Wolfmother

So last night i seen Wolfmother and damn it was epic!

It was further away than i usually go for gigs so my dad drove me and two friends there: guy called Steve, and Louis whose first gig it was.

My dad wasn't sure what to do while we were there but in the end he decided to get a ticket at the doors and watch from the seats so that was cool.

However, since i received my tickets back in April, i was suspicious of them. They were badly printed and also lacking a bar code whilst others around us in the queue generally had tickets with bar codes on them so going up to the door to get in i was quite apprehensive.

In the end, we did get in but obviously the venue knew that some tickets were badly printed so had back-ups for those that had them. It was rather irksome though because if we had just went straight in without waiting around to get in, we would have got on the barrier, like i did last time i seen Wolfmother, but this time that didn't happen.

Damn you, Ticketmaster!

Anyway, we were pretty much down the front so i was happy enough.

The support band were nothing special. Band called Turbogeist, just really a wall of noise. Think they should work on their live act coz their stuido stuff sounds decent.

Wolfmother came on not long after them and it was intense!

Coz it was such a small gig, you get to look at the lead singer in the eyes while he looks at you playing one of your favourite songs. Words. Can't. Describe.

I imagined Louis didn't quite know what to expect as it was his first gig so i wasn't surprised to find out later that he retreated further back from the front :P

Steve's a bit of a madman at gigs tho and tends to be in the moshpits etc. He was even crowdsurfing at one point! Loony.

I was all over the place to be honest. I started right in the middle down the front, then i was slowly shifted over to the left about halfway through and when Colossal ended the main set and it was all-out fucking brawl. The whole place was just a pit. Nearly fell on my arse as well but managed to grab onto someone :P

Got myself out of there for the encore and ended up over towards the right hand side of the stage somehow :S

Like last time, i'd say Colossal was the best song. Everyone just goes mental!

Was annoyed that security didn't hand out cups of water though coz i was dying in there: crushed, no air, no space. Trickle of water woulda done me fine but nah, not a sausage.

Also, coz i wasn't on the barrier, i didn't really have an opportunity to get my camera out without fear of dropping it, so i don't really have any pictures to show.


Compared to the last Wolfmother gig, id say this one wasn't as good.
The support band were average here, plus i didn't get their setlist like i did last time.
Didn't get on the barrier like i had planned.
Security didn't give out drinks.
Wolfmother's set wasn't brilliant.

It wasn't amazing last time either, and in general they don't play great sets. The reason is that they tend to go into really long on-stage jams which are cool but i'd much rather see more songs to be honest. They played 14 songs last time and 12 here. However, they did briefly cover The Beatles' "Dear Prudence" and The Doors, "Riders on the Storm".

However, for a band with 2 studio albums and over 25 songs, id have hoped for more than 12.
The only song they played here they didn't last time was Mind's Eye.

I'll stop moaning coz it still was an awesome night, just could have been better but certainly worth 20 pounds.

Then again Biffy was 20 pounds and played 25 songs... right, i'll stop, i'll stop! ;D

I enjoyed my night and that's whats important!


Rowan <3


P.S There is a new blogger in the midst around here and his name is Thomas. He's 16, from Germany (his English is good don't worry :P) and i'm sure he'd love to here from you all. He's had his blog for around a week now and here it is: http://a-little-refuge.blogspot.com/

A Lil' Update

So the past couple of week have been fairly busy to say the least. They've had their pros and they've had their cons.

The best thing to come out of the past few weeks is probably the fact that i got an A in all my prelims i sat last month which i find quite overwhelming. I didn't expect that at all.

One of the most surprising things was the subject i thought i'd do worst in, English, is the subject i did best it in. I got 82% overall.
Elsewhere, i got 76% and 77% in Spanish and French respectively.
75% in Media Studies.
Another thing that surprised, and disappointed, me to a certain extent was my music mark - 70%. Just scraping an A :/

It's coz i rely to much on the practical element of the subject, in which i try (and often succeed) to be a perfectionist. It was my below par listening result of 22/40 that brought my mark down.
However, i cant just rely on my playing skills to get me an A as was shown today. My guitar exam.
I only had 2 pieces to play, as opposed to 5 on bass 2 weeks ago which went superbly.

I know im a lot weaker on guitar, having not played it as long as bass but my performance today was average in my opinion. I don't know if it was nerves or what but my first piece i messed up some chords and my rhythm was way out at points, something i knew the examiner picked up on as well - I seen her scribbling away a few times when i thought i messed up.

The 2 pieces only lasted five minutes overall. 1 was a full play through (my average play) but the piece that was sampled is the one i'd have preferred to play in full. Im much better at it and the solo is great but i wasnt given the opportunity to showcase that.
Overall, i'd give piece one 6/10.
Piece 2 - 9/10 but unfortunately i only played about half of it.

Anyway, as i said, i strive to be a perfectionist in my playing so perhaps i was disappointed but maybe it was ok from another point of view. My teacher said i played well...

Enough ranting about music. My marks elsewhere were brilliant so i shouldnt worry too much, just gotta hope i can put in a similar performance for the final exam.


Apart from all the stress of the past few weeks which i actually consider to be tougher than the exam period itself, it's been fairly subdued.

Our options have been put in front of us for next year and ive been a bit worried about what to pick next year. I'd already settled on *one* language. Only one because i have been doing two simultaneously for the past 4 years and its just not funny anymore. Next year im doing one and that is final - it's looking like it'll be Italian at a similar level to my Spanish and French this year.
I think that would look good on any CV - 3 languages all at the same level. Variation.
Would also like to do Advanced Music simply coz i love music xD

Now the last two im really not sure on. There's a course in Video Editing but im not 100% on it yet and im also considering going back to Modern Studies and taking it a Higher level.
I've got until the 25th to make up my mind so i can discuss it with my guidance teacher more if needs be.
But definetely Advanced Music and Italian at a higher level. Also, Bryan's picked them xD
Don't have a go at me! Im not picking them coz he is. He actually surprised me with the Italian which i had already settled my mind on and i was always going to be picking Music anyways!
I put it down to luck :P


I'm sorry this post was dominated by school news, it's just really all thats been going on recently. If you're sick of it, just think about poor old me!
However... there is something un-school related.
Got home today to find that Wolfmother are coming back to the UK!
Tickets don't go on sale till tomorrow but i worked my way through and got tickets on pre-sale ;)
The only problem is that they're playing a bit further afield than they did last time i seen them and i don't know if Alex will go with me like he did last year.
We'll cross that bridge when we come to it i guess but it makes up for me losing out on Queens of the Stone Age tickets: the Wolfmother gig is a few days after it!


Rowan <3




Posting this simply coz i've been quite obsessed with it recently. Don't worry i'm not tripping acid or smoking pot :)


YET!!!! MWAHAHAHAJFOGSHGJSDGSLDHFKLSDHGJKL walrus

Top 100 Songs of 2010

(as according to iTunes)


Over the past couple of days, ive been going over this post and making sure it reads properly as ive been working out my most played 100 songs of 2010. Im doing it really coz i love my music - personally, i think the world would be dead without music and honestly, i consider it as very important in my life -  so i like making little lists like the one below.

This is only according to iTunes tho, which is not the only place i listen to music so it isnt entirely accurate, but its the nearest thing to it i suppose. iTunes always has little hitches and glitches that alters final readings, too, so throughout a year, things can get messed up.
Also, the fact that only 7 different bands appears on the whole list is probably because when i like a band... i REALLY like a band :P
Oh yeah, my collection of cds has grown throughout the year so not every song on my iTunes has been there from the start. Bands like The Beatles, White Stripes, Rage, Klaxons, System of a Down arent really on the list coz they're a few of many bands ive started listening to this year.

^The above was a precaution before everyone says i listen to Muse too much :P
I havent actually listened to them much recently tbh but as a warning, there will be a lot of songs on this list you've probably never heard of but how and ever here it is, starting at 100 -



100. Wave Upon Wave Upon Wave - Biffy Clyro (47 plays)

99. Convex, Concave - Biffy Clyro (47 plays)

98. Mind's Eye - Wolfmother (48 plays)

97. Darkshines -  Muse (48 plays)

96. Now I'm Everyone - Biffy Clyro (48 plays)

95. Dead Star - Muse (49 plays)

94. Eradicate the Doubt - Biffy Clyro (49 plays)

93. Sundial - Wolfmother (50 plays)

92. Muscle Museum - Muse (50 plays)

91. Assassin - Muse (50 plays)

90. Invincible - Muse (50 plays)

89. Fury - Muse (50 plays)

88. Pause It And Turn It Up/Tradition Feed - Biffy Clyro (50 plays)

87. Know Your Enemy - Rage Against the Machine (51 plays)

86. Bullet In The Head - Rage Against the Machine (51 plays)

85. Sunburn - Muse (51 plays)

84. Sky Demon - Biffy Clyro (51 plays)

83. Born On a Horse -  Biffy Clyro (51 plays)

82. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds - The Beatles (51 plays)

81. Dimension - Wolfmother (52 plays)

80. In The Morning - Wolfmother (52 plays)

79. Back Round - Wolfmother (53 plays)

78. Killing In The Name - Rage Against the Machine (53 plays)

77. The Small Print - Muse (53 plays)

76. Happiness - Kasabian (53 plays)

75. Whorses - Biffy Clyro (53 plays)

74. Justboy - Biffy Clyro (53 plays)

73. Exogenesis: Symphony Pt 2: Cross-Pollination - Muse (54 plays)

72. Unnatural Selection - Muse (54 plays)

71. Soldier's Poem - Muse (54 plays)

70. Butterflies & Hurricanes - Muse (54 plays)

69. Where Did All The Love Go? - Kasabian (54 plays)

68. Got Wrong - Biffy Clyro (54 plays)

67. New Moon Rising - Wolfmother (55 plays)

66. Butcher Blues - Kasabian (55 plays)

65. 9/15ths - Biffy Clyro (55 plays)

64. New Born - Muse (55 plays)

63. Millonaire Waltz - Queen (56 plays)

62. Bodies In Flight - Biffy Clyro (56 plays)

61. Falling Down - Muse (57 plays)

60. Popcorn - Muse (57 plays)

59. Falling Away With You - Muse (57 plays)

58. Time Is Running Out - Muse (57 plays)

57. Colossal - Wolfmother (58 plays)

56. God & Satan - Biffy Clyro (58 plays)

55. Only One Word Comes To Mind - Biffy Clyro (58 plays)

54. Map of the Problematique - Muse (59 plays)

53. Starlight - Muse (59 plays)

52. Living Is a Problem Because Everything Dies - Biffy Clyro (59 plays)

51. California Queen - Wolfmother (60 plays)

50. Resistance - Muse (60 plays)

49. Knights of Cydonia - Muse (60 plays)

48. Booooom, Blast & Ruin - Biffy Clyro (60 plays)

47. The Kids From Kibble And The Fist Of Light - Biffy Clyro (60 plays)

46. Apple Tree - Wolfmother (61 plays)

45. Exogenesis: Symphony Pt 3: Redemption - Muse (61 plays)

44. Ladies And Gentlemen (Roll The Dice) - Kasabian (61 plays)

43. Sing For Absolution - Muse (63 plays)

42. Woman - Wolfmother (64 plays)

41. There’s No Such Man As Crasp - Biffy Clyro (64 plays)

40. Crazy Little Thing Called Love - Queen (65 plays)

39. Mountains - Biffy Clyro (65 plays)

38. Joker & The Thief - Wolfmother (66 plays)

37. Exogenesis: Symphony Pt 1: Overture - Muse (66 plays)

36. Plug In Baby - Muse (66 plays)

35. Vlad The Impaler - Kasabian (66 plays)

34. Bubbles - Biffy Clyro (66 plays)

33. People of the Sun - Rage Against the Machine (67 plays)

32. Guiding Light - Muse (68 plays)

31. Blackout - Muse (68 plays)

30. Screenager - Muse (69 plays)

29. Endlessly - Muse (69 plays)

28. Uprising - Muse (70 plays)

27. Hyper Music - Muse (70 plays)

26. Cosmic Egg - Wolfmother (71 plays)

25. Ruled By Secrecy - Muse (71 plays)

24. 57 - Biffy Clyro (71 plays)

23. Megalomania - Muse (72 plays)

22. MK Ultra - Muse (73 plays)

21. Far Away - Wolfmother (74 plays)

20. Citizen Erased - Muse (74 plays)

19. Take a Bow - Muse (74 plays)

18. Stockholm Syndrome - Muse (74 plays)

17. Micro Cuts - Muse (75 plays)

16. Many of Horror - Biffy Clyro (75 plays)

15. White Feather - Wolfmother (76 plays)

14. Who's Got a Match? - Biffy Clyro (76 plays)

13. There’s No Such Thing As A Jaggy Snake - Biffy Clyro (76 plays)

12. Vagabond - Wolfmother (77 plays)

11. The Captain - Biffy Clyro (77 plays)

10. Shock Shock - Biffy Clyro (79 plays)

9. White Unicorn - Wolfmother (80 plays)

8. Tales - Wolfmother (83 plays)

7. In The Castle - Wolfmother (85 plays)

6. Undisclosed Desires - Muse (86 plays)

5. Space Dementia - Muse (86 plays)





4. Glitter And Trauma - Biffy Clyro (87 plays)





3. Bliss - Muse (95 plays)



^Im in that crowd somewhere :P



1= Hysteria - Muse (96 plays) + That Golden Rule - Biffy Clyro (96 plays)



^And im in there somewhere too







So there you have it. You've probaly gotten bored by seeing Muse, Biffy Clyro and Wolfmother dominating the list so i can only hope that this time next year, the results are a little more varied :P


Rowan <3

Guitar Exam

Hey guys, just a quick post to let you know that the guitar exam today went well.

It wasn't as plain sailing as the bass exam but i can't complain, i never expected it to be.

Just like the bass setup, i played one song all the way through, which went without any glitches.
Then play my two other pieces about halfway through.
First one was fine, on the 2nd one i made a few errors although it's pretty much the only errors i made in both of the exams so i don't think there's anything to worry about.

I wish i could say that i had results for you but.....they won't come back until August, when i get all my exam results in the one go.
These two practical exams count towards our final mark which is why we don't get them back yet.

Apart from that, today was the usual Thursday, tough and tiring and i even forgot to bring my guitar home after school *facepalm*
But it's safe is the music store so i can get it tomorrow :P


Cheers,
Rowan


Here is a song i'm currently learning on guitar, it is one of my favourite songs by Wolfmother and is called Tales, or by it's full name, Tales From the Forest of Gnomes.



From what i can gather it's about forgetting all of your regrets, just putting all the bad stuff behind you and looking ahead to the future.....
It's a real feel good song anyway, and never fails to cheer me up :)


And here's a pic of my guitar.

Week Recap (50th post!!!)

50th post woo!

:P

This week for me was, as expected very busy, eventful and amazing!

Don't worry, i'll explain.


Tbh, it wasn't as busy as i expected it to be, it was busy enough but i still had the time to come on the computer etc.
But i thought i would leave it all for one big post.

So, on Monday i had my first prelim.
In Music.
Had to get there early so me and Alex arranged for his mum and my dad to taxi us to school each day coz the bus can be unreliable sometimes.

But the Music prelim wasnt really a proper test. It was more like, "Let's just get this out the road, eh?"
So, i did my test working on a hardback book resting on a xylophone :P
As i said, not really a test.

But i learned most the stuff and from the attitude the teacher took, we all did fine.

Good times. :)


Tuesday brought about French.
This is where it started, Music was like a preparation to settle into the week but French was full on.
Not that i had any problems as it is one of my best (although disliked) subjects. Found no problems with the reading paper, listening paper or my writing piece.
The listening was the toughest really, but nothing major, so all good in the French department.

Spanish on Wednesday was the same. One of my best but hated subjects and i don't think anything went wrong.

Thursday and Friday were the most challenging days tho. They saw the prelims in Modern Studies and English, if you don't study for them, you're in trouble.
So Wednesday and Thursday night i studied like a madman.
And it is difficult to gauge how well i think i did in both.
You can tell with languages but you can't really with these two.

They both pretty much consisted of writing for 2 hours non-stop, that was quite something!
I finished both papers which is good but i doubt i got full marks or anything.
Modies looked at subjects like British Parliament *yawn*, Crime and Law in Society and American Culture so i needed to know my stuff there and i answered all the questions but i still dunno how the results will be.

English consisted of writing two essays. One Prose (a novel) and one a poem.
My prose was Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (i book i find i can very much relate with) and my poem was To a Mouse by Scottish poet Robert Burns. *yawn*

Jekyll and Hyde essay went very well i think, wrote non-stop. But i was a bit more hesitant on To a Mouse and i think i started rambling a bit. (Like right now :P)

But anyway, in terms of tests last week, they went very well.
Although on Friday i woke up feeling dreadful but i knew i had to go into my Prelim so i grinned and beared it. Went home straight after and went to bed. I'm better now tho.


Well thats all for school and tests but there's something else that made my week very exciting.


Thats to say, the Discussion Page on "A Rent-Boy Named..."

It started on January 18th actually.

On the FAQ page, a poster named JJ started having a discussion with one of the site's most known readers...G.


I didn't think anything of it first (i wasn't spying on them lol, i usually read most comments posted)
But then JJ revealed he was 13, and everything halted.


13. Wow.

I thought i was the youngest RB reader! lol.

Nah, thats not it.

G suggested they move to the discussion page and this is where i disappeared for a few days for studying.
I returned to find G asking on the page if i would like to talk to JJ, and of course, i obliged.
This was after some misunderstandings between people but then it sorted itself out.

The reason for my last post was to let JJ get my email address and i was delighted when i got an email from him.
The whole reason for these emails was that JJ was able to ask me questions tht he didn't want to ask adults.
And boy did he ask!
I'm not the best person for asking advice but i think i did myself proud on answering JJ's questions.
He said i explained as well as G! And if you know what G sometimes says then wow!
That made my day when he said that.

So the emails went back and forth for a couple of days last week and i suggested MSN to him, which he didn't really know about but then his....special friend, (M, we shall call him) helped him out and i stayed upto 3AM on Saturday morning talking.
But man, it was worth it. JJ and M are great guys.
That doesn't even say enough.

They are special.

They have found each other at such a young age, and they both know that each other is gay and i don't doubt that they will have many years together.
So i was talking to them again last night and got a little teary thinking about alot of things.

That is - With all the hatred in the world, all the killing and wars, if there is a God, how can he let that happen?
But then you see something like these two boys finding each other in a small town and it makes you happy. You thank God for things like that i guess.
It made me happy anyway. The relationship between the two is just....phenomenal. I hope it never ends.

It makes me happy that they have found each other coz they can be open as they like.
And at the same time, it makes me sad coz i don't have anyone like that i can speak to.

But one day, i will move away from where i live in now. (it's not too bad, but i don't really like where i live)
And go somewhere else.
I've always thought about returning to California coz i remember it well from when i went there on holiday....

Anyway, that's a wrap people.

Thank you if you have read this far, i know i have typed a lot.

Cheers,
Rowan


This song sums up my week in a nutshell. It's a lovely song and fits perfectly with the week i had.
Hope you like it.

Spanish Speaking Exam and Wolfmother Concert

I'll start with the Spanish :D

Which went just like my French : Absolutely lovely with only one part that i got stuck on.

It went almost perfectly, i delivered my presentation which was about a minute and a half long.
Then the discussion was the only bit i messed up on, but it wasn't anything major.
The discussion is about 4 mins long with the teacher asking questions and near halfway through she asked

"Do you think the learning two languages is a important?"

"Si"

"Porque?" (Why)

And then i couldn't think of why but after about 30 seconds of thinking i stumbled an answer saying it opens doors in the future and it was plain sailing from there!

So, nothing to worry about. :)

Will probably get our final mark back next week along with french.


Just had to wait for Wolfmother now.

School finished, Alex picked me up at about 6 and we got dropped just round the corner from the venue, made our way to the queue with 30 mins until doors opened and met up with some school friends who were also going. (It wasn't even planned :P)

Doors opened at 7 and we went straight in....to the very front row, at the barrier!!! Just a little from the right of the centre.

(Never been at the barrier in my life and i was a bit apprehensive as to whether it might be too much for such an inexperienced gigger haha, but we survived.)

Got robbed for water but i needed to keep hydrated of course and then the support band came on.
Played their set which was pretty good and then cleared their gear away, in the process knocking their setlist onto the ground, in the space between the barrier and the stage, so i asked a security guard if i could have it and he let me!

A little souvenir, how nice. XD

The support band were called The Black Angels btw.


Another hour of wait while people slowly but surely filled the gaps in the crowd.
I started getting a bit nervous coz it was getting so cramped but what else do you expect at the front?


Anyway, Wolfmother came on and everyone went instantly mad!
I couldn't get a note of the set or any videos but they played all the good stuff and some stuff i'd heard but didn't know the words.

They finished with Joker and the Thief tho, which brought with it more crushing and crowdsurfers and with that, it was finished.

I could finally breathe again!

The barrier is good tho, you don't miss a thing that happens onstage but for that privilege, you get mauled against the barrier and can't jump around so freely.
But it was worth it by far.
I let my arms take the brunt of it instead of my ribs tho, so my arms are quite bruised today :P

Also at the barrier, you get looks from the guys onstage which me and Alex definetely got, that was awesome.
Eye-to-eye with someone who inspires you....

Words....


Can't....


Describe....



So afterwards, i got a lift home again from Alex's dad and crashed out almost immediately in my newly organised room.

Pretty awesome week this week!

Ending on a high with my Unofficial 1000 Visits!

Yay!


(Although it is more than that :P)

Haha


Cheers guys,
Rowan





(There's 4 of them now, not 3) :P

Hope you like it!

Past couple o' days

Sorry, i haven't posted since Friday i think it was...

I've been getting my new room squared up :)

That's right...new room!!!


We actually went ahead with it, it took most of Sunday but here we are now.
Fair play to my mum lol.

The room isn't exactly how i want it at the moment but i think it will be tweaked a little at the weekend.



The past couple of days are a complete contrast to how i was feeling on my last post.
I feel a like i have a lot more space now.

It's not just the room that's done that for me but...

*drum roll*

I bought Steven's "old" ipod touch off him :D
He got an iphone for Christmas and offered me his for just 70 quid.
I didn't give him the full 70, but 20 and i'll pay him fully as i gradually get more money, coz i don't really get much.
But he's fine with it and said i can take my time over it.

That's what strange with him.
One second he can be the biggest bigot, homophobe whatever and the next he is all nice and friendly and loyal....
Strange one.

Anyway, i am now free to browse the web as i want.
Just a simple delete history, cache and cookies in Safari on the ipod and it's wiped.
Unlike the computer here where it gets stored in Temp Files or whatever.

So....porn at any time of the day! :P


But i won't blog from it, that would be a pain, i'll blog with a proper keyboard. ;)


The past couple of days then, in school.

Quite busy.
Loads of preparation for Prelims (beginning on the 25th)

Got practice writing prelims as well in French and Spanish.
French on Friday, Spanish on Monday.

Spanish is a toughy.
Speaking exam tomorrow but i know it pretty well.
And then for celebration....Wolfmother!!! Yay!!!

I have to wait until 1:20pm tho, so i'll be a nervous wreak by then lol.
But it should be alright.

So, trying to do the french writing practice will be rather meh but i'll use the Spanish exam as an excuse. And to be fair, it is fairly valid.

But the homework is piling up.

According to my guidance teacher we should be doing 3 hours during the week and 5 at the weekend.
I'm sorry, but i need a life and he's an arse.

I probably do about half of that and it's sufficient enough i would say.
I'm not failing anything so there we are.

Also, i attended my first Supported Study class today.
It's like an after school class thing.
But unlike most where it's optional this one was mandatory.

And what subject was it?

Yep, Spanish :P

I didn't go to last weeks class so she demanded i go to this one.

Bah, i don't like her but she does get results out of you



Thanks for all your comments on my last post.
And just to answer one question that has been asked - My brother is 13.

I'm sorry but a lot of 13 year olds are idiots.

I would certainly say i was.
I was just a moody brat a few years ago and my brother seems like that most of the time.

Anyway, as i said, a lot 13 year olds are. Not all.
Quite a number are very mature but with my brother around i don't see it.


Lastly,
I watched a very interesting "movie" recently.

It's a short Northern Irish film called James. It's about a 12/13 year old dealing with his sexuality and it's only 17 mins long so if you're interested check it out.

http://www.btn101.com/video/3882/James

BTW, when i watched it, i found it to be out of sync a little but it's nothing major.


Actually, that wasn't the last thing i was going to talk about.
Speaking of Northern Ireland i thought i would mention Iris Robinson.

The mad woman.

I was listening to a radio programme speaking about the whole controversy and whether or ot we should have sympathy for her.

I don't.


She's in deep therapy or something now.
But she got what was coming to her in my opinion.

She's such a hypocrite.

Firstly, she condemns homosexuality saying "The bible condemns it and it is an abomination"
Then she goes and has an affair....which is also condemned in the bible.


I have no sympathy for her whatsoever, she should learn to keep her big trap shut. The loony.


Anyhoo, i'll post again probably on Friday and let you know about Spanish, the concert etc.

Cheers everyone,
Rowan


P.S Thanks YouTubeBoys for following me. I linked ya. :P

Christmas Day

Don't we all love Christmas Day?

Well maybe not everyone does, but i do, and i had another good one today.

I feel a little guilty tho: for the first time ever, i didn't go to Church at Christmas. I find myself drifting further and further away from religion all the time, but that can wait for anoyher post =P

So....of course the presents i recieved were excellent but not just what the day was about.

First we opened presents at around 11ish, played around with them. Watched Top of the Pops (or some of it coz Muse and Kasabian were on....RATM did not appear of course but they played about half of Killing in the Name, conveniently cutting it off before the swearing started.) Not long after that we had family round, had our Chinese (of which there is at least half left!)
Then we sat down in the front room and watched the Xmas special of The Royle Family, what a show!
They're dragging it a bit but the Specials are quite funny.
And while watching it, my dad let me have a beer.....my "first"

He said "Ah, well, seeing as it's Christmas you can have your first full bottle of beer"
"Thanks Dad"

I drank it no bother, but unknown to him it was not my first ever full bottle of beer. Hehe.

It's made me a bit sleepy tho, it won't be long till i'm off to bed.

Anyway the presents i receieved were awesome!
My 100 Watt Bass Amp! called "Ashdown Five Fifteen" - After getting this amp i don't think i've ever enjoyed playing bass as much. The sound, compared to my last amp, is unbelievable. So much more powerful, not just in terms of volume but the sound that comes out, so much richer!
But, everyone was telling me if i played it too loud they wouldnt be happy and everyone seemed rather annoyed at it, as if it was going to disturb the whole neighbourhood (which it could!) but i'm considerate enough not too which is what annoyed me - everyone looking down on me as really inconsiderate and i don't really think i am.
Anyway i played at a decent volume which didn't bother anyone and still gave me a great time. Either way, i'll need to get some proper headphones.

I didn't get much else really, but thats fine coz the amp coast a lot.

But i did get a Mock The Week Outakes DVD.
3 books:
New Alex Rider book - Crocodile Tears.
A Muse book (didn't know they existed!)
And a Fernando Torres book. That will be enjoyable - Torres is hot, lol.

Lastly, i got the new Wolfmother CD, Cosmic Egg, and i'm listening to it right now and quite enjoying that also!
Came just in time, coz i'm seeing them on January 14th - Yep, another concert, lol!


Anyhoo, Boxing Day tomorrow. A day of lazing around and doing nothing lol. Can't wait =P

However, i hate to think about this now, but my holidays will be cut rather short on Monday or Tuesday coz i need to start doing revision (i hate that word) for school.
Revision over Christmas.....only coz a whole wave of Prelims are coming at the end of Januray, as in, every subject.

Oh and i got my test results back for those Maths and Biology tests.
Passed them, but it wasn't pretty.
55% overall on Maths.
20/30 on Biology (66%)

Tbh, i'm actually quite content with tht coz i didn't revise(arrggh) and they are my two worst subjects, so result for me!

There we go, have a good rest of Xmas if you're still celebrating and enjoy the rest of the festive season wherever you may be.

Cheers,
Rowan

Music Prelim 2 (+Other Stuff)

Hi guys, sorry i haven't posted in a while, i have been preparing for my 2nd Music Prelim but i've also been feeling quite ill. Not ill enough to stop me doing the Prelim but just generally making me feel tired and lazy lol.

So settle in for quite a long post :D

Anyhoo,

I had my Music Prelim on Thursday........

It went pretty much as i expected. Average.

I'm by no means really good on guitar (better on bass) but i'm still fairly content with how everything went overall. It was strange tho, i thought i would be performing on one of the school's electric guitars but 10 mins before they said i couldn't.
1. I hadn't been practising on that exact guitar
2. The battery is running low on that guitar (wtf, guitars don't have batteries :S)

Oh well, so at the end of the day i had to perform on an acoustic which i wasn't too happy with coz hammer-ons and pull-offs etc. sound crappy compared to electric.

But i went in and gave it my best and done good enough.
I had two pieces i was confident with and one not so confident and the grade reflected that :

Piece 1 - 8/9
Piece 2 - 6/9
Piece 3 - 7/9

I say 9 because 10's aren't given in the Prelim as people might become to complacent.
And to be brutally honest, i think i may have done better had i been playing on electric, but never mind.

So anyway it's pretty much what i expected, Piece 2 being the dodgy one, and i would have got 8 on Piece 3 but i messed up the last bar :( Gutted.

Might be getting too in depth now but overall i achieved an 'A' in the Prelim (adding both Bass and Guitar results together) getting 43 out of 60. 42 and above is an 'A' so i'm happy with that!

I took notes on what i had to do to improve on each song but that would be way too much i think haha. However, if you're desperate to find out then let me know :)


Also, before the final practical exam,(In April 2010) my mum has promised to get me an electric guitar of my own (At the moment i only have an acoustic)
So we will go hunting tomorrow morning in some guitar shops for a good guitar. I know it won't be an expensive one but i'm not bothered, as long as it plays good and is comfortable, that's all i care about.



The next load of info is just going to be a whole mash-up of things that have been happening lol, so be prepared.


Where to start?


Yeah, i'll start with a good friend of mine who added me on MSN. We got talking and over the past few days i encouraged him to start a blog coz i thought it could really help him.
I won't give his name away, coz i don't know if he wants to or not
But here's his blog (it's on Wordpress) :

http://theunknownboy.wordpress.com/

Please pay him a little visit and leave a comment, for me!!! :D
Also, he isn't Brtish, American or Australian and his English isn't 100% but its still completely understandable so i ask if you could just have a little look, cheers.


What else? What else?

errr..... i bought a new Track Pack for Rock Band 2 lol :P
Wolfmother.....3 songs off their new album (Cosmic Egg) and 2 off their first album (Wolfmother). It is completely amazing, jumping around my room making myself look like a tit, lol. At least nobody can see me there.



Next week is shaped up to be a real pisser of a week. Loads of tests, gaaahhhh! Plus it will be made extra long knowing that i have my "Epic Week" right after it. (Seeing Muse and Kasabian)
The thought alone will keep me going next week, hopefully.

One thing about seeing Muse tho is that, i have been following their setlists, getting an idea for what they might play when i see them. It ain't looking too good. They're playing the exact same stuff over and over again and they aren't even the best songs :(
Maybe i'm just being pessimistic.....i'm sure i will not give a damn on the night lol.



Football has been making a kind of come back recently for me. Liverpool thankfully beat Man U last Sunday, so i was pretty relieved but then we lost to Arsenal mid-week....out of the cup......again
I guess football always has it's ups and downs and if you're a football fan, you know what you are in for.
Fulham this weekend tho :D Should take care of them.....

And speaking of Arsenal, i will be going to Steven's house tomorrow for Fireworks and Festivities!
Oh yeh, he's an Arsenal fan :P
Maybe not the smartest idea considering his dad is also an Arsenal fan and also considering the result mid-week.....
Yes i will get some stick but i've had a fair amount this week so i am prepared.

Anyway, going to Steven's house will be great fun. I don't get to see fireworks a lot so going to see some early fireworks will be awesome! I might even get to light a few, seeing as his dad is so legendary!
Actually, they spent £128 on fireworks alone last weekend so i have no doubt tomorrow will be an absolute wild night!
We're not going trick-or-treating.....instead, we will provide the Halloween go-ers with some entertaining fireworks!

And no matter, how (er.....) blurred Steven and his dad's views are on ethnic minorities and the likes, i am determined to just enjoy myself. (After all, i did spend a whole week at his house once and made it out unscathed:P )
So, it looks pretty good, not just the fireworks, but i'm staying the night and Steven and his dad have some of the best banter ever! Can't wait to join in, lol.


*inhales.....exhales.....*

That's about all i can think of at this current moment.
It might not take long to read but it is to write, haha.

I'll try to keep my posts more regular but i can't promise anything coz the next couple of weeks are gonna be pretty hectic.

So goodbye from me for now!

Cheers guys,
Rowan



P.S

The other night, i was looking out my window as the sun was setting and the sky looked wonderful! It was a mix of pink and orange and just really looked great. So i might try and search out a suitable picture to make as a backround pic or something.
At the time i was listening to a Wolfmother song and that moment was just really nice, (sounds quite soppy lol)
But anyway i am quite obsessed with this song at the moment, lol.

Here it is :



Pretty good video, eh?
Not an official video but it's well-made

See ya!

9th November - 15th November 2009

I will talk about said week later in the post but just thought i would mention what happened today :)

Wolfmother tickets went on pre-sale this morning and Alex's mum managed to get 3 that we were wanting so we will get to see them in January. It will be so awesome:D

As soon as we could at first interval we ran off into the nearby woods to make the call to his mum, who confirmed that she got them. Standing places as well!

* * *

Anyway, onto talk about this week in November. 9th - 15th.

IT WILL BE AMAZING

Firstly, it's my work experience that week. I will be working in a music recording studio, only a few streets away, the people there are really great and of course, love music. So i have no doubt it will be pretty enjoyable. Oh, and the hours?

12pm - 4pm

So i'm only in for four hours a day!

Now i know Mirrorboy has been doing work experience recently but from what i can gather, it is set out differently to mine.

It seems his lasts over a period of a few weeks and he goes in once a week.

Mine will last over 1 week and i go in everyday.

I prefer it that way.....no school. Simple as.

So, work experience in a music recording studio, Mon - Fri, 12pm - 4pm. No school.

Not a bad deal.

But that isn't all that's happening that week......noooo

I will be attending two concerts that week!

Muse and Kasabian, two of my favourite bands.

So yes, it will be a fairly busy week and potentially one of the best of my life. I'm just looking ahead to that with great impatience. It won't come soon enough! Hurry Up! lol

Just gotta get these next few weeks out of the way and then i can enjoy myself.

And i really do have to enjoy that week coz there won't be many more like it afterwards.

November is where the real hard work starts in preparation for exams, which take place in April - June next year....

Prelims are before that tho, most take place in January and February, so they may clash with Wolfmother......gotta hope they don't.

Some prelims, as you might now, take place now and December : Music and French

Music is half-done (2nd part being next Thursday) and French Oral (lol) will be in December. Merry Christmas! HAHA Thanks for that French teachers....

That's looking quite far ahead tho, so for now i will just look forward to that magical week in November that won't come quickly enough!

Cheers,

Rowan

Back to Shhhhhchool/Sweet Dreams

It's always awful going back to school after a week's holiday,

- You don't wanna go back
- You're getting used to not being there
- You're sleep pattern has been interrupted


It was mostly the 3rd one for me,

Over the past week i have been staying up to really stupid times such as 2/3am in the morning and waking up at about Noon.
The same applied this morning except i couldn't sleep till noon unfortunately, so i didn't end up having the best of days.

I did actually go to bed at the fairly reasonable time of Half Ten last night but i couldn't get to sleep for love nor money, so i just listened to music on my phone and tried to drift off. Still wasn't working so i switched the phone off.....still nothing.
So i layed there, eyes open and out of nowhere i had this flashback to when i was about 3 years old....one of my earliest memories of life.

I don't remember much of that time period of course but i remember this particular incident.
My best-friend at the time lived across the street and i had this tricycle that i used to ride on our pretty much car-less cul-de-sac street. One day, i was cycling (or tricycling it) across to my friends house and the next thing i know i'm staring at the front of a black BMW.  

And that's it! This memory just randomly occured and for some reason it prompted me to take a trip down memory lane and for the next hour or two i re-called various memories from my early childhood. I was actually surprsied at how much i could remember. It was the strangest thing!
I re-called my memories before school, then nursery/pre-school and the first few years of school. It was actually a really nice and peaceful experience, recalling this stuff while staring up at the sky, undisturbed, in complete silence.

This, however, did have it's consequences as i only got about 4 hours sleep and had to got to school, which pretty much killed me lol.

Nothing much eventful happened, apart from i learned that one of my favourite bands, Wolfmother, will be touring the UK in January, with tickets being released this Wed-Fri, so hoping to get some, me and Alex will probably go. Can't wait!

Also, i have my 2nd Music Prelim next Thursday on guitar, which i'm not so confident about. Hence why i made sure it was the 2nd Prelim, giving me longer to learn the pieces.

Will probably post again later this week, although it will be quite busy, i want to speak about the week beginning 9th November, which will be very eventful indeed, so that should hopefully come sometime after Wednesday :D

That's about it for now,

Cheers,
Rowan







P.S Here's a Wolfmother video for y'all (it's a bit out of sync)
















Hello Ahmed :)