FAC251 - Painfully Good

Factory - the new Haçienda?

FAC 251 - A different kind of venue

When I found out we had a gig booked at Manchester's FAC251 I couldn't help but feel a huge sense of pride in the city I live in. For those who don't know why, I shall give you a brief history lesson. Back in the 1980s Manchester music was growing. A new record company founded by Tony Wilson opened up a whole new world of music from Joy Division and New Order to the Happy Mondays and James. As part of Factory records New Order opened a club called 'the Haçienda'. I won't bore you with the details but basically it was a world of messiness, drugs and - above all things - music.

The day before the gig...

Outside it looks industrial

... I felt a bit rough with a slightly soar throat. I woke up the next morning after an early night feeling like a sheet of razor blades were slashing at the inside of my unnaturally dry throat. And I felt achey. Great. So I texted our manager, Pete, saying "I think I have tonsillitis, tonight is gonna be a struggle. I'm definitely not singing!"


...How wrong I was!

Inside looks similar to the old Haçienda

After chewing on a fair few painkillers and spraying some throat spray I entered the venue. To say it is run differently to other venues is an understatement. When we usually play gigs we are told to sell a minimum amount of tickets and then (and only then) we will get a small cut of the money. At FAC251 however we didn't have to sell a thing - not a sausage. That was nice! So we got on with the soundcheck - Pete brought me some vitamin tablets which tasted like gone-off Calpol! We then played some songs and I attempted to sing into the mic...

It bloody hurt.

Wristband - Artist: No Really. I am...

Never before have I enjoyed a gig while wishing I could just curl up into bed, but this night was different. We started playing to about 15 people who, collectively as a band, we all knew! By then end we were playing to a sizeable crowd (probably around 90 people) who were cheering and applauding despite my croaky attempts at backing vocals! The vibe was amazing. Some gigs just feel right and this one felt electric! But, by the end I was tasting blood and my throat was on fire! Not so good.

Since the gig...

Matt at the gig.

I've recovered and my throat feels much better (thanks for asking!). Also FAC251 have got back in touch... they want us to headline a night in July. Can it be part of the next Manchester music movement?

Hopefully it already is.

Recording

It's been a while... 
But after multiple days of being shacked up in a tiny DIY studio the band have finally finished recording a 5 track E.P. Of course as soon as they have been produced I shall put some tracks up on here so you can finally here the sound of my band!

Jon Ellis.

Oceansize - Bassist Jon Ellis (on right)

That name may not mean anything to you, but to the band he is a Mancunian God! Jon is the man who has been recording with us and used to be a member of Oceansize (check them out as they were pretty speical). Jon has been more than a man who presses record and makes us sounds sexy, he's also been a fantastic mentor in helping the band to find our sound. Along with manager Pete, they are the two people who have selflessly made the band sound like we do.

Hopefully a CD will be available at the next gig

The Tracks
All five songs are equally as important to us, with each carrying different meanings and reminding us of memorable times. Some are slightly older than others in terms of when they were written but all are current and in keeping with The Marivaux's sound.

The ones to watch out for..
Without a doubt, 'Track Record' as it is our swan song of the new era for the band. It is the most likely to become a single and every time we play it people seem to love it and attempt to sing along.
There's also 'Altitude' which morphs the sounds of old school rock and new age indie with Guy playing a fantastic Harmonica layer over the tune. More of an anthem than a stand alone single but equally as listenable.
Finally, Come With Me has the melody and riffs of any good tune. Hopefully people will agree.

Not long now... 

The Ram & Shackle

No matter how well you play...
You can still sound as terrible as a one man band falling down a staircase if the set up is terrible. And on Monday night the set up was terrible; no monitors to hear ourselves; no microphones for the guitar amps or drums; and no stage to give presence to our set. 


And yet, I still had a good time. Even more surprising was the fact that the crowd seemed to find us bearable if not actually good too! 


The moral of the story is...
...as long as we're enjoying our playing, people will enjoy our gigs... even if it doesn't sound great!


Although it just might've had something to do with the amount of alcohol consumed...