We did the art school degree show street party last friday. That was a laff. Everyone's pissed up and rammed into the street, swiging buckfast and fink brau in equal gulps. Almost from the start of the set people were getting on the stage and jumping into the crowd - it was near constant. So two bouncers dressed in the finest day-glo jackets stood at either side of the stage, looking glum & even resisting Joel's polite request that they dance. They couldn't stop him launching himself into the crowd either, floating around out there for a couple of minutes while we played the breakdown in Reator Party. He got back to the stage on time and we finished the set, falling out the back of the stage tent onto the road. I think we went back on for a shambolic rendition of the I Know Kung Fu Remix and left proceedings to Mother & the Addicts.



I went out and danced to them, parping a miniture klaxon inbetween the numbers. Then it ran out and I threw it at Mother's moustache. Take that slimeball! After all the po-going about I happened to be walking by the stage after the DJs had stopped and all the music and dancing had finished. In a flash of inspiration I remounted the drum kit and proceeded to play. The crowd reacted positively and began dancing again, the bouncer reacted negatively and started shouting spitty threats in my face, then grabbed a drum stick out of my hand. I picked up another off the floor and he got me in a half-nelson. Then the crowd rushed the stage, people took the sticks from out of my hands and started drumming for me. The bouncer, with his bacon mishape brain, didn't think to remove me from the drum stool, and there i remained in this ridiculous wrestling move with my arms in the air, while 20 odd people tried to play the drums on my behalf and other bouncers grabbed clumsily at their necks. I managed to wriggle out of the hold and got on the floor, banging the bass pedal with my hands.

Then getting up, I grabbed the snare and two sticks and retreated to the front of the stage, banging away some drunken samba rythyms as best I could. The bouncers came at me again, so I ran into the crowd. The stage was still full of people dancing, the bouncers frantically trying to get them off. I went to the other side and plonked the drum on a bin and continued playing. Various art school employees tried to get the drum or my sticks off me but failed, until i was attacked by about 4 of the swine, two on each arm. I struggled but it was no use, they had me. But then I had an idea & started pulling the bouncers with me into the crowd; they were surrounded on all sides and people just started attacking the bouncers with fists and bottles, including a little old man (thanks, by the way) who gripped both arms around one of the bouncers necks, kicking him in the back with his little feet. Soon they succumbed to these assaults and I was let go, skirting off into the crowd to be informed by a friend that the police had just arrived.

[BTW If anyone's got any photos of the show or the hoo-ha afterwards can you send us em? ta.]