Spin those balls – Rock Lottery is BACK. It’s a simple deal: get a load of bands, put the members’ names in a hat, and let the random hand form new bands. Rehearsal time is eight hours. Then they play a set, giddy with nerves and booze and get the punters to vote for a winner. Ridiculous amounts of fun in other words, with the added bonus of the door money going to charity. Cardiff’s first Rock Lottery was held in Dempsey’s in December to a crowd of people lucky enough not to be at ATP, with winners The Party Boys returning for a set at #2. It will be great. For further info we spoke to organiser Daryl Woollard:
How did the idea for Rock Lottery come about?
We were in the pub with a friend who had just returned from Canada. He was telling us about a crazy night he stumbled across, called Rock Lottery. He was a bit sketchy with the details but we thought the concept was tremendous and we joked about getting our friends together to do something similar.
A few more pints in and we thought that with the large community of musicians in South Wales it was a perfect place to start such an event.
After a few more pints in we were dreaming of hosting the event at Wembley with Rod Stewart on stage with M.I.A, Nigel Kennedy and half of Pantera.
For the first event, which bands were involved and how did you pick them?
We took the safe bet and asked a few bands we knew personally and a few we thought would be interested by the concept. Not everyone responded but those who did (Threatmantics, Victorian English Gentleman’s Club, Truckers Of Husk, Man Without Country, Denuo, Hunters, Kutosis, Death Of Her Money, Hail! The Planes and Evils) were buzzing with excitement and although no one was sure what to expect on the day we were delighted people were prepared to give it a whirl.
What are your memories of the night? Which combinations of bands stood out for you and did you have a favourite act?
I can’t single out one band in particular (although I did vote for Black Coffee on the night). I was staggered by the quality of each band and how much work had been put into one day to create a 20 minute set from scratch. You would’ve thought the bands had been together for a lot longer than 8 hours.
Our biggest regret was that we didn’t record any of the sets and it’s sad to think that those songs will never be heard again. Each band received plenty of votes which proved that there really was something for everyone to enjoy.
What’s been the feedback from the bands? Did they enjoy the experience?
Everyone who took part in the first Rock Lottery wanted to be involved the second. And I’m sure many of them will be voting for their new favourite act on Sunday 18th.
Any hints on who’ll be involved this time? Could you give a little info on The Party Boys?
Hints – Well we’ve got rock, folk, electronica, metal and hip hop all represented. Oh and a friend of Kanye West.
The Party Boys were a 3 piece made up from Truckers of Husk, Man Without Country and Threatmantics. They won the very first Rock Lottery with a certain rhythmic, comedic charm. We thought it would be perfect to bring them back together one more time and to pass over the RL trophy. Also they are guaranteed to get the room shaking.
Any more events in the future?
We’ll see how Rock Lottery #2 goes first. Ideally we would like to the event to grow. (Maybe Rod Stewart on stage with M.I.A, Nigel Kennedy and half of Pantera.)
Rock Lottery#2
Cardiff Arts Institute
Saturday 18th April
8pm, £5
Join us for another unique occasion in which a new selection of Cardiff’s most loved musicians will come together for a one off evening of musical splendour unlike anything you’ve ever encountered, all in the name of charity. The concept of the Rock Lottery is simple. At the start of the day we take the best local musical talent on offer, throwing each individuals name into a hat. A draw will be made at random, pulling out drummers, guitarists, singers and whatever-the-hell-else is in there to form a bunch of completely new bands. We then lock each of these new bands in their own rehearsal room, where the brief is simple. Write a set of completely new, original music.
On the Sunday evening we take control of the Cardiff Arts Institute, where these uber-side-projects will take turns playing out the fruits of the days labour. Friendships will blossom, boundaries will be broken, whole new genres will be born. Musical differences will explode, and there will undoubtedly be disagreements, probably even tears. But by the end of it we will have experienced something completely unlike what’s gone before, and along the way we’ll have raised some money for a very worthy cause.
The chosen charity this time is the Downs Heart Group. DHG is a charity offering support and information relating to heart conditions associated with Down’s Syndrome.You can get more info from here – http://www.dhg.org.uk/ If guaranteeing a unique, colourful, bizarre and uncompromising line up wasn’t enough, we’ll also be playing host to a handful of special guests who’ll turn up to spin their favourite tunes. As well as trying to squeeze in some Rock Bingo (trust me) AND AND AND …..we’ve persuaded last years winners The Party Boys to reform for one night only! You would, quite simply be a fool to miss out. Tell your friends, tell all your friends. See you on the 18th April.
UPDATE
This Sunday 18th April sees the return of the Rock Lottery. It’s like a swingers party, but with car keys replaced with keyboards, baby oil replaced with hair wax and fat chicks replaced with phat riffs.
For those of you who’ve been living in a cave for the last couple of months, this is how we do it:
We take all of our musicians and bung their names in a pot. We draw them out at random, and form 4 new bands. Those bands have 6 hours to write a setlist, which they have to play to you lovely people that very evening. No one has the faintest idea of who’s going with who, or what sort of music will be written. One thing’s for certain though… This will be the ONLY CHANCE you will ever get to see and hear these wonderous incarnations.
This time, stepping up to the plate for your aural and visual pleasure, we have members from;
Among Brothers
Brandyman
The Bryden String Quartet
Drone
Exit International
Hyener???
People In Planes
Strange News From Another Star
Truckers Of Husk
Whytel
Y Pencadlys
If that wasn’t enough, the night will see the final outing from The Party Boys, winners of the inaugral Rock Lottery trophy. Who return for a final lap of honour and to pass the trophy on to whichever band is lucky enough to win over your hearts.
It’s worth noting, that on top of everything else these musicians are putting themselves through on Sunday, they’re also getting going at 9am. That’s 9AM! A pretty mean feat for any musician… Let alone on a Sunday. So spare a thought for these poor souls, if they can do all of this, then we’re pretty sure that the least you can do is come along and support them. It is, after all, all for charity.
Taking control of the decks inbetween the bands are Balloon’s Matt Jarrett and Matt Scott, who are kindly playing through following their All Time Top 100 set in CAI that very afternoon. Amongst their selections they’ll be dropping in rock classics to help you play our first ever game of Rock Bingo… It’s simple. Pick up a card, listen out for the hits and mark them off. There will be prizes for your efforts.
So that’s about that. Remember… Sunday 18th April. Cardiff Arts Institute. 8pm. £5. All proceeds to the Downs Heart Group (http://www.dhg.org.uk). The lovely Penny Green at DHG has sent us some words of encouragement and thanks. You can read them below… I’m sure you’ll agree it’s a very worthy cause.
Oh, and did we mention that it’s going to be A-FUGGING-MAZING?! No?! Well it is. So don’t miss out.
See you on Sunday.
Lots of Love,
Daryl ‘Bob’ Geldof & Ben ‘Midge’ Ure
From Penny Green, Director @ DHG:
“Every day in the UK, two babies are born with Down’s Syndrome and one of them will also have congenital heart problems which may well require major surgery within the first six months of life. This is a difficult and worrying time for families, but for the past 20 years, Down’s Heart Group has been using the experience of fellow parents to provide information and support to help remove the feelings of isolation they experience.
Although a national charity, we are only small and rely heavily on donations to continue our work, so we are very grateful to everyone involved in Rock Lottery for giving up their time and experience in supporting us. We hope that you all have a great time and enjoy yourselves, especially knowing that at the same time you are helping to support a better life for people with Down’s Syndrome and heart issues, not only here in the UK but across the World. THANK YOU”
http://www.cardiffartsinstitute.org / http://www.myspace.com/rocklotterycardiff / http://twitter.com/RockLottery / ‘Rock Lottery’ on Facebook
