My penultimate gig before the lockdown was in Shoreditch, a London away day gig to see Dry Cleaning, who I loved when they supported Bodega at NAC last year. They were supported at The Village Underground by Pozi, and a spin-off band of Bodega, the impressive The Wants.

The Wants

Dry Cleaning go from strength to strength and felt on the cusp of something and clearly have a strong, adoring following. This venue is a lovely arched underground space which is not over-filled despite this being a capacity sellout crowd of 500, I enjoyed the gig, the space and the vibe.

Dry Cleaning

The Coronavirus hysteria was just building up ahead of this gig and I was curious (and a tad apprehensive) to see what London would be like. I didn’t see any masks and the tube trains were certainly as busy as usual, as was Camden where I spend a few hours beforehand. The main difference noticeable at the venue was more of a queue in and out of the toilets as everyone observed the 20 second hand wash advice!  A couple of weeks later and gigs were being cancelled left right and centre and soon followed the inevitable lockdown and no gigs and no pubs open which continues still. It all seems such an age ago now and I don’t expect to see another gig for a very long time.  My only link now to this gig was somehow damaging my ankle whilst walking around during the day, a pain which still serves as a reminder of my last main gig.

(c) shashamane 2020

@RShashamane

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Norwich: Music City, UK

Norwich: Music City, UK. A Norwich playlist of well over 48 hours of local music on Spotify: