|
FAQ
v3.02 29-09-07
Note: The FAQ has finally been brought up to date, kicking and screaming all the way, nearly two years after the Phono closed! Even now sheepish is constantly evolving, but nevertheless this is a useful snapshot of where we are now.
1.
Basics
1.1 What is
Black Sheep?
It's the best weekly goth night in Leeds!
1.2
Where is Black Sheep?
It's at the Subculture nightclub, formerly The Bassment, on the side of the Merrion Centre in Leeds. See the Subculture section for details, directions etc. Black Sheep originally ran at the Phono
- which also has its own section..
1.3
When is Black Sheep?
It's every sunday from 7pm and usually runs until 11pm, unless
its a bank holiday or some other excuse for an extension.
Yes, did we mention that Black Sheep is indeed a weekly
goth event?!
1.4
What is Transmission?
Transmission is the name of our new monthly clubnight, which replaced Friday Flock from October 2007. Transmission runs every second Saturday of the month at the Subculture, and has its own website at www.transmission-leeds.com.
1.5 What was Friday Flock?
Friday Flock was a monthly clubnight run by sheepish from 2004 - 2007. It was succeeded by Transmission (see above) when we had the opportunity of moving Flock to a Saturday night. Transmission isn't, strictly speaking, the same night as Flock, however it does have similarities (and the same DJs!).
1.6 Do you run gigs/put bands on?
Sometimes. See the Live section.
1.7 What is Woolstock?
In both 2006 and 2007 we ran a large weekend event in Leeds called "Woolstock", both times featuring a clubnight and two nights worth of live music. Bands included the likes of Inkubus Sukkubus, NFD, Killing Miranda and Skeletal Family, and you can find full details of both weekends on the website at www.woolstock.co.uk.
back
to FAQ index
2.
General
2.1 How much
is it to get in?
Providing that there isn't a band on, its free entry!.
2.2
Do I have to be a member?
No. Since moving to the Subculture the night has become free entry, so there is no longer any reason to offer membership. In any case the membership scheme was originally brought in to get around archaic Sunday licensing laws that have long since been abolished, see below!
2.3
What is/was "the sunday club"?
The Sunday Club was a previous incarnation of Black Sheep,
or Black Sheep is the latest incarnation of the Sunday Club,
depending on who you believe. Previously licensing laws meant
that any club opening on a sunday had to be "members
only", thus the members and club thing. This no longer
applies, but the regulars liked the idea of keeping the tenner
for a year scam, and thus it remained until the Phono closed. Back in those days, members
were part of "The Sunday Club", whilst the night itself is called
Black Sheep, or something.
2.4
What is/was the "Sunday Goth Social"?
The Phono closed at the end of 2005 and while Black Sheep (in name) went on hiatus pending a suitable venue being found, we continued the weekly night (under somewhat reduced circumstances) in the Cellar Bar of The George, calling it "The Sunday Goth Social". 2.5
How long has the night/club been running?
There had been a goth night at the Phono since the early Eighties. Black Sheep (in name) has been running seven years (as of Easter 2007) and as the "Sunday Club" was doing the same thing for at least five years preceding that. There was definitely something even before that, but people start to get a bit sensitive about their ages when you ask about that far back(!), so it gets a little vague. We think we're probably the oldest goth night in the country, we might even be right! See also the Phono
section.
2.6
Why is it called "Black Sheep"?
The usual answer to this one is "because all the good
names had been taken". In strict literary terms, black
sheep means "A member of a family or other group who
is considered undesirable or disreputable", which would
be a good answer. Mostly its ironic, as goths have often been
described as "black-clad sheep". And then there's
this thing whereby most goth nights seem to have "black"
in their name, unless they're nicking song titles (one of
the previous incarnations of the Sunday Club was called "Snakedance").
So the truth is partly a mixture of the above, but mostly
because of the rich potential for cheap humour that you may
have witnessed on some of the posters/flyers, eg "Do
You Flock as Well As You Dance?".
2.7
Why do you have guest DJs?
Variety, essentially. See the stuff about music
policy. Black Sheep aims to represent as much of the current
scene as possible. The best way to do that is to have guest
DJs who specialise in different
areas, rather than leave it to the same person(s) each week.
2.8 Do you run/did you run..?
Sheepish as a group, and the DJs as individuals, have either been involved in, or run, a number of other events, particularly during the post-Phono hiatus of 2006 (when we generally did random stuff to keep ourselves sane!). Sheepish has previously been involved in various Bank Holiday specials, Friday Flock, Friday Flock Live (a monthly goth/industrial gig night), Amphetamine Logic (very trad!), Red Shift (very bleep!), several "Heartland" weeekends, Sunday Goth Social (essentially Black Sheep) and the very wonderful Bad Wisdom, which sadly became a little irrelevant when Black Sheep returned properly. As individuals the current residents were also been involved in Oblivion (the Phono's long running Saturday alternative night) and Carpe Noctum (Bradford's main goth/industrial night).
back
to FAQ index
3.
Music
3.1 What is
the music policy?
i. All Shades
Of Goth, Past And Present.
ii. Black Sheep is request driven.
iii. Variety. Hence the different guest DJs every week.
Nowadays it
is widely accepted that goth has been constantly evolving and changing
ever since the genre/subculture/whatever came into being. We're
not interested in the petty music fascism that sees certain groups/songs
labelled as not "proper" goth because they don't conform
to some trainspotter definitions. These are the people who get into
a frenzy trying to label and classify music into little boxes, band
by band, or in some cases (like the Neffs) album by album. These
are the sort of people who got upset when Apoptygma Berzerk did
a remix for the Cruxshadows*. Not us. Should we so desire, we can
follow the Banshees with Icon Of Coil, or Rammstein with Inkubus
Sukkubus. Sometimes we do. We know its important to respect the
past, but its just as important to embrace the present too. Don't
worry, it'll be painless, we promise!
*obviously this was written before the Cruxshadows turned into Neuroticfish with a string section!
3.2
Do you publish playlists/setlists?
Yes. All guest DJs are invited to write down their sets for
inclusion on the website here.
Most do. The residents never write playlists in advance, and we're frankly too lazy
to record them every week, but we've been trying to do it at
least once a month. Trying and failing. They are kept here.
3.3
Do you play requests?
Most definitely. Place a request here
or email it to the Requests address on the Contacts
page. Or you can always ask on the night (most people do).
Some of the guest DJs have setlists so may not play your request,
so MAKE SURE THEY WRITE IT DOWN!!! Probably best to wait for
the resident DJ to come back on (see "Who DJs at Black
Sheep" below).
3.4
Why do you always play [song]?
The most likely answer is "because it's requested".
We once managed a whole fortnight without playing "Once
In A Lifetime" on either a saturday or a sunday night.
This magnificent feat was only achieved after nearly six months
of it being requested every weekend without fail, and only
because it genuinely didn't get requested on those nights.
Suffice to say that we only narrowly avoided a lynching for
not playing it. Check out the setlists
to see which songs are the usual offenders. (Updated 2004:
Thankfully "Once In A Lifetime" is rarely heard on a sunday
nowadays!)
3.5
Why do you never play [band/song]?
Because it sucks. No, seriously now, its probably because
it hasn't been requested. Request whatever it is, and if we
haven't got it, we can usually get it for the next sunday.
3.6
Can I bring in a song for you to play?
Yes, um, well, probably. But no promises, 'cos most DJ's are
wary about putting stuff on they haven't previously heard.
Probably with good reason. Its always good to hear something
before you play it.
3.7
Can I send you a promo/demo to play?
Most certainly. Everything we receive is played down the club.
Although some are played more than others.
back
to FAQ index
4.
DJs
4.1
Who DJs at Black Sheep?
The resident DJ is Paul (that's me), generally know everywhere
as "Phono Paul" except for on net.goth where its
"Paul Sheep" for simplicity.
The other main resident is Pyromancer who usually does the
DJing on the Sundays directly following Friday Flock. The third sheepish DJ is GothVodka who is co-resident at Friday Flock and usually DJs at our live events.
We also have a great many regular guest DJs, and one day there
might be a profile area for all of them on the website. (Although we've been saying that since at least 2002 and it hasn't happend yet!)
4.2
How do you choose guest DJs?
By a very complicated algorithm written in Fortran, ran on
a beautifully preserved ZX80 chip, embedded in the cerebral
cortex of a cat called Poppy. And she's not happy about it.
4.3
Can I DJ at Black Sheep?
If you work elsewhere or have your own night, you're more
than welcome. Either send an email to to the address on the
Contacts page, or better still
ask on the night. If you've never done it before, still come
and have a word on a sunday night, as we often let "new"
DJs have a go in the first hour, some of whom have become
regulars. Quite a few local DJs started out at the Phono,
although some may not care to admit it!
4.4
What happened to John/Jamie?
Sunday Club John stopped DJing to spend more time with his
good lady and to enjoy long weekends at the seaside. Jamie
retired to Harrogate and started breeding!
4.5
When is [DJ] coming back?
Forthcoming Guest DJs are listed within the forums here.
Basically the turnaround is between four and six months, so
providing the DJ is free and still wants to do a sunday, probably
sometime within the next half year. This does seem quite a
while, but then last year (2003) we had about 30 different
guest DJ's and there's only 52 weeks in the year!
back
to FAQ index
5.
Bands/Live Events
Updated July 2007: We've already run 5 live events this year and we have a sixth line-up for August. What with the launch of Transmission and other commitments, not least Paul (that's me!) getting married, we do not intend to book any gigs between September 2007 and at least Easter 2008.
5.1
Where can I find out about forthcoming live events?
Live events are announced in the Events section of the forum,
and also in the Live section
of the main site.
5.2
How often do you have bands play?
This year (2004) we've been averaging about one live event
a month, although to avoid clashing with other events some
months we've had two and some none.
5.3
How much is it to get in?
This will vary dependant on the band(s) concerned. There is
quite an overhead to putting on live events, and this must
be covered by the door. However we do occasionally run free
live events, which will be clearly listed as such in the Live
section.
5.4
Where/How do I buy tickets?
Full details are available in the Live
section. Basically, tickets can be bought in person, by post
or via Paypal. We also now sell tickets via Nochex and Google checkout, and for larger gigs we also sell tickets though Jumbo Records and Hellraiser in Leeds.
5.5
Who organises/books bands etc?
For the time being its me (Paul) and I can be initially contacted
by email (see Contacts page).
5.6
Whats the venue like/capacity etc?
Capacity is now officially 300 (previously 360 but recently reduced), however due to the layout the venue only needs about 60-70 to generate a decent atmosphere. The stage area itself is particularly low and set to
the side of the dancefloor. On the positive side, this gives
live events a more intimate feel. There is a huge storage
area for gear, but no proper back stage area.
back
to FAQ index
6.
Website
6.1
How often is the website updated?
The website is updated weekly, usually just to change the
forthcoming DJ and add a setlist.
There are generally some larger changes once a month. Anything
else is usually put in the forums,
because its easier and most people read that first anyway.
6.2
Who runs the website?
Paul, mostly.
6.3
How do I contact the webmaster?
You can email the webmaster from the address on the Contact
page. Or talk to the scruffy bastard behind the decks on a
Sunday.
6.4
There's a photo of me in the gallery that I'm not best pleased
about. What do I do?
Use the "gallery" email address on the Contact
page and we'll remove it straight away, no questions asked.
Please send a link to the image, or some way to let us know
which picture you're referring to.
6.5
Who provides the forum?
The open source PHPBB forum is hosted locally. More information
can be found at www.phpbb.com.
Its wonderful, but make sure you're on a fairly pokey server
or it'll be way too slow.
6.6
Who moderates the forum?
Paul looks after the general stuff. Pyromancer and Faelis
oversee a number of the forums along with gothVodka, akasha and blckencht. All
moderators can be PM'd on the forum in the event of any problems.
6.7
Why are some things censored on the forum?
They're not. Honestly. There is a word filter facility
but it is only used to turn all variations of the word "fuck"
into "flock", and this is done purely for humorous
effect. Also there are several anti-spam precautions in place, although those can easily be circumvented by joining the appropriate grom (see the guide on the forum).
6.8
Can I link to you/Can you link to me?
Certainly. Tell us the URL and a brief description and we'll
add you to the Links page. At present
we don't carry banner links or banner ads, sorry.
back
to FAQ index
7.
The Subculture
7.1
Where is The Subculture?
It's in Leeds, under the Merrion Centre, a dirty great 1960s
shopping centre. Its at the top end of town, just down from
the Metropolitan University (also know as "The Met" or "The
Poly" by old people) not far from the Fab Bar, and about five
minutes walk from Leeds Central Station. The club entrance
is on the outside of the shopping centre itself. Stand facing the town side entrance of the Merrion Centre (the one straight opposite the St. John's Centre turn right and walk along the road keeping the Centre on your left. On the junction of Merrion Street and Wade Lane turn left, and the Subculture is the first doorway almost immediately on your left.
7.2
What is the dress code?
There is no dress code as such, but we have a pretty good
set of bouncers who tend to "steer away" people
who may not particular enjoy the music on offer(!). This essentially
means that if you turn up looking like a townie on a sunday
night, its unlikely they'll let you in.
7.3
What are the age restrictions?
Generally speaking you have to be over 18 and proof of ID may be required. However the venue does sometimes run "all ages" shows, so if you have a query regarding a specific event, please contact The Subculture. Please do not ask us as we don't make the rules!
7.4
Does the Subculture have its own website?
Yes. its at www.thesubculture co.uk.
Black Sheep is mentioned somewhere, if you look hard enough!
7.5
Can I hire the Subculture?
Probably. Talk to the nice people at the Subculture website.
back to FAQ index
8. Bar Phono
8.1 What's all this talk about the "Phono"?
The Phono was the notorious former home of both Black Sheep and Friday Flock. Originally "The Phonographique", the club was legendary back in the goth heyday of the 80s, being generally regarded as the axis around which the northern goth scene both evolved and revolved. The club finally closed it's doors in December 2005.
8.2 Where is/was Bar Phono?
The club is no more, and there's isn't even a doorway left to mark it's passing, never mind a blue plaque! The Phono was located within the Merrion shopping centre, mere yards from where the Subculture is now. The club entrance was within the shopping centre itself. Walk up the town side entrance of the Merrion Centre (the one straight opposite the St. John's Centre) and stop at the top. The club entrance was ahead and slightly to your right, sandwiched between the newsagent's kiosk and the small staircase partially hidden immediately to it's left. It's just a small bit of wall now, mind, barely the width of a doorway!
8.3 Does the Phono have its own website?
It used to be at www.barphono.com, but it's long since gone.
8.4 Is that thing true about [person/band/song] and the Phono?
Probably. The Phono, under one name of another, had been deeply entrenched (and occasionally at the forefront) of the Leeds goth scene since the early eighties. Despite there being absolutely no evidence whatsoever, it is widely believed that "Floorshow" by the Sisters was written about, or inspired by, the Phono. Apparently "Alice" was too, if you believe this gentleman. It is certainly true that Marc Almond (he of Soft Cell and cheeky breathalyser jokes) used to DJ, and god only knows what else, down the Phono. As mentioned above, there is a little more about the club's "illustrious" history here. back
to FAQ index
|
