Blog: Rocking In The Annex

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The Sophisticated Rehearsals continued yesterday as I made my way up to Leicester and then to Tiger Towers to meet Tom for our traditional trip to his EXCELLENT local Offy and then to get our tea. This time we chose Chinese: DELICIOUS.

Fully fed it was HO! for The Tigermobile and Woodhouse Eaves, where once again we were due for a practice. We picked Tim up, looked at the progress of the Pattison's Extension (SO grown-up) and then nipped back down the hill to the Village Hall... or, rather, to the annex.

Apparently something was going on in the main Village Hall, so I was expecting us to be playing in a tiny little shed stuck on the side, but the annex to Woodhouse Eaves Village Hall is of a kind which MOST villages would be proud to have as their MAIN hall. There were proper toilets, kitchen, large cupboard (labelled "The Council Would Prefer It If You Kept This Door Shut": polite, but FIRM) and even a POOL table in the corner, which I am sure GENERATIONS of children have looked at longingly, WISHING that once, just once, they'd arrive for the christening/birthday/nursery class to find it plugged IN. Also, the annex was very clearly labelled: "ANNEX", it said it large bold labels on the outside. GOOD.

As is becoming traditional Tim had forgotten something so he and Tom went back to collect it while I set up the drums, which i set up EXPERTLY. All right, it wasn't anywhere NEAR a full kit, but still, I could tell from Tim's face when he returned that he was IMPRESSED. I also had a quick GO, and discovered that replacing the foot operated bass drum with a stick walloped floor tom makes it MUCH MUCH easier to play in time. Bobby Gillespie: consider your early career FOUND OUT.

Francis arrived shortly after that, and we couldn't help but notice that he'd not bought his Euphonium. He explained his carefully thought out reasons - basically, he couldn't be bothered with it - and, JUST when he judged that our faces had become SAD enough at this news, whipped out the replacement instrument - a HARMONICA! HOOPLA!

We WHIPPED through most of the songs, then Emma arrived and we WHIPPED through them again. Well, I say "WHIPPED" but it was more like a gentle STROLL, as between each song there was time for HILARITY. Band Confidentiality prevents me from revealing what this was about but, as you would doubtless expect, it was the usual mixture of incisive comment about the current political scene and not AT ALL a giggling blend of rude jokes, Dr Who, and GOSSIPING about mutual acquaintances.

It was all sounding pretty good - we're getting there with The Balance, helped by Emma using a microphone, though i think I'll probably need one to. The songs were sounding good, ESPECIALLY (theme from) My Exciting Life In ROCK and the ACAPELLA section in Sod It Let's Get Pissed and it was, i think, a markedly more CONFIDENT Validators that left the annex promptly at 10.30pm.

We said our goodbyes and then Tom and I ZOOMED back to Leicester for a fairly conventional post-practice wind-down, consisting of a BEER and a repeat viewing of the aforesaid Doctor Who. I bet Pete Doherty finishes off his gig evenings in EXACTLY the same fashion.

posted 11/7/2008 by MJ Hibbett

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Comments:

See, that's why I based my Time In Bands on the Bobby Gillespie Philosophy (without the smack-addiction, naturally) - do what looks good but takes less effort.
posted 12/7/2008 by Steph

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