Ominous Folk

The first time that three of us went out to sing folk music (Tom, Nimue, James) we offered ourselves up as A Cupful of Tentacles. The MC said ‘testicles’ by accident and while that’s an amusing story, it doesn’t really work for singing out.

We’ve been developing a performance side to Hopeless, Maine for a while now, and have recently added Susie Roberts to the mix. Susie is an excellent harmony singer and rounds out the sound in wonderful ways. 

This weekend we took a Hopeless Maine show – stories and songs held together by a script – to Festival At The Edge. We were also busking at The Town That Never Was – a steampunk event. Raising questions of how on earth to present us, what to call us, what works in a program and has the flexibility to cover a multitude of sins.

‘Ominous Folk’ was a description I hit on for the steampunk programme. It works – it gets across the essence of what we’re about. It expands nicely – The Ominous Folk of Hopeless Maine. It also leaves us room for other things and could be wired into titles for other activities. For example, A Murder Mystery with the Ominous Folk of Hopeless Maine – which I’ve been wanting to do for years. 

Hopeless at the Edge

This is an old photo of the Cup full of Tentacles crew, out in the streets of Stroud. Left to right… Susie Roberts, James Weaselgrease, Nimue Brown, Tom Brown.

This year we’ll be at Festival at the Edge on the Friday night – https://www.festivalattheedge.org/

We’ve got a show with songs – traditional, original and borrowed, Maine folklore and Hopeless Maine oddities… Do come and see us!

On the mist shrouded, grave dark sea, a boat shatters its hull against the malice of rocks. Hungry water sucks the living down, until only one remains, kept afloat by a large tea chest and drifting towards dawn and the shore

James Weaselgrease is a young scientist, who washes up on the island. He doesn’t really believe in vampires, selkies or mermaids. the dustcats are confusing and he fears that he is losing his mind…

The Hopeless Maine family strikes again

There are many truly lovely people who have, one way or another, thrown themselves into the tentacled embrace of Hopeless, Maine.

It would be fair to say that we’ve had a tough few months. As many of you know, Tom had a stroke back in December – he’s recovered well but it was scary at the time. Nimue has been ill a lot – nothing so dramatic, but ongoing adventures in pain and weariness. And so it was that some of the wider Hopeless Maine family gathered together and did a lovely thing to cheer us up.

This was apparently the brainchild of Nils Visser – who you will have seen a lot of here on the blog with his glorious Diswelcome series. He pulled a fabulous team together to make this happen. He’s a fine chap, and responsible for inventing Snugglepunk. Or possibly Smugglepunk.

There’s Professor Elemental doing the music, aided and abetted by Tom Carunana. We love the Prof, and the video features some of the art Tom’s done for him over the years.

Bob Fry is a longstanding supporter and spoon fancier, also an essential part of Nimue’s Wherefore project.

Herr Doktor once went so far as to make a spoonwalker. He’s also widely believed to be a deity of the steampunk pantheon.

John Bassett can be held responsible for Steampunk Stroud, and is also part of the Hopeless Maine film team, wearing many different hats for that one. All in one stack, obviously.

Cair Going is a gorgeous person and we were there when she was crowned as Queen.

Bill Jones can teach you how to grow Victorians in your garden. You may have seen his work in Private Eye.

Lou Pulford has written for this blog and performed with us in public places and has the best tentacles.

Susie Roberts sings with A Cup Full of Tentacles – the performance side of Hopeless – when we’re allowed to go out and do unspeakable things in public places.

Deep gratitude to you all, for being in our lives, for being so relentlessly lovely, and for making us cry over this video. You are all splendid and we wish we could hug you all.

Stuck in a hedge

I believe it was John Boden of Bellowhead who introduced The Pricklie Bush as a song about a man stuck in a hedge. I came to that story via Genevieve Tudor – who does a most excellent folkshow on Radio Shropshire and which you can (should!) listen to online if you like that sort of music. If you don’t like that sort of music, flee now, this post is not for you.

I wrote a Hopeless Maine version of this song. Normally I try and write more original things, but it’s a song with a great tune and chorus, and I find the original verses a bit dull. Also, getting stuck in a bush seemed like a Hopeless sort of thing, we have a lot of prickly bushes, fruit and inedible plant matter.

James and I recorded this one for the Steampunk Over Ether Festival, held online recently. It’s not the best recording of anything I’ve ever done, there’s a crunchy moment at the start which bothers me, but at the same time, we are all very tired and that wasn’t the first attempt. Hopefully it will amuse you anyway…

Tom was unwell when we did the recording, but he’s far less covered in tentacles now and is expected to make a full recovery.

Shipwrecking on Hopeless, Maine

The fog by night is darker, deeper, shrouding everything. No stars shine through, no moonlight glimmers. All sounds are muted, colours dim, here is no hope here. No hope at all. Only cold and damp malevolence.

On the mist shrouded, grave dark sea, a boat shatters its hull against the malice of rocks. Hungry water sucks the living down, until only one remains, kept afloat by a large tea chest and drifting towards dawn and the shore.

James Weaselgrease shipwrecks on the shores of Hopeless, Maine. A man of science, he is in no way prepared to deal with all the folklore and songs of the supernatural. He’s even less prepared for the island’s ghosts, and other uncanny residents!

We’re shipwrecking at Festival at the Edge this summer, all being well, with a new Hopeless Maine project and an hour long performance. More about the festival here – https://www.festivalattheedge.org/

Show me your tentacles

This song emerged as a consequence of a conversation with Meredith Debonnaire. We were talking about what kinds of things people might sing in the pub in Hopeless Maine. The pub in question being The Squid and Teapot.

I firmly believe that no matter how grim and depressing the circumstances, there will always be people who can find something to laugh at. Or be rude about. Humour is how we cope with things, so in a grim environment, it makes sense that some people would be all about the giggles whenever possible.

And so, when we were at Blist’s Hill for The Town That Never Was  (a good place for song writing, I am finding) I put this together…

Many thanks to everyone who has contributed to the tentacles we have at home!

Spidermilk biscuits

This is a piece that came about because The Keith of Mystery wanted to do a Hopeless Maine Home Companion set at the Stroud steampunk weekend. The original Home Companion had sponsors, including powdermilk biscuits. Tom Brown – familiar with the original – did something disturbing in a Hopeless Maine sort of way.

This recording doesn’t really do justice to the live experience – we had half a dozen people on the groaning, all horribly out of tune with each other. It was truly magical.

Spidermilk!

During the Stroud Steampunk weekend, we did a Hopeless Maine Home Companion, very much inspired by The Prairie Home Companion.

The original show had an imaginary sponsor in the form of powdermilk biscuits. This is what happened when we tried to translate that happy jingle into something more Hopeless…

 

Our Toys need us!

Hello people! (and others)

This week the Vendetta will be departing from the norm because of special circumstances, and for the best possible of reasons.

Edrie Edrie and Walter Alice Sickert are some of our favorite people in the world, at all ever! They are our art heroes and have been part of our journey as creators since the beginning of the Hopeless, Maine project. Walter and Edrie are the hub of Walter Sickert and The Army of Broken Toys (Which is one of our favorite bands in the world at all ever. You may be seeing a pattern developing here) Walter is also a visual artist (And all around creative force of nature)  We commissioned him to do this Salamandra piece for the first graphic novel volume of Hopeless, Maine.

Bloody. Gorgeous.

He also wrote a hopeless, Maine song that had me in actual tears the first time I heard it. Here is a video Nimue made with the song as the soundtrack.

If/when the thing that we can not talk about happens, you know that the Toys will be a part of it, because they get it on a very deep level and are just plain bloody amazing.

Now, let’s get to the crux of the matter. Edrie is (for a brief time, and obviously through no fault of her own) sans job. In order for the band to be able to continue making music and art and love and tentacles and amazingness, they need the funds for studio time and all of the other necessary things. Here is how that is going to happen. They have a Patreon Page where you can go and pledge and as a side effect, be exposed to more brilliant, wildly creative art and music. In these times especially, WE NEED THESE PEOPLE MAKING ART. (Pardon the volume, I feel strongly about this) So please, please, pretty please with tentacles, get in there and be a part of this!

(Tell them Tom and Nimue sent you)

Enter a world of Steamcrunk Imagination!

 

Love and tentacles (As Walter would say)

Us.

Hopeless, Maine and Some Freaks

Greetings people! (and others)

This week, I bring you a video that Nimue has made in order to introduce people to our strange playground. She made it specifically because we are involved in a local event called Stroud Book festival, and we are going to be in a gallery for the week (Which is why the Hopeless, Maine Arts and Crafts Movement has begun and is now completely out of control. More on that later) They asked for a video to promote HM, and so, here it is. (I’ll be back after you watch/listen. Promise)

You will notice that the (Bloody amazing) music is by Walter Sickert. Walter is one of our art heroes and leads one of our three favorite bands in the world/ever- Walter Sickert and the Army of Broken Toys. 

Walter wrote and performed this song for us. (sorry. Having a moment here) and it’s a thing we go back to whenever we are having creative doubts (Much less often than in times past, admittedly) He has also written the soundtrack for the film Some Freaks, which is out in theatres now! It can also be found online if you don’t have the sort of enlightened theatre that shows unspeakably cool things.

 

Hoping (as always) this finds you well, inspired and thriving.