6/7/2007 Friday night in Essex, and then back in Barnet...

Subject	Friday night in Essex, and back in Barnet...
PostedDate	7/5/2007 9:51:00 PM
	The plan was to drive out to Harlow to see TAT. Last time I drove out to The Square it all went wrong and I missed the band. This time I got there in record time after finding the roads surprisingly empty and having a rather exciting drive. I arrived at the exact time I expected the band to take to the stage, but as I approached the venue I could see something was wrong - the doors were shut - there was no one outside... I walked up to the door. It was locked and there was no one inside - a notice on the door said the show had been cancelled due to 'Unforseen circumstances'. There was no further information.  I started to wonder if there was some sort of jinx on my visits to the place - this was the third time I'd driven all the way out there and not got to see the show (Queen Adreena pulled a show there at the last minute due to illness). Next to the car park I found what looked like some sort of shrine by a tree - the sort of thing with flowers and cards that you see at the scene of fatal accidents or murders.  I had to assume this was connected with the venue being closed - there wasn't a soul around to ask. A T-shirt pinned to the tree had STAFF printed on it. My evening plans might have gone wrong, but at least I was still alive - it looked like some other poor sod wasn't. I got back in the car and drove back to Barnet - a little subdued. I was home around 35 minutes later, but it seemed a waste to stay at home after spending time getting ready to go out earlier. I remembered taking a picture of a 'What's on' blackboard outside a local pub last week - to asist my feeble memory. I found it on my computer - apparently 'The Natalies' were on at the Bell & Buck. I'd never heard of them but decided it might be worth wandering down there to check them out. I had no idea what to expect as I walked into the pub, but what I certainly wasn't expecting was to find that 'The Natalies' were in fact a bunch of middle aged men playing middle of the road songs from the 80's!  They were pretty dull - about the same level of charisma as Steve 'Interesting' Davis. I was going to say they were pedestrian, but they weren't quite as exciting as that. The place was nearly empty, and the only people actually watching the band were four half interested women sitting at a table who were obviously the band's WAGs. It may have been free to get in, but I still felt like asking for my money back. Even the pub's late licence and almost good beer wasn't going to tempt me to stay - after one quick pint I'd had enough and headed back home. Oh well, I'd been out to see good bands the previous two nights - two out of three wasn't bad. And at least I was still alive.