the-session-leopard-blog

Another two weeks in paradise

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 23:25:13 +0100

Another long pause between blogs. Is there a 'why the long pause' joke anywhere? Any animals with surprisingly long - as opposed to big - paws? I digress.

Easter approaches and there's been much DIY and painting in the Brighton home. Only if I super-imposed this cartoon onto a West Pier backdrop could this image surmise the current climate better. And maybe Garfield wouldn't look quite so happy. Note to self: must scour charity shops for Garfield and Peanuts comics for the bathroom.

There is light at the end of a pretty tedious tunnel in the blinding whiteness of our bedroom walls. With a little luck we may be constructing a bed tomorrow, which will be the first genuine bed I've slept on since the middle of January. It will also mean shifting a mound of 'stuff' which will mean I can then shift another mound of 'stuff' and have, what they call in the industry, a 'studio'. Lucky really, as I have been unable to resist purchasing a few extra items of music technology. Expect some glorious DJ mixes to be posted up here in the future, with a little thanks to these items.

Talking of DJing, something strange has happened: I've started buying music again. There was a time not too long in the past when me taking real interest in dance music would sound quite absurd. A number of events drew me to dance music, but it was a mix from an acquaintance and genius DJ Tubbs (who runs Untracked Records and a fantastic dance music blog: headsdown.org) that made me really appreciate disco grooves and the craft of structuring a DJ set. With a hint of inspiration that is often very difficult to keep hold of - I have regular arguments with Adorno in my head - I have been slowly stocking up on some brand spanking new underground disco. I'm the coolest consumer in my street.

Other news? There is plenty but I tire and must to bed before long. But I will leave you with this: If you wish to own a collaboration by me, there is one available now on iTunes, in the name of charity. A group of Oxfordshire-associated artists have covered the seminal Radiohead album The Bends and Richard Walters and myself (Oxfordshire born and bred) have donated a track to this project:

Go ***here*** to sample the album and maybe spend a few pennies. Most of the money goes to Children In Need.

Sleep now. If not sleep, hopefully rest.

Grow Old With Me (waiting for a blog post)

Sat, 27 Feb 2010 23:42:47 +0100

Damn. I broke the 'blog every two weeks' rule. Ug.

It's been a strange time. The olympics have been a good excuse to yet again become nocturnal, as has the rumblings of a new project. With no studio at my fingers tips, my old sooped-up iMac lies upon a chair; a mouse hovers on a small bedside table and there's a warm patch on the floor where I sit. Not ideal.
Happily, my delightful headphones keep me hi-fi through the long nights, and don't underestimate iMac speakers for their grot-box credentials.

Also a stop to the usually furious search for work means finally clearing the deck of some outstanding projects. I was lucky enough to be invited to a wedding in Stockholm last year and I took my delightful Harinezumi camera with me. Finally, I've cut the footage together as a little present to the bride and groom - and also to keep my wandering mind occupied. At the wedding, a friend sang Grow Old With Me by Lennon for the couple, so it made good sense to make it the soundtrack. It is a fine, unrepentantly loving song with a purity you don't hear too often in these calculated times.

Micro-blog stalemate & Big Country

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 01:28:22 +0100

Music remains on ice due to house issues. I don't 'think' about music a lot - it is an abstract concept when it isn't in motion - but I really miss having that world of creative abandon; a creche for the mind. It also means I'm not scouting for work which plays on my mind. Luckily I am currently secure, but contrary to popular belief, I don't like being lazy.

So what to do? The possibly-useful-almost-certainly-pointless Google Buzz offers yet another avenue to spout badly crafted sentences into the inter-abyss. Micro-blogging only really feels useful when it's 1, instantaneous and 2, received by someone. With too many options to sum up my mood I fear that 1, I will be caught by too many micro-blog feeds to update and 2, no one will read them anyway.

In between my busy social-network calendar, I've taken some time to refine a few poems and I should hopefully be applying to various publications/poetry quarterlies/rhyming & timing annuals soon. I expect nothing, which is refreshing.

And, I as I write this, I watch some vague music TV to see what the kids are corrupting themselves with. Gaga is getting the thumbs up it seems. No pun intended, or indeed maybe possible. The tame auto-tune-singing-hiphop-shit must be kept to a minimum unless it has an absolute genius melody. Chris Brown 'Kiss Kiss' yes, some guy called Iyaz... no, no and thrice no.

But now some real music. This has been killing me since christmas when my brother introduced me to it. And it's a frickin' B-side from 1985!

Gin and Juice and Trident 80b circuitry

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 15:24:25 +0100

Argh! A faulty doorbell meant I missed the delivery of my new mixing desk this morning. No matter - it will come tomorrow and I don't even have all the connections for it yet to start late-night analogue mixing. It's the most expensive thing I've ever bought. I guess I don't even reeeeally need it (google ITB vs OTB to find out why techy ppl).

If you are a painter, you can paint on anything with anything, but there must be something about treating yourself to the highest quality material - the best canvas, the finest ultramarine - that makes it a little more of an 'occasion'. The purchase is to make mixing more of an occasion, as well as the various assets this desk gives me.

Here it is - a Toft ATB 16:

I was a little dis-heartened this morning r.e the missed delivery BUT... I have the perfect solution for these situations. This, as a mood lifter, is perfect (warning, some hip-hop language present):

Chess, RnB, Forks, Groove

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 23:40:12 +0100

It's a little too busy for my liking at the moment. A good barometer for when the balance of my life starts to tip slightly is my chess play.

I'm not a crossword man as I don't read enough and words don't satisfy me quite like numbers do. Therefore, a crossword to me is not just unfulfilling; I'm also rubbish at them! Geometry, proportions, abstractions and the like are more my style. When I make music, I often think in terms of shapes and in the rare moments I write for myself, I am interested in simple words beautifully arranged. I doubt I'll ever be a novelist with that ethos!

So I am not partial to the Telegraph's cryptic crossword, but I do play chess daily. Probably around 20 moves a day on various games played at chess.com, depending on how distracted I am. Feel free to find me as "blackviking" on the website ("blackviking" was once a contender for my 'music' name). My Swiss-cheese mind has been making far too many blunders of late. When the current music projects have quietened down I prescribe myself a few days off for a mental fondue.

In the meantime, in between the business of busyness, I always find some calm in 90s RnB classics. It's so sickly sweet but occasionally delicious, like dessert wine. This über-hit by producer Donnell Jones has a supremely groovy underlying instrumental. Almost any vocal would sit happily on it. I guess he thought, "I may as well whisper something over this, it can't miss".

Truth Hits Everybody, Truth Hit Everyone (Wooa-oh)

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 01:57:18 +0100

Greetings from East Sussex. Home life is a mixture of joy and the niggling stresses of home alterations but it is mostly very joyful. Having a proper high-quality supermarket on my doorstep is strangely uplifting. We will eat well this year. Also, having the sea as the horizon lets you know daily where you stand, where you cannot go and where you belong. It is humbling.

I had a break from making music this weekend after a full-on week and another one to follow. This didn't stop me spending an hour on the beach with some music in, loosening my arm on a few stones. Usually when I do this, the magic of shuffle let's a track settle into my brain box, tickling it a little with inspiration. On the beach, the tunes looped over with satisfaction but nothing really 'stuck'. "I know these few hundred tracks far too well", I told myself.

Then - on the way home - The Police saved me. I'd never really stumbled over this track, but it has now been on repeat in my head these last two days. Strict, catchy guitars with a lyric that really cuts and awesome free-roaming drums; it is pure post-punk pop-perfection.

Hello from Brighton

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 00:21:21 +0100

My first Tuesday as a Brightonian, and all is well. I won't bore you with the story of the move, but I will bore you slightly less with a few pictures:

Packing The Swede away. Very important.

My new living room, full of boxes. Loads of the bastards.

The view 50 yards from my house (which is somewhere to the left of this). If it all goes wrong, I have the option to swim out into oblivion in the style of Reggie Perrin...

I must admit, I do love it here and having the sea as a horizon is wonderful. However there is no time to sit or saunter - the last few days have been devoted to semi-orchestral pieces for an animation series. More info on this soon!

I'm going to watch some tennis and talk rubbish online. Byes. x

Flashlight (into the past)

Sat, 09 Jan 2010 23:27:18 +0100

Apologies once again for the unexplained absence. I could easily blog daily with some knee-jerk reaction to 'this, that and the other', but I find myself content to be choosy with what I share. I'd rather wait until something comes along that doesn't feel forced or overarching - the same method I employ with writing poetry. Fortunately for you all, their is no poetry in me at the moment.

What their is, is the meat of a real-life event. I am writing this in a room half-dispersed into cardboard boxes, the other half of its contents floundering in piles. A week from now I should be in a new house - not a shared house, or flat, or commune but a real, purchased house - in Brighton, a short walk from the sea and a day or twos canoeing from France.

I am amazed at how many boxes of 'things' me and my partner have. It is tiring to process everything and pack it away knowing the reverse will be happening in a matter of days. Its merits lie in the brief time you have with a few items you cherish, or items you thought you'd lost. You remember why you have them, what they were meant to mean and what they mean now and each one is like a little play, each curtained off as you place them into cardboard boxes.

A tape emerged from a small collection of tapes I'd kept for years, despite not having a tape deck anymore to play them. It was from the early nineties and one of the first waves of 'freebies' that you get on the front of music magazines to tempt your pennies. On it was a selection of about 6 or 7 indie also-rans from the era of scuzzy guitar-pop and one of those, for some reason of tune or hook, I became fond of. I kept the tape for so long because this band never really made it in the UK, I couldn't find the record anywhere and thought to myself that I'd one day have to digitise the tape, just to save that song.

I don't understand why I hadn't done this before, but on finding the tape I decided to have a little look on youtube... naturally it was there in all its glory, with a video I'd never seen; full of people I'd never seen; playing a song I'd heard hundreds of times.

As someone comments on the video, it's like a great lost REM song.

2009 Meme/List/Question thingy

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:36:19 +0100

Any are welcome to complete the questions themselves. I would be happy to read yours as I clean up the unused christmas alcohol, but I will not tag anyone - no-one needs to be forced into this kind of heavy interrogation.

1. What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?
Lots now I think about it. I'll stick on playing a gig at a porn party in Paris.
2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I had no NY resolutions, but I did make one mid-year to call my mother every day in the week. I've kept this easily. It turns out 10 minutes is easy to give. This year I will write more.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
No
4. Did anyone close to you die?
Yes
5. What countries did you visit?
Lebanon, Sweden, France and Witney
6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
A record deal.
7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
I don't do dates, just events. My Grandma's funeral day is particularly vivid, but so are many more.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Somehow managing to stay afloat and live off music related work.
9. What was your biggest failure?
Not hitting any big adverts despite getting very close many times. It's a pain I can easily bear but my bank account would've been pleased.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Work boredom while still teaching. Odd colds and man-aches. Mostly clean as a whistle. Museli and bananas keep me alive.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
My phone does me nicely. I'm buying more interesting things next year.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Alex Martin's sterling rise to coupledom.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
There are some real strange fruits in this world. I've no need to mention them.
14. Where did most of your money go?
Somerfield, M&S (when Somerfield becomes unbearable), an invisible landlord.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Music, in tiny transient flashes, but enough to make me hungry to make it.
16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
A few by Above & Beyond. Probably 'Buzz'.
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? Still very happy but a little more secure and settled.
b) thinner or fatter? Fatter. Oh dear.
c) richer or poorer? Same. Floating.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Writing.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Worrying about maybe being rubbish.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
With family, doing my best to make things cheerful and good.
21. Did you fall in love in 2009?
Nope. That is done and I am no longer falling.
22. How many one-night stands?
None. That's OK right?
23. What was your favorite TV program?
Thanks to iPlayer, loads. I really enjoyed The Tudors, despite it being no substitute for a History GCSE.
24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
I don't do hate. People I start to hate become forgotten.
25. What was the best book you read?
Did I read a book? Yes. The Book Thief, and it was very worthy of my usually digital time.
26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Emalkay 'When I Look At You' - played in a big club. I could kill to that sub.
27. What did you want and get?
A remix released both digitally and physically for cash.
28. What did you want and not get?
To hit an advert pitch for 10's of K's. You have no idea how close I got.
29. What was your favorite film(s) of this year?
Did I see any? Can't remember. I only watch Coming to America on loop.
30. What did you do on your birthday?
I spent time with my glorious partner.
31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Being asked to join Interpol.
32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
A frenchman whose had his moped and baguette stolen, and he's gonna find them.
33. What kept you sane?
Trying not to be selfish with emotions.
34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
The blonde one off Countdown
35. What political issue stirred you the most?
I was taken by the BNP debates. Good to feel politically motivated on occasion.
36. Who did you miss?
My grandma of course, but I can recollect her in a moment and I'm glad she was not made to suffer any more of life's humiliations.
37. Who was the best new person you met?
I have a few to choose from. LJH gets a very honorable mention, but I am fond of that little Brummie drummer Bid I met while working with A&B. Lovely guy, awesome drummer.
38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009:
Calmness.
39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year: "Don't Stop Me Now"

Christmas is conquered.

Sat, 26 Dec 2009 17:55:53 +0100

I hope everyone had a good day. A bit late now, but the link for the xmas song in my previous post was a bit faulty... here's a fresh one: H E R E