Join the club
FIAT 500
> WORDS BY ALISON DANIELS
52-54 Langstane Place 01224 676000 www.themusicclub.co.uk 56
The Music Club is Aberdeen’s newest and most interesting venue for laid back tunes and food. The venue is on Langstane Place, just opposite Dusk and Eljo’s and has been designed to make music accessible to anyone from seasoned performers to those interested in picking up an instrument.
You can pick up the what’s-on guide at the venue or join the mailing list. Spontaneous jams throw up unexpected combinations. The atmosphere is very welcoming and supportive, and there’s always something going on. The Music Club is rapidly staking a claim to be the musical heart of the city.
Gordon Middler and Mark Ockendon worked for almost a year to strip the building out and design the new café bar and performance areas, and it has clearly been a labour of love. “Over the years, I had been teaching music, performing, working as a session musician and going to see a lot of live bands, and I thought it would be great if you could do all that in one place and grab something to eat with your friends at the same time,” explains Gordon, “and that’s where the Music Club came from.”
“People have commented on the energy and how different it feels - a great time with no pressure,” enthuses Gordon.
The programme of performances is very diverse, so there’s something for everyone.
The café bar and performance areas are already up and running and the venue also offers rooms for hire. Plans are in place for workshops, tuition, and an after school club early next year. Mark and Gordon hope that they can replicate the Music Club’s success in other cities over time, but for now this comfortable, entertaining venue is a one-off. Gordon calls it a fresh vibe with fresh coffee – I’d call it just what Aberdeen needs.
> WORDS BY DAVID GILLANDERS Over fifty years ago Fiat launched the 500, otherwise known as the Cinquecento. It was marketed as a cheap and practical town car, measuring just 9ft.9” long and powered by a 479cc, air-cooled engine – this truly was one of the first city cars. By the time it ceased production in 1975, the 500 brand had sold a staggering 3.6 million cars. So no pressure then for the new 500, which was launched again in March 2007, exactly 50 years after the launch of the Cinquecento. After driving the new 500, similarities between the new VW Beetle and the BMW Mini become apparent. They are all striving to become the new icon of the Noughties. If it was on price alone, the Fiat would win hands
down because the price of this car starts at £8,100. There are three engines available: a 1.2 litre 8v unit, the 75 bhp 1.3 litre multijet common-rail turbo diesel and a 85 bhp 1.4 litre 16v engine, coupled to a 6-speed manual gearbox. Later this year will come the Fiat 500 Arbarth which will have a 1.4 litre engine with a variable geometry turbo charger; this will produce 135 bhp and 180 nm of torque. My impression of the 500 is that it is well built, and has a neutral handling chassis which I liked – the engine does need to be revved quite hard, which really is no hardship, and I can imagine crazy Italian drivers whisking through the streets of Milan. The car pictured is in Funky White I can well understand why Fiat picked that name to describe the colour. This little 500 must be a contender for Urban Car of the Year, but whether it can knock the original Cinquecento off its pedestal, only time will tell. 57