| things to do when you have a lot of time on your hands |
[14 Jun 2009|03:18pm] |
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mood |
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not too bad |
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music |
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New Order - "Brotherhood" |
] |
My first proper week as an unemployed was ok, although I did go into my old Runcorn work twice to get things finished off which I didn't manage when I was disabled. (I'm not fully better yet, knee still feels uncomfortable). I didn't get a call back from the job centre about getting free money but I did find a great job to apply for at Edinburgh University, working for a guy I sort of knew in my PhD days and starting in September.
So with lots of free time I've been doing plenty of music, although not really music but noise. When Grimbergen got dropped from Steinklang (and I still don't have a new label) I got so pissed off I decided it was time to do a noise project. Something to get my anger out, which wouldn't require as much time and effort and where there are more opportunities for gigs (even if it is in front of twenty people in a private cellar party). The project is called Now Wash Your Hands and I have been making some good progress.
I am so pleased that I now show you my MySpazz page and demand you add me (if you like noise that is) and wait patiently and eagerly for me to upload some tracks. Should be within a month I reckon.
In other news, I'm going to this later this afternoon and this next week. The week after that I have to get out my flat and go and live with my parents, which isn't going to be great. Also, I'm doing a month without alcohol, because May was way too heavy and did involve personal injury. It's going ok.
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| WGT photos |
[08 Jun 2009|10:51pm] |
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mood |
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starting to decline |
] |
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music |
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Morrissey - "Southpaw Grammar" |
] |
In case you're not on Facesmash and want to see my amusing and well chosen photos from the Wave Gotik Treffen festival last week.
Nice to have a free day today but this unemployment lark will get tiresome pretty soon.
Last few days in Prague were good and journey home on Friday fine, but after all of May's madness I have decided to stop drinking for a whole month as I was starting to feel like an old alky.
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| this should be Saturday onwards at WGT |
[04 Jun 2009|06:55am] |
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mood |
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should go outside soon |
] |
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music |
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New Order - "Movement" |
] |
( Saturday, Sunday and Monday fast times )
Tuesday morning up and away all fine, although feeling completely knackered and thinking about quitting alcohol for a month. Got back to Prague with an hour's wait for Myc (my current host) to get home from work and was very lucky to bump into fellow Zizkov residents Sarka and Kayla, who chatted with me in a cafe for the required time. I then managed 12 hours' sleep Tuesday into yesterday and had a really lazy day. Party times tonight and then back home to Manchester tomorrow. Well done if you read all of this.
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| getting less crippled each day |
[19 May 2009|01:53pm] |
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mood |
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a bit grumpy |
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music |
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doom metal in my head |
] |
So my twisted knee improved slightly during last week. But then on Thursday I became more crippled with a minor operation to remove two lipomas (fat lumps) from my left forearm. This was a freakish procedure to watch and the wounds made it hard to operate my crutches. Was very traumatic Saturday peeling the dressings off and finding they were stuck to the scars with old blood. Got to get the stitches out on Thursday, not looking forward to that.
( fast cripple times at the weekend )
Sunday we had lunch at Kim By The Sea with Chris, Nicki and Yak (sic?), the first and last of which had done the big 10km race in Manchester that morning, so they were quite pleased with themselves. Then we watched some coverage of it at Chris's flat before Ville and Nicki headed off for an early evening train back to Leeds and York.
This is my last week of my job and somehow I'm not working so hard right now! Too many distractions. On Friday I'm going to see Morrissey, which I'm finally starting to get excited about (again). Then next Monday Prague and the following Thursday Leipzig, and I might even be without crutches by then, although they could be handy for getting me seats on trams and that.
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| short post on the weekend |
[28 Apr 2009|01:37pm] |
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mood |
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stress week not so stressy |
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music |
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doom metal in my head |
] |
The main thing I did at the weekend was on Friday night when I met my old friend Lloyd and took him to the restaurant where my dad is now working since selling up the family shoe shop business last year.
Bem Brasil, just off Deansgate, opened last week and is a rather large Brasilian meat feast eatathon. As a veg I had plenty of beans and taters and salads, but I was hoping the food would be a bit more exotic. Waiters came round with big pieces of meat on massive swords and carved pieces off, so after a while I found this a bit unpleasant, especially the red beef with blood coming out. Lloyd enjoyed it though. It was quite strange seeing my dad working as operations manager or whatever it is he does, wandering about talking to people and directing some of the waiters and that. He isn't supposed to be working the evenings but he seems to be enjoying it too much to go home on time. The place was very busy and all the punters seemed to be having a lovely time, so looks like it could be a rare success in these difficult times. So if you like loads of meat and want to enjoy Brasilian scran then get down to Bem Brasil on the double (there, advertising done)!
After Lloyd and I had a slightly unsuccessful run on beers that didn't taste very nice. Forcing down a Bailey's tasting vanilla porter in Font and feeling out of place and the oldest people there wasn't so much fun. We got a nice outdoor table at Sand Bar, which was good until it got too cold, and an alcoholic on crutches doing silly rap stuff came along, but when I gave him a quid for some booze his song about me and Lloyd was rubbish! That's about it.
I finally just heard from Max from Steinklang about the second Grimbergen album and he says he really likes it but won't release it as nobody's buying dark ambient and industrial anymore and all he can sell is neo-folk and martial stuff! Damnit!
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| Technical question |
[17 Mar 2009|06:09pm] |
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mood |
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confused, worried |
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music |
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nothing |
] |
I finally moved into the modern world and bought myself an iPod, the reason for this being that I won't be able to take much stuff with me to New Zealand in June.
But I'm loading CD's onto my work laptop, as I never made my home computer work with the wireless network I tried to make in my flat. I'm going to buy a new laptop next month, but I want to use the time now to get CD's in, as I have many. A guy at work said you can't transfer your iTunes library from one computer to another and I might have to put the CD's in fresh (luckily I've only done 30 albums so far, in two nights' work).
So do I wait until I get the new laptop to carry on ripping my CD's or is there a way to transfer your library? People get new computers all the time so they must have to do this.
Thank you.
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| Half arsed talk of 2008. |
[09 Jan 2009|01:34pm] |
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mood |
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messing around |
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music |
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Mogwai in my head |
] |
I should be working but first I wanted to put up my top ten albums of 2008. I probably only bought fifteen 2008 albums anyway, so it's not very comprehensive. I did buy plenty of albums from previous years, my favourites being Dragons "Here Are The Roses", iLiKETRAiNS "Elegies To Lessons Learnt", And One "Bodypop" and Mogwai "Mr Beast". Here are the 2008 albums though:
TOP TEN ALBUMS 2008 1. Mogwai – “The Hawk Is Howling”
2. Rome – “Masse Mensch Material”
3. Klangstabil – “Math And Emotion”
4. Lustmord – “[Other]”
5. Foals – “Antidotes”
6. Death In June – “The Rule Of Thirds”
7. Empusae – “The Hatred Of Trees”
8. The [Law-Rah] Collective – “Inspiration”
9. Autoclav1.1 – “Love No Longer Lives Here”
10. Nordvargr – “Pyrrhula”
Also must mention Front 242 "Moments" and Absolute Body Control "Wind[Re]Wind" because live albums and collections of old stuff don't count.
( Other 2008 things... )Overall: 2008 was quite busy and intense, mostly up, not so much downs as just a bit of stress. 2009 holds great unknowns!
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| here is an update and here are some photos |
[06 Jan 2009|01:10pm] |
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mood |
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don't like work! |
] |
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music |
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random things in head |
] |
Happy New Year my Live Journal chums, not so happy 2009 for many I think?
So Christmas was quite lovely as usual but went by in a flash. I received a toy synthesiser, an atlas and a crate of ale, so I was happy. Emma and I spent the two days with my folks, and also my sister had her boyfriend to stay and he's nice. First vegetarian Christmas dinner for me; Emma and I got veg haggis, veg sausages and for some strange reason cheese stuffed jalapenos.
Sunday 28th we had a family pre-my birthday pub lunch, which was nice except for most of the group getting poor food. Then Monday Emma and I were up to Edinburgh for the festivities; the train was an hour late and Emma got carried away drinking a vile concoction of navy rum and cheap ginger ale. We stayed at Dan and Cat's house, and after delicious home made goulash we were off to the Canon's Gait to start the birthday holiday. We were joined by Chris and Nicky, who awarded me a box of spooky York ale in amazing disco wrapping paper, Neil, Oli and Adri and then, when Henrik, Vlad and Simona came we adjourned to the World's End and were met by Phil and Bengt and his girlfriend. I drank many fine pints of ale and felt great like a birthday boy should.
( here is a long story of my birthday trip to Edinburgh )
Here are the photos from Edinburgh.
At the weekend we were ill and Emma soon overtook me with a real grown-up flu. Glad I had already taken yesterday off work, today back is no fun. Happy 2009!
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| here is a link to five photos. |
[24 Dec 2008|03:05pm] |
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mood |
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quite excited |
] |
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music |
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Kraftwerk - "Tour De France Soundtracks" |
] |
On Saturday Emma and I visited some locations to do with Morrissey, thanks to help from this book:
Here are some nice photos for you to look at.
Christmas tomorrow, hope you all have a lovely time doing whatever things you like doing. Only 6 days to my birthday, huzzah!
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| One week to go! Don't forget! |
[23 Dec 2008|01:58pm] |
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mood |
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quite excited now |
] |
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music |
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Bloc Party - "Silent Alarm" |
] |
Not long to my 30th birthday party, just the pleasant business of Christmas standing in the way now!
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| weekend activities |
[15 Dec 2008|01:31pm] |
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mood |
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alright today |
] |
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music |
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iLiKETRAiNSiNMYHEAD |
] |
Friday night I had a much needed staying in evening while Emma went to her works Christmas do, which can't have been that great as she was home by midnight. Bed not long after but a terrifying loud wind outside kept me awake for some time.
( Saturday night was good fun )
Yesterday we went to my parents in the afternoon to help put the Christmas tree up but when we got there my sister was home for the weekend and had done it on Saturday. We had a good curry feast anyway. The end, except this was supposed to be my last week at work but then I worked out I'll have to work next Monday too for maximum results with minimum stress.
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| a quick trip to Wales |
[25 Nov 2008|01:32pm] |
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mood |
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ok |
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music |
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none |
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I only went to Wales once before as a small child, and for no particular reason never went back. Now I've been back in Manchester for a year it was high time to visit the nearby western lands. Castles would be the main focus of the trip.
We got up at a decent time on Saturday and were out before 11am, then drove to Conwy in an hour and a half and were greeted by an amazing castle by the sea. (I will rip photos off the internet for this article.)
This might have been the finest castle I have ever seen, if we count castles as the empty, semi-ruined Medieval type and not large houses on hills full of posh furniture and things from the Renaissance onwards, as you get in those like Edinburgh or Nottingham. The weather was pretty fine at this point and we enjoyed a good hour wandering about the castle, climbing its towers and admiring the view, but there wasn't time for going round the whole town walls.
( Here is the rest with more photos. )
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| here is the flyer |
[20 Nov 2008|11:32pm] |
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mood |
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nearly bedtime |
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music |
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traffic and the fridge noises |
] |
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| Nasty Noise Disco needs arts! |
[14 Nov 2008|01:54pm] |
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mood |
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desperate! |
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music |
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it's gone silent in my head again |
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So I've nearly sorted out the details for The Nasty Noise Disco, (just one difficult band not answering my e-mails but I know they're coming anyway!)
I've been trawling Google and Flickr for funny pictures for the flyers and it is a shocking struggle!
I'm initially looking for vintage, especially 1930's and 40's, photos of people, preferably soldiers, dancing or having some kind of party. It is amazing how hard this is to find.
Can you help?!
Failing that, other crazy pictures which might have the slightest thing to do with birthday parties, especially, for some reason, I'm in the mood for outsider art or art brut paintings and drawings. Or draw a picture of me in a cheesy Manga sci-fi style like all those stupid cyber clubs have on them (especially ones who claim to play noise)! (Try to guess how much noise you'll hear at the Nasty Noise Disco!).
Winner gets guestlisted and a free pint.
Love you long time!
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| weekend and things |
[11 Nov 2008|03:27pm] |
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mood |
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busy and stressy (quite) |
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music |
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crap pop in my head |
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I have nearly sorted the third band for my birthday party, The Nasty Noise Disco, and just confirmed a glamorous guest DJ, Cavey Nik from Dead and Buried in London. I will make him play post punk and minimal electro mainly, but maybe there could also be some death rock. Iain Sublevel3 will also be DJing (Fimbulvetr/Finsternis music before bands and late night classics and favourites near the end of the night) plus one more Edinburgh DJ to be confirmed, who will do old school EBM and rhythmic industrial after P.A.L.
So a weekend happened and it was pretty good fun. Friday Emma and I went to meet Rhys ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) screen_death for his 30th birthday party. A very quick drink in the Retro bar and then we went to nearby St Petersburg Russian restaurant, which was an interesting experience. The food was simple, tasty and overpriced, the vodka range was curious, and a lady sang Russian songs then English ones from behind the bar. After that a few of us collected Tony Autoclav and Jamie ESA off the train with another rushed pint in te Salisbury, then we reconvened with the rest of the party at a dodgy karaoke bar. I was quite in the mood to have a go but there was a long waiting list; also some quite unpleasant hassly people there. The mics seemed to be too quiet anyway. After Rhys made a death metal vocals go of "I Will Survive" (I did backings with too quiet proper singing) we went to Tink's house for some afterpartay, which was quite a lot of fun apart from the cartoon scally Manc idiot with the trousers falling down and the nice but irritating sideburns face boy who banged on at me about how he was Belfast's best bread wrapper boy (sorry to insult your friends Rhys!). Later I fell asleep and awoke surrounded by balloons with a shoe on my head. We left about 7am.
Saturday was saved by Chris Tofu dragging us out of bed at 3pm and taking us together with Nicky to Dunham Massey stately home, near Altrincham, for the last less than an hour of daylight. We wandered the wooded grounds amongst herds of deer (didn't find out what type but there seemed to be two), which was quite lovely. Then we parted for dinner while they cooked ready for Spanish Susana from Skinjob's bonfire party. There was no bonfire, but Chris did firebreathing and some other people span fiery things about. I had my debut go at firebreathing and didn't set fire to myself (or achieve much of a result!). It was quite exciting. There was also a funny bit showing jumpstyle videos to people and the food was good, but it was quite subdued and we left about 2.
Sunday we managed to get out and in the car for a quick Liverpool trip, arriving at 4pm after a traffic jam added maybe half an hour to our journey! Just went to Albert Docks and visited the Tate Gallery, which was a pretty good small version of the Tate Modern in London, with plenty of good examples of minimalism, abstract expressionism and surrealism amongst other things. We didn't have time for the temporary exhibitions though. The weather was horrible too, very cold, windy and rainy. We then had veggie burgers in one of those American diner style places that kids like so much and then drove home in time for Stephen Fry Races Around All American States At A Rate Of 5 to 10 Minutes Per State.
Anybody for anything for my birthday guests to do in Edinburgh on New Year's Eve?
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