The Village is shit

Saw Mogwai on Sat night at the Village (formerly the Mean Fiddler then Mono). Neither of these previous venues were brilliant but they were all right. The latest incarnation is a couple of steps backwards though. The entrance is just to the right of the front of the stage [so you don't disturb the crowds in the pub below I suppose - perviously you entered via a stairwell from the front (there is some part of a stairwell still there - it has been moved a little but now is a fire exit (well the bouncer wasn't letting anyone in or out)] and you have a steady stream of people coming and leaving most of the night through there. The toilets are still behind the stage and you have to elbow your way along the left hand side to get there. The bar has been moved to the other side so now the venue is very long and narrow (3 or 4 times as long as it's wide). No Golden Ratios here as regards length and width. Plus the bloody sound desk takes up half the width of the venue. So when it is crowded as it was at a sold out Mogwai you are perhaps 30 metres from the stage straining to see above the sound desk that is half way between you and the stage. It is just rubbish. Plus 2 drinks cost more than a tenner. Plus you're chucked out at 11 so they can sell the venue all over again (so just 90 minutes of Mogwai). I've never got too annoyed by venues before, the Ambassador is kippish but you can move around and get a decent enough view, the Red Box does get too crowded but again you can at least see. But this was just shit.

Mogwai were great when I wasn't fuming. The new songs sound good. I can't wait to actually enjoy them properly at Glastonbury. It was Stuart's birthday and the crowd sung Happy Birthday to him.

The support was Noaxgt (??), drums, all muscular bass and a viola. Fairly interesting but no huge variation. If the bass playing wasn't always being so angry and purposeful it would perhaps be better.