Photo: The 4th Suit last night at Camden Calling, The George Tavern, London, E1

"Oh, we do like to [gig] beside the seaside"

'The 4th Suit' at the Seaside!!!!!! Details on ROCK-TIL-YOU-DROP Musicians & Bands http://bit.ly/qxEOw6 @the4thsuit punk westonsupermare

The 4th Suit play London

Just got wind of this one!! Tomorrow night (16th): ‎The 4th Suit play Fiddlers Elbow, Chalk Farm/Kentish Tn, NW5: http://bit.ly/mCMVZE punk

The 4th Suit at Camden Calling, The Enterprise, Chalk Farm, March 2011

These cunting bands

Steve White and the Protest Family don't have a drummer. But they are still funny. They are angry, too. The 4th Suit have a drummer, a great new one, so they too are funny, and angry (though it's a little hard to hear just how funny and angry because the soundman can't get their sound right).  The Outbursts have the same drummer as usual, but a different guitarist, both of whom make them funny and angry at the same time.

But what ties these bands together - these and a few others in this punk-comedy genre who shan't remain nameless such as 14 Carat Grapefruit and Punks Not Dad - is not just their funny-angriness, but their use of what some people - not so much women, and especially not American women - consider the funniest-angriest word in the English language, the vulgarism that dates back to the early 13th century and is commonly used to describe politicians and female genitalia.

"Why is everyone such a cunt?", sings Steve White, which is of course a good question; Matt the singer with 4th Suit asks for a show of hands from Phil Collins fans in the house, and Matt the bassist with Outbursts raises his hand (obviously in jest), only to be told his pop idol is a "cunt!" And when Matt and his Outbursts take to the stage themselves, there are more "cunts", and at least one it would be impossible to dispute: Gary Glitter.

The promoters of this fine bill of bands, which includes a poet and a rap/funk* band called Dekay and the D'mans, are Camden Calling. They are not cunts. They help the homeless and the vulnerable access the arts and music through events like this one at The Enterprise in Chalk Farm, North London, which is run, and features performances, by homeless people. Luckily for Steve White and his Protest Family, The 4th Suit, and the Outbursts they do have homes to go to and eventually, circa 11:15pm, they all leave for them.

Sadly for Matt Russell, the local cunts have got to his car first, and have caused at least two-hundred quids worth of damage to it. Suddenly, cunt is not such a funny word.

* I have since been corrected on Facebook by rapper Dekay Ex, who prefers her music to be classified as 'LIVE RAP'. That's as opposed to the dead variety, I presume.

Sod this for a game of soldiers

The 4th Suit

The Galileo Seven

Alpha Rays

I think I've done three or four Fiddler's gigs now. Attendance at all of them has been disappointing. It's a shame. It's a decent venue. There's no division between venue and bar. Once you're in, you're in. The sound is good. It's five minutes walk from Chalk Farm tube station. The staff are friendly.

At the last gig, the Blues night, there was nearly 60 people in the 150 capacity venue, but only 22 of these were paying customers. 20 musicians. A few WAGS. And a bunch of locals made up the numbers. It seemed reasonably busy. People danced, and so on.

Last night, there were 12 paying customers. Just enough money at the end to pay the sound man. Their were a few WAGS, a couple of French guys who thought they were above paying to see their mates. The locals. But there was a gaping void in front of the stage. People were pinned to the walls around the venue of fear of standing out, literally.

Is is worth it?

Tox of 14 Carat Grapefruit came out to support The 4th Suit who'd travelled from Bristol to play. And what a fine punk band they are. And lovely blokes. The kind of band that stops me from giving up on this whole thing. Hobbyists. A good attitude. No egos. No bullshit. Mates, mostly from school. Loyal to each other. No bickering. They plugged in, following their late arrival, and played. Then they relaxed. And ate. And drank. And drove home to Bristol.

Steve 'Istvanski' was out in support of The Galileo Seven, which featured on lead vocals and guitar, former Stabilisers guitarist Allan Crockford, perhaps more famously known for his place in 80s psychedelic-mod-rockers The Prisoners. They were very professional. Kept themselves to themselves, but put in a fine performance, much like The 4th Suit, performing as if the venue was more than half-full rather than more than half-empty.

By the time the Alpha Rays hit the stage the place was empty, save a handful of loyal friends. Which was sort of depressing.

I think I'm going to knock these gigs on the head. I'll honour the bookings I have committed to. And I'll probably continue to do The Libertine gigs, especially the Saturday night electric ones. But with respect, many of these bands are wasting their time playing in 150 or more capacity venues. They don't have the following. These are pub bands. They want less bands on their bill, and to be able to play longer sets, but they don't draw enough people to justify these arrangements.

Last night, two of the bands were travelling ones, so they can be forgiven for not bringing a big crowd, but The Alpha Rays are a London band. They won't survive long on the Full-PA Toilet Circuit without more support. I don't pressure bands to bring people. I'm beginning to see why venues do though. I don't want to be a promoter like that. It's not me.

On Tuesday night, 14 Carat Grapefruit arranged a ROCK-TIL-YOU-DROP gig of their own. In the spirit of the mature musicians' community, they branded it as such. They asked me to bring my stage-banner down and I went along and introduced the bands. I flyered it, and did some real-world social networking. Their performance was well attended, but as the night went on, the Miller in London Bridge felt much the same as The Fiddlers did last night at 11.15. Empty.

I think this is the way forward for RTYD. I'm tired of organising these bigger gigs. Bands can arrange their own gigs at these places. I will promote those bands and musicians that I like, and are friends with. I will happily endorse their gigs, and include them in my monthly email-outs, as long as they give a nod to ROCK-TIL-YOU-DROP in some way.

I need to focus on my own band. And when that's back in one piece, I will do as 14CG do, and organise Pocket Rocket gigs, with support from stalwart RTYD-associated bands that I like and care about.