07/04/06
A couple of things...
I said the new album would be out in the Spring and it's Spring now (allegedly) with no sign of the album (or the sun for that matter). Looks like there's going to be a few more months of work before the album's ready but I can promise that I've finished 5 songs which will definitely be on the album and written the music for another 5 which almost certainly will be. Just as a sneak preview here are the titles "Confetti, Champagne and Roses", "No Strings Or Ties", "The Girl Who Broke Her Own Heart", "Friday Night, Saturday Morning" and "Get A Grip My Dear". You can hear an acoustic version of "Confetti, Champagne And Roses" as part of the LSRfm podcast here.
Next up, gigs. I'm hoping to have a separate gigs / touring section up in the next few weeks, but this'll involve an overhaul of the whole site, so there could be delays! Anyway, my next outing is on Wed 19th April at the Cockpit Bar, as part of their regular Acoustic club. Once again it's free entry, so if you've not made it to a gig yet "come on down, the water's lovely".
Finally, some good news if you want to download Mindfilming - you can now get the full album from Napster and soon (within 2 months) you'll be able to get it from about 40 international download sites including I-Tunes etc. This has been with the aid of the pretty astounding people at CDBaby.com. I'll get a list of all these sites on the Shop page as and when they're ready.
Phew, so much to do, so little time. Off to write some more lyrics...

06/04/06
Had a great time playing Carpe Diem last Sunday - met a few regulars on the Leeds Music Forum, which was great having been a regular poster for the last 6 months or so. I'm told the free food was delish, though I didn't try it myself, but the real tragedy of the night was that I got 5.5 out of 20 in the general knowledge quiz and then missed out on winning the music quiz by half a point!

31/03/06
It's great being able to walk from the comfort of your own living room to to a gig in 5 mins, which is why it was so cool playing the Cardigan Arms last Friday.
I was only booked at a day's notice to fill in for a band who'd dropped out but having never played there before I thought it would be worth it to check out the venue - and it's ace. Quite a small room. Ok, a tiny room really. If you had a turnout of 40 people it'd be standing room only, but the PA is pretty good and the promoter, sound engineer etc are dead friendly. In the end it worked out as more of a rehearsal than a gig - Chris Molyneux, who was first on had only been booked at short notice too, and the headliner Glyn Bailey was from Blackburn, so the turnout was... limited! Luckily having a sense of humour about these kind of things is a prerequisite and I enjoyed both the other guys' sets.
If you came along to the last gig I played at Carpe Diem you'll remember it was one of the first Sunday Glutton nights and it was pretty damn good. The weekly gigs are free entry with 2 acoustic bands, free food and a music / general knowledge quiz. Well, I'm back again on Sunday (2nd April) supporting The French Defence, so if you can't face the prospect of Sunday night telly (remembering that they repeat Planet Earth on the following Saturday night!) then come along and say hi. But don't count on winning the quiz, this one's mine. Mwah ha ha ha...

19/03/06
...and now a full 30 minute recording from the Grain Division gig at Sandanista, Leeds has been added for your listening pleasure here. Enjoy.

18/03/06
I dropped in to do a session / interview for Leeds Student Radio just over a week ago and the resulting live versions (complete with invisible band on 2 songs) can be found here. Hopefully I'll have a copy of the full interview by the end of the week...

13/03/06
Cheers to everyone who came along to the Jug of Ale last Saturday; it was especially cool to catch up with lots of old friends (and I mean old, heh heh!). Sandwiched in between The Jeeps and Gary Nock the room was pretty rammed when I took to the stage and the audience's reaction just got more enthusiastic as the set went on... Fingers crossed I'll be back to Brum before the end of the year, maybe when the new album is out.
I've finally got the dates for the festival that I'll be playing in May this year. The International Pop Overthrow Festival in Liverpool will be hosting a selection of the best Powerpop bands from around the world at The Cavern Club - this will be an amazing week of bands and I'll be playing twice: Wed 24th May, 7pm @ The Cavern Pub and Sun 28th May 2.15pm @ The Cavern Club (Front Stage). What makes this extra special is that all gigs are FREE ENTRY - so no excuses will be acceptable, you have to be there!
As for festival no.2 - nope, you'll just have to wait til the next installment. It's a corker though.

5/03/06
Sandanista just won the Yorkshire Evening Post Best Bar in Leeds Award and I know why, judging by the gig last Thursday. No stage as such, but room for a huddle of musicians (I think that's the collective noun) and plenty of room for me and the invisible band - the appreciative audience and tasty tapas added to the good vibes. Rob from Grain Division (the promoters) recorded the gig and the performance will be broadcast on their radio show in the next week or so. Fingers crossed I'll get a copy that you'll be able to download from the site later in the month.
I'm really looking forward to next Saturday's gig at the Jug of Ale, Moseley, Birmingham. Having played there about a million times with Theory, it's a home from home and I'm hoping that all of you Midlands based devotees can make it. Remember doors are 8.30pm and it's £4 /£3 with flyer - Headline is from local band The Jeeps.