Treblekicker |
Friday
The search for an alternative to Audiogalaxy is over. Well almost. Soulseek is one I've been aware of for a while but was a little sparse. It's the first community to be placed around a genre (electronic music), and now boosted by all the Audiogalaxy refugees seems pretty good. I'm currently downloading Primal Scream, Audio Bullys and Nobukazu Takemura - it's good for obscure music, albeit only electronic stuff. I suppose Kazaa Lite (when it doesn't crash) is OK as a back up. Thursday
Well, I'm sat here in the Easy Everything cyber cafe on Tottenham Court Road, filling in time before a job interview. If all goes well I'm not going to be out of work for too long. Fingers crossed!
This is only the second time ever I've been in a cyber cafe and I'm quite impressed. For one pound I get 73 minutes of internet time and it's high speed too. Not so impressed with that aspect yet. Perhaps I should try some streaming sites for size. Still haven't booked a hotel in Amsterdam or a holiday in Portugal. Hopefully should have some time later. Had one of the new Big Breakfast buns at McDonalds for breakfast. Normally their breakfasts are cool but this - scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, cheese and BBQ sauce in a white bun was a little disappointing. Remember when Anna used to stay over in Leytonstone getting up early to go in with her and going to Chancery Lane McDonalds to have Pancakes and Sausage. 
Now that was a breakfast Wednesday
Well, blimey. Soon as I decide to start my blog, my computer throws a major wobbler. Details too boring but basically I wasn't online until about 4'o'clock today. Then had to pop out to hire a suit for Saturday (Jo and Paul's ball and chain bash as my friend Stu memorably put it), come back, decorate and then put the cassoulet on. I'm not having this turning into a food blog, so you'll have to wait another time for my recipe. In the mean time here's a version fairly close to mine. There's no definite method anyway. You'll need lots of time but if you feel in the mood click here.
What I wanted to talk about was the Mercury Music Prize. I love this award. I think it's great that there's something like this, and I've never found particular fault with the judges decisions, even when I didn't agree with them - I didn't even mind M-People winning. In a time of cultural relativism, good vocal house, which may not be my cup of tea has as much right to win as anything else. This years choices are pretty good... 
ROOTS MANUVA Run Come Save Me DOVES The Last Broadcast BEVERLEY KNIGHT Who I Am GEMMA HAYES Night On My Side THE STREETS Original Pirate Material THE CORAL The Coral JOANNA MACGREGOR Play ELECTRIC SOFT PARADE Holes In The Wall THE BEES Sunshine Hit Me GUY BARKER Soundtrack DAVID BOWIE Heathen MS. DYNAMITE A Little Deeper Gemma Hayes I find a little underwhelming and as usual I've never heard of the jazz or classical entries. But I love The Streets and Roots Manuva who are really quite similar. Run Come Save Me has the slight edge to me although I wish he wouldn't sometimes go on about smoking weed. Part of sound system culture that the album is very swamped in I guess. Apparently he just sits at home in his bedroom with his G4 making his rhymes and tunes having a smoke. Sounds a bit like my modus operandi for music making :) The Doves I think I should like more - they have occasional brilliant moments but what do have is some very cool videos. Don't know who does them but whoever it is should be congratulated, for the retro-psychedelic way they've treated the film. As for The Coral, my brain hurts trying to work out what I think of them. Shouldn't they be nicking cars and listening to garage at their age though instead of listening to Zappa and making homages to the Wicker Man? Here's a photo from the Wicker man, for no other reason that it's an excellent film. 
Christopher Lee in full effect Tuesday
Just had this really strange dream. I was in the Big Brother house and I made it to the end. During the running of the show, I kept making big pots of my tomato sauce for everyone, even as it was ending. For some reason BB was set in my Gran's house and the four of us that had made it to the end all left together and my sister was there. No one seemed to get any money either. As we were leaving, Davina was there sitting on my Gran's sofa, so I thought she might be able to pull some strings and get me a job, so I said, "Would it be possible for you to do something for me when I leave the house." She gave me a really strange look so I said, "You think I'm going to ask for something really twisted but it's not, honestly." She seemed OK with that. When we did leave lots of people seemed to be around handing out what was either bottles of whiskey or mineral water, I'm not sure. Then I woke up.
Monday
Beer blog (one in a occaisional series)
Mac Mart, local pikey shop has been selling an interesting variant on Spanish Beer, San Miguel. It's brewed under license in Hong Kong - god knows why they're selling it here cheap, surely economics doesn't make sense, but unlike a lot of beers brewed under license it's really nice, better than the Spanish original which was good but gassy. This is smoother and very well suited to the very hot weather we've been having. This picture isn't exactly what the label's like but it's got the different bottle shape. 
Not listed here, which is odd as the Oxford Bottled Beer Database is normally pretty extensive.  Radio 4 makes the afternoon a lot more bearable. So far I've heard a funny little play about a girl who lives an a B&B with her mum, a program on Split Capital Investments, which I still am none the wiser what they are (other than bad) and now there's a program on the 1909 book, Riddle of the Sands. I have flecks of blue paint in my finger nails.
This is my first ever post of course. Not sure this blog will be of interest to many people but it should keep me out of trouble and also give me a place from which to vent my spleen. Can you get done for being stoned on the web?
About me... Age: 27 Sex: Male Job: out of work (hopefully not for long, otherwise this is going to be a depressing blog!). Journalist by trade Live: Essex (hey! I didn't say I was proud of the fact!) Loves: Music, good food, drink, dope, Anna, cats, friends Hates: The Daily Mail, pedants, dumbing down, bigots and pork scratchings. I'm now going to get on with the decorating. |
