For me, the Super Furry Animals were always one of those bands. You know, the kind of band you hear all the time and you like, it’s just you’re not exactly going to rush out there and spend  your cash on the new album. I remember growing up around plenty of people who called themselves fans, but I’d always found another album I’d like to buy instead.

A decade later, and I’m actually starting to like them more. Especially after their ninth album, ‘Dark Days/Light Years’ hit the (electronic) shelves in March of this year. The album is undoubtedly brilliant, recieving widespread acclaim from sources such as NME, who not only describe the offerings on this album as “sprawling epics”, also referred to their reputation as “one of the best live bands around” [*].

It was with a stroke of luck and a wee bit of modern-day (social) networking that we got to go along to see the band perform last Saturday at Somerset House in London; thanks to the guys over at Magners UK. This may have, in itself, been the highlight of the whole night. There is a constant argument going on about the importance of Social Networking, with many in mainstream and big business writing the whole scene off due to low returns and the lack of a ‘personal touch’. I for one am a big fan of the likes of Twitter, and it paid off this weekend with a pair of gig tickets. I’ve never met these guys, I haven’t taken them out for a business lunch or donned a suit to meet their expectations, but there we were enjoying a free gig on a mild summers evening in London.

But, back to the gig. The NME claim of “one of the best live bands around” isn’t wrong, with the band putting on a fantastic live show. Guitarist and Lead Vocalist Gruff Rhys gained applause and laughs with his use of cue-cards throughout the show, whilst we stood amongst crowds of middle aged fans who seemed delighted to be smoking a bit of weed whilst the kids stayed at home with the babysitters, a hark back to their younger days when the Super Furry’s were at the height of their fame. Somerset House was a great setting for the concert – luckily the weather held out and we were able to enjoy our drinks in relative comfort (apart from finding out a large Pimms & Leomonade was £9…). It was also impressive to see the devout fans come out in style, with the award for Most Effort going to the guy in the full size crocodile suit.

You can listen to the new album, ‘Dark Days/Light Years’ on Spotify here. If you would like to get in touch with the guys over at Magners, or keep up to date on their events and promotions, then check them out on Twitter or Facebook.

It’s that time of year again, and another fantastic London Pride festival has been and gone in the Big Smoke that is London. Squidge went along to join the festivities with a few friends (and maybe a few beers along the way).

The march started in Portman Square, just off Oxford Street in Central London. People from all over the country, and the world, marched for LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual, Trans) rights, and for an end to discrimination. As the Stonewall banner says, “Some people are Gay, Get over it!“. With an amazing party atmosphere, the event is one of the highlights of the year for one of the most diverse and multi-cultural cities in the world.

Once in Trafalgar Square, the stage shows started and we were treated to the likes of the Urban Cookie Collective, Q Boy and Kele Le Roc (below), as well as speeches from the likes of Peter Tatchell, Simon Hughes, Sarah Brown and more. I did however have to endure the Eurovision group Scooch (2nd below), which was a nightmare in itself. It seems that many in the crowd agreed with me, and amongst tyhe hail of bottles I managed to get a dousing of beer along with a few other photographers and camera crew in the press pit.

But of course Pride is made by the people that march and attend the rallies, and by those who stand in solidarity with the LGBT community. Below is just a small selection of some of the people we met along the way. If you see yourself in these pictures, drop us a line in the comments box below, we’d love to hear from you!

All images on this page were taken by Jonathan  Dodds. If you would like to use these images on your website or blog, please link back to this page. If you would like higher resolution images, please email me direct at kniferack@squidgemag.com.