May 2009 Archives

It seems that someone has managed to infiltrate my dreams and commit them to digital video...

Click the picture above to access the online shop where you can buy the physical version of EchoNET. The unique thing about this release is that it comes with a FREE DVD version that is encoded in 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound. This is the only place where you can get that version and most importantly the surround sound edition, as I will not be releasing that on this site.

...it is no secret. I've been following that band since the TNT album from 1997 and I have never been disappointed by any of their records. There always something there to keep me interested. The band has a new album out called Beacons of Ancestorship on 22 June and there are two free promo MP3s being circulated (legally) to get you in the mood. Tortoise are great. I wish I could be in Tortoise. (sigh)

http://www.pampelmoose.com/promos/Tortoise-High_Class_Slim_Came_Floatin_In.mp3

http://www.thrilljockey.com/assets/freedownload/Tortoise-Prepare_Your_Coffin.mp3

The following review has come in courtesy of music website Jamendo:

Music to My Ears wrote:

Very Laid Back, Chilled, Calm Album
8 out of 10
15/05/09
A very laid back, chilled, calm album. Filled with lovely,beautiful filled, rock, instrumental, guitar, progressive, musical tracks. That are produced, composed and performed to a high standard. Excellent album, to relax, sit back and simply enjoy, as a great background music, or even to meditate along to.

Excuse the punctuation there as many of the listeners at Jamendo are from the European continent with English not as their mother language. If you want to go over to Jamendo and leave a review and rating, head over to:

http://www.jamendo.com/en/album/45201

I remember the Manic Street Preachers. They used to be good once, when I was young, when they had melody lines that burnt into your brain like "Motorcycle Emptiness" and "A Design For Life". Now it seems the band has inadvertantly caused controversy with its new album sleeve.

Journal for Plague Lovers (Art by Jenny Saville)

Apparently, the powers-that-be at Sainsburys will be selling this CD in a plain sleeve just in case the artwork might cause offence. I balk at this, I really do. Obviously, some sensitive soul sees blood and gore instead of having any appreciaton for artistic technique or the education to understand the art in front of them. They obviously have no experience of art and I wonder what they'd make of some of Lucien Freud's darker pieces. Meanwhile, the hypocrisy continues as they will probably be selling copies of Nuts and Zoo with boobs, bums and wobbly bits on show, and copies of women's weekly shlock mags that have headlines like "Boyfriend raped my baby" and appear to the rubbernecker instinct in us.

It is plain to me that we live in a childish, stupid society with no common sense or ability to process visual information at a higher level. Arsehats!

It's nice when people compliment you. I've had two compliments in just as many days for my music, so I am feeling flushed and giddy as a lovesick schoolgirl. I give enough of this stuff away, so it is very heartening when someone takes the time to thank you. It's is a rare thing and I know it takes a lot of effort to pen nice words, so it always is a good thing when you get a little virtual slap on the back.

Dom Langham of France wrote:

"Thanks for your music.You're a great dreamer, composer and musician. I like this.
If you have a moment, take a look at my website : http://www.myspace.com/yin_yang_music
I'm a musician like you... but i don't have your talent.

Thanks a lot,

Dom"

And thank you Dom for taking the time to write.

Over at the Cakewalk Forum (which is all about audio recording software SONAR), someone heard my music and said that "you got skills". I think that in modern parlance that this is a good thing. I think the young folk was complimenting me. I am honoured. I Got Skills...

(I think I might use this as the name of my next compilation album! Though I think it sounds more like something from the movie Napoleon Dynamite. Still it makes me smile at the thought of having some sort of skills - this is almost as good as the time when I was in Los Angeles and buying a guitar at Sam Ash near the Virgin Megastore in Hollywood and the goth girl behind the counter was really getting off on the fact that I was a bona fide genuine Brit who played guitar. I could have gotten off with her. Even the Missus said so!).

For those of you who can't wait, here's the album to listen to in full:

Before...

After...

Well I finally managed to put the pieces together to finish another CD of material and I bring you EchoNET. I've designed the new artwork and just need to fabricate the new CDs for processing and worldwide electronic distribution. The thing about the new CD is that it will be packaged with a free DVD that contains the 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound mix of the album, so you can immerse yourself in the audio experience. The album is just over 45 minutes long and features 14 tracks, most of which have been previewed on this site in one form or another.

I'll post proper links when it is all complete and ready for purchase.

So you are probably walking around looking like Michael Jackson on a shopping spree in Dubai, resplendent with face mask and a prescription of TamiFlu, wondering if which of your family members are going to buy the farm during the great Swine Flu Pandemic of 2009? Well Swine Flu isn't a new phenomenon, here's an information film from 1976 which follows a similar slant to what we are getting today.

Does anyone remember the great Swine Flu pandemic of '76? No, neither can I. All I remember was the blazing hot summer and having my right arm in plaster up to the shoulder. Summer 2009 is going the same way...but no arm in plaster, right?