Last weekend I spent all day Saturday (up until about 2am Sunday morning actually) listening to submissions for a music festival held in Canberra, ACT (for those of you who don’t know, Canberra is the Capital of Australia). I had help, in the form of three friends. Two of these guys have been running the festival for the last 4 years, and prior to that, a very close friend and I had been organising it. The festival, called Indyfest , has been running for about 12 years now. While it is no...
Mondays are synonymous with bad luck, as we all know. There is even a word for it: Mondayitis. But I never really believed in the Monday curse. Not until today, anyway. After a very busy weekend (I’m going to write a separate blog about my Saturday), which included a close friend’s wedding yesterday afternoon, I wasn’t exactly the sharpest prickle on the cactus this morning. As I was leaving the house, I realised I’d left my sunglasses at the wedding reception. Now, under normal circum...
I wrote a post recently about a problem I was having with my ears. I had an infection that left me almost completely deaf for two weeks, a hell I wouldn’t wish upon my worst enemies. Since then, I have had my hearing restored but have been told if I don’t give up performing and recording music, I could lose my hearing permanently. I don’t know what to do. I am a very creative person, with music being my biggest outlet. Being on stage is better than any drugs I’ve ever tried. There is j...
I have such wonderful memories of my childhood. I am the eldest of five children all born within 6 years (basically, my mother spent the 60's pregnant), with the breakdown being 4 boys then (finally, according to my parents) a girl. My sister had all four of us boys wrapped around her finger from the time she could bat her eyes at Dad. She grew into a beautiful, strong, proud woman who has become a wonderful wife and mother whom I love dearly. My immediate brother Greg and I were best fr...
My wife and I are big fans of Nick Hornby. One of our favourite books of his is High Fidelity. One of the aspects of this book we enjoy is the lead characters and their incessant list-making, particular by the main character Rob. So, in conversation the other night, we decided we would spend the next couple of months trying to come up with our Desert Island Twenty. This is a list of songs that mean so much to us that we would forsake all other music to only listen to these if stuck on a d...
I've written previously about how much I love music. I was recently left incapacitated for a couple of weeks after an ear infection left me almost completely deaf. I tried to keep as positive an attitude as I could during this time but the worst thing was not being able to listen to music. I tried all sorts of tricks to keep my mind occupied but everything kept coming back to music for me. Not only could I not hear my favourite tunes, I couldn't play guitar or sing either (something I try...
Nearly two years ago I turned 40 years old. It’s a milestone, similar to turning 18 or 21 or even 30. I’m not pointing this unchangeable fact out to be obvious, but to reiterate how I still feel like a kid inside. This doesn’t necessarily mean I’m naïve or I have license to act immaturely in public places. I simply recognise where my creativity stems from and allow myself to be indulgent when inspiration happens. Recently, though, a friend pointed out a behavioural problem he thought I...
The afternoon is a splendidly languid summer one, the sort that makes teenagers skip school in favour of being pummelled by surf and wrestling in the sand. I feel like skipping the afternoon drudgery myself. But such is life for an adult, particularly in the western world, that they have to give up these simple pleasures in favour of doing something very few of them honestly enjoy: work. So I go back into my overly air-conditioned office, shivering as I take my seat. The corner workstat...
What if Jesus Christ was living right next door to you? Would you recognise him? Would you feel his presence, understand his message and become a disciple? Would you respect his beliefs and opinions, without necessarily adopting his religion? Or would you want to crucify the bastard for having yet another rowdy party in his backyard, with all his hippy mates, drinking wine and passing around plates of smelly fish. What about if your son or daughter were recognised as an incarnation of Buddha?...
Why is it some people don’t like having their photo taken? The rationale I’ve heard used is basically they don’t think they look good enough. I’ve heard this said by some of the most beautiful people I’ve ever known. Take my wife, for instance (yeah, I know this sounds like the lead up to a corny vaudeville joke, but bear with me). She is absolutely gorgeous. Of course, I am completely biased, but she is, trust me. Anyway, she can’t stand her photo being taken. Whenever anyone points...
How is this for a premise: making an ass of yourself can put points on your wisdom scorecard if you make an ass of yourself and don’t even know you’re doing it. The getting of wisdom comes later when you realise and then go out of your way to eat humble pie and apologise for your behaviour. I don’t think this is being regretful either, because the getting of regrets is from doing something you KNOW to be wrong at the time. Making an ass of one’s self is usually done completely unselfconsci...
“The music business is a long shallow plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free, and good men die like dogs… There is also a negative side.” - Hunter S Thompson “There is something sick about a person whose only interest is money. And the same can be said, I think for the Company whose sole goal is profit.” - Richard J. Haayen I can’t hold back any longer. I’ve held back from saying anything for ages but now I’ve had enough. I’ve had enough of manufactured Popstars and...
What is a success? Is success money or power? Is success fame? Is success freedom to choose what, how and when? We so often hear of people who seemingly have everything but are plagued by mental problems, addictions and obsessions or are just nasty and temperamental. Too often I hear folk lamenting the failures of their life or ranting about how others have got it so much better. They’re jealous of the hard work others do to gain success. They’re envious of material possessions, ar...
“All the great pleasures of life are silent.” Clemenceau This is the quote on the bottom of the calendar for June 22nd 2005, which happens to be my birthday. I find it rather ironic given: a. I’m a musician b. I’ve just found out I will have to wear hearing aids for the rest of my life. Having said this, I agree with the quote, in a lot of respects. We live in such a noisy world; sometimes it is really hard to appreciate quiet when we hear it. In the past, I’ve lived...
I haven’t been as active on JU this year as I would have liked because I’ve been sick. So has my wife. We’ve both been fighting off a terrible summer cold. My poor wife was sick on Christmas Day and the only reason we had a New Year's celebration is due to copious amounts of cold and flu medication. A lot of people I know and work with have also been sick with the same rotten bug. But I’ve also found out something else and have been trying to figure out the best way to share it with my n...