Bunch Of Fives: BLED

BLED is the artistic partnership of anti-art artist Jamy Crozier (RED) and songwriter and producer Leo Himmelblau (BLUE). The duo’s moreish goth-pop music, vivid aesthetic and dramatic live show make them an unmissable prospect at this year’s Northern Electric Festival.

The duo have done their fair share of touring and so share the top five service stations that they’ve encountered on their travels…

Dear reader, we have travelled the UK playing shows to modestly filled rooms lately and have nearly always broken even. On this crusade we have gathered a wealth of knowledge, which we shall now depart unto thee.

Behold, our top five service stations are as follows:

1. Welcome Break, Fleet M3
Not your best service station to be honest, but this one wins hand over fist for picnic area. You get the luxury of sitting and eating your overpriced snacks in a pinewood forest! Just imagine you’re in California with the redwoods. 6/10

2. Roadchef, Annandale A74
Absolutely charming lake. Slightly overpriced samosas but you pay for the scenery. Can confirm that the verges are soft. 7/10

3. Extra, Skelton Lake M1
Shiver me timber! That’s some nice wood. The whole front of this gaff is designed using sustainable spruce. It’s unbelievable! Also so many food options you can’t really decide and end up just going to WHSmiths again. Gotta love it tho! 8/10

4. Roadchef, Strensham M5 
Have you ever been to LEON? If you, like us, are prone to a weaker bowel, then they have all your allergy bases covered. It’s fast food but it’s bougie and tastes amazing seven times out of ten. So this service station has one, yeah. It is also uniquely placed so that you can do a wee before you inevitably get stuck in traffic around Birmingham. 8/10

5. Westmorland, Gloucester M5
Crikey! What can we say? (Rhetorical, we’ve got loads of things to say.) These guys know how to grass a roof and provide some of the greatest service station service in the world. Highlights include: the sleek glass design, the chunky chips (cooked to perfection and great with their unbranded brown sauce) and the hammer Red purchased that happened to contain SIX screwdrivers in the handle (initially thought only to be four but upon further inspection, yes, Westmorland has done it again, SIX screwdrivers). Tip: great place to drop off scary hitchhikers. Only downside, and it’s very minor, is the confusing car park that is hard to exit, although why anyone would want to leave is beyond us. 9/10

*Note to reader, we are reserving 10/10 for our own service station should we one day venture into the industry. It will be blue and red and contain screwdriver-hammers, chunky chips, a grass roof and lots of pine trees.