Last night we went to The Victoria in Dalston to see Slagheap from Bristol and Nervous Twitch from Leeds.
Nervous Twitch are C86 style with a hint of surf.
Slagheap are my new favourite band! Gav said this gig was the best show we’ve been to this year and I agree. Slagheap sound like The Slits but are better musicians, more funny and more danceable. We bought their LP at the show and played it as soon as we got home. I hope they play in London again soon.
Friday 20th May 2022, Het Depot, Leuven, Belgium.
This gig was a dream come true for me. After 6 months of intense learning I got to play guitar on stage with my favourite band at an amazing show.
First band of the night was locals Hetze. They are like a tornado; fast and in-your-face heavy punk, with short, tight songs that are full of energy and aggression. Hetze are coming to London in September to play Chimpyfest 2022, do not miss them!
Next up was us! I joined Hagar The Womb last September and have spent months learning to play their songs on guitar. The Hags were my favourites when I was a teenager, at that time the punk scene was completely male dominated and Hagar The Womb were one of very few bands of the time that I could relate to. I still love them and it is amazing to be playing with them.
We put on a lively and fun show and we had a great time playing. Karen and Ruth made it very clear what the band thought of Boris Johnson and Brexit, Mitch was in full-on show-off mode and the audience seemed to love it.
The lights went out and we were in darkness and then it was time for Pussy Riot. It was the first time I had seen Pussy Riot and I was completely blown away. Their show, Riot Days, tells the story of the Punk Prayer performance and their arrest, trial and imprisonment following it. Visuals including English translation of their words were projected behind them and the packed venue was captivated and in awe. Pussy Riot’s show is one of the most empowering and strong performances I have ever seen. Their strength and conviction is incredible, and it felt especially important to me (as a Brit) as our government is in the process of making protest illegal.
After Riot Days the group returned to the stage for a shorter performance in solidarity with Ukraine and to give a declaration of their opposition to the Russian invasion. Half of the merch sales for this tour will be donated to a Children’s hospital in Kiev.
Today we had a fun pre-gig practice with Mike (Dinosaur Skull) who is standing in for Tabi on drums at the Queens Head tomorrow. We are so excited about this gig, we’ve been playing gigs for almost 23 years and for most of that we’ve been the ‘token girls’ in a man’s domain. This is the first time we have played on such a female centric line up (Mike will be the only man on stage all night). 23 years ago we could only dream of this line up happening. Mike organised this gig, and when he was choosing the bands for the night he said that it didn’t hit him until the line up was fixed that he would be the only man on stage all night, and he said that he wants to wear a ‘token male’ T-shirt to the gig, (so I drew him wearing it).
London had a shit week. I want to cry and scream with rage. And it is over 30 degrees. London is too crowded and dirty and sad for hot weather. It is sunny, and there is a big cloud of sadness and anger. The cloud of the Finsbury Park Mosque attack the day before, the cloud of Grenfell Tower, the cloud of London Bridge, the cloud of disappointment that we still have a government that we do not agree with or vote for, the cloud of Brexit, the cloud of Westminster Bridge. Too much. Give us a break. We are all being nicer to each other to ease the pain, but we hurt. If any other band had been playing on tuesday night then I wouldn’t have gone.
I’m sure Dam know a thing or two about rage and sadness and being attacked. They are from Palestine. They are Palestine’s longest running hip hop band, they’ve been making music for around 20 years. I only came across them a couple of years ago, when they released the excellent anti-gender violence song Who You R.
Within minutes of Dam bounding on to the stage all of the tension I felt inside started to melt. They were medicine for my soul. This band are so full of positive energy, hope and catchy tunes. It was impossible not to dance. They preach a serious ethic with a smile and a wicked sense of humour. “We are Dam, from Palestine. Our country is occupied, but we have a scene… Hey, you should all move to Palestine, I hear London isn’t so good lately”.
Otoboke Beaver at the Working Man’s Club, Bethnal Green. 5th May 2017.
Otoboke Beaver blow my mind. They are all absolutely masters of their weapons, they play with exact precision and ease at 100mph at the same time as contorting into acrobatics. They command absolute attention, waiting for silence before launching into a full on punk rock assault.
They promised to return to the UK again next year. I will be counting the days.
Support was from the excellent c86-ish Say Sue Me from South Korea.
more GIGS AND PENCILS Otoboke Beaver:
Otoboke Beaver in the gigs and pencils calendar 2017 (free to download)
It was Ian Damaged’s 50th birthday and 25 years of Damaged Goods Record Label, and there was a secret surprise! Talulah Gosh!!!!!
Talulah Gosh at the 100 Club
I was too far back and behind a post to see much of Helen Love, but what struck me most about the gig was the amount of 40 year old blokes who were so-bloody-excited that they jumped up and down for the whole show.
Helen Love and audience of middle-ish aged blokes with beards and glasses, who were acting like excited teenage girls.
I love Euros Childs.
Euros Childs and the Boogie Band at the Boston Arms.
Moon Duo are one of the bands that I got totally obsessed with this year. I saw them at the Boston Arms and then in Brighton for the final date of their tour. They had an amazing light show. Afterwards we went for a post-gig beer on the pier and looked at the full moon reflecting on the sea and I sketched the gig on the back of the printout for the ticket
Moon Duo at the Haunt with fantastic light show.
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We visited south of France for the Happy Punk festival. We fell in love with Fred’s chien Scarlet, the best punk dog ever. Pink decided to improve our fish costumes with some red tape. Ohhh la la! Rabies Babies love le France!
Rabies Babies play a song for Scarlet at the Happy Punk Festival in France
Pink taped us up.
Scarlet le Chien
gigs and pencils 