The first night Sick! Liverpool Night:
Saturday 4th September 2009
@ The Magnet, Liverpool
Lineup: Strawhouses,
Fake Union,
Phil from Coma,
Rachael Dunn
I was keen to do another night in Liverpool, but I didn't want to rush into anything after the disaster of the first two.
Myself and Andy Von Pip discussed lots of ideas for a night but nothing really gelled sufficiently enough to get over the previous two nights.
Strawhouses
Eventually I was taking to Mark of The Thought Criminals and he expressed an interest in playing in Liverpool. I was quite keen to do a night with them, and so I sounded out The Magnet about booking a night.
They offered me Friday 4th September, ideal being a Friday, not so good as the students weren't back by then, but it was the best offer on the table so I decided to go for it.
Fake Union
I didn't want to do another "Peeled" night as Peel listeners are knocking on a bit and outside London people in their 40s don't seem to go out as regularly.
Back when I was organising the Liverpool peeled nights The Shabangs and Newspaper Lovers (later renamed Fake Union) were discussing it on Myspace and kept saying it was "Sick" and I thought that might be a good name for a night, and so I decided to use it.
Phil from Coma
Unfortunately The Thought Criminals dropped out, but I'd been recommended a band called Strawhouses who were really good, I was keen to get Fake Union back (who performed at the previous night as The Newspaper Lovers) and I knew Rachael Dunn through poetry groups.
In with the booking fee was poster and flyer printing and distribution, and someone to do the door. However, on the night we could only spot one poster in the area (in the takeaway next door) and they'd forgot about the door person, and had to organise someone in a hurry, meanwhile about 20 people got in without paying.
Rachael Dunn
The band that impressed me most on the night was Fake Union. They'd asked me and Andy before to manage them and I didn't feel I had the time or contacts, but with the benefit of alcohol we approached them and signed them up!
Alas, we really didn't have the time and never got around to doing anything management wise, which is a shame as I really feel they could go places.
Again musically it was a great night, but the turnout was low with around 40 paying customers, and economically it was a disaster, still I was back in the saddle and Fake Union's performance inspired me to carry on.