The History of the Hangover Lounge

The Hangover Lounge turns 6 this Sunday, May 25. Last year we put on a gig - Birdie, Amor de Dias and Hacia Dos Veranos - and gave away a glossy fanzine. That zine contains a history of the Hangover Lounge's first 5 years. There have been many great events in the last year, but settle back and read about the first 5 years.

Oh, and come along this Sunday. It'll be great to see you relaxing as always.


Gather round as we relate the many heroic tales, valiant adventures and musical milestones of London’s award-winning club.

2008-2009
John invents the Hangover Lounge but seeing as his record collection consists of a Can box set and the B*Witched back catalogue, Tim and Ben are recruited to cover the musical gaps. We open at the Salmon and Compass in Islington, playing every Sunday. We start doing monthly gigs, beginning with a young Australian, Elizabeth Morris, who plays AC/DC’s You Shook Me All Night Long on the ukulele. She’s very good. We become a venue on London popfest and cajole The Hit Parade into playing.

2009-2010
100 yards down the road, the Lexington are feeling like they’re missing out so we accept their promotion offer. John gets a girlfriend, which is the real reason he wanted to become a DJ. We wait for his resignation letter. Eventually, we accept that he’s staying. Such are the demands of running an award-winning weekly club we recruit a new board member, Steve. He tells us he knows Brian Wilson, so we expect a special secret gig. Steve receives a written warning for wearing a Jefferson Starship shirt and then an official reprimand for wearing a Survivor shirt. Turns out he doesn’t know that Brian Wilson. He’s got a car, though, so we retain his services.

2010-2011
We expand our entertainment empire into the world of actual record releases. Our first 10” EP features Amor de Dias’ excellent debut and Allo Darlin’s best song to date, Tallulah, written especially for this release. A production line of volunteers help sleeve 500 of them in the Lexington one Sunday. Heartwarmingly, the same people help sleeve the next two EPs. Tim moves our merchandising into new, even giddier, heights by making beer mats.

2011-2012
Edwyn Collins plays an acoustic gig. A number of grown men appear to have ‘something in their eye’. We release our second 10” EP, featuring Pam Berry’s first solo outing, a cover of Love’s Wonder People (I Do Wonder). She claims this got her a “handwritten cease and desist order sent straight from the grave by Arthur Lee”. We claim that it’s really rather good. The question ‘why isn’t anyone paying tribute to the memory of Grant McLennan’ becomes ‘why don’t we do something’. We have our first annual McLennan tribute day. To celebrate our third birthday, Darren Hayman designs a splendid poster.

2012-2013
We move to the Union Chapel for one day in January, as part of our first Lost Weekend, and celebrate the release of our third 10” EP. Due to the vagaries of international record pressing (aka not being as important as Mr Big Records, who have block booked the Czech Republic’s pressing plants in the run-up to record store day) a hectic dash by car is required to get the records to the church on time. And that is why we kept Steve and his car on the team. Saint Etienne launch their Words & Music album in May with a Q&A. Robert Forster sees footage of our second McLennan tribute day, starring David Westlake, Phil King and Pete Astor, among others, and sends a lovely email thanking the bands for their “incredible gesture”.

2013
We press 500 copies of a 7” picture disc. And then give them away. It’s the most expensive flyer ever. It seemed like a good idea at the time. It still does. Withered Hand headline the Union Chapel on our second Lost Weekend and it’s so busy they have to open the upstairs. We release our first album, Limay by Hacia Dos Veranos. We expect it to go gold. It sounds that good. Due to swingeing government cuts, the RNLI is replaced by the Hangover Lounge as the fourth emergency service.

Disclaimer: we cannot help you in a shipping crisis, but we can help calm your hurting head on a Sunday.

Grant McLennan tributes filmed

Thanks to Luke Haines, David Westlake and Heathers' Michael Avishay for reminding us, again, what brilliant songs Grant McLennan wrote and what wonderful musicians he inspired.

We'll start with Luke and David playing together for the first time in 23 years.



Luke played The Monkees' Pleasant Valley Sunday in recognition of Grant's Monkees devotion, then played Don't Let Him Come Back.



Michael played a new song inspired by The Go-Betweens, an inspired version of Streets Of Your Town, and Cattle and Cane (last year on hearing Elizabeth Morris was going to play Cattle and Cane, Robert Forster remarked "that is a brave choice").

A letter from Grant McLennan, February 1979

Grant McLennan "hails from the outback. His family are pioneers. He is courteous and listens to the radio a lot."

The Clientele / Birdie / The Would-be-goods: Friday 11 July

It's not very often we arrange ticketed shows, but when we do we do our best to make sure they're good ones. This is no exception. We're proud to announce, in conjunction with our friends at Chickfactor, this blinding bill featuring rare sets from three of our very favourite groups: The Clientele, Birdie and The Would-be-goods. 

Even when these groups played more often they didn't play enough. These days, we miss them and can't wait to see them. 

What's more, everyone who buys a ticket gets a free copy of a beautiful brand-new 7" picture disc featuring new songs by The Clientele and Birdie!

The show will be on Friday 11 July. Tickets have been on sale for a few days and they are selling fast, so be sure to get yours quickly. Like, now, preferably. They're available here but I fear they won't be for very long. 

While your diaries are out, make a note of the afternoon of the Sunday immediately after that, Sunday 13th July. Back to the usual Hangover Lounge Sunday afternoons, we are working on yet another extremely special line-up. More of that soon. 

Incidentally, we think the photo of The Clientele up there is by Gail O'Hara of Chickfactor, but we're not absolutely certain and we'll correct the photo credit asap if we have to! 

Grant McLennan tribute gig 4 May 2014

It's that time of year when we celebrate the work of one of our best-loved songwriters ever, Grant McLennan. Our fourth annual Grant McLennan gig stars David Westlake again, because it wouldn't be the same without him (you should listen to his radio session backed by Robert Forster, Amanda Brown and Robert Vickers). And you should know that The Servants' excellent Small Time/Hey Hey We're The Manques! is now on vinyl.

We're equally delighted to welcome Heathers from Los Angeles, one of our favourite bands to debut last year. Of course they're Go-Betweens fans. Why would they not be. Here, listen to the rough and tumble jangle of their new single:



There's a very special guest joining us. Don't ask us who, because we're not telling. Last year Robert Forster dropped in, fought the jetlag and played a couple of songs. You remember:



We open our doors at 2pm. The gig's free and starts at 3pm. You should stick around afterwards and go to the Odd Box gig in the evening. Why not? It's a bank holiday the next day. Why? 4 ace bands, that's why:

Kid Canaveral
One Happy Island
Night Flowers
Chorusgirl

Gavin Osborn, Grace Petrie, MJ Hibbett - free gig June 1

Gavin Osborn sings about break-ups and girls. And occasionally, burgers, clown-costumes and cryogenic freezing. A lyrical feast for the wistful, the hopeful, the lovelorn and the losers. In his own words.

He has recorded three albums for Banquet Records - In The Twee Small Hours, Meeting Your Heroes, and Come On Folks, Settle Down. He is regularly on BBC Radio 4, has co-written heart-warming midnight story-shows with comedian Daniel Kitson, with whom he toured the UK in 2010, supporting Belle and Sebastian.

Here he is with Kitson at Latitude:



"Gavin Osborn writes minutely detailed, bittersweet story songs on his acoustic guitar and sings them with a comic timing usually absent from his anti-folk contemporaries." - Stewart Lee, The Sunday Times

Grace Petrie is a songwriter, activist and performer from Leicester. She exploded onto the national protest scene in 2010 with the emotive anthem Farewell to Welfare, which captured perfectly the spirit of the new wave of dissent in austerity Britain. Since then she has quietly become one of the most respected independent songwriters working in the UK today.

Her young career boasts three studio albums and national tours with Emmy the Great, Josie Long and Robin Ince, as well
as a string of festival performances including Latitude, End of the Road and Glastonbury.

In 2012 she appeared on Channel 4's Random Acts, in a video made by award-winning director Chris Shepherd for her song "Rise". She has been featured in the Guardian, Diva Magazine and named 'one to watch' the Independent on Sunday's Pink List. She has appeared
on BBC Radio 4's The Now Show, and writes brilliant third-person autobiographies.




MJ Hibbett has performed live on Radio One, had a Record Of The Year in Rolling Stone, an Album Of The Day on 6Music, released one of the first ever viral videos, inspired a character in Judge Dredd, toured all around the world, very narrowly avoided writing an autobiography, and taken five productions to the Edinburgh Fringe, all independent of
record companies or management. He doesn't expect a medal for it, though a pint would be nice.



This gig starts early at 2pm and will be over by around 4pm. And it's free.

The Understudies album launch Sunday 30 March

The Understudies are launching their finger-snapping, rump-shaking debut album, Let Desire Guide You Hand, on Sunday March 30 with A Little Orchestra.

You won’t have forgotten their 2013 star turn at our Lost Weekend:



And A Little Orchestra, the hardest working orchestra in showbusiness, will be playing a set of their own, too.



Enderby’s Room, meeting all your indiepop folk needs since 2012, make a welcome return. They were very good a year ago. They’re better still now.



Tickets are a mere £4, or £12 if you fancy a side order of The Understudies’ album with your ticket. And if you’re a fan of Spector pop and Smiths jangle, the £12 option is recommended.

The Lounge is open from 2pm as usual. Doors to the gig open at 6pm and the whole shebang will be over by 9.30.