I went to Liverpool the other week. They had a festival going on called Liverpool Soundcity! that I wanted to check out. It was intended to be like SXSW, with tons of signed and unsigned bands playing around the city’s many venues. That suited me, of course, seeing that I’m an old indie snob with an aversion to outdoor festivals. I was also eager to check out Liverpool’s new place for rockers with a taste for sumptuous living, namely the swanky Hard Days Night Hotel. Here’s what happened…I arrived in Liverpool on a train from Manchester and was half expecting to see Ms. Marple waiting for me on the platform. No such luck, but at least I was going to make it in time for my five o’clock tea at the Hard Days Night. A concierge called Kevin took my bags up to the 6th floor and showed me around my room. It was pleasant enough, complete with a button on the showerhead that promised to "rinse my hair better." I didn’t know what in God's name that meant, but I felt safe knowing that it was there. Being from Finland, I made my five o’clock tea into a five o’clock filtered coffee, and drank it while contemplating the night ahead of me. I decided to head to the Carling Academy to see The Death Set and Crystal Castles. I showered, made sure my pillows were duck and goose, and hit the town.Everyone at the gig seemed notably young. Kids were wearing plastic neon bracelets, something to do with the nu-rave phenomena, I guessed. I pushed through the tiny staircases packed with teenagers only to find that The Death Set had long since finished their show, but that I was still able to see Crystal Castles. They were OK. The girl was "rad". After the show I felt my job was done for the day, bought some greasy fish n’ chips and headed back to the hotel across the small center of town. After all, I needed to gather some strength to rock hard the next day.COCO CRYSTAL
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