Bits and pieces

Saturday or Sunday morning I woke up and for about five minutes watched what seemed to be the television equivalent of a gentlemen’s club. T4 had televised parts of Friday night’s Carling 24 – a series of gigs across London. All fairly mainstream bands, unsurprisingly, and all of the musicians were male. Actually I have to clarify that. There may be the odd female drummer or bassist in one or two of the bands but the bands playing were overwhelmingly male.

The presenters were the delightful Steve Jones, Anthony Crank (I think) and Alex Zane. This programme and the gigs that it covered made me so angry I still can’t write about it. Women are consistently excluded from the musical community in so many different ways, and this was just another example. I’ll admit that on a global scale this is pretty unimportant, but on a personal level I am sick and tired of being silenced in this way. Anyway I kid you not, so angry I can’t even write about it.

So I’ll leave you with a couple of unrelated quotes from the very quotable “the accidental” by Ali Smith – another Orange Fiction shortlist novel.

“All the girls look the same this year, Anton said in his ear. He was pleased someone like Anton had singled him out to tell him something like that in his ear. Look, Anton said. They all look like they’re off porn sites. It was true. After you’ve looked at sites, all girls start to look like it.”

“The film is supposed to be about love. But its only message, as far as Magnus can make it out, is not to be too fat if you’re a girl or everyone will think you are laughable and no one will want to marry you”.

Very perceptive that Magnus character. Anyway if I get a chance a post about the novel will be up soon. It must be one of the most beautiful pieces of prose I have ever read so would definitely recommend it.