One more ramble about politics and then I'll eave it for the time being. I'm sure most of you don't want to read another gloomy and pessimistic state of the nation blogpost but here it is anyway. I was pondering on Friday night as the clock counted down to 11pm that in the time since I've taken an interest in politics (sometime around 1983-4, the Falklands War and the miner's strike) that I can only remember celebrating a political/electoral win once, which was 1997 (obviously). We danced in the forecourt of the Conservative Club that night, drunk on beer and ousting the Tories after two decades of hard right rule. The Conservative Club was dark, they'd all long gone home but dancing in their empty car park was a victory, letting the light in. The sun shone the next day. But even the second win in 2001 didn't really seem like a victory more an expectation and a shrug. Every other election or vote has for me been a defeat. We seem to be reversing as a nation, the open, welcoming, liberal face the UK had in the 90s and 00s looks to have gone replaced by a nationalist, mean spirited, openly hostile one. It's not just politics. Work has been heavy recently too, more than just recently actually, heavy for some time- long hours, pressure, lots of top down stuff, low morale. Et fucking cetera. It all adds up doesn't it?
I've just read that back and very nearly deleted the whole thing- it's just more whinging and I'm not sure it helps. Blogging does lift the spirits and is by and large a positive medium. Writing snarky posts is easy, putting things down and slagging things off, and when done well it can be very funny but there's always Twitter for that. The spirit of music blogs has mainly been positive, enthusiastic and outward looking- listen to this, you might like it, I do, download it and then buy it somewhere. Try this one, for example, Water Woman by Kenneth Bager, a Danish DJ, musician and producer, the man behind the Music For Dreams label. In 2018 he released this ten minute beauty with vocals from Farafi, slow and ominous drums but then a parting of the clouds to let the sunshine in.
The B-side is a dubbed out version, opening with running water and FX, synths buzzing and then the thumping rhythm and a heady trip out.
No Water (Dub Mix)
Stonker!
ReplyDeleteThese are dark days indeed. Whinging, ranting, musing, whatever you want to call it, is definitely healthy. Having an outlet in which to vent is important and our little community is a far more open and accepting environment to do it than virtually any area of social media that I've come across.
ReplyDeleteVery cool tunes this morning. The sun is out and I'm sipping my first coffee of the day while listening to them - it's positively Spring-like. I hope the work pressures ease up soon Swiss Adam.
Could be worse SA, you could be Scottish, even when you win you lose. Sometimes I think Renton was right.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29-LRuuqFT0
Ha. Good point Drew and always worth remembering that there's always someone worse off than you.
ReplyDeleteAnyway I have just discovered Lover by T Swift, jesus it's good! It reminds me of something that I can'tt put my finger on but it's a wonderful song.
ReplyDeleteFirst rule of blogging - never apologise.
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