Sorry there’s been no posts for a while, I’ve been all a-whirl with Summer School! But there’s a Moll Baxter Band gig coming up next Thursday at the Golden Lion, with support from Tom ‘Ponies’ Bramhall – or ‘Pom Tonies’ as I said by accident the other day…
Come along for folk-tapping, blues-busting, troubaudacious barding!
Hi Peops,
Until I get the gig calender up and running on the homepage, here are the shows I’ve got coming up over the next couple of months.
MUSIC:
Friday 2nd July 2010: Mona House Art, Comedy and Music Night. Mollie Baxter, Sam Wilson, Jess Thomas, Al Alvarez, Ron Scowcroft, Dee Sidlo. 7.30pm, FREE
Friday 16th July: Spotlight Club, Storey, Lancaster. Moll Baxter band finishing off a night of spoken word with music. 8pm, £4.00/£2.00
Thursday 5th August: Moll Baxter Band play The Golden Lion, Lancaster from 9pm. FREE
Saturday 14th August: Moll Baxter Band at the Music Coop’s festival in Warton. More details tbc.
WRITING:
Tuesday 27th July: Wordsoup Tringe special, a second chance to see the dramatisation of ‘Keeping Light,’ a collaboration between Mollie Baxter, Norman Hadley and David Riley. The Continental Preston, 8pm £3.00
We played an Existence Gig at The Oakwood in Glossop on Saturday. A fabulous venue run by the most hospitable people you could wish to meet.
Had to share these photos though: In their beer garden is an old upright piano. It’s casing has been removed and it’s partially filled up with soil ‘to put some flowers in.’ I think it was Rae who assured us ‘It was like this when we found it,’ as if we might take issue with them for piano abuse! But doesn’t it look beautiful? (HORTICULTURAL NEWSFLASH: Cukes rather poor, gherkins are mad forrit – I have surplus plants.) Perhaps I should send them some gherkins to plant in it. Or nasturtiums would be quite nice…
The colours and textures are amazing, I reckon I’ll be using these images for posters. You’re welcome to use them too – if you could acknowledge them that would be appreciated.
This Thursday April 22nd at the Yorkshire House, Lancaster.
Doors open 8pm.
£3
4 fantastic acts under one roof:
The smoky-folky, whisky-wordy stylings of Moll Baxter
The soulfully crafted songs of Jess Thomas
The stunningly moving Kish Maguire
And the subtle loopings, and quirky alt-electronica inventiana of Cam Crook
Hope to see you there!
X
I’ll be doing a set of short pieces in Clitheroe on April 1st as part of Outspoken’s ’3P’ events coming to the north for the first time. I’ve decided to a set of shorts, that are (hopefully) amusing.
Here’s a taster…
PATIENCE
Contrary to popular belief, patience is not a card game for just one player. It is, in fact, a fundamentally two-player game – a detail sadly overlooked in most rule books.
Player One deals the cards and proceeds to arrange them by suit and rank according to certain spatial rules. This half of the game is familiar to us all and requires no further explanation.
Sadly, what is often neglected is the role of Player Two. Thankfully, it seems we have an instinctive facility to abide by the true system that the rulebooks overlook. The game begins when Player One invites Player Two to a game of Rummy, Pontoon, Go Fish etcetera – it isn’t important which game, as long as it is for two players. Player Two then declines. (Experienced players may at this point enter into a series of coercions and refusals, but new players may skip this step for now).
Player One shuffles and deals the cards for a game of patience. Within a few minutes, Player Two should seat himself uninvited at a convenient distance and, judging their timing with care, should begin to offer Helpful Hints, kindly pointing out any missed opportunities on the part of Player One, trying to achieve a score of 21 comments.
Needless to say, the true object of the game for Player One is not to assemble the cards by suit and rank, but in doing so, without wrapping Player Two’s eyebrows around their fist. Clearly, the difficulty of such a task may go some way to explaining why these rules have fallen by the wayside.
Wired In March 22nd 2010
Monday 22 March 2010
For line-up visit: http://www.dukes-lancaster.org/music/wired-in
I’ve just finished tinkering with the piece I’m going to read. It’s a little bit different to what I usually write… I’m trying to do 3 different things.
First of all, rather than telling a story, I’m trying to use words to convey a series of images, such as would be seen in an abstract film.
Secondly, I’m trying to use images that either I personally associate with my hometown, Morecambe, or that are captured in Richard Davis’s collection of ‘All about Morecambe’ photographs.
Thirdly, I’m trying to invite listeners/viewers to see Morecambe differently. Not in any particular way differently, but to look at it with fresh eyes, whatever that means to them.
You never know, I might be able to persuade Mr Dave George of Electric Free Time Machine to improvise some loopy atmospherics behind the reading… I have just over 24 hours to do that.
(c) Richard Davis
Extract:
…the picture wobbles. Now you are watching a home movie: a camera jerks round too fast – you feel vertigo, a seagull cuts an arc in the sky, you see a face in shadow. The face turns and the figure runs – a child across the sand, feet kicking up behind, to join a second, smaller girl who has her back to the sea. The camera angle drops as if submissive, you peer up at her from a dog’s eye view.
She points behind the camera, behind you. You are curious, you wait for the camera to follow, but it won’t turn. Frost crackles over the screen. Something is trying to stop you from seeing. You swipe the frost away. You are getting cold, cold and frustrated.
How can you see what she sees? The camera just needs to follow her pointing finger. You have an idea… surely it can’t work? You pick up the TV, lift it from its crust of snow. You turn slowly, eyes on the screen and… yes, as you turn, so does the picture inside the TV.
Finally, you are in control. The image sweeps across the beach in the direction of the girl’s pointing finger.
What will you see? The screen goes black and you open your eyes. Did you know that they were closed?
Come along!
Back by popular demand… (I demanded and they said, oh go on then…)
This is a child-friendly event. Si will be wearing his clown trousers and we will be pouring custard into them between each song.
Rob will only say ‘Phooey’ when something goes wrong with setting up the PA.
And Harvey will do a selection of cup and ba…
Alternative Americana, folky bluesy, naggy, whiskied (and whiskered) songs to tease and finger your earlobes.
Come along after work/Jeremy Kyle/breakfast and say hello. Catch a movie afterwards, mayhaps.
Hope to see you there!
Moll X
Lancaster’s Very First Story Slam!
4th September 2009 Storey Creative Industries
Review by Mollie Baxter www.molliebaxter.com
Lancaster may be no stranger to Poetry Slams, but this is something a little bit different – a Story Slam, with 5 minutes to enthral the audience with your tales, and -to put a little extra adrenaline in the system – no recourse to scripts or prompt sheets allowed, only what may be contained on the back of a hand! This is not a reading, therefore, but a performance. Organised by professional story-teller Mary Lockwood, the Slam takes its inspiration from the successful Story Slams in the U.S. (go to Mary’s Slam blog at www.thestoryslam.co.uk if you’re interested in seeing some videos of overseas slammers, as well as for information about Mary’s project itself.)
To read the rest of this review, please visit http://thelunecyreview.wordpress.com/2009/09/11/lancaster%e2%80%99s-very-first-story-slam/
Here are some photos courtesy of Richard Davis of Totally Wired from last night’s show. (Thanks, Richard!)
Singing ‘Alma Garrett’s Shoes.’
Reading ‘Mud, Blood and Gold,’ which accompanies the song.
Note to Self: don’t stick your tongue out when you’re concentrating.
A Blast of Cultural Mayhem!
Featuring:
Mollie Baxter (doing a words and music combo)
Jo Gillot (captivating singer-songwriter)
Ottersgear (Mikey Kenny’s and band)
Vik Lawless (Poet)
Improv Express (Improvisation Troupe)
And others – a veritable feast of entertainment.
Tickets £5 (on the door or from The Book Room on Meeting House Lane, Lancaster)