There are gigs that you go to because you like the band or the artist. There are gigs that you go to because the band have a couple of songs that you like, the band are in town, and you think that you may as well give them a shot at having some more songs that you might like. And there are gigs that you go to because your brother invited you and it was a good opportunity to get pissed with him.

Ah... That just about brings us to the Pigeon Detectives gig at the Carling Academy in Birmingham.



The Pigeon Detectives are quite popular. They sold out two nights at the Carling Academy in Birmingham which, by the way, is no mean feat. They have had a number 3 and a number 5 album, five top 40 singles and a slot on the Radio 1 Big Day Out event (or whatever it was called). My Brother thinks they are great.

I had never heard of them. My Brother tried to educate me. He lent me the album. I copied it onto my MP3 player, where it still remains, unlistened to. (Nearly a lie. I had listened to the "Take Her Back" single, which was generic Indie Pop, but not bad for that. There will be a clip at the end of this section.)

So, the question is: How much enjoyment can you get from a gig where you hardly know the band and hardly know the songs?

Quite a lot, as it happens, although it does help to be slightly lubricated.

My Brother and I first had drinks in the Square Peg. Then we had drinks in two more (unknown) pubs. Then we ran into Billy The Tout. (My Brother shook him warmly by the hand and casually mentioned that if the Sex Pistols tickets turned out to be lemons he would be forced to hunt him down and kill him. Billy The Tout laughed a lot, but his eyes were not laughing.) Then my Brother and I were in the venue and we had some more drinks.

We checked out the crowd. 16-24 at most. We checked out the ladies. Lots of polka dot blouses. Is that the 'in thing' for the kids? We checked out the bar (again) and then we checked out the band.

Jeans, leather jackets and T-shirts. The lead singer had a curly perm and was very bouncy; running around the stage, hanging off the stage and jumping off the speakers. Very enthusiastic. The Pigeon Detectives played fast Indie pop mostly, although there was a ballad in there somewhere. Crunching guitars, melodic bass, cymbal driven drums. Big choruses. Actually it was a really good sound mix, not something you always get at the Carling Academy. I could hear understand every word of every song, or was that because my Brother sang along throughout? Might be.

I had a thoroughly good time and did not have a hangover the next day, which was also a result.

Hard to know if the Pigeon Detectives will endure. There are just so many similar bands around. Depends on if they progress musically, says muso Jerry.

I like "Take Her Back", so here it is.



"Forgetting Sarah Marshall".



I have thus far been nearly immune to the talents of Judd Apatow and his merry band of funmeisters. I have never seen "Knocked Up" or "Superbad" or "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby". No doubt one day I will. I have seen "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and "Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy" on TV and found them... well... OK, I suppose. Not really my cup of tea, but nothing awful enough to make me want to change the channel.

I went to see "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" last Monday. So, why exactly did I bother to see it, when everything in the press has pointed out that it is exactly the same as every other Judd Apatow produced movie?

Frankly, nowt else on at the cinema that I could be arsed with. (Indy? "Sex And The City"? Thank you, but No.)

"Forgetting Sarah Marshall" again, is OK. Really it is. OK is good and better than not OK. Not a disaster, not a masterpiece, but OK and alright, and it does the job it sets out to do. Funny in parts, grossly rude in others. Some nice performances from Jason Segel, Kristen Bell and the UK's very own Russell Brand. Interesting to read that Russell Brand is generally considered to have stolen every scene in which he appears, when Brits will tell you that what he is doing is a watered down version of the standard shtick he has been using on British TV and radio since his UK breakthrough a couple of years back. Still, if it works, why not?

"Forgetting Sarah Marshall" has done the expected business in the UK and the States and is a competent piece of comedy. Could be a lot worse.