Daylight Saving Time

As the clocks go back, I wonder how pcs can make sense of this process, when I cannot get the purpose behind this nonsense!

Part 5 in a 4 Part Trilogy: Favourite Album Titles of All Time



Perhaps you are feeling a little down due to missing Jackie Leven & instead you chose to watch the Buoys Vs Men?

Wayne Rooney & Christian Ronaldo were outstanding, the latter is so obviously talented, but the former for me showed such power, turn of speed & agility, I was stunned with his performance.


Back to those 2 album titles by 1-Speed Bike.

• Droopy Butt Begone
• Someone told me Life Gets Easier in Your 50s

I nearly feel off my lifesize statue of Henrik Larsson

Old Wheaties

The main benefit of download culture, & I wish to emphasise, the cultural aspect, is that you get to hear items that you would not buy due to lack of info/funds…etc….

This means that sometimes you come across an artist or cd that totally takes you by surprise & blows your socks off!

This morning for me it is: Wheaty Mattiasch – Old Wheaties (there is an album called New Wheaties).

Old Style Real Music. Where does it sit? Alt. Country, Alt. Folk, Freak Folk, Acid Folk?

It is just so good. Remember the first time you heard Pearls Before Swine or the Holy Modal Rounders, back in 69, man.

Procrastination is the Mother of All Indecisiveness

Spoilt for choice 7 a.m. Sunday, still dark & wet outside.

What cd could lift my spirits & help me wash down that essential bowl of java.

Therein lies the problem. Should it be something dreamy & background like Joni Mitchell, Laura Nyro or Goldfrapp’s ‘Felt remixes’ or something uplifting & funky like Barry Adamson’s ‘Murky World of’ or perhaps an item more demanding like the compilation ‘The Garden is Full of Forking Paths’.

On the latter title, it was pointed out that this is a book title, but I am unsure as to whether the colleague was referring to a recent book of modern short experimental stories or the J.L. Borges original.

The correct decision on the choice of music is crucial for setting my mood right for the day, so I decided on the ‘Felt remixes, but this only causes anxiety as I want to listen to the basic album now.

One of the tracks is a remix by either the king of the tango: Astor Piazzola or the Gotan Project, now I am off on another tangent.

Another task for another day. It is a wonder I finally get out of the house.

Sometimes There is No Need for Words

Observations from Orbit, Part 9



Although they are often tagged with the label 'psychedelia' I would suggest a re-think is required here. The japanese band Ghost, I would say are closer to Can or Faust.

On another of those 'must listen' trips Ghost are getting their much - deserved, time on my current playlist.


Ok maybe we describe them with both tags: psychedelia & krautrock although I believe they will appeal to both sets of avid listeners.

Observations from Orbit, part 322


On a recent visit to St Machan's Graveyard in the Campsies, I was struck by the large skull & crossbones marker at the entrance.

It has nothing to do with pirates or johnnie depp or even keith richards, but this symbol is often found on Scottish graves, but this is the first time I have seen it prominently displayed at the graveyard gate.


Trying to source the reason why opens more doors than it closes. The Freemasons & Knights Templar are masters of disinformation.

The most innocent theory would suggest it was just an anti papist signal in place of angels & saints.

Marches

For anyone who really knows me, it would come as no surprise, that I would be listening to Lawrence Abu Hamdan’s Marches e.p. at 8 a.m. on a Saturday.

This is 18 minutes (2 tracks) from an artwork involving a sound piece of ? people marching, although it sounds more like walking fast. I am reminded of flamenco beats.

For me I was disappointed that there was not more sounds elsewhere leaking into the piece, but there you go you can’t have everything!

This album will find a place beside some of the rather obscure cds in my collection e.g. like ‘Dog Pound, Found Sound’ that amazing double cd of dogs barking non-stop. I would recommend playing this on constant repeat, if you are going on holiday & you don’t want the neighbours to raid your fridge.

Perhaps this might be a regular update on this blog ‘obscure objects of delight’….i am sure I have other cds in the same vein as the 2 mentioned above. I will sleep on this.

Power to the People Right Now

Great 'Wire' article this month that illustrates how download culture has put the music back into the hands of the people & cut the profits of the multinational corporations.

Perhaps this will mean there will be less money around for weapons of mass destruction, less toxins & poisons & more love.

Maybe I am stretching the bounds of niaivity too far?

Get Jewels on Your Antlers



I just realised that the outstanding Jewelled Antler Collection of 3" cds has been released in a 4 cd pack.

Not everyone's cup of red bush, I suppose, but it is hot stuff around this house.

It includes: The Ivy tree, Hala Strana, Uton & Kemilliset Ystavat (always fond of Finnish freakery!), Thuja, Fursaxa.

No 2 tracks sound the same, no 2 bands sound the same or even sane. Miss at your peril.

Fridge Magnet

My next door neighbour keeps emptying my fridge.

The Happy Highlanders are half way up (or should that be half way down?) Mount Balde @ Lake Garda & I am losing so much free time working on assessments for my ITALL Literacies course.

George Burley is quite rightly kicking ass & my neighbour keeps ram raiding my fridge.

Yesterday everything was halfed...e.g. cheery pie & an exceptionally succulent Pineapple.

Could someone please tell me what's going on?

Greatest Whistling Records of All Time


I used to freak at such silly notions, but this a.m. listening to Alison Goldfrapp's 'Felt' remixes with that outstanding synthesized whitling tune & remembering I recently transferred that whitling track from 'Kill Bill', whose title escapes me at this moment.


In addition, I do have a soft spot for the numerous whitling tunes from the pen of the great Ennio Morricone.

In fact, I find a comfortable comparison between Goldfrapp's'Felt' & the works of that fine Italian maestro.

Stone of Destiny Vs Hun Spear of Destiny



I cannot let recent shocking events in Scottish Football pass without comment.

I believe that the Burley/Boyd bust up shows what is so wrong with our modern game & our National team. Such a parcel of rogues!

To think that Kris Boyd can dictate who the manager plays is so absurd & indicates a complete lack of respect. Maybe his time at the 'gers' has bent his heid?

George Burley on a personal level came out with some superb statements that show his passion for the game.

Joe Jordan would have died trying to score a goal for his country.

It is an honour to wear that jersey & I am sure although big George from Coatbrdge missed an easy, 'tap-in' he will one day make us very proud of his achievements, unlike that snivelling , baldy, fatboy who ate all the killie pies, before he started on the ibrox tuckshop!

Gregor & Silke in Munster


My friend, Gregor emailed me as he is spending his 42nd birthday in Germany. This reminds me of my own 19th birthday locked up in an Istanbul hotel room, with a pile of wood for the stove to keep warm.

I also had some mood elevators to keep my mind off of the 'agent provocateurs' outside as the events filmed as 'Midnight Express' were happening.

Choices


Go and see Jackie Leven (again) @ a bowling club in Anniesland or watch Manchester United Vs Celtic.

Sorry Jackie!

DONT LET THE SUN CATCH YOU CRYING



Sun City Girls, Sun Ra, Sunburned Hand of the Man, Black Sun, Blue Sun & Cold Sun - Dark Shadows........check them out if you can.


Blue Sun - Live has got that raw, live sound you remember from 'Kick Out the Jams'.

They seem to have been kicking the bong around a little though, while listening to too much Doors, James brown & Wynder K. Frogg!

Revenge of the Selfish Shellfish



If someone asked me where I had been recently, I would have to admit I had been in a very crazy & scary place.



This would be inside the minds of Steve Stapleton & David Tibet as I had decided I was going to get a deep listen to my, dare I say complete, collection of Nurse With Wound/Current 93 & offshoot/related albums.

This is a mammoth task (not mammoth tusk!) but I am on the case. I am a little dismissive of the purely instrumental albums & tracks as I find I enjoy the stuff with the weird, gothic, neofolk vocals.

I am enjoying this journey, but it is only the beginning with a long way to go. I had put it off for so long, but at the moment, there is so much rewarding material.

Even the play on words is fun as you can see from the title, above.

Tap Dancing on a Dirty paper Cup


Saturday morning & I am up early to do the ‘bouncy bouncy’, but instead I gave Hafdis Huld’s ‘Dirty paper Cup’ a listen.

I careless accepted the offer of a seriously strong cappuccino from my neighbour next door last night, so I struggled to get any sleep. I should know better by now!

PC problems & laptop problems have slowed the contributions to this blog quite a bit. When did life become so complicated?

Gosh this Hafdis Huld album is ‘so nice’ in a French ye-ye way, a bit like my wonderful 3 ‘tap-ins’ last Wednesday.

Campsie Clachan


With my wife & mother-in-law as passengers there was a limit to my travels yesterday.

I thus made some future plans, God Willing & laid down some markers for explorations of the Campsies. I found myself a base camp & I hope to explore around this area over the autumn & winter.

Squidnapped

I am on a crazy diet these days, it appears, where I only eat prawn shaped food groups, eg. Cashew nuts or half of onion rings or half calimeri.

Music for Levitation


Henry Texier – Amir
Cold Sun – Dark Shadows
Perry Leopold –
Ghedelia Tzartes
Alcest
Dirty Projectors
TV on the Radio
Chris Hinze Combo
Sufjan Stevens
No Neck Blues Band
Nihilist Spasm Band
Musci & Venosta
Magna Carta – Seasons
Paddy mcAloon – I Trawl the Megahertz
Nicola Conte – Rituals
After All
Terry Reid
David Axelrod
United Bible Studies
Sam & Valley – My Favourite Clinic
Faun Fables
Badgerlore
Rex Holman
Necks
Marispol
Pentangle
Fugs
Barn Owl
AMM
This Heat
Sun City Girls
Caravan
Soft Machine
Various – Far Out Bossa
Liverpool Scene
Pantaleimon
Richard Youngs
Volcano the Bear
Daniel Padden
John Fahey
Beirut
Kings of Convenience
Animal Collective
Panda Bear
Pocahaunted
Bird Tree
Feathers
Eddy Detroit
Son of Earth
Janek Schaefer
Jandek
MV & EE
Micah P. Hinson
Microblind Harvestmen
Pekka Streng
Castanets
Devendra Banhart
Jana Hunter
Family
East of Eden
Quintessence
Grahame Bond
Larkin Grimm
Funki Porcini
Caretaker
People Like Us

The Way of the Samurai

‘I only went out for a walk & finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in’.
(John Muir)

Could this be a definition of Scottish zen? It is stating something that we are all aware of, but we could not state it as succinctly as above.

There has been that Scottish – Japanese link in the arts & culture for a while. Even thinking back to those superb novels by Alan Spence & the current Pastels/Bill Wells/Tenniscoats/Mono/Domino relationships going on today, Glasgow has opened up to the Japanese collaborations.

I would hope that this is a 2 way process.

Alone in the Dark Forest


Sometimes it does you some good to lose yourself in a dark wood. You know the edge of the forest, where no-one ever goes, because the sun never reaches it.

You feel the temperature drop suddenly & it is damp & you can smell the dampness & see how the frost is never far away from this hidden, inaccessible, corner.

I often search out these lesser known tracks. Today I did so & found myself lost & directionless. I could not see above or through the forest & I kept ploughing deeper into the dark places.

The stillness & the peace & quiet make it all worthwhile. It can be difficult to find this solace anywhere.

I am reminded of the desert, when a few wrong decisions, a couple of wrong turns or guesses can put you in mortal danger.

On a personal level, I really do not worry overmuch, as there is a celestial navigator steering the ship.

Bummer Road

Remember that time when you recorded all those Grateful Dead live versions of ‘Dark Star’ back to back & played them lying on your hammock in the sun on your mp3 player?

It happened to me again as I had collected a large number of Matthew Valentine & E. Elder’s space ragas recordings & I began to drift off & out & in. Truly clutching the kosmik.

Fleshmarket Close


Busy week on the library front that included a trip to Edinburgh & Stirling on following days. Jetlagged.

It has been such a long time since I have been in the home of Scottish government. My time there was brief & spent at the National Library of Scotland for a meeting.

It was such an odd day that began with me attending the funeral of one of my friend’s father.
On the train out to Edinburgh, I had great intentions of a) catching up on my reading for the meeting or b) listening to some new sounds mp3-ed on my moby.

I did neither of these, because the chap sitting next to me taking photos, from the window was obviously foreign & possibly, arab. Being a ‘weegie’, naturally I started a conversation & being a ‘smart ass’ this was totally in Arabic all the way from Falkirk High to Waverly. The journey passed in the blink of an eye.

The capital has changed so much since I was last there. They have built a castle on a hill.(haha). I was busy looking for all the Rebus locations & yes I did cut through Fleshmarket Close.

On the return journey, I was with 2 colleagues from the meeting, but it was not all library chat, we discussed gardening over a cruel Scottish summer & the position, value & cheap cost of having an allotment in today’s credit crunch year. Once again the journey was painless.

As I changed trains at Partick, I met another of my schoolmates, Dennis & I filled him in concerning the earlier funeral & the fact that another schoolchum has mentioned him name at the funeral.

I do not wish to make a big thing about the latter coincidence, but it was so ‘Magnolia’.

The journey out to Stirling was by fast car, but it is one of my favourite journeys on a clear day, which it was. It is no wonder one of my cousins lives on this route. Probably for the same reason as her, I feel very comfortable & at home in this area between Drymen & Stirling.

Looking at My Wierd CD Collection I had to Laugh Out Loud



Two titles of recent vintage that spead the smileys include:

• The Last Time I Took Acid, I went Insane
• We Should have Smoked the Salmon First