Nailing descartes to the blog.....

Next month I will be partaking in the mass exodus of Britain that happens every summer commonly referred to by the average British proletariat as "Going on my summer holz". Although it makes no sense (at all!) To leave the country the only time of year when we get anything remotely like nice weather, I've booked a flight out of this bitch. So in preparation for lying on a beach while I drink alcohol poison inducing cocktails and cook till my imminent melanoma is actually audible, I decided a trip to the book shop was essential. Upon arriving I headed straight for the philosophy section intent on buying a book by the modern philosopher, Simon Critchley, who is featured in this months vice. Unfortunately they only had really really expensive Critchly hardbacks so I ended up buying some other philosophy books including Descartes most key writings for £3.99! One of the books, The Consolations of Philosophy, I noticed had been turned into a TV series a few years back for Channel 4, so not wanting to go over board on the book buying I decided to go home and look for the T.V. series. Well I found it and watched all 6 episodes last night and fuck me they're awesome! I strongly recommend you watch this entire series. It is full of extremely clever ideas about love/self esteem/ happiness/anger from some of the worlds brightest philosophers cleverly delivered by Alain De Botton author of the book. I seriously cannot recommend it enough.

1. Socrates on Self-Confidence

"One who is injured ought not to return the injury, for on no account can it be right to do an injustice; and it is not right to return an injury, or to do evil to any man, however much we have suffered from him."

"The unexamined life is not worth living."

02. Epicurus on Happiness

"Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for."

"It is not so much our friends' help that helps us, as the confidence of their help."

03. Seneca on Anger

"Dangerous is wrath concealed. Hatred proclaimed doth lose its chance of wreaking vengeance."

"To be always fortunate, and to pass through life with a soul that has never known sorrow, is to be ignorant of one half of nature."

04. Montaigne on Self-Esteem

"A good marriage would be between a blind wife and a deaf husband."

"Ignorance is the softest pillow on which a man can rest his head. "




05. Schopenhauer on Love

"Almost all of our sorrows spring out of our relations with other people."

"Each day is a little life: every waking and rising a little birth, every fresh morning a little youth, every going to rest and sleep a little death."




06. Nietzsche on Hardship

" Two great European narcotics, alcohol and Christianity. "

" Out of damp and gloomy days, out of solitude, out of loveless words directed at us, conclusions grow up in us like fungus: one morning they are there, we know not how, and they gaze upon us, morose and gray. Woe to the thinker who is not the gardener but only the soil of the plants that grow in him. "

I've decided to start a mixtape series! The series is called "a Mixtape for....." and will feature collections of songs for various situations. Hope you enjoy the first two....


01. Good clean fun - You gotta stay positive
02. Good clean fun - On the streets saving the scene
03. The Descendents - Coffee mug
04. Have heart - The unbreakable
05. Every time I die - Romeo a go-go
06. The Dillinger escape plan - We are the storm
07. The Hope conspiracy - Bled across the wire
08. The Number twelve looks like you - Blue dress
09. Glassjaw - Love bites and razor lines
10. Drowning man - The Unbearable burden of always being right
11. The Fall of troy - F.C.P.R.E.M.I.X.
12 Hopesfall - The Bending

A mixtape for.......
STOPPING YOU FROM
FALLING ASLEEP, BEHIND THE WHEEL.
(Dedicated to Ceri)


01. Thursday - For the workforce, drowning.
02. Pretty girls make graves - Modern day Emma Goldman
03. Thrice - The Artist in the ambulance
04. Rise against - Heaven knows
05. Saves the day - You vandal
06. Rancid - Olympia Wa.
07. Propagandhi - Ska sucks
08. Me without you - January 1979
09. Minus the bear - Hey is that a ninja up there?
10. Tubelord - Night of the pencils
11. Hot club de paris - Let go of everything
12. Sublime - What I got
13. The Pharcyde - Drop

A mixtape for.......
SIPPING BEERS AT A BBQ

THE LONG WAIT IS OVER!
7 years, 5 albums 2 e.p's and 4 vinyl after the forming of the band, Math-core heavy weights the number 12 looks like you finally tour the U.K. in support of their newest album worse than alone. I'm not really that into their recent release so I'm hoping to god they play old songs! Which they fucking should do seeing as they've never been over before!

20/09/09 - Southhampton Joiners
21/09/09 - Newport TJ's
22/09/09 - Sheffield coporation
23/09/09 - Peterborough the met lounge
24/09/09 - Glasgow ivory blacks
25/09/09 - Aberdeen korova
26/09/09 - Leeds josephs well
27/09/09 - Manchester moho live
28/09/09 - Plymouth white rabbit
29/09/09 - Nottingham rock city
30/09/09 - London underworld

CLASSIC CLASSIC ALBUM

The number twelve looks like you - Put on your rosy red glasses




For ages vice has been getting worse and worse as most of their best writers have anticipated the wandering fickle attention spans of hipsters everywhere and jumped ship. Gavin Haynes however is still great and his most recent article interviewing girls who support the BNP party is pure fucking gold, check it out here read the comments at the bottom as well funny shit!



A while back I mentioned that I had engineered an awesome band in work called will it fly? Well I finally managed to get my hands on two tracks off their forth coming E.P! The untitled E.P is set to be released this september and will feature 6 songs. Anyone who likes the style of the bands I blog about will definitely like these guys. I intend on putting on a show in the near future for these guys and another couple of awesome bands (Rico and the thieves check them out!) so when I get around to organising it I'll keep you updated! For fans of minus the bear American football and texas is the reason.

Will it fly? - Inemuri view

Will it fly? - The coin has spoken

When the catholic girls go camping, the nicotine vampires rule supreme!

I'm slacking I know! I've been busy as fuck at work this week and at some points felt like crying..... my p.a stopped working half way through a packed gig, sound engineering can be fucking stressful! I got to mix some awesome bands though like.......

Cancer bats
Rolo tomassi
The plight
Pulled apart by horses
The old romantic killer band
who were supported by an awesome new band called will it fly? I will be blogging about them as soon as they sort out a recording!

Most people know who Richard Kern is, but for those of you who do not, he is the man with literally the best job ever. Kern grew up in new york at a time when the art scene was exploding, he ran a zine called the heroin addict, hung out with artists/musicians like Lydia Lunch, Henry rollins, kim gordon and made videos for bands like sonic youth and the butthole surfers. He wrote and directed many low budget 8mm films in the 1980's which mainly focused on sexual fetish and violence, which led him, along with a few others to become a main pioneer of the cinema of transgression movement. Since the 1990's he has mainly just been doing awesome still photography work, which judging from his vbs show consists of him getting beautiful models high and naked while taking photo's of the proceedings.......bastard.
Check out his website here
check out his vbs show here.

Possibly THE creepiest non fictional thing I have ever seen. Louie Theroux and his film crew go to a mental facility for ex-convicted sexual deviants in California and witnesses a Halloween celebration where they film something I have been having nightmares about for a week now. Here's a video of clips I edited from the documentary.



Here's a link to the whole documentary.

Giraffes? giraffes! are a 2 piece math/prog rock band from Massachusetts who met in college and released their 2nd album titled more skin with milk mouth in december of 2007. It's awesome! It reminds me of early truckers of husk with a touch of the more crazy side of sikth. Have a listen and then buy the record it's sick believe me!

When the catholic girls go camping, the nicotine vampires rule supreme!

Buy the record here.


I finally got to watch this film the other day after deciding not to attend last years frightfest and fuck me it is harsh. I mean really harsh I literally had to turn away from the screen in parts, but if your going to make a shocking horror film you should do it right and Pascal Laugier really surpassed himself. I now cannot wait for the new hellraiser film which he has written and directed let's hope hollywood hasn't turned him into a pussy.

martyrs 2008