So here were are once again on another distinctly mediocre morning in one of the most utterly unremarkable months of the calendar.  I was born in November and at least November is pretty reliably completely shit, whereas October doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be.  It’s not even consistently rubbish enough to hate.

So far so fucking splendid.  I have been driven away from Facebook today by an over-abundance (i.e. one person) of grown fucking adults talking in fucking babyspeak.  “U cud of come 2 [insert name of some shit club or other].”  Dear lord, that makes me want to stamp on something fluffy and cute.

How much fucking time can you possibly be saving yourself by deliberately spelling things like a fucking clueless, infantile fucktard?  Just suppressing the urge to commit suicide for being such a shallow, vapid, hateful cunt must take more energy than just using the English language properly in the fucking first place. The universe will catch up with you twats, you know.  That kind of imbecility won’t go unpunished in a just world. Karma hates adults who think they’re illiterate twelve-year-olds, and you will get yours eventually.

Fuck it, that’s all I’ve got this week.  Here are some gigs.  Go to them.

Tuesday 11th October 2011: Lach performs at the Storytelling Night at The Stand.

Having hosted an open mic night in New York for the last thirty-odd years Lach not only has a lot to tell, but also has developed a knack for telling it.  He the kind of guy who can be funny without actually having to tell jokes – just a natural storyteller, really.

Lach – Blue Overcoat

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Thursday 13th October 2011: Men Diamler at Henry’s Cellar Bar.

Men Diamler, for those of you who live in St. Andrews, will be playing on an amazing bill on the 11th, with Jeffrey Lewis and Withered Hand, but for those of us Edinburgh-bound you can catch him here on Thursday at Henry’s Cellar Bar. Rich plays solo acoustic music, but that doesn’t really even begin to describe it – he can be singing tragic ballads one minute, and bellowing in your face the next.

Men Diamler – Naughty Songwriter Blues

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Thursday 13th October 2011: Vic Galloway presents Bwani Junction, Miniature Dinosaurs & Blank Canvas at the Electric Circus.

This is the first in a series of monthly gigs hosted by Vic at the Electric Circus. He’ll be introducing and interviewing the bands from the stage as well, so you’ll get to hear the voice of Scottish music radio coming from an actual person for a change, instead of a set of speakers.

Friday 14th October 2011: Michelle Shocked at the Caves.

I genuinely have no idea what Michelle Shocked is up to these days, and I haven’t listened to her music in ages, I have to confess.  But on hearing she was playing here I happened serendipitously upon a copy of Short Sharp Shocked in a secondhand record shop, and it reminds me how much I enjoyed her early records, which I discovered back when I first moved the UK in the early nineties.

Michelle Shocked – Black Widow

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Sunday 16th October 2011: Alasdair Roberts, Aileen Campbell & Wounded Knee at the Scottish Storytelling Center.

This is the Edinburgh leg of the Archive Trails tour, which I believe is a project organised by the artists and the ever-impressive Tracer Trails, creating new work inspired by the contents of the archives at the School of Scottish Studies.

Video: Vimeo – YouTube
Photos: Flickr – Blueback Hotrod
Free mp3 downloads: zip file (right click – save as)

The more I read about Johny Lamb from Thirty Pounds of Bone before this session, the more nervous I became.  The internet seemed to be full of all sorts of tales of him being reclusive, antisocial and very, very hard on interviewers.

Now, the press can be a little unreliable at the best of times, and personality-based reports of this nature can vary from person to person, but it almost comical how completely different this session was to my expectations.  Johny was friendly, perhaps a little shy, genuinely chatty and a lovely guy.  In fact, in terms of the interview podcast I think this is probably the most interesting one we’ve ever had.

Thanks are due to Mrs. Toad for the splendid bacon sarnies, to Dylan and Fiona who took the pictures, and to Matthew who did a lot of the filming.  As per usual we have the podcast below, the freely downloadable session mp3s underneath that, followed by the videos we made for all the individual songs.  The tracklisting for the podcast is at the very bottom of the page.  Enjoy!

Direct download: Toadcast #169 – Thirty Pounds of Bone Toad Session

Thirty Pounds of Bone – The Maritime Line (Toad Session)

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Thirty Pounds of Bone – A Lesson in Talking (Toad Session)

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Thirty Pounds of Bone – The Jonah Shanty (Toad Session)

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Thirty Pounds of Bone – Uyeasound (Toad Session)

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01. Thirty Pounds of Bone – The Maritime Line (Toad Session) (11.02)
02. Birdengine – Scarecrow and the Longpig (19.00)
03. Dad Rocks – Aroused By Hair (23.36)
04. Thirty Pounds of Bone – A Lesson in Talking (Toad Session) (37.19)
05. Le Reno Amps – You Must Remember (42.47)
06. Mary Hampton – Ballad of the Talking Dog (44.56)
07. Thirty Pounds of Bone – The Jonah Shanty (Toad Session) (57.37)
08. Diamond Family Archive – I Have Forgotten (66.16)
09. Men Diamler – Waiting for the Snow to Thaw Pt. 2 (68.22)
10. Thirty Pounds of Bone – Uyeasound (Toad Session) (82.44)

[Well, I couldn't exactly review this gig myself, could I? So Dianna has very kindly volunteered to write this for me for this week's Sunday Supplement.  Click on the images to enlarge them, and go to Blueback Hotrod to see Dylan's entire set from the night, and to read Dianna's own blog (shockingly, it's not about music) click here.  The next house gig will be in November for the Maxwell Panther album launch.]

Somehow I’ve been roped into penning this Sunday Supplement. Which, I have to admit, is a bit daunting as I’m a neophyte, comparatively, to this whole scene. As a bit of a preface and a warning, I’ll just say that this in no way is a very good musical review. I’ll leave that to people who know what they’re talking about – or barring that, are much better than I am at pretending that they do.

I didn’t go to the first Toad House Gig. I wasn’t in the country, so I was at a bit of a disadvantage. If it was anywhere near as pleasant as the second was, these things might just have a bit of staying power.

My friend and I managed to arrived unfashionably early, despite the fact that my iPhone conspired with my iBook and iPod to erase any trace of the address from my iCal. That’s a bit of a lie, I actually have a MacBook. I just liked the whole iCrap trend I had going there. But, on the bright side of that, I had a mini tour of Stockbridge, which is surprisingly cleaner and brighter than Leith. Which, on second thought isn’t surprising at all, but I’m still completely charmed by its trash-free streets and shiny, shiny lights.

After running into Dylan who helpfully pointed the way, Rebecca and I found ourselves in the fabled residence of the Toad family – consisting of Mr. and Mrs. Toad, and their cohabitant, Floyd, who made several comedic appearances throughout the evening. I have to say, that cat has remarkable timing. His accompaniment with Animal Magic Tricks was nothing short of inspired.

It’s rare that one gets to sit on a comfy sofa three feet away from the performer in a close, intimate setting. For Animal Magic Tricks, this was enchanting. During Men Daimler, this was more borderline startling – I think we all witnessed first-hand the power of a singer who really knows how to project. It took me back to the days early in my college/undergrad/underage days when I’d go to house parties, have one beer, and then feel extremely nervous because I was positive the cops were going to come because of the noise, give me a MIP (minor in possession for those of you not from the States) and I’d never become the senator/astronaut/doctor I’d alway dreamed of becoming.

Anyway. Besides the appeal of comfy places to sit, and the ability to have any beverage that I wanted (because I had to bring it myself), the true appeal of the night was the informality of it all. It was much like an extremely large dinner party without any dinner – or almost like a feast in some sort of king’s court replete with minstrels for our entertainment. An example which, in one fell swoop, completely bashes that whole ‘informal’ thing that I said and adds an air of pretentious fatuousness that I really feel was lacking from this post. Which just doubled with the use of the term ‘pretentious fatuousness.’

Perhaps I should actually talk about the music. As this is, primarily it seems, a music-type blog. Both sets were well suited to the small venue, especially Animal Magic Tricks as you got to see all of the things she was doing with the interesting little gadgets she had with her. She was, by the way, absolutely beguiling. I didn’t really know either of these musicians – except by virtue of their Myspace pages – but I was genuinely delighted by what I heard. Floyd’s interruptions, Matthew’s interjections on equipment use and misuse, and Men Daimler’s occasional lyrical slippage only added to the sense that we were all just a group of friends (friends who may not have actually ever met in real life) who were enjoying the talents of a couple of their more gifted friends (also whom they had never actually met before).

Unfortunately, my friend and I had to be horribly responsible postgrad students and got home before midnight, so I’m unable to fill you in on any gin-soaked shenanigans that may have taken place later. I might be able to extrapolate and make something up, but I’m not really all that bothered. So, instead enjoy the lovely photos from Blueback Hotrod from that night and just make them up yourself. If you were watching the live webcast, it won’t be that hard – unless we’re talking about anything that happened anywhere that wasn’t the 6 feet or so of stage.

This may or may not work, and the quality may be pish, but we’re working on it! Try my Livestream account if the streaming isn’t working.

Widget removed, gig over, sorry!

This week’s job is the finishing of the Honeytrap Toad Session, preparing the second Toad House Gig for Friday – brilliant brilliant brilliant! – sort of getting ready for the Toad Autumn Party at the Bowery on the 10th (Pineapple Chunky madness, woo!) and getting the Meursault singles pressed and the artwork sorted.  If I am dead by the weekend, do not be surprised.

Fortunately, the start of the week is relatively light on gigs.  Lightish anyway.  Tonight is free, so I should get a chunk done then.  I just fear the traditional upload hell which tends to accompany the finishing of these bloody videos.  Vimeo is a great service in many ways, but the uploading is flaky as fuck and incredibly annoying.  Still, that’s presumably a matter for Friday at 4am, if the FOUND session is anything to go by.

Tuesday 29th September 2009: The Blank Tapes & Magic Leaves at the Bowery.

I really like it when people around me get all giddy about the visit of bands I’ve never heard of – it makes going to a gig that much more exciting.  This is one of those gigs

Wednesday 30th September 2009: Wild Beasts & The Kays Lavelle at Cabaret Voltaire.

These guys are just on the edge of stuff I like – some of it I absolutely love and some I find just a little bit too much.  It’s camp and loose, but they write terrific pop songs nevertheless and I am really looking forward to seeing them live to get a bit more of a clue about their personality as a band.

Wild Beasts – Hooting & Howling

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Thursday 1st October 2009: Leith Tape Club at the Iso Lounge, with Animal Magic Tricks and Men Diamler.

The Leith Tape Club is a lovely night, with a small capacity and an initmate atmosphere, and conveniently right around the corner from my work.

Thursday 1st October: Meursault, Three Blind Wolves & Washington Irving at Sneaky Pete’s.

Three Blind Wolves are apparently Ross Clark-related, although I have to confess I know nothing about them.  Washington Irving are another new one on me, but I think we all know quite enough about Meursault by now.

Friday 2nd October 2009: X Lion Tamer & Nite Jewel at Sneaky Pete’s.

I don’t know why I like X Lion Tamer, exactly.  All that synthy 80s pop should be way more than I can handle, but oddly I find myself really enjoying it – basically I suppose because the songs are just incredibly catchy.  Night Jewel, I have to confess, I know almost nothing about.

X Lion Tamer – Neon Hearts

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Friday 2nd October: Animal Magic Tricks & Men Diamler play the second Toad House Gig.

These house gigs look like turning into really nice things.  The last one was bloody lovely, and with the lovely Animal Magic tricks and Men Diamler, whose music can be as mental as it can lovely I think this one will be a fantastic night.

Animal Magic Tricks – Smallish Hooves

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Friday 2nd October: Trespassers William, Glissando & eagleowl at the Wee Red Bar.

Gizeh Records’ allstar tour comes to Edinburgh, supported by local sorts The Kays Lavelle and eagleowl.  I have to confess I rather feared for eagleowl, who were somewhat threatened by a recent combination of relocation and fornication, but seeing them back playing (superbly) at the Withered Hand EP launch last week has cheered me right up.  They have about seven new songs recorded too, you know.  I’ve no idea what they’re going to do with them, but they have them, which is tantalising, but definitely rather excellent news.

Saturday 3rd October: Kid Canaveral EP launch at the Bowery, with Come On Gang and Cancel the Astronauts.

This lineup is ridiculously indie-pop-tastic, with Edinburgh’s three finest lining up in a show of defiance to all that moany indie-folk shit I insist on listening to.  This stuff is all about the infectiousness of the tunes, and Kid Canaveral are perhaps the most hummable band in the city.  Their new EP is out on download or, erm, tape.  Yes, tape.  Good fucking grief, it’ll be wax cylinders or fucking eight track next.

Kid Canaveral – Couldn’t Dance

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Alright, this time it’s really happening.  After having to hastily re-shuffle the lineup at the inaugural Toad House Gig (no big deal really, as it was a brilliant night anyway, fortunately, and with big thanks to Neil, Jamie, Pete and Jonnie), this time I can confirm that Animal Magic Tricks really is going to play at our house.

She’s touring with the mental and amazing Men Diamler, so I think that makes for a brilliant 1-2 lineup, and we’ve got some recording pencilled in for that weekend to finish off her joint EP release with Neil from Meursault and Pete from The Leg.

Again, please buy tickets in advance if you can, because it really helps to get an idea of numbers for things like this.  Our house isn’t all that big and will fill up pretty quickly, so that would be best all round.  It’s BYOB, and all the money will go directly to Rich and Frances, so please do cough up and come along.

For those of you who wish to investigate, before committing, try here:
Animal Magic Tricks MySpace
Men Diamler MySpace

And also please remember that they are both also playing the Leith Tape Club the night before, down at the Iso Lounge in Leith with the Colourful Band.  The details are here, but please go along to support Alan, who hosts the night, because he is doing an excellent thing.