Colin DJing at Butcher Boy gig

To celebrate the release of Butcher Boy's second album, React Or Die, the band are putting on a few shows in Glasgow on three consecutive Saturdays (14th, 21st and 28th).

The middle of these three performances, on Saturday 21st February, will take place at Queens Park Bowling Club, and John from the band has been kind enough to ask me to play some records once the band has finished. I understand Keith (Spitfire) and John himself will also be spinning a few, so it should be a cracking night.

Due to club rules, the night will be invitation only so if you want to come along, email your name(s) to Bowlingclubshows@googlemail.com. Doors are at 8pm and it will all be over by midnight.

Advance copies of React Or Die are available now from How Does It Feel To Be Loved?

Review of The Ballet in The List

Just a quick post to let you know that The List have published a review of our gig on 10th January, written by Malcolm Jack. Malcolm couldn't make it down in time to see Miabeane and the Asthmatic Scene or The Hermit Crabs, in case you were wondering why only The Ballet get a mention.

"Travelling thousands of miles from New York City to Europe for a tour is not something you’d expect a band to do half heartedly, so it was a shame to see Big Apple electronic indie pop softies The Ballet performing here in Glasgow with a timidity that bordered on the apologetic.

Shyness is a given from an outfit of their literate, bittersweet ilk. But this bunch have got some great songs, and since a sizeable and receptive audience turned out to hear them, there was little excuse for the band not to be cranking up the volume and looking marginally less like they wanted dearly, in spells, for the floor to open wide and swallow them.

‘The House on Fire’ recalled the chirpy synths and beats of Au Revoir Simone, while much of the rest of The Ballet’s tunes, ‘In My Head’ the standout amongst them, were straight from the school of strummy melodic wistfulness whose alumni includes The Magnetic Fields, the Hidden Cameras and Belle and Sebastian – groups who have learned not to let their inherent aversion to a crowd prove a hindrance to a good live show."

PS. We should have news of another popshow for you soon, so check back later in the week.

Photos from HMHB 5 - Saturday 10th January

Miabeane and the Asthmatic Scene


Miabeane and the Asthmatic Scene


The Hermit Crabs


The Hermit Crabs


The Ballet


The Ballet


The Ballet


The Ballet

Playlist from HMHB 5 - Saturday 10th January

Thanks to everyone who came down last night! We hope you had as much fun as we did. Here's what we played once the bands had finished. Photos to follow shortly.

Colin
The Deirdres - Milk Is Politics
Girlfrendo - First Kiss Feelings Vs. Everyday Sensations
Pocketbooks - Cross The Line
Minisnap - Innocent
The Wedding Present - A Million Miles
One Happy Island - Temporary Tattoo

Lynsey
Pocketbooks - Falling Leaves
Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers - New England
Eux Autres - Molly
Fabienne Delsol - I'm Gonna Catch Me A Rat
Comet Gain - You Can Hide Your Love Forever
Withered Hand - New Dawn

Colin
Tiger Trap - Puzzle Pieces
Heavenly - Stop Before You Can Say It
The Smiths - You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby
Trembling Blue Stars - November Starlings
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - Young Adult Friction
Orange Juice - Blue Boy
The Lucksmiths - Smokers In Love

Lynsey
The Ballet - The Face of Everything
Jens Lekman - The Opposite of Hallelujah
Go Sailor - Bigger Than An Ocean
Cars Can Be Blue - Sun Blows Up
Tilly and the Wall - Sing Songs Along
Belle & Sebastian - Dirty Dream #2
Vivian Girls - All The Time
The Magnetic Fields - Luckiest Guy on the Lower East Side
Kenickie - Come Out 2Nite

Colin
The Concretes - Seems Fine
Tullycraft - The Neutron
Malcolm Middleton - We're All Going To Die
Afternoon Naps - Orange Paw
Felt - Rain of Crystal Spires
Belle & Sebastian - Women's Realm
Camera Obscura - Let's Get Out Of This Country
Hefner - Hymn For The Cigarettes

Lynsey
Tullycraft - Twee
Blondie - Denis
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart - This Love Is Fucking Right!
The Shangri-Las - The Train From Kansas City
David Bowie - Modern Love
The Hidden Cameras - Ban Marriage
The Aislers Set - The Red Door
The Sea Urchins - Pristine Christine
The Smiths - Panic

Colin
The Shangri-Las - Wishing Well
Arab Strap - Speed-Date
Blondie - X-Offender
Belle & Sebastian - I'm A Cuckoo
Squeeze - Up The Junction
Neutral Milk Hotel - Holland, 1945
The Smiths - Girlfriend In A Coma
The Magnetic Fields - I Don't Want To Get Over You
Voxtrot - The Start of Something

Lynsey
Hefner - The Day That Thatcher Dies
Belle & Sebastian - Le Pastie De La Bourgouisie
The Supremes - When The Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes
Girls Aloud - The Promise
The Housemartins - We're Not Deep
The Essex Green - This Isn't Farm Life
Camera Obscura - Number One Son
The Primitives - Spacehead
The Pastels - Truck Train Tractor

The Ballet tomorrow night

There's every chance you're sick of these posts by now, and for that I apologise. It's just that The Ballet are IN THE UK RIGHT NOW, playing a sold-out show in London tonight before flying up to Glasgow tomorrow morning in time for our popshow at The Flying Duck tomorrow night. Possibly the most exciting thing that's ever happened.

Although the flyer says doors are at approximately 8.30pm, we'll be opening fairly promptly because the first band will be on around 9pm. Of course, once the bands are finished we'll have our usual monthly Half My Heart Beats club night until 3am, which should be pretty awesome itself.

Check back on Sunday for photos and playlists!

New club flyer!

Designed by David Zacharis of The Smittens.

Clarification for Saturday night

It has occurred to me that we maybe haven't made a couple of things about Half My Heart beats this Saturday as clear as we could have, so I just wanted to write a quick post to clear things up.

First of all, we're not selling tickets in advance so please just turn up at The Flying Duck and pay on the door. For those of you travelling from further afield and worried about getting in, fret not. The capacity for the club is something like 350 so I can't foresee any problems. If you're still worried, let us know on halfmyheartbeats@gmail.com or leave a comment and we can take a note of your name and make sure you get in okay (Lynsey and I will be taking turns at manning the door. Or womaning the door).

Secondly, I'm not sure how clear this is but we've got our usual monthly club night straight after the bands, running until 3am as usual. Your £5 includes club entry (usually £4 alone), so really you're only paying £1 for three incredible bands. Again, get in touch if you've got any requests. If you're travelling 100 miles or more, as I know some of you are, I guarantee to play at least one of the songs you ask for! Within reason...

If you've been wondering why we haven't posted flyer designs for the club side of things, it's because we're having new designs made up that should be with us any day now. I'll throw up a post as soon as they arrive.

Miabeane and the Asthmatic Scene video

Here's the third of my video posts featuring the bands that are playing at the next Half My Heart Beats on Saturday night. This is Miabeane and the Asthmatic Scene doing Edwin and the Physio, and below is a slightly older video of them playing Remember Your Shinguards at an old Winchester Club night.



You can hear more from the band at their website or on myspace.

Here's the details for the gig, and don't forget we'll be having our usual club night as soon as the bands are finished through til 3am.

The Hermit Crabs video

As promised, here's another video of one of the bands we've got playing at Half My Heart Beats a week tomorrow (Saturday 10th). This time it's The Hermit Crabs being proper popstars in that America, set to Feel Good Factor, a song from their first album (which was called Saw You Dancing).

You can hear more of The Hermit Crabs either at their website, on myspace or on the Matinée website.

Sorry if this is a little excessive, but I'm going to include the gig flyer in each post between now and next Saturday so the details are always there near the top.