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Saturday 31 March 2012

Plans afoot for poet musician website

Patrick Dreux, my old friend, warm and intelligent poet and musician is going to be the first artist. He's just sent me some files, but my internet is so slow I hope it's not going to frustrate my dreams of doing a small poet-musician netlabel, modelled on Richard Sanderson's Linear Obsessional. However, I don't intend it to have such a furious output!

Saturday 24 March 2012

Monomono-Banza Diaries by Eze Chimalio, a sort of review by me

Monomono-Banza Diaries
by Eze Chimalio
published by Dark Windows Press
I love graphic novels and this is an area that's really grown in popularity recently. I was interested in this book initially as I'm interested in Dark Windows Press - a important small press for the surrealist community which publishes the magazine Patricide.
My impression is wow, really sophisticated nihilistic stuff, closest thing I can think of is Robert Crumb. Gives me the same kind of dark feeling of paranoia and wanting to just lock yourself away from the world because it's all totally pointless.
For me it is fascinating to see the African community in this kind of dark, seedy light. I like the way the subject moves between the different strata of society. The use of the babies thoughts, the internal monologue even of the smallest child.
As someone who works on the Reuters international community I recognise a lot of the social issues touched on the book - such as the plight of orphans, HIV, the lure of terrorism for the young ... as a human being I relate to the internal commentary of anxiety, selfishness and paranoia.
After reading this I feel a lot more frightened of and for the human race. Is that a good thing? It's a powerful 'read'.

http://darkwindowspress.com/

Monday 19 March 2012

Bukittinggi Tales

Bukittinggi Tales

My new album!

from the sleevenotes: "I always thought I would return to Bukittinggi but so far this hasn’t happened. Yet my experiences of singing in the Mingkabau dialect of Sumatra Barat have survived and transmuted into strange audio patterns that I carry around inside. This album consists of improvisations looking at these memories of songs with their mis-remembered words and melodies. Each track lasts approximately ten minutes and is improvised in my home studio in Mottingham, SE London"





http://linearobsessional.bandcamp.com/album/bukittinggi-tales

Sunday 11 March 2012

Surprise new potato haul

Ducks are lurking for worms

I saved a frog/toad from Poly, uncovered it under a rock - it's gone next door.

Yellow leeks

They're starting - we have various other seeds germinating, in and out of doors, including kohlrabi which I haven't heard of before but which looks pretty robust.

Strawberry patch

The old strawberry patch has got overgrown, we need to weed it. Fortunately we have plenty of straw which we got for the ducks to put under the berries when they start to crop.

Digging the new veggie patch

The ducks are after the worms - they are pleased with the work.

Chitting potatoes

Dog asleep on table

Sunday 4 March 2012

World News Vision - April 2011


World News Vision - April 2011

My new album just out! On Jerome Poirier's Three Legs Duck netlabel.

http://threelegsduck.bandcamp.com/album/world-news-vision-april-2011