Yeah yeah, I'm lazy and I don't drop by here anymore, but I got jetlag and I'm in Edinburgh and it's 5:30am here's my crappy snippets of life on the road with the wolfies courtesy of my myspace page;
February 01, 2007
lame? yes ?Current mood: sleepy
by now people who drop by here would start to realise i'm crap at this. so, i finished that last tour of germany france uk and usa. been out on the big day out. sat home for near a month and i'm back at singapore airport. things have changed alot. i have a house. a 2nd child (both of the canine variety) a few more records and a program tha ti can put them on my ipod. cara (my partner) has joined these technological ranks too, so cyber world look out.?i can't really remember before where i was and can't be arsed backtracking. but the big day out. this year i only did the east coast, but let's see... they would have been my 43, 44 and 45th big day outs that i've worked at over the last eleven years.... hmmm, no wonder i still haven't recovered from the strenuous work and 21 hour days.... this vessel i drive be getting old. gold coast is always good to re-acquaint with folks on the circus. managed to get to the after show, even though i got in at 430am after work... caught up with an ol' matey tristan who was on holidays in oz there. and the sugar town girl from here, beck. not to mention a bunch of familiar faces.?sydney. and atlast i'm not staying out at the shithole near the site with 2000 kids and grumpy security.nothing really to report here. same old same old. however i did work at the lily allen side show and didn't half mind it. not sure if it's a bad thing. it's the first time i've heard her music and it's not what i was expecting. also the fact that i could get a bloody mary in a glass at the airport and take it on the plane was a plus.?melbourne is always great, and more so when yer in a hotel room the size of your house and it's all to yourself. the inaugural love police dinner was moved from adelaide and the gold coast to melbourne to cookie, which i begrudgingly thought would be a loud bar with ordinary food, but was i wrong. it was quiet......not (just saw borat on the plane, had to drop it.) the booze was flowing, the schmooze was showing, and the food was um.... divine. thankfully had a mild evening compared with old matey jimmy-pop. caught up with a few mateys at the gig in the vip action (dunno how they got in there) and trudged back home a shattered bruised shadow. so now i'm here with another bloody bloody mary, hoping it'll make me hit the hay on the flight typing some crap that will suffice a few months.... i hope this finds you all well.?ta ta.????
oh yeah! adding to the last one;?saw james brown. ?jimmy page thanked me.?broke into the delorian from back to the future.?went to the fillmore.?went to the golden gate bridge.?enjoyed portland and oregan's tax free-edness.?ate a bit of an olive willingly.?puffed a cigarette willingly.?might have eaten meat unwillingly (hidden in food)....?i'm sure there's more, but hey.
November 04, 2006
singapore song? ?Current mood: delirious?
well. what may appear to me to be promising initial entries, but according to you; half arsed lame ramblings have begun again, but the powers that be are trying to thwart the notion of it even beginning.
my old faithful hand-me-down iBook has done a big turd on its face, so here i am in layover in singapore using the qantas club slow as shite PC's (working, albeit) to pass the countless hours. soon i shall be over in the UK not catching up with any friends, but more along my blogging styles, a kind of half arsed one way conversation and rambling. not really making any sense but that of accomplishment, so i acn say oh, i saw so-and-so. saw being the operative word.
shits gone on again since we last spoke;
where was that.
might have gone though virginia, caught up with a mate in nth carolina, went to florida, both orlando (cairns) and st petersberg (russia?) a funny thing happened there. it was so stinking hot that andrew and i thought it be a good idea to go to the beach for a swim of sorts. wait! there's a boat hire joint! let's do that!!! and let's stop in the middle of the bay and have a quick swim. and let's then run the motor but not switch it to neutral. and get stranded with neither of us having taking a phone and shit. luckily old matey at the marina lent us his phone so we knew what time we should be back and he pottered out and towed us back to shore and probably lost his license as the cops were questioning him en route about a motorised boat.... hmmmm.... anyway i'm here and we're here and some tall stories were spoken into the microphone that evening. after florida off to hotlanta, where i caught up with old matey kim from criminal and talked my way into free tix to the band of horses gig only not to go but had a top night with the entire crew (less JBR and bailey) and band and the cec hall too. damn those bunch of arses for keeping me from the gig!!!! i think after that we musta headed for memphis on the mississippi river went out and had a sticky at stax museum of soul and a gawk and the mississippi. my god! and then down to nashville where plenty of fun was had. andrew myself and the mess hall went out during the day with jody white, son of tony joe white, and enjoyed the surrounds, but not nearly as much as the frivolities that we all had later at the bar across the road and wherever else.
the next day may have been in pittsburg, but i have no idea now. it was a bit of a dive of an area, but a great rekkid store just down the street with 3 million records! and a killer house of a band room. then the virgin festival in some place... baltimore? saw rjd2, some roller girl derby action, the who and chili peppers. the next morning in cleveland, chris found out that lisa was going into labor so without further avail he flew home. and we found out we were too.went to chicago to catch a flight and i got home to some domesticated bliss in the form of home ownership. and i'm loving it, but i now need these memoirs more than ever to pay for the pad... well, the memes come from touring, huh? so here i am in singapore thinking what interior decorating mag or DIY book or furniture piece i'll purchase next.... hmmmm. in the words of lou and andy; "i want that one"
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September 15, 2006
new york, you dork ?Current mood: accomplished
okay, well alot's happened since last time i visited these fair shores, so i'm gonna cut my losses of another month with wolfmother meandering our way across america, and australia ande the arctic monkeys through new zealand and oz and get back to the here and now.?it was great to be back home for a chunk of time hanging with friends and loves and having some stability but my country neede me for yet another tour of duty.?i boarded the qantas day time flight (which to me means no sleep=jetlag) and proceeded to watch 5 films en route to LA. usual bullshit at the airport, but got through it all to my jfk flight, which i managed some shut-eye. finally got to the desired destination (who weren't expecting me) but alas had a spare bed in my own room at the LPNYCHQ (lp, for those who don;t know is love police, is the company i work for. nyc, for those who don't know is new york city. hq, for those who don't know, you are dorks. go back to kinda) had the night off to gather myself (yeah, right) and basically stayed up talking to the guys (james and monica) about shite and drinking the ole faves, sierra nevada. mmmmmm. got a real sleep in, which happens in the USA to me. nowhere else. 11am. had to get up and get it happening. we were supporting a band that i had heard of and not heard (like most peeps i ask), gov't mule. some 90's jam band with a guy who's played in the allman brothers band.?cool.?the gig is in a big ole derelict pool over in brooklyn, and i mean big. this pool is about 30M by 125M. kinda brings a whole new meaning to the term crowd surfing. WM go on and tear through a blazing set complete with andrew taking a fall in the 2nd song just to produce some horizontal feedback. merch is through the roof and i've already paid my due for being here. we've converted a bunch of 40-something hippy stoners to the word of the wolf. back in NYC and i'm up again till 4am. trying to locate the 30 shirts which end up being in the pocket of my bag (they must have shrunk and turned into cash somehow on the wrong turn at alberquerke (SIC)) another late one. this time midday and out and about up to st marks and cake shop records and coffee. then i do something i don't plan on doing too much of and coming across a market square with some schmicko vinyl. dagnabbit! so i score a good 12 rekkids and stroll back to the hq. what to do tonight. there's george clinton and the p-funk mob, john zorn, cat power, band of horses or dr octagon of whom i'd love to see all. arrrrggghhhhh! too much pressure in deciding. no pass. no personal space at the gig. no one to say, "fuck me! this shit's amazing. i wish so and so could be here to see this!" so i don what any music-lover would do and check out a new aussie bar that's opened in town. apparently the fish and chips are great. i have myself a few tamarama's (like a daiquari) pretty good. and they have lamingtons, for you aussies who miss yer goodies. anyway, it's called bondi road, and it's pretty cool. then back to the HQ with one of mon's mates who's a russian ex-pat and we talk more shit all night. shit. all night.?i thought it's be a lot more intense spending a day off on the 5th aniversary of 9/11, but there wasn't a great deal of in yer face shit happening. went to a top notch little organic cafe and bar called counter on 1st ave. no, maybe that was on sunday morning.... great brunch, all vego and organic. but still no good coffee, infact no espresso machine in this one. ARRRGGGHHHHH!!! well back to 9/11. had a bit of a hike up to times square for reasons i won't bore you with. i can see all the zzz's already from here. then back through the thrift store neck only to come up with nuthin but a russell crowe that in a day gone by was worth more than 2 dollars. dunno about that any more... argh. now i'm stuck with the wretched thing. back toward hq where i find teany (moby's cafe= vego) and order some baked beans on toast, which is damned good as it's highly unlikely to find it much more over in the USA. and out we go agian for another night on it. monica's band, "LONESOME BILLIES" are performing at a bar called the rodeo. i'm not sure what to expect, but hot damn. it's good. thinking i'll wind up having an early one, as i'm driving a car to boston tomorrow, that goes out the window soon enough as the vodkas start going down. hmmmm. it's a mission to drive up there with a throbbin' noggin, and no co-pilot and bugger-all directions and considering i make a wrong turn straight off the cuff and i have 3&1/2 hrs to get there... anyway, i get there 15 minutes late at an average speed of 68 mph in my pontiac. nice travelling and listening to the new radiodread disc all but three times. tonight we are joined by none other sydney's own, THE MESS HALL and an unknown band who are just to pmates with LP, the strokes. catch up with the WM lads and tales are told. they've had some good times in the last couple of months. maybe cos i wasn't around....? anyways, we learn that WM were the biggest sellers at the festival in canada over the likes of the strokes, raconteurs and massive attack to name a few. so there! tour's kickin' along nicely. wake up in norfolk at the gig already. 2pm. hmmm. out and about to get me some banking done. find a great cafe with the best coffee in the states so far for this trip. relative theory. good coffee. good peeps. good music. what more do you want? huh HUH? and then there's the venue. my god. i didn't get to enjoy it, but the band room had a 10person jacuzi (SIC), pool table, fuusball table (SIC), table tennis table, and much much much more. top notch venue. shame about the merch cut and them counting the swag, but hey! ya gotta pay for the band room somehow.... and that brings me to here. charlotte. a quaint city in north carolina, with a half decent cafe (therapy) which do some damn fine sangas. got good beers and make an ok coffee. off to tom's pub to meet some friends from the uk who happen to be over here (moved to be with a plus one) and have a few pints and games of pool tonight. what fun awaits! until next, stay classy, san diego.
May 21, 2006
you milwaukee the walk, but do you talk the talk? ?Current mood: amused
well,?milwaukee was an interesting place when the lights went out.?had a stroll around during the day but not too far from the venue and didn't see much at all.?but after going back to the hotel, al(fearless leader), myles(drums), jonboyrock(front of house) and myself(shark) were waiting out front for a taxi, and a car pulled up and rolled down the window. here's what ensued;?"have you got big cocks?" the shrill black voice came from the vehicle.?puzzled and caught off guard, the most any of us could return was "what?"?the same query was shot back. myles gathered that being a shark a dorsel fin might be on the large side and piped up, "mark does."?"oh" came a sort of query.?by now we had time to gather our wits, and being i had my knee high sock to protect me from the cold-ass temperature in fonz-town, and also with myles' direction and jbr's voice "yeah he's got big socks." and i started to disrobe, lifting my trouser leg to reveal my rather well endowed "leg warmer."?"oh," the same monosyllabic response. "no no no no no, we said BIG COCKS." they clearly didn't get the dry lame dad jokes, and the car disappeared into the cold dark.?we anticipated maybe to do a block and try again as we are from austria and have not much understanding of their language, but alas no.?laughs were had and times were shared.?and then there was the diner....?(this is what i recall but it's all about me, innit. for further reading check out jonboyrock and myles' pages for their point of view recollection of the aforementioned incident)
May 07, 2006
pinged across the pond
Date: 12-april?
Place: Baltimore?
Vibe: great area around the docks?
Score: a stack of original funk pressings?
Devoured: a great coffee from town
Action: well, (un)fortunately the band did make it, though missing soundcheck. Those die!die!die! guys must drive like old ladies. Im sure they all had a blast at the aftershow party. I got out and around the town and managed to score a bunch of original funk pressings on the cheap. Also got myself cut throated in a afro-barber shop. Tres-styles. The town seemed a bit run down, but by the docks was pretty snazzy. Had an amazing coffee, during the gig as I was on the knod. The first band, the dead set were ex-pats from Sydney and very punk in their approach, setting up their gear on the floor and mashing their rock with sampled sounds. ??
Date: 13-april?
Place: Charlotte?
Vibe: a great city in the Middle-East (thanks, Brick Tamland)?
Score: an interesting evening with Andrew?
Devoured: 2 pints of Samuel Adams organic Ale and a superb veg buritto at Thomas St. Tavern.?
Action: woke up, basically in the middle of nowhere (en-route to atlanta) but what a great city Charlotte turned out to be. I was fearing red necks and hicks, but it turned out to be a prosperous little town. Had a bit of a stroll around, in the most glorious of weather to discover a great caf with one of the best sandwiches Ive ever had. The girl informed me of a great art gallery which was housed in an old cathedral that had burnt down. I then found my way back downtown to the library (as you gathered I am a bit outrageous!) to post these here tales. I then met up with Andrew and we strolled around the downtown looking for a bite, but nothing showed up. I recalled hearing about an area called central (which was far from it) and we cabbed it in that direction. Our first port of call was the pub, though Andrew is off the booze at the moment and their menu seemed fitting aswell. The grub was awesome, the samadams organic ales were superb, we chin-wagged about all sorts, and decided to top it off with some pool. We then headed to one of the oddest places Ive been thus far; some local rock-star had put on an evening. We walked into the room and were in an empty room, apart from the star, his 2 go-go dancers and the bar staff. It was lame. We headed upstairs to a room, where the locals were until they climbed out the window and up the roof. Yes, charlotte was interesting.??
Date: 14-april?
Place: Atlanta?
Vibe: still in the Olympic hey-day?
Score: some great wax.?
Devoured: sierra nevada ?
Action: had a bit of a stroll around this place, and its so freakin massive. Took me all day to get from one side of the city centre to the gig, but being those sierra nevadas IPA that Ive become fond of its a good thing. The gigs at the aptly named DRUNKEN UNICORN and its a very cool gig graff everywhere and unicorns for days. I met a bunch of interesting folks here, who are now informing me of greener pastures around the town, which Ill be checking out sometime soon.??Date: 15-april?Place: british airways ?Vibe: loads of leg room!?Score: cant you read??Devoured: shit food as my veg option didnt go through.?Action: Off to England for a few days to coincide with the album release. Most of the day is spent at airports and on planes. Pretty drab, not much to report. You should try it sometime if you wanna know how Dave Faulkner and myself feel about it.??Date: 16-april?Place: London, England?Vibe: its cold again.?Score: a day off to get over the flight?Devoured: a few ales with Tristan?Action: landed. Caught the train. Caught the other train. Walked a mile to the hotel. Checked the surrounds of Shepherds Bush. Tried to stay awake due to none on the flight. Went for a few pints with mr t. retire; hurt.??Date: 17-april?Place: London?Vibe: grey?Score: another day off to get over the flight.?Devoured: a lot of ZZZs?Action: checked a few old stomping grounds like Camden and Soho. contacted a few mates to inform them of my where-abouts. London calling???
Date: 18-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a gig opposite my favourite caf outside oz.?
Devoured: ummm. Some said coffee from SUBURB.?
Action: had a bit of a look further afield from SB so Portabello Rd seemed to be the spot. Quite surprised as to how many different sides London has. Though the promise of vinyl failed me here, the food won me over. Then off to rough trade in Covent Garden for an instore in what could only be described as tiny. The place filled up with fans and noise in no time as the band whipped through a few numbers.??
Date: 19-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a day with SFA to do?
Devoured: probably some cool vinyl from somewhere. Its freaking hard to keep track of it all?
Action: well, lets see. Nuthin and lots. I mean does anybody actually read this. ???
Date: 20-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a night on?
Devoured: an earful of aussies?
Action: Camden crawl is like a miniature SXSW in London. About 10 venues open the doors to bands, fans and curious folk so for 20quid you can go to 10 venues where each has 5 bands. Its a bit of a mish-mash, and I guess you cant get into a club if its already capacity and merch dont go too well. Basically it was a great triumph for the band, and for me out in the foyer, it was a bit of a yawn.??
Date: 21-april?
Place: Sheffield?
Vibe: this town rocks?
Score: a Hendrix rarity for 3quid?
Devoured: the venues catering?
Action: another early start for the drive way up the country, and just aswell for the traffic and my half-arsed directions. we roll into town, and its a great venue, and they tell us that 800 tix have already sold! I trawl off to look around town and get our tma birthday prezzie. British comedy, you cant go wrong. The town is pretty arty, as any town with a tram-line is, but by the time I get out to see it, most of it is closed oh well, the venue is sold out and the crowd is very vocal and get a great show in return for it. ??
Date: 22-april?
Place: Alexandra Palace, London?
Vibe: Glorious?
Score: A gig in the Palace.?
Devoured: organic ales and superb catering?
Action: Alexandra Palace was one of those places you just gotta rub your eyes and do a double take. I heard it was on a hill overlooking London, but when we got there, it made up for the lack of caffeine and space in the van. Set on top of a hill with a clear view of everything, it was nothing short of a palace. The venue itself could hold 8,000 or so, and then there were the other rooms and the ice skating rink all set in, well a palace. And the weather that London put on that day was ideal with not a cloud in the sky. It upset me when tristan rang inviting us for a bbq in the park. I had not much to do thanks to the Kaiser Chiefs and the venue, except take advantage of the catering and gawp in awe at the and from the venue. The band won over the crowd with ease, playing their biggest indoor show yet.??
Date: 23-april?
Place: around soho and covent garden?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a day with everyones favourite clegg.?
Devoured: some amazing organic vegan action ?
Action: I head out to meet olematey, cleggers and introducer her to her hometown. We stroll around covent garden, neals yard and soho and discover a great little organic veggie place and we gorge ourselves silly on some delicious cuisine. Well spotted clegg! We walked up an appetite and now walk one off back around oxford circus.??
Date: 24-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: hook-up with Rob ?
Devoured: some amazing thai near brick lane?
Action:. The band were doing the album chart show today and an instore at Virgin megastore. I hung around for the megastore gig which was conveniently less than a mile from SUBURB COFFEE. It was looking as though not many peole were turning up for their official launch, but as the mi, which I was not required for, so I headed off to Brick Lane with Rob for a few bevvies and some grub. The Ten Bells pub I found and decided to meet up with him at had a history. It was where Jack the Ripper met up with his trollops before doing what he did best, which Im unsure of. Anyways, pool was played, food was eaten and a lot of pints were had, and I felt it when we got to the tube which Id missed the last one. Who knew the tube stopped??? On the buses.???
Date: 26-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: setting up for the Q-mag photo shoot (not a score at all)?
Devoured: a great brekkie at babes&burgers?
Action: well today started a little early for old cotton fingers, well not too early, just before my dose of Suburb Caffeine. So off to an apparent rehearsal studio for some photos for Qmag, which Im helping set up to look like their jam room. Mis-hap 1: its a photo-studio. Mis-hap 2: the backline Q organise has no bass cabs or heads, just 20 marshall quad-boxes. Mis-hap 3: WM is NOT David Lee Roth. So we carry 8 of them upstairs, thinking to bring the rest up later, as the photographer thinks a wall of marshall would be cool. 1 gold star our way. The band get there and think its too DLR so we take a few out of the equation. Snaps are taken. Rock-moves posed. Its odd to watch a drummer play air-drums with a full kit in front of him. Anyways, packed it all down and off to the Koko again, which is where the top of the pops was filmed, and its an amazing old building. This gigs been sold out for a while, and the band turn it on and up for them. Were graced with the die!die!die!guys again for this show???
Date: 27-april?
Place: british airways?
Vibe: how many movies can I watch??
Score: re-acquainted myself with Billy Bragg?
Devoured: shit flight food ?
Action: blahblahblahblahblahblah??
Date: 28-april?
Place: Los Angeles?
Vibe: what the??
Score: amoeba $50 voucher.?
Devoured: the best coffee in USA at kings road caf. ?
Action: Im thinking that this week will be hell, with the only redeeming factor being amoeba, as last time I was here it was shit. But straight away I sniffed out an amazing caf whilst looking for another one that bt had taken me to years ago. This aint so bad. Then off I trot, full of beans for the 2 mile walk to amoeba. Around the first corner I spot a guy up a ladder putting up some Shepard Fairey propaganda billboard, and ask if he works for him. Lo and behold it is he, so we chat a while and he sings a few lines of woman citing that the loves the band. Stoked! We exchange details and off I stroll feeling even better about LA. Ah, amoeba. Last time I was here I spent a good 9 hours here and didnt put a dent in it, but this time its even bigger, but Ive got a 50$ voucher thanks to Casey and the band playing here last time. I walk out of there, having conquered maybe of what I wanted to, but having only spent the voucher. Nice. On the way back I note that the organic chain, wholefoods has wireless, so I take full advantage of that and their caf grub. This aint such a bad place after all ??
Date: 29-april?
Place: Coachella festival?
Vibe: could this be the best festival in the world? I think its a contender?
Score: seeing a few great artists in some amazing surrounds ?
Devoured: the best festival catering ever ?
Action: ony 3 hours SE of LA and you hit a desert oasis called indio, and held in the polo fields is a festival called Coachella, very like splendour, but in USA super-sizing. The fact alone that its at a polo field sounds plush, and it is. The catering, backstage area, vip area, the soft maintained grass fields surrouded by palms surrounded by mountains all adds up to a thing of beauty. Out there amongst it was pretty warm and the sun was relentless, so myles, al and myself ddecided to go brokeback styles, looking California but feeling Minnesota. ?
?Date: 30-april?Place: L.A.?Vibe: I love the smell of carbon monoxide in the morning?Score: a day in LA with SFA to do, hay.?Devoured: another day at the grande olde amoeba ?Action: well, day off or not, there was a lot I wouldve liked to have done/seen at the festival, but it was good to not wait around all day for a handful of things yeah, Im jaded, I guess. Maybe you have too by the lack of juiciness and gossips here anyways, checked out a bit more of LA and confirmed that kings road is THE caf.
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February 01, 2007
lame? yes ?Current mood: sleepy
by now people who drop by here would start to realise i'm crap at this. so, i finished that last tour of germany france uk and usa. been out on the big day out. sat home for near a month and i'm back at singapore airport. things have changed alot. i have a house. a 2nd child (both of the canine variety) a few more records and a program tha ti can put them on my ipod. cara (my partner) has joined these technological ranks too, so cyber world look out.?i can't really remember before where i was and can't be arsed backtracking. but the big day out. this year i only did the east coast, but let's see... they would have been my 43, 44 and 45th big day outs that i've worked at over the last eleven years.... hmmm, no wonder i still haven't recovered from the strenuous work and 21 hour days.... this vessel i drive be getting old. gold coast is always good to re-acquaint with folks on the circus. managed to get to the after show, even though i got in at 430am after work... caught up with an ol' matey tristan who was on holidays in oz there. and the sugar town girl from here, beck. not to mention a bunch of familiar faces.?sydney. and atlast i'm not staying out at the shithole near the site with 2000 kids and grumpy security.nothing really to report here. same old same old. however i did work at the lily allen side show and didn't half mind it. not sure if it's a bad thing. it's the first time i've heard her music and it's not what i was expecting. also the fact that i could get a bloody mary in a glass at the airport and take it on the plane was a plus.?melbourne is always great, and more so when yer in a hotel room the size of your house and it's all to yourself. the inaugural love police dinner was moved from adelaide and the gold coast to melbourne to cookie, which i begrudgingly thought would be a loud bar with ordinary food, but was i wrong. it was quiet......not (just saw borat on the plane, had to drop it.) the booze was flowing, the schmooze was showing, and the food was um.... divine. thankfully had a mild evening compared with old matey jimmy-pop. caught up with a few mateys at the gig in the vip action (dunno how they got in there) and trudged back home a shattered bruised shadow. so now i'm here with another bloody bloody mary, hoping it'll make me hit the hay on the flight typing some crap that will suffice a few months.... i hope this finds you all well.?ta ta.????
oh yeah! adding to the last one;?saw james brown. ?jimmy page thanked me.?broke into the delorian from back to the future.?went to the fillmore.?went to the golden gate bridge.?enjoyed portland and oregan's tax free-edness.?ate a bit of an olive willingly.?puffed a cigarette willingly.?might have eaten meat unwillingly (hidden in food)....?i'm sure there's more, but hey.
November 04, 2006
singapore song? ?Current mood: delirious?
well. what may appear to me to be promising initial entries, but according to you; half arsed lame ramblings have begun again, but the powers that be are trying to thwart the notion of it even beginning.
my old faithful hand-me-down iBook has done a big turd on its face, so here i am in layover in singapore using the qantas club slow as shite PC's (working, albeit) to pass the countless hours. soon i shall be over in the UK not catching up with any friends, but more along my blogging styles, a kind of half arsed one way conversation and rambling. not really making any sense but that of accomplishment, so i acn say oh, i saw so-and-so. saw being the operative word.
shits gone on again since we last spoke;
where was that.
might have gone though virginia, caught up with a mate in nth carolina, went to florida, both orlando (cairns) and st petersberg (russia?) a funny thing happened there. it was so stinking hot that andrew and i thought it be a good idea to go to the beach for a swim of sorts. wait! there's a boat hire joint! let's do that!!! and let's stop in the middle of the bay and have a quick swim. and let's then run the motor but not switch it to neutral. and get stranded with neither of us having taking a phone and shit. luckily old matey at the marina lent us his phone so we knew what time we should be back and he pottered out and towed us back to shore and probably lost his license as the cops were questioning him en route about a motorised boat.... hmmmm.... anyway i'm here and we're here and some tall stories were spoken into the microphone that evening. after florida off to hotlanta, where i caught up with old matey kim from criminal and talked my way into free tix to the band of horses gig only not to go but had a top night with the entire crew (less JBR and bailey) and band and the cec hall too. damn those bunch of arses for keeping me from the gig!!!! i think after that we musta headed for memphis on the mississippi river went out and had a sticky at stax museum of soul and a gawk and the mississippi. my god! and then down to nashville where plenty of fun was had. andrew myself and the mess hall went out during the day with jody white, son of tony joe white, and enjoyed the surrounds, but not nearly as much as the frivolities that we all had later at the bar across the road and wherever else.
the next day may have been in pittsburg, but i have no idea now. it was a bit of a dive of an area, but a great rekkid store just down the street with 3 million records! and a killer house of a band room. then the virgin festival in some place... baltimore? saw rjd2, some roller girl derby action, the who and chili peppers. the next morning in cleveland, chris found out that lisa was going into labor so without further avail he flew home. and we found out we were too.went to chicago to catch a flight and i got home to some domesticated bliss in the form of home ownership. and i'm loving it, but i now need these memoirs more than ever to pay for the pad... well, the memes come from touring, huh? so here i am in singapore thinking what interior decorating mag or DIY book or furniture piece i'll purchase next.... hmmmm. in the words of lou and andy; "i want that one"
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September 15, 2006
new york, you dork ?Current mood: accomplished
okay, well alot's happened since last time i visited these fair shores, so i'm gonna cut my losses of another month with wolfmother meandering our way across america, and australia ande the arctic monkeys through new zealand and oz and get back to the here and now.?it was great to be back home for a chunk of time hanging with friends and loves and having some stability but my country neede me for yet another tour of duty.?i boarded the qantas day time flight (which to me means no sleep=jetlag) and proceeded to watch 5 films en route to LA. usual bullshit at the airport, but got through it all to my jfk flight, which i managed some shut-eye. finally got to the desired destination (who weren't expecting me) but alas had a spare bed in my own room at the LPNYCHQ (lp, for those who don;t know is love police, is the company i work for. nyc, for those who don't know is new york city. hq, for those who don't know, you are dorks. go back to kinda) had the night off to gather myself (yeah, right) and basically stayed up talking to the guys (james and monica) about shite and drinking the ole faves, sierra nevada. mmmmmm. got a real sleep in, which happens in the USA to me. nowhere else. 11am. had to get up and get it happening. we were supporting a band that i had heard of and not heard (like most peeps i ask), gov't mule. some 90's jam band with a guy who's played in the allman brothers band.?cool.?the gig is in a big ole derelict pool over in brooklyn, and i mean big. this pool is about 30M by 125M. kinda brings a whole new meaning to the term crowd surfing. WM go on and tear through a blazing set complete with andrew taking a fall in the 2nd song just to produce some horizontal feedback. merch is through the roof and i've already paid my due for being here. we've converted a bunch of 40-something hippy stoners to the word of the wolf. back in NYC and i'm up again till 4am. trying to locate the 30 shirts which end up being in the pocket of my bag (they must have shrunk and turned into cash somehow on the wrong turn at alberquerke (SIC)) another late one. this time midday and out and about up to st marks and cake shop records and coffee. then i do something i don't plan on doing too much of and coming across a market square with some schmicko vinyl. dagnabbit! so i score a good 12 rekkids and stroll back to the hq. what to do tonight. there's george clinton and the p-funk mob, john zorn, cat power, band of horses or dr octagon of whom i'd love to see all. arrrrggghhhhh! too much pressure in deciding. no pass. no personal space at the gig. no one to say, "fuck me! this shit's amazing. i wish so and so could be here to see this!" so i don what any music-lover would do and check out a new aussie bar that's opened in town. apparently the fish and chips are great. i have myself a few tamarama's (like a daiquari) pretty good. and they have lamingtons, for you aussies who miss yer goodies. anyway, it's called bondi road, and it's pretty cool. then back to the HQ with one of mon's mates who's a russian ex-pat and we talk more shit all night. shit. all night.?i thought it's be a lot more intense spending a day off on the 5th aniversary of 9/11, but there wasn't a great deal of in yer face shit happening. went to a top notch little organic cafe and bar called counter on 1st ave. no, maybe that was on sunday morning.... great brunch, all vego and organic. but still no good coffee, infact no espresso machine in this one. ARRRGGGHHHHH!!! well back to 9/11. had a bit of a hike up to times square for reasons i won't bore you with. i can see all the zzz's already from here. then back through the thrift store neck only to come up with nuthin but a russell crowe that in a day gone by was worth more than 2 dollars. dunno about that any more... argh. now i'm stuck with the wretched thing. back toward hq where i find teany (moby's cafe= vego) and order some baked beans on toast, which is damned good as it's highly unlikely to find it much more over in the USA. and out we go agian for another night on it. monica's band, "LONESOME BILLIES" are performing at a bar called the rodeo. i'm not sure what to expect, but hot damn. it's good. thinking i'll wind up having an early one, as i'm driving a car to boston tomorrow, that goes out the window soon enough as the vodkas start going down. hmmmm. it's a mission to drive up there with a throbbin' noggin, and no co-pilot and bugger-all directions and considering i make a wrong turn straight off the cuff and i have 3&1/2 hrs to get there... anyway, i get there 15 minutes late at an average speed of 68 mph in my pontiac. nice travelling and listening to the new radiodread disc all but three times. tonight we are joined by none other sydney's own, THE MESS HALL and an unknown band who are just to pmates with LP, the strokes. catch up with the WM lads and tales are told. they've had some good times in the last couple of months. maybe cos i wasn't around....? anyways, we learn that WM were the biggest sellers at the festival in canada over the likes of the strokes, raconteurs and massive attack to name a few. so there! tour's kickin' along nicely. wake up in norfolk at the gig already. 2pm. hmmm. out and about to get me some banking done. find a great cafe with the best coffee in the states so far for this trip. relative theory. good coffee. good peeps. good music. what more do you want? huh HUH? and then there's the venue. my god. i didn't get to enjoy it, but the band room had a 10person jacuzi (SIC), pool table, fuusball table (SIC), table tennis table, and much much much more. top notch venue. shame about the merch cut and them counting the swag, but hey! ya gotta pay for the band room somehow.... and that brings me to here. charlotte. a quaint city in north carolina, with a half decent cafe (therapy) which do some damn fine sangas. got good beers and make an ok coffee. off to tom's pub to meet some friends from the uk who happen to be over here (moved to be with a plus one) and have a few pints and games of pool tonight. what fun awaits! until next, stay classy, san diego.
May 21, 2006
you milwaukee the walk, but do you talk the talk? ?Current mood: amused
well,?milwaukee was an interesting place when the lights went out.?had a stroll around during the day but not too far from the venue and didn't see much at all.?but after going back to the hotel, al(fearless leader), myles(drums), jonboyrock(front of house) and myself(shark) were waiting out front for a taxi, and a car pulled up and rolled down the window. here's what ensued;?"have you got big cocks?" the shrill black voice came from the vehicle.?puzzled and caught off guard, the most any of us could return was "what?"?the same query was shot back. myles gathered that being a shark a dorsel fin might be on the large side and piped up, "mark does."?"oh" came a sort of query.?by now we had time to gather our wits, and being i had my knee high sock to protect me from the cold-ass temperature in fonz-town, and also with myles' direction and jbr's voice "yeah he's got big socks." and i started to disrobe, lifting my trouser leg to reveal my rather well endowed "leg warmer."?"oh," the same monosyllabic response. "no no no no no, we said BIG COCKS." they clearly didn't get the dry lame dad jokes, and the car disappeared into the cold dark.?we anticipated maybe to do a block and try again as we are from austria and have not much understanding of their language, but alas no.?laughs were had and times were shared.?and then there was the diner....?(this is what i recall but it's all about me, innit. for further reading check out jonboyrock and myles' pages for their point of view recollection of the aforementioned incident)
May 07, 2006
pinged across the pond
Date: 12-april?
Place: Baltimore?
Vibe: great area around the docks?
Score: a stack of original funk pressings?
Devoured: a great coffee from town
Action: well, (un)fortunately the band did make it, though missing soundcheck. Those die!die!die! guys must drive like old ladies. Im sure they all had a blast at the aftershow party. I got out and around the town and managed to score a bunch of original funk pressings on the cheap. Also got myself cut throated in a afro-barber shop. Tres-styles. The town seemed a bit run down, but by the docks was pretty snazzy. Had an amazing coffee, during the gig as I was on the knod. The first band, the dead set were ex-pats from Sydney and very punk in their approach, setting up their gear on the floor and mashing their rock with sampled sounds. ??
Date: 13-april?
Place: Charlotte?
Vibe: a great city in the Middle-East (thanks, Brick Tamland)?
Score: an interesting evening with Andrew?
Devoured: 2 pints of Samuel Adams organic Ale and a superb veg buritto at Thomas St. Tavern.?
Action: woke up, basically in the middle of nowhere (en-route to atlanta) but what a great city Charlotte turned out to be. I was fearing red necks and hicks, but it turned out to be a prosperous little town. Had a bit of a stroll around, in the most glorious of weather to discover a great caf with one of the best sandwiches Ive ever had. The girl informed me of a great art gallery which was housed in an old cathedral that had burnt down. I then found my way back downtown to the library (as you gathered I am a bit outrageous!) to post these here tales. I then met up with Andrew and we strolled around the downtown looking for a bite, but nothing showed up. I recalled hearing about an area called central (which was far from it) and we cabbed it in that direction. Our first port of call was the pub, though Andrew is off the booze at the moment and their menu seemed fitting aswell. The grub was awesome, the samadams organic ales were superb, we chin-wagged about all sorts, and decided to top it off with some pool. We then headed to one of the oddest places Ive been thus far; some local rock-star had put on an evening. We walked into the room and were in an empty room, apart from the star, his 2 go-go dancers and the bar staff. It was lame. We headed upstairs to a room, where the locals were until they climbed out the window and up the roof. Yes, charlotte was interesting.??
Date: 14-april?
Place: Atlanta?
Vibe: still in the Olympic hey-day?
Score: some great wax.?
Devoured: sierra nevada ?
Action: had a bit of a stroll around this place, and its so freakin massive. Took me all day to get from one side of the city centre to the gig, but being those sierra nevadas IPA that Ive become fond of its a good thing. The gigs at the aptly named DRUNKEN UNICORN and its a very cool gig graff everywhere and unicorns for days. I met a bunch of interesting folks here, who are now informing me of greener pastures around the town, which Ill be checking out sometime soon.??Date: 15-april?Place: british airways ?Vibe: loads of leg room!?Score: cant you read??Devoured: shit food as my veg option didnt go through.?Action: Off to England for a few days to coincide with the album release. Most of the day is spent at airports and on planes. Pretty drab, not much to report. You should try it sometime if you wanna know how Dave Faulkner and myself feel about it.??Date: 16-april?Place: London, England?Vibe: its cold again.?Score: a day off to get over the flight?Devoured: a few ales with Tristan?Action: landed. Caught the train. Caught the other train. Walked a mile to the hotel. Checked the surrounds of Shepherds Bush. Tried to stay awake due to none on the flight. Went for a few pints with mr t. retire; hurt.??Date: 17-april?Place: London?Vibe: grey?Score: another day off to get over the flight.?Devoured: a lot of ZZZs?Action: checked a few old stomping grounds like Camden and Soho. contacted a few mates to inform them of my where-abouts. London calling???
Date: 18-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a gig opposite my favourite caf outside oz.?
Devoured: ummm. Some said coffee from SUBURB.?
Action: had a bit of a look further afield from SB so Portabello Rd seemed to be the spot. Quite surprised as to how many different sides London has. Though the promise of vinyl failed me here, the food won me over. Then off to rough trade in Covent Garden for an instore in what could only be described as tiny. The place filled up with fans and noise in no time as the band whipped through a few numbers.??
Date: 19-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a day with SFA to do?
Devoured: probably some cool vinyl from somewhere. Its freaking hard to keep track of it all?
Action: well, lets see. Nuthin and lots. I mean does anybody actually read this. ???
Date: 20-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a night on?
Devoured: an earful of aussies?
Action: Camden crawl is like a miniature SXSW in London. About 10 venues open the doors to bands, fans and curious folk so for 20quid you can go to 10 venues where each has 5 bands. Its a bit of a mish-mash, and I guess you cant get into a club if its already capacity and merch dont go too well. Basically it was a great triumph for the band, and for me out in the foyer, it was a bit of a yawn.??
Date: 21-april?
Place: Sheffield?
Vibe: this town rocks?
Score: a Hendrix rarity for 3quid?
Devoured: the venues catering?
Action: another early start for the drive way up the country, and just aswell for the traffic and my half-arsed directions. we roll into town, and its a great venue, and they tell us that 800 tix have already sold! I trawl off to look around town and get our tma birthday prezzie. British comedy, you cant go wrong. The town is pretty arty, as any town with a tram-line is, but by the time I get out to see it, most of it is closed oh well, the venue is sold out and the crowd is very vocal and get a great show in return for it. ??
Date: 22-april?
Place: Alexandra Palace, London?
Vibe: Glorious?
Score: A gig in the Palace.?
Devoured: organic ales and superb catering?
Action: Alexandra Palace was one of those places you just gotta rub your eyes and do a double take. I heard it was on a hill overlooking London, but when we got there, it made up for the lack of caffeine and space in the van. Set on top of a hill with a clear view of everything, it was nothing short of a palace. The venue itself could hold 8,000 or so, and then there were the other rooms and the ice skating rink all set in, well a palace. And the weather that London put on that day was ideal with not a cloud in the sky. It upset me when tristan rang inviting us for a bbq in the park. I had not much to do thanks to the Kaiser Chiefs and the venue, except take advantage of the catering and gawp in awe at the and from the venue. The band won over the crowd with ease, playing their biggest indoor show yet.??
Date: 23-april?
Place: around soho and covent garden?
Vibe: grey?
Score: a day with everyones favourite clegg.?
Devoured: some amazing organic vegan action ?
Action: I head out to meet olematey, cleggers and introducer her to her hometown. We stroll around covent garden, neals yard and soho and discover a great little organic veggie place and we gorge ourselves silly on some delicious cuisine. Well spotted clegg! We walked up an appetite and now walk one off back around oxford circus.??
Date: 24-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: hook-up with Rob ?
Devoured: some amazing thai near brick lane?
Action:. The band were doing the album chart show today and an instore at Virgin megastore. I hung around for the megastore gig which was conveniently less than a mile from SUBURB COFFEE. It was looking as though not many peole were turning up for their official launch, but as the mi, which I was not required for, so I headed off to Brick Lane with Rob for a few bevvies and some grub. The Ten Bells pub I found and decided to meet up with him at had a history. It was where Jack the Ripper met up with his trollops before doing what he did best, which Im unsure of. Anyways, pool was played, food was eaten and a lot of pints were had, and I felt it when we got to the tube which Id missed the last one. Who knew the tube stopped??? On the buses.???
Date: 26-april?
Place: London?
Vibe: grey?
Score: setting up for the Q-mag photo shoot (not a score at all)?
Devoured: a great brekkie at babes&burgers?
Action: well today started a little early for old cotton fingers, well not too early, just before my dose of Suburb Caffeine. So off to an apparent rehearsal studio for some photos for Qmag, which Im helping set up to look like their jam room. Mis-hap 1: its a photo-studio. Mis-hap 2: the backline Q organise has no bass cabs or heads, just 20 marshall quad-boxes. Mis-hap 3: WM is NOT David Lee Roth. So we carry 8 of them upstairs, thinking to bring the rest up later, as the photographer thinks a wall of marshall would be cool. 1 gold star our way. The band get there and think its too DLR so we take a few out of the equation. Snaps are taken. Rock-moves posed. Its odd to watch a drummer play air-drums with a full kit in front of him. Anyways, packed it all down and off to the Koko again, which is where the top of the pops was filmed, and its an amazing old building. This gigs been sold out for a while, and the band turn it on and up for them. Were graced with the die!die!die!guys again for this show???
Date: 27-april?
Place: british airways?
Vibe: how many movies can I watch??
Score: re-acquainted myself with Billy Bragg?
Devoured: shit flight food ?
Action: blahblahblahblahblahblah??
Date: 28-april?
Place: Los Angeles?
Vibe: what the??
Score: amoeba $50 voucher.?
Devoured: the best coffee in USA at kings road caf. ?
Action: Im thinking that this week will be hell, with the only redeeming factor being amoeba, as last time I was here it was shit. But straight away I sniffed out an amazing caf whilst looking for another one that bt had taken me to years ago. This aint so bad. Then off I trot, full of beans for the 2 mile walk to amoeba. Around the first corner I spot a guy up a ladder putting up some Shepard Fairey propaganda billboard, and ask if he works for him. Lo and behold it is he, so we chat a while and he sings a few lines of woman citing that the loves the band. Stoked! We exchange details and off I stroll feeling even better about LA. Ah, amoeba. Last time I was here I spent a good 9 hours here and didnt put a dent in it, but this time its even bigger, but Ive got a 50$ voucher thanks to Casey and the band playing here last time. I walk out of there, having conquered maybe of what I wanted to, but having only spent the voucher. Nice. On the way back I note that the organic chain, wholefoods has wireless, so I take full advantage of that and their caf grub. This aint such a bad place after all ??
Date: 29-april?
Place: Coachella festival?
Vibe: could this be the best festival in the world? I think its a contender?
Score: seeing a few great artists in some amazing surrounds ?
Devoured: the best festival catering ever ?
Action: ony 3 hours SE of LA and you hit a desert oasis called indio, and held in the polo fields is a festival called Coachella, very like splendour, but in USA super-sizing. The fact alone that its at a polo field sounds plush, and it is. The catering, backstage area, vip area, the soft maintained grass fields surrouded by palms surrounded by mountains all adds up to a thing of beauty. Out there amongst it was pretty warm and the sun was relentless, so myles, al and myself ddecided to go brokeback styles, looking California but feeling Minnesota. ?
?Date: 30-april?Place: L.A.?Vibe: I love the smell of carbon monoxide in the morning?Score: a day in LA with SFA to do, hay.?Devoured: another day at the grande olde amoeba ?Action: well, day off or not, there was a lot I wouldve liked to have done/seen at the festival, but it was good to not wait around all day for a handful of things yeah, Im jaded, I guess. Maybe you have too by the lack of juiciness and gossips here anyways, checked out a bit more of LA and confirmed that kings road is THE caf.
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VIEW 6 of 6 COMMENTS
biancarose:
I'm so back! B xo
speedway74:
great to see you even if so briefly last night, let me know when youre around a bit longer and we'll go get a drink sometime