Blog: The Waiting Room

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The full-on proper Dinosaur Planet TOUR started on Sunday, and so myself and Mr S Hewitt gathered at Kings Cross just after lunch, ready to hop on a train and head NORTH for the gig at The Waiting Room, in Eaglescliffe.

The train was PACKED, but we handily found a double seat... and soon realised why it was free, for LO! we found ourselves sat behind some Newcastle Fans going home after a weekend in London which they recounted to each other AT INCREDIBLY HIGH VOLUME FOR THE NEXT HOUR. As Steve said, "I don't mind a bit of high spirits, but..." You know when you see a bunch of 14 year old boys excited to be out together on a bus or something? You always get one who's in charge, surveying the conversation, a couple shouting jokes, and then a couple of others SHRIEKING WITH LAUGHTER and then looking around nervously to check they've done it right? Like THAT, only with 50 year old men. FOR CHRIST'S SAKE! They were BELLOWING racism and the usual bollocks bravado about FIGHTING at such volume that even the iPod was unable to block them out - again, understandable for teenage boys off the leash for the first time, but bloody annoying and pathetic from six middle aged men - and gradually the carriage emptied as people SQUEEZED into the rest of the train.

MAN ALIVE, the quiet carriage had never FELT so quiet! It was BEAUTIFUL, and felt slightly wrong when we very quietly WHISPERED our way through a lines practice. We were restored to full sanity well before we arrived in Darlington, where we were met by the ever delightful Mr Bob Fischer, who took us over to the BBC Tees office where we recorded a quick SESSION for him, doing some of the tracks from the show, and did an interview about the tour and the forthcoming concept album. I think it'll be on this week, and it WHIPPED by!

Having done that he very kindly gave us a lift over to Eaglescliffe where The Waiting Room is located, and where we enjoyed a DELICIOUS tea of Shepherd's Pie. It was LOVELY - it also came with EXTRA potatoes, which some might think was maybe TOO MUCH potato in one meal. I didn't. It was ACE.

Soon Bob was back, as was Mr C Steward, sole audience member from the last time I played up this way and we settled down to watch The SouthMartins - a Housemartins/Beautiful South covers band with perhaps the most PERFECT name of ALL Tribute Bands. They did a LOT of Beautiful South stuff, almost all from the first couple of albums i.e. The Quite Good Ones That I Used To Have On Tape. It was all rather lovely - INDEED you did Forget How Many Hits They've Had, or at least _I_ did. Lots of the audience seemed to be BIG fans of them, especially a few people sat just behind us who, despite singing along and CHEERING like mad for everything, also seemed to want to SHOUT conversation at each other throughout the gig. I was on ALERT for later. "These could be trouble!" i thought.

I was not incorrect, as they decided to TALK LOUDLY thoughout OUR set. Half of them LEFT after ten minutes, saying "THIS IS DOING MY FCUKING HEAD IN" as loudly as possible as they walked out, and another kept trying to INTERJECT all the way through, but actually this was FINE. Everyone else came on board pretty quickly and properly got into it, and it may be that the couple of people trying to spoil it made them want to get on OUR side even more. It was all HIGHLY enjoyable - I'd been a bit worried about how much we'd remember, but we did it almost ALL right, and even when we didn't it was fun. My FAVOURITE bit was when me and Steve did a knocking on the door bit in PERFECT synchronicity - we were so impressed we forgot where we were!

Full credit to Mr S Hewitt on this one too, who was not swayed in the LEAST by interruptions, and indeed INCREASED his volume along with me to match. It made for a DEAD good show I thought - although we still didn't convince one heckler, who bellowed "GET THE OTHER LOT ON STAGE, I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS CRAP!" "I'm stood right behind you!" i said, as her husband shook his head in despair.

Soon it was time to FLEE, and we HUGGED our goodbyes to all and sundry as we set off into the night courtesy of Steve's Mum, at whose house we were staying and where TEA was supplied. Next morning would find us up EXTREMELY early to get home via a train SO VERY FULL that we had to stand up for most of the way, but for now it was time to RETIRE, safe in the knowledge of a tour well begun!

posted 26/10/2010 by MJ Hibbett

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