year in review

hello there

usually, if not normally, i would call this annual post something as grandiose as "best", look you see. other than appreciating the great ego delve that would see me as someone equipped to declare such (best) of anything, to be honest i'd have a hard time selecting one "outstanding" thing of anything from 2024. and that's down to there being so many (surprisingly) excellent things. 

instead, then, a kind of "does what it says on the box" post, or if you will what it says in the title. quite likely i shall miss some things out, but then you cannot lament what you didn't know wasn't there. or something like that. kind of. 

travel

as per quite a few posts in the first (give or take) quarter of the year (for people who talk in such forms of measurement) i went off to that there New Zealand. this was a journey that i had not ever expected to make, but was very much glad to have done so. beyond getting to see beloved family either once more or for the first time, it's one amazing country. somehow i very much doubt that i am alone in wondering why, having gone to New Zealand, i went and left it. really, it's incredible. 

certainly the travel to New Zealand was not as straightforward as it could be. the whole thing nearly stopped before it started due to their "secret" visa thing which they claim totes is not a visa, which is called the NZeTA. just get signed up for one before you go. 

flying, in particular for so many hours at once (i think 17 or so between Dubai and New Zealand) wasn't quite as sh!t as i remembered or feared it was. still, the glamour and excitement has long since been eroded from international flights, replaced as it has been with cost cutting, profiteering and the misery of having to travel with other people, some of who(m) are astonishingly ignorant. highlights, from a certain point of view, included getting my shoes x-rayed in case they had explosives in them, and getting knacked off of a customs official for the kind of cigarette lighter i had in my bag. i did find it a bit strange that he confiscated one of them and left three identical ones in my (Bowie) bag, but it did not feel appropriate to tell him how to do his job. 

cinema

if i remember right it was seven (7) times i went to go see a film at the cinema. well, seven different films. nearly all of them were alone, with it being just Venom 3 or whatever it was called seeing me go with someone else, in that instance young William. going to the movies is often billed as a "social thing", but that has never made sense, since you basically sit in darkness and ignore who(m)ever it is you have gone with for the duration of the film. or at least you are supposed to. 

what was the best film i saw this year? that would be a hard one to narrow down. overall i was most impressed with Civil War, which was the first (i think) i saw this year. it was nice to see that some films are still allowed to trust an audience with a premise and get on with it. easily the best performance i saw during the year was Demi Moore in The Substance. a truly bonkers film, laced with Kubrick references and not for all tastes. on a similar note the film Heretic appeared to exist only to allow Hugh Grant to show off some acting flair, for there was little else to the film. 

on the whole, or overall, in 2024 i kind of rediscovered just how much i once loved going to the movies. this was no bad thing to reconnect with. unsure if frequent cinema visits shall continue into 2025, but it just might. depending what they put on. 

vibes

how improbable and strange that the year started off with something as momentous as a coming together of Liam Gallagher and John Squire and it should prove to be forgettable. oh, their album was really good, just that Liam managed to overshadow it a bit as the year went on. 

if i were to pick an "album of the year", well, i couldn't. perhaps the closest i could get is to name two, being KillerStar with their self-titled record and Death Song Book featuring Brett out of Suede. the one off of Crowded House was a pleasant surprise, as it was way better than the previous one. for the two heavyweight releases of the year, being new albums from The Cure and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, both were excellent, extraordinary albums. yet this is what one would expect from both, if they were not going to be such then they wouldn't have bothered releasing them.

being in the century we are, there were whimsical, throwaway and temporarily enjoyable albums measuring about 30 minutes each off of Kaiser Chiefs, Kasabian and someone called Blossoms. none of these three set the world on fire, but they were momentarily enjoyable. worst, by some distance, was a phenomenally disappointing return of Primal Scream with an awful record. 

absolutely ludicrous vibes purchases this year involved paying north of £20 for some Argentine metal disc called Satan Sex Ceremonies as the title and cover amused me. then there was also the i knew i would kind of regret it £150(!!) Rock N Roll Star set celebrating Bowie's Ziggy Stardust. considering all the material they had available it really is a poor set, but here we are. 

famous people

rather bafflingly, and for the most part unexpectedly, i got to meet three (3) famous people this year. in chronological order that would be Piers Corbyn, Griffin Dunne and Hugh Cornwell. being as diplomatic as i can, the last two were an absolute delight to meet. 

theatre

so i ended up going to see two (2) theatre productions this year. both were last minute (more or less) decisions, and done on the cheap. i don't really have the energy to go and look for the links, but somewhere (here) you will find my posts on the delights of Fawlty Towers and Dr Strangelove

which was my favourite, or which did i consider the "best" of the two? really hard choice. i have not laughed as hard as i did during the second act of Fawlty Towers in all the time i can remember. yet the first act of Dr Strangelove was staggering genius on every level. if there is any way to tell the two apart then i suppose it would be that i'd happily go and see this production of Dr Strangelove again, although i doubt that chance will permit. 

how likely are further theatrical adventures in 2025? not really sure, or i don't rightly know. there is every chance of me being in that there London (innit) frequently enough to go, and i have every confidence that cheap, (quasi) last minute tickets will be on offer. yet the main draw of seeing these two was the exceptionally comfortable familiarity i had with the story of each. 

service stations

an oddity of my life is that i seem to spend a fair bit of time at these (service stations) twice a week, or thereabouts. quite a curiosity is that other people now do a "best service station" thing, some of them on a national broadcast level, a few years after i started doing it. oh well, if people are going to copy one thing off of me rather that, i suppose. 

sadly i didn't make it to my usual winner of the service station of the year - the one near Castle Donington, purely for being near there - during 2025. i did, however, find a new favourite in the form of the one at North Grantham on the A1. close second was probably Tibshelf, although i have also discovered that London Gateway is nowhere near as bad as i had always assumed. 

happily i managed, for the duration of the calendar year, to avoid the two worst service stations in the known world, which remain Blyth and Wetherby. both of these are bad mostly because they are a sort of strange magnet for really, really ignorant people. you know, people who just meander about and stand blocking entrances, in particular to toilets, and hold up queues at coffee and food places whilst they ponder life choices instead of ordering and moving on. 

biggest decline in a service station is, alas, Ferrybridge. at the start of the year it was good, but by the end of the year it had started to attract the sort of ignorant, retarded type of people who make Wetherby so damned impossible to just get in and get out of. 

gigs

probably one of the wisest things i have ever gone done is book tickets to go and see a joint tour by Suede and the Manic Street Preachers twice in one week. and the dumbest thing i did was not buy tickets for more nights of the tour. 

overall, and by some distance, the best was Suede at Leeds. it was, they were, just totes f****** amazing, man. next best was Suede at London, followed by Manics at London, followed by Manics at Leeds. i think i am a little Manics-ed out for the moment, so have decided to skip their imminent tour. but if Suede announce more gigs, well, i am there. 

worst concert of the year is as easy to name as it is disappointing - James. i really love their music, to the extent that i have always turned a blind eye to just how obnoxious and full of himself Tim Booth is. anyway me and a few others got "tricked", for north of £60 a ticket, into going and seeing a quarter-hearted soundcheck billed as a "special pre-tour show". if you wish to read more then click here, but it was enough to put me off the band for life. 

reading

for some reason i have fallen out of the habit of reading. quite a shame, and i have at least one dozen novels (probably more) sat here that i really, really wish to read. i can't even recall from the little i read during 2024 which was the better, so it was probably the 4th novel (came out in paperback) from that tall bloke who used to do that show, whose brother plays bass in Suede and also started out as a backing dancer for Sonia. 

car crash

not really sure this is something one can have a "best" of, but here. 

little things in life moment

every now and then i get to do something i think is totes amazing. it doesn't matter that no one else is interested, or "gets it", for i do. like playing the song Baker Street whilst actually on Baker Street. 

sure, this video (above) is a slight cheat, as i was parked around the corner from Baker Street when i played it. well, it would have been illegal (and stupid) to film whist driving. but i did indeed play the song again whilst on Baker Street. twice, possibly three times, as it happens, as traffic does not move too quickly on that famous road. i used to think it was so easy........

cigarettes

yes, yes, smoking is bad for you, etc. anyway, i got to smoke a good deal more Marlboro Red than i thought i might, which was excellent. 

if Marlboro Red have an indelible place in my heart, which is kind of funny as it's likely their affect (or effect) on my heart that shall bring my demise one day, then the next most excellent ones were some brought to me off of Belgium. other than that, any and all cheap ones were good.

exhibition of the year

from what i can recall i only actually went to one (1), which was the Batman one. 

it was excellent, a real highlight of a couple of days in that there London (innit) which were not spent doing all that verk stuff. 

right, i think that's about it. other than being sure i have missed some aspects out, well, wow, that was quite a full year for me. and yet i feel so hollow, so transient, so little connection to life, so very disconnected from anything and everything. not much left to do except to see what, if anything, the year ahead (2025, it says here) brings. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

tapes for scale

greetings

well, the day today (when published, look you see) is that one seen as still being very much of Christmas, although the big day itself (yesterday) is now likely a memory. hopefully, i do trust, a fond memory for you all, or pleasant or similar. 

despite the fact that we live in an era where traditions tend to get disposed of in favour of instant gratification and immediate disposal i was very pleased to receive a number of Christmas cards. for those of you who do not know what such are, well, they are a bit like cards people give to others on their birthday, except these ones express wishes for Christmas rather than birthdays. never be afraid to ask. as it happens, two particularly peculiar cards arrived on the same day. well, it's possible they arrived on different days, but i only got to see them on my return home on the same day. 

i was rather fascinated to see that two friends, who(m) so far as i am aware do not know each other, had apparently embarked on a quest to get the title of sending me the most non-standard sized Christmas card in the reduced category. no, it certainly is not that i expect, or wish for, big massive cards, yet still i was rather surprised by the ones which landed. of course they are presented face down, so as to preserve the modesty of my address. goodness knows what anyone reading this would do with the details of my nominal place of residing in this era of exile, but i would rather not find out. 

these are indeed more or less randomly selected tapes off of my collection, just to give a sense of size. perhaps i could have used a "regular" Christmas card to illustrate such, but i actually have no idea what a standard size one would be. also, tapes are quite class. for those somewhat curious, the smaller of the two (2) cards did indeed feature a stamp what took up around 20% of the available surface, so some rather impressive work was done to include all of the intricacies of my address. 

apparently me sending a card to my (sugar spun) sister was suspicious. this is, at the least, in the eyes of the authorities over in New Zealand. going on the above they opted to inspect it, on the off chance i had decided to send a "biological risk" to their wonderful nation. no, i had not, and didn't really have that much of an issue with them checking, but they may have cared just to ask. glad to see someone fully trained carried out the inspection, as goodness knows what might have happened if they had let the work experience kid or some trainee have a go. 

right, that's about that for this, then. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

well tonight thank god it's them instead of you

howdy pop pickers

mostly this is all about me purchasing a single knowing in advance that (alas) it would be atrocious, with my knowledge being spot on. also this shall be a lament for a world no longer here, look you see, with some comments likely to be determined to be a whine. but, you never know, the odd valid point may well be made here, even by accident. 

so, for the 40th anniversary of Do They Know It's Christmas off of Band Aid they went right ahead with a kind of obligatory re-release. this has been done before, with re-recordings coming out in 1989, 2004 (no, nothing in the 90s that i recall) and, disastrously, 2014. no "new" version here, however, just what has been called an "ultimate" mix by Trevor Horn. 

it is, i am so sorry to write this, the case that the "ultimate mix" is an obscenity. as in it is really, really bad. so bad, as point of fact, a conspiracist or cynic might suggest that the comments off of Ed Sheridan (or whatever) and his pal (i believe called Fused) were deliberately engineered to distract people from just how remarkably much of a totes f*** up this version is. and i write that as a devotee of Trevor Horn, for he had a massive part in the sound of Frankie, so had a massive part in the sound of my life. 

one gets the feeling that the original (1984) version of the song is included on the tape (disc) out of some sort of obligation. it remains a masterpiece. no, not the "greatest" Christmas song of all time, but perhaps (despite the views of some) the most important. also included are the 2004 version, which is a surprisingly dated breezy, whimsical "acoustic" thing that has far, far, far too much Coldplay to it. there's also the Live Aid finale version, which is chaotic and a fun memory from that truly remarkable day, but has all the audio quality of someone holding a dictaphone up to tele to record it. 

there is also the obscenity of the 2014 "rewrite". beyond reflecting the dire lack of true, genuine grade a pop stars by this point in our history, it all got distracted by making it about "other things". i do not mean to be flippant or light, but i genuinely can't recall if they elected to now make the song all about Haiti, Ebola or some other concern. sure, quite likely a noble concern or several concerns, but it moved it all away from what inspired that magical moment in pop history. 

worst of all, for me, was the removal (or if you will replacement) of a specific line. for some reason some people have, over the years, decided that the lyric sung by Bono (before he was really Bono as we know him today) well tonight thank god it's them instead of you was "wrong" and should never existed. i would absolutely agree that it's controversial, but that's its strength. 

right there is the line that addresses much of the recent "controversy" around the song, and right there is the power of the song. and beyond, dear reader, far beyond. in one very direct, overt, in your face line, so many things got addressed. isn't it so that those are the precise words which pierce the heart when confronted with images of abject horror and are called on to help? don't those words head on address, tackle or debate concepts such as western (sometimes called "white") privilege and prompt a sense of western (frequently called "white") guilt? how f*****g dare they go and remove one of the most powerful lines to exist in any song? if it made people feel uneasy or uncomfortable, then so much the f*****g better as that's exactly what it should do. 

for the most part (or mostly) when i heard that Ed Sheridan (or whatever) was all upset about them using his contribution to the "ultimate mix" without asking, i was very much (at first) "oh f*** off, you complete tw@t", which to be fair is my reaction to anything he has to say. reading on about what it was he had to say, i was somewhat bemused by the cultural appropriation going on by him and his Fuse mate, declaring that the song "reinforced stereotypes" about Africa. wow. indeed there are some lines of fluff in the song, likely inaccurate, but i really doubt that the lyrics have been influential on the way people have considered a continent for the last four decades. goodness knows what the fallout shall be when these two hear a certain song off of Toto (band, not dog). 

people involved with the actual 1984 song have responded to him (them) far better than i could. strangely and unexpectedly Tony Hadley in particular gave a considered, thoughtful reply, which has challenged my perspective on life as i really, really, really f*****g hate Tony Hadley. let me kind of leave it as whilst there may be variations of validity to the opinions of Sheridan (or whatever) and Fuse, for me, and hopefully for many, these words of (quasi) Sir Bob are all that matter. 

in what i take as being a marking of the 40th anniversary the BBC has recently shown a fly on the wall documentary about the making of the original single. it truly is a wonderful thing to behold. what a chaotic, no one knows what's going on day it was, and if anything it amplifies what a miracle it is that the song came out sounding as good as it did, or rather does. highlights are a very pre-fame Bono being all meek and shy when meeting music legends, Boy George swanning in and showing them all how to do it and Midge Ure working his absolute socks off. 

sadly what the documentary shows is a world which simply does not exist. music, it seems is no longer as important as it once was. as in most of the people who appeared in the 1984 original were household names far beyond the reaches of the pop world. all of them made sacrifices, gave up time and money that just wouldn't happen today. i could go on (and on) here, but there is little point in doing so, i suppose. ultimately, had all of this been happening for the first time in 2024 not 1984, Bob and Midge would have had to settle for setting up one of those "donate" pages and getting various celebrities calling for people to donate via social media. 

 

no, to the best of my knowledge this (awful) new version of Do They Know It's Christmas has not reached number one on the singles chart. with thanks to all this "streaming" nonsense, the charts are a mess anyway, featuring all the usual Christmas songs at the top rather than ones specifically released for the season. since for the last couple of decades (or so) the once much vaunted, highly desirable Christmas number one has simply been an advert for "talent" shows or been all about some idiot whose primary talent appears to be able to say "sausage roll" over someone else's record. 

whereas no, i am no expert in such things, it does strike me as they needlessly overthought this release. essentially all they had to do was put the original out again, but include "rarities" such as the original b-side, featuring messages from people that couldn't (or wouldn't) make the recording, as well as the 12". including the other versions (except oddly the 89 one) does little but chart the sad decline in musical talent available as the years have passed. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

richmond

hello there

no, alas, this post is not (at least specifically) related to either of the places called Richmond here in England. that means it's nothing to do with the proper one of that place in North Yorkshire, or the rather rancid one down there in London (innit). instead it's to do with the cigarettes of the same name, look you see. 

yes, for those concerned, or who need such spelling out for them (presumably the people that the warning images on packets are aimed at) smoking is very silly, likely quite bad for you and so on. should you smoke then you are probably best off at seeking ways to quit, or to cut down considerably. please don't let anything here inspire you to take up the habit. 

this is, mostly if not ostensibly, another foray into the realm of acquiring cigarettes via less than conventional means. not quite sure if these Richmond cigarettes are counterfeit, bootleg or procured in an illicit way, but equally am sure they are far more modestly priced than the ones you get off of standard retailers. for cost these were priced at a comparatively reasonable £5 a packet, which is around or between 25% and 33% of the price for similar "legal" ones. a mere ten (10) years ago the "legal" cigarettes at shops only cost around £5, which tells you of the insane tax practices embraced. quite likely explains why so many are being pushed towards the more independent distributor of cigarettes too, i suppose. 

how are these cigarettes? well, no, they are far removed from the joys of Marlboro. not too bad, as they certainly get the job asked of them done. should for some reason you wish to see an image of me smoking one of them (a Richmond, rather than a Marlboro. sadly) then the picture below is sure to delight. those wishing to rather not see me at all would do well to scroll quite quickly. 

mostly these Richmond cigarettes (since Americans get confused when i call them fags) are surprisingly sweet. so far as i am aware i have not ever experienced cigarettes that have such a "sweet" taste to them. unexpected and peculiar. of all the magical, wondrous toxins they supposedly put into cigarettes i am assuming it's not strychnine as i believe that's quite bitter. perhaps it is in fact arsenic, as i believe that is supposed to have a sweet, quasi aniseed sense to it. 

i am not at all sure that i shall continue with these. yes, i know, i know, i should probably cease all cigarette use all together, but let us dwell in reality for the moment. these ones are not quite so harsh as the other independent ones, Manchester, but also lack the definitive "kick" of them. highly likely, now i consider it, that the Manchester ones have a much higher ratio of that strychnine in them. certainly that would explain one or two curious side effects (or affects) of persistent use. 

with the current government, led by Sir Keir who(m) i believe is not, as it turns out, the same Keir that memorably featured in 2001 A Space Odyssey, determined to kill as many of the population as possible it is peculiar that they aren't encouraging smoking. that would get a lot of the job done for them, if we are honest about it. but then smoking is actually pleasurable, and they appear to wish as many of us as possible to not just die but to die in misery. at least they are (semi) honest about this. 

should for some (inexplicable) reason you wish to see film footage of me enjoying one of these cigarettes then the below video will delight. note that it was a particularly miserable day i went off outside, such is my dedication. 

eventually there shall come a point at which even the thickest government notices a massive shortfall in the ludicrous tax they claim from cigarettes, yet clear evidence of lots of people still smoking. i have no doubt that someone somewhere has a conspiracy theory about why less than official cigarettes are available so (relatively) easily and so (comparatively) cheaply. still, they (them in power) have rather boxed themselves into a corner, so it's (highly) unlikely they will ever consider reducing the stupidly high taxes imposed. 

once again, then, smoking is quite bad and something you shouldn't do. i would suggest that most things that i do are not the sort of thing people would hold up as a good example. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

bob stokoe statue

now then

a further somewhat unexpected tale off of Sunderland for you. indeed yes this happened when i was in the place for the Hugh Cornwell gig, look you see. as for what "this" is, well, i would imagine you may well have worked that one out from the title of the post. 

there exists variations of reasons why i try at least once a year to post here a statue which can be found outside of a football stadium. in truth i thought this would not happen this year, and i may have had to cheat, pointing out that Sir Mick Jagger is famed for attending matches. how very fortunate, then, that my journey to stay at a hotel for the Hugh Cornwell gig took me past the (rightly) celebrated Stadium of Light stadium. 

for those who do not know who(m) this is a statue of, and also missed the clue in the title, that's none other than Bob Stokoe, the manager who(m) led Sunderland to a surprise FA Cup win in 1973. this was in the days when both the FA Cup really, really mattered and was (rightly) important, and yes it was a true surprise result. Sunderland, of the second division, won 1-0 against the much celebrated, top division high flyers Leeds United. this statue captures the moment Mr Stokoe went charging off in celebration at the blowing of the final whistle. 

of all the statues i have encountered on my travels, be it specifically to seek football related ones for here or simple chance sightings, this is one of the greatest. to some this may sound a bit silly, but i just love the dynamics of it, how it captures a sense of movement, of motion and of course of emotion. i would imagine it's very difficult to do so in something which by definition is motionless. 

sorry, yes, i should (indeed) have put some sort of warning before the picture above, for it does indeed feature me, or moi, stood next to it. not a selfie, though. 

my favourite detail, and perhaps the key to its magnificence, is the curves on the jacket belt. it gives an inescapable sense of free flowing movement. not at all sure i have done it justice here with the pictures i have added, but then i suppose that's true of all pictures here. still, all the more reason to, if you get the chance, go and see the statue yourself. 

yes, as an ostensible Middlesbrough fan there should be a sense of "rivalry" here. except there isn't really. we happen to be close to them, and "derby days" are often somewhat heated. for the real, or true North East "rivalry", well, that's Sunderland vs Newcastle. for us down in Boro we are quite happy being a decent club town that frequently punches well above our weight. 

going back to the importance the FA Cup used to have would be to encourage you to seek out a documentary i once saw on the 73 final. a film crew went out and filmed the streets of both cities just before kick off, and not a single person was to be seen. that's what is meant by a community spirit that has faded if not been lost. now the FA Cup is kind of dismissed by certain top flight clubs, seeing it as a distraction from seeking money via treading water in the all encompassing premier league. 

how big, exactly, can a "big" club be if they are so flimsy about a competition which has inspired passion and love for the game (and teams) for generation after generation? 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

it ends then starts with you

howdy pop pickers

well, i suppose this one is, ultimately, vibes related, so the usual musical greeting is applicable. no actual music, though, but quite the unmistakable link, look you see. 

it is now the business end of the year (2024), or if you will a point at which some might say death to 2024. for me it has been quite an extraordinary year, but (maybe) more on that at another time, another place. right now, the usual dilemma is the decision on a calendar for the year ahead. except that it really wasn't much of a debate, or even conversation. 

being rather delighted (or at the least satisfied) with the not strictly speaking official David Bowie calendar i picked up from Boyes for this year (2024) i popped in to see if they had similar. indeed they did, with pictorial evidence of such shown above. for the same price, too, which from what i can recall was if not a flat £10 then something like £9.99. this is only slightly cheaper than the "official" calendars featuring Bowie, but has the immense advantage of featuring much more better pictures. 

on returning home with this new calendar i had the sense that there was something quite familiar with the cover picture. well, the cover picture and the image used for January, for they are one and the same. if you see what i mean. it did not take too long to work out such familiarity. blimey, does anyone really find all this stuff i write interesting. 

so yes, then, it is so that January 2025 features the same image as used for December 2024. that is really a lovely touch by the bootleggers, or if you will pirates, or should you prefer independent business types who have no time for trivialities such as copyright and permission. i now deeply regret not getting one of these Bowie calendars for 2023, just to see if December 2023 happened to be the image which greeted January 2024. see the link from above (or here) for that particular picture. 

how peculiar that, once more, the unofficial calendar is like totes, full tilt better than any of the official ones. for a start they seem to use considerably better pictures. also, they just present them straight, without any artsy stuff or tired sepia tint. from what i recall the main "official" calendar from those in charge of the Bowie estate focused exclusively on the Hunky Dory album. i mean, yes, it is an exceptionally good record, but no, i really don't want to celebrate it for an entire year. 

above is a vaguely clear image of the twelve (12) images that await display during the course of 2025, then. if i am entirely honest i could probably have done without the Labyrinth one, but then again that's quite an iconic look (which is saying something considering all of the iconic looks what he had). the songs were good too, and the film was decent enough. yeah, happy with them all. presumably that image for December 2025 shall, if they follow the pattern, be the one used for January 2026. i do hope there is that kind of consistency, even if many would wish it so that i do not make it quite so far in time as to find out the answer. 

very pleased indeed that my calendar selection proved to be straightforward. i shall take it (bravely) as a given that, since you have read this far, you are to a degree happy for me with this. may it be so that your choice (or selection) of calendar is also excellent. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

かなり奇妙な日本のカード possibly

こんにちは

something of a return to randomly noticing something on my travels, 見てみろよ. yes, indeed this was once again down there in that London (innit), which is where i would appear to spend the majority of my time. hence me seeing things of stuff. 

well, there i was, then, wandering around a reasonably posh (if not quite exclusive) area of the place. for those interested in such, a kind of darkly autumnal day it was, with a brooding grey (or gray) sky punctuated by the occasional instance of rain. on my travels i happened to notice this. 

of an aspect of this being one of them "QR" code things i am veritably certain. my use of possibly in the title concerns the language used in the wording either above or below this code thing, depending on which way around you hold it. indeed yes, also to the side, if you hold it that way.

alas, no, i have no idea at all what this might be about. certainly not is my answer to any question you may pose as to whether or not i "followed" the QR code aspect. going around and scanning random codes of this nature is a very foolish thing indeed. even ones out in public that look "safe" or official, as many people who have been scammed by fake QR codes at parking locations have (sadly usually to their financial detriment) discovered. 

 

just what could this card, or specifically the code, be for? at a guess i would assume some sort of scam, quite possibly related to all that "crypto" magical internet money nonsense. maybe it's an advert for someone offering (ahem) personal services, in which case yes, i missed a trick there, so to speak. if i am right (rare but happens) and that is Japanese, who knows, it may be some sort of invitation to join the yakuza or similar. as i have no immediate wish to lose any fingers as a sign of loyalty or as a form of punishment for breaking some unspoken rule, no thanks. 

there exists every chance (or possibility) of course that it is something rather more harmless. it may well be just a go at some sort of "viral marketing" for a restaurant, club or what have you. were it so that it was such, well, likely well north of a decade too late for it. most, i would suggest, are quite aware of the dangers of scanning and following random qr codes, so it's unlikely anyone would do so. unless they are really quite innocent, or indeed simple. 

perhaps some of the more adventurous or ambitious of you would wish that i had put a more better image of this qr code here. well, no. it could be harmless, but likely isn't. should you be all that eager to find out what it was (or is) for i am sure you can find one of these cards. from what i remember it was within the realms of the NW1 postcode are, go for a stroll and good luck. 

in glorious retrospect, or on reflection (whichever sounds right) no, this wasn't the most interesting thing i could have put up (or on) here. the scary thing is that it's probably not likely to be the most boring post of mine. 

お互いに優れている!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

hugh cornwell

howdy pop pickers

so yes, then, pretty much as the title gives every indication of being, this post concerns the general magnificence of Hugh Cornwell. yes, that one, look you see. more specifically, for those of you who like such yet still visit this blog, an evening of Hugh Cornwell live and in concert. indeed, another gig for the year this year (2024). 

a concert that, as it happens, very (kind of) nearly didn't happen and/or did not get attended. for a brief overview of issues, our (for i went with someone) means of transport got written off by one of them range rover driver types, and the gig was on what they claimed (as they always do) would be the worst ever weather the UK had faced, so trains were a bit touch and go. in regards of that it was so Hugh was in Scotland the night before, which really did have bad weather, and it was exceptionally touch and go as to if they would make it to the gig. 

happily, or if you will merrily, our train (at least there) was on time and running fine. Hugh and his entourage also made it, with some delay, which meant the gig was somewhat later than planned. but it at least happened. 

i believe it has been established over the last year (or so) that my new(ish) phone, one of them Samsung A14 things, is completely sh!t for taking pictures in general, with gigs (or concerts) being a particular challenge for it. oh how i miss my LG; wish they would make phones again. well, anyway, that above is probably the best picture i took of Hugh and his band giving it loads in that direction, or if you will going full tilt with the excellent tunes. 

for those with a "thing" for provenance, this was at the Fire Station in Sunderland. on November 23 of this very year, for further clarification. before anything else (yet after all else i have written so far) what an absolutely amazing venue it is. i believe they have a Bowie tribute on early next year (2025), i may well just go right ahead and go see it. 

ostensibly this gig, and the tour entire, was to showcase stuff from Hugh's most recent album, called as it is Moments Of Madness. this is indeed a fine album. but, of course, i was kind of if not mostly then partially there for the songs what he gone done with The Stranglers. unexpectedly i found myself in a bit of a minority in this respect, but i shall get to that. 

with pictures being rather bad off of my new phone it is so that video (yes, we have got a video) is all the more worse. but, for the sake of it rather than it being of any practical use, there's a brief clip of Hugh and the band doing Golden Brown. this came up surprisingly early in the set, for if nothing else  is easily the "best known" song off of his former band.

the vagaries of time are quite a thing, are they not. it is, i believe, so that Hugh Cornwell has been a solo artist for twice as long as he was in The Stranglers, yet such was the impact and success of that band it remains his main association. not that he has an issue or quarrel with that. in one of the many interludes in which he spoke to us fans gathered the pattern for the set was two of his solo songs, followed by a classic (his words) off of The Stranglers.

despite not getting the chart success he had with The Stranglers it is (merrily) so that Hugh has built up a substantial following with his solo work. no, not quite "appeal has become more selective" like Spinal Tap, but a pretty big following. i was impressed, if that is the right word, that so many of the audience were singing along (well, shouting) to the solo numbers. to my shame, no, i wasn't so familiar with them as to join in with the choir. 

beyond Golden Brown we got an interesting, perhaps (possibly) eclectic mix of Stranglers classics, mostly from the 70s era. from memory there was Duchess, Tank, Nice N Sleazy (sadly no strippers on stage so no "nude woman horror shock" headlines this time), Nuclear Device and a very welcome performance of Dead Loss Angeles. whereas i thoroughly enjoyed hearing him do them, and shall cherish such with what time i had, there was some "unease". perhaps this is out of just how much many of the audience had a clear preference for his solo work, but also it in a sense felt like "cheating" hearing these without it being the classic Stranglers line up. this may be why i am umming and aahing about going to see Daltrey next year (2025). 

even though it had been a long day of travel and everything was late Hugh Cornwell made himself available after the gig for pictures, greeting people and signing stuff. no, i did not get my picture taken with him, but a dear friend certainly did. 

under no circumstances at all would i have gone and seen Hugh, or anything Stranglers related, without my dear friend Mandybabes. no, not her actual name, except now it is, since i asked Hugh to sign a tape (disc) to Mandybabes and he did. whilst i was aware of some of their songs before, she introduced me to the marvels (and wonders) of the band proper. a quite wonderful way for me to be able to say thank you for that introduction and the many years of listening to their quality vibes. 

blimey, 2024 has been a staggeringly good year for gigs for moi. with it now being the the time when all live events are mostly Christmas music i suspect that's that for gigs for me for 2024. fear not, for some excellent ones are all lined up. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

fox

heya

i suppose, to be specific (or if you are pedantic) i should really have called this post foxes, for there is more than one featured. two, look you see. well, perhaps not look at the moment, as i appear to be having some issues adding images. let me go and have a cigarette (sorry) whilst it considers thinking about letting me add them, then. no, it seems to be having none of it, so i shall just have to try doing this later. rather than, you know, earlier. 

oh right, working now. but be warned my image taking (or if you will photography) skills have not really got any better. there is only so much of this i can blame on the camera. 

so, as regular (or frequent) readers will know, i appear to spend a good deal of time in that there London (innit). due to this i am able to witness one of the issues (or problems) that they have, and which becomes national news, because London. you may well have guessed which one, but to be clear indeed i write of the proliferation of foxes wandering around. 

quite often i will see them just mooching about, presumably on a quest for food. that's the foxes on such a quest, not moi, but yes i do indeed eat from time to time. it is somewhat peculiar, and certainly unexpected, when i find myself stood in a street and one just comes wandering by, strolling along as if of a more domesticated nature like a cat or dog. 

what's the reason for such a widespread number of foxes on the streets of London? it would be wonderful to blame that awful, terrible mayor of theirs, but i don't think it is his fault. the ban on fox hunting is something that hopefully most would agree with (ideally all), it was not (so far as i am aware) replaced with any sort of plan on how to limit or curtail the fox population. given a free hand, then, or what have you (paw, perhaps), i can only suspect fox numbers have increased as a result, or consequence, of this. 

yes, certainly, the constant building going on in and around London (innit) likely pushes them out into areas they would not normally roam. but, as i said, i am no expert, i have gone done no research, i am merely speculating. now that i am firmly (if not well) into my 50s i appreciate that i am expected to have extreme, unsubstantiated and vocal opinions on everything, yet i find myself leaning more towards a life of if i don't know enough about something then i am probably not going to comment as a matter of fact, rather confessing to it being a vaguely considered view. 

have i been attacked or "spooked" by a fox? not really. well, yes, there was that one incident where one probably nearly ate me, but in retrospect i think that was my imagination at play. if anything these foxes seem rather skittish and, perhaps wisely, very wary of people. there's been one or two reports of foxes apparently "sneaking" into people's homes and attacking people. one would hope that someone is not making such things up, but no i am not going to do any research. 

am i going to be making a post on the subject of fox sightings an annual thing? probably not. well, if i make it into the next year and see one (and am able to capture an image or two) then maybe, but alas it is not something i can commit to. just look at this post and the other one (link again) and pretend it is the first time you have seen it. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ode on red

greetings

just one of them "nothing really" posts that i am so prone to do, look you see. unfortunately yes, as the title suggest, once more it is an irresponsible love letter (kind of) to Marlboro red, the type of cigarette i covet more than any other. 

for clarity or what have you on that, once again i feel the pressure of society compelling me to point out, if not quite stress, that smoking (cigarettes) is very bad for you, is very silly, and depending on what your current lot (or plight) in life is you should not start smoking or quit as soon as possible. very little of what i do or gone done would be held up as a good example of life. 

a good friend, and indeed verk colleague, offered to get me some cigarettes off of their travels. i said thank you very much indeed for that, for it is both kind and economical, since most of the rest of the world sells them a good deal cheaper than here in the UK. so yes, then, i got some Marlboro red. lovely. 

what makes these all the more lovely is the split between the classic Marlboro red packet design and the excellent EU warning images we are now banned from using. these (in respect of the latter) are three of my all time favourite warning images. going from right to left you have someone looking a lot like Ant or possibly Dec (i don't care which) out of Ant and Dec getting medical treatment, a lady looking like she has surprisingly come back to life in a boss horror film and a bloke concerned that his male protruding part is busted, claimed to be due to smoking. as for the classic packet design, well, that's some of the most iconic branding in history, no matter what you may think of the product. 

have i ever given serious consideration to, you know, quitting? don't get excited, those wishing for my demise, i mean smoking and not life. well, yes. every now and then the youngest of my (known) children will mention doing so, and a sense of guilt comes with it. well, if not guilt, then heartache that someone does care about me, and also that they have a point. 

most recently there has been this declaration from David Lynch, encouraging people to quit. i was quite taken by the honesty of it. for the most part he is encouraging people to give them up so they don't end up as seriously ill as he, but also he does not lie. he declares no regret at smoking, and does not lambast himself for his lifelong love affair with them. whereas i am not at all sure i am anywhere near enough intelligent to act on it, it has been this from Mr Lynch that has given me reason to take serious stock of this particular life choice. 

but, of course, for now, a smoker i remain. i do feel it is my destiny if not way, and i am resigned to it likely being the thing that does kill me one day. well, if something (or someone) else killed me, that would be (allowing for gallows humour) f*****g hysterical. 

really not sure if these images have ever actually inspired someone to quit. i mean by the time you have seen the images, what with cigarettes now not allowed to be on display, you have already bought the packet. most people who do at least try to quit generally express the notice that it shall be done "after they have finished" the current packet. 

let me go and try to find something, as much as i love these, more better to write of.

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

cinema heretic

hello there

and so the business end of the year has dawned, look you see, what with it being (at time of publication) december already. blimey. no, that's not (quite) the subject on (or of) which i intend to write here, but one cannot but help wonder just how many more transitions of months, if not years, i have ahead. rather than behind, yes, true. 

so, yet another cinema trip this year. that's quite a few for me, and indeed all have been to that Ealing Project cinema. well, i did try for a different one for Venom, but they had no space for me or William. oh well. in this instance i went and saw Heretic, which is mostly known for starring Hugh Grant. again, it was an instance of my interest in the film being sparked by seeing a trailer for it. 

for those in a rush, and wishing to remain spoiler free, yes the film is worth seeing (very much so) for the widely celebrated performance of Hugh Grant. his magnificent work easily covers up the significant shortcomings of the rest of the film. oh, it's not really a horror as such, but all the same has a few moments of tension with a couple of shocks. and for the rest of this post spoilers are possible. 

plot? two young lady missionaries (i believe off of the Mormon church) go and visit Mr Reed (Hugh Grant), as he has expressed an interest in learning more of their religion. on visiting they are soon apparently trapped in his house, with him playing a sort of "cat and mouse" sort of game with them, except more of a "psychological battle" thing. and that's it. 

by no means is it a "bad" film. quite well paced and, for what my view on such is worth, rather well made. it just "flatters to deceive" i suppose, as ultimately it's a quite flimsy premise, no true or real substance to it and it all takes quite a while to reach a rather basic, rather tired point. yet it has a not really secret weapon (rather an in your face one) in the form of a truly breath-taking performance from Hugh Grant. as i mentioned earlier, it is a performance worth all the hype and rave reviews. 

don't remember exactly, but as pictured above i went for the more modest (as in smaller) box of popcorn, which i did not manage to spill, and i think the large coke. was just south of £9, which was indeed north of the cost of the ticket, what with me taking advantage of their tuesday discount. 

well, back to the film, and Hugh Grant's performance. not that the others in the cast are poor, but it is clear very early on that all was written around getting a stellar performance for this character. any and all shortfalls in the plot and what have you are not so much covered up as they are compensated for with what you get from Hugh Grant in this. if not quite a "once in a lifetime" role (this is no Hannibal Lecter) then a rare chance where you would think and actor would go "f*** yes", because it's an immersive, challenging and probably fun role to take on. 

i did think it odd that it had a November 1 release date, as much of the marketing screamed "horror". so yes, i thought the week before Halloween would have been wiser. as it turns out, it's all less horror, more what i suppose one would call psychological suspense thriller, or something like that. no, it's not the best thing i have seen this year, but also far from the worst. 

quite unlikely, i would think, that i shall go to the cinema (yet) again this year. the only thing they are promoting heavily is Gladiator 2, and the trailer makes it seem that what started off as a rather bad idea is going to be even worse than feared. oh. don't think much else of interest is going to be released for the rest of the year, assuming i have no interest in "seasonal" things. 

be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!