#fourthpage

2020 has been an interesting place to be already. A really great time was had in France and Belgium with the equally great Christian Vasseur. We have recorded most of the concerts so I’m sure there will be something to hear soon.

Fourth Page is thundering around in its usual slinky manner, currently in the process of putting together some more shows for this year having already played in Brum at the wonderful Club Integral Midlands branch.

What? has it’s debut show coming up in Hay-on-Wye on 20th March, very much looking forward to that.

The solo record is going on a pace more on that soon, and a session with an old friend very soon....

First off Fourth Page are hitting the road in a few weeks, with Carolyn and Paul just back from Russia and Peter’s forays into Bollywood music can’t wait to be part of that thoughtful melting pot. The first date is at Cafe Kino in Bristol. 

https://www.4thpage.com/

https://www.wegottickets.com/event/484365

I have been busy with the new Quartet ‘What?’ comprising of Sonia Hammond, Gerry Gold, Rod Paton and myself. We have recorded an album which will be released next year. Which has an other worldliness even if I do say so myself.

Even more news I have officially started a new solo record, a few weeks ago I went into the very wonderful Baby Microbe Recording Studio in Brixton with Andrea Rocca at the helm. I was joined by Peter Marsh and Tom Clarke and we laid down the skeleton of something that feels very special. More on that soon.

Finally I am pleased to say that Christian Vasseur and I will be making our dulcet tones known in parts of France and Belgium again in January, very much looking forward to that too.

I hope all are well in Binaryland.

Back in the late 80s early 90s I was at art school in Falmouth. I was already taking the tentative musical steps towards wanting to make music a big part of my life. I was a raw hungry, more arrogance than ability, young man with eyes on technical ability and the need for respect. I still had the they must listen to me for I am playing childishness that comes at that time (see the Elvis film Jailhouse Rock to see a good description). Fame and fortune beckoned it was my right so I thought.

Then a series came on the TV charting the Russian New Music movement. It followed how musicians in the then USSR were rebelling against the establishment, and the control they had over creative thought. These people were taking real risks just to make this music. One programme in particular 'Letter from Volgograd', depicted a place where the pollution was so bad it would shorten your life and the living standards were close to barbaric. Really not the advert that the CCCP would have wanted you to see. The people there had no way out, they couldn't just nip to Paris and start afresh. This was it. So what did they do? They created some of the most beautiful and exciting music I had ever heard. It was their means of escape. The place where their spirits could lift. Their defiance was inspiring . They weren't endlessly making demos to try and get signed and wanting to be rock stars. They made this music because they had to. Suddenly I realised that I was approaching this music thing all wrong. It took a number years for it to fully sink in but once it did it changed my whole attitude towards music. As one of those meme things said 'If the path ahead of you is clear, you are on someone else's.'

Fast forward a good few years and I am standing on a doorstep ringing a bell for the door to be opened by the man who made those films, Leo Feigin, having as a member of Fourth Page released a record on his label. It was quite a moment. So for me when I get on that stage at Oto that young hungry man (that sat in front of the TV all those years ago) will understand that the path he took musically was the right one.

Some concerts coming up in different guises. 

Sonia and I will be playing at The Globe in Hay on the 26th April as part of concert being put on by NAWR.

I will be playing in Vienna on 5th May at the aNOther festival as part of the Borderline improvisations alongside Franz Hautzinger (trumpet), Johannes Kretz (electronics), Wei-Ya Lin (viola) and Huiseung Yoo (violin).

Also I’ll be playing with Fourth Page as part of the Leo Records 40th Anniversary evening being held at Cafe OTO in London on 6th June.

https://www.cafeoto.co.uk/events/leo-records-40th-anniversary-show/

One final thing, I’ll be heading back to Lille in October to record with Christian Vasseur.

Hope all are well in binary land and maybe catch some of you at one of the shows.