I have a pair already, but they're knackered!
No idea what this was referring to. But now it can refer to my Macbeth Eliots in Black and cream, which they don't make anymore :(
EDIT: I threw them away, they started to make my feet bleed...
30/10/2012
I AM CLONES
And another...
So, my good friend Rob has a solo project
and because he's cool, he's got me playing bass and screaming for him. Which is fun.
and we're playing the first gig tomorrow night at Aston University. It's still early days (I'm learning lyrics now...) so we probably won't be as good tomorrow as we will be soon but fuck it.
Australia East Coast Guide 2
Something I wrote for some friends I met in Asia that were heading to Aus, probably a fair bit different from the last one I wrote, but this is rather influenced by peterpans!
CAIRNS
Things to do:
Great Barrier Reef - this is the big one, have to do it. Currently a special with Ocean Free that'll do you a dive for $20 and it's a sweet boat.
Bungy Jumping here, only place in Aus.
Don't bother with Cape Tribulation (Cape Trib) it's a bit shit, but the Atherton Tablelands tour is good. Uncle Brians is the best tour, but Captain Mattys is good too (and a bit cheaper)
White Water Rafting, this is great, but a bit of a drive away from Cairns, you can use this to transfer down to Mission Beach though, which is a nice spot, and it'll knock about 2 hours off the journey down to your next stop
Places to see:
The lagoon, lots of girls, sometimes topless. There's another one at Gilligans which is smaller, but less kids/old people so better for the boobies.
Where to go out:
Gilligans is king here, it's got a massive nightclub in the complex, during the week it's quiet and they do some stupid backpacker things, including wet tee-shirt comps and other retarded shit. At the weekends it packs out with Aussie locals, the atmosphere take a bit of a dive, but altogether it's still good, and it's a good time to meet some aussie chicks too
Woolshed has a similar vibe, and allows people to dance on the tables, which people like. It seems to be the main competitor of Gilligans, nowhere near as big, but still a god party, and cheaper than gillis. Worth a night.
Everywhere else... not a clue!
Cairns - mission = 2 hours
MISSION BEACH
White Water Rafting - same as above
Sky Diving - a great place to skydive onto the beach.
This place is really small and chilled out, a nice rest from Cairns, and some really friendly people in the hostels, but you'll get bored after a day or so, not much going on here at all.
mission - townsville = 3 hours
TOWNSVILLE/MAGNETIC ISLAND
Townsville is an Aussie tourist hotspot, but very few backpackers here, it's only used as the port to get over to Maggie Island. This is a place that wants to by thailand! They have a full moon party, but people have said it's a bit shit, so don't bother with that, but you can check it out for a day or two. Seems to be highly recommended by the Irish, so maybe head over and check it out. You can get deals that include your ferry ticket, accom and some meals at the Base hostel if you go to Peterpans. Again, it's small and chilled, but I've been told it's really good.. so... up to you guys!
townsville - airlie = 10 hours (overnight!)
AIRLIE BEACH/WHITSUNDAYS
The Whitsunday islands are beautiful, and you'll want to be on the Clipper to have the best time, it's the biggest boat, it's got the best vibe and the biggest party atmos. Slide, diving board and hot tub on board, it's for getting loose and having fun. But you'll still get plenty of time to see Whitehaven beach and do plenty of snorkelling and see the fish! Just don't get too drunk and a hangover on a boat is no fun.
Airlie:
Stay somewhere cheap, that's not shit (Beaches is shit, everywhere else is pretty ok)
Party... Anywhere you want, there's one road in Airlie, and it's pretty short. You can wander up and down fine and you'll see where is busy and where's not. Beaches is pretty good and Mambos(??) in the middle is pretty cool. Mama Africa is the only club and stays open pretty late. Just keep it easy, and when you meet a chick who's game, take her home quick! It's such a short walk, you can bang and bail in half an hour wink
Airlie - Agnes = 10 hours
1770/AGNES WATER
This place has two names, it's confusing as fuck! This is a good place to stop for a night or two, they really want to bring more people in here, so you can usually get a free surf trip or something while you're there. Most of the hostels have free wifi, so make sure you get one of those. The best thing here is that it breaks up your journey to Rainbow beach, saves a long stop over at a shitty bus stop in Hervey Bay, which you don't want!
Agnes - Rainbow = 8 hours
RAINBOW BEACH/FRASER ISLAND
Rainbow is a cool little town, good place to chill, but with enough backpackers coming through to keep it fun. Most people just rush through though, so it might not be a great place to spend too much time. The best thing here is the DINGOS tour of Fraser Island. This is rad, driving a 4x4 around on the beach and down sand/dirt roads, then jumping out to see some cool shit, or go for a swim in some really nice lakes. It's on of the best things I did in Oz, so do it! it's 3day 2 nights, camping next to the beach, and pretty high chances of a lay.
Rainbow - Noosa - 2 hours
NOOSA
this place is cool, and crawling with Canadian chicks, definitely worth a stop over, and possibly a good place to stop for a while, work for accomm get into things a bit more. A good place for surfing as well, so give it a shot. Don't stay in Dolphins! It's also near Australia Zoo, which is the biggest and best, so hit that up on your way down to Brisbane
Noosa - Brisbane - 2 hours
BRISBANE
Boring. Good botanical gardens, great modern art museum, not much else. Some people love it, I was bored.
Brisbane - Surfers = 2 hours
SURFERS PARADISE
Not my cup of tea at all! But, very good night life, a little more dressy than other places (no flip-flops and vests!) and lots of Aussies on the pull. A good place to meet Aussie chicks though, especially if you get out of the backpacker bars. Has Wet n Wild and Dreamworld, the biggest theme parks in Aus, so give them a blast, but not in the school hols!
Surfers - Byron = 2 hours
BYRON BAY
3 places to stay in Byron
1) Backpackers Inn - the cheapest place, about 10 mins from the town, not great though
2) nomads - right in the middle, big party hostel, but one of the most expensive
3) Arts Factory - funky place, lots of people love it, but it's about 20mins from the town
Very cool place, very hippy, loads of people love it, and it's rad. Great for surfing, and even free board hire if you find the right place, but the board are made of dick. EXPENSIVE though, so popular, and expensive to match. you have to go to Nimbin! it's fun and cool.
Byron - Spot x - 6 hours
SPOT X
It's a surf camp, nothing else there! Just surf, chill, shag, and eat. All food provided, and it's good food!
Spot x - Syd
SYDNEY....
I'll finish this later...
Romantic or Creepy?
I got to thinking about this when a girl I met in Thailand told me about a guy who had been following her across borders and around islands. My first thoughts were how romantic, that he was willing to change his plans just to be with her, but she thought it was creepy. So I did a bit of research, and there's a few articles online on the subject, (one totally stolen from another, bad reporter!) each listing some examples of what was romantic and what was creepy, and yeah, when phrased with bias it's easy to make a possibly romantic gesture seem creepy and vice versa.
For example:
Tony meets Gemma in a hostel in Bangkok and after a night out together she leaves, without having exchanged any details. Tony asks around at the hostel and finds out where Gemma has gone and decides to catch her up. He finds the hostel she's staying in at the next town and surprises her.
Now it's easy to spin this either way, mostly based on how the night out was, good or bad, and how he finds out where Gemma has gone, asking others who she knew, or everyone at the hostel. But at the end of the day, the defining difference between romantic and creepy is...
Whether she likes him!
Simple as that, if they hadn't exchanged details because they forgot, and she wanted to see him again and he magically appears at the next hostel as well, well then ain't that just grand. But if she deliberately didn't give him her details, then he turns up to see her, well that sure is creepy!
Well fair enough, makes sense to me... but wait. Isn't romance supposed to be about wooing the lady? Making a girl that's not into you get into you with romantic gestures. Yeah that sounds right, but wait. If she doesn't already like you then those big romantic gestures (and the bigger they are, the worse it is) are just seen as creepy and push her further away from you.
So, thanks creeps and stalkers for ruining romance for everyone, and thanks girls for assuming anyone trying to be romantic is being a creep.
Romance is dead, long live awkward honesty.
27/02/2012
Soundwave
I headed over to Soundwave festival at the Sydney Olympic Park yesterday, no ticket but hopeful. After a nice guy sold me his spare for $5 less than the original price I was in a good mood for some bands!
The arena is pretty huge, and pretty intimidating, the buildings are all huge and there's no signs anywhere. Luckily the free (yes free, UK fests take heed) program had a map, kinda hard to work out, but I got there, and I'm off to catch:
A Day To Remember
From way away in the stands there's really no atmosphere, and the sound quality is pretty low, lots of wind and the huge distance make it sound like listening to a iPhone on a cliff-top. Still, the crowd near the front seem to enjoy it, and the set is pretty tight. Predictable crowd favourites are the order of the day here, but a nice mix of the newer albums, missing out the heavier tracks for this audience. The most entertainment came from their props, while the band did the easy rocking out thing, stage hands first launched a load (heap!) of beachballs into the crowd, then a few songs later showered them with toilet rolls. Seeing the white strings in the air above their heads really made ADTR fun to watch. I skipped the end of their set for:
UnderOath
The stage these guys are on seems to be a cattleshed, it's a huge metal cave and as such there's way too much reverb in here, a lot of the sound getting lost in the mush of echoes. After a bit of a delay the band hit the stage hard, and it's clear to see why these guys are still going. A smaller crowd than they would've got in the UK, they still the heads are nodding. The hits are obviously the order of the day again, which suits this audience to the ground, the older songs going down much better with a surprisingly female crowd. It's a case of a band who's audience hasn't kept up them over the albums, with many looking like they should be in a sydney club rather than a dirty post-hardcore show.
Four Year Strong
Are playing the outdoor stage just outside, so giving them a listen seems too easy. Catching the end of the set, including many favourites including 'wasting time' and 'heroes get remembered' they're very tight and the vocal harmonies are as nice live as on album. Again, the crowd seems too small for a band this big back home. It's a fun set of great tunes, but the outdoor stage suffers from being too quiet to get into the music, and as such they come across a little weedy. With the dependance on two vocalists there's not too much action on stage, not to say that they were boring, just compared to others they lack the 'x' factor.
Bad Religion
Are surprisingly playing one of the main stages, clearly these guys are more popular here. There seems to a lot of love for bands of their generation, a love for punk that seems a little stuck in the 90s. As such BR pump out a set of oldies, pleasing the crowd, but for a newer fan (like me) I'm left wanting for more from 'The Empire Strikes First'. Still they play a decent amount from that album, and plenty of older classics as well. It's possible that they played 'you' after I left, but the song that accompanied many happy hour of video game skateboarding would have been welcome. Overall the sound is good closer to the stage, and the set is real tight, while the between song is honed to a friendly chat, no bullshit, and a few smart jokes. The size of the venue dampens the atmosphere a little though, so the effect is less impressive than other shows. I leave a little early to see a personal favourite of mine:
Circa Survive
It's another big shed for Circa, and as such a total lack of atmosphere. This doesn't stop Anthony Green doing a superb job though, his pitch perfect vocals soaring over the melodic guitar lines. The band play a stunning set, keeping things alove with a mix of their three albums. It's pretty clear that Anthony is high, probably on PCP or something similar, but this just makes him even more entertaining to watch, arms swinging all over the place and eyes like a crazy hitchhiker in the middle of the outback. The energy on stage smashes the passive audience to pieces, although the last song 'Get Out' sends the crowd crazy, finally showing the band the love they deserve. Again the differences between Aus and home become apparent, as the UK would have been more excited for early album 'Juturna' songs rather than the later efforts. That said, it was a spectacular set, if only more people realised, or the sound was less echoy.
Thursday
Are outside as well, the same stage as FYS, and suffering from the the same problems, lacking power mostly from the lack of volume. Their set is fast paced, as the power through the best of their albums. They're keen to let the gathered people know of their upcoming show in Sydney where they'll be playing the whole of 'Full Collapse' as a memorial to themselves, and as a farewell to Australia. The band put on a nicely tight set, but it's not enough to get people moving much, or to inspire much. It goes to show how even the longest lasting of the 'emo' bands from the early 2000's are beginning to fall. Then it's time to wander over for
The Dillinger Escape Plan
who are on one of the smallest stages, although it's still in a shed far too big. Perhaps this is the way of Australia, nearly every pub, bar and venue I've been has seemed far too big for it's occupancy, I crave a tiny intimate venue! Still, this set certainly had atmosphere, with plenty of people piling to see the crazed tech-metallers. It's a blistering set as well, deathly screams over quick double pedal, insane technical riffs and pounding bass lines. This is a band that don't do things by half, and within seconds the vocalist in the crowd screaming in the faces of the front row. This is just the start though, as the guitarist start throwing themselves around the stage, climbing amps is a regular occurrence, and even the lighting rig at the back of the stage. Guitars are spun around arms and bodies as they show their love for their music in the most visceral way possible. It's powerful stuff that really impresses, especially when combined with the technicality of their songs. All too quickly their set is over so it's back to the first shed, but on the way I happen across:
Strung Out
conveniently playing my favourite song. It's an amazing mix of punk-rock and technical ability that creates a real unique sound, although the lame stage does it no justice. All too soon it's time to hurry off for
LetLive.
My most anticipated band of the day and one I've been looking forward to since Reading festival last August. They hit the stage like a brick to the face, hard and heavy. It's a small crowd but every one there seems to be a huge fan, screaming and singing back to the band with passion. The pit is a little strange as the lack of people allows it to open too wide. Vocalist Jason Aaron Butler is a machine, throwing himself across the stage with a raw passion that is unmatched these days. It's pure emotion pouring out of his lungs as he bellows those words into the faces of those present. Again, the stage action is impressive, with guitars, drum parts and speakers all being used to climb, leap from or throw. The power behind this band is huge, and the audience is left with knowledge of how a good band really should be. Up close and personal. On the stage right beside
Your Demise
start up. Only staying for a couple songs, I find their style of 'party hardcore' idiotic and meaningless. The riffs are brutal and aggressive, but there's no depth to this band. Still they're a tight band, and they look the part. The action on stage is nothing compared to the insanity in the pit though. It seems that most of the audience have come down for the chance to two-step and swing fists more than actually listening, but that's fine as it gives the rest of something good to watch. Back in another shed though is
I Am The Avalanche
A band I don't know much about, and not one I've listened to much. It's quiet in here again, but that doesn't seem to bother the band, who pump through the last couple tunes of their set. It's clear that the Vocalist has taken of lot of his old band 'The Movielife' with him to this project. It's a similar mature punk-rock that works well. This would definitely work well in a smaller venue, as the somewhat apathetic audience doesn't help at all. Still, the last song 'Brooklyn Dodgers' is a perfect example of the great songwriting capable from this band.
Slipknot
Are about halfway through their set when I climb the stands to give them a chance. I've not been a fan of theirs for many years, and unsurprisingly I'm still not. From what I can tell, their super tight and their songs sure are heavy. But it's not for me, and the distance again weakens the impact hugely. Also, I'm shocked at how polite they are between songs, so much for the horrific and disgusting image they had, they're just some nice old guys in silly masks. As the drum-set lifted for the set finale I struggle to understand the purpose of such a showboat maneuver, it seems somewhat pompous and cliched now, but the crowd sure go wild for it! And it's back again to the shed for one last band although
Cro-Mags
are still playing when I arrive, a band that does not impress at all. It's like watching Comeback Kid play all those songs no-one liked. It's fast and hardcore, but most of the people in the room at that point are just waiting for
Enter Shikari
Who come on to a massive cheer. And play loads of new stuff that I really don't know, but everyone else seems to...
Bored of writing this now, will continue at another time, probably.
The arena is pretty huge, and pretty intimidating, the buildings are all huge and there's no signs anywhere. Luckily the free (yes free, UK fests take heed) program had a map, kinda hard to work out, but I got there, and I'm off to catch:
A Day To Remember
From way away in the stands there's really no atmosphere, and the sound quality is pretty low, lots of wind and the huge distance make it sound like listening to a iPhone on a cliff-top. Still, the crowd near the front seem to enjoy it, and the set is pretty tight. Predictable crowd favourites are the order of the day here, but a nice mix of the newer albums, missing out the heavier tracks for this audience. The most entertainment came from their props, while the band did the easy rocking out thing, stage hands first launched a load (heap!) of beachballs into the crowd, then a few songs later showered them with toilet rolls. Seeing the white strings in the air above their heads really made ADTR fun to watch. I skipped the end of their set for:
UnderOath
The stage these guys are on seems to be a cattleshed, it's a huge metal cave and as such there's way too much reverb in here, a lot of the sound getting lost in the mush of echoes. After a bit of a delay the band hit the stage hard, and it's clear to see why these guys are still going. A smaller crowd than they would've got in the UK, they still the heads are nodding. The hits are obviously the order of the day again, which suits this audience to the ground, the older songs going down much better with a surprisingly female crowd. It's a case of a band who's audience hasn't kept up them over the albums, with many looking like they should be in a sydney club rather than a dirty post-hardcore show.
Four Year Strong
Are playing the outdoor stage just outside, so giving them a listen seems too easy. Catching the end of the set, including many favourites including 'wasting time' and 'heroes get remembered' they're very tight and the vocal harmonies are as nice live as on album. Again, the crowd seems too small for a band this big back home. It's a fun set of great tunes, but the outdoor stage suffers from being too quiet to get into the music, and as such they come across a little weedy. With the dependance on two vocalists there's not too much action on stage, not to say that they were boring, just compared to others they lack the 'x' factor.
Bad Religion
Are surprisingly playing one of the main stages, clearly these guys are more popular here. There seems to a lot of love for bands of their generation, a love for punk that seems a little stuck in the 90s. As such BR pump out a set of oldies, pleasing the crowd, but for a newer fan (like me) I'm left wanting for more from 'The Empire Strikes First'. Still they play a decent amount from that album, and plenty of older classics as well. It's possible that they played 'you' after I left, but the song that accompanied many happy hour of video game skateboarding would have been welcome. Overall the sound is good closer to the stage, and the set is real tight, while the between song is honed to a friendly chat, no bullshit, and a few smart jokes. The size of the venue dampens the atmosphere a little though, so the effect is less impressive than other shows. I leave a little early to see a personal favourite of mine:
Circa Survive
It's another big shed for Circa, and as such a total lack of atmosphere. This doesn't stop Anthony Green doing a superb job though, his pitch perfect vocals soaring over the melodic guitar lines. The band play a stunning set, keeping things alove with a mix of their three albums. It's pretty clear that Anthony is high, probably on PCP or something similar, but this just makes him even more entertaining to watch, arms swinging all over the place and eyes like a crazy hitchhiker in the middle of the outback. The energy on stage smashes the passive audience to pieces, although the last song 'Get Out' sends the crowd crazy, finally showing the band the love they deserve. Again the differences between Aus and home become apparent, as the UK would have been more excited for early album 'Juturna' songs rather than the later efforts. That said, it was a spectacular set, if only more people realised, or the sound was less echoy.
Thursday
Are outside as well, the same stage as FYS, and suffering from the the same problems, lacking power mostly from the lack of volume. Their set is fast paced, as the power through the best of their albums. They're keen to let the gathered people know of their upcoming show in Sydney where they'll be playing the whole of 'Full Collapse' as a memorial to themselves, and as a farewell to Australia. The band put on a nicely tight set, but it's not enough to get people moving much, or to inspire much. It goes to show how even the longest lasting of the 'emo' bands from the early 2000's are beginning to fall. Then it's time to wander over for
The Dillinger Escape Plan
who are on one of the smallest stages, although it's still in a shed far too big. Perhaps this is the way of Australia, nearly every pub, bar and venue I've been has seemed far too big for it's occupancy, I crave a tiny intimate venue! Still, this set certainly had atmosphere, with plenty of people piling to see the crazed tech-metallers. It's a blistering set as well, deathly screams over quick double pedal, insane technical riffs and pounding bass lines. This is a band that don't do things by half, and within seconds the vocalist in the crowd screaming in the faces of the front row. This is just the start though, as the guitarist start throwing themselves around the stage, climbing amps is a regular occurrence, and even the lighting rig at the back of the stage. Guitars are spun around arms and bodies as they show their love for their music in the most visceral way possible. It's powerful stuff that really impresses, especially when combined with the technicality of their songs. All too quickly their set is over so it's back to the first shed, but on the way I happen across:
Strung Out
conveniently playing my favourite song. It's an amazing mix of punk-rock and technical ability that creates a real unique sound, although the lame stage does it no justice. All too soon it's time to hurry off for
LetLive.
My most anticipated band of the day and one I've been looking forward to since Reading festival last August. They hit the stage like a brick to the face, hard and heavy. It's a small crowd but every one there seems to be a huge fan, screaming and singing back to the band with passion. The pit is a little strange as the lack of people allows it to open too wide. Vocalist Jason Aaron Butler is a machine, throwing himself across the stage with a raw passion that is unmatched these days. It's pure emotion pouring out of his lungs as he bellows those words into the faces of those present. Again, the stage action is impressive, with guitars, drum parts and speakers all being used to climb, leap from or throw. The power behind this band is huge, and the audience is left with knowledge of how a good band really should be. Up close and personal. On the stage right beside
Your Demise
start up. Only staying for a couple songs, I find their style of 'party hardcore' idiotic and meaningless. The riffs are brutal and aggressive, but there's no depth to this band. Still they're a tight band, and they look the part. The action on stage is nothing compared to the insanity in the pit though. It seems that most of the audience have come down for the chance to two-step and swing fists more than actually listening, but that's fine as it gives the rest of something good to watch. Back in another shed though is
I Am The Avalanche
A band I don't know much about, and not one I've listened to much. It's quiet in here again, but that doesn't seem to bother the band, who pump through the last couple tunes of their set. It's clear that the Vocalist has taken of lot of his old band 'The Movielife' with him to this project. It's a similar mature punk-rock that works well. This would definitely work well in a smaller venue, as the somewhat apathetic audience doesn't help at all. Still, the last song 'Brooklyn Dodgers' is a perfect example of the great songwriting capable from this band.
Slipknot
Are about halfway through their set when I climb the stands to give them a chance. I've not been a fan of theirs for many years, and unsurprisingly I'm still not. From what I can tell, their super tight and their songs sure are heavy. But it's not for me, and the distance again weakens the impact hugely. Also, I'm shocked at how polite they are between songs, so much for the horrific and disgusting image they had, they're just some nice old guys in silly masks. As the drum-set lifted for the set finale I struggle to understand the purpose of such a showboat maneuver, it seems somewhat pompous and cliched now, but the crowd sure go wild for it! And it's back again to the shed for one last band although
Cro-Mags
are still playing when I arrive, a band that does not impress at all. It's like watching Comeback Kid play all those songs no-one liked. It's fast and hardcore, but most of the people in the room at that point are just waiting for
Enter Shikari
Who come on to a massive cheer. And play loads of new stuff that I really don't know, but everyone else seems to...
Bored of writing this now, will continue at another time, probably.
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