CAMDEN CRAWL 2011 - LAST MINUTE TIPS

IT RAINED for the first time in the history of the Camden Crawl last year. When I say rained, more like giants stood atop Primrose Hill hosing down Camden High Street until all the little indie ants were washed down the drain.


So let’s hope this year, the giants take a break from watering their gardens just long enough to let us music-loving ants swarm over Camden and Kentish Town’s finest venues for the Camden Crawl’s 10th anniversary.



Odd Future, Miles Kane, Killing Joke, British Sea Power, St Etienne, Graham Coxon, Frankie and the Heartstrings, Villagers, Giggs – the list of unmissable acts is endless but to be sure to catch your top choices requires military precision.

Army-style discipline alone is tough but throw in sun, good times, queues, clinging onto friends in a sea of people, navigating dark venues, and mountains of alcohol and the best laid plans are bound to dissolve into a haze of good intentions and gigs you didn’t quite plan to see.

This is not a bad thing –the Crawl is the ideal spotting ground for new music so enjoy the unknown acts and see if you can predict which ones are going to make it.

Here’s a few tips for the day – I won’t labour the wear comfy shoes point this year no matter how vital I think it is:

- It’s not all about gigs in dark places. There’s a whole daytime programme of comedy, theatre and the chance to pit your mind against some of the industry’s biggest musos at a choice of challenging pub quizzes.

- Manage expectations – don’t expect to see every band you want – there will be timetable clashes, mad dashes from Mornington Crescent to Kentish Town, and just plain old queues so prioritise and enjoy the unknown.

- Keep your eyes and ears open for secret appearances, pop-up gigs and the unexpected, last year Amy Winehouse was pulling pints at The Dublin Castle and Pete Doherty was hanging around outside the job centre, a few years previously David Schwimmer joined the crawl.

- Try to predict collaborations – as Giggs and Lethal Bizzle are both booked to play and they’ve just released the Monsta Man remix, that’s the one I’m guessing.

- Check out the Red Bull outdoor stage – it’ll be a rare chance to see rap collective Odd Future who made waves at this year’s SXSW festival. And if you can prove you’re an NW1 resident, you can get into Hawley Crescent for free.

- Download the Gaymers Camden Crawl 2011 The Album compilation – free to ticketholders from www.7digital.com/camdencrawl – and check out the bands you haven’t heard yet, you never know, it might just stop you missing out on the next band of the year.

- AND FINALLY – follow me on twitter for live updates throughout the weekend and tweet me any Crawl news, gossip or rumours of secret gigs – I promise to share – @roisingadelrab

CAMDEN CRAWL APPROACHES

NOT too long ago a group of wise old music moguls gathered in Dingwalls for the annual “pick me” fest that is the Camden Crawl band allocation day.

As DJ Steve Lamacq described it in his Going Deaf for a Living blog: “It’s like picking teams in a school playground.”
Except a fair amount of young musicians I knew at school would’ve run a mile at the mention of PE.



So while we don’t yet know who the 14 promoters hosting gigs for the Crawl managed to wrangle for their chosen venue, we can still bring you a selection of the names that have been released so far.
St Etienne, Villagers, Frankie & the Heartstrings, Lethal Bizzle, British Sea Power and Simian Mobile Disco – the most high profile of the names we know right now.
Toddla T, Hadouken, Mazes, Young Dreams, The Qemists, Dinosaur Pile-Up, The Phantom Band, and Hudson Mohawke are also on the known list.

But there are a whole lot of not so well-known musicians that are worth a look-in.
You never know – one day Florence and the Machine’s playing to 100 people in The Crescent pub for the Crawl, the next, young Flo’s sharing the stage with Jennifer Hudson at The Grammys, playing the socialite’s entertainment in Gossip Girl and Dog Days is being assimilated into Glee choir’s indistinctive repertoire.



While the main headline acts are yet to be announced, rumours are rife.
Although I’m hoping Aerosmith will be among the headliners, I’ve a feeling Steve Tyler’s caught up judging a little talent show over in the states.

So here’s a basic summary of what it’s all about:
The Camden Crawl – one wristband, two days (April 30 – May 1), music, comedy, fringe arts, and interactive events, 250 live acts and special guests across 50 venues.
While there is music all day from the very start, there’s a whole bunch of other activities during the sunshine hours to help crawlers prepare for the hardcore trek around Camden (and Kentish Town) venues as dusk sets in.

The real games begin after the taxing music quizzes, comedy, spoken word and performance, visual arts and crafts, interactive events and games (see www.thecnj.com/music) are over.
I leave you with a brief summary of our recommendations.

There’s the Island Records showcase at the Enterprise featuring Tribes, Kid Adrift and Jon Fratelli, as well as Cocknbullkid and Rizzle Kicks (previously featured on this page).
Or take vantage on the Roundhouse Terrace for the Summer Sundae Weekender with Benjamin Francis, Leftwich, Delta Maid, Dog is Dead, Lulu & the Lampshades, Marques Toliver, 2:54, Beth Jeans Houghton, Dry the River, Peggy Sue and Young Dreams.

We don’t yet know who else is playing where so here’s a brief list of some of our picks from the rest: Visions of Trees, Paris Suit Yourself, DELS, Dananananaykroyd, Divorce, Japanese Voyeurs, John and Jehn, Wild Palms, Flats, Little Comets, P Money, Sound of Rum, The Chapman Family, Teeth and Fiction.

For tickets, as well as profiles of all these bands and the rest of the line-up, visit www.thecamdencrawl.com

NO MORE SOFA SURFING - THE DRUMS TAKE ON THE CAMDEN CRAWL

JUST five months ago fledgling Brooklyn band The Drums were crashing on a friend’s couch in Camden, playing their debut European show at Kentish Town’s tiny cult venue, The Flowerpot.

This weekend the very same New York four-piece will be the crowning glory of the borough’s biggest festival – the Camden Crawl.

                                           (The Drums)

Weary frontman Jonathan Pierce spoke to me from Berlin, at the end of an 11-hour stretch of interviews.

He said: “It’s been a little void of adventures. The only adventure we’ve had is seeing if we can stay awake.”

The band were this week forced to cancel their show at Highbury’s Relentless Garage thanks to volcano-induced flight delays, but Crawl organisers are confident they’ll make it to Camden in time.

Jon said: “I know we’re playing the Crawl but we’re not familiar with it. Us American lads are still brushing up on our UK education. We used to stay in a friend’s house in Camden Place when we were in London. The Flowerpot was our first show in Europe so it was a really special time for us. Camden really does hold some significance for The Drums. We just went and grabbed coffee all day long.”

Jon first met bandmate Jacob Graham at Christian summer camp. He said: “I was raised in a Christian household and so was Jacob. It’s normal in America for kids to be shipped off to summer camp and ours just happened to be Christian.”

But it looks like the boys are struggling with the trappings of fame.

He said: “Our least favourite thing in the world is photo shoots. When you start a band you don’t realise everything it entails. You have ideas that it’s about making songs you really love for the next 40 years and here we are in Berlin and we’ve had three photo shoots today and we just hate having our picture taken.”

Their meteoric rise to fame has meant at times their newfound status has overtaken them.
They once played to a crowd of 10 at Santa Barbara University then minutes later posed for an NME cover shoot.

Jon said: "There were 10 kids there all wearing university sweatshirts and had never heard of us. We really go for it when we're playing live, we don't hold back no matter what the situation, so there was a weird awkward dynamic. We played our last song and found out a band has to play for 50 minutes or we don't get paid. 

"We were really broke at the time and didn't have another song. So we ended up playing Kiss And Make Up that St Etienne covered off our i-Pod. We all just danced on the stage and met our quota and got paid. The next thing we did was jump in a van and drive through the beach and did a photo shoot for the cover of NME. It was weird doing a cover shoot five minutes after we played in front of absolutely no-one."

They may have found success but Jon admits he’s still not quite content. 

He said: "It’s not that I’m complaining – it’s just I’m confused. You have these dreams and then your dreams come true and you realise you still are just as confused and probably even more confused because it didn’t solve all your problems.
"There’s this eternal questioning about what is going to make me happy. If this doesn’t make me happy then what will? But it lends to good songwriting. I learned early in my life that money doesn't make me happy and the lack of money doesn't make me happy either. If we had all the answers life might be more... I don't know, so I'm happy to be miserable at this point."

He’s a harsh self-critic, and keeps strict quality control on his songs.
He added: “Nothing really drives me to write anything. It’s never really a conscious thing. I write all the songs and my rule is they have to come naturally. If it feels laboured over then I throw it out. It goes for the lyrics as well. 

“A song might sound happy at first listen but if you listen to the lyrics they often sound a little bit sad or hopeless. We have our own sensitive brand of rock ‘n’ roll. We’re definitely not a typical sex drugs and rock’n’roll type of band. There’s more delicate blood running through our veins. The most exciting thing to us isn’t cocaine it’s writing a beautiful pop song and that’s the honest truth.”