Nokiart

I'm still reeling from that unfounded accusation of being uncreative so i thought i'd share my latest piece 'My Trusty Nokia 3310 (unmade cellphone)'. On display in my bookcase and mounted with Velcro so it can be bought back into service in emergencies. Built for pennies, bids start around the £100 mark.

Gigbeth Bites Back (Bah humbug)

From Gigbeth Blog 21st Sept'

"The fact that the blog is called ‘Another Byte of Banality’ makes me assume that the blog is a hive of negativity rather than creativity."

That'll teach me to make flip remarks in a fit of boredom ,irony is i'll probably win that free ticket raffle i entered at Artsfest.
Some thoughts though..

• I'm 42 AND cynical so yes the glass is probably half empty (and probably cracked to boot).


• Despite this i am quite chirpy as most people will vouch for.


• The Banality bit comes from the fact that as much as i enjoy reading and writing blogs in the bigger sheme of things thay are banal.


• Now Gigbeth is up and running the line up isn't too bad (though i'd prefer The Courtesy Group to The Guillemots)..


• I Frickin' loathe S Cowell and everything he stands for and on.


• The comments thing doesn't work on Gigbeth.com hence this entry being here.

Drinks are on me, November @ The Rainbow
All the best Midge

Well It Certainly Sells

Stockings @ The Hare and Hounds
Originally uploaded by Midge Diabolik

I've spent the morning editing, Flickering and tagging some pictures from last nights Magnificatz gig. I found this misc' picture, uploaded it and tagged it with 'stocking' and 'seams', it's now had Seven views in five minutes. Really makes you think!

Addendum: it's now 28 views in about five hours, the 'busiest' piccie i've ever Flickr'd.

Double Addendum: 53 views, this could be the best Flickr ever!

Turn It up Sonny...

'Urban Village' Dave will be hosting the first (of hopefully many) Used Pro Audio fair at the Custard Factory on the 19th October. Expect PAs, Speakers, Amps, Microphones and miscellaneous wotnot (trust me, i've seen the electronic Aladdins cave of goodies he's 'Tetrissed' into his garage). Dealers are most welcome, you can contact him at Dave[at]CalSystems.co.uk or stalk him via www.calsystems.co.uk

Eccentricity In The City

Do i hear a bid for £1.50 for nationalistic flip flops, £2.00 for some slides of Rome, £3:00 for edible underwear, X amount for an animated electronic singing hamster, £8:00 for a 'musical saw' lesson. then it must be The Eccentric Auction fundraiser @ the Anchor Inn. As promised it was like an eBay/Carboot hybrid 'on acid'. Lovejoy wannabes Harry and Si pulled off the auctioneers hat bit admirably for the Eccentric City paper (think parochial Headpress meets the Metro) and pumped me good (oooer!!) for a bid on some Zines, still all independent print is worth a punt!. Special appearance by John Ward who reminds me of a contemporary rubbish themed Wilf Lunn and i ALWAYS have time for Skip divers.

Unlucky for you guys i lost the raffle for a free page in the next issue so a printed tabloid sized rant will have to wait for another day.

Auction wise i bagged The Trojan Rat and some 'zines ...

apologies for quality of pictures but the room was tiny, light was dim, i'm on medication

Strap On Jack Revisited

My bestest mate Al was searching through some old photographs (y' know, those square paper things with pictures on them) when he came across some photo's (~'80s) of STRAP ON JACK, Bearwoods finest pub Rock/R'n'B band** bar NONE!. Fond memories of following them round Brum (typically The Sheldon, Barrel Organ, The Bear, etc..) to listen to such ditties as 'Spank Yer Plank', 'Pink Cadillac', 'Your Not The Woman You Used To be', 'I Wanna Be Your Dog',' We Been Drinking' and so on and so forth all turned up to '11'. Frickin' heady days of Wine and Roses, Snakebite and Black, not sure if my hearing ever recovered. These photo's were taken in various places including London and the West Coast. I've flickr'd them all into a set along with some scans of albums and promo stuff. I'm now trying to source some older pictures of Micks raincoat and Red bowler hat phase.

Where Are They Now

• Mike Hayes (Guitar/Vocals/Class lyrics) - Missing In Action!!


• Haldin H Wright (Bass) - Fronts the BEST Thin Lizzy Tribute Dizzy Lizzy


• Richard Heath (Drums) - Journey man muso for Clarkesville Mountain Band and Partners In Crime

Special Dispatches

• Martin 'Tex' Wood (roadie, tech and thumpings) - went to college, got qualified, last seen working for C.A.B


• Alan Middleton (asst' roadie in later 'True Grit' days) - IT tech, got married and sired a mixed five aside team, (kind supplier of these photos)

**(NB! not that trite 'Sultans Of Swing' shit churned out by middle aged frustrated bank manager musos)

All The Worlds A Frickin' Wurlitzer

After six weeks of 'suffering' i've finally gone the Docs and had it confirmed that i'm suffering from Viral Labyrinthitis. Pesky little middle ear conditon which gives the sensation that the worlds constantly wobbling, nothing serious but i'm certainly not the perky bundle of fun i usually am. So it's a course of Leeches for me @ £7:10 a pop!, though after reading through the side effects and the no alcohol clause i think i'd rather have the dizziness. Still, Frank says most Custard Factory weekenders would pay good money for a feeling like that :).

Eyeball Limpets !?

Is there nothing more annoying than when a contact lens slips and sticks like buggery to the bottom of your eyeball, (and when it does come free you end up having to chase it round the edge of your sclera using a tiny make up mirror!).

Hitchiking To The Bank.

J' Accuse !!

Bit dismayed to read that there are plans for a sixth book in the Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy 'trilogy' ('So Long and Thanks for All The Fish' was a pretty lacklustre outing and i didn't even read 'Mostly Harmless'). I think even Douglas Adams knew that they'd run their course and was then writing his Dirk Gently books. Hitchikers Guide WAS Adams and i just don't see how another author can even come close to capturing that style, to quote from the article...

The book will "make no claims for Eoin being Douglas", according to Prior. "It's not Eoin Colfer writing as Douglas Adams, as was the case with Sebastian Faulks," she said, pointing to Penguin's successful publication of Faulks's new James Bond novel Devil May Care earlier this year. "It's absolutely about him being himself – Eoin the author, but with the cast of Hitchhiker."

So what's the bloody point, cynical me thinks it's just a ruse to milk a long dead 'Ameglian Major' Cash Cow!!

Artsfest

El Diabolero

Hundreds of events over dozens of venues so reviewing it would be pointless/tedious. Suffice to say that along with the Frankfurt Christmas Market it's one of the few things that Birmingham City Council get right.


(i've Flickr'd some stuff but Birmingham Flickr group have it all stitched up)

Addendum: the frickin' weather was perfect!!

Cash Strapped Adicts !?

  Well, i WAS going to go see veteran punksters The Adicts on Sunday but i've just realised they're playing The Academy. So that'll be 17 quid in and 3.70 a pint.. screw that!!. Instead i'm off to Artsfest to hoy eggs at 'anarcho crusties' (give me a break) The Levellers who also played The Academy last year @ £18:00 a pop!!.

A Curious Egg Indeed.

  Those Curates Egg types pull off another coup and bag a return visit from Johnny Clarke (Oct 3rd, part of the Birmingham Comedy Fest). Caught him at the Hare & Hounds last time where he did around Two hours of killer stand up (just a couple of poems though) only interrupted when he politely asked leave to take a leak. Age (and rehab) has certainly made him more reliable, we went to see him several times in the 80's and he just didn't turn up (probably on a bender with the cash he made from those Sugar Puff Ads).

  I only saw Ted Chippington once ~'86 (supporting Fuzzbox) but STILL tell the joke about my Dad being in 'Nam, <pause > that's Cheltenam, Ha Ha Ha!.

Where Did I Put My Feet ?

One thing i pride myself on is my reliable memory. But for Frank to remind me that i've got a defunct website knockin' about was a bit of a shocker!.
(no apologies for photo, i've got a great ass)

Addendum: This morning i tried to update that site only to find that my FTP client wouldn't work. Some Googling found this. Seems Orange has stiffed it's old loyal Freeserve customers who now cannot access their websites without going through a laughable rollback to a dial-up connection, completely f*kin' hatstand mate!. My Ass now belongs to the ages!!.

D:ream On Digbeth

Still speculation about the final line up for Gigbeth but seriously, D:ream and the Sugarhill Gang!. I'm assuming these were the leftovers from this years scaled down Gay Pride.

McAlpine vs. The Mary Celeste

As Pete Ashton pointed out on his C.F blog the Billie Piper whoreding on the front of the Custard Factory is certainly eyecatching. But judging by the feedback from Joe Public (and the few weirdos that come in the shop) the general opinion is that the whole place is shut for repairs. This is certainly reflected in a downturn in trade and the general quietness of the Sat/Sun flea markets. Are there any proposed dates for completion and funky little miniature mockups?. (and that deathtrap lakeside boardwalk will need fixing soon!)

Johnny TwoJobs !?

After many years of Practice, Study, and Dedication as a Slacker my efforts have now come to nought. I now find myself with two jobs and a full time working week. DigbethSlacker blogspot will now have to be renamed DigbethYuppieScumbag. Applications for position of wife and 2.5 kids will be most welcome (tattooed wives get first cuts!).

Re: Cycle zine

I've bought many a Punk fanzine since the early Eighties but at the Punx Picnic (see below) i came across this...

Chainbreaker a rough guide to bicycle maintenance by Lynn Jackson and Ethan Clark

A delightfully quirky lifestyle zine/book (which are much more common in the States) covering everything from aligning derailleur gears to making belts from bike tyres to essays on life as a female bike mechanic.
From content to layout it has a real Punk DIY asthetic throughout with some funky illustrations and diagrams.The real bottom line though (and reason for this post) is that it's great to come across these labours of love but they are becoming increasingly rare due to the advent of Web 2.0 and internet publishing, i remember when Cut and Paste used to mean getting your fingers sticky!.