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barmcakemag · 2 years

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Barmcake sampler

Interviews from Barmcakes 1-12. To get hold of issues 2-12, please make a donation here - £2 per issue, UK delivery only.

This edition, which came out in December 2020, is a celebration of northern independent musicians, authors, artists, publishers, photographers, poets and pubs who make the world a better place at a difficult time.

The value of the arts has been talked about a lot this year as the government weighed up how much to give or loan people who work in the sector. While money is vital, the value of the arts shouldn't be measured only in financial terms.

Sometimes you can read a book, hear a poem or listen to a song and they live with you forever because they are so extraordinary, fresh and exciting. That's how I felt when I saw Roy, Toria Garbutt and Nick Ellis at a gig in Leeds last year, for example.

And as David Gedge says in the interview on Page 6: "The number of people who’ve said to me: ‘Oh David, The Wedding Present have got me through some really hard times’. Music is more than just putting the radio on while you’re making a brew, it’s bigger than that for a lot of people, not just music, all the arts."

Part of what gives northern towns and cities their identities are their artists/artistes and their pubs and shops. The world would be a poorer place if we ended up with just Tesco, Gary Barlow, Wetherspoons and their like after all this.

Front page, left to right: Top row: John Cooper Clarke (photo from I Wanna Be Yours), The Real Diana Dors by Anna Cale, David Gedge (photo: Peter Koudstaal) Second row: Cornershop's Tjinder Singh (photo: Marie Remy), Toria Garbutt (photo: Emma Aylett), Roy Third row: Dean Wilson, O'Hooley & Tidow (photo: Phil Carter), Gail Myerscough Fourth row: The Mermaid's Pool by David Nolan, To The Dark by Chris Nickson, The Wicket Men by Tony Hannan Fifth row: Olivia Hemingway's Small Worlds exhibition, McCookerybook & Rotifer, Corto bar

Thanks to the interviewees and the people who let me use their poems, photographs and designs. Thanks to the advertisers and proofreader Prue.

I wrote everything and took the back page pics. I also found the ads, designed the magazine, edited it, and delivered the copies. Dave Griffiths Donations/back issues/stockists: barmcakemag.tumblr.com Printed by: Minuteman Press PS: There is swearing on p20 (in a great poem).

An interview with Roy:

Issue 11 came out in December 2019. It features interviews with Diane Morgan, Kathryn Williams, Babybird, The Distractions and BOB and features on authors, musicians and artists.

Barmcake 10 came out in May 2019. It features interviews with the director of Being Frank, Tjinder Singh from Cornershop, Adelle Stripe, A Certain Ratio, Bernard Wrigley, and the MD of Talking Pictures TV.There is also an extract from a new book by Ian Clayton, as well as features on Nick Cave, Stephen Morris, Gentleman Jack, Mekons, Helen Mort, AA Dhand, James Bentley, Fur Clemt, plus the only listings for northern and middle-aged people. You are welcome to quote from the sample interview (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

Barmcake 9 came out in October 2018. It features exclusive interviews with The Lovely Eggs, Graham Fellows, Jane Weaver, Nightingales, Ruts DC, Northern Broadsides, Olivia Hemingway, Rob Chapman. Plus exclusive features on Mark Hodkinson, Hylda Baker and Rebellion and mini features on David Nolan, Salford Beer Festival and Louder Than Words. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta

Barmcake 8 came out in April 2018. It features exclusive interviews with Joanne Harris, The Monochrome Set, Helen McCookerybook, Bryony Lavery, Rosie Wilby and The Wedding Present documentary-maker. Features on Mark E Smith and The Puzzle Hall Inn. Mini-features on Viv Albertine, John Cooper Clarke, Dave Haslam, Chris Nickson, Marble Brewery, and the Saul Hay Gallery. Also featuring The Charlatans, The Slits, Sheffield heritage pubs, Kevin Boniface and Nicola Mostyn. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta

Barmcake 7 was released in June 2017. It features exclusive interviews with Count Arthur Strong creator Steve Delaney, George Costigan, John Keenan, the director of the Square Chapel, Halifax, blogger Beers Manchester, Root and Branch Productions theatre company. It also features Kathryn Williams, Frank Sidebottom, Stuart Maconie, Manchester International Festival, The Fall karaoke, David M Barnett, Heath Common, Tony Hannan, Sarah Tierney, Saul Hay Gallery, Bear Tree Records, The Real Story, and Dancing in the Dark. To see the full print version, please send a donation and I’ll post one. Click here for Paypal link You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

Barmcake 6 was released in October 2016. It features exclusive interviews with Miranda Sawyer, Buzzcocks, The Undertones, Barrie Rutter, Mark Thomas, The Skids, and Jennifer Reid. There are features on Alan Bennett, Pete Wylie, Teenage Fanclub, Jenn Ashworth, The Julie Ruin, charity shop vinyl, 8bitnorthxstitch, literature festivals, Haarlem Artspace, NS Calcutt, and poetry by Saxon Pepperdine. To see the full print version, please send a donation and I’ll post one. Click here for Paypal link. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

Released in April 2016. Exclusive interviews with Ken Dodd, John Cooper Clarke, Martin Parr, The Bluetones, Jeffrey Lewis, Helen Clapcott, James Bentley. Features on Statement Artworks, David Bowie, Fuzzbox, Bella Hardy, The Stairs, Dale Hibbert, blogger Drakeygirl. To see the full print version, please send a donation and I’ll post one. Click here for Paypal link. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

Released in October 2015. Exclusive interviews with Kathryn Williams, Ian McMillan, Elkie Brooks, Dave Haslam, Emma Jane Unsworth, Mik Artistik, The Zombies. Features on Cross stitching the stars, Beer Mat Movies, Vinyl Tap record shop, Temptation club night for the over-40s, David Barnett’s new novel Dave Hadfield’s new book, poet Jo Bell, O’Hooley and Tidow, Pub stargazing, Skipton Sound Bar record shop/bar, Asian Dub Foundation. To see the full print version, please send a donation and I’ll post one. Click here for Paypal link. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

Published in April 2015. Exclusive interviews with John Shuttleworth, John Bramwell, O’Hooley&Tidow, Glossop Record Club, The Record Cafe, Paul Salveson. Features on Belle & Sebastian, Game of Thrones, Dean Clough Lego Model, Frank Sidebottom, The People’s History Museum election exhibition, Carol Morley, Poetry by Dan Greenwood, Memories of the Royal Park pub, Leeds, by Vince Mihill. To see the full print version, please send a donation and I’ll post one. Click here for Paypal link. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

Published in October 2014. Exclusive interviews with Viv Albertine, Pete Wylie, Age of Chance, Steve Huison, Edwyn Collins film-makers, Nat Johnson, Leigh Linley. Features on Michael Palin, Yorkshire’s best ale towns, the Good Beer Guide, Literature Festivals. Click here for Paypal link. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

Published in June 2014. Exclusive interviews with the Wedding Present, Cud, Revolutions Brewery, Frank Sidebottom film-maker. Features on Maxine Peake, Alan Bennett, Half Man Half Biscuit, Billy Bragg, Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott, Rebellion Festival, Northern Broadsides, Tony Ray-Jones, Ross McGinnes, Camra’s best pubs. Click here for Paypal link. You are welcome to quote from the sample article (up to three pars) but please don’t use anymore without paying me. Ta.

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barmcakemag · 3 years

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Welcome to Barmcake

Fed up with style-over-substance magazines that only cater for the under-40s? You’ve come to the right place.

I started Barmcake because I felt there was nothing out for people of a certain age who like particular music, comedy, pubs, plays, art and books. The internet has opened up new ways of contacting performers and venues, yet many websites and magazines ignore readers who are over 40.

Each Barmcake takes about three months to make – partly because of my other work and partly because I want to write the best articles and interviews out there. I’m tired of reading beautiful-looking magazines with glorified ad features or flabby interviews.

I want to focus on the words rather than the design, which is why Barmcake is deliberately ‘lo-fi’ and retro (the bold headline font is the nearest I could find to match the credits of 70s sitcoms).

I write all – or all but one or two – of the articles in each edition. I also design the magazine, edit it, find the advertising, sort the fundraising, promote it, and deliver it. I am a sub editor and have been a journalist since 1989.

Unlike some magazines, I don’t want the content to feature press releases or agency copy you can read elsewhere. Too many big circulation magazines are ignored because the articles are not worth reading.

Putting editorial first has paid off as revenue from adverts has gone up tenfold since issue two and I have covered the costs of the last three issues (besides adverts, I also raise money through Paypal donations).

The idea for Barmcake had been bubbling away for a couple of years while I was working as a sub editor for the Manchester Evening News series of newspapers. I noticed there was an appetite for free magazines and newspapers, yet most of the titles were aimed at an under 40s audience and most ignored artistes over 40 (hence the strapline northern entertainment for the middle-aged).

I didn’t want to create a website as it lacks the personal touch of a newspaper or magazine. Each edition of Barmcake is yours to hold, to savour, to read how you want, not something borrowed on a screen.

The first edition of Barmcake came out in April 2014 and the last one was in December 2020.

There are pleasures and pitfalls to making a magazine on your own - the joys of interviewing interesting people and the terrors of a technical meltdown (I had to redo issue 8 from scratch after my computer packed in). I also underestimated the amount of time it took to make a magazine on my own.

If you would like to get hold of back issues 2-12, please send a donation. (Click on the Paypal link). Barmcake is paid for by me, apart from the adverts and donations.

(Suggested minimum amount of £2 for issues 6-10, £2.50 for rarer issues 2-5).

Thanks for the kind comments and donations.

“I am immensely proud to be on the cover of this mag.” (Miranda Sawyer)

“A thing of northern indie music/arts aceness. Aimed at old folk like me but cool kids will love it too.”

“Midlife without the crisis.”

“It is a refreshing change to read good, well-researched interviews.”

“I think that Barmcake is excellent, it made me really homesick! Some great interview work too.”

“Barmcake is an excellent magazine that circulates in the nether regions of Lancashire and Yorkshire. It isn’t boringly nostalgic; in fact it has a radical edge to it.”

Donations welcome via here.

Dave Griffiths

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barmcakemag · 3 years

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PLEASE SUPPORT THESE SMASHING VENUES

Fancy a northern outing? Here is a list of the lovely independent shops, pubs, and cafes, plus gig venue, cinema and art gallery that have stocked Barmcake - from Wigan to Hull, from Skipton to Sheffield, and in and around Leeds and Manchester.

Please note - you are unlikely to find any Barmcakes in the venues as I am not making them anymore.

If you can’t find a copy (or have enjoyed the magazine), please make a donation via the Paypal link. Click here for donations.

Bradford Record Cafe / Sparrow

Bury Trackside

Clitheroe Corto

Chorlton Chorlton Bookshop

Didsbury The Art of Tea

Eccles The Northern Type

Glossop George Street Community Bookshop

Halifax Grayston Unity / Lantern / Three Pigeons

Heaton Chapel Heaton Hops

Hebden Bridge Fox & Goose / Trades Club

Huddersfield Coffee Evolution / Grove / Kings / Rat & Ratchet / Sportsman / Vinyl Tap

Hull Wrecking Ball Press

Ilkley Flying Duck

Leeds Colours May Vary / Grove / Jumbo Records / Reliance

Manchester Bar Fringe / Marble / Piccadilly Records / Saul Hay Gallery / Smithfield

New Mills Beer Shed / High Street Books

Otley North Bar

Salford Kings

Sheffield Bath Hotel / Red Deer / Shakespeare / Showroom Cinema

Skipton Sound Bar

Sowerby Bridge Jubilee

Stockport The Hope / Ye Olde Vic

Todmorden Border Bookshop / Lyalls Bookshop

Urmston Prairie Schooner

Wakefield Harry’s Bar

Westhoughton Beer School

Wigan Central / Sherringtons

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barmcakemag · 3 years

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Halifax Festival of Words talk

This is the talk I gave at the Halifax Festival of Words. It took place in the front room of the Grayston Unity bar (pictured below) last month, just before publication of Barmcake 9. Some of the posters from the talk are also pictured below. Thanks to the festival and bar for having me.

I love this front room.

It sort of reminds me of being a kid, at my grandparents, on Boxing Day.

Some of the family used to get up and do a turn – a song, a sketch, a tune.

Among the aunties and uncles was my Great Aunty Mary, who was great in all respects. She was very funny, wrote poetry – and was the spitting image of Hylda Baker, (poster below), who I’ll be coming to later.

I didn’t have an uncle like Lou Reed – fortunately.

That would have made Christmas a bit tense.

‘Uncle Lou, you’ve spilt heroin on your roast potatoes again.’

Anyway, I’ll be coming on to the Velvet Underground later as well.

So, I’m Dave Griffiths and I make Barmcake.

The magazine started in April 2014 and the new edition – issue 9 – is out next week.

There are usually two editions a year. I only brought one out last year because I was busy with my other work – I’m a freelance writer, editor, proofreader and journalism tutor.

Barmcake is available free in about 45 venues in West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, Sheffield, and North Derbyshire. You can also obtain copies by post, if you send a donation.

I write all – or all but one or two – of the articles in each edition. I also design the magazine, edit it, find the advertising, sort the fundraising, promote it, and deliver it.

This afternoon I’m going to be telling you why I make a print magazine in the digital age.

And why I make this particular magazine, which I believe is different from anything else out there.

(I know it’s definitely the only one that offers northern entertainment for the middle-aged.)

I’ll also tell you how I make an issue from scratch.

There are high points about making Barmcake – interviewing people like John Cooper Clarke, Viv Albertine, and Ken Dodd.

But there are perils about making a magazine on your own – for example when my computer packed in a week or so before deadline for issue 8 and I had redo the pages from scratch

I’ll also tell you about the money side of things.

I’m happy to take any questions at the end. Although don’t ask me anything about maths. The square of the hypotenuse is worth two in the bush, or whatever.

I’ve been a journalist since 1989.

I’ve worked for all the ridiculously-named weekly newspapers – the Congleton Chronicle, the Biddulph Chronicle, the Ormskirk Advertiser, the Wigan Observer.

I’ve never been a Woodward and Bernstein-type journalist. I used to love doing golden wedding anniversary interviews – finding out about people’s lives. (The secret for most couples is: ‘Never go to bed on an argument’).

I moved to London in the mid-90s and became a sub-editor. Then I came back up north to Leeds to work for PA New Media’s Ananova website as a sub and writer. It was a really exciting time to be part of a new national media organisation.

At that point the digital world seem to offer limitless possibilities – a chance to hear fresh voices and cover things that didn’t get much attention on a national platform

But as it went on – on Ananova and elsewhere – the choice of topics became narrower and the coverage shallower.

It felt like a missed opportunity and after a few years, I left to become a sub on the Manchester Evening News print edition.

That disillusionment with the digital world fed into the creation of Barmcake. I even stopped doing my own blog, which is a sort of forerunner of the magazine.

I feel websites lack the personal touch of magazines and newspapers. Each edition of Barmcake is yours to hold, to savour, to read how you want. It’s not borrowed on a screen in a clutter of links and dowdy, keyword-heavy headlines.

Print is more personal.

I was reminded of that a few years ago when I was flicking through a paper, turned the page and there was a two-page picture spread of the inside of a doll’s house – with fantastic detail of each room

Now, if that had been a website link – say ‘See the amazing doll’s house, click here’ – I probably wouldn’t have looked at it.

But the photo, text and design on the printed edition stopped me in my tracks.

And it was me who chose to stop and look at it, not a website trying to guide me

Of course, I can’t do Barmcake without digital media.

I can get instant access to performers and venues via their websites and email addresses.

And Twitter is a great promotional tool.

Even the front page of each Barmcake is partially designed that way so it looks good on Twitter.

Crucially, it’s how you use all that information available on the internet.

And I think many websites, magazines and newspapers aren’t making the most of it. They are picking from the same narrow pool of stories.

Meanwhile arts coverage in regional newspapers – with a few notable exceptions – is not as good as it used to be.

Some newspaper bosses are so pleased they can offer the same size newspapers as 10 years ago with half the staff, they forget about the quality of the editorial content.

When I look at some of the free lifestyle magazines in shops and pubs, the editorial content seems to be a shoddy afterthought.

And some website and magazine interviews are written by people who don’t appear to know anything about their interviewees, beyond what the PR company has told them

So that’s another reason why I started Barmcake – I want the articles to be the top priority.

I don’t stint on research and writing and rewriting.

For a two-page article in issue 8, for example, I read four books and endlessly wrote and rewrote the article.

They were four books about The Fall so it wasn’t the worst thing ever.

Hashtag firstworldindieproblems

Pete Wylie was another reason I started Barmcake.

I read he was crowdfunding to make a new LP which to me was huge news.

But I couldn’t find much about it in magazines, newspapers and websites.

Now I’ve got Northern entertainment for the middle-aged in my strapline.

But I hate some middle-aged people’s attitudes to new bands, the sort of people who say: ‘Well, of course, they sound a bit like the Velvet Underground but they are not as good as them – and I speak as someone who has a 23-minute out-take of John Cale whittling a spoon.’

But having said that, there are artistes aged 40 and upwards – like Pete Wylie – whose work is either being ignored or under-appreciated, while some fairly dull, conservative, twentysomething bands are lauded to the hilt, merely because of their age.

I also felt audiences aged 40 and over were being ignored by many websites and magazines – the sort of people, for example, who might live in West Yorkshire but travel to gigs or comedy shows in Sheffield and Manchester (hence my circulation area).

People who like a nice real ale pub, a good book and trips to theatres and galleries.

Those were the subjects I wanted to write about.

Plus I wanted to provide a decent listings service.

I used to love looking at City Life and Time Out and picking out gigs I wanted to see.

Can you do that on the internet? Not really, unless you want to wade through lists of venues or dates of gigs.

Barmcake is also a reaction against magazine shops like Magma and websites like Stack and Magculture.

They only consider design-led, rather than text-led, magazines (spoof trendy mag, above).

Their view, unfortunately, seems to dominate the indie-mag culture.

The Magma magazines are beautiful, for sure, but slightly formulaic – lots of photos, lots of white space.

Some of the articles can be slightly sterile and desperately in need of an edit.

I was brought up on 80s NME and Sounds with writers like Steven ‘Seething’ Wells and his hectic, hectoring, hilarious prose, which is completely at odds with something you’d read in, say, Monocle.

Word magazine and Forty-20, a rugby league magazine, are other influences as they put – or did put in the case of Word – witty text first, before the design.

So a year before I left the MEN, I was thinking about going freelance and starting a magazine.

I went on a Guardian course about how to make one.

I wanted to know if I could make a magazine on my laptop and how much it would cost.

But the course wasn’t particularly helpful about either the basics of making a magazine or the money side of it.

And I realised I had a lot to learn when I went to a printer in Manchester after I went freelance.

I wanted someone to guide me about the basics of the printing process.

At the MEN, you simply had to press a button to send it to the printers. The page sizes, colours, etc were all set up for you.

So I came bounding into the shop, all enthusiastic, to be met by this spectacularly miserable bloke.

I said: ‘I’m going to make my own magazine and I was just wondering what I need to do.’

He said: ‘How many pages?’

‘Er..I don’t know, about 35.’

Shakes head: ‘You can’t have that number. What type of paper do you want?’

‘Er…I don’t know, just standard magazine paper.’

‘What sort of paper do you want for the front?’

‘Er…I don’t know.’

‘Do you want colour or black or white?

‘A mix of colour and black and white.’

‘Which pages are colour?’

‘I don’t know yet.’

I left the shop with my tail between my legs; my hopes not exactly crushed but dented.

Fortunately, I discovered the Footprint Workers Co-operative in Leeds who were very helpful and answered all my daft questions with patience.

I can definitely recommend them if you are starting your own magazine or fanzine.

So I had an idea of what I was going to cover (music, comedy, pubs, theatre, books. film, art).

I had an idea of how I was going to write it (make the writing as good as it can be, keep the articles short)

I wanted to target an over 40s audience living in and around Leeds, Sheffield and Manchester, (although I don’t mind who reads it -– I’m not going to tell a youth with a fashionable beard to ‘put the Barmcake down sunshine’)

I wanted to keep the design simple and retro (the headlines are meant to look like 70s sitcom credits).

And I wanted to make it as cheaply as possible – so I would do all or most of the writing, as I couldn’t pay anyone else, and I would deliver it.

I found a free design program (called Scribus) and I only use publicity photos or photos that I take myself.

I don’t charge for Barmcake because I want to get the magazines in the sorts of pubs, cafes and independent shops where people like to read books, newspapers and magazines.

In these sorts of places, most of the other magazines and newspapers are free.

Keeping it free also means less hassle for the owners of the pubs and cafes – no separate pots of money to keep etc.

I wanted a funny northern word for the title and Barmcake fits the bill.

There’s also the ‘You starting a print magazine in the internet age? You Barmcake!’

‘Northern entertainment for the middle-aged’ gives some idea of what the magazine’s about, but it is not entirely serious.

I don’t want to go down the professional northerner route:

(Hovis voice):‘Eeeeeeeh, we’re all right friendly in t’ north.

‘London? They never speak to anyone.’

I’m always up for challenging northernness, because let’s face it – some of the world’s most miserable people are in Yorkshire!

I also didn’t want to get stuck in a straight, white, indie, male, middle-aged rut where The Smiths, The Fall or Half Man Half Biscuit can never be criticised.

And where it would be blasphemous to suggest that Temptation by Heaven 17 is better than Temptation by New Order.

Barmcake is A5 because I wanted something that people can fit in their pocket or bag when they are out and about and it only costs a first class stamp to post a copy.

Apart from postage, my other costs are printing and petrol.

So I need to find about £850 for each issue.

Initially I used some of my voluntary redundancy money from the MEN and money from my other work to pay for the magazine.

I started seeking advertising from issue 2 onwards.

My advertising revenue has gone up from £60 in issue 2 to £630 in issue 8.

It will be more than that in the new edition.

I feel that if you give people something to read, then they don’t just flick through the magazine and so they are more likely to see the adverts.

I am pleased that plan appears to be paying off.

But, it’s tricky balancing the amount of time you spend on editorial and advertising.

On some issues, I’ve left the advertising a little too late because I wanted to get the editorial right.

But, if I spend too much time on the advertising, I may get more ads in the short term, but I won’t keep the advertisers in the long term as the quality of the magazine will drop.

I set up a Paypal account for donations, which you can access via my website, and that brings in between £150 and £200 per issue, so I was more or less able to cover my costs for the first time for issue 8.

I also sent some copies to Australia for the first last time.

However I’d like to bring in more money through donations.

So I’ll go through how the magazine has developed over the years.

Here are some bits from Issue 1 (above).

That issue had interviews with Cud, the Wedding Present, the director of a Frank Sidebottom doc, and the Revolutions Brewing Company owners, among others.

Features included Maxine Peake, a pub crawl on the Tour de France Yorkshire route, and Alan Bennett.

I did ask for interviews with Maxine and Alan.

With Alan, Faber and Faber gave a curious response – not no, but: (Alan Bennett voice): ‘Mr Bennett is aware of your interest.’

(I like to think everyone at Faber speaks with an Alan Bennett accent).

I was hoping perhaps that they were giving him potential material for his diary.

That would be the dream for me: (Alan Bennett voice): ‘I used to be contacted by the Guardian, but now it’s only bread-related magazines.’

In general I find about 75% of people I contact agree to interviews.

I was excited to get the first issue out.

There were 1,000 copies for that, it’s been 1,500 copies from issue 2 onwards

There was a good response to Barmcake 1 – the title, strapline and the front cover probably made the biggest impact.

But in hindsight I felt the interviews were too short and there were too many, fairly ordinary, one-page previews.

I addressed those issues for Barmcake 2 by making most of the interviews two or three pages long and sticking about 6-7 previews on two pages at the back – and that’s been the format ever since.

So issue 2 (above) had interviews with Viv Albertine, Pete Wylie, Age of Chance, Steve Huison, among others.

My friend Richard wrote about why Otley is better than Prague for beer.

He has also done Bluetones and Skids interviews in other issues.

My friend Roshi has written about David Bowie and Count Arthur Strong.

And Prue, my wife, has interviewed Bryony Lavery and done a piece on the theatre company she co-founded – Root and Branch Productions (more northern entertainment for the middle-aged).

I’ve only used one feature from a writer I didn’t know as I want to be in a position to pay people for their work.

Viv Albertine was one of my most important interviews I’ve done for Barmcake.

It’s one of the most popular pieces with readers and it encouraged other artistes to get in touch.

I thought her book was one of the best memoirs/autobiographies I’d read, yet many of the reviews concentrated on the Johnny Rotten and Sid Vicious anecdotes and didn’t focus enough on her fascinating life.

She answered my questions within a day (some people take nearly 2 months) and I was really chuffed she’d taken the trouble to give such interesting answers.

For example I asked her: Was punk the only time she’d come across so many strong and interesting characters?

She said: “God no. Those people weren’t that strong and interesting. Vivienne Westwood was.

“We were all very flawed. But at least we didn’t hide our flaws, we flaunted them.

“I would say it was the only time in my life when you were allowed to be yourself, not smiling and saying thank you all the time.

“Not greasing the wheels and aspiring and careerist.”

The Ken Dodd interview, from issue 5, in 2016 was also a highlight.

Here’s an extract:

He was fizzing with jokes and anecdotes.

When I mentioned I was from Huddersfield, he immediately recited a limerick about the town involving udders.

He told me an interviewer once asked if Dodd was his real name and he told him it was an anagram.

While I took that in, he’s onto the next joke.

I was also fascinated with how works an audience.

He said: “You play an audience like a musician plays his instrument.

“You know where the hotspots are, you know where you’ve got to work hard on them when they’re a bit stubborn, you know where to flirt with them, where to encourage them, and where to take it easy.

“You put little ad libs in, little asides, go faster, slower, louder, quieter, take it easy.”

So it was great to interview Ken and it was great to interview John Cooper Clarke for the same issue.

The interview was difficult to set up but turned out well.

I was meant to be interviewing him at a gig in Buxton but my car broke down and I couldn’t get to the gig in time on the train.

The angle I went on was his accent – whether it was the most important thing about his work and whether living in Essex for 25 odd years had affected it.

Here’s an extract:

“Accent? I don’t think it’s at all important. It’s what the work contains.

“I don’t think the accent’s got anything to do with it.

“I think vocal quality might have something to do with it, as in musicality.

“Listening to my old stuff it sounds like I’ve got a problem with my adenoids, and it can’t be that because I had my adenoids removed when I was about eight-years-old.

“To be honest, I think my voice is better than it’s ever been.

“But that’s not because of the accent, it’s because of the sonorous baritone quality.”

And of course, I can’t think of anyone else who says ‘sonorous baritone quality’ quite like John Cooper Clarke – stretching the vowels and punctuating the words so they got a real rhythm., He makes run-of the mill words sound magnificent.

Issue 3, (above), had interviews with, among others, John Shuttleworth, John Bramwell, O’Hooley and Tidow, the organiser of the Glossop Record Club, and Professor Paul Salveson, who talked about railways and northern regionalism.

The latter is an example how I’ve occasionally moved away from my core subjects as I think it would interest readers.

In issue 7 I interviewed the marvellous Beers Manchester blogger who wrote about dealing with grief after his son died.

And in issue 8 I talked to Rosie Wilby who has written a really interesting book about monogamy.

One of the things I’ve enjoyed about Barmcake is finding out about wonderful artistes I didn’t know much about, like O’Hooley and Tidow, and looking into topics I’ve not really thought about much, such as non-monogamous relationships – and record clubs.

Glossop Record Club was the first of the groups or people I featured from Twitter.

I noticed the people who started following me were doing some interesting and unusual stuff.

In other issues I’ve done features on 8bitnorthxstitch, (pictured below) who makes fabulous cross-stitch creations of bands such as The Fall and TV shows such as Coronation Street

There’s Beer Mat Movies, who writes film reviews on beer mats

And Jennifer Reid, or as she calls herself, the pre-eminent broadside balladress of the Manchester region.

In Issue 4, I decided to make a few tweaks to the structure with a picture-led centrespread and a bigger listings section.

I don’t want the magazine to date so my listings look up to four months ahead.

The listings are usually the first and last thing I do in the magazine.

I look at every gig venue, theatre, and gallery website in my circulation area, looking for potential star interviews, cover stars and centrespreads.

I listen to bands I’ve not heard of before who are playing at these venues.

Artistes are also contacting me now and I use three or four stories an issue from them

Once I get two or three big interviews, the rest of the magazine falls into place.

I feel it’s a bit like organising a festival – you need headliners plus strong supporting acts.

And once I get the headliners, I start looking for advertisers.

I have a mix of regular and new advertisers.

I then ask all my stockists, I ask local brewers and some businesses who follow me on Twitter.

Most of my interviews are by email, the rest are phone interviews although I did one face-to-face chat with Martin Parr.

There is always a mad panic at the end of each issue , either because of a missing interview or ad, but all you can do is politely grovel with people to please, please, please in send the material.

As it’s just me making the magazine, there are no back-up features, no IT team to deal with technical problems, such as converting pdfs to jpgs.

Fortunately I’ve always managed to fill an issue in the end.

Once I’ve written and rewritten my pieces, I go back and check everything – the original source material, fact checks, spell checks.

The issue is then proofread by Prue and then by one of our friends.

I don’t want a daft literal or incorrect name to undermine the magazine, especially as Barmcake takes about two months to do, on and off, between my other work.

My printer then gives me a final proof before it goes to press and I get it back within a week.

The new Barmcake is due out midweek next week.

I like to do a big reveal on the day of publication but I can tell you it is the biggest Barmcake ever, with 9 exclusive interviews, more than any before, and 5 features – including Hylda Baker.

It takes me four days to deliver the copies.

I cover an area bordered by Wigan, Ilkley and Sheffield.

The list of venues is on the website, although it will change slightly over the next few days. Venues ask to be stockists and readers also recommend places.

I keep about 300 copies back for people who want a copy in the post, and for friends and media people.

Then I do a Twitter promo campaign for about 2-3 weeks.

I only put one article per issue online and I only do that months after the issue comes out.

In February, I start on a new issue.

It will be the fifth anniversary issue and a chance to take stock.

Ideally I’d like to be making more money for it, getting regular sponsorship from a suitable partner, and in the long term looking to pay others to write.

But anyway, that’s the story of Barmcake.

I hope you have enjoyed it

#magazines journalism

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barmcakemag · 4 years

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Barmcake A-Z

This is a list of all the people I’ve interviewed for Barmcake (well nearly all - RIP Ken Dodd) and one or two others I’ve done features on, with details about where you can buy their stuff direct and/or news about what they are up to (new releases/fundraisers/delivery details etc).

These people make great music, theatre and art, write fantastic books, perform wonderful comedy routines. I wanted to do a small bit to help people through what is likely to be a difficult year. Without them, it would be a much more bland and boring place.

Barmcake interviewees (and others)

8bitnorthxstitch www.etsy.com/shop/8bitnorthxstitch

A Certain Ratio www.acrmcr.com/

Age of Chance @ageofchance

Viv Albertine www.faber.co.uk/tutors/viv-albertine/

Mik Artistik https://www.mikartistik.com/Fundraising

Jenn Ashworth http://jennashworth.co.uk/ Latest book: Notes Made While Falling

Babybird www.babybird.info/

David Barnett @davidmbarnett Latest book: Things Can Only Get Better

Bear Tree Records www.beartreerecords.com/

Beer Mat Movies @beer_mat_movies

James Bentley http://buryfcinthemid90s.co.uk/

The Bluetones https://thebluetones-uk.myshopify.com/

BOB @BOBindieband

Kevin Boniface https://kevinboniface.co.uk/work

John Bramwell http://www.johnbramwell.com/

Elkie Brooks @ElkieOfficial

Buzzcocks @Buzzcocks Boxset (1991-2014) and new single, Gotta Get Better, recently released

Rob Chapman www.rob-chapman.com/?LMCL=Gndvmz

Helen Clapcott https://paintingsofstockport.co.uk/

Comma Press @commapress

Heath Common @CommonHeath

John Cooper Clarke @official_jcc

Cornershop www.cornershop.com/Latest LP: England Is A Garden

Cud @CUDband

AA Dhand www.aadhand.com/

The Distractions @DistractionsMcr Nobody’s Perfect LP reissued and expanded

Fuzzbox @FuzzboxOfficial

Glossop Record Club https://glossoprecordclub.wordpress.com/ Monthly radio show to continue

Tony Hannan www.tonyhannan.co.uk/

Bella Hardy www.bellahardy.com/shopBest of compilation out now

Joanne Harris www.joanne-harris.co.uk/

Dave Haslam www.davehaslam.com/#/dave-haslam-short-biog/Latest book: Searching For Love

Olivia Hemingway http://www.oliviahemingway.com/

Mark Hodkinson www.markhodkinson.com/

HOME @HOME_mcr Commissioned new work which will be on website. Also asking for donations

Steve Huison http://stevehuison.net/

Independent Salford Beer Festival www.salfordbeerfest.com/

Nat Johnson https://natjohnson.bandcamp.com/

John Keenan www.liveinleeds.com/

Bryony Lavery www.unitedagents.co.uk/bryony-lavery

Jeffrey Lewis www.thejeffreylewissite.com/

The Lovely Eggs @TheLovelyEggs New LP: I Am A Moron

Marble Brewery @marblebrewers Web shop and deliveries

Helen McCookerybook http://mccookerybook.com/Latest LP: Pea Soup

Ross McGinnes http://rossmcginnes.com/

Ian McMillan @IMcMillan

The Monochrome Set @themonoset Latest LPs: Little Noises box set and reissues of Strange Boutique and Love Zombies

Diane Morgan @missdianemorgan

Nicola Mostyn http://www.nicolamostyn.com/ Latest book: The Love Delusion

Chris Nickson @ChrisNickson2

The Nightingales thenightingales.org.uk/New LP in May: Four Against Fate. New film later this year: King Rocker

David Nolan @Nolanwriter

Northern Broadsides @NBroadsides

O’Hooley and Tidow https://ohooleyandtidow.bandcamp.com/

Martin Parr www.martinparr.com/

Pomona Books www.pomonauk.com/

Record Café @TheRecordCafe Take outs/home deliveries

Jennifer Reid http://jenniferreid.weebly.com/

Revolutions Brewing Co @revolutionsbrew

Root & Branch Productions @root_branchprod

Route @Route_News Latest book: Paul Hanley’s Have A Bleedin’ Guess: The Story of Hex Enduction

Ruts DC @therutsdc

Paul Salveson @paulsalveson New book: The Works

Saul Hay Gallery @SaulHayFineArt

Miranda Sawyer @msmirandasawyer

John Shuttleworth @johnshuttlewrth New book: Two Margarines

The Skids @richardjobson

Something Left Behind @TWPdocumentary

Square Chapel Arts Centre @squarechapel

Statement Artworks @PosterboyEric

Adelle Stripe @adellestripe

Count Arthur Strong www.countarthurstrong.com/

Mark Thomas https://markthomasinfo.co.uk/

Sarah Tierney http://sarahtierney.co.uk/

John Toolan @MrToolan

The Undertones @TheUndertones_

Emma Jane Unsworth @emjaneunsworth

Vinyl Tap @vinyltaprecords

Jane Weaver @JanelWeaver

The Wedding Present https://scopitones.co.uk/

Rosie Wilby @rosiewilby

Kathryn Williams www.kathrynwilliams.co.uk/

Bernard Wrigley https://bernardwrigley.com/

Pete Wylie www.petewylie.co.uk/

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barmcakemag · 5 years

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Barmcake is 5!

Northern entertainment magazine Barmcake is celebrating its fifth birthday.

The magazine features exclusive interviews with the likes of Viv Albertine, Ken Dodd, John Shuttleworth, John Cooper Clarke, Elkie Brooks, Ian McMillan, Buzzcocks, The Undertones, Joanne Harris, Kathryn Williams, and Dave Haslam.

It is aimed at an over-40s audience who enjoy gigs and pubs in and around Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield, and it celebrates musicians, performers and authors of a similar age.

It’s made by me – Dave Griffiths. I write all (or all but one or two) of the articles in each issue; I also design the magazine, edit it, find the adverts, promote it, raise funds for it, and deliver copies to around 45 pubs and shops in and around Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield.

The first edition of Barmcake came out in April 2014 and the magazine usually comes out twice a year (spring and autumn), although I only brought one issue out in 2017 because I was busy with my other work.

But I’m delighted how well Barmcake has been received. Readers’ comments include:

“Midlife without the crisis.”

“A thing of northern indie music/arts aceness. Aimed at old folk like me but cool kids will love it too.”

Back issues 2-12 are available by post via the PayPal link.

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barmcakemag · 6 years

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To advertise in Barmcake

Fed up of reading free magazines full of dreary features?

If the editorial is bobbins, the reader won't waste time on the magazine and the adverts will be ignored - no matter how big the circulation.

I offer exclusive interviews, original and interesting features, and easy-to-use listings.

I appeal to an over-40s audience which has largely been forgotten about by most magazines and websites.

And I distribute the magazine carefully in places which welcome readers and reading material.

Readers spend more time on good quality magazines, so adverts are more likely to be noticed. I also aim to be cheaper than most of my competitors.

Barmcake is a free, A5, 32 or 36-page full colour magazine distributed in about 40-45 pubs, cafes, and shops in Greater Manchester, Sheffield, West Yorkshire, and Derbyshire. Circulation: 1,500 (usually, occasionally 1,000).

Prices for pages:

Quarter page £35

Half page £65

Full page £95

Back page £150

Contact email: [email protected] or Twitter @barmcakemag

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barmcakemag · 8 years

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Barmcake 2 (12 inch remix)

The Age of Chance and Edwyn Collins film interviews were heavily edited in the magazine: full versions are here. You are welcome to quote up to three pars from the sample articles but please don’t use whole articles without paying me. Ta. Click here for Paypal link to buy a copy of the magazine.

Interview with Edwyn Collins film-makers (full version)

When you think of music documentaries you think of slick concert footage and a bit of PR guff. The Possibilities Are Endless is not one of those documentaries.

It’s a moving and uplifting film about the remarkable recovery of Edwyn Collins from a stroke that almost killed him: his memory and personality were affected, he had to learn to read again, and initially the only words he could say were: ‘The possibilities are endless’ and the name of his wife Grace Maxwell, whose love and devotion helped his recovery.

Music, although important, is only incidental in this film (Edwyn provides some lovely incidental music) , it’s about identity, memory and love. “I’m struggling to come to terms with who I am,” Edwyn says at one point.

It’s a beautifully-crafted film. The film-makers and joint directors, Ed Lovelace and James Hall, have strived to convey what it was like for Edwyn after the stroke, using the landscapes of the Highland coastal town of Helmsdale which he loves and which helped to jog his memories.

I asked the directors if Edwyn’s story was one they wanted to tell for a long time? Were they big fans?

We have always been fans of Edwyn’s but on hearing Losing Sleep, his first album after his illness, we were immediately struck by how direct Edwyn’s lyrics had become compared to previous albums. There was an otherworldliness and a profundity to the songs that although were simpler than Edwyn’s earlier work, managed to project a powerful internal conflict that touched on identity and memory. The songs gave an impression of a man coming to terms with himself and we were immediately intrigued. Our aim was to delve into that period after Edwyn’s stroke and create a piece of film that could imagine his process of rebuilding an identity. We were watching a lot of slower-paced documentaries like Sleep Furiously and Modern Life where the landscape became an identity on its own. Because of Edwyn’s love of nature, in particular in the North East of Scotland, we began imagining his devastated brain as a ravaged landscape that over time became brighter, bolder, and full of life.

The nature of Edwyn’s illness must have made it difficult to film. I assume you had to ration the amount of time with him and also restrict those heartbreaking times when he was struggling for words? Did the improvement in his health change the way you made the film?

We did interviews with Edwyn for three years in the build-up to the film. These interviews consisted of us and Edwyn sitting in his studio in West Hampstead with a microphone, just letting the conversation flow naturally from one point to another, or from one memory to the next. Edwyn’s aphasia meant he would take longer to answer questions or to find the words, but given the time and the space, Edwyn will come out with a notion that will completely surpass what you had been anticipating. Every time we went back to do these interviews Edwyn’s speech was improving, and we loved that his expanding verbosity would be apparent in the film and work as a way to chart the recovery progress in an non conventional way. The fact that the interviews were actually helping with Edwyn’s speech therapy was a huge inspiration to us, and made us even more determined to get the film made.

Edwyn’s ambient-type music at the start of the film is lovely: did he write that from his impressions/memories of Helmsdale or did you show him your shots of the area first?

Edwyn had such an inherent grasp of the film and its tone right from the beginning. Even though he didn’t see much of the footage before recording the score, he and Grace were instrumental in finding locations and telling us about places that had meaning to them. Edwyn knows those locations better than anybody so we were confident that his score would fit perfectly. It was truly an honour to have Edwyn write the soundtrack and the first time we heard his composition was a historic moment for us - we were totally blown away and left speechless by what he had created. Edwyn’s genius truly knows no bounds.

The themes of memory and love were dominant in the film. Were they things that emerged while you were making the film or did you want to emphasise those themes from the start?

Memory and identity were key themes throughout. We were concerned with how an identity could be rebuilt as memories returned and how the re-accumulation of these memories could create a new version of the Edywn of old. We wanted to present memories not as recreated scenes that were linear, but more like moments that move from one to the next guided by emotions - a reflection of our interview process. The love theme was something that came to us later as a result of us spending more time with Edwyn and Grace and witnessing their unique relationship. Edwyn’s story is also Grace’s and it was important to us that this came across in the film.

Can I just check on timings for this film. You started filming in 2011? What period of time did you cover in the film? Was the US chat show clip at the start of the film just before the stroke?

We filmed on and off for about two years, but the timeline of the film runs from the moment of Edwyn’s stroke to the present day. Our goal was to tell Edwyn’s story from inside his head, as he had told it to us. Edwyn’s recollection had less emphasis on facts or the bleaker hospital days at the beginning of his illness, and more on his perception of the experience and the thoughts and feelings associated. The performance that opens the film shows Edwyn before his stroke at the height of his powers in the mid 90’s. It acts as a ghost that lingers throughout - a faded image at the back of Edwyn’s brain that at first seems entirely relevant, but as the confidence in his current self grows, becomes less important.

How unusual is it to have two directors on a film? Do you tend to take different roles on set or take turns in different roles? Do you have any debates on how the film should look on set or do you thrash out any differences beforehand?

Duo directors seem to be becoming popular, particularly in documentaries. We find that working with a partner helps to push the creative to its utmost as the project evolves, and ensures the lonely days of funding don’t get too discouraging. We have known each other for a long time and have worked on countless projects (films, commercials, music videos) since leaving film school so there is a deep-rooted appreciation of each other’s sensibilities. Disagreement is generally short-lived due to our trust in the mutual vision that we set out clearly from the start of each project.

Tell me about your film-making journey from debut feature Werewolves Across America, Katy Perry to Edwyn. Was there anything in common between the musicians and the film-making?

There seems to be a theme of identity in our films. This isn’t always intentional but it surfaces throughout the film-making process. With ‘Werewolves…’ we focused on these kids trying to figure out how to live their lives and come to terms with who they were. When we were filming Katy she was making the step up from well-known pop star into a global megastar and we wanted to focus on her navigating this transition, keeping the camera close to her at all times. We love to tell stories in the eye of the storm as it were, putting the viewer in a position where they can identify with the protagonist as much as possible. Edwyn’s rediscovering of his identity was always going to be an immersive experience and the ambition of throwing the viewer into a discombobulated mindscape excited us from the very beginning.

You were executive producers on the Perry film? What exactly were your roles in that movie?

We directed and shot the documentary footage on tour with Katy for 15 months. Our intention was to document the turbulent but life defining year with a no-holds barred, stripped-back style. The only way to achieve this was to be ever present until we became invisible. That’s how the most genuine and heartfelt moments ended up on camera - months of sitting in dressing rooms to build up a trust that can’t be won any other way. The footage was subsequently bought by Paramount and we executive produced the film from there on out.

The Possibilities are Endless is released on iTunes and embarks on a UK preview tour from October 20, ahead of its general release November 7 thepossibilities.co.uk

Extended interview with Age of Chance’s Neil Howson

C86, the compilation of 80s indie bands, was re-released earlier this year. One of the most innovative bands on the collection was Age of Chance. I asked band member Neil Howson, now at Leeds University, what he thinks about C86 now? Tbh I thought some of it wasn’t that great – a lot of bands just sent outtakes whereas we sat down and wrote something specifically, and used it as a chance to experiment with some ideas we had using layers and string collision.

Did you have anything in common with any of the other bands? We were friends with Big Flame - we did swap gigs and shared politics, humour and a love of funk… we liked dancing which a lot of other indie bands frowned on! We’d played with the Wedding Present as they lived down the street but we had a different approach.

There are a handful of C86 bands still going. Do you imagine what it would be like if Age of Chance had not split up? It would’ve been great to carry it on and still be successful, but very, very few bands can do it – U2 spring to mind, but it’s very tough to maintain the fire and creativity and the hunger. I think we did the best we could. I think maybe if we were still going it would’ve been through the dance spectrum, more electronics but heavier, rather than just play old stuff. The band seemed to have a fairly fully-formed sound and look early on? What were the band’s influences, audio and visual? We had broad musical tastes with Motown, Spector, Dexys, Northern Soul, a lot of funk and disco, Glenn Branca, the Stooges, Sinatra. Visually, Russian Supremacists, the pop artists Lichtenstein, Warhol and modernists like Mondrian. We also liked the culture of consumerism, advertising slogans - the language and imagery, which you can see on our record sleeves. We used to talk about sound and how our favourite bands presented themselves. I always liked that they seemed to have their own universe, which is what we tried to create with our sleeves, inserts and sound. Did Leeds have any bearing on how you sounded? The Gang of Four and Mekons were the groups we liked. They had aggression and ideas, they didn’t just sing about love, and they had an energy and a real identity. Leeds was getting really creative about 1980 and when Marc started Soft Cell, it began to take off. It wasn’t weighed down with Goth at that point and we felt we had a chance to create something new that distilled our tastes and ideas. Is it correct that you were first band to use a sampler? Were the early ones a real faff to use? I think we were the first to integrate it, rather than just as a novelty, like early synths. We’d used them on the Fon tracks, and started on loops, with Hamilton Bohannon and Janet Jackson. They were a faff and very expensive; it changes the way you write and compose, not necessarily for the better! They can add colour and texture but I liked the immediacy of hitting something. You are seen as forerunners of bands like Jesus Jones and EMF. Are they fair comparisons and can hear Age of Chance in any other artists? I think they were influenced by us, they used some of the sound guys we had. EMF sounded like early Cure before their first single and Pop Will Eat Itself completely changed after our LP came out; they even used our graphic team Designers Republic, but we knew them. After that, I thought the Prodigy and Rage against the Machine had echoes of us. And listen to 99 Problems by JayZ and Take It from 1,000 years of Trouble…it sounds like the same session. I think we created a new type of music by being open to technology and the culture around us, that’s why we called our first LP Crush collision. Were you pleased with the reissues in 2009? Was there any temptation to reform around that time? Yes and it was a real surprise; I came back from holiday to a request from The Guardian for a full-page interview. We got the best reviews ever and we were on the radio again. I have to admit I tried to get us back together; we had some offers but we’ve all grown up, got families, businesses etc, and back then the band was our life, in every waking hour. Recapturing that devotion and commitment again is very difficult. And we couldn’t have just played a pub, it would’ve needed a lot of rehearsal and we’d have wanted a real event. In a way I’m ok with it; we created something unique and the songs still sound exciting, and I discovered our sleeves are used in a university course on decoding semiotics in the USA! Was there any contact with Prince over the Kiss cover and Public Enemy over the Take It remix? After we signed to Virgin America we met Prince’s former manager who’d watched him dance to it at the Glam Slam club - he said he loved it! With Public Enemy, we nearly signed to Def Jam so PE had our demos. We were the first group they chose to work with and I met Chuck D later…he couldn’t believe how big our drums sounded, but like the songs. they were very similar to us in terms of approach to sound, visuals and polemics.

What are the band members doing now? Any future Age of Chance activity? Steve has a vintage store in Harrogate called Space, which sells furniture, clothing and records, Geoff works in TV and film , and I’ve lost touch with Jan. Steve and I did an AOC DJ set at the Designers Republic retrospective a few years ago, and I’ve got a dad garage band, but at the moment nothing planned.

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