Hobos hit Brixton 21st June (with the help of JA ECOSSE)....
Category: Parties and Nightlife

We're doin a gig in Brixton next Saturday (21st June) at the Hootananny presented by Ja Ecosse (http://www.myspace.com/jaecosse), with chooons selecta DJ Hectorrr on til late ...  Hootananny can be found at 95 Effra Road (a venue time out called "one of the best nights out South of the River"),we'll be playin a couple of sets and have some free CDs... myspace friends introduce yrselves and we'll make sure you get one. Got a feelin' this is gonna be reallyyy good so hope to see y'all there.......Hobo Chang

Currently listening : Super Ape By The Upsetters Release date: 2006-09-26

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singers that sound amercian then you find out theyre not
Current mood: confused
Category: Music

hallo

okay mostly i make a point of keeping my mouth shut about other artists, cause sometimes it can look like sour grapes, even when its not.. but, theres always a but, everyone is intitled to their opinion, yes! and me being extremely opinionated, at times, as well as being totally receptive, to challenging interesting debates about anything.   but music does it for me and i just cant keep my mouth shut on this occasion..

why oh why do singers im sorry i dont think i can call them artists, and it seems to be a worrying amount of women especially ones that are getting lots of radio play at the moment, sing with a usa accent and if they dont sing with that they sing in a dick van dyke kind of way..dunno call me old fashioned but it really does my head in...its my own fault i shouldnt of listened to the radio today, wont say what station.. but i heard four different songs by four different singers, and i nearly smashed the radio to bits... i mean dusty springfield never did it, shirley bassey never bloody did it, maggie bell never did it, marrianne faithfull never did it sade never flipping did it amy winehouse doesnt do it, bet she would agree with me..mick jagger does it though,i could go on for ages about that too..but i wont. im not saying they shouldnt be allowed to do it, freedom of singing and all that, im just saying i dont understand why they would want to i mean thats like kinda not being who your voice is...isnt it?

apologies for ranting but there must be someone out there who agrees, and if you dont then well, its only my opinion..

hope youre having a good week,,spring is on its way with a daffodil between its teeth  just for you..

Currently listening : The Essential Odetta By Odetta Release date: 25 October, 1990

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review of our tunes by Electric Roulette...
Current mood: busy

...have done a nice review of us at
electricroulette.com

Currently listening : Friday on My Mind By Easybeats Release date: 10 September, 2002

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live poetry fest with john cooper clarke,martin newell,luke wright,ross sutherland
Category: Writing and Poetry

went to see john cooper clarke, martin newell, luke wright, ross sutherland at the art centre last night....

now we all know poetry is an acquired taste and theres a fine line between being shit,pretty good and truely great, theres  really no in between,and as with everything in this artistic narcistic competative  world in which we live only the strong survive.... you,ve either got it or you haven;t, you and i both know that, i just happen to be typing... and it is...only my humble opinion 

 all of these guys are fab performers

luke wright and ross sutherland are excellent poets in their own right but they are also part of a collective called ailse 16, anyway they were great, lukes poem camping dad is a must and funeral poem to. check him out on my space.com/luke wright 

ross sutherland was for me a little shining light, really liked him...pacman poem is great, think thats what its called, this was a stand out for me,,,he looks pretty hot in a camel suit too...

martin newell was on top form and the poem house in france is still a fucking blinder...he does his poetry thing exceptionally  well and the wit of the man brings tears to my eyes on occassion,i have total respect for his medium  but for me i really prefer him doing his music thing, so really enjoyed him playing a few tunes on guitar and piano, not at the same time, well maybe in the privicy of his own home..... google martin newell for poetry and music, i know he,d like that....

john cooper clarke, was excellent as always call me biased but i am never disappointed and each time he delivers a little something special. he never misses a beat,his timing is impeccable, and he,s the only man i know apart from elvis, that looks cool with a guitar across his back . beasley street rocked as always,  was good to hear hanging gardens of basildon to.  he,s doing thought for the day for radio soon  so look out for that, reckon it to be mighty entertaining.  the guy is so fucking cool right down to his cuban heeled boots... like i said before if you have,nt heard of john cooper clarke then  check outwww.johncooperclarke.com for poems etc and 2008 dates. and if you have well, i dont need to tell you do i..

Currently listening : Snap, Crackle & Bop By John Cooper-Clarke Release date: 27 June, 2005

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LINTON KWESI JOHNSON ROCKS
Current mood: ecstatic
Category: Writing and Poetry

went to see l k johnson at the art centre in colchester last night........

was absolutely outstanding, he was reading a selection of his poems that have been published by penguin,,...just him no band, just the great man himself in the flesh, a very powerful and moving performance, i had the opportunity for a little chat,(very little) as a mutual friend of ours, john cooper clarke called me up to say he could,nt make it, and that if i got a chance to speak to Linton could i give him his regards.  yeah john i said i,m sure he,s gonna have time to have a chat and kick back with me!! obviously in my fantasy world we would do exactly that.

 well little did i know eh... like i said, i got to speak to him, passed on johns best wishes and managed  to slip a very rough dub demo of some of our songs into his hands,after getting him to sign his poetry book of course.

 on reflection hope i was;nt too forceful. on reflection i think i probably was, he was the perfect gentleman and took it (the cd)... dont think i,ll get the opportunity again, it had to be done.

 one of the songs is an arrangement of a john cooper clarke poem heart disease called love, he very kindly let us use his lyrics, and we went to work on it, the result has the john cooper clarke seal of approval and  we will put it up soon so look out for that...

 anyway, signing off now but if anyone hasn,t heard of LKJ or JCC then you should so check it out...

fiona

HOBO CHANG

Currently listening : Bass Culture By Linton Kwesi Johnson Release date: 01 April, 1991

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how to make an album the hobo way..part 1
Current mood: lazy

firstly i have to stress, i am extremely lazy with regard to maintaining our blog, i set out with the best intention, but then get lost in checking out cool pages and traxs when im on here and it kinda pales into insiqnificance.. so im trying to change that with HOW TO MAKE AN ALBUM THE HOBO WAY PART1........

here goes.part 1.

Take five years to think about it.

watch this space

Currently listening : Live in 1960 By Sister Rosetta Tharpe Release date: 12 August, 1994

6:38 AM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

viva la france
Current mood: thoughtful
Category: Life

jazz 

wine

dub

more wine

dub,jazz

croque madame

more dub

wine

jazz

you

Currently listening : Jacques Brel By Jacques Brel Release date: 30 June, 1998

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phil collins is wrong
Current mood: contemplative

listen to more beefheart its good for your head

see our site for recommendations kats

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COLCHESTER ART CENTRE GIG
Current mood: chipper

GIG BLOG

COLCHESTER ART CENTRE  9.2.06

FUZZFACE/HOBO CHANG/KERRY LEATHAM

ANOTHER GREAT NIGHT FOR LIVE MUSIC IN COLCHESTER, HAD THE OPPORTUNITY OF PLAYING WITH THE ABOVE LOCAL ARTISTS, KERRY LEATHAM STARTED THE EVENING OFF WITH A GREAT SET OF WELL WRITTEN TUNES AND SOME FANTASTIC GUITAR PLAYING, INCIDENTALLY LAST TIME WE PLAYED WITH KERRY (PARDON THE PUN) WAS IN THE SUMMER LAST YEAR AT VAGABONDS,WHICH SADLY IS NO MORE A VENUE FOR LIVE MUSIC, ANOTHER ONE HITS THE SHITTER........YOU CAN CHECK KERRYS TRACKS OUT AND READ ALL ABOUT HER  ON MYSPACE.COM.JUST SEARCH HER NAME, ITS A COOL SITE........

UP NEXT US HOBO,S, ITS ALWAYS GREAT PLAYING THE ART CENTRE CAUSE MORE OFTEN THAN NOT YOU GET CHRIS SECKER DOING THE SOUND AND THATS A GOOD GOOD THING, IT MAKES A CHANGE TO ACTUALLY HEAR STUFF COMING THROUGH MONITORS........GREAT VIBE, PACKED UP FOR IT CROWD, HAD A CHANCE TO PLAY A FEW NEW TUNES AND THE 45MINS WAS OVER AS ALWAYS TOO QUICKLY, FUNNY THAT YOU SPEND AGES IN REHEARSALS WITH IT SEEMS LIKE ENDLESS TIME LEFT, THEN THE MINUTE YOU GET ON STAGE AN HR FEELS LIKE FIVE, BLOODY WEIRD..ANY THEORIES???

FUZZFACE  ARE PROMOTING A NEW SINGLE AT THE MOMENT AND THE CROWD GOT A CHANCE TO WATCH THE DVD VERSION OF THE SINGLE, WHICH YOU CAN PURCHASE FROM THIER WEBSITE WWW.FUZZFACE.CO.UK THEY DID A GREAT SET  AND AS ALWAYS PLY THIER TRADE LIKE THE TRUE PROFESSIONALS THEY ARE.

ALL THIS ON A SCHOOL NIGHT EH..........

THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE THAT BOUGHT CDS AND TEE SHIRTS WE REALLY DO APPRECIATE IT, ..........

Currently reading : Billie Holiday - Lady Sings The Blues By Billie Holiday Release date: 01 March, 1985

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LE CLUB CRUMPET
Category: Music

Club Crumpet, Wivenhoe Football Club, 4 November 2005

Its always a pleasure to play Club Crumpet. Wivenhoe Football Club is a brilliant venue for live bands, the acoustics are great, the bar's cheap and with an entrance fee that doesn't hurt the wallet.

The evenings events kicked off with DJ Nem (who plays a mixture of dub reggae soul funk). DJ Nem's a fantastic DJ, and you can often catch her doing a residency somewhere in Colchester. Next up were Jellybag fronted by Keith Godman. A great live band, their sound a crossbreed of blues, rock with more than a nod to Frank Zappa, Jellybag played an excellent set and are really worth catching if you see them playing anywhere.

Then came the Hobo set, which included a few new tunes and also featured Mary of Dog Friendly on flute, sax and backing vocals. Its always scary and exciting doing new tunes, never knowing quite how they will be received. As all those people in bands will agree, rehearsal rooms are one thing live performance another. Rehearsal rooms now that's a whole blog just to itself!

One of our new tracks (A Heart Disease Called Love) is a poem by legendary punk poet John Cooper Clarke. We approached him with the idea of writing around the lyrics, he was cool with it and loved the idea, lets hope he still loves it when he hears it. We tried out a cover of a James Brown tune, 'Talkin Loud, Saying Nothing'. As with all James Brown tracks, great bass and drum lines which kept Sean and Dave smiling in a worrying sort of way. We also played an early Marley classic 'reaction', featuring backing vocals from Mary. It was all over too quickly as usual, and everyone went home happy sweaty and exhausted ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Currently listening : Sketches of Spain By Miles Davis Release date: 23 September, 1997

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