1,339 THE SHUDDERS, Jol Rose, Swindon The Tuppenny, Thursday 25th July 2024

The second week in a row up The Tuppenny for their “Thursday Night Music Club”, and this time it’s for country/ folk Swindon scene veterans The Shudders, arguably the ‘don’s answer to Buffalo Springfield or Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, and of course featuring my good friend Tim on bass guitar. I’d not seen the boys since the inaugural “My Dad’s” Festival in August 2021 (gig 1,187) and since then Tim had been rehearsing again with his old 101 bandmate Andy Ashley, so I thought the next time I’d see him play, it would actually be with a reformed (and possibly renamed?) 101… However, this opportunity to catch an acoustic iteration of The Shudders presented itself, timed with Logan also playing a few of their tracks on his phone playlists of late, so why not, eh?

I picked Logan up from his gym sesh and parked up behind the Hop, greeting Tim and the rest of the band, plus a whole horde of Swindon gig folks (Paj and Avril, Paul, Andy, Dubs – even Beef rocked up later!), before grabbing a front row pew for opener Jol Rose. Another veteran of the Swindon music scene, albeit a gent I’d not seen “live” before, his buoyant solo acoustic guy shenanigans veered between seriously old school galloping Elvis/ Sun Records honky tonk rock’n’roll (opener “Bangalore Boogie” and a later “Two Ton Trixie”), occasional Lou Reed-esque laconic yet wallowing balladry (“All Alone Again”) and some 60’s Dylan-esque political protest essays (“Liars And Thieves” and “Palestine Free” both striking a chord), all delivered with oodles of strident harmonica and effervescent and chatty enthusiasm. So chatty in fact, that he had to cut a couple of songs from his set, but still finished with a rousing singalong to “We’re Gonna Make Some Hay”, a song about getting old and seizing the day, which I’m all up for. Overall, a fun opening set, despite the occasional tech issues (which Jol initially put down to something loose rattling around in his guitar!) from an entertaining performer and possible distant cousin – in Swindon, who knows for sure?! 

The Shudders then set up in fairly short order, and I showed them a pic of the first time I took Logan to a Shudders gig – May 2008 (gig 746), when my then 10-month-old son was perched on my shoulders! Introducing the band, Danny made reference to said pic, suggesting we re-enact it tonight. Not much chance of that…! The boys, seated line abreast, with drummer Jim atop his beatbox slightly behind vocalist Danny, eased into the repetitive hook and easy, melodic refrain of Byrds/ late period Teenage Fanclub-esque opener “Get Out Of Here”, setting the tone for tonight’s performance and thereafter commenting, “we’re going to destroy all the happiness Jol brought [to his set]!”, before the melancholy yet singalong “No Man’s Land”.

This was again an understated yet eminently melodic set from the boys, touching on all aspects on their canon but sensibly concentrating on the slower, more pensive 3-part harmony-driven 70’s Laurel Canyon folk/country rock-tinged material, more suited to this acoustic setting. However, I particularly enjoyed the bouncier and powerpoppy “Sorry”, initially abandoned (“brain fart!” admitted Liam) yet revisited later in the set, the unplanned, pub-wide rousing clap- and singalong to the Irish jig of oldie “Lost And Broke”, and the equally unplanned and pacier set closer “Words Of A Fool” (featuring a positively Smiths-esque middle 8 guitar break from Liam, according to Logan!), although the entire set was delivered with understated charm and bonhomie from the band, relaxed and at ease in front of friends and family.

Ed persuaded them back for an encore; not “Standing In The Rain” as constantly requested by one vocal punter, but the sprawling and widescreen sea shanty of “Mary’s Grace” (“[this encore is] so depressing you’ll wish we hadn’t bothered!”, Liam had remarked beforehand). A fine way to re-connect with The Shudders after an absence of a few years from my “Dance Card”, and nice to catch up with Tim and the boys. Quick compliments and farewells before a quick drive home after another fun “Tuppenny Thursday Night Music Club” evening out for Logan and myself!

1,187 “MY DAD’S BIGGER THAN YOUR DAD” FESTIVAL, Swindon Town Gardens, Saturday 28th August 2021

 

In June, the Swindon Music Community lost a towering figure, both figuratively and literally, in Dave Young, former owner of the Victoria and 12 Bar gig venues, promoter and impresario extraordinaire, and latterly our “live” favourite Gaz Brookfield’s tour soundman. As a relative newbie to the music scene that for years had been sprouting fertile tendrils right under my unknowing nose, I never really knew Dave apart from on brief nodding terms, but I can still acknowledge the massive impact he’d made to Swindon’s entertainment scene, and to the lives of many of the good folk therein. Following his passing, a number of said folk, led by Ed Dyer of the “Swindon Shuffle” team, came up with the idea of this event, apparently a continuation of events Dave himself used to run (hence the name), as a perfect way not only to celebrate the life of such an important figure in Swindon music lore, but also raise some much-needed cash for the Prospect Hospice, who supported Dave during his final days. That in itself would have been enough to ensure my attendance, but when Gaz decided to break his current gig hiatus to play a full band set in honour of his friend, Logan was up for it too!

 So Logan and I headed up the hill on a sunny Saturday lunchtime, parking up just around the corner from the Town Gardens thanks to a resident’s parking pass from local boy Rich! Wandered through a smattering of stalls to get our wristbands for entry into the grassy Bowl leading up to the arched mainstage, bumping into Rich and Ady and catching up with the Americana stylings of openers BLACK SHEEP APPRENTICE, Richard Skidmore’s vehicle to document his paeans of lost love and despair, as backdrop. Just the kind of stuff for a sunny day, then! I jest, of course, as “Skiddy” and crew were on top form, with “Born To Walk Alone” and eponymous set closer “Black Sheep Apprentice” my highlights of a fine set of his combination of Spanish guitar-inflected psych folk pop and Ennio Morricone-meets-Arthur-Lee baroque dusty Americana, a set concluded by Skiddy raising a glass to his old friend Dave. Fine start!

 Rich headed off to the footy and Logan and I took a wander around the stalls while JIM BLAIR was plying his proto bluesy riffery onstage. A gentleman and a very talented musician, Jim, but honestly (and my loss, I know…) his stuff’s not to my tastes; the same could be said for the subsequent ERIN BARDWELL TRIO, an unusual 3-piece set-up from former Skanxter Erin, who played predominantly piano-led ska material, a couple of early numbers which I recognised as 2-Tone covers. Again, Erin is a lovely bloke, but I’ve never liked ska, so Logan and I caught up with old friends Rich and Helen, before heading out of the Bowl to the Bandstand, operating as the second “acoustic” stage and being overseen by “Sheer Music” impresario Kieran Moore. THE LOST TRADES, a loose collective of 3 local folky musicians including Tamsin Quin (whom I’d seen deliver charming pastoral acoustic sets in the past) and Phil Cooper (who supported Fij and Bickers in Oxford a couple of years back with a quirkily impressive, almost US college pop solo set) kicked off their set with a very Fleetwood Mac-like “One Voice”, an ironically named number as it was immediately evident that it was the combination of their 3 voices, intertwining and producing some lovely harmonies, that would be the feature of their delicate yet intriguing and absorbing folksy set. A jaunty “Ballad Of The Groom Of The Stools” (a true lost trade, apparently, being about the servant who used to wipe the king’s arse!) made Logan chuckle, but it was closer “Wait For My Boat To Come Home”, with its intricate harmonies, that was my favourite of a set from a band I’ll definitely see again – and soon!

 

Another wander around the Bowl, then, bumping into folks and catching up with the likes of Paul Carter, Si and Matt Hall, Steve and his charming wife Caz, a returning Mark Carter back from Aus, then, back out by the bandstand, an arriving Tim and Danny, then Gaz Brookfield! Gaz had rocked up there, as had we, to catch the 5 p.m. set from his touring buddy B-SYDES. “I’m glad to be actually playing to people’s faces!” announced Ben after kicking off his set with a robust and rambunctious solo version of the excellent “Crutches”, a real banger with the full band but still pretty damn fine in this format. The more plaintive and poignant storytelling of “This Was My City Once” followed, and a none-more-appropriate “Good Times” elicited a nip of whisky from Gaz’ hip flask! A great set from Ben, despite his worries that, “I’ve forgotten how to tune and chat in these last 18 months!” which culminated in an angular and discordant “Still In Saigon” and featured an impressive last note hold from Ben. Good work, mate, you certainly earned your subsequent planned “advanced state of refreshment”!

 

A little chat with the man before the subsequent SHUDDERS set, which initially seemed very understated and almost hushed in comparison with Ben’s performance, but then settled into a combination of relaxing and hazy 70’s West Coast Laurel Canyon vibes (the likes of opener “Thought I Saw You” and “Sorry”), and more upbeat earlier “Pirate Folk” stuff (“Words Of A Fool” and the later jig of “Lost And Broke”). By now, Stu had arrived so the Shudders formed an atmospheric backdrop to our catch-up.

 We then headed back into the by-now much busier Bowl (an earlier chat with organiser Ed Dyer revealed over 700 advance tickets were sold – well done Swindon, that’s pretty impressive!) where Dave’s old band THE CHAOS BROTHERS were delivering overt, punchy and hobnail-stompy covers of the likes of “Ever Fallen In Love” and “The Jean Genie” to universal acclaim from an increasing dancefloor (dance-field?). But we were here for our undoubted highlight of the day…

 

After GAZ BROOKFIELD AND THE COMPANY OF THIEVES’ totally understandable withdrawal from our recent Wickham Festival, we’d assumed that this was going to be another blank Brookfield year… so Logan and I were both well up for this set, so much so that I had to persuade Logan not to grab a bit of barrier until the band actually came onstage! However, when Gaz led the band on and implored us to, “gather round!” we didn’t need any further persuasion! Opener “The March Of Progress” demonstrated not only that Gaz and co., despite the forced “live” hiatus and possible lack of face to face rehearsal, really hadn’t missed a beat, but also, judging by Gaz’ impassioned roar of the “What is going… ON!!!!” hook, he was “on it” too, determined to play a blinder for the old friend Dave. “The Tale Of Gunner Haines” got Logan singing along down the front, bringing back memories of that RSD duet (!), and a galloping “World Spins Round” was ragged and racey, Gaz and co whipping through the set at quite a lick, although Gaz admitted, “the lockdown pounds have made this a lot harder work – good cardio though!” Tonight’s stage-time organiser, the esteemed Mr. Dave Franklin, got a shout out as a “piratey type” before an excellent “Land Pirate’s Life”; the inevitable “Be The Bigger Man” featured a toned down lyric of, “I grabbed the scoundrel by the throat,” in deference to the younger audience members (!); and all too soon, final number “Let The East Winds Blow” saw Gaz lead the clapping and singalong echo line, to conclude a superb festival set full of utter bangers. Great to have you back, Gaz!

 Dusk fell on the Bowl as Logan decided he was hungry, so I actually saw the early part of the follow-up set from another of Dave Young’s old bands, BOYS FROM THE COUNTY HELL, from the food queue! They were however completely as advertised, happily; a fiddly-diddly raggle taggle bunch of old Pogues fans playing their heroes’ brand of punked-up Irish folk, with a selection from MacGowan’s mob’s material covered for good measure (including, gladly, their eponymous “Boys From The County Hell” which saw me shouting, “lend me ten pounds and I’ll buy you a drink!” at my son whilst ordering his hot dog!). A lot of Spider Stacey-inspired tin whistle instrumental reels were also a feature, but the sing-and-swayalong covers of “Dirty Old Town” and closer “Jesse James” saw me and the Hall brothers sing along raucously. Good time stuff!

 

A brief break before headliners KOVA ME BADD came onstage, led by what appeared to be the Honey Monster in an old style stripe bathing suit! Their relentless cheesy covers were however a bit much for me, and when Logan asked to call it a (long) day I was fine with that. So that drew our participation in My Dad’s Bigger Than Your Dad Festival to a close; a complete success in my experience, with lots of good times, good friends and great sounds, all brought together to celebrate love, life and music. Just as Dave Young, no doubt looking down on us with a wide bandit grin, would want. Ed and co., this was simply a splendid day, you’ve all done Dave proud. Well done and thanks!

1182 THE SHUDDERS, Swindon The Manor, Saturday 29th August 2020

 

Breaking a Covid 19-induced 169 day-long gig famine with this local one, but hey, it’s some “live” music at last! Since my last gig, waaay back in March, the world had gone into lockdown hibernation to contain the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic, with my pre-arranged Spring “Dance Card” of scheduled gigs suffering blanket postponements firstly into Autumn, then further postponements into 2021! Of late, he world has at least taken small steps towards a return to normality (myself being back to work for 8 weeks now, for instance, after a 14-week furlough period from March to June), but there still exists considerable uncertainty about when larger public gatherings such as gigs can return. A very frustrating – and financially precarious – time for music fans, artists and venues, then, leading to this, my second-longest break between gigs – ever!

 I was actually expecting said break to be even longer, but local scene stalwarts The Shudders announced an acoustic gig at The Manor pub, a stone’s throw from our front door, and in the pub’s beer garden where the necessary dreaded Social Distancing (an utter oxymoron in my eyes – surely being “social” is about closeness and friendship, not staying away from folks!!) can take place. So we arranged a family evening outing to the pub, wandering out just as a cloudy but dry day had rather ominously morphed into a damp and chilly evening, threatening drizzle for our outdoor event. Bugger! The Shudders, however, were set up line abreast under a wooden gazebo next to the pub back door, so at least they wouldn’t get wet! Caught up with Tim between periodic soundchecks, and chatted with other punters “Paj” and Colin, before Danny called the band to order, kicking off their first set in front of a small but hardy clutch of onlookers.

 An “in between” band set-up, this, with Liam and Danny both wielding big acoustic guitars, Tim plugged in with his electric bass, and drummer Jim playing a percussion box, all huddled together under an ivy-bedecked wooden gazebo which gave the impression of a weird nativity play! The opening set material delved back to The Shudders’ embryonic first “Pirate folk” album, opener “Words Of A Fool” seeing their second speaker – which had apparently stubbornly refused to play ball all day – firing up midway through! Oldies “Dog You Can Kick” and the trad-country sounding “River Song” followed, sounding a little understated and hesitant, fragile even, which I guess was totally understandable given both the long break and unusual nature of this performance. Danny’s vocals however seemed more strident and upfront for the anti-war protest number “A Truce Song”, and after that each number sounded better than the last, as the band warmed to their task and shook off their understandable ring rust, Danny admitting to be, “suffering from the lockdown fever of not playing,” before “Standing In The Rain”. A subsequent “Long Way Down” was the best of this first set, a galloping CSNY-like 70’s country rocker to take us to a break.

 A pause then, Rach electing to take the kids home as it was now less damp but increasingly chilly, so I caught up with Tim before The Shudders’ second set. “By way of an apology for the cold weather, this one’s called “Sorry”,” introduced Danny as the number snuck in with its looped acoustic riff and groovy harmonic chorus. “Thought I Saw You” was its usual fine, breezy if understated powerpop self, then the boys tried a new number out on us before a lead vocal-swapping, meandering yet haunting cover of Neil Young’s alt-country classic “Powderfinger”. “Two more songs then you can go somewhere warm!” joked drummer Jim, but the remaining hardy perennials (all 5 of us!) made our own warmth with an energetic fun jig around the table to set closer “Lost And Broke”, the raucous fiddly-diddly Irish reel number interspersed with some audience participation and a mid-number “Box solo” from Jim! A fun way to end the set, after which we all decamped to the bar for warmth!

 A quick chat with the boys afterwards before I headed off home. This one’s admittedly not going to threaten the likes of Nada Surf or The Hold Steady in my 2020 gig “Top Ten”, but after such a lengthy period of Covid 19 gig hibernation, it was just nice to catch up with friends and hear “live” music again. So thank you to The Shudders for providing that opportunity, and hopefully it won’t be so long before the next one…

1,048 THE 2017 SWINDON SHUFFLE, Various Swindon Venues, Friday 14th to Sunday 16th July 2017

And now… it’s Shuffle Time! Time for the annual weekend-long multi-venue festival showcasing the finest in Swindon’s original music scene, initiated 11 years ago over a few drinks by my old friend Rich Craven, who, as with the inception of so many great ideas, simply asked, “what if …?” Only the third time I’ve supped from the heady nectar of the Shuffle’s cornucopia of delights, I’m afraid to say, given that my long-term broad ignorance of the local scene (well, all but any band my friend Tim Owen was playing in, at least…!) was still only relatively recently cured. However, given my thorough enjoyment of this event last year both from a musical and social standpoint, I was again determined to continue to make up for lost time, and Shuffle along as much as I could!

Thursday night’s previously booked Mercury Rev gig precluded my attendance at Shuffle Day 1, so I thereby missed Misfires at The Castle, whom I’d enjoyed at Level 3 recently. Reports indicated it was both a packed-out success, and a bit of a youth club kids’ rock night out! Friday evening at the same venue promised the same albeit for the older punters, a slew of heavier acts giving the schedule the look of a real Grunting Rock Pig stage! An early start too, as I parked up and hit the venue on a sunny Friday evening, shorts and double kneestrap in situ, well before 7! MY SOCIAL DECLINE were soundchecking for their early set, and after my mate (and MSD guitarist) Rich Carter paused for a quick chat, they were straight on in front of the early doors punters at 7.20. They were determined to play it hard and heavy from the outset, all scowling, sneering vocals from Rich Bellis, following their usual scuzzy instrumental opener, and driving, Stooges riffery from Messrs Bellis and Carter. “Rhubarb” featured a big dumb Ramones-ish riff and profanities liberally scattered around like machine-gun victims, “With Nirvana” had a more 90’s indie feel and a fun “Girl From Mars” reference (Rich Carter’s favourite song, apparently!), and “Maverick” probably featured the best hook of the set, some militaristic drum peels from young Liam Dearing, and a Drones/ Models proto-punk feel. I also actually enjoyed final number, the grungy, quiet-loud “You Mean Nothing To Me”, this time out, as this quickfire set provided a fine, slightly discordant but enjoyable Shuffle start!

Chats with Rich afterwards – he couldn’t hear himself onstage so just concentrated on making noise! – and Paul and Ellen Carter (no relation to each other – any of them!), then Bristol’s DOWNARD were next up. A boy/ girl, drum/ bass duo in grey boiler suits and colourful goggles, their confrontational, hard and fast post-hardcore noise was primitive and industrial, with distorted vocals from the drummer, recalling the strident noise assault of Spectres, Slaves and Idles. Not really my cup of sump oil but I warmed to their tumbling drums and palpable bass noise, although I wondered if this is what having an enema of the ears would sound like. One thing for sure; they’d kick the likes of Royal Blood up and down the street any day of the week!

I chatted with the arriving Hall brothers, pondering the absence of usual drummer Jamie from their line-up tonight, and we ruminated on how tonight’s set would work, with short-notice replacement drummer Liam O’Halloran (ex of Polar Front, now Hail) having only practiced once with the band! Next up onstage were another drum/ bass duo, GAGREFLEX, who again played it hardcore and superfast, with more tumbling drums and tempo changes not only giving the set a tense, agitated feel, but also recalling the embryonic stylings of early Biffy Clyro. Conversely, their set felt too intense and got repetitive for me, so I retreated to the refuge of the bar to gather myself for my Highlight of the Night!

Took a wander down the front, taking a pew as RAZE*REBUILD set up; strange not only to see a different face on the drumstool, but also to see something other than “Back To The Fall” as opening song on the list… perhaps I can ease myself in tonight then…! Ha! No chance of that, as newie “Burden Of Youth” was just as fast, frantic and widescreen, a flag-waving, breast-beating rock anthem worthy of a much bigger stage, followed in quick succession by the joyous popcore sonic assault of “New Leaf”. No easing myself in – I was rocking down the front as hard as possible from the off, thankful for the double kneestraps!

Tonight represented the 8^th time I’ve seen this band in barely over a year, and if anything, I’m becoming more of a fan with each outing. The quality of Si’s songwriting is matched only by his kinetic, scissor jumping, vein bulging performance, and the band’s inclusive, open honesty. And Liam was a revelation; shirtless after 2 numbers (“it’s bloody hot [up here]!”), he scarcely missed a beat, his slightly more overt drum style a perfect substitute for Jamie’s more laid back technique, astonishing for just one practice! Praising his performance mid-set, Si joked, “[He’s] young and pretty too; we probably should have put him at the front!” “Back To The Fall” was again superb, this time sandwiched between two newies, the frantic “Never Saved My Soul” and a more sprawling, tempo changing closer “Poison Air”, which thankfully featured some slower interludes, necessary for this old dancer as, given the band effectively finished the set with 4 fast ones, the air was rapidly disappearing from the room! A pounding, visceral and once again brilliant set from a band rapidly becoming one of my favourite bands around, period!

Brief congrats afterwards with the boys before I needed some air and a drink, and I stayed at the bar for headliners 2 SICK MONKEYS. Veterans of the Swindon scene, they’re apparently knocking it on the head this year, so the back room was packed with veteran rock punters determined to make the most of this showing. They’re a very “marmite” band and I confess I’m very conflicted with them; vocalist/ bassist Pete (whom I’d referred to, affectionately (honest!) as a “badger haired gobshite” when they supported the Dickies for gig 826 a few years back) is a rapid-fire, entertaining raconteur (an early diatribe including, “I’ve got no money, I’m can’t pay, we’ll take that monkey away!”), but their ramalama leather and studs style primitive punk assault sails uncomfortably towards the type of band (Discharge, Anti Pasti and their homogenous ilk)that turned me off punk back then. They went down a storm, so good on them for that, but, sweaty and tiring, I hit the road before their set concluded, to close out my Shuffle Day 1.

My Shuffle Day 2 didn’t start with the lunchtime library sessions, as had been the case in previous years, due to Kasey having a stagecoach end-of-term show! Instead, this was a Saturday evening affair, as I picked up my wingmen for the night, Messrs. Carter and May, and the 2 Rich’s and I parked up in old town in time to grab a drink in The Tuppenny and take our pews for MOLEVILLE’s early set at 5.30. Familiars mainman and occasional Vaudeville performer Steve Skinley’s side project, this, and I was pleased to see his Moleville material didn’t deviate too much (overlapping frequently, in fact!) from Familiars’ usual modus operandi of dark, rich evocative late night mood music with just a soupcon of Nattionals-esque baroque US alt-indie. Filtering a looped drumbeat through his keys to flesh out the sound, “Battlecry” was an early highlight, mournful and haunting with Steve’s vocals as smooth and dark as mahogany, Steve also plugging his “Oliver Postgate/ 50’s Sci-Fi” YouTube video for this track! A lush, lovely “Red Forest” was apparently inspired by the reclamation of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster site by nature, “Dynamite” was a deliciously morose penultimate number, and Steve perversely left us with a final, more upbeat and almost fuzzy pop number about reality TV! Overall, a lovely start to the night thanks to this truly talented gentleman.

Steve joined our table as well for some music and comics chat, as OLI NORMAN, next up, set up. Unfortunately his set was beset with technical issues; 2 strings broken during the first number, forcing compere Ed Dyer into a time-filling stand-up routine (!) and tuning issues visibly frustrating him thereafter. He deserved props for perseverance, though, and his smooth, well-structured melodic numbers, which for me had the feel of 70’s singer-songwriters such as Paul Simon, and for Steve Bon Iver, eventually shone through. I could even forgive the use of those dreaded loop pedals to add harmonic depth - in fact I actually liked that! “Stockholm”, his final, darker and racier strumalong number, was my favourite of his set.

DREUW, eventually next up at 7.30 after a fiddly set-up process, were an intriguing prospect; an eponymous vocalist/ guitarist backed up by Perry Sangha, formerly of the very fine Polar Front on occasional guitar and computer-based backing tracks. In fact, with the set-list sticking out from Perry’s set-up, it occasionally looked as if he was playing a photocopier! They opened with a cover of Chris Isaak’s mournful “Wicked Game”, their chilled, stripped-back interpretation even quieter than the original, and their set thereafter was equally low-key, quiet, atmospheric and delicate, veering between Bella Union Americana and even Galaxie 500’s hushed ballads (although both Steve and Rich C drew comparisons to Explosions In The Sky, a band I’m unfamiliar with). A great shame, therefore, that it was fighting a losing battle in a room full of noisy people, ironically many of which were their own entourage!

We headed off a couple of numbers before the end, as our parking ticket was due to expire, and repositioned the car at the bottom of the hill (I don’t do hills, me, if I can help it!), hitting a packed Beehive for 8.15, midway through CANUTE’S PLASTIC ARMY and their introspective, folk-tinged works. They provided the soundtrack to our greeting folks and getting the drinks in, although I took notice again of their apposite reading of Pulp’s “Razamatazz”. I then took a wander to the front of the performance area (tucked away by the door, necessitating a viewing spot almost in the face of the performers) for NICK PARKER, a (very) late addition to the bill (getting the call, “a couple of days ago,” apparently!) and due on at 8.45 but taking the stage at 9. A 25 minute set time-slot only then, and this was an object lesson in making the most of it. Grabbing the attention from the outset with opener “Departures”, he weaved a tapestry of observational life, holding a mirror to the minutiae and mundanity of humanity. A splendid opener, recalling Del Amitri’s “Nothing Ever Happens”, he followed this in short order with a jolly, knockabout “Down With The Yoof”, bringing on his German friend Emily for vocal accompaniment on a mid-set ballad. “Terry And June”, a folky “list song” which for me always recalls The Lemonheads’ “Being Around” as well as Ian Dury’s list-based lyrical style, was next up, and a splendid vignette of a performance was concluded with Nick joking, “my name’s Nick Parker, or TBA as the poster says!” and a great, singalong “Es Tut Mir Leid”, during which I got to hold up the “Entschuldigung” placard and conduct the crowd in the choral singalong. Affable, dry, funny and inclusive – great stuff again Nick!

We took a breather outside the cramped pub thereafter, complimenting Nick on his performance and catching up with other folks and friends. I’d fully intended to catch some of the next set from the splendidly named and punkish Cupcake Diaz And The Felt Tip Pens, but hunger was a greater call, so we headed off for sustenance, before I dropped the boys off to round off my Shuffle Day 2!

Family commitments unfortunately precluded my joining Shuffle Sunday until mid-evening (sorry Si and Matt!) but I hurriedly headed into town, to a packed and sweaty Beehive, after Logan arrived home from his swim class. No real need as the schedule was running an hour late, so I managed to catch the last knockings of BUSWELL’s set. A local musical maverick, Shaun Buswell tonight fronted a relatively conventional 6-piece band, running through a powerful, potent Nick Cave-esque number, “about a serial killer,” and an equally strident and dynamic cover of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” (again!), with some nice flute embellishment, and Isaak’s lilting soprano replaced by Buswell’s lionesque roar,. Glad I caught some of that!

Next up, as I caught up with Tim and Tracy in the bar and briefly outside, were the 6-piece BLACK SHEEP APPRENTICE at 8.15. The irrepressible Richard Skidmore (we’re all “Skiddy’s Shuffle Hotties!” this year according to his 2017 badge, which is far preferable to his 2016 version!) took the stage to a Cowboy theme film music backing track, then led his black Stetson-clad charges into Wild West territory, dishing up dark and rampant Country-tinged powerpop, dusty Alt-Country and whisky-soaked murder ballads in equal measure. “Let It Go” recalled Posie Ken Stringfellow’s excellent Chariot project, a darker “Born To Walk Alone” was dedicated to his mother, then Skiddy got “The Maiden” out (a gorgeous white Gretsch with gold trim) for a morose and (ironically) parched-sounding “Water”, giving props beforehand for the Shuffle organisers by announcing, “people involved in the [Swindon] Arts are special… well, not that [type of] special!” The set highlight, however, was a stunning, elongated “I Cursed Your Name”, a menacing, Violent Femmes-like revenge ballad with a lengthy, repetitive hook and some excellent slide guitar from Jim Blair. The eponymous and cacophonous “Black Sheep Apprentice” rounded off a startling set, Skiddy, soaked at the finale (commenting earlier, “it’s between me and Si from Raze*Rebuild for [the title of] Swindon’s sweatiest performer!”), having poured all kinds of scary conviction into a stellar performance.

Another breath of fresh air outside, catching up with familiar faces from the past (hi Bex!), then back in for the finale of the weekend. Or, as Ed Dyer put it before thanking all and sundry for a successful weekend, “we’ve got one band left, and we were desperate!” THE SHUDDERS however were absolutely the perfect act to close out the Shuffle; right band, right place, right time! After the gathering storms of the nonetheless superb BSA set, the clouds parted as they delivered an upbeat, inclusive and celebratory set of harmonic powerpop worthy of the occasion. “Thought I Saw You” was all Summery harmonies and Posies powerpop riffs, “Words Of A Fool” racey and ramshackle, and newie “Star Bright” featured a great memorable hook. Another newie, “You Look Good”, could have walked off Teenage Fanclub’s “Songs From Northern Britain” album, and “Sorry” was deliciously understated, the boys round harmonising as Paj filmed the band and audience. “In the spirit of the festival,” Danny ironically announced a cover, Neil Young’s fine countrified “Powderfinger”, which saw Danny, Liam and Tim all taking lead for one verse each, before the song rounded off with a chorus of “Rocking In The Free World”. That should have been it, but the crowd clamour prompted a final run through of “Lost And Broke”, the jaunty Irish reel and singalong hook proving a great way to finish proceedings.

More catch-ups with Tim and Darren Dust afterwards, before I reluctantly bade farewell to all and sundry and headed home to conclude my Shuffle Day 3. Thus ended (for me, at least…!) another great Swindon Shuffle, with excellent performances throughout from truly talented people. If a relatively small town such as Swindon and its’ environs can throw up excellent songwriters and performers of the likes of Si Hall, Steve Skinley, Nick Parker, Rich Skidmore and the Shudders, playing in small venues to friends and contemporaries for a worthy cause in mental health charity Mind, it baffles me that the likes of Ed Sheeran can pack out Wembley Stadium 2 nights on the bounce. Nothing against the guy, but there are far better singers and songwriters out here going unnoticed. Scratch the surface, people, there’s musical talent right on your doorstep, and, year after year, The Swindon Shuffle goes a long way towards proving it!

995 THE SHUDDERS, RAZE*REBUILD, Swindon Faringdon Park, Saturday 9th July 2016

An evening in the Park! This was a small precursor to what looks like the most promising “Swindon Shuffle” (the annual event showcasing the best in Swindon bands) since I’d been paying attention to it (not as long as I should have been, I’m somewhat ashamed to say), with the Shuffle organisers putting on a taster for said event at this, the 150^th Annual GWR Swindon Children’s Fete, as it stretched lazily and languidly into an overcast but humid and warm evening. We’d been considering taking the kids to the Fete anyway, but the presence of the in-form Shudders, plus the startling Raze*Rebuild, served to confirm our attendance!

We left it late, parking in the Outlet and wandering under the railway bridges to the Park for 5.30, finding a lot of the stalls packing up as day-tripper families dispersed. Still a few things to do, though, and we made a bee-line for the Helter Skelter and Hook A Duck stall, bumping into Rich May and family in the process. We also met Rach’s friend Rachel and her kids, and us grown-ups chilled by the performance area to the sound of a couple of Swindon Academy of Music young performers, while the kids hared around letting off steam. Eventually the serious bands showed up; Tim and The Shudders joined us for brief chats, vocalist Danny unfortunately suffering with a seriously croaky voice, and the Raze*Rebuild boys conducted an early and fiddly soundcheck. Kasey wanted to meet the band, which I arranged, the band taking it in good humour just before they took the stage; thanks boys! “Songs Of Praise” co-promoter Ed then introduced them onstage at 7.15 with a big push for the Shuffle itself, vocalist Simon then deferring to the children on the slippery dancefloor in front of the stage by promising, “not to swear – well, I promise to try not to swear!”

Raze*Rebuild were great again – I honestly wasn’t being flip or patronising when I tagged them as “my new favourite band” after their recent devastating Vic performance, gig 991; this lot are so seriously right in my wheelhouse they might as well be picking out curtains and home furnishings for it! If distilling and encapsulating the best of pre- and post-grunge US alt-rock and “popcore”, purveyed by the likes of Husker Du, Buffalo Tom, even Jimmy Eat World, into a shiny, upbeat and ridiculously catchy whole, wasn’t in itself enough, Raze*Rebuild then deliver said fayre with vim, venom and fire, following the lead of strong-armed, sinew-bulging and kinetic, scissor-kicking vocalist Simon Hall. The guitar mix was a little blowaway, as one would expect from a small open stage in an increasingly windy early evening field, the sound overall lacking the power and fulsome potency of that Vic showing, but no matter, the band made up for it in dynamism, honesty and humour. After anthemic fist-pumping opener “Back To The Fall” and the almost Joe Jackson-esque stripped rhythmic verse of “Jaded Heart”, Simon remarked, “I thought we’d scare you kids away! I underestimated you – fair play!” to his increasing junior moshpit, and later challenged Logan (who’d been taking a watching brief down the front) with, “I’m going to make it my mission to get you up on your feet!” A couple of cheesy and suitably rough-handled covers filled out the set, but the originals shone through, the bleeding raw Buffalo Tom-isms of “Kat I’m Sorry” being my highlight. They concluded a splendid set with the comment of, “I honestly thought we’d clear this place!” to the kids, and with the Jimmy Eat World-esque tear-soaked emo power ballad “Sand In The Petrol”. Now I can’t wait for their Shuffle set this Friday…!

The Shudders were on in short order thereafter, as the wind picked up and the darkening clouds threatened to unburden their contents. “The Shudders with man-flu!” announced Danny, his broken croak then totally failing to hit the high opening line to a nonetheless galloping and rambunctious singalong “Words Of A Fool”. He then advised, “when my voice goes, you get to nominate which of us carries on [singing]!” (Tim apparently being the crowd favourite here), but thankfully it held up through the Blue Oyster Cult 70’s riffery and “Grease” glam stomp of “No Angels In The Slipstream” and the subsequent, lovely and pastoral “Sunrise”. “Thought I Saw You” was initially understated, affected by a similar paucity of guitar oomph as that which hindered Raze*Rebuild’s early numbers, but took flight eventually, and “Sorry”’s powerpop stylings saw Danny nurse his voice to the finish line, dropping an octave for the 2^nd chorus after failing to get anywhere near the high notes first time around – poor chap!

A couple of oldies and a thank you to the leaden skies, “for the rain holding off!” then preceded their final number, newie “Star Bright”, which was my highlight of this brightly delivered and well-chosen set tonight. Ed had made reference in his introduction to the 7-year gestation period of their current album, which saw the light of day earlier this year, so by that token we might get to hear the slow burn opening and excellent soaring backbeat chorus of this number on record in, ooh, 2023…

Brief goodbyes and Kasey happily scrounging signatures from The Shudders for her list, then it was off for one last Hook A Bag for the kids, then home for 9.30 to lay tired heads to rest. A fun evening out in itself, and a successful taster for the main event coming this weekend. Shuffle up next!

986 THE SHUDDERS, Fake Walnut Dash, Swindon The Locomotive, Friday 29th April 2016

Can we squeeze another April gig in? OK, why not, considering it’s Tim’s band of alt-Americana troubadours The Shudders, whom my friend Rich Craven rather accurately recently described as “The Violent Femmes of the West Country”. Albeit maybe with fewer backwoods murder ballads…! Anyway, another local one then, and quite a late one as well, given that Rach was swimming mid-evening, and in any case the musical festivities don’t kick off at bottom-of-town bar venue The Locomotive until 10 p.m., so no rush to head on out!

Early evening was spent watching “SHIELD” and the excellent “Daredevil” before Rach arrived home just after 10, just having enough time to question my sanity on my late departure as we passed, like ships in the night, at the front door! Parked up behind The Mail Coach and wandered in about 10.15 to find support Fake Walnut Dash already under way. Pleasant surprise No. 1 was that the gig was very amply attended, my attempts to maintain entertaining discourse with the likes of Tim, promoter Dave Franklin and Dean, being punctuated by a number of, “excuse me, pardon me,”s from punters squeezing past in this admittedly compact and bijou room. Pleasant surprise No. 2 was Fake Walnut Dash themselves; apparently their first ever gig, they played a funk-beat heavy, delta blues melange which evoked a New Orleans honky tonk bar band at times, a little schizophrenic sonically, but a band determined to have a good time and pass that same vibe on to the assemblage. Pleasant surprise No. 3 was that one of the dual vocalists (in matching “Shoop” t-shirts) was the esteemed Mr. Gaz Brookfield’s lady, Mr. Brookfield being in attendance himself to support her.

Unfortunately, it appeared that much of the crowd were likewise part of the opening band’s entourage, as once they finished, there suddenly seemed to be a chunk more room to move around, as The Shudders set up for their 11.00 start. Also, I was once again irritated by the proliferation of drunk people (mainly scantily-clad women, sadly) entering, exiting and entering again, jostling repeatedly and uncaringly past my stage-front spot in their lairy beer haze. Was I ever that vacuous in my cider-soaked youth? Actually, no, scratch that… I was probably worse...

So, a late one, with a thinned-out crowd, including a smattering of disinterested and lairy slappers swaying around, present to herald the band onstage. Hardly ideal circumstances for The Shudders, but they came out of the traps purposefully, noisily and stridently, kicking off with ramshackle, singalong oldie “Words Of A Fool”, and following that up with the intricate guitar and bouncy harmonic powerpop of “Sorry”. An early “Sunrise” was the one token slowie, the maudlin delicacy of this 70’s US West Coast vibe-drenched number the best sounding song of the set, but at odds with the rootsier, rockier rest of the performance. This wasn’t a time to fuck about with the ballads, as a subsequent, Replacements-style bar-room blues-riff powered “Thought I Saw You” attested to. Time instead to rock! Brand newie “Star Bright” (“hot off the presses – please don’t judge us if we don’t play this properly,” remarked Danny) had a delicious ascending riff and a stomping drum-propelled choral hook, and the boys even delved back in time to the fiddly diddly Irish jiggery-pokery of “Lost And Broke” and the groovier, raw-boned bluesy rock of “Yellow Flower Stare”. Final number, a strident, well-judged cover of Neil Young’s classic “Rocking In The Free World”, closed out an entirely apposite, perfect Friday night bottom of town bar rock set, the boys resisting calls for an encore. Job done, no need!

A few words with the boys, and also with Messrs Franklin and Brookfield afterwards, before the time bumped up to my parking expiry and I headed off with Dean in tow.  A tough one, this, but in trying circumstances The Shudders, for me, pulled off a minor triumph and should be pretty pleased with themselves for tonight’s work. Well done boys!