Is anyone going to the AIM event at L’Auberge this Monday? I don’t know much about it myself. AIM stands for Association of Independent Music. They are holding a quiz this Monday at L’Auberge. I think anyone can buy tickets to go.

There are big prizes up for grabs, apparently. Friends and all round lovely label Bella Union booked a team of 7 but unfortunately a few of them can’t go, so my friend (and TLOBF maestro) Rich Thane and I are joining the team. I have no idea what it’ll be like… if you are there please say hello. But I’m down for ANY event with free chicken wings… yeah man. Livin’ the high life.

I had the pleasure of watching Tristram play three times this week (once at the Allotment- hurrah!). He’s got such a wonderful voice and some really lovely songs, I think (and hope) 2010 will be a really good year for him. He has an EP on the way, featuring the very lovely Someone Told Me A Poem. 

What’s even better is that he’s backed by such a strong band. Greg plays music in his own band (The Lofty Heights) but provides stellar accompaniment to Tristram, offering up sweet harmonies and some great glockenspiel and melodica parts. Becca is an epic cellist; she’s absolutely brilliant. Somehow she manages to play in about 32731848130 (4) bands and bring something really great to each. Drummer Tom is amazing. He’s so animated and fun to watch, and adds in so many lovely little touches to his playing. 

Good stuff. Visit Tristram on his Myspace and go see him live.

I went to two things today: 1. Bandstand Busking and 2. The Moonshine Jamboree Christmas Party. They were both very nice. Here are a few of my favourite photos from the day (I took quite alot), the rest are on my Flickr.

Here are 3 photos of Tristram & his lovely band, my favourite of the buskers:

Can you tell how cold it was from those photos? Then, through a magical twist of time and distance, I went to the Slaughtered Lamb. Joe played, he looks pretty cool with that pentagram behind him:

Then, because I sat in the same place while all the acts played, all my photos from the Slaughtered Lamb look the same. They’re on my Flickr should you wish to see them anyhow. Lots of bands played, including Tristram, Lofty Heights and Jake Bellows. And here is a photo of my friend and show promoter extraordinaire Anthony Chalmers (The Moonshine Jamboree/God Don’t Like It) looking pretty suave:

Good times.

Upstairs at the Big Chill House is a nice little room. It’s cosy and warm and played host to The Local/Names’ Christmas shindig.

First, Oh Ruin played. Singer Eoin O’Ruainigh  was pretty jolly. He got everyone to sing a long with him and played some lovely songs. It’s always nice to come across a local act (who is good and) who I haven’t seen before. Listen to his songs here.

Next was Caitlin Rose. She has such a powerful voice. It’s amazing. She played a bunch of her own songs including Sinful Wishing Well, which is a truly brilliant song. I really love it, you can watch a good video of her playing it here. She also played a cover of You Are My Sunshine, explaining her gran used to sing it whenever there were tornados in Oklahoma (or something), so it would scare her dad whenever he heard it. It’s really interesting hearing little anecdotes like that just because they’re so far from what life is like here. She played a couple of songs with piano accompaniment from her friend Skylar. She really is a talent; Names has such a good ear for great artists- I wouldn’t have heard her if I hadn’t been browsing their site. I really look forwards to Caitlin being back in London and playing more shows, and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend going to one. Listen to her songs here.

Next up was David Thomas Broughton. Such is the way of going to so many gigs, this happened to be the fourth time I’d seen him play. Alot of people really, really rave about him, or completely dislike him. I thoroughly enjoyed his performance that evening. Regardless of his humorous antics while performing, he is undeniably a very talented musician. He loops the guitar so brilliantly and his voice is amazing. Every set is different, so despite not being a huge fan, it always feels fresh and is interesting to watch. I’d recommend going to see him play if you’ve yet to experience some DTB action. His Myspace is here.

It was a lovely evening indeed. Pay a visit to The Local and go to a show.

Some photos of cellist Hildur Gudnadóttir, who also plays cello in Múm. She was supporting Fever Ray and was fantastic. +10 points for the amazing head warmer:

Lost in Hildurness. Great name.

Here’s a nice video of Squirrels from Neva Dinova’s last record You May Already Be Dreaming.

Along with the Moonshine Jamboree party tomorrow Jake plays at Pure Groove on the lunchtime of the 10th and later that day at The Luminaire with Alessi and Treetop Flyers.

This is tomorrow:

The Moonshine Jamboree have a few shows coming up. I am 100% definately hitting up the Christmas party tomorrow at the Slaughtered Lamb; I’m really excited. Neva Dinova maestro Jake Bellows is playing a set along with some other nice folk including Tristram and The Lofty Heights. What a lovely way to spend a chilly Sunday. Why not head to the busk over in Victoria Park first (The Clientele, Tristram and Fyfe Dangerfield of Guillemots from 1pm) and then catch the bus to the Lamb? Doors are at 4. I can guarantee it will be lovely, and  a real treat to hear Jake Bellows perform. Buy your tickets in advance from Ticketweb.

Then December 8th Slaraffenland play at the Queen of Hoxton and on the 9th The Miserable Rich and Kristin McClement play at the Hoxton Bar and Kitchen. You can get tickets and more over at God Don’t Like It.

I’ve been a fan of the North Carolinian brothers for a couple of years now, and they seem to tour non-stop… just not over here. But wait! They are coming- March 16th at The Garage. Yes. The Garage. Boohoohoo.

Venue aside, I really can’t wait to see them play. Their music has so much energy and I think the songs will be brilliant live; if you watch Youtube footage of the band they look phenomenal. They released a new record this year and I have to say that I haven’t been able to get into it (yet, perhaps) but I really love their two Gleam EPs, Four Theives, Emotionalism… all of their Pretty Girl songs.

They are a great band. Listen to them here.

I really am quite unbearably excited about the two Allotment shows we have coming up next year. Two of my favourite acts. Not from round these parts. You’ll know them, I’ve blogged about both of them loads. They are amazing. I think we’ll announce them soon. One of my more superficial favourite things about booking new shows is that I get to draw new posters- hurray!

January 27th

February 28th

Keep those dates free! Save them! And listen to all the bands I’ve blogged about loads and by way of probability you will listen to the two acts who are playing. 

Yo La Tengo have such an epic back catalogue, I can barely say I know their stuff apart from a few odd songs. They played the Roundhouse recently and it was a sell out, so the opportunity to catch them play an instore at the comparatively ultra-intimate Rough Trade East was pretty appealing,

Wristbands were handed out at 6pm, and they were probably gone within 15 minutes. Hardly surprising. The instore itself was lovely, there was a very warm atmosphere and the band seemed really appreciative of the audience- and kindly took requests. It always endears me to a band when they ask fans what they want to hear, it was especially sweet because you could tell that were some pretty huge YLT fans in attendance. At one point guitarist/vocalist Ira Kaplan mentioned it was the band’s 25th anniversary this year, and joked that some members of the audience were younger than the band is. Yep.

Everything sounded great, and they played Speeding Motorcycle- which was fun to hear live (it was only a few weeks ago I heard Daniel Johnston do it at the Union Chapel, and the day before Caitlin Rose had joked about playing it… spooky). I don’t really know their material well enough to comment in much detail, but it was an enjoyable instore and I feel lucky to have gotten to see the band play. The Yo La Tengo Myspace is here if you fancy a listen.