2011 in review, with a heavy heart

I haven't posted here since the Stone Roses reformed (no North American dates YET, those wankers), and that was a long time ago (over 2 months ago) but I've been busy.

• starting at the end of October 2011 TGTF became the Guardian Music-endorsed TGTF, showing up regularly on their "Best of the Music Blogosphere" blog roll. (at the time of this writing, my Top Gigs of 2011 is still sitting on their blog roll, which is pretty cool for Casiokids, Dutch Uncles, White Lies, the Joy Formidable and the Coronas, b/c they got attention I'm sure they weren't expecting.) in early December I was asked by two members of Delphic WHY I was still hawking TGTF badges on my holiday in Manchester and the answer was, "we are now the Guardian-endorsed TGTF, I have a reputation to protect!" this included making sure we had plenty of not just content but GOOD content for them to choose from. which meant many, many late nights for me.

• speaking of that holiday, I was away for my birthday in England for 16 days but was ill for 14 of them. so my plans to do a lot of poetry and songwriting went by the wayside of trying to stay in as physically fit as possible state for 10 gigs, hanging out and drinking with friends and colleagues, a lot of sightseeing-related walking, and travel between 3 different English cities. to say I was wiped by the time I returned is an understatement. somehow though I managed not to take a single day off work since I returned. (yes, I am such a good little employee.)

if you were wondering what those 10 gigs were, they were:

• Dutch Uncles Now Wave show (Fiction supporting) - 02.12.11 - Deaf Institute, Manchester, England - my There Goes the Fear review
• Example (Fenech-Soler supporting) - 01.12.11 - Apollo, Manchester, England
• Exit Ten (A Thousand Autumns, Tomorrow We Radio, and Fei Comodo supporting) - 29.11.11 - Fibbers, York, England - my There Goes the Fear review
• Billie Butterfly fund 'Magic in the Air' charity show featuring Everything Everything, I Am Kloot, and Badly Drawn Boy - 28.11.11 - Comedy Store, Manchester, England - my There Goes the Fear review
• City Reign EP launch (Stella Marconi and Modern Alarms supporting) - 26.11.11 - Gulliver's, Manchester, England
• Blonde Louis homecoming show (Monaco Bears and Camus the Cat supporting) - 25.11.11 - Plinston Hall, Letchworth, England - my There Goes the Fear review
• Cashier No. 9 (Kowalski supporting) - 24.11.11 - XOYO, London Old Street, England - my There Goes the Fear review
• Pete and the Pirates (The Catcher 9 supporting) - 22.11.11 - Buffalo Bar, London Islington, England
• City Reign (Wire Trees and Ulysses supporting) - 19.11.11 - Bull and Gate, London Kentish Town, England - my There Goes the Fear review
• I Dream in Colour single launch show (Heroics and Anchor and the Dove supporting) - 18.11.11 - Bull and Gate, London Kentish Town, England - my There Goes the Fear review

• I got to interview Marc Riley for TGTF inside the new BBC in Salford and who should walk in but Stuart Maconie?!? hugs and photos ensue. I never could have predicted that happening. I'm still amazed thinking about it. and he remembered me from my letters and me Tweeting him? what are the odds of that?


• going back to the Guardian coverage, we suddenly had a lot more interest from potential writers. I am finding this good and bad. it's great to have interest. but gee whiz, if you plan to contribute somewhere, be sure you respond to your editor's emails. I can only assume you don't care or you're too busy to respond - and therefore not a good fit - if I don't hear from you. that has been pretty frustrating: maybe because I'm a woman, some people think I'm a pushover. not in your life. but I've picked up at least one good writer who is a friend of a regular contributor, so that's good...


• but I can tell, it's a tough road ahead in 2012. I'm trying to not let this spectre of being tops in the Guardian's books hang over my head...like it already is. it is hard being me. I don't think anyone realises how much I put into the blog, how I sometimes lie awake at night thinking about how to make the site better, how to help my writers achieve their dreams, how I'm going to start a new campaign to promote a fledgling band I believe in and how exactly I plan to do that. I didn't mean for it to happen, but the blog has become my life. I'm not whinging: I'm very proud of what TGTF has become under my leadership and we still have leaps and bounds to grow and become even better. it's like when Elvis was saying he was jealous of the Beatles being a group: when you're the person running something big, you can have lots of supporting players, but no one but you knows the pressure of keeping things in tip top shape. and it is a lot of pressure.


• it's become very clear that one important thing has to happen before I can even *think* about leaving America for England. and that thing - something that could actually happen, versus something that will never happen, like me getting cured - is not going to happen anytime soon, so I think I can kiss my dream of living in England goodbye. and surprisingly, I'm okay with that. I had such a violent shock to the system on this trip that I'm not really sure when I'll return. if I do, I'm guessing it will have something to do with my dear friend Matt Abbott, whose presence I miss daily.

I'm going to work on trying to post more here in 2012, starting with one of those a "song a day" memes. I already know it's going to be tough work - not for the posting aspect, but for the choosing of the songs.

I learned something important this year, which I should have already predicted from the pain I experienced some 399 days prior. something still weighs so heavily on my heart, after the knife went in and then was twisted. it is so big it threatens my mental acuity, my health, all my future relationships. I can be in a public place, in the middle of a crowd, on an airplane, in an elevator...and I will start to cry. it's not right. everyone says I'm so strong; if only they knew. this is me, after years of fighting like my father said I would always have to. sometimes I am tired of fighting and being the strong one, I need someone to lean on. and the one person I want to lean on...I can't. he has no idea...and I have no way to tell him.

sometimes I feel like it is going to engulf me like a huge, oncoming wave with no warning: cold, painful, unrelenting. and sometimes I don't care that my life would end if it did. sometimes I just pray at night that my eyes will not open again, because then I could be sure all the pain would dissolve.

you can have all the right words prepared. but they are useless if you're never given the opportunity to say them.

Emmy the Great - 'We Almost Had a Baby'

I first heard this song, Emmy the Great's 'We Almost Had a Baby', on Radcliffe and Maconie (back in their Radio2 days), it didn't mean anything to me personally. I loved the fact that Emma-Lee Moss is Chinese (well, half-Chinese: close enough) and making her dream of being a singer come true. more so, I was struck dumb by the beauty of her voice (in particular, the last couple notes that swirl in the air and tug at the heartstrings), as well as the strength of the songwriting. if the story is taken from her real life / is true (and from what I've seen on the Web, it sounds like it is?), it's amazing.

somehow she's managed to compartmentalise a fling with a Ricky Nelson-type 'Travelin' Man' that included a night of heated passion with someone who meant so much to her and still means so much to her, yet he could care less now. she recalls how she thought that after a night of unprotected sex, she was so worried she was pregnant. yet, the wistfulness is painful - she knows that if there had been a baby, it would have been their baby. so many times in film we see women thinking they can use having a baby as a trump card in keeping a man, and instead of this idea being a cheap ploy in this song, it's heartbreaking. she's despondent. perhaps there's even a part of her that wishes she had been pregnant, because maybe he would have stayed.

the next time I saw you
out on the road
I'd have something to say
other than "pay me all of the money you owe"

I would have liked to
to have something above you
to have something to hold
and know I could choose to grow

I would've called you
and I'd have said "hey
you know I'm in control
I'll let you know if you have to come and choose a name"

she also paints, in one brief verse, the very picture of lost innocence. pretty sure she lost her virginity to this man (cue the waterworks):

well, I am a woman
and you know I'm a woman
but before I met you
I was only a kid
you know
when you thought you would break me
but you wanted to take me
so you did

and later:

I'm not the girl you remember from the start
I was only a baby
now I'm what you made me

she admits to wanting to give up everything to prove to him she was worthy of his love:

and once you left me in the spring
and twice you left in fall
and once I tried to make a life
to keep myself in yours

also, it's painfully obvious that this man is a musician, who flitted into her life when it was possible and flitted right back out (fits the profile of a touring musician):

do you think of me when you are playing
the one and five in four?
is country music
what your life is for?

I don't think men fully realise that that when it comes to love / sex / having babies, it's us women who carry the majority of the brunt of the consequences. there's a reason why there are more male "playas" and male serial flirters than women: the stakes are higher for women. if we sleep around, don't use protection and birth control, we're the ones that get pregnant and have to live with the potential unsettling, life-changing outcomes of unsafe liaisons.

hmm. it just really hit home today. when you're in love with someone, that someone is your whole world. for women, often times we're the ones having to give sex, because the men in our lives expect it, and we think that is enough to prove our love for them. but if there is ever a point when that someone stops loving you, especially after you've given them the most precious gift in the world, it's impossible to comprehend. it's not a question of forgiveness. it's not simple at all. it's like you're a drifting boat, left to drift forever, staring out into the horizon and wondering where the hell you're going.

so I've spent the entire afternoon listening to the song, bawling. like a baby. predictably.

Twitter world is *not* the real world.

the more time I spend on Twitter, the more I'm convinced people think it works like the real world. it does, but in a worse way than the real world does. and I think that's possible. people need validation and their egos stroked in real life, but it seems like on Twitter the desire to be liked, in the case of some of the more difficult cases, the desire to hear the sycophantic cries of your followers, is magnified to ridiculous proportions.

I've regarded Twitter as a useful tool b/c it's like Facebook and AOL IM rolled into one. (if anyone like me is still around out there that remembers what AOL IM was.) you can use it to tell people what you're doing, and if you're into music, what music turns you on and what you're listening to at the moment.

this afternoon I made a factual (so what I considered a completely unincendiary) statement about the absence of Steve Lamacq from 6music this week. a good majority of my followers don't listen to 6music as much as I do (or even listen to it at all) so I was stating the fact that Andrew Collins was subbing for him while he is in Brooklyn on quasi holiday, quasi work trip, and with Collins in for Lammo, the show isn't the same. Lammo is an indie music cheerleader of sorts, whereas Collins is a comedian (I recall him going to Edinburgh Fringe quite a lot?) / lit chap these days. it's like comparing apples to oranges. the show is bound to be different when you've got a different presenter.

Radcliffe/Maconie suffers a similar fate when one of them is out and the other must present solo, and the Mark Radcliffe fans love it when Stu is away, b/c he plays more indie-ish (?) stuff from what I can gather? and the Stuart Maconie fans like me are chomping at the bit when Mark is away, b/c Stu gets away with playing more Northern soul, and he tends to flirt with his female guests and generally be adorable (haha).

"one of the things is not like the other" is something we learned from Sesame Street, right?

somehow Mister Collins took my comment of "I miss Lammo. no offence to @CollingsA but drivetime isn't the same (:" as a personal slight. had I said, "Collins, you suck!" or "Andrew Collins should never be allowed to host drivetime, evah!" I could see he would have a decent argument for being upset. to a certain degree. in any event, he thought I was dissing him.

what's even loonier about the whole thing is that Collins must have been looking up his @replies to have found my Tweet in the first place. I'm sure Mister Big UK Media doesn't follow an inconsequential person like me, so that's the only way he could have found it. my guess is that it must have been a really slow night in London and with nothing to do, he went fishing for compliments through his @replies or possibly (and quite masochistly?) was looking for complaints into his second day of subbing for Lammo.

unfortunately, he found the Tweet and decided it was grounds for (minor) war. he said something to me that I regarded as a bit of a threat, saying I shouldn't say things on Twitter I wouldn't say to his face. ok, so you tell me, what part of "I miss Lammo. no offence to @CollingsA but drivetime isn't the same (:" is hateful? I don't see it. I'm not an arsekisser *and* I'm a fan and friend of Lammo's so the last thing I'm going to say to any of his substitute presenters is "you're so wonderful, I love it when Lammo is away and you can fill in for him!" b/c I don't think that.

apparently, I was supposed to be sensitive to the fact that Andrew Collins might misconstrue a statement of fact as a dig at him. and oh yeah, he said I needed to learn Twitter etiquette and not use his Twitter handle in my Tweets so he won't read them and get upset. ummm...WTH?

I ended up deleting the Tweets because I just don't have time to deal with any rabid Collins fans coming after me with a pitchfork. some of my followers who also follow him have told me they read the exchange and either laughed and/or shook their heads at what happened.

the man has 10,000+ followers. if he feels the need to go after an innocent comment someone made stating a preference for a favourite presenter on a threatened radio station, that's pretty stupid.

a couple weeks back I wasn't allowed to have an opinion. now I'm not allowed to state facts. Twitter just keeps getting more interesting. (ha!)

FYI this whole thing ended up confirming what I already knew: I prefer Lammo above all others :)

(oh yeah, and I *still* think that Foals track sounds like Doves.)

edit 24 Mar 2010, 9:30 AM: he's still going on about Twitter etiquette. is there such a thing? this is pretty weird. it's like having the Emily Post of Twitter come back at you and tell you you've made a social gaffe.

dunno, I suppose I should be grateful that he slightly backpedaled on his previous vitriolic Tweets to me.

CollingsA
@theprintedword Not offence at comment, offence at etiquette failure re: using someone's Twitter name when you needn't have done

he wanted to make the point that any Tweet containing his name should be praise and nothing else? dunno. if you're expecting Twitter to deliver only compliments to your desktop / mobile phone / electronic gadget of your choice, I think you're missing the point of Twitter completely. it's a great equalizer b/c anyone with access to the internet can post whatever's on their mind, whenever they want. I wonder what his thoughts are on all the recent "comments" made about Director-General Thompson.

ugh, Christmas covers, make them stop.

I wanted to be put out of my misery after hearing Florence Welch's cover of Wham!'s "Last Christmas" on Lammo's programme just now. UGH. I'll give her that she was performing it as part of some special xmas show thingy but still...really no need. her voice squeaks and I'm sorry, I just don't like the way she sounds. "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)" is a good choone for the disco but other than that, I can live without her really.

but this isn't the only offender this Christmas. there is also an acoustic version of "Don't They Know It's Christmas" (aka the Bob Geldof/Band-Aid 1984 Christmas charity single) this year being put out by Badly Drawn Boy. don't mess with thar classics. ever!

there's a Thea Gilmore xmas-themed song playing on Rad/Mac and Radio2 as well. but as seeing it's not a cover (I don't think?) I'll leave that one alone.

only one more week left. THANK GOD.

TWO WEEKS!

no, calm down, not the Grizzly Bear song...

I only have 2 more weeks to go before I see Friendly Fires and the xx again. at the Paradise in Boston. today I was on the verge of freaking out b/c the process of getting to BWI via mass transit is kind of complicated and so is trying to get from Logan into downtown Boston. it's going to be a crazy dance of subways, trains, and buses, not to mention two trips in those big metal boxes in the sky.

doesn't matter. I'm going to see Friendly Fires and the xx! I'm going to see Friendly Fires and the xx! I'm going to see Friendly Fires and the xx!

to say I was excited would be an understatement. there's been so much crap going on in my life - work's been busy and at times rough, rowing with my mum who is never satisfied with the choices of her grown daughter, and getting not-so-good news at the doctor's :/ and just I found out today that another one of my aunts has been diagnosed with breast cancer. :/

here's a random tidbit of squee-age - Mathew Horne (aka Gavin of "Gavin and Stacey") Tweeted me a kiss on Monday. I'd told him he had an excellent taste in music. yeah, I'm still more happy about that than should be allowed. hey, the boy likes We Were Promised Jetpacks *and* the Pains of Being Pure at Heart. my friend C and I were talking today about how there might be fists flying over this in a certain venue in the near future - ahahaha...so watch this space!

oh yeah, and I think I'm developing a major crush on Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend. I remember the first time I heard "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" on Radcliffe/Maconie and thinking, who are these people? I hate how this version of the video from Beggars Group is so dang blurry :P but the video is amusing, you should watch it at least once. and remember, this was filmed BEFORE "Twilight!"



better quality is the new video for 'Cousins', which I wrote about at TGTF today. TEEHEE. thank you XL Recordings, I wuv you!

Elbow room

I remember the day when I was finally converted to the religion of Elbow. you know, that time-honoured belief system led by guru Guy Garvey. I'd heard the most luscious love song ever - "One Day Like This" :

drinking in the morning sun
blinking in the morning sun
shaking off the heavy one
heavy like a loaded gun

what made me behave that way?
using words I never say
I can only think it must be love
oh, anyway...
it's looking like a beautiful day...

you must not be human if that doesn't move you. not to mention the orchestration behind the lyrics, whew!

so when I read that Elbow were coming to D.C. to do one of their only two headlining gigs in America this year (the other date being in Los Angeles; they have since added an Atlanta date this coming Saturday, 8 August), I knew I just had to be there.

I also schemed such that I would head down to the club directly from work (via D.C.'s lumbering mass transit system to avoid figuring out where to put my car downtown where it wouldn't get hit or stolen) and queue up early. this was rather farcical, because I arrived promptly as I expected, around 5 PM (a good two hours before the doors would open, and another 4 1/2 until Elbow would take the stage) and not one soul was there. good, I thought.

oddly, three city policemen were standing right in front of the venue. I wondered how long I was going to have to wait by myself. two girls went up to the box office and were turned away b/c the show had sold out. I suggested they come back later b/c there are always people walking around outside the 9:30 before the doors open, trying to sell their tickets to other fans at face value. (note: my only gripe with English venues: touts run rampant outside every gig - at least I've seen them at all the ones I've been to. scruffy blokes have tried to chat me up either to sell tickets at inflated prices - "d'you need a ticket for tonight's show, luv?" - or they want to buy them cheaply off you in order to turn around and tout it to someone else - "anybody got tickets they want to sell?") I hope the girls did come back and were able to get in.

15 minutes later, a couple who had driven down from Philadelphia (the girl being a fellow music blogger!) arrived. we chatted a long time. we also stood next to the front door and I could hear them soundchecking for "Starlings" (the trumpets!), "One Day Like This", and "Grounds for Divorce". they sounded great many, many feet away and through glass, so I could only imagine what they'd sound like a couple feet away when I'd be standing at the barrier.

this gig also marks the first time I've ever been first in line at a gig.

then around 6 PM, the girl's boyfriend walked over from where we were standing - next to the box office/will call window. I had no idea why he'd walked over there...but it turns out it was b/c he recognised the figure of Guy Garvey, who had just come out of the front door of the venue and was looking for the band's tourbus. I'd seen it earlier, parked on the side street next to the venue. but poor Guy, he looked lost b/c he was probably thinking, where did it go, I JUST saw it!

so the girl said, "I think that's Guy Garvey, I'll save your spot, go over there and talk to him!" so I did. I was a nervous wreck. I am always this way around people who make music I adore. I hope one of these days I'll become the cool as a cucumber that one of my good friends is ALWAYS around rock stars, but the truth of the matter is, the level of respect I have for musicians/singers/songwriters is so high, I have difficulty rationalising that they might actually be normal, nice people. for everyone I've met so far, that's been the case. so what am I worrying about?

I'm really not sure how I got words out of my mouth, but it basically consisted of me telling him I was covering the event for our American music blog and going to do a write-up (he thanked me for that, that was so cute!). then we started talking about Stuart Maconie and Manchester (he said, "you know Stuart Maconie too? he's a good man, he is...") and then I said I was so glad that they came back to D.C. b/c I missed the show in April 2008 b/c I was ill with the flu. they'd played the Sixth and I Synagogue, a tiny venue with awesome acoustics but where no acts are allowed to curse. (seriously.) I also added, "I'll look out for Elaine the singer, I listened in on your Finest Hour show on Sunday!" and he just beamed, I think he was so happy that an American listened to his 6music programme. (if I get a sideways mention in his show this week, I will die.) he is just one big, adorable teddy bear. in all, v. exciting event in my life.

this incident was even detailed on 6music yesterday by Steve Lamacq for his National Anthem feature - have a listen, when he played one of my favourite songs in addition to telling everyone in the UK what had happened to me. I seriously need to give that man a lifetime supply of pints.

the review is done, I finished it last night - I'll add the link to the featured item at Popwreckoning later today when it posts, so watch this space!

I have an announcement!

well, I have several, actually. some of them I just haven't had the time to post about until now. for my sanity, I'll put them in chronologic order:

--

1. in June I posted a letter to one of my music journo heroes, Stuart Maconie (he of 6music's Sunday programme "Freak Zone" and the copresenter of Radio2's nightly programme "Radcliffe and Maconie") . he's always been a bit of a living legend in my and my friends' eyes b/c he has interviewed Morrissey more times you can shake a stick at and, from all appearances, has somehow maintained a confidence and kinship with the man. I stuck an international reply coupon and an SASE in with my letter, thinking that if he'd have time, he'd post me a promo picture of Mark and himself or something equally nonpersonal.

so on the second week of July, I come home from a long day's work and see in my pile of mail an envelope with this in the upper right hand corner:



I bit my lip as I opened the envelope and revealed a letter Stuart himself had typed out on A4 paper using MS Word. I won't bore you with the details, but the end of the letter (right before his signature in black Sharpie) was this:

Do what you love is my advice. And take care of yourself

S
xx

the man must receive bags upon bags of mail every day from his devoted legions of fans around the UK alone, not to mention anyone outside of the UK's borders who might fancy a listen to one of his shows. and he chose to write to me. I am v. grateful.

2. interestingly, there is a sideways connection between what Stuart Mac wrote me in his letter and Ed Mac of Friendly Fires. the day Stu wrote me was the day the Phenomenal Handclap Band was scheduled to come in for a live session for Radcliffe/Maconie. as usual, I tuned in that night, not knowing that it was the v. same day Stuart was going to write a letter to me. I knew nothing about the PHB until that morning of their session, when I opened an email from the le poisson rouge mailing list - where I'm seeing the Fires on the 12th - and I see the PHB is their support act.

I dunno about you, but I find the timing of both the email and when the band were visiting the Oxford Road BBC Manchester studios, ALONG WITH the choice of opening act must be more than a coincidence! I even dashed off a reply to Stuart with what had happened - this time no IRC and SASE, b/c I figured he didn't need to be bothered further! - but I thought he might be amused with this startling set of events.

at any rate, the PHB's live session with Mark and Stu was phenomenal (no pun intended) so I am looking forward to photographing and seeing them live in 10 days. eep!

3. my Paolo Nutini/Matt Hires/Erin McCarley gig report was made a featured item at Popwreckoning. you can read it here. I wasn't too impressed with Paolo (I think he may have just been a little pissed before coming onstage) but I really enjoyed Matt and Erin's sets and would have been happy if it'd just been the two of them.

Erin McCarley with her purty acoustic


that was the third time I'd been at the 9:30 this year and definitely the worst experience of the three. Doves had been sold out, yet tall guys let me stand in front of them on the balcony. the Camera Obscura crowd was filled with relatively mellow people - just like their music - and I never once felt threatened. fast forward a month to the Paolo Nutini show. let's just say that there were totally rabid fans from age 16 to age 50 and they screamed equally as loudly and passionately for Paolo, and the older set grated on my nerves for their "I'm allowed to be a b*tch and treat you like crap" sense of entitlement. when I went to go get my press pass - which was an ordeal in itself that I don't want to relive by typing it out here - one of these women shouted at the guy at the window that Paolo's tour manager had said she could go in before everyone else, because "I have to be in the front."

lady, unless you're his mum, you line up with the rest of us. end of story.

I do not have a problem with REAL fans lining up early and taking up the front spots b/c I'd rather have a real fan in front than a posturing industry type or someone who's shoved their way to the front from the back. we're all fans and we're in this together - be kind to your fellow fan.

4. bands have been making fall tour announcements left and right. some of the blast from the past notables:

Pearl Jam
Manic Street Preachers
Muse (touring w/ U2)
Leonard Cohen
Mew

5. good lord this has gotten long. will be back in a mo' with another post to finish up...

"best of" upcoming events - late March 2009 edition

b/c I'm hopelessly behind on things, we're on the last full week of March before I can get out a "best of" list...

Nemone (6music)
24.03 - Royksopp interview
25.03 - Chew Lips interview

Steve Lamacq (6music)
24.03 - Paul Smith (Maximo Park) interview
27.03 - Doves interview plus live tracks recorded in Maida Vale

Radcliffe/Maconie (Radio2)
23.03 - Colin Meloy (Decemberists) interview
25.03 - Jackie DeShannon interview

Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
25.03 - Blue October performance

Jimmy Fallon(formerly Conan O'Brien) (NBC)
28.01 - Morrissey performance - watch here

Leno (NBC)
24.03 - PJ Harvey and John Parish performance
25-27.03 - Prince performances

Letterman (CBS)
23.03 - Bloc Party performance
24.03 - White Lies performance (this is so ironic b/c they're taping this in NYC this afternoon, and I'll be on the train home from their gig when they play this on tv)
26.03 - U2 performance
27.03 - Lyle Lovett and John Hiatt performance

oh yeah, and I have a ticket to see Doves in June!

Carl and Pete love at the NME awards

Pete Doherty and Carl Barat were reunited by means of the annual event that is known as the NME Awards last night. nice array of pics and misc coverage are available here and here.

It's also nice to see a good amount of people also slag off the Jonas Brothers. I'm soooo very sick of them...

Here's a list of last night's NME award winners from 6Music:

BEST BRITISH BAND supported by Shockwaves
Oasis
Bloc Party
Radiohead
Muse
Last Shadow Puppets

BEST INTERNATIONAL BAND supported by 4music
Kings Of Leon
The Killers
MGMT
Vampire Weekend
Crystal Castles

BEST SOLO ARTIST
Ladyhawke
Jay-Z
Laura Marling
Lightspeed Champion
Peter Doherty

BEST NEW BAND supported by Bench
Vampire Weekend
MGMT
Glasvegas
Late Of The Pier
White Lies

BEST LIVE BAND supported by Red Stripe
Radiohead
Oasis
The Killers
Muse
Kings Of Leon

BEST ALBUM supported by HMV
Kings Of Leon - ‘Only By The Night’
The Killers - ‘Day & Age’
Glasvegas - ‘Glasvegas’
Oasis - ‘Dig Out Your Soul’
Bloc Party - ‘Intimacy’

BEST TRACK supported by NME Radio
Vampire Weekend - ‘A-Punk’
The Last shadow Puppets - ‘The Age Of The Understatement’
Kings Of Leon - ‘Sex On Fire’
The Ting Tings - ‘That's Not My Name’
MGMT - ‘Time To Pretend’

BEST VIDEO supported by NME TV
Late Of The Pier – ‘Heartbeat’
The Last Shadow Puppets - ‘My Mistakes Were Made For You’
Radiohead - ‘House Of Cards’
Vampire Weekend - ‘A-Punk’
Oasis - ‘The Shock Of The Lightning’

BEST LIVE EVENT
T in the Park
Glastonbury
Isle Of Wight Festival
Reading And Leeds Festival
V Festival

BEST TV
Skins
The Mighty Boosh
Gavin & Stacey
Never Mind The Buzzcocks
The IT Crowd

BEST DANCEFLOOR FILLER
Bloc Party - ‘Mercury’
Dizzee Rascal - ‘Dance Wiv Me’
Crystal Castles - ‘Courtship Dating’
Friendly Fires - ‘Paris’
Late Of The Pier - ‘Bathroom Gurgle’

BEST DVD
Foo Fighters - ‘Live At Wembley Stadium’
The Rolling Stones - ‘Shine A Light’
Kaiser Chiefs - ‘Live At Elland Road’
Arctic Monkeys - ‘At The Apollo’
Muse – ‘HAARP’

BEST BAND BLOG
Noel Gallagher / Oasis
Little Boots
Lightspeed Champion
Radiohead
Foals

BEST VENUE
London 02 Arena
London Astoria
Glasgow Barrowland
London 02 Brixton Academy
Manchester Apollo

BEST ALBUM ARTWORK
We Are Scientists – ‘Brian Thrust Mastery’
Muse – ‘HAARP’
The Cure – ‘4:13 Dream’
Guillemots – ‘Red’
The Killers – ‘Day & Age’

HERO OF THE YEAR
Brandon Flowers
Noel Gallagher
Barack Obama
Noel Fielding
Alex Turner

VILLAIN OF THE YEAR
Amy Winehouse
George W Bush
Peter Doherty
John McCain
Gordon Brown

BEST DRESSED
Brandon Flowers
Noel Fielding
Alexa Chung
Alex Turner
Noel Gallagher

WORST DRESSED
Amy Winehouse
Peter Doherty
Katy Perry
Brandon Flowers
Johnny Borrell

WORST ALBUM
Jonas Brothers - ‘A Little Bit Longer’
Coldplay - ‘Viva La Vida’
Britney Spears – ‘Circus’
Scouting For Girls - ‘Scouting For Girls’
Razorlight - ‘Slipway Fires’

WORST BAND
Tokio Hotel
Jonas Brothers
Scouting for Girls
Fall Out Boy
Oasis

SEXIEST MALE
Carl Barât
Keith Murray
Matt Bellamy
Peter Doherty
Miles Kane

SEXIEST FEMALE
Hayley Williams
Kate Jackson
Alison Mosshart
Lykke Li
Stephanie Dosen

BEST WEBSITE
Facebook
YouTube
Last FM
MySpace
Bebo

random tidbit of the day: I just about died laughing when Stuart Maconie reported this on Monday night's programme - the pressings of the CD of Faryl Smith, a castoff from Britain's Got Talent, was discovered to be *not* to be her angelic own but the voice of the cantankerous Mark E. Smith and the Fall's 2008 album Imperial Wax Solvent.

Needless to say, Universal chiefs weren’t best pleased.

My spy tells me: “They had ordered hundreds of copies and they were staggered by what was on it. They have had severe words with the pressing plant.”

this begs the question, was the mistake in mixing up "Faryl" with "the Fall"? or perhaps mistaking one Smith for another? these photos side by side are hilarious.

Moz on Radio 2 Live last night / this week's Roundtable

I am not sure what to make of the Morrissey gig at the BBC Radio Theatre last night (available on the Rad/Mac page for the next 6 days). all the tracks seemed laboured.

I *did* highly enjoy "Why Don't You Find Out For Yourself?"

--

Thursday's Roundtable sees Radio 1's Bethan Elfyn join journalist Leonie Cooper in reviewing some new releases
(FYI Simon Raymonde of Bella Union Records (and ex-Cocteau Twins) was added at the last minute.)

1. Pet Shop Boys - "Love Etcetera" - dunno but this sounds old and tired to me. what do you think?

2. Peter Bjorn and John - "Nothing to Worry About" - just on principle, I should be against this b/c Kanye West is singing this band's praises. I agree with Leonie's assessment that the song sounds very Lykke Li, but Lykke Li does it better.

3. Spinnerette - "Ghetto Love" - the singer sounds like Chrissie Hynde, or maybe the vocalist for the Waitresses - neither of which are a compliment.

4. Hockey - "Too Fake" - perhaps I am jaded, but this sounds like other stuff that's out. their synth play remind me of Passion Pit, who they are touring with in England. hear this track and you'll understand what I'm talking about.

5. the winner - a tune by Maccabees - this reminds me of the new wave of shoegazing that is currently being led by White Lies.

6. Lady Sovereign - "So Human" - I am generally not a fan of rap or hip-hop but I like this one. it's got a nice melody and dancey backbeat - stolen from the Cure's "Close to Me". maybe that's why I dig it more than I should...anyhoo, you'd see me grooving to this at the disco.

7. Airborne Toxic Event (album of the week) - "Does This Mean You're Moving On?" - "so dumb, so dumb, so dumb, so dumb"...??? this does not make me optimistic about the gig of theirs I am going to next month. :/ Steve also played "Something New" which begins like a '60s song that I cannot think the title of right now...have a listen and tell me what it is, please! I have also read on the net it sounds like Jam's "A Town Called Malice." I don't agree. when I think of that song, I think of the crazy dancing scene in "Billy Elliott" when Jamie Bell is tip-tapping his way through his little town.

random tip of the day: this is of no consequence, but I am really digging Royksopp's "Happy Up Here" more than I should. this is evidenced by my brain thinking it really wants me to start doing jazz hands or rollerskate every time the song cues up on the radio.

"best of" upcoming events (third list of January)

addendum to this post from 12 January

Radcliffe/Maconie (Radio2)
27.01 - Graham Nash interview (added later 'cos it was just announced on Rad/Mac)
11.02 - Morrissey live session and Q&A with Mark and Stu at the BBC Theatre, London (repeated in list here b/c I'm worried I'll forget!)

Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
05.02 - Morrissey performance - sure to be mobbed by mozzolo regulars

Conan O'Brien (NBC)
28.01 - Cold War Kids performance
30.01 - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds performance

Leno (NBC)
07.01 - Hoobastank performance
29.01 - Franz Ferdinand performance

Letterman (CBS)
29.01 - Graham Nash performance
30.01 - Gaslight Anthem performance

crap, I just realised why I missed Delta Spirit on 16.01, I was watching the wrong show. instead I was watching Hugh Laurie and his charity Band on TV. oops! at least I got to hear them on Lammo's Monday night show recently.

random thought of the day: I have tickets to see both Airborne Toxic Event (12.03) and Morrissey (14.03) and I am very excited, for I did not have to go through a tout for either! see, the little things in life make me happy.

live Morrissey interview/gig on 11 February, Radio2

Mark Radcliffe and Stuart Maconie are travelling down from their comfy confines at the Oxford Road Studios to Broadcasting House, London, to bear witness to a long-time-coming session with the man Morrissey, supposedly beginning with a interview segment. to be broadcast live on Wednesday, 11 February, at their usual show time of 20.00 to 22.00.

info on the 100 pairs of tickets being given away at Radio2's Web site. yet another reason why I hate being on the wrong side of the Atlantic! ::fumes::

random tip of the day: 5 days left to listen to the 12 January Morrissey announcement at 40 min into the Radcliffe/Maconie show and what's more, a humourous bit at 1 hr 5 min into it about someone's mum and fried chicken. seriously tho, it is on topic. I am respectful and amused by Stuart Mac and I think the feeling is mutual :D

"best of" upcoming events (second list of January)

addendum to this earlier post from last week

Ellen Degeneres (check U.S. local listings)
15.01 - Live performance (c'mon you remember them. and they're going to perform "Lightning Crashes".)

Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC)
16.01 - Delta Spirit performance (need to remember to program this directly after Airborne Toxic Event on Letterman...yeah yeah, I'm a geezer. I can't stay awake for these late night shows b/c I get up at 6 in the morning for work.)

Radcliffe/Maconie (Radio2)
12.01 - Morrissey announcement (it's got to be either an in-session at the Oxford Road Studios open to fans, or a full-fledged broadcast recording like this Elbow thingamabob being recorded this Saturday and going out on Radio2 on 31.01 - either way, this fangirl is again mourning *not* living in blighty)
13.01 -Starsailor in session, and look, it's Onion Tuesday! (don't ask, just listen)

"best of" upcoming events

fyi: ratings added 12.01

David Letterman (CBS)
05.01 - Glasvegas performance - meh.
07.01 - Okkervil River performance - meh.
16.01 - Airborne Toxic Event performance

Leno (NBC)
05.01 - Iron and Wine performance - oops, forgot about this.
09.01 - Eagles of Death Metal performance - groovy.

Radcliffe/Maconie (Radio2)
05.01 - Adrian Edmondson & The Bad Shepherds in session - they didn't grab me; nice enough tho.
07.01 - chat with Teitur ("Catherine the Waitress") - v. interesting interview from the Faroe Islands' inhabitant; wishing him every success.

random tip of the day: for the David Lee Roth fans out there, a page full of random Diamond Dave noises.

bless this mess

a new year. so I'm trying my hand at another blog - one that's public and hopefully of interest to those who have a finger on the pulse of popular music today.

2008 was, on the whole, a pretty good year for me. I started a new job in an entirely new field, and with it, a whole new outlook on what's important in life. I gained a better appreciation for the one thing that had brought me joy throughout my life and had been there for me when people and luck weren't. and that would be...

music.

thank you very much Radio2 and 6music for turning me on to music from blighty and saving me from the radio broadcasting wasteland that surrounds the D.C. area like a shroud. maybe I am being overly dramatic, but if you lived here and had to hear Santana and Rob Thomas's "Smooth" or any ancient song by Nickelback one more time, you would understand.

several of my stateside friends find it humourous (or more possibly, daft) that I'm probably more "famous" (if that's the right word) in Britain than I am here, as I'm a keen participant in several radio shows. this year I actually spoken to two of Britain's who's who of the radio presenting world - Stuart Maconie of the Radcliffe/Maconie show (Monday to Thursday evenings on Radio2) and the Freak Zone (on Sunday afternoons on 6Music) and Steve Lamacq, the famed indie rock oracle of 6Music (weekday afternoons on 6Music).

the thing is, I would imagine that to a music-loving Brit, it feels completely normal to interact with their radio presenters, b/c these DJs invite people to text in, write in via email, and even phone in and voice their opinions. while there are plenty of them to whom the Beeb is a nuisance, for whatever reason, for me, it's so nice to listen to radio stations that don't stop for commercial every 3 songs, want to you to contact them -and- have people behind the mixing boards that know their stuff (what a concept!)

the goal of this blog? whenever I feel compelled, I will write about my favourite music, what gigs I'm planning to attend and after I've gone, share my thoughts on them. I also plan to provide commentary on the state of music based on the new stuff I hear and highly recommend for their aural merits.

I also have been writing lyrics to songs for a while now and basically I am a Bernie Taupin looking for an Elton John. so if you know of anyone you'd recommend, let me know.

FYI I am most definitely not in England - and this evidenced by the 3 small deer chomping on the grass in the backyard. if the pics come out, I'll post them here later.

I'll end with this...a very happy new year to you all!