16.3.2010

Notes From Holiday

Kuwait airport only has three places to eat: Cafe Costa, Pizza Hut and, yes, McDonald's. Is this the price of liberation?

I love the Airbus 340 - very smooth plane. I actually slept fairly well on the way to Bangkok. I was awakened by a voice I thought they were calling my name, turns out they were saying "hot towel?". Still not a bad way to wake up.

There can't really be any reason why we can't use mobile phones on planes, otherwise terrorists wouldn't need to worry about all those, frankly dangerous, bombs. They could just call up auntie during take-off and cause untold chaos the world over. I for one though am glad for a little respite from the intrusive little buggers.

We lit a fire under a small balloon and watched as it slowly floated off into the Thai night sky. It's orange glow burning like a fiery star looking down on us. Mars too added it's angry red glow to the firmament. The light of the fragile balloon and the mighty god of war appeared much the same as they twinkled above us.

The moon was full and directly above me as I reclined by the pool. I was even more thrilled to know that the full awesome mass of the sun was directly below me, beneath the whole globe of the earth.

Lucy the babysitter returned scared. Up the road from our hotel there is a area of road patrolled by several dogs, they seemed reluctant to let her pass so she returned for help. It fell to me to perform some sort of masculine duty. We started off bravely enough, but after the first dog began to bark violently others joined in from all directions. These dogs were not on leashes either and, egging each other on, began to advance on us, Lucy hanging on to my arm for grim death. When one actually decided to lunge at us I saw my life flash before my eyes. I willed us on with the calmest wrds I could find, don't look directly at them or make and challenge, keep moving. Eventually, my heart tearing at my chest, we left their territory and the barking slowly diminished. We breathed again. A little disorientated it took two goes to find the right house (with more dogs), Lucy was safe, but it dawned on me that I had to walk back past the hounds alone! She walked me back to the junction I needed, are you married? she asked me.

Phuket town has a Tesco and a shopping centre. As if to remind me of Croydon, it's called Central.

Surin is just as expensive as London.

Bangkok has a most delicious mixture of old and new. From the ornate and noisy, yet wonderfully baroque Tuk Tuks, to the glittering skyscrapers.

Callow Youth - 21st January

Can You Hear Me?

Can you hear me? There are plenty of ways to do so, and this post is going to outline three of them. Read on wherever you are are in the world, as there is something for everyone.

First up there is fantastic chance to hear me live with my band - Callow Youth - this Thursday 21st January at the White Hart, 1 Mile End Road, Whitechapel. Callow Youth is a three piece band featuring myself on guitar, vocals and vocal effects; my brother Haydn Callow on drums and percussion (he's a truly amazing talent, well worth the price of admission just to hear his playing alone) and Wayne Myers on bass (Wayne is also a very talented multi-instrumentalist and a seriously good player). We'll be doing our usual mix of songs (including favourites; Lightkeeper, When The Snow Fell In Denver and I Need Your Love) plus all the spoken word, instrumental and weird sound effects that you would expect from us. We'll be onstage at about 9:45pm, so plenty of time to check out the art openings in the area, grab a bite to eat and a beer and not miss a note. Admission is just £4 on the door (£3 for students with an NUS card) - a real bargain, as it includes four acoustic acts too.

Can't get to the gig? Well how would you like me to come and play in your own living room, school, church etc..? well thanks to the growing phenomenon of Micro or Home Gigs this can be arranged. Do you have a room large enough to allow ten of your friends and the artist to be accommodated comfortably? If you have a detached or isolated space then we can bring the whole band, alternatively we can play acoustically or with an electronic drum kit. I can also arrange for more than one artist to perform and make a fantastic night of music for you and your friends. Prices would start from about £60 for one artist up to about £120 for a full band plus support act. If you can get 10 friends along that is only £6 - £12 per person and the price would include a demo CD (usually £3) so a great bargain. If you can get more friends along the price per person is a lot less. So what do you need to do? Well just think of a date (or dates to be on the safe side) and get in touch... drop me a line at music @ darencallow . co . uk (without the spaces). Acts I can get to play for you include myself, Callow Youth, Charlie Savigar, Fit & The Conniptions and more... the prices quoted here are for the south east of England, but we can sort out prices for anywhere in Europe or the world, if you really want it, it can happen!

So one more option to hear my music in this post: I am very excited to announce that you can now download the Faith! album from iTunes. This super compilation album sold in aid of Cystic Fibrosis features a unique mix of my own song - Lightkeeper, as well as tracks by Luke Jackson, Eddy Johns and Charlie Savigar to name but three. Only want one track, no problem just download the one you want, or grab the whole lot (a massive 18 tracks!!) for just £7.99 - every single penny raised will help this good cause, so please go and get one, more or all!

DOWNLOAD NOW!

That's it for now, after my gig this Thursday I'm off to Thailand for two weeks for a holiday. I'll try and do at least one post from out there, otherwise, see you all when I get back. I'll be heading to Charlie's gig at the Cafe De Paris, Leicester Square on the 12th, so maybe I'll see you there.

Daren
xxx

Picture is from my gig at The Library in Islington, taken by Harriet Armstrong - www.harrietarmstrong.com

Obsession

It's been a month of real highs and occasional lows. I've had some great gigs and some ordinary ones, but the good ones are outweighing the others. The band gigs have been especially enjoyable. Last week on the 23rd we played at Power's Bar again and it was a tough gig to play with the audience either a) not being into us or b) not being there. But we still played our best gig yet. Haydn was on sensational form and Wayne too (despite a trapped nerve in his shoulder). We played like there were a couple of thousand people there to see us, rather than the dozen or so that were left by the end. That is, after all, how you should play every gig, so we felt good and energised if just faintly disappointed that we didn't get a bigger crowd. It was a quiet time of year anyway, so we're expecting better things in 2010.

Which brings me on to plug our two next gigs, which are both really exciting. Firstly we'll be at THE WHITE HART, Whitechapel (Mile End Road) on the 21st January. We are the only band on, so will be using Haydn's full kit again and really looking forward to it. The gig is upstairs, and we will be on between 9.30pm and 10pm, so plenty of time to come down after work. Do come along if you can.

Then on the 16th March we have a really excellent line-up for you at the TROUBADOUR in Earl's Court. We will be headlining, and the other acts will be Charlie Savigar and the 15 year old singing sensation - Luke Jackson. We are really hoping that Frog Morris will be able to be the host and perform sketches and poetry and there will be one more opening act. This night is NOT TO BE MISSED!!!!! You've had plenty of warning, so get it in your diary now, and make sure you are there.

Meanwhile my solo gigs continue. Best way to see those is to check out my website:

Gig List

I'll try and do another post early in 2010, but for now, I'd like to wish you a fantastic and music filled 2010. Make sure you get to see as many bands as possible and support unsigned and up-and-coming bands.

All the best!

Daren
xxx

Farewell Prohibition

Andy Warhol said that in the future we will all be famous for fifteen minutes. It was way back in June of 2008 that I first played an acoustic set for the 15 Minute Club at Prohibition near Tower Bridge in London. Since that first 15 Minute Club appearance I've gone on to play at their venues in Islington, Birmingham and Oxford and the night's have always been excellent. They must have liked me too, as this year they asked me to take over the regular hosting of the Prohibition night. This was something that I was very happy to do, but it took a while to find my feet. The biggest problem was thinking what to say as I introduced the acts... I finally got the hang of it after a few weeks.

So it was with some sadness that I was there for the last 15 Minute Club of the year, and possibly the last one ever! If it does turn out to be the end of their nights there then it really is the end of an era. Mind you we went out in some style. We had nine live acts on the last night, including myself and everyone played really well. We even finished with the traditional 15 Minute Club jam (one of the things that make it very special and fun for musicians and audience alike), when both Laurence and Rae performed too. It was probably one of the most successful nights that I've been involved in there, and we can only hope that they are back next year. In the meantime though they have a new night kicking off at the Hoxton Pony on December 2nd... I won't be at that one though, 'cos it's my birthday and I'll be celebrating elsewhere!!

I certainly enjoyed my time working there, all the acts were great (thank you!) and the jams were always entertaining. It was interesting to see the difference in the way the acts treated me when I was just another performer and when I was the host! They tend to look up to the host a lot more, but it was fun to have that extra responsibility. It was a really good experience.

In other news, I've posted one more video from the gig at the Power's Bar... here it is:



I'm currently working on trying to book a few more band gigs, with some really strong line-ups, including Luke Jackson and Charlie Savigar, so stay tuned for more news on that.

Daren
xxx

More Power

The gig on the 11th went very well. Many thanks to all those who came to support us.





Next two Callow Youth gigs are:

15th December 2009
LIQUID NATION, LADBROKE GROVE
161-165 Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill, London, W10 6HJ

21st January 2010
THE WHITE HART, WHITECHAPEL
1 Mile End Road, Whitechapel, London, E1 4TP

Bookmark our homepage and join the mailing list here:
http://www.callowyouth.com/

My next solo gigs start tonight at Prohibition, St. Katharine's docks then:

1st December 2009, 8pm (solo)
Liquid Nation, 161-165 Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill, London, W10 6HJ

9th December 2009, 8pm (solo)
Powers Bar, 332 Kilburn High Road, Kilburn, NW6 2QN

17th December 2009, 8pm (solo)
The Edinburgh Cellars, 125 Newington Green Road, Islington, N1 4RA

27th December 2009, 8pm (solo)
The Phoenix, 37 Cavendish Square, London, W1G OPP

See you very soon!

Daren
xxx

Callow Youth - 11th November

With great excitement I can announce that my new band will be called Callow Youth. The band is myself on guitar and vocals, Haydn Callow on drums and percussion and Wayne Myers on bass.

Out first gig will be at Power's Bar, Kilburn on the 11th November.

There will be more news and a website coming soon. But for now, stay tuned to this Blog for all the latest recording and live news.

Daren
xxx

Faith Album - The Launch

Wow, is it really only a week? This time a week ago I had just got home from the Faith! album launch in Margate. It really was an excellent night at the Lido - a fantastic old seaside night club. I got there nice and early and there was plenty of time for main man - Lee Robson - to show me to my guest room and let me prepare for my performance. When I got back to the venue the soundman had temporarily disappeared, but it was wonderful to see Luke Jackson and his dad Paul, as well as Charlie Savigar, who I hadn't seen for about 2 years!

Soon it was time to get underway, as the lights came down and the people came in. I was opening the night, so had to hit the stage running and get things moving. I opened up with I Need Your Love and then played The Fool I Am, After All and finished with the track off the album - Lightkeeper. It all seemed to go well, so I was pleased that I'd done my bit for the night and could relax and watch the other acts. In fact everyone rose to the occasion. The first half of the night belonged to the unsigned acts, with excellent performances from Dan Cropper, Kayley Weller, Billy & Laura Page (over from Texas) and Johan Nøkland Lund (over from Norway I believe). I must admit to be slightly biased but my own personal favourites where Charlie and her band, and the mighty Luke Jackson who played a storming, professional and passionate set, that totally belied his age!!

After a short break it was the chance for the TV talent to show their thing. I believe that Ben Mills, Shaughnessy and our host, Daniel Evans have been involved in some TV show called X Factor, now since I've never seen it, it's hard for me to comment, but they certainly went down very well. I think it's pretty safe to say that Daniel was the crowd favourite by a long way... his spontaneous jam with Ben Mills, was another highlight. Oh, I almost forgot even my mate Eddy Johns managed to make it and perform a short set. Before we knew it, it was all over, just time for a group photograph and it was time to head to bed. I must say it was a very enjoyable and worthwhile project and I loved being part of it...

...but it's not over yet. This was, after all, only the launch of the album, now it's over to you. We are very pleased to say that the CD of the album is now available to purchase for just £9.99 with free postage in the UK and postage of only £1.50 everywhere else in the world. The CD has 18 tracks that have been donated by the artists and professionally packages and produced. My own track is a unique version of Lightkeeper that you can't get anywhere else, and there are also tracks by Luke Jackson, Charlie Savigar, Kayley Weller and Eddy Johns as well as many others. Even if you don't like all the tracks you should still buy a copy. As I said to a friend of mine, it only needs one of the artists to "make it" and you got something really valuable and special - and even if they don't you are helping a great cause. All profits from the sale of the album go to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.

So don't delay, Christmas is coming, so treat yourself and buy a few extra copies for your friends!!

http://faithalbumlaunch.co.uk/shop/

I'm off now to host a night at Prohibition (Sunday), and then there will be another post on Monday when I have an exciting announcement. So come back then!!

Daren
xxx

Photo courtesy of 121 Pics:

Faith Album - It's Nearly Time!

Several months ago a chap by the name of Lee Robson had an idea. He really wanted to raise money to help the sufferers of Cystic Fibrosis and approached a number of acts to provide songs for a compilation album. The artists came back with songs and the project grew to include a single release and an album launch concert to be held in Margate.

I decided to re-record one of my favourite songs - Lightkeeper - and drafted in Haydn Callow to play drums and Paul Tkachenko to play bass. You can read more about the progress by viewing these previous blog posts. Please note that this unique mix of Lightkeeper WILL ONLY BE AVAILABLE ON THIS ALBUM! So if you would like it in your record collection, this is the only way to get it.

The other bands and artists on the album are as follows: he Dunnos (Germany), Anders Fransson (USA), Anglo Saxon (UK), Charlie Savigar (UK), Dan Cropper (UK), Billy Page (USA), Eddy Johns (UK), Johan Nokland Lund (Norway) Unfolds (UK), Kayley Weller (UK), Mike Hirst (USA) and 11 year old Jordan Jansen (Australia). Jordan’s song ‘I Wish’ which was written by Jordan and is dedicated to everyone who lost a loved one with CF.

As you can see there are a fantastic number of artists from several countries who have put time and effort into album, as well as Lee and all his team. Now we need YOUR help! A limited edition CD of the album is available for pre-order now. Please do go to the website (link below) and order a copy (or more, it would make a very nice Christmas present for that relation that you never know what to get). Even if you don't really like all the acts, we would urge to you buy anyway. It will also be available for purchase by download after the launch concert... which is the other way you can help.

Please do buy a ticket and come along to the launch. It's being held at the Lido in Margate on the 24th October. I'm very proud to be opening the show (at 7.40pm) which is hosted by Daniel Evans (X-Factor 2008), Daniel will also be performing along with Luke Jackson, Charlie Savigar, Dan Cropper and Kayley Weller.

Special Guests include Journey South (X-Factor 2005) and Ben Mills (X-Factor 2006), also coming direct from the USA just for this gig is Billy Page plus from Norway will be Johan Nokland Lund, with support from Shaughnessy and Michael Hinch.

I have to say that is quite some line-up and excellent value for just £6.50!!! This is one night of live music not to be missed. So I bet you are just itching to get the website address and find out more... well here it is:

http://www.faithalbumlaunch.co.uk/

Please do mention this album and launch concert on your blogs and websites, Twitter, Facebook wherever. Let's get a full house and sell many copies, it's a really good cause and I want us to raise as much money as possible. GO TO IT!!

The Band Begins

It's always been a dream of mine to put a three piece band together to play the songs I've been working on for the last two years. Originally I planned to start recruiting players next year, but a chance to play a headline set at the Montague Arms brought the plans forward. So it was that two weeks of rehearsals and planning started. The first part of the planning involved working out which songs to play and then get some friends in to help play them. I'd had an idea to take the best of the acoustic arrangements that I'd been playing, and combine them with performance ideas and rock instruments.

Given that I only had a small amount of time to get a band together and limited rehearsals, I chose just five songs to play with the band and a further three to do on my own or in collaboration with other artists. My brother Haydn stepped up to play drums and percussion, Wayne Myers (of Fit & The Conniptions) agreed to play guitar and Edward Kaye took up the challenge of playing bass.

I started the set myself playing The End Of The World part I using the looper pedal and TC Helicon VoiceLive box. Then I was very fortunate that Martin White agreed to play accordion on an acoustic version of After All. Following that the band stepped up to play The Fool I Am followed by Obsession that included spoken word parts by Daniel Lehan and Frog Morris.

After the poetry it was time for the four last songs and so we played Lightkeeper, When The Snow Fell In Denver, All I Want Is You (featuring a reluctant Stuart on tambourine) and finished with a triumphant I Need Your Love. Not everything worked perfectly, for example we managed to play Denver better in the soundcheck, but we did enough to get a genuine call for an encore, we obliged with a reprise of The Fool I Am. There is still lots of room for improvement, but there was enough there to show that we had some big potential. The hope is to play with more players and finalise the line-up later this year or early next year. The next band gig will be on the 11th November at Power's Bar in Kilburn - so come on down and see the progress.

A big thank you to Haydn, Ed, Wayne, Martin, Daniel and Frog for their contributions. It's been a good start, but the future is going to be even better.

Band Debut & Faith Album Launch

Hi friends, I just wanted to let you know about two exciting events that are coming up in October.

Firstly I am very excited to announce that I am putting together a small band to play at Frog Morris Presents on the 8th October. The band will consist of my brother Haydn Callow on drums, Edward Kaye on Bass and myself on acoustic and (shock! horror!) electric guitar, also performing with us will be Wayne Myers of Fit & The Conniptions on guitar and, hopefully, Martin White on accordion. I'm particularly excited about the chance to play with my brother again, he's played with many bands including, but certainly not limited to, Honeytunnel, Damien McCabe and The Barron Knights as well as many shows, and his own jazz trio. He's also taught at Drumtech and written for Drummer and Rhythm magazine - so he certainly knows his flam from his para-diddle!

We will be playing for about 40 minutes and the set will include solo numbers, full band numbers and one or two surprises. If you can make it down then please do, it should be an excellent evening. Martin White is also doing a set and I'm sure Frog will be doing a turn or two as well. I'm hoping to video our set too, so that I can share bits on YouTube, but please do come along if you can.

You can find the Montague Arms at 289 Queens Rd, London, SE14 5JN it's very near Queens Road Peckham station and not far from New Cross. Here is a map.



The second event I want to draw your attention to is the Faith Album which is launched on the 24th October and will be available to buy from the 26th October in aid of Cystic Fibrosis. I have recorded a special, full band version of Lightkeeper for this project. The recording again features Haydn on drums and Paul Tkachenko on bass, and will only be available on this album - it will not be released in this form via any other media.

The album, signature song ‘FAITH!’ will be performed by 15 year old singer / songwriter Luke Jackson who co-wrote the song with Charlie Mason in the USA. Charlie has co-written with some of the best stars around including "Hit 'N' Run" single, Billiam the UK supernova boy band with "The Beautiful Ones” their first top 40 hit single. Charlie has also scored co-writes with, among others, PJ Bianco (who hit No. 1 with the Jonas Bros.), Aussie hit maker Hayden Bell, Johan Aberg (of Christina Aguilera fame) and Westlife producer Niklas Jarl.

The other fantastic artists featured on the album are: The Dunnos (Germany), Anders Fransson (USA), Anglo Saxon (UK), Charlie Savigar (UK), Dan Cropper (UK), Billy Page (USA), Eddy Johns (UK), Johan Nokland Lund (Norway) Unfolds (UK), Kayley Weller (UK), Mike Hirst (USA) and 11 year old Jordan Jansen (Australia).

The album will be mastered right here in the UK by Ian Thompson of White Wolf Recording, Newcastle. Ian has over 25 years experience in the music/recording industry and has recorded artists including Erasure, The New London Symphonic, Floyd2 and many chart hit artists.

Sounds pretty exciting doesn't it? The album is available for pre-order on CD already and you can do this here:

http://www.faithalbumlaunch.co.uk/

All the money raised is going to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust and it's only £9.99 plus an extra £1.50 for those outside the UK. So what are you waiting for? Go order a copy or two now! Those of you on Facebook can also join the Group for the album here.

If you are in the UK, you can also come to the launch night on October 24th at the Lido in Margate, tickets are on sale now, and can also be bought from the website above. Many of the acts on the album are playing, plus some special guests and it should be a really fun evening. I can't wait - will you be there?

And as if that wasn't enough I also have many acoustic gigs coming up in London, and hopefully some full band gigs soon too. Check out all my gigs here:

29th September 2009, 8pm
Liquid Nation, 161-165 Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill, London, W10 6HJ

1st October 2009
Nine Bar, 146 Tanner Street, London, SE1 2HG

8th October 2009
Frog Morris Presents:
DAREN CALLOW + FRIENDS @ The Montague Arms, 289 Queens Rd, London, SE14 5JN

11th October 2009, 8pm
The Phoenix, 37 Cavendish Square, London, W1G 0PP

18th October 2009, 8pm
15 Minute Club @ Prohibition, St Katherine's Docks, East Smithfield, E1W 1AA

24th October 2009
Faith! Cystic Fibrosis charity album launch - limited tickets BOOK NOW
The Lido, Ethelbert Terrace, Margate, CT9 1RX

1st November 2009, 8pm
15 Minute Club @ Prohibition, St Katherine's Docks, East Smithfield, E1W 1AA

I'm also going to be hosting some nights for 15 Minute Club in Hoxton, so stay tuned for more news on all this.

See you very soon, better go prepare for tonight's gig now! Although since it's actually tomorrow (29th) I'm getting a bit ahead of myself, that's how excited I am!!

Daren
xxx

P.S. More updates on the band and all gigs on Twitter.

This Happy Band

Yesterday I was playing as part of This Happy Band an art project / pub crawl arranged by Daniel Lehan as part of the Nunhead Festival. It was certainly a fun and slightly surreal experience. We all gathered outside the Old Nun's Head pub near Nunhead Green and what a motley crew we were. There were pirates, musicians, a human percussion instrument (also known as Calum F Kerr), a laughing bear, a pantomime horse, a poet or two and a man dressed head to toe in camouflage as a kind of latter day Greene Manne. We collectively clattered and strummed our way around three pubs performing as we went. Frog Morris chipped in with a poem or two (mostly about beer), I performed a few songs as did Tim, and Mr Solo. There were many highlights to the day, but the performances in the Nunhead Community centre, and our impromptu appearance on the festival stage certainly topped it off. There is a small video clip of this on YouTube: the saxophone player is Viv and the ukelele is played by Tim.

We all ended up in the Man Of Kent for one more performance in front of the bemused locals. My version of Do You Want To Dance? was nearly drowned out by miscellaneous percussive noises. We all performed a final item and then relaxed with a few well deserved beers.

I'm just about recovered now and doing some practice before tomorrow's gig at the Camden Head - if you are free come along from 9pm - 100 Camden High Street.

Daren
xxx

All The Way There And Back Again

It's been an emotional and creative roller-coaster for the past month, and it's been way too long since my last confession. I've been up north to Edinburgh, out east to Thetford(ish) and played and watched a whole variety of interesting performances. Here's some highlights:



Edinburgh Fringe
================
Where to start?! It was an amazing few days, lots of flyering on the Royal Mile (mostly in the rain) - late nights with friends, acquaintances and even the odd celebrity (failing to flyer Marcus Brigstock for example). Lots of good shows: I chiefly enjoyed Short Intention Span (especially all dressed up as Wally, and the creepy guy returning the condom), Moon Chavs, extremely sexy poetry with Richard Tyrone Jones & friends @ Utter, Robin Ince losing his mind onstage (downstairs at Negociants where I first played the Edinburgh Fringe in 1994), a mesmeric and intimate performance from Edwyn Collins, the filthy penis-obsessed Kunt & The Gang and, of course, the seminal, unforgettable, unexplainable and utterly unfathamable A Young Man Dressed As A Gorilla Dressed As An Old Man Sits In A Rocking Chair For 56 Minutes (about which plenty has been said already).

I must also mention TWINLESS by Charlotte Young - which was, after all, the reason why I was up there in the first place. Charlotte's piece was a combination of video and performance that certainly wasn't to everyone's taste. It concerned the death of her twin sister in a hideous tandom bicycle accident and how she dealt with the loss of a sibling and comedic partner. The performances all took place in the Crypt (very apt) below the Jekyll and Hyde pub in Hanover Street, after the comedy and before the eclectic A-Band. It was good to have a late evening slot as the subject matter was quite dark. Despite our efforts to warn people (my flyering technique of "It's about death, it's very funny" seemed to go down quite well) kind of, it was clear that the few people who had come expecting stand-up comedy or the like were to be very bemused as Charlotte shuffled in in her pyjamas and stood mostly in silence whilst the video ran. Those of us that got the humour though, found it utterly hilarious and wonderful, and this encouraged an initially nervous Charlotte to add extra lines during her raffle sections. The, totally ad-libbed, line of "It's that time again" spoken dead-pan made me laugh so much I nearly had an injury. The quietest night (just three people) was also excellent as they all won a prize and it was the only time that Charlotte almost lost it with laughter on stage... priceless.

It was with great sadness that I was unable to complete the run due to a family illness, but I just want to say many thanks for Richard Soames for stepping in to complete the run. It was a fabulous experience and it only remains for me to say THANK YOU and CONGRATULATIONS to Charlotte for a fantastic first Edinburgh Fringe run... may there be many more.

Oh, and also there are still t-shirts available for £7 if anyone would like one (pictured above).

After spending time with my family, I slowly managed to get back into playing and seeing shows. I fitted in a short performance at the Kiss Of A Lifetime (by Mike Chavez Dawson et al) and a trip to the Tate to see a Pil & Galia performance. Next stop:

Frogstock
=========

Frogstock is one of those sublime english traditions that has survived in various formats for many years now. Last year I played at the acoustic, cut-down version and was regaled by Frog and Victoria with stories of fields full of stages, giant campfires, stalls selling all kinds of wonderous things, and young love (ah sigh). Frog swept his arm in front of him describing a marvellous field with a trailor mounted main stage, dance tent and many other wonders... ah how I envied experiencing these hedonistic delights...

...fast forward a year and there I was, walking into just such and arena of dreams (am I building this up enough yet?). This year the Swan pub in Coney Weston took up the mantle and lo! there was the main stage, lo! there was the acoustic / comedy stage, lot! there was the dance tent, bouncy castle, giant bonfire, stalls, food vans, t-shirt stand, impromptu performances, REAL ALE BY THE BARREL-LOAD and glorious english sunshine to cap it all.

It was a day about which only good things will be remembered. Young Henry playing on both the acoustic and main-stage, all the t-shirts selling out by mid-afternoon, impromptu Saxa-boom jamming, the Blo' Boys back to their best (pictured below), glasses of beer with friends in a field... what could be better? My own performance (at about 5pm on the mainstage) could not even be mired by a few sound glitches in the first song, or my glasses nearly falling off due to sweat (the stage faced directly into the setting sun). It was nice to revive All I Want Is Stu for another year, and songs like Lightkeeper were made for a festival atmosphere.

I even got the train back home after Deference Engine's performance, so was able to cap the whole experience by sleeping in my own bed rather than in a tent. Roll on next year, when I'm hoping I will have a band to perform with!



Well that's the major round up, off to catch up with a few Blogs now. Make sure you check out some of my up-and-coming gigs below and I hope to see you soon.

Daren
xxx

19th September 2009, 2 - 5pm
Nunhead Festival, Nunhead

21st September 2009, 9pm
RAW GEMS @ The Camden Head, 100 Camden High Street, NW1 0UL

28th September 2009, 8pm
Liquid Nation, 161-165 Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill, London, W10 6HJ

1st October 2009, TBC
Nine Bar, 146 Tanner Street, London, SE1 2HG

8th October 2009
Frog Morris Presents:
DAREN CALLOW + FRIENDS @ The Montague Arms, 289 Queens Rd, London, SE14 5JN

11th October 2009, 8pm
The Phoenix, 37 Cavendish Square, London, W1G 0PP

18th October 2009, 8pm
15 Minute Club @ Prohibition, St Katherine's Docks, East Smithfield, E1W 1AA

24th October 2009
Faith! charity album launch - limited tickets BOOK NOW
The Lido, Ethelbert Terrace, Margate, CT9 1RX

1st November 2009, 8pm
15 Minute Club @ Prohibition, St Katherine's Docks, East Smithfield, E1W 1AA

Twins, Wine and Frogs.

I'm off to Edinburgh today, to provide technical support to my friend Charlotte Young and her show TWINLESS. The show deals with the sudden death of her twin sister and comedy partner Emily, and features a specially produced video and a raffle (with big prizes). My role is to make sure you can hear the sound and turn lights on and off and stuff... oh and sell t-shirts... something I have a fair amount of experience of. Since I'm very closely involved in the show I'm sure that you'd expect me to say it's very good and you should come and see it, so I won't. Instead I'll just mention that my bestest mate (m) James thought it was THE BEST THING HE'D EVER SEEN, EVER, and he's totally unbiased.

Anyway, here's some details of when and where you can see it in Edinburgh. It's free to get in, 10p per ticket for the raffle and the t-shirts are a mere £7. It runs from 25th - 29th August and starts at 23:00. See you there!!

It's not the first time I've ever been involved in a show on the Edinburgh Fringe. On August 21st 1994 I played in a bar called Negociants with my then band - Air. Rather bonkersly we decided to drive there, do the gig, and then drive back home (to Harrow) all in the space of a day. Somehow we survived without crashing the van, but I have no idea how. This time I'm going by Easyjet.

After I return from Edinburgh, I have just one day at home before flying to LA. I'm going to meet my bestest mate (f) Peachy there for a tour of the vineyards of California and such like. I'm sure it will be very civilised and we won't get drunk at all. Not even once.

After this mad-cap road trip I'm back in the UK with just a few days to prepare for the festival of the year. Yes indeed it's the return of Frogstock, bigger and bolder than ever. It's on Saturday 12th September and features the usual mix of music, comedy, performance art, ale, badgers and, almost certainly, more ale. It's in a pub this time, which indicates to me that there will probably be more ale than normal. Although that may be technically impossible.

More info here:

http://frogstock.frogmorris.net/

I'll try and keep you all updated from the festival, best wishes to you all.

Daren
xxx

P.S. You can find the rest of my gigs here:

http://www.darencallow.co.uk/gigs.html

P.P.S. Do also check out my friend Daniel Lehan's Blog from Finland:
http://greetingsfromfinland.blogspot.com/ I'm performing with Daniel at the Nunhead Festival on the 19th September.

Influences... Ultravox

Music is a magical thing. It's remarkable how a tune, a melody or a lyric can transport you to another place, or bring back a vivid memory. So it is for me and Ultravox. Hearing any song off the Quartet album instantly re-locates me to Sheffield on Boxing Day many years past. We went to visit my dad's auntie Margaret and uncle Stan at Christmas for a few years when we lived in Liverpool. Since it was Christmas I always had a new tape to listen to (or one year a MW radio that never left my ear) and Ultravox is the one I really associate with this time.*

I'm sure most of you will be familiar with Ultravox from their, oh so nearly, hit song - Vienna. The combination of synthesizers, violin, drum machine and European imagery was certainly a mixture that appealed to me. In truth Vienna was not totally typical of what they did... for three golden albums (Vienna, Rage In Eden and Quartet) they mixed cinematic soundscapes, synthetic sounds and rock guitar to amazing effect. They were always inventive: detuned radios are switched off with click (Rage In Eden), delay soaked drums from the end of one song start another (The Ascent) and a range of swirling effects and noises. They also introduced me to a love of drums that go pfft, tic, dop and fah (as opposed to the usual rock: snap, crack and pop), which I've never lost. In truth I didn't think all that much of Vienna at the time, but fell in love with Hymn (from Quartet) - and then rediscovered the back catalogue. It wasn't just me they influenced, Depeche Mode were fans too, and I would imagine that bands like Muse and MGMT were heavily influenced as well.

It all went a bit wrong after they released Lament and then decided that the next step should be to fire their drummer (Warren Cann) and embrace world music. What followed was possibly the worst album of all time - U-Vox. Fortunately there has been a recent change of heart, and for their reunion tour, they reformed the optimum middle line-up (Cann, Billy Currie, Chris Cross and Midge Ure) and played all the hits from the three albums mentioned above.

I've rediscovered the joys of disappearing into a world of Ultravox music in the iPod age. It's a revelation to hear the details of the music now, that the cassette / Walkman combination conspired to obscure. Do check out a few tracks on Spotify or the like, and see what you think.

One final anecdote, my dearly departed friend Andy Hewitt was a big fan too. One day many years back he tuned into a radio programme and immediately identified Ultravox drummer Warren Cann as the guest on the show. After listening for a while he realised that he was a "mystery guest" and listeners were failing to identify who he was, it made him laugh as there was no mystery at all, just a voice he recognised and knew. If only he'd been near a phone to call in!

To hear the Ultravox influence, check out my songs: Lightkeeper, or Minneapolis Hungover Tired Awake.

Daren
xxx

P.S. I am very happy to say that I have actually seen Ultravox live... last year at Hammersmith Apollo, that's where the picture is from.

*Interesting fact: it was also this time of my life that I was initially thrown back to when standing in the back of a truck in 2006... when the snow (nearly) fell on Denver (okay Detroit actually).

Coming Up For Air

Ever get the feeling that you're a bit too busy?! I've just found a few minutes to write up my Blog after playing three gigs in five days, and I've got two more coming this week alone.

On Thursday last week I made a trip to the Edinburgh Cellars for a show and then hot-footed it to the Duchess to attend my mate Will's last open mic session there. Will's night was one of the first I ever did as an acoustic artist, way back in February 2008. So there were definitely mixed emotions as I took to the stage with a five song set. Hopefully open mic night will continue in September, but it's uncertain at the moment.

Sunday night and I was at Prohibition in St. Katherine's docks. It was a really special night as Laurence (the co-host with Rae) was celebrating his birthday. He'd hand-picked all the acts and it was certainly a very fun night. I particularly enjoyed The Hall Of Mirrors and Sala, but all the acts put on really good shows. Even Rae joined in at the end as we performed an impromptu version of California Dreamin' with Sala on guitar, and the lovely Lyllou on violin.

Btw, make sure you check out Rae's new tune - Persuasion, which is currently being played by Pete Tong amongst others.

For some reason that I can't quite recall right now, I decided to play at RAW on Monday night. I was pretty tired that day, but still managed to get there and play. It was another very enjoyable night and I'm looking forward to seeing the pictures on the RAW site very soon.

And it's not over yet: TONIGHT I'm playing at the Powers Bar in Kilburn and tomorrow night, I'm heading to the Nine Bar in London Bridge Road. Both gigs promise to be really good, so do come along if you can. More details here.

You should also check out this show: TWINLESS that was previewed in London Lite yesterday, my friend Charlotte is performing it and I'm helping do something technical or other... highly recommended.

More soon,

Daren
xxx

Prohibition: Sunday

This is just a quick post to plug a big show on Sunday 2nd August. It's 15 Minute Club at Prohibition, St. Katharine's docks again, but this time it's Laurence the co-host's birthday! The line-up has been hand selected and there are likely to be a few surprise songs and jams taking place. Come on down from about 7.30pm and be part of the fun.

I'm also playing at the Edinburgh Cellars tomorrow night (Thursday 30th July) and might see if I can sneak off to The Duchess in Battersea afterwards, where my friend Will is running his last open mic night there. It was one of the first ones I ever did, and it's still one of the best.

I'll be busy with gigs next week too: on Monday 3rd I'm going to do the RAW night at the Abbey Tavern in Kentish Town. Wednesday I'll be at the Powers Bar in Kilburn, and Thursday at the Nine Bar (near Tower Bridge again). Phew!

In other news I've been offered the chance to be tour manager for a band who will hopefully be supporting Status Quo through November and December. Sounds like an opportunity too good to miss!!

Hope you are all doing well, catch you later.

Daren
xxx

Down Under The Station

We all had a feeling it was going to be an interesting gig. Even getting into the place was a challenge. Perhaps you've been to London Bridge recently and seen a long queue of people seemingly waiting to get into some part of the station basement. Well I know what they are waiting for now, and it's called Shunt.

Shunt is hard to define, it's part work space, part theatre, part art installation, part night club. The atmosphere is damp and humid, like being in a cave or some sort of Victorian England slum experience. It's no coincidence that the London Dungeon share the same space in the dank arches under the station. I arrived at the entrance in Stainer Street and then was led through a reception, bar, theatre and huge video installation that takes up about 10 arches to the far side of this eclectic venue. We were performing in the Speakeasy, which is a little pub sized room with a small bar and a big PA. The chairs and tables didn't match anything - least of all each other, and the whole vibe was easy going. The artists were all nervous and excited, we had no idea what the audience reaction would be to the mixed line-up that our host - Frog Morris - on behalf of Utrophia had assembled.

In the end we had no worries at all (apart from the odd technical glitch). The audience came in and out, but often stayed and crowded around the door to catch what was happening. We didn't disappoint them.

Frog was first on as host: Dave the security guard, who has an interesting line in safety information and an unhealthy relationship with his dogs! The first section of the show was dedicated to art. Daniel Lehan, becoming an increasingly confident performer, amused and entertained with poems and stories about sex, Sting and an interactive poem about buses in London. Next up was another gob-smacking performance from Duncan Ward. It's very hard to give a full flavour of what Duncan does in mere words, but suffice to say it involved, bags of compost, a bottle of champagne, leaves and other foliage, a paper aeroplane and, well, a fair about of mess. As with the last time I saw him at the Montague Arms, the audience were hushed into mesmerised silence, and the doorway was crammed with people trying to get a view.

After the art, it was the turn of the comedians, and James W. Smith, with musings on philosophy and sex and Aaron Barshak, the self-styled Comedy Terrorist, helped us understand religion a little more completely. There was also an appearance by the renown medium - Mystic Huere.

Finally it was time for the music! I was up first and went for the more performance art end of my repertoire. It all seemed to go down pretty well, despite one small equipment glitch. The full set was:

The End Of The World Part I
The Prophet
Lightkeeper
The End Of The World Part II
After All
When The Snow Fell In Denver (extended version including a spoken verse from Obsession)
The Doctor Who Theme Tune (Oh yes!)
I Need Your Love

I was very pleased to get some great feedback after the set, and sold quite a few CDs.

Last, but not least, was Deference Engine who despite one or two problems with the backing track played a storming set. In the end all that was left to do was sing a rousing chorus or two of Angry Badger (pictured above, Deference Engine just off) and we were on our way out of the venue into the south London night.

It was such a great event and, although we are unlikely to ever get the chance to perform at Shunt again, you can see similar nights to this EVERY MONTH - on the 2nd Thursday at the Montague Arms in Peckham.

Or if you want to catch my songs sooner, then I'll be at Prohibition (a mere stone's throw from Shunt in the St. Katharine's docks near Tower Bridge) tonight!

Daren
xxx

Not Prohibited Anymore

It always amuses me when bars make some reference to abstinence or temperance. For example near Clapham Common there is actually a bar in an old Temperance Hall. Another example is one of my favourite venues to play - Prohibition Bar & Grill. I've been to two excellent Sunday nights there recently both courtesy of the wonderful people involved with 15 Minute Club.

Two Sundays ago I played an excellent night there with just two other acts including the lovely Liz Fyfe band, who were all very friendly people. Last Sunday I caught my mate - Acoustic Ashley (pictured above, he doesn't have a beard, that's a harmonica) doing some excellent looping there and also the talented and beautiful Linn Öberg. Both were really good nights with a good, appreciative crowd creating a fabulous vibe. I'm heading back there to play again this Sunday, so do come down if you want to be part of a fun and exciting night.

I also have to mention 15 Minute Club's night at the Living Room in Birmingham. I've played there twice now and both times the vibe was very friendly and relaxed. Looking forward to getting back there before too long.

Talking of returns, I'm also heading back to the Nine Bar on the 6th August. Coming up sooner I'll be at the trendy Shunt bar, down in the vaults at London Bridge. It's a night hosted by Frog Morris, who is also running his much talked about night at the Montague Arms - THIS THURSDAY. So do come down to any night you can make.

One other bit of news is that I'm finishing the Faith! mix of Lightkeeper today and tomorrow - it's sounding very good with real drums and bass now in place and I can't wait for you to hear it. Talking of which, I just found this video:

Live @ The Abbey Tavern

They got the captions slightly wrong, it is me and the song is definitely Lightkeeper.

Full list of upcoming gigs:

12th July 2009, 7.30pm onwards
15 Minute Club @ Prohibition, St. Katharine's Docks, Nr. Tower Bridge, London

18th July 2009
UTROPHIA @ SHUNT, 20 Stainer St. London, SE1 9RL (Photo ID required for entry)

30th July 2009, 8.30pm
Stripped Bare @ Edinburgh Cellars, 125 Newington Green Road, Islington, N1 4RA

2nd August 2009, 7.30pm onwards
15 Minute Club @ Prohibition, St. Katharine's Docks, Nr. Tower Bridge, London

5th August 2009, 8pm
Stripped Bare @ Powers Bar, 332 Kilburn High Road, Kilburn, NW6 2QN

6th August 2009, 8pm
Nine Bar, 146 Tanner Street, London, SE1 2HG

24th October 2009
Faith! charity album launch: limited tickets - BOOK NOW
The Westcoast, 3-5 King Street, Margate, United Kingdom


See you very soon,

Daren
xxx