House music

Regular readers may remember my first blogpost feature on Cherry Cherry (RIP). Whilst I was there I came across a beautiful papercut, and vowed to follow up it's creator.  As is natural in Norwich it didn't take much investigation... me: "kate, who did this?" kate: "that'll be Su Owen, would you like her number?".  And with that I thought I had a feature on a crafter on my books.  What I didn't expect was to get a returned call from Su saying that she'd jacked in her teaching job and set aside her papercuts to set up a new Home!  So a few months on and House cafe 52's doors are open, the license is in place, the menu is expanding and I thought it was time to let you in.

House is a home from home. All the furniture and crockery is sourced from boot sales and secondhand shops, ie: worn in and comfy.  The walls are lined with local art to be bought and books waiting to be read.  This is the kind of cafe where you feel comfortable to come alone, buy tea (there's lots and lots of tea, tea is Su's speciality) and just hang.  I went along with a couple of friends for a quick brew, bought toast and peanut butter for breakfast, settled on the sofa, and ended up buying a fish finger sandwich for lunch 3 hours later!

Kids are not only welcomed, but encouraged - Su is a mother of 3, god knows where she finds the time - and has catered not only with food but also activities.

And now her evening license has come through the fun has only just begun. Regular evenings are popping up such as Freestyle fingers, an arty evening for both relaxed and serious crafters, and - on the night I popped along - Tunesday Record Club.  A night for dusting down your old vinyl (anything, I repeat anything, goes...) and taking your turn on the decks...

Set just yards from the Art Centre on St Benedicts this is the perfect pre gig bar, it's cosy, lively and has some great tunes...

Oh, and in case you're interested, I couldn't go down without taking something to slot on the decks myself... so what did I take?  An old fav of mine... Je Suis Un Rock Star of course!

Don't knock it till you've tried it!! 

Dinner time - a venture into music...

A little fun here.  Thought I'd try my hand at some stop motion for a music video.  Sargasso Trio needed a quick and fun video for the release of their new single Dinner so we came up with the concept of a never ending dinner party.  Naively I thought we could knock this up in an hour, though the reality (and more importantly the constant rain) meant it took the best part of two days.  I now think Nick Park must be the most patient man in the world....

However, the end results are fun - and the song is bloody great!

Enjoy x

Sargasso Trio

Sargasso Trio, where do I start? Firstly, they are good friends of mine, so it may sound as though I'm biased, but honestly truly I'm not. Both my partner and I have worked in or around the music industry on and off for years and met more musicians and bands than I care to mention. But on all my travels, for these guys, I hold a torch.

I don't know whether it's their totally eclectic mix (couldn't even begin to categorise them), their versatility - they switch instruments and singers on nearly every track, their talent - and they are very very talented, both as songwriters and musicians, or the fact that, however good their recordings, they blow it out of the water on stage (which has always been a personal benchmark of mine).  Whatever it is, I can't praise Emily, Ben, Pete & James enough.  Being a big fan of the Ian Dury school of song writing, the line "she thinks he loves her for her mind, he thinks he loves her for her bum" is pure genius!

These few pictures, if truth be told, were taken some months ago whilst they were rehearsing for their second album. I've also shot them in the recording studio and in a wood, but the pictures don't really matter.

What matters is that album number two Get To Grips (following the fantastic Burnin' Burnin' Burnin') is finally out on July 4th.  And if you want a taster, the launch night at Norwich Art Centre is on July 2nd where you can pick up some pre release copies! 

Oh and if I haven't sold it to you yet...  Listen and turn it up!

Bo Nanafana

What. A. Night!!

This was a couple of first's for me. The first time I'd shot in a nightclub (such hard work, hats off to Rod Penn, the resident Bo Nanafana photographer!), and perhaps rather ashamedly, my first ever Bo Nanafana!  If you've lived in or around Norwich long enough you've probably been to at least one in your time. If not, then let me tell you you're missing out.

Regularly held at The Talk, the nights are themed with titles such as Ju Ju Jamboree to Carry on Swinging. But always with one thing in common, dressing up and having fun!

Tonight's theme was Tropicana with a very Cuban rhythm.  Held in the magnificent Spiegeltent as part of the Norwich & Norfolk Festival tickets sold out months in advance and the doors opened to a long queue of festival goers and Bo regulars all decked out in feathers, flowers and fedoras.

Love this guy! This is the second time I've encountered magician Bob Percy, and he never fails to impress. Seriously, if you're having a party, hire him... you're guests will thank you.

Nights always start with a quick dance lesson dependant on the nights theme. So no excuse not to get down later...

Outside in the Spiegel gardens guests lounged under the stars while DJ's played all night and the Relish boys served up the most incredible gourmet burgers (my venison burger may have saved my life from the late night tequila session...).

And the highlight of the evening? The one and only Cuban Brothers! I caught them once years ago playing in Shoreditch, but they just get better and better. I've never seen so many smiles in one room. Love love love these guys x

Somewhere in here is Helen Stoneley, one of the Bo Nanafana directors and the lady who invited me and my camera along for the evening. Thanks Helen, I had the best night x

Keep your eyes peeled for the next Bo, back at The Talk. You can bet I'll be there... x