Writers block over - a new beginning. Christmas and then Birthday.

Alrighty then!
I have let this go for far too long, giving in to my evil "do nothing" side.
Thinking I have nothing to say, is just plain wrong, inevitably the act of writing will lead to words spilling out of my sub-concious. Plus, I have much to draw on considering my prolonged abscene from this blog.

Christmas happened, a welcome break from work and a chance to see my family and catch up with friends - all very good fun. Highlights included giving my parents their presents, turning my mind into ectoplasmic soup at a mates house(!), Star Christmas dinner, and lunch at The Oxford Retreat with some of the loveliest people a person could ever wish to know, a lunch which lasted at least 8 hours, well the eating bit was over after the first hour or so, the drinking bit continued on into the night. Excellent fun, me and Jimmy were last men standing I believe.

2008: we careered headlong into the new year, hurtling towards my 40th birthday aka. "the birthday that cannot be named".
The original plan was to have a gig!! However this was proving to be tricky. Trying to pin bands down to do an impromtu set isn't easy especially when they have other commitments that pay money. So plan B was to have DJ's!
This was a far far better idea, it negated all the logistic problems, allowed everyone involved to do their bit and then carry on partying, I didn't need to employ a sound man, so cheaper for me too. It also gave the evening a wider music range so something there for everyone, yaay!
I don't really put parties on but this was an occasion I needed to mark, after all I have got this old and not had a wedding so I felt I deserved a big blow out with lots of friends.
Invites were done via myspace and facebook, plus some phone calls and word of mouth, this avoided the need for printing and posting invites and so fitted in with my lo-cost minimal paper ethos. Due to my bad organisation I was sure I had forgotten people and was also fearing that no one would turn up but I am sure these are normal party fears.

I had secured the use of the upstairs of the Jericho Tavern as the venue, on a Saturday night no less thanks to Autumn. DJ's were booked and confirmed. I braced myself for the night, that sounds a tad paranoid but I was really nervous about it. I asked my old mate Dougie to give me a hand and provide some CD decks, he dropped by on the saturday afternoon to give me a hand and I would have been lost without him, his experience with such things was invaluable and I can't thank him enough for all his help. He sorted out the sound as best as was possible, which more than adequate for the occasion with the proviso that "no one turns it up too much".
I doubt he will read this but I am indebted to you Douglas James.

And so all set up - we were ready to rock. I went home changed and showered, and returned to the venue. I even had time to have some dinner at the Jericho, what with them being a bit of a gastro outfit.

The evening went off better than I could have hoped for: people turned up in their droves, I didn't count but I would estimate at about 70 - 80 maybe more (yeh right)! so many friendly faces everywhere I went.
The DJ's were nothing short of brilliant. Heres the line up.
8 - 8.50 Jimmy, PC, Walter (2 foals and a viking)
8.50 - 9.20 Ollie and Thomas YK
9.20 - 10.20 Ady VacPop
10.20 - 11.10 Darryl
11.10 - 12.10 Micheal Barry ARF



PC Rae kicked it all off (by arriving with a headphone adapter when one was essential and impossible to find), he led his co-horts Jimmy and Walter through a set of the finest current tunes, as well as not so recent monster tunes.

Ollie and Thomas, smashed it up, my personal highlight was them going from "Warm leatherette" The Normal into "I could be so good for you" the theme from Minder!! Stunning.

Ady was throwing down the classics as he threatened to do, nice work my friend.

Darryl my old mate filled the place with disco house which actually got me on the dance floor!!

Micheal rounded the night off with his brand of indie dancefloor grooves from the top smash club night he runs called Abort Retry Fail, a great job well done - loved it.

Pretty much something there for everyone.

I got some great gifts too!! I'm not really used to getting presents so I was blown away by this.
Including an "old man/duffer" kit from Abby, hee hee, very funny.
I managed to stay standing all night, despite being bought drinks left, right and centre, had to dodge a couple as I was already drinking 3 drinks at a time.
It was amazing, even to the point of being almost dreamlike, so many friends all wishing me well, and they were all having a great night, (I think. :))
Happy birthday was led by Hannah Connely aka thebirthdaygirl - I was so stoked!

I only had the Jericho til 12, which seemed early but as it turned out was probably the perfect time, leave it on a high, best policy I reckon. The party however was continued at the HiLo Jamaican on Cowley Road, Aidan Larkin (the Rum & Bass king of Oxford) was spinning reggae and ska to a packed house and we joined in the madness with rum and red stripe - Oh Yes.

Then back to normal. well the glow of bonhomie, does continue and my memories are with me always.

Music Nerd

Ah now its time for that second entry of my blog, the "yeh I'll get round to doing that soon" next bit.

First things first, something annoyed the heck out of me today: "Foals" have got the Balloons single out today, so instead of buying it online pre-ordered I thought that I would just pick one up from HMV on my way home, the CD, 7 inch and ltd 12 inch, all in one go, I can just carry it home with me, yeh that'll be good - I was very badly mistaken though - very stupid of me to think that a major High Street music shop would stock all formats of a local bands first full blown single release. I should have known really, that it would be too much to ask, over the past year or so I have occasionally browsed the above store and have consistently been let down by what is on offer from the racks, serious lack of new music as well as back cat of many bands, then occasional finds are always well over priced. These shops have turned their back on music retail and are well on their way out. I got the Balloons single "bundle" online earlier.

On another musical note, yeh, see what I did there - oh whatever, I am a massive fan of Stuart Maconie's Freak Zone on 6music I listen sometimes live on Sunday night when he's on but mainly on listen again at work, bury myself into some heavyduty photoshop work and zone in on the freaky beautiful sounds Mr. Maconie regales his show with, last nights was a particular humdinger. As well as reading out my email (yeh I know 'nerd!', but I will do it again), he also played the almighty "Fuckbuttons" and whats more he also had a feature on Raymond Scott, the jazz and ground breaking electronic music composer/musician, who I have been checking out lately. This along with a great playlist was a marvelous show. Check it out here
also Fuckbuttons while you're clicking.

Yeh I am loving Fuckbuttons, big time, they were definately one of this years live music highlights when they played the Cellar back in the summer, that gig was nuts, Jimmy Evil had nailed the sound as ever, and I believe Andrew and Ben had played the night before at some dump where nobody got it, in Oxford they knew they were among friends and my goodness did they put on a show.
Fuckbuttons sound is a miasma, a pulsating fog that gets into you. I like that they can't really be described by genre but simultaneously bring to mind many musical memories from down the years and theres the thing it is simultaneously so making it tricky to tell one from another, so you just go with it. The rhythm is non generic no 4-4 here, well maybe sometimes but the timings change and fluctuate and the whole thing is very human and dirty in a very lovely way.
Everyone moves, they cant help it. So looking forward to the album. Street Horrrsing, is due for release on February 11

Last week I went to one of the fine evenings put on by Permanent Vacation this time with Coo Productions at he back of the Bully, PNAK, Please and Elapse-O, I arrived as PNAK were starting and settled in to a reverie of noise and beats, live drums and a guy manhandling a collection of effects pedals, a lovely sonic attack that kept me interested wondering where they were going with it all, as I got the hang of it it would change speed and intensity, I felt at times it could have gone further more intense and dark but thats just me. I was in a fine state and got it into my head that this was something I was seeing and hearing a bit more of lately so I coined the term "Effects-core" and promptly exclaimed this to Mr Lex, I made myself laugh as I had to check myself and my mad ramblings to Lex telling him not to tell anyone (I am a funny prat though). Anyway I googled it the next day and didn't really find anything music related except for another term "Pedal-core" to describe Envy which sort of could be the same I guess but not really what I am describing.
Last time Please played Oxford I missed them so I was interested to hear them, they did not disappoint at all. A 3 piece ,2 guitars and a drummer, now I ain't going headlong into a list of who they sound like, they have an approach to music that is very much of the same ilk as say crass or a constellation band, mad unlikely structures, punk rock, post this, post that, old new, islamic/sufi, blood and guts in high school, bastard, bastard... Please
Elapse-O the local guys were next and was pleased with the way they are moving their sound forwards, more structure (a little bit), and a fuck you up driven beat that ties together the monster bass noise, the guitar (sonic) attack and the Alan Vegaesque vocals. Keep it up chaps I am very interested in where this is going. Elapse-O

There you go: Mr Axl noted somewhere or other that I hadn't mentioned music yet - have now!! and I will again …
Oh and I know I said sonic assult twice.

That blog I was going to do

So here it finally is, that blog is was going to do, and about time too.
I have always been awful at keeping any kind of written record of my life
and simultaneously always wanted to do so. As a wise man once said, I think it was Confucius but not 100% sure on that, "the longest journey begins with a single step" (sic), so here is that step being taken. Steady as I go and many more to follow.

Right what culture have I partaken in this week? Its been a sparse week due to some cashflow problems but it was hard to pass up the offer of a free screening of a new Snowboard film called "Terminal Ferocity" from my very good friend Mon B at SS20 (Cowley Road Oxford). It was a Brit snowboard overview featuring some of the best riders from the British scene, now to many of you this may sound a tad dull, well those of you who couldn't give half a toss about sliding down a mountain on an overpriced tea-tray, I accept that but as your at my blog sorry but thats how I roll sometimes (the roll comment makes me sound even more of a wanker, ah good), however the point I wish to make is this; the "Terminal Ferocity" is funny as hell, its done in a docu style in "the making of" fashion, it rips the piss out of any pretension of cool hip snowboard types, all the pro boarders involved take a verbal pasting as do the film-makers involved in shooting the action. There is tons of great action and it is so refreshingly presented in a very British way, massive piss take.
Here is their myspak
A million thanks to Mon for the beers and the dudes from Unleash The Lens who got the chinese food in.

For much of the rest of the week so far I have stayed in and listened to 6 music, not really been listened to my own music that much this week I think I'm just enjoying the shared experience of a radio show, 6 does play mostly good stuff of course and that is very important as well as the fact other people are listening too.
Also been reading the latest issue of Stool Pigeon, Foals on the cover plus Yannis interview - as well as a Young Knives interview. Stool Pigeon seems to be one of the last bastions of good music journalism, wit, originality, intelligence and knowledge combine to always make it a worthwhile read and its free!! I feel quite strongly about good music writing, I grew up reading writers like Maconie, Collins, Quantick in the inky music press of the 80's and feel I may have taken their quality of writing for granted at the time but when faced with alot of the bad writing I see online and in some of the music press I realise I had it good.

The first step has landed and my journey has begun, hope you all come along to see where it takes me.