fireworks eve is gunfire night. cheers to all my friends in such situations. a thought to my nephew and his wife in st louis, where i spent a firework 4th of july. thinking gunfire cities all over the world.

halloween i like, costume'd, as always. guitars in cases. craigsnigans. screen eye. haven't taken a shot in a month. not feeling it, other than pursuit of capitalism. strange that i find comfort in that, at this end. two drinks in at what used to been,

i guess, i am, hearing it a little. fingers don't come down right now and then. something singular, arrogant and vulgar, no class. got some new guns. they might help. been keeping a very low wordcount and i'm gonna change that.

off movies for music (duh), and that dreary science of the unblinking  the hockey

swiss cheese burger at moderne tonight, very fine. burger and a shake.

much love to you all, still reading after all these years. on we go. up we get.



he's twice that size now.

t

When things aren’t going solidly with my own art, I can turn to intaking masses of culture instead. It feels lazy, but probably is more of a recharge than a vacation, or perhaps both. Right now it’s movies, as the NHL season fires up (a powerful distraction of mine also), I’m trying to get as much outdoor activity in as I can here in beautiful Squilax. Been out on the houseboat, and fiddling with the new hostel guitar (a well worn and friendly Montana acoustic), and trying to organize my own gear.

Movie hits would be ‘Beaufort’, ‘Morituri’, a pair of stellar (and very dark) anti war films (as opposed to ‘Saving Private Ryan’, which I would call a pro-war movie), ‘The Darjeeling Limited’, ‘Hellboy 2’ (which was much better than I expected), and ‘The Dark Knight’ (also, if only for the Joker).

Misses include ‘Burn After Reading’ (which I’d retitle ‘Burn Before Watching’ – a rare Cohen brothers flop) and the overhyped ‘Son of Rambo’. I guess my own expectations, when defeated, are a films worst critic. Better that I expect little, and am surprised. I’ve got a line of several fav’s to rewatch also – ‘Unbreakable’, ‘the Sixth Sense’, and ‘The Lives of Others' (see last blog).

So it is a good sign that between Rotem’s continuing inspiration and Nicholas bugging me, I’ve returned to blog. I’ll try and have some excitement to pass along also, and some photos too. Maintaining my flicr and facebook and all that has been a little much this summer, lets hope the fall brings a return to the books for me also.

much love;

t

ps – hey I do have some excitement – the Victoria band will break it’s longtime self imposed island exile with a Vancouver show at the Rickshaw Theater on Oct 23. Let your Vancouver humans know – we’ll be in top form for our debut !

watching the hostel late last night, got 'lives of others' on movie channel, the good one, with no commercials. amazing movie, one i'd heard about but likely would not have chased down. subtle and nuanced story about eighty's east germany, about a playwrite and his actress girlfriend and the secret policemen who surveil and harass them. highest recommend, it really touched me, a superlative work of art which speaks to the artist's perspective at many levels.

kittens dominate the hostel now, running new, throwing down books and anything on a shelf. cuteness = survival trait. i should know..)

the hostel has added two new staff, as zamboni has moved up to computer consulting, her pest control spot is now taken by referee and claymore (orange). named after equipment, as per hostel policy (massey, ferguson, zamboni, samsonite), they're in the adorable and explore it all stage. orienteering, i guess.

yesterday i finally made my attempt at spring falls, the water fall which comes down squilax mountain, in a ravine just east of the face that lord's over the hostel. deceiving name, since it's not water from the spring on the mt (which feeds the hostel the best tasting water you've ever had, year round), but from the spring run-off, as snow finally unkinks. for maybe ten years i've been eyeing it and saying i should climb up there and have a shower. it'll get late, and it'll stop being a waterfall, and i'll say, next year.

yesterday i looked over my crappy couple of weeks, and my dissatisfaction with everything, and about 3 i set out for the waterfall. it was slowing down the last week, not much snow anywhere, and i'd been letting the regular rains put me off. but in that magical way that something is decided, without internal debate, it was last afternoon, and off i went.

three things also been militating against this climb. first is, while spring run-off is generally pleasant (no flooding here), there's downsides to spring mountain climbing, notably the cougars with their young. they're hungry and they got mouths to feed. two, it's not a passion anyone else here at the hostel shares with me, so i'm going alone, which kinda makes reason one a little more potent. and finally, the last time i tried to climb squilax mountain i nearly died.

there's a fine blog on that subject, in my back pages somewhere, but darned if i can find it now. was thinking about it when i climbed yesterday, so i made some changes for attempt #2.

- most important - climb with the mt, not against it. no illusions that i'm going to conquer anything up there, and quite aware that this can kill me. i'm a fool by definition for doing this. hey, fifteen minutes of hard climbing will remind me, but knowing it from the start, i got wise to some essential preparations.

- take water, cel phone. tell someone where i'm going and when. you laugh, but i did none of those things last time. and, i take samson the hostel dog with me, not that he's going to do much if i hurt myself, but he'll put the cougars off, hopefully, since there's two of us (samson is a coward, and would last about thirty seconds vs a cougar, but the idea is that two of us won't have to deal with it). i also take my 'arkansaw toothpick', which isn't one of those legendary fighting knives (been reading some louis l'amour), but a hefty machete just short of a meter long. if i do end up vs a cougar, i want one blade that's longer than his 10, since the only chance i have, if it comes to that, is to convince him i can injure him enough to impede future hunting.

i load the dog in the truck and drive five minutes up the hill, to just below the traintracks. this is to disorient the dog, so he doesn't realize that there's this interesting place right across the highway, and thus get himself killed freelancing. i leash him up as we walk the traintracks to the point where i can see the falls, and the base of the avalanche path it streams down. get a couple of nice shots of a lizard on the rails, kindly freezing for the photo op. then up we go.

pretty early it's clear samson isn't really thrilled at the relentless vertical. having a sniff out of the animal trails, and thick coniferous suits him, but i'm all business and up we go. mostly climbing the stream, passing hundreds of gorgeous stones, making light of my waterbottle (and lack of food, not too bright), and occasional bushwacking, we climb hundred of meters. he scrambles, frequently drinks and rests his paws in the pools. i push him up a few hard spots, and he returns the favour by near missing me a few times with fair sized stones he dislodges. we figure it out pretty quick.

the mountain gets on your mind after an hour of this. there's no place to rest on a horizontal, it's all near dangerous incline, where you're pulling yourself up on tree branches, ducking and cursing, or carefully chosing which stone to grab next, knowing the large ones are the most stable, but also the most dangerous if not. looking back down where we've come doesn't help, the view is fearsome, and the tiny dots of the houses and fields across the river bring your insignificance home. looking up, now no sight of the falls, just endless rock and wood. the machete digs into my back when it catches on trees, and my fingers get rough and hardened to the slips and grabs.

another hour, hard breathing and stopping only for the photo op, or the drink, we look no closer to the goal. the mind drifts to the reality of this quest, there's no certainty that the falls are reachable or suitable for a stop if we can get there. samson loses me in the trench after a sidetrip and is fooled by the echo of my calls, so he heads down instead of up after me. it's ten minutes before he figures it out and catches up. the condor vultures who spend their day in endless circles high on the mt get closer, but there is no indication that the falls are anywhere close. we lose the stream twice as it goes underground, and climb in strange silence, over logs trapped by rocks and stripped as clean, as if by beavers, by the elements. lots of fallen trees, both dead and sometimes still living, brought down by rockfall. have to check the branches twice, as the deadfall will betray you and let you fall. green is good.

we pass a few rockeries, with thunder eggs and jade shot ex-lava. too many gorgeous specimens to take, not to mention how foolish it is to collect rock on the way up.... i can't resist a few. a few times i truly rock climb, cursing as this is not my strength or skill. mostly i go to the tree side and go branch to branch, literally climbing trees up the mountain. a single holdout bank of snow, hidden in the deep shadow. another hour goes past and the trees are thinning, and i catch a glimpse of the falls. still no sign that i can get close, indeed it's looking harder, as there are two paths of rockfall and the one which has the stream is too sheer for me to take. i work my way up the second path, closing on the rock face, and running out of trees. i can now clearly see adams lake, and captain's village marina on the shuswap, though i have to be careful on the loose footing to take pictures.

then suddenly we are not alone, there is a moutain sheep thirty meters up, giving us the once over before moving away, up the side too steep for the dog or i, right up to the falls and beyond. too quick for me to get to safe ground and get the camera out, but i am cheered by this visit. we're close, and his presence also means there's likely no cougars either.

i scramble over a couple of avalanche paths, and make the middle ground of trees between the two ravines. working higher i suddenly can see the falls, and yes there is a way in, and a place to be under them. indeed, the last fifty meters are quite reasonable, i can use the rock wall to hold, and take my last shots before the mist begins. with only towel and barechest i make the last rush, and find there's even an impression in the cliff face behind the falls where one can stand upright, and even could picnic if he was smart enough to bring food (note to self). i strip down and go take an icy shower, runoff water being just this side of freezing, as i look down on the tiny countryside below, and shiver. the dog sniffs around interested in the trails. a huge bald eagle circles a hundred meters below...

not many minutes rest, as i have the mountain and the descending sun on the brain (and have been longing to be home for several hours), so down we go. i learned from my near death experiences of the last climb, and take the same path down as we took up. this eliminates the near death, limiting it to a few short falls, and quick handgrips. the unused machete hangs, along with the stowed camera and leash.

down and down and down, via trees and sometimes on the rocky slides. since the danger in all of this is hitting my head, i am often on my ass sliding, using handholds to ensure that i only fall on my legs, ass or back. the vultures come in and give us a good look over, eight or more turning tight circles, their pink heads uglifying their huge black spans. i sing for them, and tell 'em the dog will eat me before they do, should i come to grief.

another hour, and i am very tired. doubly careful as i know this is the time i can make a bad mistake from fatigue, we finally see the rail tracks below, and double back to avoid the cliff which edges the CN created gully which shields them from the full runoff and slides. such a relief to walk on horizontal ground ! aching feet get us to the truck, and then down to the hostel again. i am exhausted, but know i climbed with the mountain and achieved the goal. my story and pictures convince three hostellers they will make the attempt tomorrow. the dog won't be so enthused when i invite him in the truck next time.

i will upload the photos here on a new album, tho i warn you they're not as spectacular as the real thing. i'd love a commentary from any of you climbing experts, to further point out my many mistakes. and if anyone finds the previous climb, in the blogs of the past archived here (it's be in the spring/summer, and in '06 or '07) then please leave the link in the comments, for all !

love;

t

ps - rotem, kerouac is a fine bukowski changeup - try 'desolation angels' or the newly released 'original scroll' version of 'on the road' (a huge improvement !). he's worth getting into. i'll get back to miller, on your reccomend, i think all i've done there is the 'tropic's'..... right now, it's a host of rockhound and boxing manuals...

click here for

the photos

hostel wants for cats, mouser lineage kittens, outdoor types, who won't upset the queen in retirement in residence. tall order, and for all the vets, buy and sell and craigslist/kijiji, none to be found. has zamboni figured out how to block 'em ? no.

it's the late spring. yeah, late spring, late kittens. nature comes late this year. well, i know it's going to be fun watching the dog with 'em, he's a gentle giant and would love to meet some cats who don't use him as a mobile scratching post. wonder if he'll bug 'em as much when they hunt as he does spala, hunting dog who visits....

the river rises, out canoeing yesterday, gathering beaver sticks, and looking for eagles. none. but the condor vultures are circling squilax mountain, and the canada geese trail a couple of chicks, which were half a dozen three days ago. there's other hunters than kittens out there.

what's it got to do with music ? well, the SG wails and boogies along to the conference finals, and some definition comes. soon to recording demos, and singing. i got a punching bag up in the caboose, can the sm58 workout be much longer ? zamboni's ears have retired, so even the guitar doesn't bother her much anymore.

behind on several orders of writings, but not managing to do the do list. looking for joy first. i'll let you know.

love;

t

one of the things that's stirring the blog interest again is the possibility of printing a 'best of' with some bridging material as my first book. if any of your have experience with self-publishing, let me know. i'm thinking whatever is reasonably priced, perhaps with a ten page photo section. not sure if photos are that important... i'm excited at the idea, though i'm old enough to know it'll be ten times the work i expect it to be.

speaking of ten times the work, yesterday i got my norway hockey jersey in the mail. i've been trying to get one of these for many years, and finally overcame the language issues, and the fact that norway doesn't sell hockey jersey's, since there's no interest. they do have some game worn ones left over tho, and i got johnny nilsen's 22 right here. norway makes up for their relative hockey insignificance (they qualified for the 2010 olympics men's in last place, which is actually a remarkable achievement for them, considering they produce about 1/100th the NHL level players sweden does) with an amazing red/blue jersey with a white polar bear crest. wow. and NO ONE has got one, since it took me 40 emails, two bank transfers and hundred of dollars to secure mine. i am experiencing the pleasure of a hard won victory. now bring on that socan cheque.

today i also relish the sending off of the victoria band's application for the victoria jazz society's vancouver island blues bash. we'd love to play it, and i think we got the cred, but cross your fingers for us, or even better - email the victoria jazz society

info@jazzvictoria.ca

and let 'em know we rock the blues. not going to make it into salmon arm this evening to see some bands at barry's place, but it's good to know he's got that going on. later this summer, we're going to be gigging again up here. much love to you all, have a great weekend !

rock on;

t

my hockey team, the vancouver canucks, bowed out of the playoffs with a game six loss last night, in one of the most entertaining hockey games i've ever seen. i managed to rise above the anger and recrimination to see it as that - entertainment, and an inspiration to do what my team was unable to do, rise to the occasion earlier.

grey threaten drizzle morning in squilax still beautiful, i get a beaver stick off the wharf as i check it, and find the sweater i wanted instantly in the new organization. today there's town errands to do, mail, library, and an application for the victoria blues bash to get done.

one positive is that when i'm stressed and watching hockey i play guitar to keep my hand occupied. out of that comes new progressions, and more often, variations on the old, since my head and soul are distracted. yesterday i came up with a subtle and pretty variation on the prechorus of 'st louis blues', a dissonant beauty made moreso. it's kinda like a much faster and more sectional 'llama face', and the new pc made me itch to teach it to a keyboard player. this new album has some fierce competition for what songs make the cut.

cat and dog both overnighted outside, summer is coming indeed.

love;

t

i can feel the dust on my blog stirring to a mighty cloud as i type this, like the beaver chewed sticks raise silt from the river edge when i rake 'em in. rotem's blog, not one of his best, still has prodded me enough today.

i've been pretty sick this winter, so blogging has been a casualty. i'm back in squilax, now beginning the positive process of organizing all my possessions in the caboose i'll call home for many months now. friday i untangled the knot of cables that has been sitting in my gear box for years, testing every one and throwing out the crackles.

no shows for a while, trying to make sense of the whole and focus on the desperately needed new album. it's hard to get back to this equally dusty habit of writing and rewriting. today, as dull on a monday as any wage slave i watch the cat scar the window, looking for reentry, and consider the naked photo i got in the mail. a good start for a monday. music still pays my bills. c'mon, tea, kick in.

guitars, f/x boxes, grants, an august tour, which of these can i bring to life. first, this. and to love the taste of free'd dust.

love;

t

ahhh, these bugs been running around facebook for a while - so you get the seconds, sans links i'm afraid.....

1) Tatoos, piercings – haven’t got any, ever. Got a bunch of scars tho. I watched someone tagged here get his first tattoo. His dad blamed me for it. Now he’s a lawyer.

2) Deodorant, scent, or cologne is just service to a manufactured neurosis. I shower daily - if how I smell still bothers you, stay away from me. I love many of the people tagged here, and will forever. i met one of these people on my favourite ride, and discovered we'd both worked for judy perly.

3) My first hundred times onstage getting paid I was a DJ. I love djing, tho I don’t do it much now. Someone tagged here worked with me for a bunch of those gigs.

4) I and one other person tagged here did an airband to ‘Cold Sweat’ by Thin Lizzy while Phil Lynott was still alive. I was then and am now, a geek.

6) I dunno if I’ve ever had more fun than being walked out on by the parking lot rockers when we airbanded ‘Whiplash’ in grade 12. At the time, Metallica was viewed as a skater band, not a metal band – so the shrubs didn’t dig it. Plus they thought we weren’t cool. I realized – on that stage - I didn’t care who thought I was cool. All the guys who were onstage with me then are tagged here.

7) I’ve met Billy Bragg, Mike Watt (genuine nice guys), and Paul Westerberg (asshole), fallen off a mountain, been swept away by the sea, been arrested both justly and unjustly, and I don’t think any book about rock and roll comes as close to how it feels to me as ‘Coming Through Slaughter’ by Michael Ondatjjeei. Well, Lester Bangs does. And Kerouac. But nothing else. One of my highschool buddies who loved Iron Maiden is now a university prof.

8) When I was sixteen I started going to all ages shows, and I saw Nomeansno at the Rat’s Nest, a legendary punk crashpad/venue in Victoria. I know you won’t believe me, but back then there were just as many girls slamdancing as boys, and if someone fell we pushed people back and picked them up. If someone was scared to go in alone we’d go in as a couple. It really felt like eden, compared to the clique bs and jock threats of highschool. That lasted about a year before the jocks started getting into. I wish someone tagged here had been with us in those days.

9) I’ve never regretted money spent on instruments. I’ve been playing the same acoustic since ’88 and the same electric and since ’94. Every lesson I’ve learned about being a good musician translates into being a good human. Listen, support, empathize, be real and pay attention. Make it cool for everyone and pick ‘em up if they fall. Oh yeah - don’t do it for the money. One friend tagged here works as an A+R rep for a record company.

10) I’ve held one leg back so the baby could come out. I’ve held a crying baby to my chest for hours till she went to sleep and never felt happier. I’ve been homeless. I’ve been insane. Insane people starve and freeze on our streets TONIGHT so our taxes are low. Jesus said a rich man gets into heaven as easily as a camel gets through the eye of a needle – but I don’t know one Christian who takes that seriously. I’ve argued this with two of the Christians (one a priest in training) tagged here.

11) in ’94 I cut my first album, with Gabe from Gob on drums and Greg from the Manvils on bass. Two people tagged here helped me in studio. Last year i produced a great album for someone else tagged here.

12) I stopped paying more than 20 bucks for a show after I saw Joe Strummer sing with the Pogues and realized both he and I were bored at the time. Seen WAY more great shows since, many for free. Support the people who need your money, not the industry.

13) My dad was born in 1905, fought in the Norwegian resistance, and immigrated to Edmonton in ’51 with my half brother and sister. I have more blood relatives in the US than I do in Canada. My mom is the daughter of immigrants from London. My maternal grandfather was a career soldier, hated war and was the most humble man I’ve ever known.

14) My dad taught me to fight with a knife before I was ten. I carried that knife everywhere (including school) from age 15 to 18 and never pulled it on anyone, showed it off or wanted to.

15) I don’t believe in marriage, monogamy or Jesus Christ. What you believe is fine for you - but I think marriage is obsolete, monogamy a weakness (what right do I have to restrict who someone else loves ? jealousy is good ?), and I can’t support any religion that claims to have exclusive rights to heaven. I can see the face of god on the waters any time I want – and I don’t need a priest or creed to know what it means to me. I once joined a cult to see if they could brainwash me. I found it was like any other church – good for some and not others. And not for me. One person tagged here has cried with me while Christians tried to brainwash us at a camp, and changed her name of record at school to the one we gave her there. Another person tagged here joined the cult on my advice.

16) BC ferries going to Swartz Bay is my fav ride ever. Fav drives – Banff-Jasper, through Mt Hood to Oregon from Washington, and Victoria’s Dallas road out to Sidney along the coast is good too. Most welcoming cities: St Louis, Amsterdam, Toronto. Least: Vancouver. Worth it for the tuna sashimi tho.

17) Billy Bragg said – ‘if you’ve got a blacklist, I want to be on it’. I believe the same – in a bigoted world you better be on the side of those bigoted against.

One of my friends tagged here got gaybashed, in part because he refused to try to get out of it by saying he was straight (which he was). That’s courage that counts.

19) Nirvana had a huge cultural impact, but in terms of artistry or courage in their convictions – they’re a pimple on Husker Du’s ass. Imagine Nirvana with two Cobains, both gay, playing the heaviest music going in an intensely homophobic scene where NO ONE made even a living wage. Cobain couldn’t hold Grant Hart’s jockstrap – and he would tell you that himself if he could. Don’t get me started on Wilco (The Replacements), or Green Day (The Descendents/All), or yr alt-country whoevers (Jason and the Scorchers). Kids today man…..

20) I believe you are a fool if you think you’re smarter or better than any other person. If you judge, you are out of your league. My own foolishness is one of the very few things I’m certain of. Fortunately, I like my laugh.

21) I won’t ‘own’ a pet until I can house it in natural conditions such that I don’t have to maim it’s sexuality. I love my pet – so I’ll make sure it’ll never have offspring so I don’t have to be inconvenienced ? How selfish is that ?

22) One of my friends tagged here has described to me the sound of a plastic bullet hitting the flesh of someone a few feet away from her, and what it’s like to have the house next door airstruck. Don’t kid yourself that we are the good guys. We’re no better than any of the groups we label terrorist. We don’t want to know what our governments do – but in this era – we can’t claim that we don’t know. Here in BC you can still see the concentration camps we put our own neighbors into because their ethnicity. We are still waging war on the native people of Canada, and I made a living for many years working as a government alcohol salesman, a soldier in that war.

23) I will never accept nomination for an ‘award’ such as a juno et al. I have no interest in being a celebrity or doing the red carpet bullshit. I want to play songs and have people buy ‘em. Anyone signed to a major label is the enemy – a servant of the stockholders. Green Day ain’t punk, nor was Rage Against the Machine. I have not purchased a major label recording in fifteen years.

24) I remember the first time I heard a rock and roll song (‘Gimme Some Lovin’ by the Spencer Davis Group) used in a commercial. I thought – there’s a great song ruined forever. I won't ever let a song of mine be used like that.

“All the silver you can steal, can’t buy a piece of what I feel” – Grant Hart.

25) In ’94 two computer geek roomies of mine (the long distance unicycle riding one tagged here) suggested I buy a website for my record company. I still own www.yap.com. I’ve been offered tens of thousands of dollars for it, but I think I’d rather keep it and see what happens next. Why not ?


and while i'm at it - here's the other thing i've been getting tagged a lot with;


15 Life Changing Albums

1) The Kinks – Give the People What They Want: first album purchased ever, ‘paranoia’ I would still love to cover with the band.

2) Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath: I can still put the album on and leave it on for hours, I have covered ‘the wizard’.

3) Billy Bragg – Talking with the Taxman About Poetry: brought me to solo performance, I’ve covered ‘levi stubb’s tears’.

4) Van Halen – 1: balls, with humour and a little brains too. And the best guitarist in the world at the time… 'ain't talking about love' - someday...

5) The Replacements – Pleased to Meet Me: attitude, hooks, heart, snot and puke. i've covered 'here comes a regular' from their earlier and just as good album 'Tim'.

6) Soundgarden – Screaming Life: my buddy Adam played this for me in ‘87. An unknown band released by a tiny indie label no one ever heard of from just south of us.... My first reaction was - wow, a heavy band who like Sonic Youth.

7) Nomeansno – Sex Mad: this was my highschool release valve – an incredible record that spoke directly to me from a local band which I could see every few months. Nomeansno has never been as good as they were with Andy Kerr.

8) Liz Phair – Exile from Guyville: I was frozen by the first couplet of ‘6’1’. And there's more.

9) PJ Harvey – Rid of Me – balls, with humour and a little brains too. And the best drummer in the world at the time.

10) Judas Priest – Screaming for Vengance: was sick for days with a fever listening to this album again and again. Always prefered Priest to Maiden, I think now because Priest had some politics going on underneath it all... Not that i cottoned on at the time.

11) Soul Asylum – Hang Time: before they sold out to corporate schlock these guys were a great band. I don’t expect anyone who’s had to listen to ‘runaway train’ to believe me. How you kids feel about Weezer, I feel about Soul Asylum. Well, I did. I’m numb now.

12) Pixies – Dolittle: this and the equally dumb fun of The Cult’s ‘Electric’ dueled in my car stereo for more than a year, to the exclusion of pretty much everything else.

13) Motown Box Set - well, the music had changed my life way before I got the box set.

14) The Minutemen – Double Nickles on Dime: heart and soul. And forty odd songs with titles like ‘the roar of the masses might be farts’, and ‘political song for Michael Jackson to sing’.

15) The Jamaican Music Box Set – source of my all time fav mix tape.

Sweet 16/17) Thelonius Monk's Greatest Hits/Ornette Coleman's "The Shape of Jazz to Come" - now that's melody writing.

hey i managed to get video uploaded from chicklet to the web. just a dark starter - but it's paul and i playing here at squilax this summer. much more to come - tho i don't know if much is in any better light. crank it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32kSiKmtg8k

song's got lyrics about wanting to rape and pillage like my ancestors (both british and norwegian) did traditionally, bit of a send up to the folkfest attitude towards the old days. got a beatles reference in there too, hello jeff stone.

lots more video of all these folks to come, if you like.

it's all i can do to stave off the 'no beer and no tv makes homer something something' this time of year. trying to start on vancouver island tour for feb/march, the next album (which this tune could be on), and getting back to toronto. slow going.

love;

t

watched the considerably less violent 'last king of scotland' last night after taking in 'blood diamond' earlier this week. movies set in africa - tho it looks like the next one i'm seeing is 'control'.

been listening to a lot of metal these days, enjoying the classic guitar tones (and drummer) of mastodon and the chopmania of protest the hero. so 'master of puppets' for now. so i returned to an old fav of mine when i played a lot more of this kinda stuff - whole tone scale. the six note scale has no semitones - so its a workout for the mind as well as the ears. i tune my strat to c# g c# g c# g low to high and thrash out - milking the little fender practice amp for all it's tranistory glory. feels good to squeal and shred. as with the heavy stuff on richard's cd - it makes me wanna do that second .married cd sometime. idle talk.

hey if you can invite some humans to our victoria show on dec 27, or nanaimo on dec 26 - lemme know and i'll send you the event page - if it ain't waiting for you in your mailbox.

pain of having only one electric is you tune it one way and then want the regular tune later that day.... did i mention i'm trying to get an sg into my near future ?

might be time to talk about that cousin wedding i been planning.

rock on;

t

well, then sun mid day - with an audience of chairs while the kitchen gets it's glitz. trying to get into new albums - twenty or so from the library. been unable to get into a lot - usual. struggling with derek trucks right now - great tone and i love 'volunteer'd slavery' so it's a great start - but it's too smooth. is it the tones are too classic ? lenny kravixtitis ? i'm nitpicking ? but where's the song ?

i remember getting a ben harper cd from a citr giveaway back in the day - and suprising myself by liking it despite it's clean neo hippy eithic. it's background music. i guess derek trucks fits in there - like dave mathews - just too damn sweet for my taste. not enough hate. i'm replacing it with the byrds. the byrds have sour lyrics. thank you. can't do anything listening to this. it's listening music.

small show here after the travel talk this afternoon. i'm debating a new tune or two and can't decide. lot of that these days.

wait a sec - '5d' is making the hippy-ometer go off. perhaps i'm being unjust to derek et al. can't be good all the time.

there's a cool illinois blues on this here alvin youngblood heart cd - and a good ska tune too. that cleans up my beefs with the neo hippies.

hope you've invited a few other folks to this show we're doing dec 26 in nanaimo and dec 27 in esquimalt. if you help out - the party will be stellar.

love;

t