Graffiti

Spotted this today, on a postbox just off Berkeley Square and it made me laugh. Poor old Fat Pete.

Cabbage Patch Hucknall

Sitting here watching Later.... and Simply Red are on. He's not looking any better these days, in fact its pretty frightening. His face looks like its sliding off.

He looks a bit like a bitter aged cabbage patch kid. A discarded doll placed in cupboard for decades with only a bucket of cocaine to sustain it. Only to emerge like some bizarre moth to blight the world with Robert Palmer-esque turgid pop and get on everyones tits.

Mick Hucknall

Kate Nash has just done her turn, and for all the hype surrounding her, it was pretty dull actually, bit like an angry humourless female Mike Skinner. Some song about being pissed off and rowing with your other half at a party. And she looks like one of the girls from school who thought she was great but was just a nob. Back to myspace please.

The Cribs are on too, who I listened to being interviewed the other night on the radio, and looked exactly as I expected. I'm liking em though, the single Mens Needs is good, great hook and poppy. They kind of play a bit jerkily, but not like the hoards of angular bands we see so much of, kind of awkward almost., like they can't quite keep up. Wakefield's White Stripes? Perhaps just cause one of em resembles Jack White. Got my vote though.

Patti Smith is on, acting like some bonkers aunt who crops up at weddings. Interesting but a bit scary.

Quick flick to 4 and Transmission, can't watch this for too long or Laverne will force me to destroy the TV. Still, its the Happy Mondays, and it surprisingly it actually sounds quite good. Noisy and more akin to their first two albums. Surprisingly it would appear they are the best thing on the box this evening. The kids are struggling to dance to it, which must be a good sign.

Next on 4 Rufus Wainwright but I can't be bothered to write about that. Unless he's dead good.
PS - he was pretty good, as it goes.

Football Focus

Footy season is pretty much over now, FA Cup tomorrow heralds the official arrival of summer, at least in my eyes.

I'll miss footy focus which is often a hotbed of musical surprise and inspiration. Just a couple of weeks ago I was lazing about reading the paper and taking in the opinions of Gary et al, and not paying very much attention to a somewhat earnest Tony Adams mulling the state of the England team, and clearly trying to position himself as much more of a thinker than viewers might have previously considered (they'd put him in a nice park and shot him from high angles), when rolling over the top came the dulcet tones of Sarah Cracknell.

Its always good to hear a bit of unexpected wistful pop, especially when provided by Saint Etienne. I believe it was Just a Little Overcome from Sound of Water. Adams' thoughtful contemplation of the state of the national side, accompanied with the dreamy synths really worked, and cheered me up no end. A few years ago when Electronica was in its heyday, they obviously had some spod down there doing the music for Football Focus, and 'last weeks goals' would be flying into the net soundtracked by Plaid and all manner of quality Warp tunes. Worth the licence fee alone, and certainly beats ITV's cliched and irritating use of the likes of U2 for their coverage.

The only other TV moment that has surpassed this in recent times was very special indeed. Vegging on the sofa one Friday eve, pondering the curry options during Hollyoaks, when what comes floating from the televisual device but the maudlin tones of Boards of Canada. Amazing. Such beauty, juxtaposed with such dross. Quite a combination. I think it was used as a backing track for OB walking out after a particularly bad argument with Max. I keep watching but no more BOC yet.