Amor de Dias gig

Amor de Dias are playing a very special gig on Sunday May 26. It's their first full-band gig, featuring no less a rhythm section than The Clientele's James Hornsey and Howard Monk.

It's also their only UK gig. You need to see this.

Here's a song from Amor de Dias' album, The House At Sea. We've played a song from it every week this year at the club. The Mercury Music Prize awaits.


And here's The Clientele playing Bonfires on the Heath in a park:

Birdie

They were the Velvet Underground for the mod generation. They were big in Japan. They were popular pretty much everywhere outside of the UK. Which was odd, as after Britpop's bluster when people were trying anything - the new acoustic movement, anyone? - to find some sweet relief they'd have found salvation in Birdie.

Birdie's two albums, 1999's Some Dusty and 2001's Triple Echo, are masterpieces of Left Banke psych and Laura Nyro pop. It's no surprise they were so popular; when they played the Union Chapel for us last year, 500 people turned up.

That was Birdie's first full-band gig in over a decade. This is their second.

Robert Forster

"I'm honoured to be here today," Robert Forster told the audience at our third Grant McLennan tribute gig. We were honoured that Robert played two songs. He stayed for several hours afterwards, chatting to fans and old friends. It was a very special day.

Coming Down In May

It's already May! It's nearly time to start dusting off those old Razorcuts records about the summertime! It's an unusual May in that it is a month of only four Sundays, but notwithstanding that, the question we were musing on the other day was whether this is the single most exciting month of Hangover Lounges EVER? I mean, ever? That's, like, FIVE YEARS! 

Here's what we've got: 

SUNDAY THE FIFTH OF MAY: our Third Annual Tribute To Grant McLennan day, hats off to the memory of the great man himself.  You can read about the line-up here: http://hangoverlounge.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/the-third-annual-grant-mclennan-tribute.html The previous two Annual Tribute To Grant McLennan days have been brilliant and have also seen some unexpected special guests and we see no reason to think this will be any different. Also, as of the time I am posting this, it's TODAY!

SUNDAY THE TWELFTH OF MAY: we have three special guest DJs this afternoon: 

ONE: the delightful and enigmatic Celine, who can often be seen being delightful and slightly enigmatic at the Hangover Lounge

TWO: the similarly delightful Emily from the popular group Tender Trap, and also formerly of the popular group Betty and The Werewolves

THREE: the dissimilarly delightful Sean Price, self-appointed El Presidente, dispenser of uniquely gruff Pricean good vibes, and it'll be his birthday so feel free to buy him a drink. 

Or us. You can buy us a drink too, if you like. It'l be our birthday soon too. 

SUNDAY THE NINETEENTH OF MAY: THIS ENTRY DELETED PENDING CONFIRMATION OF VERY SPECIAL THE-WEEK-BEFORE-OUR-BIRTHDAY GUEST DJS who we'll let you know about as soon as we can.

SUNDAY THE TWENTY-SIXTH OF MAY: it's our fifth birthday party!! HOORAY! We have a proper actual amplified ticketed evening gig upstairs featuring three - THREE - of the best groups in the word at the moment. AND there will be special Hangover Lounge fifth birthday party beer! AND there will be special Hangover Lounge Five Years beermats. AND we have been writing an actual FANZINE to give to you, and Ben has been editing it and he's actually competent so it might be worth reading. And you will be able to watch us get DRUNKED. And it's a bank holiday the next day and everything is going to be great. 

I can't see any good reason for missing any of that. Can you?

Love Goes On! And on

What your favourite Grant McLennan song?
"I really like 'Love Goes On'. There's nine chords in a row, which he doesn't repeat. It's so him. A lot of his best songs are on '16 Lovers Lane'. And 'Cattle & Cane' is a really good song. It was like 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' or something — a quantum leap, a break-through song."
Robert Forster

This Sunday, at least two of our guests for our third annual Grant McLennan tribute gig will be covering Love Goes On!

As a taster, here's The Go-Betweens playing it at an acoustic gig at Tower Records on 25 August 1994.


And here again they're playing it at McCabe's guitar shop on 11 November 1988

Returning heroes and a debut

You should've seen our returning heroes and deubtant last Sunday. Robert Rotifer got a band this time (including Ralegh Long, who made a fine solo debut, and the TVPs' Mike Stone on bass) and it was fantastic. Owl & Mouse were, predictably, rather special.

What's that? You did see them? Well, you didn't see these performances, because we filmed these behind closed doors. For you, now, see these for the first time:

Coming Down In April

I know, I know, it's cold. Every last stupid joke it's possible to make about unseasonal weather has been made. What's that fiery ball in the sky? HAHAHA. I am writing this with cold fingers and cold toes in the full expectation that by the end of this stupid month we will be wearing t-shirts and flip flops and looking forward to a glorious summer of sunny and nice, but not such sunny and nice that it seems like a better idea to go to the park than come to the Hangover Lounge. Is that too much to ask?

It's April and we have got an EXCELLENT month lined up for YOU. Here's how it's looking: 

SUNDAY APRIL THE SEVENTH: we are delighted to welcome our good friend Amos, formerly of the band Fanfarlo, amongst other good things, as guest DJ. He's got amazing taste and an amazing record collection, but we have no idea what he'll play. Just the way we like it. 

SUNDAY APRIL THE FOURTEENTH: we've already told you about that, down there. We have a live and acoustic and free show upstairs featuring our friends Rotifer, Owl & Mouse and Ralegh Long. You know its going to be a good one.

SUNDAY APRIL THE TWENTY-FIRST. This one, too, will be a bit special! For starters there's regular guest DJ Mike Harrison from "You Set The Scene", a York thing which we like to think of as a sister club. But additionally we have something special upstairs, courtesy of In The Dark Radio, who are also kindred spirits, we reckon. Here's what they have to say: 

"On Sunday 21st April In The Dark brings their pop-up cinema of sound to the Hangover Lounge. 

Described by The Londonist as "the next big thing in nights out", In The Dark bring together the best creative radio, podcasts and sound art from around the world and tailors them into specially curated programmes for live audiences. It's a bit like a film club ... but without the pictures. 

What better way to spend a lazy Sunday - you can even close your eyes if you want to!

In The Dark is a collaborative project between radio producers, podcasters and sound artists. They aim to create a mini-revolution in the way we think about the art of spoken-word radio by lifting it out of its traditional settings and curating it in new and unusual ways. You can find out more about them at www.inthedarkradio.org"

We've never hosted anything like this before and we're rather excited. Some of the In The Dark folks will be doing the guest DJ thing also. We think they are GREAT.

SUNDAY APRIL THE TWENTY EIGHTH: It'll be a lovely day for sure, and we are THIS CLOSE to having a guest DJ lined up, but not quite. We'll let you know once we do. Oh, there'll be a jumble sale upstairs that day, so bring your shopping bags. 

While you're here. don't forget to put our two big May events in your effing filofax, or whatever it is you youngsters use these days: our third Annual Grant Mclennan tribute day, with a hefty handful of heroes playing live, plus OUR FIFTH BIRTHDAY PARTY on the 26th, with a proper show and a load of giveaways and stuff. It's all on the blog, you know. This blog.