The album “Hymn To The Immortal Wind” by Japanese group Mono (not the 90’s britpop group of the same name, which I initially thought it was). Its from all the way back in 2009 (this is an anniversary release)
If you like Explosions In The Sky, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Sigur Ros etc, then this will be right up upper proverbial street. Very cinematic in style, instrumental music that combines simple melodies, space and slowly building lush arrangements with moments rock noise (its produced by Steve Albini). I’m on my fourth listen in the last couple of days and an utterly transfixed. Off to discover their back catalogue……
Here’s the gorgeous “Burial at Sea” from the album…..
Wilson Wilson says
I love Mono. A brilliant live act too, although they mainly play sitting down so if you’re a short-arse like me you don’t see much. This is the first song of theirs I heard:
Kaisfatdad says
This week I discovered ……that a certain German film director has a part in the Mandalorian.
seanioio says
This week I discovered……..Hamish Imlach
Never heard of him until this week & he is rather marvellous
Kaisfatdad says
On the subject of talented Scottish singer-songwriters, Big Stevie mentioned Findlay Napier yesterday. I was immediately won over,
Kaisfatdad says
In 2014, Findlay and Boo Hewerdine wrote a series of songs together about real people which became the album Very Interesting Persons
fitterstoke says
That takes me back…I used to sing this when I was young and folkie…
I last saw Hamish Imlach at a “big night” they’d put together for Alex Campbell – Danny Kyle was the compère, Hamish did his own spot before they introduced Alex and some other guests, including John Martyn. 1982 (I think!) in the McLennan Galleries in Sauchiehall Street. They’d put lots of chairs out, expecting a big crowd – in the event, it was only about a third full and we all moved forward. I seem to remember the musicians all played on the floor, level with us rather than using the stage. Evening ended with wine in paper cups being handed round the audience…
Leicester Bangs says
That Suede’s Mat Osman and TV egghead Richard Osman are brothers.
Black Celebration says
Yes – he occasionally mentions him on Pointless.
seanioio says
Mat Osman writes a lot of theme music for shows too (8 out of 10 cats etc. ) which Richard is often involved with in some capacity too.
Billybob Dylan says
This week I discovered that Walter Tevis, the bloke what wrote the book ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ also wrote ‘The Man Who Fell To Earth,’ originally published in 1963.
He also wrote ‘The Hustler’ and ‘The Color of Money.’ He only had six novels published in his lifetime, and three of ’em were made into films and one into a miniseries. That’s quite a batting average!
deramdaze says
This week I discovered, confirmed really, that the word “Soccer” isn’t American slang for Association Football, but rather the go-to word in every single British newspaper (local or national) to differentiate it from the Rugby code, all through the 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, and right up to the season I’m currently on, 1962-63.
Moose the Mooche says
Hull friend of mine habitually refers to football as soccer. He’s a League fan.
Watch the RL film This Sporting Life – it’s referred to as football throughout.
Watch it anyway, it’s a bloody good film, notwithstanding Richard Harris’s rather odd accent.
retropath2 says
This week I discovered a wonderful sounding Scottish festival called Knockengorroch which I now want to go to.
https://www.knockengorroch.org.uk/
fentonsteve says
I discovered about the Sunflower symbol.
https://hiddendisabilitiesstore.com/about-hidden-disabilities-sunflower
I can put my “GO ON, I DARE YOU – ASK ME ABOUT MY BOWELS” t-shirt back in the wardrobe.
Kaisfatdad says
That is so inspired. And can do so much good @fentonsteve.
Our daughter is Down Syndrome; a very visible disability.. People can see at once that she is different and change their beghavious accordigly.
But some of her schoolmates, who also have disabilities, look “normal” It must be so much more difficult for the families of those kids when their children don’t conform in some way to what is expected of them.
What a very good idea the Sunflower Symbol is.
fentonsteve says
It popped up in the Reading University LinkedIn feed. As soon as I saw it, I thought “that’s brilliant, why has nobody done it before?” and discovered it started in 2016. My Crohn’s had already been diagnosed for a few years by then, but I hope newly-diagnosed patients are made aware of it now.
I carry a “Can’t wait” card in my wallet, provided by Crohn’s & Colitis UK, and I’ve only needed to use it once – fairly recently, at one of my lad’s football matches. The changing rooms were locked for Covid safety, so I went to the next-door gym. As soon as I mentioned my Can’t Wait card, the door was opened, I didn’t even need to take the card out of my pocket.
I’ve bought myself a t-shirt, badge and wristband. Green’s not really my colour but it will be handy for festivals and whatnot.
retropath2 says
“Greens not my colour”: glad the dietary restrictions are keeping you, um, formed, @fentonsteve.
Unfamiliar with the Can’t Wait movement (sorry), what are the details, as it would be a useful signpost for many of the patients I see, similarly caught between two stools.
fentonsteve says
Free from https://hiddendisabilitiesstore.com/shop.html?product_list_order=price
but currently out of stock.
I get mine in a rather fetching purple from Crohn’s & Colitis UK – they send you one with the first quarterly magazine. Membership is £15 per year. You can also get a free RADAR key to unlock disabled loos.
https://crohnsandcolitis.org.uk/get-involved/become-a-member
The website and magazine are full of useful info, but the interviews can be a bit hard-going; always the tale of someone who prolapsed, had a life-or-death ambulance ride, traumatic surgery, but is now recovered. I always think to myself “I’m not doing so bad…”
{edith: paging @retropath2 }
davebigpicture says
Tesco will give you a free sunflower lanyard, no proof needed.
https://www.tesco.com/help/invisibledisability/
fentonsteve says
Yeah, the site I posted above is for companies to buy things to give away, as well as for the public to buy, so that’s where Tesco must get theirs.
There’s a big “you must not re-sell these” banner. My t-shirt purchase will fund several free lanyards.
Black Celebration says
One thing I wish I knew but I don’t – is the purpose of the metal tray bit at the end of an ironing board. You can’t successfully rest the iron on it in any reliable way yet it seems to be designed for that purpose.
Sewer Robot says
It’s a conspiracy between the board people and the manufacturers of irons. Everyone tries every conceivable way to balance the iron there, all over the world irons crash to the floor, replacement irons need to be bought – Ker Ching!
Black Celebration says
I knew it. Bastards!
MC Escher says
…several interesting facts from Twitter (that I can’t remember now).
A bit more Spanish for my lockdown project: learn Spanish.
bobness says
That the word enormity is not necessarily related to the word enormous.
Black Celebration says
In other words size doesn’t matter?
Freddy Steady says
Oh I hope so.
mikethep says
Niche publishing factoid: the original Pan Books logo was drawn by Mervyn Peake.
SteveT says
@Chrisf that is beautiful music and right up my street.
This week I discovered Odins Raven Music featuring Sigur Ros with Steindor Anderson and others. It is a recording of a live performance from the Barbican in 2002. Only just released it is music of most startling beauty.
Mike_H says
Before Len Deighton wrote his many novels he was a photographer for the RAF police’s criminal investigation branch, then an art student at Goldsmiths and a professional illustrator, designing over 200 book covers including the first UK edition of Jack Kerouac’s “On The Road”.
He was also a cookery writer for The Observer for 4 years. His recipes were in the form of illustrated Cookstrips, an idea he had while still at art school and assisting the chefs while working part time in the restaurant of the Royal Festival Hall. The cookstrips were later collated into books. Some of the cookstrips can be seen pinned to the wall in Harry Palmer’s kitchen, in the Ipcress File movie.
Rigid Digit says
And it was Len Deighton’s hands cracking eggs in the Ipcress File. Michael Caine’s acting prowess fell just short of whipping up an omelette
Moose the Mooche says
Somebody has quoted me on two Wiki pages from a fanzine I wrote when I was 18. I’m totally freaked.