The Next Big Thing

Well thanks for asking but in order to have writer's block then you have to be a writer. And that counts me out on a number of fronts...

It was one of those all weather drives to the stalag this morning. The flesh and the spirit were somewhat less willing even than usual. "It'll soon be the weekend" was the message from from Wreckless Eric's "Big Smash" via the cd player. That seemed to be recklessly optimistic given the circumstance but it's a good thing to be reminded that there is light at the end of that there tunnel thing. Amy and Eric stopped by here on their way back south on Saturday night. It was great to see them and they were in fine fettle. I was privileged to get a wee preview of some songs they're working on for a forthcoming release. Grand stuff that sits outside of any pigeonholes either of them are use to being stuffed into. They have a show in France soon so if you’re within range then go catch something very special indeed.

Like I mentioned in my short intro to last night’s late post scramble to get Ben’s Blasters report up, I saw the Hamell show again last night. During the show I got to thinking how hard it must be to focus and do this again and again. It seems like it's more difficult than just belting out songs in a conventional set. There are parts where the tempo of the storytelling and strumming intersect to drive home the message. Is this stuff really based on true stories? Very probably but the way he tells them has an extra edge. It's not comedy but humour comes in many shapes and sizes and when it's as sharp as this you won't even feel the gnashers biting yer arm off. He'll tell you "this isn't for everybody" but I was thinking that maybe it is. That it's exactly the dose of salts a lot of people need. As before, the "fuck it" chorus raised the roof. It was a horrible, wet night in Edinburgh but at that point the feeling of release was palpable. I guess he's halfway through the run now and it seems like the momentum is in high gear. See him. What else would you be doing between 6 and 7pm if you're in Auld Reekie onyhow?

Film Festival opens tonight and hits full throttle tomorrow. The great John Waters is in town, let them festivities begin.