GIG REPORT: The Evens, Belfast, City Church Hall, 28th March 2006

Check out that photo, somehow I failed to get a decent snap of Ian and Amy together, and anyway, I don't really like taking pics at gigs so I always limit myself to 4 or 5 shots maximum. Firstly I prefer to leave that to people who know what they are doing, and secondly I think it can distract the performers, particularly at intimate shows like this one. Take them during the first three songs and then put your camera away was the gig etiquette when I started freelancing for magazines ten years ago and I don't see any reason to change it now.
The City Church Hall above Common Grounds coffee shop on University Avenue is a pretty great venue for an all ages, early evening show. Given the shifting demographic of Fugazi fans, loads of people have brought along their kids which is cool and as its the first week of BST it's not even dark when we arrive.
For those of you who don't know, the Evens is the work of Ian Mackaye (yes, THE Ian Mackaye of Fugazi, Minor Threat, Embrace) and Amy Farina (once of the Warmers and I think Ted Leo's Pharmacists), and somehow their debut album crept out on Dischord last year without much fuss. It's worth hearing - it's a quiet record, just guitar/ drums and a different singing voice from MacKaye - with some great tunes, some of which you could even hear Fugazi having a go at.
They are a totally self-contained touring unit, complete with their own little low-watt PA and mixer, and no stage lights, preferring to use the house lights throughout. This is a bit unsettling at first, but once they get into the songs, it doesn't really matter. THey play pretty much all of the album, and encourage a lot of audience response on quite a few choruses, and some freeform whistling on set closer 'Sara Lee'. Ian is happy to chat in the intimate environment, and Amy even has to prompt to crack on with the show a couple of times!

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BRIEF GIG REPORT: The Focus Group/ Clone Quartet/ Barry Peak, Belfast Lavery's Bunker. 23rd March 2006

There was a reasonably good crowd at this, despite a lot of competition elsewhere and a relatively unknown quantity headlining.
Barry was up first, not strictly solo, more in a kind of rolling line-up mode. He is joined on vocals and guitar by Tanya (ex-Go Commando/ Tunic) for a lot of the set. We get some new songs, a Television Personalities cover, no Backwater material at all, and two Torgas Valley Reds songs - the single 'Torgas Valley Blue' and the unreleased 'Appalachia', although happily that song will see the light of day as the posthumous album will be released in a couple of months. Shaun (ex-TVR, now Oppenheimer) helps out on keyboards for these songs and for a few minutes they are a trio.
Clone Quartet play a set of fine indie-pop, much the same as their recent Numbers support and belfest show last year. Some very strong tunes, even if the sound just wasn't as great as the show a couple of weeks ago.
The Focus Group are billed as 'featuring Arabella Harrison' and in fact she does a short set before they come on. Very impressive acoustic stuff, a bit reminiscent of Mary Lou Lord. The Focus Group are better than their myspace material suggests, and although some of them were in No Knife they are more in tune with 90s shoegaze bands than that lineage suggests. Check them out.

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John Peel's Record Box 36-37, introducing G.L. Crockett

John Peel's Record Box 36-37, introducing G.L. Crockett

36. G L Crockett - It's a man down there + Every hour, every day (4 BROTHERS) 1965
37. G L Crockett - Look out Mabel + Did you ever love somebody (CHECKER) 1965
On the evidence of these four songs GL is equally at home with rockabilly or soul. All of these songs are available on various compilations, check out this discography for more info. In fact the 7" of "It's a Man Down there" is currently available here.
I've also found some info on the 4 Brothers label although little about GL himself.
The Killing Floor Blues blog has 'It's Man Down There' online at the moment, and this useful info...
"Bluesman G.L. Crockett is known mainly for his Chess rockabilly 'Look Out Mabel' and today's selection, a mid-'60s blues hit on the Four Brothers label. 'It's a Man Down There' borrowed lyrics from Sonny Boy Williamson's 'One Way Out' and aped Jimmy Reed's backporch boogie beat and boozy vocals to create an engaging tune."
It's probably my favourite of the four songs here, although its soulful flipside 'Every Hour, Every Day' runs it close.
A curious fact about 'Look out Mabel' is that the songs were recorded in 1957 and released under the name G. 'Davy' Crockett, yet different takes of these songs from the same session were released 8 years later as GL. There ends my knowledge of GL, although he is well worth checking out.

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John Peel's Record Box 33-35, Elmore James to the Freshmen

John Peel's Record Box 33-35, Elmore James to the Freshmen

33. Elmore james - The Sky is Crying + Standing at the crossroads (FLASHBACK RECORDS)
Classic Delta blues which I'm sure a lot of people will recognise. There's a good Elmore James discography here. He was one of the most influential blues musicians and a contemporary of Robert Johnson, although he seems to have gone unrecorded until the early 1950s. Much covered and much respected.

34. TRACKS MISSING: Firemen - Old smokie + Louie's theme (LE CAM)
Another blank I'm afraid. Not even a year this time! Any help gratefully appreciated.

35. Freshmen - You never heard anything like it + Bombing run (RELEASE RECORDS) 1979
I have heard something like it, i just can't make up my mind whether it's Ian Dury, Sham 69 or Chas n Dave. The Freshmen were an Irish showband (!) trying their hand at Cockney punk and if you like the sound of that, it's on ebay at the moment. Personally I recommend that you avoid this at all costs, this is the worst one yet. It is strange how the blues and soul and experimental releases have held up well, but the pop/punk stuff hasn't. That's the common theme of the box so far for me.

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John Peel's Record Box - now where was I?

John Peel's Record Box - now where was I?
Inexplicably I have become distracted from this worthy pursuit, but it's very much back on again. Elmore James kicks off the next lot and he's coming soon! Here is a recap of the other posts as they were made over a month ago.
Intro
John Peel's Record Box, 1-4 Al Casey to Andy Capp
John Peel's Record Box, 5-9. Anemic Boyfriends to Big Stick
John Peel's Record Box, 10-13 Bill Oddie to Cat Power
John Peel's Record Box 14-19, a Charlie Feathers special!
John Peel's Record Box 20-23, Cheeze to Cleveland Crochet
John Peel's Record Box 24-28, cracks start to appear!
John Peel's Record Box 29-33, an Eddie and Ernie special
John Peel's Record Box: Electro Hippies

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Goodbye Ivor Cutler
Fitting obituaries in The Times and The Guardian.
“When I do die I shall be glad to get away from loud pop music and motor cars, but I shall miss, insofar as when one is dead one can miss anything, the beautiful kindnesses of those people to whom courtesy comes naturally.”
Ivor Cutler 1923-2006.

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PHOTOBLOG no.2 Ove-naxx, Lavery's Bunker, Belfast 5th March 2006

Part of a five-strong Japanese onslaught last night at the Bunker. If I hadn't been wearing heavy duty earplugs I wouldn' have been able to get close enough for this picture! I'm claiming this is Ove-naxx though the final procession of performers was so full-on I may have lost track slightly. Anyway, it is one of the few good photos I've taken at a gig, so here it is.
The gig was interesting though I had only gone along to see Numbers. Clone Quartet were on first with a slightly different line-up than their BelFest show but were equally as good. Numbers were a lot different than the material I had heard (namely the 'Life' album), there were a lot less rowdy as well, but still really impressive. Coming from a similar place to Deerhoof which is fine by me.
I wasn't sure whether or not to stay for DJ Scotch Egg and crew but they were so entertaining I couldn't fail to be impressed. Earsplittingly loud and brilliantly annoying, I wish there were more people who were willing to go out on a limb like this.
(PS If that isn't Ove-naxx in the pic please comment and correct me! Ta)

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PHOTOBLOG no.1 Floodlight, Windsor Park, Belfast

It's interesting for me to do a photoblog this month, I am a very amateur photographer, and although I have a decent camera and editing software, I'm only really learning things. This is a photo I took last night at the Northern Ireland - Estonia match (1-0 to NI by the way) from below the floodlight nearest to Midgely Park. I wished I had waited until the snow had started to fall, but I wasn't actually there to take photos, I was supposed to be working! Anyway, here it is.

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I am a footnote on wikipedia
Fame at last! The picture that I took of the John Peel tribute mural at Bridge End, Belfast, is the footnote to Wikipedia's Teenage Kicks article. I was quite chuffed, not to mention amazed by the extra site traffic coming this way!

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A few updates...
GIG PREVIEWS: I have been wondering what to do with all the gig listings I get sent, especially since the ezboard fell apart, but I have decided to add them into my myspace calendar. However, this doesn't seem to be working correctly, and although I've listed some gigs and made it viewable by everyone, I can only see one gig, and only when I am logged in as myself. It's hardly headline news that a myspace feature doesn't work, so this may just be a temporary solution to gig listings. Keep sending them anyway.
PHOTO BLOG: I have decided that March will be the month where I publish a photoblog. Regular updates about music, and in particular the John Peel Record Box, will appear here as normal, and for the moment so will the regular photo updates. Random nonsense will be on the myspace blog.

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