Day 25: Two Gigs in One Day

Selfies with Graeme

Two gigs in one day; not bad going eh!? One in many respects was a work related gig (if that's what you want to call it) and the other was for my own enjoyment but nevertheless two gigs is pretty good! For once I willingly got up at a fairly decent time for a weekend, I think the milder weather has certainly had a positive impact on me and pain wise things have been a little easier hence why it's easier to get up in the morning at the moment. Mum made us buttermilk pancakes for breakfast which is always a good thing if you ask me. Afterwards, I had a mad scramble round the house as I had to be at the local record store for 1pm and well there's only so much you can fit into a short space of time. But I did learn that I'm a pretty decent multitasker and can almost apply makeup and curl my hair at the same time. Close enough anyway!

I was going to be doing an interview for the local record store's website with a musician who was performing in store yesterday (Sunday). Unfortunately, I the timings didn't quite work out as he got held up in traffic as some of the roads were closed but I'm still going to do a wee concert review. Potentially, I could have grabbed a few minutes at the end however, I had tickets for Graeme Clark's gig in Glasgow later in the evening and due to the roads being closed we'd have to leave early in order to get there on time. The gig itself was a fun experience and of course, it's great to support the local music scene and see others doing the same. I must admit that I had a good old time to myself browsing the shelves before the gig even started although for once I left emptied handed which is a surprise!

The local record store

We headed back home for dinner and before long we all set off to good old Glasgow taking an alternative route to avoid disruptions thanks to the road closures. Fortunately, we encountered little traffic and arrived in Glasgow with plenty of time to spare. We even managed to find a parking space in a side street just along from the venue-how often does that happen!?

With it being the West End Festival, the area was absolutely buzzing. All of the surrounding restaurants and cafes within the area were filled to the brim with people, it reminded me a lot of London where I spent a lot of time as a child due to hospital. In fact, that's one thing I really miss about my visits to London; the city buzz and quirky vibe. There's something really special about it!

Siempre Bicycle Café was just a short walk away from where we had parked so we took a leisurely stroll admiring this cute little plant shop on route. The entrance to the café was up this little side lane where a small queue for the gig had already began to form. My Dad ran ahead to check it was the right place before heading off to meet up with a friend who lives in the area. As we waited in the queue we could hear the sound check taking place which sounded amazing! It was  also lovely to chat with everyone in the queue as we waited, everyone was so sweet! That's one of the reasons I love going to gigs, you meet so many lovely people!

A wee glimpse inside the café

Following sound check Graeme popped out to say hello and chat with everyone before heading off to get ready for the gig. Just a short while later, the doors were opened allowing everyone to make their way inside and find a seat. It was such a cute, quirky, little café where you instantly felt at home.

Again, I'll refrain from saying too much about the gig itself as I intend on writing an actual review at some point in future-I have a list of things to do! However, what I will say is that it was an amazing gig! I loved hearing Graeme's new material from his new album 'The Thought Collector'. Honestly, you guys need to go check it out-you'll absolutely love it! The two highlights of the gig for me personally, was Graeme playing a bit of 'A Hard Day's Night' by The Beatles during one of his amazing songs named 'Heart of Stone' and hearing his new song 'Do Those Things To Me'; that song in particular really caught my attention. As soon as I heard it, I instantly loved it! 

Following the gig I waited a little while before going up to briefly speak with Graeme. Graeme has been a really great support to me with my blogging, media & journalism aspirations and is always so encouraging towards everything that I've been doing. Like I said before, it meant a lot that he agreed to let me to interview him for my radio show on 3TFM (which by the way I'm airing the first part of this Thursday evening between 7-8pm). It was a big deal for me as it was my first ever interview. I was pretty nervous but I couldn't have asked for anyone better to chat to! I'm going off track a little but it was really lovely to chat to him after the gig and of course take another selfie!

A wee pic of the gig itself

After speaking with Graeme, I went and found Mum and Laurel who were patiently waiting on me (nothing ever changes haha!). Once organised we called Dad to let him know that we were ready to head home. Walking back to the car we couldn't help but stop in our tracks noticing someone's gorgeous house which was filled with twinkling fairy lights and this amazing dreamcatcher hanging on the wall. As you can probably imagine my eyes were absolutely glistening at the sight of it-it was my dream house!

Once we found Dad, Laurel begged him to find a chip shop as she was feeling a little peckish. We've become a bit accustomed to having chips and curry sauce as an after concert snack. We stopped in at a local chip shop and Laurel popped in to pick up the order, I really didn't want anything although I managed to sneak a few chips from Laurel's box as it did look rather delicious!

Well, that brings us to the end of yet another blog I'm afraid. A busy day indeed! But totally worth it! I'll be back very soon with another post so pop back soon to check it out!

Love & Peace,

The Hat Hippie xx