Just read this and weep America

He is a grumpy bugger but this just about gets it right.
Just about - even though he has no idea of British Geography and that my dear colonial cousins is unforgiveable!

T T FN

Which is posh for Ta Ta for Now.

Toodel oooo.


TAKEN FROM A POST ON: http://lefsetz.com

The Feeling At Shepherd’s Bush Empire

It’s different here. Everybody’s still a believer.

There’s radio. That everybody listens to. There’s television, featuring all the new acts. And tons of TV advertising and billboards to boot. There’s a vibe here, music is part of the fabric. David Byrne had it right. Same as it ever was.

At the Shepherd’s Bush Empire tonight I felt it was like 1964, and the Beatles were performing. The venue is unlike any in the U.S., that I’ve been to anyway. It looks like a legit theatre, but according to the history, it’s always been used for music.

On the floor people were packed in so tight it was almost like the Who in Cleveland.

And then there were THREE balconies. Hovering seeming feet from the stage. It was so intimate, you felt so THERE! There was a level of excitement we used to have HERE in the sixties. One that disappeared long ago, with the arena rock of the seventies and the MTV of the eighties.

Speaking of which, the Feeling covered the Buggles’ "Video Killed The Radio Star". I heard the initial notes and…couldn’t believe it.

But even more stunning was that everybody knew the words. They were singing along. Hell, many times during the show the audience functioned like a backup singer.

You’d think it would be all girls, aren’t they the only ones listening to pop?

But there were some oldsters like me. And twentysomething dudes who looked like they’d whomp you in a blind alley. But, they were singing along with every word.

It’s like music is the national religion here. Not like a sideshow in the U.S.

All the money and all the celebrity conspired to ruin the mainstream music scene in the States. The only shit worth seeing is under the radar. Whether it be Robert Randolph or some band in a club. The stars? They don’t seem to be playing to the fans, but to the media. Their devotion is to the bank, not the listener. It’s palpable. The mainstream music scene in the U.S. is so phony that you tune it out.

But according to Richard, CD sales are UP in the teenage demo in the U.K. I mean broadband penetration isn’t what it is in the U.S., but I see a lot of white headphones. Then again, CD prices are dropping here. Tesco is in a battle with Warner, it won’t even stock a couple of hit records until they bring the price down. Predictions are that CDs are gonna decline to five pounds, far less than half of what they were only a few years ago.

And this gig? Thirteen pounds and change. Which works out to under thirty bucks.

Furthermore, it’s cheaper than that. Because our money ain’t worth shit over here. Lunch at the museum today, a small salad, was twelve bucks. The ten minute cab ride to the venue? Twenty bucks. It’s not like we’re living in a third world nation in the U.S., but for the supposed greatest country in the world, we’re not looking too good. Hell, the FOOD is even good in London these days. The Tesco at the gas station doesn’t only put 7-11 to shame, it eclipsed Ralphs in quality, if not breadth.

So whatever anybody tells you, don’t take what’s happening in the U.K. to be representative of what’s happening in the U.S., and vice versa. They’re two completely different worlds. The U.S. has got Top Forty, comprised of hip-hop and a bit of pop, and the underground. With dinosaurs ruling the live venues.

In the U.K., the dinosaurs tour, hell, I saw an ad for HAWKWIND in "Q". But the up and comers, it’s a very vibrant scene. And it’s multifarious genres, in a way we haven’t seen in the States since the seventies.

Sure, the acts sell out and do endorsements here, but it’s not as big a deal, because people don’t believe in the myth. They know except for the Robbie Williamses, everybody’s doing it for a lark, and will be down in the pit working a day job with them soon.

As for the band…

The mix was HORRIFIC! The bass sounded like a chainsaw and dominated the mix. The solo in "Sewn" couldn’t even be heard. And the lead singer was just as jive as he was in L.A.

But it all didn’t fall flat here. The audience clapped hard for an encore. The early twentysomething girls in front of me drank their beer and shook their asses even though none of them had a man in sight. It was about the MUSIC! The way it made them feel. Real good.

Shepherds Bush Empire

__________________________________________

One more thing. It’s like a living record here. I was riding the Central line back from the venue and one of the stops was…"White City"! I thought Pete Townshend was being METAPHORIC when he named his album that.

And Harry talked about buying a house in Richmond. Which immediately reminded me of the Faces song.

And every time I look at the tube map, "Play With Fire" goes through my brain…

Now she gets her kicks in Stepney
Not in Knightsbridge anymore

You feel the musical culture here. You get a sense of where the musicians were coming from when they wrote those classic songs. After all, it’s not always sunny like in L.A., you have plenty of time to think, to be introspective, to let your inner feelings and hopes and dreams out in your songs. It’s less about shining on, and more about WE GOTTA GET OUT OF THIS PLACE!

But most people never do.

The Feeling is an English thing. So many of today’s English acts just will not translate, they’re local productions and phenomenons. Makes you wonder why we went through twenty odd years of English music dominating the American charts.

And I open the paper on the train this afternoon and there’s a picture of the Battersea Power Station… Can you say ANIMALS???

The Shipping Forecast

After expending my carbon credits by flying back from the land of the fathers I landed at Gatwick - the worlds most god forsaken airport - so that I could rush up to a meeting at the legendary townhouse studios in London.

This place is an amazing labyrinth of studios and mastering suits that has a history that basically writes the last 30 years of the british music business.

The great thing about my little visit is that both Al and Steve took me for a guided tour of the entire place - from the basement to the roof an it was a really charming place to be. I can see why musicians love it so much. In the bowels of the building I came across boxes of old DAT tapes from everyone who has ever been there. I picked up a dusty box and found it was an old Beta video tape of Iron Maiden live in Rio. Lying gathering dust in a damp basement - the stuff of legend. Someday someone will have a clear out and find hidden treasures like this that have been long forgotten.

It is sort of reassuring to find that despite my most cynical moments there are still places that have a real scent of musical history still hanging about.

On the way up to London I switched on the radio and heard one of the great British institutions - the Radio 4 SHIPPING FORECAST. In case you have never heard this it is just a list of sea areas and pressures, sea conditions and yet somehow it is redolent of the entire history of Britain. "Cromarty , Forth, Tyne Dogger. West North West 1008, falling." is the kind of thing you hear. "Thames, Dover Wight. gale force 8 gusting 9. Imminent."

The thing with the shipping forecast is that no matter what the weather man is saying he always says it in a clear calm voice so that boats out at sea can hear it and write it down. That way they will know in advance if they are going to sink in the perfect storm later that day. Nice. I only wish there was a music business forecast.

Can you imagine a broadcast that you could tune into that went along these lines:

"Digital, Live, Merch - 40% rising slowly.
Licence, Sync, Myspace. Anti-cyclonic. Steady.
Labels. Legals, CD, Retail, falling fast. Collapse Imminent."

What a relief that would be.

As you know we are at the unknown edge of a new weather front in the way music is managed. It is unpredicatable. A bit like the winter. One day calm, the next stormy. I do feel that right now the storm is just passing over and we may even emerge from the other side in the next year or two. It is feeling better now that it has for ages.

One thing that does worry me is that I have heard a few bits of news from the big city. Remember where you heard it first ( or second or ages ago ...)

Firstly Whitfield St studios shut down whilst I was in Aus. What a shame. Brilliant massive space, right in the centre of London. Then Sarn is in the dung again and so is Olympic and even Abbey Road is losing cash. What a terrible omen for the technicians and guardians of yore and what an opportunity for the new bucks with verve and a few dollars to spend on Pro tools and a decent Mac.

Clever men i shite coats with shiny heads are always inventing new ways to record and technology is always changing so that isn't really a problem but, what may be a problem is the loss of a community and shared experiences that places like these create. Its what what we all got into the business for after all. Weeks of sweaty hedonism in the dark, dank rooms where others have already behaved badly and brilliantly allow a certain creative freedom that a bedroom studio does not. I mean aren't you more likely to knock of the hookers and gak in a creative haze when you are in a proper studio than when you are blogging or watching clips on you tube whilst you wait for that damn render to finish?

We allow these places to decay at our peril.

Save the wailers.
Save the wail.

HACIENDA HOLA

Guided by the well hung cow that wanders past my room every evening I have been considering the state of the music world.

Since the nice men in white suits took me away from the debauchery and decrepitude of rock n roll I have had plenty of time to think. Sadlly, thanks to the herbal medication I haven't been able to use that time. Instead I have wasted the opportunity by sitting in alpine streams watching birds twitching like a diva about to go on stage.

Today however I am calm and considered. The effects of the mangold poultice are wearing off and there is hope in the brain of this demented author.

It struck me - as I observed a stork wafting past - that there are millions of different genres of music but we only ever consider one; The one we like. Believe it or not I like white mans indie rock and that is why the label has gravitated towards that particular style. That's why college radio and BBC are almost entirely composed of the same stuff. It's programmed by the same people from the same background with the same haircuts and the same attitudes.

Now whay should that interest you? SImply because if you can think different you may be able to break through in an entirely original way.

Let me explain. Here in the midle of Europe there are "cantons". These are areas that all have distinct identities and even languages. Did you know that there are French, German and Italian Swiss? They all get along togther and have one identity outside their country - SWISS.

Now, in music there are all the genre's - Urban, Rock, Country etc and the occassional crossover but generally you are what you are and that's that.

It strikes me that perhaps its possible to look at breaking that mould and setting up a new method of working.

Imagine recording in French for example and getting a big followig in Canada and France before you even think about London , New York or Sydney. Imagine trying to be the first band from Dubbo or Dublin that sings in Cantonese or that uses a weir instrument like an oud in a pop song.

It has been done before with massive success - eg Beatles and Ravi Shankar, Christie Moore and Planksty, Madonna and talent. Combine the unusual elements and find a new blend.

It can work. There is even a chef in the UK who cooks snail porridge and is a big star - YEUUUCH!

For those of you interested in working in America why haven't you thought about the Hispanic market? I know they don't get big headlines in the mags but something like 40% of America speaks spanish not English. Thats huge! It is not something to ignore. Then there is Korea, India, China, Indonesia and many many more.

There are the odd successful foreign acts - gloria estefan and Los Lobos perhaps but not many. Make the journey and you will be famous.

So in short if you want to make it don't think like the rest. Try to pin the tail on the donkey but look for a new adhesive!

Until later