Book Launched

Three men on the Metro was launched on October 1st at Newcastle University as part of the First Thursday events series. All three men and a healthy audience were in attendance as the tri bradyagi (or however we're spelling it this month) rattled through a 45 minute set of underground favourites, as voted for by actual moles.

One in three audience members purchased a copy -- if we can keep to that average in future events the reprint and indeed the Putin-sized yacht cannot be far away. An interesting dynamic appeared in the course of the reading, as Andy and Bill traded humour and acerbity, while Paul provided the lyrical loud/quiet contrast that first brought the Pixies to fame. Now we've just got to get the intros (and the sound FX) into alignment...

For those of you eager to shell out, the book is available here, or for Amazonian pre-order here

Banya board meeting balked, sauna substitute a success

By the simple act of not checking first, the tri brodyagi turned up at Newcastle's Victorian City Pool on Ladies' Night, or rather on the evening selected for women to use the Turkish Bath. Says it all, really. Disgruntledly making do with the seventies sauna arrangement next door, the Myetromen discussed final arrangements for the book, including that vital stanza Bill still hadn't written, and readings and other promotional work -- including a First Thursday Reading on October 1st in Newcastle University.

They then transferred to the hot plastic tube of the steam room, a kind of anti-igloo in smooth cream and steam, and considered the possibility of using recordings of the metro and a few nifty slides to announce transitions in the readings, reminded Bill he still had to meet with the cartoonist about the Stations of the Dog strip, and considered a Moscow launch.

Sprawling on the pleather recliners after a refreshing dip in the main pool, they reflected on recent Russian-based reading and news items, including the railway-related issue of renaming Leningrad Station after the tsar, another touch of resurrectionary conservatism; and the unfortunate attempt to close down access to historical resources on the net, another touch of reactionary control-freakery. (You can still access a parallel site by the same author, Vyacheslav Rumyantsev, here, though I can't find an English version.)

They then repaired to a nearby Turkish restaurant to gargle Efes and consume mezes, looking forward to a meeting with their publisher somewhere in York Station to Finalise Everything! Sample stanzas to appear soon...