D.I.Y. In Pictures Part II

I'm not really sure it should be called D.I.Y. because it's my actual job, but I'm sure you get the idea. Here are a couple of examples of what I've been up to recently. If you wish to see Part I then click Here.

The first set of photos belong to the house a couple of doors down from me. The previous occupant moved out and it was in dire need of some work. Broken curtains, shitty furniture, damp and 15 year old carpet with no underlay were just some of the obstacles that needed to be overcome.

This is a prime example of how disgusting some people can be. The grey line on top of everything is actually dust. Proper thick dust. I know the carpet is old, but seriously, ever heard of a hoover??

The small crack in the wallpaper turned out to be damp that covered the entire bay window wall. Removal of everything and replastering was the order of the day.

And so...after getting shot of the carpet, fixing the floorboards, replastering, filling, sanding, stain blocking, PVA-ing, caulking, priming, undercoating, more painting and a new carpet and furniture...the room now looks like this...

Next up is a job I've just finished elsewhere. For 2 quite lovely ladies. The task was to remove the quite delectable wallpaper from the walls, build some cupboards and put up some shelves, then paint. But with so many jobs, there were small hiccups.

Removing the wallpaper exposed walls that had seen better decades. There was little choice but to call in the plasterers and have the whole room skimmed. So here's the second stage.

Next up was to start the painting before the chippy arrived to put the cabinets together. After much furious sanding, painting, filling, more sanding, more painting and yours truly putting the shelves up (which are VERY level I'll have you know) the end product looks a little like this...

I love getting jobs that involve a bit more than just putting paint on walls. There's much more of a sense of achievement afterwards, which is a rare feeling having done this type of work for so long.

A much delayed update to Song of the Week, but I think you may agree that it's worth waiting for. I watched Jools Holland again the other night and Muse were on. So click the top right video to watch their performance of Uprising. Enjoy.

The Moons @ The 100 Club, Oxford Street

All Mod Cons went to the 100 Club again the other night to check out The Moons. With front man Andy Crofts and the rest of the band on absolutely fine form it was definitely a night to remember. Please feel free to check out their MySpace page (above) and their blog (HERE), which is currently showing footage of them supporting Ocean Colour Scene in Crewe.

Turning up to the venue early to get tickets saw unexpected benefits, with AMC stumbling in on The Moons going through their sound check. Normally you don't get to see any of this so out came the camera to record the moment.

After they'd finished Andy came over to say hello (and probably make sure we weren't up to no good). Not only is he an excellent musician but he's incredibly approachable and was more than happy to have his photo taken with yours truly. He even put me and CF on the guest list. Mr Crofts, you're a gent.

With the support act, Operator 6, warming the crowd up nicely The Moons took to the stage and let fly with 8 fantastic tracks. Expect to hear big noises from this band coming your way soon. For those of you fortunate enough to be living in the UK look out for details of them supporting The Rifles and more OCS gigs. If my luck holds out I'll be heading up to Camden next Wednesday to see them with The Rifles at the Narrow Minded Social Club.

The evening was filled with fantastic music and even more excellent people. Outside I saw legend that is Eddie Piller again (top bloke that he is) and the outstanding Stefan who was there proving once again that he is a ludicrously good photographer. Below are some more snaps of some of the bods that I was with.

New Housemate T

T's other half...V (Not Hugo Weaving's character...obviously).

The lovely CF

And Czech Boy showing how the Europeans end their nights...

All in, a brilliant evening. Special shouts to Andy, Ed, Stefan, P, K, Debs, Darren, and everyone else.