Accoutrements

[gtw]

In the light of discussions about the BSP robots over on the Leefest thread, I wondered what people's favourite or least favourite stage dressings, costumed characters, sonic bridges between songs, film clips etc were. Basically - a thread about BSP on stage that is about everything other than the band's songs or peformance, the audience or the venue.

Can we catalogue every unique accoutrement of note?

[Dr_Dupree]

The first time I saw BSP play live was at the Roundhouse in October 2008.

The accoutrements that especially impressed me then were:

1) The wind-up air raid siren (Atom)
2) The bike (a Raleigh 20, yeah?)
3) The Owl
4) Ursine Ultra

[gtw]

Ursine Ultra is certainly the longest-lived I suppose, alongside the stage birds and the foliage. First sighting at ULU 2004 I believe?

Noble's tummy keyboard (non-functioning) - Fort Rox

The dada audio track (can't remember any more detail than that). Decline era. Lasted through Open Season gigs?

The Larsen B foam machine - Open Season tour.

Made of Straw Man with the Existential Angst - Camden Crawl Koko gig 2011

[redc]

The first time I saw BSP play live was at the Roundhouse in October 2008.

The accoutrements that especially impressed me then were:

1) The wind-up air raid siren (Atom)
2) The bike (a Raleigh 20, yeah?)
3) The Owl
4) Ursine Ultra

..but surely trumped by The London Bulgarian Choir? They were definitely my favourite (massive steerable radio telescopes excepted), if counted as "accoutrements".

[kevo]

Predicatably, I love the old skool BSP 'accoutrements'. The Kurt Schwitters 'Ursonate' audio, TS Eliot's 'Triumphal March', the Betjeman poems, the bi-planes before St Louis, 'This is not goodbye, this is just goodnight' (which they used at Leefest, incidentally)...

Ursine Ultra first appeared at ULU in October 2003, the day Remember Me was re-issued. The foliage and plastic birds etc were around a long while before the bear reared his ugly head (as seen in the Meridian TV doc, which was filmed in October 2002). Used to like the way they used the audio clips (particularly the Schwitters stuff and church bells, etc) to fill the gaps when changing guitars between songs. Sadly missed.

Least favourite? The Patrick Mooreheads with their laser guns at the gig at the Concorde (2004 I think - the day John Peel died) and the current naff tin-foil robots.

Anyone remember the 'ghosts' during 'All In It' at the start of the Udderbelly gig at the Great Escape in Brighton? I quite liked that, but suspect I was the only one. The 12-foot Noble with the luminous ball face at Dot-to-Dot in Nottingham also deserves a mention... (picture, anyone?!)

[Muybridge]

Noble's dinosaur mask at Natural History Museum.
Hamilton's mask thing at Koko.
Eamon, anytime.

[Lancashire Fusileer]

Eamon's drum. One of those things that will never sadly return...

Think of plenty of dafty one-off additions:
The toy seagulls and football head at Nottingham 2006, Kevo they were some of the best pics of the band, ever from Adam Hare, we had them on the site, but when we re-developed we "lost" them...
Horses head & bulbs at Haldern 2005
The "Koelsche drinking sock" and 3d glasses at Gebaude 9, 2008
Air raid siren in all of DYLRM tour.


Band clothing should be a completely separate topic.

The Panda in the crowd (which gig in London?) surely should be counted?

Would it be cheeky to say some of the past & present members of this board should be added to this list?? Elitism thrives in Broken Britain...

Love all this stuff as long as it doesnt get too "Last Night of the Proms".

[mick wright]

Agree with kevo re: 'old school' TS Eliot and Schwitters etc and the air raid siren - when it broke at National History Museum, Noble threw it off stage, nearly braining Archie.

I wonder what happened to the 'visitors book' into which we scribbled way back when.

[gtw]

The flags (DYLRM onwards)

The Wicker Stag (Open Season Forum show)

The giant owl with revolving head and laser eyes (Valhalla tour) never materialised did it?

The opening scene of 'A Matter of Life and Death' being played in full before the band took to the stage. (Decline era, and presumably earlier?)

Cumbrian wrestlers (Brighton Komedia DYLRM show, and Later with Jools Holland. Anywhere else?)

[kevo]

The opening scene of 'A Matter of Life and Death' being played in full before the band took to the stage. (Decline era, and presumably earlier?)

Don't think it was quite 'in full' - it was shown before their support slots with the Flamng Lips, Jan 2003. Can't remember it being shown at any other gigs, but might well be wrong.

They also screened 'Great Expectations' - just once, I think, possibly at Hove Old Market?

[kevo]

some of the best pics of the band, ever from Adam Hare

Yeah, they were fantastic. What a gig that was.

[avocetboy]

Noble attempting to wash his face with Smoggy's wagon wheels in Bradford, whilst not a BSP inspired accoutrement, still makes me smile.

[gtw]

The opening scene of 'A Matter of Life and Death' being played in full before the band took to the stage. (Decline era, and presumably earlier?)

Don't think it was quite 'in full' - it was shown before their support slots with the Flamng Lips, Jan 2003. Can't remember it being shown at any other gigs, but might well be wrong.

I didn't 'do' the Lips BSP tour, so only saw this at The Garage spring 2003. Pretty sure it was the whole scene.

[blir]

Eamon's drum. One of those things that will never sadly return...

Not true. Eamon and his drum (or "a" drum) made all our hearts flutter again at Bowery Ballroom this year. But yes, agreed.

[boom]

Eamon's drum. One of those things that will never sadly return...

Not true. Eamon and his drum (or "a" drum) made all our hearts flutter again at Bowery Ballroom this year. But yes, agreed.

indeed,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEfn2gIGuoo