Politics, Prog and Chickens

Hi-de-hi.

So, the Election ? Phew, cor blimey guv'nor, didn’t see that coming. In fact, I didn’t, and lost a £50 bet as I was the only person in the country, seemingly, who plumped for an outright Tory majority. So, Dave and the boys want to get into bed with the Liberals, and being good liberals, they've lifted up their skirts and shown a bit of leg to keep things interesting.

Apparently, the Tories were only 16,000 votes short of an overall majority, but that doesn't count because they don’t believe in PR. And because of the Liberal Democrats so called, "triple lock" system, put in place after Paddy Ashdown was roundly shafted by Blair in the mid-90's, the fate of the country will now be determined by a group of so called "Liberal Activists". There's democracy for you - expect a lot more of this kind of shenanigans if PR becomes a reality. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Choice moment of the election was when metaphor and real life collided in spectacular style, when a car crash literally occurred a few yards away from the Labour relaunch following the infamous bigot affair. This was closely followed by Labour's deathbed conversion and Mandelson's subsequent feline positioning on voting reform, a policy, let us not forget, included in Labour's manifesto since 1997 but conveniently forgotten until it came to squeaky bottoms this time around.

I also couldn’t figure out why being posh and well educated is apparently seen as an undesirable quality in a prospective leader. I've heard it said that it's because they "can’t relate to ordinary people". I don’t know about you, but I know lots of "ordinary people", and indeed count myself as one of them. Would you give me the job ? Thought not, and I wouldn’t give it to you either (no offence). Personally, I would rather have extra-ordinary and exceptional people running the Government,

In any case, what’s ordinary about Brown ? Or Mandelson ? Or Harperson ?

Right, anyway, this weekend saw some excellent prog-related adventures in Leamington Spa, of all places. This was part of a Prog festival called Progeny, held annually. This year there was a fringe too, and it was that that I went to see. I was joined there by the most well connected lady in Prog and my good buddy Nelliebot; we hung out in a student bar, drank champagne and generally felt old and out of place (it was prog, after all).

Here we all are:-

.

From l-r we have:- James (aka LFE), Karin (aka Philadephia), John (aka Racing Hippo), Nellie and yours truly, looking a bit grumpy actually - not sure why as I most decidedly WAS NOT, OK !!!!. Picture was taken by Dena from the It Bites forum, whom it was lovely to meet also.

As for the shirt, I make it a rule never to go to prog gigs wearing a band t-shirt; I consider it my duty to "do different", as we say in Norfolk. 

Downstairs in a cellar bar was where the action was, featuring an acoustic set by Christina Booth and Chris Fry followed by John Mitchell and John Beck performing some It Bites and Kino tunes. To stand in a small bar, hearing musicians of such quality was/is brilliant, although it has to be said that Nellie's anarchic streak meant that we didn’t (couldn't) stay too long for Tina (or "Dorothy" as she is now known) and Chris. 

One of the neatest things about these gigs is that nobody minds if you go and say hello (that goes for musicians and AND audience !), so it was good to meet John Mitchell (the Hardest Working Man in Prog (tm)) and the legendary John Beck. I ended up have a good chat to JB over a beer after the gig and after a while, when he realised I wasn't a fanboy, he loosened up and was a real pleasure; mad as a box of frogs, but a really top bloke, as was JM. A top bloke, I mean...

The following day was an acoustic gig by the mighty Tinyfish,

Tinyfish are a totally different proposition in the sometimes samey world of prog. Resolutely song based and with a slightly unhinged edge in both presentation and performance, they deserve some real success. I was delighted to at last meet Simon Godfrey, chief songwriter and singer, who told me some details about the new album (The Big Red Spark). He seems very excited about it, and from what I've heard from those who have heard a rough mix, he should be.

Here's a photo of the very excellent Tinyfish in full flight recently:-.

Credit to Bo Johansson for this pic.

There's a new video blog too:-

Anyway, Tinyfish are a great band and a top set of blokes and you should really check them out. It's prog, but not as you know it. If there's any justice in this world, the classic rock press will give Tinyfish and the album a big push, as they really deserve a higher profile and the success that should follow from it.

BTW, I've added a tweak to the playlist on the LHS of the blog by adding links. Follow the link to find interesting stuff, whether it's the lyrics or a relevant website.

You're welcome. 

 

In other news, Project Chicken has come to fruition and Gable End  is now host to 4 ex-free range hens rescued from Little Hen Rescue, a charity based just down the road from here.

Here a some pics of the Ladies. Their names are Comanche, Deirdre, Twin A and Twin B. 

The good news is that egg production has started, but they have a lot of work to do before they break even. Obviously, I don't expect immediate payback, but I am monitoring their MI very closely and have a number of management actions standing by should the team begin to fall off target.

Here some things they don't tell you on the websites about Chickens:-

1. Free Range Hens are often in as poor condition as battery reared one's
2. They fight, quite viciously actually, in order to establish, literally, the pecking order. Apparently a Cockerel will sort this out, as he keeps the girls in line...
3. They can decimate a garden in days
4. Like most things, you can end up spending a fortune on stuff. 
5. They are the closest living relative to T-Rex
6. They think everything is food, inc cigarette ash and toes ! (and food)
7. They LUURVE grapes ! But then, who doesn't...?
8. They crap EVERYWHERE - In fact, I cannot believe the amount of shit 1 chicken can produce per day, or the size of some of it frankly. In fact, 1 Chicken produces almost as much shite as 1 politician. How do I know ? Well, we've just spent the last 4 weeks listening to most of it, haven't we ?