Coal Exchange Farewell Party 15/09/2007

At this particular moment in time Cardiff very much resembles a massive bombsite with the city centre having been almost completely demolished to make way for a huge temple to rampant consumerism. The legendary Spillers Records has already been under threat from money-hungry developers, and Saturday 15th September marked the farewell to yet another victim of so-called progress.

Surprisingly little fuss has been made over the last year or so concerning the impending demise of much loved live music venue The Coal Exchange which is about to undergo a £20 million redevelopment, including “commercial, office and residential units”. According to Macob, who are responsible for the project, the hall will be retained for live events. However, it is unclear whether we will ever see the kind of live bands and 12-hour raves that we’ve grown accustomed to once apartments surround it. What better excuse then to enjoy one last banging party within those stunning walls? Coal Exchange regulars TANTRUM made sure the legendary venue received the send-off it deserved with a massive free party. Kicking off at 4pm it featured 11 hours of some of Cardiff’s favourite bands and DJs, with Ninjah compeering.

Arriving on time for a change I joined the small crowd that had gathered on the steps to bask in the evening sun. There was a lot of friendly chatter, drink and a lovely vibe, and to be honest, I did not venture inside until some time later when the sounds of the first band, Cardiff newcomers THE WHISTLING BISCUITS aroused my curiosity. Amazingly, it was only their second gig, which I am sure everyone there found hard to believe. Led by singer/songwriter Owen Bowley, this folk/ prog rock influenced six-piece is definitely going places. Their tunes feature great arrangements and the melodies and vocal harmonies literally made my hair stand up on end! What a marvellous start to the party! Hopefully Cardiff will be seeing a lot more of them in the months to come, as this is a band not to be missed.

Just about time for a sneaky fag before one of my personal favourites, TOP SHELF JAZZ took the stage. This was actually the first time I’ve seen the full band since their return from Down Under. Complete with tap-dancing courtesy of Lula Shaker they played a blinder of a set. As night began to fall, crowds of people started filing into the building and congregating outside. What with the smoking ban and it being a lovely mellow evening, there were as many people outside as in giving the event a lovely festival feel. Ever-omnipresent Cosmo turned up with a portable amp and guitar and gave an impromptu set in the car park much to everyone’s delight. The singer only narrowly escaped serious injury when one over-enthusiastic dancer flung himself at him in a drunken frenzy, but soon recovered from the initial shock and continued entertaining us with classics such as ”Expressin’ myself” and “Oi mush”.

Time was flying by and the next time I found myself stumbling back inside the party was in full swing and the marvellous 19th century building was packed to the rafters with sweaty, happy partygoers bouncing along to the up-and-coming STAEDLER AND WALDORF. I’d seen them a couple of months back and had been slightly disappointed, but this time they were totally on form and had the crowd bopping to the pounding rhythms of “K2” like crazed baboons. The vocalist sounded great and the bass player’s contortions were as ever causing me a great deal of amusement. I managed to join in the dancing for about five seconds before finding myself being dragged back across the hall, fresh can of Red Stripe in hand, by a friend on a desperate mission to smoke yet another cigarette.

I do in fact have to admit that I spent a great deal of time outside or milling around the hall giving people drunken bear hugs throughout the evening. This, in any case is my excuse for having absolutely no recollection of some of the goings-on that night. One strong memory is of sharing a Chinese take away with the aforementioned friend, my share for some reason consisting mainly of poppadums. I also remember dancing to TATTSYRUP but seem to have completely missed out on the TEXAS RADIO BAND and only got a split seconds glimpse of BATUCADA BASICS. However, I was thoroughly enjoying the atmosphere, which was amazing everywhere I went, toilets included.

One band I did manage to catch was SICKNOTE who have been regulars at the Coal Exchange over the past year or so and whose most recent gigs include the Metro Weekender. Never failing to entertain, they had the whole place bouncing in no time with obligatory dancers joining the band onstage, including recent regular supporters ELEPHANT FOOT. I was surprised to see that P&O who is usually responsible for the amazing visuals, had swapped his projector for a microphone, behind which he stood looking the epitome of cool and not doing much. Just as the first notes of the amazing “Headshot” blasted out of the speakers, I was once again wrenched away from the action and dragged violently out of the building for further lung damage.

The party continued until 3 in the morning with banging Drum ‘n’ Bass from APERTURE DJs. Wimp that I am, I took my leave at about 2AM, ready for a nice cuppa and warm bed, but very happy to have experienced a brilliant farewell party befitting of such a great place as the Coal Exchange.