Issue 53 / March 2015

Bido Lito! March 2015
5
Bido Lito!
Issue Fifty Three / March 2015
bidolito.co.uk
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Editor
Christopher Torpey - chris@bidolito.co.uk
Editor-In-Chief / Publisher
Craig G Pennington - info@bidolito.co.uk
Keith Ainsworth
WORDS ARE WIND
Editorial
Some of the greatest political debate in the land takes place our in pubs and music venues, fuelled as much by a sense of indignation as
by a couple of pints of Erdinger. Gassing off about how we think things should be run is natural, and should be encouraged in all instances –
even from those idiots we’d rather not hear much from, and certainly not just during Question Time. Having said that, I do find it amusing to
watch the Twitter spike on Thursday night when QT is in full flow, while David Dimbleby is doing his best circus ringmaster routine. Even then
most of the armchair politicians settle for cramming their once-weekly rants in to 140 characters, and are happy if they just get a couple of
retweets. Any contribution to political discussion is welcome, of course, no matter what the means of expression, but what does it all lead to?
There was a time when people would be so moved by their political views that they’d arrange meetings with like-minded individuals and
act on their shared beliefs. Marches were staged, protests dreamt up, and the prospect of bringing about change was real. This was an era in
which self-made fanzines and flyers, not social media, were the primary methods of expression. Nowadays our digital activists will only take
to the streets if the cause has an accompanying hashtag.
Bido Lito!’s humble beginnings can be traced back to that zine culture of pouring your heart out on to a page, backed only by the conviction
to stand beside what you believe in. We all want everyone to agree with us (mainly because we all think we’re the only one who can see ‘The
Truth’), and the idea of sharing your dearly held views with whoever will listen is as old as time itself. This democratic approach is a key pillar
of our society. Whether you tweet it, Facebook it, Instagram it, or write it down in a letter that you send to your MP, it is your right as a citizen
to give a shit and make sure everyone knows about it.
With this year's general election – on 7th May – taking on more importance as each day passes, we thought it was high time we started
addressing the wider issues that could ultimately affect the independent creative culture that is our cocoon. Starting with Emma Brady's
comment piece this month (The Final Say, page 46), we are going to be having our say – and we want you to join us in this debate.
The dingy, smoke-filled bar rooms and basement clubs of yesteryear were not only places where political debate was fermented, but also
places where ideas came to fruition. Open Mic culture has long been a backbone of music communities across the world, serving as the ideal
place for our would-be musical heroes to cut their teeth. The ubiquity of Open Mic nights means we can sometimes take them for granted;
but, as our feature this month shows, Open Mic nights are an institution we must cling on to, for the raft of opportunities such nights throw
up. Personally, I've never stepped up at an Open Mic night and bared my soul in front of a room of musicians, but I can only assume it's a
terrifying experience; give me the interval quiz to read out any day of the week. But to all those of you who do get up, week in and week out,
we salute you.
Moving on; it’s been a long while since we had a mention of Tranmere in these pages, so I thought I’d bring you up to speed. The Palios
regime is now in full flow, with Micky Adams leading the team away from the foot of the table, point by hard-earned point. Iain Hume is
back home too, after a stint playing cricket in the Indian Premier League (at least I think that’s what he was doing). Things are steady if
unspectacular, but at least they’ve sorted the hot dogs out. I just wish they’d have a similar revolution with the half-time music.
We'd also like to say a huge thanks to Jack for stepping in for Luke this month on design/layout duties. It's been a pleasure working
alongside him on this issue – I just hope my obsession over apostrophes hasn’t been too much of a burden!
Christopher Torpey / @BidoLito
Editor
Reviews Editor
Sam Turner - live@bidolito.co.uk
Designer
Jack Ehlen - jackehlendesign.com
Proofreading
Debra Williams - debra@wordsanddeeds.co.uk
Sales And Partnerships Manager
Naters Philip - naters@bidolito.co.uk
Digital Content Manager
Natalie Williams - online@bidolito.co.uk
Words
Christopher Torpey, Craig G Pennington, Phil Gwyn, Paddy
Clarke, Richard Lewis, Jennifer Perkin, Paddy Hughes,
Dan Brown, Josh Potts, Josh Ray, Sam Turner, Emma
Brady, Maurice Stewart, Dave Tate, Alastair Dunn, Laurie
Cheeseman, Naters P, Howl Rama, Christopher Carr, Chris
Hughes.
Photography, Illustration and Layout
Jack Ehlen, Nata Moraru, Robin Clewley, Adam Edwards,
Mook Loxley, Lucy Roberts, Nick Booton, Oliver Catherall,
Keith Ainsworth, Jack McVann, Mark McNulty, Paul
Hitchmough, Glyn Akroyd, Gaz Jones, Aaron McManus,
Stuart Moulding, Christian Davies.
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The views expressed in Bido Lito! are those of the respective contributors
and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the magazine, its staff or the
publishers. All rights reserved.
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