Jaws + Two Fathoms, Jack Parker’s living room, Birmingham 11/05/13
Being in Birmingham right now, the chances are you’ll have heard something about the parties that Jack built – you can read our review of his last one here. If you’ve somehow missed out for this long, the premise is fairly simple; one house, a room full of good people, and a number of stellar bands. And so, at 9pm on May 11, people piled towards the address for a night of merriment and music.
Two Fathoms First to the floor was Neil Ward – alias Two Fathoms. Armed with naught but his voice and an acoustic guitar, he performed his infectious acoustic-folk melodies, which, whilst not your typical house party fodder, wasted no time in prompting those in attendance to dance along. Charismatic and effortlessly entertaining, he conversed with and performed for the packed room, before ending with a song containing the deliciously appropriate lyrics “I’ll have one more and I’ll fall to the floor, so fucking drunk I’m getting carried out the door” (if ever there was a motif for a house party, it seems safe to say that this one would be fairly accurate).
And then it was Jaws. People wasted no time before piling into the hallway, the living room, and the kitchen beyond in order to see (or at least hear) them play. Crowd surfers, balloons, a duvet, an inflatable palm tree, a sombrero, and the disembodied head of a donkey piñata all made their way over the heads of those gathered as the band played their music to an adoring household.
Jaws A floor full of friends and fans sang along to every word that echoed through the house, and the room didn’t stop moving for a moment. It was to a drunken chorus of “STAY IIIIIN! STAY OUUUUUT!” that they ended their ‘set,’ before caving to pressure and hitting the floor once more.
As most of those present piled out the back for a smoke and/or a breath of cool air, it was with the energy and elation that a really good night provides. It wasn’t long, however, before the entire building was forced out the doors, as local law enforcement had come a-knocking.
Jaws Stood out in the cold after the party was drawn to an early close, trying to decide on a next plan of action, there wasn’t single people who could bring themselves to complain. When the music’s this good and the company that merry, what more could you hope for? Here’s to the next time.
Photographs by Georgina Shortland.
