Thursday 26 March 2009

Lights Kamera ACTION



Topshop's new music experience Topman CRTL kicked off last night in Hoxton with Metronomy at the helms.

By helms, I mean they 'curate' the night by selecting a couple of bands they like the sound of for our pleasure.

Your Twenties opened and were an average preppy indie-pop band. So far, so blah. What we weren't expecting was Kamerakino.

Like a Germanic version of The Commitments and with a lead singer who looked like a younger, prettier version of Shane McGowan the audience stopped dead in their Topshop tracks as the lead singer announced "Ello, we're from Munich" in a thick brogue. The guy in front of me whispered "Er, he's joking right? They can't be for real?"

Turns out they were. They started their nu-folk attack armed with violins, keyboards and a shouty Munichian front man. And they were AMAZING. Finger of Love had the wacky keyboard girl dancing around, led by said finger and their follow up tracks got everyone dancing, albeit with a bemused grin on their faces.

Munich - the new music revolution.

Tuesday 24 March 2009

Waiting For E.T.


Whatever happened to crazy cults? Time was in the 90s you couldn't go a few weeks without some wackos in the Bible Belt holding hostages or offering themselves up for sacrifice for the secret of eternal life.

The classic cult story was the UFO-obsessed Heaven's Gate group in 1997, where 38 people clad in black shirts, jogging bottoms and brand new Nike trainers committed suicide as they believed the Earth was going to be wiped. They also wore armbands that said 'Heaven's Gate Away Team'.

Nike's Just Do It never seemed so apt.

The Heaven's Gate story is the inspiration for Tim Phillips' exhibition at Vyner St gallery Boys School at the moment. Heaven's Gate is a hulking great structure; part totem pole, part altar that looks at the misguided revery the group had for their supposed afterlife.

The mix of wooden panels and shiny black plastic contrast with the Swarovski crystals and gold detailing, presumably to illustrate the flashy, false ideas the group were fed. All that it was lacking was a JD Sports black trackie suit and Nike kicks. Hey, those dogs gonna look F_L_Y next time around, y'all!

Sunday 22 March 2009

I'll pencil it in the diary, yeah? Email me to confirm, yeah?


Until you’ve worked in an office, you'll never truly understand the soul-crushing manner in which you’re expected to conduct your day-to-day life.

‘The Meeting’ is a new theatre show at Invisble Dot theatre, Camden, by two of the guys from the brilliant The Inbetweeners (seriously, why don’t more people watch this?). You actually sit round the boardroom table while your ‘bosses’ lead a company meeting that’s so well-observed it basically makes you want to bore your eyes out with the biro in front of you.

The show is full of the cringing mannerisms that senior management employ, seemingly unaware that it makes them look like utter dicks. Slideshows pictures of the company’s ‘Robin Hood away day’, over-stressed points about the whereabouts of a manager’s mug (“It’s blue and white checked, I brought it from home. Someone must have seen it?”) and a blazing row with the obtuse IT guy make you want to weep for the 9 to 5ers.

But thank fuck you’re not one of them.

Saturday 7 March 2009

All the King's Horses


It's officially festie time. Time to start planning which festival promoter's pockets to line and how far you're willing to travel for the ultimate weekend of musical joy and fuckery.

What would be amazing would be a festival that's right on your doorstep, has loads of cool acts from the local area, in venues up and down one street and costs just over a tenner a night.....Oh, we're in luck you say?

Land of Kings is a brand new music festival taking place in Dalston on the 16th and 17th April. Basically think a street worth of incredible house parties taking place along the Kingsland Rd in all the little basement bashment bars, little cafes and other hot spots. Camden Crawl? Nah, more like Dalston dance-off.

I'll be getting my dancing shoes on for Greco Roman, Allez Allez, Nathan Fake, Todd Hart, New Family and Skill Wizard, who're some of the first names released for the line-up.

It's also the return of Make It Stop, Mum! as we're hooking up with Filthy Few to put on a 'All The Kings Horses' night as part of the festival. Think DJ sets from New Young Pony club (synergy, yeah?) and us, bales of hay, nosebags, rosettes, jodhpurs, whips and plenty of cracking tunes to get you neigh-ing for more.

You need to buy tickets here , one night wristband will give you entry to more than 10 clubs for £12 and a two night wristband for double the pleasure will be £20. Or early birds can get both nights for £15 if you buy, like, this instant.

And you don't have to camp. AFFIRMATIVE.

WhoMadeHeroes

Sometimes you don't realise what's missing from your life until it arrives. Turns out I was lacking three Danish men in very tight all-in-one clown suits playing the electric guitar with a glass of champagne.


The incredible WhoMadeWho were back in town on Thursday at the tiny Hoxton Bar and Grill for the launch of their new album, The Plot, and totally rocked the place. They know FUN should be a massive part of a live act which is why they had everyone dancing manically and beaming at each other.


Here's the track of the night, Space To Rent, which the guys seemed super happy that everyone knew the words:





I spoke to lead singer Jeppe from the band earlier this week about why his dream collaboration would be with Michael Jackson. Read the interview here.