rock'n'roll dottie

a place of welcome

 Dear Sheddists,

a church should be a welcoming place, a place where anyone can come to find a listening ear, a cup of tea and a few precious moments of companionship.

That's why our church runs a weekly 'Place of Welcome' on a Saturday morning when people can pop in and stay as long as they like.

These are very special times in the life of our church.

Best regards,

electrofried(mr)

elbow

Dear Sheddists,

once more we're back in the O2 Birmingham to see one of our very favourite bands.

Sometimes it's all too easy to knock those that succeed, but with commendable determination Elbow rarely move far from their roots.  Boasting a vocalist of some considerable substance in Guy Garvey, a man who could easily secure a second career as the back-up goalkeeper at Sutton United, they enjoy a virtually unprecedented connection to their diverse and highly enthusiastic fan-base. Which is why it's even more special to see Elbow play a comparatively small venue - the O2 has a capacity of just 3,000.

The band are on form for their second night in Birmingham, running through a seamless blend of new material from their latest album, 'Little Fictions' and much loved hits from their highly impressive catalogue. The likes of 'Mirrorball', 'Lippy  Kids' and 'One Day Like This' are all greeted with rapturous applause.

Guy Garvey must surely be one of our greatest modern poets, capturing the joys and sorrows of life in what at first-sight appear little more than throw-away lines to catchy pop-music. And behind him, a highly disciplined and tight band of musicians that have been together now over quarter of a century.

Birmingham salutes you, Elbow!

Best regards,

electrofried(mr)

curry, beer and the gentle pleasures of a fine conversation

Dear Sheddists,

another terrific afternoon in the company of my dear friend, Clive - a very special gentleman indeed!

We feast royally at the legendary Asha's a cheeky pint of refreshing Kingfisher being the ideal accompaniment to an Executive Special Lunch. Neither of us lays the remotest claim to being an executive, but it's cracking curry all the same and is dispatched with customary gusto.

Suitably replenished we make our way across the road to Birmingham's finest real ale emporium, the The Wellington.  Possibly the only pub in town to have no food available bar nuts, crisps and pork scratchings, the fact it's full by the end of the afternoon is testament to the expansive range of fine keg beers on offer from around the country, the names of which are helpfully displayed on a screen by the side of the bar.

We begin with halves of Brother Rabbit, a delicious pale golden brew with a light frothy head perched precariously atop that is reminiscent in certain lights of the new President of the United States.  Regrettably, the former is capable of recycling in the adjacent Gents whereas the latter is not, much as one might wish to be the case.

Brother Rabbit goes down a treat, as does the following halves of Masterwork. At 5.6% it's the strongest beer on offer which sets us up nicely for ....

Ruin - a beer the young bar-tender assures me is a fine choice, being brewed with native botanicals.  I should have spotted a 'ringer' when he goes on to observe it is the beer equivalent of gin. We taste it, look at each other with shocked expressions before replacing our glasses on the table.

"Washing-up liquid", opines my learned colleague and I find little cause to demur.  We pass on this one and a swift return to the bar is made for halves of Fireside, an ever-dependable Black Country brew and two bags of salted nuts to remove the last lingering taste of Ruin.

Conversation flows throughout the afternoon across a wide range of topics that include the origin of the God gene, bereavement, the trials and tribulations of our beloved Aston Villa, the importance of family life and the current position in Sierra Leone.

Time for our last halves, the coffee-coloured Simcoe Stout and then it's out into the light once more as we go our separate ways.  All in all a fantastic way to spend an afternoon!

Best regards,

electrofried(mr)

victory .. at last!!

the pet shop boys triumphant return

Dear Sheddists,

yesterday evening sees dear mrs electrofried and I at our local corporate mega-arena as we enjoy once more the company of the Pet Shop Boys accompanied by sundry thousand other fans.

We arrive an hour after the doors open. Eschewing the madly over-priced and weak-kneed lagers on offer we make our way to the floor of the arena and hunker down in our seats to enjoy an extended minimalist techno-set of mind-blisteringly repetitive beats that makes the average Ritchie Hawtin mix look like a frivolous, filigreed, rococo playtime exercise.  Perhaps its purpose is to encourage mass hysteria come the the first outbreak of anything remotely resembling a melody line ... and in that it succeeds brilliantly.

The Boys hit the stage around 8:45 to the rapturous applause which greets the opening strains of 'Inner Sanctum'.  Neil Tennant is clad in a deliciously inappropriate baco-foil bomber-jacket positively bursting at the seams like an oven-ready Bernard Matthews Christmas turkey.  He's in fine voice.  Meanwhile, his compatriot in crime, Chris Lowe, stands sphinx-like behind his keyboards clad in trademark shades and a mean line in science-fiction inspired millinery.

The set is an inspired and seamless amalgam of new work from the 'Electric' and 'Super' albums yoked unashamedly with the best of a highly impressive back-catalogue, stand-outs from which include "West End Girls' and 'Go West'.  The light-show is equally impressive.  We watch transfixed as hypnotic 3D geometric cubes and circles pulse from the stage-screen to be subsumed in strange images of giant ants crawling in silhouette across a dancing body. Lasers, smoke and mirrors transport us to another place as we sway in time to 'Home and Dry'.

All to soon the Boys close out the set with  a celebratory retooling of 'Always on my mind' coupled with a brief reprise of 'The Pop Kids' from their latest album. My can they put on a show!!!


Yours as ever,

electrofried(mr)