commonpeople1: (Steven Lubin)
[personal profile] commonpeople1

Guess What

Although Stoke Newington is just a neighbourhood in North East London, it feels very much like a self-contained village. Stoke Newington High Street, the main road that leads to it, is lined with aromatic Turkish restaurants and trim Mediterranean men straight out of a Fellini film. Lesbians have been slowly migrating to Stoke Newington these past ten years (Kevin and I lived with a trio of crazy ones in Stokey when we first moved to London) and their presence is felt everywhere; but it's also home to large Hasidic and Afro-Caribbean communities. Church Street, the prettiest artery running through Stoke Newington, carries all kinds of fancy restaurants, second-hand books and clothes shops, and even has an entrance gate into one of London's oldest cemiteries, Abney Park Cemetery.

Ryan's Bar, on Church Street, has a basement that welcomes local bands:

Hellium and Eggs carry a torch for the sixties that casts shadows of The Kinks and The Who. Two of them on stage, many instruments between their feet and hands. The sixties was never this fun.

HillBilly and the Bonfire conjure beautiful songs out of tragedies, their sound firmly placed in the folk tradition. Either you pay attention to the lyrics or you catch yourself drifting off, stuck to the ceiling.

Guess What live in the same decade as Hellium and Eggs, but prefer to explore soundtracks to french lounges and secret agents. There's a glitter of psychedelia behind their venetian masks.

Pissinboy proves on stage that there's more to Italy than sappy ballads and Eurocheese Dance. I hear the Velvet Underground in his sound, but also Guided by Voices. The audience's favourite.

Patrickbruel end the night, shifting between noise experimentation and poppy indie. They jump; they fall down; they lose guitar strings. They could have gone on and on if the owner of the bar hadn't come down to announce that all proceedings must stop at 11, like the clock at the end of Cinderella's ball. Because there are no carriages to take us home, we stand on Church street and give moral support to the smokers. We explain to a new friend the aphrodisiac powers of Bride of Chucky and despair at the chilly wind that is so unsummery.

***


I've developed a crush on a band from Melbourne, called Cut Copy. They do everything with the 80s and indie pop that makes me happy.

Date: 2008-07-07 09:49 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] noondaydemon.livejournal.com
I love your descriptive narratives about life!

Date: 2008-07-08 12:07 pm (UTC)

Date: 2008-07-07 11:40 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] desayuno-ingles.livejournal.com
Wow, that's quite a large lineup! How fun!

This is going to piss me off, b/c I've heard of Cut Copy but can't figure out what brought them to my attention. I'm listening, though, and it's fantastic!!

Date: 2008-07-08 12:07 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Aren't they just? Hearts on Fire is my favourite track so far, but the others are growers. They've got plenty of stuff on Last Fm too.

Date: 2008-07-08 12:15 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] aeonflux.livejournal.com
Guided By Voices!! My cousin was in the band when it was called Dash Rip Rock and the Hairspray(I think?) Boys. He's even designed some of the artwork for their covers. They're his friends from growing up...and I'm always amazed when people know them.

Date: 2008-07-08 12:08 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Wow, that's pretty cool. To be honest, I don't know their stuff that well; it was Kevin who drew the comparison. But, as far as I know, Guided by Voices is quite well known over here (at least by people who buy music mags.)

Date: 2008-07-08 06:35 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sor-eye-ah.livejournal.com
Ha ha, I have friends in Stoke Newington who moved there for that exact village feel :D How you doin' btw?

Date: 2008-07-08 12:08 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
I'm doing good! Happy this is my last week; excited/nervous about the new job.

How are you doing?

Date: 2008-07-08 05:24 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sor-eye-ah.livejournal.com
Ohh what's this about a new job??? Do tell! grats!

Date: 2008-07-08 07:48 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
It's with a small arts organisation here in Hackney, quite near me. They work with English Heritage on the history of the borough. I'm going to be their Admin and Marketing officer. :-)

Date: 2008-07-08 08:25 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] sor-eye-ah.livejournal.com
Sounds perfect for you! I really hope you enjoy it. *hugs*

Date: 2008-07-10 10:44 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] millionreasons.livejournal.com
You forgot to mention: And home to one Ms R Stevenson ;-)

Date: 2008-07-10 03:43 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] commonpeople.livejournal.com
Home to one Ms R Stevenson who failed to attend the event! :-)

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