Sunday
And another Sunday arrives...
So far I've:
I got fed up with buying things from Tesco, and decided to obtain food from other sources. I'm not sure how long this is going to last, but I much prefer buying vegetables from someone that really cares about veg, jam from someone who makes jam, chocolate from a confectioners etc. It makes shopping more fun and interesting: supermarkets are rather soulless dispiriting places. Tescos is my least favourite: that nasty, clinical, fascistic white-and-blue branding is cold and inhuman, to say the least. And the chocolate selection is awful.
Anyway, whilst ruminating on this, I recalled that an old friend of mine had an organic veg stall on the market. Reasonable prices too, and knowing Mr Bob Folland as I do it's something that he genuinely cares about. He's tucked away up the market alley-row opposite Curry's, a couple of 'huts' behind the guy at the front who also does Fruit and Veg.
HMV
HMV seem to be going down the plughole. They're actually second only to Tescos in the list fo places that sap my will to live. Dark and dingy, badly laid out, more expensive that their website, unit upon unit of the same stock on the perpetual '2 for £10' sale, taking up space that could and should be devoted to a more extensive selection of stock.
Why are they selling drinks and books? Why do they only have a few shelves of classical stuff? 90% of their shelf space represents less than 10% of musical history: surely, if music is their livelihood, they should love music more than this? Why have they tried to turn the place into a nightclub with thumping killer bass thudding out of the speakers? Do any of the staff know (or care) who King Crimson is?
Contrast this with the places that sell second-hand vinyl and CDs. Every time I go in one of these places, the shop guy seems to be chatting to some customer or other about their purchase ("yeah, it's good album and you'll enjoy it. Definitely better than their later stuff after they replaced the guitarist... I found that the early stuff is definitely the best")
Fingers crossed, if HMV goes, these small, specialist places will be able to breathe a bit more, but I must admit, I'm somewhat concerned about the future of music.
Spotify
I recently rediscovered my love of music, and have started trawling through different genres. Jethro Tull was first. I fancied listening to something natural, folky, rocky, and that band with the guy with the hat and the flute fitted the bill perfectly. 'Heavy Horses' is now one of my favourite albums ever.
Anyway, I clicked around YouTube and went off to find some more 70s prog-ish music. I was a big fan of Pink Floyd when younger, and I've always liked music performed by technically accomplished individuals, and I discovered the most awesome band: King Crimson. Ages ago, I seem to recall bloodredglossy recommending King Crimson to me (though I may have misremembered), and by God I'm kicking myself for not having taken that recommendation seriously.
Anyway, I found trawling around Youtube a pain, so I had a go at using Spotify, and downloaded the free version. After having The Ozric Tentacles' Erpland (a slight digression) interrupted by an advert for British Gas, I decided to pay a fiver a month for it just to get rid of the bloody adverts.
Prog Rock Conclusions so far:
Seriously, you must check these guys out:
*sigh*
"To summon back the Fire Witch, to the court of the Crimson King..."
So far I've:
- Hoovered
- Taken recycling out
- Found a small bucket for the compost waste
- Put the washing on
- Tidy up stuff, magazines, books etc
- Put food on for dinner
I got fed up with buying things from Tesco, and decided to obtain food from other sources. I'm not sure how long this is going to last, but I much prefer buying vegetables from someone that really cares about veg, jam from someone who makes jam, chocolate from a confectioners etc. It makes shopping more fun and interesting: supermarkets are rather soulless dispiriting places. Tescos is my least favourite: that nasty, clinical, fascistic white-and-blue branding is cold and inhuman, to say the least. And the chocolate selection is awful.
Anyway, whilst ruminating on this, I recalled that an old friend of mine had an organic veg stall on the market. Reasonable prices too, and knowing Mr Bob Folland as I do it's something that he genuinely cares about. He's tucked away up the market alley-row opposite Curry's, a couple of 'huts' behind the guy at the front who also does Fruit and Veg.
HMV
HMV seem to be going down the plughole. They're actually second only to Tescos in the list fo places that sap my will to live. Dark and dingy, badly laid out, more expensive that their website, unit upon unit of the same stock on the perpetual '2 for £10' sale, taking up space that could and should be devoted to a more extensive selection of stock.
Why are they selling drinks and books? Why do they only have a few shelves of classical stuff? 90% of their shelf space represents less than 10% of musical history: surely, if music is their livelihood, they should love music more than this? Why have they tried to turn the place into a nightclub with thumping killer bass thudding out of the speakers? Do any of the staff know (or care) who King Crimson is?
Contrast this with the places that sell second-hand vinyl and CDs. Every time I go in one of these places, the shop guy seems to be chatting to some customer or other about their purchase ("yeah, it's good album and you'll enjoy it. Definitely better than their later stuff after they replaced the guitarist... I found that the early stuff is definitely the best")
Fingers crossed, if HMV goes, these small, specialist places will be able to breathe a bit more, but I must admit, I'm somewhat concerned about the future of music.
Spotify
I recently rediscovered my love of music, and have started trawling through different genres. Jethro Tull was first. I fancied listening to something natural, folky, rocky, and that band with the guy with the hat and the flute fitted the bill perfectly. 'Heavy Horses' is now one of my favourite albums ever.
Anyway, I clicked around YouTube and went off to find some more 70s prog-ish music. I was a big fan of Pink Floyd when younger, and I've always liked music performed by technically accomplished individuals, and I discovered the most awesome band: King Crimson. Ages ago, I seem to recall bloodredglossy recommending King Crimson to me (though I may have misremembered), and by God I'm kicking myself for not having taken that recommendation seriously.
Anyway, I found trawling around Youtube a pain, so I had a go at using Spotify, and downloaded the free version. After having The Ozric Tentacles' Erpland (a slight digression) interrupted by an advert for British Gas, I decided to pay a fiver a month for it just to get rid of the bloody adverts.
Prog Rock Conclusions so far:
- I cannot stand Led Zeppelin or Yes (so far I've not heard anything that impresses me from either)
- I like Focus, King Crimson and stuff with flutes in
- If you're not going to play anything interesting with that guitar, at least put it through some effects instead of just grinding it and trying to look mean
- There's something dreadfully silly, yet quite cool, about songs that have wizards and kings as their subject matter
Seriously, you must check these guys out:
Click to view*sigh*
"To summon back the Fire Witch, to the court of the Crimson King..."