How could one come by four Svetlanas and a bottle of rum? Would you have to be a rich Russian oligarch, or a naughty salary man? Neither a tryst, nor an escape, nor a drink fueled indiscretion – yet the four Svetlanas are for real. We are not talking about a high stakes, closed door kinky Moseley moment here… No the Svetlanas I am talking about are of a different kind entirely. These Svetlanas come from a distinguished long line of Svetlanas that came before them – they have been in existence since 1928 – but don’t look a day older…

We are talking about the great JSC Svetlana valves – in particular about the 6L6GC Winged-C variety. And, there are four of them, since we need four matched ones.

Beware: The Svetlana brand name in the U.S. is owned by an entirely different company, and you will not be getting the original production at all. So if you live in the US or Canada, make sure you are asking for JSC Svetlanas. According to Watford Valves, they are the “best clean sounding current production 6L6GC made to day.”

I have put these into my good ole’ ValveKing 100, and they have brought the thing to life. When you want valves, you gotto go Russian!

Here they are in situ, purring happily away:

And… here is another wicked sample of Russian graphic art:

‘Bout a couple of days ago, I decided to go to the Litro event at Foyles. It sounded quite good on paper: an offering of music and literature from 6 to 10pm – and all of that for only the modest entry fee of £5. I was thinking to myself, “Hmmm… why not catch some early evening sounds and relaxation?” So I got there in good time, got a nice laté and a bit of literature, and perched myself up on a nice, wooden yet extremely uncomfortable bar stool by the window-side. I was geared up, ready to relax! Then 6pm came and went by… No sign of any acts whatsoever…

About 6:20, the stage PA started belting out a fine variety of canned and tinned sounds that could almost have been live. I had my back to the stage – and wondered whether the band had arrived. So I swiveled around on my bar stool and appraised the stage-side developments. I spotted a bar assistant fiddling with the PA and then retreating hastily. The couple of well-mannered blondes who were sitting at the table immediately behind me synchronously eyed my crotch, and I wondered whether I had left my fly open. After discreetly re-assuring myself that I was in proper decorum, I continued to watch the stage for a while, and eventually turned back to resume my reading of an excerpt from Gulliver’s Travels.

At around 7:10pm, all hope having faded of catching some early evening live tunes, having finished my little literature handout, and growing weary of waiting, I decided to call it a day. I took in a deep breath, exhaled, put on my jacket, double checked my crotch and the blondes, and then with a calm smile made my way to the door.

Yes! Peaches, with her electro-punk sound, was at the RFH. It was a memorable evening: her parents were in the audience, and… she began the show with the maxim, “I m gonna murder you tonight!”

To my right was a Spanish contingent of 4 girls and a guy. Perhaps it was the Spanish influence that lead me to read the Peaches logo – placed high up on the stage – as ‘Nachos’. But after a double take, I realized what it said. : ) On my left, were a couple of leathered up dudes. Then there was that ultra-tight-neon-blue-lycra-catsuit clad girl, who was wearing a transparent plexiglass teapot on her head. And, the twin albino Jimmy Hendrix look-alikes….

The start up acts included the lovely Charli XCX – dressed up in full Harajuku style, and the extravagant, sweet-voiced Jonny Woo…