Music school's good fun, feels like coming to home to finally be doing something I really want to do - I never had enough real passion for film or journalism. The class are a good bunch of people, variety of backgrounds - interesting to see where people are at. Some just want to build confidence, some play by ear but don't know the theory, some seem like guitar wizards already... I've got more theory than some, and I've been writing original music for over ten years. What I need is to lift my playing chops, and to find ways of breaking through the great wall of indifference - all those people out there who'd love my music if only they knew it existed, and the ones who browse the website but don't place an order (this probably means you).
To that end I made (yet) another new album last week - 'Gleefully Unknown 1997-2005'. This is the 'best of' compilation I've talked about for a while (and for which Creative NZ were completely unhelpful with funding). It's on CDR at this stage, but I've worked on getting the packaging really good - lots of colour photos, and including all the lyrics this time. I also bought a colour printer that can print artwork directly onto the surface of the disc rather than needing sticky labels.
It's got 18 tracks, including pieces from all my albums, stuff with The Winter and Ascension Band ('Live 2004' lineup), and two previously unreleased tracks. So if you need a handle on my life's work, start right here. Email me for a copy (fiffdimensionATgmailDOTcom), $15 each.
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The summer holiday ended on a good note - I saw two Will Oldham gigs, in Nelson and at the Mussell Inn in Takaka. Here's one of my all-time favourite songwriters, who I've listened to for ten years now, and he's playing to a hundred people at the local Irish pub! I went up to him at the end to say hi, and he accepted a copy of my compilation album. Hope he listens to it...
It was also great to see him at the Mussell Inn, big smile, talking about how well he slept and how much he's enjoying NZ. For someone with a reputation for dark songwriting, he seems like a downright jolly chap. And the looseness of the band (including Dirty Three guitarist Mick Turner on keyboards) was much more to my taste than the drilled precision of Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds.
There was a more disturbing element to the visit to Golden Bay though - Pupu Springs closed due to rock snot. This country of ours is so fragile...
Have to get the house cleaned up for bbq this afternoon... we invited a bunch of people, wonder if many will turn up?
Posted by fiffdimension at February 11, 2006 08:38 AM | TrackBackTrippy album. I liked it, I bought it, other people should too! The 'best of' is really worth a listen. :)
Posted by: phreq at February 16, 2006 10:31 AMYou're too kind, thanks.
Posted by: Dave at February 18, 2006 07:46 AM