Space is Brilliant

Ballboy are fan-fucking-tastic live. The energy in their songs heard in person is simply overwhelming. Or it could have just been my excitement at seeing for the first time the people who performed the music that I have grown to love over these years. Well, either way, I had fun.

They played an almost entirely electric set, made up of songs from their three principal albums with slightly more lifted from the first, Club Anthems 2001. I've yet to hear their third electric album, Royal Theatre, so I got to experience those songs played live first. The biggest surprise came in the form of the electric version of Olympic Cyclist, which to the best of my knowledge isn't on any of their CDs. Satisfyingly, I also got to stand right at the front.

Ballboy deliver music that has a rare honesty to it. Gordon McIntyre's lyrics talk of love and ambition in a way that is not the stuff of dreams, but instead makes the mundane and ordinary seem beautiful. They capture the energy and magic that is inherent in everything we do and somehow realize it as song. Tales of the small successes and the seemingly unscalable plateaus in life are married perfectly with a kinetic rhythm that that makes you want to just do something.

Before Ballboy, support act King Bear put on an impressive show. Their off-colour blend of wailing guitars and green-tinged synth shrieks offering something unique and memorable. I'm thankful for the introduction to this band.

Being as this was, the night after the Scottish cup final, the Gorgie carnival was out in full force. Chants of, "We're shit and we won the cup," to the tune of Go West filled the Grassmarket. It always makes for an interesting night, but preferably watched from behind glass. The 'Blazer, a welcoming establishment at the best of times, has a pretty low tolerance for football supporters, so it provided such a suitable vantage point.

Another fun thing about the 'Blazer is watching the perplexed look on punters' faces as they are informed that Jack Daniels and Baccardi aren't sold there. "We've got forty-five different rums. You don't have to drink Morgans, you know."

My bedroom is disturbingly tidy right now. Not just in an "omfg, you actually have a carpet" kind of way, but you can even see some of the walls too. I give it three days before it reverts back to the way it was.

Happy Birthday

Many happy returns to brucec! I hope you have a fine day today.