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Can’t claim any greater knowledge about punk besides the usual. Mohawks, three chords, leather jackets with pins, big ass boots, and interesting hair colours. Granted, most of my punk exposure pre 1994 came from documentaries, movies like Dudes (1987) and that dude that got Spocked in The Voyage Home. Oh, and The Young Ones. So when MTV aired 21st century (digital boy), I recognised the vocal…

The cruelest lesson of life is that of achieving a goal, and then having it taken away from you right away. All that effort, pain, and sacrifice, gone in a snap. It’s not uncommon for this to happen to relationships and it’s understandable: we might overlook red flags because of several factors which might be concomitant. A few of those red flags: bad relationship with the parents, intolerance…

I never felt at place at Bar One. Then again, I never felt at place at the pub at Trent Building in the University of Nottingham either. Not too keen on the ambiance of student bars, even back when I was one of them. Dudes got rowdy, drinks weren’t that good, and the food was passable at best. Still, Ivan was a dear friend and he was on a budget. He came from Ukraine and was doing this high…

“I can see my breath” whispers Rowina just loud enough so we can hear her in the front over the noise of the car’s heating. We are somewhere between Aberdeen and Glasgow, in the dead of the night, returning from a Radiohead concert. Spirits were now down as it was somewhere around 3 AM, the coldest hour (or so I’m told). Theresa told them they packed light clothing and now they were paying the…

I never understood the Nirvana comparison. I can’t find a single Bush song that sounds like Nirvana at all. I think it was more of that one criticism one person makes popular and everyone hangs to that train of insults just to fit in. As someone who was bullied for 8 straight years, I understand and sympathise. Just as grunge was fading into nostalgia, Britpop acts flourished and got the…

24 hour party people is a film that is very close to my dearest memories. Michael Winterbottom’s post-modern, half-truths, half-myths film feels like the intertwining of two different stories: the rise and fall of Joy Division and their gloomy music and the rise and fall of Happy Mondays and their drug-fuelled Madchester defining sound. A movie I saw at the Nottingham Savoy a few weeks after…

The concept of duality is always a fascinating theme for musicians. Many bands have dived head first into exploring the contrasting nature of human nature. Pink Floyd  did with Poles Apart. Billy Joel with The stranger. Nine inch nails could write a thesis on the subject with The Fragile. Bat for Lashes’ sophomore album, Two Suns, grabs the concept of duality and weaves an intricate study.…

Back in 2008, I’d still venture to mixup records and scavenge the discount bins. I’d been doing it for the previous 4 years and I had some duffers and some keepers. Since I would commute for 2 hours or so, I needed fresh music everyday. One day in July of 2008, a massive waterspout hit near my job and I had to stay for a while, waiting for the flooded streets to recede. I was listening for the…

I’m not lazy, I just procrastinate. A lot. Been told many times by many types of experts that it’s either a) “being on the spectrum” or b) “adhd, here’s some meds.” Whatever is the truth, the first time I heard The National was at a concert. It wasn’t a surprise gig, I already had my ticket from months ago. Contrary to the idealised version I wrote a few months ago, I went in blank. A friend had…

I can’t fathom coming up with a debut album as perfect as Silent Alarm. Granted, the strength of their singles and the Little Thoughts EP surely gave the album a strong foundation to build up upon. Whatever the case, Silent Alarm is a perfect album. Great mixing, crisp production that still allows plenty of range, and a brutal rhythm section with Matt Tong and Gordon Moakes. Don’t get me wrong,…

I’ve been a part of many fandoms in my life. Star Wars, Star Trek, and Dr Who were my baby steps, and I tend to check them out from time to time, but I no longer posses and encyclopaedic knowledge; they’ve expanded too much, beyond my interest. I can’t claim to be a massive Bond fan, but my parents were. They loved Connery, tolerated poor old Lazenby, had a ball with Moore’s goofy adventures,…

I don’t know the rubric for “making it”, it’s something that surely depends on the goals one sets up. When I started writing, I knew people who only wanted to use music reviewing as a way to “work their way in” and push their own music. Others were chancers with no clear artistic intent, only wanting a career on gatekeeping. BNP supporters too. Then there were the people who only wrote about…

Contrary to most bands mentioned on this series of posts, The Stills are a bit of an oddity. If you ask me to choose only one song from a band that I can clearly admit it’s my fave, I’ll struggle. Not so much with The Stills. Don’t take me the wrong way, the Canadian indie band had a healthy three album run and have many good songs, but it’s this obscure song from their debut EP, Rememberese,…

“Whose alarm is it?” a friend asked on a recent trip to a spa town. We were having dinner after a long drive, the stereo was blasting some music, and she asked again. “An alarm is off, check your phones”. “It’s the song” another friend replied. I sipped from my cup silently. They were both right. Soul meets body is an urgent song. “‘Cuz in my head there’s a greyhound station where I send my…

By now you’ve realised I was a loner growing up. Nothing but music and whatever idea I had in my head, notebook and pencil/pen on hand, ready to write something I would eventually matter of factly discard. Contrary to other grunge bands, Soundgarden clicked right away with me. It was the impossibly weird tunings. It was the crunchy distortions. It was the eerie bass work. It was Chris Cornell’s…

Although mostly known by the massive hit Here’s Where The Story Ends, The Sundays are a band that contains multitudes. It’s a perfect summary of what it is to be human. Reading, Writing & Arithmetic has that jangly guitar, making it a college-radio friendly box of delights. Blind is mostly understated, like a quiet moment of intimacy that will be long forgotten once the fighting begins. Then we…

Hey, half a year of writing every day. First and foremost, thanks to everyone who has commented, liked, shared, and even derided this project. I started the year on a very low point in my life and…kinda still there, but feel writing is helping me inch upwards. Any day above ground* and all that, I guess. I love writing. It can be something formal like an email, something with research involved…