Howl Griff

Thought it was about time I introduced you to a great band.. the band that Lauren Laverne described as “Lush.. the band we love” – Howl Griff are 4 guys from all over the place.. Hywel Griffiths, Welsh crooner from Aberystwyth – lead singer and guitar, Gary Parkinson, Bolton bad boy lead guitar, Steve Kennedy, Californian bass beater and Nick Moore, Mersey drum machine.

I’m quite fortunate that two of the band members live in the same house as me – I get to hear all the new and unreleased tracks, plus the jam sessions.. here’s the band:

Hywel Griffiths - graphic designer and AV powerhouse by day, wanton red wine drinker by night - turned down a 2 month job offer in New York to concentrate on Howl Griff.

Gary Parkinson, editor of Four Four Two and one of the only people in the UK who actually uses Twitter - also can't have a photo taken of himself without a strange expression.

Nick Moore - also works at Four Four Two, accident prone drummer and the only man "Livin' on an Island" actually applies to

Steve Kennedy - VfX genius, mac lover and Californian accent bearing bass-player

They’ve released two albums, Howl Griff and The Hum, with a further album Hope Against Hope as yet unreleased.. perhaps more exciting though is a brand new album which I’ve heard played at home and some tracks live..

They’re definitely an up and coming band – the new album is going in a different direction to the preceding ones. Check them out if you can – they’re playing a fair few festivals.

Here’s Crash and Burn from their album “The Hum“

I’ll leave you with another track from The Hum – Surreal:

Comedy at Brockwell Lido

The family went out last Tuesday to enjoy a free comedy night at Brockwell Lido Cafe, can’t really complain at free comedy on a school night. First up were Thomas Hardie; Joy Thomas and Caroline Hardie are a fast-paced, mental comedy duo with a residency at the Water Poet in Shoreditch.

Thomas Hardie

The compère, Clever Peter’s William Hartley, a quick wittted, quick talking welcome break between each act.

William Hartley

Next up was Nathan Dean Williams, a dark and depraved first sketch. If you have a fear of clowns then maybe not for you, though it’s hard to feel anything but pity in his sad rantings, definitely worth checking out.

Nathan Dean Williams

His second sketch, the final act, involved a rabbit neck deep in tragedy – overall a very downtrodden pair of characters who hit the satirical bone in your body.

The third act – Toby – are sisters Sarah and Lizzie Daykin and they came with two sketches each as bizarre as one another – the first sketch was a mix up with a stork delivering a baby.

Toby

Followed by my favourite sketch of the night, a disturbed lady who gets a visit from the RSPCA.

The penultimate act were Miranda Hennessy and Friends – Miranda Hennessy, Steven Shapland and David Seymour, doing four sketches.

Miranda Hennessy and David Seymour

Miranda Hennessy, David Seymour and Steven Shapland

The whole night was full of laughter from the punters, each act definitely worth another watch. I’ve been invited to Thomas Hardie’s next gig on June 13th so I’ll take some more photos.