Sensateria returns 26.5.12 at Club PST

Birmingham’s renowned psychedelic club Sensateria returns this month, after an eighteen year hiatus. The sixties themed club night began in 1984 and ran for ten years, moving to and from venues such as The Fantasy Club, The Powerhouse [now the closed Oceana], The Hummingbird [now Birmingham Ballroom], Digbeth Civic Hall Institute [now HMV Institute] and Snobs.

March Area Guide

Welcome to the March edition of the Area Culture Guide for the West Midlands packed with loads for you to do during the month.

Alternative Valentines

Valentine’s Day means a lot of things to a lot of people. For some, it’s an opportunity to express their undying love and affection for another by showering them with tacky gifts, flowers and chocolates that on any other day could only be seen as a form of apology. To others it can be a hateful affair. Whether it’s because of love lost, a love never had or a great dislike for all commercial occasions (we’re looking at you, Grandparents Day), February 14th can stir up a lot of unhealthy thoughts and feelings. With this in mind, we wanted to offer you all a life-line. From live music to film, we’ve devised a list of options of both anti- and alternative Valentine’s Day events to help see you through that rather ridiculous and overly hyped day.

Steve Conte and the Crazy Truth

HMV Institute, 9 December, £10

Taking their name from a Charles Bukowski poem, The Crazy Truth started up in 2005 when Steve Conte – of the New York Dolls among many, many others – bumped into old school-friend and bassist Lee “Leeko” Kostrinsky on the streets of New York. Joined by Phil Stewart – of Scarborough! – on drums, they played their first gig within a few months at a T-Rex memorial concert.

Rocking Around the Bullring: A Xmas Gig Guide

We often associate Christmas with quaint home comforts: turkey sarnies, chestnuts roasting on open fires, ‘horrid’ jumpers from Nan that we’d probably splash £40 on if they were hanging off a rack in Urban Outfitters. But what to do if we want to hit the town, yet can’t stomach the thought of yet another mulled wine at the famous Xmas market?

Leftfoot 10th Anniversary

Metro Area, The Bull’s Head, 3 December, £5

Bonobo, HMV Institute, 12 December, £15 adv

Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, The Library HMV Institute, 17 December, £18.50 adv

January 2000 saw Adam Regan and Richard Whittingham start up Leftfoot at the Medicine Bar. It quickly became a haven for fans of leftfield, soulful music.