the world the way i want it - Pop-up shop

‘The world the way I want it’ was a magical pop-up shop on Redchurch Street near Brick Lane. Open for just a month, there wasn’t long to catch a glimpse of this little gem, but I luckily managed to find a spare half hour to visit last weekend, and I am so glad I did.

Keggie Carew certainly created her own world in this little shop. Every inch of the space was decorated with her artwork, findings and other mysterious bits and bobs. I could have spent hours in there exploring everything.

She has an obvious interest in the great outdoors, I particularly loved the ‘pink shoes with Dorset hills and sheep and bird gazers in the trees’. Appropriate to the theme, half the profit is going to ‘Kiva’ for micro-loans to sustainable farm projects.There were plenty of unconventional gifts for sale too: poetry rubber stamps, bug pots (I bought one for my dad), ‘true story’ t-shirts. The insect necklaces seemed to be a good seller, as you can see from the images, they come in different bug varieties, and are eerily beautiful. Carew assured me, these necklaces are wearable, but with care. I think they are the perfect Tim Burton-style present for the lady that has everything.

These temporary pop-up shops are becoming more and more popular, and seem to be cropping up all over the place. After visiting ‘The world the way I want it’ I bumped into another pop-up store, where two creatives from Madrid were showing their work, jeweller Karen Hallam and artist Fernando Herlop. These quirky little shops are worth looking out for, they are brilliant for picking up one-off items and often at much lower prices than you would expect.

Visit shop website here.

Vibe Live with Jetson and Graffiti 6

Brick Lane couldn’t be boring if it tried, there is always something to see there. Last week (after stuffing myself with copious amounts of Brick Lane curry) I went to VIBE LIVE at the Vibe Bar to see two new bands: Jetson and Graffiti6.

Jetson are a three piece, currently unsigned, but I’m sure for not much longer. Their music is a collision of Funk and Folk. Only together since 2009, they already have a certainty of sound and style and a large following including celebs like Jamie Cullum and Emma Watson and can boast performing in major venues such as the O2 Arena. The song ‘Ashdown Drive’ particularly moved me, lead singer Rohan Unni was completely possessed by the words, and moved about the stage with infectious energy (there were several moments I was desperate to get up and dance with them). Jetson work together as a team on stage, coherent and well organised. Their repertoire is individual with a laid back quality that is perfect for easy summer listening. Jetson’s obvious passion for performing would make any audience love to watch and listen.

See them next at The 100 Club on Oxford Street on Thursday 8^th July where they will be headlining, as well as a free gig at Roadtrip in Shoreditch this Thursday, 3^rd June.

Graffiti6 are a recent collaboration between Jamie Scott and TommyD, both separately and together they have impressive resumes. It’s surprising that they have only been an ensemble since Autumn 2008 because they work together brilliantly. When asked, Jamie described his music to me as “a dinner date between Northern Soul and Folk Music.” After listening I would agree with that meeting of styles, Jamie’s voice is luxurious and soulful and soars through each and every melody effortlessly. As a singer myself, I particularly enjoy a male singer exploring the upper register of his voice and Jamie certainly does this, with great confidence. The support of the talented band around him gives him the platform to play around and enjoy the music.

Lulu and the Lampshades

I love Lulu and the Lampshades, and I cannot believe I have only just discovered them.

The Lampshades were recommended to me by a friend and I am yet to see them live, although I have watched numerous YouTube videos of them and had a good chuckle to myself. Fun is at the heart of their music - they play with all kinds of strange and wonderful objects and makeshift instruments, bashing, hitting and clapping. The amazing thing is, they make it sound really good. The two singers in the Lampshades team - Luisa and Heloise have whimsical voices that melt together in harmony, impressive considering their music is often so close to being a cappella.

This music is pop-folk at its most inventive. Their influences seem to come from all over the place, at times they sound similar to the chirpy Puppini Sisters and often quite like Peggy Sue. They sing about all things, weird and wacky and apparently the majority of their songs Luisa writes while cycling.

There are so many great songs to choose from (all on YouTube). Their first single, 'Feet to the Sky' comes with an adorably quaint video. My favourite though is the simpler 'You're gonna miss me when I'm gone' featuring just Luisa and Heloise, oh, and they trusty cups of course. I found myself humming the tune all day.(Learn the cups here: http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/2997/lulumiss.jpg)

Lulu and the Lampshades play on Friday 11th June at LOOK STRANGER! on Brick Lane. My intention was to write about them after the gig, but I'm hoping that my pre-review will encourage a few more people to go along.

Check them out on: http://www.myspace.com/helouisamusic