Always Trying to Work It Out

Steve Dixon and I drove around Bristol trying to find parking for the Low gig last night. Boy, we know the roundabout by The Exchange well by the end of the night. My fault, I thought my gig kemosabe - who was kind enough to drive us there - knew the way. I only know the way from The Exchange, so my directions were a bit scrappy do. Eventually we did and got into the Trinity in time to see the final song from the support band, buy a beer and do the first sweep of the merch’ table.

Low’s set consisted very heavily of songs from their new album ‘Double Negative’ (did they play the whole album?), which is no bad thing. ‘Double Negative’ is pretty experimental with the actual sound of the songs, to the extent that the first time I played it I did check my stylus. It was great to hear the songs stripped of the effects and they really soared, filling up every corner of the church. They also settled into two extended bouts of guitar drone, similar to the ‘guitar armageddon’ that My Bloody Valentine used to close their sets with, but at a less ear threatening volume. I’d accuse most bands of being self indulgent at this point but Low last night weren’t doing it for effect, they were being artistically uncompromising, yes they were. I got the same feeling listening to the drone as I do when I’m looking at a Rothko painting. It filled my soul with joy.

Alan Sparhawk barely spoke to the audience for the first half, then when he did someone started screaming at the crowd. I have no idea why or what she was screaming about. Sparhawk was - understandably - freaked out and kept asking “Is everyone…cool?” Things seemed to settle down, but it was all very weird. Sparhawk recovered and was quite chatty after, even updating the audience on how his kids were doing, and how one had gone to art college. He seemed to be almost justifying the price of the gig ticket (which was a bit spicy) but fuck it, they’re Low. I’d see them every week if I could. Mimi did say ‘Is it Monday right?’ to which a wag in audience replied “Welcome to Bristol.”

They did pull some older songs out of the bags, particular highlights being ‘Murderer’ and ‘Pissing’. Low can play whatever they want, but I always hope for ‘When I Go Deaf’ but the one time I heard them do it live I blubbed like a baby, so probably best they didn’t.

I'm a Believer

By rights I should have had a better time. All the conditions were good. I’d purposefully left myself a bit dehydrated so I wouldn’t have to go for a slash right out of the gate, so I was cautiously optimistic about getting a new PB in Sunday’s Cardiff half marathon.

It’s my tenth? The only way I could know for certain is if I counted the amount of Cardiff half medals I have, and I don’t want to do that. I was a bit nervous. I hadn’t really got the required pace in my training runs, and I should have left more time to taper my training. ASICS have stopped doing their bespoke online running plan, so I thought I’d do my training ad hoc, having done enough of these. In the last four weeks I’ve also had a fair amount of lower back pain. On the day I slathered so much Ibuprofen gel and Deep Heat on my back that I probably created my own back brace.

I was running this year to raise funds for the wonderful local charity The Wallich which helps rough sleepers and prevent homelessness. One of the benefits was that they had a room in the City Hall to store bags and stay warm. It was a sunny if cold start. I set off for the start line at 9:30 for the 10am start. That side of things was a bit chaotic and at the end of Queen St, by the old Barfly. It was gridlocked with supporters. Can’t moan too much cause I was in the White Pen with 15 minutes to spare and in time to see the now traditional huge flames fire up vertically in front of the Castle.

And we were off!

Yes! I didn’t need a slash so I was off to a very quick start running the first mile in 6:33. The miles just flew by and I remember thinking ‘This pace isn’t too bad, if I dig in I might be able to do this.’ However things started to go to shit between miles 3 and 4 when take the hill from Penarth road up towards Barry and Penarth. I never really regained my pace after that. I needed an average pace of 6:50 and I was hitting around 7:20. So I knew by the time I got to the barrage I wasn’t on for a sub 1:30. The trick is then to keep going at a good pace and not just to kick back. I did get a pick-me-up when I saw The Wallich supporters at Richmond Rd. They cheered me on and I briefly hit the 6:40 pace again only to lose it again by the time I got to Albany Rd. So I kept on grinding the miles, I only stopped at one water station and I actually felt pretty strong running, especially when it came to Roath Park Lake, which is around mile 10 when you start to really feel it.

Although nothing really hurt and I felt strong I never got the ‘race high’ that I normally get around mile 8 fueled by lovely lovely endorphins. As I closed in on the end and killer hill as you coming into Cathays at mile 12 the closer I could get to 1:30 the better. I sprinted but still only got in at a disappointing 1:35.

Now, I don’t want to be a prick about this cause I know in the greater scheme of things that it’s a good time. If you’d said to me at the start of the year would I prefer a PB in a marathon or a half marathon I’d have chose the marathon, and I did get a PB in Newport in April, but still…I can’t help be disappointed. I should have trained more, and I should have followed a plan. As it turned out I was actually 2 minutes quicker than last year, and I know what I’ve got to do for next year. Also I raised money for a great charity, which is the the most important thing. I suppose.

War Paint

It’s been an…eventful year. This has meant that some of my activities have sometimes taken a back seat. Principally my painting. I’ve been less than inspired with my usual subject matter, and a few things I’ve gone back to haven’t really worked out. This has all translated to me spending less and less time in my studio, to the point that I was shocked to realise the other day that I hadn’t been there in 6 weeks.

“Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”

— Picasso

However I have had an idea for a new set of paintings, partly informed by the work I saw in the RA Summer exhibition. So the ideas have been fermenting and it was just a matter of dragging myself back. In the words of Picasso “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.” which has meant that I’ve been back to my studio twice this weekend.

There have been some very practical considerations, namely that my studio is a tip. I have mentioned a few times on this blog that I run in, throw some paint and turps around then run back out again, but now the space really is a disgrace, so I had to do some tidying up. Believe it or not the picture you can see if after I’d done some cleaning. Yes, I have some way to go.

Having cleared my studio of Burnt Umber, which at one point seemed to be breeding, I now find that I need some, which is all part of life’s rich pageant. It does feel good to be back working, knowing what direction I’m going, and - as soon as I do some more cleaning - a path into my studio

Beat Quest

Yesterday was a bit full on.

It kicked off with a deceptively leisurely start as I got ready for the Cardiff 10k. I was a bit blase about the race as it's not my distance. When I did it a couple of years ago I was astounded that there was such a fuss being made about a race which was just 6 miles. I do recognise that it was quite a douchey thing to think, it's a big challenge and a very life affirming thing to do. Like any of this events it also spotlights the best side of my adopted home town.

I was a little but nervous and I walked to the start line, no reason really. I did have an ambitious pace of 6:40 in mind, and random parts of me began to ache (especially my back, oi granddad!). I had time to nip into The Hilton for my now tradition pre-race slash, especially as they delayed the start by 10 minutes.

Blimey though it was tough! I did the first mile in 6:20, which upon reflection was probably a bit too fast. I got steadily slower, and by midpoint I was pretty fucked, although I was keeping a respectable pace. Even though I'd looked at the map of the route before hand I couldn't quite put all of it together in my head. It was a good, flat route if a little twisty turny, which took in The Stadium, Westgate Steet, Llandaff Fields and Potcanna Fields. There was a point on Castle Avenue where someone was breathing so loudly and in such an avant-garde jazz way that it drew looks from the crowds, I hope the runner was okay, they certainly didn't sound it. As soon as it started it was over, and I got a respectable 43:32 and an average 6:57 pace, which is fine. It was a training run for the Cardiff Half and I was pushing myself. I was happy to get a Nation Radio pen in the goody bag. 

Next was a brisk walk, a shower and off to The Corner in Roath, where we were filming the first new 'Anoraks' episode for two years! 'Anoraks' is the geek sitcom which I created and co-write with the very talented director Ed Sinclair. It's a very tenacious project as we've managed to keep it alive despite scheduling issues and actors dropping out. It feels like with the casting of Sarah Bennington as Kim - the third lead character - that the final piece of the puzzle and slotted into place. We'd rehearsed on the Saturday and there was an instant chemistry between the three actors which was exciting to witness. Our camera man Chris Davies was on hand as were new additions Rachel Price and Andrew Creak as runners/support artists. It was great to see the episodes finally coming together thanks to Ed's hard work. I just turned up and said: "Say 'Falconmyer' in a funny way.'.

We wrapped at 4:30 and I had another brisk walk to get to Cardiff Central to get the train to Bristol for the Flatworms/Thee Oh Sees gig at the 02. What was great is that I was reunited with my gig kemosabe 'Grumpy' Gareth Evans for our first gig together in two years! Blimey, what was it about 2016? Yes the 02 is a shit venue, I'll only ever go there as a last resort, and this counted cause we'd failed to see the two bands in London when the Beast from the East blew in March. I was really looking forward to seeing Flatworms, and I was a bit disappointed when the t-shirts they had for sale turned out to be not much cop. T-shirt disappointment aside they were very good, a very tight three piece with a real kick who didn't fuck about, even though the lead singers mike was a bit temperamental, causing a Spinal Tap style roadie intervention. 

If I'm honest I enjoyed Flatworms more than the headliners. Not that Thee Oh Sees were bad, they were great, very dynamic live, and the twin drummers just knock you out visually as well as sonically (I couldn't get out of my head how much one of the looked like the late playwright Joe Orton). John Dwyer - Thee O Sees defacto leader - likes a guitar noodle as well as a gurn, and about midway through the set and another guitar workout the day began to catch up with me and my back started to ache again. It did cause us a rueful smile as both Gareth and I pushed our palms into our backs for support on the way back to the car.

A busy busy day which I'm gonna pay for in the coming week, but what the hell, it was fun. 

Stripper Vicar

I should have written this three weeks ago when we actually went to the RA Summer Exhibition,  but hey ho there you go.

It was baking hot in The Smoke when Sian and I rocked up to the Royal Academy. This was a landmark year being it's 250th year and they had pulled out all the stops. The xxhibition was on three floors and in a turn around from  there seemed to be a few more of us armature artists in there, which gives it a bit more vigor. I'd been on the fence about going but it had got some great reviews and it was curated by everyone's favorite unsettling media transvestite Grayson Perry. 

What market this year out was a playfulness, some of the stand out pieces played with art history like Kim Jong Un/Duchamp mash up (pictured above) in the second room and the smoking green lady in curlers (right) which we nearly bought. and pictures with terrible puns. There was also a wall of portraits of Perry which people thought in a wave of sycophancy would get them in, and they were right. It did work, it was cheeky and funny. 

Inevitably with an exhibition so vast and a tiny bit more inclusive than previous years  there's going to be a few sings and misses. I wasn't keen on Cornelia Parker sex robot piece, thought it was a bit on the nose. I didn't think much of the David Hockneys, but these were two of the few low points for me. The lino/wood cuts seemed to be grouped together in the new upper room and were very impressive and were a good counter point to the digital work. Also Parker's framed red dot panting is becoming a bit of a perennial, it's like turning a corner and bumping into an old friend. I wonder how long she can carry on the gag? 

All in all a great year, and I came out feeling inspired and with a few ideas about what I'll be submitting to get rejected next year.

Do You Realize??

Blimey I'm tired.

I suspect that it was some kind of beautiful accident which got The Flaming Lips booked into the 1,000 capacity Tramshed last night. The gig sold out in an hour, and it's the busiest I've ever seen the venue, and lordy lord it was hot, it was disco hot.

I have a lot of history with the Flaming Lips and are probably one of the only bands I've seen in multiple countries. I've lost count of how may times I've seen them. The first time was at a Glastonbury in 1999 (?) with Grumpy Gareth at the other stage. The set had fake blood, nun glove puppets, basically everything you'd want from a gig.

Last night after some technical difficulties they were straight out of the traps with 'Racing for the Price' and proceeded to open the full visual onslaught that they're known for. It felt like they started the show with an encore. That level of euphoria couldn't be maintained for the entire gig but it came pretty damn close. The set relied pretty heavily on 'Soft Bulletin' and 'Yoshimi' which is no bad thing, they have been pretty much been doing the same set for the last five years, which I'm not complaining about, I'm pretty sure I've seen Wayne Coyne zorbing across the crowd while singing 'Space Oddity' before, I definitely haven't seen him ride a unicorn while wearing rainbow wings before. Coyne did mention that they pretty much hadn't changed the stage set they use for an enormo-festival stage and it was even more impressive in The Tramshed. 

There were a lot of phones out for the Lips zany antics, but I managed to stay in the moment and leave my phone in my pocket, I nicked the photo above from a friend's Instragram feed. It was a proper old school sweaty gig, both Sian and I were drenched when we left. I loved the gig, it was just sheer joy which was topped off with an inflatable rainbow (of course) and 'Do You Realize??'. A gig to lift your soul and make you smile.  

Christ's Entry into Govan

I didn't intend to go to see Trembling Bells. It's been a spicy month and there's more coming up so I thought 'I can duck out of this gig.' but then 6 Music started to pummel me into submission. Thus listening to Marc Riley's listeners email in to say how good the band were on their current tour I caved and with a few taps of Dice I'd bought a ticket.

“ I didn’t think Trembling Bells were her kind of band. I was right. ”

I had a  further surprise when Sian took up my offer of coming along. I didn't think Trembling Bells were her kind of band. I was right. We got to Clwb Ifor just after 9 and they were already on which was a relief on a school night. I love Trembling Bells, they feel like a band from another era, and wouldn't sound amiss contributing songs to the original 'Wicker Man'. They're a bit Fairport while tipping a hat to the Haunted Generation sub-genre. I can appreciate that they're not everyone's cup of tea. I was one of the youngest members of the   audience which numbered roughly 40+ who were very 6 Music. On Saturday when I mentioned to my mate Jas that I was seeing the band his face crumpled up and he compared their music to the sound of fingernails being dragged down a black board, so yes definitely not everyone's cup of tea. Bugger it, I love them, I acknowledge their proggy folkely dokely leanings but I embrace that!

They did a fair amount from the new album including my favourite, the bonkers 'Christ's Entry into Govan' which led to a proper old Cockney wig out where I went down to the front. Sian said later that her favorite part of the gig was seeing being bopping along to the song.

I don't know how long the band have been on tour but they seemed a little fatigued. Not when they were actually playing but just with their slightly awkward stage banter. It was nice to hear about their adventures in the Forest of Dean that day on a pilgrimage to find Dennis Potter's birthplace. Alex Neilson the singing drummer (I'm a sucker for a singing drummer) and main song writer of the band started one song acapella for the encore, had a wobble, forgot the words and started another.

They didn't have a medium t-shirt which was a bugger and a large would have looked hideous so we started walking home. Yep, Sian didn't like the band and not unreasonably she asked if I knew she wouldn't like the band why I invited her out. Well she constantly surprises me, there was a outside possibility that she might enjoy them (unlikely) but it was just nice to have a night out with her, and a school night out at that. 

Last Time

Gigmaggedon continued with...ladies and gentlemen The Rolling Stones!

Loads of mates of mine were going, but it proved near impossible to organise a mutually agreeable meeting point which was a shame. The weather was good enough for a beer garden and although I like the support band Elbow, I didn't like them enough to put up with the Stadium's overpriced cooking lager. 

We timed it perfectly and got to the Stadium in time to get a drink (fizz) 'ave a slash, bump into friends and find a spot. The Stadium was packed and may have been close to selling out? I was surprised at how many twenty somethings made up the crowd, which might have helped the atmosphere, which was great, it was a Friday night in Cardiff!

The Stones were right of the gate with 'Street Fighting Man', and you could feel a swell of energy from the crowd. Jagger was chewing gum as he moved around the stage, I dunno why but I thought it was a nice touch. They were remarkable and seemed to be having a good time, I even saw Charlie crack a few smiles. It was essentially a greatest hits set, but with a few surprises thrown in. The blues number 'Just Your Fool' was good to hear with Jagger on harmonica. 'Get Off My Cloud' was by request and I dunno if I've heard them do it before? Equally 'Like a Rolling Stone' was good to hear and I was happy that 'Paint it Black' got an outing.

I nipped off to get a drink, but rushed back when I heard Keef take lead vocals on 'You Got the Silver' and 'Before They Make Me Run'. Oddly enough I thought Keef was a bit off, Charlie was very tight, Ronnie surprised me (as he did at the 2014 Hyde Park gig) by being blistering, but Keef, I dunno. At one point he did start the wrong song. Was it his fault? Who knows. 

Jagger made reference to other Cardiff gigs they'd done, especially the 1975 Cardiff Castle gig which didn't go ahead. I don't think they played anything past 1978, the disco workout of 'Miss You' sounded fresh. Unlike the Beyonce gig I pretty much knew every word of every song. Loved the gig. Couldn't believe how good they were and how energetic Jagger was, there wasn't an ounce of fat on him. 

I've seen them four times now, and surely this has got to be the last time? If so it was an amazing send off. 

Crazy in Love

It's been a heavy month of giggage.

It kicked off on the 6th with Beyonce and Jay Z at the Millennium Stadium. It was more a Spectacle than a gig and it's fair to say I felt like a complete tourist. It was lots of fun though, it's hard not to enjoy something done on that scale and with that amount of flair. I knew about four songs though. Thought they pissed 'Crazy in Love' away. The visuals were full on with a heavy emphasis on how much in love Beyonce and Jay Z are. Thought about buying a t-shirt, but at £30 a pop they can fuck off for free. 

Next up was Nadine Shah and Billy Bragg at the Millennium Centre. The opening set of this year's Festival of Voice. It's not really a festival of course and it was bad planning to put it on when there are so many other gigs happening in Cardiff. Tickets weren't cheap for the events and they should have operated some kind of wrist band system. Four gigs get one free? Still, it brings in some big names.

One of the selling points for this gig was that Nadine Shah was supporting. I'd missed her when she'd played The Globe last year and was kicking myself. She took a bit of time to find her feet, and favored a Liam Gallagher style arms behind her back stance. As the set continued she found her confidence, and the last song 'Way Out' had a Led Zep type swagger which provided the most thrilling six minutes of live music I've seen this year.

Billy Bragg was funny, engaging and utterly charming. I particularly him telling the story of being berated for using a single use water at his last Cardiff gig, only to be greeted by the person who'd called him out, again in the crowd. The big nosed bard from Barking seemed to get a bit more conciliatory when the audience member made himself known, although to Bragg's credit he had change to multi-use bottles.

The set was a heady mix of music and politics, high points included songs from his Woody Guthrie Mermaid Avenue album and of course 'New England'. 

The next gig I went to was Belly with Steve Ford in the Glee Club. I'd been in the Glee the night before to see the drag artist Jinx Monsson, which was an entirely different proposition. Belly took the unusual step of having two sets and an interval. Is it because the venue usually has an interval? I preferred the second set, they were a bit less shambolic and more charming. The front row were a hardcore bunch of fans who'd contributed to a crowd funder campaign. It was a joy to see how much they were enjoying the gig and being together. When Tanya Donelly said that they were doing a song from the new album an American behind us said loudly:

"No one came to hear your new songs, we just want the old stuff." someone turned around and said:
"Shut the fuck up!"
"Calm down!"
"Don't tell me to fucking calm down."
Steve and I edged away as they started to jab fingers into each others chests. There was an odd atmosphere in the gig, somewhere between euphoria and violence which I wasn't expecting.

Two days later came an unexpected gig in the form of Norwegian singer Susanne Sundfør at the New Theatre. It was part of the Festival of Voice and I was offered two free tickets. Great! Never seen a gig in the New Theatre and I have very happy memories of working there as a a barman when I was a student. I enjoyed the support band, Sian was less keen After a interval where I caught up with the talented photographer Simon Ayre it was in for the main act. I was aware of Susanne Sundfør but didn't know what to expect. It was just her and another woman accompanying her on piano and guitar. I absolutely loved it and find it impossible to describe the music without using cliched terms like 'ethereal' and 'glacial' . Great stuff and a complete contrast to the Beyonce gig exactly a week before.

Blimey, I was feeling a bit punchy the day after, it's a heavy schedule, even for me, but I was saving the best to last...

Hey Superman

I was hungover and sweating profusely on an oppressively humid Megabus on the way up to London. It was my annual trek to The Smoke to drop my paintings off. Jesus I was so relieved to get off that bus, it seemed never ending. I was taking the Megabus up to try and cut costs, the big mistake was getting the 9am bus, cause I couldn't sleep and it was like a Greenhouse on wheels

I was a disgrace on the underground, so wandering around like a clown, getting on the wrong train and getting off too early.  Eventually I got to the Happenstance studio, dropped off the paintings, had a chat to Anastasia and off I did trot. A flying visit as I had stuff to do back in Cardiff.

A week later I was back up in London to pick the paintings back up, again on the Megabus, but this time not hungover and we got in half an hour early. Larvely! This gave me an opportunity to look around the exhibition. It was as great and diverse as usual, but if I'm honest nothing really leapt out at me. It was at the same gallery - Candid Arts Space - as last year and it's a great space. I was interviewed for Art Freak a Youtube vlog. Oooo, vlogs, all the young people are vlogging aren't they? As long as they aren't vlogging a dead horse. Sorry. 

After the interview I had to grab the paintings before the exhibition ended and jump back onto the underground. With an understandingly weary look Anastasia said "Yeah that's fine, Darren's special." You can say that again. So grabbed the paintings and dashed across town to get the next train home. Loved having the paintings in the exhibition, it's still a thrill for me to have the opportunity to have my paintings on show in London. I'm thinking of trying something a bit more representational for the RA next year and I'm looking forward to going to the Summer exhibition in a couple of weeks.  

Newport State of Mind (pt 2)

I have a lot to be grateful for. Not least that I am healthy enough and have the resources to run marathons. 

I was nervous in the build up to yesterday inaugural Newport marathon. I was aiming for a sub-three hour time, an ambitious time.  My training had gone reasonably well but I hadn't really hit the required pace. To add a little spice to proceedings the first train to Newport was at 8:04, leaving a slim margin of time before the 9am start time. As it turned out the train was on time and not packed which surprised me. On the train I put on my first layer of deep heat, and lordy lord did it stink.

“...part of the street by the Wetherspoons had been cordoned off with police tape. The night before an 18 year old had driven into a crowd. Welcome to Newport...”

I didn't really know where the start line and just followed everyone else. As we walked down the waterfront there was a part of the street by the Wetherspoons had been cordoned off with police tape. The night before an 18 year old had driven into a crowd. Welcome to Newport. 

It was a slightly chaotic scene at the waterfront. The Marshall I asked didn't know where the white start was: "Errr, that way?"  It wasn't hard to find but I do get a bit chippy just before the start of a race. I had been a bit - errr - over eager to sign up, and as a result I had the bib number of 16, which I was slightly ashamed and proud of in equal measures. 

The start time got pushed back by 15 minutes, then a following 15 minutes because of the delay people had getting into Newport. It was always going to happen, and is something that Run4Wales will learn. Also it would be good to keep spectators away from the running pens, there were lots of people just wandering around. 

After the delays we were off at 9:30am, and I was right at the start. I got off quick and did the first mile in a very pacey 6:33, and despite having lots of opportunity before hand I needed a slash within the first mile, I stopped just before mile 2 but it didn't really slow down. I managed to keep a sub 7 hour pace for the first 7 miles before it started to slip away and I saw the 3 hour pace setter pass me and gradually fade into the horizon.

Despite this the pace was good, I felt strong and i was dipping below the 7 mile pace on a regular basis. The route was great, very flat (as promised) with lots of straight, long country roads. it's hard to see how they could grow the race as I could imagine that the route could get pretty congested. I was lucky to have a lot of space from the get go. There was were few supporters on the route because of how out of the way it was. I didn't find this a problem cause I'm happy to chew the miles with just my own thoughts.

“I did think that if my time was good I’d Moonwalk over the finish line...”

The way i handled the race was as soon as I got over mile 17 I'd think 'Only 8  more miles to go...' of course it was actually just under 9 miles but it was just what I'd tell myself to keep churning the miles. Alas my faithful Garmin didn't seem to be able to churn with me, it kept turning itself off after mile 19, which was really frustrating. Although I couldn't see what my overall time was i kept switching it back on to keep an eye on my pace, which was around 8 - 7:30 minute miles. Around this time I began to get a weird nerve pain in my left arm. it's something different each marathon, at Brighton it was my shoulders,

I knew at this point - miles 19 - 21 - that I wasn't going to get a sub-three hour, i knew it awhile before in fact, but I knew that if I dug deep that I'd be on for a PB. I did think that if my time was good I'd Moonwalk over the finish line, in the end I decided not to. 

i really had to dig deep for the last three miles, because traditionally that's where it wall falls apart for me. At mile 24 we double backed on ourselves and on the other side I could see the 3 hour 15 pace setter. I knew I had to stay ahead of him to have a hope of a PB, I was still doing a respectable time, but I could feel him snapping at my heals as I came up to mile 25. I just ground my teeth, dug in and used everything I had to speed up in the last mile. Then in the distance I could see the finish line and the clock ticking at the 3 hour 13 mark, I sprinted and crossed the line at 3 hours 14 minutes and 59 seconds. Four minutes off my PB at Tokyo and ten minutes faster than my time in Brighton last year.  The pace setter came in just after me.

I was happy crossing the finish line, and without knowing it made the volunteer who was giving out medals put it on me like Princess Leia putting the medal on Han Solo at the end of Star Wars. I got my t-shit and some water and walked past the crime scene (now with forensic experts swabbing) to the station and had to run (oh the indignity!) to catch the train.

A great course, which has the makings of a great race once Run 4 Wales have got over their teething troubles. My quest for a sub three hour marathon continues...

Needling Neville

Saturday was the annual Record Store Day. As I seem to say every year there wasn't a huge amount I wanted. I had been trying to reign in my spending and when I was looking through the list of thus year's releases I initiated last year's rule, I had to be confident that I would listen to anything I bought at least twice if not more. Which meant that this year's two Doctor Who release were out. My vinyl enabler Steve Dixon had got me a list of the prices, so I whittled it down to a list of ten, and out of that three or four I really wanted. Among them were the soundtrack to 'The Omega Man' - an 'of it's time' 70's Charlton Heston film - by Ron Grainer and the single release of 'Whole Lotta Love' by Led Zeppelin.

As always the real thrill of Record Store Day is the anticipation and getting together for mates for a shared experience. I'd popped into Spillers briefly the day before to drop in some Brownies and see Lauren Laverene do her 6 Music show from the store. My regular Record Store Hombre Steve Ford arrived at my house at 7am. Last year we had the luxury of going to The Head Store in Cardiff and pretty much having our pick and choose of the releases. However that store closed down shortly after so it meant after some debate we went to our fall back position of Diverse Records in Newport. Steve Dixon didn't think he could make it, then at the last minute he realised he could. So we all clambered into Steve Ford's car (I thought it was a new car, but he'd just washed it) and picked up Steve F's friend Mike on the way.

On the way to Diverse we yapped about what was on our lists, and of Record Store Day's past. It was a very sunny April morning and we continued to chat as we walked over to Diverse. When we got there the queue was about twenty strong, so manageable, was it up slightly from the last time we'd queued there for RSD in 2015? Probably. In year's gone by Paul Weller's put out RSD releases (Weller's not my cup of java) until too many were turning up straight away on Evil Bay. This year the theme seemed to be The Alarm, there were a lot of their fans out on maneuvers.  

We had a very pleasant time yapping in the queue and taking turns getting coffee. To add a little spice to the proceedings Steve F really needed a slash around ten minutes before the store opened. They were letting a staggered amount of people into the store. We had a conversation between us about would we go in as a group or individuals, we decided to go in as a group. It turned out to be academic as it was a one in/one out system by the time we got to the front. 

Inside it was fairly civilized and not the feeding frenzy there's been in previous years. They even had very good vegan cakes! The stock seemed to be down on previous years, but I found the Led Zep quickly, the had around six copies, a This is the Kit album, and I'd ummedd and arrrddd about the Johnny Cash Live at Folsom Prison release. I thought it was just a re-release, but it was actually a boxset with some tasty tasty extras, so I picked that up. They had the Bowie Berlin live album, but I decided to pass as I was planning on a visit to Spillers. 

We were all generally happy with our finds. Outside the store I saw a car scraping another while trying to park. The cafe over the road opened and Steve F popped in for a blessed slash, and cause we're men of a certain age we followed him. On the way back to the car we stopped by a second hand record store where I bought three albums for £10 including a Throwing Muses album. We drove back yapping and comparing our purchases. Steve D and I weren't done with RSD. We popped down to D'vinyls cause they had a crazee 50% off everything! Picked up another four albums and chatted to Steve Dvinyl (there's too many Steve's!).  

Later Sian and I were on our way to see a film and popped into Spillers on the way. The queue at around 3pm when they'd been open since 9am was unbelievable. It was nearly out of the arcade. I don't think I've ever seen it so busy which is great news! I popped in the next day. The staff were surprisingly chipper and they still had a lot of stock including a Jeff Buckley live album at the Omega Man soundtrack. For wallet worrying reasons I decided to leave the Buckley album for now, although Graf reassured me that they had a few copies.

Another fun Record Store Days and it was great to meet up with the various Steves. 

If You Shoot the Head You Kill the Ghoul

Easter saw the Wales Goes Pop! festival at the Gate. Now one of the regular fixtures Floyd calendar it's a chance to catch up with friends, upcoming bands and some old favorites, and I do believe that this was the first year that the festival has sold out.

The night before I'd been to The Exchange in Bristol to see the brilliant 'No Age' with my mate Jas.  It was a big Jeff approved gig which was good to see. I'd never hear of No Age before but was thoroughly impressed, two brothers one on drums singing and the other on fringe and guitar. The singing drummer - and I'm a sucker for a singing drummer - did ask if everyone was a Vegan cause : "Hey...we've heard that everyone over here is a vegan now?" Great noisy night.

The next day we started later, getting into The Gate after a boozy lunch in Milgi. We got in to see Jemma Roper but to be honest the first few bands didn't really touch the sides as we caught up with friends. I enjoyed the hilariously Peaness. I was keen to see Jeffrey Lewis and because I was a few bottles of Prosecco up I thought I'd have a chat with him. I wanted to tell him how much his song 'Bugs and Flowers' meant to me, and how I'd used it as part of a meditation class I taught. I asked him if he'd play it that night, and he said he was still working out the set list, so that's a no then. I was a bit burbaly but he was charming if a little embarrassed. I bought a copy of 'It's the Ones Who've Cracked That the Light Shines Through' which  he was good enough to sign. Enjoyed his set (I'll whisper this, I preferred his Clwb Ifor set). We watched three songs from an under the weather and under par Sweet Baboo and went home.  

Saturday was a late start again, the first band we saw were the wonderfully shambolic Axolotes Mexicanos. With an energetic lead singer who spoke little English and would talk over her lead guitarists as he desperately tried to keep up with her and translate at the same time. I've never seen a band split up on stage before and thought I just might this time. Joyfully Six Form they raised the energy of a year which was in danger of becoming a bit samey. 

We missed Desperate Journalist as we went out to a very cold Roath Yard Street Food festival. We got back in time to see Dream Wife who are spiky, punky fun. I saw them last year, and - in a theme for this year - we managed three songs then went home.

I guess Sunday was the day we were sorta waiting for. We got to The Gate in time to see Colour Me Wednesday, terrible name but decent enough band,. Next up were  Goat Girl who'd I'd been looking forward to. They were a great gnarly band. Their song 'Man' is on heavy rotation on 6 Music and I replace the the word 'Man' with 'Cat' for Sian's amusement. You have to be there. goat Girl were great and seemed to have more substance than a lot of the bands on the bill.

I enjoyed Brix and the Extricated, and actually danced to Totally Wired. Brix is tiny and comes across as you're favorite mad Aunty.   I bought 'The Big Midweek' from the merch stall cause Riley goes on about it so much, and an enthusiastic punter behind me recommended it.

It was very busy in The Gate on Sunday night, and the demographics age did shift up by about twenty years, probably in anticipation  of the headliners Shonen Knife. An old school friend of mine Kris Christopher had traveled down just for their set, and very good it was too. Probably the best of the weekend. Kris was one of the happiest bounciest people I've see at a gig this side of Big Jeff. They were lots of fun with probably the smileiest drummer I've ever seen. I'm not hugely familiar with their music but will have to rectify that.  Both Sian and I bought t-shirts and we actually managed to stay for the entire set. Afterwards we chatted to a Tim and Liz Lambert and a few other people. As soon as it had began Wales Goes Pop! 2018 was over. 

I'll be honest, it wasn't a vintage year. There seemed to be too may bands with two word names like Body Perfect who sounded similar, but there was enough and I enjoyed catching up with so many friends.  

Save Me

This is my first new blog post of my new site! Whoop!

Last night was a school night gig! I was joined by Sian and Jase. The reason it was a goer was because it was pretty early doors and it was around the corner in The Globe. We'd actually gone to see the support act Thomas Truax, who is truly unique in every sense of the word. The headliner was Bob Log III who I'd never heard of, but the poster of depicting what looked like one of Daft Punk playing a banjo was intriguing.

It was a fair turn out for a Tuesday night of around 60 people, but blimey it was actually colder in the venue than it was outside! I dunno, I don't think the Globe is a great venue. I actually like it cause it's just around from my house but they've really really got to sort the sound out.

I've seen Thomas Truax about half a dozen times? He's got an eccentric and wandering act which never fails to get any audience grinning from ear to ear. I think it's combination of home made instruments (The Hornicator and bionic drum machine Mother Superior made up of old bike wheels) and his honesty. He always uses all the space of a venue and last night saw him wandering around the balcony and stairs. I was really taken with one of his new songs 'Save Me' which had a line about a homeless person saying that they actually have two homes, their skin and the coat. Very arresting.

There was a new home made instrument in the shape of a mini drum type toy box with a length of extendable plastic ventilation plastic pipe. Truly weird and wonderful.  

Pale Snow

As life goes on I have to be constantly reminded to let go of things.

 'The Beast from the East' clipped my wings with it's sudden drop in temperature followed and intense snow fall. In Cardiff the snow began to fall on Thursday morning and pretty much didn't stop until late the next day. It was bloody marvellous! I loved it, everyone was giggly and Cardiff felt a little magical and eerie as people slowly mad their way down the deserted, quiet white roads. I went out for a run on Friday at the height of the snow, just to be a contrarian and also I thought if I got a few miles under my belt that I would have earned sitting in snug while eating a bowl of Heinz Cream of Tomato soup. As it happened I had to cut the run a bit short cause the snow was too deep, but it was great to get out.

The flip side of this snow fun was that everything turned to shit. Sian and I were supposed to drive up to London with my gig kemosabe Gareth Evans to go to the CastleMania night. There were around five bands including the incendiary Thee Oh Sees and Flatworms. I was looking forward to it but there was a Red Weather warning (likely life threatening conditions) and as I looked out on Thursday at the sheets of snow howling down I laughed and thought 'This ain't happening.' so reluctantly... 

On the Saturday the big thaw had began to set in, so Sian and I decided to go to the free Hey Colossus gig at the Moon. We dragged ourselves out into the slushy, wet Cardiff night but after waiting for ten minutes a bus didn't turn up so we reluctantly went back home. We tried to see a film the next day which inexplicably got cancelled due to the weather.

So last night Brett Anderson out of Suede was doing a reading and signing for his new autobiography 'Coal Black Mornings' at Rough Trade in Bristol. I'm a big Suede fan, and the book had a great review in Mojo and I hadn't seen the new store so decided to go along. One thing the weather has shown me is that don't own any waterproof footwear. It rained just long enough on the cycle ride down to Cardiff Central to get damp and get my feet wet.

Now the plan was get there a bit early, get some food (salute to the Falafel King) find the store, look about then chill. Door were 6:30 so cycled up to Queen Road to where the old Rise store had be. It was my understanding that Rough Trade had taken over the premises. I was wrong. So I stood outside the former Rise store - which is now an eatery - in the freezing rain and wondered where the hell the store was. I still had time so I headed off. I had another vague idea where the store was, and I was wrong again. So I cycled around Bristol in the rain for twenty minutes, stopping from time to time to ask increasingly clueless people if they knew where the store was. At one point I was outside a pub getting increasingly soaked, getting angry and thinking 'OH FOR FUCK'S SAKE!' of course it's my own fault, I never check. I calmed down and pressed on. Eventually Google Maps got me to the store. Fuck, was I relieved to find it. I chained my bike up right on 6:30. I was horribly wet but I didn't mind so much. Picked up my copy of the book and wrist band.

Cause I got there at 6:30 I thought Brett might just be taking the stage and I'd have to shuffle in at the back. However doors were 6:30 and the interview was due to start at 7:30, larvely! So I had time to get a seat four from the front, look around the store and get a cup of Earl Grey. Brett was engaging, funny and ever so slightly louche. He talked about his Dad and his Council Estate up bringing and the early days of Suede. He then took some questions from the audience, which as ever were a mixed bag. I was thinking of asking a question but I always stumble across my words in situations like this, so decided to keep quiet. Also on a more prosaic level I wanted to get the signing sorted as soon as so I could get the earliest train home. I'd double bagged three Suede 12 inch sleeves to get signed and as soon as the interview was over got into line as soon as possible.

Brett seemed happy to sign, have his photo taken with people and chat. I asked him what new music he'd been listening to, he said not much, I said there was a lot of good stuff around and recommended The Orielles. He said he'd heard Cabbage and White Horses who he'd liked. With the book (and a very handsome volume it is too) and sleeves signed I got my shit together and cycled off quickly. It must have been about 8:35, and with a truly heroic effort I managed to get back to Temple Meads and on the 8.54 back to Cardiff, happy with my fan boy swag.

What a beautiful day

Saturday saw the 10th anniversary of the Cardiff Parkrun. The event is an absolute credit to the organisers and to Cardiff. I turned up with a thousand others to run and celebrate. I first ran it at the end of 2011 and I've seen it grow and grow. The beautiful thing about the Parkrun is how inclusive it is. You get variety of ages and abilities out on a Saturday morning from the serious runners without an inch of fat to people running with their dogs and push chairs. It's so friendly and has enough of a bite to it that when you cross the finish line you feel like you've achieved something and earned the rest of your Saturday. On this particularly special run, the Phil Cook the run organiser gave a list of thank yous and looked back at the history briefly before the run began, while the recently beefed up PA played 'What a beautiful day' by the Levellers as it began to rain. 

I sorta knew I wasn't going to get good time on Saturday, but that wasn't really the point. I'd also been feeling a bit of an ache in my left hamstring again, so I was punting in the excuses early. I did think 'Maybe I should have volunteered to Marshall the run instead.' but there were a ton of marshals on the route.  It was just impossible for me to get a clear space at the start just because of the sheer number of people, but it did open up pretty quickly and I did get a fair puff of steam up. In the end it wasn't my best time but it wasn't my worse, I suppose it gives me a marker average pace time, I want to beat my PB this year and get under 19 minutes.

There was such warmth and - quite rightly - feeling of celebration on Saturday morning. It feels that everyone concerned knows how special the Cardiff Parkrun is. 

Hey heart breaker

So the first significant date in my calendar has swung around. Yes! It's time for my annual rejection from the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition! So why after six years of rejections (I think) do I still keep applying. Well much like the sweaty palmed gambler at the roulette table or the skint punter buying a lottery ticket I still think I've got a chance. To be fair it has kicked me up the ass a bit and I found the discipline of working to a particular size galvanizing.

The first painting I've submitted 'dreamwife' (left) was finished late last year. It's the latest version of a painting I've been working on for a few months. I think it's about the third version. Although I enter the Summer Exhibition every year I seem to be weirdly unprepared for it. Around August last year I began working on this and the other painting. This meant I could take my time on it. There were a two or three other paintings I thought I might submit but this one, I think I submitted a version of this last year, but I've refined it this time round. I haven't made a huge concession to the RA on this one, it's a bit larger than A3, so it is a bit of a punt. 

However the second painting 'I'll take a shot at whatever you've got'  (right) I've completed aimed at the RA. The image itself is quite an old one for me, from a Jim Jones Revue gig. I've painted it a number of times and don't think I've ever really nailed it.

Having been to the Summer Exhibition a few times I don't second guess what they're looking for, but the one consideration is size. Space is at a premium, especially if Grayson Perry needs a room from his tapestries. So I decided I'd work small (just bigger than A4), intense, and after awhile I decided just to concentrate on the one painting. This is unusual for me cause I like to have a few things on the go at one time, and I don't like to over work a painting. After a few weeks of dashing into my studio, working on it the painting began to emerge. There were a few parts I had to paint over and rework, the head to the right formed first then the red hand at the top left which needed working and reworking, and I had to paint over the fist at the bottom left. I finished it two days ago. That was the good thing, I allowed myself the luxury of time and set the discipline of getting it right. I'd take a step back from the painting and think 'Is that right? Can I do better?' most of the I could do better and would go back to it. With both paintings I got to the best version, and I'm especially happy with 'I'll take a shot...' so they've been submitted and I a wait my rejection with eager anticipation.

Wasted smile

My 2018 gig campaign has got off to a  satisfying if stuttering start. 

In a bid to banish the January blues 'The Moon - the spiritual sister venue to the lamented Barfly - has a month of free gigs. Amongst these were three I would have cheerfully have paid for, Surfing Magazines, Duds and the ever brilliant Skinny Girl Diet. Great! Added to this my mate had John Mouse and Sweet Baboo playing at his house as a perk of a Crowdfuning campaign he'd contributed towards. Larvely! Giggage a Go Go! 

Then unfortunately the Surfing Magazines gig got postopned cause the drummer was ill, you can't be too pissed off that a free gig has been postponed, and as they are three quarters of the Wave Pictures I'm pretty sure they'll be back. Then the John Mouse gig was also postponed cause he was offered a slot on a 6Music show. Fair enough. Dim problemo cause Steve Ford just went ahead and had a party which was great.

So the gig year started on the 23rd. Later than I thought it would, which is fine and 2018's first gig was in the venue where 2017's last gig was. It was a good line up. We got in to see very young, very earnest and very in love with Joy Division - Silent Forum, who I liked very much. Next up were Cardiff discordant heros Gindrinker. On the way to The Moon we saw the distressing site of Cardiff's oldest pub - The Rummer Tavern - being ripped apart as part of a refurb. I mention to this as DC Gates 'lead singer' and avant garde trumpeter with Gindrinker has been a long term barman in The Rummer and was quite rightly scathing of the refurb.

Around ten-ish on a  school night Duds were up. A Marc Riley band, there were around 8 people packed onto the tiny stage. Following on from Gindrinker, Duds were also wonderfully jarring and they also had hot trumpet action. They reminded me a lot of Devo and Captain Beefheart. Great stuff. As the lead singer left the stage he said: 

"Enjoy the rest of your evening." 'Christ.' I thought 'This is my evening.' I bought a t-shirt and then wished I'd bought the album and Sian and I caught a taxi home.

It wasn't so bad that the Skinny Girl Diet gig was a late one on Saturday. We got there 8ish to check out the earlier bands and bumped into a few mates, which is always nice, one of who was in the first band we saw. They were followed by Honey, who were a bit Metal for my tastes, but not bad, and had driven all the way from Cornwall just for the gig! Impressive.

Before SGD there was a shouty dread wearing a Backstreet Boys t-shirt and backed by a drum machine. It was all good sweary fun. Midway through the set he was stripped to the waste and shouting "Fuck Theresa May!", it didn't feel like a Cardiff gig.

Finally Skinny Girl Diet took the stage, and superb they were too. A very tight set, with a few new songs snuck in. I love the communication between the Holiday sisters. Just a look between them speeds up the tempo or goes sends the song off into a jam. As it was a Saturday night and it was a free gig there were some twenty somethings off their boxes down the front. Now sometimes this kind of foolishness annoys me, and I find that when I'm on the wagon that I have far less tolerance of drunk/pharmaceutically refreshed people. That night it just felt like people out having a fun in a place they feel comfortable, so what the hell.

Great set, and looking forward to seeing them again in six months, probably. No new merch, never mind.

The refurb on The Rummer had been completed when we walked past. It was stacked with TVs spilling out Sky Sports. It looked ghastly

Wolf pack

Regardless of how many races I run there's always lessons to be learned. My latest lesson is don't be greedy. 

My pace had been speeding up and I was feeling good and last week I forgot to have a rest day between runs. Well to be right I just tried to pack too much into too few days, so ended up doing 9 and half miles on the Friday, a Parkrun on the Saturday and then two runs on the Sunday. The run on Friday was pretty pacey, but - oh my days - my time in the Parkrun was disgraceful! I couldn't find a space to really get going at the start of the 5k, I got stuck behind a few people and then when the route did open up I just couldn't get my pace. I pushed and pushed but it just wasn't happening, I just hadn't put on my running feet. The truth is that despite feeling pretty good Saturday morning I didn't have the energy after the run the day before. 

This still didn't stop me going for two runs the next day. The two runs in one day is on my Asics plan and is a bit of a killer. The first one is a speedy 5.5 miles, and the second is a slower 8.5 miles. I was struggling with the pace on the 5.5 miler and after packing my legs and a cup of tea I dragged myself out for the 8.5 miles run. Jesus, that was such a grind. I'd forgotten to charge up my Garmin watch and when it ran out of juice after 3 miles I settled into steady clomp. All in all in was a scrappy run, but the miles were chewed up and I'm going to space the runs out a bit this week, with three months until the Newport marathon I've still got time to get my pace back. 

Look at your hands

This year has taken me a bit of getting used to.

Initially I had a gentle introduction to 2018 as I reluctantly shrugged off my Christmas duvet. I'm gradually getting back into the swing of things. This includes getting back into my running regime. The goal for this year is to try and run a marathon in under three hours.

I'm tentatively off to a good start. Unlike last year I start without any injuries and kicking the booze (blimey December was a really boozy month for me) has seen my pace gradually begin to return. Part of the campaign saw me do my first official Parkrun for a year on Saturday morning. I'd one one or two last year but hadn't handed my barcode in to get the runs recorded.

The plan for the Parkrun is to beat my PB over the next two months and run it in under 19 minutes. So there was nothing resting on Saturday, it was just a base level run to get back into. I was still a tad nervous, and my left hamstring had been aching a bit, and I'd forgotten to put on my compression sock. I had at the back of my mind that I could stop if it wasn't going well.

The Parkrun have finally got a decent PA system, so everyone could finally hear the announcements and indeed enjoy a selection of Queen's greatest hits before the run. I located myself in the time coral I thought was realistic and set off. After the initial crush and I found some space and pushed myself at a decent pace. I'll not pretend it was comfortable and wobbled at my usual spot by the Welsh College of Music and Drama. In the last half I focused on beating a runner with a manbum and then felt sick in the last 1000 yards (I don't think the two events are connected). When I crossed the finish line my eyes began to water and I did think for a moment that I was going to be sick (as the picture above illustrates), but I was fine as I stumbled towards a steward to show my barcode. I got a decent time of 20:35 which is okay for the time of the year.

I'm heading down to the Parkrun again this Saturday morning with ambition to shave a substantial amount of time of 20:35.