pic: Jane McCallion

Amnesty International’s Write for Rights Festive Fayre, held at the Human Rights Centre in Shoreditch this weekend, merged traditional stalls with live entertainment, ranging from the hilarious to the bizarre.

After some time browsing stalls and sampling mulled wine, mince pies and cupcakes, the entertainment kicked off with 23-year-old former boxer and spoken word artist Sean Mahoney. The young rhymer’s short but funny set focused on the sort of problems faced by young men, such as how to talk to attractive girls.

The next act on stage was alternative comedian Andrew Bailey, who has dubbed himself ‘The King of Dysfunctional Doowop’. Bailey emerged dressed as the grim reaper and performed a set involving a sound sampler. Wearing a rubber gas mask upside down over his face, he played a piece of clear plastic tubing like a didgeridoo while inhaling ping-pong balls, all interspersed with jokes, before finally blowing up a heavy-duty, full-arm black rubber glove which he then fired off his head. Somewhere between theatre of the absurd and just absurd, Bailey was far and away the most bizarre act of the night.

During the intermission, attendees were encouraged to write letters to 24 prisoners of conscience and their families, either on paper provided or on Christmas cards available from the many stalls.

Hackney Song Works choir gave an eclectic performance including a Medieval carol, a Croatian love song and a number in the Congolese language Lingala, which choir leader Maya Waldman said was “so essential” to the work done by Amnesty.

Song Works were followed by controversial punk poet Attila the Stockbroker. His expletive laden rants about topics from his racist maiden aunt, to skinny women and the fashion industry, left some members of the audience feeling uncomfortable.

Kate Fox, a satirical stand up poet, writer and Radio 4 regular, was the penultimate act of the night.

The evening closed with a performance by stand up comedienne Sara Pasco, who spoke about her letter-writing project and the importance of communication. Over the past year she has written to a variety of people, from ex-boyfriends to vegan prisoners. Although Pasco abstained from jokes, many of her stories were still amusing; she told of one prisoner who believed she was sending him coded messages from contacts on the outside.

It was a fun evening for both the audience and performers, but the purpose of the event was not forgotten and piles of letters and cards were left on all tables at the end of the night.

pic: Olive Loves Alfie

Stuck for Christmas present ideas? Are those two-for-one Sainsbury’s selection boxes looking appealing? Before you resign yourself to giving everyone gift vouchers, EastLondonLines has picked the five best places in Hackney for unusual presents.

Lifestyle Bazaar, Kingsland Road

Grow your own edamame kit, anyone? This shop is a treasure trove of totally unnecessary but highly entertaining stocking fillers. ELL particularly liked the ‘southern softie’ and ‘it’s grim up north’ slogan mugs. Their range of kitchen gadgets will brighten up the most slovenly of student digs, though how thrilled a trendy young thing would be to open a foldable cheese-grater on Christmas morning is debatable. The pick-up sticks game (remember that?) is the ideal post-Christmas dinner amusement, especially for adults with a red wine handicap.

The website is here, and you can order online.

Niko B’s Santa Baby Pop-up Chocolate Shop, Dalston

If you must buy chocolates for people, for goodness sake get good ones. For the cocoaphiles on your Christmas list, visit Niko B’s pop-up shop. You can see the chocolatier himself at work, try the chocolate soup (a blend of liquid dark chocolate, port, coconut milk and winter spices), and pick up some freshly made gifts. The boxes are beautifully packaged, and even delivered on your behalf if you so choose. Why not confuse and delight people with an edible chocolate box full of truffles; or for those worried about their five-a-day, invest in Amaretto soaked figs, filled with ganache and dipped in dark chocolate.

Drool over Niko’s creations here.

Hackney Homemade Christmas Markets, St John at Hackney Church Gardens

If you’re still not sorted by the last weekend before Christmas, fear not! Hackney Homemade is holding markets on both December 17 and 18. Shop for handmade presents (we won’t tell anyone if you pass them off as your own) whilst the kids enjoy the free pop-up ice rink. Expect knitted goodies, beautiful jewellery and traditional toys. Homemade Christmas tree decorations could be the perfect solution for a picky relative. After all that shopping, sneaking a few homemade mince pies before dinner is a sensible way to keep up energy levels.

More information can be found here.

Olive Loves Alfie, Stoke Newington Church Street

Stuck for what to get the kids? If Argos has sold out of the latest craze, why not go traditional? Olive Loves Alfie call themselves a family lifestyle store, but the real joy of this shop is in their brilliant array of children’s toys. From customizable birdhouses to the traditional doctor’s kit, there is not a DVD in sight. The toys on offer encourage hours of lets-pretend games, re-defining the concept of ‘playing’ in a way far removed from sitting on the sofa, clutching a game controller.

Check out the ‘love to play’ section of the website here.

Viktor Wynd’s Little Shop of Horrors, Mare Street

Relatives and children are now sorted, but what about the achingly cool twenty-somethings that haunt the coffee houses of Dalston and Shacklewell? If Christmas is an originality contest in your flat, then you need to visit Viktor Wynd’s shop of curios. From winged taxidermy dogs to floral teacups baring rather rude phrases, this store has it all. ELL particularly liked the book entitled ‘The Art of Faking Exhibition Poultry’. Don’t bring the children, and prepare to spend at least an hour staring with your mouth open.

Click here for an idea of what you can expect.

Breathe a sigh of relief, and cancel that dreaded trip to Oxford Street.

Brotherhood of the Lake. pic: Anurag Tagat

You know an underground movement is alive and kicking when a bunch of young bands want to tear a club down to the ground. And they came pretty close to doing that at Scream Lounge in Croydon in a metal melee headlined by the brilliant Brotherhood of the Lake.

First to take to the stage on Saturday were the newly-formed Bromley-based quintet Bears. Songs such as  ‘Always around’ and ‘Silver Tongues’ sounded close to alternative metal with a catchy melodic streak, though the vocals seemed laboured and painful to listen to at times.

Black Shapes emerged as the most interesting of the lot – with Converge-inspired hardcore punk, they ripped open their set – quickly proving they were clearly meant to share the stage with headline act Brotherhood of the Lake. While they do not yet have any music uploaded to their website, you get the feeling you will be hearing a lot more from them.

Silhouette of a Ghost (SOAG) continued the damage, taking it a step further by opening the moshpit with songs such as ‘Take your Blinkers Off’ and ‘A Portrait of Other’. Besides monster breakdowns and intense stage energy, a mix of guttural vocals, frenzied riffing and destructive double bass drumming made it akin to well-known bands such as Glassjaw and Bury Your Dead. Before finishing they announced it was bassist Steve Todd’s last gig. “They’ll be shit without me,” he joked.

While Croydon boys Foundations saluted US metal heroes August Burns Red, at times they seemed inspired to the level of worship and fanboy-ism. If SOAG had borrowed August Burns Red’s hardcore output, Foundations took influence from the metalcore side – but despite this adulation at least they (and their fans) seemed to have enjoyed themselves.

Next on stage were a six string bassist and the fastest shredder in the room – part of Surrey-based Eyes of Munity – in a set that featured great solo lead guitar playing and unmatched bass grooves. Songs like ‘From Ashes’ and ‘The Follower’ seemed to say, “If it ain’t broke, break it down.” As great as it was for a round of melodic hardcore, it was a pity they played to the least number of people in the club. On the other hand, at least they knew when to stop – if they had played any longer, the verse-breakdown-verse structure would have become overdone.

Headline act Brotherhood of the Lake are quickly winning over critics in Britain’s underground metal scene. Full of heavy breakdowns and throat-damaging screams, themes of depression, society and religion are delivered with a yelling hardcore punk lyrical ethos.

Brotherhood of the Lake may consist of five members, but they seemed to fill half the club by jumping and stomping around all over the room. Ploughing through songs including ‘Every Nerve Ending, ‘The Desperation’ and ‘Ghosts’ with deafening accuracy, vocalist Rob seemed to have the combined guttural ability of all the previous singers on stage before him as the band ripped through a blistering set.

Walls of sound squealing out with distortion from the Plymouth-based band left ears ringing for a good hour later – always the sign of a true, straight up no-nonsense hardcore band climbing up the scene’s ladder.

Art by Zoe Catherine Kendall pic: Tillie Cox

Sound and visuals combine in this rapturous art exhibit, says Tillie Cox.

East London’s arty crowd were in attendance at Sunday’s ‘platform for contemporary activity’ Pop-Up Circus in London Fields. Platform cafe, situated down an anonymous alleyway and through a locked warehouse door, was jam-packed with people for the all-day event.

Performances throughout the afternoon and evening took place in the warehouse space, with its well-stocked bar, tasty menu and beautiful panoramic views. An art exhibition adorned the walls, making interesting viewing between performances.

Of particular note in the exhibition was Zoe Catherine Kendall’s presentation, which featured bold paintings with an almost pop-art inspired colour theme, alongside handwritten notes from artist-to-audience, making one question their response to her work, drawing the audience in further.

Also of interest was Angel Luis Gotor’s sketches, which proved life drawing is still a skill worth mastering for budding artists.

Performance-wise Flautist Rehana Browne made for ideal Sunday listening as she played the brilliantly mixed tempo Stardrift by Edwin Roxburgh.

Following Rehana was perhaps one of the more unusual pieces of the day. The Water Project by artist Greg Genestine-Charlton was a live painting piece, which involved the artist carefully tipping water down a pre-made work, the image of which was projected on a screen behind him for the rapt audience to see. The sound of the water trickling was amplified and mixed by two technicians on a sound desk, while another  the other water noises blowing bubbles through water and using other techniques to create music.

The performance was kindly preceded by an announcement advising the audience to make use of the toilet facilities beforehand, as the sound of running water for 45 minutes may cause problems for some.

In all, a fascinating day in a lovely environment. The hidden entrance to Platform cafe may give pretensions of exclusivity, but the warmth of the audience quickly dispelled any associations with an elitist art culture.

Visit Pop-Up Circus to find about more about contemporary art events.

How the World Began pic: Robert Workman

There is more to this play than a tired religious debate, writes Sophie Zeldin-O’Neill.

Catherine Trieschmann’s play finds an apt setting in the cosmopolitan enclave of the Arcola Theatre. Scrambling past the bewitched alleyways of Hackney and through the surreal hoards that comprise a Dalston Friday fug, the glow from the theatre’s entrance felt like divine intervention. You want to have the church and state debate, mate? You’ve come to the right place.

Like a notebook-toting Julie Garland, I crossed the cobbles and landed feet first in the studio space, amid the almighty rage of a hurricane, wondering where on earth I’d put my pen. But just as Kansas ebbed into the back of my mind, I found myself right back there.

The biology classroom that the audience initially finds itself in has all the usual characteristics of a high school, but then you learn that it is in the process of being rebuilt following a devastating tornado. And as you witness the conflict between pensive creationist teenager Micah and his evolutionist Science teacher Susan, things start to get real.

This first scene goes off with a big bang, and you are left to muse proceedings beneath the glittering cosmos projected across the canopy ceiling, a device deployed to great effect throughout.

It was difficult to grasp why Trieschmann chose to channel the debate through the mouths of a religious country ‘hick’ in one corner and an East Coast educator in the other. I found this use of stereotypes a little frustrating at times, and felt that it was perhaps speaking more to a US audience who might recognise that particular brand of division more personally.

I was initially bewildered, too, by the decision to make the central character someone who had experienced the traumatic premature loss of his mother, but far from being a two-dimensional case of ‘I lost, and have therefore found’, the complexities surrounding how his grief affected his relationship with religion were thoroughly compelling, drawing out the inherent fear that can accompany both faith and non-belief.

Amid the absence of his parents, Micah’s de facto guardian takes the form of Ciaran McIntyre’s bumbling Gene, a light-hearted antidote to the interaction between teacher and pupil, and a crucial foil for their tangible friction.

Meanwhile the role of Micah himself is played to perfection by the striking, intense Perry Millward, whose flourishing career as a character actor looks bright. Anna Francolini and McIntyre are to be commended too not only for engaging performances but for flawlessly maintaining different American accents throughout.

The debate forms the spine of the production but leaves room for flexible manoeuvre into the exploration of personal relationships, the meaning of education and “problems beyond these four walls”. All big topics, but all served well by an outstanding, tightly-directed cast and a bold writer who eloquently ponders that most age-old of assertions: “Heavenly Father’s a tricky little bastard isn’t he…”

How the World Began, Arcola Theatre, Hackney; until December 10. See Arcola Theatre for more.

EastEnd Cabaret at the Arcola Theatre Pic: EastEndCarabet

EastEnd Cabaret comes with high expectations. Their show, The Revolution Will Be Sexual, has been showered with critical praise and this week they grace the cover of Time Out.

The spacious Arcola tent may not be the obvious choice for cabaret, but it works surprisingly well, albeit with a rather chilly audience who kept their coats firmly on as they sipped mulled wine.

And then the gin-swilling duo emerged. Soviet sweetheart Bernadette Byrne (Jennifer Byrne) sashayed her way to the stage with a shrill “elo darlingz”. She was followed by Victor Victoria (Victoria Falconer-Pritchard), who was dressed as half man half woman and was brandishing an accordion.

As Victor took his or her seat at the piano, Bernadette launched into a slow tempo version of Let’s Talk About Sex. This would prove a fitting prelude to her many tales of sexual misadventure that wove the show together.

The first, just in case the audience thought this was a pre-watershed affair, involved an anecdote about a trip to Thailand and a ping pong ball.

A story about an unfortunate case of rigor mortis followed, which was complemented by the most adept kazoo playing I have ever witnessed. An audience member was then ushered onto the stage as Bernadette improvised a song about their date together based on his responses, which featured Nandos and ‘Toy Story’ 2 and 3.

The duo’s witty repartee was not limited to salacious anecdotes, however, and Victor’s puppeteering of a hammer and sickle created an ingenious narrative of the financial crisis. Littered with profanities, David Cameron does not come out of it well.

After a story involving the Dalston Dominatrix – that featured songs by Nelly and Kings of Leon – it was time to stay goodnight. The show ended with a tribute to a night of drunken excess: mistaking fosters for cocktails and waking up with four club stamps on your wrist.

EastEnd Cabaret has created a wonderfully witty show: flawlessly maintained characters with musical talent and even better comic timing keep the audience enraptured.

It is not first date material or a family outing – you are asked at one point to intertwine legs with the person next to you – but this show is the ideal outing for friends.

Enjoy with a healthy dose of gin and brace yourself for some audience participation.

The Arcola Tent in Dalston hosts EastEnd Cabaret from November 16-19 and 24-26. See the Arcola website for booking information.

Photo: Will Coldwell

Sickboy’s infatuation with religious symbolism manifests itself in a playfully surreal way at his latest show.

Consisting mainly of conventionally scaled paintings, the compositions resemble that of medieval religious art, with dramatically coloured figures centred beneath arches – like stain glass windows glowing with animated holiness.

With titles such as ‘Forget’, ‘Forgiven’, ‘Critically Zen’ and ‘Jonah’, the inspiration for the work is obvious. As the artist explained: “I started off looking at old renaissance paintings, and looking at the signs and symbols in them, reappropriating them as my own”, before reassuring me, “It’s not just to ram a load of Catholicism down your throat!”

Despite Sickboy’s evident shift to the finer side of street art, there is a nod to his past endeavours in the form of a full size caravan, daubed with his infamous ‘temple’ tag. The caravan (which doubled as a bar at the opening), sits opposite a confession booth, complete with it’s very own, albeit cantankerous, priest.

Pulling back the curtain to reveal a broad man in a dog collar, I asked the looming churchman if he was real. “Course I am”, he scowled back at me.
Would he be taking confession tonight? “Depends if I feel like it”, he said, yawning.

That experience in many ways epitomises the character of Sickboy’s work; the more time you spend on it, the more absurd it becomes. Take ‘King of the Universe’, in which a Dali-esque figure hangs it’s head, looking over a segment of a toy train set, covered in miniature tags, resting on its lap. Whatever messages we begin to draw from the composition are lost as our eyes are hijacked, drawn away towards a tiny depiction of Dangermouse in the bottom left hand corner, shooting rainbows out of his eyes.

Sickboy sucks the viewer into his pyscadelic world of cartoon futurescapes, with slogans such as “Its just a dream”, “Brother” and “Heaven Only Knows”, strewn carelessly around them, further reminders of the religious undertones of the work.

Perhaps the irrationality of these details stems from the fact that he is at heart a graffiti artist.  It may look like fine art, but for Sickboy it seems the temptation to deface them was just too much for him to resist.

Sickboy’s show is at the Dray Walk Gallery, Brick Lane, until Sunday 6 Nov

www.thesickboy.com

Wow Now. Photo: Xixi Zheng

Ever since it was sold to a mystery bidder in February, a cloud of intrigue has surrounded the disused Shoreditch Tube station.

Situated just off Brick Lane, itself famous for its graffiti by artists including Banksy, D*Face and Ben Eine, there couldn’t be a more suited space for an exhibition documenting urban art. After three months hard graft cleaning up, art collective Wow Now are the first to exhibit in the newly converted arts space.

An overwhelming riot of colour and surrealist graffiti, the exhibition is an amalgamation of sculpted paint, collage and everyday ephemera documenting the here and now as seen through the eyes of artists from some of the world’s most vibrant cities.

It’s hard to imagine a space more fitting for the subject matter – the downstairs gallery opens out onto the tracks and as the trains rumble past it’s difficult to decipher where the exhibition ends and reality begins.

From the pulsating, comic-like prints of Stephen Tomkins to the various motifs of unicorns and Dobby the house-elf scattered across the walls, the artists have clearly relished the challenge of creating snapshots of urban culture.

Particularly interesting is the live performance installation from Austrian super troupe Perfekt World, which allows you to choose and then watch what gets painted on a 30m long wall back in Vienna over a live web link. We asked them to paint us God, who appeared to us shortly after, via a post-it stuck on the wall.

We went along for a look:

Wow Now @ Shoreditch Tube Station

Featuring: Alex Daw (UK), ZTY 82 (Germany), Ben Weller (UK), Stephen Tomkins (USA), Perfekt World (Austria), Sid One (UK)

June 2nd-9th // Daily 10-8pm

Admission FREE

Photography: Xixi Zheng. Sound: Lindsay Foley and Phil Brown

Photo: Sofia Ignatidou

There’s more to Drums than just hype. The effervescent surf-pop quartet from Brooklyn proved that much after yesterdays live performance at the Queen of Hoxton.

The band which last year got shortlisted for the BBC Sound of 2010 and began this one as NME’s top tipped act appeared in front of an audience that had been waiting for hours but still didn’t mind unleashing all the ‘groupie’ energy that had been building up steadily during the night.

Soon enough, the tiny stage wasn’t able to contain a rampant Jonathan Price who briefly left it to join the dancing crowd. The frontman’ s moves across, on and off the stage were assured, instigating repetitive bursts of excitement.

His dance, a joyous reflection of Ian Curtis’ performances, was a visual representation of music simple enough to be familiar yet careless enough to be fun.

Those who are able to identify stylistic pose for what it really is – the cover and not the content – realized Drums don’t take themselves too seriously. They are not arrogant but assured enough to be confident about their work and the clear desire to enjoy themselves.

Their return to classic music forms doesn’t seem to be an effort to dig up antediluvian hype tricks but a conscious decision to be straightforward.

That’s why this gig in Hoxton turned so easily into a party with Jacob Graham’s raw guitar performance providing the necessary twists. His inexorable fury was clearly the main driving force of the band’s music presentation.

It all seemed perfect, apart from a confusing tension of release and confinement. As soon as our minds started drifting away to beaches and surfing a really edgy security woman would drag us back to reality shouting pointless directions to her onstage colleague.

We felt like kids trying to play while having an austere nanny destroying their plans again and again. Let’s hope next time she’ll let us unleash the ‘monster’ within.

I <3 East London

Sweaty garage rock, snarling vintage synthesizers, pitch-bending guitars and grating electro pulses abound at I ♥ East London. This rhythmic night of live music held on the first Thursday of every month on Whitechapel Road, spreads the passionate message that East London is an exciting place to be for creative music.

Running the ground between beatmeisters manning the DJ booth and indie bands taking to the main stage, ♥ embraces all there is to love about local music. From the warehouse shouts of The Coolness or Daytona Lights and their lighter, breezy take on stress-free indie pop the night is a celebration of the eclectic vibrancy of the East London music scene.

As forward-thinking as organisers Eliminator Expo are with their eyes keenly fixed on up-coming bands and artists, they remind us not to forget our history. Their choice of venue – The Rhythm Factory – was also where The Libertines, Razorlight and the Others graced the walls with ear-screeching guitar chugs and cone-bending basslines.

Previous events were held with great success, thanks to a fresh selection of local acts including Remake ReModel, Mafia Lights, Edit/Select, Islington Boys and Waxhouse – all spread across a healthy mix of genres ranging from punk-ish afro-beat to pseudo –disco house-meets techno. A rather peculiar Japanese band also made an appearance, comprised of a trio of (supposedly) 17-year old girls, singing songs dedicated to sushi, farmers and vegetables.

The quality of ♥ continues to rise as the next event on December 2nd looks even more promising. It will be headlined by We Are Animal – an appropriate band name given their aggressive guitar toplines, filthy vocal cuts and youthful lyrics that anyone can relate to.

Another act to watch out for is Rosa Alchemica; too frequently imitated but rarely bettered, their brand of post-punk has darker origins. Their debut ‘3000 miles 3000 nights’ was recorded in an abandoned gay bar, pocked with glory holes in the bathrooms and a stage complete with bars at the front. It is angular, moody and surprisingly catchy.

Designed with the financially struggling student in mind, ♥ shuns ‘£15 capitalist cocktails’ for house mixers and bottles of Stella at £2.50 a pop; students only pay £4 for entry and musicians, of course, get in for free. For non-students, take advantage of the flyer scheme and enjoy the night for £5 instead paying £8 on the door.