We went to see the film "Vantage Point" tonight.



A really enjoyable film with an unusual way of replaying the same scene from various different viewpoints.

07.03.08

There was a post on the 'Kent' forum from the band, stating their dismay with illegal file sharing of mp3's. In one of my more creative moods I decided to join in with this contribution:

I have to agree that illegal file sharing is taking money from the artist, and without the possibility of making money or breaking even, what's the point of creating the music we love to hear. However.....
Most artists get their money via their record companies, some of the same record companies that continually say that they are losing money due to illegal file sharing. Is it losing money or just making a lot less?
My history as a music fan has seen many changes. When I bought "Are Friends Electric?" by 'Tubeway Army' in 1979 is was a time where I could buy a 7" single, maybe a picture disc and look forward to an album.
During the 80's the record companies started the multi format idea, particularly in the UK. I could now buy the 7", the 7" pic disc, the 12", the limited 12" remix, the cassette single, the poster sleeve single and I regularly did for the artists that I collected. Basically paying for the same thing over and over. But we chose to do so. It was available and we wanted it.
When CD became more widespread in the mid 80's the record companies must have been rubbing their hands with happiness. We started to replace what we'd already paid for on vinyl with the CD versions of the same thing. Again we chose to do so, but it now turns out at a hugely inflated price.
Once CD was the standard format the record companies had to think of more ways of making us give them our money. The digital remaster!! Lets release the same cd yet again, but with a few extra pictures in the booklet, some demo's and even better sound. Genius!! It worked on me.
Along comes DVD and even more opportunities arise. Lets re-release an album that's only been out a few months, but this time for Christmas with an extra dvd in the package. Who could resist? Not me usually.
Then comes mp3. An mp3 is an mp3. The bitrate may vary but suddenly the multi format money machine starts to grind to a halt. Or does it?
Some artists have their work spread carefully across different formats, with extra tracks only appearing on the pointless 7" vinyl, just to make people pay for something they really didn't want. Do you buy the 7" and hope someone you know still has a record player or do you try to download the extra track instead? You can't? It's on the vinyl only? Mmmm? Maybe someone has illegally ripped the vinyl version to mp3? (Hard-Fi take note!). And while I'm downloading a track I couldn't get on mp3 by any other legal means, have you seen what else I can get this way??
Record companies have made far too much money for far too long and as it starts to dry up they point the finger at illegal downloaders instead of at themselves. They say that they can no longer afford to promote new and unknown artists. Mmmm? Isn't 'Myspace' doing that anyway? I've heard more new bands in the time that 'Myspace' has existed that I ever did in all the years that the record companies were "paying" to promote them.
Some artists have realised that the best way to fund their art is via the money they can make from touring. Both Prince and The Charlatans are recent examples, giving albums away for free. Tickets sales and merchandise can be very lucrative, especially if t-shirts are priced fairly (Kent take note!!). Don't get me started on the booking fees and postage costs for concert tickets, I could rant for days!!!
Living in such an instant access world, record companies have to question their desire to make tracks difficult to obtain, whether it be across multi-formats, in special download 'packages', or just as in the case of iTunes, only available in certain countries shops. I appreciate the licensing deals may vary from country to country, but wake up and get it sorted. They still haven't learnt that making a track hard to obtain may encourage the person who was willing to pay for it to find it in a less legal way. And then the seed is sown.
To conclude, I still believe that illegal downloading is harming artists, but if their record companies hadn't been so greedy for so long they wouldn't be faced with such a bad situation. Or is it my fault for paying for all this stuff in the first place??
Rant over!

Atmo1

02.03.08

I know I say this every year, but I do often think that this may be the year where I stop discovering new music and turn into one of those people whose music collections stop in a certain era and all they do is reminisce.
Tonight I heard a track that renewed my excitement in new music. Please go listen to "Time To Pretend" by a band called 'Mgmt'. Stunning.

26.02.08

After checking out of the hotel we put our bags into left luggage at the Central Station and set off to explore Copenhagen.
First stop was the disappointment that is the 'Little Mermaid'. Where you expect the "wow" factor, unfortunately you find the "is that it?" factor instead!





We eventually made our way to the Carlsberg Brewery with its magnificent architecture





and a free beer at the end of the tour too!
 

24.02.08

Almost as soon as we fell asleep it felt like we had to get up again, but at least we got to the airport on time. Sadly the plane didn't and we missed our slot, adding a further 40 minutes wait once we actually seated on it!
We were soon in Copenhagen though and although it was cold at least it was dry. We walked through the shopping area, Strøget, enjoying a nice passage



 and onto Nyhaven where Gareth got to practice with the new camera!







After checking in at the hotel we freshened up and then headed back into town where we visited 'Ripleys Believe It Or Not Museum Of Adventures' which I sure would be a great place to take children but I couldn't get through there quick enough. Part of the entry price included a visit to the 'Wonderful World Of Hans Christian Anderson Museum' which was even worse, but we'd paid so much for the tickets that we had to attempt to get our moneys worth. We failed!

After a nice shower back at the hotel I set off for the KB Hallen to see 'Kent' in concert. When I arrived at 8pm the place was almost deserted and I must admit for one moment I thought I'd got the dates wrong, but I checked with a member of staff who assured me the support band would be on at 8:30pm. At exactly that time the lights went down and I found myself stood at the front watching 'Familjen' play a 20 minute set. After just 10 minutes 'Kent' took to the stage at 9pm sharp. They played an absolutely brilliant set and I couldn't believe that once again I was right at the front, stood in front of bass player Martin Skold.











An unforgettable night!

23.02.08

A lazy start to the day as Gareth and I were both on leave from work. We managed to fit in a visit to the gym before we packed for our weekend away. Then I drove us to London where I was going to see 'Mark Ronson' play at the Hammersmith Apollo. I saw him a few months ago at the Pyramid Centre in Portsmouth and I have to say that his show better suits a smaller venue. Tonight was also one of the worst crowds that I have ever have had to stand amongst, with people shoving their way through every few seconds and beer being thrown too. The gig was only made bearable by the wonderful 'Daniel Merriweather' and a guest appearance by 'Tim Burgess' from 'The Charlatans'.
Once back to the car I had to drive us to a hotel I'd booked near Stansted Airport in readiness for our early start tomorrow. We decided to trust the Sat.Nav to guide us the quickest way. A BIG mistake! It directed us through the centre of London which even at that time of night was really busy. Gareth was pleased to sight see as we passed The Royal Albert Hall, The Ritz, across Piccadilly Circus and through the West End. I've never experienced so many traffic lights in such a small area, further delaying us. We eventually got to our hotel at 1am which considering we had to be up again at 4:30am was hardly worth it!

22.02.08

Tickets went on sale this morning for the 'Kent' summer tour, so I logged into the Swedish ticket website early in readiness. When they went on sale I got straight to the purchase page only to get the following message:

"The arranger has chosen to only offer tickets to Swedish customers over the internet. We may be able to assist you if you call our CallCenter"

I was absolutely furious. UK ticket sites may crash every time tickets go on sale, but at least they are on sale to everyone.
I telephoned the ticket company in Sweden instead and after being on hold for 18 minutes I was then told that they don't take card payments and I would have to organise a bank transfer. Gareth sorted this for me, to a cost of £35 on top of the ticket and postage price. It's a good job 'Kent' are worth it!

21.02.08

The sunset this evening was particularly beautiful. The sky went a



deep orange colour and just glowed across the rooftops.

18.02.08

Gareth and I went to see the film 'Jumper' tonight.



Despite the excellent special effects, the film didn't really seem to go anywhere.

17.02.08

Had an early start today. Gareth was working so I got up at the same time and then went to the gym for a work out. Consequently by the time he got home in the late afternoon we were both really tired, so we decided to have a little sleep. Problem was that although I set my alarm, I was so tired I don't remember turning it off, and woke up at 6:45pm. Not usually an problem except I'd arranged to meet my friends Richard and Nick in Bournemouth at 7:15pm, and it's at least an hours drive to get there! Well it is under normal circumstances but I drove like a bat out of hell!!
We all went to see 'Alison Moyet' at the Bournemouth Pavillion, a really classy venue. There were rather a lot of 'ladies' there accompanied by other 'ladies', and I swear they were dressed like a fashion show from a charity shop. Colour co-ordination and flattering fits were completely disregarded! There were also some 'gentleman' who preferred the company of other 'gentlemen' there. We knew this because Richard recognised quite a few, surprisingly, considering they were wearing more than towels and there was no steam around!
Alison has an amazing voice but the gig wasn't what I'd hoped, as she did very different arrangements of some of her hits which I didn't even recognise until I listened hard to the familiar lyrics and tried to remember the original and proper tune! As for what she did to 'Yazoo' classics "Only You" and "Don't Go"... don't get me started!

16.02.08

Gareth and I, along with his Mum and his sister Laura, travelled to Cardiff today to check out the venue for our Civil Partnership in May. We've booked some suites at The Angel Hotel



 for the ceremony itself and the party afterwards so we went there to have a look around. We met up with my sister Glenys when we got there so we managed to ask a variety of questions between us all! Thank you to all for the help and advice!
Later on we all met up with my good friend Amanda and had a great time wandering Ikea!

14.02.08

This morning I received "Cold Warning', a Gary Numan DVD from a concert in 1984.



 I saw him play live for the first time on that tour and I remember it really well... for a very odd reason. To say I was excited to see him back then would be such a huge understatement. It was because of him that my love of synthesizer music began. I still remember as the lights went down at the St. David's Hall in Cardiff and the introduction music began. As he walked on stage I threw my arms in the air and cheered with every ounce of energy I could, which unfortunately caused the upper part of my body to actually seize up, meaning that even when I stopped cheering I couldn't move my arms back down! I had visions of being taken away in an ambulance with the back doors open to accommodate my outstretched arms! Luckily within a few minutes the muscles started to relax and my arms could be lowered. Even so, I must have looked like a complete idiot for a while!

Even though it's still winter, the bulbs I have planted in the garden have started to bloom already, adding a much needed dash of colour!





 

09.02.08

Tonight I travelled to Portsmouth to see 'Travis' play at the small Wedgewood Rooms venue. I'd bought the ticket on Ebay and had to meet a relative of the seller near the venue to collect it. We were also going in together as the venue is really strict on Ebay re-sales and their was a chance I could be refused entry, but luckily all went well.
It was a really unusual gig as it began at 10pm with the band playing their proposed new album from start to finish with no talking to the crowd between tracks. I say proposed as the album isn't recorded yet, so consequently the crowd hadn't heard any of these tracks before. The section where I was stood got bored by this very quickly and soon more people were talking than listening. I've seen 'Travis' premiere new tracks in the past where they have been played between better known songs, which at least holds the attention of the crowd. When they'd finished this run through they left the stage for 5 minutes and then returned to play a more familiar set which thankfully included some hits eventually finishing 10 minutes after midnight!


pic courtesy of hb @ travisonline.com

A huge thank you has to go to my two companions for the evening, Annie & Cathy, 'the sandlewood sisters'. An absolute pleasure to meet two amazing ladies!

08.02.08

I travelled up to Camden in London tonight to see 'Hard-Fi' perform at the beautiful venue, Koko.



It was great to see them perform in a small venue again after their Arena tour last December. It was made even more special when they were joined onstage by Mick Jones, formerly of 'The Clash' to play that bands classic "Should I Stay Or Should I Go?".


pic courtesy of ian dewsbury @ nme.com

It was definitely one of those never to be forgotten moments!!

06.02.08

When I woke up this morning the sky was dark orange on the horizon



and the blue above got deeper and deeper, giving a beautiful view across the trees near the house.

04.02.08

This afternoon we went to see 'Juno'.



It was a great film for a Sunday afternoon, poignant, funny and relaxing.

03.02.08

We went to see 'Cloverfield' tonight.



This film is currently getting a LOT of hype so I was really looking forward to seeing what all the fuss was about. I can't fault the special effects but it was like a mixture of lots of other films and left me feeling a little disappointed. It's not a bad film but it certainly isn't as good as it's being made out to be.

02.02.08

I went to the Reading Hexagon tonight to see 'Athlete'. I can't say I was that bothered about going before the gig, but was glad I did.


pic courtesy of Anna1976 @ forums.athlete.mu

The band were on great form and the crowd were really getting into it!

01.02.08

As the sun set this evening the view from my office window was quite beautiful.


 

30.01.08

We were told today by the Millennium Stadium that they are cancelling our party there to celebrate our Civil Partnership on May 17th as the whole stadium has now been hired for a local rugby final. We had been warned this may happen, but were told that it is usually booked around six months before an event to cope with the 70,000+ tickets sales. Unfortunately they are only expecting between 2000 and 4000 for this match so the ticket sale time is not so crucial. Back to the drawing board!!

29.01.08

We did some work in the garden this afternoon, mainly putting netting over my flowerbeds as the local cats are using them as toilets and digging all my bulbs up in the process, little b*stards!
Whenever I work out there a small robin appears to check if any food is likely to become available and it was getting most excited when I filled up an old plant pot with bird food, having a loud sing to show its delight!
It didn't even mind when Gareth fetched my camera for me and I got close to take it's picture!


 

27.01.08

Before I joined the gym in January 2007 I rarely wore any kind of sports clothing, but since then I've bought quite a lot to wear when training. Today I visited a huge sports shop near to where I work as I wanted some new shorts. As I approached the huge automatic doors to enter the shop they opened to let out two customers, who between them were so big that I had to wait to let them pass. Once inside I looked emaciated compared to the other customers perusing the "sports" clothing. One woman was holding a box of 10 jam doughnuts from the supermarket next door and was happily munching her way through them as she wandered the aisles, leaving a trail of sugar in her wake and crumbs down the front of her stretch fit Nike top ! Is cake eating a sport?

25.01.08