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Serendipity

Fortune wears a mask
To the masquerade ball
Its outline and figure
Is all that you have to go on
But still you ask
For her hand to dance.
The music is unfamiliar
And the other couples
Pirouette around you both
Effortlessly and elegantly,
Heads held high,
Their suits and dresses
Smarter than yours;
Cleaner and newer.
When the music stops
And the ladies and gentlemen
Remove their masks
Each is pleasantly surprised
But underneath yours is another
And her's, the same;
Serendipity is the host
Of tonight's mystery ball.

Things to do in Brighton & Hove - Friday 28th March - Thursday 3rd April

http://www.thebestof.co.uk/local/brighton-and-hove/community-hub/blog/view/things-to-do-in-brighton--hove---friday-28th-march---thursday-3rd-april

Things to do in Brighton & Hove - Friday 28th March - Thursday 3rd April

• 25th March 2014
• Author: Tom Sayer
• 0 Comments

Friday 28th March

The Beautiful Word, Momotaro and Lunar Maria: Folk pop meets electronica meets French trip-hop. Something for all your musical desires.  6pm, £FREE before 9pm, Blind Tiger Club – 52-54 Grand Parade, BN2 9QA

Half Crown: Recently winning the Best Unsigned Band of 2013 Award from S&M, this local band are far from your typical 5-piece indie outfit, combining influences from blues and folk to rap and rock. Support from The Local Herd and Rainslicker. 8pm, £5, Prince Albert - 48 Trafalgar Street, BN1 4ED

PSSA Presents RENT: A Broadway musical/ rock opera set in New York, the story is based around a group of struggling friends trying to cope with modern day life. Fri- Sun 7:30pm and Sat-Sun 4pm, £9, Wagner Hall – Regency Road, BN1 2RT

Saturday 29th March

VegfestUK: Britain’s premiere vegetarian and vegan festival returns in its 6th year with talks, workshops and lots of other meat-free activities. Sat and Sun 11am-6pm, £2, Hove Town Hall – Norton Road, BN3 4AH

The Chocolate Festival: If vegan food isn’t your thing, who doesn’t love a bit of chocolate? This weekend’s event will be a delight for your taste buds, so why not treat yourself and try something new? Sat and Sun 10am-6pm, £5, Corn Exchange – Church Street, BN1 1UE

Funny Women: A monthly night of the best female stand-up. This month’s main acts are the American comedians Abigoliah Schamaun and Lynn Ruth Miller with a host of great supports. 7:30pm, £10/8, Komedia - 44-47 Gardner Street, BN1 1UN

Sunday 30th March

La Luz: All female American surf/doo-wop quartet from Seattle cross the pond for their exciting European Tour. Sure to be a busy one so get down early. 7pm, £7, Green Door Store – Unit 2,3&4 Trafalgar Arches, BN1 4FQ

Ugly Duckling + support: Alternative hip-hop trio from California, Ugly Duckling have a fresh vibe with a very listenable sound that’s somewhere between early Will Smith and Jurassic 5. 7:30pm, £10, Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar -9-12 Middle Street, BN1 1AL

RM Hubbert: Scottish Album of the Year winner, RM Hubbert combines intimate folk with music technology for a serene stripped back sound. Support from Myyths and Grasshopper. 7:30pm, £9, Komedia – 44-47 Gardner Street, BN1 1UN

Monday 31st March

Tinie Tempah: The hit single ‘Pass Out’ was one of the defining anthems of 2009. Five years later and Tinie Tempah still going strong! Catch him in Brighton on the UK of his new album, Demonstration. 7pm, £25, Brighton Centre – Kings Road, BN1 2GR

Flash Mob Jazz: A weekly night where the house band plays a selection of swing and old-time classics that are sure to get you dancing, or at least tapping your toes to the beat. 9pm, £FREE, The Mesmerist – 1-3 Prince Albert Street, BN1 1HE

Tuesday 1st April

Eternal Love: Combining contemporary language, stunning costumes and terrific live music, Shakespeare’s Globe’s production of The Story of Abelard & Helouise is one not to miss! Tue-Sat 7:45pm, Thur & Sat 2:30pm, £11.90 – £32.40, Theatre Royal – New Road, BN1 1SD

Flooding Rivers: Electrified folk and country music, with noisy bluegrass-influenced electric guitar, whisky-soaked hollering, freight-train drums and doghouse bass.  Support from Delta Bell and Lewis McKale. 8pm, £4/3,TheHope – 11 Queens Road, BN1 3WA

Wednesday 2nd April

Andrew O’Neill: Heavy Metal - A History: A comedic and musical journey through the ins and outs of Heavy Metal. For fans of metal and non-moshers alike. 8pm, £10/8, Komedia – 44-47 Gardner Street, BN1 1UN

Druids Head Open Mic: Brighton’s longest running open mic, always with some great new and undiscovered talents to entertain you until last orders. 8:30pm, £FREE, Druids Head – 9 Brighton Place, BN1 1HJ

 

Thursday 3rd April

Eddie & the Hotrods/The Members: A huge double-bill line up with longstanding touring veterans Eddie and the Hotrods, who are sure to wow you with their Rock’n’Roll tunes in this intimate setting. 7:30pm, £15,Concorde II – Madeira Drive, BN2 1EN

River Jumpers: Brighton-based melodic punk rock band, fresh off recording their new single, with a trio of local pop-punk supports: Midday Committee, The Call Back Academy and Six Time Champion. 7:30pm, £4, The Hope – 11 Queens Road, BN1 3WA 

The Feeling Review @ Concorde II

Walking along Madeira Drive is often a nostalgic experience, in particular when you are going to see a band that was just getting started when you were going through your adolescence.

The support, The Gentlemen, was a sort of cross between The Hoosiers and The Script, placed in a blender to remove any lumps of originality, but occasionally holding the audience’s attention with smooth patter in between the rather slushy songs.

The Feeling walked on stage for the last date of their UK Tour into the darkness with clouds of white smoke. Theatrics aside, Dan Gillespie’s festival vocals pierced through Concorde II all the way back to the bar. The band was unafraid to play old favourites early on, with the big singles from 12 Stops and Home all featuring in the first half of their set.

Interluding the performance, an acoustic rendition of Rose for piano and vocals was tender yet powerful; a track that Dan admitted was his favourite from the debut record.

The new material had a more rocky edge to it without losing the melodic strength of the first two albums and it would suggest that there is still plenty of life left in them yet!

Printed Publication in Brighton and Hove Independent

Here is my first (credited) contribution to the Brighton and Hove Independent, the first of my new weekly page, on Page 21.

http://issuu.com/brighton-and-hove-independent/docs/133-march-21-2014

The Take Off and Landing of Everything Review

Longstanding Mancunian outfit Elbow go from strength to strength, following on from their performance at the Olympic Closing Ceremony and their noteworthy B-sides collection Dead in the Boot, with their colossal new record, The Take Off and Landing of Everything. The sheer emotional weight of the songs would be enough to sink the battleships of the toughest of souls with a heart of profoundly personal poetry and marvellous musical melancholy, which has rarely skipped a beat since their debut album Asleep in the Back in 2001. From its heart-breaking lengthy opening track 'This Blue World' the album is a slow and gentle journey, ending perfectly with the wonderful 'The Blanket of the Night'. The album is devastatingly beautiful and deserves all the recognition and support that it is sure to receive. 5*****

The Great Escape Competition

http://www.welovebrighton.com/competitions-offers/win-pair-tickets-great-escape/

WIN A PAIR OF TICKETS TO THE GREAT ESCAPE

Published On March 19, 2014 | By Tom Sayer | Competitions & Offers

Win a Pair of Tickets To The Great Escape 8th-10th May 2014

Brighton’s most intense music festival, The Great Escape, returns in its ninth year with a line-up as strong as ever, featuring over 400 up and coming bands playing in the city across 35 venues over three days.

Founded in 2006, The Great Escape has always had a real mix of all genres, and TGE 2014 is no exception! Withsomething for all musical palettes, The Great Escape is definitely something to stick in your diary!

Amongst the artists announced this year are JON HOPKINS, CHLÖE HOWL, GEORGE EZRA, JIMI GOODWIN, CHARLI XCX, ALBERT HAMMOND, JR, ROYAL BLOOD, JOEL COMPASS, FRANK HAMILTON, HOZIER, AUGUSTINES, DRY THE RIVER, MNEK, EAST INDIA YOUTH and KIESZA

We are pleased to announce that we have A PAIR OF WRISTBANDS to give away to a lucky winner, which grants the wearers entry into all of the core events over the three days (excluding the Dome shows), subject to venue capacity.

Over the past few years, The Great Escape has been widely recognised as “The best place in Europe to discover new bands” (The Times) and this year is sure to not disappoint!

For a chance to win the pair of 3-day wristbands simply answer our question below:

In which year was the first The Great Escape Festival?

a) 1986

b) 1996

c) 2006

Your Answer (required)

Your Name (required)

Your Email (required)

 I have read and accept the Terms and Conditions of this prize draw competition

Terms & Conditions: 1. By entering this competition you agree to join our mailing list. Once you have received an email from us you have the option to un-subscribe if you wish to. 2. One entry per person. 3. The competition closes at 5.30pm on 16/04/2014. 4. The winner will be randomly selected from all correct entries received after the closing date. 5. Only the winner will be notified. 6. Open to UK and Eire residents only.

Things to do in Brighton & Hove - Friday 21st March - Thursday 27th March

Check out my latest blog for thebestof.co.uk with my picks for the upcoming week. If you'd like a physical copy it will be in the Brighton and Hove Independent on Friday. http://bit.ly/1eixceh - Featuring: Normanton Street Jacob March March of the Mermaids Dan Croll (Music) Luke ConcannonThe Black Fields *EP Launch* @ The Bermuda Triangle, BrightonHobbie Stuart Alasdair Roberts Cloud Boat

Things to do in Brighton & Hove - Friday 21st March - Thursday 27th March

• 19th March 2014
• Author: Tom Sayer
• 0 Comments

Friday 21st

The Black Fields w/Normanton Street:Brighton-based Americana outfit launch their newRough Road EP, with support from local hip-hop soul group Normanton Street. 7pm, £5, Bermuda – 193 Kings Road, BN1 1NB

We Will Be Free! The Tolpuddle Martyrs Story: Fresh off its run at Edinburgh Fringe, this show set in 1834 tells an extraordinary true story accompanied by folk singer/squeezebox player John Kirkpatrick. 7:30pm, £12/10,The Marlborough – 4 Princes Street, BN2 1RD

Speaky Spokey: A literary cabaret entertainment of short stories, music, performance poetry and film. 8pm, £7/5, Latest Music Bar - 14-17 Manchester Street, BN2 1TF

Saturday 22nd

Alasdair Roberts: Glaswegian singer-songwriter and folk pioneer comes to Brighton to share his beautiful finger-style guitar songs. 8pm, £10, The Hope – 11 Queens Road, BN1 3WA

Hobbie Stuart: Brighton pop singer-songwriter who built a reputation for acoustic covers presents his new single ‘Still Here’, with support from The Watermelons and Staniford. 7pm, £10, Concorde II – Madeira Drive BN2 1EN

Christian O’Connell: The ten-time Sony Award-Winning DJ (Absolute Radio Breakfast Show) performs his debut stand-up show. 8pm, £15, Komedia -44-47 Gardner Street, BN1 1UN

 

Sunday 23rd

Mermaids of March – Photo Shoot!: A photoshoot on Brighton seafront. A chance to see some of Brighton’s mermaids out in the sunshine (hopefully). 1pm, FREE, Brighton Beach

 

Brighton Under Cover: A tribute to the music Lou Reed and Velvet Underground by a host of Brighton’s artists. 6pm, FREE with Facebook event signup,Prince Albert -48 Trafalgar Street, BN1 4ED

Salsa Celtica: AScottish musical group famed for playing a form of music that is a fusion of salsa music with traditional Scottish instruments, including elements of folk and jazz. 7pm, £15, The Old Market – 11a Upper Market Street, BN3 1AS

Monday 24th 

The Feeling: Several years after ‘Fill My Little World’ and ‘Sewn’, The Feeling finish off their latest album tour in Brighton. 7:30pm, £18.50, Concorde II – Madeira Drive BN2 1EN

The Dishwashers: David Essex returns to the stage after his hugely successful portrayal of Eddie Moon in BBC’s EastEnders. Mon-Sat 7:45pm, Thur & Sat 2:30pm, £11.90 – £35.40, Theatre Royal – New Road, BN1 1SD

Tuesday 25th

Jacob March + Support: Local folk talent Jacob will be playing a variety of tracks from his recent album Losing the Faith. 8pm, FREE, The Hope – 11 Queens Road, BN1 3WA

Luke Concannon + Jimmy Davis: Former Nizlopi frontman is back from his hitchhiking mission in Palestine with a new album and some great stories to tell. 8:30pm, £8/6, Latest Music Bar - 14-17 Manchester Street, BN2 1TF

Wednesday 26th

Cloud Boat: A soulful duo combining electronic influences with a folk lament. 8pm, £6, The Hope – 11 Queens Road, BN1 3WA

Polar Bear: Mercury nominatedexperimental jazz group led by Sebastian Rochford showcase their new album, In Each and Every One. 8:30pm, £17/15,Komedia – 44-47 Gardner Street, BN1 1UN

Thursday 27th

Comic Boom: A monthly night showcasing the best brand new top-notch comedy from the circuit. Komedia – 44-47 Gardner Street, BN1 1UN

Dan Croll: Former LIPA graduate and national Songwriter of The Year Winner showcases his new album, Sweet Disarray. 7pm, £8, The Haunt – 10 Pool Valley, BN1 1NJ

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England Expects - Sara Sheridan

Check out my review for the forthcoming novel by Sara Sheridan, England Expects, the follow on from London Calling.

http://www.welovebrighton.com/reviews/theatre-arts-reviews/taengland-expects/

Enjoy!

Interview with The Jezabels

Check out my interview with the Jezabels here:

http://www.welovebrighton.com/features/music-nightlife-features/chat-jezabels/

If you are in a band from or playing in Brighton and would like to do an interview, please get in touch at tom@tomsayer.co.uk

Tom

High Masts

Have been in bed all day, feeling pretty under the weather when I picked up my notepad and wrote a poem. I then got my guitar to figure out some chords and set it to music. Here is the result...


https://soundcloud.com/tomsayeruk/high-masts

High Masts.

Sharing our breaths with the trees
I took out the map but you tore it to pieces
You said we must make our own path
Surrender ourselves to the lay of the land

And in years we will find
That our lives had untwined
And we're reduced to a few lines a year
But the shadows we cast
In the moon, our high masts
Are sailless, unmoved by the breeze

The tickling rain trickled down
Old street signs weathered like sand
We waited outside, like a groom and his bride
With processions of people around

And in years we will find
That our lives had untwined
And we're reduced to a few lines a year
But the shadows we cast
In the moon, our high masts
Are sailless, unmoved by the breeze

But the shadows we cast
In the moon, our high masts
Are sailless, unmoved by the breeze

One Day Like This

So the new Elbow album, The Take Off and Landing Of Everything, is out today and I cannot recommend it enough. Here is a cover of One Day Like This from their Seldom Seen Kid album, which I recorded during a Lecturers and Postgrads recital in my MA year, accompanied by string quartet and drums.

Enjoy!

IMDb Listing

I found out last week that a short film that I worked on with Reece Lynch, now the founder and director of RLHorizons is to be submitted for a number of Film Festivals. Consequently, this means that the film is now on IMDb and I have a profile on it too, as the composer! This is something that i have always hoped to achieve and I am absolutely thrilled. You can check out my profile here or just search Tom Sayer in the search bar, as I have done countless times to make sure that it is real.

Check out the great work of my friend Reece and his company RLHorizons!

www.rlhorizons.com

https://www.facebook.com/RlHorizons

https://twitter.com/RLHorizons

Weekly Update @ WeLoveBrighton

Today was a very busy day. I started off by writing a preview for experimental jazz group Polar Bear, then wrote a review of my new Album of the Week,  Losing The Faith by local singer-songwriter Jacob Marchington before interviewing Sam Lockwood from The Jezabels, ahead of attending their gig at Concorde II tonight. All in the line of duty for my work at WeLoveBrighton.com.