Jeff from We Versus The Shark is blogging his band's UK experiences on the road with Pulled Apart By Horses for Athens Georgia online arts magazine Flagpole. Thanks to both for allowing Jeff's tour diary to be carried on the STA blog and here's chapter 4.
Fourth Installment (25/03/09)
That's (obviously) the front page of the map for how to get around London via the underground subway system. Throughout the tube, you can find other pieces of art amongst the billboards for Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Vincent Gallo shilling for H&M (goddamn him). I don't want to fall into the familiar lib American spiel about Europeans and their high appreciation for the higher arts, but this is simply not something you would see in even New York. It speaks of a different attitude. It's nice.
That said, Tom Hudson, vocalist for Pulled Apart By Horses and our host here in Leeds for the past few days, rides a similar train to us through his "artistic" "career": he works a moderately blase job by day to support his habit of needing to act the fool in front of crowds. Between rent and needs, it's a scrape-by situation. I'm excited to get to the Nordic regions--we've just confirmed a show in Oslo--and see what socialism has done for them over there. Especially considering Neil's New Hampshire-borne libertarian streak.
The shows have been consistently fun, and tonight was our first headlining show. Our Middlesbrough venue, Uncle Albert's, was a perfect antidote to the shitshow of a barricaded-stage bougie joint we played in York, which shall remain nameless (The Duchess). I've just assumed that pretty much no one knows us around here, and we've been enjoying the comfy slot of playing before the Horses, who are newly minted up-and-comers according to the NME. Tonight, we played last of four bands and played to about forty kids. Despite my lingering stomach problem, god damn if that isn't a nice experience.
Anyway, I'm trying to avoid boring folks with details about backstage amenities (or lack thereof) or garbage soundguys. Do you guys want to hear about that stuff? I doubt it. Next post I think I'll get into one of the more bizarre aspects of British culture: the tabloids.
Jeff Tobias
Fourth Installment (25/03/09)
That's (obviously) the front page of the map for how to get around London via the underground subway system. Throughout the tube, you can find other pieces of art amongst the billboards for Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Vincent Gallo shilling for H&M (goddamn him). I don't want to fall into the familiar lib American spiel about Europeans and their high appreciation for the higher arts, but this is simply not something you would see in even New York. It speaks of a different attitude. It's nice.
That said, Tom Hudson, vocalist for Pulled Apart By Horses and our host here in Leeds for the past few days, rides a similar train to us through his "artistic" "career": he works a moderately blase job by day to support his habit of needing to act the fool in front of crowds. Between rent and needs, it's a scrape-by situation. I'm excited to get to the Nordic regions--we've just confirmed a show in Oslo--and see what socialism has done for them over there. Especially considering Neil's New Hampshire-borne libertarian streak.
The shows have been consistently fun, and tonight was our first headlining show. Our Middlesbrough venue, Uncle Albert's, was a perfect antidote to the shitshow of a barricaded-stage bougie joint we played in York, which shall remain nameless (The Duchess). I've just assumed that pretty much no one knows us around here, and we've been enjoying the comfy slot of playing before the Horses, who are newly minted up-and-comers according to the NME. Tonight, we played last of four bands and played to about forty kids. Despite my lingering stomach problem, god damn if that isn't a nice experience.
Anyway, I'm trying to avoid boring folks with details about backstage amenities (or lack thereof) or garbage soundguys. Do you guys want to hear about that stuff? I doubt it. Next post I think I'll get into one of the more bizarre aspects of British culture: the tabloids.
Jeff Tobias
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