NEW SOUNDS, ART SALE, DARK NIGHTS

The wind is howling down Novar Drive and 'Most Haunted' is playing on TV. November is off to an interesting and auspicious start!

I'm running low on space in the ol' studio so all of my finished paintings are going on sale for less than £200 each to make space for new canvasses. As ever, gimme a shout if you're interested in anything and we can chat! I want to work on some dark landscape stuff for the next little while. Well, thats how I feel about it tonight. It could well be a very different situation tomorrow: following your nose is generally a good thing but in terms of artistic temperament it can send you mad round some tangents and bends. All I need to have is one enlightening conversation and I'm zap into whatever subject it was we were talking about, at the expense of all else!

So it goes.

Today at work I decided to do an article on Appalachian Folk music. Now, I'm no expert on the subject, quite the opposite in fact, but in researching the article I came across some interesting bands that are around right now. Now, I'm not saying these bands are Appalachian Folk, I just came across them in my travels so have a gander at Wovenhand, 16 Horsepower and Rising Appalachia for some interesting sounds.

I'm really into the ethos of Rising Appalachia in particular: the inclusive performance aspect, the stage being open for aerial artists, fire-breathers etc: it's what I always dreamed of doing when I was in my twenties. They don't do the kind of music that I'd play but that's hardly the point I guess! Bands in general need to be more interesting: it takes a bit of cash but it doesn't have to take loads of cash.

I'm reading 'Deep South' by Paul Theroux and so far it's enjoyable and perceptive. I'm on the lookout for some dark Southern, Ozark mountains kinda stuff so if anybody has recommendations...

One book in that vibe that I LOVED is called 'The Devil All The Time' by Donald Ray Pollock. It is full of pretty bizarre and dark imagery, like for example a mad preacher who gets all fired up on booze and hellfire and then pours a jar of live spiders all over himself in the middle of a revival, that kind of thing. It's one hell of a read! I also love Daniel Woodrell (Winter's Bone) and I can say that 'The Outlaw Diaries' is pretty brutal and absorbing.

New music is coming soon: I'd like to get an EP out before the end of January but I'm working on a bunch of commercial music stuff too so we'll see how that goes. I'm just looking forward to making some noise, you know?

xx