Gig Report: RNCM Chamber Orchestra, RNCM, Friday 22 June 2007

Rushing to the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) after a canal-side run in preparation for Sunday's race, we made it with time to spare and grab a refreshing beverage (we had run 4 miles, so it was well-deserved). We enter the Haden Freeman Concert Hall, a smaller theatre than the one we had been in for the trombone concert though it still had a 200-odd seat capacity. As usual with this venue the mix of people was varied, but was generally divided between older mum and dad types and the student brigade who were possibly the friends of the 45-strong performers, all who are tertiary students at the aforementioned college.

Beginning the 4 part show is a stunning tribute to Beethoven's 9 Symphonies reworked to include electric and bass guitars and an ice-cream vendors bell. For the most part it was very entertaining and flowed smoothly, never knowing when each well known strain from the symphonies would appear, but the ice cream vendors bell did not fit at all, appearing randomly and without context - though that was probably the main idea - it just seemed more like someone's mobile went off during the performance.

The second piece which was a flute concerto (Mandala ki Raga), fused Indian and classical music. An Indian lady sat cross-legged on a special black podium in the middle of the orchestra while a flautist stood to one side. While talented, parts of the performance were again a little too avant-garde and more distracting was the fact that I kept thinking of that film, Anchorman, where Will Ferrel plays 'jazz flute'. Unfortunately during the end of the piece my throat gave way and I had to leave the theatre so I could cough without disturbing the performance. Always annoying! Luckily intermission followed and Phil and I went to the bar to grab something suitable to sooth my throat.

Returning to the hall we watched an even more bizarre and heavily percussive 4-part piece being performed which was so atonal and contemporary I couldn't get into it at all. The piece in question was called 'Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World' which should tell you how 'out there' it was. The piece shares the same name as a Haruki Murakami novel which will make sense to anyone who has read one of his novels. As Phil has a healthy collection of literature by this writer he was able to enjoy the performance and understand it more than me.
Ending the concert and returning to a more traditional style, we were treated to a rendition of Beethoven's Symphony No 1 in C major, which was in all sense music to my ears and to my mind showcased the technical abilities of the performers.

And so ended our cultured Friday evening as we returned home to catch up on Big Brother (for my benefit not Phil's).

Gig Report: Ricky Gervais, FAME, MEN Arena Thursday 21 June

Ricky Gervais is probably the hottest British comedy export at the moment, following his television success with The Office (which has been made into an American version starring Steve Carrell of 40-Year Old Virgin fame) and The Extras. Picking up no less than a half dozen Baftas and a couple of Emmys stateside, he can probably boast being the most high-acclaimed comedy acts the Brits have produced too. So it's no surprise that he's filling large venues up and down the country in his latest stand-up offering, Fame. For audiences who have previously enjoyed his Animals and Politics shows, this was somewhat of a departure. Gone is the lecture-style performance, giving way to a more unscripted, conversationalist delivery of jokes around being a celebrity. The comedy he presented on the whole was funny (and the hour long set was almost enough to justify the £30 ticket price) though I think that some of it was lost in the size of the venue. Even though we had 4th row seats in the lower tiered section up the back, it was impossible to read any facial expressions and I have ridiculously good distance vision. Added to that, the topical humour was in some parts a bit raw and would be better suited to a more intimate setting.
Back tracking a little (and this is more for completeness) the warm-up act was well chosen. Will Smith, an upper class mid 30's guy gave a performance that engaged the audience and took no cheap shots at anyone other than himself.

Overall it was a great night out and we're glad we went, but the DVD would be just as funny.

Ocean's 13: enough already?

Like Monique, I also took advantage of another 2-for-1 Wednesday (the one benefit of having an Orange handset in the house) and went off to the cinema last night. Phil was keen to see Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, but unlike Monique I put my foot down (small petulent child that I am) and refused to watch some comic-book-turned-movie entertainment. Really not my thing - I can happily enjoy Shrek and the like, but Spiderman et al - absolutely not. Though I would like to see Vacancy (the hotel room based horror flick) I think I'd prefer to be at home to catch that one. With the lights on. So the natural choice was Ocean's 13. Having seen the first two instalments (the second of which was widely panned by critics) I pretty much knew what was in store. A wrong done to someone, and elaborate heist and a cast of sexy A-list male actors. And whilst the film did what it said on the tin - you have to ask, have we had enough of Ocean's already? Well, frankly, no. Sure we knew that the team would pull it off in the end - but then doesn't James Bond always get the lady and save the day? There is absolutely enough room in the market for well shot plain ol' cinema fun - sure beats some of the tragic rom-com dross on the screens.
If I could criticise this film at all is that it didn't have many twists to the story as the first one AND Ellen Barkin was probably not the best choice for her role (what's up with those fake knockers too?) but hey on a half price ticket, I was more than 50% entertained.
Verdict: Wait til it's on DVD if you're not a massive fan of the series.

Comedy Sketchbook Taping, ITV Granada Studios

Last night we walked into town to Granada studios, the hallowed grounds of Coronation street, to watch the taping of Comedy Sketchbook, a show made up of 'hilarious' clips from some of Britain's finest comedy moments, hosted by Angus Deayton (left). Shuffling to the gates we notice the audience is a much more mature one - perhaps semi-fans of the host himself. Entering the grounds we're directed through security and then towards a conservatory like building which is actually attached to the Rovers Return fronted building, where audience members can purchase a drink and snacks. This of course is not the Rovers Return interior that is used in Corrie (as it is affectionately known), but the outside is frequently used for shots.

Filing into the studio and this is the first actual television studio I have been in, I'm amazed to see it is in effect a section of high ceiling warehouse with hundreds of lights of all descriptions positioned above our heads. The garish set looks larger than life, but on the monitor appears more normal. Several headset wearing people buzz around talking quietly into walkie-talkies and we take our seats in the second row. A warm-up guy tells a few jokes so that our laughter is recorded, though he wasn't that good so some of the laughs were pretty forced (except for the audience snorter - there's always one!). Soon, and without too much formality, Angus Deayton enters the studio to much applause and he's a true professional, at least for the first show where his scripts were read without fault. It looked like we'd be heading home earlier than expected if he followed suit in the second taping - sadly he was obviously getting weary because he fluffed his lines repeatedly. The show was shot pretty much how you will see it going to air, we listened to Angus, then watched some clips, back to Angus and so on until the end of the show. All of the clips were British and some of them I didn't really get the joke as they were small sketches of characters that most people grew up with and understood the larger context, still it was a good night out and interesting to watch.

The verdict? Unlikely to be a major comeback for Angus who is sadly relegated to one-off late night shows, but he shows he's still got comic timing and an audience appeal.

Live Earth!!

Just got a text through from Live Earth saying my registration has been successful and I am able to purchase Live Earth tickets. Which of course is all very exciting except that I now have something else booked in for that weekend... isn't that always the way?

Oh well, it's small comfort but plenty of things are in the diary this week, not least of which is Ricky Gervais at the MEN arena on Thursday night. Tonight however, we're off to see a TV show being taped called Comedy Sketchbook, hosted by Angus Deayton. Interesting to see what ends up on television after our Britain's Got Talent taping... cannot believe the £50 wedding singer from our audition session - not only did he get through (madness) but then got kicked off for being a known sex offender. Anyway, it seems that despite this, the show was a massive success (though the popularity of the American one made it a fairly safe bet for Simon Cowell) and it was great to see that Carphone Warehouse salesman and part time opera singer Paul Potts won.

Tim Tams and Whitlams

OK, no Tim Tams (it's the only thing I could think of to rhyme with Whitlams) but I am super pysched today. I've got tickets to see Tim Freedman (Whitlams) early August in London with a good friend who lived in Australia and shares my passion (or tolerates it at the very least) for the Whitlams! This is definitely a rare opportunity and totally worth a trip to the capital for the performance. (Thanks Ails!)

Also arriving in the post are tickets I grabbed the other day for Ricky Gervais live in Manchester on the 21st - making that week sooo busy... I've signed us up to go watch another show being taped (yes, I've lost my mind), there's a classical concert, another 10km jog and Knowsley Hall Festival. Red Bull anyone?

Gig Report: Good Golly Miss Polly! Roadhouse, 8pm Thursday, 7 June 2007

Such a busy weekend that I haven't had time to blog about Thursday night's gig.
So... how was it!?
OK, so the tickets and website said doors at 7.30pm and arriving at 8pm I had assumed we'd be catching a bit of the support and then Polly herself, but when we reached the dingy Northern Quarter venue (it's pretty grim, but a good start for people trying to make it in the business) we found that the doors had not even opened - soundchecks were still in progress. Backing up the stairs we perused the shops in this area, lingering at Dainese (sp?) so Phil could drool over the motorbike gear before I dragged him across the road to a new Kro Bar for us. This one I think is a little more upscale than the Oxford Road location, though the familiar simple Danish stylings and strawberry beer (Fruli on tap!) is a welcome sight. Finishing our beers we head back to the venue to enter it's dark interior. The noises resonating from the stage are poorly constructed rock, sounding like a group of 40-something men practicing in someone's garage. This is (according to the flyers pasted on the walls) '100 Club' whose vocals were indecipherable for the entire set. We assumed that the guy on the mixer was being kind by drowning the frontman out but in any case it wasn't unbearable. A chance to grab some drinks and take in the venue sees us procuring more beers (they serve Fruli here too so it can't be all bad!) and finding a spot to stand. Note - this venue has a distinct lack of seating - the only chairs available are red and black metal folding chairs but even these are in short supply. The crowd at this point is very small, making the venue seem ultra 'school-disco awkward' since
a) the music is not a beat you can dance to,
b) it's mainly full of men who don't visibily show musical appreciation more than nodding their heads vaguely in time; and
c) there is a huge space in front of the band where noone wants to stand.
Lather, rinse and repeat for the next band - which is disappointing and now weird... why on earth would Polly have over-pumped rock building up to her folksy set? Anyway, enter 'Sound Club' who I assumed would be a marked improvement owing to the more professional looking equipment and care at which they unloaded their pedals from their bubble-wrap in boxes. The frontman is a wannabe Liam Gallagher - right down to the forward-combed hair and top-buttoned styling. With attitude to match and a swagger that would make Liam proud. Throughout the short set he continued to purse his lips and wind the mic lead over and around his head in a vaguely Oasis stylee. Just a shame he didn't have the talent to match and that quite frankly they were a bit middle class trying to be 'street' - the drummer's mother taking photos was a dead giveaway. By now we'd discovered that parking ourselves to the right of the stage is one of the venue's accoustically bankrupt places to stand - though for the first two bands it didn't make a whole lot of difference and we promptly relocated to the mid-back section of the rapidly filling Raodhouse. It seems that Polly is building quite a fan base, and she enters the stage to much applause. Dressed in red she acknowledges the crowd with grace and humour immediately endearing herself to people who have not laid eyes or ears on her previously. What follows is a selection of songs from her album (Fingers and Thumbs) being released Monday 11 June which she is clearly excited about. Her voice clear, warm and solid, she sounds a lot like KT Tunstall and though the tunes on the whole are not as catchy they are both listenable and likeable - and judging by the now crowded stage area of the Roadhouse, I'm not the only one who thinks so. Track of the evening for me is the gorgeous Back To The Start. Big (Fingers and) Thumbs up for Polly!
Gigs over for the week, Phil and I tortured ourselves at the gym on Saturday in preparation for a lack-lustre effort in another 10km race. Striving for excellence in mediocrity we suitably gave up after 30mins each on the treadmill and opted for weights before returning home to crank up the BBQ and open a bottle of wine. Waking to a stunning Sunday morning we headed for the Peak District to stroll 4-5 miles of their finest undulating hills, some of which we had covered previously and some new territory. Finally, after nearly 6 years in this country (yep, it's been THAT long) I have achieved several patches of sunburn on my shoulders, neck and chest. I'm almost proud - though Phil's rather disappointed frown at my sun damage tells me I really shouldn't be! Ahhh, the sun baking days of my youth revisited, if only briefly!