Pig With The Face Of A Boy

Our website has moved

2010-12-17T19:27:00.001Z

Visit us at http://pigfaceboy.co.uk/. We've got a shop and lyrics and everything.

I am the man who arranges the blocks T-shirt

2010-12-11T22:41:00.000Z

Here's a preview of our new T-shirts. They've just arrived, and look amazing. They'll be on sale on this site in a few days, but if you're in a hurry, you can buy them now on Dan's site at http://danwoods.co.uk/buy-dan/tetris-t-shirts/

Hip hip hurrah

2010-11-07T15:36:00.000Z

WINNER - BEST ANIMATION - Super Shorts International Film Festival 2010
WINNER - LOW BUDGET AWARD - Super Shorts International Film Festival 2010

On the pig screen

2010-10-25T22:55:00.000+01:00

We've just been nominated for this award. If you fancy seeing A Complete History of the Soviet Union as told by a humble worker, arranged to the melody of Tetris in a more cinematic setting, come along to The Cinema, Regent’s College, Regent’s Park, London, NW1 4NS on 31 October for 7pm. Say hello if you see us.

Theatre Souk, 16 September & 7 October

2010-09-14T21:19:00.002+01:00

Pig With The Face Of A Boy will be playing an hour-long set at this unique experiment at a pop-up theatre venue near Oxford Street. Come along, if you're in London. We're appearing on two dates:

Thursday 16 September 8:30-9:30
Thursday 7 October 7:30-8:30

We'll in the Cabaret Bar which is on the right as you enter the building.

It's at 3-4 Picton Place, London W1U 1BJ, in the former offices of Uzbekistan Airways. Here's a map.

390,000 views, cor blimey; and other shows

2010-09-09T21:54:00.003+01:00

Hello new followers! Welcome to Pig With The Face Of A Boy. If you like what we do, you can buy our album using the links on the right.

Our video of A Complete History of the Soviet Union as told by a humble worker, arranged to the melody of Tetris has had 390,000 views at the time of posting. Cor! Blimey. Thank you, all, for your support and your continuing plugs.

We’re now back in London following our successful shows in Edinburgh. On Saturday 11 September we’re performing at this benefit event in aid of the recent floods in Pakistan. More than 21 million people have been affected by the worst floods in living memory, and large areas of the country are still underwater. There quite a few other interesting acts playing, and it will be a fun evening in aid of a worthwhile cause.

We’re appearing on a couple of nights of the Theatre Souk event, run by London’s leading pop-up theatre company Theatre Delicatessen. We’ll be in the Cabaret Bar at 20:30 – 21:30 on 16 September and 19:30-20:20 on 7 October, and you can take the opportunity to explore a whole bunch of other rooms featuring London’s best emerging and experimental theatre-makers.

If you want to book us for your gig or for any other queries, you can email us at pig@pigfaceboy.co.uk.

130,000 views, wow; Dan's solo show

2010-08-19T10:46:00.002+01:00

You can catch Dan in his new solo show, Oral History, at the Three Sisters 19-29 August at 5pm. He'll be performing songs about our civilisation, in the hope that future generations will recite them around campfires, and get the wrong impression. It's a mixture of new songs and Pig classics. The show is part of the Edinburgh Free Festival, so you don't have to pay to get in.

Thanks to all who have watched our video of A Complete History of the Soviet Union as told by a humble worker, arranged to the melody of Tetris. And thank you if you've bought the album, as this helps us to spend more time creating more stuff. You can download it using the links on the right.

Hello new followers!

2010-08-11T21:18:00.002+01:00

Welcome to the blogsite of Pig With The Face Of A Boy. Thanks for visiting!

You can buy our album on iTunes or Amazon or using the links on the right.

At the moment we're in Edinburgh appearing at the Fringe, doing a show at 5pm every day at the Three Sisters, 139 Cowgate, Edinburgh EH1 1JS. If you're around, do drop in to say hello and watch our show.

To book us or for any other questions, you can email pig@pigfaceboy.co.uk.

Tetris lyrics

2010-08-11T21:11:00.004+01:00

A number of people have requested the lyrics for A Complete History of the Soviet Union As Told By A Humble Worker, Arranged To The Melody Of Tetris. Here they are:

To Moscow I came seeking fortune
But they’re making me work til I’m dead
The bourgeoisie have it so easy
The Tsar’s putting gold on his bread
The people of Moscow are hungry
But think what a feast there could be
If we could create a socialist state
That cared for the people like me:

I am the man who arranges the blocks
That descend upon me from up above.
They come down and I spin them around
Til they fit in the ground like hand in glove.
Sometimes it seems that to move blocks is fine
And the lines will be formed as they fall -
Then I see that I have misjudged it!
I should not have nudged it after all.
Can I have a long one please?
Why must these infernal blocks tease?

I am the man who arranges the blocks
That continue to fall from up above.
Come Muscovite! Let the workers unite!
A collective regime of peace and love.
I work so hard in arranging the blocks
But the landlord and taxman bleed me dry
But the workers will rise! We will not compromise
For we know that the old regime must die.
Long live Lenin, kill the tsar!
We salute the sickle and star!

I am the man who arranges the blocks
That continue to fall from up above.
The food on your plate now belongs to the state
A collective regime of peace and love.
I have no choice in arranging the blocks
Under Bolshevik rule, what they say goes.
The rule of the game is we all are the same
And my blocks must create unbroken rows.
Long live Stalin! He loves you!
Sing these words, or you know what he’ll do...

I am the man who arranges the blocks
That are made by the men in Kazakhstan.
They come two weeks late and they don’t tessellate
But we’re working to Stalin’s five year plan.
I am the man who arranges the tanks
That will make all the Nazis keep away
The Fuhrer is dead, and Europe is Red!
Let us point all our guns at the USA.
We shall live forever more!
We can start a nuclear war!

I am the man who arranges the blocks
That are building a highly secret base.
Hip hip hurrah for the USSR!
We are sending our men to outer space.
I work so hard in arranging the blocks
But each night I go home to my wife in tears -
What’s the point of it all, when you’re building a wall
And in front of your eyes it disappears?
Pointless work for pointless pay
This is one game I shall not play.

I am the man who arranges the blocks!
But tomorrow I think I’ll stay in bed.
The winter is cold, I’ve got plenty of gold
And I’m standing in line for a loaf of bread
Maybe we’d be better off
If we brought down Gorbachev

I am the man who arranges the blocks
That continue to fall from up above.
The markets are free! So much money for me!
Tell me, why should I care for peace and love?
The markets are free! So much money for me!
Tell me, why should I care for peace and love?
Peace and love, peace and love!

And now the wall is down, the Marxists frown
There’s foreign shops all over town
When in Red Square, well don’t despair
There’s Levi’s and McDonald’s there
The US gave us crystal meth
And Yeltsin drank himself to death
But now that Putin’s put the boot in,
Who’ll get in our way?

So we reject free enterprise
And once again the left will rise.
Prepare the flags to be unfurled
For we’re seceding from the world:
We shall regain the Georgian soil
We shall obtain the Arctic oil
We shall arrange the blocks and toil
Forever and a day.

Game over.

Edinburgh 2010

2010-08-03T12:45:00.001+01:00

We're appearing at the Edinburgh Fringe to perform songs from our next album, The Girl With The Arms Made From Marrows.

The show runs from 5-17 August 2010 at 5pm every day.

It's part of the Free Edinburgh Fringe. There's no need to book - simply turn up and enjoy.

The Facebook event is here

NEW VIDEO - A Complete History of the Soviet Union, arranged to the melody of Tetris

2010-07-13T19:18:00.002+01:00

We've made a video of our song, "A Complete History of the Soviet Union as told by a humble worker, arranged to the melody of Tetris", directed and animated by Chris Lincé. Huge thanks to Chris, and to Tim, Nicola, Lucy, Malcolm, Robin, James and Remy for making it possible.

Pig with the Face of a Boy's TETRIS VIDEO LAUNCH COMEDY NIGHT

2010-06-23T23:09:00.002+01:00

Thursday 8 July 2010
Doors 19:30, start 20:00
at The Miller, 96 Snowsfields, London SE1 3SS

A delicious evening of free-admission comedy.

We've made a video of our song 'A Complete History of the Soviet Union As Told By A Humble Worker, Arranged To The Melody Of Tetris', fantastically directed and animated by Chris Lincé. To celebrate the launch, we're hosting a free admission night of comedy, to include:

Sketch comedy from the fresh and brilliant TOBY

Neo-post-post-music hall comedy from the very funny BOB & JIM

And, of course, comedy songs from PIG WITH THE FACE OF A BOY

and the Grand Unveiling of the video of A COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE SOVIET UNION AS TOLD BY A HUMBLE WORKER, ARRANGED TO THE MELODY OF TETRIS!

The Miller is close to London Bridge tube/rail. See you there!

The Girl With The Arms Made From Marrows

2010-06-10T09:02:00.005+01:00

We're delighted to announce details of our Edinburgh show.

Once again we'll be at the Edinburgh Free Festival this summer, where we'll be premiering songs from our next album, The Girl With The Arms Made From Marrows.

We had a brilliant time and had a fantastic audience at last year's Edinburgh Fringe. This year we're in a bigger space, Maggie's Chamber at The Three Sisters on Cowgate. We'll be on every day at 5pm from 5-17 August.

And Dan will be performing his solo show, Dan Woods's Oral History, in the same venue from 19-29 August. He will be singing yet more daft songs, with an improbable ambition that future generations will tell his stories around campfires.

Last year the critics thought Pig With The Face Of A Boy were "the new rock'n'roll" and reckoned "a better hour of shiny comic songs may be hard to find". So come and see us, and point your friends our way!

Listen to our songs

2010-02-04T00:54:00.001Z

You can listen to our songs:

1 By buying our CD. There are lots of songs on our CD.

2 By clicking on the player on the right.

3 By visiting our MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/pigwiththefaceofaboy

4 By seeing us live. The calendar on the right shows when you can see us.

Petiton to make bendy buses make accordion noises as they go round corners

2009-11-29T13:37:00.000Z

Please join this group.

Joining a Facebook group is of course the world’s least effective form of political action. However, this is a cause Pig With The Face Of A Boy are particularly passionate about, and we believe Transport for London should implement the measure without delay.

Gig With The Face Of A Boy

2009-11-25T21:02:00.002Z

Keep an eye on the 'google calendar' box on the right for details of our gigs. We're performing at UCL on Saturday, and next Wednesday we're returning to the Cavendish Arms as part of a brilliant night called the Cheeky Beggars Banquet.

More will appear soon.

The 'google calendar' box feels a tad cramped and messy. Does anyone know an easy and effective way to make it less ugly?

The World's Smallest Festival

2009-09-24T00:47:00.001+01:00

Pig With The Face Of A Boy will be appearing at The World's Smallest Festival this Sunday 27th September. It will take place in a secret location in South London. For tickets, text the word "BLAG" to 60777 (£1.50 per text). 50 texters will be given two tickets each entirely at random.

We're excited. There are some great acts lined up. It's going to be huge.

Our first album (La La Ha Ha)

2009-09-11T20:46:00.000+01:00

A number of people have been asking how they can buy our CD. To make this both possible and easy, we added a button to the right of the page, which allows you to send us money via the electronic payments provider PayPal. You don't need a PayPal account to use the service.

To check the system worked, I tested it out, which rather irritatingly meant I had to fork out £7 for one of my own CDs. Much to my surprise, it arrived immediately.

Coming to a town

2009-09-08T23:29:00.009+01:00

Pig With The Face Of A Boy will be performing at a town near you, if you happen to live near to Gravesend, which is a town in Kent.

We'll be playing at 7:30(ish) on Sunday 13th September as part of the Red Roar Festival.

We're also due to be playing as part of the World's Smallest Festival on Sunday 27th September. This is obviously top secret. If word gets out it will no longer be the World's Smallest Festiva l, so the endeavour will be pointless.

If you like us and think we should play at your venue or festival, email pig@pigfaceboy.co.uk, and we'll see if we can make it happen.

(The photo is from a nativity play I was once in. It's not from the show. There are no puppet sheep in our show. There is no need to be afraid.)

Another four star review

2009-08-20T10:10:00.003+01:00

From ThreeWeeks.

"These boys are in danger of making 'anti-folk' the new rock'n'roll."

We are toying with the idea of pasting "THE NEW ROCK'N'ROLL!" on our posters, just to see what sort of people turn up.

Read the full review here: http://edinburgh.threeweeks.co.uk/review/7483

Four stars in The Skinny

2009-08-10T11:01:00.002+01:00

From The Skinny:

Come in off the crowded streets and escape the unending raucous cries of flyer-bearing promoters and overheated children – the Free Edinburgh Fringe Festival brings you sweet and twisted comedy tunes from Pig with the Face of a Boy and twelve perfect little songs cleverly composed with both well-honed comic timing and fine musicianship.

Their lyrics always begin in the world of the sane but then take a surprising leap down dark and surreal comic alleyways, where love-struck shepherds mingle with the half naked, urine-drinking Howard Hughes. With a jingly set of instruments, including a 12 string ukulele, their harmonies put you in mind of the early Divine Comedy, as they blend the melodies of music hall with intelligent acoustic pop tunes. A better hour of shiny comic songs may be hard to find, and certainly not for free.

See Pig With The Face Of A Boy in Edinburgh for free

2009-07-05T19:14:00.004+01:00

Pig With The Face Of A Boy are going to the Edinburgh Fringe! You can catch our show at The Newsroom every day from 6-30 August. As an experiment in socialism, all performances will be free.

We’ll be singing songs and talking in between. More details soon.

Pig with the shirt of a boy

2009-05-30T22:48:00.005+01:00

The annual Lechon festival in the Philippines.

They'll cook the pig whole, on charcoal, and apparently it's delicious. Occasionally the pigs are made to wear fancy dress, which people find humorous.

Are these pigs about to kiss each other tenderly on the lips? No, of course not. They're dead.

Donald is back

2009-05-04T09:15:00.003+01:00

Donald is back. He's back from Mexico.

Does anything strike you as unusual?

We'll be playing at the Leather Exchange, SE1 3HN on Wednesday 6th May.

Where's Donald?

2009-02-25T23:24:00.004Z

View Larger Map

Donald is here. See if you can spot him. If you're in the area, say hello.

He'll be back in May. When he gets back, Pig With The Face Of A Boy be gigging and recording as if he'd never been away.

Pig With The Face Of A Schoolboy

2008-09-09T12:11:00.001+01:00

Pig With The Face Of A Boy's Donald and Dan will be appearing in the sketch show "Unsupervised Detention" at the Canal Café Theatre on 23 September at 9:30pm.

We will be performing silly sketches and songs and wearing school uniform. You can visit the show's website here

To book tickets call the Canal Café theatre on 020 7289 6054.

Become a "fan"

2008-08-01T12:40:00.005+01:00

Using the links on the right, you can find us on Facebook and become our "fan".

We've just set the page up, and at the time of writing we have 13 fans, which makes us happy. Please keep them coming. If we can get another 675 fans, we will be as popular as Michael Bolton.

Pig With The Face Of A Monkey

2008-08-01T12:27:00.005+01:00

From the Torygraph:

A piglet with the face of a monkey has been born in a remote Chinese village, astonishing local residents.

Its front legs are much shorter than its back legs, causing it top hop rather than walk on all fours like a normal piglet.

“It’s hideous. No one will be willing to buy it, and it scares the family to even look at it,” owner Feng Changlin told the Oriental Today newspaper.

"My God, it was so scary. I didn't know what it was. I was really frightened," she said.

But not everyone in the family is disgusted by its appearance.

“Our son likes to play with it, and he stopped us from getting rid of it. He even feeds it milk,” said Mr Feng’s wife.

Neighbours have suggested the couple keep the piglet to see how it looks as it matures.

Welcome to Pig With The Face Of A Boy

2008-08-01T11:53:00.001+01:00

Thank you for visiting Pig With The Face Of A Boy.

The words and music of Donald Newholm and Dan Woods have already been acclaimed as "good", "cute", "frightening" and "delightfully mainstream". We hope to put some of it on the site soon.

In the mean time, we'll post a few pictures of Donald and me for you to dribble over.