A More Than Helpful Nudge Awake...

If this blog were a workplace, then I would currently be walking in to the office hanging my head in shame. I’ve been unfeasibly absent from these pages for unreasonably long and I thought it about time I rectified this situation before it got out of hand.

Exploding me out of my stupor have been two on-going projects from two excellent friends of mine that I have had the privilege of witnessing in recent days and, to be honest, it would have been outright rude of me to not have mentioned them on here.

The first is the Oikos Project, which is currently still taking shape on a playground down near London Bridge as Martin Kaltwasser and his team of hardy volunteers put the last touches to a unique building in London, a theatre made entirely from reused and salvaged materials.

Project-managed by our very own Ben Melchiors, this is one of the most beautiful projects I have seen in recent memory. The idea is a holistic one as builders, playwrights and producers all collaborate to make the whole concept bloom as one.

Once this ode to the humble pallet crate is complete it will house two plays and an audience of around 120 people at each performance. The two plays by Simon Wu and Kay Adshead, Oikos and Protozoa, both examine the ways our society would adapt and survive if or when the worst happens. As a juxtaposition to the landscape and buildings around it, both the theatre and the plays should be a stark reminder of the unsustainability of current times and the dangers lurking should we ignore this.

Oikos will run from 26th August - 18th September with Protozoa on from the 23rd September - 9th October. Tickety things here...

Talking of stark reminders, there are few people out there at the moment more passionate to hold that mirror up to us or more lyrically equipped to get her message across, than the incredible Kate Tempest.

Possibly the hardest working poet/MC in London at the moment, every performance I catch of hers touches a nerve and fills the heart. Having travelled the country playing pretty much every British festival known to mankind, she is returned and has just released an accompanying video to her poem, Line In The Sand, which premiered at Rich Mix this week.

Despite her nervousness at how the words would deliver on film rather than through her electric live performances, the tone of both the direction of Joe Roberts and the aesthetic atmosphere matched the touching truth and passionate belief of her poem and I am reminded one more of her awesome talent and how it deserves a wider and wider audience.

The film will hopefully gain a small release around about the same time as the much anticipated Sound of Rum album. The world generally will feel a slightly better place when they do...

Update: Some Deep Throat style, anonymous reader has given us the link to Kate's film so without further ado...

Prom Diddly Om Prom Prom

 Phew. Well, that was another hiatus from these here musings but not in any normal sense of the word.

Having spent the last 3 weeks at Glastonbury and then at the unmatchable beauty of Nowhere, I am now returned less than refreshed physically but more than rejuvenated in all other ways. Some exciting new beginnings on the job front are only adding to my sense of all round well-being right now.

To delicately put the cherry on this moist and delicious iced cake, I have returned just as the 2010 Proms are beginning.

Running until the 11th September, the Proms is always filled with incredible performances housed in that stable of classical concerts, The Royal Albert Hall. Furthermore, most of these performances can be seen for the bargain price of 5 English pounds, if you turn up early enough on the evening.

This would place you way up in the gods but once you bring a little something to lie on and a decent bottle with you, the joy of spreading out and surrendering to the union of so many amazing musicians as you float high above the arena is more than apparent.

The list of performances is easily found on the BBC website and you might even find a surprising amount of performances from other backgrounds and talents beyond the usual so why not take yourself beyond the usual?

Summer Hiatus

Well, it all went a bit silent and dark out there on my cultural radio for a bit.

I can only apologise for the delay in my most recent updates but I have begun a small hiatus from working life and took initial advantage of such time to maneouvre by surrounding myself with beauty in scenary and company up in the Lake District.

Rejuventated and returned, I feel like I have a veritable cultural artillery to unleash, before I head once again to a dusty plain in Spain, and, to begin at the beginning, I will start with a free festival coming up this very weekend.

Celebrating Sanctuary is an event that is at the heart of Refugee Week. Despite rabid tabloid headlines regarding immigration this and asylum seekers that, the reality is that the majority of refugees bring massive contributions to our society, especially in this epicentre of multiculturalism we call London. Refugee Week is about considering this and celebrating this.

Celebrating Sanctuary brings a whole host of amazing musicians, performers and poets together on one bill. Many of these will be acts you've yet to be conscious of but will soon be blown away by.

Headlining are Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars whose story is one of triumph through adversity and whose music is a manifestation of the positivity that courses through these incredible musician's veins.

Alongside them are musicians from as far afield as Somalia, Tibet, Afghanistanand Bosnia and, from much closer to home, the incredibly talented wordsmith, a cappella lyricist and all round phenomenon that is Kate Tempest.

If you haven't seen the girl in action yet, be prepared to be astonished.

All of this and more will be happening right by the Oxo Tower in Bernie Spain Gardens and is, thankfully for my broke ass, FREE.

Medea at Midnight

                            Photo by Allan Titmuss

With every passing year it seems, changes abound more abunduntly and more rapidly. To grab our attention, things apparently need to be bigger, better, newer, different, more outrageous, more involving. .

However, it is a rare occasion that something both pushes the envelope and entices in equal measure. With the advent of partipatory, promenade theatre there have been ever more daring performances, ever increasing boldness of location and new levels of audience interaction.

Taking all this to seemingly new heights is a production in association with LIFT and The Arcola Theatre. Hotel Medea, having been put on by The Arcola last year and currently on tour in Brazil, will be returning as a site-specific performance.

Leaving by boat from the QEII pier, near the living embodiment of human horror that is the O2, the journey will begin at midnight and go through the night until 5:30am, meanwhile, the full force of the melodrama of Hotel Medea will be scored live by DJ Delores as the marathon story unfolds around London.

This is going to be intense, powerful and, undoubtedly, a unique way to experience theatre.

I'm just buying my tickets now and I wouldn't want to have to try and put the experience into words for you...

Velocipede Venture

I don't know about you but, as a cyclist in London, I can't help but notice the explosion of fellow two-wheeled commuters and travellers. I've even begun to experience bicycle traffic jams on my route to work.

This, however, is not to denigrate such things as more dashing velocipedes on our streets but to celebrate and revel in this happy happenstance and pedalled pleasure...

In recognition of this, I thought I'd tell you about The Pleasant Revolution. They have been taking epic, not to mention heroic, bicycle tours of Northern and Central America and are currently on their beautifully slow-paced way to our shores as they pedal across Europe.

Not only this, but since the very literal moniker for their journey would indicate, The Pleasant Revolution Bicycle Music Festival Tour: Europe 2010 are carrying a 1200 watt pedal-powered PA system and a motley crew of outstanding musicians with them.

Scheduled to arrive in this city of Faster, Bigger, More on the 5th June they will be taking a brief hiatus from the trip to show the ways of Slower, Less and Quality.

They will be holding a series of events as they move around East London, all of them for FREE and featuring bands including The Ginger Ninjas, CelloJoe and The Genie.

They have released their schedule as follows...

Saturday 5th June

9:00 - 10:00 Look Mum No Hands Bicycle Cafe - Smallish venue mainly for the press.

11:00 - 13:00 London Fields - Huge loads of space and lots of Bikes

14:00 - 16:00 Stepping Stones Farm Stepney

17:00 - 19:00 Surrey Docks City Farm

21:00 - late Pangea Project Stamford Hill

Sunday June 6th

12:00 - 19:00 Camden Green Fair Regents Park

It'll cost you nada and I hereby offer my own personal guarantee that the sun will be shining. I know it will because I won't be working and me and the guy with his hat on up there have an 'understanding'...

What excuse do you have? Join the Revolution...

Jamming at Jamboree

                              Photo by Pascale Yebgui

One of the things we are most blessed with, living in this fair old city, is the amazing amount of music from all corners of the world that resonate through the boroughs every day.

From huge and world-renowned venues to the dark and dingy nooks and crannies, aural delights seep out of every pore.

Down towards the nook and cranny end of the spectrum is a little-know bar tucked away in Cable Street Studios. Stepping through a giant, heavy curtain into Jamboree helps build the anticipation and one then steps into a beautifully atmospheric bar where all manner of performers come and display their talents throughout the week.

Regular nights here include 'Red Sky At Night' on Mondays, featuring a myriad of Bluegrass and Americana-inflected music hosted by the man known as Jim, and 'Magic Swirling Ships' on a Thursday with the finest selection of Garage Rock bands around.

In my humble opinion, the best venues are the ones that aren't on the tip of everyone's tongue. The kind of places that people who do know, often keep to themselves.

Well, today I'm breaking rank. Just for you guys...

Romper Causing a Rumpus

Now, being more of a culcha whore than a party whore these days, it is not often that I am moved to write on this page regarding another 'fundraiser'.

So I'm not going to start now. What I am going to write about though is an event that has been bubbling under the surface for a while now in the braincheese of some of our most respected compadres.

Brought to you by the estimable Mr Genochio, the irrepresible DJ Malaka and the irreplaceable Drusus Germanicus, Rumpus avoids the usual fuss and bluster and cuts straight to the chase.

Featuring a stream of performers from all parts of the artistic spectrum including the full-on swing powerhouse that is The Smoky Taps, the searing roundhouse kick of mayhem and mystery that is Reverend Zero's Medicine Show and those dashing gentlemen of action, Flay and DeVille.

This is without even mentioning the veritable ukulele hero Desmond O'Connor and chillout space designed by and featuring the kings (and queens) of Kitsch, The Immaculate Extremists.

If you're not bloated from indulging in all this then the gluttony will continue into the night with a range of DJs playing anything from Gypsy to Electroswing to Dubstep.

Taking place at Cable, near London Bridge, and for the unreasonably affordable price of £8, let the wild rumpus begin!

Celebrate the Tate

Believe it or not, the Tate Modern is 10 years old this year. Yes, it's 10 whole years since the former Bankside Power Station was reborn to great acclaim as one of the world's best homes of modern art.

I can't help but think back to what I was doing in 2000. And cringe a little. We're all a lot older and wiser now. Kind of. Right?

Anyway, as much as I am fond of riffing, scatting and circumnavigating the point, let's get back to the issue here.

In honour of this auspicious birthday, the Tate Modern are holding a free festival this weekend from Friday 14th to Sunday 16th May.

Working with the apparently 'visionary' curators Maurizio Cattelan, Cecilia Alemani and Massimiliano Gioni, there will be more than 70 international, independent art collectives creating projects in the famous Turbine Hall.

Some of these collectives include White Columns (New York), Cinemateque de Tanger (Tanger), Kling and Bang (Reykjavik) and no.w.here (London) and the opportunity to see them will be extended to midnight on Friday and Saturday.

From the information I've seen this looks as though it will be a veritable feast of contemporary art and performance and allied with the knowledge that most of you are in a permanent state of hunger for creative juices, this is surely a match made in heaven...

Megatropolis

Things just ain't what they used to be. In my day etc etc.

A familar rant and one I am not immune to. However, in some cases it is immutably true and the cinematic world throws up plenty of exceptional examples.

Probably the star witness in any such case would be the improbably epic Fritz Lang film, Metropolis. Made in 1927 and featuring more than 38000 extras, this is the most expensive silent film ever made costing more than 5 million Reichsmark (not far off 1 million pounds, which considering that my grandma said that everything then cost a penny, is, officially, a fuckload). The special effects still resonate on any viewing as much as the plot still feels relevant and sharp and the original soundtrack featured the likes of Richards Wagner and Strauss.

I am therefore extremely excited to reveal that Metropolis will be given a cinematic re-release in the UK on the 10th September and be featuring a full 25 minutes of lost footage thus making it the film in totality that Fritz Lang always intended!

If you haven't seen this film already then whet your appetite with the trailer that is available here and be prepared to have improved your life a notch. If you have, then you will all know what I am making such a fuss about.

If ever the word spectacular could be applied to a moviefilm, then Metropolis would be at the head of the rowdy queue.

The First Rule of Scrap Club is....SMASHITUP!

We live in an era and a city where the stresses and strains of modern life often weigh heavy on our shoulders and it is important to have an outlet to vent every so often.

Now Michael Douglas in Falling Down had one idea but that often leads to unnecessary killing of people and scaring of people in creepy burger joints. There is another way.

Scrap Club.

The premise is that if you are fortunate enough to get a ticket, you attend and are then shown into the arena. Each round a set of names are called and a load of hallowed scrap is brought into the room ranging from volvo cars to gas cookers, from grand pianos to exercise bikes.

When your name is uttered, you are then handed a sledgehammer and a pair of goggles and, well, you go to work on it. Smash it, kill it, break it, wreck it. It's frankly primeval.

Once you've walked the walk, you step away from the arena and, hey presto! The stress and anger has simply melted away...Ahhhh....now...

I'M GOING HOME!

21st May 19:30
Bocking Street Warehouse E8 3RL
Tickets are £10 (plus £1 bastard tax)