issue 6 of ne magazine
Post on 06-Mar-2016
226 Views
Preview:
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
1
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
THE BIGGEST FREE MAGAZINE FOR THE NORTH EAST
ISSUE #6 MARCH 2013
SAGE Jazz FestivalHiccups FestivalFood For ThoughtsMusic From RayneAnd More
Featuring
Plus
PHOTOGRAPHER PETER REED
2
The song your l i s ten ing to
on our NE MAGAZINE P layer
whi le you read th i s i s sue i s
ca l led Fa l len by RAYNE, make
sure you check out the i r
feature for more info on a
great band.
3
Welcome Note .
Welcome to another great I s sue of NE Magaz ine . I t s been a ver y busy month for us p lann ing loads of g reat content coming your way soon so make sure you keep up wi th us on our Facebook page , i f you haven’ t a l ready then th i s month you have missed out on severa l amaz ing compet i t ions , so go l i ke us now so you don’ t miss out on any more…because we’ve got some crack ing ones coming your way! ! !
http ://w w w.facebook.com/pages/N-E-Onl ine-Magaz ine/248245728604190?ref=ts&fref=ts
Don’ t forget i f you want to appear in a future i s sue then p lease get in touch as we can ’ t he lp you i f you don’ t te l l us , we rea l ly need you to he lp us to showcase how fantast i c the North East and i t ’s people are
Unt i l next month , take i t easy
Wayne
EDITORWayne Groveswayne@neonlinemagazine.com
DESIGNERJoseph Archerwww.josephphil l iparcher.co.uk
archer.joe@neonlinemagazine.com
CONTRIBUTORSIan Berry Photographerwww.ianberry.co.uk
info@ianberry.co.uk
Greame Baty Photographerwww.facebook.com/GJBPerformancePhotography
g.j .baty@gmail .com
Ant Clennanhttp://www.facebook.com/ant .clennanhttp://wwwsouthtynesidekettlebells.co.uk
WebsiteGreg Wyllie BA (Hons)www.evocreative.co.uk
info@evocreative.co.uk
SPONSORSCineworld Boldonwww.cineworld.co.uk
The Sage Gatesheadwww.thesagegateshead.org
Ocean Beach Pleasure Parkwww.oceanbeach.co.uk
Quasar Elite South Shieldswww.quasarsouthshields.co.uk
For all queries or if you would like to feature or advertise in NE Magazine email contact@neonlinemagazine.com
Unless stated otherwise all competition entries should be sent to win@neonlinemagazine.com
Plus you can catch up with us online for news, events, blogs, competitions and more at www.neonlinemagazine.com
Follow us on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/pages/N-E-Online-Magazine/248245728604190join us on twitter @NEOnlineMag
4
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
4
6 13
9 16
DEATH TO INDIE
TRIP THE SAGE JAZZ FESTIVAL
PETER REED
5
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
5
23 RAYNE
26 THE HICCUPS FESTIVAL
20 FOOD FOR THOUGHTS
6
When d id you form and how d id i t come about?Mark and Jax have been f r iends for years and have been in prev ious bands together, the same for N ik and Mike . Mike and Mark star ted work ing together and the rest i s h i stor y. Are you a covers band or do you do your own mater ia l?We wr i te our own mater ia l and wi l l cont inue to deve lop our own sty le and sound, however, we do have a sof t spot for “punk ing up” cheesy 80 ’s and 90 ’s pop h i t s . A Random fact about each band member? (3 for a so lo ar t i ste ) Michea l Jax i s 1/16 Mex icanMike Renwick hates cheeseNik B loomf ie ld i s a f ra id o f sta ined g lass
Who are you?We are Death to Ind ie , a 4 p iece pop-punk/punk-rock out f i t . Where are you f rom?Based in Newcast le Who does what in the band?Michae l Jax – Lead Vox and Gui tarNik B loomf ie ld – Lead Gui tarMark Rayner – Bass and Genera l ManagerMike Renwick - Drums Where d id the name come f rom?We fe l t that “ Ind ie Cu l ture” has taken over. The or ig ina l idea of Ind ie ( Independent ) Mus ic was or ig ina l i ty and deve lop ing someth ing new. Th is has been saturated and i t seems that popular mus ic i s a l l so s imi lar.
w indowsMark Rayner i s a par t t ime stand up comedian What has been your most memorab le moment to date so far? Each member has the i r own, Mark ’s i s p lay ing Legends N ightc lub in f ront o f a c rowd of over 200 , N ik ’s was s ign ing wi th The An imal Farm record labe l , Mike ’s was p lay ing Nambucca in London and Jax ’ was read ing our f i rst rev iew on GIG- IT webs i te . Who insp i res you?As we are a band, we are a l l in f luenced by d i f ferent people through d i f ferent genres . For o ld school punk bands l i ke The Outcasts and The Ramones , r ight through to new rock bands l i ke The Foo f ighter and The Offspr ing .
I N T E R V I E W W I T H D E AT H T O I N D I E
7
I f you cou ld make 1 person d i sappear for good who would i t be and why? ( famous)S imon Cowel l , he i s the reason why the mus ic industr y i s more interested in a pretty face and the a lmighty buck than raw ta lent . Rea l songwr i ters wi th stor ies to te l l a re be ing shunned in favour o f some two-b i t , auto tuned, fash ion labe l p lucked st ra ight out o f midd le school to be a record labe l puppet . What would your r ider be i f you were p lay ing a huge g ig?Je l ly Beans , Newcast le Brown A le and Pr ing les . Where would you l i ke to g ig the most?Vans Warped Tour, Roundhouse in London or Download Fest iva l . I f you cou ld t rave l back in t ime when would you t rave l back to and why?Late 60 ’s ear ly 70 ’s . So much was happening mus ica l l y. A lot o f mus ic ian were exper iment ing wi th d i f ferent sounds and inst ruments and car v ing
Where i s your favour i te p lace in the North east?Whit ley Bay coast/ S t James Park What ’s your a ims for 2013?Get the EP done, promote the a lbum and get on a few fest iva l s . Tour as much as poss ib le too . Why should people come and l i sten to you?The one th ing we are wel l known for i s the energy and en joyment we put into our l i ve shows. For us , be ing in a band i sn ’ t just about the mus ic , i t s about mak ing sure the aud ience have fun , en joy the show as wel l as the no ise . Where can people fo l low you/keep up to date wi th you?Facebook.com/deathto ind ieukYoutube.com/deathto ind ieukTwitter @deathto ind ie
out new genres . There was a lot more f reedom of express ion back then, now, i t s a l l just bu i ld ing on what the ar t i st s back then star ted . I f you cou ld p lay wi th anyone in the wor ld , past or present who would i t be and why? The Who, The Foo F ighters , The C lash . A l l G iants o f Rock/Punk. What ’s the most embarrass ing th ing you have ever done at a g ig?At our f i rst Legends g ig we a l l wore dresses , N ik has fa l len off the stage before . What adv ice would you g ive to anyone want ing to star t a band up?Be prepared to p lay empty rooms, work wi th 2 b i t use less promoters and bands who th ink they are b ig ger than they actua l ly are . I f you were not p lay ing in a band what would you be do ing instead?We would st i l l be invo lved wi th mus ic , e i ther as sess ion mus ic ians , so lo ar t i st s or product ion .
9
f ree a lbum ser ies ca l led DEMO (Damn Ego’s Mash ing Out ) back in 2009. I re leased 5 in a l l f rom then unt i l 2011 v ia var ious H ip Hop and downloadable s i tes . I guess you can ca l l them a journey of progress ion because l i s ten ing back over them each one bettered the last ef for t . In a l l honesty none of them cou ld be p layed star t to f in i sh as the over a l l pro ject wasn’ t t ight enough. Each one had gems though wi th the l i kes o f Dorm Room, Toy Box and So Far So So which I st i l l per form today. I t ’s on ly now af ter re leas ing the Poet iks stuff that I fee l l i ke I ’m ready to re lease a so l id so lo a lbum.
Hi Tr ip! Welcome to NE Magaz ine , so te l l us a b i t about yourse l f and what you do? I ’m 27 , marr ied wi th 2 gorgeous ch i ldren and I ’m a l so a H ip Hop ar t i st f rom Consett Co . Durham go ing by the a l ias Ego Tr ip . I come f rom a Sa lvat ion Army background as my parents work for them and dur ing my younger years we moved around a lot wi th the i r job , meaning I was constant ly t r y ing to f i t in wi th new people and new schools . A l though that was a pa in I learned how to read mus ic scr ipts , p lay brass inst ruments and how to s ing - we l l ho ld a note lo l . I t wasn ’ t unt i l I was about 15 that I f i rst star ted wr i t ing l y r i cs and songs . At f i rst I guess i t was just a phase but as the years went on i t became a part o f my l i fe . How hard was i t for you star t ing out as a rap ar t i st f rom the North East? I t ’s probab ly the hardest p lace to come out o f as a rapper just because of the accent a lone. Not many people can understand i t over songs i f I ’m be ing bruta l ly honest . I ’m lucky I don’ t have a st rong Geord ie accent so people can understand what I say. I t ’s not the best known p lace for H ip Hop e i ther espec ia l l y when people main ly l i s ten to people f rom London, B i rmingham and Manchester. But that ’s
chang ing , people l i ke Rex Reg is , Suus , Skrufz , Mi l i tantz and Darksyde are a l l mak ing a lot o f no ise through the North East and beyond
Have you a lways done your own mater ia l? Yeah, I love wr i t ing l y r i cs . I th ink I ac tua l ly en joy wr i t ing more than the actua l record ing even though both of those can be rea l ly f rust rat ing . There ’s t imes when I ’m in the stud io wi th Poet iks when we he lp each other to make the over a l l song sound better but apart f rom that ever y th ing you hear i s my own.
Te l l us about your a lbums and how you star ted out re leas ing them? I star ted work ing on a
A N I N T E R V I E W W I T H T R I P
10
see boarded up houses , burnt garages and gangs of teenagers stand ing around st reet corners . I t makes me gratefu l for what I have .
I f you cou ld make 1 person d i sappear for good who would i t be and why? L i l Wayne lo l a l though
I admire h i s work rate , h i s mus ic i s horr ib le and h i s dress sense of leopard sk in leg g ings make H ip Hop a laugh ing stock to the masses .
What has been your most memorab le moment to date so far? I t was probably meet ing Obie Tr i ce on a st reet corner in Manchester just before h i s g ig . At the t ime he was s igned to Eminem’s Shady Records Impr int and had just re leased h i s debut a lbum ‘Cheers ’. I remember be ing wi th my g i r l f r iend (now wi fe) Gemma and a f r iend of mine R imm. A week before , me and R imm had recorded about 4 or 5 t racks and thrown them on CD’s under the name Lost Sou lz . Look ing back now the mus ic was horrendous but at the t ime we were the best rappers in the UK - in our heads lo l . R imm remembered we had one of our CD’s in the car so we ran p icked i t up and headed for Obie , who was wi th these 2 HUGE body guards . Ob ie s lapped hands wi th us and took the CD say ing he would check i t out . Th ink ing about i t we probably made h i s ears b leed and the CD got snapped in ha l f but h im just tak ing the t ime to take i t o f f us and ta lk to us for 5 minutes was a l l the mot ivat ion I needed to make i t in mus ic .
Who insp i res you? A lot o f people insp i re me f rom my wi fe and k ids to f r iends to other ar t i st s . I hear a lot o f mus ic and I th ink about t r y ing s imi lar th ings . P laces a l so insp i re me, l i ke when I ’m dr iv ing home to see my parents and I
I f you cou ld p lay wi th anyone in the wor ld , past or present who would i t be and why? At the minute i t would be Joe Budden. The guy has become my favour i te rapper over the last couple o f years , H i s l y r i cs are so thought provok ing which i s how I t r y to wr i te mine, and he doesn ’ t care what people th ink he just goes out and does i t and i t seems to be pay ing off at long last .
What ’s the most embarrass ing th ing you have ever done
at a g ig? lo l ! I t has to be forgett ing my ly r i cs at my f i rst g ig in Wales . I was
drunk on stage wi th Prospekt
and one of my favour i te songs
of mine h i t so I s tar ted rapp ing a long then a l l o f a sudden for an unknown reason I wanted to change the ly r i cs and messed i t up lo l ! I f roze , but Prospekt be ing a qua l i ty rapper just star ted f reesty l ing the rest o f f the verse wi th ly r i cs o f f the top of h i s head. Per fect cover up we got away wi th i t - we l l that ’s what Prospekt and our DJ thought before I star ted laugh ing and sa id ‘Gem I forgot my ly r i cs ’ down the mic lo l . We a l l make minor mistakes lo l ! I ’d l i ke to take th i s
t ime to thank Prospekt by the way so . . . Thank You lo l ! !
11
What adv ice would you g ive to anyone want ing to get star ted in Rap? Be yourse l f. There ’s no po int be ing someone your not or coming across as someth ing that has noth ing to do wi th your s i tuat ion . Be l ieve in yourse l f and you’ l l ach ieve any th ing . Don’ t be af ra id o f your dreams no matter how crazy they may seem.
Share a secret wi th us? Hmmm i t wouldn’ t be a secret i f I to ld you would i t? N ice t r y though lo l
Where i s your favour i te p lace in the North east? Consett . lo l ! I t ’s as s imple as that . S top turn ing your noses up lo l . I t ’s my home, the p lace where I g rew up. I learned a lot f rom my t ime l i v ing there . I have great memor ies and some amaz ing f r iends f rom there . Why e l se would I have ‘DH8’ tattoo ’d on my arm? Ser ious ly lo l !
Who are Poet iks? Poet iks i s a name me and Prospekt had back in 2006 when we star ted work ing as a duo on a few songs . Noth ing came of i t back then to be honest . A f ter me naming Prospekt and br ing ing h im into the game back in 2005 we had a minor fa l l ing out in 2008 and d idn ’ t ta lk aga in unt i l the summer of 2010, in which t ime I had star ted my DEMO ser ies and Prospekt had star ted work ing wi th CeeJay. The f i rst t ime a l l o f us were in the stud io together was mid 2010. I remember i t we l l because I thought i t was a p lan by Prospekt to jump me lo l no joke! !
your songs? Wow! err rm!! Probably these l ines f rom a f ree sty le me and Prospekt d id before Retr ibut ion came out “Deve loped hear ing ‘a ids ’ f rom phone ‘sex ’. That ’s a ‘punch’ l ine accord ing to my wi fe locked out on the doorstep” lo l don’ t ask! She ’ l l knock me out i f she ever reads th i s .
What ’s your a ims for 2013? My f i rst a im i s to get Speak of the Dev i l done ready for the end of Apr i l . And a l so star t on my f i rst o f f i c ia l so lo a lbum. As wel l as a l l o f the Poet iks idea ’s f rom our next promo re lease ‘Box ing With God’ to our f i rst o f f i c ia l a lbum, Hopefu l ly the fan base grows through out the year and I get to per form in more p laces across the countr y
Why should people come and l i sten to you? I come wi th a lot o f energy on stage , I love putt ing on a show. Not just turn up on stage rap a b i t and then leave! I want to be the guy who gets stuck in your head for days .
Where can people fo l low you/keep up to date wi th you? w w w.poet iks .bandcamp.com w w w.th is i sego.com w w w.h i r i skrecords .com @this i sego @off i c ia lpoet iks @hir i skrecords w w w.facebook.com/th is i sego w w w.facebook.com/poet iks w w w.facebook.com/hi r i skrecords
I was ner vous , I d idn ’ t know what to expect . F rom then unt i l ear ly 2012 we jumped on each others songs and per formed together. I t was in June of last year me and Prospekt dec ided to br ing Poet iks back to l i fe and work on a jo int EP together. That same n ight we recorded ‘ War Mus ic ’ and ‘Sp i tt in & Rhymin ’ which can be heard on the Retr ibut ion a lbum (w w w.poet iks .bandcamp.com) . I t wasn ’ t unt i l a week later Pekt came up wi th the idea of add ing CeeJay to the group g iv ing us more depth wi th h im be ing an amaz ing s inger. Our f i rst port o f ca l l was a t rack ca l led ‘Sn i tch ’ a imed at North East group Top Boy Round Here . The response was unrea l ! We had the North pat ient ly wa i t ing for Retr ibut ion which dropped last August . A long s ide that we dropped another EP in December ca l led Funs Over which carr ied on the hype f rom Retr ibut ion . I t a l l happened so fast f rom forming to be ing ca l led the ‘Super Group of the North ’ as Prospekt and CeeJay are f rom the North West .
Are you s igned? I ’m not s igned as such . My c lose f r iend Stu runs a loca l H ip Hop record labe l ca l led H i R i sk Records and I ’ve been putt ing my mus ic out v ia them for near ly 10 years . I owe a lot to S tu for the amount of work he puts in and the be l ief he has had over the last decade or so .
What ’s your favour i te l y r i cs f rom one of
12
13
So how about you te l l us a b i t about yourse l f? I am a midd le aged Bed l ington lad . I went to co l lege and stud ied graph ic des ign then photography. I am a father o f three ( two boys and one g i r l ) and grandfather o f two boys . I l i ke to v i s i t ga l ler ies , museums and go for dr ives in the countr y but s i tt ing down on the beach in the sun i s a l so good.
Your winn ing photo b lew our judges away, i t rea l ly i s an incred ib le
wi th exposures so I knew what to set my camera on and focused manua l ly. Are you a fu l l t ime profess iona l photographer or i s photography a b i t o f a hobby?Photography i s a lo t o f a hobby, I take my camera wi th me whenever we go for a dr ive and keep stopp ing to take photos . I submit some of my photos to photo l ibrar ies , I used to photograph events
image, how hard was i t to get that shot , what was your process for catch ing i t?I t was around 5 in the morn ing , I was in Newcast le to p ick up my son who was t rave l l ing up f rom London and I had ha l f an hour spare so took a wa lk around the quays ide took a few shots on t r ipod for s low exposures . I saw that some of the l i ghts were coming on at the Sage so went onto the Mi l lenn ium br idge . Whi le wa lk ing a long the Quays ide I exper imented
A N I N T E R V I E W W I T H P E T E R R E E D
14
to see per formances , watch ing people do someth ing that they love and do ing i t we l l p lus you a l so get to l i s ten to mus ic or watch a p lay. What insp i res you wi th your photography?I t r y to get the v iewer to look at my photographs and th ink , “ I want to go there” or “ that looks n ice” or just “what i s that ” as long they f ind them interest ing . Do you have a facebook or a webs i te where people can see your work?http ://w w w.facebook.
at Wal l ington for the Nat iona l Trust and recent ly have been cover ing the A l ternate Model contest . And what k ind of photography do you do? I l i ke to photograph concerts , people , landscapes , abst ract images . I don’ t st i ck to a s ing le sub ject . Any th ing can make a good image
I f you cou ld shoot anyone/any p lace who/where would i t be and why?I t would be a concert but who depends on what cd I ’m l i sten ing to at the t ime. I l i ke go ing
com/peter. reed.39 http ://peterreedemai l .w ix .com/the- l ight-was-r ight Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f? I ’m lef t-handedI once broke my leg in a bad land ing on a parachute jumpI asked the gu i tar i st Johnny Winter what i s h i s best s ide (he wasn’ t amused)
Any th ing you would l i ke to add?Has anybody got any jobs for a photographer, no job too easy no pay too large .
16
performed by Northern S infon ia , orchestra o f The Sage Gateshead, wi th jazz so lo i sts T im Whitehead and Henr y Lowther p lus award winn ing t r io L ighthouse , featur ing the award-winn ing p ian ist Gwi lym S imcock . The venue’s int imate Jazz Lounge, c reated for the fest iva l , w i l l host two af ternoons of ‘Jazz f rom the North ’ on the Saturday and the Sunday, wi th bands f rom the North of Eng land, Scot land and a l so f rom the far North wi th the Verner i Poh jo la Tr io and Oddarrang , both f rom F in land and who have recent ly rece ived a warm recept ion at the London Jazz Fest iva l .
The connect ion wi th Nord ic jazz goes fur ther welcoming back Dan ish bass p layer Jasper Hø iby and h i s band Phrones i s on the Sunday who, s ince the i r 2010 appearance at the fest iva l as par t o f a Loop Co l lect ive showcase , have taken Europe by storm. They are supported by the un ique duo L i tt le Rad io ( Ia in Ba l lamy and Nor weg ian St ian Carstensen) .
A s ideways North East connect ion comes wi th the un ique concert ‘Speed of Grace – a t r ibute to AC/DC ’ by German jazz s inger Jens Thomas wi th Verner i Poh jo la whereby the mus ic o f AC/DC becomes late n ight chamber jazz .
The fest iva l i s a lways de l ighted to work wi th broadcaster/mus ic ian A lyn Sh ipton and th i s
Gateshead Internat iona l Jazz Fest iva l , the la rgest UK fest iva l he ld under one roof, has announced i t s head l ine acts and themes for 2013 inc lud ing the Nat iona l Youth Jazz Orchestra , L ighthouse , Phrones i s , Chr i st ine Tob in , Ruby Turner and The Brand New Heav ies . The fest iva l w i l l take p lace in the spectacu lar surroundings o f The Sage Gateshead on Fr iday 5th - Sunday 7th Apr i l 2013 and t i ckets go on sa le on Fr iday 7th December.
The fest iva l k i cks o ff in Ha l l One wi th the f i rst ever v i s i t to the venue f rom the Nat iona l Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO) – now en joy ing a new and h igher prof i le - w i th some spec ia l jazz guests , p lus an opening set f rom the The Sage Gateshead’s own youth jazz ensemble , Jambone. In Ha l l Two that even ing the genre-bust ing Soweto K inch presents mater ia l f rom h is new double a lbum ‘ The Legend of Mike Smith ’ w i th h i s new t r io .
The North i s a key theme for the fest iva l , interpreted in var ious ways . Saturday n ight ’s Ha l l One concert presents two jazz su i tes insp i red by the North East o f Eng land – ‘Northumbr ian Sketches ’, wr i tten in the 1980’s by Newcast le jazz mus ic ian/composer Ian Carr in i t s f i rst ever North East per formance, and ‘Songs to the North Sky ’, wr i tten in 2012 by T im Gar land, res ident in the reg ion . Both wi l l be
17
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
17
to i t s i con ic roof wi th the sounds of over 100 saxophone p layers in the cu lminat ion of the North East ’s own vers ion of Saxophone Mass ive , the now wel l estab l i shed mass part i c ipat ion pro ject for sax p layers o f a l l ages and ab i l i t ies p lay ing under the gu idance of the pro ject ’s or ig inator and Gateshead Internat iona l Jazz Fest iva l ’s regu lar Andy Sheppard and gu i tar i st Chr i s Sharkey.
Ros R igby, Per formance Programme Di rector at The Sage Gateshead sa id : “ I am rea l ly look ing for ward to welcoming some new ar t i st s to our fest iva l such as the F inn ish ar t i st s as wel l as some of the qu i rk ier events l i ke the AC/DC t r ibute which I ’m sure Gateshead’s own Br ian Johnson would en joy!”
Gateshead Internat iona l Jazz Fest iva l i s produced by The Sage Gateshead in co l laborat ion wi th SERIOUS.
T ickets can be booked e i ther by ca l l ing 0191 443 4661, on l ine at w w w.thesagegateshead.org /g i j f13 or in person f rom The Sage Gateshead’s T icket Off i ce f rom the 7th December (pre-sa le on the 6th December to Sage Supporters . For more informat ion about jo in ing Sage Supporters v i s i t w w w.thesagegateshead.org /support-us )
year he wi l l work wi th us to deve lop Jazz Words - an exp lorat ion of the re lat ionsh ip between jazz and poetr y, notab ly the work of Ph i l ip Lark in and W.B.Yeats ; ‘ Lark in ’s Jazz ’ invo lves both jazz sett ings o f h i s poems but a l so read ings o f Lark in ’s wr i t ing about jazz and the p lay ing of the works he descr ibes . The event a l so inc ludes I r i sh s inger Chr i st ine Tob in ’s h igh ly regarded ‘Sa i l ing to Byzant ium’ - her band’s sett ings o f Yeats poems. A lyn Sh ipton wi l l a l so present a l i ve ed i t ion of Rad io 3 ’s Jazz Record Requests f rom the fest iva l .
Gu i tar i st s wi l l be thr i l led to hear that semina l F rench gu i tar i st B i re l i Lagrene makes a rare appearance outs ide London; whi l st st i l l a master o f the Re inhardt legacy, h i s current band i s a f ree-wheel ing quartet remin iscent o f 1960’s B lue Note , w i th saxophonist F ranck Wol f, drummer Jean Marc Rob in and Hammond organ ist Jean-Yves Jung prov id ing the texture and groove.
Sou l and funk lovers wi l l be up on the i r feet for a sensat iona l double b i l l in Ha l l One on the last n ight o f the fest iva l w i th Joo ls Ho l land regu lar Ruby Turner and 90 ’s superstars The Brand New Heav ies , who are now ce lebrat ing a new a lbum re lease .
The Sunday af ternoon wi l l a l so see and hear the Concourse of The Sage Gateshead f i l led
both per formances wi l l o f fer the combined forces o f jazz mus ic ians and c lass ica l , appea l ing to a wide range of mus ic lovers . Composer T im Gar land was insp i red by the North East to c reate the approachab le , melod ic and c inemat ic p iece ‘Songs to The North Sky ’. Movements wi th in the p iece inc lude ‘ Tyne Song ’, ‘ Shapes Over Northumber land’, ‘ S torm Over K ie lder ’ and ‘ L i tt le Bay B lue ’ (ded icated to the beach near T im’s home in Whi t ley Bay) . T im Gar land sa id : “ The su i te was insp i red by the b ig sky l ines o f the North East and my t ime t rave l l ing to and f rom there , i t ’s the most c inemat ic and autob iograph ica l work I ’ve wr i tten wi th a part i cu lar emphas i s on melod ies f i t t ing for these b ig skyscapes”.
Northern Sp i r i t s – Jazz Fest iva l ce lebrates North East LandscapeSaturday 6 Apr i l 2013
The mus ic o f two of the UK’s most d i st inct ive ly or ig ina l jazz composers – T im Gar land and nat ive Tynes ider Ian Carr – wi l l be featured at Gateshead Internat iona l Jazz Fest iva l , insp i red by the landscapes of the North East o f Eng land. The Northern Sp i r i t s concert wi l l inc lude the wor ld premiere per formance of ‘Songs to the North Sky ’ composed by T im Gar land. In add i t ion to th i s new su i te wi l l be the f i rst per formance in the North East o f ‘Northumbr ian Sketches ’ (both to be conducted by C lark Rundel l ) which was composed by the late mus ic ian Ian Carr. Featur ing Northern S infon ia , orchestra o f The Sage Gateshead,
18
The orchestrated work of ‘Northumbr ian Sketches ’ by t rumpeter / composer Ian Carr was commiss ioned for the Brackne l l Jazz Fest iva l in 1986. The p iece i s in four movements and was a t r ibute to the Northumbr ian author, S id Chap l in , a North Eastern wr i ter for nove ls , sc reenplays and poems of ten set in County Durham’s p i t v i l l ages in the 1940s and ‘50s . The p iece uses the landscape which Chap l in had known and loved and combines c lass i ca l st r ing orchestrat ion wi th v ibrant jazz improv isat ion . John Cumming , f rom Ser ious sa id o f the p iece : “ I was pr iv i leged to work wi th Ian Carr on many occas ions over the years , inc lud ing co-commiss ion ing ‘Northumbr ian Sketches ’, which rece ived i t s premiere at
19
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
19
YOUR TICKET’S A BARGAIN ON TUESDAYS
*Additional charge will be applied for 3D films.
Every movie, every Tuesday – just £4.40*
both jazz and c lass ica l mus ic fest iva l s at South H i l l Park Brackne l l in the 1980s . I remember Ian descr ib ing the cha l lenge of wr i t ing for st r ings wi th great exc i tement , and when George Foster and Ser ious re -d i scovered the p iece for Ian ’s memorab le memor ia l concert in 2010, i t reminded me just how accompl i shed and absorb ing th i s mus ic remains . I t w i l l be rea l p leasure to hear i t once more and I ’m sure Ian ’s c reat ive sp i r i t w i l l watch over and insp i re th i s f i rst North-Eastern per formance.” The concert a l so inc ludes a for ty minute set by the award winn ing t r io L ighthouse , which inc ludes T im
Northern Sp i r i t s i s at The Sage Gateshead on Saturday 6 Apr i l 2013, as part o f Gateshead Internat iona l Jazz Fest iva l which takes p lace on the 5 – 7 Apr i l 2013. T ickets are £19.50 and can be booked e i ther by ca l l ing 0191 443 4661, on l ine at w w w.thesagegateshead.org or in person f rom The Sage Gateshead’s T icket Off i ce . A jazz fest iva l pass i s ava i lab le .
Gar land a long wi th p ian ist Gwi lym S imcock and percuss ion ist Asaf S i rk i s . L ighthouse themselves were a l so insp i red by a North East landmark - S t Mar y ’s L ighthouse in Whi t ley Bay - and have now p layed a l l over the wor ld . Ros R igby sa id : “ Th is i s a un ique event ce lebrat ing two ambit ious compos i t ions for jazz ensemble and orchestra - one f rom the last centur y and one wr i tten in the last year- both insp i red by the North Eastern landscape and cu l ture . We are de l ighted to make i t one of the h igh l ights o f the 2013 Gateshead Internat iona l Jazz Fest iva l .”
www.cineworld.com
20
Sage Wisdom
When you get o lder other people , in my case k ids , move around your pr ior i t ies for you usua l ly. You can ’ t just wa lk out o f the house for a n ight out , ever y th ing has to be organ ised .Thus I never usua l ly ce lebrate th ings l i ke b i r thdays and ann iversar ies , i t ’s too much hass le .
Th is year someone ment ioned the Sage had a Brass iere , a fact that I wasn ’ t aware of, a f ter a l i t t le invest igat ion I dec ided to t reat my other ha l f to a ce lebrator y meal for our wedding ann iversar y.I must admit that th i s makes me sound ver y romant ic , unt i l you rea l i se that I am actua l ly qu i te cheap. Af ter 7pm you can get two courses for £12 or three for £15.
The Sage in case you have been l i v ing in a cave for the last ten or so years in about a ten minute wa lk f rom Gateshead Metro or a ver y short tax i r ide . You can a l so get the
Goats cheese and o l ive tar t w i th a herb sa lad and ba lsamic dress ing .My star ter was love ly, the ter r ine was n ice ly f lavoured and moist and the sa lad per fect ly dressed. I d id th ink that there was a l i t t le too much p icca l i l l i but i t was easy to leave i t and better to have too much than too l i t t le . Mr Johnson loved h i s tar t , beaut i fu l l y c r i sp short past r y wi th no sog gy bottom and aga in a wel l dressed sa lad .
The mains were a l so exce l lent , my Co ley f i l let was beaut i fu l l y cooked and the sa lad of beans and peas was love ly. I would have l i ked my f i sh to have a l i t t le more season ing , as there was sa l t and pepper on the tab le th i s was easy to rect i f y. Mr Johnson had the ch icken wi th b lack pudding and whi te on ion puree which was fabu lous . I he lped myse l f substant ia l mouthfu l . The ch icken was moist and the puree was smooth and creamy. I cou ld have and d id t r y to stea l the p late .
The pudding se lect ion was as conc i se as the
Quays ide bendy bus which drops you pretty much outs ide the door.The bu i ld ing i t se l f has become one of the North East ’s most i con ic landmarks , at n ight i t g lows l i ke a mag ica l c reature that you might f ind whi le adventur ing wi th Dr Dool i tt le .We made our way through the crowds to the Brass iere which on ly had two other customers . Normal ly th i s would be a cause for concern but I th ink af ter a qu ick st raw po l l o f my food ie f r iends i t ’s because not many people know about the Brass iere .
The af ter 7pm Soprano menu has three cho ices for each course , inc lud ing a vegetar ian opt ion . I loved th i s neat conc i se menu, I am not a huge fan of la rge menus , I persona l ly fee l that b ig menus can cause confus ion in k i tchen leav ing the food on the p late qu i te not as i t shou ld be .For star ters I choose the pork and p i stach io ter r ine wi th p icca l i l l i and croutons , Mr Johnson choose a caramel i sed on ion ,
21
rest o f the menu, I went for the raspberr y panna cotta wi th lemon curd and Mr Johnson went for the cheese board . My panna cotta had the appropr iate j i g g le factor and the f lavour was remin iscent o f the b lue raspberr y which i s not bad th ing . I t su i ted my current obsess ion for pudding that requ i res no chewing . I was however devastated that i t was ser ved wi th choco late sauce rather than the advert i sed lemon curd . I cou ld have compla ined and I am sure the staf f would have rect i f ied th i s w i th no prob lems but in a mature fash ion I choose to su lk l i ke a petu lant ch i ld instead.
The cheese board when i t a r r ived was impress ive even for non-cheese lover, w i th substant ia l port ions o f loca l ly sourced cheeses .The wine se lect ion was a l so good and reasonably pr i ced , we went for an Argent inean Malbec , my favour i te wine pr iced at a reasonable £19.95 .The ser v ice was a l so fantast i c and a l though we were the on ly two customers in the Brass iere the staf f were not int rus ive at a l l , they were po l i te and he lpfu l .The food i s unbe l ievab le good espec ia l l y when you cons ider that i t i s on ly £15 for three courses . A l l the romance went out o f the even ing when I kept repeat ing can you be l ieve th i s i s on ly £15. I have no idea how such great food i s so reasonable and a l l loca l ly sourced.
The whole meal wi th wine cost £54 inc lud ing
two s ides , that ’s £27 a head.
The overa l l exper ience was love ly the Brass ies i s understated and fu l l o f c lean l ines . My on ly major compla int i s that at the back of the Brass iere are the most h ideous cheap red vases fu l l o f twigs . Once I had spotted them they annoyed me and should be removed immediate ly.
In a l l th i s i s one of the best mea ls I have ever eaten, the whole exper ience was ver y ver y good. The food i s def in i te ly a 8 .9 out o f ten , the ser v ice would be a 9 out o f 10 , but va lue for money i s a 10 out o f 10 . I s t i l l can ’ t be l ieve i t was so cheap and so good.My f ina l test i s usua l ly would I eat there aga in? I have a l ready booked to go back .
By
E l i zabeth Johnson
www.josephphilliparcher.co.uk
NEED A DESIGN?
Business cardsLeaflets and Brochures
MagazinesInformation Graphics
07523 331797
23
An a l ternat ive- rock band f rom Sunder land
Ben Potts , lead s inger and bass .Adam Dag g , lead gu i tar and keys .S teven ‘Nez ’ Na isbet on drums and samples .
Why Rayne?(Ben) We took ages dec id ing on a name. We went wi th Rayne when
Te l l us a Random fact about each band member?(Ben) I had a test i c le removed due to Cancer last year 2012. I recent ly featured in the Nuts magaz ine because of i t . Excuse the pun! Adam i s a we i rdo, he has never t r ied eat ing a sandwich because he doesn ’ t l i ke the look of them.Nez current ly owns Katy Perr y ’s drum k i t .
What has been your most memorab le moment to date so far?(Ben) Th is might sound a b i t c rap but for me i t was p lay ing one of the Stanhope shows - maybe 2007. I t was in a marquee of around 2000 people and they a l l went menta l when we came on. I loved that and d idn ’ t want i t to end. Memorab le stor ies happened af ter, but that would be for another t ime lo l . (Adam) for me i t ’s a l l the batt le o f bands we have won and the amount of money we have ra i sed for numerous char i t ies . I t ’s near ly £20 ,000. (Nez) My most memorab le moment would be the launch of our current a lbum ‘ The New En l ightenment ’ that i s ava i lab le on iTunes ( shameless p lug) . Th i s was a br i l l i ant n ight . I cou ld of stayed there forever.
Who insp i res you?(Ben) My insp i rat ions are not f rom mus ic ians or bands , I f ind insp i rat ion f rom rea l people and stor ies o f them. To be honest , I don’ t rea l ly l i ke mus ic LOL . I just l i ke p lay ing i t . (Adam) I
we d i scovered a b i t g raff i t i that sa id Rayne. We sto le that , and for a short whi le , even the way i t was wr i tten was used for promo work .
Descr ibe yourse l f in 5 words or less?(Ben) Th is i s hard , er r r . . . Amaz ing! LOL
How long have you been per forming?(Ben) We have been per forming s ince school 16 years ago . I t ’s taken us ages to deve lop a sound that we are happy wi th , as recent as last year haha.
Covers or own mater ia l?(Ben) We prefer to p lay or ig ina l g igs but have to p lay the odd st ink ing sweaty pub fu l l o f demanding drunken people who shout , ‘P lay th i s p lay that ! ’ We do these g igs to fund g igs away.
I N T E R V I E W W I T H R AY N E
24
haven’ t rea l ly got any insp i rat ions , I don’ t look and someone and th ink I want to be l i ke that . In the beg inn ing I used to look up to gu i tar i st s but I ’ve been p lay ing that long now that I just l i ke to do th ings my way. (Nez) I ’m insp i red by Trav i s Barker. What he has done for drums i s amaz ing , the fe l la can p lay any sty le whi l st mak ing i t look good.
I f you cou ld make 1 person d i sappear for good who would i t be and why? (Ben) Mine would be O l ly Murs , I can ’ t stand h im or h i s mus ic . Just pathet ic , I don’ t even want to go into i t because I might smash th i s ipad! (Adam) Whoever gave Mcf ly a record dea l . That band rea l ly annoy me. (Nez) Not so much one person but I hate i t when people have made i t because they have a sob stor y. ‘My hamster d ied so can I have a dea l?
What would your r ider be i f you were p lay ing a huge g ig?(Ben) Wynona LOL . I wouldn’ t have a menta l one , just someth ing smal l l i ke kebabs and maybe an Ear l Grey! Ser ious ly though, just some beers would do . (Adam) A van that works because we have been jump star t ing ours for 10 years and my ca lves are shot to b i t s . (Nez) Tuna and cucumber sandwiches cut into t r iang les and the crusts cut o f f. I ’m wi th Ben, just a few beers would do me a l so .
l ip ! (Nez) I went to s i t on my drum stoo l a f ter a song and fe l l f l at on my backs ide . I went ver y red , so embarrass ing .
What adv ice would you g ive to anyone want ing to star t a band up?(Ben) G ive up p lease so i t w i l l be eas ier for us LOL . Best adv ice would be , i f poss ib le , star t when you’re rea l ly young so you can wr i te a l l the rubb ish mus ic out o f you. When you f i rst star t , any th ing you p lay wi l l amaze you so i t ’s best to get a l l the c rap out o f you and mature into someth ing great . You need to be young.
Where i s your favour i te p lace in the North east?(Ben) We a l l l i ke to be in the pract i ce room. Just the three of us mess ing around coming up wi th new ideas and songs , takes you back to be ing a k id , no prob lems, no worr ies when that door shuts .
Have you had any funny/wei rd fan inc idents?(Ben) I once got into a f ight on stage because someone was adamant that I was miming and s lag g ing me off for i t . I had to take h im onto the stage in f ront o f ever yone and g ive i t the o ld 1 -2 down the mic , to prove the mic was l i ve! He was st i l l say ing qu i te ag gress ive ly that I was st i l l miming , so I h i t h im, which i s a shame rea l ly cos I l i ked p lay ing there and we got barred . I wasn ’ t miming!
A l l t ime no 1 Mus ic ian/S inger f rom past or present?(Ben) I have 2 . The best voca ls that have ever been are Roy Orb ison and Fredd ie Mercur y. No one comes c lose to that . (Adam) Steve Va i , a l l rounder, can p lay any th ing . Took gu i tar the fur thest and I l i ke that . (Nez) Michae l Jackson, ya don’ t rea l ly need to know any th ing about Michae l Jackson, you a l ready know i t .
What ’s the most embarrass ing th ing you have ever done at a g ig?(Ben) Where to star t w i th me?. Mine i s t r y ing to throw a gu i tar round my neck and i t came off the st rap and i t smashed the neck . I t was a G ibson Les Pau l as wel l . I was gutted and rea l ly embarrassed as ever yone star ted laugh ing . (Adam) At the same g ig Ben smashed h i s gu i tar he a l so k icked the mic stand whi l st I was rock ing out a lead break and the mic span round and smacked me in the chops . F in i shed the so lo wi th a burst
25
What ’s your a ims for the rest o f 2013?(Ben) We would d ie happy i f we cou ld p lay, just even once , in f ront o f thousands of people , l i ke a stad ium, support ing someone maybe. That ’s a l l we want to do . I need to know what th i s fee l s l i ke . I can on ly imag ine and be ver y jea lous of bands that have . I can ’ t even go to watch g igs because I get to jea lous and want to do i t . We would l i ke to be successfu l as poss ib le , l i ke any other band rea l ly, I w ish they ’d a l l qu i t so i t would be eas ier haha.
Why should people come and l i sten to you?(Ben) Ever y g ig i s memorab le - i t rea l ly i s ! Come and see us l i ve , I
th ink you’ l l surpr i se yourse l f.
Where can people fo l low you/keep up to date wi th you? w w w.facebook.com/rayneoff i c ia lw w w.twi tter.com/off i c ia l raynew w w.soundc loud.com/raynemus icRayne are represented by Ambicon Mus ic Group w w w.ambiconrecords .co .uk‘Fa l len ’ the f ree download s ing le re leased on 5th March i s taken f rom the i r The New En l ightenment debut a lbum
MR B. WAYNE017862945MR B. WAYNE017862945MR B. WAYNE017862945MR B. WAYNE017862945
YOUR POWERTO WATCH UNLIMITEDMOVIES(IT’S YOUR PERFECT SIDEKICK)
WATCH AS MANY MOVIES AS YOU CANFOR JUST £14.99 A MONTH
Ask a member of staff or join at cineworld.com/unlimited
Minimum 12 month subscription. 3D, IMAX, D-Box and Alternative Content uplifts payable. 3D glasses and VIP/Delux seating excluded. Higher monthly fee of £17.99 for West End cinemas (Fulham Road, Chelsea, Haymarket and Shaftesbury Avenue). Minimum age 18. For full terms and conditions visit cineworld.com/unlimited/terms. Until further notice, 10% retail discount available on production of a valid card.
CIN2035_QUAD_Unlimited_Batman.indd 1 11/05/2012 18:12
www.cineworld.com
26
Hi Jen , welcome to NE Magaz ine . So for the few readers who don’ t know you how about you te l l us a b i t about yourse l f?Hi ! Thanks for hav ing me! I ’m a s inger/songwr i ter and p ian ist f rom South Sh ie lds . I p lay wi th Jen Stevens & the H iccups - predominant ly or ig ina l mus ic (and covers g igs to pay the b i l l s ! ) , in f luenced by F leetwood Mac, Skunk Anans ie , Beaut i fu l South , and lots o f s inger/songwr i ter types! We’ve recent ly re leased our second a lbum, ‘Better F rame of Mind,’ and we’re current ly record ing a new EP and s ing le , which we hope to re lease in May 2013. I ’m a l so ha l f o f The Tea Larks , a duo I ’m in wi th Kate Gormley, who p lays gu i tar and s ings . We p lay lots o f love ly covers , and s ing lots o f love ly harmonies! Both acts have facebook pages and youtube v ideos - do check us out !
We hear you’re the bra ins beh ind a b ig mus ic fest iva l that ’s
w i th stomach cancer a couple o f years ago . She got through her f i rst round of chemo, and th ings were go ing great . Her and Dad moved away f rom the North East , f i rst to Card i f f, and then to the i r Dutch barge , Sara , down in S l imbr idge near Che l tenham. Ver y soon af ter they moved there , Mum star ted go ing down h i l l aga in . She came up to v i s i t my brother and I in March , and we had a great week wi th her shopping , c rochet ing , wa lk ing and just en joy ing each other ’s company. She got ver y i l l ver y qu ick ly af ter that , and star ted hav ing to spend more and more t ime in hosp i ta l , and
about to h i t South
Sh ie lds , so te l l us a l l about i t?
The fest iva l i s in memor y of my Mum, Anne Stevens , who was a l so known as ‘Mama Hiccup.’ Mum was d iagnosed
27
then the hosp ice . I don’ t rea l ly want to ta lk about the ins and outs o f i t . Most people know how horr i f y ing cancer i s . My brother, Rob, and I , went down to Che l tenham to see Mum at the Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hosp ice the second week of Ju ly. We sa id our goodbyes on Saturday 14th Ju ly 2012. The H iccups and I supported Scout ing for G i r l s at Bents Park on 15th Ju ly, and I had the support o f a l l my dearest f r iends , a l l w i l l ing me on. The on ly people miss ing f rom that c rowd were my fami ly. On Sunday 22nd Ju ly, at 3pm, whi l st Aaron (my gu i tar i st ) and I were sett ing up for our regu lar Sunday g ig , Aaron’s phone rang . I t was my Dad. Mum was gone. Tony (my husband and bass i st ) and my wonderfu l f r iends got there as soon as poss ib le , and Aaron and I p layed the g ig . Let ’s face i t – Mama Hiccup would have k icked my arse i f I had cance l led!
suffer foo ls anymore , and I fee l l i ke she ’s r ight bes ide me at ever y s ing le g ig . Eg g ing me on, te l l ing me off, shout ing for more , and inst i l l ing the courage and determinat ion in me to keep go ing . My Mum was one of the most v ibrant , car ing , interest ing people you cou ld have known. I f you were lucky enough to meet her, you’ l l know what I mean. The staf f at Leckhampton Court Hosp ice seemed to understand that and were so good to us a l l in Mum’s last weeks , and we want to g ive them someth ing back . Mum took a huge interest in the loca l mus ic scene when l i v ing in South Sh ie lds , and was a lways at H iccups and Beat les for Sa le g igs when she fe l t we l l enough, so a mus ic fest iva l seemed the best p lan of act ion! A l l o f the prof i t s f rom the fest iva l a re go ing to the Sue Ryder Char i ty. I t ’s go ing to be at Hedworth Ha l l in South Sh ie lds on Saturday 23rd March 2013, f rom 2pm ‘ t i l l ate . We’ve got some rea l ly great acts and enterta inment - bands , acoust i c
Her funera l was on Fr iday 3rd August . She had a natura l bur ia l , i t was a beaut i fu l day. Rob and I composed the ser v ice , which was main ly made up of songs and poems, but we kept th ings fa i r l y short , then went and got on wi th the b i t Mum would have approved of in the pub. One of the songs , which Aaron and I per formed, was ‘Ann ie ’s Song ,’
by John Denver, one of her favour i tes , and Annie be ing a ch i ldhood n ickname. I don’ t th ink I ’ l l ever be ab le to s ing i t aga in…. Not that I d id a part i cu lar ly good job on the day! I can ’ t descr ibe how much I miss her. However, s ince she lef t us , I ’ve fe l t st ronger some how. I don’ t
28
29
acts , two stages , two bars , auct ions , raf f les , cupcake sta l l s , a f ternoon tea , face pa int ing , ba l loon model l ing , bur lesque, f i re breath ing , v intage sta l l s , c raf t and jewel ler y sta l l s . . . I t ’s go ing to be a rea l ly g reat day!
Who have you got l ined up to p lay?To name just a few. . .The Karma Heart , Beat les for Sa le , The mOObs, The Understud ies , The Maver ick Re jects , Too Sp icy, and Jen Stevens & the H iccups , and the Tea Larks , obv ious ly ! The mus ic wi l l run for the whole day, f rom 2pm ‘ t i l l ate , and there rea l ly i s someth ing for ever yone, whatever type of mus ic you’re into!
How hard has i t been organ is ing the fest iva l?I t ’s been pretty tax ing , on both a phys ica l and an emot iona l leve l . . .but
facebook page.
I s there any way people can fo l low you and keep up to date wi th whats happening?I ’ve set up a facebook page and event - check out w w w.facebook.com/MamaHiccupMus icFest iva l and w w w.jenstevens .co .uk for more informat ion .
I s there any th ing you would l i ke to add?Just some shameless p lug g ing! Both of the Jen Stevens & the H iccups a lbums are ava i lab le on iTunes , or for a phys ica l copy, order one f rom w w w.jenstevens .co .uk or get yourse l f a long to a g ig ! Fo l low me on twi tter @jenfah iccups , and for updates on my bands , check out w w w.facebook.com/jenstevensandthehiccups and w w w.facebook.com/thetea larks
I ’ve had so many k ind offers o f he lp , that ’s made i t much eas ier. People f rom the North East rea l ly are one of a k ind - a lways wi l l ing to p i tch in and he lp . I t ’s been a b i t over whelming to be honest !
And what has the response been l i ke so far?We’ve had a huge amount of interest and support , and t i ckets are se l l ing rea l ly fast !
So wi l l th i s be a regu lar event or just a one off?I ’d l i ke to th ink we’d do i t aga in in the future . I ’m sure Mum would approve! Ask me at the end of the day when i t ’s a l l over though haha!
Where can people get ho ld of t i ckets?T ickets are ava i lab le f rom Hedworth Ha l l , and f rom myse l f and band members . Contact deta i l s a re on the
www.cineworld.com
30
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
31
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
www.cineworld.com
32
of Tom R ichmond dur ing the late n inet ies . A regu lar s lot drawing for the student magaz ine ensued, a longs ide a degree port fo l io that was ce lebr i ty car i cature based for the most part . Upon complet ing my degree I was at someth ing of a c rossroads , not rea l ly knowing what to do; then one day a not iced an ‘ARTISTS WANTED’ ad on l ine , posted by a guy ca l led N ige l Cooke who owned a stand at A l ton Towers Resort . (N ige l ’s s ince become a good f r iend. ) One th ing led to another, and I spent the next four years soak ing up the summer season and learn ing the ropes as a car i catur i st into the barga in . I s that the on ly k ind of i l lust rat ion/drawing you do?In a word , yes . I ’ve dabbled in other re lated f ie lds over the years , at var ious t imes exp lor ing character des ign , logo des ign , and rea l i st i c drawing . However I keep coming back to the fact that I am a car i catur i st at heart , and th i s i s how I ’d l i ke to be remembered when I ’ve gone (hopefu l ly many, many years f rom now) . I love the not ion of look ing at the wor ld in a s l i ght ly skewed, exag gerated way, which I f ind on ly in car i cature . Th is i s why I intend to st i ck wi th i t for the long hau l .
I f you cou ld draw anyone famous past or present who would i t be and why?I don’ t rea l ly have a mass ive urge to draw
would f requent ly cock up a drawing in some random way or another, and have to surrept i t ious ly p lace a thumb or such l ike across the offend ing part o f the drawing when present ing the ar t to the customer. Th is happened more t imes than I care to reca l l ! On another occas ion , I reduced a lady to tears af ter drawing her wi th , in her own words , a “mass ive nose”. ( I must admit , i t doesn ’ t fee l par t i cu lar ly good to e l i c i t th i s react ion f rom someone; but at the same t ime, I o f ten wonder why she was s i tt ing for a car i cature in the f i rst p lace , i f she was that sens i t i ve about her features . ) These days , I ’m so exper ienced in what I do the humour and funny moments genera l ly come about through what I ’m putt ing down on paper – and the react ions o f the c rowd watch ing . Te l l us 3 random facts about yourse l f?1 . I love l i s ten ing to Chr i stmas mus ic year-round. Sad but t rue!2 . I have a fu l l -on obsess ion wi th New York C i ty : cu l ture , h i stor y, a rch i tecture . . . smi tten wi th the p lace .3 . I was on ‘ The Pau l O ’Grady Show ’ in 2008, present ing a customised car icature port ra i t to the man h imse l f. Top fe l la !When you’re not drawing how do you l i ke to spend your t ime?The usua l , rea l ly : ch i l l ing out wi th my f iancée and some good TV, read ing , c inema, runn ing , dr ink ing , gym (not necessar i l y in that order ) . Noth ing too
anyone famous; I th ink humans as a race are a l l so un ique and ind iv idua l that i t ’s a lmost i r re levant whether they ’re in the pub l i c eye or not . Hav ing sa id that , I would have loved to have had a c rack at S teve I r win when he was st i l l a round; I found – and st i l l f ind – h i s enthus iasm for l i fe utter ly infect ious . Come to th ink of i t , I ’d love to spend ten minutes in the presence of the Da la i Lama too.
What has been your most memorab le moment so far?Drawing A lan Shearer for a char i ty auct ion ranks pretty h igh , but just gett ing the ins ide t rack i s when I won my awards for ‘Best L ikeness ’ and ‘Best Par ty Car icatures ’ at the Internat iona l Soc iety o f Car icature Art i st s ’ annua l convent ion in Las Vegas in 2005. I t was my f i rst year in attendance (wi th my good pa l and fe l low ar t i st Mike Car lon) and i t was a b last . Hang ing out and ming l ing wi th my ar t i st i c heroes lef t me tongue-t ied at t imes , and I spent most o f the week ar t i st i ca l l y c r ipp led by be ing in the presence of such car i cature roya l ty ; however I seemed to overcome that , go ing on to have a fantast i c t ime and creat ing a ga l ler y o f p ieces u l t imate ly deemed worthy by my peers .
Have you had any funny/embarrass ing inc idents whi l st drawing someone?Too many to ment ion! In the ear ly days o f A l ton Towers I
top related