Lives of the English Rakes
May. 3rd, 2006 06:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alexsarllI omitted to mark Beltane officially this weekend, for which I apologise, but I think I marked it in practice; in Soho Square and in Gillespie Park (which I'd never before found in daylight), I could feel the world coming alive again. And that still left time to visit Bermondsey (where geekdom was divided into science and Who factions, the former holding that 'School Reunion''s only flaw was the lamentable pseudoscience, the latter that it was the continuity glitch), to accidentally go somewhere which may have been Edmonton on the way home, and to spend Sunday in Docklands at Nelson's old shagnest, proving once again that there are actually only a thousand people in the world.
I'm a little ambivalent about Love Music Hate Racism. Yes, I love music. Yes, I hate racism. But then they have to go and spoil it by opposing Islamophobia too, and implicitly equating it with racism. On top of which, after Pete Doherty's second no-show for one of their events, they somehow manage to avoid the obvious inference, viz. he is a useless little junkie twerp. No, instead we get this whine: "The only disappointing aspect of the day was that longtime LMHR supporter Pete Doherty was unable to play with his band Babyshambles after being arrested by police on the morning of the event. However, the rest of the band did come down to show their support, and Babyshambles bassist Drew McConnell with LMHR's Martin Smith made speeches strongly criticising police for failing to bail Pete in time to play at such a major anti-racist event, despite appeals from event organisers. The police decision was especially curious since Pete was since bailed the morning after." Right, so he's enough of a mess that he injects unconscious kids with drugs, and if the police actually dare respond to this, then they're engaged on some covert racist agenda? What pathetic nonsense.
I don't think I've ever seen a bad David Devant show (and bear in mind, they're possibly the band I've seen live most times, and if not then definitely not far off). But some of those shows were good, some were very good, and some were great. I think that the 100 Club show was one of the great ones. It helps that, as well as being a storied venue, it also seems to be a pretty good one (how have I managed never to come here before?), and it helps that whereas they've often been saddled with some pretty average indie support acts, this time they have the Would-Be-Goods (whose songs make up for what they lack in stage presence) and the rather dapper Jazz Butcher (anyone with a song introduced as being "about how dinosaurs were fvcking great" gets my vote). But all this is set-dressing; what makes it is that they're up there playing like their lives depended on it, with the Vessel encouraging us to picture the dry ice and lasers, wave our arms through them, feel the spirit of David Devant himself...they may not have the stage tricks and the Spectral Roadies up there, but this is still all about the magic.
The boshing among you might like to know that at 7pm this Thursday in Saint Matthew's Church, Great Peter Street, there will be a performance of happy hardcore 'choons' on the church organ.
The alleged Bosnian pyramid provides a good summary of how I regard stories of the occult and unknown; it would come as no great surprise to me if there were an ancient pyramid lurking in Europe, disguised as a hill - but at the same time, the parties claiming this to be the case sound like a right bunch of chancers.
I'm a little ambivalent about Love Music Hate Racism. Yes, I love music. Yes, I hate racism. But then they have to go and spoil it by opposing Islamophobia too, and implicitly equating it with racism. On top of which, after Pete Doherty's second no-show for one of their events, they somehow manage to avoid the obvious inference, viz. he is a useless little junkie twerp. No, instead we get this whine: "The only disappointing aspect of the day was that longtime LMHR supporter Pete Doherty was unable to play with his band Babyshambles after being arrested by police on the morning of the event. However, the rest of the band did come down to show their support, and Babyshambles bassist Drew McConnell with LMHR's Martin Smith made speeches strongly criticising police for failing to bail Pete in time to play at such a major anti-racist event, despite appeals from event organisers. The police decision was especially curious since Pete was since bailed the morning after." Right, so he's enough of a mess that he injects unconscious kids with drugs, and if the police actually dare respond to this, then they're engaged on some covert racist agenda? What pathetic nonsense.
I don't think I've ever seen a bad David Devant show (and bear in mind, they're possibly the band I've seen live most times, and if not then definitely not far off). But some of those shows were good, some were very good, and some were great. I think that the 100 Club show was one of the great ones. It helps that, as well as being a storied venue, it also seems to be a pretty good one (how have I managed never to come here before?), and it helps that whereas they've often been saddled with some pretty average indie support acts, this time they have the Would-Be-Goods (whose songs make up for what they lack in stage presence) and the rather dapper Jazz Butcher (anyone with a song introduced as being "about how dinosaurs were fvcking great" gets my vote). But all this is set-dressing; what makes it is that they're up there playing like their lives depended on it, with the Vessel encouraging us to picture the dry ice and lasers, wave our arms through them, feel the spirit of David Devant himself...they may not have the stage tricks and the Spectral Roadies up there, but this is still all about the magic.
The boshing among you might like to know that at 7pm this Thursday in Saint Matthew's Church, Great Peter Street, there will be a performance of happy hardcore 'choons' on the church organ.
The alleged Bosnian pyramid provides a good summary of how I regard stories of the occult and unknown; it would come as no great surprise to me if there were an ancient pyramid lurking in Europe, disguised as a hill - but at the same time, the parties claiming this to be the case sound like a right bunch of chancers.
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no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 06:04 pm (UTC)I'm pretty sure that the entire population of our combined friendslists love music and hate racism too, but the actual campaign is nothing more than a front for the Trots in the SWP. See also "Anti-Nazi League". That lot and Doherty deserve each other.
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Date: 2006-05-02 06:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 06:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 06:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 06:16 pm (UTC)Also, that's the third mention of Jazz Butcher in two days from three separate sources after about two years of not hearing/talking of him at all. Spooky.
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Date: 2006-05-02 06:17 pm (UTC)For me it's been Lily Allen cropping up in every conversation, email and the like.
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Date: 2006-05-02 06:18 pm (UTC)Who is Lily Allen?
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Date: 2006-05-02 06:26 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 06:29 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 06:28 pm (UTC)Whether or not it's a pyramid, it's a pretty spiffy looking hill anyway.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 06:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 09:49 pm (UTC)Spectral Roadies
Date: 2006-05-03 09:29 am (UTC)If I was not already engaged this Thursday, I would HEARTILY endorse Organ Bosh. Hurhurhur, "organ".
Re: Spectral Roadies
Date: 2006-05-08 04:33 pm (UTC)The place to which my parents are moving is near somewhere called BOSHill!