Apeman

Went to watch King Kong yesterday afternoon and arrived daunted at the prospect of a three hour epic but left in an invigorated mood. The time had flown by. I suppose it was an old-fashioned film experience – set piece following set piece with too many exciting cliffhanging moments to count. I unashamedly and thoroughly enjoyed it. The IMDB suggests that director Peter Jackson paid homage to the 1933 Faye Wray version by slipping in several knowing details into his epic. I like that sort of thing.

Hey Chick

Hetty and Bella, the two chickens that joined our family unit in August continue to go from strength to strength. Despite gloomy murmurings that they would cease laying during the winter months we are consistently presented with two large and delicious eggs each day. Being off work has enabled me to cook their favourite treat, spaghetti. I am convinced the daft things reckon they are knocking back the tastiest worms in Christendom as the strands hardly touch the sides as they force them down. They adore any form of pasta and enjoy rice – which we believe they think are really maggots – too. I am really fond of these beasts and feel tangible pride in them whenever I poach another pair of their ova.

Tomorrow I shall be at Kingsholm Stadium to cheer on the city against the league’s bottom club, Leeds Tykes. We should win this one especially after a reported fine second half against Wasps on Boxing Day. Confidence should be fairly high but it is slightly disappointing and lacking in ambition to be using a defeat as a springboard for greater things. I am yet to see the team lose this season as I rarely attend away fixtures but am yet to witness any real art from the side, especially in the back division. Hopefully the dream pairing of Tindall and Simpson-Daniel will start to click soon. Oliver Morgan has proved my player of the season thus far. I appreciate his head-up, intelligent runs and dedication to the cause. I rate him highly. The returning hero Mercier has yet to get the backs purring but I recall in our wonderful cup and league winning season three (?) years ago that we scored marvellous try after marvellous try – and that was with the rather predictable bash-through-the-middle centre partnership of Todd and Fanolua and Mercier. Perhaps it will all click soon. No matter. It will be great to meet up with folk and appreciate fine banter for an hour or three.

Yesterday afternoon I strolled around a chilly Gloucester for a few hours, wrapped up warm as toast and with the sunny sounds of Dr. Alimantado filling my ears and transporting me to warmer climes. A search for new trousers proved fruitless and I returned home with only a few library books and a pack of empty CD cases from Smiths to show for my efforts. A poor return indeed.

Records

It is difficult to pick up this weblog. Does one recap all that needs mentioning from the past three or four months or does one pretend the site is up to date and carry on as before? Hmmm…

There were plenty of fine CDs released this year and I guess it is right to celebrate this here. One of my favourite discoveries of 2005 was Sufjan Stevens. His ‘Seven Swans’ album – a year or two old now I think – has been playing on my MP3 player almost non-stop for the past few months to the extent that I put off exploring his album from this year ‘Come On Feel the Illinois’ in case it didn’t live up to the genius of the former. I needn’t have worried. Both albums are full of subtlety, delicate melody and, heck, whimsy. What else have I enjoyed this year? 'Campfire Headphase', the longingly anticipated new long player from Boards of Canada didn’t disappoint. Swirling soundscapes and bags of atmosphere were aided and abetted by, heaven forbid, a few guitars strummed by the reclusive electronic uberstars. 'Aerial', the new Kate Bush album was lovely and intelligent and unusual. The song all about pi on the first CD remains a favourite. Not many people could get away with that kind of eccentricity but the mighty Bush managed to sit songs about maths, washing machines, Elvis and Joan of Arc together with insouciant ease. I loved the new Go-Betweens pop album ‘Oceans Apart’ and really thought the Gorillaz’ ‘Demon Days’ was clever and knowing and funky but was tainted by mass appeal. I know that sounds snobby. My Morning Jacket’s album ‘Z’ - pronounced 'zee' I believe - was eminently listenable to and the latest new Joy Division, The Editors, lived up to that tag as well as any with a fantastically gloomy recording, ‘The Back Room’. S is going to arrange a copy of Vashti Bunyan’s new album soon and I look forward to that. The Observer Music Monthly printed a Top 100 albums of the year review recently which led me to investigate Camille’s album ‘Le Fil’ which is a kind of French Portisheadesque ambient thing with, joy of joys, a drone that runs throughout the whole album. It really is rather beautiful and I have been listening to it while I pen these words. The Observer also pointed me towards the blind Malian couple Amadou et Miriam and their exuberant album ‘Dimanche a Bamako’. I sometimes worry that I only play miserable, contemplative stuff but this soaring, infectious recording bucks that particular trend. It’s noisily life-affirming.

Two Score Years

It is a touch embarrassing to realise that my last posting was in August albeit at the very end of that fine month.

So, what to report? My 40th birthday was just before Christmas and the landmark was passed with fun and friendship and fine food. I feel no different and have, indeed, utterly forgotten that I am now ‘closer to sixty than twenty’. My birthday bash was at the wonderful Café Rene, an oasis of good sense in a world of brand names and theme pubs. It was splendid to be surrounded by super people. My Mark E. Smith cake went down a treat and I received more reggae CDs than you could conceivably shake a Camberwell Carrot at. My current favourite is the mighty ‘Best Dressed Chicken in Town’ by Dr. Alimantado, a seventies roots classic. S presented me with The Fall’s Complete Peel Sessions (interesting version of my favourite Fall song L.A.) which I have been dipping into with relish.