London Live: 8 - 14 December

Dec 082008

Gig of the Week: Twisted Christmas – Barbican

As Christmas hurriedly approaches, the larger venues around London have been largely booked up by comedians and tribute shows. Fortunately the smaller venues keep the variety levels high, and this week is no exception. Pick of the bunch is the second in the Barbican’s series Only Connect, the first of which was the Drifting and Tilting concerts featuring the music of Scott Walker. The theme this time round is the underbelly of our traditional festive practices, with the artists performing their own versions of classic and modern Christmas tunes. With artists like Jarvis Cocker, Patrick Wolf and Kathryn Williams involved the event surely has to be interesting to say the least…

Tickets are still available from the Barbican’s website, from £13 to £22.

Jarvis Cocker – Baby’s Coming Back To Me

Patrick Wolf – Stars

Kathryn Williams – Flicker

Don’t forget to vote in our Best of 2008 section

Photos: Patrick Wolf: sugicy; Jarvis Cocker: Lizzka

Read on for the rest of Stereo Jealousy’s recommended London gigs this week…

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Athur C. Clarke - Songs About Space

Mar 192008
Arthur C. Clarke (1917 – 2008)
One of science fiction’s brightest luminaries rotates slowly towards the light at the end of the tunnel today, Arthur C Clarke passing away in his home in Sri Lanka this morning. Obviously most famous for his novel The Sentinel, transformed for film into the lauded 2001: A Space Odyssey. Upon reading about Clarke this morning, I discovered many tangents between his life and mine. Clarke was born on December 16, as was I. He studied at King’s College London, as did I. He was chairman of the British Interplanetary Society, whose office is across the road from mine, and whose bin padge adorns my monitor. Small coincidences that spurred me to write this post, and accompany it with some songs about space. I guess there is something about the cosmos that inspires art of all forms. As a concept it is pure fiction and fantasy: an infinite blank canvas for creatives to work their magic. Clarke leaves this world with stories of higher intelligence, futures yet to be realised, robots ruling humans. A true literary giant passes. R.I.P.