discellany

To all the Beefheart fans out there...Favorite period? Poll options are limited, so I'm afraid I've had to exclude the mid-70s "commercial" period. I'm guessing both "Unconditionally" and "Bluejeans" have their fans, but if they're honestly your go-to Beefheart albums, you'll have to fess up in the comments below!

Cheers,

D

1 week ago | [YT] | 6

discellany

Hi everybody!

The new Beefheart video (thumbnail below) will go live at 8PM THIS EVENING (Thurs 18th Jun). I have travel plans this weekend, so I'm putting it out 24 hours ahead of my traditional slot to give me a chance to respond to your comments etc.

This one's been brewing for a while. Hope you enjoy it!

Catch you later,

D

1 week ago | [YT] | 17

discellany

Sometimes you get to edit, and other times the editing gets to you. This is one of those "other" times. Currently, deep in the weeds of a (you guessed it) Beefheart video, which as of right now, is nowhere near ready for consumption. Lots going on, middle of exam season, excuses excuses, I know...

Expect an upload sometime next week...definitely by the weekend, but if I get ahead of the curve, a midweek drop is possible. Stay tuned for updates!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

D

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 23

discellany

Sometimes you get things wrong, and rather than leave this in the comments section of the video concerned, I thought it better to flag it up here, where it might reach a few more of you...

Gary Baker of McCarthy has been in touch to point out that the drums on the band's "The Enraged Will Inherit The Earth" album are not programmed. This was something I pulled from an online interview with Tim Gane, and repeated in the video. I guess the slightly crisper, polished sound of this album gave me little reason to question that claim. I've read the same thing repeated in a few other posts/pieces online, and I'm guessing that this misconception originated via the same source. It was an honest mistake, but nonetheless, I'd like to offer my sincerest apologies to Gary. For the sake of accuracy/clarity, I've also added an addendum to the video description.

Thanks for your attention.

D

3 weeks ago (edited) | [YT] | 23

discellany

There's been mucho salivation over the imminent release of the new Boards Of Canada later this week, and rightly so. Amongst all the hubbub, you may have missed the news yesterday of another unexpected comeback. Following a long absence from recording and playing, Vini Reilly has announced a new Durutti Column album, "Renascent", for release on 31st July. I was pretty emotional on hearing this. Vini's stroke in 2010 had left him in poor health, unable to play guitar at a level he was happy with, and the prognosis didn't look good. There were murmurings in 2011 that he was working on something...but following that, nothing.

Anyway, just passing it along ICYMI. The album teaser track is "Liars" (link below), and it's just wonderful to hear him making music again.

D

1 month ago (edited) | [YT] | 9

discellany

Hey everybody!

Hiding away indoors from the late-May heatwave (definitely NOT a sun worshipper), so a few things...

[1] If you've already checked out the latest video, thank you! Everyone else? It's linked below...you know what to do.

[2] Having some history with Springsteen going back to my teens, I made the mistake last night of watching "Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere". "It's about Nebraska, it'll be OK", I thought. Well, I thought wrong. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WATCH "SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE". Comfortably the worst rock bio-pic I've had the misfortune to sit through. A very bad movie which violently ODs on its own self-mythologizing seriousness. Take heed.

Anyway, be sure to enjoy what's left of the holiday weekend!

Cheers,

D

1 month ago | [YT] | 3

discellany

It's been an all-day edit and I still have tons of extra stuff to do (thumb, chapters, description, etc etc etc)...So, the new video will now be ready to drop tomorrow (Sat 23rd May) at 8PM UK time.

See you there!

Cheers,

D

1 month ago (edited) | [YT] | 12

discellany

Anything to distract myself from the job in hand...

A break from the writing drudgery by (1) tinkering with some "toys" (yes, I have discovered the joy of synth) and (2) knocking up this, the most cursory of spoilers, for next weekend's video. Google's "Search By Image" doesn't return an obvious match for the pixelated LP in the centre, so hopefully this one's enough of a head-scratcher to pique your interest. Feel free to pop your guesses below, but I'll neither confirm nor deny any correct answers. Ever the showman, eh?

Have a great weekend,

D

1 month ago | [YT] | 10

discellany

IT LIVES! These are the kind of repairs that give me the cold sweats...high voltages, everything PCB-mounted, all crammed into a tiny chassis with zero room for error. Thankfully, it seems as if the SS rectifier was indeed the source of my problems (random power loss/shutdown). These are nice little amps, bags of Voxy chime in a shiny lunchbox-style package...and much louder than you might think.

Cheers,

D

1 month ago | [YT] | 14

discellany

Thanks to old compadre Charles I will shortly be escaping the non-stop media coverage of the UK local elections (inevitably depressing, but at least Plaid ruined the Reform coronation back home)...Deerhoof, tonight, Norwich Arts Centre. The evening is saved! The country? Not so much...

D

1 month ago | [YT] | 13