We saw Mark Gardener, the lead singer of Ride, play last night at the Knitting Factory. He was quite good. It was just him singing alone with a 12-string acoustic guitar. He played a mix of old Ride songs (e.g. ‘dreams burn down’, ‘vapour trail’) and new songs. His guitar playing was brilliant, and very much in the style I play (except he can play!). That said, it was a late, late show, and he didn’t exactly hold our interest through the set. He looks completely different these days – the locks of dark hair are gone, replaced by a closely cropped blond army cut.