hail to the underdog

last night, as i finished up Starman Omnibus Vol.1 and read James Robinson's lengthy and enlightening afterword, i was reminded of a quote

i wasn't entirely sure who had said that 'history is written by the winners' (i guess it could have been Shakespeare), but it seemed entirely appropriate as i read the rambling thoughts of Robinson, as he regaled his journey that lead him to the acclaimed run on the '90's incarnation of Starman and the paths he had crossed

and as thought of my own embryonic ideas for a potentially acclaimed comic stories came to mind, and if i will ever actually get round to fully developing my fantastical whims, i also gave thought to how many other stories of creatives have also gone unheard, all those also-rans and ne'er-do-wells that never got to claim the spoils of victory or tell their tales


and it was this mentality that drove me to write my piece on Flo Kirton for the Enfield Advertiser, to give a voice to someone on the other side of the music industry, since your Qs and NMEs are already clogged up with the bands and artists that have made it  and your 'hot tips'

but what happens when the 'next big thing' doesn't get 'big'?

i want my columns to give a different scope from your usual music journalism, of course in a local paper i give a lot of time to local bands, it would be stupid not to, and there are many deserving bands knocking around Enfield, but so much is made of this fantastic future that we're living in, where more and more is available to us, that i want to expose the cracks in this ideal... just because the NME is telling you that 'the next big thing' recorded all their demos in their bedroom, it doesn't mean that Joe Goddard will be knocking down your door wanting to turn you into a popstar just because you own a PC and a little bit of music software

and you'll also find me dipping my toe into the other end of the spectrum, with a recent column on Cheryl Cole and a work in progress on Kanye West, and possibly a sideways glance at Justin Bieber.

but keep your eyes peeled for pieces on my agenda covering The Freewheelin Troubadour, 9BlinD and Deeds of the Dying and a look at the recording habits of Those Handsome Animals and Akira the Don, who recently unleashed a killer mixtape in conjuction with Joey 2tits as he builds towards the release of his second album proper.

 Pyke by Akira The Don stream only
available on the mixtape 'the kidnapping of Akira The Don By Joey 2tits'

Frank Sinatra once said.....

'I feel sorry for people who don't drink.

When they wake up in the morning,

that's as good as they're going to feel all day.'

i've never really done quotes on this blog before, i was just gonna give you an update but then when i found this quote as i was skipping through other blogs recently, it felt quite apt

it is apt because on friday night i probably drank my own weight in alcohol, weighed everybody else that came to me housewarming party and then also drank their weights in alcohol too

i arose for a bacon roll at some point saturday morning, i also crawled to the door while wrapped in a duvet to greet a bemused jehovah's witness

yes, friday night was my idea of 'not having too much' since i'd got Bushfest that i needed to survive on saturday and because i like my house and am only just getting used to it and didn't fancy seeing the whole place spinning just yet... if it did spin i have no recollection of it, much the same as i have no real recollection of the striptease i supposedley performed in the garden and falling asleep in the shed.

but time and tide wait for no man, and before my body was really ready to, i was off to the Bush Hill Park Tavern to prepare for the evening kicking off.

now i know you're gonna wanna know how it all went, and trust me, i am working on a write up of it, but it has been a super busy week for me, and i'm still not properly hooked up with internet access at (new) home so it's been hard to find the time and means to dedicate to it, which is why you also haven't had any blog posts since last thursday, poor form i know, but it couldn't be helped

so i think today goes some way to make up for that, you've had an update on why i have been m.i.a, you've had a quote, and, as promised, here.... help yourself to some downloadable (and relevant) music....

Eels - That's Life (Frank Sinatra cover)