SYS RIP

The above is occurring at Soup Kitchen this Wednesday AKA tomorrow and it's basically the hottest free ticket that money can't buy. Come one, come all, raise a glass to the ascending ghost of Sir Yes Sir. Their last ever gig.

You can expect some of this...

You can buy their album at Good Grief! or from the band most likely on the night. The cover is by Lucy Jones so you know it's good

There's a tape EP too with artwork by the marvellous SAVWO. That'll be available on the night and forever more (til it sells out).

We'll be open late doors to celebrate this triumphant occasion. SYS RIP! Here's a press release from the band defining the split...

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emo indie rock fans of the world reach for your hankies; supporters of underachieving groups of 20-something wimps hush your gasps; fanciers of unprofessional, weedy, irrelevant guitar bands raise your feeble fists to the skies and give the heavens a non-committal grunt of semi-anguish; the rumours are true: 

SYS ist tot

(that's german for "SYS is dead")

(SYS being our band, sir yes sir)

yes, we're packing it in. genuine thanx to everbody who's helped us along the way, we've had some good times:

maida vale
sowerby bridge pizza
marc riley
some concerts

and some frustrating, underwhelming, and/or bullshit times:

stolen belongings
melted masters
most other parts

we play our last show THIS WEDNESDAY at manchester's SOUP KITCHEN.  it's a free show; eastenders isn't on on wednesdays; it's warm in soup kitchen.  fill an egg cup with tears and receive a complimentary pin badge; marvel at our illustrious 5-yr back catalogue (one tape and one cd and one cdr), brought together in one place for the first (and last) time in a touching tribute to 'commerce'. some of our friends (and yours?) will be playing too, good ones (look at our twitter, or posters around manchester if you live there, for more 'details').  we will play the cream of our impressive catalogue, including (but not limited to):

SEX ON FIRE (aka hit 3)
I PREDICT A RIOT (aka not excited)
PRETTY FLY (FOR A WHITE GUY) (aka have i hell)

...and many more (some with the drum machine. do you remember the drum machine? that was WILD!). it will be fun, if you've ever liked us, or we've ever liked you, please do come and say hi (bye).

whilst this journey comes to an end, the dream (get signed to DGC! play at lollapalooza in 1994! etc) lives on and  perhaps you'll hear something new from us (a different us) in 2K11?

lots of love,

Joseph, Daniel and Samuel

22 November 2010 (a.k.a. the day the  music died)

Note to editors

1. We feel that our comprehensive (not to mention critically acclaimed) back catalogue is defining WHO WE ARE and HOW WE LIVE OUR LIVES.  We don't want to think like LOSERS any more; LOSERS being the foundation on which we've built our image, career and, ultimately, life-view.

2. We feel the name ("SIR YES SIR") prevents us from ever reaching the top table of the music industry.  How can we be offered (or deserve?) that elusive recording contract whilst burdened with a moniker which, when anagagramised, spells "ERR, I SISSY"?

3. We feel that, in light of the successes over the years of fellow travellers down the road labelled "CREDIBLE CAREER AS ALT. MUSICIAN (AND SOMETIME CELEBRITY COLLABORATOR, JOOLS HOLLAND STAR, STYLE ICON ETC)", the "SYS vehicle" has too many miles on the clock to prick up the ears of the all-important public any more than they've already been pricked.  "Sir Yes Sir?  Yes, I believe I saw them at Jabez Clegg back in 2007.  They were ok; no more, no less.  I have no desire to invest any MORE time in their output" (is our feeling on what the likely reaction to the question "Sir Yes Sir?" would be, were it posed to "Joe Bloggs")

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P.S. The Hotpants Romance instore was a raging success, thank you to them for playing and to all that came. Go see them across the Europe map right now!

Hotpants Romance live at Good Grief!

This Sunday at 5pm, Hotpants Romance play at Good Grief! Soup Kitchen! as part of their 2010 euro tour. Come one, come all, this will be well good.

Here's the proof :



Does anyone remember internet cafes? Mint!

Old shop

Last days photo record of the shop as it was in Afflecks. It's all here, exposed. Life in front of the desk, life behind it. Coke can consumption, colour overload, wooden animal obsession, gifts, zines-a-million, tape rack, strings and things...

Good Grief! Third Floor Afflecks 1st December 2009 - 8th November 2010

Coming soon...

Good Grief! Soup Kitchen 15th November 2010 - ???

Good Grief! is moving!

BIG NEWS! BIG THINGS! DOING IT BIG!

Good Grief! is hauling ass from it's current abode on the third floor of Afflecks to a new home at street level in the Soup Kitchen! If you don't know Soup Kitchen, it's a smashing place. It's a canteen soup cafe sandwich bar venue and exhibition hut on Spear street just across from Blythe's and a few doors down from Fred Aldous', Manchester's two main vein art shops. It's a prime location in super surroundings and I'm very excited and thankful to the Soup Kitchen for letting Good Grief! bring it to their patch.

Here's some photos of the Soup Kitchen to get you in the mood...

By day!

Inside! GG will be parked by the bookshelves at the end of the room.

By night!

When the shop moves to Soup Kitchen, you'll be able to come in, look at zines, grab a bowl of coffee...a cup of soup, watch a gig, buy a poster, eat a Manchester egg, take in an exhibition, murder a beer, sit down. All of this and so much more! I'm excited! Can you tell?

Excited but saddened to leave the current shed on the third floor. Thanks to all that have supported Good Grief! in it's present location, I liked being enclosed and long and thin - these were great times. Eternal thanks forever more to Neil Robbins AKA the Scientist for his stirling work early doors to help make the shop what it was with fixtures and feelings and flair. It would not have been anywhere NEAR as good had Neil not kindly and kingly provided his precision point brains and recycled plasticability and woodland nouse. Too many thang yews to all friends and stockees, you're the bestest. Thanks you too to peoples at Afflecks Palais, my fellow shopkeeps especially throughout the ages. I'll miss having same-boat neighbours and friends but look forward to meeting my two new sidekicks - soup and rolls. I'm sure we'll get along famously. Gonna take some photos this week for a more fitting memoriam of the shop as it is now, perhaps then the tears can flod. Goodbye third floor, you beautiful bastard. Hello Soup Kitchen, thank you Sam.

So, you have until Monday to experience the shop as it rolls and has rolled since December 1st 2009. Gates close at 6pm on Monday 8th November 2010. Next Monday! We're open every day until then so git on down for chrissakes to grab a clump of that fabled black shed turf to stick in your trophy cabinet. I doth incite a pitch(ure perfect) invasion! And when I say everyday, I mean everyday. This is how it goes for the rest of /end of days...

Thursday 4th November - 10.30am til 6pm

Friday 5th November - 10.30am til 6pm

Saturday 6th November - 10am til 6pm

Sunday 7th November - 11am til 5pm

Monday 8th November - 10.30am til 6pm

Tuesday 9th November - IT'S GONE

Now between shops Good Grief! won't be closed for long, I don't have an exact reopening new location date but it might be something like Friday 12th/Saturday 13th November. Keep it tuned to here, the official channel, for news on that and please do tell your offline friends. New opening times will be unrolled soon too.

Excitable times!