Things are going on all the time!, This category is about things I’ve been to or sometimes would have liked to have been to. Also, it’s about events I’m a part of or have had some hand in running.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this gig, but in the end it was good. I thought they’d only play newer stuff, but we got version of ‘Being Boiled’, and ‘Empire State Human’ too which was great. Nothing from Travelogue though which was a shame.
They played all the tracks you’d expect them too and a few that I didn’t expect like ‘The Lebanon’ and ‘Seconds’ which was great to hear live. It was quite a short gig though at only an hour a quarter.
I’m glad that I went to see them, it was a good show and I thought that they played well.
4 weeks to Christmas. That’s all, and after that, new year and then 2011. Where has this year gone?
People start asking you ‘Are you ready for Christmas?’ around now (and before), like it is some kind of thing you have to brace yourself against. Some kind of attack that’s on the way.
In some ways I can understand that kind of thinking. I already feel under pressure from constant Christmas advertising. I wish there was a little more joy in Christmas. A little more peace on earth and good will to all men.
The next 4 weeks will be busy no doubt, but I’m hoping to keep the ‘peace on earth, goodwill to all men’ in mind as far as I can.
If my Grandfather were alive today he would be 100 years old today. I miss him. He was an amazing man. A tinkerer and maker. A wizard with electronics and always creating amazing little gadgets.
When I was little he made me a toy police car made out of old tin cans and bits of tape machines. It was amazing and I played with it for years.
So today I remember my wonderful Grandpa and think of all the good time we had together. Oh, and you might wonder what the picture is? Well, it was his pencil tin, where he kept technical drawing pencils and a set of compasses and the like. It reminds me of him.
Today was the London to Brighton Vintage Car Rally. I love watching these ancient vehicles on their way to Brighton. Every year I decide to make a real effort to watch as much of the rally as I can and every year something gets in the way. Usually staying in bed longer.
Today I managed to see more of it than I have for the last 3 years which was great, but even so I didn’t see as much as I’d like to. Maybe next year.
My last post was about going to WOMAD, and since then I’ve been thinking about why I like festivals so much, especially ones like WOMAD, in fact, especially WOMAD.
A lot of UK festivals are just too big for me. I like smaller festivals like WOMAD where I can wander around easily and go from one stage to another quite quickly. That’s one of the things I love about festivals I can check out lots of different acts during the course of a day and stay for 5 minutes or watch the whole show.
It is like a kind of musical buffet where I sample some things and don’t get on with them, and others I have to eat the lot. If you know what I mean.
In some ways this goes against what I’d said before about listening and consuming music. I guess that this buffet approach to must is further along the consumer path then the dedicated listen. However, in many ways it is different from that argument.
I always enjoy coming away from WOMAD with a few new things to listen to, and this year they were.
The first time I saw The Portico Quartet was at WOMAD a few years ago. They were amazing and made a really big impression. Of course, now they’re no longer the Portico Quartet, and they’re just Portico, which is fine. Their music is quite different now, but I still like it. However, for me I…
Another great memory from WOMAD days was of Nouvelle Vague. I went to see them in the Big Red Tent and thought they were amazingly good fun. I subsequently bought quite a lot of their tracks. I say their tracks, of course for the most part they are covers, but what excellent covers they are.…
As I was thinking about WOMAD I started remembering some of the high points over the years and I thought I’d share them. One such high point was when WOMAD was back in Reading, before it moved to Charlton Park in Wiltshire. I remember seeing Mitsoura for the very first time there. They were amazing.…
I wasn’t able to spend the whole weekend at WOMAD this year, I was only able to go for the day this year. Which was ok. The weather was pretty awful on the Friday, so the Saturday was a good option in the end. So as always here’s the obligatory photo of the flags. I…
I think I’ve been going for about 10 years now, so in some ways it would be a shame not to go, but the line up isn’t inspiring me this year, which is a shame. I’m thinking about it, but not convinced as yet. I may just go for the day. I’ve done that a…
They only released two albums and the last was a long time ago. Dura Dura Dura (their last album) was excellent as was their first album but it’s been years since they did anything. It’s a shame. I wish they’d done more. I’ve checked their site occasionally and there’s never anything new. I suppose it’s…
I was really pleased to get to see the Radiophonic Workshop at WOMAD this year. They did a talk and also a performance as well. Both were really enjoyable.
This was a great talk from Mr Ware from Heaven 17. I really enjoyed it, he had some great insights into the development of synths since the 1970s. Of course it wasn’t for everyone, but I thought it was awesome, especially as synth 20 was an OP-1!
I felt compelled to get this nice little box set at WOMAD this year. I’ve got quite a lot of the tracks already, but it’s really well put together and it came with a load of bits and pieces like postcards and stuff, most of which have actually survived the weekend and trip home. I…
I am Ashley Elsdon 