Rubble n Shit #4 (part one)

Issue #4 of Rubble n Shit was cut n pasted in the summer of 2001, which was a hot and sunny one if I remember correctly. This issue is probably my favourite as it features my first ever band interview, with King Adora, which was at the time the most terrifying and exciting thing that had ever happened to me. I was obsessed with that band and still have my signed album, singles and t-shirt from the signings covered in this issue. It also includes an awesome in-store performance and signing at Virgin Megastore on Oxford Street - later HMV and now closed down, I think - as featured in this video. I might even be in it somewhere, with terrible hair and too much eyeliner on.

I've had to remove a few pages though, cos some stuff was just a little too personal and embarrassing to share. There's also funny photo of chubby-faced teenage me in part two, so do come back for the second half if you want a good laugh.  

The King Adora signing was held at Left Legged Pineapple in Loughborough, a new and second hand record shop, which sadly closed a few years back. This was the first time I visited Left Legged, but a couple of years later I would pop in every Friday after college en route to the pub. I always scoured the second hand section first to try and save money, and it was rare I left empty handed.

I think York was the furthest we ever travelled for a gig, but we probably would have gone anywhere to see the Pachinos. It was a bloody long way. I made mixtapes to keep us entertained, which I still have stashed away in my shoe box of old cassettes. I rarely throw anything away.

Ooh, here it is, the big interview with Maxi from King Adora. And I got a kiss on the cheek, that was all 18-year-old me really wanted from life...

'So we went in, sat down and announced we were 'absolutely shitting ourselves''

I think honesty is always the best policy.

We were so baby faced we always got away with 

buying child train tickets whenever we went to gigs.

 This was the first time we met Crackout. 

We went to the dressing room to meet 

Steven and Jack after the gig. They were being filmed 

for the video for 'You Dumb Fuck' at the time. 

I think some of the live shots in the video are from that gig.

Wish I could remember more about this gig, sounds like it was awesome. 

Didn't have the guts to interview Therapy? at 18, but I did many years later.

Also met Andy Cairns in a pub in late 2001.

I was so terrified and awe-struck I think I only managed a 'hello'.

King Adora signing at Virgin Megastore.

Rubble n Shit #3 (part two)

Here's part two of Rubble n Shit #3, written and slapped together in early 2001. If you missed part one you can read it here.

Jag and Mem from Outmeasured went on to be in Ghost of a Thousand.

So long Charlotte, I'll miss you

Going to a gig in the ruins of The Charlotte, in Leicester, was definitely one of the bizarre moments of my 2013. Having seen on Twitter that it was hosting a one-off final show before it's refurbished into a pub, I couldn't resist the chance to go to one last gig there.

I started going to The Charlotte when I was 16. Over the years I've seen some incredible gigs there and interviewed some great bands. The two main things I loved about the place were how close you could get to the bands during a gig and how easy it was to meet them.

I saw Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros play a secret warm-up show in 2000. Joe shouted out the window to us as we were queuing, telling us to stick around as it was going to be a great show. He spent most of the gig stood on a crate - in his socks - so those at the back could see, as they hurtled through a set list made up mainly of Clash songs. I was 17 at the time and it remains one of my favourite ever gigs.

The Alkaline Trio and Crackout gig I went to in 2001 was wild and probably oversold. I'd never seen so many people squeezed into The Charlotte before. It was December and freezing outside, but inside the walls were dripping with sweat before any of the bands had been on, as there were so many bodies packed in. I remember Alkaline Trio dedicating 'Stupid Kid' to a lad whose birthday it was, changing the lyrics to 'Birthday Kid' as he crowd surfed his way from the sound booth to the stage. I also had a beer with Steven from Crackout, as was customary at their gigs.

Against all the odds - 2001 was the year of the Nokia 3210, so we didn't have camera phones, never mind the ability to film - I've just found this video from the gig. It probably features the back of my head at some point.

King Adora, Send More Paramedics and Gallows, A Wilhelm Scream are just a few of the Charlotte shows I can remember... I could go on, but that would involve trawling through my ticket stubs and racking my tired old brain to try and remember all the gigs I paid on the door for, and we really haven't the time for that.

En route I wondered to myself whether they still had the UV light and the scaffolding pole that served as a barrier, how many doors there would be on the toilet cubicles (never a full set) and if my graffiti was still there... The answer to all of these questions is no. Mainly because most of the building has gone and the bands were playing in the ruins of the venue.

Everything looking normal

Walking in, the bar area looked like it was already under going a refurb, with just a couple of lamps hanging from the ceiling to provide the lighting. Through a makeshift doorway was the old floor and stage area, and stepping through, I thought it felt a little chilly. I also thought how odd it was that people were smoking inside. And then I noticed the hole in the roof. And then it dawned on me that it wasn't a hole at all. There was no roof and there were no longer any toilets - they'd been knocked down. That's right, I'd wandered into an outdoor gig in December - DECEMBER! - with just a small marquee to protect us from the elements.

The Paradimes play the outdoor stage at The Charlotte

The bar

But despite losing the feeling in my feet and legs, as I shivered my way through three and a half hours of live music, it was great fun remembering all those nights I'd spent in there jumping around and covered in sweat that wasn't entirely my own.

It was also amusing watching everyone else thinking the same and pointing at where things used to be. The best was seeing people wander up to where the toilets used to be, point at the empty space, look up at the sky and let out a string of expletives. It's easy to see why...

No doors, no cubicles, no toilets

Goodbye Charlotte, I'll miss you

Thankfully, The Charlotte will be reborn as a pub next year and will nod towards its musical past with old gig posters on its walls. I can't help feeling a little sad that it'll never host a proper gig again, but I'm sure I'll pop in at some point. If only to let out a string of expletives while pointing out where things used to be.