Yes, we’ve seen similar stuff before, and in the hands of almost anyone else it’d be quite boring by now, but somehow Gareth Malone manages to keep our interest. A great deal of this has to be due to his infectious passion for singing and his refusal to give up in the face of the kids’ initial indifference. It really is lovely to watch, despite a certain predictability. I’ll be glued to the remaining two episodes and to whatever Mr. Malone comes up with next.

Jim Parsons, the Big Bang Theory’s Sheldon Cooper, plays a huge succession of different characters in this cancer charity video. Joyful, absolutely joyful.

If you haven’t yet come across Show of Hands, here’s a great place to start. I’ve liked this song for a while now, and every time I hear it I like it more. It’s a really good dig at the bankers and politicians who have got us into our current financial mess. Enjoy.

The service even preserves the file structure on your computer and allows you to connect multiple machines, so a whole family could share a collection with each other. I really am very impressed. It doesn’t quite do away with the need for an MP3 player, since the 3G/WiFi coverage required isn’t yet universal, but it comes very close indeed. Top marks.

Update: The Spotify client for Symbian phones is now available! Point your mobile’s browser at m.spotify.com to get it.

I’ve been showing this to friends for ages and thought it was about time I shared it with the rest of the world. Enjoy!

Last night we played for Camden Calling at the Cavendish Arms in Stockwell, and had a great time. Jenni’s brother Frank came along, and it was great to meet him. Also present were Matt, who videoed the entire proceedings, and his friend Guy and I was also very pleased to see Rob and Ellie. The nicest things were feeling more relaxed this time around, having more fun with the audience and seeing people singing along. There were one or two (or possibly more) moments where I fluffed the chords but, most importantly, we kept going and I managed to recover.

Unfortunately I was feeling very tired, not having slept terribly well for the previous two or three nights, so I had to make my excuses and leave early, something I’m normally reluctant to do as I feel it’s polite to see the other bands. Besides, there were some really good artists on the bill and it would have been lovely to hear them. I shall have to try to be more rested next time.

Last night was our first gig, courtesy of Camden Calling. I’d been extremely nervous but as it turned out I needn’t have been. There were one or two fluffs but essentially we did really well. It was Jenni’s birthday, too, so before we started there was a cake, bubbles in lieu of candles, and a rousing chorus of ‘Happy Birthday To You’. We played all six of the songs we’d decided to cover, the audience favourite being our slow, acoustic version of Britney Spears’ ‘Hit Me Baby One More Time’, which went over very well indeed. The best news of all is that we’ve been asked to play again, which was my criterion for judging the evening a success, so I’m very pleased. A huge thanks to Alexis and Camden Calling for having faith and putting us on unauditioned.

You can find the complete set of photos here.

OK, now I’ve got this site moved to a new host I can start blogging again properly. So last Tuesday my friend Jenni and I headed for the Underworld in Camden to see friends The Veil playing. Neither of us had seen them live before and I have to confess we were both suitably impressed. If Goth/Metal is your thing, give them a listen.

Once we were done there we headed over to Monto Water Rats to see The Quotes. Jenni had seen them before and had given me a copy of their album, which I really like. They were excellent live and a thoroughly good time was had, especially as we bumped into Ruth, who we’d met before at an SCA event.

An honourable mention also goes to Lux Lisbon, who were also on at Monto’s. Tight, poppy, good looking. Well worth seeing again.