Camden Crawl

Last weekend saw my beloved Camden host its beloved Crawl. We had weekend passes and so did our friends so my flat was like a hostel with two bodies on the sofa bed and a body at the bottom of our bed. Cosy. But I tried to be a good hostess, I made tea and toast on Saturday morning. Sunday I was tired and grumpy so everyone had to fend for themselves. Sorry guys.

The problem with Camden Crawl is you think it's going to be a whole day long event but actually you get your map at 11am and then have to find something to do until the bands start playing at 6pm. Sure there are things going on during the day but they're not promoted like the main acts so I'm sure we missed a few hidden gems. Thank fuck for the Halwey Arms is all I can say. Lovely Dougie treated us like rockstars (Halstars ;)) and gave us some free drinks and let us queue jump lots the whole weekend. Thank you Dougie. The Halwey had loads of live music throughout the day and I managed to catch Sam McCarthy's set both nights, featuring Dee Plume (wearing and amazing Kiss jacket) on Saturday. We also trotted around aimlessly and managed to bump into George Craig which was quite random but a nice surprise.

We were adamant we wanted to see General Fiasco at Dublin Castle as our first proper gig on Friday and so got there about an hour and a half early. We were first in the queue at the doors and then 10 minutes before the gig starts they tell us all to get out as the queue will start outside. Bastards. This meant the people at the back were now at the front and by the time we got outside we were right at the back. We managed to finally get in and caught the last 3 songs. Luckily GF were playing Saturday at the much bigger Electric Ballroom and so we managed to catch them there. They were great and I'm looking forward to seeing them back in London on the 6th May.

Next up we went to see Skint & Demoralised. I'd only ever heard one song and was really surprised, Matt Abbott is much better live and we managed to catch him on the Myspace Bus too, although we were outside.
Skint & Demoralised

I think we'll go and see him when he hits Camden next, I'm now following him on Twitter and find his rhyming tweets hilarious. I know I'm a loser and I have been told off already for liking S&D. The only other band I saw was Daniel P Carter's band Hexes. Oh my god they were too good and if you like a bit of hardcore I'd give them a listen.

So that's it really. Throw in a few badges, some humous and chips, a lot of cider, a Subway, late night McDonalds, running down Camden High Street (twice, don't ask), getting asked for id at KOKO and probably a million other random things and you have my Camden Crawl weekend. I'm sure I could have seen more bands and made the more of it but we had a laugh and the sun was out so it was all good.

My New Running Shoe

I've decided I can't afford the gym every month but I really do need to get fit. I luckily have Regents Park just 5 minutes up the road from me and the gloriously piss/vomit covered streets of Camden town at my disposal so I've decided to start running. I thought about running a while ago but it was cold then and I don't like the cold (I carry a hotwater bottle around work the way others carry notepads) but now the sun has come out I think I can handle being out in the open for more than 5 minutes without crying. Also, according to George Craig, it improves your skin, I have terrible skin so this is a huge bonus. Plus if he can run 30 miles in a week then I bloody well can, my thighs surely hold more power in them than his little sticks.

I'm not a jogging bottom and trainer kind of girl and never have been. Personally I think if you wear jogging bottoms in public you are officially classed as a chav. I don't want to be classed as a chav so I've been and bought some leggings. Leggings are surely the sports equivalent of the skinny jean. Right? I also asked Adam if I could run in Converse, he said no. Also I think running in my usual footwear would just look like me running around Regents Park randomly rather than me trying to get fit and I might look a bit mental (I run a bit weird) so I had to start the search for a trainer. What a nightmare. I don't wear leather and I only wanted black so my options were limited. I asked my Twitter followers for suggestions and received the grand total of zero replies. Bastards. Adidas, my sports brand of choice, was a dead end and so I moved on to Nike. Oh how I now love Nike. Not only did I find a trainer made of synthetic material but I also found out I could personalise them! I chose to make the whole trainer black apart from, and this is the best bit (or the most pathetic bit, you choose), I have a pink 'ONO' on the top of one tongue and a pink 'MCR' on the other tongue. I have to wait 28 days, which really does halt my fitness regime, but it's going to be so worth it. So very worth it. I'm sure I'll be able to run faster, get fitter and lose more weight just through having my favourite bands names embroidered on to my running shoe.

Here's a picture of what they should look like. I'm sure this image does them no justice as I can assure you they really will be the best trainers EVER!

Now where do I put my house keys and iPhone?

The Vulture

Gallows are just unbelievably good in my eyes. I cannot wait for their new album Grey Britain. This is their new single. I love this video, Frank Carter looks wicked in a suit. I'm seeing them on 21st May and if the last time I saw them is anything to go by they'll be brilliant.