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Being in the room is everything.

It’s the best bit about live music, club nights, stage shows and all the rest which, in our increasingly screen-mediated times, holds an even more vital resonance.

Yet human nature dictates we try and preserve that fleeting joy, and somehow bottle it up in our minds, (or on our phones). Then we get frustrated.

Eulogising these cherished moments – seemingly never to be topped – can quickly morph into the mantra of ‘thing’s ain’t what they used to be’ and ‘Camden’s music scene is dead’.

Meanwhile, back in real life, other people, new people, are carving out their own best moments.

Camden’s young people grow up with one of the world’s most famous live music destinations on their proverbial doorsteps, (no matter what shifting trends, onerous licensing pressures and nostalgic naysayers may do to put it down).

If we want the place to live up to its former glories, new artists need a platform and space to grow. The borough’s schools are, of course, bursting with talent blissfully unshackled from the ghosts of halcyon days. Funding their creativity, however, certainly has seen better days.

With basic support networks like functioning music departments and the creative cushion of the dole long gone, INTRA is a new, locally-born charity set up by musician parents, which brings together school-age bands, and creates opportunities for them to play Camden Town’s hallowed stages.

This Sunday, 30th March, they take over The Jazz Cafe for their biggest free gig yet (details below).

Having been along to a couple of recent editions at The Camden Club, the energy for the new is infectious. The pleasure of the live moment fully present. The quality of musicianship self-evident.

Last Sunday morning I also joined their busy roundtable, gathered in a Kentish Town front room, to ask what these young musicians felt about being part of this collective shout.

“The experience of performing live has been brought to life for me a lot more,” says Sidney. “It was always sort of, we go around to Robin’s and we play music, but now we're getting up on stage, we're performing to people. We get to share the music that we've written.”

“It’s a much better space than a school gig, too” adds Robin. “To get our name out there, and it’s a good use of time at the weekend - something to look forward to, having a goal for all that practising.”

“It feels nice to be wanted somewhere,” chips in Rose. “The audience actually want to hear us, rather than just playing somewhere where they need some noise in the background.”

Sonny offers that, “because it’s free to come along, it's encouraged more people our age to go out, not only to hear our music, but experience other music in general. I think that's a good thing.”

He’s not wrong. In these challenging times for hospitality, getting a new generation out from the sofa/phone/Spotify matrix is arguably a political act.

“It creates a sense of community through music,” adds Alfred, of the scene rapidly building around the INTRA events. “Seeing people you know as friends up on the stage, playing live music, helps inspire others.”

With many of the first wave of bands soon destined for Uni, jobs, travel or whatever, the need to create an ongoing pipeline of fresh young musicians entering the community is also important.

“It’s very positive. No one is criticising bands for not playing well or making mistakes,” says Humphrey of the purposefully supportive, experimental atmosphere.

“And it’s rewarding, after you practise a lot, to see other people appreciate what you do,” contributes Max, while bandmate Sam agrees; “the atmosphere at the gigs is great, especially when you’re in the crowd watching your peers play. That removes a lot of the stage fright you get before gigs, makes playing live feel more realistic, giving everyone the same opportunity to play.”

“I grew up learning classical music,” says Nina, “and playing an INTRA gig was my first with a rock group, and it's the perfect place to start. If you're gonna make a mistake, there's no judgement, so it was a great, open community that made a smooth transition from being in orchestras.”

Her bandmate Suzi adds, “It's very inspirational watching everyone else play, bringing their different musical backgrounds, playing their original ideas.”

“I come from a traditional music background,” says Arrow, who lead’s up improvisational crew thejamafterwards–, who bring each gig to a mass participatory close via a quintessentially Camden melting pot of folk instruments and musical influences. “I got my diploma in Georgian folk music a year ago, and since then, my progression into jazz has been quite swift. My other bandmates, Rufus and Enzo – on the steel pan and the bass, respectively – helped me define a love for jazz and for jams. The fact that we can perform our jams in a place like the Jazz Café with INTRA, helps us, and all of these bands realise childhood dreams to play in front of a big audience. But it takes our naïve dreams to ‘be famous’ and makes us more realistic, where we discover that it’s not about having fame, it’s about finding our community.”

The roundtable fizzes with ideas: playing on the canal, a Latin music workshop, a partnership with another charity to bring their rappers and hip hop artists into the mix. There’s a remarkable degree of respect and trust from the young musicians in the adults who are facilitating all this, too. This is an intergenerational community, very much a product of its place and time, and all the better for it.

If you’ve ever heard (or said) that live music in Camden is a shadow of its former self, INTRA is the evidence that it is actually being completely reborn. Again.

“It is great to be able to work with so many young musicians across the borough,” says INTRA’s co-founder and MD, Al Mobbs. “There is an incredible positivity and joy in getting together to record, rehearse, write and play live, and thanks to the likes of local venues The Camden Club and The Jazz Cafe, the bands now have a place to call home. There is so much more to come. Camden is Dead! Long live Camden!”

INTRA Presents: Camden Rising 2025 at The Jazz Cafe, Sun 30th Mar. Doors 11:15am Book free tickets (inc. info on attending as an under 18 or guardian)

SPONSOR

Setting a new standard of luxury living at Camden Goods Yard

In our partner feature this week, discover Camden Goods Yard, the new neighbourhood which stretches across eight-acres between Chalk Farm and Primrose Hill, comprising a mix of beautifully designed Manhattan, one, two, and three bedroom apartments.

Residents will have access to a range of exclusive facilities including a 24hour concierge, wellness suite with a state-of-the-art gym, 18m swimming pool, steam room and sauna, as well as three cinema rooms, a stylish lounge area, co-working spaces and a rooftop private dining room – providing the epitome of luxury and city living.

Read the full story and arrange an appointment to take a look around.

📊 This week’s one-click poll

With news this week that Camden Council has adopted the masterplan for Regis Rd in Kentish Town, including building the proposed Camden Film Quarter, a world-class film and TV production hub…

Last week we asked the question: The Big Issue magazine have given the whole of this week’s edition over to graffiti, with artist 10Foot as guest editor, so…

What's your view on the growing proliferation of street art in London?

Love it: super-talented artists are improving our environment with glorious work
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 60%

Loathe it: public walls should be clean and tidy, let's keep art in a gallery
🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 12% 

Meh: some of it's aright, but I'm not really that impressed
🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 28%

and some of your comments:

“If 10foot is an artist, I'm a zebra with a law degree.”

“It’s good to see artists we may never get to hear about otherwise. Also brightens areas up as long as it’s not anything cruel!”

“Like jokes, if they’re good they’re great, if they’re just pointless tags, they’re awful.”

“I enjoy all forms of street art, it makes me happy, even if its s**t”

“Street art is best when it is unexpected - too much it just adds to the visual noise that surrounds us.”

FOOD & DRINK

🍕 Japes is adding something different to Parkway’s pizza mile

This week we finally got around to paying an invited visit to Japes, the Camden Town pizza joint that specialises in the deep pan style of pizza that was born in Chicago. With thin, stretchy sourdoughs proliferating across London, and a cluster of five other pizza operators on the same stretch of Parkway alone, this differentiator is a wise move.

You do need to be in the mood for comedic strings of decadent mozzarella and deeply rich tomato sauce getting everywhere, but it’s a lot of fun. Our starter plate of goat cheese and figs provided the most delicate moment, before the deep dish pies swiftly emerged and things got properly serious.

The Chicago, heavy on the pepperoni, appeared quite small on first impressions, but proved plenty to contend with, even when sharing. I actually preferred Japes’ own hybrid creation, the ‘London style’ pizza, which caramelises cheese in with the crust for a degree of crunch that sits well alongside the pillowy centre and the generous nduja and mozzarella bonanza going on up top.

A punchy house Negroni was the perfect acidic foil to wash down the mouthfuls of all that unctuous cheese and crust, and we toddled off into the night seriously sated, as you might expect. The restaurant is a nice addition to a crowded local marketplace, (but the world seemingly never has enough pizza right?), and Japes is doing something genuinely different here, with charming owner/hosts working hard to make it a success, too.

We’ve added Japes to the comprehensive Camdenist reader-voted rundown of the area’s best pizzas feature that we compiled via this newsletter exactly a year ago, (having sadly had to remove the now lost Pizzeria Di Camden). Make sure to add it to your list, too.

STORIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED

🕳️ Revealing the hidden catacombs and tunnels beneath Camden

📍 Brand Camden: what does it mean?

🤯 Camdenist Guest Editor Ruby Wax on why we are out of our minds

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