#cafe blend

[lunaticscentral]

Mariana is a passionate business owner in Central, she describes the atmosphere amongst business owners within the area as well as her reasoning for being part of this community.

[danieldobbs-blog]

Gig today at Cafe Blend, Birmingham.

Birmingham peeps! Hope to see some nice faces at Cafe Blend at 6:00pm today. If you're coming, you can book tickets online for £6 or you can pay on the door for £8. Proceeds from tickets sold on the door will be donated to the Birmingham Children's Hospital. Here's the link to tickets. https://www.theticketsellers.co.uk/tickets/an-acoustic-evening-with-charlie-pidcock/10026057

[theysayfortunefavoursthebrave]

OxjamBrum Takeover: Events at Cafe Blend

I arrive at Cafe Blend 15 minutes early, giving myself chance to acquire a comfy seat and a mug of hot Matcha green tea. I'm impressed already; there is a vast selection of drinks on offer and joined during the day by passing friends we try a selection of seasonal flavoured lattes, herbal teas and liquor coffees, all of which are beautifully crafted and accompanied by a dark chocolate mint... I am won over. The cafe has soft green walls, comfy seats, friendly staff and a chilled, relaxing atmosphere that bodes well for the event I am here to cover: a combination of spoken word and live music collected by poet and writer Leeanne Stoddart. She rises to the stage at half-four prompt to deliver an introduction and two beautiful poems, the first: Justification, is an enchanting tale of why she writes about love, containing powerful lyrics ending with the idea that 'love is the ultimate poem'. It is romantic and her soft voice present the words with a hushed strength and omnipotence. A favourite line of her next poem (one the crowd requests her to perform) tells of the power of words and it sets the scene for a wordy afternoon..."words can be such pleasant things".  Next up are Moselele, a string of 9 ukelele players from Moseley who are charming and get all of the crowd smiling with their renditions of popular classics beginning with London Calling, followed by renditions of tunes by Red Hot Chili Peppers, Black Kids and aquiring my definite seal of approval with a Dandy Warhols cover mid set. They are a wonderful group of people, all looking so happy to be where they are, and make me want to get up and dance in the middle of the floor in a pair of dungarees and flowers in my hair, which is always a sign of a good set. The group are friendly and welcoming and I want to go along and join their regular practices despite having never picked up a Uke in my time. The band draw in a lot of passers by and are perfectly suited to the chilled and alternative location of the event. Their harmonies have soul and their smiles capture the audience. It's so lovely to be at a gig where those performing are genuinely happy to be there. 

A short break follows where I'm distracted by what looks like the world's best cake residing on the table next to me, Cafe Blend... I will be back. There is a large range of food and snacks on offer with the shelves clearing throughout the day. Hot sandwiches, pastas, (mouthwateringly enticing) cakes and crisps too. They even sell porridge, and I love porridge. 

Next on is Naomi Paul, a poet, a comic and a singer whose varied set entertains me. A charming combination of stories, poetry, and songs contemplate issues relevant to Birmingham today, such as the decreasing of libraries and books (Birmingham's new central library will actually contain fewer books than the current site), too, anecdotal tales of trips she has taken, including a sweet poem combining buying fish and remembering old relationships. 

At 6pm, Amanda Hemmings, the lady I have been waiting for, takes to the stage. A powerful woman with an obvious lyrical talent makes a short but valuable contribution to the line up. Her piece entitled Graffiti draws on her experience teaching creative writing to children and provokes and opens the eyes of the coffee drinkers. She has the ability to put words together perfectly to create strength and captivate the audience. In about 7 minutes, Amanda has changed how I view the world and what I want from life. Punchy lines echo out through the audience and she departs the stage, denim jacket and satchel in tow, leaving the audience with their jaws on the floor before an eruption of applause. 

Leeanne returns to the stage to deliver a couple more of her poems, Hairitage is a favourite, depicting how her hairstyle has altered through different periods of her life. A short break is taken and the cafe's music is well selected, from delicate folk to Little Dragon, it is in fitting with the vibe of the day. The second band of the day's proceedings take to the stage at 7 and are Midnight Bonfires, a local troop of four handsome young things who provide sweet tunes to sip drinks to. Beautiful lead vocals sooth the audience along with accompaniment from guitar, bass, mandolin and a drum box. The vocal harmonies in their third song, Trench were lovely and charmed the varied members of the public they drew in. Their fourth song, Follow Me Back, was stunning, one I could listen to again and again. They play the sort of music that I imagine listening to as I drive off into the desert in an old rusty van to begin an adventure. Rich and raw, their cover of St. James Infirmary Blues is the sort of song that rings through your ribcage and makes you want to get up and change the world. Voodoo Eyes, the next track is going to be a big hit, everyone around me is smiling. People are continually drawn in from the streets and I can see why, the music is wonderful; strong. I recommend buying their album. (Also, check out their website, the writing is wonderful.)

7.30 brings us Al Hutchins representing spoken word. A man with whom if were we to converse I imagine I would see eye to eye with as he, as well as I, saves poems he writes on bus journeys on his mobile phone. His strong, 'very brummy' (my friend Miles comments) voice carries his words to parts of the cafe which haven't heard sound before and his lyrics are powerful and provocative. An adjustment of Muhammed Ali's motto ends with 'sinking like a turd' to which the audience burst with laughter. He writes clever prose making you think about life and reminding me of what is great about poetry: small events written in unique ways can become transformative capsules of thought that live long after the words have left the tip of the tongue. I fret at the idea that we are indeed zombies in G-star raw. 

Next up, and the last on is James Summerfield, who is actually a group of three men including two with two of the finest groomed beards I've seen in a while. Beautiful, heart warming music, accompanied by a gentle voice. These three are going to be big. I will buy their music. Go buy their music. They bring in even more passers by, and I'm impressed by the range of people who trickle in through the doors. Representatives from all age groups, all interests and even all three Universities call through. I want to see this band again already, and they aren't even finished yet. Their music is smashing and they donate 20% of all record takings to Oxfam like true gentlemen. A personable band to end the night on, with lovely music from guitar, banjo, harmonica and drums. I'm sold.

Just after half eight, Leeanne takes to the stage once more to thank everyone involved for making it such a successful event. Cafe Blend were indeed excellent hosts, Jack, the stage manager kept the proceedings to time and well organised making sure everyone could hear what was going on, the smiley Oxjam volunteers selling raffle tickets and all of the performers for making what was a truly special event to witness. I had a wonderful time. She ends with "Donate! It is not too late", and I will too.

Leeanne produced a fantastic set for a wonderful cause. Go splash your pennies and support Oxjam: raising money to save lives. 

I wrote this review a couple of weeks ago, you can see a select part in this month's BrumNotes magazine. Go get yourself a free copy! It is officially my first published review, yay.