Written for Listed Magazine
“We came here with Calvin Harris and you were animals. We’re here tonight and you’re animals. Bournemouth – you are animals!”
Sporting a leather jacket and jeans, Mr Hudson reaches out to touch the outstretched hands of the crowd, before launching into ‘White Lies’.
The retro settings of Bournemouth’s Orange Rooms made it a stella venue for the gig, with their quirky 70s wallpaper, swinging chairs and TV screens playing Star Wars. Drinks were a bit more expensive than in other places, but their inventive cocktails are well worth the price.
After ‘Forever Young’, which saw the audience leaping up and down, screaming the lyrics back at the artist, came the hit which saw Mr Hudson rocket to fame – ‘Supernova’.
After a performance that was out of this world came the black hole that this was already the end of the set. The artist sang only three songs, leaving the audience wanting more.
The venue was refreshingly different and the set had a lively atmosphere. I've no doubt Mr Hudson’s performance will be talked about for lightyears to come.
Wednesday, 2 December 2009
DMF Insights with guest speaker Dave Morgan - IP (Intellectual Property)
Review written for The Dorset Music Forum, published by the Bournemouth Echo
NB My name has been misquoted as 'Foster'
Protecting intellectual property is essential in creative industries, where artists rely on the originality of their work to earn a living.
On Wednesday 18 November Dorset Music Forum welcomed Mr Dave Morgan, who came to speak to members about safeguarding their creative ideas.
The talk covered patents, registered designs, trademarks and copyright and gave plenty of information on the various laws, procedures and conditions. At the same time, it was also very entertaining, with the examples of unusual patents such as dust-covers for dogs drawing laughs from the audience.
“I wrote a sit com when I was younger...and I’m working on a musical,” said Paul Coombs, who attended the talk, “[at the event] you network and you get information for lots of stuff like that.”
After the presentation there was a chance to ask questions and an impromptu discussion broke out about music royalties for cover songs. A number of people took the opportunity to promote local music events. The evening ended with a chance to network.
DMF Insights will welcome Robin Oxford a producer from London on 13th January. Details will be on the DMF website shortly.
NB My name has been misquoted as 'Foster'
Protecting intellectual property is essential in creative industries, where artists rely on the originality of their work to earn a living.
On Wednesday 18 November Dorset Music Forum welcomed Mr Dave Morgan, who came to speak to members about safeguarding their creative ideas.
The talk covered patents, registered designs, trademarks and copyright and gave plenty of information on the various laws, procedures and conditions. At the same time, it was also very entertaining, with the examples of unusual patents such as dust-covers for dogs drawing laughs from the audience.
“I wrote a sit com when I was younger...and I’m working on a musical,” said Paul Coombs, who attended the talk, “[at the event] you network and you get information for lots of stuff like that.”
After the presentation there was a chance to ask questions and an impromptu discussion broke out about music royalties for cover songs. A number of people took the opportunity to promote local music events. The evening ended with a chance to network.
DMF Insights will welcome Robin Oxford a producer from London on 13th January. Details will be on the DMF website shortly.
A Smooth Criminal Masterclass
Written for Listed Magazine.
The group of dancers move perfectly in time with the music, the sound of their trainers echoing around the room. They sidestep, before pretending to pull down the brim of a hat, whilst ‘Smooth Criminal’ blares from speakers.
Watching from the front of the room and occasionally shouting encouragement is the dance’s creator – Jeffrey Daniel - the late Michael Jackson’s choreographer.
Members of the Pure Funk dance group were given a master class by Mr Daniel on Saturday 7 November at Poole and Bournemouth College. The former member of 70s group Shalamar – who created hits such as ‘Night to Remember’ and ‘I Can Make You Feel Good’ - taught the King of Pop to moonwalk and has been credited with bringing street dance to Europe.
“The classes have gone exceptionally well,” he said, “the kids are enjoying it – that’s what it all boils down to.
“The dance I showed them, ‘Smooth Criminal’ - we rehearsed that thing at for least three weeks for the video. It’s not just your average 1 2 3 4, it’s done to this really intricate beat. So to come in here and do something that intricate in that amount of time is really very impressive. They loved the challenge and they did very well.”
Amy Beveridge, the founder of Pure Funk said, “it’s been a massive inspiration to them, not just because of the choreography that Jeffrey is teaching them, but to learn that he’s a really nice, down-to-earth person as well.”
For more information about Pure Funk, visit their website at http://www.purefunk.co.uk/
Fancy trying your hand at street dance? Pure Funk’s Classes run nearly every day of the week and do adult courses, as well as those for children. There are options available for all abilities.
The group of dancers move perfectly in time with the music, the sound of their trainers echoing around the room. They sidestep, before pretending to pull down the brim of a hat, whilst ‘Smooth Criminal’ blares from speakers.
Watching from the front of the room and occasionally shouting encouragement is the dance’s creator – Jeffrey Daniel - the late Michael Jackson’s choreographer.
Members of the Pure Funk dance group were given a master class by Mr Daniel on Saturday 7 November at Poole and Bournemouth College. The former member of 70s group Shalamar – who created hits such as ‘Night to Remember’ and ‘I Can Make You Feel Good’ - taught the King of Pop to moonwalk and has been credited with bringing street dance to Europe.
“The classes have gone exceptionally well,” he said, “the kids are enjoying it – that’s what it all boils down to.
“The dance I showed them, ‘Smooth Criminal’ - we rehearsed that thing at for least three weeks for the video. It’s not just your average 1 2 3 4, it’s done to this really intricate beat. So to come in here and do something that intricate in that amount of time is really very impressive. They loved the challenge and they did very well.”
Amy Beveridge, the founder of Pure Funk said, “it’s been a massive inspiration to them, not just because of the choreography that Jeffrey is teaching them, but to learn that he’s a really nice, down-to-earth person as well.”
For more information about Pure Funk, visit their website at http://www.purefunk.co.uk/
Fancy trying your hand at street dance? Pure Funk’s Classes run nearly every day of the week and do adult courses, as well as those for children. There are options available for all abilities.
Tuesday, 27 October 2009
Graphics
I created some opening graphics for a youth programme called 'Spotlight' which a team of us had to put together for a news assessment.
http://www.youtube.com/user/i7867722#p/u
http://www.youtube.com/user/i7867722#p/u
Monday, 26 October 2009
And Another Thing...
Written for geeks.co.uk, a version withot the information on NASA was published by 4Q Magazine and Nerve Magazine.
It’s been made into a feature film starring Martin Freeman and sold millions of copies worldwide, now The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is celebrating its 30th birthday with the release of a new book - And Another Thing...
“Well, Douglas Adams’ agents cooked up this plan and asked me if I’d do it and had permission from his wife, Jane Belson. I’m a fan of the series and I found it very hard to say no, so here we are a year later about to publish,” the 43 year-old from Wexford says.
Eoin is famous for being the creator of the bestselling series of teenage novels, Artemis Fowl, a film of which is expected to go into production next year. He describes writing And Another Thing...as “liberating”, saying that “because normally I write for teenagers...I have to be careful what I write, not meaning to sound patronising. With this book I just let myself go and wrote what I wanted.
“There were the usual challenges because there were lots of people who would maybe not like it, I needed to convince them. By page one I needed to convince them that maybe this is not so bad. It was strange having to consider people reading it.”
For those of you who are not familiar with the series it begins with the destruction of the Earth to make way for a hyperspace bypass. Miraculously there are survivors – Arthur Dent is rescued by his friend Ford Prefect, who turns out not to be from Guildford, but a planet somewhere near Betelgeuse. Together they travel the universe meeting a host of crazy characters including Zaphod Beeblebrox; the two-headed president of the galaxy, Slartibartfast ; a planet-maker with a taste for fjords and Marvin the paranoid android; a manically depressed robot.
“Lots of people don’t read it because they don’t like science fiction,” Eoin says, “[but] it’s not your normal science fiction book – this is extremely funny and irreverent satire and science fiction. Not so much Star Wars...closer to Jeeves and Wooster than Star Wars. People should have a go and see if they like it. I think they will.
“You can’t do good satire unless there’s something in it - it was really well written, the characters were great. It’s up there on a shelf with Pink Floyd and Monty Python. It’s one of those cultural British icons that people remember.”
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was originally broadcast as a radio show in 1978, and a year later came out as a book. Originally there was going to be three novels, but the series turned into a trilogy of five – The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, Life the Universe and Everything, So Long and Thanks for all the Fish and Mostly Harmless. Its creator Douglas Adams intended to write a sixth novel but sadly died in 2001 aged just 49. Though the author left notes on the plot, Eoin assures me he didn’t use them.
“I wanted to do my own story,” he says, “I thought if I used his notes it would divide opinion, so I just did my own thing.”
So what can people expect from the latest novel?
“They can expect lots of the old characters back again, they can expect some new characters, they can expect an adventure. In a nutshell – same universe, same characters, new story.”
Thor the Thunder God, the hammer-loving immortal who had a cameo in Life the Universe and Everything will be taking on a bigger role in And Another Thing... There will also be a brand new character, Hillman Hunter - “he’s a sort of property developer. He’s very funny; people who’ve read the book love Hillman Hunter.”
The anniversary has also seen the publication of special editions of Douglas Adams’ books - look out for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which comes with a DIY cover and a set of stickers.
In addition NASA have paid their own tribute to the series in the form of tweets from the LCROSS (Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite), which crashed into the moon on October 9 in order to search for traces of water-ice.
The team quoted from the part of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy in which a whale is materialised above the surface of the legendary planet of Magrathea:
# “And what's this thing coming toward me very fast? So big and flat and round.
# it needs a big wide sounding name like 'Ow', 'Ownge', 'Round', 'Ground'!”
# “That's it! Ground! Ha! I wonder if it'll be friends with me?”
Then it struck the moon’s surface.
For more information on And Another Thing... (£18.99), visit the website at http://www.6of3.com/
Beat the Radar
Written for 4Q Magazine.
Beat the Radar were signed up to the Akoustik Anarkhy label after bumping into its cofounder, Noel Vazquez, in a toilet.
“He said, ‘I’ll come listen to you guys’,” says bass-player Rowan Smith, “we thought he was just going to ask us to play a pub night that he runs, but he wanted to sign us. It all happened pretty weirdly!”
Despite the strange start to this relationship, it seems to be going very well. The lads describe working with the label as an “honour”, and say that Akoustik Anarkhy’s encouragement made sure their first album was completed.
“They pinned us down and said ‘why don’t you finish the recordings whilst it’s still possible or else it’s gone forever’ - gave us more direction.
“It’s like having a fifth member who gives you a kick up the arse when you need it! I know it’s quite a weird thing to say but Akoustik Anarkhy has quite a family atmosphere ‘cause there’s just so many people come along and it’s the same faces, and bands that supported us we’re mates with.”
Beat the Radar started at the University of Lancaster, where Rowan and guitarist Laurie Hulme were studying. After deciding to form a group together, the guys started looking around for a singer to join them.
Laurie says, “we knew Johnny because he was in another band, and then one day Johnny says ‘I’ll try out with you guys’ and that was it.”
After spending a couple of months in America the group moved to Manchester in order to get themselves noticed. Later on their drummer left in order to live in London and after a search for a new member, Adam Featherstone stepped in to take his place.
“When we first started we had another guitarist, so it was a five-piece and we were more grungier and that,” Laurie says, “Adam’s drumming definitely brought a different kind of context to it, a lot more dancier at times.”
Adam admits that the music scene in Manchester surprised him because it was so different to that of Leeds, which he says was filled with cliques – making it hard for new talent to break through.
He says, ““I came from Leeds and I was living in Leeds for a while before I came here and it’s completely different from the Leeds music scene...Manchester is really really spread open and I couldn’t believe it when I first came because the music scene here is really really broad and friendly.
“I did a lot of work for a couple of well-known bands there and it was just like everyone that was anyone knew everyone and apart from that they didn’t want to know.
“Before I moved here my impression was that it was a bit dead and it was ten years too late and all the music had happened. But I think the best is about to happen, really. It’s not just a wait – it’s all happening now.”
Despite owing much of their influences to Mancunian groups such as The Stone Roses, The Smiths and The Chameleons, Beat the Radar describe their style as “very US indie, but as in the actual indie indie, rather than Fall Out Boy!”
Laurie adds “but I think Jonny brought a real back-to-British side as well.”
The group’s first single, ‘Telephone Conversation’, was played by Steve Lamacq on his Radio 1 show, ‘In New Music we Trust’. It has also been remixed by Spartak - a collaboration between Martyn Walsh, Inspiral Carpets and Ruthless Producer – who decided to work with the band after seeing them live.
Rather than releasing the track solely as a download, it was also brought out on a limited edition disc, with artwork by a friend of the band.
“To me that’s what independent music is all about – being a little bit different rather than just sticking it on download or whatever. We made a big thing about it.”
The launch of the album was another big step for the band, with a launch gig taking place at the Garden’s Hotel.
“We got friends’ bands to play and stuff and it was really good. It was really grand ‘cause everyone was there just having a good time.”
So far the band has only had one major problem – security at a festival they recently played.
“They were weird people, security,” they laugh.
Laurie says “we were supposed to play unplugged but we told them we could use this amp ‘cause I had to play a guitar solo. [We were given] this little matchbox-sized amp. In the end it was so quiet we ended up getting shot down.”
Later on at the same place, “we went out and bought like a 24 pack of beer and brought it in and the security came back and said ‘you can’t have that, you got to throw it out’ and then they came back and said ‘you can have it but you’ve got to put it in plastic cups’. So they had to put like a 24 pack of beer in these plastic cups...it looked like some sort of 18-year-old’s birthday party!”
The group have an album due out in November, and are set to release another single from it – ’18 19 20 21 22’ shortly.
“When the album’s out we might do a little tour or something,” they say.
Beat the Radar will be playing The Roadhouse with Optional Wallace on 18 September, at Cafe Saki on 3 October and at The Park Hotel in Lancaster on 10 October.
For more gig dates check out their Myspace page – www.myspace.com/beattheradar
Beat the Radar were signed up to the Akoustik Anarkhy label after bumping into its cofounder, Noel Vazquez, in a toilet.
“He said, ‘I’ll come listen to you guys’,” says bass-player Rowan Smith, “we thought he was just going to ask us to play a pub night that he runs, but he wanted to sign us. It all happened pretty weirdly!”
Despite the strange start to this relationship, it seems to be going very well. The lads describe working with the label as an “honour”, and say that Akoustik Anarkhy’s encouragement made sure their first album was completed.
“They pinned us down and said ‘why don’t you finish the recordings whilst it’s still possible or else it’s gone forever’ - gave us more direction.
“It’s like having a fifth member who gives you a kick up the arse when you need it! I know it’s quite a weird thing to say but Akoustik Anarkhy has quite a family atmosphere ‘cause there’s just so many people come along and it’s the same faces, and bands that supported us we’re mates with.”
Beat the Radar started at the University of Lancaster, where Rowan and guitarist Laurie Hulme were studying. After deciding to form a group together, the guys started looking around for a singer to join them.
Laurie says, “we knew Johnny because he was in another band, and then one day Johnny says ‘I’ll try out with you guys’ and that was it.”
After spending a couple of months in America the group moved to Manchester in order to get themselves noticed. Later on their drummer left in order to live in London and after a search for a new member, Adam Featherstone stepped in to take his place.
“When we first started we had another guitarist, so it was a five-piece and we were more grungier and that,” Laurie says, “Adam’s drumming definitely brought a different kind of context to it, a lot more dancier at times.”
Adam admits that the music scene in Manchester surprised him because it was so different to that of Leeds, which he says was filled with cliques – making it hard for new talent to break through.
He says, ““I came from Leeds and I was living in Leeds for a while before I came here and it’s completely different from the Leeds music scene...Manchester is really really spread open and I couldn’t believe it when I first came because the music scene here is really really broad and friendly.
“I did a lot of work for a couple of well-known bands there and it was just like everyone that was anyone knew everyone and apart from that they didn’t want to know.
“Before I moved here my impression was that it was a bit dead and it was ten years too late and all the music had happened. But I think the best is about to happen, really. It’s not just a wait – it’s all happening now.”
Despite owing much of their influences to Mancunian groups such as The Stone Roses, The Smiths and The Chameleons, Beat the Radar describe their style as “very US indie, but as in the actual indie indie, rather than Fall Out Boy!”
Laurie adds “but I think Jonny brought a real back-to-British side as well.”
The group’s first single, ‘Telephone Conversation’, was played by Steve Lamacq on his Radio 1 show, ‘In New Music we Trust’. It has also been remixed by Spartak - a collaboration between Martyn Walsh, Inspiral Carpets and Ruthless Producer – who decided to work with the band after seeing them live.
Rather than releasing the track solely as a download, it was also brought out on a limited edition disc, with artwork by a friend of the band.
“To me that’s what independent music is all about – being a little bit different rather than just sticking it on download or whatever. We made a big thing about it.”
The launch of the album was another big step for the band, with a launch gig taking place at the Garden’s Hotel.
“We got friends’ bands to play and stuff and it was really good. It was really grand ‘cause everyone was there just having a good time.”
So far the band has only had one major problem – security at a festival they recently played.
“They were weird people, security,” they laugh.
Laurie says “we were supposed to play unplugged but we told them we could use this amp ‘cause I had to play a guitar solo. [We were given] this little matchbox-sized amp. In the end it was so quiet we ended up getting shot down.”
Later on at the same place, “we went out and bought like a 24 pack of beer and brought it in and the security came back and said ‘you can’t have that, you got to throw it out’ and then they came back and said ‘you can have it but you’ve got to put it in plastic cups’. So they had to put like a 24 pack of beer in these plastic cups...it looked like some sort of 18-year-old’s birthday party!”
The group have an album due out in November, and are set to release another single from it – ’18 19 20 21 22’ shortly.
“When the album’s out we might do a little tour or something,” they say.
Beat the Radar will be playing The Roadhouse with Optional Wallace on 18 September, at Cafe Saki on 3 October and at The Park Hotel in Lancaster on 10 October.
For more gig dates check out their Myspace page – www.myspace.com/beattheradar
Tuesday, 18 August 2009
Cache Me if You Can
Published on www.geeks.co.uk, a link to the article has also been included in geocaching.com's monthly international newsletter.
After 10 minutes of hunting through ivy-covered trees I finally find what I’m looking for – part of a fence post has been carefully wedged between a couple of lower branches. Pulling it away I discover a small Tupperware box concealed among the leaves – a geocache.
Put simply, geocaching is an international treasure hunt. There are over 42,000 of them to be found in the UK, as well as 3380 in Italy, 32 in Antarctica and even one hidden on Mt Kilimanjaro.
To start you’ll need to log on to www.geocaching.com and create an account. The site used to be completely free, but you now have the option to become a premium member for about £30 a year. The only kit you need is a GPS device. Some caches may be possible to find without one, but the majority would be nearly impossible as OS grid references aren’t specific enough to be of much use unless there is a definite landmark described in the cache’s clue.
You can get geocaching applications for iPhones for £5.99. If you don’t own one then a standard walking GPS such as the Garmin Geko 201 (£89.99) will work just as well.
If finding the caches alone isn’t challenging enough, you must do so without being seen by ‘muggles’ – non-geocachers. Some boxes are deliberately hidden in busy areas such as cities, parks and supermarkets, so a good plan is needed to retrieve one secretly. After you’ve searched for a cache, you log on to the site and post whether or not you found it.
When you’re lucky enough to find a cache there will be a logbook inside to sign. Some boxes may also contain other objects such as toys, postcards or, in some cases, CDs. If you take something you put something else back in, unless the object removed is a trackable one. There are two main types of trackable objects – coins and bugs – the latter being a dog-tag which is normally attached to a key-ring or model. Geocachers move these objects from box to box and they normally have ‘missions’ given to them by their owners. These can be anything from visiting as many British castles as possible to travelling to Australia. One cache in Folkestone has been put in place especially for people wishing to have their trackables taken across to the continent, with people going on the Channel Tunnel stopping by to pick them up.
Some caches are placed in a trail, with one box having to be found in order to retrieve clues to the next, others may only be searched for at night. My favourite cache –which I have, shamefully, yet to find – is hidden at Bletchley Park, where WW2 code breakers cracked the German enigma. The clue to finding the cache is written in code, which users have to decipher before they can search for it.
Near many landmarks such as Buckingham Palace and The Houses of Parliament, being seen hiding a small box is likely to get you arrested. Geocachers have solved this issue by creating virtual caches which are ‘found’ by answering a question about the location.
A word of warning – geocaching is surprisingly addictive. You will soon find yourself spending hours on the site checking for new caches. A simple trip to London will include a quick detour to look for that box near Victoria Square. This sport may take over your life, but it’s worth it!
After 10 minutes of hunting through ivy-covered trees I finally find what I’m looking for – part of a fence post has been carefully wedged between a couple of lower branches. Pulling it away I discover a small Tupperware box concealed among the leaves – a geocache.
Put simply, geocaching is an international treasure hunt. There are over 42,000 of them to be found in the UK, as well as 3380 in Italy, 32 in Antarctica and even one hidden on Mt Kilimanjaro.
To start you’ll need to log on to www.geocaching.com and create an account. The site used to be completely free, but you now have the option to become a premium member for about £30 a year. The only kit you need is a GPS device. Some caches may be possible to find without one, but the majority would be nearly impossible as OS grid references aren’t specific enough to be of much use unless there is a definite landmark described in the cache’s clue.
You can get geocaching applications for iPhones for £5.99. If you don’t own one then a standard walking GPS such as the Garmin Geko 201 (£89.99) will work just as well.
If finding the caches alone isn’t challenging enough, you must do so without being seen by ‘muggles’ – non-geocachers. Some boxes are deliberately hidden in busy areas such as cities, parks and supermarkets, so a good plan is needed to retrieve one secretly. After you’ve searched for a cache, you log on to the site and post whether or not you found it.
When you’re lucky enough to find a cache there will be a logbook inside to sign. Some boxes may also contain other objects such as toys, postcards or, in some cases, CDs. If you take something you put something else back in, unless the object removed is a trackable one. There are two main types of trackable objects – coins and bugs – the latter being a dog-tag which is normally attached to a key-ring or model. Geocachers move these objects from box to box and they normally have ‘missions’ given to them by their owners. These can be anything from visiting as many British castles as possible to travelling to Australia. One cache in Folkestone has been put in place especially for people wishing to have their trackables taken across to the continent, with people going on the Channel Tunnel stopping by to pick them up.
Some caches are placed in a trail, with one box having to be found in order to retrieve clues to the next, others may only be searched for at night. My favourite cache –which I have, shamefully, yet to find – is hidden at Bletchley Park, where WW2 code breakers cracked the German enigma. The clue to finding the cache is written in code, which users have to decipher before they can search for it.
Near many landmarks such as Buckingham Palace and The Houses of Parliament, being seen hiding a small box is likely to get you arrested. Geocachers have solved this issue by creating virtual caches which are ‘found’ by answering a question about the location.
A word of warning – geocaching is surprisingly addictive. You will soon find yourself spending hours on the site checking for new caches. A simple trip to London will include a quick detour to look for that box near Victoria Square. This sport may take over your life, but it’s worth it!
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