Jake Oldershaw

Review in Russian Daily

2008-11-18T16:09:50Z

Here's a link to a nice review in Russia's biggest daily!

http://www.mk.ru/blogs/idmk/2008/11/17/mk-daily/381320/

Quite a funny translation if Babelfished...

Russian TV Feature

2008-11-15T21:14:24Z

It's been a wonderful week so far here in Moscow. Here's a link to a youtube from NTV - part of our lavish press attention on thursday!

http://ru.youtube.com/watch?v=r0NbtaRGXEY&feature=channel

The Glassworks at Pilot in Birmingham

2008-11-12T07:38:12Z

A date for the diary. 'Pilot' 18th December at The Custard Factory, Digbeth Birmingham

Our newly formed company 'Untied Artists' will be presenting extracts from Ivar Waldemarson's 'The Glassworks' at the mince pie special Pilot event cuarted by Talking Birds

Be there!

]]> 18th December 2008 - Doors 7.00pm First Act 7.30pm
Custard Factory, Gibb Street, Digbeth, Birmingham
Tickets £5/£4 on the door.

December's Pilot, hosted this time round by Talking Birds (though someone
else will be making the mince pies, Mr Kipling probably) will feature the
following stunning acts:

Stan's Cafe - Come Together
Peter Fletcher - Reflections on the Counting of Sneezes
Kings Of England - Where We Live and What We Live For
Millions and Pliers - Writing the Biography of the Millions
untied artists - (extracts from) The Glassworks
Instant Opera Company - Specialise

With live pre-and-post music by the very excellent Little Rumba.

It promises to be a night of excellent untried performances where your
support, feedback, and general goodwill is most appreciated. A colourful
e-flyer will be sent out in due course, but we're hoping to reserve a space
in your packed diaries before they're all filled up with office parties and
whatnot.

Intimate History in Moscow

2008-11-12T07:33:43Z

We're currently in Moscow with the show. It's part of the New European Theatre Festival, performed at the Ermolova Museum in the city centre. More details can be found here - http://netfest.ru/about_eng.shtm

Times 2-9.30pm, 13-16 November

Great to be here!

How Quickly Things Change

2008-05-08T09:56:39Z

Just been back to the Isle of Wight for family parties and early summer sun. The more time i spend there the more i want to go back. The island's started to really get things moving again with the festivals attracting the young and beautiful, even to come down and live. Talking with family who were around for, and quite involved with the original 68-70 festivals, has revealed how quickly public opinion changes.

]]> On Southern Vectis buses you can see Johnny Rotten's face advertising this years 'Nokia' Isle of Wight festival (The Sex Pistols are headlining). Surprising enough given the shock they caused when they arrived on the music scene but even more surprising when you consider that the same bus company placed an ad in the local paper assuring all customers that their buses had been thoroughly disinfected following their use during the festivals! All this not quite forty years ago!

The shock for that small island community must have been considerable when by some accounts 650,000 people came to Afton Farm (just a mile from my folks place) for the 1970 festival. I remember some fantastic footage of the local jeweller in Freshwater and his daughter talking 25 years after the event. 'Some of them stayed for days, weeks, some of them might still be here, we just don't know!' Like some kind of Invasion of the Body Snatchers nightmare the freaks have taken over and made it acceptable for Never mind the Bollocks to adorn the back of our buses!

I suppose that generation grew up, chilled out probably even bought the company, whatever company that might be, and having a bit of fun for a weekend in the summer became thoroughly acceptable rather than rocking the foundations of civilisation. Leonard Cohen's back this year, having to pay the bills because his manager did him over, ending the weekend at the festival Michael Eavis set up in '71 after a bit of island inspiration.

Like anything money plays a part, once they'd got over the shock and repealed a 30 year 'Isle Of Wight Act' that pretty much banned any festivals on the island, the council stood to make a whole load of direct and peripheral profit out of the festivals. Trading on the majestic history of Bob Dylan in '69 and, amongst others, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors and Miles Davis in '70, but not run by the original organisers, the 'Nokia' Isle of Wight Festival now sits in a municipal park in the island's capital, Newport. Rock and Roll and and easy nip into town to use a decent loo.

Meanwhile in its fifth year, Bestival, has got really popular really quick. After humble beginnings they've received a license for 40,000 people to squeeze into Robin Hill. Great festival, great line up, but isn't that too many people for a site that size?

The Return of Dr Pfeffer

2008-03-17T12:55:07Z

Just a quick one to say look out for the repeated series 'Dr Pfeffer's Lonely Hearts Club coming up on Radio 4. Playing every wednesday in April at 11.15pm (and on listen again) ,this is the radio version of Intimate History that was commissioned last year.

Still Here

2008-03-05T12:26:30Z

It's been some time since the last entry. A two month stint of 'the rice show' has in the states was, in the appropriate vernacular, awesome. Since then more outings to Cornwall and Zurich have been similarly successful. The show was brought down by Kneehigh whose dedication, friendliness and connection with local audience was inspirational.

]]> Meanwhile we're plugging away at more gigs for Intimate History, and a couple of other things in the pipeline.

The first cabaret version of Intimate History will take place at Warwick Arts Centre on 31st May. 'Intimate History - Into the Night' features a 5 strong band, new songs and is on a double bill with the very fine Talking Birds show - Trevor Goose.

Also next week sees a rare outing for the new Stan show' The Cleansing Of Constance Brown' on home turf seehttp://www.stanscafe.co.uk for details. It's quite a ride.

I Got Bitten By The Apples

2007-11-15T12:11:53Z

Just nestled outside the wonder that is Paradise Forum (see Nov 2006 blog) , The Yardbird is really getting itself together as a great place for a night out. Last night we went to see Israeli 8 piece band, 'The Apples' that were funky as dogshit. The name isn't all that good but the combination of tight-assed brass-led funk and hilarious scratch antics nearly took the roof off.

]]> Arriving on stage with a eurocool five-strong brass section, engaging frontman/drummer, and two Guantanamo bodysuited dj's they crashed headlong into the first track despite being two decks down. In a heavily decks based outfit you'd think this would be a bit of a problem but the intrepid DJ Todres and The Schoolmaster were soon battling over the same turntables, arms interlocked, looking like this bit of imposed improvisation presented a welcome challenge.

Did I mention the drums? Breakneck beats from Yonadav Halevy who manages the seemingly impossible task of keeping a get-on-yer-feet beat and leading the band and sorting out quite a lot of technical problems whilst all the time looking like he's having the best time time of his life.

It's a thoroughly infectious mix and soon enough if you're not grooving with a great big smile on your face well then you're way too cool for school. Their signature Rage against the machine cover goes down a bomb wiv da kids, an encore includes a laugh out loud call and response between us and what sounds like James Brown in a mincer. Honestly.

I got to remembering my two tours to Israel in 2000 and 2002. The spirit of The Apples was so much like a lot of the people I met, especially in Tel Aviv. At the time I couldn't help thinking all this hedonism was born out of a fatalist approach to life. Could be dead tomorrow so lets enjoy today sort of thing.

It looks like they're on tour in the UK til the 20th but check them out here if you can't see them. More of the same please

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=37880542

Feel The Heat - Why Brum Tries Too Hard In All The Wrong Places

2007-11-05T11:28:12Z

In a few other pages I've moaned on about some aspects of Birmingham's cultural identity and I'm afraid this will be no different. Read em and weep.

]]> Lately by the side of major roads and in the national press adverts have popped up extolling the virtues of Birminghams arts scene. 'Feel the Heat...Over half a million works of art...' boasts one, as if quantity could possibly be more important than quality. I can't help feeling this (most likely six figure) campaign is severely misjudged. Surely cultural reputation stems from a healthy curatorial, educational, grass roots 'scene' that is nurtured from within. Only then will it attract national and international attention through its own merits. Simply putting a poster up saying 'We've got lots of art y'know' just isn't good enough.

'Gigbeth - The UK's Most Diverse Music Festival' - is another case of running before you can walk. I have to admit to only attending the opening event here but with such a shambolic organisation who can blame me? With an open mind a bunch of us turned up fashionably late to the free event on the high street an hour after the published start. Unfortunately so had the sound crew it seemed. With a 200 strong crowd in a 5,000 capacity arena we waited for another half hour while the crew farted around trying to get the first band on. Reports of seeing them playing footie and not working during the day even though the stage was ready filtered through... Another case of advertising superlatives not delivering, made all the more embarrassing as a major music conference that coincided with the event can't have failed to notice the events shortcomings.

Come to think Birmingham is always harping on about the biggest this, the most that, so i suppose it's no surprise that's bled into the arts market from, say, 'The largest billboard in the world!!!!!!!!!!!' or 'The most places that look like the back of somewhere.'

I don't want to be entirely negative so i've got to include how much I like the newly refurbished Town Hall. The opening programme was well thought out and suitably eclectic. You couldn't help thinking someone was testing the water to see which events drew which crowds, spent what money. I only hope whoever was doing that doesn't then close up the doors and shy away from programming such wide ranging, quality acts.

Bike Bezerk

2007-09-14T16:12:58Z

Coming to the end of the 'Of All The People...' run for Metropolis Bienalle in Copenhagen. It's been great to be here but at times a bit frustrating. When the show has poor attendance (which is rare these days) it can feel like a strange Beckettian experiment, wheeling 12 tons of rice around for hours on end for no-one to see. A bit of detective work and it's discovered the press officer has quit - if nobody knows the show is on how is anyone supposed to come?

]]> Copenhagen has a relaxed quality, beautiful sea and canal vistas, great cycle lanes. We were given bikes for the duration which was very welcome, after the initial wacky race routine as you discover the local road etiquette it's not long before you're zooming around like the best of them. That's what i love about these long runs. You get a real flavour of what it's like to live in a town - Shovelling snow in -15c in Massachusetts, eating pig in Stuttgart...!

We had a chance to see a great site-specific new circus show by Italian/Danish company Cantabile2.
Set outside a disused dockside grain silo with a complimentary boat-trip, it was highly skilled, beautifully lit and breathtaking. Grungey Bukowskian characters knocking around in industrial wastelands. Visual enough to understand in any language but not so tricksy as to lose a sense of emotion and humanity. Sets a pretty high standard in comparison the other circus shows in my limited experience.

This Time Last Year

2007-08-09T17:17:07Z

Just been reminiscing about the project 'One Last Look' i made with Talking Birds last year. Click here for a full film of the 20 minute tour as we took people around the Coventry and Warwickshire Hospital to mark its' closure.

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/chm/hospitalproject/events/onelastlook/3docs/film/

Highly emotional and a right laugh, the perfect combination. It was a joy to perform, something like 16 times in 2 days?

A Pre Edinburgh Taster Of Intimate History

2007-08-07T17:47:42Z

See here for a taster of 'To Be King' from Intimate History that features Derek's sublime cello arrangement played brilliantly by Matt Sharpe.

http://www.dereknisbet.info/pages/mediaplayer.asp?filename=To_Be_King.mp3

To see a couple of songs performed live in a cabaret setting come to Taylor Johns House in Coventry, Weds 8th August

I Went To The Big Chill And All I Got Was Stressed

2007-08-07T10:35:57Z

Overheard conversation walking to the mainstage on saturday night in a crowd with a few fancy dressed types -

Oi! Fucking Al Qaeda! How come you hate christians so much?...Oh sorry mate you're not Al Qaeda, you're a ninja.

I could go on but i'm too chilled to bother - man.

Intimate History at Edinburgh 2007

2007-08-02T11:24:08Z

I'm very excited to announce that my show for one audience member at a time is showing as part of the British Council Showcase in Edinburgh this year. Aready half the tickets have been booked by international promoters and we're hoping there will be more take up over the week. So the rest of the 10 minute slots are extremely limited and we're hatching plans for how to distribute them. Read on for details.

]]> The show runs during these times in 10 minute intervals

Mon 20th 20:00 - 23:00
Tue 21st 16.00 - 19:00 & 19:30 - 21:30
Thu 23rd 19.30 - 22.30
Fri 24th 12.00 - 15.00 & 16:00 - 18:00 & 19:00 - 21:00
Sat 25th 12.00 - 15.00 & 16:00 - 19:00

Currently Friday and Saturday have the most free slots. If you would like to come to the show (on any day) please contact me here jake@jakeoldershaw.com leaving your details, phone number, and roughly when you would like to come to see the show. Failing that you can always turn up at the venue and chance your arm.

Very central it is too, just behind the Festival Theatre here :
Venue 365 - Alison House, 12 Nicolson Square, EH8 9DF

For a map go here :

http://www.viamichelin.co.uk/viamichelin/gbr/dyn/controller/mapPerformPage?strCountry=1138&strAddress=&strMerged=Alison+House%2C+12+Nicolson+Square%2C+EH8+9DF&x=0&y=0#locid=39MTE2RUg4OURGNDE5N3ExMGNOVFV1T1RRMk1qYz1jTFRNdU1UZzJOVGM9

See you there!

Back With The Bells Of Shandon

2007-06-27T15:54:35Z

It seems like a week ago that we were last in Cork with 'Of all the people...' in 2006. Coming back to the Midsummer festival has confirmed my suspicions that people here are some of the friendliest, funniest people you'll meet. The town seems on the edge of a massive development, which i desperately hope doesn't ruin the relaxed non-commercialist spirit that still lingers in the streets.

]]> Last year we attended a site specific dance show by Catapult Dance at St Anne's church in Shandon. Very nicely put together, it contained up close movement within the tower, as well as various dances that you viewed from the top. As you looked down on the 3 or 4 individual dances and over the rest of the city you could imagine the whole town beginning to take part in the choreography. Shandon as an area seemed pretty rough and ready. When Heather and Karen saw the show the audience was witness to what they thought was either a mugging or a robbery! This year gentrification looks like it's slowly sneaking in. New build houses going up and a bistro, 'The Four Liars' (named after the clocks on each side of the tower each telling a different time) looking pretty swanky.

Over the weekend the Shandon Street festival was going on and amid the gourmet sausages and crepes i went up the tower again with Jo. This time we got to have a go on the main attraction of the tower. For a few euro they'll let you ring the church bells completely unsupervised except for a few numbered sheets notating 'Abide with Me', 'Amazing Grace', 'You are my sunshine' or whatever. As you pull the strings and knock out yet another dodgy tune for the residents of Shandon to endure, the effect is strangely elating, we were jumping around for joy!
If you're ever in Cork i'd recommend it whole-heartedly, just spare a thought for the locals and don't try to work out 'The Ace of Spades' on church bells for an hour!