The Hidden Masters

Up at Michelle and Gregor's first for some pre-gig cocktails, we hotfooted to Sleazy's (yes, again) for a late night gig. The Hidden Masters rarely perform before midnight and it must have been closer to 1am when they took to the stage. It was just then that I found out they had shrunk from a 5 piece to a 3, two of their former members being in or going to London. Didn't matter, the remaining players easily filled the gap. They were superb. We were lucky enough to get right at the front, so I got great footage (again, apologies for the sound, it's just a wee camera) of Golden Hair, Rolling Thunder and Reading my mind (sic). If you listen out, you can hear all of us singing and cheering along at some points; I joined in on the chrous of Golden Hair.

Gotta love that cowbell. Bless that drummer Johnny, he's just mesmerising, both as a drummer and a singer.

The Hidden Masters; always a great night out.

Cheap & Nasty

Last night we went along to Nice & Sleazy's (twice in a week) for Cheap and Nasty, a band and dj night. Featuring the Squid, The Paraffins and the Plimptons, it was sure to be a treat. And it was. The Squid played a storming set, admitting that they had in fact caused the credit crunch with my favourite song of theirs, "I hate the Royal Bank of Scotland".

The Paraffins are just one guy with an aquamarine kid's guitar, an MP3 player and a penchant for banging cymbals and he plays a nice tidy set. I quite like his work, he's a confident showman; check him out if he's playing near you.

Ah, the Plimptons. Their song, "Japan" held extra resonance now that I've been. I always like to watch them, they put on a good floorshow. I videoed "Ocean Colour Resurrection" for your viewing pleasure. Apologies for the poor sound, it was done on my camera.