BUGGING OUT & PARTY POM POM
BUG MUSINGS
Nice to be home after a busy week with a couple of bill paying jobs as well as three BUG shows and Song Wars composition. I don’t usually have so much going on in a single week and a couple of times I felt things got a bit cock shaped. I’ve had a few somewhat disgruntled messages from people who were at one or other of the two BUG shows we did at the BFI on Thursday 19th May. We were doing some more filming of You Tube comment recitals but I went a bit overboard and decided to film three in each show, breaking up the flow rather and subjecting the audience to my shit ups and retakes for the camera. I had hoped that the filming wouldn’t detract from the audience’s enjoyment of the show, but for some people it ended up being more disruptive than I had anticipated. Apologies to anyone who felt short-changed. We won’t do it again!
Despite filming gripes, I thought it was one of the best selections of videos we’ve had at BUG in a while, thanks as ever to curator David Knight with help from Phil Tidy. Many of the videos we’ve featured in previous shows are archived in playlists on the BUG You Tube channel though this month’s show may not be up there yet. Here’s a couple of my faves from BUG 25.
Last week was also the first time I have ever visited Manchester (!) for a BUG show at the Zion Arts Centre in Hulme organized by Mike, one of the two people who came to see my one hour live show in New York last October. I thought the Manchester show went pretty well and I hung out for a while afterwards with some of the people who came along. I felt like an art student again! Thanks to everyone who was there and especially to Helen Davies who presented me with knitted versions of myself and Joe for which I am profoundly grateful. I see Helen has blogged about our meeting too, here. She might like to know her beautiful creations are sat in the celebrity enclosure of the shelf in my studio. I have every intention of returning to Manchester for more BUG shows later in the year when maybe I’ll get to see more of the city than I did this time. As far as other BUG shows outside London go, I’m also hoping we might pop up at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year with a ‘best of’ show. I’ll let you know when I hear anything definite.
AUDIENCE QUESTIONS
A few of my recent live shows have included a couple of questions posed by the audience from my Technical Meltdown show a few months back at the BFI. I’d like to try and make this a semi regular feature so if you ever have any questions for me that you wouldn’t mind me reading out and having answered at a live show, please post them in the comments section below, including your name etc. I’m meeting Moby for a BUG special next Wednesday 1st June, so if you have any questions you’d like me to relay to the baldy dance & sample genius then you can add those too.
SONG WARS
Don’t forget to vote for Song Wars this week. You can Garth’s magnificent Twister song on the BBC blog here as well as my own Party Pom Pom song (though the word ‘song’ is really stretching it), which if you wish you can right click on and download for keepsies below. Email VOTE ADAM or VOTE GARTH to this address: adamandjoe.6music@bbc.co.uk
In case you’re interested, here’s a charmingly animated video of the conversation a few years back on the 6 Music show (when there was more of a ‘zoo’ type atmosphere in the studio!) that inspired the song/noise in the first place. Cheery bye ho pom pom!
Love Adam
Hey Adam. What kind of questions were you after (I couldn’t get tickets for the Meltdown show unfortunately)? Other than: “Can you please come and do a Bug in Southampton as it’s quite far to get to London, Manchester and Norwich…” I can’t think of any…
Comment by Patrick — May 23, 2011 @ 8:36 pm
I can’t speak for the ‘flow’ of the shows last week but I was at the directors cut with Peter Serafinowicz the week before and I’ll be a darned sock if it wasn’t the best one I’ve been to(I’ve been to about 10, my girlfriend and I find it the perfect wind down after working week). So keep doing your thang and I’ll see you with Moby next week.
Toodles.
Comment by Jonathan Reed — May 23, 2011 @ 10:23 pm
It is quite surprising that you’d never been to Manchester before!
Questions for Adam: Does your facial hair have a nickname and if so what’s its provenance?
What does your grooming routine consist of?
Do you think the this cider trend/fad is going to end soon.
Have you seen Joe in the nude? Has he seen you in the nude?
Last 3 American Presidents – snog, marry, avoid.
Comment by Safwan Patel — May 24, 2011 @ 1:11 am
Hi Adam! I hope people haven’t been giving you too hard a time, but I’m also sort of relieved you’ve been made aware that (at least some members of) the audience were a bit disgruntled after the BUG on 19/5. My pal and I, who’ve been to almost every BUG for a few years now, did indeed feel a little short-changed afterwards—as though we’d paid for the privilege of providing the laugh track for a show intended for another, more important audience. The mistakes and re-takes weren’t really the problem — it was more that we felt under-valued, like when you’re chatting with someone at a party who keeps looking over your shoulder for other, more interesting, people to talk to.
We felt bad about feeling a teeny bit resentful, though, because we do love you so and want you to TAKE BUG TO THE NEXT LEVEL (whatever that may be). We hope you’re able to do that. For what it’s worth: my pal and I remarked afterwards that the performance style you use for the camera is, though still adorable, very different from the wonderfully candid and authentic delivery you use for the BFI audience proper. I’m sure you, being a Famous Media Person, know exponentially better than me about what works best on camera, but we couldn’t help but wish there was a way to more effectively translate that raw, vital performance energy for the YouTube audience. Because they would totally fucking love it.
Anyway, I am a massive tosser and will now stop trying to have opinions about things I don’t understand. Bye!
Comment by hsg — May 24, 2011 @ 2:13 am
Hey, thank you for posting this cool picture! They look great on your celebrity shelves with Shrek and the toothpicks. It was lovely to meet you, hope you come back to Manchester soon. Thanks again, Helen x
Comment by Helen Davies — May 24, 2011 @ 9:33 am
Aww, this post is great – Ross & I really enjoyed the Manchester show & will definately be there if you come back again! Great to meet you and thanks for letting us have a piccy with you!! Ross was chuffed that you like his Song Wars animation! Did you think the Zion Centre was like being in Byker Grove?? we did! G.xx
Comment by Gill Biddle — May 25, 2011 @ 11:06 pm
Adam, don’t be so ludicrous. I was at BUG 25 and in no way did I feel the flow was disrupted nor did I feel short-changed by your pieces to camera. I enjoyed every cockamamie minute of your wafflings. And I would say to those who are so senstive that their enjoyment is so easily dented ‘WELL MAYBE YOU SHOULDN’T BE SITTING HEEEEEEEERE’.
Bye! xx
Comment by Jane — May 27, 2011 @ 12:51 pm
I love Pom Pom Party! I have just listened to it 5 times in a row. It really puts me in a good mood. Maybe if you released it, it would get to number 1! Or you could just play it to people who are depressed and it would make them better! It will be interesting to see how you can top this one..
Comment by Amy — May 28, 2011 @ 5:22 pm
My my! A new website! With comments, no less!
Comment by Iain — May 28, 2011 @ 11:51 pm
Hi Adam, Just wanted to know if there was audio from the BUG Unkle thing you did with James Lavelle? Gutted I missed it. Ta very much. x
Comment by Callum O'Grady — May 31, 2011 @ 5:10 pm
Dear Dr Buckles,
What exactly are you a Doctor of? My friend Bobby thinks it may be chiropody.
Caro
Comment by Caroline — May 31, 2011 @ 5:12 pm
Party Pom Pom and the story behind the phrase has kept my sister and I amused for far longer than it should do, considering our age. We spent an entire weekend in the English Riviera competing to see who could shout ‘Get ready to do a poo!’ the loudest in public. Even our own mother failed to keep a straight face and said with some resignation “poo has never failed to amuse you two”. Clearly, it isn’t just us that have succumbed to the poop hilarity, which is strangely reassuring and has subsequently helped to restore my faith in mankind! Keep up the good work and puerile humour Sir – our sanity depends on it! All the best. xx
Comment by Amelia — June 4, 2011 @ 8:59 pm
ATTENTION: Dave Gorman totally nicked your thing about accent-mangler Tracy Goodwin, on the new Matt Lucas pilot show thing on the BBC Comedy website.
Thank you.
salutes
Comment by Nadia Squealer — June 17, 2011 @ 2:54 pm
Is it just me or is the 80′s song on this week’s Radio 4 ‘Now Show’ a bit of a rip of the Dr Buckles classic “80′s song”…?
Comment by Jonathan — June 20, 2011 @ 2:51 pm