Portsmouth's legendary lost Surf Punks Emptifish return for a home-town show next weekend, headlining a night of Garage Rock at the city's newest venue, The House of Rapture. In the 80's the band's gigs gained an infamous reputation, due to in part to an often raw connection with some of the more raucous Pompey fans, leading to Emptifish gaining a ban from playing within the city limits. Whilst it could be argued that this censure led in part to the band's split, on the eve of recording their debut album no less, time heals most rifts (even The Eagles reformed, despite Don Henley's famous quip) and, after all this time, it only seems fitting that their latest gig is in the shadow of Fratton Park.
Support on the Skaraman curated night comes from Sci-Fi Punk supergroup The Gary 7, a band featuring members of Armoured Flu Unit, Thee DB3, The Good Time Charlies and, of course, Emptifish themselves, with mood music between sets courtesy of DJ Paul Groovy.
The band recently released a new single, Haunted, through local label Mayfield which featured ex-Damned drummer Rat Scabies on percussive duties (I remember seeing Dead Men Walking at The Wedgewood Rooms some years ago, an evening notable for Captain Sensible telling some rather interesting and slightly off-colour anecdotes about his old bandmate, but those are tales for another time).
Tickets for the Saturday 6th July gig are £8 in advance, available now from the venue, direct from the bands involved or in person from Lord Sonic's shop on Albert Road.
I like live music, I like a good beer and I like to enjoy one whilst indulging in the other. With this in mind it would seem obvious that I'd be rightly appreciative of any event for new music that just-so-happens to take place in a venue which has a brewery attached.
The House of Rapture, Portsmouth brewers Staggeringly Good's new bar venture, is soon to play host to that most popular way of sampling new music, the Open Mic. In partnership with local band-cum-entrepreneurs Skaraman the new venue will be hosting regular Open Mic Nights, starting with their inaugural event on Thursday 29th February.
Most Open Mics I've encountered have tended to limit themselves to solo or duo acts, trios at a push, with nary a sniff of a full band. Not so at The House of Rapture, the organisers are keen to welcome all to their stage; solo acts, duos, small ensembles and full band line-ups too, the venue will cater for all to plug-and-play.
The doors open wide on the new night at 1900 and, as time slots won't be pre-allocated, would be players are advised to get there early.
For the most part my memories of attending Glastonbury Festival are good; a wonderful selection of music and entertainment, spread across a sprawling site, enjoyed amongst the excellent company of friends and several thousand other people. Admittedly walking through the mud can become a bit of a chore, any shelter from the elements depends on how much you paid for your tent, the sound of people giggling off nitrous can get very annoying and, obviously, the memory of the Long Drops famed aroma draws a knowing recognition amongst fellow travellers who've experienced its delights.
As I've grown older however the lure of urban festivals, such as The Great Escape in Brighton or Portsmouth's own Victorious, very much appeals; I can enjoy a surfeit of good music, seek shelter from the elements when required, and retire to the comfort of a proper bed at the end of the night. If only there was a way of enjoying Glastonbury in a similar manner, of savouring the music but without the mud or "interesting" toilet facilities? No long walk between stages, no chance of the stage view being blocked by That Guy with a ridiculous flag on a pole. If only.
This thought may well have occurred to the very nice people at the Staggeringly Good Brewery who, having both a tap room and a new music venue at the their disposal, have decided to stream the best of Glasto for the enjoyment of Portsmouth's beer and music loving punters.
Alongside the yet-to-be-announced-but-most-likely-excellent selection acts whose performances will be shown on the big screens will be a selection of the brewery's excellent (and unfined) ales. Add to this the promise of proper toilets, no mud and absolutely no chance at all of being stuck behind someone trying to get their significant other on TV by hoisting them onto their shoulders and it sounds like a winning plan to me. Obviously it won't be the same as being stood in a muddy field in Somerset but that's kind of the whole point.
Best of all though is the price of the tickets; entry is absolutely FREE (which, given that I like many others missed out on a ticket to the festival's return this year, makes it even more of a bargain). Lovely super smashing great, as the late Jim Bowen was wont to say.
Waking up on a wet Saturday morning, with a sore throat and a head full of cold, puts no-one in the best of spirits. So it was then that I attempted to recharge my energies with a double-header of caffeine and Twitter. Whilst the coffee machine did its noisy thing I scrolled through my feed and, yes, saw something which brought the sunshine back into my day.
For a while now small venues have been disappearing from out midst, with Portsmouth losing several over the past few years (The RMA Tavern, Drift In The City and The Cellars to name but three). It's therefore nice to be able to report some good news; the lovely folks of local ale producers Staggeringly Good have today announced the imminent of a new venue for the city, The House of Rapture.
Situated adjacent to both the brewery and its taproom, within shouting distance of Fratton Park, this new venture promises to marry the joyousness of live music with craft beer (which Staggeringly Good brew some very tasty examples of). If you're in the least bit beardy, like me, then this is a very good thing indeed.
The House of Rapture opens next week and, to celebrate its launch, the venue is hosting three evenings of FREE live music. The fun starts this Thursday, 20th December, with party ska from the always effervescent Skaraman, psychedelic rock from Mystic Hipniks Picnic (from Portsmouth, via Metropolis) and some chilled out ambience from Highlights Of Our Modern World (who were excellent at Dials Festival this year).
The following night, Friday 21st December, boasts modern folk from Megan Linford, shoegaze from Superdrone and 6Ts flavoured psych-rock courtesy of Number 9. The opening celebrations conclude on Saturday 22nd December with grunge from Make Them All Smile and [drum roll] a super secret special headliner who will be announced on the day. All that and they sell very nice beers too which, I'm sure you'll agree, really is something to celebrate.
