The Horne Section @ Durham Gala

The Horne Section @ Durham Gala

It takes a rare talent to stand up and make a theatre full of people laugh – it also takes a rare talent to entertain the same crowd with impromptu music, magic and mayhem yet Alex Horne and his Horne Section do both with consummate ease. 

People might know Alex from appearances on 8 out of 10 Cats does Countdown, Live at the Apollo and other chat shows; small segments which serve as comedic interludes but watching his full show, as we did at a sold out Gala Theatre, Durham, makes for an original and fun packed couple of hours.

Me and the Big' Lil' Bro had taken a 'lite' supper at the Lebanese restaurant Lebaneat, tucked into a whopper of a meze platter and, despite the walk back down the hill to the Gala, we still needed a bit more exercise to burn off the delicious range of grilled meats, rices, dips and salads - we need'nt have worried as our arms, legs and laughter muscles were about to get a great workout. (on a side note, we can DEFINITELY recommend Lebaneat, up near the Cathedral but better book a table, we were lucky to get one but, as is the sign of a great restaurant, it was packed with non-stop walk ups having to find somewhere else.)

 

Combining brilliant musical comedy with plenty of visual gags, including the most original use for Henry and Hetty Hoovers (which is more than a little trippy) , Alex performs a stand-up routine to rival the modern funny greats – Lee Evans, Al Murray, Lee Mack, Tim Vine et al,  yet what Alex has extra in his hilarity arsenal is a backing team who themselves have great comedic timing and no small amount of playing skills.

Routines like “the reverse Conga”, getting the whole auditorium to do a “Zumba” workout, “songs are better for including the Baker Street sax” and plenty of audience participation make the evening uniquely funny without ever verging on silly or banal.  Indeed, Alex manages to pay homage to old time vaudeville and music hall theatre, days when acts had to be experts in every aspect of entertaining and not resort to clichéd sexist or ‘shock’ tactics to entertain their audience.

The Horne Section is on tour and there’s not many better ways to spend an evening, just remember to take your comfy trainers and strap up your ribs.

Jazz in my Pants in Durham City

Jazz in my Pants - JIMP

Anyone visiting Durham city this month will not be able to avoid the huge range of live music echoing around this historic city, for this is the Month of Brass. We ventured into the city on Saturday and had an amazing wander around the bustling streets.  For what felt like the first time in ages we had a warm, sunny & dry day; the crowds were all smiling and the live entertainment just added to the feeling that we had just come through a 3 week storm; I guess in fact, we had.

After walking down Silver Street and over & back over the bridge we headed to the Gala square, initially for something to eat but as we approached we found we were just in time to catch one of the funkiest groups I've seen in ages - Jazz in my Pants (even the name is enough to raise a chuckle).

This gang of brilliant young musicians have taken the core essence of a jazz brass ensemble and pumped it full of funk, soul, sass and cool - all at the same time - their repetoire is like taking a trip through the history of modern music with the Beatles (as a funk/soul waltz), Queen, Madness and then a fabulous rendition of a real classic Blues with Laurie providing an amazing impression of Louis Armstrong - this has to be seen/heard to be believed that such a 'nice' looking young man (ok, there were many in the audience who called him downright cute) can then come out with the raw, growling, gravelly voice of Ol Satchmo himself.

Whilst Laurie provided this vocal solo, JIMP is very much an ensemble performance, everyone has a key part to play and it's all delivered with a genuine sense that JIMP are having just as much fun as the audience.  They are all very, very talented musicians who clearly spend a lot of time planning and rehearsing their set and it shows in the fluidity and tightness of their playing.

Definitely worth seeking them out during the Durham Brass 2012, I defy anyone not to be tapping & clapping along while you marvel at the just how good Drum & Brass can sound.

Go get some Jazz in your pants !