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H2Volume 9/Issue 2/5/11/07

/PAD: WHATS YOUR

PROBLEM? page 8

/STUDENTS AND

THEIR MULTIPLE(LACK OF) USES

page 10

/ONE WEEKEND IN

TELEVISIONLAND page 14


2/44

Editors letter

H2O Magazine,

Students Union,Bath Spa University,

Newton Park,

Bath,

BA2 9BN

Email:[email protected]

01225 875588

www.bathspasu.co.uk/h20

Editor/ Dan Polak

Features Editor/ Vicki Mason

Arts Editor/ Stuart Richardson

Music Editor/ Dan Manning

Sports Editor/ Lizzie Overton

Sub Editors/ Claire Sibbick

Harry Shorthouse

Jasmine Ayres

Rosie Taylor-Trigg

Photographer/ Lotte North

Marketing/ Tim Holden

Simon Antrobus

VP Communications and

Campaigns/ David Jones

Contributors/ Owen Davies,

Alex Ross, Katie Steed, Rosie

Taylor-Trigg, Matt Bolton, Emily

Farrar, Martyn Burchett, Nat

Huitson, Claire Morris, Debbie

Attwood, Molly Case, AmyPatterson, Chris MacLennan,

Dave Jones, Bethan Howell,

James Anderson, Oz Webb

The opinions expressed in the

pages of this paper are those

of the authors and do not

necessarily represent the views

of Bath Spa University Students

Union. However, BSU Students

Union makes every effort to

check the content of the articles .

This month in numbers:

600 Number of extra copiesprinted last month compared with the

month before

19 Articles promised but notdelivered

1 Number of emails asking forncreased number of cheese-based

articles.

Good hello,

The year trudges on; the rst years are settled and stock-

piling trolleys. The second years are disillusioned and

getting drunk out of boredom more than anything else and

he third years have woken up to the idea of the real world

ust around the corner and are systematically applyingor any kind of post-grad qualication that will keep them

waking up at one in the afternoon for a bit longer. So all is

as expected.

This issue has gone quite smoothly thanks to our lovely

new people. Hello new people. Of course the slickness of

production is also in debt to the old people as well. Hello

old people.

This month Im approaching the issue of PAD in myeditorial. We will have another survey coming up in the

very near future to gauge your opinions on the matter

and well publish the results so that you can have a look

at who thinks what. Id like to point out that in every H2O

where I or one of the team approaches an issue relating

o university life, we will follow it up. In that spirit, I hope

you will all attend the Make Wednesday Afternoons Free

protest outside main house, as we certainly will be there.

Also pick up an issue of H2O soon for our investigation into

he available rooms, with our very own room audit. Letssee if we can clear some space for sports, skills and all

kinds of things that make us much more rounded people.

Not fat. More attributes. Talents and stuff.

Dan


3/44

CONTENTS

REGULARS/

ON THE COVER/

SPECIAL FEATURES/

sabbaticals page 4

jobshop page 24

arts page 20music page 30

sports page 37

scouts and their uses page 12a residents guide to Bath page 13

band prole page 18

live band review page 19

is pad bad? editorial page 8

what are students for? page 10

tv week, jimmy carr in the bogs, page 16


4/44

James

Anderson:

SU Presidentello again everyone, hope you

re all ok and youve started

our year on the right foot.

opefully you havent spent

ll your money at the bar!

hat said if you do have any

roblems through the year then

he Students Union is the place

o come for help and advice

with anything and everything!

Current issues

s your President it is my

esponsibility to represent

ou and help sort out any

roblems students have. I

ave recently come across two

reas of concern that many

tudents feel strongly aboutnd this is where I can help.

us Service

rom talking to students,

omplaints to me and from

eading Facebook it is evident

hat the bus service falls well

elow the expectations oftudents, especially when

ou are paying 82 a term for

he service! I have had a fair

mount of complaints emailed

o me about the bus service and

took these to a meeting with

two representatives of First who

are currently looking through

them to improve their service.

They have said they will try

and put more buses on where

possible and will look into the

customer service provided by

their drivers as many complaints

were about rude drivers. This

is the rst step towards a goodbus service but we need to be

a little patient as First put their

changes to work. Whilst these

plans are put into action can I

please ask all students to be

patient with drivers and try your

hardest not to be rude in return.

The main problem drivers are

having is students leaving

the Students Union on a

Wednesday or Friday night

and pushing to get on the bus.

For the future, can all students

please follow a few guidelines

when using the 418 service;

Dont push to get on the bus

at the end of the night- the 418

buses can hold up to 120 people

so there is more than enoughroom for everyone on two buses

Do not threaten drivers- if drivers

are shouted at or threatened

they will not drive the bus and

then no-one goes anywhere

Move down the bus- no

matter what time of day. If you

have to stand up please move

down so people getting on

dont have to squeeze pastand the bus driver then knows

how much room there is.

Try to have the correct change!

This speeds up your paying

process so the buses wont run late

If we can follow these guidelines

then the drivers will be more co-

operative and we can show First

that we can keep our end of the

deal and it is their turn to improve

the service for the students that

pay so much. Everyones co-

operation in this matter will be

greatly appreciated. If there

are any other complaints you

would like me to pass on then

please email me with details

of exact time and date to: su-

pres [email protected].

Wednesday Afternoons

Want to be part of a club

or society but have no free

time? Want to represent theuniversity by volunteering?

Want a guaranteed time all

year round when you can work

part time? Want set time each

week to do group work? Want

a time when you know you can

practice/rehearse for upcoming

events/assessments? These

are the types of things students

are being restricted from doing

every year and I have had so

many complaints from students

about the troubles they face. We

are one of the only universities

in the country that does not have

Wednesday afternoons free for

students to take part in extra

curricular activities, which I feel

are important to development ofnew employability skills, or study/

rehearse to improve grades in

assessments. I am asking all

students who feel they would like

to get involved in this campaign

to get in touch by emailing

me (su-president@bathspa.

ac.uk) with contact details so

we can get the ball rolling. All

the plans are in early stagesbut I will be doing a feasibility

study to show the University

that it is possible without too

much disruption, and then I

will want student involvement

to show the University this

is what the students want.

Thats what I am mainly focusing

on at the moment but if there are

other issues bothering you please

do not hesitate to get in touch.

Id like to say a big thank you

to everyone that helped with


5/44

Bethan Howell:

VP

Activities andParticipation

ath Spas Got Talent which

was a great night with loads of

alented people. With another

pen mic coming soon you

might have another chance to

ee the great song writing skills

f Alex Edworthy, the amazing

oice of Kerry Smith singing her

wn songs, the breathtaking

uitar playing from MarkColdham and Olly Wright on

is didgeridoo and harmonica.

Congratulations to the winner

Mitch Miller who won two tickets

o Amsterdam. Keep your eyes

ut for Open Mic as everyone

s invited to play and practice

laying in front of a crowd.

inally, I hope everyone keeps

n eye out for the November

ampaigns from my counterpart

P David Jones and uses VP Beth

owell to join a society or sign up

o a trip/activity (its not too late)

ake care

hwmae Spartans!

Hopefully youve all settled

into a routine by now and work

hasnt started to get on top of

you yet. As for us sabbs things

havent really settled down since

freshers week! Outside of our

normal ofce hours weve had

brilliant Flirt!, Flux (including

Stingray from Neighbours guestappearance!!), Open Mic, Bath

Spas Got Talent and Karaoke

nights. So make sure you get up

to your SU and dont miss out!

The rst couple of weeks I was

busy with the sports teams who

went on Varsities to Newport(03/10) and Winchester (10/10)

and had a chance to get their

freshers out in friendly matches.

We took over 200 students over

both weeks and came from there

with some successful results.

The stars on both days were the

newly formed basketball team

who won on both occasions

(beating last years BUSAchamps!) having never played a

match before. As for all the other

teams, it was nice to have such

a positive start to the year with

a good turn out, so lets keep

that up for the rest of the year!

One of the Go for it! activities

we held was the free learn to DJ

session on 16/10. The session

was taken by resident student

DJ Chris Bibby and was a great

success. About 15 hopeful DJs

turned up, and after being shown

the ropes by Chris, had a go of

mixing some tunes themselves.

We are looking to hold anothersession in the near future, so if

you are interested get in touch

via my e-mail. I would like to add

a personal thank you to Chris for

taking this session and also doing

a smashing job headlining the

Flirt! and Flux on a weekly basis.

Tuesday 23rd of October saw the

nal of Bath Spas Got Talent at

NP SU, and what a night it was!

We had drums, guitars, singers,

didgeridoos, harmonicasthelot! The competition was a

brilliant opportunity for our

students to get up and show

their talent, and the feedback

from the audience was positive.

Thank you to everyone who

went to the effort of entering and

performing (including those in the

rst heats) because it does take

some balls to get up on stage

and do what you did in front of

an audience!! The winner was a

very talented fresher Mitch Miller

who sang his own song, and

Everything by Michael Bubl,

and pocketed himself 2 tickets to

the Amsterdam trip! Keep an eye

out for next terms competition,

will it be Spas in your eyesor Spa Idol? wait and see!!

We held our rst curry night at

the SU on Saturday the 27th of

October which sold out within

15 minutes! The next chance

youll get to snap up a curry

and a drink for only 5 will

be on the 10th of November.

Thats about it from me, so take

it easy and if theres anything

you want your SU to provide,

please free to approach us

and raise any issues you have.

Beth xxx


6/44

David Jones:

VP

Communications

and Campaigns

ey there Kats and Kittens,

ope that youve had a good

ouple of weeks at the start

f term, and are now getting

well into the swing of things.

o where to start, well, after

getting my article in a little bit

late for Dan, I thought I would

do that same for this edition of

H2O. We have been getting

some good feedback from

H2O. So please continue to

support you student magazine

by sending in your stories,

pictures and news. It would be

especially good if we could getsome correspondents from the

halls of residence, and that

does include Somerset Place,

Waterside Court and Bankside.

This is your magazine too.

On the web front, things on the SU

website are ticking over nicely. A

big thanks to the 200 of you who

are currently signed-up to use

the group:space area. It is home

to exclusive content from Bath

Spas Got Talent and Friday Flux.

Talking of Bath Spas Got

Talent, I want to say a huge

well done and thank you to

all of the nalists. A massive

shout-out to Mitch, our rst Bath

Spas Got Talent winner; he is

a huge talent so look after him!

Things in the Union ofce

have certainly slowed down

after Freshers Week, although

things are now looking forward

to Christmas. Its really hard to

think of things to buy people.

In the last few years, Ive had

the silly notion that having an

ebay christmas would be cool.

This was not the case, althoughsome of the bargains that you

can nd on ebay are amazing!

Anyway, this month sees a big

awareness campaign taking

place. Look out for information

about personal safety, drink

and drug awareness, and safe

sex. For more information, keep

your eyes out at the campuses.

Just quickly to mention, we are

currently conducting a survey

about the ents run by the SU.

If you get involved, you could

win a new iPod nano. Simply

visit the SU website and follow

the link on the home page.

You stay classy Bath Spa,

and thanks for stopping by!

David

You attend one of only 6universities thatdoesnt have wednesday afternoons free forsports and skills. Help us change that.

www.bathspasu.co.uk/wednesdayafternoons


7/44

MONEY MATTERSEvery issue our welfare ofce furnish you with the many things that the University

of Life would have taught you by now. Its basically like going to two universities.

Except the University of Life was just made up by miners and taxi drivers.

ncome can be tight when

oure a student, so you

eed to make the most of themoney you do have coming in.

Most of your income will arrive

n a lump sum three times

uring the academic year;

arly October after registration,

anuary and April. You will nd

helpful to work out a budget

andling your money matters

an be challenging, deciding

what your priorities are and how

much to spend on each item

an be confusing and initially

verwhelming. Here are some

money matters tips which will

ive an idea on how to handle

our money matters successfully.

irstly, remember that your loan

s paid in 3 installments at the

tart of each term in September,

anuary and April. Each payment

as to carry you until the next one.

Check youre receiving the

maximum Student Loan you are

ntitled to, two things to check:Have you applied for the

means tested element of

our student loan, this also

etermines possible grant

nd bursary entitlement?

Have you been paid for the

orrect number of weeks, (some

ourses are longer than others)?

in any doubt, check

with your Local Authority

Getting a bus pass is essential

or cheap traveling, this is

vailable from the Student Union

at 82 per term. You can travel

on all Bath services, as well

as using the bus at weekends.

Money MattersTips for Budgeting

-Spend some time planning

your income and expenditure

-Prepare or use a budget

sheet , there is an example

of this at welfare web page

-Recognise what you might

be worrying about, what you

might overspend on, what

your needs are, how your

lifestyle affects your money etc.

-List essential expenditure at

least once a month, maybe when

your bank statement comes in.

-Try to keep a record of

everything you spend, including

bank and credit card statements.

This helps identify regular and

occasional spending patterns

and you will need them to apply

for the Access to Learning Fund.

-Save (where you can) and

plan for extra expenditure such

as start of year costs, special

occasions, family birthdays etc.

-If you have debts, or feel you are

getting into debt, or are about toborrow money but worry about

paying it back, dont ignore the

situation. Go for advice from

the Welfare Ofce as soon as

possible. We will help you to deal

with the priority debts and help

you make the best decisions

and manage your budget.

-Open a student or graduatebank account if you havent

already got one. If you are

unable to get an account with

overdrafts because of debts or

any other reason, consider a

basic banking account and seek

advice from the Welfare Ofce.

-Try not to withdraw money

too often, for example,withdraw money for the week

-Consider where buying

books is essential and check

out second hand options,

libraries and sharing.

-Check out all student discounts

and nd out about emergency

nancial help, including the

Access to Learning Fund.

We do offer a money advice

service. Please visit welfare

webpage for further information.


8/44

EDITORIALWITH DAN POLAK

Who likes PAD? Because it

eems everyone doesnt. It

eems like everyone doesnt

ecause those who dont like

AD are very, very vocal about

. Why shouldnt they be? I think

AD is dire. Its patronising,

s slow moving, its repetitive.

actually reminds me a lot

f a module I took in the rstear called WRITING: THE

ROCESS, which was mostly

bout how we all like to write

tories in our pyjamas with

ome biscuits nearby, and (I

ave this on good authority)

was teachable in a single day.

AD follows the same kind of

oute. Most peoples problemwith it is the close-to-unbearable

atronising tone. Most people,

he vast majority, know not to

wear a polo shirt to an interview.

Of course you dont. Its stupid. It

makes you look eight years old

nd ready for a PE lesson. If you

ont know this, you dont deserve

o get the job. You are a stupid

erson. The only job you should

e able to get if youre wearing

polo shirt is retail assistant

t Sports World. Enjoy your life.

AD is hopelessly narrow. I took

reative PAD or whatever it was

alled because I want to be a

writer. This however, is not a

areer choice, not one that willain you any marks anyway.

One of my friends was stuck with

what to do for her placement.

he wants to write novels. It

was suggested she followed a

writer around for two weeks, and

watch them write. Brilliant. Shell

only learn what said writers hot

beverage preferences are, but

thats ne. It gets a tick in the

box. Thats all thats important.

Its also too easy. You watch a

video, you learn. That is how

its meant to work. You watch

a video. You learn. You writedown what you want to be when

you grow up. You deliver a

presentation on what you want

to be. In my presentation I lied

and said I want to be a teacher,

this is because I would fail if I

said I wanted to be a writer (not

on a magazine or paper) and

thats all I want to be ever, ever,

ever. I delivered the presentationwithout aids, without prompts

and without enthusiasm. It didnt

last the correct amount of time

and I almost killed myself half-

way through when I caught

a glimpse of some goodie-

goodies gargantuan 5-point-

plan on varying garish colours of

cardboard. I got a 2.1. I should

have failed. Why didnt I fail?

Its too easy. Everyone who sat

through those presentations saw

someone who should have failed,

but didnt. ITS TOO EASY!

It takes up module time. I wanted

to do a really quite cool module,

but couldnt. Thats annoying. I

cant remember what the modulewas and it probably wasnt as

cool as I wanted it to be, but still,

I knowPAD was crap. But I also

know this opinion isnt shared by

everyone. Actually, some people

like it. Remember when Matt

Most

people

know notto wear

a polo

shirt to aninterview...

if you

dontknow this,

you dont

deserve

the job


9/44

More from this writer at

www.h2oeditor.blog.com]

olton did the PAD survey last

ear for H2O? It came up 50/50.

ome people think its rubbish.

Others (mostly jam-for-brains)

hink its alright. So that means

s serving a purpose, right?

Recently a number of anti-

AD forums have asserted the

bsolute opposite. Everybodyates PAD. Yeah they do.

Were really very clever and

his is stupid, some particular

go-maniacs have said. Wow.

is stupid, thats true. But

hese people arent as clever

s they point out; I counted

he number of posts that had

mple grammatical and spelling

mistakes while arguing thathey were to inteligent [sic] to

e insulted by PADover 50%

ad them. Oh guys you are so

ntelligent. PAD isnt stupid, no,

oure really clever. You attend a

niversity that might even, one

ay, break into the top 50! If only

omeone would employ us, eh?

ot to say that people who go to

his university are stupid. No way.

ery clever people do attend

his institution, but the arrogant

one of a student wronged is the

east pleasant way to get a point

cross. This irritating voice litters

he forums like people in pink

pandex on unicycles in Bath.

l focus on the people making

kay points. Some people

nderstand that PAD has a use

o others, if not themselves. But

most people say that we dont

need PAD. One of the forums isactually called We Dont Need

PAD. What they fail to realise

is that their collective we is not

representative of the views of

the entire student population.

A sit-in has been mentioned. A

boycott (like you dont already)

is a prevalent suggestion.

Just one idea though. How about,

instead of trying to get rid of PAD

(which is bloody compulsory by

the way, so youre not going to

get rid of it) we try and change

it? We work with those in

charge, we talk to our student

reps. We suggest things. It

already helps people, lets make

it help more people. Make it intosomething that isnt derided by

so many and actually turns out

to be useful to those who have

held jobs before, and not just

that lucky few who never had

to interview for Tesco or Costa.

PAD needs to be more difcult.

It needs to not dilute and

standardise our attributes onour CVs and instead make them

stand out. It needs to improve,

but the powers that be know that

already, and if we gave them the

feedback that we reserve only

for internet forums, then they

would know what works and

what doesnt. One of the reasons

Bath Spa is held back is due to

employability. Lets change that.

Who knows, we might end up in

the top 50 universities, and give

those who chose the intelligence

argument a little more to go on.

Instead

of trying

to get ridof PAD,

we should

try andchange it


10/44

STUART RICHARDSON TALKS

STUDENTS

bet you got pissed last night

nd I bet you have a trafc cone

omewhere in your house. Even

you didnt and dont, I bet you

t a stereotype of a student in

ome way. I bet youve missed a

eadline at some point or gone

without washing for days onnd, getting sick off the mould

rowing over the plates rotting

n the side in your kitchen, still

moping about in your dressing

own at three in the afternoon

n a Tuesday. If you are honest,

ou will accept that a lot of

eople dont like students, and

you are really honest, you

will agree that they have some

egitimate reasons for this.

Alright, so this is the point

where the but we are the future

rgument comes out, we are

he next generation in training,

ght? Have a think for a minute.

bet you knew someone at

chool who went into their Dads

lumbing business or onto someock bottom desk job only to y

p the career ladder and turn up

o your Christmas reunion drinks

n a Paul Smith suit/Vivienne

Westwood dress they just got

ut of work in, telling you all

bout how theyve got their

yes on putting money down

n a rst house. I bet there is

omeone else you can thinkf whose band has got EMI

nifng around them or who has

ad their paintings hung in one

f Stella Vines galleries once

r twice, and they didnt even

ll out that bloody great UCAS

form for the privilege. The future

youre thinking of is already

the present, and no amount

of all-night benders or post-

modern H2O articles are going

to change the fact that what

we seem to be doing here ismarking time and little else. So

what the hell is the point to us?

I have a theory. We exist for

the sake of existing. One thing

that I have not mentioned so

far about my personal view of

University, and I am sure it is

an opinion that you will share,

even if you dont admit it, is that

University is just about the most

fun thing that ever existed this

side of the line of the law (for

the most part). Now, this may

sound like a paper thin excuse

to the quick-to-judge, and Im

sure there are many people who

will disagree on the basis that

they work twenty-thousand bar

jobs and still never have anymoney and fty-million essays

to do of eighty-billion words

each, but those people must go

to a different University to the

one I do. With no jobs and just

as many essays of just as many

words as well as the very notes

you are reading at the moment

to complete each month, I

manage to get out several timesa week and do what must be

done, and its brilliant. Seriously,

name something other than

international terrorism that is not

within your grasp at University,

If youre

honest,

you willaccept

that a lot

of people

dont like

students


11/44

More from this writer at

20artseditor.blog.com]

nd you get funding to do it! You

may be learning things here, I

ont deny this, in fact Bath Spaniversity went up several places

n The Times Good University

Guide recently, so they must be

oing something right, but there

re countless other places and

methods in and by which you

an obtain any of the awards you

an get here while contributing

o society in many varied and

meaningful ways at the sameme. The difference is that we

ontribute nothing while learning

nd get away with the things that

verybody in the world wishes

hey could get away with, but

ave a self-imposed reputation

r obligations to consider.

niversity is a beautiful thing,

nd a smarter man than myself

nce said something prettyood about beautiful things;

Those who nd ugly meanings

n beautiful things are corrupt

without being charming. This

s a fault. Those who nd

beautiful meanings in beautiful

things are the cultivated. For

these there is hope. They arethe elect to whom beautiful

things mean only Beauty.

As students we have more

freedom than any other group

of people who ever have or

maybe ever will exist. We owe

that to the world in which we

live, but we also owe to the

world in which we live to make

the most of the time we have.Especially these days, you who

are Freshers now know that

money is tighter than ever with

the new top-up fees you have to

pay. Nothing lasts forever, and

there will always be someone

who wants to squeeze cash out

of something that is essentially

unnecessary and/or fun. Nearly

nobody has the opportunities

we do, and potentially within

our lifetimes, nobody will. Enjoy

it, and seek nothing else from

it but your own enjoyment. It is

the only sensible thing to do.

We

contribute

nothingwhile

learning


12/44

SSAGO? Sounds like a

ebilitating disease that will

wreck the lives of not only theeople directed affected by it

ut also close family members!

ctually Student Scout And

Guide Organisation (SSAGO for

hort) is what Im shouting about,

nd youd be surprised just how

many people are listening. I

gned over my soul a year ago

nd Im determined that for everyhree people who ask me that

uestion, Im going to sign up a

ew member in turn. And do you

now what? So far its working.

Most havent heard of it before

r were scared away by the

Guiding and Scouting badges,

unning full pelt clutching their

treet cred. But behind the

adge is just little ol me and a

reat group of mates, who like

o meet up, toss their uni work

ver one shoulder and act our

hoe size, not our age. (What

ther group would choose to

ave their Flirt in pyjamas?!)

o give us a chance, this isnt

meant to brainwash you untilll you can manage is a dib

ib dib, just to say Hey! Look

ow much fun were having

nd why arent you joining in?!

never went to Brownies

ou say (and believe me, Ive

eard that from both sexes!).

o what? Neither have half of

ur members. But the fact thatwere always planning fun stuff

o do, be it bowling or a good old

ashioned twister tournament, is

good enough reason to check

s out. Take a look at our camp in

ovember for example; Ive had

people begging to join simply so

they can come and do things like

rie shooting, archery, abseiling

and crate climbing, stuff you

just dont get to do anywhere

else all in one place (unless

you get up to some pretty wild

things at your house parties!)

In a couple of weeks well be

having our annual Ready Steady

Cook competition, a chance for

students to ght back and show

that a culinary masterpiece can

be created with just a packet of

cornakes and a tin of bakedbeans. Last year Pope opened

its doors and its kitchens to us,

and it was here that legends such

as the cup of melted chocolate

served with a side spoon were

born. This year well be invading

another set of halls, creating

even more famous dishes

and all are welcome to join us,

members or not, were alwayslooking for guinea pig tasters

The Duke of Edinburgh award

is something else you can do

with us. Perhaps you started

it at school but never got the

chance to nish it? Or maybe

you were just too lazy but now

the opportunity to work off a

couple of those extra pints (1 a

pint man! How could I say no?!)

seems really tempting. Weve

got a great group who can guide

you through the whole thing,

and theyll even help to organise

your expedition module for you,

who could say no? It looks

amazing on your CV and people

will begin to refer to you as the

expert on all things outdoor.

Theres no uniform (unless youfancy wearing a little brown skirt,

far be it from me to discriminate),

no scary promise ceremonies,

just a group of guys and gals

who like to meet up every once

in a while, descend on the town,

drink it dry and then try and

light a campre. (Obviously

were responsible adults and

the thought of playing withre never crosses our minds

for a second, and neither

should it cross yours *smiles

sweetly at SU authorities*)

Sounds like fun doesnt it?

So what are you waiting for?

DIB DIB DIBClaire Morris explains SSAGO, Duke Of Edinburgh, and

why the scouts isnt all knots and whittling...


13/44

BATH: TOURISM FOR RESIDENTSWeve all seen the abbey

nd the countless tourists

hat take pictures of each

ndividual brick; but what

lse is there to see and do

n Bath? Debbie Attwood

akes a look.

Many a weekend I have spent

ondering the question, What

s there to do in Bath but drink

myself into oblivion?! Of course

here are the more obvious

hings, such as the cinema,

estaurants and even the

heatre, but sometimes a dayut somewhere different would

e nice. Lets face it, these

more popular past-times are

ot always available on a lowly

tudents budget. So, I got to

ooking and was surprised by

he array of activities one could

et up to on a small budget.

he main activity in Bath is

he good old culture fest thats the Roman Baths. This is

ne of the busier attractions,

ut if you fancy a look, or if

our parents have nagged you

bout making the most of living

n Bath, then the best time to

o is on a Sunday morning,

efore the shops open. The best

hing about them is; if youre atudent living in Bath, youll get

n for free! Providing you take

our student card, of course.

culture isnt really your thing,

here is more! Hamburger Hill

s only 7 miles from Bath and is

ke an adventure playground for

dults, it has all sorts of activities

om paint balling to quad biking

nd Laser Combat! The pricesre pretty reasonable as well.

whole day of paint balling

ncluding a two- course meal

nd all equipment (barring the

aintballs and the footwear) is

15; the same but for half a day

is a mere 10. Quad biking is

slightly more expensive see

www.hamburgerhill.co.uk for

details. Hamburger Hill could

be a bit difcult to get to without

a car but hiring a mini-bus

for a group wouldnt be thatexpensive, perhaps asking Uni

to run a trip there is the way to go.

Still on the idea of a sporting

day out there is the Entry Hill

golf course in Bath. The prices,

again, are not bad, and cheaper

with an NUS card see http://

www.aquaterra.org/BathNES/

entryhill/ for prices. Remember,

check out club hire if youre

not a pro golfer. If you are not

a pro you may also be more

comfortable with the Miniature

Golf course in Victoria Park. Its

around 3.50 for adults and with

18 adventure holes it could keep

the amateur golfer busy for hours!

There is a wider variety ofactivities and days out if you

feel like making the short trip

over to Bristol. It is under 6

for a return ticket with a Young

Persons Railcard and the

bus (although it takes longer)

works out even cheaper. Ice

skating is something to try if you

want to improve your tness

or just laugh at your friends

attempted pirouettes whilst

you cling to the railings. The

weekend sessions are slightlymore expensive than weekdays

and its best to check www.Jnll.

co.uk/bristol for the times when

skating is open to the public.

Bristol Zoo is another easy

train ride away and even more

affordable with the deal which

First Great Western trains do

on rail travel. If you buy an

offer ticket specically for the

zoo you get your rail ticket, a

bus transfer and admission to

the zoo for a very reasonable

price. Even cheaper with a

Young Persons Rail Card!

You only have 3 years, so

why not try out all Bath and

the surrounding area has tooffer; there is more to the

weekend than just waiting

for the night to come and the

clubs to open - you can have a

brilliant day out for under 20.


14/44

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BY BATH SPA UNIVERSITY

STUDENTS UNION TO BE

YOUR TAXI SERVICE

AT ALL TIMES

ESTABLISHED 1971

24 HOURS A DAY WITH A FLEET OF OVER 150 VEHICLES

RANGING FROM SALOON TO MULTI-PEOPLE CARRIERS AND

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SPECIAL RATES FOR ALL STUDENTS TRAVELLING TO AND FROM

NEWTON PARK, SION HILL, WATERSIDE COURT AND

CULVERHAY SCHOOL.

AIRPORT TRANSFERS & OTHER TRIPS - PRICES UPON REQUEST

PLEASE NOTE: NORMAL ADDITIONAL FARES APPLY TO ALL VEHICLES ON BANK HOLIDAYS

PLEASE CANCEL TAXIS IF THEY NOT REQUIRED

NO FARES COST THE DRIVER - THANK YOU!

ABBEY TAXIS

44 44 44

TEL: 01225

ALWAYS REMEMBER TO RING


15/44

Win an iPod with

Bath Spa SU.

www.bathspasu.co.uk/ents

We want to know whatyou think about the

entertainments run here

at Bath Spa. Go onto the

Union website and ollowthe links to our Ents Survey.

We want as much input as we can, so

we are oering you a new iPod Nano

in a prize draw. Simply fll in thesurvey, and youre entered.

Its that simple.


16/44

VYP is the charitable arm ofhe MediaGuardian Edinburgh

nternational Television Festival

one of the many Edinburgh

estivals that happen along

with the Fringe), and gives

50 people aged 18-25 a

hance to join in the MGEITF

normally 500 for free, and

ttend specic workshops and

masterclasses. Thousands

pply by lling out some

xtremely short essays online,

nd then the 150 are invited to

dinburgh for the weekend, all

xpenses paid. Those last three

words are to H2O journalists as

WordArt is to GCSE students.

he event opened with perennialomedic terrier Simon Amstell

n conversation with MGEITF

egular Hardeep Singh Kohli.

mstell talked about getting into

he industry and how he was

red from his rst job by TVYP

rganiser Joe Godwin, who shyed

way at the back. Incidentally,

was on Nickelodeon and it

was for being too sarcastic.mstell was extremely shy and

ncomfortable when it comes to

alking about himself, maintaining

hat the person we see on

creen is him, but a bravado-

led version of him that comes

om wanting to be entertaining.

ove him or hate him, he should

e respected for never being

willing to compromise his views

r his style, even when theyve

otten him red or caused

etwork bosses to reprimand

im. I had the chance to speak

o him after, and spoke to him

about the BBC versus Channel4. He had nothing but praise for

his newest bosses, saying that

they always back their shows,

including his own example

when Preston stormed off Never

Mind the Buzzcocks. Where

Channel 4 had backed shows

like Brass Eye, they simply

panicked that T4 wouldnt be

able to get the pop acts to

return and get the kids to watch.

This was followed by a casino

night in the function rooms,

with free waitress drinks service

all night. This was probably to

blame for my performance at

the poker table, impressing a

total of zero network bigwigswith my chutzpah at the felt.

The night also yielded a

random and somewhat unusual

meeting with Jimmy Carr in

the mens room, but I dont

really want to talk about that.

The Friday was the day of

masterclasses. There are

almost twenty on the day, butmany happen at the same time

so you have to make choices.

These include classes with

Krishnan Guru-Murthy; Simon

Shaps, Director of Television at

ITV; and Hilary Bevan Jones,

whose production credits

include Red Dwarf and Girl in

the Caf. I attended one by

Richard Woolfe, Controller of

Sky One, Two and Three, which

was about winning BAFTAs. Sky

One had some success with

Ross Kemp on Gangs and The

Hogfather, and Woolfe talked

about why they were successfuland how they would build further

on what they had achieved so

far. Doing more Pratchett books

seemed to feature signicantly.

The third masterclass I attended

was, in many ways, the saddest.

It was by Tim Key, Senior

Producer of The Bill, and it

turns out that the team behind

the show really, really try. But

they have to produce two a

week, pre-watershed, with no

budget. Theyre aiming to keep

increasing the edginess of

the storylines, and put some

action set-pieces in, but theres

so little opportunity. Tellingly,

Key and his head writer (alsoin attendance) respond with

visible jealousy when Life on

Mars is mentioned. They can

do what they like, he said. They

can have him reach across the

table and punch someone in

the face. We just cant do that.

I consider suggesting Simon

Amstells approach to network

execs to him, but as they stillreceive very strong letters about

the decision to get rid of the

walking shoes title sequence,

I can understand his attitude.

The last masterclass was with

Tim Hincks, Chief Creative

Ofcer of Endemol UK. Hes

one of the funniest and most

engaging men in the industry,

and his talk was one of the most

interesting, focussing on the

That evening we attended the

MacTaggart Memorial Lecture,

which is known as the most

TV AND YOUNG PEOPLEMatt Bolton talks (at length) about his weekend nding out about TV,

meeting Simon Amstell and failing to chat up Konnie Huq


17/44

ontroversial part of the MGEITF.

his year, Jeremy Paxman nally

ccepted an invitation to give the

ecture, based on the scandals

hat have hit the industry in the

ast year. Paxman judiciously

ttacked all sorts of areas of TV,

ut with a fair point to make. He

uggested the program makers

hould be asking themselvesWhat is television for? All too

ften the answer appears to

e To make money. This has

ed to a lack of trust a trust

hat had to be earned for years

n televisions infancy and

ow must be earned again.

On Saturday we began our

Workshops. I took part in

Behind the Scenes, but other

workshops included producing

ews items to be presented by

Sky News anchor, creating

n edition of panel show Would

Lie to You?, and pitching

deas for shows to an exec

om Sky. The culmination of

ll this was a ninety-minute livehow on Sunday, recorded on

rofessional level equipment

nd with an audience of several

undred people. My workshop

was the one producing the live

how, so while Saturday was

elatively quiet only livening

p for a second when Cat

eeley dropped by Sunday

was indescribably stressful.While setting up and controlling

he show, we also had to take

are of various famous guests

actors from Corrie doing scenes

written by TVYPers, a comedian

osting the panel show, the Sky

ews anchor), and someone

ad to be assigned to just freak

ut somewhere, yelling things

t the empty equipment boxes.

ater that night, I had people

sking me to introduce them

o comedian Dara OBriain, as

had struck a rapport with him

earlier. There was also a special

edition of University Challenge,

with the teams made up of

various heads of channels. The

point at which I realised justhow good the event was, and

decided to recommend it very

strongly like, with a baseball

bat. Apply, or so help me God

was when a slightly tipsy, and

very small, Konnie Huq grabbed

my ID tag, pulled my ear down to

her and started telling me all the

gossip from behind the scenes at

the MGEITF itself. Then saw one

of her bosses, pulled me over to

him by my arm, and then began

introducing me to him and his

colleagues as her new friend.

It was one the most surreal

weekends of my life, but if any

BSU students are considering

going into broadcasting, itreally is the best thing youll

ever do until you win a BAFTA.

www.mgeitf.co.uk/tvyp

A

slightlytipsy

Konnie

Huqgrabbed

my ID

tag

[More from this writer atwww.h2ofellow.blog.com]


18/44

ARTIST PROFILEwith Vicki Mason

LydiaBirchall

[More from this writer at

www.h2ofeaturesed.blog.

com]

Going from being in a band to

eing a solo artist is surely a

cary prospect for anyone. In

he music world it has been

ttempted many times with

arying degrees of success. The

kes of Robbie Williams went

om little more than a gloried

acking dancer in Take That

o one of the most successfulolo male recording artists

f the late nineties. And Mel

who, until the recent hype

bout the Spice Girls comeback

our had, thankfully, almost

ropped off the musical radar.

ydia is a new solo artist who

nows all about leaving a

and behind to go it alone.

Originally from Crawley, Lydia,

ow a third year Commercial

Music (CM) student, trained

t the prestigious Brit School

whose graduate list boasts

rtists such as Amy Winehouse,

he Kooks, Leona Lewis, Kate

ash and Katie Melua where

he was in a vocal and piano

ased group called Euphony.

rom there she came to Bath

pa in September 2005 and

ormed The Shackleberries along

with Emma Chillman, Georgina

uitson and Lucy Court. An

.P, tour, video, rockumentary,

lbum and countless gigs

ater the girls decided to go inifferent directions as, according

o Lydia, we all felt like it was

me to do our separate projects.

ydia already had solo material

n the style of Imogen Heap

and Sia and was acoustic and

soulful, based around the piano

or guitar with experimental

vocals but this year has seen a

shift in style and image. Gone is

the gentle acoustic vibe and in

its place is a grown-up, rocked-

up Lydia that is a mixture of

Paramore, Kelly Clarkson and

good old Avril Lavigne rolled intoone - denitely something to rock

out to! According to Lydia she

has always really wanted to do

it and now is the right time. I can

denitely let go on stage morewith this genre of music and I

dont take myself too seriously.

Whilst the music itself is a

solo project, Lydia is workingwith ex-band mate Georgina

Huitson and fellow third year

CM student Zac Froud on the

production side. Lydia is very

excited as she knows they

will do an amazing job on my

songs! Second year student

Seb Berrios and third year Rich

Webb will also be lending support

both on guitar and in the studio.

The three tracks currently

available on Lydias MySpace

are examples of her softer side.

Take A Deep Breath the rst

of her solo songs to appear is

a ood of crashing piano and

heart-felt lyrics that underline

the inuences of Imogen Heap.Next is Two Angels a more

gentle love song that showcases

Lydias impressive vocals and

harmonies. Finally, we have

Loved currently the only

guitar-based track a haunting

song about heartbreak that

easily gets stuck in your head;

I was left humming it for days.

So, where can you nd the

edgier, matured and newly solo

Lydia? Currently in the recording

studio, Lydia will be posting

new material via the wonders

of MySpace before releasing

her solo album in a few months

time. On the gig front, she willbe doing some acoustic gigs at

Moles Spartacus next month

and keep your eyes peeled

for gigs with the full band!

And what does she want you to

take from her music? Music for

me is all about communicating

emotions and experiences

so if the listener can feel the

same emotions, then Im the

happiest girl in the world!

www.myspace.com/

lydiamusicuk


19/44

LIVE BANDwith Natalie Huitson

These United

States:Porter Cellar

Bar

hese United States are a

uirky band from the other side

f the pond that, simply put,

old the crowd and the listenern every sense. Describing

heir own sound as Jungle and

Western Swing, with personal

nuences from the Flaming

ips and Bob Dylan, their sound

s catchy and melodic.

fter sitting down in the cool

d hangout of the Porter Cellar

ar, I got a very Folk-y feel-

ng, in between the dynamicsf Gomez and the vocals of

he Thrills, which had a unique

ound of catchy melodies,

coustic guitar, husky voice,

nd banjo riffs. All of which

were something to be desired

n a quiet Tuesday night.

hese United States are a retro

ooking three piece band of

hirty-something year olds, withom Hantow on the banjo and

lectric guitar, Mark Charles

n bass, and the ever lovable

esse Elliott on lead vocals

holding every girls eyes with

is handsome I just threw on

nything kind of look.

hese United States played on

quiet, half empty, Tuesday

ight in the atmospheric Porter

Cellar Bar. However, after the

ands rst few songs, such as

enni Anne grab my hand, the

usiness, and rst sight, this

began to change and the venue

had started to ll. People from

upstairs ventured downstairsfor a pint, and an earful of the

strange sound that had seeped

through the oor. The bands

forty minute set of experimental

banjo riffs, electro pedal steel,

funky base lines, and memo-

rable vocals kept the crowds

heads pointed towards the

stage, and away from the beer

in their hand.It was refreshing to watch an

American band who didnt talk

about the touchy subjects, to

most Brits, about Bush, the Iraq

war and politics, and it seemed

this approach was wholly ap-

preciated by the audience. This

allowed more time for the lead

singer, Jesse, to have a general

chit-chat with the crowd about

which places were best to hang

out in, where people were from,

and a comparison of aspects

of America to England. It was

a friendly interaction with the

crowd that so many bands lack.

These United States have been

touring the UK and Europe for

months, and the closeness and

tightness was apparent onstagewith all three members gelling

together to create a unique

Folk like sound, which was a

pure winner to the ears of those

present. Their passion, creativ-

ity and fast paced performance

was an excitement to watch,

and the band, despite having

suffered from u and tour-ex-

haustion, gave everything theyhad, with the lead singer Jesse

nearly falling off a beer soaked

slippery table.

These United States are a band

to look out for, from the begin-

ning to the end they jammed

out some awesome tunes that

held the attention of the crowd

until the last note had been

played. The bands sheer dyna-

mism on stage was as cool as

a mountain stream and it cant

be long before their music ows

into bigger waters for more to

sail on. I for one will be onboard

again next time round.


20/44

ARTS

[Contribute to the ARTS

section by emailing

[email protected] or

[email protected]]

With Stuart Richardson

ello again!

Good to see you. Arts is here

nd artier (I made that word

p) than ever, now including

eviews of things that have

lready happened!

lso we have a book dissection,

ews and the ever brilliant

pportunities column. Read it

nd love it or Ill nd you and

at you.

tuart x

----------------------------------------

The History Boys,

Theatre Royal, Bath

aving not seen the History Boys

efore, I was looking forward to

meeting these young, northern,estosterone lled lads who had

een dreaming of Oxbridge from

heir 1980s Shefeld grammar

chool since they opened at the

ational Theatre in May 2004.

arge black and white projections

showed the boys smoking

and ghting along to eighties

power rock, and there were

enough c*nts and f*cks in their

language to ensure the promised

outrageous behaviour, but

then rebellion led to confusion.

Their intensely homoerotic

relationship with their teachers,

and their blas attitude toward

the unwanted pederasty that one

of them indulged in struck me

as incredibly liberal in eighties

Shefeld. Similarly, the level of

depth with which they argued

for literature and truth struckme as paradoxically opposed

to their rebellious characters.

Sections of the play were

indeed very amusing, but I

found myself increasingly

uncomfortable with the comic

brushing off of the behaviour of

a man who was essentially a

sex offender, and the audiences

laughing acceptance of this.

Behind the ghting talk of our

History Boys is the voice of

writer Alan Bennett, that hero

of the theatre going audience.

Bennett is a notoriously funny

writer, and his unique humour

has ensured a worldwide tour,

a stretch at Broadway and a

feature lm of the play released

last year. This is for a Bennett

audience, nostalgic for being

young and opinionated. It isnot intended for our generation.

Fortunately I dont need Bennett

and nostalgia. I have seminars.

Amy Patterson


21/44

O P P O R T U N I T I E S

FOR WRITERS AND

P E R F O R M E R S

Shades of Brown, the

gg, Bath

Things are never just black or

white, Rani Moorthy directs to

he audience in her one woman

how, Shades of Brown.

fter the success and sell out

erformance of Curry Tales,

he is back with a disturbing,

hought provoking and yet

umorous account of an unlikely

ubject. It is a performance

iscussing, from various points

f view, how the Western world

ees people with skin defects.

rom characters such as the

lbino South African to the

arcissistic Indian bride, I felt Iad found a small insight into

he Western worlds obsession

with superciality that I had

ever thought about before.

he performance is constructed

n three sections with characters

hat are thoroughly engrossing,

nd watchable, each telling their

tory through vivid storytelling,

ashback, and various props.With a bare stage and minimal

ghting, Moorthy manages to

ecorate the stage with her

haracterisation and direct

ddress, and, of course, the

moving discussion of each

haracters skin condition.

owever, she never comes

cross as preachy, but

ather she tells stories withumorous monologue and

lot so that each character

ecomes truly believable.

Whilst this performance is

njoyable, and I did nd it

nteresting, it lacks the humour

eeded for a good laugh with

our mates, and the gentle

wooing powers necessary for a

ate. Perhaps this is one to go

o alone, with your parents or a

ke minded chum who wants to

ee something a bit different.

Molly Case

Open Mic Night

The Halo caf/bar, 141

Gloucester Road, Bristol

Held EVERY THIRD SUNDAY,

(October 21st, November 18th

etc) sign up from 7.30pm, be-

ginning at 8.00pm.

FREE ENTRY.

An Open Mic for any act.

www.acousticnight.com

The Love Lounge

The Bell, 103 Walcot Street,

Bath

Every Thursday, 8.30pm startFREE ENTRY, FREE PER-

FORMANCE.

www.walcotstreet.com

Bristol Short Story Prize

20 Top stories to be published

in the rst ever Bristol Short

Story Prize Anthology, with

three top prizes of 300, 200

and 100 respectively. 3000words max, 7 entry fee, Clos-

ing date March 31st 2008.

http://www.literaturesouthwest.

co.uk/news_details.asp?id=110

The Royal Oak Folk Night

Lower Bristol Road, Bath

Every Wednesday, 9pm (ish)

start

A night of Irish Folk musicplayed by anyone who can and

will get involved

The Facebook Review

A Facebook group to which

anybody can send poems or

short stories to be considered

for publication in a monthly

review. Twelve people areselected by the twelve who won

publication the month before.

Nobody gets paid, but the more

people use the group, the more

prestige it gets. Communism

(sort of) in action!

Control

(Dir. Anton Corbijn, UK, 135

min.)

TICKETS COURTESY OF

THE LITTLE THEATRE

CINEMA

Control, a biopic of the late Joy

Divisions front man Ian Curtis, isnot a bad lm. It is not as good

as some people will have you

believe, but it is not bad. First

time director Corbijn is already

a renowned photographer, and

as a consequence every frame

is beautifully shot. The music

is excellent (provided you are

a Joy Division fan), and Sam

Riley is good enough as Curtisthat you dont think about how

good he is being. There are

some fairly uncomfortable

problems with the lm, however.

It is far too long, and the time

sequence is disorientating, so

that Curtis aged 17 23 takes no

time at all, but at least double that

amount of time is dedicated to the

story of his descent into suicidal

tendencies after hearing that the

band were to tour America, an

amount of time which, in reality,

was very small. His eventual

suicide feels disturbingly like it is

being celebrated as some kind

of dangerous but bold artistic

leap. Nowhere near enough

attention is paid to the musicCurtis made and far too much

is given to dull voiceovers that

reveal nothing but unpleasant

whines that could be coming from

any 16 year old boy. Samantha

Morton is also pretty rubbish as

Deborah Curtis, which is unusual.

These things mar but do not

completely ruin what is ultimately

a good watch, provided youare sure this is your kind

of thing in the rst place.

Stuart Richardson


22/44

ATONEMENTIS A SINChris MacLennan explains why reading Ian McEwan is like being trapped

n a room with a man who has talked about jam, bricks and the differences

between these two objects, for the last seventeen hours.


23/44

Recently it seems to have been

fairly common opinion that a

ice way to spend an evening

would be to go and see Scottish

over boy James McAvoy and a

leary eyed (yet still inexplicably

outing) Keira Knightley wallow

round in a sea of their own

ears for a couple of hours.

rom my tone you have

robably, by now, deduced

few things. Firstly, I did not

njoy the recent angst-ridden

xcuse for cinema which was

Atonement. Secondly, subtlety

s not my forte and as a result

dont intend to be employing it

hroughout the rest of this article.

did, for some reason, give

he author the benet of the

oubt and decided to further

nvestigate this most critically

nd publicly acclaimed product

f the veritable bilge-kitchen that

s Ian McEwans writing desk.

he rst thing that struck mewhilst reading Atonement was

hat McEwan has written about

nother writer character, Briony.

McEwan seems, over his career,

o have made quite a habit of

his. It would be all well and good

they werent all stereotypical

roubled writer characters

rawn from the EncyclopaediaGenerica that seems to be

McEwans bible. Brionys single-

minded, borderline autistic Im

writer attitude would make

or a fairly good character in my

yes if McEwan didnt use the

haracter, albeit in completely

ifferent environments, so often.

here is a strong connectionwith classic literature throughout

tonement. The trouble is that

nd it reads like nothing more

han a list of authors one should

ave read, like when you meet

n English Literature student

and they conversationally test

you on such things to see if

you are worthy of their time.

I dont think this would have

incurred quite so much of

my displeasure had my copy

of the book not been from

something called The FutureClassics Range which has

deemed Atonement worthy of

having a reading guide at the

back. It was reminiscent of

GCSE English and it worries

me that this is the kind of thing

being canonised these days.

It would be unfair to claim that

Atonement is all bad. It is a

book of two halves, the second

being a signicant improvement

on the rst. The troublehere lies in slaving through

the rst which, if you dont

much care for Jane Austen,

I can assure you is a chore.

I draw this parallel for two

reasons. Firstly, the language

used throughout the book

makes a pleasant change these

days. It is all tting of the setting

and as a result there is some

beautifully antiquated, verging

on archaic reels of prose which

are a pleasure to read if you like

that kind of thing. Unfortunately,

the fact that some of it is so well

written makes it even more tragic

that the rst half of the book drags

so very much. It seems that in

his attempt to write like Jane

Austen, who is evidently a hero

of his, McEwan has stumbled

into the trap of writing almost

half a book about girls withowery names like Cecilia sitting

around in a mansion wondering

if the next gentleman caller is

going to be the man they marry.

As I said earlier, the book

does pick up but it takes its

sweet time to do so. Part two

fairly abruptly jumps from the

classic English mansion settingto France during World War

II and it is in this setting that it

becomes evident that McEwan

has done his research. We are

now presented with a far more

believable array of characters

and, away from the English

stately home setting which had

become so very tiresome, a

far more interesting storyline.

The book really did improve from

this point, mainly because by this

juncture there are some actual

problems to deal with. Comparing

Atonement, Enduring Love and

McEwans short story collection,

revealingly entitled First Love,

Last Rites, it becomes evidentthat McEwan does thrive on

overreaction to the trivial.

If Im totally honest, once it got

going, I didnt completely despise

Atonement. It does however

irritate me that McEwan gets so

much acclaim when there are

so many more original authors

out there who nobody seems tohave heard of. I mean for Gods

sake read some Paul Auster.

Still, it was better than

Enduring Love. NEVER

READ ENDURING LOVE.

The book

does pick

up, but

takes itssweet time

to do so


24/44

JOB SHOPHey guys!

is a well known fact that every

tudent when they start or

eturn to University has trouble

uggling their social lives and

he work load youre all just

oo busy! Well youre not the

nly ones; the Jobshop has

een busier than ever, notnly are we surpassing last

ears gures, but were nding

more employers and jobs than

ver. And it wont stop there

We have an array of colourful

obs on offer, all suited to your

usy life-style. So if you fancy

eing a Tea Room Assistant

n the Jane Austen Centre,

ooking in the Refectory or

working in a toy shop, we

eally should be your next stop.

So how do you use

our service?

Well rst of all make sure you

egister with us on line at www.

athspa.ac.uk/jobshop. After you

ave done this you will be able

o peruse online at your leisure

ur wide range of jobs simply by

ogging in to our site. Not only that

ut youll also be able to access

ur Minerva resources and

eceive regular emails from usegarding the latest and greatest

obs the county has to offer.

Once youve found the right job

ll you need to do is either email

s at [email protected] or pop

in during our ofce hours, (see

below for times), and well do the

rest. It really couldnt be simpler!

The Jobshop is open

For Sion Hill students in

SP5 GO1 on Tuesdays

- 9.30am until 11.00am

and

For Newton Park

students in LY 102B

on Monday to Friday- 12.30pm until 2pm

And nally, just a quick note to

say that if youve come to the

Jobshop before and successfully

have got a position with an

employer wed love to hear about

your experience, so please

email us at [email protected] with any feedback you

may have about your job,

employer or even our service.

Well thats it for now! Dont

forget to check on the next page

for some of our most popular

and recent vacancies. So from

all of us at the Jobshop team

good luck in your University

work and your employment, and

hopefully well see you all soon.

JOB SHOP

[Good

experience

using

JOBSHOP?

Get in touchwith them at

j.jobs@bathspa.

ac.uk or fll out

the feedback

forms at the

end of the year.If youve found

a job through

the JOBSHOP

adverts in H2O,

let us know

how it went ath20@bathspa.

ac.uk]


25/44

Apsley House

Hotel

Chamber

Person/

Kitchen Porter

(100493)

5.50 - 7.00

p/h

Newbridge

Hill, Bath

Hilton Bath

City Hotel

Conferencing& Banqueting

Host (100017)

NMW p/h

Walcot Street,

Bath

Shaw Trust

Personal

Assistant

(100513)7.00 p/h

Keynsham

Sky High

Trafc Data

Collection

(100472)

Enumerator

6.50 + p/h

Various

Locations

Bath Tutors

(100356)

Tutors16.75 -

19.25 p/h

Bath

Tridias

(100500)

Sales Assistant

Christmas Staff5.80 p/h

Bath

Helphire

(100499)

Weekend

Admin

Assistant6.70 p/h

Bath

Pick n Mix

ChildrensParties

(100494)

Themed

Entertainers

for KidParties

25 (1st

Hour)

Decreases

after.Various

Locations


26/44


27/44


28/44


29/44


30/44

MUSIC--------------------------------------------------------------

[ Contribute to the MUSIC

section by emailing

[email protected]

or [email protected]]

Star Crossed Lovers

A Boy Called Doris

REGALReleased: 07/10

8/10

Star crossed lovers is like nothing Ive heard before. This mysterious Mancunian band begin

with what sounds like a xylophone, developing steadily but perfectly into the main riff of the song.

A dreamy male voice sings the lyrics, supported by subtle female backing vocals and calm per-

cussion. The bass is soft, and there is the inclusion of gentle violin music at one point.

know that this description looks like a recipe for disaster, but it all works surprisingly well; man-

aging to create an atmosphere which is both sexy and soothing. I nd the music very difcult tocategorise; it carries elements of sounds by bands like Pulp I suppose I could call it ambient

dream Pop/Rock or something similarly pretentious, but it denitely has its own distinct style.

The B-side is a song called chom chom, which is more rocky, but with the same glistening vo-

cals and harmonies. After hearing these songs, I cant wait to check out A Boy Called Doris other

ecordings. [KS]

His Lyrics Are Disastrous

Jakobinarina

REGALReleased: 24/09

3/10

Jakobinarina (pronounced Yako-bin-a-reena) is a band of six Icelandic teenagers. Bjork they are

not though; their debut single, his lyrics are disastrous, is a short Post-Punk cacophony of squeaky

aucous guitars, synthesizers and excitable drumming. The singer sounds like a modern day Joe

Strummer but the music is lacking in the imagination and revolutionary edge that drove punk bands

ike The Clash to their peak. The song is quite fun, but it is denitely not made of original material and

after a few listens becomes nothing more than dull. On the other hand, the band name and song title

are eye catching and intriguing, so perhaps Jakobinarina are keeping their true personalities hidden

or now. [KS]

Frames

Oceansize

SPV

Released: 1st Oct

9/10

Many were worried, ve years ago, that the genre of Progressive Rock had been diluted by a multi-

ude of wanky artists, such as Dream Theatre or Coheed and Cambria, and although Oceansize have

never liked to be coined under this misunderstood genre, they have managed to inject hope into the

housands of Musos who follow it piously. Youve probably heard a snippet from their second album,


31/44

Everyone into position, on one of Oranges many adverts -- though this is a poor representation of

he dense structure and intensity their albums deliver. Or, more likely, youll have heard a track on the

opening credits of the OC, though I hope for your sake youve never been forced to watch it.

f you are a fan of the OC or Hollyoaks, then please, dont pain yourself with this article. Flip to the

games at the back, I swear, we wont tell anyone

Frames, at seventy-eight minutes, is a colossal recording of delicate fragility and harsh crescendo

hats easily worth the eight pound youll be forced to debit your account with. Their Mancunian lead

singer, Mike Vennart, has returned with an energy betting his younger self, with lyrics such as dont

you die on me now reminiscent of the angst off their rst album; Eforesce. The overdrive has been

urned up and their sustains set to maximum, with track sleeping dogs and dead lions sounding

more like Meshuggah than their archaic protg Pink Floyd. Theres even an Isis esq. instrumental

oward the end that explodes into a classic Sludge-riff, with circular layering that succeeds in frag-

menting your thoughts -- moulding them into the bands desire. Traditional instruments are used

minimally at times, with melodies overlapped, like hundreds of small paint strokes used to create a

much more detailed picture.

Stand out tracks unfamiliar and trail of re are full blown assaults of emotive crescendo, climaxing

at the formulaic seven-minute mark. Mike Vennarts lyrics in these tracks, reminiscent of the power of

Maynard James Keenan and the poeticism of David Bowie, beg to be sung along to, though I doubtus normal folk would ever manage to recreate their lyrical originality. The mergence between these

and the following tracks is a seamless blend of crashing percussion and ambient melancholy, with

only twin a spoken monologue over break beat drumming from Mark Heron, whose control over his

drum kit has grown ever more masterful as the band have progressed. Otherwise, much like their

previous releases, the album peters out a little towards the end, though the UK bonus track voorhees

s truly fantastic, with starting lyrics Para scopes extend the lens, veiny hands cant mend creating a

ruly gothic atmosphere.

For those that have never heard of Oceansize, imagine ve Manchester lads whove grown

up alongside bands such as King Crimson, Yes, and Ozric Tentacles, but who sustain the Futurist

heory of abandoning the bourgeois. Moments of Tool ourish, even the effects used for The MarsVoltas ambience wash cyclically in the peripheral sound. If it wasnt for the rst tracks placidity and

itle-censorship, this would have got 10/10, for whats wrong, really, with titling a track Commemora-

ive 9/11 t-shirt? Did this song have to be such a bland opener?

f you havent seen Oceansize, then why? Three albums on and theyre stronger than ever. Theyve

existed in a time where the Arctic Monkeys toured their rst release at thirty pounds a ticket, yet

Oceansize have managed to secure intimate gigs such as the Bierkeller, Wedgwood Rooms and

Concorde 2, for less than a tenner. You would not be able to spend your money a better way, unless

of course, you purchased Garth Marenghis Dark Place, a series that Oceansize are also particularly

ond of.

Sanchez!!! [DM]

Pilgrimage

Om

SOUTHERN LORD

Released: 08/10

7.5/10

For those of you who werent to know, Om are Al Cisneros and Chris Hakius, rhythm section of legen-

dary Sludge and Stoner-Rock pioneers Sleep. Pilgrimage, their debut on Southern Lord is, simply put

- music for charting the metaphysical unknown. Transcending between genres; Chant, Drone, Metal,

Dub, not to mention an altogether different kind of Drum n Bass, this is a psychedelic out-pouring

rom Ganeshas warm milky trunk itself.


32/44

MUSIC--------------------------------------------------------------ndeed as the name Om suggests, theres an eastern vibe and presence here that adds a discernable

avour to this spiritual nourishment. The rhythm is low and heavy, yet it meanders seemingly, as if on

a navigated journey. Their grooves form mantras which ebb and ow between sparse percussion. The

iver pulsates onwards, balanced always by the depth and subtlety of Chris Hakius drumming. Its

hypnotic stuff, with a calculated measure of bombast. This is best heard on the unrelenting stomp that

s unitive knowledge of the godhead. Pilgrimage adopts a more introspective approach, never rear-

ng its head above the uidity and chant that encompasses the piece, thus ensuring the effectiveness

of its successor. Through restraint Om are meditative, at their most intense -- cosmic.

The title track is also a great conveyance of Mr. Cisneros ability to expand upon a groove. Theres a

denite sense of evolution here. The vocals, which take the form of chant, incorporate a third element,

however, musically they become a seamless extension of the rhythm. The cryptic nature of the lyrics

s reassuringly tting; think Christian Mysticism and Space Travel (of the nonsensical kind). How-

ever, Als lyrics, which were often bordering on hilarity with Sleep, are toned down to an extent here.

While the lateral thinker will attempt to form some meaning or message from them, everyone else

will just think theyre ridiculous. Om, perhaps surprisingly, create far more poignant music than Sleep.An example being the third and longest track, at nearly 12 minutes in length, -- Bhimas theme. It

evolves, uncoiling, like a snake after initially submerging you in bass fuelled space fuzz. Ten minutes

n, Al blurts out Lazarus and shortly afterwards the very fabric of time gets a good shredding. This

part, when performed live, is particularly powerful and riveting, yet in contrast endearing and whole-

some at the same time.

Such is the majesty of Om.

Production comes courtesy of the omnipresent Steve Albini, an analogue loyalist. His input reinforces

he minimalist aesthetic shared by the band. If this is just too minimalist for you, then hold tight and

wait for further news of the Shrinebuilder project, which looks set to be a musical collaboration be-ween the members of Om, Scott Kelly (Neurosis) and Scott Weinrich of the late (Hidden Hand).

All in all this is another great release from the band. It may not reach the dizzying heights of At Giza

rom Conference of the birds, and at just over half an hour playing time it does leave something to be

desired. However, whats not heard on this recording will no doubt be gift wrapped for us shortly

OD]

Wincing The Night Away

The ShinsTRANSGRESSIVE

Out now

4/10

This is The Shins third album and, even though it is beyond a clich to say, it is their difcult third

album. The album fades in with a dreamy synthesiser on track sleeping lessons and maintains a

dream-like quality with James Mercers high-pitched vocals crooning lazily over acoustic Indie nice-

ness. Then Australia kicks in and the tone changes completely to pure pop perfection, with la la

as and everything. A feel-good Indie anthem of the highest quality, despite the downbeat lyric, your

nightmares only take a year or two to unfold.However, Mercers voice is too nice to be anything approaching dark. With his middle-American

wang, he could cover Radiohead and still sound secretly happy about something. Turn on me is

another outstanding track, as is spilt needles, but the rest of the album fails to stand up to the higher

standard of these songs and the quality of their previous albums. Its a good album, and great to have

on during a lazy day at home. But then, so is an old jumper. [AR]


33/44

Once upon a time

Air

VIRGIN

Out Now

5.5/10

might not be in the best position to review this song, as I have heard very little music by Air. On the

other hand, it could be good to listen to the band from a fresh perspective.

This song is built on a beautiful and constantly dynamic piano riff, onto which other sounds are lay-

ered. Soft vocals are also constant. The music denitely creates an atmosphere, although I wouldntsay that it is particularly catchy. It would make great background or lm music, due to its subtle vocals

and indistinct melody; yet it is not something that I would constantly return to. But thats just me --

from what I have heard already by the band, the song denitely meets their usual standards, and for

Air fans Im sure it will not disappoint. [KS]

Applause Cheer Boo Hiss

Land Of Talk

REBEL GROUP

Out Now

6/10

Canadian artist Land of talk utilise a traditional mix of Indie/Rock, yet theyve somehow managed to

stand themselves out amongst the rest in a very crowded industry.Applause cheer boo hiss sounds a little like Courtney Love guest staring for the Pixies, with At-the-

drive-ins discordant-mash thrashed in the background. Its not amazingly original, nor does it invoke

one to fathom the unthinkable. What it does, however, with tracks such as summer special, is spill

heartfelt anecdotes that many could empathise with if they just gave it half a listen. Elizabeths vocals

arent unique, but they are enticing, seductive and enchanting, with lyrics such as look at those girls,

so young, so young, still piss their pants. That old dogs mangy allowing a different spin on subjects

hat havent even been spun. Sea foam is their rst single and a good representation of what to ex-

pect on the album. At times you can hear The Strokes in their melodies and chord driven verses, yet

other times they reminisce on a period that drives away from contemporary normality. Off-beat drum-

ming and quirky time-signatures are the foundation for their highly experimental, yet formulaic debut,eaving a contradiction of ideals that the band need to securely manifest in their follow up.

No doubt Land of talk will become popular, and their sound will grow more commercial over the next

ew years, so I advise you to jump on the bandwagon before they do. Then, at least, you will be able

o be the cool one who used to like them, but now doesnt because everyone does.

snt that what we all want from music? [DM]


34/44

LIVE BAND, INTERVIEW AND REVIEW: KOSHEENBristolian trio Kosheen were

back home last month to promote

heir new album at Bristols non-

smoking Carling Academy. After

a years setback on the albums

elease and a highly successful

worldwide tour Damage was nally

unleashed on the British public,

and with the fabulous PJ Harvey,

Oceansize and Bonobo soon to

ollow, the city looked desperate

o kick-start the new term.

Damage continues the ambience

hat drove 2003s Kokopeli, but

deepens the live performance

with a ve-piece band that hasnt

ailed to impress the media.Producer and performer Darren

Beale, who liked neither Brown

nor Cameron, spoke of their

previous album as adjusted for

ive performance and named

after some Indian dude. Its no

wonder this experimental phase

of their career didnt last long, for

t was clearly dangerous to pry

Kosheen from their inherent Post-Pop brilliance. Still, the music

does breathe out its Electronica

and suck in the various Drum n

Bass roots, leaving an evolved

sound thats plastered with

Sian Evans powerful vocals --

which are undoubtedly unique.

On stage in Bristol, with the

support of her patriotic fans,

her vocals were indescribable.

Sian isnt their archetypal

musician however, for it was

Darren Beale and Mark Morrison,

with inuences that include

Boards of Canada, Aphex Twin

and Autechre, whose talent

moulded the songs. These artists

are difcult to spot in Kosheensecordings though, and when

asked if Damage was difcult

o make their negative reply

wasnt indicative of the anal-

attentiveness of your typical

Warp artist, but more like that of

Roisin Murphy. On stage they

neednt be compared to any

other as they swaggered and

smiled to themselves, clearly

engrossed in a project they

were both pleased and content

with. On the recording, with

highlights out of this world

and guilty, they have found a

different direction to push Sians

personal vocals, with eighties

techno-pop and atmospheric

musicianship creating catchy

melodies and sub-bass hooks.

The new drummer fullled

their tough quota on the live

set and couldve easily rivalledPitchshifters maniac in speed

and poise, so credit to a band

this well rehearsed -- even

though they only toured England

ve months ago due to a record

label cock-up. The crowd was

there to see Kosheen and

nothing more, which was

fortunate because the rst

two artists were abysmal and

barely worth mentioning. I

will though, just to make sure

you never stumble acrosseither Subline or Rochelle, for

you will want god to give you

that time back. And he wont.

The band were more nervous

performing in Bristol, cause

youve got your family or yourmates trying to get up on stage,

but neither Sians powerful,

controlled crescendos, nor

Marks sustained gawp ever

showed signs of this. In fact,

with classics such as slip and

slide and hungry, any nervous

wavers that may have been

present disappeared amongst

a roaring unity from the crowd,

which, oddly enough, appeared

to be primarily of energetic

homo-erotic origin. This frantic

energy barely petered out,

even after the encore, which

left thousands wondering when

they were going to see their

favourite artist again, though

it will probably be very soon.

Kosheen have grown

commercially and musically.

Their album reects this well

and their live performance

adds a well-inked stamp of

approval. Theyll probably

fade into the long list of tired,

repetitive artists within their

next album or two, but at thismoment theyre still performing

with drive and passion. If the

smoking ban doesnt kill them

off, then perhaps everyonell

become coke-heads and well

An evolved

sound thatsplastered

with Sian

Evans

vocals

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