Friday 20 February 2009

Perspective

Like most people who work in London, I take the tube to work. Most days I sit and read the paper and try to ignore what is going on around me. Occasionally I take whatever book I happen to be reading at the time.

Once in a blue moon I put on my ipod.

This may seem strange for a man who makes his living in the music business, but having suffered at the hands of fellow travellers who inflict their cheesy house music on everyone within earshot - seemingly without any understanding of the irritation they are causing, I tend to excercise restraint in my listening habits.

Once in a while however I feel the need to commune with a few of my tunes, and the thing that strikes me whenever I do is the extraordinary power of music to alter your perspective.

Want to seethe in private - stick on some thrash metal. Need to hark back nostalgically to your teens - Led Zeppelin every time. Feeling sad and lost - get that Sarah Mclachlan playlist on, want to smile - stick on a bit of ELO.. you get the idea.

Now I know that this is not exactly revolutionary thinking, but it struck me that with such a significant percentage of the public lost in their own musical wilderness for such a large part of the day, it might be an idea to promote our bands in those terms.

Hmm... this requires more thought. I'll get back to you.

Wednesday 18 February 2009

The Twits

There is a great quote in an otherwise unremarkable movie called "Other People's Money". Danny DeVito plays a master of the universe and is commenting unemotionally about a small business he is about to buy up and destroy.

"Fastest way to go out of business?" he asks.. "Take an increasing share of a decreasing market. Slow and steady. Down the drain".

I was reminded of that watching the conspicuous consumption by the record industry tonight at the Brits. How we can celebrate such dreadfully mediocre tosh as The Ting Tings and Duffy is utterly beyond me.

Thank god for Kings Of Leon and Elbow (nice one Phil).

Monday 16 February 2009

Tears in my eyes..

Its late and I am sitting here listening to Bob Dylan with tears in my eyes.

I have never really been a fan, but sometimes a particular song can resonate with what is happening in your life and this is one of those times.

"How many deaths will it take till he knows, that too many people have died? The answer my friend is blowing in the wind, the answer is blowing in the wind..."

I can not remember ever feeling more sad..