Love(tt) is in the air
A couple of weeks ago, a friend was saying that this girl was looking to meet new guys and so I said ‘Cool, bring her out.’ And he says ‘She’s a nurse.’ And I say ‘Cool, bring her out.’ And then he tells me that she actually remembers me. We met something like two years ago at my birthday party. The one with the cage and stuff. Anyway, then he tells me to forget it. I didn’t make a good impression on her. Which is fair enough since I didn’t even remember her at all. He says I’m not her type. I ask him why.
Her reasons:
‘He’s too tall, too smooth and too wild.’
Wow.
That’s outrageous.
That’s the best lack of interest I’ve ever gotten.
The best bad impression I’ve ever made.
That’s like a guy leaving my basketball team because I’m too tall, too good and too flashy.
I’ll take that.
__________
Interestingly enough, I told this story to another friend of mine and she laughed.
‘You? Smooth?’ *uncontrollable laughter*
Yeah, thanks Gina.
I thought it was just the ‘wild’ bit that was off.
What?
Oh piss off. You can all go to hell!
__________
Speaking of tall, smooth and wild, Sleepwalker says you should listen to Lyle Lovett’s ‘Road to Ensenada’. The coolest and smoothest album I’ve listened to since… um… I dunno. I don’t tend to listen to music that sounds cool. But seriously, ignore the hair and the face and the history with Julia Roberts. This guy is witty and oozing with charm and attitude. He’s the coolest cat in cowboy boots. He’s like the Snoop Dogg of country music.
But without the hos.
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Friday, May 19, 2006
xtn takes the rubbish out
I hope you get to read this eventually. Or else it should be pretty obvious from how I act around you. It shouldn’t really come as much of a surprise anyway.
As far as I know, we’re square now. And if we’re not, you can tell me and I’ll square it off. And then with that, we’re done. I will not be associating myself with you from this point forth.
Here’s what you did:
- You walked out on us.
- You didn’t tell us about it, which consequently prevented us from even going ahead without you.
- You then stole two of us over to your side (which I guess explains why you didn’t tell us).
- When you eventually wrote us your ‘apology’, you left out details and ultimately claimed that what you did was for our own good.
- The details you left out were who you were going to and who you’re dragging with you. (By now you should know that in our circles, information like this runs freely. It’s whether you want to own up to it or not that separates the decent human being from the dickhead.)
If you had had enough of us and wanted to walk out, that’s fine. No grudges would have been taken. But just be a man and tell us to our faces. Don’t drag the rest of us down in your misery. We’re supposed to be your friends. Who the hell would actually risk friendships over this? It’s ridiculous! You’re a sad spineless little man for what you’ve done here.
If you read this and feel any sort of guilt or regret, then good for you. But if you think you’re in the right and I’m just victimising you like you always think we’re doing, then screw you.
And now, I suppose, having called you spineless, I should justify myself for why I’m doing this in blog form, rather than to your face. Here are my reasons.
- I wish to have no further dialogue with you. At this point I do not ask for or want an apology or explanation or retort of any sort from this. This is one-way rant.
- This is what you would do in my place, so it’s almost poetic… and I’m just petty enough to go there.
- I think you deserve a public slagging.
Whatever you think of those reasons, I really couldn’t care less.
I realise that I will still see you around, and probably often, because we float in common circles. At these occasions you can expect a level of civility and courtesy as is fit for any human being. But anything beyond this, you should not be holding your breath for.
The worse thing to me about all this is that while the other guys I’ve spoken to are miffed by what you’ve done, I know at the end of the day you will get away with this and they will forgive and forget. Because they always do. Because they’re great guys who always let you get away with things for one reason or another.
Here’s the thing. You have great friends. I know because they are mine as well. So please learn to appreciate that. Because if you pull more of this kind of crap on them, eventually you will lose them too and you will have no one. Kindness and friendships can only stretch so far.
I have little else to say at this point so I will close with these parting words.
I thank you for whatever friendship we did once have. I can’t say we were great friends but we were friends no doubt. I thank you for the extended credit. It was generous and appreciated. I thank you for all our years of playing together. We had some hard times, but we had some cracking good times too. Some of the best memories of my late youth.
But really, seriously, what you’ve done here is ridiculous.
I hope you get to read this eventually. Or else it should be pretty obvious from how I act around you. It shouldn’t really come as much of a surprise anyway.
As far as I know, we’re square now. And if we’re not, you can tell me and I’ll square it off. And then with that, we’re done. I will not be associating myself with you from this point forth.
Here’s what you did:
- You walked out on us.
- You didn’t tell us about it, which consequently prevented us from even going ahead without you.
- You then stole two of us over to your side (which I guess explains why you didn’t tell us).
- When you eventually wrote us your ‘apology’, you left out details and ultimately claimed that what you did was for our own good.
- The details you left out were who you were going to and who you’re dragging with you. (By now you should know that in our circles, information like this runs freely. It’s whether you want to own up to it or not that separates the decent human being from the dickhead.)
If you had had enough of us and wanted to walk out, that’s fine. No grudges would have been taken. But just be a man and tell us to our faces. Don’t drag the rest of us down in your misery. We’re supposed to be your friends. Who the hell would actually risk friendships over this? It’s ridiculous! You’re a sad spineless little man for what you’ve done here.
If you read this and feel any sort of guilt or regret, then good for you. But if you think you’re in the right and I’m just victimising you like you always think we’re doing, then screw you.
And now, I suppose, having called you spineless, I should justify myself for why I’m doing this in blog form, rather than to your face. Here are my reasons.
- I wish to have no further dialogue with you. At this point I do not ask for or want an apology or explanation or retort of any sort from this. This is one-way rant.
- This is what you would do in my place, so it’s almost poetic… and I’m just petty enough to go there.
- I think you deserve a public slagging.
Whatever you think of those reasons, I really couldn’t care less.
I realise that I will still see you around, and probably often, because we float in common circles. At these occasions you can expect a level of civility and courtesy as is fit for any human being. But anything beyond this, you should not be holding your breath for.
The worse thing to me about all this is that while the other guys I’ve spoken to are miffed by what you’ve done, I know at the end of the day you will get away with this and they will forgive and forget. Because they always do. Because they’re great guys who always let you get away with things for one reason or another.
Here’s the thing. You have great friends. I know because they are mine as well. So please learn to appreciate that. Because if you pull more of this kind of crap on them, eventually you will lose them too and you will have no one. Kindness and friendships can only stretch so far.
I have little else to say at this point so I will close with these parting words.
I thank you for whatever friendship we did once have. I can’t say we were great friends but we were friends no doubt. I thank you for the extended credit. It was generous and appreciated. I thank you for all our years of playing together. We had some hard times, but we had some cracking good times too. Some of the best memories of my late youth.
But really, seriously, what you’ve done here is ridiculous.
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Sleepwalker and me
He comes back to me from the dead in these times.
On trains. In cars. Walking down the streets of Chatswood on a late afternoon.
Welcome back.
It's good to be back.
So tell me something.
Love is like an apple. You can pick it up and eat it and it tastes pretty good. Especially the red ones. I'm not so fond of the green ones.
What are you on about?
Nothing. It's late. I'm tired.
Tired?
I'm sleepwalking. It's what I do.
So where have you been in all this time?
Well, after I last left you, I travelled down the allegorical highway. Mostly I walked but ocassionally I hitched rides from passing thought vehicles. Along the...
Where were you going?
... as I was saying...
Sorry.
... yes, well, along the way I met a bird and she told me to look for the wise man. She told me that he can give me all the answers I need.
To what questions?
Um... I dunno. Anything I suppose.
Can you ask him what I should have for lunch tomorrow?
No I can't. I'm not seeing him again. This was in the past. You asked me where I had been.
Oh. I see.
Apparently not.
No need to be rude!
Anyway, so I asked the bird where I could find him. And she showed me the way. Past the twin peaks that look like lopsided breasts and over the hill that looks like... um... well, a big rock. And then you will find a mountain. On top of this mountain is a small cave and in this cave is where you can find the old wise man.
You never mentioned he was old.
They're all old.
Who are?
Wise men! Anyway... so I contemplated the idea of finding a wise man who could give me the answers to anything but the twin peaks that looked like lopsided breasts looked far away and the hill was covered with jagged rocks and the mountain was too high and too mighty for a mere figment to conquer. So I said 'Nah, it's too hard. I wouldn't be able to get there'. And she said 'That's OK. I can fly you to him'. And so I said alright and then I climbed onto her back (in a non-sexual manner - this isn't that type of a story) and she flew me past the twin peaks that looked like lopsided breasts and over the hill that looked like a big rock and up the mountain and then she let me off in front of the cave. You have to go in yourself, she said. And so I did. And I looked back to wave and thank the bird and then I was inside and the old wise man was sitting in front of me on a cushion of whispers.
Is this story going to take much longer?
And so I asked him if he was the wise man and he said yes. And then I asked him if he was so wise, then does he know the meaning of life and he said yes. And I said wow, cool!
So?
What?
What's the meaning of life?
I dunno. I didn't ask.
Why not?
I don't care. I'm a figment.
So that's your story?
That's my story.
That story sucks!
You suck more!
I'm not talking to you anymore.
He comes back to me from the dead in these times.
On trains. In cars. Walking down the streets of Chatswood on a late afternoon.
Welcome back.
It's good to be back.
So tell me something.
Love is like an apple. You can pick it up and eat it and it tastes pretty good. Especially the red ones. I'm not so fond of the green ones.
What are you on about?
Nothing. It's late. I'm tired.
Tired?
I'm sleepwalking. It's what I do.
So where have you been in all this time?
Well, after I last left you, I travelled down the allegorical highway. Mostly I walked but ocassionally I hitched rides from passing thought vehicles. Along the...
Where were you going?
... as I was saying...
Sorry.
... yes, well, along the way I met a bird and she told me to look for the wise man. She told me that he can give me all the answers I need.
To what questions?
Um... I dunno. Anything I suppose.
Can you ask him what I should have for lunch tomorrow?
No I can't. I'm not seeing him again. This was in the past. You asked me where I had been.
Oh. I see.
Apparently not.
No need to be rude!
Anyway, so I asked the bird where I could find him. And she showed me the way. Past the twin peaks that look like lopsided breasts and over the hill that looks like... um... well, a big rock. And then you will find a mountain. On top of this mountain is a small cave and in this cave is where you can find the old wise man.
You never mentioned he was old.
They're all old.
Who are?
Wise men! Anyway... so I contemplated the idea of finding a wise man who could give me the answers to anything but the twin peaks that looked like lopsided breasts looked far away and the hill was covered with jagged rocks and the mountain was too high and too mighty for a mere figment to conquer. So I said 'Nah, it's too hard. I wouldn't be able to get there'. And she said 'That's OK. I can fly you to him'. And so I said alright and then I climbed onto her back (in a non-sexual manner - this isn't that type of a story) and she flew me past the twin peaks that looked like lopsided breasts and over the hill that looked like a big rock and up the mountain and then she let me off in front of the cave. You have to go in yourself, she said. And so I did. And I looked back to wave and thank the bird and then I was inside and the old wise man was sitting in front of me on a cushion of whispers.
Is this story going to take much longer?
And so I asked him if he was the wise man and he said yes. And then I asked him if he was so wise, then does he know the meaning of life and he said yes. And I said wow, cool!
So?
What?
What's the meaning of life?
I dunno. I didn't ask.
Why not?
I don't care. I'm a figment.
So that's your story?
That's my story.
That story sucks!
You suck more!
I'm not talking to you anymore.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
How I made my way back to the computer
The iRiver has gotten me back to the computer. I have a hell of a lot of CDs and it's been really cool to go through all my old records (I'm old school) and remembering that I had forgotten how good some of this stuff is. I'd forgotten how good Eminem is. How good del Amitri is. How damn good Joan Osborne is. Most of these albums bring back memories of some sort. Of better or worse times. So it's been real good.
How it's bad is that now since I'm online I end up chatting to people on MSN til late. This is why I left the computer in the first place. I just wasn't getting enough sleep.
Oh well...
Here are two of my all-time favourite song lyrics (for cleverness, not meaning or sentimentality) that the iRiver has reminded me...
'They say love only comes once in a lifetime
Well once was enough for me
She was one in a million
So there's five more just in New South Wales'
The Whitlams
'Don't get so distressed
If the good life won't arrive
You've been seeing SOS
When it's just your clock reading 5:05'
del Amitri
And the chorus goes:
'We do not lie side by side
And mock the thought of you
And I don’t take her hand and ask
Is this what he used to do?
’cos I just want to free her from
Your jails of jealous dreams
’cos at least a house when it’s empty
Stays clean'
OK I'm losing you. None of you care. Let's move on...
da Vinci Code
I'm so sick of all this hype over the movie and the book. I've read it and it's fun and all... but is it worth all this? Has it changed my life? Well no...
I think it's extremely poorly written as a piece of literature. It's good pulp but it annoys me when people see it as something more important. There was zero character development. By the end, I stopped caring what happened to them....
*spoiler*
And all that stuff about opening that thing without releasing the vinegar on the papyrus.... just freeze the damn thing and cut it open! Take out the papyrus and thaw it out. It all felt like a waste of time...
*end spoiler*
And what about the crappy romance right at the end... are you kidding?!
And the controversial bits... it was interesting but not really new and, in my opinion, does almost nothing to my Catholic faith. In fact, I haven't met anyone who's read it and said that it shook their faith. It's only one of many theories on Jesus, and if it were true (I personally think there's a high possibility that it is mostly true) it should surely change the history of things, but not the faith. Anyway.... I won't go into that right now.
Having saif all that, I'm still going to see the movie. It's got a great cast (any movie with Paul Bettany and Jean Reno and Audrey Tautou is worth seeing), good solid (if Hollywood-y) director. Should be a fun watch.
Close enough
I finally saw Closer. It was everything that everyone said it was. Intense, theatrical, messy. I really liked it. And my, has Natalie grown up...
Here's another thing. Jude Law plays a bastard so well that he does it so often and every time, I wish his character dead. That's an achievement.
You know the first time I saw Clive Owen was in a computer game. Privateer 2: The Darkening.
Anyway, I'm chatting to my cousin in Eindhoven now. So I'm off.
The iRiver has gotten me back to the computer. I have a hell of a lot of CDs and it's been really cool to go through all my old records (I'm old school) and remembering that I had forgotten how good some of this stuff is. I'd forgotten how good Eminem is. How good del Amitri is. How damn good Joan Osborne is. Most of these albums bring back memories of some sort. Of better or worse times. So it's been real good.
How it's bad is that now since I'm online I end up chatting to people on MSN til late. This is why I left the computer in the first place. I just wasn't getting enough sleep.
Oh well...
Here are two of my all-time favourite song lyrics (for cleverness, not meaning or sentimentality) that the iRiver has reminded me...
'They say love only comes once in a lifetime
Well once was enough for me
She was one in a million
So there's five more just in New South Wales'
The Whitlams
'Don't get so distressed
If the good life won't arrive
You've been seeing SOS
When it's just your clock reading 5:05'
del Amitri
And the chorus goes:
'We do not lie side by side
And mock the thought of you
And I don’t take her hand and ask
Is this what he used to do?
’cos I just want to free her from
Your jails of jealous dreams
’cos at least a house when it’s empty
Stays clean'
OK I'm losing you. None of you care. Let's move on...
da Vinci Code
I'm so sick of all this hype over the movie and the book. I've read it and it's fun and all... but is it worth all this? Has it changed my life? Well no...
I think it's extremely poorly written as a piece of literature. It's good pulp but it annoys me when people see it as something more important. There was zero character development. By the end, I stopped caring what happened to them....
*spoiler*
And all that stuff about opening that thing without releasing the vinegar on the papyrus.... just freeze the damn thing and cut it open! Take out the papyrus and thaw it out. It all felt like a waste of time...
*end spoiler*
And what about the crappy romance right at the end... are you kidding?!
And the controversial bits... it was interesting but not really new and, in my opinion, does almost nothing to my Catholic faith. In fact, I haven't met anyone who's read it and said that it shook their faith. It's only one of many theories on Jesus, and if it were true (I personally think there's a high possibility that it is mostly true) it should surely change the history of things, but not the faith. Anyway.... I won't go into that right now.
Having saif all that, I'm still going to see the movie. It's got a great cast (any movie with Paul Bettany and Jean Reno and Audrey Tautou is worth seeing), good solid (if Hollywood-y) director. Should be a fun watch.
Close enough
I finally saw Closer. It was everything that everyone said it was. Intense, theatrical, messy. I really liked it. And my, has Natalie grown up...
Here's another thing. Jude Law plays a bastard so well that he does it so often and every time, I wish his character dead. That's an achievement.
You know the first time I saw Clive Owen was in a computer game. Privateer 2: The Darkening.
Anyway, I'm chatting to my cousin in Eindhoven now. So I'm off.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
I’m on a bit of a roll. A mini roll. But a good one. Part of it will be lost because I’m not quite as giddy now as I was last night but the feeling is still here.
We won last night. Our mixed team. I was wrong. We can be OK. We’ve improved a lot the past few weeks and last night we beat a decent team by one point. I scored the last basket with 10 seconds to go… but only after I stuffed up the chance to go up by one about 15 seconds earlier. And I missed eight free throws all up. And… alright no negativity.
My friend, A (clever eh, that I called him ‘A’ so that you won’t be able to tell that I’m talking about Alwin), came back from China for a week and a half or something and I gotta say that that had a lot to do with this roll.
I’ve never believed that you can have close friends that you don’t see or speak to or write to very often. A lot of people say ‘I hardly see Sammy Saussagehead but every time we catch up it’s like nothing’s changed and we’re still best friends.’
I think that’s rubbish. I don’t see how someone can be your close friend if you can’t even be bothered to hang out with them (unless you hang out with nobody… then that would be different, maybe).
I still believe that. But I also believe that A, to me, is an exception to that rule. Maybe it’s because our lack of contact is due to oceanic expanses more than anything else, but whatever.
So he came over, without notice (because we very rarely email each other) and for the past week it’s been catch-ups and whatnot. And I feel great about it. Genuinely great. About a lot of things.
Thursday night was Oriented. I hate these events. Last time I went I was stuck talking to some IP lawyer who was telling me that his job is so hard to get into. He was there again this time. And he remembered me. On the other hand, this time Ben unloaded this drunk Indian guy who was very interested in the fact that my name tag said that I am Jean Lee from UBS. But he forgot who I was ten minutes later. Asked me again if I worked at UBS. I just walked away.
Anyway, the point is, this time it was fun again. I was intoxicated, hanging out with good friends, meeting random people. It was liked uni days all over again.
Then came Friday, Shuai and I went to see The Vasco era (see my last blog). I love this band. It’s the kind of sound that I’m really into at the moment. Think White Stripes, Black Keys. They weren’t quite as good as they were at the festival but still pretty good. While we’re on guitar music, the week before went to see my guitar tutor’s band, Livewire. That was fun. They’re an 80’s glam metal band that just refuses to leave that era. It was obviously a rent-a-crowd. But good luck to them. Ben’s a truly amazing guitarist.
Saturday, I’m tired as hell but it turns out to be another fun day. Both day and night having a decidedly maple leaf theme to it. Lunch at Spice-I-am (my current favourite restaurant) followed by pre-night karaoke and then dumplings and handmade noodles for dinner. After that we said farewell to our friend Gord, who’s going back to Canadia. I’ll be visiting him later in the year.
Sunday I spend the entire day playing guitar and pretending to be a rock star of sorts. Then at night I catch up with my psych friends, including Gina who’s also come back to Australia for a short visit, having been working in Jakarta the past year on the avian flu for the WHO. Psych outings can often be hit and miss because it’s generally a conservative group who are mostly married (and act married). But this night was fun. And we figured out that next March will be ten years since our first year psych camp so we’re hoping that everyone can get together then, which for this group is easier said than done…
Monday, I get myself a 20GB iRiver H10 mp3 player! I’ve been eyeing this for a while, watching as the price slowly dropped at JB. I got it for $336, which I’m happy with. I’m always so far behind in technology and when I catch up, I get the biggest one, choosing function over form. The iRiver is like the iPod’s stocky but reliable uglier cousin. But this is the best toy I’ve bought since my electric guitar!
Monday night is A’s departure vigil. We play Scrabble (my first time – it’s a good game) and then I hang out and chatted with him ‘for about 15 minutes’ which turned out to be 3 hours and I get home and I wake up late to work the next day.
I was going to write something mushy and sentimental about him but I think I’ll just forget about it. It’s pointless. He’s my oldest surviving friend and I love and respect him for that. That’s all you need to know. But I will say this, the two of us having gone our separate ways have brought us closer to seeing eye to eye on many topics than we ever have before. Strange how that’s happened. We have a much more similar world view now.
Anyway… I best be getting some sleep.
Or maybe a bit later.
I’m in a good mood.
We won last night. Our mixed team. I was wrong. We can be OK. We’ve improved a lot the past few weeks and last night we beat a decent team by one point. I scored the last basket with 10 seconds to go… but only after I stuffed up the chance to go up by one about 15 seconds earlier. And I missed eight free throws all up. And… alright no negativity.
My friend, A (clever eh, that I called him ‘A’ so that you won’t be able to tell that I’m talking about Alwin), came back from China for a week and a half or something and I gotta say that that had a lot to do with this roll.
I’ve never believed that you can have close friends that you don’t see or speak to or write to very often. A lot of people say ‘I hardly see Sammy Saussagehead but every time we catch up it’s like nothing’s changed and we’re still best friends.’
I think that’s rubbish. I don’t see how someone can be your close friend if you can’t even be bothered to hang out with them (unless you hang out with nobody… then that would be different, maybe).
I still believe that. But I also believe that A, to me, is an exception to that rule. Maybe it’s because our lack of contact is due to oceanic expanses more than anything else, but whatever.
So he came over, without notice (because we very rarely email each other) and for the past week it’s been catch-ups and whatnot. And I feel great about it. Genuinely great. About a lot of things.
Thursday night was Oriented. I hate these events. Last time I went I was stuck talking to some IP lawyer who was telling me that his job is so hard to get into. He was there again this time. And he remembered me. On the other hand, this time Ben unloaded this drunk Indian guy who was very interested in the fact that my name tag said that I am Jean Lee from UBS. But he forgot who I was ten minutes later. Asked me again if I worked at UBS. I just walked away.
Anyway, the point is, this time it was fun again. I was intoxicated, hanging out with good friends, meeting random people. It was liked uni days all over again.
Then came Friday, Shuai and I went to see The Vasco era (see my last blog). I love this band. It’s the kind of sound that I’m really into at the moment. Think White Stripes, Black Keys. They weren’t quite as good as they were at the festival but still pretty good. While we’re on guitar music, the week before went to see my guitar tutor’s band, Livewire. That was fun. They’re an 80’s glam metal band that just refuses to leave that era. It was obviously a rent-a-crowd. But good luck to them. Ben’s a truly amazing guitarist.
Saturday, I’m tired as hell but it turns out to be another fun day. Both day and night having a decidedly maple leaf theme to it. Lunch at Spice-I-am (my current favourite restaurant) followed by pre-night karaoke and then dumplings and handmade noodles for dinner. After that we said farewell to our friend Gord, who’s going back to Canadia. I’ll be visiting him later in the year.
Sunday I spend the entire day playing guitar and pretending to be a rock star of sorts. Then at night I catch up with my psych friends, including Gina who’s also come back to Australia for a short visit, having been working in Jakarta the past year on the avian flu for the WHO. Psych outings can often be hit and miss because it’s generally a conservative group who are mostly married (and act married). But this night was fun. And we figured out that next March will be ten years since our first year psych camp so we’re hoping that everyone can get together then, which for this group is easier said than done…
Monday, I get myself a 20GB iRiver H10 mp3 player! I’ve been eyeing this for a while, watching as the price slowly dropped at JB. I got it for $336, which I’m happy with. I’m always so far behind in technology and when I catch up, I get the biggest one, choosing function over form. The iRiver is like the iPod’s stocky but reliable uglier cousin. But this is the best toy I’ve bought since my electric guitar!
Monday night is A’s departure vigil. We play Scrabble (my first time – it’s a good game) and then I hang out and chatted with him ‘for about 15 minutes’ which turned out to be 3 hours and I get home and I wake up late to work the next day.
I was going to write something mushy and sentimental about him but I think I’ll just forget about it. It’s pointless. He’s my oldest surviving friend and I love and respect him for that. That’s all you need to know. But I will say this, the two of us having gone our separate ways have brought us closer to seeing eye to eye on many topics than we ever have before. Strange how that’s happened. We have a much more similar world view now.
Anyway… I best be getting some sleep.
Or maybe a bit later.
I’m in a good mood.
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
My great escape
Tonight I’ve decided to blog. Maybe only because for once I have something worth writing about. I went to the Great Escape Festival on the long weekend and it was mostly a positive experience. I haven’t really been to a big festival before. The only one before this was The Feelgood Festival on New Years Day. That was much smaller. Here are some of my thoughts on the weekend. There’s a lot to go through so just feel free to skim through to parts you might wanna read about.
Friday
Mostly crap, really. Started out poorly too. Our prepaid Moshtix tickets allowed us to line up in the exclusive Moshtix line, which was actually much longer and slower than the line to buy tickets on the spot. The wait was about 40 minutes or so. Oh yeah, we also saw our friend Shuai in the line, laughed in his face for having pre-bought tickets, went to the Ticketek line, got rejected, then had to join the back of the line that he was in. Great start. Here’s the rest of the day.
The Fumes: we heard two songs. I loved it. Hard blues/rock. Awesome vocalist/guitarist and energetic drummer. Actually got a called for an encore. I only saw two other acts who got asked to come back. More on them later.
Unkle Ho: We came into the Bunker, saw a guy starting up his laptop and walked out.
The Dawn Collective: First song – this is ok. Second song – eh, alright. Third – I’m bored. Out of here. There’s a guy playing an electric cello in the band, if that says anything.
Dave Graney: Walked passed his stage. He was telling a joke. Or maybe he was singing.
Arabesk: The ONLY act all weekend that started late. Then when they started, they got my attention for about 10 minutes. Half the stage was taken up by the drummer, and guitarist and whichever other musicians where there. The other half was left empty so that the fiddler could jump around and act like Danny Bhoy doing an impersonation of an Irishman.
Hawksley Workman: Played all 3 days. He’s actually not bad. Like Adam Duritz on weed. Halfway through the show the jumping kangaroos invade the crowd and he goes ‘Oh my god, it’s just like my dream!’ and someone shouts ‘Look, they’ve got testicles!’ and then Hawksley starts unbuttoning his shirt. I get up to leave not long after.
Something for Kate: Solid standard rock band performance. The kind of band that built Triple J’s rep back in the early 90s, when they grew on trees. I find their bass player sexy (NB. Their bass player is a woman).
Mia Dyson: The highlight of Friday for me. Started out a little slow built it up and by the middle of her show, she’d packed out the Grove. She’s like Australia’s answer to Melissa Etheridge but more bluesey and less angst. Very energetic performance.
The Darling Downs: I can’t remember them. That’s how good they were.
Silverchair: I’ve never been a fan but they were pretty good. And really packed out the Village Green like no other act on Friday. I left after hearing Open Fire, which is my favourite Silverchair song. I was satisfied.
Blue King Brown: They played some percussion thing, which was cool. Then the girl said ‘This is a song about freedom. So that we can one day have freedom in this country and not have to tolerate our evil government blah blah blah…’ Are you kidding me?! Do you know what country you live in?! Freedom?! From what?! Bad trains?! I left.
Martha Wainwright: ‘Be kind,’ she says. ‘It’s a folk festival after all.’ Er… no it’s not. Are you sure you know where you are? Granted she got a raw deal by getting a lot of feedback but continually going ‘Sorry I have to stop this song. Can we get more vocal? Can we get more guitar?’ got a bit annoying. When she played she was pretty good though.
From here, it’s all downhill…
Sigur Ros: Headlining? Are you kidding?! Over Silverchair? Really? Where are they from? Iceland? Melodramatic to the max. The guy plays his guitar with a bow and from the silhouette it looks like he’s murdering someone. Slowly. I know some people worship this band but I found them excruciating. I’d describe them as a castrati singing to chill out music. Or a whale trying to impersonate Chris Martin. Here’s a question: They’re from Iceland and they sound weird. Bjork is also from Iceland and she sounds weird. Would Icelandic people listen to Shannon Noll or Delta Goodrem and say ‘Man, what is this weird sh*t?’
Waiting for Guinness: Like Arabesk with singing. Bohemian. I think. I dunno. Didn’t stay long enough.
Stephen Cummings: Pretty good, but man he looks old.
Connie Chang’s Cabaret Roadshow: Three things you need to know about the Connie Chang Roadshow, should someone one day ask you to come see their show. One, Connie Chang sings cover numbers like ‘Fame’. Two, Connie Chang is not Chinese. Three, Connie Chang is a man. I’m not placing any judgements, but you just gotta know these things.
DJ Skoob: We thought he was a guy doing a sound check. For serious.
We went home. It was cold.
Saturday
Better start. No lines.
The Vasco Era: Another rock/blues outfit. Australia’s answer to the White Stripes. Absolutely awesome! The front has real star quality. Works the stage, excellent guitarist, great percussionist, great screamer. And he tends to stick his index finger up in a ‘wait a minute’ kind of sign as he sings. I hope to watch them again real soon. The surprise find of the weekend for me.
Joel Plaskett: Entertaining skinny geeky guy with a guitar of the Mraz mold. Also played all three days. He talked more than he sang, which was fine. Set was ruined because some hippie group about 20 metres away was paying their respects to the sun or a bunny or something. Really loud. The jumping kangaroos came again. Someone says ‘Hey look, they’ve got testicles!’
Eskimo Joe: I like them. Melodic, light, pleasant. I never realised how much like Matchbox 20 they are.
Liz Martin: Girl with guitar. I don’t recall too well.
The Audreys: I’m a fan. Not a big fan but a fan. Light whimsical country/folk. The lead singer, who I think is named Tasha (or I could just be making it up because it’s late), is quite sassy. I dig her.
APRA sessions: These were just Q&A sessions with songwriters about stuff. I just went because Lior was there.
Andy Clockwise: I skipped Juan de Marcos’ Afro Cuban Allstars because generally I’ve never understood the fascination with Latino music. Andy Clockwise turned out to be good value. He looked a bit like Dr Who or Where’s Wally, just scruffier. I wouldn’t pay much to see him but I was borderline impressed.
Femi Kuti: African guy with a sax. I wish I skipped this. Because…
Rodrigo y Gabriela: These guys were the most impressive act of the weekend. Hands down. I wouldn’t buy their CD (but would welcome a copy if someone downloads it…) Just a guy and a girl playing guitars. No singing. Absolutely awesome. He’s the picker. She’s the powerhouse. Combinations of strumming and slapping. Wow. They’re awesome. The Riverside filled up and people were standing on chairs and tables. It was like a secret gathering, everyone feeling lucky they’re not watching some African dude and his sax. These guys would have brought the house down if they had not been playing outdoors. For the record, two tables broke due to them. This was the second act that I saw that got asked for an encore. They obliged.
The Bird: I think we saw them. Can’t remember who or what they were though.
The Black Keys: The main blues/rock act of the weekend but in my opinion, they were outplayed by our own acts, The Fumes and The Vasco Era, or even Ash Grunwald if you want to include him. Not that the Black Keys were bad at all but our local boys are better.
Karaoke: We kept warm. That was good.
Paulmac: Here’s the thing with Paulmac, he’s a DJ so I excuse him for having a deck as an instrument, which I would normally scoff at. And he writes very middle of the road songs (with maybe the exception ‘Just the thing’). And I would never buy his albums, even if it was $5. But… both times I’ve seen him live have been VERY VERY entertaining. I have no idea why. Maybe it’s his energy. Or maybe it’s just cos he’s such a genuinely likeable guy. Whatever, it was a really cool set. ‘Just the thing’ and ‘Sweetness and light’ (I think that’s the name of it) really brought the Big Top down. He’s the final act that garnered an encore call, though due to curfew restrictions, he couldn’t oblige the crowd.
We went home. It was even colder than Friday. And smellier. It was very smelly.
Sunday
Entrance no dramas.
Claire Bowditch and the Feeding Set: What’s the difference between her and Sarah Blasko and Missy Higgins and all those other girls with guitars singing twee ‘singer-songwriter’ songs? Beats the hell out of me. I was very underwhelmed. Not bad. But what’s with the hype? She’s likeable enough I suppose.
Perry Keyes: Another surprise packet. A very likeable folk and old time rock and roll act. I stayed watching him much longer than expected.
Lior: The first big act of the day. Look, I am obviously a fan. Seen him perform five times and counting… but I can’t help but think that he’s lost something. He’s become a star. Not that he’s become an arsehole but I think his act is too polished now. Too much playing it up to screaming girls (like what I said about John Mayer). And fist pumps after songs. His performances used to have a wide eyed ‘man, I can’t believe I’m performing to this many people’ kind of feel about them. I’m sticking with him though. I like the direction he’s going musically… yep… you guessed it, more blues.
Paul Greene: I think we walked pass him.
Ash Grunwald: Yet another surprise. I always thought ‘surfie, guitar, probably reggae’. Nope I was wrong. He’s another hard blues man. (This festival was really a blues and roots festival with other stuff tacked on. Martha was right after all.) Very likeable down-to-earth guy, lots of energy, amazing guitar skills. All his songs kinda sound the same but still very good.
Now comes the dilemma. Xavier Rudd, Josh Pyke and Butterfly 9 overlapping times heavily. I decide to give each act half an hour.
Xavier Rudd: I wish I could have stayed longer. He was really cool. Sitting on the big stage all by himself on a podium with drums, little chimes and other percussions, three didgeridoos and guitars and with a harmonica around his neck. This set had this vibe to that. Made people in the crowd look genuinely happy. I mean, there was a little too much hippie-ness in him for my liking but I left wishing I could stay for longer. ‘Let me be’ was breathtaking.
Josh Pyke: Hmmm… I love ‘Middle of the hill’ but I dunno about the rest of his songs. Not bad, but again, guys like him with guitars singing mid-tempo songs practically grow on trees. He’s like a Claire Bowditch except I like him a bit better because I have a gender bias.
Butterfly 9: They’re a little soppy and daggy and there were maybe only twenty other people watching them with us but I love them. These guys need more confidence because their music is beautiful. I’ve seen them three times now and they remain one of my favourite Aussie acts. Here’s hoping they get noticed…
Bernard Fanning: I love this album, and although his performance wasn’t bad, it was really no-frills and workman-like. I remember seeing him in an early Powderfinger show and he had this charm about him. Now he just seems to play his stuff and then leave. Nothing more to it. Maybe he was annoyed that Donovan Frankfurter or whatever his name is got top billing ahead of him. But this was pretty much just like listening to his CD but really loud.
The Mountain Goats: The guy has the same singing style as Cosmo Whatshisname from Weezer, except the Goats do more folky tunes and less rock. We left early but only after they fortuitously played my three favourite songs of theirs first: ‘This year’, ‘Dance music’ and ‘Love love love’. They’re OK. I don’t love them.
Bob Evans (real name, Kevin Mitchell from Jebediah): I absolutely loved this album when it came out a few years ago. And for some reason, nobody noticed it. They’re great country/folk-tinged pop songs. I was reminded of how much I liked these songs and surprised by how well I remember how to sing along to them. In fact, I sang along more to Bob Evans than any to other act on the weekend.
Decoder Ring: An Apple I-book is NOT a musical instrument. Do I need to repeat myself?
We went home. It was cold again.
My personal highlights
Best act of the weekend: Rodrigo y Gabriela
Best new band discovery: The Vasco Era
Best female act: Mia Dyson
Best male act: Xavier Rudd or Bob Evans
Best party: Paulmac
Best realisation: That there are many random people that I wish I could hit with a rubber-coated mallet. Pity I’m a pacifist, an abider of the law, and just plain non-psychotic, really.
Best sideshow: the be-testicled jumping kangaroos (not just because I know one of them personally through work)
Worst act: Maybe Unkle Ho… all 30 seconds of what we heard.
Worst big act: Sigur Ros… sorry, these guys are a joke.
Most annoying: Either smokers who blow smoke in my direction or random moments of hippie-ness, like random dancing and sun worshipping and whatnot.
Second most annoying: That we have to wear those stupid entry armbands for all three days. Yes they survived multiple showerings, but still…
Biggest stinker: The fact that every night was headlined by an international act, while there were better, and more locally famous, Aussie acts playing before them. Sigur Ros over Silverchair, The Black keys over… actually, there wasn’t anything else that major on that night (Paulmac could fit the bill as a headliner but his set was much more suited to the Big Top anyway rather than the main stage.) and Donovan Frankenstein over Bernard Fanning. I know that this is probably the only way they can get the international acts to come. But it still stinks.
Best food: A toss up between the Hare Krishna food and the woodfire nachos.
Most amusing thing to be followed by moments of disgust and concern: Blowing my nose every night to find that my snot was black.
Tonight I’ve decided to blog. Maybe only because for once I have something worth writing about. I went to the Great Escape Festival on the long weekend and it was mostly a positive experience. I haven’t really been to a big festival before. The only one before this was The Feelgood Festival on New Years Day. That was much smaller. Here are some of my thoughts on the weekend. There’s a lot to go through so just feel free to skim through to parts you might wanna read about.
Friday
Mostly crap, really. Started out poorly too. Our prepaid Moshtix tickets allowed us to line up in the exclusive Moshtix line, which was actually much longer and slower than the line to buy tickets on the spot. The wait was about 40 minutes or so. Oh yeah, we also saw our friend Shuai in the line, laughed in his face for having pre-bought tickets, went to the Ticketek line, got rejected, then had to join the back of the line that he was in. Great start. Here’s the rest of the day.
The Fumes: we heard two songs. I loved it. Hard blues/rock. Awesome vocalist/guitarist and energetic drummer. Actually got a called for an encore. I only saw two other acts who got asked to come back. More on them later.
Unkle Ho: We came into the Bunker, saw a guy starting up his laptop and walked out.
The Dawn Collective: First song – this is ok. Second song – eh, alright. Third – I’m bored. Out of here. There’s a guy playing an electric cello in the band, if that says anything.
Dave Graney: Walked passed his stage. He was telling a joke. Or maybe he was singing.
Arabesk: The ONLY act all weekend that started late. Then when they started, they got my attention for about 10 minutes. Half the stage was taken up by the drummer, and guitarist and whichever other musicians where there. The other half was left empty so that the fiddler could jump around and act like Danny Bhoy doing an impersonation of an Irishman.
Hawksley Workman: Played all 3 days. He’s actually not bad. Like Adam Duritz on weed. Halfway through the show the jumping kangaroos invade the crowd and he goes ‘Oh my god, it’s just like my dream!’ and someone shouts ‘Look, they’ve got testicles!’ and then Hawksley starts unbuttoning his shirt. I get up to leave not long after.
Something for Kate: Solid standard rock band performance. The kind of band that built Triple J’s rep back in the early 90s, when they grew on trees. I find their bass player sexy (NB. Their bass player is a woman).
Mia Dyson: The highlight of Friday for me. Started out a little slow built it up and by the middle of her show, she’d packed out the Grove. She’s like Australia’s answer to Melissa Etheridge but more bluesey and less angst. Very energetic performance.
The Darling Downs: I can’t remember them. That’s how good they were.
Silverchair: I’ve never been a fan but they were pretty good. And really packed out the Village Green like no other act on Friday. I left after hearing Open Fire, which is my favourite Silverchair song. I was satisfied.
Blue King Brown: They played some percussion thing, which was cool. Then the girl said ‘This is a song about freedom. So that we can one day have freedom in this country and not have to tolerate our evil government blah blah blah…’ Are you kidding me?! Do you know what country you live in?! Freedom?! From what?! Bad trains?! I left.
Martha Wainwright: ‘Be kind,’ she says. ‘It’s a folk festival after all.’ Er… no it’s not. Are you sure you know where you are? Granted she got a raw deal by getting a lot of feedback but continually going ‘Sorry I have to stop this song. Can we get more vocal? Can we get more guitar?’ got a bit annoying. When she played she was pretty good though.
From here, it’s all downhill…
Sigur Ros: Headlining? Are you kidding?! Over Silverchair? Really? Where are they from? Iceland? Melodramatic to the max. The guy plays his guitar with a bow and from the silhouette it looks like he’s murdering someone. Slowly. I know some people worship this band but I found them excruciating. I’d describe them as a castrati singing to chill out music. Or a whale trying to impersonate Chris Martin. Here’s a question: They’re from Iceland and they sound weird. Bjork is also from Iceland and she sounds weird. Would Icelandic people listen to Shannon Noll or Delta Goodrem and say ‘Man, what is this weird sh*t?’
Waiting for Guinness: Like Arabesk with singing. Bohemian. I think. I dunno. Didn’t stay long enough.
Stephen Cummings: Pretty good, but man he looks old.
Connie Chang’s Cabaret Roadshow: Three things you need to know about the Connie Chang Roadshow, should someone one day ask you to come see their show. One, Connie Chang sings cover numbers like ‘Fame’. Two, Connie Chang is not Chinese. Three, Connie Chang is a man. I’m not placing any judgements, but you just gotta know these things.
DJ Skoob: We thought he was a guy doing a sound check. For serious.
We went home. It was cold.
Saturday
Better start. No lines.
The Vasco Era: Another rock/blues outfit. Australia’s answer to the White Stripes. Absolutely awesome! The front has real star quality. Works the stage, excellent guitarist, great percussionist, great screamer. And he tends to stick his index finger up in a ‘wait a minute’ kind of sign as he sings. I hope to watch them again real soon. The surprise find of the weekend for me.
Joel Plaskett: Entertaining skinny geeky guy with a guitar of the Mraz mold. Also played all three days. He talked more than he sang, which was fine. Set was ruined because some hippie group about 20 metres away was paying their respects to the sun or a bunny or something. Really loud. The jumping kangaroos came again. Someone says ‘Hey look, they’ve got testicles!’
Eskimo Joe: I like them. Melodic, light, pleasant. I never realised how much like Matchbox 20 they are.
Liz Martin: Girl with guitar. I don’t recall too well.
The Audreys: I’m a fan. Not a big fan but a fan. Light whimsical country/folk. The lead singer, who I think is named Tasha (or I could just be making it up because it’s late), is quite sassy. I dig her.
APRA sessions: These were just Q&A sessions with songwriters about stuff. I just went because Lior was there.
Andy Clockwise: I skipped Juan de Marcos’ Afro Cuban Allstars because generally I’ve never understood the fascination with Latino music. Andy Clockwise turned out to be good value. He looked a bit like Dr Who or Where’s Wally, just scruffier. I wouldn’t pay much to see him but I was borderline impressed.
Femi Kuti: African guy with a sax. I wish I skipped this. Because…
Rodrigo y Gabriela: These guys were the most impressive act of the weekend. Hands down. I wouldn’t buy their CD (but would welcome a copy if someone downloads it…) Just a guy and a girl playing guitars. No singing. Absolutely awesome. He’s the picker. She’s the powerhouse. Combinations of strumming and slapping. Wow. They’re awesome. The Riverside filled up and people were standing on chairs and tables. It was like a secret gathering, everyone feeling lucky they’re not watching some African dude and his sax. These guys would have brought the house down if they had not been playing outdoors. For the record, two tables broke due to them. This was the second act that I saw that got asked for an encore. They obliged.
The Bird: I think we saw them. Can’t remember who or what they were though.
The Black Keys: The main blues/rock act of the weekend but in my opinion, they were outplayed by our own acts, The Fumes and The Vasco Era, or even Ash Grunwald if you want to include him. Not that the Black Keys were bad at all but our local boys are better.
Karaoke: We kept warm. That was good.
Paulmac: Here’s the thing with Paulmac, he’s a DJ so I excuse him for having a deck as an instrument, which I would normally scoff at. And he writes very middle of the road songs (with maybe the exception ‘Just the thing’). And I would never buy his albums, even if it was $5. But… both times I’ve seen him live have been VERY VERY entertaining. I have no idea why. Maybe it’s his energy. Or maybe it’s just cos he’s such a genuinely likeable guy. Whatever, it was a really cool set. ‘Just the thing’ and ‘Sweetness and light’ (I think that’s the name of it) really brought the Big Top down. He’s the final act that garnered an encore call, though due to curfew restrictions, he couldn’t oblige the crowd.
We went home. It was even colder than Friday. And smellier. It was very smelly.
Sunday
Entrance no dramas.
Claire Bowditch and the Feeding Set: What’s the difference between her and Sarah Blasko and Missy Higgins and all those other girls with guitars singing twee ‘singer-songwriter’ songs? Beats the hell out of me. I was very underwhelmed. Not bad. But what’s with the hype? She’s likeable enough I suppose.
Perry Keyes: Another surprise packet. A very likeable folk and old time rock and roll act. I stayed watching him much longer than expected.
Lior: The first big act of the day. Look, I am obviously a fan. Seen him perform five times and counting… but I can’t help but think that he’s lost something. He’s become a star. Not that he’s become an arsehole but I think his act is too polished now. Too much playing it up to screaming girls (like what I said about John Mayer). And fist pumps after songs. His performances used to have a wide eyed ‘man, I can’t believe I’m performing to this many people’ kind of feel about them. I’m sticking with him though. I like the direction he’s going musically… yep… you guessed it, more blues.
Paul Greene: I think we walked pass him.
Ash Grunwald: Yet another surprise. I always thought ‘surfie, guitar, probably reggae’. Nope I was wrong. He’s another hard blues man. (This festival was really a blues and roots festival with other stuff tacked on. Martha was right after all.) Very likeable down-to-earth guy, lots of energy, amazing guitar skills. All his songs kinda sound the same but still very good.
Now comes the dilemma. Xavier Rudd, Josh Pyke and Butterfly 9 overlapping times heavily. I decide to give each act half an hour.
Xavier Rudd: I wish I could have stayed longer. He was really cool. Sitting on the big stage all by himself on a podium with drums, little chimes and other percussions, three didgeridoos and guitars and with a harmonica around his neck. This set had this vibe to that. Made people in the crowd look genuinely happy. I mean, there was a little too much hippie-ness in him for my liking but I left wishing I could stay for longer. ‘Let me be’ was breathtaking.
Josh Pyke: Hmmm… I love ‘Middle of the hill’ but I dunno about the rest of his songs. Not bad, but again, guys like him with guitars singing mid-tempo songs practically grow on trees. He’s like a Claire Bowditch except I like him a bit better because I have a gender bias.
Butterfly 9: They’re a little soppy and daggy and there were maybe only twenty other people watching them with us but I love them. These guys need more confidence because their music is beautiful. I’ve seen them three times now and they remain one of my favourite Aussie acts. Here’s hoping they get noticed…
Bernard Fanning: I love this album, and although his performance wasn’t bad, it was really no-frills and workman-like. I remember seeing him in an early Powderfinger show and he had this charm about him. Now he just seems to play his stuff and then leave. Nothing more to it. Maybe he was annoyed that Donovan Frankfurter or whatever his name is got top billing ahead of him. But this was pretty much just like listening to his CD but really loud.
The Mountain Goats: The guy has the same singing style as Cosmo Whatshisname from Weezer, except the Goats do more folky tunes and less rock. We left early but only after they fortuitously played my three favourite songs of theirs first: ‘This year’, ‘Dance music’ and ‘Love love love’. They’re OK. I don’t love them.
Bob Evans (real name, Kevin Mitchell from Jebediah): I absolutely loved this album when it came out a few years ago. And for some reason, nobody noticed it. They’re great country/folk-tinged pop songs. I was reminded of how much I liked these songs and surprised by how well I remember how to sing along to them. In fact, I sang along more to Bob Evans than any to other act on the weekend.
Decoder Ring: An Apple I-book is NOT a musical instrument. Do I need to repeat myself?
We went home. It was cold again.
My personal highlights
Best act of the weekend: Rodrigo y Gabriela
Best new band discovery: The Vasco Era
Best female act: Mia Dyson
Best male act: Xavier Rudd or Bob Evans
Best party: Paulmac
Best realisation: That there are many random people that I wish I could hit with a rubber-coated mallet. Pity I’m a pacifist, an abider of the law, and just plain non-psychotic, really.
Best sideshow: the be-testicled jumping kangaroos (not just because I know one of them personally through work)
Worst act: Maybe Unkle Ho… all 30 seconds of what we heard.
Worst big act: Sigur Ros… sorry, these guys are a joke.
Most annoying: Either smokers who blow smoke in my direction or random moments of hippie-ness, like random dancing and sun worshipping and whatnot.
Second most annoying: That we have to wear those stupid entry armbands for all three days. Yes they survived multiple showerings, but still…
Biggest stinker: The fact that every night was headlined by an international act, while there were better, and more locally famous, Aussie acts playing before them. Sigur Ros over Silverchair, The Black keys over… actually, there wasn’t anything else that major on that night (Paulmac could fit the bill as a headliner but his set was much more suited to the Big Top anyway rather than the main stage.) and Donovan Frankenstein over Bernard Fanning. I know that this is probably the only way they can get the international acts to come. But it still stinks.
Best food: A toss up between the Hare Krishna food and the woodfire nachos.
Most amusing thing to be followed by moments of disgust and concern: Blowing my nose every night to find that my snot was black.
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