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blogs are so 'last year', but then again Fruits de Mer is so last century it's as close to cutting-edge as we're ever likely to get (unless the time machine I've ordered from eBay really does work)
...so this is the FdM blog and you're welcome to it.
It's all supposed to be related to music but sometimes I lose the plot and drift a bit, with typically uninspiring results
BAD DAY OUT OF THE OFFICE
With Villa on a bit of a 'downturn', I turned to a day at Sandown races to turn things round...how could a 50-1 shot called Klarc Kent fail in the big race? Well, it didn't help that he didn't finish.
BRIDPORT MUSIC CENTRE
at least I think that's what it was called - didn't seem to be a name on the front, but worth a look in if you're passing, plenty of second hand LPs; (I was hoping to report back on Chunes in Weymouth too, but the shop was closed without any explanation)
THE ROCKY ROAD TO DUBLIN 2
I survived...Jamieson Distillery, Guinness Brewery, a series of traditional Irish pubs, the world's biggest Weatherspoons and a couple of record shops that didn't part me from by bank account.
Visiting Dublin with two pissheads was always going to be a high risk strategy, but when we bump into a mate of Kev's who claims to have drunk 15 pints before we met him at 5pm I knew for sure I was way out of my league.
NAMLOOK
I'm trying to draw the line at buying straight reissues but this CD box-set of some of Pete Namlook's finest moments was too good to refuse.
HE MAY BE ROYAL BUT...
Prince William is clearly a serious Villa supporter and it's good to see a touch of real life in the Royal Family
A CLASSIC BUT...
'The Making Of Five Leaves Left' 4LP box-set - out soon, and certainly interesting, but a whopping £96.
I thought I'd wait and see if a more reasonable CD version emerged - it sort of did, if you count £90 for a 5CD set as reasonable; I can't help but think it's all getting a bit out-of-hand.
THE ROCKY ROAD TO DUBLIN
I'm going into training for a couple of days in Dublin mid-month with my Dr. Sardonicus oppos, Kev and Steve - celebrating Kev's retirement (although his employers won't notice the difference).
Guinness and Jamesons visits already booked, it all seemed a good idea at the time...whether it will do after the event is another matter - I'm just hoping they'll drink each other under the table, while I watch.
CRYSTAL TEARDROP
Debut LP out from a very interesting new UK psychedelic band (so interesting I tried to interest them in FdM!) on Rise Above Records.
Definitely one to check out, although I was a bit put off by the cost direct from the label - £30 inc over £7 P&P - must be tracked and traced, I guess - so I'll wait until it appears on Amazon/Norman/Juno.
LET'S START A NEW MONTH WITH BRIGHTON
My favourite town for a night or two away from home, but this trip was with Liz rather than the kids so it meant less IPAs, DIPAs, bands I've never heard of and more food and wine (although we DID stumble across two tap rooms)
GOODBYE MARCH
As months go, this one doesn't rank in the top 800 I've lived through, so I'll be glad to see the back of it. Roll on April...
GREEN DOOR STORE
Three bands for three quid in a new venue for me in Brighton; the place was packed, everybody was really up for it - and who can blame them for three quid. Nagasaki Dog + Slut + The Wrong Trousers, if you're interested.
Definitely a place to revisit.
WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE - DAVID BAILEY?
Bit of an arty photo from me one my new phone - three quarters of The Wrong Trousers setting up before their gig at The Green Door Store (the lead singer was missing)
THE FIRST £18 PINT
...or at least, MY first £18 pint - Verdant Brewery Unconventional Tactics - an 8% DIPA on tap in our local craft bar; crazy price, of course, but it was rather good (and I AM in training for a day's drinking this weekend with one of my kids in Brighton)
FROM ONE EXTREME TO ANOTHER
Apparently my (very expensive) birthday present this year is to take Liz to see two of her heroes - Neil Young and Cat Stevens - at Hyde Park in July, supported by Mr Cheerful himself.
The acts are 79,76 and 79 years old respectively,so I wonder what the odds are that one of them (or one of us) pegs out before the gig?
On the other hand, I'm off to Brighton next weekend with one of my kids to see three bands I've never heard of at the Green Door, all for 3 quid.
I wonder which event I'll enjoy most?
TOUGH DECISIONS
A couple of spare days and I decided to bite the bullet on a couple of things:
- thinning down the stock of years-old FdM promo CDs I've accumulated - to make space for new ones - they'll go to good homes
- doing the same with some of the DVD box-sets that are gathering dust; if they don't pass one of two tests -will I ever play them again or will the kids want them when I peg out - they're going to a mate who's young enough not to have to ask himself the same questions for a good few years yet.
I-PHONE HELL
Oh the joys of getting a new phone...losing/forgetting passwords, getting kicked out of hotmail and having to find my way back in, trying to avoid Siri, CoPilot and other 'essentials'.
Add to that, Microsoft has announced it's ceasing to support Publisher in a year or so, which means I'll have to find another idiot-friendly design tool for putting together ads, covers, etc (please don't suggest Adobe - I'm too old a dog to learn that many new tricks)
FIDO PRINT
I've found a t-shirt printer who will produce colour t-shirts alot cheaper than I'm sued to - not quite the £5 FdM shirt, but not far off if you order 50+ - and they will do as few as one shirt! Direct-to-garment printing, not screenprinting, so worth getting a sample printed before committing to a long run, but well worth checking out - www.fidoprint.com
WOKING CLASS?
First record fair I've come across in Woking is on Feb 23rd - actually in Ripley, which is even nearer to FdM Towers, so no excuse not to check it out.
Update - an excuse WAS found - our heating system packed up and I was on duty waiting for the repair company to turn up and fix it - which they very impressively did, turning up on Sunday afternoon..
HOPE & RUIN
A first visit of the year to Brighton's Hope & Ruin for a three-band evening (all for 7 quid, what's not to like!). The first band on - The Dead Red Lips - deserved a bigger audience than they got and whoever said Dunes were a mix of SF Sorrow-period Pretty Things and Captain Beefheart must have seen/heard a different band to me.
Still, all good fun (with the exception of the post-gig kebab)
SPACE DEBRIS
A band that had completely escaped my attention until a couple of weeks ago, Space Debris tick all the right instrumentals/krautrock/keyboard boxes for me - worth checking out if you're late to the party too.
UTV
What a brilliant banner, unfurled before Villa's Champions League game against Celtic, The club has made a couple of crass commercial decisions this season, pissing off some die-hard fans, but somebody in the marketing dept got this spot-on!
Sabbath's farewell performance, at the Villa ground, is another winner - although I'm not sure I can handle 10 hours of take-no-prisoners heavy metal.
ALL'S FAIR
First fair of the year this weekend in Guildford; to be honest, it's pretty small, the ones at G2 are on a different scale - but worth a quick look, before visiting Ben's Collectors Records of course.
AND ALL BECAUSE THE LADY LOVES THE DOORS
A slight exaggeration, Liz thinks they were OK - OK enough to allow me to drag her along to see The Doors Alive at the Half Moon next month as a Valentine's Day gift!
EVERYBODY WAS FUNG-FU BITING
Just watched ‘The Legend Of The 7 Golden Vampires’ - possibly the only Hammer horror shot in Hong Kong…Dracula meets Bruce Lee, anyone?
Despite a spirited Peter Cushing, it was pretty much unwatchable, including a duff Count Dracula; best moment for me was to see that Dracula’s coffin had a ‘D’ on it - presumably to avoid confusion for any other passing, part-time coffin dwellers.
A BIT OF AN ALAN PARTRIDGE MOMENT
...but I couldn't resist buying this psychedelic Beatles compilation on the ever-dubious Verne label - good fun though!
RELIC OF SPAIN
Picked up on holiday - pretty much a pristine copy of the first Floyd album I ever bought, and still quite possibly my favourite
HOUSE OF FOUR
A very nice Christmas surprise from my old mate Craig - a four-track 10" of Pretty Things covers
QUADROPHENIA
A pretty dull Christmas for TV is suddenly looking a lot brighter as I sit down to watch a re-run of one of the best rock films ever made...I've already seen Timothy Spall and Gary Holton making early acting appearances!
HO, HO, HO...
Stolen from X, Twitter or Bluesky...
NOW THAT'S WHAT I CALL A BOX-SET
The Beatles' finest, in my book...and a fine, inevitably overblown, vinyl box-set; £165 from Amazon UK but less than half that from Amazon Germany and postage about the same as in the UK.
NOW that's what I call my Christmas present to myself.
RED ALERT
Codex Seraphini at the Hope & Ruin - a great set, very intense; we nearly got them to play at Dr. Sardonicus Festival a few years ago - maybe one day...
MERLIN TONTO
A new band for me, and they played down the pecking order at the Hope & Ruin's 'Cupboard House Party' all-dayer in Brighton, but I'd rate them as definitely worth checking out - krautrock meets electronica?
C'MON, FEEL T'NOIZE
Somewhere, in a galaxy far, far away...Noddy comes from Yorkshire and doesn't plug his guitar in; hang on, it was Lewes and Slade UK...
IT'S CHRISTMAS!!!
Maybe not yet, but this should be a good crack on Friday the 13th, and a nice warm up for...
IT'S CODEX SERAPHINI!!!
on...Saturday the 14th, the Hope & Ruin in Brighton are running the Cupboard Music House Party, an all-dayer with loads of bands I've never heard of - but Codex Seraphini are headlining, so it's bound to be good (that said, with my lad Chris and Kev & Steve from the FdM stall in Cardigan in-tow, things could get pretty blurry)
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www.fruitsdemerrecords.com
...hear the tracks.. ..buy the vinyl.. ..smell the fish...