The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur News and Links for Friday, December 9

hello hello hello - Fitzie may be in Connecticut today, but let’s talk about a concert that happened back in Washington

I first heard Nikki Lane on the radio and loved her song First High - I even featured in one of my tracks of the day.

Around the same time I learned she was due to perform at the Black Cat (where I saw Yard Act). How neat! So I decided to hold off on listening to the rest of her music until the concert itself.

Well, let’s say the crowd for Nikki Lane was a lot different than for Yard Act. Much more denim shirts and flannel. Apparently she’s a country singer! Some post-concert digging led me to learn that she teamed up with Josh Homme to create her most recent album, which is a bit more rock-and-roll than her previous ones.

I’m not much of a country guy, I have to admit. But I do love my punk rock. And there was something punk-rock about this South Carolina-born artist. She did, after all, choose a punk rock song to walk out to.

During her hour--plus long performance she performed with a sort of punk-rock edge that I don’t normally associate country music with: on-stage drinking, f-bomb droppings and crowd-surfing.

And she performed with this rock-and-roll edge as well as she flowed from some of the easier to identify country music motifs through electric guitar solos. Her guitarist even played a solo with his guitar behind his back.

Maybe there are people here who are more country-oriented than I who could push back against all I say, or corroborate it.

As someone who has not taken to country music, Nikki Lane was a refreshing change.

Fitzie’s track of the day: Denim & Diamonds, by Nikki Lane

And now for your links:

Mauricio Pochettino guest-writes for The Athletic ($$) on Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe

Luis de la Fuente replaces Luis Enrique as Spain’s head coach

Kazuyoshi Miura, 55, seals move to Portuguese second-tier club

NPR: US pay-to-play puts football out of reach for many kids