Exposed Magazine May 2018

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THE YOUNG GUNS OF BRIXTON SPEAK OUT

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28 28: SHAME “There are two ways to send a message: make them laugh or make them cry.”

Charlie Steen of South London rabble-rousers Shame on the UK music scene today, brotherly love in the band and why he hates people asking if he’s angry all the time.

50 SHADES OF MAY PHIL TURNER (MD)

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36: IN SESSION

NICK HALLAM (SALES DIRECTOR)

A gritty insight into the tough old job of music journalism as we cotch in a sunny beer garden with Katie Pham & The Moonbathers.

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SARAH KORIBA (ACCOUNTS)

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MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU

42: TO HULL AND BACK

MARC BARKER (DESIGN)

Award-winning director Sean McAllister on class and culture ahead of the world premiere of his latest doc ‘A Northern Soul’ at Doc/Fest.

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44: THE BEST OF THE FEST Rounding up our pick of festivals which won’t leave you too skint and all of ‘em within a short drive of Sheff. Loveleh.

70: SPEAKIN’ MUSIC Getting to know worldwide beatboxing phenomenon and awardwinning composer Reeps One ahead of his live docu-show arriving at Abbeydale Picture House next month.

11: UPFRONT 52: FOOD & DRINK 61: THINGS TO DO 63: NIGHTLIFE 65: COMEDY 69: MUSIC 85: LGBT 88: CULTURE

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ARCTICS IN NUMBERS

HOMEWARD BOUND After the hype surrounding their supposedly nailed-on gigs at Hillsborough Park came to nowt, it was announced last month that Arctic Monkeys will be playing a string of homecoming shows at Sheffield Arena in September. Seems they’re still fairly popular around these ends with the first two gigs both selling out in less than ten minutes of release.

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“NAH, KALE IS JUST CABBAGE FOR BELLENDS MATE.”

THE CATEGORIES Sheffield, yer beauty. You wonderful people turned out in droves to have your say at this year’s Exposed Awards, smashing all previous voting records, and the 2018 shortlist we’ve been left with serves to highlight the wealth of innovative, hard-working businesses and people grafting away to make this city such a cracking place to live.

Things are gearing up nicely for our big bash at 92 Burton Road on May 17th - where we’ll have music, magic, street food, good ale, a photobooth, a pamper room, plus plenty more fun and games to keep you entertained throughout the evening.

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Senses Working Overtime Sensoria Festival announces theme and first events for their 11th instalment Sheffield’s annual festival of film and music returns (now in a 10-day-long format) this September, and the first acts are up.

Tickets are now available for BEAK> on October 4th at The Foundry, a band made up of Geoff Barrow of Portishead and duo Billy Fuller and William Young, also known as Moon Gangs.

Providing support will be Ex-Easter Island Head, playing percussive pieces on horizontally laid electric guitars - probably not something you see every day.

This year’s theme will be ‘Senses Working Overtime’ and all the events in the programme will explore touch, taste and smell (alongside the senses you’d expect in a festival: sight and sound).

For those unfamiliar with the festival, Sensoria showcases live performances, film screenings, exhibitions and special events on the film industry across eclectic city venues (previous years included drive-ins and swimming pool screenings) and has featured names like Jarvis Cocker, Bill Drummond, Richard Hawley, Laurie Anderson, Paddy Considine, Christopher Eccleston and John Grant.

Sensoria Festival runs from September 27 – October 6. The rest of the programme will be announced over the next few months at sensoria.org.uk.

PETE MCKEE ANNOUNCES EXHIBITION EVENTS

Ahead of his biggest exhibition to date, Sheffield artist Pete McKee has announced a series of additional buildup events to complement the show.

These will include a tribute to an oldschool WMC at Crookes Social Club on 15th July, with The Everly Pregnant Brothers, magician Steve Faulkner and a special guest doing the turns. Naturally, there will also be bingo and a meat raffle to get involved with.

Two other events include a historical walking tour of Sheffield on 28th July and a screening of Ken Loach’s The Spirit of ’45 at the Showroom Cinema on 17th July.

Tickets are on sale now from petemckee. com and subject to availability

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I think it’s hard to be a Sheffielder and not have an opinion on Park Hill. Something so vast, so distinctive, overshadowing the city centre and constantly stood on the periphery as life rumbles on below is going to have an impact on you.

It’s usually the first thing people see when arriving by train into the city, and the last thing they glance up at before boarding to go elsewhere.

I’ve seen mention of Park Hill in local pubs and bars often bring out two conflicting attitudes: pride in those who have links to the estate and scornfulness from others who have long seen it as a blight on the landscape, both aesthetically and culturally. Controversy is etched into its very framework – a large concrete reference point for recurring debates on politics, class, history, architecture and much else besides.

Like many others, I’ve been fascinated by it for as long as I can recall.

Even gazing up as a kid, with all political and social relevance stripped away, there was something about the place which commanded scrutiny; it challenged you head-on to form an opinion. I later learned that my mum – then a toddler – and most of her siblings lived in the flats on Bard Street directly behind the complex for a time. I’d try and pry information from family about life there, but tended to get the somewhat obligatory hardy Sheffield response of a shrug of the shoulders and something along the lines of “Ah, it were oreyt. What more do you expect?”

In the years to come I’d get to know the place a bit better through working in local journalism - photoshoots with bands, interviewing artists on-site, exploring the abandoned pubs, and more recently speaking with new business owners and residents who’ve decided to make Park Hill their home. For me, there’s simply no another building in the city with such an interesting and topical past, present and future.

So: following on from announcements regarding the final phases of the Urban Splash redevelopment, which will see them partnering with Alumno Developments to create accomodation for circa 350 students plus new shops and facilities; and the news that Phase 4 and 5 will see the relocation of S1 Artspace to larger premises, as well as open market and affordable housing, we thought we’d garner opinion from ex and current residents, artists, photographers, business owners and developers to pay something of a homage to one of the city’s most recognisable landmarks. Here’s just a snippet of what they had to say.

Joseph Food, Mag Editor

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MICK JONES, EX-RESIDENT WHO TOOK THE PICTURE ABOVE AND TO THE LEFT IN 1969

“I moved on Park Hill in 1961, aged ten-years-old. I thought we’d won the pools. We had underfloor heating, an inside toilet and bath, a fitted kitchen, and an innovative garbage system where you pushed your tin cans down the sink.

It was like a village in a city centre. Many residents who were rehoused from slums were kept together. The amenities were wonderful. We had our own shops with a coffee bar, dentist, hairdresser, school etc. We had three pubs, soon to be four. There was a launderette and a community centre with weekly dances and bingo. We had the famous “Streets in the Sky” where the milkman or breadman could deliver straight to your door. There were a number of porters on the site who looked after maintenance and cleared rubbish too big for the Garchey system.

They also chased us off the grass when we were playing football. Life was idyllic. But sadly, by the 80s the council seemed to lose interest and the place became more and more rundown. This led to original families leaving and a downward spiral where only the desperate were housed in the flats.”

DAVID WATKINS, CHAIR OF PARK HILL RESIDENTS’ ASSOCIATION

What is the general community feel like in Park Hill today?

We have a wide variety of people but that’s the way we like it. 40% of the flats are made up of affordable housing here, which is something we’re proud of. We’ve got a huge variety of income groups here: there are people on benefits and then there are some wealthier people – for example, there’s someone who also lives in Canary Wharf. It’s quite an interesting place and it can be quite challenging but everyone is proud of where they come from. It’s certainly worth looking around if you haven’t been.

What are your views on the idea that the redevelopment is mostly about gentrifying the area?

I went along to committee meetings on the planning stages and we actually did make amendments so as a residents’ association we were involved in the planning with Urban Splash, and we mainly support what they’re trying to do.

A small amount of gentrification is probably a good thing in this area, but I don’t mean posh flats and wine bars; we want it to be more like an artistic gentrification with students moving in too. The sorts of things they do I suspect will get more

people interested in the area. We’ve also got the S1 Artspace and in a year or so we’re going to collaborate with Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

Are there any concerns from residents?

There were some concerns raised on the lack of social housing. We like having it there, it’s a good thing to have a widespread community and we believe everyone should have a nice place to live whether you’re a doctor, a dustman or someone on benefits walking around with a pushchair. That was the original idea. The lack of housing benefits is affecting the new plans though.

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RAYMOND KINSELLA, REGIONAL MANAGER AT GREAT PLACES HOUSING GROUP

Could you tell us a bit about Great Places and its relationship with Park Hill?

Great Places (then Manchester Methodist Housing Association) were selected as the affordable housing partner for the Park Hill regeneration project in 2004. Great Places Housing Group is one of the largest developing housing associations in the north, working to improve the lives of the thousands of people living in its portfolio of over 19,000 homes. We provide almost 100 homes for rent and shared ownership in Phase 1; alongside 160 leaseholders this is now a vibrant mixed tenure, mixed income community.

What classes as affordable housing in 2018?

Affordable housing can be either housing for sale such as shared ownership (which we have at Park Hill) or housing for rent.

The general formula for setting rents is 80% the value of market rents therefore affordable rents are anything up to around 80% of market rents for any given area.

Affordable rents with Great Places are approximately 65-71%.

TOM MUTTON RESIDENT OF THREE YEARS “I never saw myself living in a flat until I went to visit Park Hill. There’s a real diverse mix of people who live there. I’m not the youngest for sure, and I’m definitely not the oldest.

On my floor alone you’ve got people who go to university, young couples who have just had their first child, people who are retired – people from all walks of life. It’s nice to see it being redeveloped in a way that is keeping some of its history and heritage but then also trying to incorporate a bit more in terms of new amenities to take advantage of where it’s

“I spent quite a bit of time up at Park Hill around 10 years ago. I painted a few of my slogan murals on the walls up there when it was still a building site. The old apartments had been ripped out, leaving only the concrete framework. It looked crazy and I loved it. The place just had a great atmosphere. I even went up on the roof, which was amazing and one of the best views I’ve seen of Sheffield.”

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Shaun Bloodworth

KID ACNE SHEFFIELD-BASED ARTIST AND MUSICIAN

In what ways do you work with the local community?

Great Places worked with residents to set up the Park Hill Residents Association and we routinely work with them. As a new community, the residents of Park Hill want to be heard and they want to participate in influencing the services provided by us and engage with other service providers concerning the local environment and amenities. For them, being heard gives them recognition and legitimacy. We have encouraged and supported residents with advice, funding and publicity materials and have helped organise things by supporting residents to host formal and informal meetings.

What do you think makes Park Hill such a special place?

Park Hill has gone through significant changes over the years, falling out of favour on many occasions and for some serving as a reminder of the true meaning of community in its heyday. However, in recent times it has emerged triumphant and proud thanks to the regeneration partnership that still believes in the original concept. Its renaissance brings colour and life to the area and hope for the city. It is by proxy a bringer of life; the spirt of Park Hill lies within the many interactions and activities performed by the people who live here - it’s their energy that breathes life into this building and gives rise to community.

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RICHARD BOLAM, EX-RESIDENT ARTIST AND MEDIA PRODUCER You’ve argued in your blog [The Scandal that is Park Hill – votepleb.wordpress.com] that the design of Park Hill estate rendered it a failure from the beginning.

Can you explain why?

The original failure was that the “Streets in the Sky” concept, so beloved of Le Corbusier and the brutalism fetishists is all very well, but the facilities in Park Hill were implemented with minimum standards. There were no shops or other amenities except on the ground floor making it isolating for anyone with mobility problems.

Also, the orginal design created lots of secluded corners making it both intimidating and genuinely dangerous for vulnerable tenants.

What are your main issues with the Urban Splash redevelopment project?

After leaving in 2004, I pretty much forgot about Park Hill until I went with a group of photographers on a look-around in October 2015 when I was shocked by how little had been finished and that there was evidence of people sleeping rough in the curtilage. Park Hill took four years to build from scratch but Urban Splash have already taken 10 years to fail to finish it. In the midst of a widely acknowledged housing crisis, they have rendered two-thirds of the living accommodation uninhabitable, in order to prevent squatting, so it can’t even be used temporarily.

Although there is an element of social housing, most of it’s not, with purchase prices starting at £100,000. The site is being gentrified as an asset for the middle class when it was built with public money for the purpose of providing sanitary housing for working people.

Ideally, what would like to see done with Park Hill?

I attended a talk by Mark Latham when they were first refurbishing Park Hill and I was impressed with the improvements, as they were addressing some of the problems that I had encountered myself. But that was before I knew it was going to become a speculative asset for a private company. If Urban Splash can improve the place, then so can any other developer, given the money.

Sheffield City Council borrowed money to build a new office block for HSBC, so why can’t they borrow money to refurbish affordable housing?

MARIAH LOUCA, EX-RESIDENT WHO MOVED FROM CYPRUS TO PARK HILL DURING THE 80S

RACHEL CORNISH, CO-OWNER OF THE RECENTLY OPENED SOUTH STREET KITCHEN AT PARK HILL “A few people have asked us why we chose this location, sometimes with a very surprised tone. But when you get people to come over and visit, to see the views and the space, they instantly get it. It’s actually quite green up here and you can either sit inside to admire the views, or grab a takeaway and sit behind the train station looking over the city. Obviously it’s hard to remove the bad image some people of have of Park Hill, but I really like the idea of opening a place that brings people to an area. The feel here is of a community that is really striving to be a community, and it’s hugely exciting to be part of that.”

How did you find yourself moving from Cyprus to Park Hill?

I was born in Sheffield but my dad’s from Cyprus so we moved to London and lived in Cyprus. My parents separated when I was seven-yearsold, so we moved back to Sheffield, which was a huge culture shock.

Everything hit me – the British way of life, the Yorkshire way of life, the Sheffield way of life – and it was a very specific culture which I wasn’t used to. We moved to Park Hill in 1986, 358 Long Henry Row What was it like living there as a kid?

I made really good friends at school.

I befriended a girl and a lad on Long Henry Row and we’d just run about a lot. Like, if your block went in a straight line, the minute it started curving and you went to a different end of the complex it was literally like the nether. Sometimes you would start to freak out and get in the lift, which always smelt of piss, and it felt like you were in a big maze.

It was during the time you lived there that the estate started to develop a notorious reputation for crime and drugs. Were you or aaware of the problems?

I was too young but I found out later that my mum wanted to move. There was a single mum with two young kids who was stabbed to death on the bottom floor of our block, and I think that was a bit of a trigger point for my mum to get us out.

It must have been strange for family to adapt to the contrasts between a seaside town in Cyprus and 80s Sheffield.

I mean sometimes as a kid you just remember Sheffield feeling grey: it was Thatcher’s 80s, unemployment was really high and industry low.

Because the building was always grey and monolithic as a kid, everything is magnified and contrasted hugely with the colours of Cyprus and the Mediterranean Sea. How do you feel when you return today?

The city has gone through a massive regeneration, so it’s not the one I grew up in a lot of ways. I’ve got a lot of pride and respect for it because I think it’s a hardy and malleable place; the city adapts well and that’s down to the people that live here. I’d come back and look up at Park Hill – which used to be this big reminder to keep moving on – but now it signifies something very different through what Urban Splash have done. It’s a hard one, though, because part of me goes “Brilliant! It looks amazing!”

– but then remember I once lived under that social housing situation and there are families who absolutely deserve to have a great space to live in. It is so complicated and loaded, but there comes a point where you have to engage. It’s kind of like the analogy that the train’s moving whether you like it or not – so jump on, let’s have the conversation and create something together that everyone can love, something that the city can be truly proud of.

WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 21

RICHARD FLETCHER, ARTIST (TOWERBLOCKMETAL) AND URBAN REGENERATION ADVOCATE Tell us about Tower Block Metal and its relationship with Park Hill.

I’ve been creating imagery of brutalist buildings as well as other aspects of urban and industrial environments for a long time now; it’s essentially a real labour of love. I’ve always had a fascination with the post-war urban environment and I can still remember the times when it was viewed with a tentative openness and optimism.

Obviously, this type of urban living has gone through good and bad times over the last few years and Park Hill is the absolute structural embodiment of that.

What is the pull to these buildings from an artistic perspective?

Park Hill allows you to get up close and dirty with it that other urban spaces do not. The open yards within the derelict complex are wonderfully eerie, almost brooding evocative spaces, with pigeons as your only companions. More importantly, Park Hill is one of the few remaining brutalist buildings that have been saved from the wrecking ball. Its Grade II-listed status clearly still irks and exasperates many. Haters are always going to hate.

You’re a passionate advocate for urban living. How has Park Hill and similar housing projects had to develop to fit in with the modern world?

That’s a great question. Clearly I am passionate about Park Hill but this goes way beyond the now iconic image. It is the rationale, history and future of urban living that I am an unrelenting advocate for. I’ve always been a passionate supporter for making such schemes work and challenging the dominant narrative that they are simply concrete jungles.

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NICK BAX, HUMAN STUDIO What was it like moving in as the first commercial business back in 2013?

Only the first block was inhabited, so I think there were around 70 people here; whereas now there are probably 500 or so. We had three years of drilling and fitting out going on around us – just noise really. But we always had faith that this place would become more of a destination and that seems to be coming to fruition.

What gave you that faith?

I think partly Urban Splash’s track record, although they couldn’t have picked a worse time to try and develop this building. They’d literally started work on it as a shell when the recession hit, and lots of people then thought it wouldn’t get done. But it did.

Today clients who’ve lived and worked in the city for decades will come and visit us and it’s the first time they’ve ever been to Park Hill.

Strange, isn’t it? It’s somewhere that people have always looked at from afar and judged, but many haven’t actually stepped inside.

Yeah, it’s quite literally the over side of the tracks.

You’ve got the tram tracks, the train line, a busy dual carriageway; you have to be quite determined to get here. People will tend to focus their opinions on how it looks from the outside, rather than what you can see when you’re inside and looking out – it’s a stunning view of the city and a very different one to what we’re used to. I like it because you can look at the city quite objectively from up here. I also think people are surprised by how quiet and peaceful it can up here given the proximity to the city centre.

With that in mind, would you say the building lends itself to housing creative industries?

It’s an interesting point, because it didn’t set out to be a new creative quarter or anything. But it’s not for everyone, this place, and I think it can particularly appeal to people with a bit of knowledge of art or design history and maybe that’s why a number of the companies who’ve moved here are involved in creative or digital practice. It becomes part of your DNA and you have to be on-board with the place.

For example, Warp Records moving here just makes perfect sense to me.

As a business, how do you fit into the community?

The community is good. We’ll see and speak to people in the communal spaces all the time. When we moved in we had a party downstairs and about 200 people, a few of them residents, came down to join us. It will always be hard to replicate the community bonds that they had here in the 60/70s – old neighbours were literally rehoused together with floors named after their old streets – but it’s a friendly atmosphere certainly. We’ve got a café now, which is a good chance to see other neighbours and businesses more regularly.

What are the common misconceptions about Park Hill you’ve noticed?

I think the biggest misconception for me is that people blame the building for the place and communities falling apart. Even on a national scale, these sorts of buildings were seen to be a problem.

Yes, it wasn’t looked after properly, but something I know from growing up in a mining village during the 80s is the effect of the government encouraging people to buy their council homes. It led people to think that: A) living in council-owned property was undesirable; and B) you needed to have a home with a nice garden – definitely not a flat – to be seen as successful. Another misconception with Park Hill is that it’s like a tower block inside, but the space on the decks and “streets in the sky” design means it’s spacious and airy. Planners didn’t really see how all our cities were going to grow; they must have thought people were all going to flock to the countryside or the woods. High-rise living is hugely important for growing cities.

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“I had heard some rumours about Park Hill when I told people I was moving, but when I went around to look at the show flats before moving in I just fell in love with how the flats looked and the feel of the new phase. There is a huge sense of community. We have a resident Facebook group where we all talk, whether that’s asking someone to come and move something or borrowing some sugar.

We also share things that are going on around Park Hill; we’re in the process of putting together a community garden and I’m also part of a book group which meets every six weeks. Now that we’ve got South Street Kitchen we suggested having drinks down there as neighbours. I’ve never lived in such a huge block of flats but also have never lived somewhere that is so friendly.”

First of all, why Park Hill?

Park Hill is like a global brand for Sheffield. It has that national and international resonance, but we all know that there have been difficult times and cycles since starting off initially as quite a happy place. It later fell on hard times of course, but you could argue that a lot of the problems going on at Park Hill were actually going on across the whole of the industrial north.

It wasn’t specific to a building type or a place, there were a lot of social and economic pressures spread across the areas that led to various issues.

What were the initial aims for the project when awarded the contract back in 2004? And have they changed or morphed over time?

I think fundamentally it has remained the same. There are different elements or ingredients in any development which might need slightly changing at times. We approached it with the idea that a building of this scale with the location and strength of character it has could become a fully-functional, successful place again. I suppose in the regeneration jargon of the day there were talks about “sustainable communities” and we’ve seen those sort of words come and go, but we know what it means: a place that people recognise and want to live in. It’s also about having a mix of people of different ages and backgrounds and a mix of facilities too. That aim has remained at the core of what we want for Park Hill, and if you look around the Streets in the Sky today you’ll see that’s what has been delivered.

And where are we at now in term of the development phases?

Where we are at is such a tipping point. We’re about to go onsite with Phase 2, which will provide 200 more flats and more ground floor facilities as well. The student housing scheme is about to going into planning, bringing another demographic to add to the community. With those things very close to coming into construction reality, both of which will be finished by the end of 2020, which will mean two-thirds of the whole estate done.

How have you set about changing the negative perspectives surrounding Park Hill?

70-80% of the job here is changing the perspectives and prejudices around Park Hill. But we have been able to take a lot of heart in the amount of people who’ve talked about how fundamentally it can be a great place to live. We worked quite closely with Ivor Smith, one of the original Park Hill architects who passed away quite recently, and shared a lot of design work and changes to the building with him. He told us that it was designed as a place for people to be happy to live in, but it became a place that wasn’t so much that anymore, and he have us his blessing on the plans to go for it and make it a place for people to live happy lives in again. It’s not job done yet, but I think we’re halfway to achieving that.

How do you counter the argument that redevelopment is essentially a large-scale gentrification project?

You’ve spoken to Dave, the chair of Park Hill Residents Association. Would you describe him as gentrified? He’s actually bought his own market flat, but he’s just an ordinary Sheffielder like many others who live here. That’s aside from the fact that 40% of the units in Phase 1 are affordable housing, so you’ve got people on full social rent and a number of incomes here. I have large sympathy with people who say that the dismantling of large-scale council housing is an issue – there certainly should be much more available.

But I would equally argue that Park Hill benefits from being a mixed community rather than just offering one type of tenure, and that might be oversimplifying it a bit, but we could be looking at 1,500 people living here when the phases are complete and I think offering a variety of housing, as you find in most villages and communities, is a positive and healthy thing.

What makes Park Hill special to you?

Where do I start? I’m a big design fan and people say you either love it or hate it. Well, I love it. Fundamentally, it’s that sense of community that was still there when we first got involved and meeting residents who’d lived here through the bad times. It’s a source of pride for me that we as a company have managed to get through some difficult times – namely the pause due to the recession – and have been able to witness the reformation of a genuine community. Our next challenge is to get a pub in, so keep an eye out for that!

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The South London five-piece released their first album this year and it is astounding. Songs of Praise is a debut record that captures a sense of instantaneous necessity no British band has been able to achieve since a little old act that might be familiar to people round these parts called Arctic Monkeys.

The group have the visceral intensity of Nirvana and the wry self-

awareness of, well, Nirvana. Add to that the call and response virtuosity of Gang of Four and an ear for an irreverent hook akin to Pixies and you have the makings of a very exciting prospect.

The group of school friends started the band and honed their craft in the midst of an enviable list of similarly exhilarating acts such as Fat White Family and have paid homage with ten tracks of startling freshness.

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Dust on Trial is as sinister a start as you could have whilst One Rizla sees the band wrestling with their pop credentials; bringing an uplifting essence to the line “If you think I love you, you’ve got the wrong idea”. Elsewhere, The Lick is a dingy diatribe to the vacuity of the music industry that is carried along with a bass line that mesmerises like a languidly swinging noose and closing track Angie is as cathartic as it is redeeming. Its Stone Roses-esque sense of whimsical dreaminess can’t help but, and I hate this phrase, leave you wanting more.

Since releasing the album in January they have been gifting venues, including the Leadmill, with their unpredictably energetic shows; a few of which have descended into a state of laddish chaos that they have been quick to disapprove of.

After answering machine messages were left and signal was lost numerous times, Exposed eventually caught up with oft-shirtless-on-stage singer Charlie Steen outside our Kelham Island office in a sweltering Sheffield.

CS: I’m so sorry about the mess around. We were sound checking so I couldn’t feel my phone going and the rest of the time I was losing connection on this piece of shit.

It’s fine. You inspired me to go and sit outside. I thought I had rubbish connection so figured I would get a better one by sitting in the sun.

Nice man. I’m glad I could get you some vitamin D. Appreciated. So what are you doing?

We played in London last night so none of us have really slept. We’re all from South London and there were 1,500 people last night. In a big way you lose things like dignity and friendships and family when you go off on tour so last night we got to see a lot of our old mates, which was very nice.

Was it a bit of a reunion?

Of course, man! It was really fucking nice seeing everyone. I miss London.

It’s my favourite city.

How was the gig?

It was great. It was fucking rammed.

Over-capacity. We played with Black Midi, who we really love, and Peeping Drexels, who we toured Germany with, were supporting them. It’s been a lot of fun to have das Deutschland influence. I am originally German. My name was Stein and then changed to Steen.

Interesting. Why did you have to change it?

Because of the Nazis.

Those guys ruined everything!

It was in the 1900s that my family first moved. I don’t really know the details. I know that Stein means stone and that they were farmers on the borders of Frankfurt.

My friend has moved to Frankfurt and I was thinking of going. Is it nice?

When I was there it was really cold and quite dark. Sorry, I’m not in the most optimistic mood today; I’m very tired. Thank you for taking the time to call me and I’m sorry about how difficult that situation just was.

Don’t worry and it’s my pleasure, I’m quite a fan I must say. I’ve not seen you live though. I had a pass to review the show at the Leadmill and I was too ill to go. How was it?

Sheffield was good.

This whole tour’s been a completely different experience. The entirety of the UK tour has sold out and half of Europe has sold out so it’s been really surreal. But it’s been a lot of fun. I think that was our first ever headline show in Sheffield, so it was great to come back.

What did you make of the city itself?

It’s an amazing city that we’re still yet to explore properly, but the pints are cheap and the food is greasy – two essential things any great city must have.

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Too right. Sorry to backtrack to the whole changing your name thing, but one question I’ve penned is: “Do you feel a sense of obligation to the element of chaos because you share such a similar name to actor and general mad head Charlie Sheen?”

No. That’s just something PE teachers, distant relatives and football coaches would say to me when I was ten and it wore off pretty quick. I haven’t heard it in a long time and, no, I don’t feel any unspoken connection with Mr Sheen.

I was ashamed of that question.

“THAT’S JUST SOMETHING PE TEACHERS, DISTANT RELATIVES AND FOOTBALL COACHES WOULD SAY TO ME WHEN I WAS TEN AND IT WORE OFF PRETTY QUICK. I HAVEN’T HEARD IT IN A LONG TIME AND, NO, I DON’T FEEL ANY UNSPOKEN CONNECTION WITH MR SHEEN.” Don’t be ashamed. Relax and enjoy the outdoors. I’ve never been asked that before so triple points.

Really? I thought that was a cheap and easy one. So what do you normally get asked? In fact, I’ll rephrase that, what’s your least favourite question to be asked?

“Are you angry?” Since the launch of the album we’ve sort of campaigned to deteriorate any preconceptions of us being a laddish band. When we wrote the album we were teenage boys so we can’t disagree with the affiliation, but we don’t want to be a band that plays one emotion.

I was going to say, there’s so much depth to the album.

Thank you and I hope that comes through. I think maybe it’s from our live gigs because its quite energetic so it could be perceived as confrontational, but we always saw it as something that’s entertainment and the underlying element is humour at all of our shows. Of course, some anger and some aggression and some sadness and happiness is in there as well.

Hopefully there’s a range.

There’s a quote from Stephen Hawking I came across: “Life would be utterly tragic if it weren’t funny.”

Exactly. There are two ways to send a message: make them laugh or make them cry.

Yeah. Like I said, and I don’t want to kiss your arse, but I really do like the album. My friend, Callum, who as it happens lives in London turned me on to it and I haven’t felt that way about a British guitar band in a long time.

It was a relief.

Thank you very much. That means a lot.

Do you think there’s a chance that there might be something bubbling under the surface and that current issues could instigate a new range of bands that start giving more of a shit?

It’s really hard to speak on a wider scale of perception because we’re so involved in this band. It’s our life.

We’re touring a lot so I guess maybe sometimes we’re too close to the painting to step back and see the whole picture. But I think in terms specifically about music then, yeah, there are some incredible bands at the moment.

I’m only 20-years-old and have only been going to gigs for a few years, so I can’t speak on a large scale or have the knowledge on whether this moment is important or not. We feel pretty lucky to know the bands we know and have the music that’s being written for the right reasons.

The thing is, nobody has any money, so any band that is in a position of starting out in the past several years has that awareness of the lack of financial stability. I think that’s creating something quite interesting, separating the sheep from the shepherds.

Do you think it takes out the real engagement and commitment from the audience?

The money?

Well, the lack of. Due to the means that have brought about the lack of money, IE Spotify and social media.

I don’t know. It was bound to happen at some point and I think where the music industry is, even in a year or two, with the rate that technology has moved, we could be in a completely different position.

They’re still writing fucking laws for Spotify and music because it is that new. There are so many things that need to be addressed. I don’t know whether I’m optimistic or pessimistic; I guess you just have to be realistic and understand that there’s nothing you can predict. I think we’re just enjoying the moment. We have quite old-school methods in terms of how much we play and even the type of music we write. So I don’t know.

On the subject of how things have changed, you were one of the last bands featured on the cover of NME. What do you think the closure of the printed edition means for up-and-coming bands like yourselves that they have championed in the past?

To be honest, I can’t predict what the closure means but it’s definitely sad to see it. I think something else will be birthed from this and I’m curious to see what that will be. It will almost definitely be something online or perhaps we will revert back to the beginning and everything will revolve around word of mouth. I’ll ponder that.

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You seem like a pondering sort of guy.

Well, yeah, I have just been walking in circles for 15 minutes in the High Street.

Get yourself sat in a park.

I would but we’re sound checking now. We’re seeing two of our mates later who go to Oxford Brooks, which is the shit uni in Oxford. It’s funny because they can blag going to Oxford.

I used to blag going to Leicester when I went to De Montfort, even though Leicester isn’t that good of a uni.

Name the city not the uni.

Exactly. So, looking to the future and the past, you guys go way back and I get the impression you’re really tight. Do you think that will hold you in good stead?

I think it’s the strongest and the weakest factor of this band. Our relationship went past friendship a long time ago and now it’s at the state where we know everything about each other, we experience everything together and we don’t argue. Well, we argue like brothers. We never stay mad at someone for too long and we know each other very well. We know when someone needs space and we know everyone’s mannerisms. It means there’s not much time to be in a relationship or have a girlfriend because I pretty much already have four. We have all the arguments and make-ups.

Do you think it will provide you with longevity? Being so tight as mates and actually being really good?

I don’t know, man. We don’t have a goal or a target. We’ve always had this dream to sell out Brixton Academy, but apart from that we don’t really have a point we want to get to and I guess if we did have that then what’s there left to accomplish after you reach that stage? We don’t look at the finish line; we’re just looking at the next step.

After wrapping up the conversation with Charlie apologising again for signal problems and saying that he was going to throw his phone against a brick wall, he told us about their “hectic” festival schedule, which includes a slot at local favourite Y Not Festival (tickets still available).

The group will also be playing a headline show at The Leadmill on 18th November.

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Katie Pham The Moonbathers Words: Charles Gray Pics: Miro Kiss – Grit Multimedia

Sheffield wallflower Katie Pham makes for an excitedly calming presence...

The singer-songwriter plays luscious, resplendent jazztinged pop in the mould of Hiatus Kaiyote and with a hint of Warpaint alongside her band The Moonbathers.

It makes for perfect listening in the scorching sun that bathes the Steel City on the evening we meet up.

The two of us gather in the beer garden of London Road’s The Cremorne whilst herself and her two band mates, Jack Athey and Oliver Warrap, conduct a DJ set under the moniker of Blancmange Lounge.

I ask Katie for an interview without her two compadres as to make subsequent note transcriptions a bit easier, to which she is initially hesitant, saying that they are “there with me through everything”. However, after a few sips of beer, rolled up cigarettes, slices of pizza and off the cuff comments on the similarities between mayonnaise and salad cream, she becomes firmly at ease and proves a delightfully self-deprecating presence.

The 24-year-old grew up on Pearl Street in Sharrow and has so far released two and a half EPs of transcendent majesty alongside the Moontbathers. But the origins of her journey towards musical shamanism can be traced back to wholly different places.

“I started out playing the ukulele on my own at places like the Green Room in Sheffield when I was 15,” she says. “I turned out quite prolific in the scene. It was my first steps towards writing pop music and trying things out. I was comfortable having the platform.”

A British-born daughter of refugees of the Vietnam War, she adds: “I would play all kinds of shit like Mystery Jets

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and The Cure and became adept at writing my own songs.

It was very primitive.”

The eureka moment that proved the catalyst for Katie’s transition from ukulele covers to the expansive music she plays now came about after purchasing her guitar – a beautiful, green Wavelength Italia Emola, which she talks about with as much vigour as a memorable meal.

“It’s my favourite thing,” she says. “It’s just gorgeous and gets me the exact sound I want. From when I first saw it I knew it was exactly what I wanted. I wanted to name it something aquatic but nothing stuck. Now I just call it Baby.”

After meeting and striking up a solid bond with bassist Jack on the circuit in Sheffield and after much deliberation and patience, Katie finally found her drummer whilst working at the Riverside in Kelham Island; a time of her life she remembers with mixed emotions.

“I worked there when it was chill and then it went shit.

Before the new firm bought it I thought it was the best job I’d ever had. Then they came in and started erecting nonsense signs and changing everything. I haven’t been back since I left.”

“At least one thing I can take is that I came across Oliver there. I was working one shift and saw him play and thought ‘This guy fucking gets it! I need him.’”

With the group’s lineup settled upon, the next step came with recording the music. The first output was a split EP with Fentonville Street Band and recorded with local troubadours Delicious Clam.

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“I absolutely love the Clam boys.

They’re doing such a great job and they’re all such beautiful people.”

The next two EPs, Parent’s Evening and Voyager, were recorded with Blancmange Lounge and were mixed by themselves.

“I started off wanting to control everything and do everything myself but I’ve since found that it’s best to get other people involved”, she says.

“The group’s all about finding other artists, like Rosie PM and Tom J Newell, and getting them involved”.

But Katie seems unsettled. She is ready for the group to expand their sound and take bigger and bolder influences. To do the trick, a new guitarist is now in the works. “It’s got hard to write songs because my standards have increased so much.

Everyone seems to see us as a basic three-piece but I’ve got bigger ideas now. I really admire what we do but I feel limited by it.”

“I listen to jazz and hip-hop orientated pop music and I want that to come through. We keep getting put on lineups with bands playing rock music and I worry that my influences aren’t coming through enough. I want to jump off that point I’m at now and start making something more from where I am.”

She continued: “I’m looking forward to having a new guitarist to take the heat off. I will be playing less guitar, which is funny because that seems to be what defines us. We’ve been practicing and I’ve found it very liberating.”

When asked about Sheffield, speaks with her eyes alight about her time growing up and the current scene in the city.

“I absolutely love this city. It’s such a friendly and generally great place to live. Ever since moving away I always get reminiscent of living here and being unemployed and living with my parents. In my opinion, Sheffield is really hot at the moment. There’s lots of super cool stuff going on at Plot 22 and Audacious and other places. The Sheffield shows always have caused me to get emotional because people really dig it and there’s always so much love flying around.”

A student of economics in Liverpool, Katie now works as a medical regulator in Manchester that is fuelled by her commitment to the NHS. “I really appreciated the health economics side at Uni and I grew up being in and out of hospital. Without the NHS I feel like nothing would be the same so in my own half-hearted

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way I try to give something back.

It’s nothing that stressful but, in the lamest way there’s a feeling that I’m doing my bit.”

After a tough year, which has seen Katie move house numerous times and go through a breakup with her girlfriend, it’s no surprise that Katie becomes pensive on the odd occasion during our chat.

She says: “I’m glad to move out and I’m still in the middle of doing it now. It was my own decision though.

I don’t know how I’d be without such a strong group of mates around me.

“It’s still raw. There’s not been a lot of time to write songs and get it all down. It hurts.”

Unfortunately I’m forced to leave quick-sharp for a game of football but upon my departure she becomes a lot more reflective on her achievements.

“I’m happy with what we have achieved so far. It is the best thing that has happened for me. Finding musicians I can create with and be comfortable with.”

Quick to revert the tone back to selfdeprecation, she finished saying: “I just write about being a dick. It’s like a journal. I guess it’s nicer looking back at a song than a scribble in a book.”

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Award-winning Yorkshire director Sean McAllister talks to Cal Reid about opening Doc/Fest 2018 with the world premiere of his latest documentary, ‘A Northern Soul’.

The 25th edition of Doc/Fest will again be bringing a wide range of films and directors to our fair city, allowing audiences to glean insights from some of the world’s most exciting filmmakers as they take on some of the most important social issues facing us today. Fitting the mould perfectly is Sean McAllister, someone who is no stranger to tackling big, intricate topics and often puts himself in hugely risky situations while doing so.

Indeed, while filming the critically-lauded ‘A Syrian Love Story’ he was apprehended

by Syrian police to be interrogated in jail under suspicion of being a British spy.

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The Yorkshire-born director has received further accolades for his work in other areas of the globe, too, including 2005 Sundance Jury Prize-winner ‘The Liberace of Baghdad’ and 2008’s ‘Japan: A Story of Love and Hate’, but his latest film ‘A Northern Soul’ sees Sean returning to his hometown of Hull and turning his camera on another inspiring story.

The film focusses on the life of Steve Arnott, a struggling warehouse worker with dreams of becoming a hip-hop artist. Inspired by Hull’s City of Culture event in 2017, Steve decides to take his love of music to those who have been

cut off culturally. He travels in his ‘Beat Bus’ to underprivileged areas, hoping to encourage members of those austeritystricken communities to aim high, no matter how far or out of reach dreams may seem. It also seeks to examine the social climate in Hull today following the euphoria surrounding the City of Culture festival juxtaposed with the divisive nature of the Brexit vote and detrimental public spending cuts harming the city.

A few days following the announcement that his film will be opening the festival, I gave Sean a call to discuss what he found from training his lens homeward.

Being asked to be creative director for the Hull City of Culture opening ceremony must have been a proud moment for you.

Yeah, it really was. I’m just trying to rewind my mind back. It was described to me as being “only the most important event of the year”. Martin Green was CEO, the guy who did the London Olympics with Danny Boyle. He was really keen for me to use my documentary instincts for the ceremony, and it received just the greatest response.

Had you been planning on doing another film in Hull prior to the ceremony or did that come about from meeting Steve Arnott?

I was definitely looking to do a film in Hull before being invited to direct the

City of Culture ceremony. When I was in Sheffield for ‘A Syrian Love Story’ I let something out during an interview for Broadcast Magazine. They asked me if I was looking to do another film in Hull and I mentioned that I had been thinking of it. It ended up being sort of announced through that. There was a greater interest off the back of doing the City of Culture from the BFI and the BBC around doing a new film in Hull at the time.

It seems that the film also examines another side of Hull, places set apart from the cultural boom emerging primarily in the city centre.

Yes. It was really interesting to be doing a film that was about the backstreets, a perspective looking inward to what was happening with the City of Culture.

Rather than looking outwards, I really wanted to show what it was like for those looking at what was happening in the city centre and feeling separated.

You’ve talked about the parallels between yourself and Steve when you were a young man.

I try to look for a part of myself in all the characters I film. For me, I suppose I was really looking for the person who was most like me twenty years ago: stuck working in a dead-end factory job. I also wanted to see what could have happened if I didn’t move away. Steve is in his forties now, and it made me think of what my

someone on a lower income like Steve.

“I’M INTERESTED TO EXPLORE WHAT CULTURE CAN DO, AND HOW MUCH IT CAN ACTUALLY HELP PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING CLASS. YOU BEGIN TO WONDER IF CULTURE IS ACTUALLY A LUXURY WHEN YOU SEE THE DIFFICULTIES SUFFERED BY SOMEONE ON A LOWER INCOME LIKE STEVE.” life would be like if I’d never have left.

From encountering Steve and seeing the parts of himself in me, his was the voice that I wanted to share.

It seems for Steve and people in his position that it’s an uphill battle to explore personal dreams.

Definitely. In a time where austerity and the Tory government has actually removed many creative paths from education, particularly from kids in deprived areas, it’s amazing to see when Steve goes along in his Beat Bus and the kind of response he gets from these kids in areas rife with drugs and alcohol. I’m interested to explore what culture can do, and how much it can actually help people who are working class. You begin to wonder if culture is actually a luxury when you see the difficulties suffered by

And living back with your parents while filming provided another generational take on Brexit and the development of the city.

You expect the older generation, logically, to be pro-Brexit, which isn’t the case so it’s really interesting to have something to explore that really defies expectations.

What’s interesting is that Steve, who is much younger, also ended up voting to leave. You expect the situation to be the other way around in both cases.

What message do you hope ‘A Northern Soul’ brings to Sheffield at Doc/Fest?

I hope that the film is inspiring for filmmakers to celebrate the North. On the 25th anniversary of what has become such a respected and well-known festival, and as a celebration of so many different voices from around the world, this film will celebrate the voice of the North.

What advice would you give to aspiring northern filmmakers?

I’d say to think about the voices that they want to share, the voices that inspire them.

A Northern Soul will open Sheffield Doc/Fest I’d also encourage them to make films that on 7th June at City Hall, will put the North on the radar, and to act followed by an exclusive as a platform for the region to be known Q+A with the director. to the world. Go and make films about the Tickets available from North for the rest of the globe, not just for the North. sheffdocfest.com WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 43

B E ST of the F E ST

Grim up north? Shurrup, daft sod. Festival season is nigh and here are just some of the many fine bashes taking place in or within a short drive of the Steel City which won’t cost you an arm and a leg. So grab yer wellies, a warm tinny or two, and get royally stuck in!

DOC/FEST

Where: Various Sheffield locations When: 7-12 June £££: Prices vary between specific events but full weekend passes are also available The UK’s premier documentary festival is a celebration of the art and business of documentary and non-fiction storytelling in all its forms, including film, series, audio, interactive technology, augmented reality, virtual reality and live events. It welcomes over 32,000 people a year and will feature guest speakers such as Vicky McClure, Guy Martin and Mark Cousins, plus live performances from GAIKA, Reeps One and Weish. The full line-up will be announced on the website on 3rd May. sheffdocfest.com

TRAMLINES

Where: Hillsborough Park When: 20-22 July Headliners: Stereophonics, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Craig David’s TS5 Who else: Clean Bandit, Blossoms, Jake Bugg, Shed Seven, De La Soul, Milburn, Everything Everything £££: £79 full weekend pass (Tier 6) Sheff ’s biggest and longest-running festival turns 10 this year, t’owd lad. It’s all change in 2018 with a move to the larger-capacity venue of Hillsborough park, a number of brand new stages, plenty of local talent, and a greater emphasis on showcasing the crème de la crème of the city’s finest food and drink traders. That’s before we even get started on the legendary afterparties… tramlines.org.uk 44 | WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK

PEACE IN THE PARK

Where: Ponderosa Park £££: Free to attend, but donations welcome (see website) Organised by a wide group of volunteers – artists, musicians, students, events organisers and other everyday Sheffield folk – coming together in a not-for-profit collective and promoting humanity, diversity and peace. It’s a family-friendly event with plenty of live music, DJs, arts and an unlimited supply of good vibes. peaceinthepark.org.uk

B E ST of the F E ST

PEAKENDER

Where: The Showground, Bakewell When: 17-19 August £££: £20 weekend pass // Camping prices vary The Thornbridge Brewery presents the return of the three-day Peakender: three days dedicated to the best UK breweries, fine street food, live music and entertainment – all set in the iconic location of Bakewell Showground, offering stunning views of the Peaks. There are also a range of outdoor activities including climbing, caving and abseiling and opportunities to camp (or glamp, if yer feeling fancy) overnight. peakender.co.uk

MOSBOROUGH FESTIVAL

BASSFEST

Where: Don Valley Bowl When: 2 June Headliners: Bad Manners, The Pigeon Detectives, The Christians £££: Adults (16+) £25 // Juniors (8+) £8 // Kids free A family-friendly all-dayer that has gone from strength to strength over the years, necessitating a move to a largercapacity Don Valley last year. The local scene is wellrepresented too, with the likes of Cellar Door Moon Crow, Velcro Teddybears and Seamonsters on the bill. mosboroughmusicfestival.co.uk

Y NOT FESTIVAL

Where: Pikehall, Peak District When: 26-29 July Headliners: The Libertines, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Jamiroquai Who else: Kaiser Chiefs, Manic Street Preachers, The Wombats, Razorlight, Circa Waves, The Amazons £££: £119.50 full weekend pass (Tier 5) A rain-soaked Y Not had a bit of a ‘mare last year, let’s be honest. But organisers have been keen to learn from any lessons and alongside a whole host of changes and improvements to the site have announced one of their biggest lineups to date. Throw into the mix the fact that it’s situated less than an hour’s drive from Sheffield city centre in a picturesque Peak District setting and you can’t go too far wrong. ynotfestival.com

Where: Sheffield Parkway When: 4 August Headliners: Caspa, DJ Hype, Holy Goof, My Nu Leng, Rudimental, Kurupt FM £££: Standard ticket £35 (+£3.50 booking fee) Arriving at the home of bassline this summer, this outdoor all-day festival will bring over 100 artists across five stages and celebrates a range of genres including house, drum & bass and UK garage. bassfest.co.uk

EROICA BRITANNIA

Where: Friden Grange, Peak District When: 15-17 June £££: £35 3-day pass/£20 day pass Dress to impress at this award-winning three-day boutique festival dedicated to family fun, glorious vintage, food, drink and cycling. The ‘world’s most handsome bike ride’ takes an exciting – if not quite gruelling – tour of the picturesque peak district; while over on the festival side of things, you’ve got everything from Brit Award nominee Beth Rowley to big brass and swing bands. eroicabritannia.co.uk

MUSIC IN THE GARDENS

Location: Botanical Gardens When: 29 June – 1 July Headliners: Ultimate Bowie, Michael – The Legacy, The Magic of Motown £££: Daily tickets £22 adult (17+)/ £11 child (under 16) The Rotary Club of Sheffield is at it again and has put together another fundraising garden party to remember – this year raising for Weston Park Cancer Charity. Music in the Gardens was originally a one-day event and has grown into a four-day festival bringing together a wide range of music, ranging from world-renowned acts to tribute bands to full orchestra collaborations. facebook.com/musicinthegardens

WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 45

B E ST of the F E ST

SHEFFIELD FOOD FESTIVAL

Where: Sheffield city centre When: 26-28 May £££: Free Sheffield’s largest free event returns for its eighth year, bringing more than 40,000 hungry stomachs to the city centre. A wide selection of tasty stalls and events will spread across the Peace Gardens, Winter Gardens, Millennium Square, Town Hall Square and Fargate. There won’t be many cuisines not catered for, and the popular Eats, Treats and Beats Village returns to provide a chill spot for craft beer, cocktails and tunes. sheffieldfoodfestival.co.uk

DRONFEST

Where: Cliffe Park When: 4 August Headliners: Liberty Ship, StoneRun, Rib Eye, Jungle Lion, JayRar £££: £14 Dronfest prides itself on being a well-established, family-friendly, not-forprofit music festival. After raising more than £10,000 for a wide range of charities in 2017, the event is now in its 19th year and committed as ever to showcasing local talent across a range of genres. dronfest.co.uk

THE EASY LIFE Eurohike Pop 200 // £25 Keep it simple: rock up, pop up and go have fun with this simple 2-man weatherproof tent which pitches in seconds and is easy to fold away.

SOMETHING FOR ALL THE FAM Berghaus Air 6 XL Tent // £799 With customizable sleeping space and generous standing room communal area, this is the mansion of the new Air tent range.

Erectable partition walls in the sleeping area create privacy for you and your family or simply open up the whole space and enjoy the breathing room. Easy pitching and quick release valves make packing away painless, too.

KING OF THE CAMPSITE

We all know that after a hard day’s festival-ing you need somewhere to lay your head in comfort.

Luckily, the team at Blacks Sheffield have rounded up their top tents to perfectly suit your needs.

46 | WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK

Eurohike Ribble 3 // £70 Pic: Lightweight, completely waterproof and a door which can be used a sun shelter or porch area.

Suitable for small groups/couples and not too spenny. Purrfick.

Blacks, 69 The Moor, Sheffield S1 4PF Tel: 0114 399 9828 // www.blacks.co.uk

MOSBOROUGH MUSIC FESTIVAL DON VALLEY BOWL SHEFFIELD SAT 2ND JUNE 2018 10.45AM - 11PM

FEROCIOUS DOG | TOM HINGLEYS KAR-PETS TWISTED WHEEL THE ASSIST COURTBETWEENERS DARE (HUMAN LEAGUE TRIBUTE) GIMME ABBA JUNGLE LION MARQUIS DRIVE VELCRO TEDDY BEARS

Mosborough Music Festival

INSIDE STAGE

TICKETS

ADVANCE £25 P.O.D £30 CELLAR DOOR MOON CROW 8 & UNDER FREE THE HARRINGTONS 9-15'S £8 P.O.D £10 JACK FLETCHER BAND | KAVALIERS ONLINE THE KICKLIPS | LIBERTY SHIP FROM OUR WEBSITE, THE LEADMILL, TICKETWEB LUCKY MAN | No Hot ashes SAINT PETERSBURG | THE REYTONS COLLECT WHITEHORNES, HAYBROOK AT THE ROSADOCS | SEAMONSTERS CRYSTAL PEAKS, LEADMILL, ROYAL STANDARD, MOSBOROUGH TWISTED WHEEL | WINACHI TRIBE OFF-LICENCE, BIRLEY MOOR NEWS. THE WIRED

@MmfestivalM

HOTLINE/INFO OFFICE 0114 2486906 MOBILE 07739 700733

www.mosboroughmusicfestival.co.uk

Dronfest charity music festival is back! Celebrate 19 years of Dronfest at Cliffe Park, Callywhite Lane on the 4th of August 2018.

Two stages of great music, food stalls, bars and entertainment all to raise money for charity.

Early Bird Ticket

Advanced Ticket

(Available until 20th May)

(Available until 3rd August)

Adult £14, Over 65 £10, Under 16 £5

Adult £17.50, Over 65 £12, Under 16 £5

Ticket On The Day

Adult £20, Over 65 £15, Under 16 £5 All Adult and over 65 tickets include one FREE ticket for a child aged 8-15!

Under 8‘s are always free*! *if accompanied by an adult

Sponsored By

www.dronfest.co.uk | info@dronfest.co.uk | 07770 584287 #Dronfest

B E ST of the F E ST

SOUND CITY

Where: Liverpool Baltic Triangle & Cains Brewery When: 5-6 May Who: DMA’s, Peace, Idles, The Slow Readers Club, Jaws £££: Weekend £60 / Day pass £32.45 It’s worth braving the two-hour drive for this award-winning metropolitan festival, featuring another genre-spanning lineup and a separate programme of art and dance events to seek out. Head to their website for full info. liverpoolsoundcity.co.uk

DEERSHED

BLUEDOT FESTIVAL

Where: Jodrell Bank Observatory When: 7-9 July Headliners: The Chemical Brothers, The Flaming Lips, Future Islands £££: £159 (first release) An intergalactic festival of music, science, art, culture and space exploration – all set in the grounds of a deep space observatory.

Where you can catch Richard Dawkins, Public Service Broadcasting, Joy Orbison and David O’Doherty live – possibly on the same day! discoverthebluedot.com

SLAM DUNK FESTIVAL

Where: Leeds City Centre When: 26 May Headliners: Good Charlotte, Jimmy Eat World, Lower Than Atlantis, Taking Back Sunday, PVRIS, Reel Big Fish £££: £49 weekend / £55 with afterparty The incredibly good value touring pop-punk, ska punk, metal and alt-rock fest makes its return with another mahoosive host of bands to knock your socks off. slamdunkmusic.com

COCOON IN THE PARK

Where: Temple Newsam, Leeds When: 14th July Who: Sven Väth, Seth Troxler, B2B Craig Richards, Tale of Us, Enzo Siragusa £££: £49.50 (third release) One day, one night, one stage – one of the best dance all-dayers returns with another impressive array of the biggers and best acts from the worlds of house, techno and dance. cocooninthepark.com

Where: Baldersby Park, North Yorkshire When: 20-22 July Headliners: Goldfrapp, Drenge, Field Music £££: Adult £145 / 6-15 years £50 / 3-5 years £20 / 2 years and under free One of the best family festivals in the UK, you’ve got everything ranging across music, comedy, sports, arts and cinema crammed into one weekend. Away from the headliners, you can catch the best comedy, spoken word and literature talks or get involved with the many science and crafts workshops taking place. deershedfestival.com

LIVE AT LEEDS

Where: Various venues When: 5 May Who: The Vaccines, Circa Waves, The Horrors, Ash, British Sea Power £££: £39.60 Possibly one of the strongest band lineups we’ve seen from one of the smaller festivals so far this year (Cabbage, The Magic Gang, Nadine Shah, Idles and Pulled Apart By Horses are also joining the party) – and all for a mere forty nicker! liveatleeds.com WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 49

Sheffield Model

641 ECCLESALL RD, S11 8PT. TEL: 0114 457 0831

@sophie_georgina

233 CROOKES, S10 1TF. TEL: 0114 267 1924

Bookings and enquiries can be made by emailing studio@goodvibrationstattoo.co.uk or calling 0114 2671924 or popping into the studio for a chat.

by threebestrated.co.uk

@sophie_georgina Sheffield Model

LADIES HAIR STYLIST WANTED!!!

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BUNKERHAIR.CO.UK 1.4 KRYNKL. SHALESMOOR. SHEFFIELD. S3 8UL. 0114 299 1499

Modern with a Vintage Twist Fabulous vintage style dresses, hosiery, accessories and cosmetics We stock lots of amazing brands including:

358 South Road, Walkley, ShefďŹ eld 07596 637895

misssamanthasvintage@gmail.com

@misssamanthasvintage

@misssamanthasvintage

www.misssamanthasvintage.co.uk

SPOTLIGHT ON

MISS SAMANTHA’S VINTAGE

Dress to Impress Opening in Walkley last month, Miss Samantha’s Vintage specialises in 40s/50s-inspired reproductions.

Situated on the corner of South Road and Freedom Road, the store is influenced by a “modern with a vintage twist” ethos: no secondhand products, but retro pieces made using contemporary fabrics and techniques.

“I’ve never had a shop of my own,” owner Sam told Exposed. “My husband and I renewed vows on our 25th wedding anniversary, and on our honeymoon I told him that I didn’t want to stay in my long-time, mundane job. He asked me what I wanted to do, to which I replied, ‘I want to sell pretty dresses.’ Since then it’s just morphed and gathered speed – and now here we are.”

Unlike some vintage specialists that sell only dresses and skirts, Samantha’s Vintage has a varied selection including accessories, cosmetics, shoes and capri trousers – perfect for those who aren’t a fan of the 40s flare. “The Collectif jeans we have

are high-waist, long with a turn-up leg. I thought I’d try a couple of trousers as well, and the fabric of those is lovely – they swish beautifully as you walk. I have lots of separates too, and all different colours so people can mix and match.”

Catering for sizes 8-22, in all styles of clothing and sold at a variety of prices, the store currently stocks a wide range of brands including Collectif, Hell Bunny, Voodoo Vixen, Pretty Retro, Lindy Bop and Ruby Shoo. As of June they will also be an independent seller of Irregular Choice, a label which focuses on unique, expressive footwear which you’ll soon be able to browse through via the shop’s work-in-progress website.

“It’s a mixed bag of prices, but there’s nothing above £60 in the shop. It ranges from £20-£60, though when Irregular Choice shoes come in they’ll be a bit more. When I get the website set up, it’ll have the option to use Layaway, so customers can pay off an expensive item in small instalments if they can’t afford to pay for it in one go. It’s important for us to match quality with affordability.”

Facebook.com/misssamanthasvintage Opening times are Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday 10.30-4.30pm, Friday 10.30-6pm and Sunday 11-3pm WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 53

nominated

best beauty salon

Manicure & Pedicure  Spray Tan  Facial Treatment  Body Treatment  Lashes  Waxing

For a full treatment list visit our website 32 High Street, Dore, Sheffield, S17 3GU. 0114 236 89 89 info@theboutiquebeauty.co.uk // www.theboutiquebeauty.co.uk

nominated

best beauty salon & hair stylist

Gypsy Rose Salon, 327 Abbeydale Road, S7 1FS. 0114 438 5827 / gypsyrosebeautysalon@gmail.com / Gypsy. Rose Beauty Salon

SPOTLIGHT ON

wax inc.

Wax On-wards!

Following the success of their Surrey Street branch in the heart of the city centre, Wax Inc. have recently opened a second salon on Ecclesall Road. Exposed caught up with general manager Natalie Brown to find out the key to success in the beauty game.

Offering a wide variety from your run-of-themill leg and bikini waxes to more specialist treatments. If you’re not a fan of the waxing strips, Wax Inc also offer laser hair removal services and it’s a service that’s just as popular for the guys as it is for women.

“We get plenty of men coming in for intimate and full-body waxes here. We have a very welcoming atmosphere here at Wax Inc and we aim to make the experience as comfortable and straightforward as possible. Our second branch’s new location is convenient for people coming from out of or via the city centre on Ecclesall Road, and we’re open late on weekdays, as well as on Saturday. You can easily book an appointment online, over the phone and even on our app,” Natalie told us.

Aside from waxing, there’s a range of high-

standard beauty services on offer such as HD brows, semi-permanent lash extensions, gellac nails, spray tans and 3D lipomed – a noninvasive form of liposuction which tightens skin, providing non-surgical fat extraction and cellulite reduction.

If you’re wondering about the prices of these luxury treatments, they’re all about keeping it reasonable. A leg and bikini costs just £30, and you can have an eyebrow wax for a tenner – value combined with attentive service which keeps customers coming back. Last year, the salon were finalists at the prestigious English Hair and Beauty awards and boast an average 5-star rating from their online reviews. The people of Sheffield have once again showed their love by nominating Wax Inc for an Exposed Award in the Best Beauty Salon category this year (they won it last year!), so they’ll be hoping to top off a huge few months with a bit of silverware!

To book call 0114 327 2850, use the 24-hour booking page at wax-inc.co.uk or download the Wax Inc app from the Apple store.

1 Tudor Square, 67-69 Surrey St, S1 2LA // 750 Ecclesall Road, S11 8TB WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 55

The ever-moreish Sheffield Food Festival heads back to the city centre for its eighth year on Spring Bank Holiday weekend (26th-28th May). We caught up with Laura Holmes from organisers Events Collective to find out what they’ve got in store at this year’s tasty-looking celebration.

GETTING STUCK IN!

also got lots of new talent – local companies Blessone’s Kitchen and Fula Flavour collaborating to showcase West African cuisine, Olu Babalola from Wing Kings sharing some of his signature recipes, Jane Stammers from Tipple Tails and Jane Cummings from Olive & Vine Wines on choosing the best drinks to accompany a decadent slice of fruit cake, plus Katy Fenwick from the School of Artisan Food showing how to make your own cheese and dairy products at home.

We can’t believe quite how much we’ve stuffed into the weekend this year! There will be everything people have come to expect from Sheffield Food Festival – delicious street food, fabulous local produce to take home, talented chefs demonstrating how to get the best from your ingredients, free kids activities, talks and debates – but this year we’ve also added MORE street food, MORE Eats, Treats & Beats, a NEW Food Futures area aimed at food and drink entrepreneurs, a NEW pop-up tea room in Orchard Square, a NEW Supper Club event on Sat evening hosted by food festival sponsors Proove, the NEW Tastings Table hosted by Bullion Chocolate and much, much more!

The big hit from last year’s event was undeniably the Eats, Treats & Beats Festival Village at the top of Fargate.

This is our stylish stretch tent bar surrounded by topnotch street food, which stays open into the evening for that ‘night market’ vibe. This year, the Village will open for an extra day, with a soft opening on Thurs 24th (bar only) and everything in full swing from 11am on Friday 25th May. We’re working with Sentinel Brewing Co and Stancill Brewery so the bar features some excellent local beers alongside the usual range, plus Mr D’Arcys Drink Emporium will be open throughout serving gin, prosecco and cocktails.

The street food offer in Eats, Treats & Beats is headed up

by Smoke BBQ, serving their mouthwatering pulled pork butties, and includes returning favourites The Gravy Train (delicious gooey-melty poutine) along with newcomers Get Wurst (bratwurst, currywurst and vegan wurst), Wah Wahs (Mexican BBQ, halloumerito and churros), Fro

by Joy (indulgent yet virtuous Froconut frozen dessert), Mama Tornado (spiralised potato snacks), and Canny Coffees (brilliant brews and rainbow lattes).

WHAT’S NEW?

BACK ON THE MENU Our good friends at Plug have once again curated a fantastic programme of live music and DJs to feed your ears as well as your bellies. Highlights include DJs from the internationally successful Propaganda club night on Friday 25th May; a smorgasbord of wonderful local singer songwriters – Just Alfie, Sofia Vago, Jayrar to name a few – hosted by Plug Live on Saturday 26th May; another soul and funk Sunday with Andy H, Matic Mouth and guests on 27th May; all wrapping up with more from Plug Live on Monday 28th.

The Theatre Kitchen programme is looking really exciting with plenty of our favourite chefs returning to share more secrets of the trade and showcase the fantastic produce available in our area – Tom Lawson from Rafters, Charlie Curran from Peppercorn, Vicky Wainwright from Marcos New York Italian, Brez Barwise from Sentinel Brewhouse will be just a few people attending. And we’ve 56 | WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK

READ ALL ABOUT IT!

We’re really excited to announce the launch of the brand new Sheffield Food Festival Magazine on 1st May. Alongside a full programme of events for the festival weekend, it is stuffed with interviews, features and recipes from some of the city’s most exciting food and drink businesses. Look out for this FREE magazine across the city’s shops, pubs and bars in May. sheffieldfoodfestival.co.uk

Brand new for this year is the Sheffield Food Festival Supper Club, hosted by event sponsors Proove Pizza, in the Theatre Kitchen marquee on Saturday 26th May. Their chefs have created a bespoke menu which showcases their most popular ingredients with a seasonal twist, while introducing new and delicious dishes including the Sheffield debut of Proove’s street food offering, with dishes such as Arancini, Angioletti, Crocché and Pizza Fritti all making an entrance on the night. Each course will be paired with painstakingly matched alcoholic delights including fizz, gin & cocktails. Tickets for the Supper Club are limited to just 50 people and cost £50 per person, including canapés & welcome drink, 5 courses with 5 paired drinks. Check out Proove’s social media for info on tickets or call them on 0114 294 5185.

On Saturday 26th May, Sheffield Food Festival will be hosting a one-day programme of talks, discussions, mentoring and advice aimed at food and drink entrepreneurs at all stages of their journey, from embryonic ideas to established businesses. The Food Futures programme will take place in the Town Hall and features a host of experienced industry professionals sharing their experience and knowledge, and providing opportunities for participants to discuss their own ideas.

Also on Saturday, in the Town Hall, Bullion Chocolate will be hosting the Tastings Table, giving an introduction to the world of craft chocolate, taking you through the amazing journey a cacao bean takes to become a finished bar. Tastings take place at 11am, 1pm and 3pm, in the Town Hall on Saturday 26th May with limited places available. Tickets £5, redeemable on purchases of Bullion Chocolate on the day.

We’ll be taking over Orchard Square to create a Pop Up Tea Room, with great cakes and bakes, outdoor seating and table service from the local retailers so you can simply relax and enjoy your cuppa along with some delicious, locally made, indulgent treats from companies like Bakes by Butter, Era’s Chocolate, Whipped Bakery and Ridiculously Rich by Alana. On Saturday, local street artist Faunagraphic will be designing a foodie colouring wall for festival goers to unleash their creativity, and there will be some musical treats popping up from time to time to entertain the audience.

WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 57

THANK YOU FOR VOTING FOR NEPCO! KELHAM ISLAND PIZZERIA | ABBEYDALE ROAD PIZZERIA | MOBILE | PRIVATE HIRE

#BESTPIZZASHEFFIELD @NETHEREDGEPIZZA

European Restaurant specialising in Romanian, Hungarian and German Cuisine.

This is a first for Sheffield!

Sfinx ReStauRant & Cafe

539 atteRCliffe Road, S9 3Ra Sheffield Phone: 01142 443 123 / dine@SfinxReStauRant.Co.uk

Peppercorn 289 Abbeydale Rd S, Sheffield S17 3LB peppercorn-restaurant.co.uk 0114 235 0101

Blackcurrant and Liquorice Parfait This is one of our favourite desserts when blackcurrants are in season, as the colours are stunning. We first developed the recipe when a regular customer brought in a huge basket of blackcurrants from his garden! You will need a sugar thermometer to get the temperature of the sugar syrup just right.

Preparation time: 30 minutes, plus 12 hours freezing | Cooking time: 5-15 minutes | Serves 6-8 INGREDIENTS 8 egg yolks 250g sugar 100ml water 300ml double cream 150ml blackcurrant coulis 100g liquorice compound METHOD Put the yolks into a stand mixer and whisk. Put the sugar and water in a pan and bring to the boil. Continue to cook until it reaches 120°c on a sugar thermometer. Pour the hot syrup onto the yolks with the whisk running and whisk until it creates a sabayon, which has the texture of lightly whipped cream.

Leave to cool.

In a separate bowl, whisk the double cream and divide it between two large bowls. Add the blackcurrant coulis to one and the liquorice compound to the other.

Mix both thoroughly. When the sabayon is cool, divide it in half and put it into the two bowls. Lightly fold both mixtures, trying to keep as much air in as possible.

Place into two separate containers and freeze until hard. This can now be scooped like an ice cream, or sliced like a terrine. Serve and enjoy!

60 | WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK

SEAN CLARKE, HEAD HONCHO AT THE MOOR MARKET’S BEER CENTRAL, SHOWCASES HIS CRAFT BREWERY OF THE MONTH AND RECOMMENDS SOME OF THEIR FINEST TIPPLES.

Something to Taco About Mexican-inspired cocktail bar Piña is set to be the newest addition to Kelham Island’s thriving food and drink scene when they open their doors on Harvest Lane this month.

The Piña journey began a few years ago and the brains behind the venture have been out to experience first-hand production techniques of tequila at La Alteña distillery in Arrandas, Jalisco.

The food is going to be mainly based around tacos, with traditional favourites like tacos al pastore and modern dishes like the Californian Baja fish tacos on the menu. They’ve also got veggies and vegans covered and are hoping to open up an outdoor yard.

As for tipples, you can expect the bar to be fully stocked with tequilas and mezcals. They will also be serving up cocktails, including many thirstquenching margaritas. If tequila isn’t you bag there will also be plenty of beers from reputable northern breweries on offer. barpina.co.uk

REBEL, REBEL! That mid-April sunshine was a long time coming – it really was a long, bleak winter! Let’s hope May delivers some heat, because you can bet all the money you got that it’ll deliver some mighty fine beers. Speaking of which, what’s your fave Sheffield beer garden? We at Beer Central like a sneaky one out back of the Rutland Arms, plenty of space down at Shakespeares too, and the front of Sentinel is a scorching sun trap when the orange ball in the sky is powering out rays!

Anyway we’ll be leaving the Steel City this month and heading across the border into Wales, paying a visit to the coastal city of Newport, the home of the multi-award-winning Tiny Rebel Brewery, who have recently expanded again and are truly smashing the UK beer scene.

As it often the case with breweries, the story dates back to two blokes in a garage. Back in 2011 Gaz and Brad were doing their thing, knocking out the homebrews, every one of them loved by family and friends. A small operation consisting of two guys taking on the big breweries – Tiny Rebel was born! It all started on the 16th February 2012 at The Commercial, Pontyminster. Their first two beers, FUBAR and Urban IPA, were launched and after years of experimenting with recipes and business plans, the boys were commercial brewers and on the way up. 2013 was massive: the team expanded, a new bar opened and they bagged gold, silver and bronze awards at the Great Welsh Beer and Cider Festival. 2015 didn’t slow down and was capped off with a stunning CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain Award for their hoppy Red Ale, Cwtch. Things have been just as relentless since then and Tiny Rebel have a loyal following of fans who love their many and varied brew. Here’s a quick look at three faves of theirs, but in brand new cans…

Frambuzi Raspberry Sour Framboise 4.3% 330ML Cans Packed full of the juiciest little raspberries, this is a kettle sour beer that delivers a fruity sensation in every can. Treat your taste buds to a summer delight!

Coming out of the Shell Sheffield will be getting its very own taste of the Caribbean sunshine as Turtle Bay sets up shop in the old NUM Building on Holly Street. The venture is set to open on the 3rd June and will create 50 new jobs for the city.

Jerk spices, sunshine-inspired cocktails and island spirit are all on the menu. Alongside the standalone bar there will be over 50 authentic Caribbean dishes including Turtle Bay’s famous jerk chicken and curry goat. There are also burger and salad menus and a delicious collection of dishes for vegetarians, vegans and gluten-free diners.

After a £800K investment the 172-seater restaurant will be set across two floors and will transport guests to sunnier climes with vibrant, beachshack-inspired interior. turtlebay.co.uk

Stay Puft 5.2% Marshmallow Porter 330ML Cans This kicks off with the classic roasted malts of a proper dark porter, but then the soft plump marshmallows offer up a sweet, sweet finish.

This beer really caught the imagination when it was first released.

Thankfully now part of the core range, grab one from a pub, bar or bottle shop near you.

Clwb Tropicana 5.5% Tropical IPA 330ML Cans A real fruit salad IPA, with lots of US hops, peach, passionfruit, pineapple & mango. Grab a deckchair, get your feet in the sand and reach for a Clwb Tropicana!

BEER CENTRAL LTD

The Moor Market, S1 4PF Telephone: 0114 2755990 facebook.com/BeerCentralLtd WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 61

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TOP PICKS

SU BEER FEST 6 May // Raynor Bar, Bar One and Interval Garden Sheffield Student’s Union have announced a line-up of local acts to soundtrack your leisurely day-drinking. So you’ll find over 100 real ales, craft beers and ciders on offer from over 65 of the World’s best breweries, plus some top tunes. su.sheffield.ac.uk CULTURE QUARTER MARKET 11 May // Cultural Industries Quarter Not got enough street food in your life? The Culture Quarter Market, hosted by the Foodhall project will feature street food, live music and stall for art prints and vintage clothing. tinyurl.com/y936d7bz I’M ALAN PARTRIDGE QUIZ NIGHT 15 May // Brewdog Know where the best owl sanctuary is in Norwich?

You’ll be in with a good chance in Brewdog’s latest pop culture quiz, this time themed on seasons 1-2 of Alan Partridge. Kiss my face. facebook.com/BrewDogSheffield STYLE SHEFFIELD 17-24 May //Virgin Money Lounge and City Hall Showcasing the city’s diverse fashion and beauty scene, Style Sheffield returns next month with two free events as part of Sheffield’s Alive After 5’s initiative. First up a beauty night at Virgin Money Lounge on May 17, then the big fashion show on May 24, bringing together big brands and indie boutiques. stylesheffield.com THE GIN AND RUM FESTIVAL 18-19 May // Trafalgar Warehouse The UK’s first gin and rum festival will showcase, you guessed it, lots of gin and rum. Over 60 varieties of both will be present, alongside 7 themed bars, talks and masterclasses, live entertainment and street food. Entry will get you a free satchel with your own copa glass. Bonus. ginandrumfestival.com HORROR CON UK Magna // 19 May // Free for children 11 or under Horror geeks, this is a day to live out your gory fantasies. The annual event is w heaven for freaky fans, and there’ll be eight special guest appearances from Jeff Combs (Re-animator, Masters of Horror), Barbara Crampton (Chopping Mall, You’re Next) and Billy Wirth (The Lost Boys, Body Snatchers) to name a few. horrorconuk.com

Bank on It! May’s a bit of oreyt, isn’t it? Not only does it bring with it slightly sunnier climes, making weeknight beer garden antics and impromptu BBQs fair game again, but we’ve got two – yes two! – bank hols to get stuck into. You’ll probs still be recovering from Mayday weelemd by the time you get your hands on this issue, so we’ve rounded up a few events that are looking good for Spring Bank instead. Get stuck in.

TROJAN SOUND SYSTEM @ PICTURE HOUSE SOCIAL – 25TH MAY To celebrate 50 years of the iconic Trojan Records label, Reggae Take Over are bringing the inimitable party starters Trojan Sound System to the Abbeydale Road venue.

Representing the Steel City on the night will be the Trojan Explosion crew. Expect only the finest in Ska, Rocksteady, Roots Reggae, Dub, Dancehall and UK Bass. picture-house-social.com RAVER TOTS @ FOUNDRY – 26TH MAY Get the young’uns raving early with ‘Raver Tots’, a family-friendly club event to be held at the Foundry in Sheffield’s Student Union. The event includes face painting, UV lights, bubbles, balloons, confetti and giant parachutes – not to mention some of the UK’s top DJ’s including residents Artful Dodger, Brandon Block, Slipmatt & Nicky Blackmarket. ravertots.co.uk SHAKEY-WAKEY @ YELLOW ARCH STUDIOS – 26TH MAY Back to bring you the wobbliest tunes, the Shakey-Wakey event will be held on the Saturday featuring Hedix and MC Skywalker in the main room with Drum ‘n’ Bass’ finest ANNIX plus many more and the rave cave returns featuring AXZY and a soon to be announced guest headliner. yellowarch.com

PROTEST SEASON: MARK THOMAS - CREATIVE MAYHEM @ THE MILLENNIUM GALLERY – 26TH MAY Comedian, political satirist and journalist Mark Thomas is well versed in the art of creative mayhem, and over the years his troublemaking has changed laws, cost companies millions and annoyed those who most deserved to be. After committing 100 acts of minor dissent in the space of a year, the proud libertarian anarchist is back to reflect on that project and his on-going work to creatively challenge repressive authority whenever it shows its face. museums-sheffield.org.uk FULLY GARAGE @ THE HARLEY – 27TH MAY Sheff ’s premier garage night is back with a free rave-up bringing the best in UKG, two-step and 4x4 – past, present and future. Head to bit. ly/FullyGarageMay to grab your free tickets. theharley.co.uk WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 65

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Nothing but a summer jam The sunshine is (almost) here and the Sheffield late-night scene is hotting up considerably this month. Exposed nightlife gaffer Leo Burrell mops his brow and lets you in on his top shouts for some fun and games this month.

TOP PICKS

TUESDAY 1ST

SATURDAY 5TH

FRIDAY 11TH

TTC: DJ SEINFELD, YAK, COXIE Foundry // £8.80 Tuesday Club continue their run of credible bookings with another star of the recent ‘lo-fi house’ revival.

His latest release on Or:la’s Deep Sea Frequency label is absolutely killer and he’s one of the funnest DJs around right now – he didn’t name himself after a 90s US sitcom for nowt.

CYCLE: MAMA SNAKE, KATIUSHA Hope Works // £8 DON LETTS Yellow Arch Studios // £12 Innovative post-punk director and DJ Don Letts is famed for being director of several of the Clash’s music videos and the band he formed therein with guitarist Mick Jones, Big Audio Dynamite. His energetic sets that span dub, reggae and jump up will keep the crowd bouncing ‘til the wee hours.

LA RUMBA: ROMARE (DJ SET) The Harley // £7 Following their huge 1st birthday carnival complete with samba band La Rumba bring their biggest headliner to date to the intimate confines of the Harley. Romare’s bassy beats span house, disco, afrobeat, hiphop and jazz. His live band and productions precede his DJing somewhat, but his selections are just as impressive – effortlessly flowing from techno to rare disco cuts with the skill of a seasoned DJ. Not to be missed.

WEDNESDAY 9TH

SATURDAY 12TH

PEACHY X LATT: MADAM X DINA // £7 Dubstep, bassline, grime and drum’n’bass innovator Madam X is here at long last to power through 90 minutes of heat! With support from Tino and Shakey Wakey residents.

ROOTS 6TH BIRTHDAY: ELEKTRIKAL VS SINAI SOUNDSYSTEM Trafalgar Warehouse // £10

THURSDAY 3RD SMALL IDEAS: DJ PAYPAL BAL Fashions // £8.00 This alternative clubnight brings Berlin-based DJ Paypal to Exchange Street for a night of Teklife’s finest footwork. Small Ideas are celebrating with this end of year shindig, so burn those textbooks, get down and work those feet.

SUNDAY 6TH

FRIDAY 4TH HIGH HOOPS X HUNIE: MR. SCRUFF Southbank Warehouse // £17.50 (£15 Students) Manchester’s king of eclecticism is here for a four-hour set at the freshest warehouse in town. The Attercliffe space has seen a host of Hunie parties this year, and more recently the second ever Sheffield Boiler Room. This collab with Manchester’s High Hoops is gonna be huge on a bank holiday weekend.

SAUL’S SESSIONS: MAFALDA BAL Fashions // £5 Co-founder of Floating Points’ reissue label Melodies International hits Sheffield for her debut. Expect a night of the finest rare groove disco, world music and jazz from one of the most exciting new selectors on the scene, as well as the esteemed Saul’s Sessions resident DJs.

FOR OUR FULL NIGHTLIFE LISTINGS, HEAD TO EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK/ LISTINGS-HOMEPAGE

FRIDAY 25TH MUZIK: GREEN VELVET, WAFF, JAMIE ROY Code Warehouse // £27.50 Two huge house heavyweights hit Code Warehouse in the shapes of legendary producer Cajmere aka Green Velvet and tech-house master wAFF. Newcomer Jamie Roy completes a brilliant lineup as the Muzik team warm up for the return of Twisted Wonderland this July.

WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 67

TOP PICKS MY DAD WROTE A PORNO: LIVE City Hall// May 1 // £30.80 Jamie Morton’s dad wrote a dirty book. Is he embarrassed? Not at all. After the huge success of his podcast which he runs with best mates James Cooper and Radio1 DJ Alice Levine, which has had over 100 million downloads globally, they’re going on tour to read out a ‘lost chapter’ of one of his dad’s naughty books from the Belinda Blinked saga.

‘If only more literary criticism was like this…’ – The Chortle sheffieldcityhall.com

‘Aving a laugh: Tramlines announce first ever comedy line-up The guys at Tramlines told us to expect some big changes at their 10th year anniversary bash – and they’ve certainly delivered!

As well as a pop-up cinema, two new stages, an expanded Into the Trees DJ area, a dedicated family section and more local traders on-site, the festival have announced their first ever live comedy line-up featuring some of the biggest names on the UK stand-up circuit.

13 comics will be taking to the all-new Leadmill Comedy stage, where German comedy ambassador Henning Wehn and Sheffield’s-own versatile singersongwriter John Shuttleworth will be headlining on the Saturday and Sunday respectively. Also featuring on the bill will be charismatic wordsmith Tom Wrigglesworth, Canadian funnyman Tom Stade and master of controversy Bethany Black.

NATHAN CATON Leadmill // May 23 // £12 With a joke repertoire ranging from personal to political, and after the success of his Straight Outta Middlesex tour, things will only get better for the awardwinning young comic.

‘Laidback, on-the-nose material, chopping down fools of all colours, both in day-to-day life and in the media’ – The Guardian leadmill.co.uk

For the full lineup, head to

“WITH STANDUP IN BRITAIN WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO IS BLOODY SWEARING. IN GERMANY, WE DON’T HAVE TO SWEAR. REASON BEING, THINGS WORK.” Henning Wehn 68 | WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK

IAIN STIRLING: U OK HUN? X City Hall // May 6 // £22.40 A show about how this new world of instant gratification has affected our ability to find long term happiness, expect upbeat wit and gags from Edinburgh-born stand-up and BAFTA-nominated children’s TV presenter.

‘Possesses all the born-with-it-oryou’re-not-qualities associated with the world’s leading comics’ – List sheffieldcityhall.com

SHAPPI KHORSANDI Leadmill// May 31 // £15 Star of Live At The Apollo, Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow, Have I Got News for You and Q.I, Shappi is on the road with her new sell out show. Sharp wit and energy make for a unique take on unsung heroine Emma Hamilton, a woman famous for being Nelson’s mistress. “Yes, she occasionally danced on tables naked to get ahead in life, but who hasn’t?”

‘Seriously funny and surprisingly filthy’ – The New Statesman leadmill.co.uk

Harry Yeff is an award-winning composer, who’s had three artist residencies at Harvard University and now works with scientific research company Nokia Bell Labs. He has also recently made a documentary about the human voice so, yeah, he’s quite a busy guy.

Oh, and one more thing. Under the name Reeps One he has a career as a championship beatboxer, with videos of his performances racking up a mind-blowing number of views online. Set to perform at this year’s DocFest under the title of We Speak Music: Live, which is shaping up to be one of the must-see events of the festival, we sent Exposed muso Mark Perkins, ever the man for a bit of cross-over action, for a chat with Reeps.

You’re here for DocFest in a few weeks. What can we expect?

Well, it’s in two parts really. There’s the footage from the docu-series, We Speak Music, directed by Simon Waldron, then there’s a performance, which is a response to all of the work I’ve been doing over the last few years. The documentary is an investigation into voice and technology and how innovations in voice are being paired with innovations in technology. I have had over 100 million views for the beat-boxing thing on

YouTube, but that’s not what this is about.

It’s not a beatboxing documentary. It’s to do with beatboxing, but that’s not what the film is about. Then I’m giving a performance which is showcasing some of these extra performance tools that I’ve developed over the last couple of years.

Everything is centred around the human voice.

That’s when you’ll be performing alongside something called ‘Reepsbot’. Can you tell us more about it?

I don’t want to give too much away until the actual performance, but I’ve basically developed an artificial version of myself that I’ve been educating.

It beat-boxes as me and speaks as me but composes using patterns that I’ve never done before. So I’ve written a composition in collaboration with it, and then I also have a separate project which is a live version of an Augmented Intelligence (AI) that’s

70 | WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK

been trained off hours and hours of my patterns and musical decision-making. It’s actually a comment on how AI is going to be used in the future.

It doesn’t matter if you think that you’re not interested in AI tools – at the end of the day, it is coming and will affect all our lives. This type of tool kit, where you can create something that you can interact with, which is somewhere between another person and yourself, it is already being developed.

The main tag line is my interest in the wider conversation.

Everything has sort of come full circle.

As Reeps One I have spent 10,000 hoursplus trying to sound like a machine – now a machine is trying to sound like me.

How did you discover your talent as a beat-boxer. Was it a school thing that just developed?

No, not at all. I played violin, drums, piano and trumpet when I was growing up, although not so much these days. My passion when I was young was instruments and performing. I was even a tournament chess player! Musically I couldn’t play anything spectacular

– I was good, but it didn’t compare to what I was able to do with my voice. For some reason there was something in experimenting with my voice that meant I found I could do things that other people couldn’t.

It all happened kind of organically because I never thought of it as beat-boxing. I could practice music theory without actually needing my instruments with me.

I always find it astonishing when I listen to your music that all those sounds come from the voice of one person. The range is staggering.

I think that’s main point of this documentary. I can do things that no human being has done before and, yes, the academic world has taken an interest in that, but I’m not bothered about that. What I want is for people to appreciate what their voices are capable of, and how being expressive with your voice can have a direct impact on your life. It’s such an important thing to be aware of your voice. My job is to push human voices to the absolute extreme, but I’m only doing that so that other people can realise how expressing with their own voice can mean something to them.

That’s what I’m really interested in. I’ve done three residencies at Harvard University, I’m working at Bell Labs now, but I’m still a kid from Walthamstow. I’ve no formal education. I love communication and I love performance and like pushing boundaries. Somehow, it keeps building some pretty crazy momentum.

So how do you look after your voice?

I have to be careful. If you’re going to control something in that way,

if you’re an incredible piano player, you’ve got to practise every day, but make sure you’re not overdoing it. The same thing applies to the voice.

I’m doing stuff that is untried territory, so it means I have to be extra careful.

How do you compose? Do you have to record the sounds as you come up with the ideas?

No, I use drum notation. The voice is a musical instrument. You can use it in any way you want.

If I’ve learnt anything from what I’m doing it’s that everybody has a voice. Beatboxing is just a new form and use of voice, but at the end of the day there’s something in this documentary for everyone. The focus is I have one of the most extreme voices in the world and I want to see how far human voices can go. If artists can create work around these things they can make people aware of what’s going on. I want people to know that this type of technology exists and what it means.

It reminds me of the Polyphonic Playground project that you were involved in recently. Tell me about that.

It looked like an enormous climbing frame, with swings and a slide, but as you moved over it and used it sounds were triggered. You had to reach and jump to make the composition you wanted. It’s another type of play and experimentation, and it’s another way of again pushing the boundaries. It was at the Museum of Art and Design in New York for a time and was part of the Milan Design week. It will definitely be out in London and around the UK in the future, so people in the UK can have a chance to make music with it. It fits into the concept of how you can build something that takes you out of your comfort zone.

Reeps One: We Speak Music comes to Abbeydale Picture House on June 8th as part of Sheffield Doc/Fest. Tickets are available from sheffdocfest.com.

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Mark Perkins has set himself a challenge. We asked him to talk to Stephen Jones of Sheffield-born Britpop legends Babybird ahead of their Plug gig this month. But could he do an entire interview without referring to their massive hit single ‘You’re Gorgeous’? Let’s see how he got on…

I’m astonished at how much music you’ve produced since you started out in the mid-nineties, and especially recently.

I just write very, very quickly. I’ve not got a record label at present so it all gets released on Bandcamp. There’s so much of my stuff on there – too much really.

I’m my own worst enemy. I’ve got a family, I do other things but if I go in my studio for a week and write, it just comes out really quickly. It’s my job – I’m not blowing my own trumpet, I just can’t do anything else. Bandcamp is really useful, and although they take their cut like anyone else, you’re still in control of everything. It’s a bit like the old punk ethic – DIY, flexi-discs, releasing your own stuff. The important thing is that you have control. I’ve been lucky.

I’ve got a nice band of followers, and hopefully, if the music remains good, I can keep them and they’ll continue to

Get tickets for Babybird’s homecoming show on May 19th at the-plug.com

buy my music.

How are you health-wise? I understand you’ve not been well.

Yeah I had a bit of a heart scare last June, but I’m OK. I’m on medication so I think without that I might be in trouble.

I keep fit and go to the gym, which I used to hate, but I haven’t damaged my heart so things are fine really.

And obviously the big news is that you have returned to live performing.

Was there a particular moment which inspired the decision?

Yeah, after my heart problem I thought I’d have to stop playing live. I do prance and leap about on stage and the gigs are quite physical, but we did two gigs in a church in London around Christmas, as a sort of tester, and they went really well – especially the second one. We came off the stage after the second gig and we just had a good feeling.

My friends were excited to hear you

were coming to play here and already had tickets but some of them said the inevitable ‘I didn’t know he was still around’. You must get that a lot.

Well of course that’s inevitable. It’s over 20 years since ‘You’re Gorgeous’, and I get it a lot. I feel incredibly lucky to still be doing it. When I had a record company behind me, they made the plans, and I went along with them. I didn’t enjoy that period, although I’m really grateful for it, but since about 2000 it’s been more in my control so it has been much more enjoyable. We had phenomenal success from nowhere. ‘You’re Gorgeous’ wasn’t even considered good enough for our first 5 Lo-Fi albums and it was genuinely a shock when the record company put it out and it was such a big hit. People think you write songs and aim them at a particular market to try to have a hit, but it wasn’t like that.

I promised myself I was going to try and avoid talking about that track, but I suppose you brought it up! I remember thinking how the lyrics to ‘You’re Gorgeous’ were a bit strange.

I was surprised to hear it’s a really popular wedding song.

Well, it’s up to them if they like it, but it is a bit strange. I’ve even had people asking me if I’ll come to their wedding and sing along to a backing tape, which is really odd. I’ve always been fascinated by the darker side to life. I was a big fan of David Lynch when I was at college and that track is a bit like one of his films: when you look beneath the surface there’s something odd there. If you’ve seen the video for ‘Unlovable’ which I did with Johnny Depp, that’s incredibly dark, but I like to think the the music is more joyous, and the pleasure comes if you combine the two.

I don’t write shocking stuff, but it does have a message and a bit of depth.

What do you listen to at home these days?

I listen to a lot of Arvo Part and Olafur Arnalds. They play modern classical, but I also old school hip-hop like Public Enemy and Eric B and Rakim. I did an instrumental album, not as Babybird but as Black Reindeer, which uses those sorts of beats, but also I’m a big fan of a lot of guitar music. I also love the Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett album.

How do you choose from all your songs to compile a set-list to play live?

We only had two days to rehearse last time, so we had to stick to what we knew. I didn’t want to do new stuff, we hadn’t performed together for seven years and I knew people would be happy with the old songs. But we’ve got longer to prepare this time. Perhaps we should be our own support act and do a separate set after the interval?

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Sheffield City Hall Live Music | Comedy | Entertainment

May 2018

LIVE REVIEW

Tues 1st May | 8pm

My Dad Wrote A Porno: Live Wed 2nd May | 7.30pm

Shane Filan

WORDS: ROB JOHNSON PIC: LEWIS EVANS

Sat 5th May | 7pm

Brukner Orchestra Linz, Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus & Leeds Philharmonic Chorus Sun 6th May | 8pm

Iain Stirling: U OK HUN? X Mon 7th May | 6.30pm

Dan and Phil 2018 World Tour 2018: Interactive Introverts Thurs 10th May | 8pm

Shazia Mirza With Love From St Tropez

THE VACCINES @ O2 ACADEMY The Vaccines never really fitted in. Too smart for the Courteeners crowd and too rowdy for the Radiohead lovers, they were forced to find a niche all of their own. A sold-out crowd in Sheffield don’t seem to mind.

‘Nightclub’ serves as an uneasy opener as Justin Haywood-Young’s vocals are lost somewhat under the punishing squeal of Freddie Cowan’s incendiary guitar. The unmistakable riff from ‘Wreckin’ Bar’ allays any fears about sound quality however, and from there the band never look back.

‘Dream Lover’ sounds massive, ‘Wetsuit’ is the evening’s biggest singalong and ’20/20 remains as effervescent as ever. A sleepy run through of ‘Post Break-Up Sex’ is perhaps a misstep, but a fierce rendering of ‘Norgaard’ acts as the perfect palette cleanser.

Haywood-Young doesn’t need to say much between songs, preferring short bursts of manic energy, but he does comment on the fact that their latest album Combat Sports was recorded in Sheffield, to rapturous applause.

‘If You Wanna’ is followed by ‘I Can’t Quit’ to close out the first part of the set. The band return to deliver the knockout blow that is ‘No Hope’ plus new track ‘Put It on A T-Shirt’. ‘All in White’ is the quintessential Vaccines tune with Haywood-Young getting the crowd going and Cowan launching an unforgiving attack on his guitar. As a live band, The Vaccines do exactly what they do on record. A short, sharp assault on the senses and just like that, they are gone.

I opened this piece by saying that The Vaccines never really fit. On a balmy Friday night in Sheffield, the London band have never looked more at home.

Fri 11th May | 7.30pm

Ray Lamontagne Wed 16th- Fri 18th May | 7.15pm

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Sat 19th May | 2pm & 7.15pm

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Sun 20th May | 3pm

Sing for Samaritans Sun 20th May | 8pm

The Shires

Mon 21st May | 2.30pm

Land of Hope and Glory Fri 25th May | 7pm

The Hallé

Every Friday & Saturday Doors 7.00pm | Show 8.15pm

Last Laugh Comedy Cabaret

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TOP PICKS

8pm til late

Every Friday , lor, Alex Cooper DJs John Batche h Spangle Jnr & Vic McGlynn, Ric eo Ms Vito Subbet

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THEE MIGHTEES EP LAUNCH Delicious Clam Records // May 26 // £6 Sheffield’s very jangly guitar poppers Thee Mightees are set to release a new EP, and what better way to celebrate it then with a party at Delicious Clam? Joining the band on the night is Glasgow’s finest The Bellybuttons and locals bands Rosey PM and Slacks. facebook.com/deliciousclamrecords FAT WHITE FAMILY PRESENTS ‘SHARTIC MONKEYS’ LIVE Shakespeares // May 11 // £5 Miss out on those Arctic Monkeys tickets? Not at all bothered? This might be for you. For one night only, Fat White Family and their pals will be paying a fairly tongue-in-cheek tribute. To celebrate the highly-anticipated release of the Sheffielders’ next album, they’ll be reimagining some of their classic tracks live. Support comes from Mysteron and Joey Mojitos ‘Them Sardines’. facebook.com/FatWhiteFamily

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LOWER THAN ATLANTIS Plug // May 14 // £16.50 For the first time in four years, riotous rockers Lower Than Atlantis are heading out on a regional tour and are making a stop in Sheffield.

Support on the night comes from pop-punk five piece Boston Manor and Aussie band The Faim.

The-plug.com

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BULLY & DUDE YORK & FLUORESCENT Picture House Social // May 10 // £9.90 Hailed for their energetic live shows, Nashville Rock outfit Bully released their second album at the end of the last year through the famous Sub Pop label and are currently taking the record on your around the UK. Joining them on the bill is Seattle-based trio Dude York and psych-rockers Fluorescent. picture-house-social.com

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HIGH HAZELS Leadmill // May 4 // £7 After selling out Yellow Arch Studios at the end of last year, Sheffield dream pop outfit High Hazels are heading down to the Leadmill this month for one of their first shows of 2018. The lads will be joined by the city’s up-and-coming garage-rock five piece Wulfman Fury and Pet Deaths.

Leadmill.co.uk

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150-154 DEVONSHIRE ST, SHEFFIELD, S3 7SG greenroombar.co.uk facebook.com/GreenRoomSheff

ALBUM REVIEWS BY AARON JACKON, WILLIAM FISHER AND LAURA COPESTAKE

GAZ COOMBES WORLD’S STRONGEST MAN No longer is Gaz Coombes simply known as being the frontman to Supergrass but instead an experimental and introspective mercury-nominated artist, and his third solo stint here is a reflection of just that.

The record takes influence from Grayson Perry’s ‘The Descent of Man’ and Frank Ocean’s sophomore album ‘Blonde’, tackling issues of unchecked masculinity and the alpha-male attitude.

This theme is explored prominently on second single, ‘Walk the Walk’ – a suave and sophisticated address of “unstable men who seem to be in positions of power all over the planet,” assembled on a warped bassline and looming gospel vocals.

The album occasionally tends to lull and, much like the album cover, Coombes seems to be quietly contemplating rather than tackling subject matters with vigour. It’s brightest moments are when Coombes grabs the listener by the throat like on penultimate track ‘Vanishing Act’ where he barks, “I’m gonna’ to get my F***ing head straight!”

No doubt about it, this album is a well-crafted collection of tracks tackling profound topics including gender binds and mental health issues. The World’s Strongest Man, however, merely seems to be holding a mirror to such issues, while the works that it takes influence from are the ones leading the force of change.

6/10 WF

TT LOVELAWS

FRANK TURNER BE MORE KIND

Dreamy, kaleidoscopic and captivating; it’s no surprise that this is the work of Theresa Wayman, co-founder of the acclaimed Californian four-piece Warpaint.

LoveLaws is everything you expect from a Warpaint solo project. It’s avant-garde, it’s magnetic and above all it is masterfully crafted.

The album is mostly Wayman acting as a one-woman band playing bass, guitar, vocals, and even the programmed drum beats.

She receives a little help from her Warpaint bandmates, however, and brother-come-producer Ivan.

Lead single ‘Love Leaks’ is the beacon of successful when all these elements come together. The track floats in with mellow percussion and a tinkling melody before cascading into a landslide of metallic synths.

It’s an exciting debut which effortlessly showcases how to master the intricacy of dreamy music while keeping the listener completely riveted.

8/10 WF

Frank Turner has come a long way from the days when he’d play at your town if you put him up on your sofa. A ferocious work ethic has put him at the heart of a mighty empire sustained by touring and regular releases. For the converted, Frank Turner is nothing less than the second coming, writing about their lives and their issues. For the unbelievers, at best he’s clumsy and over-earnest. This record will not shift either from their stance.

My first instincts are that the new album has less of the rousing bombast and bare-knuckle approach that characterised Turner’s previous releases and which define his surprisingly supple live approach.

That said, in the title track, 1933, Make America Great Again, and Blackout lie a quartet of songs already slipping into seamlessly into the live show. In an artistic world where to engage is to upset your corporate sponsors, his honesty and directness are refreshing. A grower.

7/10 AJ

KARA - GOING IN BLIND ‘Going In Blind’ is the first single to reach our ears from new Sheffield four-piece K A R A. There’s no hanging about as the band gets straight to it with a driving drum beat and guitar lick before the rhythm guitar takes centre stage. We’re then introduced to the dynamic vocals and the first line ‘I feel lost but you know I’m trying’ and after that the song never loses its pace – or catchiness.

The band are clearly bursting with a strong, infectious energy and throughout the track the bass and drum work unite to keep everything powering forward nicely.

It’s a summer head-bopper if there ever was one.

If you’re looking for a fresh, upbeat slice of local indie pop to listen to then K A R A might just tick the box. Go seek them out.

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all shows open to the public (14+ unless stated otherwise)

Tuesday 1st May | £16.00

WAYNE HUSsEY ANNIVERSARIO TOUR dj seinfeld dare human league tribute SUPER HANS BIG BEAT MANIFESTO benny page & COMMODO, KILLA P RAVER TOTS with DJ SLIPMATT GUN HORSE MEAT DISCO BEAK> Tuesday 1st May | £8.00 | 18+

Friday 4th May | £12.50

Friday 4th May | £5.00 | 18+

Tuesday 8th May | £8.00 | 18+

Saturday 26th May | £6.00

Friday 29th June | £17.50

Saturday 21st July | £8.00 | 18+

Thursday 4th October | £15.00

Foundry, Sheffield Students’ Union, Western Bank, S10 2tg foundrysu.com facebook.com/fsfsheffield foundry@sheffield.ac.uk twitter.com/su_foundry

TRAMLINES FRINGE @ THE FAT CAT FRI 20TH JULY

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SAT 21ST JULY

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Currently hammering through their UK headline tour and with a debut album supposedly mere months away, the buzz (if you’d forgive the pun) about Brighton indie rockers Black Honey has been ramped up a notch recently. They’ll be spending a fair bit of time in the Steel City this summer too, with a sold-out Leadmill show and a Tramlines appearance fast approaching. With this in mind, we asked Rachel Havard to get on the blower with Izzy Baxter for a chat about their big year.

Props on selling out your Leadmill show. Will this one be a biggie for you?

Oh yeah, definitely. Especially because Sheffield as a city is really good anyway, and then having sold it out – well, it’s a really fucking exciting moment when you sell out a venue in advance. People in Sheffield are really cool as well, plus everyone has more fun north of London.

Tramlines is fun too; we’ve played there like three times. We’ve normally played the alternative stages before so not like the main ones.

You’re no strangers to the city, having played a number of gigs up here and Tramlines Festival a few times before.

Yeah, we’ve played Sheffield before at the Rocking Chair and I think we might have done another gig on the Ash tour, but I can’t remember. We do a lot of touring and I’ve got a really bad memory.

Understandable because you’ve pretty much been constantly gigging for the last year or so, jetting out across Europe and Asia in the process. Got any good tour stories to share with us?

I would have to say that our favourite place was probably Tokyo. We stayed in the centre of town, had a club show and played a festival in the centre of Harajuku and there was this crazy storm while we were there which was incredibly cinematic. The rain was falling, there were puddles reflecting all the sparkling lights and it was just an awesome place to perform.

Your gigs are known to be particularly raucous affairs. I imagine we should be expecting more of the same?

Yeah, it’s gonna be quite schizophrenic; we’ll be doing the whole jumping around on stage and crowd surfing thing as per usual. However, as a little teaser, people can expect a bit more dancing and we’ll be throwing a few routines in there.

Nice. The whole Lana Del Rey comparison has been something that has followed you around for a while now. What’s your take on it?

I think that the Lana Del Rey thing comes from because we both have said we like Nancy Sinatra and Hope Sandoval. Some say it’s a vocal thing, others mean it in a more artistic sense.

There’s that sort of retro thing going on.

Yeah, there’s definitely a cinematic 50s/60s feel to you guys.

Yeah, I think so. From an artistic sense, I take a lot from my love of cult movies: I literally wanna be a Tarantino villain or something.

Surely now the debut album can’t be far away! Can you give us any sneaky details?

It’s still a bit under wraps, sorry, but I can say that we’ll be providing a few sneak-peeks that will be exclusive to these upcoming shows, so it’s going to be really exciting seeing how that goes down. We’re also going to come out after the Sheffield shows so we can have a drink and a catch up with everyone – it’s been so long!

Black Honey play Leadmill on May 11th and the Library Stage at Tramlines Festival on Sunday July 22nd.

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Ahead of bringing their post-punk racket to Corp this month, bandmates Dougie Poynter and Todd Rodrigo give us the lowdown on all things INK. So you guys announced the INK. project back in March, and now we’re straight into a headline tour. How did it all fall together?

DP: INK. is proof that sliding into someone’s DMs on social media can pay off in many ways. I’d met Todd out and about in London – he was a performer at The Box – and we got on well, so I thought it would be fun to write some songs with him. We met Corey through a mate of ours – and now we are here on the grandest ship in the world drinking Champagne with you fine people. That’s a Titanic reference, by the way.

TR: We bonded a lot over an artist called Ralph Steadman. Each piece of his work is born from a random splatter of Indian ink on a page before deciding what he will illustrate. We saw the parallels of that notion in our songwriting: beginning with a random seed of an idea and shaping it into its own natural conclusion.

You all come from fairly different musical backgrounds. How does that

mesh of influences translate into your output?

TR: It’s not something we think too much about to be honest. I like the fact that the guys will turn me onto something I wouldn’t have ever stumbled across myself. At the same time, our tastes cross over in many places too. I wouldn’t want to be in a band with another two of me anyway.

I’m already sick of myself.

DP: I think that’s the wonderful thing about it. Everyone’s from somewhere different so therefore can bring something different to the table.

Did you feel the need to try and wipe the slate clean when starting INK., or has your previous work helped shape the music you’re making now?

TR: When Dougie and I started writing, there were no intentions or preconceived ideas so it felt like a clean slate as were weren’t intentionally reacting to our previous work. That being said, I think that everything in the past shapes who you are and what

you’re doing so it inevitably has and will continue to do so.

DP: I hate wiping. Not literally, that’s gross. If you wiped your history clean then what would you be bringing musically? I think it all adds up to something positive.

The debut EP ‘HEAVEN’ is out now.

Tell us a bit about the process and themes which crop up in the tracks?

TR: I think we were both surprised about how personal the content of the songs turned out to be. It was definitely a cathartic process for us. I think a theme of anxiety is cast over a lot of it; we found common ground there which led us to dig it all up.

DP: Yeah, there are quite a few references to the darker side of the London night life. There’s one song that’s about me being an addict – before I got into recovery – and how low things really got and Todd really helped me articulate that into lyrics.

As a whole, what are you hoping to bring to the table as a 2018 guitar band?

TR: We’re all huge fans of guitar bands and we really just want to live in that world before we recline into an armchair with a pipe and slippers.

DP: I try not to over think things like that. I just want people to come to our shows and have fun or hurl INK. play Corporation on 14th May. Tickets abuse. Whatever available from corporation.org.uk makes them happy.

THERE ARE QUITE A FEW REFERENCES TO THE DARKER SIDE OF THE LONDON NIGHT LIFE. THERE’S ONE SONG THAT’S ABOUT ME BEING AN ADDICT

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BLACK SABBATH – HEAVEN AND HELL Words: Chris Lord

As a bumfluff-faced teenager flicking through Sky’s meagre selection of rock channels in search of Metallica, Green Day or any of the nu metal hangers-on that had offered me a gateway into the genre at the turn of the millennium, it was impossible to ignore the larger-than-life charisma and endearing daftness of one Mr John Michael Osbourne, once my channel-hopping habit had settled in favour of a reluctant glimpse of MTV. Whether Ozzy was treading barefoot in cold Chihuahua turds or whacked off his tits on nitrous oxide at the dental surgery, The Osbournes made for excellent and absurd viewing – all you could ever want from reality television. But the flipside is that the Prince of Darkness seemed less like the legendary frontman of the greatest heavy metal band of all time

and more like a washed-up caricature of a rock star long relieved of his talents. So perhaps 13-year-old me could be forgiven for not being sold on Black Sabbath straight away – instead returning to my bedroom to switch on the PS2 and play air guitar to Enter Sandman.

Of course, I did eventually fall in love with Black Sabbath five or six years later – albeit via the Ozz-free route, and no thanks to MTV. But before then, I had several pitiful high-school bands to form, a paper round to help fund my burgeoning Megadeth, Pantera (ew, Phil Anselmo) and Rage Against The Machine CD collections, and the entire shelf life of the emoscene kid trends to contend with, as I largely failed to convince my mates that Led Zeppelin and Queen had more artistic merit than My Chemical

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Romance. It was towards the end of my teens when my dad introduced me to Rainbow’s 1976 LP Rising that I experienced the astonishing voice of the frontman who quickly became – and is still to this day – my favourite singer: Ronnie James Dio. Following Ozzy’s firing from Black Sabbath for escalating drug and alcohol addictions in April 1979, the band’s remaining members – Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward – found themselves at a career crossroads. 1976’s Technical Ecstasy and 78’s Never Say Die! had failed to hit the creative and commercial heights of the band’s first six albums, while progress on new material was scant – Iommi later remarked that the only options were to either fire the troubled singer or dissolve the band completely. Osbourne’s future

wife, Sharon – daughter of Sabbath’s then manager, Don Arden – recommended the American Ronnie James Dio as Ozzy’s replacement, who had recently split with Richie Blackmore’s Rainbow. Always in the former Deep Purple man’s shadow during his prolific four-year stint as Rainbow’s frontman, Dio joined Sabbath and contributed to an album that was a transatlantic match made in heaven, and the sound of a band truly reborn and revitalised: 1980’s Heaven And Hell.

Ronnie James Dio’s vocal delivery was unlike anything I’d ever heard.

His powerful, skyscraping range ushered in an exciting new era for Black Sabbath, with Tony Iommi admitting that Dio was technically superior to his predecessor – which in turn allowed for fresh creative

IN MY OPINION, IT’S BLACK SABBATH’S FINEST MOMENT, AND ONE THAT’S SELDOM BEEN BETTERED IN HEAVY MUSIC SINCE – IF AT ALL. A DEVASTATING, SEVEN-MINUTE-LONG DOOM-PROG OPUS FEATURING SOME OF THE MOST ICONIC LYRICS EVER PENNED IN ROCK REFLECTING ON THE HUMAN CAPACITY FOR GOOD AND EVIL.

approaches far exceeding Ozzy’s skill set as a vocalist. Citing Iron Man as an example, Iommi observed how Osbourne used to sing with the riff, while Dio would sing across it coming up with his own unique melody different to that of the instrumentation. Musically, this opened a lot of doors for the band, and songs like Children Of The Sea and HAH’s staggering title track were way ahead of their time. Dio’s vocal prowess was at its most striking on Die Young, where he effortlessly alternated between searing, hardrock verses and the tender balladry of the choruses – an emotive juggernaut of a song that floored me with its message of defiance and heartbreak.

The arrival of Dio also advanced Black Sabbath in a lyrical sense.

Where much of Osbourne’s

creative focus was on drug-imbued metaphor, Iommi’s early, bluesier style was certainly better suited to the likes of Sweet Leaf, Hand Of Doom and Snowblind. Dio was a true storyteller whose works were steeped in folklore and mythological nuance – perfect thematic frameworks for the band’s newfound progressive direction. Look no further than the album’s opener, Neon Knights, for hard evidence: ‘Bloody angels fast descending, moving on a never bending light/Phantom figures free forever, out of shadows shining ever bright’. Covering the song with my old band Perfect Crimes at a West Street Live tribute gig two years ago is still probably the most fun I’ve ever had behind a drum kit.

Not that the band’s resident riff lord and long-serving sergeant-at-

arms was exactly lacking, but Dio’s talents undoubtedly brought out the best in Tony Iommi and imparted a renewed sense of enthusiasm upon the guitarist. HAH featured some of the most spectacular riffs and dazzling lead breaks of Iommi’s fiftyyear career (just listen to the second half of Lonely Is The Word) while the incomparable rhythmic spine of Geezer Butler and Bill Ward offered the same groove synonymous with the best of the Ozzy era offerings.

But what would this love letter to Heaven And Hell be without a special mention of the album’s rollercoasting tour de force of a title track?

In my opinion, it’s Black Sabbath’s finest moment, and one that’s seldom been bettered in heavy music since.

A devastating, seven-minute-long doom-prog opus featuring some of

the most iconic lyrics ever penned in rock reflecting on the human capacity for good and evil. That turn of pace at 4:15 still gives me goosebumps every time.

I really have warmed to Ozzy over the years and nowadays I do consider myself a big fan of 70’s Sabbath, but I’ll always be a Dio guy. Not just for the love of Heaven And Hell as a body of work, but also for the invaluable lessons in melody, dynamics and narrative that it offered my younger self. Lessons that helped shape the music lover I am today, almost a decade on. HAH will preserve Ronnie’s spirit until the end of time, but it seems fitting to part with the late legend’s most famed lyric: ‘The world is full of kings and queens who blind your eyes then steal your dreams, it’s heaven and hell!’

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EUROVISION FEVER! SAT 5TH MAY: Drag King Free Rehearsal Session // Theatre Deli // androandeve.com SAT 5TH MAY: Nachthexen LAST GIG/Snob/Es/ Current Affairs/Savage Realm/ Skylark // Abbeydale Picture House // nachthexenpunx.bandcamp.com FRI 11TH MAY Spring Fling – Your Typical Queer Prom // The Audacious Art Experiment // facebook.com/qweenofswordssheffield FRI 11TH MAY: Proud Eurovision Party // Foundry, Sheffield SU // facebook.com/ proudsheffield The merry month of May: bringing beer garden weather (hopefully), two bank holiday weekends and everyone’s favourite guilty pleasure, Eurovision, for us all to enjoy! Party season is officially upon us, people, and kicking off the first bank holiday weekend on Saturday 5th May Sheffield disco punks Nachthexen’s play their last ever gig. Aiming to go out on a high, they have invited a host of guests to join them for their final party including absolute dream babes Snob, synthy vibes from Current Affairs, hardcore punk band Savage Realm and noise rock legends Skylark. DJ Shona will be on the decks for the afterparty, which also features special guest Lady Stephen. Tasty food will be on offer from Just Falafs.

On Friday 11th May it’s prom season as Qween of Swords return for their quarterly alternative queer community mixer, ‘Spring Fling – Your Typical Queer Prom’, at The Audacious Art Experiment.

Come dressed how you feel best: everyone can be a reigning monarch at this prom. Two fresh DJs will be making their Typical Queers debut – Babycham Girl and Strutter – bringing you plenty of dancing tunes. Plus, they have the incredible Nightowls and Anna Kissed also making special appearances.

On that same night Proud are back at Sheffield Students Union for their Eurovision special, celebrating diversity in an inclusive party space.

Expect some Eurovision-themed giveaways in amongst all the usual Proud perks! With two rooms of music playing disco, chart hits, pop, R&B and dance – plus candyfloss, popcorn and rainbow drops. Sorted.

Eurovision weekend continues for the main event on Saturday 12th May with a multitude of bashes to choose from. Dempseys will be throwing their usual party playing contest in the bar downstairs from 8pm, then boogieing through the decades of Eurovision hits until 6am. Showroom’s screening will include a Eurovision sweepstake, prizes for the best fancy dress, lyric sheets, score cards, face painting and a special Eurovision cocktail. Last year was fully booked so secure a table in advance.

Over at Sheffield University, Film Unit will be playing Eurovision on the big screen, complete with hosts, Twitter wall, in-house voting, face paint and themed pizzas delivered to your seats. Burton Street Foundation are also hosting a big screen edition accompanied by an immersive culinary tour of Europe featuring a 10-course tasting menu with each dish inspired by the delicacies of the nationalities that came in the top ten last year.

If Eurovision isn’t your cup of tea, then on the Saturday Andro and Eve return to Broomhall Community Centre for their Reyt Queer Do – their big, queer second birthday. Everyone is invited, so go wild with your outfit and be fabulous. The queer cabaret is hosted by Zayn Phallic with performances

by Drag King Oliver Assets, Mo Terboat, Mr Wesley Dykes, King Confusa, Fey Geller, Crispin Creame and Sam Antics. They will be transforming Broomhall Community Centre into one seriously sparkly haven of joy. They have also teamed up with Theatre Deli to offer a drag king rehearsal session – all levels of experience welcome – on Saturday 5th May. On Saturday 19th May SAYiT will be hosting a Trans Clothes Swap, open to all trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming people at Scotia Works to support young trans people in the city.

As well as free clothes and footwear suitable for all expressions, there will be access to makeup tutorials, help with hair styling and a nail bar.

Last but not least, head to Leadmill on Tuesday 29th May for their RuPaul’s Drag Race Quiz. Yes, mam!

Celebrate the finale of Season 10 with a sickening Quiz Night Extravaganza Eleganza. Expect themed drinks and amazing prices including Leadmill VIP Cards, Drink Vouchers, event tickets and more.

Proceedings will be hosted by UK’s finest Drag Comedian Scarlet Sohandsome – because if you can’t quiz yourself, how in the hell you gonna quiz somebody else. Can I get an amen?!

That’s your lot for this month! Until next time, love and disco kisses…

Heather x

SAT 12TH MAY: Eurovision Parties // Eurovision Party Dempseys // dempseys-sheffield.com In the Bar: Eurovision Party 2018! // Showroom Cinema // showroomworkstation.org.uk Film Unit: Eurovision // The Auditorium, Sheffield SU // filmunit. org.uk Eurovision Party 2018 // Burton Street Foundation // burtonstreet.co.uk SAT 12TH MAY: A Reyt Queer Do // Broomhall Community Centre // androandeve.com SAT 19TH MAY: SAYiT Trans Clothes Swap // Scotia Works, Leadmill Road // sayit.org.uk TUE 29TH MAY: RuPaul’s Drag Race Quiz // Leadmill // leadmill.co.uk

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The audience reaction. The premiere in Toronto was actually the first time I’d seen it with an audience. All the laughs and gasps and silences were in the right place, which felt like the rhythm of the film was working. Hopefully people would come out with different opinions, but it meant people were synced into the subjective experience of the film through the characters eyes, which felt very validating. I want it to connect with an audience, so they are enchanted but also engaged with the questions.

BAFTA nominee Michael Pearce’s striking film debut BEAST launched to wide acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival and was nominated for First Feature at the BFI London Film Festival last year. A psychological drama-thriller starring Johnny Flynn and Jessie Buckley as a much-maligned Jersey couple facing up to dark accusations within their small island community, the film was released in cinemas late last month and Pearce came to Sheffield to answer an exclusive Q+A after its screening at Showroom Cinema.

Exposed film writer Anna Stopford took the opportunity to speak to the hotly-tipped director about the inspirations behind the setting of his first film and the connections he’d like it to make with its audience.

Being from Jersey, did you decide to make a film set in Jersey first and then settled on this story, or did you set out to make a dark, psychological film, and naturally ended up back there? Which came first?

I wanted to do my first feature in Jersey because I have very strong impressions of the atmosphere there, but I needed a story. I was reminded of the story of the Beast of Jersey and it reignited my childhood memories. The story made a strong impression on me because it was so sinister and so striking; there was a loss of innocence as I found out that monsters really do exist. It was great to have a true story that I could reshape, and also an opportunity for me to dig into my own childhood and magnify my impressions of the island, the good and the bad; I could show the landscape that I love and explore the feeling of suffocation that being

on an island creates. So it was a combination of wanting to shoot something there and then finding a story that had a big impact on me.

Beast has been described as ‘an adult fairytale’. Is there any message, moral, or cautionary tale you wanted people to take away from the film?

I would be reticent to reduce it to a one-line moral. I didn’t want there to be a simple lesson that you can walk away from the film with; I want you to continue to wrestle with it after you’ve seen it. I like films where there are big question marks at the end where you have to continue to engage with it - it can sometimes be frustrating because you want to figure out the whole film. It can be weeks but then I’m happy that I had to keep working with it.

The film has made an impact internationally, and has been very well received by critics, but what is your personal benchmark for success?

I found Mol as a character is quite ambiguous in her motives at times. As you have written her character, are you still capable of explaining her actions, or has she taken on a life of her own in a way?

Yes, we have a very specific take for her. In the edit, we decided to take out bits of information - because it became a bit more interesting. We couldn’t take out too much, or the audience would just feel lost with the character. We had to find a balance, where you connect with her - but only up to a certain point. You start in a place of strong empathy, and you end in a place where she is potentially an antihero.

It’s interesting seeing where different audience members lose her and begin to question her actions, although some people stay with her right until the end. I’ve always liked characters that challenge that empathetic bond - because it’s too easy to make a character completely likeable and without flaws.

Finally, what films have impressed you this year?

I really liked Good Time by the Safdie brothers, I thought it was so fun and irreverent. It’s a gritty New York crime film, and it felt very authentic, it had no sheen or polish - I haven’t seen that in a crime film for so long. Also You Were Never Really Here - Lynne Ramsay is able to find very lyrical moments within a brutal story and I find that collision fascinating. I also find Joaquin Phoenix so watchable. I like directors that have a very artful and poetic eye but are working with more pulpy material.

Beast is showing at Showroom Cinema until Thursday 10th May. Read the full interview online at exposedmagazine.co.uk/movies

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PARADISE SQUARE

This Georgian-era square was a regular meeting point for open-air poltical debate. In 1838, 20,000 chartists - a working class movement calling for a more democratic political system - gathered and rioted against the Dragoon Guards present.

Sheffield has a long and proud history of protest, activism and radical thinking. Just last month, Jarvis Cocker stood on the City Hall steps and addressed hundreds of marchers opposed to the council’s tree felling program, a struggle which has been raging on the streets for over a year now. Other recent demonstrations include thousands turning out for anti-Trump, Black Lives Matter and student fees marches, while back in the 1980s the city council’s repeated rallying against Thatcherism by adopting a range of left-wing policies saw the region named ‘The People’s Republic of South Yorkshire’.

Women’s suffrage, chartism, the miners’ strike, anti-austerity rallies, numerous peace marches, LGBT rights, the right to ramble, and more – a passion for fairness and equality has burned brightly throughout the centuries around these parts. You can even go all the way back to the radical press of the late-1700s, where two newspapers – The Sheffield Register and The Sheffield Iris – would take on the establishment by calling on the government to push for workers’ rights, racial equality and religious tolerance.

To shine a light on this intriguing thread of local history, the team at The Outdoor City have compiled a handy ‘Radicals Walk’ map to guide people various important landmarks dotted around the city centre. It’s only short stroll of just over a mile, but there’s plenty to take in along the way. Here are just a few of the important characters and events you can learn about.

VICTORIA HALL

This Grade-II listed building on Norfolk Street was home to the Sheffield Clarion Ramblers - a working class rambling group founded in 1900 which campaigned for access to the greens spaces belonging to wealthy landowners.

EBENEEZER ELLIOTT

In Weston Park, the city’s first municipal green space, you’ll find the statue of Elliott - one of the 19th Century’s finest anti-establishment poets and defender of workers’ rights. In 1830, he set up the first society to call for Corn Law reform.

JAMES MONGTOMERY

Namesake of the Montgomery Theatre and honoured with a statue outside the cathedral, Montgromery was editor of the anti-establishment Sheffield Iris in the late 18th century to argue against repression and was twice imprisoned for sedition.

THE RIGHT TO RAMBLE

In 1932, over 400 Sheffield and Manchester ramblers united for a mass tresspass in the Peak District leading to skirmishes with police and a number of hefty prison sentences. After over a century of protest, the right to roam (CROW Act) was announced in 2000.

SHEFFIELD TOWN HALL

During the 1980s, Sheffield’s left-wing council would fly the red flag above the Town Hall on May Day. Led by David Blunkett, they deliberately took a completely different policy path to Margaret Thatcher’s government declaring itself a nuclear-free zone, leading the rate-capping revolt and providing funding for local arts, music and youth clubs.

In association with

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“IF YOU’RE GOING TO DO A COMEDY ABOUT TRUMP, YOU HAVE TO GO HARD OR GO HOME”

Following on from Boris the Musical! Their postBrexit sing-song detailing the shenanigans and consequent fall from grace of the country’s biggest politiclown, the Blowfish Theatre Company are back with a new show. And this time they’ve got bigger, even more egotistical fish to fry – they’re taking on The Donald himself.

Words: Joseph Food // Pics: Heather Isobel Photography With Trump the Musical! heading to Theatre Deli next month, Exposed sat down with Laurence Peacock and David Burchhardt to discuss the origins of the company, how best to parody Trump and the fellow demagogues who’ll be joining the US President onstage.

Tell us a bit about how Blowfish Theatre came about?

L: OK, so I’m the co-artistic director and writer. I think we’ll start calling

David here an artist, as I’ve seen that’s how other companies refer to their performers.

D: Yeah, that works.

L: We are a very collaborative enterprise. But anyway, Blowfish started in 2016 following the EU referendum. There was this strange period immediately afterwards where Boris was a figure of ridicule and a “Shame on you, Boris!” sort of situation developed for a few days. I remember thinking to myself

90 | WWW.EXPOSEDMAGAZINE.CO.UK

during that time, ‘There’s a tragic arc here: the clown that has reached his apogee and fallen’. That was when we decided to make a musical about Boris Johnson. It started out as a bit of a laugh, but in the end 500 people came to two shows in Sheffield and we put on another show in Doncaster. People liked it, we really liked it, so we decided to continue.

D: It ended up running until the end of August 2017, but we did have to update the script slightly as it was going between venues. The snap election came with a show the week after, so Laurence had to write an alternate ending with not much time to spare. Then the results came in and surprised everyone again, so more changes were needed.

I suppose with the pace at which politics moves these days, lurching from one crisis to another on a weekly basis, this must be a common issue for you?

L: It’s great, isn’t it? At the moment we’ve got two systems on the go.

We’re really hoping to bring Boris back towards the end of this year, but of course it’ll need reworking a bit. In that system we take things

people already know have happened and apply a satirical take to it. The idea with Trump, however, is to set it in 2020 during this dystopianstyle future where Donald Trump is president. Could you imagine that?

Some comedians and writers says it’s difficult to be funny about Trump as he’s already so ridiculous and kind of breaks down the traditional conventions of satire. Was there an element of having to ramp up the ridiculousness a bit considering who you were dealing with?

L: Yes, the plot’s a bit silly on the surface of it; I’d say it’s almost written in a South Park sort of vein. But there’s also a more serious, satirical message beneath the silliness.

D: We definitely push the boundaries of the comedy right up to the line – to almost cringe-worthy levels at times.

I think if you’re going to do a comedy about Trump, you have to go hard or go home.

L: We definitely raised our game in terms of tone… and cruelty, really.

We had a lot of discussions about what we could or couldn’t actually say. Although, interestingly, all the

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bits we were worried about ended up getting the biggest laughs.

Can you go too far with satire as long as there’s a message?

D: A lot of it is inspired by bouffon, a comedic style which originated in France from a teacher called Phillippe Gaullier. The whole idea is ridiculous parody and grotesqueness.

Especially with some of the Kim Jong-Un lines, we’d ask if it was going a bit far, but that’s kind of the point.

L: Also, the characters on stage tend to have a straight man with them who serve as something of a moral compass. Trump has Rod, his 823rd Press Secretary; Farage has a Chief Minister and Kim Jong-Un has a minion. Even when nasty things are happening and being said, the reactions from those characters looking uncomfortable and awkward changes the dynamic a bit.

Boris is divisive but most people can’t help but find him a little bit amusing. Trump, on the other hand, a lot of people just find abhorrent. Was that ever a worry?

D: Yes, even if you don’t like Boris people can still see the humorous side to his character. Trump is literally love him or hate him.

L: We worried about that a little bit, but Trump is compelling in a different way. A What’s the secret to a good Trump impression, David? I see the small hands are very expressive.

D: Yeah, there’s also the pointing of the forefinger, the hands coming in and out like he’s playing the accordion, the pursed lips and squinting eyes. The voice is quite nasally but very deep. Though I’d say it’s much more difficult to do Donald than Boris.

There’s a bit more buffoonery going on with Boris.

D: Boris is just very exuberant, flamboyant and you can basically just go off on one. But with Donald it’s difficult to create a psyche for someone whose psyche is already… fucked. The challenge is to do

something a bit distinctive and kind of put your own spin on the character a bit.

L: Basically, nobody in the show ever looks at another character because they’re all so self-absorbed.

Ah, because Trump won’t be the only world leader playing a part in the musical. Tell us more.

L: It’s difficult trying to tell a story about Trump because you don’t really know what’s going on his mind, apart from narcissism. So we came up with the idea of populating the show with a whole host of narcissistic, populist demagogues. We’ve got King Nigel I, who’s Nigel Farage after becoming King of England. Kim Jong-un obviously likes a bit of attention too, so he’s in there. Putin’s a different sort of narcissist, one who dresses up narcissism with a sort of wider glory and love for Russia.

So how are things shaping up for these guys in 2020?

L: Yeah, so Trump is trying to make Donald and America great again… again.

D: Kim Jong-Un just won’t stop dicking around with missiles. King Nigel Farage I has overthrown the monarchy, privatised them, and is now King of the Disunited Kingdom of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. He accidentally sold Wales in a poker game.

L: Nigel’s now planning on selling Scotland to Trump for him to turn into a golf course.

D: And Putin is being suspiciously quiet, especially with Trump, as he thinks Donald has run off as with another lover, King Nigel.

L: As you can tell, it’s serious stuff.

But we like to think there’s a bit of comedy in there for everybody; we’ve not had many walkouts anyway! We might put that on the poster...

SHEFFIELD CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL Various Venues // May 11 – 19 For a whole week, Music in the Round will be presenting a collection of events as part of Sheffield Chamber Music Festival 2018.

Most of the events will be taking place at the Crucible Studio Theatre and will include performances from Ensemble 360, the multi award-winning harpist Catrin Finch and Senegalese kora player Seckou Keita and universally acclaimed pianist Peter Hill. The full list of events can be found on the Music in the Round website. musicintheround.co.uk MATTHEW BOURNE’S CINDERELLA Lyceum // May 15-19 // From £24 Having directed and choreographed dance for theatre, musicals, opera and films, Matthew Bourne and his company New Adventures are bringing their vivid interpretation of a much loved fairy tale to Sheffield. Set in London during the Second World War, Cinderella is a thrilling love story which will whisk the audience away along with Prokofiev’s enchanting score. sheffieldtheatres.co.uk Trump – The Musical runs at Sheffield’s Theatre Deli May 9-12. Head to theatredeli. co.uk for more info and tickets.

MONTY PYTHON’S SPAMALOT The Montgomery // 16-19 May // £15 Southey MTC are bringing the Tony Award winning musical to The Montgomery.

Lovingly adapted from Monty Python and The Holy Grail, Spamalot tells the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table and features everything from flying cows, killer rabbits and the nation’s favourite comedy song – Always Look on the Bright Side of Life.

Themontgomery.org.uk THIS HOUSE Lyceum // May 29 – June 2 // From £21 Following sell out runs at the National Theatre and on the West End, James Graham’s critically-acclaimed play is heading out on a UK tour, making a stop at the Lyceum. Step back to 1974 and watch as Britain’s political parties battle to change the nation’s future in this biting and energetic account of an unstable period in British politics. sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

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THE SOCIAL N E T WO R K

ON THE TWITTERSPHERE… @violentkeysmash stepped out to the back garden for a smoke on this fine afternoon, and I heard a song on the breeze. t’was billy bragg, singing “there is power in a union” #onlyinsheffield #MyDayAtSheffield #ShefUniLife

Our monthly round-up of all things webby, social and generally searched for, so you dont have to...

@georgiebeaman Girl with blue hair casually taking a ferret for a walk on a lead through Hillsborough. @caseyjayandrews Overheard in #Sheffield “Did you go out in shorts?”

“Yeah” “All night?”

“Yeah” “If spring won’t come for us we’ll come for spring.”

INTERVIEW: BACK IN BLACK “People in Sheffield are really cool as well, plus everyone has more fun north of London” *Alan Partridge voice* Not our words, Carol. The words of Brighton indie rockers Black Honey … Hello? tinyurl.com/hpwager

THE PARTY DON’T STOP You’ve seen the lineup, you’ve meticulously planned a route between stages while taking extra care to factor in pint refills, cheesy chips and powernaps – but what’s the plan after, like?

Dirty stopouts, here’s a chance to get yourselves acquainted with the oft-legendary official Tramlines afterparties. tinyurl.com/y99a4v7t

THE RINGLEADER One of the biggest names in house music, Yousef, stops by for a chat about his latest EP and how the dance scene is shaping up today. tinyurl.com/yaowwrgm NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK Sometimes it can be easy to get bogged down in the recent surge of new bar and restaurant openings in Sheff these days, so we’ve made it a tad easier by rounding up some of our favourite establishments with have arrived on the scene in the last six months. Do enjoy. tinyurl.com/y6upaac6

SOLID AS A DOC Virtually immerse yourself into the horrors of gun violence, nuclear fallout and – on a lighter note – have a chinwag with David Attenborough as part of Doc/Fest’s Alternate Realities programme this year. More info below. tinyurl.com/y847wt2h

GREGORY PORTER @ CITY HALL Exposed was there to see the award-winning jazz vocalist perform in the Steel City and, Good Lord, it was pretty special. tinyurl.com/ybcokrbq

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@nicos_toppin Not being funny but the South Yorkshire weather fairy’s deffo pull daily weather out of a hat. Ooh today we’ll have sun.

Tomorrow we’ll have thunder.

On the weekend we’ll have it raining Henderson’s relish. @poppy_f_ Hearing a Yorkshire accent on a night out and being able to say ta to someone without getting a funny look are 2 things I will never take for granted again. @PicHouseSocial We’ve teamed up with @ faveplaces and 16 of our favourite Sheffield independent businesses to design a cocktail menu that doubles as a city guide!

LAUNCH PARTY THURSDAY 3rd MAY! @sydandmallory Sheffield’s newest Independent Record Shop #BOOWAX opens in the basement of our Emporium today! Party vibes and DJ’s from midday onwards..

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