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Nelson's Column April The Camden Crawl 21st April 2006 Riding the Peaks and Troughs of Live Music in Camden Town If you asked me what my live music fantasy was, I’d probably reply saying it’s not really my thing. Generally speaking a night out somewhere like Camden isn’t my natural choice – there are too many teenage Goths lining the pavements and not a cocktail in sight. However, a couple of the girls love to get sweaty and drink cider and black, so I thought I'd ditch the sassy cocktail dress, and ‘go native’ for a night and join them on the Camden Crawl. For those not familiar with the concept, the Crawl is a night of concerts from upcoming bands with one wristband granting entry to 12 venues spread across NW1. In the back of the wardrobe I fished out a pair of torn jeans and a band t-shirt from my teenage years and jumped on the Tube. The performances we caught were fantastic fun – local hotties the Holloways eased us in violently as they raced through a fast-paced, sticky set of post-punk energy in the cramped confines of the NW1; a large crowd in the Electric Ballroom saw the bass guitar stomp of Shit Disco charm the crowd like Franz Ferdinand with a lobotomy; the night finished off in the Koko to the sounds of the criminally underrated Futureheads, followed by an indie disco till the wee hours. Sadly we missed it, but the chance to see an established act like Supergrass in a venue as small as the 200-capacity Dublin Castle was truly special. However, it wasn’t all smiles, all night long. It was hard to believe the queues that greeted revellers outside some of the venues. And later the lack of bar staff in the Koko added insult to the injury of the tailback outside, stretching halfway to Camden Tube. Given the nature of the event, it’s understandable you might have to stand in line to get into smaller venues, but a friend ended up only seeing two bands all evening. Oh yes, and the ticket declared the event open from 4pm till 4am – but really the bands only lasted from about 7:30 till just after 11. And my final moan – move it to a weekend – some of us have to work. For someone not familiar with live music in Camden it was a great intro. The Crawl only started up again last year, after a seven year hiatus, due to a dearth of decent acts, but now the scene’s thriving once more. This totally unique concept is a really novel night out and it really, nearly, was everything an urban music festival ought to be. But please – after paying £25 for a ticket you expect what it says on the tin. A revised version could be a great curtain-opener to the summer festival season. Gripes aside, I might feel like death with a dry mouth this morning, struggling through Friday to the weekend, but I’ve put the ripped jeans and band t-shirt aside for my return. Camden hasn’t seen the last of Sadie Nelson. Sunflower Painting Dug Up Wilted Sunflowers – the lost masterpiece by Austrian expressionist artist Egon Schiele – has been rediscovered and is set to be auctioned at Christie’s in June. Previously stolen by the Nazis, the painting has been missing for over 60 years and is expected to sell for between £4 and £6 million. Mayor in the Spotlight Ken Livingstone is set to face his constituents next month as he takes part in a live, televised debate on ITV. The London Debate will be held at 7pm on Wednesday 10th May, and will focus on issues faced by Londoners, Mayoral policies and plans for the city. Landmarks' Literary Light-up Extracts from famous poems and works of literature were used to light up London’s landmarks this month. City Hall, the Barbican, Senate House, Somerset House and St Paul's all became canvasses for American artist Jenny Holze’s ‘For London’ project, aimed at engaging passers-by with words and architecture. October 2008 24th October Boris v Jingjing 17th October Soaps in Pole Position September 2008 23rd September Chips too Chavvy for Chelsea 16th September The London Restaurant Awards August 2008 26th August No Smoking, No Ducks, No Barbecues 20th August The Olympics July 2008 24th July Sandwiched Out 17th July The Show Ain't Over 'Til the Fat Lady's on Page 3 June 2008 26th June Love All at Wimbledon 16th June Miller Puts the Heat on Tennant May 2008 27th May Booze Banned on Buses 20th May Same Again? April 2008 23rd April By George 11th April Back to the 80s March 2008 28th March How do You Solve A Problem Like Medea? 20th March Flight Fantastic February 2008 20th February Dark, Satanic Turnmills 6th February A Diamond in the Drink January 2008 21st January People Wanted for Plinth 14th January Boo! Hiss! December 2007 28th December Tate That - A Hirst for Art 20th December Christmas Shopping November 2007 27th November Mind the Gap 26th November London On A Tray October 2007 26th October Leaving the Station 14th October The Sky's the Limit September 2007 26th September The Play Within A Play 19th September Fashion, Frocks and Celeb Shocks 12th September Saying Tanks for the Mammaries August 2007 24th August Heathrow under Siege 17th August Gormless 10th August Losing Face July 2007 24th July Are We Reaching Boiling Point Yet This Summer? 13th July Red Ken versus Blonde Boris June 2007 22nd June Last Orders at the Fag Machine 11th June London the Musical May 2007 21st May What Lurks Beneath 10th May The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of April 2007 27th April London’s Walk on the Wild Side 20th April Stand Behind the Yellow Line 13th April Like Water for Chocolate March 2007 23rd March So, Another Magazine 16th March Avoiding iContact February 2007 23rd February Sex and Art... 16th February C-Charge Protest Fails to Bring Down Government 9th February Live Earth London January 2007 26th January A Vote for Shilpa is a Vote for Britain 18th January Carriage on up the West End December 2006 29th December Food for Thought 22nd December A Poisonous Marketing Campaign 15th December In for a Penny, In for Five Pounds November 2006 17th November Big Department Stores Leave Santa Out in the Cold 10th November Failing to Save the World October 2006 27th October Frozen Prawns and Melting Icecaps 20th October Predatory Pelicans and Happy Woodland Folk 13th October Hope at last for east end of Oxford Street September 2006 16th September Lite the Blue Paper and Stand Well Back 9th September Of Poles and Twiglets August 2006 25th August Free Fares For the Fat and the Fashionable 11th August London Friendly 4th August Archway To Organic Heaven July 2006 21st July London - Celebrity Frat House 7th July Out of the Galleries into the Streets June 2006 23rd June Mayors, Nightmares and Marias 16th June Downright Rude in Paris and London 9th June Enter the Inferno May 2006 26th May Curvaceous Border 12th May Vegging Out April 2006 21st April The Camden Crawl 17th April Down the Pan 13th April I Want to Break Free 9th April Big Brother seems to have been left in a bar somewhere 7th April Don't Box Me In March 2006 24th March Political Correctness Reaches New Heights February 2006 24th February A Stadium's Tale: Cup Final Goes West 17th February Modern Musicals are Rubbish 10th February The City-Side Alliance January 2006 20th January February Sales 20th January Moby Sick 13th January Glass Half Full 3rd January Three Cheers for the Tube Station Workers December 2005 22nd December January Bites 16th December A Remarkable Year November 2005 25th November And a Partridge in a JCB 11th November Driving Miss Sadie 4th November Spam, Spam, Spammity-Spam, Shakespeare, Zorro, Chico and Rasputin October 2005 28th October Trick or Treat? 21st October We Don't Mind a Little Delay... 14th October Final Resting Place for Young British Artists September 2005 16th September Just a small urn for me, please barman 9th September DRINK! DRINK! DRINK! 2nd September The Free Tenor August 2005 30th August Samba Rhythms Breaking Out All Over The Stadium 20th August Getting Behind the Iron Farce 10th August Mystery Play is No Sell Out