I've never been a massive fan Jay-Z really... but Mark the 45 King on the other hand... Nice mini film on how Mark made the Hard Knock Life beat...

Every Saturday, I take the kids across town to Hawks Gym (amazing place, worth having kids for alone), and afterwards we go to the Thali Cafe for cake, coffee, juice and chess. And when I get the chance I get to sneak a look at this lovely book they have there on San Francisco. Big coffee table type book, from the 70s with some amazing photographs - really grainy. Here are some dodgy mobile phone pics from the book.

Finally went to visit the "Mighty Purdown Transmitter"* today. This is a giant radio mast that you can't miss as you enter or leave Bristol. It's perched on top of a massive hill next to the M32.
Like most famous people, it's not as big close up as it seems from the road. But it's still an impressive and pretty odd looking structure. It a classic bit of 70's concrete building, that will never blend into any surroundings, unless things go very wrong indeed. Yet someone at some point decided that it would be a fine structure to have welcoming you into my fair city.
Here's the wikipedia highlights:
Pur Down BT Tower was built in 1970 and is located on a hill (Purdown) just north of the city centre of Bristol, in the Lockleaze suburb, UK (National Grid Reference: ST610764). It is one of twelve reinforced concrete towers owned by BT in the UK. It is used mainly for point-to-point microwave links and forms part of the British Telecom microwave network. It is one of the few telecommunication towers in the UK built of reinforced concrete.
*The "Mighty Purdown Transmitter" is Angela's name for this thing. I assumed it was a local pet name, that she knew from her time her years ago... but no, it's just her's... and now mine... and now yours.

"Anything can be turned into academic trash*" - Steve Reich

It's almost a bit silly to link to one or two Red Bull Music Academy interviews, as there are so many that are worth watching. You could lose days in the video archive probably. Regardless, I just found a couple of great ones.

Firstly this Steve Reich interview. It's exciting to hear a kind of untouchable musical giant talking about his work - especially one from such an academic, classical field... even more so when he comes across as pretty ordinary and uncomplex. He really pretty much removes any high art thought away from his music and his creative process, and makes it all sound wonderfully base and just born out of experimentation with loops and sounds and ideas.

And then, just so this blog doesn't turn into a big piano, classical, art music love fest, there is also a link to great Gerald Simpson (aka A Guy Called Gerald) interview. I've not checked all of this yet (can't really do 90+ minutes of Steve Reich and Gerald in one night). But the bits I've seen look interesting and Gerald always comes across as such a grounded and lovely bloke, that I'm sure he's worth checking. Plus, he's made some of the best electronic music of the last 20+ years.

Robert Sherlow Johnson: piano - Sherlow Law / Messiaen 1971
I picked up this record from my local record stall, run by Amber Green. To be honest can't really comment on the music. Avant garde, modern classical piano. Can't quite get into it yet.
The cover however, I can get into. Really nice bit of proper, old fashioned sleeve design. Lovely bit of abstract graphics with all the text in and around. Pretty funky what with the zig-zags, angeled text and bright (but minimal) colours.
The design is credited to George Daulby, from BDMW Associates, which was a classic 60's design firm a'la Fletcher Forbes Gill. Check out his classic back cat of designs.
Also like the way the 2nd side is highlighted on the back by the previous owner. As in, "this is the avant garde bomb, for the avant garde party"

Hauschka - Snowflakes and Car Wrecks (other formats)
Bought this the other day from a lovely basement vinyl section of a cafe in Falmouth called Jam.
Lovely (mainly) piano music. Just the right side of pretty and interesting and quirky... ie not too pretty, interesting or quirky. You got to get the balance right in my opinion. I'm not sure how to catagorise classical sounding music, but it's pretty much simple 'pretty' sounding classic pieces, in a calm Phillip Glass/Steve Reich type way.
He apparently fiddles with and generally messes with the piano strings - taping them together etc, to get a slightly off key sound. To be honest the sound isn't massively off key, but you do get nice sort of missed notes, or wrong keys sounds at times... Just enough to keep it interesting... but not too interesting to make it too quirky... and not so quirky as to spoil its pretty face.
A good listen or a good background...