Quench Issue 135

Quench

Take A Break Features · Interviews · Fashion & Beauty Travel · Culture · LGBT+ · Music Film · Video Games · Food & Drink

Issue 135 · April 22nd 2013

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Contents.

issue 135 · 22nd April 2013

10

26 16

30 Features

5 . THE GAP Jasmine Losasso

explains why the latest fashion statement is quite literally a waste of space.

7 · UNIVERSITY, IS IT JUST A DOSS? Sam Hickman discusses whether or not a degree is really enough to set you up for life.

Columnist

8 · ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED? With the Welsh Varsity looming, Rachel Moloney talks about rivalry in showbusiness.

Interviews

9 · THE BREUDDWYDION PROJECT

Quench spoke to Cai Morgensen, a teenager whose charity compilation raised money for The Joshua Foundation.

10· BASTILLE Matthew Jones caught up with singer Dan Smith ahead of their show

11· MAMA ROSIN James Robinson spoke to the Swiss band during their recent

12· LEWIS WATSON Beth Gregory

34

22 LGBT+

19 · DUCE FOR AN EQUAL SCORE Thomas Leeming caught up with LGBT+

Film

26 · VICKY MCCLURE

The BAFTA winning actress discusses nerves, knockbacks and the importance of homegrown cinema.

28 · PROFILE: Tom Connick takes a

chatted with the singer-song writer before his gig at Clwb Ifor Bach.

20 · THIS TIME IT’S PERSONAL...

Fashion & Beauty

Culture

George A. Romero.

29 · REVIEWS Oblivion, The Place Beyond The Pines and Scary Movie 5.

THERE? An insight into The Welsh Unsigned Stand-up Award.

22 · LITERARY ADVENTURES Explore literature in Wales and beyond.

Video Games

13 · CARDIFF FASHION QUARTER

Jordan Brewer fashion hotspots.

14 · THREE OF THE BEST FASHION BLOGS as chosen by Lorna Mason.

15. STREET STYLE Charlie Mock snaps

Travel

16 · AN AFRICA SPECIAL

Discover unexpected stories of life in Zambia and sand boarding in South Africa.

Erin Ekins joined the counter protesters during an anti-gay rally in Trafalgar Square.

21 · KNOCK KNOCK, WHO’S

Music

23 · THE RECORD STORES OF CARDIFF From Spillers to Catapult, Stephen Springate looks at vinyl hotspots available in your city.

24 · WALES GOES POP! Music report on their experiences from

30 · BIOSHOCK INFINITE reviews the newest installment of the Bioshock franchise.

ON THE COVER Food & Drink

34 · TAKE A BREAK Food share their and cake.

quench@gairrhydd.com ·@quenchmag

Q three

Editorial

a word from Laura back with a vengence. On page 10 Quench chats to chart-topper Bastille, and on page 9 Laura Cai, the creator of a charity compilation album raising funds for The Joshua Foundation. A brilliant idea and for such a great cause. anyone who wants to be involved. We’ve room. Even though it’s a busy time of year for everyone, there’s still lots of exciting things going on. With Varsity approaching, Xpress Radio, CUTV and gair rhydd are all looking for anybody who wants to help with the day’s coverage. Despite having very little knowledge of nor interest in sports, Jo’s been helping out

not too late in the term, whatever your interests!

Quench : T h e T e a m Editors: Laura Evans & Jo Southerd

Columnist: Rachel Moloney

Creative Director: Fashion & Beauty: Luke Slade Sophie Chamberlain, Vicky Gadsden, Features: Jacqueline Kilikita Helen Cameron, & Olivia Reidy Johannes Laubmeier, Rebecca Newby Travel: & Charlotte Wace Heather Arnold

LGBT+: Thomas Leeming & Erin Ekins

Film: Becky Johnson, Amy Pay & Becky Wilson

Culture: Jess Rayner

Videogames: Michael O’ConnellDavidson

Music: Rosey Brown, Kit Denison & Stephen Springate

four Q quench@gairrhydd.com · @QuenchEditor

Food & Drink: Isabel Larner

Photography Team: Nandra Galang Anissa George Fielding Katarzyna Lewandowska Sher Min Tan Bethan Phillips Oliver Richards Óliviá Walthö

Proofreading: Matthew Jones Sophie Lodge Sum Sze Tam

Cover Photo

It’s that time of year again. Lectures are coming to an end, essay deadlines approach, exam on our cover is a photo taken from the Great period is looming and all as the sun is beginning to show its face. Typical. Having had what feels 6th April. Turn to page 35 for more mouth like the longest, gloomiest winter ever, summer watering treats.

Elsewhere in Quench, Film was lucky enough the corner, but then spitefully teasing us by to be invited to a night with BAFTA winning shouting: ‘You can’t enjoy me yet, haven’t you actress and This is England star, Vicky McClure. got a degree to complete?’

She speaks in her interview, along with co-star Yeah shut up summer, I’ll still get my ice cream from the van outside The Woodville on my way industry and her experiences of nerves, to the ASSL. knockbacks and the importance of home cinema.

I shan’t continue to moan about how much Turn to page 26 for more. work everyone has to do because I’m assuming the reason you’re reading this is because it’s and took place over the recent bank holiday work that you’re avoiding. We’ve named this weekend. Organised by a band called The issue ‘Take A Break’, because quite simply, it’s School, the micro-fest was ‘an-all ages pop what you probably need to do. Admittedly we’ve weekender’ and Music went along too. Turn to stolen this idea from our Food and Drink section pages 24 and 25 to read their reviews. (not the trashy TV guide of the same name) who, You might have noticed the absence of our in this issue, give you an insight into the world of Interviews section recently; well this issue, it’s

THE GAP Sam Hickman ..........

Features writer Jasmine Losasso explains why the latest fashion statement is quite literally a waste of space.

‘T

he Gap’ has 713,521 likes on Facebook. If you’re not already following Cara Delevingne’s thigh gap on twitter, let me explain ‘the Gap’ phenomenon using

gap is ‘the distance between a girl’s legs, directly below her pubis symphsis. (There is a slight distance decrease as the inner thigh usually bulges in, about 1-1.5” down from the perineum. This is natural in even the most perfect 18 year old specimens)’. I believe this description may have prompted you to ask yourself the following questions: do I have a gap?

Should I have a gap? Am I less of a human being if I don’t have a gap? Does Gisele have one? And most importantly, am I a ‘perfect 18 year old specimen’? In my case, the answer to these questions are ‘no’, ‘unsure’, ‘I hope not’, ‘probably’ and ‘being 21, it’s pretty impossible for me to be counted a ‘perfect 18 year old specimen’’. So, I’ve concluded that I’m faced with two options: either lose so much weight that my breasts shrink to the size of pen lids and I’m forced to take iron supplements, or physically carve chunks out of my thighs whilst weeping about how repulsive and undesirable I am. Neither option is particularly inviting.

Ever since the interwar years and this thing called Mass Consumer Culture supplements were a good idea (don’t cry though, consumerism also brought you your iPad). If I were you, I’d probably buy a

bingo wings. Also, make sure you buy hair care products. And makeup. And fake tan. And anti-cellulite cream. Oh, and don’t the gap is, it’s pretty much unobtainable for the majority of women. In fact, quite sensitively, The Gap Facebook group reassures us that: ‘possessing a gap does not depend on the weight of the female, it is genetic. Slim or plus-size women can have the gap. It’s a bit like having thin ankles or thick ankles.’

After reading this terrible news I immediately went out to buy a tape measure to work out the circumference of my ankles.

Not. Unsurprisingly, the Daily Mail online did not hesitate in posting an article in which some moronic personal trainer bitches to do SQUATS, the ‘Single-leg Romanian Deadlift’, the ‘Glute Bridge with Medicine Ball between knees’, the ‘Lateral Lunge’ and the ‘wall squat with medicine ball between knees’ in order to obtain the (apparently) extremely desirable thigh-gap. I’m sorry, what? Townsend claimed that: ‘One of the most common questions I receive is how to get rid of inner thigh fat’. How depressing. Apparently, it isn’t just

told the Daily Mail that they’ve seen a two hunded and forty percent rise in demand for procedures like lipoglaze, which

freezes up fat cells so they die and disappear. Can we just pause for a second to consider that aspiring to achieve a thighgap is about as realistic as trying to gain weight under your armpits? It’s also pointless, and anyone who is judging your personal worth on whether you have a thigh-gap is frankly an enormous idiot. Personally, I couldn’t care less whether you have a thigh-gap or not and the majority of my (male and female) peers feel the same way.

(Disgraceful Daily Mail comments included: ‘I wish more women would follow the wonderful example set by these gorgeous ladies [Victoria’s Secret models]’ and ‘Anyone who disagrees that the thigh gap look isn’t a good look is obviously a jealous, bored and fat house frau that would kill to look like these [Victoria’s Secret] models.’)

I’ve no doubt that many of you have trawled through Tumblr or Facebook, staring at the smooth brown arses of the thigh-gap elite, thinking back in horror to the time you put Vaseline in between your thighs on sports day that year, and news for you. You’re not! Just because the media tells us we’re all failing in life because we don’t have a gap between our thighs, it doesn’t mean we actually are! There is no naturally ‘perfect’ way to look. Think about it this way: the slim body our parents’ and grandparents’ generations, right? Marilyn Monroe didn’t have a thigh-gap. Twiggy was pretty skinny but

features@gairrhydd.com · @qfeatures

Q

Can we just pause for a second to consider that aspiring to achieve a thigh-gap is about as realistic as trying to gain weight under your armpits?

do you reckon she went to the gym? However, in a 2009 Paula Nicolson claimed that ‘many women do not want to secretly they put pressure upon themselves if they do not conform to societal ideals’. Unfortunately, today women’s slim and muscular body ‘has become a public expression of success, achievement and androgyny’.

In the 1980s, it was decided that the ideal female body was not only thin but also muscular and, in the last thirty years, there has been a substantial rise of participation assumed today that if we go and buy specialised gym equipment, go and buy a gym membership, go and buy a sports bra and a workout top and go to the gym four times a week we’ll all be getting closer to that ideal slim and muscular female body, patronisingly smiling at us from the pages of Vogue. In 1977, walking and swimming were the most frequent forms of exercise among women, the mid-90s a third of women under 30, from non-manual was worth £682m by 1996, £1.6bn in 2001 and now stands at a healthy £2.5bn. Don’t get me wrong, if you are genuinely going to the gym to keep your running heartbeat below 200bpm and to decrease your chances of dying from cardiovascular disease – fair enough. However, I am certain that many women ‘work out’ because they want to look good. It is clear that some people while some of us might think contemporary representations of idealised bodies are ridiculous, we are not immune to them. And do you know what is even more horrible? People are nearly particular are regularly judged by their appearance, as opposed to their intellectual capacity, sense of humour or virtues. ‘Failure to conform to narrowly prescribed beauty ideas has become not merely aesthetically disagreeable Although admittedly it’s not their fault, at the moment Victoria’s Secret models quite expertly represent the ideal ‘slim and muscular’ female body. They must have thought they had hit the jackpot when it became clear that the ‘bow-legged, prepubescent’ look was all the rage now. Unfortunately though, not all women are naturally tall with ‘good’ breasts and ridiculously long legs. Nor does every woman fancy going to pilates, ‘pump and tone’ or ‘step’ or whatever every other day of the week.

Q features@gairrhydd.com · @qfeatures

These models give women an unrealistic image to aspire to. Also, not only are these kinds of preposterous beauty ideals making women feel like dog turd, they are also fairly

Still yearning for a thigh-gap? Pay a visit to http:// fuckyeahthighgap.tumblr.com and take note of how the girls posting photos of themselves are clearly starving themselves. I had a scroll through the images whilst eating pizza, and I didn’t feel guilty. In order to scare you a little bit more, I’m going to talk a bit about eating disorders, which occur mainly among teenagers and young women. was virtually unknown. So it seems those diseases were pretty much invented (at least in part) by preposterous to be relatively successful for anorexia, psychological and which are suicides).

Girls, was named Time Magazine’s coolest person of the year in 2012. She also appeared naked during an opening skit at the Emmy Awards, eating birthday cake while sitting to wear no trousers to an event last year and faced harsh and little shorts, and a bunch of [blog posts] came out that I had been out without pants [trousers]”. She continued, “I don’t think a girl with tiny thighs would have received so much no-pants attention… Get used to it. I’m going to live until 105 and I’m going to show my thighs every day.” and men alike to join together to give the gap a resounding

UNIVERSITY, IS IT JUST A DOSS?

Sam Hickman

N

ot every degree is the same; contact hours,

There are some courses, like geology, chemistry or biomedical science, where 9-4 is a typical working day, while in the humanities-based subjects a 4 and a half hour week may seem like a lot of work. There is a shocking amount of it all. Going from 9-4 in school every day, then 9-4 for A-levels (with a part-time 18 hour job at the weekends), it that there were only 8 hours worth of lectures a week... it during my free time. I joined various societies and clubs, got baking, knitting, Ebaying and generally waiting around for yet another week of practically nothing on my timetable. In comparison, my housemates, (2 geologists, 2 biomedical scientists, a chemist and a mathematician) had as many as on the other hand, found myself with almost 40 hours of unscheduled time during the day.

The idea that ‘a degree is not enough’ is one that is extremely prevalent in our institutions. It is because of this that the typical student often feels compelled to do more busier house-mates, the general consensus was ‘I don’t have any free time!’ or ‘If I’m not working, I’m either sleeping or drinking’. In these intense, 9-6 day degrees there are more regular exams and tests, but they are worth less. For example, in music, students may have a module which is 10 credits of the 120 required for the year; it will be assessed by 1 essay, at the end of term. Conversely, courses such as Maths have There is a stark contrast between student ideas towards working, drinking and social attitudes depending on which school their degree is based in. Mindset is usually determined by how many hours they have in the day just to sit about and ponder ‘is this worth £3-£9,000 a year?’

For me the answer is NO. In view of the current job climate and the unemployment rate and simply the amount of transferable skills, a Music degree was the most ridiculous idea I have ever had. No interviewer, for instance, is ever going to say: ‘Oh! You know how you compose music using a serealist hexachordal rotation technique! That’s just what we need!’ In the current job climate, my situation is that of the late, great rena de la salsa, Celia Cruz, who was told from a young age (growing up in Cuba) that she could either be a music teacher or a global icon, there was no in between. Today this is precisely the case, only we’re governed by conservatives, which is pretty much the opposite of communists...

The trouble with degrees like this is that they don’t teach the skills that would appeal to an employer and, for the average music student, it is a hopeless situation. That’s why it make sense for students who have this much free time to get involved with something other than their degree subject.

The irony of the situation is, if I was to do any other degree, such as Psychology or Medicine, my musical skills would be viewed as an extra-curricular activity and I would be praised whilst studying for a Music degree, doing more music on top every standard aria in the book, are not transferable skills.

If you look at the current job market, you will see that there are no full-time jobs for new music graduates. As well as this, with degrees like Maths, there are hundreds of highly competitive internships which are often paid. If you were to look at the humanities subjects and arts subjects like music The most practical thing a music student could do to ‘set

about essays the night before they’re due in, and ‘practice’ in the shower. Alternatively, there are those that throw panic about essays two weeks before they’re due in and still music students is that they seem constantly busy, while they, comparatively, having practically little work at all.

These last two weeks have been the ‘hell week’. There were eight assignments due in and they were all given to us over a month ago. Come the morning of the deadlines, and the music department is a-buzz with panic as half the referencing hasn’t been done or a spell check hasn’t been run or some minor (and sometimes major) part hasn’t even been written.

This is the case with quite a lot of degrees, however, when you only have around 5 hours of lectures a week, 4 hours of rehearsals a week and a lot of free time in between this, there is no reason to be in a ‘last minute panic’ about something like this. Meanwhile, in the Earth Sciences department, with of modules and course work, it is perfectly natural for a don’t have enough ‘free time’ to complete them without dying of sleep deprivation.

In the end, university is what you make of it, the challenges you give yourself as an individual and the life lessons you learn during university aren’t just what is taught in the lecture theatre. To name a few: bills, personal security and that they are responsible for themselves, and this is a crucial part of the experience. The lessons learnt and the experiences gained are things that will aid students in later life, it is the way students grow and develop that will help them through

simply having that experience of being something other than a ‘music student’ puts me in a far better position than the typical student attending 4 and a half hours a week of lectures, and singing or playing until they are hoarse or their Naturally, like all degrees, Music is what you make of it.

There are some students who go in for their lectures, panic

features@gairrhydd.com · @qfeatures

Q

Columnist

Are you not entertained?

by Rachel Moloney

Y

ou can’t beat a bit of healthy competition. So as the

year’s Varsity, let’s cast our eyes over some of showbiz’s bitterest rivalries. There’s the battle of the abbreviated reality shows (TOWIE vs. MIC), the battle of the boy-bands (as Union

show how it’s incredibly fashionable these days not just to be woman as well.

But for those of us who don’t want to run a mini-marathon,

Britain’s Got Talent, The Voice recently moved to a later time-

potatoes, tomatoes, wheat or meat. So practically my entire

both shows a bit of a nonentity anyway, full of over-excitable

routine, she still tries to eat as healthily as possible and shares

back.

Take Christmas for instance: my cinema trips had been planned out way in advance and I was beyond excited to see not just my favourite, The Hobbit, but Les Miserables and The Great Gatsby fool decided to move Gatsby back until May 15th. As someone

butter for cupcakes. Sounds like It’s all Good may make you slim, but it may also make you bankrupt. Great.

on the promotional tour for Iron Man 3, which hits cinemas The Great Gatsby avoided a December boxTony Stark don a very unsubtle suit of armour as he comes never seen any of the Iron Man wild parties and fashionable suits, Gatsby would surely have

Gatsby’s costume department has already lent some of its Vogue Australia.

Vogue’s rival Elle

eight Q

Fighting some giant metallic robot? Ain’t nobody got time for that

So perhaps an Iron Man

to rely on is a healthy diet, a lot of money and a sneaky run

Interviews

THE BREUDDWYDION PROJECT

16 Welsh and English singing bands, amongst which The Joy Formidable, have donated tracks for a charity compilation. The project was initiated by Cai Morgensen, an ambitious teenager, who transformed his A-levels project into a real success. The album’s launch took place last month in Gwdihw and the money raised through its sale goes to The Joshua Foundation.

Cai, what are you currently doing? You have

charities?

to go straight into the world of work. I work as a researcher for a television production company called that produce Welsh language programs for S4C such as Hwb and Cariad -Iaith bands, one Welsh acoustic folk group called Y Rwtch’ and I also play with Peasants King, a rock pop band from Pontypridd.

You have been referred to you as “the Welsh Bob Geldof”? Do you see yourself this way? Did you look up to the Irish artist?

The Pontypridd Observer ‘Welsh Bob Geldof’. I’m not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing...but I’ll take it as a compliment! During the project, I haven’t ever compared this project to or Band Aid Bob Geldof’s projects’ success did really prove to me that uniting a group of musicians could raise a lot of money for a charity.

How did you select the bands featured on the

selection process?

In the beginning, I was only going to ask 6 or 7 local bands from Pontypridd (the town I live in) to be on a

mini album, that was then going to be sold in gigs in the area, because at the time I wasn’t really sure if the idea they all agreed to be on the album. Therefore, I found myself in a situation where I felt that I could ask more another 6, and they agreed! At this point I was up to about 12 bands, and then I decided why not try a bigger band? I contacted Atlantic Records to ask whether The Joy Formidable would be happy to donate a track, and I couldn’t believe it, within three days I had a reply back saying that they had a song that they wanted to donate.

I honestly thought it was one of my friends playing a prank on me to start! When The Joy Formidable agreed to be on the album, it made more artists want to join then as well! I got up to 16 tracks then: 8 Welsh singing bands and 8 English singing bands. I know most of the bands that are on the album personally through going to gigs and playing alongside them so that’s how I asked them all.

for the Joshua Foundation?

When I started this project, I was in 6th form in Ysgol Gyfun Rhydfelen. We had to think of ways to raise money for a charity as a part of the Welsh Baccalaurebrainstorming ideas. Then we’d have to pitch the idea in front of a panel of local business people like Dragons Den to see if the idea could work. The winners then would go on to actually co-ordinate the project. Before

to, and because the school has got a history of raising money for The Joshua Foundation in the past, we thought why not give the money to them if we go ahead with this! line with your expectations?

The launch night went really well. I wasn’t expecting that many people to be there! I was hoping that around 40 people would turn up. Gwdihw isn’t a massive venue so 40 in there would have been really nice, but just over 70 were there on the launch night and the place was packed! It’s such a nice venue, I’m so glad I went there to launch the album.

you considering continuing the good work and Who knows…I’ve learnt so much over the process of co-ordinating this album, and I’ve really enjoyed every second of it. It has really challenged me. It was a pretty special feeling seeing all of those people come to support the project on the launch night. I think there will be some similar project to come in the future,

combines music and raising money for charity that I’ll develop sometime over the next few months and who knows what will happen next.

The album is currently available to buy on ITunes, Spotify and Bandcamp.

as a 6th form which charity the money was going to go

Q nine

In the last month Bastille have rocketed to the top of the charts and sold out their UK tour. Music writer Matthew Jones caught up with singer ahead of their show at Cardiff’s Solus on March 22nd.

Congratulations on the number 1 album and the number 2 single – Pompeii’s got something like 7 million views on YouTube now, how does it feel?

So weird! I got a call from one of the people at work yesterday and apparently it’s sold over to say in an interview! I just can’t get my head around it; it’s one of those weird, arbitrary things. It’s just a number, I don’t know what it means. I think we all try not to think about it because I think I’d go mental. It’s really odd; it A year ago you were initially known for doing the Other People’s Heartbreak mixtapes. Are you going to do any more of those in the future?

girl that sung it with us, Ella, is supporting us, so when she’s with us we’re going to do that You played SXSW last week; casually going over to Texas for a week! How was that? It must have been really weird.

It was so weird! It was fun but we were thinking that this is a little bit mental to be honest to have a little week-long interlude in America during the tour. Psychologically, it was probably quite good for us. It was the week that our album was at number 1 in the UK and we got to go to America where nobody really knew or cared who we were. I think it was probably quite good in that respect. Also, we’d gone from being on our tour where we had our whole team around us, where it’s as easy as it could possibly be with people who you know really well, to these tiny venues in Texas with borrowed gear and no sound checks. It

the same – if you’re playing on a bill where 8 on the same day, no one’s going to get a sound a band like us where we’ve got electronics in your guitars. We’ve done it before, though.

We started playing in tiny little pubs and lots of festivals along the way. The sense is that everyone who goes is sympathetic to everyone who’s like that. It’s also quite industry-heavy – I found it terrifying!

Did you catch any other bands there?

We saw a couple; not as many as I wanted.

There were loads of bands I wanted to see. I really wanted to see Haim again and I wanted to see CHVRCHES. Basically, we were only there Tuesday – Thursday and then we left to go make a music video. At the weekend Justin end were playing – it was ridiculous – but we just didn’t get to see anyone. When you’re there, it’s kind of logistical. You’ve got to get

rooms that were pretty full and a lot of people seemed to know our songs, which was really nice. That didn’t feel what I imagined a support tour to feel like. It’s just really nice to be able to play to a room full of people who know Now that you’ve got all this success with a number 1 album, what does the future hold for Bastille?

It’d be nice to be able to make another album.

Hopefully we’ll be in a position to make another record, travel a bit more and maybe make another mixtape [Drummer Woody: Progressive jazz album mate]. way you write and record things?

I hope not. We’ve always just got on with it and all the weirdness of the last couple of weeks – hopefully we’ll just ignore it and keep

to song. I’m not sure; the creative process might change purely from the fact that when

in a band and everyone’s trying to get their normal lives. Now, we’re never at home so

We have lots of ideas but we just don’t have any time unfortunately – not to sound like a martyr, we’re having a great time! The aim is that I hope to put out another Other People’s Heartbreak out at around Christmas time if we get time to record it.

Have you been playing any of those songs on the tour so far?

Yeah, we play a couple. We did a cover of No Scrubs mixed in with a song by The xx and the

ten Q

had tried.

The band Savages said that those who ran SXSW didn’t really care about the bands, getting only minimal sound checks. Did you feel like that at all?

I didn’t really get a sense that anybody was running SXSW to be honest! I’m sure they were, but it’s very much just hundreds of lit-

music@gairrhydd.com · @quenchmusic

blocked. We didn’t have a car so we had to get cabs and it takes about three hours to get a cab! I think SXSW is probably the least fun for the bands and more fun for everyone else.

Last time you were here, you were supporting Two Door Cinema Club, how’s it We were so lucky on the Two Door tour. We’d never done the support thing before so we weren’t sure what to expect. We often played

alise it or think about it too much and just get on with it!

Interviews Providing the missing link between dirty Cajun blues rock and the land of yodelling and lederhosen, Swiss leg of their European tour. James Robinson spoke to the band.

What exactly was it about Cajun and Zydeco music that inspired you to combine it with the energy of an initialCajun, Zydeco, Blues, Folk, Chants, Ballads, Jazz, and all that make the history of recorded North American music traditions, have something secretly hidden inside. We love the old raw and ings. Rock’n’roll, punk, Velvet Underground is a continuity to what we’ve found in the old sound. Too many people interpret the old repertoire trying to play it as good and clean as possible and that’s a mistake. Cajun Zydeco Blues or Jazz ARE punk !

How would you describe the writing and recording process for Mama Rosin?

We are known to be the band that never rehearse! We’re constantly on tour and create on the road. During sound check,

our demos, so we recorded ourselves and sent him the early versions of songs we recorded then in NYC. Jon liked the new songs from the very begining. About writings: We want to make a step out of the cajun/zydeco tradition and we wrote very personnal rock songs. About recording: we’ve had a producer, Jon, who was more like a 4th member of the band in the studio. He had ideas, we followed them when we agreed, and it was really motivating!

How important is the French language to your music?

The base of our lyrics is in this old-french-cajun-creole. We love this language because it expresses a lot of emotions with few and repetitive words, but we use french also and english also. Our lyrics are a blend of those 3 langages. We made it our langage. It’s very important to us. Simple but powerful!

“Our lyrics are a blend of French, English and this old French-Cajun-Creole.

We made it our language!”

journeys, the music we’ve listened at home from our vinyl collection before going on tour and the music we listen in the van or see on stage from other bands, and our brain makes the rest.

We are 3 in the band but we write altogether. Somebody brings something and the other transform it. It’s very natural!

Would you say setting up the label Moi j’Connais re-

for your latest album Bye Bye Bayou?

Being invited to NYC by Jon Spencer made us work more than for the precedent albums. That’s sure. We could not arrive in NYC with no preparation and Jon was really curious about

played everywhere and played in those festivals for professionals, those kind of music forums where all the business men and programmers meet several times in a year, and we hated that!

We are from the very beginning DIY and it’s our true motto.

industry?

We arrived in the middle of the music scene and industry 5

We started doing all the jobs that makes a band play on stage.

Booking, managing, marketing etc... we learned from these early years of the band, and one day we decided to try this new adventure of creating a label. First years we stopped in every record shop in the cities we were touring in with Mama Rosin Moi J’Connais released the new Mama Rosin album. The label opened doors to Mama Rosin as Mama Rosin opened doors to the label at the beginning...

How would you describe the live shows you played with Bellowhead recently and the live shows you’ve done in Britain generally? Are British audiences any The Bellowhead tour was great. We didn’t have any pressure.

We like to be outsiders. And nobody in the audience expected us. So that was every night 30 minutes of pure fun. We were really rocking and Bellowhead as their audience loved it! British audience is great, the best we’ve had so far. People are really involved in what they see. They have a very very strong musical culture that doesn’t exist so much elsewhere. England has given birth to so many fantastic bands! It’s kind of unique (US excepted)!

How would you say you’ve developed as a band from your earlier albums?

The early albums shows us young and raw. We weren’t playing as well as today, as musicians and as a band. I think today we really, really became better as musicians and band. We’ve played maybe 600-700 concerts all around the world and that really counts. And musically speaking we evolved to something more personnal in the sound. The mix of styles became really unique to our ears, the blend of style we play in Mama Rosin’s music and nothing else.

music@gairrhydd.com · @quenchmusic

Q eleven

Interviews

Lewis Watson Singer-Songwriter Lewis Watson is a musician on the rise. With a new EP out and a Beth Gregory chatted to him ahead of his gig at Clwb Ifor Bach Your new EP The Wild comes out later this month, what can we expect from it compared to your last EP’s?

You’ve also played with some other great acts who are getting big like Lianne Le Havas, that must be fun! upgraded from Moon Club to Clwb Ifor Bach due to such high demand. that must feel pretty good...

It seems like you have some pretty big things in the pipeline such as playing Bestival, what else does the future hold for you?

sound evolve a bit more.

There’s a cover of SBTRKT’s Hold On on your new EP, what inspired you to cover that song?

What’s it like being on tour?

twelve Q

Fashion&Beauty

CARDIFF FASHION QUARTER

Every city has a few hidden gems giving it depth and adding to the culture. But taking its place at one end of Womanby Street,

are involved whole heartedly.

There is a luxurious span of vintage pieces

in clothing but accessories and furniture too.

Womanby Street is the perfect setting for such an interesting shopping experience which sits happily alongside music venues well as trendy tapas and cocktail bar Pica Pica. The whole atmosphere to the street presence and incredibly artistic front design

mainly because its increasing popularity meant more and more shops became poorly organised and jumble sales started popping up all over the place, charging triple what the items are worth. However, after visiting

Words and photos: Jordan Brewer

that my faith has been restored. The pieces in this store are clearly hand picked for quality and style. Timeless and stylish pieces are

cave on the inside. fashion in the convention that other stores darting one way and the other trying to decide which way they want to send your feet. With

fashion; it does not follow high street trends.

units, it would be impossible not to get the urge to want to spend the day exploring all

to do the same. Whatever your personal style,

a one stop shop for anything alternative or unique, home to an almost overwhelming range of ‘nick knacks‘, curios, vintage and

Each piece of jewellery would breathe life

video games, kitsch homemade pieces and a so many more interesting items. styles that are going on clothing wise, which

there is much more depth to it than this, hard to imagine how such a diverse range of goods can all work under one roof, but once entering you can see that it is all tied together through a sense of community and a real love the people who are involved with this project

of clothing that could help you make any statement you fancy and subtle items that could compliment most designs. Everyone that works there has their own unique and interesting style - style which makes for an extremely inspiring environment and which is very refreshing if you have just come from This is not a shop for those that want trends and styles presented to them in a neat little package. This is a shop for people with endless imaginations and a taste for innovation and timelessness. for an age and still not capture the immense urge you to experience it for yourself.

fashion@gairrhydd.com ¡ @quenchfashion

Q thirteen

Fashion&Beauty

Three of the best

Fashion Blogs

Unlike many fashion blogs, which take themselves rather too seriously, Go Fug Yourself is truly hilarious, mercilessly mocking fashion and celebrity culture. It looks at celebrity style rather than the bloggers own, with amusing and witty commentary.

The blog ‘celebrates the fugly’ focusing on fashion disasters and is a welcome break from unattainable and unrealistic images of fashion and beauty which feature in so many magazines and blogs. With features like ‘Fug or Fab?’ and ‘Man Fug’ (Justin Bieber features very highly) there is plenty of guidance on what not to wear. Morgan and Cocks started the blog in 2004 and now attract a worldwide readership. They have even published a book of the

Go Fug Yourself Jessica Morgan & Heather Cocks

and have since signed a deal for another book.

Words: Lorna Mason

Style Bubble Susie Lau

See more at www.gofugyourself.com

For the boys, Steve Salter’s blog, Style Salvage, is a great source for some serious fashion inspiration. The blog champions a fairly dapper, tailored look and takes inspiration from ‘actors of yester-year Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly’. It is a great platform and supporter of many up and coming menswear designers, and also features

Susie Lau, AKA Susie Bubble, started her fashion and style blog in 2006 and it has become arguably the biggest blog in the UK. Lau began blogging as a hobby and now is fashion royalty with famous friends such as Nick Grimshaw and Daisy Lowe. A shows at London Fashion Week, hers is an inspiring success story. The blog features Lau’s own photography of her beautiful and fashion, art and style. She champions young and emerging talent, street style, and shows readers how to make couture wearable. Since starting her blog, Lau has landed herself a job at Dazed and Confused as their online editor. She’s also featured in many national newspapers and fashion magazines, such as The Independent and Glamour. It’s a pretty inspiring tale for any would be blogger.

Access it at www.stylebubble.co.uk

world of men’s fashion. The seven day style diaries is also worth a look for anyone bored of Topman, as you can feast your eyes on Salter’s eccentric vintage style. Salter started the blog in 2007 after being inspired by the success of his girlfriend Susie Lau’s blog. It now gets about 30,000 hits a month and Salter like Lau, is an established member of the fash- pack. GQ named Salter as the 93rd Style Salvage has been featured in The Times and The Telegraph.

Have a look around at www.stylesalvage.blogspot.co.uk

Style Salvage Steve Salter

Street Style Words and Photos: Charlie Mock

N

S

eil’s cozy fur collared coat is charity shop tudent Jas’s fur coat is from Topshop bought. His t-shirt and jeans are from and her boots are from Doc Martens. Her Topman and his shoes are from Doc Martens. favourite things to wear right now are crop Neil’s favourite item of clothing is his new Bill tops and vintage Adidas sports jackets.

Crosby sweater.

C

lothing line owner and student Andy, is wearing a Vans OTW jacket with Topman jeans and Vans. His t-shirt and beanie are from Quitters Never Win (www. quittersneverwin.co.uk). Andy’s item of choice at the moment is his beanie hat.

C

hloe wears a mixture of highstreet and vintage with a vintage coat

jumper from Primark. Chloe likes to wear whatever takes her fancy that day.

Get The Look

Topshop £65

Vans Skydiver, £55

River Island, £4

fashion@gairrhydd.com · @quenchfashion

Q

sixteen Q travel@gairrhydd.com 路 @quench_travel

AFRICA

Travel

Photography: Chris Beynon

U n e x pected When you imagine a holiday in Africa, you picture safaris, pyramids and volunteering at orphanages. There are, however, more exciting activities to jump in to, many of which you wouldn’t have expected to be available to tourists in Africa.

On the Cape of South Africa you can experience the thrill and adrenaline rush of sand boarding. Described as freestyle maneuvers of snowboarding” sand boarding is a unique way to view the natural beauty of the cape from the top of the sand dunes. With beginner to expert runs and instructors on hand, this exhilarating activity is a great way to see the Cape of South Africa, whilst experiencing the rush of an extreme sport.

Another unusual and exciting activity to take part in is the African Beetle Marathon; a yearly event which sees classic VW Beetles competing in an epic road marathon.

The race takes competitors through Swaziland, Botswana and Namibia, so is a great way to explore southern beaten track. It’s a great way to meet people as other challengers come from around the world to

participate.

Of course there are some more traditional and classic sights to be seen in Africa. One example is Victoria Falls, one of the largest water falls in the world, on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe. This iconic destination, however, has been made a little more exciting as a variety of companies now white water rafting down the Zambezi River which lies below the falls.

This trip is an ultimate must for any extreme sport enthusiasts as the rapids long and violent and, with a few small crocodiles in the river, this isn’t tailored for the faint hearted. Although it may seem daunting, the full and half day trips provide safety equipment and you’ll never forget the amazing views you experience whilst being drenched by the falls.

If your idea of a perfect holiday is something a little more relaxing, then Africa has some less extreme but more The Fagnoon Art School in Egypt, situated in the shadows of Saqqara Pyramid in Cairo, is a great place to get away from the tourist hustle and bustle. Release all your creative energy in the arts centre where you can re-create all the awe inspiring sites you’ve observed from the previous days of sightseeing.

An alternative way to relax and indulge in Egypt is a trip to Cleopatra’s bath. Slip into the warm, bubbling, natural spring water and unwind in the glorious sun or in the shade of the palm trees.

Cleopatra’s Bath is the most famous of Siwa’s many oases and is very popular with the locals as a place to socialise and relax.

However, don’t expect to be hopping into the spring in your swim wear, it is a local custom to bathe fully clothed.

These are just a small selection of the incredible and unexpected activities you can get involved in whilst travelling in Africa, proving that it’s not all big cats and small villages.

Kathryn Lewis

Travel

ArtIn Africa M u s i c T h e V e ry B e s t The Very Best is a group that brings together London’s Radioclit and Malawi’s Esau Mwamwaya. This collaberation creates a differnet sound that combines upbeat traditonal music of malawi with britsh dance and hip-hop. Thier latest album ‘MTMTMK’ (which apperently stands for ‘More To Malawi Than Madonna’s Kids’) showcases The Very Best’s best work; includ-

F

I

L

M

N a i ro b i H a l f - L i f e Nairobi Half-Life tells the story of Mwas, a young kenyan with dreams of becoming a famour actor, who leaves his rural home for oppertunity in Nairobi.

In the capital, however, Mwas quickely falls into a world of small time crime. The

B O O K

TheInstitute o f Ta x i P o e t ry ‘The Institute of Taxi Poetry’ by Imraan Coovadia throws together poetry, satire and detectives to tell of the mysterious death of South Without centring around South Africa’s past of aparthierd Coovadia has written a captivating novel and a great intoduction to Taxi Poetry.

travel@gairrhydd.com · @quench_travel

Q seventeen

Travel

THERE’S MORE TO ZAMBIA THAN ZEBRAS

dull dodgy place I had in mind.

eighteen Q travel@gairrhydd.com · @quench_travel

LGBT+

DUCE FOR AN EQUAL SCORE As the hard work begins, Thomas Leeming

“I

was worried I would disappoint my family,” Adam tells me as we sit down. “I was concerned about telling them. My family is quite conservative and my parents naturally thought I would turn out to be straight. I felt uncomfortable with the whole situation.”

On the 5th March 2013, after having dressed up as a tennis player for his campaign, Adam Duce won the election for

students who are part of the LGBT+ community and see what it can do in terms of appealing to a wider membership.” Indeed, his manifesto states that he wants to “enable close connections between the LGBT+ Society, its members and the Union.”

However, Adam had not previously been part of the Society.

Following his election, he has now joined and wants to get more involved. “I’ve only now come to fully appreciate the Society for

second year, Adam hopes to raise awareness of LGBT+ issues across the university.

“My parents are very supportive of me,” he says. “I never envisaged it would be this way. I wanted to run for the role because I felt that I would be a good advocate for the LGBT+ community and I feel that I’m an approachable person. I just want to act as a friend and create greater tolerance and understanding.”

make sure members of LGBT+ community don’t feel alienated

a rural region. I had a job in Boots where my colleagues would question my sexuality and everything was based on stereotypes.” He explains how it was rare to see a same-sex couple holding hands. Although slightly tentative here in

Because he had not joined the Society previously, there has been some controversy over his win, with some claiming

two minor incidents,” he recalls, “one a raised eyebrow and the other a kid saying something. Quite a lot of people smile actually.” He seems content, “We are making progress.”

and open about his sexuality. Yet, it hasn’t always been like this. he was gay. He went to a small school and struggled to accept who he was.

“I just want to act as a friend and create greater tolerance and understanding” “It was very lonely and I had to constantly put up barriers. I went to a private school where being gay wasn’t accepted. There wasn’t help or support in that regard and I felt pressure to be something, that I should be straight. Instead, I liked a guy in my class and I had to crush all those emotions. But you know what it’s like when you’re enraptured by that other person,” school!”

It wasn’t until sixth form that he began to open up to people. year at university that he opened up to his parents. Next on the list were other close family members.

“My grandmother, in particular, has been unbelievably accepting, especially coming from a Catholic background.” It is clear to see Adam is much happier now that people know.

“It’s why I made my coming out story part of my manifesto,” he explains. “It makes it personal and allows for a closer relationship. I don’t want people to have to go through what I had to.”

Certainly, Adam’s manifesto aims at making life better for all LGBT+ students. “My main objective is to create a more

those comments. I’m happy to have been elected and I want to reassure members that I am a suitable candidate for the position. There are no bad feelings on my part and I’m not going to hold it against them. I want us to work well together.”

Did he think there would be some negativity when he chose to run? “It wasn’t really a factor. I just thought about the community as a whole,” he says. “I think that the fact that a large number of heterosexual people voted for me proves that through campaigning over just a three day period has already raised awareness. I feel that LGBT+ students outside the Society are seen as not existing, which is ridiculous. There should be far more involvement from everyone.”

“I want challenges thrown against me and the Society has that chance – everyone should have that right. I want to create a strong support system for all LGBT+ students and be that supportive friend that I was lucky to have when starting university. I’m going to need co-operation from everyone and hostility will get us nowhere.”

Supportive friends is something Adam certainly has. This is one of the reasons he didn’t become a member of the Society before because he didn’t feel the need to: he had friends and was happy with the way things were. “Not everyone has such an easy transition and I hope to be able to provide this.”

However, friends alone weren’t quite enough for him. “In

picky and I wondered whether I was going to be married to my career.”

“I want challenges thrown against me – everyone should have that right” they are both very driven and will stand up for what they think is right. “I’ll still have a successful career (he wants to be a idea of sharing your life with someone, opening yourself up and have someone know everything about you was always slightly scary.” He pauses, “I’m pleased I have been proved wrong.”

Over the next few months, Adam will begin the handover taken on and is looking forward to the experience. He talks of his future colleagues with excitement: Cari Davies, the new he says cheerfully. “I do hope people will embrace me.”

myself, I did feel quite lonely. I was concerned when I would meet someone.” And meet someone he did. His boyfriend of six months is also on next year’s committee: Ollie Wannell, to his Nan’s 70th birthday party this weekend actually. I never thought I would be integrated into his family like I have. My

election being criticised and homophobia still unfortunately it’s clear to see that he will do the best job he can. With his determination and strength strongly evident, there’s no doubt Game, set and match.

I had never been in a relationship – I thought I was being too

non-LGBT+ students are aware of the issues that the LGBT+ community face. Their involvement within the association is extremely valued. I want to make sure that LGBT+ awareness

have the relevant LGBT+ awareness so that they can help prejudice.” me on a 1-to-1 basis to discuss any issues ranging from very personal through to school-related problems,” he adds.

“Groups can also be set up so students have the opportunity to talk about their concerns with like-minded individuals in an informal environment. I will then raise these issues on the relative committees at Union level and create initiatives and policies to resolve these.”

I ask Adam what he thinks of the LGBT+ Society. “I believe that there needs to be a focus on the LGBT+ community as a whole, rather than just focusing on the Society. I think that the Society needs to open up more and look to the many other

lgbt@gairrhydd.com

Q nineteen

LGBT+

This time it’s personal...

Manif Pour Tous organised a rally in Trafalgar Square, Erin Ekins joined the counter protesters in the thick of the action.

I

’ve never been one to stand quietly by on the subjects that I believe in. The art of ‘distancing’ oneself from potentially hurtful situations has never been something I have been able to master. If there is a cause that is close to my heart, or I perceive an injustice or a falsehood, then you can guarantee I’ll be the one grabbing my laptop and having a good old rant on

befell my short hair and somewhat alternative clothing, it felt good to be embraced into the comforting bosom of the queer protesters.

The march in London was, as one of the Manif Pour Tous stewards insisted in an attempt to persuade me to go away, an opportunity for the French population of London to march against the French government’s plans. It was not, on paper,

based student magazine). organised in Trafalgar Square, my immediate instinct was: ‘let’s

Couples) Bill, which is currently going through revisions and debates.

However, the crowd that gathered was predominantly

until they learn their lesson’.

Despite my convictions, I had never been to a protest all, the organisers of the rally were Manif Pour Tous, who had previously organised the 150,000 strong march in Paris against Whilst they weren’t quite up to the standards of the Paris rally,

clichéd), it became clear that the French connections were very much a smoke screen. aimed at Britain was irrelevant to me, as I am concerned with the rights of queer people the world over. But this was, evidentially, a protest in Britain, with British speakers, British participants, and they were protesting a bill that relates directly to my rights as a human being.

Personal does not even begin to cover it.

The sense of camaraderie within the counter protesters

committing suicide as a result of bullying; hate crimes against LGBT+ people are still prevalent (as, coincidentally, was once again brought to media focus when a French couple were savagely beaten by

Manif Pour Tous) and the rates of mental health problems and homelessness are still disproportionately high for LGBT+ individuals.

Marriage equality falls second to these things. However, I without a solid legal basis. How can we tell school children not to and ‘not quite good enough’ to be allowed the same rights as our

campaigner pushed his way in front of me and began to shout, ‘This

this’ –he

Partway through, a topless woman managed to get on stage some criticisms of her actions, but, for me, the buzz of seeing

it is as a direct result of people like them, the passive aggressive homophobes (who tell us they respect us and don’t hate us, but will stand in the freezing cold rain to deny us equal rights), that so many queer children struggle as I did.

The contempt and disgust in their eyes as they turned to me, clutching their homophobic signs, is something I have never

their ideology was indescribable. a couple of hundred people gathered in Trafalgar Square bearing the predictable ‘one man, one woman’ and ‘think of the children’ proclaiming the upholding of traditional marriage were hoisted up around Nelson’s Column, I couldn’t help but feel a sickening in my gut.

It wasn’t just a sickening for what I was seeing – it was for where I was seeing it.

You see, in 2009, Ian Baynham was brutally murdered in Trafalgar Square. Why? Because he was gay. Since then, a vigil against hate crime has been held every year at the base of Nelson’s Column; a circle of candles proclaiming ‘no more’, speeches, moments of silence, testimonies from family members of people who have lost their lives to hate crime and a reading of names of all those victims of homophobia, transphobia and racism.

I have been to one of these vigils. It was a deeply moving, So seeing these banners being raised, this stage being put together, adults positioning their young children strategically on the Column, resplendent in Manif pour Tous

and, with a look of sheer disgust on his face, spit ‘and you say we’re shameful’. To my utter surprise, and no doubt because the adrenaline rush that came with the woman on stage, I looked

these adults made them wave). afternoon banging on about ‘the natural of order of things’ and you couldn’t get more natural than she was at that very moment.

Moments like this were incredible. They are the reason that I am determined to take part in something like this again. There was a sense of rightness, a sense that we were standing up and and colour and disposition.

Most importantly, however, was the sense that we were not letting them get away with what they were doing.

Yes, freedom of speech entitles them to say these things, but freedom of speech does not protect you from the consequences of such speech – and if you are going to stand on a stage and denounce my life, my self, my rights, then you have to deal with the repercussions (i.e. me holding up a sign and arguing with you).

stomach, a tightening, an anger which I wasn’t quite sure how to direct.

Luckily, as I approached, there was a comfy looking rainbow

up for debate. They never are, and never will be. That’s why they are called rights.

Marriage equality is not, for me, the most pressing issue

protesters. Needless to say, as I scurried past the scowls that

behaviour is still punishable by death. LGBT+ children are still

twenty Q lgbt@gairrhydd.com

Column, being encouraged to cheer and holler the homophobic sentiments (knowing that many of them will, at some point,

sign and staring directly into my eyes. It was the most unsettling her gaze, the set of her shoulders, the hatred and conviction that ebbed through every muscle of her body. Eventually, the police escorted her away from us as they could see that we were deeply intimidated by what she was doing. It left us physically shaken.

My friend, who is straight but had come (in secret) to support me, said it was one of the most disturbing things she had ever seen.

This is the face of homophobia in our society today. It may not lives and destroying souls. myself and my mother (who recently came out), they left because they couldn’t win, the very fact of them saying the things that they said brought me to tears.

Marriage equality will happen but it is not the end of the face of hatred that permeates deeper than we realise.

Culture

Knock Knock…

Who’s there? Tons of Comedians right here in the Capital The Welsh Unsigned Stand-Up Award (WUSA) aims to support emerging talent in South Wales through giving unsigned talent a platform to showcase their work. The WUSA looks for the next Welsh Stand-Up Comedy star and

releases.

the winner a foot in the increasingly growing industry. The award is sponsored by Glee Club and returns for its second year at Chapter, comedy lover Sam Lloyd gives Quench Culture an insight into what the award is all about.

act is wishing the others well. It’s grassroots

participating in it, as well as the audiences. “although there is a competitive element, there is a greater scene of camaraderie.

Dunn adds that “the environment created friendly, and constructive. have already proudly demonstrated what

Up and down the country, stand-up comedy is Every July, the successes of the local comedy scene are condensed into the annual The festival is also integrated with an annual stand-up competition, which has

competition nights each performer is sure to waves of fantastic comedy events.

now in its fourth year, invites local amateur talent to enter the contest for the chance to package for any aspiring comedian to get

satisfy my hunger for the art of stand-up. By

out there.

The venue of the competition lies in an area out one of the upcoming heats of the impressive of its kind in Britain. It housed

it as much as I do.

recording of one of Richard Herring’s DVD

culture@gairrhydd.com · @quenchculture

Q twenty-one

Culture

Literary Adventures Literature Wales makes it their mission to promote Welsh literary talent in Wales and beyond. literary tourism events literature and the Welsh landscape in a series of unforgettable literary adventures.

as the city itself is a pulsing hub of cultural activity. There are so many organisations, from theatre companies to art galleries, that are at the forefront of nurturing fresh talent across Wales as

interpreting literature. presents a series of unforgettable literary adventures. Back

terms of literature is Literature Wales, the a national company responsible for developing and promoting Welsh literature. everyone from favourites such as RS Thomas and Dylan Thomas

genres, here are some of the tour highlights; 6th July Submarine Swansea novel Submarine. Join both Joe and Craig for a screening and a shape talent. literary tourism programme. Whether or not you are a literature

20th July Dylan Thomas’ Taf Estuary and New York Treat

trekking, cycling, sailing through Wales. The aim of Literature

audience. These adventures across the literary landscape provide Jess Rayner

For more information and how to book tickets visit: www.literaturewales.org.

There are also a number of Welsh language based events on offer.

twenty-two Q culture@gairrhydd.com ¡ @quenchculture

Music

Spillers Records 31 Morgan Arcade, CF10 1AF

The Balcony, Central Market, CF10 2AU

be complete without supposedly the oldest record shop in the word and a Mecca for music nerds everywhere. Located in the historical Morgan Arcade, Spillers has a welcoming and friendly atmosphere and a wide selection indie, punk, blues, country and western and a welsh language section. Upstairs they have a small but decent selection of vinyl, and are always well stocked with local bands. Prices do tend to be a bit higher than elsewhere, but in the average HMV. If you’re broke, then try old demos, label samplers, and occasionally a complete gem of an album. They also sell gig occasionally even have their own instore gigs.

Catapult Records 3-7 Duke St , CF10 1AZ Whilst many herald the coming of Spotify and pirating as the future of the music 4 Mackintosh Place, Roath, CF24 4RQ industry, for many music fans simply downloading or streaming their music does D’Vinyl is everything a second hand record not feel satisfying enough compared to losing shop should be. When you walk in, you are overwhelmed with music piled in every friendly and companionable atmosphere in conceivable area, which laughs in the face of the increasingly endangered local record health and safety. The range of stock sets this store. So with Record Store Day; the global celebration of the quickly disappearing CDs, books, DVDs, t-shirts, and stocking, in independent record shop, occurring on the the owners words, ‘‘Pretty much anything 20th April, what better time to look at a run except pop’’. However, whilst the shop has plenty of character, the grubby stock was Words: Stephen Springate

including a 3 for £10 deal.

Albums In this age of reformations, Suede have made the surprising move of actually recording and releasing an entire album; something their reunited contemporaries are currently struggling to achieve (Blur, Pulp, Stone Roses).

But how can they recreate a sound that lived and died in the 90s?

The answer comes as soon as Brett Anderson’s vocals soar over the opening track, sounding as if direct from Ziggy Stardust’s radio transceiver. Barriers

Catapult

Records

is

Wales’

largest

reputation and vast amount of customers one of you who step through their doors a personal experience. Whether you are a professional DJ or a sit at home listener, these guys are dedicated to making sure you get exactly what you want. They can provide you with records both common and rare, DJ equipment, merchandise, tickets, and opportunities to learn how to DJ. Their next Catapult Presents night takes place 10/05 with the legendary Doc Scott down in The Vaults.

Hannah Cook

selection of used vinyl, CDs and DVDs, but has little of the right atmosphere which is needed to lose an hour perusing their stock.

It is also overpriced, charging £7 for a used CD, which could probably be found new for a better price elsewhere. However, it has a great selection of alternative & punk vinyl, and there is a bargain vinyl section where some good deals can be found.

The Record Shop 4 Inverness Place, Roath, CF2 5RU Located just around the corner from D’Vinyl, The Record Shop is very hard to miss, painted bright blue and orange with tables and boxes of bargain CDs surrounding the entrance. Look out for the box of CDs which are free to a good home, if music along the lines of Blue’s Greatest Hits is your kind of thing. On the inside, the crypt-like shop is packed to the rafters with vinyl and CDs, probably at the best price of all the shops in this feature, with many bargain boxes scattered around the place. They seem to mainly stock rock and blues, but there is certainly something for everyone here. The good prices and great atmosphere make me inclined to say this is probably the Hot Wax Records 58 Cowbridge Rd E, Riverside, CF11 9DU Located in Canton, this store is probably the worth a visit nonetheless for a good selection of well priced vinyl, CDs, comics and other collectables in a friendly atmosphere.

SUEDE BLOOD SPORTS (WARNER) 18.03.13 is a glorious refusal that it’s time to move on, with a plethora of trademark chord progressions that immediately force a smile on your face. By the time Snowblind begins, you can’t help but be convinced.

There is an undeniable energy to the tracks, whether it’s the brilliantly Hit Me or the downright beautiful For The Strangers, with Richard Oakes’ guitar colouring every bar. It’s rather disappointing

that Suede chose to end the album on four consecutive ballads. While mesmerizing, the energy undeniably drops, leaving you feeling rather Suede wanted. Anderson states that Bloodsports is about the lust, chase and drama of love. Like an brief, intense relationship, the album begins fast and exciting, and ends with you yearning for that same early energy.

Owen Richards

music@gairrhydd.com · @quenchmusic

Q twenty-three

Music The Tuts | Friday Sugary sweet in pastel colours, The Tuts, a three piece girl group from London, looked adorable as they apologised for their late arrival and took to the stage. But then they started playing, and smashed my assumptions out of the water. Unleashing a torrent of anger and girl power, their set comprised witty, snarky lyrics and tight rhythms that got the audience moving – no mean feat in a church setting.

Reminiscent of Kate Nash (perhaps unsurprisingly, they’re supporting her on tour), punk, and 50s pop, The Tuts were upbeat, and looked like they were an extended, sit down listen, but great live.

Rosey Brown

The School Allo Darlin’

From 29th to 31st March, an exciting new microfest popped up in Cardiff. Rosey Brown, Kit experiences from Cardiff ’s youngest festival. Luke Slade also provided all the wonderful photographs!

Allo Darlin’ | Saturday Converting the room into a modern day folk dance, Allo Darlin’ let you know that there is plenty to see room for what is a glorious end to the second day of

| Sunday ignorance of what language they were singing in. Not that such critical mishaps matter when their tunes were so unpretentiously charming. New single, Verano Azul, Invierno Nuclear (Check out the funny video, replete with cartoon hamsters being frazzled by radiation and nuclear-resistant chocolate) is reminiscient of Architecture in Helsinki, with an ear for an uncanny melody which is

Franny Y Tu is more amiable, but not to a fault - rather it’s lilting melodies segue into each other with the kind of beckoning-melancholy that could only be awkwardly described as Belle and Sebastian-esque. Impressively, interest doesn’t wane in their synth and xylophone-led pop, thanks to their sometimes daydreaming rhythm which wanders pleasingly without forgetting the instant like to marry their lead singer. Cheers.

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music@gairrhydd.com · @quenchmusic

And boy have they found their audience. The bouncing faces of locals (and the odd photographer) moustaches and pixie cut hair. Their melodies, owing much to Throwing Muses and Belle and Sebastian, never simply settle as the room spins on its heels and turns them through the air.

Elizabeth Morris, the lead, sings with high, lightly accented but assured vocals taking you on the journey of their second album. is a perfect caesura to the evening’s bounce. Its bittersweet description of a lake in Sweden as being something that “all of the hipsters in Shoreditch could never style” rises them above a single-trick tag Even though they’ll never be the pivot of a genre they were certainly the pivot of the event – taking you into the night and yearning for the next day.

Luke Slade

Music

Laura J. Martin | Sunday

The Hangman Tree where you wish Martin, being the undoubtedly good songs seem a little too enthusiastically eclectic on record, many of the better experimental works really come to the fore live, allowed space so that the audience can inhale them more easily and absorb the intricacies of her voice too. Fire Horse yet entrancing places and it’s no mean feat that I found myself reminded of Joanna Newsom throughout - high voice and all. One hopes that she embraces Newsom’s avant-garde direction to allow her interesting work supercede some of the more throwaway ditties on offer.

Totem Terrors | Saturday

Totem Terrors

| Friday and the perfect musical accompaniment for the chilled Easter Friday afternoon. Combining Fable’s take on folktronica was simultaneously easy-going yet exciting to behold, no doubt partly due to the relationship between the two members. Both possessing pure, limpid voices, their vocals coalesced beautifully when they sang together and were able to soar when they sung independently.

They were, however, at their best when they performed as a full band. Songs such Always Golden were reminiscent of Bat for Lashes’ particular amalgamation of organic and electronic elements and sounded fantastic in the hall. I had some fears about the quality of the sound subtle moments may well have been lost. As it was, they set a very high standard for the

nature to that upstairs. Seated and content are the audience of Totem Terrors as they play the modern day equivalent of court poetry.

In style, however, they couldn’t be more different. Acutely self-aware and everything this type of festival is pertains to be, the whimsical delivery and consisting only of two people, it is the interplay of both their vocals and the bass guitar with the rhythm and synth that holds the room. It takes two to make an accident, and what a wonderful accident is to be found in Totem Terrors.

I caught up with Max and Rosie after the show to ask them about the festival friends with a couple of the people who set the festival up, so we’re just trying to help them make a success of it.

yesterday evening because we were practising.

If you say ‘art rock’ then it sounds pretentious and if you say ‘post-punk’ then it’s a little bit too general and if you say ‘wonky pop’ then that’s too broad. But I think we write pop songs – art pop? Is that something?

Totem Terrors’ debut album ‘Repeat Play Torrent Rar’ was was released on April 8.

Luke Slade

Live review BRITISH SEA POWER MILK AND BISCUITS COAL EXCHANGE, 14.04.13

Whether they’re playing a tour of British public libraries, hosting their own festival at the highest pub in Britain or performing a live soundtrack to a 1930s documentary about rural Scotland, British Sea Power have never been ones for conventional live performances.

So it wasn’t a massive surprise to hear I should get to The Coal Exchange early on Sunday to catch a short chilled out set from the band before the support come on, as has been standard throughout their current tour.

True Adventures, the slow burning closer to their second album, couple of quieter songs from the new album and another couple of songs from their earlier work. I’m glad I stayed around for the support band, as despite looking like a modern day incarnation of the Manson family, Milk & Biscuits steamed through a breezy set place in 60s San Francisco, bumblingly yet endearingly led by a lead singer very reminiscent of Daniel Johnson, who by the end of set must have won over even the most stone hearted audience member.

British Sea Power came back on to their new lead single Machineries of Joy, and as would occur with many songs from their new album throughout the set, the song came alive on stage, with far more kick to it than on the album which initially I found a bit

disappointing. I was worried that a set dominated by their new material was going to be a bit weak, but it was soon clear that they

Zeus EP played. Disappointingly, they played nothing from their Man of Aran soundtrack, but hearing their new version of single Waving Flags as performed on the From the Sea to the Land Beyond soundtrack was nice to watch, especially when the band’s mascot bear came onto the The well balanced material, and at times, bipolar set, which could be from a subdued violin to an expert guitar shredding in moments , was initially closed with the near on 15 minute epic, Lately. The encore was made up of old singles Remember Me and Carrion, All In It before descending into cataclysmic semi-improvised chaos. This saw band members and Ursine Ultra the bear (not a real bear, but a person in a 9ft costume) enter the audience and even a little moshing break out to the frantic instrumental folding out onstage, which always ensures every single BSP gig is unique. The band certainly know how to leave on a high, and how to remind the audience that they are one of the most underrated yet enduring British rock bands of the last decade.

music@gairrhydd.com · @quenchmusic

Stephen Springate

Q

Film

At this year’s Zoom Cyrmu Film Festival, BAFTAwinning actress Vicky McClure discusses nerves, knockbacks and the importance of homegrown cinema.

S

·

Q twenty-seven

Film

OBLIVION

PROFILE:

GEORGE A. ROMERO

Director: Joseph Kosinski Starring:Tom Cruise, Morgan Freem

‘I’ll never get sick of zombies.

I just get sick of producers.’

– George A. Romero

Words:

H

NEWS IN F I L M

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·

THE PLACE BEYOND THE PINES

Director: Malcolm D. Lee Starring: Ashley Tisdale, Charlie Sheen, Lindsay Lohan

Director: Derek Cianfrance Starring: Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes

an

SCARY MOVIE 5

D

I

Oliver Richards

James Thompson

Jess Rayner

Filth

MISSED OUT ON A RECENT FILM? STILL SHOWING (UNTIL 02/05)

The Shining The Walking Dead The Overlook Hotel

ONE-OFFS AND RARITIES

路

Q twenty-nine

BIOSHOCK INFINITE PLATFORM: PS3, PC, X360 REVIEWED ON: X360 DEVELOPED BY: IRRATIONAL PUBLISHED BY: 2K OUT NOW

Michael O’Connell-Davidson reviews the newest installment of the Bioshock franchise.

Can gaming’s smartest shooter live up to its legacy?

W

ith a plot that that examines the nature of both civil war and quantum mechanics, is meaningful, both in form and function. It represents a break from conventional

remarkable feat, considering how Call of Duty and the genre’s perceived Because of this, it’s unusually easy to forget that

is a game,

Bioshock, and while it’s hard to imagine person shooter, it does little to iterate upon the genre. Despite how old this generation of consoles actually is, looks incredible, but I occasionally encountered issues with the game’s frame rate that made extended combat encounters a lot less enjoyable. The gunplay is not at all disagreeable, but there’s a lot of it, and very little that serves to break up the action outside of

chronicles an alternate history. At the turn of the century, America that playing

for extended periods can be quite a fatiguing experience.

as a new world power and to act as a monument to their ingenuity. You play as Booker DeWitt, an ‘investigator of matters both public and private,’ and a former Pinkerton agent. Deep in debt and spiralling into depression, you are sent to Columbia to retrieve a young girl named Elizabeth and bring her back to the surface as the airborne state teeters on the brink of civil unrest.

Much of the plot’s later complication surrounds Elizabeth, who possesses the ability to open ‘tears’ in reality, creating passages to alternate universes.

topical, and revels in its own complexity. The game’s script has around 20,000 more words than the average novel and plays out like a Christopher

requires you to be permanently switched on, it won’t be everybody’s idea of escapism. does a great job, utilising a number of your combat skills. These range from traps and tractor beams to bolts of lightning, and serve to add a great deal of strategy to the game’s otherwise of interconnected ‘sky rails,’ which allow the protagonist another form of within the game’s combat arenas, making larger encounters feel like rollercoasters.

Those who have played the game’s predecessors will be happy to know that Bioshock does away with most boss encounters, instead presenting a varied set of enemies. Combat itself is not particularly hard, and those who excel at

thirty Q videogames@gairrhydd.com · @mikeocd

Indeed, I can’t quite get around the fact that the least compelling thing about the game is the game part. That’s not to say that action is below standard, because it isn’t, it’s simply overshadowed by its own a result. The narrative itself, while immensely enjoyable, is a questionable beast: whenever travel between universes is introduced to a plot, it becomes adheres closely to its own rules, but at times, it feels like without the relationship between Booker and Elizabeth, there wouldn’t be much of a plot at all.

For those reasons alone, it’s great that Booker and Elizabeth’s relationship but the protagonists are enough of a constant that it never feels particularly jarring. Certainly, the combat isn’t perfect, but, if only because of the game’s is still an experience worth having. From the box art to the gameplay itself, is a smokescreen for something much smarter, often reaching heights most games can only aspire to.

LEFT: an example of one of scenarios, showing vigor usage.

BELOW: a combat arena, showing sky rails in use.

RIGHT: Elizabeth looking at the marquee of an alternate universe cinema.

BELOW: A “motorized patriot,” one of Columbia’s automated defenders.

videogames@gairrhydd.com · @mikeocd

Q thirty-one

Food&Drink

h a v eaa break

With the end of the academic year looming upon us, frantic revision and essay-writing brings out the worst appetites in all of us. Comfort food becomes the diet staple of every

thirty-four Q

food@gairrhydd.com 路 @quench_food

Food&Drink

Waterloo Tea Gardens W

ith a tea selection that spans the entire wall behind the counter, Waterloo Tea Gardens can

talks to owner Kasim Ali a

The Great Roath Bake Off in pictures 2013 Yes, from an early age. However, as with anything, turning a passion into a business required a lot of supplementary learning and research. From 2008 we have continuously updated our knowledge.

being dependent on weather (and terroir), and economics, the farms from which we buy change

chocolate and salted caramel crunch cake Lisa Watts are ground to order. We use the aeropress technique, and also a pour over (V60) technique when brewing carafes.

Pastéis de Belém Nata and Co

We do also bring in new blends and swap them

Ibrik World

pork pies Bill Ward

Championships.

Quality is the number one factor. We try to highlight each region and processing method when we construct our tea list. Personal preference is also high up. Customer feedback is important, however we are conscious that we are and hence lead, as oppose to follow.

Espresso is tricky due to the high pressure still recommend you grind on demand.

pomegranate and cranberry white chocolate cake Molly Spivey

far away. There are many strings to our bow, selection.

The festival has been cancelled. It was organised in a café it should be tea and foods – sweet/ the best tea, should be drunk unadulterated – no milk, no sugar.

We created the space to satisfy our needs. We were often disappointed that ‘everyday’ places

was thought about in detail, we didn’t want it to make a statement, in a sense it had to be a neutral background.

food@gairrhydd.com · @quench_food

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