Last Thursday evening, various members of The Crooked Family converged on The Hope, near Google Street tube station, to film a video for the re-recorded version of The Pirate’s Wife, which features on the forthcoming album.
After our own DIYvideoefforts last year, it was a pleasure to see the band working with a friendly and clearly competent bunch of professionals, overseen by director (and new manager) Bruce. We’re eagerly awaiting the results.
In the meantime, here’s a little “making of” video to give you a flavour of what happened on the night. Make sure you watch it all the way through… the album has reverted to its original working title, which is revealed at the end.
“Memoriacide, featuring live music from Lupen Crook and Oliver Burgess played at locations in the Medway Estuary, showing Cockham Wood and Darnet Fort, Hoo Ness Island and Darnet Island. Filmed by Dave Wise in September 2009 during a canoe journey we took. The title refers to the killing of history; which is what Medway Council are guilty of by refusing to save the forts and islands from the river, and also what I am doing by showing this film and introducing the locations, which will in time encourage others to go there and no doubt ruin them, as we generally do. A very human failing, this lust for passing on information to please; to get close in some way. As the old traveller writer’s saying goes, we each kill the thing we love.”
The curse of Friday 13th… two gigs in one night, Mr Crook unexpectedly solo, caught first in the beacon’s spotlight at Gillingham, then winching up the stakes and burning The Heretic in style at Maidstone an hour and a half later.
The band will be playing at The Flowerpot in Kentish Town tomorrow evening. Stage time approximately 9pm8:30pm, no entry fee. Advance access to the download site for the new EP if you grab a flyer. Hope to see you there x
Next Monday, the band will release the Curse Of The Mirror Wicked EP. This week on the website we’ll be explaining a bit more about this project. To kick things off, here’s some live footage of Sunshine Devils - the EP’s opening track – recorded at the Barge in Gillingham last month.
This is one of the newer tracks on the EP, although not the newest. Mr Crook’s introduction to the song explains its genesis, which dates back to a specific night in September. Although we didn’t realise it at the time, the events inspiring the song were documented on this site as they unfolded.
In retrospect, 09/09/09 was not only the release date for the Great Fears & Curious Predictions EP. Though the Curse Of The Mirror Wicked EP has its roots in many ideas and experiences of the past few months, this was arguably the point at which its overall concept was born.
I believe it was last Wednesday when The Mrs and I walked hopeheartedly down Brick Lane, only to bump into artist Sam Jackson, who just so happened to be exhibiting pieces of his work as part of The Future Can Wait exhibition on the rooftop of the Truman Brewery. Whilst walking starry eyed, with our heartistic opinions, amongst the derelict setting of this warehouse, scars of days past etched over the paint flaked walls, we met with the guys who had curated the exhibition. After a little chin wagging, the band were invited to play an acoustic set that coming Saturday. Truth be told we actually had a band practice organised, but it was decided this was as good as place as any to rehearse. So, the crooked family took to Brick Lane with our acoustic get up and played a few tunes to those who happened to be admiring the walls and whereabouts of this fine craggy set up.
Sound quality isn’t the greatest, but we hope you don’t mind. Electricity wasn’t an option. This merely serves as a momentum of last Saturdays rehearsal.
Dead Girls & Daggers, the concluding song of a 30-minute acoustic set played at The Barge in Gillingham on Saturday night. Thanks to everyone who came, hope you enjoyed it as much as the band did.
A huge thank you to everybody who donated money to pay for Hicks to be towed. You will no doubt see her hug the road next year. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
When the day comes and Hicks finally splutters her last breath, she will be sacrificed for a music video. With a can of petrol and a match, flames licking the night sky, we will gently roll her into the river Medway.
Better than gorilla gigging. Devil’s Son @ Lock 17 bar Camden on Monday night . . . voice, guitar & cajon. Five songs then the last train home. ROCK like a boulder.
Crooked songs will never run straight, but some are more wayward than others. Early renditions of Beauties & Beasts contained sections that don’t feature on the version eventually released on the Great Fears & Curious Predictions EP.
Crook struggled with a dilemma. “Are my songs becoming a bit wet?” he mused one June evening last year, as his taxi sped through Chatham. Next time the song was played, there was something different about it. Stuff was missing.
However, a magpie mind won’t let go of its treasure so easily. With environmentally-aware economy, the discarded parts of the lyric and melody ended up being recycled in a darker song that was played a few times at solo gigs last summer.
It soon became clear that this sister song was a sickly Siamese beast, separated to save its healthier sibling. After a period of intensive care, its life-support system was turned off and nature allowed to run its inevitable course.
Coming across it again over a year later, I’m struck by its exuberant melody and the defiance with which it struggled with its dying breaths. Here it is, in all its flawed glory, presented with Mr Crook’s blessing. Nameless twin, RIP.
Here’s a little piece of history for you. Nearly eighteen months ago, just prior to the band’s trip to New York and the subsequent acoustic recording session that became the Great Fears & Curious Predictions EP, Lupen Crook performed a solo gig at The Slaughtered Lamb in London.
The gig was an opportunity to test out a few new songs. Amongst these were Beauties & Beasts and Window Pain & Terrible Weather, both now on the new EP. An evolving version of Beauties & Beasts became a semi-regular feature of both solo and band sets throughout 2008.
However, so far this remains the only time that Mr Crook has performed Window Pain & Terrible Weather live. He swears that it will never happen again, for reasons undisclosed. So, enjoy this fleeting glimpse of the tale of the brittle bones, the broken band and the SA-10 sounds.
