email me at ross@tourettes.com.au
Tuesday 30 October, 2007
Well - its been almost a year since I wrote this column and I thought that even if no one out there gives a fuck that at least I would wrap up 2007 in brief so that in the future I would know what went down.
Let me start in late Nov 2006. We were still in London until the 24th. It was cold and shitful and me and Michele were squatting with friends in an old pub in Brixton. The Normandy was cool and the guys there were great but it was another case of bidding our time until it was time to go. ( very much like now ). It funny how things come to there inevitable conclusion even when only a matter of days before such a conclusion is speculative to say the least. Especially when you have the eternal optimists involved - Tourettes. We vacillate, we argue, we control our loathing of each other and we get on with the job. We essentially, optimistically hope for the best - from ourselves those that have said they will and the industry at large. Fuckin music industry. Fuck. Oh I digress
My story is that early one morning at the end of Nov 2006 we all took a train to Frankfurt and then a plane to Tai pei. We had a 16 hour stop over there and went downtown for some food and beer and the flew on to Sydney where I kinda got fucked in the 'how do we get where we are going from the airport stakes'. It went a little something like this - Charisma _________ FUCK!. That's code.
Oh yeh - I had been working on a Japanese Job ( TV commercial ) while we were at the Normandy and then more at any internet that would have me including Tai pei airport - That said Ashley had invited himself to stay at my boss' flat in Bondi and so thinking that I would go there and get his ( Bernie's ) car ( he was in Japan ) I share a taxi from the airport to Bondi with Ash. This is where the fun begins. I think by that stage we had been travelling for about 48 hours and so while Ash kicked back rolled a joint and had a beer I was left to discover that the car would not start and then wander around North Bondi in a stupor looking for a cab. That cab took me direct to the office where I did a couple of hours of work and then went home. FUCK. So that was the end of the Tourettes show for last year.
December for me was a lot of work - making first a small Sony ad and the working on the post production of a Jetstar (Qantas) commercial and then again for Hitachi on some strange surfboard meets MRI machine thing - can't explain.
No idea what happened in January - more work.
Somewhere in February /March Tourettes did some more shows in Melbourne and then some in Queensland - at this time we were rehearsing for the new recording.
I ran away for a week by myself and had a great time alone writing and relaxing. It was the first time ever I have been away anywhere completely by myself.
Rehearsal continued and we played a couple of we need money shows in Sydney - fairly shitful small shows that will never happen again, 77 and the Excelsior are off the list of shows Tourettes will do again. The rooms are too small the PA to average and we have done them too many times so YES - NO is the word.
I had a lot of work done on my teeth, which really need happening as I hadn't been to the dentist in about 10 years, we did the Gay Mardi Gra which was very funny but a lot of work to make the float - I remember drinking about a case of VB cans and being altogether drunk - someone paid for me to go to the after party so that was OK - its all a blur form there. The count down was on by that stage to get back out of Australia and begin the year of Tourettes 2007.
We left Sydney April 10 direct for the studio in LA. Michele stayed behind another few weeks and joined us late April. The studio experience is one that I will not delve to deeply into here. If you know me personally - I won't mind telling you but it's not for general consumption. Suffice it to say the studio is a stress where people's real personality traits come to the fore and so it is a good litmus test for the rest of life. I have certainly drawn my conclusions post those weeks but only time will tell. It will however never be the same for me.
Many words were spoken many notes played.
Generally the studio for Tourettes is a hot house of our day to day therefore more painful than usual, bullshit amplified and foibles suffered and emotions hardened against recurrent maelstroms and the boorish provocations of those who need such ruses to cover their less in guises of more.
I left the studio early. My job there was concluded.
Hamburg beckoned. At least I would be alone. I rescheduled my flights and arrived in Germany in early May.
My friend Suza let me sleep on her floor for 3 weeks until the band arrived. Those 3 weeks were great Suza is an amazing woman who now believes that she is my wife. We laughed, we cried, we drank Sekt, we smoked some hash. I studied German. It was a great few weeks.
The band arrived May 28 and we moved into the studio in Altona.
We had stayed here the year before but this time the studio owner spoke to the House Meister and we were allowed to spread out more. The whole building is empty so a few more rooms of the 8th floor haven't mattered. We took over the whole floor and it has been great to have more room. We have had our own rehearsal room and a room each and multiple bathrooms.
We borrowed a small vocal PA from a friend and drove to Dorpstedt where the Armageddon/ISC office is and got the backline gear ( drums amps etc ) and set up. It has been that way for months now - in a few weeks we will do the reverse and return all this gear and fuck off-
These are the shows we have played this year
10.11.2007 GER Marne Kapitol
09.11.2007 GER Berlin White Trash
27.10.2007 GER Rendsberg Ballernacht
20.10.2007 GER Berlin K17
19.10.2007 BE Wieze Metal Female Voices Festival
18.10.2007 GER Augsberg Spectrum
13.10.2007 GER Leipzig Kulturbund
06.10.2007 BE Antwerp Panddemonium
04.10.2007 GER Hamburg The Logo
30.09.2007 NL Amsterdam The Winston Kingdom
29.09.2007 NL Geleen Ed & Roco's
28.09.2007 NL Coevorden Metal Front
15.09.2007 GER Berlin Trinkteufel 10th Birthday
14.09.2007 GER Berlin White Trash
01.09.2007 BEL Wachtebeke Meadow Fest
24.08.2007 GER Hamburg Markthalle
22.08.2007 UK EC1, London Dry Bar
17.08.2007 UK Brixton , London The Grosvenor
05.08.2007 GER Hamburg The Hamburg Ballroom
04.08.2007 GER Wacken Wacken Festival
14.07.2007 GER Berlin Wild at Heart
03.07.2007 GER Geseilewind Battle of Metal Festival
30.06.2007 GER Wuzburg, Rockfalls Festival
28.06.2007 GER Frankfurt Nachleben
15.06.2007 NL Amsterdam The Cave
These shows have all been driven to by me and Michael - many have been along way from home and for minimal money. This year we were lucky enough to get some touring support from the Australia Council and I would like to thank them for their support. The money we received from the International Pathways grant really enabled this year to happen.
Once again however we have been at the mercy of the promises of people around us. Yes this show will happen, yes this tour will happen, yes the Cd will be released then!!! Blah blah blah?????? excuse my cynicism. It's just that when you hear total bullshit for years you get used to picking it out fairly readily. It's most likely that if you lie to me I will know you are a liar. What can I say. Practice makes perfect.
We have become a better band this year and having our rehearsal space has made that a reality. We will crush you.
One of my favorite recurring comments post gig is "what the fuck are you guys doing here?" meaning why are you playing such a small venue - well its nice to hear but obviously it's a long way to shop.
I am rambling now and I don't care. Things are no longer chronological.
We met a woman in London called Chizzy who is helping us in Japan, we met a guy called Peter who came and did our sound for free and introduced us too his friend Dirk who is a manager and maybe he will be able to help us next year - he certainly helped us get our best paid gig ever at the MFVF in Belgium. Even though the whole experience of organizing that show was a painful lesson in how to get ripped off we still got paid more than what we are used to. Thanks Dirk here's hoping for 2008 !
Me and Michele have been going to the gym regularly and I have been trying to study German.
Ash has been spending most nights at his girl friends house.
One funny time was in summer when Doom Foxx came to the studio to do some demos for their new recording. They are a bunch of crazy guys and so the parties were pretty big. In particular one night where I shared some mushies I had bought in Amsterdam with Dave. I did them at the studio where Stewart was on the good cheap wine and a loud dose of Chisels???." You know Ross ..... breakfast at sweethearts is about this....." he says swayingly as he pounds his vein with his fist??? anyway I didn't last there much past the last strains of Bow River.... Our friends Jo & Rosa were spinning discs downstairs in the HafenKlang but it wasn't crowded enough for my addled mind and I dragged Michele to the Kogge where we found the other Doomers on it and that's where I thought it would be a good idea to share my mushies with Dave... God knows why. Anyway to cut a long story short Dave is a gay hetro with a big mouth... we had a great time at the Beat Club, Lunacy, Blaupeter where the lights were all funny...light weights... I know... anyway in the end I had to get the fuck outta there
It was summer then and Hamburger berg was still raging at 9 am... you have to see it one day - all the pretty young things..YUK
I ended up bumping into Jo & Rosa... Jo came back to mine and we tried desperately to roll another joint but neither of us had the co ordination left...
We played Wacken and camped next to some very friendly Norwegians. At first they were like - "No you can't camp here" but then we just did anyway and they settled down and we became friendly - Norwegians are nice after the first bluster - it's a Viking thing. Blond guys with puffed out chests protecting their women folk from potential marauders.
Nov 14, 2006
Played at the Purple Turtle in Camden, London. Quite a few people came out to see it which was encouraging seeing it was a rainy Tuesday night.
Nov 10
Me and Michele had dinner with Thomas Jensen - the owner of Armageddon Music. Great to speak to him, we had a nice night of Middle Eastern food in the center of London. Got some of the words from the horses mouth, which cleared a few things in my head.
End of Oct to Nov 9
Can't remember what happened. Took the backline gear we have been borrowing from ICS back to Dorpsted (where the office is). Said good bye to the crew at Armageddon. We are bailing for London tomorrow.
Friday October 27
Played in Berlin. Great as always. Our friends there are very cool. had to leave early to get the van back. Bit of a struggle this 24 hour turn around thing. Drove back to Hamburg and passed out.
Monday October 22
This last weekend past we played a'showcase' show in Stuttgart. What 'showcase' means in this case is that we didn't get paid. What really happened is that we drove all day from Hamburg to Stuttgart, nearly 800 kms, after arriving and getting lost - ( which is a reoccuring theme; seems to happen when you drive into a new town that you have never been to before and are fucked from driving, stressed out and have substandard maps. blah ) - we then waited until 2 am to play to an empty room that had been full an hour earlier. Fuck that I say! We were booked to play at 1 am and of course things were running late and we got fucked..... This nearly caused a major band melt down where we began questioning the vaildity of even bothering to try. Thanks Stuttgart! Actually the town seems quite nice, warm compared to Hamburg and the day after the show we hung around abit to talk to some "industry types" learned in the ways of Publishing. Nice talk, expensive talk when you consider the petrol etc.. I'll get back to you about publishing later.
Saturday October 14
Played today in Groningen, RKZ. I was in a shit mood and couldn't really talk to anyone. Spent the time befor ethe show asleep in the van. Tried to drink a alcohol free beer but it was not good. After the show which as lathargic to say the least I went and hid in the sleeping room we were given. Hours later a very drunk viking guy came in and snored for the rest of the night. This didn't really help my mood. After a quick breakfast we were gone. We drove to Amsterdam and got quite lost in the little streets of the city centre while trying to find the show. Eventually we got to the venue and the show was good. That night we drove to a girl called Linda's house and sleep on her floor. linda and her husband were very accommodating. Thanks mates! The next day was sunny and we set out to drive back to Hamburg. Job done.
Sunday October 8
Back in Hamburg. It's cold we are all completely broke. I haven't had a beer in 6 days. Went for a walk today the wind was blowing...nearly bought a DVD but realised I couldn't afford to buy a video I might not enjoy. Saw a bar I thought looked nice but am trying not to drink so I didn't stop. Went to Kogge and had a coffee with Pirka (Pete) & Stef. She got me a naked chicken patch.
The meeting in London with Carl was good he brought his mate Nick from Work Hard Public Relations. They want to work on the band together and bring the profile up. Should be a good thing.
The travel back from London was a Ryan Air special and we left at 1.30 am to get to Stansted airpoet which is 2 hours from London central. Then we flew to Lubeck which is 2 hours from Hamburg ZOB. By the time we got to the studio we were all fucked...it was 11.30 am and I slept from about mid day through to 9.30 am this morning.
Wednesday October 4
Ash has gone to stay at his friend, Desmond's house. That has taken the strain off. The rest of us are at Max's house in Streatham. for those of you that don't know Streatham is just passed Brixton in London's south. Our show at the Camden Underworld has fallen through so we are just chilling having a nice little break from Hamburg. It's good to watch some English TV and I am happy cause I am at Max's and at least that means I can hide in his bedroom. Max is fuckin amazing and has been looking after us all, cooking etc his hospitality is perfect. We have a meeting tomorrow with Carl a guy we met in Berlin...he is a management type and is interested in the band. I am looking forward to hearing what he has to say.
Monday October 2
you can read an email I sent to a friend...I have edited out some parts
Today is Monday. Last saturday we played a fest called Bloodstock. It was in Derby. Derby is 120 miles from the north edge of London. We are staying in Streatham which is in the south of London, just past Brixton. We are broke... so we borrowed a van from some friends instead of hiring a Torago. Well the friend had something to do in the morning so we left late... the traffic in London was nightmarish.... we eventually drove past the freeway entry and then had to do a u turn .. therefore more traffic...Then we got about 50 miles into it, the vans top speed seemed to be 50mph ( around 80km ). Then it started to do the kangaroo hop of dirty petrol death... by this time we actually should have been on stage but we were still 70 miles out.. we had called an hour before and it was cool cause they rescheduled us for 4.30 pm... that said it was now raining hard and we were doing 30 in the shoulder being chased down by semis and overtaken by old women with walking frames...
eventually we limped into derby at 3.50pm got on stage and played to a full room.. sold heaps of merch and signed CDs til I was embarrassed and had to run away. Still I must say signing things is better than gripping a steering wheel til your hands turn white and every bone and muscle in your body is saying stress out...
The Thursday before we played at a small pub in London... Ash got really pissed and was an arsehole declaring on the mike that he wished he was back in Germany "cause at least we get catering there"...... he walked off in the rain and came home soaking... Nice one Ash!
Tuesday September 26
Tomorrow we leave for London for 10 days. We have a small show at a pub in the south and then Bloodstock in Derby and then a club show in Camden on the next friday.
Sunday September 24
This last weekend has been huge. I got up super early on Thursday to pick up the van. We drove to Dorpstedt which is where our record company's office is - 1.5 hours north west of Hamburg. We had to go there to register our address with the local government in Kropp which is a slightly bigger centre near Dorpstedt. we did that and then drove back to Hamburg and loaded the van with all of our gear and drove to Berlin. we played a show at the Trinkteufel which is a small bar owned by some friends of mine there. It was a great night and I organised to let another Australian band called
Heifer play. Heifer were in Berlin for Popkomm which is one of those music industry wank fests. Anyway they wanted to play a show while Popkomm was on but couldn't get in anywhere...we had this show so I slipped them on the bill...they brought some industry down and it was throbbing , the vibe was great and I think we came away with just as many good contacts as them so it was a win win win situation.
The next night we played at a place called the Tommyhaus. It is in Berlin too. Unfortunately there weren't too many people there but it was still a good night and we made friends with a local band called Revolt.
Saturday night saw back in Hamburg. It was the Reeperbahn festival and we had a show on the Reeperbahn at a place called Lehmitz. Lehmitz is a crazy tiny bar with a stage just big enough for the drum kit. The place was packed and although we had an argument with the guy about money we sold enough merch to make up for it. We got rid of the gear and walked back down to St Pauli ( Reeperbahn area ) and had a nice party at Lotta' bar in the back streets The band Revolt from berlin were also in town and we had a few beers with them. I didn't get home til 6 am. Slept a lot and returned the van at about 8 pm.
Sunday September 17
Yesterday we played a club called Doktor K in Schwerin. Schwerin is in Eastern Germany. we played this show with Holy Moses. We went with them and they wanted to go really early. we didn't play til 11 pm ish and we had been there since around 2 or 3 pm. It was long and tedious. We didn't get paid either, but at least we didn't have to pay for the van or petrol. We sold some merch. We have just started making our own T Shirts, so I think we sold some of them which was good - at least we came out on top $$ by a little.
Friday September 15
I have just spent the last 5 days in Barcelona. I left on Saturday 9 Sept and got back yesterday.
It was a bit of a travel to get from Hamburg to Barcelona. If I had had more money I would have gone direct but then that was in the hundreds and hundreds of euro. So It too me 13 hours to get there. I left Altona at 4.15 am. I firstly had to get to Dusseldorf. The German's have this thing called Mitfahrgelegenheit. It's a ride share thing and is done for free over the internet. I organised a ride to Dusseldorf, the guy was leaving Hamburg central at 5 am, so met him there. It was alittle hard to find him because he had given me the wrong cross street, but in the end I got there and we were off. He dropped me at Dusseldorf airport and I then took the Snellbahn ( fast train ) downtown to the Hbf (central station ). Because I was flying Ryan Air I had to go to weezer airport which is about 1.5 hours out of Dusseldorf. Ryan air always do this - they use the small cheap airports just outside the city to keep the cost down. My flight was at 1.35pm so I had plenty of time. Dusseldorf is pretty, it has trams, it wasn't bombed so much in the war so the buildings are old and cool. I had a burger before I got the bus to Weezer.
the flight to Barcelona is only about 1 hour 50 minutes but then of course ryan air only goes to Gerona, which is about 2 hours from Barcelona Centrum. Blah... so it was about 5 pm before I got to the Arch de triumf, which is where the bus station is. I know Barcelona pretty well as I have been there many times. So it's very easy to get around. Max met me at the bus with a cold beer some cheese & olives and kiss. we went and had a picnic in the park and then went to Vallcarca by tube. We squatted a friends squat there as she was away. The door was unlocked anyway. Out the back were these huge Pot plants so we dried a little. I was really tired so we didn't go out for long. we visited friends and had a great time while we were there. Max's mother was there, it was her first time in Europe so we showed her around a bit but basically kept to ourselves most of the time. The trip back to Hamburg was the reverse of the way down except that I didn't have a Mitfahrgelegenheit ride organised and I had to take the train from Dusseldorf. This eemed to take forever and I was really over it by the time I got back to the studio.
Sunday September 3
Played two great pub shows this weekend. The first was in Meppel. We drove from Hamburg to Vlagtwedde in the Netherlands, this took about 4 hours. We stayed with Heleen and her family, she and her father run Overdrive Bookings - they booked both shows. when we arrived at her house they put on dinner which was great veg Mexican "meal soup". This must be a dutch invention. It was good. Meppel where the show was, was another 1.5 hours drive so we headed off at around 8pm. The show was at he 'Unreal Cafe' which turned out to be small but friendly. There were a few other bands and we ended up going on an hour late...it looked liked a lot of people had left by then but as we started they seemed to come out of nowhere and we played to a reasonable audience who seemed to like it. Another drive home - then we sat up drinking a few beers with Heleen, her brother David and her parents Bert & Greta. They are excellent company and it was sun up by the time we got to bed. In Meppel we sampled the local 'Cafe's' smokable fare and although it seemed expensive it served to pass the time.
Friday night saw us in Coevorden at 'Metal Front'. This is an old bikers club which had a great PA and excellent little stage. This was a cool place and we had a very good time hanging with the locals. The first band on were some youngsters who had very metal attitudes and poses that looked very funny on their cherubic faces. second on were Alien Nation who turned out to be cool guys and drank many a beer together after the show. We played well and were well recieved. It was a good night. Coevorden is about an hour from Vlagwedde and so we drove back and stayed up fairly late again. we had the van til Monday morning so there was no need to rush back.
Thursday August 31
Me and Quigs got up early to go get the van. We are driving ourselves to the Netherlands to do 2 shows. The drive isn't too long and we will be in Vlagtwedde by 5 or 6.
August 30
Another few days of rehearsing and practice, tomorrow we go to the Netherlands for some shows.
Saturday 26 August
Up from The Ground Fest was great, I think it was the best thing we have done so far. The sound on stage was good, much better than Summer Breeze and the crowd were very friendly. It was a lot smaller than the other fests we have done and it was easier to meet people. The travel was a bit of a nightmare as we were trying to save on van rental days, this meant driving to Frankfurt and back in 24 hours. we left Hamburg at 2am and arrived at the festival at around 9.30 am. This was alright as we were the first band on. Me and Ash found the tent for headline band and sat in comfort drinking their beer for most of the day as they didn't turn up for many hours. i met a cool guy called Christian and we smoked a spliff... spun the fuck outta me and I had to have a little lie down in the afternoon. Saw a great band called Herse, the singer is the first singer from Arch Enemy. They are from Sweden - I think, anyway check them out if you can. Fuckin' Rockin'.
By the time we got home at around 11pm or mid night we were all completely over it and poor old Nick who had driven the whole time - God knows how had another hour to get back to his house in Kiel. Tried to get him to have a sleep but he wouldn't stay. Luckily he made it OK.
Wednesday August 23
Got back from Summer Breeze and have been rehearsing the last few days. Found out we are playing another Festival called Up From The Ground this friday. Its near Frankfurt and Nick is going to be our driver. He works for ICS/Armageddon.
......much much later. In fact it must be next week. We are back in the studio. A quick date check tells me it is Saturday 19 August 2006. Time is 22:09. Last wednesday we got the call that we were suddenly playing Summer Breeze festival in the south of Germany. It was a 7 hour drive from Hamburg and we left at 2 am for a 1pm show. We were a bit tired but it seemed to go well enough. we camped, which basically does not agree with me. But then the hole festival thing is a bit hard. It has this scout camp vibe. The walks are long on the way to the toilet and rain can spoil. But there you have it. Summer Breeze was cool. It was a lot small than Wacken. The arena was like a football field in size & compared to the massive dusty paddock of Wacken the Summer Breeze was grassy green pasture. The vibe was good as it was smaller the crowd was less dramatic and people seemed to interact either more or better. Certainly the security situation was more relaxed than Wacken and I felt a little easier coming and going. Side of stage was easy to gain access to and I enjoyed The Haunted and Kreator from that vantage. It rained in the night and we decided to bail after breakfast which I was happy about.
Last weekend I spent two nights in Berlin and went a bit crazy on the drinking on the Friday. We were out late and me and max had fun with the girls from the Trinkteufel. They plied us with Krummeling and other assorted shots. we stayed with Tina who we met at Wacken. Max made best friends with her and the gang. They really like Michele and the band also and are arranging a couple of gigs in Berlin and also Dusaldorlf. That will be cool. The next, the saturday, we stayed out til way past dawn after following a punk couple to an underground bar. This bar was in a dirtfloor basement and had to be entered by crawling trough a hole in the foot path. We didn't stay long as the ceilings were low and I felt claustrophobic. We went back to Lady Fest ( queer thing where we started the night ) drank some beer and went home to Tina's. All was good.
The last few days of being in the van have really done my head in. Speaking of claustrophobia, living in the studio with the band could break me in to a hundred pieces. Day to day, day in day out. we could kill each other. The thing is that we know all the stories so to hear any one of us tell one of them again to a newcomer is enough to make you ( me ) climb the bell tower ( for want of an expression that doesn't make me think of Michele ). Did I say studio? I meant funny farm. Laboratory, test wing.
yeh yeh yeh...
Quigs is practicing on the other side of one wall. Michele is singing along with her walkman behind another and Ash is talking about VB with some German closet alcoholics. Actually Germans aren't closeted in the alcohol way. They drink and drink and drink and drink and beer is at the supermarket, the corner store the seven eleven and the petrol station. This is a good thing. Keeps the prices down see. We likes it that way out here. Beer is cheap but I will mention the slight of hand that the Euro plays upon the unsuspecting. Given the exchange rate we can't but take this too seriously. When 1 is not 1. That is my meaning. check it out.
The studio has a 360 degree view of Hamburg. It is on the eighth floor of a disused department store. It's a bit creepy at night but all in all its great. We are 10 minutes from the Reeperbahn which is just far enough to stop me walking there to get another sausage right now. But then you get that. It probably won't be far enough to stop me before it gets too much later. The Germans do a mean sausage. Last night when I dragged Michele out to accompany me we met too men in beige trench coats. One of them had the english facility to start the conversation with..." So what the fuck are you doing here ?" The Germans are into the erganomics of public space and thus we were leaning on a garbage bin with a table set around the rim. I said "so are you guys accountants?". The first guy readily agreed and so I thought wow that was funny that I guessed that. But then it turned out that they were actually shipping men and that they were only two of the many that Hamburg harboured in their harbour.
August 13
Arrived back in Hamburg.. we are at a better quality hotel...except its boring as hell...better for old people.. more room in the zimmers & quieter but I liked the vibe at the Kogge better. Anyway tomorrow we move to a studio in Altona.
August 10
Travel to Berlin by bus. This takes 4 hours and I arrive at the west Berlin ZOB. Max is there and we take the underground to Kottbusser Tor or Oranienplatz?? can't quite remember. berlin is a bit of a blur because our friend's there own & work in Trinkteufel... this is a bar. The name translates as Drink Devil. You figure it out. They drink amongst many others things a herbal tonic called Krummeling, this is served in individual small bottles that are customarily hit upside down on the bar then cracked and drained in one. proost..cheers.. what have you. Drunkeness. That was friday night..didn't get in til way after sun up.
We went to a queer gathering called Ladyfest the next night. It was just down the road. We were also supposed to go to another party down the road but on the way there 2 punks were walking the opposite direction an dthey said it had been broken up by the police and that it wasn't worth going... they sughested that we follow them to a bar in the east...this it turned out was in a cellar with a dirt floor. The ceiling was about 5 foot 10 so I couldn't stand up straight and the smell was of old dirty cellar ( surprise surprise ). Needless to say we didn't stay long. Back at Ladyfest things were still jumping so we danced for a bit and then met Niko an old friend from the Barcelona days. She is tiny and jumped all over me and Max when we saw her. Max was collecting bottled to get the refund... germany has it sussed with this P/fand as they call it, every bottle being worth 25 cents. Doesn't take too long to get a beer.
July 30
arrive in Hamburg..... from here on you can read this email I wrote to my family and friends.... I can't be bothered rewriting the story again....
It takes you up to August 10, 2006
from the beginning..
China Airlines wasn't all bad and we managed to not have to pay any extra weight charges which I was glad about.
We were delayed in Taipei airport for a few hours but they did truck in whooper burgers courtesy of Burger King with Evian to wash it all down. Nice.. Taipei airport was not what I was hoping for in terms of electronic gadget shops and pales into insignificance when compared to say Singapore airport for such geek shops. I was looking around for a camera but the prices were high and as they had free wireless internet in the terminal I was able to do price checks worldwide and thus decided to give it best.
As we were late arriving in Frankfurt we took the next available train to Hamburg ( our China Airlines ticket had a train section ). It was good to arrive in Hamburg and it took two cabs to get all our stuff to the hotel. The Hotel Kogge ( Rock n Roll hotel to those yet to become stars ). It was a great place with wireless net and excellent people but the rooms were very small. We made quite a few friends which is cool.
The hotel sector is in the Repperbahn area near the docks where harbour cruises go from. The day after we got to Hamburg we played our first show "Rock over Hamburg" with many cool bands from around the world including our new pals Rose Tattoo. This was a good intro for us , however we felt the sound was shitty... but you get that.
We stayed a few more days at the Kogge and then we went off to Wacken Wacken.com we were picked up in a bus and trucked out to the site. There had been months of the ..."No there will be no tents provided.....bring your own" ...type rhetoric but thankfully on the day we ended up getting a caravan. Max and Ellie came from London and brought tents which was good as I stayed in one with Max and Ellie took the other. Caravans make Tourettes nervous as they bring floods of disturbing memories - of snowed in domestic strife via Calgary. I am sure you've heard those stories before.
Suffice it to say the caravan was still more comfortable than the tent yet I slept on the ground two nights until I was donated a li lo.
We played a special Press Tent showcase at Wacken which was cool and secured us another festival slot at Blood Stock at the end of September in the UK. Bloodstock.com This will be good as we plan to be there in the UK for a week or so from the 21st Sept for Promo stuff for the album release.
Anyway an hour later we were loading our stuff into a van and being chauffeured to our stage by our lovely driver Anna, this was something I could very used to...
we did the show. The stage was huge and very dirty as it was an out door marquee in a dust bowl but the sound was fantastic and the Ampeg bass amp that was there was thunderous and dynamic. I need one asap!!!! ( this was in stark contrast to the amp I had used just moments before in the Press Tent which was below... way below average. My tip is never buy Marshall bass gear YUK! )
The show was great and the crew on our stage all pissed in our pockets afterwards ...saying that we were the best band that had played on that stage for the festival.. which was great. But better still Sheree who is the female power broker of the festival came along and stayed the whole show.... She also owns our record company...
She got so excited that she upgrading our passes to the "V"VIP area which we previously hadn't gotten and we were hurriedly ushered into the inner sanctum for a meeting/drink with her after the show.... this was the kind of treatment we had been hoping would happen after they had seen the show, and so it was great to feel we had come and done the job that we need to do to get the attention we want. Sheree said that she had goose bumps and that of course that she was in love with Michele. ( many girls have been saying that they would gladly give up heterosexuality to unite with Michele on the great feminine love ground. )
This is good.
Since then we have been upgraded to a better hotel, although it lacks internet and I will going back to the cooler more down to earth Kogge to send this mail.
Ashley has been getting a bit.... so he's a bit loopy.
Michael is loopy
and I share a room with Michele
We had a meeting with the record company yesterday and they are excited about the future. They will move us again on Monday to a recording studio with an apartment. We can live there, there is a kitchen and a rehearsal space so we can get on to rehearsing all the new songs we have.
Ash plans to return to Australia to write some TV music for two weeks at the beginning of September. Michele will do a Promo tour of the major centers in Europe at this time with the publicist from Armageddon. ( her name is Britta and she is lovely , so it should be a great chance for Michele and her to bond and to get the word out about the "Sick Sense" release ).
The people that we met at Wacken were all really excited about the release and I think that it will be a good thing to get the sick sense record out and move on to touring it here and then recording the new material. This new recording is still planned for early 2007 in LA. all we need is the money. ***News Flash*** ash says that we might drag Rob Hill here, he is the engineer from LA - it seems that the studio here in Hamburg might be a good place to do the album. As for me the logistics sound easier since we are already here and the record company wants to help with our rent. Gotta love that. Need a European working/holiday Rob?
I am going to Berlin for the weekend.. Max is doing a performance there so that should be fun, its been 17 years since I was last in Berlin... does seem a bit long...
Right now I am at the computer of course. I spent last night making a new promo dvd and I am just putting the finishing touches on to it now. I have a render in the background which leaves me time to write this...
approx very late July 2006
I have been rereading my earlier entry and it does seem that I crap on an awful lot. I mean....
"Rats like darkness; the sickly smell of waste as sweet as they imagine that cache of cash to be............."
yeh yeh yeh Ross. I can here the choir.
Anyway that was while I was still at the Chocolate Factory in Sydney. That warehouse was getting me down. I realised when I went there one day after we'd moved out that it was actually quite dark inside. Megan's was sunny and her verandah was amazing in the mornings facing nearly exactly east it was like a holiday place where the sun shines long all day and the blue birds sing...actually Megan has two? birds that live in a big cage outside the house next to the recycling. Megan covers them at night and uncovers them in the morning.
Megan's place was beautiful.
She drove me and Ash to the airport. She has a cute little old yellow Corona and we had Ash's red luggage on the roof so it was a colourful send off. Thanks Meegs.
Hours dragged into days and weeks into months and then we were spat out again. The Sydney city vortex had released released its hold on us....for the moment
I was somehwere between a Japanese MRI machine and rotating Elvis.
It does seem that the music industry like a sewer tends to habour those who like to reach out of its murky depth and smile twisted rat-like smiles. Their carrot dangling never so far from the truth to seem highy implausible but yet just far enough to be questioned by the witted. Not far enough from reality to be completely ignored yet just out of reach. As though they intend never to let even themselves know what is achievable and what is fantasy. Rats like darkness; the sickly smell of waste as sweet as they imagine that cache of cash to be.............
March 26
Lo f??cil cae ligero
My favorite. for now.
certainly favorites come and go. no courtesy.
what does that mean. courtesy, or none of it, please.
i mean, thank you
but we'll have none of that,
please..... shit i forgot i shouldn't.
fuck and i shouldn't bother with punctuation while iamatit. no that won't do
fuckin' rude really
you probably don't care
my mother cares though
and so by default or sheer luck or lack of it then I must too
I suppose.
I reread the above quickly and realise that I must have a courtesy bee in my bonnet...
so I will tell you my story of the middle aged white woman looking for love >
Melbourne March 2006
Two women luncheon on filet minion, scalloped potatoes. They sip cabernet. It is cool outside. A small fire burning in the hearth.
"Don't know what it is with Doris these days," said Margery Clastine, leaning forward.
Her guest this day was her very even headed friend Sylvia Nettwest. "I know," she readily agreed. "Just doesn't seem herself, does she?" Politely effecting only the smallest of interest.
Margery made another attempt to master the slab of rare meat, which lay on her plate like a fork in the road under question.
"Ever since she's been with that Stephen Benson." Margery said gruffly. "He never made an impression on me."
Margery wasn't the kind of woman that many men made an impression on. In fact it was possibly the case that not a single man had ever made an impression on this steely figure of womanhood. Some men found her icy, most found her plainly unattractive and thus, as a sex, rarely, if ever, felt the need to make it close enough to Margery to experience her repellent nature first hand.
Margery had a drinking problem. One that had become her friend. A friend indeed; one that she was loath to do anything without, and more than happy to accommodate and appreciative of at every turn. Her only other friend was Sylvia. She used to count Doris. But that was before. Stephen Benson had changed that, and since then nothing had been the same, and from Margery's assessment of the current position of things, most likely wouldn't be.
Margery sipped her wine. "Stephen is quite the wrong man for Doris."
Sylvia shied her head noticeably at this turn in the conversation, not wanting Margery to upset herself. She did, when it came to the subject of Doris and Stephen, upset herself that is, and Sylvia wasn't too keen to have to try and calm Margery, not again.
"Look Margery," Sylvia soothed "Forget about them, you have to move on."
But move on to where, was all that Margery could think.
Her own woman since she was a girl, she'd never needed more than that found at table at the Gentlewoman's Club of Victoria. Acceptance here was her zenith and it had come early for Margery Clastine. A glass of wine, a fire in winter, a cooling swim in the executive lap pool in summer and a seasonal menu that exhibited every bit of why the VGC of Melbourne was considered a premier dinning establishment in the very heart of the culinary capital of Australia. The club was her haven, a protectorate in a patriarchally inclined world.
Expedience and a pragmatic ruthlessness had brought her this far and for many years she'd not seen a reason to change a thing. She'd had a certainty for the future. A certainty that had moulded and carved her from the raw. It was now that same certainty that often brought her to tears, in private. Though she'd never loosen herself in public to that extent.
Maybe a few drinks too many had occasioned flavourful outbursts here and there, but her composure was in check this day and her only response to Sylvia was, "Yes, I should really be going."
She finished her glass in one and called for the concierge to have the valet bring her car around.
25 March 2005
From: s.benson@vic.gov.au
Subject: a thoughtful remark
Date: 25 March 2005 9:44:25 PM
To: clastinem@bigpond.com
Dear Margery
It is some regret that I pen this note.
Things have worsened with my mother and as I have been reckoning with life's tribulations I have come to understand that I must not see you again. It was very interesting to meet you and I do understand if you are upset but it was never my intention to move so fast or to have in fact taken our relationship in the direction we have found ourselves.
As a courtesy I must thank you for the introduction that you made for me to your wonderful friend Doris.
I want you to know that Doris and I will be seeing more of each other.
Regards and Good-bye
Stephen
A year had passed since that email. Rent from the arms of the man she'd conjured Stephen Benson to be, Margery found herself wanting and too often at the end of another dozen reds. Her tears welled more easily, and most mornings her drawing room awoke to her bleary and dazed. Though this day, her inner tension had coalesced into a vengeful supremacy. Clenched teeth pressed out the words that had tormented her remorsefully these past twelve months. " As a courtesy," she managed. Underpinning her state of mind and decisively extolling herself into action.
Chaotic hair, her coiffeurs unbalanced and in need of attention, she lurched into her kitchen and picked at the utensil draw until she found what she wanted. She moved quickly; even in her adverse condition she could still plan with a business-like compunction that withered opponents, causing self immolation in many and heartburn in those witted enough to move away from the face of the fire storm.
"Sylvia," she crooned in the receiver. "Lunch? It's been a while since we've had Doris, maybe she could bring Stephen?"
Sylvia wondered at this recapitulation but nevertheless felt a certain relief that Margery may in fact be making steps forward and readily agreed to make the arrangements.
A 10 o'clock at Queens Hairdressing, Toorak Road brought her back from the dead; a brink that she'd teetered on for months. She shone. Her Zampatti blouse coupled with the skirt she'd purchased on whim at the Fashion Circle tightened her flanks and she found herself moving with a well rehearsed ease gained from solo late night strategy meetings, fused with a need to get to the club in time to loosen her throat with a private drink or two before the days real proceedings got underway.
Sylvia arrived promptly as expected at 12.15. The dining room at the VGC was all walnut mahogany and chintz. The table was set for four: gleaming crystal, pressed linen and fine silver played a fine compassed dance, each step measure against staunch tradition and the will of the states matriarchs.
Margery, who was seated nearest the windows, rose ever gentile to greet her friend and her relief was almost palpable. She had been at the club since just past eleven thirty and even though she had timed her entrance so as to be able to have a few solitary drinks, Margery still felt inwardly corrupt at the thought of today's final outcome. She knew the extent of her will but was still unsure in her resolve, though her malignancy pushed against the good and every part of her knew it would win out.
It was terrifying yet exhilarating, shocking but kind. And in some way she saw herself not so much as a harbinger, but as a crusader on the path of righteousness. One that would lead the others that followed in a more correct path. One that felt increasingly vital as the moments passed; her blood whipping through her veins commanding her to attend to the duty that she had sworn herself to uphold.
"Sylvia, I am so glad you could come." Margery turned on a most potent and serene charm. Sylvia smiled and felt a pang of urgency as she brushed Margery's cheek with a prefunctionary kiss.
The ladies of the VGC always kissed one another hello, it was a sign to them of their sisterhood, but was little more than a glancing nothing, repeated vapidly into meaninglessness.
Margery smelt, as she had so often recently, of alcohol.
Sylvia had hoped that today might have marked a watershed in the upheaval that Margery had delved into over the past year. But it was obvious to her that that was certainly not the case.
"Oh Margery," Sylvia said, turning her attention to the table's floral centrepiece.
For a moment she was stunned to silence by the extravagance of the setting. A large, fine vase held an enormous arrangement of Supernova Carmine, a showy red-flowering Federation Daisy each topped with a bright red flower with a pronounced yellow centre.
"How beautiful." Sylvia was taken aback by a sick sense, a premonition with out structure; yet it struck an eerie chord within her and she fell instantly still.
It was well known that Doris was a Daisy aficionado, a grower and medallist at a great many of the nations Daisy championships. The portent was immediately obvious to Sylvia and it seemed an almost interminable period as she and Margery sat waiting for their two other guests to arrive.
It was rare that men lunched at the VGC, so rare in fact that this day the concierge felt the need to accompany Doris and Stephen through the vestibule and into the inner chamber of the dinning room. The sun was bright through the windows, it's strength as it arched through the sky shone refracted beads of light from the crystal ware and bared open the sense of renewal that this coming together outwardly supposed.
"Ms Doris Mattenby and Mr Stephen Benson," the concierge announced, as though he were in attendance at the royal court.
Both Margery and Sylvia rose from their seats, Sylvia almost toppling her chair backwards in her excitement to be relieved from her lone vigil at the table with Margery.
Margery lent across her side of the table as Stephen stepped toward her.
"Hello Margery," he said, cautiously trying to discern his past flames actual intent.
"Stephen, so glad you could come." Margery turned to Doris and gave her her most guileless smile. "Doris, you look radiant."
"Thank you, Margery."
She'd seen the Daisies from the vestibule and wondered at the meaning, she took them as a flag of truce and hoped that they were. These Supernova Carmine weren't hers, she never grew commercial quantities, yet she was instinctively drawn to them.
"Margery, the Supernova Carmine are rapturous, what a wonderful display they have at this time of the year."
"Oh Doris," Margery exclaimed," I thought you might like them."
Prompted by nerves, Doris launched into an explanation of her love of Daisies as though none at the table were aware of her affection for the flower. She spoke of her Summit Pink, her Summer Lustre, her Sunrise Rose and her medal winning Sugar Crystals. Stephen, who had first seated Doris, sat quietly during the treatise in wonderment at what strange fate had brought his life's entangled web to this dinning table. He gave quiet thanks to whatever power it may have been that had at last brought resolution to this seething pit of feminine angst.
Conversation followed easily as the women made small talk about trivialities ranging from the weather to whether or not quotas should be imposed on the importation of foreign flowers. Each not wanting to touch on any subject too close to themselves for fear of bringing out any true reasons for their gathering.
The entree begat the main course as champagne turned to Shiraz. As the afternoon wore on, more and more silences ensured in the conversation until it became obvious that it might be time to adjourn and say good-bye.
Doris stood and excused herself to the bathroom. Sylvia had gotten more drunk than she had wanted to and found herself slurring ingratiatingly at Stephen about the need for reform in the Victorian Labor caucus of which his membership of the factionalised right left him fatally flawed and unable to stem the conversation.
Picking up her clutch, Margery inclined that she was also going to powder her nose, stepping around Stephen to pick her way amongst other dinners towards the ladies room. As she entered, Doris was exiting one of the toilet cubicles and the two woman almost collided.
"Margery!" Doris exclaimed.
Margery had an uncertain look on her face and at first Doris read it as perhaps an overindulgence in the afternoons accoutrements, but then Margery's demeanour turned a more shocking characterture of itself and Doris became suddenly fearful. She kept watch on Margery from the vanity mirror, the look in Margery's eyes spoke volumes and somehow momentarily alerted Doris to the knife in Margery's hand.
"Margery, Please!" Doris backed into the wall as Margery came upon her with an alien strength.
Margery had had the Wiltshire in her handbag since the early morning and although she had, for a while, forgotten it was there, the waning of the conversation over desert had allowed her time to effect a plan. Sylvia had excused herself to the bathroom earlier in the meal and it was then that Margery had realised that eventually Doris would have to do the same. Margery had crossed her legs and stiffened her resolve, suffused her turmoil with yet another glass of red and continued to make polite conversation giving no hint as to her real intentions. Her time would come, as would Doris's.
And now that time was upon them.
The two women faced each other. Doris spluttered something about being sorry as Margery parried forward towards her prey. Unleashed and unhinged she swiped wildly at Doris her thrust leaving Doris' new tunic with a diagonal slash from her right shoulder to left hip. Doris screamed and Margery lunged with both hands in an upward stroke that pinned Doris squarely under the sternum, at the based of her rib cage. The plunge of Margery's fury left only the hilt protruding from a bloody gash and Doris slipped down the wall. Her gurgled words formed a throthing and beseeching "Why?" Then her last gasp was gone.
Margery was shocked at her own violence. She had expected the confrontation, but had no idea of the real intensity of the final act.
Doris's scream was heard by those diners closest to the conveniences and one had set a waiter to the task of investigating. He firstly knocked on the door and then realised that no answer was to be gained in this fashion. As he turned to the waiting faces of the diners, Margery flung open the door and pushed him aside, marching across the room to where the windows revealed the growing afternoon. Her betrayal was not yet avenged and the bloodied knife she'd pulled from Doris further propelled her towards the completion of her plan and the total eradication of her foes.
By this stage the commotion around the bathroom doors had led even those ladies who'd been dining nearest the windows to stand from their chairs and wonder what was going on. Stephen and Sylvia instinctively knew something was wrong and lurched out of their chairs just in time to be standing as Margery came upon them. Her finely constructed presence had been replaced by twelve months of malingering upset and a lifetime of self-hate. She grinned devilishly as Stephen held up his hands in a show of subordination, he had realised her intent and stepped back, stumbling over his chair. Sylvia moved to help stabilise him and this brought them both to the ground where Margery, seeing her chance, attacked Stephen's face with the knife, serrating his cheek with a glancing overhand slice. Sylvia screamed and the scene erupted as Margery leapt into a frenzied attack. She pushed Stephen to the ground with her foot, his hands at his cheek, desperately trying to staunch the flow of blood. Margery's half high heel still sharp enough to puncture the skin on his neck stuck him with such force that he fell backwards, banging his head badly on the sill.
"Liar!" she pronounced with such force that her spittle shot from her mouth. "As a courtesy," she screamed. Plunging the knife over and over into his upper chest.
Feb 14th.... V day
I was greeted at 7.55am by my very happy yoga teach. He marched straight into my brain with his bubbly Vishna-esque "Happy V day". ( I refuse to say it all! ). I continued sticking my fingers down my throat until I spewed and had to leave class early as the acrid mess had burnt a hole in my yoga mat and the 60 year old lady next to me was sniffling into her crushed up tissue rather than fully inhale the baleful truth known as V=VOMIT.
So happy V day. I will say that I do miss Max and love him dearly even though we are once again miles apart. Go on call me a faggot - you know I am.
I love to put my cock in mens arseholes. I can feel you squirming now, you FUCKING HETRO. Go take a bath. wash off.
Where was I, oh, that's right I was passed out on the toilet in Club 77 at 8 am. Oh no I hear you scream. Picture this - flooded 77 loos. Ross needs a little rest, he's had a big day 'cept there weren't enough drugs to keep him from needing sleep. First ( although this is pure hear say ) I chased that poor British backpacker around with my cock out - obviously I thought I was making a success of my night. I mean it was somewhere between 4 - 5 am. Then I believe I crawled around on my knees asking Fash to marry me, or maybe I didn't go that far maybe I just wanted SEX again. You know me, 100 beers, a dexy, a bottle of wine, miles of weed and half a pill and I'd fuck a black snake with a festered arse, if someone held it's head.
SHOW ME TO YOUR FINEST CUBICLE SIR.
"WHERE'S ROSS" said my hosts girl friend Lilly? He was here about 2 hours ago some one slurred from the corner of the bar.
"Maybe I will check the toilet - see if he's there!"
"Here he is!"
"I am just going to shake his leg under the door, see if he's alive."
"THUCK OTHFF" I believe this was my happy reply. I know you'll know and agree that when passed out and close to death it is better to sleep on than to find oneself in a cubicle pants down with someone shaking your ankle.
Be that as it may I am still alive. The lesson most likely not learned.
So I believe you want me to want you so that you can hurt me be the one to desert me..... etc. Yeh we are doing it. Get your copy at My Space now. Or you can download direct from us or if you you give a fuck about owning a bit of plastic we will be selling a few of these little discs called RFS, March 11 The Gaelic Club Sydney 18s+ & March 18 Utopia Records Sydney All Ages. C U there!
Jan 24th 2006
Heading back towards the mainland from Moreton Island. Brisbane calls and I have another 2 days there until I fly back and do the Sydney Big Day Out. That will be fun. I have been working for Bernie again and have spent most of January in Queensland. We have been shooting a Taiwanese corporate video. This has been fun I suppose but alot of the time it has actually been fairly fucked too. Things go up and down I suppose.
Working for Bernie has so many pluses but it is work all the same and it's not work that has any ongoing real meaning.
This is me in a bikini!
I should have written heaps more, something could have been said about every day I was away but somehow I have made it back to Sydney with only a handful of musings. Those are the 3 postings below this one.
I am going to try and cover some of the other things that went down while me and Ash were OS.
Personally, I was completely fucked just prior to going back to London. If you have followed Tourettes at all then you will understand that prior to leaving for Canada last year I was in a similar situation. I was tired, tying up all the loose ends that need to be gathered together before venturing off with the band is a stressful thing for me.
Anyway add all that to massive work load outside of the band ( only in order to finance Tourettes ) then you might begin to feel something.
When Tourettes returned home from LA in June 2005 we had been away for 10 months, made a new record by doing production spec deals with both an investor and the studio, toured through Western Canada and California. Upon returning it was back into it. We did over twenty shows in the next 4 months and made plans to return and organise our business affairs regarding the 2006 release and tour of the new CD, which by now you may know is called "Sik Sense".
By telling you this I am just trying to let you in on my stress level which is always high but on going OS is massive.
So then we jet. London via Singapore. Me and Ash took the tube to Brixton where Max is squatting. Ash was going to London to produce an album for a girl called MoodKiller (Tammy for short). She drove south to Brixton from Bow a northern urban part of London and took Ash to stay with her.
I spent most of the first week I was there coming down off a massive self induced stress overload. I cried. I slept. Max fed me and we watched a lot of TV. I tried to get t he internet on at the squat ( posh squatting ), that took a frustrating week and then me and Max went to Holland. ( I may have covered this below but anyway ). We went Holland to meet Heleen from Overdrive Booking Agency there. It was a very successful trip and we stayed with her and her family in Nijmegen and then Groningen and also somewhere about 2 hours drive from there???? can't remember the name. Her parents lived out there with one sheep. They we lovely people and it was a pleasure to meet them. I hope that we can work together in the future.
After leaving Nijmegen me and Max went to Ghent in Belgium to visit some friend of his there. They were cool and had an excellent squat not far from the centre. We got a lift with them to Eindhoven airport ( which is just inside the Dutch border near Belgium ) and then flew Ryan air back to Stanstead. Anyone who has flown Ryan air will know what a joy that is plus how much fun the bus ride back to Victoria can be. Hours of fun.
The week after that was spent organising myself and Ash to go to Dorpstedt and meet with the Wacken / Armageddon people. They were great too, but Dorpstedt is quite a long travel from Frankfurt. But you get that. We travelled by train, which was expensive and long and boring. But the beer was good.
After a good meeting with those guys they offered us licensing in Europe and touring slots. Nice one. Ash and I had to fly out to LA the next day so once again it was back on the train to Frankfurt.
In LA we stayed in Rob's garage, he is the guy that mixed the new CD. We worked with him everyday on our plans for the future, had some excellent meetings with his contacts there and forged a strong plan for this coming year. I will write more soon but things are good. It is good time to be in charge of your own music career.
December 16, 2005 Los Angeles
It's Friday night in Los Angeles. ash and I have been working hard all week here. We have been staying in Manhattan Beach, which is away from the action so there has been nothing to do except work. That has been good because there has been a lot to do. We spent most of the week developing plans for Tourettes 2006 in North America. We did two great meetings yesterday, one with the Tony George from the Astrade commission here in LA and the other with Eric Hellman from Arzoff Management. Both these guys were cool and are keen to help us and see what can be done in terms of licensing our material here and also in the touring realm.
December 10, 2005 Frankfurt Airport
Ash and I sit together on some rather unpleasant metal seating. We are in the arrivals hall. We actually are departing on our way to Los Angeles, which should be good. It's 6.40 am and we caught the night train from Hamburg which took 6.5 hours which was twice as long as the train we took to Hamburg the day before yesterday. Last nights train was an IC train, which stands for intercity. This I came to understand means that it stops at every city possible. Better to take the ICE, which is the intercity express.
Do you care?
If you look at the entry below you will see where I tried to begin the story of this trip but got side tracked by life and now I will start again as I have to get it all out.
We left Sydney on November 11 and headed for London town. Ash was commissioned to work on an electronica release for Mood Killer and I wanted to see Max. We also had some business to do in Europe so that was that.
Last week I went to Holland to visit a booking agent and then returned to London. The day before yesterday Ash and I left London , flew to Frankfurt took the train mentioned above and stayed the night in Hamburg. We woke up, my alarm didn't go off so there was a bit of panic and took another train to a place called Rendsburg. There were met by Enno from Armageddon records and ICS ( international concert service , they do Wacken Fest ). We spent the day with him and Sabina and wound up thrashing out the heads of agreement for a European Licensing deal for Tourettes. This is looking very promising as Armageddon is not a traditional label having been born out or the Wacken Festival, they are experienced players in the live touring realm here which means that 2006 will be a big year for us here in regards to the release of the new record that we made last year and tour(s) to introduce
us to the European market
Some where in the first week of December 2005
Well wow.
Here I am again. I know it has been a while. Who has been here? Anyone? I haven't been reading this either. I mean there's been nothing here anyway. So there!
Me and Ash left Sydney for Europe about 3 weeks ago on 11 November. We took a very pleasant trip to Singapore with Singapore airlines, their 60 movies on demand and extra inch of legroom were both very welcome. It was then on to Frankfurt where Ash was upset due to a lack of nicotine but we quickly rectified the situation before any violence, we had coffee at the Goethe Caffe in Frankfurt airport and were off again to London to arrive at Heathrow to some classic London weather. Heathrow is huge and we got one of those outlying plane parking spots and then had to catch the bus to the terminal. Immigration, tube, Brixton. Beer!
And beer it's been.....
I was in a full panic the first week I arrived but then I found this website Massive Cock dot Com
Gave me a laugh.
and I realised after I was crying over the washing up that perhaps that I should pull myself together. Or pull myself off or whatever
empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, 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empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, 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empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty, empty!
Saturday night - 21:51 to be exact about it! One of my favorite times, a good moment - it was. Been and gone and never to be repeated. And at the risk of repeating myself, let me reminice a moment reflectig upon that moment passed. And it was gone. Irrichievable. Now a dream. An alien abduction. Juxtiposed. And then some.
Fuck you very much.
Shit if you haven't read the entry before this then you should go there first. But I will recap quickly for the lazy. I am in Hong Kong. It is now 17 hours after my first entry at 5.30ish am. I am now back at the airport but waiting to leave rather than having just arrived.
Today was a whirlwind tour that goes like this. Arrive unfeasibily early in HK, meet up with the dude I am dropping the Dvds to. He is cool and drives me downtown but doesn't want to hang because he is expected in Shanghai at lunchtime with said Dvds. That means I am alone in downtown Kowloon at 6am. Very early for Hong Kong. In fact so early that the only real signs of life are people fucked up and exiting nightclubs. That was cool, they looked like they had gone pretty hard. I was on Nathan Road which is the main street of Kowloon, it goes from the Star Ferry wharf all the way to ???? not sure any I walked a fair amount of that street at different times today. At 6 am though it was all but deserted. Eventually I wandered into a 24 hour restaurant and had a beer and some wontons. They were both much appreciated. I then used their bathroom, which had a squat toilet with no paper, it's a BYO paper thing ( I noticed that the early morning newspaper vendors were packaging their papers in plastic bags with a complimentary pack of tissues, didn't understand this until I was squatting ). That said I got it together, exited the loo crossed the street bought the required rags and went back where the night before's corn and what not exited me. Nice one.
After that I found myself in the early morning food markets where they had live fish cut in half with all there entrails intact still gasping - these fish were in half remember. They also had frogs in varying colors, potions, veges, incense, eels, dried meat, fresh meat, live chickens in cages, eggs of all shapes and sizes. I am sure get the picture. I bought a second hand tea pot off an old woman who had her little street woman's jumble sale out on the footpath near the markets. It was the only thing I bought all day, besides food.
I am a bit scattered as to my next moves but I was feeling fucked and needed to sit down or something and it was hot as and sweaty too so I was trying to find a hotel with a pool and I eventually found a hotel with a public bath. This was great as it was empty and they had lockers and a fruit juice bar and a sleeping room. I had a shower a bath a juice and a 2 hour sleep. That took me up to about 1.30pm and when I left the bath house I felt like a new person. That didn't last that long as the heat was still there and the sweat wasn't far behind. Anyway I did the rounds again and eventually caught a bus back down Nathan Road and took the Star Ferry to Central ( another part of HK ). Central is where all the CBD is and it had completely different vibe to Kowloon. It actually dawned on me when I got to Central that today must have been a public holiday. This had kind of passed my mind before because there seemed to be extreme amounts of people everywhere and the banks were shut on a tuesday, but when I got to Central there is a big square right where the ferry pulls up and it was full of people sitting in groups picnicking etc. I took a tram to the end of the line a place called Kennedy Town. I then walked back grazing on weird bits of Chinese food from street stalls and cold beer from convenience stores. Very satisfying. It took me about 1 - 2 hours to walk back to central wharf and then I took the ferry back across to Kowloon got some dinner and then made my way by taxi then train to the airport. I am shagged and I have to be at work all day tomorrow. It has been a great day. C ya
11 October 2005.
Well what'd you know. Didn't I say earlier that I seem to spend a lot of time in airports. By the Rolex clock in Arrival Hall B it seems to be 5.40 am Hong Kong time. I am waiting on Tomi, not too sure how we will recognise each other but I am sure we'll get it together. Tomi works for Toyota or something like that, maybe their advertising agency or maybe he works for the Shanghai F1. That's what I have been doing and that's why I am in Hong Kong. I have spent the last 8 days holed up in an edit suite making an over priced corporate video for the Panasonic Toyota Shanghai F1 booth. We have made an English version and a Chinese one and wasn't that exciting. Ash wrote the music, I played this middle management role of dogs body. After Effects, Photoshop, Final Cut round and round we went. The Gav dawg was there and Bernarelli. They don't talk no more, you know the drill. "No that's not how it goes" - "Yes it is" etc. ad nauseum. Blah. So then it was decided that this glorious piece of Art be had delivered to Hong Kong by me. Thanks Toyota! I don't suppose that another couple of grands gonna break them. Anyway I am smiling all the way to the bank.
The work front has been extreme and in fact I fly out of HK tonight to rush back to Sydney to work on a Sony Cyber Shot camera commercial. This will all be over by the 21st and I will be cashed "the fuck" up . Yeeha muthurphukker. Sick of being poor and working for others Ash and I have decided that we should go out and hunt our own work. Sounds like a good idea except that I can't think of when I will have time.
Tourettes will be releasing a single - the first one off the new CD. It will be Rod Fuckin Stewart with the B side being our cover of The Angels classic Take a long line. The disc will actually - can u believe it have a remix by Paul Mac and Johnny from Kooki. let's go I say!
So along with all that we are going to make a video and have all of that done between now and the 8th of November when Ash and I go to London and then Europe to meet and greet our continental brethren. There has been much talk about a summer 2006 European tour for us old Touretters and therefore we must go do the do.
On the way home from there we will be dropping back into LA TO CONSOLIDATE THE WORK WE PUT IN THERE EARLIER THIS YEAR - shit funky caps lock!
anyway can you understand that there may not be a lot of time to go and form another business????? Well we are doing it anyway so ...... it's a long term project and one that Ash and myself have been harbouring ideas of for years. It will progress to the point when we have heaps of money and then make really cool stuff, music animation, blah etc. I even fantasies about having my own office space with no interruptions. Wouldn't that be nice. No dodgy joint fests, light beer binges or whinging worrying.
Tired of people feeling like they have something on me. Time to change peoples veiws.
September 22nd, 2005
Well I haven't written very much lately and that I can only put down to depression. There has been many days where I have wanted to return to bed and a few where I have done exactly that.
Australia is a cultural void where only those with strong claws survive. A minimal poplulation has led to a fight to the death for the few scraps available. Thanks for calling. Thanks for not answering the telephone - something I have been more guilty of lately, as I try to ignore the world. Why the fuck would you call me anyway?
Thanks if you have.
I wouldn't call me. Maybe I would say to myself - :"Oh that's right you are that cunt that doesn't answer the telephone when I call" or "fuck you, you self pitying prick" or "get a job you bludger" or "thanks for using me up, cunt" or "faggot" or "whatever".
Be disturbed, I am.
Don't give a shit?, I don't
There you go we have something in common.
I am sitting here at work.
It sucks, but I'm not at home, home is weird.
Its like post armegeddon and the survivors don't recognize each other.
Different very different.
I am sad. I can't feel anything else. I still sound upbeat like Im ok. But I'm not the same. Its as if we're pretending everything is fine. But nothing's fine. Its gone. It's changed. I don't know if I can do it for the next couple of months. She plans to go. She looks forward to it, but not for me. Im not looking forward to the future and Im definately not happy in the present and I regret the past.
Everything Ive done seems so pointless.
I think I need to get of this rock. As far away as possible. As far as I can go. Either that or all.
All of it back to how it was and before it was fucked up.
I don't feel like I want to be who Ive been all this time.
Ive no Idea what Im trying to say, maybe Im wrong and everything will work out. But I don't think so. I think its over. But its still going on the surface. I want to escape.
Anyway that wasn't me but it pretty much somes up how I am feeling
So off we go believing or in my case half believing
Whatever.........
August 29, 2005
Before sitting down to write I had thought that there was heaps to say and now I find myself in the position of having to extract those thoughts I am no longer sure what they were.
Oh that's right, we went to Melbourne via Albury. So I suppose I will start there.
We use a van hire company called Entrans. They are Beth & Steve. Entrans is is in Brisbane but they run their Sydney operation out of another hire company's space in Kingsgrove. Entrans used to hire vans to go th Melbourne for two days. Back then they were $135 a day and if you drove overnight you coyuld do a run to Melbourne for $270 + petrol. Beth wised up to this caper and they now have a minumum 4 day hire to Melbourne or Brisbane which does nothing for the bottom line.
August 17, 2005
After being harassed by Hans the motivator I am here committing myself to writing stuff. I realise now that it has been two months since I wrote my last entry, which is basically pretty slack. Of course things never work out the way plans are laid and the best laid plans........
You know the rest!
Now it seems that a lot has happened in the time I haven't written. heaps actually. max was here and then gone again, tried to get a little bit of work, (didn't really get any decent work yet either) then just got super busy with Tourettes, went mad and now it's today. The end!
No no - I will write more. Fuck and bother. Where to start is the question-
It all begins with the merch & promo story. Seeing as I have seemed to have had no life I can only believe that "my life once had" was recently abducted, whisked away and impaled upon an albatross shaped spike with the words Tourettes merch & promo scratched out by the finger nails of starving, candle warmed, artist garret dwellers. Presumably led to their cause by their severely addled brains, 'cause God only knows why else we keep breathing!
What?
You heard me motherfuckers. I am the star of this show. Set the lights....
Scene One
Ross is sitting at his computer.
"Fuck this shit" he mumbles to himself as he pretends to know what he's doing.
Cue audience laughter (canned - think the Mallory Knox show).
Nice. Now let's inhale the fumes from some Turpentine based poster ink. Hour after hour. One night with Quigs, then alone. Then we play stick 'em ups and the rest is history. Quickly told in the main. Deliver us from our sin as we have delivered others. Advertising is a dirty word in my bible. And I wouldn't want it any other way.
What I think I am meaning to say is that we made the fucking posters then put them up over others and then others were put up over ours in a war of attrition that was only over when rations had all but been whittled away. I cannily got the running order of dates out of order and I suppose our on going yet surely mutually satisfying relationship with Sydney posters did the rest. And it was adieus amigos or however you spell it . I resigned from the tenured position of chief poster wrangler and refuse to be involved in that kind of merriment again so long as I both shall live. Didn't I tell you to shut up I am the one talking!!!!
Oh yeh
Thanks to Jasco cause he da man. I went to his house and his flatmates knew the aforementioned astringent aroma well. They would rush home to nuzzle up to the printed fun a day seemingly not complete with out a slight asphyxia. Think Greek. (Get you minds out of the gutters fucking arse dwellers that's my shtick). I mean lack of oxygen and plane crashes. And that's what I mean about Jasco as my Cessna came in to crash-land he was there like jolt of adrenalin to the heart. Legendary.
In my opening statement to the court I heard myself say, "This is shit dude. I am over it!" To which the foreperson promptly asserted that if it was up to him he'd fuck off right then and get that beer they had been wishing for at lunch. It was a hot day after all and the jury room seemed to swelter and groan under the weight of 12 beleagued minds. But we got through.
We suffered through the abandonment of Suffer, we fixed the unfixable, the already gone to print yet inevitable last minute change. Double handling it was too and our shop steward, the inimitable Miss Michele Madden, made damn sure that the bosses paid extra. We weren't working a single overtime shift under those conditions.
What had our forefathers fought for if it wasn't for cold beer and virgin rose buds. Hard pressed as they were to adhere to the duty-laden promises of those heterosexuals. They couldn't find the need and by now I am sure you'll agree with me when I say that I can't find the energy either. I mean bringing up baby is like having a DVD to make and labouring until you perineum splits causing massive haemorrhaging, not to speak of the discomfort afforded the likely candidate by the no doubt communicable nature of the pizza that is existing in a cheesy mess by the side of your face - you disease ridden mess! Do I have a witness!!!!!!!!!! (think Gospel Church)
Do I ever crap on!
So the fuckin poster looks like this
Notice how the dates are out of order.
Next came the dvd. Well it took a year to get Crusty Boy to finish the Don't Blame Me clip - so that really set the tone in the end. I was seen several times stumbling up William St towards Elizabeth bay, sick as a dog sweating and crying.
If someone has a car with rego they want to donate you can call me on 0402 202 426 cause I am sick of fucking walking the streets of Sydney and need to get things done a little quicker than my snails pace ambulatory efforts offer. Ask yourself if you efforts offer? Anything? Do they? Probably not in my experience. Except if you are a fucking Hobbyist. I for one, much like Ferris Bueller, don't believe in "ists". I am on the blot so you can crack me up the shitter, if you know what I mean!
Mop it up sunshine!
Scar fuck me while you're at it and call me up asking for money! Yeh yeh that's right, it's in the mail!
oh yeh so it took a long time to finish the fucking tourettes dvd. Thanks to the mighty half century that is Chris Wyatt. He put the 24 hours of doom in, held my hand through several states of breakdown, held my head while spewed forth a vitriolic and slanderous torrent upon whomever was in my way and then stitched me up after the jagged edges of the casing split me in half as the neighbours theme reverberated through my brain on loop. Fuck you Harold I thought, you old Queen. Anyway, it was at the church on time, once again Jasco finger fucked the establishment much to their pleasure and dismay. DIY PUNX.
We salute you.
By the way anyone who has had a band and then decided to call it a day cause it was a little too hard has my deep sympathy, however I will say this much. It is better to whinge to your friends about the hardships of keeping a progressive artistic love affair going than it is to throw in the towel completely, 'cause as we all know, but hate to admit, it is longevity that staves off the cancerous malingerers, the harbingers and the hidden depth charges. Stick to you guns or join the ranks of the Hobbyist - an unfortunate demise for anyone really.Fuck I wish I could have read this last week, maybe life would have made more sense and I may not have had to have told everyone that I love to "Fucken Get the Fuck out of MY way you CUNT!!!!" if you know what I mean.
As it turned out we sold about 25 dvds over two gigs on the weekend just passed, so it was all worth it. It has Big Day Out stuff, Don't Blame Me + alt, Stand & a full set from the Annandale 2004. Good value for $20.
So the fuckin dvd cover looks like this
It's a bit of history now. Just make sure you buy one as they won't be around forever.
In-between all that was stuff and more stuff, clips to TV, artwork to Street Press, gigs to finalise, Patches to print. Oh yes Patches. some fun stuff-
So the fuckin patches look like this
there are only twenty-three to collect as one of them didn't really work. oh well
In Brief, mixed with advice on life
by ross ian empson
I worked on a Pepsi ad for India - I did say I hate advertising didn't I? Well I do. Who wouldn't abhor the sale of toxic rotgut to a starving subclass? Fucken drink this so you can win an mp3 player and steal all the music you like. Well how the fuck am I gonna feed my fish if all you cunts steal the fish food? Oh there there little goldfish they didn't mean it, they thought you just was relaxing on the top for a bit. Cue toilet flushing.
It's a small world and Bi Curious guys who can't commit to having there arses fucked quite yet seem to needlessly bother the horny and unwitting.
Took ecstasy again - when the fuck will I learn. Hans, listen up buddy. Fucken great night I was an obvious mess and was commented on by many in the ensuing week. How was my jaw they asked? better than my birthday party in Calgary was my well honed reply - and so it was that I cried all the way home, pushed passed anyone and told others to ....you know the one.....then promptly needed Turkish Pizza but having no money had to settle for more tears and a cheap imported lager called Hollandia. Thank whom ever you like for Beer, there is nothing like it to sooth the rotted guts of a starving subclass!
With my two recent cold sores as evidence, I am a run down mess have had two bouts of the flu also and am need of norishment. Please bring a plate to the Tourettes gig of your choice as I am sure we could do with a feed!
Stuff dick in their mouths
Go on!
If some one is bothering you, don't say anything that might upset them as they may be smarter than you and then turn what you have just said against you. Therefore bottle everything up and go home crying, then proceed to suicidal thoughts, which mutate regularly and are subsequently found laying in a puddle of urine next to the toilet just cause you could.
Fags can all go and die
Fucken Poofs too
Don't prance around me I am the fucking Queen here.
Bears in bikinis are all the rave, so go one grab yourself a handful of truck driving man and felch yesterdays leavings like there is no tomorrow
That said - It's alway been my motto to only accept the highest quality young men for my personal pleasure.
If there are moronic wanna be DJs living upstairs from you the best course of behaviour is to attack them in their sleep with fifteen inches of conduit and a greased up scorpion.
Some people have been very kind to me recently
tama, naomi, samara - they are my favourite girls
Bolt is a leg end as well as he showed great skill in construction of the very desk where I sit this moment.
Max is there on the other end of a telephone, but I do love him dearly
I did get a chance to play bass guitar recently, which was a thrill. Goody gum drops.
And from here good bye.
June 16 Thursday
Today was possibly the most amazing day I have experienced in quite some time. It was full of hope and that is the energy I need to continue. It was full of promise without promises made. Not commitment was forged but still there lay possibilities. And I fuelled upon those ideas and gorged myself in a feast recently unrivalled and certainly unparalleled. How cool! Some week ago in LA I was at work at the desk of the Student Inn. { How quickly I have found myself reinstalled in Sydney. I think I said within a few hours of arriving in Sydney last Monday night that I actually felt, (and honestly that I had just been down to the shop to get some milk, rather than across the globe twice.) Familiarity breeds what ever I am and Sydney is familiar.}
Where was I? Oh yes I was extolling upon the energy reserves held in possibility! That's right, some weeks ago I was sitting at the desk of the Student Inn and I was on the net. Knowing that I am and was rightly fucked financially and beginning to worry about those niggling little credit card debts I decided that looking for work probably wasn't a bad idea and so was surfing Australian career websites, my too favourites being Cracker.com & The Sydney Morning Herald Careers Section. Anyway there was an ad for a job at a film company in downtown Sydney which I applied for. I even went to the trouble of providing my telephone number, which I wasn't even sure I would still have. So weeks later I am in QLD and have forgotten that I even applied for that job. I think it was about 3 weeks ago. To my surprise I got a call yesterday asking if I wanted to come in for an interview. Of course I did, and today the interview was great and I have a second round one next week. so that was nice.
June 15. Sushine Coast Airport Queensland Australia
Wow! gee I seem to spend a bit of time in airports, don't !? I have had a very relaxing week where I didn't stray too far from the Kitchen or TV. Max and I cooked up heaps of good food. It was great just to relax and do fuck all. Looks like I have a job interview tomorrow at a film company in Sydney. I applied for the job online from LA about two weeks ago. I thought it was just another one of those internet things that I never hear about agin and then today Shirley telephoned me for an interview. I would be perfect for the position as I have done all the stuff before in similar small production companies. Anyway we will see! I need to pay back some of the debts that I have accured in the last few months and I would like to do that in a job where I got more satisfaction daily than just serving someone a drink at a cafe or etc. So here goes nothing. Job interviews can really suck. But they will get what they are given from me.
June 8
Got home late on the 6th - Monday. Got my shit together and escaped to QLD the next day. Mum & Dad were happy to see me. Relaxing now. Will write more soon.
6.40 am Bangkok
Well well well. The first thing I want to set straight is that United Airlines does not serve free alcholic beverages in economy class. After a short but surly exchange with my very British stewardess I resigned myself to yet another ginger ale.
7.5 hours later we were in London. I got through UK immigration much quicker than Ash, as I have British passport. He was made to wait in the "other" line which was extremely long. Anyway by the time he got through I had collected our luggage, except for the piece ( Ashley's personal bag ) that had been wrongly directed back to LA from New York. Ash found me at the United Baggage counter where I was working on getting his bag, which by the way they knew was in LA, directly back to Sydney so that it wouldn't have to go New York>London>Bangkok>Sydney. This plan actually started to feel fuckin' great when I realised that we had just saved - get this, approx AUD$1875.00. What I hear you say? We have been travelling with some excess baggage and to get that out of London Heathrow, which is notorious for ridiculous prices for excess weight, would have been 30 Pounds Sterling per Kg ( there are approx 2.5 Australian dollars to the Pound ). Now, if you do the sums you get that out rageous figure above. What? There must be a cheaper way? Well it didn't seem like it when I asked. But the main thing is because Ash's bag didn't make it to London we didn't have to even worry. So thank fuck for that! Fingers crossed that his bag is already in Sydney.
Thai International is the bomb. sexy Thai girls in silk, free beverages ( at last ), heaps of attention from said sexy stewardesses, good movies, lots of offered water/juice, Thai curry food. The list goes on. Thai and Singapore Air are my favs and Quigs said that Asiana was good too on his way back to Calgary - what is it with the western airline up themselves, non give a shit, lax attitude to customer service. My advice is go Asian!
So this is our last leg on the quickest world tour ever. And I am please to say that within half a day i will be on Aussie soil!
5.12 pm
New York (still)
We are now back in terminal 7. Luckily we didn't sit here all night as there is no Net access. It does sport slightly more comfortable seats and me and Ash have both been able to get about 2 hours sleep. We were eventually driven out of terminal 4 by a guy called Rob who kept talking, talking, talking. In fact, and this seems true, he has been in terminal 4 for the past 30 days. Now I know that seems incomprehensible but as I said - it seems true. He has had Visa issues getting to the Philipines to marry his internet bride. With nowhere else to go and limited funds he has turned terminal 4 at New York airport into his apartments extrordinaire. Weird people. Why do we always meet the weird people. I begin to wonder if we are weird. Are people writing blog entries right now about these Crazy Aussies they met, wherever it was we met them???
Well within the hour we will be boarding flight UA 956 for London Heathrow. That comes equiped with cold beverages. Thank God! International flights are always a chance to get my inner alcoholic out for few hours in the liver shaped exercise yard. yippy. Yes sweetheart, I will have another! I feel I may even turn to spirits on this leg. I mean you have to break it up a bit.
I have been reading a couple of different blogs about young men who are reformed alcoholics attending AA etc, getting interventions, relapsing and the detoxing etc. Well, my version is that if it was good enough for Jesus then it's alright by me. Maybe I'll have some wine instead of hitting the hard stuff just to keep Ecumenical/Episcopalian equilibrium in check. I just love a little aliteration on no sleep especially with a biblical slant!
rave rave rave. I kinda arced up my computer thinking I had something interesting to write and now I think that might have passed.
9.14 am
Facts
My soundtrack right now is Lamb of God
The urinals at JFK airport use 3.8 Liters per flush, which is exactly one Gallon.
Gas is 20 -30 cents a Gallon cheaper here in New York than it is in LA. I know this 'cause the "Gulf" ( nice name for an American petrol station ) said so while I was waiting for the Q3.
I really like that Jay Z song - I Just Wanna Love U ( fuck hardline cunts, I'll like what I like )
My chopsticks came in handy for the sardines
Kittens die when you masturbate
I have a teddy bear called - Panda ( he is a Panda bear )
I need a shower
Pointprovers suck, doers rule
I need sleep
I am broke
etc
8.52 am
So the news is that Timothy didn't come to the supermarket with me. He decided that it would be better to stay asleep in an uncomfortable chair. he did though impart crucial information as to the super's whereabouts plus bus instructions. Thanks Timbo!
My mission was beer and i was successful.
I took the Q3 bus through Jamaica to the corner of Merrick Blvd & Farmers Blvd. In the telling I imagined some kind of super that recalled John's or Ralph's, ( two popular breeds in LA ), as it turns out the "Western Beef" as it was known was a delapidated bright orange structure not used to the presence of strangers. The shelves were dusty, the workers suspicious. That said, they did have beer and some fruit plus sandwich supplies including that sandwich staple - bread and that Ross staple - sardines. I got some plastic 99c cheese and some tomatoes as well. Thanks Western Beef. The Q3 brought me back to terminal 4 and my Ashley creature. Couldn't get him any ciggies but he went out to pick up some poor rushed addicts old butts. Butt smokers united. Makes me wonder how the old Quigs is?
So that was my adventure to the outside world. Three beers and two sardine samdwiches later here I am. hi everyone.
I drink warm Coors light from a squat large diameter paper soup cup, Yum. I am serverly sleep deprived having had no sleep last night, 4 - 5 hours the night before and 2 the night before that. I must have mentioned the party that was thrown for me and Ash at the Student Inn on our last night?? Well if I didn't then I probably didn't say that the reason that I only got 2 hours sleep that night was that Ian our Bostonian room mate decided to fuck some Irish slut on the bunk on top of me. We was a rockin and a rollin. Then I got up. Sorry and pardon the pun but "Fuck That!". All that squelching was giving me the massive and very upsetting sickness. Yuk!
5.44 am
Timothy is going to show me how to get to the Supermarket and then I am going to buy beer and drink. I have been reading blogs again. If you read on then consisder your options as to the out comes of Sugarmosis
Read my now favorite Blogger - The Accidental New Yorker
I will have more tell when I have beer!
3.26 am
If only I could think, I would tell you something.
Hang on here's a little story for you. If it's a bit rough that's because I am making it up on the spot.
It's called Sugarmosis
As the late spring air gave way to summer the days were wetter and the sand became red. The blue tinge in the water disappeared replaced by the glow of phosphorescence. It lit the night and became the beacon by which dozens of traders plied their wares along the esplanade. Made with love, skill, practice and secrets.
A light breeze in the air whirled the canopies, scents mingled like drunken revellers. Summer nights were made for this.
Summer had a smell. Like rain on a hot road or fresh mown grass. Like sticky toffee as it sets. Summer tasted like the heavy saliva at the back of your throat. It held promise. Summer was flirtation.
All along the waters edge the vendor's calls sang out. Fresh and ready, cool and refreshing, hot and spicy, juicy and sweet, ice cold, luscious, tempting & savoury - a salad of bud tantalising confusion. Trill sounds, deep sounds a cacophony, a panoply. The choice made choice near as hectic as the clamour sprung about the lit water.
Her favourite though, was Sugarmosis, had been for as long as she could recall and would be as long as she had a hearts desire.
Warm air, carried the host and delivered it's olfactory missive; a breeze of new beginnings that were a daily ritual, each new evening bringing the need to fulfil it's own end. Indulge and tantalise and repeat. A recipe of culinary intrigue and a lingering knowledge that only one sun would yet again bring on the next.
She did love Sugarmosis. Nothing would stop or interfere with that.
She hurried. The hill was cobbled and sloped with urgency towards the water. Her dress was light, its skirts fanning as she descended. This was summer. This hill, this stretch owned her. It was the delivery. The way, the path. Once upon it she could not falter or wander from its mechanism. The shinning water beamed back with a new fathers pride. Summer was birth and rebirth and repeat. Seasons turned in on themselves and Sugarmosis was it's frenzied axis. It spun the globe, it's spherical orbit collecting the sweet floss that candies all existence.
And down she went. She would pay any price and had. Sugarmosis' obvious value was not something all would consider. But she never thought of others. And so she closed the gap between herself and that, which was hers. The clamour rose like a hero and pressed itself into her like a long missed lover. Sugarmosis called her name, as this after all was summer.
4.14 am
Yeh I am back
I have just been reading a fairly boring blog about some guy in London who is breaking up with whoever he was with. God knows some people have extremely lame existences. Do I give a fuck if you now have to pay the whole mortgage or not. No ! And another thing kids - don't get a mortgage til you grow up and know what a great deal of horrible shit it most usually will mean for life. That is just my opinion but then again this is all just my opinion.
Here is a little pic of me and Ash in our room at the good ol' Student Inn, Holloweird!
So I suppose you might like, at this point to see some of my photographic genius. Art.
More of our little humble hovel, a bit blurry but deal. I bring it - you deal with it. That's our relationship. Alright Fucko!
 23 was my fav. |
 Our room |
 Self Portrait |
 My Bed - not as many Bugs as some others |
June 03
Did I say that Ash and I were bailing from the Student Inn Hollywood? Probably. I mean I could just read the stuff I wrote yesterday to see but I can't be bothered. We are now at JFK airport New York. This is the first time I have found free internet at an International Airport. Whatd'ya know I just logged on and there are actually 5 wireless networks to choose from. yippy! So thanks Varig Lounge who ever you are. If you sell anything then I can't afford to buy it but yeh Varig you rock!
Anyway the net is going to be the sauce I spoon over the next 22 hours so that sitting here waiting for a plane to London doesn't taste so so so so bad. It wont be able to mask the taste completely but still....
Here I am if you care.
There is an annoying little girl bouncing the set of uncomfortable chairs that I am sitting on, Oh wait her mother and her are leaving. That's good See ya. We were in Terminal 7 which is where we arrived and where we have to leave from tomorrow but we got the word from our my man on the ground there that Terminal 4 was more the place for longtermers such as ourselves. And he was right. It's much more accommodating. Internet and all. In fact this set of chairs has carpet and power and Ash has taken up his sleeping position behind me. He is using Tam's grandmother's knitted rug. Thanks Tam. Oh and by the way - Hi to all the gang up there in Calgary!!!
You guys rock and Hans - don't go changing, I think you were the subject of a disturbing dream that I had last week. Anyway but that's another story. Jay the Cds and stuff came yesteday and me and Ash now have Stinkhammer shirts. Also I gave a Stink Cd to Rob as he was wondering what you guys sound like.
Speaking of Rob ( just briefly ) his mixes are the BOMB!
But now we return you to our regular screening of JFK airport and not much has changed sice I digressed into my Calgary moment. Oh there goes a guy with a trolley, haven't seen him before. Maybe I should invite him over for tea?
I did make some initial enquiries concerning the distance to the closest Supermarket or etc but then thought "fuck that - it's raining, I have no money and don't want to bother going out there". Just get me home. Not that I am going to be in Sydney very long. I am actually escaping within 24 hours and hitting the very secret squirel location of ..... Sorry I can't tell you that.
Wait something has happened. Ash has gone to the toilet! Wow. This excitement is amazing. If I can make it here I can make it anywhere or something. but we've got a great big convoy and I'VE GONE COMPLETELY MAD!
I will return after I read some other persons shit. Blog reading as I have said is my new no money entertainment!
June 02 ......later
Actually it's not later it's just that I had to go to the toilet. And that I couldn't deal with the itinerary thing.
I have been reading alot of blogs recently. QueerFilter.com is my current fav listing site. It's worth a look. Hey yeh I know that you might have found me through there. Uprooted is listed on QueerFilter so this is for Tourettes readers info.
There is some real cool stuff to read out there, my inner voyer is getting his rocks off.
I should have been writing more. Lots of stuff has been happening.
here's a few examples -
I have been twice to gospel church at First African Methodist Episcopal. I didn't go twice in a row preferring to take my church going less seriously than some I had a week off in between doses.
After the first time me and my friend Dale, who is my church connect, went to an artists space, it was hot and I bailed out early, walking around looking at art in the balzing sun was not for me. After my second visit to FAME ( I am probably not going to live forever ) me and Dale went to - The Kitchen on 43rd Place Inc. where we had Soul Food. Eating is good! I had Turkey Chops, Black Eyed Peas, Potatoes, Collard Greens & Cornbread all washed down by two servings of Iced Tea. This little restaurant was in South Central near Crenshaw. Dale said it was the cultural center of Black LA.It was cool.
Just to get back to the church thing for a bit. This last time I went I happened to be wearing my jeans that have a FUCK WAR patch on the front. This didn't go down too well with one of the main preaching dudes and he took it upon himself to rush down the center aisle in the middle of the service and whisper something to Dale to the effect that " maybe it wasn't appropriate Church wear" or something, which really made Dale mad. Anyway the main thing is that the drummer in the band there is really wicked and he took a drum solo while they collected the money. Naughty Ross!
Two nights ago we went to the Roxy on Sunset where we were on the doorlist but didn't get in anyway. Whatever. But while we were outside Lisa, who explained that she was the new guitarist from Hole introduced herself and was suprised to have Ashley exclaim immediately that "We hate Courney!". Nice one!
They threw a party for me and Ash last night here in the Hostel in LA. I haven't slept that much because the guy who is sleeping on the bunk above me decided that he was going to Fuck some blond chick from godknowswhere! This is the second time in a week this has happened. Did I say I need some privacy.
June 02
yeh it's been a while, not that long really but a lot has happened to me in the past few weeks. As I said just below it turns out that Corts friend Rob knew of us which was suprising as here in LA we are basically unknown. The sitch is this, a few years ago Ash wrote some songs for an Australian girl called Michelle Smith. She moved to LA with her boyfriend who is called Mark. Ash and Mark knew eachother years ago and etc, seems like this guy Rob also wrote songs for this girl and whilst they were doing that she had spoken very highly of Tourettes to him. etc
So when we emailed Rob he got back saying all this and that we should call him and so on. All that and etc, then we go round to his place - he loves the music and wants to get involved in mixing the record.
That was then and this is now, since then he has mixed half the tracks and is getting ready to help us put it out. There are a lot of messy industry details that I could fill in but suffice it to say we are now friends have slept on his couch a bit and he is driving us to the airport tomorrow so we can get the fuck outta the dodge!
Yes that's right me and Ash are returning to Australia. Thank fuck. To be honest I am completely over it. I mean I am over not having any, and in no particular order - privacy, money, outside interests, close friends, proper coffee, sex, car, yoga class, paying gigs, kitchen, kitchenware, closet, bed without bed buds - I am sure you get the picture.
Here it is - the last 10 months in at a glance
29 AUG 04 - DEPART - SYDNEY/SYDNEY KINGSFORD 1000
29 AUG 04 - ARRIVE - VANCOUVER/VANCOUVER AIR 1000
- AIRCRAFT -
- CLASS - ECONOMY
SUNDAY AIR CANADA FLIGHT AC 212 CONFIRMED
29 AUG 04 - DEPART - VANCOUVER/VANCOUVER AIR 1200
29 AUG 04 - ARRIVE - CALGARY/CALGARY INTL AR 1423
- AIRCRAFT -
- CLASS - ECONOMY
MONDAY AIR CANADA FLIGHT AC 570 CONFIRMED
28 FEB 05 - DEPART - CALGARY/CALGARY INTL AR 1220
28 FEB 05 - ARRIVE - LOS ANGELES/LOS ANGELES 1428
- AIRCRAFT -
- CLASS - ECONOMY
THURSDAY AIR CANADA FLIGHT AC 570 CONFIRMED
07 APR 05 - DEPART - CALGARY/CALGARY INTL AR 1200
07 APR 05 - ARRIVE - LOS ANGELES/LOS ANGELES 1409
- AIRCRAFT -
- CLASS - ECONOMY
FRIDAY UNITED AIRLINES INC FLIGHT UA 904 CONFIRMED
03 JUN 05 - DEPART - LOS ANGELES/LOS ANGELES 1120 NON-STOP
Terminal: TERMINAL 7
03 JUN 05 - ARRIVE - NEW YORK/JOHN F KENNEDY 1942 05HRS 22MINS
Terminal: TERMINAL 7
- AIRCRAFT - BOEING 757-200
- CLASS - ECONOMY
SATURDAY UNITED AIRLINES INC FLIGHT UA 956 CONFIRMED
04 JUN 05 - DEPART - NEW YORK/JOHN F KENNEDY 1850 NON-STOP
Terminal: TERMINAL 7
05 JUN 05 - ARRIVE - LONDON/HEATHROW,,GB 0655 07HRS 05MINS
Terminal: TERMINAL 3
- AIRCRAFT - BOEING 777
- CLASS - ECONOMY
SUNDAY THAI AIRWAYS INTL FLIGHT TG 911 CONFIRMED
05 JUN 05 - DEPART - LONDON/HEATHROW 1230 NON-STOP
Terminal: TERMINAL 3
06 JUN 05 - ARRIVE - BANGKOK/BANGKOK INTL AR 0605 11HRS 35MINS
Terminal: TERMINAL 1
- AIRCRAFT - BOEING 747 PASSENGER JET
- CLASS - ECONOMY
MONDAY THAI AIRWAYS INTL FLIGHT TG 993 CONFIRMED
06 JUN 05 - DEPART - BANGKOK/BANGKOK INTL AR 0810 NON-STOP
Terminal: TERMINAL 1
06 JUN 05 - ARRIVE - SYDNEY/SYDNEY KINGSFORD 2010 09HRS 00MINS
Terminal: TERMINAL 1
- AIRCRAFT - BOEING 747-400
- CLASS - ECONOMY
If you give enough of a fuck you might have noticed that today we are in LA and we wont be in Sydney til Monday June 6. That means that ( go on do the math ) OK I'll do it, roughly so as not to freak or depress myself too much we have 33 hours flight time and approx the same sitting in the various and no doubt wonderfully appointed airports of the world. You begin to question the sanity of saving around $700 each over the course of the year with this shitful ticket. Oh Blah fuck it
May 16
Monday. Got this email from Sandy's secretary.
Hey Ross,
Sandy wanted me to let you know that there's really nothing he can do for you guys.
Sincerely,
Karen
So thanks for nothing; in our meeting he had seemed enthusiastic, but had said that classic, "I'll call you" line that did make me nervous.
Ash and I went to Cyber Java demoralised etc. Sitting there we were contemplating leaving. Seeing as we have no money and all. But then Cort walked passed and stopped to say hi. He is a friend of Kyle's who lives at the Student Inn. Now, I have walked past and said hello to Cort everyday since meeting him about two weeks ago. He is one of those Hollywood wanders much like myself, wandering and wondering, I suppose. Anyway there Ash and I are desparate. A half finished record and at the end of our list of potentially interested parties and Cort walks by.
He knows that we are in a band but not much else. He starts by telling us about how the LA scene sucks and how it used to be etc etc etc. We start by telling him our situation and how we need someone to mix our record. Eventually he says, well I know this guy, a friend of a friend, you should look at his website. Seeing as we are at the Cyber Java we logged on and checked this guy. Turns out that he had heard of the band .....
May 15
Sunday
May 14
Working the front desk again. 7am - 3.30pm.
Basically me and Ash are hanging in LA to see what happens with one of our major contacts. His name is Sandy. Emailed him today to hurry him up. He already hasn't returned two phone calls so I don't really hold much hope, but we will see.
It's saturday and that's it.
May 13
Was hung over Friday the 13th. Didn't do much. Had to work the front desk again - 4pm til Midnight. Blah
May 12
Can't remember what I did today. I probably got drunk. It was thursday after all! Oh that's right. I did get drunk. Lex the bar guy from the Cat Club had invited me and Ash back this night. They have a band there called Star Fuckers. It's Dizzy the keyboard player who played piano on November Rain for Gunners has a cover band there that is kind of an alstar jam. They played ABBA SOS as guitar rock, assorted other classics in a similar style and the Gerry Cantrel from Alice in Chains got up and jammed, can't quite recall what it was but it was pretty jam-ish and Ash and I didn't last too much longer. Cort was there, but more about him later. We got another 6 pack for the walk home. It is quite a long way from the club section of Sunset back to Hollywood Blvd. Got a Hot dog on the way home.
May 11
After the show we drove back to the Hostel. I slept for a few hours, Quigs and Ash drank too many coffees and Michele dissappeared with ian to get a 2 hour massage. At about 5am we drove to the airport, gate 7 LAX to drop off Michele and Quigs so that they could make their way out of there. Me and Ash drove to Malibu on the 10 freeway to have a look and then down to Venice to get some breakfast, coffee and a bagel thing. We then drove back via Santa Monica to the Hertz place to drop of the car. By that stage it was 8am. we were both fucked and even though I had had a bit of a sleep I still felt like I had been up all night. The car cost US$94.13 and the gas cost US$20.00. We made nothing at the gig besides the CDs we sold. That's Rock n Roll though. After that it was the walk back to Hollywood for a sleep. Since Quigs has gone I am working his shifts on the front desk at the Hostel. That was this afternoon. Boring and all that. It was only 3.5 hours so it wasn't all bad.
May 10
Today is the day of our gig at the Cat Club on Sunset Blvd. It is the club that the guy from the Stray Cats used to own, I think it was Jim. Anyway it's that small one next to the Whiskey. I have to go and pick up the hire car from Hertz down on La Brea. It's about a 20 minute walk down past Santa Monica, Melrose, past Pinks famous hot dogs ( people line up there for a very long time to get a dog, haven't done that myself ), past the 99cent store, past Jet Rag ( very cool second hand clothes, haven't bought any, had a look though ). You get the picture. On sundays Jet Rag has a $1 sale. The guys a Hertz have to wear a shirt and tie. When I walked down there two days ago to make the booking I ran into Nick from one of the bands that we played with at Zen a few weeks ago, he said he might try to come down to the show tonight.
Later.....
Picked up the car. The mini van needed an oil change so we got a Chevy Trailblazer SUV with a sun roof. I picked up Michele. She has been living down Santa Monica past the 101 with some crew and a couple of dogs. Sin & 3 seem nice their place is small so I can see why Michele wanted to get out of there, she has been sleeping on the couch and floor.
She had packed up her life and was ready when I got there. We went back to the hostel in Hollywood and picked up the Ash and Micheal and headed for the show. damus came with us so that he could play roadie ( he didn't have any money to pay to come in, so he wanted to come in with us ). As usual we were a bit early, the band that we walked in on were a horrible folk dribble mishmash of female fronted whatever, then there was a noise band that the door man told me were a last minute fill in, they were better than the dribble folk. My opinion only! We were on next and by the time that happened there were actually quite a few people there to see us play, which was nice. The bar mans name was Lex, he also is the sound guy ( that may give you more of an idea of the size of the venue ). He was cool. We played using the clubs gear, Ash was happy because they had a Line 6 amp for guitar. I thought the bass amp looked good, it was an Ampeg 8 x 10 which was promising but the head was a piece of shit that didn't have enough power so I could hardly hear myself let alone anyone else. The drums were a big dimension rock kit with one rack tom and one floor. They kept creeping forward on Quigs and he wasn't that impressed. Anyway we played alright given the walk up start. Blah whatever. People seemed to dig it though. The bar guy came up and said that " I should have told him that we were good! " What can I say. We sold all the CDs we had so that was good. Met a few assorted Hollywood freaks including the guy who played Z in Pulp Fiction. He seemed cool.
It's been a real interesting time here in LA. It has held ups and downs but mainly it's just been plain old interesting.
just copped a few slings and arrows here if you care. It may amuse. From one pansy boy to another. It's our war motherfucker.
I could tell you of the owner of the Peking Chinese restaurant in Victorville, but I will leave that for Ash, he has a good take on it. Coming soon.
Or maybe you'd be interested to know about Buck Owens and the Bakersfield connection. Hi Beth! They were some of the nicest people I have met; from the older timers in Vinnie's bar when we first got there through the guys from Addiction Theory. Thanks guys. Thanks go out to Flatline from Santa Monica that were also great guys and came through on "amps n stuff".
This week has been Musexpo a nice little event that cost US$525.00 to attend, or you could just turn up on the footpath outside the key club on showcase night. Me and Michele took a walk down Sunset and it was all good, there was a lot of hob nobbing to be done and we made the most of who ever was out there. It was cool, I think we networked pretty well and some of the people met were really nice, which was good.
Thanks everyone for the support.
xx
ross
Well here in Hollywood its Monday April 25, 2005
We have a show tonight at a place in Silverlake called Zen. Silverlake is to Hollywood what Newtown or Annandale would be to Kings Cross ( Sydney ), sort of down the road about 15 minutes if you drive and about 2 hours by foot. We are some of the only people who walk that far in LA, it's all about the cars! Anyway this will be our second US sho