WHITBY NOW, TASTE BEFORE YOU PURCHASE: PART3

Welcome to Saturday night at Whitby Now 2008. Once again all the bands that have MySpace sites are in the Popwatch links in the order they'll be appearing.

I've been battling a monumentally slow computer tonight. Also MySpace has gone all funny and I can't do any searches on it. I don't know if its just me or if its the same for everybody, so it's taken ages to do this seemingly trifling bit of guff.

These are the first five performers on the Saturday night. If you can be bothered to log on again in a couple of days time, the final five will be polished off in no uncertain terms.


1. THE WHITBY NOW BAND

Kicking off the second night of musical shenanigans is The Whitby Now band. As my research for this project involved not asking anyone about who was in this group, I've decided to have a guess, based on the fact that it will be made up of old seasoned Whitby Now stalwarts.
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I reckon Enid Butler in full Elvis Vegas period get-up on vocals. Carl Robbo on extra twangy Hank Marvinesque guitar and Baron Bottomley (who sang 'Don't put your daughter on the stage, Mrs Worthington' at the first Whitby Now, and is pictured above) on piano and backing vocals. As for the rhythm section, I think Heath of Sludge Ghaut on bass, standing on amps and gurning, with Whitby's only percussionist/newsagent Martin 'Thunderbird' Verrill on the kit.
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One can only dream.


2. TANIA RODWAY

This year there seemed to be more Goths than ever at the Halloween Goth Weekend, outnumbered only by middle aged gentlemen in anoraks sporting cameras with improbably long zoom lenses.
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Tania will be adding a bit of darkness to the evening's light entertainment. Don't let her seemingly gothic looking MySpace site fool you though. Metabillyrockapopgoth is the way she describes herself, and who am I to argue?
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Buy her a Blue WKD and welcome her to Whitby Now. She'll be the one in black, unless of course scientists invent a darker colour in the meantime.
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A cider and black is right out, by the way!


3. ALEX KIRBY

For some reason Alex doesn't seem to be on MySpace anymore. This photo, seemingly taken from a boat at sea through the window of the Spa during the last Whitby Now, is the only known image of the elusive singer-songwriter in existence.
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I remember seeing him at The Met recently, and despite other bands struggling with the notorious murky Met sound quality, his voice and guitar playing cut the air cleanly like a flensing knife through blubber. Recommended listening, well worth twenty minutes of quiet attention.
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We like our whaling references round here.


4. JON HORNE AND THE MADONNAS



Popwatch's favourite curly topped troubador regales us with more acutely observed and literate lyrics interwoven with chords wrung with fearless emotion from the strings of memory and loss.
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He might do a Blondie song as well.
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We're promised that Jon will be backed by The Madonnas too. I reckon they'll be made up of top Whitby musos, and I for one hope they'll go the whole hog and vogue like mad whilst wearing conical bras.
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Listen out for Brian London, Snow Song and American Whiskey. Top songs all. Worth going the whole wide world to see.


5. HIGH TIDE

Now truly finding their own voice after ditching a lot of The Beatles references, High Tide are cooking with gas (although frankly electricity might be cheaper in the current financial climate). I hope the minimal percussionist is going to be on.

They are pictured here at The Coliseum cinema watching a rare 3D version of the 2007 Whitby Now video. The best bit, where a drunken Lee Jones suddenly lurches towards the front of the stage, has just been on. Its almost like he's going to fall out of the screen!

They really remind me of King of Convenience. In fact the title of the Kings' first LP, 'Quiet Is The NewLoud', could be High Tide's manifesto.

For a taste of Kings Of Convenience, click here.