I'll Be Your Mirror/London
Over the weekend Amy and I went over to London. On Saturday we went to the Portishead-curated I'll Be Your Mirror event, a sort of mini-All Tomorrows Parties. Sunday we just spent some time in London.
It was a bit of an odd weekend. I was feeling a bit drained on Saturday, while Amy was not feeling that well on Sunday.
At first, IBYM seemed like an event filled with undocumented rules. Don't sit there, don't walk that way, don't bring in food or drink. It was the prohibition of food & drink that was the worst, and started things off badly. I'd gathered together a collection of stuff to keep me going through the day, only to have to ditch it all. I'd specifically checked to see if you could bring food & drink and hadn't found anything saying you couldn't. (It was mentioned in the programmes, but you don't get those until it's too late...) It wouldn't have been so bad - I could have sat outside and eaten for a bit - if I hadn't also really needed the loo. At least I found a water fountain. As the day went on, more signs appeared telling people which doorways they could go through and which they couldn't. The flow was still weird though.
Alexandra Palace is a pretty location. It's not ideal for a music festival, as the two main rooms are right next to one-another. Mostly they staggered the bands so that only one was playing at a time. Unlike normal ATPs, IBYM wasn't overrun with tall people. It did have an unusually high proportion of people in wheelchairs though. Saw Adrian Utley from Portishead watching Geoff Barrow's band Beak>, until he got bored, as well as Mr ATP, Wee Barry Hogan.
I saw a little bit of London Snorkelling Club, telling a story about the crimes committed by Mick Hucknell, and then watched Helen Love, a sort of solo metal cellist and Beak>. Amy was most excited about seeing PJ Harvey and Portishead. PJ Harvey disappointed her by mostly playing new songs. I think I knew as many of the songs Amy did, because of having heard a little of her new album. She must have played at least two-thirds of it in all. With only three albums, Portishead weren't the same risk. I like Portishead, but I've never really found a significant place for them in my heart. Amy, on the other hand, was a massive fan, and thinks her younger self would berate her for not enjoying them more. Sometimes that just happens with a set. I don't think it was the fault of the band; I thought it was a good performance. The most enjoyable band of the day was The Books. I've never been very keen on The Books, but was told they're great live. They have a video accompaniment - in this case mostly cut together from video tapes - and seeing this was like seeing the missing piece of the band. I still don't think they're particularly good musically, but they were entertaining.
On Sunday morning we started by wandering along Kensington High Street looking for somewhere to eat. And also looking for Whole Foods. When we found it, it wasn't fully open, and Amy wasn't impressed by their café options (the removal of the brunch menu enraged her), so we retired to a nearby bistro where we stayed for quite a long time. Then it was back to Whole Foods. Whole Foods is a US supermarket chain that emphasises sustainability, social responsibility and foods with minimal processing and artificial ingredients. It is one of Amy's favourite places in the world. She enjoyed a very long look round, and bought some gummy sweets and three bars of chocolate.
Then we spent most of the rest of the day slowly progressing through Hyde Park. We watched a little Irish girl throw bread to the greylag geese. "Come and get it, it's wholemeal." (It wasn't.) She then progressed to throwing bread at the geese. This was more amusing, especially when chunks balanced on the back of a bird. Occasionally she would flail a kick at a pigeon that got too close. No bread for you, pigeons.
We looked for the "bird sanctuary" indicated on our (free tourist) map, but when we got there it appeared to be a nursery surrounded by overgrown ground. Which is probably a decent bird sanctuary, but not one we could go into and spy on the birdies. Still, Amy saw a bird she hadn't seen before; possibly a grey wagtail. We didn't have time to go and see the fancy ducks in St James park, and ended up with a slight last-minute rush for the coach. We made it back fine, though, and not too late in the evening.
It was a bit of an odd weekend. I was feeling a bit drained on Saturday, while Amy was not feeling that well on Sunday.
At first, IBYM seemed like an event filled with undocumented rules. Don't sit there, don't walk that way, don't bring in food or drink. It was the prohibition of food & drink that was the worst, and started things off badly. I'd gathered together a collection of stuff to keep me going through the day, only to have to ditch it all. I'd specifically checked to see if you could bring food & drink and hadn't found anything saying you couldn't. (It was mentioned in the programmes, but you don't get those until it's too late...) It wouldn't have been so bad - I could have sat outside and eaten for a bit - if I hadn't also really needed the loo. At least I found a water fountain. As the day went on, more signs appeared telling people which doorways they could go through and which they couldn't. The flow was still weird though.
Alexandra Palace is a pretty location. It's not ideal for a music festival, as the two main rooms are right next to one-another. Mostly they staggered the bands so that only one was playing at a time. Unlike normal ATPs, IBYM wasn't overrun with tall people. It did have an unusually high proportion of people in wheelchairs though. Saw Adrian Utley from Portishead watching Geoff Barrow's band Beak>, until he got bored, as well as Mr ATP, Wee Barry Hogan.
I saw a little bit of London Snorkelling Club, telling a story about the crimes committed by Mick Hucknell, and then watched Helen Love, a sort of solo metal cellist and Beak>. Amy was most excited about seeing PJ Harvey and Portishead. PJ Harvey disappointed her by mostly playing new songs. I think I knew as many of the songs Amy did, because of having heard a little of her new album. She must have played at least two-thirds of it in all. With only three albums, Portishead weren't the same risk. I like Portishead, but I've never really found a significant place for them in my heart. Amy, on the other hand, was a massive fan, and thinks her younger self would berate her for not enjoying them more. Sometimes that just happens with a set. I don't think it was the fault of the band; I thought it was a good performance. The most enjoyable band of the day was The Books. I've never been very keen on The Books, but was told they're great live. They have a video accompaniment - in this case mostly cut together from video tapes - and seeing this was like seeing the missing piece of the band. I still don't think they're particularly good musically, but they were entertaining.
On Sunday morning we started by wandering along Kensington High Street looking for somewhere to eat. And also looking for Whole Foods. When we found it, it wasn't fully open, and Amy wasn't impressed by their café options (the removal of the brunch menu enraged her), so we retired to a nearby bistro where we stayed for quite a long time. Then it was back to Whole Foods. Whole Foods is a US supermarket chain that emphasises sustainability, social responsibility and foods with minimal processing and artificial ingredients. It is one of Amy's favourite places in the world. She enjoyed a very long look round, and bought some gummy sweets and three bars of chocolate.
Then we spent most of the rest of the day slowly progressing through Hyde Park. We watched a little Irish girl throw bread to the greylag geese. "Come and get it, it's wholemeal." (It wasn't.) She then progressed to throwing bread at the geese. This was more amusing, especially when chunks balanced on the back of a bird. Occasionally she would flail a kick at a pigeon that got too close. No bread for you, pigeons.
We looked for the "bird sanctuary" indicated on our (free tourist) map, but when we got there it appeared to be a nursery surrounded by overgrown ground. Which is probably a decent bird sanctuary, but not one we could go into and spy on the birdies. Still, Amy saw a bird she hadn't seen before; possibly a grey wagtail. We didn't have time to go and see the fancy ducks in St James park, and ended up with a slight last-minute rush for the coach. We made it back fine, though, and not too late in the evening.