So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye

Here are Keef and Tash at the beginning of their last Sunday in England. The picture pretty much sums up the part of the day I joined them for. They're stood next to the Duck tour vehicle, which was amazing fun - it takes you round the streets of London then drives into the Thames and chugs around the waves for half an hour (world's funniest tour guide not pictured), and in the background is the Eye, which we went on afterwards (I'm assuming everyone's done it so no description required). They went to the Ritz afterwards, maybe they can let us know how that went.

From now on their Sundays will no doubt be spent surfing, attending barbecues, meeting Karl Kennedy, catching the Greyhound, watching baseball and lots of other Antipodean/American things. Meanwhile I intend to spend my Sunday mornings here.....

....I'm imagining that each room has T4 on big screen TVs, all the sunday papers and nurses bringin an endless supply of tea'n'toast.

Highlight of the day = this fine double rabbit as witnessed on the London Eye.

Last nite...

...I went to the first night of the Wireless Festival. The Strokes were OK, although I still think they're the most overrated band since Oasis, and I could have done without ever hearing their cover of 'Walk on The Wild Side'. Belle and Sebastian's support set was brilliant though, especially the extended glam-stomp intro to 'White Collar Boy'. My favourite Glaswegian band*, a beautiful sunset, a picnic courtesy of my friend Jen (bagels! grapes! soft cheese! chorizo!! Couldn't have been further from a Glastonbury diet if we'd tried) and the fact that it was all free made it a pretty ace way to spend a Wednesday night.

10. It was the fucking Hyde Park!


* My top five glaswegian bands in order: B&S, Teenage Fanclub, Camera Obscura, Franz, Bis. Thanks for asking. No room for Travis, The Supernaturals, David Sneddon, or Darius this time. Or for Scrooge McDuck despite the theme tune to Duck Tales being brilliant.

All change in the Med...

Potentially good news...

Slightly odd news...

A total tragedy...

The wheel of fortune turns inexorably, even in Medway.

Am I Getting Old?

Why is there so much utterly tossful music around? Kinda makes me glad that i'm gonna miss 9 months of Sandi "effing" Thom and Jack "shooby doo" Johnson all over the radio. However, I have some vex-ment happening;

1. Anyone heard Smile by Lily Allen? I really don't want to like this as,
(a) She is the daughter of Keith Allen,
(b) It's far to reggae influenced for my liking,
(c) She doesn't really sing, more talk in a tuneful way.
But I do feel strangely drawn to this track. Maybe it's this country's obsession with dinner party singer/songwriters releasing shit music for 30 somethings trying to be down with nu choons, that's warped my sense of taste.

2. Anyone heard anything by Bic Runga? One of her cd's is dirt cheap in the HMV sale and near the top of their most popular purchases list. Although this could mean she is another dinner party singer/songwriter releasing shit music for 30 somethings trying to be down with nu choons.

3. So, to combat all of the above is the latest single from my new favourite band
No chance of making the Top 10 cos it's not bland enough

I saw this...

and thought of Joe

Amazing what you can find when you're bored and on a skive from work ...

Speshal Ting

Inter-internet-net

Meta-internet interlinking; news about how other websites are reporting news. What will we do when anything real actually happens somewhere?

I'm sure a few will have spotted this already, but it's:

a) funny
b) Tooting-related and
c) a better deconstruction of the Sandi Thom "phenomenon" than any amount of po-faced broadsheet mock-horror.

Robinson's straight-faced "Erm, what did you expect?"-style soundbite on Sky News about the same thing yesterday was equally punchy.

http://www.popjustice.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=417&Itemid=147

The muddled thoughts of the permanently web-connected

2 random unconnected facts:

1) Russell T Davies studied at Worcester College, which would explain quite a lot, both about his output and about Worcester College. Worcester College was also mentioned in the Line of Beauty TV adaptation (as in the book). With the exception of Alex Cox and, a while ago now, Thomas de Quincy, nothing vaguely "cool" has ever emanated from that austere establishment. I need to cash in on this new potential hipness before it stops being underground and becomes devalued currency. Any ideas?

2) Dave & I are off to Saturday at Reading - tickets just acquired. Anyone else likely to be around then?

Joe, Barcelona sounds wicked. One of those places I've always wanted to visit but not yet managed. Maybe next year...

Such a beautiful horizon

Barcelona is amazing. There's a real vibrancy and energy, with something happening everywhere you turn, yet at the same time everyone is beautifully laid-back and it's easy to find a bench or a cool bar to escape from it all for a while. And nothing prepares you for how fantastic it all looks - not just the crazy Gaudi architecture and Las Ramblas but also the tree-lined wide open spaces of all the main roads and squares, the classical architecture of the old town, and the port with the beautiful blue sea and sky beyond it.

Individual highlights include the Gaudi roof terrace on La Pedrera; the creaky cable car ride across the port to the Olympic Stadium; the square in front of Sagrada Familia where you can sit and watch the locals playing petanque (perfect for shaking off a hangover); the hair metal cinema/bar which plays Twisted Sister, Megadeth, G'n'R, even a bit of Warrant if you ask nicely enough; and the best fountain ever, whose lights and jets 'dance' to classical and pop music including, brilliantly, Freddie Mercury/Monserrat Caballe.

I'm instantly placing it high on a meaningless list of my favourite cities in the world, alongside Tokyo and San Fran. Photos at flickr, as usual.

Luvin' the Lahrnden Laydeez

This guy is a mentalist