I’ll explain why this is so, but let me say now that there will be a monthly round-up type post from now on, on the last Sunday of every month. I’ll probably use the same headings as the Sunday Round-Up (SRU), but am considering making some amendments. I will take suggestions for it also.
Right, well last week I mentioned that I might be giving up the Sunday post, and asked for any opinions on this. Perhaps if readers had come out in their droves to beg me not to stop, it would have encouraged me, but alas, they did not. Two people responded, so Helena and Ciara, thank you lovelies
Anyhow, it’s becoming a real chore doing that post every week, and it can be difficult at times, as quite simply, sometimes I have a boring week. I’ve found myself forcing material lately.
When the Sunday post started, the “Anecdotes” and “Abstract distraction” items were events that I probably would have blogged about independently were it not for the Sunday post. But lately I found myself racking my brain for material for the SRU.
I can’t exactly talk about the savage nap I had on Thursday, but often that’s the only thing that comes to mind.
Also, when something good did happen to me, I’d want to blog about it, but would have to save it instead for the SRU. This diluted the quality of the blog, and that’s not something I liked. I like having single posts to look back on and be proud of, and the Sunday posts don’t really allow this. The SRU posts are generally just grouped under that one category. I can think of many posts that I’m proud of and like, but I couldn’t pick out a SRU that was particularly strong or whatever.
In recent weeks I could basically only manage the Sunday Round-Up, and then maybe some fairly crappy post midweek. This week I didn’t even get to do a midweek post. While I have much less hours in college than I did in school, my life is a lot more hectic and unpredictable than before.
I wake up on a Sunday and think, “OK, breakfast, then to do my homework and study” or whatever the task for the day is. Then it dawns on me - the blog post. And that’s nearly two hours gone. With a monthly post I can have more time to think about the post, work on it, and be happy with it.
With normal posts, if I’m not happy I won’t publish it. With the Sunday post there isn’t time for that usually, as I tend to only get to start it on the Sunday morning itself. Publishing something I’m not happy with is something I hate doing.
I’ll probably blog most Sundays anyway, as it’s a handy day for blogging, but I won’t be struggling to fill headings and categories and racking my brain.
I’m pleased that I at least got 17 Sunday Round-Ups done. That’s four months or so. Not bad going at all. Have a look at the competitions effort, a measly three posts they managed. For shame, Aaron
A bit of culture was injected into my life this week. Well, sorta.
Readers may remember me mentioning a French friend of mine that did helped me with my French homework the other week. This lady had a party at the weekend, and only four people there weren’t French.
I loved this. There really was quite a different atmosphere than you get at regular parties here. There was nobody getting sick on themselves in the corner, nobody robbing possessions or throwing things, it was all very civilised. There was crêpes and fajitas, along with regular party sweets etc.
I was pleased to see one of the French guys drinking Guinness. People tend to make fun of me for drinking Guinness, an “old man’s drink”, but clearly it’s just the drink of sophisticated gentlemen.
I even got to impress by throwing out the few French phrases I know :
Il y a beaucoup de circulation, surtout aux heures de point - There is a lot of traffic, especially during rush hours.
Le SIDA est trés mal - AIDS is very bad.
Tu n’est pad un putain - You are not a whore
Pamplemousse - Grapefruit
Pantalon - Trousers
I’m practically fluent.
Something that made me laugh this week :
Jokes with serious punchlines. Pretty self explanatory, here’s some of my favourites :
Man: Doctor, I’ve broken my leg.
Doctor: I’m afraid it is a very bad break. You will never walk again.
There’s an Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman. They are all trapped in a jail cell.
Eventually they all starved to death.
A man walks into a pub.
He is an alcoholic whose drink problem is destroying his family.
Did you hear about the blonde who jumped out off a bridge?
She was clinically depressed and took her own life because of her terribly low self-esteem.
Why do undertakers wear ties?
Because their profession is very serious, and it is important that their appearance has a degree of gravitas.
Two men are sitting in a pub.
One man turns to the other and says: “Last night I saw lots of strange men coming in and out of your wife’s house.”
The other man replies: “Yes, she has become a prostitute to subsidise her drug habit.”
Man: What a beautiful dog. Does he bite?
Dog-owner: No.
Man: Can I pet him?
Dog-owner: No, he has a form of eczema that makes him skin weep if touched.
How can you tell when an Essex girl wants sex?
She displays signs of arousal, such as enlargement of the clitoris and swelling of the labia.
A priest and a rabbi are sitting next to each other on a plane.
However, it is a short flight and they do not talk to each other.
Why are there no painkillers in the jungle?
Because it would not be financially viable to attempt to sell pharmaceuticals in the largely unpopulated rainforest.
What do you get when you cross a kangaroo and a sheep?
This experiment has never yet been undertaken successfully.
A horse walks into a bar, the barman says ‘why the long face?’
The horse replies…
*Sigh* ‘The axel broke on the carriage which meant a two hour delay to get to farmer Giles’s house and then it rained all the way home and the corn was ruined. Honestly, it’s one thing after another…’
An Englishman, Irishman and Scotsman walked into a bar.
The barman said “is this some kind of joke?”
The Irishman replied, “Aah, I see that you are racially stereotyping us, and you assume that my English friend is going to start some hilarious jape which I will later turn out to be the butt of. Sorry to disappoint you old chap but we are merely friends from different parts of the British Isles who meet up once a month and go out for a couple of drinks and some lunch.”
What do you call a man with a spade in his head?
You call him an ambulance. He may have fractured his skull.
What’s the difference between a rottwieller and a poodle?
There are many differences. They are two totally different breeds of dog.
Curses on :
Things changing since my day.
I got out of school in time.
The other day when coming home on the bus, we went by a local school yard. A class was doing P.E.
What they doing? Only riding feckin’ bikes.
This was always a fear of mine in school because (get ready for the bombshell)…
I never learned to ride a bike without stabilisers. As a kid I always went on my bike. Then when I got to the age where you usually take the stabilisers off, I just, well, stopped going on my bike. Lost interest.
I remember once going on a school tour to some adventure place, where you do loads of activities. I was desperately trying to find out if there was a bike part, while trying not to seem worried.
So now it’s out there in the world. I can’t ride a bike.
I also a pretty poor swimmer, but I can hold my own. May as well get all my shame into the blogosphere.
I’m pleased with :
My presentation went quite well last week.
It wasn’t strictly a presentation, but when I got in I was paired with some other lad to present the main ideas of the assigned essays to the group. A bit of waffle and charm and everything was grand.
Sadly I’ve another one tomorrow (hoping I won’t be asked again, but I probably will) and I haven’t started doing the reading yet.
Some of you will recognise David as Mark Corrigan from Peep Show. I love this guy.
Not only is he hilarious as an actor in Peep Show, he’s a very funny and intelligent (apparently he has a degree at Oxford) man, always sharp-witted and a very good writer.
This is his article about the whole Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross saga - a very entertaining read.
And check out his rant on a quiz show in the video below.
Ya gotta love him.
David <3
Product/Service I like this week :
This week is going to be a little different - A product/service I don’t like this week.
ESB. Ireland’s electricical supply board. A fucking power cut last night. On a Saturday night!
Such a bad time for the power to go. If you’re having a party or something, you’re fucked. If you’re staying in to watch TV or a movie, you’re fucked. If you’re staying in to study for a fucking presentation the next morning, you’re fucked. I had no choice but to just go to bed.
I woke up this morning with my bedroom light on. For about three seconds I was terribly bemused.
Fuck you, ESB.
A quote :
“What is a cynic? A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.”
-Oscar Wilde.
Oh Oscar, what’d we do without you?
Favourite song this week :
Medals - by Halves
Halves are a Dublin post-rock band.
Similar to the likes or Sigur Ros and Mogwai, I was surprised at just how good they were, considering how little I’ve heard of them.
Good on ye’ lads.
Enjoy.
Now, to read things for college.
I must admit this Sunday post is becoming a bit of a drag to do, I’m considering making it a monthly thing. Any opinions on that would be appreciated.
I went to lunch in Captain America’s with a friend last week. Being the hungry bastard that I am, I order the New Yorker burger. This is a savage of a burger. With a fried egg in it too. Really filling.
The food arrives fairly quickly. Good old Captain America’s, good food, but also fast food.
My burger looks delicious, One of those burgers that you really have to stretch your mouth to bite into. I happily did this.
I took my first bite and felt an explosion in my nose. What the fuck? Have I just burst a blood vessel or something?
No. The reality was much, much worse.
I soon discovered that when I took the first bite, I grazed the middle, yolky bit of the egg. This then swelled and exploded - directly up my right nostril. You couldn’t write this shit.
I grabbed the napkin and desperately tried to clean the ridiculous mess up. I’m thinking “Do I tell my mate what’d just happened or try to hide it from him?” I had to tell him, there was no point trying to hide such a hilarious (yet terribly embarrassing and disgusting) incident.
“The egg just exploded into my nose”
“Wha’?”
He looks up and sees me with my napkin and comprehends. He erupts into laughter.
After about a minute of desperate wiping and cleaning,
“Do I look alright?”
“Yeah you’re grand”
“Sure?”
“Yep”.
I finished my meal, but I could not longer enjoy it. Eating in fear of a chip exploding grease into my eye or a rogue ketchup bottle squirting into my ear.
I wonder if anyone saw that happen. I know that feckin’ girl in the booth over there. She’s in my maths lecture. Fuck’s sake.
I kept wondering how on earth it actually happened. If you saw that in a TV show or something, you’d probably think it was a bit unrealistic.
I still had to go to the bathroom afterwards to ensure there was no encrusted egg yolk on my face or up my nose.
In situations like this you’re never sure to trust friends or not. They might tell you you look grand when you actually don’t, for two reasons :
1) To save you worrying and being all annoying over nothing.
2) To laugh at you walking around with stuff on your face like a clown.
So there you go.
I am a buffon and should only ever be allowed eat through a straw.
Friend of mine had a spare ticket to Built To Spill, and asked me if I wanted to go. I’ve given them the song of the week on here a while back, and while I haven’t listened to them all that much, I did really like the stuff I had of theirs. So I went.
You can read a full report on this post here, which goes into better detail about the whole thing.
The support act were incredible, and there was a brilliant moment when the lead singer from Built To Spill got up dancing in the centre of the room during the support act’s show. Doing really cheesy and funny dance moves, and then everyone joined in. It was like a movie or something - brilliant!
Got an aul’ signature too, which is becoming quite a common occurence for me these days.
Something that made me laugh this week :
I saw this video a while back, but stumbled across it again this week. I couldn’t believe how funny it was. It’s an old clip of Russell Brand doing a sketch as this complete weirdo.
I showed this to some friends that aren’t big fans of Ol’ Russ and even they found it hilarious.
I love how in-character he is in it, using perfect phrases and language to suit the guy he’s playing. For example, something going wrong - “Oh jeepers creepers”, and when asking someone for a loan of their jeans - “Borrow us your jeans!”. There’s much more but I’d rather not spoil it.
The clip is shown during an interview with Russell and Matt, and starts at around 6.10 minutes.
Oh I need this dun’ I? I really chuffin’ need this! CHUFF IT!
Curses on :
I have lots of college work due.
Basically, four weeks ago we had a seminar where we were given assignments. Four weeks (one of which was a “reading week”) later, and I’m only starting. Worst of all, I might have to make a presentation to the rest of the group with my partner. Thing is, my partner texted me last week to let me know he’s changed courses. So I’ll be all on my lonesome.
What the fuck am I doing typing this up? I have shit to do.
I’m pleased with :
The new Football Manager is out. I’m considering bringing my laptop into lectures and playing this game the whole time. It’s perfect to play on the sly.
Also, had a good night of gambling on Thursday. Before going out on a class night out thing, I logged onto Paddy Power to check out what matches were on that night.
Juventus were playing, so I stuck a fiver on them.
I then stuck some money on a treble, Tranmere, Galatasaray and CFR Cluj all to win. Not the usual sort of teams I bet on. They all won. And we watched the last team win just before leaving to go out, so I was in an instantly good mood.
A pointless anecdote from this week :
There I was, waiting for the bus. I then see a group of four middle aged women walking out of a park, in in their walking gear. They had those little pedometer (I can’t help but read that as pedo-meter) things on their hips.
I thought to myself, “Awh, look at those little old dears, still caring about their appearance, probably because nobody else does, but still, fair play to them. Keeping fit and all that.”
When they left the park they walked into McDonald’s.
Reminded me of that picture I saw online once, of a newspaper clipping. It showed a pregnant women who was apparently concerned and kicking up a fuss about some environmental thing affecting her unborn child. She was smoking a cigarette in the photograph.
Great guy/gal of this week :
Any employee of XMusic.
This is Ireland’s largest music instrument store. Me and a friend went out there on Tuesday to check it out. It’s feckin’ huge.
We were used to the little music shops in town where it’s all cramped and you have to ask permission to try out an instrument and they come over and set it all up. And they’re usually dickheads about it all.
We went into XMusic and were amazed. It reminded me of when you’re a child and you get brought into Smyths or Toymaster or something and the mere sight of so many toys in one place gets you all excited.
After browsing for a while I decided on the bass guitars I wanted to try out. We went up and asked if we could try them out. Waiting for a response like “Yeah just give me a minute and I’ll be with you”.
But no. They replied, in an utterly casual tone “Yeah sure, try out whatever you want”. My friend asked if it was alright if he tried out a certain amp. “Whatever you want on whatever you want”.
Again, the child in a toy store comes to mind. It was like telling a child he could go play with any toy he wanted. Or telling him he was going to the Late Late Toy Show and getting one of everything.
I had to reach up and precariously take down a bass worth €1800.
Their website is still under construction but you can check out the temporary version here.
I’ll be heading out there again soon for sure.
XMusic staff <3
Product/Service I like this week :
Tiger beer. I tried this for the first time this week.
We were in a Japanese restaurant. I had a tutorial to go to soon, so instead of buying food, I bought a beer. It was pretty expensive, especially for someone who’s used to the whole 6 cans for €7 lark. But it was worth it. Lovely taste. In some ways it was almost too nice, like I wasn’t drinking beer at all.
A quote :
“No use to shout at them to pay attention. If the situations, the materials, the problems before the child do not interest him, his attention will slip off to what does interest him, and no amount of exhortation of threats will bring it back.“
-John Holt.
I drift off a lot in lectures.
Favourite song this week :
Sleep - by Godspeed You! Black Emporer
This isn’t really one of GYBE’s most famous songs, but it’s always stood out to me. I think it’s the speech at the start that grabs me. This band often has speeches like that in their songs.
The full song is over 23 minutes long, but this youtube video will only give you the first ten minutes, which will be long enough for you to find out if this band is the sort of thing you enjoy. They’re post-rock, similar to the likes of Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky, both of whom have been on here before.
Enjoy.
Now I gotta go read all about the historical context of organisation and management. That’ll be a right fucking laugh won’t it?
I forgot about this incident from a few weeks ago.
Me and a friend were heading into town - some new club. Friends were waiting for us in the place already.
Got off the bus, and were both in need of a bathroom having had some pre-club brewskis. We see a bar just down the road. That’ll do, says I. Then we’ll head to the club. Sorted.
We walk in. It’s fairly packed. They had live music too.
We get into the bathroom and the following conversation ensues.
“Did you see that performer?”
“Yep. Some chap in drag.”
“Yeah. Weird.”
“Man, did you notice how few women were out there?”
“Yeah, and how many of the lads were drinking feckin’ cocktails?”
“You know what this means, don’t you?”
Then some guy walks into the bathroom. My mate, having had a couple of beers, turns to him and says, without any shame or hesitation whatsoever, “Is this a gay bar?”
“Yep, you didn’t know that no?”
Both of us : “Nope.”
“So you’re not staying then?”
“Probably not, no.”
We then had to do the exiting walk of shame. Walking in somewhere just to use the bathroom is shameful enough in my eyes, but this extra element of embarrassment was a lovely gloss to the whole situation.
We made our blushing exit, keeping our eyes firmly on the door.
Neither of us are at all homophobic, but we’re young lads, so walking into a gay bar by accident was a little unnerving for some reason.
Online gambling. Seriously, I’ve become a degenerate gambler.
The other week I set up an account with Paddy Power to place a bet for my friend. Ah sure, I’ll have a punt myself. Why not?
I now find myself checking whatever matches are on, every day. Several times a day infact.
But I’m doing pretty well, being careful and calculating with my bets, not being too risky. Accumulators are the most fun. When you bet on the outcome of a few different matches and could win big money. Usually putting a euro or two on a decent accumulator could return €xxx.
Yesterday I had nine matches in my accumulator, six of which won, and the other three drew. I was three goals away from winning €90 off my €1 bet. This is why it’s so addictive. When you get so close to winning, you just HAVE to try again.
And again.
“Sure I’ll win the money back, not a bother.”
Overall though I’m in profit, and the largest single bet I’ve placed is at just ten euro, which is on Chelsea to win today, away at Blackburn. They won 5-0 last weekend, haven’t conceded a goal away from home since the first match of the season or something, and are playing the team with the worst defensive record in the league. I’ll get €15 back if they win. I was surprised at those odds actually, thought they’d be much shitter. I hope to fuck they don’t let me down now I’ve made this bet public.
Surprise bets are damn fun. Like yesterday I was browsing the live betting section, and saw Venus Williams was due to play a tennis match in a few minutes. One option is to bet on whether or not she’ll win her first service game. I’m no tennis expert, but I know those Williams sisters are pretty fucking muscular, thus their serve is strong. And nobody ever breaks serve in the opening game. So I stuck a few quid on and won.
So if anyone wants me to stick a few quid on something for them, give me a shout. I get a percentage of your winnings, obviously.
Something that made me laugh this week :
You all know Rick-Rolling? Tricking someone into clicking a link for this Rick Astley video. One of those internet phenomenons. It seems pretty stupid, but for some reason I find it hilarious when someone does a good Rick Roll’ing. The song is just so perfect for an internet meme. And the way he dances.
Anyway, this article gave me a good chuckle. Basically, MTV held a vote for “Best Act Ever” for their MTV Europe Music Awards. Now I’m going to quote the article for the rest of the story :
The music channel decided to invite nominations for the best-ever act in September, but did not suggest that Astley, 42, be included in the category. However, as soon as his fans realised that they could nominate the artist, they voted in droves, ensuring that he got on to the shortlist, alongside acts such as U2.
The awards, which feature ten categories voted for by viewers, garnered 79 million votes last year. This time Astley received more than 100 million, eclipsing the total votes received by every other winner combined.
“We’ve been well and truly Rickrolled,” said Richard Godfrey, a senior vice-president at MTV and executive producer of the awards. “We wanted to see who our audience would nominate and, given that we’re in Liverpool, we thought it would be someone like the Beatles. But before the nominations were even announced he shot into the lead.”
Initially worried by Astley’s inclusion, MTV set up a team to try to cut out block votes. It was to no avail.
A separate poll of MTV viewers on whether Astley’s nomination should stand also fell victim to Rickrolling, attracting 20 million votes - 99.98 per cent of which were in favour of the star’s presence. Mr Godfrey said: “People set up computer programs to bombard the website. They could be sitting in Croydon, but they made it look like they were voting from the Philippines. We put in all sorts of blocks because we wanted to be as fair as possible, but it made no difference.”
That’s 4chan for ya. Nice work lads. Rick Astley for president.
Curses on :
Today, for the first time in a good while, I feel hungover.
I didn’t even drink that much last night, but today I just can’t shrug the feeling of needing to puke. It’s truly awful. I can imagine me ruining the Sunday dinner by projectile vomiting all over the roast beef or something.
I’m pleased with :
My homeboy Barack Obama winning the election. Was there anyone in Europe that didn’t want Obama to win? My reason for liking him have nothing to do with politics though.
I mean seriously, how cool is this guy?
He’s young and charismatic, not to mention an absolute sexbomb.
Also, this guy can bust a move.
I’ve been known to start doing the Obama on nights out. It’s a real hit with the ladies you know.
A pointless anecdote from this week :
I was off all week. On Monday I was supposed to get my haircut and go dropping my CV into a few places.
I didn’t.
I was supposed to do my homework and do some reading for my course.
I didn’t.
I just got back from getting my haircut. The CVs can wait until next week, can’t they?
Great guy/gal of this week :
Matt Morgan. I’ve spoken about Russell Brand a lot on here, and neglected Matt, who is Russell’s co-writer for a lot of things, and co-host on Russell’s old radio show. The shows with Matt are far superior to the ones with a guest host or whatever. It’s my opinion too that the whole debacle with Andrew Sachs would never have happened if Matt was there (he was on holiday, hence why Jonathan Ross was co-hosting).
Lately I’ve been acquiring all the old podcasts of radio shows that I missed, and Matt is just brilliant. I recommend everyone to download this podcast just to hear Matt’s “Not too bad” story. It’s fairly early on in the show too so don’t worry about having to listen for an hour before hearing it. Makes me laugh every time.
Had to pick a DPT song after seeing them live on Monday. This song is one of those songs I put on when getting ready to go out. I love when Carl comes in with the chorus :
Just put your money in
Bruised and battered shins
You fucking love it
You fucking love it
Back on your feet again
Out on the beat again,
You fucking love it
Yeah yeah yeah
Rock on Carlos.
Enjoy.
There’s a better version here though actually, but it wouldn’t let me embed it, check it out.
I’m getting sick of blogging about concerts (four in the last month) so I’ll try to keep this short enough.
On Monday I went to see Dirty Pretty Things for the second time.
I was to meet with people I either knew from the last gig, or PeteDohertyForum. Having met the band last time, we were hoping to get lucky again and get more pictures or autographs. Time passed, the doors were due to open, and no luck.
So we were in watching the support band when the person beside me says “Is that Anthony?”. There he stood, the guitarist from DPT, so we went up for a chat, handshake, and autograph. He was very nice, and seemed really into the band that were playing. However, the fact that he was out there instead of in with his own band was a bit worrying. Rumour had it there were tensions in the band, and this wouldn’t be surprising, since this is their last tour before they split up.
The support acts were pretty good actually. But does anyone ever really care that much for the support?
DPT came on and were fucking great. The crowd were a bit subdued at the start, but soon enough it got going and it was actually pretty rough, which I think is a good thing (within reason obviously) and we were right at the barrier at the front.
The last song they played was actually by Carl’s (lead singer and guitarist) old band, The Libertines, called “I Get Along” which was amazing, everyone went pretty mental hearing that song.
My friend got the setlist, (and according to that they hadn’t planned on doing the Libertines song) and I got Carl’s (the lead singer) bottle of beer, of which he’d only drank a little bit, so free beer for me!
So we were waiting outside for some of our party to be collected, when out walks the drummer (Gary). He had been in The Libertines too, so it was great to meet him, get a photo and autograph. He was so nice. Whenever anyone apologised for keeping him he’d reassure that it wasn’t a problem, and even spoke for a while on the phone to friends of the people present. Couldn’t have been more pleasant.
That meant I had two out of the four members’ signatures on my ticket. The main man to get was Carl though, and it didn’t look like he’d be coming out anytime soon.
So we left, and I met with friends who had gone to the (inferior) MGMT concert.
After a while one of them got a phone call - the rest of DPT were leaving the venue. Let’s go.
Met with Carl, got a photo, and autograph (two actually, the pen wasted half way throught the first one - feck!) and had a chat. The best part was when some drunk idiot ( “Is the concert over?! Can I buy a ticket?!” - it’s fucking midnight and they’re going back into the tourbus) was trying to talk to Carl. Not only was he pissed, but he had a seriously weird voice/accent.
Carl turns to me and says “What the fuck’s he saying? I can’t make out a word” in his lovely British mumble.
Oh Carl, old buddy, old pal, forget him, just come back to my place, you can have my room, I’ll sleep on the couch.
Overall, the band were really nice. It was just Didz, the bassist, that I didn’t get to meet.
How many autographs and photos from bands is that lately? I’m doing well.
I’ve yet to see the pictures of me and Gary, but the one with Carl looks well, you can really see how much weight he’s lost since last time (he had to cut out drinking for a good while). I’m not really bothered putting the photo up here, since there’s already one of us in the other post, but if anyone wants to see then let me know I guess.
Sad to think they’re splitting up, but there even seemed to be tensions on stage, particularly with Carl and Anthony. Though that could easily have just been us reading into things too much.
Shellac - the band. Went to see this band on Tuesday in the Button Factory, formerly Temple Bar Music Centre. What kind of name is the Button Factory?
Shellac are one of the coolest bands going. There’s only three in the band, a drummer, bassist and singer/guitarist.
The singer/guitarist is a pretty big name in music - Steve Albini. He’s been a producer on many big albums, as well as being in three bands himself. Take a look at the list of albums he’s worked on.
The drummer was hanging out outside the venue, smoking, just like an ordinary person! The support act were one of the weirdest bands I’ve seen live, but I did quite enjoy them.
The gig itself was incredible. We were right at the front. Midway through the set they stop and ask the crowd if they have any questions for the band. Very down to earth. There was even a bit towards the end when the drummer was playing something and the bassist walked up to him and said “I don’t even know what you’re playing”. He stopped and asked the crowd if anyone knows how to play bass. The singer added “No timewasters please. Experience necessary. Must have van.” The drummer says “Style-conscious rockers only”.
The singer then said “You’ve just witnessed what we call an honest moment in the business.
When it ended, they told us they were going to be back in a few minutes, after they’d put the equipment away, to sell t-shirts and sign things or whatever. Then they told security to relax, that we’d be coming up there and there was no need to stop us. “We’re all friends here”. How cool is that?
So we got to chat to them, and get autographs. I had all three of them sign my ticket. My friend had nothing for them to sign so managed to get a bank receipt off a stranger to them to sign.
Very funny, down-to-earth guys, and it was a great gig.
Something that made me laugh this week :
It’s a classic, but it’s worth watching again. And if you haven’t seen it, where’ve you been?
This is the video of a talk show host that just can’t stop laughing at his guest. This one has the subtitles too.
Rumour has it that this is a fake, ie. it’s a sketch. Either way, it’s fucking funny.
Curses on :
The Daily Fucking Mail and the BBC.
Regular readers will know of my love for Russell Brand. Right so. Two weeks ago Jonathan Ross was co-hosting Russell’s radio show instead of the brilliant Matt Morgan, who’s on holiday. They were due to have a phone call with Andrew Sachs, the guy who played Manuel in Fawlty Towers.
The phone call went into voicemail, and Ross and Brand left a message in which Ross shouted “He fucked your granddaughter!”, causing much laughter in the studio, as Brand had indeed slept with his granddaughter, who’s a member of the group, “The Satanic Sluts”. A lovely innocent girl you see. The phone call was pretty hilarious, if a bit out of line.
The show had two complaints, which apparently were not even related to the whole Manuel incident. Then midway through the next week, the Daily Mail decide to go poking around. They print an article about it, taking the incident out of context, making it seem far worse than it was. Of course, the retarded readers of this rag go complaining to the BBC, despite most of them never even hearing it for themselves. Who complains about something they never even heard or saw themselves? Fucking idiots, that’s who.
I’d understand if this was some sort of moral crusade by the paper, but of course they couldn’t give a flying fuck about the “victims” - Andrew and his granddaughter. The whole thing had flown under the radar until reported by the papers. This then drew a lot embarrassing attention to Andrew, something he said he didn’t want. Brand and Ross had both apologised and he’d accepted this.
Could this tirade by the Daily Mail be motivated by the fact that Brand has (deservedly) taken the piss out of them on several occasions?
Now the BBC caved into the small amount of pressure (seriously, 10,000 complaints is what percent of total listeners? Negligible) and placed Brand and Ross under suspension. Brand resigns. He was probably glad of a reason to do this, with his acting career taking off and so many radio shows being done from LA or whatever. Or maybe he just didn’t want to continue doing a radio show knowing he’d now be under strict control and censorship. Either way, it’s taken away one of the highlights of my week. I was a loyal listener to that podcast, and looked forward to it every week.
If anyone’s worried about the poor little granddaughter (I don’t even know her name, she’s that useless), well fear not. She’s sold her sex story to The Sun, and perhaps her band, The Satanic Sluts, will now get a bigger name for themselves, and she can become a proper good celebrity and appear on a reality TV show. Selling her story? The actions of someone who’s ashamed and embarrassed? Perhaps she can be a page 3 girl too, to show how self-conscious she is?
I’d feel sorry for her if she was genuinely embarrassed by the whole thing, but she clearly isn’t. She’s loving the chance to gain a bit of undeserved media attention and make a bit of cheap cash.
So who’s won here?
The Daily Mail got a few copies sold and a bit of attention.
Andrew Sachs got a whole lot of unwanted attention and embarrasment, which wouldn’t have existed if the DM didn’t go fucking about.
Andrew Sachs’ granddaughter got herself a bit of cash we now know that the name of her band is well and truly accurate. Congratulations. You can have sex and tell the papers. Glorified prostitution.
Russell Brand is going to have to carry on with all his other projects.
The most downloaded BBC podcast is no longer being produced, well thank God all those avid listeners no longer have to endure the show. They must have been forced to download it or something - who could like the abominable Russell Brand?
Jonathan Ross is suspended for 12 weeks without pay. What the fuck am I gonna watch on a Friday night if I choose to stay in?
What’s worse is that the show wasn’t even live. The editor could have simply taken out the “offensive” material - that’s his job.
A big well done to the Daily Mail, (the paper who told us the Nazi’s were great and we should all get behind ol’ Adolf) for making sure everybody’s happy.
I’m pleased with :
I’ve a week off next week. ‘Nuff said.
A week to plan lots of things and then never do any of them. Bliss.
A pointless anecdote from this week :
I played Nintendo Wii for the first time the other day. It was after a few beers but overall I feel I was a natural.
Tennis, Golf, Boxing, Bowling, you name it. While the Wii is actually really good fun, it’d get boring pretty soon I reckon. It’s the kind of thing you want a friend to have, but you’re not bothered buying yourself. Thankfully this is exactly the circumstances under which I played.
Great guy/gal of this week :
The French girl in my Maths lecture who did my French homework for me. I know now that not all French people are smelly and arrogant.
Some are helpful.
Product/Service I like this week :
Amstel. 8 cans for €10 in Tesco?
Yes please.
A quote :
“The trouble with unemployment is that the minute you wake up in the morning you’re on the job“
