was ‘dumb.’ Paris Hilton? Surely not. In fact, not only did she leave the key under a mat, she also kept her safe unlocked and only realised that something was wrong after she had been burgled four times. Now, I’ve got pretty bad OCD, so I feel like Paris and I wouldn’t get on.

These events and the subsequent trials that followed were answered with The Bling Ring, starring Emma Watson. With may have to wait a long time before she can see herself dolled up in a stylish baby pink tracksuit and tramp stamp tattoo. But that’s unlikely to concern her, as she says she hates herself so much in the movie, that she won’t be able to watch it. Are you telling me she’d rather see herself dressed in a wizard costume aged 10? Suit yourself.

While Watson has refused to watch her bad-ass self, Two and a Half Men star Angus T. Jones has similarly spoken out against the character he plays, as well as the show he appears in. Following his attendance at a Christian church in California, the 19-year-old who plays the under-achieving and lazy Jake Harper has had some sort of religious awakening

No arguments here. With lots of polite ‘pleases’ in his rant, as opposed to Charlie’s Sheen’s infamous ‘tiger blood’ antics, his heart at least seems to be in the right place. However, I feel like the biggest test of all is yet to come – the day when producers reach the end of their tether and refuse to pay him

Jones’ anguished rant gives him privileged access to the Hollywood School of Grumpy and Wayward Child Stars, attended previously by Lindsay Lohan, Alexis Neiers and Macaulay Culkin. Everyone knows that the cute little boy from Home Alone was eventually arrested for marijuana possession in 2004, yet this still hasn’t stopped the forgiving British as autumn term ends and the Christmas holidays begin, settle down and let the kids run riot. They do it so well.

The Joy Formidable’s Ritzy Bryan takes time out from their US tour to talk to Liam McNeilly.

The new single Cholla was released in October. Are you happy with how that’s been received?

It’s never really been about how our music’s received. We’ve been away and made an album which we think is really beautiful and that we’re happy with and that’s the most important aspect of it for us. Cholla is a song that we really love. It talks about the breakdown of a relationship between a mother and a child. It’s amazing to play it love and we hope people can really connect with that.

You’ve been supporting Muse for their arena shows and you’re going to be supporting Bloc Party in Europe and at Earls Court in February. How are those arena shows for you, do you prefer playing to the bigger crowd?

Yeah it’s been amazing supporting Muse and we’re really looking forward to playing with Bloc Party, they’re really nice guys. Playing arenas is fantastic and it’s great to have the challenge of playing to someone else’s audience too. It’s always great to play our own shows though, we’ve got a really fantastic fan base so for us we approach every show in the same way and the delivery for us stays exactly the same.

You treated London and Bangor to some intimate headline shows recently. Are they the types of venues that are best to debut new material live?

It wasn’t something that we planned like that. It’s not a case of we have a load of new material and we want to play it in tiny intimate venues. We’ve been playing new material when we’ve been supporting Muse too. Having said that though it was lovely to play back home in North Wales. That’s where Rhydian and I are from and it was fantastic to be home for that show. I hadn’t been home for 6 or 7 months so to play a show there was something really special for the band and me.

Your new album is coming out in January to coincide with the tour, what can fans up?

With this album there’s a lot of focus on the voice. When we were writing a lot of the foundations for the songs were in the voice, acoustic guitar and a piano and we’ve used some new instruments that we haven’t used before too. Rhydian and I both have our backgrounds in classical music and this album & there are a lot of very personal songs too. So as you can expect some things are a little different but it’s still very much a Joy Formidable album and that’s important.

“Hype? I think hype’s a horrible We’ve never been about We want fans our music

You recorded some of this album in Portland, what was the process for writing the record?

We wrote a lot of this album on the road whilst we were touring which is quite a hectic way to write, it can be quite chaotic. We write some of our songs together but Rhydian and I write separately too.

last tour there when we were touring The Big Roar of production we produced this album ourselves again. That’s something that’s really important to us in creating music that’s special to us but it was also fantastic to get Andy Wallace on board to mix the record too. We really admire him and his work and he did a fantastic job.

album? Do you listen to a lot of music before you start to write material?

When we’re on tour we have a playlist that we put together, but when we’re writing we tend to go in to a bit of a bubble. You know, where we recorded just outside Portland was a really quiet, tranquil place and that was just a perfect place for us to work. Having said that, there are some really personal songs on this album and between The Big Roar and this album, my grandfather passed away. I was listening to a lot of the music he listened to and whilst that doesn’t come across in the sound that we produce it’s something that

Law’. At least that’s the foundation of it. It means that the body’s bone structure will adapt and strengthen when it’s under stress and pressure. With what I’ve just said about my grandfather, it

nature; two of us obviously grew up around the lovely peaceful North Wales countryside. We read a lot of mythology that is very animal orientated and stories rooted in Native American culture too. The Wolf is a symbol that we felt bonded those aspects together, it sort of epitomises a lot of the things that have happened to us and that we’re passionate about.

You’re on tour in the USA right now and you’ve sold out iconic venues like New York’s Terminal 5 earlier in the year. Is there a lot of hype about you over there? Hype? I think hype’s a horrible word. We’ve never been about the hype. We want fans to discover our music themselves so you know, like I said, it’s great to play to other people’s audiences as well. But we’ve played a lot of shows over the past few years and gathered a really loyal fan base that we hope can connect with what we do themselves and not through any sort of big machine.

What does Wolf’s Law mean?

With his self-named album topping UK charts and his UK tour already underway, you would not be mistaken for thinking eighteen year old Jake Bugg is incredibly talented. Hannah Davies talks to the troubadour about football, music, and his excellent ping-pong skills.

You’re fresh from touring with Noel Gallagher and Snow Patrol in the US, what was that like?

It was incredible y’ know. Some of the places, like the Ryman in Nashville was a great venue. Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, and Dolly Parton have all played there and it’s a proper old school venue. But just seeing all of America was incredible.

You’re from Nottingham, so have you travelled a lot before that?

No, I’d never been out of England before this year. I times, or however many times, and America and Canada. So yeah, it’s been incredible.

Since your album has come out, do you think it’s been a bit of a whirlwind?

Yeah, I expected it to be busy but I never expected it to be as mad, or do as well as it has done.

What do you get up to on tour in your spare time?

I’m into table tennis…

Any leader boards with you and the band? Yeah, I’m the king. We play pretty hardcore.

So you supported The Stone Roses in the Olympics this year, how was that?

horrible word. about the hype. fans to discover themselves” Jake Bugg Interviews

2012 has been a great year for new music. What new music are you listening to at the moment?

Yeah I think it has. And there are some really great Welsh bands. I’m really enjoying what Denuo are doing at the minute. I’m a fan of theirs. Also, We// Are//Animal too, they’re a really good band. Here in America I’ve been listening Kenny Vasoli’s band Vacationer who are great, I’ve liked what he’s done in the past too. And Churches, a band from Glasgow, who are fantastic.

Where do you consider your hometown show?

You know when we played those two headline shows in Bangor and London between the Muse dates it was like playing two hometown shows. We moved to London because that was where Matt was from and that’s where we’re based now. So I’d say North Wales and London are both our hometowns.

The Joy Formidable’s new album Wolf’s Law will be released on January 21st on Atlantic Records. Tickets for their Solus gig on the 28th January are available now from

It was incredible y’ know, I didn’t even think I’d get to see them live! It was probably the most memorable gig I’ve seen to be honest because I got venue. I’m a huge fan of theirs.

Who else do you really look up to?

There’s… Noel, Johnny Cash, Donovan, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix. The list goes on.

Your family are quite musical aren’t they? Did you grow up always knowing that you would be a musician, or did you ever want to be anything else?

I didn’t used to like music until I was about twelve. I was always into football, and I still am.

Who do you support? Notts County. They’re not doing too bad actually,

So there’s lots of different sounding tracks on your album. Do you draw a lot on your

Yeah I do. But I also think as a writer it’s good to make up stories and use your imagination a bit.

It’s fun. Writing songs is my favourite bit y’ know. That’s the bit I enjoy the most.

Do you ever get writer’s block?

Yeah. I think everybody does. I mean, I can always write a song, it’s just sometimes its crap.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

“For every two steps forward is a step back”. Dean Jackson from BBC Nottingham told me that. He helped me a lot.

You can listen to this interview, and more on Xpressradio. co.uk.

Aztec fairisle scarf – Topshop, £18

Davidoff Cool Water perfume set – Boots, £26

Berry bandeau sequin hem dip dress –Internacionale, £18

shadow – Boots, £6.49

Scarf – H&M, £19.99

Nail Varnish in Sleepwalker – Topshop, £6

iPhone case – H&M, £9.99

Gold Tone Clock Short Necklace –River Island, £7

Spike stone hoop earrings –T

Party Dress – Motel for

Pale Purple Cable Knit Embellished Cardigan – River 25.

L'occitane Ambre Perfume –

Estella bartlett Blue Sapphire – achica.com,

Barry M lipgloss in Passion Pink –Superdrug, £3.99

REVIEW: STREET CASUALS

Freddie Rochez to the opening

This month saw the opening of Street Casuals, located in the Morgan Quarter in the city store. For a small shop, the launch party was surprisingly grand. With a couple of live, local offer.

heftier price tag than most students would go for initially, all of the pieces have a sense of style into.

Bargain Buy

The Christmas party season is fast approaching and that can only mean one the epitome of all things festive, and are

an otherwise plain pair of shorts. Their covered shorts, reminding me somewhat of to at only

twelve fashion@gairrhydd.com · @quenchfashion Q

River Island Dark Red Sequin Shorts, £30

Alice Hart

Models Own Nail Polish in Ibiza Mix, £5, Boots

Helen Cox

A Winning Combination

Guy Christian Salon Spy:

The staff were friendly and welcoming, offering me a wanted, which is sometimes rare with hairdressers. The Abbi

Tanton

CHRISTMAS AROUND WORLD THE

I come from a family that does not celebrate Christmas, and

ol singers. Living in the part of Indonesia where people were predominantly Muslim, I have to say the ‘feel’ of Christmas is not as festive as it is in Cardiff.

I think one of the main differences I can point out about

gardless of their religious background, celebrates Christmas.

Back in Indonesia, Christmas is perceived as a Christian holy day and not a festive holiday for everyone. Those who celebrated it would go to church with their family, have a nice festive dinner and open up presents, while those who, like me and my family, didn’t celebrate Christmas, would just enjoy the day off.

One of the similarities I found between Christmas in my

stantly see signs of Christmas deals and sales. The same thing occurs in Jakarta’s malls; each store you walk into would play the same Christmas carols and offer yet another 50% off on various items that may just be the right gift for your friends and/or family. This sort of phenomenon saddens me a little, and makes me question whether Christmas is still valued as a time of togetherness or merely for presents and gifts?

However, ever since coming to Cardiff I absolutely fell in love with the Christmas market. Granted, it might be another

rummaging through Welsh handicrafts, tasting samplers of

interesting ways to learn about culture.

Another thing that majorly differentiates Christmas at home and here is the fact that all activities cease to exist during Christmas day. It was a truly odd feeling to be walking around, all stores closed and most people are enjoying the day in the sanctuary of their homes, with their loved ones. Back home, people would actually take the day off and go out with friends opening later than usual.

To me, the fact that most people are somehow forced to stay ble day. It was a day where you sort of forget about the outside world for a little while and spend some time with your loved ones. I remember when I was here during Christmas, I ended up spending an entire day with my friends, just sitting around the table, having food, a bit of wine, talk about random things and share this moment together.

All in all, since coming to Cardiff, I might just have embraced the Christmas spirit a little bit more than usual. Despite the fact that I may be away from home and my family, it is still a festivity I enjoy celebrating, even as a moment to appreciate what this city has offered me. That being said, I hope everyone will have a marvellous Christmas, no matter which corner of the world you are in!

Happy Christmas!

Nandra Galang Anissa

travel@gairrhydd.com · @quench_travel

Christmas is celebrated throughout the world and has blended in an incredible way with local cultures into something that’s always different, but gives us all common ground. Here are some descriptions of how it’s celebrated around this lovely blue marble of ours. Luke Owain Boult

Christmas in Nigeria involves a lot of celebration and family time. There is less emphasis on presents and more on religion. Most businesses close, but the roads will be packed as people rush to start the day with a church

Once back at home, people often throw parties, inviting neighbours and family members to one house, as it’s seen to be important to spend time with loved ones. Family members who live in the cities often travel back to their family home to spend time with loved ones (often taking days to travel). The Christmas meal mainly consists of jollof rice with beef, goat ter) are also served. The day usually ends with more prayer and singing before people return home.

Nigeria

Although Japan isn’t a traditionally Christian country, we do celebrate entines Day. While in Western countries, it’s a family event where people travel from all across the country to get back home and spend time with their families, in Japan, people like to spend time with their sweethearts, and restaurants are often fully booked for Christmas Eve. People eat fried is known as Santa-san here and gives presents to children, much like he does in Europe or America. Malls have Christmas decorations and Christmas sales, like in the UK. We have a more traditional family holiday called O Shogatsu Christmas, we hang out with our boyfriends or girlfriends, or go to parties.

Hiroki Chihaya from Osaka, Japan

Advent is very important in Germany for Christmas. We have advent wreaths called adventskranz

will have four lights on it. We also have advent calendars too! We celebrate mainly on Christmas Eve, when we go to church, sing carols and listen to the Nativity story. We’ll then traditionally eat a goose and open presents, while Christmas goes on for the next two days, until December 26th. We also decorate the Christmas tree. Christmas here is all about family, so it’s

use of Christmas trees and much more, and it’s a magical time, with many famous markets, which Britain has since imported and fallen in love with.

Isi Von Borke from Hamburg, Germany

leaves. Many sing carols around it and go to church at midnight on Christmas Eve. before dinner. Traditionally, a few days before Christmas, we buy a carp and keep it in a tub, before eating it on Christmas Eve along with potato salad, and potatoes for

People have fried carp or carp soup. After the dinner, and Little Jesus has left the presents, we unwrap them and exchange gifts.

It is traditional to go to church on Nochebuena (Christmas Eve), which is called Nit de Nadal ebrates during the night, and there’s a saying that ‘this night is not for sleeping’. Then, on Christmas Day, we meet up with the other part of our family and binge chimes 12, we eat a grape for each pip of the clock, which is called las Campanadas. It depends over the country and with families, in Catalonia, there is a tradition of el Tio de Nadal (the Christmas log), which children hit with a log on Christmas and then gives them presents. There’s also the tradition of el caganer per), which is a boy in the Nativity having a poo to show humility.

n

Olusegun Olujide from Lagos,

INDIAN HIMALAYAS SURVIVING INDIA

‘New Delhi is a vibrant, bustling metropolis’ is something you will undoubtedly read in any article concerning the city. Although this description is true, it does not quite paint the whole picture. I went to India on a mountaineering trip. I was

mainly of organisation and planning for our journey north to the Himalayas. Although I obviously missed much of what the capital had to offer, I did not miss sleeping naked on an al to me and the two people I was sharing it with. Please note: to avoid chronic and violent vomiting along with other stomach

Leh is built 3,526m above sea level, and despite its Tibetan monarchic roots that dominate the skyline. The ruins of Leh are not interested in the town’s history, the Buddhist shrine ings. Leh is a beautiful town and should not be missed by anyone travelling to the Indian Himalayas.

large amount of food and pills (diamox for those interested),

tion had devised several means to make our trek to base camp possible. The most notable was supposedly a bridge crossing cable with a small cage attached spanning a wide torrent. The no luggage and had a habit of rocking alarmingly with the slightest shifting of weight. Although this method of crossing would greatly recommend hiring a guide for any trek through the mountains, as their knowledge of the area is superb and they also know the best places to set up camp. The walk was natural environment that I have seen.

Upon arrival at base camp (5,000 metres), we began to

This was not something to be trivialised. Although the climb is not technical, it involves the crossing of a glacier, a long glacier) would have to be done at night to ensure there was a supernatural knowledge of the mountain. When one of our group discovered they had lost their harness on the mountain

told us not to worry and to continue with the climb anyway. After we had started to ascend the glacier, a halt was called. He walked around 20 metres away from us in complete darkness, thrust his arm into a patch of snow identical to its surround memories of the rest of the climb are diminished by the fact that I repeatedly stopped to vomit. Although we were worried that I may have had symptoms of altitude sickness, the nausea stopped early on and I was able to continue. We reached the summit expecting to see the sun rising over the entire valley. Instead, we had a spectacular view of the inside of a cloud. Despite this slight disappointment, each of us was so pleased with the achievement that it did not matter. We had climbed

India is a country full of beauty and excitement and to expe rience the best of this, you have to travel to the north. The wild and picturesque landscape that Ladakh offers is seconded only

Words: Chris Horton

Photos: George Fielding

travel@gairrhydd.com · @quench_travel

Culture

Bedtime Stories

With Christmas fast approaching, our everyday lives become foreshadowed by a sense of excitement and nostalgia. In this issue of Quench, Culture embodies the magic of the season by delving into the depths of our childhood imaginations. Here is a look back at some of our favourite bedtime stories, as we ask why they had such a big impact on our younger selves.

The Faraway Tree

As a child, it’s normal to read and love books that take you away from reality, but I seemed to have a penchant for particularly strange stories. The Tiger Who Came To Tea was a light-hearted story about an anthropomorphised tiger who strolls into a young girl’s house and almost starves her by eating everything. In Roald Dahl’s George’s Marvellous Medicine, a young boy attempts to put his grandmother in her place by concocting a potentially poisonous potion.

Elmer the Patchwork Elephant

We live a world where no two people are identical. Though we may all segment off into ever more precise groups, we are all, fundamentally, individuals. Individuality is surely something to be celebrated, yet undoubtedly everyone, and perhaps especially young people, feel a pressure to conform to a standard, and sink into the safety of a mass identity. If you were to assume the children’s book Elmer the Patchwork Elephant to be a fairly sentimental and futile read, effective you would be catastrophically wrong.

Instead, David McKee’s humble little tale manages to tackle issues of identity, social cohesion and multiculturalism more aptly than every single physical, social and health education pep-talk received throughout the duration of primary and secondary schooling. As stated as opposed to ‘elephant colour’. Disheartened by his irregularity, Elmer endeavors to make himself more like the other elephants, here meaning rolling around in berries until his skin changes to a grey-blue shade. Yet Elmer soon discovers that, in being the same as everyone else, he goes unnoticed; he is no longer Elmer, but just another unremarkable member of the herd, and this proves to be nowhere near as fun.

Regardless of its simplicity, Elmer’s lesson is an important one that resonates within every cultural, racial and religious sect. Admittedly, the book isn’t a Christmas tale, but given the whimsical romanticism around Christmas time (see John Lewis or Coca-Cola Christmas adverts for details), it seems acceptable in the festive period to promote the that guy with the distracting eyebrow twitch, or the lecturer with Noodle, and, perhaps most prominently, the acceptance of the self, warts and all. If everyone were grey, just think how repetitive and dull life would be. So, this Christmas, I urge you to forget conformity and stop striving to be grey; instead, do as Elmer the Patchwork Elephant does, and be exactly who you are. Life inspiration from an illustrated rainbow animal in a children’s paperback, who would have thought it?

Livvy Bathe

But these pale in comparison to Enid Blyton’s The Faraway Tree trilogy. It tells of how Jo, Bessie and Fanny, three brilliantly named children, discover a tree so tall that its branches lead right up into the clouds, and at its top, a ladder to another world. But after every ascent, the world above the tree changes, and they embark (pardon the pun) upon a different the Land of Birthdays, and in another, the elegantly named Land of Take-What-You-Want.

The children encounter many peculiar ‘Tree People’, such as Silky, a fairy with long silken hair, and a friendly owl. Then there is Dame Washalot, a woman who is neurotic about cleaning, and Mr Watzisname, a potential drunkard who cannot remember his name. But there’s more: The Angry Pixie, Saucepan Man, and my personal favourite, Moonface, also reside in the tree’s branches. Images of Moonface now instil in me a sense of amusement mixed with horror.

Nevertheless, I still love this book. It taught me to believe that, beyond the ordinary and unseemly, there lies adventure and possibility. As a young girl, I often spent wintry days strolling around the nearby park with my mother, trying to spy the mysterious Faraway Tree. These stories gave my childhood self something that we all need from time to time, especially in this festive season: a sense of magic.

Siobhán Carroll

Culture

Danny the Champion of the World

Pondering on your favourite children’s book is akin to walking around a veritable buffet of nostalgia. With every recalled story came that juvenile rush of emotion, but I found that a grand portion of the books that dazzled my tiny mind were written by one man alone: Roald Dahl. I haven’t seen which books fellow Quenchers have chosen, but I would bet a pretty penny that this great author’s work appears more than once.

My personal selection is Danny the Champion of the World. As a fellow Dan, it

father and son and drugged-up pheasants. As a kid, the thought of having to step up to come to the aid of a parent, as Danny does, was an exciting inversion of everything I knew about life. Plus, he got to drive a car, on his own! The section where Danny pilots the old Austin 7 through the high-hedged lanes (oh so similar to the ones just outside my town) was electrifying. I wish I could break the rules so daringly and nobly.

Furthermore, Dahl taught you the importance of sticking it to the man, and standing up for the people you care about. Danny and his father pulled off a perfect (or nearly perfect) Robin Hood heist, getting back at Mr Hazell for being a rude snob and uniting the townsfolk in the process.

But kids don’t care for such sociocultural complexity. This book sticks with me as simply being a fantastic story that drew my attention to the love and camaraderie that having a great dad can bring. It made me feel lucky.

Dan Hill

The Secret Garden

Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden has always been a childhood favourite of mine, since I was about eight years old. I vividly remember curling up on the sofa the day after Christmas (making sure that a mince pie was not too far out of reach) and reading the enchanting tale of a spoilt,

hidden garden of her absent uncle’s manor.

From being orphaned by an outbreak of cholera that claims

England. She is left to her own devices in the somewhat mysterious Misselthwaite Manor and remains obstinate until hearing the story of her late aunt’s unfortunate accident in a garden that has been locked since her death. From this point, Mary begins to soften and she eventually discovers the key to

way she lives it, forever. Along with her new friend, Dickon, the brother of her maid-servant, she tends to the garden and restores it to its former beauty. Somewhere along this journey, in the many forbidden rooms of the manor, she hears an inexplicable crying sound, and discovers her bed-ridden, closeted cousin, Colin, and along with the secret power of the garden, she heals him and his relationship with his grieving father.

because of the special sort of magic Burnett manages to weave into her tale. She allows us to sympathise with Mary and Colin, two seemingly self-absorbed cousins, because they have been raised without their parents’ love. Even though they get everything they want, they are bereft of friends and are always lonely, making their transformation at the end more profound. They learn to be better people and realise that their only limits are the ones they have set themselves.

Kirtey Verma

Illustrations by Sarah Roberts

THE ALBUMS OF 2012

With 2013 quickly accelerating towards us, it is time to stop and take a look back at the best albums and songs that 2012 gave us. So here, in no particular order, is Quench Music’s whistlestop tour of the best music of 2012.

Like all successful fusion records, Portico Quartet is greater than the sum of its parts. While clearly incorporating jazz and electronic music elements, it does not claim to be either. The result is a sound that is truly organic; in a no way a forced amalgamation of styles. Perhaps the secret to the success of this record lies in the band’s approach when adopting new sounds. Instead of simply copying and pasting beats from their admired electronic artists (Flying Lotus a clear favourite to the band) on their existing sound, the new additions appropriate the character of the quartet in an extremely sympathetic fashion. Similarly, the live instrumentation responds by adopting the qualities of electronic music, like the repetitive, syncopated rhythms of the hang drum in Rubidium Opener Window Seat immediately displays Portico’s talent for creating true beauty. Inspired by travelling across Europe, the track combines bubbling synths and soaring double bass lines to brilliantly evoke expansive landscapes. Steepless explores the addition of vocals from Swedish singer Cornelia with equalling dazzling results. While the move away from more surpasses the quartet’s previous releases in terms beauty and innovation.

Kit Denison

15.10.12

The behemoths of postrock came back after an absence which lasted far too long to unleash a monster upon our welcoming ears. Even with two songs lasting 20 minutes, this may well be their most accessible album yet (although if you’ve listened to their back catalogue, you’ll know that the term ‘accessible’ is very relative here). Although that’s not to say they haven’t lost any of albums. In fact it is quite the opposite, this time Godspeed! have shed some of the white noise and atmospherics that normally permeates their songs, just listen to their roaring opener Mladic which doesn’t wait around before crashing into the violent, ominous rock outs that they are known for. Godspeed! are back, with a sound as strong as ever and one of the best albums of the year.

Stephen Springate

Animal Collective’s ninth album is a colourful, crazy, joy to listen to.

listen yielding new layers of delight. Each song is connected to the next by static and random samples, making the whole album a kind of colourful patchwork of techno. In places it’s outrageously catchy. Rosie Oh features quirky, dove-like cooing synths, while drones and mesmerizing Indian rhythms characterise Wide Eyed. “I eat a mango, and I feel like a little honey could arpeggios on fruit-themed track Applesauce, a tune as sweet and sticky as its title. The sincerity of the album’s vocals is striking; believe wholly their cryptic mumbo-jumbo. This, contrasted with aggressive sampling and time signature changes galore, makes Centipede HZ a bizarrely beautiful creation. Rosey Brown ANIMAL

Full of unconventional structures, shifting tempos and playfully interweaving melodies, Into The Diamond Sun is a suite of quirky and intricate pop songs. They may have more in common musically with Warpaint, yet these songs are light in character and are enormous fun to listen to. This is by no means to say that Diamond Sun is straightforward. Each track is thoughtfully composed, arranged and performed, with each member injecting spades of their own musical are particularly noteworthy, but they never dominate; while the songs are generally speaking compact in length, there is room for all the ideas they wish to include.

Whereas each instrument brings a new sound to the table, their voices hold everything together. All three members sing and their clear, pure voices coalesce beautifully in to one homogonous vocal texture. These lush harmonies run throughout the album, but are especially impressive on Circles, where each section displays a different side to their voices. A wonderfully concise album, the songs here are both immediate yet will continue to reveal their craftsmanship upon each listen.

Kit Denison

GRIZZLY BEAR SHIELDS WARP RECORDS | 17.09.12

A third album like an epic sixties road trip; a swinging, echoing, retro construction. Shields, saw the band album Yellow House and the poppier sound of their second, Veckatimest, (from which came the ever popular Two Weeks). Opening track Sleeping Ute sets the scene, with swooping psychedelic synths and buzzy guitar, followed

some interesting aspects, such as minute long Adelma, a reverberating soundscape with menacing undertones. The track acts as a kind of palate cleanser between earnest, fast paced Speak in Rounds, and the lush retro sound of Yet Again, where you can appreciate bassist and producer Chris Taylor’s interest in vintage instruments. Other highlights of the album include the Arcade Fire reminiscent A Simple Answer and Sun in Your Eyes, a ballad with some very crunchy, impressionist chords, bringing the album to a sweet, echoing close.

Rosey Brown

legions of hipsters in plaid shirts told us to watch him, and I am glad I did. In January earlier this year, Michael Kiwanuka won the BBC’s Sound of 2012 poll. His debut album Home Again stands out for me as the most incredible album of this year (and with the calibre of music this year, that’s saying a lot). It’s reminiscent of Bill Withers,Van Morrison and a real return to the golden age of folk and soul. Tracks like Home Again and Bones showcase Kiwanuka’s extraordinary talent to fuse blues, folk, soul and jazz, and I’m Getting Ready may very well be my favourite song from this year. I’m studying abroad this year, and despite all the amazing things I’ve experienced, I still get homesick. Perhaps that’s why Home Again resonates with me so much. There’s an extraordinary comforting quality to the album which never fails to put me in an optimistic mood, and for that indescribable feeling, it is my top album of this most sensational albums.

Luke Owain Boult

| 12.03.12

TRACKS OF THE YEAR

STEEPLESS – PORTICO QUARTET MS – ALT-J

PUTTY BOY STRUT – FLYING LOTUS SLEEPING UTE – GRIZZLY BEAR JUPITERS – FOUR TET SHUT EYE – STEALING SHEEP I’M GOD – CLAMS CASINO THE ART OF PEER PRESSURE – KENDRICK LAMAR EMMYLOU – FIRST AID KIT

APPLESAUCE – ANIMAL COLLECTIVE CHOLLA - THE JOY FORMIDABLE WOR - DJANGO DJANGO ECHO - WILD SWIM GENESIS - GRIMES

AYLA - THE MACCABEES GOLD ON THE CEILING - THE BLACK KEYS WILD PEACE - ECHO LAKE FLUTES - HOT CHIP MURMURMATIONS - TALL SHIPS A BEAR ON HIS OWN - ISLET

- SILVER-SUN PICKUPS SIMPLE SONG - THE SHINS

NAPOLEON LOVES JOSEPHINE - WE ARE THE PHYSICS VLADIC - GODSPEED! YOU BLACK EMPEROR STAY OUT OF THE SUN - MR FOGG

BROMANCE AIN’T DEAD - PULLED APART BY HORSES

EVERY SINGLE NIGHT - FIONA APPLE

1904 - TALLEST MAN ON EARTH RUNNING - JESSIE WARE

CALIFORNIA DAYS - PEACE

FEELS LIKE WE ONLY GO BACKWARDS - TAME IMPALA

PYRAMIDS - FRANK OCEAN

BEST OF FRIENDS - PALMA VIOLETS

RUNAWAYS - THE KILLERS

YOUR DRUMS, YOUR LOVE - ALUNAGEORGE

MOTORING - TOY

SMOTHER - DAUGHTER WILL WAIT - MUMFORD AND SONS DARK STAR - POLICA

ALBUM OF THE YEAR HONOURABLE MENTIONS

In the two years since their last release Magic Chairs, Danish band Efterklang have been very busy indeed.

to shoot a music video in an abandoned mining town

must be considered as one of their best yet.

Recorded in the abandoned town of Piramiden on the Russian Island of Spitsbergen in Svalbard, this is a collection of ten tracks that shimmer and glisten like some ancient snowfall, a gradual building up of layers and textures, only to melt away almost as soon as they are noted. Their name means reverberation, and it does indeed sound like every little change in the arctic environment

The album carries on in the great tradition of ‘found music’, as much of the percussion rhythms are played on old oil tanks or other derelict machinery. A natural reverb permeates the album thanks to the location for recording, but unlike other musical expositions of texture, this isn’t overkill.

Each new lyric or melody is sensitively left to hang and melancholic, but this never really feels self-indulgent thanks to clever scoring of the accompaniment. At times reminiscent of Arcade Fire or Sigur Ros, they still manage to carve out a distinctive soundworld, albeit borrowing heavily from both classical and modern traditions. Fans of minimalism by the likes of Philip Glass or Terry Riley will Thom Hollick

THE MACCABEES - GIVEN TO THE WILD

FIRST AID KIT - THE LION’S ROAR

TALL SHIPS - EVERYTHING TOUCHING

TAME IMPALA - LONERISM

ALT-J - AN AWESOME WAVE

BOB DYLAN - TEMPEST

DJANGO DJANGO - DJANGO DJANGO

MELODY’S ECHO CHAMBER - MELODY’S ECHO CHAMBER

BAND OF HORSES - MIRAGE ROCK

FOUR TET - PINK

MR FOGG - ELEVEN

THE DECEMBERISTS - WE ALL RAISE OUR VOICES TO THE AIR (LIVE)

HOT CHIP - IN OUR HEADS

KILLER MIKE - R.A.P. MUSIC

ROLLER TRIO - ROLLER TRIO

NEIL YOUNG & CRAZY HORSE - PSYCHADELIC PILL

PULLED APART BY HORSES - TOUGH LOVE

THE WEEKND - ECHOES OF SILENCE

TALLEST MAN ON EARTH - THERE’S NO LEAVING NOW

DEERHOOF - BREAKUP SONG

FLYING LTOUS - UNTIL THE QUIET COIMES

LAU - RACE THE LOSER

CLAMS CASINO - INSTRUMENTAL MIXTAPE 2

BEACH HOUSE - BLOOM

HAIM - FOREVER

FRANK OCEAN - CHANNEL ORANGE

ALABAMA SHAKES - BOYS & GIRLS

JACK WHITE - BLUNDERBUSS

THE XX - COEXIST

MICHAEL KIWANUKAIN HOME AGAIN POLYDOR

THE ANTIDOTE TO UNDER THE MISTLETOE

Whatever happened to the classic Christmas pop song? There was a time not too long ago when it was a rite of passage for any artist

song with enough festive cheer to keep everyone going till January. Think of all the classic Christmas tunes you name one truly brilliant Christmas song that was released in the last twenty years? If you said Christmas Time

Using the rise of reality TV talent shows as a scapegoat is an overused cliché, but looking at the list of Christmas Number Ones since 2002, seven of the singles have been dire, soulless offerings from the winners of X-Factor and Popstars, and 2011 saw the ironically un-Christmassy Rage Against the Machine song Killing in the Name enter the number one spot only in order to keep X-Factor puppet Joe McElderry off of the top spot. Other prestigious alumni of the Christmas Number One spot over the last 20 years have included Bob the Builder, Mr Blobby, the Spice Girls three years in a row and Westlife. Shop displays of newly released Christmas albums paint a similarly unpromising picture, full of Justin Bieber, opera-lite stars Catherine Jenkins and Michael Buble (whose Christmas album is admittedly a good, if not original, album of Christmas standards) and gimmicky comeback albums from the likes of Steps and Rod Stewart. If you don’t fancy the saccharine deluge of earnest mitherings that the charts are throwing at us this Christmas, then what are you left with?

released Christmas magnum opus Silver & Gold. For a full review, check out Kit Denison’s take last issue, but in brief, isn’t consistently great, there is something for everyone here, whether its richly and cinematically orchestrated pieces, glitchy

electronica or quieter classic Christmas songs. At times more traditional, at times unlike any Christmas album you’ve ever

you in a relaxed mood for the season. Christmas is a time for everyone to come together, and it seems this applies in the music world too. There have been many great collaborative Christmas efforts released over the years and this is still true today. As well as a host of great duets such as The Christmas Duel between The Hives and Cyndi Lauper and a completely reconstructed version of Do They Know It’s Christmas featuring members of Fucked Up, TV on the Radio, listen to, many unlikely pairings have come together to produce whole Christmas albums together recently.

songs, look no further than This is Christmas, the playful offering from singer-songwriter Emmy the Great and Ash’s frontman Tim Wheeler. With audible chemistry sizzling throughout, this album is full of such offbeat songs as Zombie Christmas and Jesus the Reindeer any 80s Christmas pop classic. You should also try She & Him’s A Very She & Him Christmas which again uses simple boy-girl dynamics to create a charming Christmas album, this time with a more laidback 60s swing feel to it.

For a gloomier take on the festive season, you need to listen to last years Funny Looking Angels, a collaboration between Editors frontman Tom Smith and Razorlight/We Are Scientists drummer Andy Burrows. A mixture of covers and original songs, the album’s soundscape evokes the bleary darkness of a freezing winter snowstorm, only for the audience to be dragged out of the storm into shelter by the deeply rich vocals of the two; the sharp baritone of Smith sounds like a restorative shot of whisky and Burrows softer, warmer vocals sound like a comforting hot chocolate. is fast becoming one of

my favourite Christmas songs, despite it only being around for 2/20 of my Christmases. On a similarly dark note, with songs like Fuck You, It’s Over, the Glaswegian gloom kings Glasvegas’ 2009 Christmas EP is more of the same from the band with such upbeat songs as Daddy’s Gone and Stabbed, but Christmas is meant to be the loneliest season after all, and this textured, surprisingly delicate mixture of songs is perfect at evoking the more melancholic side of Christmas. If you want to know what a mix of this and This is Christmas would sound like, then listen to Gruff Rhys’ An Atheist Xmas EP, a strange mixture of cheery delivery and depressing content (one song is called Slashed Wrists This Christmas) which perfectly sums up the opposing moods of the season, as does Tom Waits’ darkly funny single Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis For the completionists amongst you, you may also want to try

Christmas Album 2002 which alongside a few patchy demos has some endearing covers of holiday standards such as Chestnuts Roasting On an Open Fire. Other covers which you should check out are Radiohead’s take on Winter Wonderland, and both Bob Marley and Iggy Pop’s versions of White Christmas . Credit is also due to The Killers, one of the only rock bands who try and release a Christmas song every year. They might not be instant classics, but the video for The Cowboy’s Christmas Ball is entertaining enough to warrant listening to more than once. Julian Casablancas also deserves a mention for I Wish It Was Christmas Today which is a great slice of festive rock. So don’t despair this Christmas if you think Buble and Bieber artists are still releasing Christmas songs and that the format is

Words: Stephen Springate Photo: Selena Meyer

L IVE

Last year, Canterbury packed out the small room in Clwb, a-room gig. This year, as a result of their growing fanbase, they graduated to the main room. Interviewing them before their gig, they were nervous that the venue would be empty, and whilst it wasn’t, it wasn’t full enough to create the atmosphere that they so deserve.

Scholars opened up the night, their singer regularly roaming into the crowd, performing directly to audience members. Their act was energetic and dynamic, thus suitably opening up the stage for second support act Mallory Knox. Knox are good at what they do (pop punk essentially) if you like that kind of thing, which I don’t particularly. So, though I appreciated their performance for being a good one – it well connected with the crowd and a number of people knew their songs - I was glad when Canterbury took to the stage.

I was surprised with the opening song of the Canterbury set – they begun with the headline track from their second album Heavy in the Day, which is one of their slower ones. Perhaps a poor choice, the audience didn’t quite know how to react, but went suitably mad as they powered into a much more upbeat second track. Thankfully, the set continued in this manner, slowing down on only a couple of occasions for a calmer song or two. Even through these though the intensity continued, as the crowd lifted choruses from the lips of the singers.

The set was well rehearsed and the band let the music do most of the talking, opting to speak to the crowd only on a couple of occasions. With the music as impressive as it is, this was a tactic that worked well for them. One of my only real criticisms of the gig is that they played all the songs as they are on the album. It’s always nice at a gig to hear a breakdown, extra solo or change in tempo in a few songs.

Though the performance was, in that respect, similar to the album, the connection between band and audience was fantastic and did bring a new dimension to their music. The two singers were working the merchandise desk (the repercussions of being on your own label) meaning they were able to chat away to fans throughout the support acts. This immediately set them out as a band playing music because they love it. Moreover, all members moved well on the stage, connecting with getting up close to the crowd. Leading one half in vocals and then the other. All simple tricks that make going to a gig that bit more inclusive and special.

More people need to hear Canterbury’s music and go down to their gigs. Once you hear them, you’ll be hooked. They are a band that truly feed off of the energy of their audience, and the only reason that this gig wasn’t as fantastic as the last was that there simply wasn’t enough audience there for them to be at their best. That being said they still had us singing along all night.

Alex Greig

Bombastic nine-piece Gentleman’s Dub Club played in the rather chilly Globe on a cold Tuesday night. The temperature of the room, in fact, was a good indicator of how the night progressed. It was pretty freezing as support act Regime took the stage, playing an interesting mix of hip hop, rap and rock. Some songs were hard core, while others had a laid-back, reggae feel. The crowd seemed slightly confused at times as to how to react. This was made up for by some pretty good political rapping, which even managed to be funny at times – “If you do ket you’re a mug!” the frontman repeatedly shouted.

The crowd were good and limbered up, and the room was luke warm as the brassy mass that are Gentleman’s up and down and singing along, catchy chorus after catchy included frontman Jonathan Scratchly crooning sweetly

When the hair on your body stands up mere seconds into the opening song, you know you’re in for a great set. And so was the story with Gabrielle Aplin - she hit the ground running. The crowd were with her from the word go, singing along with many of her own songs. Gabrielle stepped back from the microphone and let the audience take over on a number of oc-

and also perhaps a little shocked by.

Her set was littered with cover versions, from Coldplay’s ‘Fix You’ to her John Lewis cover of ‘The Power of Love’. This is one minor criticism – her set was a little too short, with one too many cover versions included. As an act that is yet to put out a full-length album, this should perhaps be forgiven – it is come to know and appreciate her own music. The set had a wonderful dynamic to it as the band left halfway

through to allow her two solo acoustic performances. It was these times when she looked most comfortable and at home, the whole crowd silencing before her and her guitar, every note hit perfectly.

The only improvements needed to her live show will come with time. She still needs to settle into leading a live band and increase her stage presence. Musically, the evening was can’t help feeling I’m going to turn into one of those people who constantly recalls how ‘I saw her live, right before she hit the big time’.

and coyly on High Grade, while the crowd lifted their hands and shouted along. Also brilliant was Fire, a more laidback track, with an amazing trumpet solo. Mainly the songs were up-tempo, perhaps surprisingly for a band named, after all, Dub Club - really, this was more like ska. But maybe it was see live: explosive brass and funky beats.

Rosey

Brown

Alex Greig GABRIELLE

The Lost Art of Christmas

How The Grinch Stole Christmas

The Miracle on 34th Street.

It’s A Wonderful Life, White Christmas

Home Alone

Elf The Muppet’s Christmas Carol Home Alone

Alice Hart

THE FILM EDITORS PICKTHEIR MOVIES OF THE YEAR

The Dark Knight

Words: Becky Johnson, Becky Wilson, Amy Pay

TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE

DIRECTOR: ROBERT LORENZ

STARRING: CLINT EASTWOOD, AMY ADAMS, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE

RATING: 6.5/10

In Trouble With The Curve,

prompt Mickey to accompany him on a scouting trip to inspect Trouble With The Curve is that despite

so that at times the movie seems to border on parody, becoming

REVIEWS

the subtlety of an approaching asteroid. Helmed by debutant Robert Lorenz, the direction is clumsy and heavy handed.

grumpy turn, yet the movie’s reliance on tried and tested the stereotype of an aged technophobe, a caricature that

RISE OF THE GUARDIANS

DIRECTOR:

STARRING: ALEC BALDWIN, ISLA FISHER, HUGH JACKMAN

RATING: 6.5/10

Amid the sequels and spin-offs DreamWorks has accumulated crisp, dazzling visuals Rise of the Guardians could be a complementary component of this collection. This spectacular illumination of festivity depicts the magical together to confront the bogeyman and preserve the beliefs of children across the globe.

Based on William Joyce’s The Guardians of Childhood, the

embarrassed in the movie’s more unbearably cheesy scenes It is hard to get to riled up about Trouble With The Curve. It it seeming rather inconsequential.

Daniel Rosser

dark undercurrent. The animation portrays mesmeric scenes nightmare soot. Alexandre Desplat’s uplifting score shimmers encapsulating emotions of triumph and tenderness. The diverse personalities add a sprinkle of light-hearted

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

DIRECTOR: MIKE NEWELL

STARRING

RATING: 6/10

mention Helena Bonham

Easter Bunny all contribute to the amusement. Without these

Rise of the Guardians from How to Train Your Dragon remains the superior force of animation.

of

to contain a sense of authenticity. Richard Hartleys score also

contain all the right elements; desolate Kentish landscapes, a casting for the part of Miss Havisham.

performances from the likes of David Walliams as Uncle

credit must be given to Ralph Fiennes for his frantic portrayal

satisfactory amount of entertainment, though if you plan to this attempt and opt for either the most recent television series or David Leans 1946 version. I had great expectations…. But Becky Johnson

AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY

Release Date | Decmber 13th

Starring: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Cate Blanchett

Lord of the Rings prequel has son reprising his directorial role. Bilbo sets by the evil dragon Smaug.

LIFE OF PI

Release Date | December 20th

Hussain Disaster strikes as a family move their circus

PITCH PERFECT

Release Date | December 21st

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brit-

JACK REACHER

Release Date | December 26th

THE IMPOSSIBLE Release Date | January 1st

A true story of a family’s search for one another after they’re seprated by the Indian Ocean

QUARTET

Release Date| January 1st

Starring: Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Billy Conolly

they all move into a retirement home, and they decide to reform their group and sing to raise monye for charity.

LES MISERABLES

Release Date | January 13th

The breathtaking on-stage production is brought onto the big screen, a french tale of

Leanne Rachael Dixon

Carter’s bizarre portrayal

Miss

TRAILER TRASH

I GIVE IT A YEAR: FEBRUARY 2013

best brit-coms in some time. I Give It A Year takes an unusual

BOXING DAY BLUES

to help you back into the seasonal spirit.

funny challenges, due mainly to a certain ex-girlfriend and an unfortunately good-looking colleague.

perhaps to its interesting mash-up of American and British

Driver and Stephan Merchant and not forgetting a supply of eye candy in the form of Anna Faris and Simon Baker. Look out for this one, due to be released in cinemas on the 8th February.

the family, so your 6 year old brother and your 60 year old granddad can share the same room

First he uses this to his advantage, then comes the realisation that he is doomed to spend the rest of eternity in the same place, seeing the same people do the same thing every day. It is an

· Q

1. The Sound of Music (1965)

2. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988) A mish- mash of real-life and animated characters, Who Framed Roger Rabbit tells the story of that cartoons actually exist.

3. Shrek (2001)

4. Groundhog Day (1993)

5. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (2005)

Becky Wilson

Becky Johnson

Erin Ekins recounts her experience of being queer at Christmas

There are a lot of words you could use to describe Christmas: festive; jolly; joyful; and triumphant, but I think the word that best sums up Christmas is – interesting

How could it not be interesting? Family members, many of whom haven’t been in the same room as one another since the same time last year, gathered together for a whole day in the spirit of festivity and celebration, sitting at the same dinner table and smiling of reindeer socks. In such circumstances, drama, and a certain degree of awkwardness, are adept at digging in their claws and settling in for the duration.

However, if you are LGBT+ or queer (a label that I use for myself, but which I know others do not like), this can add another fraught season. With many LGBT+ youth still in the closet, and some out but faced with familial disapproval, large family gatherings, especially at Christmas, can bring pain, loneliness, or the suffocating reality of hiding.

I don’t pretend to have a universal truth about being LGBT+ at Christmas: all I have is my own experience; and that experience is both awkward, at times painful, and at other times painfully funny.

Christmas was, before I came out to my grandparents and other extended family members, a time of great confusion for me. Every time I kissed someone on the cheek or shook their hand or put up with another ‘My, hasn’t she grown’, I was subconsciously and frantically ticking them off my mental list: am I out to you?; how would you take it if I came out to you?; do I have to be super-careful around you? I was out to my parents and my little brother at the time, as well as a few select others, so the road of conversation was

bumpy and, as a result, I often made mistakes. The issue was particularly prescient around the main focus of most Christmases: my grandparents. I love my grandparents on my mother’s side very dearly, and yet, for several Christmases after I came out to my immediate

Christmas was therefore guaranteed to be a tightrope of awkwardness.

If there is one thing non-LGBT+ people struggle to realise, it is just how often you allude to your own sexuality or gender identity with every sentence you say – it is not a case of merely glossing over who you’ve had/would like to have sex with.

Crushes, favourite actors/actresses, social groups, how you spend your time, hobbies, these is bound to come up in a conversation sooner or later, and, as an awful liar, I recall many bungled attempts at diverting attention away from my (probably rather obvious) queerness.

I still remember vividly my nan asking to take a look at my boxset of Tipping the Velvet and asking why those two women in corsets were sitting so closely to one another. Or that time when, while watching the Doctor Who Christmas Special, I automatically remarked on how I would very much like to have Katherine Jenkins as my very own, only to stutteringly add ‘as my duet partner’ as my little brother guffawed mightily in the corner. after coming out to them. It was a relief, a answer ‘So, what have you been up to?’ with the truth rather than dodging the question, to be able to speak without fear of something incriminating falling out of my mouth. They may not have been one hundred percent okay

with the whole situation, but I wasn’t lying anymore – and it’s the lying that carries the weight.

“I recall many bundled attempts at diverting attention away from my queerness.”

However, just when we feel that the closet doors have swung open for me and my family, never to close again – a new twist to this Christmas tale: not long ago, my mother took me and my little brother out for coffee – and told us that she is gay.

So, as my family’s queerness apparently grows, we are faced with a Christmas more interesting than perhaps any other faced before. My parents will, due to their living arrangements, be celebrating Christmas together yet separated; while my grandparents know about the separation, they do not know about my mother’s coming out; and then there’s me, their out and openly bisexual granddaughter, who is no longer hiding behind my own closet door but helping my mother to come to terms with hers.

I hope that, while this Christmas is bound help her road be a little less bumpy than my own was. I know that we’ll be okay in the end; not to draw upon cliché (okay, maybe a little bit) but as the great poet Gloria Gaynor once said: ‘I will survive’.

Fairy lights, tinsel and trees aside, Christmas is a pretty odd time to be trans*. No, I don’t want socks, nor do I want washing-up gloves or anything else stereotypical like that. The idea of gift-giving is to be able to put something in a box that, in some ways,

As a trans* person, you don’t get put in a box; there are very few forms nowadays that will allow you to be ‘trans*’ or just be a non-gender. For example, on Facebook, it’s one or the other with no middle ground.

Because it will be an interesting time for us all, but, hey, it is Christmas.

The Trouble with being Trans*

Sam Hickman sheds light on the trials and tribulations of being trans*

“I epilate - yes, my face.”

Some girls can stick on a pair of leggings, a bra, a hoodie and some UGG boots and leave the house; if I dressed like that, it would look ridiculous. Now, there are some things that are quite good about being a transwoman (in comparison to being a cis-gendered woman): you can pee standing up; you can yell “I have a penis” at pervy men on a night out; and you don’t have to admit to any gender stereotypes from either sex. On the other hand (and from a technical point of view), trans* people will attempt to commit suicide three times during their expected 23 years of life – but let’s not dwell on that…

Oh no, the troubles with being a modern

day transwoman are much more trivial than that. For instance, I can’t get facial hair removal done on the NHS and laser costs a fortune; for now, I epilate – yes, my face (if you’re going to be shocked by that, yet were to live, there’s probably something wrong with you). As a result of this, I grow a beard every week, so if you see me at the end of the week, I probably know I’ve got a beard, so you don’t have to tell me. Another downside is being misgendered! Imagine that you’ve grown up eating meat your whole life and yet for some reason people call you a ‘vegetarian’. You and they know what one is – you’ve even eaten meat in front of them, but they still insist you’re a ‘veggie’: that’s what it’s like when you call me ‘he’ – it’s just plain wrong and weird.

“The most important thing to do in life is to love yourself.”

That’s the sad thing about being trans*: you’re not 100% man or ‘vagina-clad’ woman, so you don’t really feel a part of either sex. If I’m with friends who view me as a ‘veggie’, I

Similarly, some girls (these are the hoodieleggings-UGG ones mentioned above) think that because you are not a ‘vagina-wielding’ woman, then you’re not a ‘genuine woman’ and you’re more like a dude in a skirt. Because of this, they will comment on you, about town with mascara running down her face all day, no one would tell her. Women are strange: they don’t tell people when they look ridiculous; they don’t admit to farting; and they rarely admit to being weird (well, the ‘cool’ ones don’t, at least); there are so many things about men and women that I just don’t want to be associated with.

man calls me ‘she’, a friend will always give me a look and ask (the same question every you ‘she’?”. I always reply with, “Nope, it feels like it always does when people address me”. However, the biggest trouble with being a transwoman is, despite not feeling fully incorporated into either gender, you still have to deal with the sexism. I spent 17 years as a boy and never got looked, whistled or even yelled at in the street; yet, you stick on some slap, a bra, a nice frock and a pair of heels and sud-

the street. Before I came to university, I never got asked out (not even to the pub) and now

it’s crazy! As a busker, men will come up, put some change in the box and ask me out using I play harp and sing on the street – I’m not some elaborate ‘undercover hooker’. Some men!

Through all these bad things though, I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Who wants a vagina? What wants to be ‘normal’? Who wants to be boring? The most important thing to do in life is to love yourself. Why? Because you’re the only person who (you can pretty much guarantee) will be there with you. Sometimes, as is often the case with trans* people, you can’t love yourself, either because you don’t feel like yourself or because your situation doesn’t allow you to be yourself.

One of the pivotal moments of my life was looking in the mirror one morning and recognising myself; some people will understand what I mean by that and others won’t. It’s that recognition that tells you, ‘it’s ok, you’re doing pretty well kid’; I wouldn’t give that up for anything.

“It’s

ok,

you’re doing pretty well kid.”

warmers winter

RUM, WINE AND WINTER SPICES...

One cold late November evening the Food and Drink crew gathered in the bohemian atmosphere of Milgi’s back yurt to chase away the low temperatures. Confronted with a tempting range of festive cocktails and mocktails, our guests sampled our selection of seasonal favourites. Rum and wine are the quintessential winter warmers, the perfect comfort from the harsh British outdoors. For those with less of an appetite for alcohol and ginger, and spices such as cinammon and nutmeg. We have selected the night’s favourite picks, which champion

Photos: Luke Slade

Starkvinsglögg Rom

The UK has become smitten with all this Swedish mulled wine is the perfect without having to dish out the pickled this version is made with a rum infusion that gives it a noticeable kick. The taste orange. Sultanas and almonds are the pleasantly plump (and alcoholic).

Hot Toddy

From Milgi’s winter selection comes this pleasantly tart concoction. Lemon and honey provide a contrasting balance of

depth to the drink and stop the central The Milgi guys know how to make this well (and have a cosy yurt for you to if you are feeling inspired.

Smoking Rum

As recommended by Bacardi’s specialists: one splash of lime. There’s nothing to dislike about this it is to make.

Hot Buttered Rum

Snowball Cocktail

Espresso Daiquiri

If you need to polish off the rest of your spiced rum but fancy something that’s to pique your interest and perk up your espresso shot and kahlua liqueur are softened by an addition of vanilla sugar; wintery nights.

For those who prefer their drinks a bit more decadent. This drink is started by creating a batter of butter and

to taste rather than careful measure. This batter is boiling water and spiced rum (our choice was Bacardi

result that seemed to improve the longer it was allowed those resolutions of solid healthy eating can be kept for

food@gairrhydd.com

Milgi’s seasonal pride. A creamy cocktail Dutch egg liqueur Advocaat with a fresh homemade lemonade touch.

festive food

Christmas is a wonderful time of year for anyone with a love of food. The one downside is that the food is always the same: traditional roast, mince pies, and Christmas cake. Even what to do with left overs (turkey curry anyone?) is getting a bit old. So why not try a fusion of the old with the new. Both these recipes are surprisingly easy to have a go at, and a little bit different, but still retain some old Christmas tradition.

Christmas Upside-Down Cake

(Serves 4)

This is one of the easiest things that you can do with your left overs. The recipe is really adaptable, so you can substitute the toppings listed or instead of wraps use tacos. It’s a little bit more interesting than living off turkey curry and reheated roasts until midJanuary. Here’s what you will need:

Ingredients:

For sauce:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion

1 garlic clove

1 tin Chopped tomatoes

1 tsp oregano

½ tsp black pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

1 garlic clove

1 red onion

1 red pepper

1 courgette

170g turkey

85g cheddar cheese

4 tortillas

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.

2. To make the sauce heat the olive oil in saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 4-5 minutes, until softened.

3. Add the chopped tomatoes, oregano and black pepper. Reduce the heat and leave to simmer for ten minutes.

4. For the turkey, heat the olive oil in a separate pan over a medium heat. Add the for around 5-7 minutes.

5. Add half of the cheese to the turkey mixture and continue to cook until the cheese has melted.

6. Divide the turkey mixture between four tortillas and roll up into parcels. Place into an ovenproof dish, spoon over sauce and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Place into the preheated oven to bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden. Enjoy!

Turkey Enchiladas

(Serves 10)

This is perfect for anyone like me who doesn’t like the traditional Christmas cake. It is a traditional sponge base topped with caramelized fruits and a sugar glaze; it should satisfy anyone’s sweet tooth. It’s much easier to make than a traditional Christmas cake and takes much less time too. The topping listed here can be substituted for any fruit, pineapple, plum and apple all work well, or you could even use chocolate.

Ingredients:

Cake:

225g butter

225g caster sugar

4 eggs beaten with 3 tbsp milk

100g ground almonds

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

Topping:

125g butter, plus extra for greasing

150g light brown soft sugar

600g dried fruits and mixed nuts

Method:

1. Start with the topping. Grease a round cake tin, and then melt the butter in a pan. Stir in the sugar for about 2–3 minutes until the mixture is foamy and pale. (If it starts to separate, take it off the heat and keep stirring.) Pour into the cake tin and spread evenly. Arrange the fruit and nuts in the bottom of the tin, then put to one side.

2. Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4. Cream together the butter and sugar and beat in the

3. Pour the cake mixture over the fruit and nuts. Place the cake tin on a baking tray and bake for about 1 hour or until golden and a skewer comes out clean.

4. Rest the cake on a wire rack for 2 minutes before sliding a knife around the edge to loosen it. Place your serving plate over the top of the cake and carefully slide onto the plate. Gently remove the tin. Serve with custard or ice cream!

Lorna Mason

Some of the editors take you through some nice little gifts you might want to think about this Christmas

>>Jess Rayner Personalised mugs £20 emmabridgewater.co.uk

>>Nick Evans 3 for £20 on i want one OF THOSE iwantoneofthose.com

>>Vanessa Platt Bob Dylan - Tempest Spillers spillersrecords.co.uk/

>>Tom Parry-Jones iPhone speakers amazon.co.uk

CHRISTMAS SELECTION

>>Thom Hollick Baby Panda WWF wwf-adopt-a-animal.co.uk

Rosey Thom

>>Rosey Brown OXFAM gift sets. £5-£25 Oxfam oxfam.org.uk

>>Rachel Victoria Lewis City Hive BS Honey Bees bshoneybees.co.uk

>>Jo Southerd Retro vinyl coasters £12.95 Joe Browns joebrowns.co.uk