This time last year Little Fish played the Beard Museum at the Wheatsheaf. It was well attended and enjoyable (Juju threw sweets into the audience) A year later the most obvious difference is that 50 people are turned away as the venue is quite small and Little Fish have progressed a long way in 2008. They haven't played in the UK since September 14th and it's great to catch up with so many people including others who have travelled from London. The Wheatsheaf now has a light which is nice. The band have also changed a bit since I saw them in Berlin 6 weeks ago. There seem to be some American rock influences added, of which I am not entirely sure. Vaguely similar to Give 'em enough rope from the Clash produced by Sandy Pearlman. Anyway we shall see. It's late by I get in from Oxford after dropping off a car load of fans in Camden.

Tonight it's an Oxford gig in Bristol. Its a bit of a drive, but all motorway, so I set off early to avoid the Friday traffic (seem as it is in fact a Thursday, I do quite a good job of avoiding the Friday traffic).
Little Fish are supported by Family Machine, who I have seen several times, but not recently as they have been playing at the same times as Little Fish.
My early arrival gives me time to walk around Bristol a little (mailnly looking for a toilet). There are lots of new bars around the waterfront, all apparently without character or beer (although they all seem to have Sky sports playing to empty tables). I manage to find a proper pub and try a local beer, and listen to locals having a heated agreement about their local football team (not sure whether its Rovers or City).
The Louisiana puts on quite big bands. I am told that its a venue that bands on their first UK tour play, and that the White Stripes played here. I'm a bit surprised, its really quite small upstairs and they have a plush carpet. The lights are a bit odd but reasonably effective (as long as the band stand on the right. Its only 90 minutes home .

I knew  three of the bands playing at this all day festival (14 bands for £8, no wonder it was sold out.) I'd heard good things about a few more; but I expected there to be some fillers - provided so the audience could slope off for a bite to eat without missing anything important, In this respect I was wrong. Although  I missed the last 3 bands because I had to get back to London and missed one because we were starving, all the 10 bands I saw were worth seeing; I expect those I missed were also good. It was quite nice to travel up on the Oxford Tube so I didn't have to worry about parking and could enjoy an excellent pint of Deuchers. With seeing ten bands in a day it is difficult to remember much apart from general impressions, but with the wonders of myspace I have have checked all the bands since and enjoyed listening to them again.

Back to Oxford again. The M40 is becoming very familiar even in fog like tonight.

Family Machine are an Oxford band who invited me to take some pictures of them. Fortunately the lights had returned to something like what one would expect from the Bull and Gate.

19.11.07 21:00, comment