Blog: North: ROCKED

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It was HO! for distant Leeds on Saturday, to play at the gogojohnnygo all dayer. The trip NORTH was Quite Delightful, with the only ODDNESS coming when 3 of the stupidest youths I have ever seen got on the train. One spent most of his time talking to a girl on his mobile who he'd obviously met the night before. All he said the whole time was "Is it you? I'm ringing to check you've not given me a dud number. So is it you? I'm ringing to check..." Is it wrong of me to suspect he'd been DUPED before? Then the train drew up into WAKEFIELD, the announcer said "Wakefield. This is Wakefield. Passengers for Wakefield, get off here. In WAKEFIELD" as our carriage drew up outside a large sign saying "WAKEFIELD" beyond which lay the city of Wakefield, covered in buildings with signs like "Wakefield Garage" and "Wakefield Newspapers" etc etc. They then asked EVERYONE in the carriage if this was Wakefield or not, ran up and down the carriage unable to decide, and nearly missed getting off.

Honestly, it was quite an AMAZING thing to see. Anyway, I ARRIVED in Leeds, bought a City Centre Map, and STRODE to Joseph's Well. This was where WRATH Records were having THEIR all-dayer. As WRATH is the home of Being 747, with whom we're GIGGING next month, I thought I'd pop over and say hello. I had a nice chat to STEVE from them, and saw a bit of The Bilderberg Group, who were dead good. I then took some directions, and again STRODE OFF towards The Brudenell Social Club, for the OTHER all-dayer.

Blow me, why on earth did people ever think it was a good idea to build so many things on HILLS eh? Leeds is bloody FULL of them, it's more than a poor Fenland Lad can take, really it is. I arrived some thirty minutes later KNACKERED, and had to have a sit down. LUCKILY The Brudenell Social Club is FULL of seats, as it is a proper Working Man's Club, and therefore is a GRATE venue with a proper raised stage, seating and tables. I saw a bit of Horton Parks, and then wandered off to get some LUNCH. An hour later, having eaten a slightly BIZARRO Indian Takeaway version of Lasagne & Chips, I saw The Mother(flippers). I was a bit too NERVOUS about my set to really get into it, but they all seemed to think they'd been RUBBISH, and Spoke Loudly about it afterwards, but I didn't think so. ANYWAY,then it was ME!

I was a bit AFEARED to start with, as someone was heckling and a) i couldn't see them b) i couldn't understand what they were saying. HECKLERS! This is the EASY way to throw me, if that is yr DESIRE. Instead of getting into a Heated Debate, therefore, I instead GOT ON WITH IT, and soon things were going pretty well, to the extent that, towards the end, ACTUAL GIRLS got up and started dancing!

The last time that that happened was about eight years ago, when my friend Chris and I did our one and only gig as Ernie and Joe. Girls dancing down the front, it's one of the things we get into bands for. HOORAH! Later on there was a large MIXED crowd dancing to The Cribs (who were GOOD), but I think two girls dancing is much more SUBTLE and COOL. No, really.

Anyway, GIG went off pretty darn good - played "Born Yesterday" for the first time (was all right), and managed to RESIST calls for "Encore" from a couple of tables... well, actually, just when I thought "Maybe I SHOULD go back?" they stopped, so it was lucky really. In the aftermath I sold TWO CDs, and got QUIZZED about my Political Views. HOORAH! Best of all, the young lady in question was asking with regards to "Graffiti On The Cenotaph" which I hadn't even played, it was ACE. I then LISTENED to a FRIGHTENING pub quiz, got a CHEQUE for sales from Forever Changes (HOORAH!), got confused talking to some people, agreed with some OTHER people that, yes, it had been good, and drank some LAGER. It was LOTS of fun, and then it was home time so out i STRODE again through the TIPPING rain (it had been really sunny in London!) to... er... the taxi office, and HO! for home again.

The train home was full of people's Parents, DRUNKENED. Somewhere around NEWARK I realised that I'd been the only person all day in BOTH venues who'd actually sung in their own accent, and RUMINATED upon the CHANGE in The World Of Indie since I'd gone to Pop-A-Go-Go the first time many years ago.

That was how it was - now we GIRD ourselves for MORE ROCK! YEAH!

posted 22/9/2003 by MJ Hibbett

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