During the month or so after the festival, I know we were shut away and busy recording the material for 'The Magic Moments Album', but I honestly haven't a clue what else was going on, and the total lack of news in issue 7 really doesn't help. Maybe everyone was so knackered that they were enjoying a well earned rest, not an unreasonable notion. After the 'Hotch Potch Issue', there wasn't another Grain zine till late November (above, beautifully adorned with festive imagery by Chris Carter), when the Christmas aisles had barely been in the shops for more than two months. I had nothing to do with that issue at all, due to the aforementioned busyness, but even the front cover tells you something significant has happened; no mention of Momento Mori. In fact, that seems to be the end of their involvement with The Grain, but I really couldn't tell you why and there's nothing in Mania's memoir that provides any clues. And then there were three. The Charles only had the one gig lined up due to their "lack of drum kit" (which had been stolen from the squat by some disgusting soulless piece or two of lowlife scum), supporting The Magic Mushroom Band at The Crypt on December 4th. Slack Bladder,

in the meantime, were playing with us at good old Frimley Community Centre on December 12th. The discerning music lover would have been presented with a free programme (below, designed by Jay & Kate), as had become the custom at Grain gigs. They would also find themselves in the middle of a rather unconventional set up. As we didn't really need a P.A. (and, in any event, Slack Bladder would tremble at the very mention of one!) for an intimate venue like Frimley Community Centre, we decided to play one each side of the hall (not at the same time of course, though in hindsight, a joint encore of their standout "Return Of Liberace's Crabs" would have been

something else!), with the audience inbetween, rather than both at one end, as per tradition. Slack Bladder were just Martin and Andy by this point, who both took a rather laidback approach to stage presence, often just sitting wherever took their fancy, and we and our fans sat on the floor with the audience (and them), lapping up every minute of their wondrously offensive assault on our senses. Then, when they'd finished, they went outside and took all their fans with them, leaving us to preach to the converted. Oh, we got our own back at the end of the night; in spite of being the 'headline' band (if such terminology can really be applied to Frimley Community Centre), we split the profits with them 50-50 and let them fester in their own guilt! Because that's the way I thought The Grain should be. The equality bit, not trying to make people feel guilty, that was just me being petty. Martin recently apologised for their ways of old; "Just sorry we were such a thorn in your side with our arrogant attitudes (which, of course, was all part of the image!)" He wrote. And I'm sorry for making you feel bad by giving you half the money, Martin. There, we're all square. ☺ And there it was, the very last Grain gig, but that really wasn't the way it was meant to be...