This article was published in 2002.

In a freak garden wall climbing incident, Mark, of the meticulous rhythm method, has broken the big bone that goes into the hip (the femur, apparently). So it looks like Portabello will be out of service for a couple of months while we all send love and healing vibes to Mark. Hopefully he will be better and tub thumping very soon.

The album is now on sale in Virgin Megastore in Leeds, and also the UK Borders and Tower Records stores, for the bargain price of £10. If you haven't heard (and bought) it, we urge you to do so. In fact, don't take our word for it, leedsmusicscene says:

'There are no duff tracks at all. If you can't decide between Ocean Colour Scene, Electric Soft Parade and Portabello, get Portabello. In fact, go buy Portabello ahead of all the current crop of indie tunesmith type people. Maybe they're not all as pretty as ESP, but their CD will stand a lot more plays as time goes by.' 4/5

Well, we've no full on gigs booked (look out for acoustic spots) but we will be letting you know as soon as we've planned a triumphant comeback, and we can guarantee a fistful of the best new tunes around.