Skip to main content

Woking Girl.


Tonight, me and Glyn went to Woking to play our comedian friend Jay Cowle’s gig Joke in the Box, and had a lot of fun.  

It’s the first time we’ve done a longer set at a club outside of Mostly Comedy in months. I think we needed it. We seldom perform together at the moment. When we do, we’re usually in charge of the gig as well, so our attention is split. To just be an act on the bill is a luxury, particularly when you're very comfortable with your material.

I was amazed at how busy the show was, considering we were headlining. Even I don’t know who we are and I’m one of us. The room was packed and the audience were very up for it. So much so, I was worried we’d disappoint. I did a solo set in the first half, but was so tired, I was amazed the material came out. I had an out-of-body experience as I did it; I was conscious of words leaving my mouth, yet didn't feel responsible for them. I got a good reaction considering I wasn’t present. It probably helped that I’d had a bit of a run-in at Monday's gig.

However indifferent I may have felt about my solo set, my spirits lifted when we performed together. It could have gone the other way; we’d travelled to Woking separately, and had had very little time to discuss what we’d do. Thankfully, things went in our favour. Doing it gave me a kick. Part of it is familiarity. We know the material inside out and know our roles as a double act. I’m still finding the right rhythm on my own. It takes time. I’ve worked with Glyn for longer than I’ve worked with me. I think that makes sense.
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Shakerpuppetmaker.

Have Parker from Thunderbirds and Noel Gallagher ever been seen in the same room? The resemblance is uncanny. So much so, I think something’s afoot. If my suspicions are correct, I've stumbled across a secret that will blow the music and puppet industry wide apart. In the mid-60s / mid-90s at least. It doesn’t take long to see the signposts. There’s the similarity between the name of Oasis’ first single, Supersonic, and Supermarianation, Gerry Anderson’s puppetry technique. The Gallagher brothers would often wear Parkas . Live Forever was clearly a reference to Captain Scarlet and Standing on the Shoulder of Giants to the size difference between Noel and his bandmates. The more you think about it, the more brazen it gets. It’s fishier than Area 51, Paul is Dead and JFK's assassination put together. The only glitch to the theory is scale . According to Wikipedia, Anderson’s marionettes were 1’10” and Gallagher is 5’8”. How does he maintain an illusion of avera...
Read more

'...I'm Gonna Look at You 'til My Eyes Go Blind."

Over the past week or two, I’ve been on a bit of a Sheryl Crow kick, largely thanks to rediscovering her cover of one of my most-liked Bob Dylan songs. She has one of my favourite female voices, yet despite this, I only own one CD and that’s just a single (her '97 release ‘Hard to Make a Stand’); on that basis, you can only imagine how much of her back catalogue I’d own if I hated her (it would fall into minus-figures). Dylan, conversely, takes up more of my collection than anyone else, save The Beatles and Paul McCartney’s solo work. He’s one of those artists who, when you get him, you really get him - and once I’d tuned into his style as a student, I'd time and again be blown away by his lyrics; he’ll have more jaw-dropping imagery in one track than other people fit in a whole career. These days, I mostly listen to music in the morning when getting ready, and more often than not, this will consist of a suggested YouTube playlist when I’m in the bath, r...
Read more

Stevenage: A (Tiny) River Runs Through it.

If ever a river was mis-sold, it’s the Roaring Meg in Stevenage. I just walked past it on my way to the retail park that has taken its name. They’re similarly uninspiring. The river is less of a roar and more of a dribble; cystitis sufferers produce greater flow. The retail park is soulless. What was once a thriving enterprise is nearly devoid of atmosphere, save an underlying essence of emptiness and despair. With a Toys R Us. When it was first built I was excited. Back then, the thought of a bowling alley, an ice rink, a Harvester and a Blockbuster Video within a small surface area was enticing. I celebrated many birthdays on site. There was an indoor cricket pitch there for a while where I once had a joint party with a friend. Why someone with an almost pathological fear of sport would agree to such a venture is beyond me, but I did it. Now, there’s very little at the Roaring Meg of note. The river would be a metaphor for the shopping ce...
Read more