Scrolling text

September 11, 2010 at 3:16 pm (Creative commentary, Reviews) (, , , )

Text scrolls in my mind, in waves, but it will be scrolling horizontally, vertically, and on all sorts of different angles during the Overload poetry festival. Two of my short poems ‘The winter winds’(part of it is in the image to the left with my name) and ‘One lifetime’(the current title of my blog) will be scrolling at Federation Square from today until September 19. I’d love to hear from you if you see them. What an amazing image, picturing the bustle of Flinders street station and your words, drifting above the chaos. It can’t get any better than that.

Also part of the Overload poetry festival, spoken word events, and the Overload poetry final. I competed in a slam heat and got fourth, a possible wildcard entry to the final. Two of the wildcards from all the heats will be selected at random on the night of the final to participate. Fingers crossed, toes and all that. A week before I was recorded performing my poem ‘Surrender’ at Passionate tongues by Channel 31′s poetry show, Red Lobster. The episode is also online. Look out for me at 10:15.

Music. Music. How can I write on my blog without mentioning my music? I was surprised and excited this week to learn that Trial Kennedy, the band I studied for Misplaced, are playing a gig before the Shihad gig in November. It’ll be their first gig for almost a year, and they’ll be straight out of the recording studio, and all pumped to hit the stage I’m sure. Friday 1st of October, Bada Bing 8pm in Frankston.

This week’s main inspirers were the UK band Bullet for my Valentine. BFMV electrified Festival hall and enthralled fans with their original melodic screamo sounds. BFMV played tracks from their debut album ‘Poison’, their second album ‘Scream, aim, fire’ and their recent album ‘Fever’. Tracks from ‘Fever’ were interspersed throughout the night, which was a thoughtful approach since many fans would have only recently been introduced to this album as it was only released here a few months ago. Many people are surprised when I tell them I love BFMV since their music is so dark and confronting, but I appreciate a wide spectrum of music, from classical to hip hop and beyond, and I believe that every piece of music has it’s purpose and place and that people get different things out of different pieces of music. What draws me to BFMV is their ability to draw the listener in with alluring melody, melody that drifts and infiltrates the soul and then to transition to wounded screamo which, for me, is a release of emotion. This transition from the warmth of emotion to the darkness is captivating and therapeutic. It’s honest and raw, like life. The performance at festival hall by BFMV was one of the best concerts I’ve been to in a long time and the performance is still resonating with me days later. The foursome produce music that is so cohesive it almost seems effortless and they present as a solid entity on stage which makes their performance believable. Not only that but they sound just as good live as they do recorded, but live is even better, because they carry an energy in their persona and have the ability to pass that energy onto their audience. The only let down for me was the regret that I should have brought tickets in the under 18 section – they seemed to be having more fun and abandoning their inhibitions unlike the over 18 drinking section who were either sitting down or standing, still. Next time, I’ll brave the mosh pit.

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Misplaced & Music

September 4, 2010 at 1:36 pm (Creative commentary, Reviews) (, , , , , )

Hello readers of my blog! How are you? I am quite enjoying writing in this free form rather than the intensity of poetry and narrative fiction. A brief description of what’s been going on in my writing world and then onto my musical adventures in this lovely city we live in, Melbourne.

Well, I’m sure some of you have heard that my first novel, Misplaced, was longlisted for the Hachette manuscript development program. Hachette are a huge global publishing house and they surprisingly have taken a liking to Misplaced! It was very unexpected to say the least. Hachette published the Twilight series, and I guess what was surprising for me was they stated they were looking for strong commercial fiction and I didn’t think Misplaced was but, oh well, I can’t complain. Five years later it’s exciting to see some enthusiasm amongst publishers. If I get shortlisted I will fly to Queensland to work with the editors. Whatever the future holds I am confident Misplaced will end up at the right publishing house. In the meantime I have started writing my second novel. I’ve written 1,000 words and am really excited about it. It’s been liberating to change writing styles from first person present tense to third person past tense. More on what my next book is about at a later date(when I’m ready to disclose it). Also a piece of my prose poetry Motherhood observations will be published in Page 17 in November. And for all you poetry fans out there, the Overload poetry festival kicks off this week and I’ll be competing in the first slam heat on Monday night. Check the Overload website for details.

Music. Music. Music. Have I mentioned how lucky we are here in Melbourne? On any given night you can go out alone and never be alone. And the music being played is awe inspiring to say the least. Stand out gigs for me: In late August I went to an off the hip bbq at The Tote to see the Spanish band Los Chicos who were energetic and lively, and had sort of a rock and roll salsa beat mixed with garage rock, something I haven’t heard before, and they had a crammed room of people jumping up and down, laughing, singing, and at one point, in a lull in their music, the singer had everyone on the floor, sitting, while the band played quietly in the background and he poured out his love for the city of Melbourne saying he didn’t want to leave(there was definitely love in the room). Their lyrics are hilarious, especially the song ‘We sound amazing but we look like shit’. What a fun gig!

Also that night I saw Buried Horses and the only way to describe them would be physiologically disturbing, but in a good way. They really got under my skin, and there was definitely some manipulation of my psyche going on there. I’m interested to see what they are going to come up with next.

Last week I saw The no real need and I found their music to have a very strong cohesive rhythmic element to it that really resonated with me. I allowed my senses to travel with the sound and liked where I ended up. Their sound is original, and raw, I think they’re going places.

This week took me to the Palace theater(formerly Metro where I spent every Friday night in my younger years) to see the Klaxons. It was completely full, and there were many spring chickens, jumping up and down around me, hands in the air, spilling beers, but it was still so good. I don’t know if I was expecting too much for the $64 price tag. Although some of their songs such as Echoes literally push music boundaries, others are a little predictable for me, and the band members themselves didn’t seem immersed in their music, which I believe to be a paramount aspect to performing gigs – I need to believe what you’re delivering. It could possibly have been the venue, because I’m accustomed to seeing gigs at smaller venues for a more intimate experience, whereas the Palace is huge, and has a high ceiling, so the music isn’t loud or intense enough to infiltrate.

I found their supporting band, Parades, an absolute delight to say the least. It’s great to see this younger generation of musicians experimenting with different sounds and allowing their melodies to carry them to the heart of a song. One of the singers, who I think was Kirsty Tickle, had a voice like an angel, there was no doubt about it. If that is what I’d hear in heaven take me now! Brilliant. I only found out later that she doesn’t always perform with them, she is like an occasional addition. What a shame, I’m not sure what Parades would sound like without her and if they would still be as good.

Well that’s all from me for today. Till the next installment…

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