I Spent My Rent On Records

Heartstrings

2010-03-24T13:34:00.002Z

This song just came up whilst my ipod was busy shuffling away. It starts slowly, raising your anticipation levels, then along comes a pretty average verse so you kind of drop them again. It's the kind of verse that sounds like any old band could probably knock out, but then comes the chorus which soars as high as any other chorus i can think of. It all seems so simple. Maybe I should start a band and try this.

Do You Remember The First Time?

2010-03-14T23:28:00.003Z

I stumbled on one of those 'Myspace quiz' style things on last.fm the other day. For the most part it was fairly pointless but I found myself enjoying trying to remember the details when it asked me 'When did you first hear artist x?'. Here are some answers recorded for posterity.

Super Furry Animals. I'm pretty sure I heard them first circa 1996 via the God! Show Me Magic single on a listening post in the big Our Price that used to sit on Culver Square. I didn't buy the single. I think I told myself I didn't like it, but was probably just justifying spending my lunch money on some actual food for a change. I have an oddly vivid memory of this, but it seems such a random thing to recall that I'm not entirely sure it's real.

The Apples in Stereo. A similar tale, but this time is was hearing The Bird That You Can't See over the instore sound system in the old Virgin in Cardiff. this time I bought the single immediately. It must have been about 2002

Pavement. I rented Brighten the Corners from Colchester library in the late 90s to check out this band I kept reading about. I didn't think much of it as first, except for Stereo, which was oddly familiar and also amazing. The familiarity makes me think I may have heard them somewhere before, but I can't be sure.

I found bands I've got into more recently don't hold the same strong memories of that first experience. It's all downloaded from a blog on a whim and blends into a weird musical nothingness with everything else I've downloaded that week. Songs I love these days are kind of growers that worm their way out of the otherwise averageness of my hard drive. I kind of miss that old feeling of being blown away from the very first listen. I guess it does still happen, but there's never a story behind it anymore.

Certain Fantasies

2009-11-05T23:30:00.002Z

Thought I'd ease myself back in with a fairly lightweight, and perhaps rambling post.

The liner notes of Donald Fagen's 1982 album, The Nightfly, read:

"The songs on this album represent certain fantasies that might have been entertained by a young man growing up in the remote suburbs of a northeastern city during the late fifties and early sixties i.e. one of my general weight, height and build."

Despite this sentiment being one which we may take for granted on many albums, the explicit autobiographical aspect (along with the unsurpassed cover and general excellence) gives The Nightfly a place amongst my favourite albums of the era.

Listening to the new Julian Casablancas record, I keep recalling aspects of the Nightfly. There's something about the lyrics that seem more real than they ever did on a Strokes record, the production is meticulous (like The Nightfly), and whereas Fagen marries his 50s dreams with an 80s aesthetic, Casablancas strides a gap between the 80s of his youth and the present.

I've only given it a few listens so far, but it seems a a strangely naive yet also gloriously realised album.

Contradiction

2008-11-26T23:43:00.003Z

Rivers Cuomo- Can't Stop Partying

The new Rivers Cuomo demos album is a pleasant surprise. Can't Stop Partying comes on like a strange, more mature cousin of Tired of Sex. Although he is in the lyrical territory of the Red album, musically, as the background vocals wail their way through the final chorus, he sounds like the Rivers of old, and although he's talking the talk of the big million-selling rockstar I don't believe he's enjoying it for one second.

Also:

Coming Up...

2008-11-13T16:41:00.002Z

Now She's All I See

2008-09-09T09:26:00.004+01:00

The Lemonheads- Alison's starting to happen.

I really like both the phrase and concept of Alison starting to happen. I imagine a girl that's so unique she actually qualifies as an event. Someone who you don't quite get at first but slowly come to appreciate as the best thing there is. The trouble is, on the DVD that comes with the It's a Shame About Ray Collectors Edition, Evan Dando points out the real life Alison; It's the girlfriend of one of his friends and they all seem oblivious that he's written a song where he pretty much declares he's falling for her.

Nothing Better To Do

2008-08-07T15:37:00.003+01:00

I have been stuck by an urge to update this blog, so for no particular reason I'm going to write about a couple of songs I've been enjoying. No mp3s for the time being I'm afraid, but i may change that when i get a moment.

The Sixths with Sarah Cracknell- Kissing Things

I have very little idea what this song is actually about. I have always just assumed it was sung by a hopeless romantic about her lost love, and certainly when Cracknell sings "I've been kissing the bottle wishing it was you", it's about as perfect as you can get in summarising a certain kind of heartbreak. The trouble is I have incredible difficulty in relating to the verses, so I'm left to guess her exact predicament. Against my better judgement I'm hoping she's singing about an unobtainable current love, because if it's about a lost love I suspect the story won't finish with a happy ending.

Hefner- Mary Lee

A lot of people dislike Darren Hayman's solo stuff and the most common theory is that since he's settled down with a wife he's less inclined to lay his heart on the line. My current theory, since his reunion with Jack Hayter last month is that the other members of Hefner had more influence than they're generally given credit for. I like to think this song illustrates both arguments.
"What's the sound?" the band calls
"It's the sound of Mary Lee's heart breaking" replies Darren as he carries on cheating on her.

Different, but the same.

2008-08-07T15:33:00.002+01:00

Can I Have a Taste of Your Ice Cream?

2008-06-09T16:51:00.003+01:00

In the stickiness

2008-04-29T10:29:00.001+01:00

I'm DJing in Braintree this Saturday. Look at the nice flyer they've made.

New Ways to Nothing

2008-04-25T12:25:00.001+01:00

Some of my friends have started a clubnight in London.

and a blog.

I shall be contributing to it at my at my own unique pace.

In Routine

2008-04-13T16:58:00.004+01:00

It would seem that despite continually promising myself that i will update more regularly I only get the urge once a month.

As everyone knows, the best single of last year was All My Friends by LCD Soundsystem. The single this year (is it even a single now i come to think of it?) which has reminded me most of that is the lead track from the Charlatans new album, which is still available as a free download from xfm. It's their best since Wonderland so well worth giving a listen to.

The Charlatans- Oh! Vanity

I think the adjective I was looking for is 'propulsive'. That's all for now.

This is the News

2008-03-13T14:41:00.001Z

http://news.uk.msn.com/Article.aspx?cp-documentid=7794042

Not only a great news story in its own right, but manages to incoporate a nice pun halfway through.

I Know, I Know

2008-03-03T18:10:00.002Z

Some of my friends have started to write about music here

Some early musical highlights of this year have come in the form of Let's Wrestle who provide the exact kind of shambolic, rough as hell, amusing pop songs that float my boat:

Let's Wrestle- I Won't Lie To You

My Rocket from the Crypt CD/DVD of their last ever live show turned up in the post today. I would mourn their death, but instead lets celebrate that the Dirtbombs are still releasing records:

The Dirtbombs- Ever Lovin' Man

Rough Love

2008-02-07T16:23:00.000Z

I've just checked google analytics and noticed that some people actually look at this site, so I supppose it's about time I did an update of sorts. I'll try and get back into the swing of more regular posts now that the music drought that usually comes with Christmas seems to have passed.

Firstly, and most importantly, my ipod died last night and deleted itself. After a half-hearted attempt at trying to recover the files i decided to bite the bullet and just start again from new with it. So, my vague plan is to fill it up again with a more considered selection of music, some of which may find it's way onto this blog. At the moment, I'm quite excited by the prospect although I'm quite sure that will change to frustration once I begin the task of slowly burning all my CDs again.

For now though, my hard drive and ipod are looking streamlined, and sitting right at the top of the pile is the new Rough Trade Counter Culture compilation which arrived in the post earlier this week.

My opinion of Rough Trade is rapidly deteriorating as it looks as though it's becoming more and more commercialised. I guess it's part of their strategy to survive the internet taking over the music business but I kind of liked it when it was tucked out of the way in a basement rather than it's new East London guise. In many ways it seems a bit like the NME. Once I felt it was cool and slightly underground to read it and now it just seems to have become synonymous with a lacklustre scene, trading on cliche and past reputations.

Despite my misgivings theres a few tracks on the compilation which I've been enjoying. Most notably this one by Battants:

Battants- Kevin (1989)

I haven't had time to read the sleevenotes to the compilation yet but my housemate Ed informs me this is an old song. I like being reminded that there are still songs this good floating around that I have never heard, but at the same time it's a bit concerning that none of the more recent stuff stands up to it.

EDIT: having read the sleeve notes, this isn't an old song at all! hooray for new music!

It was never as good as it tasted.

2007-12-10T13:08:00.000Z

A quick note about music this year.

Contrary to what many end of year lists seem to say (and don't they always), i think this year has been a bit on the poor side for music. Don't get me wrong, it's not been downright terrible, but it's not lived up to many recent years. I'm stuggling to pick enough REALLY good albums to make up a top 10, and there hasn't been as many singles that have really managed to grab me as usual. On the plus side, I've been to some great gigs, but often they've been bands who are still touring albums from last year.

Anyway, to prove my point, you just need to look at how many polls LCD Soundsystem are topping. Surely in a great year for music every different critics list would argue for a different album, but this it seems like it's a fact: Sound of Silver was the best album, and All My Friends was the best single. I'd go as far as to say, any polls that say otherwise seem so massively out of touch they border on irrelevant.

Somebody Do Something

2007-12-07T13:42:00.000Z

As the guardian music section says, “It's almost the end of the year... Let's make lists!”

Let’s indeed.

Traditionally, I have a hard time of naming my favourite songs of the year, not least because I always become embroiled in some kind of argument with myself about whether tracks count that I heard last year, but were only released as singles this year. The world of mp3 blogging doesn’t do anything to help matters, obviously, but the vast ocean of possible tracks to list out there has forced me to impose some kind of rules on myself otherwise I’d still be sitting listing songs in a week’s time.

As ever, the rules are vague, and I’ve discovered after deleting a few false starts of this paragraph, impossible to summarise. Not a lot of help I know. Essentially though, being a good song isn’t enough. It has to have some kind of significance in both the grand scheme of things and my own little world. It has to somehow stand out from the crowd, and have a certain degree of originality. Basically, it needs to stand up for itself devoid of any context- as a perfectly crafted slice of pop music.

Here’s the list, with some choice mp3s.

10. Prinzhorn Dance School- You are the Space Invader -
Buy album from Amazon

9. Diplo- Must be a Devil

8. The Shins- Sealegs

7. The Teenagers- Homecoming -
Buy 7" from Pure Groove (Be quick!)

6. Grinderman- No Pussy Blues -
Buy album from Amazon

5. Rihanna- Umbrella

4. The Rakes- We Danced Together (Sebastian Mix) -

3. Justice- D.A.N.C.E

2. M.I.A- Paper Planes -
Buy album from HMV

1. LCD Soundsystem- All My Friends

I thought I'd get in there quickly before Pitchfork steals all my choices for their countdown. Albums will no doubt follow soon!

I lit a sparkler to write your name

2007-11-05T22:48:00.000Z

Whilst i was driving home from Nottingham yesterday fireworks started exploding either side of the motorway as this song was reaching it's climax. It could have been straight out of movie.

Suede- The Asphalt World (in M4a format, apologies)

Whilst I'm at it, here's Brett doing it solo and acoustic:

Brett Anderson- The Asphalt World (Live, Acoustic)

Staying on theme, I was uploading some deeply uncool music to my ipod a few minutes ago and this started playing. Since i have a whole 20 mins left of bonfire night i couldn't resist. I've also just realised it's my friend Lucie's birthday today (thanks facebook!) so I should probably bring her attention to this song.

Carter USM- Born on the 5th November

Oh, who am I kidding. I love Carter really.

The Optimist

2007-10-22T21:04:00.001+01:00

As previously mentioned, I was DJing at the university on Saturday night. Unfortunately it all got a bit messy and the DJs on before me were a seriously hard act to follow, so i failed to play most of what I'd intended to and instead mostly stuck to the hits. I don't think the alcohol aided matters at all, as I couldn't make the record players work and I'm now down a copy of Nevermind by Nirvana. Still, it won't be the last record I lose and I'm sure I can pick up another copy for a few pounds somewhere.

As the night ended and it became apparant that those remaining weren't going to leave no matter what i played so I thought I'd stick on a curveball. I'd been intending to play a dance remix of the Magnetic Fields as I'd mentioned it to my friend Sean previously, however as mentioned, my lack of co-ordination stopped me from working the record decks so I stuck on a CD of the superior original version. I say superior, but in the club environment it didn't really work and sounded very muffled and distorted (again, probably my drunken fault). Still, no-one cared by that point and those that knew it seemed particularly pleased by my choice. Bizarrely it didn't make one single person leave the dancefloor.

Here is what might have been:

The Magnetic Fields- I Thought You Were My Boyfriend (Rob Rives Extended Mix) vinyl rip

Topical News Blogging.

2007-10-18T18:46:00.000+01:00

Yes, the big news today was I was sent out of work at lunchtime to buy some 'Roman themed wrapping paper', which I was pretty sure didn't exist before I trawled the town centre, and am now most certain it doesn't.

Hence a track by the Holy Roman Empire. I don't know much about them, apart from they come (or came) from Oxford and that this is a splendidly naive piece of pop, which reminds me of a slightly weedier Pulp (Especially the enthusiastic ad lib of 'go on' about 3 mins in). I spent many years having no idea who the topic of the song was, so if you don't know I suggest you don't bother finding out as it's far more charming if you just assume it's just another random girl the singer once met. Just don't go reading any papers tomorrow.

The Holy Roman Empire- Benazhir Bhutto

but if you're curious for a history lesson, click here. not that it sheds much light on song.

Recapper

2007-10-16T18:13:00.000+01:00

It would seem it's remarkably easy to let time slip through my fingers when it comes to this blog. My regular updates have lapsed somewhat already, but i've got a few good songs to post today to make up for it.

As previously mentioned I had a great weekend a month or so ago at the End of the Road festival. One of the highlights was Jeffrey Lewis who was playing songs from his new album of Crass covers. In fairness it wasn't up to the standard of a typical Jeff Lewis show as he'd completely dispensed with his trademark comic book illustrations for the songs, but it's always nice to have some new music from one of my favourite artists, especially when it seems to be a concerted artistic and political statement, and you can't blame a man for trying something new can you?

Due to the post strikes the album only got to me yesterday but I've had a couple of listens and I'm particularly enjoying this track. I can kind of identify with the sentiment. Maybe I should go check out some Crass albums?

Jeffrey Lewis- Big A, Little A

Also at End of the Road I accidently caught the end of a set by Monkey Swallows the Universe, and although I only managed to see a couple of songs they were charming enough for me to make a mental note to buy their album. Again, now that the strike has calmed down and the album's turned up there's an immediate clear highlight on there in Matterhoney, which is the kind of immediate poppy indie song i could have done with whilst i was spending all those weeks waiting for summer to happen.

Monkey Swallows The Universe- Matterhoney

I'm off to Swn in a couple of weeks time where I'll get to see them again, alongside a whole bunch of other bands, most of which I haven't heard of. Should be a good weekend!

And speaking of good weekends, if you're about Colchester this weekend (and let's face it, who wouldn't want to be hanging out in such a happening town?) you might want to come to this:

Fall Apart.

2007-10-02T18:18:00.000+01:00

Apologies for yesterday's brief entry. It was more a favour for a friend than any kind of substantial act (as you no doubt noticed.) That's not to say you shouldn't listen to it. It's a song that first came to my attention on a CD a friend made for me, which happened to be the first time I heard Rebellion (Lies) by the Arcade Fire. The blow track was my favourite.

Moving on to today's subject, the other weekend I went to the End of the Road festival down near Salisbury, which i would heartilly recommend to everyone for when it comes around next year. It's certainly the best festival I've attended outside of Glastonbury and ATP and I didn't see a bad act all weekend.

One of my highlights was watching an absolutely enthralling performance by David Thomas Broughton who pasted together a outwardly shambolic set with his guitar, some loop pedals and all sorts of clattering paraphernalia. What on the surface seemed to be melancholic folk songs were punctuated with laugh out loud moments and i literally sat with my mouth open as an incredibly detailed and meticulous performance somehow appeared from the ramshackle bumbling that appeared to be happening on stage.

His record arrived in the post today, and ineveitably it doesn't quite capture the live experience, and I'm not entirely sure how it will sit with you if you haven't witnessed him on stage, but it's still a beautiful and somewhat haunting album.

I'm still waiting for his other album to be delivered so I might post something else in the future, but I'd recommend giving this a listen.

David Thomas Broughton- Ain't Got No Sole

Having just done a quick google to get my facts straight I've also noticed he released a collaberative record with 7 Herz yesterday. You can order it here should you be so inclined

Low on Words.

2007-10-01T20:59:00.000+01:00

The Blow- The Sky Opened Wide Like the Tide

Complicating, Circulating, Operating, Generating.

2007-09-27T18:28:00.000+01:00

Every now and then a band that I love but have been neglecting for a while comes back round into focus and takes me by surprise. Sometimes it's like discovering them all over again, and on other occasions, like this, it's a bit more subtle and my appreciation of their back catalogue slowly shifts.

Yesterday I picked up the new Flaming Lips DVD, UFOs at the Zoo, which comes with all sorts of multimedia goodness which I have yet to fully explore (the MP3 audio files were a nice touch though), and immediately fell back in love with the Lips. Anyone who's seen them live will probably agree that it's impossible NOT to love their live show and whilst watching it on a TV in my bedroom isn't quite the same, I still found myself witha big grin on my face.

Now, it is my opinion that the two finest lips albums are Transmissions From the Satellite Heart, and Clouds Taste Metallic and that the band started to go downhill once they ditched the guitars for a more keyboard led sound on subsequent albums. Sadly, the only track represented from these albums on the DVD is She Don't use Jelly (the most famous but by no means the best). However overall in a live setting, the guitars on the later stuff really shine through and some of the urgency they seem to lack on record post-Clouds is restored, and some of the polish falls off, making an all the more enjoyable and rough & ready experience.

The Flaming Lips- Free Radicals (Live at Oklahoma Zoo Ampitheatre)

I'm probably off to Brighton tomorrow so don't expect any posts over the weekend. Hopefully a large batch of records should arrive at work tomorrow providing amazon delivery estimates are to be believed so there should be more for you to listen to next week.

My Love

2007-09-24T20:28:00.001+01:00

Going for some kind of record (3 posts in 4 days!) I've added my loved tracks radio to the sidebar. You should listen to it, it mostly comprises my favourite songs ever and a few recent additions.

Down To Business

2007-09-22T15:06:00.000+01:00

Mary Lou Lord- His Indie World

I guess my plan when i originally started this blog was to someday get around to putting up mp3s that i loved and say something profound about them. I always wanted to start with a bang and a great piece of writing that i felt proud of. I've kind of given up on ever doing that though and have just decided to post a song i downloaded about an hour ago, but has instantly won a place in my heart. I wouldn't like to suggest that it's because i'm shallow enough to enjoy a person listing off obscure indie bands, so I'm assuming it's more to do with Mary's double tracked vocals and the single acoustic guitar which I'm always a sucker for. After all, it was another of her songs that had nothing at all to do with indie bands that turned me onto her enough that i'd want to investigate further. More of that later though i imagine.

I'm off camping later today. Here's a special bonus.

Evan Dando- The Outdoor Type (Live at the Brattle Theatre)

It's Been A While...

2007-09-21T12:11:00.000+01:00

I've been neglecting this blog for a while, but I have the best intentions to revive it. I have a free(ish) weekend coming up so I might try and put some interesting stuff up here. I do of course use 'interesting' in its loosest sense.

In the meantime here's (roughly) what i played at milkshake last night. We had Dan le Sac vs Scroobius Pip playing, and quite frankly it was an excellent night all round. i think I ended up playing from about 10.15 to 11.45.

Fern Kinney- Baby Let Me Kiss You
MIA- Paper Planes
Hot Chip- Shake Your Fist
Diplo- Must Be A Devil
Bondo Do Role- Office Boy
CSS- Alala
The Go! Team- Doing it Right
1990s- You’re Supposed To Be My Friend
The Wombats- Let’s Dance To Joy Division
The Rakes- Strasbourg
Bloc Party- Little Thought
The Futureheads- Decent Days & Nights
Young Knives- She’s Attracted To
The Hives- Tick Tick Boom
White Stripes- Fell In Love With A Girl
Strokes- Juicebox
Art Brut- My Little Brother
Test Icicles- Circle, Square, Triangle
Jamie T- Sheila
Reverend & the Makers- Heavyweight Champion of the World
Kings of Leon- My Party (Chad & Kenna Edit)
Justice vs Simian- We Are Your Friends
Kanye West- Stronger (A-Trak Remix)
CSS- Let’s Make Love (Streetlight Remix)
Calvin Harris- Acceptable in the 80s
Eurythmics- Sweet Dreams Are Made of This
Chemical Bros- Do It Again
Van She/ Dangerous Dan- Around The World (Again)
Hot Chip- Over & Over
The Kingsmen- Louie Louie
Peter, Bjorn & John- Young Folks

It started kind of slowly, but it always does these days, however it didn't matter so much as at least it wasn't completely dead. The DJ booth was set up on the stage which made it a lot more fun than usual and I found myself taking it a lot more seriously than i normally would too. I guess that's because there were a lot of obviously new faces who'd come to see the band.

The band were good, but hampered a little by route's shoddy soundsystem and setup. The crowd didn't seem to mind though and it was the best audience I think we've ever had for a band.

The Friday Memory Test

2007-06-01T16:06:00.000+01:00

Not posted for a little while, so here's roughly what I played at last night's Milkshake. It was yet another good one!

Bonde De Role- Salta O Frango
The Rakes- We Danced Together
The Pipettes- Your Kisses Are Wasted on Me
The Holloways- Generator
The Maccabees- Precious Time
Modest Mouse- Dashboard
The Clash- Brand New Cadillac
Razorlight- In The Morning
New Order- Temptation
Arcade Fire- Rebellion (Lies)
Futureheads- Hounds of Love
The Jam- Going Underground
Bloc Party- Helicopter
The Cribs- Mens Needs
Test Icicles- Circle Square Triangle
At The Drive In- One Armed Scissor
Gallows- Abandon Ship
Arctic Monkeys- Brianstorm
Maximo Park- Our Velocity
Head Automatica- Beating Hearts Baby
Andrew WK- Party Hard
Hadouken!- That Boy That Girl
Prodigy- No Good (Start the Dance)
CSS- Let's Make Love (RAC mix)
Justice vs Simian- We Are Your Friends
New Order- Blue Monday ‘88

Sixty Nine, Dudes!

2007-04-05T13:47:00.000+01:00

This morning in the post a book arrived for me. Part of the 33 1/3 series, it's all about my favourite album ever made- 69 Love Songs, by the Magnetic Fields. I've had a brief flick through already and already had some illusions shattered, but likewise made some notable discovereies that have excited me. Nevertheless I'm starting to wonder if buying this book was actually a good idea. Nevermind, that i paid over the odds for it because it hasn't been published in Britain yet, and let's ignore the largely negative reviews it recieved on Amazon.com (there were some glowing reviews on there too though, so I took my chances), but generally, when it comes to bands, I have long held the belief that knowing less about them is usually more satisfactory. Many a band has fallen by the wayside once I've found out more about them than simply what the album sounds like. Indeed, on occasion the experience of simply seeing a band live has left me completely disillusioned and their CDs have ever-since been neglected. At present I have a 157 page book, including track by track analysis and I have no doubt there will be some crushing details in there somewhere...

In my brief flick through the book however I discovered a comment by an interviewee (known only as Veronica X- the book doesn't shed too much light on why this person has been given an interview) who tells the story of seducing her trans-atlantic lover with a series of e-mails consisting of the titles of the songs from the album. She is particularly fond of Let's Pretend We're Bunny Rabbits as it just so happens she was studying at Essex University when this exchange took place- a place overrun by rabbits. I can only assume I was also at Essex Uni at this point in time, or at the very least still hanging around the campus most nights of the week and it seems so strange (and a little sad) that this mystery other student was obsessing over the same album and we never met...

So there are two things that are good about this discovery: I often think about this town that I know everyone worth knowing, and have discovered all its secrets, but I guess thats probably not the case (let's ignore the fact, I certainly didn't think like that in '99) and this mystery student gives me a kind of hope that there might be more life to wring out of this place yet and more exciting people (or at the very least, people I'd be curious to meet) holed up in computer labs somewhere. And secondly, Let's Pretend We're Bunny Rabbits was never one of my favourite songs on the album, but all of a sudden I can relate to it a lot more. Somehow it now seems linked to late nights wandering through the university grounds and is loaded with rose-tinted nostalgia.

Book Club

2007-03-29T15:53:00.000+01:00

I finished the Black Dahlia the other night. It was a very enjoyable read, and didn't fall into the trap of having a cop-out ending that I kind of thought it would do. In fact, I'd enjoyed reading it so much I dodn't really care about the ending and the myriad of twists and turns that came in final pages was a pleasurable bonus. I often take issue with the ending of books and films, often it's all too easy to create a complex storyline only for the ending to leave you wholly unsatisfied. As a result I am half-hoping that Lost never actually comes to a conclusion on TV. Either that or I lose interest before it does.

Next on my reading list is a couple of books of short stories that i picked up from Amazon. I don't think I'll read them all in one go, but dip in and out over time. I need to pick up some other book to fill the gaps, although having said that I do have quite a full bookshelf of stuff I've never read.

Also, I'm going to rent the movie of the Black Dahlia. After having read it I can't imagine how they might film it though.

Yeah Yeah Yeah.

2007-03-12T11:58:00.000Z

I was going to write something about how great last night's gig was, but I'm pressed for time. Here's a dodgy photocopy of the ticket instead:

I might write something better later.

How I Spent My Afternoon.

2007-02-16T17:21:00.000Z

literally. all of it.

Shake Shake Shake Shake Shake Shake Shake.

2007-02-16T11:36:00.000Z

I used this title once before on a post on indiesoc. in fact, i think i've used all my milkshake related titles on there already so no apologies for repeating myself i'm afraid. i don't think the audiences overlap much anyway.

Here's a set from last night's milkshake. You may be able to tell it uses the tried and tested formula of playing all the hits around 3 random songs i wanted to test out. It all went rather swimmingly even if i do say so myself:

hot chip- over & over
fujiya & miyagi- collarbone
the arcade fire- rebellion (lies)
modest mouse- dashboard
we are scientists- nobody move…
the futureheads- hounds of love
the rakes- 22 grand job
kaiser chiefs- ruby
young knives- she’s attracted to
bloc party- banquet
amy winehouse- rehab (hot chip mix)
the killers- mr brightside
the avalanches- ray of zdarlight
justice vs simian- we are your friends
the clash- london calling
the white stripes- seven nation army
the pipettes- pull shapes
the go! team- bottle rocket

and to celebrate that resounding DJ success i proceeded to get very drunk.

Resolutions.

2007-01-30T17:14:00.000Z

Resolution number one. To keep this up to date.

Anyhow, I made one new year's resolution this (last?) year: to eat 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day. sadly i cannot even begin to claim that i have kept to this although my vague attempts at keeping to it have lead to a confrontation in a kebab shop in Leigh-on-Sea and a minor detour to a friend's parent' s pub in kings cross to spend more money than was strictly necessary. still, my fruit and veg intake has definitely been up on average so that counts, right?

also, i've just decided i should read more this year. having already gotten through one book (kafka on the shore) i'm well on my way to my target of beating last year. in fact at this rate i should probably beat it by the middle of march. next book on the agenda is a tenative delve into crime writing with the black dahlia, which was cheap in fopp.

anyhow, i enjoyed kafka on the shore, and sped through it in a week or so. i have my reservations about murakami's writing though. it's all a bit odd and whilst i'm pretty sure it's all some kind of extended (or possibly tenuous) metaphor i'm not sure if i entirely grasp it. it's an entertaining read either way though so i will no doubt return to more of his books in time. at least i tend to get to the end of them which is more than i can say for the last couple of books i've attempted (one day i will finish Light in August). I noticed some kind of Murakami companion in waterstones last month. i might buy that in order to get some insight, although it is a bit too close to the old 'dr who programme guides' that littered my mid-teens. there's no need to go back there.

In other news, myspace and indiesoc have been banned at work and i'm temporarilly without internet at home. i feel very out of touch, but in some ways it's quite nice (i'm certainly getting more reading done). blogger's still active though so maybe that will encourage me to keep this updated more.

Trials & Tribulations

2006-12-06T22:11:00.000Z

Time Keeps Slipping

2006-11-29T12:07:00.000Z

I have been pretty hopeless at keeping this up to date, but I always knew that was going to happen.

for now, the tradition remains but i'm sure i'll write something soon.

Illustrations not Included

2006-10-18T17:23:00.000+01:00

I've had a couple of interesting nights. It's times like these that i wish i had a digital camera as photos would really enliven these stories. i might buy one on saturday in preparation for my sister's halloween party.

Monday night was the Young Knives playing in the Underground at the Uni. Only it's not called the underground anymore. It's called Sub Zero and they've made it look all flash (Hypothetical photo here). There was a bit of grumbling about the new look from some of my friends but I quite like it. Whilst the old venue had a grubby vaguely punk rock feel the events there and clientelle never really matched it, and whilst it seemed a bit odd to be watching a band in such a pristine venue it was a much more friendly atmosphere and the brief bit of dancing happening at the end really highlighted it's potential. Nice sound too!

Oh yeah, the band.

This is the 5th time I've seen the Young Knives. Certainly not the best I've seen them, but they still put on a fine show. Despite my favourite song from the album, Loughborough Suicides not working so well live the finale of She's Attracted To was particularly special and a lot of non-album tracks were played too which was good. I even had a bit of a jump around in the encore for the first time in years. Only lasted about 30 seconds though. I'm too old for that kind of stuff. Admittedly, I could probably still handle it but there comes a time where you just feel a bit out of place pushing teenagers around a pit.

I was at the uni again last night too after V bar informed me they would be closed for a refurb. I went to check out The Lost Disco which is the new indiesoc night, and it was pretty great. I never actually go to indie clubs these days unless I'm DJing at them and it was surprisingly fun to dance to the old classics again. I think the night took a turn for a worse when the sambuca came out (Thanks for that Ed) and I ended leaving very early in preperation for work today. Not that it did any good. It's been a mission to get through the day.

Home Sweet Home

2006-10-16T14:47:00.000+01:00

In the middle of last week I moved back to my parents’ house, in a vague effort to prompt a ‘on step back, two steps forward’ action in my life. So far it’s been pretty nice. All the home comforts which I’ve been missing whilst living by myself are making up for the minor inconveniences I’ve had to suffer (the most notable being my mum panicking when I didn’t come home on Thursday night. I’d stayed round my friend’s house as the long walk home/ taxi wait was that little bit too much.)

The main advantage so far has been the internet access. Although by the end of weekend I think I’d exhausted all the good websites to look at and that vague feeling of boredom that comes with living with ones parents was beginning to set in.

The internet access is proving particularly useful when it comes to last.fm previously I was just scrobbling tracks from my ipod, which had it’s (very notable) limitations. I’m still doing this (with increased frequency and hence more accuracy) and I’m doing it from itunes as well, which means the charts I produce are more accurate than they were and the minor obsession I was developing can be relaxed a little.

So, in what may become a regular feature of this blog, here is my ‘top 10’ tracks of the week:

1 Brakes – Cease And Desist 5
2 The Gothic Archies – Walking My Gargoyle 4
2 The Gothic Archies – we are the gothic archies 4
2 Brakes – Mobile Communication 4
2 Brakes – Isabel 4
6 Big Star – The Ballad of El Goodo 3
6 Big Star – Feel 3
6 Oblivians – Trouble 3
6 Oblivians – Christina 3
6 The Gothic Archies – Crows 3
6 Brakes – If I Should Die Tonight 3
6 Brakes – Porcupine Or Pineapple 3
6 The Gothic Archies – How Do You Slow This Thing Down? 3
6 The Gothic Archies – Things Are Not What They Appear 3
6 The Gothic Archies – A Million Mushrooms 3
6 The Gothic Archies – Smile! No One Cares How You Feel 3
6 Brakes – Hold Me In The River 3
6 The Gothic Archies – freakshow 3
6 The Gothic Archies – shipwrecked 3
6 Klaxons – Magick 3
6 Ludacris – He Man 3
6 Brakes – On Your Side 3
6 Brakes – No Return 3
6 Brakes – Spring Chicken 3
6 Brakes – Margarita 3
6 Brakes – Beatific Vision 3

As you can see I bought the Gothic Archies' new album this week and downloaded the Breaks album. I’ve been enjoying both quite a lot. The Gothic Archies album is almost great, but seems a little flippant and quirky in comparison to the Magnetic Fields so is perhaps a little disappointing. Thats all relative though, as the Magnetic Fields certainly set the standards high. The Brakes album is virtually the opposite and some of the quirky charm from their debut seems to have been lost. Initially I thought this was a bad thing, but I’m quickly warming to it.

The other entries in the chart include Big Star who I’m finally growing to appreciate. I’ve always had a fondness for their best known tracks but felt the albums were lacking a little. I’m kind of seeing them in a new light at the moment. Particlarly ‘Watch the Sunrise’ which for some reason isn’t in this chart. Maybe it’s not as accurate as I’d hoped.

The Oblivians are in there too after I downloaded their album following an indiesoc recommendation. The new klaxons single has had a couple of listens although is yet to lodge itself in my brain, and the He-Man sampling Ludacris song got a few run throughs, but the novelty has already worn off.

What everybody wants to hear.

2006-10-05T15:12:00.000+01:00

Quite an eventful evening DJing down at the uni last night. I won’t go into too much detail about how hugely unorganised it all was as it all worked out pretty well in the end. The CD decks I was using were verging on the comically bad though and the vinyl I optimistically brought with me remained unplayed in my bag due to the lack of anything to play it on. It was also a freshers week night so I had to endure lots of young and enthusiastic students talking to me asking questions like “what are your top 3 bands ever” and the being informed that “the arctic monkeys are the best band in the world”. Obviously I’m far too jaded for that kind of thing these days.

Me and Nome were supporting DJ Lucio and I have to be honest, I’m not sure who he is, but he was a nice chap which was actually a bit of a shame as we were hoping for a diva tantrum over the state of the equipment. It was slightly annoying because with the gear we were using it really was just a case of play/stop on the CD players and Lucio was obviously getting paid a lot more than we were for doing exactly the same job.

As I said though, it all worked out as a pretty great night. Nothing much to shout about in the way of tunes played, but it’s nice to DJ somewhere less familiar and get a rammed dancefloor. Especially as it was a non-specific music event which meant the crowd were in no way a specialist indie audience. Some days it’s pretty fun just to appeal to the masses.

Something different

2006-09-26T16:56:00.000+01:00

Three posts in and already the Gods of remote server errors and transient network problems have managed to eat one of my entries. And I thought this would be better than myspace!

So anyway, last night I participated in my first band practice for some months. Essentially it’s still with my old band, but there’s been a number of changes since we last gigged. Our singer left to have a baby with his girlfriend, and our bassist moved to London. So in the true spirit that has governed the way this band has conducted business since day one, a solution has been found based on convenience rather than quality. A new drummer has been found and I have been moved to bass.

It turns out the bass is remarkably easy to pick up, and the practice went considerably better than I anticipated considering I had never played the instrument before yesterday. All we need now is a singer and a decent new name and we’ll be giggging before you can say “Sam, you do realise you’re just playing the same three notes over and over again.”

Milkshake Setlist 21/09/06

2006-09-22T15:15:00.000+01:00

I think this is what I played at Milkshake last night. I was pretty drunk by the time i finished though. the whole middle section from White Rose Movement to Razorlight was all mixed nicely too, which made me happy.

Brakes- All Night Disco Party
The White Stripes- Blue Orchid
Bloc Party- Helicopter
White Rose Movement- Girls in the Back
The Rapture- Whoo! Alright-Yeah.. Uh Huh
LCD Soundsystem- Tribulations
New Order- Blue Monday
Soulwax- NY Excuse
The Presets- I Go Hard I Go Home
Justice Vs Simian- Never Be Alone
Razorlight- In The Morning
The Futureheads- Skip To The End
The Cure- Close To Me
Talking Heads- Once In A Lifetime
The Slits- Heard It Through The Grapevine
Head Automatica- Beating Hearts Baby

When it started...

2006-09-21T16:48:00.000+01:00

And so here it is. My blog.I created the account a few months ago and I’ve been procrastinating from writing anything on it ever since. I was going to wait until I’d bought a digital camera so I could illustrate what I was writing about. Then I was going to wait for some kind of major event to come so I could open it with a bang, but major events came and went and I found that far too many stories, and memories and emotions were wound up in them to be able to write satisfactorily about them. I was then going to wait until I heard a fantastic song that I wanted to share with the world, post up a yousendit link and talk about how you NEED to hear it. I’ve since realised the best songs kind of sneak up on you, and once they’ve embedded themselves in your head it’s probably best not to think about them too closely otherwise they fall apart and are never the same again. That’s not to say I won’t talk about music on here. That’s kind of the reason I set it up, and besides, if you know me you’ll know that music is all I ever really talk about.

So I’m opening it with this pretty bland post about nothing in particular. If I end up keeping this blog up to date it will be pretty much be for my own amusement and if you decide to read this on any kind of regular basis you’ll probably notice that my life revolves around the same lines every week: good night djing, bad night djing, in between hanging out with my friends and having quiet nights in, as well as listening to too much music. As I mentioned earlier the big events are often too hard to write about, although maybe I’ll manage it with a bit of practice.

until the next time then.