Hope I dry, before I get home

You buy your ticket in February, you look forward to hazy sunshine, quaffing cold beer in the sunshine and listening to your favourite bands.

Yesterday, some of those things came true. Having seen the Somme-like conditions from Glastonbury on the TV on the Friday night, I smugly thought than god Knowsley Hall wouldn't be as bad.

On Saturday, I attended day one of the inaugural Knowsley Hall festival - which is conveniently only 30 minutes from my home. The main attraction was certainly to see the Who again, 12 months after I last saw them. Also on the bill were personal favourites of mine the Coral, Pete Wylie and Shack.


Pete Wylie was in good form, as usual he treated the crowd to his stunning wit and repartee - as well as a number of bonafide classics, Story of the Blues and Better Scream still sound pretty good today. Next up was Shack, a band that I normally think are fantastic but last time I saw them I was less than enamoured.

This time though they didn't disappoint - despite being handicapped by a clearly inebriated front-man. I thought I would have a couple of pints of what Mick Head had obviously indulged in. Alas there was a seemingly never ending queue, (see picture below)that saw us wait for just under an hour to be served. This put paid to thoughts of catching up yer-man in getting pissed - eventually I managed to get two lukewarm pints of lager, that would have to suffice. I think the festival was obviously sponsored by the temperance society, given the level of service.

While I was in the queue for food and drink, the Thrills and The View came and went - they sounded OK, I don't mind the Thrills, but I could certainly could have done without the View - not my cup of tea at all, derivative shouty bollocks!

The final two acts, were the two I had set out to see when I bought my tickets back in February. The Coral were in good form and after a break to recharge the batteries, they are back with a soon to be released album, from which a number of tunes were given an airing.

One of which In The Rain - brought about the first spots of rain, that thankfully didn't last too long. The rain that is, as the song itself was pretty good.

It is amazing that a band so young have so many recognisable hits that the crowd were familiar with - a greatest hits in the future would be a worthwhile release.

It was too good to ask for I suppose given the weather of late, as the final band the Who took to the stage, the heavens finally opened. The Who played a set reminiscent of the last time I saw them, with only a couple of the songs in the middle changed. It was good to hear the classic songs live again, with my particular favourite Won't Get Fooled Again sounding brilliant as ever. Given the worsening conditions I decided to leave during the final songs of the encore of songs from Tommy.

It was a brilliant festival and certainly one I'll look to attending next year Apart from the lack of bar facilities and the rain, I can't complain, a good day was had by all.

The Blair years

Ten years and eight days after he became prime minister, Tony Blair has finally confirmed, what most of us expected, that he will step down in the summer.

In a week when David Cameron branded his government as the "living dead", he has put an end to uncertainty and has finally seen fit to move on.

It was never meant to end this way, back in 1997 when he became the youngest prime minister since Lord Liverpool, he and the UK was seemingly on the crest of a wave.

The mood was fairly positive in the initial stages when he was swept into Downing Street on a tide of optimism to the tune of "Things can only get better".

He was elected with the promise to restore trust in politics and politicians, as well as transform the ailing services of the country.

I have posted previously about my feelings towards Blair - mainly on account of his failings. But it would be wrong not to highlight some of his successes - which there have been some.

On the plus side you can highlight the national minimum wage, as well as constitutional reform such as devolution in Scotland and Wales and progress in the Northern Ireland peace process amongst the plus points. He has made some headway with the NHS, but not enough to satisfy a number of doubters.

On a personal level, he is the only the Labour prime minister to have won three successive general elections and to have served more than one full consecutive term.

The continuation of the Conservatives spending plans and a continuation of a number of PFI initiatives have certainly not been well received. Though the biggest mistake was to be seen as being too cosy with George Bush in the aftermath of 11 September. Though he seemed to revel in the statesmanlike attention he was receiving, yet failed to understand the reaction he was getting at home.

The military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan - split public opinion and divided his own party - he suffered notable rebellions from the backbenches and within the cabinet. By trying to become a world figure, he increasingly appeared vain and arrogant and out of touch with the domestic issues.

The final months in office have been overshadowed by a police investigation into the alleged sale of honours. Though this is not an isolated instance of sleaze - this unfortunately has been prevalent throughout his time

Blair's valedictory speech today alluded to mistakes but typically he skirted around them and milked the applause for its worth. History will probably view him favourably in the fullness of time.

Sadly things did get better, then they went back to as they where.

When did life start getting so serious?

I have spent the last few weeks pouring over numerous financial documents, having numerous conversations with people trying to sell me their “best” deals – I’m jaded by the whole process and at this point I can just about summon the energy to do anything else.

The re-mortgage should be finalised next week…hopefully. On top of that I have had to contend with changing my electric/gas providers as the “budget deal” I had with my current supplier Scottish Power has just run out - they haven’t dropped their prices recently… and they have said they won't be either in the future.

There must be some central database with my details showing that my deal was up – this week has seen three energy companies knocking at more doors trying to sell the same old cobblers products.

Lucky for me I have the Internet and I can do the price comparisons – the older residents of my street are not so lucky and they may be taken in by these sharks.

I took great delight in taking the wind out the guy from NPower’s sails when I rendered his spiel obsolete, by having the facts I’d garnered form the Internet to hand – which I quoted back to him.

While I’m on the subject why do they always start with the same line of “I’m not trying to sell you anything,” when they knock at your door, when the end of a successful conversation on their part involves taking away my bank details to process and plunder.

I have also had to change my home insurance, take out a new mortgage/income protection policies - added to this I now have a critical insurance policy that I have just taken out.

With pay day well over a week away the Clark coffers are certainly a little threadbare to say the least – though if I was to cark it tomorrow – my estate would garner untold riches according to small print in the critical illness policy.

The same small print also says I wouldn’t covered in the event of suicide in the first twelve months – which is fine as I have no intentions of topping myself.

But in twelve months time, if a pile of my clothes turn up on a beach near here – don’t worry, I’ll have claimed my untold riches and buggered off somewhere hot!

Magnetic Wonder The Apples In Stereo – New Magnetic Wonder (Yep Roc/Simian)

It is rare that a band can produce an album that is retro focused, but still tinged with a dash of innovation. The latest release from the Apples In Stereo is that rarefied album. This is not so much a release - it’s more a work of art.

Multimedia releases such as this may dazzle when they are unleashed from the cellophane packaging but when played often they can disappoint. Repeated plays of New Magnetic Wonder confirm that this is style and substance in equal measure.

This is the band’s fifth official full-length release and the first on Elijah Wood’s Simian Records label and given the wealth of content on this album, it is no surprise that it’s the first release in five years. The tardiness can be forgiven, considering the quality on display here.

In the days when downloads are in the ascendancy and physical formats in terminal decline, it is a joy to know that something as lovingly put together as this exists – it is certainly something worth taking the trouble to go out and purchase.

There are twenty-four tracks across the album - some with traditional verse-chorus song structures as well as examples of the newly devised musical scale the Non-Pythagorean composition number 18.

The genesis of which is lovingly detailed on the enhanced section of the album. Robert Schneider is certainly the living embodiment of a genius in rock - proven by his pushing of the boundaries here.

The songs are what matter and they are certainly up to standard with the dazzling array of extras.

The opener Can You Feel It? - is a real call-to-arms which explores many of the musical ideas replicated across the album. Even the heckling of the audience at a gig in London get a look-in and are duly credited on the sleeve notes – “anger due to Apples’ overly loud guitars”.
The summery nature of Energy is replicated throughout and it is a hallmark of the retro styling throughout – with lashings of sumptuous Beatles and Beach Boys harmonies.

The vocoder is put to use on Same Old Drag. This song suggests a love of ELO, which is ok these days, now they have been fully rehabilitated as a guilty pleasure. At times this has something of the French band Air about it too – which is no bad thing either.

For me the pick of the album are the tunes 7 Stars and Radiation. The epic 7 Stars sits neatly in the middle of the album – most bands with a paucity of material would build up to a tune like this and make it the focal point of the album.

Radiation is the last of the traditionally structured songs and it has to be on top of its game considering what comes next. Four songs from home the epic Beautiful Machine Parts 1-2 & Beautiful Machine Parts 3-4 are a truly majestic end to the album and are songs that evoke thoughts of the Lilly’s at their finest.

If this is not enough and this leaves you wanting more? After 24 tracks (16 full tunes and 8 incidental pieces) - you can take the trouble to go online to download two extra tracks The Apples In Stereo Theme and Atom Bomb. These are slightly throwaway tracks but are still worth checking out.

The list of credits is endless and that isn’t surprising given the truly expansive nature of the release, neither too is the dedication to Syd Barrett who would no doubt have been blown away by some of the ideas at work here, had it been released when he was carving out soundscapes and pushing back musical barriers.

Here’s to seeing what direction turn next time out, but for now don’t download this, go out and buy it, as this is truly has something for everyone.

Time flies

Today is a notable day for me, as it is the tenth anniversary of me leaving the job that I had worked at virtually since I'd left school. It was only supposed to be a stop-gap, before I moved on to the next job - six years later I was still there.

This great leap into the unknown felt like the first day of the rest of life. After much soul searching, I finally decided to plot an alternative career path - doing something that I really wanted to do

I had worked for Customs and Excise for nearly six years at the time of departure – one of those years was spent with metaphorical cigar-in-mouth - given the fact that I had put in my application for voluntary redundancy in the January of 1996 – 27th March 1997 was the last day that I could leave under this arrangement.

I had two options I could have followed. Having dabbled a bit in freelance journalism – it was my intention to go to University to study and then get a job in the profession.

Option two, was to follow my passion in music and study at LIPA in studio technology. I choose option one and with hindsight it is certainly the one that I'm hapy with.

The summer after my departure was probably one of the best, as I lived off my redundancy package - living a bohemian lifestyle as it were - well as much a bohemian lifestyle can be, living at your parents.

I undertook a short lived acting course, as well as a number of the more fruitful songwriting courses, that culminated in my first 'solo' live performance at The Picket in Liverpool. Basically I dossed about before going to Liverpool John Moores University in September to study Politics with Sociology.

On reflection, I can't believe how much I have crammed into the last ten years - I have lived in a foreign country (Finland) completed my Degree, MA, a teaching qualification and other varying qualifications, I have worked in the profession that I wanted to when I was at school (but I had dismissed the chances as being not for me). I have worked as a journalist and weirdly I'm now teaching the subject. My private life has been a little hectic too - falling in and out of love on numerous occasions - many times the unrequited type too. I have even moved away from Liverpool after a short stay in Stoke I'm now living in St Helens.

Here's to the next ten years, having crammed so much in the last ten, I would settle for something a little less hectic.

There are places I remember

Today was my first trip to Goodison in 2007 and given the fact that my Nan died on the Thursday - the pilgrimage was all the more poignant.

My Nan was 91, and had been in poor health for the last year, though there is a shock when someone passes away - it was certainly something that had been expected.

For the last few years my Nan had lived in a home in Crosby, as the onset of Alzheimer’s had made it increasingly difficult for her to live on her own. Before that she had lived on Goodison Road and in the surrounding areas most of her life - the house was a stone throw from Everton Football Club.

Saturdays would invariably be spent at either of my two Nans and in the days that I couldn’t attend the game on my own I used to go to soak up the action outside the ground and would occasionally buy a programme.

It would then be back to my Nan’s – gorge myself on the piles of cakes and sweets provided and listen to the game taking place down the road, unfold of the radio.

St Luke’s Church, which is tucked away in the corner of the ground, is a place that is something that I hold dear. Not only is it a place where the rampant commerciality of attending a modern day football match is kept at bay – I think you can get a mug of coffee and a scone and still get change out of a quid. You can also enjoy the prematch atmosphere amongst fans that span the decades and no doubt have some interesting tales to tell.

It is also the church, which my Nan attended on a Sunday, and where she will visit for the final time on Thursday. It is also the place that my parents married back in January 1970 – FA Cup third round Saturday. Apparently we were drawn away that day…and lost!!!

So with the talk of a move to a new stadium in Kirkby for Everton, it will be something I will look upon with deep sadness and regret as Walton and Goodison Road hold a special place in my heart and not just because of a team that play in blue.

Sup up your beer and collect your fags

There has been a spate of bands recently getting back together some for the right reasons and some to boost the pension funds for one last hurrah. It was pleasing to see that Crowded House have reformed, though this is one reunion that is tinged with sadness. As the original drummer Paul Hester will not be around, having committed suicide in 2005.

The news to today that The Jam are getting back together is something of a shock, given that Paul Weller had previously said that his kids would have to be destitute before he considered it.

The news is all the more baffling given that Weller in fact will not be joining the band for the ‘reunion’ - it will be bassist Bruce Foxton, Rick Buckler and AN Others instead. Worryingly they have a 20-date tour and album ready to roll.

This has got to be the most ill conceived idea that I have ever heard in my life. As the years have rolled on, the dignity of the other two has lapsed year-by-year, from the whingeing biography Our Story, through to Rick Buckler joining The Gift – a Jam tribute band!

The Jam is Paul Weller, and though Buckler and Foxton have some claim to the legacy of The Jam – this would in effect be pissing all over that legacy.

I don’t think I’ll be buying a ticket or the CD – I wait eagerly as to what Weller’s response will be.