Nice to have a break from recording the new album to play the StKilda festival on Sunday. Saturday was spent hiding from the nasty hot weather; my discomfort seems petty compared to the horrors endured by so many that weekend.
It was a great turnout for the festival and we played a good show. When the sound people have it together [which they did] it allows us to relax and do our thing.Jackson Jackson were great and the Angels kicked everyones arse.An inspired choice to get these gnarly old champions on the bill.The Angels wrote the book on Australian rock.A great rythmn section,the Brewster brothers on guitars and Doc Neeson,one of the greatest frontmen of all time. A killer set,but I wished they played 'Into The Heat' and 'Eat City'.Maybe next time! As the weather and the crowd became more mongrel,it was time to make my exit and unfortunately I missed the Ladyboys set. Damn!    SCFW

Meredith is a cool festival.I first went many years ago,I think it was the second year it was happening.I remember piling into an old Bedford van with six mates,heaps of beer,no food and no tents.I drove while the yobs drank and smoked bongs on beanbags in the back.Arriving at the town of Meredith,we noticed lots of people heading to the festival on foot,having caught trains or buses.Naturally we stopped and jammed another twelve or so folks into the groaning van.The poor old Bedford struggled up the last of the hills at 30kph,but spirits were high and in such close quarters,new friends were made! Fast forward to 2008,and Meredith Music Festival is very well established and into its 18th year.One thing that seperates Meredith from some other festivals is that it was started by and is run by passionate music fans,not by BREADHEADS who are primarily chasing $$$.This fact permeates every facet of the weekend,and not even the Old Testament style downpours could dampen the fervor of the hardy Meredith faithful.Thanks to the organisers and to all the helpful staff and volunteers who made our show there comfortable and hassle free.Lets do it again!!!      SCFW

First stop was Galway, a beautiful city on the west coast, for one intimate show and a few days R&R. We behaved like sailors on leave then bolted before the townsfolk left the meeting. It was time to meet up with DAMO! Damien Dempsey is the best thing to come out of Ireland since guiness. Touring with Damien and his merry men was an absolute blast. Sold out shows everywhere and an army of loyal fans. It was hard for us to come on stage first with the crowd chanting "DAMO! DAMO!",but we got a great reaction and even sold all our CDs. Damien's music is tough and honest, and so is he. He is a huge fucker and used to box. I told him that I would fight him when he comes to Australia if he can get down to my weight. He replied "OK,I'll cut both me legs off".

One of the best nights we had was in Clonakilty, West Cork, at a wonderful pub called 'De Barras'.This place was Noel Reddings [Jimi Hendrix Experience] boozer for many years and his bass sits up on the wall amongst all kinds of interesting artifacts .When the shows were over, the instruments appeared, the pints arrive and traditional songs roar all night. John, Eamonn, Tony, Leon, Feagra...SLOANCHE!!!  [I know thats the wrong spelling, but it means CHEERS!] On the way back to Dublin,we stopped at Blarney Castle but did not kiss the stone, as it was wet with the slobber of a million tourists. Hard to explain to girlfriends back in Australia;"I caught it off the Blarney Stone, I SWEAR!!.Yeah, right mate. Back to Dublin for a few days, to see Toots and the Maytals. We were given a hard lesson in soul music and got to meet the great man himself. Got to say thanks to Tony for lending me his 1961 Gibson 345 for all the shows. A big thanks to the Lawler family for putting us up and for putting up with us. SCFW 

 I assume you have all heard of black pudding, but did you know there is also a white pudding? Both puddings feature heavily in an Irish breakfast, along with sausages,bacon and eggs. My digestive system had never before experienced such torment. I asked many Irish people what white pudding is made of but no one could give me a straight answer:maybe they wanted to spare me from an awful [offal?] truth. Im not a big meat eater, so things got tricky, craving sushi or a pho soup, but the closest I could get was Chinese served on chips. If you like Irish stew or carveries, you will do well. Fresh strawberries bought at the side of the road were magnificent. Predictably,most of my nutritional needs were met via stout. Guiness is number one, Murphys is top stuff and the cheaper Beamish goes well too. A good long distance beer is Smithwicks, but be sure to pronounce it 'Smitticks' or you will face ridicule. My best feed was chicken stuffed with Clonakilty black pudding wrapped in bacon,with a pint of course. When in Rome.....

SCFW.