Lost Music : Rose Elinor Dougall - The Enterprise

Its really loud in The Enterprise tonight, or I haven't been to any gigs in weeks, dark and moody, always reminds me of the Black Lodge from Twin Peaks. On stage is a five piece, really skinny people. Sassy dark-haired girl center-stage surrounded by keyboards, killer cheekbones and sparkly bustier.

The music is overwealmingly loud and strangely hypnotic. Like what I'd heard on Rose Elinor Dougall's Myspace page but with the overdrive pedal firmly pressed.

There's something of the early era Johnny Greenwood about their left side guitarist, I wonder if anyone else though so.

The crowd is a little sparse tonight, the only familiar faces I can see are Trevor and Tom the promoters and the woman on the door. Trevor let's me know that he's going to be winding up Lost Music after four more shows. The recession's biting and folk aren't coming out as much as in the halcyon days of 2007 and 2008.

Anyhoo, Rose Elinor Dougall was mighty fine and gets extra bonus points in my book for sticking around to see the next band.

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Molloy, The Kick Inside, Sparky's Magic Piano, Indurain - The Enterprise

I walk in two songs from the end of Molloy's set, they look and sound new wave, the stripped down sort with 80s legwarmers and glitter star facepaint. All jaggy guitar and excitment. I wish I'd come earlier.

I'm sat at the side, scribbling, the DJ has put on the Scaremongers, ooh, that was the last time I saw Sparky's and now there's this cute girl sat right next to me. My mind races, reaching for a reason not to start a conversation, there's got to be some reason, think, think, think. Bugger.

Luckily some other guy comes along and engages. Success!!

I went for a wander down Camden way between bands, and had a think, the best I could come up with was "she looked very young" and "she was probably praying I wouldn't try to chat her up".

Aw shit, she's stood right in front of me.

Ooh, there are people off of the internet here, real internet people, not indiepop folk, but the sort of people with @ before their names.

The next band on are a four piece from Bristol, The Kick Inside, pretty neat, very stripped down sound, few effects, a little ska, but the vocals have something of the Morrissey about them.

Hard to judge stand out tracks, apart from the Wedding Present cover, but I'll have to give their MySpace a listen.

There are other notebook scribbling folk here, I have competition.

Joy.

Feel strangely obliged to write more than the other person.

So yeah, last time I saw Sparky's Magic Piano, it was at the old Gresham Flyers show where my dramatic rise to fame as a presenter for The Culture Show started. Whatever happened to The Scaremongers? I knew it, I knew the whole TV thing was just a publicity stunt for Armitage's book.

Pretty shameless really. If you wanna make it in the indiepop scene you gotta play lots of gigs, and indietracks.

Sparky's Magic Piano on stage. From left to right:- microphone with guitarist / effects / synth, then a glass of wine, xylophone (possibly glockenspiel) and smiley singing girl.

I love the way she smiles when she sings. Other people smile when they sing, but here she looks like just really likes singing. Also it coms across in the warmth of their sound, and every so often there are little flashes of dimples. eeep!

Guitar with reverb that builds and builds, but even then mixed so that its the same level as the glock.

Its happy music for overcast days. One day I'll buy the album.

Between bands, when not avoiding the cute girl, I've been lurking in quiet corners, only to have really tall people stood in front of me, and then their friends join them and crowd me out of my quiet corner.

I know a couple of people in the crowd, but none of these folk, for these chaps are the headliners, Indurain, and they are from Sweden.

The spend about five minutes too long setting up their kit, laptops and a projector. The screen is a sheet taped to the usual backdrop curtains.

My friend Robbie would love these guys, they sounded a little like Suburban Kids with Biblical Names, but with less computer geek and more arthouse cinema. Best sound of any of the bands of the night, dancy and rousing.

They get a friend of the band from some other band, I fail to catch the name of, up to sing, in French.

Is it all trying too hard? I found myself getting lost in the backdrop films, and not listening to the music, getting distracted.

When they finish, I slip out quickly without saying goodbye to my friends.

Not sure why not sometimes.

Bands
Molloy
The Kick Inside
Sparky's Magic Piano
Indurain

Photies
mine
tomb242

Wee Pop: The Darlings, The Mexican Kids At Home, Little My, The Just Joans - The Enterprise

Moments later on the other side of town, I wander into The Enterprise in Camden. the street outside was packed, but inside its kinda quiet, three barmaids leap to my service. Upstairs the venue is packed.

On stage are two people, The Darlings, a singing ukelele girl and a hairy egg-shaker chap. They sounded a little like Hello Saferide. I only caught the last three songs of their set, which is a shame cos amongst their recorded output, they have the best cover of AC/DC's You Shook Me All Night Long, which I've probably missed. I'd been listening it on iTunes all weekend.

Its sweet but generic music.

Next up are a really hairy five piece, The Mexican Kids At Home. They had one of those sitting on a wooden box percussion chaps, its been months since I saw one of them. There was a twee gentleman too, playing melodica, harmonica, keyboards and occasionally "doo doo doo" backing vocals. Topped off with boy and girl harmonies they were ace.

Rather looking forward to seeing them at Indietracks, sunshining, crowd of hundreds.

Its odd, its a really comfortable crowd compared to earlier today. Lost Music, Wee Pop, Pocketbooks, Just Joans, Bobby McGees, them French kids, Bowlie folk from last night. My nerves have calmed and I feel serene.

Its been an unsettled couple of days on the internet, my naked bike ride photies getting hundreds of views on Flickr, my art website rocketing up the Technorati authority rankings, then my origami video on BoingBoing. I've reached the top or at least the upper reaches, there's no more I can do. It does nothing for my tangible self-esteem.

Next on stage, the penultimate band of the night, Little My. Tonight they are a seven-piece, and they wear animal costumes. The bunny on bass is particularly cute. They sound a little like Bearsuit, but without the mania. Some of the songs are pretty neat and would be good listening on the coach home.

I think though, they sound too much like they're used to playing with loads of folk on stage.

One extra thing in their favour, they're bitter about not playing Indietracks and bitterness fucken rocks.

Then finally, one of the most eagerly awaited bands of the indiepop scene, The Just Joans. The buzz of anticipation in the crowd is palpable. I'm biased mind, I've seen them from the start, Adam J Smith passing me their demo cassette, the first gig, a sell out show in a tea room in Glasgow, bursting into London last year. I've seen them get better and better, more confident, more comfortable in their skin.

They're a six piece now, Fraser on bass, Doug on keyboards, Chris on lead guitar and sometimes accordian, Rowan on percussion, sharing vocal duties with Katie, and centre stage, David Pope.

A fine set, with new songs and old ones, polished so they sparkle. The songs are getting better than the old ones.

They have a new EP out on Wee Pop, new songs, "What Do I Do Now" will stick in your head for months, how do we pencil them in for T in the Park '09, joined on stage by Louise Wener. And their even newer song, "You're not gonna pull" is going to set the indie dancefloors on fire.

They name-checked me, they name-checked me. Thanking Thor and Camila from WeePop for their breakfast, and Trev Lost Music for putting on the gig, and then me. My eyes welled up, I was gonna start greeting.

Its been one of those weeks, its been one of those weekends, its been one of those days. But the Just Joans, they made everything okay.

Bands
The Darlings
The Mexican Kids At Home
Little My
The Just Joans

The understudies, Plans and Apologies, Slow Down Tallahassee - The Enterprise

First gig I've been to in weeks and weeks, month maybe. I'm scrawling this in my notebook on the Jubilee Line, heading south, it'll be a long convoluted route that gets me to The Enterprise tonight. It gets me out of the house I guess, something surely need, its almost like having a social life.

Its a warm night, crowds outside drinking, I stagger in to catch the last three songs of The Understudies. Four folk on stage, plinky plonk leyboards and out of tune guitar. There's thirty people in the room, the usual Lost Music crowd

The singer chap is yelping and whining a bit, if it was fourteen years ago, they'd make a fine support band.

The penultimate song, being a Butcher Boy cover, I Could Be In Love With Anyone,raises the game a wee bit, but I'm almost glad they finished so soon after i arrived.

Trying to get a drink at the bar pissed me off so much, it wasn't so much that there was a huge queue, just where I was stood at first, some girl in a checked shirt was either getting in a large round or just discussing with about fifty other people what drink she was having, whilst the barmaid just waited and waited. After about 20 minutes I tried moving to a different part of the bar.

Alas, despite the half a dozen barstaff, the middle of the bar seemed to be a barren zone. Two hours earlier I'd been violated at Staples, trying to buy printer ink and post-it notes. Only packs of 10 post-it pads and ten fucking quid for a 13ml cyan cartridge. Its just ink for fucks sake, but still about seven hundred times the price of petrol. Seven hundred times.

In a foul mood abot customer service and as a consumer, so I walked out of The Enterprise and headed into darkest Camden.

Half an hour passed before I felt any urge to catch the rest of the gig.

Plans and Apologies on stage, a five piece with about three too many guitarists. The singer had those big dark eyebrows that girls used to go all googly eyed for last century. There was something of the Malkmus about the lyrics.

Rather pleasant except for the last few songs where the keyboardist/third guitarist was itching to get away to some other engagement. Six quid to get in and they even want to play, fuck that shit.

Second attempt at the bar, similar levels of annoyance, the guy in front of me, halfway through ordering his round realised he had only two quid and after a conference with his mates, shoved me out of the way so some rat-like ginger twat could get a round in instead.

Luckily there was a clear space at the other end of the bar, I quickly got served by a girl wearing exciting tights, but sadly beer in a glass that still had the previous owner's dregs and foam on the sides.

Slow Down Tallahassee, three piece, two rockabilly girls and a chap on guitar. Post-apocalyptic Ken Loach, throbbing images of mathematicians in a hungover Younger Younger 28s effects pedal overdose.

Aw man, really cute photographer girl. I'm going to gave to reshuffle my top five cute photographer girls, sorry Pav.

Comet Gain, The Wave Pictures - The Enterprise

Spiral Scratch: The Deirdres, Pocketbooks, Sparky's Magic Piano - The Enterprise

Bands
The Deirdres
Pocketbooks
Sparky's Magic Piano

Other reviews
Hey Hey Honeypop
Indie Mp3
MJ Hibbett

Other Photies
here