5 posts tagged “thekla”
Not feeling like I could be arsed, but having brought tickets and havin really wanted to see Retribution Gospel Choir for ages..I forced myself to make the journey back to Bristol for the 2nd night in a row.
Leaving a bit later than planned, myself, Ash, Grace, Ben and Beev piled into my car and we braved the mental rain, occasionally aquaplaning down the M4, to the Thekla. As I walked up to the venue I could hear them on stage already. I legged it downstairs, pushed through the crowd, stood at the front mesmerised as a quite clearly wasted Alan Sparhawk chucked his head back and forth while hammering out the awesome Low tune 'Breaker'. I was hugely excited/impressed. They finished their song and Alan Sparhawk leans forward to the mic and says 'Thank you and Good night' (or words to that effect).... EPIC FAIL!
I was gutted...... Tampin' I was.
Here is the photo I managed to take during their last song
After the bands finished playing, we hung around for a bit while the Thekla club night started. Ash couldn't resist the temptation of an empty dance floor so embarked on a one woman dancing extravaganza. It was great. Here is a video of her moves. Unfortunately for us (fortunately for her) it is too dark to see much, but you get glimpses of her leg work which gives you an idea of her dancing skills (ills).
My average of gigs per week this year is slipping. I was running at a 1.5 per week average. Its down to 1.3 now. This must mean that my fun to work ratio has changed. You would think. OR is it that I have been finding alternative ways to have fun other than by going to see bands....
Last week I did get to see some live music in the form of Lyrics Born at the Thekla in Bristol.
We've been looking forward to seeing him for fair few weeks now. His album 'Everywhere at Once' is a classic summer album which I can be heard pumpin out loud from my car, low riding through town with the windows down... often with ash in the passenger seat trying to master the words to his awesome tune 'I like it I love it' (she usually fails after the first verse, but what she lacks in accuracy, she makes up for in effort!).....
Since I last blogged, I hammered this whole book (almost) in 24hrs.
Worked in spillers on Saturday. Always fun and I get to go home with an arm load of new CD's. There is not a lot better than having a bag of new music to listen to. Pisses over downloading 0 and 1's i'm telling you.
Had a lovely evening hanging out with my home girls on Saturday. Especially loved driving around town listening to:
In a new experience for me, I had my mates make the 30min ride out of town to come see me in my manor. We went for a walk down to the beach and hung out in the sun. Was a nice day.
Here is a photo I took. I have hidden the identity of one gentleman who attended as he doesn't like people knowing what he has been up to via my blog :)
I am currently having my mind blown by Smog and Neil Young..... while embarking on a love affair with 60's Psych.... hoping this affair will blossom into a full blown relationship. Its really doing it for me now anyway.
Off to the 'don tomorrow. £12 return on the Megabus! barryargin!
This weekend had been pretty much non-eventful. I averted the train crash that sounds like the night I nearly went out on with beev and his p-town cru. Having opted for a 'quiet one' I stayed in and caught up on some much needed zzzzz's. Saturday I full on wrecked myself by trying to make up for a week of not exercising and doing it all in one go. This was not the best decision I have made to be honest. I spent 2 hours working on my 'gunz' in the gym, came home and went for a bitchin run to the beach and back (30 mins), then spent the rest of the evening unable to move.
I finally managed to watch Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas for the first time ever. Fuckin A! Obviously, being of the demographic which I fall under, I have read the book..... but i have not seen the film (like so many other films I have not seen. I am not a film head. Music is my medium of choice... is music a medium? I rekon its a large...)
Anyway. Ace film. Laughed. Alot. LOL, LMAO etc. etc.
So, tonight, I had made plans with 3 people to hook up and go to a gig in town. But unfortunately, had to blow them all out.
Why?
Well.
Ash phones me at 7ish going... 'mate, what day is it?' and i'm like.... (in my head) no, your birthday has been... umm... she goes 'fuckin Atmosphere in Brizzle tonight innit!'...... double 'Doh!'. Brought tickets about a month ago and totally forgot it was 'appenin.
So, I gets my shit together, blow all 3 people out that I was supposed to hook up with (sorry Grace, Ellie and Gar). Razz round 'hers' and head off to Brizzle.
Atmosphere was ace. He has Flow, rhymz and sincerity in what he is spittin..... and he is hot..... loved it.
Mid way through the gig, I notice Ash getting chatted up by a blatant gay girl (facial piercings (many)... was in a camo tshirt with 'ladykiller' written on it.... short of wearing a flashing helmet of lights with 'I AM A GAY' on it, it was pretty obvious). So this girl quizzes Ash on where she hangs out (amongst many other inappropriate questions for an 'ummm i watchin a fuckin show here' chat). Ash tells her at gigs and that, and the girl goes 'with her?' gesturing in my general direction. So ash goes 'yeah'. So from that point on, me and ash were a couple. Turns out these girls (there was another, Chey and Tasha. Nice girls. Tasha was quite umm 'vocal', but generally quiet pleasant) were in need of a lift back to Newport. So me, being the nice girl that I am, said 'yeah why not'. So me and my girlfriend Ash gave them a lift home. How we laughed.
Nice to be gay for the evening. Nice to be accepted by other gays.
It was all ash's fault, but she said that it was my fault for looking like a gay with my haircut. This is either a diss or a compliment. I can't work out which.
I must be one hot gay to pull smash. I'll take it as a compliment :)
Anyway. its gone 2am. I need to go to bed. Not a great start to my working week. But tonight will keep me amused til atleast Wednesday I rekon.
t'is never dull i tell thee.....
Occasionally when I watch people play music, when they finish a song my legs are almost like jelly and my hands start to shake. This happened tonight watching Low. So so subtle and quiet, but absolutely beautiful.... and in some parts the sound is just so intense it just blows you away. When you are watching something so good, it is hard to think about anything else. I even forgot where I was at one point (good job I had satnav eh... booom boom)
I feel lucky to absolutely love bands and be able to watch them up close as illustrated in this photo:
I watched this band all by myself cos I managed to lose everyone at the beginning. I didn't care. Had an ace time regardless.
Also, it took fuckin ages to drive back. Bastarding road works, again. After dropping everyone home (Beev, Ellie, Mark, Ash, Grace and Rhodri) I had another half hour to get home BUT I was so into the album I was listening to when I actually did get home, that I coulda kept on driving until the end of it. Now that is a testament to good album!.......... oh and it was Why? 'Alopecia' by the way.
Bjork next week! Cannot wait I tell thee!
Gig #16, how they are clocking up.
Tonight Ash, Grace, Beev and I Took a jaunt to Bristol to see the obscenely named Holy Fuck! in the Thekla. I rate their album loads. Its worth checking out their tune 'Lovely Allen' if you aint heard them before. This tune was probably the highlight of their set. Lots of dancing at the front. This included me, ash and grace and other assorted mentals.
They were way more electronic that I woulda thought them to be live. Electronic = good. But despite this, they still weren't mind blowing (see last post for Efterklang :) ). Can't expect to have my tiny mind blown to pieces 2 nights in a row. Wouldn't want it to be either. Too much for one tiny mind.
The support band Free Blood, were good sounding but lazy as fuck as they just sang and danced around to a backing track. Like a cool karaoke. Good to listen to. A bit shite to watch.
I like the Thekla though. Its a great venue. Its good because, its a venue, but its on a boat. Thats right, ON A BOAT. I love venues, and I love boats, therefore I love this place :)
Marathon journey home. Had to go via Bath cos of bastarding road works. We amused ourselves by taking it in turns to DJ on the Ipod, combined with much singing (from me) and dancing (from me also). We had an eclectic mix bag of tunes which included hits from the likes of The Black Ghosts, Skream, Smog, Sparklehorse, Bjork, Aesop Rock and Wu Tang Clan. A dip in the volume on the stereo caused a shout from the back "Turn it up, this aint no Bistro" from smAsh. Which made me laugh. She is the only person to get in my car and turn the tunes up. Everyone else turns them down and complains.
Its is 2:17am. I should go to bed.
Night y'all. :) x
Oh one last thing before I hang up the line for the last time....... I have just found this really nice Holy Fuck! remix of Radiohead's 'Nude'. Check it!
