Head Space Daily Words...

A drizzly grey London morning led me back to Shoreditch yesterday. I turned left out of the station and headed towards Bethnal Green Road, passing a tall, mixed race, unshaven guy, carrying a guitar case and wearing a top hat. Hendrix meets the magic circle. I crossed the road to find out what was showing at the Rich Mix cinema. My plan was to head to Hackney Picture House to see Whiplash at midday but if it was on at the Rich Mix, why not see it there? It was not being screened and as I walked towards Brick Lane, I stopped outside a vintage guitar shop, to peer through the window, to admire the instruments. The walls were adorned with some very nice looking, classic guitars, a real Aladdin’s Cave of six string, electric delight. A slightly built, bespectacled man with a wispy beard began to unlock the shop to open up for the day. He asked me if I wanted to take a look inside. I told him that I didn’t have time but that my youngest son is learning acoustic guitar at school and I asked if I could bring him along one day to have a blast on one of the shops electric guitars. “That’ll be no problem” the man replied. I warmly shook his hand, told him I would see him soon and went on my way.

My next port of call was the Brick Lane Beigel Bake – which is quite simply one of the best shops in London – to buy a dozen beigels and get some lunch to eat in the cinema. A tuna and sweetcorn beigel being my bake of choice. Brick Lane always interests me, whatever the day, although during the week it is relatively quiet and you can take your time and breathe it all in. The people, the clothes, the hair, the beards, the sounds, the boom from the blacked out Beamer, the ‘street art’ – good and bad – the buildings, old and ramshackle on the narrow streets and the sense of purpose, of moving forward and not standing still. Never standing still. A pacy stroll took me to Rough Trade East for some vinyl cleaning fluid. I had been there on Monday to pick up a copy of To Pimp A Butterfly, the new album from Kendrick Lamar and the 7” of Pedestrian At Best by Courtney Barnett, (see Head Space Daily Tune.)

A few stops to Canonbury, then two to Hackney Central and I was on my way, all the while listening to the new Matthew E White album Fresh Blood. I arrived at the Hackney Picture House with 45 minutes to spare, which gave me time to sit down and start writing what you are now reading. The 12 o clock screening of Whiplash was a designated Silver Screen showing with a discount for the over 60s, although not exclusively for the old timers. With time to kill, I didn’t want another coffee, nor to eat too much. A cup of tea and a biscuit would do the job but on offer was a pot of tea at £2.20 and a slice of cake would set me back £3.60. I commented to the girl behind the counter that at £3.60 I could have baked my own cake. She told me that she agreed one hundred per cent and would allow me to partake in the pensioners special of a mug of tea and a biscuit for £2. What a result. A steaming mug of cha and a shortbread finger kept me going until film time.

What I love about going to the cinema is turning off my phone and becoming immersed. No buzzing pocket, no e mails, texts, alerts, alarms and ring tones to distract me. Myself and a screen. I was amongst nineteen fellow viewers, which included not one pensioner. The OAPs were missing out. Whiplash was thoroughly enjoyable and I would recommend you go and see it, if you haven’t already...