Paperjam

Easily the greatest live band I have ever seen are coming around later in the year, I've already spunked a load of money on tickets for the birmingham gig at the Academy (or whatever it is called these days), site of the amazingly triumphant gig that put me in a good mood for that week in 2006. Ahh, 2006.

Also in the works is a scary sounding double album, featuring in the words of Wayne Coyne the vocal stylings of some "Weird mathemetician guy from Germany". Not much you can add to that really but here is a video of the band pissing about in a mildly sinister fashion.

We've seen these flyers lurking about the Tin Angel and been a bit mystified, but it's becoming clear.... A Thing About Machines is an audio/visual arts festival in dear old Coventry, happening from the 19th to the 21st September.

Artists include Andy Votel, Frog Pocket, film heroes 7inch cinema (who are running an all-day event in honour of electronic music pioneer Delia Derbyshire), Talking Birds, Modulate and more, all playing and arting about in some unusual venues, including The Crypt of St Mary's Guild Hall.

Tickets are £12 for the 7inch cinema/Sonic Boom events, get them over 'ere.

SFA/Notting Hill offshoot The Peth are out on tour, notably at the Hoxton Bar and Grill on Friday 10th and The Greenman Festival in August. London types who like catchy, stomping, glam-rock noisiness should act accordingly. I am once again logistically incapacitated and thoroughly fucked off about it.

This should of course be in the bit on the right-hand side of this web site - but if it was I couldn't bung the strange video for the excellent Shoot On Sight just down here. All together now: "WE HAVE FOUND THE INSURGENTS".

From Coventry Telegraph CV3 blog post :

Festival goers will be banned from taking alcohol into the three-day event. Any booze found on people entering the site will be confiscated by security guards and disposed of in large skips.

Eek. Seems they weren't joking when they said don't bring your own alcohol to this weekend's Godiva Festival in Coventry.

After last years' violence and general bad atmosphere it's not surprising that action has been taken, but it's difficult to see how they can police this absolutely, there's lots of ways into the Memorial Park. But there's more...

Drink will be available to buy at high-street prices in designated areas of the park but must be consumed in restricted areas. Anyone drinking alcohol outside of the areas face an on-the-spot fine of £50.

I wasn't planning on going this year, but I'd be interested to see how this all turns out, and if this is a workable solution.

Juneau Projects, banging on about squirrels

To the Rainbow in Digbeth for 7 Inch Cinema’s five year birthday bash, animation and film shorts and music and cake, and got there just as Telly Savalas Looks At Birmingham finished up - luckily I can watch the rest over at Birmingham’s Not Shit.

VJ Hooker/FilmFicciones was really good fun as ever, pulling out some daft shorts including Jim Henson’s ace “Time Piece”, unfortunately stripped off YouTube by boring bastards, but this is kind-of related:

Mike in Mono popped up, unfortunately no playing live this time round, so we couldn’t go nuts to his version of “Male Stripper” like we wanted, but instead he battered everyone’s eardrums with some of his ZX Spectrum generated videos: here’s “Red Square”, utterly brutal when played through a massive PA:

Mike had also done a new soundtrack for Norman Mclaren's "Neighbours" animation short from 1952- here's the original on YouTube, stick with it kids, it really is extremely violent.

And we finished up with Juneau Projects, two men wielding strap-on woodland creatures fashioned into guitar triggers for their indie-ish electronics. Not my thing, but their art stuff looks more entertaining.

Oh and happy birthday 7 inch...