Another Day, Bitter Pearl and Ina End at the Elephants Head

My second trip in a week to the Elephants Head in Camden. Friday I went to see a Welsh band called Lacross Club (not a spelling mistake, that's how they spell it They are Welsh). But tonight I was seeing a band that I had seen a few times before, Another Day.

Now I can't really complain about the venue given the gigs are free, but the place is really not ideal for live music. The stage is in the corner next to the main entrance to the pub. So anyone trying to enter while a band is playing has first to run the gauntlet of the band's audience (and if they are a punk band like the Lacross Club, that is a very "energetic" audience). And the acts are playing in the windows of the pub, which means we see all the passers by behind them.

And this is a particular issue when an act is as direly boring as tonight's opener, Ina End, who had come from Paris to play here (although she was American). Now to start with I really don't like solo singer songwriters - they almost always bore me. The exceptions are those with a terrific voice or who can play guitar with some aplomb. This young lady came in neither category and even switching from electric to acoustic and back did not relieve the tedium. She offered slightly yelping vocals over basic strumming with a pretty dead eyed stare. Which meant one was easily distracted into watching the passers by behind her, or even looking at the graffiti on the other side (it's Camden; there is a lot of graffiti). Anything was more interesting than her.

I assumed the second act would be an improvement  - 4 piece indie guitar band is more my style. But Bitter Pearl were a bitter disappointment. More interesting to watch than the opener - at least there were four of them. But I wouldn't describe any of what they did as songs. A collection of random playing with a less than adequate lead vocalist.

So finally to Another Day. I did ask the lead singer Louis why they were playing a place like this and he just said they fancied playing somewhere small. (A tour of proper venues is apparently to be announced shortly. But this place is literally too small for them. I don't mean too small for their potential audience; I mean too small to accommodate the five members of the band on stage. I suggested to Louis that he doesn't try his trademark backflip for fear of injury, but he said he intended to, but he and his brother only managed their party trick by asking the audience to make a space in front of the stage.

Anyway they started as usual with Astile (on percussion) reading one of his poems, below.

And then onto the band working through their set with gusto, if restricted movement. They aren't pulling up trees, but as a band they are quite appealing. I will certainly try and see them at a London date of their tour

 

Christ Church Meadow and Regents Park

An unusual combination. I took a young friend to Oxford for the day - took a look around the city centre, colleges, the Ashmolean Museum but in particular I fancied a walk around Christ Church Meadow to take some photos of the college across the partly flooded meadow. What I hadn't taken into account was that the paths would also be partially flooded - basically just a series of puddles. My young friend was not amused having worn smart clean trainers for a city walk. Anyway, I got some nice shots.

I also took him to my old college - me in Canterbury Quad

Anyway, the lad said he was under the weather a bit so we returned to London early afternoon. (He said he had enjoyed the time, just was not well, and I will take that as true. I am vain enough to want to believe it!)

So with an unexpected bit of afternoon and some sunshine to enjoy I popped into Regents Park.

I almost timed it perfectly. Almost. Nice weather in the park, but as I left it started to tip it down with a ten minute walk to Warren Street still ahead of me. Through some of the office blocks that have recently sprung up around Euston.

Then home to cook dinner and watch Coventry v Middlesbrough on ITV 4. 

Coventry 3 Middlesbrough 1. Great day!