Thanks to everyone who came to the Star and Garter on Wednesday night, for the home leg of the tour. Minor running difficulties aside, a good night was had by all. The Colt.45s were fantastic as ever. They’re back in Manchester soon, and well worth a watch. Julius Martov & The Sexy Mistakes also did sterling support work.
Our set was one of the most enjoyable we’ve ever done, so thankyou for creating such a great atmosphere. It was Steve Trumpet’s last ever Ruffian gig, not a bad one to end on. He’s going to the Faroe Islands to become a carpenter, which seems like an odd decision until you remember that he’s been living chez Bray for some time now, so it’s well to get as far away as possible.
We’ve got some more gigs coming up, including two extra FLA nights in Manchester, towards the end of September. We’ll keep you posted.
Once again, thanks to everyone who was there; profound curses to the rest of you.
Billy x
Friday 29 June 2007
Thursday 28 June 2007
Gillette Executives, Look Away Now!
Profits set to plummet as Beth Ditto announces:
Why should we shave? Men don't
Yes, that's right love. She really does talk some vapid shite. I might have more respect for her opinions on self-image if she didn't spend so much time using her body to sell records. Oh, and hanging out with Kate Moss quite so much:
If there's anybody who can make the girls ditch the razors, it's Kate [Moss]. "She's so fucking hot. I'd like to see her try and shave at Glasto.
I imagine she'd do it in the on-site shower facilities, but who knows? Cer-azzy!
It's great to see her expressing her admiration for such a creative powerhouse as Kate Moss though. You know, she did that really bad duet with Bobby Gillespie. And a worse one with Babyshambles. What a towering body of work.
Oh, and she's intellectual, as the old Popbitch story shows:
Kate Moss was doing a fashion shoot in a disused house in the East End of London. At one point, she asked where the toilet was. 'There's one downstairs,' she was told, 'but it doesn't have a door.'
'How the fuck am I supposed to get in there then?' Kate demanded.
Why should we shave? Men don't
Yes, that's right love. She really does talk some vapid shite. I might have more respect for her opinions on self-image if she didn't spend so much time using her body to sell records. Oh, and hanging out with Kate Moss quite so much:
If there's anybody who can make the girls ditch the razors, it's Kate [Moss]. "She's so fucking hot. I'd like to see her try and shave at Glasto.
I imagine she'd do it in the on-site shower facilities, but who knows? Cer-azzy!
It's great to see her expressing her admiration for such a creative powerhouse as Kate Moss though. You know, she did that really bad duet with Bobby Gillespie. And a worse one with Babyshambles. What a towering body of work.
Oh, and she's intellectual, as the old Popbitch story shows:
Kate Moss was doing a fashion shoot in a disused house in the East End of London. At one point, she asked where the toilet was. 'There's one downstairs,' she was told, 'but it doesn't have a door.'
'How the fuck am I supposed to get in there then?' Kate demanded.
Tuesday 26 June 2007
Billy Ruffian Denounced
"DontDateHimGirl.com, a controversial new website that lets women publicly out the men who cheat on them to avoid the heartache of dating the cad."
Billy Ruffian denounced as a lech and a scoundrel:
http://www.dontdatehimgirl.com/search/cheater.asp?ddh_id=60781&return_url=index%2Easp%3F
Billy Ruffian denounced as a lech and a scoundrel:
http://www.dontdatehimgirl.com/search/cheater.asp?ddh_id=60781&return_url=index%2Easp%3F
Monday 25 June 2007
On Dress Codes
Watching the BBC's coverage of Glastonbury, I was horrified to note that the drummer from the Arctic Monkeys was wearing tracksuit trousers on stage. Without rushing to knee-jerk over-reactions, the man should be shot.
Honestly, what sort of message does this send out? I hate slovenly musicians. The audience spend their time before a gig worrying about what to wear, getting excited, doing their hair, whilst you, Mr Musician, are safely ensconced in some luxurious backstage area, surrounded by whores and material trappings... and you have the temerity to wander onstage in tracksuit trousers?
I think it is no coincidence that Neil Hannon's worst work came when he decided to trade his suits in for jeans. 'Like trousers, like mind', as Joe Strummer said.
This may sound like the ravings of some deluded, style-over-content, post-romo fop, and frankly, it is. But I think it is fair to say that walking out in front of an audience looking like you've just been scavenging in bins, Badly Drawn Boy, is a direct insult to the people who have come to see you. 'You may have paid good money to be here,' says the bobble hat, 'but you're not worth the effort.'
To qualify, not even a fine pair of Oxford Bags could save Mr Doherty's exercable performance on Saturday - I choose to believe that the effect of said trousers was countermanded by the band's atrocious head-wear. Or maybe there is a scientific principle: not even the highest quality tailoring can survive a talent vacuum.
But this misses the point. If you are a musician who is considering going onstage in his sunday morning house-wear, pull yourself together man, and sort your wardrobe out! We don't go to work in boxer shorts and vests, so what makes you think you can get away with it?
Honestly, what sort of message does this send out? I hate slovenly musicians. The audience spend their time before a gig worrying about what to wear, getting excited, doing their hair, whilst you, Mr Musician, are safely ensconced in some luxurious backstage area, surrounded by whores and material trappings... and you have the temerity to wander onstage in tracksuit trousers?
I think it is no coincidence that Neil Hannon's worst work came when he decided to trade his suits in for jeans. 'Like trousers, like mind', as Joe Strummer said.
This may sound like the ravings of some deluded, style-over-content, post-romo fop, and frankly, it is. But I think it is fair to say that walking out in front of an audience looking like you've just been scavenging in bins, Badly Drawn Boy, is a direct insult to the people who have come to see you. 'You may have paid good money to be here,' says the bobble hat, 'but you're not worth the effort.'
To qualify, not even a fine pair of Oxford Bags could save Mr Doherty's exercable performance on Saturday - I choose to believe that the effect of said trousers was countermanded by the band's atrocious head-wear. Or maybe there is a scientific principle: not even the highest quality tailoring can survive a talent vacuum.
But this misses the point. If you are a musician who is considering going onstage in his sunday morning house-wear, pull yourself together man, and sort your wardrobe out! We don't go to work in boxer shorts and vests, so what makes you think you can get away with it?
Acoustic Ruffian Prevails
We played, we were a bit rubbish but I feel we are better men for the experience. I felt that the happening needed to be noted. I'm not really sure why. No doubt Thom and Ste can flesh out the bones a little but suffice to say, I don't think that Billy Ruffian Acoustic should happen again for a long time! If we didn't have Wednesday's triumphal home leg of the Filthy Little Angels Summer Tour to keep me going I might be a little down now.
Ballad of Billy Ruffian worked out alright - so much so that I think it's going to be in the set on Wednesday but we'll see how it sounds in rehearsal with the drums just to be on the safe side. So thank you to everyone that came and witnessed the experiment. Honest appraisal can be added in the comments.
Ballad of Billy Ruffian worked out alright - so much so that I think it's going to be in the set on Wednesday but we'll see how it sounds in rehearsal with the drums just to be on the safe side. So thank you to everyone that came and witnessed the experiment. Honest appraisal can be added in the comments.
Friday 22 June 2007
Thursday 21 June 2007
Filthy Nights in September
We've booked Fuel as the venue for the Filthy Little Angels showcase night in September - it'll be Sunday 23 September.
Fuel has the advantage of being the venue in Manchester that is closest to my bed. Rocking.
Fuel has the advantage of being the venue in Manchester that is closest to my bed. Rocking.
They make me blog against my wishes.
Why would Brown even want Campbell in his cabinet, anyway? The man's been made an effective laughing stock in the last year or so and, whilst he was a decent enough spokesman on Foreign Affairs, he could never be a feasible Foreign Secretary who would command any sort of respect. He's long past it, and the sooner his party realise that, the better.
It seems to me that Brown's idea of 'reaching out' to create a 'broad Cabinet' (sounds like a catalogue description) seems to have been created entirely to destabilise the LibDems by making the public associate them with the Lib/Lab pacts of the mid 90s and late 70s. They'll be haemorraging the non-IDS/Howard Tories and the non-Blair Labourites by the bucketload at this rate...
The Multimedia Adventure
We've added a Billy Ruffian Page to the NME website. This will not only help the NME to please their corporate overlords by increasing the level of user-generated content on their site, but also help us on our quest to return more google search results than That bloody David Cordingly book
For those of you who are interested in that sort of thing, bassist Ben-Paul-Ben-Paul-Ben has created what can only be described as a 'multi-faceted online node' to link all our disparate online incarnations together. RuffNet can be found at www.billyruffian.co.uk.
In other news, we're currently working on another FLA showcase night in Manchester, which will happen at the end of September. It just never stops.
For those of you who are interested in that sort of thing, bassist Ben-Paul-Ben-Paul-Ben has created what can only be described as a 'multi-faceted online node' to link all our disparate online incarnations together. RuffNet can be found at www.billyruffian.co.uk.
In other news, we're currently working on another FLA showcase night in Manchester, which will happen at the end of September. It just never stops.
Wednesday 20 June 2007
The Understated Approach to PR
This press release has recently come to my attention:
"Once in a lifetime do two mega stars come together. Rarely do such people put aside difference and ego and show the bravery and confidence needed to do something together. And when it happens the people stop, listen and watch. For a moment the world stops..."
Bravery, yes. It must take colossal courage, for R Kelly and Usher to sing a couple of songs together. I imagine there's a lot of soul-baring and anguished falsetto going on, as these two moral giants combine their talents to record a load of songs about how they're so sorry for cheating on their bitch with that skanky-ass stripper.
From the under-siege townspeople of Baqubah to the trades-union activists of Columbia, people from all over the world can follow the example of R Kelly and Usher, and the almost foolhardy bravery of their project.
I wonder if they read this?:
http://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Fearless-Love-Work-Life/dp/0316166812
"Once in a lifetime do two mega stars come together. Rarely do such people put aside difference and ego and show the bravery and confidence needed to do something together. And when it happens the people stop, listen and watch. For a moment the world stops..."
Bravery, yes. It must take colossal courage, for R Kelly and Usher to sing a couple of songs together. I imagine there's a lot of soul-baring and anguished falsetto going on, as these two moral giants combine their talents to record a load of songs about how they're so sorry for cheating on their bitch with that skanky-ass stripper.
From the under-siege townspeople of Baqubah to the trades-union activists of Columbia, people from all over the world can follow the example of R Kelly and Usher, and the almost foolhardy bravery of their project.
I wonder if they read this?:
http://www.amazon.com/Becoming-Fearless-Love-Work-Life/dp/0316166812
New Blog New Blog
Yesterday we were trying to write a short description in under 150 words of the Billy Ruffian for an NME band profile page thing - you know the sort, it's trendy for everyone to have one now. We tried to submit it but NME's website is so bad that it ate the page and we couldn't be arsed re-entering it all. This is what we went for:
I think it sums us up well. Check our Billy Ruffian Myspace for some example songs.
Do you like the Twang? Do you love New Young Pony Club? Then f*#k off. That's right, you heard me. What are you reading about music for? Just turn on Radio One and get spoon fed like everyone else. Billy Ruffian are the hard edged sound of the streets. The streets of Manchester. Streets where there are guns. And knives. Yeah that's right, knives motherf*#ker. The Nu Grime sound of the Ruffian will cut you right across your stomach and your intestines will flop out like rubbish sausages. How do you like that, c*#t? "Sharp-edged, occasionally satirical, often boisterous and sometimes sensitive, indie pop." Steve Lamacq. "A triumph, the best film since Citizen Kane" Paul Ross.
I think it sums us up well. Check our Billy Ruffian Myspace for some example songs.
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