you.make.noise.i.make.sandwiches.

#24 NOBODY BABY BUT YOU & ME.

2012-01-14T23:24:00.001Z

For a while I was worried about feeling too strongly for someone. I was worried that the feeling wasn't mutual....I don't really have that worry any more!

My trouble has always been that I've been notoriously picky, but when I find someone I think things could work with - I get in too deep. I know I may be optimistic, but these days that's just less of a worry in my mind. You don't realise how good a relationship is until you have a bad one. I had a bad one, so now I can appreciate the present...

Last night I went to meet Sarah's dad. He was performing in a play he had written at the Talisman Theatre in Kenilworth. Judging by Sarah's over-thinking and rushing she made sure I met him before the play began.
I can see why! A first impression of your girlfriends father as an ugly step-sister in tights and make-up is certainly unique!!
Regardless of the tights and make-up, I enjoyed myself I must admit. The play was funny and fair play to her father for having the guts to play a role like that...earns some man points indeed.

After the play we stayed for a drink or two and then headed home. A relatively calm evening all in all, but a nice way to meet her dad - at an event where he was prioritising his performance over interrogating his daughter's boyfriend!
And to be honest I was nervous beforehand. It's quite weird - the Ricoh Arena was a gig infront of nearly 10,000 people and I wasn't nervous, just eager to get out there. But last night, I experienced nerves for the first time since January 2010 where we played on the pitch at the Ricoh at a Cov vs. Blackpool match. Strange how it differs!!

Me & Sarah are really going well. I won't jinx it by saying anything, but things just seem to be running very well indeed.... AND, I made a breakthrough with the songwriting. More to follow on that topic....

(Ps - that picture is not how we usually act!)

I'm Currently Listening to Penny & The Quarters - You & Me

Until the next,
SM. x

#23 FEELIN' GROOVY

2012-01-11T00:21:00.002Z

Remember the girl I mentioned in the last post? Something tells me it's now a lot more public!
It's a good thing; a really good thing.

I haven't felt like this since the beginning of, yeah, 'that' relationship. But this time there's a difference, things are a lot healthier. I feel like I can trust Sarah not to mess with my head, I genuinely don't feel too worried about what she might do...she's on a new level altogether.

I'm not going to get over my head and name all the good things about her, I've learnt the dangers of putting girls on pedestals...no matter how tempting it may be.
For now, let's just say things are going great and everything's really healthy. I'm enjoying all the time I spend with her, and I can't wait to see how she fits into my life - music and all............

On the topic of music, my songwriting has taken a break for a couple weeks. One reason is that I've written enough now for the album...the other is Sarah. So many new, exciting thoughts and feelings are occurring that I find myself struggling to channel it into music. I'm not worried, this always happens when I'm put under new situations and environments.
I'm just waiting until I eventually feel settled with Sarah, then I know the songs will come bursting out.
But until that stage I shall carry on getting to know her, trying out new things, and generally enjoying life on an ever-decreasing pocket of money.

I'm Currently Listening to Fiction Factory - Feels Like Heaven

Until the next,
SM. x

#22 YEAR COULD END ON A HIGH..

2011-12-26T13:01:00.001Z

I love Christmas.
It just happens to bring out the better side of people, regardless of what else is going on.

I've done a lot this week, been out a lot this week, drank a lot this week. But it was all building up to Friday - The Tones Xmas gig at The Albany in Coventry.
The show was great, you'd find it pretty much impossible to fit anyone else in the room - and that's after we had taken all the furniture out! Half of the set was new material that had never been played live before, and it went down a treat - a really successful night that run smoothly.
I took to DJ'ing afterwards, a lot of people commented about the good songs being played - yeah, I love my music taste! ha.
The night finished on a high as well. I ended up getting with a girl that I least expected to. I've been talking to her for a few weeks now, but I always saw her as too reserved and naturally beautiful to do anything...turns out I was wrong about the first part!

Now, at Christmas, it seems like a really cool time for us to get to know eachother that bit more...so that's exactly what we're doing. I'll be taking her out on a date tomorrow, nice and relaxed - Esquires and Bella Italia. Always focus more on the conversation than what we're doing.
As for the second date, I'm going to take her to the Sea Life Centre in Birmingham, it's a little more exciting than the usual places...and she won't know about it till we get there, added bonus!
I'm going to be honest, I do really like her. From what I have found out, She's a beautiful girl who thinks about things a lot before doing anything - she's nice to everyone and a genuine person, just what I need really!

I really think this could be a game-changer.

Anyway, I'll leave you with that....Until next time!

I'm Currently Listening to John Mayer - Slow Dancing In A Burning Room

SM. x

#21 PARTIAL SUNSHINE OF THE FLAWLESS MIND.

2011-12-18T02:02:00.004Z

I whine on about 'spontaneity', but everything has some form of routine.

A routine I've noticed in my day-to-day life is something that occurs in my old friend darkness, during the...sounds of silence.
It involves me, in complete isolation, lying in bed. (No, it's nothing sinister)
I turn my laptop on, load up YouTube, Spotify and iTunes...and the world of music is at my finger tips. This is the one true time of day where I can listen to music, soak it in and really feel it's affects.
Headphone's on - Volume at 100% - complete isolation.

I tend to sway towards mellow songs at this time of night, lyrics triumph over the music.
Favourites seem to be Simon & Garfunkel, The Smiths, Crowded House and then some form of early soul/blues tunes.
I've noticed the effect this routine has upon me; it put's me into a really calm state of mind. A chilled optimism like everything is running in harmony - a status quo.

If only this feeling stayed 24/7, it seems to be the part of the day I looked forward to the most! Thats bad isn't it - I look forward to isolation, haha.
Truth is, I have OCD when it comes to music, some call it being a perfectionist - other's refer to it as 'slave driver', so at this time of the night I'm my own DJ. I don't have to judge the crowd's reaction, just my own.

No-one can ever be a better DJ than yourself, mainly because no-ones know's you better!
If I could stay in this state of mind constantly, I would be a great person.
Music is my therapy, it affects everything in one way or another....

By the way, on a completely random note, here's a great photo of Paris I found and edited...

I'm Currently Listening to Sammy Davis Jnr - Mr. Bojangles

SM. x

#20 BLUE VALENTINE.

2011-12-17T15:58:00.001Z

This song - wow.
Blows me away....

SM.x

#19 SUBSTANCE.

2011-11-28T00:54:00.001Z

When I was with my ex-girlfriend, I wrote 3 songs in 3 months - a steady effort.

However, since everything ended just over a month ago I've now written and completed 6 new Tones songs.
Six songs that I'm pretty certain will all have a part to play both at shows and on the album.
I won't lie, they aren't ecstatically happy songs. But for once they truly have meaning... I think that's more important than anything else.

I don't know whether I should reveal their names, but I guess this is a private blog so here's a couple:
- Let Me In --- A mellow song with an uplifting chorus and an optimistic outro. This was the first song I wrote after the breakup and probably the most poignant. The verses seem to describe the one-sidedness of relationships whilst the chorus looks at the regret you feel for getting in too deep with a bad choice of person. Meanwhile the outro seems to conclude the feeling's of the song as a whole... Yet I can bet that for many people they will listen to it and just think it's an uplifting 'poppy' song. That makes me smile.

- Daydream --- This is all about sarcasm. It follows the path of a guy being told about an unfaithful girlfriend, yet it's done from her perspective. You really have to look at the lyrics to realise what a bad thing she's done...because obviously from her perspective it's very watered down and smoothed over. The only hints are in the few lines leading up to the chorus. This song always makes me grin, I mean look at the irony of the title! There was no daydream, just the one in her own head.....

- Victoria --- I don't really speak to anyone called Victoria, that's why I used it in the song. Obviously it's the description of the girl mentioned in many of our previous songs, but to use her own name would prove immature and unbearable! Victoria takes place as a couple are breaking up, it's right there in the thick of it. Me and Loz do a 'call and response' trick in the chorus (I guess he takes on the voice of the girl, haha). The verses go on to map the thoughts of the guy as he sits there, the girl has stormed off and he's left alone...sitting down, trying to piece things together. The song doesn't really show any remorse for Victoria, she's put over as a hard-skinned, self-centered female who can't face reality. At least that's what I was aiming for!

- Girl With The Golden Crown --- Don't get your hopes up, this might not appear on the album...it's a bit more experimental I reckon. This is my first attempt at writing a 1st person story line in chronological order. Every other time I've thought of trying this it seemed too cheesy, but when I was playing around with the chords an idea just seemed to fit in with it. The Song (not about a girl going to the dentist) but is infact about a girl who, growing up, had the 'golden crown' of innocence and naivety - But through time she eventually lost it. She got complacent with herself and tried to run before she could work...The compliments of her innocence had changed her and gone to her head. The song is from the perspective of her boyfriend, the first line takes place at 8pm at the start of a night out, the second line takes place at 3am as he stumbles back into his house...alone. The rest of the song seeks to piece together what happened in those several hours, what did she do, when did she do it, and more importantly...why?!
I haven't finished this, I'm only half the way through with it. I reckon I'll sort out my English Coursework this week and then focus my mind on the other half of the song...the first time I've given a lot of thought to a song to be honest.

I guess this is what the song's are trying to say! There's an underlying
meaning to them, it's always about someone in particular....

There are other new tunes as well.
I guess what I'm trying to say is: I was optimistic about the album before I became single, and now I'm bursting. I was worried about cliches, but these new songs have depth that I've only managed to interpret through what's happened in the past few weeks and cliches are no longer an issue, I think.

I want people to listen to the songs and read into them whatever they need to. After all, a song should act as a best friend; giving you advice and helping you through your own individual situation. But I know what these songs meant to me when I wrote them, I scribbled them down when I was in different moods - and recently I've found that some of them can transform even my own moods. I'd love for them to have such an effect on other people as well, only time will tell I guess!

Obviously I'm over this girl now. I'm thankful that I managed to get so much out of the relationship's bitter ending - I've learnt more about emotions and observations, you can see that in the songwriting. Now I'm more open to the new experiences that will shape the next songs....

I'm Currently Listening to Crowded House - Don't Dream It's Over

SM. x

#18 START OF WINTER - NEW BEGINNINGS.

2011-11-22T00:24:00.003Z

The Danni situation has not crossed my mind in a while - that's a good thing.
Last week I tried to be the bigger person and sent her a message saying 'we can be civil' ... I didn't get any reply, I can almost laugh sometimes at the immaturity.

In other news! For the past fortnight there was a new girl on the scene. To cut things short, things seemed promising...but then she chose to drunkenly get off with another lad. A recurring trend with my choices, it seems.
So I doubt that me and this girl will go anywhere in the future.....

Music - We have 5 new songs! The pressures been put on us now to get all the material for the first album, give it another week and I'll be able to take a break from songwriting and focus on recording instead.

By the way - I need a new leather jacket....

I'm currently listening to Bon Iver - Perth

SM. x

#17 I WAS BLIND, NOW I CAN SEE.

2011-11-08T18:19:00.003Z

This post could easily turn into a rant - i'm going to try to avoid that.

I won't go into much detail about this 3 week (so far) rollercoaster, the abuse I received, the lies and rumours about me that I heard about, the past stories about her that I got told. To sum things up, I found out an awful lot of slaggy and disgusting things about Danni, and through all of this she continued to stick the knife in until I have a period of feeling awful every single day through one way or another. Be it from abuse, her friends messaging me, threats, or her cosying up to a lad who she knows I hate and she doesn't like that much herself.
It's all pathetic....drained every thing out of me on a day to day basis, yet something new that she's hidden seems to always come out. It's sickening.

Tinie Tempah @ LG Arena, Birmingham.

Luckily I've had the right sort of people around me who spoke common sense and helped me see her for who she is - rather than her deceptiveness.

I won't write here what they said; mainly because it's too truthful, ALOT of people spoke their mind, and much of it was very close to the bone. I won't lower myself to her level.
At the end of the day, she's done everything wrong and more....she now tries to hide it and move on and expects me to hide away whilst she does so. You never learn from cruel mistakes if you always hide away from the consequences - it defeats the point.

I know her for who she is, I know her feelings towards what she did in this situation....I find it disgusting
Some day soon I'll realise how lucky I was to not still be with her, obviously that day is yet to come - once you love someone and make yourself that vunerable, it takes an awfully long time to get back to how you were.

"Have you ever been in love? Horrible isn't it? It makes you so vulnerable. It opens your chest and it opens up your heart and it means that someone can get inside you and mess you up" - Neil Gaiman

I'm a realist. If I say I'm in love - I genuinely mean every word. That's what is making this so much more difficult.
Especially knowing she said she felt the same, yet she can move on with a lot more ease. Does that show once again what type of person she is?
Slagging off her mates behind their backs, telling lies so she doesn't have to face the truth, and then just moving onto the next lad....... When I look at the facts, it does make me a bit relieved - obviously hurt at the same time, I gave that girl all of my trust and she blew it to pieces and more.

Anyway, I don't want someone that low in self-respect, bitchy to others, two-faced airhead to dominate this entire post.
On to MUSIC.
Last week we supported The Specials at the Ricoh Arena. It should've been the happiest week of my life I'm sure - yet obviously other things overshadowed the event.

Nevertheless, the boys did good! The arena was sold-out with 10,000 people and our set was a success. Being on such a big stage made me realise how much I want this on a regular basis, but also how comfortable being on a massive stage felt. We always seem to perform better on bigger stages, a really active band.....so if this album goes down well next year, I'd like to add a lot to my experiences so far.
The future's looking really exciting right now musically - with the album being recorded, the label behind us all the way, more and more new songs sounding better and better, things are on a role and pace is just increasing.... I can't begin to imagine where this could be in a couple years! I hope anyway.

Life is busy. Music is great, the situation of that spiteful girl is disastrous.

"You will never know true happiness until you have truly loved, and you will never understand what pain really is until you have lost it."
I was in love with the side of her she wanted me to see. As I dug deeper and she relaxed and showed who she really was - it was someone completely different. I can understand why she'd want to hide that part of her self from other people, it's pathetic and cruel.

I'm currently listening to Primal Scream - Movin' On Up

"I was blind, now I can see. You made a believer out of me.

I'm movin' on up now. Gettin' out of the darkness. My light shines on."

SM. x

#16 FIRST LOVE.

2011-10-23T01:08:00.002+01:00

Numerous times have I thought about writing a post in the past couple days. But I thought I'd deal with life directly before I try to document it.

I am now single.
This was not out of my own doing, it was done by the girl who I thought was something different than what she turned out to be. I saw potential in something which has now turned out to be not very nice, quite the opposite of my thoughts in fact.
To make this very simple - Danni cheated on me and then ended things whilst wanting to 'still talk'.

Although at first I was in a haze of 'why', I've now realised that this couldn't have been done by the girl I thought I loved. I gave her everything and she was too immature to appreciate it.
In some ways I'm glad things are over, because in hindsight she was not a very nice person.

Atleast now I don't have to try and justify her cheating on me, I can accept her for the heartless person she is!
Overall I'm putting this down under the heading 'First Love'.
Yes, I've been in relationships before..but this is the one where I meant the word 'love' every time I used it.
This is the relationship that taught me what it's like to fall in love, I guess it also taught me that its unwise to feel this unless the person feels as strongly towards you. She simply became complacent and a person that I'm happy is no longer in my life.
I tried my best to be the best boyfriend possible, I did everything I could for her....and she treated me like this. She didn't appreciate how much I cared for her.
Yes I know I've written many songs about love, but until these last few months I've been relatively inexperienced in the power that the four-letter word can have. This is an experience that, although being extremely painful, will help me to mature in both myself and my songwriting - whilst helping me to realise in the future which girls are a waste of time with.

Now it's time to move on. Unfortunately the memories live on in songs I've written, one of which will be played at next week's Ricoh Arena gig supporting The Specials :/ ...that'll be an interesting few minutes. It'll also be hard visiting all the places we use to go to because we did so much whilst we were together, even all of my favourite songs I handed over to her.

This has been an unpleasant few days, and I know I'm not fully over her, but I will be in time. Because now I know that regardless of how I feel now, she was not the right girl for me - Danni turned out to be a poisonous adolescent, but I loved her so much.

Talk to you soon,
SM. x

p.s. I'm going to leave those previous posts below still on the page. Maybe more people can realise the dangerous joys of naivety, ...they only last for so long.

#15 IT'S GETTING BETTER ALL THE TIME.

2011-09-05T01:46:00.000+01:00

I just realised that two posts ago I was discussing the benefits of being a single musician; and in the last post I was updating everyone on my new relationship status...what a hypocrite.

Things still haven't changed, i'm as happy as ever..I think she is aswell.
What I keep finding interesting is how she knows the band comes first - and lets me keep it that way! She's happy to settle for second best, that's something that I know she doesn't deserve. But there's nothing I can do to change that.
I try to understand and over-analyse everything, but I'm completely puzzled when it comes to this. How can someone do that?!! She continues to amaze me

Danni isn't like any other girl I've met before - there's something different. I don't fully know what it is, but I like it. I love it.

It's bizarre.

Changes the way you see things....

SM. x

#14 END OF THE HOLIDAYS; START OF SOMETHING NEW...

2011-08-28T13:21:00.001+01:00

I've done it again!
My last post was mid-July, and now it's the end of August...my fault again, sorry.

It's been an interesting few months though.
Everyone always goes back to education in early September and wishes that they had 'done more' with their summer holidays. For me I don't think I'll have that feeling...Yes, I may have done more with my free time but over the course of the last month I found something that poets write about, musicians make songs about, and most people search desperately for......LOVE.

My previous posts all seem a bit lost, with a fair share of depression! The mind works in strange and not always logical ways, mine in particular. But since meeting..hmm, lets call her, actually no - enough of the codenames. Here name is Danni.
But yes, since meeting Danni things have changed..for the better. She's the first girl that I've actually given the chance to be a part of my life, the first girl to meet my parents, the first girl for a lot of things. And at no point during any of us did I think that I had made a wrong choice with her, that's a first for ME.

I always thought that in order for me to feel how I do now; It would take a few years and a different city. But in fact, it has happened right now and in Coventry. That's rare.
And I wouldn't say it's naivety that makes me feel like this because, let's be honest, I've had my fair share of experiences in this department. I reckon that although people may believe that this is some form of young love that is more like a phase, they'll change their minds the further into the future we go...
My main mountain to overcome now is songwriting. Over the years I had become increasingly good at writing bitchy love songs. Not depressing songs, there was always a slight bit of optimism in there, but mainly something came crushing down. It doesn't sound very nice but when you disguise it with a nice upbeat melody it works! Quite ironic too.
But now I've met Danni there isn't that gap in my love that I had exploited for songs in the past. Things are almost too good! So when I try and write songs nowadays I want them to be happy love songs. The annoying thing is that this isn't what I usually do, so recently it's like I've started songwriting all over again! Finding the right words to say is really hard when you're writing songs in a whole new category. And time is not on my side as work begins on the album next tuesday.
Anyway, she is good inspiration..I'm sure of it. When the album comes out next year, there will be atleast a couple songs on there inspired by her. I'll leave it to you to figure out which ones!

She would kill me for uploading a photo. Maybe that's why I did it. Haha.
As you can tell - she's also a dancer.

The weirdest thing is how quick everything between us happened. I was speaking to her only 5 weeks ago arranging to go for a drink. Our first date was on the 24th July..I think. A drink in Starbucks followed by a meal at Bella Italia..the best that Coventry has to offer, haha.
Then it was 5 dates that week, same the week after, and from then on we've spent pretty much every day together...and it still only feels like I've just touched the surface!
That's a good sign. I've got no problem introducing her to anyone I know..be it musical or family. If anything, I'm proud of introducing her. Long may that continue.....

She's in Cuba right now for two weeks, gets back on Saturday 3rd September. Then we've been together a month on the wednesday, for most people that's nothing..but for me that's a miracle! haha. What to do what to do.....

MUSIC - We've been demoing recently. We start properly in the Studio with the Grammy-man himself Mr. Roger Lomas this coming Tuesday...I'm excited! Got a few new song ideas that I want to lay down on record, most bands have a raw first album and mature by the second..but we've been writing this album for a while now and the difference between the first song and most recent is incredible - the maturity in the songwriting and the ideas is hugely noticeable.

To sum things up with Danni, there's a quote from a film called "As Good As It Gets" :

“…I might be the only one who appreciates how amazing you are in every single thing that you do, and … I watch them, wondering how they can watch you bring their food, and clear their tables and never get that they just met the greatest woman alive. And the fact that I get it makes me feel good, about me.”

That sums it up pretty well.

I'm currently listening to The Black Crowes - She Talks To Angels

I'm sure we'll speak again soon,
Franz Ferdinand. x

#13 MAY/JUNE/JULY?

2011-07-13T21:34:00.002+01:00

All I can say is, sorry! From the 27th May till today (13th July) my blog has been dormant...my bad.

A lot has gone on, as you would expect...but where do I begin?

Firstly, this will hopefully not be a blog containing largely advanced words and an over-detailed interpretation of every little detail!
I realised that when you over analyse things you just depress yourself! So recently I've been trying to judge things in a more simplistic way, it seems clearer....

MUSIC - The band is cool.
Since we've got the backing band onboard we've done 3 gigs. they've been a triumphant success! The third one was the Main Stage at the Godiva Festival in Coventry, UK. We played Saturday afternoon and they had 75,000 people through the gates on that day alone...here's a minute teaser that gives an insight into it: http://vimeo.com/26054982 it was a really cool gig.

My own music tastes are still expanding...that whole French music phase was cool, well - Belgian if you count Jacques Brel.
I keep returning to the real good stuff though, I'm talking The Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel etc.. offbeat music is cool but at the end of the day the true classics are classics for a reason - you just can't get sick of them!
My favourite lyrics can still be found in 'America' by Simon and Garfunkel...

"Kathy, I'm lost," I said, though I knew she was sleeping" and "Let us be lovers we'll marry our fortunes together"

I love the first line because it just sums up songwriting as a whole. Trying to say something everyone knows but in a sort of indirect way. The 'I knew she was sleeping' but gets me every time. Like there's this guy sitting on a bed next to a girl and he finally shares his true feelings and insecurities..even though he knows she's asleep and can't hear. It makes you wonder why did he say it at all? I just love the whole feel of that. Its only a few words but they're perfectly put together.

The record label say our sound is Modern Retro, that phrase always amuses me. Our sound seems to be like the old retro stuff back in the 60's (everly brothers etc) but because of our ages it has a modern twist, like Luke Pritchard meets Paul Simon! Haha.

FASHION - Undoubtedly, the further into Music you get the more you have to think about what the hell you're putting on yourself. I'm not going as far as being Gok Wan's apprentice - but there is an element of that to it unfortunately.
I will never admit to stealing fashion tips off Alex Turner, but..... you get the drift.
I'm trying to find new ways to stand out on stage without looking like a complete bell-end, (a meat suit is out of the question).
Recently I wore a black turtleneck jumper to a show, Godiva Festival Photo , it worked and got ourselves in a few newspapers, even if I did look like the Cadburys Milk Tray Man!.

GIRLS - So much goes on even I can't remember! That sounds awful, but I mean it's more of a rollercoaster with a couple of loose hinges.
The women who I use to talk to I stopped talking to, and then at one point they all came back into my life!
I don't know where to go so I'm going to try to stick to being a single musician - they same to have all the fun.
ALTHOUGH, A large glimmer did come into my life at the weekend. I was at a party in Leamington and met someone. Another codename, hmmm, let's call her Susie Q..haha.
We stayed up talking until 7AM and slept next to each other on a little tiny sofa in the front room of this house. I hate to use the word 'romantic' but.... .
Now I am in a dilemma however, I've been known to be notoriously picky with my choices. It's almost a sickness.
Yet..'Susie Q'..ticks every box I look for, and there are a lot of boxes trust me!
She's beautiful, funny and clever. It sounds like a great catch right?
But wait............ She's 21.

That's just over a four year difference! Age aside, we fit together perfectly. She surprisingly gets my humour and..lets just say I can put up with hers!
But the age thing is in both of our heads...it still don't know whether we're going to be able to overcome it.
She's hesitant because of it - I can understand why.
I have a date and a gig to persuade her. I guess I'll know which way It'll go by 23rd July. I have truly put all my eggs in one basket for this one. Since I met her I can't seem to find other girls attractive! That's a crime.

I'm currently listening to Coldplay - Hurts Like Heaven. It's a new song of theirs and I'm hoping it's on the album..

I'm sure we'll speak soon,
Frédéric François Chopin. x

P.S. The exams seemed to go fine.

#12 THE WORLD IS YOUR APHRODISIAC.

2011-05-27T00:38:00.002+01:00

This is weird. Its half 12 on technically the morning of an exam yet I feel a sense of optimism regarding myself.

What has been occurring since my last post then!
I've become obsessed with Roald Dahl...again. I caught a radio program in October of last year called 'How Roald Dahl Shaped Pop' or something like that, and to be honest it was one of my favourite programs I've ever listened to on the radio.
For some reason it popped back into my head last week and I scouted the web for a download which I eventually found. People I really rate like Kate Nash talking about how Dahl inspired her song 'Mariella' as well as others.
Inspiration is hard to come by. If you could bottle it up and sell it you'd make a fortune. Unfortunately you can't, but the books of Dahl aren't a bad alternative!

In other news, I'm past half way through these dreaded exams. They've all gone pretty well so far, SO FAR.

I bought a pair of tickets the other day for Bon Iver (Justin Vernon) in Birmingham on 9th November. For those of you who haven;t yet witnessed good music - one of his songs was sang by 'Birdy' called Skinny Love and got to number one the other month I think.
Birdy, why call yourself that? Her real name's something like Jasmine Van Den Bogaerde.

I've played L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. by Noah & The Whale way too many times these past couple weeks; it's unhealthy.

Kate Nash is my guilty pleasure; it's true. She has a great style of songwriting and can really set a scene for escapism (like Dahl!).
It always puzzled me why she never realised the first song off her second album, 'Paris' as a single. I don't just like it because of my fixation with Paris! The idea behind it and the song itself is my favourite off the album, that's all I'm saying.

I'm currently listening to Bon Iver - Calgary

That's all folks,

Mike Teavee. x

#11 ON THE EDGE OF A CLIFF.

2011-05-15T23:37:00.000+01:00

I had intended to post this a few months back but din't get around to it till now. I post this now on the eve of my first exam, the lost night of my exam virginity if you will!

So...on my bedroom wall, there are two passages of text that I look to for advice from time to time.
The first is a poem by Rudyard Kipling (not the man who makes cakes) called 'If'. This poem has diverted me from a lot of bad decisions in the past..
here it is:

IF you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

There you have it. My favourite poem.

The next feature on my wall is a speech written by Mary Schmich called Wear Sunscreen. It was an article in her column back in 1997 in the Chicago Tribune. The speech was then converted into a song by Baz Luhrmann.
Once again, it's advice on living life.
If you're like me and prefer to listen to something rather than read it; have a listen to the song: Baz Luhrmann - Everybody's Free To Wear Sunscreen
There are funny parts in places, but the underlying message of living without regret; that's the greatness of it.

I'm currently listening to The Beatles - In My Life

Until we meet again,
SM. x

#10 STUDENT BY DAY, JUDGE & MUSICIAN BY NIGHT.

2011-05-11T18:15:00.001+01:00

It's been sixteen days since my last post! Only seems like a couple days.

I have to keep busy anyway...otherwise the voices tell me to do wild things.

Let's go from the end of April, we played at a wedding in Draycote Hotel. The groom was the owner of a club in Coventry; very nice guy...even when he was put in prison for armed robbery. Cov shall be cov!

Anyway the gig was a good one indeed. We had Roger Lomas mastering the desk and Horace from The Specials playing bass...just the right ingredients to make everything click. I especially liked our dressing room, situated in the hotel's kitchen and storage area. No televisions to smash, just a bag of potatoes and numerous plastic trays.
Still, at least we are at a 'wedding' on royal wedding weekend, the other details can be skimmed over.

This was then followed by a week at King Henry VIII, one of the last I will ever endure.

Skip forward to the first weekend in May and this was mainly spent with the Tile Hill lot. Including a plan to go to the cinemas which got pulled half hour before the start of the film, leaving me with two tickets to see the horror movie Insidious.

Oh! Then we travelled to 2-Tone Central to see The Ripps, mainly because I got a support slot for a good friend of mine Alex Warburton.

I like The Ripps...they'd easily be one of my favourite bands in the area. They have a newer more pop-orientated sound reminiscent to some 80's stuff and The Cure; but I like it.

However the band were dreadfully let down by the sound on the night. The bass sounded like a metronome and I swear only the bass drum had a functioning microphone! Got lots of the main vocal but barely any guitar either; awful mix.

Leap forward once more to this Tuesday, the 10th of May. I had been invited to be a judge at a talent competition in Warwick Arts Centre (the only time I had been there was to see Jimmy Carr).

The event was an inter-school type of affair, with 14 Coventry schools taking part and ran by the Coventry Jubilee Rotary Club; an organisation that reminded me a bit of the Freemasons.

Usually I'd turn down the offer as I'm very good at improvising criticism, but annoyingly picky when it comes to quality of talent.

I caved in anyway...and was thankful that I did! The standard was high indeed, apart from a few awkward parts of the night like me having to give constructive advice to a female Oboe soloist and a dance troupe performing a medley from Hairspray.

The night included a meet and greet buffet in the dressing room, as well as a brief conversation with the Lord Mayor and capped off with a bottle of wine; obviously not for me...!

We gave the first place to Coundon Court, they were on form. Performing a medley from the Lion King it was like a proper professional production that could've fitted in the West End.

With the second place award being given from me to a young band from King Henry VIII....no favouritism, I promise!

That's a brief overview of the past week or so; i may have missed a few things...I'll re-post if I have.

And now to leap forward once more into the present. Tomorrow is my final full day in compulsory education. We leave on Friday morning and have the first exam next Monday. I shall be crying on Friday - tears of joy!

Then everyone's off to park to get drunk.

Only joking; it's King Henry's remember.

Anyway, my mock exams aren't going the best...some teachers do not understand humour:

And then after exams my schedule consists of the studio, a few massive gigs, and then starting at Bluecoat in September. I decided to take English Lit./Lang, History, Psychology, & Music Technology.

I'm off now to brainstorm practical jokes and general annoyances to perform in the coming days.

I'm currently listening to Bon Iver - Blood Bank

Jesus still loves you,
Justin Vernon.

#9 CHEF-D'OEUVRE.

2011-04-26T13:51:00.000+01:00

I decided against the 04:48 post this morning. Common sense? I'm afraid so.

The whole cryptic thing I was doing on the last post didn't work out. Back to Square One now.
It's been a while since I mentioned any band news on here, so here we go....
Things are GOOD. Extremely busy however, as free time is now becoming very scarce indeed. We got given some exceptionally favourable news last week; only trouble is I can't say on here! (Yes, this is meant to be a journal - but this is top secret until announced I'm afraid!) ...you can come to your own conclusions.

We're practising an awful lot recently, but I can see a constant improvement in the other lads as they adjust to the gruelling 8-hour sessions!

As many of you know may already know, my dream girl has always been Zooey Deschanel. An american actress who you may have seen in films like Yes Man, Almost Famous, 500 Days of Summer etc..... She's even in a quirky pop band called She & Him.
Well, a young lady called Cheyenne drew me a picture of Zooey Deschanel and gave it to me the other night. I must say, I was amazed at how good it actually was! For a 17 year old to draw this is very cool indeed......

So thank you Cheyenne; this now takes pride of place on my bedroom wall!

I'm currently listening to Ed Sheeran - Wayfaring Stranger

Until next time,
Franz Ferdinand.

#8 CARDENIO.

2011-04-21T04:48:00.006+01:00

"To blog or not to blog..."
This is the question that has occasionally popped into my head ever since the dust began to gather upon my previous posts.

What is the subject of this blog? ...No despair or sadness I'm afraid folks!
Instead, the theme is "nouveau commencement" as the garlic-eating, accordion-playing people across the water would say.
Because of that thing I love called 'spontaneity', I have foolishly decided to write this blog now - at 04:48AM on a Thursday morning. -_-
The past stories I have told through this medium of an online journal are, well....in the past. And that is where they shall stay.
New horizons now! I hate to be so sketchy with the details, I feel like I have cheated you out of an informative post. However I do not have any updates so far! ...I have a feeling I might do by my next post though, possibly on Sunday night (or 04:48AM on Monday morning if spontaneity creeps up on me again).

Oh, I recently priced up my future Paris trip! (For those of you that do not know, I am planning on living in Paris for a month...possibly in the summer of 2013).
I have not confirmed my 'travel friend' (Inbetweeners voice is appropriate) but at the moment it looks like it may be Miss Emily Cramp, you can see her blog at: http://alotoflove-alotofblood.blogspot.com/
As I was saying.....I have so far priced up that for a return eurostar ticket to and from paris, plus accomodation for four weeks in a studio flat nearby Central Paris it will cost roughly £1800 in total for 2 people. Making my first dream in life possibly for £900!
And there's spending costs blahblahblah.... oh, and learning the language! But as Sherlock himself would say "Elementary, my dear Watson."

Define beauty? Try this for size...

au revoir, et a la prochaine
Charles Nepveu.

#7 PIGEONS OF DRAMA.

2011-04-12T12:28:00.001+01:00

I haven't posted in a while...judging by the last post, no surprise.

Anyway, what have I been doing recently?

1. Taking advantage of the summery weather, enjoying a little sing song in the park while the sunlight was out.

2. Attended a christening. Well, 'attended' is quite a strong word. I strolled up to the doors of the church and saw everyone outside waiting. Just to find out that they had just gotten out and I'd miss the service completely! An extreme 'fashionably late', I'd say.
3. Went to a Pigeon Detectives gig last night with Georgie. The band was better than expected, a lot of stage presence and a catalogue full of 2-minute belters. I even liked some of their new stuff, a crazy thought for a band with a third album!
I was particularly impressed by Matt Bowman's impression of Roger Daltrey. Boisterously swinging the microphone around, often getting extremely close to the bass player's head.
(I remember reading somewhere that those exaggerated movements on stage gave a band stage presence. Thats why The Who worked so well, Daltrey was doing stuff with the microphone, Moon was going mental on the drums, Townshend was doing all of those exaggerated windmills and Entwistle was the calm in the eye of the storm. Interesting....)

That's a brief outline of my weekend. As for the drama; it has been entwined with the Sally Cinnamon series. Now it is just one big screenplay!
Because of these recent updates, Sally Cinnamon is now known as 'Jenny Beckman'.

I'm currently listening to Ash - Girl From Mars

Jesus Loves You,
Steven Demetre Georgiou.

6# HAPPINESS IS A WARM GUN.

2011-04-08T14:28:00.001+01:00

Update:

1.) Me and 'Sally Cinnamon' are no more.
2.) That is all.
3.) Goodbye.

Currently listening to Cat Stevens - Wild World

Colour my life with the chaos of trouble,

Oscar Wilde.

#5 TAKE IT EASY.

2011-04-06T21:00:00.000+01:00

I'm not in a good mood to write this blog........someone grab me some zinc!

To anyone reading this, feel free to comment with 'ways to relax'. I don't like my serious side!
That's the story of the day really, I need to chill - hard to do with hot weather like this :)

Had an interview this morning at Bluecoat Sixth Form. Been given a conditional offer, easy conditions though...so looks like I'm heading there for two years! As I'm planning on doing Law at University, I've had to slightly alter my choices in order to be in with a chance of going to one of the Russell Group universities. Now I'm doing: English Lit/Lang, History, Psychology and Music Technology.

Usually topic: Sally Cinnamon? I can't comment on that I'm afraid! It's a little rocky....self-inflicted however. I need to show her we're on the same wavelength, feel free to post suggestion ey.

Only the special ones will be able to link these photos together.

I'm currently listening to Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues

Catch you later,

Jacques Brel. x

#4 LA DOLCE VITA.

2011-04-05T00:00:00.000+01:00

I'm writing this blog just past midnight...so bare with me.

Most of you here will have read my previous post about so-called 'Sally Cinnamon' and be interested to hear it's sequel; unfortunately I have to disappoint you. Give me a few days!
Needless to say things are interesting on that front, the big question is 'what is this?'....Usually i'd say it's too early; but this is hardly a new relationship, more of a rejuvenated one with more hope. Ever seen 500 Days Of Summer? I reckon that captures the essence of this.
There is always that idea in the back of my mind, the idea of 'the game'. You know the one. Distance brings closeness, mysteriousness is the way forward. All of that rubbish.
I can't see myself going down that route, to use the almighty cliché - what will be will be!

I've made an ever-expanding list of things I need to do before I get too old. A premature bucket list almost! Who knows, I might not be alone.... (no order)
1. Live in Paris
2. Visit Barcelona
3. Visit New York
4. Watch the film Submarine
5. See either Paul Simon or Art Garfunkel
6. Do a gig on a rooftop
7. Write a song abroad
8. Play at a major festival e.g. Glastonbury/Reading...
9. Have a spontaneous month, see where I end up.
..............There are many more I'll bore you with at a later date.

The beacon of drama in school is still glowing strong. However it's turned into a more discrete form....awkwardness. I shall take it in my stride, as Local Natives would say 'Who Knows, Who Cares'.

Things with the band are very interesting indeed! It's going to be a busy few months without a doubt, no scrap that - a busy couple years! The new songs are sounding great, now I just want everyone else to hear them in their best form.....live.

Anyway, night all. Hopefully I'll have part 2 of the Cinnamon series very soon; i hope it's interesting for you and I both. Who knows...

Au Revoir,
I shall leave with this quote from Oscar Wilde:

"It is only shallow people who do not judge by appearances. The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible."

Oscar Wilde - the 19th Century's very own Shallow Hal.

I'm currently listening to Jacques Brel - Ne Me Quitte Pas

Aesthetically,
JFK. x

SHE'S GOT YOU HIGH.

2011-04-03T13:20:00.000+01:00

Well, an eventful weekend to say the least!
I'd say a full U-turn has taken place since my last post yesterday morning.... the ongoing school dilemma/problem is as current as it was then but nevertheless..yesterday was a good day!

The saturday morning lie-in is a cherished period of my life that means as much to me as a good cup of tea, intense i know.
Anyway, I had arranged (with half hour notice) to go into town to meet alex and his girlfriend danni. btw - i urge you to see Alex live, great voice!
I thought i'd be different for once and treat myself to a Subway. (diversity is one of my strengths, as is sarcasm).
Then, i had a call from a certain girl who i dont want to say the name of, in this blog - i shall call her Sally Cinnamon.
You see, there are some things that are just too private to say!

Anyway, me and so-called miss Cinnamon went for a drink at Bar Eden. A great bar in cov city centre for a good chat.
After a couple of rounds of drinks things were going well; as they always do with her. I can't talk to her too often, my jaws hurt afterwards with all the conversations!
I told her about the things I hold closest; the things i'm going to do in the next couple years. e.g. living in paris for a while, visiting barcelona again blahblahblah......

Things were great. Then i walked her back to her house in Earlsdon. My jaw aching more and more with the varied topics of conversation.
We got near her house and the spontaneous date was 'sealed with a kiss' you could say.
An unexpected encounter, but i suppose those are the best kind. Now where do we go from here i wonder....
(I'll save that for the next blog...)

I'm currently listening to Kate Nash - Paris

I'm glad we had this talk,

Theodore Roosevelt. x

DRAMA.

2011-04-02T13:43:00.000+01:00

There is always drama.
It looks like I have been in the middle of it the past day however!

remember that saying about how secrets always come out eventually?...could not be more true!
Even though this is a journal there are certain things regarding this specific topic that I dare mention, so I won't. Recently i've adopted the 'i don't care' mentality regarding other people's opinions; especially if they're negative. This isn't about constructive criticism though...i welcome that.

Things have exploded on the school scene the past day or so. in some ways, i'm looking forward to leaving that place behind next month! I always wondered about leaving everyone there behind, but recently i've been thinking a bit more about it. and once again i have decided to use my 'i don't care' mentality. onwards and upwards ey! New is good, i think.
Out of new things comes new experiences. I'm not a big fan of 'comfort circles'.

Anyway, all of these cryptic clues about the events of the past day have not enlightened you at all i bet!
So i'm gonna go and find solace in an array of medium-paced music by Foals, Local Natives, Simon & Garfunkel, Jacques Brel, The Smiths, Cat Stevens & The Maccabees.

I'm currently listening to Bibio - Lover's Carvings

Keep on keeping on,
Bill Clinton. x

BRAND NEW.

2011-03-31T00:08:00.000+01:00

This is the first blog I have tried writing...depending on its success, it might not be the last.

Blog: "to read, write, or edit a shared on-line journal."

The word I am immediately dragged to is 'shared'. I can't stand these people who find it their job, no...duty, to tell everyone the goings on of there daily routines. I just can't see how generic phrases like 'it's sunny' and 'so tired' can be of any use to anyone else except the person who type it in the first place!
Because of this...I will try my best to keep my blog on topic, a task which I may have already failed at.

So many things happen day-to-day and a good 90% of them are gone from my memory within a couple weeks, so it looks like I'll be using this for my ramblings and random outbursts of meaningless (yet hopefully still on topic) ideas and opinions.
My main reason for doing this is to rebel against the all-to-accessible world of Instant Messaging. (BBM for you lucky few).
That's what's messed things up these days - accessibility.
You hear a song and like it, next step is to listen again. Nowadays it requires 5 seconds on a little site called Google and the song is being played through your speakers; probably with numerous links for a free download. And people wonder why stores like HMV are dying out....

But i suppose, in some ways, the music industry has its very own form of natural selection ; an evolution process. The bands that make it are the ones who have the new ideas to work the system! ...or have a lot of luck with a good batch of songs.
The example I'm drawn to is Arcade Fire. I've seen videos of these guys playing to a crowd of a couple thousand and being in the middle of the audience with megaphones! Or videoing a song with the whole band in an elevator.
Spontaneity; that's where it's at! Or even better...well thought out spontaneity.

It is for this reason that I'm a keen follower of La Blogotheque...a website and youtube channel.
Here it's all about spontaneity, mainly in the streets of Paris. You have Bon Iver playing Skinny Love to 20people in a Parisian flat (a song which, to my disappointment, has nothing to do with Justin Vernon falling in with 'anorexic chicks', as Paul Heaton would say) and then Vampire Weekend or The Kooks playing renditions of their catchy tunes whilst roaming the streets of France.......brilliant brilliant.
I'll leave you with that.

I'm currently listening to Phoenix - 1901

Your good friend of friends,
Ronald Regan. x