(no subject)

A musical post today...

Over the next week or so, I'm going to be getting terribly excited, because of Elbow's forthcoming concert in Glasgow in a couple of weeks' time.  Not only that....

They have a new album - named Build a Rocket Boys! - which is out on Monday!

J's a cynic.  He reckons it's going to be c**p.  Because, he reasons, they can't possibly top The Seldom Seen Kid. 

It's true.  They've given themselves a tough yardstick to try and beat.  I bought The Seldom Seen Kid on the strength of two things.  Firstly, I loved their single The Bones of You (it's one of the anthems of my latest WIP and oh, boy, can I write to it!) and secondly, I reasoned that anyone who wrote a track called The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver had to be a genius. 

I awaited my first playing of The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver with utter trepidation.  Would it live up to my expectations??? 

You bet it did.  It has now become my Lake District anthem: I like nothing better than to hear its dulcet tones reverberating through the car stereo system as we turn onto the A66 and see the vast grim bulk of Helvellyn and Blencathra looming up in the distance and growing ever closer.  It particularly suits seeing the hills in winter, as its mood is epic, breath-taking,  and just a little bit tinged with melancholic foreboding.

I have faith in Elbow.  I think they can deliver something special, so I'm really, really looking forward to the day when Build a Rocket, Boys! drops through the letter box.

And if that wasn't exciting enough...  Understandably, when I first encountered Elbow, I hoovered up their back catalogue (Asleep in The Back and Leaders of The Free World were going very cheap at HMV so I took the plunge and bought them both).  Again, I was not disappointed, because I found several tracks I could write to.  I'm particularly fond of Little Beast from Asleep in the Back, which has again become a writing anthem for the same WIP.  

At the time, I was reassured that I'd tracked down their entire back catalogue, but...  When I explored Amazon last week, I discovered that I'd missed one!!  Evidently they released a follow-up to Asleep in the Back called Cast of Thousands which I'd never even heard of!  So I've now got the pleasure of receiving not one but two new Elbow albums next week which I'm going to have to get familiar with before the concert!

Of course, the bad news is that with such a vast back catalogue, it's unlikely they'll play either Little Beast or The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver at the concert (I'm pretty sure they'll play The Bones of You, because it was a single that sold quite well, if I remember right).  Perhaps that's just as well.  If they play Little Beast, I'll be gripped with inspiration and I'll be itching to start writing NOW, which is impossible in the middle of a crowded concert hall, and if they play The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver, I'll probably burst into tears because I'll be suddenly gripped with an overwhelming desire to be rubbing shoulders with those magnificent giants of Cumbria that I featured in my posts last week. 

(no subject)

A musical post today...

Over the next week or so, I'm going to be getting terribly excited, because of Elbow's forthcoming concert in Glasgow in a couple of weeks' time.  Not only that....

They have a new album - named Build a Rocket Boys! - which is out on Monday!

J's a cynic.  He reckons it's going to be c**p.  Because, he reasons, they can't possibly top The Seldom Seen Kid. 

It's true.  They've given themselves a tough yardstick to try and beat.  I bought The Seldom Seen Kid on the strength of two things.  Firstly, I loved their single The Bones of You (it's one of the anthems of my latest WIP and oh, boy, can I write to it!) and secondly, I reasoned that anyone who wrote a track called The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver had to be a genius. 

I awaited my first playing of The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver with utter trepidation.  Would it live up to my expectations??? 

You bet it did.  It has now become my Lake District anthem: I like nothing better than to hear its dulcet tones reverberating through the car stereo system as we turn onto the A66 and see the vast grim bulk of Helvellyn and Blencathra looming up in the distance and growing ever closer.  It particularly suits seeing the hills in winter, as its mood is epic, breath-taking,  and just a little bit tinged with melancholic foreboding.

I have faith in Elbow.  I think they can deliver something special, so I'm really, really looking forward to the day when Build a Rocket, Boys! drops through the letter box.

And if that wasn't exciting enough...  Understandably, when I first encountered Elbow, I hoovered up their back catalogue (Asleep in The Back and Leaders of The Free World were going very cheap at HMV so I took the plunge and bought them both).  Again, I was not disappointed, because I found several tracks I could write to.  I'm particularly fond of Little Beast from Asleep in the Back, which has again become a writing anthem for the same WIP.  

At the time, I was reassured that I'd tracked down their entire back catalogue, but...  When I explored Amazon last week, I discovered that I'd missed one!!  Evidently they released a follow-up to Asleep in the Back called Cast of Thousands which I'd never even heard of!  So I've now got the pleasure of receiving not one but two new Elbow albums next week which I'm going to have to get familiar with before the concert!

Of course, the bad news is that with such a vast back catalogue, it's unlikely they'll play either Little Beast or The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver at the concert (I'm pretty sure they'll play The Bones of You, because it was a single that sold quite well, if I remember right).  Perhaps that's just as well.  If they play Little Beast, I'll be gripped with inspiration and I'll be itching to start writing NOW, which is impossible in the middle of a crowded concert hall, and if they play The Loneliness of The Tower Crane Driver, I'll probably burst into tears because I'll be suddenly gripped with an overwhelming desire to be rubbing shoulders with those magnificent giants of Cumbria that I featured in my posts last week. 

(no subject)

I have just survived an encounter with The Evil One, aka Softy.  I was supposed to be riding Molly, but she was so lathered up after the last lesson that she was pulled at the last minute.

Softy is a very attractive piebald cob.  Her markings are striking, and she looks like she should be taking part in The Big Country.  But she's got white around the eyes which gives the impression that she's a bit wild and untrustworthy.  It's not far from the truth.  In my experiences with her, I've found her to be a lazy wilful minx who gives riding school horses a bad name.  She has two speeds only:  zoom, and dead slow and stop.  And if you get on her wick, she is the archetypal Immovable Object.

Last time I rode her was three years ago.  Our hour long Battle Royale culminated in a hissy fit and four hooves parked solidly on the ground.  Nothing I could do would budge her. 

Today, I survived my encounter unscathed.  We had a few hairy moments, but there were none of the hysterionics from the last time.  I guess I've learned that an outright confrontation with Softy just does not work.  If you try and bully her into doing something, she will not do it.  Psychological warfare is required.

We walked, we trotted, and Softy was grudgingly obliging.  But my leg position went completely to pot and I felt like the experience put me back weeks.  If your whole philosophy is to be at one with your horse and to be a fluid partnership, you're on a road to nowhere if one member of the duo just does not want to be there and will not be persuaded otherwise,

But looking on the bright side...  At least it was better than last time:-)

(no subject)

I have just survived an encounter with The Evil One, aka Softy.  I was supposed to be riding Molly, but she was so lathered up after the last lesson that she was pulled at the last minute.

Softy is a very attractive piebald cob.  Her markings are striking, and she looks like she should be taking part in The Big Country.  But she's got white around the eyes which gives the impression that she's a bit wild and untrustworthy.  It's not far from the truth.  In my experiences with her, I've found her to be a lazy wilful minx who gives riding school horses a bad name.  She has two speeds only:  zoom, and dead slow and stop.  And if you get on her wick, she is the archetypal Immovable Object.

Last time I rode her was three years ago.  Our hour long Battle Royale culminated in a hissy fit and four hooves parked solidly on the ground.  Nothing I could do would budge her. 

Today, I survived my encounter unscathed.  We had a few hairy moments, but there were none of the hysterionics from the last time.  I guess I've learned that an outright confrontation with Softy just does not work.  If you try and bully her into doing something, she will not do it.  Psychological warfare is required.

We walked, we trotted, and Softy was grudgingly obliging.  But my leg position went completely to pot and I felt like the experience put me back weeks.  If your whole philosophy is to be at one with your horse and to be a fluid partnership, you're on a road to nowhere if one member of the duo just does not want to be there and will not be persuaded otherwise,

But looking on the bright side...  At least it was better than last time:-)