September 2001

17th – 23rd September -Phil

A stable diet of Kentish town takeaways, enough passive smoking to equal a 60 a day habit and unending sympathy for the terrible fates that await our drumming friends. Just a few of the pleasures of making those rock’n’roll dreams come true. Fair few B+G regulars this week but my first chance to see Sparking Toys, something I was nearly denied by the reluctance of modern technology. Couldn’t whistle any of their tunes, no idea what they were singing about but they sounded great and carried it off in sparkly outfits with the odd cowboy hat.

Tuesday 24th -Andy

International Harry are making a solid and competent guitar pop noise to accompany my shish kebab. Seems to go down ok, Kentish delight do a lovely Chicken Shish. Ten o’clock and the evening seems to be flying by. There’s a good crowd in and Fail Safe are on stage. Four lads who met at Ipswich University are playing some slightly disjointed but nonetheless pleasant sounding guitar pop. They share vocals between an Ashley from Coronation Street lookalike and a bloke in an ‘I Love Kylie’ T-shirt.

The Ashley lookalike twiddles one to many guitar solo’s for my liking but on the whole they make a reasonable racket. Police and Thieves are tonight’s headliners and take to the stage and are greeted by an enthusiastic crowd. Someone’s been stealing their older brother’s record collection it would seem. They look about twenty and they all look like they should have bit parts in Quadraphinia! The frontman sounds like a snarling version of the singer from The Beat The band hammer out some great sounding punky Ska riffs somewhere between The Clash and very early Jam. The sizeable crowd go home happy.

Wednesday 25th -Andy

As I pull up outside The Forum I hesitate to turn off my ignition because Human Fly by the Cramps is playing on my tape. Walking into the Bull and Gate I’m thinking well the first band don’t stand a chance now with Poison Ivy’s guitar still fizzing in my head. The first band tonight are Bird.

The room is packed and low and behold theres a girl dressed in leather hot pants and fishnets playing a distorted hell raising guitar just like Poison Ivy, amazing coincidence! Bird are obviously enjoying themselves grrrl power etc. The singer bobbing about with a big smile plastered across her face as she sings some great throw away lines.

Vodkadog then woo the healthy Wednesday rabble with some very XFM friendly sounding grunge pop. Very entertaining and extremely deafening. Last up tonight we have The waltz. “They’re like the strokes” an ill informed or obviously completely deaf record scout tells me on his way in at the door. They’re blokes and that’s where similarities with the strokes end. In fact forget The Strokes they were Penthouse, very loud, a sort of trash blues experience with all the chaos of an early Gallon Drunk gig.

Thursday 26th-Andy

and a trip south of the river to The Montague Arms. It’s a great pub, they once interviewed Mark E Smith, Shane Mcgowan and Nick Cave in here all at the same time for the NME. Imagine walking into your local boozer for a lunch time pint and seeing that lot soaking up the ale. You might as well give up straight away and look for another pub. Anyway it’s almost as bad when The Brain Of Morbius hole up in a pub, but thankfully they leave a little beer for the punters.

First up here are Vibe Factory formerly known as Distract Vibes, they’re from Rotterdam. They are a male/female duo and they play an intriguingly intense but brittle sounding set. It seems improv and the singer Wally, an ex Feyenoord football hooligan (allegedly!), has the audience on their toes with some very strange vocals. He seems to be mumbling to himself feverishly, it’s enthralling and at times a bit disturbing.

Brain Of Morbius are always a treat, Singer Bones bashing himself over the head with a metal tray whilst singing about music written backwards for the violin. Even more disturbing I think you’ll agree.

Sunday 30th -Andy

and back at The Bull and Gate for a metal flavoured night. Goatboy get us under way, they’ve made the trip from Wales. A very energetic and lively frontman roars into a microphone that looks like it was made on the great egg race. A DJ scratches and injects random samples into the songs at will. They rock, and hold the Sunday throng well.

Day 13 are middle tonight and make a heavy grunge metal growling sound. The singer hunched double for most of the set, seemingly clutching his stomach, must have had a pizza slice off of one of those street stalls in Camden before the show. He hollers into the Mic as the band rumble through some gut wrenching numbers.

Finally we have Intoxica, two glamour goths front the band. They look like they long since missed the last boat across the black lagoon. They remind us all that yes, The Mission did actually exist. Black dreams tonight people. I’m off home and straight to bed and I’m not even going to take my mascara off! Rock n Roll!