FENCE HOMEGAME FESTIVAL '09 REPORT (The Final Word)

THURS 16th > THURS 23rd APRIL

Fence Collective Homegame Festival,
Anstruther, Scotland
Featuring The Fence Collective & many other bands/singers.

Before i start rambling, below are all the HG6 links. The photos, videos, and scans. I think that's everything covered.

All the HG6 links..

THE OLO PHOTOS (Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 /  Part 5)

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Well...where do i begin? I'm really not sure. I've been putting off writing about the weekend (or week as it turned out to be) for over 4 weeks now. Not cos i don't wanna do it, it's just i wanna try and remember as much as i can, although saying that i think i will spare you all the details as to protect everyone involved. This year was messy! I was gonna write a really big report but maybe i'll just keep it 'fun sized' so i don't bore you. Remind me at the end if i've kept my word on the length of the blog. I'll mention our live sets first.

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Our Saturday night set (for however many silly errors we made) was a success! Mainly due to all the good people that came and watched us, cheered us, and danced!..yes, people danced! I saw it out the corner of my sweaty eye. I think it was the best reception we've ever had. Thank you! It was very strange having some of my heroes in the crowd watching, i couldn't see them thank god. I only found out after, which was a blessing. They said they enjoyed it, they may have been lying, let's not worry now. A few hours before we were due to play i was in trouble. I was in such a state and unsure if i was gonna be able to stand up let alone carry out the challenging task of whispering nonsense through various voice delays while ripping gaffa tape. It was my own fault..i partied a bit too hard on the Friday night meaning the Saturday was mainly spent feeling like the bottom of the Anster sea was the only place for me. I won't go into details but i was forced into doing something in the toilet that cleared my throat (and belly) of the poison. "The Barbershop! The Mop Top!.." YES! I was back in the game. After our performance i amazingly somehow forgot all about my earlier troubles and enjoyed a glass or two. Had a weird night!!  

The setlist..
Really new (never played live)
New (not recorded)
Re-jigged old song
Cover

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Bitty McClean 
Don't Touch Baby
Are You Girl?
The Elastic Waste Band
Flipper/My Cuckoo Crisis
Tortoise Shell/Purple Rain
The Barbershop
Strays
Sphinx

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You can see the photos from our main set HERE and HERE.

The only review that exists is this one..

"Then across the road for an PROPERLY original set from Bristol's OLO Worms at Legends - I imagine "the" nightclub in Anst'er! Really, really original - I can't be more unoriginal in emphasising the originality of their tunes and accompanying projected film - find them out and make them perform for you." - Bhone Website

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Our acoustic set on the Monday night was kinda fun. We didn't really know what was gonna happen so didn't really plan anything. Mark and i were'nt sure if we were gonna do anything at all but in the end we thought why not? Mark tapped out beat on something, and i played with a large lampshade. I tried to do a little Lil' Wayne rap (at the end of the 'Waist Band' chat) but soon found out that i really can't rap. Gareth and Matt started off a bit..ermm...off, but soon found their way. I really liked hearing 'Germs Stand Up' again. We seemed to go down well with the rest of the Fence gang and friends. After everyone had finished playing we moved/broke the tables and had a dance.

The setlist..
New (not recorded)
Old song
Cover

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Germs Stand Up
The Elastic Waste Band
To The End
What's The Ugliest Part Of Your Body?

You can see the photos from our acoustic set HERE.

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Yeah!! I know what i'll do now! BULLET POINTS! They always work well and that means i don't need to worry about my writing style, not that i have one. Ok! I'm gonna shoot you down with my blog bullets. Here are most of my (can't remember them all) Homegame 6 memories!..

* The 'party house' and all the house parties. 
* Finding myself most mornings slumped in a akward position in the 'party house'.
* The feeling after making myself throw up just before our set. I was a new man!
* Getting married to Rebecca Slow Club with Pictish Trail playing the vicar, then going to the beach with rum hipflasks for our honeymoon. 
* Bhoywonder (in general). Always makes me smile. Soo many funny poses.
* My 'gay baker' / 'gay sailor' outfit for our set.
* Watching the crowd from the balcony bounce to Pictish Trail's 'Winter Home Disco'
* Jamie Ashley's cooking.
* The look on the Blonde girl's face who was drinking my drink after our set.
* Fudgedonut's wooping during our set.
* The 'new' 'wild' Gareth (he's back to normal now).
* Sunday night's dance off! pulling down my trousers to a crowd of people who thought it quite funny rather than being disgusted. 
* James Yorkston's tipexed eyes.
* John Maclean's 'greatest songs ever' DJ set. Going mental and knocking over drinks when he played 'A Milli'.
* Kalee dancing! and Mr Anderson barking orders at the confused dancers.
* Meeting Vashti Bunyan.
* Lone Pigeon getting bluetack stuck in my hair then cutting it out.
* Surprized by the amount of 'special sweets' there were on offer.
* My attempt to rap like Lil' Wayne over the 'Art Attack' theme. EPIC FAIL!
* The chain walk.
* Walks (in general).
* Fresh air.
* Doing the conga!
* Beefball football match. 
* Arm wrestling a girl and WINNING!
* No pressure of internet for a week, i was free!
* Playing golf with King Creosote & HMS Ginafore and his tour of St.Andrews.
* Fish & Chips, Ice Cream, and booze (obv).
* Being invited on board the BBC bus to play and be filmed with King Creosote, his daughter, Rozi Plain, and the woman from The Delgardos. Obviously i could'nt do anything so i just stood behind the camera whistling from time to time.
* The sausage roll van!
* Running into the rain.
* The sun! Being on a beach with sunshine.
* Being cheeky to people.
* The beef gang who were great all week.
* King Creosote's pudding.
* Dancing with a lampshade..the dancing with the lampshade on my head. Poor lampshade.
* Lone Pigeon's late night performance.
* Chatting to John Maclean.
* Slow Club's secret show. 
* Stewarding and greeting people to the festival on day 1.
* Missed alot of music, but hey!
* Lastly, i saw and enjoyed music by..FOUND, Burns Unit, Slow Club, Pictish Trail, King Creosote, Rozi Plain, Jonnie Common, Boywonder, Kid Canaveral, Hardsparrow, Rachael Dadd, James Yorkston & Adrian Crowley, OnTheFly, Viva Stereo, Pip Dylan, wiQwar, Player Piano, & HMS Ginafore.
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Below are G.Jones' HG6 memories..

I think this is most of them (in vague day order):

* Rose Canaveral and Pigeonhair's arm wrestling - which attracted a good crowd of locals who laughed heartily at james's struggle.
* KATOPAZ/TAKE A BREAK
* Going for a walk to Crail on Friday for a coffee, getting within 500yds and accidentally walking into a bog, meaning a shameful/soggy traipse back. City Slicker.
* No phone/Internet - brilliant
* Hall Confusion
* Helping mama casino on the bar.
* Friday night's stewarding - 'escorting' a local from the Hew Scott. Where's your wristband?
* Co-forcing a party on the party house - they had no idea, poor things.
* Being too 'refreshed' from Friday to get through Bhoywonder's set, fluffing some huge notes before giving up entirely. Jonny gave me a deserved kick up the ass.
* John Amino's set - AMAZING!
* James Yorkston 'making eyes' at a female folk singer
* The guy in Legends who saw me struggling with the worst/crackliest bass head in Scotland whilst we were setting up and volunteered his Ashdown one, that he happened to have in his boot. A genuine LEGEND.
* SWEAT.
* Watching the sound guy going to the loo during our set.
* Helping run Ben's Bakery concession after playing, for about an hour.
* Pints with straws.
* Late-night sing-along at the Hew Scott.
* The 'off the ball' incident with Dom.
* Dom requesting a cross-field pass from Pigeonhair by yelling 'TWITTER IT!'
* Promising Pigeonhair that if we were on opposite teams during Beefball, I'd kick him, then within 30 secs of changing sides getting the chance to clatter him in a perfectly legal 50/50, the moaning lasted till Tuesday.
* Wandering around Anstruther in full Southampton kit (with sweatbands) trying to get a key back into our flat.
* Stewarding the 'secret gigs' - JY & Athletes were amazing, a lot of love in the room.
* JEAN SCENE - i've bought an ipod touch (they're not £100 John)
* Tea and Scones
* ICHI! BEST SHOW! PING PONG!
* Giving Rachel Dadd a piggyback during KC's set.
* John Amino's heckling.
* 'If you don't know me by now' with Bhoy in Craig DTTS's car. BIB THEM!
* The Ceidleh dancing, never have simple instructions been so confusing.
* Beach Boys/Beastie Boys/Beatles
* Stomping/Screeching/Conga/Clapping
* Falling asleep on the beach with Bhoy (maybe that's where my bruises came from)
* Getting a tan.
* Haven Lamb Lunch with a Bloody Mary.
* Gorlkeepers pool champs.
* A life-saving throat lozenge.
* Pigeonhair on Lampshade.
* Bum note singing.
* KC on Piano.
* High Commsioner in some fine glasswear.
* The 'table' incident, thanks for getting me out Skips!
* Hitting everything/everyone with a drumstick.
* Tea by the harbour, being thrown 10p by KC.
* A long walk across some well-ploughed fields - the answer is LEFT.
* Amazing roast dinner (thanks Jamie!)/POP!/ladettes to ladies/being called an 'ignorant f*** by a potty-mouthed friend.
* Golf at St. Andrews
* Classic Ice-Cream
* Potato and Bean/Cheese Pie
* Drinks at the Heron House - everyone on Fence loves GIRLS ALOUD! WOOP! Jonny's miming.

Lowlights

*Driving home.
*Everyone elses' cough.

I'M SURE THERE'S LOADS MORE.

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HG6 is officially over! 
HG7 is only 11 months away!!

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