I am posting this early because I won’t have easy computer access on the first Friday of the new month – I will be quite literally living the dream, as the Primevals have 3 dates in France – Rennes, Lorient and Paris and I will be in a van, hooting with laughter and listening to Sonny Sharrock.
Still, I’d like you all to gather round and share what you’ve been listening to, reading and watching, and if there is anything new coming up we should be aware of
the californian says
I was at St Lukes in Glasgow last Friday at the tribute evening for the late Professor Stewart Cruickshank (eminent Scottish BBC producer). There, pre-gig, I encountered big Paul, Primevals drummer and old friend. I asked him to pass my regards to EHM. A very good evening of fine performances followed not least of which was the Primevals themselves. Also featured were Emma Polock, Karine Polwart, Kim Edgar (my mate’s cousin), The Pastels, Roddy Hart, Justin Currie, Mowgli & the Donuts, Rab Noakes & more. This was one of what my mate, Mick & I refer to as a mystery gig whereby one of us purchases 2 concert tickets but doesn’t tell the other one who will be performing. This was followed on Sunday night by my mystery gig choice which was Rhiannon Giddens in Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. This was one of the best gigs I have attended for some time and my dear friend, the aforementioned Mick, reckoned it was the best of our mystery gigs in the 5 or so years we have been doing them. Prior to the Rhiannon gig I was at the Motherwell v Celtic cup final at Hampden park. Sadly, Celtic continued their unbeaten domestic run with a 2-0 victory. However, Motherwell have just drawn with Celtic tonight in the league.
Been listening to Jeff Beck’s Loudhailer, Dawes, Buddy Miller, Dave & Phil Alvin, Lambchop and A Sudden Burst of Colour (4 young chaps from Motherwell)
ganglesprocket says
HEARD
Been working my way through REM’s albums in order. NEWSFLASH They were mostly brilliant up till New Adventures in Hi Fi. Afterwards, still good, not always astonishing. I like to rock the boat with my contrarianism.
Living With The Gods – Neil MacGregor’s new Radio 4 series about belief and how it binds and separates us as humans is just wonderful in every way. 15 minute chunks of mind expanding ideas, history, erudition, art… This will make you a better person if you listen.
You can find it here… http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09c1mhy/episodes/downloads
The News. Fuck me, Trump retweeting Britain First. Nomatter how dreadful he gets, he never fails to get worse.
SEEN
Stranger Things 2 is a lot of fun. Again, I hate to be contrarian, but I tell it like it is.
READ
Currently beasting through Robbie Robertson’s Testimony and really loving it. He really has had such an enviable life. A talented dude, with his eyes open who grabbed every chance he got. And he got quite a few. Plus he bends over backwards to praise Levon, who didn’t do the same in his own book at all. Mind you, I haven’t finished it yet so…
Lodestone of Wrongness says
Review of the Year!
Gatz says
A quick Read Andrew Cartmel’s Vinyl Detective books were recommended on here recently, andvery enjoyable they are too. I read the first (Written in Dead Wax) last week from the library and bought the second (The Run Out groove) to start on a train journey today. Not high literature, but enjoyable romps set in the world of obscure jazz records and crate divers (sic), with an enjoyable cast of characters with whom you want to spend time.
Seen The End of the F***ing World (Channel 4, 4OD) is up there with The Handmaid’s Take as the best thing have seen on television all year. Funny, touching, heart-in-mouth moments aplenty, it’s terrific and makes a supberb binge watch.
On Saturday we went to see the Life of Julie Cope, a Grayson Perry exhibition at the Firstsite Gallery in Colchester. The exhibition is of materials, largely 4 huge tapestries, from his House for Essex in Wrabness and it’s small but excellent. As you wander around a recording of Perry reading his own narrative poem about Julie’s progress from birth in the Canvey Island floods to her death on Colchester High Street plays in the background. The whole thing is a riot of colour, craft, symbolism, and packs a surprisingly hefty emotional punch. You should go if you possibly can.
I type this in a hotel in Manchester, and have just got in from Songhoy Blues at Manchester Academy 2. They make a terrific sound, but don’t really vary from a tightly set template. Frequent mentions were made of a new album, but to be honest with the same instrumentation and style pretty much all the way through I couldn’t see why anyone would need more than one Songhoy Blues album. By way of contrast we’re going to see Mike Monroe (of Hanoi Rocks fame) tomorrow night. We’re in Manchester to see the Light’s daughter, who is at the Uni and is appalled that her parents go to far more gigs than she does.
Not that many though. I think the only other one in November was the Afro Celt Sound System with the Dhol Foundation at Colchester Arts Centre. Last year the Afro Celts released a new album then played the festivals before headlining their own tour, and were road hardened by the time they played what my have been my gig of the year at Colchester. This year they played a string dates after a few days rehearsal with no new album to tour. The result was lots of individual virtuosity, but less barn storming band numbers. In particular I could have done with more from the women singers and a bit less Dhol Foundation.
deramdaze says
Heard (and read) – Jimi, who would have been 75 last Monday.
I find I now skip Purple Haze, Foxy Lady, Hey Joe, Voodoo Child etc. for the lighter, almost more lyrical, songs e.g. Drifting and Night Bird Flying from Cry of Love.
When I pick up yet another compilation from the Oxy, a weekly occurrence, I play all the songs from about Crosstown Traffic onwards.
Also: Alexei Sayle’s Imaginary Sandwich Bar, last episode tonight.
Seen – Cricket (it’s not looking good), rugby league (that final ten minutes v. Tonga, yikes!).
Went to the local rugby union club to hear the coaches talking tactics, great evening, none the wiser. Something about breakdowns and cradles.
moseleymoles says
Alexei Sayle’s Imaginary Sandwich Bar shows that the 6:30pm R4 ‘comedy’ slot does not have to be rotting septuagenarian outings (I’m Sorry.. or Just A Minute) or who-commissioned-this standards of unfunny (Hal, the Sheila Hancock, In and Out of the Kitchen, Hut 42, the one about the alien invasion etc etc). You just have to let someone who is actually a good comic loose….all together now he’s a bad, bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad, (sounds of Jubilee line)bad,bad,bad,bad,(sounds of the Eurostar)bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad, (sounds of Parisian cafes)bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad, (sounds of the Jubilee line again)bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad, (sound of door opens and footsteps) bad,bad,bad,bad,bad,bad, MAN!
From tonight’s the story about his cat is just excellent too. And there’s a great Rod Stewart punchline.
sjmaynard says
Read – Finally got round to Murakami’s IQ84 which i really enjoyed. Also Attrib: a collection of short pieces by Eley Williams which is brilliant. My aim to read 52 books this year seems to have crashed and burned (possibly the 1100 page Murakami didn’t help) so its nothing over 200 pages from now until Christmas. (Which is great as I can re-read Slaughterhouse 5)
Seen- Its been a month of vintage films, took delivery of the re-issue of Ace in the Hole which is magnificent still and ploughed through Heavens Gate which still isn’t.
Heard – St Vincent – I haven’t really engaged so far but Masseduction is a really good album. Fulfilled my obligation with Morrissey which unlike previous efforts which were lumpen and lyrically questionable in places has transcended that and is lumped with keyboards and genuinely unpleasant. Like many and way too late I am done with you Steven, it was really something and now it is really nothing.
Also the new Mammal Hands – Shadow Work which is very good indeed and combines jazz, some systems/nyman esque hooks and methods as well as just plain enjoyable.
And finally, I heard an excellent (or not joke) from my son (aged 10)
Q: How do you tell the gender of an ant?
A: Put it in a bowl of water, if it sinks its a girl ant, if it floats —–boy ant!
I’ll get my coat.
ganglesprocket says
Murukami, technically counts as three…
Marwood says
Seen
Taboo
Finally caught up with the Tom Hardy led grime–a-thon. It was gristly and grisly; awash with blood and guts and muck and bullets. So atmospheric it felt like you needed a good wash after watching each episode. Mr H played the supernatural / super hero lead and was menace personified (even his hat looked as though it could handle itself in a fight).
Dunkirk
I also saw Tom as the stoic spitfire pilot in Dunkirk. I say that I saw him – for most of his screen time half his face was obscured by an oxygen mask. Yet he was still rather brilliant. The moment when his character was weighing up his next step (the old crate nearly out of fuel, yet the battle was still raging above and below) was masterful.
Must say that Dunkirk was an amazing experience. It starts tensely (a group of Tommys running for their lives through the streets) and that tension just grows and grows. That was aided by the score – which is a living, breathing thing. The sound kept ascending – rising and rising without ever reaching a plateau. I found it almost suffocatingly tense. Also found myself saying ‘oh no’ and ‘get out of there’ out loud on a number of occasions. Brilliant and draining by equal measure.
Ex Machina
Like the recent Bladerunner 2049, this movie interrogates the concept of what it means to be human and also focuses on female identify. It also manages to cram in warnings about the insidious nature of search engines and social media and how these technological edifices can be used to manipulate us.
A Few Good Men
This must be about 25 years old now, but I had never seen it before. It’s entertaining enough, with decent performances from the supporting cast (and when was JT Walsh anything other than riveting?). Aaron Sorkin’s script is a bit too on the nose for me, and has a horrible tendency to Tell, and not Show. Case in point, the night before big bad Jack Nicholson is placed in the dock, Tom Cruise’s young, reckless but brilliant lawyer explains how he is going to break the case (basically, goad Nicholson’s character into losing his temper). So, when the chips are down, there is no suspense, because we know what Tom is going to do! Spoils the suspense and undermines the volcanic outburst from mad Jack.
Boyhood
At the other end of the Show / Tell scale is Boyhood, a truly lovely film about – well, nothing much. But also it’s about everything; growing, maturing, love and loss, dreaming and reality. It features a host of winning performances but my favourite was possibly Patricia Arquette’s character. She is filled with self doubt and has a habit of choosing feckless men. Yet she is driven to advance her position in order to validate her sense of self but, more importantly to her, provide a better life for her children. She’s a wonderful mum and also genuinely positive influence on her community. I think she is the film’s George Bailey – seemingly oblivious to all the good that emanates from her and her actions.
Paddington 2
And talking of George Bailey – Paddington himself is a more explicit example. During the film he is placed into prison and we watch on as the street in which he lives is knocked out of kilter; his neighbours are unable to function properly without this kind-hearted soul in its midst. A warm, funny and wise movie – can’t wait to see it again.
Detectorists
A welcome return from Andy, Lance and the gang. I am up to episode 3 as I write this, with 4 ready and waiting. It’s such a joyful programme, and Toby Jones’ face; resigned, hopeful, kind and witty is just one of the shows many charms. And Garfunkel is played by Simon Farnby – who wrote the script for Paddington.
Read
Quiller Balalaika
I have been working my way through Adam Hall’s Quiller series for years and I finally reached the final book this month. These are spy yarns of the very highest order; tense, exciting, full of incident and detail. They are told in the first person, and Quiller gives us insight into his dangerous, shadowy and violent world. At the end of this book was an afterword, written by the author’s son. He explains that his father literally finished the book on his deathbed, rousing himself to put the final touches to his hero’s last adventure. A melancholy end to a wonderful series of novels.
Amy & Isabelle
The third of Elizabeth Strout’s books I have read and each one is a small marvel. In this we follow the lives of a single mother and her teenage daughter. There is introspection and loneliness, need and want as both women negotiate unspoken truth and emotions. Beautiful prose and some heart-breaking moments
Heard
Nothing much of note, I’m afraid.
badartdog says
Heard
I’ve been listening to a few audiobooks. Just started Neal Stephenson’s Snowcrash and am enjoying it – I don’t read/listen to much Sci-Fi, this is convincing me that maybe I should. I quite enjoyed The Pines by Blake Crouch – which reminded me of Twin Peaks, The X Files and Vanilla Sky. I much preferred The Last Days of Jack Sparks by Jason Arnopp – a recent guest on the Bigmouth podcast. It was fabulous, its about the supernatural, the ego, social media, truth and faith and is a rollicking listen (or read).
Music-wise – Afghan Whigs. Everything I have, all I’ve played.
Seen
Paddington 2 is perfect.
Thor: Ragnarok is chock-full of Kirby goodness. Despite loving comics, I’m not that fussed by Marvel or DC movies, but this was great fun.
I enjoyed Paranoid on Netflix too. No idea if it’s had a UK TV release, I think it was a co-production with a German company. Intriguing crime story set primarily in an un-named Cheshire town, Big pharma conspiracies and cover-ups, great cast, well acted – though there were times when I was convinced each of the main characters were mentally ill. Maybe that was the point.
Read: Paper Girls is a fabulous comic series that would appeal to anyone who enjoyed Stranger Things.
AoB: Bingo Little is a total hero and has helped to make my 8 year old’s Christmas (potentially) brilliant.
The Joint Council for Qualifications are a bunch of idiots, why teachers, pupils and parents aren’t marching on their offices with pitchforks and torches I’ll never know.
Moose the Mooche says
Re your final point: the JCQ have just sent me an award for services to examining, which a) I wasn’t expecting and b) absolutely confirms your point.
badartdog says
ha ha – I’m sure it was well-deserved, Mr Moose
Rigid Digit says
Heard
60s Mod and Psych stuff – The Pretty Things, The Creation, The Action and The Artwoods all being enjoyed.
The 3 Disc compilation Love Poetry And Revolution: A Journey Through The British Psychedelic And Underground Scenes 1966 To 1972 has also taken a bit of a spanking.
And for way of variety (at least by continent), the Nuggetes compilation has been played very loudly recently.
New Noel Gallagher has finally plopped on my doormat – that’s the weekend sorted.
Read
Bruce Dickinson – What Does This Button Do.
Entertaining, but need more opinion and “dirt”
Seen:
Trainspotting 2 – it was never going to compare to the original. In fact apart from the characters and setting, this doesn’t really have much to do with the original. A fine film story on it’s own.
The Hatton Garden Job – generally predictable heist movie, but entertaining all the same.
Baron Harkonnen says
Very nice listening choices Rigie.
Moose the Mooche says
Laughing Len’s Popular Problems. He really did have a renaissance didn’t he? Those final albums form quite a triptych.
Flaming Pie – wow! Apart from the Steve Miller tracks it’s flawless. Why not more fuss about that album? A lot of variety from the great man.
Yazoo – Upstairs at Eric’s. I can still remember how startling Moyet’s voice was in 1982. Quite an adventurous album between the soul-pop hits.
minibreakfast says
I hope it was the vinly version, as I gather the CD omitted I Before E Except After C, one of my faves.
I think it was restored on a later reissue.
Moose the Mooche says
It is indeed a vinly, and a pretty good one. I could do without I before E but I’m glad it’s there.
“Waaaooo Waaooo! Goodbye seventies!”
Little did she know, poor lass, the seventies would never – will never – finish.
minibreakfast says
Not if the Afterword has anything to do with it!
salwarpe says
Last but one month of my year of daily music blogging and I continued the theme from October (pre-teen music) to my teenage years with a selection of nightly songs from those seven years – from punk to pop to goth – teenage kicks. An interesting, if not always happy trawl back more than half a lifetime ago.
Here is a list of the songs:
The Stranglers – Golden Brown, The Jam – A Town Called Malice, The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band – Canyons of Your Mind, OMD – Joan of Arc (Maid of Orleans), Eartha Kitt – Where Is My Man?, The Clash – Janie Jones, Bruce Springsteen – Hungry Heart, PIL – Religion, Nena – 99 Luftballons, The Cars – Heartbeat City, UB40 – Food For Thought, Prince – Raspberry Beret, The Bluebells – I’m Falling, The Art of Noise – Close (To The Edit), Shannon – Let the Music Play, The Cure – The Lovecats, The Thompson Twins – You Take Me Up, Propaganda – Dr Mabuse, The Sisters of Mercy – Possession, the Cult – Big Neon Glitter, Bauhaus – Hollow Hills, Marillion – Fugazi, Mike Oldfield – In High Places, New Order – Confusion, The Sisters of Mercy – Lights, Billy Bragg – The Man In The Iron Mask, The Jesus & Mary Chain – Deep One Perfect Morning, Joy Division – The Eternal, The Gun Club – Hearts, The Damned – The Shadow of Love.
Next month, I think I’ll carry on into a look back at my twenties. Then I can put the blessed project to bed.
Hawkfall says
Lights is a wonderful Sisters song, one of Eldritch’s very best lyrics. Bravo!
salwarpe says
Cheers, @Hawkfall! I’m a bit of a sucker for the early b-sides – Blood Money, Bury Me Deep, etc. Though Fix is my overall favourite.
Baron Harkonnen says
Heard;
Lots of King Crimson, thanks to the arrival of ‘Sailors Tales’, I’m only just realising how great a band they were/are.Tim Buckley, got the LPs out, lovely stuff. Never really liked his son’s stuff, I bought the albums and EPs but gave them away. Average White Band, thanks to an Amazon lightning deal. Michael Head’s new LP, release of the year? Maybe.
Seen;
Nothing.
Read;
I’m in the middle of an enormous load of Sci-Fi bollocks, probably the worst set of (Kindle) books I’ve read this year. Feckin’ love it.
retropath2 says
The Crims are doing a big tour next winter, I see. As someone with only CotCK, would I like ’em?
Baron Harkonnen says
They have changed a bit since then but the live albums they`ve released this year from their US tour are very good.
Baron Harkonnen says
I forgot Robert bloody Plant in his nearly hometown of Wolverhampton. He was excellent but you already know that.
Moose the Mooche says
In my head I heard that post in the voice of Noddy Holder played by Vic Reeves… prior to demanding a Cup-a-Soup.
atcf says
Heard: for the first time in 20 years I spent money on a Noel Gallagher album. And it’s pretty good! It sags at times to be sure, and it would be a far less interesting record without David Holmes’ production, but ‘Holy Mountain’ is a hoot. Big dumb pop at its best, Slade would be proud of this one.
Also been listening to Sharon Jones’ last album. There’s no noticeable drop in the quality of her voice or the material, it’s a good way to sign off.
Read: Rob Baker’s High Buildings Low Morals. Fascinating stories about high (and low) society in 20th Century London. Led me to an old biography of Tallulah Bankhead, who spent some time in London in the 1920s then went back to America to behave like a rock star 30 years before the term was invented. Her last words in 1968 were allegedly “Bourbon and Codeine”.
Seen: Death of Stalin, was that this month? Good fun but not as many good one-liners as I’d hoped and with a surprisingly dark ending.
mikethep says
Seen: frogmarched Mrs thep off to see The Death of Stalin. She enjoyed it nearly as much as I did, luckily. Lots of jokes, some of which you hate yourself for laughing at. Great cast too, the only weak link being Paul Whitehouse, who seemed to think he was still in The Fast Show. Simon Russell Beale as Beria was magnificent.
Also working my way through The Vietnam War, which is sensational, the absolute model of what a proper documentary series should be. By which I mean:
1. Intelligent, informative, clear script.
2. Thoughtful, articulate interviewees from all sides.
3. No recaps of previous episodes for those with no attention span.
4. No endless repeats of film material to illustrate different circumstances – haven’t seen one repeat in 4 episodes.
5. No pompous synthesised washes of cod-symphonic music with added portentous booms to keep your woofer busy, just well-chosen snatches of contemporary rock, never overdone. (Including DONOVAN, hurrah! Our boy done good.) And no music threatening to drown out the voiceover, just occasionally, way back in the mix.
6. No speeded up clouds.
None of this is a surprise of course – the lad Burns has form.
Read: a couple of John Lawtons, First We Take Berlin and The Unfortunate Englishmen, featuring a Cockney wide boy tealeaf called Joe Holderness, universally known as Wilderness, who becomes an MI6 wideboy tealeaf and spy who makes a fortune on the black market in Berlin after the war, but comes to grief every time he tries something a bit more ambitious. In between he does a little light work serving King/Queen and Country. Excellent reads.
The new Lee Child, The Midnight Line. I confess I’ve never developed the ability to tell the good ones from the bad, since I always romp right through them. This one was no different, in any sense.
I’m rather fascinated by the strange story of Rudolf Hess and his sudden arrival by parachute in Scotland. Indeed I once started (but never actually wrote apart from the opening chapter) a novel in which either Hess was a serial killer in London during the Blitz or the man sent by Hitler to kill him was a serial killer, I couldn’t decide which (it’s a novel, so you make things up, ok?). So I’m enjoying The Hitler-Hess Deception by Martin Allen, which puts forward the notion that Hitler, who was desperate to finish the war in the West so he could concentrate on Russia, was spoofed by the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare into believing that his latest peace feeler hadn’t fallen on stony ground like all the others had. Haven’t finished it, but I’m finding it thoroughly convincing and enjoyable.
Heard: only live music was Mousey in Auckland, as described elsewhere.
Nothing else stands out particularly, except that I’ve got loads and loads of Dylan Theme Time compilations on my iPod, which I’m playing in the car. Continuously surprising and enjoyable, although doubts are stirring about whether he actually had all that stuff in his record collection. *winky face*
Oh, one more thing: Will-o-the-Wisp, read by Kenneth Williams. Found a CD in a chazza and couldn’t resist – the moment I started playing it I realised that I knew large swathes of it off by heart, so often had I heard it when the offspring were little. “Faiwies weally are widiculous cweatures.” Magic 🙂
JustB says
I really liked Paul Whitehouse in TDOS. The whole thing was a proper masterpiece – managed to somehow be a pitch-black The Thick Of It, but with real gravitas and horror. The third act wasn’t exactly a surprise, if you know anything about Soviet history, but my god – a film which had been darkly comic up until that point becomes a full-on tar-pit, with a final 15 minutes that really rams home the horror and jackknife unpredictablity of an autocracy. Nobody is sympathetic except the poor regular Russians – Paddy Considine, bless him, running around like a mad bastard trying to satisfy the whim of an absurd and terrible old man – but every one of the central cast manages to be simultaneously hilarious and appalling.
SRB was outstanding, like you say, but matched by Michael Palin and pipped to the post by Jason Isaacs, for me. That man should get an Oscar.
PS: it’s maybe a testament to the film’s cast and all-round brilliance that I momentarily forgot that Steve Buscemi’s in it. (Y’know. Not a big role. Just playing *Khrushchev*, as a kind of awful office joker. No big deal.) It’s an amazing performance and yet it doesn’t stand out at all.
Sewer Robot says
Ooh, I’m proper excited to see it now!
Leedsboy says
Seen.
Have watched Justice League in the cinema. It was ok. The Marvel/DC films are sort of merging into a big hamburger chain restaurant like franchise to me. Watched Hunt For The Wilderpeople (on Netflix) as well. Very god indeed. A little fruity and dark but my youngest kids were just about ok with it. TV has been a bit lacklustre. Masterchef Professional is ok. Not been near the Apprentice – there are enough arses in business without watching some wannabe ones. Finished Patriot on Amazon Prime. Very good indeed. Also The Detectorists (brilliant) and Motherland (v. funny in places but I’m finding the overacting and some of the characters a bit wearing).
Read
Danny Bakers last two autobiographies on Audiobook (should that be heard?). Very funny. I love his confidence and he always manages to stay the right side of puffed up. The cancer treatment section (spoiler alert) was interesting, moving and, in parts, darkly funny. Also started on Mark Dawson’s Milton books. Similar to Lee Child but with longer sentences and more believable (just) plot lines.
Heard
Concerts by Jason Isbell and War On Drugs. Both excellent with the Isbell gig shading it. New music from Anna Ternheim (All The Way to Rio) – lovely, dark, tuneful pop. Colors by Beck – excellent. Reminds me (in places) of Phoenix – Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix which is no bad thing. Also went back to the Family of the Year album Lorna Vista. Its a good one.
davebigpicture says
Hunt For The Widerpeople was ace. My wife finds stuff like that. I’d never think to put it on.
Marwood says
I gave up on Motherland after the third episode. I began by thinking that Diane Morgan was the best thing about it. Then realised that she was the only good thing about it.
Lemonhope says
I think you may be right
moseleymoles says
It hasn’t maintained the brilliance of the pilot that’s for sure. Maybe it couldn’t. Anna Maxwell-Martin’s character is not that sympathetic, presumably she is meant to be, and Keith the wet stay-at-home dad is downright annoying. So the only scenes with real comic vim are those between Diane Morgan and uber-mum Lucy Punch, of which there are not enough.
Leedsboy says
That’s about it for me as well.
MC Escher says
The latest ep was a real RTF folks
moseleymoles says
If it’s the one we saw this week with the in-laws coming down to ‘help’ it was exactly that. The Promises Auction one was still very below par.
moseleymoles says
Heard and Seen: Ride live (see review)
READ
Continuing to read against my natural turf (literature and Sci-fi) I read Tinker, Tailor, Soldier,Spy which is the first Le Carre I’ve got to that justifies the hype. An absolute masterpiece. And my first Maigret, Maigret (in fact the 17th) which I found not to be a masterpiece.
SEEN
Shared Trading Places with son who loved it. There are barely any gags in the first third as the characters and plot are built, and its rife with dated attitudes, but the last third is solid comedy gold. We also hooted our way through My Scientology Movie – ‘it’s a public road’ and the me filming you filming me filming me stuff is excellent. But they have opened up a huge new base not a mile away from where I’m typing so my alias must never now be revealed. Not seen the Cruiser yet in Poundland or Costa on the High Street.
HEARD
Currently mildly obsessed with Digweed/Sashaesque ‘deep house’ compilation series Anjunadeep, particularly those mixed by Jody from Way Out West. There’s 9 of them so far, and working my way through all of them on Spotify. Great for running, great for cooking.
And of course the start of the month was disc after disc of Lars and James’ out-takes on the Masters of Puppets box set. Coming soon: making daughter moles listen – Kids React To! – Meet the Residents and Third Reich N Roll.
mikethep says
It’s funny about Maigret. I love the idea of him, and collect those old Penguins in a vague sort of way, but whenever I actually read one I’m really rather bored. I wonder if it’s the translations?
moseleymoles says
@mikethep this was a new translation. I think you are right that the idea of Maigret is actually far better than the writing. And as Simonon wrote nearly 500 books plus short work, I am guessing that his prose might best be seen as servicable even in the original language. Absolutely fulfils the rule that second-rate books make first-rate drama.
seanioio says
HEARD
As part of my ‘admitting I am wrong about artists I thought were rubbish but are actually quite good’ program, I have given the latest Public Service Broadcasting album a whirl & it is a marvel. ‘They Gave Me a Lamp’ in particular is brilliant. I hated their ‘Space’ album but the ‘Mining’ one is top.
The new Noel Gallagher album is half brilliant & half filler. However, the half brilliant is making it worth a listen on my commute. Every time I hear Holy Mountain I do want to listen to Roxy Music though!
ABBA. At their worst it is just overblown, pretentious pop. At their best it is overblown, pretentious pop! I have been listening to them lots this month & if you listen to them in order from Ring Ring to The Visitors it is a delight. For my money they are a perfect band.
READ
Not much for November although I did re-read ‘Flowers for Algernon’ & as usual it slayed me. A really great read & it gets me blubbing like a baby every time.
SEEN
Detectorists is back & it is as good as ever. Each episode is a delight & everything abut it is perfect.
The A Word is really enjoyable to watch too. Christopher Eccleston & Lee Ingleby are particularly good in it.
AOB
Baby number 2 joined us on the 30th October so November has been a short sharp shock of remembering how tiring it is with a newborn in the house. I think having a 2 year old about the place has made it a bit more interesting.
Bingo Little says
Congratulations, seanioio – that’s lovely news! Hope you’re able to get some kip over Xmas.
Leedsboy says
Congratulations.
Tiggerlion says
Interesting use of the word ‘interesting’. Hearty congratulations to you and your partner. Don’t spend too much on Christmas. Neither will remember it. And instead of listening to Holy Mountain, just go straight to the source and listen to Roxy Music instead.
seanioio says
Thank you for the lovely congratulations! Woody has been great so far & with it being our 2nd it’s much less of a shock this time!
@Tiggerlion, the word ‘interesting’ was maybe said through gritted teeth! Haha. In fairness, our 2 year old has been great so far & if you had offered us the way she has been pre-birth we would have taken it like a shot. We will definitely not be throwing money at Christmas. Even if we wanted to my 2 week statutory pay will be in my December wage so going to be on a budget anyway.
Thanks for the Four Tet review by the way – still my album of the year I reckon!! 🙂
Leicester Bangs says
Heard:
Lots of good new albums, starting with ‘Self’ by Om Unit. I keep saying that there’s still lots of brilliant drum & bass out there if you’re prepared to look for it, and Om Unit is a case in point. I’ll forgive him the rather obvious nods to Burial, because everybody in D&B and dubstep nods towards Burial these days.
More D&B (and breaks and electro) on ‘Belief System’ by Special Request. His last album was a tribute to pirate radio stations, and though dazzling could be a chore, leaning as it did towards the more clattery end of jungle. This one features the same pristine production and stylistic wandering eye, but is much better balanced.
Also, ‘The Desecration Of Desire’ by Dave Clarke, which is great — though maybe not as great as Clarke thinks — and also ‘Vows’ by The Disappointment Choir, at last (I’d been waiting for it on vinyl). It’s brilliant. A carnival of heart-on-sleeve lyrics and at times wantonly weird delivery. The thrill of it is in the vocal interplay, but I love it when it wigs out musically, too. It all makes for a really moreish, earwormy album.
New-old: Gradually snapping up the ‘Junjo Presents…’ (formerly ‘Scientist Presents…’) dub album series. I think I must have talked about these last month, so I reiterate: you’ve got to get them, they’re a must, essential for all reggae fans. Why? Because they feature a bonus disc of the original songs to hear alongside the dubs. You’re getting an awful lot of (brilliant) reggae bang for your buck.
What else? Oh yeah, a great new box on On-U Sound of early Dub Syndicate albums, ‘Ambience In Dub’, though not at all ambient. I’m also on a bit of a Roger Waters binge at the moment, and this has involved buying the 2015 remaster of ‘Amused To Death’, which sounds absolutely stunning. I mean, really, properly, gobsmackingly good, managing to combine crystal separation with the usual sound effects you expect from Waters — machine guns, jet planes etc. — and a ‘live’ feel, as though he’s there in the room with you. I should point out, for BBC balance, that this applies only to my decent home stereo. I played it in my little Fiat and it was all a bit muddy.
Disappointments? Another icon of my youth bites the dust. Morrissey, you join The Fall and Andrew Weatherall in sounding too tired and bereft of ideas to deserve another penny of my cash.
Watched:
Being on this Roger Waters binge, I returned to Alan Parker’s ‘The Wall’, which always topped ‘My fave films EVER!’ lists when I was a diary-writing teen — although I hadn’t seen it since. I watched it with my son, who’s only 13, and it’s a lot harder-hitting than I remembered so I ended up cringing through a lot of it. Even so, it remains a powerful (if somewhat ‘on the nose’) experience. On the DVD extras, Rog gives his verdict, pulling a face and saying that he thinks the film is ‘good’, but flawed. ‘There are no laughs,’ he complains, going on to add that his own work is full of comedy but none of that had made its way into the film. You could have knocked me down with a feather. I mean, I guess there *is* comedy in Waters’ work — well hidden though it is — but is there any in ‘The Wall’?
Read:
‘Elizabeth’ by Jessica Hamilton, who is actually Ken Greenhall, a horror writer currently being ‘rediscovered’. I’m picking up another of his books later this morning. According to my Goodreads page I’m also reading ‘The End Of The World Running Club’, but although I vaguely recall starting it, I can’t remember anything about it. Oops.
AOB:
Off to see Gorillaz next week with my son, his first-ever gig. They’re his favourite band. I wouldn’t go see them of my own volition but looking forward to it. Bit of a result, that.
Gary says
Watched
End Of The F***ing World.
American Vandal.
Both really excellent binge viewing.
Watching
The BBC telly series Howards End. I loved the book, loved the film and now am loving the telly programme. Interesting to note that while the leads are all superb, they’re still not quite in the same league as Thompson, Hopkins and Redgrave were in the film. But they are excellent nonetheless. Philippa Coulthard (as Helen Schlegel) and Alex Lawther, out of End Of The F***ing World and Black Mirror, (as Tibby Shlegel) are actually better than their film counterparts.
Gary says
Add to “Watched”
The Big Sick – Started quite well and had moments of genuine lol, mostly due to Kumail Nanjiani’s charming performance, but like most rom coms, fell flat towards the end.
Detroit – Just brilliant. I’ve seen only a few Kathryn Bigelow films (Point Break, Strange Days, The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty) and really liked every one. This is no exception. A reviewer on IMDB says: “Unfortunately for both Bigelow and the city of Detroit, Detroit’s script casts too wide a net to be especially impacting.” I couldn’t be disagree more. Having had no info about the film in advance, the film’s wide view of the 1967 titular riots had me thinking it was a documentary for the first half an hour or so. (Admittedly, I was mildly sedated.) I loved the pace with which it then gradually narrowed into a smaller, focused, specific story. And Will Poulter continues to surprise.
Add to “Watching”
Detectorists – So glad to see it’s still brilliant. I am totes agree with everything Marwood says up above. Lance’s (Toby Jones) visit to the hypnotist (episode 2?) and the car/motorbike chase (episode3?) had me in stitches.
Native says
Heard
Currently enjoying three new albums, all which I purchased on vinyl; Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds with ‘Who Built The Moon?’, Morrissey’s ‘Low In High School’ and Bicep’s self-titled, debut album.
Also, been listening to the Pet Shop Boys reissues of ‘Yes’ and ‘Elysium’ in the car on cd.
Seen
Went to see The Divine Comedy on their current ‘Foreverland’ tour in Leeds. I’ve given the album my best shot, but I just can’t seem to warm to it, unlike most of their previous efforts. However, I completely enjoyed the show. Neil Hannon was in great voice – and he sang my two favourite DC tracks; ‘A Lady Of A Certain Age’ and ‘Our Mutual Friend’.
SteveT says
Winter finally came – have had to scrape the car windscreen 3 times in the last week of November. What the fuck is that about?
HEARD:
The latest Boo Hewerdine is a bit meh. A couple of great songs spoilt by a couple of absolute stinkers. Disappointing because he is normally so reliable.
Yardbirds 68 is largely great and the bonus disc of studio stuff very illuminating as to where they could have gone to next.
My daughter got me the Bob Marley boxset Songs of Freedom which mainly chronicles his early career. It is fab.
Also Mogwai – Every Country’s sun – the opening track Coolverine is one of the best pieces they have done.
Sharon Jones Soul of a woman is a perfect goodbye from one of the best female soul voices around. Great playing by the Dap Kings too and it is sad to think this is the last we will hear from her.
Also Who and Tim Buckley boxsets which have improved several long car journeys.
READ:
Just finished my second Mike Gayle book Turning Forty which have enjoyed but it is a little disquieting that there is not swearing in any of his dialogue – that is not the real world.
About to embark on the Bob Harris autobiography.
The Uncut ultimate guide to Steely Dan was excellent and easily the best one they have done.
Lots of insights into song meanings that I have found most illuminating.
SEEN:
Robert Plant and Blue Rose Code live – both excellent shows but both very different. Plant has the most amazing live band and with the addition of Seth Lakeman on violin it was really a great night.
On the big screen I saw Call me by your name which I found very enjoyable.
On TV I am finally tiring of Coronation Street now that it has lost all of its unique humour – the scriptwriters need shooting.
The Apprentice is also losing its sheen and the new candidates seem very poor – doubt there is a decent business brain between them.
On the other hand I am really enjoying The A Word and Love, Lies and Records. Ashley Jensen in the latter is wonderful. Oh of course how could I forget Peaky Blinders? – the plot in this latest series is full of twists and turns that make the wait for the next episode almost unbearable. Great TV.
Locust says
Not much to tell this month. A combination of too much work and not enough money, I haven’t had the energy to read much and no money to buy music.
Seen:
Just finished series 2 of Jordskott, over all quite a disappointing season. Lacking the magic of series one and promising a lot more than it delivered. Perhaps because the final episode clearly set up a series three for the big show-down and reveals…
Swedish comedy group Grotesco have been showered with praise for their third series, but despite some laughs I’ve been quite underwhelmed so far. It’s original and intelligent, but is it all that funny? I’m not convinced.
I saw a new Hamlet filmed for TV; that’s new as in a new play based on the original but very different, with parallels to our times, very dark, but quite moving. Unfortunately it suffered from being theatre filmed for TV – very static and confined and very theatrical, in a bad way. None of which I would have minded about as much in the theatre, watching it live. Still, interesting.
Apart from that just University Challenge and Masterchef The Professionals.
Tried to watch Dickensian but had to turn it off fifteen minutes in, I couldn’t stand it!
Read:
Still dipping in and out of the Neil Gaiman collection of non fiction.
And slowly making my way through Colin Harper’s second John McLaughlin installment, very interesting and well written as always. The reason it’s going slowly is because every chapter has something interesting to say about something (other than Johnny Mac) that reminds me of something else that I then have to look up or listen to, or tell me something I didn’t know that I want to know more about; so it sends me down lots of rabbit holes! Recommended to everyone with an interest in music – of any kind.
Heard:
Bought only a couple of new albums (making up for it this month) but got some from a generous friend as well.
Neil Finn’s album Out Of Silence has a lot of gorgeous melodies, and is rather good, even though I often think his lyrics lack something.
The Weather Station was unexpectedly good, very 70s California, a tinge of folk, mellow. I sometimes wish her voice was a little stronger, but besides that, it’s great.
Noah Gundersen’s latest; White Noise is very different from his previous, and for the better, IMO. Some really good songs on it, especially the second half of it.
Jordan Klassen – Big Intruder is a mixed bag, a few highlights but most of it fails to grip me and I struggle to remember what he sounds like the minute I turn the music off. Quite bland.
I love Lizz Wright’s voice on Grace, so soulful and warm. A very restful album, as made for lazy Sunday mornings.
I loved Anna Tivel’s previous album, and latest Small Believer is more of the same, nice story songs sung in a lovely, slightly breathy, voice. But although I still like the songs heard one at a time, listening to the entire album make the tracks almost blend together into one long track, and I find it difficult to tell them apart or remember them. A little more variation, sound-wise, would be welcome…but then I listen to any of the tracks on its own and feel mean, because they’re all very good!
Nerina Pallot’s album Stay Lucky is good, but the production is a bit bland and sugary for my taste. The songs are great, and her voice, but I would have loved the music to be a bit more raw and against the grain, or just funkier. This is far too well behaved.
Jupiter & Okwess – Kin Sonic is OK, but I expected much better.
Spent four hours today putting up my Christmas tree, but I still find it difficult to believe it’s only a month away. It feels like it ought to be the beginning of October…this year has gone by too fast!
Colin H says
Thanks so much Loki – that’s lovely to hear! 🙂
I’m always amused, though, when you say ‘Not much to tell this month….’ and then proceed to tell us about the absolutely colossal quantities of culture you have consumed!
Locust says
Nah, it isn’t the quantities of consumed culture that are colossal; it’s the quantities of words I use to describe a very small quantity of consumed culture… 😀
mikethep says
Sorry to hear the bad news about Jordskott 2 – I was completely gripped by the first series. I wish sometimes film makers would say, good, that worked, now let’s try something different, instead of automatically going for series 2.
Locust says
It had some gripping moments in series 2 as well, but two major issues for me: they almost completely abandoned the forest and spent most of the episodes in the city, and worse still; in police offices and hospital corridors – not very magical environments exactly.
And they overcomplicated the plot twists and strayed too far away from the heart of the first series; the folklore and the magic of nature, making it more about the organisation working to cover these things up from ordinary people.
I was slightly underwhelmed all through series 2, but the real disappointment came in the final episode.
I suspect that it originally was written as a single series with a clear end, but the unexpected popularity of it made them greedy for more, so they had to quickly think of a new plot for a series two.
Kaisfatdad says
I agree that Grotesco does not have many laughs, @Locust. But if is not too funny haha, it is magnificently funny peculiar. And wonderfully satirical. The episode about the school parents meeting was cringingly accurate.
Edgy, unpredictable, bloody and thought provoking. It is one of the few tv shows that I really don’t want to miss.
Locust says
Oh, I still watch it, and mostly enjoy it. It just doesn’t tick my LOL box, but intelligent satire isn’t the worst kind! I just miss the kind of comedy that makes me laugh uncontrollably until my stomach’s in pain…everything has to be so bloody clever these days… 😉
bungalowjoe says
READ
Just finished re-reading The Name Of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss and now reading the second book in the Kingkiller Chronicles, The Wise Man’s Fear.
Brilliant fantasy reading on an epic scale.
retropath2 says
Trying to chase around the recommendations of others on the listening front: such as ever is December. Hard sometimes to get a full idea but in the time available was surprised by Phoebe Bridgers, expecting beats and thump, rather than the Laurel Canyon quirk it is. Undecided. Likewise Megan Henwood: starts well but gets a bit dull. Tokio Myers is good in a Lidl Moby sense, but still good. A surprise has been the latest from Rural Alberta Advantage, which may creep in alongside Ian Felice in my americana best of year.
BUT on the telly, Walking Dead and Vikings are both back!!!!!!!!!!!
And I have the Unthanks to see on thursday. With orchestra.
Morrison says
Seen:
Back to the city of culture to see Pat Metheny at Hull City Hall. It’s been a while since I saw a live act in its Victorian splendour and forgotten how unforgiving the acoustics are. Still, Pat and his band were great – even if he frequently lapsed into endless solo-ing leaving gifted pianist Gwilym Silcock vamping away quietly. The real star was drummer Antonio Sanchez – endlessly hustling things along and making an absolute racket when needed.
Then on to the Turner Prize at the refurbed Ferens art gallery – hard to pick a likely winner from a mundane line-up. Over at the Fruit Market, Martin Parr’s photography exhibition of Hull cafes is great with his saturated colours making close ups of local delicacies like the pattie come alive.
Another great drummer – Clarence Penn – popped up in bassist Michael Janisch’s jazzy fusion band in Cambridge. He looked like he was having a whale of time – so inventive across the tricksy time changes – and good to see a group of younger folk stage front watching his every move.
Read:
Sebastian Barry’s “Days Without End” is a fascinating fictional first person narrative describing the life and adventures of a young Irishman adrift in the mid-19th century wild west. Almost Cormac McCarthy-esque in its description of the Indian and American Civil Wars, it’s written in a curious archaic language – I suppose how you’d imagine the central character would speak – occasionally lapsing into an intense poetic style that occasionally jars. Still, really strong story telling and ripe for film treatment.
A worthy follow-up to best-seller “The Loney”, Andrew Michael Hurley’s “The devil’s day” is more horror strangeness set in a forgotten corner of Lancashire, switching this time to the Pennines. It’s a natural habitat for this dark satanic tale and really creepy in places, casting a rich array of characters amidst strange goings on on t’moors. Also following the investigative journalism of Carole Cadwalladr as she ties together the loose and hidden strands around Russian involvement in the Brexit campaign – and links between big data, mystery money men, think tanks, campaign groups and key political figures.
Heard:
Couple of decent soul albums: first up, second division R&B diva Syleena Johnson has teamed up with dad Syl for a great uptown Chicago soul album – reuniting musicians from the glorious 60s/70s and romping through regional classics in a live studio setting. Great production – there’s strings, horns and harps aplenty – and even if some of the covers are over-familiar there’s knockout versions of a couple of Syl’s hits in “We did it” and “Is it because I’m black?”. Next up; Kennedy Administration – more an 80/90’s soul vibe – but strong tunes and she’s a great raspy singer with some nifty uptempo stuff.
There’s also a new Leroy Hutson compilation out from Acid Jazz – spanning the cult soul hero’s 70s/80s output. Always a massive fan – he’s a great singer/songwriter/arranger/producer with a knack for slinky superbly orchestrated soulful groovers that still sound remarkably fresh. Possibly best compilation of the year for me.
Top tip from Richard Williams’ blog – Petula Clark’s jazz album from the early 60s. She was just starting to make waves in the charts but hastily arranged a session with leading Brit jazzers – including Ray “Mr Funky Trumpet” Davies – covering standards and a couple of strange song choices. It’s a swingin’ session – but she also excels on ballads as well. And a mere couple of quid from the classy Hallmark label.
Finally, a couple of spellbinding ECM piano jazz trio albums. Usual fey lyrical noodling – but beautifully done – Django Bates Beloved “The study of touch” is sublime. Even better, Aaron Parks’ “Find the way” is a bit of a minor classic – one of the best albums of the year for me.
Mike_H says
I always struggle to remember what I’ve been up to for the past month, every time the Blogger Takeover comes around.
Movies:
None. I just don’t seem to be arsed to watch movies these days. So I don’t.
TV:
Mostly my TV is off, but once in a while I like to watch a crime drama series. Very, very occasionally, a comedy. The Detectorists is looking good still and I’m enjoying it so far. BBC4’s subtitled crime dramas have been a mixed bunch. Didn’t think much of the latest scandinavian thing, to the point that I can’t even remember the name of it. Some tosh involving a group of squabbling young folks in a remote house. Decided not to bother after the first episode.
The Spanish offering “I Know Who You Are” was better. I’d not bothered to keep up with the first season so had to rush through it on iPlayer before it expired and then went straight into season 2. Some overly-histrionic acting here and there but enjoyable with a slightly disappointing ending.
The new French one, “Witnesses: A Frozen Death” is a bit more like it.
Enjoying “Gregory Porter’s Popular Voices”. Shame it doesn’t have the time to dig a little deeper, though.
Books:
I re-read Douglas Adams’ “Hitchhikers” series and found it quite a bit darker, towards the end, than I remembered. Read LeCarre’s “A Legacy Of Spies” and enjoyed it but a couple of weeks later I can barely remember it. Re-read Chris Brookmyre’s “Boiling A Frog” after remembering his descriptive passage in it about the different styles of nutter in the Scottish prison system. Not his very best but enjoyable nonetheless. Then bought and read his latest, a foray into the Sci-Fi genre. It was a good read, I thought, with some interesting concepts put forward. Belatedly ploughed my way through all 3 of Steig Larsson’s Millennium trilogy in succession and enjoyed them a lot. Next, I suppose, will be a tentative dip into the continuation of the story by the new author, to see if the standard is maintained. Also likely to give Philip Pullman’s new one a go once I see it in paperback.
Albums: See my entries for the best-of-the-year list in The Baron’s thread for the pitiful few 2017 releases I’ve bought.
Old and decrepit albums I’ve shelled out for include releases by Swiss pianist Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin “Live” on ECM (a double CD) and “Continuum” by his smaller Mobile outfit, also on ECM. Described somewhere as Zen Funk, which sounds an OK description. A meld of funk and minimalism is what I think I would call it. Piano, bass clarinet/alto sax, bass, drums, percussion. For the Mobile configuration, the bass is dropped and a contrabass clarinet is featured instead of the alto sax. There is a string quintet (2 violins, viola & 2 cellos) added to good effect on the record, but probably not when touring.
An album of solo piano works “Piano” by Eliza McCarthy (note the Mc- prefix. Not the folk goddess we know and love) is pretty good but not an easy listen and probably not going to get much future play.
A couple of albums by an outstanding classical acoustic guitarist Neil Campbell. “Through The Looking Glass”, which is a solo effort occasionally using loops and delays to stunning effect, and another CD of Philip Glass: Metamorphosis & Steve Reich: Acoustic Counterpoint, comprising a duet with electric guitarist Carl Bowry on the Philip Glass piece, and a solo recording with bass overdubs on the Reich piece.
Finally bought Melanie DeBiasio’s “No Deal” a long time after everyone else did. Dunno what took me so long.
An album “Live At Hope Hall” and an EP “The Burning Low EP” from Tobias Ben Jacob & Lukas Drinkwater, known as Jacob & Drinkwater. Acoustic guitar and upright bass. Mr. Jacob is the writer and primary singer (good voice, good modern English folk songs). Mr Drinkwater provides nice slinky basslines and harmony vocals. Very pleasing to the ear.
Live Music:
Daylight Music, Saturday lunchtimes at London’s Union Chapel has had an interesting month.
November 4th we got a selection of the piano roll compositions of Conlon Nancarrow on a specially-installed player-piano and music by roboticist/musician Sarah Angliss, played on theremin, automated carillon and keyboards, with a singing robot head.
On the 11th we got Angèle David-guillou and the Guildhall Saxophone Ensemble playing new arrangements of tracks from her recent album “En Mouvement” and pianist Eliza McCarthy (see albums, above) playing solo piano pieces.
On the 18th we had Matthew Bourne on piano with Kit Downes on the chapel’s pipe organ improvising together and also a solo piano improvisation by ECM artist Nik Bärtsch.
On the 25th was singer/pianist Kathryn Joseph, The Deep Throat Choir, singer Lilith Ai and incidental music by Haiku Salut.
On November 4th I saw local funk covers band Dex & Mercy’s Funk & Soul at the Chandos Arms in Colindale. On the 5th I was back there again to see jazz pianist Robert Carter perform with sax bass and drums accompaniment.
On the 16th I trekked over to Oval Space in the Hackney/Bethnal Green borderlands to see Anna Meredith and her band.
On the 19th I schlepped down to The Islington pub to see The Disappointment Choir, in the company of Hannah, DFB, Ruby Blue and Azeem.
A.O.B.
My landlady has had the tiling in the kitchen re-done. Looking a bit smarter. She’s also put the rent up by £25 a month, though.
Thought last week my external hard drive with all my music files on it had started dying on me. Only bought it 6 months ago.
Fortunately it was just my USB hub throwing a wobbly. I had 2 synced backups anyway, so I wouldn’t have lost anything except the play count & date added stats in my media player, which rely on reading the drive ID of the volume where the files are stored. A new drive would mean rebuilding the database, which is not difficult but takes hours.
Wondering what to get for my 30-odd year old married-young father nephew for Xmas. He’s my target in our family Secret Santa scheme. £30 maximum spend limit.