I went to a gig last Wednesday night (17th June) at the Craufurd Arms in Wolverton, Milton Keynes. On the undercard was “Mother Corona” and headlining “Samsara Blues Experiment”. Each band gets its own write up.

Mother Corona (MC) has featured on my site before - I saw the Didcot-based-three-piece for the first time in February and wrote about that gig too.

As a result of that Oxford event, my buddy Mark Hughes ordered the band’s CD releases “Reburn” and “Out of the Dust” – he subsequently loaned them to me and, because both were/are good albums, I recently set about buying them myself. And that insight is relevant because the process of procurement meant that I became aware of last Wednesday’s gig.

The outing presented the perfect opportunity to return Mark’s CDs and catch up over burgers, beers and heavy metal – tickets were duly purchased via the Craufurd’s website.

Mark and I arrived at the Arms at around 8pm; I saw the MC trio at the corner of the bar and strolled up to ask when the guys were due to take to the stage. With a decidedly bemused look, the fellas said “8:30pm” – I realised why I got the bemused look moments later when I saw the notices taped along the back of the bar. Doh, how not-very-observant of me!

I digress for a moment; the band members are an interesting looking lot – the guitarist (lovely chap though I am sure he is) is heavily tattooed with shaved head and a full, pointy beard looks like a dangerous, volatile white supremacist sort (think Edward Norton, AHX but with much, much more ink); the singer (and drummer) - Dave - with the trademark ‘metal’ long hair has this thing he does with crossing and uncrossing his eyes that makes him look a little mad (think Steve Buscemi/Mr Deeds/Crazy Eyes); and then, jarringly, the bass player Rob is completely normal in appearance (in fact he could work in my office and fit in just fine).

With regards to the band’s music – it is distorted, grungy/sludgy/stoner heavy metal. The guys are capable musicians and the band is tight. Lesser skilled bands would need an extra guitarist to cover the range of sounds that MC produces. Lee (the guitarist) plays a Gibson Les Paul with serious aplomb, so much so that at one point I leant across to Mark and mentioned that watching his fingers racing around the fretboard made me want to grab a guitar and have a go myself.

The Craufurd’s gig hall was fairly lightly populated by punters but then I guess it was a school night. There were probably about 30 people in total, which is no reflection at all on the quality of the bands and their music.

Mother Corona took the stage at the allotted time and played a set that consisted of the following six tunes.

• Sunscope
  
• Hollow Empire
  
• My Diablo
  
• Back to Hell
  
• Stone Cold Universe
  
• Turn It Off
  

During Sunscope, Dave’s right drumstick snapped and he carried on playing with the half that stayed in his hand. Bearing in mind that he had to use both feet, both hands and sing at the same time, he did a great job of holding it all together whilst making allowances for his right hand’s reduced reach.

The venue’s settings for the microphones weren’t quite right, the instruments rather drowned out the vocals. Perhaps my experience was influenced by my position in the hall; Samsara Blues Experiment (SBE) was similarly affected. 

The penultimate number - Stone Cold Universe - is my favourite of all the MC songs, you can find it on YouTube if you’re tempted to listen.

Despite having procured the band’s CD back catalogue, the other four songs were new to me (not featured on either album).

At the end of the set, I got chatting to Rob Glen the band’s bass player. I had exchanged emails with him during the process of ordering the CDs mentioned earlier. He advised me that I had purchased the last copy the band had of “Out of Ashes” - I’ll consider that a lucky result.

After the gig, Rob was good enough to email on the set-list, which was helpful in writing this post.

By the way, if you fancy sampling MC’s wares, YouTube is a good place to start. If you want to buy the music, you need to visit Bandcamp, or get to a gig. Even though "Out of the Dust" is sold-out, you can still buy the songs from the album via a download. On that release, my favourite track is entitled “Nuclear Winter”.

 https://mothercorona.bandcamp.com/album/reburn

Mother Corona is a band that I’ll happily see again, I am now following the guys on Facebook and will pay particular attention to gigs in a commutable distance from home or work.

Samsara Blues Experiment at the Craufurd Arms
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I went to a gig last Wednesday night (17th June) at the Craufurd Arms in Wolverton, Milton Keynes. On the undercard was “Mother Corona” and headlining “Samsara Blues Experiment”. Each band gets its own write up.

Prior to the gig, I’ll be honest, I had never heard of Samsara Blues Experiment but, at the point of booking the tickets, Hughesy (my gig-going, beer-drinking, burger-eating, ex-work pal) recognised the name immediately and proceeded to state – and this is verbatim - “Oooh - they are bloody good!”

And it turned out he was right.

SBE took the stage after the obligatory sound check and played the following:

• Singata
• Into the black
• Centre of the sun 
  
• Vipassana 
  
• Don’t belong
  

Now you might be thinking that five songs for the headlining act doesn’t seem like a lot but, and I kid you not, each tune lasted between 10 and 15 minutes.

SBE is a German outfit, it has three members and all are properly accomplished musicians. The band’s sound is complex and travels through Hendrix type blues to spacey, psychedelic, prog-rock via chugging, stoner metal.  The songs are typically multi-movement pieces with changes of tempo and style during them. The vocals are minimal and so the music does the talking.

In terms of the listening experience, the analogy I’d draw is that SBE has an impact not unlike Pink Floyd (genre aside). SBE creates music for one to immerse oneself in, it is genuinely intense - I found myself concentrating so much that by the end of the set, I was actually tired.

Regarding the end; there was an odd moment when the audience expected an encore that didn’t materialise. There weren’t many people in the hall (perhaps 30-40 souls – it was a mid-week gig in Wolverton, the attendance no reflection on the quality of the bands); maybe there wasn’t enough noise generated to inspire the band to play more, or maybe there was never any intention to play another song and the Craufurd sound guys were just slow to turn the lights on and cue the “exit” music (maybe they were just overwhelmed by the intensity of the experience and needed time to re-adjust).

The final number “Don’t Belong” impressed me so much that at the end of SBE’s set (and when the lights were on), I asked the bass player what the name of the song was and what album it appeared on. I subsequently purchased “Waiting for the Flood” before heading for home.

That four track album was/is so good that I have since ordered, “Revelation & Mystery” and “Long Distance Trip”. During the process of ordering the extra CDs, I exchanged emails with Chris Peters, the vocalist/guitarist. He was kind enough to send me on the set-list from the gig.

For the record, Samsara Blues Experiment is an excellent band, if you have the opportunity to get to a gig, I would wholeheartedly recommend it. I’ll be paying attention to shows in the UK and will try my best to see this group again.

Mother Corona at the Craufurd Arms
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Last weekend (20th June) saw the Welton Soapbox Derby turn the normally quiet village into a centre of attention truly worthy of the BBC Radio Northampton outside news crew covering the event.

Regular readers will know that I went last year (read my 2014 review) and, despite the pouring rain, I was determined to enjoy this year’s event too.

What is it about Summer Saturday weather in Daventry? The previous Saturday saw the Daventry Motorcycle Festival subjected to Heaven-sent, water-based abuse - typically followed by a lovely sunny Sunday. This weekend saw a repeat meteorological performance, but where the rain affected the motorbike turnout, there was no such reduction in attendance at the Welton Village Fair.

The format for the derby followed last year’s structure with some notable improvements to spectator safety, the obvious presence of the media and the arrival of Ben Cohen, the Saints/England rugby star (and Strictly Come Dancing celebrity contestant).

The downhill time trialling began at around 1:30pm although all racers needed to be present earlier in order for their vehicles to be scrutineered and deemed safe (enough) by Halfords.

Once again, the imagination, sense of humour and engineering consideration was clearly evident and I wandered around parc ferme taking photos of my favourite soapboxes (see below).

Racers took turns to attempt/complete the course and their efforts were logged and positioned in a league table. There was a speed trap and I understand that 20+ miles per hour wasn’t unusual. Unsurprisingly there were a few accidents (some rather spectacular) and a greater number of near misses and soapbox failures.  

Whenever The Trotters Independent Traders vehicle was brought to the start line, the theme tune to “Only Fools and Horses” was broadcast over the public address system to accompany the descent. I sang along (I mean who wouldn’t) much to the chagrin of my daughter.

At times the rain was really heavy; it was during a downpour that I came face to face with Ben Cohen, I was tempted to ask for a photo but he looked a bit pissed off (to be fair, he was getting pissed on, meteorologically speaking) so I resisted the urge to ask for a selfie, or for a signature on the Saints shirt I was wearing. He’s a much bigger bloke than I am and, though he’s an anti-bullying campaigner, I wouldn’t want to get on his wrong side. Maybe next year I’ll get lucky!

The Welton Village Fair was a great success in my opinion, it was colourful, exciting, fun and well organised; my appreciation goes out to all those responsible for making it happen.   

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Click on the pictures below to enlarge them. Higher resolution shots are available, get in touch if you want one emailed to you.

The 13th June saw Daventry’s annual motorcycle festival take place. Unsurprisingly, given I have attended all of them to date, I was keen to support this year’s event too. And even though the weather was miserable, I turned up with my camera to soak up the atmosphere (whilst my clothes/shoes soaked up the rain).

The High Street was closed to non-motorbike traffic and various club stands, merchandising concessions and a covered stage (for the bands) were all set up prior to 9am. The event formally kicked off at around 10:30am when the official ride-in arrived. 

It became apparent fairly quickly that the whilst the rain hadn’t stopped play, it had affected the turn out - this year, only the High Street saw bikes displayed along its length. Previous events have seen more than twice as many machines turn up (with Sheaf Street and the market square pressed into service for motorcycle parking/display purposes).

The organisers will of course have worked just as hard this year as any other in the festival’s five year history; but one thing they can’t influence is the weather. Typically Friday had been good, Sunday was subsequently good - but during Saturday, the rain just didn’t let up. Still, that’s the UK for you, it may be June, but summertime gives no guarantee of sunshine.

Regardless of the downpour, some great bikes were on show and I share some photographs of my favourites.

My thanks go to those that worked hard to pull the event together, it may have been less attended than normal but despite the best efforts of the rain, it was no washout. The motorcycle festival was still good and it brought a welcome buzz to Daventry. Fingers crossed that next year sees the heavens be more benevolent and the event attendance get back up to the highs of 2013/14.

See pictures below (click on them to enlarge)

So it’s official that Chris Evans is going to front the new incarnation of Top Gear. I have mixed feelings but, on balance, I think that Evans is a good, perhaps even the best, choice (though he has a very tough act to follow).

I generally (unless it’s Doctor Who) hate remakes of films/TV shows - The Italian Job, Alfie, The Sweeney, Starsky & Hutch, Knight Rider, The A Team are prime examples - because why mess with something that was perfect in the first place. New Top Gear, if it seeks to closely replicate the Clarkson/Hammond/May (CHM) era, will become a naff pastiche…

…and I would hate it.

Evan’s has his work cut out for him to do something rather different but whilst retaining some of Top Gear’s DNA (humour, irreverence, edginess, slapstick, entertainment over education). The Top Gear format under Clarkson had been consistent for some time, and arguably a little tired; so a refresh isn’t necessarily bad news for the hordes of Top Gear fans (like me).

Looking on the bright side, the BBC has a track record of pulling off significant change – think Doctor Who – Matt Smith was surprisingly good in the role that David Tennant had so comprehensively owned prior to Smith’s appointment.

So I find myself in the odd position of simultaneously mourning the passing of CHM, whilst genuinely looking forward to experiencing the Evans’ re-imagination.

Chris Evans is certainly a good presenter and entertainer, he has plenty of ideas, he is a known petrolhead and he has enough status for the gig; but he sounded a bit ropey whilst in the Ferrari with Clarkson during the TFI Friday sketch aired last week.

Is Evans a good enough driver?

Can he recruit a good enough support team?

Does he have some engineering knowledge to support his enthusiasm for the car?

Only time will tell. But I hope he pulls it off.

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I read this piece on the BBC News website the other day…

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-31647697

…and it prompted me to take to my keyboard and share a photograph of my latest vintage(ish) technology find.

I saw this bright red Direct Line telephone in a Daventry charity shop and just had to buy it. Stupidly pleased, excited even, I took the phone home and showed it to the wife and kids – it got the thumbs up, even from Mrs Baldwin, though her approval was more begrudging.

However, the phone is not promoted in my seventies stuff gallery because it’s just not that vintage - 1990s more than 1970s. I used to have a GPO twist dial equivalent (also pictured) that would have been featured in the gallery had I not sold it on ebay some years before I created this site.

It was partly that phone that prompted the purchase of the latest one. My wife delights in sharing a story about me that I think highlights my resilience and dogged determination, but that she thinks showcases my DIY shortcomings.

I bought the GPO unit in the year 2000 or thereabouts; it came with the vintage wiring which meant that I couldn’t use it without attaching a new connector/jack. The challenge that I had was that the colour coding for the wiring changed over the years and I had to figure out which order the four wires went in.

These days, one would just get on the internet and find the solution in seconds, back then though, this wasn’t an option and so I resorted to trial and error.

Do you remember the game Mastermind? It required one player to guess the colours and order of the pegs that the other player had hidden behind a screen. With notepad to hand, this was the approach I adopted to resolving the phone wiring conundrum – I tried combination after combination until the phone worked. It took hours and hours of effort and after much stress and frustration, I finally succeeded.  

I remember the success, the fist-pumping, joyous, result orientated hollering and full-on sense of achievement.

Mrs Baldwin remembers the expletives on the long journey to that success! More than a decade later, her occasional advice when I am contemplating something I am not exactly qualified for – “remember the red phone”.

When I got home after making the purchase of the new red phone, I announced its arrival with the line “remember the red phone…

“…well check out this baby.”

The good news, it works perfectly and has the right connection to plug it straight in. It looks cool, sounds great and is a lot more practical to use because of the push buttons; the star and hashtag make navigating automated menus doable where the old twist dial fails.

Back to the BBC article that prompted this post; whilst I don’t feel any need/desire to watch a black and white television or replace my laptop with a typewriter, I still love a telephone that has an old-fashioned bell ring.

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I saw something this morning on the way to work that caused my jaw to drop. The biomechanical lapse took place at the Landmark Hotel roundabout on the A45 in Daventry.

As I pulled up to the island to turn towards Weedon, I watched a motorcyclist ride on to the roundabout. To be honest, I couldn’t miss him (but before you get all stressed that doesn’t mean I maimed or killed him), rather, he was easy to spot given his bike was bright red, he was wearing dayglow yellow strides and…

…he was using his smartphone!

And yes, you read that right.

This chap was on the roundabout, on his bike, with his left hand on the handlebars and his right operating his mobile. Having finished whatever he was doing, he nonchalantly put the phone into his right pocket, zipped it up and then gunned his bike into the distance. 

Seeing people fiddling with their gadgets whilst driving a car is still a familiar occurrence despite the prospect of a fine (not to mention the danger the distraction causes). To date though, I have never seen a motorcyclist take such a risk.

Whilst I caught this chap’s number plate FN08 Xxx (not shared in full to protect the stupid), I didn’t catch the make of his bike - though it was a serious performance machine not a twist-and-go scooter (the back tyre of the bike was about a foot wide).

My thoughts took two conflicting paths simultaneously, the first was that the number plate should have started with a ‘K‘ - because then the first four digits would have spelt KNOB, which felt appropriate.

The second was that grudging respect was due to this fella for being able to manipulate his phone without dropping it, or his bike. I know that if I tried such a thing, my phone would just end up in pieces at the roadside. Crikey, the touchscreen on my Samsung is so poor that I sometimes struggle to operate the phone whilst sat still at my desk.

So admonishment or admiration? It’s a tough call though, on balance, I am going to have to opt for the first adjective.

But, bearing in mind that my daily commute to the office takes me to the same roundabout every day, at much the same time, I am going to keep an eye out for this rider to see if he has anymore tricks up his sleeve. I might revise my score upwards.

Bye for now.

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