the nottingham music special
issue 44 Dec 11 - Jan 12
contents
editorial
LeftLion Magazine Issue 44 December 2011 - January 2012
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People say that you can’t judge a book by its cover, but you can tell quite a lot about this issue by looking at that photo by our own NME award-winning snapper David Baird. On it you’ll find the faces of Nottingham’s musical ‘Class of 2011’ – to whom we dedicate this issue. The last time we gave over this much space solely to music was back in Issue 4 – when my esteemed colleague Al Needham put together an ‘istreh of our local scene. Starting in the twelfth century with Alan-a-Dale and ploughing through to the death of the Xylophone Man; the at times tongue-in-cheek article ended on that classic cliffhanging idiom ‘To Be Continued...’
Contain Notts 04 May The news diary that will stand in the middle of Mansfield Road at midnight on New Years Eve and shout; “Come on then, world! END, you bastard! I DARE yoh!”
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LeftEyeOn Your city, seen through the eyes of its bestest photographers
in New Basford 06 AOurCanadian Rob leaves a little something out
for Santa, the dirty bogger
Nottingham Music Special 08 The 15 pages dedicated to NG bands
and artists start here
All About The Label 14 It’s Who they are, what they do, and if
they want your demo or not
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Kirk Spencer Live and direct from Radcliffe-on- Trent
A Family Affair 17 It’s Docta D and DJ Razor, Kemet’s
father-and-son team
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Roger Caney If he’s not seen your band, you don’t have one
des Bohémiens 21 Manière Outstanding In Their Field
Of ‘Blu Summerlin 22 Kind 10 Chris Harleighblu: neo-soul queen-in- A one-time outsider lays out exactly
why our scene is so unique
The Pops 11 Topper When Jacksdale was the centre of
the gig-going universe
12 Anti-Capital-Ists The I’m Not From London stable
credits Editor-in-chief Jared Wilson (jared@leftlion.co.uk) Editor Al Needham (nishlord@leftlion.co.uk) Santa Alan Gilby (alan@leftlion.co.uk) Marketing and Sales Manager Ben Hacking (ben@leftlion.co.uk) Designer Becca Hibberd (becca@leftlion.co.uk) Art Editor Tom Norton (tom@leftlion.co.uk) Literature Editor James Walker (books@leftlion.co.uk) Music Editor Paul Klotschkow (paulk@leftlion.co.uk) Photography Editor Dominic Henry (dom@leftlion.co.uk)
facebook.com/leftlion
waiting
State of Independents 23 The The Maze and The
Chameleon
Works 27 Art Katrine Brosnan and Trish Evans
Ever After 28 Appley Introducing Orchard: Sneinton
Events Listings 29 Nottingham What to do in town this bi-month
33 Noshingham Bread and Bitter, the Navigation and
Tamatanga get nibbled at
34 Reviews More bands and artists get tabholed Sound 41 Trent Waiting for a licence
Lion 42 Write Reviews, previews, poetry, Katie
Half-Price
Squad 45 Mither Rammell boyfriends and women
with photos of you in handcuffs
People’ll Do Anything For A Horrorscopes 24 Some 46 Rocky Free Handout Plus The Arthole, LeftLion Abroad
The art of flyering
and Notts Trumps
Six years on we’ve finally gone back because we sense the tipping point is near for the ‘Nottingham Music Scene™’. The evidence is there as local acts get signed up by major record labels and descend en mass to play at the major music festivals, London A&Rs make regular trips to Notts and national media like The Guardian start to recognise it too (well played, Mike Atkinson). This is all happening because our DIY scene structure is working. The years of hard graft by a large number of passionate volunteers spanning events promotion, media, management, recording and more are all starting to pay off and people from outside of the city are finally looking at our product and realising how good it is. Perhaps the best thing about the ‘Class of 2011’ is that the range of genres represented would struggle to be more diverse. No-one is sure of the exact recipe for success, but right now we seem to have more musical ingredients than Papa John’s. So, back to that cover photo. For those of you who weren’t there, we didn’t just randomly stumble upon nearly fourhundred of this cities premier musicians all huddled together. We invited them and they came. In fact toomany came (apologies to those of you crammed at the back). To everyone on there; it was great sharing that moment with you. Hopefully we’ll all look back at it in years to come, pointing out all the famous alumni to our grandkids, saying “we were there at the beginning.” jared@leftlion.co.uk PS – Don’t forget to access all the special features of this issue at leftlion.co.uk/magazine
Cameron Bain Poetry Editor Aly Stoneman (poetry@leftlion.co.uk) Screen Editor Alison Emm (ali@leftlion.co.uk) Sport Editor Scott Oliver (scott@leftlion.co.uk) Stage Editor Adrian Bhagat (adrian@leftlion.co.uk) Administrator Duncan Heath (duncan@leftlion.co.uk) Cover David Baird, assisted by Carla Mundy, Jemma Cox and Ashley Bird. Special thanks to Daybrook House Promotions and Hey Zeus Photographers Ralph Barklam Lamar Francois Claudette Jarvis Tom Maddick Carla Mundy Stephen Wright Peter Zabulis
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Illustrators Cameron Bain Steve Larder Rob White Contributors Viv Apple Mike Atkinson Rebecca S Buck Rob Cutforth Ian Douglas Kristi Genovaise Rebecca Gove-Humphries Katie Half-Price Darren Howard Shariff Ibrahim John Micallef Nigel Pickard Claudia Kowalski Robin Lewis Roger Mean Sarah Morrison Beane Noodler Nick Parkhouse Tim Sorrell Mary Ann Pickford Lola Taylor Megan Taylor Andrew Trendall Anthony Whitton
youtube.com/leftliontv
LeftLion.co.uk received twelve million page views during the last year. This magazine has an estimated readership of 40,000 people and is distributed to over 350 venues across the city of Nottingham. If your venue isn’t one of them - or you’d like to advertise - please contact Ben on 07984 275453, email ben@leftlion.co.uk or visit leftlion.co.uk/advertise.
DJ, promoter, scribblin’ fiend. Better known to insiders as ‘Mac’, Cameron has organised and designed for RubberDub - one of Nottingham’s hottest underground nights - since 2007. A mere 21 summers, the lad has sprayed his visual musk across anything that doesn’t move, from vinyl and CD covers to canvases, graffiti and murals. He’s also worked with a huge spectrum of creative sorts, including cover art for Los Angeles bass pioneer 6Blocc, Amental Ragga Jungle crew and Holland’s Laag Crew, flyers for Cambridge’s Uprizing and Nottingham’s Lobotomy events, and the survey result illustrations for this issue and a contribution to our centrespread.
Parisa Eliyon
Singer, promoter, spreadsheet-vixen Another contributor who is so multifaceted that spods regularly roll her head as a check against their Cloak of Invisibility, Parisa has been lead singer in the now-defunct hip-hop and drum and bass band Basement Forté, recently recorded a tune with N3ON from Play No Games and has a few gigs coming up in 2012 under the Lyrical Wax banner. She also runs the monthly Acoustickle night - which rotates between the Alley Café, The Maze and the Bodega and has showcased the likes of Jake Bugg and Kirk Spencer. Now she’s completely buggered up any chance of a social life by getting her hands dirty on the ‘Lion, helping out with the cover shoot, chipping in reviews for the website, and getting stuck into the backroom jobs we’ve pretended don’t need doing for the past year or so. facebook.com/acoustickle leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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MAY CONTAIN NOTTS October - November 2011 Mapperley nearly blows its Top
5 October
All I know so far is the police have searched a house, arrested two people and that unknown chemicals have been removed from the premises. Apparently it was chaos up there earlier today. Anybody heard anything more yet? RebelRhymes
Goose Fair opens, and it gets more and more like visiting a decrepit auntie you never got on with. You go once a year out of duty, you don’t really know why you’re there from the minute you arrive, they barely recognise you, and there’s a funny smell.
Yeah that does all sound pretty intense. I’m guessing the ‘open container’ was the bath!? Prob just a lush bath bomb... hoho Alan
6 October
Apparently a controlled explosion has been carried out. RebelRhymes The Volatile Liquid found in the property was ‘Nitro Glycerine!’ (A powerful liquid explosive). Also an illegally held Firearm and ammunition were discovered during the search. Makes you wonder they were up to in there. A pint of ‘N.G.’ would be hand grenade power and they had a barrel of the stuff! RebelRhymes I thought it was going to be someone with a bathtub full of amphetamine! I don’t know what they were going to do with it. Do people still blow safes open in banks? Monkey Doctor
with Nottingham’s ‘Mr. Sex’ Al Needham
The death of Steve Jobs inspires a heroic bit of pre-pubescent bragging from one eleven year-old to another in the queue for the bus; “My Dad’s got two iPads – one in his bedroom and one in the living room”. It would have been so easy for May Contain Notts to turn round and point out that the one upstairs was obviously his ‘wank’ iPad and that his parents’ beached-whale of a relationship was virtually over. And you know what? It really was. Incredibly so.
16 October
Occupy Nottingham begins. And without being snarky, I think it’s mint what they’re doing, and it’s so nice to see people rolling up and donating stuff to them and just being decent to each other.
19 October
It is announced that Darren the Waving Goat has died at White Post Farm at the age of eleven. And I’m sorry, but I can’t let this pass, even in Nottinghamshire’s moment of grief and loss, but in a pig’s arse was that goat waving. Look at the videos of him on YouTube; the goat is clearly – clearly – making the tosser sign at people.
21 October
Rumpus at the Occupy Nottingham site when a bloke gets taken away by the police and cautioned in the back of a van for holding a placard with ‘UP YER BUM’ written on it.
23 October
The owners of Oceana go into liquidation. Somebody tell the management that I am offering them fifty quid to take that disco flooring off their hands; it’d look bleddy lovely in me Mam’s kitchen.
Heartwarming story of the bi-month: a couple in Shirebrook are warned by the council that their garden is in such a state, they risk eviction. Their son - who has the words ‘MUM’ and ‘DAD’ tattooed on his neck – responds by filling the garden with items nicked from other peoples gardens, including a bench, a bird table, hanging baskets, wind chimes and even gravel. After he’s done his community service, he needs to pitch Garden Teef – a makeover show where Alan Titchmarsh and that tosser with the poncy cuffs show you how to break into other people’s conservatories - to a TV company.
5 November
13 November
An Aston Villa footballer gets battered in Leeds, drives home kaylide, crashes on the motorway, finds himself in Bulwell, panics and runs like a bastard, and is eventually arrested. Poor sod.
Nottingham’s most opinionated grocers, on... The death of Jimmy Savile!
So unfortunate, a lovely man and of course nobody knows how much he did for charity. When he died, both sides of the Telegraph were about him. Both sides. He was a marvellous superstar, a proper celebrity, and underrated.
The demise of Steve McLaren!
Very disappointing, but we did say as much in the last issue. You just can’t expect an open chequebook. He knew what he was taking on. Everybody knows full well that Forest have got no money, so it’s ridiculous to think you’re suddenly going to get 40 million quid in your back pocket. It’s just not going to happen. A good manager can motivate the side he’s got, it’s as simple as that. Look at the miracles we’ve performed with our staff!
England cock up at the rugby world cup! Disappointing. Just disappointing. And the Welsh missed out by one point.
Europe goes jittery!
The fact of the matter is simple - the Euro is a load of rubbish, which is why Great Britain never joined it. All the countries have to abide by one tax system, which suits strong economies like France and Germany, who, incidentally, signed a treaty in 1956 saying that they’d never argue in public again. That’s why good old Gordon wouldn’t sign up, because he didn’t want the Bundesbank controlling our system.
Santa’s Coming!
We’re going to have a jolly time after we’ve sold all of our Christmas trees, but we’d be able to have an even jollier time if LeftLion gave us a discount on our advert. We were going to take our staff out for dinner but now we’re not, because they won’t appreciate good food and they have terrible table manners. We’re going to either the Officers Mess above World Service or the private room at Harts. We’re also going to see Rolf Harris and Def Leppard. We’re seeing Rolfy on the 14th He’s an 82 year-old man whose had some wonderful hits and is a light-hearted entertainer. Marvellous.
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11 November
27 October
Thieves break into a pub in Bakersfield, stab the landlord in the hand and nick cash, jewellery and – bizarrely - a child’s tooth. Hopefully, the courts will slap them with damages totalling a whole pound, to be left under a pillow. Meanwhile, Bonfire Night on the Forest is sponsored by a supermarket.
9 November
A woman from Forest Fields blames the breakdown of her marriage on her obsession with Westlife, which has driven her to having massive tattoos of them on her legs and spending thirty grand on seeing them and buying low-grade-Irish-boyband-related tat. Can you imagine being her husband? You’re on the settee with your missus, and you’re feeling a bit fruity, so you run your hand up your leg – only to discover you’re caressing Ronan Keating’s lumpy slab of a face?
10 November
Hang on, wasn’t he in Boyzone? Him who died, then. The gay lad. So was he? Oh, bollocks to it.
12 November
Someone nicks all of Derby’s Christmas lights. By the time you read this, all them will be on someone’s house in Top Valley, leading to burns victims as far away as Bulwell and causing satellites to crash into each other
10 November
The Australian owners of Pound Solar System – er, the Broadmarsh Centre – look at their plans to expand the place one more time, suddenly realise that they might as well spend all that money on giving every pig in the country breast implants and an anal bleaching while they’re at it, sober up and flog the dump to the owners of Viccy Centre for £55 million. Who probably wake up the next morning hungover to buggery, slink downstairs scratching their nuts, see a big chatty shopping centre in the hallway still in the bag, silently scream to themselves when they realise they’ve bought a big hunk of pound shop that looks as attractive as Ayatollah Knomeni’s come face, and then go through every bin bag outside frantically looking for the receipt.
A Channel 4 documentary about Mark Kennedy reveals that, as well as helping the police smash up a school to get at the Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station protesters, he also spied on people in twenty-two other countries and help shut down a community centre in Copenhagen so the building could be bought up by rightwing Bible-bashers. And he’s a Chelsea fan. He also mentions his life is a “pretty big negative at the moment”, what with his missus leaving him after she found out he was slapping it about.
14 November
The first ever flight to America from East Midlands Airport takes off, offering a service to Newark Airport in New York. US anti-terrorist fighter jets are nearly scrambled over the Atlantic when thirty-two confused nanas start banging on the cockpit door and asking if they can be let off at Balderton.
24 November
Our Christmas lights are turned on by the Lord Mayor, Mick Wildgust, which is the coolest name for a Lord Mayor ever. It’s like having a wrestler or a Gladiator for your civic representative. If the Council want to get the kids onside, they need to get him to travel about in his own official Atlasphere, and make him open garden fetes with a swish of a big ornamental jousting club.
25 November
A bloke from Hucknall fakes a burglary of his laptop at the house he lives at with his Mam in a doomed attempt to stop her finding out he was subscribed to porn sites. Mate, if you’re reading this, don’t bother; mams know. I brought home a copy of Men Only in a complex trade involving a bag of lead figures nicked from Games Workshop and buried it as far under the mattress as possible. The next morning, it had appeared under my pillow.
25 November
Someone gets done at the Christmas Market for trying to nick sausages from that stall with a fishing rod, like a big meaty Hook-A-Duck. Merry Christmas, and God bless us, every one. leftlion.co.uk/mcn
LeftEyeOn
Notts as seen through the lenses of the local photo talent over the last two months...
Lost A Job, Found An Occupation The beginning of Occupy Nottingham, which is now – as we go to press – over fifty days old. Check LeftLion.co.uk for regular interviews with the occupants. Tom Maddick / tamphotography.co.uk Gimme Shelter A huge eye peers out across the Market Square, caught by the renowned Notts street photographer himself. Stephen Wright / tinyurl.com/swstreetphotos
The Rugs Don’t Work Credit Crunch Carpets roll out their new ad campaign in prime locations across the Arnold area. Tom Maddick / tamphotography.co.uk I Can See Your House From Here Goose Fair; gets smaller every year, but retains a shabby candy-caned beauty when it gets dark. Lamar Francois / lamarfrancois.smugmug.com
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Rob Cutforth hangs out a stocking of seasonal bile... Christmas in England again. Oh goody. Where to start? Maraschino cherries, booze-filled chocolate, mince pies, eggy drinks: British food is pretty awful at the best of times, but British Christmas food is enough to make a maggot weep. Only in England can a horrible thing like fruitcake make sense. It takes months to prepare, contains more booze than it does cake and it is so dry and sickly by the end of it all that you can barely class it as food. It’s like a petrified dog turd. With cinnamon. Why do you do this to yourselves? Is it there to remind you of how tough times were during the War? I once saw a gimp-footed pigeon picking at some street puke turn its nose up at a crumb of fruitcake. Speaking of stodge, do you think there are enough potatoes on a Christmas table in England? Mashed, boiled, baked, deepfried, roasted, scalloped, stuffed, julienned, powdered, pummelled, Dauphinoise, Florentine, bubble and squeaked...you may as well just take turns kicking each other in the colon. At my first English Christmas, I was surprised to cut into the turkey to find it wasn’t some sort of giant avian-shaped spud. Afterwards, it’s no wonder someone suggests going out for a walk every few minutes; you have to work all that potato through your digestive tract somehow. But it’s not just any walk, is it? No, this is An English Holiday Walk Through The Country. Four hours of exercising your Right to Roam, clomping around in the pouring rain looking for the spot Charlotte Bronte’s horse once had a dump. We have a word for The Holiday Walk Through The Country in Canada - it’s called ‘trespassing’. I usually spend the entire time hiding my face in my jacket repeatedly asking; “Are you sure we’re allowed to be here? I think that farmer is armed.” England is the only place in the world where even walking is political. The Christmas card exchange thing in this country winds me up as well. What a pointless exercise this is. Let’s stop calling them Christmas cards and start calling them what they really are: Bit Of Card With Impersonal Greeting Stamped By Some Factory Worker In China Bought To Appease Workplace Guilt. Every year I think to myself, right; maybe if I don’t say anything, people will forget to give out Christmas cards and we can just say ‘Merry Christmas’ to each other’s faces like civilised adults. But no. There always has to be some psychotic Christmas keeno in admin who feels the need to send them around. Usually in midOctober and signed “Love Soandso”. Love! I’m sorry, but that is harassment. A quick call to HR will nip that filth in the bud. You cannot be too careful these days. Having said that, I will take a card with ‘Love’
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on it before I will accept an email stating that you’ve “donated your Christmas card money to charity”. Oh yes, you big hero, I’m sure Christian Aid will cherish that £3.50. You can hear an audible sigh ripple across the office as your workmates open that email. Everyone thinking the same thing; “Christ, why didn’t I think of that?” This year, I’m going to send an email around that reads, ‘Sorry, I spent my Christmas card money on ball gags and therapy’. That oughta get them to leave me alone. And why is British TV so depressing at this time of year? Being around the family for that long is excruciating enough, why compound the misery? Watching the EastEnders Christmas special and all those child abuse adverts, it’s all I can do to not have a nervous breakdown. Do Barnardo’s and the NSPCC have some sort of competition to see who can produce the most offensive TV advert? “OK, Jimmy, in this scene we need you to cry - so what I need you
to do is pretend Mummy is dead. No, not just dead, but decapitated. Can you do that Jimmy? Pretend mummy has no head? No, don’t start crying yet! Wait until the cameras are on, you unprofessional little shit.” Last year, however, the most offensive ad didn’t come from Barnardo’s or NSPCC. It had nothing to do with child abuse at all. It came from Dogs Trust. “The dog you sponsor will write and send you photos!” Oh wow, that is some amazing dog. Actually, here’s an idea, Dogs Trust; how about instead of the pound a week you’re asking for, I give you 20p and you can keep the condescending dog-tat, mmmkay? Who are these people who actually think the dog is writing them letters? It’s 2011 for God’s sake - not even children are that gullible these days. If you are one of these parents who convinces your kids that the dog is actually writing letters, Barnardo’s should be doing an ad about you.
I look at an English Christmas not as a fun vacation, but more as a Christmas gauntlet. I feel like I’m running down a dark tunnel while my mother-in-law stuffs candied potatoes into my face as images of Phil Mitchell throwing children through plate glass windows and dogs taking photos of each other are flashed on the walls. If I make it through an English Christmas Gauntlet without smashing my TV, slitting my wrists or upchucking my spleen through my nose, I think I’ve done pretty well. Happy New Year. leftlion.co.uk/cinb
A MAJOR COMMISSION FOR SNEINTON MARKET BY NEVILLE GABIE SNEINTON MARKET RE-OPENS WITH A SYMPOSIUM, AN EXHIBITION, A MARKET AND A FEAST WITH REBECCA BEINART, WAYNE BURROWS, MATHEW TRIVETT AND OLIVER DALBY CURATED BY JENNIE SYSON www.orchardsneinton.co.uk
SYMPOSIUM
EXHIBITION
MARKET
FEAST
Friday 9 December The Space Nottingham Contemporary 11am – 4pm
9 December – 22 December Surface Gallery Launch event Friday 9 December from 6.30pm
Saturday 10 December Sneinton Market 10am – 4pm Evening programme from 5pm.
Sunday 11 December Stonebridge City Farm 4pm - 8pm
A day-long event, presenting how food is bought and sold in cities, and how that affects our use of public space.
Group exhibition featuring photographs, new writing, installation and a mobile apple press.
Stalls and events in the new market place. Featuring Sneinton Market Traders, Arts and Craft market, Sowing Sneinton, Shrug Ladies, LeftLion, Nottingham Visual Arts and much, much more!
With author of ‘Hungry City’, Carolyn Steel and artists Nina Pope and John Newling. Further speakers tbc.
Gallery open Tuesday – Sunday. Closed on Mondays. 12noon – 6pm Weekdays 12noon – 5pm Saturday (except Saturday 10th when the gallery will remain open from 11am until 7pm to celebrate the launch of the market.) 12noon – 4pm Sundays
A celebration at the farm. Cooking demonstrations and gastronomic tastings galore alongside a festive bonfire.
Night-time projections in collaboration with Trampoline.
Surface Gallery
Acts, organisations and individuals repping at the covershoot were; 1st Blood, 8mm Orchestra, Aaron Smith, The Afterdark Movement, Alex Hel, Alexa Hawksworth, Alex Barnum Meserve, Basement Forte, BassToneSlap, BBC Nottingham - The Beat, Beatmasta Bill, Beggars Belief, Blind Thieves,Blue Yonder, Boots Booklovers, Bowman and Hul Danny Patrick, Dealmaker Records, Delta Sun, Denizen Recordings, DHP, Dick Venom and the Terrortones, DJ Legion, Dog Is Dead, Duke Zero-One, Dwyzak the Elevator, EG, E Angels, Gerry Trimble, Gina Stone, The Golden Troubadours, Great British Weather, Guy Elderfield, Harleighblu, Hello Thor, Hey Zeus, Hot Horizons, Hot Japanese Girl, Crump, Just James,Kappa Gamma, Kirk Spencer, Kogumaza, Kurt Martinez, Lee Gough, Lee Ramsay, Liam Bailey, Life In Lyrics, Lois, Long Dead Signal, Louis Scott, Lukeward E The Money, Motormouf, Muha, The Music Exchange, New Generation Superstars, Nick Jonah Davis, Nina Smith, Nottingham Live, Notts Live Radio Show, Nusic, Old Basford, Ol MAP, Rattle, Rastarella Falade, Rebel Soul Collective, Red Bear, Riverview, Rob Green, Roger Caney, Ronika, Royal Gala, Rubberdub, Saint Raymond, Sapphire Lane, Shelly Tastebuds, Timothy J Simpson, Tommy Farmyard, Tom Wardle, Tray Electric, T’s Myth, Tusken Coalition, Twikki, Union Station Massacre, Vanity Box, The Wax Dramatic, We
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In April 2005, LeftLion asked why Nottingham was the most underperforming music city in the UK. In December 2011, we’re wondering which local act is going to kick the door in first. The next 14 pages are dedicated to the musical community of Nottingham, because we’ve never had it so good.
h, Alex Traska, Allotment Dogs, Alright the Captain, The Amber Herd, Arse Full of Chips, Audacious Face, The Austin Francis Connection, Baby Godzilla, Bantum, The and Hull, Breadchasers, Bystanders, Captain Dangerous, Cantaloupe, Carla Mundy, Cecille Grey, Chris Reeve Esq, Chris Underwood, The Cult of Dom Keller, The Cusp, r, EG, Elena Hargreaves, Emily and the Martens, Face That Boils Itself, The Fade, Frankie Rudolf, Fists, Flat Soufflée, Fresh Eyes For The Dead Guy, Gallery 47, Gang of e Girl, Hhymn, I Am Lono, Illuminatus, I’m Not From London, In Isolation, Injured Birds, J-Littles, Jack Benjamin, James Ellis, Jimmy The Squirrel, Jody Rothera, Johnny eward Equation, Maniere des Bohemians, Mat Andasun, Matthew Stephen Cooper, Marvin Brown, Mas Y Mas, Marc Reeves, The Maze, Mike Atkinson, Mimm, Mizz Red, Moksha, ord, Oldboy, Paper Plane Crash, Parks, Pete and the Pixels, Percydread, Petebox, Pilgrim Fathers, Poddingham, Practical Lovers, Prae Vita, Ralph Barklam, Rapunzel Shelly Hancock, Skeleton Crew, The Smears, Sol Baish, Soul Buggin’, Soul Intent, Spotlight Kid, Steph Hargreaves, Steve Oliver, Stiff Kittens, Sura Susso, Swimming, tic, We Are Avengers, We Show Up On Radar, White Dolemite, Wigflex, Will Jeffery, YeYeBoys, You Slut!, and Yunioshi leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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When we began work on this issue, we agonised over an editorial article which we hoped would explain exactly why the local music scene is so important to us and the city. Then we received the following piece from Chris Summerlin, which says it all. Back in 1998 I was living in Northampton and had been to Nottingham just once to play a gig at Sam Fay’s; an old railway building which then went on to become Hooters, and then a pile of bricks near the NHS walk-in centre. A pre-internet time, I relied on paper fanzines - one of which I used to write for - to keep me in the know about things that might have otherwise been below the radar of the NME or Melody Maker. It was through this papery grapevine that I heard that American band Unwound were playing in Nottingham. Equally important to me at the time was that Nottingham band Bob Tilton were supporting. I’d looked everywhere for their LP Crescent and then chanced upon it in the bargain bin at my local record shop (which says something about Northampton). In its own modest way, that album blew my mind. It sounded like a lot of American music I liked, but it was rougher and less defined and somehow more British - simultaneously familiar and alien. The biggest bonus was that they were playing at the one venue I knew how to get to: Sam Fay’s. Easy. I caught the train to Nottingham with my long-suffering girlfriend of the time and walked the short distance from the station to Sam Fay’s. It was closed. Not just closed as in “not open yet”, but as in “boarded up, never to re-open”. Balls. Figuring that the gig was cancelled we began trudging back to the station, yet on the way by pure chance I saw a piece of crumpled paper on the floor that read: “UNWOUND MOVED TO DUBBLE BUBBLE”. A stroke of luck - but what the hell was Dubble Bubble? This was worse than the gig being cancelled: it was happening somewhere but we just didn’t know where. Nottingham seemed impossibly big to me then and for all I knew the gig had been moved to Spain. Resigned to grabbing a burger and going home, we followed the signs to the shops with our heads hung low. However, taking my first ever steps into the Market Square I could hear Bob Tilton playing, clear as day, coming from somewhere close. Like some Pied Piper nonsense. I kid you not. We followed the noise to an alley off the Square and perfectly illuminated in the window of a café were Matt Newnham (Gringo Records) and an assortment of label mates. I think I’d met them all once before, but I knew Matt from his label and his fanzine Damn You. They banged on the glass and beckoned us in to explain that the bands were sound checking and the gig would open in a bit. What struck me immediately was the range of people at the gig. It was greater than I was used to and they didn’t all look like they were from the same tribe - a whole variety of cultures, ages and gender had shown up. To my dismay, as Tilton set up, people were jokingly heckling them. I remember one older guy with a quiff shouting at them as they got ready to play. I couldn’t believe someone would heckle a band this important and serious, so concluded from the way the guy looked that he must be the older brother of the guitarist and that this was deeply embarrassing for the artistes. Tilton were amazing; loud, ferocious and genuinely unpredictable. People didn’t treat them reverently like I had expected; it was a loud and boozy crowd, but that just made it more alien to me and more exciting. They had their own sound man; a scary looking skinhead guy in a biker jacket, getting into the gig as much as any of the punters which just added to my confusion. I’d been to plenty of gigs in my life but this somehow felt very different, all highlighted by the fact that maybe 75% of the people left before Unwound played. It was like an entire, characterful and portable audience had just been there for Bob Tilton and then disappeared like the shopkeeper in Mr Benn. I recall trying to speak to some of the Tilton guys afterwards but far from being serious chin-stroking musicians like I expected, they were either socially retarded or very drunk. Possibly a bit of both. Despite this, there was a moment where I had the strongest feeling that everybody around me
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was going to play a huge part in my own life at some point. It was the weirdest sensation. I even told my girlfriend, to which she suggested it was maybe time we went home. In the following months I kept crossing paths with people. My first band recorded an album and Gringo put it out. I started writing for the fanzine Damn You and this expanded into putting on gigs under their banner, the first being in Matt’s home town of Colchester. We continued going to see Bob Tilton play wherever we could and got on nodding terms with them, and when they played for the last time, at Bunkers Hill Inn, we all went to see it. Having finished my degree, rather than stick a pin in the map, I instinctively felt Nottingham would be a good place to move to. Around this time and completely out of the blue, Neil from Bob Tilton called me up at my Mum’s house - this was nothing short of crazy to me at the time as we’d only ever spoken on occasion and usually under the influence. He asked if I wanted to come and play guitar in a new band he was doing - Wolves! (of Greece) - as he heard I was thinking of moving to Nottingham. I figured the guy was psychic. I said yes. And the rest is history, I’ve been here ever since. True to my instinct, everyone I met that night at Dubble Bubble had a huge impact on my life. I’ve been in countless bands with Neil and his friend Phil for over ten years now. I shared a house with Matt Gringo and we’ve put on about 150 gigs under the Damn You banner in the city since moving here. The terrifying soundman turned out to be former Radio Trent and Rock City DJ Mark Spivey, who now plays with Neil and myself in Kogumaza. The guy who’d scrawled the note I found was Anton Lockwood, aka Night With No Name, who amongst other feats of spectacular generosity over the years somehow wangled it for Wolves! (of Greece) to play live on John Peel when Radio One Sound City was in Nottingham. And the guy who heckled Bob Tilton? Coop from The X-Rays who, even though I played at his wedding, was deeply offended I thought he was related to Neil. That evening at Dubble Bubble was a perfect distillation of what is so good about music in Nottingham. Every few years some bright spark will write an article about how Nottingham never produces any bands. They wrongly assume that everyone in the city makes music with a common goal and that common goal is success and exposure on regular terms, or to “make it” as my Mum might say. The great thing about that Dubble Bubble gig was that this wasn’t a stepping stone to success for the bands playing - it was the perfect environment for them. It was a literally life-changing experience for some of the people who attended and this happened almost in secret. We live in a time where everything is easy to get hold of. If you miss a band first time round, don’t worry because they’ll reform eventually. You can book tickets for a gig, a meal beforehand and a taxi home without even speaking to another human. Minimal effort. But there’s still an element of Nottingham and the music and art made here that’s the antithesis of that. So much of what happens here happens in relative secret, not through cliqueyness but through a modesty and dignity on the part of those involved. I love this about Nottingham: it’s all there, under the surface and you have to work at finding it but when you do it’s more special. It’s why I moved to the city and why I’m still here and I know a lot of people who feel the same. Nottingham consistently blows my mind by being a place where people know and support what others do - beyond the supposed boundaries of the styles of music they make. That’s why the crowd seemed weird to me that night, because music is a rightfully social activity in this city and that means a diverse and seemingly unconnected bunch of people are going to be out supporting it. When idiots talk about the city being cliquey and bands backbiting they’re not talking about people I know or people that I feel represent the city. The good stuff doesn’t need or want to be shouted about. Understanding that this is what makes the city so special is key to answering the question; “Why aren’t there more bands from Nottingham?” The answer is “Why aren’t you looking harder?”
TOPPER THE POPS Night Club, I Paid In, Got A Stamp Upon My Skin, January 1971: “I was watching Oil City Confidential, a documentary about influential pub rockers Dr Feelgood. Their manager described their first gig outside London, at the ‘Silk Top Hat Club,’ when called the Pig Boy Charlie Band. Surely he meant the Topper? Indeed he did - he confirmed it over the phone. “I remember Lee Brilleaux making his entrance down these stairs onto the stage in his gig gear - denim jacket, gloves - and putting on a great show, and the DJ (presumably Gay Lord Mick) saying ‘Fookin’ ‘ell, you’ve got a star there mate.’” So in 1971 an early incarnation of Dr Feelgood, playing strippeddown rock ‘n’ roll, were laying down the foundations of punk in Jacksdale.”
Do They Know It’s Jacksdale, 1979: “From the nightmare of Friday the 13th in a tough old mining village (where they can’t even spell your name right) to playing Live Aid to a crowd of over 90,000 in the J.F.K. Stadium and a worldwide TV audience of billions, six years to the day later. Jim Kerr of ‘Simple Minos’ and Chrissie Hynde actually got married in 1984 - wonder if they ever reminisced about that weekend, when they took turns to dodge phlegm from a handful of scowling spiky-tops in Jacksdale?”
Out Of Control, September 1979: “During the recent riots, Desmond Morris wrote that the trouble was a city problem and said; ‘Did you ever hear of a riot in a village?’ Hmm, I thought. In the 1970s the Co-Op in Jacksdale was regularly ram-raided for TVs and hi-fis, us little punk urchins kicked off a mini-riot in and around our youth club (using Osmonds LPs for missiles after we’d been told not to play our punk records), and our elders were involved in a full-scale battle in the village after an infamous Angelic Upstarts gig at the Topper. “In them days you went to a fight and an Upstarts gig broke out,” singer Mensi told me. A few weeks after the Upstarts riot, a tragic incident at another battle between lads from Eastwood, Sutton and Jacksdale where one lost an eye proved the death knell for the club.” The Palace and the Punks by Tony Hill, Northern Lights Lit, £9.95. Available from Amazon
In the days before Rock City, the Arena or even the Concert Hall, the best music venue in Notts was the Grey Topper in Jacksdale. Tony Hill, author of a new book documenting the club and the bands that passed through it on the way to something bigger, takes us through his scrapbook…
Never Trust A Mr Whippy, February 1976: “An ice cream van pulled into the Topper car park playing a discordant tune. The occupants were The Stranglers, a full year before their debut single. They’d go on to release classics like No More Heroes, but back then they had to pacify the Topper Teds by playing Great Balls of Fire. The van’s existence was fully confirmed by Strangler’s drummer, Jet Black in an interview for the book; it had been a legacy from an earlier business enterprise.” Go Where The Crowds Go, August 1979: “This is a great month at the Topper, which by now had become a notorious punk venue. The Ruts were one of the last, but arguably the greatest, of the punk groups to play there. Championed by John Peel, their second single Babylon’s Burning smashed into the Top Ten, but less than a year later lead singer Malcolm Owen was dead from a heroin overdose. The Members - of Sound Of The Suburbs fame - remember it as one of the best places they ever played. ‘They were possibly the smallest but most enthusiastic audience we have ever played to. The energy was unbelievable - the kids went madder than anywhere else in England,” said J C Carroll in an interview for the book.
This Means Nothing To Me, 1981: “Taken from the ‘Bitz’ section of Smash Hits. The Topper made many a ‘worst gig’ list; Adam Ant had a pint pot thrown at him and his leather jacket pinched. He wrote; ‘I Hate Topper Punks’ on the toilet wall. Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders changed the lyrics of Stop Your Sobbing to ‘Stop Your Gobbing’. Judas Priest’s crew spent an entire day setting up an elaborate light show in their early days, only for a handful of punters to turn up. Even the legendary Bill Haley played to little more than a few flat-capped men and their dogs after the owner – out to make a killing – mistakenly made it allticket. The night of the gig and adverse winter weather meant few could make the perilous expedition down the steep, fog filled, snow and ice descent into the Dale.”
Do You Remember The Good Old Days Before The Ghost Town? June 1979: “When The Specials turned up at the Topper, it was a month away from the release of their first single, and a month into the Thatcher government, which already had a club raised above its head ready to smash the industrial north and the working class. Factories closed, pits would follow, mods fought with punks in the Topper and Slab Square, and the seeds for riots were growing in the inner cities. Aptly, as the Topper wound down in 1981, so did The Specials with their last single. The line ‘This town is coming like a Ghost Town, all the clubs have been closed down’ was a fitting epitaph for the Topper and Jacksdale.” Stranglehold Upon Me, May 2007: “By the time I’d researched and written The Palace and the Punks, Topper owner Alf Hyslop had become a total hero to me. It was like his spirit and that of punk was living inside me - so much so that I had to have a go at putting on a reunion gig. I wasn’t prepared for how much of an arduous undertaking it would be; A Co-Op had been built over it, and many wanted its rotting corpse to lay there undisturbed. It was as if the police, councils, and residents’ associations were terrified that I might dig it up and release its curse. After the first village venue pulled out under the pressure, The Welfare then agreed to put it on – until someone mentioned the curse of the ‘Black Horse’ (another nearby venue where a Subs gig ended in a riot), which led to an extraordinary meeting of t’committee, whose members and their views had not changed since ’79, who cancelled the gig. Ironically a lifeline was thrown to me by the drummer out of Showaddywaddy, who now runs the MFN Club at Eastwood. Which left me with four weeks to go to shift the tickets…” leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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interviews: Jared Wilson photos: Ralph Barklam
Introduce your band to us Jay: Ali Powers is a delicate, talented, troubled and loveable soul. Ali: Jay Evans, if that is his real name, is a strong, solid guy who’s like a brother to me, really. He’s my foundation, my rock! Dave Lancaster is very handsome but completely untrustworthy. Jay: And a bit camp. So where did Hot Japanese Girl start out? Ali: I’ve been in various bands since I was eleven and written and recorded bunch of rock songs but done nothing with them. Then Dave came along and said, “How about we form a band?” So all of the demos were just me playing all the instruments and vocals. Soon after the Myspace went up we got this comment from Will saying: “This is sick! I want to sign you for my label.” Suddenly there’s this guy who wants to make our music video before we’d actually played a gig! We’d basically done a Milli Vanilli. So, when was your first gig together? Ali: It was the INFL London bus gig and Samantha Morton was in the audience, which was crazy. I drank too many Red Bulls - I was trying to get focused but was just freaking out . Jay: There was a real buzz because everybody was itching to see this band that Will had been going on about. The pub was packed and it went at about a hundred miles an hour, everyone seemed to love it. You recently played the inaugural gig at the revamped Rescue Rooms. Ali: It was a really big deal and good fun to do. Jay: Although the bloody drum-kit fell on top of me, mid-song. I was getting right into it and then all of a sudden, I’m on the floor with my eyes shut and this thing on top of me. Tell us the story behind one of your songs… I wrote Frankie after attending my first film première down in London, for doing end credits for this horror film called The Scar Crow. I’d fallen head-over-heels for this girl and decided to find a copy of her favourite childhood book, The Magical Shoelaces. I travelled all over London on the tube and buses trying to find this book. On the way I met someone who worked in a bookshop called Frankie, she drew me a map of how to find the book and told me how she danced fifties Jitterbug and twenties flapper girl. So, as a thank you, I decided to write this song and email it to her. And she liked it. I’ve got the book somewhere too. Everyone seems to have a favourite Will Robinson story, what’s yours? Ali: The first time I met him was at The Golden Fleece, he turned up in the tightest trousers you’ve ever seen and there was something that I just didn’t trust about him. Then he offers us this contract and cuts his hand open, drizzles blood all over the contract and signs his name in blood on it. I’m not a Christian, but I’m pretty sure that’s wrong... Jay: While we were there somebody came in with a bag of stuff, going; “That’s yours, Will” and he started pulling out his wrestling suit. I’d known Will for a couple of years at this point and I knew exactly what was going on, but it must have seemed slightly odd to Ali. Tell us about your labelmates, Baby Godzilla and Captain Dangerous. Jay: There is no discernible talent between ‘em, really. Okay, Baby Godzilla are great. But they don’t seem to have any choruses. And they need to stop breaking stuff – or at least stuff they need all the time. Ali: They’re probably going to be really nice to us now, in their interview. Jay: Don’t be so bloody stupid. Of course they won’t. What about Captain Dangerous? Jay: A totally wicked bunch they are. Total drunkards and maniacs. Ali: Actually, the ironic thing is Captain Dangerous are probably the most drunk of all of us. I don’t think Matt from Baby Godzilla touches a drop before he goes on stage. All of that mania is real, not chemically enforced. Whereas mine is all damage I take with me. I’m a lumbering cart with three wheels. facebook.com/hotjapanesegirl
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Where does the name come from? I moved from Watford to Mansfield when I was twenty-one and everybody assumed, because of my southern accent, that I was from London. I ended up spending a lot of my time telling them I wasn’t. It’s also a line from Withnail and I - “We’re not from London, you know.” So how did you first get involved in the Nottingham music scene? I left Mansfield and came to Nottingham after I took a serious kicking from some youths. Through my sister I was mates with Pete Dale; the drummer in Punish The Atom and Amusement Parks On Fire. I joined See Tickets and soon realised the entire music community worked there and I also went on tour with Punish The Atom and basically became their biggest non-sex groupie.
Introduce your band… Jamie: Our bassist Mark is the most perfect human being alive except for two things; he can’t whistle and he’s really crap at reversing his car. Our violinist, Rob Rosa, is obsessed with bums and mum jokes. Adam has a penchant for vile cheap wine. Adam: Miles carries a pedal board around that is bigger than a dead body. Jamie falls asleep everywhere – it’s amazing how he can turn up to a party and be asleep in the corner less than twenty minutes later. The launch party for Forgive Us We’re British at the Rescue Rooms was one of our favourite gigs of 2011… Adam: It was for us too - we hadn’t played many Nottingham shows for a while and we wanted to have a big blowout. So we played as a twelve-piece with a full string section and got really good support in with Cecille Grey and Dick Venom and the Terrortones. We had a great afterparty at The Maze and there was also an unplanned after-afterparty at my house. I made the mistake of getting drunk and inviting the whole bar back to mine. I hadn’t told my girlfriend and she was upstairs in tears being comforted by Dick Venom; which is just one of those things that should just never happen. You’ve been played on TV recently, including twice on Hollyoaks. You ever watch those programmes? Adam: I quite like Hollyoaks. Jamie: I absolutely hate any kind of soaps. Adam has terrible taste in TV programmes. His favourite show recently was Gavin Henson’s The Bachelor. Adam: I also watch The Only Way is Essex, Made in Chelsea and a fair bit of reality TV; I say this genuinely and without irony. But we got on there after we got a publishing deal, there was a blanket agreement for our song Everything Beautiful Reminds Me of You, which has since appeared on Hollyoaks, Fresh Meat, Grey’s Anatomy and an ITV football advert. Do you get paid much for things like that? Adam: We’ve not had our royalties yet but I’ve been told that it should be a decent amount of money. It should help to pay for the album and the campaign around it. When can we expect an album? Jamie: July next year. We’re in the process of recording one with Andy Wright of We Show Up On Radar, who is like our sixth band member really. Previously recording has been a hassle, but he seems to know more about how we should sound than we do. Adam: Recording is the one thing we have been slow with over the years, so it’s nice to be busy with it now. We’ve also got a stop-gap live album lined up called Live at JT Soars. We’re planning to release one free acoustic track a week for fifteen weeks. So if people want
What was the first gig you promoted as INFL? I sorted a guy out with some tickets for a sold out Arctic Monkeys gig in return for two dates at Blackpool’s The Beat Nightclub as all the local bands were desperate for gigs outside of Nottingham. I put on Amusement Parks on Fire, Plans & Apologies, Drive By Argument and The Sound Of The Superstring on the first night, and Punish The Atom, Curtis Eller and The Hellset Orchestra on the second. Both gigs did well. Then Anton Lockwood (who was Punish The Atom’s manager) offered me my first Nottingham gig in the Red Rooms. Soon after that you had an interesting gig at Blueprint… It was normally a dance venue, but the potential was there to hold a lot of people. Unfortunately the management double booked us with some dance promoters and instead of cancelling we decided to make it a joint event. It was going well until the local estate gangsters turned up. Fights broke out in a mish-mash of tight jeans, knuckledusters, angular haircuts, gold chains and baseball bats. After that I quickly realised the importance of location when booking nights. Your next location happened to be Templars bar… They gave us the freedom to do whatever we wanted. So I nailed chicken wire to the floor and ceiling, creating a cage in front of the stage and hired stickfighters to battle it out with nunchucks and batons between the bands and the crowd. Then I teamed up with Andy Clydesdale of Audio Massage - it’s never dull working with him. We employed popcorn girls and showed Super 8 films while the bands played. For Friday 13th we nailed shoes to tables, hung black cats from the ceiling and stuck broken mirrors all over the walls. We also did a couple of years of late night cave parties in the Loggerheads, and to celebrate the last day of indoor smoking, we started up a new night at The Maze called Prohibition, where staff and punters wore 1920s style spats, dresses and headgear. Prohibition was the night with the boxing ring - where did you get that from? After going on a mission around Nottingham boxing clubs, gypsy sites and gyms, we found a ring and two fighters willing to stage an exhibition fight, in homage to Nottingham’s prizefighter Bendigo (who used to box at The Maze regularly). Unfortunately their car broke down on the way to the gig, so both Andy and I had to pull on the gloves instead. You’ve used the iconic London red buses to take bands around Nottingham and to London... We brought a proper London bus into town for a Halloween Ghost bus tour in 2009. It stopped by some bars for drinks and we had Captain Dangerous and Maniere Des Bohemiens playing live with vampire burlesque girls stripping. It got very messy. The buses to London were about getting exposure for bands by putting on a free gig in the fashionable east end with Royal Gala, Old Basford, The Eviltones, Pilgrim Fathers, Fists, Cuban Crimewave and many more. Sam Morton even came down,
said a few words to the crew of our film and then stayed to party afterwards. What’s the state of play with the INFL film? We have filmed over forty live sets from Nottingham bands and have interviewed key characters of the Notts music scene in order to produce a movie about the DIY scene whilst posing the question “Do Nottingham bands have to move to London to achieve national recognition?” The debate and film continues. The movie is currently in postproduction as we try to raise finishing costs. And you’ve done all this whilst dealing with cystic fibrosis. Yeah. I was diagnosed when I was three. There wasn’t as much known about it in the early eighties and sufferers had a very high mortality rate. The doctors said I’d be lucky to reach seven, then when I got to seven they said perhaps twelve, then when I reached twelve they said mid-teens. By the time I was fifteen I had stopped listening, but I am always aware that a long life is not guaranteed. How does it affect your day-to-day life? I take about thirty-five tablets and eat 5,000 calories daily to get the same amount of nutrition as you would, which is almost impossible to do and the reason behind my svelte figure. I do get bloated after a few beers or if I forget my tablets when I eat, and I pretty much always have a cough. The good thing about it is that I can eat whatever I like; fast food, chocolates, full-fat milkshakes, steaks, cakes, curries. It actually lends itself very well to the rock and roll business; being proactive and not accepting what others tell you all the time is a DIY punk approach that I’ve adopted with most of my projects. I probably push myself too hard in terms of work and play, but I think making the most of your life is something everyone should do regardless. If more people were told that their days were numbered, they’d make more of the time they have. What are your opinions on the state of our current music scene? I think it’s gone from strength to strength in the last five years, largely due to much more collaboration between bands, labels and promoters. Bands and labels are stepping up their game in terms of doing things themselves and creating a real energy in the city. Just look at the success of the Hockley Hustle and the support available from organisations like LeftLion, Nusic and Nottingham Live. What advice would you give to young bands or promoters? If you think you’ve got a career in music, then get out and start doing something. There will be a million people telling you that you can’t do it, but why would you want to listen to them? Work hard, make your own luck and take risks when you see an opportunity. Oh and never lend any money to James Waring. imnotfromlondon.com
Introduce your band members to us… Matt: Johnny is a man double our age with twice the anger. But he’s always very punctual. When we go on tour he usually eats a lot of Spam and it sends him crazy. Tom likes to hit things really hard - not always his drums. He’s never afraid to act like an idiot on stage, which is pretty cool. Tom: Paul is athletic, enjoys a tipple and pulls the best bass faces. Matt is tall and handsome. Sometimes I just sit and watch him, my mind boggles. I think...I think I love him. You were supposed to tour Poland earlier this year… Tom: Yeah, it was because a couple of years ago we did a five date tour in Poland that was sorted by a Polish guy I knew from work. The band all took a guitar each and I took my cymbals and my snare, and it cost £40 each on Ryanair. We played student festivals and in a cave. It was such a good time and they just love music over there, they were really into it. Matt: So we planned to go back again this year and use the same contacts. We were really excited and had about ten dates booked out there so we bought a van for £500 and called him Van Diesel. But smoke started coming out of the back just as we got our tickets from the Eurostar. About ten yards later, the van’s engine just stalled; hours passed and we got word back from the AA men that they couldn’t fix it. It was rubbish to let so many promoters in Poland down that had put their time and faith into us. Tell us the story behind one of your songs... Matt: Our song Dave Lancaster is named after the bass player from Hot Japanese Girl. But the lyrics came when I angrily wrote this letter out one night to an ex-girlfriend who had put me through a lot. When I read through it I realised it was horrible, just awful and I didn’t send it. But the repetition was such that it worked like a song. So we jammed and kept just repeating the same riff, while I screamed these lyrics over it. Tell us a bit about your labelmates … Matt: Captain Dangerous are a multifaceted bunch of young men, with a lead singer who tends to inflate to at least three or four times his actual size while singing. They write songs about people forgiving them because they’re British. Tom: Hot Japanese Girl are brilliant - when their new double EP CD comes there’s probably going to be no point in us, or anyone else, bothering to make music anymore. All good riffs and ideas will be taken; there’ll be nothing left, because they’ve done it all. Captain Dangerous? Yeah, they’re not bad. A little weird, perhaps… What’s your favourite Will Robinson story? Tom: He got us a gig in Bradford on Saturday. Then he popped up on Facebook and said, “Hey guys! What you doing Saturday night? I’ve got this battle-of-the-bands thing that you might be able to judge, if you’re not doing anything.” So you definitely have to keep your own diary when you’re involved with him. Matt: He’s invited entire bands full of people back to my house, on the terms that they’d get steak and champagne there. I tend not to keep either of those in stock. But he’s great to work with - we wouldn’t want to be without him, that’s for sure. What are your plans for New Year? Matt: We’re going to play at The Maze with loads of other great acts for LeftLion. Well, that’s my plan – I hope the rest of the band share that plan as they have all been told. Tom: I’m sure I’ll be there in some shape or form.
to compile it themselves they can – and if they can’t be arsed they can buy the album off us instead. Tell us a little bit about your labelmates... Jamie: Us being labelmates with Baby Godzilla is a bit like Oscar Wilde being mates with Hilda Ogden from Coronation Street. It’s really sweet that they look up to us, but you can tell that the only reason any of them got in a band was so they could be on the same label as Captain Dangerous. Adam: Hot Japanese Girl also just want to be like us. But perhaps not as much as Baby Godzilla do. I think Will Robinson just picked those two bands because they have people in them who he can make look a little bit like each of us.
Nottingham by doing crazy genius things and is the first person I know who started putting twenty bands on the same bill and forcing them to talk to each other. I’ve made so many friends because of that man… Do you feel like Notts has something right now? Jamie: Yeah - it’s a boomtown! We’ve played a few gigs in London recently with highly-repped female singers who aren’t a patch on Nina Smith, and with quirky combo’s who can’t touch We Show Up On Radar. I think we’re all just hoping that once a few more like Liam Bailey and Dog is Dead slip through then the rest of us will start coming through nationally. soundcloud.com/captaindangerous
Anything else to declare? Matt: I learnt the other day that analogue display clocks are always positioned around the ten past ten or ten to two position, because they’re smiling in this position. Their arms are up, and they’re happy. The most common one is eight minutes past ten, because you don’t want it to be too perfect as that looks like they’ve set it that way. I’ve never ever noticed that before and I was told on Monday. Since then, I’ve looked quite a lot and it’s true. facebook.com/baby.godzilla.bastard
See Baby Godzilla, Captain Dangerous, Hot Japanese Girl and five more great acts at the LeftLion and I’m Not From London New Year’s Eve Extravaganza at The Maze on Saturday 31 December. Tickets from £5 available at leftlion.co.uk/nye
Ah, Will - tell us a bit about him. Adam: He throws the best parties and has the best ideas for gigs. He’s changed the landscape for gigs in leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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Every local label we can think of, what they’re into, and if they’re up for listening to your demo. And if you’ve been missed, please don’t feel dissed… 49s Vs Dolphins
Field Records
Adaptation Music
Folkwit Records
Specialists in limited edition, handmade releases by bands with a penchant for American post-hardcore. Recent projects include compilation Touchdowns #1, a label supergroup called Sneinton, a stream of gigs at the Chameleon and some gorgeously put-together tapes. 49svsdolphins.bandcamp.com
Internationally-sourced deep and soulful house label, with a few Notts artists on board. Sub-label, Cosmic Elements, covers lounge, chillout, jazz, funk and space disco. Has a strict demo policy, but is keen to work with new vocalists and musicians – and don’t rule out any producers as long as ‘they are consistent and produce quality music’ adaptationmusic.co.uk
Bad News Records
The home of ASBO Peepshow, Fresh Eyes For The Dead Guy and Merciless Terror, Bad News veers towards the even darker side of metal, but isn’t interested in pigeonholing its artists, some of whom are as far-flung as the US and Russia. They accept demo submissions, but prefer physical CD, cassette, vinyl, and even wax cylinders to any of that digital rammell. badnewsrecords.com
Connect For Music
On a mission to ‘create a soundtrack for the city of Nottingham’, CFORM focuses on exclusively Notts house, techno and electro. Set up in order to put out the tracks created by label owner Rich and his mates, they are, quote, ‘definitely open to demo submissions’. connectformusic.tumblr.com
Dealmaker
The primo purveyors of downtempo beats, rap and jazz, the formerly Canning Circus-based Dealmaker is now comfortably ensconced on Broad Street and has multiple fingers in musical pies, including a very swish residency at Nottingham Contemporary. Yes, they accept demos, but via digital dropbox only. thedealmakerlabel.com
Denizen Recordings
With the likes of Hhymn, Origamibiro, Injured Birds and Kappa Gamma under their wing, Denizen – part of the Confetti empire - deal with 100% Notts-based artists at present, and are happy to stay that way for the foreseeable future. According to label boss Pete Fletcher, they are up for CD or online demo submissions, try to respond to everyone, and will check out your next gig if they think you’re worth it. denizen.uk.com
Earache
The legendary bedroom-based brainchild of Digby Pearson championed the very earliest death metal bands of the late eighties, and is now a worldwide concern a quarter of a century later. They now have offices in London and New York, but still keep a base in Nottingham. Demo submissions welcome - email digby@earache. com with a link to your extreme and innovative sounds, or submit your YouTube clips via the website. earache.com
The Elementz Productions
Specialists in all things bass, tropical and dark carnival, their leftfield club imprint takes in acts from all over the place. Not looking for demo submissions at the moment, but their Lace Market-based studio is available for hire. theelementz.co.uk
Farmyard Records
According to owner Tommy Farmyard, this label’s oeuvre is ‘varied, eclectic, often beautiful, often dark, always melodic and accessible - a great representation of the talent oozing out of Nottingham’. Like all good farms, the produce is 100% locally sourced, with more to follow. Demos welcome, preferably Soundcloud-based facebook.com/farmyardrecords
Mark Del On the rise of Notts Music “While entering our fifth year doing this I’ve never seen more buzz, good vibes and momentum. Four local acts signed to major labels, the biggest Future Sound of Nottingham ever and the most Notts-tastic Splendour ever. A&Rs are inundating our city, more media outlets are devoted to Nottingham music than ever, our own hook up with LeftLion and Confetti and it all culminating in the scene’s first piece of major national media coverage; The Guardian article was a big, big moment. Plus there’s one more to come, Dog Is Dead headlining City – the biggest headline show by a Notts band in Notts ever! Bring on 2012.”
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The self-styled ‘home for dysfunctional artists’ mainly deal with instrumental music that falls into the post-rock, post-hardcore, math and electronic genres. Whilst not Notts-exclusive, taken in the likes of Old Basford, Grain, You Slut! and Alright The Captain, and love to hear from bands and artists who already have stuff to listen to online. field-records.com
A hugely eclectic label, spanning alternative folk roots and alt country through to lo-fi and experimental music, with a global network of artists on board – including a soupçon of local acts such as Andy Whittle, Jezz Hall, The Phil Langran Band and Nimming Ned. Happy to cock a tab at your demos – either drop ‘em an e with links to your online sounds, or upload tracks to their SoundCloud or Dropbox. folkwit.com
Gringo Records
On the verge of a decade and a half of activity, Gringo are proud standard-bearers of, in their own words, ‘UK DIY excellence’, with roughly a third of their roster based in the Motherland. Owner Matt Newnham isn’t one to sift through demos – he’d rather deal with bands who are already self-sufficient and filter through to him through word of mouth. gringorecords.com
Hello Thor
The much-loved DIY indie label never set out to be Notts-only, but love the thought of working with artists they can regularly bump into at gigs or pop to the pub with, love to put on gigs and parties in Nottingham, and are constantly blown away by the talent in town. Constantly looking for, quote, ‘music that excites us’, they’re keen for even more demo submissions. As Nick Lawford, Thor’s Artist Liaison says; ‘Just say hello and give us gifts at gigs.’ hellothor.com
Low Point
The very under-the-radar home of ambient, drone and experimental music, Low Point handles artists from all over the world. As owner Gareth Hardwick says; ‘As the music released by the label tends to be quite ‘niche’ at the best of times, limiting our output to just Nottingham based artists would be incredibly restrictive!’ As such, the demo-to-release ratio is small – definitely ‘don’t call us, we’ll call you’ territory. low-point.com
Mimm
The music wing of the multi-faceted design empire (situated right next door to Dealmaker) concentrates on the eclectic fringes of the dance spectrum, and specialises in producing exquisite limited edition vinylartwork-and-t-shirt/jumper packages, from the likes of Spam Chop. Predominantly, but not exclusively, consisting of all-Notts artists, their release schedule for 2012 is completely blocked out, but they are interested in hearing new stuff. mimm-shop.co.uk/label
White Horse Records
Electronic dance label who – while casting the net far and wide – are always keeping an ear to the ground in the NG. House, dubstep, synth pop and drum and bass demos welcome – send ‘em via the website. whitehorserecords.co.uk
Wigflex
The type of music put out buy this label can, according to designer / promoter / manager, Spam Chop, be summed up by the words ‘gloop’, ‘wobble’ and ‘click’. The majority of the roster is either Notts-based or from here originally, but not exclusively. Demos always welcome; lob them in the direction of the website. wigflex.com
MUSO SURVEY: Where DO you live?
1. FOREST FIELDS 2. SHERWOOD 3. CITY CENTRE As suspected, there’s a dense cluster of musos concentrated north of town. We didn’t ask if the city centre residents lived in Lace Market ponce-boxes, or in a skip round the back of the Bodega, or just never went home, ever. (Results taken from an anonymous survey held during the cover photoshoot at Rock City, October 2011)
TOMMY FARMYARD
ON A YEAR OF PROMOTING “It’s been a fantastic year of gigs and I’m very lucky to have worked with so many amazing people. I could write a list as long as my arm, so much uber talent and so much of it under the radar. Most of the gigs I’ve organised this year have been at JamCafe or The Golden Fleece; there’s been carnage, sweat, tears, fantastic music and some very very special and memorable moments. Nottingham’s talent has really started to break through this year - all is good in the hood.”
THE MARK OF SPENCER
interview: Paul Klotschkow photo: David Baird
Kirk Spencer has been played on Radio One, 1 Xtra and 6 Music, and has played at Reading and Leeds - not bad for a nineteeen-year old... Are you a Nottingham lad? I’m from Radcliffe-on-Trent way; it’s outside of the main part of Nottingham but it’s great as I’ve got all of my friends there. What is your earliest musical memory? It has to be buying Spice Girls, and Five...I went to see Five at the Ice Arena. Are you a big pop fan then? Every kid kind of likes pop. I listened to my dad’s music, stuff like Bob Marley; and my mum’s music, which is quite Eastern influenced. She’s a yoga teacher. So having that whole ‘Eastern’ sound on Enter The Void isn’t some trend thing, it’s because you grew up listening to it... Yeah, but it’s only been in recent years where I’ve really got into that type of music. At the moment I’m listening to a lot of psychedelic music from the sixties to early seventies of which a lot is influenced by Eastern music. What was the first record you bought with your own money? I can’t actually remember... it could have been a Spice Girls one. I didn’t used to spend my money on music a lot. Are you of the generation who have grown up with downloading music for free? I think I am of that generation. It’s only recently I’ve been getting back in to buying music, as a kid I downloaded albums. I downloaded all of Radiohead’s albums, but when they released In Rainbows, I bought the full package and the tab book. I also buy music now because if I DJ with it, I need the quality to be high. Do you think that as a musician, you can now see how people getting music for free has affected the traditional way of listening and purchasing music? I can see how it is messing up the industry, but on the other hand I’ve discovered so many artists that are great and then gone on to see them play live; it’s a two way thing. The old model has to change at some point; everything has to change. How did you progress to making your own music? I started playing in a band and at school I found out about this project that was happening down at Community Recording Studios. I went there and met Trevor Rose and Nick Stez, who run the studios. They gave me the skills to learn how to produce; CRS is a studio where lots of things are happening, so you can get involved in lots of different aspects of making music. I’m still learning now. You’ve been played on Radio One a few times now, how did that happen? I found a short film on Vimeo that was set in India and the first track that I made for it was called Flying Through India. I listened to Nihal’s show on Radio One every week, so I sent it to him via Soundcloud and he played it. He didn’t just play it once he played it for four weeks. A lot of people you have to chase up, but I didn’t with Nihal - from that start he just liked like the track. You’ve got three EPs out - has your sound changed much over them? I guess it has, although I don’t actually know. I’m not sure if my approach to making music has changed, but people are constantly changing. Depending on what kind of mood I’m in, the music I make will change and I’m teaching myself new stuff every day.
Which label are you working with? I’m getting interest from some indies and some majors. A track that I did with Marita called Gold got on the Radio One playlist, so a lot of people heard that which helps. I’d like to get signed, just for the fact that it might help me see the world. How do you re-create your music live? Luckily I’ve got an amazingly tight drummer, Ben Fawce and I’ve got Marita who acts as the hype person and sings. It’s been awesome working with them. I’ve always listened to bands like Rage Against The Machine who literally rip up the stage and that is what I want to create, I haven’t done it yet, but I’m still working on the live show and some new tunes so I can create that effect. Getting a good reaction from a live crowd is one of the best feelings because as a musician you spend a lot of the time working on your music. Will you expand in to a full band set-up? I’m working on a band project at the moment with Faley from Late of the Pier, which is really fun. You are also a dab hand at doing remixes. How many people have you done remixes for? Not that many, I’ve turned down quite a few. Unless it is for a decent label then I don’t see the point. But recently I’ve done two remixes for a Playstation game called Unchartered 3. At the moment I’m working on quite a big track that I can’t actually talk about. How do you put your stamp on a remix? Sometimes I’ll listen to a track and there might only be a two words in the whole track that I like, so I would just use those two words. Same with a synth part, I’m not scared to take out a synth part and do a whole track around that. It’s just grabbing the bits I like. What current Nottingham music are you listening to? I’ve always thought that Origamibiro are really inspirational. Some of the artists and graphic designers like Jon Burgerman, and even filmmakers like Shane Meadows, they all inspire me. Bands like Late of the Pier because of their success and they way they got their stuff to look and sound. How do you class yourself - are you a musician, producer, DJ... what? I would say that I am more of an artist. I’m not doing anything completely out of the ordinary though, I’m influenced by people like Flying Lotus and they get called electronic artists, so I’m going with that. Is the city a supportive place for you to make music, or do you need to move elsewhere to step up? Nottingham’s been amazing; growing up here and going to nights like Wigflex and some of the nights that Dealmaker do. There’s still loads more that can happen in the city, but whether it does happen is a different matter. I think I will go to India; I want to see the whole world and all I really need is my laptop to make music. I’m also working on some sketches with my mate and hoping to do a comedy podcast together by this time next year. I’m not a comedian but my mates are. Why should whoever is reading this go out listen to your music? Because just like you guys are, I’ve been reading LeftLion since I was a kid - so you could be me one day. kirkspencer.tumblr.com
Liam Bailey ON getting to number 5
Petebox
David Baird NME Professional Music Photographer award 2011
“Chase and Status rang me after hearing You Better Leave Me Now and sent through a beat. I went into the studio later that week and wrote and recorded my part in about twenty minutes. It’s mad how easy it all was. The weekend it got in the charts I was completely off my Daniel - I figure that was the only way to celebrate. I got a call off my dad and he said “I’m proud of you son”. Playing it later to a packed Glastonbury crowd was the stuff you dream about when you’re a kid.”
“I did a cover of Where Is My Mind because it’s an amazing song, simple as that. It’s recorded live using my vocals, guitar and effects going through a loop pedal and filmed by Nottingham director Simon Ellis. It’s amazing how well it has been received by folks and shared around the internet. I certainly didn’t imagine it would have had over 1.5 million views to date. The Pixies themselves even posted it on their site. Awesome.”
“My award winning shot is of The Subways taken at 2000 Trees Festival. I knew Billy the guitarist would climb onto a specially built platform on the bass drum and launch himself in the air so I got in position and lined up the shot waiting in anticipation. I think I only took two or three photos of the jump but in this frame all the elements just came together to make a great photo. It was a great feeling to be recognised by the NME, a magazine which regularly contains photography by some of the best in the business. I can’t wait to see what the future holds!”
ON his Youtube smash hit
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Kemet FM is about to clock up five years of broadcasting in January - and its community policy might just well be encapsulated by their own father-and-son team, Docta D and DJ Razor…
interview: Al Needham photo: Dom Henry
IT'S A FAMILY AFFAIR How long have you been doing this? Docta D: I got into DJing after seeing Whodini at Rock City, when they put two lights on the Technics, which rose very slowly on a pneumatic, and the next thing you know…”Hang on, we know that tune...but what the heck is he doing to it?” It was mind blowing and I decided I wanted to make records as well as play ‘em. So me and someone else got signed to Sony Columbia under the name Subsonic 2, did an album, three singles, two tours. Was Razor around at this time? He must have been about one or two. He used to get his hands on there all the same. In the end, people ended up telling me; “You know what you was like at twenty-one, twenty-two, when you were invincible? Well, your son’s killing you at sixteen!” Do you miss the pirate-era? Yes, because it was so cut-and-thrust. You never knew if this was the day you were going to have the door bust in on you. I remember looking across the flats and seeing the DTI kicking in the door of Globe FM the same time they were kicking in our door. That was incredible to watch - and yeah, we were back up later on that day. When did you realise what your dad did? Razor: To be honest, I don’t remember. I remember breaking his Technics. Actually, that was the wrong thing to say; that would be an admission of guilt. I was a child, he should have put them in a more suitable place where I couldn’t get to them. Docta D: That was the first time I took apart a Technics SL-1200, repaired it and put it back together. Razor: I think I was about fourteen or fifteen when I started doing things myself, and got introduced to Courtney Rose at Take One Studios. Being a friend of my dad, he started filling me in about things from back in the day that my dad was doing. Kinda like a history lesson. Anyway, I started to go to Groove City for my vinyl. Just sit in there for time... Docta D: Ours was Rob’s Records up Hurts Yard. Anybody who has been a proper DJ and worth their salt has had tuberculosis from going into Rob’s Records. Razor: Is that the one down that tight alleyway? All I know is that it smells like damp. Docta D: Listen. That did not put us off. The higher echelons of
PODDINGHAM PAUL
ON A YEAR OF RECORDING “With Nottingham artists signing to major labels and gaining worldwide attention, this has been an amazing year! On a personal level, the great thrill for me has been to interview artists for Poddingham, and then record them in live session with Team Poddingham - an outstanding group of Confetti students. Highlights are the raw live skank of Breadchasers, the emotionally charged, irresistibly danceable, Maniere des Bohemians and a Nina Smith session that sends shivers down my spine. Bring on 2012!”
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Nottingham DJs were allowed to go upstairs. To the unsifted stuff.
Razor: He can’t finish a sentence without growling. “You’rrrrrre listening to Doctarrrrrrrr...”
That’s hallowed ground - what’s it like? It’s just piles and piles and piles of records. And you see a sideboard, move it out the way, and there’d be rows and rows of records. You’d go through every single one. There was a little record player on the side and you’d be sat up there forever.
Docta D: Actually, I can finish every sentence by sounding professional.
Do you and your dad ever argue about music? Razor: Yes, actually. The other week we were doing a show, and he was there, “I got this mix to play to you - wicked music, yeah”. I swear down, from when he pressed play – I was in agony. I just wanted it to stop. Couldn’t stand it. Docta D: Do you know what one of the songs was? Tour de France, Kraftwerk. Absolute classic! I told him, you can’t say that! That is sacrilege to the very shoulders you should be stood on! Razor: I don’t like electro. I don’t get it. It’s repetitive. Docta D: “MWOW MWOW MWOW MWOW MWOW-MWOW! MWOW MWOW MWOW MWOW MWOW-MWOW! DO IT LIKE A MONSTA MAN! DO IT LIKE A MONSTA MAN!” Razor: Leave Giggs out of this! That’s a beat! Docta D: I don’t like this new style of grime, dubstep; it rides roughshod over the very people and peers they should be looking up to. They’ll take something and cheapen it. They’ve just put a coupla beats behind it. If they start to do a tune, they get a machine, go, “OK, today’s tempo is 118, and everything else now will sync in with the 118 because my computer will lock it that way.” Whereas in my day, if you’re trying to mix the SOS Band with somebody else, it was still a band. So, when it got to the chorus, I knew that he was gonna get a bit mental and speed himself up by an eighth… With the music of today, if you lock it right, you can go to the toilet, make yourself a cup of tea, and come back. Razor: I know how to DJ on vinyl. I got taught by Mista Jam, before he moved down to London for 1Xtra. Don’t worry about that.
Razor: What? By sounding like Tony the Tiger? Kemet’s pretty much the only modern music station in town now, isn’t it? Docta D: Yeah. This is why I think it’s pretty important - the job that Kemet are doing and the gap that they’re filling and the job that they’re providing. Kemet, of course, bills itself as an ‘urban’ station, not a black one. How do you feel about that? I hate the term ‘urban’. But, I live and die by it. Razor: But, to me, ‘urban’ just means inner city. Docta D: If they’d just called it a music station – a radio station, y’know? That puts us on par with everybody else. Then we can just be judged on what we do, not what we play. So what’s Kemet’s policy towards local acts? Razor: It’s strong. I’ve got my own show on a Friday as well, and I always try and get artists and producers from all round Notts involved in. So does Ms Tempz - her show is more focused completely around it. There are so many youths that I know, and I tell them; right, listen, stop doing this, stop doing that, you’re making yourselves look stupid. Get me a copy of your track, clean it, and I’ll play it on my show - and then maybe next week I’ll bring you in and I’ll interview you. Any last words for LL readers? Razor: Y’know what, whatever it is, old or new, music is music. Anybody who has music in their life is blessed. Docta D: Everybody involved in Kemet is amazing. There are some unsung heroes who propel Kemet FM forward, and keep us DJs doing the right thing. It’s a great thing to be a part of. Old To The New Show, Tuesdays 7-9pm. DJ Razor’s Midnight Melt Down, Saturdays midnight-3am. 975kemetfm.co.uk
Docta D: This is why our show is called Old To The New. We try to bridge the gap, where he’ll end up getting on my last nerve about half past eight. He starts to play songs - and I’ve got the original. And I’ll say; “Take that off! Play the original!”
MUSO SURVEY: MOST PLAYED-AT VENUE IN NOTTS
1. MAZE 2. GOLDEN FLEECE 3. BODEGA Everyone, it seems, has been caught hanging about in that courtyard. Usually all at the same time. The Fleece also reps hard for Mansfield Road, and good to see the old Social keeping it local. (Results taken from an anonymous survey held during the cover photoshoot at Rock City, October 2011)
JAKE BUGG ON SIGNING TO MERCURY “I uploaded some songs to BBC Introducing... and Dean Jackson at BBC Nottingham liked them. A few weeks later I signed with Kitchenware management and Mercury came to my rehearsal. I was getting loads of label interest at gigs, but Mercury always turned up so I felt good about them. I played some big gigs this year; Glastonbury, Splendour, Glee, Rock City and support to Evan Dando, but none of it felt real until I signed that eighty-three page document. Behind me in the lawyers office were platinum records from Oasis, The Verve, Charlatans and The Stone Roses. I’m thinking, what am I doing here?
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YOU CAN DREAM IT OR YOU CAN DO IT Launch your career in Music or TV & Film with a Confetti course starting January www.confetti.uk.com Call 0115 859 9804 Text Confetti to 88802 (Normal network rate) In association with
STE DEALMAKER ON SCORZAYZEE LIVE
“I finally managed to put on Scorzayzee live at The Rescue Rooms and it was an epic set of classic after classic. Following on from Inkrument, Cappo and Phi Life Cypher, Scorz defeated his nerves to deliver a slamming hip-hop show without a gram of aggro. There was a moment in his freesyle over MJ’s Man in the Mirror when Karizma jumped from out of nowhere and hijacked the stage in a way only he could. My hair was standing on end and there was a room full of minds was blown.”
MUSO SURVEY: NEXT ARTIST TO BREAK THROUGH
NINA SMITH A very close thing, this; Gallery 47, Harleighblu, Jake Bugg and Ronika were all flagged up heavily, as was Liam Bailey (obviously, a lot of people have already decided he’s already made it), but Ms Smith nicked it in the end.
TREV FROM DOG IS DEAD
ON APPEARING IN SKINS
“It was collectively everyone’s first time on a proper professional TV set. We had to wait a long while before we started shooting, but I understand that is very common in film and television. At about 6:30pm we started playing our part, which consisted of miming the last 24 or so bars of our first single Glockenspiel Song, about thirty times whilst a large crowd of extras jumped up and down chanting the lyrics “We are a mess, we are failures and we love it” back at us. It was pretty surreal and pretty knackering.”
(Results taken from an anonymous survey held during the cover photoshoot at Rock City, October 2011)
A TERABYTE of gIGS
Roger Caney: he’s seen more live music in Notts than you. Come, take his hand and let him lead you through the toilet venues of Nottingham... Why? “Because going to see live music is always different - even the bands I love can be different every time I go and see them. I’m just constantly amazed at the depth of talent here in Nottingham; the list of bands that I like at the moment is just endless. I probably go to around three or four gigs a week, depending on what’s on - they sometimes clash with arty things that I like going to too. I must start keeping a log”.
interview: Paul Klotschkow photo: Claudette Jarvis
The Old Vic “I’ve been in Nottingham since 1973, but only really started gigging in the eighties. I was sharing a flat with some folk and they said they were off to a gig in the basement at the Old Vic. There were a couple of punky bands from somewhere up North who had been brought down by Paul Kilbride who had recently moved here. It’s now Eschucha” Sam Fay’s “Paul later started a listings mag called Overall and started promoting gigs at a venue located in some old engine sheds off London Road by the Canal (later to be Hooters). Here, apart from all the visiting talent, local DJs such as Walt (Sweet Potato) and Nail (now of Bent) had nights, and I saw some of the early gigs by local bands such as Wholesome Fish, and promotions by Anton Lockwood.” The Yorker “One night when my son Morgan was staying over, a band was rehearsing downstairs. I went down to complain about the noise keeping him awake, and ended up in the band. They were called The Decline. We played gigs in Nottingham, with my favourite being upstairs in The Yorker on the day Laurence Olivier died in July of ’89 - I did vocals for Sympathy for the Devil with a slow first verse in an Olivier stylee. The tatty cassette recording of this gig makes my tenor sound not bad. It’s now the Rose of England” Junktion 7 “About ten years ago I was working on Alfreton Road, about five minutes walk from J7, so I would often pop in for a quick drink after work, end up watching a gig, and stumble home after midnight. This was the days when Adrian, his missus and her sister Tammy were running the place, and we had loads of locals on. This was where I saw the great Notts ska-punk revival start with people like Weeble. Also, there was this attractive redhaired woman who was a good sound engineer and did a bi-weekly CD DJ set in the downstairs bar, indulging her obsession with sixties pop/soul. This was Roni, who I ran into a couple of years later at The Rescue Rooms gig – and later discovered that she was now known as Ronika and about to be big...” Bunkers Hill “One night I ran into a bizarre little band called Master, who told me about a band a couple of them had recently started up at Trent and the gig they had lined up at Bunkers Hill. They became The Hellset Orchestra, one of the first and best prog-goth-rock revival bands, started by Michael Weatherburn with some guys from his rock band Maelkar. Michael, of course, is now back being a rock-god with Ulysses Storm” Moog “The first incarnation of Moog had the highest quota of electronic acts of all types that I’ve seen in Nottingham - some worldwide, and also local acts and DJs, my favourite being Ill Tim who is now one of the Molten Gods. A favourite band for me - possible bias alert - was Laboratoire, which had a core of my son Morgan, with two other laptoppers; Leigh Toro (Molten Gods/ Flotel) and Kamal Joury (Geiom)” On being known as ‘That Bloke Who Goes To Gigs’ “It feels a bit odd. I don’t want to become even more of a freak, but people seem to want to party, so let’s party. I’ll only stop going to gigs when they tear my last glowstick from my cold, dead hand. Or when I start grandad dancing”
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You’ve had a pretty busy year Rob Rosa (violin): We’ve been really busy. A few festivals over the summer starting with Southwell Folk Festival, which was an amazing local festival. Being a folk festival we were probably the most lively band there and we ended up with a crowd of about 500 people which was brilliant. Then there was Port Eliot Festival down in Cornwall, which was probably the poshest thing we’ve ever played. Then we did a tour of the south-west at the end of October.
out of ten they might not notice, because there’s no ‘right’ way in this sort of music; just a good way and a better way.
Jonny: Hopefully it’ll bring people to our gigs. It’s the way things are going, though.
How do you feel you’ve evolved as a band since you started? We’ve been going about two and a half years, and now we don’t even really think about it when we play - we just play, and we’re a lot tighter. For me, as I kind of conduct the band, it’s just become quite natural. Everyone just knows what they’re doing. It means we can try more complicated stuff now.
Do you think your genre of music could go mainstream? Rob: I think it already is, in a way. There are electro-swing nights on in town that people like, lindy hop dancing is making a comeback, people want to learn that style…
Best moment of the year so far? Jonny Kerry (accordion): The end of the tour, I think. We sold out the last two gigs - in fact they turned away about fifty people at the last one.
Your most obvious quirk that sets you apart is the gypsy influence and your fascination with that culture. Where does that come from? Jonny: It all started with Django Reinhardt, who really started the genre. There are a couple of bands in Notts who play in the same style - Hot Club and Swingology, who we’re really quite influenced by. There’s a great community in this city of gypsy jazz-style music.
Rob: Summer Sundae was the biggest we’ve ever played. Oh, and of course the album launch at Contemporary, although I don’t remember so much of our performance… Jonny: We got pretty drunk. Rob: But I remember the jam at the end; it went on until 2am and was fantastic. We recorded the LP - Where The Road Bends - at Paper Stone studios in five hours. It’s a great space; it feels like it’s got a lot of history in there. It was actually recorded quite a long time ago, so we were very used to it by the time it came out. We always feel that what we’re doing now is better than what we did before and we’re all pretty hyper-critical of what we do. Jonny: I’ve only listened to it once - I think I’ve improved so much since the recording I don’t like to listen to myself back then… You sound like perfectionists, but how does that marry with the fact that most of your performances are improvised? Jonny: It’s quite exciting, actually, constantly pushing yourself. Rob: There has to be a lot of humour involved; we all have to be pretty laid back, really. We’re critical in that we’ll admit if something could have been better, but we’ll give praise when its due. So if someone plays a great solo you’ll give them a look and a nod to let them know, or if something went a bit dodgy we’ll all give a ‘whoops’ look. Jonny: We have to laugh about it really, sometimes we’ll try something like a famous tune and it’ll just go horribly wrong, you can only laugh at that. Rob: And at the end of the day it doesn’t really matter, if you muck up at your job you might get fired, but so long as the audience are enjoying what’s going on, it’s fine. Plus nine times
Rob: When my brother and I were little, our Dad pretended to play the violin to get us started and we were introduced to many styles including Hungarian-style gypsy music. Our grandfather was a violin player too, so it’s in the blood I suppose. In terms of influence it was at first Stéphane Grappelli, Chris Garrick and, when I saw him at the Hand & Heart, Ben Holder, who’s a local violin legend. Can we clear up the rumour about you living in a caravan? Jonny: Yeah, I did, but it might have been more to save money than anything else! I just wanted to experience what that sort of life was like, living with nothing. It was fun actually, but I’ve just moved in with Rob because of the cold, I wussed out on that! I gave it a good shot though, I think. When The Road Bends is also the name of a film about Roma culture and music. Coincidence? Jonny: It’s an American film that came out quite a while ago; the title is based on a gypsy proverb. So we’re kind of paying homage to that… Rob: Because we do go where the road bends. It’s very relevant to the music we make since we never know where it’s going to go, being almost totally improvised.
Jonny: I think it’s because a lot of people actually want to go out dancing now rather than just going to a rave and doing big-fishlittle-fish cardboard box all night. Rob: You can’t really take classes in banging a few pills and raving. I think in these, quote, ‘times of austerity’ people do want to go out and do more interesting things. You’re totally instrumental at the moment. Has it crossed your mind to get in a vocalist? Jonny: Well we can all sing, so we’re hoping to start adding some harmonies to the music. Rob: We also do have guest vocalists too. Last year we had Lisa de’Ville, Irina Muha and Motormouf join us for a bit which was great. We might be planning some more collaborations for the next album, but we’re keeping that under wraps at the moment. What’s next for Manière des Bohémiens? Jonny: Definitely a European tour, that’s the next step. Rob: We want to go all over, Django’s birthplace, Paris, Brussels, hopefully Marciac festival, maybe Toulouse. We just really want to play more venues, to more people and with a higher profile. We see ourselves as a young band; we have the potential to go on for a long time. The type of music we play, it’s very much not about image or age. I think as you get older the image part of it gives way to talent, which hopefully we’ve got a bit of. Anything else you’d like to say? We’re good music to take someone out on a date to, apparently. So there you go, fellas. manieredesbohemiens.com
Not only is Google auto-completing your name as you start to type ‘manie’, but your album is also up on torrent sites. How do you feel about that? Rob: Whoa. Really? Seriously? I’m kind of honoured really, I mean it’s bugger all to buy it really, and you can buy it online, but because we’re not that well known the main way people get hold of our records is at gigs. So I suppose if people are nicking it online, fair enough, they haven’t been to see us live...
interview: Sarah Morrison photo: Dom Henry
Manière des Bohémiens – French for ‘Manner of the Gypsies’, according to Babel Fish – and their infectious, rapturous, blindingly improvised Romany swing music is massively popular in Notts. Quite simply, they are...
OUTSTANDING IN THEIR FIELD leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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Kind of ‘Blu interview: Shariff Ibrahim photo: Ralph Barklam
Incredibly talented, effortlessly cool, immaculate influences - no wonder labels are perking their ears to the old-school, big band soul of Harleighblu...
How old were you when you first picked up a mic? I was recording in studios and writing songs - proper songs - from the age of seven. If I hadn’t been given that opportunity then, I don’t think I’d have the opportunities I have now. It takes so long to develop yourself, and I still want to push myself even more. From being a little girl, I knew what I wanted to do; I went out there and tried my hardest to achieve it. What were you listening to back then? Rare groove, reggae and deep soul. Mum’s a proper northern soul and motown head, so I was exposed to all of that. Then I bought Who Is Jill Scott? when I was eleven, and after that there was no turning back - I was a neo-soul queen. Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu and D’Angelo still get rinsed on my iPod. You’re currently a student. What are you studying? I do music performance, which entails reading and writing music, performance and theory. We also look into how politics and society change the way people have written music - how things like the Civil Rights movement influenced musical styles like soul. There’s a lot more to it than I thought; it makes you feel like you’ve learned something when you go home, so it’s cool. Are you managing to balance uni with music? I’m finding it okay at the moment - but I’m naturally a nighthawk, so with my lessons starting at 9am, it’s a bit hectic. I’m used to being in the studio until 5am sometimes, so I’ve had to shave off a few of the really late night sessions. I always get my work done but the music never comes in second place. I always make sure I balance it correctly and work hard at both. How’s the new album going? That doesn’t feel like work. My producer - Joe Buhdha - is amazing. He plays the magical ideas he’s sampled or created, then I sit down and write. We throw our ideas together, lay them down and it seems to work. We’re seventeen or eighteen tracks in now, so it’s going to be a big album. Is working with a hip-hop producer like Joe Buhdha different to the normal recording process? It’s like I’ve gone full circle. I actually did an album when I was twelve, and my producer was sample-based then, so I was very urban-sounding for a long time. I worked with some chaps from Birmingham and that gave my music more of a pop-jazz feel, but it was a bit too leftfield; I needed that edge, which I think Joe has. Would you ever give dance and dubstep a go? I’ve touched upon it before, but never officially released anything. I was working with the Elementz for a while, and while I do feel that music and they’re obviously fantastic, I don’t feel I sit on it the same. It’s the same with Liam Bailey, I think; he’s been most successful with his Chase & Status track - which is obviously amazing, but I know him for his other stuff. A lot of people think; “I know Liam from that track - we want him on more tracks like that”. But I think he’s way better than that. What are the origins of your name? I was going to be a twin, and my mum was going to call one Harleigh and one Blu. She got so used to saying the two together that when she lost one in the very early stages, she just decided to put the names together. Your band is huge, and seems to keep on growing. How do you keep them all in check? I can’t really take any credit for that; I’m more of a turn-up-and-sing girl. I have a certain control, but my bassist James Waring is like the band manager. He makes sure everyone rehearses and is on time, making sure rehearsal spaces are fit for the band, and gets us most of our gigs. He’s just an all-round grafter. We’re all seriously hard-working people, but when we’re rehearsing it just feels like we’re chilled and jamming, making stuff up on the spot. Do you play any instruments yourself? I’m learning the piano at the moment, and have just learned the blues chords. I don’t find songwriting too difficult now, but if I could get a musical message out of my head and just get it down instantly, that would be so helpful rather than just having it in my head and humming it.
What do you prefer: songwriting, recording or performing? Recording. Laying down fresh ideas and layering up harmonies is my favourite part by far, but I do love performing as well because of that crowd feedback. When people are jamming and nodding their heads and really feeling you, it makes all the late hours you put in rehearsing and recording worth it. What do you think of The X Factor? My opinions are mixed. I respect people who are talented and go on it, because this game is hard to crack and it’s not going to get any easier. But I resent it too, to be honest. The amount of times I’ve had people say to me; “Why haven’t you been on X Factor? You’re twenty now, and that girl is only sixteen - you’re cutting it a bit fine…” when my idols - Jill Scott and Luther Vandross - were thirty-odd when they made it. The producers don’t know what to do with the very talented people; they give them loads of crap pop songs to sing that don’t suit their voices and then the audience rightfully end up not ‘getting’ them – and if you don’t win the programme, what damage is it going to do to your career? It doesn’t seem worth it to me. You have an incredible voice. Do you ever try to hustle people at karaoke or SingStar? Not so much karaoke, but I have played SingStar and lost dramatically. I must flip the tones in my voice a lot because I just kept getting it wrong all the time. I had to sing flat like “muh muh muh” just to hit the notes. What does happen now though is every time I’m at a birthday bash, I have to sing Happy Birthday. I know it’s coming, so I have to mentally prepare myself... myspace.com/HarleighbluLow
Lou from Royal Gala On Nottingham’s women musicians “I’ve had four staggering years as a front woman in Royal Gala, playing everything from barges in Battersea, asylums in Dublin and erm… posh cinemas in Hockley. Being a woman on stage has huge highs and its complement of lows. I often forget I am one. I got changed on stage in front of 600 people at Headstock this year because I was late and I honestly forgot I had tits. I’m in awe of the sense of friendship and support between female performers in Nottingham. There so much talent that it’s hard to know where to start. All I can say is that I am proud to call many of these women friends.”
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leftlion.co.uk/issue44
MUSO SURVEY: NEXT BAND TO BREAK THROUGH
KATTY FROM SPOTLIGHT KID ON PLAYING GLASTONBURY
DOG IS DEAD No surprise, this; Anton and DHP have got their backs, they’ve already got a deal, they’ve about to headline Citeh. They were nearly pipped at the post by Fists, though, with honourable mentions for Swimming and Royal Gala. (Results taken from an anonymous survey held during the cover photoshoot at Rock City, October 2011)
“We played Glastonbury on the BBC Introducing stage. It was the perfect slot because the crowd were fresh and enthusiastic. A huge audience was gathered to see The Coral, who were billed before us, but they cancelled (after getting stuck in the mud). So stage compere Tom Robinson warmed up the crowd by busking a few of his hits instead. I remember being backstage changing into my mud-free glad rags and hearing him belt out Sing If You’re Glad To Be Gay. We were buzzing from our performance for the rest of the weekend; it was a truly amazing experience.”
THE STATE OF INDEPENDENTS
Gaz Peacham runs things at The Maze. Nick Turner handles The Chameleon. Together, they’ve seen almost every band and artist in Notts…
How tough is it to run a small independent venue like this? Very. Notts has so much going on all the time - so many clubs, pubs, theatres, cinemas etc – so you need to give people a reason to come out, especially now as it’s so cheap to drink at home. Most of the money made on tickets and the door goes straight to bands or on promotion. If we didn’t sell enough beer at gigs, we’d have to close.
How did you end up running The Chameleon? I first came here in 2007, but I’ve known the place since 1995, when when it used to be Raffles. When we started, it was a café and we only put fourteen gigs on in the first year. Cafés don’t make any money any more, so we’re just a gig venue now. We put on about 160 per year. You’re very supportive of the Notts DIY music scene. We specialise in indie/ underground stuff; anything from noise music to hardcore to pop to indie rock to jazz to folk. We try to cover a wide spectrum, but because we are running a business, there are certain things that we can’t put on. Stuff like Straight Edge; they don’t spend any money on alcohol, and they don’t drink enough pop to keep the place going, so we have to try and avoid them. Nothing against them – but you’ve got to make money to survive.
When other small venues fail, where do they go wrong? I think some venues get lazy. You have to stay on your toes; support your local scene, be passionate, and enjoy what you do - and if things get stale, reinvent yourself. The trick is cut costs wherever you can without dropping standards. You have to work really hard, be your own biggest critic and take risks.
So what are you trying to do here? This is a launch pad for bands. Most of them aren’t going to make it, and most of them aren’t even going to bother to try. interview: Kristi Genovese Some of them are good, some of them are terrible, but they’ve photos: Carla Mundy got their mates to come down. Some of them do it for a laugh, others have big ideas. Everyone has got to start somewhere and everyone started in the small places. Do you have any favourite Nottingham bands? You’re putting me in to a corner here, aren’t you? Fists are a good band. The Cult of Dom Keller – OK, they get a bit drunk, but when they are sober they’re alright. Human Hair, who’ve just played. Is it tough to run a small independent venue like this in the city? If you want to support your small independent venues you’ve got to get out and watch live music. We are forever getting hit by extra costs, and the Council just don’t want to help. We’re not attached to a brewery or a big company; we’re doing this on our own. What people need to understand is that if they don’t keep the small venues alive, bands will just end up playing their instruments in their own backyard. The venues that have failed - what did they do wrong? I don’t think that they did anything wrong, apart from the fact that the customers just didn’t bother going. Town is a funny place nowadays; every year you’re going to get a different crowd in because of the students. In their first year they’re messing about, going to lots of different places, whilst we are more of a cultured type thing. Eventually, some will come here because a band is on, then say that they like this place, because it’s a bit out of the way and they didn’t know about it – even thought it’s opposite the Square. And that’s what we’re trying to be; a bit undercover, where all people are welcome as long as they relax and get into the music.
facebook.com/groups/chameleonartscafe
What’s the biggest misconception punters have of your job? That it must be a cool job. Yes, I hang out with bands, press and cool people, meet absolute idols of mine now and then and essentially get paid to put on and watch awesome music. But I also have to clean sick out of radiators, carry drunks out of interview: Paul Klotschkow the venue at chucking-out time, and paint the whole venue top to bottom in 24 hours with no sleep. I’ll get calls from beer suppliers at 8am and calls from bands asking about gigs at 2am. If I get five hours sleep, it’s been a good day. Genre-wise, there seems to be an ‘anything goes’ approach at The Maze. We have a ‘try anything at least once’ policy, which I think that has stood us in good stead. You can’t let personal taste dictate too much, when there are so many styles and tastes out there. One of the best things about working here is that I have discovered some amazing bands that have opened up my mind and – I think – have made me a better musician too. In our band survey, The Maze came out as the favourite place to play at – which is scary, seeing as it was a hair’s breadth away from being converted into more student flats a while back. We’ve helped a lot of local bands achieve their potential, and I’m really proud of our involvement. When we did the cover shoot for this issue, Steph Kirkup and I looked round and worked out that roughly 90% of them had played The Maze before, and about 50% had played their first gigs here. That makes me so happy. How do you link up with new promoters? They come to us a lot of the time, but we’re very proactive and approach people too. In the last six weeks, there hasn’t been a night where I haven’t been working, been at a gig or playing a gig. If we go to a night and we like the way a promoter has run it, we may ask them if they want to work with us. What do you think to the Notts scene circa 2011-2? It’s in a great state. There’s a very diverse and real scene here; I like the fact the DIY ethic is strong. People are fairly open to music in Nottingham as well; there’s a lot of crossover in genres, which makes it very special. themazerocks.com
MUSO SURVEY: FAVOURITE NOTTS VENUE TO PLAY
ILLUMINATUS ON PLAYING DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL “Download is the Holy Grail of UK metal. We all had some pretty high expectations of the day and I think they surpassed what we all hoped for. For the first time ever we actually wanted it to rain at a festival because we were playing in a tent! The rain definitely did us some favours - we’ve been told it was three deep queuing to get in and that’s amazing to hear. Character of the day award goes to the lead singer of Gwar, stomping around backstage putting on his own personal show for us all.”
1. THE MAZE 2. THE BODEGA 3. MOOG Not even close, this; although it was an anonymous survey, you could tell the DJs were split between Moog and the Fleece, while some bands wanted to mention the biggest place they’ve played. (Results taken from an anonymous survey held during the cover photoshoot at Rock City, October 2011)
Nina Smith
ON PLAYING OUT OF TOWN “A high point was when I supported Petebox on tour. It was not only a great time, but it gave me experience in travelling to unknown venues and playing to new crowds. Petebox is a gem! I also played my first show in London as support to Finlay Quaye, I didn’t know what to expect but everybody in the room listened and Finlay was really welcoming. Although he didn’t have much choice because I accidentally walked in on him when he was on the loo backstage.”
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SOME PEOPLE’LL DO ANYTHING FOR A FREE HANDO
Some of the city’s most prolific flyer and poster artists talk about the artwork they sweated blood and tears over, only to see it blow down the street or fall off a toilet door…
Rikki Marr
Boy, this was really hard to choose. This was part of a series that I produced for Sean West and Camouflage around 2006. All the gigs featured local artists from the Dealmaker roster with a big headline act from beyond Nottingham. I’ve picked this one because stylistically it’s the best representation of what I like to draw and I don’t get away with it very often. I do my best to give promoters and musicians something that they are happy with, and that suits their style, But every now and then I get away with drawing a character like this.
Steve Larder
This is the most recent flyer I drew for a gig at the Old Angel. Quite often my opinion of a piece of work changes, mostly due to staring at the same page for hours on end. I tend to over-analyse and more often than not I can only see the faults. I used this design as an excuse to step outside of my comfort zone and try something that I wasn’t sure where it would end up. I like to keep things tangible if at all possible, so whenever I use digital colour I attempt to keep things simple so the image doesn’t look overly manipulated on a computer. This was drawn using ink, nibs and brushes on Bristol board with some rudimentary Photoshop editing.
Paul Atchison
This is for a funk, soul and hip-hop night that has been held at many venues across the city over the years. I enjoy working on The Hustle posters; they’re created from scans of vinyl covers from my own collection, so I feel I have a personal interest in the work. This is a flyer from a series when The Hustle was at the Golden Fleece. The flyers have developed over time - they now feature scans of bodies with animal heads on. I think there are some really talented artists/ designers in the city’s scene; I still regularly pick up flyers for the artwork.
AnGi Fletcher
I designed this for the Marble Valley (Steve West from Pavement’s band) show that Fists put on at The Chameleon in 2009. It was one of the first shows that we promoted on our own rather than with our friends Supernight and Hello Thor, and I remember being excited, but a little anxious about what I was going to come up with. All the bands had visual names, so I had a lot of inspiration to choose from although the idea of a ‘Marble Valley’ seemed a bit more ambiguous. An initial idea I came up with involved a giant swan, which fortunately I ditched because Wonderswan ended up cancelling. I decided to try a different approach for me and opted to use only hand drawing materials. I don’t think it’s necessarily the most striking poster I’ve done, but I really enjoyed doing it – I used watercolours and pencils.
compiled by: Tom Norton
DOUT only
Alex Traska
As a huge fan of jazz and the iconic Blue Note Records sleeve designs, I was excited when Ste Allan of Dealmaker Label asked my company, Makermet Creative, to produce a series of posters in the Blue Note style, mirroring a previously successful campaign for the Wu Tang Clan. Two years later, we’re still sticking with the theme, and have produced approximately fifteen in the series for some of my favourite acts including Quantic, The Portico Quartet, Belleruche, The Hidden Orchestra and Scorzayzee. This early design for Anti-Pop Consortium remains a firm favourite.
Chris Summerlin
This isn’t my favourite poster that I’ve designed - in fact I could change about twenty things on it now. But it’s for my favourite gig I helped put on in Nottingham: Hot Snakes at Cabaret in 2005; they were absolutely mindmelting. And the gig itself is surely the point of gig posters, isn’t it? We (Damn You!) lost a ton of money on the show, as it clashed with something at Rescue Rooms, so we had to let people in cheap. Six years on and people who went to the Rescue Rooms are tweeting about how excited they are that Hot Snakes have reformed and are playing again. I don’t know if that’s amazing or depressing.
Small Kid
Mac
I’ve chosen this flyer because it’s the one I always spend the longest staring at; the last ever Rubberdub at Blueprint, and the last ever official night at Blueprint before it closed down - until we got back in and did a free party, that is. Ray Keith absolutely smashed it and he enjoyed the night thoroughly, ending with Renegade’s Terrorist, which was literally the last tune officially played in that club. Blueprint meant so much to us; we even lived there for a few days. The flyer captures a perfect sunset scene, representing the sun going down on Blueprint and the monkey playing the last vinyl. I love the purples and pinks in the flyer, and the style I’ve drawn the ‘RubberDub’. Definitely one of the best and most important flyers I’ve done.
Flyer design always interested me from a young age, when I collected Dreamscape and Mythology flyers from the rave-era. Pre-internet, they were the only way to promote your event. I produced Detonate flyers from when they started to their ninth birthday, before Tom Price took over. With the early Detonate flyers we used to use all photos, but made sets that kept to a theme - like urban landscapes, graf etc - and used heavy fonts for the line-up, which was a contrast to the other styles that were coming out of Nottingham at the time. After my 1,000th flyer I decided to produce less and focus more on my own work. I do still produce the odd flyer, though; I currently do the Dogma Presents flyers.
Homage To Catalonians Katrine Brosnan
I think every city has a recognisable identity, and it really comes across in the people you see at work or at play. This piece is a coming-together of the drawings I did while people watching on a trip to Barcelona. I drew characters that caught my eye on buses, on the beach in Sitges and in the many lovely cafés in the city. My prints start out as line drawings; I always bring a sketchpad with me wherever I go, and find I have more time to doodle and draw when on holiday. These characters were drawn from life with my trusty fineliner, and later drawn digitally so I could arrange a composition and edit my sketchbook into a single print. At the time I was reading Orwell’s Homage to Catalonia, hence the title - in honour of all the lovely people I met on my trip. I started looking through my drawings, the photos I’d taken and all the other bits of ephemera I picked up along the way and compiled the final design for the print. I then turned my sketchpad drawings into two images for a silk screen and created the screen print in my home studio. I had some nice feedback at a recent craft fair; a lady who had spent some time in Barcelona really connected with the print as the characters portrayed reminded her of the city. Getting comments is always lovely and very encouraging. After studying fine art at Nottingham Trent, my work has continued to evolve; I now concentrate on simple line based illustrations, playing with traditional printmaking techniques such as screenprinting, letterpress and lino-cuts. I love the process and history connected with printmaking; it’s so exciting to see these techniques enjoying a resurgence at the moment. The ink, the plates, the presses and the action of printing are very compelling for me and satisfy my urge to make. Some of my latest work is creating illustrations for functional items such as bags, ceramics and brooches. If I had the luxury of time and money I would like to experiment more with making accessible household designs for things such as wallpaper, or larger ceramic pieces completely from scratch. I’m always expanding my range of work and I would like to carry on and eventually work full time as an illustrator and printmaker. At the moment I work part time for a charity, so I fit in my illustrating and printmaking on my day off and at weekends.I am a member of Leicester Print Workshop which is a very supportive environment to make and develop my work. I find inspiration in lots of places, including my bus trips to work which also provide great thinking time. Katrine’s work will be on sale at the Craft in the City craft market, Waterstones, Bridlesmith Gate on 3 and 4 December and at the Curiosity Haus Market, Bunkers Hill on 17 December katrinebrosnan.co.uk
Art Works TRACE
TRISH EVANS This photograph captures eight seconds in time in November 2011, portraying the flow and navigation of three traceurs (freerunners) within a crumbling industrial building close to the Canal, taken at night, with the assistance of a full moon. To me, this image is symbolic of freedom, inquisitive playfulness and the reinvention of forgotten, once-thriving spaces. My work has never been overtly academic and my approach has always been crudely simple; I attached LED lights to the traceurs’ legs and arms, and took long exposure shots to capture their movement and interaction with the immediate environment. The actual building is in a state of slow collapse and only still stands due to an internal body of scaffold, which is surrounded by an immense overgrowth of weeds. I had to trespass over dodgy old walls, boulders and through undergrowth in pitch black to take the shot. I’m inspired by artists who reinvent or see the beauty of unremarkable ‘things’, and street-based art which doesn’t need to be explained and doesn’t need to be accessed - it’s just impressively simple and just there. I’m also one of those people who loves really rubbish-looking architecture, boarded up buildings and decaying concrete. I studied in art and design, with a degree at Trent in Furniture and Product Design and from then on I have delivered and developed a whole host of contemporary arts projects, events and programmes. With a young family and a number of other freelance projects and work commitments, all of my photography is evening-based - usually after the kids are in bed, which is OK with a very considerate husband. But I also project manage the event, which requires extensive planning, partnership work, fundraising, PR, etc. But,to be honest, I thrive on being busy and being creative.
This particular image is a work in progress for an installation called TRACE. This has been commissioned for Light Night in Nottingham on 10 February 2012, and will include projections of my photography and with film, sound and parkour in collaboration with a whole host of digital media and sonic artists. It’s an expansion on a previous installation I did last year (pipeline: they came running), but the themes this time focus more specifically on the reinvention of abandoned spaces such as old industrial units, closed petrol stations and rooftops to convey a relationship and comparative existence. It’ll take place in an underpass, next to the Broadmarsh Centre and Maid Marian Way, under an NCP car park; a shining example of a disused and forgotten pocket of the city that has been adopted by the parkour community as a playground ripe for exploring and given new meaning. As for future projects, I recently did a shoot with the parkour community in Berlin, and there is talk of taking our TRACE shoot to Paris. If funds and time were available to definitely say that these ideas could happen, that would be truly amazing. Perhaps they will… road-work.org.uk / facebook.com/TraceNottingham leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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LEFTLION featured listings... LISTINGS Appley Ever After December 2011 – January 2012
TICKETS ON-LION Buying tickets for events in Notts? From the latest DJs at Stealth to the latest bands at venues like Spanky Van Dykes and The Rescue Rooms, you can get them all through our website, at no extra cost. Even better, thanks to our partnership with gigantic.com, every time you buy one through us some of the funds will go towards LeftLion and a bit more goes to those nice folks at Oxfam. leftlion.co.uk/tickets
LEFTLION NEW YEARs eve extravaganza Oh yes, me ducks - after destroying venues all over town every New Years Eve, the LeftLion NYE do alights this year at the Maze - in collaboration with I’m Not From London, with a blistering line-up featuring Tray Electric, Hot Japanese Girl, Gaz Breadchaser, Long Dead Signal, Baby Godzilla, Manière des Bohémiens, Mokshah and Captain Dangerous - in other words, a line-up so chunky there’s a danger we won’t get through them all until 2013. If you get yourself sorted, there’s still time to score a £5 earlybird ticket, and then it’ll be £7 in advance and a mere tenner on the door. Bear in mind that the Maze can only hold so much unadulterated Nottsness, so book early to avoid being stood on Mansfield Road on a freezing cold Saturday night while your mates are inside and giving 2011 a massive kick up the ringpiece and telling it to jog on. LeftLion New Years Eve Extravaganza, Saturday 31 December, The Maze, Mansfield Road leftlion.co.uk/nye / themazerocks.com
The 10th Annual Damn You Xmas Covers Party Ever wanted to see your favourite Notts bands destroy your favourite songs and all in the name of having a good time and raising loads of dosh for charity? Now in its 10th year, the Damn You Chrismas Covers Party will feature Swimming, Fists, Kogumaza, Hhymn, Souvaris and Guilty Parents, with many of them teaming up to form one-off Notts music super groups that you will only get the chance to see on this night. And they take this event frighteningly seriously. Damn You, the promoters behind the gig, chuck all profits towards the Nottinghamshire Hospice, and this year they’re aiming to break their record. Don’t miss this: it’s one of the main events in the gig-going calendar. The 10th Annual Damn You Chrismas Covers Party, The Bodega, Saturday 17 November 2011. on.fb.me/xmascovers2011
For even more listings, check our up to date online section at leftlion.co.uk/listings. If you want to get your event in this magazine and on our website, aim your browser at leftlion.co.uk/add.
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The revamped Sneinton Market: Core blimey. Sneinton Market: it’s the oldest of its kind in Nottingham, having clocked up 150 years of service with fruit and veg stalls, plants, clothing, bric a brac, antiques, groceries, lace and all that good stuff. But, on the other hand, it’s also the newest market in Notts, after a huge regeneration of its square. And no mere re-laying of slabs either; the revamp has been the result of a huge collaboration between the market, the Council, and local artists and art groups. The centrepiece of the new market is Orchard, a major new commission undertaken by the award-winning Nevile Gabie, whose CV includes the relocation of a two-ton iceberg from Greenland to a park in Cheshire, compiling a massive collection of photos of goalposts across four continents, and being artist in residence at the Halley Reserch Station in Antarctica. This time, he’s gone a bit pastoral with a range of permanent, temporary and participatory projects which involve the planting of apple trees of 100 different varieties – not only in the square, but into Sneinton and St Anns, in an attempt to create an urban orchard, tie the market even tighter to the community, and make a contribution to the sustainable food debate. The project reaches a highpoint from Friday 9 December, with the Orchard Symposium at Nottingham Contemporary; a day-long event that investigates how food is bought and sold in cities and how that effects the use of urban space. Meanwhile, the Surface Galley across the road from the market opens its Orchard Exhibition, featuring a series of new documentary photographs by Oliver Dalby, a series of curated meals and installations from, Rebecca Beinart, a mobile apple press by Mathew Trivett, a new volume of writings by Wayne Burrows, and featuring Trampoline and Dance4. The market opens the next day, with workshops and demonstrations, and the weekend culminates with an Orchard Feast at Stonebridge City Farm. All of this is free, but you’ll need to book for the Orchard Symposium – check the Orchard Sneinton website to reserve a place.
Market Coordinator Wendy Honeyman-Smith on Orchard and its deep, deep roots in Sneinton So how did an open market end up working with an artist - and vice versa? Sneinton Market has had quite a lot to do with art; the Apples and Pears and Crafty Wares markets by Curiosity.Haus were successful, and they’ll be coming back this year. Other artists will be selling and exhibiting here, and we are working with Surface Gallery on publicity. There is a strong arts community in St Ann’s, Sneinton and the Lace Market, and the Orchard project was commissioned to reflect that. Is this a definite attempt to step away from the puffa-jacket, threeCrazy-Frog-thongs-for-a-fiver image that markets have? No, we like Crazy Frog thongs as well. All new shopping areas try to get at least a bit arty and conceptual when they start, but they get dated very quickly. Is this why you settled on something more natural? To me, an orchard in an urban setting could be seen as conceptual - but there are loads of people round here who are passionate about food, and growing, and I don’t think they see it that way. During the community consultations many people wanted to see more greenery, so see the urban area softened a bit. I like the idea of being able to follow a green route out of the City to, for instance, the river. I think we’re on our way to being able to do that now. What’s the relationship between Sneinton and apples? Well, we’ve always sold apples – and before the Enclosure Acts of the 1850, Sneinton and St Anns would have been farmland, leading up to the orchards in Mapperley and Lambley, and eastward to Southwell. Therefore, Sneinton was the natural place for a fruit and veg market. I’ve found out a lot about apples during this project. Did you know that they never reproduce accurately unless they are grafted onto stable root stock? Otherwise they make endless varieties of themselves, like people. Do you not worry that such a strong art presence might put off certain people from using a working market? It might with some people. But then, you don’t have to read trees as art. Everyone can recognise and appreciate trees, there were trees here before, and they were loved by the businesses on Bath Street, so they have been retained. I think the Orchard project works on many different levels; when the marketplace is busy they will provide a back drop, and when the square is empty they will help define the space. What are your future plans? What’s the goal for the market, and Orchard? Our future plans are quite ambitious. The City Council have supported our plans one hundred percent. Apart from the traditional Saturdays and Mondays, we have a student market planned for Wednesdays, and ‘Something for the Weekend’, a jazz-cafe type of Friday evening market. We want to see the square become a hub – for buying and selling, for community, art and fresh, local food. The legacy of Orchard will be the trees, and the opportunity we have had to really think through with a lot of other people how we would like to see the space used. Orchard, 9-11 November, Sneinton Market orchardsneinton.co.uk
music event listings...
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
Thursday 01/12
Thursday 01/12
Injured Birds The Malt Cross Free, 8pm
Kris Ward The Southbank Bar Kris Ward.
The Lemonheads The Rescue Rooms £15, 7.30pm Performing It’s A Shame About Ray
Sixties Gold Royal Centre £22 / £24 / £26.50, 7:30pm Gerry and The Pacemakers, The Searchers, The Fortunres and Chip Hawkes.
Ever daydreamed about becoming the next Shane Meadows? Being a pretender to The Neptunes’ producer throne? Or even the British equivalent of Shigeru Miyamoto? Well, if you’re into the creative side of film, TV, music or gaming, the Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies is the place to help you turn your passion into a career. How good is it? Well Shane Meadows himself has made use of the place this year, for the latest instalment of the This Is England saga.
Friday 02/12
Running courses in Music Technology, Film & TV Production and Games Technology, Confetti is a little bit different from other colleges. The first thing that’s apparent is the hugely creative atmosphere; everything is geared towards making this place of learning a stimulating environment. As opposed to larger colleges, the pin-sharp focus on media-based courses means that you’re learning from – and with - like-minded people on industry-standard kit. It’s like working in the ‘real world’ of media, but with the safety net of people who can help you.
John Taylor Trio Lakeside Arts Centre £12 / £15, 8pm - 11pm Rob Deering Christmas Special The Glee Club £10, 7pm The Treatment Rock City £7, 6.30pm Junkie Kut (Single Launch Party) Spanky Van Dykes £3, 8pm - 12am On the Verge The Hand and Heart Free, 8:30pm - 11:45pm Mr. Plow, Dan Britton, Chris Conway and Bella Roots. Forest Fire, Hhymn and Fists The Chameleon Cafe Bar £5 , 7:30pm - 11:30pm Plus Twenty Year Hurricane Tee Dymond The Approach Free, 9:30pm Martin Taylor The Trent Navigation Inn Free, 9pm Malindy Deux Araab Musik Dogma £3, 10pm - 3am Button Pusher Jamcafé Who’s Alan Stiletto? The Maze £4 / £5, 9pm Old Basford, Wholesome Fish, Howlin Black and DJ Mista Shotta.
Antonio Forcione and Adriano Adewale Nottingham Contemporary £15, 8pm Plus Sura Susso and Peter Bernard Zebrahead The Rescue Rooms £11, 6.30pm Plus Army of Freshmen Hessian Throw Travellers Rest Free, 9pm - 11pm Kasabian Nottingham Arena £30, 7pm Plus Miles Kane Runs until: 03/12 Dollop Stealth £10, 10pm With James Blake DJ set, Dollop DJs and more TBC. Summerlin Rock City £6, 6.30pm plus The Hype Theory and You Ate My Dog. Wonky Wax Headz Moog Free entry, 9.30pm Percydread Live Spanky Van Dykes £3 / £5, 9pm - 2am
CONFETTI
Definitely not a throwaway outfit
You’re not just stuck in a vacuum, though; events, commercial projects and trips are part and parcel of the Confetti experience, helping you to build up a network of contacts for when you’ve graduated. Past trips have taken in the likes of the Berlin International Film Festival and video games event Japan-Tag in Dusseldorf. All this long-standing industry insight and tutor support is geared towards preparing you to hit the ground running. So, whether you want to become a music producer, camera operator, sound recordist or games designer, places for courses that begin as soon as January are still available. And get a shift on; we want to start writing about you… Check their website, call 0115 993 2373 or text MEDIA to 88802 to find out more. Confetti, Convent Street, NG1 3LL confetti.uk.com
Friday 02/12
Saturday 03/12
Sunday 04/12
The After Dark Movement Jamcafé Free, 8pm - 1am
Troumaca and Starlings Stealth £5, 10pm
Alphabet Backwards The Golden Fleece
Sticky Morales The Approach Free, 9pm
The Staves and Paul Thomas Saunders The Navigation Live £6, 8pm
Tom Attah and Franny Eubanks The Trent Navigation Inn Free, 9pm Kunt and The Gang The Old Angel £6, 8pm - 11:30pm Even Flow The Maze £3 / £4, 8pm
Saturday 03/12
Black Cherry Burlesque The Black Cherry Lounge £8, 8pm
Sack Sabbath Rock City £10, 6.30pm
The Pushrods The Running Horse £2 entry, 9pm
Twin Atlantic The Rescue Rooms £8, 6.30pm
Stagefright The Running Horse Free, 9pm - 11:30pm Soundhism 14 The Bodega £3 - £6, 9pm - 3am DJ Funky East The New Art Exchange Free, 8pm - 12am The Last Pedestrians The Trent Navigation Inn Free, 9pm Delta Sun and The Golden Troubadours Deux £4, 8pm Seven Little Sisters The Lion Inn Free, 8pm
THIS SHOP ISN’T CRÊPE The Curious Pancake: it’s flipping amazing.
Shake and Bake Jamcafé With DJ Leygo.
Food lovers: calm yourself. The Curious Pancake has absolutely nothing foodbased on offer. Everyone else: get excited, for the aforementioned inquisitive egg-based comestible is actually an online store brimming with crafty and quirky products that you’ll want to chuck in your shopping basket icon.
Revolution Sounds Xmas Party! The Maze £6, 4:30pm The JB Conspiracy, The Junk, Barrelman, Girlfixer, Firing Blanks, The Headstarts, Luddite Bastard, The Rutherfords, Will Bailey, Liam O’Kane, Back to Basics DJs and Stanley Mackerel.
Yes, at this time of the year internet shopping is an infinitely preferable way to spend a dinner hour than stepping into the cold and making your way through hundreds of people who seem oblivious to the fact that it’s normal to walk in a straight line at a reasonable pace – and sites like the CP not only offer something a bit different, but also give you a warm glow inside because you’re sustaining small businesses in Notts. God bless us, everyone! According to Claire Senior, the mastermind behind The Curiosity Pancake, the slightly weird choice of name comes from The Third Policeman, the rather dark and absurd book by Flann O’Brien. ‘And I have an unwavering love of pancakes with maple syrup and ice cream, but am baffled by their curious ability to increase my BMI’. Born and bred in Pontefract, Claire moved to Nottingham after she graduated eight years ago because of our thriving arts scene, good pubs and cheap rent. With a degree in Illustration under her belt, she began The Curious Pancake as a way of selling the fun and quirky products that she’s been creating: illustrative gifts, cards, stationery, jewellery, wallets and bags. The Curious Pancake site features a range of fun, accessible, everyday adornments, including a super-cute laser-cut Peter Pan crocodile necklace with a tick-tock clock cut out of its middle, and a Smart Arse badge for the know-it-all in your life. Bags include the chortle-out-loud work of Gemma Correll, and there are notebooks and writing sets that are so cool you’ll be digging around in your bag for that long-forgotten pen. The website officially launched in October 2011 and is going from strength to strength. The Curious Pancake is all about the bigger picture, though, and are happy for any artists and makers to drop them a line if they feel their work could fit with what’s on the site. So doodlers, crafters, designers and makers, check it out and see if you can become part of a flipping good thing.
Deli Quartet Nottingham Contemporary Free, 7pm
Sunday 04/12 Grant Hart (Husker Du) The Glee Club £14, 7pm Amplifier Rock City £11, 7.30pm The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus and Hawthorne Heights The Rescue Rooms £10, 6pm
Acme Swing Band Deux Pete The Feet The Hand and Heart Free, 1pm Harry’s Tea Time Jam The Lion Inn Open Mic Night The Johnson Arms Dr Comfort and The Lurid Revelations The Southbank Bar
Monday 05/12 Lust For Life Spanky Van Dykes Free, 9pm Aloe Blacc Rock City £15.50, 7pm The Rock Sound Riot Tour The Rescue Rooms £14, 6.30pm Malcolm Middleton The Bodega £12.50, 7pm Plus Human Don’t Be Angry. Acoustickle The Maze £3, 7:30pm Union Station Massacre, Alexa Hawksworth, Jake Buckley, Boychild and Richard Howell. Kinki Kristmas The Forum £4 / £5, 10:30pm Only Men Aloud Royal Centre £19.50 / £26.50 / £32.50, 7:30pm
Tuesday 06/12 Ivan Campo The Malt Cross Free, 8pm Eat The Beat Spanky Van Dykes Free, 12pm - 5pm Ben Howard The Rescue Rooms
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music event listings...
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
Tuesday 06/12
Thursday 08/12
We Were Promised Jet Packs The Bodega £7, 7pm Plus Let’s Buy Happiness
Adam Ant and The Good, The Mad and The Lovely Posse Rock City £25, 7pm John Law’s Opt Trio Bonington Theatre Free - £12, 8pm - 11pm Def Leppard / Motley Crue Nottingham Arena £45, 7pm Timothy J Simpson The Bodega
Manière des Bohémiens The Hand and Heart 8:30pm - 11pm Glastonbudget Festival Audition The Maze £4, 7:30pm Mokshah, TTL Overdrive, Dodos Aren’t Dead, Ghost Town Music and George Buchanan. Kiss Kiss Oceana £3 / £4, 10pm Duran Duran Nottingham Arena £30 - £55, 7:45pm
Wednesday 07/12
Let Me Die A Young Man’s Death Spanky Van Dykes The Magic Band The Rescue Rooms £20, 7.30pm Professor Green Rock City Steve Mcgill The Trent Navigation Inn JD Promotions Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm Best Kept Secret, 3rd Time Lucky, Break The Silence and Angel Of Solace. QuoFestive Nottingham Arena £37.50, 7pm Status Quo, Roy Wood and Kim Wilde. Christmas In The City 2011 Royal Centre
Thursday 08/12
Student Beer and Carols The Malt Cross Glenn Tilbrook The Rescue Rooms £17.50, 7pm
Martin Taylor The Trent Navigation Inn Teebee Dogma £3, 10pm - 3am Balkan Express The Hand and Heart Free, 8:30pm Notts In A Nutshell Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm The Fade, Nightmare Arcade, Timestealers and The Bystander. Jay Hart The Southbank Bar Bryony Griffith and Will Hampson Nottingham Playhouse £7, 8pm Nottingham Classics - sinfonia ViVia Royal Centre £10 - £32, 7:30pm
Friday 09/12
Boogie Street The Approach Big D and The Kids Table Rock City £10, 6.30pm Basslaced Stealth £12, 10pm Flux Pavilion, Jack Beats, Feed Me, Gemini, and more. Hanger 3 The Running Horse £2 entry, 9pm - 11:30pm
It’s A Wonderful Fife
Caledonian Soul reaches Glee this January
King Creosote & Jon Hopkins arrive at Glee Club on Tuesday 31 January with a rarer-than-rare opportunity to hear their Mercury Prize-nominated LP Diamond Mine in full in an intimate, all-seated setting. A collaboration between King Creosote - Fife singersongwriter and Fence collective member Kenny Anderson – and maverick electronic producer Jon Hopkins, who’s also worked with Coldplay and Brian Eno, Diamond Mine is a genuine labour of love, recorded over a number of years whenever Jon and KC could get together, without the pressure of deadlines. Intended to be heard as a single experience – which it will be when it’s performed at Glee - Diamond Mine produces a near classical suite of emotion ranging from cracked despair to patched-up euphoria. Described by King Creosote as a “soundtrack to a romanticised version of a life lived in a Scottish coastal village,” the record weaves in slices of Fife life - bike wheels, spring tides, tea cups and café chatter - to produce one of those beautiful, unique and timeless albums that certain people get obsessive about. Support comes from Edinburgh-based artist Withered Hand, aka Dan Wilson, and tickets are priced at £12, available from the website. Or call ‘em on 0871 472 0400. glee.co.uk/nottingham-music
Friday 09/12
Kool Kat / The Garage Reunion Xmas Party 2011 Escucha £10, 9pm - 4am Graeme Park, Allister Whitehead, Digs and Woosh, Cass Roc, Jonathan, Buhdha Brothers, Dave Cotterill. Kerblammo – Round 4 The Maze £3.50, 8pm - 2am 8mm Orchestra Jamcafé Plus Practical Lovers, Zackie Chan and Skyes Dymond. Blues Night The Trent Navigation Inn Sounds Of Life The Old Angel £3 / £4, 8pm Band of Jackals, The Human Targets, The Species and Something of Boris. Assault Spanky Van Dykes £2 / £3, 9:30pm
Out With The Old And New Nottingham Pride: not just for summer It’s one of the big events in the LGBT calendar in Notts – sod it, in the Notts calendar, full stop - but even though the weather is way too nippy to stand on a float with your shirt off, work is already underway to ensure that next year’s Nottinghamshire Pride event is going to be even bigger and better than the one that occurred in July. For a kickoff, it’s going to be extended to two days in 2012 – the parade will still dominate the Saturday, while the Sunday will be a bit less frantic – a ‘hangover’ day, if you will, making the biggest festival of diversity in the East Midlands even more prominent. If it’s anything like last year’s event – which was rammed with high-profile music and comedy, Harry Derbridge from The Only Way is Essex and thousands of people from all walks of life – it’s gonna be massive. Eon will also once again play a big role this year, sponsoring the event once again. “We are very Proud of Eon coming on board again they are a great company and worked really well with us last year “said Angela Barker Pride’s Chair. So, with the festive season upon us, the organisers of NP will be taking the opportunity to spread the word and jack its profile up even more in a special event at Jongleurs Pride Christmas special on Sunday 18 of December, with performances from Mark Cram, Andrew O’Neill, Topping and Butch, Robert White and Jonathon Mayor. Ticket prices are £20 in advance and £25 on the door if you’re partaking in a slap-up meal, or £10 in advance and £15 on the door if you’ve already had a big tea. nottinghamshirepride.co.uk / jongleurs.com
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Saturday 10/12
The Feds The Approach Bella Hardy The Glee Club £10, 6.45pm Death In Vegas The Rescue Rooms Friends Electric Stealth £5, 10pm Ellwood Rock City £8, 6.30pm Purple Radio Christmas Party Moog Free, 4pm - 3am Hot Money The Running Horse £2 entry, 9pm - 11:30pm Psycle’s Christmas Caper The Maze £5, 10pm - 4am Manière des Bohémiens Cafe Bar Contemporary Free, 8:45pm - 11pm 3 Legged Cat The Trent Navigation Inn Highness Soundsystem The Bodega £6, 10pm - 4am The Long Tall Texans The Old Angel £12.50, 8pm Hoochie Coochie Club Xmas Party Spanky Van Dykes £5, 8pm - 2am Scott Charles, Frank Gannon, The Duke, Tom Lawrie, Kev Connellan and Craig Simpson. The Shakes and Richard Howell The Southbank Bar The Bootleg Beatles Royal Centre £25
Sunday 11/12 Shed Seven Rock City £18.50, 7pm
Sunday 11/12
Swound! The Rescue Rooms £5, 7pm Poppy Folk Club Christmas Theme Night The Poppy and Pint Folkus Christmas Show The Maze £4, 8pm Wild Wood The Southbank Bar Grimethorpe Colliery Band Royal Centre £18 / £19.50 / £21, 7:30pm
Monday 12/12
Notts In A Nutshell Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm Sychatrissi, Sacrisity, Blindsight and Daniel Angelus. The Saturdays Nottingham Arena £19.50 / £28.50 / £32.50, 7:30pm
Tuesday 13/12
Bowen and The Tide The Malt Cross An Audience with Peter Shilton The Approach £15, 6pm Jam Session / Open Mic Travellers Rest Deli The Hand and Heart Glastonbudget Festival Audition The Maze £4, 7:30pm
Wednesday 14/12
Title Fight The Rescue Rooms £8.50, 6.30pm This Town Needs Guns The Bodega £7, 7pm Steve Mcgill The Trent Navigation Inn
music event listings... Wednesday 14/12
Thursday 15/12
Franz Nicholay The Maze £5 / £6, 7:30pm
A West End Christmas Royal Centre £16 - £25
Thursday 15/12 Example Rock City £17.50, 6.30pm Plus Fenech Soler Gilad Atzmon’s Orient House Ensemble Bonington Theatre £5 - £12, 7pm - 11pm Acoustic Sessions The Golden Fleece Richard Howell The Approach Martin Taylor The Trent Navigation Inn DJ Derek Dogma Free / £3, 10pm - 3am Take The A-Tram The Hand and Heart Nhyilus The Old Angel IKE Promotions Presents The Maze £3, 7pm Odessa, Blind Ambitions, Strike Team, Armed For A Crisis and The Repent. Richard Howell The Southbank Bar
Friday 16/12 Rock City in the 90s Christmas Special Rock City £3, 10pm The Complete Stone Roses The Rescue Rooms £12, 7pm Pointy Boss The Running Horse
Friday 16/12 Friday Freak The Basement £2 / £4, 8pm - 6am Manière des Bohémiens The Old Market Square Ska - Ra - Bouche and Monkey Doctor DJ Jamcafé Buzzard The Lion Inn The Notts Collective X-Mess Party The Maze £3, 9pm Audiophile Sessions Cafe Bar Contemporary
Saturday 17/12 Dog Is Dead Rock City £7.50, 7pm
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
Dog City The biggest Notts gig this decade - so far... Capping what has been a remarkable year, local five-piece Dog is Dead are set to headline the main stage Rock City on Saturday 17 December. Support comes from Tribes and the winner of the recent Nusic podcast competition that gave the opportunity for one lucky Notts band the chance to open up the show. It’ll be the perfect end to Dog Is Dead’s year and a way to celebrate their achievements in 2011. They’ve done numerous laps of the UK on tour, supporting the likes of Viva Brother and Bombay Bicycle Club along with their own headline shows, including a sold out show at the Rescue Rooms that saw scenes not witnessed in this town since Limahl out of Kajagoogoo stood on a window ledge over the Littlewoods in the Market Square and waved at some girls. Then they played a string of UK festivals, including a homecoming show at Splendour. The five lads from West Bridgford also recently dropped new single Hands Down, and earlier this year completed their ‘Your Childhood’ trilogy – a trio of songs they released on their own record label made up of Glockenspiel Song, Young and River Jordan. With each of these releases the band have showcased why there has been such a buzz of excitement hanging around them, and not only here in Nottingham but all over the UK. It was these early songs and a string of electric live performances that saw them get snapped up and talked into signing on the dotted line with Atlantic Records, meaning they are now rubbing shoulders with the likes of Death Cab For Cutie, Panic! At The Disco and, perhaps less impressively, Craig David. They are currently holed up away writing and recording demos in preparation for their debut album, which is set to see the light of day in the Spring/ Summer time next year. Until then, there’s this show; a fitting end to a ridiculously successful year. Dog is Dead, Rock City, 8 Talbot St, NG1 8GG, Saturday 17 December. dogisdead.co.uk
Saturday 17/12
Saturday 17/12
Sunday 18/12
Earthtone9 The Rescue Rooms £10, 6.30pm
The Money Jamcafé
Kate Walsh The Glee Club £10, 7.30pm
The 10th Christmas Covers Party The Bodega £6, 8pm Bad Axe The Running Horse El Gecko The Trent Navigation Inn
20 Years Of Smokescreen The Maze £5, 9pm Mas Y Mas Cafe Bar Contemporary Family Carol Concerts Royal Centre £8.50 - £15.50, 7pm Runs until: 21/12.
Prints In The Snow The Golden Fleece Hugh Pascall Quintet Nottingham Contemporary £7, 7:30pm Pete The Feet The Hand and Heart
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music event listings... Sunday 18/12 Harry’s Tea Time Jam The Lion Inn Kate Rusby - Christmas Concert Nottingham Playhouse Alfie Boe Royal Centre £20 / £30 / £35
Monday 19/12 Beer and Carols The Malt Cross
Monday 19/12 Friendly Fires Rock City Notts In A Nutshell Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm 3rd Time Lucky, The Gnome Architects, Paradise Killers and The Streetlights.
Tuesday 20/12
Jam Session / Open Mic Travellers Rest Colin Staples and Doc Shellard The Hand and Heart Crazy Arm and Great Cynics The Maze £5, 7:30pm Plus Smokey Bastard, PJ Bond, Bad Ideas and Shankland.
Wednesday 21/12
Lock Up The Rescue Rooms £12, 6.30pm Steve Mcgill The Trent Navigation Inn IKE Promotions Presents The Maze £3 / £4, 7pm
Thursday 22/12
Acoustic Sessions The Golden Fleece Aistaguca The Hand and Heart
Friday 23/12
The Modest and The Aithers Christmas Party Gig Hucknall Town FC £5 tickets, 7pm - 12pm The Money The Rescue Rooms £5, 7pm Mick Rutherford Band The Running Horse £2, 9pm - 12am Chaos Promotions Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm The Spangle Corps, SKIM and Separation Anxiety.
Thursday 29/12
Acoustic Sessions The Golden Fleece Dark Edge Indie Night The Greyhound Baron Lewis Duo The Approach Moonwhiskey Soul Jam Return! The Maze Kris Ward The Southbank Bar
Saturday 31/12
LeftLion New Years Eve Extravaganza The Maze £5 - £10, 9pm - 1am Baby Godzilla, Captain Dangerous, Manière des Bohémiens, Hot Japanese Girl, Tray Electric, Mokshah and more. New Years Eve Party The Malt Cross £8, 8pm Natalie Duncan and DJ Minister Hill. Countdown 2011 Rock City, Rescue Rooms and Stealth £20, 8.30pm Sub Focus, DJ Fresh, Friction, Hype, Cyantific and The Prototypes, Dbridge, Marcus Intalex, Break and Klute, Youngsta, Jack Sparrow, LX, Ms Dynamite, Breakage, Mistajam and Subscape, Hudson Mohawke, L-Vis 1990, Pearson Sound, Toddla T and Redlight. See below.
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
Buggin’ Out
Three-handed DJ collective hit Moog this NYE The triumvirate of soul in Nottingham, Beane, Wrighty and Mark A are all likeminded vinyl spinners who, as seasoned DJs, were sick of being told what they could and couldn’t play. They came together in a smooth rebellion to play music they really loved and wanted to hear out on the town. Through word of mouth and plenty of chat they started rotating through various places around Nottingham including The Loft, Brownes & Snug, as well as launching their own website. With record collections spanning over six decades, if it’s soul, they’ve got it covered: everything from dusty 45s from yesteryear, latin shufflers from Brazil, glitterball disco gear, crazy futuristic grooves from Detroit, insane broken jams from West London, old school boogie joints or solid underground house. Quite simply it doesn’t matter if it’s new or old, well known or obscure; if it’s got soul coursing through its veins then Soul Buggin’ will make sure it’s played loud and proud. Having built up a sturdy reputation in fair Nottingham, they’ve been invited to play at the legendary Disconnected Warehouse Party in The Lace Market, Freestyle in Birmingham, Broadway Café Bar, Sounddhism at Bodega and Nottingham Contemporary. Not content with one monthly night, they have a monthly residency at Bar Eleven, as well as for the last three years at Moog. But not just so that they can play their own tunes, oh no, they have had a pretty slick turnaround of guest DJs who they personally believe can get grins slapped on punters faces and feet on the floor. Since starting out, the night has gone from strength to strength and regularly sees big names playing on the last Saturday of every month, including Benji B, Phil Asher, Ashley Beedle, Domu, Colin Curtis, Horse Meat Disco, Bill Brewster, Simon Faze Action, Luke Unabomber & Al Kent, to name but a fistful. What they’re getting right excited about at the moment though is their forthcoming New Years Eve party at Moog with some big guests in the shape of Alex Traska (MyHouse-YourHouse), Mark Rayner (Wild Honey) and Osbourne (DiY). Far enough out of town to avoid all the messy scenes that you don’t want to be part of, it’s also a proper bargain at £3/£5 a ticket and running from 9pm – 4am.
Saturday 31/12 Soul Buggin’ New Years Eve Disco Moog Osbourne, Alex Traska, Wrighty, Beane and Mark A. New Years Eve 2011 The Southbank Bar £15, 7pm Black Tie Ball / Joe Strange Band. Full Circle The Running Horse £3.50, 9pm - 1am Urban Intro The Approach £10, 9pm New Years Eve Classical Gala Royal Centre £10 - £31
Wednesday 04/01
Notts In A Nutshell Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm Great British Weather, The Conifers, The Rift and Dead Commercial.
Detonate see the New Year in with a bang
The mighty Detonate aren’t afraid to shout it from the rooftops: beatswise, they’re laying on the biggest - and quite possibly the best - NYE party in the UK. Spreading themselves thickly over the holy trinity of clubs - Rock City, Stealth and Rescue Rooms – their Countdown events smash it on an annual basis, and the last three years have been outright sell-outs, with the word ‘epic’ used more than once or twice. Detonate itself will be playing host in the main arena with acts such as electronics maestro, Sub Focus, DJ Fresh, Friction, Hype, Cyantific and The Prototypes, and get deeper with their basement line-up, which features Dbridge, Marcus Intalex, Break and Klute. Play No Games will represent the darker side of dubstep with Youngsta, Jack Sparrow, V.I.V.E.K and LX One amongst others. Nottingham’s formidable dubstep and drum and bass overlords Basslaced and DBE will be hosting in the Rescue Rooms. There’ll be local talent in the form of Radio 1Extra’s MistaJam, who couldn’t resist coming back after his successful stint last year. He’ll also be joined by the likes of Ms Dynamite, Breakage and Subscape. Meanwhile Stealth plays host to some of 2011’s rising stars alongside veterans of the bass music scene; Hudson Mohawke, L-Vis 1990, Pearson Sound, Toddla T and Redlight. Running over almost twelve hours from 8.30pm, (for those who can’t wait for the action to begin) to 6.30am (for those who never want it to end), seven arenas of music, 4,000 people a nd Funktion One sound throughout, you know the score: it’s going to be loud, it’s going to be manic, it’s going to be fun. The super early bird tickets have all sold out – unsurprisingly - but there are still limited early bird tickets for those last few organised people, and general admission is available up until, well, probably not long. Strolling up to the door on the night and expecting to pay your way in is not advisable. Countdown 2011, 31 December, Rock City, Stealth and Rescue Rooms, Talbot Street, NG1 5GG detonate1.co.uk
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On the Verge The Hand and Heart Free, 8:30pm - 11:45pm With Van der Verse, Rue Royale and Bruise. Mofo Promo Presents The Maze £3 / £4, 6:30pm Into Ruins, Beneath Hell, Gods To Fall, Elessar and Deliver Us To Evil.
Saturday 07/01
Rethink Charity Gig The Maze £3.50, 2pm With Best Kept Secret, Scarlet Walls, Artifice, Spirytus, Them Balloons, Generation Freak, A Dishonest Truth, Def Goldblum, Dreaded Monkey, Wreckless Necklass and Screaming Psyche. One Direction Royal Centre £19.50 / £27.50, 7:30pm
Sunday 08/01
Nottingham Folkus Presents The Maze
Tune Thousand And Twelve
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Thursday 05/01
Tuesday 10/01
Manière des Bohémiens The Hand and Heart 8:45pm - 11pm
Tuesday 10/01
Notts In A Nutshell Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm Kagoule, Heroes Of Switzerland, Vanity Box and Anticure.
Thursday 12/01
Aistaguca The Hand and Heart Fay Hild Trio Nottingham Playhouse £10 / £12, 8pm
Friday 13/01
Tribal Suns and Allotment Dogs The Old Angel £3, 8pm Plus The Fade and Surveillance.
Friday 13/01
Monkey Nuts Presents The Maze
Saturday 14/01
Deaf Club Stealth £5, 10pm Stiff Kittens The Bodega Audacious Face Presents The Maze £3.50, 6pm
Sunday 15/01 Of The Night The Maze
Monday 16/01
Asking Alexandria Rock City £12.50, 7.30pm Notts In A Nutshell Presents The Maze £3, 7:30pm Nigel Kennedy Royal Centre £35 / £39.50 / £45
Tuesday 17/01
Son of Eagle The Malt Cross The Black Dahlia Murder The Rescue Rooms £12, 6.30pm Plus Skeletonswitch and Fleshgod Apocalypse
Thursday 19/01
Paul Carrack in Concert Royal Centre £27.50, 7pm Toploader The Rescue Rooms £15, 7.30pm The Money and Rugosa Nevada. Balkan Express The Hand and Heart
The Bread and Bitter
The Navigation
Tamatanga
Britain’s pubs are closing at a rate of fifty per week, but the Bread and Bitter is unlikely to be among the fallen any time soon. Sourcing ingredients locally and attracting a diverse crowd while keeping its prices down - has ensured the place is buzzing with activity throughout the week. As it’s owned by Castle Rock, a pint of Harvest Pale costs a very reasonable £2.50; possibly the high point of my companion’s evening.
Since being taken over by new owners in the summer, The Navigation has undergone a makeover, started to build a rep as a gig and event venue, and – most importantly for this section of the mag – has swooped in to recruit Annie and her renowned Burger Shack from the Old Angel. This makes the Nav a pretty hectic place at the best of times; when we rocked up there were three Rockabilly bands playing downstairs, and a craft fair on upstairs.
With its business model obviously summed up as ‘the Indian Wagamama’, this self-styled urban Indian canteen is clearly aiming for the pre-cinema and theatre clientele who frequent Nando’s, TGI Friday’s and the aforementioned pan-Asian chain. So out go the pints of Kingfisher, hot towels, Kama Sutra murals and sitar music; in come menus that double up as placemats, kids’ meals, tasteful paisley, fashionably blocky stools and speakers pumping out deep house. To someone who has spent time in curry houses across the shire, it’s all a bit weird at first; yes, you can get poppadums and chutneys (£2.45) if you ask the waiting staff nicely, but if you want an onion bhaji (£3.85) you’ll have to settle for it as a side to your main.
All You Need Is Loaf
Monday is Curry and Quiz night at the Beer and Bitter, so I went for the curry-and-a-pint offer (£8.95). My lamb was served with rice, naan bread, and mango chutney; adding two poppadoms will set you back an extra 75p. The meat was tender, well marinated and garnished with sliced red chillies, ramping things up a notch in terms of heat. My veggie partner opted for Sausages and Mash (£7.25). That usually means those depressing Quorn sausages that resemble amputated fingers after rigor mortis has set in. What actually arrived were homemade vegetarian sausages sourced from a butcher in Beeston; big fat soft-textured masterpieces. In combination with a dollop of creamy mash, fresh cabbage, carrots, peas and rich dark gravy, they were consumed in record time. Vegetarians and vegans are well catered for on both the food and drinks menu; all Castle Rock beers are vegetarian unless they have been refined, so it’s worth checking at the bar. (Refinings help to settle the beer and are made from fish bladders. I may turn vegetarian yet…) Most of the dessert options involved cake. I ordered Alabama Fudge Cake with vanilla ice cream, while my partner went for coffee and walnut cake with cream (both £3.50). His arrived drizzled with caramel sauce – a plate licker – while my delicious and indulgent treat of dark chocolate did not disappoint. The Bread and Butter is a real community pub, opening at 10am for breakfast and offering both a pensioners’ and children’s menu. There’s a local choir who call in every Tuesday night and perform a short set, and the pub houses a ‘brewers’ graveyard’ of artefacts from closed breweries. Even the building is a bit eccentric; originally a bakery, the cast-iron oven fronts are still set into the interior walls, while the bar area features stained glass panels made from recycled bottles. If you’re after sports screens, loud background music and a bottle of WKD, this really isn’t the place for you. But if hearty pub grub, friendly staff and a right good ale ring your bell, then the Bread and Bitter could well become your home from home. Aly Stoneman
It’s got the Canal on lock
Thank Ganesha It’s Friday
As at the Angel, each of the burgers have a theme, mainly musical, with relevant toppings. The ‘Thin Lizzy’ (£6.90) has Guinness as an ingredient, whilst the heart stopping ‘Elvis’ (£6.90) has peanut butter and jam. There’s three options for fries - straight, curly and wedges – and it’s all presented on a wooden slat with a couple of sliced gherkins for garnish. Another huge tick in the ‘win’ column for this place is that, unlike other places where vegetarians are often fobbed off with one or two options on the menu, all 24 of the burgers on the menu can be made for vegans and vegetarians, while the actual beef is locally sourced. My friend and I opt for the ‘Howlin’ Lord’ (£7.50) and the ‘BB King’ (£6.90), our choices possibly subliminally dictated to us by the Blues tunes that fill the pub when we first got there. The latter is drenched in BBQ Sauce and topped with onions and cheese. We take the Quorn option, but it’s more than enough to satiate even the meatiest of appetites. Eating it is a sloppy, but fun experience as the sauce makes its way all over my face and hands. It’s not often that I can say that the simple act of eating a burger is an outright delight, but this is one time when it definitely is. Our second choice - the ‘Howlin’ Lord’ consists of cheddar, jalapeños, black olives, onions, peppers, chilil paste and – gasp - a whole grilled Scotch bonnet pepper. When ordering it, I was advised by the relentlessly cheerful and super-helpful Annie that I’ll need a fire extinguisher. My companion dares me to eat the Scotch bonnet pepper whole. I do, because I’m an idiot. I step through the looking glass into a world of searingly hot sweats and dizzy lightheadedness. According to my companion, who has not immolated his tastebuds, the actual burger is spicy and sweet in equal measure, but not overpowered by heat and is bursting with flavour.
Fortunately, like all good curry houses, there’s a wealth of choice. You can choose from more than a dozen curry bowls; from the fiery infusion of coriander, chilli, ginger and garlic of lamb chettinad (£9.75) to the coconut-based goan fish curry (£10.25) or the creamy tomato-based butter chicken (£9.25) - all with with either rice or naan. Or you can check out their tandoor plates, such as the tender garlic-infused malai lamb chops (£10.75) or the spiced salmon fillet with chutney (£11.25). Or sample one of the chicken, lamb or paneer wraps with chips (£7.96-8.95), or perhaps something from the traditional thali selection (£11.95 £14.25) or Indian tapas menus (three dishes for £12, five for £19). I went for the lamb muglai (£9.75); diced lamb in a ginger and garlic-laced sauce with cream, mace and cardamom. It was warming, full of flavour and complimented by the two round garlic naans. My friend went for the tama feast of lamb chops, tandoori chicken, salmon and hara jhinga (£12.25) and very nearly didn’t finish it – there was enough spicy meat and fish to satisfy even the most hardened carnivore. For dessert I had the pistachio kulfi (£3.45), three scoops of adorable pistachio flavoured ice-cream which calmed down my tingling mouth a treat. My friend had the spiced chocolate mudpie (£4.95), which came with a scoop of ice cream and was slightly too sickly for my liking.
Annie’s Burger Shack proudly claims to serve the best authentic American burgers in the UK. And you know what? They’re probably right. Paul Klotschkow
With an adequate menu of alcoholic drinks (7 wines, 2 beers, 3 cocktails) and plenty more besides, what you get at Tamatanga is a wide range at reasonable prices. While hardcore curry addicts might feel way out of their comfort zone, it’s hard to argue against this place when you compare it to some of the direct competition around the Cornerhouse – and it’s still Indian food, at the end of the day. Claudia Kowalski
6 Wilford Street, NG2 1AA. Tel: 0115 8087280
The Cornerhouse, Trinity Square, NG1 4DB. Tel: 0115 9584848
153-155 Woodthorpe Drive, Mapperley, NG3 5JL. Tel: 0115 9607541
the-navigation.com
tamatanga.com
Our resident fast food expert Beane Noodler continues his quest to eat at every takeaway in Nottingham…
TRENT KEBABS Open seven days a week and pretty much 365 days a year, the trusty kebab shop closes for no man, not even Santa – unless it’s Trent Kebabs. Strangely, despite lying in the heart of the city centre, they choose to close every summer when the students bugger off. Upshot: have one too many in the neighbouring Orange Tree and you can find yourself a hungry man come kicking-out time. Fortunately students are back and falling all over Notts making a mess everywhere, so TK Snaxx has flung its doors back open Willy Wonka-style. I opted for one of their classic large lamb shish kebabs in a naan, but was instantly put on my guard when the guy disappeared through a door in the back to cook it. Half the joy (and relief) is seeing those chunks of beast smoking away on the grill, but to this day I’ll never know what happened ‘out the back’. It’s times like this when you don’t ask questions for fear of the answer, so I decided to chuck in one of their huge onion bhajis as back-up. Fortunately the concoction wasn’t half bad - certainly not the best I’ve chomped on in Nottingham, but this is Studentville paradise with cheap deals a-go-go. You could do a lot worse. 36 Shakespeare Street, NG1 4FQ
PEARL HOUSE Chinese takeaways: a mystery to me, if I’m honest. This is no slight on the fine cuisine of the Orient - I’ve tasted some lovely stuff in sit-down restaurants - but I’ve never had a really good takeaway. This is probably due to blind panic-ordering due to the ridiculous size of the menu; I mean, do you really need three hundred-plus items? I nearly fell back into my traditional ordering technique of ‘spin the menu’ at Pearl House, but I played it safe with the holy quartet of chow mein, prawn balls, chips and egg fried rice. On arrival it positively dripped with unhealthiness (but, of course, that’s half the reason you’re buying it), but let me say this: it hit the spot massively, and it goes without saying that only a complete madman would disregard the power of the Chinese takeaway cooked chip - what is their recipe? So, while I still can’t fully separate the Wu-wheat from the Chinese-chaff, a few foodie friends of mine recommend this gaff no end, so it can’t be half bad. Give it a whirl and let me know, as I still ain’t got a clue. 2-2a Hall Street, NG5 4BB
Rather listen to the tunes on this page than read about ‘em? Better wrap your tabs round Sound Of The Lion, our dedicated music podcast, available at leftlion.co.uk/SOTL. If you want your own tunes reviewed and you’re from Notts, hit up leftlion.co.uk/sendusmusic ...And Stars Collide
The Cult of Dom Keller
Nick Jonah Davis
Finally, after being deafened by their material live, it’s exciting to finally have an album. The Courage To Start Again is an excellent marriage between post-rock and metal, with a mature approach to song-writing that permits an even balance of melody and cacophony. Whilst the long play clocks in at 45 minutes, the time just flies. With never a dull or inaccessible moment, the band has certainly gone through extensive lengths to come up with an original sound that keeps them firmly away from the countless imitators of the genre. You could easily compare the band to the big names at points, which seems inevitable when talking about pretty much any post-rockers, but doing so would only cheapen what is a very positive musical experience. The shining jewel in the crown of the album is When Our Eyes First Met, which nails you to the wall from the get-go with a massive bassline, squalling chords and a relentless drum assault. After your attention has well and truly been beaten into submission the track goes into gentler territory, with the whole band meandering hopefully through lush musical landscapes whilst never overstaying their welcome. A is a very well-structured album and the band exercises a finely-honed sense of balance throughout. The result is a finely crafted work of art. Anthony Whitton Available online. andstarscollide.com
I hit play. Opening track Eyes jolts with a heroic dose of crashing fuzz and layered distortion to warm up the synapses for their impending journey. Worlds flows out of the wires and has that indefinable character of a great psych inner space track – a loose and junkie soothsayer of truth. Sinewy layers of echo guitar slide over a driving beat that pulses ragged and knowing. The singer comes out at me as if lost deep in the vortex of Keller’s maelstrom, with a hand stretched out from No Man’s Land, draaaawn out pronunciation lets me know we have an understanding. The wall of skewed lo-fidelic fuzzed out art that CODK achieve proves that they are hitting their stride. You Are There In Me washed over me with confident awareness, echoing vibrations and dizzying repetition, setting the scene for the epic closer – Saguaro. Seeing as I was in for nine minutes of droning echo and a potentially messy divorce from reality, I laid down and prepared. Time slowed down. Syrupy heartbeats explode, gyrating in spasm to coalesce amongst the exaltation of larks let loose in a hammer strike from the psychojuggernautic belly of CODK’s main event. Before the piece finished, I was taken to a post-apocalyptic epic set on the wastelands of Saturn where time is non-linear and everything is a tessellated oxymoron. I hit play. Darren Howard Available online and at gigs. myspace.com/domkeller
Listening to this album I was unsure of how to review it; it is one of the most beautiful and elegant albums that I’ve heard and no words can do it justice. The only way to appreciate the second album from one of the UK’s, not only Nottingham’s, premier folk guitarists is by putting it on and letting it wash over you. Although I can appreciate good folk music, I’m nothing even approaching a folky, and this is an album heavily steeped in the British folk tradition. With the recent passing of Bert Jansch, this album is a timely reminder of what a huge influence that hugely talented, yet modest, man has been on music, and Nick Jonah Davis is very much part of that great tradition. Of Time and Tides is a short and concise album with its eleven tracks spread over 36 minutes of elegant guitar playing. Opening with Twiga, a sparse and unsettling start to the album where each picked note is giving room to breath. Death and the Monkey is a highlight, dancing around a repeating guitar line and full of pagan joy, whilst Nocturne has the added accompaniment of some meditative piano. So please put down your Mumford and Sons records; if you really want to hear the sound of new folk it is right here on your door step. Paul Klotschkow Available online. facebook.com/nickjonahdavis
Dog Is Dead
Grey Goes Down
The Courage To Start Again Album (Self Release)
Hands Down Single (Atlantic Records) Overnight success will have been a long time coming for Dog is Dead. It’s getting on for eighteen months since their triumphant Glastonbury performance in 2010 which, as the Guardian recently reported, set them on their path to their deal with Atlantic Records. The band have already built up a popular and critical following with their excellent Your Childhood Trilogy and through some superb live performances. Now, they return with their first release on a major label. With producer David Kosten on board – his previous credits include Bat for Lashes and the Mercury Prize nominated Everything Everything – Nottingham’s most likely have come up with a more polished and traditional pop record than their previous efforts without losing the elements that made us love them in the first place. Hands Down is simply one of those great anthemic, chorus led indie-pop records which you’ll be singing along to by the end of the first listen. Rob Milton’s vocals have never sounded better and the band gradually and cleverly adds additional layers of instrumentation until the song reaches its soaring climax. If Dog is Dead can keep producing records of this quality then it will only be a matter of time before Nottingham finally has a popular chart band we can be proud of. Hands Down is hands down one of my singles of 2011. Nick Parkhouse Available online. dogisdead.co.uk
EP2 EP (Self Release)
Love Letters to Rock ‘n’ Roll Album (Self Made Records) Grey Goes Down came together in 2005, rising from the wreckage of New Art Riot. They found early success, winning a national UK Unsigned Battle of the Bands competition in 2006 and completing a national tour. From there, the band stepped sharply away from the norm by spending the next few years writing new material while singer/guitarist Jon Huddy worked as a mercenary in Afghanistan to fund the start-up of the band’s own label and publishing company. With bassist Gemma Jackson and new drummer Arek Kulesza, the band reconvened, released a couple of singles early in 2011 and then focused on this, their debut album. Opening track, Safe Sex has an intro that is reminiscent of Feeder’s Buck Rogers, but this impression quickly dissipates as the buzzsaw guitar kicks in and the band settle into a much sharper, punkier sound. Initially, Huddy’s vocals call to mind American punk/grunge acts like Green Day and perhaps even Soundgarden, but the better comparison may be Simon Neil from Biffy Clyro. Single So Easy is a snarling, spitting beast of a song in the classic punk tradition. It’s very easy to imagine that this band are a formidable proposition live. There are a couple of decent slower songs, but this is a band that is best experienced at full-throttle. Smart lyrics and loud guitars: what’s not to like? Tim Sorrell Available online and at gigs. greygoesdown.com
Of Time And Tides Album (Tompkins Square)
John Marriott The Little Typists EP (Self Release)
John Marriott recently threatened us, stating that if we didn’t review his album soon then his next project would be called Why Don’t LeftLion Review My Stuff When I’ve Been Played On 6Music? It’s for this reason we’ve been biding our time. We can think of nothing we would enjoy more than being the object of his irreverent, sarcastic, deadpan humour - all delivered in a thick Notts accent. This EP is short and sweet. Topics include climbing Mount Everest, a house ruined by...children, the tram defaced by advertising so that you can’t see out on to the beautiful arboretum, a young wordsmith composing a ‘smug anecdotal pop song’, white shoes, and the chattering classes. He’s self-referential and almost bored of the facade of trying to create something unique. In Open Michael he messes about with the loop pedal, bringing in various electronic effects and then suddenly gives up as if bored with the futility of it all. But is it art? is like electronic calypso, the kind of backdrop you’d expect to hear on a level in Super Mario. The music is varied, electronic, constantly changing tempo and on occasion, veers perilously close to cheesy pop. But when juxtaposed against his brutally frank lyrics, instead of wanting to dance, you just want to sit back and admire his verve. Dance music for MC Pitman fans. James Walker Available online. soundcloud.com/thelittletypists
Origamibiro
Shakkei Album (Denizen Recordings) As any Japanese garden designer will tell you, shakkei refers to the principle of “borrowed scenery” elements of the external landscape are incorporated into a garden’s internal composition. An equivalent approach can be found here, which adds electronically treated background effects suggesting the rush of heavy rainfall, the rumbling of an approaching train, or the cheers of a large crowd. Even when these noises are absent, the music retains suggestions of specific environments. This sensibility is amplified in live performances, in which sound effects are generated on stage – rustling camera film, a vintage typewriter, a flickering early animation device. Presumably, similar techniques have been used in the recording studio, but the lack of visual clues soon frees the listener from wondering about the “how”, as the ambient textures instead begin to cast their spell. Initially, these textures are slow, sparse and meditative, with bowed instruments dominating the immediate foreground. Halfway through, a swell of steadily shimmering strings emerges from the stillness, like a sudden shaft of sunlight. Later on, musical box-like tinkles and a repeating two-note interval that could have been lifted from Somewhere Over The Rainbow introduce a sense of nostalgic longing, as if the music was wafting out of dusty crates in a grandparent’s attic. Experimental but fully finished, ambient yet wholly captivating, this is a truly beautiful piece of work. Mike Atkinson Available online and at gigs. origamibiro.com
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Swimming
Ecstatics International Album (Tummy Touch Records) Swimming are here to introduce Nottingham to their own idiosyncratic brand of astronomy-rock. Frontman John Sampson holds together the myriad fuzzy sounds and influences that swoon around his band in successfully captaining the Swimming spaceship everskyward. Neutron Wireless Crystal is a psychedelic whirlpool of dreamy histrionics and sharp, punctuating beats – imagine if Prince was of robot descent. Indeed, there’s a shimmering and glacial tone that runs throughout the album. In Ecstatics in a dizzying synth-pop gem, like a chandelier slowly falling to the ground, while Mining For Diamonds is a slow-burning and ethereal drone that builds into a dub-charged, schizophrenic, glitch-ridden beast. Kid Global is what MGMT would sound like if they kept their heads in the sky but their feet on the ground, while Classic 1001 Dreams is otherworldly odyssey that’s as blissed-out as its title suggests. The dreamy nature of the album has its pros and cons. On the one hand, it carries a weight of imagination and ambition, as if you’re off on a pleasantly numbing hallucinogenic trip. However, as the last notes of closer Team Jetstream ring out, you can’t help but feel that you may have lapped the same landmarks on the journey a few times over. Ecstatics International is a bold and courageous statement from a band light-years ahead of their peers. Andrew Trendell Available online and at all good record shops. swimmingband.com
Ulysses Storm
Snake Cult EP EP (Wicked Wicked Bird) Ulysses Storm are a three-piece band featuring the classic line-up of bass, drums and guitar. Quite a change for former Hellset Orchestra frontman, and now Ulysses Storm main man, Michael Wetherburn, given that Hellset Orchestra were a somewhat different eight-piece band with a multitude of instruments. Their 2010 debut, the Ulysses Storm EP, was an raw, loose-limbed blues album somewhat in the mould of Grinderman or The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. Right from the start of Snake Cult, it’s clear that the band have moved on for their new record: the riffs are still there, but the band seem altogether tighter and heavier now, with Wetherburn’s guitar throwing out a tone-setting, foot-on-themonitor solo on the outstanding Just Another Snake Cult. Franska the Bear has some freaky jazz stylings, but a tone of menace pervades. Oh Oh Oh is funkier, but that choppy rock guitar lingers, joined by some almost Rick Wakeman-like keyboard effects. There’s some piano too on The Ice Glove Held Time, and there are quieter bits - and a bit more of that wailing keyboard - on His Place Upon the Pediment, but in the main, it’s the riffs that dominate. The band describe themselves as producing “bombastic blues dance riffs”, and it’s pretty hard to argue with that. Bombastic riffs, certainly. Highly recommended. Tim Sorrell. Available online and at gigs. facebook.com/pages/Ulysses-Storm
music event listings... Saturday 21/01
Wednesday 25/01
Livewire AC/DC The Rescue Rooms £12.50, 7pm
Josh Rouse and The Long Vacations The Glee Club £15, 7pm
GWAR Rock City £13, 5pm Plus Viking Skull and Sister. fiN Stealth £5, 10pm The Maze Presents The Maze Our Helical Mind, The Afterdark Movement, TheBrokenDoor, Def Goldblum and Spittin Inc.
Sunday 22/01 Cancerous Womb The Old Angel £5, 7pm Plus Zombified, Cacodemonic and Death Tripper. Sounddhism Sunday Sessions The Golden Fleece
Cool Blue and Slamdoubt The Maze £3, 7:30pm
Thursday 26/01
Situated in Exchange Arcade, just a stones throw from the Market Square, The Music Exchange is an independent record shop specialising in second-hand and brand new vinyl. Opened in 2009 as a social enterprise set up by Notts-based homeless charity Framework, the shop evolved from a start-up selling second-hand records that people had donated to the city centre specialists of brand-new vinyl.
Carol Leeming and The Random Acts of Senseless Beauty The Basement 8:30pm - 11:30pm
This locally-sourced approach is paying off in spades, with patronage from two Notts design icons: Sir Paul Smith has been bigging the place up all over the shop, if you’ll excuse the pun, going so far as stocking the pop-up record stores in his Japanese branches with vinyl bought directly from the shop. Meanwhile, the shop’s mint-as T-shirts have been designed by none other than from-here-doing-quite-well-over-there artist, Jon Burgerman.
Blue Shift The Hand and Heart
They don’t just have one of the widest selections of music in the city, either; they also put on some amazing gigs, having taken over venues such as Nottingham Contemporary, Broadway and the Bodega. They aren’t shy about putting on the odd in-store too - Record Store Day last April saw local DJs entertaining a queue that snaked down to the feet of the Cloughie statue. If you’ve never been before, Saturday 3 December would be the perfect day to get acquainted with the place; local label Hello Thor take over the shop and promise a live band, DJs, giveaways and of course - the opportunity to buy some vinyl. The Music Exchange, 18 West End Arcade, Chapel Bar, NG1 6JP themusicexchange.org.uk / frameworkha.org
Let It Out Presents The Maze
Friday 27/01
Thirteen Stars The Malt Cross
Saturday 28/01
All Time Low Rock City £17.50, 7.30pm
The Music Exchange and Hello Thor start the vinyl countdown to 2012
The thing we love about The Music Exchange is that it’s not in competition with other vinyl outlets in town like Rob’s Record and Anarchy; they regularly send customers their way and are more than happy to talk up other shops that share a deep and unabiding love of black wax. Even better; there’s a section dedicated to Notts artists and labels.
Tuesday 24/01
Dave McPherson The Maze £4 / £6, 7:30pm
Right Up Our Alley
Lower Than Atlantis Rock City £8.50, 6.30pm
Hot Point Sound System The Maze £7, 9pm Kenny Ken, Dan D, Xtra Hype Krew, Just James, Wiley, Blake with El Gritz and K Classice, Sandwich of Doom, Lobes, Tinitus, Murden, The Blob, Soul Pimps, The Funky Juke, Chips Malone, Funkman Steve and Sneaky B.
Monday 23/01
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
Wild Flag The Rescue Rooms £11.50, 7pm
Saturday 28/01
Sunday 29/01
Tuesday 31/01
Reel Big Fish Rock City £14.50, 6.30pm
Man Overboard The Rescue Rooms £7, 6.30pm Plus The Story So Far, Save Your Breath and The Riverview.
Laura Veirs The Rescue Rooms £10, 7pm
Batronic The Maze £4 / £5, 9pm The Last Cry and Pink Hearse. Best Of British Royal Centre £6 - £20
Cultural Vibrations The Golden Fleece Free, 8pm - 11:45pm
Tuesday 31/01
King Creosote and Jon Hopkins The Glee Club £12, 7pm Howler The Bodega £8, 7pm
Treehouse The Malt Cross
ChinESE nEw yEar
CElEbrationS Join us to welcome the Year of the Dragon with a feast of lively traditional and contemporary entertainment, culminating in a spectacular fireworks display across the lake.
FrEE
Lakeside Arts Centre, University Park, Nottingham.
y Sundaanuary 29 J m 4.30p
Box Office: 0115 846 7777. www.lakesidearts.org.uk
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art event listings... Thursday 01/12
Thursday 01/12
Klaus Weber Nottingham Contemporary Free, Various times Runs until: 08/01 Klaus Weber’s art works create ruptures with what we would call reality. In so doing they call our deepest belief systems into question. They provide an ironic counterpoint to the shared understanding – social, natural, scientific – that underpins our society. They also expose the maverick forces of nature that disrupt our own ability to control.
Flashback and Anish Kapoor Nottingham Castle Runs until: 18/03 Kapoor’s sensual and beguiling sculptures are created using a range of materials including pigment, stone, polished stainless steel and wax.
Sleeping Beauty: Restoring the Talleyrand Bed Harley Gallery Free, 10am - 2pm Runs until: 24/12 Julia Margaret Cameron Photography Exhibition South Nottingham College Various times Runs until: 09/12 An exhibition of world-class portrait photographs based upon portraiture, spanning images from the birth of photography in the middle of the 19th century to contemporary images.
Thursday 01/12 An English Perspective Harley Gallery Free, 10am - 2pm Runs until: 24/12 Collected over thirty years by William and Alison Parente, this is the first public exhibition of this collection of work by English artists.
An action, event or other thing that occurs or happens again The Bonington Gallery Free, 10am - 5pm Runs until: 23/12 Exploring repetition as a tool for the manipulation and control of the masses. What Comes After Cornerhouse Free, 10am - 5pm Runs until: 03/12 An exhibition of photography and video from recent Nottingham Trent MA Photography graduates, exploring time and memory. Dr Sketchy’s Anti-Art School Glee Club £8, 11:30am Marnie Scarlet and Constance Peach.
Friday 09/12 Orchard Exhibition Surface Gallery Free, 6:30pm Runs until: 20/12 A major new commission for Nottingham’s recently revamped Sneinton Market. The awardwinning artist has planted a series of apple trees in the new square, intended for communal use and enjoyment.
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
CURIOSITY KILLED THE TAT
Craft, Tunes, Booze: Welcome to the Haus of fun If the words ‘Christmas craft fair’ make you automatically think of batty Nana rammell or handmade cards riddled with spelling mistakes, don’t worry; it’s safe to be seen at craft markets nowadays, and not only because they’re being held in places that we like to frequent, like public houses. Curiosity.Haus are one such contemporary craft and design set-up that, like overeager pre-adolescents, can’t wait for Christmas to arrive. So they’re turning Bunkers Hill into an Aladdin’s Cave of desirable delights on Saturday 17 December for a craft fair that you do not want to miss.
If you’re sick of being outdone at Christmas by your cool younger sister who just seems to instinctively know what everyone wants, pop down to Bunkers and outshine the Christmas star that led the three wise men by getting your hands on some of the handmade goodies made by the talented designer folk of the Midlands. We’re talking textiles, jewellery, ceramics, homewares, vintage clothes, accessories, cakes and so much more. The Indie Christmas Market will also have, as the name suggests, music to fill your ears as you browse the wares. And not just any old music; the entertainment will come from live acoustic acts in association with Notts About Music. As all this festive palaver is being held in a pub, there will be deals ahoy; the bar will be open as usual, with spiced winter mulled wine on offer and a free mince pie with every one bought. Plus, to grease the wheels of consumerism, every £10 spent at the bar will earn you a £1 voucher to be used on any purchase from the Christmas Market. As part of Bunkers Hill’s annual Christmas Beer Festival (which runs from Monday 12 December until Monday 19 December), they will be launching a new seasonal ale from the Pub People Company (Everlasting Light, a 3.6% mild bitter), alongside other Christmas ales from a host of breweries including Bateman’s, Young’s, Oakham, Ossett, Blue Monkey, to name but a few. Christmas shopping with all the horrific elements removed and some ruddy good ones added? That’s just how we roll in Nottingham, duckeh. Curiosity.Haus Indie Christmas Market, Saturday 17 December 12-5pm, Bunkers Hill, 36-38 Hockley, NG1 1FP curiosityhaus.co.uk
Friday 09/12
Saturday 07/01
Saturday 07/01
100 Years of Belly Dance Performance New Art Exchange Free, 7pm - 7:30pm Taking you through the history of belly dance.
Where The Lost Things Go Harley Gallery Runs until: 05/02
H is for... Harley Gallery’s first EVER open exhibition Harley Gallery £10 to enter up to 3 pieces. Free entry to view, 10am Runs until: 05/02
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leftlion.co.uk/issue44
theatre event listings... Thursday 01/12
Saturday 21/01
Cinderella The Playhouse Runds until: 14/01
The Vanessa Miller School Of Dancing Showcase Nottingham Playhouse £12.50 / £15, 6:30pm The Vanessa Millar School of Dancing presents their ninth showcase of dance – including ballet, tap, modern, street, jazz, acrobatics and contemporary as well as singing and musical theatre – all performed by its talented dancers.
Wednesday 07/12 Ever Wanted To Act? College Street Centre £8, 8pm - 10pm
Saturday 10/12 Treasure Island Lace Market Theatre £7 / £8 / £10, 2:30pm Runs until: 17/12 This swashbuckling play brings out all the comedy and adventure of the story. Suitable for children of all ages. Sleeping Beauty Royal Centre £13 - £26.50, Various times Runs until: 15/01 Joe Pasquale, Ceri Dupree, and Lucy Evans.
Monday 09/01 The Kiss Of Death Lace Market Theatre £7 - £10 Runs until: 14/01 This hard-hitting modern thriller explores layers of twisted unreality as Zoe and the police team close in on a serial killer.
Tuesday 10/01 Lord Of The Dance Royal Centre £25 / £30.50 / £35.50, Various times Runs until: 12/01
Tuesday 24/01 An Inspector Calls Royal Centre £12 - £26 Runs until: 28/01
Thursday 26/01 Layers Of Skin Nottingham Playhouse £8.50 - £12, Various times A fast-moving, intricate and multilayered production, combining Retina’s bold, physical and challenging choreography with participatory dance and live music from Aranis.
Saturday 28/01 Episodes 2012 Nottingham Playhouse £6 / £8 The performance programme is part of Youth Dance England’s U.Dance framework, inspiring and providing opportunities for children and young people to perform. These annual showcases offer an insight into the wealth of dance and creativity in Nottinghamshire, and provide young people an opportunity to showcase their work in a professional manner.
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
Grim/Fairy Tales Red Riding Hood and Lowry hit Lakeside
He might be famed for his scenes of industrial England, but the iconic L.S. Lowry’s work encompassed far more than Northerners with bad posture – as a new and very special exhibition reveals. Spanning Lowry’s work from the twenties to the mid-fifties, this free showcase – sourced from both private and public collections - is dotted with lesser-known seascapes and nudes, arranged throughout the gallery in a nonchronological order, with an emphasis on the art and no mention of that song about kids on the corner of the street who were sparking clogs. L S Lowry Exhibition, Wednesday 16 November 2011 until Sunday 5 February 2012 Meanwhile, as we approach the time of year when kids get introduced to theatre, the classic fable of the plucky little girl lost in the woods is given a new spin thanks to the pen of Olivier award-winning writer, Mike Kenny. Red Riding Hood still wants to venture into the depths of the forest to visit her Grandma, but this time she has her brother in tow. Directed by Matt Aston and scored by composer Julian Butler (Charlie and Lola), with plenty of chances for the audience to get into the festive spirit with a sing-along. Red Riding Hood is a magical, inventive Christmas treat for children aged four and upwards. Little Red Riding Hood, Thursday 8 December until Saturday 31 December 2011 Djanogly Art Gallery, Lakeside Arts Centre, University Boulevard, NG7 2RD lakesidearts.org.uk
Monday 30/01
Tuesday 31/01
Chinese State Circus - Yin Yang Royal Centre £15 - £28, Various times Runs until: 31/01
All The Fun Of The Fair Royal Centre £14 - £32 Runs until: 04/02
Get your events in the magazine on on our sparkling new shiny website by signing up and entering them at
LeftLion.co.uk/add Always check with the venue before planning your outing to avoid dissapointment.
leftlion.co.uk/issue44 leftlion.co.uk/issue44
37
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Ticket prices £7.50, £4.50 NUS available from www.gigantic.com or The Approach
*(:2 (3,: (5+ ,?;,5:0=, 4,5< (=(03()3, +669: 67,5 WT www.onthefloorcomedy.co.uk • Twitter@onthefloornotts • www.facebook.com/OnthefloorNotts THE APPROACH: FRIAR LANE, NOTTINGHAM NG1 6DQ • TEL: 01159506149 • www.theapproachnottingham.com • www.facebook.com/theapproach • sales@theapproachnottingham.com
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25/11/2011 14:56
comedy event listings... Every Friday
Friday 02/12
The Best In Live Stand-Up Comedy Glee Club Various prices
Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Glee Club £5 / £4, 7:30pm 15 comedians and Spiky Mike.
Jongleurs Comedy Show Jongleurs Various prices
Every Saturday The Best In Live Stand-Up Comedy Glee Club Various prices Saturday Night Comedy Forum Various prices Jongleurs Comedy Show Jongleurs Various prices
Every Sunday The Big Quiz Spanky Van Dykes £1 per entrant, 8pm
Just The Christmas Night Out Forum £15, 6:45pm Barbara Nice, Paul McCaffery, Eric Lampeart and Darrell Martin. Chris Addison - The Time Is Now, Again Royal Centre £20
Sunday 04/12 Sunday Night Comedy The Approach Gary Delaney, Chris McCausland, Phil Nichol and Windsor.
Tuesday 06/12 Daniel Kitson - Work In Progress Forum
Sunday Night Comedy The Approach
Thursday 08/12
Every Monday
Greg Davies The Glee Club £15, 6.45pm
Malt Cross Pub Quiz Malt Cross £2 per team, 8pm
Friday 09/12
Every Wednesday The LeftLion Pub Quiz Golden Fleece £2 per team, 9pm - 11pm 6 members per team. 50p surcharge on every team member over the six.
Every Thursday Entertainment Quiz Night Jamcafé
Funhouse Comedy Club Antenna £25, 7pm Paddy Lennox, Alfie Moore and Spiky Mike.
for more: leftlion.co.uk/listings
Fri-Ha-Ha-Ha Lane The Approach get serious about comedy
There’s a new comedy night in town, with the recent launch of ‘On The Floor’ at The Approach on Friar Lane. Every Sunday they have three acts and a compère and there are some great names heading their way in the next couple of months. The Approach is a great venue for this sort of thing; plenty of space (so you don’t have to sit near the front to get picked on) and a relaxed, intimate atmosphere. They serve a varied food menu and a great range of quality drinks, including real ale. Upcoming headliners include the deadpan Steve Hall on 4 December, supported by the dry wit of Chris McCausland. Brilliant young black observational comic Nathan Caton heads the bill on 11 December with tales of his matriarchal grandmother and a confessional tale about a ‘Your Mum’ cussing battle with an eightyear-old. On the following Sunday there’s a chance to see Steve Day’s observational humour about his deafness. This obviously raises a philosophical question: if a deaf comedian performs in a forest and nobody laughs, does he notice? After a break for Christmas, On The Floor return on 15 January with Sean Percival, a tousle-haired Brummie ex-welder. That’s pretty funny in itself. 22 January sees James Elliot Cook supported by the funny anecdotes of Sally-Anne Hayward. That night will be compèred by the very funny Matt Price, notable for being the first comedian who, after years on the dole, launched his stand-up career with funding from the government’s New Deal scheme. Finally for this bi-month, afro-bearing Brummie Andy White headlines on 29 January with support from Paul B. Edwards and Jen Brister. Tickets are very reasonably priced at £7.50 (or just £4 for students) and to make your night go with a swing there are cheap drinks including a three-bottles-of-beer-for-a-fiver deal and a bottle of wine for £10. The Approach, 12-18 Friar Lane, NG1 6DQ onthefloorcomedy.co.uk
Saturday 10/12
Sunday 11/12
Friday 23/12
Christmas Party Night Glee Club £13 / £26, 7pm Zoe Lyons, Jim Tavare and Chris Ramsey.
Christmas Special Forum £9 / £15, 6:45pm Charlie Baker, Rob Rouse and Darrell Martin.
Laughing Horse New Acts Competition Bunkers Hill Inn £5, 7:30pm
Big Comedy Christmas Frenzy! Forum £7 / £9, 6:45pm Ian Cognito, Martin BigPig, Pierre Hollins and Simon Bligh.
Just The Christmas Night Out Forum Rob Rouse, Wes Zaharuk and Darrell Martin.
Funhouse Comedy Club Bunkers Hill £7, 7pm Marc Lucero, Jane Hill, Phil Pagett and Spiky Mike.
Tuesday 13/12 Christmas Quiz Johnson Arms Christmas themed quiz, plus Zoe’s infamous Santa outfit Just The Christmas Night Out Forum £9 / £12 / £22, 6:45pm Wes Zaharuk, John Robins, Matt Kirshin and Darrell Martin.
BASKET CASES Just The Tonic mussel in on our local hero
Rolf Harris Live Royal Centre £30 / £35, 7:30pm
As well as continuing its admirable policy of bringing the finest comedy acts to our city at the fairest of prices, Just The Tonic have also taken Dave Bartram – known to all rightminded people as ‘The Fish Man’ – to its heart. However, for some reason – possibly Political Correctness, probably because it’s a good way to work in a genital-related reference – they call him ‘The Cockleman’. Normally, we’d point out how wrong they are, but as its Christmas, we’ll let it slide just this once. The point is, along with the seafood and Peparami, Nottingham’s very own crustacean sensation has a stack of ‘Cockleman Concession Cards’ in his basket, which’ll get you two whole quid off the door at JTT, situated at The Forum deep in the bowels of the Cornerhouse.
Thursday 15/12 Christmas Party Night Glee Club £19.50 / £7, 7pm Dave Fulton, Seann Walsh and Mark Olver. Just The Christmas Night Out Forum £9 / £12 / £22, 6:45pm Wes Zaharuk, John Robins and Darrell Martin.
And what comedic bounty awaits you, the punter, this bi-month. Their line-up of Christmas party shows begin on Friday 9 December, dominate the next three Fridays and Saturdays and the week leading up to Santa’s visit, and culminating in the Big Comedy Christmas Frenzy on the 23rd. And as soon as the last of the Rennies have been necked, it’s straight into the New Year’s Eve special - top line-up, a guaranteed seat and free entry to the nightclub after. Expect 2012 to be a big year for JTT, barring any cataclysmic global disasters, of course. January’s highlights include a very mysterious, cannot-be-announced special guest on the 13th and 14th (so if you go on the first night, you’re expected to keep your pan shut, plus the likes of Piff the Magic Dragon, Paul Tonkinson, Adam Bloom, Ivan Brackenbury, and Doc Brown. Tours already booked for the spring include Glenn Wool, Josie Long, The Boy with Tape on his Face, Henning Wehn, Patrick Monahan and Dave Spikey from Phoenix Nights. And regular appearances from The Fish Man, er, The Cockleman. No, sod it; The Fish Man. Just The Tonic, The Cornerhouse, Burton St, NG1 4DB
Friday 16/12 Out To Lunch Christmas Party Glee Club £19.50, 12:30pm Dave Fulton, Seann Walsh and Mark Olver. Funhouse Comedy Club Antenna £25, 7pm Ben Schofield, Zoe Lyons and Steve N Allen.
Saturday 31/12 New Years Eve Party Night Glee Club £26.50, 7:15pm Josh Widdicombe, Carey Marx and Jimmy McGhie. New Years Eve Special Forum £25, 6:45pm Roger Monkhouse, Ian Cognito and Darrell Martin.
Tuesday 17/01 Josie Long - The Future Is Another Place Forum £10 / £12, 6:45pm
Thursday 19/01 Glen Wool - No Man’s Land Forum £8.50 / £10, 6:45pm
Thursday 26/01 Big Value Comedy Showcase Auditions Forum Free, 6:45pm Every year Just the Tonic auditions loads of acts from around the country to take part in our Edinburgh Showcase ‘The Big Value Comedy Shows’
Sunday 29/01 Richard Herring - What Is Love, Anyway? Nottingham Playhouse £15, 7:30pm
justthetonic.com leftlion.co.uk/issue44 leftlion.co.uk/issue44 39 leftlion.co.uk/issue44
39
Can Sound Turn A Pound? Trent Sound: a heroic attempt to bring back the glory days of local commercial radio. But can it stay alive long words: Mike Atkinson enough to get an FM licence in 2013? For those who still remember Radio Trent in its seventies and eighties glory days, when the station broadcast on 301 metres AM, Trent Sound’s studio address should hold a special resonance. In point of fact, there wasn’t a “301 Coventry Road, Bulwell” before the service launched on 13 June – but for station manager Andy Lloyd, who sold his adjacent computer business in order to fund the start-up, the chance to revive the memory was too good to pass up. It’s a fitting inspiration for a station that seeks to “capture the magic, fun and local identity of Radio Trent” – although for the latter-day owners of the now defunct Trent FM, which was subsumed into the Capital behemoth on 3 January, the tribute fell on somewhat stony ground. According to Lloyd, “All hell broke loose; they sent a courier up from London on a motorbike, with a cease and desist letter. They didn’t want us to use the name Trent at all. We had to sign certain undertakings about things that we wouldn’t do, and they in turn “permitted” us to use the word Trent. We pointed out that it’s actually the name of a river – which they may not have been aware of, down in London – and it’s not really in their gift to grant. We’ve got Trent Valley Windows, Trent Kebabs… Trent everything, really.” While various Trent exiles – including the station’s first ever on-air presenter, John Peters – clubbed together at radiotrent. co.uk, which launched as a web-only service three weeks after Trent Sound, Lloyd and his team started to forge a different path. Their ultimate objective is to secure a community radio licence, which would allow them to migrate to FM full time. There will be a chance to do that in 2013, when Ofcom opens its doors to the next round of licensing applications – but until then, the station is obliged to remain almost entirely internet-based, broadcasting round the clock. Despite this restriction, there are still periodic opportunities for Trent Sound to hit the city’s radio dials, thanks to Ofcom’s “restricted service licences” (or RSLs, as they say in the business). These can be granted to stations who are preparing to apply for a permanent licence, up to a maximum of two 28-day periods per year.
Handily timed for the holiday period, Trent Sound’s first RSL is scheduled to run from 12 December until 8 January. You’ll find them right at the top of the dial – on 87.9 FM, just to the left of Radio 2 – and if you like what you hear, they’re hoping you’ll follow them back onto the internet, after the licence expires. In this respect, the welcome lack of on-air adverts should help curry favour with new listeners. “We really need to get the station out there”, says Lloyd, “and we don’t give a stuff about making money”. Although the station’s weekday output sticks to an oldies-based format – nothing before 1965, nothing after 1995 – a wide array of evening and weekend specialist slots aim to create “a radio station for everybody”. There are programmes dedicated to rock, indie, R&B, house, world/folk and blues, as well as a gay show on Saturday nights, and a three hour show on Wednesday evenings called Notts Live, which is dedicated to promoting local talent. Presented by Andy Haynes and Bainy Bain, Notts Live has been doing its thing since September 2010. After its original hosts Sherwood Radio shut down in May, the show quickly found a new home at Trent Sound. Each week’s edition is themed around acts that will be playing in town over the following week, and a full gig guide is broadcast during the first hour. “We try not to be genre-based”, says Andy Haynes. “If they’re from Nottingham, we’ll try and feature them.” Since its inception, Notts Live has featured tracks by around five hundred Nottingham acts. It’s a staggering total, which speaks volumes about the healthy state of the current scene. Live studio sessions have featured such local worthies as Will Jeffrey, Alexa Hawksworth, Adam Peter Smith and Euler, and regular “two hour takeovers” have been hosted by the likes of Satnam’s Tash and the Amber Herd. No stranger to music-making himself, Andy Haynes has been known to join the Amber Herd on stage, brandishing his theremin: “I put myself out there as a bit of a theremin slag”, he explains, “but I’ve not had too much take-up on that.” The Notts Live brand also extends to occasional live promotions, and to this end there will be a “Notts Live Office Christmas Party” at the JamCafé on 21 December, headlined by Spaceships Are Cool and broadcast live on the show.
As for the rest of Trent Sound’s schedule, Andy Lloyd operates an “open access” policy, which presents opportunities for aspiring broadcasters to get involved. “This doesn’t mean that anybody can”, he cautions, “because you have to have some degree of professionalism, but we’re not an old boys’ network and we want to be accessible. But it’s going to be staffed with the people who will stay. What I don’t want are the glory boys, who will just come in for the RSL. We’ve had it already!” They’re aiming high, and there’s still a long way to go. But if you agree with Lloyd that “the whole premise of independent local radio has died” – just listen to Capital, and weep for what has been lost – then Trent Sound deserves full credit for trying to put the ‘local’ back into local radio. trentsound.com
THE NUSIC BOX Your new Notts music tipsheet, courtesy of Nusic’s Mary Ann Pickford
Rob Green
Remember how we told you that Notts has so much talent out there? This man is a case in point; a multi-skilled performer (with a sparkling background in acting), singer and guitarist. But did you know the first ever song he learnt to sing was Aretha’s (You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman? No, we didn’t either, ‘til he revealed all in his recent Future Session. He puts in as much passion into his performance as his influences Nat King Cole and Beverly Knight; coupled with that stunning voice of his, it’s easy to see why he’s an up-and-coming talent. He’s currently working on his first recorded EP, Parlour Tricks; until then, check the footage of him on our website to get a flavour of his soulful melodies. myspace.com/robertgreenmusic
Frankie Rudolf
Word on the street is that this Wollaton lad has only been playing live and writing songs since August, yet he displays the talent and professionalism of a seasoned performer. He draws inspiration from Coldplay, but is primarily an acoustic act which complements his melodic vocals. We were so impressed by the demo he sent us that we asked him to come in to do a Future Session. He’s also featured on our New Music Podcast and holds the record for being our youngest ever Rewind artist. Anyone wanna top that? He’s the latest in a long run of talented musicians from his area and no doubt we’ll see more from him as he progresses. Watch this space. facebook.com/FrankieRudolf
Skorpion
Ears to the ground! Kyle Cook - a producer who is all about the dubstep - has been dropping bass-heavy sounds for around two years, and we think it’s high time he got the attention he deserves. What we like about him is that not all his tunes are as filthy as the floor at Ocean after a student night – sounds like Get Help are quite atmospheric, thanks in part to a string section which adds a different dimension to his music. We like him so much, we featured his tune Awake on our New Music Podcast. Citing the likes of Datsik, Excision and Downlink as his influences, he’s got an outstanding five-track EP on SoundCloud, and we think he’s going to do the city proud before too long. Oh, and did we mention that he’s fifteen? soundcloud.com/skorpion-dubstep
Hit up leftlion.co.uk for Nusic’s suite of Notts-music-exclusive podcasts, and head over to nusic.org for the complete NottsTunes experience leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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Write Lion
At last, we hear you say; a page in the magazine that’s not about friggin’ music. To keep it this way, send your wordy delights to either books@leftlion or poetry@leftlion
Seventy
The Moon’s Last Gasp
Ed. C.J. Allen Nottingham Poetry Society, £5
Children’s History of Nottinghamshire
Pat Tobin Chipmunka, £12.99
Nottingham Poetry Society (NPS) celebrates its seventieth anniversary with this anthology of writing from twenty-five current members including Derrick Buttress, Jeremy Duffield, Adrian Buckner, Cathy Grindrod, Pippa Hennessey, and Robin Vaughan-Williams. Many of the contributors have been widely published elsewhere and the diverse topics and styles contained inside make it a real treasure trove with something to please all tastes. An excellent Christmas gift for poetry lovers seeking a little inspiration, this beautifully produced anthology - edited by C.J. Allen - provides an opportunity to support a Society that has been nurturing local poets since 1941 and continues to offer a regular programme of literary events and competitions. NPS meets in The Mechanics on North Sherwood Street on the fourth Saturday of each month at 2.45pm – so bundle up your poems and get down there to support them. Now everybody, after three: Happy birthday to you, happy birthday… Aly Stoneman nottinghampoetrysociety.co.uk
As far as ‘misery lit’ goes, this has enough mental and physical abuse to give Dave Pelzer a run for his money. However, the author isn’t after pity or one-upmanship and avoids titillating details. Instead he offers a biography of life growing up in St. Ann’s as an Irish immigrant and the challenging circumstances of his life that would see him become a violent alcoholic suffering from schizophrenia. Despite the awful facts, this is an intentionally funny book. Humour is his coping mechanism, which is useful when placed in mental institutions and psycho-dynamic therapy sessions that are pure Ken Kesey, with equally villainous Nurse Ratcheds. Tobin recounts an acupuncture session where his therapist was more interested in showing him photos of carp he’d caught and sharing details of his online dating conquests than performing his kwon do katas. In desperate need of an edit, it goes off on countless tangents; but with such a strong voice, this can be forgiven. James Walker chipmunkapublishing.com
Masters of Crime
Out Of Towners
Crime, violence, anti-heroes, literature, history, a fast-moving narrative: this book really has something for everyone to get stuck into. Adam Nightingale has broken away from his previous works of grisly local history to tell us about the dark and seedy side of London, and specifically the colourful and sinister figures who inspired some of the best known fictitious masters of crime. So Moriarty and Fagin both have their moments, alongside the wonderful tale of the on-going ‘great feud’ between real-life villains, Jack Sheppard and Jonathan Wild, and a whole cast of lesser-known, but equally fascinating, scoundrels from both fact and fiction. With an easy to read style reminiscent of the storytelling of oral history, as well as some striking illustrations and photographs, Nightingale traces surprising links between fact and fiction and keeps his readers unceasingly entertained. You almost don’t realise that you’re learning something too. Rebecca S Buck thehistorypress.co.uk
Sixteen-year-old Chris and his mates descend on a tacky seaside town, intent on a weekend of beer and girls. Sure enough, at the caravan park disco they meet some like-minded girls. Shedding that cumbersome virginity becomes a real likelihood, but the fun turns to mayhem when they fall foul of the local thugs. A night of rampage ensues as the murderous Kirkie and his gang chase Chris and the others through the drunken crowds. Blood is going to spill and change everyone forever... This is Tunstall’s second Young Adult novel - a follow-up to his shortlisted debut Big and Clever - and it confirms his earlier promise as an outstanding commentator on modern youth. Out of Towners is hard-hitting and gripping. The author captures that teen spirit, acne and all, with pithy, authentic dialogue meaning that the adolescent in all of us can identify with Chris and his dilemmas. In the background Tunstall paints a broken Britain where booze-bingeing and watching X Factor is as good as life gets. Ian Douglas fiveleaves.co.uk
Adam Nightingale History Press, £18.99
Booker shortlist I thought I’d gee yoh a rundaahn of this year’s nominations! LOL! The Sense of an Ending: Julian Barnes Typical biddy-lit, lookin’ back on past cuz there’s nowt much future left. While he tries to question the nature of memreh, I fink he should give me some of his ‘posh bingo’ and interrogate meh mammrehs. That’s how yoh find true happiness, duckeh. Pigeon English: Stephen Kelman This is a Roman à clef e.g. copies from real life cuz the awfur can’t fink up owt on his own. It’s abaht Damilola Taylor - I mean an eleven-year-old Ghana kid who has nowt, and written in diolect (e.g. they say ‘bumbleclot’ and that). His life is so crap he talks to a pigeon. Jamrach’s Menagerie: Carol Birch Talk abaht jumpin’ on the bandwagon. Did yer really reckon you’d win with another story featuring a tiger after The Tiger’s Wife and The Life of Pi? Honestleh. This time it carries someone rahnd in his maath after he wor born twice. Jamrach. LOL! The Sisters Brothers: Patrick deWitt At last - summat funneh! Two bros – one a reluctant assassin, the other a killer, travel across America during the Gold Rush. But they aren’t very hard cuz one on ‘em is scared of spiders. Reckon the awfur has watched too many Coen Bros films down Broadway. Half Blood Blues: Esi Edugyan The reason we invaded Eyerack and Afghan is cuz we’re sick ta death of readin’ abaht the bleedin’ Nazzehs! Hello? There’s loads more consumer choice nowadays. The variables this time are black ppl and jazz; and like jazz, the structure is all over the shop. Snowdrops: A D Miller Talkin’ of which, here’s somet’ we don’t know - Moscow is as bent as a Pakistani test bowler. This is a psychological thriller abaht seductive opportunities, hedonism, corruption and debauched nightclubs – bit like Notts on New Year’s Eve.
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‘Snottinghamshire!’ Lola says. ‘We could be living in Snot!’ Surely I’d told my nine-yearold this essential fact already? Apparently not, neglectful mother that I am. Help is at hand thanks to our very own Ian Douglas, whose non-fiction debut is packed with juicy titbits: ‘In the plague, they stuffed corpses under the castle,’ Lola says, then giggles, ‘Do you know what they did in the Theatre Royal when there weren’t any toilets?’ Ah, the auditorium will never be the same again! Readers are challenged to uncover clues in local landmarks through photographs and bright illustrations, while fictional diary entries offer the chance to compare lives with a Victorian mine worker. The excitement of Goose Fair, however, is revealed as little-changed (although somewhat lacking in dancing bears these days). Throughout, information is effectively delivered using a scrapbook format, suggesting a hands-on sense of really rummaging through history. Megan and Lola Taylor hometownworld.co.uk
ORE
Dan Tunstall Five Leaves, £5.99
Katie Half-Price AYUP! Seein’ as meh namesake always outsells the
Ian Douglas Hometown World, £4.99
Ed. Z. Allak, J. Cooper, A. Rigley & S. W. Roche Launderette, £5 The product of a years worth of work from the MA in Creative Writing at Nottingham Trent University, ORE sees short stories, poetry and extracts from longer works by fifteen writers from the 2011 class bought together in this slim volume. Alumni from previous years include Niki Monaghan, Chris Killen and Maria Allen. More recently, Mark Goodwin (the winner of the 2011 East Midlands Book Award) and Kerry Young (who wrote the foreword to this book, and whose first novel will be published this year). Highlights of this diverse and assured collection include a piece of verse by Lorna Poole rather fetchingly set to sheet music on the page, a disturbing perspective on sponsoring a child soldier in Sudan by Hannah Shelley and a jolly poem about death (after Roger McGough) and the best ways to meet it by Senga Wallace Roche. Robin Lewis ntu.ac.uk
Caribou Stork Nightmares Annelise Atkinson is an artist and zine maker who runs the Caribou zine shop - a caravan crammed with popup books, vintage typewriters and gorgeous oddities. It’s currently situated in Hopkinson’s Gallery - which has been transformed into an eclectic collection of independent shops thanks to NTU graduate Liam Woodgate - taking inspiration from flea markets such as Brighton’s Snooper’s Paradise. Although Caribou is an amalgam of caravan and boutique, it’s named as such because Annelise fell in love with reindeer on holiday in Sweden. Makes you wonder what it would have been called if she’d spent her vacation in Skeggy… But the caravan won’t be here for long, folks. Annelise intends to visit festivals and craft fairs across the country to spread the word. She’s a woman on a mission, an analogue kid trapped in a digital universe, with a fetish for anything handmade. She produces her own zines and has formed Ultra Horse with Dan England, a kind of zine conglomerate. Now she gets them sent through from across the globe. ‘One of my favourites is Kosho Kosho a Japanese cut and paste DIY zine, done by a girl whose imagination brings inanimate objects to life. You can cut-out and make your own paper iPhone and mini snowpeaked mountains or smiley-faced tables!’ she informs. Closer to home is I Like Going to the Cinema which ‘is photocopies of a decade’s worth of saved ticket stubs from all over the world (but mainly in Nottingham) accompanied by a little story connecting the films to memories of the time. I’ve had people welling up when reading this at zine fairs.’ The Caribou Caravan is a much needed antidote to the Facebook generation, placing quality over quantity, and making connections at a more realistic pace. It’s becoming so popular that this year saw our first zine fair in Nottingham organised by Raw Print. We like. caricaribou.tumblr.com
In 1970 Gil Scott-Heron wrote The Revolution Will Not Be Televised as a criticism of how the mainstream media manipulates the truth. Forty years later, John Micallef examines how media manipulation still exists, albeit in a more complex form. Also: Viv Apple’s Lions stand their ground in Market Square and we feature a poem from the collection ‘Making Sense’ (Shoestring Press 2004) by Nottinghamshire author and poet Nigel Pickard, who recently passed away.
FOG
Nigel Pickard Something about this at the present time. This is the way the world ends a dull echo of sounds the way a view vanishes beyond an outstretched hand. The way it gets between us. Something in the cliché of the metaphor. Something in its necessity in its rightness in its authentic lack of revelation. A photograph just coming up almost developed. Something about this at the present time.
The Revolution Will Be Televised
John Micallef / Gil Scott-Heron
You will be able to stay home, brother. You will be able to plug in, turn on and cop out. You will be able to lose yourself on skag, or weed, or coke Because the revolution will be televised.
illustration: Steve Larder
Lions
Viv Apple We’ve seen it all, sitting here guarding the high stone columns proud before the Council House. We’ve watched them come and go, Sheriff and Mayor and all their underlings since nineteen twenty eight. But more important still, the people in Old Market Square: protesting, celebrating, mourning, all were there. And we looked on indulgently and stood our ground. In nineteen forty five, year of a thousand towns and cities singing with their soldiers and their wives and sons, and small girls in their shiny, too-long dresses running wild around us, quick as mice. But we looked on indulgently and stood our ground. A queen came for her Silver Jubilee, slow walking down towards us with her smile, being majestic. Not, you understand, like us but still regal enough as if born to the job, smiling at faces lining up to gawp and say, ‘She’s smaller than I thought!’ So we looked on indulgently and stood our ground. And now, the kids still climb on us and later we become their meeting place. In freezing air, bare shoulders shrug a nonchalance that goes with their new century. We guard them, secret trysts or loud nights out, no matter. We look on indulgently and stand our ground.
Today, the revolution will be brought to you By psuedo-macho beer, or oblique car commercials, Asinine, odourless adverts For plastic processed food, For a nation who’ve forgotten how to cook. If it don’t go in a microwave, You wouldn’t know what to do with it...brother. The revolution will still claim to give your mouth sex appeal The revolution will still claim to make you look five pounds thinner The revolution will make you believe its, “Because you’re worth it.” The revolution will feature your favourite footballers In compromising rendezvous with soap stars/ strippers/ minor celebrities, Who transform into pneumatic pop stars with their own reality TV shows; Whose reality, brother? Empty-eyed idols in inane cosmetic adverts, Advertise a soulless society, Where the word revolution is merely a fashion statement. Since Rodney King, there will be more pictures of pigs Shooting down brothers on the instant replay, Yes, there will be more pictures of pigs Shooting down brothers on the instant replay, Because once in a while... Yes, just once in a while... The Media likes you to believe, It is not the government’s bitch. There will be only tasteful highlights on the 10 o’clock news Of British soldiers dying in Afghanistan. There will be no brutal truths. There will be no real life coverage of limbs being torn asunder. There will be no live coverage of men felled by a barrage of bullets. There will only be interviews with weeping widows, fatherless children, Pictures of parades, salutes, fanfares and posthumous awards. Distractions from the real revolution. The revolution will be televised By the BBC, CNN, Sky TV Broadcast direct, instantaneously. The revolution will be no re-run, brother. The revolution may be live, But today, The revolution will be EDITED! leftlion.co.uk/issue44
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MITHER SQUAD
Nottingham problems, handled by Nottingham people. In Nottingham.
Accidentally sent your boss a dildo for Secret Santa? Working part-time on a sex phoneline where you have to pretend to be a Filipino call girl, and the bloke who rings up every night sounds awfully like your Dad? Mither Squad is here to kick your problem in the genitals – and this is who they are… Rebecca Dakin We cocked up last issue; Rebecca didn’t tell Richard and Judy about her former job as an escort – it was Eamonn Holmes. Ugh. Check her out at rebeccadakin.com
The Fish Man Dave Bartram is currently not happy about having to pay parking fees at night, and wonders if anyone in town would let him park up on their space of an evening. Please drop an e to fishman@ leftlion.co.uk, there’s a love
Nottingham’s ‘Mr Sex’ A former male stripper, ‘Mr Sex’ always regrets that he never played a gig in his home town, but seeing as his Mam and sister had promised to attend, and probably shout “AH’VE SEEN IT ALL BEFORE, DUCKEH!”, he doesn’t regret it that much
The Thompsons Nottingham’s most opinionated grocers, the Thompson brothers are packing massive wood at the moment in the form of their five to seven foot Nordman pines. Get your baubles out, missus, etc...
He’s thinking of offering someone a bunk-up
His ex has got pics of him with his tassle out
Dear Mither Squad,
Dear Mither Squad,
I’m really close friends with this girl, and actually fancy the arse off her – but she’s going out with a twat, who she always slags off, but still stays with. Anyway, she’s looking for somewhere to live, and there’s a spare room going at ours. I’ve not made a firm offer yet, but she sounds keen. What should I do? Cruel Overlord of Mapperley Park
I split up with my ex-girlfriend six months ago, and we’re not really on speaking terms at the moment. What’s the best way of approaching her and finding out if she’s still got the photos of me handcuffed to her bed naked on her mobile – and getting her to delete them if she has? TH, NG2
Rebecca: Yes, offer her the room, if you can put up with her constant moaning about her bloke. Fish Man: Er, well, I’d like to take her out for a drink first to get to know her better. ‘Mr Sex’: He already knows her, duck. Fish Man: Yeah, but I only know her through selling. As a customer. I fancy her meself, but she’s with somebody else. But I have got a spare room, and she can have it, as long as she loves animals. ‘Mr Sex’: Hang on…are we talking about you or this bloke? Did you write this? What pub is this woman in? Thompsons: Offer her it at a discount rate and Bob’s your uncle. If you play your cards right you’ll be in, in more ways than one. ‘Mr Sex’: Anyway, two words; No. Mate. Do you think she’s gonna catch a glimpse of you stomping to the bog in the morning in a five year-old Forest shirt and think; “Ooh, actually, yes”? Yes, having her in the house is going to give you a slim opportunity to get your end away when she’s tired and emotional, but if you’re going do that, you might as well dish a handful of Rohypnol into the kettle an’all. Rebecca: I don’t get guys who are interested in women that date twats. Get her to move in, and try and be twattier than him to win her over. ‘Mr Sex’: Actually, letting her in would be the best way to prolong their relationship, because she’ll have the best of both worlds; she’ll have all the drama of knocking off a bell-end while coming home to a gormless doormat who’ll do anything she asks. And if you think it’ll be bad enough listening to him giving her a seeing-to, wait until you see him on your sofa, with his feet on your coffee table, on your X-Box 360.
Rebecca: Get a female friend that she doesn’t know to go to a place your ex hangs out, slag you off within earshot, and wait for her ears to prick up. She then says how she dated you recently and you were a real arse, and then starts a mammoth slagging-off session… Thompsons: Ask her outright and tell her that it’s your property. ‘Mr Sex’: I don’t reckon this is much to worry about, to be honest. For starters, women are less inclined to hold on to ex-related grot, so if you’re not getting on, it’s safe to assume it’s been lobbed. And if she’s still got it, so what? Let her letch over what she’s lost. Fish Man: Go round her house with some flowers and a bottle of wine, and say “Right then, drink that”, and then when she’s pissed go and look for her mobile and delete the boggers yourself. Thompsons: There’s no need to break the law and steal the phone. Rebecca: Anyway, she then tells your ex that you said you love sending rude photos of yourself, and that she had some photos of you in a gimp suit with a twig between your ass cheeks that she’d have loved to have circulated on the net, but lost her phone – and asks her if she’s got any. If she says no, you’re in the clear. If she says yes, then asks to take a look, and accidentally-onpurpose delete them. Sorted. ‘Mr Sex’: If it turns out she’s already shown ‘em to her mates, you should thank her for advertising your services (and allude that you’ve already availed yourself of their wares), and if she’s shown them to her new bloke, she’s cocked up big style – he’ll thinks she’s a right cow and will back off. Fish Man: Let’s put it this way – he must be dead ugly, because she wouldn’t have dumped him otherwise – so why would she keep his picture? What’s he got to worry about? Thompsons: Just send her a solicitors letter and have faith in the law.
Fish Man: This other bloke? He wouldn’t even get through the bleddy door with the dog I’ve got. I’m telling yer. ‘Mr Sex’: But Dave, erm…never mind.
IF YOUR BLOKE’S BEING A NOB, OR YOU CAN’T STAND YOUR JOB, TELL MITHER SQUAD YOUR PROB, AND AN ANSWER RIGHT BACK AT YOU WE WILL LOB. Email mithersquad@leftlion.co.uk - or if you want total anonymity, fill in the virtual form at leftlion.co.uk/mithersquad Mither Squad might be proper men and women of the world, but one thing they aren’t are medical experts. And if your bits are playing up, go to the clinic and get them sorted. ‘Mr Sex’ had a girlfriend who was a nurse, and she once had deal with a bloke who’d got a bottle of salad cream on his nob, which had created a vacuum and he needed it off before it went black.. She had to tell him to look away as she smashed the bottle with a toffee hammer, and then she had to get all the glass out. Wince.
Sagittarius (November 23 - December 22) Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh can be hard to come by in the modern day – and you definitely won’t find them in Primark. But then again, as much as you and your two friends would like to believe it, you are neither kings, nor wise men.
Capricorn (December 23 - January 19)
Dear Wizzard, Do you really wish it could be Christmas every day? When my kids start singing your song, it’s time to cover ears and the only band playing is on an iPod. And as if the snowman ever brings the snow? That’s like saying that a cheese-man delivered the pizza.
Aquarius (January 20 - February 19)
Why bother making New Years’ resolutions? You’re perfect as you are, darling. I don’t wanna see you change. Unless of course you want to stop talking while you’re eating. Or just stop that annoying noise that comes out of your mouth when you talk.
Pisces (February 20 - March 20) You have started to realise that there is nothing but yourself stopping you from being happy and achieving better things in both your career and your personal life. This knowledge will make 2012 all the more disappointing when nothing changes.
Aries (March 21 - April 20)
LEFTLION ABROAD Occupy Wall Street, New York City, USA
The doctors will be polite and professional when discussing your condition, and its implications on your future, with you. But they’ll joke about it later in the lounge and think about it all night when they get home.
Taurus (April 21 - May 21)
Some people will surprise you with the gifts they offer you this Christmas. I know you asked for something other than socks this year, but you didn’t mean this. It might be small and wrapped up nice and neatly, but it’s a baby for goodness sake!
Gemini (May 22 - June 22)
When a young family member asks you if they can have a puppy for Christmas, the appropriate response is not: “No darling, we’ll have turkey and roast puddings like everyone else.”
Cancer (June 23 - July 23) The office Christmas party is always a reason to let your hair down, but you still need to act responsibly and know your limits. Don’t drink too much, be polite to senior management and leave the mistletoe belt at home.
Leo (July 24 - August 23) You’ve never liked men with facial hair – but especially not those with overgrown white fluffy beards. You don’t like people who wear red and white either – and you hate people who climb down chimneys. All in all, it’s safe to say you are Claustrophobic.
Virgo (August 24 - September 23) Betrayal, treason and skulduggery will all feature heavily in your life for the next month. You must admit that this sounds far cooler than the data entry and light office work that you are used to.
Libra (September 24 - October 23)
Your sentiments for recycling and saving paper are admirable. But some people may question the thought and effort of you taking all last year’s Christmas cards and mailing them back to the senders this year, with the words “same to you” scribbled inside.
Scorpio (October 24 - November 22) A heralding angel of the Lord will appear unto you and start to sing, then seem confused, then ask the date and then apologise for visiting a few years early. Heed her words not to use birth control for a while.
While Occupy Nottingham protestors continue to camp out in the Market Square, spare a thought for their Brooklyn brothers across the pond too. Occupy Wall Street began on 17 September and looks set to continue well into 2012 as they battle against the stock market, Capitalism and greed. At least they now have a copy of LeftLion to keep them company. This photo was taken by our friends John Sampson (of Swimming band fame) and Ronika (of Ronika fame) while they were attending the CMJ Festival in New York this October. Want to see more photos like this? Then check out leftlion.co.uk/abroad. Want us to publish your holiday snap too? Well, take this copy of the mag with you, get clicking away and then email us the product of your labour to abroad@leftlion.co.uk
leftlion.co.uk/horrorscopes
BLEDDY HELL, IT’S PROPER DERBY ROAD KEEP WARM, SIT TIGHT - LEFTLION 45 WILL BE OUT ON 27 JANUARY SU THOUSAND AND TWELVE
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Time it usually begins 11:30am
floor: Found on living room ing paper Scrunched-up wrapp On the telly: Arse all by Songs written about it
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New Years Day
Boxing Day
Bono: 0
Time it usually begins : 4:15pm Found on living room floor: Empty bottles, trouser s on the telly: Arse all Songs written about it by
Bono: 1