Swung-By

We played Oxford on Wednesday, and London on Saturday. London was a really great alldayer. Trash Kit are my favourite band at the moment. We played a sort of mixed set with Michal and Lisa, playing two Corey O's songs (the closest I've come to seeing them live so far, sadly) and five or six of ours. Lisa played a drum pad thing [pictured], and I think it really suited us. We're gonna try it as a permanent thing, with our friend from Oxford playing it (but it's not really for sure yet so I can't say his/her name out loud).

Husbands were really good, Drunk Granny were great. It made me feel great about being on Local Kid. I wear my sticker with pride. Sometimes I think we don't fit in, because we aren't really very rocking, at all, but then most of the time I think that doesn't really matter, because we have other things in common. The best thing about our set was when Michal forgot his bit in My Kaleidoscope, and we stopped and looked at him. And then everyone clapped. And then Roz said "that's not the end", and then Michal played his bit and we finished the song.

Gross Overs

Anyway we played a gig on Sunday and it was okay. It was our first gig with just Roz and me, not including living room gigs and things. We played:

My Kaleidoscope
The Way
Internal World
Cool Science
Mysterious Guitar
Fluffy Clouds Of Joy

We played with this band Trash Kit and they were really good, their myspace doesn't do them justice right now. We spoke to the bassist and she was really nice, Michal said she used to be in Electrelane, which is cool, cos she seemed pretty much like a normal person. Some of our songs don't really work well with just the two of us, like Cool Science for one. It means I have to play guitar and sing for ages on my own, which is cringey. We have some new songs and hopefully in Oxford (Wheatsheaf, Wed 26th Aug) we'll be able to chop and change a bit.

In other news we had a practice with a drummer but nothing will come of it cos she is really busy. It was fun though, and we are looking to maybe try with some other people and see how it goes. If you know anyone....

In other news I've been listening to Perfect Fit by Clues a lot. Clues are a new band with Alden from The Unicorns in. I can't wait to have money to get the album.

In other news OH PLEASE DONT http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8212110.stm

Jobsworth

Here are the things I have thought that I might be able to do for a living in my life:

1. Footballer
2. Musicker
3. Skateboarder
4. BMXer
5. Online Gambler/Poker Player
6. Some sort of vague online presence (I don't know, maybe writing a blog so good that people who don't know me will read it and click adverts)
7. Lecturer
8. Author
9. Game Designer
10. eBay Trader
11. Journalist/Critic
12. Chef/Restauranteur/Food Inventor (I have this idea for a vegan egg)
13. DJ (the radio type, not the Ibiza type)
14. T-Shirt Designer
15. Athlete (middle or long-distance running)
16. Gamer (I am pretty good at games that don't involve shooting or solving mysteries)
17. Charity Worker (the good kind, not the practically-molest-you-on-the-street kind)
18. Stand-up Comedian
19. Guitar Teacher
20. Some combination of all these things

Right now I am whittling it down to numbers 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18 or 19. Or 20.

Practicing

Practicing is what we've been doing. I think until recently we had a ratio of about 1 practice:1 gig, but we are quite keen to be better than we have been. And it's actually fun now. I'm a big stupid loser for a million reasons and The Bumblebees is one thing I really think I have done in my life. There isn't really a thrill from playing old songs, like the ones on the EP, but doing new ones is amazing fun, and always worth the depression and stuff.

Gene Simmons Fixes The Music Industry

This quotes are from an interview with Gene Simmons, in which he gives his opinion on the state of the music industry. I think he has something against freckles. And college.

There is nothing in me that wants to go in there and do new music. How are you going to deliver it? How are you going to get paid for it if people can just get it for free?

The record industry doesn't have a f*cking clue how to make money. It's only their fault for letting foxes get into the henhouse and then wondering why there's no eggs or chickens. Every little college kid, every freshly-scrubbed little kid's face should have been sued off the face of the earth. They should have taken their houses and cars and nipped it right there in the beginning. Those kids are putting 100,000 to a million people out of work. [I don't know where he gets these facts from - presumably nowhere.] How can you pick on them? They've got freckles. That's a crook. He may as well be wearing a bandit's mask.

Doesn't affect me. But imagine being a new band with dreams of getting on stage and putting out your own record. Forget it.

I open a store and say "Come on in and pay whatever you want." Are you on f*cking crack? Do you really believe that's a business model that works?

The most important part is the music. [Tiny bit of a contradiction there..] Without that, why would you care? Even the idea that you're considering giving the music away for free makes it easier to give it away for free. The only reason why gold is expensive is because we all agree that it is. There's no real use for it, except we all agree and abide by the idea that gold costs a certain amount per ounce. As soon as you give people the choice to deviate from it, you have chaos and anarchy. And that's what going on.

He says anarchy like it's a bad thing. I definitely have dreams of putting out my own record. But I don't have dreams of a major label putting it out, which the base he builds his whole argument on.

Anyway the point is this guy Joel Tenenbaum got sued far more money than he could ever pay for downloading (and uploading) some songs. And this is what Gene Simmons wants. Although maybe anyone who downloads Kiss songs deserves everything they get.